HERCULES FURENS

Medea:He's gone! And can it be? And shall he thus depart,560Forgetting me and all my service? Must I drop,Like some discarded toy, out of his faithless heart?It shall not be. Up then, and summon all thy strengthAnd all thy skill! And, this the fruit of former crime,Count nothing criminal that works thy will. But lo,We're hedged about; scant room is left for our designs.565Now must the attack be made where least suspicion wakesThe least resistance. Now Medea, on! and doAnd dare thine utmost, yea, beyond thine utmost power![To theNurse.]Do thou, my faithful nurse, the comrade of my grief,And all the devious wanderings of my checkered course,Assist me now in these my plans. There is a robe,The glory of our Colchian realm, the precious gift570Of Phoebus' self to king Aeëtes as a proofOf fatherhood; a gleaming circlet, too, all wroughtWith threads of gold, the yellow gold bespangled o'erWith gems, a fitting crown to deck a princess' head.These treasures let Medea's children bear as gifts575To Jason's bride. But first infuse them with the powerOf magic, and invoke the aid of Hecate;The woe-producing sacrifices then prepare,And let the sacred flames through all our courts resound.Chorus:No force of flame or raging gale,Or whizzing bolt so fearful is,580As when a wife, by her lord betrayed,Burns hot with hate.Not such a force is Auster's blast,When he marshals forth the wintry storms;Nor Hister's headlong rushing stream,Which, wrecking bridges in its course,585Pours reckless on;Nor yet the Rhone, whose current strongBeats back the sea; nor when the snows,Beneath the lengthening days of springAnd the sun's warm rays, melt down in streamsFrom Haemus' top.590Blind is the rage of passion's fire,Will not be governed, brooks no reins,And scoffs at death; nay, hostile swordsIt gladly courts.Spare, O ye gods, be merciful,595That he who tamed the sea may live.But much we fear, for the lord of the deepIs wroth that his realm of the second lotShould be subdued.The thoughtless youth who dared to driveHis father's sacred chariot,Was by those fires, which o'er the heavens600He scattered in his mad career,Himself consumed.The beaten path has never provedThe way of danger. Walk ye thenWhere your forefathers safely trod,And keep great nature's holy laws605Inviolate.Whoever dipped the famous oarsOf that bold bark in the rushing sea;Whoe'er despoiled old PelionOf the thick, dark shade of his sacred groves;Whoever dared the clashing rocks,610And, after countless perils passed,His vessel moored on a barbarous shore,Hoping to fare on his homeward wayThe master of the golden fleece,All by a fearful end appeased615The offended sea.First Tiphys, tamer of the deep,Abandoned to an untrained handHis vessel's helm. On a foreign shore,Far from his native land he died;And now within a common tomb,620'Midst unknown ghosts, he lies at rest.In wrathful memory of her kingLost on the sea, did Aulis thenWithin her sluggish harbor holdThe impatient ships.Then he, the tuneful Muse's son,625At whose sweet strains the streams stood still,The winds were silent, and the birds,Their songs forgotten, flocked to him,[12]The whole wood following after—he,Over the Thracian fields was hurled630In scattered fragments; but his headDown Hebrus' grieving stream was borne.The well-remembered Styx he reached,And Tartarus, whence ne'er againWould he return.The wingéd sons of BoreasAlcides slew, and Neptune's son635Who in a thousand changing formsCould clothe himself. But after peaceOn land and sea had been proclaimed,And after savage Pluto's realmHad been revealed to mortal eyes,Then did Alcides' self, alive,On burning Oeta's top lie down,And give his body to the flames;640For sore distressed was he, consumedBy Deianira's deadly gift,The double blood.A savage boar Ancaeus slew;Thou, Meleager, impiouslyThy mother's brother in wrath didst slay,And by that angry mother's hand645Didst die. All these deserved their death.But for what crime did Hylas die,A tender lad whom HerculesLong time but vainly sought? For he,'Mid waters safe was done to death.Go then, and fearlessly the deepPlow with your daring ships; but fear650The peaceful pools.Idmon, though well be knew the fates,A serpent slew on Afric sands;And Mopsus, to all others true,False to himself, died far from Thebes.655If he with truth the future sang,Then Nauplius, who strove to wreckThe Argive ships by lying fires,Shall headlong fall into the sea.And for his father's daring crime660Shall Ajax, that Oïleus' son,Make full atonement, perishing'Midst flame and flood.[13]And thou, Admetus' faithful mate,Shalt[14]for thy husband pay thy life,Redeeming his from death. But he,Who bade the first ship sail in quest665Of the golden spoil, King Pelias,Seethed in a boiling cauldron, swam'Mid those restricted waves. Enough,O gods, have ye avenged the sea:Spare him, we pray, who did but goOn ordered ways.FOOTNOTES:[12]Reading,cui.[13]Reading, with a period afterprofundumand afterOïleus.[14]Reading,impendes.ACT IVNurse[alone]: My spirit trembles, for I feel the near approach670Of some unseen disaster. Swiftly grows her grief,Its own fires kindling; and again her passion's forceHath leaped to life. I oft have seen her, with the fitOf inspiration in her soul, confront the godsAnd force the very heavens to her will. But now,A monstrous deed, of greater moment far than these,675Medea is preparing. For, but now, did sheWith step of frenzy hurry off until she reachedHer stricken home. There, in her chamber, all her storesOf magic wonders are revealed; once more she viewsThe things herself hath held in fear these many years,Unloosing one by one her ministers of ill,Occult, unspeakable, and wrapt in mystery;And, grasping with her hand the sacred altar-horn,680With prayers, she straightly summons all destructive powers,The creatures bred in Libya's sands, and on the peaksOf frigid Taurus, clad in everlasting snows.Obedient to her potent charms, the scaly brood685Of serpents leave their darksome lairs and swarm to her;One savage creature rolls his monstrous length along,And darts his forkéd tongue with its envenomed sting,Death-dealing; at the charming sound he stops amazed,And fold on fold his body writhes in nerveless coils.690"But these are petty ills; unworthy of my hand,"She cries, "are such weak, earth-born weapons. Potent charmsAre bred in heaven. Now, now 'tis time to summon powersTranscending common magic. Down I'll draw from heavenThat serpent huge whose body lies athwart the sky695Like some great ocean stream, in whose constricting foldsThe greater and the lesser Bears are held enthralled,The greater set as guide for Grecian ships, the lessFor Sidon's mariners! Let Ophiuchus looseHis hand and pour forth venom from his captive thrall!And let the Python huge, that dared to rear its head700Against the heavenly twins, be present at my prayer!Let Hydra's writhing heads, which by Alcides' handWere severed, all return to life and give me aid!Thou too be near and leave thy ancient Colchian home,Thou watchful dragon, to whose eyes the first sleep cameIn answer to my incantations."When she thus705Had summoned all the serpent brood, she cast her storeOf baleful herbs together; all the poisons brewedAmid the rocky caves of trackless Eryx; plantsThat flourish on the snowy peaks of Caucasus,Whose crags were spattered with Prometheus' gore; the herbs710Within whose deadly juice the Arab dips his darts,And the quiver-bearing Mede and fleeing Parthian;Those potent juices, too, which, near the shivering pole,The Suabian chieftains gather in Hyrcanian groves.The seasons, too, have paid their tribute to her stores:Whatever earth produces in the nesting time,And when the stiff'ning hand of winter's frost has stripped715The glory from the trees and fettered all the landWith icy bonds; whatever flow'ring plant concealsDestruction in its bloom, or in its twisted rootsDistils the juice of death, she gathers to her use.These pestilential herbs Haemonian Athos gave;720And these on lofty Pindus grew; a bloody knifeClipped off these slender leaves on Macedonia's heights;Still others grew beside the Tigris, whirling onHis flood to meet the sea; the Danube nourished some;These grew on bright gem-starred Hydaspes' tepid stream;725And these the Baetis bore, which gave the land its name,Displacing with its langourous tide, the western sea.These felt the knife when early dawn begins to break;The fruit of these was cut in midnight's gloomy hour;This fatal crop was reaped with sickle magic-edged.730These deadly, potent herbs she takes and sprinkles o'erWith serpentvenom, mixing all; and in the brothShe mingles unclean birds: a wailing screech owl's heart,A ghastly vampire's vitals torn from living flesh.Her magic poisons all she ranges for her use.735The ravening power of hidden fire is held in these,While deep in others lurks the numbing chill of frost.Now magic runes she adds more potent far.But lo!Her voice resounds! and, as with maddened step she comes,She chants her charms, while heaven and earth convulsive rock.[EnterMedea,chanting her incantations.]Medea:I supplicate the silent throng, and you, the gods740Of death's sad rites, and groping chaos, and the homeOf gloomy Pluto, and the black abyss of deathGirt by the banks of Tartarus! Ye storied shades,Your torments leave and haste to grace the festivalAt Hymen's call! Let stop the whirling wheel that holdsIxion's limbs and let him tread Corinthian ground;Let Tantalus unfrighted drink Pirene's stream.745On Creon's stock alone let heavier torments fall,And backward o'er the rocks let Sisyphus be hurled.You too, the seed of Danaüs, whose fruitless toilThe ever-empty urns deride, I summon you;This day requires your helping hands. Thou radiant moon,750Night's glorious orb, my supplications hear and comeTo aid; put on thy sternest guise, thou goddess dreadOf triple form! Full oft have I with flowing locks,And feet unsandaled, wandered through thy darkling grovesAnd by thy inspiration summoned forth the rainFrom cloudless skies; the heaving seas have I subdued,755And sent the vanquished waves to ocean's lowest depths.At my command the sun and stars together shine,The heavenly law reversed; while in the Arctic seaThe Bears have plunged. The seasons, too, obey my will:I've made the burning summer blossom as the spring,760And hoary winter autumn's golden harvests bear.The Phasis sends his swirling waves to seek their source,And Ister, flowing to the sea with many mouths,His eager water checks and sluggish rolls along.The billows roar, the mad sea rages, though the winds765All silent lie. At my command primeval grovesHave lost their shade;[15]the sun, abandoning[16]the day,Has stood in middle heaven; while falling HyadesAttest my charms.But now thy sacred hour is come,770O Phoebe. Thine these bonds with bloody hand entwinedWith ninefold serpent coils; these cords I offer thee,Which on his hybrid limbs Typhoeus bore, who shookThe throne of Jove. This vessel holds the dying bloodOf Nessus, faithless porter of Alcides' bride.775Here are the ashes of the pyre on Oeta's topWhich drank the poisoned blood of dying Hercules;And here the fatal billet that Althaea burnedIn vengeance on her son. These plumes the Harpies left780Within their caverned lair when Zetes drove them forth;And these the feathers of that vile Stymphalian birdWhich arrows, dipped in Lerna's deadly poison, pierced.But lo! mine altar fires resound!While in the tripod's answering voice785Behold the present deity!I see the car of Trivia,Not full and clear as when she drivesThe livelong night to meet the dawn;But with a baleful, lurid glare,As, harried by Thessalian cries,790She holds a more restricted course.Send such uncanny light abroad!Fill mortals with a dread unknown;And let our Corinth's priceless bronzeResound, Dictynna, for thy aid!795To thee a solemn sacrificeOn bloody altar do we pay!To thee, snatched from the mournful tomb,The blazing torch nocturnal burns;On thee I call with tossing head,800And many a frantic gesture make;Corpselike upon the bier I lie,My hair with priestly fillet bound;Before thy awful shrine is wavedThe branch in Stygian waters dipped.And, calling on thy name, with gleaming shoulders bared,805Like Bacchus' mad adorers, will I lash my armsWith sacrificial knife. Now let my life-blood flow!And let my hands be used to draw the deadly sword,And learn to shed belovéd blood![She cuts her arm and lets the blood flow upon the altar.]Behold, self-stricken have I poured the sacrifice!810But if too oft upon thy name I call,I pray forgive this importunity!The cause, O Hecate, of all my prayersIs ever Jason; this my constant care.815[To attendants.]Take now Creüsa's bridal robe, and steep in these,My potent drugs; and when she dons the clinging folds,Let subtle flames go stealing through her inmost heart.The fire that in this tawny golden circlet lurks820Prometheus gave, who, for his daring heavenly theftIn human aid, endured an ever-living death.'Twas Vulcan showed the fires concealed in sulphur's veins;825While from my brother Phaëthon I gained a flameThat never dies; I have preserved Chimera's breath,And that fierce heat that parched the fiery, brazen bullOf Colchis. These dread fires commingled with the gall830Of dire Medusa have I bidden keep the powerOf lurking evil. Now, O Hecate,Give added force to these my deadly gifts.And strictly guard the hidden seeds of flame.Let them deceive the sight, endure the touch;835But through her veins let burning fever run;In fervent heat consume her very bones,And let her fiercely blazing locks outshineHer marriage torches! Lo, my prayer is heard:Thrice have replied the hounds of Hecate,840And she has shown her baleful, gleaming fires.Now all is ready: hither call my sons,And let them bear these presents to the bride.[Enter sons.]Go, go, my sons, of hapless mother born,845And win with costly gifts and many prayersThe favor of the queen, your father's wife.Begone, but quick your homeward way retrace,That I may fold you in a last embrace.[Exeunt sons toward the palace, Medeain the opposite direction.]Chorus:Where hastes this Bacchic fury now,All passion-swept? what evil deed850Does her unbridled rage prepare?Her features are congealed with rage,And with a queenly bearing, grandBut terrible, she sets herself855Against e'en Creon's royal power.An exile who would deem her now?Her cheeks anon with anger flush,And now a deadly pallor show;Each feeling quick succeeds to each,860While all the passions of her heartHer changing aspect testifies.She wanders restless here and there,As a tigress, of her young bereft,In frantic grief the jungle scours.865Medea knows not how in checkTo hold her wrath nor yet her love;If love and wrath make common cause,What dire results will come?When will this scourge of Corinth leave870Our Grecian shores for Colchis' strand,And free our kingdom from its fear?Now, Phoebus, hasten on thy courseWith no retarding rein.875Let friendly darkness quickly veil the light,And this dread day be buried deep in night.FOOTNOTES:[15]Reading, with period aftermeae.[16]Reading,relicto, and substituting comma for semicolon.ACT VMessenger[comes running in from the direction of the palace]: Lo, all is lost! the kingdom totters from its base!The daughter and the father lie in common dust!880Chorus:By what snare taken?Messenger:By gifts the common snare of kings.Chorus:What harm could lurk in them?Messenger:In equal doubt I stand;And, though my eyes proclaim the dreadful deed is done,I scarce can trust their witness.Chorus:What the mode of death?Messenger:Devouring flames consume the palace at the will885Of her who sent them; there complete destruction reigns,While men do tremble for the very city's doom.Chorus:Let water quench the fire.Messenger:Nay here is added wonder:The copious streams of water feed the deadly flames;And opposition only fans their fiery rageTo whiter heat. The very bulwarks feel their power.890[Medeaenters in time to hear that her magic has been successful.]Nurse[toMedea]: Oh, haste thee, leave this land of Greece, in headlong flight!Medea:Thou bid'st me speed my flight? Nay rather, had I fledI should return for this. Strange bridal rites I see![Absorbed in her own reflections.]Why dost thou falter, O my soul? 'Tis well begun;895But still how small a portion of thy just revengeIs that which gives thee present joy? Not yet has loveBeen banished from thy maddened heart if 'tis enoughThat Jason widowed be. Pursue thy vengeful questTo acts as yet unknown, and steel thyself for these.Away with every thought and fear of God and man;900Too lightly falls the rod that pious hands upbear.Give passion fullest sway; exhaust thy ancient powers;And let the worst thou yet hast done be innocentBeside thy present deeds. Come, let them know how slightWere those thy crimes already done; mere training they905For greater deeds. For what could hands untrained in crimeAccomplish? Or what mattered maiden rage? But now,I am Medea; in the bitter school of woeMy powers have ripened.910[In an ecstacy of madness.]Oh, the bliss of memory!My infant brother slain, his limbs asunder rent,My royal father spoiled of his ancestral realm,And Pelias' guiltless daughters lured to slay their sire!But here I must not rest; no untrained hand I bring915To execute my deeds. But now, by what approachOr by what weapon wilt thou threat the treacherous foe?Deep hidden in my secret heart have I conceivedA purpose which I dare not utter. Oh, I fearThat in my foolish madness I have gone too far—I would that children had been born to him of this920My hated rival. Still, since she hath gained his heart,His children too are hers—That punishment would be most fitting and deserved.Yes, now I see the final deed of crime, and thou,My soul, must face it. You, who once were called my sons,Must pay the penalty of these your father's crimes—925My heart with horror melts, a numbing chill pervadesMy limbs, and all my soul is filled with sinking fear.Now wrath gives place, and, heedless of my husband's sins,The tender mother-instinct quite possesses me.And could I shed my helpless children's blood? Not so,Oh, say not so, my maddened heart! Far from my hand930And thought be that unnameable and hideous deed!What sin have they that shedding of their wretched bloodWould wash away?Their sin—that Jason is their sire,And, deeper guilt, that I have borne them. Let them die;They are not mine. Nay, nay! they are my own, my sons,And with no spot of guilt. Full innocent they are,935'Tis true—my brother, too, was innocent. O soul,Why dost thou hesitate? Why flow these streaming tears,While with contending thoughts my wavering heart is torn?As when conflicting winds contend in stubborn strife,And waves, to stormy waves opposed, the sea invade,940And to their lowest sands the briny waters boil;With such a storm my heart is tossed. Hate conquers love,And love puts impious hate to flight. Oh, yield thee, grief,To love! Then come, my sons, sole comfort of my heart,945Come, cling within your mother's close embrace. UnharmedYour sire may keep you, while your mother holds you too.[Embraces her sons.]But flight and exile drive me forth! And even nowMy children must be torn away with tears and cries.Then let them die to Jason since they're lost to me.950Once more has hate resumed her sway, and passion's fireIs hot within my soul. Now fury, as of yore,Reseeks her own. Lead on, I follow to the end!I would that I had borne twice seven sons, the boast955Of Niobe! But all too barren have I been.Still will my two sufficient be to satisfyMy brother and my sire.[Sees a vision of the furies and her brother's ghost.]But whither hastes that throngOf furies? What their quest? What mean their brandished fires?Whom threats this hellish host with horrid, bloody brands?960I hear the writhing lash resound of serpents huge.Whom seeks Megaera with her deadly torch? Whose shadeComes gibbering there with scattered limbs? It is my brother!Revenge he seeks, and we will grant his quest. Then come,Within my heart plunge all your torches, rend me, burn;965For lo, my bosom open to your fury's stroke.O brother, bid these vengeful goddesses departAnd go in peace down to the lowest shades of hell.And do thou leave me to myself, and let this handThat slew thee with the sword now offer sacrifice970Unto thy shade.[Slays her first son.]What sudden uproar meets my ear?'Tis Corinth's citizens on my destruction bent.Unto the palace roof I'll mount and there completeThis bloody sacrifice.[To her remaining son.]Do thou come hence with me.But thee, poor senseless corse, within mine arms I'll bear.975Now gird thyself, my heart, with strength. Nor must this deedLose all its just renown because in secret done;But to the public eye my hand must be approved.Jason[in the street below shouting to citizens]: Ho, all ye loyal sons, who mourn the death of kings!Come, let us seize the worker of this hideous crime.980Now ply your arms and raze her palace to the ground.Medea[appearing on the housetop with her two sons]: Now, now have I regained my regal state, my sire,My brother! Once again the Colchians hold the spoilOf precious gold! And by the magic of this hourI am a maid once more. O heavenly powers, appeasedAt length! O festal hour! O nuptial day! On, on!985Accomplished is the guilt, but not the recompense.Complete the task while yet thy hands are strong to act!Why dost thou linger still? why dost thou hesitateUpon the threshold of the deed? Thou canst perform it.Now wrath has died within me, and my soul is filledWith shame and deep remorse. Ah me, what have I done,Wretch that I am? Wretch that thou art, well mayst thou mourn,990For thou hast done it!At that thought delirious joyO'ermasters me and fills my heart which fain would grieve.And yet, methinks, the act was almost meaningless,Since Jason saw it not; for naught has been performedIf to his grief be added not the woe of sight.Jason[discovering her]: Lo, there she stands upon the lofty battlements!995Bring torches! fire the house, that she may fall ensnaredBy those devices she herself hath planned.Medea[derisively]:Not so,But rather build a lofty pyre for these thy sons;Their funeral rites prepare. Already for thy brideAnd father have I done the service due the dead;For in their ruined palace have I buried them.One son of thine has met his doom; and this shall die1000Before his father's face.Jason:By all the gods, and by the perils of our flight,And by our marriage bond which I have ne'er betrayed,I pray thee spare the boy, for he is innocent.If aught of sin there be, 'tis mine. Myself I giveTo be the victim. Take my guilty soul for his.1005Medea:'Tis for thy prayers and tears I draw, not sheathe the sword.Go now, and take thee maids for wives, thou faithless one;Abandon and betray the mother of thy sons.Jason:And yet, I pray thee, let one sacrifice atone.Medea:If in the blood of one my passion could be quenched,No vengeance had it sought. Though both my sons I slay,1010The number still is all too small to satisfyMy boundless grief.Jason:Then finish what thou hast begun—I ask no more—and grant at least that no delayProlong my helpless agony.1015Medea:Now hasten not,Relentless passion, but enjoy a slow revenge.This day is in thy hands; its fertile hours employ.Jason:Oh, take my life, thou heartless one.Medea:Thou bid'st me pity—Well! [Slays the second child.]—'Tis done!No more atonement, passion, can I offer thee.Now hither lift thy tearful eyes ungrateful one.1020Dost recognize thy wife? 'Twas thus of old I fled.The heavens themselves provide me with a safe retreat.[A chariot drawn by dragons appears in the air.]Twin serpents bow their necks submissive to the yoke.Now, father, take thy sons; while I, upon my car,With wingéd speed am borne aloft through realms of air.1025[Mounts her car and is borne away.]Jason[calling after her]: Speed on through realms of air that mortals never see:But, witness heaven, where thou art gone no gods can be!HERCULES FURENSHERCULES FURENSDRAMATIS PERSONAEHERCULESSon of Jupiter and Alcmena, but the reputed son of Amphitryon.JunoSister and wife of Jupiter, and queen of heaven.AmphitryonHusband of Alcmena.TheseusKing of Athens and friend of Hercules.LycusThe usurping king of Thebes, who has, prior to the opening of the play, slain king Creon in battle.MegaraWife of Hercules and daughter of Creon.ChorusOf Thebans.The sceneis in the princely palace of Hercules at Thebes, on the day of the return of the hero from the lower world.The jealous wrath of Juno, working through Eurystheus, has imposed twelve mighty and destructive tasks on Hercules, her hated stepson. But these, even to the last and worst, the bringing of Cerberus to the upper world, he has triumphantly accomplished. Abandoning her plan of crushing him by toils like these, she will turn his hand against himself, and so accomplish his destruction. Upon the day of his return from hell, she brings a madness on him, and so precipitates the tragedy which forms the action of the play.ACT IJuno[in soliloquy]: Lo I, the sister of the Thunderer(For, save this name alone, I've nothing more),Have left my lord, so often false to me,Have left, in widowhood, the realms of heaven,And, banished from the sky, have given placeUnto my hated rivals. Now must earth5Be my abode, while they in heaven reign.Behold, the Bear, far in the frozen north,Is set on high to guide the Argive ships;Behold, in southern skies, where days grow longBeneath the warmth of spring, the Bull shines bright,Who once the Tyrian Europa bore.There gleam the wandering Atlantides,10A fearful band for ships and sea alike;And yonder fierce Orion with his swordThe very gods affrights; his stars, as well,The golden Perseus boasts; while Leda's sonsWith shining banners glitter in the sky;And they, Latona's children, for whose birth15The floating land stood firm. And not aloneHave Bacchus and his mother gained the heavens;But, that the infamy may be complete,The skies must needs the Cretan maiden's crownEndure. But these are ancient wrongs I tell:One wild and baneful land alone is fullOf shameless mistresses—the Theban land,20Which all too oft has me a stepdame made.And though Alcmena scale the heights of heaven,And hold my place, victorious over me;And though her son his promised star obtain(Whose hateful getting cost the world a day,Since Phoebus, bidden to hold his shining car25In Ocean hid, with tardy light shone forthFrom eastern seas): still ever in my heartShall hate relentless dwell. Undying wrathMy outraged soul shall kindle; and my grief,All hope of truce denying, endless warsShall fiercely wage. But what avail my wars?30Whatever savage things the hurtful earth,The sea or air produce, terrific shapes,Fierce, pestilential, horrible, and dire,The power of all is broken and subdued.Alcides towers above and thrives on woe;My wrath is his delight, and to his praiseHe turns my deadly hate. While I, too stern,35Impose his dreadful tasks, I do but proveHis origin, and opportunityFor glorious achievement render him.Where Phoebus with his neighboring torch illumesThe east and western shores of Aethiop's land,Alcides' dauntless courage is adored;While all the world considers him a god.And now have I no monsters more to send;40And less his toil to do the tasks I bid,Than mine to set them. Joyfully he hearsMy several commands. But what dire tasksThe tyrant may conceive can harm that youthImpetuous? His very arms, forsooth,Are torn from monsters which he feared—and slew;45With spoils of lion and of hydra armed,He walks abroad. Nor are the lands of earthEnough for him: behold, the doors of DisAre burst, and to the upper world he bringsThe booty taken from the vanquished king.'Tis not enough that he returns alive:The law that binds the shades is set at naught.Myself I saw him, when he had o'ercome50The king of hades and escaped the nightOf that deep underworld, display to JoveThe spoils of Dis. But why does he not lead,Oppressed and overcome, the king himselfWho gained by lot an equal realm with Jove?Why rules he not in conquered Erebus?Why bares he not the Styx? His upward wayFrom deepest hell to earth he has retraced,55And all the sacred mysteries of deathLie open to the world. Not yet content,And proud that he has burst the bars of night,He triumphs over me, and, insolent,He leads through all the cities of the landThat gruesome dog of hell. I saw, myself,The daylight pale at sight of Cerberus,60The sun start in affright. Nay, even IWas struck with terror; and, as I beheldThat triple-headed beast in bondage led,I trembled at the thought that 'twas my will.But all too trivial ills do I lament;My fears must be aroused for heaven itself,Lest he who overcame the lowest depthsShould scale the very skies, and from his sire65His scepter snatch away. Nor to the starsWill he, like Bacchus, by an easy pathAscend; through ruin would he make his way,And wish to rule an empty universe.He is inflamed with pride of tested strength;But he has learned by bearing up the heavens,That by his power the heavens can be subdued.70Upon his head he bore the universe,Nor did his shoulders bend beneath the weightOf that stupendous mass; the vault of heavenUpon his neck was poised, and steadilyHe bore the expanse of sky, the shining stars;And even me, down pressing, he endured.He seeks a place among the immortal gods.Then up, arouse thee to destructive wrath,75Destroy him meditating plans so great.Meet him in single strife; with thine own handsAsunder rend him. Why thy mighty hateDost thou consign to others to appease?Enough of monsters; let Eurystheus rest,All weary with imposing thy commands.Though thou shouldst open wide Sicilia's vaults,And free the Titans who essayed to wrench80The scepter from the hand of mighty Jove;Though the Doric isle, which trembles with affrightWhene'er the heaving giant turns himself,Should ease her weight upon the monster's head;Though in the moon another race of beastsShould be conceived: yet all of these, I knowAlcides conquered and will conquer still.Seek'st thou his match? There is none save himself.85Then set him on to war against himself;Let furies from the lowest depths of hellBe roused and come to aid, their flaming locksAglow with maddening fire, their savage handsThe horrid snaky scourges brandishing.Go now, thou proud one, seek the seats of heaven,And scorn the lot of men. And dost thou think,90O hero brave, that thou hast fled the StyxAnd gloomy shades? Here will I show thee hell;Here will I summon up the goddess direOf Discord, deep in darkness thick confinedFar down below the abode of guilty souls.A cavern huge within a mountain's holdIs her dark prison. Her will I call forth,95And from the deepest realms of Dis bring upWhate'er thou hast escaped: base Crime shall come;Impiety that fiercely stains its handsIn kindred blood; the shape of Error, too,And Fury ever armed against itself.This, this assistance shall my grief employ.Come then, ye ever-faithful slaves of Dis,100Begin your task. Shake high the blazing torch;And let Megaera lead her dreadful bandOf sisters viperous. With deadly handLet her from off the blazing funeral pyreA burning brand snatch up. Now to your task;Thus seek revenge for violated Styx:Distract his heart with madness; let his soul105More fiercely burn than that hot fire which glowsOn Aetna's forge. But first, that HerculesMay be to madness driven, smitten throughWith mighty passion, I must be insane.Why rav'st thou not, O Juno? Me, Oh, me,110Ye sisters, first of sanity deprive,That something worthy of a stepdame's wrathI may prepare. Let all my hate be changedTo favor. Now I pray that he may comeTo earth again, and see his sons unharmed;May he return with all his old-time strength.Now have I found a day when HerculesMay help me with his strength that I deplore.115Now let him equally o'ercome himselfAnd me; and let him, late escaped from death,Desire to die. Now let it profit meThat he is born of Jove. I'll stand by himAnd nicely poise his hand, that so his dartsMay with more deadly aim be hurled. I'll guideThe madman's arms. And so at last I help120Alcides in his wars. The crime complete,Then let his father to the heavens admitThose guilty hands. Now must the attack begin.The day is breaking, and with saffron lightThe rising sun dispels the gloom of night.

Medea:He's gone! And can it be? And shall he thus depart,560

Forgetting me and all my service? Must I drop,

Like some discarded toy, out of his faithless heart?

It shall not be. Up then, and summon all thy strength

And all thy skill! And, this the fruit of former crime,

Count nothing criminal that works thy will. But lo,

We're hedged about; scant room is left for our designs.565

Now must the attack be made where least suspicion wakes

The least resistance. Now Medea, on! and do

And dare thine utmost, yea, beyond thine utmost power!

[To theNurse.]

Do thou, my faithful nurse, the comrade of my grief,

And all the devious wanderings of my checkered course,

Assist me now in these my plans. There is a robe,

The glory of our Colchian realm, the precious gift570

Of Phoebus' self to king Aeëtes as a proof

Of fatherhood; a gleaming circlet, too, all wrought

With threads of gold, the yellow gold bespangled o'er

With gems, a fitting crown to deck a princess' head.

These treasures let Medea's children bear as gifts575

To Jason's bride. But first infuse them with the power

Of magic, and invoke the aid of Hecate;

The woe-producing sacrifices then prepare,

And let the sacred flames through all our courts resound.

Chorus:No force of flame or raging gale,Or whizzing bolt so fearful is,580As when a wife, by her lord betrayed,Burns hot with hate.

Chorus:No force of flame or raging gale,

Or whizzing bolt so fearful is,580

As when a wife, by her lord betrayed,

Burns hot with hate.

Not such a force is Auster's blast,When he marshals forth the wintry storms;Nor Hister's headlong rushing stream,Which, wrecking bridges in its course,585Pours reckless on;

Not such a force is Auster's blast,

When he marshals forth the wintry storms;

Nor Hister's headlong rushing stream,

Which, wrecking bridges in its course,585

Pours reckless on;

Nor yet the Rhone, whose current strongBeats back the sea; nor when the snows,Beneath the lengthening days of springAnd the sun's warm rays, melt down in streamsFrom Haemus' top.590

Nor yet the Rhone, whose current strong

Beats back the sea; nor when the snows,

Beneath the lengthening days of spring

And the sun's warm rays, melt down in streams

From Haemus' top.590

Blind is the rage of passion's fire,Will not be governed, brooks no reins,And scoffs at death; nay, hostile swordsIt gladly courts.

Blind is the rage of passion's fire,

Will not be governed, brooks no reins,

And scoffs at death; nay, hostile swords

It gladly courts.

Spare, O ye gods, be merciful,595That he who tamed the sea may live.But much we fear, for the lord of the deepIs wroth that his realm of the second lotShould be subdued.

Spare, O ye gods, be merciful,595

That he who tamed the sea may live.

But much we fear, for the lord of the deep

Is wroth that his realm of the second lot

Should be subdued.

The thoughtless youth who dared to driveHis father's sacred chariot,Was by those fires, which o'er the heavens600He scattered in his mad career,Himself consumed.

The thoughtless youth who dared to drive

His father's sacred chariot,

Was by those fires, which o'er the heavens600

He scattered in his mad career,

Himself consumed.

The beaten path has never provedThe way of danger. Walk ye thenWhere your forefathers safely trod,And keep great nature's holy laws605Inviolate.

The beaten path has never proved

The way of danger. Walk ye then

Where your forefathers safely trod,

And keep great nature's holy laws605

Inviolate.

Whoever dipped the famous oarsOf that bold bark in the rushing sea;Whoe'er despoiled old PelionOf the thick, dark shade of his sacred groves;Whoever dared the clashing rocks,610And, after countless perils passed,His vessel moored on a barbarous shore,Hoping to fare on his homeward wayThe master of the golden fleece,All by a fearful end appeased615The offended sea.

Whoever dipped the famous oars

Of that bold bark in the rushing sea;

Whoe'er despoiled old Pelion

Of the thick, dark shade of his sacred groves;

Whoever dared the clashing rocks,610

And, after countless perils passed,

His vessel moored on a barbarous shore,

Hoping to fare on his homeward way

The master of the golden fleece,

All by a fearful end appeased615

The offended sea.

First Tiphys, tamer of the deep,Abandoned to an untrained handHis vessel's helm. On a foreign shore,Far from his native land he died;And now within a common tomb,620'Midst unknown ghosts, he lies at rest.In wrathful memory of her kingLost on the sea, did Aulis thenWithin her sluggish harbor holdThe impatient ships.

First Tiphys, tamer of the deep,

Abandoned to an untrained hand

His vessel's helm. On a foreign shore,

Far from his native land he died;

And now within a common tomb,620

'Midst unknown ghosts, he lies at rest.

In wrathful memory of her king

Lost on the sea, did Aulis then

Within her sluggish harbor hold

The impatient ships.

Then he, the tuneful Muse's son,625At whose sweet strains the streams stood still,The winds were silent, and the birds,Their songs forgotten, flocked to him,[12]The whole wood following after—he,Over the Thracian fields was hurled630In scattered fragments; but his headDown Hebrus' grieving stream was borne.The well-remembered Styx he reached,And Tartarus, whence ne'er againWould he return.

Then he, the tuneful Muse's son,625

At whose sweet strains the streams stood still,

The winds were silent, and the birds,

Their songs forgotten, flocked to him,[12]

The whole wood following after—he,

Over the Thracian fields was hurled630

In scattered fragments; but his head

Down Hebrus' grieving stream was borne.

The well-remembered Styx he reached,

And Tartarus, whence ne'er again

Would he return.

The wingéd sons of BoreasAlcides slew, and Neptune's son635Who in a thousand changing formsCould clothe himself. But after peaceOn land and sea had been proclaimed,And after savage Pluto's realmHad been revealed to mortal eyes,Then did Alcides' self, alive,On burning Oeta's top lie down,And give his body to the flames;640For sore distressed was he, consumedBy Deianira's deadly gift,The double blood.

The wingéd sons of Boreas

Alcides slew, and Neptune's son635

Who in a thousand changing forms

Could clothe himself. But after peace

On land and sea had been proclaimed,

And after savage Pluto's realm

Had been revealed to mortal eyes,

Then did Alcides' self, alive,

On burning Oeta's top lie down,

And give his body to the flames;640

For sore distressed was he, consumed

By Deianira's deadly gift,

The double blood.

A savage boar Ancaeus slew;Thou, Meleager, impiouslyThy mother's brother in wrath didst slay,And by that angry mother's hand645Didst die. All these deserved their death.But for what crime did Hylas die,A tender lad whom HerculesLong time but vainly sought? For he,'Mid waters safe was done to death.Go then, and fearlessly the deepPlow with your daring ships; but fear650The peaceful pools.

A savage boar Ancaeus slew;

Thou, Meleager, impiously

Thy mother's brother in wrath didst slay,

And by that angry mother's hand645

Didst die. All these deserved their death.

But for what crime did Hylas die,

A tender lad whom Hercules

Long time but vainly sought? For he,

'Mid waters safe was done to death.

Go then, and fearlessly the deep

Plow with your daring ships; but fear650

The peaceful pools.

Idmon, though well be knew the fates,A serpent slew on Afric sands;And Mopsus, to all others true,False to himself, died far from Thebes.655If he with truth the future sang,Then Nauplius, who strove to wreckThe Argive ships by lying fires,Shall headlong fall into the sea.And for his father's daring crime660Shall Ajax, that Oïleus' son,Make full atonement, perishing'Midst flame and flood.[13]

Idmon, though well be knew the fates,

A serpent slew on Afric sands;

And Mopsus, to all others true,

False to himself, died far from Thebes.655

If he with truth the future sang,

Then Nauplius, who strove to wreck

The Argive ships by lying fires,

Shall headlong fall into the sea.

And for his father's daring crime660

Shall Ajax, that Oïleus' son,

Make full atonement, perishing

'Midst flame and flood.[13]

And thou, Admetus' faithful mate,Shalt[14]for thy husband pay thy life,Redeeming his from death. But he,Who bade the first ship sail in quest665Of the golden spoil, King Pelias,Seethed in a boiling cauldron, swam'Mid those restricted waves. Enough,O gods, have ye avenged the sea:Spare him, we pray, who did but goOn ordered ways.

And thou, Admetus' faithful mate,

Shalt[14]for thy husband pay thy life,

Redeeming his from death. But he,

Who bade the first ship sail in quest665

Of the golden spoil, King Pelias,

Seethed in a boiling cauldron, swam

'Mid those restricted waves. Enough,

O gods, have ye avenged the sea:

Spare him, we pray, who did but go

On ordered ways.

FOOTNOTES:[12]Reading,cui.[13]Reading, with a period afterprofundumand afterOïleus.[14]Reading,impendes.

[12]Reading,cui.

[13]Reading, with a period afterprofundumand afterOïleus.

[14]Reading,impendes.

Nurse[alone]: My spirit trembles, for I feel the near approach670Of some unseen disaster. Swiftly grows her grief,Its own fires kindling; and again her passion's forceHath leaped to life. I oft have seen her, with the fitOf inspiration in her soul, confront the godsAnd force the very heavens to her will. But now,A monstrous deed, of greater moment far than these,675Medea is preparing. For, but now, did sheWith step of frenzy hurry off until she reachedHer stricken home. There, in her chamber, all her storesOf magic wonders are revealed; once more she viewsThe things herself hath held in fear these many years,Unloosing one by one her ministers of ill,Occult, unspeakable, and wrapt in mystery;And, grasping with her hand the sacred altar-horn,680With prayers, she straightly summons all destructive powers,The creatures bred in Libya's sands, and on the peaksOf frigid Taurus, clad in everlasting snows.Obedient to her potent charms, the scaly brood685Of serpents leave their darksome lairs and swarm to her;One savage creature rolls his monstrous length along,And darts his forkéd tongue with its envenomed sting,Death-dealing; at the charming sound he stops amazed,And fold on fold his body writhes in nerveless coils.690"But these are petty ills; unworthy of my hand,"She cries, "are such weak, earth-born weapons. Potent charmsAre bred in heaven. Now, now 'tis time to summon powersTranscending common magic. Down I'll draw from heavenThat serpent huge whose body lies athwart the sky695Like some great ocean stream, in whose constricting foldsThe greater and the lesser Bears are held enthralled,The greater set as guide for Grecian ships, the lessFor Sidon's mariners! Let Ophiuchus looseHis hand and pour forth venom from his captive thrall!And let the Python huge, that dared to rear its head700Against the heavenly twins, be present at my prayer!Let Hydra's writhing heads, which by Alcides' handWere severed, all return to life and give me aid!Thou too be near and leave thy ancient Colchian home,Thou watchful dragon, to whose eyes the first sleep cameIn answer to my incantations."When she thus705Had summoned all the serpent brood, she cast her storeOf baleful herbs together; all the poisons brewedAmid the rocky caves of trackless Eryx; plantsThat flourish on the snowy peaks of Caucasus,Whose crags were spattered with Prometheus' gore; the herbs710Within whose deadly juice the Arab dips his darts,And the quiver-bearing Mede and fleeing Parthian;Those potent juices, too, which, near the shivering pole,The Suabian chieftains gather in Hyrcanian groves.The seasons, too, have paid their tribute to her stores:Whatever earth produces in the nesting time,And when the stiff'ning hand of winter's frost has stripped715The glory from the trees and fettered all the landWith icy bonds; whatever flow'ring plant concealsDestruction in its bloom, or in its twisted rootsDistils the juice of death, she gathers to her use.These pestilential herbs Haemonian Athos gave;720And these on lofty Pindus grew; a bloody knifeClipped off these slender leaves on Macedonia's heights;Still others grew beside the Tigris, whirling onHis flood to meet the sea; the Danube nourished some;These grew on bright gem-starred Hydaspes' tepid stream;725And these the Baetis bore, which gave the land its name,Displacing with its langourous tide, the western sea.These felt the knife when early dawn begins to break;The fruit of these was cut in midnight's gloomy hour;This fatal crop was reaped with sickle magic-edged.730These deadly, potent herbs she takes and sprinkles o'erWith serpentvenom, mixing all; and in the brothShe mingles unclean birds: a wailing screech owl's heart,A ghastly vampire's vitals torn from living flesh.Her magic poisons all she ranges for her use.735The ravening power of hidden fire is held in these,While deep in others lurks the numbing chill of frost.Now magic runes she adds more potent far.But lo!Her voice resounds! and, as with maddened step she comes,She chants her charms, while heaven and earth convulsive rock.

Nurse[alone]: My spirit trembles, for I feel the near approach670

Of some unseen disaster. Swiftly grows her grief,

Its own fires kindling; and again her passion's force

Hath leaped to life. I oft have seen her, with the fit

Of inspiration in her soul, confront the gods

And force the very heavens to her will. But now,

A monstrous deed, of greater moment far than these,675

Medea is preparing. For, but now, did she

With step of frenzy hurry off until she reached

Her stricken home. There, in her chamber, all her stores

Of magic wonders are revealed; once more she views

The things herself hath held in fear these many years,

Unloosing one by one her ministers of ill,

Occult, unspeakable, and wrapt in mystery;

And, grasping with her hand the sacred altar-horn,680

With prayers, she straightly summons all destructive powers,

The creatures bred in Libya's sands, and on the peaks

Of frigid Taurus, clad in everlasting snows.

Obedient to her potent charms, the scaly brood685

Of serpents leave their darksome lairs and swarm to her;

One savage creature rolls his monstrous length along,

And darts his forkéd tongue with its envenomed sting,

Death-dealing; at the charming sound he stops amazed,

And fold on fold his body writhes in nerveless coils.690

"But these are petty ills; unworthy of my hand,"

She cries, "are such weak, earth-born weapons. Potent charms

Are bred in heaven. Now, now 'tis time to summon powers

Transcending common magic. Down I'll draw from heaven

That serpent huge whose body lies athwart the sky695

Like some great ocean stream, in whose constricting folds

The greater and the lesser Bears are held enthralled,

The greater set as guide for Grecian ships, the less

For Sidon's mariners! Let Ophiuchus loose

His hand and pour forth venom from his captive thrall!

And let the Python huge, that dared to rear its head700

Against the heavenly twins, be present at my prayer!

Let Hydra's writhing heads, which by Alcides' hand

Were severed, all return to life and give me aid!

Thou too be near and leave thy ancient Colchian home,

Thou watchful dragon, to whose eyes the first sleep came

In answer to my incantations."

When she thus705

Had summoned all the serpent brood, she cast her store

Of baleful herbs together; all the poisons brewed

Amid the rocky caves of trackless Eryx; plants

That flourish on the snowy peaks of Caucasus,

Whose crags were spattered with Prometheus' gore; the herbs710

Within whose deadly juice the Arab dips his darts,

And the quiver-bearing Mede and fleeing Parthian;

Those potent juices, too, which, near the shivering pole,

The Suabian chieftains gather in Hyrcanian groves.

The seasons, too, have paid their tribute to her stores:

Whatever earth produces in the nesting time,

And when the stiff'ning hand of winter's frost has stripped715

The glory from the trees and fettered all the land

With icy bonds; whatever flow'ring plant conceals

Destruction in its bloom, or in its twisted roots

Distils the juice of death, she gathers to her use.

These pestilential herbs Haemonian Athos gave;720

And these on lofty Pindus grew; a bloody knife

Clipped off these slender leaves on Macedonia's heights;

Still others grew beside the Tigris, whirling on

His flood to meet the sea; the Danube nourished some;

These grew on bright gem-starred Hydaspes' tepid stream;725

And these the Baetis bore, which gave the land its name,

Displacing with its langourous tide, the western sea.

These felt the knife when early dawn begins to break;

The fruit of these was cut in midnight's gloomy hour;

This fatal crop was reaped with sickle magic-edged.730

These deadly, potent herbs she takes and sprinkles o'er

With serpentvenom, mixing all; and in the broth

She mingles unclean birds: a wailing screech owl's heart,

A ghastly vampire's vitals torn from living flesh.

Her magic poisons all she ranges for her use.735

The ravening power of hidden fire is held in these,

While deep in others lurks the numbing chill of frost.

Now magic runes she adds more potent far.

But lo!

Her voice resounds! and, as with maddened step she comes,

She chants her charms, while heaven and earth convulsive rock.

[EnterMedea,chanting her incantations.]

Medea:I supplicate the silent throng, and you, the gods740Of death's sad rites, and groping chaos, and the homeOf gloomy Pluto, and the black abyss of deathGirt by the banks of Tartarus! Ye storied shades,Your torments leave and haste to grace the festivalAt Hymen's call! Let stop the whirling wheel that holdsIxion's limbs and let him tread Corinthian ground;Let Tantalus unfrighted drink Pirene's stream.745On Creon's stock alone let heavier torments fall,And backward o'er the rocks let Sisyphus be hurled.You too, the seed of Danaüs, whose fruitless toilThe ever-empty urns deride, I summon you;This day requires your helping hands. Thou radiant moon,750Night's glorious orb, my supplications hear and comeTo aid; put on thy sternest guise, thou goddess dreadOf triple form! Full oft have I with flowing locks,And feet unsandaled, wandered through thy darkling grovesAnd by thy inspiration summoned forth the rainFrom cloudless skies; the heaving seas have I subdued,755And sent the vanquished waves to ocean's lowest depths.At my command the sun and stars together shine,The heavenly law reversed; while in the Arctic seaThe Bears have plunged. The seasons, too, obey my will:I've made the burning summer blossom as the spring,760And hoary winter autumn's golden harvests bear.The Phasis sends his swirling waves to seek their source,And Ister, flowing to the sea with many mouths,His eager water checks and sluggish rolls along.The billows roar, the mad sea rages, though the winds765All silent lie. At my command primeval grovesHave lost their shade;[15]the sun, abandoning[16]the day,Has stood in middle heaven; while falling HyadesAttest my charms.But now thy sacred hour is come,770O Phoebe. Thine these bonds with bloody hand entwinedWith ninefold serpent coils; these cords I offer thee,Which on his hybrid limbs Typhoeus bore, who shookThe throne of Jove. This vessel holds the dying bloodOf Nessus, faithless porter of Alcides' bride.775Here are the ashes of the pyre on Oeta's topWhich drank the poisoned blood of dying Hercules;And here the fatal billet that Althaea burnedIn vengeance on her son. These plumes the Harpies left780Within their caverned lair when Zetes drove them forth;And these the feathers of that vile Stymphalian birdWhich arrows, dipped in Lerna's deadly poison, pierced.But lo! mine altar fires resound!While in the tripod's answering voice785Behold the present deity!I see the car of Trivia,Not full and clear as when she drivesThe livelong night to meet the dawn;But with a baleful, lurid glare,As, harried by Thessalian cries,790She holds a more restricted course.Send such uncanny light abroad!Fill mortals with a dread unknown;And let our Corinth's priceless bronzeResound, Dictynna, for thy aid!795To thee a solemn sacrificeOn bloody altar do we pay!To thee, snatched from the mournful tomb,The blazing torch nocturnal burns;On thee I call with tossing head,800And many a frantic gesture make;Corpselike upon the bier I lie,My hair with priestly fillet bound;Before thy awful shrine is wavedThe branch in Stygian waters dipped.And, calling on thy name, with gleaming shoulders bared,805Like Bacchus' mad adorers, will I lash my armsWith sacrificial knife. Now let my life-blood flow!And let my hands be used to draw the deadly sword,And learn to shed belovéd blood![She cuts her arm and lets the blood flow upon the altar.]Behold, self-stricken have I poured the sacrifice!810But if too oft upon thy name I call,I pray forgive this importunity!The cause, O Hecate, of all my prayersIs ever Jason; this my constant care.815[To attendants.]Take now Creüsa's bridal robe, and steep in these,My potent drugs; and when she dons the clinging folds,Let subtle flames go stealing through her inmost heart.The fire that in this tawny golden circlet lurks820Prometheus gave, who, for his daring heavenly theftIn human aid, endured an ever-living death.'Twas Vulcan showed the fires concealed in sulphur's veins;825While from my brother Phaëthon I gained a flameThat never dies; I have preserved Chimera's breath,And that fierce heat that parched the fiery, brazen bullOf Colchis. These dread fires commingled with the gall830Of dire Medusa have I bidden keep the powerOf lurking evil. Now, O Hecate,Give added force to these my deadly gifts.And strictly guard the hidden seeds of flame.Let them deceive the sight, endure the touch;835But through her veins let burning fever run;In fervent heat consume her very bones,And let her fiercely blazing locks outshineHer marriage torches! Lo, my prayer is heard:Thrice have replied the hounds of Hecate,840And she has shown her baleful, gleaming fires.Now all is ready: hither call my sons,And let them bear these presents to the bride.[Enter sons.]Go, go, my sons, of hapless mother born,845And win with costly gifts and many prayersThe favor of the queen, your father's wife.Begone, but quick your homeward way retrace,That I may fold you in a last embrace.

Medea:I supplicate the silent throng, and you, the gods740

Of death's sad rites, and groping chaos, and the home

Of gloomy Pluto, and the black abyss of death

Girt by the banks of Tartarus! Ye storied shades,

Your torments leave and haste to grace the festival

At Hymen's call! Let stop the whirling wheel that holds

Ixion's limbs and let him tread Corinthian ground;

Let Tantalus unfrighted drink Pirene's stream.745

On Creon's stock alone let heavier torments fall,

And backward o'er the rocks let Sisyphus be hurled.

You too, the seed of Danaüs, whose fruitless toil

The ever-empty urns deride, I summon you;

This day requires your helping hands. Thou radiant moon,750

Night's glorious orb, my supplications hear and come

To aid; put on thy sternest guise, thou goddess dread

Of triple form! Full oft have I with flowing locks,

And feet unsandaled, wandered through thy darkling groves

And by thy inspiration summoned forth the rain

From cloudless skies; the heaving seas have I subdued,755

And sent the vanquished waves to ocean's lowest depths.

At my command the sun and stars together shine,

The heavenly law reversed; while in the Arctic sea

The Bears have plunged. The seasons, too, obey my will:

I've made the burning summer blossom as the spring,760

And hoary winter autumn's golden harvests bear.

The Phasis sends his swirling waves to seek their source,

And Ister, flowing to the sea with many mouths,

His eager water checks and sluggish rolls along.

The billows roar, the mad sea rages, though the winds765

All silent lie. At my command primeval groves

Have lost their shade;[15]the sun, abandoning[16]the day,

Has stood in middle heaven; while falling Hyades

Attest my charms.

But now thy sacred hour is come,770

O Phoebe. Thine these bonds with bloody hand entwined

With ninefold serpent coils; these cords I offer thee,

Which on his hybrid limbs Typhoeus bore, who shook

The throne of Jove. This vessel holds the dying blood

Of Nessus, faithless porter of Alcides' bride.775

Here are the ashes of the pyre on Oeta's top

Which drank the poisoned blood of dying Hercules;

And here the fatal billet that Althaea burned

In vengeance on her son. These plumes the Harpies left780

Within their caverned lair when Zetes drove them forth;

And these the feathers of that vile Stymphalian bird

Which arrows, dipped in Lerna's deadly poison, pierced.

But lo! mine altar fires resound!

While in the tripod's answering voice785

Behold the present deity!

I see the car of Trivia,

Not full and clear as when she drives

The livelong night to meet the dawn;

But with a baleful, lurid glare,

As, harried by Thessalian cries,790

She holds a more restricted course.

Send such uncanny light abroad!

Fill mortals with a dread unknown;

And let our Corinth's priceless bronze

Resound, Dictynna, for thy aid!795

To thee a solemn sacrifice

On bloody altar do we pay!

To thee, snatched from the mournful tomb,

The blazing torch nocturnal burns;

On thee I call with tossing head,800

And many a frantic gesture make;

Corpselike upon the bier I lie,

My hair with priestly fillet bound;

Before thy awful shrine is waved

The branch in Stygian waters dipped.

And, calling on thy name, with gleaming shoulders bared,805

Like Bacchus' mad adorers, will I lash my arms

With sacrificial knife. Now let my life-blood flow!

And let my hands be used to draw the deadly sword,

And learn to shed belovéd blood!

[She cuts her arm and lets the blood flow upon the altar.]

Behold, self-stricken have I poured the sacrifice!810

But if too oft upon thy name I call,

I pray forgive this importunity!

The cause, O Hecate, of all my prayers

Is ever Jason; this my constant care.815

[To attendants.]

Take now Creüsa's bridal robe, and steep in these,

My potent drugs; and when she dons the clinging folds,

Let subtle flames go stealing through her inmost heart.

The fire that in this tawny golden circlet lurks820

Prometheus gave, who, for his daring heavenly theft

In human aid, endured an ever-living death.

'Twas Vulcan showed the fires concealed in sulphur's veins;825

While from my brother Phaëthon I gained a flame

That never dies; I have preserved Chimera's breath,

And that fierce heat that parched the fiery, brazen bull

Of Colchis. These dread fires commingled with the gall830

Of dire Medusa have I bidden keep the power

Of lurking evil. Now, O Hecate,

Give added force to these my deadly gifts.

And strictly guard the hidden seeds of flame.

Let them deceive the sight, endure the touch;835

But through her veins let burning fever run;

In fervent heat consume her very bones,

And let her fiercely blazing locks outshine

Her marriage torches! Lo, my prayer is heard:

Thrice have replied the hounds of Hecate,840

And she has shown her baleful, gleaming fires.

Now all is ready: hither call my sons,

And let them bear these presents to the bride.

[Enter sons.]

Go, go, my sons, of hapless mother born,845

And win with costly gifts and many prayers

The favor of the queen, your father's wife.

Begone, but quick your homeward way retrace,

That I may fold you in a last embrace.

[Exeunt sons toward the palace, Medeain the opposite direction.]

Chorus:Where hastes this Bacchic fury now,All passion-swept? what evil deed850Does her unbridled rage prepare?Her features are congealed with rage,And with a queenly bearing, grandBut terrible, she sets herself855Against e'en Creon's royal power.An exile who would deem her now?Her cheeks anon with anger flush,And now a deadly pallor show;Each feeling quick succeeds to each,860While all the passions of her heartHer changing aspect testifies.She wanders restless here and there,As a tigress, of her young bereft,In frantic grief the jungle scours.865Medea knows not how in checkTo hold her wrath nor yet her love;If love and wrath make common cause,What dire results will come?When will this scourge of Corinth leave870Our Grecian shores for Colchis' strand,And free our kingdom from its fear?Now, Phoebus, hasten on thy courseWith no retarding rein.875Let friendly darkness quickly veil the light,And this dread day be buried deep in night.

Chorus:Where hastes this Bacchic fury now,

All passion-swept? what evil deed850

Does her unbridled rage prepare?

Her features are congealed with rage,

And with a queenly bearing, grand

But terrible, she sets herself855

Against e'en Creon's royal power.

An exile who would deem her now?

Her cheeks anon with anger flush,

And now a deadly pallor show;

Each feeling quick succeeds to each,860

While all the passions of her heart

Her changing aspect testifies.

She wanders restless here and there,

As a tigress, of her young bereft,

In frantic grief the jungle scours.865

Medea knows not how in check

To hold her wrath nor yet her love;

If love and wrath make common cause,

What dire results will come?

When will this scourge of Corinth leave870

Our Grecian shores for Colchis' strand,

And free our kingdom from its fear?

Now, Phoebus, hasten on thy course

With no retarding rein.875

Let friendly darkness quickly veil the light,

And this dread day be buried deep in night.

FOOTNOTES:[15]Reading, with period aftermeae.[16]Reading,relicto, and substituting comma for semicolon.

[15]Reading, with period aftermeae.

[16]Reading,relicto, and substituting comma for semicolon.

Messenger[comes running in from the direction of the palace]: Lo, all is lost! the kingdom totters from its base!The daughter and the father lie in common dust!880Chorus:By what snare taken?Messenger:By gifts the common snare of kings.Chorus:What harm could lurk in them?Messenger:In equal doubt I stand;And, though my eyes proclaim the dreadful deed is done,I scarce can trust their witness.Chorus:What the mode of death?Messenger:Devouring flames consume the palace at the will885Of her who sent them; there complete destruction reigns,While men do tremble for the very city's doom.Chorus:Let water quench the fire.Messenger:Nay here is added wonder:The copious streams of water feed the deadly flames;And opposition only fans their fiery rageTo whiter heat. The very bulwarks feel their power.890

Messenger[comes running in from the direction of the palace]: Lo, all is lost! the kingdom totters from its base!The daughter and the father lie in common dust!880

Messenger[comes running in from the direction of the palace]: Lo, all is lost! the kingdom totters from its base!

The daughter and the father lie in common dust!880

Chorus:By what snare taken?

Messenger:By gifts the common snare of kings.

Chorus:What harm could lurk in them?

Messenger:In equal doubt I stand;And, though my eyes proclaim the dreadful deed is done,I scarce can trust their witness.

Messenger:In equal doubt I stand;

And, though my eyes proclaim the dreadful deed is done,

I scarce can trust their witness.

Chorus:What the mode of death?

Messenger:Devouring flames consume the palace at the will885Of her who sent them; there complete destruction reigns,While men do tremble for the very city's doom.

Messenger:Devouring flames consume the palace at the will885

Of her who sent them; there complete destruction reigns,

While men do tremble for the very city's doom.

Chorus:Let water quench the fire.

Messenger:Nay here is added wonder:The copious streams of water feed the deadly flames;And opposition only fans their fiery rageTo whiter heat. The very bulwarks feel their power.890

Messenger:Nay here is added wonder:

The copious streams of water feed the deadly flames;

And opposition only fans their fiery rage

To whiter heat. The very bulwarks feel their power.890

[Medeaenters in time to hear that her magic has been successful.]

Nurse[toMedea]: Oh, haste thee, leave this land of Greece, in headlong flight!Medea:Thou bid'st me speed my flight? Nay rather, had I fledI should return for this. Strange bridal rites I see![Absorbed in her own reflections.]Why dost thou falter, O my soul? 'Tis well begun;895But still how small a portion of thy just revengeIs that which gives thee present joy? Not yet has loveBeen banished from thy maddened heart if 'tis enoughThat Jason widowed be. Pursue thy vengeful questTo acts as yet unknown, and steel thyself for these.Away with every thought and fear of God and man;900Too lightly falls the rod that pious hands upbear.Give passion fullest sway; exhaust thy ancient powers;And let the worst thou yet hast done be innocentBeside thy present deeds. Come, let them know how slightWere those thy crimes already done; mere training they905For greater deeds. For what could hands untrained in crimeAccomplish? Or what mattered maiden rage? But now,I am Medea; in the bitter school of woeMy powers have ripened.910[In an ecstacy of madness.]Oh, the bliss of memory!My infant brother slain, his limbs asunder rent,My royal father spoiled of his ancestral realm,And Pelias' guiltless daughters lured to slay their sire!But here I must not rest; no untrained hand I bring915To execute my deeds. But now, by what approachOr by what weapon wilt thou threat the treacherous foe?Deep hidden in my secret heart have I conceivedA purpose which I dare not utter. Oh, I fearThat in my foolish madness I have gone too far—I would that children had been born to him of this920My hated rival. Still, since she hath gained his heart,His children too are hers—That punishment would be most fitting and deserved.Yes, now I see the final deed of crime, and thou,My soul, must face it. You, who once were called my sons,Must pay the penalty of these your father's crimes—925My heart with horror melts, a numbing chill pervadesMy limbs, and all my soul is filled with sinking fear.Now wrath gives place, and, heedless of my husband's sins,The tender mother-instinct quite possesses me.And could I shed my helpless children's blood? Not so,Oh, say not so, my maddened heart! Far from my hand930And thought be that unnameable and hideous deed!What sin have they that shedding of their wretched bloodWould wash away?Their sin—that Jason is their sire,And, deeper guilt, that I have borne them. Let them die;They are not mine. Nay, nay! they are my own, my sons,And with no spot of guilt. Full innocent they are,935'Tis true—my brother, too, was innocent. O soul,Why dost thou hesitate? Why flow these streaming tears,While with contending thoughts my wavering heart is torn?As when conflicting winds contend in stubborn strife,And waves, to stormy waves opposed, the sea invade,940And to their lowest sands the briny waters boil;With such a storm my heart is tossed. Hate conquers love,And love puts impious hate to flight. Oh, yield thee, grief,To love! Then come, my sons, sole comfort of my heart,945Come, cling within your mother's close embrace. UnharmedYour sire may keep you, while your mother holds you too.[Embraces her sons.]But flight and exile drive me forth! And even nowMy children must be torn away with tears and cries.Then let them die to Jason since they're lost to me.950Once more has hate resumed her sway, and passion's fireIs hot within my soul. Now fury, as of yore,Reseeks her own. Lead on, I follow to the end!I would that I had borne twice seven sons, the boast955Of Niobe! But all too barren have I been.Still will my two sufficient be to satisfyMy brother and my sire.[Sees a vision of the furies and her brother's ghost.]But whither hastes that throngOf furies? What their quest? What mean their brandished fires?Whom threats this hellish host with horrid, bloody brands?960I hear the writhing lash resound of serpents huge.Whom seeks Megaera with her deadly torch? Whose shadeComes gibbering there with scattered limbs? It is my brother!Revenge he seeks, and we will grant his quest. Then come,Within my heart plunge all your torches, rend me, burn;965For lo, my bosom open to your fury's stroke.O brother, bid these vengeful goddesses departAnd go in peace down to the lowest shades of hell.And do thou leave me to myself, and let this handThat slew thee with the sword now offer sacrifice970Unto thy shade.[Slays her first son.]What sudden uproar meets my ear?'Tis Corinth's citizens on my destruction bent.Unto the palace roof I'll mount and there completeThis bloody sacrifice.[To her remaining son.]Do thou come hence with me.But thee, poor senseless corse, within mine arms I'll bear.975Now gird thyself, my heart, with strength. Nor must this deedLose all its just renown because in secret done;But to the public eye my hand must be approved.Jason[in the street below shouting to citizens]: Ho, all ye loyal sons, who mourn the death of kings!Come, let us seize the worker of this hideous crime.980Now ply your arms and raze her palace to the ground.Medea[appearing on the housetop with her two sons]: Now, now have I regained my regal state, my sire,My brother! Once again the Colchians hold the spoilOf precious gold! And by the magic of this hourI am a maid once more. O heavenly powers, appeasedAt length! O festal hour! O nuptial day! On, on!985Accomplished is the guilt, but not the recompense.Complete the task while yet thy hands are strong to act!Why dost thou linger still? why dost thou hesitateUpon the threshold of the deed? Thou canst perform it.Now wrath has died within me, and my soul is filledWith shame and deep remorse. Ah me, what have I done,Wretch that I am? Wretch that thou art, well mayst thou mourn,990For thou hast done it!At that thought delirious joyO'ermasters me and fills my heart which fain would grieve.And yet, methinks, the act was almost meaningless,Since Jason saw it not; for naught has been performedIf to his grief be added not the woe of sight.Jason[discovering her]: Lo, there she stands upon the lofty battlements!995Bring torches! fire the house, that she may fall ensnaredBy those devices she herself hath planned.Medea[derisively]:Not so,But rather build a lofty pyre for these thy sons;Their funeral rites prepare. Already for thy brideAnd father have I done the service due the dead;For in their ruined palace have I buried them.One son of thine has met his doom; and this shall die1000Before his father's face.Jason:By all the gods, and by the perils of our flight,And by our marriage bond which I have ne'er betrayed,I pray thee spare the boy, for he is innocent.If aught of sin there be, 'tis mine. Myself I giveTo be the victim. Take my guilty soul for his.1005Medea:'Tis for thy prayers and tears I draw, not sheathe the sword.Go now, and take thee maids for wives, thou faithless one;Abandon and betray the mother of thy sons.Jason:And yet, I pray thee, let one sacrifice atone.Medea:If in the blood of one my passion could be quenched,No vengeance had it sought. Though both my sons I slay,1010The number still is all too small to satisfyMy boundless grief.Jason:Then finish what thou hast begun—I ask no more—and grant at least that no delayProlong my helpless agony.1015Medea:Now hasten not,Relentless passion, but enjoy a slow revenge.This day is in thy hands; its fertile hours employ.Jason:Oh, take my life, thou heartless one.Medea:Thou bid'st me pity—Well! [Slays the second child.]—'Tis done!No more atonement, passion, can I offer thee.Now hither lift thy tearful eyes ungrateful one.1020Dost recognize thy wife? 'Twas thus of old I fled.The heavens themselves provide me with a safe retreat.[A chariot drawn by dragons appears in the air.]Twin serpents bow their necks submissive to the yoke.Now, father, take thy sons; while I, upon my car,With wingéd speed am borne aloft through realms of air.1025

Nurse[toMedea]: Oh, haste thee, leave this land of Greece, in headlong flight!

Medea:Thou bid'st me speed my flight? Nay rather, had I fledI should return for this. Strange bridal rites I see![Absorbed in her own reflections.]Why dost thou falter, O my soul? 'Tis well begun;895But still how small a portion of thy just revengeIs that which gives thee present joy? Not yet has loveBeen banished from thy maddened heart if 'tis enoughThat Jason widowed be. Pursue thy vengeful questTo acts as yet unknown, and steel thyself for these.Away with every thought and fear of God and man;900Too lightly falls the rod that pious hands upbear.Give passion fullest sway; exhaust thy ancient powers;And let the worst thou yet hast done be innocentBeside thy present deeds. Come, let them know how slightWere those thy crimes already done; mere training they905For greater deeds. For what could hands untrained in crimeAccomplish? Or what mattered maiden rage? But now,I am Medea; in the bitter school of woeMy powers have ripened.910[In an ecstacy of madness.]Oh, the bliss of memory!My infant brother slain, his limbs asunder rent,My royal father spoiled of his ancestral realm,And Pelias' guiltless daughters lured to slay their sire!But here I must not rest; no untrained hand I bring915To execute my deeds. But now, by what approachOr by what weapon wilt thou threat the treacherous foe?Deep hidden in my secret heart have I conceivedA purpose which I dare not utter. Oh, I fearThat in my foolish madness I have gone too far—I would that children had been born to him of this920My hated rival. Still, since she hath gained his heart,His children too are hers—That punishment would be most fitting and deserved.Yes, now I see the final deed of crime, and thou,My soul, must face it. You, who once were called my sons,Must pay the penalty of these your father's crimes—925My heart with horror melts, a numbing chill pervadesMy limbs, and all my soul is filled with sinking fear.Now wrath gives place, and, heedless of my husband's sins,The tender mother-instinct quite possesses me.And could I shed my helpless children's blood? Not so,Oh, say not so, my maddened heart! Far from my hand930And thought be that unnameable and hideous deed!What sin have they that shedding of their wretched bloodWould wash away?Their sin—that Jason is their sire,And, deeper guilt, that I have borne them. Let them die;They are not mine. Nay, nay! they are my own, my sons,And with no spot of guilt. Full innocent they are,935'Tis true—my brother, too, was innocent. O soul,Why dost thou hesitate? Why flow these streaming tears,While with contending thoughts my wavering heart is torn?As when conflicting winds contend in stubborn strife,And waves, to stormy waves opposed, the sea invade,940And to their lowest sands the briny waters boil;With such a storm my heart is tossed. Hate conquers love,And love puts impious hate to flight. Oh, yield thee, grief,To love! Then come, my sons, sole comfort of my heart,945Come, cling within your mother's close embrace. UnharmedYour sire may keep you, while your mother holds you too.[Embraces her sons.]But flight and exile drive me forth! And even nowMy children must be torn away with tears and cries.Then let them die to Jason since they're lost to me.950Once more has hate resumed her sway, and passion's fireIs hot within my soul. Now fury, as of yore,Reseeks her own. Lead on, I follow to the end!I would that I had borne twice seven sons, the boast955Of Niobe! But all too barren have I been.Still will my two sufficient be to satisfyMy brother and my sire.[Sees a vision of the furies and her brother's ghost.]But whither hastes that throngOf furies? What their quest? What mean their brandished fires?Whom threats this hellish host with horrid, bloody brands?960I hear the writhing lash resound of serpents huge.Whom seeks Megaera with her deadly torch? Whose shadeComes gibbering there with scattered limbs? It is my brother!Revenge he seeks, and we will grant his quest. Then come,Within my heart plunge all your torches, rend me, burn;965For lo, my bosom open to your fury's stroke.O brother, bid these vengeful goddesses departAnd go in peace down to the lowest shades of hell.And do thou leave me to myself, and let this handThat slew thee with the sword now offer sacrifice970Unto thy shade.[Slays her first son.]What sudden uproar meets my ear?'Tis Corinth's citizens on my destruction bent.Unto the palace roof I'll mount and there completeThis bloody sacrifice.[To her remaining son.]Do thou come hence with me.But thee, poor senseless corse, within mine arms I'll bear.975Now gird thyself, my heart, with strength. Nor must this deedLose all its just renown because in secret done;But to the public eye my hand must be approved.

Medea:Thou bid'st me speed my flight? Nay rather, had I fled

I should return for this. Strange bridal rites I see!

[Absorbed in her own reflections.]

Why dost thou falter, O my soul? 'Tis well begun;895

But still how small a portion of thy just revenge

Is that which gives thee present joy? Not yet has love

Been banished from thy maddened heart if 'tis enough

That Jason widowed be. Pursue thy vengeful quest

To acts as yet unknown, and steel thyself for these.

Away with every thought and fear of God and man;900

Too lightly falls the rod that pious hands upbear.

Give passion fullest sway; exhaust thy ancient powers;

And let the worst thou yet hast done be innocent

Beside thy present deeds. Come, let them know how slight

Were those thy crimes already done; mere training they905

For greater deeds. For what could hands untrained in crime

Accomplish? Or what mattered maiden rage? But now,

I am Medea; in the bitter school of woe

My powers have ripened.910

[In an ecstacy of madness.]

Oh, the bliss of memory!

My infant brother slain, his limbs asunder rent,

My royal father spoiled of his ancestral realm,

And Pelias' guiltless daughters lured to slay their sire!

But here I must not rest; no untrained hand I bring915

To execute my deeds. But now, by what approach

Or by what weapon wilt thou threat the treacherous foe?

Deep hidden in my secret heart have I conceived

A purpose which I dare not utter. Oh, I fear

That in my foolish madness I have gone too far—

I would that children had been born to him of this920

My hated rival. Still, since she hath gained his heart,

His children too are hers—

That punishment would be most fitting and deserved.

Yes, now I see the final deed of crime, and thou,

My soul, must face it. You, who once were called my sons,

Must pay the penalty of these your father's crimes—925

My heart with horror melts, a numbing chill pervades

My limbs, and all my soul is filled with sinking fear.

Now wrath gives place, and, heedless of my husband's sins,

The tender mother-instinct quite possesses me.

And could I shed my helpless children's blood? Not so,

Oh, say not so, my maddened heart! Far from my hand930

And thought be that unnameable and hideous deed!

What sin have they that shedding of their wretched blood

Would wash away?

Their sin—that Jason is their sire,

And, deeper guilt, that I have borne them. Let them die;

They are not mine. Nay, nay! they are my own, my sons,

And with no spot of guilt. Full innocent they are,935

'Tis true—my brother, too, was innocent. O soul,

Why dost thou hesitate? Why flow these streaming tears,

While with contending thoughts my wavering heart is torn?

As when conflicting winds contend in stubborn strife,

And waves, to stormy waves opposed, the sea invade,940

And to their lowest sands the briny waters boil;

With such a storm my heart is tossed. Hate conquers love,

And love puts impious hate to flight. Oh, yield thee, grief,

To love! Then come, my sons, sole comfort of my heart,945

Come, cling within your mother's close embrace. Unharmed

Your sire may keep you, while your mother holds you too.

[Embraces her sons.]

But flight and exile drive me forth! And even now

My children must be torn away with tears and cries.

Then let them die to Jason since they're lost to me.950

Once more has hate resumed her sway, and passion's fire

Is hot within my soul. Now fury, as of yore,

Reseeks her own. Lead on, I follow to the end!

I would that I had borne twice seven sons, the boast955

Of Niobe! But all too barren have I been.

Still will my two sufficient be to satisfy

My brother and my sire.

[Sees a vision of the furies and her brother's ghost.]

But whither hastes that throng

Of furies? What their quest? What mean their brandished fires?

Whom threats this hellish host with horrid, bloody brands?960

I hear the writhing lash resound of serpents huge.

Whom seeks Megaera with her deadly torch? Whose shade

Comes gibbering there with scattered limbs? It is my brother!

Revenge he seeks, and we will grant his quest. Then come,

Within my heart plunge all your torches, rend me, burn;965

For lo, my bosom open to your fury's stroke.

O brother, bid these vengeful goddesses depart

And go in peace down to the lowest shades of hell.

And do thou leave me to myself, and let this hand

That slew thee with the sword now offer sacrifice970

Unto thy shade.

[Slays her first son.]

What sudden uproar meets my ear?

'Tis Corinth's citizens on my destruction bent.

Unto the palace roof I'll mount and there complete

This bloody sacrifice.

[To her remaining son.]

Do thou come hence with me.

But thee, poor senseless corse, within mine arms I'll bear.975

Now gird thyself, my heart, with strength. Nor must this deed

Lose all its just renown because in secret done;

But to the public eye my hand must be approved.

Jason[in the street below shouting to citizens]: Ho, all ye loyal sons, who mourn the death of kings!Come, let us seize the worker of this hideous crime.980Now ply your arms and raze her palace to the ground.

Jason[in the street below shouting to citizens]: Ho, all ye loyal sons, who mourn the death of kings!

Come, let us seize the worker of this hideous crime.980

Now ply your arms and raze her palace to the ground.

Medea[appearing on the housetop with her two sons]: Now, now have I regained my regal state, my sire,My brother! Once again the Colchians hold the spoilOf precious gold! And by the magic of this hourI am a maid once more. O heavenly powers, appeasedAt length! O festal hour! O nuptial day! On, on!985Accomplished is the guilt, but not the recompense.Complete the task while yet thy hands are strong to act!Why dost thou linger still? why dost thou hesitateUpon the threshold of the deed? Thou canst perform it.Now wrath has died within me, and my soul is filledWith shame and deep remorse. Ah me, what have I done,Wretch that I am? Wretch that thou art, well mayst thou mourn,990For thou hast done it!At that thought delirious joyO'ermasters me and fills my heart which fain would grieve.And yet, methinks, the act was almost meaningless,Since Jason saw it not; for naught has been performedIf to his grief be added not the woe of sight.

Medea[appearing on the housetop with her two sons]: Now, now have I regained my regal state, my sire,

My brother! Once again the Colchians hold the spoil

Of precious gold! And by the magic of this hour

I am a maid once more. O heavenly powers, appeased

At length! O festal hour! O nuptial day! On, on!985

Accomplished is the guilt, but not the recompense.

Complete the task while yet thy hands are strong to act!

Why dost thou linger still? why dost thou hesitate

Upon the threshold of the deed? Thou canst perform it.

Now wrath has died within me, and my soul is filled

With shame and deep remorse. Ah me, what have I done,

Wretch that I am? Wretch that thou art, well mayst thou mourn,990

For thou hast done it!

At that thought delirious joy

O'ermasters me and fills my heart which fain would grieve.

And yet, methinks, the act was almost meaningless,

Since Jason saw it not; for naught has been performed

If to his grief be added not the woe of sight.

Jason[discovering her]: Lo, there she stands upon the lofty battlements!995Bring torches! fire the house, that she may fall ensnaredBy those devices she herself hath planned.

Jason[discovering her]: Lo, there she stands upon the lofty battlements!995

Bring torches! fire the house, that she may fall ensnared

By those devices she herself hath planned.

Medea[derisively]:Not so,But rather build a lofty pyre for these thy sons;Their funeral rites prepare. Already for thy brideAnd father have I done the service due the dead;For in their ruined palace have I buried them.One son of thine has met his doom; and this shall die1000Before his father's face.

Medea[derisively]:Not so,

But rather build a lofty pyre for these thy sons;

Their funeral rites prepare. Already for thy bride

And father have I done the service due the dead;

For in their ruined palace have I buried them.

One son of thine has met his doom; and this shall die1000

Before his father's face.

Jason:By all the gods, and by the perils of our flight,And by our marriage bond which I have ne'er betrayed,I pray thee spare the boy, for he is innocent.If aught of sin there be, 'tis mine. Myself I giveTo be the victim. Take my guilty soul for his.1005

Jason:By all the gods, and by the perils of our flight,

And by our marriage bond which I have ne'er betrayed,

I pray thee spare the boy, for he is innocent.

If aught of sin there be, 'tis mine. Myself I give

To be the victim. Take my guilty soul for his.1005

Medea:'Tis for thy prayers and tears I draw, not sheathe the sword.Go now, and take thee maids for wives, thou faithless one;Abandon and betray the mother of thy sons.

Medea:'Tis for thy prayers and tears I draw, not sheathe the sword.

Go now, and take thee maids for wives, thou faithless one;

Abandon and betray the mother of thy sons.

Jason:And yet, I pray thee, let one sacrifice atone.

Medea:If in the blood of one my passion could be quenched,No vengeance had it sought. Though both my sons I slay,1010The number still is all too small to satisfyMy boundless grief.

Medea:If in the blood of one my passion could be quenched,

No vengeance had it sought. Though both my sons I slay,1010

The number still is all too small to satisfy

My boundless grief.

Jason:Then finish what thou hast begun—I ask no more—and grant at least that no delayProlong my helpless agony.1015

Jason:Then finish what thou hast begun—

I ask no more—and grant at least that no delay

Prolong my helpless agony.1015

Medea:Now hasten not,Relentless passion, but enjoy a slow revenge.This day is in thy hands; its fertile hours employ.

Medea:Now hasten not,

Relentless passion, but enjoy a slow revenge.

This day is in thy hands; its fertile hours employ.

Jason:Oh, take my life, thou heartless one.

Medea:Thou bid'st me pity—Well! [Slays the second child.]—'Tis done!No more atonement, passion, can I offer thee.Now hither lift thy tearful eyes ungrateful one.1020Dost recognize thy wife? 'Twas thus of old I fled.The heavens themselves provide me with a safe retreat.[A chariot drawn by dragons appears in the air.]Twin serpents bow their necks submissive to the yoke.Now, father, take thy sons; while I, upon my car,With wingéd speed am borne aloft through realms of air.1025

Medea:Thou bid'st me pity—

Well! [Slays the second child.]—'Tis done!

No more atonement, passion, can I offer thee.

Now hither lift thy tearful eyes ungrateful one.1020

Dost recognize thy wife? 'Twas thus of old I fled.

The heavens themselves provide me with a safe retreat.

[A chariot drawn by dragons appears in the air.]

Twin serpents bow their necks submissive to the yoke.

Now, father, take thy sons; while I, upon my car,

With wingéd speed am borne aloft through realms of air.1025

[Mounts her car and is borne away.]

Jason[calling after her]: Speed on through realms of air that mortals never see:But, witness heaven, where thou art gone no gods can be!

Jason[calling after her]: Speed on through realms of air that mortals never see:

But, witness heaven, where thou art gone no gods can be!

DRAMATIS PERSONAE

The sceneis in the princely palace of Hercules at Thebes, on the day of the return of the hero from the lower world.

The jealous wrath of Juno, working through Eurystheus, has imposed twelve mighty and destructive tasks on Hercules, her hated stepson. But these, even to the last and worst, the bringing of Cerberus to the upper world, he has triumphantly accomplished. Abandoning her plan of crushing him by toils like these, she will turn his hand against himself, and so accomplish his destruction. Upon the day of his return from hell, she brings a madness on him, and so precipitates the tragedy which forms the action of the play.

Juno[in soliloquy]: Lo I, the sister of the Thunderer(For, save this name alone, I've nothing more),Have left my lord, so often false to me,Have left, in widowhood, the realms of heaven,And, banished from the sky, have given placeUnto my hated rivals. Now must earth5Be my abode, while they in heaven reign.Behold, the Bear, far in the frozen north,Is set on high to guide the Argive ships;Behold, in southern skies, where days grow longBeneath the warmth of spring, the Bull shines bright,Who once the Tyrian Europa bore.There gleam the wandering Atlantides,10A fearful band for ships and sea alike;And yonder fierce Orion with his swordThe very gods affrights; his stars, as well,The golden Perseus boasts; while Leda's sonsWith shining banners glitter in the sky;And they, Latona's children, for whose birth15The floating land stood firm. And not aloneHave Bacchus and his mother gained the heavens;But, that the infamy may be complete,The skies must needs the Cretan maiden's crownEndure. But these are ancient wrongs I tell:One wild and baneful land alone is fullOf shameless mistresses—the Theban land,20Which all too oft has me a stepdame made.And though Alcmena scale the heights of heaven,And hold my place, victorious over me;And though her son his promised star obtain(Whose hateful getting cost the world a day,Since Phoebus, bidden to hold his shining car25In Ocean hid, with tardy light shone forthFrom eastern seas): still ever in my heartShall hate relentless dwell. Undying wrathMy outraged soul shall kindle; and my grief,All hope of truce denying, endless warsShall fiercely wage. But what avail my wars?30Whatever savage things the hurtful earth,The sea or air produce, terrific shapes,Fierce, pestilential, horrible, and dire,The power of all is broken and subdued.Alcides towers above and thrives on woe;My wrath is his delight, and to his praiseHe turns my deadly hate. While I, too stern,35Impose his dreadful tasks, I do but proveHis origin, and opportunityFor glorious achievement render him.Where Phoebus with his neighboring torch illumesThe east and western shores of Aethiop's land,Alcides' dauntless courage is adored;While all the world considers him a god.And now have I no monsters more to send;40And less his toil to do the tasks I bid,Than mine to set them. Joyfully he hearsMy several commands. But what dire tasksThe tyrant may conceive can harm that youthImpetuous? His very arms, forsooth,Are torn from monsters which he feared—and slew;45With spoils of lion and of hydra armed,He walks abroad. Nor are the lands of earthEnough for him: behold, the doors of DisAre burst, and to the upper world he bringsThe booty taken from the vanquished king.'Tis not enough that he returns alive:The law that binds the shades is set at naught.Myself I saw him, when he had o'ercome50The king of hades and escaped the nightOf that deep underworld, display to JoveThe spoils of Dis. But why does he not lead,Oppressed and overcome, the king himselfWho gained by lot an equal realm with Jove?Why rules he not in conquered Erebus?Why bares he not the Styx? His upward wayFrom deepest hell to earth he has retraced,55And all the sacred mysteries of deathLie open to the world. Not yet content,And proud that he has burst the bars of night,He triumphs over me, and, insolent,He leads through all the cities of the landThat gruesome dog of hell. I saw, myself,The daylight pale at sight of Cerberus,60The sun start in affright. Nay, even IWas struck with terror; and, as I beheldThat triple-headed beast in bondage led,I trembled at the thought that 'twas my will.But all too trivial ills do I lament;My fears must be aroused for heaven itself,Lest he who overcame the lowest depthsShould scale the very skies, and from his sire65His scepter snatch away. Nor to the starsWill he, like Bacchus, by an easy pathAscend; through ruin would he make his way,And wish to rule an empty universe.He is inflamed with pride of tested strength;But he has learned by bearing up the heavens,That by his power the heavens can be subdued.70Upon his head he bore the universe,Nor did his shoulders bend beneath the weightOf that stupendous mass; the vault of heavenUpon his neck was poised, and steadilyHe bore the expanse of sky, the shining stars;And even me, down pressing, he endured.He seeks a place among the immortal gods.Then up, arouse thee to destructive wrath,75Destroy him meditating plans so great.Meet him in single strife; with thine own handsAsunder rend him. Why thy mighty hateDost thou consign to others to appease?Enough of monsters; let Eurystheus rest,All weary with imposing thy commands.Though thou shouldst open wide Sicilia's vaults,And free the Titans who essayed to wrench80The scepter from the hand of mighty Jove;Though the Doric isle, which trembles with affrightWhene'er the heaving giant turns himself,Should ease her weight upon the monster's head;Though in the moon another race of beastsShould be conceived: yet all of these, I knowAlcides conquered and will conquer still.Seek'st thou his match? There is none save himself.85Then set him on to war against himself;Let furies from the lowest depths of hellBe roused and come to aid, their flaming locksAglow with maddening fire, their savage handsThe horrid snaky scourges brandishing.Go now, thou proud one, seek the seats of heaven,And scorn the lot of men. And dost thou think,90O hero brave, that thou hast fled the StyxAnd gloomy shades? Here will I show thee hell;Here will I summon up the goddess direOf Discord, deep in darkness thick confinedFar down below the abode of guilty souls.A cavern huge within a mountain's holdIs her dark prison. Her will I call forth,95And from the deepest realms of Dis bring upWhate'er thou hast escaped: base Crime shall come;Impiety that fiercely stains its handsIn kindred blood; the shape of Error, too,And Fury ever armed against itself.This, this assistance shall my grief employ.Come then, ye ever-faithful slaves of Dis,100Begin your task. Shake high the blazing torch;And let Megaera lead her dreadful bandOf sisters viperous. With deadly handLet her from off the blazing funeral pyreA burning brand snatch up. Now to your task;Thus seek revenge for violated Styx:Distract his heart with madness; let his soul105More fiercely burn than that hot fire which glowsOn Aetna's forge. But first, that HerculesMay be to madness driven, smitten throughWith mighty passion, I must be insane.Why rav'st thou not, O Juno? Me, Oh, me,110Ye sisters, first of sanity deprive,That something worthy of a stepdame's wrathI may prepare. Let all my hate be changedTo favor. Now I pray that he may comeTo earth again, and see his sons unharmed;May he return with all his old-time strength.Now have I found a day when HerculesMay help me with his strength that I deplore.115Now let him equally o'ercome himselfAnd me; and let him, late escaped from death,Desire to die. Now let it profit meThat he is born of Jove. I'll stand by himAnd nicely poise his hand, that so his dartsMay with more deadly aim be hurled. I'll guideThe madman's arms. And so at last I help120Alcides in his wars. The crime complete,Then let his father to the heavens admitThose guilty hands. Now must the attack begin.The day is breaking, and with saffron lightThe rising sun dispels the gloom of night.

Juno[in soliloquy]: Lo I, the sister of the Thunderer

(For, save this name alone, I've nothing more),

Have left my lord, so often false to me,

Have left, in widowhood, the realms of heaven,

And, banished from the sky, have given place

Unto my hated rivals. Now must earth5

Be my abode, while they in heaven reign.

Behold, the Bear, far in the frozen north,

Is set on high to guide the Argive ships;

Behold, in southern skies, where days grow long

Beneath the warmth of spring, the Bull shines bright,

Who once the Tyrian Europa bore.

There gleam the wandering Atlantides,10

A fearful band for ships and sea alike;

And yonder fierce Orion with his sword

The very gods affrights; his stars, as well,

The golden Perseus boasts; while Leda's sons

With shining banners glitter in the sky;

And they, Latona's children, for whose birth15

The floating land stood firm. And not alone

Have Bacchus and his mother gained the heavens;

But, that the infamy may be complete,

The skies must needs the Cretan maiden's crown

Endure. But these are ancient wrongs I tell:

One wild and baneful land alone is full

Of shameless mistresses—the Theban land,20

Which all too oft has me a stepdame made.

And though Alcmena scale the heights of heaven,

And hold my place, victorious over me;

And though her son his promised star obtain

(Whose hateful getting cost the world a day,

Since Phoebus, bidden to hold his shining car25

In Ocean hid, with tardy light shone forth

From eastern seas): still ever in my heart

Shall hate relentless dwell. Undying wrath

My outraged soul shall kindle; and my grief,

All hope of truce denying, endless wars

Shall fiercely wage. But what avail my wars?30

Whatever savage things the hurtful earth,

The sea or air produce, terrific shapes,

Fierce, pestilential, horrible, and dire,

The power of all is broken and subdued.

Alcides towers above and thrives on woe;

My wrath is his delight, and to his praise

He turns my deadly hate. While I, too stern,35

Impose his dreadful tasks, I do but prove

His origin, and opportunity

For glorious achievement render him.

Where Phoebus with his neighboring torch illumes

The east and western shores of Aethiop's land,

Alcides' dauntless courage is adored;

While all the world considers him a god.

And now have I no monsters more to send;40

And less his toil to do the tasks I bid,

Than mine to set them. Joyfully he hears

My several commands. But what dire tasks

The tyrant may conceive can harm that youth

Impetuous? His very arms, forsooth,

Are torn from monsters which he feared—and slew;45

With spoils of lion and of hydra armed,

He walks abroad. Nor are the lands of earth

Enough for him: behold, the doors of Dis

Are burst, and to the upper world he brings

The booty taken from the vanquished king.

'Tis not enough that he returns alive:

The law that binds the shades is set at naught.

Myself I saw him, when he had o'ercome50

The king of hades and escaped the night

Of that deep underworld, display to Jove

The spoils of Dis. But why does he not lead,

Oppressed and overcome, the king himself

Who gained by lot an equal realm with Jove?

Why rules he not in conquered Erebus?

Why bares he not the Styx? His upward way

From deepest hell to earth he has retraced,55

And all the sacred mysteries of death

Lie open to the world. Not yet content,

And proud that he has burst the bars of night,

He triumphs over me, and, insolent,

He leads through all the cities of the land

That gruesome dog of hell. I saw, myself,

The daylight pale at sight of Cerberus,60

The sun start in affright. Nay, even I

Was struck with terror; and, as I beheld

That triple-headed beast in bondage led,

I trembled at the thought that 'twas my will.

But all too trivial ills do I lament;

My fears must be aroused for heaven itself,

Lest he who overcame the lowest depths

Should scale the very skies, and from his sire65

His scepter snatch away. Nor to the stars

Will he, like Bacchus, by an easy path

Ascend; through ruin would he make his way,

And wish to rule an empty universe.

He is inflamed with pride of tested strength;

But he has learned by bearing up the heavens,

That by his power the heavens can be subdued.70

Upon his head he bore the universe,

Nor did his shoulders bend beneath the weight

Of that stupendous mass; the vault of heaven

Upon his neck was poised, and steadily

He bore the expanse of sky, the shining stars;

And even me, down pressing, he endured.

He seeks a place among the immortal gods.

Then up, arouse thee to destructive wrath,75

Destroy him meditating plans so great.

Meet him in single strife; with thine own hands

Asunder rend him. Why thy mighty hate

Dost thou consign to others to appease?

Enough of monsters; let Eurystheus rest,

All weary with imposing thy commands.

Though thou shouldst open wide Sicilia's vaults,

And free the Titans who essayed to wrench80

The scepter from the hand of mighty Jove;

Though the Doric isle, which trembles with affright

Whene'er the heaving giant turns himself,

Should ease her weight upon the monster's head;

Though in the moon another race of beasts

Should be conceived: yet all of these, I know

Alcides conquered and will conquer still.

Seek'st thou his match? There is none save himself.85

Then set him on to war against himself;

Let furies from the lowest depths of hell

Be roused and come to aid, their flaming locks

Aglow with maddening fire, their savage hands

The horrid snaky scourges brandishing.

Go now, thou proud one, seek the seats of heaven,

And scorn the lot of men. And dost thou think,90

O hero brave, that thou hast fled the Styx

And gloomy shades? Here will I show thee hell;

Here will I summon up the goddess dire

Of Discord, deep in darkness thick confined

Far down below the abode of guilty souls.

A cavern huge within a mountain's hold

Is her dark prison. Her will I call forth,95

And from the deepest realms of Dis bring up

Whate'er thou hast escaped: base Crime shall come;

Impiety that fiercely stains its hands

In kindred blood; the shape of Error, too,

And Fury ever armed against itself.

This, this assistance shall my grief employ.

Come then, ye ever-faithful slaves of Dis,100

Begin your task. Shake high the blazing torch;

And let Megaera lead her dreadful band

Of sisters viperous. With deadly hand

Let her from off the blazing funeral pyre

A burning brand snatch up. Now to your task;

Thus seek revenge for violated Styx:

Distract his heart with madness; let his soul105

More fiercely burn than that hot fire which glows

On Aetna's forge. But first, that Hercules

May be to madness driven, smitten through

With mighty passion, I must be insane.

Why rav'st thou not, O Juno? Me, Oh, me,110

Ye sisters, first of sanity deprive,

That something worthy of a stepdame's wrath

I may prepare. Let all my hate be changed

To favor. Now I pray that he may come

To earth again, and see his sons unharmed;

May he return with all his old-time strength.

Now have I found a day when Hercules

May help me with his strength that I deplore.115

Now let him equally o'ercome himself

And me; and let him, late escaped from death,

Desire to die. Now let it profit me

That he is born of Jove. I'll stand by him

And nicely poise his hand, that so his darts

May with more deadly aim be hurled. I'll guide

The madman's arms. And so at last I help120

Alcides in his wars. The crime complete,

Then let his father to the heavens admit

Those guilty hands. Now must the attack begin.

The day is breaking, and with saffron light

The rising sun dispels the gloom of night.

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