preview

The Golden Ass Literary Analysis

Decent Essays
Open Document

The beloved tale of Cupid and Psyche takes up a large portion of The Golden Ass, relative to the other anecdotal interludes. Given the central placement, length and style, many readers have questioned its relevance to the overarching story. Is it an artistic interlude providing a reprieve from harsher circumstances, like the long description of Achilles shield in the Iliad, or does it advance the story? While it is tempting to view the tale as an artistic interlude, the Tale of Cupid and Psyche perpetuates the demonization of women in The Golden Ass, draws parallels between Psyche and Lucius, and foreshadows the tragic fate of Charitë. Firstly, in the story of Cupid and Psyche, Psyche’s two sisters embody Lucius’ reoccurring view of women as evil and sexually insatiable. …show more content…

For example, he describes the heart of the baker’s wife as “a regular cesspool” and he continuous to describe her as “malicious, cruel, spiteful, lecherous, drunken, selfish, obstinate, [and] as mean in her petty thefts as she was wasteful in her grand orgies” (The Golden Ass tr. Graves, 203). The description of her heart as a cesspool, attacks the very nature of the women; in her heart, at her core, she was a filthy, contemptable being. His following list of insults, further emphasizes his strong disdain for her. Likewise, Apuleius uses Psyche’s two sisters to further his wicked characterization of women. The younger of Psyche’s two sisters asserts that she will “be ashamed to call [herself] a woman” if she does not see Psyche “toppled down from her pinnacle… and flung into the gutter” (109). Here, the sister equates being a woman with taking violent, jealous action against her own flesh and

Get Access