![]() ![]() Ironically, it turns out that, in Ovid’s experience, there aren’t many girls cultured enough to appreciate a poem written by their lover. Roses are red, violets are blue, poems don’t flatter much more than a few.Don’t give her flowers if she has hay fever, for example, or chestnuts if just last week she said she’s gone off them. Take her preferences into consideration.For added sentiment, he suggests you tell your beloved it is from your own country estate (even if you bought it from the Lidl around the corner). Gifts should be small and meaningful, such as a basket of seasonal fruit. In Book 2 of the Ars Amatoria he provides a few guidelines for appropriate and appreciated gifts for men to give their ladies: ![]() ![]() While he does complain about his lover “nagging for too many presents” (1.10.11-2), Ovid advises that you give a gift when asked. Here, I will relate the best of his advice for students of Classics to utilise. One of his better-known works, the Ars Amatoria (“The Art of Love”), instructs his readers – both male and female – on how to make themselves attractive to, and keep the affections of, their lover. Ovid, famed for his erotic poetry, is a self-proclaimed expert on love. ![]()
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May 2023
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