[Iphigenia] and to charm with my words whomever I wished, [Iphigenia] to that I would have come.
νῦν δέ, τἀπʼ ἐμοῦ σοφά, §1215δάκρυα παρέξω· ταῦτα γὰρ δυναίμεθʼ ἄν.
But now, my only wisdom, [Iphigenia] I will offer tears; for this I can do.
§1216ἱκετηρίαν δὲ γόνασιν ἐξάπτω σέθεν §1217τὸ σῶμα τοὐμόν, ὅπερ ἔτικτεν ἥδε σοι, §1218μή μʼ ἀπολέσῃς ἄωρον· ἡδὺ γὰρ τὸ φῶς §1219βλέπειν· τὰ δʼ ὑπὸ γῆς μή μʼ ἰδεῖν ἀναγκάσῃς.
[Iphigenia] And as a suppliant bough, I cling to your knees [Iphigenia] with my body, which this woman bore to you, [Iphigenia] do not destroy me untimely; for it is sweet to look upon [Iphigenia] the light; do not force me to see the things below the earth.
§1220πρώτη σʼ ἐκάλεσα πατέρα καὶ σὺ παῖδʼ ἐμέ· §1221πρώτη δὲ γόνασι σοῖσι σῶμα δοῦσʼ ἐμὸν §1222φίλας χάριτας ἔδωκα κἀντεδεξάμην.
[Iphigenia] I was the first to call you father, and you to call me child; [Iphigenia] and first, putting my body on your knees, [Iphigenia] I gave and received sweet tokens of affection.
§1223λόγος δʼ ὁ μὲν σὸς ἦν ὅδʼ· Ἆρά σʼ, ὦ τέκνον, §1224εὐδαίμονʼ ἀνδρὸς ἐν δόμοισιν ὄψομαι, §1225ζῶσάν τε καὶ θάλλουσαν ἀξίως ἐμοῦ; §1226οὑμὸς δʼ ὅδʼ ἦν αὖ περὶ σὸν ἐξαρτωμένης §1227γένειον, οὗ νῦν ἀντιλάζυμαι χερί·
[Iphigenia] And this was your talk: "Shall I indeed, my child, [Iphigenia] see you happy in a husband's home, [Iphigenia] living and flourishing worthily of me?" [Iphigenia] And mine in turn was this, as I hung about your [Iphigenia] beard, which I now touch with my hand: [Iphigenia] "And what shall I do for you?
§1228Τί δʼ ἆρʼ ἐγὼ σέ; πρέσβυν ἆρʼ ἐσδέξομαι §1229ἐμῶν φίλαισιν ὑποδοχαῖς δόμων, πάτερ, §1230πόνων τιθηνοὺς ἀποδιδοῦσά σοι τροφάς; §1231τούτων ἐγὼ μὲν τῶν λόγων μνήμην ἔχω, §1232σὺ δʼ ἐπιλέλησαι, καί μʼ ἀποκτεῖναι θέλεις.
Shall I receive you as an old man [Iphigenia] with loving welcome into my home, father, [Iphigenia] repaying you with the nurturing care that tends your old age's toil?" [Iphigenia] Of these words I indeed keep memory, [Iphigenia] but you have forgotten, and wish to kill me.
§1233μή, πρός σε Πέλοπος καὶ πρὸς Ἀτρέως πατρὸς §1234καὶ τῆσδε μητρός, ἣ πρὶν ὠδίνουσʼ ἐμὲ §1235νῦν δευτέραν ὠδῖνα τήνδε λαμβάνει.
[Iphigenia] Do not, I entreat you by Pelops and by your father Atreus [Iphigenia] and by this mother, who having formerly suffered birth-pangs for me [Iphigenia] now suffers this second birth-pang.
[Iphigenia] What have I to do with the marriage of Alexander [Iphigenia] and Helen?
πόθεν ἦλθʼ ἐπʼ ὀλέθρῳ τὠμῷ, πάτερ;
Why did he come for my destruction, father?
§1238βλέψον πρὸς ἡμᾶς, ὄμμα δὸς φίλημά τε, §1239ἵνʼ ἀλλὰ τοῦτο κατθανοῦσʼ ἔχω σέθεν §1240μνημεῖον, ἢν μὴ τοῖς ἐμοῖς πεισθῇς λόγοις.
[Iphigenia] Look at me, give me a glance and a kiss, [Iphigenia] so that at least I may have this from you when I die [Iphigenia] as a memorial, even if you are not persuaded by my words.
§1241ἀδελφέ, μικρὸς μὲν σύ γʼ ἐπίκουρος φίλοις, §1242ὅμως δὲ συνδάκρυσον, ἱκέτευσον πατρὸς §1243τὴν σὴν ἀδελφὴν μὴ θανεῖν· αἴσθημά τοι §1244κἀν νηπίοις γε τῶν κακῶν ἐγγίγνεται.
[Iphigenia] Brother, though you are but a small helper to your loved ones, [Iphigenia] yet weep with me, entreat our father [Iphigenia] that your sister may not die; indeed, some sense [Iphigenia] even in infants arises of evil things.
§1245ἰδοὺ σιωπῶν λίσσεταί σʼ ὅδʼ, ὦ πάτερ.
[Iphigenia] Look, though silent he entreats you, father.
§1246ἀλλʼ αἴδεσαί με καὶ κατοίκτιρον βίου.
[Iphigenia] Nay, respect my plea and pity my life.
[Iphigenia] Yes, by your beard we two dear ones entreat you; [Iphigenia] the one is a fledgling, the other grown up.
§1249ἓν συντεμοῦσα πάντα νικήσω λόγον· §1250τὸ φῶς τόδʼ ἀνθρώποισιν ἥδιστον βλέπειν, §1251τὰ νέρθε δʼ οὐδέν· μαίνεται δʼ ὃς εὔχεται §1252θανεῖν.
[Iphigenia] Summing up in one, I will conquer all argument: [Iphigenia] to look upon this light is sweetest for mortals, [Iphigenia] and the things below are nothing; he is mad who prays [Iphigenia] to die.
κακῶς ζῆν κρεῖσσον ἢ καλῶς θανεῖν.
To live miserably is better than to die gloriously.
[Chorus] O wretched Helen, because of you and your marriage [Chorus] a great struggle has come upon the sons of Atreus and their children.
[Agamemnon] I understand what is pitiable and what is not, [Agamemnon] and I love my own children; for otherwise I would be mad.
[Agamemnon] And it is terrible for me to dare this, wife, [Agamemnon] and terrible not to dare it; for I must do this.
§1259ὁρᾶθʼ ὅσον στράτευμα ναύφρακτον τόδε, §1260χαλκέων θʼ ὅπλων ἄνακτες Ἑλλήνων ὅσοι, §1261οἷς νόστος οὐκ ἔστʼ Ἰλίου πύργους ἔπι, §1262εἰ μή σε θύσω, μάντις ὡς Κάλχας λέγει, §1263οὐδʼ ἔστι Τροίας ἐξελεῖν κλεινὸν βάθρον.
[Agamemnon] Do you see how great is this fleet, [Agamemnon] and how many chiefs of bronze-clad weapons of the Greeks, [Agamemnon] who have no voyage to the towers of Ilium, [Agamemnon] unless I sacrifice you, as the prophet Calchas says, [Agamemnon] nor is it possible to capture the famous foundation of Troy.
§1264μέμηνε δʼ Ἀφροδίτη τις Ἑλλήνων στρατῷ §1265πλεῖν ὡς τάχιστα βαρβάρων ἐπὶ χθόνα, §1266παῦσαί τε λέκτρων ἁρπαγὰς Ἑλληνικῶν· §1267οἳ τὰς ἐν Ἄργει παρθένους κτενοῦσί μου §1268ὑμᾶς τε κἀμέ, θέσφατʼ εἰ λύσω θεᾶς.
[Agamemnon] A certain passion has maddened the army of the Greeks [Agamemnon] to sail as quickly as possible to the land of the barbarians, [Agamemnon] and to stop the abductions of Greek wives; [Agamemnon] they will kill my daughters in Argos, [Agamemnon] and you and me, if I annul the oracle of the goddess.
§1269οὐ Μενέλεώς με καταδεδούλωται, τέκνον, §1270οὐδʼ ἐπὶ τὸ κείνου βουλόμενον ἐλήλυθα, §1271ἀλλʼ Ἑλλάς, ᾗ δεῖ, κἂν θέλω κἂν μὴ θέλω, §1272θῦσαί σε· τούτου δʼ ἥσσονες καθέσταμεν.
[Agamemnon] It is not Menelaus who has enslaved me, child, [Agamemnon] nor have I come to do his bidding, [Agamemnon] but Greece, to which I must, whether I wish or do not wish, [Agamemnon] sacrifice you; and we are powerless before this duty.
§1273ἐλευθέραν γὰρ δεῖ νιν ὅσον ἐν σοί, τέκνον, §1274κἀμοὶ γενέσθαι, μηδὲ βαρβάροις ὕπο §1275Ἕλληνας ὄντας λέκτρα συλᾶσθαι βίᾳ.
[Agamemnon] For she must be free, as far as lies in you, child, [Agamemnon] and in me, and Greeks must not [Agamemnon] have their wives plundered by force by barbarians.
[Clytemnestra] O child, O foreign women, [Clytemnestra] ah me, wretched on account of your death!
§1278φεύγει σε πατὴρ Ἅιδῃ παραδούς.
[Clytemnestra] Your father flees, having delivered you to Hades.
§1279οἲ ʼγώ, μᾶτερ·
[Iphigenia] Ah me, mother!
ταὐτὸν τόδε γὰρ §1280μέλος εἰς ἄμφω πέπτωκε τύχης, §1281κοὐκέτι μοι φῶς §1282οὐδʼ ἀελίου τόδε φέγγος.
For this same [Iphigenia] song of fortune has fallen upon both of us, [Iphigenia] and no longer is there light for me, [Iphigenia] nor this beam of the sun.
§1283ἰὼ ἰώ.
[Iphigenia] Alas, alas!
§1284νιφόβολον Φρυγῶν νάπος Ἴδας τʼ ὄρεα, §1285Πρίαμος ὅθι ποτὲ βρέφος ἁπαλὸν ἔβαλε §1286ματέρος ἀποπρὸ νοσφίσας ἐπὶ μόρῳ §1289θανατόεντι Πάριν, ὃς Ἰδαῖος Ἰ- §1290δαῖος ἐλέγετʼ ἐλέγετʼ ἐν Φρυγῶν πόλει,
[Iphigenia] O snow-beaten glen of the Phrygians and mountains of Ida, [Iphigenia] where once Priam cast out the tender babe, [Iphigenia] having separated him far from his mother, for a deadly [Iphigenia] fate, namely Paris, who was called Idæan, [Iphigenia] Idæan in the city of the Phrygians!