About this episode
Mary and Charlotte discuss Cleopatra's representation in literature with biographer Lucy Hughes-Hallett.
Mary and Charlotte talk to Lucy Hughes-Hallett, acclaimed biographer and author of ‘Cleopatra: Histories, Dreams and Distortions’, about Cleopatra’s afterlife on the page. Lucy begins by observing that “the people who write about her aren't interested in describing her as a real person. They use her as a kind of mirror onto which they can project their own prejudices and anxieties and often erotic fantasies.” In the 14th Century, Boccaccio mined the old evil temptress angle. Geoffrey Chaucer, however, went the other way: she was a martyr to love, choosing to kill herself rather than consider life without Antony. For Shakespeare, she provided the perfect character to study the effects of unbridled passion. After Napoleon’s conquest of Egypt, Cleopatra was orientalised - her skin and hair became darker in pictures and she indulged in decadent acts of cruelty. In recent decades, she has been framed as nationalist freedom fighter and feminist hero, but it feels like - even two thousand years on - there is more to explore in this most elusive of historical queens. Mary and Charlotte recommend some further reading: The new edition of Lucy’s book is just out: Cleopatra: Histories…
People in this episode
Hosts: Mary, Charlotte
Guest: Lucy Hughes-Hallett
Topics covered
- Cleopatra
- biography
- literary representation
- historical analysis
- feminism
- cultural interpretation
Keywords
- Cleopatra
- biography
- literature
- historical queens
- feminism
- cultural analysis
- Boccaccio
- Chaucer
- Shakespeare
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Cleopatra: Histories, Dreams and Distortions, The Death of Cleopatra
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