Catullus 48 in Latin & English: Mellitos oculos tuos, Iuventi
Channel: David Amster
Date: 2022-03-26

#catullus
#latinpoetry
#latinpronunciation

Catullus 48 is a love poem to Juventius, similar to poems 5 and 7, which are addressed to Lesbia/Clodia. In poem 16 he said to Furius and Aurelius: 
“Vos, quod milia multa basiorum legistis, male me marem putatis?” (You, since you read ‘many thousands of kisses,’ think I’m not a real man?). I believe the current poem is probably what led to their criticism, and his famous poetic retort in poem 16. 

Mellitos: of honey, honey-sweet

Iuventi: Juventius is a young man whom Catullus had a crush on. The “Juventius Cycle” consists of poems 15, 21, 23, 24, 48, 81, 99, and probaby 16 and 40.

Si quis: quis after si = aliquis, someone, anyone; here it’s probably an indirect way of saying “if you yourself would…”

Sinat: would let, permit, allow; present subjunctive. Is Catullus concerned that Juventius would not allow him to kiss him, or is he concerned about what others might think?

Usque: continually, constantly

Usque ad: even to, as far as, up to

Milia trecenta: 300,000 (kisses)! He uses the same number in poem 9: “Verani, omnibus e meis amicis antistans mihi milibus trecentis.”

Basiem: I would kiss, present subjunctive

Nec numquam: not never! 

Videar: would I seem, present passive subjunctive

Satur: sated, full, satisfied

Futurus: future active participle of SUM = futurus esse

Densior: denser, more numerous

Aridis aristis: than dry/mature beards/ears of wheat; ARISTA is the bristlelike top of the ear of wheat, the beard or awn. But it can also refer to the ear itself. It’s “ablative of comparison” after densior. Note that the same language is used by Vergil, “densae...aristae” (Aen. 7.720), Ovid, “seges arida” (M. 2.213), and St. Augustine, “seges ab initiis herbidis usque ad aridas aristas” (Civ. Dei 4.8). I like to think that St. Augustine might have read Catullus in his rowdy student days! 

Sit: would be, should be, were; present subjunctive of SUM. 

Seges: a wheatfield, grain field; crop

Osculationis: of kissing (kisses); compare basiationes in poem 7. 


Artwork:

The Elgin Germanicus, Roman, circa 37-45 AD. Germanicus, here 19 years old, was the adopted son of Tiberius and father of Caligula. I took this photo at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, but recently it has been bought by the Getty for 8 million dollars! 

Translation:
David Amster, Fez, March 26, 2022 


Pronunciation:

meLLītōs oculōs tuōs, iuventī,
sī quis mē sinat usque bāsiāre,
usqu(e) ad mīlia bāsie(m)N tRecenta
nec nu(m)NGqua(m) videaR satuR futūrus,
nōñ sī dēñsior āridīs aristīs
sit nostRae seges ōsculātiōnis.

ñ = nasalized N before S.
R = trilled R


Repetition of Sound:

melliTOS OCULOS TuOS, iuventi,
SI quiS me SInat USQUE baSIare,
USQUE ad milia basiem trecenta
Nec Numquam videaR saTUR fuTURus,
NON SI denSIor ARIdIS ARISTIS
SIT NOStrae SegeS OSCULationIS.

Note especially:
OCULOS…OSCULationis
ARIdIS ARISTIS SIT
All the S sounds in the last two lines; does he mean to suggest the sound of the wind rushing through the dry grain? 


Meter: Hendecasyllables  

⏓ ⏓ – ⏑ ⏑ – ⏑ – ⏑ – ⏓ 

(where ⏓ ⏓ is one of – ⏑ or – – or ⏑ –) but note that in this poem the first feet are all spondees ( – –)

mēllītōs ŏcŭlōs tŭōs Iŭvēntī
sī quīs mē sĭnăt ūsquĕ bāsĭārĕ
ūsque ād mīlĭă bāsĭēm trĕcēntă,
nēc nūmquām uĭdĕār sătūr fŭtūrŭs,
nōn sī dēnsĭŏr ārĭdīs ărīstīs
sīt nōstraē sĕgĕs ōscŭlātĭōnĭs.


Your honey-sweet eyes, Juventius,
if anyone would allow me to kiss continually,
I would kiss them even three-hundred thousand times,
nor would I seem to be sated, not ever,
not if the crop of our kisses were
denser than dry ears of wheat.