Reading Notes: Ovid's Metamorphoses III, Part B

Orpheus and Eurydice

For me, the most compelling part of this story is the same part that's made it such a universal one: the idea of a protagonist deciding to fight death to win back a loved one. If I were to retell this story, I'd probably use that same hook for the general premise, then switch up the characters, setting, and way of going about fighting death.

Ganymede and Hyacinthus

In this story, I was intrigued by the detail of the god Phoebus loving Hyacinthus so much that he abandoned his godly duties and took up human tasks instead: "...he did not object to carrying the nets, handling the dogs, or travelling as a companion, over the rough mountain ridges, and by constant partnership feeding the flames." I like the idea of a god leaving his post and posing as a human, and looking at all the chaos that might cause if he ditched his responsibilities. If I were to use that idea, I'd probably go with a human protagonist who's figured out his secret and has to work with/convince him to go back to his real life.

Pygmalion

I've always liked the story of Pygmalion and Galatea, because with a bit of a genre shift, it works really well as a sci-fi or fantasy—or even horror—story. If I used this one for my assignment, I would still play with the idea of someone being created—but I don't think it would work out as well as it did in this version of the story.

Myrrha and Cinyras

From this story, I would take the idea of the Furies as dealers of punishment: "the three sisters, with black snaky hair, that those with guilty hearts, their eyes and mouths attacked with cruel torches, see." But I would either want to look at it from their point of view, the point of view of someone close to them, or place it in a high school or small-town modern setting.

Myrrha's Punishment

In this story, it was Myrrha's request at the very end that caught my interest: she begs to be denied both life and death, and I think something like that could lead to an interesting character and situation.

Atalanta and Hippomenes

Initially, what caught my eye about this story was the last part of the oracle's warning to Atalanta: that she would continue to live, but not be herself. This sounds like a messy, unpleasant fate to experiment with in a story, and I think it could be used in a variety of interesting ways. Later, when Atalanta met Hippomenes and heard his challenge, I felt like their dynamic felt like a more cynical, modern fairy-tale: a girl cursed with the inability to fall in love, and the boy who's in love with her, who she'd want to love if she could. Ultimately, that could be an interesting angle to tell a story from too, I think.

Bibliography: Ovid's Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline. Source: Mythology and Folklore UN-Textbook.

Image Credit: "Venus and Adonis" (1637) by José de Ribera. Source: Wikimedia Commons.