Daphnis and Chloë by Longus
"Daphnis and Chloë," attributed to the ancient Greek writer Longus, is a pastoral romance set on the idyllic island of Lesbos. The narrative begins with the discovery of two abandoned infants: Daphnis, a boy found by a goatherd, and Chloë, a girl discovered by a shepherd. As they grow, the two children develop a close bond while tending their flocks, exploring the complexities of love and desire amidst pastoral life. The story unfolds with various challenges, including pirate attacks, rival suitors, and misunderstandings, which test their affection and innocence.
As Daphnis and Chloë navigate their feelings for each other, they also confront societal pressures and the realities of love. The tale culminates in revelations about their true identities and the eventual approval of their marriage by their biological parents, who are of noble birth. The narrative intertwines themes of love, identity, and the influence of the divine, particularly through the character of Pan, who plays a role in guiding the young lovers. Ultimately, "Daphnis and Chloë" is celebrated as a rich exploration of young love, innocence, and the pastoral ideal in ancient literature.
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Daphnis and Chloë by Longus
First transcribed:Poimenika ta kata Daphnin kai Chloen, third century c.e. (English translation, 1587)
Type of work: Novel
Type of plot: Pastoral
Time of plot: Indeterminate
Locale: Island of Lesbos
Principal characters
Daphnis , a young shepherdChloë , a shepherdess
The Story:
On the Greek island of Lesbos, a goatherd named Lamo one day finds a richly dressed infant boy being suckled by one of his goats. Lamo and his wife, Myrtale, hide the purple cloak and ivory dagger the boy wore and pretend he is their own son. They name him Daphnis. Two years later, a shepherd named Dryas discovers an infant girl being nursed by one of his sheep in a cave of the nymphs. This child also is richly dressed. Dryas and his wife, Nape, keep the girl as their own, giving her the name Chloë.
When the two children are fifteen and thirteen years old, they are given flocks to tend. Daphnis and Chloë play happily together, amusing themselves in many ways. One day, while chasing a goat, Daphnis falls into a wolf pit, from which he is rescued unharmed by Chloë and a herdsman she summoned to help her. Daphnis begins to experience delightful but disturbing feelings about Chloë. Dorco, a herdsman, asks permission to marry Chloë but is refused by Dryas. Disguising himself in a wolf skin, Dorco shortly afterward attempts to seize Chloë. Attacked by the flock dogs, he is rescued by Daphnis and Chloë, who innocently think he was merely playing a prank. Love, little understood by either, grows between Daphnis and Chloë.
In the autumn some Tyrian pirates wound Dorco, steal some of his oxen and cows, and take Daphnis away with them. Chloë, who hears Daphnis calling to her from the pirate ship, runs to aid the mortally wounded Dorco. Dorco gives her his herdsman’s pipe, telling her to blow upon it. When she blows, the cattle jump into the sea and overturn the ship. The pirates drown, but Daphnis, catching on to the horns of two swimming cows, comes safely to shore.
After the celebration of the autumn vintage, Daphnis and Chloë return to their flocks. They attempt in their innocence to practice the art of love, but they are not successful. Some young men of Methymne come to the fields of Mitylene to hunt. When a withe used as a cable to hold their small ship is gnawed in two by a goat, the Methymneans blame Daphnis and set upon him. In a trial over the affair, Daphnis is judged innocent. The angry Methymneans later carry away Chloë. The god Pan warns the Methymnean captain in a dream that he should bring back Chloë, and she is returned. Daphnis and Chloë joyfully celebrate holidays in honor of Pan.
The two lovers are sad at being parted by winter weather, which keeps the flocks in their folds. In the spring the lovers happily drive their flocks again to the fields. When a woman named Lycaenium becomes enamored of the boy, Daphnis finally learns how to ease the pains he feels for Chloë, but Lycaenium warns him that Chloë will be hurt the first time she experiences the ecstasy of love. Through fear of doing physical harm to his sweetheart, the tender Daphnis will not deflower his Chloë. Meanwhile, many suitors, Lampis among them, ask for the hand of Chloë, and Dryas almost consents. Daphnis bewails his inability to compete successfully with the suitors because of his poverty. With the aid of the nymphs he then finds a purse of silver, which he gives Dryas in order to become contracted to Chloë. In return, Dryas asks Lamo to consent to the marriage of his son, but Lamo answers that first he must consult his master, Dionysophanes.
Lamo, Daphnis, and Chloë prepare to entertain Dionysophanes, but Lampis ravages the garden they prepared because he was denied Chloë’s hand. Fearing the wrath of his master, Lamo laments his ill fortune. Eudromus, a page, helps to explain the trouble to Lamo’s young master Astylus, who promises to intercede with his father and blame the wanton destruction on some horses in the neighborhood. Astylus’s parasite, Gnatho, falls in love with Daphnis but is repulsed. Finally, the depraved Gnatho receives Astylus’s permission to take Daphnis with him to the city. Just in time, Lamo reveals the story of the finding of Daphnis, who is discovered to be Dionysophanes’ son. Meanwhile, Lampis steals Chloë, who is later rescued by Gnatho. After Dryas tells how Chloë was found as a child, it is learned that she is the daughter of Megacles of Mitylene. Thus the supposed son and daughter of Lamo and Dryas are revealed as the children of wealthy parents who are happy to consent to their marriage. The wedding is celebrated amid the rural scenes dear to both bride and groom. Daphnis becomes Philopoemen, and Chloë is named Agele. On her wedding night Chloë at last learns from Daphnis how the delights of love are obtained.
Bibliography
Barber, Giles. Daphnis and Chloë: The Markets and Metamorphoses of an Unknown Bestseller. London: The British Library, 1989. A fascinating study of the bibliographic history of the work and its reception by various audiences.
Fekete, David J. “Two Vast Antagonists: Longus and Plato.” In A Rhapsody of Love and Spirituality. New York: Algora, 2003. Contrasts Longus’s depiction of interpersonal love in Daphnis and Chloë with Plato’s ideas of transcendent love, arguing that these conflicting views are the origin of modern confusion about love.
Hardin, Richard F. Love in a Green Shade: Idyllic Romances Ancient to Modern. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2000. Examines the idyllic romance tradition in literature, with special emphasis on Daphnis and Chloë. Surveys the work’s reception from its rediscovery in the Renaissance through its various adaptations in English, French, Spanish, and other languages.
Longus. Daphnis and Chloë. Translated by George Thornley and with an introduction by J. M. Edwards. New York: Putnam, 1924. Reprint. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1989. The Thornley translation is revised and augmented by J. M. Edwards, whose introduction details the various manuscript sources. Includes a useful appendix on the origins of the work.
‗‗‗‗‗‗‗. The Story of Daphnis and Chloë. Translated, annotated, and edited by W. D. Lowe. Cambridge, England: Deighton Bell, 1908. Reprint. New York: Arno Press, 1979. Perhaps the most useful edition for academic purposes because of its elaborate annotations.
Morgan, J. R. “Longus.” In Time in Ancient Greek Literature, edited by Irene J. F. de Jong and René Nünlist. Boston: Brill, 2007. Studies the narration of Daphnis and Chloë, focusing on the order in which events are presented and other aspects of time in the work.