Reading Diary A: Apuleius's Cupid and Psyche

Apuleius's Cupid and Psyche

The Captive Woman:

• The lady referred to herself as an ass
• The robbers stole the young girl only to hold her ransom for money, they had no other plans for her
• Why did the young girl torment herself?
• The old lady had other plans for the girl if she was going to act that way

Her Dream:

• Was it normal for people in this place to marry their family members? Like their cousin?
• No one even fought for the girl when they came to steal her, why not?
• "Dreams that come in daytime are always said to be untrue, and secondly a nightmare often signifies the opposite."

Psyche's Beauty

• The 3rd daughter was so beautiful, no human speech could even describe them or tell them how it really was.
• I wonder how the girl felt having all these people gaze at here all the time
• Venus was very jealous of Psyche, threatening her because of her looks
• Cupid ruined peoples marriages

The Oracle of Apollo

• Why did no one want to marry Psyche if she was so beautiful, that makes no sense to me 
• I liked what she said to her parents, they should have been crying when she was named the new  Venus 
• Did she die because of what Venus told her son Cupid?

The Magical Palace: 

• The voices were just voices, there were no people they were invisible
• The palace was beautiful, she thought it must belong to a god. Instead it belonged to her 
• It was made by divine art, with no locks or anything

Psyche and the Invisible Servants, by Giordano

The Mysterious Husband:

• Her husband showed up at night, and in the morning she woke up and was no longer a virgin
• So she isn't really dead, people just think she is dead
• Her husband does not want her to look anywhere near or answer to her sisters when they come looking for her, or she will be ruined but eventually she won and he said she could do as she pleased
• Who is her husband?

The Jealousy of Psyche's Sisters:

• The sisters are jealous of what Psyche has 
• They wept for her when they thought she was dead but now are not happy with how her life turned out compared to theirs

Psyche's Husband Warns Her:

• The sisters were planning to murder Psyche that is how jealous they were
• Her husband promises her a child
• Psyche wants to see what her husband looks like

Cupid and Psyche, by Stanhope

Fears and Doubts:

• Psyche's sister told her lies about what her husband was going to do with her 
• Psyche believes her sisters and tells them everything her husband told her not to tell
• The sisters helped plan her husbands murder

Psyche's Husband Revealed:

• Psyches husband was cupid
• Instead of killing Psyche like he was supposed to Cupid made her his lover
• Cupid disobeyed his mother Venus

Psyche's Despair:

• The Shepard god told Psyche to pray to her lover Cupid and to worship him
• Psyche told both sisters the same story, and they both went to the cliff and both died because of their lie to her