Polyphemus is the nasty cyclops Odysseus and his men encounter on the island cave where they have made themselves at home with his food.
To escape, the surviving men -- those whom Polyphemus hadn't devoured -- made the one-eyed giant drunk, poked out his eye, and then attached themselves to the underbellies of Polyphemus' flock of sheep, so that when they went out for their daily graze, the men, whom Polyphemus had trapped inside the cave, could escape. Odysseus then taunts the cyclops. Altogether, the Greeks' behavior, while necessary for life preservation, isn't laudable, except for its cunning. Here is a more tender side of the cyclops Odysseus got the best of, the tender, hopelessly loving, side. The object of his affections is the nymph Galatea.
'Galatea, whiter than the snowy privet petals,Translation provided by Anthony S. Kline.
taller than slim alder, more flowery than the meadows,
friskier than a tender kid, more radiant than crystal,
smoother than shells, polished, by the endless tides;
more welcome than the summer shade, or the sun in winter,
showier than the tall plane-tree, fleeter than the hind;
more than ice sparkling, sweeter than grapes ripening,
softer than the swan's-down, or the milk when curdled,
lovelier, if you did not flee, than a watered garden.
Galatea, likewise, wilder than an untamed heifer,
harder than an ancient oak, trickier than the sea;
tougher than the willow-twigs, or the white vine branches,
firmer than these cliffs, more turbulent than a river,
vainer than the vaunted peacock, fiercer than the fire;
more truculent than a pregnant bear, pricklier than thistles,
deafer than the waters, crueller than a trodden snake;
and, what I wish I could alter in you, most of all, is this:
that you are swifter than the deer, driven by loud barking,
swifter even than the winds, and the passing breeze.
Also see Theocritus' version of this love in Polyphemus and Galatea A Beauty and the Beast - VI From 'The Idylls of Theocritus'
