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But very often he preferred the company of sweeter- natured beauties. The wood nymphs were among his favourites' When Hera suspected some new rival reigned she would appez;r among the wood nymphs and question them closely to ferret out the truth.It was difficult to face Heraspenetratinggazeand not tostanuner andsay something stupid when Zeus was hiding in the trees nearby. Hera was approaching the woods one day when the nymph Echo came running out to meet her. She was rhe greatest gossip of them all. The Queen of Olympus stood listening for at least half an hour to various stories of what so-and-so had said or done. She believed that she was learning forest secrets from the nymph. Her fury was indescribable when she found that Echo had kept her listening to allow Zeus to make his exit.'Echo enjoys repeating the words of others,'she said venomously.'In future those shall be her only speech. She shall say nothing else.' 'Nothing else?'asked Echo, trembling at the goddess's glance. From that moment she could only fepeat the last few words she heard.Unable any longer to chatter, she took to wandering by herself in the forest. One day she noticed a young huntsman striding through the trees. She thought he looked more beautiful than thegods and fell hopelessly in love with him. She lay in wait for him daily and followed him through the forest, trying with pleading eyes and outstretched arms to tell him she adored him. The young man, whose name was Narcissus, was used to adoration. Countless wood nymphs had loved him in vain. He thought love a waste of time and jeered at them cruelly. Echo's devotion infuriated him.'Do you think 20 Echo and Narci.ssits i want to see you all the time?'he shouted angrily at her. 'I want to see you all the time!'repliccl Echo, delighted with this gift of words. This made Narcissus crosser still. The wood nymphs decided that Narcissus's cruelty hadgone too far. All those who had once loved him made aplan.They went to Nemesis, of all the goddesses the one that men most far.Itis she who humbles the proud and punishes the wicked. They begged her for vengeance on Narcissus. 'Make him fall in love more hopelessly than we have done'they prayed. Nemesis smiled with cruel pleasure.'He shall love no one but himself,'she said. There was a clearing in the forest where branches were reflected in the water of a clear still pool. Narcissus went there in the heat of the day andlay down to rest near the water's edge. He saw his face reflected in the pool and was struck by its beauty. He was studying it when Echo came stealing up behind him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek.'Get away' said Narcissus, shaking her off, his beautiful face distorted and ugly with rage.'1 don't love you and i never will. I never want to hear your voice or look into your faceagain.' 'Look into your face agarn, again, again, again,'sobbed Echo. 'Look into my face,'mocked Narcissus, who enjoyed turning Echo's helpless words against her.'Now that makes sense. The only thing I've ever heard you s:ty that does.'He moved his head to the right to admire his 21 ffi Ecbct and Narcissas profile, and then to the left. He sighed with day looking for him but could make no sense satisfaction.'You are flawless: beautiful as the of what he said.',Why does it give me hope, day,'he told the reflection smiling in the water. then mock me? I know it loves me for it Echo fled further into the mountains and smiles at me and comes to meet me when I hid herself in a cave. Grief made her so ill stoop to it.'No one could persuade him to that she could neither eat nor sleep. Her leave the forest pool. Day after day he lay, youthful face grew sharp and withered; peering distractedly into the water, until daily she became thinner until she wasted hopeless love wasted his strength away to nothing but living bones. Hera at last took entirely and he died. pity on her and turned her bones to rock, so The nymphs who had loved him were that Echo rested at last among the mountains. then truly sorry that they had brought about Nothing was left of her but a thin sad voice, his death.'Narcissus, farewell' they lamented which still haunts caverns and lonely 'Farewell.. . farewell. .. farewell...' repeated mountain places, waiting to answer you if Echo. When the nymphs came with funeral you call. torches to bear away his body, they found Narcissus never noticed she had left him. nothing by the pool. In his place a yellow He lay by the water's edge all day gazing flower was growing. They had never seen into the pool, entranced. Narcissus, who had one like it before. It stood among the soft despised the love of women, now doted on grass at the water's edge, tossing its head in a face in the water. He leaned to kiss its the wind, turning to this side and to that, and beautiful forehead but it vanished as his lips nodding whenever the breeze fell, as though touched the water.'Come back to me,'he it were gazing in the water. The nymphs begged and as the ripples stilled, the face he named the flower Narcissus. \7e know it longed for reappeared. At night he could well today, for Narcissus is the Greek nhme not tear himself away.His friends came every for the daffodil. )2 'l J ,t^' tgts.Et t : burst r!tt :e?" :r. I'm I ?luto's lme!" :phone t :Iwqs E cho and lr.i arci.ssat.s before tffi: , rte six HrH{ All the goddesses liked to run through the silent woods on Mount Olympus, leor in playing qnd chqsing the deer. There wqs Queen Herc, soundless qs the .th her sun's rcys; there wqs Diqna, quiet qs moonlight; there were the wood leus!" nymphs flitting like thistledown . . . qnd then there wqs Echo. Echo wos clwcys chcttering, arguing, or shrieking with lcughter. The ri.nd' "1:,1i "aJ qs qs &qlr;"R i - deer scottered soon Echo opened her mouth. trffffi,h. .'t1 i{Lirlo' ! ffi*"- 4! "Echo!" soid Herq sternly to her one doy. "You've done it ogoin!" .i, "\Whqt? Didn't do anything," scid Echo pertly. "Yes you did. You tqlked. You're olwoys tolking." green, "I'm not!" see, is "You qre. Don't tell me you're not." en she ..-1 "Not," sqid Echo, who clwoys hqd to hove the lqst word. "Not, not, t" ghing, "," - n01. " t, qngry qt qnd i\ Ilero wcrs so thqt she pointed o mcgic finger Echo. "Once o keep Ior ull, be silent!" ned to 'l'hc nymph wqs struck dumb. She put her honds to her throot, her fingers I qround ng the ('/"- to hcr lips, ond looked in horror. .ghter. "l,ct this be q lesson to you. You olwoys wqnted the lost word. Now you eqves. :,lrull hcrvc nothing else!" people ". . . nothing elser" sqid Echo. She found the words in her mouth, ond rlrr'\' rvcrc thc only ones she could speck. "\'orr rnoy clo now," sqid the queen of the gods. g&.1",- 21 GREEK MYTHS I ,lr ritit :ri'l 7; .in :: I , ,t ft ::s , j ': :,1 :.\ c' .x'.*ffin 1 T rr I t; k;:;w'r ,r ,i L ]llr f 'r*4-t .;ill I ; rll( ". . . go nowr" soid Echo, without meoning to. ri Echo rqn sobbing off the mountqin qnd wqndered qbout miserobly in the It,' I foothills. There, qmid his flock of sheep, she sqw o shepherd boy. He was ,lrr. combing his curly hqir into ringlets qnd brushing the grcrss off his tunic. lr,t This wqs Norcissus, qnd Norcissus wqs qs beoutiful os ony god. The l, rvt shepherdesses could not lqy eyes on him without folling in love. ,lr' Echo wqs no different from the shepherdesses. She fell in love with I Nqrcissus at first sight, ond whqt she would hove given to be qble to tell him rlrrr so! But her lips were seqled like q locked door. All she could do was follow , rltt him qbout, her hcnds full of flowers qnd her eyes full of love. "Whqt cqn I do for you?" he osked, when he sow her gozing qt him. ". . . for you . . . for you," scid Echo, ond loid the flowers qt his feet. Unfortunately, Norcissus wqs quite used to women fclling in love with him. It hoppened qll the time. He knew how hondsome he wqs qnd thqt \ll mode him very, very voin. \Worse still, he did not much like women, did lrr' not wqnt their sickly, syrupy love. Echo only onnoyed him, trciling olong I rlit behind him, soying nothing, storing with her mouth open. l'... I 22 "., I ECHO AND NARCISSUS "Everywhere I go, you follow," he complsined. ". . . follow . . . follow," soid Echo. "stupid girl. I suppose you think you love me." ". . . love me . . . love mer" pleoded Echo. "You bore me. Leqve me qlone!" ". . . qlone! slone!" wqiled Echo. The word filled her with horror. / Day ofter week qfter month she dogged Nqrcissus's footsteps. In her il,r fi unhoppiness she grew pole ond thin, qnd when qll her becuty hqd fqded l bccouse of her love for him, he scid, "Oh do go owoy! I hste the sight of you. i: l)o you really suppose I could ever cqre for q stick insect like you? Look qt vuurself !" "Lookctyourself! ... Look ot yourself!" sobbed Echo. "Glodlyr" ssid the vain young nlun, ond went to the pool in the center of the forest rrnd cxqmined his reflection. [cho's love turned to hote, trncl though she hqd no words, in the rhc wished o wicked, wordless wish. e wqs Slrc wished that Nqrcissus :unic. rlrorrld one day love qs she The krvcd him, ond suffer for it ur slrt: wos suffering. with 'l'hcn she wqndered owoy into the forest where, in her misery, she grew ll him lhrrrncr ond thinner, pcler and poler. At lqst her body fqded ctwqy ollow rrltoqe thcr. Only her voice wqs left to blow qbout with the leqves. n. /" / 'J" fu'\-# -,,. ."d F . t. .r*,ffifl t"i ,& with },' thqt r\ll tlris whilc, Nqrcissus sst by the pool staring ot his reflection. Somehow #t ', did lrl uorrkl not sccm to teqr himself awqy. The more he looked, the more he rlong lrl, t.rl rvlrul hc sow. Narcissus fell in love with the fqce in the wcter, iust os | ,lr,,lrrrtl lullcn in klve with him. He longed to kiss those lips, just os Echo 23 GREEK MYTHS ;.i #+ . .efr',We /:#' -.,r..tt:fiii::r' t: lrl .t'.,: -' "4:"'{ ,- j *i. ,$sr4li I hod longed to kiss his. At lost, leaning down towqrd the shining pool, he kissed the wqter-ond the fqce reflected there dissolved into ripples. "Oh don't go!" Norcissus reqched out cnd plunged his hqnd into the woter, but only monoged to shqtter the reflection oltogether. So he sct very still ond gczed and gczed and gozed . . . 24 'l ECHO AND NARCISSUS ,\{conwhile, in her polcce, Hero, queen of the gods, regretted her temper rund sent her hqndmqidens to look for Echo cnd forgive her. They seorched tlrc high rocks qnd wooded plcces, but when they colled her nqme-"Echo! l'.cho!"-their words simply floqted bock to them on the breeze: ". . . Echo! , . . Echo! ... Echo!" 'l'hey did find one thing, though-o pretty yellow qnd white flower r1r owing beside o pond. It leqned out over the wqter qs if qdmiring its own rt:llcction in the pool. Iior Nqrcissus hod token root where he sst. He too hcd pined owoy in lropcless love, until qll thqt remoined of his body were soft petols qnd o lrt'ntling stqlk. "l've never seen this kind of flower before," sqid one of the nymphs. "I rluuder whqt it's cqlled." And the breeze in the woods seemed to whisper, "Norcissus! Nqrcissus!" 'l'o this dcy, the scrme flower cqn be found growing wild on the bonks of 1'nncls, leoning out over the wqter qs if in love with its own reflection. And tx'oplc call it ncrcissus, though they have long since forgotten the vqin rlrcgrhcrd boy. ' Mt.', u. &*. -"_. , t". ,, i, \ /:a. t-;;e:lr,-./ Frl { t+, f II "\ ,ol, he B,:r& tl k", l"/ , \l' ?1 ;'r I Li'. f'J.-* :i f'. to the tl,/,, it-,.\'* -I . t very fffiM{ t NARCI55U5 Among all the nymphs of Boeotia who served the goddess Hera, Echo was known for her constant chatter. She heard all the latest gossip and would keep the nymphs and the goddess amused with her stories of loves and quarrels, of secrets and misunderstandings. Zeus, the husband of Hera, found Echo a useful ally. He often deceived his wife and dallied with both nymphs and mortals, and many times Hera might have caught him had not Echo detained the goddess with her chatter. When Hera found out how Echo had been tricking her, she was furious. She told the nymph, "Since you like to repeat what you hear, you shall do that-and nothing more." And she took away Echo's power of speech and condemned her forever to repeat the last few syllables of anything that was said to her. "Now leave my company. Be gone!" the goddess commanded. And Echo, unable to beg for mercy, could only cry, "Gone!" "Oh, Echo! Alas!" cried the nymphs. 'Alas!" repeated Echo. Banished by the goddess, she went to live in a cave high in the mountains. But Echo was lonely. She would follow shepherds or hunters i' c': f ;1 )i's l--1ir .r \'-J1,::d ffi# '\$,ihk \. 'i{ / $1:.' tu t: {i \ ':i .'.w. fi:,^ d 1i \:t t t" ' t_ i pt,r i -t'ii . "/*:iW.oi ,,-S't" c?'I f,- '; ,l s- 4-d/ 3 ^_' tE! '9. t^ .' :_:-l ::^ :/ iorr \; ,.'. l "\' .\ t' r--"&*4*.^- $' ,{ ' '-: i, a ,*+**N F :4 "Who are you?" " Narcissus." " Narcissus!" "Come this way!" "This wayl" Narcissus heard the branches rustle and turned toward the sound. "l'm here!" he said. "Come and join me!" "Join me!" cried Echo, overjoyed-and she broke from her hiding place and ran toward him, holding out her arms. At the sight of her, Narcissus drew back. He curled his lip and said, "Be gone, nymph! Why do you follow me? I could never love you." "Love you!" pleaded Echo. But he had turned his back on her. Echo, despairing and ashamed, went to hide herself in her cave. There she wept and could not be comforted. She wasted away; her body dried and became air, and all that was left of her was her voice and her bones. ln time even her bones turned to stone, but her voice remained,' and travelers hear it still in caves and wells and rocky places. As for Narcissus, he continued to spurn all love, until one day a rejected nymph prayed that he might sufferfor love as she had done-and the goddess Nemesis, who punishes pride, heard her. Narcissus, out hunting and hot from the chase, came uPon a pool. Trees and tall grasses grew around it, and the water was still, clear * 156't as polished silver, and pure. He lay down beside it and cupped his hands to drink. But as he leaned out over the water he saw below the surface a beautiful face: fine eyes, dark curling hair, a perfect neck and shoulders-some spirit of the pool, he thought, looking up at him. "Who are you?" he asked, and the lips moved in silent reply. Fired by love, Narcissus tried to kiss the lips, but they disappeared as soon as he touched the water. When the pool grew still again the lovely creature returned. Narcissus reached out his arms, implored its love, and saw arms beneath the water reach out to him. But when he tried to embrace the spirit, it disappeared again. "Don't leave me!" begged Narcissus. All thought of food and drink now left him. He lay stretched beside the pool, gazing in longing at his own reflection, not knowing it to be himself, for Nemesis had taken away his reason. Over and over he plunged his arms into the water, and every time the image eluded him. *157* Now Narcissus knew rejection. "How can you not love ffi€," he demanded, "when so many nymphs have pined for my love?" So he lay and wept, and at last, like Echo, he began to fade away. "Alas!" he whispered. "Farewell!" Echo answered him "Farewell!" and all the nymphs of woodland and water wailed with her as he died. They say the Naiads came to bury Narcissus, but could find nothing there, not even bones-only a flower to which they gave his name. * 159 * THE SAD TALE OF ECHO AND NARCISSUS The Sad Tale of Echo and Na rcissus all the classical myths of The story of Echo and Narcissus is one of the best known of combines a portrait of a man transformation. A typical ovidian metamorphosis tale, it explanations of two natural suffering from a very human trait, excessive self-love, with ph"norlena, the mountain echo and the early-flowering narcissus. While he was still a baby his rnotltcr Echo was a nymph from Mount Helicon, a range Cephissus. foreknowledge of her son's Futr'rlc by of mountains in Boeotia in central Greece' This had sought the infallible seer Tiresias' area was also favor-rrecl by the Muses, who raised visiting There are several explanations for Tircsias's and trained the young nymphs who lived there' abilities. According to one legend' as a Thus Echo was well prepared for the service of prophetic man, Tiresias had killed two mating snakes Hera, and became a member of the goddess's ret- young metamorphosed into a inue. Despite her clury to Hera, however' the and had been magically Eight years later, he did the same thing maiclen was always sympathetic to Zeus in his woman. restored to his original male form' amorous pursuits, even though she was never his and was he had experience of being, in mistress. Instead, she assisted him in his pliilan- Because both man and woman, clering by distracting his wife's attention' turn, asked him to Whenever Zeus wished to engage in a f-lirta- Hera and Zeus about whether tion or seduction, he would inf,ortn Echo and she settle an argument women enjoYed sex more' woulcl then involve Hera in light-hcarted conver- men or Tiresias sided with Zeus, sation, diverting her so that she failed to keep her When that women derived r-rsual sharp eye on her husband This rurse proved agreeing from sexual union, highly successful, since Hera loved gossip' Echo more pleasure so angered that she would chatter away charmingly, and Zeus was free Hera was But because his to indulge himself in the company of attractive blinded him. had vindicated nymphs or maidens. answer god gave At last, however, Hera saw through the trick Zeus, the gift of ancl was very angry. To punish Echo, the goddess Tiresias the prophesy in comPen- aFflicted her with an inability to start a conversa- Another mYth tion or introduce any new topic of discussion' For sation. Tiresias eternity Echo was limited to repeating the very tells how after same worcls that someone had addressed to her' was blinded Athena Embarrassed, she fled to the most desolate wood- seeing that lancls and valleys of Mount Helicon, but she con- bathing, and gave him tinuecl to delight in talking She would stalk she then gift of everyone who happened to find their way into her the ProPhesY. wilderness, ancl would then repeat, mournfully' an)'thing that theY might saY. called In the meantime a Young man The nymph Echo is shown Narcissus was courting a doom of his own, in his dancing with a satYr - a fellow case through excessive pride Narcissus was the nature spirit - on this Sth-century son of the nymph Lirope and the river god gc Greek vase. STORIES OF LOVE AND TRANSFORMATION spr,rrned lovers asked the gods that Narcissr-rs shor-rld suf'fer the same pain that they did: unre- quitecl love. Tl'ris prayer came to the attention of Nemesis, the goddess of vengeance and retribution. She fol- lowed Narcisstts, and as he passecl a .still pool ol water, she afl'lictecl him with a fierce tl'rirst. When he bent over the water to clrink, he saw fbr the lirst tirne his own reflection in the quiet water, as though in a mirror. Now, lts Tiresias hacl prophe- sied, Narcisstts knew hirnself - although he did not r.rnderstancl that it was his own reflection. He believed instead that he was ilt last looking at a lnan worthy of his love. From that rnoment he rernainecl I'ropelessly in love with his own it'tlage. \When he bent towurrcls it, it seenecl to respond and tcl move eagerly towarcls him. llut jr-rst as he was about to kiss the aclorallle fece, the irnlgc lvotrlcl clisintegrate ancl he wor,tlcl have to wait r-rntil the wxter was calm for his ltelovecl t() rettll'n. The nymph Echo saw N'rrcisstts lly the pool ancl pror.nptly f'ell in love rvith him as lte tttttr- Narcissus lived a solitary existence in the forests of Mount mlrrecl worcls of passion ancl clevtlti Geraldine McCaughrean Greek Myths Jacqueline Morley Cynthia Rylant