Bulfinch’s Mythology · Chapter
III: Apollo and Daphne—Pyramus and Thisbe—Cephalus and Procris explained
The chapter recounts three tragic love stories from classical mythology.
What happens
The chapter recounts three tragic love stories from classical mythology. First, Apollo, after slaying the serpent Python, is struck by Cupid's golden arrow and pursues the nymph Daphne, who, fleeing his advances, is transformed into a laurel tree. Second, the Babylonian lovers Pyramus and Thisbe, forbidden to marry, communicate through a crack in a wall and plan to elope, but a series of misunderstandings leads to their double suicide. Third, Cephalus, a hunter, inadvertently kills his wife Procris when she, suspicious of his calls to the breeze, hides in the bushes and is struck by his javelin.
Themes in this chapter
Love and Transformation
Each story involves love leading to a physical transformation: Daphne into a laurel, Pyramus and Thisbe into mulberry fruit, and Procris's death altering Cephalus's understanding.
Hubris and Divine Retribution
Apollo's boastful pride after slaying Python provokes Cupid's revenge, causing his unrequited love for Daphne.
Fate and Free Will
The characters are caught between their own choices and the inescapable outcomes set by divine will or misunderstanding, as seen in the tragic ends of Pyramus and Thisbe and Cephalus and Procris.
Characters to notice
- Phoebus Apollo
God of music, poetry, and medicine; slays Python and falls in love with Daphne after being struck by Cupid's arrow.
- Danaë
Not present; placeholder removed.
- Cupid
Son of Venus; shoots Apollo with a golden arrow to incite love and Daphne with a leaden arrow to repel it.
- Cephalus
A hunter who accidentally kills his wife Procris with his javelin after she spies on him.
- Pyramus
Handsomest youth of Babylonia; lover of Thisbe; dies by suicide believing Thisbe has been killed by a lioness.
Key passages
“I am the god of song and the lyre. My arrows fly true to the mark; but, alas! an arrow more fatal than mine has pierced my heart! I am the god of medicine, and know the virtues of all healing plants. Alas! I suffer a malady that no balm can cure!”
Apollo declares his divine powers over music, archery, and healing, yet admits he is helpless against the love wound inflicted by Cupid.
Apollo's speech to Daphne highlights the irony of a god who cannot cure his own heartache.
“Since you cannot be my wife, you shall assuredly be my tree. I will wear you for my crown; I will decorate with you my harp and my quiver; and when the great Roman conquerors lead up the triumphal pomp to the Capitol, you shall be woven into wreaths for their brows.”
After Daphne is transformed into a laurel, Apollo vows to honor her by using her leaves for his crown, harp, and quiver, and for Roman victory wreaths.
Apollo's promise establishes the laurel as a symbol of eternal glory and poetic achievement.
“Cruel wall, why do you keep two lovers apart? But we will not be ungrateful. We”
Pyramus and Thisbe address the wall that separates them, acknowledging its role in allowing them to communicate despite their families' opposition.
The lovers' dialogue personifies the wall as both an obstacle and a conduit for their secret messages.
“I implore you, if you have ever loved me, if I have ever deserved kindness at your hands, my husband, grant me this last request; do not marry that odious Breeze!”
Dying Procris asks Cephalus not to marry the 'Breeze,' revealing her mistaken jealousy over his innocent calls to the wind.
Procris's final words expose the tragic misunderstanding that led to her death.
