The Ass’s Ears and the Novel’s Voice. Orality and the Involvement of the Reader in Apuleius’ Metamorphoses

Apuleius' novel ambiguously fashions itself both as a written book and as an oral account. However, orality often seems to prevail, and its 'bookishness' appears to be only superficial. This 'fictive orality' can be considered as one of the literary tricks the novel adopts to capture his reader's attention more easily, to transform him from passive audience into active participant in a narrative exchange, and ultimately to lure him into the fictional world. This fiction of orality enhances the theatrical quality of Apuleius' narrative: the act of narrating almost seems to become a sort of staging an action, of producing a theatrical drama in which the audience is called to take part.