Echo and Narcissus is a story from Ovid's book of poetry, Metamorphoses , about a beautiful boy named Narcissus and Echo the mountain nymph, or Oread , who fell in love with him. Zeus has cheated Hera with other women and he loved doing it. Zeus had given Echo the task of entertaining his wife Hera with stories, in order that he might have time to slip away and philander around with other women. Hera noticed something was up (she was known for her jealous and vengeful nature), and mistaking Echo as the object of Zeus's uncouth affections, she cast a spell on the unfortunate nymph - Echo would only be able to repeat the last words addressed to her and never speak her own again. Narcissus, a beautiful human youth, got separated from his hunting companions one day in some woods. Echo, being a nymph and also feeling pitiful because of her curse, had been wandering those same woods. The moment she saw Narcissus traipsing through the forest, she fell in love with him