Hecuba

play by Euripides

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June 29, 2026

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The play Hecuba by Euripides centers on the Trojan queen Hecuba after the fall of Troy. As a prisoner of the Greeks, Hecuba learns that her youngest son, Polydorus, has been murdered by Polymestor, king of Thrace. Driven by grief and a desire for revenge, Hecuba orchestrates a brutal retaliation, blinding Polymestor and killing his sons. The play explores themes of loss, vengeance, and the dehumanizing effects of extreme suffering, culminating in a prophecy that Hecuba will be transformed into a dog. Euripides, one of the three great Athenian tragic dramatists, often depicted characters with flawed natures and uncontrolled passions, leading to tragic outcomes.12

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Hecuba
According to Euripides (in the Hecuba), her youngest son, Polydorus, had been placed under the care of Polymestor, king of Thrace. When the Greeks reached the Thracian Chersonese on their way home, she discovered that her son had been murdered and in revenge put out the eyes of Polymestor and…
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According to Euripides (in the Hecuba), her youngest son, Polydorus, had been placed under the care of Polymestor, king of Thrace. When the Greeks reached the Thracian Chersonese on their way home, she discovered that her son had been murdered and in revenge put out the eyes of Polymestor and…
Read More

Euripides
Hecuba
Also set in the aftermath of the Trojan War, Hecuba (c. 425 bc; Greek Hekabē) shows the double disaster that reduces the aged Trojan queen Hecuba, now a widowed slave, by sheer weight of hatred and misery to a mere animal ferocity. Hecuba first…
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Also set in the aftermath of the Trojan War, Hecuba (c. 425 bc; Greek Hekabē) shows the double disaster that reduces the aged Trojan queen Hecuba, now a widowed slave, by sheer weight of hatred and misery to a mere animal ferocity. Hecuba first…
Read More