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5

ah ego non aliter tristes evincere morbos

optarim, quam te si quoque velle putem. at mihi quid prosit morbos evincere, si tu nostra potes lento pectore ferre mala?

13

Nulla tuum nobis subducet femina lectum : hoc primum iuncta est foedere nostra Venus.

11. 5. at F Ha A Ah V an Cartault cum w. quid A quod w.

2. quod . . . vexat: the reason is Sulpicia's; perhaps Cerinthus does not know the situation. calor: fever.'

3. non aliter: 'under no other conditions.'

4. optarim. . . putem: a mere possibility. -te... velle note the emphatic position of the subject.

6. lento: cf. 2, 6, 36, n. He would surely be a lover 'slow of heart' that would not be moved by such an appeal as this!

4, 13

Addressed to an unknown lady, possibly the 'Glycera' mentioned by Horace, Car. 1, 33, 1-3: Albi, ne doleas plus nimio memor inmitis Glycerae, neu miserabilis decantes elegos.

The perfection of form, the characteristic mannerisms and sentiments, and the beautiful simplicity and intensity of its spirit of devotion, mark it as a certainly

si w.

(Cf.

genuine poem of Tibullus. Magnus in Bursian's JB., Vol. 51 (1887), p. 359. For the opposite view cf. Postgate, Sel., Appendix C.) The composite character and authorship of this fourth book of the Tibullus collection permits us only to conjecture to what original series of elegies this gem may have belonged.

1-4: 'Thou only in my eyes art fair. 5-16: May thy beauty not appeal to others; my love needs not the stimulus of envy; thou art my all in all - SO swear I by great Juno. 17-24: Foolish oath! Henceforth I'm at thy mercy. Yet will I ever faithful be, and pray for Venus's favor.'

I. subducet: steal away.'. lectum i.e. amorem. Cf. the similar use of λέχος and λέκτρον by the Greeks for 'wife'; this same form of usage occurs, e.g. 29 times in the Helena of Euripides.

2. iuncta est: cf. 1, 1, 69.

5

10

tu mihi sola places, nec iam te praeter in urbe
formosa est oculis ulla puella meis.
atque utinam posses uni mihi bella videri!

displiceas aliis: sic ego tutus ero.

nil opus invidia est, procul absit gloria vulgi :
qui sapit, in tacito gaudeat ille sinu.
sic ego secretis possum bene vivere silvis,
qua nulla humano sit via trita pede.
tu mihi curarum requies, tu nocte vel atra
lumen, et in solis tu mihi turba locis.
nunc licet e caelo mittatur amica Tibullo,
mittetur frustra, deficietque Venus.'

13. 8. ille w ipse 0.

3. Cf. Prop. 2, 7, 19: tu mihi sola places: placeam tibi, Cynthia, solus; Ovid, A. A. 1, 42: elige cui dicas tu mihi sola places.'

4. formosa: cf. Cat. 86. 6. sic only in that case.'. ero: the rapid increase of hope, as Tibullus dwells on the thought, is expressed by the changing tenses and moods: posses (impossible), displiceas (possible), ero (probable, taken for granted).

7. opus: sc. mihi. - gloria : Sc. tua.

8. Cf. Prop. 2, 25, 30: in tacito cohibe gaudia clausa sinu; Némethy, pp. 297, 339.

9. sic: i.e. if safe in the possession of thy love.

11. Cf. Prop. I, II, 23-24; Hom. I. 6, 429-430: Ἕκτορ, ἀτὰρ σύ μοί ἐσσι πατὴρ καὶ πότνια μήτηρ,

ἠδὲ κασίγνητος, σὺ δέ μοι θαλερός παρακοίτης

66

A similar mood appears in Shakespeare, Sonnets, 91: Thy love is better than high birth to me, Richer than wealth, prouder than garments' cost, Of more delight than hawks or horses be; And having thee, of all men's pride I boast." 43: "All days are nights to see till I see thee, And nights bright days when dreams do show thee me." I12: "You are my all the world."

13. e caelo i.e. even a goddess. Tibullo: the use of his own name emphasizes the contrast between his humble self (poor Tibullus) and the divine mistress from the skies. Cf. Hor. Sat. 2, 1, 18: Flacci verba per attentam non ibunt Caesaris

aurem.

15

hoc tibi sancta tuae Iunonis numina iuro,

20

quae sola ante alios est mihi magna deos. quid facio demens? heu heu mea pignora cedo. iuravi stulte: proderat iste timor.

nunc tu fortis eris, nunc tu me audacius ures:

hoc peperit misero garrula lingua malum.

iam faciam quodcumque voles, tuus usque manebo,
nec fugiam notae servitium dominae,

sed Veneris sanctae considam vinctus ad aras.
haec notat iniustos supplicibusque favet.

15. hoc A hec V.

-

15. Iunonis: cf. 4, 6, 1, n. numina: the omission of per occurs mostly in the poets.

17. pignora: i.e. iste timor of v. 18 (that anxiety of yours' for fear of losing my affection), which acts as a safeguard to your constancy.

19. nunc: 'now' that I have declared myself thus.

23. vinctus as a willing slave. 24. notat: cf. 1, 8, 5: ipsa Venus magico religatum bracchia nodo perdocuit multis non sine verberibus.

PROPERTIUS MSS. SIGNS

N = Codex Neapolitanus (or Guelferbytanus).
A = Codex Vossianus (ends with 2, 1, 63).

F

L

V

0

=

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: Codex Laurentianus (or Florentinus).

Codex Holkhamicus (begins with 2, 21, 3).
Codex Daventriensis (begins with 1, 2, 14).

= : Codex Ottoboniano-Vaticanus.

= consensus of the foregoing, as a rule, of all, so far as extant.

N1, N2, N3, N4, A1, A2, etc., the 1st, 2d, 3d, etc., hands in the respective Mss.

W = late or inferior Mss., or corrections.

SEXTI PROPERTI

ELEGIARVM

LIBER PRIMVS

I

Cynthia prima suis miserum me cepit ocellis, contactum nullis ante cupidinibus.

tum mihi constantis deiecit lumina fastus

I, I

Apparently written as an introduction to this "Cynthia Monobiblos."

1-8: Cynthia was the first woman to bring me to her feet. 9-18: Milanion won Atalanta by persistence and by enduring hardships for her sake; but Cupid has failed to teach me to succeed. 19-28: I would resort to anything to rid myself of my anguish, magic rites to win the affections of my mistress, or heroic treatment to be free from her power. 29-38: Bear me away, friends, where no woman can ever come; remain, you who are well matched, but see that you escape the torture under which I suffer, or you will wish you had heeded my warnings!'

Note the riming endings of

the two halves of vv. 1, 6, 7, 8, 12, etc.; for other metrical features cf. Intr. § 42.

1. Cynthia: cf. Intr. § 33.

This first word furnishes a correct keynote to the whole book. prima: only in the usual sense of lover's protestations; cf. 3, 15, 3-6. Propertius, however, doubtless never had been so completely enthralled by any other mistress. oculis; not at all a fond lover's diminutive; Propertius is not in a flattering mood. 2. ante: used as an adjective. Cf. 1, 22, 2, n.

- ocellis

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3-4 Cupid is represented as engaging in an actual struggle with the poet, as in an arena, wherein the victor's success is marked by the actions indicated by deiecit and pressit. - constantis

fastus: gen. of description; his former pride is now broken.

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