Reading Diary B: Cupid and Psyche

Okay so I liked the Cupid and Psyche unit, I particularly loved the second half. The episodes of the story where Venus sends Psyche on all of those crazy tasks was really fun to read, particularly because many of the tasks are familiar to me from modern fairy tales. The first task given to Psyche by Venus required her to sort a bunch of beans into their particular types. This is very similar to the task that the step-mother in Cinderella forces Cinderella to do if she wants to go to the ball.

Depiction of Psyche entering the underworld
in Psyche aux enfers by Eugene-Ernest
 Hillmarcher (1865)

I liked how the story portrays Psyche as very determined. She is able to complete all of the tasks (with some help from animal friends), all of the while she is desperately searching for Cupid. I particularly liked the final task given to Psyche. She is to travel to the underworld to obtain a bottle of Beauty from Persephone. There were so many stipulations that she had to follow in order to ensure her safe passage back to the world of the living, and she was prudent enough to follow all of those without question or hesitation. That shows determination. But she couldn't seem to resist opening the jar of Beauty even though she was warned not too. Honestly that kind of annoyed me. I mean, come one. You make it all of the way back from the Underworld with literally only one thing left to do, and you can't manage to do it? She's already the most beautiful woman in the world, why is she so willing to ignore the warning to potentially get just a little bit more beauty?

Also there is just one thing that I could not get over in the story. Psyche cried the entire way through it. Honestly, drives me nuts that women in ancient literature are always crying. I mean, come on. Toughen up. I would love for there to be a remake of this story where Psyche is just a little bit less emotional, and a lot more rational.