The Suppliants by Aeschylus

First produced:Hiketides, 463 b.c.e.? (English translation, 1777)

Type of work: Drama

Type of plot: Tragedy

Time of plot: Mythical age

Locale: Argos

Principal characters

• Danaüs, an Egyptian of Greek descent
• His Fifty Maiden Daughters,
• Pelasgus, the king of Argos
• The Fifty Sons of Aegyptus,
• Brother of Danaüs,

The Story:

Danaüs and his fifty maiden daughters flee Egypt after Danaüs’s brother, Aegyptus, decides that his fifty sons should take their cousins to wife. The fugitives finally reach the shores of Argos, the land of their illustrious ancestress Io, a mortal loved by Zeus. Holding olive branches wrapped in wool before an Argive altar, the maidens seek Zeus’s protection of their purity. Their supplications to the father of the gods include the wish that the sons of Aegyptus might meet disaster at sea between Egypt and Argos. In fear of being forced to marry Aegyptus’s sons, the maidens also invoke the wretched Procne, who was given in marriage to the perfidious Tereus and took the life of her child, Itylus, out of hatred for her husband. They repeat their supplication to Zeus to protect them from forced love, and they invoke Artemis, the goddess of chastity, to be favorable to them. They declare that they will end their lives themselves before submitting to the sons of Aegyptus. They go on to invoke not only Zeus but also Apollo, who himself was once an exile. They pray to Poseidon, god of the sea, and to Hermes, the messenger of the gods. Danaüs recalls that the gods are merciless to those who indulge in lustful pleasures.

Danaüs, observing that someone approaches, cautions his daughters to stay near the altar and to conduct themselves with modesty. A man, followed by servants and warriors, enters the sacred area. Seeing that the maidens wear Eastern clothing and that suppliant wands were placed on the altar, he asks whence Danaüs and the young women come. Questioned in turn, he discloses that he is Pelasgus, the king of Argos. One of the maidens then tells him that they are of Argive stock, descendants of Io, the Argive woman who gave birth to a son by Zeus. Pelasgus interrupts to remark that the maidens appear to be North Africans and to resemble the Amazons rather than the Grecians.

The maiden resumes her tale, recounting that when Hera, the wife of Zeus, saw that Zeus loved the mortal Io, she transformed Io into a heifer and placed her under the guard of Argus, the many-eyed god. Hera also created a gadfly to sting Io into a miserable, wandering existence on earth. Io’s wanderings took her to Memphis, Egypt, where by mystical union with Zeus—the touch of his hand—she gave birth to a son. She named him Epaphus, from the nature of his birth. Epaphus had a daughter, Libya, after whom a great stretch of North Africa was named. Libya had a son, Belus, who fathered two sons, Danaüs—the father of fifty daughters, whom the king beholds before his very eyes—and Aegyptus, the father of fifty sons.

Pelasgus, satisfied that they are of Argive stock, asks why they left Egypt. The maiden explains that they fled because they were threatened with forced marriage to their cousins; it is not so much that they hate their cousins as that they want their husbands to love them. Pelasgus, observing that in the most advantageous marriages there is no aspect of love, is not sure he can support the maidens in their cause. The maidens point to the wand-decked shrine and ask Pelasgus to heed the sign.

All the sisters plead for assistance from Pelasgus, who fears that his meddling in the affair might bring war to Argos. Apprehensive, yet anxious to help, he insists that he will have to consult his people. The suppliants answer that he is an absolute ruler and can, if he so desires, make his own decisions. They warn him to beware of the wrath of Zeus, the god who takes pity on humans in distress and is merciless with those who refuse to assist others. Still Pelasgus insists on consulting his people, for he fears to bring disaster to Argos. Even after searching deeply in his soul for an answer, he declares that the problem is one with which he alone cannot cope, that to resolve it will involve frightful sacrifices to the gods.

In despair, the maidens propose that Pelasgus use their girdles to hang them to the statues in the sacred area. Deeply disturbed, Pelasgus suggests that Danaüs gather up all of the wands and, in hopes of eliciting general Argive sympathy for the maidens, place them on altars in the city of Argos itself. Once he is assured of safe passage into the city, Danaüs accepts the suggestion and departs with the wands. When Pelasgus directs the maidens to an unhallowed area of the sacred ground, they ask how they are to be protected there from their cousins. Pelasgus, advising them to pray to the Argive gods, returns to Argos to consult with his people.

Left alone, the maidens resume their earnest prayers and invocations to Zeus. They again recall Zeus’s love for their ancestress and appeal to him—who is after all responsible for their being—to save them from the lust of Aegyptus’s sons.

Danaüs returns to report that to a man the Argives will defend any refugees from seizure. Pelasgus reminds the Argives that if they fail to assist and to offer sanctuary to suppliants, Zeus will send a man-eating monster to the city. The maidens sing their gratitude to the people of Argos and invoke the gods to look auspiciously upon the land.

Danaüs, standing on an elevated place in the sacred ground, sees the sons of Aegyptus approaching the shore in their ships. He calms his frightened daughters by reminding them of the Argives’ promise, but when he wishes to leave them to summon help, they beg him to stay with them. He points out that it will take Aegyptus’s sons some time to make proper anchorage and that there is plenty of time for him to seek aid.

After Danaüs leaves, the maidens, overcome with apprehension at the approach of their cousins, speak of the death they prefer to the enforced love that appears to be imminent. As they cry in anguish to Zeus, a messenger comes to them from the ships and, treating them with brutality, orders them to the ships. While he sneers at their frantic appeals to the Greek gods, Pelasgus comes upon the scene of violence and demands of the messenger his business. The Egyptian answers that he comes to take what belongs to him and that only force, not any fear of the Greek gods, can prevent his taking the maidens back to Egypt. Pelasgus declares that the sons of Aegyptus will have to fight to claim their captives. When the messenger asks his name, Pelasgus retorts that his name does not matter; what does matter is that the women will not be taken from Argos by force.

The messenger returns to the ships, and Pelasgus invites the maidens to take shelter with the friendly people of Argos. The maidens first seek the approval of their father, Danaüs, who advises them to treasure their chastity before their lives and gives them permission to go. Rejoicing, the daughters of Danaüs sing reverently and thankfully to Artemis, goddess of chastity. They also invoke Aphrodite, goddess of love, who they are sure will help in guiding them to marriages blessed by true love.

Bibliography

Aeschylus. The Suppliants. Translated by Peter Burian. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1991. An excellent modern translation of the play. Also provides a sound introduction to the themes and imagery of the play and includes brief notes explaining references in the translation.

Beck, Robert Holmes. Aeschylus: Playwright Educator. The Hague, the Netherlands: Martinus Nijhoff, 1975. Chapter 7 examines The Suppliants and its themes in the context of the supposed trilogy to which it belonged. Beck places particular emphasis on the moral message that the playwright may have intended with the drama.

Burian, Peter. “Pelasgus and Politics in Aeschylus’ Danaid Trilogy.” In Aeschylus, edited by Michael Lloyd. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007. Burian, who has translated The Suppliants, updates an article he originally published in 1974, in which he examines the character of Pelasgus and the role of the Argive political system in the tragedy.

Conacher, D. J. “Supplices (The Suppliants) and Its Trilogy.” In Aeschylus: The Earlier Plays and Related Studies. Toronto, Ont.: University of Toronto Press, 1996. Conacher analyzes the play’s themes, structure, dramatic devices, and the trilogy of which it is a part. His book also contains a more general discussion of Aeschylus’s use of the chorus and imagery.

Garvie, A. F. Aeschylus’ “Supplices”: Play and Trilogy. 2d ed. Bristol, England: Bristol Phoenix, 2006. The standard work on the style, structure, and meaning of the play. Garvie tends to be cautious in his speculation about the content of the lost plays and their possible relevance for interpretation of The Suppliants.

Mills, Sophie. “Theseus and The Suppliants.” In Theseus, Tragedy, and the Athenian Empire. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997. Mills traces the myth of Theseus, analyzing The Suppliants and the other dramas in which he is a character. She maintains that these plays portray Theseus as the idealized embodiment of the Athenian national character.

Spatz, Lois. Aeschylus. Boston: Twayne, 1982. An excellent and accessible general work on the art of Aeschylus. Chapter 4 on The Suppliants is especially rewarding for discussion of possible political ideas in the drama and of various themes in the choral odes.

Winnington-Ingram, R. P. Studies in Aeschylus. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1983. A sober and intelligent survey of Aeschylean drama that repays consultation. Chapter 4, “The Danaid Trilogy,” is concerned primarily with the speculative reconstruction of the trilogy and its value for interpreting the drama. This work updates earlier work on the Danaid trilogy.