Interpretation essay

Orpheous and Eurydice

The story of Orpheous and Eurydice is one of love, loss, and compassion. This is a story of a man in love, searching for his most loved belonging, his wife. His loyalty to his marriage is something that he was willing to fight for; his desire to be reunited with his wife was so strong that he would put his life on the line for it. Orpheous’s skilled musician ability was so great that he could make even the most evil creatures of the underworld weep when he played. He believed that it might of been enough to challenge the decision of Hades in allowing Eurydice to walk back to earth for a second chance of life with her husband Orpheous.
On a natural level, Orpheous and Eurydice were from different families but their hearts were the same. Orpheous was a son of one of the nine muses, which were the goddesses of entertainment. They would entertain by singing and playing music for the gods and goddesses on Mount Olympus. Orpheous was able to obtain some of this entertainment capability from his mother. He was also a Thracian prince. Orpheous fell in love with a beautiful youth by the name of Eurydice; she was a woman of elegance and flawless love.

He later asked for her hand in marriage and she agreed. After the wedding she along with some of her bridesmaid’s went into the woods when a viper bit her and the poison flowed through her veins killing her slowly. When Orpheous heard of the news, grief swarmed in on him like a paddleboat being engulfed in waves at sea. He was convinced that he could get her back so he thought of a scheme. He went down to the underworld to try and convince Hades to let her live again. He began his descent shortly after the death, playing his music and singing.

He was able to make creatures of terrible horror weep as he passed Erebus and continued to Tartarus. He passed though the underworld leaving a trail of color and harmony from the joyous tune coming from him. When he reached the awful place of glooming sadness, he confronted Hades. The emotion pouring out of his voice was enough to make even the most evil God agree with him. Hades had one rule; do not turn around to see your wife until you are out of the underworld and completely back on earth. He began his journey back to the earth.

The fact of his wife was behind him was eating at his heart. He wanted to turn just to see her but then he saw light. He emerged from the hole in the ground and turned to hug his wife but she was not all the way out and disappeared. He was able to see her but was in such dire need to see his wife that he could wait no longer and she descended back down and would never be seen again. The Gods would never allow for Orpheous to make another trip down to the underworld so he walked the earth in agony and woe.

The story is just what some may call life, we all have lost loved one’s before whether it be friends, family, husbands, or wife’s. The story on a social level reminds us that pain and suffering is just another part of every day that everyone is bound on experiencing. The story describes pain, suffering, woe, sadness, and life. Life contains lots of difficulties. There are many people that live with the same emotions as Orpheous did every waking moment. This shows us that life is not perfect. Orpheous how ever had the opportunity to gain back what he lost but was so sad that he could not wait and ended up turning around to soon.

His lost loved one was Eurydice, who was his wife. She reminds us that even our most loved possessions can be snatched away. Eurydice is a sign of loss that everyone can either relate to or understand. Sometimes these things can be reclaimed and others may be lost forever. You may lose your wallet and find it a week later under the couch but, a loved one in reality may never be reclaimed once their lives pass. Death is something that is known through out the world and cannot be stopped.

Orpheous took the death of his wife very heavy and would suffer until she was returned to him, which never happened. Loss is one of the most difficult things to deal with and may affect you till the day you pass away. Having to wake every morning without something that your life once revolved around would be difficult to do. We are able to understand the grief that Orpheous suffered from, and Eurydice may help some people to realize that some people suffer more than others. In one way or another we all are able to connect to the story because of the simple fact that we all wish we could have another chance at something that was taken away or lost. We all would like to be able to go back and regain the one possession that meant something to us.

This story is one of life. It shows us that the most amazing moments in life can be taken away or destroyed. Orpheous was able to go down to the underworld and convince Hades to allow Eurydice another chance at life, but with his desire of seeing his wife turned too early. His one opportunity was lost forever and could never return to the place he had just come from. The story is a loving one filled with compassion, but with compassion comes loss, woe, and agony. The story was a great one that most everyone can understand.