Metamorphoses

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Ovid’s Metamorphoses
“The Metamorphoses” by poet Ovid is a culmination of literary prowess that is termed as one of the most influential literary works of the medieval age. These work was so acclaimed, that renown English literary geniuses, such as Shakespeare conceded to its influence. The very first line in this narrative sheds significant light on the possible thematic concerns of the author. It is a declaration of the author’s intent and reads: “In nova fert animus mutatas dicere formas / corpora” which translates as “I intend to speak of forms changed into new entities” (Booth 95). The author describes a series of changes, hence the name metamorphoses. Also, one of the author’s main thematic concern is the idea of beauty. The nature of this phenomenon, how different persons define and view it and its benefiting value.
From a reading of this works, the nature of beauty in itself is multifaceted meaning that it can take up various forms. Ideally, the beauty can have both physical and spiritual aspects here: the physical primarily refers to that which is tangible and perhaps worthy of admiration while the latter refers to surreal aspects of said beauty (Booth 96). Some characters who embody beauty and admiration in the narrative include Atalanta, the princess who was admired by Meleager, Cassandra who escapades with Apollo are an open secret and Adonis who was described as an astonishingly handsome young man. On the other hand, t…