Language

Ovid and Li Po: Two interpretive statements

According to the introduction to Ovid's "Metamorphosis," the poet Ovid, although greatly admired for his dazzling rhetorical displays of poetic wit and genius, was banished from the Augustan court because of his rather flippant attitude towards morality: "The Emperor Augustus was trying hard, by propaganda and legislation, to revive old Roman standards of morality and Ovid's Art of Love," as well as Ovid's other literary works, were "not exactly helpful." This can be seen in "The Metamorphosis" where even the supposed victory of female chastity, as in the section entitled "Daphne and Apollo" becomes sexualized. The nymph Daphne begs to be transformed into a tree with the words: "O help me, / if there is any power in the rivers, / Change and destroy the body which has given / Too much delight!" But Apollo is still capable of loving her appearance and sensuality emerges victorious as the laurel branches become the god's crown and the laurel tree his lyre. Playfully, this sexualized scene where the god embraces the beautiful tree becomes transposed with Roman victory: "Let Roman victors, in the long procession, / Wear laurel wreaths for triumph and ovation. / Beside Augustus' portals let the laurel/Guard and watch over the oak."

Like Ovid, the Chinese poet Li Po alternated between respect for authority and irreverence, functioning as a kind of "cross between court poet and jester," and injecting "additional dimension of poetic fantasy" and comedy to his works in contrast to his contemporary T'ang poets. Li Po mixes high and low sentiment, ribald humor with meditations upon the nature of life, as can be seen in his poem on hospitality "Bring in the Wine," where he urges his host: "So you, my host, / How can you tell me you're short on cash? Go right out! / Buy us some wine!" And almost immediately follows with a concluding: "And here together we'll melt the sorrows / of all eternity!"