The dinner table is the center for the teaching and practicing not just of table manners but of conversation, consideration, tolerance, family feeling, and just about all the other accomplishments of polite society except the minuet.
Judith Martin (b. 1938) American author, journalist, etiquette expert [a.k.a. Miss Manners]
Miss Manners’ Guide for the Turn-of-the-Millennium, Part 2 “Home Life,” “Parents and Children” (1989)
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Quotations about:
dinner
Note not all quotations have been tagged, so Search may find additional quotes on this topic.
But I digress: of all appeals, — although
I grant the power of pathos, and of gold,
Of beauty, flattery, threats, a shilling, — no
Method’s more sure at moments to take hold
Of the best feelings of mankind, which grow
More tender, as we every day behold,
Than that all-softening, overpowering knell,
The tocsin of the soul — the dinner-bell.
You’ll dine well, dear Fabullus, in my lodging
one day soon — if the gods look on you kindly,
if you bring along a good and lavish
dinner, not to mention an attractive
girl, plus wine and salt and witty stories.
If, I repeat, you bring this lot, old sweetheart,
you’ll dine well. The thing is, your Catullus
has a purse that’s full — of spiders’ cobwebs.[Cenabis bene, mi Fabulle, apud me
paucis, si tibi di favent, diebus,
si tecum attuleris bonam atque magnam
cenam, non sine candida puella
et vino et sale et omnibus cachinnis.
haec si, inquam, attuleris, venuste noster
cenabis bene; nam tui Catulli
plenus sacculus est aranearum.]Catullus (c. 84 BC – c. 54 BC) Latin poet [Gaius Valerius Catullus]
Carmina # 13 “To Fabullus,” ll. 1-8 [tr. Green (2005)]
(Source)
(Source (Latin)). Alternate translations:Fabullus, if the gods agree,
So mightily to favour thee;
Thou shalt, ere many days be spent,
Sup with me to thy heart's content:
But do thyself provide the treat,
Of which we sumptuously may eat;
Bring thy fair mistress, bring thy wine,
Loud laughter, and each jest of thine;
Let these, my merry soul, be sent;
Then sup unto thy heart's content:
For thy poor poet's purse with nought
But spider's worthless webs is fraught.
[tr. Nott (1795)]Fabullus, thou shalt be my guest
At supper soon, if Heaven's behest
No otherwise decree:
The feast too must be rich and rare,
And since though lov'st luxurious fare,
Bring such a feast with thee.
And bring the girl with breast of snow,
And wine and wit of ready flow,
And laughter's joyous peal;
Bid but all these my board attend,
And then no doubt, my gallant friend,
We'll have a glorious meal.
For in my coffers spiders weave
Their webs in peace ....
[tr. Lamb (1821)]You dine with me, Fabullus mine,
On Friday next, at half-past two;
And I can promise that you'll dine
As well as man need wish to do;
If you bring with you, when you come,
A dinner of the very best,
And lots of wine and mirth , and some
Fair girl to give the whole a zest.
'Tis if you bring these -- mark me now!
That you're to have the best of dinners;
For your Catullus' purse, I vow,
Has nothing in't but long-legg'd spinners.
[tr. T. Martin (1861)]If the gods will, Fabullus mine,
With me right heartily you'll dine,
Bring but good cheer -- that chance is thine
Some days hereafter;
Mind a fair girl, too, wit, and wine,
And merry laughter.
Bring these -- you'll feast on kingly fare --
But bring them -- for my purse -- I swear
The spiders have been weaving there.
[tr. Cranstoun (1867)]Please kind heaven, in happy time, Fabullus,
We'll dine merrily, dear my friend, together.
Promise only to bring, your own, a dinner
Rich and goodly; withal a lily maiden,
Wine, and banter, a world of hearty laughing.
Promise only; betimes we dine, my gentle
Friend, most merrily; but, for your Catullus --
Know he boasts but a pouch of empty cobwebs.
[tr. Ellis (1871)]Thou'lt sup right well with me, Fabullus mine,
In days few-numbered an the Gods design,
An great and goodly meal thou bring wi' thee
Nowise forgetting damsel bright o' blee,
With wine, and salty wit and laughs all-gay.
An these my bonny man, thou bring, I say
Thou'lt sup right well, for thy Catullus' purse
Save web of spider nothing does imburse.
[tr. Burton (1893)]You will feast well with me, my Fabullus, in a few days, if the gods favour you, provided you bring here with you a good and great feast, not forgetting a radiant girl and wine and wit and all kinds of laughter. Provided, I say, you bring them here, our charming friend, you will feast well: for your Catullus' purse is full with cobwebs.
[tr. Smithers (1894)]You shall have a good dinner at my house, Fabullus, in a few days, please the gods, if you bring with you a good dinner and plenty of it, not forgetting a pretty girl and wine and wit and all5 kinds of laughter. If, I say, you bring all this, my charming friend, you shall have a good dinner; for your Catullus' purse is full of cobwebs.
[tr. Warre Cornish (1904)]Fabullus, the Gods so willing, you shall feast with me in luxury, a few days hence, if you will bring with you dishes both delicate and varied, a comely maid, wine, wit, and a store of quips and cranks. Bring all these, my dear friend, and you shall sup luxuriously; for the purse of your Catullus is full of cobwebs.
[tr. Stuttaford (1912)]Come dine with me, Fabullus, do.
You shall dine well, I promise you.
If Fates are kind, and if you bring
Along with you the needful thing --
A dinner bountiful and fine,
A pretty girl, new salt, old wine,
And topping all a hearty laugh,
Mirth, jest, and wit and friendly chaff --
If these you bring, old friend, I swear.
That you shall dine on royal fare.
Catullus' purse is full -- but hold!
Of musty cobwebs -- now don't scold ....
[tr. Stewart (1915)]Right well, Fabullus, you shall sup with me
If the Gods love you, at an early date,
If you bring ample fare and delicate,
A damsel too , if she be nice to see;
Bring wine and spice and laughs and gaiety;
Bring these and you will sup with me in state.
For my poor little purse, I tell you straight
Is stuffed with cobwebs, full as full can be.
[tr. Symons-Jeune (1923)]Soon, if all's well, Fabullus mine,
You at my house shall nobly dine,
If you the noble meal provide,
Yes, and a lovely girl beside,
And wine and wit and mirth sans end.
If these you bring, my charming friend,
You shall dine nobly; cobwebs fill
The purse of your Catullus. Still ....
[tr. MacNaghten (1925)]Within a week, dear friend, (D.V.)
You shall be dining well with me;
That is, if you yourself provide
The dinner and the wine beside,
And with some jokes to salt our food
A damsel of complaisant mood.
If these you bring, then, as I say,
We'll have a jolly feast that day.
For I must tell you that my purse
Is full -- and there is nothing worse
Of cobwebs, and it does not hold
The smallest particle of gold.
[tr. Wright (1926);
"Deus Volunt" = "God Willing"]Come, my Fabullus, there's a grand dinner waiting
for you at my house tomorrow, or the next day,
or the next, or a few days after --
that is, if gods are kind and you bring a banquet with you:
don't forget a round of wine and
a bright-eyed, sparkling girl and
your wit and every known variety of laughter.
Bring these, my dear, and you
shall have a glorious dinner;
your Catullus (see his purse)
has nothing left but cobwebs.
[tr. Gregory (1931)]Fabullus, you'll have quite a feast
At my place in a day or two --
If the gods decide to favor you,
If you provide the meal, at least.
Then bring a glowing girl, and lend
Some wine, some wit, a laugh that rings.
If you remember all these things,
You'll have a feast, my charming friend --
For your Catullus' money-sack
is full of spiders, nothing more.
[tr. Hollander (1976)]You will dine well with me, my dear Fabullus,
in a few days or so, the gods permitting.
Provided you provide the many-splendored
feast and invite your fair-complected lady,
your wine, your salt, and all the entertainment!
Which is to say, my dear, if you bring dinner
you will dine well, for these days your Catullus
fines that his purse is only full of cobwebs.
[tr. C. Martin (1979)]You’ll dine well, in a few days, with me,
if the gods are kind to you, my dear Fabullus,
and if you bring lots of good food with you,
and don’t come without a pretty girl
and wine and wit and all your laughter.
I say you’ll dine well, and charmingly,
if you bring all that: since your Catullus’s
purse alas is full of cobwebs.
[tr. Kline (2001)]You’ll dine well at my house, Fabullus
In a few days, if the gods favor you, and
If you bring a fine, large meal with you.
And don’t forget: a bright-eyed girl,
Wine, salt, and every kind of cheer.
If you bring these things I ask, fine friend,
You will dine well: for your Catullus’ wallet
Is full of nothing but spider webs.
[tr. @sentantiq (2015)]You will dine well, my Fabullus, at my house
in a few days (if the gods favor you),
and if you bring with you a nice big
dinner, not without a pretty girl
and wine and wit and laughs for everyone
I say: if you bring these, my charming one,
you will dine well -- for the little purse
of your Catullus is full of cobwebs.
[tr. Wikibooks (2017)]You will dine well, my (dear) Fabullus, at my house
in a few days, if the gods favor you,
and if you bring with you a large and good dinner,
not without a bright girl
and wine and salt[/wit] and laughter for all.
If you bring these, I say, our charming one,
you will dine well -- for your Catullus's
purse is full of cobwebs.
[tr. Wikisource (2018)]
When you are invited to dine, particularly with people you do not know very well, it always helps to have a conversational opener, a phrase which here means “an interesting sentence to say out loud in order to get people talking.” Although lately, it has become more and more difficult to attend dinner parties without the evening ending in gunfire or tapioca, I keep a list of good and bad conversational openers in my commonplace book in order to avoid awkward pauses at the dinner table. “Who would like to see an assortment of photographs taken while I was on vacation?” for instance, is a very poor conversational opener because it is likely to make your fellow diners shudder instead of talk, whereas good conversational openers are sentences such as “What would drive a man to commit arson?,” “Why do so many stories of true love end in tragedy and despair?,” and “Madam DeLustrio, I believe I’ve discovered your true identity!” all of which are likely to provoke discussions, arguments, and accusations, thus making the dinner party much more entertaining.
Lemony Snicket (b. 1970) American author, screenwriter, musician (pseud. for Daniel Handler)
The Grim Grotto (2004)
When one is too old for love, one finds great comfort in good dinners.
Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960) American writer, folklorist, anthropologist
Moses, Man of the Mountain, ch. 6 [Mentu] (1939)
(Source)
The human frame being what it is, heart, body and brain all mixed together, and not contained in separate compartments as they will be no doubt in another million years, a good dinner is of great importance to good talk. One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.
Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) English modernist writer [b. Adeline Virginia Stephen]
A Room of One’s Own, ch. 1 (1929)
Strange to see how a good dinner and feasting reconciles everybody.
Samuel Pepys (1633-1703) English diarist, naval administrator
Diary (1665-11-09)
