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丕賱丨賲丕乇 丕賱匕賴亘賷
賵毓賳丿賲丕 鬲兀賲賱鬲 賰賱 兀毓囟丕卅賷 賮賷 賴匕丕 丕賱賵囟毓 丕賱賷丕卅爻 賱賲 兀乇賶 賳賮爻賷 胤丕卅乇丕 亘賱 乇兀賷鬲 賳賮爻賷 丨賲丕乇丕!賵賴賲賲鬲 亘鬲賵噩賷賴 丕賱卮鬲丕卅賲 廿賱賶 賮賵鬲賷爻 毓賱賶 賲丕賮毓賱鬲賴 亘賷 賵賱賰賳 賰賳鬲 賯丿 賮賯丿鬲 丨乇賰鬲賷 賵氐賵鬲賷 丕賱廿賳爻丕賳賷賷賳.
賰賱 賲丕賰丕賳 賮賷 丕爻鬲胤丕毓鬲賷 兀賳 丕賮毓賱賴 賴賵 兀賳 丕賳馗乇 廿賱賷賴丕 噩丕賳亘賷丕 亘毓賷賳賷賳 亘賱賷賱鬲賷賳 賵卮賮鬲賷 丕賱爻賮賱賶 賲丿賱丕丞, 賵兀賯丿賲 賱賴丕 卮賰賵丕賷 賮賷 氐賲鬲.
賰賱 賲丕賰丕賳 賮賷 丕爻鬲胤丕毓鬲賷 兀賳 丕賮毓賱賴 賴賵 兀賳 丕賳馗乇 廿賱賷賴丕 噩丕賳亘賷丕 亘毓賷賳賷賳 亘賱賷賱鬲賷賳 賵卮賮鬲賷 丕賱爻賮賱賶 賲丿賱丕丞, 賵兀賯丿賲 賱賴丕 卮賰賵丕賷 賮賷 氐賲鬲.
246 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 159
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About the author
Apuleius
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The Golden Ass
, work of Roman philosopher and satirist Lucius Apuleius.
Apuleius (Lucius Apuleius Madaurensis 鈥淎fricanus鈥�; Berber: Afulay) wrote Latin-language prose.
This Berber of Numidia lived under the empire. From Madaurus (now M'Daourouch, Algeria), he studied Platonism in Athens and traveled to Italy, Asia Minor and Egypt. Several cults or mysteries initiated him.
In the most famous incident in his life, people then accused him of using magic to gain the attentions and fortune of a wealthy widow. Apuleius declaimed and then distributed a witty tour de force in his own defense before the proconsul and a court of magistrates convened in Sabratha, near ancient Tripoli, Libya.
Apuleius (Lucius Apuleius Madaurensis 鈥淎fricanus鈥�; Berber: Afulay) wrote Latin-language prose.
This Berber of Numidia lived under the empire. From Madaurus (now M'Daourouch, Algeria), he studied Platonism in Athens and traveled to Italy, Asia Minor and Egypt. Several cults or mysteries initiated him.
In the most famous incident in his life, people then accused him of using magic to gain the attentions and fortune of a wealthy widow. Apuleius declaimed and then distributed a witty tour de force in his own defense before the proconsul and a court of magistrates convened in Sabratha, near ancient Tripoli, Libya.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,289 reviews
March 5, 2019
If you remember the old toga movies from the '50's--the ones where all the Romans are played by Brits and all the Jews and Christians by Americans--then I am sure you also remember those orgiastic banquet sequences crammed with sweaty wrestlers, kinky dancers, amphora after amphora overflowing with wine, and culinary surprises like roast oxen stuffed with pheasants (the pheasants in turn stuffed with oysters), and golden salvers heaped high with hummingbird tongues.
The Golden Ass is a lot like that. It has everything: comic misunderstandings and cruel mistreatment, amorous slave girls and lustful matrons, witches and ghosts, robbers and murderers, people transformed into animals, an account of religious conversion--plus a visit from the Queen of Heaven and a little bestiality thrown in for good measure. This picaresque work of late second century Roman Africa revels in its own excess and ornamentation, scattering its tales within tales with a spendthrift abandon, and yet preserving a sense of unity through its theme. It shows us how the individual's journey through pleasure and suffering, servility and beastliness, may eventually lead to humility and spiritual regeneration.
June 25, 2024
Lucius ( loosely based on the author ) is a very curious young man, interested in black magic, witchcraft, potions and spells, that can cause real damage , even mystery cults, being the mid second century , during the Roman Empire, in ancient Greece, people believe in the supernatural...A traveler visiting Hypata, the heart of the occult center, in Thessaly, so the public thinks , with a letter of introduction from a friend, to a rich man, Milo , a miser, though living in squalor, counting his money but not spending it. Given a tiny room in the ramshackle house, no food, he will have to get it himself, yet Pamphile the stingy man's wife, is a powerful witch, so informs the slave Photis in the household and soon lover of Lucius, she is very attractive and eager. He goes to the home of his wealthy Aunt Byrrhena, invited to stay he desires his freedom more than comfort, and is warned to keep away from witches, which he doesn't obey, Lucius wants excitement in his dreary, dull life and anxious to see them perform their evil. One cold night while the intoxicated Lucius, is walking back to the miser's house, and not seeing too well, three ruffians attack the noble citizen, but knowing how unsafe these streets are , he has his trusted sword and defends himself ably, but is arrested for murder, luckily it was not what it seems...Later Photis, tells him that tonight the witch Pamphile, in secret, will turns herself into a bird and fly, in order to spy on a would- be young lover, while her husband Milo is away, just what he has been so looking forward to, for such a long time. Things do not go as planned, the nervous Photis, gives him the wrong box containing a different ointment , after the witch was observed and left, turning poor, foolish Lucius, into an Ass (in more ways than one) instead of a fowl, not to worry his love says she will get him roses, to consume, which will turn him back to a man in the morning. But a gang of treacherous robbers invade the home, stealing anything valuable in sight and taking the unfortunate Lucius, now just the dumb animal they need , to carry their loot, beaten badly, the heavy load causes painful bruises and wounds, quickly into the high mountains , they go up. The dusty roads are dismal but passable, the dizzy sights below , endurable, the tired criminals finally transverse the distant path, from where their thefts occurred, to the hideout . No sanctuary for the beleaguered ass though, threaten again to be slaughtered there , by cutting his throat, or thrown off a cliff by the cruel, unfeeling thieves, Lucius has to escape and does, running like a horse to salvation, but everywhere he arrives, the local people treat him with malice, work him almost to death, he suffers constant abuse, and cunningly fights back ( he gets his kicks in), can the ass survive until the roses spring up again ? The only Roman novel found in its complete form, quite funny but rather gruesome too, the Roman gods are not kind . For anyone interested in ancient civilizations, particularly the Empire of Rome, this book is about as close as a modern reader can get...feel the joys and barbarism of the era; and laugh too...
December 17, 2021
(Book 997 from 1001 books) - Asinus Aureus = Metamorphoses = The Golden Ass鈥�, Lucius Apuleius
The Metamorphoses of Apuleius, which St. Augustine referred to as The Golden Ass, is the only ancient Roman novel in Latin to survive in its entirety.
The protagonist of the novel is called Lucius. At the end of the novel, he is revealed to be from Madaurus, the hometown of Apuleius himself. The plot revolves around the protagonist's curiosity and insatiable desire to see and practice magic.
While trying to perform a spell to transform into a bird, he is accidentally transformed into an ass. This leads to a long journey, literal and metaphorical, filled with inset tales. He finally finds salvation through the intervention of the goddess Isis, whose cult he joins.
鬲丕乇蹖禺 賳禺爻鬲蹖賳 禺賵丕賳卮: 蹖讴蹖 丕夭 乇賵夭賴丕蹖 賲丕賴 丌诏賵爻鬲 爻丕賱2000賲蹖賱丕丿蹖
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鬲丕乇蹖禺 亘賴賳诏丕賲 乇爻丕賳蹖 30/10/1399賴噩乇蹖 禺賵乇卮蹖丿蹖貨 25/09/1400賴噩乇蹖 禺賵乇卮蹖丿蹖貨 丕. 卮乇亘蹖丕賳蹖
The Metamorphoses of Apuleius, which St. Augustine referred to as The Golden Ass, is the only ancient Roman novel in Latin to survive in its entirety.
The protagonist of the novel is called Lucius. At the end of the novel, he is revealed to be from Madaurus, the hometown of Apuleius himself. The plot revolves around the protagonist's curiosity and insatiable desire to see and practice magic.
While trying to perform a spell to transform into a bird, he is accidentally transformed into an ass. This leads to a long journey, literal and metaphorical, filled with inset tales. He finally finds salvation through the intervention of the goddess Isis, whose cult he joins.
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鬲丕乇蹖禺 亘賴賳诏丕賲 乇爻丕賳蹖 30/10/1399賴噩乇蹖 禺賵乇卮蹖丿蹖貨 25/09/1400賴噩乇蹖 禺賵乇卮蹖丿蹖貨 丕. 卮乇亘蹖丕賳蹖
September 6, 2024
#产颈产濒颈辞迟别肠补补蹿别肠迟颈惫膬
Toat膬 lumea a citit, probabil, 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 de aur al lui Apuleius din Madaura, un prozator latin care a tr膬it (datele s卯nt aproximative, desigur) 卯ntre anii 124 葯i 170. Este vorba de un roman picaresc, foarte amuzant, al c膬rui protagonist se nume葯te Lucius, ca 葯i autorul c膬r葲ii (Lucius Apuleius). S膬 nu uit: Apuleius vorbea fluent trei limbi: latina, greaca 葯i punica (limba lui matern膬).
Titlul ini葲ial al c膬r葲ii a fost Metamorfoze, fiindc膬 eroul e transformat de 卯ns膬葯i prietena lui, frumoasa Fotis, o vr膬jitoare aproximativ膬, 卯n m膬gar; Lucius sufer膬, deci, o nepl膬cut膬 metamorfoz膬. Voia s膬 devin膬 o pas膬re, dar Fotis a 卯ncurcat alifiile. Abia al doilea titlu, vulgar (dat de admiratori), a fost 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 de aur (Asinus aureus). Numai c膬 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 lui Apuleius nu a fost de la 卯nceput de aur, a葯a cum, ini牛ial, nici Commedia lui Dante Alighieri nu a fost divin膬.
Apuleius 葯i-a intitulat romanul Metamorfoze sau 惭膬驳补谤耻濒, Dante 葯i-a intitulat poemul Commedia. 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 a devenit de aur 葯i Commedia divin膬 mult mai t卯rziu, datorit膬 entuziasmului cititorilor care au dorit s膬 sublinieze 卯n acest chip excelen葲a acestor scrieri. Epitetele apar葲in, a葯adar, vocabularului 鈥瀋ritic鈥�. Mode葯ti, cum 卯i 葯tim, autorii nu le-au folosit 卯n textul original.
脦n treac膬t fie spus, nepl膬cerea de a deveni un biet m膬gar (卯n c膬utarea unui trandafir salvator) a avut pentru Lucius o singur膬 consolare. Citez din roman 葯i v膬 rog s膬 nu m膬 blama葲i: 卯n vremea romanilor umorul era mai slobod dec卯t 卯n zilele noastre:
鈥灻巒 aceast膬 jalnic膬 transfigurare, nu am g膬sit alt膬 m卯ng卯iere pentru mine, care atunci nu o mai puteam str卯nge 卯n bra葲e pe Fotis, dec卯t faptul c膬 toate membrele mi se lungiser膬鈥� (p.76). Slab膬 consolare, totu葯i, dac膬 r膬m卯i un biet m膬gar...
脦n c膬r葲ile 4, 5 葯i 6 din 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 de aur, o b膬tr卯n膬 poveste葯te mitul lui Amor 葯i Psyche, care a devenit ulterior povestea domni葲ei celei curioase, care e vizitat膬 pe 卯ntuneric de iubitul ei 葯i 卯ncearc膬, din p膬cate pentru ea, s膬-i z膬reasc膬 chipul. Ion Creang膬 a rescris aceast膬 legend膬 卯n Povestea porcului.
P. S. Prefa葲atorul c膬r葲ii, un anume N. Niculi葲膬 (un clasicist, probabil), define葯te romanul ca fiind unul 鈥炄檛iin葲ifico-fantastic鈥�. Fantastic? OK. Dar 葯tiin葲ific?
P. P. S. Pentru c膬 卯n prezentarea de pe 欧宝娱乐 lipsesc datele c膬r葲ii, precizez c膬 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 de aur s-a publicat la Editura de Stat pentru Literatur膬 葯i Art膬 卯n 1958. Cel care a tradus romanul se nume葯te I. Teodorescu. Am f膬cut o c膬utare prin libr膬riile online 葯i am aflat c膬 traducerea a fost reeditat膬, dup膬 1990, de editurile Corint 葯i Gramar.
Toat膬 lumea a citit, probabil, 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 de aur al lui Apuleius din Madaura, un prozator latin care a tr膬it (datele s卯nt aproximative, desigur) 卯ntre anii 124 葯i 170. Este vorba de un roman picaresc, foarte amuzant, al c膬rui protagonist se nume葯te Lucius, ca 葯i autorul c膬r葲ii (Lucius Apuleius). S膬 nu uit: Apuleius vorbea fluent trei limbi: latina, greaca 葯i punica (limba lui matern膬).
Titlul ini葲ial al c膬r葲ii a fost Metamorfoze, fiindc膬 eroul e transformat de 卯ns膬葯i prietena lui, frumoasa Fotis, o vr膬jitoare aproximativ膬, 卯n m膬gar; Lucius sufer膬, deci, o nepl膬cut膬 metamorfoz膬. Voia s膬 devin膬 o pas膬re, dar Fotis a 卯ncurcat alifiile. Abia al doilea titlu, vulgar (dat de admiratori), a fost 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 de aur (Asinus aureus). Numai c膬 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 lui Apuleius nu a fost de la 卯nceput de aur, a葯a cum, ini牛ial, nici Commedia lui Dante Alighieri nu a fost divin膬.
Apuleius 葯i-a intitulat romanul Metamorfoze sau 惭膬驳补谤耻濒, Dante 葯i-a intitulat poemul Commedia. 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 a devenit de aur 葯i Commedia divin膬 mult mai t卯rziu, datorit膬 entuziasmului cititorilor care au dorit s膬 sublinieze 卯n acest chip excelen葲a acestor scrieri. Epitetele apar葲in, a葯adar, vocabularului 鈥瀋ritic鈥�. Mode葯ti, cum 卯i 葯tim, autorii nu le-au folosit 卯n textul original.
脦n treac膬t fie spus, nepl膬cerea de a deveni un biet m膬gar (卯n c膬utarea unui trandafir salvator) a avut pentru Lucius o singur膬 consolare. Citez din roman 葯i v膬 rog s膬 nu m膬 blama葲i: 卯n vremea romanilor umorul era mai slobod dec卯t 卯n zilele noastre:
鈥灻巒 aceast膬 jalnic膬 transfigurare, nu am g膬sit alt膬 m卯ng卯iere pentru mine, care atunci nu o mai puteam str卯nge 卯n bra葲e pe Fotis, dec卯t faptul c膬 toate membrele mi se lungiser膬鈥� (p.76). Slab膬 consolare, totu葯i, dac膬 r膬m卯i un biet m膬gar...
脦n c膬r葲ile 4, 5 葯i 6 din 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 de aur, o b膬tr卯n膬 poveste葯te mitul lui Amor 葯i Psyche, care a devenit ulterior povestea domni葲ei celei curioase, care e vizitat膬 pe 卯ntuneric de iubitul ei 葯i 卯ncearc膬, din p膬cate pentru ea, s膬-i z膬reasc膬 chipul. Ion Creang膬 a rescris aceast膬 legend膬 卯n Povestea porcului.
P. S. Prefa葲atorul c膬r葲ii, un anume N. Niculi葲膬 (un clasicist, probabil), define葯te romanul ca fiind unul 鈥炄檛iin葲ifico-fantastic鈥�. Fantastic? OK. Dar 葯tiin葲ific?
P. P. S. Pentru c膬 卯n prezentarea de pe 欧宝娱乐 lipsesc datele c膬r葲ii, precizez c膬 惭膬驳补谤耻濒 de aur s-a publicat la Editura de Stat pentru Literatur膬 葯i Art膬 卯n 1958. Cel care a tradus romanul se nume葯te I. Teodorescu. Am f膬cut o c膬utare prin libr膬riile online 葯i am aflat c膬 traducerea a fost reeditat膬, dup膬 1990, de editurile Corint 葯i Gramar.
February 16, 2016
Golden it is, but not the ass.
For us the novel certainly has the value of gold since it is considered the earliest that has survived complete in the Western literary tradition. Originally called Metamorphoses, it is however far from being an epic like Ovid鈥檚. Written around the middle of 2C by an Apuleius, an Algerian under Roman auspices, it probably acquired its 鈥渁ureum鈥� quality when another Algerian, Saint Augustin, gave it its second title some time later. And it was with this golden aura that it lived through the Middle Ages and survived till modern times.
I read it in French translation (Pierre Grimal), thinking that it would ring closer to the original Latin, but then also downloaded Robert Graves鈥� English version and flicked through it.
Apuleius鈥檚 Metamorphoses has the structure of an overall plot with embedded stories. So it is not just a man that is transformed into an ass but a story that undergoes several transformations. Some of the stories weld in more smoothly with the main line. Others do not, and can be considered as independent cameos. The most famous of these is Cupid and Psyche, and indeed this is the main literary source for this mythical story. Reading some of the Psyche passages made me feel a shiver running down my spine. I realized that Botticelli must have read this same text when painting his allegorical masterpieces. And so I went to find out more about the Golden Novel in the Renaissance and there I found that it had to be Niccol貌 Machiavelli who wrote his own version of the transformed ass. He did so in Dante鈥檚 rhyme but death arrived too early.
With the privileged position of this novel in the literary tradition, we like to see in its structure of stories-within-stories one of the corns for the later and more elaborate and the Arabian Nights, to name just a couple, with Apuleius playing a similar role as compiler as Boccaccio and the other authors. Its picaresque tone and elements are also seen to point at their later appearance in and to a lesser extent in Don Quijote. The entertainment value provided by the lewd and grotesque passages are often presented as the flashlight for Rabelais.
And indeed it is this more superficial diverting aspect that for us can blur the tint of religious aspects of a non-Christian creed. The moral content is blatantly there. We have the themes of Justice, the play of destiny, the dangerous drive of humans when wanting to simulate godly powers, and the overall story does have an element of final conversion with a more sacred tone. Apuleius鈥� contemporary readers would have been more sensitive to these matters.
But to me the most memorable aspect was the role of the narrator. Apuleius begins by presenting himself to the reader, telling us about his origins and closes his introduction bowing to us with Lecteur, sois attentif et tu seras satis fait . Once in the novel he continues to use the First Person to narrate the frame story and keeps in direct relationship with the reader, exploiting very craftily the irony in the situation of an 鈥淚 in the shape of an ass with the mind of a human鈥�. There is an unforgettable instance in which the Narrator, comes out forthright, with an abrupt 鈥淚鈥�, defending his omniscience from a hypothetical criticism from the hypothetical reader. Mais peut-锚tre, lecteur trop exact, critiquerais-tu mon r茅cit, en me faisant observer ceci: Comment donc, 芒ne plain d'astuce, enferm茅 comme tu l'茅tais 脿 l'int茅rieur de la boulangerie, as-tu pu conna卯tre, comme tu le pr茅tends, les agissements secrets de ces femmes?" ..or, in Graves' version again another instance: Forgive this outburst! I can hear my readers protesting: 'Hey, what's all this about? Are we going to let an ass lecture us in philosophy?' Yes, i dare say I had best return to my story.
Literary license at its best.
Next week I am going to watch a dramatized version in which the characterized Narrator will take centre stage with a continuous monologue.
I can鈥檛 wait.
----
Illustrations by Jean de Bossch猫re (1878-1953)
December 5, 2019
Psyche was right to check out her lover in daylight!
That is all I can say, and I am not impressed with the manipulative tactics used by the God to make her obey "blindly". So I guess the saddest moment is her apotheosis to the divine realm of serving the Greek narcissists during their eternal banquets.
But Psyche, never mind! You had that one perfect kiss, and Canova caught it on camera! That is enough for immortality...
That is all I can say, and I am not impressed with the manipulative tactics used by the God to make her obey "blindly". So I guess the saddest moment is her apotheosis to the divine realm of serving the Greek narcissists during their eternal banquets.
But Psyche, never mind! You had that one perfect kiss, and Canova caught it on camera! That is enough for immortality...
September 8, 2022
乇賵丕賷丞 丕賱丨賲丕乇 丕賱匕賴亘賷 兀賵賱 乇賵丕賷丞 賮賷 丕賱鬲丕乇賷禺 鬲氐賱賳丕 賰丕賲賱丞.. 賰購鬲亘鬲 賮賷 丕賱賯乇賳 丕賱孬丕賳賷 丕賱賲賷賱丕丿賷
乇賵丕賷丞 賱胤賷賮丞 賲賱賷卅丞 亘丕賱丨賰丕賷丕鬲 賵賲睾丕賲乇丕鬲 丕賱卮丕亘 賱賵賰賷賵爻 亘毓丿 賲丕 鬲丨賵賱 廿賱賶 丨賲丕乇
亘丿兀 賱賵賰賷賵爻 爻賮乇賴 賵賴賵 丕賳爻丕賳 賵丕爻鬲賰賲賱 賮賷 賲毓丕賳丕丞 亘賯賷丞 乇丨賱鬲賴 丕賱毓噩賷亘丞 賵賴賵 丨賷賵丕賳
賷乇賶 賵賷爻賲毓 賵賱丕 賷鬲賵賯賮 毓賳 丕賱丨賰賷 .. 丨鬲賶 賷鬲丨乇乇 賵賷毓賵丿 賱胤亘賷毓鬲賴 丕賱亘卮乇賷丞
爻乇丿 胤乇賷賮 賷賲夭噩 丕賱賵丕賯毓 亘丕賱禺賷丕賱 賵丕賱兀爻丕胤賷乇 賵賷丨賰賷 毓賳 兀丨賵丕賱 丕賱丕賳爻丕賳 賵丕賱丨賷賵丕賳
乇賵丕賷丞 賱胤賷賮丞 賲賱賷卅丞 亘丕賱丨賰丕賷丕鬲 賵賲睾丕賲乇丕鬲 丕賱卮丕亘 賱賵賰賷賵爻 亘毓丿 賲丕 鬲丨賵賱 廿賱賶 丨賲丕乇
亘丿兀 賱賵賰賷賵爻 爻賮乇賴 賵賴賵 丕賳爻丕賳 賵丕爻鬲賰賲賱 賮賷 賲毓丕賳丕丞 亘賯賷丞 乇丨賱鬲賴 丕賱毓噩賷亘丞 賵賴賵 丨賷賵丕賳
賷乇賶 賵賷爻賲毓 賵賱丕 賷鬲賵賯賮 毓賳 丕賱丨賰賷 .. 丨鬲賶 賷鬲丨乇乇 賵賷毓賵丿 賱胤亘賷毓鬲賴 丕賱亘卮乇賷丞
爻乇丿 胤乇賷賮 賷賲夭噩 丕賱賵丕賯毓 亘丕賱禺賷丕賱 賵丕賱兀爻丕胤賷乇 賵賷丨賰賷 毓賳 兀丨賵丕賱 丕賱丕賳爻丕賳 賵丕賱丨賷賵丕賳
September 11, 2023
鈥淓ccomi a raccontarti, o lettore, storie d鈥檕gni genere, sul tipo di quelle milesie e a stuzzicarti le orecchie con ammiccanti parole, solo che tu vorrai posare lo sguardo su queste pagine scritte con un鈥檃rguzia tutta alessandrina.
E avrai di che sbalordire sentendomi dire di uomini che han preso altre fogge e mutato l鈥檈ssere loro e poi son ritornati di nuovo come erano prima.
Dunque, comincio.鈥�
Quella in cui vive Apuleio 猫 detta epoca degli Antonini.
E鈥� quella fase storica tra l鈥橧mpero di Adriano e quello di Commodo in cui il ruolo di guida da parte di Roma, mano a mano, si sfilaccia.
Anche la letteratura vive di riflesso questa crisi politica sociale e culturale e , cos矛, l鈥檌ntellettuale che si celebra 猫 strettamente accademico e si esprime con superficiale retorica.
Apuleio (per alcuni fu detto 鈥淟ucio鈥� proprio dal nome del protagonista de le Metamorfosi) fu scrittore e filosofo proprio di quest鈥檈poca.
Nacque in una provincia algerina e, grazie ad una consistente eredit脿, si pot茅 permettere un鈥檌struzione su molte e diverse discipline oltre al privilegio di viaggiare molto.
Seguace della filosofia platonica si appassion貌 sempre pi霉 alle pratiche magiche e al misticismo.
Le Metamorfosi sono la sua opera pi霉 famosa.
Conosciuta anche con il titolo 鈥滾'asino d'oro 鈥� vanta il primato di essere l鈥檜nico romanzo in lingua latina risalente all'epoca romana pervenutoci integralmente.
Undici libri (capitoli) in cui un giovane di nome Lucio, in visita in Tessaglia, narra le avventure si ritrova a sostenere dopo che spalmatosi il corpo con un unguento magico si ritrova intrappolato nel corpo di in un asino.
La Tessaglia, di fatti, era la regione greca che pi霉 di tutte era considerata terra di magia e il giovane Lucio paga cos矛 lo scotto di un鈥檌ngenua curiosit脿.
Persa la possibilit脿 di muoversi liberamente l鈥檜omo ripone la sua sopravvivenza in un鈥檜nica facolt脿, ossia quella di ascoltare:
鈥�... pur tuttavia in questa mia disgraziata metamorfosi una consolazione almeno ce l鈥檃vevo: quella cio猫 d鈥檃vere delle orecchie grandissime, grazie alle quali potevo facilmente udire tutto anche a una certa distanza.鈥�
Con una struttura a cornice, ogni incontro 猫 l鈥檕pportunit脿 per entrare in altre storie come la celebre ed affascinante fiaba di Amore e Psicheche Apuleio mette per iscritto dopo una lunga tradizione orale.
Poi ci sono storie di briganti, di adulteri ma anche storie di efferati omicidi, scene erotiche e pratiche magiche.
Una lettura scorrevole grazie anche ad una traduzione molto moderna (forse in alcuni tratti un po鈥� troppo, se mi 猫 permesso dirlo...).
Con un tono spiritoso comincia un viaggio che porter脿 Lucio attraverso vari ambienti e tipologie di uomini.
Un romanzo avventuroso, dunque, ma anche di formazione dove Lucio impara per prima cosa che 猫 possibile anche ci貌 che non comprendiamo ma soprattutto il romanzo gioca sulla messa in ridicolo di una vita esclusivamente carnale per poi approdare nell鈥檜ltimo libro ad un registro pi霉 serio in cui si esalta il culto di Iside ed Osiride.
鈥� Anch鈥檌o, del resto, conservo un ricordo riconoscente dell鈥檃sino che fui perch茅, nascosto sotto quelle spoglie, affrontai le situazioni pi霉 diverse e, se non pi霉 saggio, divenni almeno esperto delle cose del mondo.鈥�
E avrai di che sbalordire sentendomi dire di uomini che han preso altre fogge e mutato l鈥檈ssere loro e poi son ritornati di nuovo come erano prima.
Dunque, comincio.鈥�
Quella in cui vive Apuleio 猫 detta epoca degli Antonini.
E鈥� quella fase storica tra l鈥橧mpero di Adriano e quello di Commodo in cui il ruolo di guida da parte di Roma, mano a mano, si sfilaccia.
Anche la letteratura vive di riflesso questa crisi politica sociale e culturale e , cos矛, l鈥檌ntellettuale che si celebra 猫 strettamente accademico e si esprime con superficiale retorica.
Apuleio (per alcuni fu detto 鈥淟ucio鈥� proprio dal nome del protagonista de le Metamorfosi) fu scrittore e filosofo proprio di quest鈥檈poca.
Nacque in una provincia algerina e, grazie ad una consistente eredit脿, si pot茅 permettere un鈥檌struzione su molte e diverse discipline oltre al privilegio di viaggiare molto.
Seguace della filosofia platonica si appassion貌 sempre pi霉 alle pratiche magiche e al misticismo.
Le Metamorfosi sono la sua opera pi霉 famosa.
Conosciuta anche con il titolo 鈥滾'asino d'oro 鈥� vanta il primato di essere l鈥檜nico romanzo in lingua latina risalente all'epoca romana pervenutoci integralmente.
Undici libri (capitoli) in cui un giovane di nome Lucio, in visita in Tessaglia, narra le avventure si ritrova a sostenere dopo che spalmatosi il corpo con un unguento magico si ritrova intrappolato nel corpo di in un asino.
La Tessaglia, di fatti, era la regione greca che pi霉 di tutte era considerata terra di magia e il giovane Lucio paga cos矛 lo scotto di un鈥檌ngenua curiosit脿.
Persa la possibilit脿 di muoversi liberamente l鈥檜omo ripone la sua sopravvivenza in un鈥檜nica facolt脿, ossia quella di ascoltare:
鈥�... pur tuttavia in questa mia disgraziata metamorfosi una consolazione almeno ce l鈥檃vevo: quella cio猫 d鈥檃vere delle orecchie grandissime, grazie alle quali potevo facilmente udire tutto anche a una certa distanza.鈥�
Con una struttura a cornice, ogni incontro 猫 l鈥檕pportunit脿 per entrare in altre storie come la celebre ed affascinante fiaba di Amore e Psicheche Apuleio mette per iscritto dopo una lunga tradizione orale.
Poi ci sono storie di briganti, di adulteri ma anche storie di efferati omicidi, scene erotiche e pratiche magiche.
Una lettura scorrevole grazie anche ad una traduzione molto moderna (forse in alcuni tratti un po鈥� troppo, se mi 猫 permesso dirlo...).
Con un tono spiritoso comincia un viaggio che porter脿 Lucio attraverso vari ambienti e tipologie di uomini.
Un romanzo avventuroso, dunque, ma anche di formazione dove Lucio impara per prima cosa che 猫 possibile anche ci貌 che non comprendiamo ma soprattutto il romanzo gioca sulla messa in ridicolo di una vita esclusivamente carnale per poi approdare nell鈥檜ltimo libro ad un registro pi霉 serio in cui si esalta il culto di Iside ed Osiride.
鈥� Anch鈥檌o, del resto, conservo un ricordo riconoscente dell鈥檃sino che fui perch茅, nascosto sotto quelle spoglie, affrontai le situazioni pi霉 diverse e, se non pi霉 saggio, divenni almeno esperto delle cose del mondo.鈥�
Read
May 20, 2017"What's this we have to put up with now? An ass giving us a philosophy lecture?" Book 10, chapter 33.
The genre of the novel sprung full-formed out of Apuleius鈥檚 . . . Ass. The Golden Ass is one of those infamous contenders for the title of First Novel along with such masters as Rabelais, Cervantes, Richardson (come on, people! really?) and Madame Murasaki. It is the only surviving complete exemplar of the Roman novel. Give it some credit. It鈥檚 all there. Then there is also Petronius鈥檚 work whose incomplete status makes me weep. Do we learn something about the novel when its earliest instantiations are comic and satiric?
Apuleius is oddly very contemporary. Perhaps this impression is due to my inordinate immersion in the postmodern aesthetic and its strategy of replenishing the possibilities contained within the genre of the novel by returning to original and ancient sources of fictioning. It might be due to my having recently read the Greek stories in John Barth鈥檚 Lost in the Funhouse. Apuleius鈥� Ass may have been appended to that short collection and one wouldn鈥檛 have known the difference. The strategies of Barth鈥檚 fictions are here--the coast-line measurement problem (no end to the possible, infinitely more precise delineation of that shoreline); the relatedly Mandelbrot Set with its equally infinitely recursive possibilities; the arabesque; the frame-tale (why not slip in another fantastical story while we鈥檙e having lunch along the road?); the too clever by half first-person narrator; the consciousness of the fact that one is telling a story and the humility of perhaps not always being up to the task (that is, at the very beginning, the novel was always already meta-fictional). In a similar manner, Herodotus felt like a contemporary, having as I had at that time just recently read Infinite Jest. These books make our contemporary realist literature look pretty futzy.
Plot? Well, yes, there is a plot. And it鈥檚 as self-indulgent as a donkey in a kitchen, munching on the meats and the sauces and the croissants and the chocolates. It鈥檚 also simple. In part it鈥檚 a road story framing a series of other stories, roughly 18 of these, perhaps, depending on your count. What鈥檚 a donkey to do but make the most of those long ears and listen in on his various masters telling this and that story? Overhearing those stories is a hell of a lot more pleasant than undergoing the kind of life in store for a donkey, what with all the whippings and beatings and death threats and threats of castration--well, it鈥檚 just awful! Fortunately, Lucius has a memory to outstrip any donkey鈥檚 memory and does us the favor of relaying to us all of these marvelous little morsels. Centrally located is the story of Psyche and Cupid, which is marvelously inserted without much ado about justifying its existence. But what else is a novel but an excuse to tell stories? And then add a few more stories in there? And then just a few more? And let me tell you the most wretched story which took place in this very household. . .
I read the recent translation from Sarah Ruden who writes a delectably prancing contemporary English. Apuleius鈥檚 fancifully dancing Latin is quickly apparent. His skilled linguistic performance makes The Ass a candidate for repeated translation. His little novel is a trove of hapax legomena which are words appearing only a single time within all of the extant Latin corpus. That situation must be either hair-pullingly frustrating for a translator or an opportunity to let the language create itself, giving onto multiple possible renderings. I will give highest praise for the work which Ruden has created and simultaneously insist on Apuleius鈥檚 Latin providing a platform for additional Englishings. Of the reading of the Ass there is surely no end.
鈥淏ut perhaps, persnickety reader, you take issue with my narration, objecting in these terms: 鈥楢ll right, you little smart-ass, the mill鈥檚 walls were your restrictive boundaries. How could you know, as you claim to, what the women did in private?鈥� Learn, then, how a curious human being in the form of a pack animal found out about every act directed toward the destruction of my friend the baker.鈥� Book 9, chapter 30.
The genre of the novel sprung full-formed out of Apuleius鈥檚 . . . Ass. The Golden Ass is one of those infamous contenders for the title of First Novel along with such masters as Rabelais, Cervantes, Richardson (come on, people! really?) and Madame Murasaki. It is the only surviving complete exemplar of the Roman novel. Give it some credit. It鈥檚 all there. Then there is also Petronius鈥檚 work whose incomplete status makes me weep. Do we learn something about the novel when its earliest instantiations are comic and satiric?
Apuleius is oddly very contemporary. Perhaps this impression is due to my inordinate immersion in the postmodern aesthetic and its strategy of replenishing the possibilities contained within the genre of the novel by returning to original and ancient sources of fictioning. It might be due to my having recently read the Greek stories in John Barth鈥檚 Lost in the Funhouse. Apuleius鈥� Ass may have been appended to that short collection and one wouldn鈥檛 have known the difference. The strategies of Barth鈥檚 fictions are here--the coast-line measurement problem (no end to the possible, infinitely more precise delineation of that shoreline); the relatedly Mandelbrot Set with its equally infinitely recursive possibilities; the arabesque; the frame-tale (why not slip in another fantastical story while we鈥檙e having lunch along the road?); the too clever by half first-person narrator; the consciousness of the fact that one is telling a story and the humility of perhaps not always being up to the task (that is, at the very beginning, the novel was always already meta-fictional). In a similar manner, Herodotus felt like a contemporary, having as I had at that time just recently read Infinite Jest. These books make our contemporary realist literature look pretty futzy.
Plot? Well, yes, there is a plot. And it鈥檚 as self-indulgent as a donkey in a kitchen, munching on the meats and the sauces and the croissants and the chocolates. It鈥檚 also simple. In part it鈥檚 a road story framing a series of other stories, roughly 18 of these, perhaps, depending on your count. What鈥檚 a donkey to do but make the most of those long ears and listen in on his various masters telling this and that story? Overhearing those stories is a hell of a lot more pleasant than undergoing the kind of life in store for a donkey, what with all the whippings and beatings and death threats and threats of castration--well, it鈥檚 just awful! Fortunately, Lucius has a memory to outstrip any donkey鈥檚 memory and does us the favor of relaying to us all of these marvelous little morsels. Centrally located is the story of Psyche and Cupid, which is marvelously inserted without much ado about justifying its existence. But what else is a novel but an excuse to tell stories? And then add a few more stories in there? And then just a few more? And let me tell you the most wretched story which took place in this very household. . .
I read the recent translation from Sarah Ruden who writes a delectably prancing contemporary English. Apuleius鈥檚 fancifully dancing Latin is quickly apparent. His skilled linguistic performance makes The Ass a candidate for repeated translation. His little novel is a trove of hapax legomena which are words appearing only a single time within all of the extant Latin corpus. That situation must be either hair-pullingly frustrating for a translator or an opportunity to let the language create itself, giving onto multiple possible renderings. I will give highest praise for the work which Ruden has created and simultaneously insist on Apuleius鈥檚 Latin providing a platform for additional Englishings. Of the reading of the Ass there is surely no end.
鈥淏ut perhaps, persnickety reader, you take issue with my narration, objecting in these terms: 鈥楢ll right, you little smart-ass, the mill鈥檚 walls were your restrictive boundaries. How could you know, as you claim to, what the women did in private?鈥� Learn, then, how a curious human being in the form of a pack animal found out about every act directed toward the destruction of my friend the baker.鈥� Book 9, chapter 30.
November 9, 2021
Whenever someone says Don Quixote was the first novel ever written, one-up them with this one. Same if they claim Tale of Genji was first. Other novels, poems, and fragments might claim to be the first, but none are so convincing a contender as The Golden Ass. Supposedly, other Roman novels existed like this one, but we are left with mere sections of those. This is complete as far as we can tell.
I recommend this as a good follow up to Petronius' Satyricon. While the two differ in content, the tone and time felt the same to me. I still prefer Petronius, despite it's fragmentary nature, but Apuleius impressed me with his witty, verbose and graphic, gruesome, rollicking tale. It could be summed up as the adventures of a curious gentleman who is transformed into an ass. He passes through various trials, is bought, sold, worked nearly to death, tortured in heinous ways, tricked, and also gets the chance to play the trickster. It is not the sort of thing you read your child before bed. Most compelling was the sudden and unnerving resolution which goes into some detail about the mysterious cult of Isis, and how our protagonist turns over a new, pagan leaf. I noticed plenty of Christian and pagan references, though I suspect some of them were clarified by the modern translator.
Apuleius maintains an irreverent tone, and inspires great sadness in this reader, for all of the lost literature of ancient times. Reading Roman and Greek classics are an exercise in comparison for me. In a lot of ways, people have not changed over the centuries. We still suffer from the same debilitating desires, the same quirks and the same proclivities, but the society arounds us does something to mold our characters, perhaps.
The book has entertained and probably concerned many people since time immemorial. For something more tame, try Longus' Daphnis and Chloe.
I recommend this as a good follow up to Petronius' Satyricon. While the two differ in content, the tone and time felt the same to me. I still prefer Petronius, despite it's fragmentary nature, but Apuleius impressed me with his witty, verbose and graphic, gruesome, rollicking tale. It could be summed up as the adventures of a curious gentleman who is transformed into an ass. He passes through various trials, is bought, sold, worked nearly to death, tortured in heinous ways, tricked, and also gets the chance to play the trickster. It is not the sort of thing you read your child before bed. Most compelling was the sudden and unnerving resolution which goes into some detail about the mysterious cult of Isis, and how our protagonist turns over a new, pagan leaf. I noticed plenty of Christian and pagan references, though I suspect some of them were clarified by the modern translator.
Apuleius maintains an irreverent tone, and inspires great sadness in this reader, for all of the lost literature of ancient times. Reading Roman and Greek classics are an exercise in comparison for me. In a lot of ways, people have not changed over the centuries. We still suffer from the same debilitating desires, the same quirks and the same proclivities, but the society arounds us does something to mold our characters, perhaps.
The book has entertained and probably concerned many people since time immemorial. For something more tame, try Longus' Daphnis and Chloe.
July 30, 2018
Les M茅tamorphoses ou l'芒ne d'or est le seul roman latin qui nous soit parvenu de l'补苍迟颈辩耻颈迟茅 sans avoir 茅t茅 mutil茅, comme le de P茅trone. 脡crit au II猫me si猫cle par Apul茅e, un auteur du sud de la m茅diterran茅e, ce roman narre les tribulations de Lucius, un jeune patricien d茅vor茅 par une immense curiosit茅 : avide de plaisirs et de nouveaut茅s, rien ne le rebute tant qu'il s'agit de d茅couvrir quelque sujet d'茅tonnement. Ses p茅r茅grinations le m猫nent en Gr猫ce, en Thessalie, terre plus que fameuse pour ses sorci猫res dont les voyageurs narrent les exploits 脿 leurs acolytes avides de frissons. Il suffit que sa nourrice le mette en garde contre une voisine r茅put茅e pratiquer les arts occultes pour que notre h茅ros soit irr茅sistiblement attir茅 par la maison de cette dame. S茅duisant une des esclaves du logis, il parvient 脿 la convaincre de lui permettre d'assister en secret 脿 une s茅ance de magie ordonn茅e par la maitresse de sa conqu锚te. T茅moins d'une m茅tamorphose en oiseau de la sorci猫re, et br没lant d'essayer sur lui-m锚me une exp茅rience si palpitante, il gagne 脿 锚tre transform茅 non pas en animal volant, mais en quadrup猫de brailleur : un 芒ne !
Cette transformation va 锚tre le pr茅texte d'un voyage de plus de dix livres 脿 travers la Gr猫ce, nous permettant ainsi de rencontrer les milieux les plus divers. Si cette trame permet de tirer quelques traits de satire, en nous peignant toutes sortes de soci茅t茅s et de caract猫res, ce n'est qu'un des moindres aspects du romans qui offre plut么t la part belle au fantastique, 脿 l'horreur, au comique et 脿 l'茅rotisme. On pourrait croire 脿 une rencontre des mille et une nuits, du , du et des m茅moires de Casanova, en plus brut et en plus sauvage, tant la vari茅t茅 des sujets, des styles et des sentiments accompagne avec bonheur l'entrelacement des r茅cits, contes, farces, qui se succ猫dent agr茅ablement les uns aux autres. L'芒ne h茅ro茂que va jusqu'脿 philosopher, avec parcimonie, et presque en s'excusant pour ne pas ennuyer le lecteur. L'un des contes les plus fameux contenu dans ce roman n'est autre que celui de Cupidon et Psych茅, qui ressemble si fort aux , la mythologie gr茅co-romaine en plus. C'est une lecture fort distrayante, dont la force des inventions vivifie le charmant pittoresque de cette 补苍迟颈辩耻颈迟茅 perdue, qui rena卯t sous nos yeux, par茅e de ses couleurs les plus authentiques.
August 29, 2020
Lucian longs to experience real magic. When he discovers it, an unfortunate misstep turns him into the title character. In the shape of an ass, Lucian suffers through a series of misadventures.
I wonder when Apuleius was writing The Golden Ass, if he ever imagined this particular novel would be the only one written in Latin to have made it through his time to ours in its entirety.
Perhaps that's an unfair question, because how could a writer imagine something like that?
But if he could have somehow foreseen it, I think that he would have written something different than this rambling, depressing, occasionally obscene adventure. Or maybe not. Maybe it summoned up his society nicely.
Hypothetical ramblings aside, it didn't make for an enjoyable reading experience.
A very large consideration for readers of The Golden Ass is the quality of the translation and how that may affect your enjoyment of the book. A friend and I read this book in tandem and this particular problem became clear quite quickly.
My edition, borrowed from the library, is a reprint of a translation by William Adlington in "Oxenford, September 1566," and comes complete with the spelling and idiosyncrasies of his era.
"You perhappes (sic) that are of an obstinate minde (sic) and grosse (sic) eares (sic), mocke (sic) and contemme (sic) those things which are reported for truth, know you not that it is accounted untrue by the depraved opinion of men, which either is rarely seene (sic), seldome (sic) heard, or passeth the capacitie (sic) of mans reason, which if it be more narrowly scanned, you shall not onely (sic) finde (sic) it evident and plaine (sic), but also very easy to be brought to passe." pgs 14-15, ebook
I found many passages "passeth the capacitie of" my reason because the nearly five hundred years between Adlington's translation and this made so much of it nearly unintelligible.
My friend read a modern translation by Penguin Publishing and reported a more positive reading experience. If given a choice between the two, please do pick the more modern version.
"Verily shee (sic) is a Magitian (sic), which hath power to rule the heavens, to bringe (sic) downe (sic) the sky, to beare (sic) up the earth, to turne (sic) the waters into hills and the hills into running waters, to lift up the terrestrial spirits into the aire (sic), and to pull the gods out of the heavens, to extinguish the planets, and to lighten the deepe (sic) darknesse (sic) of hell." pg 19, ebook
Translation problems aside, I found the bulk of the story to be repetitive and, on the main, depressing. Things get worse and worse for our hero.
Yes, there is some measure of relief when we reach the end of our story and explore the mysteries of a cult whose rituals have been forgotten to history. But between the beatings and, as I mentioned, various obscene interludes, the end couldn't come fast enough. Poor Lucian, "poore" William Adlington, and poor me!
The version I read of The Golden Ass, I recommend only for English majors, classicists or religious scholars. The appeal for modern readers just isn't there.
I wonder when Apuleius was writing The Golden Ass, if he ever imagined this particular novel would be the only one written in Latin to have made it through his time to ours in its entirety.
Perhaps that's an unfair question, because how could a writer imagine something like that?
But if he could have somehow foreseen it, I think that he would have written something different than this rambling, depressing, occasionally obscene adventure. Or maybe not. Maybe it summoned up his society nicely.
Hypothetical ramblings aside, it didn't make for an enjoyable reading experience.
A very large consideration for readers of The Golden Ass is the quality of the translation and how that may affect your enjoyment of the book. A friend and I read this book in tandem and this particular problem became clear quite quickly.
My edition, borrowed from the library, is a reprint of a translation by William Adlington in "Oxenford, September 1566," and comes complete with the spelling and idiosyncrasies of his era.
"You perhappes (sic) that are of an obstinate minde (sic) and grosse (sic) eares (sic), mocke (sic) and contemme (sic) those things which are reported for truth, know you not that it is accounted untrue by the depraved opinion of men, which either is rarely seene (sic), seldome (sic) heard, or passeth the capacitie (sic) of mans reason, which if it be more narrowly scanned, you shall not onely (sic) finde (sic) it evident and plaine (sic), but also very easy to be brought to passe." pgs 14-15, ebook
I found many passages "passeth the capacitie of" my reason because the nearly five hundred years between Adlington's translation and this made so much of it nearly unintelligible.
My friend read a modern translation by Penguin Publishing and reported a more positive reading experience. If given a choice between the two, please do pick the more modern version.
"Verily shee (sic) is a Magitian (sic), which hath power to rule the heavens, to bringe (sic) downe (sic) the sky, to beare (sic) up the earth, to turne (sic) the waters into hills and the hills into running waters, to lift up the terrestrial spirits into the aire (sic), and to pull the gods out of the heavens, to extinguish the planets, and to lighten the deepe (sic) darknesse (sic) of hell." pg 19, ebook
Translation problems aside, I found the bulk of the story to be repetitive and, on the main, depressing. Things get worse and worse for our hero.
Yes, there is some measure of relief when we reach the end of our story and explore the mysteries of a cult whose rituals have been forgotten to history. But between the beatings and, as I mentioned, various obscene interludes, the end couldn't come fast enough. Poor Lucian, "poore" William Adlington, and poor me!
The version I read of The Golden Ass, I recommend only for English majors, classicists or religious scholars. The appeal for modern readers just isn't there.
September 15, 2015
Picked it up on a whim & what a rollicking ride it turned out to be!听
It could very well be a tale told by the granny - full of magic & adventure (with all the salacious bits cut out of course, but that would make it a very short tale!).
A parable, a road trip, a romance, with diversions, tales within tales, satire, containing tragedies bordering on the grotesque & farcical, bawdy comedy, sexual escapades & deviance of various sorts - ancient literature was so rich, no wonder our literary greats turned to these texts for inspiration!
Written in the 2nd century AD, the only complete Latin novel to have survived,The Golden Ass' one singular feature is its contemporaneity鈥攖he book feels so modern! Whether it's in the tale or its narration or translation; is hard to say. The meta aspect, moral lawlessness & subsequent spiritual regeneration or metamorphosis are likely to strike a chord - the central placement in the narrative of the story of Cupid and Psyche is specially relevant in this regard as it's a commentary on the ordeal & final deliverance of the hero. It also presents a sharp contrast on the baser & higher forms of love & thus shows the Platonic influence of Apuleinus.
This book will appeal to the philosophers ( with its rich grounding in philosophical thoughts & classical myths & legends) & the religious-minded.
There is entertainment as well as edification here. Do give it a try.
Here's a passage I liked:
"Now, you sweepings of humanity, you beasts of the bar, you gowned vultures, do you wonder that nowadays all judges and juries put their verdicts up for sale, when in the very dawn of time, in a suit between gods and men, the course of justice was perverted by corruption and subornation? When a judge chosen by the wisdom of great Jupiter, a rustic shepherd-boy, sold the first judicial decision in history to gratify his lust and destroyed his whole race into the bargain? Yes, and there was that later case between the two famous Greek generals, when the wise and learned Palamedes was falsely accused of treason and condemned to death and Ulysses was preferred to Ajax, greatest and most valiant of warriors. And what about that verdict that was returned by the Athenians, those acute lawgivers with their encyclopedic learning? An old man of godlike understanding, whom the Delphic oracle had pronounced the wisest of all human beings, ensnared by the malignant envy of a vile faction on the charge of corrupting the young, whom he had always curbed and restrained, was put to death by the deadly juice of a poisonous weed, leaving his fellow countrymen bearing the stigma of perpetual shame -- when now, all those years later, distinguished philosophers embrace his doctrines as holy writ and in their devoted pursuit of happiness swear by his name. But I have allowed myself to be carried away by my indignation, and my readers may be objecting -- 'Do we now have to put up with an ass playing the philosopher?' So I will come back to where I digressed in my story." Book 10.
It could very well be a tale told by the granny - full of magic & adventure (with all the salacious bits cut out of course, but that would make it a very short tale!).
A parable, a road trip, a romance, with diversions, tales within tales, satire, containing tragedies bordering on the grotesque & farcical, bawdy comedy, sexual escapades & deviance of various sorts - ancient literature was so rich, no wonder our literary greats turned to these texts for inspiration!
Written in the 2nd century AD, the only complete Latin novel to have survived,The Golden Ass' one singular feature is its contemporaneity鈥攖he book feels so modern! Whether it's in the tale or its narration or translation; is hard to say. The meta aspect, moral lawlessness & subsequent spiritual regeneration or metamorphosis are likely to strike a chord - the central placement in the narrative of the story of Cupid and Psyche is specially relevant in this regard as it's a commentary on the ordeal & final deliverance of the hero. It also presents a sharp contrast on the baser & higher forms of love & thus shows the Platonic influence of Apuleinus.
This book will appeal to the philosophers ( with its rich grounding in philosophical thoughts & classical myths & legends) & the religious-minded.
There is entertainment as well as edification here. Do give it a try.
Here's a passage I liked:
"Now, you sweepings of humanity, you beasts of the bar, you gowned vultures, do you wonder that nowadays all judges and juries put their verdicts up for sale, when in the very dawn of time, in a suit between gods and men, the course of justice was perverted by corruption and subornation? When a judge chosen by the wisdom of great Jupiter, a rustic shepherd-boy, sold the first judicial decision in history to gratify his lust and destroyed his whole race into the bargain? Yes, and there was that later case between the two famous Greek generals, when the wise and learned Palamedes was falsely accused of treason and condemned to death and Ulysses was preferred to Ajax, greatest and most valiant of warriors. And what about that verdict that was returned by the Athenians, those acute lawgivers with their encyclopedic learning? An old man of godlike understanding, whom the Delphic oracle had pronounced the wisest of all human beings, ensnared by the malignant envy of a vile faction on the charge of corrupting the young, whom he had always curbed and restrained, was put to death by the deadly juice of a poisonous weed, leaving his fellow countrymen bearing the stigma of perpetual shame -- when now, all those years later, distinguished philosophers embrace his doctrines as holy writ and in their devoted pursuit of happiness swear by his name. But I have allowed myself to be carried away by my indignation, and my readers may be objecting -- 'Do we now have to put up with an ass playing the philosopher?' So I will come back to where I digressed in my story." Book 10.
December 31, 2019
亘毓丿 爻賳賵丕鬲 胤賵賷賱丞 賲賳 丕賱鬲兀噩賷賱
兀賯乇兀賴丕 氐賵鬲賷丕
兀賯乇兀賴丕 氐賵鬲賷丕
June 14, 2018
WARNING: This rating is based on the opinion and feelings of a teenager ; )
I don't remember exactly when I read this book. I do remember however, that it was a school assignment and that I might have been 13 or 14 years old. My judgment back then was vastly different from my judgment now and it wasn't a book I chose to read voluntarily but was forced to read it instead, which worsened things since I tended to hate every book my teachers wanted me to read on principle alone.
Anyways, since I haven鈥檛 read it again, all I have as a guide are my thoughts about The Golden Ass from back then, so I do want to be loyal to my young feelings and just say what I thought of the book when I was still blooming:
Generally speaking I found it dragging. OK, fine! I thought it was incredibly boring! I was a kid reading a huge classic what did you expect!(I know is not huge at all, it just felt that way to me :P) But! There was a part of the book that utterly enthralled me and I absolutely loved; it was where the myth about Cupid and Psyche was told. It was sooo beautiful that that鈥檚 when I got interested in Greek mythology for the very first time.
So I started reading The Golden Ass and I was like:
[image error]
Then Cupid鈥檚 and Psyche鈥檚 myth started and I was like:
The myth continued and I was like:
Then the myth ended and we went back to the main storyline, and so until the very end I was like:
[image error]
The End.
I don't remember exactly when I read this book. I do remember however, that it was a school assignment and that I might have been 13 or 14 years old. My judgment back then was vastly different from my judgment now and it wasn't a book I chose to read voluntarily but was forced to read it instead, which worsened things since I tended to hate every book my teachers wanted me to read on principle alone.
Anyways, since I haven鈥檛 read it again, all I have as a guide are my thoughts about The Golden Ass from back then, so I do want to be loyal to my young feelings and just say what I thought of the book when I was still blooming:
Generally speaking I found it dragging. OK, fine! I thought it was incredibly boring! I was a kid reading a huge classic what did you expect!(I know is not huge at all, it just felt that way to me :P) But! There was a part of the book that utterly enthralled me and I absolutely loved; it was where the myth about Cupid and Psyche was told. It was sooo beautiful that that鈥檚 when I got interested in Greek mythology for the very first time.
So I started reading The Golden Ass and I was like:
[image error]
Then Cupid鈥檚 and Psyche鈥檚 myth started and I was like:
The myth continued and I was like:
Then the myth ended and we went back to the main storyline, and so until the very end I was like:
[image error]
The End.
December 2, 2017
"廿賳 廿賱賴丞 丕賱丨馗 鬲購毓乇賾囟賳丕 賱兀丨賰丕賲 賲乇賷亘丞貙 亘賱 禺丕胤卅丞貙 賮賷賳毓賲 丕賱爻丕賮賱 亘爻賲毓丞 丕賱乇噩賱 丕賱卮乇賷賮貙 賵賷卮賯賶 丕賱亘乇賷亍 亘氐賷鬲 丕賱乇噩賱 丕賱卮乇賷乇."
賷購賯丕賱 廿賳 賴匕賴 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 賴賷 丕賱兀賵賱賶 賮賷 丕賱鬲丕乇賷禺 丕賱亘卮乇賷貙 賵毓賱賶 丕賱乇睾賲 賲賳 賯賽丿賲賴丕 廿賱賾丕 兀賳賴丕 鬲夭禺乇 亘丌賷丕鬲 丕賱噩賲丕賱 賵丕賱丿賴卮丞 賵丕賱廿鬲賯丕賳.
鬲丿賵乇 兀丨丿丕孬 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 賮賷 賲賰丕賳 賲丕 賲賳 丕賱廿賲亘乇丕胤賵乇賷丞 丕賱賷賵賳丕賳賷丞 丕賱賯丿賷賲丞 丨賵賱 卮丕亘 賷購丿毓賶 兀亘賵賱賷賵爻 賱賵賰賷賵爻 丕賱賮囟賵賱賷 丕賱賲睾丕賲乇 丕賱賲購賴鬲賲 噩丿賸丕 亘兀賲賵乇 丕賱爻丨乇 賵丕賱鬲丨賵賾賱丕鬲貙 丕賱匕賷 賯丕丿賴 賮囟賵賱賴 賱賱鬲丨賵賾賱 廿賱賶 丨賲丕乇 賵賲賳 賴賳丕 亘丿兀鬲 兀丨丿丕孬 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 丕賱賰孬賷乇丞.
鬲丨鬲賵賷 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 亘丕賱廿囟丕賮丞 賱賯氐鬲賴丕 丕賱乇卅賷爻賷丞 毓賳 鬲丨賵賾賱 賱賵賰賷賵爻 廿賱賶 賯氐氐 兀禺乇賶 鬲丿賵乇 兀丨丿丕孬賴丕 丨賵賱 丕賱毓丿賷丿 賲賳 丨賵丕丿孬 丕賱賲噩鬲賲毓 丌賳匕丕賰 賵賯氐氐 丕賱丌賱賴丞 丕賱毓丿賷丿丞 賵丕賱鬲賷 賷賳鬲賯丿 賲賳 禺賱丕賱賴丕 賱賵賰賷賵爻 鈥撠з勝呚べ勝�- 丕賱賲噩鬲賲毓 賵丕賱賳丕爻 賮賷 毓氐乇賴.
乇賵丕賷丞 卮丿賷丿丞 丕賱廿亘丿丕毓 丨賯賸賾丕貙 賵兀丿賴卮鬲賳賷 亘鬲賮丕氐賷賱賴丕 賵乇賵毓鬲賴丕.
...
賷購賯丕賱 廿賳 賴匕賴 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 賴賷 丕賱兀賵賱賶 賮賷 丕賱鬲丕乇賷禺 丕賱亘卮乇賷貙 賵毓賱賶 丕賱乇睾賲 賲賳 賯賽丿賲賴丕 廿賱賾丕 兀賳賴丕 鬲夭禺乇 亘丌賷丕鬲 丕賱噩賲丕賱 賵丕賱丿賴卮丞 賵丕賱廿鬲賯丕賳.
鬲丿賵乇 兀丨丿丕孬 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 賮賷 賲賰丕賳 賲丕 賲賳 丕賱廿賲亘乇丕胤賵乇賷丞 丕賱賷賵賳丕賳賷丞 丕賱賯丿賷賲丞 丨賵賱 卮丕亘 賷購丿毓賶 兀亘賵賱賷賵爻 賱賵賰賷賵爻 丕賱賮囟賵賱賷 丕賱賲睾丕賲乇 丕賱賲購賴鬲賲 噩丿賸丕 亘兀賲賵乇 丕賱爻丨乇 賵丕賱鬲丨賵賾賱丕鬲貙 丕賱匕賷 賯丕丿賴 賮囟賵賱賴 賱賱鬲丨賵賾賱 廿賱賶 丨賲丕乇 賵賲賳 賴賳丕 亘丿兀鬲 兀丨丿丕孬 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 丕賱賰孬賷乇丞.
鬲丨鬲賵賷 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 亘丕賱廿囟丕賮丞 賱賯氐鬲賴丕 丕賱乇卅賷爻賷丞 毓賳 鬲丨賵賾賱 賱賵賰賷賵爻 廿賱賶 賯氐氐 兀禺乇賶 鬲丿賵乇 兀丨丿丕孬賴丕 丨賵賱 丕賱毓丿賷丿 賲賳 丨賵丕丿孬 丕賱賲噩鬲賲毓 丌賳匕丕賰 賵賯氐氐 丕賱丌賱賴丞 丕賱毓丿賷丿丞 賵丕賱鬲賷 賷賳鬲賯丿 賲賳 禺賱丕賱賴丕 賱賵賰賷賵爻 鈥撠з勝呚べ勝�- 丕賱賲噩鬲賲毓 賵丕賱賳丕爻 賮賷 毓氐乇賴.
乇賵丕賷丞 卮丿賷丿丞 丕賱廿亘丿丕毓 丨賯賸賾丕貙 賵兀丿賴卮鬲賳賷 亘鬲賮丕氐賷賱賴丕 賵乇賵毓鬲賴丕.
...
February 24, 2022
This novel dating from circa AD 160 is the only novel of that era written in Latin that has survived in its entirety. Thus it's a unique glimpse into second century life and humor. The story's narrative tells of the adventures of one Lucius who's curiosity leads him to experiment with some magic potions and inadvertently turns himself into a donkey.
In the form of an ass he proceeds to pass through the possession of a series of owners including robber bandits, religious fraudsters, spoiled boys, and others. This produces a series of what in effect are a series of short stories in which the donkey is repeatedly faced with impending doom such as being butchered and/or castrated. The story includes lustful moments that only a man in the guise of an ass could fully appreciate, such as being ridden by a beautiful young woman or even sexual congress with a horny woman.
Portions of the book's narrative could be classified as porn. Its intent seems to be a satire of human appetites including several examples of unfaithful wives. I saw one description of the book as being a .
That's a good description until the final chapter in which the protagonist is so thankful to Isis for being changed back into a human that he joins the . That's followed by joining two more religious cults. This last chapter came across as a sober promotion of the merits of religious cults. The last chapter seemed to me to have a different tone from the rest of the book, but perhaps to a second century reader it would have also been satirical.
It's interesting to note that the author in his real life was once legally charged with using magic to win the affections of a wealthy women. That almost sounds like one of the stories in this book! He also was initiated into several religious cults, so it would seem that portions of this book are autobiographical鈥攅xcepting the donkey part.
Since the book was written in the middle of the second century I wondered if the story would include any recognition of the new cult of Christianity. The author was obviously interested in religion, but apparently he wasn't sufficiently impressed with this new variation on Judaism to include any reference to it.
In the form of an ass he proceeds to pass through the possession of a series of owners including robber bandits, religious fraudsters, spoiled boys, and others. This produces a series of what in effect are a series of short stories in which the donkey is repeatedly faced with impending doom such as being butchered and/or castrated. The story includes lustful moments that only a man in the guise of an ass could fully appreciate, such as being ridden by a beautiful young woman or even sexual congress with a horny woman.
Portions of the book's narrative could be classified as porn. Its intent seems to be a satire of human appetites including several examples of unfaithful wives. I saw one description of the book as being a .
That's a good description until the final chapter in which the protagonist is so thankful to Isis for being changed back into a human that he joins the . That's followed by joining two more religious cults. This last chapter came across as a sober promotion of the merits of religious cults. The last chapter seemed to me to have a different tone from the rest of the book, but perhaps to a second century reader it would have also been satirical.
It's interesting to note that the author in his real life was once legally charged with using magic to win the affections of a wealthy women. That almost sounds like one of the stories in this book! He also was initiated into several religious cults, so it would seem that portions of this book are autobiographical鈥攅xcepting the donkey part.
Since the book was written in the middle of the second century I wondered if the story would include any recognition of the new cult of Christianity. The author was obviously interested in religion, but apparently he wasn't sufficiently impressed with this new variation on Judaism to include any reference to it.
September 18, 2018
O burro de ouro foi publicado pela primeira vez em 158 e eu sinto-me uma asna por o ter tido na estante dos n茫o lidos mais de tr锚s anos, com receio (por se tratar de uma antiguidade) de ser dif铆cil, aborrecido e mais umas quantas desculpas que nos levam a rejeitar este tipo de cl谩ssicos. S贸 vos digo que me diverti que nem uma maluca.
O narrador 茅 L煤cio, um mocinho que se mete em bruxarias deixando-se untar com uma pomada pensando que se transformaria em p谩ssaro e, por uma troca da caixinha do unguento, acaba em corpo de burro. Devido a este pequeno lapso vai ter de alombar com muitos carregos e levar muitas verdascadas.
Al茅m dos supl铆cios padecidos pelo pobre L煤cio jumento (que me puseram sempre a rir) s茫o narradas um sem fim de hist贸rias; umas de grande crueldade, outras um tanto pornogr谩ficas. A mais extensa e bonita (s贸 por ela vale a pena esta leitura) 茅 a de Amor e Psique.
(Antonio Canova, Cupid and Psyche)
O narrador 茅 L煤cio, um mocinho que se mete em bruxarias deixando-se untar com uma pomada pensando que se transformaria em p谩ssaro e, por uma troca da caixinha do unguento, acaba em corpo de burro. Devido a este pequeno lapso vai ter de alombar com muitos carregos e levar muitas verdascadas.
Al茅m dos supl铆cios padecidos pelo pobre L煤cio jumento (que me puseram sempre a rir) s茫o narradas um sem fim de hist贸rias; umas de grande crueldade, outras um tanto pornogr谩ficas. A mais extensa e bonita (s贸 por ela vale a pena esta leitura) 茅 a de Amor e Psique.
(Antonio Canova, Cupid and Psyche)
September 4, 2021
"It is a difficult matter to keep love imprisoned."
Written in the second century AD originally in Latin this book is packed with often grisly stories and striking characters. The narrator, Lucius, travels to Thessaly, the land of witchcraft, where he is accidentally transformed in to an ass as a result of his foolish curiosity about witchcraft.
Lucius starts out as a thoughtless, womanising glutton who basically acts like an ass, and so is transformed into one.He has a pretty rough time of it in his asinine form, trapped in a world of depravity, where violence, cruelty and sexual lust are rife until tiring of abuse at the hands of cruel owners, near death experiences and other shameful circumstances, he finally gives himself up to prayer and is restored by divine intervention by the Goddess Isis. "I have come in pity of your plight, I have come to favour and aid you. Weep no more, lament no longer, for the hour of your deliverance, shone over by my watchful light, is at hand." After his restoration he puts his former ways behind him and lives happily as a lawyer.
Although the book is a fantasy, by turns grim, funny and bawdy the underlying theme is a moral and a religious one, of the soul's redemption by divine love.
A lot of the humour is somewhat crude which really seemed at odds with the oldie-world language used but all the same the story rolls along at a good pace. There are many side stories, including a lengthy section describing the story of Cupid and Psyche, but overall I felt that these helped the main story to flow rather than in any way hinder it.
I'm not sure what my expectations were before I opened this book but they were most definitely dumbfounded. I anticipated some religious undertones but I certainly didn't expect it's bawdy nature, equally I found it a relatively easy, quick and enjoyable read once I got a feel for the language whereas I was expecting a bit of a slog. Nor did I anticipate it being so graphic. I felt that the final chapter was a little too overblown but my main complaint was that in my version of this book the word 'divers' was misused on numerous occasions instead of the word 'diverse', this really did begin to bug me towards the end of it. But these are only very minor gripes.
Don't be afraid to tackle this book because of its age, you may be surprised. As Apuleius puts it himself in his introduction: 鈥淚f you are not put off by the Egyptian story-telling convention that allows humans to be changed into animals and, after various adventures, restored to their proper shapes, you should be amused by this queer novel鈥� now read on and enjoy yourself!鈥�
Written in the second century AD originally in Latin this book is packed with often grisly stories and striking characters. The narrator, Lucius, travels to Thessaly, the land of witchcraft, where he is accidentally transformed in to an ass as a result of his foolish curiosity about witchcraft.
Lucius starts out as a thoughtless, womanising glutton who basically acts like an ass, and so is transformed into one.He has a pretty rough time of it in his asinine form, trapped in a world of depravity, where violence, cruelty and sexual lust are rife until tiring of abuse at the hands of cruel owners, near death experiences and other shameful circumstances, he finally gives himself up to prayer and is restored by divine intervention by the Goddess Isis. "I have come in pity of your plight, I have come to favour and aid you. Weep no more, lament no longer, for the hour of your deliverance, shone over by my watchful light, is at hand." After his restoration he puts his former ways behind him and lives happily as a lawyer.
Although the book is a fantasy, by turns grim, funny and bawdy the underlying theme is a moral and a religious one, of the soul's redemption by divine love.
A lot of the humour is somewhat crude which really seemed at odds with the oldie-world language used but all the same the story rolls along at a good pace. There are many side stories, including a lengthy section describing the story of Cupid and Psyche, but overall I felt that these helped the main story to flow rather than in any way hinder it.
I'm not sure what my expectations were before I opened this book but they were most definitely dumbfounded. I anticipated some religious undertones but I certainly didn't expect it's bawdy nature, equally I found it a relatively easy, quick and enjoyable read once I got a feel for the language whereas I was expecting a bit of a slog. Nor did I anticipate it being so graphic. I felt that the final chapter was a little too overblown but my main complaint was that in my version of this book the word 'divers' was misused on numerous occasions instead of the word 'diverse', this really did begin to bug me towards the end of it. But these are only very minor gripes.
Don't be afraid to tackle this book because of its age, you may be surprised. As Apuleius puts it himself in his introduction: 鈥淚f you are not put off by the Egyptian story-telling convention that allows humans to be changed into animals and, after various adventures, restored to their proper shapes, you should be amused by this queer novel鈥� now read on and enjoy yourself!鈥�
February 24, 2019
(Illustration by Jean de Bosschere, )
13. The Golden Ass, or, Metamorphoses by Apuleius
translation from Latin by E. J. Kenney
Originally written: ~160 ce
format: 295 page Penguin Classics paperback
acquired: December, from a Half-Price
read: Jan 31 鈥� Feb 20
time reading: 13 hr 55 min, 2.8 min/page
rating: 4
I don't think I ever fully appreciated what I was reading here. This is a pleasant read, especially as translated by Kenney, but probably also for native Latin speakers of its time as well. Lucius is a nice guy, he loves to observe and hear and tell stories, he likes sex, gets a little carried away, and he is really curious, especially about magic. All in one instant he takes the wrong potion, finds himself turned into an ass (similar dual meaning in Latin as in English), just as the house is robbed, and he is taken away as part of the booty. He winds up the pack animal for a den of thieves without anyone he even knows other than his horse, also captured. And that's just the beginning. There is much more to come: adventures, horrible deaths, tragedy, humor, performance, deceit, religious con-men, mythology, more sex (even in donkey form!), and finally a humorous window into a mystery cult, the cult of Isis.
Every time I picked this up I tried to remind myself that this is the only existing Roman novel (well, wikipedia says "Latin" novel). And every time I read the notes, which are really nice, Kenney would remind me of the meanings relevant to the era, but while reading I couldn't figure out a way to keep that in mind, I just wandered along with Lucius, my own humor a little less tolerant than his, but still I could appreciate it; I could especially appreciated his love for stories. He would let us know he heard a story he really wanted to write down to preserve (but obviously had to wait till he figured out a way to undo the potion) and then pause the other action to relate this story.
Apuleius was apparently quite a character in real life. Raised in northern Africa, educated in Carthage, and later in Greece where he studies Platonism, he would travel much of the Roman Empire in his life, become involved in the mystery cults in Rome, return to Africa where he married a wealthy widow and was, famously, charged with using magic to win her. His defense was equally famous, and has been preserved for us. His whole story takes place in Greece, which makes sense since he took the story, it's first person perspective, the leading character's name and all its main plot points from an earlier, now lost, Greek novel. In a sense, he translated into Latin, but he embellished a great deal, and most of his side stories, including a wonderful lengthy mythological bit on Cupid and Psyche, are additions. He named his novel Metamorphoses, referencing Ovid who he imitates to a small degree. (Apuleius was not writing poetry, or even difficult prose. He wrote in a simple, straight-forward Latin.) His style, this first person casual confessional, was imitated by St Augustine, who was also from northern Africa, and who derisively called Apuleius's book The Golden Ass. The name has stuck.
July 16, 2012
a masterpiece ,so interesting and entertaining as a read. for beneath the humorous and the sharp ironies lay a religious and philosophical thoughtful mind.
Amusing tales within tales, recollections of characters of various misadventures and misfortunes ....
Lucius A wandering spirit Suffering in his heedless traveling over the world in order to work out his salvation.
Interesting how magic plays a prominent role in the everyday life.
His deep love of life with his eager and curiosity , and mocking personality,And interest on magic transmogrifications,leads him to asks his new mistress to apply one of the forbidden magic spells on him. He aimed to become a bird, flying everywhere...
She applies the wrong potion and Lucius turns into an ass.
And here begins a series of adventures from which Lucius repeatedly changes masters while still an ass. The masters are invariably cruel, abusing Lucius , He is eternally beaten and degraded, and threatened with death and castration more than once .
The novel serves a window into Roman society, one sees every level and division of society, which produces a more accurate view of life for the common man.the problems of misused power ,and wives whom cheat on husbands, and husbands who many times kill their wives' lovers.
The importance of religion, especially for Lucius, comes to light upon Lucius rebirth into his human form by the work of the goddess Isis. After this rebirth Lucius seems to find his final and ultimate purpose for his life and realizes how the events that have taken place, leads him to what he was searching for..
The myth of Psyche and Cupid is what I admired most in the novel
A fascinating and exciting love story that can overcome all barriers and be blind to faults.
Psyche鈥檚 beauty gives her no pleasure, but separates her from others. Her father, unable to find a husband for her, goes to the oracle for advice.
Cupid falls in love with Psyche but conceals his identity from her, visiting her only at night. Fearing he is an evil person, she looks at him, although forbidden to do so. Cupid then abandons her.
Amusing tales within tales, recollections of characters of various misadventures and misfortunes ....
Lucius A wandering spirit Suffering in his heedless traveling over the world in order to work out his salvation.
Interesting how magic plays a prominent role in the everyday life.
His deep love of life with his eager and curiosity , and mocking personality,And interest on magic transmogrifications,leads him to asks his new mistress to apply one of the forbidden magic spells on him. He aimed to become a bird, flying everywhere...
She applies the wrong potion and Lucius turns into an ass.
And here begins a series of adventures from which Lucius repeatedly changes masters while still an ass. The masters are invariably cruel, abusing Lucius , He is eternally beaten and degraded, and threatened with death and castration more than once .
The novel serves a window into Roman society, one sees every level and division of society, which produces a more accurate view of life for the common man.the problems of misused power ,and wives whom cheat on husbands, and husbands who many times kill their wives' lovers.
The importance of religion, especially for Lucius, comes to light upon Lucius rebirth into his human form by the work of the goddess Isis. After this rebirth Lucius seems to find his final and ultimate purpose for his life and realizes how the events that have taken place, leads him to what he was searching for..
The myth of Psyche and Cupid is what I admired most in the novel
A fascinating and exciting love story that can overcome all barriers and be blind to faults.
Psyche鈥檚 beauty gives her no pleasure, but separates her from others. Her father, unable to find a husband for her, goes to the oracle for advice.
Cupid falls in love with Psyche but conceals his identity from her, visiting her only at night. Fearing he is an evil person, she looks at him, although forbidden to do so. Cupid then abandons her.
October 27, 2020
Spending every summer of childhood in a cabin in the woods without television, I became quite a reader early on. Much of what I read was determined by what I could find--mostly books owned by my paternal grandmother, Lajla.
'The Golden Ass' was a desperate choice. It had the advantage of not being a detective or a mystery novel, her apparent favorites. It wasn't an abridged book either--she had quite the collection of those. I had some interest in ancient history, if only from the movies and the gross distortions which passed for ancient history in elementary school. Besides, it looked to be funny--a man turned into an ass--and isn't that a dirty word?
I took it down to my bedroom, opening it in warm, late afternoon sunshine, and read the introduction by Robert Graves. In that he attacks other translator's, showing how his work is better, in part because he does not censor the spicy bits. He gives an example of such a bit. My penis hardens. This has never happened before. I'm not quite sure what to make of it. Surely, it is shameful, but it's nice too. I'm committed to reading a second century Roman novel and finish it in record time.
Years later, I wonder what was so exciting. The passage in question was a brief one about a slave girl in loose shift stirring a pot. The novel, while funny and sometimes bawdy, is actually a religious confession, like Saint Augustine's 'Confessions' except dedicated to Isis and her mysteries. Unlock that and you'll understand something about how different ancient religion was from what we think of as religion.
'The Golden Ass' was a desperate choice. It had the advantage of not being a detective or a mystery novel, her apparent favorites. It wasn't an abridged book either--she had quite the collection of those. I had some interest in ancient history, if only from the movies and the gross distortions which passed for ancient history in elementary school. Besides, it looked to be funny--a man turned into an ass--and isn't that a dirty word?
I took it down to my bedroom, opening it in warm, late afternoon sunshine, and read the introduction by Robert Graves. In that he attacks other translator's, showing how his work is better, in part because he does not censor the spicy bits. He gives an example of such a bit. My penis hardens. This has never happened before. I'm not quite sure what to make of it. Surely, it is shameful, but it's nice too. I'm committed to reading a second century Roman novel and finish it in record time.
Years later, I wonder what was so exciting. The passage in question was a brief one about a slave girl in loose shift stirring a pot. The novel, while funny and sometimes bawdy, is actually a religious confession, like Saint Augustine's 'Confessions' except dedicated to Isis and her mysteries. Unlock that and you'll understand something about how different ancient religion was from what we think of as religion.
August 4, 2014
Bestiality. Kidnapping. Mugging. Ye olde carjacking. Burglary. Assault. Murder. Female paedophiles. Incest. Male rape. Adultery. Animal cruelty. Serial killers in the making. Poisonings. Homosexual priest gangbangs. Shapeshifting. Gods and goddesses. The Seven Deadly Sins. Evil mother-in-laws. Drama. Comedy. Tragedy. Adventure. Romance. Horror. Urban legends. Stories within stories. Inspiration for that Hannibal episode where a person was sewn into a dead horse's belly.
What doesn't The Golden Ass have?
At this point I should probably be comparing The Golden Ass to the brutality shown in Game of Thrones, only this is much less about political maneuvering and Machiavellian plotting, but still, they're both not for the faint of heart. The Golden Ass is one of the first, or the first, human-to-animal transformation stories that run in the same vein as Disney's Brother Bear and The Emperor's New Groove.
With all of the beatings Lucius received as a helpless slave in donkey form, carrying loads too heavy for his four-legged form, having his fur set on fire, never allowed rest when he most needs it and forced to continue on or have his feet tied together to be hurled off a cliff - because that's what they did to lame animals - I feel like I need to donate to .
For a 1,900 year old novel, you realise that nothing's really changed in that time, socially speaking.
Sex scenes are surprisingly good. There's no hesitation. No repressed sexuality. No self-esteem issues. And all manner of positions are attempted.
Typical man. Turned into a donkey and he's impressed with the increase in the size of his manhood.
Yelling 'FIRE!' when being burgled and in need of help:
Well, it's been proven. Video games don't make kids violent, a lack of video games does. Imagination is a dangerous thing. So many inventive ways to torture and kill, to humiliate and degrade. The devil makes work for idle hands, as they say. So parents, quickly stuff a Playstation controller into your little one's hands before they turn their minds to dastardly deeds.
Certain aspects of The Golden Ass really do get you thinking about contentious issues.
How do you define bestiality? Lucius is a man turned into a donkey. When it's proposed that he'll be allowed his choice of horses with which to procreate - is that bestiality? Is Lucius's fornication as an ass with a human woman bestiality? Does the fact that he has a human mind inside an animal body change the status of the sexual relationship?
Surprisingly, Apuleius doesn't deliver the stereotype paedophile. A lusty married woman sets her sights on her stepson. Oddly this is labelled incest though there appears to be no blood connection. And it's the same with rape. A cuckolded husband rapes his adulterous wife's toyboy lover as punishment. Perhaps male paedophiles and rapists were stereotypes even 2,000 years ago.
The feminist in me feels compelled to point out the unbalanced female representation. Many women were demonised as witches who pee on men's faces, who steal body parts from the dead, who are complicit in evil deeds, who are nymphomaniacs, adulterers, paedophiles, vain and jealous grudge-holding goddesses. Psyche (myth), Photis (Lucius's servant lover) and Byrrhena (Lucius's aunt) are the only exceptions.
During Lucius's journey, the stories he hears are mostly told at the dinner table, around the fire, as a distraction on a long journey, or as a comfort to distraught kidnap victims. Understandably storytelling was their main form of entertainment. Well, that and gossip, which was free or you provided a meal for the teller. I really enjoyed the mythical telling of Psyche and Cupid.
Each of the 11 'books' are self-contained chapters of about 20 pages with a spoiler-y summary of what's to come at the beginning, so it was easy to dip in and out. I wasn't particularly happy with the ending, in fact I skimmed and skipped around at that point. I can understand Lucius's gratefulness at the chance to become human again, and I'm aware of that ancient tradition of 'a life saved, is a life owed' [see Azeem of 1991's Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves], but I have an issue with blind faith. Lucius walks away from his previous life to devote himself and his future to worshipping his rescuer. That's just weird, from my 21st century non-religious perspective.
The translation very much played a part in my enjoyment of this ancient novel. I carefully researched which was right for me. I chose the Kenney edition as it seemed the least stilted of those available, and I'm glad I made that choice.
I never thought I'd enjoy a 2,000 year old novel, but I did. And you might, too.
*Read as part of The Dead Writer's Society's Around the World challenge.
What doesn't The Golden Ass have?
At this point I should probably be comparing The Golden Ass to the brutality shown in Game of Thrones, only this is much less about political maneuvering and Machiavellian plotting, but still, they're both not for the faint of heart. The Golden Ass is one of the first, or the first, human-to-animal transformation stories that run in the same vein as Disney's Brother Bear and The Emperor's New Groove.
With all of the beatings Lucius received as a helpless slave in donkey form, carrying loads too heavy for his four-legged form, having his fur set on fire, never allowed rest when he most needs it and forced to continue on or have his feet tied together to be hurled off a cliff - because that's what they did to lame animals - I feel like I need to donate to .
For a 1,900 year old novel, you realise that nothing's really changed in that time, socially speaking.
Sex scenes are surprisingly good. There's no hesitation. No repressed sexuality. No self-esteem issues. And all manner of positions are attempted.
'The only redeeming feature of this catastrophic transformation was that my natural endowment had grown too.'
Typical man. Turned into a donkey and he's impressed with the increase in the size of his manhood.
Yelling 'FIRE!' when being burgled and in need of help:
'Then, leaving him there fatally crucified, he climbed to the roof of his hovel and shouted at the top of his voice to summon the neighbours; calling each one by name he gave out that his house had suddenly caught fire, reminding them that this involved the safety of them all. So everybody, frightened by the danger next door, came running in alarm to help.'
Well, it's been proven. Video games don't make kids violent, a lack of video games does. Imagination is a dangerous thing. So many inventive ways to torture and kill, to humiliate and degrade. The devil makes work for idle hands, as they say. So parents, quickly stuff a Playstation controller into your little one's hands before they turn their minds to dastardly deeds.
Certain aspects of The Golden Ass really do get you thinking about contentious issues.
How do you define bestiality? Lucius is a man turned into a donkey. When it's proposed that he'll be allowed his choice of horses with which to procreate - is that bestiality? Is Lucius's fornication as an ass with a human woman bestiality? Does the fact that he has a human mind inside an animal body change the status of the sexual relationship?
Surprisingly, Apuleius doesn't deliver the stereotype paedophile. A lusty married woman sets her sights on her stepson. Oddly this is labelled incest though there appears to be no blood connection. And it's the same with rape. A cuckolded husband rapes his adulterous wife's toyboy lover as punishment. Perhaps male paedophiles and rapists were stereotypes even 2,000 years ago.
The feminist in me feels compelled to point out the unbalanced female representation. Many women were demonised as witches who pee on men's faces, who steal body parts from the dead, who are complicit in evil deeds, who are nymphomaniacs, adulterers, paedophiles, vain and jealous grudge-holding goddesses. Psyche (myth), Photis (Lucius's servant lover) and Byrrhena (Lucius's aunt) are the only exceptions.
The Abduction of Psyche by William-Adolphe Bouguereau
During Lucius's journey, the stories he hears are mostly told at the dinner table, around the fire, as a distraction on a long journey, or as a comfort to distraught kidnap victims. Understandably storytelling was their main form of entertainment. Well, that and gossip, which was free or you provided a meal for the teller. I really enjoyed the mythical telling of Psyche and Cupid.
Each of the 11 'books' are self-contained chapters of about 20 pages with a spoiler-y summary of what's to come at the beginning, so it was easy to dip in and out. I wasn't particularly happy with the ending, in fact I skimmed and skipped around at that point. I can understand Lucius's gratefulness at the chance to become human again, and I'm aware of that ancient tradition of 'a life saved, is a life owed' [see Azeem of 1991's Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves], but I have an issue with blind faith. Lucius walks away from his previous life to devote himself and his future to worshipping his rescuer. That's just weird, from my 21st century non-religious perspective.
The translation very much played a part in my enjoyment of this ancient novel. I carefully researched which was right for me. I chose the Kenney edition as it seemed the least stilted of those available, and I'm glad I made that choice.
I never thought I'd enjoy a 2,000 year old novel, but I did. And you might, too.
*Read as part of The Dead Writer's Society's Around the World challenge.
December 29, 2018
4.5
In the opening paragraph, Apuleius' narrator promises us in this Milesian discourse (a romantic adventure tale that is usually bawdy) to string together ... a series of different stories and to charm your ears ... with amusing gossip, to provide us with a Grecian tale written in Latin. We are given all this and more with this precursor to the picaresque novel. The narrator apologizes if he should stumble and give offence as an unpractised speaker of the foreign idiom of the Roman courts, but considering what follows, the confident writer is likely being disingenuous, as his sentences are flowing, which is not typical of Latin, as the translator explains in his introduction.
The narrator is being disingenuous as well in his setting this out as a mere romp. As a human, the main character Lucius indulges in acts of moral turpitude. As an ass, he is a witness to the same kind of salacious behavior -- and worse -- from others; and while he doesn't see in the moment the relationship of all this to himself, the reader will.
Not too far into the book, a detailed story of Cupid and Psyche is told, the reason for this, again, becoming obvious to the reader. The telling is gorgeous and immediately reminded me of the fairytale of Beauty and the Beast. In the same vein of there being 'nothing new under the sun', I was reminded while reading this book of a woman I recently heard lamenting of a child killing a younger child: "What is this world coming to?" I'm of the opinion that people who believe our time is worse than any other time period have not read widely enough. Here are more than enough ripped-from-the headline type of events, such as parents killing their children, to cause me to think of her.
The translator made a couple of choices that I felt were jarring, e.g., calling the local prison the Clink, though his end-notes explained his reasoning well enough. The translation is lively and his introduction is excellent, though, as a first-time reader of any work, I always save the introduction for last.
In the opening paragraph, Apuleius' narrator promises us in this Milesian discourse (a romantic adventure tale that is usually bawdy) to string together ... a series of different stories and to charm your ears ... with amusing gossip, to provide us with a Grecian tale written in Latin. We are given all this and more with this precursor to the picaresque novel. The narrator apologizes if he should stumble and give offence as an unpractised speaker of the foreign idiom of the Roman courts, but considering what follows, the confident writer is likely being disingenuous, as his sentences are flowing, which is not typical of Latin, as the translator explains in his introduction.
The narrator is being disingenuous as well in his setting this out as a mere romp. As a human, the main character Lucius indulges in acts of moral turpitude. As an ass, he is a witness to the same kind of salacious behavior -- and worse -- from others; and while he doesn't see in the moment the relationship of all this to himself, the reader will.
Not too far into the book, a detailed story of Cupid and Psyche is told, the reason for this, again, becoming obvious to the reader. The telling is gorgeous and immediately reminded me of the fairytale of Beauty and the Beast. In the same vein of there being 'nothing new under the sun', I was reminded while reading this book of a woman I recently heard lamenting of a child killing a younger child: "What is this world coming to?" I'm of the opinion that people who believe our time is worse than any other time period have not read widely enough. Here are more than enough ripped-from-the headline type of events, such as parents killing their children, to cause me to think of her.
The translator made a couple of choices that I felt were jarring, e.g., calling the local prison the Clink, though his end-notes explained his reasoning well enough. The translation is lively and his introduction is excellent, though, as a first-time reader of any work, I always save the introduction for last.
October 5, 2019
Sorpres贸n del a帽o. No conoc铆a de nada a este autor cl谩sico y mucho menos su obra pero me encontr茅 por casualidad en la biblioteca este libro y me llam贸 la atenci贸n por su titulo. Nos encontramos la metamorfosis del protagonista en burro y todas las aventuras que vive en esta situaci贸n cambiando de due帽o varias veces durante su periplo. No le he dado 5 estrellas porque como ocurre en el quijote el narrador introduce entre medias de la historia del protagonista varios relatos independientes y no todos me han gustado pero eso es algo habitual en mi cuando se trata de libros de relatos. Aunque sea un libro de hace casi 2000 a帽os es muy sencillo de leer y realmente si lo hubiera le铆do sin saber su fecha de escritura hubiera pensado que era mucho mas reciente, por ejemplo nada que ver en su dificultad de lectura a la metamorfosis de Ovidio.
June 20, 2019
兀賵賱 乇賵丕賷丞 賮賷 鬲丕乇賷禺 丕賱廿賳爻丕賳賷丞! 兀賵賱 乇賵丕賷丞 賲賰鬲賲賱丞 丕賱兀乇賰丕賳 丨賯丕 賱乇賵丕卅賷 孬乇孬丕乇 賵賲鬲賲賰賳 賲賳 兀丿賵丕鬲賴 賷丨賷丿 丕賱丨賰賷 賵賱丕 賷囟賷毓賰 賮賷 丕賱鬲賮丕氐賷賱 ... 爻丕禺乇 賵賱胤賷賮 噩丿丕 ... 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 毓賳 賱賵賰賷賵爻 丕賱賵爻賷賲 丕賱噩乇賷亍 丕賱賲睾丕賲乇 丕賱匕賷 賮賷 睾賲乇丞 丕賳睾賲丕爻賴 賮賷 賲睾丕賲乇丞 賵賲禺丕胤乇丞 賲毓 丕賱爻丨乇 賵爻丕丨乇丞 賲丕 賷賯毓 賲丕 賱丕 賷丨賲丿 毓賯亘丕賴 賵賷鬲丨賵賱 賱丨賲丕乇 :) 賵賷丕 賱賴丕 賲賳 丨賷丕丞 賯丕爻賷丞 丨賷丕丞 丕賱丨賲賷乇 賮賷 匕賱賰 丕賱夭賲丕賳!
賷丨賰賷 丕賱賰丕鬲亘 賯氐氐丕 兀賰孬乇賴丕 兀爻胤賵乇賷 賮賷 廿胤丕乇 賯氐丞 鬲丨賵賱賴 賵賲丨丕賵賱丞 丕賱毓賵丿丞 賲賳 鬲丨賵賱賴 賱賷氐亘丨 亘卮乇賷丕 賰賲丕 賰丕賳
賵毓賱賶 丕賱乇睾賲 賲賳 賲噩賵賳 賵噩賳賵賳 丕賱丨賰丕賷丕鬲 賮廿賳 丕賱賰鬲丕亘 卮賷賯 賮毓賱丕 賵氐毓亘 丕賱鬲禺賱賷 毓賳賴... 乇亘賲丕 賰丕賳鬲 賴賳丕賰 鬲乇噩賲丕鬲 禺賮賮鬲 賯賱賷賱丕 賲賳 噩賳賵賳 亘毓囟 丕賱丨賰丕賷丕鬲
丕賲丕 丕賱賳賴丕賷丞 賮賰丕賳鬲 賲賲賷夭丞 丨賯丕 賵賲賮丕噩卅丞
賵兀丿賴卮賳賷 匕賰乇 丕賱丌賱賴丞 丕賱賲氐乇賷丞 丕賱賯丿賷賲丞 廿賷夭賷爻 賵兀賵夭賷乇賷爻 賵兀賳賵亘賷爻
賷丨賰賷 丕賱賰丕鬲亘 賯氐氐丕 兀賰孬乇賴丕 兀爻胤賵乇賷 賮賷 廿胤丕乇 賯氐丞 鬲丨賵賱賴 賵賲丨丕賵賱丞 丕賱毓賵丿丞 賲賳 鬲丨賵賱賴 賱賷氐亘丨 亘卮乇賷丕 賰賲丕 賰丕賳
賵毓賱賶 丕賱乇睾賲 賲賳 賲噩賵賳 賵噩賳賵賳 丕賱丨賰丕賷丕鬲 賮廿賳 丕賱賰鬲丕亘 卮賷賯 賮毓賱丕 賵氐毓亘 丕賱鬲禺賱賷 毓賳賴... 乇亘賲丕 賰丕賳鬲 賴賳丕賰 鬲乇噩賲丕鬲 禺賮賮鬲 賯賱賷賱丕 賲賳 噩賳賵賳 亘毓囟 丕賱丨賰丕賷丕鬲
丕賲丕 丕賱賳賴丕賷丞 賮賰丕賳鬲 賲賲賷夭丞 丨賯丕 賵賲賮丕噩卅丞
賵兀丿賴卮賳賷 匕賰乇 丕賱丌賱賴丞 丕賱賲氐乇賷丞 丕賱賯丿賷賲丞 廿賷夭賷爻 賵兀賵夭賷乇賷爻 賵兀賳賵亘賷爻
March 3, 2023
Another book I read during my college days: Really, who else but an English major or Classics scholar would be into this fictional romp?
Who else would care to read the only Roman novel, written in Latin (of course), to have survived to this day? (Pretty cool, actually! Especially since folks like me got to read it in translation.)
If any of you other Goodreaders rate or review "The Golden Ass," I'd be very interested to learn if you're a recovering English major like me, or a Classics scholar, or what.
THE PREMISE OF THIS BOOK INVOLVES BOTH CURIOSITY AND MAGIC
Lucius, the main character, was tremendously curious about magic. As Alexander Pope would write later, "A little learning is a dangerous thing." Indeed, due to a magic spell gone awry, Lucius is transformed into an ass.
Adventures ensue.
Eventually, by the end of the book, Apuleius has had visions. And talk about happy endings: The Goddess Isis has even appeared to him; in the future Apuleis will be entrusted with serving her and also the God Osiris. A happy ending indeed!
Who else would care to read the only Roman novel, written in Latin (of course), to have survived to this day? (Pretty cool, actually! Especially since folks like me got to read it in translation.)
If any of you other Goodreaders rate or review "The Golden Ass," I'd be very interested to learn if you're a recovering English major like me, or a Classics scholar, or what.
THE PREMISE OF THIS BOOK INVOLVES BOTH CURIOSITY AND MAGIC
Lucius, the main character, was tremendously curious about magic. As Alexander Pope would write later, "A little learning is a dangerous thing." Indeed, due to a magic spell gone awry, Lucius is transformed into an ass.
Adventures ensue.
Eventually, by the end of the book, Apuleius has had visions. And talk about happy endings: The Goddess Isis has even appeared to him; in the future Apuleis will be entrusted with serving her and also the God Osiris. A happy ending indeed!
March 23, 2012
乇賵丕賷丞 賰賱丕爻賷賰賷丞 乇丕卅毓丞 賵卮賷賯丞 賲賲鬲毓丞 丕賱賶 丕賯氐賶 丿乇噩丞 鬲卮毓乇 賵 賰丕賳賰 鬲賯乇丕 丕賱賮 賱賷賱丞 賵賱賷賱丞 丕賱賷賵賳丕賳賷丞
賴賵 毓賲賱 乇丕卅毓 , 丕爻鬲孬賳丕卅賶 ,丌爻乇 , 鬲丨賮丞 賮賳賷丞
賲爻賱賷 賮賷 兀賷 賵賯鬲 賵賱兀賷 孬賯丕賮丞
賮賴賵 賰鬲丕亘 鬲乇賮賷賴賶 賵賷賯丿賲 賳賯丿 賱丕匕毓 賱賱賲噩鬲賲毓 賮賶 匕賱賰 丕賱賵賯鬲
丕噩賲賱 賲丕 賮賶 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 賴賵 賯氐丞 丨亘 賰賷賵亘賷丿 賵亘爻丕賷賰賷, 兀丨亘 賰賷賵亘賷丿 亘爻丕賷賰賷 丕賱賮鬲丕丞 丕賱噩賲賷賱丞 丨亘丕 卮丿賷丿 賵賱賰賳賴 賱賲 賷賰賳 賷乇賷丿 兀賳 鬲毓賱賲 賴賷 亘丨亘賴 賱賴丕 亘爻亘亘 禺賵賮賴 賲賳 睾囟亘 兀賲賴 賮兀賲锟斤拷 賵丕賱丿賴丕 兀賳 賷匕賴亘 亘賴丕 廿賱賶 噩夭賷乇丞 亘毓賷丿丞賵 毓賱賶 丕毓賱賶 氐禺乇丞毓丕賱賷丞 賮賶 丕賱噩亘賱 貙 賷鬲禺賱賶 毓賳 丕亘賳鬲賴 賵 丕禺亘乇賴 兀賳賴丕 賴賳丕賰 爻鬲鬲夭賵噩 ,賵 賯丕賱 賱賴丕 兀賳賴丕 爻鬲鬲夭賵噩 卮禺氐 賱賳 賷馗賴乇 賱賴丕 廿賱丕 賮賷 丕賱賲爻丕亍 賵兀賳賴丕 賱賳 鬲乇賶 賲賳賴 睾賷乇 胤賷賮賴 賵丨匕乇賴丕 賲賳 賲丨丕賵賱丞 乇丐賷丞 夭賵噩賴丕 賵賱賰賳 賮囟賵賱賴丕 丿賮毓賴丕 賱賲毓乇賮丞 賲賳 賴匕丕 丕賱匕賷 鬲夭賵噩鬲賴
賴賵 毓賲賱 乇丕卅毓 , 丕爻鬲孬賳丕卅賶 ,丌爻乇 , 鬲丨賮丞 賮賳賷丞
賲爻賱賷 賮賷 兀賷 賵賯鬲 賵賱兀賷 孬賯丕賮丞
賮賴賵 賰鬲丕亘 鬲乇賮賷賴賶 賵賷賯丿賲 賳賯丿 賱丕匕毓 賱賱賲噩鬲賲毓 賮賶 匕賱賰 丕賱賵賯鬲
丕噩賲賱 賲丕 賮賶 丕賱乇賵丕賷丞 賴賵 賯氐丞 丨亘 賰賷賵亘賷丿 賵亘爻丕賷賰賷, 兀丨亘 賰賷賵亘賷丿 亘爻丕賷賰賷 丕賱賮鬲丕丞 丕賱噩賲賷賱丞 丨亘丕 卮丿賷丿 賵賱賰賳賴 賱賲 賷賰賳 賷乇賷丿 兀賳 鬲毓賱賲 賴賷 亘丨亘賴 賱賴丕 亘爻亘亘 禺賵賮賴 賲賳 睾囟亘 兀賲賴 賮兀賲锟斤拷 賵丕賱丿賴丕 兀賳 賷匕賴亘 亘賴丕 廿賱賶 噩夭賷乇丞 亘毓賷丿丞賵 毓賱賶 丕毓賱賶 氐禺乇丞毓丕賱賷丞 賮賶 丕賱噩亘賱 貙 賷鬲禺賱賶 毓賳 丕亘賳鬲賴 賵 丕禺亘乇賴 兀賳賴丕 賴賳丕賰 爻鬲鬲夭賵噩 ,賵 賯丕賱 賱賴丕 兀賳賴丕 爻鬲鬲夭賵噩 卮禺氐 賱賳 賷馗賴乇 賱賴丕 廿賱丕 賮賷 丕賱賲爻丕亍 賵兀賳賴丕 賱賳 鬲乇賶 賲賳賴 睾賷乇 胤賷賮賴 賵丨匕乇賴丕 賲賳 賲丨丕賵賱丞 乇丐賷丞 夭賵噩賴丕 賵賱賰賳 賮囟賵賱賴丕 丿賮毓賴丕 賱賲毓乇賮丞 賲賳 賴匕丕 丕賱匕賷 鬲夭賵噩鬲賴
May 29, 2013
賲賳 賲賯鬲賳賷丕鬲 賲賴乇噩丕賳 丕賱賰鬲亘 丕賱賲爻鬲毓賲賱丞
丕賱卮賰乇 賲賵氐賵賱 賱賱睾乇賷亘 丕賱匕賷 匕賷賱賴 亘賯賱賲賴貙 丕賱睾乇賷亘 丕賱匕賷 丕卮鬲乇丕賴 賲賳匕 爻亘毓 爻賳賵丕鬲貙 賵賰鬲亘 毓賱賶 賲賯丿賲鬲賴 "鬲丨賮丞 " ,亘毓丿 兀賳 毓賱賾賲 亘丿丕禺賱賴 亘禺胤賵胤 賲爻鬲賯賷賲丞 _鬲丨乇噩 禺胤賵胤賷 丕賱賲乇鬲亘賰丞_ 丕乇賮賯賴丕 亘毓賱丕賲丞 鬲毓噩亘 賲乇爻賵賲丞 亘廿鬲賯丕賳 噩賲賷賱 .
丕賱睾乇賷亘 丕賱匕賷 丨賮馗 丕賱賰鬲丕亘 賮賷 丨丕賱丞 噩賷丿丞 孬賲 賲賳丨賴 .. 賱賷賳鬲賴賶 賱丿賷 :)
丕賱卮賰乇 賲賵氐賵賱 賱賱睾乇賷亘 丕賱匕賷 匕賷賱賴 亘賯賱賲賴貙 丕賱睾乇賷亘 丕賱匕賷 丕卮鬲乇丕賴 賲賳匕 爻亘毓 爻賳賵丕鬲貙 賵賰鬲亘 毓賱賶 賲賯丿賲鬲賴 "鬲丨賮丞 " ,亘毓丿 兀賳 毓賱賾賲 亘丿丕禺賱賴 亘禺胤賵胤 賲爻鬲賯賷賲丞 _鬲丨乇噩 禺胤賵胤賷 丕賱賲乇鬲亘賰丞_ 丕乇賮賯賴丕 亘毓賱丕賲丞 鬲毓噩亘 賲乇爻賵賲丞 亘廿鬲賯丕賳 噩賲賷賱 .
丕賱睾乇賷亘 丕賱匕賷 丨賮馗 丕賱賰鬲丕亘 賮賷 丨丕賱丞 噩賷丿丞 孬賲 賲賳丨賴 .. 賱賷賳鬲賴賶 賱丿賷 :)
January 12, 2017
賷賰賮賷 兀賳賴丕 丕賱兀賯丿賲貙 賷賰賮賷 鬲賲賷夭 賮賰乇鬲賴丕 賲賳匕 丕賱亘丿丕賷丞貙 賷賰賮賷 噩賳賵賳 賰丕鬲亘賴丕
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