TEREUS VIOLATES PHILOMELA
As soon as Philomela is having been put on the having been painted vessel
And the sea is having been moved up by oars and the earth is having been pushed away
He exclaims, “We succeeded! My wishes are brought/carried with me!”
And he rejoices, and his delights hardly give respite to his uncivilized feelings
and on no occasion he turns his eye away from her
Not otherwise than when the hunter of Jupiter deposited a hare with its hooked feet
To its high aerial nest,
There is no escape for the having been captured, the hunter watches his prize.
And now, the journey is having been accomplished, and now, on his shores, the tired
Boats had come. The king, with the having been born from Pandion,
Drags her to high dwellings, unintelligible from the ancient woods
And there, paling and trembling and altogether fearing,
And now with tears, asking where her sister truly is,
He imprisons her. Having admitted his sin,
He overcomes her, a young woman and alone, by force, with her father often having been called in vain,
Often with her sister, in addition to all the powerful gods.
She trembles just as a fearing lamb, which wounded,
Having been discarded by the mouth of the gray wolf, not yet being seen as safe
And as a dove, with its feathers having been soaked by blood
Trembles, it still fears the greedy claws which have clinged to it.
Soon when reason returned, with her having been spread out hair having been torn
Like a mourner, after having cut her arms with a beating
Holding out her palms she said, “O you barbarian by dreadful deeds!
O cruel one! Did not the orders of my father
With respectful tears, nor the care of my sister,
Nor my virginity, nor the laws of marriage move you?
You disturbed everything; I have been made the destroyer of my sister’s marriage;
You are the mate of both; Procne is my fated enemy!
Why not you take away this mind, so that no crime as far as to you is left behind, you traitor? Yet if only you would have done it before the abominable
intercourse: I would have had empty shadows of blame
If however these above discern, if divine gods
Are to some degree, if not all things died with me,
At some time or other you will pay punishments for me!
by discarded shame itself I will speak your deeds
As soon as Philomela was aboard the painted boat, and they push away from land, Tereus exclaims, "We succeeded! I have with me what I wished for! He rejoices, but his lust is still not satisfied. He never turns away from Philomela, like when an eagle deposits a hare in it's nest, there is no escape for the captured as the hunter watches it's prize. And now, the tired boats came to his shores, the journey being over. The king drags Philomela, trembling and afraid, in tears, asking where her sister is, to high dwellings hidden in the woods and imprisons her. After telling her what he intends to do, he overcomes her by force, a young woman and alone. She calls her father and sister in vain, along with all the powerful gods. She trembles like a fearing lamb, not yet seen as safe after being discarded by the mouth of a gray wolf, or like a dove trembles, with it's feathers soaked by blood, still fearing the greedy claws that clinged to it. Soon when reason returned, with her hair having been torn, and after she has hurt her arms by a beating, she says like a mourner, holding out her palms, "Oh you barbarian! Did the tearful orders of my father, or the care of my sister, or my virginity, or the laws of marriage not move you? You've ruined everything! You destroyed my sisters marriage by means of myself; you lusted for both; Procne should be my enemy! Why don't you kill me, so that no crime is left undone, you traitor? If only you would have killed me before you raped me: I would then have no shame within me. If however these above notice, if gods exist, if my chance for revenge doesn't die with me, then at some point you will pay for this! I will speak what you did without shame.