Ovid*s Metamorphoses

Group Read-aloud (text will be displayed onscreen during the meetup).
Today we are reading Book (chapter) 9, the second part of the story of The Death of Hercules. Last time we read Book 9, Hercules and Nessus, and the first part of The Death of Hercules. Since both stories function as one unit, we will re-read Hercules and Nessus and the first part of The Death of H, and then discuss them both. So if you missed last week, you can get caught up this week.
Welcome to the Ovid*s Metamorphoses reading group! Please feel free to log in five or ten minutes early to work out any technical issues or just to say hello. We try to start on time. The meeting host puts David Raeburn*s English translation up on screen, and we take turns reading aloud from that. Then we have a structured discussion, followed by a more free-form one. (You do not need your own copy of the book.)
We do not record or transcribe these meetings. Please do NOT click Yes on Zoom AI Assistance when entering Zoom. If you have enabled any form of AI, recording, or transcribing before entering the session, please exit the meeting, disable it, and log back in.
You*re welcome to join in at any time in the series. No special knowledge or preparation is necessary; all you have to do is show up. Since we don*t record this, please keep your camera on for friendliness if you feel comfortable doing so.
Ovid*s long and astonishing poem Metamorphoses is a compendium of ancient Greek and Roman myths and legends that has resounded through Western civilization for over two thousand years. Exuberant, sophisticated, witty, harrowing, deeply ambiguous, and sublimely beautiful, it is one of the foundational works of Western culture. Its complexity, lyric beauty and wealth of stories are unsurpassed in world literature, and its tales and themes have inspired artists ever since. (Dante, Chaucer, and Shakespeare all drew upon it as a source.)
We pause to savor felicitous phrases and share our responses to the stories, and to spotlight recurring images and explore the connections. Along the way we*re learning about the morals, customs, and beliefs of Greco-Roman antiquity, some of which were very different from our own. We stay close to the text, mentally putting ourselves in the place of the original audience, while inevitably of course comparing their worldviews with ours, thereby sliding through a continuous doublemindedness that is itself a series of metamorphoses.

Caution: The book*s contents may be triggering for some trauma survivors. Please consult a reputable mainstream summary or review source to assess whether this is a suitable text for you.
Our reading group consists of people from a variety of walks of life, and we enjoy learning and sharing together. No matter our backgrounds we try to conduct ourselves with sensitivity and respect. We do not discuss contemporary politics.