W. A. Oldfather
1928 · defaultJust as a mark is not set up in order to be missed, so neither does the nature of evil arise in the universe.
Compare translations
The same words of Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus in every English translation on the site, side by side.
Enchiridion 27
Epictetus · Open this passageGeorge Long
1877As a mark is not set up for the purpose of missing the aim, so neither does the nature of evil exist in the world.
P. E. Matheson
1916As a mark is not set up for men to miss it, so there is nothing intrinsically evil in the world.
Which translation of the Enchiridion?
Every translation here is complete and free to read in full on this site. They differ in age and in voice. The measurements below are taken from the whole of each translation.
| Translation | Words | Words per sentence | “Thou” and “thy” per 1,000 words | In a sentence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| W. A. Oldfather1928 | 8,272 | 26.2 | 0.1 | The Loeb Classical Library edition, printed facing the Greek. Smooth, modern prose, and the translation this site uses by default. |
| George Long1877 | 8,144 | 26.4 | 0.2 | The most literal of the three. Long often prints the Greek term or an alternative rendering in brackets, which makes it slow going but useful for checking the others. |
| P. E. Matheson1916 | 7,361 | 25.1 (shortest) | 0 | Published by the Clarendon Press, Oxford. The plainest and most concise of the three, and the easiest to read aloud. |
Shorter sentences and fewer old forms usually make for an easier read; the older, more literal versions are better for checking what the original says. A good way to use them is to read in one and, when a sentence stops you, look at it here in the others.