A Lesson Plan: Counting Kisses, A Lesson in Hyperbole

 

“Counting Kisses:”

A Lesson Plan in Hyperbole

Objective:

Students Will Be Able To:  analyze the hyperbolic trope of counting kisses in the poems of Catullus and Martial to infer some perspectives of Roman sexuality

Essential Questions

·         What is hyperbole?

·         Who was Catullus? What was his contribution to Roman literature?

·         Who was Martial? What was his contribution to Roman literature?

·         How do you count in Latin?

Do Roman poets use different imagery in erotic poetry to men vs. to women? 

LGBT Meets SPQR Lesson Plan 10: Counting Kisses, A Lesson in Hyperbole

From Sappho to Aphrodite: Fragments

Fragment LV (Cox 1925 version # 84)

Dormivi in somnis una cum Cypride

Προσελεξάμης όναρ κυπρογενεία

I have lain beside Aphrodite in dream...

Fragment XIII: (Cox 1925 version #56)

Sappho, cur omniopulentiam Venerem…?

Πσάπφοι τί τὰν πολύολβον Ἀφρόδιταν; 

Sappho, why does [no verb] many-gifted Venus?

 --Translated from the Greek by Johannis Christianus Wolfius

 

SAPPHO	MAP:
Name:  Σαπφώ / Sappho Date:  630 – 570 BCE Works:  <lost: only fragments remain>	REGION  5
BIO:	Timeline:
Sappho was universally applauded by the ancient world as the “Tenth Muse.” Because she was one of the earliest Greek lyric poets, there is very little definitive information on Sappho’s life.  It is generally agreed that Sappho was a wealthy noblewoman from the island of Lesbos who had three brothers and a daughter named Kleis. She used her prominent social position to support a cohort of other women artists, and composed many poems about them, expressing her love for them, praising their beauty, and celebrating their marriages. Whereas earlier Greek poetry was epic poetry with serious themes of gods, warfare, and the state, Sappho’s lyric poetry is emotional, intimate and personal. Her poetry centers around womanhood and womanly love, providing rare insight into social mores of the time period. The modern term “lesbian” (a woman who is attracted to another woman) reveals the longevity of her impact upon western culture [NOTE: Although “lesbian” is the accepted term in modern English, authors in the ancient world used a different word for a homosexual woman, and only occasionally used the term “lesbian” euphemistically]. Unfortunately, although her poetry was universally revered by the Greeks and Romans alike, Sappho’s works only exist as fragments, adding mysterious allure to her larger-than-life status but unfortunately hindering our understanding of her life and thoughts.	Archaic Greek

 

 

 

Muse & Love Combined: In Praise of Sappho, Greek Anthology XXVI.310

In imaginem Sapphus:

Ipsa tibi fingendi peritia Natura tradidit informandam

Mytilenaeam, o pictor, Pieridem.

Scaturit splendor in oculis: hoc autem aperte

monstrat imaginationem, plenam sollertiae.

Natura vero laevisque et non extra-modum efferens-se

caro subindicatam simplicitatem habet.

Simul autem ex hilari et ex intelligente vultu

Musam prodit Cypridi commixtam.

Αυτή σου πλάστειρα Φύσις παρέδωκε τυπώσαι

 την Μυτιληναίαν ζωγράφε Πιερίδα

Πηγάζει το διαυγές εν όμμασι τούτο δ εναργώς

δηλοί φαντασίην έμπλεον ευστοχίας

Αυτομάτως δ ομαλή τε και ού περίεργα κομώσα

σαρξ υποδεικνυμένην την αφέλειαν έχει

Αμμιγα δ εξ ιλαροίο και εκ νοεροίο προσώπου

Μούσαν απαγγέλλει Κύπριοι μιγνυμένην

-- Damocharis, Greek Anthology XXVI.310; translated into Latin by Hugo Grottius

O artist,

The expert craftsman Nature herself

has presented to you

the Lesbian Muse, Sappho.

The sparkle of her eye clearly reveals

her soul brimming with creativity.

We see her carefree nature and self confident body language

from her cheerful and intelligent expression:

the artist reveals a Muse "mixed with*"  Venus.  

The poet deliberately uses the sexually charged word μιγνυμένην [commixtam] to show Sappho in a relationship with the goddess Venus.

DAMOCHARIS	MAP:
Name:  Damocharis Date:  5th – 6th c. CE Works:  Greek Anthology	REGION  5
BIO:	Timeline:
Little is known about the poet Damocharis except that he lived in Cos during the late 5th through early 6th century CE. Only a handful of his poems are preserved in the Greek Anthology; nothing else of his is still extant.	BYZANTINE / LATE GREEK LITERATURE

GREEK ANTHOLOGY	MAP:
Name:  ???? Date:  Works:  Greek Anthology; Anthologia Graeca; Florilegii Graecii	REGION  UNKNOWN
BIO:	Timeline:
The Greek Anthology is a modern collection of Greek lyric poetry compiled from various sources over the course of Greco-Roman literature. The current collection was created from two major sources, one from the 10th century CE and one from the 14th century CE. The anthology contains authors spanning the entirety of Greek literature, from archaic poets to Byzantine Christian poets.	BBYZANTINE / LATE GREEK LITERATURE

A Man Reborn: The Rebirth of Hippolytus [Ovid, Fasti VI.732-756]

 Hanc quoque cum patriis Galatea receperit undis,

plenaque securae terra quietis erit,

surgit humo iuvenis telis adflatus avitis,               735

     et gemino nexas porrigit angue manus.

notus amor Phaedrae, nota est iniuria Thesei:

     devovit natum credulus ille suum.

non impune pius iuvenis Troezena petebat:

     dividit obstantes pectore taurus aquas.               740

solliciti terrentur equi, frustraque retenti

     per scopulos dominum duraque saxa trahunt.

exciderat curru, lorisque morantibus artus

     Hippolytus lacero corpore raptus erat,

reddideratque animam, multum indignante Diana.               745

     'nulla' Coronides 'causa doloris' ait:

'namque pio iuveni vitam sine volnere reddam, 

    et cedent arti tristia fata meae.'

gramina continuo loculis depromit eburnis:

     profuerant Glauci manibus illa prius,                750

tum cum observatas augur descendit in herbas,

     usus et auxilio est anguis ab angue dato.

pectora ter tetigit, ter verba salubria dixit:

     depositum terra sustulit ille caput.

lucus eum nemorisque sui Dictynna recessu               755

     celat: Aricino Virbius ille lacu.

--Ovid, Fasti VI.732-756

The same day that Galatea welcomes in her father’s waves,

When the earth lies quiet and full of peace,

A youth rises from the earth, struck down by his grandfather’s weapons,

Extending his hands bound by twin serpents.

We all know the tale of Phaedra’s lust and Theseus’ wrongdoing,

When he, bamboozled, condemned his own son [to die].

The youth, pious in vain, did not reach Troezen.

A bull rose up from the waves; this spooked the lad’s terrified horses,

and they dragged their master, still clutching the reins,

Through rocky craigs and rough terrain.

He fell from the chariot, and snatched up by the reins tangled in his limbs,

Hippolytus’ body was mangled…

Overwhelmed with grief, Diana restored him to life.

Asclepius said, “There is no need to grieve,

For I shall restore the pious youth to life—every wound removed—

The wretched Fates shall yield to my healing art!”

From an ivory cabinet he started to pull medicines,

The kind that had previously benefited Glaucus,

When the prophet found the aforementioned herb

that a snake had used to cure another snake.

Three times Asclepius touched the youth’s breast,

Three times he spoke a healing spell,

And then the youth raised his head up

From the ground.

A grove now conceals him in woods

Where Dictynna haunts.

That man—a man reborn [Virbius]—now dwells in Aricia’s lake.

OVID	MAP:
Name: Publius Ovidius Naso   Date:  43 BCE – 18 CE Works:  Ars Amatoria                Metamorphoses*               Tristia, etc.	REGION  1
BIO:	Timeline:
Ovid was one of the most famous love poets of Rome’s Golden Age. His most famous work, the Metamorphoses, provides a history of the world through a series of interwoven myths. Most of his poetry is erotic in nature; for this reason, he fell into trouble during the conservative social reforms under the reign of the emperor Augustus. In 8 CE he was banished to Bithynia, where he spent the remainder of his life pining for his native homeland.	GOLDEN AGE ROME

Publilius Syrus on Women: A selection of Sententiae

The sententiae (maxims) of Publilius Syrus show some perspectives of women in Roman society:

* Adulter est uxoris amator acrior.

A person who actually loves their wife is an adulterer.

* Aperte mala cum est mulier, tum demum est bona.

When a woman is openly wicked, she is finally good.

* Aut amat aut odit mulier, nil est tertium.

A woman either loves or hates; there is no alternative.

* Casta ad virum matrona parendo imperat.

A chaste wife rules over her husband by obeying him.

* Didicere flere feminae in mendacium.

Women learn to use weeping deceptively.

* Feminae naturam regere desperare est otium.

To control a woman’s nature is to give up hope of a life of leisure.

* Malo in consilio feminae vincunt viros.

Women are better than men at making evil plots.

*Mulier quae multis nubit, multis non placet.

A woman who weds many, will not please any.

*Muliebris lacrima condimentum est malitiae.

A woman’s tears are icing on the cake of her evil ways.

*Muneribus non lacrimis meretrix est misericors.

A mistress respects your money, not your feelings.

* Muliebre est furere in ira.

It’s effeminate to have a meltdown when you’re mad.

 

--Publilius Syrus, Sententiae (selections)

Publilius Syrus	MAP:
Name:  Publilius Syrus Date:  1st c. BCE Works:  Sententiae	REGION  4
BIO:	Timeline:
Publilius Syrus was a famous performer of Golden Age Rome. Although he entered Rome a slave from Syria, he was quickly freed due to his talent and became one of the foremost mime artists of his age. The corpus of moral sayings (Sententiae) attributed to him continued to grow after his death, with later authors adding their own contributions to the collection.	GOLDEN AGE ROME

Bringing Home A Gold Medal: Cynisca, Princess of Sparta [Greek Anthology 13.16]

In Praise of Cynisca 

Name:  Unknown Date:     Unknown Region:    Unknown Citation:    Greek Anthology 13.16

My forefathers and brothers were Kings of Sparta,

I, Cynisca, erect this monument

In my chariot-racing victory.

Of all the women in Greece,

I alone can say that I brought home the prize.

 

Σπάρτας μὲν βασιλῆες ἐμοὶ πατέρες καὶ ἀδελφοί- ἅρμασι δ’ ὠκυπόδων ἵππων νικῶσα Κυνίσκα εἰκόνα τάνδ’ ἔστησα. Μόναν δέ με φαμὶ γυναικῶν Ἑλλάδος ἐκ πάσας τόνδε λαβεῖν στέφανον.

Spartae quidem reges mei patres et fratres, curribusque velocipedum equorum vincens Cynisca imaginem hanc erexi. Solam autem me aio mulierum Hellade ex omni hanc reportasse coronam. Translated into Latin by Johann Friedrich Duebner

M/M: Equal in Love and Arms, Achilles & Patroclus, Greek Anthology vii.143

Foedere amicitiae* par nobile nec minus armis,

Aeacide salve, tuque, Menoetiade.

 

Ανδρε δύω φιλότητι και εν τεύχεσσιν αρίστω

χαίρετον Αιακίδη και συ Μενοιτιάδη

--Greek Anthology vii.143, translated by Hugo Grotius

Greetings Achilles & you too, Patroclus,

equals in love and no less so in war.

* the translator here chose to translate φιλότητι with a line reminiscent of Catullus' famous line CIX.6: foedus amicitiae

<Anonymous>	MAP:
Name:  ???? Date:  Works:  Greek Anthology; Anthologia Graeca; Florilegii Graecii	REGION  UNKNOWN
BIO:	Timeline:
The Greek Anthology is a modern collection of Greek lyric poetry compiled from various sources over the course of Greco-Roman literature. The current collection was created from two major sources, one from the 10th century CE and one from the 14th century CE. The anthology contains authors spanning the entirety of Greek literature, from archaic poets to Byzantine Christian poets.	Byzantine Greek

M/M: Achilles & Patroclus, Together in the Tomb: Greek Anthology

 Patroclus hic situs est, tumulo quoque iunctus Achilli,

Quem Mars ipse manu perculit Hectorea.

Πατρόκλου τάφος ούτος ομου δ Αχιλή τέθαπται 

ον κτάνεν ωκύς Αρης Εκτορος έν παλάμαις.

--Mantissa Secunda de Graecis Heroibus, compiled & translated by Henricus Stephanus #6

Here lies Patroclus, joined with Achilles in the tomb,

whom Mars himself smote through the hands of Hector. 

<Anonymous>

<Anonymous>	MAP:
Name:  ???? Date:  Works:  Greek Anthology; Anthologia Graeca; Florilegii Graecii	REGION  UNKNOWN
BIO:	Timeline:
The Greek Anthology is a modern collection of Greek lyric poetry compiled from various sources over the course of Greco-Roman literature. The current collection was created from two major sources, one from the 10th century CE and one from the 14th century CE. The anthology contains authors spanning the entirety of Greek literature, from archaic poets to Byzantine Christian poets.	Byzantine Greek

W/W: Nannion & Bitto, Greek Anthology v.207

 TRIGGER WARNING: male Greco-Roman authors often slandered women with non-heteronormative lifestyles

Nannion & Bitto Samiae celebrare recusant

Legibus his Venerem, quas Venus ipsa dedit,

Et cupiunt quae [non bona sunt], tu fugitivas

Detestare tui foederis alma Venus.

Αι Σάμιαι Βιττό και Νάννιον εις Αφροδίτης 

Φοιταν τους αυτής ουκ εθέλουσι νόμοις 

Εις δ έτερ αυτoμoλoύσιν ά μη καλά δεσπότι Κύπρι 

Μίσει τας κοίτας τας παρά σοι φυγάδας.

--Asclepiades, in Greek Anthology v.207; translated into Latin by Hugo Grotius

Nannion & Bitto from Samos refuse to follow the laws of Venus

that the goddess herself has decreed,

and instead want to do things [that are not good].

Blessed Venus, look down with hatred

on those who avoid your rules!

Name:  Asclepiades of Samos Date:  3rd c. BCE Works:  [fragments included in the Greek Anthology]	REGION  5
BIO:	Timeline:
Asclepiades of Samos was a Greek lyric poet from the 3rd century BCE. His works are preserved in the Greek Anthology, a collection of Greek lyric poetry that spans numerous genres, topics, and authors.	HELLENISTIC