AntigoneBy SophoclesTranslated by R. C. Jebb----------------------------------------------------------------------Dramatis Personaedaughters of Oedipus:ANTIGONEISMENECREON, King of ThebesEURYDICE, his wifeHAEMON, his sonTEIRESIAS, the blind prophetGUARD, set to watch the corpse of PolyneicesFIRST MESSENGERSECOND MESSENGER, from the houseCHORUS OF THEBAN ELDERS----------------------------------------------------------------------The same as in Oedipus the King, an open space before the royal palace,once that of Oedipus, at Thebes. The backscene represents the frontof the palace, with three doors, of which the central and largestis the principal entrance into the house. The time is at daybreakon the morning after the fall of the two brothers, Eteocles and Polyneices,and the flight of the defeated Argives. ANTIGONE calls ISMENE forthfrom the palace, in order to speak to her alone.----------------------------------------------------------------------ANTIGONE Ismene, sister, mine own dear
sister, knowest thou whatill there is, of all bequeathed by Oedipus, that Zeus fulfils notfor us twain while we live? Nothing painful is there, nothing fraughtwith ruin, no shame, no dishonour, that I have not seen in thy woesand mine. And now what new edict is this of which they tell, that our Captainhath just published to all Thebes? Knowest thou aught? Hast thou heard?Or is it hidden from thee that our friends are threatened with thedoom of our foes? ISMENE No word of friends, Antigone, gladsome or painful, hath cometo me, since we two sisters were bereft of brothers twain, killedin one day by twofold blow; and since in this last night the Argivehost hath fled, know no more, whether my fortune be brighter, or moregrievous. ANTIGONE I knew it well, and therefore sought to bring thee beyondthe gates of the court, that thou mightest hear alone. ISMENE What is it? 'Tis plain that thou art brooding on some darktidings. ANTIGONE What, hath not Creon destined our brothers, the one to
honouredburial, the other to unburied shame? Eteocles, they say, with dueobservance of right and custom, he hath laid in the earth, for hishonour among the dead below. But the hapless corpse of Polyneices-asrumour saith, it hath been published to the town that none shall entombhim or mourn, but leave unwept, unsepulchred, a welcome store forthe birds, as they espy him, to feast on at will. Such, 'tis said, is the edict that the good Creon hath set forth forthee and for me,-yes, for me,-and is coming hither to proclaim itclearly to those who know it not; nor counts the matter light, but,whoso disobeys in aught, his doom is death by stoning before all thefolk. Thou knowest it now; and thou wilt soon show whether thou artnobly bred, or the base daughter of a noble line. ISMENE Poor sister,-and if things stand thus, what could I help todo or undo? ANTIGONE Consider if thou wilt share the toil and the deed.ISMENE In what venture? What can be thy meaning? ANTIGONE Wilt thou aid this hand
to lift the dead? ISMENE Thou wouldst bury him,-when 'tis forbidden to Thebes?ANTIGONE I will do my part,-and thine, if thou wilt not,-to a brother.False to him will I never be found. ISMENE Ah, over-bold! when Creon hath forbidden? ANTIGONE Nay, he hath no right to keep me from mine own.ISMENE Ah me! think, sister, how our father perished, amid hate andscorn, when sins bared by his own search had moved him to strike botheyes with self-blinding hand; then the mother wife, two names in one,with twisted noose did despite unto her life; and last, our two brothersin one day,-each shedding, hapless one, a kinsman's blood,-wroughtout with mutual hands their common doom. And now we in turn-we twoleft all alone think how we shall perish, more miserably than allthe rest, if, in defiance of the law, we brave a king's decree orhis powers. Nay, we must remember, first, that we were born women,as who should not strive with men; next, that we are ruled of thestronger, so that we must obey in
these things, and in things yetsorer. I, therefore, asking the Spirits Infernal to pardon, seeingthat force is put on me herein, will hearken to our rulers. for 'tiswitless to be over busy. ANTIGONE I will not urge thee,-no nor, if thou yet shouldst havethe mind, wouldst thou be welcome as a worker with me. Nay, be whatthou wilt; but I will bury him: well for me to die in doing that.I shall rest, a loved one with him whom I have loved, sinless in mycrime; for I owe a longer allegiance to the dead than to the living:in that world I shall abide for ever. But if thou wilt, be guiltyof dishonouring laws which the gods have stablished in honour.ISMENE I do them no dishonour; but to defy the State,-I have no strengthfor that. ANTIGONE Such be thy plea:-I, then, will go to heap the earth abovethe brother whom I love. ISMENE Alas, unhappy one! How I fear for thee! ANTIGONE Fear not for me: guide thine own fate aright. ISMENE: At least, then, disclose this plan to none, but hide it
closely,-andso, too, will I. ANTIGONE Oh, denounce it! Thou wilt be far more hateful for thy silence,if thou proclaim not these things to all. ISMENE Thou hast a hot heart for chilling deeds. ANTIGONE I know that I please where I am most bound to please.ISMENE Aye, if thou canst; but thou wouldst what thou canst not.ANTIGONE Why, then, when my strength fails, I shall have done.ISMENE A hopeless quest should not be made at all. ANTIGONE If thus thou speakest, thou wilt have hatred from me, andwill justly be subject to the lasting hatred of the dead. But leaveme, and the folly that is mine alone, to suffer this dread thing;for I shall not suffer aught so dreadful as an ignoble death.ISMENE Go, then, if thou must; and of this be sure,-that though thineerrand is foolish, to thy dear ones thou art truly dear. (Exit ANTIGONEon the spectators' left. ISMENE retires into the palace by one ofthe two side-doors. When they have departed, the CHORUS OF THEBANELDERS enters.) CHORUS (singing,
strophe 1)Beam of the sun, fairest light that ever dawned on Thebe of the sevengates, thou hast shone forth at last, eye of golden day, arisen aboveDirce's streams! The warrior of the white shield, who came from Argosin his panoply, hath been stirred by thee to headlong flight, in swiftercareer; LEADER OF THE CHORUS (systema 1)who set forth against our land by reason of the vexed claims of Polyneices;and, like shrill-screaming eagle, he flew over into our land, in snow-whitepinion sheathed, with an armed throng, and with plumage of helms.CHORUS (antistrophe 1)He paused above our dwellings; he ravened around our sevenfold portalswith spears athirst for blood; but he went hence, or ever his jawswere glutted with our gore, or the Fire-god's pine-fed flame had seizedour crown of towers. So fierce was the noise of battle raised behindhim, a thing too hard for him to conquer, as he wrestled with hisdragon foe. LEADER (systema 2)For Zeus utterly abhors the boasts of a proud tongue; and
when hebeheld them coming on in a great stream, in the haughty pride of clanginggold, he smote with brandished fire one who was now hasting to shoutvictory at his goal upon our ramparts. CHORUS (strophe 2)Swung down, he fell on the earth with a crash, torch in hand, hewho so lately, in the frenzy of the mad onset, was raging againstus with the blasts of his tempestuous hate. But those threats farednot as he hoped; and to other foes the mighty War-god dispensed theirseveral dooms, dealing havoc around, a mighty helper at our need.LEADER (systema 3)For seven captains at seven gates, matched against seven, left thetribute of their panoplies to Zeus who turns the battle; save thosetwo of cruel fate, who, born of one sire and one mother, set againsteach other their twain conquering spears, and are sharers in a commondeath. CHORUS (antistrophe 2)But since Victory of glorious name hath come to us, with joy responsiveto the joy of Thebe whose chariots are many, let us enjoy
forgetfulnessafter the late wars, and visit all the temples of the gods with night-longdance and song; and may Bacchus be our leader, whose dancing shakesthe land of Thebe. LEADER (systema 4)But lo, the king of the land comes yonder, Creon, son of Menoeceus,our new ruler by the new fortunes that the gods have given; what counselis he pondering, that he hath proposed this special conference ofelders, summoned by his general mandate? (Enter CREON, from the centraldoors of the palace, in the garb of king, with two attendants.)CREON Sirs, the vessel of our State, after being tossed on wild waves,hath once more been safely steadied by the gods: and ye, out of allthe folk, have been called apart by my summons, because I knew, firstof all, how true and constant was your reverence for the royal powerof Laius; how, again, when Oedipus was ruler of our land, and whenhe had perished, your steadfast loyalty still upheld their children.Since, then, his sons have fallen in one day by a twofold
doom,-eachsmitten by the other, each stained with a brother's blood,-I now possessthe throne and all its powers, by nearness of kinship to the dead.No man can be fully known, in soul and spirit and mind, until he hathbeen seen versed in rule and law-giving. For if any, being supremeguide of the State, cleaves not to the best counsels, but, throughsome fear, keeps his lips locked, I hold, and have ever held, himmost base; and if any makes a friend of more account than his fatherland,that man hath no place in my regard. For I-be Zeus my witness, whosees all things always-would not be silent if I saw ruin, insteadof safety, coming to the citizens; nor would I ever deem the country'sfoe a friend to myself; remembering this, that our country is theship that bears us safe, and that only while she prospers in our voyagecan we make true friends. Such are the rules by which I guard this city's greatness. And inaccord with them is the edict which I have now published to the folktouching the
sons of Oedipus;-that Eteocles, who hath fallen fightingfor our city, in all renown of arms, shall be entombed, and crownedwith every rite that follows the noblest dead to their rest. But forhis brother, Polyneices,-who came back from exile, and sought to consumeutterly with fire the city of his fathers and the shrines of his fathers'gods,-sought to taste of kindred blood, and to lead the remnant intoslavery;-touching this man, it hath been proclaimed to our peoplethat none shall grace him with sepulture or lament, but leave himunburied, a corpse for birds and dogs to eat, a ghastly sight of shame.Such the spirit of my dealing; and never, by deed of mine, shall thewicked stand in honour before the just; but whoso hath good will toThebes, he shall be honoured of me, in his life and in his death.LEADER OF THE CHORUS Such is thy pleasure, Creon, son of Menoeceus,touching this city's foe, and its friend; and thou hast power, I ween,to take what order thou wilt, both for the dead, and
for all us wholive. CREON See, then, that ye be guardians of the mandate. LEADER Lay the burden of this task on some younger man.CREON Nay, watchers of the corpse have been found. LEADER What, then, is this further charge that thou wouldst give?CREON That ye side not with the breakers of these commands.LEADER No man is so foolish that he is enamoured of death.CREON In sooth, that is the meed; yet lucre hath oft ruined men throughtheir hopes. (A GUARD enters from the spectators' left.)GUARD My liege, I will not say that I come breathless from speed,or that have plied a nimble foot; for often did my thoughts make mepause, and wheel round in my path, to return. My mind was holdinglarge discourse with me; 'Fool, why goest thou to thy certain doom?''Wretch, tarrying again? And if Creon hears this from another, mustnot thou smart for it?' So debating, I went on my way with laggingsteps, and thus a short road was made long. At last, however, it carriedthe day that I should come hither-to
thee; and, though my tale benought, yet will I tell it; for I come with a good grip on one hope,-thatI can suffer nothing but what is my fate. CREON And what is it that disquiets thee thus? GUARD I wish to tell thee first about myself-I did not do the deed-Idid not see the doer-it were not right that I should come to any harm.CREON Thou hast a shrewd eye for thy mark; well dost thou fence thyselfround against the blame; clearly thou hast some strange thing to tell.GUARD Aye, truly; dread news makes one pause long. CREON Then tell it, wilt thou, and so get thee gone? GUARD Well, this is it.-The corpse-some one hath just given it burial,and gone away,-after sprinkling thirsty dust on the flesh, with suchother rites as piety enjoins. CREON What sayest thou? What living man hath dared this deed?GUARD I know not; no stroke of pickaxe was seen there, no earth thrownup by mattock; the ground was hard and dry, unbroken, without trackof wheels; the doer was one who had left no trace. And
when the firstday-watchman showed it to us, sore wonder fell on all. The dead manwas veiled from us; not shut within a tomb, but lightly strewn withdust, as by the hand of one who shunned a curse. And no sign met theeye as though any beast of prey or any dog had come nigh to him, ortorn him. Then evil words flew fast and loud among us, guard accusing guard;und it would e'en have come to blows at last, nor was there any tohinder. Every man was the culprit, and no one was convicted, but alldisclaimed knowledge of the deed. And we were ready to take red-hotiron in our hands;-to walk through fire;-to make oath by the godsthat we had not done the deed,-that we were not privy to the planningor the doing. At last, when all our searching was fruitless, one spake, who madeus all bend our faces on the earth in fear; for we saw not how wecould gainsay him, or escape mischance if we obeyed. His counsel wasthat this deed must be reported to thee, and not hidden. And thisseemed best; and the lot
doomed my hapless self to win this prize.So here I stand,-as unwelcome as unwilling, well I wot; for no mandelights in the bearer of bad news. LEADER O king, my thoughts have long been whispering, can this deed,perchance, be e'en the work of gods? CREON Cease, ere thy words fill me utterly with wrath, lest thoube found at once an old man and foolish. For thou sayest what is notto be borne, in saying that the gods have care for this corpse. Wasit for high reward of trusty service that they sought to hide hisnakedness, who came to burn their pillared shrines and sacred treasures,to burn their land, and scatter its laws to the winds? Or dost thoubehold the gods honouring the wicked? It cannot be. No! From the firstthere were certain in the town that muttered against me, chafing atthis edict, wagging their heads in secret; and kept not their necksduly under the yoke, like men contented with my sway. 'Tis by them, well I know, that these have been beguiled and bribedto do this deed.
Nothing so evil as money ever grew to be currentamong men. This lays cities low, this drives men from their homes,this trains and warps honest souls till they set themselves to worksof shame; this still teaches folk to practise villainies, and to knowevery godless deed. But all the men who wrought this thing for hire have made it surethat, soon or late, they shall pay the price. Now, as Zeus still hathmy reverence, know this-I tell it thee on my oath:-If ye find notthe very author of this burial, and produce him before mine eyes,death alone shall not be enough for you, till first, hung up alive,ye have revealed this outrage,-that henceforth ye may thieve withbetter knowledge whence lucre should be won, and learn that it isnot well to love gain from every source. For thou wilt find that ill-gottenpelf brings more men to ruin than to weal. GUARD May I speak? Or shall I just turn and go? CREON Knowest thou not that even now thy voice offends?GUARD Is thy smart in the ears, or in the
soul? CREON And why wouldst thou define the seat of my pain? GUARD The doer vexes thy mind, but I, thine ears. CREON Ah, thou art a born babbler, 'tis well seen. GUARD May be, but never the doer of this deed. CREON Yea, and more,-the seller of thy life for silver.GUARD Alas! 'Tis sad, truly, that he who judges should misjudge.CREON Let thy fancy play with 'judgment' as it will;-but, if ye showme not the doers of these things, ye shall avow that dastardly gainswork sorrows. (CREON goes into the palace.) GUARD Well, may he be found! so 'twere best. But, be he caught orbe he not-fortune must settle that-truly thou wilt not see me hereagain. Saved, even now, beyond hope and thought, I owe the gods greatthanks. (The GUARD goes out on the spectators' left.) CHORUS (singing, strophe 1)Wonders are many, and none is more wonderful than man; the powerthat crosses the white sea, driven by the stormy south-wind, makinga path under surges that threaten to engulf him; and Earth, the eldestof
the gods, the immortal, the unwearied, doth he wear, turning thesoil with the offspring of horses, as the ploughs go to and fro fromyear to year. (antistrophe 1)And the light-hearted race of birds, and the tribes of savage beasts,and the sea-brood of the deep, he snares in the meshes of his woventoils, he leads captive, man excellent in wit. And he masters by hisarts the beast whose lair is in the wilds, who roams the hills; hetames the horse of shaggy mane, he puts the yoke upon its neck, hetames the tireless mountain bull. (strophe 2)And speech, and wind-swift thought, and all the moods that moulda state, hath he taught himself; and how to flee the arrows of thefrost, when 'tis hard lodging under the clear sky, and the arrowsof the rushing rain; yea, he hath resource for all; without resourcehe meets nothing that must come: only against Death shall he callfor aid in vain; but from baffling maladies he hath devised escapes.(antistrophe 2)Cunning beyond fancy's dream is the fertile
skill which brings him,now to evil, now to good. When he honours the laws of the land, andthat justice which he hath sworn by the gods to uphold, proudly standshis city: no city hath he who, for his rashness, dwells with sin.Never may he share my hearth, never think my thoughts, who doth thesethings! (Enter the GUARD on the spectators' left, leading in ANTIGONE.)LEADER OF THE CHORUS What portent from the gods is this?-my soulis amazed. I know her-how can I deny that yon maiden is Antigone?O hapless, and child of hapless sire,-Of Oedipus! What means this?Thou brought a prisoner?-thou, disloyal to the king's laws, and takenin folly? GUARD Here she is, the doer of the deed:-caught this girl buryinghim:-but where is Creon? (CREON enters hurriedly from the palace.)LEADER Lo, he comes forth again from the house, at our need.CREON What is it? What hath chanced, that makes my coming timely?GUARD O king, against nothing should men pledge their word; for theafter-thought belies the first
intent. I could have vowed that I shouldnot soon be here again,-scared by thy threats, with which I had justbeen lashed: but,-since the joy that surprises and transcends ourhopes is like in fulness to no other pleasure,-I have come, though'tis in breach of my sworn oath, bringing this maid; who was takenshowing grace to the dead. This time there was no casting of lots;no, this luck hath fallen to me, and to none else. And now, sire,take her thyself, question her, examine her, as thou wilt; but I havea right to free and final quittance of this trouble. CREON And thy prisoner here-how and whence hast thou taken her?GUARD She was burying the man; thou knowest all. CREON Dost thou mean what thou sayest? Dost thou speak aright?GUARD I saw her burying the corpse that thou hadst forbidden to bury.Is that plain and clear? CREON And how was she seen? how taken in the act? GUARD It befell on this wise. When we had come to the place,-withthose dread menaces of thine upon us,-we swept away all
the dust thatcovered the corpse, and bared the dank body well; and then sat usdown on the brow of the hill, to windward, heedful that the smellfrom him should not strike us; every man was wide awake, and kepthis neighbour alert with torrents of threats, if anyone should becareless of this task. So went it, until the sun's bright orb stood in mid heaven, and theheat began to burn: and then suddenly a whirlwind lifted from theearth storm of dust, a trouble in the sky the plain, marring all theleafage of its woods; and the wide air was choked therewith: we closedour eyes, and bore the plague from the gods. And when, after a long while, this storm had passed, the maid wasseen; and she cried aloud with the sharp cry of a bird in its bitterness,-evenas when, within the empty nest, it sees the bed stripped of its nestlings.So she also, when she saw the corpse bare, lifted up a voice of wailing,and called down curses on the doers of that deed. And straightwayshe brought thirsty dust in her
hands; and from a shapely ewer ofbronze, held high, with thrice-poured drink-offering she crowned thedead. We rushed forward when we saw it, and at once dosed upon our quarry,who was in no wise dismayed. Then we taxed her with her past and presentdoings; and she stood not on denial of aught,-at once to my joy andto my pain. To have escaped from ills one's self is a great joy; but'tis painful to bring friends to ill. Howbeit, all such things areof less account to me than mine own safety. CREON Thou-thou whose face is bent to earth-dost thou avow, or disavow,this deed? ANTIGONE I avow it; I make no denial. CREON (to GUARD) Thou canst betake thee whither thou wilt, freeand clear of a grave charge. (Exit GUARD, To ANTIGONE) Now, tellme thou-not in many words, but briefly-knewest thou that an edicthad forbidden this? ANTIGONE I knew it: could I help it? It was public. CREON And thou didst indeed dare to transgress that law?ANTIGONE Yes; for it was not Zeus that had published me that
edict;not such are the laws set among men by the justice who dwells withthe gods below; nor deemed I that thy decrees were of such force,that a mortal could override the unwritten and unfailing statutesof heaven. For their life is not of to-day or yesterday, but fromall time, and no man knows when they were first put forth.Not through dread of any human pride could I answer to the gods forbreaking these. Die I must,-I knew that well (how should I not?)-evenwithout thy edicts. But if I am to die before my time, I count thata gain: for when any one lives, as I do, compassed about with evils,can such an one find aught but gain in death? So for me to meet this doom is trifling grief; but if I had sufferedmy mother's son to lie in death an unburied corpse, that would havegrieved me; for this, I am not grieved. And if my present deeds arefoolish in thy sight, it may be that a foolish judge arraigns my folly.LEADER OF THE CHORUS The maid shows herself passionate child of passionatesire,
and knows not how to bend before troubles. CREON Yet I would have thee know that o'er-stubborn spirits are mostoften humbled; 'tis the stiffest iron, baked to hardness in the fire,that thou shalt oftenest see snapped and shivered; and I have knownhorses that show temper brought to order by a little curb; there isno room for pride when thou art thy neighbour's slave.-This girl wasalready versed in insolence when she transgressed the laws that hadbeen set forth; and, that done, lo, a second insult,-to vaunt of this,and exult in her deed. Now verily I am no man, she is the man, if this victory shall restwith her, and bring no penalty. No! be she sister's child, or nearerto me in blood than any that worships Zeus at the altar of our house,-sheand her kinsfolk shall not avoid a doom most dire; for indeed I chargethat other with a like share in the plotting of this burial.And summon her-for I saw her e'en now within,-raving, and not mistressof her wits. So oft, before the deed, the mind
stands self-convictedin its treason, when folks are plotting mischief in the dark. Butverily this, too, is hateful,-when one who hath been caught in wickednesthen seeks to make the crime a glory. ANTIGONE Wouldst thou do more than take and slay me? CREON No more, indeed; having that, I have all. ANTIGONE Why then dost thou delay? In thy discourse there is noughtthat pleases me,-never may there be!-and so my words must needs beunpleasing to thee. And yet, for glory-whence could I have won a nobler,than by giving burial to mine own brother? All here would own thatthey thought it well, were not their lips sealed by fear. But royalty,blest in so much besides, hath the power to do and say what it will.CREON Thou differest from all these Thebans in that view.ANTIGONE These also share it; but they curb their tongues for thee.CREON And art thou not ashamed to act apart from them? ANTIGONE No; there is nothing shameful in piety to a brother.CREON Was it not a brother, too, that died in the
opposite cause?ANTIGONE Brother by the same mother and the same sire. CREON Why, then, dost thou render a grace that is impious in hissight? ANTIGONE The dead man will not say that he so deems it.CREON Yea, if thou makest him but equal in honour with the wicked.ANTIGONE It was his brother, not his slave, that perished.CREON Wasting this land; while he fell as its champion.ANTIGONE Nevertheless, Hades desires these rites. CREON But the good desires not a like portion with the evil.ANTIGONE Who knows but this seems blameless in the world below?CREON A foe is never a friend-not even in death. ANTIGONE Tis not my nature to join in hating, but in loving.CREON Pass, then, to the world of the dead, and, it thou must needslove, love them. While I live, no woman shall rule me. (Enter ISMENEfrom the house, led in by two attendants.) CHORUS (chanting) Lo, yonder Ismene comes forth, shedding such tearsas fond sisters weep; a cloud upon her brow casts its shadow overher darkly-flushing face,
and breaks in rain on her fair cheek.CREON And thou, who, lurking like a viper in my house, wast secretlydraining my life-blood, while I knew not that I was nurturing twopests, to rise against my throne-come, tell me now, wilt thou alsoconfess thy part in this burial, or wilt thou forswear all knowledgeof it? ISMENE I have done the deed,-if she allows my claim,-and share theburden of the charge. ANTIGONE Nay, justice will not suffer thee to do that: thou didstnot consent to the deed, nor did I give thee part in it.ISMENE But, now that ills beset thee, I am not ashamed to sail thesea of trouble at thy side. ANTIGONE Whose was the deed, Hades and the dead are witnesses: afriend in words is not the friend that I love. ISMENE Nay, sister, reject me not, but let me die with thee, andduly honour the dead. ANTIGONE Share not thou my death, nor claim deeds to which thou hastnot put thy hand: my death will suffice. ISMENE And what life is dear to me, bereft of thee? ANTIGONE Ask Creon; all
thy care is for him. ISMENE Why vex me thus, when it avails thee nought? ANTIGONE Indeed, if I mock, 'tis with pain that I mock thee.ISMENE Tell me,-how can I serve thee, even now? ANTIGONE Save thyself: I grudge not thy escape. ISMENE Ah, woe is me! And shall I have no share in thy fate?ANTIGONE Thy choice was to live; mine, to die. ISMENE At least thy choice was not made without my protest.ANTIGONE One world approved thy wisdom; another, mine. ISMENE Howbeit, the offence is the same for both of us.ANTIGONE Be of good cheer; thou livest; but my life hath long beengiven to death, that so I might serve the dead. CREON Lo, one of these maidens hath newly shown herself foolish,as the other hath been since her life began. ISMENE Yea, O king, such reason as nature may have given abides notwith the unfortunate, but goes astray. CREON Thine did, when thou chosest vile deeds with the vile.ISMENE What life could I endure, without her presence? CREON Nay, speak not of her 'presence'; she
lives no more.ISMENE But wilt thou slay the betrothed of thine own son?CREON Nay, there are other fields for him to plough. ISMENE But there can never be such love as bound him to her.CREON I like not an evil wife for my son. ANTIGONE Haemon, beloved! How thy father wrongs thee! CREON Enough, enough of thee and of thy marriage! LEADER OF THE CHORUS Wilt thou indeed rob thy son of this maiden?CREON 'Tis Death that shall stay these bridals for me. LEADER 'Tis determined, it seems, that she shall die. CREON Determined, yes, for thee and for me.- (To the two attendants)No more delay-servants, take them within! Henceforth they must bewomen, and not range at large; for verily even the bold seek to fly,when they see Death now closing on their life. (Exeunt attendants,guarding ANTIGONE and ISMENE.-CREON remains.) CHORUS (singing, strophe 1)Blest are they whose days have not tasted of evil. For when a househath once been shaken from heaven, there the curse fails nevermore,passing from
life to life of the race; even as, when the surge isdriven over the darkness of the deep by the fierce breath of Thraciansea-winds, it rolls up the black sand from the depths, and there issullen roar from wind-vexed headlands that front the blows of thestorm. (antistrophe 1)I see that from olden time the sorrows in the house of the Labdacidaeare heaped upon the sorrows of the dead; and generation is not freedby generation, but some god strikes them down, and the race hath nodeliverance. For now that hope of which the light had been spread above the lastroot of the house of Oedipus-that hope, in turn, is brought low--bythe blood-stained dust due to the gods infernal, and by folly in speech,and frenzy at the heart. (strophe 2)Thy power, O Zeus, what human trespass can limit? That power whichneither Sleep, the all-ensnaring, nor the untiring months of the godscan master; but thou, a ruler to whom time brings not old age, dwellestin the dazzling splendour of Olympus. And through the
future, near and far, as through the past, shall thislaw hold good: Nothing that is vast enters into the life of mortalswithout a curse. (antistrophe 2)For that hope whose wanderings are so wide is to many men a comfort,but to many a false lure of giddy desires; and the disappointmentcomes on one who knoweth nought till he burn his foot against thehot fire. For with wisdom hath some one given forth the famous saying, thatevil seems good, soon or late, to him whose mind the god draws tomischief; and but for the briefest space doth he fare free of woe.LEADER OF THE CHORUS But lo, Haemon, the last of thy sons;-Comeshe grieving for the doom of his promised bride, Antigone, and bitterfor the baffled hope of his marriage? (Enter HAEMON) CREON We shall know soon, better than seers could tell us.-My son,hearing the fixed doom of thy betrothed, art thou come in rage againstthy father? Or have I thy good will, act how I may? HAEMON Father, I am thine; and thou, in thy wisdom, tracest for
merules which I shall follow. No marriage shall be deemed by me a greatergain than thy good guidance. CREON Yea, this, my son, should be thy heart's fixed law,-in allthings to obey thy father's will. 'Tis for this that men pray to seedutiful children grow up around them in their homes,-that such mayrequite their father's foe with evil, and honour, as their fatherdoth, his friend. But he who begets unprofitable children-what shallwe say that he hath sown, but troubles for himself, and much triumphfor his foes? Then do not thou, my son, at pleasure's beck, dethronethy reason for a woman's sake; knowing that this is a joy that soongrows cold in clasping arms,-an evil woman to share thy bed and thyhome. For what wound could strike deeper than a false friend? Nay,with loathing, and as if she were thine enemy, let this girl go tofind a husband in the house of Hades. For since I have taken her,alone of all the city, in open disobedience, I will not make myselfa liar to my people-I will
slay her. So let her appeal as she will to the majesty of kindred blood. IfI am to nurture mine own kindred in naughtiness, needs must I bearwith it in aliens. He who does his duty in his own household willbe found righteous in the State also. But if any one transgresses,and does violence to the laws, or thinks to dictate to his rulers,such an one can win no praise from me. No, whomsoever the city mayappoint, that man must be obeyed, in little things and great, in justthings and unjust; and I should feel sure that one who thus obeyswould be a good ruler no less than a good subject, and in the stormof spears would stand his ground where he was set, loyal and dauntlessat his comrade's side. But disobedience is the worst of evils. This it is that ruins cities;this makes homes desolate; by this, the ranks of allies are brokeninto head-long rout; but, of the lives whose course is fair, the greaterpart owes safety to obedience. Therefore we must support the causeof order, and in no wise
suffer a woman to worst us. Better to fallfrom power, if we must, by a man's hand; then we should not be calledweaker than a woman. LEADER To us, unless our years have stolen our wit, thou seemestto say wisely what thou sayest. HAEMON Father, the gods implant reason in men, the highest of allthings that we call our own. Not mine the skill-far from me be thequest!-to say wherein thou speakest not aright; and yet another man,too, might have some useful thought. At least, it is my natural officeto watch, on thy behalf, all that men say, or do, or find to blame.For the dread of thy frown forbids the citizen to speak such wordsas would offend thine ear; but can hear these murmurs in the dark,these moanings of the city for this maiden; 'no woman,' they say,'ever merited her doom less,-none ever was to die so shamefully fordeeds so glorious as hers; who, when her own brother had fallen inbloody strife, would not leave him unburied, to be devoured by carriondogs, or by any bird:-deserves
not she the meed of golden honour?'Such is the darkling rumour that spreads in secret. For me, my father,no treasure is so precious as thy welfare. What, indeed, is a noblerornament for children than a prospering sire's fair fame, or for sirethan son's? Wear not, then, one mood only in thyself; think not thatthy word, and thine alone, must be right. For if any man thinks thathe alone is wise,-that in speech, or in mind, he hath no peer,-sucha soul, when laid open, is ever found empty. No, though a man be wise, 'tis no shame for him to learn many things,and to bend in season. Seest thou, beside the wintry torrent's course,how the trees that yield to it save every twig, while the stiff-neckedperish root and branch? And even thus he who keeps the sheet of hissail taut, and never slackens it, upsets his boat, and finishes hisvoyage with keel uppermost. Nay, forego thy wrath; permit thyself to change. For if I, a youngerman, may offer my thought, it were far best, I ween, that men
shouldbe all-wise by nature; but, otherwise-and oft the scale inclines notso-'tis good also to learn from those who speak aright. LEADER Sire, 'tis meet that thou shouldest profit by his words, ifhe speaks aught in season, and thou, Haemon, by thy father's; foron both parts there hath been wise speech. CREON Men of my age are we indeed to be schooled, then, by men ofhis? HAEMON In nothing that is not right; but if I am young, thou shouldestlook to my merits, not to my years. CREON Is it a merit to honour the unruly? HAEMON I could wish no one to show respect for evil-doers.CREON Then is not she tainted with that malady? HAEMON Our Theban folk, with one voice, denies it. CREON Shall Thebes prescribe to me how I must rule? HAEMON See, there thou hast spoken like a youth indeed.CREON Am I to rule this land by other judgment than mine own?HAEMON That is no city which belongs to one man. CREON Is not the city held to be the ruler's? HAEMON Thou wouldst make a good monarch of a desert.
CREON This boy, it seems, is the woman's champion. HAEMON If thou art a woman; indeed, my care is for thee.CREON Shameless, at open feud with thy father! HAEMON Nay, I see thee offending against justice. CREON Do I offend, when I respect mine own prerogatives?HAEMON Thou dost not respect them, when thou tramplest on the gods'honours, CREON O dastard nature, yielding place to woman! HAEMON Thou wilt never find me yield to baseness. CREON All thy words, at least, plead for that girl. HAEMON And for thee, and for me, and for the gods below.CREON Thou canst never marry her, on this side the grave.HAEMON Then she must die, and in death destroy another.CREON How! doth thy boldness run to open threats? HAEMON What threat is it, to combat vain resolves? CREON Thou shalt rue thy witless teaching of wisdom. HAEMON Wert thou not my father, I would have called thee unwise.CREON Thou woman's slave, use not wheedling speech with me.HAEMON Thou wouldest speak, and then hear no reply? CREON Sayest
thou so? Now, by the heaven above us-be sure of it-thoushalt smart for taunting me in this opprobrious strain. Bring forththat hated thing, that she may die forthwith in his presence-beforehis eyes-at her bridegroom's side! HAEMON No, not at my side-never think it-shall she perish; nor shaltthou ever set eyes more upon my face:-rave, then, with such friendsas can endure thee. (Exit HAEMON) LEADER The man is gone, O king, in angry haste; a youthful mind,when stung, is fierce. CREON Let him do, or dream, more than man-good speed to him!-Buthe shall not save these two girls from their doom. LEADER Dost thou indeed purpose to slay both? CREON Not her whose hands are pure: thou sayest well. LEADER And by what doom mean'st thou to slay the other?CREON I will take her where the path is loneliest, and hide her,living, in rocky vault, with so much food set forth as piety prescribes,that the city may avoid a public stain. And there, praying to Hades,the only god whom she worships, perchance
she will obtain releasefrom death; or else will learn, at last, though late, that it is lostlabour to revere the dead. (CREON goes into the palace.)CHORUS (singing, strophe)Love, unconquered in the fight, Love, who makest havoc of wealth,who keepest thy vigil on the soft cheek of a maiden; thou roamestover the sea, and among the homes of dwellers in the wilds; no immortalcan escape thee, nor any among men whose life is for a day; and heto whom thou hast come is mad. (antistrophe)The just themselves have their minds warped by thee to wrong, fortheir ruin: 'tis thou that hast stirred up this present strife ofkinsmen; victorious is the love-kindling light from the eyes of thefair bride; it is a power enthroned in sway beside the eternal laws;for there the goddess Aphrodite is working her unconquerable will.(ANTIGONE is led out of the palace by two Of CREON'S attendants whoare about to conduct her to her doom.) But now I also am carriedbeyond the bounds of loyalty, and can no more
keep back the streamingtears, when I see Antigone thus passing to the bridal chamber whereall are laid to rest. (The following lines between ANTIGONE and theCHORUS are chanted responsively.) ANTIGONE (strophe 1)See me, citizens of my fatherland, setting forth on my last way,looking my last on the sunlight that is for me no more; no, Hadeswho gives sleep to all leads me living to Acheron's shore; who havehad no portion in the chant that brings the bride, nor hath any songbeen mine for the crowning of bridals; whom the lord of the Dark Lakeshall wed. CHORUS (systema 1)Glorious, therefore, and with praise, thou departest to that deepplace of the dead: wasting sickness hath not smitten thee; thou hastnot found the wages of the sword; no, mistress of thine own fate,and still alive, thou shalt pass to Hades, as no other of mortal kindhath passed. ANTIGONE (antistrophe 1)I have heard in other days how dread a doom befell our Phrygian guest,the daughter of Tantalus, on the Sipylian
heights; I how, like clingingivy, the growth of stone subdued her; and the rains fail not, as mentell, from her wasting form, nor fails the snow, while beneath herweeping lids the tears bedew her bosom; and most like to hers is thefate that brings me to my rest. CHORUS (systema 2)Yet she was a goddess, thou knowest, and born of gods; we are mortals,and of mortal race. But 'tis great renown for a woman who hath perishedthat she should have shared the doom of the godlike, in her life,and afterward in death. ANTIGONE (strophe 2)Ah, I am mocked! In the name of our fathers' gods, can ye not waittill I am gone,-must ye taunt me to my face, O my city, and ye, herwealthy sons? Ah, fount of Dirce, and thou holy ground of Thebe whosechariots are many; ye, at least, will bear me witness, in what sort,unwept of friends, and by what laws I pass to the rock-closed prisonof my strange tomb, ah me unhappy! who have no home on the earth orin the shades, no home with the living or with the
dead.CHORUS (strophe 3)Thou hast rushed forward to the utmost verge of daring; and againstthat throne where justice sits on high thou hast fallen, my daughter,with a grievous fall. But in this ordeal thou art paying, haply, forthy father's sin. ANTIGONE (antistrophe 2)Thou hast touched on my bitterest thought,-awaking the ever-new lamentfor my sire and for all the doom given to us, the famed house of Labdacus.Alas for the horrors of the mother's bed! alas for the wretched mother'sslumber at the side of her own son,-and my sire! From what mannerof parents did I take my miserable being! And to them I go thus, accursed,unwed, to share their home. Alas, my brother, ill-starred in thy marriage,in thy death thou hast undone my life! CHORUS (antistrophe 3)Reverent action claims a certain praise for reverence; but an offenceagainst power cannot be brooked by him who hath power in his keeping.Thy self-willed temper hath wrought thy ruin. ANTIGONE (epode)Unwept, unfriended, without
marriage-song, I am led forth in my sorrowon this journey that can be delayed no more. No longer, hapless one,may I behold yon day-star's sacred eye; but for my fate no tear isshed, no friend makes moan. (CREON enters from the palace.)CREON Know ye not that songs and wailings before death would nevercease, if it profited to utter them? Away with her-away! And whenye have enclosed her, according to my word, in her vaulted grave,leave her alone, forlorn-whether she wishes to die, or to live a buriedlife in such a home. Our hands are clean as touching this maiden.But this is certain-she shall be deprived of her sojourn in the light.ANTIGONE Tomb, bridal-chamber, eternal prison in the caverned rock,whither go to find mine own, those many who have perished, and whomPersephone hath received among the dead! Last of all shall I passthither, and far most miserably of all, before the term of my lifeis spent. But I cherish good hope that my coming will be welcome tomy father, and pleasant to
thee, my mother, and welcome, brother,to thee; for, when ye died, with mine own hands I washed and dressedyou, and poured drink-offerings at your graves; and now, Polyneices,'tis for tending thy corpse that I win such recompense as this.And yet I honoured thee, as the wise will deem, rightly. Never, hadbeen a mother of children, or if a husband had been mouldering indeath, would I have taken this task upon me in the city's despite.What law, ye ask, is my warrant for that word? The husband lost, anothermight have been found, and child from another, to replace the first-born:but, father and mother hidden with Hades, no brother's life couldever bloom for me again. Such was the law whereby I held thee firstin honour; but Creon deemed me guilty of error therein, and of outrage,ah brother mine! And now he leads me thus, a captive in his hands;no bridal bed, no bridal song hath been mine, no joy of marriage,no portion in the nurture of children; but thus, forlorn of friends,unhappy one, I
go living to the vaults of death. And what law of heaven have I transgressed? Why, hapless one, shouldI look to the gods any more,-what ally should I invoke,-when by pietyI have earned the name of impious? Nay, then, if these things arepleasing to the gods, when I have suffered my doom, I shall come toknow my sin; but if the sin is with my judges, I could wish them nofuller measure of evil than they, on their part, mete wrongfully tome. CHORUS Still the same tempest of the soul vexes this maiden withthe same fierce gusts. CREON Then for this shall her guards have cause to rue their slowness.ANTIGONE Ah me! that word hath come very near to death.CREON I can cheer thee with no hope that this doom is not thus tobe fulfilled. ANTIGONE O city of my fathers in the land of Thebe! O ye gods, eldestof our race!-they lead me henc--now, now-they tarry not! Behold me,princes of Thebes, the last daughter of the house of your kings,-seewhat I suffer, and from whom, because I feared to cast away
the fearof Heaven! (ANTIGONE is led away by the guards.) CHORUS (singing, strophe 1)Even thus endured Danae in her beauty to change the light of dayfor brass-bound walls; and in that chamber, secret as the grave, shewas held close prisoner; yet was she of a proud lineage, O my daughter,and charged with the keeping of the seed of Zeus, that fell in thegolden rain. But dreadful is the mysterious power of fate: there is no deliverancefrom it by wealth or by war, by fenced city, or dark, sea-beaten ships.(antistrophe 1)And bonds tamed the son of Dryas, swift to wrath, that king of theEdonians; so paid he for his frenzied taunts, when, by the will ofDionysus, he was pent in a rocky prison. There the fierce exuberanceof his madness slowly passed away. That man learned to know the god,whom in his frenzy he had provoked with mockeries; for he had soughtto quell the god-possessed women, and the Bacchanalian fire; and heangered the Muses that love the flute. (strophe 2)And by the waters of
the Dark Rocks, the waters of the twofold sea,are the shores of Bosporus, and Thracian Salmydessus; where Ares,neighbour to the city, saw the accurst, blinding wound dealt to thetwo sons of Phineus by his fierce wife,-the wound that brought darknessto those vengeance-craving orbs, smitten with her bloody hands, smittenwith her shuttle for a dagger. (antistrophe 2)Pining in their misery, they bewailed their cruel doom, those sonsof a mother hapless in her marriage; but she traced her descent fromthe ancient line of the Erechtheidae; and in far-distant caves shewas nursed amid her father's storms, that child of Boreas, swift asa steed over the steep hills, a daughter of gods; yet upon her alsothe gray Fates bore hard, my daughter. (Enter TEIRESIAS, led by aBoy, on the spectators' right.) TEIRESIAS Princes of Thebes, we have come with linked steps, bothserved by the eyes of one; for thus, by a guide's help, the blindmust walk. CREON And what, aged Teiresias, are thy tidings?
TEIRESIAS I will tell thee; and do thou hearken to the seer.CREON Indeed, it has not been my wont to slight thy counsel.TEIRESIAS Therefore didst thou steer our city's course aright.CREON I have felt, and can attest, thy benefits. TEIRESIAS Mark that now, once more, thou standest on fate's fineedge. CREON What means this? How I shudder at thy message! TEIRESIAS Thou wilt learn, when thou hearest the warnings of mineart. As I took my place on mine old seat of augury, where all birdshave been wont to gather within my ken, I heard a strange voice amongthem; they were screaming with dire, feverish rage, that drowned theirlanguage in jargon; and I knew that they were rending each other withtheir talons, murderously; the whirr of wings told no doubtful tale.Forthwith, in fear, I essayed burnt-sacrifice on a duly kindled altar:but from my offerings the Fire-god showed no flame; a dank moisture,oozing from the thigh-flesh, trickled forth upon the embers, and smoked,and sputtered; the gall
was scattered to the air; and the streamingthighs lay bared of the fat that had been wrapped round them.Such was the failure of the rites by which I vainly asked a sign,as from this boy I learned; for he is my guide, as I am guide to others.And 'tis thy counsel that hath brought this sickness on our State.For the altars of our city and of our hearths have been tainted, oneand all, by birds and dogs, with carrion from the hapless corpse,the son of Oedipus: and therefore the gods no more accept prayer andsacrifice at our hands, or the flame of meat-offering; nor doth anybird give a clear sign by its shrill cry, for they have tasted thefatness of a slain man's blood. Think, then, on these things, my son. All men are liable to err; butwhen an error hath been made, that man is no longer witless or unblestwho heals the ill into which he hath fallen, and remains not stubborn.Self-will, we know, incurs the charge of folly. Nay, allow the claimof the dead; stab not the fallen; what prowess
is it to slay the slainanew? I have sought thy good, and for thy good I speak: and neveris it sweeter to learn from a good counsellor than when he counselsfor thine own gain. CREON Old man, ye all shoot your shafts at me, as archers at thebutts;-Ye must needs practise on me with seer-craft also;-aye, theseer-tribe hath long trafficked in me, and made me their merchandise.Gain your gains, drive your trade, if ye list, in the silver-goldof Sardis and the gold of India; but ye shall not hide that man inthe grave,-no, though the eagles of Zeus should bear the carrion morselsto their Master's throne-no, not for dread of that defilement willI suffer his burial:-for well I know that no mortal can defile thegods.-But, aged Teiresias, the wisest fall with shameful fall, whenthey clothe shameful thoughts in fair words, for lucre's sake.TEIRESIAS Alas! Doth any man know, doth any consider...CREON Whereof? What general truth dost thou announce? TEIRESIAS How precious, above all wealth, is good
counsel.CREON As folly, I think, is the worst mischief. TEIRESIAS Yet thou art tainted with that distemper. CREON I would not answer the seer with a taunt. TEIRESIAS But thou dost, in saying that I prophesy falsely.CREON Well, the prophet-tribe was ever fond of money. TEIRESIAS And the race bred of tyrants loves base gain.CREON Knowest thou that thy speech is spoken of thy king?TEIRESIAS I know it; for through me thou hast saved Thebes.CREON Thou art a wise seer; but thou lovest evil deeds.TEIRESIAS Thou wilt rouse me to utter the dread secret in my soul.CREON Out with it!-Only speak it not for gain. TEIRESIAS Indeed, methinks, I shall not,-as touching thee.CREON Know that thou shalt not trade on my resolve. TEIRESIAS Then know thou-aye, know it well-that thou shalt not livethrough many more courses of the sun's swift chariot, ere one begottenof thine own loins shall have been given by thee, a corpse for corpses;because thou hast thrust children of the sunlight to the shades,
andruthlessly lodged a living soul in the grave; but keepest in thisworld one who belongs to the gods infernal, a corpse unburied, unhonoured,all unhallowed. In such thou hast no part, nor have the gods above,but this is a violence done to them by thee. Therefore the avengingdestroyers lie in wait for thee, the Furies of Hades and of the gods,that thou mayest be taken in these same ills. And mark well if I speak these things as a hireling. A time not longto be delayed shall awaken the wailing of men and of women in thyhouse. And a tumult of hatred against thee stirs all the cities whosemangled sons had the burial-rite from dogs, or from wild beasts, orfrom some winged bird that bore a polluting breath to each city thatcontains the hearths of the dead. Such arrows for thy heart-since thou provokest me-have I launchedat thee, archer-like, in my anger,-sure arrows, of which thou shaltnot escape the smart.-Boy, lead me home, that he may spend his rageon younger men, and learn to keep a
tongue more temperate, and tobear within his breast a better mind than now he bears. (The Boyleads TEIRESIAS Out.) LEADER OF THE CHORUS The man hath gone, O King, with dread prophecies.And, since the hair on this head, once dark, hath been white, I knowthat he hath never been a false prophet to our city. CREON I, too, know it well, and am troubled in soul. 'Tis dire toyield; but, by resistance, to smite my pride with ruin-this, too,is a dire choice. LEADER Son of Menoeceus, it behoves thee to take wise counsel.CREON What should I do then? Speak and I will obey. LEADER Go thou, and free the maiden from her rocky chamber, and makea tomb for the unburied dead. CREON And this is thy counsel? Thou wouldst have me yield?LEADER Yea, King, and with all speed; for swift harms from the godscut short the folly of men. CREON Ah me, 'tis hard, but I resign my cherished resolve,-I obey.We must not wage a vain war with destiny. LEADER Go, thou, and do these things; leave them not to others.CREON
Even as I am I'll go:-on, on, my servants, each and all ofyou,-take axes in your hands, and hasten to the ground that ye seeyonder! Since our judgment hath taken this turn, I will be presentto unloose her, as myself bound her. My heart misgives me, 'tis bestto keep the established laws, even to life's end. (CREON and hisservants hasten out on the spectators' left.) CHORUS (singing, strophe 1)O thou of many names, glory of the Cadmeian bride, offspring of loud-thunderingZeus! thou who watchest over famed Italia, and reignest, where allguests are welcomed, in the sheltered plain of Eleusinian Deo! O Bacchus,dweller in Thebe, mother-city of Bacchants, by the softly-glidingstream of Ismenus, on the soil where the fierce dragon's teeth weresown! (antistrophe 1)Thou hast been seen where torch-flames glare through smoke, abovethe crests of the twin peaks, where move the Corycian nymphs, thyvotaries, hard by Castalia's stream. Thou comest from the ivy-mantled slopes of Nysa's hills, and
fromthe shore green with many-clustered vines, while thy name is liftedup on strains of more than mortal power, as thou visitest the waysof Thebe: (strophe 2)Thebe, of all cities, thou holdest first in honour, thou and thymother whom the lightning smote; and now, when all our people is captiveto a violent plague, come thou with healing feet over the Parnassianheight, or over the moaning strait! (antistrophe 2)O thou with whom the stars rejoice as they move, the stars whosebreath is fire; O master of the voices of the night; son begottenof Zeus; appear, O king, with thine attendant Thyiads, who in night-longfrenzy dance before thee, the giver of good gifts, Iacchus! (EnterMESSENGER, on the spectators' left.) MESSENGER Dwellers by the house of Cadmus and of Amphion, there isno estate of mortal life that I would ever praise or blame as settled.Fortune raises and Fortune humbles the lucky or unlucky from day today, and no one can prophesy to men concerning those things whichare
established. For CREON was blest once, as I count bliss; he had saved this land ofCadmus from its foes; he was clothed with sole dominion in the land;he reigned, the glorious sire of princely children. And now all hathbeen lost. For when a man hath forfeited his pleasures, I count himnot as living,-I hold him but a breathing corpse. Heap up riches inthy house, if thou wilt; live in kingly state; yet, if there be nogladness therewith, I would not give the shadow of a vapour for allthe rest, compared with joy. LEADER OF THE CHORUS And what is this new grief that thou hast totell for our princes? MESSENGER Death; and the living are guilty for the dead.LEADER And who is the slayer? Who the stricken? Speak. MESSENGER Haemon hath perished; his blood hath been shed by no stranger.LEADER By his father's hand, or by his own? MESSENGER By his own, in wrath with his sire for the murder.LEADER O prophet, how true, then, hast thou proved thy word!MESSENGER These things stand thus; ye must
consider of the rest.LEADER Lo, I see the hapless Eurydice, Creon's wife, approaching;she comes from the house by chance, haply,-or because she knows thetidings of her son. (Enter EURYDICE from the palace.) EURYDICE People of Thebes, I heard your words as I was going forth,to salute the goddess Pallas with my prayers. Even as I was loosingthe fastenings of the gate, to open it, the message of a householdwoe smote on mine ear: I sank back, terror-stricken, into the armsof my handmaids, and my senses fled. But say again what the tidingswere; I shall hear them as one who is no stranger to sorrow.MESSENGER Dear lady, I will witness of what I saw, and will leaveno word of the truth untold. Why, indeed, should I soothe thee withwords in which must presently be found false? Truth is ever best.-Iattended thy lord as his guide to the furthest part of the plain,where the body of Polyneices, torn by dogs, still lay unpitied. Weprayed the goddess of the roads, and Pluto, in mercy to restrain
theirwrath; we washed the dead with holy washing; and with freshly-pluckedboughs we solemnly burned such relics as there were. We raised a highmound of his native earth; and then we turned away to enter the maiden'snuptial chamber with rocky couch, the caverned mansion of the brideof Death. And, from afar off, one of us heard a voice of loud wailingat that bride's unhallowed bower; and came to tell our master Creon.And as the king drew nearer, doubtful sounds of a bitter cry floatedaround him; he groaned, and said in accents of anguish, 'Wretchedthat I am, can my foreboding be true? Am I going on the wofullestway that ever I went? My son's voice greets me.-Go, my servants,-hasteye nearer, and when ye have reached the tomb, pass through the gap,where the stones have been wrenched away, to the cell's very mouth,-andlook. and see if 'tis Haemon's voice that I know, or if mine ear ischeated by the gods.' This search, at our despairing master's word, we went to make; andin the furthest
part of the tomb we descried her hanging by the neck,slung by a thread-wrought halter of fine linen: while he was embracingher with arms thrown around her waist, bewailing the loss of his bridewho is with the dead, and his father's deeds, and his own ill-starredlove. But his father, when he saw him, cried aloud with a dread cry andwent in, and called to him with a voice of wailing:-'Unhappy, whatdeed hast thou done! What thought hath come to thee? What manner ofmischance hath marred thy reason? Come forth, my child! I pray thee-Iimplore!' But the boy glared at him with fierce eyes, spat in hisface, and, without a word of answer, drew his cross-hilted sword:-ashis father rushed forth in flight, he missed his aim;-then, haplessone, wroth with himself, he straightway leaned with all his weightagainst his sword, and drove it, half its length, into his side; and,while sense lingered, he clasped the maiden to his faint embrace,and, as he gasped, sent forth on her pale cheek the swift
stream ofthe oozing blood. Corpse enfolding corpse he lies; he hath won his nuptial rites, pooryouth, not here, yet in the halls of Death; and he hath witnessedto mankind that, of all curses which cleave to man, ill counsel isthe sovereign curse. (EURYDICE retires into the house.)LEADER What wouldst thou augur from this? The lady hath turned back,and is gone, without a word, good or evil. MESSENGER I, too, am startled; yet I nourish the hope that, at thesesore tidings of her son, she cannot deign to give her sorrow publicvent, but in the privacy of the house will set her handmaids to mournthe household grief. For she is not untaught of discretion, that sheshould err. LEADER I know not; but to me, at least, a strained silence seemsto portend peril, no less than vain abundance of lament.MESSENGER Well, I will enter the house, and learn whether indeedshe is not hiding some repressed purpose in the depths of a passionateheart. Yea, thou sayest well: excess of silence, too, may have a
perilousmeaning. (The MESSENGER goes into the palace. Enter CREON, on thespectators' left, with attendants, carrying the shrouded body of HAEMONon bier. The following lines between CREON and the CHORUS are chantedresponsively.) CHORUS Lo, yonder the king himself draws near, bearing that whichtells too clear a tale,-the work of no stranger's madness,-if we maysay it,-but of his own misdeeds. CREON (strophe 1)Woe for the sins of a darkened soul, stubborn sins, fraught withdeath! Ah, ye behold us, the sire who hath slain, the son who hathperished! Woe is me, for the wretched blindness of my counsels! Alas,my son, thou hast died in thy youth, by a timeless doom, woe is me!-thyspirit hath fled,-not by thy folly, but by mine own! CHORUS (strophe 2)Ah me, how all too late thou seemest to see the right! CREON Ah me, I have learned the bitter lesson! But then, methinks,oh then, some god smote me from above with crushing weight, and hurledme into ways of cruelty, woe is me,-overthrowing and
trampling onmy joy! Woe, woe, for the troublous toils of men! (Enter MESSENGERfrom the house.) MESSENGER Sire, thou hast come, methinks, as one whose hands arenot empty, but who hath store laid up besides; thou bearest yonderburden with thee-and thou art soon to look upon the woes within thyhouse. CREON And what worse ill is yet to follow upon ills? MESSENGER Thy queen hath died, true mother of yon corpse-ah, haplesslady by blows newly dealt. CREON (antistrophe 1)Oh Hades, all-receiving whom no sacrifice can appease! Hast thou,then, no mercy for me? O thou herald of evil, bitter tidings, whatword dost thou utter? Alas, I was already as dead, and thou hast smittenme anew! What sayest thou, my son? What is this new message that thoubringest-woe, woe is me!-Of a wife's doom-of slaughter headed on slaughter?CHORUS Thou canst behold: 'tis no longer hidden within. (The doorsof the palace are opened, and the corpse of EURYDICE is disclosed.)CREON (antistrophe 2)Ah me,-yonder I behold a
new, a second woe! What destiny, ah what,can yet await me? I have but now raised my son in my arms,-and there,again, I see a corpse before me! Alas, alas, unhappy mother! Alas,my child! MESSENGER There, at the altar, self-stabbed with a keen knife, shesuffered her darkening eyes to close, when she had wailed for thenoble fate of Megareus who died before, and then for his fate wholies there,-and when, with her last breath, she had invoked evil fortunesupon thee, the slayer of thy sons. CREON (strophe 3)Woe, woe! I thrill with dread. Is there none to strike me to theheart with two-edged sword?-O miserable that I am, and steeped inmiserable anguish! MESSENGER Yea, both this son's doom, and that other's, were laidto thy charge by her whose corpse thou seest. CREON And what was the manner of the violent deed by which she passedaway? MESSENGER Her own hand struck her to the heart, when she had learnedher son's sorely lamented fate. CREON (strophe 4)Ah me, this guilt can never be fixed on
any other of mortal kind,for my acquittal! I, even I, was thy slayer, wretched that I am-Iown the truth. Lead me away, O my servants, lead me hence with allspeed, whose life is but as death! CHORUS Thy counsels are good, if there can be good with ills; briefestis best, when trouble is in our path. CREON (antistrophe 3)Oh, let it come, let it appear, that fairest of fates for me, thatbrings my last day,-aye, best fate of all! Oh, let it come, that Imay never look upon to-morrow's light. CHORUS These things are in the future; present tasks claim our care:the ordering of the future rests where it should rest. CREON All my desires, at least, were summed in that prayer.CHORUS Pray thou no more; for mortals have no escape from destinedwoe. CREON (antistrophe 4)Lead me away, I pray you; a rash, foolish man; who have slain thee,ah my son, unwittingly, and thee, too, my wife-unhappy that I am!I know not which way I should bend my gaze, or where I should seeksupport; for all is amiss with
that which is in my hands,-and yonder,again, a crushing fate hath leapt upon my head. (As CREON is beingconducted into the palace, the LEADER OF THE CHORUS speaks the closingverses.) LEADER Wisdom is the supreme part of happiness; and reverence towardsthe gods must be inviolate. Great words of prideful men are ever punishedwith great blows, and, in old age, teach the chastened to be wise.THE END
L. Arminius Faustus
Senior Plebeian Aedile, Quaestor,
Interpreter (lingua lusitaniae), Scriba propraetoris Brasiliae.
Visit my office at
http://geocities.yahoo.com.br/lafaustus/index.html
"I too in words could fight even Immortals..."
Iliad, Homer, book XX
The answer of Hector about Achilles' speeches.
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