Ulysses and the Cyclops

[phil]

Hi All,

In one of the 38 stories, Ulysses and the Cyclops there is this line:
"Quid vos, tu tuique cari, mihi dabitis?"
I get
"What will you(pl), you(sg) and your(sg) dears, give me?"
Dears?!? Can that be right?
Cheers

[benissimus]

more idiomatic might be "those dear to you", i.e. your companions

[phil]

Thanks. It threw me that a great ugly monster in a cave would use the word cari, rather than something like amici or comites when describing a dozen or so cheese-eating soldiers. It seemed a bit incongruous.

[tjnor]

Then again, it is comparable to Tolkien's Gollum and his use of endearments like "My Precious." Dickens had his villian Fagin call members of his gang of thieving boys, "My dear." The irony reinforces the deadly intent behind the words.