Reading: Week 2 Anthology

I chose the following stories because they seemed the most interesting to me. I really liked Pygamlion, I am a sucker for stories that include the gods like venus. I also really liked the moral of the man in the moon story.
Origin Stories: the moon 

The Man in the Moon 
Laos Folk-Lore by Katherine Neville Fleeson (1899)
- a blacksmith complained that he was not well and that his work was too warm. He said he wanted to be a stone on the mountain and that the mountain is cool because the winds blow and the trees give shade.
- a wise man told him to be a stone on the mountain and he became a stone on the mountain.
- unfortunately, a stone cutter came to the mountain searching for stone to cut and when he saw the stone that was once the blacksmith he knew that was the stone he wanted. So he began to cut it.
- The stone was in great pain and wailed that the cutting hurt and that he no longer wanted to be a stone but thought it would be nice to be a stone-cutter.
- The wise man then told him to be a cutter and then he became a stone-cutter but after searching for the suitable stone he became tired and his feet hurt.
- the man then said he no longer wanted to be a stone-cutter now he wanted to be the sun because he thought it would be agreeable to be the sun. 
- the wise man then told him to be the sun and the man became the sun.
- being the sun the man realized the sun was warmer than the blacksmith than a stone, and than the stone-cutter.  He complained, " I dislike being the sun the moon looks cool; I want to be the moon."
- the wise man told him to be the moon and the man became the moon.
- the man complained that the light from the sun shined on him and it was warmer being the moon than when he was the sun. He then desired to be the blacksmith again because it was the best form of life he had.
- the wise man replied to him that he was tired of changing his warmth. He decided to become the moon and that he shall remain as the moon.
- To this day he lives in the heavens as the moon.

PYGAMLION
Ovid's Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline
- pygmalion (lio) had seen the daughters of propoetus spend their lives in iniquity. He was disappointed in how females' morals and hearts were so he never took a partner and was alone in life as a bachelor. 
- He had great skill in sculpture and carved out of snow-white ivory a woman figure or statue. 
He fell in love with the sculpture he created. He made her lifelike like an actual girl but as much as he could desire she was not real. 
- He looked at his creation and would even run his hand over the sculpture as if it was real flesh and not ivory. 
_ he kisses and thinks his kisses are returned. He even grew to hold, speak to it, and even imagines pressuring his fingers on her limbs and worries over bruises from the pressure. He grew to clothe her and accessorize her with rings and necklaces, and pearl earrings. and cinctures around her breast and places her on the bed and calls her his bedfellow.
- the day of the venus festival cam and celebrated through cyprus and heifers their curved horns gilded fell to the bow on the snowy neck. pygmalion made his offering and prayed for a girl like his ivory girl. Golden venus was present in the festival and heard his prayer and sent him a sign of three flames in the fire. 
when he returned he went to his creation and leaning over the couch he kissed her and she felt warm and touched her breast and the ivory yielded to his touch and lost hardness. 
- he excited with great joy and feels his creation again to find warmth and a pulse and kissed her and his creation looked up to meet his eyes. 
- they married to which the goddess attended the wedding and they had a son together named paphos to which the island is named after  

Pygmalion