Can a person both hate and love at the same time? In Catullus' poetry, he displays the two-sided affection he has for his lover, Lesbia. Through her, he presents the love affair in which he experiences the joy of passionate love requited and the torment of betrayal, both at the same time. On one hand, Lesbia brings Catullus nothing but happiness. He tells her to "live and love" with him without caring about what "sour …
showed first 75 words of 641 total

showed last 75 words of 641 total
…free from this despair: "Cleanse my soul of this sickness of love, give me power to rise, / resurrected, to thrust love aside, / I have given my heart to the gods, O hear me, omnipotent heaven, and ease me of love and its pain." Therefore, Catullus ends up heartbroken and desolate, yet loves Lesbia the same. In conclusion, Catullus shows that a person can experience both love and hate simultaneously, just as he did with Lesbia.