The Labors of Hercules

赫克拉斯的磨难

　　The goddess Hera, determined to make trouble for Hercules, made him lose his mind. In a confused and angry state, he killed his own wife and children. 　　 　　
　　 When he awakened from his "temporary insanity," Hercules was shocked and upset by what he'd done. He prayed to the god Apollo for guidance, and the god's oracle told him he would have to serve Eurystheus, the king of Tiryns and Mycenae, for twelve years, in punishment for the murders.

* insanity：“精神错乱”的意思，本词的意思不难由lose his mind推测出来。lose his mind也表示“精神失常”。
* oracle：“神谕”。另外ORACLE还是美国著名的计算机公司的名字，相信熟悉电脑的朋友一定不会陌生。

　　As part of his sentence, Hercules had to perform twelve Labors, feats so difficult that they seemed impossible. Fortunately, Hercules had the help of Hermes and Athena, sympathetic deities who showed up when he really needed help. By the end of these Labors, Hercules was, without a doubt, Greece's greatest hero.

* deity：是“神”的意思，还可以表示“神性”、“被奉若神明的人或物”等意思。如：a society in which money is the only deity（金钱至上的社会）。 　　

　　His struggles made Hercules the perfect embodiment of an idea the Greeks called pathos, the experience of virtuous struggle and suffering which would lead to fame and, in Hercules' case, immortality.
* embodiment：“体现”、“具体化”等意思。
* pathos：“激起怜悯和同情的因素”、“伤感力”等等。Hercules因其所受的苦难而成为“痛苦”和“不幸”的代名词。embodiment of an idea the Greeks called pathos即为此义。
* virtuous：是“道德高尚的”、“品行端正的”等意思。他与命运的抗争使他成为“正义斗争的典范”。