batch.motif.roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg-l9323-l9399
---
record_id: batch.motif.roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg-l9323-l9399
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
passage_locator:
label: EXPLANATION. / EXPLANATION. / BOOK THE THIRTEENTH. / EXPLANATION.; lines
9323-9399
start: '9323'
end: '9399'
translation: The Metamorphoses of Ovid, Books VIII-XV
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Hecuba laments the dead, discovers the body of Polydorus on the shore,
and, overcome by grief and rage, deceives Polymnestor with a promise of treasure
before blinding him. The Thracians attack her, and she responds with biting and
barking, howling through the plains. The passage then turns to Aurora, who mourns
Memnon, slain by Achilles, and petitions Jove to grant him honor as consolation
for his death.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Hecuba says that the deceased maiden will not receive ancestral funeral rites,
but only tears and foreign sand from her mother.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Hecuba says that Polydorus, her youngest remaining son, had been entrusted
on those coasts to the Ismarian king.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Hecuba goes toward the shore to gather water and sees the body of Polydorus
thrown up on the shore with wounds made by Thracian weapons.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:4
text: The Trojan women cry out, while Hecuba is struck dumb by grief and becomes
benumbed like a hard rock.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:5
text: Hecuba looks at the ground, the sky, her son's face, and especially his wounds,
and prepares herself for vengeance.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:6
text: The narrator compares Hecuba's rage to a lioness bereft of her sucking whelp
pursuing an unseen enemy by tracks.
category: other
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:7
text: Hecuba goes to Polymnestor and asks for a private meeting, claiming she wishes
to reveal hidden treasure for her son.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:8
text: Polymnestor believes Hecuba, comes to a secret place, and swears that all
gifts already given and to be given will belong to her son.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:9
text: Hecuba and the captive matrons seize Polymnestor, and Hecuba thrusts her fingers
into his eyes and tears at the empty eye sockets.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: obs:10
text: The Thracian people attack Hecuba with darts and stones after the death of
their king.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: obs:11
text: Hecuba bites at the thrown stones and, when attempting to speak, barks aloud
and later howls through the Sithonian plains.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: obs:12
text: The passage states that Hecuba's fate moved Trojans, Pelasgian foes, and all
the gods, and that Jove's wife and sister denied she deserved that fate.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- id: obs:13
text: Aurora is afflicted by grief for Memnon, whom she saw slain by Achilles on
the Phrygian plains.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: obs:14
text: Aurora's rosy morning color turns pale, and the ether is hidden in clouds
when she sees Memnon's death.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
- id: obs:15
text: Aurora cannot endure seeing Memnon's limbs laid on the funeral flames and
falls at Jove's knees with tears.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- id: obs:16
text: Aurora asks Jove to grant Memnon some honor as solace for his death and to
ease a mother's wounds.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Hecuba
description: An aged Trojan mother who mourns the dead, discovers Polydorus, blinds
Polymnestor, and then barks and howls when attacked.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:7
- ev:9
- ev:11
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: unnamed maiden of royal birth
description: A deceased maiden of Hecuba's house whose funeral rites Hecuba laments.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Polydorus
description: Hecuba's youngest remaining son, entrusted to the Ismarian king and
found dead on the shore with Thracian wounds.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:3
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Polymnestor / Odrysian king
description: The king who is called the contriver of Polydorus's murder and is blinded
by Hecuba.
role_refs:
- role:6
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Trojan women / captive matrons
description: Women who cry out at Polydorus's body and later help seize Polymnestor.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:9
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Thracian people
description: People who attack Hecuba with darts and stones after their king's death.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Aurora
description: Rosy-colored mother of Memnon who mourns him and petitions Jove.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- ev:14
- ev:15
- ev:16
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Memnon
description: Aurora's son, slain by Achilles on the Phrygian plains and laid on
funeral flames.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- ev:15
- ev:16
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Achilles
description: The warrior whose spear kills Memnon on the Phrygian plains.
role_refs:
- role:11
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Jove
description: The supreme ruler of the gods whom Aurora petitions for honor for Memnon.
role_refs:
- role:12
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- ev:16
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: wife and sister of Jove
description: A goddess who denies that Hecuba deserved her fate.
role_refs:
- role:13
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- id: fig:12
name_or_label: Trojans, Pelasgian foes, and all the gods
description: Collective witnesses moved by Hecuba's fate.
role_refs:
- role:14
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
roles:
- id: role:1
label: grieving mother
assigned_to:
- fig:1
- fig:7
basis: Hecuba mourns her children, and Aurora grieves for Memnon as his mother.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- ev:13
- ev:16
- id: role:2
label: avenger
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Hecuba prepares vengeance and blinds Polymnestor.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:9
- id: role:3
label: barking and howling sufferer
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Hecuba bites at stones, barks when attempting to speak, and howls through
the plains.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: role:4
label: unburied or poorly buried royal dead
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Hecuba says the maiden will receive tears and foreign sand rather than ancestral
tomb rites.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:5
label: slain son
assigned_to:
- fig:3
- fig:8
basis: Polydorus is found dead with wounds, and Memnon is slain by Achilles.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:13
- id: role:6
label: contriver of murder
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Polymnestor is named as the contriver of Polydorus's murder.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: role:7
label: deceived and blinded king
assigned_to:
- fig:4
basis: Polymnestor believes Hecuba's claim about treasure and is blinded by her.
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: role:8
label: female companions and helpers
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The Trojan women cry out and the captive matrons help seize Polymnestor.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:9
- id: role:9
label: retaliating attackers
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: The Thracian people attack Hecuba with darts and stones after their king's
death.
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- id: role:10
label: divine petitioner
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: Aurora falls at Jove's knees and requests honor for Memnon.
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- ev:16
- id: role:11
label: slayer
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: Memnon is said to perish by Achilles' spear.
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- id: role:12
label: supreme divine ruler
assigned_to:
- fig:10
basis: Aurora addresses Jove as supreme ruler of the gods.
evidence_refs:
- ev:16
- id: role:13
label: divine witness to undeserved fate
assigned_to:
- fig:11
basis: Jove's wife and sister denies that Hecuba deserved her fate.
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
- id: role:14
label: moved witnesses
assigned_to:
- fig:12
basis: Trojans, Pelasgian foes, and all the gods are said to be moved by Hecuba's
fate.
evidence_refs:
- ev:12
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: foreign sand
literal_form: tears and a handful of foreign sand
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: sym:2
label: shore and flowing water
literal_form: shore, stream, flowing waters
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs:
- water
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:3
label: wounds and blood
literal_form: wounds made by Thracian weapons; dreadful and guilty blood
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:9
- id: sym:4
label: hidden treasure pretext
literal_form: concealed treasure said to be left for Hecuba's son
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- id: sym:5
label: eyes torn out
literal_form: perfidious eyes and empty eye sockets
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:4
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: sym:6
label: darts and stones
literal_form: darts and stones thrown by the Thracians
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:6
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
- id: sym:7
label: barking and howling voice
literal_form: barks aloud; howl dismally through the Sithonian plains
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
- id: sym:8
label: paling dawn and clouds
literal_form: rosy morning color turns pale; ether hidden in clouds
associated_figures:
- fig:7
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:14
- id: sym:9
label: funeral flames
literal_form: limbs laid on the closing flames
associated_figures:
- fig:7
- fig:8
taxonomy_refs:
- fire
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- id: sym:10
label: kneeling supplication
literal_form: Aurora falls down at Jove's knees with tears
associated_figures:
- fig:7
- fig:10
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Hecuba laments denied funeral rites
summary: Hecuba says the deceased maiden will receive only tears and foreign sand
rather than ancestral burial, and she names Polydorus as her remaining reason
to live.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: scene:2
label: Discovery of Polydorus on the shore
summary: Hecuba goes to gather water and sees Polydorus's wounded body thrown onto
the shore; the women cry out while Hecuba is stunned and turns toward vengeance.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:2
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:5
- id: scene:3
label: Hecuba deceives and blinds Polymnestor
summary: Hecuba asks Polymnestor for a secret meeting under the pretext of hidden
treasure and, with captive women, blinds him in rage.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
- sym:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: scene:4
label: Attack and barking of Hecuba
summary: The Thracians attack Hecuba with darts and stones; she bites at the stones,
barks when attempting speech, and howls across the plains.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:6
- fig:11
- fig:12
symbol_refs:
- sym:6
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:10
- ev:11
- ev:12
- id: scene:5
label: Aurora mourns Memnon and petitions Jove
summary: Aurora grieves for Memnon slain by Achilles, her dawn color pales, and
she supplicates Jove for some honor to console his death.
figure_refs:
- fig:7
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
symbol_refs:
- sym:8
- sym:9
- sym:10
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- ev:14
- ev:15
- ev:16
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: grieving mother turns to vengeance for a murdered child
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Hecuba discovers Polydorus's wounded body, transforms grief into rage, deceives
Polymnestor, and blinds him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:5
- ev:7
- ev:9
confidence: high
cautions: The passage presents vengeance rather than a formal justice procedure;
motif label is descriptive rather than a supplied taxonomy family.
- id: motif:2
label: animal-like transformation after extreme grief
taxonomy_refs:
- shapeshifter
basis: After the attack by the Thracians, Hecuba bites at stones, barks when trying
to speak, and howls through the plains.
evidence_refs:
- ev:11
confidence: medium
cautions: The excerpt describes barking and howling but does not explicitly state
within these lines that Hecuba's body becomes a dog.
- id: motif:3
label: mother petitions a supreme god for honor to the dead son
taxonomy_refs:
- divine_parent_child
basis: Aurora, mother of Memnon, kneels before Jove and asks that Memnon receive
honor as solace for his death.
evidence_refs:
- ev:15
- ev:16
confidence: high
cautions: The requested honor is not fulfilled within the supplied passage.
- id: motif:4
label: cosmic or atmospheric mourning for a slain child
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Aurora's rosy morning color turns pale and the ether is covered with clouds
when she sees Memnon's death.
evidence_refs:
- ev:13
- ev:14
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage attributes the atmospheric change to Aurora's grief, but no
broader cosmic cycle is developed in the excerpt.
- id: motif:5
label: deceptive promise of treasure used to lure an enemy
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Hecuba tells Polymnestor she wishes to show him concealed treasure for her
son, and he comes to a secret place because he believes her.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: high
cautions: This is an episode-level plot pattern rather than a taxonomy-listed motif
family.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 9323-9331
quote_or_summary: Hecuba says the royal maiden will not receive ancestral tomb rites,
but only tears and foreign sand from her mother.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 9331-9335
quote_or_summary: Hecuba says Polydorus, her youngest male child and her remaining
reason to live, had been entrusted on these coasts to the Ismarian king.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 9336-9343
quote_or_summary: Hecuba goes to the shore for water and sees Polydorus's body thrown
up on the shore with wounds made by Thracian weapons.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 9343-9347
quote_or_summary: The Trojan women cry aloud, while grief renders Hecuba voiceless,
tearless, and benumbed like hard rock.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 9347-9354
quote_or_summary: Hecuba looks at the ground, sky, her son's face, and wounds, then
prepares herself for vengeance and devises punishment.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 9354-9359
quote_or_summary: The narrator compares Hecuba to a lioness bereft of her whelp
who follows the unseen enemy by tracks.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 9359-9363
quote_or_summary: Hecuba goes to Polymnestor, called the contriver of the murder,
and asks for an interview to reveal concealed treasure for her son.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 9364-9370
quote_or_summary: The Odrysian king believes her, goes to a secret spot, and swears
by the gods that all given and future gifts will belong to her son.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 9370-9378
quote_or_summary: Hecuba eyes Polymnestor sternly, boils with rage, attacks with
captive matrons, thrusts fingers into his eyes, and tears at the sockets.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:10
type: summary
locator: lines 9380-9382
quote_or_summary: The Thracians, provoked by their king's death, attack Hecuba with
darts and stones.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:11
type: summary
locator: lines 9382-9388
quote_or_summary: Hecuba bites at the stones, attempts speech but barks aloud, and
is remembered as howling through the Sithonian plains.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:12
type: summary
locator: lines 9388-9393
quote_or_summary: Her fate moves her Trojans, Pelasgian foes, and all the gods;
even Jove's wife and sister denies Hecuba deserved it.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:13
type: summary
locator: lines 9394-9400
quote_or_summary: Aurora is afflicted by grief for Memnon, her son, whom she saw
perish by Achilles' spear on the Phrygian plains.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:14
type: summary
locator: lines 9400-9402
quote_or_summary: The rosy color of morning turns pale, and the ether is hidden
in clouds.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:15
type: summary
locator: lines 9402-9406
quote_or_summary: Aurora cannot endure seeing Memnon's limbs on the closing flames
and falls with loose hair and tears at Jove's knees.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
- id: ev:16
type: summary
locator: lines 9406-9421
quote_or_summary: Aurora says she seeks not temples or sacrifices, but asks Jove
to grant Memnon some honor as solace for his death and to ease a mother's wounds.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/roman/project-gutenberg/metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley.md
rights_note: Public domain translation; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: high
notes: Extraction is based only on the supplied passage. Some evidence locators
for the Aurora portion extend beyond the supplied nominal end line because the
provided passage text includes those sentences; human review should verify line
numbering.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
No comparison claims were added because the passage itself does not support a cautious comparison beyond internal simile and shared episode patterns.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:roman-ovid-metamorphoses-books-8-15-riley-gutenberg__l9323-l9399
passage_sha256=e2893338d46c4625f63e4a34844310b2403a565f136cccf450d0cc981a554ce3