Title: Metamorphoses
Author: Ovid
Written: 8CE
Pages: 723 Pages
Structure: 15 “Books”. The total work contains about 250 myths.
“Metamorphoses” is an epic poem written by the Roman poet Ovid in the early first century.
It is ambitious. Right from the start, Ovid declares that he is going to tell the history of the world from Creation until the present day:
Inspire me, O Gods (it is you who have even transformed my art), and spin me a thread from the world’s beginning down to my own life time, in one continuous poem.
The theme is inevitable change. Gods are transformed so they can manipulate humans. Humans are transformed because of their immense grief or as a punishment for their actions.
We are treated to dozens of stories such as Icarus and Daedalus, Narcissus and Echo, Arachne, Venus and Adonis, Jason, Perseus, Theseus, Aeneas, Orpheus and Euridice, Prometheus, Pygmalion,…. These are the stories which inspired much of the Canon of Western Literature. We know them, we almost have ancestral memory of these tales.
The poetry is sublime. Ovid paints a vivid picture of love, suffering, despair, lust, rage… and the elements.
One of my favourite parts is the story of King Ceyx and Alcyone his loving queen. Ceyx is caught at sea in an immense storm. All he can think of as he succumbs to the waves is how much he loves Alcyone.
Seamanship failed and morale had collapsed. Such an onrush of waves, such an onrush of death was breaking over the sailors’ heads.
They burst into tears, or gaped dumbfounded, or blessed their friends who could hope to be buried. Perhaps they appealed to the gods in prayer, uselessly raising their arms towards the invisible heavens and begging for help. Perhaps they thought of their brothers and parents, their homes with their wives and children, and all they had left behind them.
Ceyx remembered his dear Alcyone. Hers was the only name on his lips. His wife was all he regretted and longed for, although he was glad that she wasn’t beside him. He wished he could look once more in his country’s direction and face his home for the last time, but didn’t know where to turn.
The sea was churning and swirling so wildly, the whole of the sky was hidden behind those murky layers of pitch-black clouds, and the night was darker than ever
This book has inspired artworks, operas, plays, novels. It’s a bird’s eye view of our cultural heritage.
And it’s so easy to read. It comes in bite-size chunks. Most stories are no more than several pages long.
Why have I waited so long to read this delightful book?