Love

LXXXVII & LXXV: Ne'er shall woman avouch herself so rightly beloved

by Gaius Valerius Catullus c. 84 – c. 54 BC

Translated by Robinson Ellis (1871) · From The Poems and Fragments of Catullus (1871)

Love

Ne'er shall woman avouch herself so rightly beloved,
Friend, as rightly thou art, Lesbia, lovely to me.
Ne'er was a bond so firm, no troth so faithfully plighted,
Such as against our love's venture in honour am I.

Now so sadly my heart, dear Lesbia, draws me asunder,
So in her own misspent worship uneasily lost,
Wert thou blameless in all, I may not longer approve thee,
Do anything thou wilt, cannot an enemy be.

MLA

Catullus, Gaius Valerius. “LXXXVII & LXXV: Ne'er shall woman avouch herself so rightly beloved.” Translated by Robinson Ellis. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/catullus/78/.

Chicago

Catullus, Gaius Valerius. “LXXXVII & LXXV: Ne'er shall woman avouch herself so rightly beloved.” Translated by Robinson Ellis. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/catullus/78/.

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