Euripides · c. 480-406 BC
Suppliants
ἹκέτιδεςEuripides' Suppliants was probably staged in the late 420s BC. After the failed attack of the Seven against Thebes, the Thebans refuse to give up the bodies of the Argive dead for burial. Their mothers, led by King Adrastus, come as suppliants to Eleusis and beg Theseus of Athens for help, and the play follows his decision, his war against Thebes and the funeral rites. The sections follow the play's own units (prologue, parodos, episodes, choral songs and exodos) and keep the standard line numbers of the Greek text.
Contents · 23 passages
- 1–41Prologue: Aethra at Eleusis sends for Theseus367 words
- 42–86aParodos: the Argive mothers beg Aethra for their sons' bodies341 words
- 87–161First episode: Theseus questions Adrastus about the expedition against Thebes780 words
- 162–251First episode: Adrastus begs Theseus for help and Theseus rebukes him771 words
- 253–285First episode: Adrastus and the Chorus appeal to Theseus334 words
- 286–333First episode: Aethra persuades Theseus to help the suppliants457 words
- 334–364First episode: Theseus decides to put the case to the Athenians296 words
- 365–398First choral song; a Theban Herald arrives at Athens309 words
- 399–464Second episode: the Theban Herald and Theseus debate tyranny and democracy647 words
- 465–513bSecond episode: the Herald forbids the burial of the dead470 words
- 514–563Second episode: Theseus defends the right of burial498 words
- 564–597Second episode: Theseus sends the Herald away and prepares for war367 words
- 598–633Second choral song: the mothers fear for the battle322 words
- 634–730Messenger speech: Theseus defeats the Thebans877 words
- 731–777Third episode: Adrastus hears the end of the battle483 words
- 778–836Kommos: the bodies of the seven chiefs are brought in389 words
- 837–917Fourth episode: Adrastus praises the seven fallen chiefs755 words
- 918–954Fourth episode: Theseus arranges the burial347 words
- 955–1008Third choral song; Evadne appears above the pyre334 words
- 1009–1071Exodos: Evadne leaps onto the pyre of Capaneus538 words
- 1072–1113Exodos: Iphis laments his children417 words
- 1114–1164Exodos: the sons bring the ashes of the seven chiefs421 words
- 1165–1234Exodos: Athena binds Argos to Athens by an oath717 words
More by Euripides
English translation by Edward P. Coleridge (1891). Original text: Greek text: Gilbert Murray (ed.), Euripidis Fabulae, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1913, as digitised by Perseus. English: Edward P. Coleridge, The Plays of Euripides, London: George Bell and Sons, first published 1891 (Bohn's Classical Library; the Perseus header records a later printing).
Greek text and translation from the Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Perseus Digital Library); translation public domain. Introductions, summaries and notes © GreekMythology.com.
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