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• The Works of Voltaire: the Dramatic Works of Voltaire Vol. Viii— Part I
• MÉrope
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• A Letter to the Marquis Scipio Maffei, Author of the Italian Mérope, and Many Other Celebrated Performances.
• A Letter From M. De La Lindelle to M. De Voltaire.
• The Answer of M. De Voltaire to M. De La Lindelle.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• Olympia
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• The Orphan of China
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• To the Most Noble Duke of Richelieu, Marshal and Peer of France, First Gentleman of the Chamber to His Majesty, Governor of Languedoc, and Member of the Academy of Sciences.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• Brutus
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• The Dramatic Works of Voltaire Vol. Viii— Part Ii
• Mahomet.
• To His Majesty the King of Prussia.
• A Letter From M. De Voltaire to Pope Benedict XIV.
• The Answer of Pope Benedict XIV. To M. De Voltaire. Benedictus P. P. Dilecto Filio Salutem & Apostolicam Benedictionem.
• A Letter of Thanks From M. De Voltaire to the Pope.
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act Ii
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• Amelia
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• Œdipus
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• Mariamne
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• Socrates
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.

ACT II.

SCENE I.

jocaste, ægina, araspes, chorus.

araspes.

• Believe me, ’tis too true, my royal mistress,
• Your dying people, with one common voice,
• Accuse the hapless Philoctetes: fate
• Hath sent him back to save this wretched kingdom.

jocaste.

• What do I hear, ye powers?

ægina.

• ’Tis wonderful.

jocaste.

• Who? Philoctetes?

araspes.

• Yes, it must be he:
• To whom can we impute it but to him?
• When last at Thebes, he seemed to meditate
• A deed like this; for much he hated Laius:
• From Œdipus his traitorous purpose scarce
• Could he conceal; for soon unwary youth
• Betrays itself: soon through the thin disguise
• Of ill dissembled loyalty, we saw
• The rancor of his heart. I know not what
• Provoked him, but too warm and open, ever
• The slave of passion, he would kindle oft
• At the king’s name, and often pour forth threats
• Of vengeance: for some time he left the kingdom,
• But fate soon brought the restless wanderer back;
• And at that fatal time, which heaven distinguished
• By the detested shocking parricide,
• He was at Thebes: e’er since that dreadful hour,
• Suspicion justly falls on Philoctetes:
• But the high name which he had gained in war,
• His boasted title of earth’s great avenger,
• And his heroic deeds, have stopped the tongue
• Of clamor, and suspended yet the stroke
• Of our resentment. Now the time is come
• When Thebes shall think no more of vain respect;
• His glory and his conquests plead no more;
• The hearts of an oppressed people groan;
• The gods require his blood, and must be heard.

chorus.

• O queen! have pity on a wretched people,
• Who love and honor thee, revere the gods,
• And follow their example; yield up to us
• Their victim, and present our vows to heaven;
• For heaven will hear them, if they come from thee.

jocaste.

• O! if my life can mitigate its wrath,
• I give it freely; take the sacrifice;
• Accept my blood; but O! demand no more.
• Thebans, be gone.

SCENE II.

jocaste, ægina.

ægina.

• How I lament thy fate!

jocaste.

• Alas! I envy those whom death has freed
• From all their cares: but what remains for me,
• What pain and torment to a virtuous heart!

ægina.

• ’Tis terrible indeed: the clamorous people,
• Warmed with false zeal, will cry aloud for vengeance,
• And soon demand their victim. I forbear
• To accuse him; but if he at last should prove
• The murderer of thy unhappy lord,
• How it must shock thy soul!

jocaste.

• Impossible!
• Such guilt and baseness never dwelt in him.
• O my Ægina! since our bonds of love
• Were disunited, naught has pierced my heart
• Like this suspicion: this alone was wanting
• To make Jocaste most completely wretched:
• But I’ll not bear to hear him thus accused;
• I loved him, and he must be innocent.

ægina.

• That constant love—

jocaste.

• Nay, think not that my heart
• Still nourishes a guilty passion for him;
• I conquered that long since; yet, dear Ægina,
• Howe’er the soul may act which virtue guides,
• Its secret motions, nature’s children, still
• Must force their way: they will not be subdued,
• But in the folds and windings of the heart,
• Lurk still, and rush upon us; hid in fires
• We thought extinguished, from their ashes rise:
• In the hard conflict, rigid virtue may
• Resist the passions, but can ne’er destroy them.

ægina.

• How just, and yet how noble is thy grief!
• Such sentiments!—

jocaste.

• Jocaste is most wretched;
• Thou knowest my miseries, and thou knowest my heart,
• Ægina: twice hath Hymen lit his torch
• For me, and twice hath changed my slavery,
• For such it was; the only man I loved,
• Torn from my arms. Forgive me, ye just gods,
• The sad remembrance of a conquered passion.
• Ægina, thou wert witness of our loves,
• Those ties, alas! dissolved as soon as made:
• Then Œdipus, my sovereign, sought and gained me,
• Spite of myself. I took the diadem,
• Begirt with sorrows. To forget the past
• Became my duty then; and I obeyed.
• Thou knowest I stifled every tender thought
• Of my first love, disguised an aching heart,
• Drank up my tears, and even from myself
• Strove to conceal my griefs.

ægina.

• How could you venture
• The dangerous trial of a second marriage?

jocaste.

• Alas!

ægina.

• Will you forgive me? shall I speak?

jocaste.

• Thou mayest.

ægina.

• The king, the conqueror subdued thee:
• You gave your hand as a reward to him
• Who saved your country.

jocaste.

• Gracious gods!

ægina.

• Was he
• Happier than Laius? Was your Philoctetes
• Forgotten then, or did they share your heart?

jocaste.

• Thebes, by a cruel monster then laid waste,
• Had promised its deliverer my hand;
• The conqueror of the sphinx was worthy of me.

ægina.

• You loved him then?

jocaste.

• I felt some tenderness
• For Œdipus; but O! ’twas far from love:
• ’Twas not, Ægina, that tumultuous passion,
• The impetuous offspring of my ravished senses,
• Not the fierce flame that burned for Philoctetes;
• Who, by his fatal charms, subdued my reason,
• And poured love’s sweetest poison o’er my heart:
• Friendship sincere was all I could bestow
• On Œdipus, for much I prized his virtue;
• And pleased, beheld him mount the throne of Thebes
• Which he had saved; but, whilst I followed him,
• Even at the altar, my affrighted soul,
• Wherefore I knew not, was most strangely moved,
• And I retired with horror to his arms.
• To this a dreadful omen did succeed:
• Methought, Ægina, in the dead of night,
• I saw the gulf of hell yawn wide before me;
• When lo! the spirit of my murdered lord,
• Bloody and pale, with threatening aspect stood,
• And pointed to my son; that son, Ægina,
• Which I to Laius bore, and to the gods
• Offered, a cruel pious sacrifice.
• They beckoned me to follow them, and seemed
• To drag me with them to the horrid gloom
• Of Tartarus: my troubled soul long kept
• The sad idea, and must keep it ever.
• Now Philoctetes doubles every woe.

ægina.

• I heard a noise that way, and, see he comes.

jocaste.

• ’Tis he; I tremble: but I will avoid him.

SCENE III.

jocaste, philoctetes.

philoctetes.

• Do not avoid me, do not fly, Jocaste.
• From Philoctetes; turn, and look upon me:
• O speak to me, nor fear my jealous tears
• Should interrupt the new-born happiness
• Of thy late nuptials: think not that I came
• To cast reproaches on thee, or with sighs
• To win thy lost affection; vulgar arts,
• Unworthy of us both! the heart, Jocaste,
• That burned for thee, and if I may recall
• Thy plighted faith, was once not hateful to thee,
• Has learned, from thy example, not to feel
• Weakness like that.

jocaste.

• I must approve thy conduct,
• And ’tis but fit I vindicate my own:
• I loved thee, Philoctetes; but my fate
• Tore me from thee, and gave me to another.
• Thou knowest what woes the horrid sphinx, by heaven
• Appointed to afflict us, brought on Thebes:
• Too well thou knowest that Œdipus—

philoctetes.

• Is thine;
• I know it, and is worthy of the blessing:
• Young as he was, his wisdom saved thy country;
• His virtues, his fair deeds, and what still more
• Exalted him, Jocaste’s love, have ranked
• Thy Œdipus among the first of men.
• Wherefore did cruel fortune, still resolved
• To punish Philoctetes, drive me hence,
• To seek vain trophies in a distant land?
• O! if the conqueror of the sphinx was doomed
• To conquer thee, why was not I at Thebes?
• I’d not have labored in the fruitless search
• Of idle mysteries, wrapped in words of darkness;
• This arm, to conquest long beneath thy smiles
• Accustomed, should have drawn the vengeful sword,
• And laid the howling monster at thy feet.
• But O! a happier arm has wrested from me
• That noblest triumph, and deserved Jocaste.

jocaste.

• Alas! thou knowest not yet what ills await thee.

philoctetes.

• Thee and Alcides I have lost already:
• Is there aught more to fear?

jocaste.

• Thou dwellest at Thebes;
• The detestation of avenging gods;
• The baneful pestilence stalks forth amongst us;
• The blood of Laius cries aloud, and heaven
• Pursues us still: the murderer must bleed;
• He has been sought for; some have dared to say
• That he is found, and call him Philoctetes.

philoctetes.

• Astonishment! the base suspicion shocks
• My soul, and bids my tongue be silent ever
• On the opprobrious theme: accused of murder!
• Murdering thy husband! thou canst never believe it.

jocaste.

• O! never! ’twere injurious to thy honor
• To combat such imposture, or refute
• The vile aspersion; no, thou knowest my heart,
• Thou hadst my love, and couldst not do a deed
• Unworthy of it. Let them perish all,
• These worthless Thebans, who deserve their fate
• For thus suspecting thee: but, hence! begone!
• Our vows are fruitless: heaven reserves for thee
• Superior blessings. Thou wert born to serve
• The gods, whose wisdom would not bury here
• Virtues like thine, or suffer love to rule
• A heart designed for universal sway,
• And courage fit to save and bless mankind.
• Ill would it suit the follower of Alcides
• To lose his moments in the fond concerns,
• The little cares of love. Thy hours are due
• To the unhappy and the injured: they
• Will all thy time and all thy virtue claim.
• Already tyrants throng on every side;
• Alcides dead, new monsters rise; go, thou,
• And give the world another Hercules.
• Œdipus comes; permit me to retire;
• Not that I fear the weakness of my heart,
• But as Jocaste loved thee once, and he
• Is now my husband, I should blush before you.

SCENE IV.

œdipus, philoctetes, araspes.

œdipus.

• Sayst thou, Araspes, is he here, the prince,
• The noble Philoctetes?

philoctetes.

• Yes; ’tis he;
• Led by blind fortune to this hapless clime,
• Where angry heaven hath made me suffer wrongs
• I am not used to bear. I know the crimes
• Laid to my charge; but think not that I mean
• To justify myself: too well I know thee
• To think that Œdipus would ever stoop
• To such low mean suspicions: no! thy fame
• Is mixed with mine; in the same steps of honor
• We trod together. Theseus, Hercules,
• And Philoctetes, pointed out to thee
• The paths of glory; do not then disgrace
• Their names, and taint thy own, by calumny,
• But keep their bright examples still before thee.

œdipus.

• All that I wish is but to save my country,
• And if I can be useful to mankind,
• This is the ambition I would satisfy,
• And this the lesson which those heroes taught,
• Whom thou hast followed, and whom I admire.
• I meant not to accuse thee: had I chose
• The people’s victim, it had been myself.
• I think it but the duty of a king
• To perish for his country: ’tis an honor
• Too great for common men. Then had I saved
• Once more my Thebans, yielded up my life,
• And sheltered thine: but ’twas not in my power.
• The blood of guilt must flow, thou standest accused.
• Defend thyself: if thou art innocent,
• None shall rejoice so much as Œdipus;
• Nor as a criminal shall then receive thee,
• But as my noble friend, as Philoctetes.

philoctetes.

• I thought myself, indeed, above suspicion:
• From many a base assassin has this arm,
• While Jove’s dread thunder slept, relieved mankind
• Whom we chastise, we seldom imitate.

œdipus.

• I do not think thou wouldst disgrace thy name,
• And thy fair martial deeds, by such a crime.
• If Laius fell by thee, he fell with honor,
• I doubt it not, for I must do thee justice.

philoctetes.

• If I had slain him, I had only gained
• One added triumph. Kings, indeed, are gods
• To their own subjects, but to Hercules,
• Or me, they were no more than common men.
• I have avenged the wrongs of mighty princes;
• And, therefore, little, thou mayest think, should fear
• To attack the bravest.

œdipus.

• Heroes, like thyself,
• Are equal even to kings, I know they are:
• But still remember, prince, whoe’er slew Laius,
• His head must answer for the woes of Thebes;
• And thou—

philoctetes.

• I slew him not; let that suffice.
• If I had done the deed, I would have owned,
• Nay boasted of it. Hear me, Œdipus,
• Though vulgar souls, by vulgar methods, deign
• To vindicate their injured honor; kings
• And heroes, when they speak, expect, no doubt,
• To be believed: perhaps thou dost suspect
• I murdered Laius. It becomes not thee,
• Of all men, to accuse me: to thy hand
• Devolved his sceptre and his queen. Who reaped
• The fruits of Laius’s death, but Œdipus?
• Who took the spoils? Who filled his throne? Not I.
• That object never tempted Philoctetes:
• Alcides never would accept a crown:
• We knew no master, and desired no subjects:
• I have made kings, but never wished to be one.
• But ’tis beneath me to refute the falsehood,
• For innocence is lessened by defence.

œdipus.

• Thy pride offends me, whilst thy virtue charms.
• If thou art guiltless, thou hast naught to fear
• From justice and the laws; thy innocence
• Will shine with double splendor: dwell with us,
• And wait the event.

philoctetes.

• My honor is concerned,
• And therefore I shall stay; nor hence depart
• Till I have ample vengeance for the wrongs
• Thy base suspicions cast on Philoctetes.

SCENE V.

œdipus, araspes.

œdipus.

• Araspes, I can never think him guilty:
• A heart like his, intrepid, brave, and fearless,
• Could never stoop to mean disguise; nor thoughts
• So noble e’er inspire the timid breast
• Of falsehood: no! such baseness is far from him:
• I even blushed to accuse him, and condemned
• My own injustice: hard and cruel fate
• Of royalty! alas! kings cannot read
• The hearts of men, and oft on innocence,
• Spite of ourselves unjust, inflict the pains
• Due to the guilty. How this Phorbas lingers!
• In him alone are all my hopes: the gods
• Refuse to hear or answer to our vows;
• Their silence shows how much they are offended.

araspes.

• Rely then on thyself: the gods, whose aid
• This priest hath promised, do not always dwell
• Within their temples; tripods, caves, and cells,
• The brazen mouths that pour forth oracles,
• Which men had framed, by men may be inspired;
• We must not rest our faith on priests alone;
• Even in the sanctuary traitors oft
• May lurk unseen, exert their pious arts
• To enslave mankind, and bid the destinies
• Speak or be silent just as they command them.
• Search then, and find the truth, examine all;
• Phorbas, and Philoctetes, and Jocaste.
• Trust to yourself; let our own eyes determine;
• Be they our tripods, oracles, and gods.

œdipus.

• Within the temple, thinkest thou, perfidy
• Like this can dwell: but if just heaven at last
• Should fix our fate, and Œdipus be called
• To execute its will, he will receive
• The precious trust, the safety of his country,
• Nor act unworthy of it. To the gods
• Once more I go, and with incessant prayer
• Will try to soothe their anger: thou, meantime,
• If thou wouldst wish to serve me, hasten onward
• The lingering Phorbas; in our hapless state,
• I must enquire the truth of gods and men.

The End of the Second Act.