7 Interesting Phrases By Terence

Terence’s phrases come from Roman antiquity and yet they keep their content and scope alive. Publio Terencio Afro was above all an author of comedies. Not much is known about his life, but the six works he wrote are preserved in their entirety.

It is precisely from these six works that Terence’s interesting phrases that continue to be cited today have been extracted. It is a kind of miracle that his writings have survived the erosion of time itself . Most of the works of his contemporaries did not meet the same fate.

It is also remarkable that Terence was a simple slave. In fact his name is the name of the lord he served in slavery. The same one who, seeing his incredible qualities, granted him freedom. That allowed him to dedicate himself to writing and that more than 21 centuries later we continue to talk about him. These are some of the most cited phrases of Terence.

1. Nothing is alien to us

This is one of the most beautiful and profound phrases of Terence. It has several translations from Latin, but in all of them the essential meaning is preserved. It speaks to us, precisely, of the essence that all human beings share.

By saying that nothing human is alien to us, he declares that every human being is capable of anything. Both in a positive and negative sense, we are all inhabited by the same potentialities.

2. One of Terence’s phrases about servility

This is a statement that has a touch of bitterness, but also an overwhelming realism. Much more if one takes into account that Terence lived in the imperial era of Rome, an environment in which convenience and betrayal were the norm.

Being solicitous and pleasing others generates friends, in quotes. This is how we win the goodwill of others, even if superficially. Instead, many people do not tolerate the truth . This usually produces animosity and rejection.

3. Catch a wolf

This is one of those phrases by Terence that reveals his facet as a comedy author. It is sarcastic and very applicable to many phenomena that occur in the framework of power. It is a metaphor that tells us about the problems that certain relationships can cause us if we don’t know how to handle them.

The wolf caught by the ears is a representation of having partial control over an attacker or an attack. In that case, the one who gets caught is the one who grabbed him by the ears, because he can’t let go, but he doesn’t want to have him close either.

4. Nothing in excess

It is a phrase taken from the Stoics and a declaration of moderation as the highest virtue of life. Everything in which there is too much, becomes something harmful. It does not matter if it is positive or negative, excess is always bad.

The Stoics rejected nothing, especially no pleasure. But they did emphasize that excess always led to pain and damage. That is why, as in Terence’s phrase, they simply advocated moderation and balance.

5. Fortune and the strong

It is also a phrase that has many variants and of which we find different versions. He talks about what we commonly call “luck” and that seems to always accompany those who have the greatest strength.

Actually, it has nothing to do with chance. Simply the spiritual strength generates logical chains in which the circumstances end up being in favor, although in the beginning they are adverse.

6. The risk

This is a call not to stop experiencing fear, but to face situations even if you are afraid. Staying in a safe place and without any risk only leads to mediocrity.

That is why Terencio tells us that if we are looking for something memorable and great, we need to expose ourselves to risks. That also means being prepared to lose, or not to achieve something, at least in the first instance.

7. What is imposed and what is agreed

In this phrase of Terence we see a clear pacifist statement. Authority is not imposed by force. And if he succeeds in imposing himself in this way, he will surely be a despicable and fleeting authority.

The pact, on the other hand, has greater power. It supposes the contest of wills, with which its effects are more lasting. The friendly pact includes the interests and needs of all those involved and this is what gives it strength.

Terence was a dedicated intellectual and a keen writer. Its popularity was immense, both during the Ancient Ages and during the Middle Ages. There are hundreds of generations who have drunk from his pen, which he still continues to teach us.