Ovid Amores 1.5 grammar question

Latin Learning Latin
1

I’m working on Ovid’s Amores 1.5, and I’m fairly unsure how the first line here works grammatically:

Deripui tunicam—nec multum rāra nocebat;
 - · ·-  · · -   -   -  -   - ·  · - -
     pugnabat tunicā sed tamen illa tegi.
      -  - -   · · -  -   · ·  -  ·  · -

The clearest note I could find said that “nec”, “multum”, and “nocebat” all go together and that rara stands in apposition to all three. I don’t think I fully understand apposition. What’s the subject of “nocebat”? If I supply “tunica” to go with “rara”, I would get something like “and the thin tunic did not do much harm”. I’m not sure what harm is to be had here, unless the “harm” is, from her point of view, his winning a skirmish in the militia amoris by getting her one step closer to naked. I also wondered if “rara” can be understood as “since (her tunic) is thin” and make the subject of “nocebat” be his action to try to grab it off of her, producing something like “and since her tunic was thin, his action didn’t ‘harm’ her much”, where this is metaphorical harm, a mock battle, he “attacking”, she “defending”. Since it’s thin, he can already see much through it.

I really hope someone can explain the exact functioning of the grammar here.

Thanks.

2

I think I may have found an answer. This line is quoted in the OLD, where a sense of nocere is documented that I maybe hadn’t seen before: “to detract from or impair (a faculty, performance, etc.)” with the comment “i.e. was not an obstacle to love”.

So I guess we DO have to supply “tunica” and translate "and (the tunic being) thin was not much of an obstacle (to him in the “war” of love). Is that the right idea?

3

Yes. Glad you spotted the OLD reference. I was in the process of trying to copy it for you. :smiley:

Do you have the Turpin commentary? You can read it on line here http://dcc.dickinson.edu/ovid-amores/epigram-0.

4

Thank you very much for the link to that commentary. I spent a long time looking for a good commentary online but I didn’t hit upon that one. I see if I had, it would have explained everything!
Many thanks!

               Dave S