Ovid Heroides 11, 13, and 14: A Commentary

372 Pages·2001·7.874 MB·English

by  James Reeson

OVID HEROlDES 11,13 AND 14
MNEMOSYNE
BIBLIOTHECA CLASSICA BATAVA
COLLEGERUNT
H. PINKSTER • H. W PLEKET • CJ. RUIJGH
D.M. SCHENKEVELD . P H. SCHRIJVERS
S.R. SLINGS
BIBLIOTHECAE FASCICULOS EDENDOS CURAVIT
C.]. RUIJGH, KLASSIEK SEMINARIUM, OUDE TURFMARKT 129, AMSTERDAM
SUPPLEMENTUM DUCENTESIMUM VICESIMUM PRIMUM
JAMES. REESON
OVID HEROlDES 11,13 AND 14
OVID HEROlDES
11,13 AND 14
A COMMENTARY
BY
JAMES REESON
BRILL
LEIDEN' BOSTON' KÖLN
2001
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Die Deutsche Bibliothek -CIP-Einheitsaufnalune
[Mnelllosyne I Supplelllentulll]
Mnemosyne : bibliotheca classica Batava. Supplementum. - Leiden;
Boston; Köln: Brill
Früher Schriftenreihe
Teilw. u.d.T.: Mnemosyne / Supplements
Reihe Supplementum zu: Mnemosyne
221. Reeson,James : Ovid Heroides 11, 13 and 14.
Reeson,James :
Ovid Heroides 11, 13 and 14 : a commentary / by James Reeson. - Leiden;
Boston; Köln: Brill, 2001
(Mnemosyne : Supplementum ; 221)
ISBN 90-04-12140-4
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is also available
ISSN 0169-8958
ISBN 9004121404
© Copyright 2001 by Koninklijke Brill NT{ Leiden, The Nether/ands
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In memory of
F.E. Reeson

CONTENTS
Preface ........................................................................................ IX
List of abbreviations Xl
Introduction
Wrongthinking heroines and inquisitive readers .................. 1
The Text ................................................................................ 8
Openings ................................................................................ 10
Background to each epistle .................................................... 12
Text
Conspectus codicum ..... ....... ........ ...................... .... ...... ...... .... 15
Sigla ........................................................................................ 15
Comparative table .................................................................. 16
Commentaries
Commentary on Heroides 11, Canace to Macareus ............ 37
Commentary on Heroides 13, Laodamia to Protesilaus 114
Commentary on Heroides 14, Hypermestra to Lynceus ...... 210
List of references 315
Indexes ........................................................................................ 323
1. Latin Words ...................................................................... 325
2. General .............................................................................. 330
3. Passages referred to in Ovid ............................................ 338
4. Passages referred to in other authors .............................. 348

PREFACE
'The Heroides are not a work of the highest order of genius.' Despitc
a surge of recent interest in these poems, this judgement of Grant
Showerman's has not yet been entirely laid to rest, and haunts thc
current Loeb cdition. The prcscnt work scts out for thrcc of Ovid's
Heroides an interpretation that presents them as rich and sophisti
cated miniatures. It does this through the dose and detailed read
ing of the text that the commentary format affords. For epistles 13
(Laodamia) and 14 (Hypermestra), no commentary in Eng1ish has
appearcd sincc that by Arthur Pa1mer in 1898. Epistle 11 (Canacc)
was induded in Peter Knox's 1995 commentary on 'Select Epistles';
but the scope and purpose of that work necessari1y set narrow lim
its on what could be done. 1 set out in my Introduction my partic
ular areas of enquiry: put simply, text and sources. An extremely
mangled text (so confused that there is still no Oxford text of thc
poems) calls far considerable attention paid to textual matters. Ovid's
highly innovative use of source material in the Heroides is only just
now beginning to be explored: for epistle 11, 1 attempt to advance
the work already done; and my account of advanced intertextual
play in epistles 13 and 14 marks a new direction in the interpreta
tion of these poems.
The commentary was presented for the doctora1 degree at the
University of Newcastle upon Tyne in October 1999. The work was
encouraged and challenged, in equal measure, by my supervisor,
Donald Hili. The only support not given by hirn (financial) was pro
vided by an award from the Humanities Research Board of the
British Academy. 1 have benefited greatly from the advice of stu
dents and staff at the Universities of Newcastle, Oxford, and St
Andrews. No doubt many of them would be appalled to see their
suggestions corrupted beyond recognition in what follows; it hardly
needs saying that 1 take fuH responsibility far any inaccuracies. It
seems to me that perhaps the same principle should be applied to
acknowledgements as to the Heroidean manuscript tradition, viz. that
it is more important to record suggestions than to single out promi
nent sources; but 1 make four exceptions: Adrian HoHis, on whose
suggestion, and with whose continuing guidance, 1 embarked on a
x PREFACE
study of these three richIy rewarding poems; Jonathan Powell and
Stephen Harrison, who, in providing reams of crucial suggestions,
went far beyond the duties necessary for Ph.D. examiners; and Mal
colm Campbell, who instructed me on the mechanics of publication.
I am, in addition, extremdy grateful for the apparently inex
haustible patience of staff at the Robinson Library, Newcastle upon
Tyne; at the Bodleian Library, Oxford; and at St Andrews University
Library.