Seduced by Literary History: Thomas Campion's Umbra and the Epyllia Tradition

This essay examines Thomas Campion's minor neo-Latin epic Umbra (1619), focusing on the poem's representation of sexuality within early modern literary and cultural contexts. Adopting methods from adaptation studies and queer studies, this article shows how the poem is striking for its frank depiction of homoeroticism and for its depiction of the self-shattering effects of desire, including that of the desire of gods. The argument further emphasizes the vitality of the poet's neo-Latin work, which played an important role in Campion's day but is often overlooked in modern criticism. To throw into relief the complexity of the sexual situations depicted in Campion's poem, the paper also traces how the narrative both draws upon and diverges from better-known English-language precedents by Marlowe, Shakespeare, and especially Spenser. Ultimately, this essay argues that Campion's epyllion not only innovates the classical tradition but also meditates on how authors' and readers' engagements with literary history amplify erotic experience.