Catullus 84 Translation
Introduction
In Catullus 84, the poet mocks a man named Arrius, who adds an aspirant to his words. During the time that Catullus was alive, it was popular for young men to study in the Greek fashion. When they studied under Greeks, young men would pick up vocal affectations like adding aspirants where they could. It is clear in Catullus 83 that the poet did not find this behavior appealing.
In this short poem, which has the bawdiness of a limerick, but not the rhythm and rhyme, Arrius thinks he speaks well. Instead of winnings, he says “whinnings” or “hambush” rather than ambush. According to Arrius’s mother, he picked up this extra aspirant from his uncle, grandfather, and grandmother.
Catullus mocks Arrius even further by mentioning that his uncle was “the freedman,” which means he was once a slave. Since Rome was a society with defined classes, Arrius must not have come from a patrician family. This makes his affectation an attempt to be more than he was.
But, in true Catullus style, the poet adds a humorous twist. In line seven, Arrius was sent to Syria, giving Roman ears a holiday from the aspirant. Instead, they got to her syllables pronounced lightly. The humorous twists continued in the final two lines of the poem as a message arrived from Syria: the Ionian shore will henceforth be called “Hionian.” It appears that Arrius had an impact on the Syrians.
Catullus was so twisted, that he even managed to make a joke without ever writing it in the poem. Consider the name of the antagonist in the poem, Arrius. If Arrius were to say his own name, it would be “Harrius” - which sounds an awful lot like “Hairy Ass.” While beards were in fashion for men, hair on the rest of the body was not. Arrius, in name and vulgar style, was completely unappealing. Not even homosexual men in Rome would have been attracted to a hairy ass.
Carmen 84
| Line | Latin text | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | CHOMMODA dicebat, si quando commoda uellet | ARRIUS, if he wanted to say “winnings ” used to say “whinnings”, |
| 2 | dicere, et insidias Arrius hinsidias, | and for “ambush” “hambush”; |
| 3 | et tum mirifice sperabat se esse locutum, | and thought he had spoken marvellous well, |
| 4 | cum quantum poterat dixerat hinsidias. | whenever he said “hambush” with as much emphasis as possible. |
| 5 | credo, sic mater, sic liber auunculus eius. | So, no doubt, his mother had said, so his uncle the freedman, |
| 6 | sic maternus auus dixerat atque auia. | so his grandfather and grandmother on the mother’s side. |
| 7 | hoc misso in Syriam requierant omnibus aures | When he was sent into Syria, all our ears had a holiday; |
| 8 | audibant eadem haec leniter et leuiter, | they heard the same syllables pronounced quietly and lightly, |
| 9 | nec sibi postilla metuebant talia uerba, | and had no fear of such words for the future: |
| 10 | cum subito affertur nuntius horribilis, | when on a sudden a dreadful message arrives, |
| 11 | Ionios fluctus, postquam illuc Arrius isset, | that the Ionian waves, ever since Arrius went there, |
| 12 | iam non Ionios esse sed Hionios | are henceforth not “Ionian,” but “Hionian.” |
