August and Ovid. Publius Ovid Nason

In times when blood flowed like a river, there was no less love. The love advice of the poet Ovid was popular then, but it is still relevant today.

Many inquisitive descendants delved into the advice of the ancient Roman poet Ovid, including the loving Pushkin.

Publius Ovid Nason is an ancient Roman poet best known for his love elegies and poems. Ovid had a strong influence on European literature, including Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin. His works were extensive and affected many aspects of human life of that time. Ovid wrote a lot of interesting things about relationships with women. What can be learned from the experience of the ancient Roman poet Ovid for a modern man? Much!

1. Take the first step yourself

“Really, the one who expects the initial step from a woman is too high, you see, thinks about her beauty. The first attack - to a man and the first requests - to a man, so that a woman could surrender to requests and flattery "

2. Strive for excellence

“To be loved, be worthy of love, and this will not give you an exceptionally beautiful appearance or a slender figure - you must combine physical beauty with the gift of the mind”

3. Don't be easy prey

“We always strive for the forbidden and desire the unlawful”

“There are also women to whom our devotion is a burden: Love fades in them if there is no rival. Sometimes the soul becomes exhausted, having had enough of happiness, for it is not so easy to keep a measure of contentment. Like a fire that has wasted its strength in its burning, exhausted, lies, hiding under gray ashes, but bring sulfur to it - and it will flare up with a new flame, and shine again brightly, as it shone before, - so the soul sometimes freezes in undisturbed laziness: sharp flint strike to ignite love!

4. Don't waste your time

“Use your youth; life passes quickly: subsequent joys will not be as beautiful as the first "

“Do not forget that the coming old age awaits you - the time of love is precious, do not waste a single day. Enjoy life while the spring years are in bloom: time runs faster than a hasty stream.

5. Compliment

“If you want a woman to continue to love you, try to inspire her with the idea that you are delighted with her beauty. She will be in a red dress, praise the red dress, she will be in a dress made of light matter, say that it suits her. If she has gold jewelry on, say that she is more precious to you personally than gold; if she decides to put on a suit of winter cloth, praise her for putting on a suit of winter cloth. She will come up in one shirt, shout: “You are burning me! ..” - and in an imploring voice ask her not to catch a cold. If her hair is skillfully combed into two braids, admire that it is combed into two braids; if this hair is curled, praise the curl. Admire her hands when she dances and her voice when she sings; if she stops, express regret that she finished early.

6. Don't criticize

“Most of all, beware of ugliness to notice in a friend! If, having noticed, you keep silent, this is in praise of you. So Andromeda never called his dark-skinned one. The one with two fluttering wings on his feet. So Andromache seemed overweight to others - Hector, among all, alone found her slender. What is unpleasant, get used to it: in habit is salvation!

7. Do not be jealous in vain

"Jealousy is the death blow to the strongest and most enduring love"

8. Take care of yourself

“Just be neat and simple. Sunburn on the Champ de Mars. Cut your body, pick up a clean toga to fit your height, fasten the soft shoe strap with a stainless buckle so that your leg does not dangle, as if in a wide bag. Do not ugly your head with an unskilled haircut—Hair and beard require a dexterous hand. Don't let your nails stick out, fringed with black mud. And not a single hair looks out of a hollow nostril. Let a clean mouth not smell of heavy staleness. And from your armpits the herd does not breathe a goat; Leave everything else - let the girls amuse themselves with this ... "

9. Don't give up and don't be afraid of obstacles

“Either do not take it, or bring it to the end”

“A drop hollows out a stone not by force, but by frequent falling”

10. Know how to part

“It is not enough to be able to leave - manage, having left, not to return. So that the exhausted heat falls out as cold ash "

11. Learn the art of love and sex

“Love is an art that can be learned and in which one can improve only by knowing its laws”

12. Take Action

“Night, love and wine do not awaken modest desires: the night drives away modesty, and wine and love - shyness”

13. Hide your emotions

“Try to seem as cold as ice, even when Etna is raging in your chest. You pretend that you are already healed, do not give out torment. Hide the tears in which you live with a cheerful smile "

14. Be flexible

“Weasels, jokes and peace are all that feeds love. If a friend in response to love will be unfriendly. Be patient and strong: wait, and she will soften. Bend the branch, and it will bend if you bend patiently. If you press hard, the bough will break. Be patient, swim with the flow across every river, for it is an empty labor to swim against the current. Be patient, and you will pacify both the tigress and the lioness, and the reluctant bull will bend his neck under the yoke. I say: be compliant! Concessions bring victory. Anything that comes to her mind, do it like an actor! He says "no" - you say "no", he says "yes" - you say "yes": obey! He will praise - praise, he will scold - scold, he will laugh - laugh and you, shed a tear - cry. Let it be a decree to all facial expressions! If you want to play by throwing square dice, try to play worse, try to pay more.

15. Be persistent

“Let it not be given - and you take from the one who does not give. If he fights and if he says: "Unfit!" Know: not yours, but yours, he wants victory in the struggle. Just try not to hurt your tender lips, so that the maiden cannot blame your rudeness. Who, having broken a kiss, did not break everything else, I truly say, that kisses are not for the future. What prevented you from achieving the fullness of the desired? Shame? It’s not shame at all - except for your dullness ”

At the request of his father, Ovid entered the civil service, but, having passed only a few lower positions, he refused it, preferring poetry to everything. Early, also at the request of his father, having married, he soon had to divorce his wife; his second marriage was also unsuccessful and short-lived, and only his third wife, from the Fabi family, remained connected with him forever. She probably gave it to her daughter Perilla, who also wrote poetry (Trist., III, 7, 11). Complementing his education with a trip to Athens, Asia Minor and Sicily and speaking in the literary field, Ovid was immediately noticed by the public and won the friendship of prominent poets, such as Horace and Propertius. Ovid himself regrets that the early death of Tibullus prevented the development of close relations between them and that he only managed to see Virgil (who usually did not live in Rome).

Creation

The first literary experiments of Ovid, with the exception of those that he, in his own words, set on fire "for correction", were "Heroides" (Heroides) and love elegies. The brightness of Ovid's poetic talent is also expressed in the "Heroids", but he drew the greatest attention of Roman society to himself with love elegies, published under the title "Amores", first in five books, but subsequently, with the exclusion of many works by the poet himself, which amounted to three that have come down to us a book of 49 poems. These love elegies, the content of which is undoubtedly based to one degree or another on the love adventures experienced by the poet personally, are associated with the fictitious name of his girlfriend, Corinna, which thundered throughout Rome, as the poet himself claims (totam cantata per Urbem Corinna) . In these more or less voluptuous works, Ovid managed to show in full force a bright talent, already then, that is, in the very young years of his life, which made his name loud and popular. Finishing the last of these elegies, he imagines himself having glorified his people of the Peligni as much as Mantua owes its glory to Virgil, and Verona to Catullus. Undoubtedly, there is a lot of poetic talent, free, unconstrained, shining with wit, naturalness and accuracy of expression, in these elegies, as well as a lot of versifier talent, for which, apparently, there were no metrical difficulties; but still, the poet, having published his Amores, did not have sufficient reason to put himself on the same level not only with Virgil, but also with Catullus. He did not surpass here either Tibullus or Propertius, from whom, like Catullus himself, he even makes quite a few verbatim or almost verbatim borrowings (see Zingerle, "Ovidius und sein Verhaltniss zu den Vorgangern und gleichzeitigen Romischeu Dichtern", Innsbruck, 1869 - 71).

"The Science of Love"

No less noise was made in its time by that work of Ovid, the preparation of which he announced to his readers in the 18th elegy of book II and which in the manuscripts and editions of Ovid bears the title “Ars amatoria” (“Love Science”, “Science of Love” ), and in the works of the poet himself - simply "Ars". This is a didactic poem in three books, written, like almost all the works of Ovid, in elegiac meter and containing instructions, first for men, by what means can one acquire and retain a woman's love (books 1 and 2), and then for women how they can attract men to them and keep their affection. This work, distinguished in many cases by the extreme indiscretion of content - an indiscretion poorly justified by the statement that he wrote these instructions only for public women, solis meretricibus (Trist., II, 303), - is literary excellent and reveals the full maturity of talent and hand a master who knows how to finish every detail and does not get tired of painting one picture after another, with brilliance, hardness and self-control. This work was written in 2 - 1 years. BC e., when the poet was 41 - 42 years old. Simultaneously with the Science of Love, a work of Ovid related to the same category appeared, from which only a fragment of 100 verses has come down to us and which bears the title Medicamina faciei in publications. Ovid points to this work as ready-made for women in the third book of the Science of Love (p. 205), calling it “Medicamina formae” (“Means for beauty”) and adding that although it is not large in volume, it great by the diligence with which it is written (parvus, sed cura grande, libellus, opus). In the excerpt that has come down, the means related to facial care are considered. Shortly after The Science of Love, Ovid published The Medicines for Love (Remedia amoris) - a poem in one book, where he, without refusing his service to Cupid for the future, wants to alleviate the situation of those for whom love is a burden and who would like to get rid of it. He performs this task with the hand of an experienced poet, but, compared with the "Science of Love", "Remedia amoris" represent rather a decline in talent, which does not reveal here that richness of fantasy, that ease in images, and even that liveliness of exposition with which "Ars amatoria" shines. . In the direction that Ovid had hitherto held, he had nowhere to go further, and he began to look for other plots. We see him shortly behind the development of mythological and religious traditions, the result of which were two of his capital works: "Metamorphoses" and "Fast".

Link

But before he had time to complete these valuable works, he was struck by an external blow that radically changed his fate. In the autumn of 9, Ovid was unexpectedly sent by Augustus into exile on the shores of the Black Sea, in the wild country of the Getae and Sarmatians, and settled in the city of Tomah (now Constantia, in Romania). The proximate reason for such a severe order of Augustus in relation to a person who, through his wife's connections, was close to the emperor's house, is not known to us. Ovid himself vaguely calls it the word error (mistake), refusing to say what this error consisted of (Trist., II. 207: Perdiderint cum me duo crimina, carmen et error: Alterius facti culpa silenda mihi est), and stating that this would mean to inflame Caesar's wounds. His guilt was obviously too intimate and connected with damage or honor, or dignity, or tranquility of the imperial house; but all the assumptions of scientists, who have long tried to solve this riddle, turn out to be arbitrary in this case. The only ray of light on this dark story is shed by Ovid's statement (Trist. II, 5, 49) that he was an involuntary spectator of some crime and his sin was that he had eyes. Another reason for the disgrace, remote, but perhaps more significant, is directly indicated by the poet himself: this is his “foolish science”, that is, “Ars amatoria” (Ex Pont. II, 9, 73; 11, 10, 15), due to for which he was accused as a "teacher of dirty adultery". In one of his letters from Pontus (IV, 13, 41-42), he admits that the first reason for his exile was precisely his "poems" (nоcuerunt carmina quondam, Primaque tam miserae causa fuere fugae).

"Sorrow"

The reference to the shores of the Black Sea gave rise to a whole series of works, caused exclusively by the new position of the poet. Testifying to the inexhaustible power of Ovid's talent, they wear a completely different color and present us with Ovid in a completely different mood than before the catastrophe that befell him. The immediate result of this catastrophe was his "Sorrowful Elegies" or simply "Sorrows" (Tristia), which he began to write while still on the road and continued to write in the place of exile for three years, depicting his sad situation, complaining about fate and trying to persuade Augustus to pardon. These elegies, which fully correspond to their title, came out in five books and are addressed mostly to the wife, some to the daughter and friends, and one of them, the largest, which makes up the second book, is to Augustus. This latter is very interesting not only by the attitude in which the poet puts himself to the personality of the emperor, exposing his greatness and exploits and humbly asking for forgiveness for his sins, but also declaring that his morals are not at all as bad as one might think, judging by the content. his poems: on the contrary, his life is chaste, and only his muse is playful - a statement that Martial later made to justify the monstrously dirty content of many of his epigrams. In the same elegy, a number of Greek and Roman poets are cited, on whom the voluptuous content of their poems did not bring any punishment; also points to Roman mimic representations, the extreme obscenity of which really served as a school of debauchery for the entire mass of the population. The "Sorrowful Elegies" was followed by "Pontic Letters" (Ex Ponto), in four books. The content of these letters addressed to various persons is essentially the same as that of the elegies, with the only difference being that, compared with the latter, the Letters show a marked decline in the poet's talent. This was felt by Ovid himself, who frankly admits (I, 5, 15) that, re-reading, he is ashamed of what he has written and explains the weakness of his poems by the fact that the muse he invokes does not want to go to the rude Getae; to correct what he has written, he adds, he does not have enough strength, since any tension is hard for his sick soul. The severity of the situation was evidently reflected in the freedom of the poet's spirit; the constantly felt oppression of an unfavorable situation more and more hampered the flight of his imagination. Hence the tedious monotony, which, in combination with the minor tone, ultimately produces a painful impression - the impression of the death of a primary talent, placed in miserable and unnatural conditions and losing its power even in language and versification. However, two works of Ovid came to Rome from the shores of the Black Sea, indicating that Ovid's talent was also capable of objects, the processing of which required a long and serious study.

"Metamorphosis" and "Fast"

The first of these works was Metamorphoses (Transformations), a huge poetic work in 15 books, containing an exposition of myths related to transformations, Greek and Roman, from the chaotic state of the universe to the transformation of Julius Caesar into a star. This high poetic work was begun and, one might say, completed by Ovid in Rome, but was not published due to a sudden departure. Not only that: the poet, before going into exile, burned, out of grief or in his heart, even the manuscript itself, with which, fortunately, several lists had already been made. The lists preserved in Rome gave Ovid the opportunity to revise and supplement in volumes this major work, which was thus published. "Metamorphoses" is Ovid's most fundamental work, in which the rich content delivered to the poet mainly by Greek myths is processed with such power of inexhaustible imagination, with such freshness of colors, with such ease of transition from one subject to another, not to mention the brilliance of verse and poetic turns, which cannot but be recognized in all this work of the true triumph of talent, causing amazement. No wonder this work has always been read a lot and has long been translated into other languages, starting with Greek. translation made by Maxim Planud in the 14th century. Even we have quite a few translations (both prose and verse); four of them appeared during the seventies and eighties of the XIX century. Another serious and also large work of Ovid, not only in volume, but also in meaning, is the “Fasti” (Fasti) - a calendar containing an explanation of the holidays or sacred days of Rome. This learned poem, which gives a lot of data and explanations related to the Roman cult and therefore serves as an important source for the study of Roman religion, has come down to us only in 6 books, embracing the first half of the year. These are the books that Ovid managed to write and edit in Rome. He could not continue this work in exile due to lack of sources, although there is no doubt that he subjected what he wrote in Rome to some alteration in the Volumes: this is clearly indicated by the inclusion there of facts that had already taken place after the exile of the poet and even after the death of Augustus, as for example. the triumph of Germanicus, dating back to 16. In poetic and literary terms, the Fasts are far inferior to the Metamorphoses, which is easily explained by the dryness of the plot, from which only Ovid could make a poetic work; in the verse one can feel the hand of the master, familiar to us from other works of the gifted poet.

Ibis and Halieutica

Among the works of Ovid that have come down to us, there are two more that entirely belong to the time of the poet's exile and stand, each, apart from the others. One of them, “Ibis” (the well-known name of the Egyptian bird, which the Romans considered unclean), is a satire or libel on the enemy, who, after the exile of Ovid, pursued his memory in Rome, trying to arm his wife and exile against him. Ovid sends this enemy countless curses and threatens him with exposing his name in another work, which he will write no longer in elegiac meter, but in iambic, that is, with all epigrammatic causticity. Ovid borrowed the name and form of the work from the Alexandrian poet Kaldimachus, who wrote something similar to Apollonius of Rhodes. Another work, which has no connection with the others, is a didactic poem about fishing and is called "Halieutica". From him we have only an excerpt in which the fish of the Black Sea are listed and their properties are indicated. This work, which Pliny refers to in his Natural History (XXXII, 5), due to the specialty of its plot, does not represent anything remarkable in literary terms.

Lost works

It would be incomparably more interesting for us if, instead of these two unimportant works, Ovid's tragedy, entitled Medea, came down to us, which, although it was a work of the poet's youth, was considered in Roman literature one of the best examples of this literary type. Quintilian (X, 1, 98) dwells on it with pleasure, and Tacitus also mentions it in the “Conversation about Orators” (ch. 12). A few more works have not come down to us, written partly in Rome, partly in Volumes, and among the last - a panegyric to Augustus, written in the Getic language, which he himself announces in one of his Pontic letters (IV, 13, 19 et seq.). Ovid, still not losing hope for alleviation of his fate, if not for a full pardon. But these hopes were not destined to come true. Not only Augustus, but also Tiberius, to whom he also appealed with prayers, did not return him from exile: the unfortunate poet died in Tomy in 17 and was buried in the vicinity of the city.

Heritage

Ovid was the last of the famous poets of the Augustan age, with whose death the golden age of Roman poetry ended. The abuse of talent during its greatest development deprived him of the right to stand along with Virgil and Horace, but the poetic talent that abounded in him and the virtuosity of his poetic technique made him a favorite not only among his contemporaries, but throughout the Roman Empire. Undoubtedly, Ovid as a poet should be given one of the most prominent places in Roman literature. His Metamorphoses and Fasts are still read in schools as a work of a Latin writer exemplary in language and versification.

(full name - Publius Ovid Nason) - an outstanding Roman poet, best known as the author of the poems "The Science of Love" and "Metamorphoses", as well as love elegies. He had a huge influence on European literature, including Pushkin, who dedicated an extensive epistle in verse to him in 1821.

Biography of Ovid

Publius Ovid Nason Born March 20, 43 B.C. e. (711 from the founding of Rome) in the city of Sulmone in Italy.

In ancient Rome, Ovid was a descendant of a family belonging to the class of horsemen. His father was a wealthy man and gave a good education to his sons.

From an early age, Ovid discovered a passion for poetry. Later, he admits that even when it was necessary to write in prose, poetry involuntarily came out from under his pen. Young Ovid soon became convinced of his complete incapacity to occupy administrative and judicial positions, which his father so hoped for.

Leaving the service, the outstanding writer was engaged only in poetry, fortunately, the financial situation made it possible not to worry about daily bread.

Attending rhetorical schools in Rome early accustomed him to a sophisticated rhetorical-declamatory style, elements of which are visible even in his later works. Ovid completed his education by making a journey to Greece and Asia Minor, which was considered in his time necessary for any educated Roman, especially a poet.

The accumulated experience formed the basis of his literary works. Fame came to him immediately, and many famous poets, in particular, Horace and Propertius, became his good friends.

At the request of his parents, Ovid married early, but was soon forced to divorce; the second marriage was also short and unsuccessful, and only the third, with a woman who already had a daughter from her first husband, turned out to be strong and, apparently, happy. Ovid had no children of his own.

Being a wealthy man and free from public service, Ovid led a frivolous lifestyle in Rome. In his poetry, he often introduced frivolous motifs and images, which was contrary to the policy of Emperor Augustus, who dreamed of reviving the ancient and harsh Roman virtues. This may have been the reason for Ovid's exile in 8 AD. e. to the extreme north-eastern part of the empire, namely, to the city of Toma (present-day Constanta in Romania), where in 17 (according to other sources in 18) he died.

Creativity Ovid

The first literary experiments of Ovid were love elegies and the so-called "Heroides" (messages of love content addressed by women of the heroic era to their beloved men). He drew the greatest attention of Roman society to himself with love elegies, published under the title "Amores". Three books of 49 poems have come down to us. These love elegies are associated with the fictitious name of his girlfriend, Corinna, which thundered throughout Rome. Here Ovid managed to show his bright talent in full force, which immediately made his name loud and popular.

"The Science of Love"

An even greater furor was made by the next work of the poet - the poem “The Science of Love in three books, written, like almost all the works of Ovid, in elegiac meter. "The Science of Love" is devoted to love, including carnal, gender relationships. The poem in poetic form contained instructions, first for men, in what ways one can acquire and retain female love (books 1 and 2), and then for women, how they can charm men and maintain their affection. The indiscretion of the content was combined with outstanding artistic merit, testifying to the maturity of the artist's skill.

This work was written in 2 - 1 years. BC e., when the poet was 41 - 42 years old. Shortly after The Science of Love, Ovid published The Cure for Love, a poem in one book, where he seeks to alleviate the situation of those who find love a burden and who would like to get rid of it.

Ovid at this time was in the prime of life and at the zenith of glory. He was no longer the frivolous youth who began to write his love elegies. It was time to think about how to fill the rest of your life with decent work.

The poet took up the development of mythological and religious traditions, the result of which were two of his major works: "Metamorphoses" and "Fast". The work went quickly: seven years later, Ovid had the first six books of the Fasts and all fifteen of the Metamorphoses ready and waiting only for the final finish.

But the poet did not have time to finish these valuable works. In the autumn of 8, he was unexpectedly sent by Augustus into exile on the shores of the Black Sea in the city of Tomy. The reasons for the disgrace are unknown. Ovid himself mentioned dissatisfaction with poetry and a certain act, spoke vaguely about a mistake.

While still on the road, Ovid began to write "Sorrowful Elegies" or simply "Sorrows", which became a new genre in national poetry, because. elegies were previously associated exclusively with love themes. These writings are imbued with sorrow and feelings; some of them are addressed to Augustus with the hope of a change of fate.

Then he wrote the “Pontic Letters” in four books, the content of which is essentially the same as the elegies, with the only difference that, compared with the last, the “Letters” reveal a noticeable drop in the poet’s talent.

Then Ovid again turns to his capital works, which, due to a sudden departure for exile, were never completed and published.

Metamorphoses of Ovid

The first of these works was the poem "Metamorphoses" ("Transformations"), written back in Rome. An unexpected departure provoked Ovid to destroy the manuscript, but fortunately, several copies of it have survived. Living in Tomy, the poet added and revised the work to the form in which it is known now.

"Metamorphoses" - the most fundamental work of Ovid, consisting of 15 books and containing a presentation of Greek and Roman myths related to transformations, starting from the chaotic state of the universe to the transformation of Julius Caesar into a star.

The plot of the Metamorphoses is nothing but the whole of ancient mythology, presented systematically and, if possible, chronologically, as far as the chronology of myth was generally imagined in those days.

Ovid creates a huge work containing about 250 more or less developed transformations, arranging them mainly in chronological order and developing each such myth in the form of an elegant epillium.

In "Metamorphoses" the poet was faced with the task of a new understanding of the world. No wonder Ovid pulls the entire motley fabric of his great poem to one knot, to one key symbol - metamorphosis. Metamorphosis means the unity of the world, in which everything is human or reminiscent of a person, the history of the world from wild chaos to historical times is the history of its revival and animation, and Ovid tells it. Metamorphosis also means the eternity of the world, in which nothing ends in death, but ends only in transformation. Having told and shown this, Ovid ends Metamorphoses with a direct teaching - the speech of the sage Pythagoras that everything flows and changes, everything is animated by an eternal soul, overflowing from body to body, and therefore a person should love all living things and not eat animal meat . So the idea of ​​transformation is inseparable from Ovid's idea of ​​universal love.

With "Metamorphoses" in terms of the degree of influence on European art, none of the works of the era of antiquity can be compared. This poem was considered a favorite by many prominent people, for example, Montaigne, Goethe and others. Pushkin gave an extremely high assessment of the work of Ovid.

"Fasty"

"Fasty" is another serious and also large work of Ovid both in volume and in value. It is a calendar containing an explanation of the feasts or holy days of Rome. The poem has come down to us only in 6 books, embracing the first half of the year, those books that Ovid managed to write and process in Rome. In exile, he could not continue this work due to lack of sources, although he subjected to some alteration in the Volumes what was written in Rome: this is clearly indicated by the inclusion there of facts that took place after the exile of the poet and even after the death of Augustus.

Ovid was the last of the famous poets of the Augustan age, with whose death the golden age of Roman poetry ended. As a poet, Ovid should be given one of the most prominent places in Roman literature. His "Fasts" and "Metamorphoses" are still read in schools, as the works of a Latin writer exemplary in language and versification.

A crater on Mercury and a city in the Odessa region are named after the poet.

He worked in many genres, but was most famous for his love elegies and two poems - Metamorphoses and The Art of Love. Due to the discrepancy between the ideals of love he promoted and the official policy of Emperor Augustus regarding family and marriage, he was exiled from Rome to the western Black Sea region, where he spent the last ten years of his life. He had a huge impact on European literature, including Pushkin, in 1821. dedicated to him an extensive epistle in verse. Archived from the original on November 28, 2012..

Biography

"Fasty"

Another serious and also large, not only in volume, but also in value, the work of Ovid is represented by "Fasty"(Fasti) - a calendar containing an explanation of the holidays or sacred days of Rome. This learned poem, which gives a lot of data and explanations related to the Roman cult and therefore serves as an important source for the study of Roman religion, has come down to us only in 6 books, embracing the first half of the year. These are the books that Ovid managed to write and edit in Rome. He could not continue this work in exile due to lack of sources, although there is no doubt that he subjected what he wrote in Rome to some alteration in the Volumes: this is clearly indicated by the inclusion there of facts that had already taken place after the exile of the poet and even after the death of Augustus, as for example. triumph of Germanicus, referring to the city. In poetic and literary terms, the Fasts are far inferior to the Metamorphoses, which is easily explained by the dryness of the plot, from which only Ovid could make a poetic work; in the verse one can feel the hand of the master, familiar to us from other works of the gifted poet.

Ibis and Halieutica

Among the works of Ovid that have come down to us, there are two more that entirely date back to the time of the poet’s exile and stand, each, apart from the others. One of them, Ibis(a well-known name for an Egyptian bird, which the Romans considered unclean), is a satire or libel on the enemy, who, after the exile of Ovid, pursued his memory in Rome, trying to arm his wife and exile against him. Ovid sends this enemy countless curses and threatens him with exposing his name in another work, which he will write no longer in elegiac meter, but in iambic, that is, with all epigrammatic causticity. Ovid borrowed the name and form of the work from the Alexandrian poet Callimachus, who wrote something similar to Apollonius of Rhodes.

Another work, which has no connection with the rest, is a didactic poem about fishing and is entitled "Halieutica". From him we have only an excerpt in which the fish of the Black Sea are listed and their properties are indicated. This work, which Pliny refers to in his Natural History (XXXII, 5), due to the specialty of its plot, does not represent anything remarkable in literary terms.

Lost works

Although these two works have been preserved, the tragedy of Ovid, under the title "Medea", which, although it was the product of the poet's youth, was considered in Roman literature one of the best examples of this literary type. Quintilian (X, 1, 98) dwells on it with pleasure, and Tacitus also mentions it in the “Conversation about Orators” (ch. 12). A few more works have not come down to us, written partly in Rome, partly in Volumes, and among the last - a panegyric to Augustus, written in the Getic language, which he himself announces in one of his Pontic letters (IV, 13, 19 et seq.). Ovid, still not losing hope for alleviation of his fate, if not for a complete pardon. But these hopes were not destined to come true. Not only Augustus, but also Tiberius, to whom he also addressed with prayers, did not return him from exile: the unfortunate poet died in Tomy in the city and was buried in the vicinity of the city.

Heritage

Ovid was the last of the famous poets of the Augustan age, with whose death the golden age of Roman poetry ended. The abuse of talent during the period of its greatest development deprived him of the right to stand along with Virgil and Horace, but the poetic talent that beat in him and the virtuosity of his poetic technique made him a favorite not only among his contemporaries, but throughout the Roman Empire. Undoubtedly, Ovid as a poet should be given one of the most prominent places in Roman literature. His Metamorphoses and Fasts are still read in schools as a work of a Latin writer exemplary in language and versification.

A crater on Mercury and a city in the Odessa region are named after Ovid.

Catch phrases from the works of Ovid

• Casta est quam nemo rogavit - She is chaste, whom no one coveted
• Fas est et ab hoste doceri - You must always learn, even from the enemy

Translations

Selected poems were repeatedly published in Russia for schools in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Collected works:

• Compositions P. Ovid Nason all that have come down to us. / Per. A. Klevanova. In 3 vols. M., 1874.
  • T. 1. Messages of heroes and heroines. Love Poems. The art of love. The cure for love. cosmetics. About fish. XXXVI, 264 pp.
  • T. 2. Metamorphoses or changes in species. XL, 345 pages
  • T. 3. Fasty. Sad verses. Letters from the banks of Pontus. Fragments. XL, 344 pages
• Works. In 2 volumes. St. Petersburg, 1903.
  • T. 1. The art of love. The cure for love. cosmetics. Fasty. Love elegies. Metamorphoses. 276 pages
  • T. 2. Metamorphoses. 380 pages
• Ovid. Collected works. In 2 volumes / Intro. Art. V. S. Durova. St. Petersburg, Biographical Institute "Studio Biographica". 1994. (almost complete edition, but some Love Elegies and Paired Messages are missing)
  • T. 1. Love elegies. Heroes. The science of love. The cure for love. Rubbing for the face. Sorrowful elegies. Letters from Pontus. Ibis. 512 pp.
  • T. 2. Metamorphoses. Fasty. 528 pages

Early works:

• Heroines of Ovid. / Per. D. Shestakova. Kazan, 1902. 157 pages.
• The science of love. / Per. V. Alekseev. St. Petersburg, 1904. 136 pages, 2nd ed. St. Petersburg, 1914. 220 pages.
• The science of love. / Per. A. I. Manna. St. Petersburg, 1905. 158 pages.
• Songs of love. (Amores). In 3 books. / Per. Ya. B. M., 1905. 168 pages.
• Ovid. Ballad messages. / Per. F. F. Zelinsky, L. F. Zavalishina. (Series "Monuments of world literature". Ancient writers). M., Sabashnikov Publishing House. 1913. XLIV+344 pp.
• The art of love. / Per. G. S. Feldstein. M., 1926. 180 pages.
• Remedies for love. / Per. G. S. Feldshein. M., 1926. 88 pages.
• Ovid. Love elegies. / Per. S. Shervinsky. M., Goslitizdat. 1963. 202 pages, 25000 copies.
• Ovid. Elegies and small poems. (Series "Library of ancient literature"). M., HL. 1973. 528 p.
• Ovid. Love elegies. Metamorphoses. Sorrowful elegies. / Per. S. V. Shervinsky, entry. Art. S. A. Osherova. M., artist. lit. 1983. 512 pages ("Love Elegies" in full, "Sorrowful Elegies" in excerpts)

"Metamorphoses":

• The myth of Daphne according to the Russian prose translation of the beginning of the 18th century was published in the book: Nikolaev S. I. Polish poetry in Russian translations: The second half of the 17th - the first third of the 18th century. L., 1989. S. 144-148.
• transformations Ovidiev with notes and historical explanations, or the Advent of pagan gods and demigods from the beginning of the world ... Translated from French. K. Rembovsky. T. 1-3. M., 1794-1795.
• Transformations. / Per. F. Matveeva. In 2 vols. M., 1874-1876.
• Transformations. / Per. V. Alekseev. St. Petersburg, 1885. 388 pages.
• XV books of Transformations. / Per. A. Feta. M., 1887. XXIV, 793 pages (in Russian and Latin)
• Ovid. Metamorphoses. / Per. S. V. Shervinsky, ed. and approx. F. A. Petrovsky, article by A. I. Beletsky. M.-L.: Academia, 1937. XXX, 358 pages. 5300 copies.
• Ovid. Metamorphoses. / Per. S. Shervinsky, ill. P. Picasso. (Series "Library of ancient literature"). - M.: Artist. lit., 1977. - 430 pages.

Later works:

• Cry Publius Ovid Naso. / Per. I. Sreznevsky. M., 1795. 320 pages (text in Russian and Latin)
• Selected sad elegies. / Per. F. Kolokolova. Smolensk, 1796. 290 pages.
• sorrow Ovid. (Tristia). / Per. A. Feta. M., 1893. 146 pages.
• Letters from Pontus. / Prosaic. per. V. E. Rudakova. St. Petersburg, 1893. 166 pages.
• Ovid. Sorrowful elegies. Letters from Pontus / The publication was prepared by M.L. Gasparov and S.A. Osherov. - M.: Nauka, 1978. - 271 pages. 50,000 copies. (Series "Literary monuments")

Literature dedicated to Ovid

• A. S. Pushkin to Ovid.
• I. M. Tronsky A History of Ancient Literature: Ovid.
• S. Osherov Lyrics and Epics of Ovid.
• Drimba O. Ovid. Poet of Rome and Tom / Per. from Romanian.. - Bucharest, 1963. - 291 p.
• Gagua I.P. Ovid Nason and ancient Colchis. - Tb. : Publishing house Tb. un-ta, 1984. - 124 p. - 1500 copies.
• Podosinov A.V. Works of Ovid as a source for the history of Eastern Europe and Transcaucasia: Texts, translation, commentary. - M .: Nauka, 1985. - 288 p. - (Ancient sources on the history of the peoples of the USSR). - 14,000 copies.
• Vulikh N.V. Ovid. - M ., 1996. - 282 p. - (Life of remarkable people). - 10,000 copies.
• Cherkassky L.E. Roman exile and wanderer from the kingdom of Wei: Publius Ovid Nason (43 BC - 17 AD) and Cao Zhi (192-232) // Historical and Philological Studies: Collection of Articles for 70- anniversary of Academician N.I. Conrad. M., 1967.- S.407-415.

Notes

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