Week 3 Story: The Modern Narcissus

Author's Note:

This story is based off of Ovid's Metamorphoses: Narcissus, which is a continuation of Echo. Echo was a story about a woman who fell in love with Narcissus. When Echo revealed herself to him, he did not like what he saw and ran from her. Because of this, Echo wilted away and died in the woods due to her despair and loneliness. Rhamnusia, who is the goddess of revenge decided to punish Narcissus for this. In Echo, when Narcissus was born, a prophetic vision disclosed that he would live a long life ‘If he does not discover himself.’ Fast forward- Narcissus is on a walk when he sees this fountain surrounded by luscious trees and grass. The water in the fountain seems untouched and crystal clear. He stops to rest in the shade of the trees, and takes a drink from the fountain. He sees his reflection, and is just so mesmerized by himself. He grows so in love with his reflection, that when he reaches for it he gets upset that he can't reach it. When his tears hit the water, it distorts the reflection, and he gets angry that his reflection seems to run away. He screams, and hits himself, and lays on the grass to die (remember the prophecy). When his sisters go to get his body for his funeral, his body is no where to be found. Instead, there is now a white flower with a yellow-heart center in his place. Now, welcome to my version of Narcissus: The Modern Narcissus.

"The Modern Narcissus"

Katie was a typical high school junior. She had a best friend, Bree, who she was very close with. Other than Bree, she didn't talk to many other people. Issues at home with her siblings and her relationship history caused her to have low self-esteem issues. Bree was the only person she could really talk to about things, and Bree felt the same way about her. They spent most of their time together.

One day, Katie was browsing through social media when she came upon a recent picture of one of the popular girls in her class. Her natural beauty and easy-going personality were so captivating to Katie. She noticed herself longing to be admired, just as she admired the popular girl in class. Katie went to her bathroom and started practicing with her makeup, something she never quite cared about. She watched YouTube makeup tutorials and practiced until she thought it was perfect. She also had dyed her hair and started to style it like the hairstyles she would see in the Cosmopolitan magazines. Katie suddenly changed her wardrobe. Before she knew it, she looked like she had a complete makeover. 

Very happy with her recent changes, Katie starting taking more pictures of herself. However, she wouldn't just take one and be done. Katie often spent more than 10 minutes making sure she snapped the perfect picture of herself. She would then share it on social media, and wait for the notifications to come in regarding picture comments and likes. This became a daily routine for her. But it didn't end there. When she and Bree would spend time together, she would request that they take more photos together. If Katie found any tiny little flaw in the way she looked, the picture would have to be retaken. It had to be perfect.

One day, Bree was confiding in her, and telling her something that had really been bothering her. However, she wasn't giving Bree her undivided attention like she usually did. She had been looking at her Instagram account reading the comments that people had left on her most recent picture. Bree noticed this lack of attention, and asked her, "well...what do you think I should do?" It was as if Katie didn't hear the question because she exclaimed, "Oh my god, look what Sara said. She said I look like I could be a model. I've been thinking about it. I mean... don't you think I look like I should be a model?" This bothered Bree. "Wow, Katie, thank you for listening and caring about my situation. You know what? You've changed. Suddenly you're just so self-absorbed, and honestly I don't think I could stand it anymore. Who ARE you? Just go home." Katie was shocked. She didn't think her best friend would ever say something like that to her. "Are you serious right now? You don't have to be so jealous. Whatever." Just like that, Katie left. She had become so self-absorbed, that her once best friend called quits on the friendship. Before she knew it, she had nobody who truly cared about her. 

Story source: Ovid's Metamorphoses: Narcissus

Ovid's Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline