This is desperate behaviour, my lord and it leaves no doubt to anyone who sees you, my lord, that youve gone mad! Reg. Menelaos Brothers must share each others pain. You will kill the one whos loved by all so as to save the one whos hated by all! It is the wish of the Heavens. What should I call your deeds to make them also sound lovely? Where shall I go to find your hand, to ask you to help me in my hour of despair? Help us because our plight needs your help. This man has forcefully and unjustly ripped your letter from my hands, my lord! I need to tell you things that our daughter should not hear. Perhaps were both being deceived. The world beneath the earth is a world of nothing. Achilles Slave to whom? Ill have none of it! Achilles They jeered at me! Why has their marriage brought about my death, father? Klytaimestra Well? Menelaos Act according to your position, or youll be very sorry, old man! Achilles By the goddess Modesty! Come and hear my news! And tell me another thing, Agamemnon: when you return home, when you come back to Argos, will you have the gall to put your arms around any of your children? Iphegenia at Aulis) was left unfinished at Euripides' death in 406 BCE, and so the beginning and the ending especially are mutilated and choppy.Completed by someone else, it along with The Bacchae and the lost Alcmaeon formed a trio produced in Athens which won Euripides a fifth albeit posthumous first prize.. Agamemnon recounts the recent history of Helen's suitors . How I wish he never lived at that meadow where all the flowers bloomed: roses and hyacinths, all those flowers that the goddesses plucked. Overview. A member of the chorus rushes into the tent. What ruin, what catastrophe youve brought upon me by running off with Helen! My friend, neither kill nor be killed because of me. Second Chorus They are the offspring of a great and most fortunate family. The second, Iphigenia at Aulis, so vastly different as to highlight the playwright's Protean invention, centres on the ultimate dysfunctional family, that of Agamemnon, as natural emotion is. Details. Stop waiting for those indecisive sons of Atreas to tell you what to do. Tears that come about from making our daughter a bride to Achilles. . Iphigeneia But but look at you, father! And Helen, Zeus daughter, will shed bitter tears, too, for betraying her husband. Whether they treat me well or appallingly makes no difference to them. The Watchman, whose . Klytaimestra Our other daughters are looked after well and they are safe in their quarters. 1090. Old Man But, surely, my lord, surely it is there, in the trappings of office and power, that we find pleasure! We took Iphigeneia to the forest of Zeus daughter, Artemis. That light, this light all around us, will cut all other arguments to pieces. Cassandra who shakes loose her golden hair beneath the green garland of laurel whenever the god grips her with his prophetic gasp. Protect us in our terrible misfortune. You may accept or manage cookie usage at any time. I shall do as you say. Your current position in the text is marked in blue. Our daughters marriage is my concern! The sparkling water of your ancestral streams is waiting for you! See this letter, this contemptible letter with the contemptible message inside it? Chorus Go, young girl! Youve murdered Tantalus, my first husband and with even more brutal violence, youve torn my baby from my breast and dashed it hard against the ground! Let my pity be a protective blanket over you; it is the pity of a young man but it is a sincere pity, nevertheless and one brought about by the fact that I have been the one named as your daughters husband. Iphigeneia Well then, get rid of this ugly frown from the face that I love so much! Ah! And, they should also swear that they would attack and destroy the land of the wrongdoer by the force of arms, whether his land is Greek or foreign. Id rather live a life full of misery than die a heros death! 370. The fleet of the war-loving Taphians, with its foaming oars, was commanded by their king, Phyleus son, Meges who had left the Echinae, islands that are far too unwelcoming for sailors. Is being a General the only thing in your head? Dear women of Argos, this death, my death, this sacrifice to Artemis, will speed the Greeks to Troy and bring honour to the Greeks. Hes gone mad only so far as your daughter and you are concerned. Cry! Well then, tell me: what will your prayer, your plea to the gods be? Menelaos First, look at me in the eye and then Ill tell you! I dont understand, father. Klytaimestra So, my darling will not be put to the sword? 929. How full of torment is life for us ephemeral creatures! Achilles Words, logic, can fight off fear. Then Achilles, Peleas son, took the golden basket and the holy water in his hands and ran around the goddess altar, chanting. Iphigenia is told that she must prepare for her new life, and that she will be quite alone, far from her parents and home (666, 669). Happy noises of incoming royal procession, including horses and chariot are heard within, Stage Left. He married Thetis, Nereus daughter. Listen to their words: 790, Who will it be, I wonder, who will bring tears to my eyes, drag me by my beautiful hair and pluck me from my ruined land?. Agamemnon What? Christoph Willibald Gluck: Overture to "Iphigenia in Aulis" (orch. Why all this violence? She goes to her death, so her father won't have to carry the guilt of. Youll be back inArgos, taking care of our other daughters. As she imagines Agamemnon killing Iphigenia, Clytemnestra. Written between 408, after Orestes, and 406 BC, the year of Euripides' death, the play was first produced the following year in a trilogy . And I shall here where the groom is, I shall. Someone must be playing games with both of us for some reason! You shouldnt go against them! He, madam, hes the cause of all your torment, madam. Because, even though it would be improper for a little girl to plead at a mans knees, she will put aside her sense of modesty and do it, if you wish. The whole city ofAulisis quiet and the guard on the walls has yet to change. Tell us whats wrong! I know about your plans. Klytaimestra She stretches her right hand 830. Achilles Then listen to me carefully, madam so that well achieve our aim. What? What a sweet joy! 1440. I wont let anyone take your life even though it would be against your wish. Iphigeneia Whats wrong, daddy? IPHIGENIA IN AULIS Essay Summary A monologue from the play by Euripides NOTE: This monologue is reprinted from The Plays of Euripides in English, vol. Agamemnon My thoughts exactly, my darling. Checking out the situation carefully. Klytaimestra I hear you, I hear you! IPHIGENIA: Had I, my father, the persuasive voice Of Orpheus, and his skill to charm the rocks To follow me, and soothe whome'er I please With winning words, I would make trial of it; But I have nothing to present thee now Save tears, my only eloquence; and those I can present thee. Achilles The whole army is calling out for. Menelaos I was waiting to see if your daughter would leaveArgosto come to the army camp. Achilles Alone? I would have given it for the sake of my fellow soldiers. I could not. As is common, there is a dowry, here brought by her mother from the household of Agamemnon (lines 612-13). It seems that the generals do as they please with me. If I could use such a voice and have everyone charmed, have them convinced to agree with me and follow me, then I would use that voice. 9.1", "denarius"). What should I call them? Pause. November 1, 2021 . Euripides, Iphigenia in Tauris 390). I can see that youre angry at your husband but I think youre wrong about that. How I pity you! What has brought on all this anxiety? Here we are, eagerly obedient to your wish! Such good wives are rare, Agamemnon! The Plot of Iphigeneia at Aulis. Hes gone out a while ago and Iphigeneia, in the meantime, has heard how her father is planning to kill her. Enough! Iphigenia in Aulis has been added to your Cart . Make sure this golden hair god stays far away from my bed chamber! First Chorus And there I saw the two Ajaxes sitting together: Oeleus son and the son of Telemon, the crown ofSalamisand Protisilaos and Palamides, whose father is Poseidons son. Look here, father! What was the point of bringing us up here for a marriage that. Sacrifice me. Old Man He tricked you about the marriage with Achilles, my lady, so that youd be willing to come here. Some madness has overtaken their hearts and they want to sail immediately over to Troy to the land of those barbarians and to put an end to this raping and stealing of our women, to tearing them away from their marital beds. Iphigeneia Of course. Attic tragedies were performed in Athens about the 5th century BC. Agamemnon Pleasure! Free to mock her! Tell me what plan I should adopt! Most treacherously wronged by your closest friends. First Chorus The right wing of this naval force was taken up by the fifty swift ships of the war-loving Myrmidons from Phthia. Can you see what the goddess has placed upon her altar? I shall speak clearly for you. Not from any birds, not from the sea and not from any of the winds that rule over the waters between us andEpirus Total silence! It is a horrible thing for one to lose a child! I was not going to slaughter my own daughter, old man! With him also was his close friend, Adrastus, their commander, ready to exact vengeance forHellas sake, against the woman who fled her husbands halls so as to marry a barbarian. And how did you respond to that? Should you not be expecting a poisonous welcome since youre departing like a snake? Indicating the skyLook up there! 240, First Chorus Their emblem was the goddess, Palas Athena, standing on a chariot pulled by winged horses, an emblem that pleased and encouraged the sailors. You can see it! Of beauty kindling flames of love, High on my splendid car I move, Betrothed to Thetis' son a bride: Ah hapless bride, to all the train. Oh, Achilles! Now you know the whole thing. With blessings or with force? Agamemnon Can you not see him standing in the midst of all the Greeks, telling them all about Calchas prophesies and all about how Ive promised to sacrifice my daughter to Artemis but then went back on my word? I swear by my mother, the goddess Thetis, that I shall fight the Greeks to save you! That would be bad for both of us. Intelligence, brother, can turn any man into a head of State. The only other Greeks who know about this are Calchas, Odysseus and Menelaos. Klytaimestra Will he try and come here and drag my darling away, just like that, against her will? Do you think that I, son of Atreas the fearless, will be afraid to raise my eyes and look at you in the eye? Or fastest delivery March 8 - 10. If he doesn't go through with the sacrifice, the army will rise up, sacrifice her, and kill their entire family. You will be away from me for a very long time. Later, he becomes so angry that he picks up the wooden frame upon which the scroll rests and throws it violently to the ground. Klytaimestra Hes an evil man, my husband. 1891. 990. Iphigeneia rushes and embraces Agamemnon. Clytemnestra hears that Achilles is faithless, whereupon she at once urges Iphigenia to leave Aulis and return home. 389. 1279. Enter AGAMEMNON and ATTENDANT. Klytaimestra What would you like me to do? 1040. Or else, we might as well call Mount Sipylus, the Asian city where his barbarous ancestors came from a great city and wipe out of our mind the name of Phthia! And you, you will carry the honour of my deed wherever you go! The lustral water, the barley, everything is ready for the holy flame. Where are we going to set it up? Klytaimestra Yes! Its a natural thing for men with decent hearts to do the decent thing. Klytaimestra My dear Lord, Agamemnon! Have no fear, the pain will soften with custom and with the passage of time.