Sophocles, Trachiniae, Lewis Campbell (Translator), 108

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DÊ
600

Even that hath been my care, Lichas, while thou
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Wert talking to the stranger-maids within,
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That thou shouldst take for me this finewoven web,
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A present from these fingers to my lord.
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And when thou giv’st it, say that none of men
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Must wear it on his shoulders before him;
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And neither light of sun may look upon it,
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Nor holy temple-court, nor household flame,

Till he in open station ’fore the Gods

Display it on a day when bulls are slaughtered.

So once I vowed, that should I ever see

Or hear his safe return, I would enfold

His glorious person in this robe, and show

To all the Gods in doing sacrifice

Him a fresh worshipper in fresh array.—

The truth hereof he will with ease descry

Betokened on this treasure-guarding seal.—

Now go, and be advised, of this in chief,

To act within thine office; then of this,

To bear thee so, that from his thanks and mine

Meeting in one, a twofold grace may spring.

Trachiniae. Sophocles. Lewis Campbell (Translator). London, New York and Toronto. 1906.

Current edition Experimental

English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) (English) (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906))

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (2)

Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) — 108 focus

δύστανον ἐλπίζουσαν αἶσαν.

Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 94-140 focus

Χορός

ὃν αἰόλα νὺξ ἐναριζομένα

τίκτει κατευνάζει τε, φλογιζόμενον
95

Ἅλιον Ἅλιον αἰτῶ

τοῦτο καρῦξαι, τὸν Ἀλκμήνας πόθι μοι πόθι παῖς

ναίει ποτʼ, ὦ λαμπρᾷ στεροπᾷ φλεγέθων,

ἢ ποντίας αὐλῶνος ἢ δισσαῖσιν ἀπείροις κλιθείς,
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εἴπʼ, ὦ κρατιστεύων κατʼ ὄμμα.

103

Χορός

ποθουμένᾳ γὰρ φρενὶ πυνθάνομαι

τὰν ἀμφινεικῆ Δηιάνειραν ἀεί,

οἷά τινʼ ἄθλιον ὄρνιν,
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οὔποτʼ εὐνάζειν ἀδακρύτων βλεφάρων πόθον, ἀλλʼ

εὔμναστον ἀνδρὸς δεῖμα τρέφουσαν ὁδοῦ

ἐνθυμίοις εὐναῖς ἀνανδρώτοισι τρύχεσθαι, κακὰν
110

δύστανον ἐλπίζουσαν αἶσαν.

112

Χορός

πολλὰ γὰρ ὥστʼ ἀκάμαντος ἢ νότου ἢ βορέα τις

κύματʼ ἂν εὐρέϊ πόντῳ βάντʼ ἐπιόντα τʼ ἴδοι,

οὕτῶ δὲ τὸν Καδμογενῆ στρέφει, τὸ δʼ αὔξει,

βιότου πολύπονον ὥσπερ πέλαγος
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Κρήσιον. ἀλλά τις θεῶν αἰὲν ἀναμπλάκητον Ἅιδα
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σφε δόμων ἐρύκει.

122

Χορός

ὧν ἐπιμεμφομένα σʼ αἰδοῖα μέν, ἀντία δʼ οἴσω.

φαμὶ γὰρ οὐκ ἀποτρύειν ἐλπίδα τὰν ἀγαθὰν
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χρῆναί σʼ· ἀνάλγητα γὰρ οὐδʼ ὁ πάντα κραίνων βασιλεὺς ἐπέβαλε θνατοῖς Κρονίδας·

ἀλλʼ ἐπὶ πῆμα καὶ χαρὰ πᾶσι κυκλοῦσιν, οἷον

ἄρκτου στροφάδες κέλευθοι.
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μένει γὰρ οὔτʼ αἰόλα

132

Χορός

νὺξ βροτοῖσιν οὔτε κῆρες

οὔτε πλοῦτος, ἀλλʼ ἄφαρ

βέβακε, τῷ δʼ ἐπέρχεται

χαίρειν τε καὶ στέρεσθαι.
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ἃ καὶ σὲ τὰν ἄνασσαν ἐλπίσιν λέγω

τάδʼ αἰὲν ἴσχειν· ἐπεὶ τίς ὧδε

τέκνοισι Ζῆνʼ ἄβουλον εἶδεν;
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Translations (4)

German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 112 focus

Wie man in Weiten der See, wann

Boreas oder der Süd stürmt,

Wogen sich drängend an Wogen,

Kommend und gehend erblickt:
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So treibt den Sohn Thebe's umher

Des Lebens vielfältige Noth,

Und wächst empor, kretischen Meers

Wallungen gleich; doch läßt ihn nie

Straucheln ein Gott und hält ihn stets
115

Ferne vom Haus des Todes.

Zweite Gegenstrophe.

English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 108 focus

Deianira

Where didst thou see him tlien ?

Tell me, oh ! quickly tell me.

English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 108 focus

Lichas
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The duty of an herald it is mine
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With firmness to discharge; nor e'er to thee

Will I be false; but, as it is, present

This chest, and faithfully relate thy words,

English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904)) — 94-140 focus

Enter the Chorus on the other side.

Chorus

You, to whom Night gives birth when she is vanquished and despoiled of her starry crown,

and whom, as you blaze, she lays to rest, I pray you, O Sun, Sun, tell me, where is Alcmena’s son, where dwells her child? O Shining god with your bright flash,
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is he on the straits of the sea, or does he lean upon the twin continents? Speak, you who surpass all in sight!
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103

Chorus

For with longing heart, as I hear, Deianeira, the battle-prize, now,

like some mournful bird, never rests her eyes’ longing that they might be without tears, but nourishing a well-remembered fear for her husband’s travels she is constantly afflicted
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by her anxious, widowed marriage-bed and in her misery anticipates misfortune.
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112

Chorus

For just as one may see billow after billow

advancing and passing over the wide deep before the tireless south-wind, or the north, so the great toil of his life, stormy as the Cretan sea, now whirls back the heir of Cadmus, now exalts him. But some god always
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keeps him unerring from the house of Hades.
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122

To Deianeira.

Chorus

With respect I reproach you for your weeping, but still I will speak in dissent.

You must not, I say, wear away fair hope. Remember that the all-accomplishing king, the son of Cronus, does not appoint a painless lot for mortals. Sorrow and joy revolve to all, as the stars of the Bear
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move in their circling paths.
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132

Chorus

Starry night does not remain constant with men, nor does tribulation, nor wealth; in a moment it is gone from us, and to another in his turn come both

gladness and bereavement. So I urge even you, our Queen, to keep these matters firmly in your outlook. You must, for who has
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known Zeus to be so without care for his children?
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Commentary

Commentary (R. C. Jebb) (OCR draft) (Commentary (R. C. Jebb))

mvp-comment-309-1 αὐτὰ … ταῦτα ¹ καὶ ² πράσσω ³ ἠγορῶ ⁴

mvp-comment-309-2 ταναϋφῆ ⁵ τόνδε γ’ εὐϋφῆ ⁶ ἀϋφῆ ⁷ ταναϋφῆ ⁸ γε ⁹

mvp-comment-309-3 πέπλον ¹⁰ τόνδε ¹¹

Commentary (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) (Commentary (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) focus

531-632. mvp-comment-400-1 Deianira, who has already prepared the charmed robe, confides her intention to the Trachinian maidens, and, on Lichas' coming forth, entrusts the gift to him, with the appropriate commands.

600. mvp-comment-453-1 αὐτὰ δὴ.. πράσσω] ‘I have been arranging this very thing,' viz. what Lichas is to do.

601. mvp-comment-454-1 ἠγορῶ] You have been talking.' Lichas has done talking to the women, but Deianira's act, for which this gave time, is still in progress. Hence the pres. and imperf. tenses.

602. mvp-comment-455-1 τόνδε γ᾽ εὐϋφῆ] 'Just this carefully woven garment.' Wunder's conjecture, ταναϋφῆ, has been very generally received by recent editors. But (α) γε, although postponed in the sentence ( Essay on L. § 26. p. 44; § 41. p. 77 ), bears a good meaning, complying with Lichas' σήμαινε, and particularizing: (β) εὐφῆ, “Carefully woven,' is exactly in point; the value of the gift was enhanced by the care which Deianira had spent on it: (c) ταναϋφῆ (for which, cp. 674, ἐνδυτῆρα) occurs nowhere in any extant writing, and though Hesychius mentions the word, there is nothing in his manner of doing so to show that he is quoting from Sophocles.

Sophocles Trachiniae 108

Lewis Campbell (Translator)

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Current edition Experimental

Deianira

Where didst thou see him tlien ?

Tell me, oh ! quickly tell me.

Lichas
620

The duty of an herald it is mine
620

With firmness to discharge; nor e'er to thee

Will I be false; but, as it is, present

This chest, and faithfully relate thy words,

Commentary

Stable identifiers

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Current edition Experimental

Deianira Where didst thou see him tlien ? Tell me, oh ! quickly tell me.

Lichas 620 The duty of an herald it is mine 620 With firmness to discharge; nor e'er to thee Will I be false; but, as it is, present This chest, and faithfully relate thy words,

Commentary

Stable identifiers

Deianira

Where didst thou see him tlien ?

Tell me, oh ! quickly tell me.

Lichas
620

The duty of an herald it is mine
620

With firmness to discharge; nor e'er to thee

Will I be false; but, as it is, present

This chest, and faithfully relate thy words,