Book 1, Chapter 44

“But error fills everything.

105 “Achilles drags Hector tied to his chariot: he thinks, I suppose, that Hector feels himself being torn apart. So Achilles believes he is taking revenge; while she mourns it as the bitterest of sorrows:

“‘I saw—how grievously I bore the sight—“‘Hector dragged by a four-horse chariot.’

“What Hector? Or how long will that be Hector? Accius does better, and at last Achilles shows some sense:

“‘No, indeed: I gave his body back to Priam; Hector I took away.’

“So it was not Hector you dragged, but the body that had been Hector’s.

106 “Look, another rises from the earth to keep his mother from sleeping:

“‘Mother, I call to you, who ease your care, held in suspense by sleep,“‘And have no pity for me: rise and bury your son—!’

“When these words are sung in low, mournful strains that spread sadness through whole theaters, it is hard not to judge the unburied miserable. ‘Before the beasts and birds—’ He fears that, if his limbs are torn, he will have less use of them; he has no fear that they may be burned.

“‘And do not let my half-eaten remains, with bones laid bare,“‘Be foully dragged across the earth, smeared with clotted blood—’

“I do not understand what he fears, when he pours out such fine seven-and-a-half-foot verses to the pipe. We must therefore hold fast to this: nothing after death should trouble us, though many people punish their enemies even when dead. In Ennius, Thyestes utters curses in truly splendid verses: first, that Atreus should die in a shipwreck. That is harsh enough, for such a death is not without severe sensation. The rest is empty:

“‘Himself impaled on the highest jagged rocks, disemboweled,“‘Hanging by his side, spattering the rocks with decay, gore, and black blood—’

107 “The rocks themselves will be no more devoid of all sensation than the man ‘hanging by his side,’ for whom Thyestes imagines he is wishing torment. Things that would be harsh if he felt them <are> nothing without sensation. But this is utter emptiness:

“‘And may he have no tomb to receive him, no harbor for his body,“‘Where, human life laid down, his body may rest from troubles.’

“You see how deeply these words are steeped in error: he thinks there is a harbor for the body, and that a dead man rests in his tomb. A great fault in Pelops, not to have educated his son and taught him what deserved concern, and how far!”

“But mistaken ideas are everywhere.

105 “Achilles ties Hector to his chariot and drags him along. I suppose he thinks Hector feels himself being torn apart. So Achilles is taking revenge, or so he thinks. But the woman mourns it as though it were the bitterest thing of all: “‘I saw—what it hurt me terribly to see— “‘Hector dragged along by a four-horse chariot.’ “What Hector? How long will he be Hector? Accius does better, and for once Achilles is sensible: “‘No, I gave Priam back a body. I took Hector away.’ “So you didn’t drag Hector, but the body that had been Hector’s.

106 “Here comes someone else out of the earth to keep his mother awake: “‘Mother, hear my call! You put your worries on hold and ease them in sleep, “‘With no pity for me. Rise and give your child a grave—!’ “Set that to low, weeping music that fills whole theaters with sorrow, and it’s hard to avoid thinking people without graves unhappy. ‘Before wild beasts and birds—’ Apparently he’s afraid torn limbs won’t work as well! Burning them doesn’t alarm him. “‘Don’t allow what’s left of me, half eaten, with the bones exposed, “‘To be dragged about in the dirt, filthy with bloody slime—’ “What he fears is beyond me: he can still sing such excellent seven-foot lines to a pipe! Our firm rule must be to trouble ourselves over nothing after death. Yet many people go on punishing enemies who’ve died. Ennius gives Thyestes some splendid verses cursing Atreus. He begins by calling for death at sea. That’s harsh enough: dying in a shipwreck does involve dreadful suffering. The next part means nothing: “‘Pinned high on jagged rocks, his guts torn out, “‘Hanging sideways, splashing the stones with rot, gore, and black blood—’

107 “The man ‘hanging sideways’ will feel no more than the rocks themselves. Thyestes imagines he’s wishing him torture. If the man could feel, these things would be dreadful; without feeling, they amount to nothing. This next wish is especially empty: “‘May he find no tomb to take him in, no sheltering harbor for his body, “‘Where, once human life is over, his body may rest from pain.’ “Look at the confusion behind all this! He imagines a harbor for the body, with the dead man taking his rest inside the grave. Pelops has a lot to answer for: he failed to bring up his son properly and teach him what deserves concern, and how much.”