Sophocles, Trachiniae, Lewis Campbell (Translator), 99

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LICH

Yea, dear my Queen, now I have seen thee hold

Thy mortal wishes within mortal bound

So meekly, I will freely tell thee all.

It is as he avers. This maiden’s love,

Piercing through Heracles, was the sole cause,

Why her Oechalia, land of plenteous woe,

Was made the conquest of his spear. And he—

For I dare so far clear him—never bade

Concealment or denial. But myself,

Fearing the word might wound thy queenly heart,

Sinned, if thou count such tenderness a sin.

But now that all is known, for both your sakes,

His, and thine own no less, look favouringly

Upon the woman, and confirm the word

Thou here hast spoken in regard to her:—

For he, whose might is in all else supreme,

Is wholly overmastered by her love.

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)) — 99 focus

ἢ ποντίας ποντίας ποντίους αὐλῶνας, ἢ δισσαῖσιν ἀπείροις ἀπείροισιν ἀπείροισι κλιθείς·

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,
100

εἴπʼ, ὦ κρατιστεύων κατʼ ὄμμα.

103

Χορός

ποθουμένᾳ γὰρ φρενὶ πυνθάνομαι

τὰν ἀμφινεικῆ Δηιάνειραν ἀεί,

οἷά τινʼ ἄθλιον ὄρνιν,
105

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
115

Κρήσιον. ἀλλά τις θεῶν αἰὲν ἀναμπλάκητον Ἅιδα
120

σφε δόμων ἐρύκει.

122

Χορός

ὧν ἐπιμεμφομένα σʼ αἰδοῖα μέν, ἀντία δʼ οἴσω.

φαμὶ γὰρ οὐκ ἀποτρύειν ἐλπίδα τὰν ἀγαθὰν
125

χρῆναί σʼ· ἀνάλγητα γὰρ οὐδʼ ὁ πάντα κραίνων βασιλεὺς ἐπέβαλε θνατοῖς Κρονίδας·

ἀλλʼ ἐπὶ πῆμα καὶ χαρὰ πᾶσι κυκλοῦσιν, οἷον

ἄρκτου στροφάδες κέλευθοι.
130

μένει γὰρ οὔτʼ αἰόλα

132

Χορός

νὺξ βροτοῖσιν οὔτε κῆρες

οὔτε πλοῦτος, ἀλλʼ ἄφαρ

βέβακε, τῷ δʼ ἐπέρχεται

χαίρειν τε καὶ στέρεσθαι.
135

ἃ καὶ σὲ τὰν ἄνασσαν ἐλπίσιν λέγω

τάδʼ αἰὲν ἴσχειν· ἐπεὶ τίς ὧδε

τέκνοισι Ζῆνʼ ἄβουλον εἶδεν;
140

Translations (4)

German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 103 focus

Denn lange schon seh' ich in sehnendem Gram
100

Der Deianeira, die er im Kampf sich erstritt,

Gleich dem geängsteten Vogel,

Nimmer ruh'n des Auges Sehnsucht, welchem die Thräne versiegt.

Stets denkt sie angstvoll, ach! des entfernten Gemahls,

Und härmt sich, daß sie sonder ihn im öden Lager schmachten muß,
105

Ein jammervolles Loos erharrend.

Zweite Strophe.

English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 99 focus

Deianira

The guiltless may talk thus,

Who know no ill ; not those who are unhappy.
730

English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 99 focus

Lichas

My honour'd mistress, since I see thee moved

By soft humanity, and not unlearn'd

In human nature, I no more will hide

Aught from thy knowledge, but disclose the truth.

It is as this man said; with love of her

Was Hercules inflamed; and for her sake

Her father's realm, Echalia, by the spear

Was wasted wide. These things (for of my lord

Thus I must speak) he gave me not in charge

To hide, nor were they by himself disown'd:

This fault was mine, if it be deem'd a fault;

For I was fearful, lady, lest thy breast

By tidings so unwelcome I should wound.

And now, since all the truth to thee is known,

For his sake, for thine own, with kindness treat

This woman; be thy promised courtesy

Confirm'd; for he, who glorious in his might

Triumph'd o'er all, is by her love subdued.

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,
95

is he on the straits of the sea, or does he lean upon the twin continents? Speak, you who surpass all in sight!
100

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
105

by her anxious, widowed marriage-bed and in her misery anticipates misfortune.
110

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
115

keeps him unerring from the house of Hades.
120

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
125

move in their circling paths.
130

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
135

known Zeus to be so without care for his children?
140

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-246-1 ἀλλ’ ¹ θνητὴν φρονοῦσαν θνητὰ ² ἀγνώμονα ³

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

473. mvp-comment-355-1 θνητὴν φρονοῦσαν θνητά] 'Having mortal thoughts, as becomes a mortal.' Cp. esp. Fr. 320, καλὸν φρονεῖν τὸν θνητὸν ἀνθρώποις ἴσα. κοὐκ ἀγνώμονα] (1) 'And not perverse' (thoughts). Neuter plural. Cp. Αj. 1236, ποίου κέκραγας ἀνδρὸς ὧδ᾽ ὑπέρφρονα. Or (2) sc. οὖσαν, ‘And not perversely disposed.'

Sophocles Trachiniae 99

Lewis Campbell (Translator)

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Current edition Experimental

Deianira

The guiltless may talk thus,

Who know no ill ; not those who are unhappy.
730

Commentary

Stable identifiers

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Current edition Experimental

Deianira The guiltless may talk thus, Who know no ill ; not those who are unhappy. 730

Commentary

Stable identifiers

Deianira

The guiltless may talk thus,

Who know no ill ; not those who are unhappy.
730