Metamorphoses

6/6/07

The last class we got into a discussion of metamorphoses, by Ovid. I got to thinking more about the concept and decided to look a little more into the book, as well as the idea of morphing into something else. Looking more into Greek and Roman mythology I found what a huge role they played in Ovid's book.

Ovid emphasizes tales of transformation often found in myths, in which a person or lesser deity is permanently transformed into an animal or plant. The poem begins with the transformations of creation and Prometheus metamorphosing earth into Man and ends with the transformation of the spirit of Julius Cesar into a star. The idea of transforming into another thing is hard for me to imagine, in fact, I don't believe in it. I don't agree when people say that when we die we will come back as an animal, for example. I have to realize, as well as anyone else interested in reading some of the older novels would have to, that these transformations were a party of everyday life for people back then. Tracing even back to the Romans, they believed in the after life, and took their time in preserving the dead so that they would have a successful after life.

Greek mythology is filled with gods, and heroes. It is something we have molded into our society today, and still managing to bring some of the past theories into it. When we say something is great, we might use the term herculean. This can be tied back to Hercules, a Greek hero that saved many. I am a firm believer in society today, as well as the modern medicines we have brought with us. This is when I got to thinking, are we really better today? And if we are, why is tragedy becoming even more common? When I read Greek or Roman myths I am overcome with the heroism included in it. But then, I think about society today. Aren't our soldiers over fighting in Iraq just as brave? When we read stories we are overwhelmed with all the good we read, but is this simply because someone choose to not include all the bad associated with these stories? The more I look into modern day books dealing with heroic ending I realize one common theme among them. All of them begin with some tragedy. Look at 9/11. This was one of the most terrible things to happen to our country, and out of it we see how united we all have become, as well as all of the support we have been given. The residents involved in Hurricane Katrina given so much help to rebuild their homes, which were destroyed tragically.

I think that this ties back to the saying that the transformation involved in story telling helps us live on forever. When we die, if we leave behind our stories, we will live forever.