Mini: Shakespeare's Sources: Ovid's Metamorphoses

Join us on a literary journey through the transformative tales of Ovid's Metamorphoses and their profound impact on the works of William Shakespeare. 

Ovid's Metamorphoses, a collection of mythological stories of change and transformation, serves as a rich source of inspiration for many of Shakespeare's most iconic plays and characters. Before diving into the Shakespearean connections, Elyse and Kourtney provide an overview of key stories in Ovid's Metamorphoses, ensuring that both enthusiasts and newcomers can appreciate the context.

Join us as we discover the clear parallels between Ovidian stories like Pyramus and Thisbe  and Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Explore how a specific translation of Ovid's stories impacted Shakespeare and other early modern writers. 

Kourtney Smith (KS): Welcome to another Shakespeare Anyone mini-episode! In these mini-episodes, we’ll be exploring topics that are related to Shakespeare but aren’t necessarily connected to whatever play we’ve been discussing. 

Elyse Sharp (ES): And they’re mini, because, well, they’re shorter than our other episodes. They’re like quartos if the regular episodes are folio editions.  

KS: In today’s episode, we’ll be talking about Ovid’s Metamorphoses and Shakespeare.

ES: Unless you’re living under a rock, you know the name William Shakespeare. And that name, Shakespeare, is synonymous with art and culture in Western society. While we at Shakespeare Anyone? want to discuss Shakespeare without the bardolatry, it is vital to acknowledge his influence on, well, everything. For better or worse, Shakespeare shows up everywhere you look.

KS: But Shakespeare didn’t emerge out of a vacuum as some genius. He was a practicing playwright and theatremaker who was inspired by the world around him. We’ve already talked about some of those influences. For example, we can see texts like Holinshed’s Chronicles, events like the Gunpowder Plot and pamphlets about court gossip possibly influencing his plays. But, according to scholars like Shakespeare’s Globe’s Head of Research Dr. Will Tosh and former guest on the podcast Sir Jonathan Bate, Ovid’s Metamorphoses is likely Shakespeare’s favorite book.

ES: Now this is a large claim to be made. We don’t actually know what books Shakespeare loved because we don’t have a Shakespeare BookTok video or Substack article telling us his favorite reads of the month. All bad jokes aside, we don’t even have writings from Shakespeare’s diary or pamphlets to learn about his opinions on anything!

 KS: In which case, scholars extrapolate from a wide variety of information ranging from the play’s texts, narrative sources, themes, and verbal echoes to come to a conclusion about Shakespeare’s influences. Through this work, it's easy to see how Ovid’s collection of myths was a powerful source of inspiration for the bard’s plays and poetry. 

ES: And whether or not Shakespeare was actually an avid Ovid fanboy, Ovid is the only classical author to be name-dropped in Shakespeare’s plays, and of the small number of specific books Shakespeare’s characters read onstage, Ovid’s Metamorphosis is featured twice. 

KS: But before we talk about Ovid’s influence on Shakespeare… Who is Ovid?

ES: Publius Ovidius Nasso, known as Ovid, was a Roman poet born in 43 BCE, one year after the assassination of Julius Caesar. Ovid’s family was well-to-do and sent him and his brother to Rome to be educated. Even though Ovid was a member of the knightly class, which was likely to lead him to a career in politics, he left politics to write poetry. Ovid’s most popular work is the fifteen book compendium of mythological stories called Metamorphoses. Through acts of dramatic transformation by gods, goddesses, and mortals, this book’s central notion is that a person’s soul remains unchanged through metamorphosis.

KS: The stories within Metamorphoses are arranged in a chronology that starts with the creation of the world and ends with the death and deification of Julius Caesar, which happened a year before Ovid was born. The poem is written in dactylic hexameter verse–for more on verse, listen to our episode on Shakespeare’s Prose and Verse. As it traces its way through its chronology, Ovid retells key events in Greco-Roman Mythology. Metamorphoses does not follow one character or storyline from beginning to end, so neighboring stories in the collection sometimes have little to no connection to each other–other than being a story of transformation and the next in the chronology.

ES: Despite Ovid’s unbroken chronology and Ovid’s sometimes seemingly arbitrary way of jumping from one story to another, scholar Brooks Otis identified four divisions within the overall narrative. According to Otis, the books can be grouped like so: Books 1 and 2 are “The Divine Comedy,” Books 3 through 6, line 400 are “The Avenging Gods,” Books 6, line 401 through 11 are “The Pathos of Love,” and Books 12 through 15 are “Rome and the Deified Ruler.”

KS: Now, trying to summarize all of the stories contained within the 15 books would probably turn this mini episode into a full-length episode, so instead, we have chosen to highlight stories that may be familiar to listeners who are familiar with Shakespeare or Greco-Roman mythology. With that said, here are some of the stories contained in Ovid’s Metamorphoses, according to (mostly) SparkNotes:

ES: In Book 1, Ovid writes of the creation of the world for Man to rule. Mankind goes through four ages: 1. The age of gold: a time of goodness, 2. The age of silver: a time of hard work, 3. The age of bronze: a time of the first wars, and, lastly, 4. The age of iron: a time of bloodshed. In the iron age, the gods witness human impiety, so Zeus floods the humans. Deucalion and Pyrrha must repopulate the world. This book also includes the myths of Daphne’s transformation into a Laurel and Io’s transformation into a Heifer.

KS: In Book 2, the son of Helios, Phaeton, asks his father to prove that he is, indeed, his father. To prove it, Phaeton rides Helios’ chariot across the sky. Phaeton loses control of his father’s chariot and damages the earth. Jupiters stops and kills Phaeton by hurling a thunderbolt. This book also includes the myths of Callisto’s transformation into a bear, Cycnus’s transformation into a Swan and the rape of Europa.

ES: In Book 3, Europa’s father exiles the mythic hero Cadmus because he cannot find Europa. While exiled, Cadmus established Thebes. However, Cadmus’s household is now plagued. His grandson, Acteaon, is transformed into a deer after seeing Diana bathing in a grove. Actaeon’s own hunting dogs then kill him. Semele, Cadmus’s daughter, becomes pregnant with Jupiter’s child. A jealous Juno convinces Semele to ask Jupiter to make love with her as a god (a no-no in Greek myth). Jupiter does, so Semele dies. Jupiter brings back their son, Bacchus, in his thigh. This book also includes the myths of Tiresias and Narcissus and Echo.

KS: In book 4, Minyas’s three daughter weave and tell stories. The first tells the tale of forbidden love between Pyramus and Thisbe. The second tells a tale of Mars and Venus’ affair in which the mortal Leucothoe is punished by being buried alive and then transformed into frankincense. The third tells the tale of Salamacis’ desires for Hermaphroditus in which the two become one. The book also includes the myths of Perseus saving Andromeda by using Medusa’s head to petrify the sea monster.

ES: In book 5, Perseus’ marriage to Andromeda is contested by Andromeda’s former fiance, Phineus, and his army of over a thousand men. Perseus retaliates by turning the men to stone with Medusa’s head. This book also includes the myths of Minerva meeting the Muses and hearing of Calliope’s song about Dis (or Pluto) raping and abducting Proserpina and the myth of Lyncus being turned into a lynx.

KS: In book 6, Minerva and Arachne, her rival in the art of weaving, compete in a contest and, unlike Minerva’s glorification of the gods, Arachne’s tapestry creates a portrait of the gods raping and deceiving humans. Minerva physically assaults Arachne, so Arachne hangs herself. Then, Minerva transforms Arachne into a spider. This book also includes the myths of Niobe mocking god-worship and losing her children and Philomela’s rape and mutilation by her sister, Procne’s, husband, Tereus. As revenge, Procne kills her son and serves him as a meal to Tereus. Procne and Philomela escape by transforming into birds. Tereus also becomes a bird.

ES: In book 7, Jason demands the Golden Fleece from King Aeetes, but is told he has to complete certain feats. Jason promises to marry the love-struck Medea in exchange for her help against her father. Medea agrees and uses her magic to help Jason get the Golden Fleece. This book also includes the myths of Minos seeking military aid against Athens and Cephalus testing his wife Procris’ fidelity.

KS: In book 8, Minos attacks the city Alcathous and, during the siege, Scylla, the daughter of their ruler Nisus, falls in love with Minos. Scylla betrays her own father, which horrifies Minos and he and his army leave. Scylla follows and, like her father, is transformed into a bird. This book also includes the myths of the Minotaur’s labyrinth and Daedelus and Icacrus’ attempts to fly. This book includes various metamorphoses stories.

ES: Book 9 centers around Hercules and his wife Deanira. First, Achelous tells how he fought with Hercules over Deianira’s hand in marriage but was unsuccessful. Then, Hercules saves Deianira from an attempted rape by Nessus, a centaur, by shooting Nessus with an arrow. As he dies, Nessus gives Deianira a poisonous cloak, but tells her it has a love charm. Sometime later, fearing that Hercules no longer loves her, Deianira gives him the cloak, which he puts on and dies a long and painful death. Jupiter and the gods turn Hercules into a god. This book also includes the story of Hercules’s birth as well as two stories that examine love from a social and heteronormative point of view.

KS: In Book 10, Eurydice dies and her husband Orpheus travels to the underworld to ask Proserpina and Pluto to return Eurydice. Orpheus sings a song that makes Proserpina and Pluto grant his request with the condition that Orpheus does not look back at Eurydice as they leave the underworld. Orpheus begins to climb out of the underworld but, worried that Eurydice is actually following him, he looks back and loses her for good. Cupid accidentally pricks Venus (his mother) with one of his arrows, which causes her to fall in love with Adonis–preferring him over heaven. She tells Adonis a story, after which he goes hunting and dies after being gouged by a boar. Venus mourns Adonis. This book also contains the myths of Ganymede who was taken to heaven by Jupiter; and Pygmalion–a sculptor who falls in love with the statue he creates.

ES: In Book 11, Orpheus is killed by Thracian women and his shade joins Eurydice in the underworld. Bacchus punishes the Thracian women by turning them into trees. Bacchus gives King Midas the gift of golden touch. Eventually King Midas realizes the gift is a curse and asks Bacchus to take it away. The founder of Troy tricks Neptune and Apollo into building the wall of Troy without properly paying them, and the gods punish Troy with a flood. This book also includes stories of suffering and transformation. 

KS: Book 12 tells the story of the Trojan War and the battle between Achilles and Cycnus. Then, Neptune and Apollo plot to kill Achilles. Apollo appears on the battlefield under the cover of a cloud and tells Paris to shoot at Achilles. Paris does, and Achilles is killed. This book also tells a tale of a brawl with centaurs at a wedding celebration.

ES: In Book 13, Ajax and Ulysses argue over who deserves the arms of Achilles in front of the chiefs of the Greek army. The army chiefs award Ulysses the arms and Ajax commits suicide. Troy falls and misfortunes befall its citizens. Aeneas, the son of Venus, and his father and son set off to establish a new land. This book also features many tales of misfortune and woe.

KS: In Book 14, Glaucus asks Circe to help him win Scylla’s love, but Circe refuses because she is in love with Glaucus. Circe transforms Scylla into a monster, but before Scylla can destroy Aenea’s fleet, she is turned into a crag. Aeneas goes to Dido’s kingdom, then to Sicily, before arriving on the shores of Latium where he is attacked and eventually dies. Aeneus is turned into a god because of his valiant fighting, and his son rules over the Latin kingdom. There is a war between the Romans and the Sabines, after which Romulus establishes peace and is turned into a god. This book also tells the tale of Circe and Ulysses.

ES: Last but not least, Book 15 follows Numa who leaves his hometown to learn about the universe and becomes a student of Pythagoras. Pythagoras encourages vegetarianism. When Numa dies, his wife Egeria mourns and is comforted by Hippolytus, the son of Theseus. Hippolytus tells her stories to comfort her but Egeria cries so much she is turned into a spring of water. After these stories, a plague breaks out in Rome that causes the Romans to bring Apollo’s son to Rome to cease the plague. Then, Ovid tells of the murder and deification of Caesar and of the rise and the future success of Augustus.  

KS: A 1717 translation of the epilogue reads: “The Work is finish'd, which nor dreads the Rage/ Of Tempests, Fire, or War, or wasting Age:/ Come, soon or late, Death's undetermin'd Day,/ This mortal Being only can decay; /My nobler Part, my Fame, shall reach the Skies, /And to late Times with blooming Honours rise:/ Whate'er th' unbounded Roman Power obeys,/ All Climes and Nations shall record my Praise:

If 'tis allow'd to Poets to divine,/ One half of round Eternity is mine.”

ES: Ovid’s stories were a staple of Renaissance Europe, so it only seems natural that Ovid eventually emerged on England’s shores to influence the artists of Shakespeare’s England. And Ovid’s popularity is quite interesting because, as Dr. Tosh does point out, these inherited stories were a challenge to the gender conformity and sexual chastity of the early modern church. Many stories include lewd themes and plots, including the abduction and assault of mortals by the gods that go unpunished, or punish the women. (We’re sorry to Europa, Daphne and Io, to name a few of these victims.)

KS: But early modern England had a champion for Ovid in translator Arthur Golding, best remembered for his 1567 translation of Metamorphoses. Golding was a friend of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, and Sir William Cecil, The Lord Burghley–two of Queen Elizabeth I’s favorites. While visiting Cecil House, he translated four books of Metamorphoses, publishing them in 1565 before finishing the complete 15 in 1567. 

ES: While it is difficult to determine with precision how influential Golding’s translation was, we do know that over the next 45 years, Metamorphoses was reprinted for a total of 7 editions–so, it must have sold pretty well. Furthermore, its literary influence can be seen in the writings of John Lyly, Thomas Nashe, Thomas Heywood, and Robert Greene. In 1602, an anonymous play entitled Narcissus was performed at St. John's College, Oxford, on Twelfth Night which declares in its prologue “The play we play is Ovid's own Narcissus.” When compared to Golding’s translation it is clear that the writer of Narcissus was informed by Golding. 

KS: And now, the moment you’ve been waiting for: how was Shakespeare inspired by Ovid and where can we see examples of this inspiration in Shakespeare’s works?

ES: Well, Shakespeare’s most Ovidian works are his narrative poems: Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece, but Ovid’s influence can be found throughout Shakespeare’s canon. Echoes of Ovid’s linguistic style (as well as the linguistic style of the Golding translation) can be found in how Shakespeare writes his rhetorical passages. 

KS: One striking linguistic echo is the speech in The Tempest where Prospero renounces his magic. His call to “Ye elves of hills, brooks, standing lakes, and groves” directly echoes the words of Medea the witch in Metamorphoses Book 7: “Ye Ayres and windes: ye Elves of hilles, of Brookes, of Woods alone / Of standing Lakes.” Prospero and Medea go on to make parallel claims about their magical powers–that they can command wind and trees and have the power to wake the dead. 

ES: Ovid also serves as the foundation for many of Shakespeare’s plots. Romeo and Juliet  takes some inspiration from Ovid’s Pyramus and Thisbe–a title which is also prominent in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. In fact, the Pyramus and Thisbe performed by the mechanicals is a parody of Ovid’s story of forbidden love in Book 4 of Metamorphoses. Quince’s very literal interpretation of Ovid’s story turns the play into the opposite of an Ovidian story–there is no magic or supernatural, no nature, no transformation. 

KS: Shakespeare’s use of Ovid as plot inspiration and useful classical reference is incredibly evident in Titus Andronicus. In Titus, Ovid’s story of Philomela is explicitly and repeatedly referenced throughout the play as it simultaneously serves as the source material for the plot. Shakespeare’s characters actively engage with their own understandings of the Philomela story and work to revise and improve upon the original story. In a key moment of revelation, a copy of Metamorphoses is physically present onstage, allowing Lavinia to use the classical story to convey what has happened to her. 

ES: Ovid’s stories have also influenced (and continue to influence) poets and writers beyond Shakespeare. His story Pygmalion from Book 10 tells the story of a sculptor who falls in love with the statue he creates. This story was the basis for George Bernard Shaw’s 1913 play of the same name, which then became the 1956 musical My Fair Lady. In 2013, Madeline Miller’s short story Galatea retold the myth from the point of view of the statue. Orpheus and Eurydice, also from Book 10, informs the plot of Baz Luhrman’s Moulin Rouge! and was also adapted into the musical Hadestown in 2016. 

KS: If you are interested in reading Ovid’s Metamorphoses but are nervous about the sexual violence, we recommend reading female translator Stephanie McCarter’s edition. 

ES: According to the hardcover, it “addresses accuracy in translation and its representation of women, gendered dynamics of power and sexual violence in Ovid’s classic.” 

KS: And that’s Ovid’s Metamorphoses and Shakespeare!

ES: Thank you for listening to this episode. 

Quote of the Episode:

ES: From Cymbeline, act three, scene four, said by Imogen, “Hath Britain all the sun that shines?”

Shakespeare Anyone? is created and produced by Kourtney Smith and Elyse Sharp.

Music is "Neverending Minute" by Sounds Like Sander.

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Works referenced:

Blake, Harriet Manning. “Golding’s Ovid in Elizabethan Times.” The Journal of English and Germanic Philology, vol. 14, no. 1, 1915, pp. 93–95. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27700642. Accessed 24 Sept. 2023.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Metamorphoses". Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Sep. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Metamorphoses-poem-by-Ovid. Accessed 16 September 2023.

Ovid. The. Xv. Bookes of P. Ouidius Naso, Entytuled Metamorphosis, Translated Oute of Latin into English Meeter, by Arthur Golding Gentleman, a Worke Very Pleasaunt and Delectable. 1567. . Translated by Arthur Golding. London: William Seres, 1567. Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership, http://name.umdl.umich.edu/A08649.0001.001. Accessed 24 Sept. 2023.

Ovid.  Ovid's Metamorphoses in fifteen books. Translated by the most eminent hands. Adorn'd with sculptures:. London: Jacob Tonson, 1717. Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership, http://name.umdl.umich.edu/A08649.0001.001. Accessed 24 Sept. 2023.

“Ovid’s Metamorphoses.” British Library: Collection Items, British Library, www.bl.uk/collection-items/ovids-metamorphoses. Accessed 24 Sept. 2023.

Tosh, Will. “Shakespeare and Ovid’s Metamorphoses.” Shakespeare’s Globe: Blogs & Features, Shakespeare’s Globe, 22 Sept. 2021, www.shakespearesglobe.com/discover/blogs-and-features/2021/09/22/shakespeare-and-ovids-metamorphoses/#0.