Also according to this article at Cornell, Ovid was the sole poet of the story and there aren’t any earlier versions, so it is likely both of our interpretations are askew.
That’s because ancient Greeks didn’t know what an asexual was! If an ancient Greek tells you about a magic rock that attracts metal objects, that’s a magnet. If an ancient Greek tells you that he drank water from the well right next to the toilet and now his poop is bloody, that’s dysentery. If an ancient Greek tells you he doesn’t love anyone, that’s an aromantic or an asexual. We have more advanced science these days, and more advanced words for scientific phenomena.
So may he himself love
This prayer doesn’t make any sense if Narcissus already had the ability to love. The mortal who said this prayer, and the god who answered it, both observed that Narcissus has never loved anyone. Cause he’s aro.
And he was rude to people because they didn’t respect his consent. One of the suitors he rejected literally prayed to the gods to kill him. The boy was surrounded by violent incels, of course he was abrasive.
The story doesn’t define him as asexual. It does say he scorned and mocked people who then cursed him:
‘So may he himself love, and so may he fail to command what he loves!’
https://ovid.lib.virginia.edu/trans/Metamorph3.htm#476975711
Also according to this article at Cornell, Ovid was the sole poet of the story and there aren’t any earlier versions, so it is likely both of our interpretations are askew.
https://www.cornellcollege.edu/classical_studies/CLA216-2-A/narcissus-echo/
That’s because ancient Greeks didn’t know what an asexual was! If an ancient Greek tells you about a magic rock that attracts metal objects, that’s a magnet. If an ancient Greek tells you that he drank water from the well right next to the toilet and now his poop is bloody, that’s dysentery. If an ancient Greek tells you he doesn’t love anyone, that’s an aromantic or an asexual. We have more advanced science these days, and more advanced words for scientific phenomena.
This prayer doesn’t make any sense if Narcissus already had the ability to love. The mortal who said this prayer, and the god who answered it, both observed that Narcissus has never loved anyone. Cause he’s aro.
And he was rude to people because they didn’t respect his consent. One of the suitors he rejected literally prayed to the gods to kill him. The boy was surrounded by violent incels, of course he was abrasive.
Ovid was a Roman not a Greek.