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Orpheus and Eurydice

Music is one of the most effective art that people use throughout their life. Music allows

people to show their feelings. Various myths and legends show how music is of importance to

humans’ life. The legend of Orpheus and Eurydice is a myth that tries to portray the emotions of

music which is performed by a man separated from his wife by two different worlds. Czeslaw

Milosz recreates the legend of Orpheus and Eurydice originally done by Ovid while still

maintaining the originality both thematically and tonally of the original myth. Therefore, the two

poems are similar in various aspects. For instance, they all have the same themes which include

love, death, self-doubt, and indiscipline.

In Orpheus and Eurydice by Milosz, love is portrayed. The severed head of Orpheus

continues singing the name of his beloved one. The move that Orpheus makes of going to Hades

to bring his wife back to life also portrays love (Milosz, p.1). The same theme of love is

represented in the poem by Ovid where Orpheus makes the same step of getting his beloved one

out of Hades, the land of the dead (Ovid, p.32). In both poems, it is observed that the love of

Orpheus towards Eurydice is the foundation of his music.

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Death is another theme that is present in both poems. In Milosz poem, Orpheus goes to

Hades to get his wife back from the dead (p.1). According to the Greek myths, Hades refers to

the land of the dead. Death is also depicted later in the poem Orpheus and Eurydice by Ovid

when Orpheus fails to get his wife from Hades (Ovid, p.26). He spends into the wilderness

singing where he meets some women who tear his limbs apart killing him. Besides death, self-

doubt is also portrayed in both poems. This is especially so when Orpheus recalls his wife telling

him “You are a good man.” (Milosz, p.1). Both poems outline that he did not believe it which

shows that he had self-doubt.

Indiscipline is one of the major themes that are depicted in both poems. Orpheus is given

conditions that he has to follow to save Eurydice (Ovid, p.28). He is not supposed to talk to her

or turn his head around to assure himself that she is behind him (Milosz, p.2). However, Orpheus

fails to do so when he turns around after reaching near the exit of the underground. This becomes

an epic fail as Eurydice’s only chance of leaving Hades vanishes.

After reading the two poems, there are a lot of similarities that emerge. From the

character setting to the theme setting, the reader notices a lot of similarities. This may be due to

the fact that the poem by Milosz is phrased from the poem by Ovid. However, the two poems

succeed in showing the opportunities that come during the lifetime of an individual to impact

their lives positively but end up messing such chances due to various human desires.
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Works Cited

Milosz, Czeslaw. "Orpheus and Eurydice." New Yorker 17 (2004): 82-83.

Ovid. Metamorphoses. Wordsworth Editions, 1998.