Key Stage 4 pupil Yunxi, from Chertsey High School in Surrey, recently took part in The Scholars Programme, where Royal Holloway, University of London PhD student Tom Barrett taught the Arts and Humanities course: ‘Rewriting Rome: Were they all straight, white men?’
Tom submitted Yunxi’s final assignment for consideration for the latest issue of our journal of outstanding student work, The Scholar. After peer review, Yunxi’s article was chosen to be published, and we wanted to feature it here for you to read.
Yunxi’s is one of 27 articles to be featured in the latest edition of The Scholar, featuring STEM, Arts and Humanities, and Social Sciences articles from Key Stage 2-5 pupils from non-selective state schools. Schools interested in running The Scholars Programme can fill out our quick enquiry form to learn more.
Key Stage 4
Pupil Name: Yunxi
School Name: Chertsey High School
Supervised by: T. Barrett
Tutor University: Royal Holloway, University of London
Course Title: Rewriting Rome: Were they all straight, white men?
Ovid’s Metamorphoses, as one of the most famous works in the classical literary canon – ‘a collection of texts that are considered to hold authority’ (Barrett 2024, p. 6), has received considerable academic acclaim. Under the umbrella of transformation, it touches upon a wide range of themes, including love, desire, violence, and the blurry boundaries between male and female, humans and non-humans. A classic is considered such as it can stand the test of time, remains open to interpretation, and continues to resonate with readers even after centuries. Of particular concern in this essay is how Metamorphoses exemplifies that from the perspective of modern queer theory. Since the 1990s, queer theory has developed as a novel interpretive framework that challenges gender essentialism and has been applied to different disciplines, including literary studies.
One can easily find that Ovid represents different types of queer individuals in many transformation stories of Metamorphoses. As Thomas Barrett remarks, ‘There is no set definition of queer in academia. It’s a flexible term that can refer to a variety of non-normative sexual orientations, gender identities, and cultural practices’ (Barrett 2024, p. 6). In Metamorphoses, the transformation from one identity to another, suggests a liminal space that exists outside of socially constructed ideas or norms, and thus opens up new possibilities, as is claimed by Eve K. Sedgwick, queer is ‘the open mesh of possibilities, gaps, overlaps, dissonances and resonances, lapses and excesses of meaning when the constituent elements of anyone’s gender, of anyone’s sexuality aren’t made (or can’t be made) to signify monolithically’ (Sedgwick 1993, p. 8). This essay focuses on these possibilities – the representation of queer individuals – through three stories: Tiresias, Iphis and Ianthe, and Apollo and Hyacinthus. It argues that while Ovid attempts to deconstruct the normative gender and sexuality through the transformation of his characters, he ultimately fails to offer an inclusive solution as the fictional queer individuals are either punished, prevented, or destroyed.
The story of Tiresias suggests that he is a queer figure – a man who was transformed into a woman and back again into a man after seven years. Ovid describes Tiresias’ two transformations as, ‘[Tiresias] was transformed (amazing!) from a male into a female’ (McCarter 2022, p. 79), and ‘the likeness he’d been born with – reappeared’ (ibid, p. 354). A queer reading sees the transformations as a direct challenge to the conventional belief that gender is fixed. Tiresias’ special experience as a man and a woman breaks the conventional boundary between genders and its binary perception, highlighting gender fluidity. Ovid portrays this challenge to fixed gender norms positively through the emotive word ‘amazing!’, which expresses pleasant exclamation – even if it also implies how unusual gender nonconformity is.
What also stands out is the rewards of being gender queer. Tiresias is constructed as possessing peculiar wisdom because his experience distinguished him from ordinary people, granting him insights into both male and female lives – the experience allowed him to understand better how society shapes love, status, wealth, daily lives, as well as problems and stereotypes based on gender.
This positive representation of Tiresias is significant as it suggests Ovid’s critique of the mainstream society’s prejudice against gender queer. In ancient Greece and Rome, gender was ‘based entirely on the perception of power’ (Barrett 2022, p. 22), this meant that one’s gender could change as the perception of one’s power shift, causing gender fluidity. As Michael E. Stewart describes, ‘men who acted irrationally or in any “unmanly” fashion were not perceived to be displaying an alternative form of masculinity, but of slipping into the realm of femininity, while women who displayed “manly” courage did not represent a type of brave femininity, but were depicted as women who had tapped into the masculine’ (Stewart, p. 6). This gender fluidity was mainly perceived negatively by society, with effeminate men seen as immoral and women with ‘masculine’ traits as threatening. Tiresias is anything but that. His transformations were bound by fate and were justified in the mythical narrative as the experiences granted him authority and wisdom. In other words, Tiresias cannot be judged solely on moral grounds.
However, Tiresias’ insights into both sexes also cause his blindness. He was blinded after revealing insights into male and female experiences to Jupiter and Juno. Although this was not directly due to his transformations, it was because his knowledge, gained from a feminine perspective and made available by the transformations, challenged Juno’s authority as a god. This reinforces the persistent theme of punishment in canonical classical literature, like Juvenal’s Satire II and VI, that those who deviate from traditional gender norms are punished because they threaten the established social structure.
By contrasting his blindness with the positive representation of Tiresias’ transformations, Ovid might have wanted to demonstrate both the rewards and ‘dangers’ of gender non-conformity. This duality importantly reveals how stereotypes may persist beneath seemingly pro-transgender narratives and be easily overlooked due to long-standing cultural assumptions.
Similar to Tiresias, the story of Iphis and Ianthe explores queer themes. The story depicts Iphis, a girl raised as a boy, struggling with her same-sex desire for Ianthe. Eventually, to enable their marriage, the goddess Isis transforms Iphis into a boy. While both Iphis’ and Tiresias’ transformations challenge fixed-gender assumptions, a further queer reading indicates that the former focuses more on the society’s perception of lesbian relationships as incomprehensible or unacceptable.
In contrast to Tiresias’ transformations, which are determined by fate rather than personal will, Iphis’ transformation represents the inverse – fulfilling personal desire by conforming to social norms. Iphis’ confusion and anguish when she loves a person of the same sex intensely is portrayed mainly through her internal monologue: ‘What will become of me, gripped as I am by this queer longing for a novel kind of lovemaking that no one understands?’ (McCarter 2022, p. 274). This rhetorical question expresses the agony she suffers from for everybody disapproves of same sex desire, reinforcing the stereotype of queer sexuality in the mainstream society, which reflects an underlying belief that relationships required a dominant partner – and women were not seen as capable of dominance. Thus, two women were considered incapable of forming a legitimate relationship (Barrett 2022, p. 32). This internal conflict then led Iphis to pray earnestly for Isis to solve the ‘problem’ of a lesbian marriage with Ianthe, believing that nature forbids a union between two women.
As the story develops, Iphis’ confusion and pain stand in striking contrast to the joy brought by the resolution, in which the goddess Isis transforms Iphis into a boy, thereby rendering the marriage to Ianthe socially ‘legitimate’ within a heteronormative framework. There was immediate jubilation after the transformation: ‘Bring offerings to temples and rejoice with dauntless faith!’ (McCarter 2022, p. 276). The joy of a heteronormative resolution that unites them without defying the boundaries of social acceptability is then consolidated as the story concludes with a joyful marriage. The question is whether lesbianism is accepted or avoided. The ending of Iphis’ story, rather than suggest an inclusive view of queer individuals, reinforces heteronormativity. Therefore, although Ovid presents gender fluidity and genuine same-sex love, the view that lesbianism is a ‘problem’ that can be resolved through being heteronormative – might be criticised as reductive or naïve by modern critics.
Unlike the female-female love in the story of Iphis and Ianthe, Apollo and Hyacinthus’ story suggests a male-male love. While Iphis and Ianthe end up with a joyful marriage by conforming to heteronormative expectations, Apollo and Hyacinthus’ tender love ends in Hyacinthus’ death and Apollo’s grief. As the story unfolds, Apollo accidentally hit Hyacinthus in a discus match. Despite Apollo’s efforts to heal Hyacinthus, he passed away. If one can read Tiresias’ punishment for his knowledge of both male and female experiences and Iphis’ transformation to avoid a same-sex union as the divine authority over gender and sexuality, then the coincidental death of Hyacinthus can likewise be read as a divine resolution of queerness. In each case, the divine intervenes to ‘correct’ non-normative expressions of gender and desire. Hyacinthus is killed – whether by fate, accident, or divine will – thus cutting short a same-sex relationship that might have otherwise challenged heteronormative structures. Apollo’s grief, though sincere and dignified, cannot prevent this outcome. The story, like others in the Metamorphoses, ultimately suggests that queer love, while sincere and genuine, is often unsustainable within the framework of divine order.
Ovid is marvellous in representing Apollo’s grief in a way that challenges the traditional notions of masculinity in classical Greek and Latin works, where male emotional expression is frequently deemed unmanly (Allard 2018, pp. 25-26). Apollo’s deep and open grief – ‘You bring me pain and guilt!’ (McCarter 2022, p. 286) – reveals the depth of his love for Hyacinthus. It underscores the idea that masculinity and emotional vulnerability are not mutually exclusive. This is comparable to Achilles’ poignant mourning for Patroclus, which foreshadows his courageous, ‘masculine’ revenge. Achilles’ fearlessness made his tears a symbol for masculinity, but as Apollo’s story emphasises, grief is a human experience, not confined to or defined by gender.
Despite its progressive portrayal of masculinity, the story in essence conforms to a familiar narrative: queer love ends in tragedy. As pointed out by Lasse K. Hansen, ‘So many portrayals of queer people, including classics like Brokeback Mountain, are inherently tragic, and overexposure to this kind of media could ultimately lead to queer people expecting their lives to be equally as tragic (Hansen 2023, pp. 29-30). This tragic narrative of Hyacinthus’ Death and Apollo’s Grief reinforces the stereotype that queer love is doomed, and will be punished if not avoided, similar to the blindness of Tiresias and the biological transformation of Iphis. To sum up, while the story of Apollo and Hyacinthus identifies the independence of gender from emotions, but zooming out, the broader narrative reinforces the normative stereotype of queer tragedy in canonical classical literature.
Overall, this essay argues that while Ovid includes positive representations of queer individuals, they are all limited in their agency to challenge traditional stereotypes. Tiresias’ transgender agency is limited as his blindness is indirectly caused by his gender non-conformity; Iphis’ transgender agency is limited as it is merely a tool to avoid lesbianism; and Apollo’s emotional expression is limited as he can’t prevent the tragic fate of his male partner. The three stories are linked by their laudable common representation of queer individuals in early European classical literature in the canon, which continued to spread their influence across time and space. However, the stories are also bound by a common limitation: the stereotype that queerness is doomed to end tragically unless it is avoided. Given the authoritative nature of the canon, these canonical classical texts become influential media to spread such ideas of queer tragedies, which is based purely on the unrealistic fear that queerness threatens the social order. Thus, it is irrational rather than logical, but able to spread easily by implanting fear into people. A queer reading of the three stories would enable us to both analyse progressive narratives and uncover discriminatory nuances. This consequently facilitates a variety of further analyses such as critiquing common traditional bias against queer individuals or evaluating the effects of different social contexts on queer writing in literature. Therefore, queering effectively challenges traditional understandings of identity in antiquity. In a wider context, it can be extended to topics of canonical classical literature beyond gender and sexuality, such as race and religion, to broaden interpretive frameworks, reduce bias, and contribute meaningfully to research in Classics.
Allard, J-N. and Montlahuc, P. 2018. ‘The Gendered Construction of Emotions in the Greek and Roman Worlds’, trans. Max Rothstein, Clio. Women, Gender, History, no. 47, pp. 23-43. Éditions Belin.
Barrett, T. 2024. Rewriting Rome: Were They All Straight, White Men? The Brilliant Club.
Hansen, L.K. 2023. ‘Our Flag is Queer: An Analysis of Queer Representation in the HBO Series Our Flag Means Death’. Aalborg University.
McCarter, S. 2022. trans., Ovid: Metamorphoses. Penguin Classics.
Sedgwick, E.K. 1993. ‘Queer and Now’. Tendencies, Duke University Press, pp. 1-20.
Stewart, M.E. ‘Androcentrism in the Roman and Early Byzantine Empire Periods’. Available at: https://www.academia.edu/2969823/Androcentrism_in_the_Late_Roman_and_early_Byzantine_periods (accessed 2 June 2025).
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