菲洛克忒忒斯

斐洛克特底（古希腊语：Φιλοκτήτης）是索福克勒斯创作的悲剧。该剧创作于伯罗奔尼撒战争时期，是索福克勒斯现存七部悲剧之一，于公元前409年在酒神节首演并荣获头奖。剧情发生在特洛伊战争期间（《伊利亚特》主要情节之后），记述了涅奈奥普托勒姆斯与奥德修斯试图将残疾的神箭手斐洛克特底从利姆诺斯岛带回特洛伊的故事。

Philoctetes (Ancient Greek: Φιλοκτήτης, Philoktētēs; English pronunciation: , stressed on the third syllable, -tet-) is a play by Sophocles (Aeschylus and Euripides also each wrote a Philoctetes but theirs have not survived). The play was written during the Peloponnesian War. It is one of the seven extant tragedies by Sophocles. It was first performed at the City Dionysia in 409 BC, where it won first prize. The story takes place during the last year of the Trojan War (after the majority of the events of the Iliad). It describes the attempt by Neoptolemus, son of Achilles, and Odysseus, king of Ithaca, to bring the disabled Philoctetes, the master archer, from the island of Lemnos to Troy in the hopes that he and his bow might help end the Trojan War.

Background

When Heracles was near his death, he wished to be burned on a funeral pyre while still alive. In the play Philoctetes, Sophocles references the myth in which no one but Philoctetes would light Heracles' funeral pyre and, in return for this favor, Heracles gave Philoctetes his bow (seen in later texts, such as Ovid's Metamorphoses). Philoctetes left with the Greeks to participate in the Trojan War, but was bitten on the foot by a snake while walking on Chryse, a sacred ground. The bite caused him constant agony, and emitted a horrible smell. For this reason he was left by Odysseus and the Atreidai (sons of Atreus) on the desert island Lemnos as they were traveling from the Greek mainland to Troy.

Nine years pass, and the Greeks capture the Trojan seer Helenus, son of Priam. He foretells that they will need the master archer Philoctetes and the bow of Heracles to win the war. Odysseus sails back to Lemnos with Neoptolemus to get Philoctetes. The task is not easy, as Philoctetes bitterly hates Odysseus and the Greeks for leaving him there.

Synopsis

Sophocles' Philoctetes begins with their arrival on the island of Lemnos. Odysseus explains to Neoptolemus that he must perform a shameful action in order to garner future glory—to trick Philoctetes into coming to Troy with a false story while Odysseus hides. Neoptolemus is portrayed as an honorable boy, taking some persuasion to get him to play this part. To gain Philoctetes' trust, Neoptolemus deceives Philoctetes into thinking he hates Odysseus as well. Neoptolemus does this by telling Philoctetes that Odysseus has his father's (Achilles) armor. He tells Philoctetes that this armor was his right by birth and that Odysseus would not give it up to him. After gaining Philoctetes' trust and offering him passage home, Neoptolemus is allowed to look at the bow of Heracles.

Neoptolemus holds the bow while Philoctetes is going into an unbearable fit of pain in his foot (due to the snake bite he bears on it). Feeling ashamed of having misled Philoctetes, Neoptolemus debates giving it back to him. Odysseus appears, and a series of arguments ensue. Eventually Neoptolemus' conscience gains the upper hand, and he returns the bow. After many threats made on both sides, Odysseus flees. Neoptolemus then tries to talk Philoctetes into coming to Troy by his own free will, but Philoctetes does not agree. In the end, Neoptolemus consents to take Philoctetes back to Greece, even though that will expose him to the anger of the army. This appears to be the conclusion of the play—however, as they are leaving, Heracles (now a deity) appears above them and tells Philoctetes that if he goes to Troy, he will be cured and the Greeks will win. Philoctetes willingly obeys him.

The play ends here. When Philoctetes later fights in Troy, his foot is healed, and he wins glory, killing many Trojans (including Paris).