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Bailleul-LeSuer, Rozenn

Classics

2004

M.A.

The numerous references to birds in Ovid's Metamorphoses put the emphasis on the importance of our winged companions both in the poetic and Roman worlds. Of all the metamorphoses mentioned in the poem, birds are the most common shapes human beings are turned into. In order to better understand the themes Ovid introduces, a detailed analysis of each of the forty two bird transformations has been conducted, with a focus on the storyline, as well as the sources which may have influenced Ovid. The metamorphoses reveal the primordial role of divination in Augustan Rome, in which birds occupy the center stage. Their appearance, flight and cries influenced all levels of the Romans' lives, from their personal issues to the political arena. The owl, dove and woodpecker are among the birds the augurs would observe. The song of birds not only predicted men's future, it also had a major impact on nature.
The two singers Orpheus and Canens have the power to bring harmony to their surroundings. Their tunes modify nature by gathering the vegetal, animal and mineral worlds to create a perfect symbiosis. However, the loss of the poets' singing abilities leads to their death. Conversely, this same power in the hand of manipulative creatures brings chaos and misery. The world natural boundaries are no longer respected: witches become animals, while animals turn into humans. Thus, Medea and Circe take advantage of their knowledge and power to transform songs into magical charms, which they use to satisfy their personal issues. A combination of the themes of divination and song introduces the vates-concept, revived by Vergil during the reign of Augustus. Ovid's desire for diversity motivates him to exploit all the aspects of the concept, from the vates-seer inspired by the gods to the vates-bard who entertains audiences. The concept is for the most part represented by Orpheus and Pythagoras, whose theory of metempsychosis emphasizes the belief of the human soul leaving a dead body in the shape of a bird.
The theory of transmigration of the soul thus exposes that souls are immortal and reincarnate themselves infinitely, either as humans or as animals. The metamorphoses of Ctesilla, Cycnus, son of Neptune and Caeneus best illustrate the theory. Their body disappeared, whereas a bird flew away from their death bed. The association of birds with death is counterbalanced by their symbolization of fertility. Phallic allusions are in particular preponderant in rape scenes. Gods become birds to seduce mortals, while men are compared to birds of prey capturing the innocent white dove. As the poem progresses towards Rome, this symbolism is transferred to the main characters of these episodes, whose 'bird-names' are prophetic of Rome's future glory. Whereas transformed into birds, Ovidian winged characters retain characteristic features of their human past. A group of birds stand apart, the hero-birds, whose behavior is an expression of grief and public honor. Such a group includes in particular the Meleagrides and Memnonides.
However, a few men did not wait to be transformed to experience the exhilaration of flying. Therefore, Perseus and Triptolemus were given the divine right to cross the air on wings. On the other hand, Phaethon, Daedalus and Icarus manifested human hubris by becoming flying creatures. Daedalus successfully reached his destination, but Phaethon and Icarus' flying experience cost them their life. Identifying the birds involved in the Metamorphoses is not an easy task A comparison of Pliny and Aelian's studies with modem information allows in most cases an approximate identification. However, in the remaining stories, what ancient 'observers of nature' considered factual information resorts more to the myth than to science and leads us to conclude that some of Ovid's birds, such as the ciris and mergus, are the results of the ancients' imagination and beliefs.