From the readings and class discussions, know the following names and
terms:
Veranius
Fabullus
Memmius
Caesar
Cicero
Egnatius
Arrius
Auffilena
Juventius
Calvus
Cinna
lyric meters
hendecasyllable
dactylic hexameter
elegiac couplet
epigram/epigrammatic
epyllion
servitium amoris
persona
As you do your reading, consider the following questions:
1. What kind of attitude does Catullus have toward his friends? toward
his enemies? Are there any kinds of words, terms, or attitudes that
he associates with each of the two groups?
2. What are Catullus' standards for good poetry? How do
each of the poems in which he discusses poetry exemplify the standards
he sets for himself? Is there any connection between Catullus' attitude
to his poetry and to his life in general, at least as it is portrayed
in the poems?
3. How does Catullus portray himself in the poems on poetry?
in the epigrams? in the lyric poems? in the Lesbia poems? Is the picture
a unified one or not? To what extent is it real and to what extent is
it a persona?
4. How does Catullus define his feelings for Lesbia? What
words, images, or metaphors? What basis in the relationship does the
metaphor servitium amoris have? What non-erotic words does Catullus
use to explain his feelings about Lesbia? Why does he use them? What
satiric or epigrammatic elements can be found in the Lesbia poems?
5. Do you think Catullus could in reality have been as
innocent of Lesbia's true feelings as he says he was? In general, to
what extent do you think each of the Lesbia poems is an independent
and spontaneous outpouring of emotion and to what extent is the collection
a carefully calculated cycle and Catullus' personality in them a persona?
6. What is an epyllion? To what extent do Peoms 63-64
exhibit features of the epyllion? How does Catullus structure the longer
poems? What parallels are there between the characters in 63-64 and
the characters populating Catullus' shorter poems?
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