Summary

In the transition, as the water from the pool is cleaned up, Narcissus appears and stares at his reflection in the water. Attempts to get him to move fail. Finally, someone brings in a narcissus plant. Narcissus himself is lifted away from the pool, his body frozen in its pose. The plant is put in its place.

A new Narrator appears, telling the story of a wood nymph named Pomona, “whose skill in the care of plants and trees has never been equaled” (49). She loves what she does to the point that she ignores the influence of Aphrodite and never falls in love, much to the dismay of Vertumnus, the god of springtime. He disguises himself many times and in many ways, but still she refuses to pay him any attention. Finally, he disguises himself as an...