Sophocles Trachiniae 1017

Lewis Campbell (Translator)

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Ah me!
Ah! ah! Again!
Even now the hot convulsion of disease
Shoots through my side, and will not let me rest
From this fierce exercise of wearing woe.
Take me, O King of Night!
O sudden thunderstroke.
Smite me! O sire, transfix me with the dart
Of thy swift lightning! Yet again that fang
Is tearing; it hath blossomed forth anew,
It soars up to the height!

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)) — 1017 focus
Ὦ παῖ τοῦδ᾽ ἀνδρός, τοὔργον τόδε μεῖζον ἀνήκει ἀνείκει ἀνείκει ἀνήκει
ἢ κατ᾿ ἐμὰν ῥώμαν· σὺ δὲ σύλλαβε. σοί τε γὰρ ὄμμα
ἔμπλεον ἢ δι᾽ ἐμοῦ σώζειν.
Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 1004-1042 focus
Translations (4)
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 1017 focus
Sohn des gewaltigen Manns, dies Werk zu bestehen, gebricht es
Mir an rüstiger Kraft: du fass' ihn! Schärfer erspäht auch
Hülfe dein Aug' als ich es vermag.
English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 1017 focus
What power of medicine can assuage my pain^
Unless great Jove assisted? Health to me
Without him were a miracle indeed.
Let me, oh ! let me rest ; refuse me not
A little slumber ; why will ye torment me ?
Why bend me forward ? Oh ! 'tis worse than death ;
Had you not waked me, I had been at peace.
Again it rages with redoubled force ;
Where are you now, ye thankless Grecians, where.
Whom I have toiled to serve on the rough main,
And through the pathless wood? Where are you now
To help a dying wretch ? Will no kind hand
Stretch forth the friendly sword, or in the flame
Consume me? None, alas ! will cut me off
From hated life.
It is beyond my strength ; thy quicker sight
May be more useful.
English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 1017 focus
Have you repaid? O Jove, with what fierce pains
Hast thou afflicted me? This dire disease,
Whose unextinguish'd rage to madness fires
My bursting veins, oh that I had not known!
What potent charm, what skill medicinal
Can mitigate, without the pow'r of Jove,
These agonizing pangs? Oh might I see
This miracle, though distant! Let me lie,
Ah, let me lie reposed. Why dost thou touch,
Why dost thou raise me up? Each touch is death.
Thou hast awaken'd pangs that were at rest.
Again my tortures are inflamed, again
They rush upon me. Ah, where are you now,
Ye most unjust of all the Grecian race?
With many toils th' infested seas I clear'd,
And all the ruffian-haunted woods; yet now
I miserably perish; not a man
Will bring or fire or sword to put an end
To my afflictions; not a man will come
Willing to rend from me this hated life.
O thou his son, this task requires a strength
Greater than mine; assist him thou, thine eye
Quicker than mine sees what may give him aid.
English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904)) — 1004-1040 focus

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-523-1 τοὔργον τόδε 1

mvp-comment-523-2 μεῖζον 2 ἀνήκει 3

mvp-comment-524-1 ἢ κατ ἐμὰν ῥώμαν 4

mvp-comment-524-2 σοὶ γὰρ ἑτοίμα 5 ἐς πλέον ἢ δἰ ἐμοῦ σῴζειν 6

mvp-comment-524-3 The MSS. give σοί τε γὰρ ὄμμα 7 ἔμπλεον ἢ δἰ ἐμοῦ σῴζειν 8 ἢ 9

mvp-comment-524-4 The MS. words, σοί τε γὰρ ὄμμα 10 ὄμμα 11 τε 12 σοί τε γὰρ ὄμμα 13 σοὶ γὰρ ἑτοίμα 14 οίμα 15 ὄμμα 16

mvp-comment-524-5 In the Appendix are given the proposed explanations of the vulgate, and various conjectures.

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

1017. mvp-comment-730-1 ὦ παῖ τοῦδ᾽ ἀνδρός] 'Son of Heracles here!' It is strange that this expression should have given any trouble, when the much more vague ὦ παῖ κείνου τἀνδρός is so familiar in prose.

1019. mvp-comment-731-1 σοί τε γάρ. σώζειν] 'For indeed thou hast a fulness of resource beyond what I can do to save him.' The language is obscure, but has not the appearance of being corrupt. The Epic use of re may be compared with the digammated of in l. 650, or ἀποτίβατος, infr. 1030. Ας βλέπειν sometimes = ζῆν, so ὄμμα may be put by synecdoche for keenness of the faculties generally. And the ellipse of μᾶλλον ( E. on L. § 39. p. 73 ) may be accounted for by ἔμπλεον suggesting ἔνι πλέον. δι' ἐμοῦ σώζειν = τὸ δι᾽ ἐμοῦ σώζεσθαι αὐτόν, 'The hope of saving him through me.'