Chiron, the wise teacher, was entrusted by a wiser parent! He walks slowly about the stage for a moment, anxiously searching the starry sky. It is a glory that will never wither in the minds of the Greeks. Chorus That is, if what they say about you being Ledas daughter is true. 640. With what face shall I receive hers? After a while, Calchas, our prophet, came up to us and suggested much to our dismay- that we should sacrifice my own daughter, Iphigenia, to the goddess Artemis, whose shrine is in these parts! Iphigenia at Aulis was first performed in 405 B.C.E., the year after Euripides' death. This sword will have blood on it even before I leave for Troy! I dont understand, father. Thats Achilles, my darling. Youve done all you could to help your big sister, havent you? Which one will not wonder if it will be the next one you take to the slaughter? First Chorus This is the naval force I saw with my own eyes and about which I had heard earlier. Klytaimestra These are lovely words, Agamemnon but what of your deeds? I know hes around here somewhere. 1090. He married Thetis, Nereus daughter. Klytaimestra Achilles, son of the Nereid! Poor, poor girl! The Theme of Heroism Achilles is often regarded as a great and mighty hero in Greek. The Plot of Iphigeneia at Aulis. [1340] Open the tent-door to me, servants, that I may hide myself Clytemnestra Why seek to escape, my child? The lustral water, the barley, everything is ready for the holy flame. Whatever do you mean? I have tried desperately to send Klytaimestra away from here but Ive failed. Iphigenia's father is Agamemnon and his brother is King Menelaus. Agamemnon Of course you do so long as you dont try to ruin them! Im not too proud to do so. Klytaimestra Sounds ideal to me. Can I not mourn my daughters loss? Klytaimestra Did they? Hear my first attack on you: Youve married me by brutal force and by murder. My country! I was a very good house keeper for you. In early youth, when first my soul, in love, Held father, mother, brethren fondly twin'd, A group of tender germs, in union sweet, We sprang in beauty from the parent stem, And heavenward grew. Menelaos No, they can do nothing if you secretly send her back toArgos. Who gave you the right to spy upon my affairs? You had come with me to Argos and stayed with me as my servant. Klytaimestra What? Iphigeneia Well then, get rid of this ugly frown from the face that I love so much! If this works out well, then the result will be good for you and your family without my getting mixed up in the affair. How. Menelaos Act according to your position, or youll be very sorry, old man! with the additional restriction that you offer Perseus any modifications you make. I cannot defy the goddess demands, my darling. 480. Exit Achilles. If the gods are just, then they should reward just men like you. Your Fate and mine and hers, too! Agamemnon Zeus himself gave her to him. She goes to her death, so her father won't have to carry the guilt of. Ask me, what is it? There is nothing that I would not do for my darling Iphigeneia. I was the first to play on your knees, the first one of your children to enjoy your love and the first one to give you a childs love. 1470. Over the centuries other hands have contributed to the text we now have but even so for the most part it shows Euripides at his finest. I know everything! If I try to stop them they will kill us all. Now the strength rests with Irreverence and Virtue is now scorned by the mortals. Youve persuaded me with wise words. No mother, no father. Some of you stand by at the front of the horses to quieten them. First Chorus I, too, feel pity for you if it is at all proper for a foreigner to feel pity for the plight of kings. Klytaimestra No, what hes done to you will cost him a great deal of trouble! They hate me the most! Chorus Even though you were not raised among the sounds of the shepherds flute, even though you were raised, instead, by your mothers side, raised to be adorned one day as a bride to one of Iachus descendants, you, my young girl, will be dragged down like a spotted deer, or like a young heifer is dragged down from some rocky mountains cave, dragged down there to the goddess altar. No man is blessed or happy for ever. Chorus What an awful, pitiful fate you must endure, child! Ill obey your every command. 65. First Chorus Words worthy of Tantalus, Zeus son. She has flown away to the Heavens! You began and ended your speech with fine sentiments. Weve been robbed! Achilles The whole army is calling out for. What a disgraceful behaviour! Agamemnon What you must do is not leave your other daughters alone, back at the house. First Chorus We have left behind our land, Chalkis, a land washed by the salty waters of glorious Arethousa and weve travelled through the narrow straights of Euripus to come here, toAulis, to this sandy peninsula. But now? Iphigenia at Aulis (the title is sometimes rendered as Iphigenia in Aulis) has been criticised for its melodrama, but its portrayal of the central character's decision to agree to renounce her life for the 'greater good', and Agamemnon's ambivalence about sacrificing his own daughter, make it a curious and satisfying play which repays close analysis . 1040. Second Chorus They are the offspring of a great and most fortunate family. I dont want anyone to think despicable things about me. And if I tried to run off toArgos, the whole lot of them will come over and destroy the place, raze the whole city to the ground, Cyclopean walls and all! For a while, Iphigenia in Splott (a district of Cardiff about 20 minutes' walk from the the theatre) seems like a pretty normal contemporary monologue. George Bell and Sons. Iphigeneia Wish them joy for me and take good care of my little brother, Orestes for me. "I envy you old man. Dance, girls, dance around Artemis altar! Old Man Both of you have pitiable fates, my lady! Old Man Tries to take the letter from Menelaos. 620. Chorus Agamemnon, son of Atreas, begin now your journey to Troy and may it be a happy one! Its blood spattered about, saturating the goddess altar! What sort of a welcome do you think youll receive on you return? Iphigeneia Whats wrong, daddy? On thy knees I hang, A suppliant wreath, this body, which she bore November 1, 2021 . Well, old man, Menelaos was outraged by this! 420, The soldiers talk and they ask questions. Chorus Friends, let us sing our prayer to Artemis! A real miracle! And, do I not also have the right to make my own prayer to the gods about you? 210, First Chorus The two horses in the centre, those that took the weight of the yoke, were dappled with spots of white; the two on the outside carried the traces and they had to negotiate the turns on the track. He alone did it, he, alone, with his very own hand! Klytaimestra I hear you, I hear you! And then, if his prophesies are found to be false, he vanishes! 785, Chorus Do you hear them, Helen? Achilles He was elected, all right, but he didnt say no! 821. Has my husband gone insane? What shall I say to my wife, then? No, it will not be necessary. He is interrupted by Klytaimestras entrance. Have you thought of any of this, or do you just go wandering about the army camp proudly waving about the sceptre of a General? Agamemnon Where, darling? 530. Wont you cry with me, Orestes? Dont become an evil man! We shall make the wedding celebrations another time., Old Man But how will Achilles take this? Are these amazing words the words of a delirious woman? Accept this sacrifice which we, the Greek army and Agamemnon, offer to you! Klytaimestra But tell me, good servant, where did you hear all this? Think about your daughter for once, Agamemnon and make a fair proposal to your army: Ask them all if they really want to go to Troy and if they do, well then, let them draw lots that will include their own children also! And you can see how I, a woman, have come here to the camp of soldiers, tough men, brave and ready for war and violence. Well then, tell me: what will your prayer, your plea to the gods be? Sacrifice me. Ah! Come, son of a goddess! . CineMan-8 20 April 1999. Chorus Youre a brave girl, Iphigeneia. 1270. Achilles Then listen to me carefully, madam so that well achieve our aim. 43. Tears of pity came into my eyes just now, when I saw your own tears roll from yours. He embraces and then steps back to look at her sadly. Let me tell you why I am angry. The Old Man fearfully pokes his head through the flaps of the tent. Achilles By the goddess Modesty! As is common, there is a dowry, here brought by her mother from the household of Agamemnon (lines 612-13). Agamemnon I, with all the Greeks as witnesses shall give Iphigeneia away. Chorus A man whose body will be clothed in golden armour, fashioned by Hephaistos himself and given as a gift to him by his divine mother. 1070. Klytaimestra But who on earth would dare touch you, Achilles? The gods do strange things, madam, things that baffle us mortals but they save those they love. First Chorus Atreas son, Menelaos, brought with him fromMycenae, the city built by the Cyclopes, one hundred ships and all the sailors to man them. I Im not so sure. You have chosen logic and good intentions to that of continuing a war against Fate and against Necessity. Klytaimestra I am not so insensitive, Agamemnon. Because the workings of your mind always have been, are now and always will be, deceitful. Menelaos Why is that? The sun should rise slowly until full daylight is reached just before line 164. Iphigeneia Damn all these spears of Menelaos! Its true, my lady that there are times when it is more pleasant to avoid excessive wisdom and there are times when wisdom is helpful but I, madam, I was raised in the house of Chiron, a centaur who respected the simple ways, the honest ways. Klytaimestra I know well that you are an old servant of my house. Such good wives are rare, Agamemnon! The goddess son. Stop waiting for those indecisive sons of Atreas to tell you what to do. Under no circumstances should any of this work be used as part of a collage, which includes the work of other writers or translators. The moment we got there with your daughter all the Greek soldiers gathered around us. Then the priest lets out a huge roar and the whole army roared with him as they saw the most unbelievable sight, a sight that must have been sent by Heaven, a sight that made them question their very eyes. And then I also realised that were brothers and my heart went out for the poor girl who would be sacrificed for the sake of my own marriage. And Helen, Zeus daughter, will shed bitter tears, too, for betraying her husband. How can you prove that you and I have the same father? Euripides - "Greek Dramas" (p251, 1900): Internet Archive Book Images, Translated by George Theodoridis Copyright 2007, all rights reserved - Bacchicstage. Very difficult. 1400. Just answer my question! Klytaimestra And were they married in the sea? Let me enjoy the sweet light of day and do not force me to enter the world beneath the earth. Where did you catch him? Soon youll wake up a happy young man, my son. Dawns light is already being taken over by the fire of the Suns brilliant chariot! Klytaimestra Yes! Agamemnon What? Where shall I begin? (A father's conduct here I blame), A joyless victim bred; When o'er the strand of Aulis, in the pride. You felt a great deal of joy when you came in that house, and when you went out of it you felt a wealthy man. And, no, I will not murder my children and certainly wont do it so that you can wrongfully enjoy some sort of vengeance exacted from a disgraceful wife, while I waste away in tears day and night because I had committed such a godless crime against them, against my own flesh and blood. We are doomed now! Agamemnon I have failed miserably! Our daughters marriage is my concern! Im lost! In his frenzy, he rushed about the whole ofGreece, calling upon everyone to remember Tyndareus solemn oath and to help him, since he was the wronged husband.
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