“Metamorphoses” is a Latin narrative poem written by the poet Ovid. Ovid was a Roman poet during the Age of Augustus. “Metamorphoses” is considered Ovid’s magnus opum (great work) and consist of 15 books and roughly 250 Greek and Latin myths. The myths in “Metamorphoses” chronicle the history of the world from creation to present day in Ovid’s time. Although “Metamorphoses” meets the criteria for the epic genre some scholars have also considered the work to be an anti-epic. An anti-epic is a piece of literary work that challenges the conventions of the epic genre of literature. An epic is a long narrative poem told on a grand scale containing stories about armies, heroes, supernatural beings and forces of nature over long character arcs. The main protagonist for an epic is generally a hero of historical, cultural or legendary significance. In ancient epics the hero is usually a being of unbelievable stature. Ancient heros are typically partially divine or at least favored by the gods and accomplishes feats of superhuman strength or valor. Other general characteristics of the epic genre are: a. The poem begins with the invocation of a muse to inspire the poet, a prayer to the appropriate supernatural being. b. Since most ancient epics began as oral narratives, the poet generally employs several rhetorical and poetic devices such as figures of speech (similies, metaphors, etc.) and repeated phrases to aid in remembering events. c. Gods or supernatural beings frequently intervene in the action to determine the outcome d. Generally cover a single but vast topic. Some epics cover historical events, for example the “Illiad” covers the Trojan War. Other epic topics can be purely mythological like the stories that make up “Metamorphoses” Similar to other epics the actions of the gods is prevalent through out the myths in “Metamorphoses”. Most of the transformations throughout “Metamorphoses” are a result of the gods. For example, Lycaon is transformed into a wolf by Zeus. Ovid chronicles the history of the world from creation to his present day throughout the “Metamorphoses”, giving the work a historical perspective. This is another characteristic shared with other works in the epic genre. Epic poems also begin with an invocation where the poet summarizes the theme of the work. Following the trend of other works in the epic genre, In Ovid details the theme of “Metamorphoses” in the invocation. My soul is wrought to sing of forms transformed to bodies new and