الفهرس 
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Abstract
The character of Medea in the Argonautica of Apollonius is one of the two poles of intertextuality of this study had been the subject of many works and studies. Many writers have used Medea as a theme for their works, yet one of the most striking Medeas, is Euripides’. The child-killing mother, presented by Euripides, marked itself in the Medea history catalogue. He shared common elements with other writers yet he altered his work to suit the theatre. He wanted to make his Medea most striking in order to distinct it from other famous works and to distinguish himself from other Medea writers. He wrote in a time that was more prone to accepting the ideas he wanted to present. Yet his work still triggered many negative reactions; as the idea of a child-killing mother would never be accepted by laymen.
In this study, the other pole of intertextuality is another female character, Ariadne. In Poem 64 of Catullus, he discusses the story of the Cretan princess and how she was abandoned by her lover.
Catullus was born around 87 B.C. in Verona to a wealthy family and died around 54 B.C. He is known for his passionate love poems to a married woman called in his poems Lesbia, but whose real name is thought to be Clodia.
During his life, he associated himself with a group of poets known as Poetae Novi. They followed the trend of not composing long epic poems and cut short the heroic themes such as those in Hesiod and Homer. The Poetae Novi were greatly influenced by Callimachus and his Alexandrian style. They adopted the idea of openly expressing feelings and thoughts. They freed themselves of the dramatic and multiform of the epic poetry style and followed the new lore of the Alexandrian style of short epics.
Catullus as being one of the Poetae Novi followed those traits as was clear in his poems. We have around 116 poems and some other fragments. Scholars divide Catullus’ poems into three groups 1-60, short epigrams, 61-64, longer poems and 65-116 elegiac couplets.
Catullus’ poem 64 begins with the story of Iason and the Argonautica but then goes beyond expectations to revolve around the story of Ariadne. She falls in love with Theseus and helps him to kill the Minotaurus in the labyrinth of Knossos. Afterwards Theseus abandons her at the shores of Naxos, and here comes the Medea-like story back to the scene.
Catullus uses some very complex techniques to compose his work, poem 64. Besides, using ecphrasis and flashbacks, he uses the ”Ring composition” structural pattern. It is the development of narrative to reach a certain climax, then looping back to its starting point. Catullus used this technique several times in poem 64; the introduction (Catull. 64, 1-30) begins and ends with the gods of the sea, Neptunus (line 2) and Oceanus (line 30). In addition, (lines 384- 408) both encircle around the idea of cruelty of mankind.
Catullus shows in poem 64 other perspectives to the myth of Ariadne, although there are other writers who shed light upon her myth such as, Hesiod, Homer and Apollonius. Those writers came across her myth, but Catullus 64 is the only ”extended literary treatment”. In addition, her image on the shore and then rescue by Bacchus has been the theme of many vases and wall paintings.
Through this study, the intertextual elements between both characters, Apollonius’ Medea and Catullus’ Ariadne will be pinpointed and discussed, in order to show the resemblance between both feminine characters and their intertextual relationship.