Metamorphoses · Chapter
Story of Narcissus explained
Narcissus, a beautiful youth who spurns all romantic advances, is cursed by a scorned nymph to fall in love with his own reflection.
What happens
Narcissus, a beautiful youth who spurns all romantic advances, is cursed by a scorned nymph to fall in love with his own reflection. He becomes entranced by his image in a fountain, wastes away from unrequited self-love, and upon his death is transformed into the flower that bears his name.
Themes in this chapter
Transformation and Metamorphosis
Narcissus is transformed into a flower after his death, embodying the theme of physical change as a consequence of emotional or spiritual crisis.
Love and Desire
The story explores the destructive nature of self-love and unrequited desire, as Narcissus becomes enamored with his own image.
Fate and Prophecy
The curse invoked by Echo's prayer sets in motion Narcissus's inevitable doom, highlighting the power of fate.
Characters to notice
Key passages
“He fell in love with the fantastic shade, And o'er the fair resemblance hung unmoved; Nor knew, fond youth! it was himself he loved.”
Narcissus became captivated by his own reflection, unaware that he was gazing at himself.
This moment captures the central irony of the myth: the object of his desire is his own image.
“It is myself I love, myself I see, The gay delusion is a part of me; I kindle up the fires by which I burn, And my own beauties from the well return.”
Narcissus realizes that the reflection he adores is his own, and that he is the source of his own suffering.
This realization marks the climax of his self-awareness and the futility of his passion.
“When, looking for his corpse, they only found A rising stalk with yellow blossoms crown'd.”
When the nymphs searched for Narcissus's body to prepare it for burial, they discovered only a flower growing in its place.
This describes the metamorphosis of Narcissus into the flower that bears his name.