Question

Read the excerpt from The Metamorphoses by Ovid.

They go down . . . and cast stones, as ordered, behind their footsteps. The stones . . . began to lay aside their hardness and their stiffness, and by degrees to become soft; and when softened, to assume a new form. Presently after, when they were grown larger . . . some shape of man might be seen in them. . . . Yet that part of them which was humid with any moisture, and earthy, was turned into portions adapted for the use of the body. That which is solid, and cannot be bent, is changed into bones. . . . And in a little time, by the interposition of the Gods above, the stones thrown by the hands of the man, took the shape of a man, and the female race was renewed by the throwing of the woman. Thence are we a hardy generation, and able to endure fatigue, and we give proofs from what original we are sprung.

Read the excerpt from the adaptation "The Flood” by James Baldwin.

When at last they reached the plain they found themselves at the head of a noble company of human beings, all eager to serve them.

So Deucalion became their king, and he set them in homes, and taught them how to till the ground, and how to do many useful things; and the land was filled with people who were happier and far better than those who had dwelt there before the flood. And they named the country Hellas, after Hellen, the son of Deucalion and Pyrrha; and the people are to this day called Hellenes.

How does the adaptation differ from the original?

Ovid explains where humanity originates, while Baldwin specifies that the rocks become the Hellenes.
Baldwin uses the story as a creation story, while Ovid uses it to encourage people to honor the gods.
Baldwin emphasizes the positive aspects of the new Hellenic society, while Ovid does not.
Ovid says that the people made from rocks are less than human, while Baldwin does not.

Answer 1

Answer: Baldwin emphasizes the positive aspects of the new Hellenic society, while Ovid does not.

Explanation: Baldwin’s adaptation focuses on social renewal—Deucalion ruling, teaching agriculture, people becoming happier and the land named Hellas—whereas Ovid’s passage concentrates on the literal, physical origin of humans from stones and the gods’ role in that transformation (highlighting hardiness and bodily formation rather than the social benefits).