Ovid Amores II: A Selection

Book excerpt: This is the endorsed publication from OCR and Bloomsbury for the Latin A-Level (Group 4) prescription of Ovid's Amores, giving full Latin text, commentary and vocabulary for Amores 2.2, 2.4, 2.6, 2.10, 2.12. A detailed introduction covers the prescribed text to be read in English, placing the poems in their Roman literary context. Ovid's Amores represent the culmination of Roman love elegy, and the selection from Book II presented here shows the poet at the height of his literary and sexual powers. From dead parrots and eunuch slaves to the elusive mistress Corinna, Ovid teases and tantalises, deftly reworking themes and motifs from his elegiac predecessors to produce verse of effortless sophistication, wit and charm, poems that for the last two thousand years have scandalised and delighted readers in equal measure. Resources are available on the Companion Website www.bloomsbury.com/ocr-editions-2019-2021