Pan's Penance

Author: Dr. O. James Younessi

ISBN 978-1-60264-842-5 (eBook)

198 pages

Pan was the ancient Greek mythological god of the shepherds. He is depicted as the lusty half goat-half human seducer of the nymphs. He plied his charms frequently and by all accounts successfully. He failed most notably with Syrinx who was avowed to remain chaste. She was turned into reed to escape his lechery, so Pan cut the reed down and made his famous flute.This book explores the modern versions of the same moral dilemmas the fertile minds of our forefathers grappled with. But one new notion stands out...the notion of Reverse Metamorphosis. A caterpillar metamorphoses into a beautiful butterfly. It is we who love the butterfly and loathe the caterpillar. We get silk and a beautiful butterfly once the metamorphosis is complete. But the silk is not a present the caterpillar gives us. It is a by-product of its natural functions. We can only have it because the worm no longer needs it. It has already become a butterfly! But how many of us realize that the butterfly is still the caterpillar? The metamorphosis has been of its physical appearance not of the soul......then before our eyes, the butterfly becomes a caterpillar again!


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr James Younessi practices as a specialist surgeon in Sydney, Australia.He was schooled in his native Iran, the United States, and Australia. His training culminated in attainment of the Fellowship of the prestigious College of Surgeons of England and Ireland.He has a special interest in facial trauma management and implant surgery and has authored several surgical journal articles.Apart from his surgical craft he has a keen interest in literature.He is an accomplished essayist, researcher, radio-presenter, and author. He is also a peer reviewer for surgical journals. He has published two prior books, one a series of short stories called From Threads to Fabric, and the other a book on the Australian vernacular called How Australian Are You? These books have enjoyed considerable success and have been the subject of newspaper articles and radio interviews.The current book is his first novel. His next project is a series of satirical short stories that delves into important modern socio-political issues.