Ovid’s Metamorphoses #071/111: “Midas”

What this project is about.  

This one is from Book 11.

How long it took to read this (aloud): 8 mins 00s

What it’s “about”: Midas and Silenus on a bender. Midas delivers Silenus home to Bacchus, is rewarded with a wish. Wishes for the golden touch, it turns out to be a lot LESS cool than he thought (can’t even eat – compare/contrast with Erysichthon) begs for reversal, is granted this. Then boasts about music blah blah ends up with ass’s ears. A servant whispers the secret into a hole, and the earth repeats…

Words I didn’t know: none

Quotable quotes: 

Then Bacchus, glad to see the old man home, 

And like a good adopted son, thanked Midas, 

Gave him the choice of making a wish come true: 

What would he have? Midas was always sure 

To make the worst of every good occasion — 

Of turning glory into desperate ill — 

So Midas said, “Make everything I touch turn gold.”

AND

Midas’ imagination, his hopes, his dreams grew big with gold: 

He called his slaves to bring a feast before him, 

From wine to meat to bread to fruits to wine. 

And as he broke bread, that rich gift of Ceres, 

It did not break but was of gold itself, 

Beautifully hard, not stale, and as his teeth 

Ate into meat, the meat was gold, too 

And he could not close his jaws. As he poured 

Water into wine (Bacchus’ own wine) red, sunset colour, 

And raised them to his lips, both turned to gold. 

Dazed, damned by gold, a golden terror took him, 

Midas began to hate his wealth, tried to escape 

The very riches that he prayed for. However large 

The feast laid out before him, he went hungry, 

And though his throat burned dry, no drink could wet it.

(compare Erysichthon, obvs)

And

Because he seemed to learn 

His way was error, the gods took pity on him. 

Bacchus reversed him to what he was before; 

He said, “Through your own foolishness you wear 

A golden coffin, your very body is a tomb of gold; 

Go to the river that winds past Sardis city, 

Walk up the Lydian hills to its high source, 

In that pure font be birthday naked, head to foot 

To wash your guilt away.” The king obeyed; 

And gold fell from him to the waters that ran gold. 

AND

Only poor foolish Midas raised his voice 

To speak for Pan. Apollo Dclius 

Knew well enough that Midas’ ears were not 

The kind of ears that human creatures wore — 

So he enlarged them, made them grow grey hair, 

And as they twitched, they wheeled for better hearing. 

Midas looked like a man, except for ears — 

Which were the property of mules and asses. 

Even Midas felt a loss of dignity 

And wrapped a purple turban round his head, 

Which spared his vanity and held his secret. 

Only the slave who trimmed King Midas’ hair 

Knew what another slave would love to know. 

The story burned his lips — where could he tell it? 

He kneeled as if to pray and with quick fingers 

Thrust hand in earth, his lips above it whispered, 

“King Midas has ass ears,” then closed his voice 

Within the hole he made, covering it up 

With large handfuls of moist earth Then frightened, 

He ran away But whispering reeds grew up 

Around that spot and through the earth beneath them 

The imprisoned voice came whispering to the wind, 

Then all the world learned of King Midas’ ears.

How it lands to my eco-sensibility: xx

Obvious allusions, ways it was used (that I am aware of already) : xx

What I know I didn’t ‘get’: xx

To my knowledge, who’s used it why/how (RACC): xx

Further research questions: xx

Anything else: xx

Really is “be careful what you wish for”, innit!