Narcissus
Echo was a young nymph who became entangled in Zeus's ever growing love life. Not only kind and beautiful, this nymph was also very talkative. Zeus began to use her in order to distract Hera, his jealous wife, when he was on his escapades with other women. When Hera realized that she was being deceived, she cursed the talkative Echo and from then on, the only time she was able to talk was when someone spoke to her. However, this punishment wasn't drastic enough; Echo could only repeat the last phrase of whatever someone said to her.
Narcissus was a very handsome young man who was destined to “reach old age if he failed to recognize himself.” He was so handsome that many girls and nymphs fell in love with him, but he would not return any of their love. Echo was one of the nymphs who fell in love with him, but when he called to her, she could only repeat his words so he rejected her. She was heartbroken and ran and hid. One version of the myth states that Echo was so angered that she had a spell placed on him so when he saw his reflection in a pool of water, he found himself so beautiful that he could not look away; he wasted away at the edge of the pool. Another version states that one day while he was hunting, he bent over the pool of water to drink and the same thing happened to him, but only because it was his destiny. Echo felt so bad for him that she turned him into a flower, to forever peer upon his reflection.
Theme:
Overbearing pride and arrogance: Narcissus is too selfish and prideful to love anyone else the way that he loves his own reflection.
Allusions to Narcissus:
Works Cited:
Baldwin, James. "Old Greek Stories."Old Greek Stories. Authorama, n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.
Cummings, Michael J. "Ovid's Story of Echo and Narcissus: A Study Guide."Cummings Study Guide. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.
Fleming, Kristin, and Michelle Mariorenzi. "Narcissus and Echo."Metamorphoses Project. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.
Lindemans, Micha F. "Echo."Echo. Encyclopedia Mythica, 3 Mar. 1997. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.
"The Myth of Narcissus and Echo ( Their Traces in the Modern World)."Slideshare. N.p., 3 Oct. 2012. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.
Echo was a young nymph who became entangled in Zeus's ever growing love life. Not only kind and beautiful, this nymph was also very talkative. Zeus began to use her in order to distract Hera, his jealous wife, when he was on his escapades with other women. When Hera realized that she was being deceived, she cursed the talkative Echo and from then on, the only time she was able to talk was when someone spoke to her. However, this punishment wasn't drastic enough; Echo could only repeat the last phrase of whatever someone said to her.
Narcissus was a very handsome young man who was destined to “reach old age if he failed to recognize himself.” He was so handsome that many girls and nymphs fell in love with him, but he would not return any of their love. Echo was one of the nymphs who fell in love with him, but when he called to her, she could only repeat his words so he rejected her. She was heartbroken and ran and hid. One version of the myth states that Echo was so angered that she had a spell placed on him so when he saw his reflection in a pool of water, he found himself so beautiful that he could not look away; he wasted away at the edge of the pool. Another version states that one day while he was hunting, he bent over the pool of water to drink and the same thing happened to him, but only because it was his destiny. Echo felt so bad for him that she turned him into a flower, to forever peer upon his reflection.
Theme:
Overbearing pride and arrogance: Narcissus is too selfish and prideful to love anyone else the way that he loves his own reflection.
Allusions to Narcissus:
- The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde. Dorian Gray is the protagonist of the novel who is also really narcissistic and his actions and characteristics reflect those of Narcissus in Greek mythology; he is young, and handsome, rejecting and breaking a girl in love with him's heart, and vengeance leads to the death of both Narcissus and Dorian.
- Personal Helicon, a poem by Seaumus Heaney, also makes a reference to Narcissus: “To stare, big-eyed Narcissus, into some spring Is beneath all adult dignity.” This line obviously refers to the pool Narcissus is cursed to peer into for eternity.
- In the book series Harry Potter, by J.K. Rowling, a character is named after narcissus; Narcissa Malfoy, mother of Harry's nemesis at school. She is described to be incredibly vain and arrogant, as Narcissus was believed to be.
Works Cited:
Baldwin, James. "Old Greek Stories."Old Greek Stories. Authorama, n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.
Cummings, Michael J. "Ovid's Story of Echo and Narcissus: A Study Guide."Cummings Study Guide. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.
Fleming, Kristin, and Michelle Mariorenzi. "Narcissus and Echo."Metamorphoses Project. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.
Lindemans, Micha F. "Echo."Echo. Encyclopedia Mythica, 3 Mar. 1997. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.
"The Myth of Narcissus and Echo ( Their Traces in the Modern World)."Slideshare. N.p., 3 Oct. 2012. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.