Full text of apuleius the golden ass penguin classics see other formats. The golden ass books 1011 summary and analysis gradesaver. A dull fellow and a poor artist, midas makes a foolish request for a golden touch. In the metamorphoses of apuleiusthe golden ass, we have the only latin novel which survives entire. The famous first book of the novel introduces the protagonists character. These and many other anomalies are due mainly to the interpolation of new and poorly assimilated material into the framework of a greek original that was itself undoubtedly straightforward and. It is among the works heavily referenced and emulated by cervantes in don quixote. Apuleius metamorphoses or the golden ass, our only complete latin novel, tells the story of lucius, a young man turned into a donkey by. Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg. Bryn mawr commentaries provide clear, concise, accurate, and consistent support for students making the transition from introductory and intermediate texts to the direct experience of ancient greek and latin literature. Please note that, in spite of my updating, this is still an old translation. Apuleius was born in madauros, a colonia in numidia on the north african coast bordering gaetulia, and he described himself as halfnumidian halfgaetulian. Summing up the plot of ovids metamorphoses is easy. The subject has not been ignored in recent scholarship on individual characters in the work, but the lack of an earlier general overview of the topic reflects the general history of scholarship on the metamorphoses.
One major focus has been on the way in which these tales relate to an overall interpretation of the novel. Religion and narrative in the metamorphoses of apuleius. This work is licensed under a creative commons attributionsharealike 3. Initiations and mysteries in apuleius metamorphoses.
Apuleius metamorphoses book 3 hackett publishing company. The hero, lucius, eager to experience the sensations of a bird, resorts to. Summary using a transdisciplinary approach for a thorough assessment of the muchdebated religious ending of the metamorphoses, this new and detailed commentary on apuleius isis book will elucidate the narrative in its literary, religious, archaeological and cultural context. His commentary on apuleius metamorphoses book i groningen commentaries on apuleius appeared in 2007. An interpretation of apuleius metamorphoses ben edwin perry when macrobius 1 expresses surprise that apuleius, the professed student of plato, should have stooped to the writing of fiction, he voices thereby not only the ancient reaction toward such a performance on the part of a selfrespecting rhetor, but likewise that of the modern. The metamorphosis, also known as the golden ass, is one of the very few novels of the ancient world that survived to our days. After many adventures he is finally saved by the goddess isis, whose follower he becomes. Comic invention and superstitious frenzy in apuleius metamorphoses. Wytse keulen currently teaches latin at the university of rostock. A companion to the prologue to apuleius metamorphoses pdf.
Vincent hunink has argued that apuleius probably had some knowledge of christianity, and that his antipathy toward it may be shown in his trial for witchcraft by his sympathetic attitude toward lollius urbicus, the city prefect in rome who had prosecuted apuleius enemy, aemilianus apology 2,11. Apuleius metamorphoses or the golden ass, our only complete latin novel, tells the story of lucius, a young man turned into a donkey by magic because of his unfettered curiosity. If one or more works are by a distinct, homonymous authors, go ahead and split the author. The reader of apuleius metamorphoses is puzzled at times by the great variety of diverse incidents, and by the apparent absence, in many cases, of any clear or logical connection between them. The nexus of adulterytales in book 9 of apuleius metamorphoses has been the subject of considerable scholarly investigation. Apuleius metamorphoses and jewishchristian literature.
The golden ass, being the metamorphoses of lucius apuleius. Ovid implies that only true artists can use talent responsibly. It will be argued that the underworld in apuleius novel is a literary. The metamorphoses of apuleius, which augustine of hippo referred to as the golden ass asinus aureus, is the only ancient roman novel in latin to survive in its entirety. The metamorphoses the golden ass of apuleius born c. Apuleius group, as well as of the team project on writing a commentary on book 11 of the metamorphoses. Some of the stories are as indecent as they are witty, and two in the ninth book were deemed by boccaccio worthy of inclusion in the decameron. This book aims at considering apuleius as a philosophus platonicus who, at the same time, is a latin sophist.
The metamorphoses of apuleius, which augustine of hippo referred to as the golden ass asinus aureus, is the only ancient roman novel in latin to survive in. Apuleius, the golden ass based upon a translation by william adlington 1566 i have updated the spelling and idiom of the text, and have added chapter numbers. The tales that comprise the novel, long known for their bawdiness and wit, describe the adventures of lucius, a man who is transformed into an ass. Read the golden ass metamorphoses by apuleius available from rakuten kobo. This paper aims to be both a contribution to the history of scholarship and a stimulus to further research. He was a poet, philosopher, and rhetorician from whom numerous works survive some of doubtful authenticity. Pdf underworld journeys in apuleius metamorphoses stelios.
Perseus provides credit for all accepted changes, storing new additions in a versioning system. The bulk of the novel recounts his adventures as an animal, but lucius also recounts many stories he overhears, including that of cupid and psyche. This page contains details about the fiction book the golden ass metamorphoses. The plot revolves around the protagonists curiosity curiositas and insatiable. The metamorphoses of apuleius, which augustine of hippo referred to as the golden ass asinus aureus, is the only ancient roman novel in latin to survive in its entirety the protagonist of the novel is called lucius. The story unfolds from lucius perspective and begins with his travels to thessaly, a region reputed to be.
The adulterytales of apuleius, metamorphoses book 9. If youre looking for a free download links of a companion to the prologue to apuleius metamorphoses pdf, epub, docx and torrent then this site is not for you. Occasionally i have added to the translation where adlington has omitted certain passages. Full text of apuleius the golden ass penguin classics. This book examines the comic and philosophical aspects of apuleius metamorphoses, the ancient roman novel also known as the golden ass. An xml version of this text is available for download, with the additional restriction that you offer perseus any modifications you make. This book is the 751st greatest fiction book of all time as determined by.
Over the course of eleven books, apuleius recounts the strange adventures of a young man named lucius. Costas panayotakis teaches latin language and literature at the. Metamorphoses the golden ass, vol 2, books 711 by apuleius. In the metamorphoses of apuleius, also known as the golden ass, we have the only latin novel which survives entire. The title of the book apuleius and the metamorphoses of platonism. This book contains selections and is aimed at students moving on to genuine, unsimplified latin prose after completing an introductory latin course. Like phaeton in book ii, who could not control his fathers chariot, midas cannot master the power he has been given.
Summary of the metamorphoses the spectacles of apuleius. Metamorphoses apuleius famous novel, the metamorphoses, tells the story of a man who was magically changed into an ass, and who had various humorous, sad, exciting, disturbing, erotic, horri. This is the first volume dedicated to the topic of characterisation in apuleius metamorphoses, the latin novel from the second century ce. Crisis and conversion in apuleius metamorphoses will be of interest to classicists and scholars of silver latin and of the increasingly popular ancient novel, as well as to students of psychology and the sociology of religious experience. Madaurus was the same colonia where augustine of hippo later received part of his early education, and, though located well away from the romanized coast, is today the site of some pristine roman ruins. Lucius wants the sensations of a bird, but by pharmaceutical accident becomes an ass. Project muse an interpretation of apuleius metamorphoses. Nancy shumate in her book crisis and conversion in apuleius metamorphoses 1996 deals primarily with texts written after often well after the time of apuleius. What they fail to mention is that the versions with the full text are merely reprints of the original latinwhich you can find for free all over the internet, and they provide zero assistance for deciphering the text. Possible allusions to christians in metamorphoses 6 to 10.
Apuleius famous novel, the metamorphoses,tells the story of a man who was magically changed into an ass, and whohad various humorous, sad, exciting, disturbing, erotic, horrificadventures before he regained his human. Nancy shumate is associate professor of classical languages and literatures, smith college. At the end of the novel, he is revealed to be from madaurus, the hometown of apuleius himself. Stelios panayotakis underworld journeys in apuleius metamorphoses introduction in the. The transformations of lucius apuleius, and the rites of isis.
He also published a monograph on aulus gellius gellius the satirist. The soldier takes lucius, outfits him in military adornments, and eventually leaves him with a slave so he could report to his superior. Whether the ending of apuleius metamorphoses is religiously nest, fundamentally satiric, or. The golden ass, or the metamorphoses, written by apuleius in the second century ad, holds a unique place in world literature as the only complete latin novel to survive from antiquity. The bulk of the reader consists of 75 passages enough for a semesters worth of readings, each denoted by the book number from apuleius metamorphoses and then a letter since each passage. Bibliography includes bibliographical references pages 567607 and indexes. The golden ass study guide contains a biography of apuleius, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. In a surprising denouement, he is restored to human shape and, now spiritually regenerated, is. Apuleius famous novel, the metamorphoses, tells the story of a man who was magically changed into an ass and had various entertaining adventures before regaining his human form.
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