Delphi Complete Works of Aeschylus (Illustrated) (Delphi Ancient Classics) (6 page)
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Authors: Aeschylus
CHORUS
A grievous stripe shall fall!
XERXES
Yea, beat anew thy breast, ring out the doleful Mysian call!
CHORUS
An agony, an agony!
XERXES
Pluck out thy whitening beard!
CHORUS
By handfuls, ay, by handfuls, with dismal tear-drops smeared!
XERXES
Sob out thine aching sorrow!
CHORUS
I will thine best obey.
XERXES
With thine hands rend thy mantle’s fold —
CHORUS
Alas, woe worth the day!
XERXES
With thine own fingers tear thy locks, bewail the army’s weird!
CHORUS
By handfuls, yea, by handfuls, with tears of dole besmeared!
XERXES
Now let thine eyes find overflow —
CHORUS
I wend in wail and pain!
XERXES
Cry out for me an answering moan —
CHORUS
Alas, alas again!
XERXES
Shriek with a cry of agony, and lead the doleful train!
CHORUS
Alas, alas, the Persian land is woeful now to tread!
XERXES
Cry out and mourn! the city now doth wail above the dead!
CHORUS
I sob and moan!
XERXES
I bid ye now be delicate in grief!
CHORUS
Alas, the Persian land is sad and knoweth not relief!
XERXES
Alas, the triple banks of oars and those who died thereby!
CHORUS
Pass! I will lead
you, bring you home, with many a broken sigh!
[
Exeunt
THEBES
Translated by Herbert Weir Smyth
First performed
in 467 BC, this play tells the story of Eteocles and Polynices, the duelling
sons of Oedipus, the shamed King of Thebes. The tragedy examines two of
Aeschylus’ most enduring themes: the interference of the gods in human affairs
and the city (
polis
) being a key
development of human civilisation.
In the drama,
the brothers Eteocles and Polynices agree to alternate ruling Thebes, but after the first year Eteocles
refuses to step down and Polynices wages war to claim his crown, enlisting the
help of six, bringing the number to seven, strong allies to attack his brother.
Eventually, the brothers kill each other in single combat and the original
ending of the play consisted of lamentations for the dead brothers. A new
ending was added to the play some fifty years later, with Antigone and Ismene
mourning their dead brothers and a messenger entering to announce an edict
prohibiting the burial of Polynices; and finally Antigone declares her
intention to defy this edict.
The play was
the third in a connected Oedipus trilogy; the first two plays were
Laius
and
Oedipus
, with the concluding satyr play being
The Sphinx
, but sadly these works are now lost.
The Oath of the Seven Chiefs
An early frieze depiction of Polynices and Eteocles
ETEOCLES, son of Oedipus, King of Thebes
A MESSENGER (Scout).
CHORUS of Theban Maidens
ANTIGONE
ISMENE
A HERALD.
SCENE. — The Acropolis of Thebes, in which stand
altars and images of various divinities.
TIME. — Prehistoric.
DATE. — 467 B.C., at the City Dionysia.
It had been thrice
foretold by Apollo, the lord of Delphi, unto
Laïus, the King of the Cadmeans, that if he would save his kingdom he must die
without offspring. But Laïus followed the perverse counsels of his nature and
disobeyed the voice of god: he begat a son, whom he would have exposed to his
death on Mount Cithaeron; but the babe was rescued by a shepherd who bore him
to Corinth, where he grew to manhood, believing himself to be the son of the
king of that land, although in fact he had only been adopted by him being
childless. But coming to misdoubt his parentage, Oedipus journeyed to Delphi to
seek the truth; and when the god declared that he should slay his own father
and marry his own mother, he sought to flee such a fate and betake himself far
from the land wherein he thought his father and his mother dwelt. But it befell
as the god had said: on the way he met and slew, unbeknown to himself, his
father Laïus: he came to Thebes, destroyed the monster Sphinx that mad havoc on
the land, married the Queen, even his mother, and begat two sons, Eteocles and
Polynices, and two daughters, Antigone and Ismene. But when the truth stood
revealed, his mother-wife hung herself, and Oedipus stabbed his eyes that they
might not look on the misery he had wrought. And it came to pass that his sons,
who ruled in his stead alternately, each the space of a year, treated him sore
ill, so he cursed them and declared they should divide their inheritance by the
sword. Eteocles would not suffer his brother to have his time to rule; and to
enforce his right Polynices, who had fled to Adrastus, King of Argos, and
married the daughter of that prince, mustered a host and sought to take his
native town.
At this point the
action of the play begins. Warned by the seer Teiresias that the Argives are
bent on a supreme assault, Eteocles heartens the burghers, quells the outcries
of the daughters of Thebes,
frantic at their impending danger, and receives the tidings from a scout that
the enemy is advancing against the seven gates. To each of the opposing
chieftains as they are described by the scout Eteocles opposes a worthy
antagonist, nor will he himself hold back from encountering his brother when he
learns that he is to attack the seventh gate. The curse of his father must not
stand before a soldier’s honour. And so the brothers fell, each by the other’s
hand, and the curse of Oedipus and the warning of Apollo to Laïus were
fulfilled.
SEVEN AGAINST
THEBE
S
[
A large
gathering of citizens of Thebes.
Enter Eteocles with attendants.
]
ETEOCLES
[1]
Men of
Cadmus’s city, he who guards from the stern the concerns of the State and
guides its helm with eyes untouched by sleep must speak to the point. For if we
succeed, the responsibility is heaven’s; but if — may it not happen — disaster
is our lot, Eteocles would be the one name shouted many times throughout the
city in the citizens’ resounding uproars and laments. From these evils may Zeus
the Defender, upholding his name, shield the city of the Cadmeans!
[10]
But now you
— both he who is still short of his youthful prime, and he who, though past his
prime, still strengthens the abundant growth of his body, and every man still
in his prime, as is fitting — you must aid the State and the altars of your
homeland’s gods so that their honors may never be obliterated. You must aid,
too, your children, and Mother Earth, your beloved nurse. For welcoming all the
distress of your childhood, when you were young and crept upon her kind soil,
she raised you to inhabit her and bear the shield, and to prove yourselves
faithful in this time of need. And so, until today, God has been favorably
inclined, for though we have long been under siege, the war has gone well for
the most part through the gods’ will. But now, as the seer, the herdsman of
birds, informs us, using his ears and his mind to understand with unerring
skill the prophetic birds unaided by sacrificial fire — he, master of such
prophecy, declares that the greatest Argive attack is being planned in night
assembly and that they will make plans to capture our city. Hurry each of you
to the battlements and the gates of our towered walls! Rush with all your
armor! Fill the parapets and take your positions on the platforms of the
towers. Stand your ground bravely where the gates open out, and do not be
afraid of this crowd of foreigners. God will bring it to a good end.
[36]
I myself have
dispatched scouts and men to observe their army, and I am confident that their
going is not in vain. Once I have heard their report, I will not be taken by
any trickery.
[
Enter a Scout.
]
SCOUT
[39]
Eteocles,
mighty prince of the Cadmeans, I have returned with a sure report of the
army outside the walls; I myself am an eyewitness of their actions. Seven
warriors, fierce regiment-commanders, slaughtered a bull over a black shield,
and then touching the bull’s gore with their hands they swore an oath by Ares,
by Enyo, and by Rout who delights in blood, that either they will level the
city and sack the Cadmeans’ town by force, or will in death smear this soil
with their blood. And on Adrastus’ chariot they were placing remembrances of
themselves for their parents at home, and were shedding tears while so doing,
but no piteous wailing escaped their lips. For their iron- hearted spirit
heaved, blazing with courage, as of lions with war in their eyes. Your
knowledge of these things was not delayed by fearfulness; for I left them
casting lots to decide how each commander, his post assigned by chance, would
lead his regiment against the gates. Therefore, choose the bravest men of the
city and station them quickly at the outlets of the gates. For nearby already
the Argive army in full armor is advancing in a flurry of dust, and
glistening foam splatters the plain in drops from the horses’ pantings. So you,
like the careful helmsman of a ship, secure the city before Ares’ blasts storm
down upon it; for the wave of their army now crashes over the dry land. Seize
the first opportune moment for doing this. For all else, I, on my part, will
keep a reliable eye on the lookout, and you, by learning from my certain report
what happens beyond the gates, shall remain unharmed.
[
Exit.
]
ETEOCLES
[69]
O Zeus and
Earth, and gods that guard our city, and Curse, potent agent of my father’s
vengeance, do not destroy my city, ripping it up from its foundations, captive
of the enemy, a city that speaks in Greece’s tongue, and do not destroy our
hearths and homes. May they never hold the free land and city of Cadmus beneath the yoke
of slavery! Be our protection! I am certain that what I ask is in our common
interest; for a State that prospers pays honors to its gods.
[
Exit Eteocles,
with citizens. The Chorus enters in fearful agitation.
]
CHORUS
[78]
In terror I
wail loud cries of sorrow. Their army is let loose! Leaving camp, — look! — the
mounted throng floods swiftly ahead. The dust whirling in the air tells me this
is so — its message is speechless, yet clear and true. And now the plains of my
native land under the blows of hooves send a roar to my ears; the sound flies
and rumbles like a resistless torrent crashing down a mountainside.
[87]
Ah, ah, you gods
and goddesses, raise your war cry over our walls to drive away the onrushing
evil! The army of the white shield, ready for battle, rushes at full speed
against the city. Who then will rescue us, which of the gods or goddesses will
help? Or shall I fall in supplication at the feet of our ancestral gods’
statues?
[96]
Ah, blessed gods,
firmly enthroned, the time has come to hold fast to your statues. Why do we
delay, who are much to be lamented? Do you hear the clash of shields, or does
it escape you? When, if not now, shall we place sacred robes and wreaths on the
statues to accompany our prayers?
[103]
I see the clash
— it is not the clatter of a single spear. What will you do? Will you betray
your own land, Ares, where you have dwelt since long ago? God of the golden
helmet, look, look upon the city that you once cherished!
[109]
Oh come all you
gods who guard our city and its land! See this suppliant band of maidens
praying to be saved from slavery. A torrent of men, their helmet plumes
tossing, crashes around the city, sped on by the blasts of Ares. No!
Father Zeus, all-accomplishing, fend from us altogether capture at the hands of
the enemy.
[120]
The Argives
encircle the citadel of Cadmus. Terror of their weapons of war shakes us, as
the bridles in the horse’s jaws rattle the sound of death. Seven bold captains,
conspicuous among the army in spear-wielding harnesses, at the seven gates . .
. take their stand each according to his lot.
[128]
Pallas,
Zeus-born power delighting in battle, prove yourself the savior of the city!
And you, lord of steeds, ruler of the deep, Poseidon, with your fish-striking
weapon grant us release from our fears, grant us release! You too, Ares — pity
us! — guard the city named for Cadmus and make evident your closeness to us!
And Cypris, you who are the first mother of our race, defend us who are
sprung from your blood. We come to you, crying out in prayers for your divine
ears. And you, Apollo, lord of the Wolf, be a wolf to the enemy force and give
them groan for groan! You too, maiden child of Leto, ready your bow!
[149]
Ah! Ah! I
hear the rattle of chariots encircling the town. O lady Hera! The hubs are
creaking beneath the axles’ load. Beloved Artemis! The air rages at the shaking
of spears! What is happening to our city? What will the future bring? And where
does God finally lead us?
[158]
Ah! Ah! A hail
of stones strikes our battlements from afar. O beloved Apollo! There is the
clang of bronze-bound shields at the gates. O son of Zeus, in whom dwells the
sacred power to decide in battle war’s outcome! And you, blessed queen Onca, on
behalf of the city, defend your seven- gated home!
[166]
All-powerful
divinities, you gods and goddesses who wield the power to guard the towers of
our land, do not betray our city that now toils under the spear to an
alien-tongued army. Hear us, hear, as is right, the prayers we maidens offer
with outstretched hands.
[174]
Beloved spirits,
encompass the city to deliver it from ruin and show that you love it. Consider
the people’s offerings, and as you consider, help us. Remember, I beg, our city’s
worship, rich in sacrifice..
ETEOCLES
[181]
You
intolerable things! I ask you, is this the best way to save the city? Does it
hearten our army here besieged, when you fall before the images of the gods
that guard the city and shout and shriek — behavior that moderate people
despise? May I never share my home with the female race, neither in time of
evil nor in pleasant prosperity! When things go well for her, her boldness is
unbearable, but when she is afraid, she is an even greater evil for home
and city. So now your cries as you rushed here and there in panicked flight
have rattled the citizens into dispirited cowardice. The cause of the enemy
outside our gates is excellently strengthened by your behavior, while we inside
are ruined by our own people. This is the sort of trouble you will have if you
dwell with women. Now if anyone fails to obey my authority — whether man or
woman or something in between — a sentence of death will be decreed for him and
by no means whatsoever will he escape destruction by stoning at the people’s
hands. It is for the man to take care of business outside the house; let
no woman make decrees in those matters. Keep inside and do no harm! Do you hear
me or not? Am I speaking to the deaf?
CHORUS
[203]
Dear son
of Oedipus, I grew afraid when I heard the clatter of the crashing chariots,
when the hubs screamed as they whirled around the wheel, and when I heard the sound
of the steering gear, fire-forged bits, in the horses’ mouths.
ETEOCLES
[208]
Well,
then, has a helmsman ever found a way to safety by fleeing from stern to prow,
when his ship is foundering in high seas?
CHORUS
[211]
But
trusting in the gods I came in haste to their ancient statues, when the deadly
blizzard of falling stones thundered against the gates. Just then I set out in
fear to pray to the Blessed Ones that they spread their protection over the
city.
ETEOCLES
[216]
Pray that
the rampart withstand the enemy spear. Yes, the outcome is in the gods’ hands —
but then, it is said that the gods of a captured city abandon it.
CHORUS
[219]
Never so
long as I live may this divine assembly abandon us, nor may I live to see the
city overrun and the army seizing it with hostile fire!
ETEOCLES
[223]
When you
invoke the gods, do not be ill-advised. For Obedience is the mother of Success,
wife of Salvation — as the saying goes.
CHORUS
[226]
So she is,
but the power of god is supreme, and often in bad times it raises the helpless
man out of harsh misery even when stormclouds are lowering over his eyes.
ETEOCLES
[230]
It is
the man’s duty to offer victims and sacrifices to the gods when they test their
enemy; your duty is to be silent and to remain inside the house.
CHORUS
[233]
By the
will of the gods we inhabit an unconquered city, and the rampart withstands the
enemy throng. What indignation makes you resent this?
ETEOCLES
[236]
I do not
begrudge your honor of the divine race; but lest you make the citizens cowardly,
be calm and do not be overly fearful.
CHORUS
[239]
When I
heard the strange and jumbled clashes, I came in trembling fear to this
citadel, our seat of worship.
ETEOCLES
[242]
If, then,
you hear that men are dying or wounded, do not seize on the news with loud
wailing. For this is the food of Ares, human blood.
CHORUS
[245]
Oh,
but I hear horses snorting!
ETEOCLES
[246]
Hear them,
then, but not too clearly.
CHORUS
[247]
The city
groans from deep in the earth, as though we are surrounded.
ETEOCLES
[248]
Surely it
is enough that I am making plans for this?
CHORUS
[249]
am
terrified — the crashing at the gates is increasing.
ETEOCLES
[250]
Won’t
you be silent, and speak none of this throughout the city?
CHORUS
[251]
Divine
company, do not betray our fortifications!
ETEOCLES
[252]
Damn you!
Will you not endure these events in silence?
CHORUS
[253]
Gods of
our city! Do not let my fate be slavery!
ETEOCLES
[254]
You would
enslave both me and all the city.
CHORUS
[255]
Almighty
Zeus, turn your missile against the enemy!
ETEOCLES
[256]
O Zeus,
what a breed you have made for us in women!
CHORUS
[257]
A breed
steeped in misery, just like men whose city is captured.
ETEOCLES
[258]
Why are
your words ill-omened, when you still grasp the gods’ statues?
CHORUS
[259]
In my
weakness fear controls my tongue.
ETEOCLES
[260]
If
only you would grant my plea for a small service.
CHORUS
[261]
Please
state it as quickly as possible, and I will quickly know what to do.
ETEOCLES
[262]
Be silent,
wretched woman; do not terrify your own men.
CHORUS
[263]
I am
silent. I will suffer what is destined together with the others.
ETEOCLES
[264]
I welcome
this sentiment of yours over what you said before. And in addition, keep your
distance from the gods’ images and make a stronger prayer, that the gods fight
on our side. And once you have heard my prayers, then sing the victory song,
the sacred cry of joy and goodwill, our Greek ritual of shouting in tribute,
that brings courage to our friends and dissolves fear of the enemy.