ΜΕΝΕΛΑΟΣ
ὦ καλλιφεγγὲς ἡλίου σέλας τόδε ,
ἐν ᾧ δάμαρτα τὴν ἐμὴν χειρώσομαι
Ἑλένην · ὁ γὰρ δὴ πολλὰ μοχθήσας ἐγὼ
Μενέλαος « αἰχμῇ καὶ κατασκήψας πόλιν
νῦν Ἑλλάδ᾿ » εἶμι καὶ στράτευμ᾿ Ἀχαιικόν .
ἦλθον δὲ Τροίαν οὐχ ὅσον δοκοῦσί με

γυναικὸς οὕνεκ᾿ , ἀλλ᾿ ἐπ᾿ ἄνδρ᾿ ὃς ἐξ ἐμῶν
δόμων δάμαρτα ξεναπάτης ἐλῄσατο .
κεῖνος μὲν οὖν δέδωκε σὺν θεοῖς δίκην
αὐτός τε καὶ γῆ δορὶ πεσοῦσ᾿ Ἑλληνικῷ .
ἥκω δὲ τὴν Λάκαιναν ( οὐ γὰρ ἡδέως

ὄνομα δάμαρτος ἥ ποτ᾿ ἦν ἐμὴ λέγω )
ἄξων · δόμοις γὰρ τοῖσδ᾿ ἐν αἰχμαλωτικοῖς
κατηρίθμηται Τρῳάδων ἄλλων μέτα .
οἵπερ γὰρ αὐτὴν ἐξεμόχθησαν δορὶ
κτανεῖν ἐμοί νιν ἔδοσαν , εἴτε μὴ κτανὼν

θέλοιμ᾿ ἄγεσθαι πάλιν ἐς Ἀργείαν χθόνα .
ἐμοὶ δ᾿ ἔδοξε τὸν μὲν ἐν Τροίᾳ μόρον
Ἑλένης ἐᾶσαι , ναυπόρῳ δ᾿ ἄγειν πλάτῃ
Ἑλληνίδ᾿ ἐς γῆν κᾆτ᾿ ἐκεῖ δοῦναι κτανεῖν ,
ποινὰς ὅσων τεθνᾶσ᾿ ἐν Ἰλίῳ φίλοι .

ἀλλ᾿ εἷα χωρεῖτ᾿ ἐς δόμους , ὀπάονες ,
κομίζετ᾿ αὐτὴν τῆς μιαιφονωτάτης
κόμης ἐπισπάσαντες · οὔριοι δ᾿ ὅταν
πνοαὶ μόλωσι , πέμψομέν νιν Ἑλλάδα .
ΕΚΑΒΗ
ὦ γῆς ὄχημα κἀπὶ γῆς ἔχων ἕδραν ,


ὅστις ποτ᾿ εἶ σύ , δυστόπαστος εἰδέναι ,
Ζεύς , εἴτ᾿ ἀνάγκη φύσεος εἴτε νοῦς βροτῶν ,
προσηυξάμην σε · πάντα γὰρ δι᾿ ἀψόφου
βαίνων κελεύθου κατὰ δίκην τὰ θνήτ᾿ ἄγεις .
ΜΕΝΕΛΑΟΣ
τί δ᾿ ἔστιν ; εὐχὰς ὡς ἐκαίνισας θεῶν .
ΕΚΑΒΗ


αἰνῶ σε , Μενέλα᾿ , εἰ κτενεῖς δάμαρτα σήν .
ὁρᾶν δὲ τήνδε φεῦγε , μή σ᾿ ἕλῃ πόθῳ .
αἱρεῖ γὰρ ἀνδρῶν ὄμματ᾿ , ἐξαιρεῖ πόλεις ,
πίμπρησιν οἴκους · ὧδ᾿ ἔχει κηλήματα .
ἐγώ νιν οἶδα καὶ σὺ χοἰ πεπονθότες .

Menelaus

O the beautiful shine of the sun
in which I will conquer my wife
Helen . For , I , Menelaus , who indeed underwent
Many hardships in war and fallen upon the city
Now I am going to Greece with the Achaean army .
I came from Troy not so much on account of what they expect , the
woman , but for the man who
Cheated and took my wife as plunder from my home ,
So now that this man has paid the penalty by the will of the Gods
Both himself and his land have fallen to the Greek spears .
But I have come to fetch the Spartan woman ( for I do not gladly
Speak the name of the wife who was at one time mine ) .
For she is in this lodging for prisoners ,
Counted among the other Trojan women .
Those who toiled with their spears for her
Have given her to me to kill , or if I don’t
Want to kill her , to bring back to the land of the Argives .
But I for part decided not to let Helen meet her fate in Troy ,
But to lead her back to Greece by ship-speeding oar
And give her to death there ,
As compensation for all those whose loved ones were killed in Ilium .
But come on now , make way into the house , comrades ,
And take care of her , dragging her by the bloodthirsty
Hair . Whenever a fair wind comes ,
We will send her to Greece .

Hecuba

O bearer of earth and one sitting upon the earth ,
Whoever you might be , so hard to know ,
Zeus , whether the force of nature or the mind of mortals ,
I offer prayers to you . For walking along a silent road
You lead all mortals toward justice .

Menelaus

But what is this ? What strange prayers you make to the gods .

Hecuba

I praise you , Menelaus , if you kill your wife .
But flee from looking at her , lest she seize you with longing .
For she seizes the eyes of men , destroys cities ,
And burns homes . Thus are the charms she has .
I know her , as do you and all who have undergone this .

Menelaus

What a glorious day it is ! A happy dawn !
Today I’ll lay hands on my own wife ,
Helen . I’m the one who worked to get her -
With the army’s help . I’m Menelaus .
I came from Troy , but not for what they think :
Not for the woman , but that man , that traitor ,
The guest who tricked me , took away my wife
From my own home ! And now , thanks to the gods ,
He’s got his punishment , he and his land .
Greek spears have laid them low . But I have come
To get Miss Sparta : I won’t say the name -
My former wife . She’s in detention here
With the Trojan girls , the prisoners .
The men who fought with spears to capture her
Gave her to me to kill , or if I’d rather ,
To take back home with me to the land of Argos .
I decided not to intervene
With Helen’s fate in Troy but to take her back
By ship to Hellas . Let them kill her there ,
As retribution for those lost at Troy .
But go now , men , and get her from the tent !
Drag that woman here , bring her to me
By her blood-guilty hair ! When fair winds come ,
We’ll take her back with us to the land of Greece .

Hecuba

Sustainer of the Earth , in heaven above ,
Whoever you may be , Divine Unknown ,
Zeus , Fate of Nature , or the Mind of Man ,
I pray to you : you come with silent tread
And bring some justice to this affair of mortals .

Menelaus

What’s this ? What a strange new way to pray .

Hecuba

Menalaus , I approve your plan
To kill your wife . But flee her hellish sight !
She’ll trap you with desire . She traps men’s eyes ,
Ruins cities , burns up homes : she has such charms !
I know her . So do you , so do her victims .