Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Ovid's Hypsipyle
Ovid clearly spends more time than Chaucer in developing the characters of Medea and Hypsipyle. They are portrayed as more complex and realistic figures who grapple with choices of what to do about Jason's betrayals. For example Ovid's emphasises Hypsipyle's possessive and vengeful reactions to the betrayal - she wonders if she should continue maintaining her vows only to have Medea enjoy them (c.f. 75), and wishes to "dash [her] face with Medea's blood" (81) - while Chaucer glosses over this, simply stating that "she sent him a letter, which would be too long to write and tell" (15).
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I fully agree that Ovid more fully develops both Medea and Hypsipyle and expresses their psychology in ways which Chaucer willfully does not. One description I found particularly striking of Medea in Jason's Two Medeas states, "It was Medea I feared, Medea is more than a stepmother, Medea whose hands are ready for any kind of crime. Would she, who could dismember her brother's body, then cast upon the fields her brother's dismembered limbs - would she spare the pledges of my love for you?" (127). These sinister sides which is conveyed here and which you note seems to be highlighted in their omission by Chaucer. Again, through occupatio Chaucer blatantly tells the reader his source. In doing so he is indirectly casting a spotlight on this quality in the women. What is curious though, is that Chaucer seems to be quite obvious in this move, and is conceivably poking fun at the very notion of these vengeful women, or in framing it the context of 'good women' (and bad men) he may be underscoring characteristics present amongst all mankind.
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