Wax or be damned May 24, 2008
But what is generally agreed, from Ovid to Lucretius to Catullus to Pausanius, is that the now genderless youths, known as galli (or, in Greek, galloi) lived and dressed thereafter as women, becoming Cybele's priestesses, presiding at her worship and at ritual orgies in her honour. This story might have nothing more than shock value, were it not for the obvious and unexplained feminisation of contemporary men. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Australia)
Books: Book review: August Kleinzahler's new book of poems, "Sleeping It Off in Rapid City" May 2, 2008
And his range of cultural reference - from Catullus to Custer, from Lorca to Eric Dolphy - is wide and artfully deployed. Rarely does high, learned poetic art sound this casual. (International Herald Tribune -- Arts)
Robert Fagles, esteemed translator of classics, dies at 74 Mar 29, 2008
Two years ago, his long-awaited edition of "The Aeneid" was released, a decade-long project for which Fagles whose specialty was Greek had to refresh himself on the Latin he learned in college, using grammar books, and the works of Catullus and Horace and other Roman writers. He was first diagnosed with cancer while working on "The Aeneid" and suffered from Parkinson's disease. (NJ.com -- News)
Falling in love with Love Songs Mar 27, 2008
" Taking his cue from Sokolovic's doves, director-designer Brent Krysa crafted a simple yet poetic staging involving bird cages, each of which contained an object that gave the singer just enough to do during a piece without distracting from the music and text. The Pandora-like box that Phillips opened in the beginning quietly transformed a misogynist myth into one that celebrates the braveness and exhilaration of female curiosity. The harrowing ending of the cycle - a setting of two poems by... (Globe and Mail -- Entertainment)
Dear Ma'am . . . Mar 3, 2008
"mulier cupido quod dicit amanti, in vento et rapida scribere oportet aqua." Catullus (Roman poet 84-54 BC) ("What a woman says to her avid lover should be written in wind and running water. ) Step 1: 2nd rate rock groupie; Step 2: 2nd rate model; Step 3: 2nd rate singer: now, Step 4: 2nd rate Princess Diana.Fernandez, San Francisco, USA/CA Have your say * Your ViewPlease note the maximum number of characters is 1000.* Name * Email* Town / CityCountry / State * Required FieldRemember me Also in... (Times Online)
Ruminating rude boy Feb 23, 2008
Dishearteningly presuming the reader's ignorance, Fig Tree's blurb informs us that Counting the Stars recounts "the mesmerising love story between real-life poet Catullus and his older, married mistress, Clodia". But one doesn't have to be a classicist to know who Catullus was, or even to know something about his poetry ... That's all anyone knows, however; his life remains a mystery, so Helen Dunmore has set out to bring Gaius Valerius Catullus to imaginative life. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
What we talk about when we talk about ... Feb 14, 2008
With the tormented poet Catullus as his guide, he went from Chekhov to Nabokov to Alice Munro and discovered that the greatest works depend on disappointment, boredom and broken hearts ... The Latin poet Catullus was the first poet in the ancient world to write about a personal love affair in an extended way ... Other poets treated the subject of "love", allowing the flushed cheeks or alabaster limbs of this or that inamorata to enter the frame of their poems, but it was Catullus who built his... (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Radio 4: In a class of its own Feb 8, 2008
As the Roman poet Catullus said: "I hate and I love; why I do so, you may well ask.". Lots of Radio 4 fans will confess the same. (Independent)
Robinson Jeffers: Peace Poet Dec 18, 2007
You are not Catullus, you know, To lampoon these crude sketches of Caesar. You are far From Dante s feet, but even farther from his dirty Political hatreds. (The American Conservative)
James Michie dies, aged 80 Nov 5, 2007
Other translations followed, among them the poems of Catullus, Euripides' Helen, poems from The Greek Anthology, Martial's Epigrams, Ovid's The Art of Love, and Virgil's Eclogues: a formidable tally. In 1973 came a high point of Michie's work as a translator, a selection of La Fontaine's fables. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
The Flea by John Donne Oct 2, 2007
Robin Hamilton, in his edition of Donne s Complete English Poems, notes that the tradition stretched back to a medieval poem, the Carmen de pulice , which was ascribed to the licentious Roman poet Catullus. French poems on the subject could make us of the pun between puce , a flea, and pucelage , virginity. (Suite101.com)
How to be a Latin lover Sep 25, 2007
The Greeks may have written wonderfully about desire, but Catullus was the first classical poet to write about the joy and heartbreak of relationships. And Ovid left us a detailed, scandalous, hilarious, cynical, explicit and still user-friendly handbook on how to go about finding, and keeping, the man or woman of our dreams. (Guardian Unlimited -- Books)
Author's works capture Turkey's past, present Jun 9, 2007
The Turks were to be taken seriously, as they were perched strategically and sensitively between the East and West, astride the Hellespont, the sea gateway to Russia, to the Caucasuses, and to ancient Pontus where Cicero, Catullus and Pliny the Younger once governed. Reading the books of Orhan Pamuk, a recent Nobel prize winner who writes in Turkish, I can see that Turkey has not changed that much since I was there. (Coos Bay-North Bend The World, OR)
Dive into 'Body Surfing' Apr 26, 2007
The family dog, Tullus (short for Catullus. trots down the boardwalk and plants himself directly below Jeff's hands. (USA Today -- Life)
For Girls, It’s Be Yourself, and Be Perfect, Too Apr 2, 2007
A few of the things she is: a standout in Advanced Placement Latin and honors philosophy/literature who can expound on the beauty of the subjunctive mood in Catullus and on Kierkegaard;s existential choices. A writer whose junior thesis for Advanced Placement history won Newton North;s top prize. (Foster's Daily Democrat)
Warning: Young Female Students Under Pressure Apr 1, 2007
" They burst out laughing. Esther and Colby are two of the amazing girls at Newton North High School here in this affluent suburb just outside Boston. "Amazing girls" translation: girls by the dozen who are high-achieving, ambitious and confident (if not immune to the usual adolescent insecurities and meltdowns). Girls who do everything: varsity sports, student government, theater, community service. Girls who have grown up learning they can do anything a boy can do, which is anything they want... (Tampa Bay Online, FL -- News)
Latin and the Catholic Church Mar 14, 2007
Learning Latin and reading all the great works, even non-religious works like Catullus is a great joy. Additionally, it helps you learn French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese as they are all based on Latin. (Sydney Morning Herald)
