Comparing Pyramus And Thisbe's 'Metamorphosis'

28 October 2013

When Pyramus and Thisbe first went on their rendezvous in the woods, they never would have imagined that they would be the template on which many romantic stories are built. The story of the ill-fated lovers, as told in the Metamorphosis by Ovid, is one that has stood the test of time and became the story authors like William Shakespeare, song writers like Bethany Cosentino and directors like Jerome Robbins have used to express forbidden love, misunderstanding and loss. These elements of story have resonated over the ages with audiences due to our desire to love and be loved so much that we would do the most extreme things. Teenagers, especially, latch on to these story elements due to the inclusion of authority figures who
The story of Pyramus and Thisbe begins with two families sharing a wall in a duplex. One family has a daughter and one a son. Both are forbidden to see each other, but as most teen-agers do, they find a way around their parents. Through a crack in the wall too small to even fit their lips, the two best looking people in all of Babylon confess their love. Unable to wait for their parents to give consent, the two decide on a time and place to meet, in the woods, near the mulberry bush with white flowers. Thisbe arrived before Pyramus and while waiting spotted a lioness fresh from the hunt with blood dripping from her teeth and gums. Frightened, she ran away to the nearest cave and in the process, lost her shawl where the lioness tore it to shreds. When Thisbe arrived seeing what seemed to be a horrible scene of his true love’s viscous demise, he is overcome with guilt. If only