- Source
- Ovid. P. Ovidius Naso, Volume 1: Amores, Epistulae, Medicamina faciei femineae, Ars amatoria, Remedia amoris. Ehwald, Rudolf; Merkel, Rudolph; editors. Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1907.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:latinLit:phi0959.phi001.humanitext-lat2:2.1.1-2.1.38
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-27
The poet explains how he once attempted an epic on the Gigantomachy but returned to love poetry (elegy) after his mistress shut her door, concluding that singing of mythological heroes is useless compared to the practical reward of praising a girl's beauty.
Hoc quoque conposui Paelignis natus aquosis,
This also I composed, born in the well-watered Pelignian country,
Ille ego nequitiae Naso1 poeta meae.
I, that famous Naso, the poet of my own naughtiness.
Hoc quoque iussit Amor — procul hinc, procul este, severae!
This too Love commanded — far from here, be far away, grave women!
Non estis teneris apta theatra modis.
You are not a suitable audience for tender measures.
Me legat in sponsi facie non frigida virgo,
Let the maiden read me who is not cold at the sight of her betrothed,
Et rudis ignoto tactus amore puer;
and the untutored boy touched by an unknown love;
Atque aliquis iuvenum quo nunc ego saucius arcu
and may some youth, wounded by the same bow by which I am now wounded,
Agnoscat flammae conscia signa suae,
recognize the signs that share the secret of his own flame,
Miratusque diu 'quo' dicat 'ab indice doctus
and, having long wondered, let him say, ‘Taught by what informer
Conposuit casus iste poeta meos?'
did that poet compose my own misfortunes?’
Ausus eram, memini, caelestia dicere bella
I had dared, I remember, to tell of celestial wars
Centimanumque Gyen — et satis oris erat2 —
and hundred-handed Gyas — and I had voice enough for it —
Cum male se Tellus ulta est,3 ingestaque Olympo
when Earth took ill-fated vengeance for herself, and steep Ossa
Ardua devexum Pelion Ossa tulit.
bore sloping Pelion piled upon Olympus.
In manibus nimbos et cum Iove fulmen habebam,
In my hands I was holding storm-clouds and the lightning-bolt along with Jove,
Quod bene pro caelo mitteret ille suo —
which he might well hurl in defense of his own heaven —
Clausit amica fores! ego cum Iove fulmen omisi;
my mistress closed her doors! I let go of the lightning-bolt along with Jove;
Excidit ingenio Iuppiter ipse meo.
Jove himself slipped from my genius.
Iuppiter, ignoscas! nil me tua tela iuvabant;
Forgive me, Jove! Your weapons were of no help to me;
Clausa tuo maius ianua fulmen habet.4
a closed door holds a greater thunderbolt than yours.
Blanditias elegosque levis, mea tela, resumpsi;
I took up again flattery and light elegies, my own weapons;
Mollierunt duras lenia verba fores.
gentle words softened the hard doors.
Carmina sanguineae deducunt cornua lunae,
Songs draw down the horns of the blood-red moon,
Et revocant niveos solis euntis equos;
and recall the snowy horses of the departing sun;
Carmine dissiliunt abruptis faucibus angues,
by song, snakes burst asunder, their jaws split open,
Inque suos fontes versa recurrit aqua.
and water turned backward runs back to its own sources.
Carminibus cessere fores, insertaque posti,
To songs doors have yielded, and the bolt inserted in the post,
Quamvis robur erat, carmine victa sera est.
though it was of oak, was conquered by song.
Quid mihi profuerit velox cantatus Achilles?
What use to me will swift Achilles sung be?
Quid pro me Atrides alter et alter agent,
What will the one and the other son of Atreus do for me,
Quique tot errando, quot bello, perdidit annos,
and he who lost as many years in wandering as in war,
Raptus et Haemoniis flebilis Hector equis?
and lamentable Hector dragged by Haemonian horses?
At facie tenerae laudata saepe puellae,
But when the beauty of a tender girl is often praised,
Ad vatem, pretium carminis, ipsa venit.
she herself comes to the poet, as the reward of the song.
Magna datur merces! heroum clara valete
A great reward is given! Farewell, famous names of heroes;
Nomina; non apta est gratia vestra mihi!
your favor is not suited to me!
Ad mea formosos vultus adhibete, puellae,
Turn your beautiful faces to my songs, girls,
Carmina, purpureus quae mihi dictat Amor!
songs which purple Love dictates to me!
- 2.1.2Naso
The poet's own cognomen, Naso (Publius Ovidius Naso), placed in apposition with the first-person pronoun ille ego ('I, that famous...'), blending third-person self-reference with immediate personal presence.
- 2.1.12et satis oris erat
The genitive of os (mouth, face). Here, it metaphorically means 'breath/voice' sufficient for epic poetry, but also carries the connotation of 'boldness' or 'impudence' (cheek) in daring to write about such a grand celestial war.
- 2.1.13cum male se Tellus ulta est
The adverb male here functions as 'badly', 'to her own hurt', or 'fruitlessly'. It describes the Gigantomachy where Earth (Tellus) gave birth to the Giants to avenge herself on the gods, an attempt that ended in ruin.
- 2.1.20Clausa tuo maius ianua fulmen habet
The comparative adjective maius modifies fulmen. tuo is an ablative of comparison, standing for tuo fulmine ('than your thunderbolt'). It wittily contrasts Jove's cosmic weapon with the emotional strike of a locked door.