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Quick Question, Unit 9

Posted: Tue May 15, 2012 4:23 pm
by anon.edward.mouse
Crudeliorem imperium tentem oravit supplex ne odium profugorum ei de poena cogitanti esset curae.

The emboldened part is the part that gives me difficulty. Right now I've gotten:

The suppliant begged the rather cruel one holding power that he not ....?

"Odium profugorum" = hatred of the exiles

"ei" = to him

I just had a thought. Do we have a case of dative of possessive construction? For instance, literally

the hatred of the banished ones to him thinking about the penalty was concerned.

Or more colloquially,

the hatred of the banished ones not have concern to him thinking about the penalty.

It still doesn't ring true. Am I on the right track, at least?

Re: Quick Question, Unit 9

Posted: Tue May 15, 2012 9:49 pm
by Craig_Thomas
I think curae here is what is called the predicative dative, meaning something like 'a source of concern': he begs that his hatred of the exiles not concern him when considering the penalty. That is ambiguous as I've translated it; presumably he's begging him to make his decision unclouded by his hatred, rather than just not concerned by it.