An Imaginary Life resembles several of Malouf’s other works with its poetic prose, exploration of humanity’s relationship to nature, and unlikely relationships between people from different worlds. This is especially true in
Remembering Babylon, which contrasts the European settlers’ view of nature with the indigenous Aboriginal people’s view. Just as Malouf reimagines the final days of the classical figure Ovid, in
Ransom, Malouf retells the narrative of Homer’s
Iliad to explore reconciliation between the warrior Achilles and the grieving father Priam, whose son murdered Achilles’s lover. Although
An Imaginary Life is fictional, Malouf draws from Ovid’s actual writings to shape his character and comment on his ideas. In Malouf’s story, his fictional version of Ovid undergoes a powerful personal transformation, which he once refers to as a “metamorphosis.” This refers directly to the actual Ovid’s epic poetry volume
Metamorphoses, where he explores a wide range of mythological stories through the lens of personal transformation. Malouf also uses his story to critique Ovid’s frivolous lifestyle, which can be seen in the historical works
Amores, a volume of erotic poetry, and
Ars amatoria, Ovid’s three-volume instructional poetry on how men should pursue women, and how women should keep their men. Ovid’s
Epistulae ex Ponto, which he wrote while in exile, provides a look at what the poet truly felt about his new life in Tomis.