In Metamorphoses, the Roman poet Ovid tells the tale of Pygmalion, king of Cyprus, and his rather unusual love affair. The story has been interpreted in many ways, and its fascinating hero and heroine have inspired numerous artists, poets, filmmakers, writers, composers and choreographers.
       Disgusted by Cypriot women’s immortality, Pygmalion takes comfort in a statue of a beautiful woman, which he sculpts from ivory. Soon, he becomes obsessed with the sculpture. He kisses and caresses her, and showers her with gifts, making himself believe that the woman is made not of ivory but of flesh and blood.
        Pygmalion falls completely in love with the statue. Therefore, when the festival of Aphrodite comes around, he begs that the goddess would give him a wife just like his ivory girl. When he returns home and kisses his sculpted female, he finds that her lips are soft and warm. Pygmalion’s wish has been granted: his beloved statue is a living being. The two wed, and she bears him a son, Paphos.
        There are various reinterpretations of the myth. The most famous one is George Bernard Shaw’s piece—Pygmalion in Five Acts, a story of a professor who makes a bet that he can train an uneducated Londoner to behave like an upper class lady. The theme of the man creating his ideal woman is seen in both tales. In Bernard Shaw’s more feminist version, though, the heroine ultimately rejects her “creator.” In 1964, the play was adapted for a movie, My Fair Lady. Different from its stage presentation, it leaves the audience wondering whether or not the flower seller Eliza goes back to Prof. Henry Higgins, who teaches her to speak "proper" English, thereby making her presentable in the high society of Edwardian London.
         Whether you see Pygmalion as a hopeless romantic, a misogynist, or both, there’s no doubt that the myth has inspired many fine works of art and literature. The story of the king and his ivory wife is certainly one that captures the imagination.