The Golden Ass Chapter Summary & Analysis | Preface and Chapter 1: The Story of Aristomenes

Preface and Chapter 1: The Story of Aristomenes Summary

Preface: Apuleius explains that he was born in Greece and learned Latin only late in life. As such, he apologizes in advance of any of the following text - which was originally written in Latin - is awkward or poorly constructed.

Book the First: Lucius is traveling into Thessaly and, after a hard day of riding, decides to give his horse, and himself, some rest. He hears two men walk by. One is laughing scornfully at the other, expressing disbelief for something the other has just said. His curiosity piqued, Lucius approaches the men and begs to know what they are talking about, explaining that he does not mean to be nosy but that he simply wants to know everything. He rebukes the skeptic, saying that many men - himself included - have seen things which others could not possibly believe and, therefore, he thinks that almost anything is impossible.