The Black Wave: An Ecocritical Reading of Water Pollution in Greek and Latin Epic

Abstract

This thesis analyses episodes of water pollution in five works of epic: Homer’s Iliad, Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Silius’ Punica, Statius’ Thebaid, and Nonnus’ Dionysiaca. Using the lens of ecocriticism and its recent ‘blue’ turn, this thesis considers how pollution disturbs the traditional dichotomy of nature and culture and enriches our understanding of epic’s construction of the environment. Chapter 1 explores the river battle type-scene and argues that the pollution of rivers allows for environmental creativity in moments of epic violence, both in the generation of human and non-human hybrids in battle, as well as in a river’s capacity for rebirth or perpetuation in circumstances of deadened flow. Chapter 2 explores scenes of erotic pursuit which originate from environmental and gendered purity, arguing that the pollution of water sources by victims and assailants in such scenes results in novelty and diversity. Chapter 3 studies agents who both honour contaminated bodies of water and fail to engage with the phenomenon of pollution, leading to the narrative disappearance of these characters in contrast to the flourishing renown of the rivers they venerate. Ultimately, this thesis argues that environmental purity often functions as a source of stagnancy in epic, while environmental pollution can encourage adaptation, generation, and new modes of being.