Thus Fortune on our first endeavour smil'd.
Original text (Latin)
Original text (Latin)
Toil conquered the world, unrelenting toil, and want that pinches when life is hard.
No stranger to trouble myself I am learning to care for the unhappy.
In the fields of observation chance favors only the prepared mind.
Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon 'em.
O Fortune, cruellest of heavenly powers,
Why make such game of this poor life of ours?
Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Virgil (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.