The Student's Catullus

Though his audacious erotic and satrical verses survived the Middle Ages in only a single copy, Catullus has become in this century a standard author in the college Latin curriculum, ranking with Virgil, Horace, and Ovid. This new, annotated Latin edition now makes these famous poems more accessible than ever to students of Catullus' own language. The Student's Catullus places its emphasis on understanding the original Latin text rather than merely translating it into English. A complete Latin-English vocabulary explains the meaning of Catullus' words; notes to each poem illuminate the meaning of his language, with explanations of word choice, word order, sound effects, and metric artistry. Historical and literary allusions are also explained, with the result that students enter deeper into the poet's world than the best English translation can suggest. The Student's Catullus makes it clear why we still read Catullus in Latin.