Ariadne

Phaedra gives birth to a son but does not adjust well to motherhood, feeling only “despair mixed with a faint pity” (199). The baby’s constant crying exhausts her, and she feels shame at her own lack of maternal feeling. Dreaming of her own escape, she finds herself unexpectedly longing for Theseus’s stories of faraway adventures, but she resents that her child looks exactly like him; she wonders if he will grow up to become like his father. About a year later, Phaedra is pregnant again and births another son. She feels the same lack of affection for him and laments that her obligations as a mother prevent her from journeying to Naxos and finding her sister.

Ariadne watches an Athenian ship approach and wonders who could be onboard—angry men coming to reclaim the women who fled from them, or perhaps Theseus himself. As the figure approaches, Ariadne is stunned to recognize Phaedra. Ariadne and Phaedra walk together in private. Phaedra recounts the events of the past years—Minos’s anger at his Minotaur’s defeat, Deadalus’s escape, Minos’s death, Deucalion’s rise to power on Crete, Phaedra’s subsequent marriage to Theseus, and his lie regarding Ariadne’s fate on Naxos. Phaedra expresses outrage at Theseus’s dishonesty and says she sees her life with him as “a grand deception” (215).

After learning that Ariadne is alive, Phaedra begins to uncover more of Theseus’s secrets. She learns that during his heroic journey to Athens, he visited the Amazons and set his sights on their queen, Hippolyta. The Amazons, a fearsome, group of female warriors, offered him sanctuary, and Theseus snuck into an intoxicated Hippolyta’s chambers and abducted her. Rather than bring her home, he held her captive on his ship and raped her, impregnating her before she could get away. The child, a son named Hippolytus, grew up as the only male in the Amazonian tribe.

One day, Hippolytus arrives in Athens and presents himself before Theseus and Phaedra, requesting to make Athens his home; now a grown man, he can no longer stay on the island of women. Theseus begrudgingly agrees. Phaedra shows more kindness than her husband and takes an interest in Hippolytus, as he is much gentler and more honest than his father. He tends his horses himself and rides them masterfully. One morning, Phaedra goes to the stables to watch him care for his horses and to speak to him. She teases him, attempting to convince him to open up, but he is reserved. He mentions that he will take no wife: He is dedicated to the virgin goddess Artemis and has pledged to stay chaste. This troubles Phaedra, as she finds herself fascinated by Hippolytus and increasingly resentful of Theseus. Finally, she decides to sail to Naxos to see her sister.

Ariadne listens to Phaedra recount the story of Hippolytus’s arrival, and she notices the change in Phaedra’s voice and the dreaminess in her eyes. Phaedra admits her feelings for Hippolytus, comparing him favorably to her husband. She tried to confess her love to Hippolytus himself but could not bring herself to tell him. She imagines the two of them running away together. Ariadne does not hide her shock and disapproval and tries to convince her sister to see reason. She tells Phaedra that Hippolytus will never break his pledge to Artemis or his loyalty to his father; furthermore, as his stepmother, Phaedra risks drawing scandal on herself and her children. Phaedra becomes defensive and says she never should have sought help from Ariadne, whom Phaedra accuses of ignoring the whereabouts of her own husband. Having heard of his exploits across the world, Phaedra came to Naxos to seek Dionysus’s protection for herself and Hippolytus, but she now feels unwelcome. After a brief night’s rest, Phaedra and her men leave for Athens again. Despite Ariadne’s warnings, Phaedra remains committed to confessing her true feelings to Hippolytus.

Phaedra sails back to Athens, humiliated by her sister’s disapproval. She scorns Ariadne for “pretending” her life is perfect despite her own husband’s mysterious, perverse rituals in the woods. Her feelings for Hippolytus have made her see her own life more clearly, and she recognizes that another, happier life is possible. She cannot conceive of her love for Hippolytus being unrequited. As Athens draws closer, Phaedra feels more certain and courageous than ever; she will confess her love for Hippolytus while Theseus is away.

Ariadne contemplates Phaedra’s insinuation that Dionysus leads scandalous rituals. Since Phaedra’s visit, Ariadne is wracked with doubts about her life on Naxos, her husband’s true nature, and how removed she is from life off the island.

When Dionysus returns, Ariadne notes a change in him. He is not his usual lively self; instead, he frets over the places he has visited that do not worship his cult, particularly the city of Argos, where his mortal half brother, Perseus, rules. Perseus, slayer of Medusa, will not allow shrines to Dionysus in his city, which offends Dionysus. Ariadne mentions Phaedra’s visit and confronts Dionysus over failing to mention Phaedra’s marriage to Theseus. They discuss Phaedra’s attraction toward Hippolytus, and Dionysus scorns mortals as often being “the cause of their own suffering” (241). For the first time, Ariadne wonders if Dionysus is growing restless and if her love can compare to that of his adoring followers.

When Dionysus and the maenads go into the woods for their rites that night, Ariadne considers following them, hoping to prove Phaedra wrong, but decides against it. Early the next morning, she follows the path her husband and his followers took and finds a group of maenads stumbling down the pathway, blood on their robes and dirt and tears staining their faces. Ariadne resolves to follow the group at night and observe their rituals for herself.

That evening, Ariadne leaves her children sleeping in the palace and follows Dionysus and the maenads to their clearing in the woods. She is unsettled by what she witnesses: Her husband and the maenads are absorbed in a strange ritual, singing blank-faced and holding a baby goat aloft. Ariadne watches as the maenads rip the animal apart with their bare hands. Dionysus stands over the remains and speaks in a strange language, and the baby goat reassembles and springs back to life, unharmed. The maenads relax, laughing, while Dionysus’s face remains still and unchanged. Horrified, Ariadne runs back to the house before anyone notices her.

The next morning, Ariadne tends to her children and then goes to the vineyard to gather grapes. There, she is approached by Euphrosyne, the newest arrival on Naxos. The two sit and talk, and Euphrosyne confesses that she saw Ariadne the previous night during the ritual. Ariadne asks her why she decided to leave her life behind and come to Naxos. Euphrosyne tells her story: She is from a poor family in Athens and was married off at 16. She became pregnant, and the excitement of her coming baby was a comfort despite her miserable marriage. However, when she gave birth to a baby girl, her husband deemed the child worthless and abandoned the baby on a hillside. Devastated, Euphrosyne sailed to Naxos alone, and upon reaching the shore she felt happy as she had not since losing her child. Ariadne thinks of the resurrected baby goat and understands the woman’s desperate hope for her own child. She tells Euphrosyne she is glad she came. The next day, Ariadne resolves to go to Athens to be with Phaedra.

Ariadne prepares for her trip to Athens, taking her youngest son, Tauropolis, with her. Dionysus tries to convince her that it is pointless to attempt to dissuade Phaedra from her plan, but Ariadne is determined to try. When she arrives in Athens, Phaedra greets her and escorts her to the palace. Theseus is still away, and Phaedra plans to speak to Hippolytus that afternoon. She is confident he will return her affections.

In the palace courtyard, Hippolytus approaches and Ariadne introduces herself. Hippolytus refers to her as his aunt. The implication that he views Phaedra as his mother visibly flusters Phaedra, and Ariadne wonders how Hippolytus does not notice Phaedra’s affection for him. He leaves to go to the stables. Ariadne steps away to put Tauropolis down for a nap and returns to the courtyard to find that Phaedra has left. Ariadne assumes she has gone to the stables to speak with Hippolytus. At the sound of horns blaring from the harbor below, Tauropolis wakes, and Ariadne fetches him and wanders the palace. When she returns to the courtyard, Theseus is there.

Phaedra is shaken by Ariadne’s sudden visit. She feels she must act before Ariadne can convince her otherwise. She imagines that she and Hippolytus can escape on Ariadne’s ship. Phaedra goes to the stables and finds Hippolytus alone. Hurriedly, she says they must speak at once. Hippolytus looks concerned for her, but Phaedra finally expresses her true feelings.

Ariadne and Theseus stand before one another in the courtyard. He is shocked to see her. Ariadne thinks of all the times she has pictured this moment, the things she had imagined she would say to him, but now tells him only that she has come to see Phaedra. Theseus asks where Phaedra is, and Ariadne feigns ignorance. They both hear a noise—a high-pitched cry and several female voices—and follow it to the palace gardens. The servants there are wailing in despair in a sort of procession, the noise growing louder and louder. A girl at the front of the procession hands Theseus a note, which Ariadne assumes is from Phaedra—news that she has fled with Hippolytus. Theseus throws the note on the ground and hurries in the direction the wailing women came from. Ariadne retrieves the letter and follows. Theseus stops beside some trees. When Ariadne catches up, he warns her not to look. Ariadne, misunderstanding him, does not look away, and what she sees haunts her.

Hippolytus’s reaction to Phaedra’s confession is not at all what Phaedra expected; he worries for her and questions her rationality. He rejects her advances, saying he has thought of her as a mother since his arrival in Athens. Disgusted, he leaves at once. Phaedra is deeply ashamed and now sees her feelings for Hippolytus for what they are: longing to escape her current life. She panics, certain Hippolytus will tell his father what she confessed, and she fears what Theseus will do to her or her sons if he knows the truth. It is too late to catch up to Hippolytus and beg him not to tell, so she fetches a piece of papyrus and starts to write a letter to him. However, she gets only as far as writing his name before changing her mind. She wonders if she can run away with Ariadne, but when she hears the horns that signal Theseus’s return, she knows it is too late. Phaedra feels there is no way for her to escape. She takes a rope from the stables and looks to the copse of trees outside.

Phaedra hangs from one of the trees. Theseus is convinced his son is to blame, as her note has only Hippolytus’s name written on it. Ariadne does not want to betray her sister but also does not want to condemn Hippolytus; she tells Theseus of Phaedra’s feelings and suggests that Phaedra died by suicide because her love was unrequited. Theseus tells Ariadne that she does not know men, convinced Hippolytus must have taken Phaedra’s feelings as invitation to rape her. Ariadne is not convinced that Hippolytus would ever do such a thing, saying, “I fear [Theseus] judged his son by his own standards” (274).

Theseus storms away, and Ariadne commands the stable hands to take Phaedra’s body back to the palace. She tells them to warn Hippolytus, but the stable hand says he is already riding on the beach. Ariadne runs to the beach and sees Hippolytus on horseback and Theseus standing before the sea, asking Poseidon to punish his son and avenge his wife. Hippolytus’s horse panics, and a towering wave knocks them over. Hippolytus is dragged through the water and killed. Ariadne returns to Naxos immediately. Dionysus comes to her, and she sees “warmth, love, and concern” in his eyes and lets herself cry (276).