Catullus 16

[Phoebus Apollo]

I'm struggling to see how the grammar works in the line in bold:
perdicabo ego uos et irrumabo,
Aureli pathice et cinaede Furi,
qui me ex uersiculis meis putastis,
quod sunt molliculi, parum pudicum.
5 nam castum esse decet pium poetam
ipsum, uersiculos nihil necesse est;
qui tum denique habent salem ac leporem,
si sunt molliculi ac parum pudici,
et quod pruriat incitare possunt,
10 non dico pueris, sed his pilosis
qui duros nequeunt mouere lumbos.
uos, quod milia multa basiorum
legistis, male me marem putatis?
pedicabo ego uos et irrumabo.

I think it translates as 'and because they can excite one to itch' - but I don't get why pruriat is subjunctive after incitare? I can only think it's a result clause?
I also am unsure what male is qualifying in the penultimate line - I think it's the adjective marem, ie 'badly manly' --> 'less of a man' (rather than putatis?); there is a similar line in carmen 10, 'sed tu insulsa male et molesta vivis' = 'but you are terrible dull and annoying', where again male seems to be qualifying the adjective insulsa, rather than the verb vivis - I think?

 

[AoM]

16, you mean.

And is quod a relative here?

 

[Phoebus Apollo]

16, you mean.

And is quod a relative here?

My mistake! Have changed it.

I took it to mean 'because' - if it was a relative, I'm not quite sure what it would refer to, apart from perhaps the preceding clause in general?

 

[AoM]

I'll check my Student's Catullus in a bit to see whether it says anything.

 

[AoM]

Garrison's relevant notes:

- pruriat: "the potential subjunctive with incitare possunt indicates that sexual excitement is a possible result of his erotic verse rather than its object."

- "Erotic poetry is not for adolescents, who already have quod pruriat."

- "male, with the force of a simple negative, is adverbial with the omitted esse and marem."

 

[Dantius]

Ah, so I guess quod pruriat is a relative clause, "they can incite that which might itch", literally?

 

[Pacifica]

Ah, so I guess quod pruriat is a relative clause, "they can incite that which might itch", literally?

Yes.