Catullus 45

Translate 8-12
“As he said this, Cupid sneezed approval left as before the right, but Acme, gently
bending her head back, and having kissed the drunken eyes of the sweet boy on the crimson lip.”
Rhetorical Devices
-Line 11—homioteleuton: “ebrios ocellos”
-Line 10—assonance of “e”
-Lines 8-9—enjambment
Questions
-Discuss whether or not Cupid looking left to the right was lucky for Acme and
Septimius.
-own interpretation—right=lucky (Greece), left=lucky (Rome)
-How does Septimius’ declaration of love different from Acme?
-Septimius had an optimistic idea of love. (love is fine and dandy)
-Acme = enslaved to love

Catullus 50
Translate 1-6
“Yesterday, Licinius, at leisure we played much on my little tablets As we had agreed to
be leisurely: and both of us writing light verses, were playing with this meter now here, now
there, exchanging verses through jokes and wine.”
Rhetorical Devices
-Line 1—anastrophe of “Hesterno, Licini, die”
-Line 2—homioteluton “meis tabellis”
-Line 5—conduplicato and chiasmus “modo hoc modo illoc”| assonance with “o”
-Line 6—homioteleuton “iocum atque vinum”
Questions
-What was the nature of the relationship between Catullus and Licinius?
-They were good friends, but there is also a sexual perspective to their
relationship.
-What kind of tone does “delicates” give to the poem?
-It gives the poem a cute, light feeling because they’re talking about being
leisurely and playing around.

Catullus 72
Translate 1-4
“You used to say that you knew only Catullus, Lesbia. Neither did you with to know
Jupiter instead of me. At that time, I loved not as the common crowd of men loves a prostitute
but as a father loves his sons-in-law.”
Rhetorical Devices
-Line 1—hyperbaton
-Line 2-3—
-Line –ascending tricolon
-Line 4—anastrophe “gnatos…generous”
Questions
 -How does Catullus define his love for Lesbia in lines 3-4? How does this contrast with
traditional Roman love?
-He respects her like a son-in-law. In Roman tradition, fathers picked their son-in-
laws and must have respected them as a result. This contrasts with traditional Roman love
because women were not respected.

Poem 85
Translate all
“I hate and I love. Perhaps you may ask why I do this. I don’t know, but I feel it
happening and I am tortured.’
Rhetorical Devices
-Chiasmus (A, B, C, D)
-Odi—excrucior (Q&A)—D
-Amo—sentio—C
-faciam—fiery—B
-requiris—nescio—A
-Assonance of “a”
-Consonance of “s”
-Alliteration “faciam, fortasse”
Questions
-What are the main oppositions or antithesis in this poem, and what effect does it create?
-Hate, then love. So he hates her, but at the end of the day, he loves her.

Catullus 86
Translate All
“Quintia is beautiful to many for she is white, tall, well-built: I admit these attributes
individually but deny the notion of the idea of beauty because no grace, not a grain of humor, is
in such a large body. Lesbia is beautiful, who is not only totally beautiful in extreme, but also
stole all the charms of Venuses.
Rhetorical Devices
-Ascending tricolon
-descending tricolon—haec...venusta
-Hysteron Proteron
-anastrophe—Omnis..veneris
Questions
-What is Catullus definition of beauty and how does this differ from traditional Roman
views?
-He thinks that wit is beautiful rather than caring about just looks like traditional
Romans did.

Catullus 92
Translate All
“Lesbia always talks bad about me and never shuts up: may I perish unless she loves. By
what sign do I know? Because the same symptoms are mine: I am forever running her down, but
may I perish unless I love.”
Rhetorical Devices
 -Anaphora—“Lesbia”
-Conduplicato—“dispeream” (Lines 2 and 4)
-Enjambment—“de me” (Line 2) | “assidue” (Line 4)
-Polyptoton—“amat” and “amo” (Lines 2 and 4)
Questions
-Give a characteristic of one Catullan characteristic and give an example from the poem.
-Exggeration—dispeream
-Direct address of people he is personally close to—to Lesbia
-Love—amat/amo
-Why does Catullus thinks that she loves him? Could this be self-delusion?
-He thinks he loves her because he is always talking bad about her and he still
loves her. This could be self-delusion because he gives no hardcore evidence or proof of her
love.

Catullus 107
Translate 1-6
“If anything ever happens to anyone eager and desiring when not hoping for it, this is
pleasing to the mind in its true sense. Therefore this is pleasing to me and more precious than
gold because you, Lesbia, have restored yourself to me, desiring. You restore yourself to me, the
desiring one and not expecting, you yourself bring yourself back. Oh mark a more dazzling day!”
Rhetorical Devices
-Polyptoton—“optanti”, optigit, and optandus (Lines 1 and 8) | “vivit” and “vita” (Lines
7-8)
-Enjambment—“insperanti” (Line 2) | “nobis” (Line 6)
-Conduplicato—“hoc est gratum” (Lines 3-4) | restituis (Lines 4-5) | cupido (Lines 4-5)
-Consonance—“a” (Line 1)
-Pleanasm—“restituis”
Questions
-How does this poem refer to poem 45 about Acme and septimius, and what is the effect?
-It’s an intratextual reference to his own writing that can imply that Poem 107 is
satire because Poem 45 has a strong possibility of being satire.
-What is the effect of the exaggeration and repetition?
-This may imply that Poem 107 is satire.

Catullus 109
Translate all
“You propose to me, my life, a pleasant love that will be pleasant and everlasting between
us. Great gods, make it so that she is able to promise truly and that she speaks sincerely from the
mind, so that it may be allowed for us to extend through our whole life this lifelong contract of
sacred friendship.”
Rhetorical Devices
-Ascending Tricolon—“iucundum…fore” (Lines 1-2) | “di magni…animo” (Line 3-4)
-Homioteleuton—“mea vita” (Line 1) | “di magni” (Line 3)
-Pleonasm—“vere promittere” (Line 3)
-Anastrophe—“tota perducere vita” (Line 5) | “sanctae foedus amicitae” (Line 6)
-Assonance—“e” (Line 3-4) | “i” (Line 4)
 -Alliteration—“promittere possit” (Line 3) | “et ex” (Line 4)
-Synchesis—“hoc sanctae foedus amicitae”
-A
-B
Questions
-Why does Catullus invoke the deities?
-He doesn’t trust Lesbia to be truthful and wants the gods to vouch for her.
-What is the effect and social implication of Catullus using the words “foedus amicitae”?
-The “amicitae” shows that he friend-zoned her because she previously used the
word “amorem”. The “foedus” implies that their friendship is more of a political relationship
rather than consensual and romantic.