OH JOY! He finds his lost love...Can you feel my sarcasm? Is it tangible? Because the sarcasm is so thick you should be able to physically see it from your screen.
I don’t know if it’s due to my being in both the medieval romance class and Jane Austen, but I’m just kind of, a little bit, really sick and tired of romance. Maybe it’s because I was once really obsessed with Greek and Roman mythology that I’m slightly biased towards the version where Eurydice dies and Orpheus done screws up and loses her in the end. Who knows. Either way, this version bored me. I’m a cynic. Sue me.
My eyeballs must permanently be stuck in an upright position...it’s literally the same story we’ve been reading all semester. Girl gets kidnapped, boy is sad, boy goes on quest, boy wins, everyone is really happy. What would have been a cool twist was having Cerberus eat Orfeo or something. Not lazily wrapping up the ending with unicorns and rainbows. Lame. The ending was so ridiculous, it’s almost as if they didn’t know how to really write it so they just threw ink across the page and said “close enough.”
I might be coming off a tad harsh...so let me say something nice. It was nifty how the ladies had falcons as pets. I liked that. I wish I had a falcon as a pet….I would totally use it to send messages...if I had people to send messages to. Damn.
Back to the story, after my sharp turn down the rabbit hole, I’m not sure if it was a direct reference to the original but the name dropping of “snakes that past him glide” (253) was interesting. That whole section was actually interesting. It detailed his descent(ten bloody years) into a hermit, comparing and contrasting his nobility to the poor rank he fell to. “Ermine robes...leaves and grass...castles...freezing weather…” (241-247). It really brought into perspective this King Orfeo lost everything when he lost his love. Same ol’ story but it was a nice few lines.
Lastly, the appendix, let me just take a moment to revel in the appendix. “...like smoke dispersing in air, she was gone” (498-499). Beautiful. I love this version. Just the tragedy and the loss, I love it. Something about the hero not winning pleases me.
Side note, I looked up the different types of harps, because I was curious if he had a mini harp or something, and there are a lot of harps in the world. Even a harp guitar.
This is obviously not a harp guitar.
I'll admit I'm getting a bit tired of the formula we've been reading, as well, so I feel your pain. I have to disagree about the ending, though. I liked it specifically because I was always sad that the story Orpheus and Eurydice doesn't end happily. It's not like Orpheus/Orfeo is a bad dude; he just messes up, so it's nice to see him get it right for once.
ReplyDeleteI think you make a great point about the language used in the story. It *is* beautifully written, and that's a testament to the skill of both the original writer and the translator. The appendix does seem like a good inclusion for this story. It helps people who don't know about the original myth and it puts some things into perspective.
You know, I'm not even sure if this story is cathartic do much as it being convienant. It's a special type of bland that hits the scripted notes but doesn't make them special. I wanted to feel that ache of a lost love and then a wonderful reunion but that didn't happen. Honestly, the original isn't much better in that regard but because there is death and then double death it feels like there is more love going on. The stakes only need to be higher because we have no idea who these characters are so we won't care what happens to them unless it is really bad.
ReplyDeleteI'm starting to think--looking back on it now--Dr. MB had the discussion in class the other day because of your blog specifically. AWESOME! You definitely demanded a reaction!
ReplyDeleteBeing in the same two classes, I can see where you're coming from when you say you're sick of the romance and sick of the formula. After a while, it isn't satisfying to start a story and know that it will end in happiness. I just had a thought though...wait for it....wait for it. If every story ended in a sad way--in a way that meant the protagonist doesn't get what they're questing for--would that, too, become frustrating?
That being said, I like the original version of this story more. And I am just going to guess you feel the same way.