Book Section
Julie Van Peteghem
Ovidio senza Dio
Ovidian Myth and Sexual Violence in the Commedia
This essay examines medieval reader responses to representations of sexual violence in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Focusing in particular on the myth of Salmacis and Hermaphroditus, I illustrate Dante’s different, ‘detheologized’ reading approach in respect to medieval commentaries on the Metamorphoses. While medieval commentators gloss over rape and sexual assault, focusing instead on the myth’s moral meanings, in the Commedia Dante directly confronts the sexual violence prevalent in Ovid’s poem.
Keywords: sexual violence; Ovid; myth; Hermaphroditus; Dante; medieval commentary
| Title |
Ovidio senza Dio
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| Subtitle |
Ovidian Myth and Sexual Violence in the Commedia
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| Author(s) |
Julie Van Peteghem
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| Identifier | |
| Description |
This essay examines medieval reader responses to representations of sexual violence in Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Focusing in particular on the myth of Salmacis and Hermaphroditus, I illustrate Dante’s different, ‘detheologized’ reading approach in respect to medieval commentaries on the Metamorphoses. While medieval commentators gloss over rape and sexual assault, focusing instead on the myth’s moral meanings, in the Commedia Dante directly confronts the sexual violence prevalent in Ovid’s poem.
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| Is Part Of | |
| Place |
Berlin
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| Publisher |
ICI Berlin Press
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| Date |
November 4, 2025
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| Subject |
sexual violence
Ovid
myth
Hermaphroditus
Dante
medieval commentary
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| Rights |
© by the author(s)
Except for images or otherwise noted, this publication is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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| Language |
en-GB
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| page start |
261
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| page end |
283
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| Source |
A World of Possibilities: The Legacy of The Undivine Comedy, ed. by Kristina M. Olson, Cultural Inquiry, 37 (Berlin: ICI Berlin Press, 2025), pp. 261–83
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Cite as:
Julie Van Peteghem, ‘Ovidio senza Dio: Ovidian Myth and Sexual Violence in the Commedia’, in A World of Possibilities: The Legacy of The Undivine Comedy, ed. by Kristina M. Olson, Cultural Inquiry, 37 (Berlin: ICI Berlin Press, 2025), pp. 261-83 <https://doi.org/10.37050/ci-37_13>