Representations of Female Speech in the Divine Comedy: Canto 30
In Dante’s conjuring of Ovid’s Hecuba, he distorts her speech to that of a barking dog. Unlike Ovid, he blames this transformation on grief (Stark). Also, Ovid presents a more aggressive/less feminine version of Hecuba in a “manic fury” who digs out eyes with her fingers, who throws spears and stones. So while Ovid almost transforms Hecuba twice—from woman to masculine warrior and then again to a barking dog—Dante is more subtle in this removal of femininity. (CJ)