Sunday, June 17, 2012

Coniuges, Liberi, Parentes

Here is another distich by John Owen, with an English translation by Thomas Harvey,2.141. The poem paradoxically juxtaposes how a husband and wife, once two, are now one, while the Father and the Son, once one, are now two!

Coniuges, Liberi, Parentes
Sunt unum vir et uxor, erant duo corpora; at unum
Corpus erant, duo sunt: filius atque pater.

MARRIED PERSONS, CHILDREN, PARENTS
Husband and wife once two, are not but one:
Once one, two now are Father and his Son.

The vocabulary is keyed to the DCC Latin Vocabulary list. All the words in this poem are on that list:

at: but, but yet
atque, ac: and in addition, and also, and; (after comparatives) than; simul atque, as soon as
coniunx coniugis m./f.: spouse, husband, wife
corpus corporis n.: body
duo: two
et: and
filia -ae f.; filius -ī m.: daughter; son
līber lībera līberum: free; līberī (m. pl.): freeborn children
parēns -ntis m./f.: parent
pater patris m.: father, ancestor
sum, esse, fuī: be, exist
ūnus -a -um: one
uxor uxōris f.: wife
vir virī m.: man