Tuesday, November 9, 2010

The Morality of Greek Myths - Reflection #6






Due to a punishment from Juno, a nymph named Echo had her voice taken away and could only repeat the last words of others. She fell in love with vain Narcissus, but was rejected. Out of heartbreak, she eventually wasted away to nothing, only leaving behind her "echo" of others' words. Narcissus fell in love with his own reflection in the water, staring at it day after day, and gradually died, leaving behind a white flower.
I think the moral of this myth was to not have excessive pride or vanity. Echo was so vain and in love with her own voice, and when she really needs it, she's unable to use it. Narcissus, also, was so enamored with himself that he was cursed to love no one but himself. When he falls in love with his own reflection, he can't look away and gradually wastes away. Another moral of this story is to treat others the way you want to be treated. Narcissus treats everyone else around him so poorly that he pays a deathly price.
From this story, I think important virtues to the Greeks are humility and treating others well. From this story, one should learn not to only value yourself and to treat the people around them with respect and kindness.

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