quis, quid, interrogative pronoun
what,
which, Here quis is used as an interrogative adjective modifying
puer.
multus, -a, -um
many,
much; scanning reveals that multa is ablative singular feminine.
gracilis, -e
slender, slight,
slim; nominative singular masculine, modifying puer. This phrase, so
inapposite to virile manliness (presumably Horace), alerts the reader at once to the immaturity and
inexperience of this lover (the SPQR offers a head of a puer).
rosa, -ae f.
rose, rose bush; often
singular in a collective sense.
perfundo, -ere, -fudi, -fusum
drench; besprinkle; pour over; perfusus liquidis introduces the
water imagery which will develop into the destructive sea imagery of the next
stanzas.
liquidus, -a, -um
liquid, flowing,
pure; water imagery is associated with the puer in contrast to the
fire imagery of Pyrrha; in the last stanza this association binds him to the
mature lover.
urgeo, -ere, ursi
pursue, press hard
on, crowd.
odor, -oris m.
scent, smell;
perfume.
gratus, -a, -um
welcome, pleasing,
pleasant.
Pyrrha (from the Greek word for fire)
The
name, associated with hetairai, may suggest the color of her hair
(reddish-yellow or auburn) or her tempestuous nature. Does the poet intend his
readers to recall the infamous general Pyrrhus, the ruthless son of Achilles
at Troy, or the Greek King of Epirus (318-272 BC) who threatened early Rome?
antrum, - n.
cave; cavern; grotto, hollow. The SPQR contains a fresco of a rustic shrine to Venus, perfect for lovers.
cui: interrogative pronoun, dative singular masculine referring back to puer, who is unnamed because he is the classic young new lover, inexperienced in the ways of women and most particularly Pyrrha.
flavus, -a, -um
golden,
yellow.
religo (1)
bind, tie up, fasten
behind.
coma, -ae f.
hair. Click the SPQR for a view of the hairstyle worn by 1st century BCE women.
simplex, -icis
simple, natural;
followed by munditiis, ablative of specification.
munditia, -ae f.
cleanness,
neatness, elegance. With simplex the poet hints that the simplicity of
Pyrrha's hairstyle masks her complexity and treachery; in case the reader has
missed the irony, he turns to the sea to illustrate how danger lurks beneath a
serene and lovely appearance.
quotiens, adverb
how often;
exclamatory.
fides, -ei f.
faith, trust. The
word refers to both his naïve trust and her broken faith.
muto (1)
change, shift, alter;
modifies deos, who do not always favor lovers (or sailors).
fleo, -ere, -evi, -etum
cry for, mourn
for, lament, bemoan; the subject is puer.
asper, -era, -erum
rough, harsh,
violent. aspera...ventis = synchysis (interlocking word order ABAB). The
storms are a metaphor for Pyrrha's emotional outbursts, which are as inevitable
and threatening as natural phenomena.
niger, -ri
dark, black; the
adjective at once collapses into the winds the darkness of the sky that
accompanies storms.
aequor, -is n.
sea, level
surface; the noun suggests the placidity of the sea about to be disturbed
by the storm.
emiror, -ari
wonder greatly at.
Emirabitur is a hapax legomenon, a word coined by and only extant in Horace;
the prefix e- is used to intensify mirabitur.
insolens, -ntis
unaccustomed (to);
unfamiliar (with); another reference to the crass inexperience of the
puer with women and love affairs.
qui: relative pronoun, nominative singular masculine; its antecedent is the unnamed puer.
te: Pyrrha, ablative singular feminine, object of fruitur.
fruor, -ui, -uctum (+ ablative)
enjoy.
credulus, -a, -um
credulous,
foolishly trusting.
aureus, -a, -um
gold, golden,
gilded; aurea is ablative singular feminine, modifying te.
The adjective, formed from the noun aurum and refering concretely to
Pyrrha's golden hair and her beauty, may in fact be a pun on the word
aura which follows: Pyrrha is reliable like the breeze, not like the
precious metal.
vacuus, -a, -um
free, available,
disengaged.
amabilis, -e
lovely, lovable,
delightful.
spero (1)
hope, hope for, expect.
Followed by indirect statement; supply te esse.
nescius, -a, -um (+ genitive)
unaware, ignorant.
aura, -ae f.
breeze, breath of air;
another metaphorical reference to her mutable temperament.
fallax, -acis
deceitful,
deceptive.
miser, -era, -erum
unfortunate,
wretched. Understand sunt.
quibus relative pronoun, dative plural masculine; antecedent is miseri.
intemptatus, -a, -um
unattempted, untested, untried. Grammatically the adjective modifies
Pyrrha but it alludes to the inexperience of her on the part of the puer
as well.
niteo, -ere
shine, gleam, look
beautiful. The reference is to both Pyrrha and the sea, since both have a
gleaming surface that quickly becomes treacherous.
me
Accusative singular masculine, subject of
suspendisse in indirect statement introduced by indicat. Note the
emphatic position. Steele Commager, The Odes of Horace (p.52) observes: "In the
Latin, moreover, no adjective falls in the same line as the noun it modifies.
The words are rather 'suspended,' as it were, like the clothes to which Horace
refers."
tabula, -ae f.
tablet; scansion
reveals this to be an ablative (of means), modified by votiva. Sailors
often gave thanks to Neptune for escaping shipwreck by affixing a votive tablet
to a temple wall.
sacer, -cra. -crum
sacred, hallowed,
consecrated to a deity.
votivus, -a, -um
votive, offered in
fulfillment of a vow. Click on the SPQR for an example of a votive tablet in gratitude for safe harbor.
paries, -etis m.
wall (inside);
probably within a temple or shrine.
indico (1)
point out, disclose,
show, betray; introduces indirect statement (me suspendisse).
uvidus, -a, -um
wet, damp,
dripping.
suspendo, -endere, -endi, -ensum
hang, hang up; suspendisse is perfect active infinitive in indirect
statement with me as the subject and vestimenta as the
object.
potens, -entis
powerful, strong;
followed by the genitive maris.
vestimentum, -i n.
clothes.
Sailors who survived a shipwreck might hang up their clothes ex voto to
the gods in thanks. Far from regretful, the poet claims he has hung up his
votive offering in thanksgiving for his escape when Pyrrha took on this
puer.
mare, -is n.
Sea. The identity of
the god is a matter of scholarly debate. Deus can refer to a god or
goddess and both gods — Neptune and Venus — are associated with the
sea. This closing ambiguity aptly continues the poet's identification of the
disturbances of nature with the troubling passions of the female heart.
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