Polyphemus ❤️ Acis: The conduit in Ovid's Metamorphoses

Authors

  • Robert S. Santucci University of North Carolina Wilmington

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3983/twc.2025.3007

Keywords:

Ancient Rome, Conduit fic, Fan studies, Poetry

Abstract

This contribution applies a motif from fan fiction, the conduit, to the love triangle of Polyphemus, Acis, and Galatea in the Ancient Roman poet Ovid's Metamorphoses (ca. 8 CE). Reading this passage of Ovid through the lens of the conduit helps explain the role of the female narrator Galatea and Ovid's addition to the story of Acis, provides a fitting modern interpretive tool for this ancient story, and enacts a reparative reading of the text.

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Published

2025-09-14

Issue

Section

Symposium