This dissertation examines repeated mythological references in the first three books of Horace's Odes. Several mythological figures occur more than once in the Odes; those studied in this dissertation are Daedalus and Icarus, Prometheus, Tantalus, Hercules, and Castor and Pollux. I argue that in Odes 1-3 recurrent myths constitute part of a personal lexicon, a mythological vocabulary Horace uses to speak about themes such as hubris, poetry, and immortality; for example, Daedalus and Icarus, Prometheus, and Tantalus are consistently linked with immoderation, and Hercules and the Dioscuri are consistently emblematic of complementary aspects of Augustus' rule and of his future deification. This mythological lexicon can be read across poems so that the interpretation of a mythological figure in one poem can aid in understanding the use of the same mythological figure in another poem, and the collective effect of all of the uses of that figure is itself something that can be analyzed and interpreted.iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThe first word of thanks goes to my advisor, Jenny Strauss Clay, whose Odes seminar in the spring of 2010 first taught me how to love this seemingly impenetrable poet. She has consistently supported and guided me, since I first embarked on this project, even during one year when neither of us was in residence in Charlottesville. Her ability to ask the right questions and to put her finger on key problems has left a lasting impression on my thinking for which I am deeply grateful. Thanks are also due to John F. Miller, whose kind and sensible advice at every stage of the process, from the prospectus through the final chapter, has been invaluable. I am also grateful to Tony Woodman, who has been a warm, inspiring figure in my development as a classicist both by encouraging me to sharpen my ideas and by inviting open-ended conversations about Horace. Thanks also to Paul Cantor, whose European literature course helped me become a better teacher and enriched my appreciation for the whole compass of the literary tradition in which Horace is situated. I would also like to thank the dear friends and mentors each of whom has in their own way played a crucial role throughout not only this project but also everything that led up to it: Rachel Bruzzone,