Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Cervus Cornua Sua Laudans (Osius)

SOURCE: The poem comes from Phryx Aesopus Habitu Poetico, by Hieronymus Osius, published in 1574, and online at the University of Mannheim as page images and text scan. This is poem 37 in the collection. For parallel versions, see Perry 74.

READ OUT LOUD. Choose which marked text you prefer to practice with - macrons in verse form, or macrons in prose order, or accent marks in prose order, or focusing on the meter. You will find materials for all of these options below. :-)


VERSE MACRONS. Here is the verse text with macrons:

Appārent Cervō vitreīs rāmōsa sub undīs,
Cornua, laudārī posse sat illa negat.
At fuga per dēnsam cum dūceret anxia silvam,
Plūs quam prōfuerint illa, nocēre videt.
Dēvovet haec ergo, et iam crūra fugācia laudat,
Quae rōbusta parum dīxerat ante sibī.
Nōn, quae pulchra tibī sint, esse potissima crēdās,
Sed quibus ūtilitas māior inesse solet.


PROSE MACRONS. Here is the same text with macrons written out in prose word order:

Cervō cornua rāmōsa appārent sub undīs vitreīs; negat illa sat laudārī posse. At cum per silvam dēnsam fuga anxia dūceret, videt illa nocēre plūs quam prōfuerint. Ergo haec dēvovet, et iam crūra fugācia laudat, quae ante dīxerat sibī parum rōbusta. Nōn crēdās potissima esse, quae tibī pulchra sint, sed quibus ūtilitas māior inesse solet.


STRESS (ACCENT) MARKS. Here is the prose text with accents, plus some color-coding for the words of three or more syllables (blue: penultimate stress; red: antepenultimate stress):

Cervo córnua ramósa appárent sub undis vítreis; negat illa sat laudári posse. At cum per silvam densam fuga ánxia dúceret, videt illa nocére plus quam profúerint. Ergo haec dévovet, et iam crura fugácia laudat, quae ante díxerat sibi parum robústa. Non credas potíssima esse, quae tibi pulchra sint, sed quibus utílitas maior inésse solet.


ELEGIAC COUPLET METER. Below I have used an interpunct dot · to indicate the metrical elements in each line, and a double line || to indicate the hemistichs of the pentameter line.

Appā·rent Cer·vō vitre·īs rā·mōsa sub· undīs,
Cornua,· laudā·rī || posse sat ·illa ne·gat.
At fuga· per dēn·sam cum· dūceret· anxia· silvam,
Plūs quam ·prōfue·rint || illa, no·cēre vi·det.
Dēvovet· haec er·g~, et iam· crūra fu·gācia ·laudat,
Quae rō·busta pa·rum || dīxerat ·ante si·bī.
Nōn quae ·pulchra ti·bī sint ·esse po·tissima ·crēdās
Sed quibus ·ūtil·itas || māior i·nesse so·let.


IMAGE. Here is an illustration for the story from the 1574 edition of Osius:


What follows is an unmarked version of the prose rendering to faciliate word searches: Cervo cornua ramosa apparent sub undis vitreis; negat illa sat laudari posse. At cum per silvam densam fuga anxia duceret, videt illa nocere plus quam profuerint. Ergo haec devovet, et iam crura fugacia laudat, quae ante dixerat sibi parum robusta. Non credas potissima esse, quae tibi pulchra sint, sed quibus utilitas maior inesse solet.