The original interpretation of the ancient Greek myth, created by the English romantic poet in 1818.

Sleeping Endymion saw the beautiful moon goddess Diana in a dream and fell in love with his dream. From this moment on, he is doomed to search for heavenly beauty-truth. Following the concept of uplifting love, the poet leads his hero to comprehend the ideal through purification by mercy and compassion. Endymion readily comes to the aid of those in trouble: he intercedes with Diana on behalf of Alpheus and Arethusa, who were separated by her, returns youth and freedom to Glaucus and resurrects his beloved Scylla, destroyed by the spell of the insidious Circe, as well as a whole host of lovers who found their end in the bottomless depths of the ocean. The hero is required not only to exert physical strength. Endymion suffers not only from love for the goddess, but also because, in search of his ideal, he meets with an Indian girl who captivates him. The hero is tormented by pangs of conscience, believing that he is betraying Diana, but it turns out that the goddess herself turned out to be Endymion’s temptress, intending to test the mortal youth who managed to inspire her with love. Since Endymion, unknown to himself, remained faithful to his great goddess, Zeus rewards him with immortality. (From the textbook “History of Western European Literature. 19th Century: England.” St. Petersburg, 2004).