Ovid's Life And Accomplishments

Ovid, the name itself sparks a few thoughts: poetry, Latin, literature. Indeed, he was perhaps the most important and central figure of Latin literature and poems. Behind such status though, is a man. A man who lived a life beyond just his writings, who worked hard to establish career, a man with personal conflicts with his family and society. So, why are his works still legendary and an important portion of literary curriculums today? It is because his writing tells stories, it sets the reader back in time and enhances the historical context of the writing. Once one splashes into the works of Ovid, they experience ancient Rome through their own eyes.
Depending on prior knowledge or expectations, it is a bit surprising that Ovid came from
a family that definitely did not encourage him to become a writer or improve his methods of poetry. Instead, he was born as Publius Ovidius Naso in Sulmo, Italy, Roman Republic on 20 March 43 B.C into a wealthy and privileged equestrian family. As a young boy, he was educated in rhetorics by well-known orators such as Arellius Fuscus and Marcus Porcius Latro, a former student of Seneca the Elder who had also been a tutor to Roman emperor Nero. Ovid’s father believed he was to do everything possible so that his son would focus on law and politics. However, in his lectures, Ovid tended to focus on emotion rather than argument which eventually would shape his love for writing. Albeit this raging passion for poetry fueled Ovid, he succumbed to conformity and worked minor judicial posts and was a member of the Centumviral Court, got married a few times and had a daughter. Not long after, he underwent an emotional metamorphosis. Perhaps his friends Macer, Propertius and Horace and Ovid’s meeting with Virgil influenced the following choices he made. He quit his job and dedicated his attention to writing and soon enough his success kicked in.
Ovid’s works are some of the most known and important pieces of literature. They have even caused controversy. Since Ovid had lived in such a flourishing period of history, so many opportunities existed that would make it possible for him to write commentaires or allegories that would cause controversy. Many of his early works focused on the love culture that reflected the sophisticated and pleasure seeking society. Towards the further end of his life, Ovid was expelled from Rome by Augustus. Historians have not agreed upon a single reason for his exile with the evidence Ovid has left; it was caused by “a poem and a mistake”. Some believe that his works Amores and Ars Amatoria could have been at fault since they were written in a satirical manner that to some comes off as ridicule and mocking the romanic culture of Rome. Another possible reasons for his dismissal are acts of adultery, incest, and even Ovid’s possible involvement in a conspiracy against Augustus. Whatever the crime must’ve been, Ovid never was able to return to Rome and desired to do so badly as told in his writing Tristia. He passed in Tomis, Scythia Minor, Roman Empire in roughly 17 or 18 A.D.
Ovid’s works reveal his personal transformations throughout his life and allows the reader to view history from his perspective.
Some of his most popular writings are the most meaningful. At the beginning of his career, love was the focus of his writings. Amores is a collection of arousingly explicit poems praising Corinna, an imaginary woman; it became incredibly popular and brought success. Later on Ovid wrote Epistolae Heroidum (Heroides) which was a series of letters written in the perspectives of mythical goddesses and heroes to their missing lovers. Following with the theme of love, Ovid wrote Ars Amatoria an intriguing work full of advice and techniques to make one’s relationship work such as: finding a woman, keeping a woman, and a woman’s guide to understanding men and its sequel Remedia Amoris which was more advice focusing on avoiding pain caused by failed love or rejection. Ovid seemed to romanticize women’s physiques also visible in his work Medicamina Faciei Femineae which consists of separate pieces on women’s beauty treatments and the defense of cosmetic makeup, it also contains a number of recipes for homemade facial treatments. His most ambitious work was the grand Metamorphoses, an epic poem consisting of thousands of lines written in dactylic hexameter, also known as “heroic hexameter” or “the meter of epic”. It contains mythological tales and stories which take place from the beginning of the universe up to the death and appraisal of Julius Caesar. Another story focusing on mythological gods was Fasti a Latin poem constructed of six separate works that each represented the months of January to July, respectively. This work was a collection of reports and first person perspectives of Roman deities explaining the origins of Roman traditional holidays and customs. Toward the end of his writing career, Ovid experienced a personal transformation within his writing -- it shifted away from romantic topics and focused on hypocrisy and hatred, most
likely due to his exile from Rome. In his account of Epistulae ex Ponto he tells of his exile by Augustus in 8 A.D. and explains the reasoning of his expulsion briefly blaming “a poem and mistake”. Then, Ovid released his fury against Augustus in Ibis by cursing Augustus for giving him a violent yet learned abuse. Finally, in Tristia, Ovid writes about his depressing condition and his longing to return to Rome. However, he never was able to return and relieve that wish. Ovid’s works are unique and truly reveal characteristic changes throughout his life.