Quotes from work
Phèdre

Phèdre is a French dramatic tragedy in five acts written in alexandrine verse by Jean Racine, first performed in 1677 at the theatre of the Hôtel de Bourgogne in Paris.


Jean Racine photo

“Ariane, my sister, wounded by what love,
You died on the shores where you were abandoned.”

Ariane, ma sœur, de quel amour blessée,
Vous mourûtes aux bords où vous fûtes laissée.
Phèdre, act I, scene III.
Phèdre (1677)

Jean Racine photo

“You have named him, not I.”

C'est toi qui l'as nommé.
Phèdre, act I, scene III.
Phèdre (1677)

Jean Racine photo

“All afflicts and injures me, and conspires to my injury.”

Tout m'afflige et me nuit, et conspire à me nuire.
Phèdre, act I, scene III.
Phèdre (1677)

Jean Racine photo

“Crime, like virtue, has its degrees;
And timid innocence was never known
To blossom suddenly into extreme license.”

Ainsi que la vertu, le crime a ses dégrés;
Et jamais on n'a vu la timide innocence
Passer subitement à l'extrême licence.
Hippolyte, act IV, scene II.
Phèdre (1677)

Jean Racine photo

“Innocence has nothing to dread.”

L'innocence enfin n'a rien à redouter.
Hippolyte, act III, scene VI.
Phèdre (1677)

Jean Racine photo

“It is no longer a passion hidden in my heart:
It is Venus herself fastened to her prey.”

Ce n'est plus une ardeur dans mes veines cachée:
C'est Vénus tout entière à sa proie attachée.
Phèdre, act I, scene III.
Phèdre (1677)

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