Micaela Janan uses the psychoanalytic theory of Freud and Lacan to argue that the strangely fantastical way in which it is presented shows Ovid posing questions that ultimately relate to the concept of collective identity.

This book is a must for anyone interested in Augustan poetry, literary theory, or contemporary psychoanalytic studies. The readings are rigorous, the scholarship meticulous, and the theoretical approach profoundly sophisticated.

By bringing to the study of this major work of classical literature the themes of consciousness and desire dealt with in postmodern scholarship, Janan's book invites a new conversation among literary disciplines.

This book is a must for anyone interested in Augustan poetry, literary theory, or contemporary psychoanalytic studies. The readings are rigorous, the scholarship meticulous, and the theoretical approach profoundly sophisticated.

Micaela Janan uses the psychoanalytic theory of Freud and Lacan to argue that the strangely fantastical way in which Thebes is presented shows Ovid posing questions that ultimately relate to the concept of collective identity.