The Roman Mistress Ancient and Modern Representations [Paperback]

From Latin love poetry's dominating and enslaving beloveds, to modern popular culture's infamous Cleopatras and Messalinas, representations of the Roman mistress (or the mistress of Romans) have brought into question both ancient and modern genders and political systems.The Roman Mistressmakes an important and original contribution simultaneously to feminist scholarship on antiquity, the classical tradition, and cultural studies.

Wyke's essays...powerfully demonstrated the artificiality of the elegiac world, its women in particular. Wyke's key insight about love elegy is that...the elegiac woman has everything to do with the construction of a provocative male persona, and very little to do with women per se. --TimesLiterary Supplement

The material that Wyke has unearthed...is an extraordinary mixture of kitsch, glamour and classically inspired wit. --Mary Beard,London Review of Books

It is impossible to represent the complexity and subtleties of Wyke's arguments in a short review, and that is the reason to read her book....The Roman Mistressis a useful read for anyone who wishes to understand the feminist perspective on Roman elegy.... Wyke's book is essential reading for those who wish to learn how the Classics have been adapted for twentieth and twenty-first century audiences. --New England Classical Journal

Maria Wyke is Senior Lecturer in Classics at the University of Reading