Chapter 16

16  Hecuba

 

He cuba's life was one of grief and sorrow．She saw withher own eyes her eldest born Hector killed and insulted by Achilles．She saw her son Polites  slain  in front of her by Pyrrhus．And she saw her husband，the aged Priam，dragged towards the household altar and ruthlessly  butchered there．After the fall of Troy she was carried into  slavery ．Shehad the misfortune to witness her daughter Polyxena，her soleconsolation in  bondage ，sacrificed at the tomb of Achilles．She had the sad fate to see washed ashore the corpse of her young estson Polydorus，who had been entrusted to the Thracian  king for safekeeping．With her fifty children all dead she became thequeen of sorrows from whom no other woman could obtain the crown ．Yet in her distress and despair，she plucked up hercourage to avenge herself upon the Thracian king，who had murdered her son in order to get her son's gold．Later，as Dionysushad  prophesied ，she was transformed into a dog with bloodshoteyes and，unable to endure the new misery，she leapt into thesea and thus ended her unfortunate life．

 

16 赫克犹巴

 

赫克犹巴的一生充满了痛苦与悲哀。她亲眼目睹了长子海克特被阿基里斯侮辱，尔后被杀害；儿子波利斯被皮洛士杀死在自己面前；年迈的丈夫皮安姆被拖到家庭祭坛残酷地处死。特洛伊沦陷后，她成了一名奴隶。她又不幸地看到了自己在奴役中的惟一安慰——女儿波里丝娜被血祭于阿基里斯的墓前。为了使最小的儿子波里德诺斯能得到妥善的照顾，她把他委托给了塞希国王。可是，不幸的命运又使她看到了被冲到海边的儿子的尸体。她的50个孩子都死了，赫克犹巴因此成为悲哀女王，而别的女人都无法得到这顶王冠。然而，即使处于痛苦与绝望之中，她仍旧鼓足勇气向塞希国王复仇，因为塞希国王为了得到她儿子的黄金而杀死了他。后来，正如狄俄尼索斯所预言，她被变成了一条狗，眼带血丝。她不堪忍受这种新的痛苦，就跳进海里，结束了自己不幸的一生。