§241τί δ’;
What?
οὐ γυναιξὶ ταῦτα πρῶτα πανταχοῦ;
Is this not everywhere the first thing for women?
§242aκαλῶς γε χρωμέναισιν· εἰ δὲ μή, οὐ καλά.
To those indeed who use it well; but if not, it is not good.
§243οὐ βαρβάρων νόμοισιν οἰκοῦμεν πόλιν.
We do not inhabit a city under the laws of barbarians.
§244κἀκεῖ τά γ’ αἰσχρὰ κἀνθάδ’ αἰσχύνην ἔχει.
And there too shameful things, and here, bring shame.
§245σοφὴ σοφὴ σύ· κατθανεῖν δ’ ὅμως σε δεῖ.
Wise, very wise are you; but nonetheless you must die.
§246ὁρᾷς ἄγαλμα Θέτιδος εἰς σ’ ἀποβλέπον;
Do you see the statue of Thetis looking at you?
§247μισοῦν γε πατρίδα σὴν Ἀχιλλέως φόνῳ.
Hating indeed your homeland because of the murder of Achilles.
§248Ἑλένη νιν ὤλεσ’, οὐκ ἐγώ, μήτηρ δὲ σή.
Helen destroyed him, not I, yes, your mother.
§249ἦ καὶ πρόσω γὰρ τῶν ἐμῶν ψαύσεις κακῶν;
Will you indeed touch even further upon my misfortunes?
§250ἰδοὺ σιωπῶ κἀπιλάζυμαι στόμα.
Look, I am silent, and I close my mouth.
§251ἐκεῖνο λέξον, οὗπερ εἵνεκ’ ἐστάλην.
Speak of that for the sake of which I was sent.
§252λέγω σ’ ἐγὼ νοῦν οὐκ ἔχειν ὅσον σε δεῖ.
I say that you do not have as much sense as you ought.
§253λείψεις τόδ’ ἁγνὸν τέμενος ἐναλίας θεοῦ;
Will you leave this holy precinct of the sea-goddess?
§254εἰ μὴ θανοῦμαί γ’· εἰ δὲ μή, οὐ λείψω ποτέ.
Unless I die; otherwise, I will never leave.
§255ὡς τοῦτ’ ἄραρε, κοὐ μενῶ πόσιν μολεῖν.
As this is fixed, and I will not wait for my husband to come.
§256ἀλλ’ οὐδ’ ἐγὼ μὴν πρόσθεν ἐκδώσω μέ σοι.
But neither indeed will I surrender myself to you beforehand.
I will bring fire to you, and I will have no regard for your feelings— Burn then; for the gods will know of this.
§259καὶ χρωτὶ δεινῶν τραυμάτων ἀλγηδόνας.
And to your flesh the pains of terrible wounds.
§260σφάζ’, αἱμάτου θεᾶς βωμόν, ἣ μέτεισί σε.
Slaughter me, stain the altar of the goddess with blood, she will pursue you.
O barbarian creature and stubborn boldness, do you indeed endure death?
But I will soon make you rise from this seat willingly; such a bait I have for you.
ἀλλὰ γὰρ λόγους §265κρύψω, τὸ δ’ ἔργον αὐτὸ σημανεῖ τάχα.
But indeed my words I will hide, and the deed itself will soon show it.
§266κάθησ’ ἑδραία· καὶ γὰρ εἰ πέριξ σ’ ἔχοι §267τηκτὸς μόλυβδος, ἐξαναστήσω σ’ ἐγὼ §268πρὶν ᾧ πέποιθας παῖδ’ Ἀχιλλέως μολεῖν.
Sit fast; for even if melted lead should hold you all around, I will make you rise before the son of Achilles, whom you trust, arrives.
§269πέποιθα.
I do trust him.
δεινὸν δ’ ἑρπετῶν μὲν ἀγρίων §270ἄκη βροτοῖσι θεῶν καταστῆσαί τινα· §271ὃ δ’ ἔστ’ ἐχίδνης καὶ πυρὸς περαιτέρω, §272οὐδεὶς γυναικὸς φάρμακ’ ἐξηύρηκέ πω §273κακῆς· τοσοῦτόν ἐσμεν ἀνθρώποις κακόν.
It is a wonderful thing that against wild creeping beasts some of the gods established remedies for mortals; but that which is beyond viper and fire, no one has yet found a cure for a wicked woman; so great an evil are we to mankind.
§274Ἦ μεγάλων ἀχέων ἄρ’ ὑπῆρξεν, ὅτ’ Ἰδαίαν §275ἐς νάπαν ἦλθ’ ὁ Μαί- §276ας τε καὶ Διὸς τόκος, §277τρίπωλον ἅρμα δαιμόνων §278ἄγων τὸ καλλιζυγές, §279ἔριδι στυγερᾷ κεκορυθμένον εὐμορφίας §280σταθμοὺς ἐπὶ βούτα, §281βοτῆρά τ’ ἀμφὶ μονότροπον νεανίαν §282ἔρημόν θ’ §283ἑστιοῦχον αὐλάν.
Indeed, it was the beginning of great griefs when to the Idaean glen came the son of Maia and Zeus, leading the three-horse chariot of goddesses, beautifully yoked, armed with hateful rivalry of beauty, to the steading of the cowherd, and to the young shepherd living a solitary life, and the lonely hearth-protecting court.
§284ταὶ δ’ ἐπεὶ ὑλόκομον νάπος ἤλυθον οὐρειᾶν §285πιδάκων νίψαν αἰ- §286γλᾶντα σώματα ῥοαῖς, §287ἔβαν δὲ Πριαμίδαν ὑπερ- §288βολαῖς λόγων δυσφρόνων §289παραβαλλόμεναι, δολίοις δ’ ἕλε Κύπρις λόγοις, §290τερπνοῖς μὲν ἀκοῦσαι, §291πικρὰν δὲ σύγχυσιν βίου Φρυγῶν πόλει §292ταλαίνᾳ §292aπεργάμοις τε Τροίας.
And when they came to the wood-clad glen, the mountain springs washed their radiant bodies in the streams, and they went to the son of Priam, surpassing each other in hostile words of rivalry, and Cypris won with deceitful words, pleasant indeed to hear, but a bitter ruin of life to the city of Phrygians wretched and to the towers of Troy.
§293ἀλλ’ εἴθ’ ὑπὲρ κεφαλὰν ἔβαλεν κακὸν §294ἁ τεκοῦσά νιν §294aπρὶν Ἰδαῖ- §295ον κατοικίσαι λέπας· §296ὅτε νιν παρὰ θεσπεσίῳ δάφνᾳ §297βόασε Κασάνδρα κτανεῖν, §298μεγάλαν Πριάμου πόλεως λώβαν.
But would that she who bore him had cast the evil over her head before he settled on the Idaean slope; when by the divine laurel Cassandra cried out to slay him, the great ruin of Priam's city.
Whom did she not approach, which of the elders did she not entreat to slay the babe?
§301οὔτ’ ἂν ἐπ’ Ἰλιάσι ζυγὸν ἤλυθε §302δούλιον, σύ τ’ ἂν γύναι, §303τυράννων §303aἔσχες ἂν δόμων ἕδρας· §304παρέλυσε δ’ ἂν Ἑλλάδος ἀλγεινοὺς §305μόχθους οὓς ἀμφὶ Τροίαν §306δεκέτεις ἀλάληντο νέοι λόγχαις.
Neither would the yoke of slavery have come upon the daughters of Ilium, and you, O woman, would have held your seat in royal homes; and it would have released Greece from the painful toils which the young men wandered through for ten years with spears around Troy.
And never would beds have been left desolate, and old men bereft of children.
I have come bringing your child, whom to another house secretly you removed out of the way, without my daughter's knowledge.
§311σὲ μὲν γὰρ ηὔχεις θεᾶς βρέτας σῴσειν τόδε, §312τοῦτον δὲ τοὺς κρύψαντας· ἀλλ’ ἐφηυρέθης §313ἧσσον φρονοῦσα τοῦδε Μενέλεω, γύναι.
For you boasted that this statue of the goddess would save you, and those who hid him would save him; but you were found to have less wisdom than this Menelaus, O woman.
And if you do not leave and clear this ground, this boy shall be slaughtered instead of your body.
§316ταῦτ’ οὖν λογίζου, πότερα κατθανεῖν θέλεις §317ἢ τόνδ’ ὀλέσθαι σῆς ἁμαρτίας ὕπερ, §318ἣν εἰς ἔμ’ εἴς τε παῖδ’ ἐμὴν ἁμαρτάνεις.
Reflect then on these things, whether you wish to die or that this child perish because of your offense, which you commit against me and against my child.
§319ὦ δόξα δόξα, μυρίοισι δὴ βροτῶν
O reputation, reputation!
§320οὐδὲν γεγῶσι βίοτον ὤγκωσας μέγαν.
Truly, to countless mortals who are nothing, you have puffed up a great life.
§321εὔκλεια δ’ οἷς μὲν ἔστ’ ἀληθείας ὕπο, §322εὐδαιμονίζω· τοὺς δ’ ὑπὸ ψευδῶν, ἔχειν §323οὐκ ἀξιώσω, πλὴν τύχῃ φρονεῖν δοκεῖν.
And those who have good reputation by truth, I deem happy; but those under falsehoods, I shall not deem worthy of having it, except that by fortune they seem to be wise.
Did you indeed, leading the chosen men of the Greeks, take Troy from Priam, being so base as this?
§326ὅστις θυγατρὸς ἀντίπαιδος ἐκ λόγων §327τοσόνδ’ ἔπνευσας, καὶ γυναικὶ δυστυχεῖ §328δούλῃ κατέστης εἰς ἀγῶν’;
Who, because of the words of a child-like daughter, breathed so much fury, and against a wretched slave woman entered into a contest?
οὐκ ἀξιῶ
I do not deem you worthy