The Golden Ass · Chapter
XXVII explained
After the thieves fall asleep from heavy drinking, Lepolemus places the maiden Charites on Lucius's back and rides home.
What happens
After the thieves fall asleep from heavy drinking, Lepolemus places the maiden Charites on Lucius's back and rides home. The city celebrates her return, and Lucius brays loudly in joy. Lepolemus and citizens return to the thieves' cave, kill or imprison the thieves, and seize their treasure. Charites marries Lepolemus and rewards Lucius with abundant feed, calling him her 'little camel.' However, Lucius is soon handed over to a horse-keeper whose cruel wife works him as a mill-ass, feeding him only filthy bran. When let out to pasture, Lucius is attacked by jealous stallions, recalling the Thracian king who fed men to his horses.
Themes in this chapter
Fortune and Suffering
Lucius's joy at liberty and reward quickly turns to torment as he is worked cruelly and attacked by stallions.
Violence and Cruelty
The thieves are killed or thrown into ditches; Lucius is beaten with a knotted cudgel and fed filthy bran.
Transformation and Identity
Lucius remains in ass form, longing for roses to regain humanity, and reflects on the irony of being rewarded as an ass.
Characters to notice
- Lucius
Narrates his joy at being freed and celebrated, then his suffering as a mill-ass and attack by stallions.
- Charites
Rescued by Lepolemus, rides Lucius home, marries Lepolemus, and rewards Lucius with barley and hay.
- Lepolemus
Carries Charites home on Lucius, leads the attack on the thieves, and marries Charites.
- Fotis
Cursed by Lucius for transforming him into an ass instead of a dog.
Key passages
“Oh how I leaped for joy, how I neighed to see myself in such liberty, but especially since I beheld so many mares, which I thought should be my wives and concubines; and I espied out and chose the fairest before I came nigh them; but this my joyful hope turned into utter destruction”
Lucius rejoices at being let out to pasture, imagining the mares as his mates, but his hope is shattered when the stallions attack him.
Highlights the cruel reversal of fortune and Lucius's animal perspective.
“In like sort have I read in histories how the king of Thrace would throw his miserable guests to be torn in pieces and devoured of his wild horses”
Lucius compares his attack by stallions to the myth of King Diomedes, who fed guests to his man-eating horses.
Classical allusion reinforcing the theme of savage violence.