despair, be guilty of?

(The ATTENDANT takes the children into the house.



MEDEA (chanting within)

Ah, me! the agony I have suffered, deep enough to call for these



laments! Curse you and your father too, ye children damned, sons of

a doomed mother! Ruin seize the whole family!



NURSE (chanting)

Ah me! ah me! the pity of it! Why, pray, do thy children share



their father's crime? Why hatest thou them? Woe is you, poor children,

how do I grieve for you lest ye suffer some outrage! Strange are the



tempers of princes, and maybe because they seldom have to obey, and

mostly lord it over others, change they their moods with difficulty.



'Tis better then to have been trained to live on equal terms. Be it

mine to reach old age, not in proud pomp, but in security!



Moderation wins the day first as a better word for men to use, and

likewise it is far the best course for them to pursue; but greatness



that doth o'erreach itself, brings no blessing to mortal men; but pays

a penalty of greater ruin whenever fortune is wroth with a family.



(The CHORUS enters. The following lines between

the NURSE, CHORUS, and MEDEA are sung.)



CHORUS

I heard the voice, uplifted loud, of our poor Colchian lady, nor



yet is she quiet; speak, aged dame, for as I stood by the house with

double gates I heard a voice of weeping from within, and I do



grieve, lady, for the sorrows of this house, for it hath won my love.

NURSE



'Tis a house no more; all that is passed away long since; a

royal bride keeps Jason at her side, while our mistress pines away



in her bower, finding no comfort for her soul in aught her friends can

say.



MEDEA (within)

Oh, oh! Would that Heaven's levin bolt would cleave this head in



twain! What gain is life to me? Woe, woe is me! O, to die and win

release, quitting this loathed existence!



CHORUS

Didst hear, O Zeus, thou earth, and thou, O light, the piteous



note of woe the hapless wife is uttering? How shall a yearning for

that insatiate resting-place ever hasten for thee, poor reckless



one, the end that death alone can bring? Never pray for that. And if

thy lord prefers a fresh love, be not angered with him for that;



Zeus will judge 'twixt thee and him herein. Then mourn not for thy

husband's loss too much, nor waste thyself away.



MEDEA (within)

Great Themis, and husband of Themis, behold what I am suffering



now, though I did bind that accursed one, my husband, by strong

oaths to me! O, to see him and his bride some day brought to utter



destruction, they and their house with them, for that they presume

to wrong me thus unprovoked. O my father, my country, that I have left



to my shame, after slaying my own brother.

NURSE



Do ye hear her words, how loudly she adjures Themis, oft

invoked, and Zeus, whom men regard as keeper of their oaths? On no



mere trifle surely will our mistress spend her rage.

CHORUS



Would that she would come forth for us to see, and listen to the

words of counsel we might give, if haply she might lay aside the



fierce fury of her wrath, and her temper stern. Never be my zeal at

any rate denied my friends! But go thou and bring her hither outside



the house, and tell her this our friendly thought; haste thee ere

she do some mischief to those inside the house, for this sorrow of



hers is mounting high.

NURSE



This will I do; but I doubt whether I shall persuade my

mistress; still willingly will I undertake this trouble for you;



albeit, she glares upon her servants with the look of a lioness with

cubs, whenso anyone draws nigh to speak to her. Wert thou to call



the men of old time rude uncultured boors thou wouldst not err, seeing

that they devised their hymns for festive occasions, for banquets, and



to grace the board, a pleasure to catch the ear, shed o'er our life,

but no man hath found a way to allay hated grief by music and the



minstrel's variedstrain, whence arise slaughters and fell strokes

of fate to o'erthrow the homes of men. And yet this were surely a



gain, to heal men's wounds by music's spell, but why tune they their

idle song where rich banquets are spread? For of itself doth the

• mistress [´mistris] n.女主人；情妇；女能手 (初中英语单词)


• accord [ə´kɔ:d] n.&vi.符合 vt.给与 (初中英语单词)


• pledge [pledʒ] n.信物；誓约vt.使发誓 (初中英语单词)


• witness [´witnis] n.见证人 vt.目击 (初中英语单词)


• learnt [lə:nt] learn 的过去式(分词) (初中英语单词)


• hither [´hiðə] ad.到此处 (初中英语单词)


• scheme [ski:m] n.计划；阴谋，诡计 (初中英语单词)


• treatment [´tri:tmənt] n.待遇；对待；治疗 (初中英语单词)


• plunge [plʌndʒ] v.插进 n.投入；冲击 (初中英语单词)


• prince [´prins] n.王子；亲王；君主 (初中英语单词)


• triumph [´traiəmf] n.胜利 vi.得胜，战胜 (初中英语单词)


• childish [´tʃaildiʃ] a.孩子的；幼稚的 (初中英语单词)


• attendant [ə´tendənt] n.随员 a.伴随的 (初中英语单词)


• grieve [gri:v] v.&n.(使)悲痛；哀悼 (初中英语单词)


• proclaim [prə´kleim] vt.宣布；公布；声明 (初中英语单词)


• mischief [´mistʃif] n.伤害；故障；调皮 (初中英语单词)


• beginning [bi´giniŋ] n.开始，开端；起源 (初中英语单词)


• traitor [´treitə] n.叛徒，卖国贼 (初中英语单词)


• learning [´lə:niŋ] n.学习；学问；知识 (初中英语单词)


• passion [´pæʃən] n.激情；激怒；恋爱 (初中英语单词)


• wretched [´retʃid] a.可怜的；倒霉的 (初中英语单词)


• suffering [´sʌfəriŋ] n.痛苦；灾害 (初中英语单词)


• lightning [´laitniŋ] n.闪电 a.突然的 (初中英语单词)


• restless [´restləs] a.没有休息的 (初中英语单词)


• guilty [´gilti] a.有罪的；心虚的 (初中英语单词)


• pursue [pə´sju:] v.追赶；追踪；从事 (初中英语单词)


• blessing [´blesiŋ] n.祝福 (初中英语单词)


• whenever [wen´evə] conj.&ad.无论何时 (初中英语单词)


• chorus [´kɔ:rəs] n.合唱；齐声 v.合唱 (初中英语单词)


• hasten [´heisən] vt.催促；促进 vi.赶紧 (初中英语单词)


• keeper [´ki:pə] n.管理人；看守；保管人 (初中英语单词)


• trifle [´traifəl] n.琐事，小事；少量 (初中英语单词)


• counsel [´kaunsəl] n.商议；劝告；律师 (初中英语单词)


• temper [´tempə] n.韧度 v.锻炼；调和 (初中英语单词)


• persuade [pə´sweid] v.(被)说服；使相信 (初中英语单词)


• undertake [,ʌndə´teik] vt.从事；承担；担保 (初中英语单词)


• safeguard [´seifgɑ:d] n.保护措施；护送者 (高中英语单词)


• finding [´faindiŋ] n.发现物；判断；结果 (高中英语单词)


• seeing [si:iŋ] see的现在分词 n.视觉 (高中英语单词)


• chamber [´tʃeimbə] n.房间；议院；会议室 (高中英语单词)


• climax [´klaimæks] n.顶点；高潮 (高中英语单词)


• grudge [grʌdʒ] vt.&n.吝啬；怨恨 (高中英语单词)


• naught [nɔ:t] n.无；零 (高中英语单词)


• repent [ri´pent] v.后悔；悔改；悔悟 (高中英语单词)


• beware [bi´weə] v.(用于祈使句)谨防 (高中英语单词)


• tempest [´tempist] n.暴风雨 (高中英语单词)


• reckless [´rekləs] a.不注意的；鲁莽的 (高中英语单词)


• herald [´herəld] n.先驱；预兆 vt.预示 (高中英语单词)


• anguish [´æŋgwiʃ] n.(极度的)痛苦；苦恼 (高中英语单词)


• damned [dæmd] a.该死的 ad.非常，极 (高中英语单词)


• mortal [´mɔ:tl] a.致命的 n.凡人 (高中英语单词)


• penalty [´penlti] n.刑罚；惩罚；障碍 (高中英语单词)


• strain [strein] vt.拉紧 vi.拖 n.张力 (高中英语单词)


• fleece [fli:s] n.羊毛；羊毛状物 (英语四级单词)


• wedded [´wedid] a.(已)结婚的；献身的 (英语四级单词)


• wasting [´weistiŋ] a.&n.浪费(的) (英语四级单词)


• warning [´wɔ:niŋ] n.警告；前兆 a.预告的 (英语四级单词)


• billow [´biləu] n.巨浪 v.(使)翻腾 (英语四级单词)


• bridegroom [´braidgru:m] n.新郎 (英语四级单词)


• calamity [kə´læmiti] n.灾害，大灾难 (英语四级单词)


• grievous [´gri:vəs] a.痛苦的；严重的 (英语四级单词)


• verily [´verili] ad.真实的；肯定地 (英语四级单词)


• conjure [´kʌndʒə] v.祈求；召(鬼)；变魔术 (英语四级单词)


• savagely [´sævidʒli] ad.野蛮地；原始地 (英语四级单词)


• gathering [´gæðəriŋ] n.集会，聚集 (英语四级单词)


• cleave [kli:v] v.劈(开) vi.粘住；依恋 (英语四级单词)


• accursed [ə´kə:sid] a.被诅咒的；可憎的 (英语四级单词)


• willingly [´wiliŋli] ad.情愿地，乐意地 (英语四级单词)


• varied [´veərid] a.各种各样的 (英语四级单词)


• whence [wens] ad.从何处；从那里 (英语四级单词)


• smitten [´smitn] smite的过去分词 (英语六级单词)


• hapless [´hæpləs] a.不幸的；倒楣的 (英语六级单词)


• minded [´maindid] a.有…心的 (英语六级单词)


• weeping [´wi:piŋ] a.&n.哭泣(的) (英语六级单词)


• herein [,hiər´in] ad.在此，鉴于 (英语六级单词)


• festive [´festiv] a.喜庆的，欢乐的 (英语六级单词)