The Golden Ass · Chapter
XLII explained
Lucius is sold to a poor gardener and describes his harsh service.
What happens
Lucius is sold to a poor gardener and describes his harsh service. The gardener visits a friend, where a series of dreadful portents occur, including a hen laying a live chick, a fountain of blood, and other omens. A tale is told of a rich tyrant who kills three brothers with dogs and a spear, leading to the deaths of the tyrant and the last brother. The gardener, hearing these sorrowful tidings, cuts his own throat, depriving Lucius's master of his hope.
Themes in this chapter
Violence and Cruelty
The rich tyrant's murder of the three brothers and the subsequent suicides highlight the theme of insatiable cruelty and its consequences.
Fortune and Suffering
The gardener's sudden loss of hope and the tragic chain of events illustrate the capricious nature of fortune and human suffering.
Deception and Appearance
The young man feigns a wounded arm to deceive the tyrant, leading to the tyrant's downfall.
Characters to notice
- Lucius
Narrates his sale to a gardener and his harsh service, including cold and hunger.
- William Adlington
Translator; chapter heading introduces the events.
Key passages
“thou, thou wretch, triumph upon the destruction of all our family, now hast thou fed thy insatiable cruelty with the blood of three brethren”
You miserable creature, you celebrate the ruin of our entire family, having satisfied your endless cruelty with the blood of three brothers.
The surviving brother condemns the rich tyrant after the deaths of his siblings.
“the ground opened, and there appeared a great well and fountain of blood, insomuch that the drops thereof sparkled about the table”
The earth split open, revealing a large spring of blood, with droplets splashing around the table.
One of the dreadful portents that occurred during the feast.
“the furious thief drew out his dagger, and running upon the young man thought verily to have slain him, but it chanced otherwise”
The enraged thief pulled out his dagger and charged at the young man, fully intending to kill him, but events turned out differently.
The tyrant's attempt to kill the last brother fails when the brother wrests the dagger from him.