One of the inherent similarities between Hippolytus and Narcissus is that both characters are portrayed as the object of another person’s affection yet it is through these affections that both characters inevitably meet their unfortunate deaths. For example, in the case of Hippolytus it was the obsession of Phaedra and her action of lying to Theseus about Hippolytus raping her that led to his death. This occurred when Theseus used one of the wishes bestowed upon him by Poseidon which led to Hippolytus being dragged to death by his horse. In a similar case, it was the actions of one of the suitors of Narcissus who wished that Narcissus would be denied that which he loved which resulted in the character subsequently falling in love with his image that was reflected in a pool of water. He subsequently wasted away trying to reach that which he could never attain which for all intents and purposes was merely a reflection of himself.
Other similarities between the two characters can be seen in the fact that both spurned the advances of their suitors and that it was through this behavior that resulted in both of their deaths. It must also be noted that the deaths of Hippolytus and Narcissus were the result of “wishes” wherein it was the wish of Theseus that led to the death of Hippolytus while it was the wish of one of the suitors of Narcissus that also led to his death. Other similarities can be seen in the fact that both are hunters by profession and that they also came from fathers that were regarded as being important within Greek mythology. On the other hand it must be noted that the difference between the two characters lies in the fact that while Narcissus lived up to his namesake as being inherently narcissistic and self-loving, Hippolytus never expressed such traits. When examining the character of Hippolytus in the various incarnations of his characterization it can even be seen he has been portrayed as a devout follower of Artemis and that he chose to live a life of celibacy in connection to this devotion. In fact the only reason why he refused the advances of Phaedra has been connected to either him choosing to be celibate or it was due to the fact that she was the second wife of Theseus. Taking this into consideration, it can be seen that the character of Hippolytus met a more tragic end since when he tried to do what was right he was still punished for it. On the other hand the death of Narcissus can be considered as a more justified end due to his overwhelming degree of self-love.
When examining the methods of writing for both characters it is obvious the character of Narcissus is more suited to the style of Ovid since his work has always involved sexual themes, motives and actions that are considered more “explicit” as compared to other elegists at the time. Not only that, it must be noted that Ovid tended to explore the various aspects connected to love and since the character of Narcissus is the embodiment of self-love it comes as no surprise that the character would be more suited for Ovid due to his predilection of portraying the concept of love in rather “unique” circumstances.