ABSTRACT
The translation of Apuleius’ Cupid and Psyche establishes the fairy tale genre as firmly rooted in Antiquity. Psyche is a beautiful princess dogged by the vengefulness of Venus and by sibling jealousy. She has acquired an invisible supernatural husband; the rival sisters force her to break the taboo against seeing him, and the rest of the tale centres on natural rescuers who restore her to Cupid safely, perform the tasks Venus sets her and reconcile Venus herself as her future mother-in-law. The memorably opulent atmosphere, particularly of Cupid’s palace, sets the tone for a similar ethos in the Renaissance versions. Two workings are added of the Semele story, with a parallel intrigue to force the heroine into a fatal sighting of Zeus, likewise put right by her translation to heaven.
