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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
Few, if any, Roman poets achieved the grandeur or beauty of Ovid's epic work. Metamorphoses is an absolute masterpiece of poetry spanning the universe of Greek and Roman mythology from the creation of the world to Caesar. I've always admired Ovid's verse - I read sections of this work in a giant anthology of classical poetry that I lugged around around Hyde Park years ago. But after committing to the work in its entirety, I can say that I've seldom encountered such moving passages, with some stories even surpassing their Greek origins - particularly Ovid's rendition of the tales of Ceyx and Alcyone or Deucalion and Pyrrha.
Selection:
- "I grabbed a pile of dust, and holding it up, foolishly asked for as many birthdays as the grains of dust, I forgot to ask that they be years of youth."
- "Happy is the man who has broken the chains which hurt the mind, and has given up worrying once and for all."
- "Everything changes, nothing perishes"
- "Look at the four-spaced year
That imitates four seasons of our lives;
First Spring, that delicate season, bright with flowers,
Quickening, yet shy, and like a milk-fed child,
Its way unsteady while the countryman
Delights in promise of another year.
Green meadows wake to bloom, frail shoots and grasses,
And then Spring turns to Summer's hardiness,
The boy to manhood. There's no time of year
Of greater richness, warmth, and love of living,
New strength untried. And after Summer, Autumn,
First flushes gone, the temperate season here
Midway between quick youth and growing age,
And grey hair glinting when the head turns toward us,
Then senile Winter, bald or with white hair,
Terror in palsy as he walks alone."
- "I am dragged along by a strange new force. Desire and reason are pulling in different directions. I see the right way and approve it, but follow the wrong."
- "I grabbed a pile of dust, and holding it up, foolishly asked for as many birthdays as the grains of dust, I forgot to ask that they be years of youth."
- "Happy is the man who has broken the chains which hurt the mind, and has given up worrying once and for all."
- "Everything changes, nothing perishes"
- "Look at the four-spaced year
That imitates four seasons of our lives;
First Spring, that delicate season, bright with flowers,
Quickening, yet shy, and like a milk-fed child,
Its way unsteady while the countryman
Delights in promise of another year.
Green meadows wake to bloom, frail shoots and grasses,
And then Spring turns to Summer's hardiness,
The boy to manhood. There's no time of year
Of greater richness, warmth, and love of living,
New strength untried. And after Summer, Autumn,
First flushes gone, the temperate season here
Midway between quick youth and growing age,
And grey hair glinting when the head turns toward us,
Then senile Winter, bald or with white hair,
Terror in palsy as he walks alone."
- "I am dragged along by a strange new force. Desire and reason are pulling in different directions. I see the right way and approve it, but follow the wrong."
adventurous
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Wat een avontuur om deze vertaling van Ovidius te lezen. Ik vond vooral het stuk over vegetarisch eten (15:075) erg interessant en vooruitstrevend. Verder fascineerde me het hoe karakters, voornamelijk vrouwen, hun haren uitrukten en zich op de borst sloegen bij veel verdriet. Ik had nog nooit zoiets gelezen. Soms moest ik me echt even door de poëzie heenworstelen. Ik ben blij dat dit is gelukt. Mooie vertaling, voor zover ik dit als leek kan beoordelen.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Incest, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Murder, War
Er was een interessant stuk in het werk over vegetariër zijn, soms komt Ovidius heel wijs uit de hoek.
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
endless rapes and gruesome battles make it too horrifying to finish.
This was arduous book to complete because it is a continuum of countless mythological tales that all run together. That being said it is worth the read to experience the gems that are there to be had. For myself, the best chapter/book was XI, not only did it include a fantastic rendition of a ship being destroyed at sea by storm with a loss of all hands, It references Cimmeria as Robert E. Howard used for Conan. "The Cimmerians were a legendary people living either beyond the Atlantic in the uttermost West or north of the Black Sea" (Endnotes, Book XI). There is little doubt that these are the same legendary people that he envisioned as being his hero's race. It was exciting to come across a classic literary reference that could have inspired one of my favorite authors.
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
How do you rate something like this?
The translation appears fine, the narration too.
Metamorphoses itself is, let’s face it, a compilation of rapes. Not sure the word itself was ever used, but that’s what happen. Mostly men rape women but there are some variations. To the modern reader the content of these scenes — especially if you’re a rape survivor yourself — is shocking especially since, well, this is what our history, literature and art is based on? Yay. Such fun.
And saying that as someone who has loved these motifs in art for decades — it’s always better than the Christian stuff in a museum.
And of course rape victims are punished. To the point of vomit-in-my-mouth.
Positives: some of the actual transformation are described in beautiful detail.
It was nice to get to know better the stories of Procne and Philomela, Medea and Hermaphrodite. I was also interested in Biblis (loved her brother) and Iphis (born f, raised m, then turned m) and Iante. There’s still stuff worth discovering here.
I do wonder if I will ever bring myself to read a translation in verse, since that would force me to slow down with the rapes even more.
The translation appears fine, the narration too.
Metamorphoses itself is, let’s face it, a compilation of rapes. Not sure the word itself was ever used, but that’s what happen. Mostly men rape women but there are some variations. To the modern reader the content of these scenes — especially if you’re a rape survivor yourself — is shocking especially since, well, this is what our history, literature and art is based on? Yay. Such fun.
And saying that as someone who has loved these motifs in art for decades — it’s always better than the Christian stuff in a museum.
And of course rape victims are punished. To the point of vomit-in-my-mouth.
Positives: some of the actual transformation are described in beautiful detail.
It was nice to get to know better the stories of Procne and Philomela, Medea and Hermaphrodite. I was also interested in Biblis (loved her brother) and Iphis (born f, raised m, then turned m) and Iante. There’s still stuff worth discovering here.
I do wonder if I will ever bring myself to read a translation in verse, since that would force me to slow down with the rapes even more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative