Aias by Sophocles

Over the past few days, I was in Geneva (“again?” I can hear you say). I’m now (physically) back in London (and mentally back in ancient Greece). 

1/ Aias (better known as Ajax) is a great warrior in the Trojan war. After Achilles’s death, he thinks he deserves Achilles’s armour but Agamemnon and Menelaus decide to award it to Odysseus instead. Enraged, he decides to kill all three, but Athena intervenes by sending him into a fit of madness that makes him mistake some cattle for his enemies. He kills them all. Upon the restoration of sanity, Aias realises with horror and shame at what he has done, and kills himself. 

The rest of the play is other characters reacting to his death, and disagreeing about whether he should get a burial. 

That’s the plot. 

I find the play very interesting for a few reasons. First of all, ancient Greek plays, unlike 16th century and later plays, tend not to show people doing things but depict people reacting to things—fights, deaths, murders… happen offstage and get reported—but in this play, Aias appears to kill himself onstage (though I’m not sure how Sophocles staged Aias falling on his sword). 

Secondly, unless I’m mistaken, Aias has a soliloquy before his suicide—a feature we (well, I) associate mainly with Shakespeare—in other ancient Greek plays, characters may have monologues but in front of the Chorus, but in this scene, Aias is alone. 

2/ The play oddly begins and ends with Odysseus. 

He says to Athena:

“ODYSSEUS […] For my venturous course,

Past or to come, is governed by thy will.” 

(translated by Lewis Campbell) 

And when he speaks in defence of Aias: 

“ODYSSEUS […] But, though he hates me sore,

I pity him, poor mortal, thus chained fast

To a wild and cruel fate,—weighing not so much

His fortune as mine own. For now I feel

All we who live are but an empty show

And idle pageant of a shadowy dream.” 

Later Aias’s half-brother Teucer comes to say that a prophet has said Aias has to stay in the tent that day or he would die. But it’s too late—Tecmessa, Aias’s concubine, finds his dead body. 

The play raises disturbing questions about fate vs free will. At the same time, Sophocles depicts the gods as callous or at least biased.

“ATHENA Then, warned by what thou seest, be thou not rash

To vaunt high words toward Heaven, nor swell thy port

Too proudly, if in puissance of thy hand

Thou passest others, or in mines of wealth.

Since Time abases and uplifts again

All that is human, and the modest heart

Is loved by Heaven, who hates the intemperate will.”

Athena gloats in the delusion and humiliation of Aias.

Later we learn: 

“MESSENGER […] ‘Thus ever,’ said the prophet, ‘must he fall

Who in man’s mould hath thoughts beyond a man.

And Aias, ere he left his father’s door,

Made foolish answer to his prudent sire.

‘My son,’ said Telamon, ‘choose victory

Always, but victory with an aid from Heaven.’

How loftily, how madly, he replied!

‘Father, with heavenly help men nothing worth

May win success. But I am confident

Without the Gods to pluck this glory down.’

So huge the boast he vaunted! And again

When holy Pallas urged him with her voice

To hurl his deadly spear against the foe,

He turned on her with speech of awful sound:

‘Goddess, by other Greeks take thou thy stand;

Where I keep rank, the battle ne’er shall break.’

Such words of pride beyond the mortal scope

Have won him Pallas’ wrath, unlovely meed…” 

This is a heroic man, a great warrior, and Athena punishes him only because of his pride? How petty are the gods? Such a depiction of the gods I tend to associate with Euripides.

3/ One fascinating thing is that Aias isn’t a particularly sympathetic character, especially at the beginning. Not only does he want to kill Odysseus and the others, he wants to “stain [Odysseus’s] back with scourging till he die”—it’s no surprise that Menelaus and Agamemnon later don’t want to give him a burial. When the manic episode passes and Aias realises what he has done: 

“AIAS […] Behold what gory sea

Of storm-lashed agony

Doth round and round me flow!” 

For some time, Aias remains a hater: 

“AIAS […] But the invincible

Stern daughter of the Highest, with baneful eye,

Even as mine arm descended, baffled me,

And hurled upon my soul a frenzied plague,

To stain my hand with these dumb victims’ blood.

And those mine enemies exult in safety,—

Not with my will; but where a God misguides,

Strong arms are thwarted and the weakling lives.

Now, what remains? Heaven hates me, ’tis too clear:

The Grecian host abhor me: Troy, with all

This country round our camp, is my sworn foe…”  

And yet one feels for the shame, the humiliation Aias goes through, and Sophocles gives us some moving scenes between him and Tecmessa and their child Eurysakes. And when Aias dies, one feels pity for the downfall of such a great warrior.