# Midas — Metamorphoses character guide

> Midas in Metamorphoses by Ovid.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** King Midas

**First appearance:** 0109-fable-of-midas

## Snapshot

A king whose wish for a golden touch starves him, and whose bad judgment in musical contests earns him a pair of ass's ears.

## Who they are

Midas is a Phrygian ruler whose wealth cannot cure his foolishness: he asks Bacchus for the golden touch, then begs to be released from it when food and drink turn to metal. Later he prefers Pan's pipes to Apollo's lyre and is rewarded with donkey's ears, which he tries to hide beneath a cap. His stories make him Ovid's great comic warning about appetite, taste, and the impossibility of keeping a secret.

## Relationships

### [Io](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/metamorphoses_se/characters/io)

_social_

Io and Midas are connected through mythological narratives but not directly close.

### [Io](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/metamorphoses_se/characters/io)

_social_

Io and Midas are connected through mythological narratives but not directly close.

## In the story

### [Fable of Midas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/metamorphoses_se/chapters/fable-of-midas)

King who wishes for the golden touch and later judges a musical contest, receiving ass's ears as punishment.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/metamorphoses_se/characters/midas
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/metamorphoses_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/metamorphoses_se/characters