Catullus 48 Translation
Introduction |
In this poem, Catullus writes to his boyfriend, Juventius. The first line addresses Juventius’s honeyed eyes. In the next line, Catullus mentioned how he would like to kiss them, if someone would let him. With permission, Catullus would like to kiss them 300,000 times. And, to him, that would not be enough. He then compares the kissing as a harvest that was thicker than ripe ears of corn. He also manages to make a double entendre of density of the kiss, and how intense he wants them to be.
It is an unexpected simile, comparing kisses to a harvest of corn. But, if you imagine a field filled with ears of corn that are ready to be harvested, that field would represent an unimaginable number of kisses. When the field is so full of mature ears of corn, the ears look as if they could kiss each other. This is what Catullus meant when he wrote the hyperbolic simile.
This is a lovely poem addressed to his homosexual lover. When Catullus wanted to write love poems to Juventius or to Lesbia, he knew how to compile a collection of words that showcased how he felt. It is easy to relate to this poem, especially if you have ever loved someone so much that you want to kiss them for eternity.
Catullus loves Juventius so much that he will never be completely satisfied. Unfortunately, the limitations of the poem prevents Catullus from truly showing how much he loves Juventius. This poem is designed to be a six-line poem with a meter that is typically hendecasyllabic, with only one complete sentence. In this six-line poem, he includes two phrases with a balanced set of phrases between them.
Carmen 48 |
| Line | Latin text | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | MELLITOS oculos tuos, Iuuenti, | Your honeyed eyes, Juventius, |
| 2 | si quis me sinat usque basiare, | if one should let me go on kissing still, |
| 3 | usque ad milia basiem trecenta | I would kiss them three hundred thousand times, |
| 4 | nec numquam uidear satur futurus, | nor would I think I should ever have enough, |
| 5 | non si densior aridis aristis | not if the harvest of our kissing |
| 6 | sit nostrae seges osculationis. | were thicker than the ripe ears of corn. |
Previous Carmen | Available Translations | Next Carmen
Resources |
VRoma Project: http://www.vroma.org/~hwalker/VRomaCatullus/048.html
