悲劇的誕生The Birth Of Tragedy 第65期:如何塑造英雄人物
Once we realize out of what substance the Promethean dramatists before Euripides had formed their heroes and how far it had been from their thoughts to bring onto the stage a true replica of actuality,
we shall see clearly how utterly different were Euripides' intentions.
那末，你對於歐氏這種背道而馳的傾向，就會恍然大悟了。Through him the common man found his way from the auditorium onto the stage.
全憑他的力量，日常生活中的人物得以從觀衆座席闖入舞臺；
That mirror, which previously had shown only the great and bold features,
戲劇這面鏡子，以前只反映粗豪雄偉的線條，now took on the kind of accuracy that reflects also the paltry traits of nature.
現在卻照出了慘淡的真相，甚或有意地再現自然的敗筆。Odysseus, the typical Greek of older art, declined under the hands of the new poets to the character of Graeculus, who henceforth held the center of the stage as the good humored, cunning slave.
奧德修斯，古代藝術中的典型希臘人，現在，在新興詩人們的筆下，業已淪落爲格拉庫羅斯之流的形象；從此之後，這種和氣的狡猾的家奴便佔據了戲劇趣味的中心地位。The merit which Euripides, in Aristophanes' Frogs, attributes to himself, of having by his nostrum rid tragic art of its pompous embonpoint, is apparent in every one of his tragic heroes.
阿里斯托芬的“蛙”所以推崇歐裏庇德斯，是因爲歐氏的家常便藥挽救了悲劇藝術於浮誇的臃腫病。這功績首先表現在他的悲劇人物上。Now every spectator could behold his exact counterpart on the Euripidean stage and was delighted to find him so eloquent.
現在，觀衆在歐裏庇德斯的劇中真是如見自己的面影，如聞自己的歆咳，而且欣然賞識劇中人的話說得這麼美好。But that was not the only pleasure.
然而，不僅欣賞而已，People themselves learned to speak from Euripides--don't we hear him boast, in his contest with Aeschylus, that through him the populace had learned to observe, make transactions and form conclusions according to all the rules of art, with the utmost cleverness?
你還可以向歐裏庇德斯學習講話的技巧；他同埃斯庫羅斯論戰時，就以能言善辯自豪，去觀察，辯論，取得結論。It was through this revolution in public discourse that the new comedy became possible.
要之，他通過改革日常語言爲“新喜劇”創造了條件。From now on the stock phrases to represent everyday affairs were ready to hand.
因爲，從此之後，陳言俗語怎樣在舞臺上表達得恰到好處，就再不是一個祕密了。While hitherto the character of dramatic speech had been determined by the demigod in tragedy and the drunken satyr in comedy, that bourgeois mediocrity in which Euripides placed all his political hopes now came to the fore.
平凡的市民，是歐裏庇德斯一切政治希望所寄託，現在已有了發言之權，但是以前卻是由悲劇中的神人，和喜劇中的醉鬼薩提兒或人妖，來決定語言的性質。And so the Aristophanic Euripides could pride himself on having portrayed life "as it really is" and shown men how to attack it:
所以，阿里斯托芬劇中的歐裏庇德斯所引以爲榮的一點，是他刻劃出最普通、最熟識、最平凡的生活和追求，而且人人都有能力予以評判。if now all members of the populace were able to philosophize, plead their cases in court and make their business deals with incredible shrewdness,
如果說所有平民大衆都能夠獨立思考，能夠非常慎重地管理土地財產和進行訴訟，the merit was really his, the result of that wisdom he had inculcated in them.
現這都是他的功勞，和他以智慧啓迪民衆的輝煌成績。
