Metamorphoses · Chapter
Book I explained
The chapter begins with the creation of the world from Chaos, the ordering of the universe, and the creation of animals and humans.
What happens
The chapter begins with the creation of the world from Chaos, the ordering of the universe, and the creation of animals and humans. It then describes the Four Ages of Man, the Giants' War, and Jupiter's decision to punish humanity for its wickedness, culminating in the story of Lycaon's transformation into a wolf and the great flood that destroys all but Deucalion and Pyrrha.
Themes in this chapter
Creation and Order from Chaos
The opening describes the formation of the world from a chaotic mass into a harmonious universe.
Divine Power and Human Folly
Jupiter's judgment on humanity and Lycaon's hubris illustrate the consequences of defying the gods.
Transformation and Metamorphosis
Lycaon's transformation into a wolf is a central metamorphosis in this chapter.
Characters to notice
- Jove
Presides over the council of gods, recounts Lycaon's crime, and decides to destroy humanity with a flood.
- Lycaon
Tyrant of Arcadia who tests Jove's divinity by serving human flesh, and is transformed into a wolf.
- Apollo
Mentioned in the context of the Pythian games and the slaying of the serpent Pytho.
- Deucalion
Survivor of the flood, though not directly named in the excerpts, the summary references the repopulation of the earth.
- Pyrrha
Survivor of the flood, though not directly named in the excerpts, the summary references the repopulation of the earth.
Key passages
“Before the seas, and this terrestrial ball, And heaven's high canopy that covers all, One was the face of Nature; if a face: Rather a rude and indigested mass: A lifeless lump, unfashion'd and unframed, Of jarring seeds, and justly Chaos named.”
Before the oceans, land, and sky existed, all was a single, formless, chaotic mass.
Describes the initial state of the universe before creation.
“He grows a wolf, his hoariness remains, And the same rage in other members reigns, His eyes still sparkle in a narrower space, His jaws retain the grin and violence of his face.”
Lycaon becomes a wolf, keeping his gray hair and fierce expression, with his eyes and jaws still showing his savage nature.
Depicts Lycaon's physical transformation into a wolf.