Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from Euripides Alcestis: With Introduction and Notes
The plot is brie?y as follows. Admetus, king of Pherae, being destined to die, Apollo, grateful to him for past kindness during an enforced term of servitude, obtains leave of the Fates for the king to provide a substitute. After all his friends and rela tives, even his aged parents, have declined to grant him the favour of dying in his stead, his wife Alcestis alone is found willing to undertake such a sacrifice; she accordingly dies, after taking an affectionate farewell of her husband and children. In the midst of their mourning Heracles arrives on his road to Thrace, where he has a certain 'labour' to perform at the bid ding of his master Eurystheus. Admetus welcomes him as an old friend, and without mentioning his great sorrow presses him to accept hospitality, but excuses himself from joining his guest in the banquet-hall. During the meal Heracles scandalises the attendant by his boisterous behaviour in a house of mourning; but learning from him the true state of the case, he abandons in a moment his ill-timed levity, and rushes forth to the tomb, re solved to do battle with Death for his victim. After a severe struggle he rescues Alcestis from the grasp of her destroyer, brings her back veiled to the palace, and places her in the arms of her husband. This done, the hero goes on his way, promising to visit Admetus again on his return from the Thracian land.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
