A Seussian Catullus on Sparrows and Kisses Carmina 2 and 5
2023; Boston University; Volume: 30; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1353/arn.2023.0008
ISSN2327-6436
Autores Tópico(s)Themes in Literature Analysis
ResumoA Seussian Catullus on Sparrows and Kisses Carmina 2 and 5 Seth Lerer (bio) 2 Well, hello little sparrow, my little girl’s darling—I call you a sparrow, perhaps you’re a starling—Whatever you are, she just loves to hold you,To feed you, to need you, to sweetly enfold you;She gives you her finger-tip, letting you nibble,But I’ll tell you, bird, I have one major quibble.I’d like to be sitting right there in her lap,Giving her solace, taking a napIn the sinuous folds of her gown. Is it rudeIf I play with her, stay with her, lighten her mood? Now at this point the poem appears to break off.The lines make no sense, those that follow snake off.“It’s as pleasing to me as . . .” What? Here’s the confusion:An apple of gold, and a mythic allusion.There’s something about Atalanta, a hurdle,A race at a place that unlaces her girdle. You’ve got me. This Latin is spinning my head.O, hell! The next poem! The sparrow is dead. [End Page 27] 5 One kiss, two kiss,Old kiss, new kiss.One, two, three,A thousand times.We’ll kiss till weRun out of rhymes. So let us liveAnd let us loveAnd never giveThe Grinch aboveA penny for his sorry humor.Pay no attention to old rumor. Though Seuss may say, “Today is gone.Tomorrow is another one.”We know that our tomorrows end.Nox est perpetua, my friend. One kiss, two kiss,Sweet kiss, blue kiss.One, two, three,A thousand times.We’ll kiss till weRun out of rhymes. We will not careWhat Horton hears.Old Whooville’s fare—Not for our ears. [End Page 28] Conturbabimus:Let’s confuse them.Make them jealous.Don’t excuse them. We’ll lose count.They’ll never knowThe whole amountOur love can go. [End Page 29] Seth Lerer seth lerer is Distinguished Professor of Literature at the University of California at San Diego. His Seussian translations of Catullus have appeared in Arion (Winter 2022) and in Light: A Journal of Light Verse. Copyright © 2023 Seth Lerer
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