The model for a collection of metamorphosis myths was found in the metamorphosis poetry of the Hellenistic tradition, which is first represented by Boio(s)' Ornithogonia-a now- fragmentary poem of collected myths about the metamorphoses of humans into birds. In that tradition myth functioned as a vehicle for moral reflection or insight, yet Ovid approached it as an 'object of play and artful manipulation'. Ovid's decision to make myth the primary subject of the Metamorphoses was influenced by Alexandrian poetry. but that he could still treat the myths in his own way. Ovid's relation to the Hellenistic poets was similar to the attitude of the Hellenistic poets themselves to their predecessors: he demonstrated that he had read their versions .

Numerous English translations of the work have been made, the first by William Caxton in 1480. Today the Metamorphoses continues to inspire and be retold through various media. There was a resurgence of attention to his work towards the end of the 20th century. Numerous episodes from the poem have been depicted in works of sculpture, painting, and music, especially during the Renaissance. One of the most influential works in Western culture, the Metamorphoses has inspired such authors as Dante Alighieri, Giovanni Boccaccio, Geoffrey Chaucer, and William Shakespeare. Ovid took inspiration from the genre of metamorphosis poetry and some of the Metamorphoses derives from earlier treatment of the same myths however, he diverged significantly from all of his models.

The poem chronicles the history of the world from its creation to the deification of Julius Caesar in a mythico-historical framework comprising over 250 myths, 15 books, and 11,995 lines.Īlthough it meets some of the criteria for an epic, the poem defies simple genre classification because of its varying themes and tones. The Metamorphoses ( Latin: Metamorphōsēs, from Ancient Greek: μεταμορφώσεις: 'Transformations') is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. Hayden White Rare Book Collection, University of California, Santa Cruz Title page of 1556 edition published by Joannes Gryphius (decorative border added subsequently).

The metamorphosis book