Echo and Narcissus

Echo & Narcissus

The tale of Echo and Narcissus is a fascinating story. I understood the whole story, but I could not understand couple of things in the story. One of the parts in the story that I did not appreciate is why the story focuses on Narcissus more then Echo? Another part I really couldn't comprehend is why did the nymphs always go for Narcissus, even though they knew his personality was like that toward nymphs? Other then that, it was an interesting myth to read.

Echo and Narcissus was a tale of love and suffering. Echo was a beautiful nymph. She had a love for the woods and mountains. Despite her beauty and playful nature, Echo had one little problem; she was quite the talkaholic if you know what I mean. Nevertheless, Echo's part in the story should be more of a focus point then the Narcissus part.

Echo and Narcissus (1903), a Pre-Raphaelite interp...

Benjamin West, Narcissus and Echo (1805)

Nederlands: Istoriato schotels (Toegepaste kunst e...

Echo's tragedy was worse then what Narcissus went through! Maybe she is not the focal point because, she has a self-defeating passion. She is in love with an unattainable object, Narcissus. This is an impossible love, since Narcissus can not, and continually rejects her. Echo lacks identity; since she can only echo what others have said, she has no identity of her own, or it could be because she is only responsive, merely mimics, and never originates herself. Nevertheless, the tragedy seems more severe then it seems of Narcissus's.

I still don't understand why Narcissus never liked a nymph? Is it because he was so fond of himself that he could not see anything upset him? Maybe it's because he was too scared of reality? Beautiful nymphs would come to him, and he would turn down each and everyone, until one day he saw his mirror and could not resist...