Daphnis and Chloe

Introduction

Daphnis and Chloe is an ancient Greek romance novel and the only known work of the mysterious writer Longus, who lived during the 2nd century C.E., when Greece was part of the Roman Empire. The novel is a pastoral work depicting the idealized life of shepherds and rural communities, while following the love story of the two eponymous protagonists, Daphnis and Chloe. Due to the descriptions of nudity, desire, and sex, critics have traditionally considered the novel mildly pornographic.

Daphnis and Chloe was first translated from the original Greek into French in 1559 by Jacques Amyot, helping to launch a literary trend in pastoral fiction that flourished across Europe in the 16th century and into the 17th century. Longus’s novel also inspired several famous Elizabethan works, including Arcadia by Sir Philip Sidney (1590) and As You Like It by William Shakespeare (1599).

Content Warning: Please note that the novel contains references to sexual assault and pederasty. The term “pederasty,” in this context, defines a socially acknowledged romantic relationship between an older man and a younger man— usually an adolescent—in ancient Greece.

This study guide refers to the 2002 Oxford World’s Classics edition of Daphnis and Chloe.

Plot Summary

An anonymous narrator recounts how they were inspired to write the novel after discovering a beautiful painting that depicted a romantic love story. The plot follows the events of this love story. A goatherd called Lamon discovers a baby boy who has been abandoned with tokens suggesting that he is from a wealthy family. Lamon takes the baby home to his wife, and they name him Daphnis and raise him as their own. Two years later, a shepherd named Dryas finds an abandoned baby girl, similarly left with items suggesting her family is rich. Dryas takes the baby home to his wife; they call her Chloe and bring her up as their daughter.

The children are raised in the tradition of their respective adoptive families, as a goatherd and shepherdess. When the pair reach adolescence, they spend much of their time together as friends, out in the pastures with the animals. One day, after Chloe rescues Daphnis from a pit, she sees him bathing and senses desire for the first time, although she is too naive to understand her feelings. Meanwhile, a cowherd called Dorcon falls in love with Chloe. In a competition between Daphnis and Dorcon to decide who is the most handsome, Chloe chooses Daphnis and rewards him with a kiss—awakening Daphnis’s romantic feelings for her. Spurned, Dorcon disguises himself as a wolf and plans to rape Chloe. However, the cowherd is attacked by Choe’s dogs and needs to be rescued by Daphnis and Chloe, who assume he is playing a prank.

Later, pirates raid the coastal area and kidnap Daphnis. Chloe runs to Dorcon for help but finds him mortally wounded, although she is still able to help rescue Daphnis. When the pair are reunited, Chloe bathes in a sacred cave and Daphnis sees her naked for the first time and is tormented by desire.

An old cowherd named Philetas arrives and teaches Daphnis and Chloe about love, explaining that the only cure is “kissing / and embracing / and lying down naked together” (28). The young couple follow Philetas’s advice but still don’t understand how to consummate their relationship.

Next, a group of wealthy young men from the city of Methymna arrive and end up coming into conflict with Daphnis and the countryside folk. In revenge, the Methymnaean army pillage the countryside dwellers and abduct Chloe, although she is later rescued by the god Pan.

As the seasons move through winter and into spring, Chloe and Daphnis remain enamored but Daphnis is frustrated by their inability to figure out how to make love. Eventually, a woman called Lycaenion has sex with Daphnis and educates him about lovemaking. Lycaenion warns Daphnis that the first time Chloe has sex, it will hurt and she will bleed, so Daphnis decides against having sex with her. However, with the help of the Nymphs, Daphnis proposes marriage to Chloe, which is agreed to in principle by their respective adoptive families—although he must ask permission from his adoptive father’s master.

Daphnis and his adoptive family prepare the estate for the master’s arrival, although their efforts are almost ruined by a cowherd called Lampis, who vandalizes the beautiful grounds because he is also in love with Chloe. The master’s son arrives, bringing with him his companion, Gnathon, who tries to rape Daphnis when he rejects his advances.

The master and his wife arrive and it is revealed that they are Daphnis’s birth parents. Chloe is devastated because she believes Daphnis will now want to marry a rich woman. Seeing an opportunity, Lampis re-appears and abducts Chloe. By way of apologizing to Daphnis for his behavior, Gnathon helps rescue Chloe. Subsequently, Chloe’s background is also revealed and her parents are identified at a feast that Daphnis’s parents throw in honor of her and Daphnis.

The two lovers return to the countryside to be married surrounded by their families. A flash-forward reveals that following their marriage, Daphnis and Chloe have two children and live a mostly rural life. Returning to their wedding night, the novel closes with the young couple making love for the first time.