Catullus 2

Carmen 2:Latin Translation 1, Translation 2

I have gone through Catullus's poems, and between my own interests and the advice of the AP Latin Lit course, and I have elected a list of focus poems. I shall attempt a few means of response here to get the hang of it.

Comparing the two translations and the Latin, it is evident that translation two is significantly more anglicized, not being true to the Latin, more the idea of the line. I always find this risky, as it can take away the ambiguities which the poem might originally contain. for example, the first line "Passer, deliciae meae puellae," Is most literally translated, "Sparrow, of my favorite girl." Translation 1, "Sparrow, favorite of my girl, " is close, and indeed makes more sense in the context of the poem than the literal translation, but translation 2, "Sparrow, my sweet girl’s delight," takes this dilution a step forward.

Though perhaps my analysis best be less picky. I enjoy that translation one uses the grammatically proper "with whom" and "for whom," as opposed to the second places the prepositions at the end of clauses. I like the chunky, accurate translation for its value, using all the extra words and structures needed to represent a far more complicated language than itself. However, there is a certainly lack of poetry found there. In the second translation, that enjoyability is present.

Ultimately, despite its lack of faith, the second poem achieves with greater finesse what Catullus set out. I like, "whenever my shining desire wishes to play with something she loves," much more than "When it is pleasing for my shining desire to make some kind of joke and a relief of her grief." And indeed it is much more compact and thought provoking to say, "while strong passion abates" than,"so that her heavy passion may become quiet."

Alright, there I said it, but reading it in Latin is still best! I picked this poem because, having scanned many, there is clearly a more straightforward Catullus, portraying things simpler, like basic romantic desires, or in this case, the joy inspired by his girlfriend's sparrow. It's not even about sympathy, the joy he experiences seeing his girlfriend happy, or jealousy, just the happiness spawned by the sparrow. There is a certain elegance to this sort of poem, a good warm up.