Seneca, The tragedies Book

Our notes on the Agamemnon and Thyestes are appended to Aeschylus.

Hercules Oetaeus

The longest remaining senecan play, responding to Sophocles' Trachiniae. Hercules opens by asking his father, even though he "crushed all who merited thy bolts," "is heaven still denied?" (6-7). Through his efforts against the chthonians, "the anger of the gods hath been set at naught" (29). He boasts "how trivial Perseus' deeds compared to mine" (50), noting the nietzschean point that "beasts are at end: tis Hercules now begins to hold the place of monster" (55)'by which he "freed the race of men from fear" (6). The chorus for its part displays a roman cosmopolitanism (as opposed to an ancient Greek provincialism) in describing Hercules as "Sharp spear points would not pierce him, no Scythian arrows shot from bended bow, nor darts which cold Sarmatians wield, or the Parthians who, in the land of the rising sun, with surer aim than ever Cretan's was, direct their shafts against the neighboring Arabians" (155-61).

Deianira as "monstrous, dire, horrible" (260)'another chthonian? Despite her beastiality, she is on the same page as her husband regarding the debt owed to him: "though thou didst bear the heavens up, though the whole world owes its peace to thee, a worse pest than Hydra waits thee" (283)'"in the place of beasts has come the hated harlot [in locum venit ferae / invisa paelex]" (289). She is certainly jealous: "if Iole from my Hercules has conceived a child, with mine own hands will I tear it forth untimely" (345-6). Stoicism from her nurse: "what is forbidden we love; if granted it falls from our desire" (357). Spectre of Othello: "out of pity, perchance, he loves her very woes" (362). Nurse is a witch, advising "by magic arts and prayers commingled do wives oft hold fast their husbands" (452), and she explains how "the sea, land, heaven and Tartarus yield to my will, and naught holds to law against my incantations" (461). Deianira wants "if Iole's beauty hath kindled fires in the breast of Hercules, extinguish them every one, and of my beauty let him deeply drink" (556-7). Stoicism from chorus: "for greed, all nature is too little" (631). His son reports how Hercules "a mysterious plague is wasting" (751), from the robe, but "Clotho has thrown aside her very distaff from her trembling hand, and is afraid to complete the fates of Hercules" (769-70). The son reports his father's claim: "Peace has been given to earth, to sky, to sea; all monsters have I subdued" (794-5). After being told that "striving to tear the robe he tears his limbs as well" (830), Deianira realizes that "to the world he must be restored" (844). The problem is that "now with impunity shall cruel kings wield scepters; yea, with impunity now fierce monsters shall be born" (874-5). Indeed, "I have exposed you to tyrants, kings, monsters, wild beats and cruel gods, by slaying your avenger [ego vos tyrannis regibus monstris feris / saevisque rapto vindice opposui deis]" (878-80). Reversing roles from Sophocles, Deianira demands that Hyllus kill her: Wilt thou not do as bidden, wilt not crush monsters, and so be like thy sire?" (998-9); "the Eumenides themselves will acquit thy hand" (1000) because "the whole world comes rushing 'gainst me, on every side the nations rage and the whole universe demands of me its savior" (1017-19). Orpheus had apparently predicted an apocalypse, which Seneca identifies with the loss of Hercules: "The overthrow of Hercules bids us believe the Thracian bard. Soon, soon, when to the universe shall come the day that law shall be overwhelmed, the southern skies shall fall upon Libya's plains and all that the scattered Garamantians possess; ;the northern heavens shall overwhelm all that lies beneath the pole and that Boreas smites with withering blasts. Then from the lost sky the affrighted sun shall fall and banish day. The palace of heaven shall sink, dragging down east and west, and death in some form and chaos shall overwhelm all gods in one destruction; and death shall at last bring doom upon itself" (1100-17). Hercules for his part prays "so may no land produce savage monsters more when I am dead, and let the world ne'er ask for aid of mine; if any evils rise, let avenger rise as well" (1329-31). The chorus is just happy that "now has thy manhood place amongst the stars" (1564). Philoctetes comes from the funeral to advise that "The one enemy on earth which he had not overcome, e'en fire, is vanquished; this also has been added to the beasts; fire has taken its place midst the toils of Hercules" (1614-16); "his gaze was of one who seeks the stars" (1645).

Phoenissae

A short unfinished thing, comprising narratives congruent with the Seven against Thebes, the Phoenician Women, and the Oedipus at Colonus. It opens with Oedipus lamenting that "Laius rages yonder wearing the blood-stained badge of his ravaged kingdom" (40-1). While the son-brothers fight, Antigone understands "the best part of my father's mighty kingdom is my own, my father's self" (55-6), an odd property, surely. She attempts to preserve him, over his objection that "thou dost but protract my burying, and prolong the funeral rites of a living sire" (95), part of his stoic anachronism that "tis the same as killing to forbid death to him who wants it" (99), a sort of an ancient wrongful life claim. But he's also thoroughly modern in the conception that "the right to live or die is in my own hands" (103). He regards himself as a "greater monster" (122) than the Sphinx (on account of the incest/patricide); though he thinks he can be placed "deeper than Tartarus" (145), Antigone reminds him that "he whose misfortunes can no further go, is safely lodged" (199). It's unclear whether Oedipus is dumb, or his society, insofar as he admits "dread crimes which I committed, though in innocence" (218)'very much an absurdity. He recognizes, as part of this recitation, that "even in my infancy I was doomed to death" (243). "a trivial sin is my father's murder; my mother, brought to my marriage chamber, that my guilt might be complete conceived'no greater crime than this can nature brook" (270-3). His sons "have no scruple where passion drives them [NB] headlong; impiously born, they count nothing impious" (298-300). Not sure if he is ironic in "no trivial, no common crime can such high birth perform" (335). "I long for some crime more dreadful than what the causal madness of young men attempts. Not enough for me is war that as yet is between citizens; let brother rush on brother" (351-3). Jocasta for her part thinks "Tis but a trivial thing that I am guilty" (367). "Ignorance till now against our will hath made us guilty; the whole crime was Fortune's, who sinned against us" (450 ff). She notes that fraternal war is a "crime new even to Thebes" (549): "let Oedipus stand before you now, in whose judgment even for error is penalty demanded [quo iudice erroris quoque / poenae petuntur]" (554-5). Polynices: "a wife's mere chattel" (594) and "to fall from a king's estate to slavery is hard" (597). "Kingdoms won by crime are heavier than any exile" (624); "heavy penalty shall he pay; he shall reign. That is the penalty"" (646). Eteocles: "to reign he hath no will who feareth to be hated; the god who made the world set those two things together, hatred and sovereignty. This is the part of a great sovereign, I think, to tread e'en hatred under foot. A people's love forbids a ruler many things; against their rage he has more rights" (655); "sovereignty is well bought at any price" (664).

Octavia

Bona fide Roman history, regarding the Roman imperial house, "under whose rule the whole world was brought" (39). It also concerns how "incestuous passion burns" (50). Nero as "tyrant of a world [orbis tyrannus] he burdens with his shameful yoke" (250). Seneca appears as a character'his apologia, perhaps'assuming that he is in fact the author. His character argues against Nero's "A Caesar should be feared" with "but more loved" (449)'a plain echo of the agon in the Phoenissae and a proto-machiavellianism. Cf. Virgil: "Tis glorious to tower aloft, amongst great men, to have care for father-land, to spare the downtrodden, to abstain from cruel bloodshed, to be slow to wrath, give quiet to the world, peace to one's time" (471-5). "Greatest from highest ever the state exacts" (576). Another ghost, here of Agrippina: "through the rent earth from Tartarus have I come forth [Tellure rupta Tartaro gressum extuli], bringing forth in bloody hand a stygian torch to these curst marriage rites" (593-7). Seneca loses this debate, as Nero demands "let Rome's roofs fall beneath my flames" (830).