Il mito di Cefalo e Procri e il tema della prova di fedeltà (Ov. met. 7, 720-746).

This paper focuses on the myth of Cephalus and Procris in Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Book 7, and especially on the narrative section in which Cephalus tries to test Procris for marital fidelity (sollicitare fidem). Ovid reworks the mythical tradition dramatically. He turns Cephalus into a narrator of his own autobiographical experience and has him emphasize Procris’ innocence, so that Cephalus blames himself for having encouraged his wife to adultery by means of rich gifts and money. The topic of the test of marital fidelity is amplified through two literary forms: (1) historical narrative: one can compare the story of the Etruscan princes, including Tarquinius Collatinus who try to catch their wives by dropping in unexpectedly, a tale that Livy 1, 57, 6 s. relates and Ovid elaborates poetically in the second book of Fasti; (2) rhetorical declamation: Ovid is reminiscent of controversiae such as Sen. contr. II 7 on female adultery and Sen. contr. II 2 on conjugal couples that test each other – despite all the risks that this entails.