OXFORD GREEK AND LATIN COLLEGE COMMENTARIES

Ovid
Ars Amatoria
BOOK 3

E dited by

C hristopher M . B runelle
St. Olaf College

N ew York Oxford
OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Ovid, 43 B.C.-17 A.D. or 18 A.D., author.
Ars amatoria. Book 3 / O vid; edited by Christopher M. Brunelle.
pages cm -- (Oxford Greek and Latin college commentaries)
ISBN 978-0-19-998733-7 (pbk.: alk. paper)
1. Ovid, 43 B.C.T7 A.D. or 18 A.D. Ars amatoria. I. Brunelle, Christopher M. II. Title.
III. Series: Oxford Greek and Latin college commentaries.
PA6519.A8B78 2014
871’.01~dc23
2014020341
Printing number: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Printed in the United States of America

on acid-free paper
TABLE OF C O N T E N T S

Map: Rome in the Time of Ovid viii

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction 1

Ars Amatoria Book 3 with Commentary 23

Bibliography 129
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My t h a n k s go to Barbara Weiden Boyd for her initial suggestion that I write this
volume, for her sharp editorial eye, and for her deep knowledge of and delight in all
things Ovidian; to Charles Cavaliere at Oxford University Press for his encourage­
ment and guidance; to Roy K. Gibson, who offered many helpful suggestions at an
early stage of the project and whose stellar commentary has been a great benefit to
my own; to my Latin students at St. Olaf for grappling with a draft of this commen­
tary in the spring of 2012; to St. Olaf College for a professional development grant in
the summer of 2012; to my colleagues in St. Olaf’s Classics Department for their
scholarly friendship; to the staff at St. Olaf’s Rolvaag Library and Harvard’s Houghton
Library for their help in obtaining uncommon scholarly and literary works; to Julia
D. Hejduk for reading and improving the entire work and for sharing her own schol­
arship; and to Serena Zabin for her intelligent and unflagging support throughout
this project.
 INTRODUCTION

C an t h e A r s a m a t o r i a be reduced to a one-liner? Perhaps:

millihelen, n.: the amount of beauty required to launch one ship*

This joke asks us to do three very Ovidian things. It asks us to appreciate the implau­
sible idea that passion can be quantified, that there can be scientific equations for
love. It asks us to know our literary history, at least well enough to recognize Helen of
Troy and to pick up a reference to ‘the face that launched a thousand ships’ (without
having to identify Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus as the source). And, when we say it out
loud, it asks us to enjoy the fact that jokes can be poetry: except for one extra syllable,
the definition has the shape of a line from Shakespeare. Love as a paradoxical science,
as a literary commentary, as a poetic education: Ovid’s Ars amatoria.
In Ars 3, the last and longest book of his guide to seduction, Ovid claims to teach
women how to find, catch, and keep a male lover. The Ars itself is one of the bright­
est gems of Roman literature, and Book 3 is the most eye-catching of all. The text
offers generous helpings of Ovidian wit and absurdity as well as a smorgasbord of
references to Roman culture and society: architecture, theaters, gladiatorial spec­
tacles, temples, baths, men’s and women’s clothing, hairstyles, cosmetics, music,
poetry-reading, letter-writing, games, slavery, parties, sexuality, and sex. Ovid’s
habit of self-promotion reaches its zenith here, as he includes himself in not just
one but two catalogues of noteworthy poets. His elegiac treatment of myth also
culminates here in the lengthy and compelling account of Cephalus and Procris.
Ovid’s choice to educate women is both unusual and complicated, with a tone that
alternates between description and prescription and an audience whose identity is
never entirely stable. In short, there is nothing quite like it in ancient literature, and
no other work opens the same sort of window onto Augustan culture. Ars 3 helps us
see ancient Rome in a new light.

The creation of the term millihelen is disputed; the author Isaac Asimov attributed it to himself.
O v i d , A rs A m a t o r i a

THE DIDACTIC CONTEXT OF THE ARS

The Ars amatoria takes a prominent place in the lohg and distinguished tradition of
didactic poetry (from the Greek didaskein, ‘to teach ’), Every didactic poem is a lecture,
a poetic event that happens in real time; far from simply offering a catalog of facts and
advice, the didactic poet takes on the voice of an authoritative teacher, offering in­
struction on a particular topic to a chosen audience and couching his lessons in exam­
ples and illustrations drawn from daily life, mythology, and cultural history. Didactic
verse is set in hexameters, the same metrical form used in the grand narrative epics of
Homer and Vergil; though shorter than those epics, didactic poems comprise one or
more volumes, each of perhaps eight hundred lines. Despite these common character­
istics, however, ancient writers never cared to recognize didactic as a separate genre
with clearly defined rules. It may be more useful to consider didactic poems as mem­
bers of an extended family, linked to other works that share some of their traits (such
as a focus on technical instruction) but lack other defining elements. Furthermore,
none of these elements applies to every didactic poem. The teacher, who is almost
always a man, often leavens his assertions of authority with admissions of inability or
incompetence, the identity of his audience may shift repeatedly, and the poems narra­
tive direction may veer off onto topics that seem only tangentially related to the origi­
nal theme. Every such exception, however, adds to the poem’s persuasive realism,
turning what might have been a dull recitation of advice into a rhetorically and dra­
matically engaging monologue, less a technical treatise than a one-man show.
Ovid’s Ars is particularly indebted to three Greek didactic poets: Hesiod, Aratus,
and Nicander. Produced in roughly the same period as Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey,
Hesiod’s Theogony and Works and Days are the earliest surviving instances of an­
cient didactic literature and a symbol of the tradition as a whole (as Ovid shows in
two important programmatic passages, Ars 1.27 and 2.4). In the Theogony Hesiod,
claiming the role of a poet inspired and instructed by the Muses, recounts the birth
and history of the generations of gods, from primeval Chaos to the firmly estab­
lished hierarchy under Zeus; in the Works and Days he offers his brother Perses
advice on the value of and the need for hard labor as well as an almanac of the agri­
cultural year, noting which tasks are suited to which seasons. It is in this same work
that Hesiod’s didactic persona is particularly well developed, with a vivid account of
his quarrels with his brother over property and several prominent notes of his own
life as a farmer, traveler, and poet. All of these elements— divine inspiration, praise
of hard work, and personal anecdote—resurface repeatedly and humorously in
Ovid’s treatise. In a much more rarefied vein, the works of Aratus (third c. BCE) and
Nicander (second c. BCE) highlight the scholarly refinement that typifies Greek
Hellenistic poetry. Aratus’ Phaenomena (‘Appearances’) blends technical
2
description of the constellations with brief accounts of their mythological origins,
as in ‘The tortoise is also small; Hermes, even while he was still in his cradle, cut out
the shell and had it named the Lyre, which he brought into the sky and set down in
front of the unknown figure’ (i.e. Hercules, 268-71). The final third of the poem
offers a myriad of ways to forecast the weather from meteorological activity (shoot­
ing stars portend wind, 926-32, but many comets mean a dry year to come, 1093) or
the behavior of animals (if a lone wolf howls, a storm will come within three days,
1124-28). Aratus developed an ornate style, with many rare words borrowed from
Homer, and turned seemingly awkward material (e.g. the description of a regular
hexagon inscribed within a circle, 541-43) into virtuoso poetry. These qualities ap­
pealed to his contemporaries as well as to later Roman poets, several of whom—
including Cicero and Ovid himself—translated the Phaenomena into Latin.
Meander’s Theriaka and Alexipharmaka deal with the seemingly even more intrac­
table topics of poisonous animal bites and their remedies, with recherche vocabu­
lary to match the abstruse subject matter. Even his brief stories include literary
gymnastics; the burning thirst, for example, that accompanies the bite of a certain
snake is explained through an aetiological myth that incorporates not just Zeus,
Prometheus, and a donkey but also an acronym of Meander’s own name (Theriaka
334-58). The authority inherent in the poetic voice and the pleasure derived from
harmonizing (or at least bringing together) the techniques of medicine and versifi­
cation help to explain the allure, in antiquity at least, of such works. Other poems of
Nicander, now lost, also had direct and deep influence on Roman authors; Vergil
used Nicander’s Georgika in his Georgies, and Ovid’s Metamorphoses are indebted
both in title and in content to his Heteroiumena (‘Things changed into other things’).
In short, Greek didactic poetry ranges widely in style and content, and the strategies
and topics of the Ars display a deep knowledge of that range.
Two Latin didactic works also shaped Ovid’s work. Lucretius’ six-volume De
rerum natura (‘On the Nature of Things,’ c. 55 BCE) puts into verse the philosophical
system of the late fourth-century philosopher Epicurus. Addressed to Memmius, a
Roman aristocrat, Lucretius’ description of the atomic nature of the physical uni­
verse seeks to assuage the human fear of death by demonstrating through a material­
ist ontology the absence of an afterlife and the baselessness of religion in general.
Like Aratus and Meander before him, Lucretius transmutes a prose original into di­
dactic verse, with numerous remarks on the challenges of the poetic enterprise. Pub­
lished three decades before the Ars, Vergil’s four-volume Georgies (‘Farming’) echoes
Hesiod (and Aratus) in its purported goal of offering a detailed guide to running a
farm, but its constant incorporation of Roman culture and history—from the refer­
ences to Octavian that open and close the work to the accounts of Roman civil war
that litter the text like the Roman weapons that Italian farmers will, Vergil claims, dig
O vid, A rs A matoria

from their fields in years to come (1.493-97)— turns the poem from dry lecture into
an infinitely detailed and emotionally charged meditation on Roman life in general.
An equally important but scantier category of didactic literature concerns ama­
tory instruction, both in verse and in prose. Latin elegy (discussed below) contains
several striking instances of education in love. In Tibullus 1.4, the well-endowed
god of fertility Priapus describes numerous strategies for the seduction of adoles­
cent boys, which the poet can in turn share with another man named Titius; both
Propertius (4.5) and Ovid (Am. 1.8) tell of a lena (female pimp) offering devious
advice to her puella, and both poets claim to be revolted by her teaching of such de­
ceptive practices. Other authors, most of them women, wrote more explicit prose
treatises on seduction and sex, but only titles and a few scraps of them survive. Even
so, plentiful references attest to their ancient popularity, and several early imperial
writers (Martial 12.43, Suetonius Tiberius 43.2) mention the explicitly erotic appeal
of the books of a certain Elephantis. Ovid, then, in crafting an instruction manual
out of erotic material and imparting it both to men (Ars 1-2, cf. Tib. 1.4) and to
women (Ars 3, cf. Prop. 4.5 and Ov. Am. 1.8) is not so much inventing a new art form
as giving full and final expression to the diverse output of his less illustrious erotic
predecessors.

ELEGY

The many-branched history of elegiac poetry can only be briefly sketched here.
From an etymological standpoint its function was the expression of grief, or so the
ancients claimed, deriving the term from the Greek e e legein, ‘to cry ‘ah, ah’.’ Mourn­
ing is prominent throughout the tradition, from Simonides’ fifth-century funeral
epitaphs to Ovid’s lament over the death of Tibullus (Am. 3.9, esp. 3-4). But even
from the beginning, poets defined the genre not so much by content as by meter: an
elegiac poem is one written in elegiac couplets, in which a dactylic hexameter is
followed by a pentameter. (The metrical details are discussed below.) Greek and
Latin poets employ this format for nearly any topic. Tyrtaeus (seventh cent.) ex­
horts his fellow Spartans to martial valor, Solon (c. 600 BCE) writes political edito­
rials, and Callimachus (third cent.) crafts extended aetiological narratives. The
element of desire appeared early, in the predominantly martial elegiacs of Archilo­
chus (seventh cent.), but it gained a particular interpretive influence over the genre
from the fact that several of the poets who wrote about love in elegiacs also wrote
about elegiacs as an inherently amorous medium. Thus, in his three-volume work
Leontium (c. 330 BCE), Hermesianax of Colophon rewrites the history of elegy,
citing seventh-century Mimnermus as the poet who invented the form in order to
represent his longing for a woman named Nanno. Likewise, Ovid begins his Amores
4
 (l.l) with an extended programmatic joke that requires his audience to be aware
that elegiac form and amatory content are meant for each other. He had planned, he
says, to write a martial epic in suitably grandiose hexameters, but Cupid’s theft of a
metrical foot from every other line recast the work in elegiac couplets and thereby
forced a shift in theme from war to love. In theory, elegy can do almost anything; in
Ovid’s early practice, it can only sing of love.
The works of Ovid’s elegiac predecessors in Rome underscore this connection
of meter and material. Cornelius Gallus (c. 70-c. 26 BC), Sextus Propertius
(c. 50-c. 15 BC), and Albius Tibullus (c. 50-19 BC) are the trio whom Ovid re­
peatedly cites as his immediate forebears (Am. 1.15.27-30, Ars 3.333-34, 535-38,
Rem. 763-66, and Tr. 4.10.53-54). The earlier elegies of Gaius Valerius Catullus
also play an important role in the formation of the canon, but Ovid never mentions
him in the same way as the other three; rather, he saw him as a kindred spirit in
pursuit of poetic glory (Am. 3.15.7-8). Each, in his own way, shaped his elegies to
tell a similar story, the poet’s passionate and only intermittently successful pursuit
of a single beloved woman along with the rejection of a more respectable public
career. The man’s emotional subjection to his mistress (domina) is cast as a form of
love-slavery (seruitium amoris), and his rejection of a settled life of marriage for a
relationship free of external responsibilities tarnishes elegiac love as a reversal of
standard Roman traditions, the mos maiorum. The Roman elegiac corpus is much
more wide-ranging and nuanced than this or any brief description could imply; to
take just one example, Tibullus also writes of his love for an adolescent boy named
Marathus, and he articulates the military and political accomplishments of his
patron Messalla, even finding room to applaud his road-construction projects
(1.7.57-62). For all their approval of the bachelor life, Ovid’s Amores include a
cameo appearance by his own wife (Amores 3.13.1)! Furthermore, Ovid’s own
career belies the claim that elegy must represent love. In his hands the elegiac cou­
plet becomes what has been called a ‘supergenre’ (Harrison 2002 79), a poetic cat­
egory in which the strict metrical definition provides a surprising amount of room
for a dazzlingly wide array of topics and stylistic approaches: the love poems of the
Amores, the love letters of the Heroides, the didactic Medicamina faciei femineae, Ars
amatoria, and Remedia amoris, the Callimachean aetiologies of the Fasti, the
laments from exile of the Tristia and Epistulae ex Ponto, and the peculiar curse cat­
alog o f the Ibis. The inventiveness and self-awareness with which Ovid reshaped
and expanded the notions of elegiac poetry are among the most prominent aspects
of his poetic output. Nonetheless, Roman erotic elegy in general defines itself by
the joy it takes in declaring that the goal of life is to be discovered in the passionate
and private attachment between a man and a woman who are well enough versed in
Roman culture to reject its traditional premises.
O vid, A rs A matoria

THE RELATION OF ARS 3 TO ROMAN ELEGY A N D TO A RS 1-2

The curriculum of Ovid’s Ars amatoria, then, purports to teach its reader how to
become the sort of elegiac lover that appears in the works of Propertius, Tibullus, and
Ovid himself. Both explicitly and implicitly, the Ars asks its readers to be familiar
with their works, not simply as texts that promote success in love (3.333-34, cf. Rem.
763-66) but more generally as the context in which to appreciate the advice of the
Ars. Behind Ovid’s warnings of the rivalry posed by an attractive servant girl (ancilla,
3.665-66) lies his account of an affair with the ancilla Cypassis (Am. 2.7-8); when he
acknowledges that women have few opportunities for public physical exercise
(3.381-86), he is indirectly referring to Priapus’ recommendation of competitive
sports as a tool of seduction (Tib. 1.4). On the other hand, the puellae of Ars 3 should
not be taken as generalizations of the illustrious puellae of earlier elegy. Propertius’
Cynthia, Tibullus’ Delia (and Nemesis), and Ovid’s Corinna distinguish themselves
from the general crowd of women by their exceptional beauty and by the devotion
that they elicit from their poet-lovers. By contrast, that general crowd of women is in
fact Ovid’s audience in Ars 3. Hardly any of them, he claims, are beautiful enough to
need no instruction in the art of seduction (255-62). Cynthia, Nemesis, and Corinna
do make a cameo appearance (535-38), but only as models of literary fame, not ex­
amples of erotic success. Elegiac devotion and long-lasting attraction also seem of
minor importance in Ars 3. All three poets made vows of undying love (Prop. 1.12.20,
2.6.42; Tib. 1.1.59-60,1.6.86; Am. 1.3.2), and Ovid filled Ars 2 with advice on keep­
ing love’s flame bright (2.9-732, cf. 1.38 ut longo tempore duret amor), but this empha­
sis on constancy now gives way to a brief, self-serving statement of poets’ faithful
passion (544 et nimium certa scimus amarefide) and an inconspicuous account ofways
to keep a man’s interest (579-610).
More generally, the structure of Ars 3 is less plain than the structure of Ars 1 and 2.
In those first two books Ovid offered his male students a three-step plan: how to find,
capture, and keep a lover. The plan was clearly introduced (1.35-40) and just as
clearly reiterated throughout the text (1.263-68,1.771-72,2.1-20). Ars 3, however,
lacks a similarly prominent sense of organization. Even the progress of the affair is
difficult to follow, especially near the end of the book and its discussion of dinner
parties. Ovid’s advice to his male students about proper behavior at a conuiuium oc­
curred early on, as they were still learning how to find and capture their prey (l .229-
52, 1.565-602). His advice on this topic to women, however, is much shorter and
comes much later (747-68), well after they have already been instructed in how to
prolong an affair. Guidance is not entirely absent; Ovid characterizes his lecture as a
metaphorical journey by ship, with himself at the helm (26,99-100,499-500,748).
But the metaphor is not sustained, and the poet in fact finishes his journey
6
on an entirely different vehicle (809-10; cf. 467-68), as if he were not particularly
concerned to provide distinct signposts of his progress. Likewise, the ‘beginning’ of
Ovid’s instruction (101 ordior a cultu) comes only after he has spent one hundred
lines on other, apparently more important topics. Women deserve an education,
Ovid agrees, but his energies now seem much less dedicated than before to the goal
of a clear program of study.
For what sets the third book of the Ars apart from the first two, of course, is the
turn from a male to a female addressee. No other didactic poem of antiquity is ad­
dressed to women, and the one apparent exception in prose is negligible. Varro opens
his three-volume work on farming (De re rustica, 37 BCE) with a dedication to his
wife, Fundania, whose purchase of a farm, he says, makes her a suitable audience for
his agricultural advice. But the framework in which that advice is offered—a rather
lively fictional dialogue between Varro and several of his male friends—makes no
further reference to her (nor, for that matter, to the intended recipients of the second
and third books). Fundania was chosen not for her gender but for her status as a prop­
erty owner (and the aptness of her name, cf.fundus ‘farm’); she is not so much the
didactic addressee as the literary dedicatee. Ovid’s novel choice of a female audience
nonetheless has several precedents in the elegiac tradition. His penchant for paired
poems, in which one topic is viewed from two sides (Am. 2.7-8 or 2.13-14), could
justify Ars 3 as the obverse of Ars 1 and 2. Elegy also has several scenes ofwomen re­
ceiving instruction in love, and the logical conclusion of the very first statement of
the Ars (‘if anyone doesn’t know the art of love’) is that women require an education
too. But the status of the third book is complicated on many levels. The second book
ends with a strong sense of closure (733-44, esp. 733 finis adest operi), after which
Ars 3 seems very much like a postscript rather than part of a predetermined whole—
and the ambiguous grammar of its opening couplet (see the commentary) only com­
plicates the issue further. When Ovid continues to speak directly in the third book to
male readers (6, 9, 161, 587) or refers to his female students as they rather than you
(291, 552), he further weakens any impression that his advice is simply aimed at a
female audience. The idea that men eavesdrop on women who receive an erotic edu­
cation is in fact a staple of Roman elegy (Prop. 4.5, Am. 1.8) and comedy (Plautus
Mostellaria 157-312, Poenulus 210-332). Finally, Ovid’s advice to women is a dimin-
ishment of his advice to men both in quantity (from two books to one) and in scope;
the man’s active journey in the first two books has been replaced by the woman’s
passive and generally static cultivation of her physical self. Nor can the teacher him­
self be seen any longer as a disinterested professor. Though the Ovid of Ars 1 and 2
cheerfully admits his eagerness for the publicity that his work will provide him
(2.733-44), in Ars 3 his thirst for fame (205-8,339-48,535-38,811-12) is matched
or even surpassed by his erotic interest in his students (50-51, 87-88,133, 309-10,
O vid, A rs A matoria

511-24,541-54,577-84,598,663-74, etc.). This third book of the Ars may therefore

be the only didactic work of antiquity explicitly designed to bring more benefit to its
author than to its intended audience.

THE PUELLA: LEGAL A N D SOCIAL CONTEXTS

But what sort of puella is it that Ovid encourages to attend his lectures? Ihe social
status of his female student has been the subject of debate for decades, with some
scholars identifying her as a prostitute (meretrix) and others emphasizing the ambig­
uous nature of Ovid’s depiction. On the surface, his frequent claims that respectable
married women (matronae) are not the poem’s intended clientele (Ars 1.31-34,
2.599-600, 3.57-58, 3.483-84, 3.613-16) may protect Ovid from charges of cor­
rupting Rome’s upper class (and therefore undermining the family structure on
which Roman culture depends), but it is equally easy to acknowledge the ambiguity
of Ovid’s disclaimers and the difficulty of ascertaining social status in Rome. When
at 1.31-32 he orders the departure of uittae (headbands) and instita (hem of a gown,
standing here as a symbol of the gown itself), that is, the visible signs of a matrona,
three questions arise. First, could a former slave, for example, truly gain respect in the
eyes of the elite as a matrona simply by displaying the visible signs of that status?
Second, since uittae and institae are hardly ever depicted on ancient visual represen­
tations of matronae, is Ovid impishly highlighting an element of female dress that in
fact served a much smaller symbolic role than is generally assumed? Finally, should
we imagine what happens when we take Ovid at his word? Perhaps his innuendo is
literal; he does not say ‘Matrons, begone!’ but ‘Headbands and dresses, begone!’ In
other words, women, don’t scram; strip.
A freedwoman did enjoy certain legal rights denied to slaves, but her newly gained
freedom did not necessarily entitle her to full social acceptance from the elite. On the
other hand, greater sexual desirability could trump lesser social rank, as shown by
Ovid’s discussion of whether and how to sleep with slave-girls (1.383-85,3.665-66).
An epigram of Martial (3.33) also makes the case that when it comes to sex, a beauti­
ful slave-girl is just as good as a freeborn woman. Given Ovid’s earlier admission of
interest in every Roman puella (Am. 2.4, esp. 47) without concern for her social
status, it would be uncharacteristic of him to definitively exclude certain social
classes from the audience of Ars 3 or to articulate a single type as his chosen target.
To take just one example of how the book’s advice complicates any clear definition of
the puella’s status, consider the catalog of clothing styles (169-92). Here Ovid’s rec­
ommendations are not moralistic but aesthetic: every woman should choose a color
that suits her best (188). Colors, however, had cultural connotations; other Roman
authors associated brighter hues with meretrices, while darker hues implied greater
8
respectability (175-80). (The advice about hair styles at 133-52 achieves a similar
result: instead of weighing the social implications of matronly simplicity or whorish
gaudiness, women are simply asked to choose what suits their faces.) By encouraging
women, then, to choose style on the basis of personal rather than cultural norms,
Ovid argues against the validity of traditional Roman institutions. Rather than
speaking to a matrona or a meretrix, Ovid prefers to imagine a world in which such
terms are distinctions without a difference.
The centrality and ambiguity of the puella is matched by that of the legal context
of the Ars’ amatory instruction. In 18 BCE, nearly two decades before the appearance
of the first book of the Ars, Augustus passed two laws dealing with family structure
and sexual behavior. The lex Iulia de maritandis ordinibus made marriage compulsory
for senators and equestrians, with financial penalties for those who remained unmar­
ried or childless. More pertinent to the Ars, the lex Iulia de adulteriis coercendis crim­
inalized most sexual activity among elites outside of marriage, even among those
who were widowed or divorced; a matrona could now engage in sex only with her
husband, and he with her. Prostitutes (meretrices) and procurers (lenae, themselves
often former prostitutes) were still exempt, as were their customers. Otherwise, how­
ever, Augustus’ legislation marked a dramatic narrowing of the sexual options avail­
able to elite Roman males, who during the Republic appear to have been free of legal
repercussions for liaisons with non-elite women, including libertinae (freedwomen).
But, to judge from the remarks of later Roman jurists, the new law did not sufficiently
clarify who counted as a matrona; didit exempt noncitizen women, or slaves, or con­
cubines? If the extent, then, even of the application of the law was unclear in Ovid’s
time, his reference to the lex Iulia may be more teasingly ambiguous than was for­
merly thought. He defines the audience of Ars 3 as puellae whom the laws allow (quas
leges sinunt, 757) to be instructed in his art. But if what the laws allowed was itself a
matter of debate, Ovid’s formulation both emphasizes the ambiguity and leaves its
clarification up to the reader. At 3.611-16 he acknowledges that wives (nuptae) are
rightly covered under the law, but he also asks a question: If the law were also to cover
newly freed slaves, who could put up with it (quis ferat)? It may be that the law was
indeed intended to cover freed slaves, but Ovid’s use of a rhetorical question implies
that the issue was not definitively settled.
Ovid’s complaints over Augustan legislation should be seen in the wider context of
Ovid’s own legalistic tendencies. His well-known fondness for vocabulary and scenes
that derive from Roman law (discussed below) brings a spurious sense of legalistic ex­
actitude to his erotodidactic advice, but the didactic tone itself challenges Augustus’
control of social rules. For a teacher may be considered not just to offer instruction but
to set down rules and laws of behavior. When Ovid gives advice, he gives orders; prae­
cepta can be either instructions or commands. Ovid is the self-appointed praeceptor
O vid, A rs A matoria

amoris (1.17) and praeceptor amandi (2.161) who establishes leges (1.609, cf. 3.133),
iussa (2.196), and praecepta (2.745,3.57); the role of the teacher is that of the lawgiver.
(Compare the jurist Papinian’s definition of lex as commune praeceptum, ‘a public pre­
cept’ [Digest 1.3.1.pr].) If Augustus, then, can enact laws on sexual activity and mar­
riage status, Ovid can do likewise within the Ars, establishing a new set of laws for
society. It is notoriously difficult to legislate morality, as Augustus himself found out;
Suetonius (Augustus 34. l) describes a significant revolt among the elite against the leges
Iuliae. Likewise we may interpret Ovid’s frequent acknowledgment of the limitations of
his educational powers not simply as the guise of a self-mocking teacher but also that of
a frustrated lawgiver, unable to ensure that his social ordinances will in fact change the
hearts and minds ofhis citizens. These general similarities between Ovid and Augustus
on points of law lend further support to an obvious but crucial fact: that the goals and
strategies Ovid promotes are consistently couched in the framework of Augustan
Rome, both its physical structures (temples, aqueducts, colonnades, stadiums) and its
cultural constructions (religion, politics, economics, class). If explicit education in love
is viewed as a threat to a stable society, it is Ovid’s incessant emphasis on a particularly
Roman society that makes his Ars such a destabilizing force.

LIFE A N D WORKS

The most famous event in Ovid’s life, he misleadingly alleges, was a direct result of
Ars 3. In 8 CE the emperor Augustus banished the poet from Rome to Tomis, a town
on the Black Sea at the limit of the Roman Empire. Ovid was allowed to maintain his
citizenship and his property, but he was never allowed to return to Rome, and when
Augustus died in 14 his son and heir Tiberius refused to rescind the ban; Ovid died
in exile in 17 CE.
Why was he banished? In his poetry from exile, Ovid names two causes, a poem
and a mistake (carmen et error, Tr. 2.207). Much like the puella ofhis love elegies, how­
ever, these terms also resist easy definition. The mistake may have involved the unin­
tended viewing of improper behavior on the part of Augustus’ daughterJulia, who was
also exiled from Rome in the same year as Ovid, but the poet repeatedly refuses to
elaborate on the issue. The carmen is more generally agreed to be the Ars. Ovid devotes
the second book ofhis Tristia to a defense ofhis poetry, noting in particular that the
Ars had no more serious intent than many other frivolous didactic works (now lost) on
dicing, hoop rolling, and the like; moreover, he repeatedly insists, the Ars’ rejection of
respectable women as readers should have provided a sufficient literary inoculation
against the text’s misuse. But these objections are misleading on two levels. First,
Ovid’s reinterpretation of the Ars’ original definitions of its audience is suspiciously
simplistic, implying an awareness and a fundamental approval of the didactic work’s
10
appealing complexity. Second, as others have noted, Ovid’s emphasis on his carmen
may simply shift attention away from the more serious error, which, whatever its
nature, seems to have pained Augustus deeply and personally.
In other words, Ovid’s own poems, our primary source for the details of his life
(esp. Am. 1.15 and 3.15 and Tr. 2 and 4.10), must be treated with caution. He tells us
that he was born to a family of wealthy equestrian status on March 20,43 BCE, a year
in which both consuls died in civil war. From the chaos of his youth came the peace
of his adult life; the struggles that followed the murder of Julius Caesar in 44 BCE
came largely to an end in 31 BCE with the naval victory at Actium of Octavian (soon
to be given the title Augustus) over the forces of Marc Antony and Cleopatra, and the
resulting decades of governmental, military, and economic stability provided by Au­
gustus would turn Rome into the resplendent city that Ovid made his home and the
setting for his elegiac poetry. He was sent there at the age of thirteen to study litera­
ture and rhetoric; the legal career envisioned by his father was rejected in favor of a
life of poetry, fostered by his patron, Messalla, and by the rich literary milieu of his
adolescence. Vergil (d. 19 BCE), whom Ovid saw but never befriended, was compos­
ing the Aeneid and Horace (d. 8 BCE) his lyric Odes, with Propertius’ and Tibullus’
elegies under way as well. Ovid began to offer recitations of his early works, and his
Amores, originally published (if we can trust Ovid’s epigram to the extant three-
volume edition) in five books, were written in the poet’s twenties, followed by the
Heroides and a tragedy, now lost, entitled Medea. Between 2 BCE and 2 CE the didac­
tic works appeared: the Medicamina faciei femineae, the Ars amatoria, and the Reme­
dia amoris. Ovid’s already notable fame (Rem. 389, magnum iam nomen habemus)
grew even greater with his work on the Fasti, a calendar of Roman festivals, and the
epic Metamorphoses, a bravura hexameter account in fifteen volumes of seemingly all
of Greek and Roman mythology, even up to the deification of Augustus’ adoptive
father, Julius Caesar. But with his banishment from Rome in 8 CE the Fasti remained
half finished (if indeed Ovid ever planned to complete the whole year’s almanac) and
the Metamorphoses lacked its final revisions. From the shores of the Black Sea Ovid
lamented his waning poetic talent yet continued to produce a steady supply of verse
(Tristia in five books, Epistulae ex Ponto in four) addressed to various friends and
relatives back in Rome, including his third wife; one or both of his two early mar­
riages had ended in divorce. Their repeated attempts to secure his return were en­
tirely fruitless, and Ovid died in exile in 17 CE.

THE ARS AFTER OVID

Eternally engaging and infinitely adaptable, the Ars amatoria retained its popularity
(or its notoriety) over the centuries. Echoes of the Ars can be found nearly everywhere,
O vid, A rs A matoria

from Claudian’s description of the Roman uirgo who wonders at the details of emperor
Honorius’ magnificent procession through Rome in 402 (De sexto consulatu 560-74,
cf. Ars 1.213-28) to direct quotations from the Ars within otherwise perfectly medie­
val stanzas in the thirteenth-century Carmina Burana (CB 105, quoting Ars 2.501,
607,625). Perhaps most illustrative of the work’s eminence are the translations into
various vernaculars, beginning with several late medieval French adaptations. More
than many ancient texts, the Ars finds itself involved in a remarkably vigorous process
of anachronistic adaptation, in which the cultural references of Ovid’s original are re­
placed by contemporary details and themes. One anonymous French version (c. 1300)
claims from its title to be Ovid’s Art ofLove, but the text (in rhyming couplets) replaces
ancient Rome with medieval France (where to hunt for girls? try churches) and over­
lays ancient socializing with the medieval tactics of courtly love; in its early print edi­
tions, the marginal references to Ovid’s Latin text serve not only to indicate the
translator’s ancient source but to allow the reader to gauge just how far his translation
has wandered away from it. Scholars and translators alike note the modern relevance
of ancient detail. Following the lead of Jakob Micyllus’ early sixteenth-century com­
mentary, William Congreve’s 1764 rendition of Ars 3 takes shoulder pads
(analemptrides, 3.273) as a sign of transhistorical unity: "tis satisfactory to the Curious
to know the fashion is 1800 years old.’In the realm ofvividly modernizing adaptation,
Henry Fielding’s version of Ars 1 (1747, repr. 1760) stands out for the thoroughness
with which it transmutes ancient Rome into Georgian London, but lesser known pro­
ductions offer equally compelling evidence of the intelligibility of Ovid’s program. A
generally faithful anonymous seventeenth-century translation nonetheless recasts
ancient Roman games (3.353-66) in early-modern terms, some of which themselves
are now unfamiliar: ‘To passe the night at Balliards, till eleven, / At pickapandy, cards,
or odde or even.’ (Recent versions continue the trend: James Michie 1993 includes
tric-trac and spillikins; Peter Green 1982 offers halma and merels.)
Ovid is persuasive enough to inspire even his ideological opposites. The Lessons
for Lovers of‘Ovid Americanus’ (1784) offers a poetic education in the joys of married
life. The lessons may be thoroughly un-Ovidian in their morality, but their style is
deeply indebted to the Ars, with (rhyming) couplets, emotional apostrophes, and di­
dactic lectures illuminated by brief personal narratives. For example: young Anna,
who has been hounded from her house by a stereotypically evil stepmother, is se­
duced by a young man, who shortly thereafter kills himself in remorse; after her new­
born child dies, she marries another man who overlooks the supposed mistakes of
her past, and they live happily ever after. Though Ovid would hardly recognize the
story, he would surely appreciate the narrative details, as when the anonymous author
combines (incorrect) etymology and pathetic fallacy to depict the young maiden’s
plight (cf. the tale of Phyllis, Ars 3.37-38): ‘Sweet SUSQUEHANNA!— gentle
12
stream, / whose murmurs flow for ANNA’Sfame.’ Ovid (Ars 3.4) was right: the entire
world, even Pennsylvania, is ruled by Love.
In short, Ovid’s instruction may be clearly and firmly set within the values and
structures of Augustan Rome, but it is the very richness and specificity of this set­
ting that encourages his readers and admirers to create such detailed and engaging
renditions of their own. No matter our cultural context, Ovid has a great deal to
teach us all.

M YTH IN ELEGY

With its origins in both Roman elegy and didactic poetry, the Ars is a natural home
for the inclusion of mythological material. Ovid and Propertius (and, to a much lesser
extent, Tibullus) used myth throughout their poetry, often as a way to compare
themselves to others in similar plights or as evidence to support the logic of an argu­
ment. Propertius contrasts his miseries with those of Milanion, who suffered for but
succeeded in love (1.1.9-16), and likens his sleeping Cynthia to a trio of mythical
maidens (1.3.1-8). Ovid also compares his Corinna to three heroines (Am. 1.7.13-
18,1.10.1-7) and himself to everyone, including—to name only thirteen of a longer
list—Achilles (1.9.33), Agamemnon (2.8.12), Ajax (1.7.7), Hector (1.9.35), Menelaus
(2.12.10), Numa (2.17.18), Odysseus (2.17.16), Orestes (1.7.9), Peleus (2.17.17),
Pelops (3.2.15), Perseus (3.6.13), Telephus (2.9.7), and Thamyras (3.7.62). Didactic
literature likewise makes extensive use of myth, whether as the basis for aetiological
explanations or as a way to lighten the lecture with storytelling (as in Callimachus’
Aetia or Hesiod’s Works and Days). Such references and narratives abound in the first
two books of the Ars, each of which contains frequent brief comparisons to myth and
several notable mythic excursions: in Book 1, the rape of the Sabines (101-34), Pasi­
phae and the bull (289-326), Ariadne and Bacchus (525-68), and Achilles and Dei­
damia (681-706); in Book 2, Daedalus and Icarus (21-98), Ulysses and Calypso
(123-44), and Mars and Venus (561-94). By contrast, though Book 3 is equally full
of brief mythic references, from the opening catalog of good and evil heroines
(11-22) to the concluding mythological Kamasutra (775-84), extended mythic nar­
rative appears only once, in the story of Procris and Cephalus (683-746). Several
explanations have been offered for the relative absence of mythic narrative; a fre­
quent suggestion is that Ars 3, which condenses two books of instruction for men
(Ars 1 and Ars 2) into one for women, devotes more attention to the advice that needs
to be offered and thereby leaves itself less room for mythological digressions. Alison
Sharrock, however, has persuasively argued the opposite point: the mythic ‘digres­
sions’ in the Ars are in fact the primary narrative, telling the central story of the lov­
er’s education, and the strictly didactic advice is the digression away from that
O vid, A rs A matoria

narrative. If the point of the Ars, after all, is to guide its student from the beginning to
the fulfillment of an affair, Ovid’s mythological stories provide exactly that kind of
narrative progression, while the educational advice (‘if anyone doesn’t know the art
oflove’ [Ars 1.1] suggests that nearly everyone already does know it) is useful only for
pointing out the progress of its underlying plot. The general absence of mythic narra­
tive in Ars 3 is, then, a sign that the larger story of erotic progress is also absent from
this final book. Ovid’s advice for men emphasized activity, while women are now re­
peatedly encouraged to take the passive role— and are thus discouraged from taking
charge of their own erotic narrative. In Ars 1 and 2, the male lover takes action, and a
story is the result; by contrast, ‘very little happens in Ars 3, because there is very little
for the primary character to do, except to adorn herself and wait’ (Sharrock 2006,37).
The final book of the Ars has hardly any mythical narrative because there is hardly
any larger story to tell.
Still, it is not surprising to encounter this particular myth near the very end of
Ovid’s erotodidactic project. Book 2 had ended with an account of proper behavior
in bed, and Book 3 will do the same; what better way, then, to introduce a discussion
of sex than with a story that features its metaphorical cousin? The overlap between
loving and dying was already put to good use in the Amores, when Ovid proclaimed
his desire to ‘die on the job’ (2.10.36 cum moriar, medium soluar et inter opus). Here
Procris desires physical union with her beloved (732 in amplexus uxor itura uiri), and
her desire is in fact fulfilled (743-46), though it is death rather than passion that
colors their final embrace. Procris herself is aware of the connection between love
and death, as she begins her final speech (737-38) by noting that the wounds oflove
are both emotional and physical. Moreover, the tragic tale of Procris and Cephalus
also supports the sense that Ars 3 teaches a woman to behave as her man would
prefer: with complete commitment to him and ready acceptance of his infidelities.
Procris— at least in this version of the story—is both devoted to her husband and too
quick to believe the rumors of his adultery. As a result, she loves Cephalus to death
(her own, not his) and embodies the danger of trying to control his behavior. Finally,
the myth and its placement have also been understood as a metapoetic reflection on
the difficulty of properly interpreting any narrative, including Ovid’s own didactic
project. Procris’ death arises from her misunderstanding of aura (‘breeze’) as Aura,
the name of her (supposed) rival, and from the hasty error of Cephalus, the man who
mistook his wife for a hart. Should Ovid’s readers learn from their fate to be more
suspicious of what they are reading? After all, the poet has just admitted, and not for
the first time, that his educational project is skewed by an erotic interest in his sub­
jects (663-66); when he begins this final mythological narrative by announcing
‘don’t trust too quickly’ (685), it is easy to apply that command not just to the exam­
ple of the doomed couple’s story but also to Ovid’s entire treatise.
14
ELEGIAC METER A N D O V ID IA N STYLE

Ovid’s meter of choice is the elegiac couplet, the form in which (apart from the epic
Metamorphoses and several lost works) all of his poetry took shape. (For a general
introduction to Latin meter and an overview of the elegiac couplet, see AG #607-
616d.) The basic elements of the elegiac couplet are the dactyl (one long syllable fol­
lowed by two short syllables, “ ), the spondee (two long syllables in a row, ),
and the foot (a measure of metrical length; in elegiac couplets every foot is either a
dactyl or a spondee). Every elegiac couplet is formed of one dactylic hexameter fol­
lowed by one pentameter. The dactylic hexameter (Greek for ‘six-measure’) contains
six feet, of which the first four may each be either a dactyl or a spondee but the last
two must be a dactyl followed by a spondee. Exceptions to this rule are very rare and
nearly always involve ornate Greek names; in all three books of the Ars only one line
includes a fifth-foot spondee (3.147):

hanc placet ornari testudine Cyllenaea

The pentameter (Greek for ‘five-measure’) does not in fact have five full feet but two
half-lines of two and a half feet each. Like the first four feet of the hexameter, the two
full feet in the first half of the pentameter may each be either dactylic or spondaic, but
the second half of the pentameter is always dactylic ( *" ” ) and very nearly
always (and without exception in the Ars) ending in a two-syllable word.
Both the hexameter and the pentameter have a central caesura, a ‘cutting’ of a foot
by breaking it up into two or more words. In the hexameter, this caesura nearly always
(and without exception in all three books of the Ars) comes within the third foot,
usually after the first long syllable, as in line 5:

non erat armatis ^ aequum concurrlre nudas

Occasionally (in the Ars, fewer than one in ten) the caesura occurs after the first short
syllable of a dactyl, as in line 39:

et famam pietatis ^ habet, tamen hospes it ensem

(Note that both of these examples also show a caesura in the fourth foot of the line.
This tendency in the hexameter becomes a law in the pentameter, where a caesura
always appears after the first two and a half dactylic feet.)
One of the primary benefits of such third-foot caesuras is their creation of a lively
contrast between rhythmic pulse and verbal stress. Two short syllables are metrically
O vid, A rs A matoria

equal to one long syllable, so a dactyl and a spondee take up the same amount of time;
the six feet of the hexameter then provide a constant rhythmic pattern, with an em­
phasis on the first long syllable of each foot like a downbeat in a bar of music. A differ­
ent pattern, however, arises from the syllabic accents of the words themselves (for the
rules of syllabic word stress, see AG #12), and the shifting contrast between these two
patterns is fundamental to the elegiac couplet’s engaging sound. (English iambic pen­
tameters rely on the same effect. How do 1 love thee?L it me count the wdys generally
lines up its accented syllables with the stress at the end of each iambic foot, but the
verbal emphasis on how, working against the rhythmic emphasis on the following do,
draws our attention to that first word and allows it to become the organizing idea of
an entire sonnet.) The stylistic tendencies of the Roman elegiac poets (such as the
avoidance of a single monosyllable before the third-foot caesura; the only exception
in Ars 3 is 258 est illis sua dos) ensure that every hexameter and pentameter includes
feet in which these two patterns agree and feet in which they diverge. In the hexame­
ter the third foot nearly always provides contrast between verbal accent and metrical
emphasis; in both the fifth and the sixth feet these two rhythms nearly always align.
The elegiac pentameter shows a similar blend of overlap and divergence, especially at
the end of the line. The two-syllable word at the end of every pentameter is never
preceded by a monosyllable, and hence the final full foot of the line always includes
two different accented syllables, one on the rhythmic downbeat at the start of the
foot (10 puella siiis) and one on the last, unemphasized short syllable (puella suis).
This ever-shifting rhythmic duet provides the elegiac couplet with an inexhaustible
sonic variety, which in turn supports the couplet’s use in the creation of book-length
poems such as the Ars.
Ovid’s couplets distinguish themselves from those of Tibullus and Propertius by
his preference for dactyls and his avoidance of elision. With two metrical options for
each of the first four feet, every hexameter has sixteen rhythmic possibilities, from
the slow spondees of 435

quae uobis dicunt, dixerunt milii puellis

to the lively dactyls of 327

disc(e) etiam duplici genialia nablia palma

Likewise, the pentameter s first two feet offer four metrical versions. More than his
contemporaries, however, Ovid displays a particular fondness for dactyls and the
speed that they provide. In Ars 3, fully dactylic hexameters (1, 233, 301, 327, 347,
399,411,421,423, 643,653, 661, 671, 695, 699, 743, 763, 769, 781) are more than
twice as common as fully spondaic lines (159,211,215,235,435,513,567,623), and
only 18 percent of the hexameters and 20 percent of the pentameters begin with a
spondee. Ovid also distinguishes himself by including only one elision (the metri­
cal suppression of a syllable at the end of a word when that word ends with a vowel
or m and when the next word begins with a vowel or h; AG #612e) for every ten lines
ofArs 3. Elided syllables do not affect the metrical assessment of a line, but they were
likely to have been at least partly pronounced when reading out loud; their infre­
quency in Ovid improves the speed and the clarity of his lines.
Additional clarity comes from Ovid’s habit of treating every couplet as a separate
unit of grammar and sense. Nearly every couplet is its own self-contained sentence,
and even the few couplets that end without (modern) punctuation still form com­
plete grammatical units of their own. Thanks to Ovid’s talent for brevity, a single
couplet can include three (103-4,133-34, etc.), four (41-42), or even five (735-36)
distinct sentences, though this last example is unique in the three books of the Ars.
On rare occasions a sentence will extend over four full couplets, but Ovid tends to
save this stylistic refinement for the most important topics of all: his city (121-28)
and his poetry (339-46). Nearly the longest sentence, however, in all of Ovid’s ele­
gies (apart from several monstrosities in the Ibis and a register of rivers at Pont.
4.10.47-58) comes at 633-44, where he breathlessly catalogs eight different ways for
a woman to fool her guardian. Here form follows function: the custos can’t stop the
puella, and Ovid can’t stop himself.
Ovid’s linguistic choices also deserve attention. His integration ofvocabulary and
imagery from other spheres of human activity into the world of love is not just a sign
of verbal creativity but a method of expanding Cupid’s erotic domain. The terminol­
ogy of agriculture appears throughout the Ars, with copious comparisons of lovers to
farmers (101), to crops (562), or to fields (82). Metaphorical comparisons of agricul­
ture and sexual intercourse are as old as Homer (Od. 5.125-28), but Ovid’s heavy
reliance on these metaphors furthers the notion that love, like agriculture, helps to
extend its practitioners’ control over nature. Ovid’s agricultural themes also subvert
Vergil’s patriotic account of farming in the Georgies-. now patience, hard work, and
cultivation of raw nature create not the agricultural bounty on which Rome depends
but the personal beauty in which Rome delights. Thanks to his early education in
legal argumentation, Ovid also incorporates a particularly large amount of language
from the realm of the law. Direct references to Roman law are prominent, of course,
in Ars 3 (cf. 449-50, 531-32, 614), but legal phrasing is applied to the life of love as
well (cf. 491-92,588 non potes ‘you do not have legal access,’ 801 manifesta ‘caught in
the act’). Most conspicuous is his introduction of index (‘informer’) and indicium
(‘evidence’) into elegy. Ovid invests these formerly legal terms with an erotic
charge— index is now ‘one who reveals the secrets of love’ (to a rival)— and thereby
O vid, A rs A matoria

manages both to strengthen the sense that love and the teaching of love can be re­
duced to legalistic formulas (cf. 668 indicio prodor ab ipse meo, where Ovid testifies
against himself, and 719 locus est et nomen et index) and to undermine the stability of
the legal system through amorous insinuations (cf. esp. Ars 1.79-88, where a lawyer
falls in love while prosecuting a case in court).
Ovid’s verbal innovations are no less striking. Compound adjectives beginning
with semi- are a specialty with him, especially in contrast with Tibullus and Proper­
tius, who have no such adjectives. Nearly a dozen of them, however, appear either
first or only in Ovid, often with a stylistically elevated tone; the use of semisupina
(788) in the description of a sexual position embellishes what might otherwise have
been a crude account. (In a famous anecdote, Sen. Contr. 2.2.12, Ovid’s friends
asked him to remove their three least favorite lines of his poetry, and he agreed, on
condition that his own three favorite lines could not be removed; both they and he,
of course, had chosen the same three lines. One of those lines is a description of the
Minotaur [Ars 2.24]— semibouemque uirum semiuirumque bouem— and the dou­
bling of semi- adjectives in a single line is surely one of its most Ovidian features.)
Ovid is also fond of adjectives in -osus that derive from abstract nouns, for example,
officiosa (324), speciosa (421), studiosa (423), odiosum (649), damnosa (509), morosa
(237). Such adjectives, which are notably less common in epic, have a colloquial
quality. Most notable of all is formosa (257,417, 665,753), which is entirely absent
from Vergil’s Aeneid, and not simply because epic pays less attention to physical
beauty; its synonym pulcher appears forty-four times in the Aeneid but only once in
Ars 3, at 255.
Ovid’s artistry is at work in every couplet, and to discuss the finer poetic points of
them all would require a much longer commentary. Suffice it to say that every line
deserves its own appreciation. Take one example, when Ovid agrees to sabotage his
project by revealing men’s secrets to women (671-72):

uiderit utilitas; ego coepta fideliter edam:

Lemniasin gladios in mea fata dabo.

Ovid devotes the couplet to the expression of a single thought—that he will know­
ingly work against his own best interests—yet finds three harmoniously different
ways of expressing that thought, separating the couplet into its natural parts with a
sense pause at the central caesura in the hexameter. Every sentence is longer than
the one that precedes it; the result is a rising tricolon, a familiar and stylish element
of rhetoric in both poetry and prose. As so often in his works, here too the pentame­
ter rephrases the hexameter’s abstract thesis with an arresting visual metaphor.
Sound underlines sense: Ovid tends to avoid vowel rhyme in the hexameter at the
18
beginning of the fifth and sixth feet, but the repetition in fideliter edam supports the
straightforwardness of his claim. In grammar and vocabulary Ovid manages to have
it both ways, combining a breezy colloquialism (the idiomatic future perfect uiderit,
the prosaic gladius in place of the poetic ensis) with scholarly flair: Lemniasin sum­
marizes an entire myth in one word and (only here in Ovid) transliterates a particu­
lar Greek dative plural ending into Latin. And so on.
Even the literary history of the elegiac couplet can affect the shape of its contents.
Homer’s and Vergil’s grand epics are written entirely in dactylic hexameters; the ele­
giac couplet separates itself from that tradition by its topics (less weighty than those
of the Iliad or the Aeneid) and its pentameter lines (less weighty than the hexameter).
The second half of a couplet, then, becomes regarded as the defining characteristic of
the elegiac couplet, the part of its poetic DNA that distinguishes it from the nobler
epic hexameter (as Ovid famously acknowledges in Amores l.l). If the pentameter is
more elegiac than the hexameter, we should appreciate all the more Ovid’s analysis of
Roman cultural history at Ars 3.115-20: just as Propertius did before him (4.1.1-6),
he elevates the contrast between Rome’s current grandeur and its earlier shabbiness
by articulating all its modern glory in (grand) hexameters and its humble antiquity in
(lowly) pentameters. Like Rome itself, the elegiac couplet is a combination of oppo­
sites, and the productive tension between its two halves should always be kept
in mind.
Ovid would want the last word on poetry to be his. On the topics of sex and seduc­
tion, his advice may not deserve the reader’s trust, but when it comes to poetic
achievement, his declarations are persuasive. When he defends himself in the Reme­
dia amoris from charges of writing overly licentious poetry, he concludes his defense
(395-96) with a statement that is not just outrageous but true. (And ingenious, too;
even here he provokes a conflict between form and content, describing elegy in the
epic hexameter and epic in the elegiac pentameter.) Ovid may be a braggart, but he’s
also correct:

tantum se nobis elegi debere fatentur,

quantum Vergilio nobile debet epos.
‘Elegy owes as much to me— and it admits it, too!—
as lofty Epic owes to Vergil.’

FIGURES OF SPEECH

This brief list defines the rhetorical terms that appear most frequently and notably in
Ars 3. Numbers in parentheses give line numbers that provide examples of the figure
in question. The list of references is not meant to be exhaustive.
O vid, A rs A matoria

aetiology (Gk. ‘giving of a reason’): a story that provides a reason for the name of a
person or location. Ovid’s use of aetiology to describe the fate of Phyllis (38)
hints at the earlier (and lost) version of the story in Callimachus’ Aetia, which
also relied heavily on aetiology.
Alexandrian footnote (18, 659): the insertion of a seemingly general verb of speak­
ing (ferunt, dicuntur, etc.) or memory (memini, etc.) to signal a specific allusion
to earlier literature. Such ‘footnotes’ imply literary knowledge on the part of the
author and encourage the audience to appreciate the current text in its literary
context.
anaphora (Gk. ‘repetition’; 63-64,163-65,189,321-23,449-50,621-23): the repe­
tition of one or more words in the same form at the beginning of successive
phrases, providing even greater emphasis on the repeated material,
apostrophe (Gk. ‘turning away,’ sc. from the topic at hand toward a new audience;
35, 142, 196, 204, 251, 323, 336, 457, 714, 735): direct address to someone or
something not present, that is, to someone or something other than the stated
audience. Ovid’s frequent apostrophes can provide variation within a catalog
(170,183,191) and bolster his air of authority, when he treats epic heroines as his
own students (2,40,519).
chiasmus (Gk. ‘X-formation’): two phrases in which the second is the reverse of the
first (AB-BA). This frequent figure calls attention to its stylish symmetry, enliv­
ening catalogs (11-12) and descriptions of artistry (327).
compendious comparison (106): a form of comparison that requires the term being
compared to be supplied from the context, as with ‘hair like the Graces’ (Horn.
II. 17.51) in place o f‘hair like the hair of the Graces.’ The construction sacrifices
grammatical clarity for interpretive vibrancy,
double enallage (Gk. ‘interchange’): an interlocked pair of hypallages, in which two
nouns have switched their adjectives with each other. Ovid uses double enallage
to intensify the misery of a woman too old to have lovers (70 frigida deserta nocte
iacebis anus): the frostiness of the air has seeped into her, and her lonely state is
heightened by the fact that her former lovers have deserted not only her but the
entire nighttime as well,
hypallage (Gk. ‘exchange’; 287,343): a phrase in which an adjective agrees grammat­
ically with one noun but logically with another: for instance, Cephalus’ ‘sad lap’
(743 ille sinu... maesto) embodies the sadness that properly belongs to Cephalus
himself.
kakemphaton (Gk. ‘ugly sound’): the repetition of one or more syllables at the end of
one word and the start of the next. Some ancient writers criticized such repeti­
tion as inelegant (e.g. Quintilian Institutio Oratoria 9.4.41), but Ovid and other
poets seem to have ignored the criticism; even so, several instances in Ars 3
20
 (251, 261, 315) appear in poetically loaded contexts, where a discussion of ele­
gance is tinged by the sound of clumsiness,
litotes (Gk. ‘meagerness’; 208, 649, 762): a double negative that implies a strong
positive.
pathetic fallacy (38): the pretense that nature responds emotionally to human suf­
fering (Gk. 7td0o<;); cf. ‘weeping willow.’ The several pathetic fallacies (694,704)
that set the stage for Procris and Cephalus are reversed at the climax of the story,
when Cephalus (mis)takes the human Procris for a part of nature (733).
periphrasis (Gk. ‘circumlocution’; 177,183,214,357): a roundabout way of descrip­
tion, using more than one word to give the meaning of another single term.
Many of Ovid’s periphrases allow him to refer to words that are unsuited to ele­
giac poetry, either for their overly technical nature (283) or for their metrical
intractability (364).
polyptoton (Gk. ‘many cases’): the repetition of a noun or verb in another form.
Used more by Ovid than by any other Latin poet (and more than twenty times in
Ars 3), polyptoton offers sonic variation and poetic support for the logic of an
argument (218,461-62,491,513).
praeteritio (Lat. ‘passing by,’ ‘omission’): a pretended omission of a topic, thereby
calling greater attention to that topic. Ovid thus allows himself to emphasize
improper subjects and to avoid criticism for doing so (193,197,612).
syllepsis (Gk. ‘taking together’; 77, 730): the syntactical combination of the literal
and the metaphorical. Ovid’s frequent use of syllepsis is not simply a form of wit;
in hospes et ensem/praebuit et causam mortis ‘the guest offered both a sword and
a cause of death’ (39-40) the syllepsis heightens Aeneas’ culpability, turning his
actions into a weapon as deadly as the sword with which Dido killed herself,
rising tricolon (Gk. ‘three clauses’; 385-86,671-72): a sequence of three clauses in
which each is longer than the previous. With the standard caesura in the third
foot of the hexameter, the elegiac couplet itself separates into a natural rising
tricolon (31-32, 217-18), and such a rhetorical crescendo can support the im­
pression of a logical (91-92,103-4) or chronological (513-14) progression.

FU RTH ER READING

Gibson (2003) is the decisive authority on Ars 3 and the first place to look for a de­
tailed and lucid treatment of any element of the work. General introductions to Ovid
and the Ars include Watson (2002), Sharrock (2002, ‘Ovid and the Discourses of
Love’), Armstrong (2005), and Gibson (2009); Rimell (2006) and Henderson
(2006) pay particular attention to the relations among the three books of the Ars and
the Remedia. Gibson, Green, and Sharrock (2006) collect a notably wide-ranging
O vid, A rs A matoria

and engaging set of essays on the Ars and Remedia and their social and literary con­
texts, including the debate between Levine (2006), who promotes the cross-cultural
relevance of Ovid’s treatment of love, and Volk (2006), who argues by contrast that
Ovidian amor is a particularly Roman construction. Sharrock (2002, ‘Gender and
Sexuality’) touches on gender and sexuality throughout Ovid’s oeuvre and their rela­
tion to Roman norms.
Good outlines of didactic poetry include Toohey (1996) and Volk (2002), while
the first exhaustive analysis of the Ars and Remedia as didactic poems is Kiippers
(1981). Myerowitz (1985) provides a perceptive critique of the gendered nature of
Ovid’s didactic program throughout the Ars. For Ovid’s subversive manipulations of
the elegiac genre in the Ars and Remedia, see Harrison (2002), Brunelle (2005),
Gibson (2007), and Boyd (2009). The status and strategies of the teacher in Ars 3 are
the focus of Miller (1993), Downing (1999), and Watson (2007).
On the vexed status of the puella as the text’s subject and its audience, see James
(2003) and (2008), who argues that the puella is a meretrix, and Gibson (1998), who
emphasizes the ambiguities in Ovid’s depiction of his audience. Gardner (2013)
shows how the passage of time works more to the detriment of women than of men in
Ars 3. Merriam (2011) links Ovid’s rules for female laughter (3.279-90) to the gen­
dered struggle for power.
On Ovid’s language and style the fundamental work is Kenney (2002), with fur­
ther material in Booth (1981); McKeown’s commentaries (1987, 1989, 1998) offer
comprehensive detail on Ovid’s practice in the Amores and abundant references to
the Ars. Platnauer (1951) tabulates the statistics on the elegists’ metrical tendencies,
and Morgan (2012) investigates the elegiac couplet’s aesthetic significance in Ovid,
Propertius, and elsewhere.
The lengthy but isolated myth of Cephalus and Procris (Ars 3.683-746) has re­
ceived particular attention for its role in the process of reading and the construction
of gender; see Bowditch (2005), Sharrock (2006), and Hejduk (2011).

22
 Ovid
Ars Amatoria
BOOK 3
O vid, A rs A matoria

Abbreviations of Ovid’s Works

Am. Amares (‘Love Songs’)

Fast. Fasti (‘Calendar’)
Ars Ars Amatoria (‘Art of Love’)
Her. Heroides (‘Heroines')
Rem. Remedia Amoris (‘Cures for Love’)
Medic. Medicamina Faciei Femineae (‘Cosmetics for the Female Face’)
Met. Metamorphoses (‘Metamorphoses’)
Pont. Epistulae ex Ponto (‘Letters from the Black Sea’)
Tr. Tristia (‘Sad Songs’)

References to Ars 3 will be given simply by line number (e.g. 1-6 = Ars 3.1-6); references to Ars
1 and 2 will be given simply by book and line number (e.g. 2.1-6 = Ars 2.1-6).

Abbreviations of Vergil’s Works

Geo. Georgica (‘Georgies’)

Eel. Eclogae (‘Eclogues’)
Aen. Aeneis (‘A eneid’)

Abbreviations of Reference Works

AG Allen & Greenough’s New Latin Grammar rev. Anne Mahoney (2001)
Gild Gildersleeve and Lodge, Gildersleeve’s Latin Grammar, 3rd ed. (1895)
OLD Oxford Latin Dictionary
Plat Maurice Platnauer, Latin Elegiac Verse (1951, repr. 1971)

Symbols Used in the Lexical Entries

* unattested or hypothetical form

< derived from
> developed into
{} denotes etymological derivatives in English
= equivalent to, identical with
x times (e.g. 7x = 7 times)

Abbreviations of Grammatical, Literary, and Historical Terms

abl. ablative
abs. absolute
acc. accusative
adj. adjective
adv. adverb(ial)
anc. ancient
anteced. antecedent
antiq. antiquity
apod. apodosis
appos. apposition
assimil. assimilation
Aug. Augustus or Augustan
bef. before

24
 ABBREVIATIONS

betw. between
Catull. Catullus
cf. compare (Lat. confer = ‘bring together’)
cl. clause
cogn. cognate
compar, comparative
compd. compound
compl. complementary
condit, condition(al)
conj. conjunction
conn. connected
conson. consonant
constr. construction
contr. contracted
C-to-F contrary-to-fact
dat. dative
defect, defective
defn. definition
delib. deliberative
diff. different
dimin. diminutive
dir. direct
disc. discourse
dissim. dissimilar
E. English
e. g. exempli gratia = for example
el. elegy or elegiac
esp. especially
etym. etymology or etymological(ly)
ex. example (exx. = examples)
exclam, exclamation
f. feminine
fem. feminine
freq. frequent(ly)
fut. future
gdve. gerundive
gen, genitive
ger. gerund
Gk. Greek
gramm. grammatical
hapax occurring (only) once (Gk. ‘once’)
hex. hexameter
Horn. Homer
hort. hortatory
i.e. id est = that is (to say), namely
impers. impersonal
impv. imperative
ind. indirect
indecl. indeclinable

25
O vid, A rs A matoria

indef. indefinite
indic. indicative
inf. infinitive
interj. interjection
interrog. interrogative
irreg. irregular
Lat. Latin
Iit. literary or literature
Medit. Mediterranean
mg. meaning
mod. modern
ms. manuscript
n. neuter
neg. negative
nom. nominative
nt. neuter
obj. object(ive)
partit. partitive
pass. passive
pel. particle
perh. perhaps
pers. person(al)
pf. perfect
pl. plural
plpf. pluperfect
poet. poetic
posit. positive
poss. possessive
postpos. postpositive
potent. potential
pred. predicate
prep. preposition
pres. present
pron. pronoun
Prop. Propertius
prot. protasis
prov. proverb(ial)
quest. question
redupl. reduplicated
ref. reference
refl. reflexive
reg. regular
relat. relative
sc. scilicet = one may understand, namely
s.v. sub verbo = under the headword
separ. separate
sg- singular
sthg. something
sts. sometimes
26
 ABBREVIATIONS

subj. subject
subjv. subjunctive
subst. substantive
suff. suffix
syll. syllable
syn. synonym(ous)
Tib. Tibullus
TW the Trojan War
unkn. unknown
usu. usual(ly)
V. Vergil
V. verse (vv. = ver
vb. verb
vbal. verbal
voc. vocative
vs. versus, against
w/ with
w/out without
wd. word

The printed Latin text on which my commentary is based is the corrected second edition (1995)
of Kenney’s OCT.

27
 COM M ENTARY: 1 -4

P. OVIDI NASONIS
ARTIS AMATORIAE LIBER TERTIVS

A rma dedi Danais in Amazonas; arma supersunt

quae tibi dem et turmae, Penthesilea, tuae,
ite in bella pares; uincant, quibus alma Dione
fauerit et toto qui uolat orbe puer.

1-28: Ovid arms women and disarms men’s objections.

Ov. declares that the battle of the sexes should be a fair fight; to men who complain of female deprav­
ity he offers a catalog of virtuous women (who do not need his education)

LINE 1
arma, -orum (n.) implements ofwar, weapons. Gk. and Lat. poets freq. state themes w/their opening words;
Ov.’s military focus equates love w/war (cf. Am. 1.9.1 militat omnis amans), asserts epic grandeur (cf. V.
Aen. 1.1 arma uirumque cano, Ov.Am. 1.1 annagraui numero uiolentaque bellaparabam, like Ars 3.1
entirely dactylic), and links Ars 3 to the end ofArs 2 (cf. 2.741 arma dedi uobis)
Danai, -um (m.pl.) the Greeks who fought in TW [< Danaus, ancestor of kings of the Greek city
Argos]
Amazon, -onis (f.) Amazon, female warrior. Some Amazons fought in TW against the Gks. Gk. acc. pi.
-ds (AG #81). in + acc. ‘against’ (OLD s.v. in 9,12)
supersum, -esse remain; be left over
q u ae. . . dem either relat. cl. of purpose (‘that I may give,’‘for me to give,’AG #531.2) or of characteris­
tic (‘that I am giving,’ AG #53Sa); did Ov. intend to arm women, or is he simply offloading the sur­
plus of Ars 1-2? An indie, do would have implied the latter. Ov. avoids elision (AG #612e-f) more
than other el. poets (Plat 72-73) yet only here in all of Lat. poetry is dem elided; the aural ambiguity
(at least to a listening audience) further obscures Ov.’s intentions
turm a, -ae (f.) regiment of cavalry (a rare term, only 2x in Ov., to describe the Amazons [Pont. 4.10.51;
Am. 2.13.18 is corrupt]). Ancient art and lit. freq. depict Amazons on horseback
Penthesilea, -ae (f.) leader of the Amazons, whom Achilles (used by Ov. as a symbol of the male
student-lover at 1.11, cf. Rem. 676), not knowing she was a woman, slew in battle; when her helmet
was removed, he fell in love with her corpse (Prop. 3.11.15-16, Her. 21.117-18)
eo, ire go. Elision (it(e) + in) in Ov.’s hexameters is most freq. after the first long syll. of the line (Plat 86)
par, paris equal. Adj. w/ force of adv. (AG #290), ‘equally,’ ‘as equals’
uinco, -ere conquer, win. Hortatory subjv. (AG #439) w/ omitted anteced. of quibus (AG #307c) as
subj.
almus, -a, -um nurturing, kindly, generous [< alo, -ere ‘nourish’] (cf. 769)
Dione, -es (f.) in Horn., the mother of Venus, goddess of love; in Ov., Venus herself
fSueo, -ere, faui (+ dat.) favor, support. Fut. pf. shows completion bef. the action of the main vb.
(AG #308i, #547; Gild #272c, #278)
totus, -a, -um entire, whole. Abl. of place w/out prep, is usu. w/ totus (AG #429.2)
uolo, -are fly. Cupid is freq. depicted as a child or youth w/ wings
orbis, -is (m.) anything circular; wheel, sphere, world
puer, pueri (m.) boy. Nom. subj. (w/ Dione) offauerit. Ov. represents Venus’s son Cupid (cf. 515,762)
as affecting the whole earth w/ love (cf. 2.18)
29
O vid, A rs A matoria

5 non erat armatis aequum concurrere nudas;

sic etiam uobis uincere turpe, uiri.
dixerit e multis aliquis ‘quid uirus in angues
adicis et rabidae tradis ouile lupae?’
parcite paucarum diffundere crimen in omnes;
10 spectetur meritis quaeque puella suis.

LINES
armo, -are arm, equip, armatis and nudas both subst. (AG #288)
aequus, -a, -um equal, level, fair; non erat aequum ‘it would not be fair’ (indie, replaces subjv. in apod, of implied
condit signifying propriety, necessity, etc.; AG #S22a). N t in agreement w/ nt. inf. concurrere
concurro, -ere engage in battle, fight (+ dat.). An inf. serving as the subj. of a sentence has its own subj.
in the acc. (AG #452.1, #397e, cf. 761)
nudus, -a, -um uncovered, bare, nude; unarmed
etiam also, as well (modifying following wd.)
turpis, -e ugly, offensive, shameful
uir, uiri (m.) man. Ars 3 is addressed to women but freq, acknowledges a male audience (cf. 9 parcite,
161 nos male detegimur). Ov. portrays love as an intricate game (3.62,809); meaningful victories
require equally matched opponents
dixerit pf. subjv. suggests possible action in the fut., ‘someone may say (AG #446,447.1,447.3),
Ov. imagines, then forestalls male objections to the didactic purpose of Ars 3
e(x) + abl. out of, from, of (e + abl. instead of partit, gen., AG #346.c)
aliquis, -quid someone, sthg. O v. never dignifies the critics of his poetry by granting them a name
(cf. Rem. 361-62, Ibis), just as he refrains from identifying those who spoil the game of love
(245-46,453-54,699)
quid why? (interrog. adv.; nt. acc. of quis as cogn. acc., AG #390c)
uirus, -i (n.) poison, venom (note pun w/ etymologically unrelated uiri in 6)
anguis, -is (m.) snake (a freq. metaphor for treacherous women since Aesch. Ch. 249)
adicio, -ere add (ad + (i)acio; 1st syll. long despite loss of i, AG #6d, #603f.N3; a of iacio changes to i in
compd. vb., AG #15.2)
rabidus, -a, -um raging, violent, rabid
trado, -ere hand over, betray (cf. 577)
ouile, -is (n.) sheepfold [< ouis ‘sheep’]
lupa, -ae (f.) female wolf; financially or sexually ravenous woman, prostitute (but ouile has no similarly
sexual connotation)
parco, -ere spare; cease, refrain from (+ inf.)
pauci, -ae, -a few. As subst. w/ crimen (criminis [n.], crime; criminal charge, accusation) paucarum is
either obj. gen. (AG #348), ‘accusations against (only) a few women’, cf. pauca... crimina (32), or
subj. gen., ‘crimes of a few women’; pauci only 3x in Ars (cf. 3.54). Ov. claims that misbehaving
women are in the minority
diffundo, -ere pour out (fundo) widely (dis-), diffuse, sow, extend

LINE 10
specto, -are look at, regard (visually and mentally), judge (+ abl. of specification, AG #418). Ov. asks
men to evaluate women w/ their eyes and minds
meritum, -i (n.) merit, worth, commendable quality [< mereo, -ere ‘earn’]
quisque, quae-, quod- each (adj.). The shape of Ov.’s catalog (11-22) supports his argument: 2 couplets
describing 3 unfaithful spouses (11-14) are outweighed by 4 virtuous wives, each with her own
couplet (15-22)
30
 COMMENTARY: 5 -1 8

si m inor Atrides Helenen, Helenesque sororem

quo prem at Atrides crim ine maior habet,
si scelere Oeclides Talaioniae Eriphylae
uiuus et in uiuis ad Styga uenit equis,
est pia Penelope lustris errante duobus 15
et totidem lustris bella gerente uiro.
respice Phylaciden, et quae comes isse m arito
fertur et ante annos occubuisse suos.

minor, minus lesser; younger (i.e. lesser in age). Ov. enlivens his catalog w/ nested symmetry
(minor-Atrides-Helenen—Helenes-Atrides-maior), erudite genealogy (11-13,19), metrical and verbal
rarities (14), chronological balance (15-16), quotation (21), and alliteration (21)
Atrides, -ae (m.) son of Atreus; minor A. = Menelaus, husband of Helen; maior A. = Agamemnon,
Greek commander in TW, slain by wife Clytemnestra after he returned home w/ his new mistress,
Cassandra (2.399-408)
Helene, -es (f.) Helen, who started TW by eloping to Troy w/ Paris. Gk. acc. sg. -en (AG #44)
soror, -oris (f.) sister; Helenes s. = Clytemnestra
premo, -ere press; indict; premere crimine (+ acc.) = press charges on (someone)
quo prem at. .. crimine relat. cl. of purpose. Atrides Helenen ...quo premat... crimine... habet =
Atrides quo Helenen premat crimen habet; acc. crimen (obj. of habet) attracted into the case of the relat.
pron. (AG #306aN), ‘a charge for him to press upon her’
scelus, -eris (n.) crime
Oeclides, -ae (m.) son of Oecles; Amphiaraus, who foresaw his own death in the Theban War (before
TW ) but was induced by his wife Eriphyle to take part
Talaionius, -a, -um descended from Talaus, one of the Argonauts, hapax adj. in Lat.
Eriphyla, -ae (f.) Eriphyle, who accepted a bribe and convinced her husband to join the doomed attack
against the city of Thebes. Among el. poets only Ov., imitating Gk. poets, ends a hexameter w/ adj.
+ hiatus + 4-syll. Gk. name (Plat 58-59,6 exx.)
uiuus, -a, -um living, alive. Amphiaraus, fleeing by chariot from the battle at Thebes, was swallowed up
alive in the earth
Styx, -gis (f.) river of the underworld. Gk. acc. sg. (AG #82) [< Gk. crruyfw ‘hate’]

LINE 15
pius, -a, -um dutiful, obedient
Penelope, -es (f.) famously faithful wife of Ulysses (and a prize who can be won, 1.477)
lustrum, -i (n.) five-year period. Abl. of duration of time (AG #424b)
erro, -are wander. After 10-year TW Ulysses spent 10 years journeying home
totidem (indecl.) equally many (modifying lustris)
gero, -ere carry; carry on, conduct, wage
respicio, -ere lookback at; review, consider
Phylacides, -ae (m.) descendant of Phylacus; Protesilaus, the first Gk. to die in TW
quae anteced. of relat. cl. is omitted (AG #307c); supply e.g. illam
comes, -itis (m./f.) companion (+ dat.). Protesilaus’ wife Laodamia learned of his death and killed
herself. In appos. to isse, ‘as a companion’
quae. .. isse. . . fertur ‘who is said to have gone.’ Lat. ind. disc, prefers pers. pass, constr. vs. impers. E. ‘it
is said that she went’ (AG #582). isse = iisse (AG #203c), pf. act. inf. of eo, ire, ii ‘go’
fero, ferre carry; report, say (esp. in pass.). Ov. notes (w/ an Alexandrian footnote) the story’s long lit.
tradition. Diff. idiomatic use in 20
annus, -i (m.) year; (pi.) proper age, allotted span ofyears (cf. ante diem 739)
occumbo, -mbere, -bui die, lie dead
31
O vid, A rs A matoria

fata Pheretiadae coniunx Pagasaea redem it

20 proque uiro est uxor funere lata uiri.
‘accipe me, Capaneu: cineres m iscebim ur’ inquit
Iphias in m edios desiluitque rogos,
ipsa quoque et cultu est et nom ine fem ina Virtus:
non m irum , populo si placet illa suo.
25 nec tamen hae mentes nostra poscuntur ab arte,-
conueniunt cumbae uela minora meae.

fatum, -i (n.) fate, death. Poet. pi. for sg. to preserve meter (AG #101N2)
Pheretiades, -ae (m.) son of Pheres; Admetus, given by Apollo the gift of letting another die in his
place (cf. Eur. Alcestis)
coniunx, -ugis (m./f.) spouse. Alcestis agreed to die in place of her husband Admetus
Pagasaeus, -a, um from Pagasae, a town in Thessaly (a northern district of Greece)
redimo, -imere, -emi buy off, redeem, ransom {> redemption}

LINE 20
pro (+ abl.) in place of, instead of
uir, uiri (m.) man; husband
funus, -eris (n.) funeral; funeral procession.
fero, ferre, tuli, latum carry; carry out (as a corpse) at a funeral
accipio, -ipere, -epi, -eptum accept; receive (cf. 55)
Capaneus, -ei (m.) hero killed in the Theban War. Gk. voc. -m (AG #82)
cinis, -eris (m.) ash. Pred. nom. w/ miscebimur, ‘as ashes’ (AG #284)
misceo, -ere mix, commingle
inquit ‘she said’ (3rd sg. pf. of defect, vb. inquam, 'I say,’ introducing dir. quotation, AG #206b)
Iphias, -adis (f.) Iphis’ daughter; Evadne, Capaneus’ wife. Gk. nom. sg. -as (AG #82)
medius, -a, -um middle; the middle of, the midst of (AG #293)
desilio, -ere, -ui leap. El. poets freq. postpone -que ‘and’ to the 3rd or 4th word in a phrase (Plat 91)
rogus, -i (m.) funeral pyre. Capaneus’ corpse had been brought home for cremation, and Evadne killed
herself by leaping into the flames. Prop. (3.13.15-25) also praises suttee, the eastern practice of wives
who kill themselves on their husbands’ pyres, as a sign of spousal loyalty
quoque also, as well
cultus, -us (m.) cultivation, culture; appearance, dress (cultu and nomine abls. of specification w/
femina, AG #418)
nomen, -inis (n.) name; noun
femina, -ae (f.) woman; R.’s many deified abstractions, even those connoting masculinity, were almost
all feminine in gender and grammar
Virtus, -utis (f.) manliness [< uir ‘man’], courage, valor; military and moral excellence, worshipped in
R. as a goddess
mirus, -a, -um amazing, astonishing, est omitted (AG #319b). Indef. nt. in agreement w/ si-clause
(AG #572bN)

LINE 25
nec tamen and y et... not. Ov. uses tamen far more than any other poet (830x)
hae forms of hie freq. refer to what has just been mentioned (AG #297a)
mens, -ntis (f.) mind; good character. Chaste women are not Ov.’s stated audience
posco, -ere call for, summon. Personified abl. of agent arte (AG #405N3), cf. 545
ars, artis (f.) art, skill (Ov.’s topic and title), nostra = mea (OLD noster 2b)
32
 COM M ENTARY: 1 9 -3 2

nil nisi lasciui per m e discuntur amores:

fem ina praecipiam quo sit am anda modo.

fem ina nec flammas nec saeuos discutit arcus;

parcius haec uideo tela nocere uiris. 30
saepe uiri fallunt, tenerae non saepe puellae
paucaque, si quaeras, crim ina fraudis habent.

conuenio, -ire (+ dat.) suit, fit. Ov. uses appropriateness to characterize the Ars (188,273,328,546;
1.765; 2.617, etc.) and his own poetry in general (Am. 1.1.2)
cumba, -ae (f.) small boat, symbolizing O v.’s moderate poet, progress (cf. 99,500,748) and avoidance
of grander themes (but cf. 1 arma dedi Danais)
uelum, -i (n.) sail {> veil}
nisi except
lasciuus, -a, -um erotic, lewd, wanton
disco, -ere learn. Ov. explicitly advertises himself as a didactic poet (cf. Medic. 1 discite... puellae-, Ars
1.2 carmine doctus amet, 1.17 ego sum praeceptor Amoris; Rem. 9 quin etiam docui, 43 discite sanari)
amor, -oris (m.) love, love poem (cf. Amores), love affair
femina all mss. readfemina, but ‘I shall teach how a woman [i.e. any woman] is to be loved' contradicts
the saucy specificity of 27 lasciui... amores. Scholars have suggested replacing it w/ talis (‘such a
woman’ [i.e. a lasciua]), non proba (‘a lewd woman’), or Thais (a famous prostitute, cf. Rem. 385 Thais
in arte mea est)
praecipio, -ere teach, instruct. Introduces ind. quest, w/ subjv. (AG #574)
modus, -i (m.) method, manner, way. quo... modo abl. of manner (AG #412)
29-56: Women suffer more in love; they need Ov.’s help.
Supposedly natural differences between the sexes (29-32) and a list of jilted heroines (33-40)
reassert the need for Ars 3 to be written. Though Ov. prefers male dominance (43) he ex­
changes it for poetic supremacy, granted by Venus (43-56)
n ec. . . nec neither... nor
saeuus, -a, -um savage, cruel, fierce
discutio, -ere shake [< quatio] apart [< dis-], shake off, repel
arcus, -us (m.) bow (in archery). Ov. claims that Love’s weapons injure women more (but claimed the
opposite at Ars 1.281-82, cf. 3.543-44)

LINE 30
parcus, -a, -um stingy, sparing. Compar, adv. -ius
telum, -i (n.) weapon. Acc. subj. of ind. disc, introduced by uideo (AG #579)
noceo, -ere (+ dat.) harm
fallo, -ere deceive. By contrast, Ov. had told men (1.645-46) that women were the deceivers. Now he
lists four mythical heroines abandoned by men (but starts w/ the one least likely to gain readers’
automatic sympathy). All four heroines also star in Ov.’s earlier work (Her. 2 Phyllis, 7 Dido, 10
Ariadne, and Ov.’s lost tragedy Medea)
tener, -era, -erum tender, delicate [not < teneo, tenere ‘hold’]
quaero, -ere ask, investigate. Indef. subj. (you = anyone) in prot. of general condit, uses subjv., freq. w/
indic, in apod. (AG #518a)
fraus, -dis (f.) deception, falsity; ‘they suffer few charges of deception’

33
O vid, A rs A matoria

Phasida, iam m atrem , fallax dim isit Iason;

uenit in Aesonios altera nupta sinus.
35 quantum in te, Theseu, uolucres A riadna m arinas
pauit in ignoto sola relicta loco,
quaere, N ouem cur una Viae dicatur, et audi
depositis siluas Phyllida flesse comis.

Phasis, -idis (f.) from the river Phasis in Colchis, SE of the Black Sea {> pheasant}; (subst.) Medea, who
returned w/Jason to Greece; when he jilted her, she killed their children and escaped. Gk. acc. sg. -ida
(AG#83b)
iam already
fallax, -acis deceptive, traitorous [< fallo ‘deceive,’ cf. 31]. For Jason’s (and, later, Medea’s) emotional
duplicity cf. Eur. Medea
dimitto, -ere dismiss, divorce. In Aug. R., divorce w/out cause was legal but scandalous (Terence Hecyra
154-55, pseudo-Quintilian Declamationes minores 262.8); Medea’s two children byjason (Iason, -onis
[m.]), the hero of the Argonaut expedition to Colchis, make his departure all the more heartless
Aesonius, -a, -u o related to Aeson, Jason’s father; ofjason
nupta, -ae (f.) bride. Jason left Medea for the daughter of Creon, king of Corinth
sinus, -us (m.) anything folded or curved; lap, breast, bosom; embrace (cf. 743)

LINE 35
quantum in te ‘as far as it concerned you,’ ‘for all you cared’ (OLD s.v. in 26c)
Theseus, -ei (m.) hero who killed the Minotaur in the labyrinth on Crete and w / Ariadne’s help escaped, then
faithlessly abandoned her on a deserted island while returning to Athens. Gk. voc. sg. - W (AG #81.3)
uolucris, -is (m.) bird. Ariadne fears that her corpse, lacking burial (and thus depriving her spirit of
rest in the afterlife), will become food for sea birds (marinus, -a, -urn ‘marine,’ ‘sea-going’), cf. Her.
10.123-24
Ariadna, -ae (f.) Ariadne, daughter of Cretan king Minos
paueo, -ere, paui fear, be frightened of
ignotus, -a, -um unknown, unfamiliar
relinquo, -inquere, -iqui, -ictum abandon, leave behind
Nouem... dicatur 'why one (path) is called Nine Paths’ (subjv. in ind. quest, introducedby quaere). Nouem
Viae pred. nom. after dicatur (AG #284, #393a). The traveling hero Demophoon married the Thracian
princess Phyllis (-idis [f.]; Gk. acc. sg. -ida, AG #83]) [< Gk. <pi3X\ov ‘leaf’], then sailed home alone,
promising to return; after nine journeys to the shore where they had parted, she killed herself. Over her
grave grew deciduous trees, their leaves forming an etymological memorial. As the story was well known
(cf. Am. 2.18.22), Demophoon does not need to be named (cf. the absence of‘Aeneas’ in 39-40)
audio, -ire hear, learn (+ ind. disc., AG #580)
depono, -onere, -osui, -ositum let go of; cut (hair), shed (leaves). Ov. invests the world w/ male cruelty
via an aetiological pathetic fallacy
silua, -ae (f.) forest, grove. Acc. subj. of ind. disc.; Phyllida acc. obj. offlesse
fleo, -ere, fleui weep for, mourn (flesse = fleuisse, contr. pf. act. inf., AG #181a)
pietas, -tatis (f.) sense of duty, devotion. V. freq. defines Aeneas as pius, ‘dutiful’
hospes, -itis (m./f.) guest. Dido hosted the Trojan hero Aeneas and his followers after their escape
from Troy. Despite their mutual love, Aeneas left her in order to establish the survivors of TW in
Italy, as Jupiter had decreed. The story’s fame derives not only from V. Aen. 1-4 but from Ov. Her. 7,
Dido’s deathbed letter to Aeneas; Ov. quotes himself here w/ a reworking of her final epitaph (Her.
7.195 P R A E B U I T A E N E A S E T C A U S A M M O R T I S E T E N S E M , cf. Fast. 3.547-48)
ensis, -is (m.) sword. Note syllepsis w/ causam
34
 COM M ENTARY: 3 3 - 4 8

et fam am pietatis habet, tam en hospes et ensem

praebuit et causam mortis, Elissa, tuae. 40
quid uos perdiderit, dicam: nescistis amare;
defuit ars uobis: arte perennat amor,
nunc quoque nescirent! sed m e Cytherea docere
iussit et ante oculos constitit ipsa meos,
tu m m ihi ‘quid m iserae’ dixit ‘m eruere puellae? 45
trad itu r arm atis uulgus inerm e uiris.
illos artifices gem ini fecere libelli;
haec quoque pars m onitis erudienda tuis.

LINE 40
praebeo, -ere, -ui offer, provide. Aeneas left a swordw/ Dido, who killed herself w/ it (V.Aen. 4.507) at
his departure
Elissa, -ae (f.) Dido, queen of Carthage (in north Africa), loved and abandoned by Aeneas (Dido usu.
only in nom., Elissa used in other cases)
perdo, -dere, -didi destroy (pf. subjv. in ind. quest.)
nescio, -ire, -iui not know (contr. pf., AG #181a) + compl. inf. (AG #456), how to do sthg.
desum, -esse, -fui be lacking, be absent from (+ dat. of possession, AG #373b). Ov. addresses his
heroines as potent, students
perenno, -are last, endure (1st appearance of this vb. in Lat. lit.).
a r s . . . arte Ov. uses more polyptoton (repetition of a word in different forms) than any other
poet, once per 36 verses on avg. (cf. 11 Helenen, Helenes, 431 uiri uir); w / ars— arte the Ars
showcases itself
nescirent impf. subjv. in unfulfilled wish (AG #441): ‘if only they didn’t know’
Cytherea, -ae (f.) Venus, born from the sea near the Gk. island Cythera
iubeo, -bere, -ssi order, command (+ acc. and inf., AG #563a)
oculus, -i (m.) eye. Ov. claims an epiphany (divine apparition) from Venus, who orders him to teach women as
well as men and cites Stesichorus’ treatment of Helen as warning (49-50). Ov. opens Ars 1 w/ a repudiation
of divine assistance (1.25-29) but also ffeq. asserts the gods’ help (1.30,525,2.15-16,493-510)
consisto, -ere, constiti stand, take one’s place

LINE 45
miser, -ra, -rum wretched (evoking pity). Overly fortunate mortals were thought to incur divine
jealousy, and Venus was particularly envious of the very beautiful (Prop. 2.28.9-10, Her. 17.126),
but Ov.’s students are assumed to be imperfect (251-60). Venus thus portrays them in sympathetic
terms; note esp. uulgus inerme vs. artifices (‘experts’)
mereo, -ere, -ui deserve (cf. 10 meritis), meruere = meruerunt (AG #163a), cf. 47
uulgus, -i (n.) crowd, throng (freq. implying either sympathy or belittlement)
inermis, -e unarmed, defenseless (neg. in- + arma, AG #267d2, cf. 1 arma dedi)
artifex, -icis (m.) artist, specialist in an art; expert (pred. acc. after illos, AG #393)
geminus, -a, -um twin (= Ars 1 and 2, addressed to male lovers; Ov. makes Venus attest to the success
of his earlier work)
libellus, -i (m.) booklet, pamphlet, book of poetry (diminutive of liber 'book', AG #243), cf. 205
(= Medic.), Am. epigramma 1 (= Am.)
pars, -tis (f.) part, portion; half (of the human race, i.e. women)
monitum, -i (n.) admonition, instruction, advice [< moneo ‘warn’]
erudio, -ire educate, refine (sunt omitted, AG #319b)
35
O vid, A rs A matoria

probra Therapnaeae qui dixerat ante maritae,

50 mox cecinit laudes prosperiore lyra.
si bene te noui (cultas ne laede puellas),
gratia, dum uiues, ista petenda tibi est.’
dixit et e m yrto (m yrto nam uincta capillos
constiterat) folium granaque pauca dedit.
55 sensimus acceptis num en quoque: purior aether
fulsit, et e toto pectore cessit onus.

probrum, -i (n.) rebuke, insult. After insulting Helen in a poem, the Gk. poet Stesichorus (6th c. BCE)
went blind (as a form of divine punishment), then wrote a palinode (Gk. ‘back-song,’ i.e. a poem that
recants an author’s earlier views) that absolved Helen of causing T W; he regained his eyesight,
which he had lost earlier (ante [adv.])
Therapnaeus, -a, -um of the town Therapne, the birthplace of Helen, wife of Menelaus
marita, -ae (f.) wife. Dat. of ref., ‘against her’ (AG #376)

LINE 50
mox soon
cano, -ere, cecini sing about, extol (in poetry) (redupl. pf. stem, AG #177c)
prosperus, -a, -um successful, propitious, favorable
lyra, -ae (f.) lyre (stringed instrument used to accompany a singer) {> lyric poetry}
bene (adv.) well [< bonus ‘good’]. Unpretentious and freq. in Ov. (211x)
nosco, -ere, noui get to know; (pf. w/ pres, sense, AG #205bN2) know, si bene te noui formulaic (‘since I
know you well'), implying his intimacy w/ Venus
cultus, -a, -um cultured, suave [< colo ‘cultivate’]. Ov.’s first topic will be the proper cultivation of the
self (101-34); Venus encourages him to be kind to women who have already acquired culture (and
thus implies that many women already know what Ov. will teach, cf. 43,1.1)
laedo, -ere injure, ne + impv. for neg. command is freq. in poetry (AG #450a)
gratia, -ae (f.) goodwill resulting from kind treatment, benevolence, favor
dum uiues ‘as long as you live’ (OLD s.v. dum2 1, w/ fut. sense of petenda est). For Ov. love is a lifelong
pursuit (Am. 2.10,36 soluar et inter opus)
peto, -ere aim at, pursue, seek out (cf. 57). Gdve. w/ tibi dat. of agent (AG #374)
m yrto. .. uincta capillos 'her hair bound with myrtle’ (myrtus, -i [f.], an evergreen shrub w/ white
berries, sacred to Venus), capillos acc. of the part affected (AG #397b). Ov. freq. employs repetition
in parentheses (2.131,135, 573)
uincio, -ire, uinxi, uinctum bind, tie up
capillus, -i (m.) strand of hair, (pi.) hair(s) {> capillary}
folium, -i (n.) leaf
granum, -i (n.) seed, grain, berry. Divine gifts establish poet, authority at the end of many epiphanies
(cf. Hesiod Theogony 30-32; Fast. 4.15-17); here Ov. emphasizes his personal connection w/ Venus,
who provides him w/ gifts taken directly from her own crown

LINE 55
sentio, -ire, sensi sense, feel, sensimus = sensi, 1 pers. pi. for sg. (cf. 557,747,791)
acceptis sc. illis donis, abi. abs. w/ omission of subst. (AG #419c)
numen, -inis (n.) godhead, divinity, divine power [< *nuo ‘nod’ (in approval)], quoque ‘as well’ implies
that Venus’ gifts (54) fill Ov, w/ her power (cf. 548)
purus, -a, -um pure, clear (pred. nom. afterfulsit [fulgeo, -ere,fulsi ‘shine’], AG #284; adj. as adv., AG #290)
aether, -eris (m.) heaven, sky, air [< Gk. at0w ‘burn,’ ‘blaze,’ cf. Lat. aestas ‘heat’]
36
 COMMENTARY: 49-64

dum facit ingenium, petite hinc praecepta, puellae,

quas pudor et leges et sua iura sinunt,
uenturae memores iam nunc estote senectae:
sic nullum uobis tempus abibit iners. 60
dum licet et ueros etiam nunc editis annos,
ludite: eunt anni more fluentis aquae,
nec, quae praeteriit, iterum reuocabitur unda
nec, quae praeteriit, hora redire potest.

pectus, -oris (n.) chest, breast; heart, spirit

cedo, -ere, cessi give way, yield, depart
onus, -eris (n.) weight, burden (of anxiety or care, cf. 43 nunc quoque nescirent)
S7-82: Youth is the tim e for love.
Ov. appeals to his audience by emphasizing the value of gaining an early education from him.
The indignities of aging hinder erotic success (as Ov. had indicated to men as well, though not
at such length [2.107-22]; cf. also the lena’s advice to the puella [Am. 1.8])
dum (+ pres.) while. Ov.’s ingenium will not fail quickly (Jessa carina not until 748), but now is the time
to pay attention (cf. 61 dum licet)
facio, -ere make, do; function, work well (w/ ingenium as nom. subj.)
ingenium, -i (n.) innate ability, (poetic) talent. Ov. claims divine aid and natural skill
hinc (adv.) from here, from this source (Ov., or his ingenium, or Ars 3 itself)
praecipio, -cipere, -cepi, -ceptum instruct; (pf. ptc.) instruction, teachings, education
pudor, -oris (m.) sense of shame, modesty. Ov. defines his audience as immodest
lex, legis (f.) law. Augustus passed the lex Iulia de adulteriis coercendis in 18 BCE limiting extramarital
sexual activity, but the extent of the law’s application was and is unclear (see Introduction)
suus, -a, -um one’s own; their own (refl. pron. can refer not to gramm. subj. of cl. but to any emphasized
noun [AG #301b], i.e. puellae; cf. 258)
ius, iuris (n.) legal entitlement or privilege, right(s) (based on written leges)
sino, -ere allow, permit (+ acc. quas and inf. [AG #563c], sc. petere). Ov. claims to write only for
women unrestrained by law or shame, i.e. not for proper married citizens
memor, -oris keeping in mind, mindful (+ gen. uenturae senectae, AC #349)
estote fut. impv. (of esse, AG #170) can denote a general command (AG #449.2) or simply be metrically
convenient, cf. pres. impv. este (554)
senecta, -ae (f.) old age [< senex ‘old person’]. Ov. always addresses his audience in Ars 3 as young puellae,
notfeminae or mulieres; love befits youth, despite Ov.’s earlier praise of older female lovers (2.667-702)

LINE 60
abeo, -ire go away, depart, escape
iners, inertis idle, inactive; artless, Ars-less [< in- not’ + ars ‘art,’ ‘skill’]. Time spent with Ov.’s Ars is
never wasted. Adj. as adv. (AG #290)
licet, -ere it is permitted (impers. vb., AG #207) sc. by age (59-60)
edo, -ere give out [< e(x)- + do, dare ‘give,’ not Ido ‘eat’], publish, state, admit. It was the duty of the
censor to record the ages of R. citizens (Cicero de Legibus 3.7); older women might conceal the truth
ludo, -ere play (the game of love, cf. 809), perform (on stage, cf. ludius 1.112), deceive (cf. 332)
mos, moris (m.) custom, manner, style (abl. of manner, AG #412b, ‘in the style’)
fluo,-ere flow
praetereo, -ire, -ii pass by. Ov. enlivens a cliche (the river of time) with ironic repetition (phrases, not
time, can be repeated) and similarity of unda/hora
reuoco, -are call back, bring back, restore, repeat
37
O v id , A rs A m a t o r i a

65 utendum est aetate: cito pede labitur aetas

nec bona tam sequitur, quam bona prima fuit,
hos ego, qui canent, frutices uiolaria uidi;
hac mihi de spina grata corona data est.
tempus erit, quo tu, quae nunc excludis amantes,
70 frigida deserta nocte iacebis anus,
nec tua frangetur nocturna ianua rixa,
sparsa nec inuenies limina mane rosa,
quam cito, me miserum, laxantur corpora rugis
et perit, in nitido qui fuit ore, color,

LINE 65
utor,-i use, make (good) use of (+ abl., AG #410); impers. gdve. (AG #500.3),‘one must use’
aetas, -atis (f.) age, life; any period of life (implied in 66), youth (65)
citus, -a, -um swift, quick (but adv. ‘swiftly’ in 73)
labor, -i slip away, glide off (like water). Lat. poets use pes ‘foot’ to describe the motion of streams;
Ov.’s metaphor links 63 unda w/ aetas
sequor, -i follow, come after (sc. tam bona aetas as subj.)
ta m . . . quam so ... as, a s ... as (correl., AG #323g). bona (sc. aetas) pred. nom. w/fu it
caneo, -ere be grey or white with age [not < cano, -ere ‘sing’]
frutex, -icis (m.) bush, shrub; plant stalk. Ov. continues to argue by analogies to nature
uiolarium, -i (n.) bed of violets (which have gray stalks, cf. 75 canas [comas]). Pred. acc. (AG #393),
‘I saw these stalks as (i.e. when they were) flowers’
spina, -ae (f.) thorn, prickle; thorny bush, rose bush
gratus, -a, -um pleasing, attractive. Ancient lovers gave garlands (not bouquets)
corona, -ae (f.) crown, garland (of flowers). Like many didactic poets Ov. freq. notes the personal experience
that lends authority to his advice (245,487,511,1.29 usus opus mouet hoc: uatiparete perito, etc.)
excludo, -ere shut (claudo) out (ex-), exclude. The exclusus amator—the male lover denied entry into
his beloved’s house—is a standard element in erotic narrative (cf. 581,588). But if tu is a puella in
Ov.’s audience, she has already learned how to acquire a retinue of lovers (quae nunc excludis
amantes); Ov. speaks to her not as her teacher but as a (hopeful) lover

LINE 70
frigidus, -a, -um frigid, chilly, cold (w/ anus; Ov. uses double enallage, inverting the expected agree­
ment offrigida w/ nocte and deserta w/ anus)
desero, -ere, -ui, -tum abandon, leave alone; (pf. ptc. as adj.) lonely (cf. relicta 36)
iaceo, -ere lie (down), lie in bed (cf. 773,788)
anus, -us (f.) old woman [not < anus, -i (m.) ‘ring’]. Middle age is omitted; with a swift shift from youth
to old age Ov. urges his students to act now
frango, -ere break (down), shatter. After dinner, drunken youths would visit their girlfriends’ houses,
singing and asking to be let in; if refused, they might end up brawling with each other and/or break­
ing down the door, behavior that Ov. later criticizes as a sign of immaturity (567)
nocturnus, -a, -um nocturnal, happening at night
ianua, -ae (f.) door, entry {> January, the ‘door’ of the year}
rixa, -ae (f.) brawl, fight (among the woman's drunken suitors)

38
 COM M ENTARY: 6 5 - 8 0

quasque fuisse tibi canas a uirgine iures 75

sparguntur subito per caput omne comae!
anguibus exuitur tenui cum pelle uetustas,
nec faciunt ceruos cornua iacta senes;
nostra sine auxilio fugiunt bona: carpite florem,
qui, nisi carptus erit, turpiter ipse cadet. 80

spargo, -gere, -si, -sum scatter, strew (cf. 76). Youths would hang garlands (rosa freq. sg. for pi.) on the
puellas door or lay them on her threshold as a sign of ardor (as Ov. had advised them to do, 2.528)
inuenio, -ire discover, find
limen, -inis (n.) doorstep, threshold. Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2)
mane (adv.) in the morning [not < maneo ‘wait’]
quam (+ adv.) how ...! Ov.’s emotional tone (me miserum) shows a teacher’s sympathetic (and self-
serving) concern
me miserum acc, of exclam. (AG#397d), ‘poor me!’Freq. in Ov. (45x, vs. 0 in Tib., 2x in Prop.) as a
motto of elegiac lament (cf. Am. 1.1.25)
laxo, -are make (sthg.) loose; loosen, relax, weaken
ruga, -ae (f.) wrinkle. Ov. insinuates w/ corpus that strength is lost along w/ beauty
pereo, -ire vanish, disappear; perish
nitidus, -a, -um shining, bright (as a sign of youthfulness)
os, oris (n.) mouth; face

LINE 75
canus, -a, -um white, grey (cf. 67); Ov. imagines a young woman w/ a few grey hairs
uirgo, -inis (f.) virgin; girl (of marriageable age); a uirgine ‘from girlhood,’ ‘ever since you were a girl’
(AG#221.1c)
iuro, -are swear (on oath), claim; potent, subjv. (AG #446)
subito (adv.) suddenly. Cf. the abbreviated chronology at 69-70
coma, -ae (f.) hair (anteced. of quas 75)
anguis, -is (m./f.) snake; its sloughing of old skin was taken as a renewal of youth
exuo, -ere shed, slough, remove, strip (+ dat. anguibus ‘from the snakes,’AG #364). Syllepsis (literal
pellis w/ metaphorical uetustas) here strengthens the physical proof of Ov.’s logical claim
tenuis, -is thin [not < teneo, -ere, tenui ‘hold’]
pellis, -is (m.) skin (of humans or animals), hide
uetustas, -atis (f.) old age [< uetus old’]
ceruus, -i (m.) deer, stag. Acc. obj. of faciunt w/ pred. acc. senes (AG #393)
iacio, -ere, ieci, iactum throw, cast; shed. The action of a pass. ptc. can take precedence over the noun
it modifies (AG #497); ‘the shedding of antlers’
auxilium, -i (n.) help, resource; remedy (i.e. youth’s physical blessings cannot be kept)
carpo, -ere, carpsi, carptum pluck, pick, harvest (cf. Horace’s metaphor carpe diem)

LINE 80
turpis, -e shameful; ugly. Adv.-ter. ipse (‘spontaneously,’ ‘of its own accord’) highlights the unavoid-
ability of the aging process
cado, -ere fall, die, wither

39
Ov i d , Ar s A m a t o r i a

adde quod et partus faciunt breuiora iuuentae

tem pora: continua messe senescit ager.

Latm ius Endym ion non est tibi, Luna, rubori,

nec Cephalus roseae praeda pudenda deae;
85 u t Veneri, quem luget adhuc, donetur Adonis,
unde habet Aenean H arm oniam que suos?
ite p er exemplum, genus o m ortale, dearum ,

addo, -ere add, include, quod + indic, ‘the fact that’ (AG #572); Ov. critiques motherhood only for its
detractions from physical beauty
partus, -us (m.) childbirth [< pario, -ere, peperi, partum ‘give birth’]
iuuenta, -ae (f.) youth, youthfulness
continuus, -a, -urn continual, repeated
messis, -is (f.) harvest. Ov.’s freq. agricultural imagery (101-2,562,703) suggests that love is yet
another controllable facet of human culture
senesco, -ere grow old [< senex + inceptive suff. -sco (AG #263.1)], deteriorate
83-100: Women, love men; you have nothing to lose.
O v. strikingly makes his new point (since goddesses have had affairs with mortal men, so should Ov.’s
female students, 87-88) only after listing the supporting examples (83-86). If sex is a transaction,
women’s concerns over possible losses are assuaged by an impressively specious argument (89-98)
Latmius, -a, -um of Mt. Latmus (in Caria, in mod. SW Turkey)
Endymion, -onis (m.) beautiful youth loved by Luna, goddess of the moon; he fell into a perpetual and
deathless sleep in a cave on Mt. Latmus
rubor, -oris (m.) redness, blushing; a reason to blush (dat. of purpose, AG #382.1)
Cephalus, -i (m.) a beautiful Athenian loved and briefly abducted by Aurora, goddess of the dawn;
cf. his later tragic dealings w/ Procris (683-746)
roseus, -a, -um rosy, pink. Her color (cf. Horn, s ‘rosy-fingered dawn’) is natural, not emotional
(Ov. reverses the joke at Am. 1.13.47)
praeda, -ae (f.) prey, plunder (gods freq. abduct human lovers, e.g. Zeus’ Ganymede)

LINE 85
ut (+ subjv.) although (AG #527a), cf. 89. Despite Venus’ lack of offspring w/ Adonis, her children
prove that her other affairs were not platonic
lugeo, -ere weep for, mourn for, lament. Subj. is Venus (Venus, -eris [f.], the goddess of love)
adhuc (adv.) until [ad] this point [hue], even now, still. The annual festival of the Adonia, celebrated
only by women, memorialized the death of Adonis
dono, -are give, grant; concede, allow
Adonis, -idis (m.) the beautiful son of king Cinyras and his daughter Myrrha (Met. 10.298-739);
he was killed by a wild boar during a hunt
unde from what source, whence, from whom
Aeneas, -ae (m.) son of Venus by the Trojan Anchises, founder of R. (cf. mater in Aeneae constitit urbe
sui 1.60), forebear of Aug.
Harmonia, -ae (f.) daughter of Venus by the god Mars, wife of Theban king Cadmus (Met. 3.132),
mother of Semele (251)
per (+ acc.) through; in accordance with (as if gods offered good moral exemplars)
genus, -eris (n.) type, class, group, race
mortalis, -e mortal. Ov.’s lofty tone of address contradicts the earthy sexual advice

40
 COM M ENTARY: 8 1 -9 4

gaudia nec cupidis uestra negate uiris.

ut iam decipiant, quid perditis? om nia constant;
mille licet sum ant, deperit inde nihil. 90
conteritur ferrum , silices tenuantur ab usu;
sufficit et dam ni pars caret illa m etu,
quis uetet apposito lum en de lum ine sumi
quisue cauo uastas in m are seruet aquas?

gaudium, -i (n.) joy, pleasure (here, from sexual activity, cf. 805 gaudia... Veneris)
cupidus, -a, -um desirous [< cupio], lusty. Ov. flatteringly compares women to goddesses but also
reverses the direction of desire: goddesses lusted after unwilling mortal men (83-86), but mortal
men now lust after genus mortale, i.e. women (who may or may not be willing)
nego, -are deny, refuse, withhold (cf. 134)
decipio, -ere deceive (sc. uos as dir. obj.); cf. 31 saepe uirifallunt
iam furthermore (OLD s.v. iam 7d, w/ concessive ut, cf. Am. 3.4.5)
quid what. Nt. acc. of quis, dir. obj. of perditis (perdo, -ere ‘destroy,’ ‘lose’)
consto, -are stand (sto) together (con-), remain constant; ‘all things stay the same’
licet (+ subjv.) although (AG #527b, cf. 106 sit licet)
sumo, -ere take up, partake (in), make use of. mille either nom. subj. (sc. uiri) or acc. obj. (sc. gaudia);
either option coyly implies orgiastic excess
depereo, -ire perish, be destroyed, die. The verb’s freq. erotic overtones (‘be madly in love,’ Plaut. Am.
1,3.19, Catull. 35.12) here imply an even further separation of sex and love (cf. the drunken gang
rape at 765-66)

LINE 90
inde (adv.) from there, from that source (cf. unde 86). Ov. couches crude physical argument (women’s
genitals can handle freq. sex) in legal terms (92,98) as well as grammatical ambiguity and euphe­
mism (omnia, inde, pars... ilia 92, cf. 799,802)
contero, -ere rub away, grind down
ferrum, -i (n.) iron, tool made of iron (sword, plowshare, razor, etc.)
silex, -icis (m.) hard rock, stone (used as millstones, pavement, etc.)
tenuo, -are make thin (tenuis), reduce; ah w/ personified agent usu (AG #405N3)
sufficio, -ere be sufficient, be strong enough (w/ subj.pars... ilia), be up to it
damnum, -i (n.) loss, damage (physical or financial, hence Ov.’s apology at 97-98). This legal term
(7Sx in Ov.) is absent from Tib., Verg., and Lucr.
careo, -ere (+ abl.) lack, be free from
metus, -us (m.) fear. Ov. not only euphemizes the vagina but by granting it emotions personifies it too
(as he had done w/ his own genitals, Am. 3.7.67-73)
veto, -are forbid (from happening); + acc. & inf. (AG #563a). Potent, subjv. (AG #446), here implying
neg. answer
appono, -ponere, -posui, -positum place (pono) next to (ad), set alongside
-ue or (enclit. conj.). Varied repetition (quis, lumen, aqua) supports Ov.’s argument for a woman’s
unfailing physical resources
cauus, -a, -um hollow, cavernous, deep. Abl. sg. of mare is usu. mari (AG #76a3)
uastus, -a, -um vast, huge, extensive. The ocean is proverbially inexhaustible; Ov. implies that his next
argument (96) also holds water
seruo, -are reserve, guard, store away

41
O vid, A rs A matoria

95 et tam en ulla uiro m ulier ‘non expedit’ inquit?

quid nisi quam sumes, dic m ihi, perdis aquam?
nec uos prostituit mea uox, sed uana timere
dam na uetat: dam nis m unera uestra carent,
sed me flaminibus uenti maioris iturum ,
100 dum sum us in portu, prouehat aura leuis.

ordior a cultu: cultis bene Liber ab uuis

prouenit, et culto stat seges alta solo,
form a dei m unus; form a quota quaeque superbit?
pars uestrum tali m unere magna caret.

LINE 95
ullus, -a, -um any (in neg. context), implying neg. answer; ‘Does any woman say...’
expedio, -ire disentangle; solve; provide; (3rd sg. impers., AG #207) it is useful
inquam I say (defect, vb., AG #206b). Always postpos. (AG #599c), introducing dir. disc,
sumo, -ere take up, apply, use (here for cleaning oneself after sex, cf. Am. 3.7.84)
quam Relat. pron. uses aquam as anteced. and as echo; stylish chiasmus (quam sumes.. .perdis aquam,
AG #598f) masks dubious logic
prostituo, -ere cause to stand (statuo) in front (pro-), prostitute
uanus, -a, -um empty, illusory, false. W / damna (98)
munus, -eris (n.) duty; item given as a duty; service; favor, gift (here sexual)
flamen, -inis (n.) blowing [<flo, -are ‘breathe’], gust of wind, breeze
uentus, -i (m.) wind. Poets (esp. didactic) freq. describe their work w/ nautical imagery; here Captain
Ov. guides his poet, ship over the sea of love (and reintroduces the oceanic analogy of94-95)
maior, -oris bigger, greater (irreg. compar, of magnus, AG #129). Ov.’s ship will later go (iturum fut. act.
ptc. of eo, AG #203) faster but begins gently

LINE 100
portus, -us (m.) port, harbor (cf. 748, where Ov. begins to conclude his re-port)
proueho, -ere carry forward, propel
l£uis, -e light; gentle; trivial; fickle. In Aug. poetry the adj. freq. connotes stylistic levity (vs. epic
weightiness); some scholars deny a lit. ref. here, but cf. Procris’ airy error (698,729)
101-34: Love in the time of colere.
Modern beauty requires cultus; unlike the primitive past, R. and its denizens now have both wealth
and (most important) good taste. Ov. upends the standard praise (esp. V. Aen. 8.306-69) of R. s
virtuously rustic origins; cf.Am. 1.8.39-42, Medic. 11-26
ordior, -iri begin, start (w/ a(b) + abl. ‘with’)
cultus, -us (m.) cultivation, culture, (good) taste
colo, -ere, colui, cultum cultivate, take care of, foster. W / agricultural imagery and polyptoton Ov.
alleges that raw nature yields profit through hard work
Liber, Liberi (m.) the god of vegetation; Bacchus, the god of wine, which frees [< liber, -a, -um ‘free’]
the drinker from constraints; wine
uua, -ae (f.) grape; bunch of grapes
altus, -a, -um deep, high, tall. Pred. nom. (AG #284) w/ seges, -etis (f.) ‘crop,’ ‘the crop stands tall’
solum, -i (n.) ground, soil. Abl. of place w/out prep, is freq. in poetry (AG #429.4)
forma, -ae (f.) form; good form, beauty, dei (gen.) w/ munus, sc. est (AG #319b)

42
 COM M ENTARY: 9 5 -1 1 2

cura dabit faciem; facies neglecta peribit, 105

Idaliae similis sit licet illa deae,
corpora si ueteres non sic coluere puellae,
nec ueteres cultos sic habuere uiros.
si fuit A ndrom ache tunicas induta ualentes,
quid m irum ? duri m ilitis uxor erat. 110
scilicet Aiaci coniunx ornata uenires,
cui tegum en septem terga fuere boum!

quotus, -a, -um which one in a series; every nth; (w/ quisque) proportionally how many (freq. w/ neg.
tone), what (small) percentage, how few (AG #313bN2). If great natural beauty is as rare as Ov.
claims, his clientele becomes all the larger
superbio, -ire exult in (+ abl. of cause, AG #404a), pride oneself on
pars uestrum . . . magna uestrum partit, gen. (ofuos) w/ magna pars (AG #346al), ‘a large portion of
you.’ O v. implies not that most women are truly ugly but that few are so beautiful that they do not
need his advice (251-57)

LINE 105
facies, -ei (f.) physical appearance; (good) looks, beauty
neglego, -egere, -exi, -ectum neglect, disregard
Idalius, -a, -um of Idalium, a city on the island of Cyprus, home to a shrine of Venus
similis (+ dat.) similar (to), like (sc. [jormae] Idaliae deae, ‘like [the beauty] ofVenus’; a ‘compendious
comparison’)
uetus, -eris old, ancient; of earlier times, old-time. Ov. rejects antiquated standards of cultus for women
(107-12) and for R. (113-28). cohere = coluerunt (AG #163a), cf. 108 habuere
Andromache, -es (f.) wife of Trojan prince Hector (cf. 519,775)
tunica, -ae (f.) tunic (freq. worn in sets of two or more, hence pi. form). By contrast, Horn, emphasized
Andromache’s rich clothing (II. 23.437-515). The ptc. ualentes (‘vigorous’, i.e. ‘rough’; ualeo, -ere ‘be
strong’) is nowhere else used to describe clothing
induo, -ere, -i, -turn don, put on, clothe (pass, w/ acc. dir. obj., AG #156a, #397c).fuit induta — est
induta, ‘she wore’ (AG #495)

LINE 110
mirus, -a, -um amazing, astonishing; est omitted (AG #319b). Nt. in agreement w/ nt. quid (cf. 24 non
mirum)
miles, -itis (m.) soldier, private (in contrast to commander). Ov. again deflates epic grandeur (Hector
was the heroic leader of the Trojan army)
scilicet obviously, of course [scire ‘know’ + licet ‘it is permitted’], freq. ironic (cf. 523): ‘surely you
[i.e. Tecmessa] would have come dressed up’ (uenires potent, subjv., AG #446)
Aiax, -acis (m.) Ajax, Greek hero in TW famed for brawn and valor, Hector’s equal
orno, -are adorn, decorate, beautify. Gk. epic and tragedy (cf. 517) portray Ajax as martial, unsuited for
erotic advances from his wife Tecmessa
tegumen, -inis (n.) covering (as clothing, armor, skin, etc.) [< tego ‘cover’]. Ajax’s massive ox-hide
shield features prominently in Hom.’s account of TW (II. 7,8,11,16,17); Ov.’s equivocation w/ the
multiple meanings of tegumen implies that Ajax also wore hides
tergum, -i (n.) back (of an animal); skin, hide
bos, bouis (m.) ox (bourn gen, pi., AG #79). Clothing made of skins implies rusticity

43
O v i d , A rs A matori a

simplicitas rudis ante fuit; nunc aurea Roma est

et dom iti m agnas possidet orbis opes.
115 aspice quae nunc sunt Capitolia, quaeque fuerunt:
alterius dices illa fuisse Iouis.

simplicitas, -atis (f.) simplicity, plainness, guilelessness. Both noun and adj. (rudis, -e ‘raw,’ ‘unworked;’
'crude/ ‘inexperienced’) are set offby ante (adv., ‘in earlier times’); R. is now neither plain nor primitive
aureus, -a, -um of gold [aurum], golden. Other poets imagine a bygone golden age of material poverty and
spiritual richness, but Ov.’s R. reflects both economic wealth (123-26) and cultural splendor (127-28)
domo, -are, -ui, -itum domesticate, tame, conquer. At the start of his funerary inscription (Res Gestae
Diui Augusti) Aug. claims to have put the earth under R. control (orbem terrarum imperio populi
Romani subiecit)
orbis, -is (m.) anything circular; wheel, sphere, world. Roma and Amor (cf. 4) are equal in commanding
the entire world
ops, opis (f.) means, resources, power; (pi.) wealth (cf. 132). Treasures had flowed into R. since the
conquests of Carthage and Greece (146 BCE)

LINE 115
aspicio, -ere look at, notice. Ov. offers a tourist’s tutorial; the reader is to appreciate R.’s visual beauty
(cf. 389) while imagining its rustic past
Capitolium -i (n.) Capitoline Hill, at the center of R., dominated by the massive temple (recently
restored by Aug.) ofJupiter Capitolinus. Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2). Relat. cl. w/ indie, vb. simply
defines anteced. (AG #308c, #534); ‘the Capitoline which is now/ ‘the current Capitoline’
alter, -a, -um the other (of two), second, gen. sg. alterius (AG #113) of possession, in pred. (AG #343b):
‘it belonged to Jupiter #2/ ilia = quaefuerunt
Iuppiter, Iouis (m.) Jupiter [‘sky-father/ cf. Gk. Zcu<; + pater-, gen. sg. Iouis (AG #79b)], king of the
R. pantheon. W/ two Jupiters Ov. suggests that R.’s socioeconomic growth has rewritten standard
theology (esp. the pious account at V. Ae«. 8.348-54)
Curia, -ae (f.) the senate house, in the R. Forum, completed by Aug. in 29 BCE
consilium, -i (n.) counsel, advice; advisory group, advisors (i.e. senators)
dignus, -a, -um worthy (of), + abl. of specification (AG #418b)
stipula, -ae (f.) straw (implying primitive construction techniques)
Tatius, -i (m.) Titus Tatius, Sabine king who shared power w/ Romulus, R.’s first king. W / regna
tenente, abl. abs. as temporal cl. (AG #420.1)
regnum, -i (n.) kingship [< rex, regis ‘king’], power, authority
sub (+ abl.) under; under the control of. Aug.’s and Apollo’s neighboring buildings dominate the
Palatine physically and ideologically
Phoebus,-i (m.) Apollo, god of the sun, claimed by Aug. as his patron [< Gk. <t>oI|3o$ ‘shining one'; cf.
fulgeo, -ere ‘shine, gleam’]. Apollo’s Palatine temple, dedicated in 28 BCE and featuring a statue of
the god at its summit, was Aug/s most resplendent addition to R.’s architecture
dux, ducis (m.) leader (esp. military); (pi.) leaders, members of the imperial family
Palatium, -i (n.) Palatine Hill, R.’s most elite neighborhood, home of Aug. Palatia anteced. of quae...
fulgent (l 19) and subj. of quid... erant (l 20)

LINE 120
aro, -are plough. Fut. act. ptc. implies likelihood (AG #499.1), ‘destined for ploughing’
pascuum, -i (n.) pasture [< pascor ‘feed on’], pastureland
bos, bouis (m.) ox (bubus dat. pi., AG #79). Ov. denigrates antique gods (116), humans (118), and
animals (120)
priscus, -a, -um ancient. Subst. adj. denotes abstract quality (AG #289b), ‘antiquity’
44
 COM M ENTARY: 1 1 3 -1 2 8

Curia consilio nunc est dignissim a tanto,

de stipula Tatio regna tenente fuit,
quae nunc sub Phoebo ducibusque Palatia fulgent,
quid nisi araturis pascua bubus erant? 120
prisca iuuent alios, ego me nunc denique natum
gratulor: haec aetas moribus apta meis,
non quia nunc terrae lentum subducitur aurum
lectaque diuerso litore concha uenit,
nec quia decrescunt effosso m arm ore montes, 125
nec quia caeruleae mole fugantur aquae,
sed quia cultus adest nec nostros m ansit in annos
rusticitas priscis illa superstes auis.

iuuo, -are help, benefit; gratify, please

denique finally, at last; (w/ nunc) only, precisely
nascor, nasci, natum be born
gratulor, -ari give thanks, be thankful (+ ind. disc.)
aetas, -atis (f.) age; era. Ov. upends perennial complaints over mod. moral turpitude
aptus, -a, -um (+ dat.) suited (to), fit (for) [< apiscor, apisci, aptus ‘obtain’]
non q u ia. . . sed quia To explain his preference for modernity Ov. lists and rejects 4 sources of R.’s
splendor (123-26), then offers the true reason (127-28)
lentus, -a, -um soft, malleable; slow, obstinate. Ov.’s description of R.’s material wealth highlights the
effort involved in amassing it (note the spondee-heavy hexameters 123,125)
subduco, -ere draw (duco) from underneath (sub-), extract (+ terrae dat. of separation [AG #381],
‘from the earth’)
lego, -ere, legi, lectum collect, gather (130); choose
diuersus, -a, -um turned (uerto) in different directions (dis-); separated; distant
litus, -oris (n.) shore, coast (abl. of place from which w/out prep., AG #428g)
concha, -ae (f.) shell-fish; sea-shell; pearl

LINE 125
decresco, -ere diminish, decrease, dwindle
effddio, -fodere, -fodi, -fossum dig out, excavate. Abl. abs. w/ marmore (marmor, -oris [n,] ‘marble’).
Aug. (Suetonius Augustus 28) claimed to have found R. a city of brick and left it a city of marble
(317 marmoreis... theatris)
mons, -ntis (m.) mountain. R.’s beautification causes the reshaping of Nature
caeruleus, -a, -um of the color of the sky (caelum, w/ dissim. conson., AG #15.6), blue
moles, -is (f.) structure [< molior ‘build’]; jetty (built to shelter harbors from waves, cf. Her. 5.61, Met.
1.279). Abl. of means
fugo, -are cause to flee (cf. 132), dispel, rout
adsum, -esse be present. W / cultus adest Ov. glorifies R. culture in two words, neatly overturning his
lengthy description of the city’s riches
maneo, -ere, mansi persist, last, in + acc. ‘into’ (temporal, AG #424e; OLD s.v. in 13b)
rusticitas, -atis (f.) rusticity [< rus ‘countryside’], lack of urbanity, cultural backwardness
superstes, -itis remaining, surviving (+ dat. [AG #385c], ‘outliving our ancestors’ [auus, -i (m.) ‘grand­
father’ (632); ‘forefather,’ ‘ancestor’])

45
O v id , A rs A m a t o r ia

uos quoque nec caris aures onerate lapillis,

130 quos legit in uiridi decolor Indus aqua,
nec prodite graues insuto uestibus auro:
p er quas nos petitis, saepe fugatis, opes,
m unditiis capimur: non sint sine lege capilli;
admotae form am dantque negantque manus.
135 nec genus ornatus unum est: quod quam que decebit,
eligat et speculum consulat ante suum.

carus, -a, -um dear, treasured; costly, expensive

auris, is (f.) ear. Excessive jewelry warps the body’s natural beauty
onero, -are burden, weigh down [< onus, oneris ‘weight’]
lapillus, -i (m.) pebble [< lapis ‘stone’ + dimin. sufF. -illus, AG #243]; precious stone (including pearls,
gathered in the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf)

LINE 130
uiridis, -e green (here, from the presence of seaweed), sea-green
decolor, -oris discolored, stained (freq. w/ pejorative sense)
Indus, -i (m.) inhabitant of India (freq. confused in anc. texts w/ Arabia, Ethiopia, etc., cf. 1.53, Prop. 3.4.1);
easterner, ‘oriental.’ Ov. implies the stereotypical ‘riches of the Orient’ (cf. Tib. 2.2.15-16); uiridi... aqua
is a colorful variation of the Rubrum Mare (‘Red Sea’), which referred to any part of the sea from Suez to
Sri Lanka. Curtius (8.9.19) claims that jewels were washed up on the shores of India
prodeo, -ire go (eo) forward (pro), appear (in public)
grauis, -e heavy, weighed down, ponderous. Adj. replaces prot. of condit. (AG #521a): ‘if you are
weighed down’
uestis, -is (f.) garment; (pi.) clothes. Dat. w/ compd. vb. (AG #370Nl), ‘sewn onto clothes’ (insuo, -ere,
-i, -turn ‘sew on,’ ‘attach by sewing’). Public display of wealth suits R. but not R.’s women
aurum, -i (n.) gold (abl. of cause w/ graues, AG #404)
peto, -ere aim at, pursue, seek out. per quas. ..opes = per opes per quas; prep, is omitted when repeated in
relat. cl. (Gild #414R1, #621). nos (acc.) = ‘us (men)’; Ov. the teacher is also a potent(ial) lover (cf. 227)
munditiae, -arum (f.) cleanliness [< mundus ‘clean’]; good taste, restraint, comeliness
capio, -ere catch, capture. Ov. also promotes munditiae for men (1.513)
lex, legis (f.) law. Ungoverned hairdos (capillus, -i [m.] ‘strand of hair,’ [pi.] ‘hair[s]’) can only attract
through ars (153). non sint = ne sint (AG #439N3)
admoueo, -uere, -ui, -turn move to; apply. Beauty is in the hands of the hairdresser (231-42)
135-68: Hairdos and -dont’s.
Every woman should choose a hairdo that suits her face (135-52), though a studied disarray is often
attractive as well (153-58). Both sexes can suffer from graying or thinning hair, but dyes and wigs
are popular, unproblematic solutions for women only (159-68). Ov.’s tone of moderation runs
counter to the tradition opposing excessive attention (esp. on the part of women) to hair; cf. Am.
1.14, where Ov. castigates his puella for using hair dye that left her bald

LINE 135
ornatus, -us (m.) decoration, adornment [< orno, -are ‘adorn’]
quisque, quae-, quid- each one (pron., 135), each (adj., 152)
decet (fut. decebit) it suits (impers. vb. + acc. [135,153] or dat. [145], AG #388c), w/ relat. pron. quod
as nom. subj.: ‘which [type] will suit each [woman]’
eligo, -ere pick out [e(x) + lego], select, choose
46
 COMMENTARY: 1 2 9 -1 4 4

longa probat facies capitis discrim ina puri:

sic erat ornatis Laodam ia comis,
exiguum sum m a nodum sibi fronte relinqui,
ut pateant aures, ora rotunda uolunt. 140
alterius crines umero iactentur utroque:
talis es assumpta, Phoebe canore, lyra,
altera succinctae religetur more Dianae,
ut solet, attonitas cum petit illa feras.

speculum, -i (n.) mirror [< *specio Took’], associated by Ov. only w/ women's self-regard (1.305,
2.216,3.507; 3.681 reflects poorly on men)
consulo, -ere consult, refer to for advice (+ acc., AG #367c; ante adv. ‘in advance’)
longus, -a, -um long; (of a face) oblong, oval
probo, -are approve of, recommend
discrimen, -inis (n.) separation [< discerno ‘separate’], parting; part (in the hair)
purus, -a, -um pure, unadorned, plain. Some women wore jeweled ornaments (discriminalia) on their
foreheads to preserve their parts; w/ pun Ov. implicitly disapproves of their use
Laodamia, -ae (f.) Protesilaus’ wife (17), who refused to dress her hair after his departure for TW
(Her. 13.31). Ov. recasts an epic heroine as a fashion model
coma, -ae (f.) hair (abl. of quality, AG #415a)
exiguus, -a, -um small, petite
summus, -a, -um highest; top of (w/ fronte, ‘the top of the forehead,’ AG #293)
nodus, -i (m.) knot. Many R. women (incl. Livia, Aug.’s wife) wore their hair w/ a central knot
relinquo, -inquere, -iqui, -ictum abandon, leave behind (158); reserve

LINE 140
pateo, -ere lie open, be visible, be exposed, show
os, oris (n.) mouth; face
rotundus, -a, -um round, circular [< rota ‘wheel’]
uolo, uelle want; require (w/ acc. nodum and inf. relinqui, AG #563b2)
crinis, -is (m.) hair, tress
umerus, -i (m.) shoulder (abl. of place w/out prep., AG #429.2)
iacto, -are throw, scatter
uterque, -ra-, -rum- both, each of two [uter ‘which of two’ + -que, AG #151g]
assumo, -mere, -mpsi, -mptum pick up (abl. abs. w/ lyra, ‘when you hold your lyre’)
canorus, -a, -um tuneful [< cano ‘sing’]. Ancient art always represents Apollo, the androgynously
beautiful god of poetry and music, w/ long hair
succinctus, -a, -um with clothes gathered up, with skirt hiked up (for speed)
religo, -are tie (ligo) back (re-), braid
mos, moris (m.) custom, manner, style (abl. of manner, AG #412b, ‘in the style’)
Diana, -ae (f.) virgin goddess of hunting (Gk. Artemis), sister of Apollo
soleo, -ere be accustomed (ut + indie, ‘as’, i.e. ‘in her usual way’)
attonitus, -a, -um lightning-stricken; stunned; fear-stricken, terrified
cum + indie, whenever (AG #542)
fera, -ae (f.) wild animal, beast

47
O vid, A rs A m a t o r i a

145 huic decet inflatos laxe iacuisse capillos,

illa sit astrictis im pedienda comis,
hanc placet ornari testudine Cyllenaea,
sustineat similes fluctibus illa sinus,
sed neque ram osa numerabis in ilice glandes,
150 nec quot apes Hybla nec quot in Alpe ferae,
nec m ihi to t positus num ero com prendere fas est:
adicit ornatus proxim a quaeque dies,
et neglecta decet m ultas coma: saepe iacere
hesternam credas, illa repexa m odo est.

LINE 145
inflatus, -a, -um wind-blown (Jio, flare ‘blow’), floating
laxus, -a, -um loose. Adv. -e
iaceo, -ere, -ui lie (down), iacuisse pf. inf. usedaspres. (Piat 109-12, AG #486e)
astringo, -ngere, -nxi, -ctum tie tight (w/ comis, abi. of specification [AG #418b])
impedio, -ire bind, restrict. Gdve. of obligation (AG #194b) appears w/ subj. main vb. nowhere else;
some editors replace sit w/ est
placet, -ere it pleases, it seems good (impers. vb. [AG #207] w/ acc. + inf. as subj. [AG #455.2, Gild
#535], ‘it is good for this one to be adorned’)
testudo,-inis (f.) tortoise; tortoise shell; lyre (invented by Mercury from a tortoise shell). Ov. recom­
mends either a tortoise-shell barrette or a hairdo in the shape of a shell or lyre
Cyllenaeus, -a, -um of Mt. Cyllene, in the Gk. Peloponnese, where Mercury was born. Ov. ends
hexameter w/ spondaic 4-syll. Gk. name 1lx (Plat 39); here verbal and visual refinement unite
sustineo, -ere sustain, support, bear (implying greater effort than ‘wear’)
similis (+ dat.) similar (to), like
fluctus, -us (m.) flowing water [<fluo ‘flow’]; wave
sinus, -us (m.) fold, hollow; curve, curl
ramosus, -a, -um branching [< ramus ‘branch’]
numero, -are count. Didactic catalogs freq. note the infinite nature of their material, cf. 786,1.253,
Rem. 461, V. Geo. 2.103. Gnomic fut. (Gild #242N 1)
ilex, -icis (f.) holm oak, common in anc. and mod. Medit.
glans, -ndis (f.) acorn. Some old oaks produce more than 100,000 acorns per year

LINE 150
quot (indecl.) how many, as many (correi, w/ tot ‘so many/ AG #152, Gild #642)
apis, -is (f.) bee {> apiary ‘bee house’}
Hybla, -ae (f.) town in Sicily on the slopes of Mt. Etna, famous for its honey. Hybla = in Hybla, w/out
repetition ofpron. before in Alpe (Gild #414)
Alpis, -is (f.) Alp (i.e. one of the Alps)
positus, -us (m.) placement [< pono ‘place’], arrangement; hairstyle
numerus, -i (m.) number; measure, rhythm (including poetic rhythm). Neither math nor meter can
express the variety of hairdos
comprendo, -ere grasp; express [com- + pre(he)ndo,w/ contr. of vowels, AG #15.3]
fas (indecl. noun) divine sanction, that which is allowed. Ov. humorously overstates the difficulty of pro­
viding an adequate catalog (though on occasion/as simply means ‘what is possible,’ cf. Tr. 2.213,3.12.41)

48
 COMMENTARY: 1 4 5 -1 6 0

ars casum simulet: sic capta uidit ut urbe 155

Alcides Iolen, ‘hanc ego’ dixit ‘amo.’
talem te Bacchus Satyris clam antibus ‘euhoe’
sustulit in currus, Cnosi relicta, suos,
o quantum indulget uestro natura decori,
quarum sunt multis dam na pianda modis! 160

adicio, -ere add (ad + (i)acio, AG #6d; 1st syll. is long despite loss of i, AG #603f.N3)
proximus, -a, -um closest; following, next
dies, -ei (f.) day. Daily increase in hairdos typifies R.’s cultural riches (127)
neglego, -egere, -exi, -ectum neglect, disregard
hesternus, -a, -um ofyesterday [< fieri ‘yesterday’ + -ternus, AG #250], sc. coma
credo, -ere believe, suppose (w/ saepe, 153). Potent, subjv. (AG #447.2) introducing ind. disc.: ‘You’d
often think that yesterday’s h air...’
repecto, -ctere, -xi, -xum comb again. This vb. appears first here in Lat.; 21 more compds. of re- appear
first or only in Ov.
modd (adv.) only, just; only recently, just now [< modus ‘quantity’]

LINE 155
ars, artis (f.) art, skill
casus, -us (m.) chance (usu. opp. ars; Ov. wants art to supplant nature)
simulo, -are simulate, imitate. Hidden techniques work best, cf. 210
ut (+ indie.) when, as. Freq. postponed, cf. Am. 1.15.8,2.19.26, Her. 14.40
Alcides, -ae (m.) descendant of Alceus; Hercules (son of Jupiter and stepson of Alceus’ son
Amphitryon), who sacked Oechalia in order to gain Iole
Iole, -es (f.) daughter of Oechalian king Eurytus; Hercules’ capture of Iole eventually caused his own
tragic death. Gk. acc. sg. -en (AG #44). Women of sacked cities have (unsurprisingly) disheveled hair
Bacchus, -i (m.) the god of wine; he rescued and married Ariadne after her abandonment by Theseus
(cf. 35,1.527-64)
Satyrus, -i (m.) satyr, a race of lusty, liquor-loving demigods conn, w/ Bacchus
clamo, -are shout, cry out, exclaim (abi. abs. w/ Satyris, AG #419)
euhoe Bacchanalian shout of joy (cf. 1.563) [< Gk. euoi]
tollo, -ere, sustuli raise up, lift (pf. sub- + tuli, AG #200fnl, #212n)
currus, -us (m.) chariot (Bacchus’ regular form of travel). Poets freq. use pi. nouns for sg. even when
not required by meter (AG #101N2, cf. Met. 2.47)
Cnosis, -idos (f.) woman of the Cretan city Cnossos; Ariadne. Gk. voc. sg. -i (AG #82)
quantus, -a, -um how much (acc. nt. sg. as adv., AG #214d). Ov. again emphasizes the extent and
variety of female options (cf. multis 160)
indulgeo,-ere (+ dat.) indulge, be indulgent, show kindness
decor, -oris (m.) beauty, attractiveness (cf. decet)

LINE 160
damnum, -i (n.) loss, damage, blemish
pio, -are atone for, expiate. Fut. pass. ptc. can show propriety (‘atonable’) rather than obligation (‘must
be atoned for’) (AG #194b)
modus, -i (m.) method, manner, way. Ov. lists only 2 for hair (163,165) but implies later topics as well
(e.g. cosmetics, 199-204)

49
O vid, A rs A matoria

nos male detegimur, raptique aetate capilli,

u t Borea frondes excutiente, cadunt,
fem ina canitiem Germ anis inficit herbis,
et m elior uero quaeritur arte color;
165 femina procedit densissima crinibus emptis
proque suis alios efficit aere suos.

male (adv.) badly [< malus ‘bad’], unpleasantly, awfully. Men’s (nos) hair loss is irreversible; for them,
only a simile (162) can cover up the loss of beauty, and the anaphora of femina (163,165) implies that
only women are allowed to use dyes and wigs
detego, -ere unroof, uncover, expose
rapio, -ere, -ui, -turn seize, snatch away
aetas, -atis (f.) age, life; a period of life, old age
ut as (here introducing a simile that compares aetate w/ Borea)
Boreas, -ae (m.) the north wind {> aurora borealis, the northern lights}
frons, frondis (f.) leaf, foliage
excutio, -ere shake (quatio) off (ex-), snatch away
cado, -ere fall. Leaves return in the spring; nature won’t restore men’s hair (159)
canities, -ei (f.) grayness, gray hair [< canus ‘gray,’ cf. 75]
Germanus, -a, um German (i.e. from the area north of the Danube and east of the Rhine)
inficio, -ere immerse (in- + facio)-, dye, tint {> infect}
herba, -ae (f.) herb, grass; plant. Ov. seems to refer to a vegetable dye
uerus, -a, -um true (abl. of compar. [AG #406] w/ melior, sc. colore, ‘better than its true [color]’; cf. 730
uerus... color)
quaero, -ere ask, seek (for)

LINE 165
procedo, -ere go outside (from home to the street), come out
densus, -a, -um dense, teeming (+ crinibus abl. of means, AG #409a). Humorously excessive descrip­
tion: superi, densissima is applied to a human only here in all Lat. lit.; cf. the very hairy body of the
Cyclops Polyphemus (Met. 13.846-47 rigidis horrent densissima saetis/ corpora)
emo, -ere, -i, -ptum buy. Elite R. women freq. wore wigs and hair extensions
pro (+ abl.) instead of. Ov. s woman replaces herself w/ a new self (suis... suos)
efficio, -ere render, make (+ dir. obj. alios [sc. crines] + pred. acc. suos, AG #393)
aes, aeris (n.) copper, bronze; money. Abl. of means w/ efficit
rubor, -oris (m.) redness, blushing; a reason to blush (pred. nom. w/ inf. subj. emisse, AG #452.1). Most
Lat. writers criticize female beauty aids; w/ nec rubor Ov. critiques the criticism
palam (adv.) openly, in public
ueneo, -ire be for sale [< *uenus ‘for sale’ + eo ‘go,’ not < uenio ‘come’]
Hercules, -is (m.) the famous Gk. hero. The Temple of Hercules and the Muses, near the Circus
Flaminius, contained his and their statues; like these male and female divinities, Ov. implies, R.’s
men and women should not consider artificial beauty improper
oculus, -i (m.) eye
uirgineus, -a, -um virginal, maidenly (sc. the Muses, who were freq. called virgins, but Orpheus [321]
was the son of the Muse Calliope)

50
 COM M ENTARY: 161-174

nec rubor est emisse: palam uenire uidemus

Herculis ante oculos uirgineum que chorum .

quid de ueste loquar? nec uos, segmenta, requiro

nec quae de Tyrio murice, lana, rubes. 170
cum to t prodierint pretio leuiore colores,
quis furor est census corpore ferre suos?
aeris, ecce, color, tum cum sine nubibus aer
nec tepidus pluuias concitat A uster aquas;

chorus, -i (m.) performance of song and dance (Gk. xopo$); choir; group, band
169-92: The clothes-minded lover.
Women enjoy a wide spectrum of colors from which to choose something suitable (188) and inex­
pensive (171). Here too Ov. approves of the simulation of natural beauty (175,177,179) and varies
his catalog w/ apostrophe (169-70,175,183), balance (hie [sc. color] . . . ilk; ecce... ecce, nec... nec),
velocity (1-4 colors per couplet), and narrative; w/ a poetic or mythological story for nearly every
color, Ov. fabricates a sense of depth
uestis, -is (f.) garment, clothing
loquor, -i speak, talk (delib. subjv, [AG #444], w/ quid ‘what’ not ‘why’; Ov. hints at the breadth of the
topic, cf. 2.253-56)
segmentum, -i (n.) piece of fabric sewn on the outside of a garment; flounce, furbelow (in Lat. lit.
always a sign of feminine excess; only mentioned here in Ov.)
requiro, -ere seek; ask about; seek for. As before (129-32), Ov. rejects excess in favor of moderation
and variety

LINE 170
Tyrius, -a, um of Tyre, a city in mod. Lebanon, famous for expensive purple dye
murex, -icis (m.) shellfish that produces purple dye; purple dye. de + abl. of cause (AG #404), ‘from
Tyrian purple’
lana, -ae (f.) wool (naturally gray-white). Ov. freq. uses apostrophe (cf. 735), even w/ inanimate objs. (cf.
2.472 [fish], Her. 21.100 [tree]); here the personification ofwool is heightened by ascription of emotion
rubeo, -ere turn red (ruber); glow (cf. 200); blush (from shame, cf. rubor 167)
prodeo, -ire, -ii go (eo) forward (pro), appear, arrive (on the market)
pretium, -i (n.) reward; price, cost
Ifiuis, -e light, slight; easily borne, low
quis, quid what, which (as adj., AG #148bN)
furor, -oris (m.) insanity, madness. Reason favors fine style and economic prudence
census, -us (m.) census, assessment [< censeo ‘assess’]; fortune, personal wealth
corpus, -oris (n.) body. Visible opulence lowers a lover’s interest rate (cf. 129-32)
fero, ferre carry, wear
aer, aeris (m.) air, sky [not < aes, aeris ‘copper’]
ecce (inter j.) behold, look. Ov. enlivens his color catalog w/ dir. address to reader
nubes, -is (f.) cloud, cum... aer sc. est, ‘when the sky is cloudless’
tepidus, -a, -um warm
pluuius, -a, -um rainy [< pluit ‘it rains’]
concito, -are summon, gather, rouse
Auster, -tri (m.) the south wind (freq. associated in Lat. lit. w/ storms)

51
O vid, A rs A matori a

175 ecce tibi similis, quae quondam Phrixon et Hellen

diceris Inois eripuisse dolis,
hic undas im itatur, habet quoque nom en ab undis:
crediderim Nym phas hac ego ueste tegi;
ille crocum sim ulat (croceo uelatur am ictu,
180 roscida luciferos cum dea iungit equos),
hic Paphias myrtos, hic purpureas amethystos
albentesue rosas Threiciamue gruem.

LINE 175
quondam formerly, once upon a time [< cum ‘when’ + -dam ‘a certain’]
Phrixos, -i (m.) Phrixus (Gk. acc. sg. -on, AG #52), son of Boeotian king Athamas (son of wind-god Aeolus)
and wind-goddess Nephele (Gk. ‘Cloud’). Phrixus’ jealous stepmother Ino persuaded Athamas to sacri­
fice Phrixus and his sister Helle to avert famine; Nephele spirited them away on a flying ram (cf. 335-36)
Helle, -es (f.) sister of Phrixus {> Hellespont (‘Helle’s sea’), joining Medit. and Black Seas}. Gk. acc. sg.
-en (AG #44)
Inous, -a, -um pertaining to Ino (Athamas’ second wife), Ino’s
eripio, -ere, eripui snatch away, rescue, quae... diceris... eripuisse ‘who are said to have rescued’; Lat.
ind. disc, prefers pers. pass, constr. vs. impers. E. ‘who, it is said, rescued’ (AG #582), cf. 17
dolus, -i (m.) trickery, deceit, treachery (dat. of separation, AG #381)
unda, -ae (f-) wave. Ov. offers an etymology (habet... nomen) of and periphrasis for sea-green (cumatilis,
from Gk. KU^a ‘wave’) fabric
imitor, -ari imitate, resemble (w/ subj. hie [sc. color])
quoque also, as well (joining the two verbal cis. imitatur... habet)
credo, -ere, -idi believe (+ ind. disc., AG #580); pf. subjv. suggests possible action in the fut., ‘I would
believe’ (AG #446,447.1)
Nympha, -ae (f.) nymph, a female nature spirit conn, w/ forests or (as here) waters
tego, -ere cover, clothe (w/ hac ueste abl. of means, AG #409)
crocum, -i (n.) saffron (an expensive, gold-colored herb). Ov. describes saffron-colored (croceus)
clothes prepared with cheaper (171) yellow dyes
uelo, -are veil, cover, wrap (w/ subj. dea [180])
amictus, -us (m.) clothing [< amicio ‘clothe’], garments
roscidus, -a, -um dewy [< ros ‘dew’]. Aurora, goddess of dawn, rides a chariot drawn by two horses,
Gleam and Shine (Horn. Od. 23.245)
lucifer, -a, -um light-bearing [< lux ‘light’ + fero ‘carry’]
iungo, -ere join, connect (here, to their harness), span

LINE 180
Paphius, -a, -um of Paphos, a city on Cyprus, where Venus had a famous shrine
myrtus, -i (f.) myrtle, sacred to Venus (cf. 53); its leaves are a glossy green
purpureus, -a, -um purple
amethystus, -i (f.) amethyst. Ov. mimics fabric’s artificial colorings (hie sc. color simulat) w/ verbal
artifice: 3 Gk. words in 1 line, ending w/ rare (1st here in Lat. lit.) 4-syll, Gk. word
albens, -ntis pale gray; pale pink
Threicius, -a, -um of Thrace (in northern Greece). Another foreign import to enrich the wealth of
R. fashion (114)

52
 COM M ENTARY: 1 7 5 -1 8 9

nec glandes, Am arylli, tuae nec amygdala desunt,

et sua uelleribus nom ina cera dedit,
quot noua terra parit flores, cum uere tepenti 185
uitis agit gemmas pigraque fugit hiems,
lana to t aut plures sucos bibit: elige certos,
nam non conueniens om nibus om nis erit,
pulla decent niueas: Briseida pulla decebant,-

grus, gruis (f.) crane (with grayish-white plumage). Ov.’s comparison may have erotic connotations;
cranes’ hides are listed in several ancient aphrodisiac recipes (Plin. N H 30.141,32.139)
glans, -ndis (f.) acorn; chestnut (here listed for its dark brown color)
Amaryllis, -idos (f.) a shepherdess in Gk. and Lat. pastoral poetry; Ov. quotes V. Eel. 2.52, where a
shepherd notes his Amaryllis’ beloved chestnuts
amygdalum, -i (n.) almond (light brown in color)
desum, -esse, -fui be lacking, be absent
uellus, -eris (n.) fleece (used for clothing, cf. 214)
cera, -ae (f.) wax. Lat. has 2 adjs. for ‘wax-colored’ (cereus, cerinus, i.e. pale yellow), hence pi. nomina
(‘names’); Ov. again offers periphrasis of technical terms (cf. 177)

LINE 185
quot (interr. adv.) how many, as many (correi, w/ tot [187] ‘so many,’ Gild #642)
nouus, -a, -um new, fresh; renewed (OLD s.v. 13)
pario, -ere bear, produce
flos, -oris (m.) flower
uer, ueris (n.) spring, springtime (abl. of time when, AG #423.1)
tepeo, -ere be warm (pres. ptc. as adj. has abl. sg. -i, AG #121.2)
uitis, -is (f.) vine
ago, -ere set in motion; drive, send out (OLD s.v. 10)
gemma, -ae (f.) gem; bud
piger, -gra, -grum torpid, sluggish {> pigritude}
hiems,-emis (f.) winter
sucus, -i (m.) liquid, juice (cf. 583), dye
bibo, -ere drink (in), absorb
eligo, -ere pick out [e(x) + lego], select, choose
certus, -a, -um certain, assured; particular, individual (OLD s.v. certus 3), cf. 771
conueniens, -ntis suitable, fitting (+ dat.). pres. ptc. (of conuenio) as subst., ‘a good match’
(Gild #247N2)
pullus, -a,-um gray, dark (nt. pi. [188] as subst. [AG #288] ‘dark clothing,’ w/ ueste [190] abl. of quality
[AG #415] ‘dark-clothed’). Anaphora and polyptoton in the same couplet (cf. 249-50)
decet (pi. decent) adorn, suit (vb. only in 3rd pers., OLD s.v.)
niueus, -a, -um snowy white [< nix, niuis ‘snow’]
Briseis, -idos (f.) princess in TW whose town was sacked by Achilles, who took her captive. She was
then seized (rapta est) by Agamemnon; Achilles’ anger is the Iliad's theme (l.l). Her dark clothes
imply bereavement, but Ov. sees only beauty (cf. 431). Gk. acc. sg. -ida (AG #83b)

53
O vid, A rs A matoria

190 cum rapta est, pulla tum quoque ueste fuit,

alba decent fuscas: albis, Cephei, placebas;
sic tibi uestitae pressa Seriphos erat.

quam paene admonui, ne trux caper iret in alas

neue forent duris aspera crura pilis!
195 sed non Caucasea doceo de rupe puellas
quaeque bibant undas, Myse Caice, tuas,
quid si praecipiam ne fuscet inertia dentes

LINE 190
albus, -a, -um white, light-colored (nt. pi. as subst., abi. pi. of means [AG #409])
fuscus, -a, -um dark, dark-skinned (but not as dark as niger, 270)
Cepheis, -idos (f.) daughter of king Cepheus; Andromeda, chained to a cliff, attacked by a sea monster,
then saved by and married to the hero Perseus. Gk. voc. sg. -f (AG #82)
placeo, -ere please, attract. Ov. turns a mythic journey into a fashion catwalk
uestio, -ire, -i(u)i, -itus dress, clothe, tibi dat. of agent (AG #375), ‘by you’
premo, -ere, -essi, -essum press, tread (on), poet. plpf. for impf. or pf. (Plat 112-14)
Seriphos, -i (f.) small Gk. island, Perseus’ boyhood home, to which he later returned w/ Andromeda
for revenge against his stepfather Polydectes
193-208; Hygiene and cosmetics.
Women should be clean and well made up—as they already know (Ov.’s critiques of his own topics
usu. imply marginality or impropriety, cf. 612,769). Ov.’s endorsement of makeup (unparalleled in
all anc. lit.) emphasizes a natural look (210)
paene nearly (w/ adv. quam, ‘how close I was t o ...’). Ov.’s praeteritio serves both to compliment his
female audience on their proficiency and to acknowledge that excessive focus on a woman’s body
(esp. from a male narrator) does not suit elegy (cf. Rem. 429-40)
admoneo, -ere, -ui admonish, warn, advise (+ subst. cl. of purpose [AG #563] w/ ne + subjv.: ‘that a
goat should not go ...’)
trux, -ucis harsh, savage, wild {> truculent}
caper, -pri (m.) goat (symbolic of unpleasant smells, cf. 1.522, Catull. 69.5)
ala, -ae (f.) wing; upper arm; armpit (not only in poetry, cf. Sen. Ep. 56.2)
asper, -era, -erum rough, jagged; bristly
crus, -uris (n.) leg. neforent = ne essent (AG #170a)
pilus, -i (m.) strand of hair (of the body, not the head)

LINE 195
Caucaseus, -a, -um of the Caucasus, a mountain range northeast of the Black Sea, proverbially uncivilized
rupes, -is (f.) cliff, crag, de rupe puellas 'girls from the crag’ (OLD s.v. de 11)
Mysus, -a, -um of Mysia, a region in northwest Asia Minor (mod. Turkey), whose inhabitants symbol­
ized contemptible barbarousness
Caicus, -i (m.) a river in Mysia
praecipio, -ere teach (+ subst. cl. of purpose [AG #563] w/ ne + subjv.). W / si (as if Ov. were still con­
sidering what topics to choose), more praeteritio
fusco, -are darken, stain
inertia, -ae (f.) lack of ars; lack of energy, laziness
dens, -ntis (m.) tooth
os, oris (n.) mouth; face, -que = et ut, not et ne (Gild #447R)
succepta... aqua Abl. of means (AG #409); succipio, -ipere, -epi, -eptum ‘take up’ (sub- + capio), sc. w/ the hands
54
 COMMENTARY: 1 9 0 -2 0 6

oraque succepta mane lauentur aqua?

scitis et inducta candorem quaerere creta;
sanguine quae uero non rubet, arte rubet. 200
arte supercilii confinia nuda repletis
paruaque sinceras uelat aluta genas,
nec pudor est oculos tenui signare fauilla
uel prope te nato, lucide Cydne, croco,
est mihi, quo dixi uestrae medicamina formae, 205
paruus, sed cura grande, libellus, opus.

mane (adv.) in the morning [not < maneo ‘wait’]

lauo, -are wash, clean {> lotion}
scio, -ire know, know how (+ inf., OLD s.v. 8b). More flattery of his audience
induco, -cere, -xi, -ctum put on, apply
candor, -oris (m.) brightness, whiteness; fair complexion (cf. 227)
quaero, -ere seek (for)
creta, -ae (f.) chalk (used as a cosmetic base)

LINE 200
sanguis, -inis (m.) blood (abl. of means, AG #409). Women w/ naturally pale complexions (quae non
rubet) use the artifice (arte) of rouge
supercilium, -i (n.) eyebrow. Women could create the impression of a single eyebrow (hence sg. supercilii,
not pi.) by joining their edges (confinium, -i [n.] ‘boundary,’ ‘border’) together w/ soot, etc.
repleo, -ere fill in. Women’s unibrows were freq. praised; even Aug. had one (Suet. Aug. 79.2), as does
the wife in the famous Pompeiian wall painting (House of Terentius Neo, VII.2.6) of a literate mar­
ried couple
paruus, -a, -um small, short
sincerus, -a, -um unblemished, clear. Pred. acc. (AG #393) w/genas (gena, -ae [fi] ‘cheek’), ‘it covers
them (so as to make them appear) unblemished’
aluta, -ae (f.) softened leather (used here as a beauty patch to cover up blemishes)
gena, -ae (f.) cheek {cogn. w/ E. chin}
pudor, -oris (m.) sense of shame, modesty; source of shame (pred. nom. w/ inf. subj. signare, AG
#452.1, cf. 167)
tenuis, -e thin, slight, narrow; w/ jauilla (-ae ‘ash’ [used as eyeliner]), ‘a thin line of ash’
signo, -are mark, indicate, outline
prope (prep. + acc.) near. Ov. again defines his material by geography, cf. 196
lucidus, -a, -um bright, limpid (the Cydnus was famously clear, cf. Tib. 1.7.13)
Cydnus, -i (m.) a river in SE Asia Minor, where the best saffron grew (Pliny Naturalis Historia 21.31)
crocum, -i (n.) saffron (expensive yellow spice made from crocus stamens)

LINE 205
medicamen, -inis (n.) drug (cf. 647); cosmetic. Ov.’s poem Medicaminafacieifemineae catalogs recipes
and uses for cosmetics, quo = ‘in which’ (abl. of lit. citation w/out prep., Gild #387)
forma, -ae (f.) form, shape; good form, beauty. Obj. gen. (AG #348), ‘cosmetics for your beauty’
paruus. . . opus Intricate word order, apposition (libellus... opus), and opposition (paruus... grande)
support Ov.’s claim of poet, precision, cura, -ae (f.) ‘concern, care’ (abl. of specification w/ grande, AG
#418). libellus, -i (m.) ‘small book, booklet, treatise’; 100 vv. of the Medicamina survive; the original
was perh. twice as long, opus, -eris (n.) ‘work, piece of work’ (cf. 228)
55
O vid, A rs A matoria

hinc quoque praesidium laesae petitote figurae;

non est pro uestris ars mea rebus iners,
non tam en expositas m ensa deprendat amator
210 pyxidas: ars faciem dissimulata iuuat.
quem non offendat toto faex illita uultu,
cum fluit in tepidos pondere lapsa sinus?
oesypa quid redolent, quamuis m ittatur Athenis
dem ptus ab im m undo uellere sucus ouis?
215 nec coram m ixtas ceruae sumpsisse medullas
nec coram dentes defricuisse probem.

hinc (adv.) from here; from this work (i.e. the Medicamina, as well as Ars 3)
praesidium, -i (n.) protection, defense; remedy, antidote (+ obj. gen., ‘for your injured beauty,’AG #348)
laedo, -dere, -si, -sum wound, injure, impair
peto, -ere aim at, pursue, seek out. fut. impv. (AG #449) usu. implies fulfillment of a condit.: ‘[ifyour
beauty has been injured, then] seek a remedy’
pro (+ abl.) in place of; on behalf of (OLD s.v. 4)
res, -ei (f.) thing, matter; (pi.) business, affairs, circumstances
iners, inertis idle, inactive, inert; artless, Ars-less [< in- ‘not’ + ars ‘art,’ ‘skill’]. Ov. endorses himself
w/ oxymoron (ars... iners, AG #641; note emphatic placement at end of couplet), balanced pronouns
(uestris... mea) and litotes (non ... iners)
209-34: A rt works best when hidden.
The process of becoming beautiful is itself ugly. Other anc. writers emphasize the unattractiveness of
women in their natural state (Lucr. 4.1174-91, Juv. 6.461-73); Ov.’s emphasis on the need for privacy
acknowledges the issue but lacks satirical scorn
expono, -nere, -sui, -situm set out, display
mensa, -ae (f.) table (abl. of place where w/out prep., AG #429.4)
deprendo, -ere catch, apprehend [de- + pre(he)ndo, w/ contr. ofvowels, AG #15.3]
am ator,-oris (m.) lover

LINE 210
pyxis, -idos (f.) small jar (for cosmetics or medicines). Gk. acc. pi. -as (AG #81)
dissimulo, -are conceal, mask (cf. 155 ars casum simulet, 2.313 si latet, ars prodest)
iuuo, -are help, benefit {> aid, from ad- + iuuo}
offendo, -ere offend, disgust (potent, subjv. [211], AG #447.3; fut. less vivid condit. [230], AG #516b)
faex, -cis (f.) sediment; dregs, lees (used as ointment or cosmetic) {> feces}
illino, -inere, -eui, -itum smear on (cf. 314)
uultus, -us (m.) face (w/ toto, abl. of place w/outprep. [AG #429.2])
fluo,-ere flow. Women’s inability to control their bodily liquids (inch cosmetics) is a standard element
in anc. misogynist satire (Rem. 354,437, Juvenal 6.64,148)
tepidus, -a, -um warm (sc. from the heat of their bodies)
pondus, -eris (n.) weight, heavy object; heaviness (abl. of cause, AG #404)
labor, -i, lapsum slip (down, away, or off) (cf. 238)
sinus, -us (m.) fold, hollow; bosom, lap
oesypum, -i (n.) lanolin (strong-smelling grease from unwashed wool, used as cosmetic) [< Gk. olouito?]
redoleo, -ere smell (of) (+ quid what’ cogn. acc., AG #390a)
quamuis although (+ subj., AG #S27a). No matter how cultured the source, lanolin smells; Ov. deni­
grates the glory that was grease
Athenae, -arum (f.pl.) Athens (source of the best oesypum). Abl. of place from which w/out prep. (AG #427. l)
56
 COMMENTARY: 2 0 7 -2 2 4

ista dabunt formam, sed erunt deformia uisu,

multaque, dum fiunt turpia, facta placent,
quae nunc nomen habent operosi signa Myronis,
pondus iners quondam duraque massa fuit. 220
anulus u t fiat, prim o colliditur aurum;
quas geritis uestes, sordida lana fuit,
cum fieret, lapis asper erat; nunc, nobile signum,
nuda Venus m adidas exprim it im bre comas.

demo, -mere, -mpsi, -mptum remove (de- ‘away’ + emo ‘take’)

immundus, -a, -um unclean, dirty. Lanolin’s dirty origins taint its cosmetic application
ouis, -is (f.) sheep. Ov. defines Gk. technical term (oesypa 213) w/ poet. Lat. periphrasis (214)

LINE 215
coram (adv.) in public, openly (cf. 235)
misceo, -scere, -scui, -xtum mix. The bone marrow (medulla, -ae [f]., used in medicine and cosmetics)
of deer (cerua, -ae [f.], source of the most effective medulla, Pliny Naturalis Historia 28.145) was usu.
mixed w/ other cosmetic ingredients
sumo, -ere, sumpsi take up; apply, use. sumpsisse pf. inf. used as pres. (Plat 109-12)
defirico, -are, -ui rub off, scour. Anc. toothpaste ingredients were often unpleasant (hare- and mouse-
head ash, Pliny 28.178; urine, Catull. 37.20)
probo, -are approve of, recommend (+ inf.)
deformis, -e ugly, uisu supine abl. of specification (AG #510), ‘ugly to see’
fio, fieri, factum be made, be done (pass, offacio, AG #204). Polyptoton (ptes. fiunt w/ pf. ptc.facta)
highlights the opposition of process and product: in the realm of beauty, the end just defies the means
turpis, -e ugly, offensive (nom. pi. w/ multa, ‘ugly while they are being done’)
operosus, -a, -um hardworking, painstaking, diligent
signum, -i (n.) mark, sign; emblem, figure; statue, signa anteced. of quae and subj. offuit (sg. in agree­
ment w/ pred. nouns pondus and massa [AG #316b, 317b], cf. uestes... lanafuit, 222; sg. vbs. empha­
size the raw material’s undifferentiated nature)
Myron, -onis (m.) famous 5th-c. Gk. sculptor, w/ several works on display in Ov.’s R.

LINE 220
quondam formerly, once upon a time [< cum ‘when’ + -dam ‘a certain’]
massa, -ae (f.) mass, lump, raw material
anulus, -i (m.) ring. El. poets freq. describe women wearing (gero, -ere ‘carry, wear’) rings (Am. 1.4.26,
2.15) made of gold (aurum, -i [n.]) and often bejeweled (Prop. 4.7.9, Tib. 1.6.25-26)
collido, -ere beat, crush
uestis, -is (f.) garment, clothing
sordidus, -a, -um dirty, unclean (cf. the discussion of lanolin at 213-14)
lana, -ae (f.) wool (which requires much labor to be turned into clothing)
lapis, -idis (m.) stone, cumfieret circumst.: ‘while it was being made’
nobilis, -e notable, known, famous. Venus Anadyomene (Gk. ‘rising’, sc. from the sea at her birth and
wringing out her wet hair) was freq. portrayed in Gk. art, incl. a painting in R. by Apelles (cf. 401,
Am. 1.14.33-34) and R. signet rings (but nobile signum implies sthg. grander, cf. 219)
nudus, -a, -um uncovered, bare, nude. Venus in appos. w/ signum
madidus, -a, -um damp. W/ imbre abl. of cause (AG #404) (imber, -bris [m.] ‘rainwater, water’ [here, of
the sea])
exprimo, -ere press out, squeeze out
coma, -ae (f.) hair. Venus cares for her coiffure as befits an el. puella (235-50)
57
O vid, A rs A matoria

225 tu quoque dum coleris, nos te dorm ire putemus:

aptius a sum m a conspiciere manu,
cur m ihi nota tuo causa est candoris in ore?
claude forem thalami: quid rude prodis opus?
multa uiros nescire decet; pars maxima rerum
230 offendat, si non interiora tegas.
aurea quae pendent ornato signa theatro
inspice, contemnes: brattea ligna tegit,
sed neque ad illa licet populo, nisi facta, uenire,
nec nisi summotis forma paranda uiris.

LINE 225
colo, -ere cultivate, take care of. Pass. vb. emphasizes woman as material
dormio, -ire sleep (inf. in ind. disc, introd. by putemus, AG #580)
aptus, -a, -um appropriate. Compar, adv. -ius
summus, -a, -um highest; final, last. W/ manu ‘hand,’ i.e. ‘after the final touch’ (a + abl. ‘after’ freq. in Ov.).
Another art metaphor for female cultivation
conspicio, -ere view, conspiciere fut. pass, (-re = -ris, AG #163, Gild #131.lb)
notus, -a, -um known [< nosco ‘get to know/ not < nota ‘mark’]. W / dat. mihi Ov. casts himself as lover
as well as teacher (cf. 132)
claudo, -ere shut, close
foris, -is (f.) door {> forest, foreign [cf. adv. foris ‘outdoors’]}
thalamus, -i (m.) inner room; (bed)chamber {> epithalamium ‘wedding song’}
rudis, -e raw, unworked; crude, inexperienced
prodo, -ere expose, publish; betray
decet it suits (impers. vb. + acc., AG #388c), w/ inf. nescire as subj.: ‘it suits men not to know
many things’
maximus, -a, -um greatest, largest (irreg. superl. of magnus, AC #129)

LINE 230
interior, -ius internal (compar, from inter, AG #130a; nt. pi. as subst., AG #289b, ‘the interior’)
tego, -ere cover, conceal, si non = nisi (AG #525.2N)
aureus, -a, -um of gold [aurum], golden
pendeo, -ere hang down; be perched (OLD s.v. 7). All mss. read pendent, but some scholars prefer
splendent (‘gleam’) to clarify the statues’ visual allure
orno, -are adorn, decorate, beautify
theatrum, -i (n.) theatre (stone building used for public spectacles; of the 3 in Ov.’s R., that of Pompey
was the oldest, largest, and showiest)
inspicio, -ere look at, inspect, inspice = si inspicies (AG #521c; cf. 514,587)
contemno, -ere despise, scorn
brattea,-ae (f.) gold leaf
lignum, -i (n.) wood. Cf. the statuesque analogy of 223
licet, -ere it is permitted (impers. vb. [AG #207] w/ dat.populo and inf. subj. uenire [AG #455.1]). nisi
facta = nisifacta sunt (AG #521a)
summoueo, -mouere, -moui, -motum remove, clear out of the way. nisi summotis uiris (abl. abs.) = nisi
uiri summoti sunt (AG #420.4)

58
 COM M ENTARY: 2 2 5 -2 4 2

at non pectendos coram praebere capillos, 235

u t iaceant fusi per tua terga, ueto.
illo praecipue ne sis m orosa caueto
tem pore nec lapsas saepe resolue comas,
tu ta sit ornatrix: odi, quae sauciat ora
unguibus et rapta brachia figit acu. 240
deuouet, et tangit, dom inae caput illa simulque
plorat in inuisas sanguinulenta comas.

235-50: Hairdressing in public.

Only unattractive hair needs to be arranged secretly (243-44), but all women must treat their hair­
dressers properly (237-42)

LINE 235
atnon...ueto Separation of non and ueto (-are ‘forbid’ [from happening]; + acc. [sc. te] & inf. praebere
[AG #563a]) contrasts coram... praebere w/ coram... defricuisse (215-16). at conj. ‘but,’‘on the other hand’
pecto, -ere comb. Gdve. of purpose (AG #500.4), ‘(to offer hair) for combing’
praebeo, -ere offer, provide (sc. to the hairdresser)
capillus, -i (m.) strand of hair, (pi.) hair(s)
iaceo, -ere lie (down), recline (264)
fundo, -ndere, -di, -sum pour out; spread out
tergum, -i (n.) back (cf. 774). Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2), cf. 239
praecipue (adv.) especially (w/ illo... tempore, abl. of time when [AG #423.1])
morosus, -a, -um fussy, cranky, hard to please [< mos, moris ‘habit’]
caueo, -ere take care, make sure (+ ne + subjv. sis [AG #563e, Gild #548], ‘make sure not to be fussy,’
cf. 801)
resoluo, -ere loosen. (If one lock of hair slips, don’t become wholly dis-tressed)
tutus, -a, -um safe (sc. from vengeful assault by her owner). Slaves are often maltreated in Lat. lit.; Ov.’s
concern for their welfare is erotically motivated (665; 1.367-98; Am. 2.7, 2.8)
ornatrix, -icis (f.) female slave in charge of her lady’s hair and makeup; hairdresser
odi, odisse dislike, have an aversion to. Pf. form w/ pres. mg. (AG #205b)
saucio, -are wound, injure. Anteced. of relat. cl. is omitted (AG #307c), sc. illam
unguis, -is (m.) fingernail (cf. 276)
rapio, -ere, -ui, -turn seize, snatch away
brac(c)hium, -i (n.) arm
figo,-ere pierce, stab
acus, -us (f.) needle, pin; hairpin. R. hairpins were sharp and up to 7 inches long

LINE 240
deuoueo, -ere curse, call down a curse upon (someone, freq. on someone’s head [caput, capitis, n.], cf.
Her. 3.94, Met. 13.330)
tango, -ere touch; handle {< tangent}. Oaths are freq. made while touching a sacred object (OLD s.v.
tango Id); here the ornatrix is already employed in touching her victim’s head
domina, -ae (f.) mistress (as woman in charge of household; as beloved, 568)
simul (adv.) at the same time
ploro,-are wail, sob
inuisus, -a, -um hateful, odious [< inuideo ‘regard with ill will’]
sanguinulentus, -a, -um blood-stained [< sanguis ‘blood’]

59
O vid, A rs A matoria

quae male crinita est, custodem in limine ponat

orneturue Bonae semper in aede Deae.
245 dictus eram subito cuidam uenisse puellae:
turbida peruersas induit illa comas,
hostibus eueniat tam foedi causa pudoris
inque nurus P arthas dedecus illud eat!
turpe pecus m utilum , turpis sine gram ine campus
250 et sine fronde frutex et sine crine caput.

non mihi uenistis, Semele Ledeue, docendae,

perque fretum falso, Sidoni, uecta boue

crinitus, -a, -um coiffed, having hair

male (adv.) badly [< malus ‘bad’], unpleasantly
custos, -odis (m.) guardian, doorman (a particularly lowly job). Male slaves in el. freq. prevent a male
lover from visiting his beloved (601, Am. 1.6,2.2)
limen, -inis (n.) doorstep, threshold (sc. of her house)
aedes,-is (f.) house; temple. Men who entered the shrine of Bona Dea (‘Good Goddess’, cf. 637) on the
Aventine Hill were said to be blinded; Ov.’s advice, invoking divine protection for women who have
bad hair, is comically hyperbolic

LINE 245
dictus er am. .. uenisse ‘I had been announced to have come’; Lat. ind. disc, prefers pers. pass, constr.
vs. impers. E .'it had been announced that I had come’ (AG #582), ‘my arrival had been announced.’
Ov. later recommends sudden visits as a method of falling out of love, as the puella will be unpre­
pared for viewing (Rem. 341-48)
quidam, quae-, quod- a certain (dat. cuidam, AG #151c). The indef. pron. emphasizes the multiplicity
of Ov.’s erotic experience (vs. the beautifully unworked hair of his puella at Am. 1.14.17-22)
subito (adv.) suddenly, unexpectedly
turbidus, -a, -um disordered [< turba ‘crowd’], in a state of turmoil
peruersus, -a, -um misaligned, askew. Beauty requires care, or there’ll be hell toupee
induo, -ere, -i don, put on (sc. a wig, cf. 165)
hostis, -is (m.) (military) enemy. Ov. again merges erotic w/ epic (cf. 1, Am. 3.11.16)
euenio, -ire occur, happen. Opt. subjv. (AG #441), ‘may it happen’ (subj. causa)
foedus, -a, -um ugly, vile
pudor, -oris (m.) sense of shame, modesty; source of shame
nurus, -us (f.) daughter-in-law; young woman
Parthus, -a, -um of Parthia, R.’s imperial foe to the east, in mod. Iran. While Ov. wrote the Ars C.
Caesar, the grandson of Aug., was conducting a campaign against the Parthians, cf. Ov.’s extended
tribute to him at 1.177-212. Ov.’s curse is ironically fitting; Parthian cavalry twisted around (like
the puella’s wig, 246) in their saddles to fire arrows (cf. 781)
dedecus, -oris (n.) disgrace (in action or appearance), shame, eat subjv. of eo (AG #203)
turpis, -e ugly, offensive. Ov. shapes his final point into a 4-part couplet (cf. 181-82) shorn ofvbs.
(sc. est), rich w/ natural and verbal analogy
pecus, -oris (n.) livestock, cattle and sheep
mutilus, -a, -um mutilated; hornless (as sign of ugliness, cf. Hor. Sat. 1.5.60)

60
 COMMENTARY: 243-258

aut Helene, quam non stulte, M enelae, reposcis,

tu quoque n on stulte, Troice raptor, habes,
turb a docenda uenit pulchrae turpesque puellae, 255
pluraque sunt sem per deteriora bonis,
form osae non artis opem praeceptaque quaerunt;
est illis sua dos, form a sine arte potens.

gramen, -inis (n.) grass

campus, -i (m.) field, plain

LINE 250
frons, frondis (f.) leaf, foliage {> frond}
frutex, -icis (m.) bush, shrub
crinis, -is (m.) hair, tress. Hairless heads come to men through age (cf. 161), to women usu. through
dyes gone awry (cf. Am. 1.14) or illness
251-90: How to conceal bodily defects.
Nearly all women have imperfections (251-62) that offend the eye (263-76), nose (277-78), or ear
(285-90). Misogynist satire freq. catalogs female flaws (Semonides frag. 7, Lucretius 4.1160-69,
Juvenal 6), but Ov.’s emphasis on ars outweighs his criticism of natura
Semele, -es (f.) lovely daughter of Cadmus and Harmonia (86); impregnated by Jupiter, she bore the
god Dionysus, docendae ‘to be taught’ (gdve. of purpose, AG #500.4, cf. 255); Ov. again imagines
(and here rejects) mythical heroines as his students, cf. 41, Rem. 55-68
Lede, -es (f.) Leda, lovely daughter of Aetolian king Thestius; impregnated by Jupiter, she bore Helen
(11,253)
Sidonis, -idos (f.) woman of Sidon (a town of Phoenicia, in mod. Lebanon); Europa, lovely daughter of
Phoenician king Agenor; carried across the sea (fretum, -i [n.] ‘strait,’ ‘channel’; ‘sea’) and impreg­
nated by Jupiter, she bore the Cretan king Minos
ueho, -here, -xi, -ctum carry, convey, uecta voc.: ‘you who were carried’
bos, bouis (m.) bull. Jupiter’s disguise (Jalso... boue) enticed Europa to climb on
Helene, -es (f.) Helen, wife of Spartan king Menelaus (-i (m.]); she started TW by eloping to Troyw/ Paris
reposco, -ere demand back. In Ov.’s eroticized TW, neither side acted foolishly (stulte) in wanting to
possess Helen (nor did she: Her. 17.109-10)
raptor, -oris (m.) robber, abductor, rapist (i.e. the Trojan [Troicus, -a, -um] prince Paris)

LINE 255
pulcher, -ra, -rum beautiful, pulchrae turpesque puellae in appos. to turba
plus, pluris more (+ abl. of compar. [AG #406] bonis)
deterior, -oris worse, inferior. Ov.’s philosophical proverb (nt. pi. generalizes, AG #289b) softens the pessimis­
tic point (few women are gorgeous) that increases his audience (most women need his help, cf. 103-4,261)
formosus, -a, -um beautiful (usu. synonymous w/ pulcher, here a stronger term, vs. 255)
ops, opis (f.) means, resources, power, help (cf. 270)
praecipio, -cipere, -cepi, -ceptum instruct; (pf. part.) instruction, teachings, education
quaero, -ere seek (for)
suus, -a, -um one’s own; their own (refl. pron. can refer to any emphasized noun [AG #301b], cf. 58,
272). illis dat. of possession (AG #373)
dos, dotis (f.) dowry; endowment; natural gift (cf. 1.596)
potens, -ntis strong .forma in appos. to dos: ‘they have their own dowry, beauty’

61
O vid, A rs A matoria

cum m are com positum est, securus nauita cessatj

260 cum tum et, auxiliis assidet ille suis.
rara tam en m enda facies caret: occule mendas,
quaque potes, uitium corporis abde tui.
si breuis es, sedeas, ne stans uideare sedere,
inque tuo iaceas quantulacum que toro;
265 hic quoque, ne possit fieri m ensura cubantis,
iniecta lateant fac tibi ueste pedes.

compono, -nere, -sui, -situm arrange in order; settle, quiet

securus, -a, -um carefree [se- ‘apart’ [AG #267b] + cura], calm (adj. as adv., AG #290)
nauita, -ae (m.) seaman [< nauis ‘ship’]. Ov.’s analogy accrues depth w/ poet, tone; prose uses nauta,
not nauita, and never uses tumeo, -ere (‘swell,’ ‘surge’) w/ ref. to the sea
cesso, -are rest, be idle. Like the farmer of V.’s Georgies, Ov.’s student can rarely afford to rest; a success­
ful life of love requires labor (1.35-38)

LINE 260
auxilium, -i (n.) help, resource
assideo, -ere (+ dat.) sit near; attend to, devote oneself to
rarus, -a, -um rare, uncommon (w/ facies)
menda, -ae (f.) blemish (cf. 781), but usu. a flaw in writing; Ov. wittily commits kakemphaton (-men
men-), heightened by the doubling in ra-ra
careo, -ere (+ abl.) lack, be free from. Ov.’s Corinna was physically faultless (Am. 1.5.17)
occulo, -ere conceal [< oh- + celo ‘hide’], keep secret
qua (relat. adv.) to the extent that, as much as. Despite 159-60, art has its limits
uitium, -i (n.) flaw, defect; flawed nature, imperfection (cf. 754)
abdo, -ere put away [< ah- + do, dare], cover up, hide
breuis, -e brief; short. Short women are praised for beauty only once, when Ov. admits his interest in
all women (Am. 2.4.35,47-48)
sedeo, -ere sit down, be seated. Hortatory subjv. (AG #439a)
sto, stare arise, be standing. (A little standup comedy routine: one hexameter w/ 5 verbal ideas di­
rected at one short woman, who sits, rises, and sits.)
quantuluscumque, -a-, -um- no matter how small [quantulus ‘how small’ + indef. suff. -cumque ‘-ever,’
AG #151a], Short gal, long word. Ov. impersonates the mythical villain Procrustes, who stretched
his victims to fit his bed (torus, -i [m.] ‘pillow’; ‘couch,’ ‘bed’)

LINE 265
mensura, -ae (f.) measurement
cubo, -are lie down. Ptc. as clause (AG #496), ‘of you (while you are) reclining’
iniecta. .. ueste Abl. of means (inicio, -icere, -ieci, -iectum ‘throw on,’ ‘add as a cover’; uestis, -is [f.] ‘gar­
ment’; ‘covering,’ ‘blanket’)
lateo, -ere be hidden (cf. 808). Subjv. w/fac in subst. cl. of purpose (AG #565,449c), ‘make sure your
feet are hidden’, tibi dat. of refer. (AG #377)
nimius, -a, -um excessive (acc. nt. sg. as adv., AG #214d)
gracilis, -e slender, thin (a sign ofbeauty, cf. 2.660, Rem. 328)
plenus, -a, -um full; wide, thick
uelamen, -inis (n.) covering; clothing

62
 COMMENTARY: 2 5 9 -2 7 4

quae nim ium gracilis, pleno uelam ina filo

sumat, et ex um eris laxus am ictus eat.
pallida purpureis tangat sua corpora uirgis,
nigrior ad Pharii confuge piscis opem. 270
pes malus in niuea sem per celetur aluta,
arida nec u in d is crura resolue suis,
conueniunt tenues scapulis analem ptrides altis,
angustum circa fascia pectus eat.

filum, -i (n.) thread; texture. Abi. of quality (AG #415), ‘thick-woven clothes’
sumo, -ere take up; put on, wear
umerus, -i (m.) shoulder, ex umeris ‘down from the shoulders’ (OLD s.v. ex 4b)
laxus, -a, -um lax, loose. (Loose clothing offers additional benefits to men, since there will be more that
meets the eye, as Paris tells Helen [Her. 16.241]: Prodita sunt, memini, tunica tua pectora laxa)
amictus, -us (m.) clothing [< amicio ‘clothe’], garments, eat = defluat, 'let it descend’
pallidus, -a, -um pale. The sense of purpureis... uirgis is problematic (purpureus, -a, -um ‘purple,’ ‘crim­
son’; ‘ruddy,’ ‘glowing’; uirga, -ae [f.] ‘twig,’ ‘branch’; ‘rod’; ‘stripe’): ‘dark stripes’ (sc. on clothing)
would only emphasize unattractively pallid skin; the application of rouge via ‘purple sticks’ (cf. lip­
stick) has no ancient parallel. A reference to ‘birching’ to improve circulation (cf. Met. 4.352), w/
purpureis a transf. epithet (cf. Met. 8.676purpureis... uitibus)?
tango, -ere touch; affect; daub

LINE 270
niger, -ra, -rum black; dark. The term implies greater distaste than/useus (191)
Pharius, -a, -um of Pharos (island in the Nile delta); Egyptian (cf. 635)
confugio, -ere flee for safety (to); take refuge (in)
piscis, -is (m.) fish; sea creature (here, crocodile). Some ancient cosmetics used crocodile dung to
whiten the skin
niueus, -a, -um snowy white [< nix, niuis ‘snow’]. Shoes dyed white were worn only by women, but
even they were expected to remove them at dinner
celo, -are hide, conceal. Anc. poets freq. discuss the beauty of women’s feet
aluta, -ae (f.) leather softened w/ alum (alumen), here used for shoes (vs. 202)
aridus, -a, -um dry; withered, spindly. Women’s beautiful ankles (crus, -uris [n.] Teg’; ‘calf,’ ‘ankle’)
were freq. praised (Horn. Od. 5.333, Lucian Dialogi meretricum 3.2), and Ov. earlier suggested to
men a method of bringing them into better view (1.153-56, cf. Am. 3.2.25-28)
uinclum, -i (n.) bond, tie, lacing (of a sandal) (dat. of separation, AG #381)
resoluo, -ere loosen
conuenio, -ire (+ dat.) suit, fit
analemptris, -idos (f.) shoulder pad or supporting item of clothing (Gk. ‘up-lifter,’ a hapax in Lat. lit.;
nom.pl. -is, AG #81.4). Narrow (tenuis, -e) pads were used to make prominent (altis) shoulders
(scapulae, -arum [f.pl.] ‘shoulders,’ ‘shoulder blades’) less notable
angustus, -a, -um narrow, slight, small
circa (+ acc.) around (in order either to promote one’s cleavage, cf. Apuleius Metamorphoses 2.7, or to
minimize it, cf. Rem. 337-38, Terence Eunuchus 313-14)
fascia, -ae (f.) band of cloth; bandage; brassiere
pectus, -oris (n.) chest, breast, bosom

63
O v id , A rs A matoria

275 exiguo signet gestu, quodcum que loquetur,

cui digiti pingues et scaber unguis erit,
cui grauis oris odor, num quam ieiuna loquatur,
et semper spatio distet ab ore uiri.
si niger aut ingens aut non erit ordine natus
280 dens tibi, ridendo m axim a dam na feres,
quis credat? discunt etiam ridere puellae,
quaeritur aque illis hac quoque parte decor,
sint m odici rictus paruaeque utrim que lacunae,
e t sum m os dentes im a labella tegant,

LINE 275
exiguus, -a, -um small, petite
signo, -are mark, signify. R.s used their hands expressively while speaking
gestus, -us (m.) gesture (cf. 755)
quicumque, quae-, quod- whoever, whatever. Omitted antec. (sc. id) obj. of signet, ‘she should mark
whatever she says’
pinguis, -e fat, thick, plump
scaber, -ra, -rum rough. (Ov. advises men to keep their nails clean and short, 1.519)
grauis, -e heavy, strong, rank, cui dat. of possession (sc. est), ‘[She] who has’
ieiunus, -a, -um hungry. Implied prot. w/ loquatur, ‘(if she is) hungry’ (AG #521). Those with bad
breath will smell even worse on an empty stomach
spatium, -i (n.) space, extent. Abl. of degree of difference (AG #414), ‘at a distance’
disto, -are stand apart. Other authors suggest relieving halitosis w/ lozenges, sweet herbs, etc.; Ov.’s comic
solution of eternal separation creates a woman unable to enjoy the final stages of his course (769-804)
ingens, -ntis huge (a comically grandiose term vs. grandis ‘large’; cf. maxima 280)
ordo, -inis (m.) row, order. Abl. of manner (AG #412b, Gild #399Nl), ‘in a row’
nascor, -i, natus be born, be formed. Fut. pf. tense simply emphasizes the fut. situation w/out implying
a diff. in the pres. (cf. 446,753 etsi turpis eris)

LINE 280
dens, -ntis (m.) tooth (freq. sg. for pi. in Lat.)
rideo, -ere laugh. Abl. ger. of means, ‘by laughing’
damnum, -i (n.) loss (physical or financial), damage, penalty
fero, ferre bear, carry; incur
credo,-ere believe. Potent, subjv. (AG #447.3), ‘Who would believe [it]?’ Mock surprise at women’s
behavior also highlights Ov.’s own didactic role
disco, -ere (+ inf.) learn (how) (cf. 291,296,315)
aque illis ‘and by them’ (-que rarely added to prep, a, Gild#476N3)
pars, -rtis (f.) part; branch (of a topic). Abl. w/out prep. (AG #429.1), ‘in this area’
decor, -oris (m.) beauty, attractiveness (cf. decet)
modicus, -a, -um modest, moderate {> modicum ‘small amount’}
rictus, -us (m.) opening of the mouth
utrimque on both sides (uterque ‘both’ + adv. suff. -im), sc. of the mouth
lacuna, -ae (f.) hollow; dimple (used in this sense only here in all Lat. lit.). A periphrasis for gelasinus
(< Gk. yt\& u ‘laugh’)

64
 COMMENTARY: 275-290

nec sua perpetuo contendant ilia risu, 285

sed leue nescio quid femineumque sonet.
est quae peruerso distorqueat ora cachinno;
risu concussa est altera, flere putes;
illa sonat raucum quiddam atque inamabile: ridet,
ut rudit a scabra turpis asella mola. 290

summus, -a, -um highest; top of (w/ dentes, ‘the top of the teeth,’AG #293)
imus, -a, -um lowest, bottom of (cf. 307)
labellum, -i (n.) lip
tego, -ere cover, conceal (perh. in order to keep the gums from view)

LINE 285
perpetuus, -a, -um continual, constant
contendo, -ere stretch, distend (sc. puellae as subj.). Beauty requires control ofbodily shape, cf. 287
peruerso, 287 distorqueat, 288 concussa
ilia, -orum (n.pl.) flanks, guts (from the side of the body down to the groin)
risus, -us (m.) laughter [< rideo ‘laugh’]
l£uis, -e light, gentle, delicate [not < leuis, -e ‘smooth’]. Modifies nt. noun nescio quid ‘something’
(nescio ‘I do not know’ + quid ‘what’ indef. pron., Gild #467R)
femineus, -a, -um feminine, womanly (cf. 298). Delicacy implies femininity; Ov. urges men by con­
trast to limit their display of elegance (l .505-24)
sono, -are make a noise, sound (sc. puella as subj.) + cogn. acc. nescio quid (AG #390b): 'let her make
some gentle sound’ (cf. 289)
peruersus, -a, -um misaligned, askew. Hypallage (peruerso agrees grammatically w/ cachinno but
logically w/ ora) underscores the physical contortion
distorqueo, -ere twist, distort, est quae distorqueat relat. cl. of characteristic (AG #535), ‘there is one
who twists her face’
cachinnus, -i (m.) loud laughter, guffaw, cackle
concutio, -tere, -ssi, -ssum shake. Prot. of condit, as separ, cl. (AG #521c): ‘[If] someone else is shaken’
alter, -era, -erum another, a second (one)
fleo, flere cry, weep. Inf. in ind. disc. (sc. illam as acc. subj.). More humor from the contradiction of
women’s action and appearance (cf. 263)
raucus, -a, -um harsh, grating, raucous
quidam, quae-, quid- someone, sthg.
inamabilis, -e unlovable, unpleasant (vs. 2.107 ut ameris, amabilis esto)

LINE 290
rudo, -ere bray, bellow. Note pun w/ ridet: a short ride from praise to brays
turpis, -e ugly, offensive
asella, -ae (f.) female donkey. Both adjs. in 290 were recently applied to the puella (255,276); Ov.
makes an ass of his student
mola, -ae (f.) millstone. Ancient mills were freq. powered by draft animals; a mola ‘at the millstone’
(OLD s.v. ab 16b)

65
O vid, A rs A matoria

quo non ars penetrat? discunt lacrim are decenter

quoque uolunt plorant tem pore quoque modo,
quid cum legitima fraudatur littera uoce
blaesaque fit iusso lingua coacta sono?
295 in uitio decor est quaedam male reddere uerba;
discunt posse minus, quam potuere, loqui,
om nibus his, quoniam prosunt, im pendite curam;
discite fem ineo corpora ferre gradu:

291-310: Proper use of the voice and the feet.

Like laughter (280), crying is an unexpected topic of education (291-92). Some women feign speech
impediments (293-96); all women should learn to walkbecomingly (298-306)
quo (adv.) (to) where, to what point
penetro, -are penetrate; go (as far as). More mock surprise, cf. 281
lacrimo, -are cry, shed tears. Men learned the same technique from Ov. (l .659-62)
decenter (adv.) appropriately, becomingly (cf. decor, 282,295)
ploro, -are wail, sob (a more emotional term than lacrimare, but quo... modo acknowledges that
women are still in control of themselves)
modus, -i (m.) manner, style, tempore and modo anteceds. of relat. cl. quo... uolunt (sc.plorare)-, ‘they
wail when and as they choose (to do so)’
quid cum 'What [about the case] when’ (OLD s.v. quis113b)
legitimus, -a, -um legal, rightful, proper, legitima abl. w/ uoce (uox, uocis [f.] Voice; ‘sound/ pronunciation’)
fraudo, -are cheat, deprive (+ abl. of separation, AG #401)
littera, -ae (f.) letter (of the alphabet, but cf. deceptive lit. practices, 493-98)
blaesus, -a, -um mispronouncing (w/ a stammer or lisp)
iubeo, -bere, -ssi, -ssum order, command. Ov. again emphasizes the care required in creating an effect
of carelessness (cf. 153-54)
cogo, -gere, -egi, -actum compel, force, coacta nom. w/ lingua (-ae [f.] ‘tongue’), ‘the contrived tongue’
sonus, -i (m.) sound, pronunciation, iusso... sono abl. of means w/ fit

LINE 295
uitium, -i (n.) fault, flaw. Similar phrasing (est ... i n .. . decoris) at 299
quidam, quae-, quod- (a) certain. Nt. pi. w/ uerba-, women don’t mispronounce everything
mal6 (adv.) badly [< malus ‘bad’], unpleasantly, awfully
reddo, -ere give back; utter, pronounce. Inf. in appos. w/ decor
possum, posse to be able (+ inf. loqui). Potuere = potuerunt (AG #163a)
minor, minus smaller; less. Nt. acc. sg. dir. obj. of loqui (+ quam ‘than’)
quoniam (+ indic.) because, since
prosum, prodesse be of use, benefit [pro ‘on behalf of’ + sum]
impendo, -ere expend, pay, devote
cura, -ae (f.) concern, care, attention
corpus, -oris (n.) body
gradus, -us (m.) step [< gradior ‘walk’], way of walking, pace (cf. 304)
incessus, -us (m.) gait, carriage [< incedo proceed’]. Ov. links carriage and character (cf. Catull. 42.8,
Cicero pro Caelio 49). et ‘even,’ ‘also’
contemno, -nere, -psi, -ptum despise, scorn. Negat, pf. pass. ptcs. can imply ability, i.e. ‘not despised’ =
‘not despicable,’ cf. inuictus ‘unconquerable’
66
 COM M ENTARY: 2 9 1 -3 0 8

est et in incessu pars non contem pta decoris;

allicit ignotos ille fugatque uiros. 300
haec m ouet arte latus tunicisque fluentibus auras
accipit, expensos fertque superba pedes;
illa uelut coniunx Vmbri rubicunda m ariti
ambulat, ingentes uarica fertque gradus,
sed sit, u t in multis, modus hic quoque: rusticus alter
motus, concesso m ollior alter erit. 306
pars um eri tam en ima tui, pars sum m a lacerti
nuda sit, a laeua conspicienda manu.

LINE 300
allicio, -ere attract, lure [< ad + lacio, cf. laqueus ‘trap’], ille (sc. incessus) is the subj. of a pair of con­
trasting vbs. (cf. 132,134,1.545fugiuntquepetuntque,Am. 2.9.50 dasque negasque, Her. 7.170 dantque
negantque, Tr. 2.1.153-54 abeunt redeuntque... dantque negantque, Met. 15.309 datque capitque, Fast.
2.234 dantque feruntque)
ignotus, -a, -um unknown. To attract a wide audience from R.’s plentiful erotic opportunities (417-30,
cf. 1.49-60) requires a clear public broadcast
fugo, -are cause to flee, repel (cf. 132)
latus, -eris (n.) side, flank. Fully dactylic verse (vs. heavy spondees in 303) and near total
overlap of word stress and rhythmic accent heighten Ov.’s caricature of overly artificial movement
(cf. 305)
tunica, -ae (f.) tunic, garment
fluo, -ere flow, ripple
aura, -ae (f.) air, breeze. Clothes should not become sails (cf. Met. 11.477 accipit auras, when Ceyx
gathers the breeze in his ship’s sails)
expendo, -dere, -di, -sum weigh out, measure (here w/ excessive daintiness)
superbus, -a, -um haughty (cf. superbit 103). Adj. as adv., AG #290 (cf. uarica 304)
uelut like, as
coniunx, -ugis (m./f.) spouse; wife. Ov. s unattractive picture further denigrates marriage
Vmber, -bra, -brum ofUmbria, an agricultural (hence uncultured) region of Italy
rubicundus, -a, -um red, ruddy, flushed (from labor outdoors, vs. the rosy glow of 200)
m aritus,-i (m.) husband (like coniunx, a term of disapproval in the Ars, cf. 2.153)
ambulo, -are walk, stride; ingentes. ..gradus (cf. ingens 279) explains the style
uaricus, -a, -um with legs apart, waddling (describing both ilia and coniunx)

LINE 305
modus, -i (m.) manner, style; measure, moderation, hie ‘here,’ ‘in this topic’
rusticus, -a, -um countrified [< rus ‘country’], rustic, unpolished
alter. . . alter the one... the other (sc. motus [-as (m.) ‘movement’ (< moueo ‘move’)], as described in
301-2 and 303-4)
concedo, -dere, -ssi, -ssum allow (subst. ptc., ‘what is allowed,’ abl. of comparison)
mollis, -e soft, loose. Ov. counsels women not to overdo feminine stereotypes
umerus, -i (m.) shoulder. Cf. summus + imus + body parts at 286
lacertus, -i (m.) upper arm, usu. covered in public
laeuus, -a, -um left, a laeua manu ‘from the left[-]hand (sc. side)’. R.s reclining at dinner propped them­
selves on their left arm and looked to the right
conspicio, -ere view, gaze at. Gdve. w/ pars (AG #500.1), ‘worth staring at’ (cf. 780)
67
O vid, A rs A matoria

hoc uos praecipue, niueae, decet; hoc ubi uidi,

310 oscula ferre umero qua patet usque libet.

m onstra m aris Sirenes erant, quae uoce canora

quam libet admissas detinuere rates;
his sua Sisyphides auditis paene resoluit
corpora (nam sociis inlita cera fuit).

praecipue (adv.) especially

niueus, -a, -um snowy white. In Am. Ov. freq. admits his attraction to a puellas snowy-white arms
(2.4.41,2.16.29, 3.2.42,3.7.8)
decet it suits (impers. vb. + acc., AG #388c), w/ nom. hoc as sub),
ubi when, whenever (+ pf. indic, uidi 'I see’, AG #520.2, #542)

LINE 310
osculum, -i (n.) kiss [< os ‘mouth’ 4- dimin. suff. -culum, i.e. ‘little mouth’]
qua (relat. adv.) where
pateo,-ere lie open, be visible
usque continually, always. Ov. usu. includes personal experience to support his role as teacher (67,487);
here, as (uncontrolled) lover
libet it pleases (impers. vb. + inf.ferre), sc. mihi ‘I like’
311-28: Instrum ental and vocal music.
Against strait-laced R. criticism of respectable women’s education in the performing arts (cf.
Sallust Bellum Catilinae 25.2), Ov. recommends music (sung and played) as an enticing cultural
technique (already admitted by Ov. at Am. 2.4.25-28, cf. Prop.’s Cynthia at Prop. 1.2.27-28,
1.3.42,2.1.9-10)
monstrum, -i (n.) ominous sign [< moneo ‘warn’]; monster, beast
mare, -ris (n.) sea, ocean
Siren, -enis (f.) mythical half-bird, half-woman; they lured sailors to their doom with enticing songs
(Horn. Od, 12), Gk. nom.pl. -is (AG #81.4)
canorus, -a, -um sonorous, tuneful [cano ‘sing’]
admitto, -ttere, -misi, -missum allow in; send, release, give rein to. W / adv. quamlibet (‘no matter how
much’ [quam ‘how much’ + libet ‘it pleases’]) ‘no matter how fast’; Horn. (Od. 12.166,182) had em­
phasized the speed of Odysseus’ ships (ratis, -is [f.] ‘raft’; ‘boat,’ ‘ship’)
detineo, -ere, -ui detain, capture
Sisyphides, -ae (m.) son of Sisyphus; Odysseus, who successfully sailed past the Sirens by blocking his
crew’s ears w/ wax and having himself tied to the mast in order to hear and enjoy but not be ruined
by their song. His father is usu. Laertes; some accounts cite the trickster Sisyphus
audio, -ire, -iui, -itum hear, listen to. auditis pf. ptc. in abi. abs. w/ his
paene (adv.) almost
resoluo, -uere, -ui loosen. Corpora (dir. obj.) is freq. pi. in Ov. (cf. 269), = corpus
socius, -i (m.) companion. Dat. w/ pass, illita (AG #365); sociis = sociorum auribus
illino, -inere, -eui, -itum smear on. illitafuit = illita erat (AG #495), ‘had been smeared'
cera, -ae (f.) wax [cf. Gk. Kr)p6?]

LINE 315
blandus, -a, -um charming, alluring (cf. 795 blandae uoces). Like the ugly Sirens, most women will need
to rely on other talents than visual beauty alone
canor, -oris (m.) song, singing
canto, -are sing. Kakemphaton (-cant cant-) ironically subverts Ov.’s emphasis on beautiful sound
68
 COM M ENTARY: 3 0 9 -3 2 2

res est blanda canor: discant cantare puellae 315

(pro facie multis uox sua lena fuit)
et m odo m arm oreis referant audita theatris
e t m odo Niliacis carm ina lusa modis;
nec plectrum dextra, citharam tenuisse sinistra
nesciat arbitrio fem ina docta meo. 320
saxa ferasque lyra m ouit R hodopeius O rpheus,
T artareosque lacus tergem inum que canem;

pro (+ abi.) instead of

facies, -ei (f.) physical appearance; (good) looks, beauty. Few have it (cf. 255)
lena, -ae (f.) female pimp, procuress (a common character in comedy and el., cf. Am. 1.8). Ov. couches
frank social language in metaphor (cf. 752)
m od6. . . modd now (one thing) ... now (another) (AG #323f)
marmoreus, -a, -um of marble, marble-clad (cf. 125)
refero, -ferre bring back; repeat. Dir. obj. audita subst., ‘what they have heard’
theatrum, -i (n.) theatre (stone building used for public spectacles, inch drama)
Niliacus, -a, -um of the Nile, Nilotic; Egyptian (cf. Pharii 270). Egyptian music (carmen, -inis [n.]
‘song/ ‘poem’) suited lively parties (cf. Prop. 4.8.39 Nile, tuus tibicen erat)
ludo, -dere, -si, -sum play, perform (music)
modus, -i (m.) manner, way; melody, mode
plectrum, -i (n.) plectrum, pick (used for striking a cithara’s strings)
dexter, -tra, -trum right, right-hand, dextra sc. manu ‘in the right (hand)’
cithara, -ae (f.) lyre (a stringed instrument) {> guitar}
sinister, -tra, -trum left, left-hand, sinistra sc. manu ‘in the left (hand).’ Apollo, the god of music, also
holds his lyre thus (Met. 11.167-69). Two-handed hexs. are freq. in Ov., cf.Her. 11.3, Fast. 1.99, Met.
2.874,9.522

LINE 320
nescio, -ire not know (+ compl. inf. [AG #456]) how to do sthg.
arbitrium, -i (n.) power of judging; control, authority, meo arbitrio abl. of specification (AG #418a), ‘in
accordance with my control’
lyra, -ae (f.) lyre. Ov. uses lyra (321,326) and cithara (319) synonymously
mdueo, -ere, moui move, rouse; transport. W/ syllepsis Ov. joins the literal and figurative senses of the
vb.; Orpheus’ music moved stones (saxum, -i [n.] ‘rock’) and tamed beasts (/era, -ae [f.] ‘wild
animal’), cf.Met. 11.1-2
Rhodopeius, -a, -um of Rhodope (a mountain in Thrace)
Orpheus, -i (m.) famous mythical singer whose songs swayed nature (inch animals, trees, and stones)
and even the gods of the underworld; he came to them after the death of his wife Eurydice, and the
beauty of his music coaxed them to allow her to return to life w/ Orpheus (who broke a taboo and
lost her again; cf. Met. 10-11.66)
Tartareus, -a, -um of Tartarus, the underworld. Ov. mimics Orpheus w/ verbal virtuosity: 322 is the
only dactylic 4-word pentameter in Ars 3 (but cf. 2.24)
lacus, -us (m.) body of water; lake, river. The mythical underworld contained several rivers inch the
Styx, which served as its boundary; Ov. implies that Orpheus persuaded the ferryman Charon to
allow him to cross over
tergeminus, -a, -um triple, threefold. Ancient art and lit. freq. depict Cerberus, the huge dog (canis, -is
[m./f.]) that guarded the entrance to the underworld, w/ three heads
cantus, -us (m.) singing, song [< cano ‘sing’]
69
O vid, A rs A matoria

saxa tuo cantu, uindexiustissim e matris,

fecerunt m uros officiosa nouos.
325 quam uis m utus erat, uoci fauisse putatur
piscis Arioniae, fabula nota, lyrae,
disce etiam duplici genialia nablia palma
uerrere: conueniunt dulcibus illa iocis.

uindex, -icis (m.) champion, avenger. Amphion, son of Zeus and the mortal Antiope, w/ the help
of his twin brother Zethus killed their stepmother Dirce, who had mistreated their mother
(mater, -tris [f.]) for years. He then built the walls [murus, -i (m.), ‘wall (of a city)’] of Thebes
w/ his song
iustus, -a, -um just, righteous. Dirce had planned to tie Antiope to a bull and drag her to her death
but suffered the same fate herself. Ov. takes pains to acquit Amphion of cruelty (cf. 1.655 iustus
uterquefuit)
officiosus, -a, -um dutiful, eager to please, solicitous. Amphion’s music caused the huge stones to move
into place of their own accord

LINE 325
quamuis although (+ indie., AG #527e)
mutus, -a, -um unable to speak; mute, silent
faueo, -ere, faui favor, approve of (+ dat). fauisse putatur ‘[the dolphin] is thought to have ap­
proved’; Lat. ind. disc, prefers pers. pass, constr. vs. impers. E. ‘it is thought that the dolphin ap­
proved’ (AG #582).
piscis, -is (m.) fish; sea creature, dolphin {> porpoise, i.e. porcus + piscis ‘pig-fish’}
Arionius, -a, -um of Arion, a Gk. singer and lyre player; captured by murderous pirates, he sang
his last song, then leaped into the sea, where a dolphin carried him safely to shore. The story
was famous (fabula nota), as Ov. reaffirms (Fast. 2.83 quod mare non nouit, quae nescit Ariona
tellus?)
duplex, -icis double; each (of two), both
genialis, -e fertile [cf. gigno ‘produce,’ ‘create’]; lively, festive, jovial
nablia, -ium (n. pi.) small Phoenician harp (cf. its festive use at 1 Chron. 15:16)
palma, -ae (f.) palm (of the hand); hand (incl. the fingers)
uerro, -ere sweep, strike (with a sweeping motion), brush
conuenio, -ire (+ dat.) suit, fit. Ov.’s meter also matches his material: 327-28 is entirely dactylic,
w/ elegant chiasmus (duplici... palma) and speedy repetition of vowels (a 7x, i 7x) in 327
dulcis, -e sweet, delightful (cf. 798)
iocus, -i (m.) joke, jest; playful activity or situation, fun, game (cf. 367,580)
329-48: Poetry: what and how to read.
Ov. recommends to his female readers a variety of Gk. and Lat. poets, all of whose works range
wider than his amatory focus suggests. His catalog (cf. 535-38, Am. 1.15.9-30) devotes equal
attention to his erotic predecessors (329-38) and to himself (339-48). Ov. suggested bilingual
education to men as well (2.121-22) but focuses here on the importance of oral technique
(344-45) in reading
Callimachus, -i (m.) 3rd-c. Gk. poet whose learned and finely wrought poetry (incl. love poems)
deeply influenced Aug. Lat. poets. Prop, likewise announces his poetic program w/ ref. to both
Callimachus and Philetas (3.1.1)

70
 COMMENTARY: 3 2 3 -3 3 4

sit tibi Callimachi, sit Coi nota poetae,

sit quoque uinosi Teia M usa senis; 330
nota sit et Sappho (quid enim lasciuius illa?)
cuiue pater uafri luditur arte Getae,
et teneri possis carm en legisse Properti
siue aliquid Galli siue, Tibulle, tuum

Cous, -a, -um of the Gk. island of Cos, home to Gk. poet and scholar Philetas (c. 300 BCE), whose
works, now almost entirely lost, directly influenced Callimachus and must have been known in
Ov.’s R.

LINE 330
uinosus, -a, -um overly fond of wine (uinum), boozy
Telus, -a, -um of the city ofTeos (on the coast of Asia Minor), home to Anacreon, 5th-c. Gk. poet
whose verses emphasize drink and (bisexual) desire
Musa, -ae (f.) Muse (goddess of poet, inspiration). Nom. subj. w/ sit 3x
senex, -is (m.) old man. Anacreon freq. speaks in his poems as an aged lover
Sappho, -us (f.) Gk. poet (c. 600 BCE) from the island of Lesbos, famous in antiq. for her lyrics of
(bisexual) desire. Ov. is not the first to use e.g. (329-30) Callimachi Musa for Callimachus; here the
idiom puts greater emphasis on Sappho, known in antiq. as ‘the tenth muse’
lasciuus, -a, -um licentious, provocative. Ov.’s style was also described as lasciuus
cuiue cui + -we, 'or [read the poet] whose’ (dat. of possession, AG #373). Menander (341-290
BCE) was the greatest Gk. comic author of the 4th c.; Plautus and Terence adapted many of his
works into Lat.
pater, -tris (m.) father. The stereotyped plots of many of Menander’s and later R. comedies involve
an aged father whose amorous young son wins the girl next door with the help of one or more
deceitful slaves
uafer, -fra, -frum crafty, sly. The deceptive nature of slaves is a comic cliche
ludo, -ere play (upon); deceive, trick
Geta, -ae (m.) standard slave name; several Getas appear in Gk. and R. comedies
tener, -ra, -rum tender, delicate (a mark of Prop.’s seductive themes and style; cf. 343, Am. 3.15.1
tenerorum mater Amorum) [not < teneo, tenere ‘hold’]
Propertius, -i (m.) R. author (c. 50-c. 15 BCE) of four books of el. poetry (c. 28-15 BCE) re­
counting his love for Cynthia (and other puellae), legisse = legere, pf. inf. for pres. (Plat 109-12,
AG #486e)
siue or. Ov.’s three predecessors in R. el. must share one couplet; Ov. spends five couplets on himself
(339-48)
aliquis, -quid someone, sthg. Dir. obj. of legisse modified by Galli and tuum
Gallus, -i (m.) R. author (c. 70-c. 26 BCE) of four books of el. poetry recounting his love for Lycoris
(cf. 537). He served under Aug. as military general (defeating Marc Antony at Paraetonium, cf. 390)
and governor ofEgypt; his malicious temper (Suetonius Augustus 66.2) led to imperial banishment
and suicide. Fewer than a dozen of his verses survive
Tibullus, -i (m.) R. author (c. 50-19 BCE) of two books of el. poetry recounting his love for the puellae
Delia and Nemesis (536) as well as the puer Marathus. Ov. (Am. 3.9) praises his verse and laments
his early death

71
Ovid, Ars A m atoria

335 dictaque Varroni fuluis insignia uillis

uellera germanae, Phrixe, querenda tuae
et profugum Aenean, altae prim ordia Romae,
quo nullum Latio clarius extat opus,
forsitan et nostrum nom en m iscebitur istis
340 nec mea Lethaeis scripta dabuntur aquis
atque aliquis dicet ‘nostri lege culta m agistri
carm ina, quis partes instruit ille duas,

LINE 335
Varro, -onis (m.) Varro of Atax, R. author (c. 82-c. 35 BCE) of poems in many genres, incl. Argonautae, a
hex. translation of Apollonius of Rhodes’ Argonautica recounting the exploits of Jason and the quest for
the Golden Fleece. (To introduce the topic of his own fame, Ov. omits Varro s love poetry [on the topic
of his puella Leucadia, cf. Prop. 2.34.85-86] in favor of the more renowned [i«signia] epic.) Dat. of
agent (AG #375) w / dicta, spoken of by Varro’
fulvus, -a, -um brownish, sandy-colored; golden. The adj., freq. in epic (19x in V. Aen.), suits both the Golden
Fleece (cf. Am. 2.11.4, Her. 6.14) andperh. Nephele herself (sand storms arefuluus, V. Geo. 3.110)
insignis, -e renowned, notable (+ abl. of specification, AG #418) (cf. 348)
uillus, -i (m.) flock of hair, tuft [etym. conn, w/ uellus, cf. uello ‘pluck’]
uellus, -eris (n.) fleece. Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2). The ram that Nephele gave to Phrixus and Helle
(cf. 175) had a golden fleece and could fly
germana, -ae (f.) sister. Phrixus’ sister Helle fell off the flying ram and drowned {> Hellespont (‘Helle’s
sea’), joining Medit. and Black Seas}
queror, -i lament. Gdve. w/ dat. of agent (AG #374), ‘to be mourned by your sister.’ Ov. imagines not
Phrixus’but Helle’s more poignant lament for her own death (presumably while she was still on the lamb)
profugus, -a, -um fleeing, fugitive; exiled. Aeneas (-ae [m.]; Gk. acc. sg. -an, AG #44), the eponymous
hero of V.’s epic Aeneid, escaped from Troy at the end of TW, traveled to Italy, conquered the native
opposition, and established the fut. R. nation. Ov.’s phrase recalls V.’s programmatic introduction
{Aen. 1.2fato profugus), cf. 1 armaw/ Aen. 1.1 arma
altus, -a, -um deep, high, tall, lofty. Cf. V. Aen. 1.7 altae moenia Romae
primordium, -i (n.) beginning, origin. Appos. w/ profugum Aenean
Latium, -i (n.) the R. district of Italy (in which much of Aen. 7-12 takes place); Italy (in general). Abl.
of place where w/out prep. (AG #429.4)
clarus, -a, -um bright; famous, notable, nullum... clarius ...opus (-eris [n.] ‘work’; ‘piece of [lit.] work’)
w/ abl. of comparison quo (AG #409), ‘than which no more famous work [exists].’ Prop, likewise
claimed that the Aeneid would surpass the Iliad (2.34.65-66)
exto, -are stand (sto) out (ex-), be conspicuous; exist
forsitan (adv.) perhaps [<fors sit an, ‘the chance may be whether’]
nomen, -inis (n.) name, nostrum = meum (OLD s.v. noster 2b), cf. mea 340 (but pi. in 341)
misceo, -ere mix, mingle (+ dat. istis ‘with them,’ AG #413aN)

LINE 340
Lethaeus,-a,-um of Lethe, the underworld river of forgetfulness [< GkAijQt}] (cf. 648)
cultus, -a, -um cultured, suave [< colo ‘cultivate’]. Cf. coluisse (2.121, to men) and cultas. ..puellas (51);
Ov.’s poetry is tailored to his audience
magister, -ri (m.) master; teacher. Cf. 2.743 and 3.812 Naso magister erat
quis = quibus (AG #150c), abl. of means (‘with which’). Ov. begins the catalog of his works w/
a ref. to the Ars, spoken by a hypothetical reader; cf. aliquis iuuenum who praises Ov.’s Am.
(Am. 2.1.7-10)
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 COM M ENTARY: 3 3 5 -3 4 8

deue tener libris titulus quos signat a m o r v m

elige quod docili m olliter ore legas,
uel tibi composita cantetur e p i s t v l a uoce; 345
ignotum hoc aliis ille nouauit opus.’
o ita, Phoebe, uelis, ita uos, pia num ina uatum ,
insignis cornu Bacche nouem que deae!

pars, -tis (f.) part, portion; half (of the human race, i.e. either sex)
instruo, -ere equip (esp. for battle, cf. 1-4), instruct (w/ knowledge or directions)
liber, -bri (m.) book, i.e. Ov.’s Amores (‘Love Songs’), d e... libris w/ elige (eligo, -ere ‘pick out’ [e(x) +
lego], ‘select’), ‘choose from the books.’ deue = de (prep.) + -ue ‘or.’ Dir. obj. (sc. aliquid) quod...
legas, ‘(sthg.) for you to read’ (relat. cl. of purpose, AG #531.2)
titulus, -i (m.) tag on the outside of a papyrus case w/ title of work; title, titulus amorum = ‘the title
(of) Amores’ (limiting gen., AG #343d). tener ‘tender’ is transferred from Amores to titulus
signo, -are indicate, mark out
docilis, -e teachable [< doceo ‘teach’]; well-taught, practiced. Like life, lit. is an act that requires hard
work and attention to skillful performance (cf. Am. 2.1.3-4, where Ov. compares his love poems to
a theater show); anc. lit. was generally read aloud, and good materials require good presentation
(vs. Martial 1.38)
mollis, -e tender, gentle; smooth (a stereotypically feminine style, cf. 306, though Ov.’s student could
be addressing a man or woman). Adv. -ter

LINE 345
compositus, -a, -um composed, (well) crafted. Abi. composita w/ uoce
epistula, -ae (f.) letter, epistle, i.e. Ov.’s Heroides (‘Heroines’), fictional letters written by famous
women of myth (Penelope, Dido, etc.) to their lovers
canto, -are sing; perform aloud, tibi dat. of agent (AG #375a), ‘by you’
ignotus, -a, -um unknown (w/ dat. aliis, AG #384)
nouo, -are invent. Ov. claims the Heroides are a new genre; others had written poet, letters (cf. Prop.
4.3), but none had made a collection like his
Phoebus, -i (m.) Apollo, god of poetry [< Gk. OoijJo; ‘shining one’]
uolo, uelle want (cf. 349); be willing. Opt. subjv. (AG #442a) w/ ita, ‘may this be your will.’ El. freq. has
hiatus after o (Plat 57)
pius, -a, -um dutiful, conscientious. O v. claims that his worship of the gods of the poetry obliges them
to grant him fame in return
numen, -inis (n.) godhead, divinity. Voc. in appos. w/ Bacche and nouem deae
uates, -is (m.) prophet; bard, poet (esp. as inspired by the gods)
cornu, -us (n.) horn. Bacchus, whose wine frees humans from their regular selves, is hi mselffreq. rep­
resented in the form of a bull (cf.Ars 1.232)
Bacchus, -i (m.) god of wine (and of poetry as derived from irrational inspiration)
nouem (inded.) nine (the traditional number of the Muses)

73
O vid, A rs Amatoria

quis dubitet, quin scire uelim saltare puellam,

350 u t moueat posito bracchia iussa mero?
artifices lateris, scaenae spectacula, am antur:
tantum m obilitas illa decoris habet,
parua m onere pudet, talorum dicere iactus
ut sciat et uires, tessera missa, tuas
355 et m odo tres iactet numeros, m odo cogitet, apte
quam subeat partem callida quam que uocet,

349-80: Dancing, dicing, and gaming.

Like education in music (311-28), skill in dancing was considered unfit for respectable R. women; Ov.
heightens the danger w / links to drinking (350) and (socially dubious) acting (351). Dice and board
games (353-80) connote frivolity, but Ov., playing up his talent for describing complicated rules in
elegant el., notes games’ true danger: loss not of money (373 vs. 466) but of self-control (370)
quis dubitet qu in ... uelim ‘Who could doubt that I would like; dubito, -are ‘doubt’ (delib. subjv. [AG
#444] implies doubt; Ov. coyly suggests that the topic of dancing presents no problems for him) + quin
‘(but) that’ [< qui (abl.) ‘how’ + tie ‘not’], + subjv. (AG #558a), but uelim (+ inf. scire) is polite opt.
subjv. (AG #442b), ‘1would like,’ not orig. indic. ‘I want; Ov. never uses the form uolo in Ars or Rem.
scio, -ire know, know how (+ inf., OLD s.v. 8b) (cf. 354)
salto, -are dance [< salio ‘leap’]

LINE 350
pono, -nere, -sui, -situm set (down), put out (for use), serve. Abl. abs. w/ mero (cf. 751,767)
iubeo, -bere, -ssi, -ssum command, direct. W/ bracchia (brac[c]hium, -i [n.] ‘arm’), ‘arms under orders’
merum, -i (n.) wine (unmixed w/ water, hence ‘pure’ [merus, -a, -um])
artifex, -icis (m.) artisan, artist; stage performer, actor. Solo dancers who acted out scenes from myth (accom­
panied by music and song), pantomimes (Gk. ‘all-mimic’) were very popular in R,, not just a side show
latus, -eris (n.) side, flank. The term freq. has sexual connotations in el. (cf. 301, Am. 2.10.25); its use
here makes the dancers’ spectacle not just aesthetic but erotic (cf. Am. 2.4.30 molli torquet ab arte
latus, E. ‘belly dancer’)
scaena, -ae (f.) stage background; stage; theatrical life
spectaculum, -i (n.) spectacle, display, show. Appos. w/ artifices
mobilitas, -atis (f.) movement, mobility
decor, -oris (m.) attractiveness. Partit, gen. (AG #346.3) w/ tantum, ‘so much beauty’
paruus, -a, -um small. Nt. pi. subst. (AG #288) secondary obj. of monere (AG #396)
moneo, -ere warn; advise (+ subst. cl. of purpose [AG #563] w/ ut + subjv.)
pudet, -ere it shames (sc. me; impers. vb. w/ inf. as subj., AG #354c). Ov. freq. acknowledges, then cele­
brates a topic’s impropriety (cf. 769)
talus, -i (m.) knucklebone (w/ 4 flat sides and round ends), used as a (4-sided) die
iactus, -us (m.) throw [< iacio, -ere; iacto, -are [355] ‘throw’]
uis, uis (f.) power, force; value
tessera, -ae (f.) cube (cf. Gk, T^cnropa ‘four,’ i.e. w/ square sides), used as a die
mitto, -ere, misi, missum send, let go; throw

LINE 355
m od6. . . modd now (one thing)... now (another) (AG #323f)
numerus, -i (m.) number. Tres may refer to the number of dice or their individual scores. The rules of
the game (a form of backgammon?) are unclear

74
 COMMENTARY: 3 4 9 -3 6 2

cautaque non stulte latronum proelia ludat,

unus cum gemino calculus hoste perit
bellatorque suo prensus sine compare bellat
aemulus et coeptum saepe recurrit iter. 360
reticuloque pilae leues fundantur aperto
nec, nisi quam tolles, ulla m ouenda pila est.

cogito, -are think, consider (+ indir. quest, quam subeat partem, AG #574)
aptus, -a, -um appropriate, useful (cf. 226). Adv. -e
qui, quae, quod which, what (interr. adj.)
subeo, -ire come up, arise (cf. 373); go into, enter (a place [pars] on the board)
callidus, -a, -um clever, skillful. Adj. as adv. (AG #290), cf. cauta 357
uoco, -are call, summon; challenge (if attacking an opponent’s piece at another place); recall (ones
own piece from a forward position)
cautus, -a, -um cautious, prudent [< caueo ‘be on guard’]
latro, -onis (m.) mercenary, bodyguard; bandit, ludus latrunculorum ("Ihe game of little soldiers’; Ov.
gives a periphrasis for the metrically intractable name), for two players, involved a square board
w/ black and white counters of equal value moving in straight lines
proelium, -i (n.) battle. The game’s military terminology (cf. hoste, bellator, compar) suits Ov.’s pur­
poses: all's fair in love and war (1-4,342)
geminus, -a, -um twin; twinned, double. A piece in between two opposing pieces could be captured
(as Ov. reiterates w/ word order, gemino calculus hoste)
calculus, -i (m.) pebble (here, used as a counter or piece in ludus latrunculorum)
hostis, -is (m.) enemy (i.e. an opponent’s piece). Abl. of means (AG #409)
pereo, -ire perish, die. cum + indic .perit ‘when(ever) one piece dies’ (i.e. is captured, cf. 2.208fac
pereat uitreo miles ab hoste tuus)
bellator, -oris (m.) warrior
pre(he)ndo, -dere, -si, -sum grasp, capture (here, perh. ‘trapped’)
compar, -aris (m./f.) equal, comrade, companion. Isolated pieces were endangered
bello, -are wage war, fight (i.e. attack a piece on the other side)

LINE 360
aemulus, -i (m.) rival, competitor. Ov. refers either to a player helping one exposed piece with another
or to the opponent retracting an advanced piece
coepi, -isse, -tum begin (defect, vb., AG #205)
recurro, -ere run back, retreat, retire (along) (+ acc., AG #388b)
iter, itineris (n.) journey, path
reticulum, -i (n.) bag made of netting [rete ‘net’]. Abl. of place from which (AG #428g)
pila, -ae (f.) ball. Ov. refers to an unkn. game (mentioned nowhere else) in which balls are individually
lifted out of a group w/out disturbing the others
leuis, -e smooth [not < leuis ‘light’]
fundo,-ere pour (out)
aperio, -ire, -ui, -turn open {> aperture}, cf. 371. Presumably the bag could be tied closed
tollo, -ere lift up, pick up. quam tolles relat. cl. w/ antec. (ilia) pila
ullus, -a, -um any (in neg. cl., here introduced by nec)

75
O vid, A rs A matoria

est genus in totidem tenui ratione redactum

scriptula, quot menses lubricus annus habet;
365 parua tabella capit ternos utrim que lapillos,
in qua uicisse est continuasse suos,
mille facesse iocos; turpe est nescire puellam
ludere: ludendo saepe paratur amor,
sed m inim us labor est sapienter iactibus uti;

genus, -eris (n.) type (here, of gaming board), duodecim scripta (‘twelve marks’) was a 2-player board
game probably w/ 15 pieces per player and 3 dice thrown to determine each move
totidem (indecl.) equally many, just so many (correi, w/ quot ‘as,’AG #152, Gild #642)
tenuis, -e thin, narrow; subtle, fine, elegant
ratio, -onis (f.) calculation; proportion; plan, system. W. tenui abl. of manner (AG #412), ‘in a subtle
system’ or ‘by fine proportion’
redigo, -igere, -egi, -actum send back; reduce, divide, separate. The board is divided into twelve marks
(scriptulum, -i [n.] ‘mark,’ ‘inscribed character’; acc. pi. w/ totidem)
mensis, -is (m.) month, dtiddlcim (‘twelve’) is impossible in el. meter, hence Ov.’s elegant periphrasis
(cf. the treatment o f‘eleven’ at Fast. 2.567-68)
lubricus, -a, -um slippery; gliding (cf. the watery flow of time at 62-64)

LINE 365
tabella, -ae (f.) tablet, small board. Ov. describes a variant of tic-tac-toe
terni, -ae, -a triple, three each; three (cf. 394)
utrimque on both sides (uterque ‘both’ + adv. suff. -im), i.e. for both players
lapillus, -i (m.) pebble [< lapis ‘stone’ + dimin. suff. -illus, AG #243]
continuo, -are connect; align, continuasse (= continuauisse, contr. pf. act. inf., AG #181a) nom. subj.,
showing completed action: ‘to have aligned’
suus, -a, -um one’s own (sc. lapillos). Dir. obj. of continuasse, cf. 370
facesso, -ere perform, enact [< facio ‘do’ + -esso, vbal. suff. implying eagerness or willingness; AG
#263.2b, Gild #191.5, cf. V. Geo. 4.548]
iocus, -i (m.) joke, jest; playful activity or situation, fun, game (cf. 328,381,580)
turpis, -e ugly, offensive. Nt. nom. sg. modifying subj. nescire
nescio, -ire not know (+ compl. inf.) how to do sthg. An inf. serving as the subj. of a sentence has its
own subj. in the acc. (AG #452.1, #397e)
sapiens, -ntis intelligent. Adv.-ter. Ov. retroactively belittles (minimus labor) the student’s knowledge
of games (and his own elegant description) in favor of the greater task (maius opus) of self-control
while gaming
utor, -i (+ abl.) use, enjoy

LINE 370
mos, moris (m.) custom; (pi.) habits, character
compono, -nere, -sui arrange in order; settle, quiet. Inf. subj., sc. est. Ov.’s emphasis on the importance
of maintaining command of one’s emotions in the face of loss and suffering (371-78) will be echoed
in his approval of the self-control shown by older male lovers (565-72)
incautus, -a, -um heedless, unwary (cf. 357 cauta). Masc. pi. forms (vs. 132,161) here also include female
audience, cf. 379-80, the general advice of369-70, and the double entendre o f372 nuda... pectora
studium, -i (n.) enthusiasm (cf. 367facesse), intentness
nudus, -a, -um uncovered, bare, nude
lusus, -us (m.) game (on a board or in a bed, cf. 809)
76
 COM M ENTARY: 3 6 3 -3 8 0

m aius opus mores composuisse suos. 370

tu m sum us incauti studioque aperim ur in ipso
nudaque per lusus pectora nostra patent,
ira subit, deforme malum, lucrique cupido
iurgiaque et rixae sollicitusque dolor;
crim ina dicuntur, resonat clamoribus aether, 375
inuocat iratos et sibi quisque deos,
nulla fides tabulae: quae non per uota petuntur?
et lacrimis uidi saepe madere genas.
Iuppiter a uobis tam turpia crim ina pellat,
in quibus est ulli cura placere u iro ! 380

pectus, -oris (n.) chest, breast; soul. Games are serious; they reveal our true selves
pateo, -ere lie open, be visible
deformis, -e ugly, deforme malum (nt. subst., ‘evil,’ cf. 501) in appos. w/ ira
lucrum, -i (n.) profit. Romans freq. gambled on the games listed in 353-66
cupido, -inis (m./f.) desire, lust, greed (for) (+ obj. gen., AG #348), cf. 397
iurgium, -i (n.) quarrel; verbal abuse. Ov. fills the pentameter w/ a timeline of the event, from words to
deeds to the bodily consequences
rixa, -ae (f.) brawl, fight
sollicitus, -a, -um troubled, restless, anxious
dolor, -oris (m.) grief (either emotional or physical). To Ov. s catalogue of personified ills cf. V. Aen.
6.274-81

LINE 375
crimen, -inis (n.) crime; criminal charge, accusation
resono, -are resound, echo (+ abl. of means, AG #409). More parody of high epic tone (cf. V. Aen.
5.228 resonatquefragoribus aether) in a low context
clamor, -oris (m.) shouting, outcry, yell
aether, -eris (m.) heaven, sky, air [< Gk. al0w ‘burn,’ ‘blaze,’ cf. Lat. aestas ‘heat’]
inuoco, -are invoke, summon. R.s claimed truthfulness by calling down divine wrath upon themselves
(sihi) if they were lying (cf. Livy 2.45.14, Petronius 62.14); Ov. laments that everyone (quisque) uses
this tactic, since R. gods are notoriously uninterested in moral justice (1.633-36)
fides, -ei (f.) faith, trust (in) (+ dat., AG #367d). Sc. est
tabula, -ae (f.) board, plank; game board (syn. w/ tabella 365)
uotum, -i (n.) vow, prayer (in refer, to the false oaths o f376); wish, desire (404)
peto, -ere seek. Nt. pi. quae as subj., ‘What things are not sought’ (cf. 403)
lacrima, -ae (f.) tear. But Ov. s eyewitness authority (uidi, cf. 67) is subverted by the fact that women
already know how to cry on command (291)
madeo, -ere be wet. lnd. disc. (uidi madere genas) can show dir. physical (not mental) perception (Gild
#527N1): ‘I have seen cheeks wet w/ tears’
gena, -ae (f.) cheek {cogn. w/ E. chin}
pello, -ere drive off, avert. Ov. asks Jupiter to protect his clients from the crimina of foul play (375) and
of foul looks (373)

LINE 380
cura, -ae (f.) concern, care (cf. 405,424)
placeo, -ere (+ dat.) please, attract (cf. 423,430)
77
O vid, A rs A matoria

hos ignaua iocos tribuit natura puellis;

m ateria ludunt uberiore uiri.
sunt illis celeresque pilae iaculum que trochique
arm aque et in gyros ire coactus equus.
385 nec uos Cam pus habet nec uos gelidissima Virgo
nec Tuscus placida deuehit am nis aqua.

381-404: Roaming in Rome.

Women, prohibited from exercising in the Campus Martius as men do, are encouraged to walk through
the nearby districts, retracing some of the same paths Ov. suggested to men (1.67-90,1.487-504)
ignauus, -a, -am sluggish, idle, lazy. Nature was conventionally viewed as lazy in its unequal distribution of
powers (cf. Plato Protagoras 320d-22a), and womens nature was also viewed as more sluggish than men’s
tribuo, -ere, -i grant, allot, assign
materia, -ae (f.) timber; material, matter, means
ludo, -ere play (a sport or game, e.g. of love, cf. 32,809), perform (in music, cf. 318, or on stage, cf.
ludius 1.112), deceive (cf. 332)
uber, -ris rich, fertile, bountiful {cf. E. udder}
celer, -ris, -re quick, lively, sunt illis dat. of possession (AG #373), ‘they have’
pila, -ae (f.) ball (used for exercise or in throwing). Quadruple -que followed by triple nec (385) high­
lights gendered disparity of opportunity
iaculum, -i (n.) javelin [< iacio ‘throw’]
trochus, -i (m.) hoop [Gk. xpo^b? < Tptyu ‘run,’ ‘move quickly’]
gyrus, -i (m.) circle, ring, in + acc. ‘to produce’ (OLD s.v. in 21, cf. Met. 7.784 et redit in gyrum)
cogo, -gere, -egi, -actum compel, force; train

LINE 385
Campus, -i (m.) field; the Campus Martius, ‘Field of Mars,’ containing men’s sporting sites (382-86)
and many of the areas suggested to women (387-96)
gelidus, -a, -um chilly, frosty (but never in ref. to a lack of emotional warmth; this Virgo won’t turn a
cold shoulder to R.’s young men)
Virgo, -inis (f.) virgin. Ov. balances his narrative w/ two figurative uirgines, one for each sex: (385) the
aqueduct Virgo (named, says Frontinus [Aq. 1.10], for a uirgo w/ a stick [uirguncula] who helped sol­
diers find water) supplied R.’s first public baths; (388) Astraea, the virgin goddess of justice, was the
last of the gods to depart from earth at the end of the Golden Age, when she rose into the heavens
andbecame the constellation Virgo (cf. Met. 1.149-50, V. Eel. 4.6, Geo. 2.473-74)
Tuscus, -a, -um Tuscan; of Etruria, the region of Italy west of R.
placidus, -a, -um agreeable; calm, tranquil. Abl. of means (w/ aqua)
deueho, -ere carry down, convey (downstream)
amnis, -is (m.) river. The Tiber, flowing through R., divides Latium from Etruria
at but, on the other hand
licet, -ere it is permitted (impers. vb. [AG #207] w/ inf. subj. [AG #455.1])
prosum, prodesse be of use, benefit [pro ‘on behalf of’ + sum] (cf. 297)
Pompeius, -a, -um of Pompey (the Great, 106-48 BCE), who built a magnificent marble colonnade
(along with and next to his theatre, cf. 231) in 55 BCE
umbra, -ae (f.) shade. Colonnades provide protection from sun and rain
ardeo, -ere be hot, burn. Subj. Virginis... caput; equally hot-headed R.s engage in shady behavior in
August, when the sun, driving his chariot’s celestial (aetherius, -a, -um) horses, is located in the con­
stellation Virgo. Mythological periphrasis recalls Ov.’s similarly ornate defn. of July (1.68), when
men are urged to find women under the same umbra
uiso, -ere go and look at; visit (cf. the visual tour of R. at 115-20)
78
 COM M ENTARY: 3 8 1 -3 9 4

at licet et prodest Pompeias ire per umbras,

Virginis aetheriis cum caput ardet equis,
uisite laurigero sacrata Palatia Phoebo
(ille Paraetonias mersit in alta rates) 390
quaeque soror coniunxque ducis monimenta pararunt
naualique gener cinctus honore caput,
uisite turicremas uaccae Memphitidos aras,
uisite conspicuis terna theatra locis.

lauriger, -a, -um laurel-bearing; wreathed w/ laurels (symbolizing poetry and victory). Aug. ascribed his naval
victory at Actium, on the NW coast of Greece, over Marc Antony and Cleopatra (31 BCE) to Apollo’s help
sacro, -are consecrate. Apollo’s temple dominated the Palatine Hill (Palatium, -i [n.]), R.’s most elite
neighborhood and home of Aug, (cf. 119)
Phoebus, -i (m.) Apollo [< Gk. ®o!|3o; ‘shining one’]

LINE 390
Paraetonius, -a, -um of Paraetonium, a seaport west of Egyptian Alexandria; Egyptian. Ov. and others
freq. refer to Marc Antony’s forces as Egyptian (i.e. as the foreigner Cleopatra’s) to obscure the
brutal reality of civil war
mergo, -gere, -si, -sum sink. Aug.’s fleet sank hundreds of enemy ships, but Marc Antony and
Cleopatra escaped to Egypt w/ dozens more
altum, -i (n.) the deep (altus, -a, -um); sea, ocean. Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2)
ratis, -is (f.) raft; boat, ship
soror, -oris (f.) sister; s. ducis = Octavia (69-11 BCE), wife (40-32 BCE) of Marc Antony. After 27
BCE Aug. built an opulent public colonnade in her name (porticus Octauiae) by the southern end of
the Campus Martius
coniunx, -ugis (m./f.) spouse; c. ducis = Livia (c. 58 BCE-29 CE), Aug.’s wife. In 7 BCE Aug. built an
opulent public colonnade in her name (porticus Liuiae) northeast of the Palatine
monimentum, -i (n.) memorial [< moneo ‘warn’]; monument, monimenta dir. obj. of uisite, antec. of quae
gener, -ri (m.) son-in-law. Agrippa (c. 63-12 BCE), husband (21-12 BCE) of Aug.’s daughter Julia,
commander of Aug.’s fleet at the battle of Actium
cingo, -gere, -xi, -ctum surround, gird; crown, honore abl. of means and caput acc. of affected part
(AG #397b): ‘crowned about his head with honor’
honor, -oris (m.) honor; mark of honor. Ov. refers w/ nauali... honore to the corona rostrata (crown
decorated w/ representations of ships’ prows [rostra]) that Aug. bestowed on Agrippa for his naval
(naualis, -e [< nauis ‘ship’]) victory in 36 BCE over the pirates led by Sextus Pompey. In 25 BCE
Agrippa built the porticus Argonautarum in the Campus Martius; the sea voyages of Jason and the
Argonauts (depicted there) perh. alluded to his naval triumphs
turicremus, -a, -um incense-burning (tus, turis + cremo). Incense is burned in honor of many gods, but
Ov. devotes a rare and precious adj. to the exotic Isis
uacca, -ae (f.) cow. Io, daughter of Argive king Inachus, was raped by Jupiter, then turned into a cow by
vengeful Juno; after long wandering, she arrived in Egypt, where she bore a son, regained human
form, and was worshipped as the Egyptian goddess Isis (also represented w/ horns)
Memphitis, -idos of Memphis (the Egyptian city). Gk. gen. sg. (AG #82)
ara, -ae (f.) altar. The temple of Isis (cf. 635-36) stood close to the porticus Argonautarum; Ov. urges
men to visit her shrine as well (l .77-78)
conspicuus, -a, -um easily seen. c. locis abl. of quality (AG #415), 'with their prominent seats’ (OLD s.v. locus 9).
Theaters (sex-segregated) are places to see and be seen (1.99); women should procure good seats for viewing
theatrum, -i (n.) theater (stone building used for public spectacles). The Campus Martius contained
the theaters of Pompey, Balbus, and Marcellus
79
O vid, A rs A matoria

395 spectentur tepido maculosae sanguine harenae

m etaque feruenti circum eunda rota,
quod latet, ignotum est; ignoti nulla cupido:
fructus abest, facies cum bona teste caret,
tu licet et Tham yran superes et A m oebea cantu,
400 non erit ignotae gratia m agna lyrae.
si Venerem Cous nusquam posuisset Apelles,
mersa sub aequoreis illa lateret aquis,
quid petitur sacris, nisi tantum fama, poetis?
hoc uotum nostri summa laboris habet.

LINE 395
specto, -are look at, watch. Gladiatorial matches in Ov.’s time were held in the R. forum and elsewhere;
audiences were segregated by sex. Ov. details their erotic opportunities for men at notably greater
length (1.163-70)
tepidus,-a,-um warm
maculosus, -a, -um spotted, spattered [< macula ‘spot/ ‘stain’]
harena, -ae (f.) sand {> arena}, used to level the field of combat and soak up blood
meta, -ae (f.) conical marker, denoting either end of a race track. Chariots raced in the Circus Maximus
(one of the most beautiful buildings in the world, according to Pliny Naturalis Historia 36.102),
which seated at least 140,000 spectators, unsegregated by sex (cf. 634,1.135-62; the men’s account
is longer)
ferueo, -ere be very hot, be on fire. Races warmed the iron rims of ancient wheels (rota, -ae [f.] wheel’
{> rotate})
circumeo, -ire go around, skirt. Ptc. as adj. (AG #500.1), ‘which must be circled’
lateo, -ere be hidden (cf. 402). quod relat. pron. w/ omitted antec., sc. id
ignotus, -a, -um unknown, ignoti gen. sg. subst. (AG #289a), ‘what is unknown
fructus, -us (m.) enjoyment [<fruor ‘enjoy’], advantage, profit
absum, abesse be absent. Virtues require publicity to be appreciated; O v. extends the concept to the
virtue of beauty
facies, -ei (f.) physical appearance; (good) looks; face
testis, -is (m.) witness. Ov. casts beauty as a financial transaction (cf. damnum 92)
careo, -ere (+ abl.) lack, be without
licet (+ subjv.) although (AG #527b)
Thamyras, -ae (m.) Thracian singer (cf. Orpheus) who challenged the Muses; they blinded him and
stilled his voice. Gk. acc. sg. -an (AG #44). His vocal prowess is ironically undermined by Ov.’s em­
phasis on vision (398) and competition (superes 399), both of which Thamyras lost
Amoebeus, -eos (m.) Athenian lyre player (lyra, -ae [f.] ‘lyre’) and singer (3rd c. BCE), renowned for
his music and for refusing to have sex w/ his beautiful wife (Aelian De Natura Animalium 6.1). Gk.
acc. sg. -ea (AG #82)
cantus, -us (m.) singing, song [< cano ‘sing’]. Cf. Ov.’s musical advice at 311-28

LINE 400
gratia, -ae (f.) goodwill, favor; popularity; attractiveness
Cotis, -a, -um of Cos (Gk. island near the coast of Asia Minor), home of Apelles (-is [m.]), a famous
4th-c. BCE artist; Aug. brought his renowned painting of Venus (cf. 224) from Cos to R. as a dedica­
tion to the mother of the Julian family (who claimed descent from Aeneas, son of Venus)
80
 COM M ENTARY: 3 9 S -4 1 0

cura deum fuerunt olim regum que poetae, 405

praem iaque antiqui magna tulere chori,
sanctaque maiestas et erat uenerabile nom en
uatibus, et largae saepe dabantur opes.
Ennius emeruit, Calabris in montibus ortus,
contiguus poni, Scipio magne, tibi. 410

nusquam nowhere. Beyond noting that beauty needs publicity to be effective, Ov. also implies that
artists shape reality (vs. Am. 3.12)
pono, -nere, -sui set (down), place; depict (in art). C-to-F condit, w/ plpf. and impf. subjvs. (AG #517):
‘if he had not (then) ... she would (now)’
aequoreus, -a, -um of the sea. Venus (Aphrodite < Gk. a<pp6$ ‘foam’) was ocean-born
sacer, -era, -crum sacred; divinely inspired, s. poetis dat. of agent w/ petitur (AG #375a)
nisi tantum except... alone, but only. Elsewhere Ov. claims otherwise: w/ his poetry he seeks not just
fame (339-48, cf. 2.733-40, Am. 1.15.7-8) but sex as well (547, cf. 2.273-86, Am. 2.1.33-34)
summa, -ae (f.) total amount; sum; full extent (+ gen. nostri laboris)
405-32: Aim for fame.
Both poets and puellae long for celebrity (and the one can provide it for the other, 535-38); Ov.’s
lament for poetic obscurity (411-12) contradicts not only the flourishing of lit. arts under Aug. but
also his own claims to fame (Am. 1.15, 3.12.7-14, Ars 2,733-44, Rem. 361-96). Women may try
their luck in R.’s public spaces (417-32), though Ov. hints that they may be (mis)taken for prosti­
tutes (419 lupa)

LINE 405
olim (adv.) formerly, long ago. deum = deorum (AG #49d,%).fuerunt poet, shortening of regularfuerunt
(Plat 53-54, Gild #131N5)
praemium, -i (n.) reward. Sth- and 4th-c. Gk. festivals involved competitions in tragedy and comedy,
inch singing and dancing choruses (chori); victorious authors (and producers) earned (fero,ferre, tuli
‘carry [off]/ ‘win’; tulere = tulerunt, AG #163a) fame and crowns (freq. of gold)
antiquus, -a, -um ancient. Ov.’s self-pity ignores bountiful artistic patronage in Aug. R.
maiestas, -tatis (f.) dignity, majesty [< maior'greater’]
uenerabilis, -e revered [< ueneror ‘adore,’ ‘venerate’], august
nomen, -inis (n.) name, reputation [cf. nosco ‘get to know’ and 535-36]
uates, -is (m.) prophet; poet (esp. as inspired by the gods), dat. of possession (AG #373), ‘bards used to
possess holy dignity’
ops, opis (f.) means, resources, power; (pi.) wealth
Ennius, -i (m.) R. poet (239-169 BCE), author of tragedies, Annales (history of R. in verse, incl. praise
of Scipio), and a poem titled Scipio. Ennius called himself‘Homer reborn,’ cf. 413-14
emereo, -ere, -ui deserve (+ inf. poni)
Calaber, -bra, -brum of Calabria, a rural (hence uncultured) region of southern Italy
orior, -iri, ortum arise. Ennius’ backwoods origin makes his R. fame the more glorious

LINE 410
contiguus, -a, -um adjacent, next to (+ dat. tibi). Pred. nom. w/ compl. inf. (AG #458)
Scipio, -onis (m.) Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus (236-184 BCE), who defeated Hannibal
at Zama in 202. Three statues on the prominent tomb of the Scipio family outside R. were said
to represent P. Scipio, his brother Lucius (Asiaticus), and Ennius (Cicero pro Archia 22,
Livy 38.56.4)
81
O vid, A rs A matoria

nunc hederae sine honore iacent operataque doctis

cura uigil Musis nom en inertis habet,
sed famae uigilare iuuat: quis nosset Hom erum ,
Ilias aeternum si latuisset opus?
415 quis Danaen nosset, si semper clausa fuisset
inque sua turri perlatuisset anus?
utilis est uobis, formosae, turba, puellae;
saepe uagos ultra lim ina ferte pedes,
ad multas lupa tendit oues, praedetur ut unam,
420 et Iouis in multas deuolat ales aues:

hedera, -ae (f.) ivy (worn in crowns as a symbol of poet, inspiration or success)
iaceo, -ere lie (on the ground, idle), be neglected; be low (in price)
operatus, -a, -um working on [< opus, operis ‘work’], engaged in; religiously occupied w/, devoted to (cf. 635).
Ov. counters the caricature of the lazy poet w/ a picture of the dedicated and energetic zealot (cf. Am. 1.9)
uigil, -ilis awake, wakeful. All-nighters typify lovers (1.735 uigilatae... noctes, cf. Am. 2.10.27-28) and
(love) poets (2.285 uigilatum carmen)
Musa, -ae (f.) Muse (goddess of poet, inspiration). Their learned (doctis) nature requires sleepless
(uigil) and devoted (operata) attention (cura) from the hard-working poet
iners, inertis idle, inactive, inert. Nt. sg. as abstr. subst. (AG #289a), ‘idleness’ (w/ nomen... habet, ‘has
a reputation for sloth,’ cf. 536 nomen habet)
uigilo, -are be awake, stay up at night (+ dat., ‘for fame’)
iuuo, -are help, benefit; gratify, please
nosco, -ere, noui get to know; (pf. w/ pres, sense, AG #205bN2) know. no(ui)sset (contr. plpf., AG
#181a) in C-to-F condit.: ‘who would know’
Homerus, -i (m.) Homer, poet of the Iliad and Odyssey. Ov. cheekily implies that Horn, and he wrote
their works for the same reason: celebrity
Ilias, -adis (f.) Iliad [‘story of Ilium,’ another name for Troy], Hom.’s epic poem
aeternus, -a, -um eternal, imperishable, a. opus in appos. w/ Ilias. Ov. also seeks eternal fame
(Am. 1.15.7-8 mihifama perennis quaeritur; Met. 15.878-89)
lateo, -ere, -ui be hidden (cf. 397,402)

LINE 415
Danae, -es (f.) lovely daughter of Argive king Acrisius (631), fated to bear a son who would kill his
grandfather. Acrisius imprisoned her in a bronze tower; impregnated by Jupiter in the form of a
golden shower, she bore Perseus (who later killed Acrisius). Gk. acc. sg. -en (AG #44)
claudo, -dere, -si, -sum shut (in), enclose
turris, -is (f.) tower. Danae did in fact leave her tower, but only after Jupiter's visit
perlateo, -ere, -ui remain for good [per- ‘thoroughly’; the compd. vb. appears only here]
anus, -us (f.) old woman [not < anus, -i (m.) ‘ring’]. Cf. the perils of age at 59-80
utilis, -e useful, profitable
formosus, -a, -um beautiful. Voc. pi. w / puellae, who used to be the turba themselves (255); Ov. now
urges them to mingle in the public turba
uagus, -a, -um wandering, roaming. Ov. suggests both feminine freedom and promiscuous prostitution:
is a woman walking down the street a streetwalker? Male viewers might distinguish by her dress and
demeanor (cf. Prop. 2.23.13-18); Ov. at least emphasizes the puella’s action over the male’s reaction
ultra (+ acc.) beyond, past
limen, -inis (n.) doorstep, threshold (sc. of her house). Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2)
82
 COMMENTARY: 411-428

se quoque det populo mulier speciosa uidendam;

quem trahat, e multis forsitan unus erit,
omnibus illa locis maneat studiosa placendi
et curam tota mente decoris agat,
casus ubique ualet: semper tibi pendeat hamus; 425
quo minime credas gurgite, piscis erit;
saepe canes frustra nemorosis montibus errant
inque plagam nullo ceruus agente uenit.

lupa, -ae (£) female wolf; sexually ravenous woman, prostitute (c£ 8). Analogies from nature further render
woman both becomingly active and overly aggressive (c£ Ganymede, kidnapped byJupiter’s eagle; praeda 84)
tendo, -ere stretch, extend; aim (at), strive (for)
ouis, -is (£) sheep. O v. and others freq. combine sexualized imagery of wolves and birds of prey (Ars 1.117-20,
2.363-64); here word order heightens sense, w/ attackers inserted among their prey (multas lupa... oues)
praedor, -ari acquire as loot or prey; plunder, catch

LINE 420
deuolo, -are fly down
ales, -itis (m.) large bird; (w/ Iouis, ‘of Jupiter’) eagle (Jupiter’s emblem)
auis, -is (f.) bird (of any kind). For similar contrasts between one particular ales and a general flock of
aues cf. Am. 2.6.1-2, Horace Carmina 4.4.1-2
speciosus, -a, -um lovely, good-looking [< *specio ‘look’]. It's all for show, Ov. now implies (uidendam
gdve. of purpose [AG #500.4], ‘for seeing’)
traho, -ere draw, drag; attract. Relat. cl. of purpose (AG #531.2)
forsitan (adv.) perhaps [<fors sit an, ‘the chance may be whether’], + indie. (422) or subjv. (448).
Despite 251-58, even lovely women’s success rate will be low, Ov. now implies; men have much
better chances (1.269-270)
maneo, -ere stay, linger, omnibus... locis abl. of place where w/out prep. (AG #429)
studiosus, -a, -um eager (for), intent (on). Adj. replaces protasis of condit. (AG #521a): ‘if she is eager’
(+ gen. ger.placendi [AG #504])
placeo, -ere (+ dat.) please, attract (cf. 1.42 tu mihi sola places [man speaking to woman])
decor, -oris (m.) attractiveness. Obj. gen. (AG #348) w/ curam, ‘attention to charm’
ago, -ere lead, drive (cf. 428); work at, be involved in (OLD s.v. ago 22)

LINE 425
casus, -us (m.) chance, luck
pendeo, -ere hang down
hamus, -i (m.) hook; fish hook. Ov. used similar imagery for his male students (l .47-48,393,763-64);
now he teaches women to become fishers of men
credo, -ere believe, suppose. Potent, subjv. (AG #447.2) w/ omitted ind. disc., sc.piscem esse
gurges, -itis (m.) whirlpool; pool, river, gurgite anteced. attracted into relat. cl. w/ relat. adj. quo
(AG #306aN), ‘in which pool you would hardly believe’
canis, -is (m./f.) dog. Hunting imagery (w/ implications of success via ars) is freq. in Ars, cf. esp. l.4S_48,
391-94,3.370, and Procris’ end (683-746)
frustra (adv.) in vain, unsuccessfully
nemorosus, -a, -um forested (< nemus, nemoris ‘forest,’ cf. 689), well-wooded
mons, -ntis (m.) mountain
erro, -are wander, roam (freq. as a distraught lover, cf. 437,1.731, V. Eel. 6.52)
plaga, -ae (f.) trap, net (not < plaga ‘blow, wound’)
ceruus, -i (m.) deer, stag
83
O v id , A rs A m a t o r i a

quid minus Andromedae fuerat sperare reuinctae

430 quam lacrimas ulli posse placere suas?
funere saepe uiri uir quaeritur: ire solutis
crinibus et fletus non tenuisse decet.

sed uitate uiros cultum formamque professos

quique suas ponunt in statione comas:

minor, minus smaller; less. W / quid, nt. acc. sg. dir. obj. of sperare (+ quam ‘than’)
Andromeda, -ae (f.) princess (cf. 191) whose mother Cassiepia claimed to be lovelier than the sea god­
desses; Neptune in return demanded the sacrifice other daughter. Chained to a cliff and nearly slain
by a sea monster, she was saved by the hero Perseus, who chanced by. Dat. of possession w/ subj. quid
minus sperare. ‘What less had she had to hope for?’
reuincio, -cire, -xi, -ctum bind (back), tie up

LINE 430
lacrima, -ae (f.) tear. Ov. perverts the myth’s pathos w/ tasteless analysis of the heroine’s feelings and
untimely recollection of earlier advice (291-92)
funus, -eris (n.) funeral (abl, of time when [AG #424d]: ‘at the funeral’). Ov.’s alarming joke couples
death and desire (but cf. Terence Phormio 95-111 for another bereaved beauty) andw / polyptoton
(uiri uir, cf. 42) implies the interchangeability of love objects; contrast 19-22. Hellenistic Gk. poets
freq. mentioned the paradox of a wedding that becomes a funeral (cf. Her. 11.101-4,21.157-72, Tac.
Ann. 14.63); Ov. jauntily reverses the paradox
soluo, -uere, -ui, -utum loosen. W / crinibus (crinis, -is [m.] ‘tress’) abl. abs. of accomp. circumst.
(AG #420.5); cf. Ov.’s earlier praise of loose hair (153-54)
fletus, -us (m.) weeping [<jleo ‘weep’]. Dir. obj. of tenuisse. Like the professional mourners hired for
elite R. funerals, bereaved women should make an artistic display of emotion
decet it suits (impers. vb.), w/ inf. subjs. ire and non tenuisse (= non tenere, Plat 109-112)
433-66: Avoid womanish men: they lie, cheat, and steal. Ov. had simply counseled men to appear
clean and tidy (1.505-24); those who pay excessive attention to their looks (note superl. forms in
443,445,447) cloak sexual (437-38) or social (441-52) bad behavior. Some men are inveterate liars
(453-60), but those who give gifts should be rewarded w/ sex (461-66)
uito,-are avoid, shun
cultus, -us (m.) cultivation, culture, (good) taste
profiteor, -eri, professum declare; make a practice of; lay claim to. Men may require cultus too, but
should never reveal or overdo it (cf. 447,681)
statio, -onis (f.) position, station (i.e. a hairdo; Ov. usu. uses the noun of women’s hair, Am. 1.7.68, cf.
Am. 1.11.1 ponere crines)
coma, -ae (f.) hair. Ov.’s earlier advice to men stresses clean simplicity (1.505-24)

LINE 435
quae. . . dicunt relat. cl. (sc. anteced. ilia), dir. obj. of dixerunt
sedes, -is (f.) seat, place
moror, -ari delay, linger. ButOv. earlier defined Amor as naturally flighty (2.18 tam uasto peruagus orbe
puer, cf. 3.4 toto qui uolat orbepuer); not only effeminate men are likely to be inconstant
leuis, -e smooth [not < leuis ‘light’]; hairless. Men who upstage women in womanly attributes (ipsa abl.
of comparison [AG #406] w/ leuior and plures) leave them no gender roles to perform (faciat delib.
subjv. [AG #444], ‘what is she to do?’)
84
 COMMENTARY: 4 2 9 -4 4 6

quae uobis dicunt, dixerunt mille puellis; 43S

errat e t in nulla sede m oratur Amor,
fem ina quid faciat, cum sit u ir leuior ipsa
forsitan et plures possit habere uiros?
u ix m ih i credetis, sed credite: Troia m aneret,
praeceptis Priam i si foret usa sui. 440
sunt qui mendaci specie grassentur amoris
perque aditus tales lucra pudenda petant,
nec coma uos fallat liquido nitidissim a nardo
nec breuis in rugas lingula pressa suas,
nec toga decipiat filo tenuissim a, nec si 445
anulus in digitis alter et alter erit.

uix (adv.) scarcely, barely. Ov.’s nearly incredible truth—his Troia maneret ...s u i acknowledges
the tragedy that results from ignoring good advice—is detailed in 441-42: dandies are
deceptive

LINE 440
praecipio, -cipere, -cepi, -ceptum instruct; (pf. part.) instruction, teachings, education
Priamus, -i (m.) Priam, king of Troy; he had agreed w/ a proposal (rejected by the fop Paris) to return
Helen to the Gks and thus end TW. (All mss. here are faulty; some scholars emend w/ a ref. to
Cassandra, Priam’s daughter, whose prophecies of Troy’s downfall were famously ignored)
utor, -i, usum (+ abl.) make use of. foret usa = esset usa (AG #170a). C-to-F condit, w/ plpf. and impf.
subjvs. (AG #517): ‘Troy would (now) .. .if it had (then)’
mendax, -acis deceptive. (But all men have been urged to feign love: 1.611-18)
species, -ei (f.) appearance [< *specio ‘look’]
grassor, -ari prowl, roam for prey. Relat. cl. of characteristic (AG #535)
aditus, -us (m.) approach; access, opening [< adeo, -ire ‘approach’]
lucrum, -i (n.) profit. (Ov. likewise pillories women who conflate sex w/ money: 97-98,463-66,805-6)
pudendus, -a, -um shameful, scandalous (gdve. of intr. pudet ‘it shames,’ Gild #427N5)
peto, -ere seek
fallo, -ere deceive
liquidus,-a,-um liquid
nitidus, -a, -um shining, glossy, lustrous (freq. neg. in tone in ref. to men; cf. ‘oily’)
nardum, -i (n.) the plant nard; its aromatic oil, freq. used as a perfume
breuis, -e short. Any man who takes care to fold (premo, -mere, -ssi, -ssum ‘press,’ ‘insert,’ ‘fold’) the
short tongue (lingula, -ae [f.]) of his shoe into its own creases (ruga, -ae [£] ‘wrinkle’), perh. so as to
hide it from sight, is overly devoted to footwear. Budding orators likewise should not pay excessive
attention to their shoes (Quintilian Institutio Oratoria 1.3.137)

LINE 445
decipio, -ipere, -epi, -eptum deceive (cf. 454,460)
filum, -i (n.) thread; texture. Abl. of specification (AG #418) w / tenuissima (tenuis, -e ‘slender’;
‘fine’). Excessively thin garments effeminize men; Ov. simply urges them to wear clean, well-fitting
togas (1.514)
anulus, -i (m.) ring. Any man wearing one ring betokens property properly displayed; any man wearing
more than one rings false
alter et alter (the) one and (the) other. The phrase usu. implies ‘both’ (of two); here Ov. seems to imply
simple plurality (‘one and yet another’)
85
O vid, A rs A matoria

forsitan ex horum num ero cultissimus ille

fur sit et uratu r uestis amore tuae.
‘redde m eum ’ clam ant spoliatae saepe puellae,
450 ‘redde m eum ’ toto uoce boante foro.
has, Venus, e templis multo radiantibus auro
lenta uides lites Appiadesque tuae,
sunt quoque non dubia quaedam mala nom ina fama:
deceptae m ulti crim en am antis habent.
455 discite ab alterius uestris timuisse querelis,
ianua fallaci ne sit aperta uiro.

cultus, -a, -um cultured, suave [< colo ‘cultivate’]

numerus, -i (m.) number; group, ex horum numero ‘of their group’ (AG #221.11c)
fur, furis (m.) thief. The man hopes either to pawn or to wear the stolen goods
uro, -ere, ussi, ustum burn, set alight; (pass.) be on fire, be passionate
uestis, -is (f.) garment. Obj. gen. (AG #348) w/ amore, ‘love for your clothing’
reddo, -ere return, give back. The puella is demanding restoration at the time of the theft or in a later
court case for the restitution of stolen property
spolio, -are despoil, rob, plunder (cf. grassentur 441)

LINE 450
uox, uocis (f.) voice. R. women could speak in court on their own behalf, though it was peril, rare for
them to do so (cf. Valerius Maximus 8.3)
boo, -are shout [< Gk. (3odw 'shout']
forum, -i (n.) forum, where court cases were tried (cf. 1.79-88,2.223,3.542). toto.. .foro abl. of place
w/out prep. (AG #429.2)
templum, -i (n.) temple (cf. 464). The temple of Venus Genetrix (‘Founder/ sc. of the R. people by her
son Aeneas) stood in the center of R.’s Forum lulium
radio, -are radiate, shine. Venus’ temple contained many treasures
aurum, -i (n.) gold. Venus herself is traditionally ‘golden’; now R. is too (113)
lentus, -a, -um soft; slow, sluggish; unconcerned (adj. as adv., AG #290)
lis, litis (f.) lawsuit; quarrel, has... lites looks back to the material of the previous couplet. Venus never
takes R. law seriously (1.87,2.157-58)
Appias, -adis (f.) a nymph (cf aqueduct aqua Appia); her statue (presumably w/ those of other nymphs) stood
in front of Venus’ temple Gk. nom. pi. -es (AG #81.4); sg. uides agrees only w/ first subj. Venus (AG #317c)
quidam, quae-, quod- certain (but Ov. never names the subject of his attacks: 2.631,3.245)
dubius, -a, -um doubtful. W / non.. .fama abl. of quality, ‘of undoubted reputation’
crimen, -inis (n.) crime (cf. 459,632); criminal charge, accusation (cf. 31-32)
deceptae. . . amantis the action of a pass. ptc. can take precedence over the noun it modifies
(AG #497); ‘of deceiving a lover’

LINE 455
disco, -ere (+ inf.) learn (how). Ov.’s instructive pair of deceptive men (Theseus and Demophoon) echoes
Prop., who warns puellae w/ the exx. ofjason and Odysseus (2.21.11-16, esp. 15-16 puellae / discite)
timeo, -ere, -ui fear. Pf. inf. used as pres. (Plat 109-12, AG #486e). timeo + dat. uestris (sc. querelis)
‘fear for your own’ (AG #367.c, Gild #346N2)
querela, -ae (f.) complaint, ah alterius... querelis ‘from another’s complaints’
ianua, -ae (f.) door (sc. of the women’s houses)
fallax, -acis deceptive, traitorous (cf. 33fallax... Iason)
86
 COMMENTARY: 447-466

parcite, Cecropides, iuranti credere Theseo:

quos faciet testes, fecit et ante deos,
et tibi, Demophoon Thesei criminis heres,
Phyllide decepta nulla relicta fides. 460
si bene prom ittent, totidem prom ittite uerbis;
si dederint, et uos gaudia pacta date,
illa potest uigiles flammas extinguere Vestae
et rapere e templis, Inachi, sacra tuis
et dare m ixta uiro tritis aconita cicutis, 465
accepto Venerem m unere si qua negat.

aperio, -ire, -ui, -tum open. Ptc. as pred. adj. (AG #495), Test the door be open’
parco, -ere spare; cease, refrain from (+ inf.)
Cecropis, -idos (f.) female descendant of Cecrops, mythic first king of Athens; Athenian woman. Gk.
voc. pi. -is (AG #81.4)
iuro, -are swear (an oath). But Ov. tells all men to break their oaths (1.631-36)
Theseus, -ei (m.) hero famed for lying w/ and to many women; he deserted Ariadne on his way to
Athens (35). ThesW by synizesis (2 syll. as 1, AG #603c)
testis, -is (m.) witness, testes and deos pred. acc. (AG #393); Theseus can only be trusted to repeat his per­
jury (cf. 435). Gods are reliably unconcerned (377,451, cf. Am. 3.3.1 esse deos, i, crede:fidem iuratafefellit)
Demophoon, -ntis (m.) son of Theseus; he deserted Phyllis [Gk. ‘Leaf’] in Thrace (37-38)
Theseus,-a,-um of Theseus
heres, -edis (m.) heir. From Theseus Demophoon inherited the kingship of Athens and a flair for jilting
women
relinquo, -inquere, -iqui, -ictum leave (behind, cf. 35-36 Ariadna... relicta); reserve

LINE 460
fides, -ei (f.) trustworthiness (usu. associated in Ars 3 w/ men: 544, S78,791, etc.)
promitto, -ere promise, guarantee (w/ uerbis abl. of means: 'make verbal promises’)
totidem (indecl.) equally many. Women are urged to equal men in making empty vows
gaudium, -i (n.) joy (freq. sexual); sexual pleasure. Ov.’s delight in coed verbal games matches (via
repeated syntax) his interest in men’s physical rewards
pango, -ere, pepigi, pactum set; settle, agree upon. If men have actually given tangible gifts (dederint
sc. munera), women are to comply sexually; those who do not, Ov. claims, are no better than traitors,
thieves, and murderers. At 1.443-54 Ov. encouraged men to deceive women into sex w/ the promise
of future gifts but there refrained from the hysterical tone of the three examples listed here
uigil, -ilis wakeful; watchful. Adj. transferred from the Vestal virgins to flammas
extinguo, -ere extinguish, put out
Vesta, -ae (f.) goddess of the hearth. Vestal virgins were required on pain of death to keep a fire burn­
ing in her temple (in the R. Forum) at all times, as it symbolized the continued existence of R. itself
rapio, -ere snatch (away), steal. Temples were freq. filled w/ treasures; temple-robbing (sacrilegium)
was an appalling crime, cf. Suetonius Julius Caesar 54
Inachis, -idos (f.) female descendant of king Inachus; Io, worshipped as Isis (cf. 393)

LINE 465
misceo, -scere, -scui, -xtum mix. W / dat. cicutis (cicuta, -ae [f.] ‘hemlock’ [a toxic plant]; poet. pi. for
sg. [AG #101N2]) ‘with hemlock,’ AG #413aN. Anc. lit. freq. ascribes poisoning to women
tero, -ere, triui, tritum rub, crush, grind (as a medicinal preparation)
aconitum, -i (n.) aconite, wolfsbane (a toxic plant). Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2)
87
O vid, A rs A matoria

fert anim us propius consistere: supprim e habenas,

Musa, nec admissis excutiare rotis,
uerba uadum tem ptent abiegnis scripta tabellis;
470 accipiat missas apta ministra notas.
inspice, quodque leges, ex ipsis collige uerbis
fingat an ex anim o sollicitusque roget,
postque breuem rescribe moram: m ora semper amantes
incitat, exiguum si m odo tem pus habet.
475 sed neque te facilem iuueni promitte roganti
nec tamen e duro, quod petit ille, nega:

467-98: Love letters: when, how, and what to write.

Letters are a standard element of communication in R. love el.j Ov.’s advice emphasizes emotional
complexity (471-78), stylistic poise (479-82,493-98), and the dangers of detection (483-92, cf.
Her. 17.265-68 [Helen], 21.17-26 [Cydippe])
fero, ferre bear, carry; urge, prompt. Cf. Met. 1.1 in nouafert animus
propius (adv.) closer (compar, of prope, AG #130a)
consisto, -ere stand, take up position
supprimo, -ere press down on; hold back, control. After the hysteria of463-66 Ov. implies the need
for greater control of his poet, chariot
habena, -ae (f.) rein (used for controlling horses) [< habeo ‘hold’]
Musa, -ae (f.) Muse (goddess of poet, inspiration)
admitto, -ttere, -misi, -missum allow in; send, release, give speed to (cf. 312 admissas... rates). Abl.
abs. w/ rotis (rota, -ae [f.] ‘wheel’ {> rotate})
excutio, -ere shake (quatio) out (ex-), throw (from a place), -re = -ris (AG #163)
uadum, -i (n.) shallow water {> wade}. Lat. and E. share the idiom ‘test the waters’
tempto, -are try, test. Men write first (1.437-86, cf. 1.707-14); women respond
abiegnus, -a, -um made of fir-wood [< abies ‘fir’]
tabella, -ae (f.) tablet (used for writing, cf. 485,496,621)

LINE 470
accipio,-ere accept
aptus, -a, -um suited, fit [< apiscor, -i, aptus ‘obtain’]. Slaves must be suited to their tasks
(cf. 485-86)— and to Ov. s interests (cf. 665-66, Am. 2.8.4)
ministra, -ae (f.) handmaid, female servant (a more elevated term than ancilla)
nota, -ae (f.) mark, (written) character (498); signal (514,804)
inspicio, -ere inspect, examine. (But how to verify authentic emotions? Ov. urges men to imitate a
lover’s sincerity in their letters, 1.439-40,1.611-12)
colligo, -ere gather (physically or mentally), infer, quod... leges relat. cl. w/ omission of antec.
(sc. illius): ‘from the words of what you will read’
fingo, -ere feign, pretend. Subjv. in double indir. quest. (AG #574) w/ omission of interr. particle; an
‘or’ introduces second quest. (AG #335a)
ex animo ‘from his heart,’ ‘sincerely’ (OLD s.v. animus 8b)
sollicitus, -a, -um troubled, restless, anxious. Adj. as adv. (AG #290), cf. 600
rescribo, -ere write back, write in response (495)
mora, -ae (f.) delay (an essential technique for both sexes: 2.349-58,716-17,3.752)
incito, -are provoke, arouse (cf. 601)

88
 COMMENTARY: 4 6 7 - 4 8 4

fac tim eat speretque simul, quotiensque remittes,

spesque magis ueniat certa m inorque metus,
m unda sed e medio consuetaque uerba, puellae,
scribite: sermonis publica forma placet. 480
a, quotiens dubius scriptis exarsit am ator
et nocuit formae barbara lingua bonae!
sed quoniam , quamuis uittae careatis honore,
est uobis uestros fallere cura uiros,

exiguus, -a, -um small, brief. W/ tempus dir. obj. of habet

modb (adv.) only, just, simply [< modus ‘quantity’]

LINE 475
facilis, -e easy to do; compliant. Pred. acc. w/ t e . . . promitte (AG #393)
iuuenis, -is (m./f.) youth, young (man)
e duro ‘stubbornly,’ ‘harshly’ (OLD s.v. ex 8; duro subst. adj., AG #289a)
nego, -are deny, refuse (+ relat. cl. quod petit ille as dir. obj.)
spero, -are hope (cf. spes 478). Subjvs. timeat and speret w / fac in subst. cl. of purpose (AG #565,449c),
‘make sure that he hopes and fears’
simul (adv.) at the same time, together
quotiens as often as (correl. adv., AG #217b); how often (exclam., 481)
remitto, -ere send back (sc. a letter); respond, reply
certus, -a, -um certain, assured. Pred. nom. (AG #284) w/ magis (= certior, OLD s.v. magis 2a, cf. 790
uera magis), ‘hope grows more assured’
metus, -us (m.) fear. Ov. had likewise told men to be patiently optimistic (1.481-86)
mundus, -a, -um clean; attractive, elegant (cf. 133 munditiis)
medium, -i (n.) middle, center; e medio ‘common,’ ‘everyday’ (OLD 4c)
consuesco, -scere, -ui, -turn become used to (+ inf., 493); (pf. ptc.) customary, normal

LINE 480
sermo, -onis (m.) speech, conversation; language
publicus, -a, -um public; of the people, popular, common, regular
placeo, -ere please, attract. Men too should affect an unaffected style (1.463-68)
exardesco, -ere, exarsi catch on fire, flare up (with desire [2.254] or anger [Met. 1.724])
noceo, -ere, -ui harm (+ dat .formae... bonae). Lovers need both glamor and grammar
barbarus, -a, -um foreign; strange, uncouth, wrong, Barbarismus is the commission of errors in
spelling, grammar, or tone
lingua, -ae (f.) tongue; speech (spoken or written)
quoniam because, since (+ indie, esf)
quamuis although (+ subj., AG #527a). Despite their lack (careo, -ere + abl.) of matronly status, un­
married women are like matronae, claims Ov., in their desire to deceive their uiri—i.e. all women are
deceptive
uitta, -ae (f.) headband, worn by R. matrons as a mark of honor (honor, -oris [m.]) to symbolize their
propriety (cf. 1.31 uittae tenues, insigne pudoris)
fallo, -ere trick. Pred. inf. (AG #452.3) w/ est uobis... cura (dat. of possession)

89
O vid, A rs A matoria

485 ancillae pueriue m anu perarate tabellas,

486 pignora nec puero credite uestra nouo.
489 perfidus ille quidem, qui talia pignora seruat,
490 sed tam en Aetnaei fulm inis instar habent.
487 uidi ego fallentes isto terrore puellas
488 seruitium miseras tem pus in om ne pati.
491 iudice me fraus est concessa repellere fraudem,
arm aque in arm atos sumere iura sinunt,
ducere consuescat multas m anus una figuras
(a, pereant, per quos ista m onenda mihi!),
495 nec nisi deletis tutum rescribere ceris,
ne teneat geminas una tabella manus.

LINE 485
ancilla, -ae (f.) female slave, handmaid [< Gk. ‘attendant’]
puer, -i (m.) boy; (young) male slave
manus, -us (f.) hand (493), handwriting (496). A slave’s handwriting provides plausible deniability for
any love-letter that falls into the wrong hands
peraro, -are plough through, furrow; inscribe. Wooden tablets covered in wax (cf. 495-96) were used
as writing material; the stylus would plough a track through the wax. Even the handwriting of such a
letter could be traced to its scribe (as Ov. claims at Pont. 2.10.1-4)
pignus, -oris (n.) pledge (of devotion, here as written in a letter)
credo, -ere entrust. Recently purchased slaves make untrustworthy couriers
perfidus, -a, -um faithless, traitorous
quidem indeed (intensifying pci.); w/ ilk (AG #298, Gild #307.1), ‘He is disloyal, the one w ho...’
(i.e. thepwer nouus in 486)
seruo, -are preserve (for later use), stow away. Faithlessness now ironically appears in (not the lover
but) the slave, the seruus qui seruat

LINE 490
Aetnaeus, -a, -um of Aetna, a Sicilian volcano, home of the Cyclopes who forged Jupiter’s thunderbolts
(Julmen, -inis [n.] [< fulgeo ‘flash’])
instar (indecl. noun) equal; equivalent effect (+ gen.). A slave can blackmail his mistress by threaten­
ing to divulge her love letters
terror, -oris (m.) terror (i.e. the threat of blackmail in 489-90, hence the rearrangement of the mss.’ order of
w.). Abl. of cause w / pati (AG #404); some mss. replacefallentes w / pallentes, ashen-faced from that fear’
seruitium, -i (n.) slavery. Further irony: the slave wields power over the mistress
miser, -ra, -rum wretched (evoking pity)
patior, -i suffer. Ind. disc. (uidi ...puellas... pati) can show dir. physical (not mental) perception
(Gild #527Nl): ‘I have seen girls suffer’
in + acc. into; for (OLD s.v. in 23b), cf. 657
iudex, -icis (m.) judge, iudice me abl. abs. (AG #419a), ‘in my judgment’
fraus, -dis (f.) detriment, wrongdoing; deception, fraud. Men and women alike are super-duper lovers
(cf. 1.645fallitefallentes); women’s enemies are now not husbands or lovers but disloyal male slaves
concedo, -dere, -ssi, -ssum allow (+ inf., AG #563c)
repello, -ere drive away; fend off, deter
arma, -orum (n.) implements of war, weapons (cf. 1-4)
armo, -are arm, equip, armatos subst. (AG #288), cf. 5,3 ite in bella pares
sumo, -ere take up, wield. Sc. omnes as subj. of sumere (and as obj. of sinunt)
90
 COMMENTARY: 485-502

femina dicatur scribenti semper amator:

‘illa’ sit in uestris, qui fuit ‘ille’, notis.

si licet a paruis animum ad maiora referre

plenaque curuato pandere uela sinu, 500
pertinet ad faciem rabidos compescere mores:
candida pax homines, trux decet ira feras.

ius, iuris (n.) legal entitlement, right(s), here in agreement w/ Ov.’s opinion (491)
sino, -ere allow, permit (+ inf. [AG #563c]), w/ subj. iura
duco, -ere lead; draw along; draw (on a writing surface)
figura, -ae (f.) shape, style (here, of handwriting). Mimicry of another’s script can forge a duplicitous career
(Suetonius Titus 3); stylistic flexibility also marks the heroic narrator, cf. Ulysses (2.128) and Ov. himself
pereo, -ire perish, die
moneo, -ere warn; advise. Ov. laments the need (monenda gdve., AG #S00.2, mihi dat. of agent) to give
such advice
per (+ acc.) through; as a result of (OLD 13), ‘on whose account’

LINE 495
deleo, -ere, -eui, -etum wipe out, erase (to remove the lovers message or the evidence of the puellas
scribal variations), nisi deletis... ceris (abi. abs.) = nisi cerae deletae sunt (AG #420.4)
tutus, -a, -um safe. Nt. pred. adj. w/ subj. rescribere (sc. est), AG #289d
cera, -ae (f.) wax; wooden tablet coated w/ wax (used for writing)
geminus, -a, -um twin; double, two
dico, -ere say; call, amator subj., femina pred. nom. w/ dicatur (AG #284, #393a), scribenti sc. tibi dat. of
agent (AG #375a). Ov.’s suggestion to switch pron. genders has no parallel in anc. lit., but Cic. uses
epistolary pseudonyms (Art. 2.19.5), and Ov. links handwriting w/ authorship (Pont. 2.10.1-8, cf.
ps.-Ov. Epist. Sapph. 1-4)
499-524: Shun anger, pride, and moroseness.
Ov. warns of emotional faults for the facial distortions they produce (cf. 373-78, vs. the opposite
at 801-4)
licet, -ere it is permitted (impers. vb. [AG #207] w/ inf. subj. [AG #454])
paruus, -a, -um small. Nt. pi. as subst. (AG #288), cf. 353
refero, referre bring back, recall; redirect

LINE S00
plenus,-a,-um full (sc. of wind)
curuo, -are bend, curve; (pass.) belly, bulge. W / sinu (sinus, -us [m.] ‘fold,’ ‘hollow’; ‘curve,’ ‘curl’) abl.
of quality (AG #415)
pando, -ere open up, extend, stretch out
uelum, -i (n.) sail. Captain Ov. now guides his poet, craft on the open sea (cf. 99)
pertineo, -ere pertain; tend, be conducive
facies, -ei (f.) physical appearance; (good) looks
rabidus, -a, -um raging, frenzied. Anger betokens uncontrolled insanity (cf. E. ‘mad’)
compesco, -ere restrain, stifle, control. Inf. as subj. (AG #452.1)
mos, moris (m.) custom; (pi.) habits, character
candidus, -a, -um bright, white; fair; favorable. Contrast dark imagery of 504
trux, -ucis harsh, savage, wild. Emotional control distinguishes human from beast (fera, -ae W );
unrestrained anger (ira, -ae [f.]) produces monstrous metamorphoses (504)
decet it suits (impers. vb. + acc., AG #388c), w/ nom. subj. pax and ira
91
O vid, A rs A matoria

ora tum ent ira, nigrescunt sanguine uenae,

lum ina Gorgoneo saeuius igne m icant.
505 ‘i procul h in c / dixit ‘non es m ihi, tibia, ta n ti’,
u t uidit uultus Pallas in am ne suos,
uos quoque si m edia speculum spectetis in ira,
cognoscat faciem uix satis ulla suam,
nec minus in uultu dam nosa superbia uestro:
510 comibus est oculis alliciendus Amor.
odimus im m odicos (experto credite) fastus:
saepe tacens odii semina uultus habet.

os, oris (n.) mouth; face (> oral, orifice}

tumeo, -ere swell (+ abi, of cause, AG #404)
nigresco, -ere turn black, grow dark [< niger + inceptive suff. -sco (AG #263.1)]
sanguis, -inis (m.) blood
uena, -ae (f.) vein
lumen, -inis (n.) light; eye (cf. 618). Fiery (ignis, -is [m.] ‘fire’) eyes signal beauty (Met. 1.498) or wrath
(V.Aen. 12.102)
Gorgoneus, -a, -um of the gorgon Medusa, whose hideous face petrified its viewers
saeuus, -a, -um savage. Compar, adv. -ius + abl. of comparison, AG #406
mico, -are quiver, tremble (722); glitter, flash [not < mica ‘pebble,’ ‘crumb’]

LINE 505
procul (adv.) far away, i procul hinc (‘from here’) freq. used in warding off the impure or uninitiated
(M et 2.464; cf. Ars 1.31 esteprocul, where Ov. warns away proper matrons), hence its use by the
virgin Minerva
tibia, -ae (f.) anc. double-reed instrument (Gk. aulos, cf. mod. oboe) requiring ample breath; some
players supported their puffed cheeks w/ straps
tantus, -a, -um so great; (gen. of value, AG #417) of so much, worth it (cf. 610)
uultus, -us (m.) facial expression, look; face (ffeq. pi. for sg.)
Pallas, -adis (f.) Minerva (Gk. Athena), goddess of wisdom. She invented the tibia but discarded it after
seeing the distortion of her face while playing
amnis, -is (m.) river, stream (hence further distorting her face’s reflection)
medius, -a, -um middle; the middle of, the midst of (AG #293)
speculum, -i (n.) mirror [< *specio ‘look,’ cf. ‘looking glass’], cf. 135-36
specto, -are look at, contemplate (cf. 513)
cognosco, -ere get to know; discern, recognize
uix(adv) scarcely,barely (+ ulla ‘any woman,’AG #312) (S2l)
satis (adv.) sufficiently, adequately (w/ cognoscat)
minus (adv.) less. W/ damnosa (damnosus, -a, -um ‘harmful’ [< damnum ‘loss’])
superbia, -ae (f.) haughtiness [< super ‘above’], arrogance. Sc. est

LINE 510
comis, -e gracious, kind, comibus... oculis (oculus, -i [m.] ‘eye’) abl. of means
allicio, -ere attract, lure [< ad + lacio, cf. laqueus ‘trap’]

92
 COM M ENTARY: 5 0 3 -5 1 8

spectantem specta; ridenti mollia ride;

innuet, acceptas tu quoque redde notas,
sic ubi prolusit, rudibus puer ille relictis 515
spicula de pharetra prom it acuta sua.
odim us et maestas; Tecmessam diligat Aiax,
nos, hilarem populum , fem ina laeta capit.

odi, odisse dislike, have an aversion to. Pf. form w/ pres. mg. (AG #20Sb). Does O v. speak for all men?
PI. for sg. (w/ sg. experto, cf. sensimus 55) vs. collective pi. hilarem populum (518, cf. populo 24 = all
women)
immodicus, -a, -um immoderate, extreme, uncontrolled
experior, -iri, -tum experience, try (out). Ptc. as subst. (AG #494a), ‘an experienced man’
credo, -ere (+ dat.) trust. Suffering brings wisdom; experience that creates authority is often painful
(cf. V. Aen. 11.283, Prop. 2.34.3, Seneca Thyestes 81)
fastus, -us (m.) pride, conceit, disdain. PI. denotes many instances (AG #100c)
taceo, -ere be silent. A lover’s face ought instead to speak volumes
odium, -i (n.) dislike, aversion
semen, -inis (n.) seed
rideo, -ere laugh. Ov. urges mimicry (for men too, 1.503-4,2.199-202)
mollis, -e soft, tender. Nt. pi. as cogn. acc. (AG #390b) w/ ride, ‘laugh tenderly’ and perh. w/ ridenti,
but mollis usu. describes women (306,344)
innuo, -ere nod, signal {> innuendo}, innuet = si innuet (AG #521c; cf. 232)
accipio, -ipere, -epi, -eptum receive. The woman should reply w/ the same message
reddo, -ere return, give back

LINE 515
proludo, -dere, -si play in advance; practice, perform drills (esp. in military context)
rudis, -is (f.) blunt wooden sword for practice. Abi. abs. w/ relictis (relinquo, -inquere, -iqui, -ictum
‘leave,’ ‘abandon’). More conflation of love w/ war (1,247,357-60,527-30,559) via Cupid (puerille,
cf. 4) as drills (513-14) yield to fights w/ live ammo (cf. 589-90, Rem. 433-36)
spiculum, -i (n.) point of a weapon; pointed weapon, javelin, arrow
pharetra, -ae (f.) quiver (for holding arrows) [< Gk. (j>£pw‘carry’]
promo, -ere take out, draw out
acutus, -a, -um sharp, pointed
maestus, -a, -um gloomy, mournful, depressed. Ov.’s examples again debase epic grandeur, ignor­
ing women’s justified gloom (and Ov.’s own sexualization of Andromache at 2.709-10 and
3.777-78)
Tecmessa, -ae (f.) wife of Ajax (l 11); he slew her father in T W and took her captive
diligo, -ere be fond of, love (the vb. sts. implies less passion than amare)
Aiax, -acis (m.) Ajax, Greek hero in T W famed for brawn and valor, Hector’s equal
hilaris, -e cheerful, jolly. Comic adj., appearing only here in R. el.
laetus, -a, -um happy, joyful

93
O vid, A rs A matoria

numquam ego te, Andromache, nec te, Tecmessa, rogarem

520 ut mea de uobis altera amica foret.
credere uixuideor, cum cogar credere partu,
uos ego cum uestris concubuisse uiris.
scilicet Aiaci m ulier m aestissim a dixit
‘lux mea’ quaeque solent uerba iuuare uiros!

525 quis uetat a magnis ad res exempla m inores

sumere nec nom en pertim uisse ducis?

Andromache, -es (f.) wife of Trojan prince Hector (109), then (after TW) of her captor Neoptolemus,
then (after his death) of Trojan seer Helenus. As widow and exile she symbolizes feminine gloom
(Prop. 2.20.1-2 quidfles / anxia captiua tristius Andromacha?, V. Aen, 3.306-36,482)
rogo, -are ask (+ subst. cl. ofpurpose, AG #563); potent, subjv. (AG #447.3), T would never have asked
either of you.’/oret = esset (AG #170a)

LINE 520
uideo, -ere see; (pass.) seem (to oneself), imagine (OLD s.v. uideo 21). Ov.’s critique of myth (always
inconstant; 519-20 and Rem. 383 vs. Am. 2.4.33 and Ars 3.85-88) bolsters his authority and re­
writes tradition (cf. 115-16) in el. mode
partus, -us (m.) childbirth [< pario, -ere, peperi, partum ‘give birth’]. Tecmessa bore Eurysaces to Ajax;
Andromache had sons by all three husbands
cogo, -ere compel, force, cum + concessive subjv. (AG #549), ‘although’
concumbo, -mbere, -bui lie together (for sex)
scilicet obviously, surely. Freq. ironic (cf. I ll) : ‘of course she said'
lux, -cis (f.) light (a term of endearment in comedy and el., cf. Am. 1.4.25)
soleo, -ere be accustomed (+ inf.), uerba dir. obj. of dixit, anteced. of quae
iuuo, -are help; gratify, please. Men use such language too (Trist. 3.3.52)
525-54: The poet as lover.
In a reciprocal relationship w/ the puella, every man has unique gifts to offer (525-33), and poets
make not just the best poetry but the best lovers (534). Ov.’s praise of the poetic temperament
(539-50) ends w/ a dispirited admission: women just want cash (551-54)

LINE S25
ueto, -are forbid (from happening); + inf. sumere (AG #563a)
exemplum, -i (n.) example [cf. eximius ‘remarkable’]
pertimesco, -escere, -ui become very scared (of), take great fright (at) (+ acc. nomen)
dux, ducis (m.) leader (esp. military). The army’s provincial commanders were charged w/ appointing
each centurion, cavalry leader, and aquilifer (standard bearer of a legion)
centum (indecl.) one hundred (the nominal number of soldiers under a centurion)
committo, -ttere, -si entrust, assign. Gnomic pf. tenses indicate general truths (AG #475)
huic. .. h u ic. .. illi 'to one person... to another... to a third’ (OLD s.v. hie 13)
uitis, -is (f.) vine; vine-wood staff, emblem of the centurion
rego, -ere rule, control (556). Gdve. of purpose (AG #500.4), ‘to be governed’
eques, -itis (m.) member of the cavalry [< equus ‘horse’]; (pi.) cavalry
signum, -i (n.) mark, sign; emblem; military standard (kept by the aquilifer)
tueor, -eri guard, look after. Gdve. of purpose (AG #500.4), tuenda w/ signa and sc. tuendos w/ equites
quisque, quae-, quid- each one (pron.), w/ partit, cl. de nobis (sc. uiris) (AG # 2 2 1 .10c)
aptus, -a, -um suited, fit. + quem ...a d usum (529) or + inf. amare (534)
usus, -us (m.) use, function [< utor, -i ‘use’]
94
 COMMENTARY: S19-S38

dux bonus huic centum commisit uite regendos,

huic equites, illi signa tuenda dedit:
uos quoque, de nobis quem quisque erit aptus ad usum,
inspicite et certo ponite quem que loco. 530
m unera det diues; ius qui profitebitur, adsit;
facundus causam nempe clientis agat,
carm ina qui facimus, m ittam us carm ina tantum :
hic chorus ante alios aptus amare sumus,
nos facimus placitae late praeconia formae: 535
nom en habet Nemesis, Cynthia nom en habet,
Vesper et Eoae nouere Lycorida terrae,
et multi, quae sit nostra Corinna, rogant.

U N E 530
inspicio, -ere inspect, examine. Dir. obj. usum attracted into relat. cl., w/ indic, vb. (Gild #467.2): ‘Consider the
use to which each of us will be suited’
certus, -a, -urn certain, sure (544); particular. Abl. of place w/out prep. (AG #429.1)
munus, -eris (n.) duty; item given as a duty; service; favor, gift (encouraging sexual munera in return, cf. 98,462, Am. 1.10)
diues, -itis rich, wealthy
ius, iuris (n.) legal entitlement or privilege, right(s)
profiteor, -eri declare; make a practice of. Legal experts provided advice in court
adsum, -esse be present (esp. to help in a legal case)
facundus, -a, -um eloquent [<for,fari‘speak’]. Orators (distinct from legal experts, though some did both [Cic.
Brut. 148]) represented clients in court
causa, -ae (f.) cause (570), (legal) case
nempe (adv.) of course (freq. ironic; here the lawyer serves the puella, cf. 1 .8 8 )
cliens, -ntis (m./f.) client, dependent
carmen, -inis (n.) song; poem
tantum (adv.) only, simply, just
chorus, -i (m.) performance of song and dance (Gk. yopdi;); choir; group, band (cf. 168). hie chorus includes Ov.,
‘my band’ (OLD s.v. hie lb)
ante (+ acc.) before, in front of; in preference to, above

LINE 535
placeo, -ere, -itum please; (pf. pass. ptc. w/ act. sense) pleasing (Gild #167Nl)
latus, -a, -um wide, broad. Adv. -e
praeconium, -i (n.) declaration, report; publicity [< praeco ‘announcer,’ ‘auctioneer’]. But poetic fame does not
prove that these puellae were real people; nomen habet ‘has a name’ (91x in Ov.) implies either notoriety (219)
or mere etymology (177), cf. the misleading question at 538
Nemesis, -eos (f.) pseudonym of Tibullus’ beloved (334) [< Gk. goddess of retribution]
Cynthia, -ae (f.) pseudonym of Propertius’beloved (333) [< Gk. 'woman of Mt. Cynthus,’i.e. Artemis (Lat. Diana) ]
Vesper, -eris (m.) evening; the west [cf. Gk. £<r:nepo$]
Eous, -a, -um eastern [< Gk. tjaioi;]. Ov. also predicts worldwide fame for Lycoris and Gallus at Am. 1.15.29-30
(as does Prop, for Cynthia, 2.3a.44-45)
nosco, -ere, noui get to know; (pf. w/ pres, sense, AG #205bN2) know, nouere = nouerunt (AG #163a)
Lycoris, -idos (f.) pseudonym of Gallus’ beloved (334). Gk. acc. sg. -a (AG #81.2). [cf. Gk.Xux- ‘wolf,’ Lat. lupa
‘she-wolf,’ ‘prostitute’ (8 )]
Corinna, -ae (f.) pseudonym of Ov.’s beloved; name of 6 th-c. Gk. poet. The indir. quest. (quae = quis, OLD s.v.
qui1A4b) has no answer; ‘Corinna’ is little more than ‘Girl’ [cf. Gk. x6 pq ‘girl’], and poetic fame can be
granted to fictional characters as well as to people, cf. Am. 2.17.27-30
95
O vid, Ars A m a t o r i a

adde quod insidiae sacris a uatibus absunt

540 et facit ad mores ars quoque nostra suos.
nec nos am bitio nec am or nos tangit habendi;
contem pto colitur lectus et um bra foro,
sed facile haerem us ualidoque p erurim ur aestu
et nim ium certa scimus am are fide.
545 scilicet ingenium placida m ollitur ab arte
et studio mores conuenienter eunt,
uatibus Aoniis faciles estote, puellae:
num en inest illis Pieridesque fauent.

addo, -ere add, include, quod + indic, ‘the fact that’ (AG #572)
insidiae, -arum (f.pl.) ambush, trap; deceit
sacer, -era, -crum sacred; divinely inspired
uates, -is (m.) prophet; poet (esp. as inspired by the gods) (548)
absum, abesse be absent

LINE 540
facit ad m ores. . . suos ‘it suits our character’ (OLD s .v.facto 29b, cf. Am. 3.11.42 nonfacit ad mores tarn
bonaforma malos), suos = nostros (OLD s.v. suus A2)
ambitio, -onis (f.) solicitation of votes [< ambio ‘go round’]; (political) ambition
tango, -ere touch; affect, ger. habendi obj. gen. w/ amor, ‘love of having’
contemno, -nere, -psi, -ptum despise, scorn. Abi. abs. w/ foro (forum, -i [n.] any of R.’s public squares,
the center of public life, where court cases were tried [450] and business [financial and social] was
conducted)
colo, -ere cultivate, take care of
lfectus, -i (m.) bed, couch (symbolizing the private life), used for writing (cf. etym. unrelated lego, -ere,
legi, lectus ‘read’) and other activities (593)
umbra, -ae (f.) shade; the sheltered life, privacy (OLD s.v. umbra 5), cf. Am. 1.5.1-8; 1.9.41-44 suggests
a diff. relation of lectus et umbra to love
facilis, -e easy (to do, cf. 547). Acc. nt. sg. as adv., AG #214d, cf. nimium 544
haereo, -ere cling, hang on; get stuck, be caught (sc. by love)
ualidus, -a, -um strong, intense, formidable
peruro, -ere burn up, scorch. Manly public figures are sun-baked in the forum; love poets feel the heat
as well (cf. 1.23 [Amor] me uiolentius ussit)
aestus, -us (m.) heat (sc. of love, cf. 697)
nimius, -a, -um excessive. Ov. laments the lack of moderation seen earlier (305,479)
scio, -ire know, know how (+ inf., OLD s.v. 8 b)
fides, -ei (f.) trustworthiness; faithfulness. Ov. claims the same in Am. 1.3 and 2.17 but exactly the
opposite in 2.4 (esp. 10 and 48: ambitiosus amor)

LINE 545
ingenium, -i (n.) innate ability, (poet.) talent. Culture tames raw nature
placidus, -a, -um kindly, agreeable; calm. Cf. 1.12 animos placida contudit arteferos
mollio, -ire soften, temper. Personified abl. of agent arte (AG #405N3), cf. 25
studium, -i (n.) enthusiasm, intentness; interest (i.e. Ov.’s ars, cf. 540)
mos, moris (m.) custom; (pi.) habits, character
conuenienter (adv.) in accordance, harmoniously (+ dat. ‘with,’AG #384)

96
 COMMENTARY: 539-556

est deus in nobis et sunt commercia caeli;

sedibus aetheriis spiritus ille uenit. 550
a doctis pretium scelus est sperare poetis;
me miserum! scelus hoc nulla puella timet,
dissimulate tamen, nec prima fronte rapaces
este: nouus uiso casse resistet amans.

sed neque uector equum, qui nuper sensit habenas, 555

comparibus frenis artificemque reget,

Aonius, -a, -um of Aonia = Boeotia, Gk. home of the Muses (cf. Met. 6.2)
numen, -inis (n.) godhead, divinity. Ov. formerly asked the Muses (numina uatum, 347) to grant fame
to his poems; now, claiming numen himself, he asks the puellae to grant themselves to him for the
fame his poems give them
insum, inesse be present (+ dat. ‘in,’AG #370)
Pieris, -idos (f.) daughter of Pierus; a Muse. Gk. nom.pl. -es (AG #81.4)
faueo, -ere favor, support (+ dat.)
commercium, -i (n.) commerce, exchange; dealings (+ gen. ‘with,’ AG #348)
caelum, -i (n.) sky; heaven

LINE 550
sedes, -is (f.) seat, place; dwelling, home
aetherius, -a, -um heavenly, celestial. Abl. of place from which w/out prep., AG #428g
spiritus, -us (m.) breath, spirit [< spiro ‘breathe’]; inspiration
pretium, -i (n.) reward; payment. Dir. obj. of sperare (‘expect’). Poets, Muses, and puellae are all learned
(doctis, cf. 320,411), but Ov., like other el. poets (e.g. Tib. 1.9, Prop. 2.16, cf. Am. 1.10,3.8), fears that
puellae merely play the game of love for financial gain (cf. 805-6), even though they earn less than
men (549 vs. 551, cf. 89-98, Am. 1.10)
scelus, -eris (n.) crime. Pred. nom. w/ subj. sperare (551); dir. obj. of timet (552)
me miserum acc. of exclam. (AG #397d), ‘poor me!’ (the adj. is rich in mg.)
dissimulo, -are conceal, disguise (sc. the puella’s desire for money)
frons,-ntis (f.) forehead; expression; appearance (w/ prima ‘at first glance,’‘outwardly’ [OLDs.v. primus lb])
rapax, -acis greedy, rapacious [< rapio ‘seize’], este pi. impv. sum (AG #170)
cassis, -is (m.) net. Abl. abs. w/ uiso. More hunting imagery, cf. 427-28,558, vs. 539
resisto, -ere stop, halt
555-76: In praise of older lovers.
Different ages require different techniques (cf. 1.765-71). Ov. (who was about 40 when Ars 3 was
published) belittles youth (i.e, hie 559,572,575; note freq. gender reversals: 555,560,563) to focus
on the unexpected benefits of an older lover (ilk 565).

LINE 555
uector, -oris (m.) carrier [< ueho ‘carry’]; passenger; rider. Ov. reverses the usu. erotic metaphor of a
man ‘breaking in’ a filly; now the woman tames a colt
nuper recently. Horse trainers mustn’t be cavalier w/ young foals
sentio, -ire, sensi perceive, feel; experience
habena, -ae (f.) rein (used for controlling horses) [< habeo ‘hold’]
compar, -aris equal
frenum, -i (n.) horse’s bridle (w/ reins and bit)
artifex, -icis (m.) artist, specialist in an art; expert (used of animals only here; cf. 47)

97
O vid, A rs A matoria

nec, stabiles anim os annis uiridem que iuuentam

u t capias, idem limes agendus erit,
hic rudis et castris nunc prim um notus Amoris,
560 qui tetigit thalam os praeda nouella tuos,
te solam norit, tibi sem per inhaereat uni;
cingenda est altis saepibus ista seges,
effuge riualem: uinces, dum sola tenebis;
non bene cum sociis regna Venusque manent.

stabilis, -e steady, constant, annis abi. of cause (AG #404)

uiridis, -e green (esp. as a sign of lively growth), florid, brisk. Ov. postpones ut capias to 558 in order to
juxtapose (and heighten the distinction between) the older lovers (i.e. stabiles animos) and R.’s
young men (iuuenta, -ae [f.] ‘youth’),
limes, -itis (m.) boundary, limit; path, track, course
ago, -ere do, drive; go on, proceed in (OLD s.v. ago 28)
rudis, -e raw; crude, inexperienced (in love or war)
castra, -orum (n.pl.) (military) camp. But imagery in 560 emasculates the new recruit
nosco, -ere, noui, notum get to know; (pf. w/ pres, sense, AG #205bN2) know, notus 559 + dat. castris;
no(ue)rit 561 (contr. pf. subjv., AG #181a) hort. subjv.

LINE 560
tango, -ere, tetigi touch; reach. W/ thalamum elsewhere only in ref. to women: Met. 10.456 thalami iam
limina tangit (Myrrha), cf. Her. 12.57 (Medea)
thalamus, -i (m.) inner room; (bed)chamber. Poet. pi. for sg. in 590 (AG #101N2)
praeda, -ae (f.) prey. Nom. in appos. w/ qui; in Am. and Ars 3 nearly always used to describe the male
lover (cf. 84, Am. 1.2.19,1.7.44,1.8.92,2.17.5-6)
nouellus, -a, -um young, tender (freq. in ref. to an animal, cf. 1.118 agna nouella)
inhaereo, -ere cling to, remain close to (+ dat. uni)
cingo, -gere, -xi, -ctum surround, enclose
altus, -a, -um deep, high, tall, altis saepibus (saepes, -is [f.] ‘hedge,’ ‘fence’ [to protect a field from
weather, animals, or thieves]) abl. of means
seges, -itis (f.) crop; cropland. More agricultural imagery (cf. 82)
effugio, -ere escape (from), avoid
riualis, -is (m,/f.) rival, competitor (cf. 659-82, but usu. in ref. to men, cf. 593)
du m . . . tenebis ‘as long as you keep [him]’ (OLD s.v. dum l)
socius, -i (m.) companion, ally, partner. Power-sharing is equally dangerous for kings and lovers. Cf.
Ov.’s one-man army of love (Am. 2.12)
regnum, -i (n.) kingship [< rex, regis ‘king’], power, authority. Cf. Rem. 441-86 (482 regna): to fall out
of love, men should have 2 (or more) puellae
uetus, -eris old. Again Ov. allies himself w/ the well-seasoned soldier (miles, -itis [m.]), who follows
the advice that Ov,, claiming poverty, had given to other poor lovers: 2.168 multaque diuitibus non
patiendaferat

LINE 565
sensim (adv.) slowly (usu. implying control and moderation), deliberately
sapiens, -ntis intelligent, wise. Adv. -ter. Ov. upends the traditional opposition of love and wisdom
patior, -i suffer, put up with, bear (synon. w/ ferre). Gdve. w/ tironi (tiro, -onis [m.] ‘new recruit,’
‘rookie’) dat. of agent (AG #374), ‘not to be borne by a novice’

98
 COMMENTARY: 557-S74

ille uetus miles sensim et sapienter amabit 565

multaque tironi non patienda feret;
nec franget postes nec saeuis ignibus uret
nec dominae teneras appetet ungue genas
nec scindet tunicasue suas tunicasue puellae,
nec raptus flendi causa capillus erit. 570
ista decent pueros aetate et amore calentes;
hic fera composita uulnera mente feret,
ignibus heu lentis uretur, ut umida faena,
ut modo montanis silua recisa iugis.

frango, -ere break (down), shatter. Young drunk lovers are violent, cf. 71, Am. 1.6.57-60. For love
defined by a list of negs., cf. 1 Cor. 13:4-6
postis,-is (m.) doorpost
saeuus, -a, -um savage, fierce. Hie fires of youthful love are not always figurative
uro, -ere burn, set alight (sc. postes)
domina, -ae (f.) mistress (as beloved; as woman in charge of household, 241)
tener, -era, -erum tender, delicate
appeto, -ere reach for; aim at; attack
unguis, -is (m.) fingernail (used as a weapon, cf. 239-40)
gena, -ae (f.) cheek {cogn. w/ E. chin}
scindo, -ere cleave; cut, rip. Grief provokes the tearing of ones own clothes (707, V. Aen. 12.609), anger
the tearing of another’s (Am. 1.7, Ars 2.171)
tunica, -ae (f.) tunic (freq. worn in sets of two or more)

LINE 570
rapio, -ere, -ui, -turn seize, snatch; pull, tear (off). The action of a pass. ptc. can take precedence over
the noun it modifies (AG #497); ‘the tearing of hair’ (capillus, -i[m.] ‘strand of hair,’ [pi.] ‘hair[s]’)
fleo, -ere cry, weep. Gen. ger. w/ causa [AG #504]
decet (pi. decent) adorn, suit (vb. only in 3rd pers,, OLD s.v.)
aetas, -atis (f.) age, life; a period of life, youth (cf. 65). Puer usu. refers to someone younger than 17;
here Ov. demeans older immature lovers
caleo, -ere be warm, be on fire (+ abl. of cause, AG #404)
ferus, -a, -um wild
compono, -nere, -sui, -situm arrange in order; settle, quiet
uulnus,-eris (n.) wound. The wounds described in 567-71 all harm thepuella; Ov. here signals the uir’s
emotional wounds (cf. 738)
heu alas! (Ov. again acknowledges his status as lover and teacher)
lentus, -a, -um soft; slow, sluggish
umidus, -a, -um moist, wet; full of sap. Age dampens love’s fires; damp hay (Jaenum, -i [n.]; usu. very
combustible when dry) is easier to cut (cf. recisa 574) but still carries the risk of fire, Columella De Re
Rustica 2.18
modd (adv.) only, just; recently [< modus ‘quantity’]
montanus, -a, -um of the mountains, mountainous
silua, -ae (f.) forest, wood. Seasoned wood (not veterans) burns quickly
recido, -dere, -di, -sum cutback, cut down
iugum, -i (n.) yoke [cf. iungo ‘join’]; ridge, upper slope (cf. 646)

99
O vid, A r s A m a t o r i a

575 certior hic am or est, breuis at fecundior ille:

quae fugiunt, celeri carpite pom a manu,
om nia trad an tu r (portas reserauim us hosti)
et sit in infida proditione fides,
quod datur ex facili, longum male nutrit amorem:
580 m iscenda est laetis rara repulsa iocis.
ante fores iaceat, ‘crudelis ianua’ dicat
m ultaque sum m isse, m ulta m inanter agat.

LINE 575
breuis, -e brief; short. Youth and its passion fade quickly (cf. 65-66)
at but, on the other hand. El. poets freq. postpone at (Plat 96)
fecundus, -a, -urn fertile; fertilizing, productive (cf. 81-82)
fugio, -ere flee, escape (like young love); decay, become overripe (like old love)
celer, -ris, -re quick. No matter the male lover s age, Ov. counsels swift action
carpo, -ere pluck, pick, harvest (cf. 79)
pomum, -i (n.) fruit {> pomegranate}
577-610: H ow to keep a lover’s interest piqued.
Now that the puella has captured her man (cf. Ars 1), she must learn how to keep him (cf. Ars 2).
Ov., claiming to be a traitor to his own sex (577-78), suggests feigning rejection (579-88), rivalry
(589-96), injury (597-600), and danger (601-10), as he did in Am. (cf. 1.8,2.19)
trado, -ere hand over, betray (cf. 8 )
porta, -ae (f.) (city) gate. Ov. starts a new topic w/ old imagery (cf. 1-6,667-72)
resero, -are unlock, open [< sera ‘bolt’], vs. thepuella’s closed doors (567,581)
hostis, -is (m.) (military) enemy. Ov. inverts the usu. gender roles of the image, in which a woman
betrays her town to a beloved male foe (cf. Scylla [Met. 8.6-151], Medea [Met. 7.11-158], Tarpeia
[Met. 14.776-77]); cf. Am. 1.6.31 quidfacies hosti, qui sic excludis amantem?
infidus, -a, -um faithless
proditio, -onis (f.) betrayal [< prodo (6 6 8 ) ‘give away/ ‘betray’]
fides, -ei (f.) faith; trustworthiness, dependability. Ov. is reliably unreliable
ex facili ‘easily’ (OLD s.v. ex 8 , cf. 476,603; facili subst. adj., AG #289a)
mal6 (adv.) badly [< malus ‘bad’], poorly
nutrio, -ire nourish, foster. Subj. [id] quod datur exfacili

LINE 580
misceo, -ere mix, mingle. W / dat. iocis (iocus, -i [n.] ‘joke,’ ‘jest’; ‘fun,’ ‘game’ [cf. 328,381,640]) ‘with
amusements,’ AG #413aN
laetus, -a, -um happy, joyful
rarus, -a, -um rare, uncommon, occasional
repulsa, -ae (f.) rejection [< repello ‘reject’]
foris, -is (f.) door (freq. pi., cf. 605). As exclusus amator (cf. 69) the el. lover is freq. (and temporarily)
locked out by his beloved, cf. Am. 1.6,1.9.19,2.19.21-22, Ars 2.244, 523-28
iaceo, -ere lie (on the ground, in an appeal for pity), cf. 69-70
crudelis, -e cruel, unfeeling. Not the door but the lover is becoming unhinged
ianua, -ae (f.) door (synon. w/ foris). Men freq. speak directly to the door of the adored, cf. Plaut. Cure.
88-89, Prop. 1.16.35-36
summissus, -a, -um submissive, humble. Adv. -e. Locked-out lovers freq. interchange prayers and
threats, cf. Am. 1.6.25-26 w/ 1.6.57-58
minans threatening. Adv. -ter. [< minor, -ari ‘threaten’]
100
 COMMENTARY: 575-592

dulcia non ferimus: suco renouemur amaro;

saepe perit uentis obruta cumba suis,
hoc est, uxores quod non patiatur amari: 585
conueniunt illas, cum uoluere, uiri.
adde forem, et duro dicat tibi ianitor ore
‘non potes’, exclusum te quoque tanget amor,
ponite iam gladios hebetes, pugnetur acutis;
nec dubito, telis quin petar ipse meis. 590
dum cadit in laqueos, captus quoque nuper, amator
solum se thalamos speret habere tuos;

dulcis, -e sweet, delightful. Nt. pl. subst. (AG #288), ‘sweets'

sucus, -i (m.) liquid, juice (of any plant or animal; here used in medicine)
renouo, -are renew, refresh. Subj. = uiri, not puellae, cf. 577,585-88
amarus, -a, -um bitter. Tart medicine usu. cures love (Am. 3.11.8, Rem. 227)
pereo, -ire vanish, disappear; perish
uentus, -i (m.) wind. Too fair (OLD s.v. suus 13b, AG #302b) winds entail peril
obruo, -ere, -i, -turn overwhelm, submerge
cumba, -ae (f.) small boat. Poet (99) and lover (259) alike sail over the sea of love

LINE 585
hoc e s t. . . quod ‘It’s this that’ + subjv. in cl. of characteristic (Gild #631.1, AG #535)
uxor, -oris (f.) wife. Acc. subj. of inf. amari w/ patiatur (AG #563c). Only here, in the presence of the
unromantic uxor, does Ov. define sex by the absence of amor. Note pun w/ etym. unrelated amaro 583
conuenio, -ire approach, visit (sc. for sex)
cum uoluere ‘whenever they want’ (= uoluerunt, AG #163a, #520.2, #542)
addo, -ere add, include. In 587-88 Ov. suggests to an audience of married men how to reignite their
passion: recreate the conditions of a bachelor, adde . . . e t . . . dicat = si addes . ..e t ... dicet (AG #521c;
cf. 232,514,594)
ianitor, -oris (m.) door guard, porter (who guards the puella's house, cf. Am. 1.6)
excludo, -dere, -si, -sum shut (claudo) out (ex-), exclude. Cf. 69
pono, -ere set (down), let go of, put away
gladius, -i (m.) sword {> gladiator}
hebes, -etis blunt, dull (as used in practice, cf. 515)
pugnetur ‘let the fight continue’ (impers. pass., AG #208d). Rivals are a crucial yet dangerous topic
(2.373-466, Rem. 768 nostri maxima causa malt)
acutus, -a, -um sharp, pointed, acutis sc. gladiis

LINE 590
dubito, -are doubt. O v. again conflates his poet, and amatory roles (cf. 577,598)
telum, -i (n.) weapon. Love’s teachers and students freq. end up harming themselves: Am. 1.4.45-46,
2.19.34, Ars 1.64S-66,Rem. 502
quin (but) that [< qui (abl.) ‘how’ + ne ‘not’], + subjv. (AG #S58a), cf. 349
peto, -ere aim at, pursue, attack
laqueus, -i (m.) slipknot, noose, trap. More hunting imagery, cf. 427-28, 554,558
nuper (adv.) recently (+ captus, vs, earlier dum cadit, ‘while he is falling’)
spero, -are hope, anticipate (+ ind. disc.)
101
O vid, A r s A m a t o r i a

postm odo riualem partitaque foedera lecti

sentiat: has artes tolle, senescet amor.
595 tu m bene fortis equus reserato carcere currit,
cum, quos praetereat quosque sequatur, habet,
quam libet extinctos iniuria suscitat ignes:
en ego, confiteor, non nisi laesus amo.
causa tam en nim ium non sit m anifesta doloris,
600 pluraque sollicitus, quam sciet, esse putet.

postmodo (adv.) afterward, later

riualis, -is (m./f.) rival, competitor (now another man, vs. 563)
partio, -ire, -ivi, -itum share, divide up. The bonds (foedus, -eris [n.] ‘agreement,’ ‘compact,’ w/ lecti esp.
betw. spouses or lovers) of the bed (lectus, -i [m.] ‘bed,’‘couch’) are meant to be indivisible
sentio, -ire perceive, be aware of (but the rival need not exist, hence artes)
tollo, -ere lift up, raise; remove, get rid of. tolle = si tolles, cf. S87
senesco, -ere grow old, deteriorate (cf. 82). Now age is a liability, vs. 565-74

LINE 595
tu rn . . . cum ‘It is then th a t... when’ (AG #322b). Adv. bene modifies currit
career, -eris (m.) jail; cage; stall (where horses were kept at the start of a race)
quos. . . sequatur relat. cl, of purpose (AG #531.2) w/ habet, ‘it has [others] to follow’
praetereo, -ire pass, outstrip; neglect (612). Competitors enhance one’s performance
quamlibet (adv.) no matter how much [quam 'how much’ + libet ‘it pleases’]
extinguo, -guere, -xi, -ctum extinguish, put out
iniuria, -ae (f.) wrongdoing, injustice, injury [< in- ‘not’ + ius, iuris ‘right’ + -ia]
excito, -are rouse, rekindle. Ov. suggests the same technique to men, 2.439-44
en ego ‘Yes, it’s I w ho...’ en emphatic interj., ‘behold’; en ego 15xin Ov.
confiteor, -eri confess. Ov. focuses again on his own authoritative experience (590)
laedo, -dere, -si, -sum wound, injure
nimius, -a, -um excessive (acc, nt. sg. as adv., AG #214d, cf. 602)
manifestus, -a, -um conspicuous, obvious. Good art conceals itself (cf. 155, 210,801)
dolor, -oris (m.) grief (i.e. on the part of the man who perceives a rival)

LINE 600
plus, pluris mote.plura... esse ind. disc, w/ putet (+ quam ‘than’)
sollicitus, -a, -um troubled, restless, anxious. Adj. as adv, (AG #290), cf. 472
incito, -are provoke, arouse (cf. 474)
fingo, -ngere, -nxi, -ctum feign; invent. The puella is to incite the lover through the pretense of
adultery, w/ others acting the parts of custos (243) and uir
tristis, -e gloomy, grim; unfriendly
custodia, -ae (f.) protection, watch, custody (cf. 613, but serui poss. gen., AG #343)
cura, -ae (f.) concern, care, attentiveness
molestus, -a, -um annoying, pesky (adj. rare in el., common in comedy)
ex tuto ‘safely’ (OLD s.v. ex 8 , cf. 476, 579; tuto subst. adj., AG #289a)
minor, minus smaller; less. Nt. acc. sg. as adv. w/ accepta ‘acceptable,’ ‘pleasing’
uoluptas, -tatis (f.) pleasure. Antec. of quae. R. law in fact allowed men caught in the act of adultery to
be maimed or killed
liber, -a, -um free (vs. enslaved); loose, uninhibited, ut + concessive subjv. (AG #549), ‘although,’ c£ cum 60S
Thais, -idis (f.) name of several Gk. prostitutes, esp. the title character in a 4th-c. comedy by Menander
(cf. 332). Ov. again emphasizes role-playing
metus, -us (m.) fear {> meticulous}
102
 COMMENTARY: 593-612

incitat et ficti tristis custodia serui

et nim ium duri cura molesta uiri.
quae uenit ex tuto, m inus est accepta uoluptas;
u t sis liberior Thaide, finge metus,
cum melius foribus possis, adm itte fenestra 605
inque tuo uultu signa tim entis habe;
callida prosiliat dicatque ancilla ‘perim us’;
tu iuuenem trepidum quolibet abde loco,
adm iscenda tam en Venus est secura tim ori,
ne tan ti noctes non putet esse tuas. 610

qua uafer eludi possit ratione m aritus

quaque uigil custos, praeteriturus eram.

LINE 605
melior, melius better. Nt. acc. sg. as adv. w/ possis sc. admittere illum
admitto, -ere allow in (cf. 807 admittefenestris)
fenestra, -ae (f.) window. Ov. suggests stealthy entrances (another comic staple) to men as well
(2.243-50) as a sign of their passionate commitment
uultus, -us (m.) facial expression, look; face
signum, -i (n.) mark, sign
timeo, -ere fear. Ptc. as subst., ‘of someone afraid’
callidus, -a, -um cunning, crafty. Adj. used of slaves freq. in comedy, only here in Ov.
perimus ‘We’re done for!’ Common interj. in comedy, OLD s.v.pereo 5. Pf. (peri(ui)mus, AG #181b) can
imply completed fut. action (Gild #237)
iuuenis, -is (m./f.) youth, young (man)
trepidus, -a, -um fearful, apprehensive, agitated
quilibet, quae-, quod- any, whichever you like [qui ‘which’ + libet ‘it pleases’]
abdo, -ere put away [> ab- + do, dare], cover up, hide
admisceo, -ere mix, mingle (+ dat. timori ‘with fear,’ AG #413aN), cf. 580
securus, -a, -um carefree [se- ‘apart’ [AG #267b] + cura], untroubled. Erotic success requires the occa­
sional practice of safe sex

LINE 610
tantus, -a, -um so great; (gen. of value, AG #417) of so much, worth it (cf. 505)
n e . . . putet purpose cl. (AG #S63) introducing ind. disc, nodes... non... esse
611-58: How to skirt laws and guardians.
After complaining (611-16) that a freed female slave should not be covered under Aug.’s laws limit­
ing extramarital sex (see Introduction), Ov. catalogs how she (or any woman) might deceive her
guardian and meet her lover (617-58)
uafer, -fra, -frum crafty, sly. Ov. prepares for wordplay in 615 w/ irony: it is usu. not the husband
(imaritus) but the duplicitous slave who is uafer (332)
eludo, -ere deceive, fool
ratio, -onis (f.) calculation; plan, qua (interr. adj.)... ratione introduces indir. quest,
uigil, -ilis wakeful; watchful
custos, -odis (m.) guardian, doorman (a particularly lowly job, cf. 243)
praeteriturus eram periphr. conj. (AG #158bN, #195), ‘I was going to omit.’ Ov.’s coy praeteritio
(cf. 193) implies brevity but introduces one of the longest sections of the Ars (as well as its longest
sentence: 633-44)
103
O vid, A rs A matoria

nupta uirum tim eat, rata sit custodia nuptae:

hoc decet, hoc leges duxque pudorque iubent.
615 te quoque seruari, m odo quam uindicta redemit,
quis ferat? ut fallas, ad mea sacra ueni.
tot licet obseruent, adsit m odo certa uoluntas,
quot fuerant Argo lumina, uerba dabis,
scilicet obstabit custos ne scribere possis,
620 sum endae detu r cum tibi tem pus aquae,

nupta, -ae (f.) married woman, wife [< nubo ‘marry’], nuptae obj. gen. (AG #348)
ratus, -a, -um legally valid, legitimate. Ov. cheekily reiterates that a wife should fear her husband
(cf. 606), but the situation is now exactly reversed
decet it suits (impers. vb.), w/ nom. hoc as subj. (but acc. hoc obj. of iubent)
lex, legis (f.) law. Augustus passed the lex Iulia de adulteriis coercendis in 18 BCE limiting extramarital
sexual activity, but the extent of the law’s application was and is unclear (see Introduction); even
here, Ov. argues w/ emphatic repetition of hoc (614, i.e. control over wives) that freed slaves by con­
trast are not covered under the law
dux, ducis (m.) leader (esp. military); Augustus (cf. 119,391). Some mss. replace dux w/ ius ‘legal
right,’ cf. 58 quas pudor et leges et sua iura sinunt
pudor, -oris (m.) sense of shame, modesty
iubeo, -ere order, command (cf. 638)

LINE 615
seruo, -are guard, watch; keep, retain, te... seruari ind. disc, w/ quisferat
mod 6 (adv.) only, just; recently [< modus ‘quantity’]
uindicta, -ae (f.) claim of freedom. In one R. form of manumission, master and slave came before a
magistrate, another R. claimed the slave to be free, the master made no defense, and the magistrate
pronounced the slave free
redimo, -imere, -emi buy (back); buy (out of slavery) {> redemption}. Slaves freq. paid their owners as
part of the process of manumission (cf. Am. 1.8.63)
fallo, -ere trick, deceive (cf. 627)
sacer, -era, -crum sacred; (nt. subst.) holy object or action, rite,falsa usu. opp. to sacra (Horace Epistulae
1.16.54 sit spesfallendi, miscebis sacra profanis)
tot (indecl.) so many (correi, w/ quot ‘as many,’ AG #152, Gild #642)
licet (+ subjv.) although, even if (AG #527b)
obseruo, -are observe, watch (sc. te). Note connection w/ seruo (615)
adsum, -esse, affui be present, affuit (631) = adfuit by assimil. of consonants (AG #16)
mod 6 (adv.) only, just; recently (615); (sc. dum) as long as, provided that (+ subjv. in cl. of proviso, AG
#528) (617)
certus, -a, -um certain, sure. Where there’s a will (uoluntas, -tatis [f.]), there’s away
Argus, -i (m.) many-eyed (100 at Met. 1.625) guard sent by Juno to oversee Io in her wanderings (cf.
393) but duped and slain on the job by Mercury
lumen, -inis (n.) light; eye (cf. 504,648)
uerba dabis ‘you will deceive [him]’ (OLD s.v. uerbum 6 , i.e. ‘give only words’)
scilicet obviously, surely. Freq, ironic: ‘Of course he’ll stop you’
obsto, -are obstruct, prevent (+ ne + subjv. [AG #558b], ‘from [doing]’)

104
 COM M ENTARY: 6 1 3 -6 2 8

conscia cum possit scriptas portare tabellas,

quas tegat in tepido fascia lata sinu,
cum possit sura chartas celare ligatas
et uincto blandas sub pede ferre notas!
cauerit haec custos, pro charta conscia tergum 625
praebeat inque suo corpore uerba ferat,
tuta quoque est fallitque oculos e lacte recenti
littera: carbonis puluere tange, leges;

LINE 620
sumo, -ere take up, use (here for cleaning oneself in general, vs. 96). Gdve. sumendae... aquae
w/ tempus, ‘time for washing’ (done in private)
detur cum the causal cum-ch catalog (620,621,622, AG #549) heightens the helplessness of the custos;
cf. cum + subjv. 7x, 633-43
conscius, -a, -um knowing (esp. secrets), privy; (fem. subst., AG #288) accomplice
porto, -are carry, transport
tabella, -ae (f.) tablet (used for writing, cf. 469,485,496,630; some might be small enough to contain
only 2 w., cf. Mart. 2.6,14.9)
tego, -ere cover, hide, quas tegat relat. cl. of purpose (AG #531.2)
tepidus, -a, -um warm
fascia, -ae (f.) band of cloth; brassiere. The tactic is common, cf. Am. 3.1.55-56
latus, -a, -um wide (to provide better concealment for the tabellae)
sinus, -us (m.) fold, hollow; bosom
sura, -ae (f.) calf (of the leg), sura abl. of place where w/ ligatas (AG #429.4)
charta, -ae (f.) sheet of papyrus (used for writing) [< Gk. xapTt)?]
celo, -are conceal. Anc. military subterfuge employed these tactics (623-30) too
ligo, -are bind, tie up, fasten
uincio, -cire, -xi, -ctum fasten; encircle, bind (here, w/ sandals)
blandus, -a, -um charming, alluring (cf. 315,795)
nota, -ae (f.) mark, (written) character (cf. 470)

LINE 625
ciueo, -ere, caui take care; guard against (+ acc.). cauerit = si cauerit (AG #521c; pf. subjv. in fut. less
vivid condit., AG #5l6c), ‘if he has thwarted these’
pro (+ abl.) in place of, instead of
tergum, -i (n.) back. The hide that hides adds wit to the game of deception, but disgraced slaves were
also sts. tattooed w/ letters (OLD s.v. litteratus)
praebeo, -ere, -ui offer, provide (cf. 663,666)
tutus, -a, -um safe (sc. from discovery)
oculus, -i (m.) eye. Dir. obj. of fallit 627 Andfallet 629
lac, lactis (n.) milk (which can successfully be used as invisible ink either on papyrus or on a wax
tablet) {> lactic acid}
recens,-ntis fresh
littera, -ae (f.) letter (of the alphabet)
carbo, -onis (m.) charcoal {> carbon, carbuncle}
puluis, -eris (m.) dust {> powder}
tango, -ere touch; affect (660); daub, sprinkle, tange = si tanges (AG #521c)
lego, -ere, legi, lectum collect, gather (646); read, leges = poteris legere

105
O v i d , A rs A m a t o r i a

fallet et um iduli quae fiet tacu m in e lini,+

630 et feret occultas pura tabella notas,
affuit Acrisio seruandae cura puellae;
hunc tamen illa suo crimine fecit auum.
quid faciat custos, cum sint tot in Vrbe theatra,
cum spectet iunctos illa libenter equos;
635 cum sedeat Phariae sistris operata iuuencae,
quoque sui comites ire uetantur, eat;
cum fuget a templis oculos Bona D iua uirorum ,
praeterquam si quos illa uenire iubet;

umidulus, -a, -um moist, dabby (umidulus appears no more than 2x in all Lat. lit.)
fio, fieri be made (pass, offacio, AG #204)
acumen, -inis (n.) sharp point. The text seems corrupt; letters can not be drawn w/ the point of a
moist flax/linseed plant (linum, -i [n.]). Hence some scholars suggest semine lini, ‘w/ moist flax
seed’; transparent, viscous linseed oil will also appear on a wax tablet or papyrus when sprinkled
w/ charcoal dust

LINE 630
occultus, -a, -um hidden
purus, -a, -um pure, unadorned, plain, blank
Acrisius, -i (m.) Argive king, Danae s father (cf. 415), who locked her in a tower
seruandae. .. puellae gen. gdve. w/ cura (AG #504), ‘concern for keeping the girl’
crimen, -inis (n.) crime (cf. 454,459). Ov. blames Danae for being raped by Jupiter
auus, -i (m.) grandfather. Pred. acc. (AG #393), 'she made him a grandfather’
quid faciat ‘What is he to do?’ Delib, subjv. (AG #444), cf. 437. Ov. now lists 8 opportunities for the
puella to escape the notice of the custos
Vrbs, Vrbis (f.) city; The City, Rome
theatrum, -i (n.) theater (used for public spectacles). Besides its 3 permanent theatres (394), Ov.'s R.
had many more temporary structures (Vitruvius 5.5.7)
specto, -are look at, watch (cf. 395)
iungo, -gere, -xi, -ctum join (here, to their harness), span; join (in sex, 650)
libenter (adv.) gladly, willingly (women sat w/ men in the Circus Maximus, 396)

LINE 635
sedeo, -ere sit down, be seated
Pharius, -a, -um of Pharos (island in the Nile delta, where Isis had a shrine) (cf. 270)
sistrum, -i (n.) bronze rattle, used esp. in worship of Isis [< Gk. <rdu) ‘shake’]
operatus, -a, -um working on [< opus, operis ‘work’]; devoted to, worshipping (+ dat.)
iuuenca, -ae (f.) heifer. The temple of Isis (393) had a reputation for debauchery
quoque ‘and where’ (quo relat. adv. + -que) [not < quoque ‘also’]
comes, -itis (m./f.) companion. Men were forbidden to enter Isis’ temple
ueto, -are forbid (from happening) (+ inf., AG #563a)
fugo, -are cause to flee, repel. The Bona Dea (cf. 244; diua, -ae [f.] ‘Goddess’ syn. w/ dea) was said to
blind men who entered her Aventine temple (cf. 244, Cicero De Domo Sua 105, Tib. 1.6.24). Men
were not even allowed to know her real name (Cicero De Haruspicum Responso 37)
praeterquam except. Ov. alleges more divine moral leniency, cf. 83-87
quos = aliquos (AG #310a)
106
 COM M ENTARY: 6 2 9 -6 4 8

cum custode foris tunicas seruante puellae

celent furtiuos balnea m ulta iocos; 640
cum , quotiens opus est, fallax aegrotet amica
et cedat lecto quam libet aegra suo;
nom ine cum doceat quid agamus adultera clauis,
quasque petas, non det ianua sola uias?
fallitur et multo custodis cura Lyaeo, 645
illa uel H ispano lecta sit uua iugo.
sunt quoque quae faciant altos m edicam ina somnos
uictaque Lethaea lum ina nocte prem ant.

foris (adv.) outdoors, outside. A custos would guard the puellas belongings while she enjoyed the balnea
(either mixed-sex or single-sex w/ a man sneaking his way in, cf. 637-38)
tunica, -ae (f.) tunic (freq. worn in sets of two or more)

LINE 640
furtiuus, -a, -urn stolen [<fur ‘thief’; clothes were often stolen at baths]; stealthy
balneum, -i (n.) (public) bath. Anc. sources offer little exact data, but public baths in R. increased
steadily in the 1st c. BCE, w/ hundreds in use by 100 CE
iocus, -i (m.) joke, jest; playful activity or situation, fun, game (cf. 328,381,580)
quotiens as often as (correl. adv., AG #217b), whenever
opus est there is need (OLD s.v. opus 12). Female duplicity is natural, claims Ov. (cf. 1.430)
fallax, -acis deceptive. That women assist women’s ruses (637-38) is a ruse (663)
aegroto, -are be sick [< aeger, -gra, -grum ‘sick’]
cedo, -ere yield, withdraw, go out (+ abl. of place from which, AG #428f)
lectus, -i (m.) bed, couch (cf. 663)
quamlibet (adv.) no matter how (much) [quam ‘how much’ + libet ‘it pleases’; here thefallax amica
does in fact choose how sick she truly is, i.e. not at all]
quid agamus ‘what we are to do’ (indir. quest, w/ retained delib. subjv., AG #575b)
adulter, -era, -erum adulterous, impure; w/ clauis (-is [£] ‘key’ [cf. claudo close,’ ‘shut’]) = one
inserted in inappropriate holes, ‘skeleton key’, ‘duplicate key.’ Though Ov.’s lexical argument (nomine
‘by [its] name’) implies that the suggestive term adultera clauis is in current use, it is a hapax in Lat.
lit. (but cf. Sallust Bellum Iugurthinum 12.3 clauis adulterinas)
quas. . . petas relat. cl. of purpose (AG #531.2) w/ det, ‘gives you paths to take’
ianua, -ae (f.) door, entry. Lovers can enter and puellae exit via the window (605)

LINE 645
Lyaeus, -i (m.) ‘The Releaser’ [Gk. Auaioc > \ 6 « ‘release’], i.e. Bacchus, the god of wine; wine (cf. 765,
Liber 101)
uel or; even (AG #324g, cf. et 299). concessive subjv. lecta sit (AG #440)
Hispanus, -a, -um Spanish. Not all wines from Spain were praised in R.; Aug. was said to prefer unim­
pressive wine (Pliny Naturalis Historia 14.71)
uua, -ae (f.) grape {> uvula (for its resemblance to a small grape)}
iugum, -i (n.) yoke [cf. iungo ‘join’]; ridge, upper slope (cf. 574)
altus, -a, -um high, tall, deep
medicamen,-inis (n.) drug (freq. mixed w/ adultery in R. lit.: Am. 2.2.63, Tac. Ann. 3.22.1)
somnus, -i sleep. Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2)
Lethaeus, -a, -um of Lethe, the underworld river of forgetfulness [< Gk. XijOq] (cf. 340)
premo, -ere press, weigh down on. Relat. cl. of characteristic (AG #535)
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nec male deliciis odiosum conscia tardis

650 detinet et longa iungitur ipsa mora.
quid iuuat ambages praeceptaque parua mouere,
cum m inim o custos munere possit emi?
m unera, crede mihi, capiunt hom inesque deosque:
placatur donis Iuppiter ipse datis.
655 [quid sapiens faciet? stultus quoque m unere gaudet:
ipse quoque accepto m unere m utus erit.]
sed semel est custos longum redim endus in aeuum;
saepe dabit, dederit quas semel ille manus.

nec m ale. . . detinet = et bene... detinet; litotes emphasizes the efficacy of the advice
delicia, -ae (f.) diversion, (sexual) pleasure
odiosus, -a, -um loathsome, detestable (rare term in el., common in comedy)
tardus, -a, -um slow, protracted

LINE 650
detineo, -ere detain, hold back, delay
mora, -ae (f.) delay. Ov. will find another sexual use for the ancilla soon (6 6 6 )
iuuo, -are help, benefit. Inf. subj. mouere (‘move forward,’ ‘introduce’)
ambages, -um (f. pi.) roundabout path, detour [< ambi- ‘around’ + ago ‘drive’]
praecipio, -cipere, -cepi, -ceptum instruct; (pf. part.) instruction, teachings, education
munus, -eris (n.) duty; item given as a duty; service; favor, gift, bribe
emo, -ere buy
credo, -ere (+ dat.) trust. Ov. claims authority via experience; cf. 664,511 experto credite
placo, -are placate, appease. Jupiter rightly responds to proper worship, but Ov.’s otherwise innocuous
maxim is corrupted by the cynicism of651-52 and the earlier denigration of gifts {donum, -i [n.]
‘gift’) (cf. 551)

LINE 655
sapiens, -ntis (m.) wise man [< sapio ‘be wise’]. Gifts appease wise men as well as gods
stultus, -a, -um foolish; (subst.) fool
gaudeo, -ere rejoice (in), take pleasure in + abl. (AG #431)
accipio, -ipere, -epi, -eptum accept, receive. Abl. abs. w/ munere
mutus, -a, -um unable to speak; mute, silent (i.e. not a tattletale). Ov. may not have written 655-56; the
repetitions of munere (cf. 652-53) and quoque seem excessive. Some mss. read ipse uir (656), i.e. even
the husband can be bribed, but then to whom would he be mutus?
semel once (and for all) [cf. Gk. £v ‘one’], cf. 664
redimo, -imere, -emi buy (cf. 615). Slaves (or their allegiance) can be purchased and then repeatedly
blackmailed, cf. 1.389-90, Am. 2.8.23-28
aeuum, -i (n.) time; period of time, age. in + acc. ‘for’ (OLD s.v. in 23b), cf. 488
dabit... manus ‘he’ll give in,' ‘he’ll submit’ (military imagery; OLD s.v. manus 9d). Verbal variation (poly-
ptoton) paradoxically enhances consistency of behavior, cf. 458faciet.. .fecit, 1.454 dederit... dedit... dabit
659-82: Female duplicity.
In the realm of love, even a girl’s girlfriends cannot be trusted; companions become competitors.
Ov. emphasizes that men received the same advice (659-60); now, however, he is not just teacher
but lover as well (663-66). It is easy to dupe men w/ displays of affection; they enjoy it too (673-82),
esp. the vain ones (681-82)
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 COMMENTARY: 6 4 9 -6 6 8

questus eram, memini, m etuendos esse sodales;

non tangit solos ista querela uiros. 660
credula si fueris, aliae tua gaudia carpent
et lepus hic aliis exagitatus erit:
haec quoque, quae praebet lectum studiosa locumque,
crede mihi, m ecum non semel illa fuit,
nec nim ium uobis formosa ancilla m inistret: 665
saepe uicem dom inae praebuit illa m ihi,
quo feror insanus? quid aperto pectore in hostem
m ittor et indicio prodor ab ipse meo?

queror, -i, questum lament, complain. Poet. plpf. for pf. (Plat 114)
memini, -isse remember. Pf. form w/ pres. mg. (AG #205b). W / memini Ov. footnotes (and thus pro­
motes) his own texts, here 1.739-54 (739 conquerar, 751 metuendus, 741 sodali), cf. 2.169 w/ Am. 1.7;
2.551 w/ Am. 2.5; Fast. 3.471-76 w/ Catuli. 64.130-44. Cf.fertur 18
metuo, -ere fear, beware of
sodalis, -is (m.) fellow member; comrade, close friend

LINE 660
querela, -ae (f.) complaint (cf. queror 660)
credulus, -a, -um trusting (but men’s trust is easily procured, 673)
gaudium, -i (n.) joy (freq. sexual); sexual pleasure
carpo, -ere pluck, harvest (cf. 79 carpiteflorem); consume (680)
lepus, -oris (m.) hare. More hunting imagery, cf. 491; hares, famously fertile (Pliny Naturalis Historia
8.217), were freq. given as gifts to the beloved
exagito, -are stir up, rouse (from hiding), aliis dat. of agent (AG #375), ‘by others’
studiosus, -a, -um eager. The puella learns a new reason for haec (= arnica 641) to be eager; for her (and
for Ov. too, 664), altruism becomes self-interest

LINE 665
nimius, -a, -um excessive. Acc. nt. sg. as adv. w/ formosa (formosus, -a, -um ‘beautiful’), AG #214d, cf.
602. Sex w/ an attractive slave (ancilla, -ae [f.] ‘female slave,’ ‘handmaid’ [< Gk. dp<j>i7to\o? ‘atten­
dant’]) is risky but rewarding, Ov. tells men (1.375-98)
ministro, -are (+ dat.) act as a servant (ministra 470), serve
uicis (gen.) (f.) part, role, function. Defect, noun, AG #103h
domina, -ae (f.) mistress (as beloved, 568; as woman in charge of household, 241)
quo (interr. adv.) (to) where?
insanus, -a, -um insane. Adj. as adv. (AG #290). Pass. vbs. imply even more lack of control •,feror
(fero ‘carry’) freq. indicates wild abandon
aperio, -ire, -ui, -turn open, reveal, expose (to attack)
pectus, -oris (n.) chest, breast. Ov. reverses the gendered warfare of 1-6
hostis, -is (m.) (military) enemy
indicium, -i (n.) information, evidence. Personified abl. of agent (AG #40SN3), i.e. the upcoming lines
of the Ars itself, cf. ab arte 25
prodo, -ere expose, publish; hetray

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non auis aucupibus m onstrat, qua parte petatur,

670 non docet infestos currere cerua canes,
uiderit utilitas; ego coepta fideliter edam:
Lem niasin gladios in mea fata dabo,
efficite (et facile est) u t nos credamus amari:
prona uenit cupidis in sua uota fides.
675 spectet amabilius iuuenem et suspiret ab imo
femina, tam sero cur ueniatque roget;

auceps, -cupis (m.) bird-catcher [auis + capio]. He already knows where to hunt (1.47)
monstro, -are show, point out. Ov.’s comparisons highlight his unnatural behavior
pars, -tis (f.) part; portion (of land), region, area
peto,-ere aim at, pursue, seek out

LINE 670
infestus, -a, -um hostile, threatening
cerua, -ae (f.) deer. Similar imagery described hunts that were unexpectedly successful (427-28); now
they become unbelievably so
canis, -is (m./f.) dog
uiderit ‘(it) will look out for itself’ (fut. pf., OLD s.v. uideo 18b)
utilitas, -tatis (f.) usefulness, profit, expediency (Ov.’s own, not the students’)
coeptum, -i (n.) undertaking [< coepi ‘I began’]
fidelis, -e loyal. Adv. -ter. Ov. is at least faithful to his poetry if not to his puellae (664)
edo, -ere give out [< e(x)- + do, dare ‘give/ not edo ‘eat’], publish, produce
Lemnias, -ados (f.) woman of Gk. island Lemnos. All the island’s women neglected to worship
Venus; she cursed them w/ a stench, and their husbands rejected them for captive women from
Thrace. All the wives killed their husbands, hence prov. ‘Lemnian deed’ = horrific crime. They
later welcomed Jason and the Argonauts for a year; cf. 1.269-70,2.451-64. Gk. dat.pl. -asi(n)
(AG #82fnl, Gild #66N4)
fatum, -i (n.) fate, death. Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2), cf. 19. in meafata = ‘to cause my death’ (OLD
s.v. in 2 1 )
efficio, -ere make; bring (it) about (that) + ut + subjv. credamus, subst. cl. of result (AG #568), ‘make
us believe’
facilis, -e easy to do [< facio, cf. efficio; etym. link strengthens Ov.’s point]
pronus, -a, -um inclined; ready, easy. Adj. as adv. w/ uenit, AG #290
cupidus, -a, -um desirous
uotum, -i (n.) wish, in sua uota ‘for their wishes (to come true)’ (OLD s.v. in 16)
fides, -ei (f.) belief, trust. Desire makes us gullible

LINE 675
specto, -are look at, watch
amabilis, -e loving. Compar, adv. -ius
iuuenis, -is (m./f.) youth, young (man)
suspiro, -are sigh [suh- + spiro ‘breathe’]
imus, -a, -um lowest; (nt. subst.) lowest part, depths; ab imo ‘from deep within’
sero (adv.) late. El. poets freq. postpone -que ‘and’ to the 3rd or 4th word in a phrase (Plat 91), cf. 22 and
postponed et in 677
accedo, -ere approach; be added. Puellae also learn to cry at Am. 1.8.83-84
110
 COMMENTARY: 6 6 9 - 6 8 4

accedant lacrimae, dolor et de paelice fictus,

et laniet digitis illius ora suis,
iamdudum persuasus erit; miserebitur ultro
et dicet ‘cura carpitur ista mei.’ 680
praecipue si cultus erit speculoque placebit,
posse suo tangi credet amore deas.

sed te, quaecumque est, moderate iniuria turbet,

nec sis audita paelice mentis inops,

lacrima, -ae (f.) tear. Ov.’s mock surprise at this technique (291-92) has now vanished
dolor, -oris (m.) grief (cf. 702)
paelex, -icis (f.) mistress (as rival to a wife) [cf. Gk. rcaXXaidc;], cf. 684,701,739
fingo, -ngere, -nxi, -ctum feign; invent (cf. 6 0 1 ,798)
lanio, -are tear, rip. Ov. critiques immature men for such behavior (568) but asks for similar treatment
(w/ adiff. cause) at Am. 1.7.63-64
os, oris (n.) mouth; face (i.e. the man’s [illius]). Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2)
iamdudum (adv.) already, by now. Ov. comically notes the excess of his (now finished) catalog of sug­
gested activities; he could have stopped earlier
persuadeo, -dere, -si, -sum persuade, convince (+ dat.; pers. pass, can replace reg. impers. pass.
persuasum erit illi, AG #372N)
misereor, -eri have pity, show compassion
ultro (adv.) of (his) own accord. Ov. jokingly suggests that the lover thinks he’s in control of his own
responses

LINE 680
mei obj. gen. of ego (AG #143c, #348) w/ curd, ‘w/ concern for me’
praecipue (adv.) especially. Vain men (and women, 1.611-14) make easy targets
cultus, -a, -um cultured, suave [< colo ‘cultivate’], cf. 433
speculum, -i (n.) mirror [< *specio Took,’ cf. ‘looking glass’], cf. 135-36; for the quasi-personified
mirror cf. Medic. 6 8 fulgebit speculo leuior illa suo
placeo, -ere (+ dat.) please, attract (cf. 423,430)
tango, -ere touch; affect, suo ... amore ‘(their) love for him’ (AG #348a)
683-746: Procris and Cephalus.
The last and longest mythical digression in the Ars claims to show the dire effects of credulity. The
hunter Cephalus would call on the breeze (aura) as he rested; his wife Procris, (mis)informed of
his tryst with a rival named Aura, spied on him; she realized her mistake and emerged to greet
him, but he, mistaking her in turn for prey, shot her; she died in his arms. This famous myth had
many variants, all of them involving marital infidelity (cf. Met. 7.665-863); Ov.’s flair for turning
a sordid couple into romantic paragons of tragic misunderstanding shows that readers may be as
gullible as Procris was
quicumque, quae-, quod- whoever, whatever. Antec. iniuria
moderatus, -a, -um moderate. Adv. -e
iniuria, -ae (f.) wrongdoing, injustice [< in- ‘not’ + ius, iuris ‘right’ + -ia], cf. 597
turbo, -are disturb, upset, alarm [< turba ‘crowd’]
audita paelice abl. abs., ‘ifyou’ve heard rumor of a mistress’ (cf. 700-701, Am. 3.14.31-34)
mens, -ntis (f.) mind (as a sign of rational control, 713)
inops, -pis poor [< in- + ops ‘wealth’]; devoid (of) + gen. (AG #349)
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685 nec cito credideris: quantum cito credere laedat,

exemplum uobis non leue Procris erit,
est prope purpureos colles florentis H ym etti
fons sacer et uiridi caespite mollis humus;
silua nemus non alta facit; tegit arbutus herbam;
690 ros maris et lauri nigraque m yrtus olent;

LINE 685
cit 6 quickly [< citus ‘quick/ cf. modd ‘just’ < modus ‘quantity’]
credideris pf. subjv. in neg. command (AG #450.3), ‘(don’t) believe’
laedo, -dere, -si, -sum injure (cf. 598,704,739). Subjv. in indir. quest., w/ subj. cito credere
exemplum, -i (n.) example [cf. eximius ‘remarkable’]
Ieuis, -e light; trivial (cf. 1 0 0 ; if el. itself is leuis, can an el. story be grauis?)
Procris, -idos (f.) daughter of (mythical) Athenian king Erechtheus
est ...fo n s ‘There is a fountain.’Epic scene-setting w/ opening est (e.g.) locus, cf. Horn. II. 6.152, V.Aen.
1.159, Ov. Her. 16.157-58. Ov. introduces nature’s riches w/ a couplet filled w/ 5 nouns, each w/ its
own adj. The scenery also has amorous connotations; R. dining halls and bedrooms were freq.
scented w/ flowers, herbs, and spices
prope (prep. + acc.) near
purpureus, -a, -um purple, crimson; ruddy, glowing (sc. w/ flowers)
collis, -is (m.) hill; (in poetry) mountain
floreo, -ere blossom, flower
Hymettus, -i (m.) mountain near Athens, famous in antiq. for honey and marble
sacer, -era, -crum sacred. Gods are notably absent from the story; the adj. energizes the natural scene
(cf. Cicero De Divinatione 1.101,1.114 for the latent divinity of groves) and heightens the violence to
come, cf. Met. 3.155-64
uiridis, -e green (esp. as a sign of lively growth), florid
caespes, -itis (m.) turf, grassy ground; grass. Abl. of specification (AG #418) w/ mollis (-e ‘soft,’ ‘tender’
[for Cephalus to lie on, 696, cf. 728])
humus, -i (f.) earth, ground
silua, -ae (f.) wooded area, grove, wood, trees
nemus, -oris (n.) forest (freq. syn. w/ silua, cf. Met. 1.567-68, V. Geo. 2.323)
tego, -ere cover, hide (sc. w/ its shade, cf. V. Eel. 7.46 tegit arbutus umbra)
arbutus, -i (f.) wild strawberry tree (w/ unpalatable fruit)
herba, -ae (f.) herb, grass (cf. 694)

LINE 690
ros, roris (m.) dew; ros maris rosemary (‘sea-dew’)
laurus, -i or -us (f.) laurel, sacred to Apollo
niger, -ra, -rum black; dark (myrtle has at least three varieties, cf. 180, Cato Agr. 8.2)
myrtus, -i (f.) myrtle, sacred to Venus (cf. 53); freq. joined w/ laurus, cf. V. Eel. 2.54,7.62, Horace
Carmina 3.4.18-19, Curtius 8.10.14 (incl. buxum)
oleo, -ere smell, be fragrant
folium, -i (n.) leaf
buxum, -i (n.) box (a small evergreen tree) [cf. Gk. mlljoi;]
fragilis, -e fragile, brittle
myrica, -ae (f.) tamarisk (a shrub w/ tiny leaves and humble connotations, V. Eel. 4.2)

112
 COMMENTARY: 6 8 5 -6 9 8

nec densum foliis buxum fragilesque myricae

nec tenues cytisi cultaque pinus abest,
lenibus impulsae Zephyris auraque salubri
to t generum frondes herbaque sum m a trem it,
grata quies Cephalo: famulis canibusque relictis 695
lassus in hac iuuenis saepe resedit hum o
quae que ‘meos releues aestus/ cantare solebat
‘accipienda sinu, mobilis aura, u en i/

tenuis, -e thin, slender. El. is also styled as cultus and tenuis (cf. Prop. 3.1.7-8, V. Eel. 6 .8 ); Ov.’s garden
of earthly delights reframes nature as lit.
cytisus, -i (f.) laburnum, shrub trefoil (w/ yellow flowers, attracting goats and bees)
cultus, -a, -um cultivated [< colo ‘cultivate’]; cultured, suave (cf. 341-42)
pinus, -us (f.) pine (used ornamentally in gardens, V. Eel. 7.65)
lenis, -e smooth, mild, gentle
impello, -ellere, -uli, -ulsum set in motion, drive. Fern. pi. w/frondes
Zephyrus, -i (m.) west wind, traditionally gentle and warm (implying spring or summer)
aura, -ae (f.) air, breeze. Cephalus echoes Ov. at 728 (Zephyrus + aura)
saluber, -bris, -bre healthy, salubrious [< salus ‘health’] (w/ obvious irony)
genus, -eris (n.) type, class, group, tot generum recollects the richness of the scene
frons, frondis (f.) leaf, foliage (ci.frondes mouit 731-32)
summus, -a, -um highest; top of (w/ herba, ‘the tips of the grass,’ AG #293)
tremo, -ere tremble. Another (portentous) pathetic fallacy, cf. 38. Sg. vb. w/ 2 su b js frondes and herba
(AG #317b)

LINE 695
gratus, -a, -um pleasing, attractive
quies, -etis (f.) rest, quiet, peace; resting place (cf. Met. 14.52 grata quies Scyllae)
Cephalus, -i (m.) a beautiful Athenian loved and briefly abducted by Aurora, goddess of the dawn (84);
her name ominously echoes his new love (Aur[or]a)
famulus, -i (m.) servant, attendant, squire (famulus a loftier term than seruus ‘slave’)
canis,-is (m./f.) dog
relinquo, -inquere, -iqui, -ictum leave (behind), abandon. Ov.’s solitary wanderers all come to a bad
end, cf. Actaeon (Met. 3.174), Narcissus (Met. 3.413), Hermaphroditus (Met. 4.297), Phyllis
(Rem. 592), Procris (711)
lassus, -a, -um tired, weary
iuuenis, -is (m./f.) youth, young (man)
resido, -idere, -edi sit down (resedit may < resideo, -ere, -edi ‘remain [seated]’)
‘quae’que only Ov. freq. connects dir. disc, w/ -que, cf.Am. 1.1.24, Met. 9.109
releuo, -are lighten, quae... releues relat. cl. of purpose (AG #531.2), ‘to relieve’
aestus, -us (m.) heat, fever (from exertion or passion, cf. 544, ardor 714)
soleo, -ere, -itum be accustomed (4- inf.); (pf. ptc. as pres., AG #491) usual (727)
accipio, -ere accept, gather. Gdve. as adj. (AG #500.1), ‘fit for taking’ or purpose (AG *500.4), "to be
taken in’ (cf. Plautus Miles Gloriosus 891 uenit uobisfaciundum)
sinus, -us (m.) anything folded or curved; lap, breast, bosom (722); embrace (743)
mobilis, -e swift, nimble (w/ sexual connotations, cf. 802, Am. 2.4.14), fickle

113
O vid, A rs A matoria

coniugis ad tim idas aliquis male sedulus aures

700 auditos mem ori rettulit ore sonos.
Procris, ut accepit nomen, quasi paelicis, Aurae,
excidit et subito muta dolore fuit,
palluit, ut serae lectis de uite racemis
pallescunt frondes, quas noua laesit hiems,
705 quaeque suos curuant m atura Cydonia ramos
cornaque adhuc nostris non satis apta cibis.

coniunx, -ugis (m./f.) spouse. Emphatic position at line beginning stresses fear of infidelity
timidus, -a, -um fearful. Concern over rivals is warranted (659) yet restricted (683)
aliquis, -quid someone, sthg. The informant’s anonymity nicely matches the ambiguous nature of the
supposed rival
mal£ (adv.) badly [< malus ‘bad’], unpleasantly, awfully (699)
sedulus, -a, -um diligent, earnest [< se- ‘apart’ (AG #267b) + dolus ‘deceit’]
auris, is (f.) ear. Assonance (aura-aurts-audio) creates a phony sense of accuracy

LINE 700
memor, -oris mindful, retentive
refero, -ferre, rettuli bring back, report (cf. 317 referant audita)
os, oris (n.) mouth; face (727,730)
sonus, -i (m.) sound
ut accepit nomen ‘when she took (in) the name.’ Procris unwittingly recasts Cephalus’ accipienda
(698). The phrase accipere nomen usu. implies acquiring a (new) name; the roles of coniunx and
paelex are further blurred. Ov. also plays on the meanings of nomen, both ‘name’ (i.e. Aura) and
‘noun’ (i.e. aura), cf. OLD s.v. nomen 1, 6 a; 6 b.
quasi as if (sc. ‘it were the name’)
excido, -ere, -i fall, faint (in Ov. usu. from sudden news: 1.539,2.450, Rem. 348)
subitus, -a, -um sudden
mutus, -a, -um silent (a sign of female passion, 2.446-51, but Cephalus never sees it)
pallesco, -ere, pallui grow pale. Ov.’s similes (reversing the pathetic fallacy of 694: now humans mimic
nature) emphasize the beauty of Procris as el .puella
serus, -a, -um late (in the season)
lego, -ere, legi, lectum collect, gather, lectis... racemis (racemus, -i [m.] ‘cluster,’ ‘bunch’) abi. abs. as
temporal cl. (AG #420,1)
uitis, -is (f.) vine {> withe; > vise [from the tendril-like spirals of the screw]}
nouus, -a, -um new, fresh; early (OLD s.v. nouus 1lb)
hiems, -emis (f.) winter. Cf. 65-80: in wintry old age lovers depart from a pallid puella

LINE 705
curuo, -are cause to bend. Nom. subj. (Cydonia) quae
Cydonius, -a, -um of Cydonea, a city of Crete; (sc. malum ‘fruit’) quince (thought to originate in Crete;
light yellow when ripe [maturus, -a, -um])
ramus, -i (m.) branch {> ramification}
cornum, -i (n.) cornel berry (fruit of the cornel tree, pale green when unripe)
adhuc still, yet (i.e, 'while it is still unfit') [> ad- + hue ‘to this point’]
satis (adv.) sufficiently, adequately (w/ apta [aptus, -a, -um ‘suited,’ ‘fit’]). Unripe cornel berries are
edible but unpleasant
114
 COM M ENTARY: 699
'714

ut rediit animus, tenues a pectore uestes

rum pit et indignas sauciat ungue genas;
nec mora, per medias passis furibunda capillis
euolat, ut thyrso concita Baccha, uias. 710
ut prope peruentum , comites in ualle relinquit,
ipsa nemus tacito clam pede fortis init,
quid tibi mentis erat, cum sic male sana lateres,
Procri? quis attoniti pectoris ardor erat?

cibus, -i (m.) food; meal

pectus, -oris (n.) chest, breast. Grief-stricken women traditionally tear their clothes
uestis, -is (f.) garment, clothing
rumpo, -ere tear, rip, split
indignus, -a, -um unworthy; undeserving, innocent. Ov, freq. sympathizes thus w/ his lamenting
characters: 1.532,Met. 1.508,4.138,10.723, Tr. 1.3.18
saucio, -are wound, injure
unguis, -is (m.) fingernail (cf. 239-40)
nec mora (sc. est) there is no delay, at once. A formula, cf. Prop. 4.8.51, V. Aen. 5.368
medius, -a, -um middle; the middle of, the midst of (AG #293), w/ uias (cf. 723)
passus, -a, -um spread out [< panda], strewn. Ov. describes Scylla, another jilted lover, w/ the same
phrase (passis furibunda capillis) at Met. 8.107
furibundus, -a, -um crazed, raging [< furor ‘madness’]. Adj. as adv. (AG #290), cf. 712
capillus, -i (m.) strand of hair, (pi.) hair(s)

LINE 710
euolo, -are fly away, rush out. Distraught women are freq. compared to Bacchants (Baccha, -ae [f.]
‘female follower of Bacchus’, usu. depicted as energetic and crazed); so Procris’ animus has returned
(707) but not yet her mens (730)
thyrsus, -i (m.) ivy-twined staff w/ pine cone at the tip, carried by Bacchae
concieo, -ere, -ui, -turn incite, rouse
u t . . . peruentum ‘upon arrival,’ ‘when she arrived’ (impers. pass. [sc. est], AG #208d)
prope (adv.) nearby (i.e. near the glade; Ov. expects his readers to know the story)
comes, -itis (m./f.) companion (i.e. those who followed Procris into the countryside)
uallis, -is (f.) valley {> avalanche}
tacitus, -a, -um silent (Procris avoids being heard). El. provides ironic undertones for her behavior: Venus
teaches bold lovers howto move noiselessly (to elude one’s guardians and meet a lover, Tib. 1.2.15-20)
clam (adv.) secretly {> clandestine} (Procris avoids being seen)
fortis, -e strong; brave, bold (freq. of men, but cf. Am. 3.2.32 [Diana], Fast. 2.841 [Lucretia], Horace
Carmina 1.37.26 [Cleopatra])
ineo, -ire go into, enter (+ acc.)
mens, -ntis (f.) mind (cf. 684). quid... mentis ‘what (amount of) sanity’ (partit, gen., AG #713). Ov.
here implies a neg. answer (‘little’), cf. Her. 7.66
sanus, -a, -um healthy, sane. Adj. as adv. (AG #290). Procri Gk. voc. sg. (AG #82)
lateo, -ere be hidden (cf. 727)
attonitus, -a, -um lightning-stricken; stunned; fear-stricken, terrified (adj. in Ars 3 only here and 144
attonitas.. .feras; Ov. depicts Procris as prey, cf. 733)
ardor, -oris (m.) heat (physical or passionate, cf. Cephalus’ aestus 697), agitation, quis = interr. adj. qui
(AG#148bN)
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715 iam iam uenturam , quaecum que erat Aura, putabas

scilicet atque oculis probra uidenda tuis!
nunc uenisse piget (neque enim deprendere uelles),
nunc iuuat: incertus pectora uersat amor,
credere quae iubeant, locus est et nom en et index
720 et quia m ens semper, quod tim et, esse putat,
uidit u t oppressa uestigia corporis herba,
pulsantur trepidi corde m icante sinus,
iamque dies m edius tenues contraxerat umbras,
inque pari spatio uesper et ortus erant:

LINE 715
iamiam at any moment now (OLD s.v. iam 5). uenturam sc. illam esse
quicumque, quae-, quod- whoever
scilicet surely (ironic; Ov. teases Procris for her intimations of immorality)
oculus, -i (m.) eye. Dat. of agent w/ gdve. uidenda, ‘by your eyes’ (AG #374)
probrum, -i (n.) rebuke; disgraceful act (esp. sexual, cf. Cicero Philippicae 2.99, Catuli. 61.99)
piget, -ere it irks, it causes regret (impers. vb., AG #208b + inf. subj., AG #354c, #454), sc. te: ‘you are
sorry to have come’
deprendo,-ere catch, apprehend [de- + pre(he)ndo,vi/ contr. of vowels, AG #15.3]. utiles potent, subjv.
(AG #447, Gild #258, cf. Rem. 298,Met. 7.144), 'you wouldn’t be wanting to catch [him]’
iuuo, -are help, benefit; gratify, please (impers., w/ uenisse subj.)
incertus, -a, -um uncertain, unstable
uerso, -are turn, twist, disturb, pectora pi. for sg. (cf. 781)
credere quae iubeant ‘(the things) that compel (her) to believe.’ Procris ironically trusts that Cephalus
is untrustworthy, quae nt. pi. w/ 4 anteceds., 3 nouns + quia .. .putat (AG #305a); iubeant subjv. in
relat. cl. of characteristic (Gild #631.1, AG #535). Ov. freq. ends a list of specifics (locus... index)
w/ a generalizing principle (Am. 1.5.19-23, Ars 1.341-42)
index, -icis (m.) informer (i.e. aliquis male sedulus 699)

LINE 720
quod tim et ‘what it fears.’ Relat. cl., w/ mens subj. of timet; omitted anteced. (sc. id) is subj. of ind. disc,
w/ esse
opprimo, -imere, -essi, -essum press down, crush. W / herba (abl. of place, AG #429.4)
uestigium, -i (n.) footprint, track; imprint, trace
pulso, -are beat, strike, bombard (726)
trepidus, -a, -um agitated (cf. 608). Procris now resembles the scenery (694, cf. 1.553)
cor, cordis (n.) heart. Circumst. abl. abs. (AG #420.5), ‘while her heart trembles' (mico, -are ‘glitter,’
‘flash’ [504]; ‘quiver,’ ‘tremble’)
dies, -ei (f.) day. High noon freq. brings danger, cf. Horn. Od. 4.400, Met. 3.144
par, paris equal. Ov. freq. tells time w/ geometry (Met. 10.174,11.353)
spatium, -i (n.) space, extent, distance, length; in ‘at’ (OLD 35b)
uesper, -eris (m.) evening; the west [Gk. Scrirepoq]
ortus, -us (m.) rising [< orior ‘arise’]; the east

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 COM M ENTARY: 7 1 5 -7 3 4

ecce, redit Cephalus siluis, Cyllenia proles, 725

oraque fontana feruida pulsat aqua,
anxia, Procri, lates; solitas iacet ille per herbas
et 'Zephyri molles auraque’ dixit ‘ades.’
u t patuit miserae iucundus nom inis error,
et mens et rediit uerus in ora color; 730
surgit et oppositas agitato corpore frondes
m ouit in amplexus uxor itura uiri.
ille feram uidisse ratus iuuenaliter artus
corripit; in dextra tela fuere m anu—

LINE 725
ecce (interj.) behold, look (freq. at a god’s epiphany, cf. 1.525, S41-43, or a mortal’s sudden entrance,
cf. Am. 1.5.9; Cephalus’ epithet Cyllenia blurs the categories)
redeo, -ire, -ii return, come back [re(d)- ‘again’ + eo ‘go,’AG #16,267b] (730)
silua, -ae (f.) wooded area, grove, wood. Abl. of place from which (AG #428g)
Cyllenius, -a, -um of Mt. Cyllene in Arcadia, birthplace of Cephalus’ father Mercury
proles, -is (f.) progeny. Cyllenia proles usu. Mercury (V. Aen. 4.258); here Cephalus
fontanus, -a, -um of a spring (cf. 6 8 8 fans)
feruidus, -a, -um hot, burning (sc. from his exertions)
anxius, -a, -um anxious, uneasy. Adj. as adv. (AG #290), freq. w/ emotions (259,472)
iaceo, -ere lie (on the ground)
ades ‘be present’ (adsum impv., AG #170; sg. w/ collect, subj., AG #317b)
pateo, -ere, -ui lie open, be visible
miser, -ra, -rum wretched. Subst. dat., ‘to the poor woman’
iucundus, -a, -um pleasant, delightful, iucundus + error only here in all Lat. lit.
error, -oris (m.) mistake, nominis obj. gen.: ‘the error about the name’ (AG #348)

LINE 730
uerus, -a, -um true, proper (cf. 164). et mens e t... color-, more syllepsis (cf. 77)
surgo, -ere arise, get up
oppono, -nere, -sui, -situm put in front, interpose
agito, -are stir up. agitato corpore abl. of means; she crashes through the brush
m 6 ueo, -ere, moui move (someone or sthg.; dir. ob).frondes). Ov.’s narrative acceleration (surgitpres.,
then mouit pf. = completed action) prompts Cephalus’ hasty response
amplexus, -us (m.) embrace [< amplector < *plic- ‘twine,’ ‘fold’]
itura 'to go’ (fut. ptc. [eo, ire, ii, itum] showing purpose, AG #499.2)
u x o r.. .u iri In Ars, wife + husband = sorrow (20,585-86,2.153-55, 2.545)
fera, -ae (f.) wild animal, beast, mouisse sc.frondes as dir. obj.
reor, -eri, ratum think, suppose (w/ ind. disc, uidisse-, subj. se omitted, AG #581N1)
iuuenalis, -e youthful. Adv. -ter (the form is rare and hence emphatic; cf. Ov.’s critique of youth’s
impetuous behavior, 567-71)
artus, -us (m.) joint; limb; (pi.) body
corripio, -ere seize, snatch up (implying sudden motion from rest, cf. V. Aen. 3.176 corripio... corpus
[waking from a dream], 4.572, Lucretius 3.925)
dexter, -tra, -trum right, dextra w/ manu ‘his right hand’;/nere = fuerunt (AG #163a)
telum, -i (n.) spear, weapon. Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2), freq. in Ov. w/ telum

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O vid, A rs A matoria

735 quid facis, infelix? non est fera: supprime tela—

me miserum! iaculo fixa puella tuo est.
‘ei m ih i/ conclam at ‘fixisti pectus amicum:
hic locus a Cephalo uulnera sem per habet,
ante diem m orior sed nulla paelice laesa:
740 hoc faciet positae te mihi, terra, leuem.
nom ine suspectas iam spiritus exit in auras;
labor, io! cara lum ina conde m an u /
ille sinu dom inae m orientia corpora m aesto
sustinet et lacrimis uulnera saeua lauat;

LINE 735
quid facis. . . est Ov. highlights the swift drama w/ unique concision: 5 grammatically distinct sen­
tences in 1 couplet (only here in Ars)
infelix, -icis unfortunate, unlucky
supprimo, -ere press down on; hold back, control (cf. 467)
me miserum acc. of exclam. (AG #397d), ‘poor me!’ (cf. 73,552). Everyone in the story ends up miser:
Procris (729), Ov. (736), Cephalus (746).
iaculum, -i (n.) javelin, spear [< iacio ‘throw’]
figo, -gere, -xi, -xum pierce. Ov. cuts out dir. narration of the injury itself (note pf. tense) and recasts
Cephalus’ spouse as sympathetic el .puella
ei m ihi ‘ah me!’ (dat. w/ interj., AG #379a; it only gradually becomes clear that it is Procris who
speaks)
conclamo, -are cry out, exclaim
amicus, -a, -um friendly; of a friend
uulnus, -eris (n.) wound. Procris’ dying wit echoes Ov. repeatedly: her speech opens and closes
w/ repetitions ofhis words (736fixa—737fixistv, 740 spiritus exit—745-46 e x it... spiritus)
and a play on figurative and literal mgs. of uulnera (cf. 572), and she writes her own epitaph
(739, cf. 39, 812)
ante diem ‘before my fated day’ (OLD s.v. dies 7d, 8 , cf. ante annos 18)

LINE 740
hoc i.e. the fact that death was not caused by a rival (paelex)
pono, -nere, -sui, -situm place; lay (in the ground), bury (OLD s.v.pono 8 b). Procris varies a freq. tomb
formula (SITE = sittibi terraleuis), cf, Am. 2.16.15,3.9.68
lSuis, -e light, slight; easily borne
suspicio, -ere suspect, mistrust, nomine abl. of cause, ‘for their name’ (AG #404)
spiritus, -us (m.) breath, spirit [< spiro ‘breathe’] (746)
labor, -i, lapsum slip away (745), sink, collapse [not < labor ‘work’]. More irony: Procris mistook lit.
aura for fig. Aura and died as a result; now labor is literal (‘fall away’), not figurative (‘fall into error,’
‘be mistaken,’ OLD s.v. labor110)
io (interj.) ‘Oh!’ (a sign of joy [2.1], grief [Met. 3.442], or distress [Tib. 2.4.6])
carus, -a, -um dear, loving
lumen, -inis (n.) light; eye. Procris receives the usu. R. funerary rites (but out of order): her eyes are
closed, her last breath is gathered (745-46), her body is washed (744)
condo, -ere put away, conceal; establish, compose

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 COMMENTARY: 735-750

exit e t incauto p au latim p ec to re lapsus 745

excipitur m iseri sp iritu s ore uiri.

sed rep etam u s opus: m ih i nudis rebus e u n d u m est,

u t ta n g at p o rtu s fessa ca rin a suos,
sollicite expectas, du m te in conuiuia ducam ,
e t quaeris m o n itu s hac qu o q u e p a rte m eos. 750

domina, -ae (f.) mistress (as beloved, cf. 568)

maestus, -a, -um gloomy, mournful, depressed. Hypallage (sinu... maesto for ille... maestus) under­
scores the earlier pathetic fallacy (694,704)
sustineo, -ere hold up, support
lacrima, -ae (f.) tear. For corpses bathed w/ tears cf. Acc. Trag. 578
saeuus, -a, -um savage, fierce (cf. 577, again in the context of young love's ferocity)
lauo, -are wash (usu. literal; for baths oftears cf. ps.-Ov. Cons. adLiu. 113-16)

LINE 745
incautus, -a, -um heedless (cf. 371: games endanger the unwary lover’s pectus), incauto.. .pectore abl. of
place from which (AG #428g)
paulatim (adv.) gradually, bit by bit [paulus Tittle’ + -tim, cf. paulo 758]
excipio, -ere receive, catch (w/ ore abl. of means). Cephalus kisses Procris (the soul was thought to
leave the body w/ its last breath, cf. V. Aen. 4.684)
747-68: How to behave at a party.
Social gatherings w/ food and drink (cf. 2.503-6, Am. 1.4,2.5) provide opportunity as well as
danger; puellae must show moderation in their consumption or risk rejection and violence
repeto, -ere seek again, return to. Ov. implies (despite 683-86) that the story was a digression; w/ coy
apologies for the inclusion of prior material (cf. 2.535, Rem. 439,461,577-78) he undermines his
own poet, authority and the reader’s interpretive stability
opus, -eris (n.) work, task; piece of (lit.) work
nudus, -a, -um uncovered, bare, nude, nudis rebus abl. abs. (AG #419a, #420.5). Ov. claims to
choose an unadorned style for his material (for nudae res [rei (f.) ‘thing;’ ‘topic’] cf. Quintilian
Institutio Oratoria 2.4.3, Seneca Controversiae 3.prae/.6,7.prae/.5) and hints at the topics that will
be bared in 769-88
m ih i. . . eundum est 'I must proceed’ (impers. gdve. of intr. eo, ire ‘go,’AG #190d)
tango, -ere touch; reach, come to
portus, -us (m.) port, harbor (cf. 100). Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2)
fessus, -a, -um tired, weary. Ov. concludes the Rem. (811 fessae date serta carinae) in a similarly tired
ship (carina, -ae [f.] ‘keel;’ ‘vessel,’ ‘boat’)
sollicitus, -a, -um troubled, restless, anxious
expecto, -are wait (+ dum + subjv. in temp. cl. of expectancy, AG #553)
conuiuium, -i (n.) dinner party, banquet

LINE 750
quaero, -ere seek (for)
monitus, -us (m.) advice, counsel [< moneo ‘warn’]
pars, -rtis (f.) part; branch (of a topic). Abl. w/out prep. (AG #429.1), ‘in this area’

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sera ueni positaque decens incede lucerna:

grata m ora uenies, maxim a lena m ora est.
etsi turpis eris, formosa uidebere potis,
et latebras uitiis nox dabit ipsa tuis.
75S carpe cibos digitis (est quiddam gestus edendi),
ora nec im m unda tota perungue manu;
neue domi praesum e dapes, sed desine citra
quam capis: es paulo, quam potes esse, minus.
Priam ides H elenen auide si spectet edentem,

serus, -a, -um late. Adj. as adv. (AG #290, cf. decens,grata 752)
decens, -ntis stylish, graceful [< decet ‘it suits’]
incedo, -ere walk, proceed (cf. incessu 299)
lucerna, -ae (f.) lamp [< lux ‘light’]. Conuiuia usu. began in the afternoon; lamps were set out later
(posita... lucerna abl. abs.) to offset sunset (754)
gratus, -a, -um pleasing, attractive
mora, -ae (f.) delay (also recommended to women in the writing of letters, 473-74). More polyptoton,
w/ abl. of cause (AG #404) and nom. subj.
lena, -ae (f.) female pimp, procuress (a common character in comedy and el., cf. Am. 1.8). Ov. couches
frank social language in metaphor (cf. 316)
turpis, -e ugly, shameful (765). Unflattering stereotypes (cf. 255) provide comedy through rapid con­
trast (formosa, cf. 764). Fut. eris simply emphasizes fut. situation w/out implying pres. diff. (cf. 279)
pdtus, -a, -um drunk [< poto, -are ‘drink,’761; not < pdtts ‘able’]. Dat. w/ uidebere, ‘to those who are drunk.’
Ov. also warns men not to be bamboozled by low light (1.245-48) or spirited passion (Rem. 803-10)
latebra, -ae (f.) hiding-place [< lateo ‘hide’]. Ironic advice after Procris’ fate (713)
uitium, -i (n.) flaw, defect; flawed nature, imperfection (cf. 262)
nox, noctis (f.) night, nightfall. Dusk hides not just flaws but modesty too (Am. 1.5.8)

LINE 755
carpo, -ere pluck, take (presumably using the fingers in a dainty way [c£ 275-76]; R.s did not use forks at meals)
cibus, -i (m.) food. PI. denotes particular instances (AG #100b), ‘entries’
quidam, quae-, quid- someone, sthg. est quiddam ‘has some value’ (OLD s.v. quidam2 2d)
gestus, -us (m.) gesture; motion, action
4do, -ere eat (impv. es, inf. esse 758, AG #201). Gen. ger., ‘of eating’
os, oris (n.) mouth; face. PI. for sg. (AG #101N2)
immundus, -a, -um unclean, dirty
perunguo, -ere smear thoroughly. Rs. did use napkins (mappae, lintea, cf. Catuli. 12)
domus, -us/-i (f.) house, home, domi loc. (AG #93N1)
praesumo, -ere take in advance. Ov.’s concern is not dieting but lacking the appetite to appreciate a
host’s generosity
daps, -pis (f.) meal, banquet; food
desino,-ere stop, finish
citra (adv.) on the closer side; earlier (+ quam ‘than,’ cf. antequam, AG #434)
capio, -ere take; hold, have room for
paulus, -a, -um little (nt. abl. as degree of diff. w/ compar, minus, AG #414)
Priamides, -ae (m.) son of Priam (king of Troy, 440); Paris (ll), husband of Helen (Helene, -es [f.];
Gk. acc. sg. -en [AG #44]), who started TW by eloping to Troy w/ him. Gk. nom. sg. -es (AG #44)
auidus, -a, -um greedy, voracious. Adv. -e. Gluttonous women are freq. lampooned in comedy and
satire; el. rarely focuses on eating (cf. 1.230, Am. 1.4)
specto, -are look at, watch (cf. 774)
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 COM M ENTARY: 7 5 1 -7 6 6

oderit et dicat ‘stulta rapina mea est.’ 760

aptius est deceatque magis potare puellas:
cum Veneris puero non male, Bacche, facis,
hoc quoque, qua patiens caput est anim usque pedesque
constant nec, quae sunt singula, bina uides.
turp e iacens mulier multo m adefacta Lyaeo: 765
digna est concubitus quoslibet illa pati.

LINE 760
odi, odisse dislike, have an aversion to. Pf, form w/ pres. mg. (AG #205b)
stultus, -a, -um foolish (cf. 254). Hom.’s Paris refused to disown his theft (ll. 7.362)
rapina, -ae (f.) theft, plunder (the action or the item, cf. Her. 8 .6 6 ; Paris criticizes both his own role in
taking Helen to Troy and her own behavior)
aptus, -a, -um suited, proper. Nt. nom. compar, (cf. 808) w/ in (.potare
decet, -ere it suits (impers.; w/ subj. figura 772). Potent, subjv., ‘it would be fitting’ (AG #447.3).
magis w/ deceat (cf. compar, aptius), but magis potare is doubly provocative (encouraging
women to drink at all contravenes stiff R. morals, cf. Valerius Maximus 2.1.5, Pliny Naturalis
Historia 14.89-90)
poto, -are drink, imbibe (cf. potis 753). An inf. serving as the subj. of a sentence has its own subj. in the
acc. (AG #452.1, #397e, cf. 5)
Bacchus,-i (m.) the god of wine. Love (Venus’son Cupid, cf. 4,515) and liquor make an obvious pair,
cf. 1.231-32, 244 (Venus in uinis), 525-26, Rem. 805
cu m . . . puero. . . facis ‘you work with the boy’ (OLD s.v.facio 29b, cf. 540). Litotes (non male = bene)
underscores Ov.’s approval of the divine team
hoc quoque ‘this too’ (i.e. deceat potare puellas-, women should drink [761-62] but moderately [763-
64]). Speed (5 dactyls) and unusual enjambment (animusquepedesque / constant) highlight the
danger of excess
qua where; to the extent that (abl. of qui as adv., AG #215.4, Gild #91.2d)
patiens, -ntis tolerant, able to endure [< patior ‘suffer’; ptc. as adj., AG #494]
consto, -are stand (sto) together (con-), be steady, stay in control
singuli, -ae, -a single. Sc. ilia as antec. of quae and dir. obj. of uides
bini, -ae, -a double. Pred. acc. (AG #393), ‘as double.’ Ov. freq. spikes his maxims (drunks see double)
w /witty juxtaposition of opposites (singula bina), cf.68,115,132,134,155,166,218,255,256,263,
269,284, 307,476-77,489,596,753, w/ more one-two punches at Her. 7.138 (una duos), 16.70 (una
duas), Am. 2.10.4 (duas uno), 2.10.22 (una duae), Rem. 490 (singula multa), etc.

LINE 765
turpis, -e ugly, shameful. Nt. as pred. w/ iacens (iaceo, -ere ‘lie’ [on a couch or bed]) mulier, sc. est (AG
#289c). Women should avoid appearing shameful (cf. 218,249,367,379,753), yet Ov. implies that
men enjoy being aroused by it (cf. Rem. 427-40)
madefacio, -facere, -feci, -factum soak, drench. Ov. joins other authors in lampooning female drunk­
enness (cf. Tib, 1.9.59 -64, Juv. 6.300-305) and condoning rape, at least of lower-class women; cf.
1.669-72 (encouraging men to commit date rape), Ciceropro Planco 30
Lyaeus, -i (m.) ‘The Releaser’ [Gk. Audios > \b u ‘release’], i.e. Bacchus, the god of wine; wine (cf. 645,
Liber 101)
dignus, -a, -um worthy, deserving (+ inf., AG #535N2)
concubitus, -us (m.) sex act [< concumbo Tie together’], intercourse
quilibet, quae-, quod- any, whichever you like [qui ‘which’ + libet ‘it pleases’]. Grim irony, given the
catalog of upcoming appropriate sexual positions
patior, -i suffer, endure. Women were considered ‘naturally’ passive in sex
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nec somnis posita tu tu m succum bere mensa:

per som nos fieri m ulta pudenda solent.

ulteriora pudet docuisse, sed alm a Dione

770 ‘praecipue nostrum est, quod p u d e t/ inquit ‘opus.’
nota sibi sit quaeque; modos a corpore certos
sumite: non om nes una figura decet,
quae facie praesignis erit, resupina iaceto;
spectentur tergo, quis sua terga placent.

somnus, -i sleep. Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2), dat. w/ succumbere (AG #370)
posita. .. mensa ‘when dinner is on the table’ (OLD s.v. pono S, cf. Her. 16.217)
tutus, -a, -um safe. Nt. pred. adj. w/ subj. succumbere (AG #289d)
succumbo, -ere lie down, give way, submit (freq. w/ sexual connotation)
fio, fieri, factum be made, be done, happen (pass, offacio, AG #204). Sleeping women are liable to
suffer sexual violence, cf. Fast. 1.415-50, Prop. 1.3
pudendus, -a, -um shameful, scandalous (gdve. of intr.pudet ‘it shames,’ Gild#427N5)
soleo, -ere, -itum be accustomed (+ inf.). Nt. pi. subst. subj. multa
769-88: Making arrangements in bed.
Women should choose sexual positions that flatter their figures or hide their defects (cf. the catalogs
of suitable hairstyles [135-58] and clothes [169-92]). Ov.’s descriptions are more technical than
salacious; mythical heroines provide comedy, not lustfulness
ulterior, -ius more distant, farther; nt. pi. subst., ‘what follows’ (cf. Fast. 5.532pudor est ulteriora loqui,
Her. 15.133 ulteriora pudet narrare)
pudet, -ere it shames (sc. me; impers. vb. w/ inf. docuisse [= docere, Piat 109-12] and relat. d . quod pudet
[770] as subjs., AG #354c). Ov. freq. acknowledges and celebrates a topic’s impropriety (cf. 353,804)
almus, -a, -um nurturing, kindly, generous [< alo, -ere ‘nourish’] (3)
Dione, -es (f.) in Horn., the mother of Venus, goddess of love; in Ov., Venus herself (who also super­
vises Ov.’s work at 43,2.593,2.607, Fast.4.1-16)

LINE 770
praecipue (adv.) especially
opus, -eris (n.) work, task; piece of (lit) work (cf. 338); activity (ind. sexual, cf. Am. 2.10.36 soluar et inter opus)
nosco, -ere, noui, notum get to know; (pf. w/ pres, sense, AG #205bN2) know
quisque, quae-, quid- each one (pron.). ‘Know thyself’ (inscribed on Apollo’s temple at Delphi, cf.
789) has bodily applications, cf. 2.497-502; Corinna and Helen have already gained that knowledge
(Am. 2.17.8, Her. 17.38)
modus, -i (m.) style, way; (sexual) position (cf. 2.680, Am. 2.8.28,3.7.64,3.14.24)
a corpore ‘in accordance with the body’ (OLD s.v. ab 25c)
certus, -a, -um certain, assured; particular, individual (OLD s.v. certus 3), cf. 187
sumo, -ere take up, partake (in), make use of (cf. 90)
figura, -ae (f.) shape; (sexual) posture (cf. 2.679, Am. 3.14.24, Rem. 407, Tr. 2.1.523)
facies, -ei (f.) appearance; (good) looks; face. Abl. of specification (AG #418)
praesignis, -e outstanding, conspicuous
iaceto fut. impv. (AG #449) usu. implies a fulfilled condit.: ‘[if your face is lovely, then] lie face up’
(resupinus, -a, -um) (cf. 207)
tergum, -i (n.) back (cf. 236). Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2). tergo = a tergo, ‘from the rear’ (AG #429b,
Gild #390.2N1, OLD s.v. tergum 6 )
placeo, -ere (+ dat.) please, attract (cf. 423,430)

122
 COM M ENTARY: 7 6 7 -7 8 2

M ilanion umeris A talantes crura ferebat: 775

si bona sunt, hoc sunt aspicienda modo,
parua uehatur equo: quod erat longissima, num quam
Thebais H ectoreo nupta resedit equo,
strata prem at genibus paulum ceruice reflexa
femina per longum conspicienda latus. 780
cui femur est iuuenale, carent quoque pectora menda,
stet uir, in obliquo fusa sit ipsa toro.

quis = quibus (AG #150c), dat. w/ placent; antec. is subj. of spectentur. Women pleased w/ their own
terga (cf. 1.614 pessima sit, nulli non suaforma placet. Rem. 6 8 6 ) will presumably please men too

LINE 775
Milanion, -onis (m.) husband of Atalanta (Atalante, -es [f.]), a mythical princess; she refused marriage
w/ any man until won over by his patient service (2.185-92; Prop. 1.1.9). In a parallel story (Met.
10.560-680) she challenged suitors toarace and slew the slow; Hippomenes (or Milanion, Am.
3.2.29) finally won w/ Venus’ help. Ov. recounts their sexual exploits at Am. 3.2.29; the two featured
in a pornographic painting in the emperor Tiberius’bedroom (Suetonius Tiberius 44.2)
umerus, -i (m.) shoulder (abl. of means)
crus, -uris (n.) leg, shin. The huntress and sprinter Atalanta’s were presumably fine
aspicio, -ere view, behold. Subj. sc. tua crura
paruus,-a, -um small, short. Fem. sg. as subst. (AG #288). Ov. earlier also urged short women to sit,
but in a different way (263-66)
ueho, -ere carry, convey; (pass., + abl.) ride
longus, -a, -um long, tall
Thebais, -idos (f.) woman from Thebes (city in Boeotia); Andromache, wife of Hector (109). Ov. also
manipulates their sex life at 2.705-10
Hectoreus, -a, -um of Hector, the Trojan hero. Ov. sexualizes epic characters and their epithets:
Hector is ‘tamer of horses’ (II. 24.804, last word of epic)
stratum, -i (n.) bedsheet, coverlet [< sterno ‘spread’]
premo, -ere press down on
genu, -us (n.) knee
paulus, -a, -um little (nt. acc. as adv. w/ reflexa, AG #214d)
ceruix, -icis (f.) neck, ceruice reflexa abl. abs. (reflecto, -ctere, -xi, -xum ‘bend back’ [i.e. in a position sim­
ilar to 777-78]; ‘turn around’ [i.e. the woman, directed away from the man, twists toward him])

LINE 780
conspicio, -ere view, regard. Gdve. (AG #500.1), ‘worth gazing at’ (cf. 308)
latus, -eris (n.) side, flank (freq. w/ sexual connotations in el., cf. 301, 351, Am. 3.11.14).per 'all along’
(OLD s.v. 3), ‘because of’ (OLD s.v. 13)
femur, -oris (n.) thigh, Notable logical separation of relat. cl. (cui dat. of possession, AG #373; antec.
ipsa [782]) from main cl. (stet uir) matches the couple’s partial separation—the man stands by the
bed while she lies across it—and emphasizes the bodily objectification of the woman
iuuenalis, -e youthful. The woman need not be young herself, cf. 2.663-702
careo, -ere lack (+ abl.)
pectus, -oris (n.) chest, breast. R. art freq. shows women wearing afascia (274) during sex, but Ov.
portrays Corinna (also w/ iuuenalefemur and w/out a menda [-ae, (f.) ‘blemish,’ ‘fault,’ ‘flaw’], cf. Am.
1.5.18,22) naked (Am. 1.5.17-18,3.14.21-22, cf. Prop. 2.15.13-16)
obliquus, -a, -um angled. Adj. transferred from ipsa to toro
fundo, -ndere, -di, -sum pour out, spread out; (pass.) lie down
torus, -i (m.) pillow; bed. (The woman lies across it w/ her legs around the man)
123
O vid, A rs A matoria

nec tibi turpe puta crinem, ut Phylleia mater,

soluere, et effusis colla reflecte comis.
785 tu quoque, cui rugis uterum Lucina notauit,
u t celer auersis utere Parthus equis,
mille ioci Veneris; simplex m inim ique laboris,
cum iacet in dextrum sem isupina latus.

sed neque Phoebei tripodes nec corniger A m m on

790 uera magis uobis quam mea M usa canet;
si qua fides, arti, quam longo fecimus usu,
credite: praestabunt carm ina nostra fidem.

crinis, -is (m.) hair, tress (dir. obj. of soluere). Ov. praises loose hair (153-54,431) for all, despite 135,145-46
Phylleius, -a, -urn of Phyllus (a city in Thessaly); resembling Phyllis (37-38). She lived in Thrace, as did
Bacchants (710), traditionally represented w/ loose hair (coma, -ae [f.]; cf. Ov.’s description of
Phyllis as Bacchant, Rem. 593-94) and freq. called matres (e.g. V. Aert. 7.392)
soluo, -uere loosen. Inf. as acc. subj. ofind. disc, tibi turpe [sc. esse] soluere
effundo, -ndere, -di, -sum pour out, spread out (cf. 782)
collum, -i (n.) neck. Cf. 779 ceruice reflexa (‘while screwing the neck’), appropriate for one body type;
now screwing is good for all women

LINE 785
ruga, -ae (f.) wrinkle (cf. 73). Ov. criticizes R. women who commit abortions to avoid ugly stretch marks
(note, -are‘mark’; Am. 2.14.7; cf. Gellius 12.1.8), yet he also praises Corinna’s smooth belly (Am. 1.5.21)
uterus, -i (m.) belly, stomach, cui dat. of reference (AG #376), ‘whose’
Lucina, -ae (f.) goddess of childbirth (who brings newborns into the light, lux)
auerto, -tere, -ti, -sum turn around; rout, repel. Cf. 777-78, w/ the woman facing away
utor, -i use, make use of (+ abl., AG #410). Note echo of785 uterum
Parthus, -i (m.) Parthian (R.’s foes to the east, in mod. Iran), cf. 248; their swift (celer, -ris, -re) cavalry
were famous for pretending to flee, then turning in their saddles to fire at their pursuers ( 1 .2 1 0 ).
In 2 CE Aug.’s grandson Gaius concluded a campaign against Parthia (1.177-228, Rem. 225)
mille one thousand (indecl. in sg., AG #134d), implying any hyperbolically large number. Sc. sunt. Ov. freq.
notes his material’s infinite nature (cf. 149) and then adds one more item (cf. 1.253-62, Rem. 461-86)
iocus, -i (m.) joke, jest; playful activity or situation, fun, game (cf. 640,796)
Venus, -eris (f.) the goddess of love; sex, sexual pleasure (793)
simplex, -icis easy, uncomplicated (sc. labor est)
labor, -oris (m.) work, exertion, minimi laboris gen. of quality (AG #345)
semisupinus, -a, -um half lying on one’s back. Why Ov. encourages women to lie on their right side is
unclear (cf. esp. Her. 21.198), but cf. 308 a laeua conspicienda manu
789-809: Sexual pleasure and howto fake it.
Ov. claims that women should enjoy sex-so that men can enjoy it more too (cf. 2,689-92). For his
final piece of instruction Ov. first reasserts his credentials through experience (789-92, cf. 1.25-30),
and then announces a topic both intimate and duplicitous-a particularly Ovidian way to end
Phoebeus, -a, -um of Phoebus (i.e. Apollo, god of prophecy and poetry)
tripus, -podos (m.) tripod (esp. as used by Apollo’s famous oracular priestess at Delphi). Gk. nom.pl.
-is (AG #81.4). [< Gk. xpl7tou? ‘three-foot’]
corniger, -a, -um having horns (cornu, -us [n.] ‘horn’)
Ammon, -onis (m.) Egyptian god (equated w/ Jupiter), portrayed as a ram; his shrine in anc. Libya
(mod. Egypt) had been a famous oracle but was no longer so in Ov.’s time {> ammonia}
124
 COM M ENTARY: 7 8 3 -7 9 8

sentiat ex imis Venerem resoluta medullis

femina, et ex aequo res iuuet illa duos,
nec blandae uoces iucundaque m urm ura cessent 795
nec taceant mediis im proba uerba iocis.
tu quoque, cui Veneris sensum natura negauit,
dulcia m endaci gaudia finge sono.

LINE 790
uerus, -a, -um true. Nt. acc. pl. subst. (AG # 288) w/ magis (= ueriora, OLD s.v. magis 2a, cf. 477) and
quam ‘than’
Musa, -ae (f.) Muse (goddess of poet, inspiration)
cano, -ere sing (of); foretell, utter. Poetry and prophecy overlap, cf. uatum 347
fides, -ei (f.) faith; trustworthiness, dependability (802). qua = aliqua (AG #310a); si quafides [sc. est]
usu. implies a posit, answer (cf. V. Aen. 3.434)
usus, -us (m.) use; experience (of sex, cf. Fast. 4.657). Ov. acknowledged mature women’s sexual profi­
ciency (2.675-76); now he claims the same for himself (cf. the more general claim at 1.29-30).
[< utor, -i ‘use’]/ecimus —feci, 1st pers. pl. for sg. (cf. 55)
praesto, -are offer, provide; (w/fidem) keep one’s word (OLD s.v. praesto2 lib )
carmen, -inis (n.) song; poem. Ov. can also claim the reverse for his verse (Am. 3.12)
sentio, -ire sense, feel. O v, felt Venus’ power himself (55)
imus, -a, -um lowest, bottom of (w/ medullis ‘in the depths of her bones,’ AG #293)
resoluo, -uere, -ui, -utum loosen, relax
medulla, -ae (f.) bone marrow (considered as the seat of passion, cf. Am. 3.10.27)
ex aequo ‘equally’ (OLD s.v. ex 8, cf. 603; aequo subst. adj., AG #289a), cf. 5
res, -ei (f.) thing; act; business; (sc. Veneris) sex (OLD s.v. res 8c, cf. Rem. 431)
iuuo, -are help; gratify, please (803). duos = uirum et puellam; Ov. educated men in the value of mutual
pleasure in bed (2.682-83,703-28)

LINE 795
blandus, -a, -um charming, alluring (cf. 315,624)
uox, uocis (f.) voice; word (to prove and promote pleasure, cf. 523-24,803,2.689)
iucundus, -a, -um pleasant, delightful
murmur, -uris (n.) soft speech; murmur, whisper (cf. 2.466,2.723, Met. 4.70)
cesso, -are rest, stop, cease. Ov. gives his puella the same advice at Am. 3.14.25
taceo, -ere be silent; not be spoken (cf. Am. 1.4.66 blanditiae taceant)
medius, -a, -um middle; the middle of, the midst of (AG #293)
improbus, -a, -um immodest. Motormouth Ov. (nescit quod bene cessit relinquere, Seneca Controversiae
9.5.17) urges others to talk a blue streak too
sensus, -us (m.) feeling, sensation. Only Ov. (and only here) shows an interest in women who experi­
ence no pleasure in sex (but cf. Martial 11.60.7-8)
nego, -are deny, withhold, cui dat. of reference (AG #376), ‘from whom’
dulcis, -e sweet, delightful (cf. 328)
mendax, -acis deceptive (cf. 441)
gaudium, -i (n.) joy, pleasure (freq. sexual, cf. 88,462,805)
fingo, -ere feign (cf. 472). Ov. reminds his audience to shape an artistic climax
sonus, -i (m.) sound

125
Ovid, Ars A matoria

(infelix, cui torpet hebes locus ille, puella,

800 quo pariter debent fem ina uirque frui.)
tantum , cum finges, ne sis m anifesta, caueto:
effice p er m otum lum inaque ipsa fidem,
quid iuuet, et uoces et anhehtus arguat oris;
a pudet! arcanas pars habet ista notas.

infelix, -icis unfortunate, unlucky (w/ puella, sc. est)

torpeo, -ere be numb, sluggish, or inert (cf. Ov.’s private failings, Am. 3.7.35)
hebes, -etis dull, lifeless. El. always refers to genitalia w/ euphemisms (locus ille, cf. 92,804,2.707);
only Ov. (and only in Ars) refers to women’s

LINE 800
quo relat. pron. w/ anteced. locus, abl. obj. oifrui. Ov. urges the sexes to enjoy sex equally—via the
woman’s body (but cf. Am. 3.7.S-6).femina uirque lOx in Ov., in Ars to stress sexual parity (2.682,728)
par, paris equal (cf. 4 ite in bella pares). Adv. -iter
fruor, -i enjoy (+ abl.)
tantum (adv.) only, simply, just. Ov. gives men similar counsel (2.311-15)
manifestus, -a, -um conspicuous, obvious. Good art conceals itself (cf. 155,210,599)
caueo, -ere take care, make sure (+ ne + subjv. sis [AG #563e, Gild #548], ‘make sure not to be caught
in the act,’ cf. 237)
efficio, -ere make, create
motus, -us (m.) movement, motion [< moueo ‘move’]. Ov. himself prefers an active puella (Am. 2.4.14),
cf. mobilis aura 698
lumen, -inis (n.) light; eye. Ov. counseled men to note signs of pleasure in women’s eyes (2.691,721; cf.
Prop. 2.15.12 oculi sunt in amore duces)
anhelitus, -us (m.) gasping, panting (as a sign of excited exertion, cf. Juvenal 6.37)
arguo, -ere show, reveal (+ ind. quest, [quid iuuet, AG #574] in class. Lat. only here and the equally
erotic Horace Carmina 1.13.7 arguens quam lentis penitus macerer ignibus)
nota, -ae (f.) mark; signal (514). Ov. leaves it to his readers to investigate how pars ista (more genital
euphemism, cf. 799) reveals pleasure (vs. the talking penis of satire, Horace Sermones 1.2.68-71) via
its secret (arcanus, -a, -um) signs (i.e. secretions; cf. Rem. 431-32, ps.-Ov. Epist. Sapph. 133-34)

LINE 805
posco, -ere demand (sthg. [acc.] from someone [acc.], AG #396)
munus, -eris (n.) duty; item given as a duty; service; favor, gift. Immediate payment for sex implies
common prostitution (cf. pretium 552), and Ov. freq. urges his male audience to avoid expenditure
(1.447-54,2.261-78), but his uncomfortably swift shift here from loins to coins puts an end to
pleasure (cf. Rem. 413-16) and splits up femina uirque
nolo, nolle not want (+ acc. preces + inf. habere, AG #563b2), i.e. such a woman will undercut the
efficacy of her own request (prex, -cis [fi] ‘prayer’; ‘request’ [i.e. for payment])
pondus, -eris (n.) weight; authority, value (cf. Am. 2.7.14 uetas iram pondus habere)
lux, -cis (f.) light (i.e. of the sun; Ov. suggests afternoon trysts, cf. 2.619-20)
thalamus, -i (m.) inner room; (bed)chamber. Poet. pi. for sg. (AG #101N2), cf. 590
admitto, -ere allow in (cf. 605 admittefenestra)
fenestra, -ae (f.) window, totisfenestris ‘through the entire windows,’ i.e. with shutters wide open
(cf. Am. 1.5.3, Prop. 2.15.11, vs. Rem. 411)

126
 COMMENTARY: 799-812

gaudia post Veneris quae poscet m unus am antem, 805

illa suas nolet pondus habere preces,
nec lucem in thalam os totis adm itte fenestris:
aptius in uestro corpore multa latent.

lusus habet finem: cycnis descendere tempus,

duxerunt collo qui iuga nostra suo. 810
ut quondam iuuenes, ita nunc, mea turba, puellae
inscribant spoliis NASO m a g i s t e r e r a t .

aptus, -a, -um suited, proper. Compar, adv., cf. 761

lateo, -ere be hidden (cf. 266). Most women have blemishes (255-90), but dim light can give the
impression of flawlessness (Am. 1.5.18)
809-12: The coda.
Ovid gets out of bed quickly and swans off the poetic stage (vs. the lengthier curtain call at 2.733-44,
to which 811 refers)
lusus, -us (m.) game (on a board or in abed, cf. 372); light literature, el. (cf. Am. 3.1.27 lusit tua Musa)
finis, -is (m.) end
cycnus, -i (m.) swan. Ov. has commandeered Venus' chariot (traditionally pulled by swans), like Prop.
before him (3.3.29)
descendo, -ere get down (+ abl. ‘from,’AG #428f). Inf. w/ tempus (sc. est), ‘it is time to dismount’
(AG #504N2)
duco, -ere, duxi lead; pull, draw

LINE 810
collum, -i (n.) neck
iugum, -i (n.) yoke (for drawing a plow or chariot). Poet. pi. for sg, (AG #101N2)
u t . .. ita a s ... so (correl., AG #323g)
quondam formerly (i.e. at 2.743-44; no great lapse of time implied)
iuuenis, -is (m./f.) youth, young (man)
inscribo, -ere inscribe, write (sthg.) on (sthg., dat). Mea turba,puellae (appos., AG #282, cf. 255) at
first implies that Ov. still addresses his female audience (as if voc., cf. 2.733-42 to men), but 3rd-
pers, inscribant shows that he has already bid them farewell
spolium, -i (n.) spoil(s), plunder. (Afreq. military tactic in victory, cf.V.Aen. 3.288 a e n e a s h a e c d e
d a n a i s v i c t o r i b u s a r m a . ) If readers follow his advice, every lover’s body will bear the Ovid brand

of love
Naso, -onis (m.) cognomen (family name) of Ovid(ius) Publius Naso. (Only prose writers refer to Ov.
as Ouidius)
magister, -ri (m.) master, teacher. Ov. freq. calls himself Dr, Love (2,173,2.744, Rem. 55) as Tib. had
done (1.4.75-76). Didactic poets freq. end by praising and naming themselves (e.g. V. Geo. 4.559-66),
and el. freq. cites dedicatory inscriptions (Am. 1.11.27-28,2.6.61-62,2.13.25); Ov. ties both tradi­
tions together (and quotes 2.744)

127
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Oxford University Press, 2002.
Watson, Lindsay C. ‘The Bogus Teacher and His Relevance for Ovid’s Ars amatoria.’
Rheinisches Museumfiir Philologie 150.3-4 (2007): 337-74.
Watson, Patricia. ‘Pracepta Amoris: Ovid’s Didactic Elegy.’ Brill's Companion to
Ovid, ed. Barbara W. Boyd. Leiden: Brill, 2002,141-65.

Recent Translations o f the Ars Amatoria

Hejduk, Julia D. The Offense of Love. University of Wisconsin, forthcoming.
Green, Peter. Ovid: The Erotic Poems. Penguin, 1982.
Krisak, Len. ‘The Art of Love.’ PN Review (2003): 149 (book l); 151 (book 2); 153
(book 3).
Melville, A. D. Ovid: The Love Poems. Oxford, 1990.
Michie, James. The Art of Love. Folio Society, 1993 (repr. 2002 Modern Library).
Payne, Tom. The Art of Love. Vintage Classics, 2011.

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