Chris's review of Metamorphoses
Metamorphoses (Penguin Classics ed.) by Publius Ovidius Naso
I've always been interested in Greek mythology. In fact, it kind of ruined other mythologies for me, because none of them seem quite as dramatic or detailed. I mean, these are epic stories where every river, reed and tree is a character. There are stories involving men, spirits and gods, some of them funny, most of them tragic and all of them pertinent to the human condition.
That's what mythology does, really - it explains not only the natural world, with its many interesting insects and flowers, but also the human world. Knowing that things like rage, lust and jealousy are not unique to us poor humans but they are qualities that are shared from the lowest earth spirit up to the highest reaches of heaven. We all know the stories that Ovid tells, and I reckon they were all well-known when he collected them. Vut despite their antiquity,they're still accessible, still understandable and still important.
More interesting is the overall structure of the book, which reveals not ...more
That's what mythology does, really - it explains not only the natural world, with its many interesting insects and flowers, but also the human world. Knowing that things like rage, lust and jealousy are not unique to us poor humans but they are qualities that are shared from the lowest earth spirit up to the highest reaches of heaven. We all know the stories that Ovid tells, and I reckon they were all well-known when he collected them. Vut despite their antiquity,they're still accessible, still understandable and still important.
More interesting is the overall structure of the book, which reveals not ...more
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