From the first verse, the author urges his readers not to view the narrative as objective history. The two actual names are historically unrelated; they are fictional. Nebuchadnezzar did not rule in Nineveh. Notice the symbolic phrase, “turning the beauty of the city into humiliation” (14). Cities, especially capitals, were often described as maidens; conquering them is like raping them, thus dishonoring them. Another beautiful woman appears in the book whom the enemy wishes to possess and dishonor, but to no avail (13.16).