Pyramus & Thisbe Grammar & Comp Flashcards
Who is iuvenum pulcherrimus? (55)
Pyramus, the most beautiful of all men
To whom does quas refer? (56)
All girls, puellis
What Latin noun does contiguas modify?
Domos
tenuere is a shortened poetic form. What is the full form (in Latin)? Provide another example from lines 55-80 of a shortened poetic form. (57)
Tenuerunt, another example is vetuerunt
What Latin noun does altam modify? What are some possible meanings of altam?
Urbem; lofty (famous, like NYC)
What did their nearness (vicinia, line 59) produce?
Their love
What is the subject of tegitur and aestuat (line 64)? In Latin and English. What adjective modifies this subject?
Their love, “ignis”
What is the subject (in Latin and English) of the verbs fissus erat, duxerat, and fieret (lines 65 and 66)?
The common wall
How is the rima (line 65) described in Latin and English?
Thin, “tenui”
How is the paries (line 66) described in Latin and English?
Common/shared, communis
In lines 68-69, Ovid uses second person plural verbs. Who (or what) is he addressing? Why?
He is addressing Pyramus and Thisbe. This is to emphasize that they are special.
Who or what is the subject of dicebant (line 73)?
The wall
Describe where Pyramus & Thisbe live. What are their houses like? Where are their houses located? What kind of city is it? What would this have meant to the ancient Roman reader?
They live in the Eastern world in adjacent houses in the lofty city of Semiramis. The city is a mystical place and it makes it a good setting for a fairytale.
What did their father’s forbid? What were they not able to forbid? What was the effect of this?
Their fathers forbid them from getting married, but couldn’t forbid them from loving each other in their minds. This made their love grow stronger.
What is a rima (line 65)? Describe this rima. What was its history?
A crack; it was thin and it was made when the common wall of their houses were built. For a long time it was not known by anyone.
What is the effect of the narrator’s sudden shift to second person verbs in lines 68 and 69?
It emphasizes that Pyramus and Thisbe are special, having been the only ones to notice the wall.
Describe the iter (line 69). What did it come from? What was it used for?
The iter is what allowed the two lovers to speak to one another, it was a crack from the wall which separated their houses. They used it to communicate.
What sounds are alliterated in line 70? What is the effect of this alliteration in terms of the themes of the poem?
M and s sound, this imitates the sound of murmuring and whispers, which would be Pyramus and Thisbe speaking to each other.
What is Ovid imagining in lines 73-77? Be specific.
Ovid is imagining that the wall isn’t there and the two being able to have their whole bodies be joined and to kiss.
How is the word order in line 78 a perfect construct for the situation described?
Emphasis, things are jumbled up and are not working for them. The ABBA word order is a way of showing this.
What is the definition of chiasmus? What is the definition of interlocked word order? How are they similar? How are they dissimilar? What effect do they have on the text?
Chiasmus is ABBA word order where the words match in an inner and outer pair. Interlocked word order is ABAB. They are similar in the sense that they use matching endings in pairs to create some sort of purposeful effect or image. They are different word orders.
