Ovid’s Flood from Metamorphoses

iamque erat in totās sparsurus fulmina terrās; erat...sparsurus – Jove, the king of the gods, is the subject Fulmina = acc. plural

sed timuit, ne forte sacer tot ab ignibus aether conciperet flammas longusque ardesceret axis: ne… conciperet…ardesceret – verb of fearing + subjunctive = fear clause! conciperet flammas = burst into flames ardesceret = burn Axis = vault of heaven (the lovely arch of the horizon)

poena placet diversa, genus mortale sub undis perdere et ex omni nimbos demittere caelo. Perdere…demittere = these actions serve as the direct object of placet; this is what Jove wanted to do. Genus mortale = acc. sing; what are they the direct object of? Nimbos = acc pl. what is it the direct object of? Look at the first line; which type of noun-adjective pattern do we have?

Protinus Aeoliīs Aquilonem claudit in antrīs protinus = immediately Aeoliis –Aeolis is the god of winds; he resided in the area of Greece known as Aeolia, this is the region being discussed. aquilo = the northern wind which was thought to issue in winter…a calmer season. NOTE: what case is Aquilonem? claudit = who is the subject? antrīs: caverns

emittitque Notum. madidīs Notus evolat alīs, emittit – has the same subject as the last several verbs. Notus = was the Greek god of the south wind. He was associated with the hot wind of midsummer, and brought the storms of late summer.south windmidsummer Alīs= wings NOTE: what case is it?

barba gravis nimbis, canīs fluit unda capillīs; Barba – nom. “est” is understood as the verb. Unda – nom. Canīs…capillīs – what case? Why? What is the noun-adjective pattern?

fit fragor: hinc densi funduntur ab aethere nimbi Fit = fio, fiere – to become, arise, be created Fragor – crash (related to frangere, to break) Hinc – then, next Funduntur – passive voice

Nec caelo contenta suo est Iovis ira, sed illum caeruleus frater iuvat auxiliaribus undis. nec – and…not; but…not ira –which case? illum – ille, illa, illus is often used when the focus switches back to a previous person or thing being spoken of. In this case the switch from ira to the god. What is the noun-adj. pattern in the first line? The second?

Ipse tridente suo terram percussit, at illa intremuit motūque vias patefecit aquarum. Ipse – used for emphasis; to intensify the subject. Illa – referring to terram. You can tell because both are feminine and sing. Motu – ablative of means Patefecit – exposed, revealed (think “patio”!)

exspatiata ruunt per apertos flumina campos exspatiatus, a, um – having been extended, spread out flumina – neuter plural. Is it the subject or direct object? Look at the verb for help. Is ruunt singular or plural? apertus, a, um : open Noun-adj. Pattern?

iamque mare et tellus nullum discrimen habebant mare and tellus are both neuter nouns. Mare, maris – sea Tellus, telleris – earth, land, shore Discrimen—think about its etymology: – When you DISCRIMINATE against people, you create boundaries between them and yourself.

omnia pontus erant, derant quoque litora ponto. pontus: neut.acc.sing. Deep sea (like when you can’t see the shore because you are so far out) Desum, deesse, defui (+abl) – to be lacking, to be absent from, to abandon Litus, litoris – neuter ploral noun. shore

Occupat hic collem, cumba sedet alter adunca et ducit remos illic, ubi nuper arabat: hic…alter – this is a construction that aduncus, a, um: curved is comparing and contrasting two people collis: hill illic – to that place cumba: boat aro, arare, aravi – to plow

ille supra segetes aut mersae culmina villae navigat, hic summa piscem deprendit in ulmo. Ille…hic – another contrast between people Segetes: crops Aut-or Mersae – from mergo, -ere, mersi, mersus – to sink Culmen, culminis – roof Summus, a, um – superlative of magnus; highest, greatest Ulmus: elm tree (weird looking 4 th declension feminine noun)

nat lupus inter oves, fulvos vehit unda leones, Nare : to swim Ovis: shep Vehit: think “vehicle” Unda : nominative Fulvus, a, um: tawny, light-brown

quaesitīsque diu terrīs, ubi sistere possit, -que:and NOTE: the first phrase is an ablative absolute Quaesitīs : quaero, -ere, quaesivi, quaesitus Diu: for a long time Sisto, -ere: to stop; to perch Possit: from possum, posse, potui (to be able) – What mood is this? Why?

in mare lassatīs volucris vaga decidit alīs. Lasso, -are, -avi, lassatus: to fail Decido, ere – to fall down Volucris, is (f.): bird Vagus, a, um : wandering Noun-adj. pattern?

et, modo quā graciles gramen carpsēre capellae, modo – just quā – where gramen –grass Carpsēre – this is a contracted form of carsperunt and it means “chew, nibble” Capella – she-goat

nunc ibi deformes ponunt sua corpora phocae. deformis, is : ugly, shapeless, inelegant phoca: seal

Analytical Skills We often praise Ovid for his especially vivid, immediate language. Which phrase strikes you as most vivid? What is it about the Latin that makes it so striking? – Word choice? – Word placement? – Use of literary devices?

iamque erat in totās sparsurus fulmina terrās; sed timuit, ne forte sacer tot ab ignibus aether conciperet flammas longusque ardesceret axis: poena placet diversa, genus mortale sub undis perdere et ex omni nimbos demittere caelo. Protinus Aeoliīs Aquilonem claudit in antrīs emittitque Notum. madidīs Notus evolat alīs, barba gravis nimbis, canīs fluit unda capillīs; fit fragor: hinc densi funduntur ab aethere nimbi Nec caelo contenta suo est Iovis ira, sed illum caeruleus frater iuvat auxiliaribus undis. Ipse tridente suo terram percussit, at illa intremuit motūque vias patefecit aquarum. exspatiata ruunt per apertos flumina campos iamque mare et tellus nullum discrimen habebant.