The Search for an "alter orbis" in Ovid's "Remedia Amoris"
Author(s): Mary H. T. Davisson
Source: Phoenix, Vol. 50, No. 3/4 (Autumn - Winter, 1996), pp. 240-261
Published by: Classical Association of Canada
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1192652
Accessed: 25-06-2015 17:11 UTC
Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/page/
info/about/policies/terms.jsp
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content
in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship.
For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].
Classical Association of Canada is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Phoenix.
http://www.jstor.org
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
THE SEARCH FOR AN ALTER ORBIS
IN OVID'S REMEDIAAMORIS
MARYH. T. DAVISSON
I
As
PARTOF HIS EFFORT to help the "recovering lover" avoid a relapse, the
praeceptorof the RemediaAmoriswarns his pupil to stay away from his former
girlfriend:alter,sipossis,orbishabenduserit (630). In the immediate context, the
alter orbisdenotes a circle of friends that does not include the domina,which
should be reasonablyeasy to find. However, if we rememberthat much of the
poem tries to help the readerfind a world where love does not hurt too much, the
qualifyingconditionalbecomes more significant.Ultimately,despite the attempts
ofthepraeceptorto reassurehis sufferingpupil, the Remediademonstratesin many
ways that painful love may be very difficult or impossible to escape, especially
for women, and that a cure may sometimes be more painful than the disease.
This essay will concentrateon the poem's mythological exempla,which deserve
closer critical attention than they have previouslyreceived,1but will also survey
the non-mythologicalevidencethat a cure is rarelyfacileand sometimes not even
utile or laudabile.2
Even the opening dialogue invites skeptical reading. Amor, without being
brought on stage or described,is stated in the firstword to have read the poem's
title, on the basis of which he jumps to a negative conclusion: legerathuius
Amor titulum nomenquelibelli/ 'bellamihi, video, bellaparantur'ait (1-2). The
praeceptorassureshis interlocutorthat he does not intend to end happylove affairs,
only those which might lead to suicide (3-38, esp. 13-22), and Amor promptly
encourageshim to proceed(40).
Aside from the apparenthaste of Amor's judgments, certain details of the
replyraisesuspicionin those who have read Ovid'searlierpoems. The
praeceptor's
claims
not to be undoing his earlierwork: nec novapraeteritumMusa
praeceptor
1For example, Henderson (1979: xx-xxii) analyzes the "Structureand Contents" of the poem
in terms ofpracepta, with no referenceto exempla. More attention has been paid to the complex
or ironic use of mythological exemplain the Amoresand ArsAmatoriathan in the Remedia:see, for
example, Davis (1980) and Watson (1983). Weber (1983: 186-189) offers generalconclusionsabout
the argumentative,didactic, psychological,structural,and parodic functions of myths in the Ars and
Remedia.Although Weber suggests that the incongruitiesof some of the narrativesinvite the reader
to examine criticallythe poet's apparentinterpretationof the myths, he does not closely examine any
narrativefrom the Remediain this light. For a preliminaryconsiderationof this issue in the Remedia,
see Davisson 1993: 219-221.
2Throughout this essay I use terms such as utileand laudabilebecausethey are usefuldescriptions
of what is said in much of the Remedia,not becauseI imagine that Ovid referredconstantlyto Rhet.
ad Her. 3 or any similarwork while composing this poem. See below, n. 46.
240
VOL50 (1996)3-4.
PHOENIX,
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDIAMORIS
241
retexitopus(12). However, the precisenatureof this "earlierwork"remainsopen
to question. Could not the ArsAmatoriaitself be considereda declarationof war
againstCupid, since the praeceptorthere proposedto punish the god (1.24)? If so,
should Cupid be pleased that the sequel will be similar in spirit? Although the
praeceptordenies that the Remediais an attackon Cupid, he does characterizethe
praeteritumopusas a poem which changed impetusto ratio (Rem.Am. 10). Even
if we set aside some readers'objectionsto this characterizationof the Ars, can we
be certainthat the god who [Nasonem]violentiusussit(ArsAm.1.23) wants love to
continue to be systematized?3
More generally,experiencedreadersknow Ovid as a poet whose disclaimers,
such as the claim in Ars 1.31-34 not to be writing for marriedwomen, cannotbe
taken literally.4We know also that he delights in undoing his praeteritumopus.
Among his shorterpoems, Amores2.8 reverses2.7 (on the amatorand Cypassis),
and 3.4 reverses2.19 (on guardingwomen). Furthermore,both the Amoresand
the Ars in large part reverse the elegiac convention of servitiumamoris-itself
a reversalof the normal Roman male authorityover women.5 In maneuvering
throughthe hall of mirrorswhich constitutesOvid's elegiac corpus,we shouldbe
skepticalabout the possibilityof a poem which contains no elements of reversal,
althoughwe may not alwaysagree on what is being reversed.6
Second-time readers of the Remediaitself will find even more to question
in the praeceptor'sreply to Cupid. The praeceptorproposes to cure only those
love affairswhich could cause fatalities, yet elsewhere in the poem he will cite
supposedlyexemplarycharacterswhose amatorybehaviorwas fatalfor themselves
or their loved ones. The diction of 29-30 is especiallycurious:tu colematernas,
tuto quibusutimur,artes,/et quarumvitio nullafit orbaparens.The most obvious
interpretationis: "Cultivateyour mother's arts [i.e., the arts of Venus], which
we use without risk, and which are to blame for no mother's bereavement."
However, Ovid could surelyhave said something about safe amatorytechniques
3 For skepticismaboutthe successof thepracptor amorisin taming amor,see, e.g., Durling 1958:
159, arguingthat the praecepto'sclaim that Amor should be docile like the young Achilles (ArsAm.
1.11-18) actuallyreminds us that Amor, like Achilles, may grow to be a formidableadult (as he is in
ArsAm. 2.741-742). Cf. Verducci1980: 39 etpassim.
4For example,Williams (1978: 72) points out that "whatOvid does [e.g., in the story of Helen
and Paris, Am. 2.359-372, and the story of Mars and Venus, ArsAm. 2.561-594] is to undercuthis
iteratedclaim [e.g., 1.31-34] that Ar Amatoriais addressedto heterae."
5 On the Roman elegiac inversionof the traditionalrelationshipbetween men and women, see,
e.g., Luck 1969: 68-69, 128-129 and Lyne 1979: 117-130. For limits to servitiumamorisset by the
seeArs Am. 1.51-56,1.417-418, 2.193-196,2.335-336.
praeceptoramoris,
6 Even in a
relativelyliteral reading, the precise relationshipbetween the Ars and the Remedia
is complicated. One can sometimes lose track of the praeceptorsclaim to cure only unhealthylove
ratherthan all love, since the later poem often seems to reversethe earlierone. For example, in the
analysisof Henderson (1979: xvi), fourteen of the fortypraeceptain the Remediareversepraeceptain
the Arr--although three injunctionsin the Remediaactuallyrepeatthe advice of the Ars (and line 487
enjoins the pupil to re-readthe Ars). On the complex relationshipbetween the two poems, see further
Prinz 1914: 36-48 and Lucke 1982: 36.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
242
PHOENIX
without referringto motherhood twice in one couplet. Motherhood will prove
significantin the Remedia:severalmothers (as well as fathers)lose or kill their
own children because of amatorybehavior describedand sometimes advocated
in this poem of "safe"love. Moreover, lovers in need of comfort are sometimes
comparedto mothersin need of comfort:maternallove appearssurprisinglyoften
in a poem professing to teach the calculatedabandonmentof love. Curiously,
the praeceptorproposes numerousways for men to distractthemselvesfrom love
but none specificallyfor women; one might hypothesizethat motherhoodis the
female equivalentof the forumand the battlefield,were it not for the fact that the
mere existenceof offspringis often a reminderof eroticlove.
The issues of the possibility and desirabilityof a cure will not become fully
apparentuntil later in the poem, but this opening addressto Cupid at least raises
questions about the natureof the praeteritumopusand the claim that the former
work is not being undone. The praeceptor's addressto his pupils raises more
doubts. One might expect him to single out those lovers who did not play the
game safelybecause they foolishly failed to readthe Ars. However, the praeceptor
dearly acknowledgesthat the deceptiiuvenes(41) learnedlove from him (43-44).
The rest of the exordiumshows incongruitiestypicalof the poem as a whole.
First the praeceptorcites Telephus, who was cured by the same spear which
wounded him (47-48).7 Next he assureshis audiencethat he is giving arma(50)
to women as well as to men: e quibusad vestros[uellarum] si quidnonpertinetusus,
/at tamenexemplomultadocerepotest (51-52). In fact, as other readersnote, he
will offer verylittle to help women directlyor indirectly.8The praeceptor's
choice
of a figurefrom the male world of war as his first exampleof healing anticipates
the male bias which will laterbecome much more conspicuous.
The exordiumcontinueswith a lengthy catalogueof loverswhom thepraeceptor
could have cured (55-68), after which he shifts his addressyet again, from the
deceptiiuvenes(41) to Phoebus, the carminiset medicae... repertoropis(76). The
praeceptorprays: tu pariter vati, pariter succurremedenti(77), but the poem as
a whole-and the first catalogue in particular-show the difficulties of being
both a medensof lovers and a credible vates. The poetic tradition offers little
encouragementthat love can be cured,and the first catalogueillustratesthis lack
of precedents.9The praeceptordoes not offer positive examplesof healing from
his own experience,nor even claim generallythat (as in ArsAm. 1.29) ususopus
7Bycontrast,in Prop.2.1.59-64TelephusandPhiloctetes(seeRem.Am.111-114)framea list
of characters
whosemedicalhistoriesdo not demonstrate
thatlovemaybe curedbutrathercontrast
withtheimpossibility
of curinglove.
8
See,e.g., Henderson1979:42; Green1982:404; andPinotti1988:104. I do not claimthat
womencanneverlearnfrommaleexamples(andviceversa),butI shallarguebelowthatthemalebias
of boththe excmpla
andtherecommended
distractions
fromloveis too systematic
to be ignored.
9On theevident
of curinglove,see Lenz1969:4. Conte(1994:65) concludesthat
improbability
"theRemedies
as a cureforthosein love,butin facttheyfunctionas a
againstLovepresentthemselves
i.e., Romanloveelegy.Neitherdiscussesin detailthepracepto's
remedyagainsta formof literature,"
difficulties
whenhe turnsto poetictraditionin searchof encouraging
of cures.
conspicuous
examples
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDIAAMORIS
243
movethoc.Instead, he cites as "credentials"eight mythologicalloverswho would
have avoideddisasterif they had readhis teachings.
Because this catalogueanticipatesmany significantcharacteristicsof exempla
in the Remedia,it merits close consideration.Phylliswould have completedmore
than nine tripsif she had had me (thepraeceptor)as magister(55-56); Dido would
not have been dying as Aeneas left (57-58); Medea would not have killed her
childrento punish her husband(59-60); Tereus would not have been turnedinto
a bird becauseof hisfacinus(61-62); give me Pasiphaeand Phaedra(as students),
and they will lay asidetheir passions(63-64); Pariswill leave Helen to Menelaus,
and Troy will not fall (65-66); Nisus would have kept his purplelock if Scyllahad
read my books (67-68).
The most obviousfeatureof this catalogueis that it is a catalogue,with no fewer
than eight myths. Although cataloguesoccur throughoutthe Ovidian corpus,0l
cataloguesof short examplesare particularlyconspicuousin the Remedia,which
in contrastto the Ars containsjust three exampleslonger than ten lines, and none
longer than twenty-six.11
Two other featuresare apparenteven beforewe scrutinizeindividualexempla.
First, the praeceptorcites only cures which would have happened. The lack of
positive examplesof actualcuresin the traditionis emphasizedby the contraryto-fact subjunctivesin the first four examples and the last.12 The imperatives
and futureindicativesin the three interveningexamples-give me So-and-so (as
a student), and a particularevent (such as the fall of Troy) will not happenunderline the absurdityof his boasts within the context of the contrary-to-fact
subjunctives.The passagesimplydoes not provethat self-help books areeffective.
Here, as elsewherein the poem, an abundanceof contrary-to-factclausesraises
doubts about the praeceptor's
claims.13
10On cataloguesin the Met., for example,see Galinsky1975: 195, rightlypointing out that some
but not all of Ovid'scataloguesarehumorousin effect.
11The
longest exemplum,the storyof Circe, occupiestwenty-sixlines (263-288). The exemplumof
Agamemnon, Chryseis,and Briseisoccupies twenty lines (467-486), but may strikethe readermore
as part of the cataloguebeginning in 453 than as an independentlonger example.The third longest,
the story of Phyllis, occupies just eighteen lines (591-608). The Ars contains six longer exempla
involving the behaviorof lovers (i.e., one fewer per book than the Remedia,if we classifyRem.Am.
263-288, 467-486, and 591-608 as longer examples)but these averageabout thirtylines (1.295-326,
1.527-564, 1.681-704, 2.123-142, 2.561-594, 3.685-746); moreover,the Ars includesa seventhlong
exemplum(2.21-98) involving the praeceptorhimself. The Remediathus devotes significantlyfewer
lines to lengthy examples.
12Vixisset(55), isset (56), vidisset(57), armasset(59), meruissct (62), legisset(67), haesisset(68).
Pinotti (1988: 106) comments on the evident impossibilityof the situationshypothesized in 55-68
and on the absurdityof this sort of self-recommendation,but not on the pluperfect subjunctives
themselves.
13The following exemplause contrary-to-factsubjunctives(usuallypluperfect)to describewhat
would havebeen a moreexpedientresultif some characterhad acted in conformitywith thepraeceptors
instructions:55-56 (two subjunctives),57-58 (one), 59-60 (one), 61-62 (one), 67-68 (two), 99-100
(one pluperfect and one imperfect), 605-606 (two); cf. 745 (two, involving circumstancesmore
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
244
PHOENIX
Second, six of the eight characterswho should have behaved more prudently
arefemale.This statisticalso anticipatesthe trend of the rest of the poem: female
exemplaare so often negative (quodvites, in the terms of Livy pref. 10) as to
undercutthe hope that women can be curedas readilyas men.
An additionalcharacteristicof this cataloguemight strikesecond-time readers
of the poem: at least half the examplesanticipatethe tendency of the Remediato
illustrate,both directlyand indirectly,the disruptionof parent-childrelationships
which often results from passion. Medea killed her children,Tereus was tricked
by his outragedwife into eating his son, Phaedra'spursuitof her stepson caused
his father to curse him, and Scylla betrayedher father to the enemy she loved.
One might add Pasiphae,whose passionresultedin a monstrousoffspring.14
Details of individual examples support Henderson's (1979: 43) conclusion
that Ovid is "burlesquing"
catalogueshere and also anticipatefeaturesof exempla
elsewhere in the poem. First, the catalogue demonstratesa curious mixture of
directness and allusiveness. We are told that under other circumstancesDido
would not have died when Aeneas left, and, more graphically,that Medea would
not have killed her children: nec dolorarmassetcontrasua visceramatrem(59).
However, the only explicit consequence Phyllis would have avoided is being
limited to nine trips (56). Scyllais not said to suffer anythingherself;rather,her
father lost his purple hair (68). The consequencesat the beginning and end of
this cataloguewould sound superficialor nonsensicalif Ovid'sintended audience
did not know that Phyllis killed herself after running to the shore nine times in
searchof her lover, and that Scyllaremovedthe purplelock which gave her father
strength because she loved his enemy.15Numerous other exemplain the poem
will requireus to supplyour own knowledgeof a myth cited only briefly.
Second, the three exampleswhich use imperativesdeserveparticularscrutiny:
da mihi Pasilphaen,iam tauriponet amorem;/ da Phaedran,Phaedraeturpisabibit
amor./redde Parin nobis,HelenenMenelaushabebit,/nec manibusDanais Pergama
victa cadent (63-66). The praeceptorseems to be gaining self-confidence: in
63-64 he can dispose of two victims of love in one line apiece, whereas each
previous victim requireda whole couplet, and he has changed from contraryto-fact subjunctivesto imperativesand future indicatives. With Paris, he keeps
the imperative-indicativesyntax but demands our attention by a return to the
than behavior). Cf debuerat(112), debueras(574), Argolidescuperentfugere
(735), and below, n. 27.
Although the Ars contains several contrary-to-factsubjunctives,only one instance describes what
would have been a more desirableoutcome if someone had behavedmore prudently:Troiamaneret,/
pracceptisPriamisiforetusasui (3.439-440). Ovid could have used contrary-to-factverbsin 2.359-372,
2.399-400, 2.561-594, and 3.685-746, but preferredother constructions.The relativefrequencyof
contrary-to-factsentencesin the Remediais, therefore,striking.
14Ovid was obviously aware of these implications; cf. Met. 7.396 and below, n. 33 (Medea),
6.619-665 (Tereus), 15.500-532 (Phaedra),8.1-95 (Scylla), 8.131-137 (Pasiphae).
15On Phyllis' nine trips to the shore, see Hyg. Fab. 59; Henderson (1979: 114) believes that
this detail probablyappearedin Callim. Aet. On Scylla and Minos' hair, see Aesch. Cho.613-622,
Apollod. Bibl. 3.15.8, and Met. 8.6-151.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDIAAMORIS
245
couplet structure as well as by the absurdity of his claim. Most of Ovid's
educatedcontemporarieswould accept the fall of Troy, if not the story of Helen,
as an historical event with enormous consequences (including the founding of
Rome), and the praeceptor'sfuture indicative claim that he will prevent this is
patently ludicrous.16 His return to contrary-to-factsubjunctivesat the end of
this cataloguemaybe an implicit acknowledgmentthat he has been carriedaway.
The passage should alert us to expect humorous exaggerationsand absurdities
elsewhere. In addition, we need to bear in mind that Paris' behavior is here
presented as something to be avoided; second-time readerswill rememberthat
Paris, like Tereus, is held up as a positive examplelater in the poem (457-460,
709-712).17
In this first catalogue,then, we find parodyof cataloguesas such, contrary-tofact verbs, a disproportionatelynegative treatmentof women, disruptedparentchild relationships,allusivenesswhich requiresus to supply our own knowledge
of the tradition, interpretationswhich clash with other treatmentsof the same
myth, and a direct referenceto the Trojan War, despite a later claim that such
topics are not suitable for elegiac couplets (381). All of these featuresrecur in
the Remedia.The incongruoustreatmentsof certainmyths and the hypothetical
nature of some exemplaweaken our belief in the possibility of a cure, while the
use of women as negativeexamples,the use of the TrojanWar traditionas source
material,and the referencesto tragediesinvolving childrenpresent a particularly
bleak pictureto female readers.To illustratethese characteristics,I shall discuss
at length one supposedlypositive catalogue of male examplesand two negative
female examples,with brieferinterveningreferencesto other exempla.
Perhaps the most absurd catalogue in the poem appearsin lines 453-460,
supplementedby a longer examplein 467-486. After advisinghis readerto cool
his ardorby dividinghis love between two girls (441-444), the praeceptoroffers a
list of male characterswho did notin fact dividetheir time betweentwo girlfriends
but betrayeda wife or fiancee for anotherwoman. The first exemplumis Minos,
who betrayedPasiphaefor Procris(453) without obviousnegativeconsequences.
However, the next two characterssuffered dreadful consequences, which the
praeceptorpasses over in silence, leaving the sophisticatedreaderto supply them
from his or her knowledgeof the tradition.Phineus (454) was trickedby his new
love into blinding his sons, andAlcmaeon (455-456) was killed by the brothersof
his old love. The following two examples,Paris and Tereus (457-460), shouldbe
questionedby even the most naive reader,since they were used earlieras negative
examples(61-62, 65-66). Furthermore,virtuallyeveryreaderwould know that
16For the
assumption that the Trojan War was historical (even if Homer could not be entirely
trusted),see Thuc. 1.3, 9-12, Livy 1.1, and Feeney 1991: 253.
17Mankin (1984) pointed out the
praeceptorsinconsistenttreatmentof Paris.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
246
PHOENIX
Paris' obsession with his second love caused the Trojan War, and many would
also know that in one traditionOenone, the woman whom Parisabandoned,later
refusedto heal his fatalwound. Similarly,Ovid's intended audiencewould know
that Tereus, after raping and mutilatinghis wife's sister,was trickedinto eating
his own son.18
By the conclusion of this catalogue, the consequences suffered by the unfaithful
males and their victims have become serious indeed. Paris' behavior brings death
to many others besides himself; Tereus' crime and his punishment are particularly
gruesome. Even if we ignore the sufferings of the women involved, it would be a
gross understatement to say that, for all the men except Minos, the recommended
cure is worse than the disease.19 In contrast to the first catalogue in the poem,
this one lists events rather than hypothetical situations. If we accept mythological
tradition, men have succeeded many times in abandoning one woman for another,
and even if we do not believe these myths we can easily accept infidelity as
realistically possibile-a phenomenon which most readers will have observed in
their own experience.20 Yet the catalogue does not prove that leaving one's wife
for another woman is utile-it actually implies the opposite to the reader familiar
with mythology-and it proves nothing whatsoever about the praeceptor'soriginal
advice to have two mistressesat the same time.
18On Procris:
see, e.g., Apollod. Bibl. 3.15.1, Met. 7.690-862, and Fontenrose1980. On Phineus:
Apollod. Bibl. 3.15.3. On Alcmaeon: Apollod. Bibl. 3.7.5. On Paris and Oenone: Apollod. Bibl.
3.12.6. On Tereus:Apollod. Bibl. 3.14.8, and Met. 6.647-666.
19Oenone is laesa(458), which can referto
betrayalby an unfaithfullover or spouse, to a wound,
or to pain in general. The adjectiveis provocativebecause Paris was physicallylaesuswhen Oenone
refused to help him. Having been reminded of the sufferingof one of the women in this passage,
we are perhapsjustified in recallingthat Philomela and Procne sufferedgreatly,although this is not
spelled out in 459-460. Procris'relationshipwith Minos, in some traditions,contributedto a pattern
of mutualdistrustin her marriagewith Cephalus,although again this link is not mentioned in either
Rem.Am. 453-454 or ArsAm. 3.685-746. Fontenrose(1980: 289), refuting Green'scharacterization
(1979: 24) of Procris as a "trollop,"insists that Ovid "'does not want us to take into account any
featureof a traditionwhich he does not mention'."(Fontenroseborrowsthis wording from Fraenkel
1950 2.97.) I find it difficult to apply such a principleconsistentlyto the Remedia,which blatantly
omits such well-known featuresas the ultimatefate of Tereus and the traditionalcausesfor Aegisthus'
adultery(see 161-168 and below, n. 28); not everyonewill agree with my interpretationof every
Ovidianexample,but few modem commentatorsfail to find humoror some other point in the contrast
between Ovid's Aegisthus and Aeschylus',or between Homer's treatmentof the quarrelover Briseis
and Ovid's (Rem.Am. 465-486 and below, n. 21). Similarly,if the authorof a modem Ars advised
the readerto take women on late-night drives,just as Ted Kennedydid on Chappaquidick,surelywe
would drawon our own knowledgeand question this example. Since not one but severalof the men
cited in Rem.Am. 453-486 sufferedfor infidelity,the cumulativeeffect is to encourageus to question
the praecepto'srecommendation;and it is possible, if less certain, that the word laesa invites us to
rememberthe sufferingsof the women as well.
20It may seem superfluousto specify the reactions of readerswho do and do not "believe"in
mythology, since much Latin poetry passes over in silence the issue of the necessity to suspend
disbelief. However, Ovid does sometimes disrupta mythologicalpassagewith an explicitreferenceto
its fictionalnature:see Am. 3.12.41-42; Davis 1980: 415; Tr. 1.5.79-80; and Davisson 1993: 227.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDLIAMORIS
247
Although this catalogueis not long by Ovidian standards,the praeceptorseems
to acknowledgeits absurdity,for he breaksoff with: quidmororexemplis,quorum
me turbafatigat? (461). However, he adds another example at greaterlength,
which does not explicitlyinvolve infidelity to a wife (although Agamemnon was
married), but which is equally absurd. Lines 467-486 turn the great quarrel
between Agamemnon and Achilles into an elegiac rivalry. Ovid's intended
audienceknew that Homer'sAgamemnonwas not seeking a curefor lovesickness
when he took Briseis, he did not help himself by this behavior, and indeed
he greatly harmed his fellow Greeks. Aspects of the praeceptor's account, such
as his contemptuous apostropheto Chryses (471-472) and Agamemnon's silly
comment on the similaritybetween the names of Chryseisand Briseis (475-476),
trivializethe entire episode.21Thus, in both the shorterand the longer examples
our knowledgeof the full traditioncompels us to question the praeceptor's
explicit
adviceto keep two mistresses,as well as his implicit recommendationto abandon
a wife or fianceefor anotherwoman. Nor need our skepticismdepend entirelyon
this tradition:the praeceptor's
own rhetoricalquestion in 461 raisesdoubts.
Toward the end of the poem, three briefer cataloguesraise similarproblems.
One implies that love is extremelydifficultto escape, one blatantlyfails to support
the associatedpraeceptum,and the third does both. In encouragingthe lover to
avoid places associatedwith the beloved, the praeceptormoves from a negative
example, the Argive sailors who failed to avoid Nauplius' trap (735-736), to
an apparentlypositive example, the sailor who rejoices to avoid Scylla (737).
However, the praeceptor,after mentioning two other dangerousspots (the gulfs
of Syrtis and the sea near Acroceraunia),concludeswith Charybdis(739-740).
Ulysses, who should alreadybe in our minds by lines 735-736 as the principal
cause of Nauplius' anger, was able to avoid Scylla or Charybdisbut not both.22
Therefore, the catalogue as a whole is not encouragingabout the feasibility of
avoiding all dangerousplaces.23The next catalogueis supposed to demonstrate
the role of casus(742), but the claim that Phaedraand Pasiphaewould not have
fallen in love had they been poorer(743-746) is unconvincing,since it was other
aspects of their circumstanceswhich exposed them to temptation;and the idea
that povertyprotectedHecale and Iros from unhappylove (747-748) has no basis
21Pinotti (1988: 225, 228) sees a conflationand banalizationof I. 1.74-91 and 430 ff. and finds
the emphasison the similarityof the two women'snames particularlyabsurd.Cf. Lenz 1969: 5.
22On
Scyllaand Charybdis,see Od. 12.101-120. Henderson (1979: 128-129) reminds us of the
connection between Nauplius, who was Palamedes'father, and Ulysses;see Eur. Hel. 766-769, Virg.
Aen. 2.81-93, and Serv.on Acn. 11.260.
23In a related
injunction,thepraeceptorurgeshis pupil to hurryby the house wherehis rivalmight
be with his mistress (785-788), adding: illo Lotophagos,illo Sirenasin antro/ sseputa (789-790).
Again, if we think of Homer's Odysseus, the implicationsare mixed: Odysseusabstainedfrom lotus
(Od. 9.82-104), but was able to hearthe Sirenswhile escapingthem (physically)througha device(Od.
12.154-200) which might be envied by the praeceptorspupil, who would doubtlessrejoice to find a
trickthroughwhich he could enjoy his girlfriend'sattractionswithout being permanentlycaught. On
other difficultiesin 785-788, see below, n. 50.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
248
PHOENIX
in extant literature. Even if we accept the praecepto'sinterpretationsof these
characters,they do not suit the largercontext,which emphasizeswhat actions can
preventa relapse(609-611), not what sort of people can avoid love altogether.24
Finally,the catalogueof men whose love was strengthenedby jealousy(771-784)
offers little hope of escaping this nostri maximacausamali (768). The praeceptor
introduces this catalogue with the injunction not to rivalem ... fingere, most
naturallytranslated"to imagine a rival"(769). However, Orestes, Menelaus, and
Achilles had actualratherthan imagined rivals. Indeed, the catalogueends with
a humorous assurancethat Agamemnon certainlyslept with Briseis despite his
oath (779-784). The examples are irrelevantto the injunction not tofingere a
rival, unless we conclude thatfingerehere means "to visualize"a rivalwho is all
too real.25Since rivals are the "greatestcause of trouble,"relapseseems almost
inevitable.26
Isolated instances of brief mythological exemplashow many of the features
found in the catalogues. Shortly after his first catalogue of contrary-to-fact
exempla,the praeceptorstates that Myrrha and Philoctetes (99-100, 111-112)
should have nipped their respectiveproblemsin the bud (although the praeceptor
admits, 113-114, that Philocteteswas curedaftermanyyears).Thepraeceptoruses
contrary-to-factsubjunctivesfor Myrrhaand a comparableconstruction,debuerat
... praesecuisse,for Philoctetes, presumablybecause-as in his first cataloguehe cannot think of any traditional figures who cured themselves in a timely
manner.27Proceedingfrom adviceon timing to a recommendationto keep busy,
the praeceptorexplainsAegisthus' adulterywith Clytemnestra:in promptucausa
est: desidiosuserat (162). The humorouslyabruptwording invites us to question
this interpretationof the myth, and indeed the notion that those who fought at
Troy escapedamatoryproblemsis contradictedelsewherein the poem (467-486,
24Henderson (1979: 129-130) finds no intelligible guidance on falling out of love in 743-744,
747-748. In Henderson's scheme, lines 601-688 and 697-798 should show how to prevent the
renewal of love; lines 743-750 present the "precept"that "beingpoor is a help"(p. xxi). Even if we
label these lines, less schematically,as a comment on the importanceof luck at any point in one's love
life, ratherthan a directionaboutpreventinga relapse,the exemplaareunconvincing:Phaedra'sprecise
financialworth was not a traditionalfactor in her unhappylove. Henderson rejectslines 745-746,
which are usually taken to refer to Pasiphae, but these lines are acceptedby Lenz (1969), Kenney
(1961), and Pinotti (1988: 313-314), who comparesthe juxtapositionof Pasiphae and Phaedrain
Rem.Am. 63-64.
25Henderson (1979: 133) does not examine the
wordfingerebut does contrastthe existingrivalof
this passagewith the possibly imaginaryrivalof 543-544. Fingereis translated"imagine"by Melville
(1990), but Green (1982)-perhaps thinking of the exemplawhich follow-chooses "picture,"a verb
which does not establishthe truth or falsehoodof the rival'sexistence.
26Note that this
discouragingpassage appears nearly at the end of the poem, supporting the
hypothesis that the author (as opposed to the praeceptor)understandsthe extreme unlikelihoodof a
permanentcure. See above, n. 9.
27On debeoused in the
past to indicate what someone should have done (but by implicationdid
not), see Woodcock 1959: 94-95. The force of the past potential subjunctivecuperent(735) is similar
to that of the pluperfectcontrary-to-factverbsfound elsewherein the poem.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDIAAMORIS
249
777-784).28 The traditionalreasons for the lovers' anger againstAgamemnon,
includingan ancestralfeud (itself arisingpartlyfrom adultery)and Agamemnon's
sacrificeof his daughter,are not mentioned.29
Another TrojanWar figure,Paris, is used in a varietyof ways. We have seen
that (like Tereus) he was a negative exemplumin the catalogueof hypothetical
cures (61-66), but allegedly positive in the catalogue of second attachments
(457-460): this inconsistencyrecurslater. Lethaeus Amor, afterlisting various
practicalworrieswhich can distractthe pupil fromlove (551-572), concludeswith
one negativemythologicalexample:Paris should have learnedto rejectHelen by
contemplating his brothers's deaths (573-574).30 In fact, these deaths are unlikely
to distract Paris from love, since this passion caused the war which killed his
brothers;and to classifythe casualtiesas counter-irritantsis an odd way to evaluate
the greatestwar in Greek mythology. Later, the Judgment of Paris,which gave
rise to his passion for Helen and thus to the war, is commended as an example
of comparingone's girlfriendto others in orderto perceiveher weaknesses(709712). Here, as in the catalogueof men who found new attachments,thepraeceptor
has ignoredthe tragedyof the TrojanWar, which he appearsto deploreelsewhere.
Furthermore,since Paris at the time of the Judgmentwas not specificallylooking
for the weaknessesof any human or divinefemale, the praeceptorhumorouslyfails
to convinceus that making comparisonscan help us recoverfrom passion.
Before we turn to the two most fully developed negative examples, both of
which are female, it may be useful to underline two trends in the examples
discussedso far. First, numerousexempla,both positive and negative, are drawn
from the TrojanWar tradition.31This patternboth contradictsthe claimthat such
28Geisler
(1969: 227) commentson the "travesteriende
Behandlung"of this tragictale andreminds
us that Ars 2.399-408 offers an entirelydifferentexplanationof the adulterousaffair(Clytemnestra's
jealousy of Chryseis, Briseis, and Cassandra).Hollis (1973: 111-112) sees additionalhumor in the
importationof an anachronisticRomanconcernabout idlenessinto this Greeklegend.
29Ovidian
speakersoften add an amatoryemphasis not present in the originalversion of a story,
as when the praeceptoramoriscasts Achilles and Agamemnon as rivals in primarilyamatoryterms
(Rem.Am. 777-784; cf. 467-486 and Tr. 2.259-262, 371-376, etc.). In the case of Aegisthus, the
pracceptoramorisconspicuouslyoverlooksa readilyavailableamatoryexplanationfor the background
to Aegisthus'adultery(one element of the ancestralhostility betweenAegisthus and Agamemnonwas
Thyestes' seduction of Atreus'wife, Eur. El. 719-721), thus revealingan incompletecomprehension
of the dangersof amatoryentanglements.Moreover,the pracceptorneverspecifiesa direct object for
amavit (167); his emphasissuggests that Aegisthus went to bed with someone out of sheerboredom,
not that he was grippedby the sort of dangerouspassion for a particularwoman which the pracceptor
set out to cure in 15-22.
30In a different context, ut possesodissetuam, Pari,funerafatrum / debuerasoculissubstituisse
tuis
(573-574) couldmean that Parisshouldhaveconvincedhimself not to abductHelen by contemplating
the bloodshedwhich would probablyresult. However, the rest of Cupid'sspeech advisesthe pupil to
distracthimself from existing passion with existing worries, not to avoid amatoryentanglementsby
contemplatingthe new worrieswhich may result. Therefore, I assume that Cupid's exemplumrefers
to some time afterthe abductionof Helen and the deaths of some of Paris'brothers.
31See 57-58 (Dido and Aeneas), 65-66 (Paris and Helen), 111-114 (Philoctetes), 161-168
(Aegisthus and Clytemnestra),263-288 (Circe and Ulysses), 457-458 (Paris and Helen), 467-486
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
250
PHOENIX
subjectsdo not belong to elegy (381, discussedfurtherin SectionIII)and seems to
shortchangefemalereaders.Second, althoughmanymale figuresarecharacterized
negatively, many others are said to be exemplary:quodcapias,in Livy's terms
(pref. 10).32Admittedly our knowledgeof the traditionwill frequentlydiscourage
us from imitating these examples, but the contrast with female charactersis
nonetheless striking. With the dubious exceptionof Hecale (747), the praeceptor
offers only one positive female exemplum:we should not be afraidto burn loveletters, since Althaea burnedher child by means of (burning)the log (721-722).
Whereas the positive male exemplausually requiredus to supply the negative
consequencesfrom our own knowledge, here the praeceptoris so blunt-Thestias
absentemsuccenditstipitenatum-as to give us pause for thought beforeimitating
this most unmaternalmother.The passageis immediatelyfollowed by a typically
negative female example. We should get rid of the wax images (as well as the
letters) of the beloved, something Laodamiafatallyfailed to do (723-724). While
the anachronisticsuggestion that Laodamiawas gazing on cerasmay encourage
a skepticalreaction to the entire passage (Henderson 1979: 127), the exemplum
typifiesthe tendency to cite women negatively.
The two longest negative exemplain the poem both featurewomen. In his
rejection of magic as a cure for love, the praeceptorfirst cites Medea (261-262)
but does not elaborate.33He devotes twenty-sixlines (263-288) to Circe, turning
(Agamemnon, Achilles, and Briseis), 573-574 (Paris and Helen), possibly 589-590 (since Pylades
helped Orestes during troubleswhich resulted from the war), 591-608 (Demophoon and Phyllis),
676 (Penthesilea and Achilles), 711-712 (udgment of Paris), 724 (Laodamia and Protesilaus),
735-736 (Nauplius and the Greeksailors),737-740 (Scyllaand Charybdis),747-748 (Iros), 771-772
(Orestes and Hermione), 773-776 (Menelaus and Helen), 777-780 (Achilles and Briseis), 789-790
(Lotus-eatersand Sirens).
32Men who should have behaved differently include Tereus (61-62), Paris (65-66, 573-574),
Philoctetes (111-112), Aegisthus (161-168), the unsuccessfulsailors(735-736), Orestes (771-772),
Menelaus (773-776), and Achilles (777-778), giving a total of nine negative male examples if we
count Paris twice. One might add as a tenth instancethose who succumbedto lotus or to the Sirens
comment that the proximity of the mistress's
(789-790; cf. above, n. 23), although the praeceptor's
threshold is as dangerous as lotus and the Sirens is perhaps too brief to be considered an actual
exemplum.Exemplarymales include Telephus (47-48), the six unfaithfulmen (453-486), Orestes
(589-590), Paris (711-712), successful sailors (737-740), and perhapsIros (747), giving a total of
eleven positive male examplesif we include Iros. I am not sure how to categorizethe terse reference
to Penthesilea: vincendaest telo Penthesileatuo (676). Achilles succeededin conqueringPenthesilea
physically, but was himself conquered emotionally, since he fell in love with her (Apollod. Epit.
5.1). The pupil needs to conquerhis passion but is not being advised to conquerhis formermistress
physically;we must reversethe terms of the original example if we are to considerit positive. In any
case, the numberof male positive examplesis roughlyequal to the numberof male negativeexamples,
in contrastto the mostly negativefemale examples.
33Ovid mayhave chosen not to elaborateon Medea in the Remediabecausemagic did in facthelp
her win Jason, if only temporarily,and laterhelped her punish his infidelity,whereasmagic was useless
to Circe in her relationshipwith Ulysses; or becausehe had alreadytreatedor was planning to treat
Medea elsewhere, in his lost play, in Her. 12, and in Met. 7.1-424. In Her. 12.163-172, Ovid has
Medea explicitlylament the inabilityof her otherwisepowerfulmagic to retainJason or to curelove.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDIAAMORIS
251
the dignifiedHomeric goddess into a characterreminiscentof the Heroides,who
initiallytriesto detainor to forgetUlysses throughmagic andlaterpleadswith him
awkwardly.We are told first that she tried everythingto prevent his departure,
and then that she tried everythingto subdue her pain (265-268). Presumably
these efforts included magic, since the praeceptorcomments that she was able to
transformthe shapes of men but not her animi... iura (269-270). Magic, of
course,was Circe'smeans of transformingthe shapes of men in the Odyssey,but
she was not able to transformOdysseus himself, nor did Homer's Circe attempt
by any means to detain him when he had resolvedto leave (cf. Od. 10.318-319,
489). The idea that she used magic in an effort either to secureor to forget him
may have originatedwith Ovid.
Apparently forgetting his emphasis on magic, the praeceptorgives Circe a
twelve-line speech. Like Briseis and Dido in the Heroides,the love-stricken
daughter of the sun offers to settle for less than marriage-even for a mere
postponementof Ulysses'departure(273-278; cf. Her. 3.69, 7.167-180). Having
perhapslost some dignityby this offer, Circe turnsfrom the dignum(dignavidebar,
275) to the utile. Here again she resemblesOvid's Briseis, Dido, and Laodamia
in that her excessive emphasis on the safety of her beloved may make Ulysses
appearcowardly.You should fear the sea, she argues;you need not flee, because
no new Troy threatensyou here (279-282).34 Circe concludeswith a strained
allusion to the convention that love and war are separateyet analogousworlds:
hic amoret pax est, in qua male vulneroruna, / tutaquesub regnoterrafutura tuo
est (283-284).35 This reminderthat a woman can be "wounded"even in peace is
significantin a poem which specifieswar and other primarilymasculineactivities
as distractionsfrom love. Of course,we know from other exemplathat men can
sufferthe pains of love in both war (467-486, 775-784) and peace(161-168), but
in this instance the juxtapositionof the feminine and singular(both semantically
and grammatically)adjectiveuna with the passiveverb emphasizesthe woman's
role as the unique victim, appropriatelyin a poem where female exemplaare
predominantlynegative.
After Circe's speech, which does not dissuade Ulysses from leaving, the
praeceptordevotesjust one couplet to her use of her adsuetas... artes,presumably
magic, in an attempt to assuage her love (287-288). Such shifts of emphasis
between rhetoric and magic as equally ineffective means, like the shift between
detaining and forgettingUlysses as equallyunattainedends, obscurethe original
point that magic cannot cure love.36 The praecepto'sconclusion is intriguing:
34For a suggestion that the male addressee is cowardly, see Her. 3.115-116 (Briseis); for an
emphasison safety, see Her. 7.48, 7.74 (Dido), 13.70 (Laodamia).On inconsistenciesand infelicities
in Briseis'pleas in Her. 3, see Verducci1985: 117 etpassim.
35Pinotti (1988: 178) finds that this pointed couplet "lasciapoco spazio all' &eeLvov."
36Prinz (1914: 49) criticizesthe inconsistenciesof Circe'ssuasoria.Geisler (1969: 289-292) says
that Ovid is less concerned with thematic consistency than with creating an interesting scene; he
decided to combine many of the standardelements of the departurescene with a scene involving
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
252
PHOENIX
ergo,quisquisopemnostratibi poscisab arte, / demeveneficiiscarminibusquefidem
(289-290). The literal context indicatesthat carminaare magic spells. However,
coming almostimmediatelyafterCirce'sunsuccessfulspeech,these lines may slyly
warn us against trusting poems. Words and art often do not detain a lover, and
they may equallyfail to curelove.
The second relativelylong negative female exemplumis juxtaposed with a
briefer positive male exemplum,typifying the unequal treatment of men and
women in this poem. First, the praeceptorexhortshis patientto avoid solitudeand
alwaysto have a friend who will care for him, just as Pylades cared for Orestes
(589-590). Green (1982: 418) finds this example grimly humorous: the only
love which Pylades helped Orestes cure was filial, and matricide (Aesch. Cho.
900-902) seems a drasticprescription.In any case, readersof the Ars know that
it is foolish to hope for friendsas loyal as Pylades(1.743-750).
Thepraeceptoroffersno positive exampleof a friendshipcuringeroticlove, but
turns to yet another contrary-to-factexemplum,once more involving a woman
whose conductshould not be imitated.Phyllis,when abandonedby Demophoon,
would not have killed herself (nonflessetpositisPhyllidasilva comis,606) had she
not been alone (591-608). In severalways she behaves like the desertedwomen
describedin Catullus64, the Heroides,and the Ars:she rushesaboutwildly (593596), lamentsher lover'streachery(597), addressesa deaf environment(597), and
contemplatessuicide (601-604).37 However, unlike heroines of similarepisodes,
she remainsfocused on her lover: she does not mention her family or regrether
isolation.38 By contrast, in Ovid's own HeroidesPhyllis regrets alienating her
fellow Thracians(2.81-82). Moreover, she is dearly not unaccompanied(ancillis
excipiendacado,130) yet is nonethelessresolvedto die.
It is also instructiveto comparethis passagewith the Circe exemplum.The
Circe of the Remediais noteworthyfor behavingmorelike a traditional,pleading
elegiac heroine than the Homeric traditionleads us to expect. The praeceptors
magic, and he was influenced by Homer's Calypso, Hellenistic poetry, and Virgil's Dido. Pinotti
(1988: 172) cites also the influenceof the associationof Circe with Medea in Theocr. 2.15-16, Tib.
2.4.55, and Prop. 2.1.53-54. Pinotti concludes that the inefficacyof magic is here contrastedwith
poetry, however, the potential ambiguityof carminain 290 weakens her argument. None of these
commentatorssuggests that the inconsistenciesof the passageremind us that the efficacyof words in
generalis limited.
37For wild rushing about, see Catullus64.124-129 (Ariadne)and Her. 2.121-128 (Phyllis). For
complaints about the lover's treachery,see Callim. Act. fr. 556 Pfeiffer (Phyllis), Catullus 64.132,
Ars Am. 1.536 (Ariadne), and Her. 2.26, 65, etc. For the unresponsivenessof the environment,
see Catullus 64.164-166 and An Am. 1.531. For plans to commit suicide, see Her. 2.133-148 and
7.181-196 (Dido).
38For referencesto absent or deceased relativesand to isolation, see Catullus 64.177-187 and
Her. 10.59-60, 119-120 (Ariadne), 14.117-118 (Hypermnestra).Lenz (1969: 7-8) finds the Phyllis
scene to be generallypathetic, but sees humor in the emphasis of the praeceptoron solitude as her
real problem (592, 605). He does not discuss in detail what the episode actuallyproves about the
advantagesof companyfor the praeceptor's
pupils.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDIAAMORIS
253
criticism of Circe's alleged reliance on magic is undercutboth by the pleading
speech he assigns to her and by the discrepanciesbetween the Homeric Circe
and the elegiac mold into which he tries to fit her. Phyllis was alreadyan elegiac
figurein Heroides2, and she shows many traditionalelegiac characteristicsin the
Remedia.39However, the latter poem conspicuouslyomits the one conventional
featureof abandonedwomen's laments, a complaintabout solitude,which would
claim that friendscan help one avoidpassionateextremes.
supportthe praeceptor's
In summary,the exemplaof the Remediatell us how not to behave more often
than how to behave.40When the praeceptordoes exhort us to imitate someone,
his interpretationis so often inconsistentwith the traditionor with his own words
elsewherethatwe maystill doubtwhethergenuineprecedentsexist for a curefrom
love. Those characterswho apparentlydid escape one passion usually suffered
or inflicted some horrifyingfate, raising doubts aboutwhether escape is the best
choice. Finally,the poem offers almost no positive models for female readers.
Many non-mythologicalpassages,which I shall considermore briefly,support
the hypothesis that an escape from love is extremely elusive and sometimes
harmful. In consideringthe possibility of escape, we may note that no place or
activity seems safe from love. The praeceptorcommends the Forum and legal
activitiesas a distraction(151), yet inArs 1.79-80 the Forumwas a place to fall in
love, not to escapeit. Later,a pun (si te causapotensdominaretinebitin urbe,Rem.
Am. 291) underlinesthe realitythat one tends to meets one's mistressin the city,
and later still the praeceptorwarnsus that litigation against one's formerbeloved
may revivepassion (659-672). Battlefieldsare also said to offer a place of escape,
yet conqueringCupid is comparedto conqueringthe Parthians(153-158)-who,
we soon learn, find safety in flight (224).41 More importantly,we have seen
39Ovidwasdoubtlessinfluenced
treatment
of Phyllis,butthe one-linefragment
by Callimachus'
(556 Pfeiffer)does not allow us to assessthis influence.
40To recapitulatethe exempladiscussedabove,we should imitateTelephus (47-48), Minos (453),
Phineus (454), Alcmaeon (455-456), Paris (457-458 and 711-712), Tereus (459-460), Agamemnon
(467-486), Orestes (589-590), Althaea (721-722), sailors who avoid danger (737-740), perhaps
Achilles (675-676; see above, n. 32), and perhapsHecale and Iros (747-748; see above,247-248 and
250), for a total of at most fourteenpositive examples.We should not imitate Phyllis (55-56), Dido
(57-58), Medea (59-60), Tereus (61-62), Pasiphae(63), Phaedra(64), Paris (65-66), Scylla(67-68),
Myrrha(99-100), Philoctetes (111-112), Aegisthus (161-168), Medea (261-262), Circe (263-288),
Paris(573-574), Phyllis(591-608), Laodamia(723-724), the victimsofNauplius (735-736), Phaedra
(743-744), Pasiphae (745-746), Orestes (771-772), Menelaus (773-776), and Achilles (777-784),
and those who succumbedto lotus or to the Sirens (789-790; I count this as a single examplebecause
the allusion is so brief), for a total of twenty-three negative examples. I have surveyedthe examples
offered to the pupil as models or warnings,but have not discussedeverymythologicalreferencein the
poem: for example, the distinction which the praeceptordrawsbetween himself and Diomedes (5-6)
is not offered to guide the reader'sbehavior.
41Indeed, "thereaderwould rememberthat it was when running awaythat the Parthianswere at
their most dangerous"(Henderson 1979: 62).
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
254
PHOENIX
that the praeceptoris inconsistent in his subsequentclaim that fighting in Troy
would have preventedAegisthus'difficulties(161-168), since Troy was the scene
of amatoryproblemselsewherein the poem (467-486, 777-784). The praeceptor
next suggeststhe countrysideas a placeto farm,hunt, fish, catchbirds,and escape
love (169-212), yet the diction recallsTibullus and Ovid's own Ars.42
More generally,shortlyafterbeing admonishedto avoid locasola(579), we are
warned to avoid the contagia(613) which may affect us if we encountercupidos
... amantes(611). The subsequentinjunctionto find an alterorbis(630) seems, as
I said in my introduction,to referto avoiding the domina(occursum
dominaenon
tulit ille suae,622). However, if we are tryingobedientlyto find a world which on
the one hand contains no lovers yet on the other hand is not deserted,the orbis
we seek may be elusiveindeed.
A safe orbiswould be particularlyelusive for Ovid's contemporaryfemale
readers,who could not have found distractionby arguingin the courts, serving
in the army, farming in the fields, or hunting in the forests. One might expect
thepraeceptorto recommendmotherhoodas a comparabledistractionfor women;
after all, Virgil'sDido indicated that a parvulusAeneas(Aen. 4.328-329) would
have alleviatedthe pain of separation. However, motherhood is never said in
the Remediato make an escape from love possibile.Indeed, as we are explicitly
remindedin the exemplumof Medea (59-60), the mere existenceof offspringcan
angera woman who has been hurt in love.43
Moreover, the praeceptorrepeatedlydraws analogies between the erotic love
he is trying to cure and maternallove, traditionallyconsideredmore loyal and
less erratic.Just as we do not try to soothe a bereavedmother until she has had
time to mourn, so cures for erotic love must be carefullytimed (127-130); the
pupil should distracthimself with a second girlfriend,becausea bereavedmother
is less miserableif she has other children (463-464); he should avoid fear and
42Agriculturewas a metaphorfor love in Ars Am. 1.359-360, 401, 450, 2.513, 2.652, etc., and
Tib. 2.6.21-22; it was also an activitywhich might be shared with the beloved in Tibullan fantasy
(12.71-75 and 1.5.21-34). Specifically,to Rem.Am. 173-174 cf. ArsAm.2.513 and Tib. 2.6.21-22;
to 189-190 cf. Tib. 1.5.24 (the adjectivenudois Ovid'saddition);to 195 cf. ArsAm.2.652. Of course,
Lucretius,the Eclogues,and the Georgicsare also importantfor this passage; see furtherHenderson
1979: 60-67. Hunting and fishing, prescribedin 199-210 as distractionsfrom love (cf. Virg. Ecl.
10.56-69 and Prop. 2.19.17-32, although neither poem is optimistic about a cure), were metaphors
for love in ArsAm. 1.45-48, 263-270, 391-393, 761-766, etc.
43Cf. Procne, who uses her child to punish his unfaithfulfather(Met. 6.519-660); Clytemnestra,
whose wrathis attributedby Aeschylusto both her daughter'sdeath and her husband'sinfidelity(Ag.
1417, 1438-47, 1525-29, 1555-59), and who is punished by her own unhappyson; and Althaea,
whose anger at her son is causedby behaviorarisingfrom his own passion (Met. 8.317-525). All of
these figuresappear,at least by implication,in the Rem.Am. (Procne in 459-460 and by implication
in 61-62; Clytemnestraby implicationin 161-168 and perhaps589; Althaea in 721). However, the
Remediaspells out the connectionbetween love and the sufferingchildrenof the angeredmotheronly
in 59-60. The notion that childrencan remindtheirmother of unhappylove is explicitin the Heroides:
forsitan ctgravidamDidon, scelerate,relinquas,/parsquetui lateatcorporeclausameo(7.133-134); nate,
amoris(11.113: Canace).
parumfaustimiserabilepignus
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDLIAMORIS
255
distrust in love, because the mother who fears for the safety of a son in battle
winds up loving him more than her other son (547-548).44 Admittedly, Roman
motherswere expectedto face bereavementmore stoicallythan Americanmothers
today.45Nevertheless,the analogiesbetween erotic love and a more committed,
praiseworthylove suggest that escape from the former is not facile and perhaps
not honestum.46
Particularlynoteworthy is the context of the claim that a bereavedmother
is less upset if she has other children. This comment interrupts the catalogue
of second attachments, supposedly commendable but mostly disastrous, which
the praeceptor himself called tiring (461), and it is followed by Agamemnon's
attempt to substitute Briseis for the similarly named Chryseis (467-486). Some
readers may recall that Agamemnon's own wife, who cited her daughter's death
(Aesch. Ag. 1417, 1525-29, 1555-59) as well as Agamemnon's infidelities (Aesch.
Ag. 1438-47; cf. ArsAm. 2.405-406) to explain her anger, was notoriously not
consoled by the existence of other children. In any case, just as the mythological
exempla involving maternal sorrow and anger remind us that erotic involvement
may have painful and lasting results, not easily escaped, so the non-mythological
passages associating erotic with maternal love weaken the notion that the former
ought to be begun and ended at will.
44Henderson
(1979:108),citingthesepassagesas wellas line 30 (etquarum
[artium]vitionulla
fit orbaparens),statesthat "theimageof the sorrowingor anxiousmotherseemsto havehad a
powerful,andnot veryreadilyunderstandable,
appealfor Ovidin thispoem."However,the image
is moreunderstandable
if we considerthe relationship
betweenamatorypassionand the existence
of offspring,as well as the possiblesuggestionthateroticlove,like maternallove, shouldhavean
To Henderson's
listof passageson motherhood,
onemightadd184,on the
dementof commitment.
cowlamentingherlost calf. Anotherworriedparentappearsin 571, butherewe finda father(the
aremasculine)
pronounsin the passagewhosegenderis unambiguous
worryingaboutafilia nubilis
ratherthan a son in danger.
femalereadersfacednot only a higherinfantand child mortalityrate
45Ovid'scontemporary
thanwe do today,but alsothe knowledgethattheymightlose theirsons throughwaror through
adoptionsarranged
(oftenat an earlyage)
by theirhusbands,theirdaughtersthroughmarriages
andtheirchildrenof eithersexthroughdivorce,sincethechildrenwould
arranged
by theirhusbands,
wouldundoubtedly
be appalledby the notion
belongto the divorcingfather.Ovid'scontemporaries
of televisionshowswhichencouragethosein griefto paradeor even to exaggerate
theirfeelings.
to requireconsolation(Cic.Fam.
Nonetheless,the lossof a childwasat leastsometimesconsidered
4.5-6, Sen.Marc.andHelv.),andwasnot the subjectof a flippanthandbookin verse.Evans(1991:
the "current
debate"overthe extentto whichthe relationship
of "parent
and
172-177)summarizes
childwitnesseda profoundchange[i.e.,parentsbecamemoreemotionally
attachedto children]... in
the Republicand... duringthe firstdecadesof the Principate"
(174).Golden(1988)concludesafter
a surveyof the evidencethatUweshouldassumethe ancientscaredwhentheirchildrendiedunless
thereis somecompellingreasonto doubtit."
46Theexplicitemphasisof the poem,as Henderson(1979:42) notes,is on the utile(line53), not
the honestum.
Forexample,whenthepraeccptor
recommends
friendshipandcitesPylades,he does
notpraisePylades'
honorable
behavior
butratherpointsout thathicquoque
nonlevisususerit
amicitiac
to maternal
loveallowus to thinkof
(590).I amsuggestingonlythatthepoem'srepeatedreferences
lessutilitarian
considerations.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
256
PHOENIX
Literature-any literature-offers no safer protection from love than other
supposed distractions. The praeceptorattempts to distinguish between genres.
For instance, he defends the licentiaof the Remediaon the basis that different
topics suit different meters (371-372): in particular, Callimachinumerisnon
est dicendusAchilles(381). However, Achilles appearsin three exemplain the
Remedia,which also cites numerous other examples from the Trojan War.47
Later, the praeceptortries to protecthis pupils by exhortingthem to avoid teneros
poetas (757), specifically Callimachus, Philetas, Sappho, Anacreon, Tibullus,
Propertius, Gallus, and himself (759-766). Yet if the Remedia itself is any
guide, anyonewho confined himself to readingHomer, the Epic Cycle, and the
tragedianscould scarcelyavoid encounteringlove andjealousy.48
If caelum,non animummutant (Hor. Epist. 1.11.27) and perhaps libros,non
animummutant apply to some followers of the praeceptadiscussedabove, cibum,
non animum mutant might characterizethe concludingpraeceptaon food and
drink(795-810). Not all agreewith Green'sjudgment that Ovid "wasout of fuel"
at this point.49However, in the immediate context the rathermundane passage
offers a strikingcontrastto the anxiouslines on the rival(767-794), the maxima
causamali (768), a passagewhich contains probabledoublesentendreseven in its
advice to hurryby the house where the rivalis presumablyenjoying the beloved
(785-788).50 In the context of the poem as a whole, advice on aphrodisiacand
anaphrodisiacfood seems of limited use, since the pupil is not being trained to
suppressall sexualurges. Indeed, he was enjoinedin 399-404 to wear himself out
with quamlibetinvenias(403) before visiting his beloved, in 441-488 to have two
girlfriends,and in 531-542 to disgust himself by means of a copia(541) of sexual
activitywith his girlfriend.What the pupil is supposed to learn is to change his
attitudetowarda particularwoman, a changewhich diet may not effect.
In addition to inconsistenciesabout the dangers of places, activities,literary
genres, and physical impulses, the Remediareveals the praeceptor'slimitations
even.more directly. He acknowledgesthat some unspecified number of readers
are in need of healing preciselybecause they read his Ars (41-44), that some
of his medical praeceptawill strike his readers as dura (225, on leaving town;
cf. 523), and that he has suffered from the same infirmity which he is now
trying to heal in others (313-314). This last confession introduces a personal
47Achilles: 467-486, 676, 777-780. Other Trojan War exempla:above, n. 31. On Ovid's
"creativetransgressionof the expectedboundsof elegy"even as he drawsattentionto "thefundamental
importance... of generic criteria,"see Hinds 1987: 117,132 etpassim.
48In 751-756, thepraeceptorwarnshis pupil againstpantomime,not tragedy;see Henderson1979:
131.
49Green (1982: 425) suggests that the section on diet gives "the
impression... that Ovid ... was
out of fuel";Henderson (1979: 136) acknowledgesthat "to modern taste ... [the section] may ...
seem ... anti-climactic,"but justifies it on the basis of the conventions of medical treatises,as does
Pinotti (1988: 333).
50See Green 1982: 424 on the use oflimina (786) and the allusionsto ArsAm.2.725-726,731-732
(on sexualtechnique).On other difficultiesin this passage,see above, n. 23.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDIAAMORIS
257
anecdote: the praeceptoronce tried to forget a girlfriend by dwelling on her
imperfections, but the first three allegationswere untrue (318, 320, 321), and
the fourth imperfection, her greed, provoked his hatred (322) ratherthan the
indifferenceadvocatedelsewhere(655-658).
Furthermore, the advice on cataloguing or exaggerating imperfections is
followed by the suggestion that the pupil drop in on his mistressbefore she has
finished her make-up, but this is qualifiedwith a curious warning: non tamen
huic nimiumpraeceptocrederetutumest: /fallit enim multosformasine arte decens
(349-350). In the immediate context, the couplet warns male readersthat their
attempt to be disgusted by seeing girlfriendswithout make-up may backfire.In
the poem as a whole, the couplet also remindsus that preceptsare not foolproof
and that attractionmay occur independentlyof any system. One might compare
the double-edged comments about Circe:while the immediate context indicates
that the adsuetas... artes (287) and carmina(290) which could not change the
laws of her own nature (animi... iura tui, 270) were magic spells, the passage
may also warnus againstexpectingeither techniquesor poetryto change our own
nature.
Of course, Ovid is not the first poet to acknowledgethat his topic is difficult
and that no system can cover every contingency. For example, Lucretiusadmits
that his subject matter is formidableand obscure, and that its bitterness needs
sweetening (1.410, 1.933-950, 4.7-25). Virgil comments that victims of the
plague were actually harmed by quaesitae... artes, and that the experts were
helpless (G. 3.549-550).51 However, the praeceptorof the Remediagoes far
beyond his counterpartsin the De rerumnatura and Georgicsin displayingthe
limitations of his own ars. After all, neither Lucretius nor Virgil states that
his own earlierpoem has caused his pupils' difficulties, neither resorts to eight
blatantlyhypotheticalexemplaas credentials,and neither claimsto be tired of his
own examples.52
51On medical writings which may have influenced the Remedia,see Pinotti 1988: 16-20. Ovid
might have been skeptical about the practicalusefulness of such works as Nicander's Theriacaand
Alexipharmaca.On possible limitations in Nicander'sknowledge, see Gow 1953: 24. After reading
graphicdescriptionsof the sufferingsspecificallycausedby each of manysnakes (e.g., Ther.235-257,
271-281, 298-308, 338-342, 424-437), one would like some guidance as to which of the numerous
remedies describedin 493-956 is appropriatefor a given species. Before consuming the head of the
snake which had poisoned me, I would prefermy adviserto be more definite about whether I should
take it with wine or water (see 622-624); I might hesitate to takecoriander(874), said to be poisonous
in Alex. 157; and I might question the valueof weighing out medicinal"cakes"(ic6KXovt SpacXai{oU5,
954-955) since the poet gives no proportionor weights for the twenty-sixingredients.Alexipharmaca
does list specificantidotesseparatelyafterdescribingeach poison, but nonethelessoffersa bewildering
varietyof choices in most cases. Ovid may, therefore,have found some precedentfor poems which
pose as medicalhandbooksbut in fact have some other purpose.However, Nicanderat least offers no
precedent for repeatedconfessionsby the praeceptorof his limitations, nor for mythologicalexempla
which contradicteither the precedingpraecepta
or poetic tradition.
52
Commenting on quidmororexemplis?(461), Henderson (1979: 99) cites such phrasesas longum
est (Lucr. 4.1170) and quidreferam?(Virg. G. 2.118). However, Hendersonrightly notes that Ovid's
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
258
PHOENIX
Is the Remediaa didactic failure? It is not a reliableself-help book, but the
limitationsof the praeceptorteachus to watch for the seriousimplicationsof what
seems to be a game, as well as for humorousimplicationsof what seems deadly
serious at the time.s3 (Perhapsthe Trojan heroes would, after all, have behaved
differently if Ovid had been present to point out or to invent the ridiculous
aspects of their behavior.) Does the poem rework, deform, kill, or provide
a remedy against amatoryelegy?54 Conte argues that the praeceptor'sreply to
Cupid's opening complaint "almost seems to say, 'Never have I really written
elegy (especiallystartingwith the Ars ); if elegy is for the most part suffering,...
I have alwayssought a differentelegy'."s5The opening may indeed imply that,
in Ovid's corpus at least, games ratherthan suffering are generic to elegy. The
rest of the poem, however, shows the dangers of the game as clearlyas Ovid's
elegiacpredecessors,even while it seems to defy elegiac tradition(e.g., Prop. 2.1)
by claiming that love can be cured after all, that an elegiac poet can be a vates
medens(cf. 77).56
The Remediagoes beyond mere parody of didactic and elegiac conventions.
It frustrates,not occasionallybut systematically,our searchfor a comprehensive
system,for an arsguaranteedto devisean end to an affairwhich, evenif intendedto
be expedient,has grown painful.The phrasequidmororexemplis?(461) illustrates
the co-existence of parody and warning. It parodies a didactic technique, the
catalogueof examples,but also-particularly since it is immediatelyfollowed by
a frivolouslytreatedexampleof a disastroussecond attachment-it raisesdoubts
about the possibility of finding exemplato prove seriouslythe praecepta of the
Remedia.The poem is not, of course, a humorlesssermon on what is currently
termed "responsiblesexuality,"although considerationsof space have precluded
extensive discussion of Ovid's humor here.57 However, this very entertaining
poem, a fine demonstrationof the pitfallsof trustingcarminato animi vertereiura
line is an "exaggeratedextension" of such expressions;neither Lucretiusor Virgil adds anything
comparableto quorummeturbafatigat.
53Cf. Myerowitz 1985: 178 on playfulnessand seriousnessin the Ars:to read the poem, we must
"playwith, ratherthan attemptto live by [emphasisadded], the illusion that it is possible to arriveat
any realend other than death."
54See Barsby1978: 7 on reworkingelegy, Durling 1958: 158 on killing elegy; Verducci1980: 36
on deforming elegy; and, with specificreferenceto the Remedia,Conte 1994: 65 on the poem as "a
remedyagainsta form of literature."
55Conte 1994: 58. The extent to which "elegyis for the most part suffering"(as opposed to, for
example,a series of poses calling attention to themselves)in Catullus, Propertius,and Tibullus is, of
course, a subjectof criticalcontroversy,but most readerssee a qualitativedistinction between Ovid
and his predecessors.
56On Prop. 2.1, see above, n. 7.
57It is impossibleto do justice to Ovid'shumor in a single essay,particularlyan essayemphasizing
other aspects of his poetry. Cf. Cahoon 1991, a response to Boyd 1987, which had criticized
Cahoon 1984. Cahoon (1991: 368) respondsin apparentfrustrationthat "I must firstconfess to the
unintendedhumourlessnessof my own earlierargument.I had imagined that Ovid'switty, charming,
and ingeniouslyfunny poem had been so long recognized as such that there was no need for me to
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDIAAMORIS
259
(270; cf. 290), does repeatedlyinvite us to question the praeceptoFsclaims and
advice.
I have argued above that many such questions are motivated by the poem's
exempla. The precise degree of our skepticism obviously depends not only on
the nature of the examples but also on what we bring to the poem. If we
bring common sense alone, we will question the handling of certain exempla.
Agamemnon'semphasison the similarityof two girls'names (475-476) is almost
surelyirrelevantin his decision and certainlydoes not help those who do not have
a choice of two similarlynamed girlfriends.Circe'sinconsistenciesabout means
and ends (265-288) call into question the praeceptor's
originalpoint about magic
as a means (to be avoided) and about forgetting love as an end. If we bring a
reasonablealertnessto contextandto the poem as awhole, we will questionspecific
inconsistencies,such as the use of Tereus and Paris,who arenegativeexamplesin
61-66 but supposedlyprotrepticexamplesin 457-460. More generally,we may
notice the large numberof contrary-to-factexamples,the interestin motherhood
implied by both mythologicaland non-mythologicalpassages,and incongruities
in non-mythological passages, such as those recommending "safe"places and
genres: the cumulativeeffect is to raise doubts about the possibility of escape,
especiallyfor women. If we bring a basic competence in the literarytradition,
which Ovid assumed, we will question eccentric interpretations,such as the
emphasis on Aegisthus' idleness (161-168), and perhaps those passageswhich
commend Homeric figureswhile ignoring the tragic consequencesof the Trojan
War. If, in addition, we bring familiaritywith Ovid's own earlierworks, we
should approachall his exemplawith a healthy skepticism. Although it is the
later Metamorphoses
which offers the most explicit instancesof examplesthat fail
to convince, the Amoresand Ars include numerousexampleswhose handling is
flippantor far-fetched.58
Ovid's Remediaamorisis more than a second entertaininginvestigationof the
limits of ratio. It does not undo the Ars, but it does go beyond the earlierpoem
in its explorationof the consequencesof the system presentedin the Ars. Love
turns out to be both ubiquitous and dangerous. Risks abound, not only in the
undisciplinedtype of love which the Ars should have precluded,but also in the
calculatingamatory strategieswhich would be pursuedby obedient readersof
the Ars and Remedia. With its conspicuouspaucity of straightforwardpositive
examples and its high frequency of examples from outside traditionallyerotic
subjects, the Remediarepeatedlyreveals the lasting effects of lovers' behavior
on themselves, their families, and even internationalpolitics. Non-mythological
evidence confirms the limited efficacy of ars, which was alreadyevident in the
ArsAmatoria,and the pervasivepower of love, which becomes more apparentin
acknowledgeits humour.The result, I now see, was a ratherpriggishand moralistictone ....
Amores2.6 is very funny."
s8 See Davisson 1993: 217-219.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
So yes,
PHOENIX
260
the Remedia.More characteristicof the Remediathan the Ars is the suggestion
that not only is an easy escapefrom painfullove extremelyimprobable,but also a
casualescape from love may be undesirablebecause of the pain which may result
for the lover himself or for others. The evidence for this rests on those examples
which imply or (as in 60) spell out the consequencesof infidelity,as well as on the
analogiesbetween erotic love and the traditionallypraiseworthylove of a mother
for a child. After readingthe Remedia,we may not even want to be curedof love;
and no system is likely to workwithout the cooperationof the patient.59
DEPARTMENT
OFCLASSICS
LOYOLACOLLEGE
MD 21210
BALTIMORE,
U.S.A.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
andRomeNew Surveysin the Classics12. Oxford.
Barsby,J. 1978. Ovid.Greece
Binns,J. W. 1973.Ovid.Boston.
Boyd,B. W. 1987. "TheDeath of Corinna'sParrotReconsidered:
Poetryand Ovid's
Amores."
CJ82: 199-207.
Cahoon,L. 1984.'The Parrotandthe Poet:the Functionof Ovid'sFuneralElegies,"CJ
80:27-35.
1991. "Psittacus
redux.Boyd'sBirdandMine (or, SomeThoughtson Aims and
Methodsin LiteraryStudies),"CJ86:368-376.
LoveElegy,Pliny'sEncyclopedia.
Conte, G. B. 1994. Genresand Readers:Lucretius,
Baltimore.
and Anti-exempla
in the Amoresof Ovid,"Latomus39:
Davis,J. T. 1980. "Exempla
412-417.
Davisson,M. H. T. 1993. "Quidmooroexemplis?:
Mythologicalexemplain Ovid'sPreExilicPoemsandthe ElegiesfromExile,"Phoenix47:213-237.
Durling,R. M. 1958."OvidasPraeceptorAmoris,"
CJ53: 157-167.
andChildren
inAncientRome.London.
Evans,J. K. 1991. War,Women,
Feeney,D. C. 1991. TheGodsin Epic.Oxford.
Fontenrose,
J. 1980."Ovid'sProcris,"
CJ75:289-294.
Fraenkel,E. ed. andcomm.1950.Aeschylus:
Agamemnon.Oxford.
K.
1975.
Ovid's
An Introduction
to theBasicAspects.Berkeley
Galinsky,
Metamorphoses:
andLosAngeles.
AmorismitKommentar
zu
Geisler,H. J. ed. andcomm. 1969. P. OvidiusNaso:Remedia
Vers1-396. Berlin.
Golden,M. 1988. "Didthe AncientsCareWhen Their ChildrenDied?,"G&R35:
152-163.
Gow, A. S. F. andA. F. Scholfield(eds. andcomms.).1953. Nicander:ThePoemsand
Poetical
Fragments.
Cambridge.
s91 am gratefulto the refereesof Phoenixfor additionalparallelsfrom the Heroides,for suggestions
on clarifyingthe interpretationof certain exempla,and for encouragementto consider some broader
issues in the Remedia.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
REMEDI AMORIS
261
Green, P. 1979. "The Innocence of Ovid's Procris:A. A. 3.687-746," CJ 75: 15-24.
tr. and comm. 1982. Ovid:TheEroticPoems.New York.
Henderson, A. A. R. ed. and comm. 1979. P. OvidiNasonisRemediaAmoris. Edinburgh.
Hinds, S. 1987. The Metamorphosisof Persephone:Ovid and the Self-ConsciousMuse.
Cambridge.
In Binns 1973: 84-115.
Hollis, A. S. 1973. "TheArsAmatoriaand the RemediaAmoris."
E.
ed.
1961.
P.
Ovidi
NasonisAmores
...
Remedia
amoris.Oxford.
[et]
J.
Kenney,
Lenz, F. W. ed. and tr. 1969. Ovid'HeilmittelgegendieLiebe[und]Die Plege desweiblichen
Gesichtes.Berlin.
Luck, G. 1969. TheLatin Love Elegy.2London.
Lucke, C. 1982. P. OvidiusNaso:RemediaAmoris:Kommentarzu Vers397-814. Bonn.
Lyne, R. 0. A. M. 1979. "ServitiumAmoris,"
CQ NS29: 117-130.
Mankin, D. 1984. "Parisin Ovid's RemediaAmoris."
Unpublishedpaperpresentedat the
April meeting of the ClassicalAssociation of the Middle West and South.
Melville, A. D. tr. 1990. Ovid:TheLovePoems.Oxford.
Myerowitz, M. 1985. Ovid'sGamesofLove. Detroit.
Pinotti, P. comm. 1988. PublioOvidioNasone:RemediaAmoris. Bologna.
Prinz, K. 1914. "Untersuchungenzu Ovids Remediaamoris."WS36: 36-83.
Verducci, F. 1980. "The Contest of Rational Libertinism and Imaginative License in
Ovid'sArsAmatoria,"Pacfic CoastPhilology15.2: 29-39.
- 1985. Ovid'sToyshopof theHeart:EpistulaeHeroidum. Princeton.
Watson, P. 1983. "Mythologicalexemplain Ovid'sArsAmatoria,"CP 78: 117-126.
Struktur
Weber, M. 1983. Die mythologische
Erzahlungin OvidsLiebeskunst.Verankerung,
undFunktion.Frankfurt.
Williams, G. 1978. Changeand Decline:RomanLiteraturein the Early Empire. Berkeley
and Los Angeles.
Woodcock, E. C. 1959. ANew Latin Syntax.Cambridge.
This content downloaded from 151.100.47.155 on Thu, 25 Jun 2015 17:11:57 UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions