Cleopatra fascinated the Romans both during and after her lifetime. Horace's Ode 1.37 is a complicated response to her defeat at the hands of Octavian. Your assignment is in two parts. First, google images of Cleopatra, and find and post 2 images from antiquity and 2 from later periods. Be sure you have the right Cleopatra-- there were a number of Ptolemaic queens with the same name. The one you want is Cleo VII, who died in 31 BCE. Provide a brief description of each image and its date of composition. Second, discuss the language and imagery Horace uses to describe Cleopatra. What picture do we get of her from the vocabulary of the first half of the poem? How does the simile in the 5th stanza affect the reader's impression of Cleopatra?
Post by Tuesday, March 26.
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