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| Author | Message | | | Posted on Sun Dec 12, 2004 23:31:01 | |
| | | I have had several different Latin teachers over the years, and they have a slight disagreement over the fate of Lesbia's sparrow as mentioned in poems 2 & 3. One teacher says that the poem should be interpreted for face-value, that Catullus is simply mocking the sparrow in poem 2, or that he wishes to have one himself. Then, when the sparrow dies, he either is truly sad or is once again mocking the sparrow. The other teacher says that those same poems may be interpreted to be implying that Catullus has, in fact, killed the sparrow himself. I was just wondering if anyone else here has an opinion on the matter. | |
| | | Posted at Thu Dec 16, 2004 01:42:23 | Quote |
| | | I have also had questions about the interpretation of carmen 2 and 3. I believe that Catullus is simply mocking his girlfriend's affection for her pet, and her sadness when it dies. Does anyone have any different ideas about the interpretation of this poem? | |
| | | Posted at Tue Mar 15, 2005 06:25:46 | Quote |
| | | There is another interpretation of this poem. Suffice it to say that there is a more erotic bend. | |
| | | Posted at Wed Mar 16, 2005 00:58:45 | Quote |
| | There is absolutely no way of knowing whether Catullus killed the little sparrow. Its all the stuff of lounge room chit chat - no one knows.
But what we do know is that Catullus is indeed being sarcastic. He invokes the image of Homeric Epic poetry, but with a caustic bent. When Catullus say that the Sparrow now flies through the gloomy halls of the underworld he is like Odyseus, but he is mocking.
It is almost like Bugs Bunny doing opera, its a mockery. | |
| | | Posted at Wed Mar 15, 2006 14:18:34 | Quote |
| | The erotic interpretation of Catullus 2 and 3 has been ruled out in the early Eighties (even if some American and German scholars incredibly still believe it). I cannot see but a slight, innocent mockery in the complaint over the dead sparrow: Catullus here imitates his Hellenistic model: it quite is a piece of art without further not-literary implications.
I was amused at reading that some teachers dare suggest Cat. "killed" the sparrow!!! Whence may they have taken this foolish hypothesis?  | |
| | | Posted at Thu Mar 16, 2006 23:00:59 | Quote |
| | | I am interested in the poem Carmen 3, I would like to use the poem for a Humanities paper I am doing, I have to relate the work to my own life, so if you know anything about the poem please let me know, I don't want to write about it if I don't interpret it correctly. | |
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