Kathleen Cruz
The Roman poet Propertius explains that he writes love elegy because of a harsh girl (dura puella) who refuses to return his affection; in his view, this makes him especially accursed, as love is the only disease (morbus) that cannot be treated.
Roman elegy is a genre of extremes; it narrates the intense joys of reciprocated affection and the bitterness its authors feel when their love is not returned. Love is, in turns, a gift and an illness - and similarly, love elegists at times revel in their poetic skill and at others lament that they haven't chosen another, higher literary form to gain renown.
In this course, we'll take a close look at the work of one of the central representatives of Roman elegy, Propertius, and explore how he works through the tensions represented by this literary genre. We'll consider how he articulates his vision of love and the puella around whom many of his poems revolve, but we'll also think about how Propertius' engagement with elegy reflects the greater social dynamics and concerns of his Rome. Along the way, we'll explore, too, the genre's influence on later literature and the way its emotional extremes remain visible in modern expressions of love today.