Jean Racine's 1677 French tragedy follows the tormented queen Phaedra, consumed by forbidden passion for her stepson Hippolytus. This classical drama explores the destructive power of desire through Racine's masterful alexandrine verse, translated here by Robert Bruce Boswell.
My mind is settled, dear Theramenes, And I can stay no more in lovely Troezen. In doubt that racks my soul with mortal anguish, I grow ashamed of such long idleness. Six months and more my father has been gone, And what may have befallen one so dear I know not, nor what corner of the earth Hides him. And where, prince, will you look for him? Already, to content your just alarm, Have I not cross'd the seas on either side Of Corinth, ask'd if aught were known of Theseus Where Acheron is lost among the Shades, Visited Elis, doubled Toenarus, And sail'd into the sea that saw the fall Of Icarus? Inspired with what new hope, Under what favour'd skies think you to trace His footsteps? Who knows if the King, your father, Wishes the secret of his absence known? Perchance, while we are trembling for his life, The hero calmly plots some fresh intrigue, And only waits till the deluded fair-- Cease, …Continue reading →
This is the Robert Bruce Boswell translation, a public-domain English text. Marginalia presents it unabridged, with chapter navigation, your reading position saved, and optional AI commentary on any passage.
The supreme tragedian of 17th-century France, whose spare and perfectly balanced verse dramas explored passion, duty, and fate with an intensity unmatched in French literature. His heroines — Phedre, Andromache, Berenice — remain among the most psychologically complex characters in dramatic history. All works by Jean Racine →
Browse all Drama · 17th-18th C works