Week 3 Story: With Love, Psyche

Dear Diary, 

I learned today that I will get married. I have dreamed of this for a long time. I have spent too many days alone with my tears. They believe that being beautiful must mean you have it all, this is not true. I have nothing, I am left alone and up until now I was going to die alone. Until my father went to the oracle... I have been commanded to get married and it will be with a monster like husband. I am to go to the cliff and the wind should sweep me away to my new life. There is nothing I can do about it.

-Psyche

Dear Diary,

The Magical Palace, that is what I call my new home. I have a husband too, he is mysterious, I don't know what he looks like and he only comes at night. This doesn't seem as bad as the oracle told my father. I have everything I could ever need here including invisible servants that take care of all my needs. I miss my parents and sisters a lot but this is my new life.

-Psyche

Dear Diary, 

I am so alone. Even more than I was in my old life. I cry all the time. I might as well be dead, no one knows where I am and I have no contact with anyone besides my unknown husband at night.. He told me my sisters will be coming to me soon but I should not talk to them. I convinced him to allow me to speak with them as long as it was quick and I did not listen to my sisters when they question or make assumptions about my new life. I can do this, I will steer clear or questioning. I just want them to know that I am okay, that is all. 

-Psyche

Dear Diary, 

I saw my sisters today! I was so happy but I go really nervous when they began to ask questions about my husband so I quickly gave them some items from the magical palace and led them on the way out. I think everything is okay now. They do not need to worry anymore.

-Psyche

Psyche and Her Sisters

Dear Diary,

I am so sick of this man! I am exhausted with his paranoia that my sisters are out to harm me. They are my family, they would never hurt me. I am going to see them again, he is not happy about it but he has to allow me to. 

-Psyche

Dear Diary, 

My sisters reminded me today of my fate from the oracle. I was supposed to marry a beast, a monster and live a terrible life. But things have not been that way... I know soon my husband will show his true colors and that is why he won't allow me to see him. He is a monster. Tonight, I am going to kill him and take all of his fortune. He claims to love me but I am trapped here, with a monster! I never would have thought of this plan without my sisters, they care about me so much. They will be here waiting for me after to help me carry my fortunes away. 

-Psyche

Dear Diary,

I have made a terrible terrible mistake. My husband is not a monster. He is Cupid! I went along with the plan and when I turned the lamp to him, I saw how beautiful and gracious he looked as he slept. I couldn't believe my eyes. He woke up.. flew away.. I know now that he will be gone forever. He was telling me the truth all along about my sisters. I am sure they were jealous of my life, they didn't know who my husband was but they wanted me to kill him so they could have some of my fortune.  He knew they were no good. How could they have done this to me? I will punish them.. I have to find a way.

-Psyche

Dear Diary,

I killed my sisters. It is their own fault though. I went to each of their palaces and told them what I saw.. which was Cupid. I tricked them. I told them that when he saw me he told me to leave and never come back, that he was going to be with my sister now. I knew they would believe me. Cupid did no such thing. He left but he did not say these things to me. I am not sure if he will return but I know that my sisters will never betray me again. They both tried to call for Cupid, to go to the Magical Palace. When they did, they jumped from the cliff like fools. To their death. I am not sad anymore, I have nothing left to worry about. Maybe my husband will come back after he sees what I have done. 

-Psyche

Dear Diary,

Cupid came back for me. But we must keep our love a secret for now.. Venus does not know that Cupid struck himself with his own arrow. I hope that we do not have to hide out for long. This is the life I have always wanted. I am happier than I have ever been, even without my sisters. 

This story is a retelling of Apuleius's Cupid and Psyche. I did not change a lot from the story but I choose to write it from Psyche's point of view in diary entries. In the original story, the story is being told to a hostage who was soon to be married when she was kidnapped to help calm her down while they wait for the ransom. The story of Cupid and Psyche, Venus the goddess of love and beauty is angry at Psyche because of her beauty. The attention is being taken from Venus so she commands her son Cupid to find a terrible man to wed Psyche where she will live her life in misery. Cupid does the opposite, he doesn't find some terrible man for Psyche, Cupid himself becomes her husband. This is why he won't let her see him, he went against his mother's wishes and shot himself with his own arrow to fall in love with Psyche. When Psyche's sisters come to visit her, they see the beautiful life she appears to be living but do not know that she doesn't know who her husband really is. They are enraged with jealousy and plot to convince her to kill her husband. When Psyche goes to kill her husband, it is revealed that he is Cupid. She then feels betrayed and goes on to convince her sisters that Cupid actually wants them to marry him and they kill themselves while trying to get to Cupid.