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Catullus 45

Acme and Septimius are in love and it's hard to tell who is more devoted to whom. It's all the same to Amor, however, just so long as they love.

Click on the words in the poem below to get vocabulary information.

Please, if you see errors, let me know about them so I can fix them!

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Acmen Septimius suos amores
tenens in gremio 'mea' inquit 'Acme,
ni te perdite amo atque amare porro
omnes sum assidue paratus annos,
quantum qui pote plurimum perire,.............................5
solus in Libya Indiaque tosta
caesio veniam obvius leoni.'
hoc ut dixit, Amor sinistra ut ante
dextra sternuit approbationem.
....at Acme leviter caput reflectens............................10
et dulcis pueri ebrios ocellos
illo purpureo ore suaviata,
'sic' inquit 'mea vita, Septimille,
huic uni domino usque serviamus,
ut multo mihi maior acriorque...................................15
ignis mollibus ardet in medullis.'
hoc ut dixit, Amor sinistra ut ante
dextra sternuit approbationem.
....nunc ab auspicio bono profecti
mutuis animis amant amantur....................................20
unam Septimius misellus Acmen
mavult quam Syrias Britanniasque:
uno in Septimio fidelis Acme
facit delicias libidinesque.
quis ullos homines beatiores...................................225
vidit, quis Venerem auspicatiorem?

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Meter: hendecasyllabics.
1. Acmen: Greek Accusative for woman's name, Acme; 
Septimius: the boyfriend's name; 
amores: in apposition with Acmen; take with suos, "his girlfriend/lover"
5. quantum...perire: "just as much as he who is able to be desperately in love".
8. Amor: the god of Love.
13. Septimille: Vocative diminutive of Septimius, "my little Septimius".
15. ut: "as".
22. mavult: present 3rd plural from malo.
24. facit delicias: as Garrison says, "takes her pleasure"
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last updated October 17, 2003
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