Why it matters
Narcissus lies by a stream, lost in his own reflection, while the nymph Echo, who can only repeat others' words, watches in despair from across the water. Waterhouse painted the scene from Ovid's Metamorphoses in 1903.
Did you know?
- Narcissus's red robe symbolises his burning self-love.
- Echo is separated from him by the stream, and he never looks back.
- In the myth, a narcissus flower grew where he died.
Based on the Wikipedia article Echo and Narcissus (Waterhouse painting) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
