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Chapter 8 - Love and Death

from Part IV - Love, Seduction, Death

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 January 2020

Martin M. Winkler
Affiliation:
George Mason University, Virginia
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Summary

Chapter 8 treats the subject of love and death from two different angles. Ovid’s Heroides is a series of letters by famous women in myth, addressed to their absent husbands, lovers, or sweethearts, some of whom write back. A number of the women writers face imminent death. The first part of this chapter examines the main characteristics of the letters in the Heroides and applies these to one particular, and particularly haunting, film: Max Ophüls’ Letter from an Unknown Woman, based on a novella by Stefan Zweig. In this case, background Ovidianism is especially striking, as can be seen and heard in the opening sentence of the letter written by the film’s heroine to her callous lover: “By the Time You Read This Letter, I May Be Dead.” Who could resist such an opening? The chapter’s second part examines a variety of screen responses to the myth of Philemon and Baucis from the Metamorphoses. These range from a big-budget Hollywood “weepie” (The Notebook) to Mr. Sycamore, an independent production with a quirky not-quite-romance. This little gem deserves renewed appreciation. Discussions of some other European and American productions round off the chapter.

Type
Chapter
Information
Ovid on Screen
A Montage of Attractions
, pp. 271 - 301
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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  • Love and Death
  • Martin M. Winkler, George Mason University, Virginia
  • Book: Ovid on Screen
  • Online publication: 27 January 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108756891.008
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  • Love and Death
  • Martin M. Winkler, George Mason University, Virginia
  • Book: Ovid on Screen
  • Online publication: 27 January 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108756891.008
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Love and Death
  • Martin M. Winkler, George Mason University, Virginia
  • Book: Ovid on Screen
  • Online publication: 27 January 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108756891.008
Available formats
×