Propertius’ Aberrant Itineraries: Fleeting moments in the Eternal City

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapter

Abstract

Propertian poet-lover hurries through the city to meet his beloved. But his itinerary stalls when passing the site of the celebrations for the opening of Apollo’s Portico on the Palatine. Propertius’ trajectory from imperial monument to beloved’s bed is interrupted, or stayed, in a moment of delay which suspends in tension the two elements of the elegist’s persona, citizen and lover. Movement through an elaborately choreographed imperial scenery (or more accurately, loitering on its stage) leads to the emergence of an interstitial space between lover and citizen that allows for the reconsideration of the power and freedom and the limitations of both the citizen and the lover.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationThe Production of Space in Latin Literature
EditorsWilliam Fitzgerald, Efrossini Spentzou
PublisherOxford University Press
Chapter1
Pages23-43
Number of pages21
ISBN (Print)9780198768098
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 22 Mar 2018

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