The Poetry of Gaius Valerius Catullus/40
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Text & Translation[edit | edit source]
Meter - Hendecasyllabic
Line | Latin Text | English Translation |
---|---|---|
1 | Quaenam te mala mens, miselle Ravide, | What bad mind, wretched little Ravidus, |
2 | agit praecipitem in meos iambos? | drives you headfirst into my iambs? |
3 | Quis deus tibi non bene advocatus | What god summoned not well |
4 | vecordem parat excitare rixam? | prepares to rouse a demented fight? |
5 | An ut pervenias in ora vulgi? | Or so that you may arrive into the mouths of the common crowd? |
6 | Quid vis? Qualubet esse notus optas? | What do you want? By any means do you wish to be known? |
7 | Eris, quandoquidem meos amores | You will be, since my lover |
8 | cum longa voluisti amare poena. | you wished to love with a long penalty. |
Connotations of The Text[edit | edit source]
Line 1[edit | edit source]
- Ravidus
The rival of Catullus.
Line 3[edit | edit source]
- non bene advocatus - not well summoned
A slight mistake in invocation may bring down the wrath of the gods
Line 7[edit | edit source]
- meos amores - my loves
Refers to Juventius, a young boy who Catullus chased for his affections. Homosexual affairs were a normal part of Roman life, and Juventius may have been a freedman or a slave, since it was not proper for a Roman man to have sex outside marriage with another Roman citizen.
The use of the plural amores indicates the passion felt for Juventius.
Line 8[edit | edit source]
cum longa ... poena- Catullus predicts his poetry will be everlasting.
Vocabulary[edit | edit source]
Line 1[edit | edit source]
- quinam, quaenam, quodnam - what; tell me?
- mens, mentis f. - mind; reason
- misellus -a -um - (dim. of miser) poor; wretched
Line 2[edit | edit source]
- ago, agere, egi, actum - to drive; urge
- praeceps, praecipitis (adj.) - headlong; head first
- iambus, iambi - iamb; metrical foot
Line 3[edit | edit source]
Line 4[edit | edit source]
Line 5[edit | edit source]
Line 6[edit | edit source]
Line 7[edit | edit source]
- quandoquidem – since; seeing that
Line 8[edit | edit source]
- volo, velle, volui – to wish; want; prefer
External Links[edit | edit source]
- Catullus 40 A Translation of Catullus 40
- Catullus 40 Another Translation of Catullus 40