Sicily and Thessaly
The chorus of Trojan women wonders where they might be sent and with whom. They allow themselves a modicum of hope in wondering if they might go to Thessaly or Sicily, and then they wax poetic about the beauty of those lands. It is a bittersweet moment, however, for the women have no control over where they go, and they will not end up anywhere that brings them pleasure.
Hecuba
The image of Hecuba is one of abject suffering. She is wearing black, she has cropped hair, and she is covered in ashes. She is prone, initially conducting her lament from the ground. There is nothing about her physically that suggests she was once Queen of Troy, but her dignity shines through once she begins discoursing with the chorus and her female family members. Though the very picture of sorrow, Hecuba still displays nobility of character.
Helen
Helen enters the scene beautifully dressed and well-coiffed. She is in stark contrast to Hecuba with her cropped hair, black clothes, and ashes; we are meant to hate Helen and find dignity in Hecuba. Helen's appearance reminds the audience what the war was ostensibly about and also suggests the complete absurdity and injustice of the whole thing. Were the deaths of thousands of people equal to the death of one woman? And, since we know Helen didn't actually die or even get punished, what was the Trojan War for?
Troy Burning
The end of the play—Troy's walls burning, the collapse of the citadel—is a potent image, but not for the reasons one thinks. Troy is already dead. It died when its men were slaughtered, its women dispersed, and its children killed or left orphaned. It died when its history was eradicated, its temples sullied, and its memories lost. More recently, it died when Astyanax died. Thus, the walls burning are anticlimactic and almost pitiful. There is really nothing left to burn.
