章节正文
strophe 1
I have lived with the Muses
And on lofty heights:
Many doctrines have I learned;
But Fate is above us all.
Nothing avails against Fate
Neither the Thracian tablets
Marked with Orphic symbols,
Nor the herbs given by Phoebus
To the children of Asclepius
To heal men of their sickness.
antistrophe 1
None can come near to her altars,
None worship her statues;
She regards not our sacrifice.
O sacredgoddess,
Bear no more hardly upon me
Than in days overpast!
With a gesture Zeus judges,
But the sentence is yours.
Hard iron yields to your strength;
Your fierce will knows not gentleness.
strophe 2
And the Goddess has bound you
Ineluctably in the gyves of her hands.
Yield.
Can your tears give life to the dead?
For the sons of the Gods
Swoon in the shadow of Death.
Dear was she in our midst,
Dear still among the dead,
For the noblest of women was she
Who lay in your bed.
antistrophe 2
Ah!
Let the grave of your spouse
Be no more counted as a tomb,
But revered as the Gods,
And greeted by all who pass by!
The wanderer shall turn from his path,
Saying: 'She died for her lord;
A blessed spirit she is now.
Hail, O sacred lady, be our friend!'
Thus shall men speak of her.
(ADMETUS is still crouched on the Palace steps, when
HERACLES enters from the side, leading a veiled woman.)
LEADER OF THE CHORUS
But see! The son of Alcmena, as I think, comes to your house.
(ADMETUS uncovers his head, and faces the newcomer.)
HERACLES
Admetus, a man should speak freely to his friends, and not keep
reproaches silent in his heart. Since I was near you in your
misfortune, should have wished to show myself your friend. But you did
not tell me the dead body was your wife's, and you took me into your
house as if you were in mourning only for a stranger. And I put a
garland of flowers upon my head, and poured wine-offerings to the
Gods, when your house was filled with lamentation" target="_blank" title="n.悲痛，哀悼，痛哭">lamentation. I blame you, yes, I
blame you for this-but I will not upbraid you in your misfortune.
Why I turned back and am here, I shall tell you. Take and keep
this woman for me until I have slain the King of the Bistones and
return here with the horses of Thrace. If ill happens to me-may I
return safely!-I give her to you to serve in your house.
With much striving I won her to my hands. On my way I found public
games, worthy of athletes, and I have brought back this woman whom I
won as the prize of victory. The winners of the easy tests had horses;
heads of cattle were given to those who won in boxing and wrestling.
Then came a woman as a prize. Since I was present, it would have
been shameful for me to miss this glorious gain. Therefore, as I said,
you must take care of this woman, whom I bring to you, not as one
stolen but as the prize of my efforts. Perhaps in time you will
approve of what I do.
ADMETUS
Not from disdain, nor to treat you as a foe, did I conceal my
wife's fate from you. But if you had turned aside to another man's
hearth, one more grief had been added to my sorrow. It was enough that
I should weep my woe.
This woman-O King, I beg it may be thus-enjoin some other
Thessalian, one who is not in sorrow, to guard her. In Pherae there
are many to welcome you. Do not remind me of my grief. Seeing her in
my house, I could not restrain my tears. Add not a further anguish
to my pain, for what I suffer is too great. And then-where could I
harbour a young woman in my house? For she is young-I see by her
clothes and jewels. Could she live with the men under my roof? How,
then, could she remain chaste, if she moved to and fro among the young
men? Heracles, it is not easy to restrain the young....I am thinking
of your interests....Must I take her to my dead wife's room? How could
I endure her to enter that bed? I fear a double reproach-from my
people, who would accuse me of betraying my saviour to slip into
another woman's bed, and from my dead wife, who deserves my respect,
for which I must take care.
O woman, whosoever you may be, you have the form of Alcestis,
and your body is like hers.
Ah! By all the Gods, take her from my sight! Do not insult a
broken man. When I look upon her-she seems my wife-my heart is torn
asunder-tears flow from my eyes. Miserable creature that I am, now
taste the bitterness of my sorrow.
LEADER
I do not praise this meeting; but, whatever happens, we must
accept the gifts of the Gods.
HERACLES
Oh, that I might bring your wife back into the light of day from
the dwelling of the Under-Gods, as a gift of grace to you!
ADMETUS
I know you would wish this-but to what end? The dead cannot return
to the light of day.
HERACLES
Do not exaggerate, but bear this with decorum.
ADMETUS
Easier to advise than bear the test.
HERACLES
How will it aid you to lament for ever?
ADMETUS
I know-but my love whirls me away.
HERACLES
Love for the dead leads us to tears.
ADMETUS
I am overwhelmed beyond words.
HERACLES
You have lost a good wife-who denies it?
ADMETUS
So that for me there is no more pleasure in life.
HERACLES
Time will heal this open wound.
ADMETUS
You might say Time, if Time were death!
HERACLES
Another woman, a new marriage, shall console you.
ADMETUS
Oh, hush! What have you said? A thing unbelievable!
HERACLES
What! You will not marry? Your bed will remain widowed?
ADMETUS
No other woman shall ever lie at my side.
HERACLES
Do you think that avails the dead?
ADMETUS
Wherever she may be, I must do her honour.
HERACLES
I praise you-but men will call you mad.
ADMETUS
Yet never more shall I be called a bridegroom.
HERACLES
I praise your faithful love to your wife-
ADMETUS
May I die if I betray her even when dead!
HERACLES (offering him the veiled woman's hand.)
Receive her then into your noble house.
ADMETUS
No, by Zeus who begot you, no!
HERACLES
Yet you will do wrong if you do not take her.
ADMETUS
If I do it, remorse will tear my heart.
HERACLES
Yield-perhaps it will be a good thing for you.
ADMETUS
Ah! If only you had not won her in the contest!
HERACLES
But I conquered-and you conquered with me.
ADMETUS
It is true-but let the woman go hence.
HERACLES
She shall go, if she must. But first-ought she to go?
ADMETUS
She must-unless it would anger you.
HERACLES
There is good reason for my zeal.
ADMETUS
You have conquered then-but not for my pleasure.
HERACLES
One day you will praise me for it-be persuaded.
ADMETUS (to his attendants)
Lead her in, since she must be received in this house.
HERACLES
No, I cannot leave such a woman to servants.
ADMETUS
Then lead her in yourself, if you wish.
HERACLES
I must leave her in your hands.
ADMETUS
I must not touch her-let her go into the house.
HERACLES
I trust only in your right hand.
ADMETUS
O King, you force me to this against my will.
HERACLES
Put forth your hand and take this woman.
ADMETUS (turning aside his head)
It is held out.
HERACLES
As if you were cutting off a Gorgon's head! Do you hold her?
ADMETUS
Yes.
HERACLES
Then keep her. You shall not deny that the son of Zeus is a
grateful guest. (Takes off the veil and shows ALCESTIS.) Look at
her, and see if she is not like your wife. And may joy put an end to
all your sorrow!
ADMETUS (drops her hand and starts back)
O Gods! What am I to say? Unhoped-for wonder! Do I really look
upon my wife? Or I am snared in the mockery of a God?
I have lived with the Muses
And on lofty heights:
Many doctrines have I learned;
But Fate is above us all.
Nothing avails against Fate
Neither the Thracian tablets
Marked with Orphic symbols,
Nor the herbs given by Phoebus
To the children of Asclepius
To heal men of their sickness.
antistrophe 1
None can come near to her altars,
None worship her statues;
She regards not our sacrifice.
O sacredgoddess,
Bear no more hardly upon me
Than in days overpast!
With a gesture Zeus judges,
But the sentence is yours.
Hard iron yields to your strength;
Your fierce will knows not gentleness.
strophe 2
And the Goddess has bound you
Ineluctably in the gyves of her hands.
Yield.
Can your tears give life to the dead?
For the sons of the Gods
Swoon in the shadow of Death.
Dear was she in our midst,
Dear still among the dead,
For the noblest of women was she
Who lay in your bed.
antistrophe 2
Ah!
Let the grave of your spouse
Be no more counted as a tomb,
But revered as the Gods,
And greeted by all who pass by!
The wanderer shall turn from his path,
Saying: 'She died for her lord;
A blessed spirit she is now.
Hail, O sacred lady, be our friend!'
Thus shall men speak of her.
(ADMETUS is still crouched on the Palace steps, when
HERACLES enters from the side, leading a veiled woman.)
LEADER OF THE CHORUS
But see! The son of Alcmena, as I think, comes to your house.
(ADMETUS uncovers his head, and faces the newcomer.)
HERACLES
Admetus, a man should speak freely to his friends, and not keep
reproaches silent in his heart. Since I was near you in your
misfortune, should have wished to show myself your friend. But you did
not tell me the dead body was your wife's, and you took me into your
house as if you were in mourning only for a stranger. And I put a
garland of flowers upon my head, and poured wine-offerings to the
Gods, when your house was filled with lamentation" target="_blank" title="n.悲痛，哀悼，痛哭">lamentation. I blame you, yes, I
blame you for this-but I will not upbraid you in your misfortune.
Why I turned back and am here, I shall tell you. Take and keep
this woman for me until I have slain the King of the Bistones and
return here with the horses of Thrace. If ill happens to me-may I
return safely!-I give her to you to serve in your house.
With much striving I won her to my hands. On my way I found public
games, worthy of athletes, and I have brought back this woman whom I
won as the prize of victory. The winners of the easy tests had horses;
heads of cattle were given to those who won in boxing and wrestling.
Then came a woman as a prize. Since I was present, it would have
been shameful for me to miss this glorious gain. Therefore, as I said,
you must take care of this woman, whom I bring to you, not as one
stolen but as the prize of my efforts. Perhaps in time you will
approve of what I do.
ADMETUS
Not from disdain, nor to treat you as a foe, did I conceal my
wife's fate from you. But if you had turned aside to another man's
hearth, one more grief had been added to my sorrow. It was enough that
I should weep my woe.
This woman-O King, I beg it may be thus-enjoin some other
Thessalian, one who is not in sorrow, to guard her. In Pherae there
are many to welcome you. Do not remind me of my grief. Seeing her in
my house, I could not restrain my tears. Add not a further anguish
to my pain, for what I suffer is too great. And then-where could I
harbour a young woman in my house? For she is young-I see by her
clothes and jewels. Could she live with the men under my roof? How,
then, could she remain chaste, if she moved to and fro among the young
men? Heracles, it is not easy to restrain the young....I am thinking
of your interests....Must I take her to my dead wife's room? How could
I endure her to enter that bed? I fear a double reproach-from my
people, who would accuse me of betraying my saviour to slip into
another woman's bed, and from my dead wife, who deserves my respect,
for which I must take care.
O woman, whosoever you may be, you have the form of Alcestis,
and your body is like hers.
Ah! By all the Gods, take her from my sight! Do not insult a
broken man. When I look upon her-she seems my wife-my heart is torn
asunder-tears flow from my eyes. Miserable creature that I am, now
taste the bitterness of my sorrow.
LEADER
I do not praise this meeting; but, whatever happens, we must
accept the gifts of the Gods.
HERACLES
Oh, that I might bring your wife back into the light of day from
the dwelling of the Under-Gods, as a gift of grace to you!
ADMETUS
I know you would wish this-but to what end? The dead cannot return
to the light of day.
HERACLES
Do not exaggerate, but bear this with decorum.
ADMETUS
Easier to advise than bear the test.
HERACLES
How will it aid you to lament for ever?
ADMETUS
I know-but my love whirls me away.
HERACLES
Love for the dead leads us to tears.
ADMETUS
I am overwhelmed beyond words.
HERACLES
You have lost a good wife-who denies it?
ADMETUS
So that for me there is no more pleasure in life.
HERACLES
Time will heal this open wound.
ADMETUS
You might say Time, if Time were death!
HERACLES
Another woman, a new marriage, shall console you.
ADMETUS
Oh, hush! What have you said? A thing unbelievable!
HERACLES
What! You will not marry? Your bed will remain widowed?
ADMETUS
No other woman shall ever lie at my side.
HERACLES
Do you think that avails the dead?
ADMETUS
Wherever she may be, I must do her honour.
HERACLES
I praise you-but men will call you mad.
ADMETUS
Yet never more shall I be called a bridegroom.
HERACLES
I praise your faithful love to your wife-
ADMETUS
May I die if I betray her even when dead!
HERACLES (offering him the veiled woman's hand.)
Receive her then into your noble house.
ADMETUS
No, by Zeus who begot you, no!
HERACLES
Yet you will do wrong if you do not take her.
ADMETUS
If I do it, remorse will tear my heart.
HERACLES
Yield-perhaps it will be a good thing for you.
ADMETUS
Ah! If only you had not won her in the contest!
HERACLES
But I conquered-and you conquered with me.
ADMETUS
It is true-but let the woman go hence.
HERACLES
She shall go, if she must. But first-ought she to go?
ADMETUS
She must-unless it would anger you.
HERACLES
There is good reason for my zeal.
ADMETUS
You have conquered then-but not for my pleasure.
HERACLES
One day you will praise me for it-be persuaded.
ADMETUS (to his attendants)
Lead her in, since she must be received in this house.
HERACLES
No, I cannot leave such a woman to servants.
ADMETUS
Then lead her in yourself, if you wish.
HERACLES
I must leave her in your hands.
ADMETUS
I must not touch her-let her go into the house.
HERACLES
I trust only in your right hand.
ADMETUS
O King, you force me to this against my will.
HERACLES
Put forth your hand and take this woman.
ADMETUS (turning aside his head)
It is held out.
HERACLES
As if you were cutting off a Gorgon's head! Do you hold her?
ADMETUS
Yes.
HERACLES
Then keep her. You shall not deny that the son of Zeus is a
grateful guest. (Takes off the veil and shows ALCESTIS.) Look at
her, and see if she is not like your wife. And may joy put an end to
all your sorrow!
ADMETUS (drops her hand and starts back)
O Gods! What am I to say? Unhoped-for wonder! Do I really look
upon my wife? Or I am snared in the mockery of a God?
- worship [´wə:ʃip]
n.&v.崇拜；敬仰 (初中英语单词) - sacred [´seikrid] a.神圣的；庄严的 (初中英语单词)
- gesture [´dʒestʃə] n.手势 v.打手势 (初中英语单词)
- sentence [´sentəns] n.判决 vt.宣判；处刑 (初中英语单词)
- fierce [fiəs] a.残忍的；强烈的 (初中英语单词)
- goddess [´gɔdis] n.女神 (初中英语单词)
- freely [´fri:li] ad.自由地；慷慨地 (初中英语单词)
- mourning [´mɔ:niŋ] n.悲伤；治丧；戴孝 (初中英语单词)
- worthy [´wə:ði] a.有价值的；值得的 (初中英语单词)
- victory [´viktəri] n.胜利，战胜 (初中英语单词)
- boxing [´bɔksiŋ] n.拳击运动 (初中英语单词)
- glorious [´glɔ:riəs] a.光荣的；辉煌的 (初中英语单词)
- therefore [´ðeəfɔ:] ad.&conj.因此；所以 (初中英语单词)
- conceal [kən´si:l] vt.藏；隐瞒 (初中英语单词)
- welcome [´welkəm] a.受欢迎的；可喜的 (初中英语单词)
- remind [ri´maind] vt.提醒；使记(想)起 (初中英语单词)
- endure [in´djuə] vt.忍耐，忍受；坚持 (初中英语单词)
- accuse [ə´kju:z] vt.谴责；控告，告发 (初中英语单词)
- insult [in´sʌlt, ´insʌlt] n.&vt.侮辱；损害 (初中英语单词)
- miserable [´mizərəbəl] a.悲惨的；可怜的 (初中英语单词)
- whatever [wɔt´evə] pron.&a.无论什么 (初中英语单词)
- dwelling [´dweliŋ] n.住所；寓所 (初中英语单词)
- advise [əd´vaiz] vt.忠告；建议；通知 (初中英语单词)
- faithful [´feiθfəl] a.忠实的；可靠的 (初中英语单词)
- betray [bi´trei] vt.背叛；辜负；暴露 (初中英语单词)
- disdain [dis´dein] vt.&n.藐视，轻视 (高中英语单词)
- seeing [si:iŋ] see的现在分词 n.视觉 (高中英语单词)
- restrain [ri´strein] vt.抑制；管束；限制 (高中英语单词)
- bitterness [´bitənis] n.苦味；辛酸；苦难 (高中英语单词)
- exaggerate [ig´zædʒəreit] v.夸张，言过其实 (高中英语单词)
- lament [lə´ment] v.哀悼 n.哀悼；恸哭 (高中英语单词)
- blessed [´blesid] a.享福的；神圣的 (英语四级单词)
- lamentation [,læmen´teiʃən] n.悲痛，哀悼，痛哭 (英语四级单词)
- shameful [´ʃeimfəl] a.可耻的；猥亵的 (英语四级单词)
- chaste [tʃeist] a.贞洁的；高雅的 (英语四级单词)
- saviour [´seiviə] n.救星；救助者 (英语四级单词)
- console [kən´səul] vt.安慰；慰问 (英语四级单词)
- remorse [ri´mɔ:s] n.懊悔；自责；同情 (英语四级单词)
- wanderer [´wɔndərə] n.流浪者 (英语六级单词)
- mockery [´mɔkəri] n.嘲笑；笑柄 (英语六级单词)
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章节正文
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