Ovid's Metamorphoses and Further Metamorphoses discussion
The Metamorphoses - The 15 Books
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Book Two - 19th November 2018
For the Battus and Mercury episode, we have again a print interpretation.Battus is in the process of becoming a stone. 'That stone will talk before I do'
I'm sorry but I have no details on the image. Note that the subtitle is in French.
It shows Apollo, the owner of the cattle, distracted while playing his pipe, and not noticing how Mercury steals away his sheep. Then in the foreground is Mercury again, without his accoutrements, bribing Battus and punishing him into his stony metamorphosis. The horse/mare on the left - could that be a reference to Ocyrhoe?
Thanks Kalli - this looks similar to (but isn't) the engraving that was included in the George Sandys 1632 illustrated edition of the Met. where each illustration comprised various episodes from the single book: you can see the engravings here http://ovid.lib.virginia.edu/sandys/c...
Roman Clodia wrote: "Thanks Kalli - this looks similar to (but isn't) the engraving that was included in the George Sandys 1632 illustrated edition of the Met. where each illustration comprised various episodes from th..."Thank you, RC.. I was unfamiliar with those by George Sandys.
Roman Clodia wrote: "We can also find parallels with Io in that Callisto is silenced ('her powers of speech were wrested away,' 2.483), but her human consciousness still remains, at odds with her body: 'but though her body was now a bear's, her emotions were human,' 2.485...."
The instances in which speech - or loss thereof - is another running theme... I believe RC has commented on this already... We fist had Io, but now also the greatest 'speaker' so far, Ocyrhoe, the one who speaks that which has not yet happened, is also silenced. She is not even allowed a human upper body since that would still allow her to speak.
I found the passage on Envy very striking. The Notes in my text say that IN-VIDIA, in Latin, 'refers to a flawed act of vision' - and draws attention to the many terms that refer to vision, and looking, and eyes, and images in the text.
On Envy, the illustration I find is from Flemish engraver. Godfried Maes. Envy. Between 1664 - 1700.
Kalliope wrote: "The instances in which speech - or loss thereof - is another running theme..."Is it too obvious to say that many (not all) of these stories are concerned with the muting of women?
Just going back to the Beckman image of Europa, I'm struck by how much it makes me think of the Minotaur - and Picasso's minotaur works which I saw in the British Museum exhibition a few years ago.
I didn’t know about all the Callisto paintings, Obviously lots of mixed feelings and anxiety about pregnancy both in the ancient “pagan” world and centuries later with Ovid as an endless source for transposing emotions to a safer sphere for visualizing difficult but tantalizing subjects....
Roman Clodia wrote: "Is it too obvious to say that many (not all) of these stories are concerned with the muting of women?"
Unfortunately, yes... mostly women left speechless.
I am rereading the Phaeton episode and noticed this time that also Earth, is prevented from speaking by the reigning smoke. Although she finally succeeds and implores Jove to put a stop at the disaster.
Elena wrote: "with Ovid as an endless source for transposing emotions to a safer sphere for visualizing difficult but tantalizing subjects.... .."Yes, very true, Elena... Ovid transposing emotions onto a safer arena... which reinforces my idea of how all this mythological lore seemed both very familiar but also somewhat estranged in Ovid's world... There is a certain detachment from all these gods and goddesses...
Another aspect that is striking me is the limitations and disadvantages of being a god.Phoebus tells Phaeton that he wants something that 'not even the gods can have'.
In Book 1 Inachus complains that being a god and immortal is a curse, since he will continue suffering for Io for the rest of his existence...
There are more cases of this peculiar status of divinity... I will post them later on.
Elena wrote: "I didn’t know about all the Callisto paintings, Obviously lots of mixed feelings and anxiety about pregnancy"Excellent point, Elena - I hadn't thought of that. In this case, it's about pregnancy and revelation (or pregnancy as revelation).
Roman Clodia wrote: "Elena wrote: "I didn’t know about all the Callisto paintings, Obviously lots of mixed feelings and anxiety about pregnancy"Excellent point, Elena - I hadn't thought of that. In this case, it's ab..."
You are probably both right as a general matter of male fear of the mysteries of women, not to mention whatever fears women have for themselves. But in this case, it's much simpler: OMG, SHE BROKE THE CODE! R.
Roger wrote: "Callisto Paintings: heroic, and not so much..."
Roger, as I have just reread the Callisto episode, I have looked again at your paintings.
I am struck by the different treatment between Titian and Rubens.. The former shows Diana in command and Callisto portrayed completely ashamed.
While Rubens's rendition centres on Callisto. Also showing regret but with a certain pathos rather than real guilt. Diana, on the left, is not shown as powerful as in Titian's rendition.
I paid more attention to the text this time, and it is not Diana who punishes Callisto, but Juno. Diana just expels her.
We have a somewhat humorous (for 21C eyes) rendition of the episode by the Flemish:
Karel Philips Spierincks. Early 17C. Philadelphia Museum of Art.
In this version we see, in the background on the left, Juno dragging poor Callisto by the hair...
On Arcas, again, not a major episode for the pictorial renditions, so I have only found a print.Hendrik Goltzius (after)-(1558-1617).
Jupiter stopping Arcas is not shown, but a bear can be seen on the right, in the skies. I only see one bear.
Arguably, though, Diana does punish Callisto by expelling her from the group, leaving her isolated and without community. Even if we don't factor in Ovid's exile, the concept is a powerful one in the Roman mind as exile takes the place of imprisonment in the taxonomy of punishments.
Roman Clodia wrote: "Arguably, though, Diana does punish Callisto by expelling her from the group, leaving her isolated and without community. Even if we don't factor in Ovid's exile, the concept is a powerful one in t..."Yes, certainly.. it's just that in my second read I realised the metamorphosis was not prompted by Diana.
The subject of the Rape of Europa has been a very popular one with painters in the Western tradition, one that has been even treated by modern artists.One thing though about the title 'Rape of Europa" - it was not used as a title for this painted scene until much later. Titian called it 'Europa and the Bull'.
Of the old school, the most famous is Titian's. It formed part of the six 'poesie' that Titian painted for Philip II. It was one of the later works and therefore in the painter's looser handling of his brushstroke. There was probably going to be a seventh painting but it was never delivered.
It was highly successful and was copied by various artists several times, including Rubens, who kept his own version.
Titian. 1560-62. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston.
Titian follows the text in several details :
Europa now is terrified; she clasps
one horn with her right hand; meanwhile the left
rests on the bull's great croup She turns to glance
back at the shore, so distant now. Her robes
are fluttering -- they swell in the sea breeze.
(Mandelbaum)
This painting has had an interesting life. And the book The Rape of Europa: The Intriguing History of Titian's Masterpiece traces it. Its life has paralleled that of the 'metamorphosis' of nations - staying in any particular country at the time of its highest power. In this case: Venice - Spain - France and currently in the US (with the assistance of the UK).
The Prado holds now the copy by Rubens, which he carried out during his second visit to the Spanish court. He kept it for himself but upon his death it war purchased by the Spanish king, Philip IV (Velázquez's patron) and we will come back to this painting when we tackle the myth of Arachne.
Rubens. 1628-29. Prado Museum.
Another rendering which I saw not too long ago, is Veronese. He puts the emphasis on the seduction scene, rather than the 'kidnapping'. Europa is fascinated by the beauty of the bull and has, so far, just dared to sit on his croup. Her companions are offering the garlands and there is an overall festive scene. Note how the bull is licking one of her feet, while she rests the other on top of the bull's hoof.
All the sensuality and none of the drama is seen in the foreground.
In the back, on the left, however, we see how the story proceeded when the Bull is taking her towards the shore and finally sets off.
Veronese. 1578. Palazzo Ducale.
There is a later version by Veronese.
Veronese. 1581-84. Capitoline Museums.
I’m still struggling over why Ovid is considered comic and witty. The paintings are wonderful at expanding the vision of what might be happening in each story, but not the whole. One thought is that the very rapidity of his sequence of stories makes it mind bending. Ovid is comparable to a good stand up comedian who paces anecdotes so well you hardly know why you are laughing.
Ovid with this hectic pace plays with the epic concept compared to Homer’s quite ponderous style. The battles in the Iliad go on forever. Ovid’s epic style is rapid fire and challenges the reader or auditor to link them up without transitions.
Historygirl wrote: "I’m still struggling over why Ovid is considered comic and witty. The paintings are wonderful at expanding the vision of what might be happening in each story, but not the whole. One thought is th..."
I am finding the witticism in some specific moments...
But I agree with you, Historygirl, in how disconcerting the sequence of stories is... In my reread I am making note for myself of what is the connecting link between one story and another...
This as well as the themes of 'speech/muteness' and also the characteristics of being a deity are the elements that, apart from the paintings, I am tracking.
The explicit presence of the Narrator, from time to time, is also to be noted.
This is all about storytelling...
Ovid is a man born outside the Roman empire with enough wealth to receive education. He's popular due to his carefree nature, and his work reflects the attitudes of Roman: culture, ideals, and behaviors of that time. As we see in Book Two, his ability to weave varies tales into an epic is clever in it's own way; Phaethon's fall and Gaia's plea for salvation humanized chaos. Whereas, Callisto's and Ocyrhoe's metamorphosis revealed the cruelty of divine retribution; even human's and creature's are punished for testing authority. It has no transitions because these stories were heard and recited on a daily basis.
I’m so impressed with the audience that can follow all the many colorful characters and interlaced plot lines —- audience both as the ancient listeners and later the viewers of intricate narrative art. I wonder how these paintings by Rubens and Titian were interpreted and explained, all that intertwined flesh....Are there any accounts? Before our Met. Group read, when I looked at such narrative art in museums I mostly just walked past, now that I know the stories and characters I’m entranced by all the details. I visualize a royal reception with a courier of some sort explaining who’s doing what like a museum curator talk....especially the need to explain and expand the compression of several sequential events in one flat square canvas...I like the analogy of a stand up comics routine. I did a few art talks as an archivist with some paintings in our collection, mostly to entertain donors, and humor was essential to keep my audience...there is latent humor even in the scenes of sexual assault, Jupiter and his trickery, Juno and her jealousy....
Elena wrote: "I’m so impressed with the audience that can follow all the many colorful characters and interlaced plot lines —- audience both as the ancient listeners and later the viewers of intricate narrative ..."Interesting questions, Elena.
In the case of the 'poesia' series that Titian painted for Philip II, some letters have survived. I have not read them. But both the subjects and the manner in which they were painted were discussed. Titian's letters go into more detail than did the King's (unsurprisingly). But the patrons knew the stories. Philip had 3 copies of the Metamorphoses. At least in the Renaissance, cultivated people would have been very familiar with the stories.. That is why it is interesting to see which sections/elements of the story are selected, but also, how...
In the Veronese the way the bull is licking Europa's foot is so telling... That is all the painter's invention.
Kalliope wrote: "Historygirl wrote: "I’m still struggling over why Ovid is considered comic and witty. The paintings are wonderful at expanding the vision of what might be happening in each story, but not the whole..."Kalliope, Great suggestion to have a study plan. I will start a notebook. Met. Is so complex. I understand why you and the other moderators chose a one year read.
I am a bit confused with the Ocyrhoe, who is turned into a mare as a sort of punishment for having revealed too much with her prophecies. Another case of a woman losing her speech. She says that it is the Fates who interrupt her, but then later on her father, Chiron, appeals to Apollo who is however not powerful enough to stop Jove's doing.
So, it was Jove (through the Fates?) who punishes Ocyrhoe?
On the Herse and Aglaurus story there are several paintings. It seems to have been very popular among the Norther schools.One very much in the Rubens's mode.
Jan Boeckhorst. 1650-55. KHM Vienna.
A very different rendering, with emphasis on the landscape - Ovid's text certainly delights in describing the fields of Munychia, with the Lyceum.
Paul Bril. 1605. Chatsworth House.
And by the same artist posted above in Diana & Callisto.
Cornelis van Poelenburgh. 1625. Gallery Prince William.
Kalliope, I have a couple of verbal comments on your posting #120, with the Titian and Rubens. I will join in with some more pictures when I get back to my real computer.1. The Rubens copy is so close to the Titian in all but color, which is surprising, because he was a great colorist; it is the kind of thing you would get in a poor reproduction, or with a few bad decisions in Photoshop. Which is a useful reminder that, with all these reproductions, we have to extrapolate with the aid of things by the artist we have actually seen in the flesh.
2. Your quotation from Mandelbaum makes the whole abduction seem much more terrifying; he takes a strong interpretation of the Latin (the verb, I think, is "pavet," which—someone correct me—doesn't indicate the degree of alarm). I looked it up in Rolfe Humphries, which is all I have with me just now, and he makes the whole thing seem so much more gentle:
Is it time? Not quite. He leaps, a little playful,
On the green grass, or lays the snowy body
On the yellow sand, and gradually the princess
Loses all fear, and he lets her pat his shoulder,
Twine garlands in his horns, and she grows bolder,
Climbs on his back, of course all unsuspecting,
And he rises, ever so gently, and slowly edges
From the dry sand toward the water, further and further,
And swimming now, with the girl, trembling a little
And looking back to the land, her right hand clinging
Tight to one horn, and the other resting easy
Along the shoulder, and her flowing garments
Filling and fluttering in the breath of the sea-wind.
Kalliope wrote: "I am a bit confused with the Ocyrhoe, who is turned into a mare as a sort of punishment for having revealed too much with her prophecies. Another case of a woman losing her speech. She says that ..."‘My destiny’s running too fast, and I may not prophesy further. My powers of speech are being obstructed. My arts were purchased too dearly if they have directed the anger [660] of heaven against me. I wish I had never foreknown the future.”
In Raeburn I can’t find a God or Goddess named, although Apollo is identified as the god of Delphi shortly thereafter. One idea is that Ocyroe did not have powerful backers as did the Oracles of Delphi. Apollo was their sponsor. Ocyroe was half centaur and half naiad, which wasn’t very high up on the pantheon chart. Finally, she did not have control of her powers, which made her dangerous.
The story links more closely to Phaeton’s than at first appears. Two young people are given supernatural powers and doomed by them. Ocyroe is sadder, because she didn’t ask for her gift. She gets to live, but is metamorphosed into a horse, loses her voice and her identity. Her name becomes Hippe meaning “mare.”
I’m starting to pick up transitions, but some are very subtle.
Roger wrote: "I looked it up in Rolfe Humphries, which is all I have with me just now, and he makes the whole thing seem so much more gentle:..."
Gosh, yes, Roger... this is very different...
And that version seems much more in accord with the painterly renditions.
Browsing the web today, I came upon the striking image above. It is an ad for an exhibition in Kiev last year. Reading the text (below), I was struck how relevant the Europa myth still is today, to issues such as the status of women, politics, and—this surprised me—coming of age. R.
RAPE OF EUROPA opens at M17 Contemporary Art Centre in Kiev, Ukraine on February 16, 2017.
RAPE OF EUROPA is an international multimedia exhibition by visual artist Yana Lande in collaboration with the artists Anastasia Isachsen (Norway), Asta Bria (UK) and Natalka Osha (Ukraine). The exhibition includes 12 photo art works, an artefact in a form of a bull, video art and music.
The exhibition is a tender, touching yet strong story about coming of age told by contemporary means. The project is also an artistic comment to the current political situation in Ukraine.
Kalliope, I could not make out everything in your Veronese image, so I looked up a detail, both from the original picture in Venice, and from an engraved variant version that makes it even clearer.
There is also a mirror-image of the composition in the National Gallery, London.
You are right about the licking of the foot, which you say is the artist's invention. As to that, yes, but Ovid does say he gives her kisses, though on the hands, so the switch to the foot is delightful, and suggestive. Ovid makes clear that these are but an earnest of what is to follow later. In Rolfe Humphries' rather free translation:
…and he, the loverThe renaissance terracotta that I showed earlier also has the kissing, but this time neither the hands nor the feet, but the bare breasts!
Gave kisses to the hands held out, rejoicing
In hope of later, more exciting kisses.
So what is it about all these breasts? Is it just soft porn to please the male patron? Are they justifying it by assuming that Europa was about to go bathing, and this was just the first stage of her undressing? Both Veronese pictures show one of Europa's attendants fiddling, it would seem, with one of her shoulder straps. Is she trying to cover her up again? Or more interestingly, is she actually un-covering her? In which case, the encounter with the bull is like a ceremony, a coming of age, as suggested by the Ukrainian exhibit I mentioned in my previous post. This fits in with the frequent presence of Cupids in paintings of the subject, so that both Jupiter and Europa come with their attendant train. Groomsmen and bridesmaids? R.
Going back to sources, here are two versions of the story from antiquity: a krater signed by Assteas (about 370-360 BCE) from Paestum, and a fresco (detail) from Pompeii (first century CE):
Neither of the two shows Europa especially afraid. The Assteas version has her in a pretty printed summer frock. Perhaps she is a little apprehensive, but not terrified. The artist keeps close to Ovid: one hand on the horn, her drape billowing behind her. The water is not represented, but instead depicted symbolically by the presence of Nereids or Tritons. Europa is no longer in her own world, but the mythological one.
The Roman fresco, of which this is only a detail, gives us that bare-breasted motif again, with no explanation for it. There are the three attendants here too, and they seem to be leading the bull, on which Europa sits like a princess in a procession. Or a bride. Which takes me to another Pompeii fresco:
I was not originally going to include it, partly because it is difficult to make out, but mainly because the setting is obviously urban, as though this were a procession to a temple rather than an abduction by sea; I wondered if the attribution was mistaken, and not Europa at all. But now I am not so sure. There is a ceremonial quality to all of these images that links them just as much as the abduction theme does. Once again, I wonder about the Europa story as a symbol of marriage…? R.
One more, and then I am done (for now). Here are two Cubist versions of the story. The top one is by Picasso. I can find nothing more about it, but it certainly ties into his obsession with bulls (and women). Since both woman and bull are reduced to flat areas upon the canvas (or is it paper?), the two share a common substance.But this is nothing to what Jacques Lipschitz does in his 1938 sculpture, where the figure of Europa seems to be totally subsumed in that of the bull. No longer riding on his back, she seems to be clinging to his flank; you can see the outline of her bosom and her hair. And she is kissing him on the open mouth—but it looks almost as though he is devouring her. A violent, disturbing image, quite different from most of the others we have been looking at. R.
How very prolific the Europa myth has been for artists.Thank you, Roger, I was going to post the National Gallery version of the Veronese, which keeps a similar composition, but turned around - which made me think of prints.
Since I saw the first version of Veronese, I posted recently (we had in the Thyssen an exhibition on 'The Triumph of Beauty and the Destruction of Painting' in Venetian art) I remember how struck I was by the licking of the foot, and also by her resting her other foot on the God's hoof (implying she is sort of acquiescing)....
Interesting that he repeated it in his other versions.
Not only is the Europa theme prolific but also one of the few that are still explored by modern artists.We have so far the Beckmann, the Picasso and the Lipschitz.
But my favourite of the ones I have seen of modern art is this one:
Valentin Serov. 1910. Tretyakov Gallery.
Europa is less sensuous than delicate. Jupiter very powerful. And the dolphins are exquisite.
Roger wrote: "There is a ceremonial quality to all of these images that links them just as much as the abduction theme does. Once again, I wonder about the Europa story as a symbol of marriage…? .."
These Roman examples are beautiful.
And yes, the popularity of the myth could have been due to its being used for marriage scenes. To our C21 eyes this seems weird, but I have seen worse stories for Renaissance wedding furniture.
Thank YOU, Kalliope, for posting the Serov. I had encountered it on my search, but at a small scale it looked like a cartoon or a graphic novel, so I didn't bother to look at it at full size. I agree, it is splendid.Interesting that you should relate my conjecture about the Europa story and marriage to actual practical applications on furniture or ceremonial depiction. But I meant something more pervasive than that: an explanation for the ubiquity and resonance of seduction/abduction/rape scenes in the Metamorphoses and certainly in the later depiction of them. I suggest that they play out the fear of marriage/deflowering in many a young woman's mind, but also the possible rewards that such a state might bring.
It is easy to see how this would apply to the Europa story in particular. Its beginning is civilized and gentle, a reciprocated wooing. It then moves into the actual abduction—taking the bride away from her home, family, and friends—that is surprising certainly and even frightening. But it also explains why so many artists depict it almost as a triumph, and not just for Jupiter.
The marriage parallel also goes far to illuminate our discussion of the very different moral color put upon the stories by the #MeToo generation, renaissance artists, and Ovid himself. R.
Roman marriage ritual actually played out the 'abduction' scenario hence the carrying of the bride over the threshold of the new husband's house which we theoretically retain. We see it, too, in the mythic rape of the Sabine women - and I was both surprised and somewhat disturbed in finding that myth re-emerge in a very different key in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers which I saw for the first time recently. The change from the Sabine women to the Howard Keel song 'Sobbin' Women' is both witty and uncomfortable.
Roman Clodia wrote: "Roman marriage ritual actually played out the 'abduction' scenario hence the carrying of the bride over the threshold of the new husband's house which we theoretically retain."Very interesting! I thought I might be on to something; it is good to have it confirmed. It is so long since I saw Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, that the Sabine reference surely rolled right over me.
If you think of it, there is always something uncomfortable about the idea of marriage, even today. And in a society where most brides were virgins and all were property, I would imagine that their mixed emotions would include at least an element of apprehension. R.
Kalliope wrote: "Roger wrote: "Callisto Paintings: heroic, and not so much."
Today I was in a Seminar on the Dutch 'Italianate landscape painters of the C17 and the following was shown...
Cornelis van Poelenburg..." I love this painting, I would never have found it on my own, and if I had it would not have made sense to me without the Met....
Kalliope wrote: "We have so far the Beckmann (54), the Picasso and the Lipschitz (both 136)."I added the post numbers to your list for reference. I also posted the Ustyuzhanin (50). And now you have the Serov (138). Europa is an especially powerful subject, since it engages with forces more powerful than mere storytelling. R.
Roger wrote: "And in a society where most brides were virgins and all were property"The Romans were slightly more sophisticated than that: there were two forms of marriage cum manu and sine manu: the first placed a wife under the legal ownership of her husband so she was, as you say, his property; but the second which was more modern and gained popularity during the late republic meant that the woman wasn't transferred to the ownership of her husband, remained as part of her paternal family and thus held on to her property, dowry and so on. On the assumption that a father would die before a husband, this left many married women sui iuris i.e. under their own legal control.
The level of divorce and re-marriage in the late republic was also immense so that many wives weren't virgins - the famous Fulvia, for example, who was married serially to Clodius Pulcher, Curio and finally Mark Antony.
This whole issue would have been prominent at the time Ovid was writing the Met. as Augustus tried to impose moral legislation to bring marriage under public, political control. He wanted to force young men and women to marry and have children to prop up the falling birth rate - and the fact that marriage had to be legislated for implies that people were side-stepping it, or, at least, marrying later.
The Europa story also gives the etymology of 'Europe', the continent: she is a princess of Sidon, a Phoenician city on the eastern side of the Mediterranean, and is carried by Jupiter to Crete (I think this destination is only mentioned in the first lines of Book 3) - where, of course, the bull becomes crucially important to Cretan culture... Going back to the marriage discussion which Roger has prompted, we could read this Europa story as an example of exogamy (marriage outside of a social group). It seems to work here to link various cultures from around the Mediterranean, giving them/us some common ancestors.
Just to say I'm following the discussion with much interest — and viewing the art with great pleasure.
Here's a really odd one: an engraving in the Albertina, Vienna, by René Boyvin (1525–80). The only documentation I can find on it says that it's taken from one of the mythological paintings by Rosso Fiorentino at Fontainebleau, but I can't find the original. However, it is striking in a number of ways. One, a very obviously male bull! But two, a quite androgynous Europa, strongly muscled, and well able to take on the bull on its own terms. Very much as Michelangelo might have treated the subject, had he taken it on. R.
I have been looking at a number of Europa paintings on what you might call the Titian model: subject reclining on the bull, who is in the water moving left to right, billowing draperies, and attendant Cupids. And it strikes me that Titian is unique in having Europa lie almost on her back, with her thighs parted. No other version that I have seen does this, certainly not the ones by Luca Giordano (top right) and Francesco Albani (bottom left) that I show a detail of below. But I have seen something very similar in Titian's Danae (detail bottom right). So again, the question is Why? The soft porn to please a patron theory that I advanced before? Probably not much. Tying in to the other poésies? Possibly, though I would have to look at all the others. Or something to do with Europa's fertility? I don't know about that one. But did Jupiter make her pregnant, and if so, who were her offspring? R.
Roman Clodia wrote: "Roman marriage ritual actually played out the 'abduction' scenario hence the carrying of the bride over the threshold of the new husband's house which we theoretically retain. We see it, too, in ..."
This is fascinating, RC, and explains many things.
I also saw the 7 Brides.... film ages ago, and probably dubbed, so the play of words was completely lost to me.
Ovid's Metamorphoses and Further Metamorphoses
Books mentioned in this topic
Le bain de Diane (other topics)After Ovid: New Metamorphoses (other topics)
The Penelopiad (other topics)
Metamorphica (other topics)
The Penelopiad (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Pierre Klossowski (other topics)Euripides (other topics)
..."
I keep thinking of this, RC, given that his readers would have been a great deal more familiar with other accounts than what we are today.
I also ask myself why was Ovid the preferred textual source for the painters from the Renaissance onwards.
May be it is Ovid's playful note, as well as his concerns with literary creation and expression, which allowed the stories to be exploited for their sensual and entertaining aspects - since the ethical /moral messages were expressed instead mostly through religious themes.