''Hercules Oetaeus'' (Hercules on Mount Oeta) is a ''

fabula crepidata A ''fabula crepidata'' or ''fabula cothurnata'' is a Latin tragedy with Greek subjects. The genre probably originated in adaptations of Greek tragedy (hence the names, coming from ''crepida'' = ''sandal'' and ''cothurnus'') beginning in the early ...

'' (Roman tragedy with Greek subject) of c. 1996 lines of verse which survived as one of

Lucius Annaeus Seneca Lucius Annaeus Seneca the Younger (; 65 AD), usually known mononymously as Seneca, was a Stoic philosopher of Ancient Rome, a statesman, dramatist, and, in one work, satirist, from the post-Augustan age of Latin literature. Seneca was born in ...

's tragedies. It tells the story of Hercules' betrayal by his jealous wife, Deianira, followed by his death and

apotheosis Apotheosis (, ), also called divinization or deification (), is the glorification of a subject to divine levels and, commonly, the treatment of a human being, any other living thing, or an abstract idea in the likeness of a deity. The term has ...

. The general opinion is that the play is not Seneca's, but was written in close imitation.

Authorship

The play was first rejected by

Daniel Heinsius Daniel is a masculine given name and a surname of Hebrew origin. It means "God is my judge"Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 68. (cf. Gabriel—"God is my strength"), ...

in the 17th century, It is worth noting that Heinsius also rejected Seneca's ''Phoenissae'', and he ascribed ''Hercules Furens'', ''Thyestes'', ''Oedipus'', and ''Agamemnon'', to Seneca's father. and the majority of modern critics agree that the play in its present form is not by Seneca. The work has many small differences in style from Seneca's other plays which "suggest a fundamentally different approach to playwriting". It is also around twice as long as Seneca's other plays, and is in fact the longest drama to survive from antiquity. ''Hercules Oetaeus'' contains numerous passages from Seneca's other plays which have been lifted out of context, reworked, and inserted into the play. The play's conclusion contains a strong

Stoic Stoic may refer to: * An adherent of Stoicism; one whose moral quality is associated with that school of philosophy *STOIC, a programming language * ''Stoic'' (film), a 2009 film by Uwe Boll * ''Stoic'' (mixtape), a 2012 mixtape by rapper T-Pain *' ...

theme which is not found in Seneca's other plays. However, there are scholars who defend the play as authentic (albeit hastily written), or argue that a later hand reworked an incomplete fragment. Critics in favour of this view argue that the first third of the play (lines 1–705) could have originally been written by Seneca but that the end of the play is not his.

Characters

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

, Son of Jupiter and Alcmena *

Iole In Greek mythology, Iole (; grc, Ἰόλη ) was the daughter of King Eurytus of Oechalia. According to the brief epitome in the '' Bibliotheca'', Eurytus had a beautiful young daughter named Iole who was eligible for marriage. Iole was claimed ...

, Daughter of Eurytus, king of Oechalia *''nutrix'' (nurse) *

Deianeira Deianira, Deïanira, or Deianeira (; Ancient Greek: Δηϊάνειρα, ''Dēiáneira'', or , ''Dēáneira'', ), also known as Dejanira, is a Calydonian princess in Greek mythology whose name translates as "man-destroyer" or "destroyer of her hu ...

, Daughter of Oeneus, king of Aetolia, and wife of Hercules *

Hyllus In Greek mythology, Hyllus (; Ancient Greek: Ὕλλος) or Hyllas (Ὕλᾱς) was son of Heracles and Deianira, husband of Iole, nursed by Abia. Mythology Heracles, whom Zeus had originally intended to be ruler of Argos, Lacedaemon and Mes ...

, Son of Hercules and Deianira * Alcmena, Daughter of Electryon, king of Mycenae *

Philoctetes Philoctetes ( grc, Φιλοκτήτης ''Philoktētēs''; English pronunciation: , stress (linguistics), stressed on the third syllable, ''-tet-''), or Philocthetes, according to Greek mythology, was the son of Poeas, king of Meliboea (Magnes ...

, A prince of Thessaly, and friend of Hercules *

Lichas :''Lichas can also refer to Lichas the Spartan, who discovered the bones of Orestes, or a genus of trilobite'' In Greek mythology, Lichas (; el, Λίχας) was Hercules's servant, who brought the poisoned shirt from Deianira to Hercules beca ...

(silent role) The messenger of Deianira to Hercules *Chorus, of Aetolian women, faithful to Deianira. *Band, of Oechalian women, suffering captivity in company with Iole.

Plot

The long, heroic life of Hercules has neared its end. His twelve great tasks, assigned him by

Eurystheus In Greek mythology, Eurystheus (; grc-gre, Εὐρυσθεύς, , broad strength, ) was king of Tiryns, one of three Mycenaean strongholds in the Argolid, although other authors including Homer and Euripides cast him as ruler of Argos. Famil ...

through Juno's hatred, have been done. His latest victory was over

Eurytus Eurytus, Eurytos (; Ancient Greek: Εὔρυτος) or Erytus (Ἔρυτος) is the name of several characters in Greek mythology, and of at least one historical figure. Mythological *Eurytus, one of the Giants, sons of Gaia, killed by Dionysus ...

, king of Oechalia. Hercules slew the king and overthrew his house, because he would not give Hercules his daughter Iole in marriage. And now the hero, having overcome the world, and Pluto's realm beneath the earth, aspires to heaven. He sacrifices to Cenaean Jove, and prays at last to be received into his proper home.

Act I

The first scene, with the chorus following, is at Euboea, where Hercules, about to offer sacrifices on the promontory of

Cenaeum Mount Lichada and Cape Lichada ( el, Χερσόνησος Λιχάδα, Chersonesos Lichada) is a mountain and cape forming the northwest tip of the island of Euboea, Greece. Their ancient name was Κήναιον ''Kenaion'', Latinized as Cenaeum. T ...

, records his wishes for a place in the heavens, which he recounts and boasts he has deserved. (The rest of the Tragedy takes place at

Trachis Trachis ( grc-gre, , ''Trakhís'') was a region in ancient Greece. Situated south of the river Spercheios, it was populated by the Malians. It was also a polis (city-state). Its main town was also called ''Trachis'' until 426 BC, when it was refo ...

.) Iole joining in with the Chorus of Oechalians, bewails the destruction of her country, the slaughter of her father and kinsfolk and lastly, her own position of servitude.

Act II

Deianira, furious with jealousy having seen Iole, debates revenge with her nurse. She decides to send a garment to Hercules anointed with the blood of the centaur Nessus. She believes that it will act as love charm, but mentions how Nessus told her that the charm must be kept in darkness. The Chorus of Aetolian women bewail the lot of Deianira, they express their dislike of ambition, avarice, luxury and other frivolous pursuits of mankind, and praise the inferior conditions of life.

Act III

Deianira repents of her plan when she is acquainted with what danger the poison has brought about, and the calamity, as predicted from its exposure to the sun, has now taken place. Having learned about this from Hyllus, Deianira resolves to kill herself. The Chorus sings of everything as being subject to Death, regarding the failing strength of Hercules— "that nothing born or created is lasting," which sentiment of Orpheus it praises, and they intersperse the Chorus with celebrating his divine art.

Act IV

Hercules complains about suffering undeservedly, and that he should be doomed to die an ignominious death, especially one arising out of a woman's treachery. Alcmena consoles Hercules, whilst lamenting his sad fate. Hyllus having returned, tells Hercules that Deianira, after she found that she had been deceived by Nessus, killed herself. The Chorus beseeches Phoebus to announce to all the world the death of Hercules: they predict the apotheosis of Hercules, and implore Jupiter, that there may be no more Tyrants, wild beasts or monsters, brought forth in the future, if so, that another Hercules may be forthcoming, as the avenger of such calamities.

Act V

Philoctetes announces the death and the last disposal of the body of Hercules. Alcmena grieves about her own downfall, arising out of the death of Hercules. Alcmena, in her grief, chants a funeral dirge. Hercules, having been raised to the companionship of the gods, consoles his grieving mother, being introduced into this scene by being lowered from the heavens above. The chorus breathes its thanks for the Apotheosis of Hercules, and is ready to worship the new Deity.

Sources

The first four acts follow the basic structure of

Sophocles Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or co ...

' play the ''

Women of Trachis ''Women of Trachis'' or ''The Trachiniae'' ( grc, Τραχίνιαι, ) c. 450–425 BC, is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles. ''Women of Trachis'' is generally considered to be less developed than Sophocles' other works, and its dating has been ...

''. However the scenes which describe Hercules's self-immolation and apotheosis at the end may be derived from

Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the th ...

's ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the wo ...

'' (ix. 229-272).