THE GROWTH OF THE TIE 17 



are judged." No ancient addresses language of this 

 kind to his father. 



In Greek tragedy love is admitted only as a form 

 of relentless fate. It is not allowed to enter into 

 family life in the form of passion, nor is woman's 

 modesty respected as the public sentiment of the 

 moderns requires it to be. Both Euripides and 

 Eacine have treated the story of Andromache, each 

 from the point of view of his own age. The Greek 

 poet depicts the maternal love of his heroine, but 

 cares nothing for her other womanly attributes. 

 From being the spouse of the noble Hector, slain in 

 battle with the Greeks, Andromache becomes the 

 slave of Pyrrhus. But her past rank entitles her 

 to no consideration ; on the contrary, she is made 

 to perform the most menial offices, and as a matter of 

 course shares the bed of her captor. And her fate 

 would seem to have been entirely agreeable not 

 only to Greek notions, but to the spirit of Eomau 

 civilisation as well ; for Virgil, while accepting the 

 views of Euripides, represents Pyrrhus as afterwards 

 marrying Andromache to one of his slaves, Helenus, 

 another Trojan captive, and the brother of Hector. 



Against such humiliating treatment of a noble 

 woman it never occurred to the Greek or Koman 



c 



