An Imaginary Life
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| Author | David Malouf |
|---|---|
| Cover Artist | Bill Bachman |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | George Braziller |
| Released | March 1978 |
| Media Type | Print (Hardcover) |
| Pages | 174 pp |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-8076-0884-X |
An Imaginary Life is a 1978 novella written by David Malouf.
It tells the story of the Roman poet Ovid, during his exile in Tomis.
Whilst there, Ovid lives with the natives, although he doesn't understand their language; and forms a bond with a wild boy who is found after having been brought up by wolves.
The relationship between Ovid and the boy, at first one of protector and protected, becomes an alliance between two people in a foreign land.
Ovid comes to Tomis enculturated with a Roman worldview and through his attempts at teaching the boy aquisition of language is able to free himself from the constrictions of Latin and the encompassing perception of reality that is his only barrier against transendence.
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