Critical Introduction

Publius Ovidius Naso (43 BCE–17/18 CE), known now simply as Ovid, is one of the most celebrated of Roman poets, though his life was marked by tragedy. After enjoying success with Amores (16 BCE), Heroides (?), and Metamorphoses (8 CE), Ovid was banished to Tomis (in what is now Romania) by the emperor Caesar Augustus. Little is known about the reason for this exile, but it had a tremendous impact on Ovid: though he continued to write, his star had waned, and he died in exile a decade later.

Metamorphoses, the text included here, is considered Ovid's masterpiece. It is a collection of stories, all clustered around the theme of transformation—in body, soul, nature, or thought. The poem also deals heavily in Greco-Roman mythology, while at the same time taking on the entire scope of human history—from the creation of the universe to the deification of Julius Caesar. The two stories presented here, Lycaon and Cadmus, deal with physical transformation. They introduce an interesting element into the history of monsters by blurring the line between the human and the monster (in the case of Lycaon) and by exploring the transcendent and foundational roles monsters play in the creation of civilization.

Reading Questions

Lycaon is one of the earliest werewolf stories we have, but how do you think it compares to later werewolves such as those found in Bisclavret and werewolf movies such as The Howling (1981) or the Twilight franchise? Specifically, think about how the different werewolves begin: do characters get the choice to become werewolves? Is lycanthropy couched in a moral context? Lastly, consider the importance of the wolf for Roman identity: a she-wolf was said to suckle Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, and the wolf is bound up with the beginnings of Rome. Does that change your understanding of the werewolf in this story?

Cadmus, as the founder of Thebes, functions as a sort of culture hero. Why do you think that the founding of Thebes based on a monster? What might the dragon represent? What might it mean that Cadmus sows the dragon's teeth and that the spawn of the dragon become the founding members of Theban society?