ORESTES.
_Ques._ Who was Orestes?
_Ans._ He was the son of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra. At the time of
his father's assassination, Orestes, then a child, was saved by his
sister Electra, who sent him secretly to their uncle Strophius, king
of Phocis. Here he formed a friendship with Pylades, the son of that
monarch, which was so true and constant that it passed into a proverb.
Orestes was urged by messages from his sister Electra, to avenge the
murder of his father, and her counsels were confirmed by the responses
of the oracle of Apollo at Delphi. Orestes, accompanied by his friend
Pyl´ades, repaired in disguise to Mycenæ. Here he announced himself to
Clytemnestra as a messenger from Strophius, bringing news of the death
of her son Orestes. The guilty queen feigned to grieve at these
tidings, but Ægisthus made no effort to conceal his satisfaction.
Orestes was now seized with horror at the thought of the deed which he
was about to commit, but the reproaches of Electra, and the
remembrance of his father's cruel fate, banished every thought of
pity, and he slew Clytemnestra and Ægisthus with his own hand. This
act, however justified by the guilt of Clytemnestra, and the express
command of the gods, was abhorrent to nature, and could not pass
unavenged. Orestes was pursued by the Furies, and wandered frantic and
despairing from land to land, always accompanied by the faithful
Pyl´ades.
The oracle of Apollo was consulted, and the Pythia declared that
Orestes would not be delivered until he had visited the Tauric
Chersone´sus, and brought from thence to Argos, a certain statue of
Diana, from the temple of that goddess. It was the custom at Tauris,
to sacrifice all strangers at the altar of Diana; Orestes and Pyl´ades
were accordingly seized on their arrival, and carried as victims to
the temple. The officiating priestess was no other than Iphigenia, the
sister of Orestes, whom Diana had saved when she was about to be
immolated at Aulis. Perceiving that the strangers were Greeks, she
offered to spare the life of one, on condition that he would be the
bearer of a letter to Greece.
This proposal gave rise to a memorable contest of friendship, each
desiring to sacrifice himself for the other. Pyl´ades at length
yielded to Orestes, and consented to take the letter. His surprise was
great on perceiving that it was addressed to Orestes himself; an
explanation followed, and Iphigenia resolved to fly from Tauris with
her brother. Their plans were so well laid, that they not only
succeeded in escaping unobserved, but were also enabled to carry off
the statue of Diana, which they brought to Argos.
Orestes reigned many years in Mycenæ, and was married to his cousin
Hermi´one, daughter of Menela´us and Helen. Pyl´ades married Electra,
the sister of his friend.
The tragic poets add many incidents to the story of Orestes. They say
that when pursued by the Furies, he took refuge in the temple of
Apollo, at Delphi. By the command of that god, he repaired to Athens,
where he was tried by the court of Areop´agus. The judges were divided
in their sentiments, but Minerva interfered in behalf of Orestes, and
he was acquitted.
HECTOR.
_Ques._ Who was Hector?
_Ans._ He was the son of Priam and Hec´uba, and the most valiant of
all the Trojan chiefs who fought against the Greeks. The Fates had
decreed that Troy should not be taken as long as Hector lived. The
hero knew that he was destined to fall before the walls of his native
city, and that he could at best only postpone the ruin of his country
for a little time. Not discouraged by this, he performed prodigies of
valor, and slew, with his own hand, Patroclus, the friend of
Achil´les. He next went out to meet Achil´les himself, notwithstanding
the remonstrances of Priam and Hec´uba, and the tears of his wife
Androm´ache. He fell as we have seen, and this event was shortly
followed by the overthrow of his father's kingdom. Hector was not only
distinguished as a warrior and a patriot; he was equally admirable as
a son, husband, and father; and his character is perhaps the noblest
which has been described by any writer of antiquity.
When Troy was taken, Calchas excited much uneasiness among the Greeks,
by a prediction, that if Asty´anax, the son of Hector, were permitted
to live, he would one day avenge his father's death, and raise Troy
from its ruins. Diligent search was therefore made for the child, who
had been concealed by his mother in the recesses of Hector's tomb.
Here he was discovered by Ulys´ses. Disregarding the prayers of the
unhappy Androm´ache, the Grecian commanders precipitated the boy from
the summit of a lofty tower.
OEDIPUS--ETEOCLES AND POLYNICES.
_Ques._ What was the story of these princes?
_Ans._ Oedipus was the son of La´ius, king of Thebes. He was exposed
by his father immediately on his birth, to avoid the fulfillment of an
oracle which declared that La´ius was destined to fall by the hand of
one of his children. Oedipus was found by a herdsman, who brought him
to Pol´ybus, king of Corinth. This monarch was childless, and adopted
the infant as his own.
When Oedipus was grown to manhood, he desired to learn something of
his real parentage, and went to consult the oracle of Delphi. The god
warned him to shun his native country, declaring that if he returned
thither, he would become the murderer of his father, and be guilty of
crimes which would draw upon him the vengeance of the gods. Oedipus
understood this of Corinth, and instead of returning to that city,
proceeded to Thebes. Here he slew his father La´ius in an accidental
encounter, and, after his victory over the Sphinx, which we have
already mentioned, he fulfilled the other predictions of the oracle.
Oedipus reigned many years in Thebes before he discovered his
parentage, and the crimes which he had unknowingly committed. In his
despair, he put out his eyes, and went into exile, leaving the throne
to his sons Ete´ocles and Polyni´ces. It was agreed between the
brothers that they should reign each a year alternately. Ete´ocles
first ascended the throne; but when the year had expired, he refused
to resign the crown. Polyni´ces was indignant at this breach of faith,
and fled to Argos, where he married the daughter of King Adrastus.
This monarch assembled a large army to enforce the claims of his
son-in-law. The command of the expedition was given to seven
chieftains, who were to attack each one of the seven gates of Thebes.
After all the Argive leaders, except Adrastus, had perished before the
walls, it was proposed that Ete´ocles and Polyni´ces should decide the
war by single combat. The brothers fought with such animosity that
both fell, mortally wounded. The battle was then renewed, and the
Argives were totally defeated. Creon, the uncle of the fallen princes,
was now king of Thebes; he had the body of Ete´ocles honorably buried,
but he left the remains of Polyni´ces exposed to the dogs and
vultures, and forbade, under pain of death, that any one should bestow
on him the rites of sepulture. He thus carried his vengeance beyond
the grave, as, according to Greek superstition, the souls of the
unburied were excluded for a hundred years from the Elysian fields.
Antig´one, the daughter of Oedipus, had, meanwhile, accompanied her
father in his exile, and watched over him with touching devotion until
death released her from this filial duty. She no sooner learned the
cruel order of Creon, than she resolved, at whatever hazard, to
perform the funeral rites for Polyni´ces. She succeeded in approaching
the corpse, which she covered with earth, making the usual libations.
While thus engaged, Antig´one was seized and brought before Creon. She
defended nobly the pious act which she had performed, and was
condemned by the tyrant to be entombed alive.
The misfortunes of Oedipus and his children have been celebrated by
three Greek tragedians: Æschylus, Sophocles and Euripides. In the
tragedy of Sophocles which bears her name, the character of Antig´one
is beautifully drawn. We have the sternest heroism, tempered always by
the tenderness of filial piety and sisterly devotion. The whole
presents the finest ideal of womanly excellence which can be found in
the writings of any ancient poet.
The following lines are taken from Dale's translation of the
Antig´one. Creon reproaches the heroine with having violated the laws;
she replies:
"Ne'er did eternal Jove such laws ordain,
Or Justice, throned amid th' infernal powers,
Who on mankind these holier rites imposed--
Nor can I deem thine edict armed with power
To contravene the firm unwritten laws
Of the just gods, thyself a weak frail mortal!
... I knew before
That I must die, though thou had'st ne'er proclaimed it,
And if I perish ere th' allotted term,
I deem that death a blessing. Who that lives
Like me encompassed by unnumbered ills,
But would account it blessedness to die?
If then I meet the doom thy laws assign,
It nothing grieves me. Had I left my brother,
From my own mother sprung, on the bare earth
To lie unburied, that, indeed, might grieve me;
But for this deed I mourn not." ...