King of this happy land, Troezen's his destiny:
And he knows that the law will grant to your son
Those proud ramparts of Minerva's creation.
And he knows that the law will grant to your son
Those proud ramparts of Minerva's creation.
Racine - Phaedra
330
I thought this peril might be turned from you.
Even now Hippolyte prepares to leave us too:
And I fear that if he appears, in that storm,
The fickle crowd will follow him in swarms.
Oenone
Panope, that's enough. The Queen who's listening, 335
Will not neglect to heed your vital warning.
Act I Scene V (Phaedra, Oenone)
Oenone
My lady, I'd ceased to urge you to live on:
I'd already decided to follow you to the tomb:
I had thought to seek to deter you no longer:
But this new trouble forces new duties on you. 340
Your fate has altered, and shows another face:
The King's no more. Madame must take his place.
You belong to your son, left to you by that death,
A slave if you die, a king while you have breath.
On whom, in this trouble, would you have him depend? 345
His tears will find no hand to dry them, no friend:
His innocent cries, heard by the gods above us,
Will harm his mother, and anger his ancestors.
Live: you've nothing to condemn yourself for there:
Your passion becomes a commonplace affair. 350
Theseus, in dying, destroyed those complications,
That formed the crime, the horror of your passion.
Hippolyte's presence is less fearsome to you now,
And you can see him without guilt on your brow.
Perhaps, convinced of your profound aversion, 355
He'll make himself the leader of this sedition.
Disabuse him of his error: sway his bravery.
King of this happy land, Troezen's his destiny:
And he knows that the law will grant to your son
Those proud ramparts of Minerva's creation. 360
Both of you face the same true enemy:
Combine: oppose Aricia, in harmony.
Phaedra
Well! I will let myself be led by your advice.
Let us live, if they can bring me back to life,
And if love of a son, at this gloomy time, 365
Can re-animate what's left of my feeble mind.
Act II Scene I (Aricia, Ismene)
Aricia
Hippolyte wishes to see me here? And why?
Hippolyte looks for me, wants to say goodbye?
Ismene, is this true? Surely, you're incorrect?
Ismene
It's due to Theseus's death: the first effect. 370
My lady, be ready on every side to view
Those Theseus rejected, who'll flock to you.
Aricia's finally mistress of her fate,
And you'll soon see all Greece is at your feet.
Aricia
So it's not, Ismene, some ill-founded rumour? 375
I have no enemies: I'm a slave no longer?
Ismene
No, my lady, the gods no longer oppose it,
And Theseus goes to meet your brothers' spirits.
I thought this peril might be turned from you.
Even now Hippolyte prepares to leave us too:
And I fear that if he appears, in that storm,
The fickle crowd will follow him in swarms.
Oenone
Panope, that's enough. The Queen who's listening, 335
Will not neglect to heed your vital warning.
Act I Scene V (Phaedra, Oenone)
Oenone
My lady, I'd ceased to urge you to live on:
I'd already decided to follow you to the tomb:
I had thought to seek to deter you no longer:
But this new trouble forces new duties on you. 340
Your fate has altered, and shows another face:
The King's no more. Madame must take his place.
You belong to your son, left to you by that death,
A slave if you die, a king while you have breath.
On whom, in this trouble, would you have him depend? 345
His tears will find no hand to dry them, no friend:
His innocent cries, heard by the gods above us,
Will harm his mother, and anger his ancestors.
Live: you've nothing to condemn yourself for there:
Your passion becomes a commonplace affair. 350
Theseus, in dying, destroyed those complications,
That formed the crime, the horror of your passion.
Hippolyte's presence is less fearsome to you now,
And you can see him without guilt on your brow.
Perhaps, convinced of your profound aversion, 355
He'll make himself the leader of this sedition.
Disabuse him of his error: sway his bravery.
King of this happy land, Troezen's his destiny:
And he knows that the law will grant to your son
Those proud ramparts of Minerva's creation. 360
Both of you face the same true enemy:
Combine: oppose Aricia, in harmony.
Phaedra
Well! I will let myself be led by your advice.
Let us live, if they can bring me back to life,
And if love of a son, at this gloomy time, 365
Can re-animate what's left of my feeble mind.
Act II Scene I (Aricia, Ismene)
Aricia
Hippolyte wishes to see me here? And why?
Hippolyte looks for me, wants to say goodbye?
Ismene, is this true? Surely, you're incorrect?
Ismene
It's due to Theseus's death: the first effect. 370
My lady, be ready on every side to view
Those Theseus rejected, who'll flock to you.
Aricia's finally mistress of her fate,
And you'll soon see all Greece is at your feet.
Aricia
So it's not, Ismene, some ill-founded rumour? 375
I have no enemies: I'm a slave no longer?
Ismene
No, my lady, the gods no longer oppose it,
And Theseus goes to meet your brothers' spirits.
