THERE is perhaps nothing extraordinary in the fact that man is wise
and just, takes great care to provide for his own children, -shows
due consideration for his parents, seeks sustenance for himself,
protects himself against plots, and possesses all the other gifts
of nature which are his. For man has been endowed with speech, of
all things the most precious, and has been granted reason, which is
of the greatest help and use. Moreover, he knows how to reverence
and worship the gods. But that dumb animals should by nature
possess some good quality and should have many of man's amazing
excellence assigned to them along with man, is indeed a remarkable
fact. And to know accurately the special characteristics of each,
and how living creatures also have been a source of interest no
less than man, demands a trained intelligence and much learning.
Now I am well aware of the labour that others have expended on this
subject, yet I have collected all the materials that I could; I
have clothed them in untechnical language, and am persuaded that my
achievement is a treasure far from negligible. So if anyone
considers them profitable, let him make use of them; anyone who
does not consider them so may give them to his father to keep and
attend to. For not all things give pleasure to all men, nor do all
men consider all subjects worthy of study. Although I was born
later than many accomplished writers of an earlier day, the
accident of date ought not to mulct me of praise, if I too produce
a learned work whose ampler research and whose choice of language
make it deserving of serious attention. Mythology, mariners' yarns,
vulgar superstitions, the ascertained facts of nature-all serve to
adorn a tale and, on occasion, to point a moral. His religion is
the popular stoicism of the age. Aleian repeatedly affirms his
belief in the gods and in divine providence; the wisdom and
beneficence of Nature are held up to veneration; the folly and
selfishness of man are contrasted with the untaught virtues of the
animal world. Some animals, to be sure, have their failings, but he
chooses rather to dwell upon their good qualities, devotion,
courage, self-sacrifice, gratitude. Again, animals are guided by
reason, and from them we may learn contentment, control of the
passions, and calm in the face of death.
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