Concept in Definition ABC

The term Pygmalion has a direct relationship with classical mythology and, especially, with the ability of myths to provide suggestive ideas. The mythical tale of Pygmalion has become a reference cultural universal that is present in the literature, the movie theater wave psychology.

The origin of the myth

According to Greek mythology Pygmalion was a king of the island of Cyprus and one of his hobbies was sculpture. Despite his power, the king was lonely and sad and this led him to carve a statue of a perfect woman. As he was sculpting the marble he was amazed by the result of her and when he finished her work he fell deeply in love with her and gave her the name of Galatea. The sculptor king had created the ideal woman but he could not truly love her.

The love Impossible led Pygmalion to ask the gods for help. The goddess Aphrodite was touched by the artist's frustration and made the marble of the statue transform into a woman of flesh and blood. The sculptor got his dream and from the union of humanized Galatea and Pygmalion the island of Papos was born.

The legend of the sculptor in love with a statue was collected by the Roman poet Ovid, who in his work "The Metamorphoses" recovered the story of Pygmalion.

What does it mean to be a Pygmalion?

If a person has a weak point they talk about their Achilles heel. If a man is very emotionally attached to his mother, he probably has an Oedipus complex. And by affirming that a man is a Pygmalion, what is meant? It is someone, usually a cultured man, who educates a woman of humble and little cultivated origin until she transforms her into a refined person.

Whoever acts in this way is known as a Pygmalion and his aspiration it is to emulate the sculptor of mythology, that is, to create a model of a woman according to her ideal of perfection. In this sense, there are many stories that have been recreated in fiction, among which we can highlight the 1964 film "My fair Lady", in which the female character (a humble and uneducated florist played by actress Audrey Hepburn) transforms into a high society lady with exquisite manners thanks to the teachings of her Pygmalion.

In the field of psychology

In psychology there is the so-called "Pygmalion effect". This effect occurs when a person, usually an educator, is capable of generating greater self-esteem in another individual.

In the field of sexuality

Agalmatophilia is a paraphilia that is inspired by the mythical tale of Pygmalion. Thus, people who fall in love or feel attraction sex by statues or inflatable dolls suffer from agalmatophilia, a sexual inclination based on the fantasy of a perfect being.

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