The Poetry of Gaius Valerius Catullus/11

Text & Translation Meter - Sapphic Strophe LineLatin textEnglish translation1Furi et Aureli comites CatulliFurius and Aurelius, companions of Catullus,2sive in extremos penetrabit IndosWhether he will enter among the distant Indians,3litus ut longe resonante EoaWhere the shore far and wide by a resounding eastern4tunditur undaWave is struck,5sive in Hyrcanos Arabesve mollesOr among the Hyrcanians or the soft Arabians6seu Sagas sagittiferosve ParthosOr among the Sacae or the arrow-bearing Parthians7sive quae septemgeminus coloratOr among the waters which8aequora NilusThe seven-fold Nile colors,9sive trans altas gradietur AlpesOr whether he walks across the high Alps,10Caesaris visens monimenta magniSeeing the monuments of great Caesar,11Gallicum Rhenum horribile aequor ultiThe rough Gallic Rhine water and the dis-12mosque Britannos-tant British,13omnia haec quaecumque feret voluntasAll these things, whatever the will14caelitum temptare simul paratiOf the heaven-dwellers should bear, prepared to try together,15pauca nuntiate meae puellaeAnnounce to my girl a few16non bona dictaNot-good words.17cum suis vivat valeatque moechisMay she live and fare well with her adulterers,18quos simul complexa tenet trecentosThree hundred of whom she holds in an embrace at the same time,19nullum amans vere sed identidem omniumTruly loving none, but again and again all of their20ilia rumpensGroins bursting.21nec meum respectet ut ante amoremLet her not await, as before, my love,22qui illius culpa cecidit velut pratiWhich has fallen due to her infidelity, just like23ultimi flos praetereunte postquamA flower of the furthest end of the meadow, after24tactus aratro estIt has been touched by a passing plow. Connotations of The Text Catullus 11 is an untitled poem by Catullus, typically believed to be the last of the Lesbia poems. The meter is Sapphic strophe. Catullus 11 also touches on the historical events occurring at the time it was written. The various geographical references in the poem can easily be interpreted as the known borders of the Roman Empire during Catullus's lifespan. External Links Catullus 11 A Translation of Catullus 11 Carmina Wikibooks Original Sources on Catullus