Nūllī sē dīcit mulier mea nūbere mālle
quam mihi, nōn sī sē Iuppiter ipse petat.
Dīcit: sed mulier cupidō quod dīcit amantī,
in ventō et rapidā scrībere oportet aquā.
notes
Lesbia has made a bold promise to Catullus, invoking the almighty Jupiter to emphasize the extent of her devotion, but Catullus, along with us the readers, soon discovers that her declaration was just a lie that changed as fast as the waters and the winds. As this poem reveals, Lesbia can both enchant and destroy Catullus with only her words.
Meter: Elegiac Couplets.
1: Nūllī: dative singular after nūbere. dīcit: introduces indirect statement (sē…mālle) (AG §579); the verb is critical to the poem and Catullus repeats it for emphasis in line 3. mulier mea: “my woman” or even “my wife”; in the polymetrics Catullus often refers to Lesbia as mea puella (Cf. 2.1 and 3.3).
2: petat: “(Jupiter) should seek”; present subjunctive in a future less vivid condition (AG §516.b).
3: cupidō…amantī: “to a desirous lover”; dative singular. quod: “that which” or “what”; direct objective (accusative singular) of dīcit.
4: oportet: “it is fitting” + infinitive (AG §455.2).
vocabulary
nūbō nūbere nūpsī nūptum: get married
Iuppiter Iovis m.: Jupiter or Zeus, chief of the Olympian gods; by metonymy, the weather, wind, sky
cupidus –a –um: desirous, eager
amāns –antis: sweetheart, lover
rapidus –a –um: strongly flowing, swiftly moving, rapid; scorching, consuming