Thursday, January 29, 2015

Extra Reading Diary: Ovid's Metamorphoses

For the extra reading diary, I did the crystal ball because I wasn't sure which one I wanted to do! So the one that came up was Ovid's Metamorphoses, and that was cool with me! Here are my thoughts on some of the stories.

I realize it's the first story in the unit, but I liked Deucalion and Pyrrha a lot. Most people are aware that the major monotheistic religions have a flood story (most famously, Noah from Genesis 5-10), but I don't know if many people are aware of Jupiter and Neptune flooding the world - I certainly wasn't! The imagery was extremely detailed. The descriptions of the world and all the animals really set the scene for a world where the sea is king. Similar to Noah, only god-fearing people remain in the world - Deucalion and Pyrrha. They are told to throw stones behind them so that the world may be repopulated. They question it at first, but eventually do as told. Sure enough, the stones turn to people. I think this reinforces what so many religions teach: do as god/the gods instruct, and they will reveal their true power.

I also enjoyed Phaethon and the Sun. At the beginning, Phaethon gets told he isn't born of such high nobility like he thinks he is. Like any young guy, Phaethon gets pretty upset at this notion. When I read through it, I kind of imagined Phaethon's mother like any mom. She does what she can to help her son feel better. And like any typical kid, Phaethon goes on a headstrong, probably over-the-top adventure.

I loved the descriptiveness used when he gets to the Palace of the Sun. Describing the days, months, years and even centuries as physical beings is something only the Greeks would've thought to do. Same with the seasons. The personification of Winter with icy white hair, or Spring with a crown of flowers. Once Phoebus admits he is Phaethon's father, like any young man does, Phaethon bites off more than he can chew. He requests to drive Phoebus' chariot of fire. Since Phoebus had promised him any wish, he couldn't refuse. So he tried to dissuade Phaethon. But Phaethon was having none of it.

Phaethon's Ride explains the reasoning behind the sun setting and rising. Phoebus tells him to take the chariot in a wide arc, only following the path already clear-cut. Of course, things don't go as according to plan, and as so many Greek myths go, Phaethon dies. He's a tragic example of overestimating one's abilities.

Phaethon attempts to control the Chariot of Fire.

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