batch.motif.roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg-l1548-l1589
---
record_id: batch.motif.roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg-l1548-l1589
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
passage_locator:
label: EXPLANATION. / EXPLANATION. / EXPLANATION. / EXPLANATION.; lines 1548-1589
start: '1548'
end: '1589'
translation: The Metamorphoses of Ovid, Books VIII-XV
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: "“a heavy island grew upon her changed members.”"
summary: A river speaker recounts that Perimele, his beloved Nymph, was cast from
a rock into the sea by her father Hippodamas while pregnant. The speaker bore
her up in the water and prayed to Neptune to grant her a place or let her become
a place. Neptune assented, and Perimele's body hardened, became covered with earth,
and changed into an island.
language: English
quote_policy: quoted
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: One island is named Perimele and is described as withdrawn from the rest and
pleasing to the speaker.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Perimele is identified as a beloved Nymph whose virgin status the speaker
says he took away.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: Hippodamas, Perimele's father, pushed his pregnant daughter from a rock into
the sea.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The speaker received Perimele and supported her while she was swimming.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: The speaker prayed to Neptune, asking him to assist Perimele by granting her
a place or allowing her to become a place.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: Neptune moved his head and shook the waters as a sign of assent.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: Perimele was afraid but continued swimming while the speaker touched her trembling
breast.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: Perimele's body grew hard, earth covered and enclosed her limbs, and an island
grew upon her changed members.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Perimele
description: A beloved Nymph, daughter of Hippodamas, cast into the sea while about
to give birth and transformed into an island.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: River speaker
description: The first-person speaker, one of the sacred rivers, who says he injured
Perimele, received her in the water, supported her, and prayed to Neptune.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Hippodamas
description: Father of Perimele, described as taking offense and pushing his pregnant
daughter from a rock into the sea.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Neptune
description: Bearer of the Trident and King of the ocean, ruler of the waters, who
assents to the speaker's prayer.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
roles:
- id: role:1
label: beloved nymph transformed into island
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Perimele is called the speaker's beloved Nymph and later becomes covered
with earth as an island grows on her changed members.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- id: role:2
label: punishing father
assigned_to:
- fig:3
basis: Hippodamas takes offense and pushes his daughter from a rock into the sea.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: rescuer and supplicant
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: The speaker bears Perimele up while she swims and prays to Neptune for assistance.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: role:4
label: sea ruler granting assent
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Neptune is invoked as ruler of the waters and responds by moving his head
and shaking the waters with assent.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: role:5
label: pregnant daughter cast into the sea
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Perimele is described as Hippodamas's daughter, about to bring forth, pushed
into the sea.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: Perimele island
literal_form: An island formed upon Perimele's changed body.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:4
- id: sym:2
label: sea and flowing waters
literal_form: The sea and the realms of flowing waters ruled by Neptune, where sacred
rivers end.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: sym:3
label: rock
literal_form: The rock from which Hippodamas pushes his daughter into the sea.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:4
label: trident
literal_form: Neptune is addressed as the bearer of the Trident.
associated_figures:
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:5
label: fresh earth
literal_form: Earth grows over Perimele's body and encloses her floating limbs.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Perimele cast into the sea
summary: Hippodamas takes offense at Perimele's condition and pushes his pregnant
daughter from a rock into the sea.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:2
label: River speaker prays to Neptune
summary: The speaker supports Perimele in the water and asks Neptune to grant her
a place or let her become one.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: scene:3
label: Perimele becomes an island
summary: Neptune assents, and Perimele's body hardens, is covered by earth, and
becomes an island.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:4
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: woman transformed into an island
taxonomy_refs:
- shapeshifter
basis: Perimele's body hardens, is covered by earth, and an island grows upon her
changed members.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: 'The taxonomy reference is approximate: the passage describes transformation
by divine assent, not voluntary shapeshifting.'
- id: motif:2
label: pregnant daughter cast into water by father
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Hippodamas pushes Perimele, his daughter about to give birth, from a rock
into the sea.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: No broader taxonomy reference is directly supported by the supplied list.
- id: motif:3
label: divine beloved rescued through supplication
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_beloved
basis: The speaker calls Perimele his beloved Nymph, supports her in the water,
and prays to Neptune for her rescue or transformation.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- ev:3
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage frames the relationship as beloved and injured; the exact
status of the speaker as divine is inferable from his identity among sacred rivers
but should be reviewed.
- id: motif:4
label: landscape formed from transformed body
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Fresh earth encloses Perimele's limbs and a heavy island grows on her changed
members.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: This is a passage-level pattern rather than a supplied taxonomy family.
comparison_claims:
- id: claim:1
claim: The footnote cautiously relates Perimele to Apollodorus's Perimede, described
there as wife of Acheloüs, but the name and genealogical details differ from the
immediate narrative.
claim_level: linguistic_similarity
target: Apollodorus's Perimede, wife of Acheloüs
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
counter_evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:5
confidence: low
limitations: The supplied evidence is only a translator's footnote; it does not
provide the Apollodorus passage itself, and the roles or family details are not
identical.
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: quote
locator: lines 1548-1552
quote_or_summary: The speaker points to an island called Perimele and says, “This
beloved Nymph did I deprive of the name of a virgin.”
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt used.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 1552-1556
quote_or_summary: Hippodamas, Perimele's father, takes offense and pushes his daughter,
about to give birth, from a rock into the sea; the speaker receives and bears
her up as she swims.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 1556-1569
quote_or_summary: The speaker addresses Neptune as bearer of the Trident and ruler
of flowing waters, asks him to assist Perimele, and requests that she be granted
a place or allowed to become a place.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: quote
locator: lines 1569-1577
quote_or_summary: Neptune shakes the waters with assent; Perimele swims in fear,
her body grows hard, earth encloses her limbs, and “a heavy island grew upon her
changed members.”
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short excerpt used.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: footnote 81, lines 1585-1589
quote_or_summary: The footnote states that according to Apollodorus, Acheloüs's
wife was named Perimede and bore him Hippodamas and Orestes; it also identifies
the Echinades as five small Ionian Sea islands near Acarnania.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: low
notes: The basic narrative actions and transformation are explicit. Taxonomy alignment
is approximate because the supplied motif list lacks a direct 'metamorphosis into
island' category. The comparison claim rests only on a footnote.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
Only the supplied passage and footnote metadata were used.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg__l1548-l1589
passage_sha256=7ec4798117492b83b78fc20825125757d3c2803d3a63c9b2a093a60acd2fb05a