You can be whatever you desire. You can achieve anything you set your mind to. Change your thoughts, change your reality. Such tropes decorate the individualist cultural rhetoric, solidifying a common belief in one’s limitless agency to transform their life to fit their wishes. Yet in reality both ancient and modern, external pressures can render futile individual attempts at self-redefinition. Today, this is found in the rigid social systems— a scaffold— preventing equal opportunity for all, and while one should refrain from directly comparing all-too-real systemic inequalities with mythology, the theme of individual powerlessness in the face of greater outside forces is commonly investigated in classical literature. Perhaps, then, a close look at one such text may prove valuable in evaluating the limits of individual agency in the context of self-driven metamorphosis. In the tale of Apollo and Daphne from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Daphne’s attempts to pursue a celibate, independent lifestyle are futile in the face of Apollo’s enduring passion. By bridging descriptions of both Daphne’s independence and Apollo’s admiration of her beauty with wind imagery, and by employing situational irony in Daphne’s sudden submission and in her retention of beauty following transformation, Ovid implies that despite Daphne’s best efforts at redirecting her fate, the results of her metamorphosis are ultimately subject to Apollo’s interpretations.
Throughout the passage, wind imagery illustrates both Daphne’s willfulness and Apollo’s immutable obsession with her beauty, highlighting that Daphne’s attempts to drive her own narrative can only go as far as Apollo’s view of her allows. Seeking respite from Apollo’s passionate gaze, Daphne “runs away, softer than a swift breeze” and is thus represented as a free spirit (Met. 1.734-735). By comparing Daphne to a force of nature, Ovid underscores her determination to drive her own story. Yet in spite of her intentions, in Apollo’s eyes “even then she seemed so beautiful. The winds revealed her body, as the opposing breezes blowing against her clothing made it flutter, and light gusts teased her freely flowing hair” (Met. 1.777-782). Like the wind which tosses Daphne’s clothes and hair, Apollo’s ideals regarding her identity determine how she is portrayed. Notably, the very same wind which previously symbolizes Daphne’s attempted agency here represents the power of Apollo’s views in shaping her appearance. Thus, Ovid reveals how even the very act of self-definition can be so differently construed in the eyes of another witness. Without an open-minded audience, Daphne’s self-identification as a free spirit only goes as far as the onlooker’s biases will allow. More specifically, Daphne exists in Apollo’s (spell-bound) eyes only as a prized beauty, so her attempts at demonstrating her disinterest are only ever met with admiration.
Even when Daphne chooses to adopt an entirely new identity so as to elude the confinement of Apollo’s impressions, Ovid continues to emphasize through wind imagery Daphne’s susceptibility to socially-imposed ideals. Daphne’s metamorphosis is an effort of independence coming from her own volition, but her branches “[nod] in agreement” following Apollo’s proclamation that she shall be his tree (Met. 1. 833-834). This uncharacteristic move seems to be Apollo’s painting of his desires on what may merely be a tree blowing in the wind. In further support of this interpretation, the “heavy numbness… [that spread] across her limbs” upon becoming a tree makes it unlikely that that the nodding is Daphne’s purposeful reaction; instead, it is more plausible that it is the combined result of a gust of wind and Apollo’s wishes (Met. 1.807). Once again, the wind symbolizes the force of Apollo’s perceptions in shaping an unfaithful interpretation of Daphne’s activities. That Daphne’s identity is manipulated to match Apollo’s wishes even in the clear absence of her agency solidifies the tragedy that is her identity’s subjection to others’ ideals and not her own.
In addition to wind imagery, the situational irony of Daphne’s submission to Apollo’s ownership lends credit to the reading that Daphne’s supposed agreement is not the product of her own volition, but of Apollo’s ideals. Throughout most of the text, Daphne fervently rejects marriage and flees from her pursuer “the way a lamb runs off, fleeing a wolf” (Met. 1. 739-740). It would be highly ironic for Daphne to so suddenly give in to the thing she fears so deeply; it is more reasonable to conclude that the actions portrayed in the text are not an accurate representation of her sentiments. Thus, if the apparent nodding is not Daphne’s consent, then it follows that the description posed in the text must be colored by bias— that is, Apollo’s bias. Notably, while Daphne’s metamorphosis is meant to free her from Apollo’s obsession, it ironically traps her in a state of even less agency than before, disproving the notion that self-redefinition through metamorphosis is always under the control of the individual. The situational irony of Daphne’s submission therefore provides yet another indication that the power of the observer trumps that of the individual in determining the outcome of self-redefinition.
In another instance of situational irony supporting the triumph of Apollo’s wishes over Daphne’s, Daphne’s beauty endures following her decision to have it eliminated. Fatigued from Apollo’s hunt-like chase, Daphne calls upon her father: “change me! Destroy my beauty” (Met. 1.805-806). She is promptly transformed into a tree, but contrary to her wishes, “[a]ll that remains of her is her shining beauty” (Met. 1.812-813). Not only does Daphne fail to dictate her own identity through metamorphosis, but it results in the exact opposite of that for which she aims. This contradiction between Daphne’s intention to be perceived as all but beautiful and the reality of her being seen as nothing but beautiful emphasizes that her identity is ultimately at the mercy of those who perceive her. While self-redefinition through metamorphosis of identity is commonly considered the sole business of the individual, Daphne’s story presents an argument for the social vulnerability of even the most strong-willed efforts.
In the story of Apollo and Daphne in Metamorphoses, Ovid employs wind imagery and situational irony to illustrate Daphne’s ultimate lack of agency over her identity, demonstrating that even one’s best efforts at self-definition are ultimately subject to others’ interpretations. As Daphne flees from Apollo, her effort is likened to a swift wind, yet the same breeze is what strengthens Apollo’s admiration for her. Wind is also later implied in (presumably) Apollo’s interpretation of Daphne’s submission, and the irony of this sudden change of heart emphasizes the unlikelihood that the portrayal of Daphne’s attitude is a faithful representation of her true intentions. Furthermore, Daphne’s final effort at dictating her own narrative through metamorphosis is answered with a transformation that ironically highlights the beauty she tries to disown. Through the devices of wind imagery and situational irony, Ovid thereby reveals the powerlessness of the individual in driving the outcome of their own metamorphosis.
The tale of Apollo and Daphne can thus be studied as a counterargument to the common but mistaken belief that the individual ultimately directs their own metamorphosis. From a close reading of Metamorphoses, it appears that the result of an individual’s transformation is far more dependent upon the perceptions of those witnessing it than it is on the person actually undergoing the transition. From this it may be concluded that social forces have the final say in the result of individuals’ attempts at redefining their lives. When this is compared to the naively optimistic rhetoric of our culture, it seems that we are conditioned as a society to turn a blind eye to the social scaffold’s resistance to individual ambition. This is, of course, extremely relevant to conversations of social justice and perhaps part of why we struggle to overcome inequality; in order to achieve the ideal of individual freedom, we must first venture to understand how the social scaffold checks individuals’ attempts at straying from its structure.
Works Cited
Johnston, Ian, translator. Ovid, Metamorphoses, Book 1 (English Text). 2012, http://johnstoniatexts.x10host.com/ovid/ovid1html.html.
