Master thesis | Classics and Ancient Civilizations (MA)
open access
This thesis provides an examination of the representation of gender roles in the Salmacis and Hermaphroditus scene in Ovid's Metamorphoses. Ovid thoroughly plays with gender roles and expectations...Show moreThis thesis provides an examination of the representation of gender roles in the Salmacis and Hermaphroditus scene in Ovid's Metamorphoses. Ovid thoroughly plays with gender roles and expectations of gender roles in the scene. The scene is examined in the light of intertextuality with other stories in Ovid's Metamorphoses, Odysseus' speech to Nausicaa in Homer's Odyssey and several similes.Show less
Master thesis | Classics and Ancient Civilizations (MA)
open access
This thesis charts Ovidian references to Daedalus, the archetypal craftsman, made in and around the poet's 'own' exile. Analysis reveals several strong parallels between the artists (the poetic...Show moreThis thesis charts Ovidian references to Daedalus, the archetypal craftsman, made in and around the poet's 'own' exile. Analysis reveals several strong parallels between the artists (the poetic persona and his mythical character): firstly, and most simply, they are innovative; they also reside in hated exile; they suffer oppression by authority; they advise 'moderation' to their ‘children’; they grieve and repudiate their arts; yet literary immortality brings some sort of consolation. Considering these rich parallels, this thesis states the case for a strong analogy between the two that effectively adds layers of significance to Ovid's own status as an artist - one who can both fly and fall. This leads further to a reflection on 'why', and on what effects this might produce. This thesis suggests poetic self-aggrandisement, the evocation of sympathy, and also a deeper poetological point about how one subjectively adopts/responds to such techniques in reading and being read as an artist/audience.Show less
