Cupid and Psyche. Annie Swynnerton, 1891.

One of the myths that I became particularly attached to was the story of Cupid and Psyche.

Cupid and Psyche first appeared in Lucius Apuleius’ The Golden Ass (2nd century C.E.) and is considered one of the first literary myths (or fairy tales). The story is overheard by Lucius, the golden ass, as he travels to find a way to break the enchantment that keeps him in animal form.

The Tale

When Venus’s temple is neglected because her devotees are admiring the mortal princess Psyche, the vengeful goddess orders her son Cupid, god of love,  to strike the beautiful girl with one of this golden arrows, so that she may fall in love with a hideous creature that will be set before her. Devoted son that he is, Cupid does as ordered but falls in love with Psyche himself. Suddenly, things get complicated.

Unwilling to lose Psyche, Cupid asks Zephyr to whisk his beloved away to his palace, where she will be wed to him in secret. The problem is how to keep it all from Venus?

Cupid marries Psyche, concealing his identity from her by cover of darkness and forbidding her from ever looking upon him. When Psyche’s jealous sisters learn of Psyche’s felicity, they convince her that she has married a beast too hideous to reveal himself.

Tempted by the mystery, Psyche lights a lamp while her husband sleeps and sees Cupid, who wakes as a drop of oil falls from the lamp.

All sorts of havoc ensues when Cupid flies off, leaving Psyche to deal with the fallout of his mother’s discovery. Determined to find her husband, Psyche successfully overcomes a set of Herculean challenges set by Venus, showing Venus that she’s more than just a pretty face.

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Much of the criticism on Cupid and Psyche focuses on the matter of curiosity and the forbidden. Psyche is told to not look upon Cupid–What kind of power dynamic is that in a marriage?! But, behold, female curiosity at its best.

Like the story of Eve and the apple, you can read Psyche’s transgression in several ways. I choose to read it as Psyche’s desire to know. It’s a very powerful notion, to think of Psyche challenging Cupid’s mandate and taking control of the situation.

Psyche’s determination and steadfastness as she completes Venus’s impossible tasks reveal her mettle as a heroine; she undergoes a Hero’s Journey of her own and emerges triumphant. She’s no damsel in distress, Psyche.

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While researching the story, I also had the opportunity to read Julius Lester’s amusing retelling of Cupid and Psyche:

Cupid: a tale of love and desire

It has been a while since I read it, but I do recommend it as an original take on the tale or as a starting point for research on Cupid and Psyche (Lester includes a great list of references at the back of the book).

You can find several versions of Cupid and Psyche online, but if you want to find an inexpensive copy with some decent explanatory notes, I recommend the Penguin Epics version. This is the one that I used when writing on the story.

It hesitated for a moment, but decided to open it now rather than wait for Christmas… yes, I’m impatient, but my excitement could not be contained! Inside, I found a candy cane tube filled with Hershey’s chocolates (I’m a chocoholic, these will disappear quickly), a very pretty blue card, and two books:

Edith Pattou’s East, which I had been eyeing in the library just this morning, and a sweet little purple book titled Jane Austen’s Little Instruction Book, featuring highly edifying quotes penned by that gentle lady.

This was an incredibly thoughtful surprise Thank you Secret Santa!

on a side note… it’s snowing on WordPress.

Books Lovers Secret Santa is hosted by The Neverending Shelf.

Of course, when I grew up, there were no more school book fairs, but a few years ago I started attending the Miami International Book Fair. It’s always a chance to find some new reads and great bargains, but this year’s fair was a bit disappointing. The selection was great, but the cultural events that were a not-to-be-missed part of the fair were well… missing.

The International stage and pavilions were replaced with discussion auditoriums, which is great, but there were already plenty of book discussion events to be had. The pavilions used to showcase arts and crafts, music, and all sorts of other interesting things from five countries selected for the year’s festival. Most of the entertainment provided was for children, which is great if you have kids, but there wasn’t much else for adults to do between browsing the stalls for books.

I still had a nice time, but I can’t say it was as fun as previous book fairs. I have to wonder if this is due to the financial difficulties that Miami-Dade College, the Fair’s host, has been experiencing?

I guess it was alright, thought I hope they are able to host the International pavilions again next year.

Regardless of the experience, I managed to bring home a nice little cache of books some of which I bought from the Friends of the Library group (can’t wait for their annual book sale, they had a great selection at their book fair stall).

My book stash:

An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott

A Song for Summerby Eva Ibbotson

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

East of the Sun by Julia Gregson

and a hardcover copy of Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason by Helen Fielding (one of my favorite re-readables)

I have yet to read the Uglies series, though it has been on my “I will get around to it one day” list for a while, but after reading a blurb for Leviathan and seeing the wonderful book trailer, I knew I wanted to get to this one soon.

When I learned that Westerfeld was going to be making an appearance, I bought a copy and marked it down on my calendar.

The event was one of the most interesting ones I have attended, and they’ve had some interesting YA events. Mr. Westerfeld of the steampunk masterpiece presented a highly entertaining lecture on the history of illustrations in books and the idea of emergent technologies at the turn of the century… and deadly dart pooping birds. He was funny and informative and the images, many of which will be published in the companion guide to the series, were amazing.

Here are some pictures from the event (click to enlarge):

]]> http://things-she-read.org/2009/10/26/what-a-steampunk/feed/ 3 emperatrix http://things-she-read.org/2009/10/23/leviathan-cometh/ http://things-she-read.org/2009/10/23/leviathan-cometh/#comments Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:08:41 +0000 Gricel http://thingssheread.wordpress.com/?p=235 ]]> Scott Westerfield is going to be reading from Leviathan at Books & Books this Sunday at 6 pm. I so want to go! I’ve never read Westerfield’s novels, but this book has really sparked my interest. Steampunk and a girl a disguised as a boy, this is definitely a book to add to my “to read” list.

If I get to go to the event, I’ll post pictures and such .

Of course, a booksigning followed the event, so I was able to get my copy of Princess Forever signed

Then there was the decadent chocolate fountain from Peterbrooke’s…
enter gratuitous chocolate picture

I started going to the fair four years ago, so I knew that I had to set a budget for myself unless I wanted to end up overspending on books. I told myself I would only spend $25 – enough to pay my entrance, have something to eat, and buy one gotta-have-it book. Did I go over? Yes… but I couldn’t let the opportunity pass!

My trip downtown started with a train ride and one happy little green grasshopper.

I got to the fair and nearly got in for free because the lady at the ticket booth thought I was underage , but I am an honest bibliophile and paid my way.

I did some browsing first, after all, I needed to be choosy if I was limiting myself to one book, then I took a stroll through the International Village, which was hosting Egypt, Argentina, Brazil, and Spain this year.

I spent some of my lunch money in Egypt, on a tiny glass perfume bottle and some baklava, and went in for a surprise impulse buy in Brazil – it was a surprise because I don’t understand a word of Portuguese, and the lady only knew how to say “Three dollars.”

What was inside the mystery parcel? A cookie. I have to admit, I was totally suckered in by the wrapping.

Eventually, I found my one book at a used book stall, a collection of Colette’s Claudine novels that was in decent condition, though it obviously spent way too much time in someone’s car.

And then I found the book that undermined my tight budget… a 1936 copy of Gone with the Wind that I found for $35 in the Antiquarian section of the fair. Admittedly, it’s not a first printing, and it doesn’t have a dust-jacket, but it’s GwTW! And it’s in great condition for such an old text – no obvious signs of damage, the spin is intact, the pages are not loose, just the usual signs of age.

So here are my carefully selected buys…

After reading to a packed house (a 400 count fire hazard), Lahiri took questions from the audience, explaining that the title of the book was inspired by Hawthorne’s “The Custom-House”, and offering a brief account of her writing process.