Notes to Catullus, Carmen 62

Organization of Catullus 62
The poem is in the form of an antiphonal singing contest that was perhaps a feature of Greek weddings, the carmen amoebaeum, which first appeared in Theocritus' bucolic poetry (see Idylls 6 and 8) and later in Virgil's Eclogues 3 and 7. Catullus 62 consists of alternating choral stanzas, unequal in length due to the loss of verses. Although the stanzas are sung responsively, it is thought that the youths open the poem and either they or the poet sing the final lines addressed to the bride, victoriously announcing her appearance for the deductio to the groom's home:

Introduction in 3 stanzas: Youths sing lines 1-5; Maidens sing lines 6-10; Youths sing lines 11-19

Contest in 6 stanzas: Maidens sing lines 20-25; Youths sing lines 26-31; Maidens sing lines 32-?; Youths sing lines 33-38; Maidens sing lines 39-48; Youths sing lines 49-58

Coda in 1 stanza: Poet/Youths sing the final lines 59-66.

 

 

Not all texts identify the speakers of the stanzas; those that do variously use pueri and virgines/puellae. We use the terms with which the singers refer to themselves: Iuvenes and Innuptae.

vesper, –eris/eri m.
evening; evening star. Vesper is the Latin name given to the planet Venus, the first celestial body to become visible as the sky darkens. In Greek myth the god of the evening star was Hesperos, son of Eos, the goddess of the dawn. His presence is invoked in the refrain that recurs throughout the poem (see ll. 5, 10, 19, 25, 31, 38, 48, 66), as sunset was the traditional time for weddings.
adsum, -esse, -fui
be present. The verb appears again in l. 5 as an imperative, in direct address to the god, and in the recurring refrain.
iuvenis, iuvenis m./f.
young man; youth; the term could also refer to young woman, but not here. The case is vocative plural.
consurgo, -ere, -surrexi, -surrectum
rise; spring up; start; present active imperative, 2nd person plural. The young men are urged to rise from their couches, where they have been dining (see l. 3), probably at the house of the bride's family.
Olympus, -i m.
Mount Olympus, home of the Olympian gods; heaven; sky; a locative ablative. Here, Olympo=caelo. Click on SPQR for a view of Mount Olympus at sunset.
exspecto (1)
wait for; expect; hope for; modifies lumina.
diu adv.
long; a long time.
vix adv.
with difficulty; hardly; scarcely.
tandem adv.
at last; finally.
lumen, -inis, n.
light; lamp; torch; object of tollit.
tollo, -ere, sustuli, sublatum
lift; raise; the subject is Vesper.
surgo, -ere, surrexi, surrectum
rise; get up; arise; spring up; infinitive after tempus [est].
iam adv.
now; already. The fourfold anaphora of iam (ll. 3-4 and again in l. 17) betrays the impatience of the youths and quickens the rhythmic pace.
tempus, -oris n.
time; right time’ opportunity; supply est.
pinguis, -e
fat; rich; fertile; poetic accusative plural modifying mensas.
linquo, -ere, liqui
leave; quit, let alone; infinitive after tempus [est].
mensa, -ae f.
table. The unmarried men have been dining together at their own tables, apart from the unmarried women. Now they join the maids to perform the bridal song.
virgo, -inis f.
maiden; unmarried woman. The bride is ready to be ritually escorted to the groom's house.
Hymenaeus, -i m.
Hymenaeus, the nuptial-song in honor of Hymen, the god of marriage. This invocation is repeated in the next line (also ll. 10, 19, 25, 31, 38, 48, 66); Hymenaee is the vocative case. Click on SPQR for an image of the god on a mosaic pavement.
Hymen, -is m.
Hymen, a refrain chanted at Greek weddings, personified as the god of marriage. Here in the vocative case. The first syllable of the god's name is scanned variously long or short for metrical reasons (Hymen o Hymenaee Hymen = spondee, dactyl, dactyl). The wedding chant Hymen, hymenaee, o hymen appears earlier in Plautus' Casina IV.3. Click on SPQR for sculpture of Hymen, personified as a youth, holding a wedding torch together with winged Cupid.
cerno, -ere, crēvi, crētum
see; discern; understand. The unmarried women prepare for their antiphonal song.
innuptus, -a, -um
unmarried; here used substantively: =virgines.
contra adv.
in opposition to, over against, facing. Click on the SPQR for an image of Greek maidens line-dancing as the chorus may as they sing.
nimirum adverb
without doubt; presumably; certainly.
Oetaeus, -a, -um
of Mount Oeta; Oetaean, a mountain in central Greece, where a cult of Hesperus, who loved Hymenaeus, is said to have existed (click on SPQR for location)
ostendo, -ere, ostendi, ostentum
display; hold out; show.
Noctifer, -i m.
Evening star; Night star; litterally nox + fero = bringer of night. Neither Vesper nor Noctifer appear in writings before Catullus.
certus, -a, -um
certain; fixed; definite. The construction is colloquial: certest=certa est. The maidens confirm the rise of the evening star.
video, -ere, vidi, visum
see, observe; be aware. The construction is colloquial: videsne=vides ne, followed by ut and the indicative mood.
ut adv.
how
perniciter adv.
nimbly; swiftly. The urgency of the youths is repeatedly contrasted with the reluctance of the maidens.
exsilio, -ere, exsilui
leap up; spring up; start; shortened form of exsiluerunt, here and in l. 9.
temere adv.
casually, thoughtlessly; by accident; at random.
cano, -ere, cecini, cantum
sing; sing about; recite; celebrate. The object is [id], understood antecedent of quod.
vinco, -ere, vici, victum
surpass; conquer; the object is quod.
par, -is f.
suitable; equal; proper, right; supply nobis.
facilis, -e
easy, without difficulty; ready; translate not with nobis (dative of respect), but as an attributive adjective modifying palma.
aequalis, -e
contemporary, of the same age; equal, like; vocative plural, translate as a substantive noun: comrades, pals. The maidens use the word in reference to themselves below in l. 32.
palma, -ae f.
palm; prize; victory; glory; modified by facilis. Click on SPQR for victory palms on the female gymnasts mosaic from the villa at Piazza Armerina.
paro (1)
prepare; set out; provide; get ready; the verb is in the perfect passive indicative, its subject = facilis palma. Scan for rhythmic pattern and note alliteration.
aspicio, -ere, aspexi, aspectum
behold; catch sight of; look at; imperative plural followed by ut = how.
secum=cum se
the reflexive pronoun se refers to the subject of the clause innuptae . . . requirunt.
meditor (1 dep.)
practice; study; think over, contemplate, reflect on; design, purpose. The youths note the maidens' mental preparation for the performance (lines 13, 14).
requiro, -ere, -quisivi, -quisitum
search for; look for; ask; inquire after.
frustra adv.
in error, in vain.
memorabilis, -e
worthy of memory, remarkable.
sit = present active subjunctive with relative pronoun quod in relative clause of characteristic.
mirus, -a, -um
astonishing; estraordinary, marvellous; understand [est].
penitus adv.
deeply; thoroughly.
mens, -tis f.
mind, understanding; ablative of means.
laboro (1)
work, toil; take pains; the subject is quae (the maidens) in a causal relative clause using the indicative.
alio adv.
otherwise; elsewhere; in/to one way/side . . . in/to another (correlative).
divido, -ere, -visi, -visum
separate, divide; apportion; distinguish; note the emphatic nos (the youths) that opens the line.
auris, is, f.
ear; attention; judgment. In l. 17 the youths identify which of the two they need to focus on.
iure adv.
rightly, justly.
cura, -ae f.
attention, care, concern. A worthy maxim: amat victoria curam.
quare adv.
therefore.
animus, -i m.
memory; mind, intellect, reason.
saltem adv.
at least; at all events; translate with nunc.
converto, -ere, -verti, -vertum
change, turn around.
incipio, -ere,- cepi, -ceptum
begin, take in hand, commence; note the tense, followed by the infinitive.
decet, -ere, decuit
it is right, proper; followed by the infinitive.
Hesperus/os, -i m.
the evening star, the Greek name of the evening star, which arose in the west; the son of Cephalus and Aurora or elsewhere of Iapetus and Asia. In l. 1 the youths eagerly address the evening star by its Latin name Vesper. In response the maidens reprove the evening star, using its Greek name (in the vocative case Hespere, echoed by the youths below in l. 26). Note the alliteration of hard c sounds in the stanza, betraying their rejection of the wedding evening his appearance heralds. Click on SPQR for a fresco from Pompeii portraying Hesperus flanked by Venus and Apollo.
fero, ferre, tuli, latum
carry; bear; move; the subject is quis ignis, in direct question. It is followed by caelo, ablative of place where (locative) without the preposition in.
crudelis, -a, -um
hard-hearted; cruel; comparative adjective modifying ignis. See below l. 24 for comparative adverb crudelius.
natus, -a, -um
daughter, son; object of avellere.
possum, posse, potui
be able, can; present active subjunctive, 2 s, in a relative clause of characteristic introduced by qui (antecedant Hespere).
complexus, -us m.
embrace; ablative of separation after avellere; in l. 22 it is given priority as the first word in the line.
avello, -ere, avelli/avulsi, avulsum
pull away; take away; remove. The ritual of seizing the bride from her mother's embrace evokes the ancient custom of marriage by force/capture by the groom (emphasized by its repetition in l. 22). Click on SPQR for detail from a Greek vase of the separation of mother and daughter in the wedding ritual.
retineo, -ere, -tinui, -tentum
hold back; cling; keep; retain; preserve; modifies natam, emphasizing the mutuality of resistence. Note the visual word painting: the reverse separation in ll. 21-22 of natam and matris. Click on SPQR for detail from a Greek vase of the separation of mother and daughter.
ardeo, -ere, arsi, arsum
be on fire, burn; glow; desire; modifies iuveni.
castus, -a, -um
pure; chaste; note the chiastic word order which separates the youth and maiden while juxtaposing their differences (ardenti castam). Click on SPQR for detail of the reluctant bride from the Aldobrandini fresco.
hostis, -is m. f.
enemy; stranger, foreigner.
capio, -ere, cepi, captum
take; capture; seize; perfect passive participle, ablative s. modifying urbe in ablative absolute. Click on SPQR for detail of defeat of the Dacians from Trajan's Column.
luceo, -ere, luxi
shine forth; glitter; be light, be visible. Refuting the maidens' opening verse (l.20), the youths praise Hesperus for heralding the wedding night.
iucundus, -a, -um
delightful; pleasing; comparative adjective modifying ignis, exactly replacing crudelior in the line.
despondeo, -ere, -spondi, -sponsum
betroth; pledge; promise; perfect passive participle modifying conubia.
firmo (1)
confirm; support; strengthen; prove; subjunctive in a relative clause of characteristic after qui.
conubium, -ii n.
marriage; right of intermarriage; here the reference is to the legally binding betrothal between bride's father and husband-to-be.
flamma, -ae f.
blaze; flame; passion; ablative of means. The word suggests both love's passion and the ritual wedding torch.
pango, -ere, panxi/pepigi, pactum
contract, pledge; settle; fix, make fast; the object is quae (neuter plural, referring to conubia above. The line features two versions of the perfect indicative 3 pl form of the verb: pepigere and pepigerunt, the former probably for metric reasons or stylistic variety. Note the absence of the bride in the list of those arranging the betrothal.
vir, -i m.
husband; male; hero; understand here "bridegrooms."
ante adv.
previously, before; first of all.
parens, -ntis m./f.
parent; these would be the parents of the bride and groom.
iungo, -ere, iunxi, iunctum
join together; unite; perfect active indicative 3 pl. The subject is viri . . . parentes.
prius quam adv.
before, sooner; first, previously.
effero, -fere, extuli, elatum
lift up, raise; bring out; se, the reflexive pronoun, refers to the subject of the verb, ardor.
ardor, -oris m.
flame, fire, brightness; ardent desire (metonomy).
divus, -a, -um
divine; used substantively here as "gods."
felix, -icis
happy; blessed; fortunate; ablative of comparison with hora.
optatus -a, -um
longed for; wished for; comparative adjective, nominative singular neuter,refuting the maidens' crudelius (l. 24)
aufero, -ferre, abstuli, ablatum
take away; remove, The direct object is unam, followed by ex and the ablative of separation (nobis). Click on SPQR for a relief of a woman leading two girls bound by their garments to each other.
Lacuna: in textual criticism the term is used to refer to a gap in the text of a manuscript. Here, only the first line of the maidens' third stanza survives, a loss of perhaps five or more lines which include the refrain Hymen o Hymenaee, Hymen, ades o Hymenaee. It is possible that the first or more lines of the youths' answering stanza is also lost.
Given the pattern of their earlier exchanges and on the basis of the youths' defense of Hesperus, in their missing lines the maidens are thought to rebuke Hesperus for ennabling the darkness which brings danger and allows thievery.
adventus, -us m.
arrival, approach; ablative of time at which, it is a direct address to Hesperus, in defense of the evening star.
vigilo (1)
keep awake at night; be vigilant; keep watch.
custodia, -ae f.
guard; protection; sentry. Augustus instituted the vigiles, a public force of firemen and police, who nightly patrolled Rome's districts for the safety of all.
nox, noctis f.
night; ablative of time when.
lateo, -ere, -ui
lie hidden; lurk; the subject is fures.
fur, -is m.
thief; slave, the antecedent of quos. The youths portray them as hiding from capture.
idem, eadem, idem pronoun
the very one, the same. The youths refer to Hesperus, not a star but the planet Venus. In some seasons it rises in the evening, in others at dawn, but never (idem saepe revertens) on the same day.
reverto, -ere, -i
turn back; return; the subject is idem.
muto (1)
change, alter;perfect passive participle in an ablative absolute construction.
comprehendo, -ere, -endi, -ensum
perceive, comprehend; lay hold of; seize, grasp; in the 2nd person s. indicative mood, its object is quos (the thieves).
nomen, -inis n.
name; ablative in ablative absolute construction with mutato.
Eous, -i m.
Eous, the Greek name of the morning star, the star of Venus. It is in apposition to the subject in the verb comprendis. Note how the star's two names open and close the line. In Catullus manuscript V, the reading is eosdem, which works metrically and may be defended because mutato...nomine renders the proper name unnecessary. However, eosdem is unidiomatic, as it would refer back to fures in line 34, and may have arisen from scribal error. Schrader's emendation to Eous is generally accepted instead.
lu/ibet, -ere, -uit, -itum
it pleases, is pleasing, is agreeable, impersonal useage, followed by the dative innuptis.
fingo, -ere, finxi, fictum
contrive, invent; shape, fashion; perfect passive participle modifying questu. Note how the youths negate the maidens' charges against Hesperus by accusing the maidens of wishing to be seized.
carpo, -ere, -si, -tum
slander; pluck, wear away, destroy.
questus, -us, m.
complaint, protest, outcry; ablative of means.
quid tum interrogative adverb in a hypothetical situation
what then . . .if? correlative to the simple fact present conditional clause si carpunt [eum].
tacitus, -a, -um
silent, mute; ablative of manner with mente.
mens, -tis f.
mind; purpose; will.
requiro, -ere, -sivi, -situm
seek, want; search for; try to obtain; its direct object quem refers to the unexpressed antecedant eum (Hesperus as wedding usher?), the object of carpunt.
flos, floris m.
flower, youthful beauty; ut introduces an extended simile of a flower to a maiden. Can you identify the cluster of rhetorical embellishments (hyprbaton, asyndeton, antithesis) in this third round of competition?
saepio, -ire, saepsi, saeptum
surround with a hedge, to hedge in, fence in, enclose; perfect passive participle modifying hortis. What is the effect of the spondaic line and the repeated s sounds of the words in l. 39?
secretus, -a, -um
solitary, remote, secret. Hyperbaton separates the adjective from its noun, thus emphasizing flos.
nascor, -sci, natus/a
be born, originate; the subject is flos.
hortus, -i m.
garden. Note the chiastic word order: flos . . . saeptis secretus . . . hortis.
ignotus, -a, -um
unfamiliar, unknown; modifies flos.
pecus, -oris, n.
cattle, herd, flock; dative after the verb ignosco.
convello, -ere, -velli, -vu/olsum
tear up, pluck, pull away; perfect passive participle modifying flos.
aratrum, -i n.
plow; ablative of means. In Carmina 11. 23-25 Catullus compares himself and his love to a flower at the edge of a meadow which has been grazed by the passing plow (Lesbia) and left for dead.
mulceo, -ere, -si, -sum
stroke, touch lightly, caress, soothe; the antecendant of quem, which introduces three Relative Clauses of Fact, is flos.
aura, -e f.
breeze.
firmo (1)
strengthen, make firm; note that in each triad the verb leads, followed by the subject noun.
educo (1)
nurture; bring up, rear, train. Note the asyndeton; what effect does it have on the line?
imber, -bris m.
rain, rain-storm, shower.
opto (1)
wish for, desire; choose, select; alternate form of 3rd person pl. perfect active indicative (the gnomic perfect indicates an action begun in the past and continuing in the present). Note the repetition of the line in l. 44, with the change of the adjective from multus to nullus after the critical incident in l. 43.
tenuis, -e
sharp, thin, fine; ablative of agent with ungui.
carptus, -a, -um
picked, plucked, torn off; modifies idem (i.e., flos).
defloresco, -ere, -florui
fade, wither, decay, an intransitive verb.
unguis, -is m.
nail; ablative of agent.
dum . . . dum conj. . . . adv.
while . . . so long: two coordinate (not correlative) clauses descriptive of sic virgo [est].
intactus, -a, -um
untouches, chaste; modifies virgo.
maneo, -ere, mansi, mansum
remain, stay.
carus, -a, -um
dear, beloved; followed by the dative case.
suus, -a, -um 3rd person possessive pronoun
his own, her own, its own, their own; it refers back to the subject of the verb (virgo). Here, dative of relation used in the plural as a substantive for family, friends.
castus, -a, -um
chaste, pure; modifies florem. Scan the line for the correspondence of meaning and meter conveyed by the first four feet.
amitto, -ere, -misi, -missum
lose; indicative in a temporal cum clause.
polluo, -uere, -ui, -utum
defile, pollute, dishonor; in an ablative absolute construction, it modifies corpore.
iucundus, -a, -um
pleasant, pleasing; when she is no longer a virgo, she loses the interest of children.
viduus, -a, -um
deprived of a husband or wife; mateless, widowed, bereft; modifies vitis. Note how the transferred epithet (rhetorical term hypallage) bridges the human and vegetal worlds, like the simile introduced by ut.
nudus, -a, -um
naked, bare, uncovered, exposed; modifies arvo.
vitis, vitis f.
vine. Roman farmers used to train grapevines on trees for support and exposure to sun and shade.
arvum, , -i n.
arable land/field. Note the anthropomorphizing modifier nudo.
numquam adv.
never. Note the effect of the repetition and asyndeton.
extollo, -ere
to raise, elevate, exalt; se, the direct object of the verb, is the reflexive pronoun referring back to vitis.
mitis, -e
mild, mellow, mature, ripe.
uva, -ae f.
grape. Continuing the metaphor, the youths counter that virgins do not produce children.
tener, ĕra, -ĕrum
soft, delicate, tender; modifies corpus.
pronus, -a, -um
leaning forward, sinking downward, sloping; modifies pondere.
deflecto, -ere, -flexi, -flexum
bend, turn downwards; the subject is vitis.
pondus, -eris n.
burden, load, weight.
iam adv.
at any time now; now, precisely (repeated for emphasis).
contingo, -ere, -tigi, -tactum
be contact with, touch, reach; followed by the ablative, its subject is summum flagellumn.
radix, -icis f.
root (of a plant); ablative after contingit. The unsupported vine contradicts the natural order.
flagellum, -i n.
branch, shoot; modified by summum.
agricola, -ae m.
farmer. Note how the structure of the line replicates that of ll. 42 and 44.
colo, -ere, -ui, cultum
cultivate, nurture, protect. Alternate version of the 3rd person plural perfect indicative active form coluerunt.
iuvencus, -i m.
bullock, ox. Bullocks were used to loosen the soil around the vines.
forte adv.
by chance, perhaps.
ulmus, -i f.
elm; dative case after coniungo. Click SPQR for drawing of Tuscan grapevines trellised on elm trees.
coniungo, -ere, -iunxi, -iunctum
join together; unite; join in marriage; indicative passive perfect in a Simple Fact conditional clause. The subject is eadem (= vitis).
maritus, -i m.
husband; in apposition with ulmo.
incultus, -a, -um
uncultivated, untilled; neglected; modifies virgo with a sexual connotation.
senesco, -ere, -ui
grow old, age; compare above l. 45.
conubium, -i/-ii n.
marriage, legal right of intermarriage; the reference is to legal Roman marriage, which is the union of two Roman citizens with their consent. The adjective par, deriving from its agricultural simile, suggests appropriateness resides in a couple's compatibility, including rank and status (click on SPQR for the Boscoreale fresco of an elite married couple).
maturus, -a, -um
ripe, mature; the ablative of time in which, it modifies tempore, thus linking the bucolic theme.
adipiscor, -sci, adeptus/a sum
attain, acquire. Indicative perfect form in a Temporal Cum clause.
magis comparative adv.
more; greater, from magnus.
minus comparative adv.
less; smaller, from parvus.
invisus, -a, -um
hateful. Note the chiastic order of the words opening and closing the line:cara viro . . . invisa parenti.
The refrain is missing at this point in 2 mss.
The refrain is sometimes inserted here since the singing contest between the maidens and the youths ends with the youths having the final word and therefore claiming victory.
The coda of the poem begins at l. 59, some scholars seeing it as a sign that the bride has appeared, thus acquiesing to be wed. The lines are attributed by some to the poet rather than the youths, as it is an admonishment addressed directly to the elite bride which reaffirms the accepted order of Roman patriarchy.
pugno (1)
contend, battle, fight; a negative command = noli pugnare. The verb is repeated in l. 60; the peremptory command recurs in l. 64.
talis, -e
such, of such a kind; ablative of accompaniement after cum.
coniunx, -iugis m. f.
spouse; husband, wife; note the juxtaposition of coniuge virgo.
aequum, -i n.
fair, just, equitable, proper, reasonable; aequom is an early form of the nominative and accusative singular. It is constructed with est and the infinitive.
trado, -ere, idi, -tum
hand over to, deliver, surrender; perfect indicative in a Relative Clause of Fact, introduced by the pronoun cui (dative after tradidit, its antecedent is tali coniuge).
ipse, ipsa, ipsud
himself, herself, itself; the very; he, she, it (emphatic).
pareo, -ere, -ui, -itum
obey, submit to, surrender to; followed by the dative case (quibus). Infinitive after necesse est.
virginitas, -tatis, f.
virginity, maidenhood; modified by the possessive pronoun. Catullus employed the term virgo four times before, essentializing the chastity of the bride-to-be. Click on SPQR for a fresco of a young woman with perhaps her mother.
ex parte adverbial
a part, some of; partly, in part; followed by the genitive of possession parentum.
tertius, -a, -um
a third; followed by the dative case after (do). Note the emphatic anaphora of pars and the chiastic structure of tertia . . . patrist . . . tertia matri. What is the effect of the anaphora of tertia in ll. 63-4?
patrist = patri est.
duo, duae, duo
two, both; here (cf. above l. 59) Catullus uses the dative plural after pugnare.
gener, -i, m.
daughter's bridegroom/husband, son-in-law; in the dative case after do. Scholars disagree over whether the text should read suo, in agreement with genero, or sua, in agreement with iura. Which of these readings would you defend? In either case, the reflexive pronoun refers back to the subject of the verb (understand parentes).
ius, iuris n.
legal right, power, authority; justice, duty, direct object of dederunt. Note that the bride's third portion is outweighed by the groom's, as he is awarded the two-thirds parental portions along with the bride's dowry.
simul adv.
together with, followed by cum and the ablative case.
dos, -otis f.
marriage portion, dowry.


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