Ovid and the Olympians

Analytical Essay # 58352

English > Analysis
Literature > Greek and Roman

Examines the portrayal of the gods in "Metamorphoses," by the ancient Roman writer, Ovid.

2,600 words () | 12 sources | MLA | 2005 United States

Paper Summary:

Why are the gods portrayed as they are in the "Metamorphoses"? The essay outlines the different presentations of divinity in this book and hypothesizes why its author, Ovid, might have written the story this way, given his relationship with religion and the State. The essay makes good use of Latin.

From the Paper:

"The gods of the Metamorphoses are distinguished by their often amoral relations with humans and by their lack of epic majesty. Like many other Roman poets, Ovid often presents the gods in a comical or unflattering light, yet he goes to an extreme not approached by other writers. Although J. Solodow suggests his stories lack a meaning beyond entertainment, the immense catalogue of divine rapes and the inglorious depiction of the gods begs an explanation. The gods have the same flaws as humans--pridefulness, lust, jealousy, and speaking before they consider the consequences of their decrees?and mortals suffer as a result. The gods are not aloof from the mortal world and do not seem superior to mortals in any meaningful way. In Ovid: A Poet Between Two Worlds, Hermann Frankel said of the Metamorphoses that ?Its value cannot be grasped by conventional standards, nor will its peculiar import reveal itself to the casual reader. Its very luster is baffling. The brilliant surface causes us to wonder how much, or how little, may lie hidden beneath.? Perhaps beneath the surface, the Metamorphoses contains a sly political allegory."