Assignment task:
Read the text below, which is an extract from Plutarch's Lives. What can this text tell us about Cleopatra's reputations?
It is said that the asp was brought in with the figs, hidden under the leaves, just as Cleopatra had commanded, so that the creature would alight on her body without her knowledge. But they say she saw it as she picked up some of the figs and she said, 'So there it is, then' and offered her bare arm to its bite. Others say that the asp was kept enclosed in a pitcher and that Cleopatra excited and provoked it with a golden distaff until it struck and fastened itself to her arm. No one knows the truth: it is also said that she carried poison in a hollow hairpin, which she kept hidden in her hair. There was, however, no sign of a rash on her body or any other indication of poison. Also, no snake was found in the mausoleum, although they say some tracks could be seen leading from there to the sea on the side that faced that direction and where the windows were. And some claim to have seen two light and indistinct pricks on Cleopatra's arm.
Plutarch (2006) 'Life of Antony 85-86' [translated by Prudence L. Jones], in P. J. Jones Cleopatra: a source book. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, p. 194.
Guidance for Option:
1. This question is asking you to apply what you have learned from the unit on Cleopatra to your understanding of a short text.
2. You will need to say something about how Cleopatra is depicted in the passage and provide some evidence for your view.
3. Make sure to include some brief contextual details for the passage, i.e. when and by whom it was written. Can these details help you to understand the way that Cleopatra has been depicted here? Note that you have already met Plutarch's work in the module book, in Section 3.1 ('Plutarch's Cleopatra: the shameless seducer').
4. Try to identify some similarities between Plutarch's image of Cleopatra and the other ancient or modern sources - both visual and literary - that you have met in the unit. Do you think that this passage has influenced later depictions of Cleopatra? If so, how?
5. It will also be helpful to consider whether there are any significant aspects of Cleopatra's reputation, as studied in the module, which are not reflected in this passage.