Tibullus 1.1 Flashcards
congerat…teneat
may (…) assemble… and hold
iussive subjunctives. Prayer-like. Suggests prayer as much as command.
Divitias… whole line… auro
greed surrounds this line
alius
someone
impersonal- refers to everyone, but its singular so suggests he has a specific example in mind
has the same root as ‘suos’- anticipates ‘fulvo’
iugera
plots
a word more to do with wealth
labor assiduus
constant toil
this is vivid personification - the work is being feared.
Quasi-militaristic tone
vicinus
lurking in the vicinity
jusxtaposed next to assiduus- emphasises etymological pun.
Martia Classica
Mars’ trumpets
personification shows integrity of Roman religion
somnos
sleep
its plural- sleeps
shows repeated action
pulsa fugent
sleep flees when Mars’ trumpets blare
Drawing a division between the rich and the poor. The poor are not afraid of work, but they’re not excited for war. For the rich it is the opposite
Me mea…meus
may (poverty provide) me … within MY hearth
Repetition. Turns all description to him. no more generalisation.
vita inerti
idle life
leisurely life of the country
traducat
provide me with
Passivity. Contrast with iussive subjunctive ‘congerate’ in line 1
assiduo igne
steady fire
he is miss-led by poverty- it will not be a steady road.
He talks about the comforts of a fire, not the hardships of labouring in the countryside.
igne
fire
Fire = life’s driving force and centrality
seram
plant
future/optative?
Prayer seems less definite
teneras
tender
elegaic word that he’s managed to fit in here, talking about vines.
grandia poma
tall fruit trees
poma = regular word for these fruit trees grandia = the tree is so big and productive that it must be god blessed
Spes
Goddess of Hope
destituat
plant
word often used in military metaphor
frugum semper acervos
always send stacked crops
this shows a contrast between the type of wealth wished for by Tibullus (i.e.that of a farmer) and that of the rich men in the first lines.
Pracebeat et pleno pinguia
and I pray fill my fats with juice from bursting grapes
plosive alliteration. Emphasises plentiful nature of his crops.
Nam
For
Conjunction at beginning of line. Moves poem along, changes subject to WHY Tibullus deserves these things
stipes desertus
lonely tree stumps
how you prayed to Terminus, god of boundaries.
stipes…desertus…vetus…lapis…
tree stumps… lonely…weathered… stone
adjectives suggest nostalgia and a faraway world.
trivio
crossroad
more common place for an altar
et quodcumque
and whatever..
suggests Tibullus will be grateful with ‘whatever’ hes given
pomum
fruit
picks up on line 8 where poma = fruit trees that Tibullus is planting. Shows progression through the poem.
novus annus
new year
new year, new hope: new production of crops
educat
(the new year) produces
A word used to talk about ‘raising’ a child, or educating a person. He sees the production of his crops as a worthwhile and important venture.
libatum agricolam ponitur ante deum
as a gift before the farmer god
libatum at start of line to show the importance and depth of his dedication to the gods.
Libatum also literally comes before the gods in the line.
‘farmer god’ is left very vague- so as to gain favour of any gods?
ante deum: literally infront of the staute/shrine.
Flava Ceres
golden ceres
natural epithet for Ceres.
implicitly contrasts ‘fulvo’ in first line, even looks a bit like it.
sit…pendeat
may my… be hung for you
use of subjunctives again = wishful thinking
nostro de rure
mine from the country
Temple is likely in the city
corona spicea
cornhusk crown
crown of grain spikes-
Pliny - earliest garland used
Pomosisque
and fruitful…
Same word for third time in poem.
Fruity
progression
ruber
red
red used to paint statues
red = blood -> fertility, or war and death
Priapus
Fertility god and chief Roman garden divinity
felicis
prosperous
rich/productive = fortunate
quondam, nunc
once, now
juxtaposition of time frames contrast btwn past and present
Custodes, fertis munera vestra, Lares
Guardians, your fertile lands rendered, Lares
Guardians of the crossroads (in part), position surrounding line suggests their full immersion in the festivities of compitalia.
Guarding the line?
Tunc…
Nunc….
then…
now…
Contrast at start of lines. Contrast between then and now
agna…agna
lamb lamb
repetition
pathos? Little lamb is dying :/
exigui soli
meagre soil
contrast to previous dream of large fields.
agna cadet vobis
the lamb will die for you
sacrifice similar to that made in war?
iam modo, iam
if only now, now
progression of time- contrast between past and present beforehand, now clearly cemented in talking about the present.
deditus given (to long journeys)
military term.
to ‘surrender’ oneself to long marches is to to give oneself over to the enemy.
Perhaps his previous ambitions have led to his current circimstances?
longae viae
long trips
Common Tibullan euphemism for travel.
Travel for military/commercial purposes.
via - connotations of separation, insecurity and desire. Common in poetry and constant in elegy
Canis
Dog Star
Avoiding the heat of the Dog Star is commonplace in latin poetry.
Associated with the creative impala and retreat from life’s pressures.
Emblematic of the vita iners
Contentus
happy now
pun
he describes surrendering to army marches etc, as negative, but is happy to be held prisoner by the shade.
rivos
brook
plural. Makes the action habitual
same for ‘ortus’ (rising)
interdum
at times
postulates only spurts of activity
nec tamen,
and not however
abrupt, sparks reader’s imagination
pudeat
ashamed
indicated revulsion overcome
stimulo tardes increpuisse
to scold reluctant (cattle) with a prod
a typically challenging verbal usage.
increpuisse implies entirely verbal coercion of the cows, stimulo carries this through to actions, which Tibullus isn’t quite as at home with.
Desertum
abandoned
whole line compares to Eclogues, where farmer leaves a forgotten lamb because he is leaving the pastoral landscape entirely. Tibullus’ word choice suggests that it was mistakenly abandoned, where Virgil used ‘religuit’, which suggests more deliberate abandonment
at vos exiguo pecori, fureaque lupique,
Parcite: de magno
and all you wolves and robbers, spare my meagre flock….
direct adress- command,angry.
the contrast returns to the opening lines.
wolves and robbers represent the biggest threat to a farmer from both the human and bestial worlds.
hic ego pastoremque meum lustrare quotannis
i purify my shepherds in this place every year
with the threat of wolves and robbers gone, Tib can now also perform the other duties of a landowner. Now in the vivid present.
Pales
early italic pastoral divinity. Her feast was Parilia- April 21st, trad. foundation day of Rome.
Pliny- milk and oil were her libations, rather than wine
Et placidam soleo spargere lacte Palem
and sprinkle gentle pales with some milk
sibilance - like sprinkling.
only a goddess so ‘calmed’ can willingly make the fields so productive.
Adsitis divi
gods be with me
Regular, ritualistic invitation by summary prayer
paupere mensa
humble table
poor in wealth, not spirit
Mensa here is the sacrificial table
puris fictilibus
clean earthenware
puris = pure, parallel to paupere, OR clean/ pure. Both a reflection on Tibullus and his way of life
