Epic Succession and Dissension

Book excerpt: This study constitutes the first modern book-length, in-depth critical analysis of Ovid, Metamorphoses 13.623–14.582. In this unit Ovid, by challenging openly the artistry of his great predecessor Vergil, redraws the parameters associated with the definition and appreciation of epic poetry. The book first introduces the methodological complexity of the Ovidian embrace strategy, and, subsequently, it reads the ‘little Aeneid’ closely, discussing the network of allusions to its prototype. It assesses the structure and thematics of each episode in the cluster, and traces the recurrence of prominent motifs throughout the Metamorphoses. Not least, it explores poetics, arguing that Ovid’s selective incorporation of the Aeneid reproduces the spirit and fundamental ideas of the model in an idiosyncratic sophisticated manner.