Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur
“Prosperous and successful crime is called virtue.”
Seneca, Hercules Furens
What does “Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur” mean?
Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur translates as “Prosperous and successful crime is called virtue.”
When crime succeeds, people praise it as virtue. Seneca exposes how power and success can rewrite moral judgment.
“Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur” word by word
| Latin | English | Grammar |
|---|---|---|
| Prosperum | prosperous, fortunate | accusative singular neuter (modifying scelus) of prosperus, “favourable, fortunate” |
| ac | and | conjunction, a shortened form of atque |
| felix | successful, lucky | accusative singular neuter (modifying scelus) of felix, “fruitful, lucky”; felix has the same form for all genders |
| scelus | crime | accusative singular neuter of scelus, “crime, wicked deed”; it is the subject of the infinitive clause (accusative and infinitive construction) that the sentence is built on |
| virtus | virtue | nominative singular feminine of virtus, “manly excellence, virtue”; the complement (predicate noun) of vocatur |
| vocatur | is called | third person singular present passive indicative of voco, “I call” |
How to pronounce “Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur”
The main differences are c in scelus (hard k in Classical, soft sh in Church), v (w in Classical, v in Church) and the ae/oe-free vowels, which sound the same. Stress falls on PRO in prosperum, FE in felix, SCE in scelus, VIR in virtus and CA in vocatur.
The story behind it
Word for word the line says that a crime which is prosperous and successful is called virtue. It comes from Seneca’s tragedy Hercules Furens, a Roman play about the hero Hercules and his madness.
In the play the tyrant Lycus has taken power by murder. The passage goes on to say that the good obey the guilty and that right lies in arms, so the line sits inside a bleak picture of how force shapes what people call right.
Seneca was a Stoic philosopher as well as a tragedian, and the line is often quoted as a blunt observation about moral judgment bending to success. It is used today in writing about corruption, tyranny and the way winners rewrite history.
How to use “Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur”
A sharp epigraph for an essay on corruption, propaganda or the abuse of power, or the opening line of a political thriller. As a tattoo or motto it is a deliberately cynical choice, since it describes a vice rather than recommending a virtue.
- Latin
- Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur
- English
- Prosperous and successful crime is called virtue.
- Source
- Seneca, Hercules Furens
- Era
- Classical
- Theme
- Power
Common mistakes
- It is not Seneca’s own advice. It is a bitter observation spoken within a tragedy about tyranny, and it condemns the habit it describes.
- Do not read virtus as modern “virtue” in a purely moral sense. In Latin it also carries the idea of strength and courage, which is part of the irony.
- The word order is poetic. Scelus is the thing being called, virtus is what it is called, so it does not mean that virtue is called a crime.
- Quotations often cut the line short or alter the word order. The version given here follows the standard Latin text.
Questions about “Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur”
What does “Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur” mean?
Literally, “a prosperous and successful crime is called virtue”. It means that when wrongdoing succeeds, people praise it as if it were virtuous.
Who said “Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur”?
It comes from Seneca’s tragedy Hercules Furens, where it is spoken in a scene about the tyrant Lycus seizing power through murder.
How do you pronounce “Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur”?
In Classical Latin: PROH-spe-room ahk FEH-leeks SKEH-loos WEER-toos woh-KAH-toor. In Church Latin the c in scelus becomes sh and the v becomes a v sound.
Is “Prosperum ac felix scelus virtus vocatur” a good tattoo?
It is correct Latin, but it is a cynical statement about corrupt success, so make sure you want that meaning. Many people choose it as a warning rather than an ideal.
More to explore
Translation and grammar checked by Latin Quoter · last reviewed November 2026
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