Editing Phaedra (mythology)

{{Short description|Cretan princess in Greek mythology}}
{{More footnotes needed|article|date=March 2021}}
{{Infobox deity
| type = Greek
| name = Phaedra
| deity_of = Queen of [[Athens]]
| member_of = the [[Cretan|Crete]] Royal Family
| image = Wall painting - Phaidra and her nurse - Pompeii - London BM GR 1856-0625-5 - 02.jpg
| caption = Phaedra with an attendant, probably her nurse, a fresco from [[Pompeii]], 60–20 BC
| alt = 
| other_names = 
| affiliation = 
| cult_center = 
| abode = Crete, later Athens
| consort = [[Theseus]]
| parents = [[Minos]] and [[Pasiphae]] or [[Crete (mythology)|Crete]]
| siblings = [[Catreus]], [[Ariadne]], [[Androgeus (son of Minos)|Androgeus]], [[Xenodice (mythology)|Xenodice]], [[Acacallis (mythology)|Acacallis]], [[Glaucus of Crete|Glaucus]] and [[Deucalion (son of Minos)|Deucalion]]; the [[Minotaur]]
| offspring = [[Acamas (son of Theseus)|Acamas]] and [[Demophon of Athens|Demophon]]
| predecessor = 
| successor = 
| Roman_equivalent = 
| Etruscan_equivalent = 
}}

In [[Greek mythology]], '''Phaedra''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|f|iː|d|r|ə|,_|ˈ|f|ɛ|d|r|ə}}; {{langx|grc|Φαίδρα|Phaídra}}) is a [[Crete|Cretan]] princess. Her name derives from the Greek word {{lang|grc|φαιδρός}} ({{lang|grc-Latn|phaidros}}), which means "bright".  According to legend, she was the daughter of [[Minos]] and [[Pasiphaë]], and the wife of [[Theseus]]. Phaedra fell in love with her stepson [[Hippolytus of Athens|Hippolytus]].  After he rejected her advances, she accused him of trying to rape her, causing Theseus to pray to [[Poseidon]] to kill Hippolytus (which Poseidon did), and then she killed herself.

The story of Phaedra is told in [[Euripides]]' play ''[[Hippolytus (play)|Hippolytus]]'', [[Seneca the Younger]]'s ''[[Phaedra (Seneca)|Phaedra]]'', and [[Ovid]]'s ''[[Heroides]]''.  It has inspired many modern works of art and literature, including [[Phèdre|a play]] by [[Jean Racine]].

== Family ==
Phaedra was the daughter of [[Minos]] and [[Pasiphaë]] of [[Crete]], and thus sister to [[Acacallis (mythology)|Acacallis]], [[Ariadne]], [[Androgeus (son of Minos)|Androgeus]], [[Deucalion (Cretan)|Deucalion]], [[Xenodice (mythology)|Xenodice]], [[Glaucus (son of Minos)|Glaucus]] and [[Catreus]] and half-sister to the [[Minotaur]]. She was the wife of [[Theseus]] and the mother of [[Demophon of Athens]] and [[Acamas (son of Theseus)|Acamas]].

== Mythology ==
{{Unreferenced section|date=December 2021}}
[[File:Hippolytus, Phaedra and nurse - wall painting (1st century AD) from Herculaneum.jpg|thumb|left|[[Hippolytus of Athens|Hippolytus]], Phaedra and nurse, antique fresco in [[Herculaneum]]]]
Much of what we know about the mythology and story of Phaedra is from a collection of plays and poems. Many of these earlier sources such as ''Phaedra'', a play by [[Sophocles]], and ''[[Hippolytus (play)|Hippolytus Veiled]]'', a play by [[Euripides]], have been lost. However, works such as ''[[Phaedra (Seneca)|Phaedra]]'', written by Roman statesman and philosopher [[Seneca the Younger]], and the ''[[Heroides]]'', a collection of poems written by [[Ovid]], give details of the story. As a result there are many different versions of the story of Phaedra and [[Hippolytus (son of Theseus)|Hippolytus]], but they all share the same general structure, with two versions becoming more prominent over time. Version 1 depicts Phaedra as the shameless and lustful wife of [[Theseus]], the King of Athens. The other version, Version 2, shows Phaedra in a much kinder light, as a noble and virtuous queen, yet each has a similarly tragic ending.

=== Traditional version ===
[[File:Musée-Ingres-Bourdelle - Hippolyte, après l'aveu de Phèdre, sa belle-mère - Étienne-Barthélémy Garnier - Joconde06070000123.jpg|thumb|Hippolytus after the confession of Phaedra by [[Étienne-Barthélémy Garnier]]; [[Musée Ingres]], Montauban]]
In the more traditional version of the story, Phaedra is the primary cause of misfortune in the tale. The story goes that Phaedra, who was the mother of two sons, Acamas and Demophon, falls in love with her stepson Hippolytus, Theseus's son by another woman (born to either [[Hippolyta]], queen of the [[Amazons]], or [[Antiope (Amazon)|Antiope]], her sister)  and sets out to entice him. It is unclear in this version exactly why Hippolytus rejects Phaedra, if not simply because he is her stepson, but Phaedra becomes humiliated when Hippolytus refuses her.

Afraid of the consequences that may befall her if Theseus learns about her actions, she lies to her husband that Hippolytus tried to rape her. This angers Theseus who immediately curses his son with one of three wishes granted to him by [[Poseidon]], the god of the sea. At the request of Theseus to kill Hippolytus, the god summons a huge bull that rises from the sea and scares Hippolytus's horses into a frenzy that drags the rider to his death. In one rendition of the story Hippolytus's name is translated to "the one who is torn apart by horses".

In the end Phaedra's treachery is somehow discovered (it is unclear how), and to avoid a more painful death, she decides to take her own life.

=== Alternative version ===
In this version of the story, Phaedra has a reputation as a virtuous queen and is not entirely responsible for her actions. She gets caught in the crossfire between Hippolytus and Aphrodite, the goddess of love. This narrative requires a little background on an earlier conflict between Hippolytus and [[Aphrodite]]. Hippolytus is a devout follower of [[Artemis]], the goddess of the hunt and, among other things, the goddess of chastity. As a result he hails her as the greatest of all deities and in a show of devotion to honor the goddess, Hippolytus vows eternal chastity, swearing that he will never love or marry. This offends Aphrodite who is regularly worshipped by all in Greek mythology, and in an attempt to punish Hippolytus, the goddess of love curses his stepmother Phaedra to fall madly in love with him.

[[File:Sarcofago con la morte di fedra del II sec., da tomba di incisa vivaldi (1304) fuori s.m. delle vigne.JPG|thumb|Death of Phaedra; 2nd century sarcophagus, [[Santa Maria delle Vigne]], Genoa]]

Phaedra becomes distraught and depressed for several months due to "dreadful longings" for Hippolytus. Eventually, unable to tolerate the burden of her suffering in silence, she confides in her nurse and shares her feelings towards Hippolytus. The nurse concerned about her mistress's health tells Hippolytus about how Phaedra feels. Bound by his oath of abstinence, Hippolytus rejects his stepmother. When Phaedra learns of her nurse's actions, she fears the consequences of her immoral desires and plans to commit suicide. But before doing so, she writes a letter to her husband Theseus accusing Hippolytus of attempting to seduce her in an attempt to clear her name and possibly protect her children from misfortune.

Similar to the ending of Version 1, once Theseus reads Phaedra's letter and learns of his son's supposed sins, he prays to Poseidon to kill his son. And in a very similar fashion to the first tale, Poseidon summons a huge bull to scare Hippolytus's horses into a wild frenzy that kills him. However in this version of the narrative, the story does not end there. Artemis is saddened by the loss of her devout follower and reveals the truth to Theseus about Aphrodite and the curse she placed on his wife. The story ends with Theseus grieving over the death of his wife and son.[[Image:Hippolytus Sir Lawrence Alma Tadema.jpg|thumb|left|''The Death of Hippolytus'' (1860) by [[Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema]]]]

=== Other versions of the story ===
In another version, after Phaedra told Theseus that Hippolytus had raped her, Theseus killed his son, and Phaedra then committed suicide out of guilt, for she had not intended Hippolytus to die. [[Artemis]] later told Theseus the truth.

In a fourth version, Phaedra told Theseus and did not kill herself; [[Dionysus]] then sent a wild bull which terrified Hippolytus's horses.

[[Euripides]] twice placed [[Hippolytus (play)|this story]] on the Athenian stage, of which one version survives.

According to some sources, Hippolytus had spurned [[Aphrodite]] to remain a steadfast and virginal devotee of Artemis, and Aphrodite made Phaedra fall in love with him as a punishment. The Athenians maintained a small shrine high on the south slope of the [[Acropolis of Athens|Acropolis]] devoted to Aphrodite 'for Hippolytus'.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kerényi |first1=Karl |title=The heroes of the Greeks |date=1959 |publisher=Thames and Hudson |page=243 |oclc=681148657 }}</ref>

In one version, Phaedra's nurse told Hippolytus of her love, and he swore he would not reveal her as a source of information.

== Cultural influence ==
Phaedra has been the subject of many notable works in art, literature, music and film.

===In art===
* Phaedra with attendant, probably her nurse, a [[fresco]] from [[Pompeii]] circa 60–20 BC
* Figure 8 Phaedra, wall painting, early first century CE, Pompeii, now Antiquarium di Pompeii, Pompeii, inv. no. 20620,<ref name=":0">{{cite journal |last1=Swetnam-Burland |first1=Molly |title=Encountering Ovid's Phaedra in House V.2.10–11, Pompeii |journal=American Journal of Archaeology |date=2015 |volume=119 |issue=2 |pages=217–232 |doi=10.3764/aja.119.2.0217 |jstor=10.3764/aja.119.2.0217 |s2cid=191820393 }}</ref><ref>{{cite thesis |last1=Abigail |first1=Dupree |title=Phaedra: Empathy for a Disloyal Wife in Roman Painting and Poetry |date=2017 |doi=10.17615/xp3z-7r92 }}</ref>
* Second century Roman Sarcophagus of [[Beatrice of Lorraine]] in the [[Camposanto Monumentale di Pisa|Camposanto]] in [[Pisa]]. This was the model for [[Nicola Pisano]]'s work on the [[Pisa Baptistery]] in the mid-thirteenth century.
*[[Alexandre Cabanel]]'s ''[[Phaedra (Alexandre Cabanel)|Phaedra]]'' (1880)

===In literature===
Phaedra's story appears in many acclaimed works of literature, including:
* [[Euripides]], ''[[Hippolytus (play)|Hippolytus]]'', Greek play
* [[Ovid]], ''[[Heroides]]'' IV
* [[Seneca the Younger]], ''[[Phaedra (Seneca)|Phaedra]]'', Latin play
* [[Jean Racine]], ''[[Phèdre]]'' (1677), French play
* [[Algernon Charles Swinburne]], ''Phaedra'' (1866), English lyrical drama
* [[Herman Bang]], ''Fædra'' (1883), Danish novel.
* [[Gabriele D'Annunzio]], ''Fedra'' (1909), Italian play
* [[Miguel de Unamuno]], ''Fedra'' (1911), Spanish play
* [[Eugene O'Neill]], ''[[Desire Under the Elms]]'' (1924), American play
* [[Marina Tsvetaeva]], ''Fedra'' (1928), Russian play
* [[Mary Renault]], ''[[The Bull from the Sea]]'' (1962), English novel

=== In music ===
Phaedra is also the subject of a number of musical works, including:
* ''[[Hippolyte et Aricie]]'', [[opera]] ([[tragédie en musique]]) by [[Jean-Philippe Rameau]], 1733
* ''[[Phédre]]'', [[opera]] by [[Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne]], 1786
* ''Fedra'', opera by [[Giovanni Paisiello]], 1788
* ''Fedra'', opera by [[Simon Mayr]], 1820
* ''Phèdre,'' overture by [[Jules Massenet]],1873 <ref>{{Cite web |title=Phèdre (Massenet, Jules) - IMSLP: Free Sheet Music PDF Download |url=https://imslp.org/wiki/Ph%C3%A8dre_(Massenet,_Jules) |access-date=2023-03-20 |website=imslp.org}}</ref> also appearing as a protagonist in his 1907 opera ''[[Ariane (Massenet)|Ariane]]''
* ''[[Fedra (Pizzetti)|Fedra]]'', opera by [[Ildebrando Pizzetti]], 1915, based on D'Annunzio's 1909 play
* ''[[Phaedra (album)|Phaedra]]'', lp record by [[Tangerine Dream]], 1974
* ''[[Phaedra (opera)|Phaedra]]'', opera by [[Hans Werner Henze]], 2007

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

== References ==

* [[William Smith (lexicographer)|Smith, William]]; ''[[Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology]]'', London (1873). [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0104%3Aalphabetic+letter%3DP%3Aentry+group%3D17%3Aentry%3Dphaedra-bio-1 "Phaedra"]
* [[Virgil]], ''[[Aeneid]]'' [[s:Aeneid (Dryden)/Book VI|VI.445]]; [[Ovid]], ''[[Metamorphoses]]'' [[s:Metamorphoses (tr. Garth, Dryden, et al.)/Book XV|XV.497]]
*{{cite book |last1=Racine |first1=Jean |title=Phaedra |date=1958 |publisher=Librairie Droz |isbn=978-2-600-04472-1 }}
*{{Cite web |title=Phaedra and Hippolytus |url=https://www.greekmythology.com/Myths/The_Myths/Phaedra_and_Hippolytus/phaedra_and_hippolytus.html }}

==External links==
* [https://iconographic.warburg.sas.ac.uk/category/vpc-taxonomy-000118 The Warburg Institute Iconographic Database (images of Phaedra)]
*{{Commons category-inline|Phaedra}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Phaedra (Mythology)}}
[[Category:Princesses in Greek mythology]]
[[Category:Queens in Greek mythology]]
[[Category:Characters in Book VI of the Aeneid]]
[[Category:Mythological Cretans]]
[[Category:Attic mythology]]
[[Category:Phaedra (mythology)| ]]
[[Category:Theseus]]
[[Category:Suicides in Greek mythology]]
[[Category:Deeds of Aphrodite]]
[[Category:Potiphar's wife archetype in folklore]]