Deianira

Deianira nearly married the river-god Achelous, who transformed himself successively into a serpent and a bull to win her over. Heracles fought him and wrenched off one of his horns, ending the contest — that horn became the legendary Horn of Plenty. It was thus that Deianira was given in marriage to the greatest of Greek heroes.

While crossing the river Evenus, the centaur Nessus offered to carry Deianira on his back while Heracles swam across. Along the way, Nessus attempted to assault her; Heracles struck him down with an arrow dipped in the venom of the Hydra of Lerna. As he lay dying, the centaur treacherously advised Deianira to collect his blood as a love potion to keep Heracles faithful.

Years later, Heracles returned victorious from Oechalia with Iole, the defeated king's daughter, as his captive. Fearing she was losing her husband's love, Deianira sent him a tunic soaked in Nessus's blood, convinced it was a charm to ensure his faithfulness. The poison clung to Heracles's skin and caused him such unbearable agony that he chose to die on a funeral pyre on Mount Oeta.

The tragedy of Deianira embodies the Greek theme of involuntary error: she had no murderous intent whatsoever. The moment she understood what her act had brought about, she took her own life. The Greeks saw in her fate the example of a loving woman destroyed by jealousy and the cunning of a dead enemy.

Deianira is one of the rare mythological women whom Sophocles made the true heroine of a tragedy, The Women of Trachis. Unlike other heroes' wives confined to secondary roles, she is the central figure of the play, and her inner voice, her doubts, and her grief fill every moment of it.