Prosa 1

section 1

obticuit: < obticesco, "be struck dumb."
exorsa: < exordior, "begin."

section 2

penitus: "deeply, thoroughly."
tantum animi tui: "so much of your soul" (but not all: cf. 1P6).
sicuti tu tibi fingis: to be taken closely with mutata; cf. sec. 9 of this prosa.

section 3

illius prodigii: i.e., Fortuna.
fucos: literally, "dyes, rouges," here, "false appearances, deceptions."
eo usque: "up to this point" (a point specified by the dum [="until"] clause).

section 4

si: si . . . reminiscare . . . cognosces . . . laborauerim: mixed future condition with subjunctive in protasis, indicative (future, then future perfect) in apodosis; cf. on 1P2.6.
reminiscare: si . . . reminiscare . . . cognosces . . . laborauerim: mixed future condition with subjunctive in protasis, indicative (future, then future perfect) in apodosis; cf. on 1P2.6.
cognosces: si . . . reminiscare . . . cognosces . . . laborauerim: mixed future condition with subjunctive in protasis, indicative (future, then future perfect) in apodosis; cf. on 1P2.6.
laborauerim: si . . . reminiscare . . . cognosces . . . laborauerim: mixed future condition with subjunctive in protasis, indicative (future, then future perfect) in apodosis; cf. on 1P2.6.

section 5

Solebas: solebas . . . insectabare: the continuative force of the imperfect is strong in both verbs: "you used to . . . (regularly)."
praesentem: praesentem . . . blandientemque: sc. fortunam.
blandientemque: praesentem . . . blandientemque: sc. fortunam.
prolatis: prolatis . . . sententiis: ablative absolute, "rendering your judgment."
insectabare: solebas . . . insectabare: the continuative force of the imperfect is strong in both verbs: "you used to . . . (regularly)."
sententiis: prolatis . . . sententiis: ablative absolute, "rendering your judgment."

section 6

contingit: "happens, occurs."
descisceres: "digress, deviate"; subjunctive in result clause.

section 7

transmissum: "passed along"; modifies quod.

section 8

rhetoricae suadela dulcedinis: rhetoric is what is employed in the prosae, music (cf. hac musica laris nostri uernacula) in the metra.
cumque hac: "and with this [i.e., rhetoric]"; the two main verbs of the sentence are the jussive subjunctives adsit and succinat. The construction would be clearer with a comma after deserit.

section 10

sui: i.e., "of fortune" -- objective genitive, not possessive.
blandiebatur: blandiebatur . . . alluderet: this vacillation of verb mood has no effect on meaning.
alluderet: blandiebatur . . . alluderet: this vacillation of verb mood has no effect on meaning.

section 11

innotuit: < innotesco, "become known."

section 12

Si: Si . . . queraris: "If you approve (of her), use (i.e., take advantage of) her ways of behaving, don't complain."
utere: imperative.
ne queraris: subjunctive with ne in a prohibition. Si . . . queraris: "If you approve (of her), use (i.e., take advantage of) her ways of behaving, don't complain."
perniciosa ludentem: "[someone (i.e., Fortuna)] making a game of ruination."
esse: sc. causa.
debuisset: past potential subjunctive.
quam: sc. ea as antecedent.
non relicturam: sc. esse; indirect discourse governed by poterit esse securus (taken as verb of thinking/feeling).

section 13

abituram: translate, "that is going to pass away."
manendi fida: literally, "faithful in remaining," here "that may be relied on to remain."
allatura: future active participle < adfero, "bring"; translate, "that is going to bring."

section 14

ex arbitrio: "at (your) choice."
calamitosos: predicative, sc. homines.
fugax: "transient, fleeting"; though this word is in all the manuscripts, it may be an interpolation -- cf. Gruber.

section 15

suffecerit: future perfect.
exitus: accusative plural.
prudentia: nominative; cf. imprudentia, 1P3.8.
in alterutro: i.e., in good fortune and in bad.
formidandas: formidandas . . . exoptandas: future passive participles (gerundives) of necessity: "that are to be feared . . . to be desired."
exoptandas: formidandas . . . exoptandas: future passive participles (gerundives) of necessity: "that are to be feared . . . to be desired."

section 16

oportet: "it is necessary" + subjunctive.
intra fortunae aream: "on fortune's turf." Fortune is like a cruel and arbitrary empress presiding in the amphitheater.

section 17

iniurius: "wrongful, unjust."
fueris: fueris . . . exacerbes: the variation between perfect and present subjunctive is without significance for the meaning.
exacerbes: fueris . . . exacerbes: the variation between perfect and present subjunctive is without significance for the meaning.

section 18

quo: quo . . . quo: "whither."
quo: quo . . . quo: "whither."
promoueres: intransitive, "move forward."
inter se: here, "with each other."

section 19

uoluentis rotae: From as early as the fifth century B.C. Fortune is depicted as the mistress of a wheel whose revolutions govern the fates of men; largely through Boethius the image impressed itself vividly on the Middle Ages. In the commonest form of illustration, four figures appear at the cardinal points of the wheel (cf. 2P2.9): at the top, a king wearing a crown (labeled: regno); at the right, a falling man, losing a crown (regnabam); at the bottom a figure prostrate with no crown (sine regno); and at the left, an ascending figure reaching for a crown (regnabo).
incipit: sc. Fortuna.
fors: predicative.