Festina lente (Classical Latin:[fɛsˈtiː.naːˈlɛn.teː]) orspeûde bradéōs (σπεῦδε βραδέως,pronounced[spêu̯.debra.dé.ɔːs]) is a classicaladage andoxymoron meaning "make haste slowly" (sometimes rendered in English as "more haste, less speed"[1]). It has been adopted as amotto numerous times, particularly by the emperorsAugustus andTitus, then later by theMedicis and theOnslows. During the 1960s the Cuban Revolution used this ancient phrase (apresúrate lentamente) in its message to the masses.
The original form of the saying,σπεῦδε βραδέωςspeũde bradéōs, isClassical Greek, of whichfestīnā lentē is theLatin translation. The wordsσπεῦδε andfestina are second-person-singular present active imperatives, meaning "make haste", whileβραδέως andlente are adverbs, meaning "slowly".
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The Roman historianSuetonius, inDe vita Caesarum, tells that Augustus deplored rashness in a military commander, thus "σπεῦδε βραδέως" was one of his favourite sayings:[1][2]
Nihil autem minus perfecto duci quam festinationem temeritatemque convenire arbitrabatur. Crebro itaque illa iactabat:σπεῦδε βραδέως; ἀσφαλὴς γάρ ἐστ᾽ ἀμείνων ἢ θρασὺς στρατηλάτης;et: "sat celeriter fieri quidquid fiat satis bene."
(He thought nothing less becoming in a well-trained leader than haste and rashness, and, accordingly, favourite sayings of his were: "Hasten slowly"; "Better a safe commander than a bold"; and "That which has been done well has been done quickly enough.")
Certaingold coins minted for Augustus bore images of acrab and abutterfly[3] to attempt an emblem for the adage.[4] Other such visualizations include ahare in asnail shell; achameleon with afish; a diamond ring entwined withfoliage; and perhaps most recognizably, adolphin entwined around ananchor.[5][6]
Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany tookfestina lente as his motto and symbolised it with asail-backedtortoise.[7] This emblem appears repeatedly throughout hisPalazzo Vecchio where it was painted by the artistGiorgio Vasari.[8] There are about 100 instances in the palace decorations andfrescos and there are now tours with the object of finding them all.[9]
The Renaissance printerAldus Manutius adopted the symbol of the dolphin and anchor as hisprinter's mark.Erasmus (whose books were published by Manutius) featured the phrase in hisAdagia and used it to compliment his printer: "Aldus, making haste slowly, has acquired as much gold as he has reputation, and richly deserves both." Manutius showed Erasmus a Roman silver coin, given to him byCardinal Bembo, which bore the dolphin-and-anchor symbol on thereverse side.[10][11]
The adage was popular in theRenaissance era andShakespeare alluded to it repeatedly. InLove's Labour's Lost, he copied the crab and butterfly imagery with the characters Moth and Armado.[12]
The French poet and criticNicolas Boileau, in hisArt poétique (The Art of Poetry) (1674) applied the dictum specifically to the work of the writer, whom he advised in those words:
Hâtez-vous lentement, et sans perdre courage,
Vingt fois sur le métier remettez votre ouvrage,
Polissez-le sans cesse, et le repolissez,
Ajoutez quelquefois, et souvent effacez.
(Slowly make haste, and without losing courage;
Twenty times redo your work;
Polish and re-polish endlessly,
And sometimes add, but often take away)[13]
Jean de la Fontaine alluded to the motto in his famous fable of "The Hare and the Tortoise" (Fables, 1668–94), writing that the tortoise "with a prudent wisdom hastens slowly".[14]
TheOnslow family ofShropshire has the adage as its motto, generating apun upon the family name: "on-slow".[15]
The adage was a favourite of the influential judge,Sir Matthew Hale,[16]
Sir Matthew Hale was naturally a quick man; yet, by much practice on himself, he subdued that to such a degree, that he would never run suddenly into any conclusion concerning any matter of importance.Festina Lente was his beloved motto, which he ordered to be engraved on the head of his staff, and was often heard to say that be had observed many witty men run into great errors, because they did not give themselves time to think...
— Bishop Burnet,The Life and Death of Sir Matthew Hale
The meaning of the phrase is that activities should be performed with a proper balance of urgency and diligence. If tasks are rushed too quickly then mistakes are made and good long-term results are not achieved. Work is best done in a state offlow in which one is fully engaged by the task and there is no sense of time passing.[17][18]
Inphysics, the name "Festina Lente Limit" has been applied to theStrong Confinement Limit, which is a mode of anatom laser in which the frequency of emission of theBose–Einstein condensate is less than the confinement frequency of the trap.[19]
ComposerArvo Pärt wroteFestina lente for strings and harp, in which some instruments play the melody at half-speed while others play it at double-speed, so the music is both fast and slow.[20]
Goethe refers to both the proverb and Augustus' adoption of it in his poemHermann und Dorothea (helpfully for poetry, the German rendition itself rhymes—"Eile mit Weile"):[21]
Laßt uns auch diesmal doch nur die Mittelstraße betreten! Eile mit Weile! das war selbst Kaiser Augustus' Devise.
(Let us again take the middle course. Make haste slowly: that was even Emperor Augustus' motto.)
The Lord Chancellor uses the phrase inW S Gilbert'sIolanthe: "Recollect yourself I pray, and be careful what you say — as the ancient Romans said,festina lente."[22]
InBram Stoker's 1897 novelDracula, Dr. Van Helsing says of Count Dracula,
He has all along, since his coming, been trying his power, slowly but surely; that big child-brain of his is working. Well for us, it is, as yet, a child brain; for had he dared, at the first, to attempt certain things he would long ago have been beyond our power. However, he means to succeed, and a man who has centuries before him can afford to wait and to go slow.Festina lente may well be his motto.[23]
The novelMr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore byRobin Sloan involves asecret society devoted toAldus Manutius, whose members use "Festina lente" as a motto/greeting.[24]
Basketball coachJohn Wooden used the adage throughout his writing on coaching, changing it to,"Be quick, but don't hurry."
{{citation}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)The translator originally chose "Gently make haste", here turned back to "Slowly make haste", which is more faithful to the French "lentement"
The result is music which is both fast and slow
This phrase that's repeated in the novel—festina lente—what's that all about?