Summary of An Imaginary Life
The novella “An Imaginary Life” recounts how the Roman poet Ovid (Publius Ovidius Naso, 1st century AD – author of the Metamorphoses), after falling from favour with Emperor Augustus, spends his remaining years in exile in Tomis, then regarded by his fellow Romans as the edge of the civilised world, on the Black Sea coast (modern-day Constanța, Romania). The story follows Ovid’s attempts to connect with the local population, whose language and customs he does not understand. Gradually, he forms an unusual bond with a wild local boy who has grown up in the forests. Ovid attempts to teach the boy to speak and to communicate with other humans.
Reasons to read An Imaginary Life
“An Imaginary Life” is a short but compelling and highly allegorical novella — almost a fable, or a metamorphosis in itself — about exile and belonging. It explores the relationship between culture or civilisation (represented by Ovid) and nature (represented by the wild boy). The book is inspired by the historical exile of Ovid to Tomis in AD 8, though Malouf uses the setting primarily as a philosophical and allegorical exploration of language, civilisation and transformation. David Malouf is a celebrated Australian writer. He was awarded the Neustadt International Prize for Literature in 2000, and the Australia Council Award for Lifetime Achievement in Literature in 2016. Other notable works by Malouf include “The Great World” and “Remembering Babylon” (winner of the International Dublin Literary Award in 1996).
Setting: Constanța (Tomis) (Romania)
Original title: An Imaginary Life
Year of publication: 1978
Nr of pages: 160
