Metamorphoses ~ Book XI

Posted on March 16, 2016 by cleopatra

Book XI

Orpheus / The Bacchantes / Midas / Troy / Peleus & Thetis / Ceyx / Daedalion / The Wolf / Ceyx & Alcyone / Aesacus

Orpheus charms the beasts and trees with his songs, and even the stones pause to listen. But the Thracian women, the Bacchantes, are enraged, accusing Orpheus of scorning them. They hurl staffs and rocks at him, intent on murder but when a stone is flung,

“….it cleaved the air, it yielded to the spell

of his enchanting voice and lyre: it fell

at Orpheus’ feet as if compelled to seek

forgiveness for its mad audacity …… “

Circling him, the women attack, and all of their weapons would have been tamed by his sweet music, if their “shrieks and caterwauls” had not drowned it out, and they murder and dismember him. Mournful sounds fill the air as his body is carried by the Hebrus river to the coast. There, a snake attempts to attack the head, but before it can, Phoebus turns it into stone. As the Shade of Orpheus descends to the Underworld, he meets Eurydice. Side by side, they walk and they can now gaze at each other without fear.

Nymphs finding the head of Orpheus (1900)
John William Waterhouse
source Wikiart

Bacchus intends to punish the criminals for their profane act, and the Bacchantes find themselves bound to the ground. Roots spread from their feet, bark begins to cover their bodies, as they are transformed into oak trees.

König Midas (1670)
Andrea Vaccaro
source Wikimedia Commons

Bacchus leaves Thrace for his Lydian land and own vineyards in Tmolus. His satyrs and bacchantes crowd around him, but Silenus (his tutor) is missing, yet he finds him with King Midas who has him in his care. Bacchus rewards Midas with one wish, and the king requests that everything he touches will turn to gold. Delighted, Midas begins to touch everything, but soon realizes the curse of his request, repents, and Bacchus instructs him to go to a river near Sardis to wash his sin away. Midas complies and even today, as Ovid tells us, the Pactolus’ shores can be streaked with gold. Midas, however, now hates riches and roams the hillside, but his wits were never clever and he continue to seek stupid things which will bring harm. While watching a musical contest between Pan and Phoebus, upon Tmolus judging Phoebus Apollo the winner, Midas disagrees and for his ill-judgement, Phoebus turns Midas’ ears into those of an ass. He wraps those ears to his head with a purple turban and when his slave discovers his secret, the slave whispers it into a hole in the ground. But when the reeds there grow tall, they whisper the secret to the winds, betraying the servant.

Apollo departs for Troy where Laomedon had accepted the offered of Phoebus and Neptune to build the walls of Troy for payment in gold and then reneged on his debt. The sea god caused a flood to bury the fields of Troy. In payment, they demanded the daughter of the king, Hesione, who was chained to a reef for the prey of monsters, but Hercules saved her. For his payment, he was promised horses, but again Troy was faithless and Hercules razed its walls.

Apollo and Poseidon Punishing Troy (c. 1590)
Paolo Fiammingo
source Wikimedia Commons

Hercules gives Hesione to Telamon as a royal bride but he is busy fighting with his brother, Peleus. Peleus is famous for his goddess wife, and we learn of his “courtship”. Zeus had an ardent desire fot Thetis, the goddess of the waves,” but it was prophesied by Proteus that her son would be greater than his father, so Zeus blessed his grandson, Peleus, to pursue her. Peleus attempted to rape her in her grotto but Thetis transformed into a bird, a tree and then a spotted tigress, so Peleus wisely abandoned his plans. He prayed to the gods for success and was counselled by Proteus, who rose from the sea, to tie her up, which he did and made her pregnant with Achilles.

The Feast of Peleus (1872-81)
Edward Burne-Jones
source Wikimedia Commons

Peleus accidentally kills his half-brother, Phocus, and for this treachery he is exiled to the land of Trachin, recounting a lie as to his crime. Ceyx, the king of Trachin, welcomes him, then weeps, whereupon Peleus and his men ask the cause of his sadness.

Ceyx tells of his brother, Daedalion, who had a lovely fourteen-year-old daughter, Chione. She was raped by both Phoebus and Mercury, bearing twin sons but one from each god: Autolycus, “a connoisseur of wiles and guiles”, and Phillamon, Apollo’s son, “famed for lyre and song.” Chione, because of this glory bestowed on her, now considered herself surpassing Diana’s beauty, and, for her insult, she was killed by an arrow of the goddess. At her funeral (burning), Daedalion overcome with grief, ran senselessly around, finally leaping from Parnassus’ peak, where Apollo changed him into a hawk, and “aggrieved, he makes all others mourn.”

As Ceyx relates this story, Peleus’ Phocian cowherd rushes in to announce that a wolf is ravaging the herds of oxen and terrifying the people. Peleus silently believes this event to be his penance for his crime. As they prepare to leave to deal with the wolf, Alcyone, the wife of Ceyx, begs him not to go, foreseeing his death. Thetis intervenes to pardon Peleus and helps him, changing the wolf into a marble statue. But the fates cause Peleus to travel to the land of Magnesia and King Acastus, where he is cleansed of his guilt.

Meanwhile Ceyx is still puzzled by his brother’s fate and these strange happenings, so he decides to consult an oracle on the isle of Clarus. Alcyone begs him not to go, but, while trying to calm her fears, he departs and his boat encounters a momentous storm. Before he drowns, he prays that his body will return to his wife for burial, and she finally spots it floating in the water, confirmation of her husband’s death that she had received in a dream conducted by Morpheus. As she tries to reach the body, she is changed into a bird (a kingfisher), and when she tries to cover her husband with her wings, he too changes:

“…… Their love remained; they shared one fate.

Once wed, they still were wed: they kept their bond.

They mate; they rear their young; when winter comes,

for seven peaceful days Alcyone —

upon a cliff that overlooks the sea —

broods on her nest. The surge is quiet then,

for Aeolus won’t let his winds run free;

he keeps them under guard, so that the sea

maintain the peace his fledgling grandsons need.”

Halcyone seeking her husband Ceyx (1914)
Herbert James Draper
source Wikimedia Commons

An old man, as he watches the pair of birds, is reminded of another bird, a swift merganser. The bird is of the line of Ilus and Assaracus, then Ganymede, then Laomedeon, and finally Priam, who was the last king of Troy. Aesacus, half-brother of Hector (son of Priam) pursued the nymph, Hesperie, who was bitten by a serpent as she fled. Distraught, Aesacus offered his life for hers. As he leapt into the sea, Thetis pitied him and clothed him in feathers, but Aesacus so diligently sought death, he continually attempts to plunge in the sea, only to rise again. He is the diving bird, the merganser.

source

❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀

In this book, I noticed varying motifs on music, sound and hearing. Orpheus communicates by music, yet is drowned out by the Bacchantes’ shrieks; Apollo and Pan have a musical contest; Mt Tmolus must brush away the forest to hear; Midas for hearing ‘incorrectly’ has his ears changed to those of an ass; Proteus’ words are stopped/finished as he sinks into the sea; on Ceyx’s ship, the captain’s voice in drowned out by the “blustering winds”; Ceyx’s words are impeded by the waves; and the Cimmerian cave is a place of complete silence yet for the Lethe.

While the stories often seem random, we can experience a non-linear telling of some of the history of Troy and its heroes. The scattering make up a puzzle, if we can only pick up the pieces and fit them into the whole.

Metamorphoses

Snake ❥ stone
Thracian women ❥ oak trees
Midas’ touch ❥ gold
Midas’ ears ❥ ears of an ass
Thetis ❥ bird/tree/spotted tigress
Thetis ❥ various shapes ❥ Thetis
Daedalion ❥ hawk
Wolf ❥ marble statue
Ceyx & Alcyone ❥ birds (kingfishers)
Aesacus ❥ merganser (“diving bird”)

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Metamorphoses ~ Book X

Posted on March 8, 2016 by cleopatra

Book X

Orpheus and Eurydice / Cyparissus / Orpheus’ Prologue / Ganymede / Hyacinthus / The Cerastes / The Propoetides / Pygmalion / Myrrha & Cinyras / The Birth of Adonis / Venus and Adonis / Atalanta & Hippomenes / The Fate of Adonis

Orpheus & Eurydice (1864)
Frederic Leighton
source Wikiart

Hymen did not bless the wedding of Orpheus, and what a mess! (I’m losing my narrative tone, aren’t I?) His bride, Eurydice, while crossing the meadow with her Naiad friends, stepped on a viper and died. After his weeping ceased, he travelled to the Underworld to seek his cherished wife. Playing sweetly on his lyre, he begged the gods to restore her to life, and so beautiful his song that even the bloodless shades shed tears and the Furies wept. By his skill and love, Orpheus won his wife back, but was warned as he was leading her out, to only look straight ahead or she would be reclaimed by the dead. Nearly in the upper world, Orpheus could not resist looking at her, and as his eyes fell upon her, he watched her sink back into the abyss. Frantic, he ranged the banks of the Styx like a shade, then finally left the Underworld.
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Metamorphoses ~ Book IX

Posted on March 3, 2016 by cleopatra

Book IX

Achelous & Hercules / Hercules, Deianira, Nessus / Hercules & Deianira / Alcmena / Dryope / Iolaus / Byblis & Caunus / Iphis & Ianthe

Hercules and Achelous
Cornelius van Haarlem
source Wikimedia Commons

Achelous relates how he lost his horn in a fight with Hercules when they both contended for the hand of Deianira. First he had attempted to persuade the girl’s father by disparaging Hercules, but Hercules discounted words, instead wanting to fight. Finally overpowered, Achelous first attempted to transform himself into a snake and then a bull, but his enemy tore off his horn, which the Naiads took and filled with fruit and flowers, now called a sacred Cornucopia. Sophocles’ play, The Women on Trachis, recalls this battle between Achelous and Hercules.

While Hercules was journeying back to Tiryns with his bride, Deianira, a rushing river stopped their path. Nessus, a centaur, offered to take the lovely bride safely to the other shore, while Hercules swam over. Once on the other side, Hercules hears cries and sees that the centaur is attempting to kidnap the girl. Yelling threats, he threaded his bow and shot the arrow which hit the centaur in the spine coming out on the other side. Knowing that Hercules had dipped the arrow in the venom of the Hydra, as life ebbed from him, Nessus gave his envenomed, blood-soaked tunic to Deianira, promising that it would kindle the love of Hercules.

Nessus kidnaps Deianeira (c. 1600)
Hans Rottenhammer
source Wikimedia Commons

Juno hated Hercules for his mighty deeds and while he was away, she had Rumor go to his loving wife, whispering lies of his love of Iole. Deianira, being a sister of Meleager (I thought they were all turned into guinea hens – see Book VIII), devises a plan of revenge: to cut the throat of her rival, but meanwhile, she will send Hercules the tunic of Nessus to rekindle his love. As he wears it, the venom courses through Hercules’ body, bringing searing pain, but when he tries to take it off, he tears his flesh with it. Before he perishes in agony, he hurls his attendant, Lichas, into the sea, blaming him for bringing the gift and the man becomes a stone in the Euboean Sea. The gods are dismayed at what will happen to the earth’s defender and Jove decides to deify him, riding down in his chariot to cloak him in a cloud and then place him in the sky.

Birth of Heracles
Jean Jacques François de Barbier
source Wikipedia

Because of his father’s wishes, Hyllus, the son of Hercules, wed Iole who is now pregnant. Hercules’ mother, Alcmena gives the girl advice and tells her of her own birth pangs. Cruel Juno, angry at Jove’s impregnating Alcmena, sits outside, crosses her legs and her fingers to block the birth. But Galanthis, the servant girl, cleverly recognizes the goddess and announces that Alcmena has given birth. Juno is astounded, leap up and with the unlinking of her knees and fingers, the knot was undone and Alcmena finally gave birth. Yet Galanthis makes the mistake of jeering at Juno who turns her into a weasel.

Iole tells of her half-sister, Dryope, who was raped by Delphi’s deity (Phoebus), nevertheless Andraemon happily married her. One day, as she was walking with her infant son and Iole, she picked the purple blossoms of a lotus, which dripped blood with her plucking. The lotus was a nymph who had transformed herself after being chased by Priapus, but from Dryope’s innocent carnage, the lotus begins to transform her as well. Sister, husband and father, all rush to the scene just in time to hear Dryope’s final plea for her son to visit and know her, then she gives the boy a final kiss before her lips are sealed forever.

Iolaus appears in the doorway, this nephew of Hercules having his youth restored by his uncle’s request to Hebe, the wife he married when he was placed in the sky. Hebe wishes never to perform the task again, but her vow is stopped by Themis, the prophetess, telling of many times this similar event would take place in different ways. Even the gods wish for such favours for their favourites but through examples of Minos, Rhadamanthus and Aeacus, Jove demonstrates all are not so blessed and the deities settle down.

Old Minos is concerned about an overthrow by young Miletus, but Miletus sails away and starts his own city at the mouth of the Meander. He finds a Cyanee, is lured by her body and she gives birth to twins, Byblis and Caunus. Byblis develops an unsisterly love for Caunus, pining for him with a startling intensity. Finally, she sends him a letter confessing her love, which he receives with a burgeoning rage. He escapes, leaving the land and her obscene love, but she follows him in a frenzy of passionate despair, travelling all over until completely insane, she collapses, her tears transforming her into a fountain.

Byblis turning into a spring (1866)
Jean-Jacques Henner
source Wikimedia Commons

In Phaestus, Crete, there lived a freeborn man called Ligdus with a pregnant wife, Telethusa. He wishes only two things for his “dear” wife (please, sense the beginning of sarcasm here): that she suffers little pain in childbirth and that the child may be a boy, because if it turns out to be a girl, he will put her to death. Both distraught over his decision, as Telethusa is about to give birth she sees the (Egyptian) gods, Anubis, Bubastis, Apis, Osiris’ son, Isis, Osiris, and the Egyptian snake who tell her to let the child live. So Telethusa is able to fool everyone into thinking that the child is a boy, and thirteen years later the boy, Iphis (really a girl), is betrothed to the lovely Ianthe. Now Iphis actually longs for Ianthe, but is distraught over her sex, thinking that nothing can come of the union. The girl prays to Isis, and behold! On the day of the marriage Iphis is transformed into a young man and gets his/her desire.

❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈ ❈

I must say that in spite of the distastefulness of some of these tales, Ovid has outdone himself. His metamorphoses are not just simply humans changing to bulls, birds and whatnot, but a broader transformation of gender, alliances, and even unnatural love.

Metamorphoses

Lichas ❥ hard stone

Hercules ❥ a god

Galanthis ❥ weasel

Nymph ❥ lotus

Dryope ❥ lotus tree

Iolaus ❥ youth

Boys ❥ men

Byblis ❥ fountain

Iphis ❥ young man

The Metamorphosis of the Lovers (1938)
Andre Masson
source Wikiart

Metamorphoses – Book VIII

Posted on February 28, 2016 by cleopatra

Book VIII

Scylla, Nisus, Minos / Daedalus, the Minotaur, Theseus & Ariadne / Daedalus & Icarus / Daedalus & Perdix / The Calydonian Hunt / Althaea & Meleager / Theseus & Achelous / The Echinades & Perimele / Baucis & Philemon / Erysichthon’s Sin / Erysichthon & Famine / Erysichthon’s Daughter/ Achelous

Minos & Scylla
17th century etching
source Wikimedia Commons

Minos, the son of Europa and king of Crete, besieges Alcathous and the coast of Megara, and its king, Nisus, amid his grey hairs, has a gleaming purple tuft which holds the security of his kingdom. Now, his daughter, Scylla, climbs to the top of the tower of the king to watch the siege and falls madly in love with Minos. She convinces herself that if she is taken hostage, the war will end. With such thoughts, she sneaks into her father’s bedroom, tears off his tuft, and hurries out to find Minos. King Minos, however is appalled at her present, and claiming her a disgrace, calls for her banishment. Imposing just wars on the Megarians, Minos set sail for home, leaving lovelorn Scylla spewing poison and lamenting her fate. Finally, she decided to follow Minos, diving into the waves and holding fast to his ship. Yet, her father now is a tawny osprey, and he dives at her, dislodging her from the stern. Scylla transforms into a bird, called the Ciris, meaning to cut, for she had shorn her father’s tuft.

The Minotaur (1884)
George Frederick Watts
source Wikimedia Commons

Minos arrives home and sacrifices to Jove, but there is a shame lurking in Crete. The adulterous liaison of Mino’s mother and a bull, has produced an hideous offspring which must be concealed. Minos gets the famed builder, Daedelus, to construct a labyrinth that is so intricate, the monster will never get out. In this maze, the Minotaur is imprisoned, but Theseus kills it three years later, with the help of Ariadne, the daughter of Minos, who gives him a thread to find his way out. While Theseus took Ariadne with him, he left her on Naxos, but in her desolation and tears, Bacchus gave her a place in the constellations as the Northern Corona, her crown a diadem of stars.

Daedalus, weary of his sojourn in Crete, decides to escape, and “at once he starts to work on unknown arts to alter nature”. Constructing wings make of reeds, twine, feathers and wax, he cautions his son, Icarus, that he must follow him and not fly too high nor too low to avoid being wetted by the ocean or scorched by the sun. At first, the boy flies right behind his father but then, delight and audacity come upon him and he soars up into the open sky. The wax on the wings melt and he plunges to the sea and to his death. Daedalus finally discovers his son’s plight and builds a tomb for him on an island now called Icaria.

Lament for Icarus (1897)
Herbert James Draper
source Wikimedia Commons

As Daedalus builds the tomb, an irate partridge comes out of a muddy ditch to scold him. This bird is Perdix, his nephew, who at twelve years old was trusted to his care and teaching. But the boy proved too clever and bright, and in his envy of the child, Daedalus threw him from Minerva’s sacred citadel, lying and saying that he’d fallen. Minerva, however, scooped the child up in mid-air and transformed him into a partridge. Now Daedalus, spent and ragged, arrives as a suppliant near Aetna (Sicily) where King Cocalus gives him refuge but wisely prepares his troops for an invasion by Minos.

The Calydonian Boar Hunt (1611-12)
Peter Paul Reubens
source Wikimedia Commons

Because of Theseus’ bravery and success, Athens is relieved of paying tribute to Crete and all lands praise him and ask for his assistance in peril. Oenus, king of Calydon requires his assistance when a massive boar is sent by the goddess Diana, who is incensed because all the gods had been given a gift of the harvest, yet her alter lay bare. A legion of men gather, some of whom are familiar, including Achilles’ father (Peleus), Jason, Telamon, and wise Nestor in his youth (from The Iliad), and the Calydonian hunt begins. The men charge the boar who becomes enraged and nothing seems to be able to slow his frenzy. Finally, Atlanta, the only woman in the hunt, manages to draw blood, and Meleager praises her bravery. The rest of the men, however, are angered at being bested by a woman, and rather forcefully, yet thoughtlessly, attempt to kill the animal. Finally Meleager kills the massive beast, and all applaud him, but when he gives part of the his glory to Atlanta, dissent rumbles through the hunters. His uncles emerge to reclaim his gift, angering Meleager who kills them both.

Althaea, Meleager’s mother, is in the process of giving gifts to the gods for his victory, when she sees the bodies of her brothers being borne into the city. Agonized over their deaths, she recalls a prophecy where the Fates assigned the same life to a log as to Meleager. His mother had secreted the log away, but with this murder she resurrects it. Her agony as to whether or not to burn it is riveting:

” ……Within Althaea, mother wars with sister;

those two names tear apart her single heart.

First she grows pale with fear of what she plans,

a crime so foul; but then her seething wrath

inflames her eyes with its own color, red.

Now she appears to be most menacing —

a horrid thing —- and now you’d swear that she

was merciful. When savage frenzy dries

her tears again. Althaea cries. She’s like

a ship that, driven by the wind and by

a current running counter, is the prey

of both and — in uncertainty — obeys

two forces ……”

After a Gollum-like conversation with herself, finally she calls on the Furies to witness her deed, hurling the log into the fire. As the log burns, so does Meleager until he is only ash. His sisters are distraught, his father is agonized, his mother commits suicide and Diana is content. She turns his sisters into guinea hens.

Theseus, sailing away from Calydon and the carnage, is warned by the river-god Achelous, to take refuge in his house. Heavy rains have swelled the Achelous river and he is in danger if he attempts to cross. Aegus’ son accepts the hospitality and he is given a feast.

Theseus asks Achelous about an island that he sees far off and the river god informs him that it is not one, but five islands. They used to be five Naiads, but when they sacrificed ten bulls for a festival dance and forgot to invite Achelous, he swelled with rage, sweeping the nymphs away and tearing away a piece of land to form five parts, now called the Echinades. There is yet another island, Perimele, named for his love, who he, by force, took her virginity. Her father threw her from a cliff into the sea, however Achelous bore her up, calling on Neptune, who changed her into an island.

Mercury & Jupiter in the House of Philemon & Baucis (c. 17th century)
Jacob an Oost
source Wikimedia Commons

Pirithous, the son of Ixion, scoffed at the river god’s tale, feeling that the gods were given too much power, but Lelex countermands his profession with a story to tell. In the Phrygian hills, there once was a devolted old couple named Baucis and Philemon. One day, the gods Jupiter and Mercury came seeking shelter in the guise of men. The poor doddering couple gave them lodging and the best of the food they had to offer. When they saw that their wine bowl was magically being replenished they were frightened that their food was not good enough and went to kill their only goose who guarded their land. But the poor goose gave them a chase and they gave up exhausted, when finally the gods revealed themselves. They took the couple on a long walk and when they looked back, their house was turned into a temple. When asked for their desire, they asked to become priests of the temple and die together when their time came. All came to fruition, but as their lives faded, one was transformed into an oak tree and the other, a linden.

Theseus is quite stirred by these tales and wishes to hear another. Achelous tells of the transformations of Proteus, then relates a story of Erysichthon, who scorned the gods, chopping down a sacred grove of Ceres, including a sacred oak, causing the tree to bleed as the nymph inside is killed. She utters a prophesy of punishment for Erysichthon’s sin, but still Erysichthon is heedless.

In punish for Erysichthon’s heartless deed, Ceres sends her nymph to Famine (as she cannot go herself for their purposes are opposed), and Famine pays the sinner a visit, breathing on him until he dreams of gnawing, burning hunger, but he can only eat air.

Erysichthon Sells His Daughter (1650-60)
Jan Havicksz Steen
source Wikimedia Commons

Erysichthon’s hunger becomes so unbearable that he sells his daughter, but she escapes her master by changing herself into the shape of a man. When father sees daughter again, he sells her to master after master, all of whom she eludes by changing form. Finally, the ravenousness of Erysichthon causes him to eat all he has and, in desperation, he “began to rend his flesh, to bite his limbs, to feed on his own body.”

Achelous wonders why he tells of the metamorphoses of others when he, too, has undergone many changes. In fact, he removes his head-wreath showing not two, but one horn upon his head. Then he groans.

Metamorphoses

King Nisus ❥ osprey

Scylla ❥ bird

Ariadne ❥ Northern Corona constellation

Perdix ❥ partridge

Meleager’s sisters ❥ guinea hen
Five Naiads ❥ the Echinades islands

Perimele ❥ island

Baucis & Philemon ❥ oak and linden trees

Proteus ❥ boar, serpent, bull, stone, plant, stream, fire

Erysichthon’s daughter ❥ man, mare, bird, deer, etc.

Achelous ❥ river, snake, bull

Behold The Stars Review – Books VII & VIII

Metamorphoses Book VII

Posted on February 16, 2016 by cleopatra

Book VII

Medea and Jason / Medea and Aeson / Medea and Pelias / The Flight of Medea / Theseus and Aegus / Minos / Cephalus / The Plague / The Myrmidons / Cephalus, Procris & Aurora

Jason and Medea (1907)
John William Waterhouse
source Wikiart

The twin sons of Boreas assist King Phineus, who aids them in their journey to Colchis, where Jason meets with King Aeëtes to claim the Golden Fleece. The king agrees to relinquish his prize upon Jason completing three horrendous tasks. Yet Medea, daughter of the king, has fallen madly in love with Jason. In spite of Jason’s foreign origin and the loyalty she owes to her father, she agrees to help Jason succeed in his trials in exchange for his promise of marriage. First, he tames the dangerous bulls with herbs of Hecate given to him by Medea, yoking them to plow a field that has never before been plowed. As he drops snake’s teeth into the ground from a bronze helmet, each takes the shape of an armoured warrior who attacks Jason. But the young man hurls a stone into their ranks and they turn on each other, perishing in a civil war. In his last test, Jason puts to sleep a dragon with juices from a hypnagogic herb, gains the Fleece and sails home with his new wife.

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A Man’s A Man For A’ That by Robert Burns

Posted on February 11, 2016 by cleopatra

A Man’s a Man For A’ That

By Robert Burns

Is there, for honest poverty,

That hings his head, an’ a’ that?

The coward slave, we pass him by,

We dare be poor for a’ that!

For a’ that, an’ a’ that,

Our toils obscure, an’ a’ that;

The rank is but the guinea’s stamp;

The man’s the gowd for a’ that,

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Metamorphoses – Book VI

Posted on February 10, 2016 by cleopatra

Book VI

Arachne / Niobe / Latona and the Lycian Peasants / Marsyas / Pelops / Tereus, Prochne, Philomela / Boreas and Orithyia

The Fable of Arachne or The Spinner (1656)
Diego Velazquez
source Wikiart

Minerva is quite pleased by the Muses’ story, but, wanting to punish someone herself, she finds Arachne, a girl of lowly birth raised up by the renown of her artistic weaving. Minerva, in the guise of an old woman, attempts to warn her of her pride, but Arachne shows complete contempt for the goddess, who reveals herself and accepts the girl’s spinning challenge. As a warning, Minvera weaves in the four corners of her cloth: Thracians, Rhodope and Haemus, who took names from the gods and were turned into mountains; the Pygmaean queen who defeated Juno and was transformed into a crane; Antigone, daughter of the Trojan king, for being Jove’s consort was changed into a stork; and because of the boasting of their beauty, King Cinyras’ daughters were tranformed into the marble steps of Juno’s temple. In what appears to be a forceful indictment against the gods, Arachne weaves into her cloth various scenes of the gods, representing deceptions, manipulations and transformations of humans. Furious, Minerva strikes her; Arachne takes a nooses and hangs herself but in pity, Minerva allows her to live but in the form of a spider.

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Metamorphoses – Book V

Posted on February 3, 2016 by cleopatra

Book V

Perseus and Phineus / Proetus / Polydectes / Minerva, the Muses, Pegasus / Pyreneus / The Pierides / Typhoeus / Ceres & Prosperina / Arethusa & Alpheus / Triptolemus & Lycnus / The Pierides — Again

Perseus turns Phineus and his followers to stone (early 1680s)
Luca Giordano
source Wikipedia

In the middle of the wedding feast, uproar rises and it is Phineus, the brother of King Cepheus, coming to revenge himself on Perseus for stealing his bride. Curiously King Cepheus chastises his brother for not saving his bride himself and says that he has given her to Perseus for his deeds. Not certain whether to aim his shaft at the king or Perseus, Phineus chooses the latter, but Perseus hurls it back, killing Rhoetus, and the wedding feast turns into a brawl. Perseus battles nearly everyone at the feast until he is backed against a pillar and his strength is beginning to ebb. He holds up his old, trusty weapon, the head of Medusa, which turns his enemies to marble statues and his one friend, Aconteus, into stone. Phineus repents, but too late, as he too is transformed into marble.

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Metamorphoses – Book IV

Posted on January 28, 2016 by cleopatra

Book IV

The Daughters of Minyas / Pyramus & Thisbe / Mars, Venus, Vulcan, the Sun / Leucothoe & Clytie / Salmacis & Hermaphroditus / The Daughters of Minyas / Athamas & Ino / Cadmus & Harmonia / Acrisius / Perseus & Atlas / Perseus & Andromeda / Perseus & Medusa

Minyas’ daughter Alcithoe and her sisters disdain Bacchus’ revelries and deride the god. The daughters of Minyas sit at home during the festivities, and as they weave their cloth, they also weave stories as they work, carefully choosing their tales.

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On Reading ‘The Faerie Queene’ by C.S. Lewis

Posted on January 27, 2016 by cleopatra

“Beyond all doubt it is best to have made one’s first acquaintance with Spenser in a very large — and, preferably, illustrated — edition of The Faerie Queene, on a wet day, between the ages of twelve and sixteen; and if, even at that age, certain of the names aroused unidentified memories of some still earlier, some almost prehistoric, commerce with a selection of ‘Stories from Spenser’, heard before we could read, so much the better.”

A number of us are going to be reading The Fairie Queene beginning sometime in April and, considering the difficulty of the poem, I decided to do some pre-reading investigation.

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