A mythic goddess of love passionately pursues a handsome young man who prefers the hunt and repeatedly rebuffs her advances. She employs flattery, seduction, and cautionary speech to sway him, while he insists on leaving for the chase. Ignoring her warnings, he departs and is fatally wounded during a hunt. The goddess responds with grief, rage, and imaginative transformations that attempt to preserve his beauty and memory. Rich pastoral imagery and ironic tonal shifts explore desire, the tension between erotic pursuit and refusal, and the transience of youth and life.