Pyramus and Thisbe

While the Metamorphoses touches on a variety of subjects, it often returns to the subject of love. Myths with erotic themes dominate the text. That being said, in contrast to Ovid’s earlier works like the Amores—in which love represents a fun, if sometimes painful, force for lovers—love in the Metamorphoses carries a distinctly darker tone. It is almost always a destructive, irrational force. Most romantic encounters in the Metamorphoses are a hodgepodge of standard awful elements: they are non-consensual; unnatural (e.g. between animals and people, between blood relatives); one-sided; or end in despair.

Through this lens, Ovid’s “happier” love stories deserve special consideration. While Pyramus and Thisbe’s romance ends in tragedy, it is remarkably free from the Metamorphoses’ usual, disturbing erotic elements. Pyramus and Thisbe are, for all appearances, societal equals. There is no obvious power differential between them, and both participate in the affair with full consent. Perhaps most striking of all, they are selfless in their love, even to the point of self-sacrifice. Pyramus and Thisbe not only fully consider the needs and happiness of their lover—they prioritize their lover’s well-being over their own.

These dynamics can be explained in part by Pyramus and Thisbe’s identity as mortals.