Psyche and Eros | Feature Friday Book Review

Let's chat Psyche and Eros by Luna McNamara

00:00 Intro
01:36

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[sylvestglenn]

It’s been a while since I’ve read this book, but you touched on several of my thoughts when reading it – especially about the heroism aspect. I’ve lived and worked with the Eros and Psyche myth for a dozen years now and even made a pilgrimage to the Louvre to see Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss in 2005. Canova’s statue is what started my own love affair with the tale. If you read nonfiction works on the tale, I highly recommend Martin Lowenthal’s Alchemy of the Soul. He begins with the story of Eros as an ancient god before going into the tale itself, and I appreciate some of his perspectives in his rendition of the tale. He also regards the tale from an alchemical point of view, which very few nonfiction authors do, and he dives a bit into the tale in relation to the mystery cults – which is where we find the tale within the larger tale of the Golden Ass. While Apuleius wrote the story in the 2nd century CE, as part of a larger mystery cult tale, he does refer to it as “an old wives’ tale” and I’ve often pondered its oral origins. There have been figures (statues/mosaics) that have been designated as Cupid and Psyche from between the 4th and 2nd centuries BCE, so while the written tale is Roman, the oral tale could possibly predate Greek mythos. Because the tale was used within the mystery cult, I have been playing with the idea of Psyche and Eros being a tutelary tale for Aphrodite’s priestesses as a possible origin. In the first part of the tale, you have hints as to what the first mysteries the initiate priestess would experience, akin to the lesser mysteries of the Eleusinian Mysteries and then after a period of serving in temples of other goddesses (alluded to in Psyche going to Hera’s and Demeter’s temples), the priestess would be told Aphrodite is your sovereign, and she would enter the House of Aphrodite for her Greater Mysteries initiations, which is where the four tasks come into play.

So what you said about Psyche being more feminine really resonates. She is not part of the hero’s journey presented within the patriarchal culture, where McNamara places her, but a feminine journey from a pre-patriarchal world. At least, I like to think so. Still, I think we learn from every retelling, and I did appreciate this one.

[fey]

you vocalised a lot of what i was feeling about this book! I unfortunately wasn't able to finish it. I found the 'hero' idea really forced and clunky and a lot of the romance moved very fast. I think for me Wendy Higgins' 'Soul in darkness' remains my favourite Psyche and Eros retelling! Thanks for such a thoughtful video, really enjoyed it!

[ninadow]

Thank you for this very thorough review. I've been meaning to read this one because Cupid & Psyche is my favorite myth, but I definitely have my doubts about it now, knowing that this book decided to make Psyche into an Action Girl heroine. And that it apparently keeps adding in other figures from myth like Easter eggs? 😅 I might still read it, but I'll have to steel myself, haha.

There is another book coming out in a few months that I have higher expectations for—"The Palace of Eros" by Caro De Robertis, which is an explicitly queer version of the tale (nonbinary Eros makes a lot of sense tbh!). Going off the book description, it seems like it hews much more closely to the original myth. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on that one too, since you're a fellow Cupid & Psyche fan!