«Mundum tibi nullus ademit». Il paradiso non-perduto per Ila in Draconzio «MUNDUM TIBI NULLUS ADEMIT». THE UNLOST PARADISE FOR HYLAS IN DRACONTIUS

In his rewriting of the myth of Hylas (Romul. 2), Dracontius realizes a complex process of hybridization of different Ovidian myths, which he displaces, transforms and even combines with additional literary memories in order to create a new meaning altogether. Also with regard to the locus amoenus, which is the background to Hylas’ abduction, Dracontius decidedly directs his choice towards the Ovidian setting, in the Metamorphoses, of many episodes of seduction, especially those related to water: suggestive places, with a reassuring appearance, which nevertheless are a prelude to a tragic outcome. However, intent on softening the most worrying elements of the Hylas episode and of the other Ovidian stories from which he draws inspiration, Dracontius deviates from his main model while also drawing on other sources (in this case Claudian’s De raptu Proserpinae). Thus his tale of Hylas comes to a ‘happy ending’: the locus amoenus motif, which, in Ovid’s Metamorphoses, represents paradise lost for the victims of erotic assaults, is transformed by Dracontius into a paradise gained.