CHARACTERS (in order of appearance) Odysseus: the director of Greek intelligence Ajax: a formidable warrior Athena: the goddess of war Chorus: the sailors and soldiers of Ajax Tecmessa: the battle-won wife of Ajax Eurysaces: their three-year-old son Messenger: a soldier of the Greek army Teucer: the half brother of Ajax Menelaus: the deputy commander of the Greek army Agamemnon: the commander of the Greek army Odysseus appears at dawn--low to the ground--darting in and out of shadows. He is searching for a safe place to wait for A jax . Athena startles him, a voice at the borders of darkness. Athena Why am I never surprised, son of Laertes, to catch you stalking an enemy at daybreak, like a blood- hound after some scent, tracking foot- prints behind the tents where Ajax and his men hold down the battle line? You wish to know if he's inside, soaked in sweat from the slaughter? Then tell me what you've come to do, and you may learn from one who knows. Odysseus Dearest Athena, guardian goddess, though your shape evades my eyes, I hear you clearly in my mind, like the tune of a song to which I somehow know the words. I'm circling in on an enemy, just as you've guessed, close on his heels. I have come for Ajax, the one we called the "shield." It is he alone whom I now hunt. Last night, he did some- thing vile, some vile thing, some- thing un- imaginable, if he is the one, we cannot be sure, still shaken by the sight of it, and so they sent me here to confirm what he has done. All of our cattle are dead, and the men who tended them, hacked to pieces, butchered by a hand--his, we think--for one of our men swears to have seen him sprinting across the field with a wet sword. As soon as I heard, I was on the case, following the tracks, which led me here, but I've been thrown by strange markings in the mud and cannot find him anywhere. You have arrived, as always, at the right moment to guide me with your hand. Athena steps out of the shadows. Athena Obviously, Odysseus, I came to help with the hunt. Odysseus Then I am on the right track? Athena He is the one you describe: the killer of cows. Odysseus A reckless gesture, but why did he do it? Athena Black bile--blinding rage--over the arms of Achilles. Odysseus But what drove him to attack the animals? Athena In his mind, their blood was yours. Odysseus He wished to kill the Greeks? Athena Affirmative. He would have completed his mission had I not been paying attention. Odysseus Where did he find the courage to do it? Athena He stalked you quietly in the night. Odysseus How close did he come to his target? Athena Close enough to strike the generals. Odysseus And what contained his bloodlust? Athena I did. I robbed him of the pleasure of cutting you to pieces, raining on his death parade, distracting him with visions of bovine foes grazing in the fields under the watchful eyes of simple herdsmen. He descended upon them with full fury, ripping out horns with his hands, slitting throats and snapping spines, at one point squeezing the life from a general, then taking the lives of other officers, or so he thought, trembling from contamination. I stoked his rage, driving him deeper into the snare. Finally tired from all the killing, he bound and gagged his sad prisoners, those pitiful few cows and sheep some- how still standing, and rounded them up for the death march back to his camp, convinced they were men. He tortures them inside the tent. And now I will expose you to his illness, so you may see it with your own eyes. Stand there, like a man. He won't hurt you, as long as I am here. Don't worry. I will hide you in his blind spot; he won't see you in the shadows. Athena turns and shouts toward the tent. You, there, in the tent, stretching prisoners on the rack, put down your ropes; report to me immediately! Odysseus What are you doing? Lower your voice. Athena Watch what you say. Someone might call you a coward. Odysseus Please, Athena, by the gods, let him stay inside the tent. Athena He's only a man, not to be feared, the same as before. Odysseus He was and is my enemy. Athena Well isn't it satisfying to laugh at an enemy? Odysseus It would please me more if he stayed within. Athena Are you afraid to gaze upon a maniac? Odysseus When he was sane, I would have met his stare. Athena He won't see you standing before him. Odysseus Isn't he looking through the same eyes? Athena I'll shade his eyes and darken his vision. Odysseus Whatever the goddess wants, she takes. Athena Stand there silently. Do not move! Odysseus I must remain, against my wishes. Excerpted from All That You've Seen Here Is God: New Versions of Four Greek Tragedies Sophocles' Ajax, Philoctetes, Women of Trachis; Aeschylus' Prometheus Bound by Sophocles, Aeschylus All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
