Introduction

Gaius Valerius Catullus was a Latin author who wrote the poem “Sparrow”. Sparrow is one of the personal poems written by Catullus , where Lesbia was the girl with whom he was in love. He was the only European author who wrote a series of 25 poems for only one woman. However, there is a mixed opinion about Lesbia. Some believe this is an imaginary lady, the dream girl of Catullus ’s poems while others say she is not an imaginary figure but a real woman named Cloida. Though this is a simple but very touchy poem where the poet expresses his feelings that are associated with love, anger, and sadness. The sparrow is one of the most appreciated poems among his series of 25 on Lesbia. However, this poem is written two times or we can say it has two parts. Both are interrelated to each other, as the objects are same while the subjects are a little slippery. So the theme slightly shifts from one subject to another while both the objects are same. Therefore, in both these poems, the author describes the life and death of the sparrow that was a pet of Lesbia. The interesting thing to notice is the triangular relation developed by the author. At one side the Pet sparrow is the beloved of Lesbia while on the other hand, the author is in love with Lesbia. So he in these two poems first expresses the life of the sparrow and its relation with Lesbia. At the same time presents a hidden erotic expression that he himself feels and desires to have a relation with the mistress of the sparrow. Moreover, we also find the element of jealousy when the poet describes the relationship of the sparrow and its mistress, Lesbia. While in the other poem, Catullus describes the death of the sparrow and also shows his anger about the sparrow for being the cause of his beloved’s sadness and weeping.

Lesbia’s Sparrow

Though a love relation was not yet started between Lesbia and the author but he has fallen in love with her. Therefore, in the poem while describing the relationship and feelings between the sparrow and his love Lesbia, he imagines himself to be in place of the sparrow and desired to share the passion of love from her. Another interesting theme expressed in this poem is the erotic feelings conveyed while describing the relation between the sparrow and Lesbia. For instance when he describes how Lesbia use to play with the sparrow, allowing the sparrow to sit on her lap and then gives her the top of her finger to bite and enjoys the tickle on her finger and glows with happiness. Where at this point it seems that the poet deeply desires to be in place of the sparrow and enjoy a romantic relationship with Lesbia while transferring the heat of passion, passion of love.

Basically in a romantic relationship while making love, erotic feelings develop where biting, nibbling and sucking the top of the partners finger is a soothing and relaxing way to kiss at the same time gives fun. So the author in a using metaphoric imagery expresses his erotic desires while describing the joy, glow, freshness and relaxing feelings of Lesbia when the sparrow bites at the top of her finger, which she encourages. This whole theme can be taken as a metaphor though technically it is not but as the author portrays an erotic picture of her beloved having fun and at the same time feeling comfort for her pain. Where here pain is another metaphor and at the same time imagery used, which describes the pain due to the heat of passion, inner desire that is the erotic desire of every men and women possessing as a part of his/her nature. Nonetheless, this is a love triangular relationship pictured in the poetry where the poet loves the lady who is the main object for him, and the lady who is the mistress named Lesbia loves her pet sparrow. However, the last two lines dramatically deviate from the erotic expression to slight jealousy showered with a mixed feeling of love and heat of passion.

The Death Of the Sparrow

This poem is slightly different from the first poem, though in both the poems the author is describing his love for Lasbia relating it with the love relationship of the sparrow and the lady. The second poem therefore, has a sad and gloomy mood where the poet at the same time describes his anger and deep love. Therefore, the tone keeps on shifting from one mood to another in the second poetry. As compared to the first poem, this poem simply describes the sweet and innocent feelings of the sparrow towards his mistress. The erotic element is not present at all; at the same time no jealousy is expressed. The poem starts with anger addressing to the world and all people who have a heart, feelings and emotions. It seems that the poet is shouting and screaming in front of the world crying and telling them his beloved’s pet has expired and is dead. If we go in the depth of these starting lines, we can visualize the deep love of the author for her beloved as he feels the deep sadness, grief and pain of her beloved that she gets from her pet’s death. So this also shows the true, strong love of the author for Lesbia as even being a little jealous of the relationship between the sparrow and her, he forgets every thing and feels the pain that her beloved is going through due to her lovely sparrow’s death. Well this is the most beautiful, pure and mature expression portraying a deep and true feeling of love that rarely exists in today’s world, which is portrayed by the author in this second poem.

However, in the later lines, the poet again comes back to the relationship between the sparrow and the lady. Though maintaining a gloomy mood, he leaves all the jealousy, heat of passion as well as erotic and romantic desires hidden in the first poem he simply unites himself to Lesbia in describing the feelings and relation of the sparrow and his beloved. As he tells how strong was the relationship of the sparrow and Lesbia, how much she uses to love. This he describes in the fifth line by saying her beloved loved the sparrow more then herself. Again we notice a love triangle, relating the love that Lesbia has for her pet sparrow and the author has for Lesbia. However, the harsh tone changes to serenity with the shift of jealousy to a liberal approach leading towards understanding while the poet describes the feelings of the sparrow to her beloved. He portrayed a prestigious and respectable relationship between the sparrow and the lady. He changes the whole picture presented in his first poem. Though he describes the sparrow sitting on the lady’s lap but gives the relationship a new name. He pictures the lady as giving warm motherly feelings to the sparrow as she allows her to sit on the lap and the sparrow does not moves from her lap, jumping here and there, and playing with her fingers biting the top of it.

In the last few lines the mood of the author again shifts towards a mixed feeling of madness and sadness. The poet describes the feeling of acceptance to the harsh reality of life by saying that the sparrow is now dead and flying to a dark place from where return is evitable. The ending lines though intense but shows mixed feelings of the poet as he at the same time blames the day to be evil as the sparrow dies and also feels the grief of his beloved. Although Catullus blames the evil shadows of Orcus for the death of this sparrow but actually it is he himself responsible to destroy his intimate relationship with Lesbia that he truly wanted to keep. So again we find imagery where Catullus describes the death of the sparrow and blaming the evils of the underworld Orcus , while hiding his personal betrayal and separation to his beloved. Though balancing his expression of love he expresses sympathy towards the sparrow that is now dead and also holds her responsible to steel the smile, freshness and liveliness of his beloved as she has left his love to cry and weep and make her eyes red and swollen. However, the hidden fact is the failure of the author to achieve spiritual union, which is basically the death of the sparrow, though he achieved sexual union with Lesbia.

Poetic devices

These two poems are very simple having easy language and less literary technicality. Yet the theme of the poem is a bit technical. Though the poet has not focused much on the rhythm, as it is irregular in both the poems. However, the author tries to keep a balance in the meters. On the other hand, in both the poems, he uses metaphors. Where in the first poem he uses implicit metaphors while in the second poem, he uses an explicit metaphor. For instance, when he says the sparrow was sweeter than honey, he symbolizes and compares the sweetness of the sparrow with the sweetness of honey. Moreover, a lot of imagery is used in both the poems. Both the poems lack the use of alliteration and assonance. It seems that the poetry is the first instinct portrayed about the relationship between the sparrow and the lady, and then relating it to he personal feelings for Lasbia that developed his personal desire to be in place of the sparrow so he can play with his love and make her happy. Therefore, both the poems are simple as they lack literary technicality that usually poems have. For instance, there is no echo, diction, simile and metaphor is just slightly touched just to make feel it is a poem. No proper meter and rhythm is used. However, the tone of the poem is mixed but balanced. Where there is feeling of jealousy, the poet has maintained the passion of love, where there is anger and emotional disturbance, the poet has balanced it with his calm and understanding approach nonetheless fabricating his betrayal to Lesbia symbolizing it with the physical death of the sparrow.