Catullus 85 Explained

Catullus 85 is a poem by the Roman poet Catullus for his lover Lesbia. Its declaration of conflicting feelings, "I hate and I love", is renowned for its drama, force and brevity.^[1] The meter of the poem is the elegiac couplet.

Text

Ōdī et amō. Quārē id faciam fortasse requīris.Nesciŏ, sed fierī sentiō et excrucior.^[2] I hate and I love. Why I do this, perhaps you ask.I know not, but I feel it happening and I am tortured.

– u u / – – / – u u / – – / – u u / – – Ōd'et a / mō. Quā / r'id faci / am for / tasse re / quīris.   – u u / – u u / – / – u u / – u u / – Nesciŏ, / sed fie / rī / sen ti' et / ex cru ci / or.^[3]

Musical settings

• "Odi et amo", No. 19 of Moralia by Jacobus Gallus
• "Odi et amo", part of Catulli Carmina by Carl Orff
• "Odi et amo" by Jóhann Jóhannsson's album Englabörn
• "Wrecking Ball" (Miley Cyrus), adaptation with Catullus 85 by Eric Whitacre, performed by Eric Whitacre Singers and Marius Beck; performed live and recorded at the 2014 iTunes Festival in London
• Iarba & Cox - Keed
• "I Hate and I Love" 1981 cantata for mixed chorus an percussion by Dominick Argento

Notes and References

1. https://www.ancient-literature.com/rome_catullus_85.html "Odi et amo (Catullus 85)"
2. Book: https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0003%3Apoem%3D85. C. Valerius Catullus. Carmina. Poem 85. Leonard C. Smithers. Perseus Project. 18 February 2019.
3. Book: Kitchell . Kenneth F. Jr. . Smith . Sean . 2006 . Catullus: A Legamus Transitional Reader . xxix . 978-0-86516-634-9 . April 17, 2006.