Confessions in Ovid's MetamorphosesByblis and Myrrha, two of Ovid's passionate and transgressive heroines, confess incestuous passions. Byblis longs for her brother, Caunus, and Myrrha covets her father, Cinyras. Mandelbaum translates these tales effectively, but sometimes a different translation by Crane gives new meaning to an argument. As Byblis and Myrrha realize the feelings around them, they weigh the pros and cons of these emotions. Despite the terrible relationships involved, each young girl provides practical support and speaks in a way that arouses pity for her plight. Their paths of reasoning coincide, but Byblis begins where Myrrha ends, and vice versa; Myrrha begins where that of Byblis ends. The language used by Byblis and Myrrha elicits sympathy. Immediately, Byblis exclaims: “What misery is for me! to draw attention to his suffering (Mandelbaum 308). Later, she speaks of her “sorrow” caused by the “bad fate” which made Caunus her brother (308-9). Myrrha emphasizes her “misfortune” of not being born into these tribes which would allow her to realize her desires. Instead, she is “abandoned and deprived of the very man [she desires]” (339). In Crane's translation, Myrrha considers herself "the most depraved" (online). All of these revelations force readers to feel sorry for the girls in their situation; they seem victims of their desires. Both Byblis and Myrrha denounce their passions. After Byblis wakes up from intimate dreams of her brother, she states that she would never want to see this scene in the light of day (Mandelbaum 308). Later in her speech, she calls his incestuous pursuit a “forbidden path” and his ardent desires “obscene and vile fires” (309). According to Cran... middle of paper ... my daughter's speech arouses even more pity. Beyond all the similarities, each girl follows a different path in her mind. Readers feel more compassion for Myrrha and less for Byblis depending on the paths they have taken. Ironically, Myrrha becomes the one who fulfills his desires. As a result, she is transformed into a myrrh tree; in this form, she will contaminate neither the dead nor the living with her bad actions. Regardless of Byblis' desire to build a relationship with her brother, the passion she seeks is denied to her. She mourns her loss profusely, so she becomes a fountain, whose flow never ends. Works Cited Mandelbaum, Allen, trans. Ovid's Metamorphoses. By Ovid. San Diego: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1993. Crane, Gregory, ed. Perseus Project. 1995. Tufts University. October 6, 1999 http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/text?lookup=ov.+met.+init>