A Token of Pain: Betrayal of Xenia in Sophokles’ Philoktetes

Abstract

Abstract Philia and its betrayals are among the central issues of Sophokles’ Philoktetes. Deserted by his Greek friends, Philoktetes has been left on Lemnos with only his powerful bow, the gift of his friend Herakles, to save him from starvation. When a prophecy reveals that Philoktetes or his bow—or both—are necessary to the conquest of Troy, Odysseus is determined to persuade or trick Philoktetes, who now hates his former friends, into rejoining the Greek army.1 Odysseus persuades Neoptolemos, the son of Philoktetes’ friend Akhilleus, to gain Philoktetes’ confidence (70–71) by pretending to hate the Greeks as much as Philoktetes does (59). After gaining control of the bow by pretending to be Philoktetes’ friend, Neoptolemos is overcome with disgust at his role of false friend. He returns the bow to Philoktetes and proves himself to be a true friend. Although he is unable to persuade Philoktetes to go to Troy, Neoptolemos is willing to sacrifice glory for friendship. The play ends with the appearance ex machina of the deified Herakles, who orders his friend Philoktetes to go to Troy and ratifies the bond of friendship between Neoptolemos and Philoktetes, who will take Troy together, guarding one another like two lions (1436–37).