Parole chiave
epicureismo
emozione
amore
donna
animali non umani
Come citare
Abstract
Lucretius famously concludes the fourth book of De rerum natura with an account of love; reading that finale as the analysis of an emotion, rather than a diatribe against it, shows that what Lucretius offers is not a cure for love, but a path to experiencing amor in a way that is both Roman and Epicurean. To that end, challenging the traditional interpretation of DRN 4, 1263-77 – namely, that wives have no need to please their husbands sexually and take little or no pleasure in sex themselves, this study argues that according to Lucretius there can and should be mutuality and reciprocity in love and its pleasures. Male or female, human or (other) animal, the position adopted by a mating pair during sexual intercourse reflects and embodies their emotions, and thus illuminates the complex neurophysiological processes and ethical choices behind them. Love, sex and marriage can coexist; when that happens, love and the pleasures of love-making are mutual, natural and necessary and ‘doggie style’ is the natural choice for coupling – or so Lucretius teaches.
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