The Golden Ass Of Apuleius

Cupid and Psyche Apuleius - Cupid and Psyche is a story from the Latin novel Metamorphoses, also known as The Golden Ass, written in the 2nd century AD by Apuleius. It concerns the overcoming of obstacles to the love between Psyche (Soul or Breath of Life) and Cupid (Desire), and their ultimate union in a sacred marriage.

The Metamorphoses of Lucius Apuleius is the only complete Latin novel to have survived to this day. Lucius of Maudorus is insatiably curious about magic, but when he tries to magic himself into a bird, he transforms instead into a donkey. The story follows his literal and metaphorical journey, and was called by St Augustine The Golden Ass.

Written towards the end of the second century AD, The Golden Ass tells the story of the many adventures of a young man whose fascination with witchcraft leads him to be transformed into a donkey. The bewitched Lucius passes from owner to owner - encountering a desperate gang of robbers and being forced to perform lewd 'human' tricks on stage - until the Goddess Isis finally breaks the spell and Lucius is initiated into her cult. Apuleius' enchanting story has inspired generations of writers such as Boccaccio, Shakespeare, Cervantes and Keats with its dazzling combination of allegory, satire, bawdiness and sheer exuberance, and remains the most continuously and accessibly amusing book to have survived from Classical antiquity.

In its original it is a masterpiece of rhetoric almost for rhetoric's sake, a travelogue of those seeking a meaning for their passions, a set of intertwining romances conceived in their purest form as "secular scripture," and at its core a cautionary tale about perception and hypocrisy that turns upon itself. It is also meant to be read aloud for public guffaws rather than privately for a few genteel snickers. Rather than merely providing another perfectly scholarly but exceedingly dull translation of what is supposed to be a knee-slapper, Relihan digs deep into the spirit of the piece, re-creating Apuleius's slyness, plays upon words and images, and irreverence that cloaks deep faith. He also provides a well-reasoned introductions for those to whom Apuleius and his panoply of significantly off-kilter and fleshly gods are strangers, making it much easier to get the jokes.

The Golden Ass is the only Ancient Roman novel in Latin to survive in its entirety. The protagonist of the novel is called Lucius, like the author. At the end of the novel, he is revealed to be from Madaurus, the hometown of Apuleius himself. The plot revolves around the protagonist's curiosity (curiositas) and insatiable desire to see and practice magic. While trying to perform a spell to transform into a bird, he is accidentally transformed into an ass. This leads to a long journey, literal and metaphorical, filled with in-set tales. He finally finds salvation through the intervention of the goddess Isis, whose cult he joins.

"Today there is much discussion of the liberation of women," writes Marie-Louise von Franz, "but it is sometimes overlooked that this can only succeed if there is a change in men as well. Just as women have to overcome the patriarchal tyrant in their own souls, men have to liberate and differentiate their inner femininity. Only then will a better relationship of the sexes be possible." It is this timely theme that Dr. von Franz explores in her psychological study of a classic work of the second century, The Golden Ass by Apuleius of Madaura. The novel recounts the adventures of a young Roman who is transformed into an ass and eventually finds spiritual renewal through initiation into the Isis mysteries. With its many tales within a tale (including the celebrated story of Psyche and Eros), the text as interpreted by Dr. von Franz is a rich source of insights, anecdotes, and scholarly amplification.

The contributions to this volume on the Isis Book reassess current interpretations, highlight aspects of text, language, and style, and develop new lines of approach regarding the interpretation of this fascinating many-layered text, the last book of Apuleius’ famous novel.