Der junge Ovid: Eine unvollendete Biografie

by Diane Wood Middlebrook

After writing two extremely well received biographies—the first about Anne Sexton and the second about poets Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath—world-renowned scholar Diane Middlebrook’s final project was a study of Ovid’s work. Though he has been dead for over two thousand years and had left no personal records—not even the name of his mother—his poetry endures. Middlebrook was convinced that her intimate knowledge of Ovid’s poetry and the approach she used in Her Husband (winner of the Prix Du Meilleur Livre Estranger), combined with a deep immersion into the Rome of Ovid’s time, would enable her to write what could, without bragging, be called an Ovidian biography.

However, severe health issues interfered with Middlebrook’s work, and she was ultimately unable to complete this ambitious project before her death in 2007. She left behind an extraordinary look at the conditions and customs to which Ovid was exposed as a young Roman, as well as an acute interpretation of his family and personal life, gleaned from close readings of his poetry and letters from exile. Exhaustively researched and carefully constructed, Middelbrook’s portrayal of Ovid is certain to be studied by scholars and read by historians for year to come.

Genres: History, Biography

Hardcover

First published July 15, 2014

About the author

Middlebrook, who taught at Stanford for 35 years, was perhaps best known for Anne Sexton: A Biography. Its intense scrutiny of the poet's life made it "one of the turning points of late 20th-century biography," according to the newspaper. Middlebrook published several other well-received biographies and works of criticism, and was known for funding various arts organizations and literary salons for women. Born in Pocatello, Idaho, she graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Washington in 1961 and earned her Ph.D. from Yale in 1968. She married Carl Djerassi, inventor of the birth-control pill in 1985.

Reviews

[Dustin Simmons · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really interesting take on Ovid. There's very little evidence for him in the historical sources, so the author extrapolates autobiographical information from his poetry. It's a dangerous, but extremely interesting approach. I appreciated the author's dramatized episodes where she tries to set the scene, and her analysis of Ovid's poetry is always insightful.

[Jana]

Mixed feelings.

Positives: I feel like I’m now a fan of Diane Middlebrook and want to read her other biographies (Ann Sexton and Sylvia Plath/Ted Hughes).
I loved the background information and her quotes from Ovid’s writing.
Her husbands afterward was a lovely tribute.

Less so: I didn’t like the italicized speculation parts wherein the book becomes fictionalized. Though I understand we’re talking about someone who loves 2000 years ago and there’s not a lot to go on. That said, thankful they WERE italicized!

[Bronnagh Norris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish this book was without the italicised dramatisations and focussed on the connection between poetry and history. Because of the italics, I didn’t feel like I learned anything new about Ovid, just bland suspicions about his marriage and upbringing etc. I understand that it is an unfinished work, and it is a shame because it would have likely been more enjoyable if the author had been able to research more.