Ille quidem totam gemebundus obambulat aetnen: El Cíclope ovidiano como inspiración Paródica en Petronio, Sat. 100.3-5

Abstract

This paper analyzes the function of the allusions to the lamentation of the Ovidian Cyclops in the words of Tryphena and in Encolpius' reaction (Sat. 100.3-5). These allusions parody the attitude of the Homeric Cyclops and the topic of the adventure by the sea, which is a recurrent theme in the Greek idealistic novel. Although the Homeric episode is the most renowned model of any allusion to the Cyclops, Petronius «enriches» the text with other connotations that mediate and complicate the relationship between the Satyricon and Homer: these connotations are the allusions to Ovid that, by means of a change in tone, allow the parody to take place. This change of tone is realized by the use of tremebundus, which alludes to Ovid, Met. XIV 188 (gemebundus). The allusion implies a form of degradation, which is the intertextual mark that Petronius leaves to make us understand that Encolpius' reaction absolutely lacks decorum.