Catullus 85 is a

poem Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings in ...

by the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

poet

Catullus Gaius Valerius Catullus (; 84 - 54 BCE), often referred to simply as Catullus (, ), was a Latin poet of the late Roman Republic who wrote chiefly in the neoteric style of poetry, focusing on personal life rather than classical heroes. His s ...

for his lover

Lesbia Lesbia was the literary pseudonym used by the Roman poet Gaius Valerius Catullus ( 82–52 BC) to refer to his lover. Lesbia is traditionally identified with Clodia, the wife of Quintus Caecilius Metellus Celer and sister of Publius Clodius P ...

. Ōdī et amō. Quārē id faciam fortasse requīris. Nesciŏ, sed fierī sentiō et excrucior. I hate and I love. Why I do this, perhaps you ask. I know not, but I feel it happening and I am tortured. Its declaration of conflicting feelings, "I hate and I love", is renowned for its drama, force and brevity. The meter of the poem is the

elegiac couplet The elegiac couplet is a poetic form used by Greek lyric poets for a variety of themes usually of smaller scale than the epic. Roman poets, particularly Catullus, Propertius, Tibullus, and Ovid, adopted the same form in Latin many years late ...

. – u u / – – / – u u / – – / – u u / – – Ōd'et a / mō. Quā / r'id faci / am for / tasse re / quīris. – u u / – u u / – / – u u / – u u / – Nesciŏ, / sed fie / rī / sen ti' et / ex cru ci / or.

Musical settings

* "Odi et amo", No. 19 of ''Moralia'' by

Jacobus Gallus Jacobus Gallus (a.k.a. Jacob(us) Handl, Jacob(us) Händl, Jacob(us) Gallus; sl, Jakob Petelin Kranjski; between 15 April and 31 July 155018 July 1591) was a late-Renaissance composer of presumed Slovene ethnicity.Skei/Pokorn, Grove online Born ...

* "Odi et amo", part of '' Catulli Carmina'' by

Carl Orff Carl Orff (; 10 July 1895 – 29 March 1982) was a German composer and music educator, best known for his cantata ''Carmina Burana'' (1937). The concepts of his Schulwerk were influential for children's music education. Life Early life Car ...

* "Odi et amo" by

Jóhann Jóhannsson Jóhann Gunnar Jóhannsson (; 19 September 1969 – 9 February 2018) was an Icelandic composer who wrote music for a wide array of media including theatre, dance, television, and film. His work is stylised by its blending of traditional orchest ...

's album ''

Englabörn Englabörn is the first full length studio album by Icelandic musician Jóhann Jóhannsson, released by Touch Music in 2002. Music included on Englabörn was composed for a play by Hávar Sigurjónsson and was played by string quartet, percussion ...

'' * "Wrecking Ball" (Miley Cyrus), adaptation with Catullus 85 by

Eric Whitacre Eric Edward Whitacre (born January2, 1970) is an American composer, conductor, and speaker best known for his choral music. In March2016, he was appointed as Los Angeles Master Chorale's first artist-in-residence at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. ...

, performed by Eric Whitacre Singers and Marius Beck; performed live and recorded at the 2014 iTunes Festival in London

References

{{Catullus C085 Love poems