Iphis
Mythology
According to
However, Telethusa was soon visited in the middle of the night by the Egyptian goddess Isis, along with a train of other gods:
When Iphis turned 13, Ligdus, still ignorant of Iphis's true sex, arranged for her to marry Ianthe, daughter of Telestes, who was "praised by all the women of Phaistos for the dower of her unequalled beauty." The two youths, who had been instructed alongside each other and shared the same teachers, fell deeply in love with the other.[6] As described by Ovid, Ianthe waited in confidence for their promised union, believing she would wed a man. In contrast, Iphis loved Ianthe without hope, burdened by the knowledge of her womanhood. As Iphis lamented to the goddess Juno and the god Hymenaios: [7]
"O what will be the awful dreaded end, with such a monstrous love compelling me? If the Gods should wish to save me, certainly they should have saved me; but, if their desire was for my ruin, still they should have given some natural suffering of humanity. The passion for a cow does not inflame a cow, no mare has ever sought another mare. The ram inflames the ewe, and every doe follows a chosen stag; so also birds are mated, and in all the animal world no female ever feels love passion for another female—why is it in me?"
Telethusa attempted to delay the wedding, knowing that it would lead to the discovery of her ruse, but soon exhausted every avenue of excuse.[8] The day before the wedding, Telethusa, now desperate, brought her daughter with her to the temple of Isis. Together, the two offered their jewelry and prayed for any type of aid.[9] In response to their prayers, the altar moved and the temple doors shook.[10] Pleased by the omen, Telethusa left the temple with Iphis, only to find her daughter transformed. As described by Ovid: [11]
Her face seemed of a darker hue, her strength seemed greater, and her features were more stern. Her hair once long, was unadorned and short. There is more vigor in her than she showed in her girl ways. For in the name of truth, Iphis, who was a girl, is now a man!
After being transformed into a man, Telethusa and Iphis erected a tablet at the temple to commemorate the miracle. The next day, Iphis happily married Ianthe in a ceremony presided over by Juno, Hymenaios, and Venus. [12]
Interpretations
The story of Iphis and Ianthe is the only mythological account of female same-sex desire, not only in Ovid, but in all of Graeco-Roman mythology.[13] Whether Ovid disapproves of or is sympathetic toward female homoerotic desire has been a point of contention for scholars.[13] The main social inscription in this myth is the need for a male heir in a patriarchal society and the inevitable misogyny this creates.
The story of Iphis is similar to that of
In popular culture
- The 17th-century publisher Humphrey Moseley once claimed to possess a manuscript of a play based on the Iphis and Ianthe story, by William Shakespeare. Scholars have treated the claim with intense skepticism; the play has not survived.[citation needed]
- Ali Smith's 2007 novel Girl Meets Boy is based on Ovid's story of Iphis and Ianthe, and is part of the Canongate Myth Series.
- The Mechanisms' 2013 album Tales To Be Told features a song called "Iphis" based on the story of Iphis and Ianthe.
- Liberty of Londonhas fabric and leatherwork patterns named after both Iphis and Ianthe.
See also
- Leucippus of Crete, Greek mythological character, transformed into a man by the goddess Leto
Note
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 4-10.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 13-21.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 21-27.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 28-53.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 58-69.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 80-82.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 93-105.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 154-162.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 163-179.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 180-194.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 190-195.
- ^ Ovid. Metamorphoses, Section 9, Line 203-206.
- ^ a b Kamen, Naturalized Desires and the Metamorphosis of Iphis. 39(1), 21.
- ^ Antoninus Liberalis, The Metamorphoses of Antoninus Liberalis translated by Francis Celoria (Routledge 1992). Section 17.
References
- Publius Ovidius Naso, Metamorphoses translated by Brookes More (1859-1942). Boston, Cornhill Publishing Co. 1922. Online version at the Perseus Digital Library.
- Publius Ovidius Naso, Metamorphoses. Hugo Magnus. Gotha (Germany). Friedr. Andr. Perthes. 1892. Latin text available at the Perseus Digital Library.