Trachiniae. Sophocles. Thomas Francklin (Translator). London. 1758–1759.
English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) (English) (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759))
Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.
mvp-comment-63-1 πολλὰ γὰρ … ἴδοι 1 κύματ’ ἂν … ἴδοι 2 εὐρέϊ πόντῳ 3
mvp-comment-63-2 Three other views claim notice. (1) <*>ν 4 ἂν 5 ἴδοι 6 ἐν 7 ἴδοι 8 ἴδῃ 9
mvp-comment-63-3 βάντ’ ἐπιόντα τ’ 10 βάντ’ 11
mvp-comment-64-1 οὕτω δὲ 12
mvp-comment-64-2 Construe:
mvp-comment-64-3 βιότου πολύπονον 13 ὥσπερ πέλαγος Κρήσιον 14 στρέφει τὸ δ’ αὔξει τὸν Καδμογενῆ 15 Κρήσιον 16 στρέφει 17 αὔξει 18 τὸ δ’ 19 βιότου πολύπονον 20
mvp-comment-64-4 Among those who receive στρέφει 21
mvp-comment-64-5 As to the MS. τρέφει 22
mvp-comment-65-1 ἀλλά 23 τὸ δ’ αὔξει 24
mvp-comment-65-2 ἀναμπλάκητον 25 ἐρύκει 26
mvp-comment-66-1 ὧν 27
mvp-comment-66-2
Hense (whom Nauck follows) thinks that this second antistrophe (122—131) requires to be transposed, so as to become the second strophe, immediately following v. 111. But this change is worse than unnecessary. It is liable to the fatal objection that vv. 132 ff. (
μένει γὰρ etc.) are then severed from the thought which they develope (vv. 129—131
ἀλλ’ ἐπὶ πῆμα καὶ χαρὰ etc.). They are brought into a context which does not suit them (vv. 119— 121
ἀλλά τις θεῶν etc.).
mvp-comment-67-1 αἰδοῖα 28 ἁδεῖα 29 ἁδεῖα 30 ἀντία 31 ἁδεῖα 32 αἰδοῖα 33
mvp-comment-67-2 οἴσω 34
mvp-comment-68-1 γὰρ 35
mvp-comment-68-2 ἀποτρύειν 36
mvp-comment-68-3 ἐλπίδα τὰν ἀγαθὰν 37
mvp-comment-69-1 ἀνάλγητα 38
mvp-comment-69-2 οὐδ’ ὁ πάντα κρ. 39 οὐδ’ 40
mvp-comment-69-3 ἐπέβαλε 41
mvp-comment-70-1 ἐπὶ … κυκλοῦσιν 42 ἐπὶ πᾶσι 43 κυκλοῦσιν 44 χαρὰν 45 χαρὰ 46 οἷον 47 αἰὲν 48
mvp-comment-70-2 ἄρκτου στροφάδες κέλευθοι 49
mvp-comment-71-1 οὔτ’ αἰόλα 50 νὺξ 51
mvp-comment-71-2 κῆρες 52
mvp-comment-71-3 ἀλλ’ ἄφαρ βέβακε 53
mvp-comment-71-4 τῷδ’ 54 χαίρειν τε καὶ στέρεσθαι 55 ἐπέρχεται 56
mvp-comment-71-5
Other views are as follows. (1) The constr. is,
ἀλλὰ χαίρειν τε καὶ στέρεσθαι ἄφαρ βέβακε (
τῷ μέν),
τῷ δ’ ἐπέρχεται. This is less simple. (2)
τῷ δ’=simply ‘
and to him,’—
i.e., to the person from whom woe or joy ‘has gone.’ But: (
a)
τῷ δ’ surely implies an antithesis. (
b) The clause
τῷ δ’ ἐπέρχεται κ.τ.λ. would thus mean merely,—‘and then his experiences begin over again.’
mvp-comment-72-1 ἃ 57
mvp-comment-72-2
Others suppose that
ἃ is governed by
ἴσχειν
58
τάδ’
59
mvp-comment-72-3 For λέγω 60
mvp-comment-72-4 ἐλπίσιν ἴσχειν 61 ἄβουλον 62
mvp-comment-73-1 ἀπεικάσαι 63
mvp-comment-74-1 θυμοφ<*> 64
mvp-comment-75-1 μήτ’ <*>θοις … νῦν δ’ ἄπειρος εἶ 65 νῦν δ’ 66 νῦν τ’ 67 νῦν δ’ 68 τε … δέ 69
mvp-comment-76-1 τ<*> νεάζον 70 τοιοῖσδε 71 βόσκεται 72 αὐτοῦ 73
mvp-comment-76-2 θάλπος … ὄμβρος … πνευμάτων 74
mvp-comment-76-3 The text is as clearly sound as the passage itself is beautiful. But numerous changes have been proposed: for these, see Appendix. Here I will only remark that the genuineness of the words καί 75 νιν 76
mvp-comment-77-1 ἡδοναῖς 77
mvp-comment-77-2 ἐξαίρει βίον 78
mvp-comment-78-1 ἐν νυκτὶ 79 λάβῃ 80
mvp-comment-78-2 ἤτοι … ἢ 81
mvp-comment-78-3 πρὸς ἀνδρὸς … φοβουμένη 82
mvp-comment-79-1 αὑτοῦ 83
mvp-comment-79-2 κακοῖσιν οἷς 84 κακοῖσιν οἷς 85
mvp-comment-80-1 μὲν οὖν δὴ 86
mvp-comment-81-1 ἦμος 87
mvp-comment-81-2 τὴν τελευταίαν 88
mvp-comment-82-1 δέλτον 89
mvp-comment-82-2 ἐγγεγραμμένην 90 ξυνθήμαθ’ 91 ξυνθήματα 92
mvp-comment-83-1 ἀγῶνας ἐξιών 93 οὐ 94
mvp-comment-83-2 ἔτλη 95
mvp-comment-84-1 ὥς τι δράσων 96
mvp-comment-85-1 ἔτ’ οὐκ ὤν 97
mvp-comment-85-2 εἶπε μὲν … εἶπε δ’ 98 προτάξας 99
mvp-comment-85-3 εἶπε … ὅ τι χρείη μ’ ἑλέσθαι λέχους κτῆσιν 100
mvp-comment-85-4 ἣν τέκνοις … νέμοι 101
mvp-comment-85-5 διαιρετὸν 102
mvp-comment-86-1 The constr. is:
mvp-comment-86-2 χρόνον προτάξας 103
mvp-comment-86-3 ὡς 104
mvp-comment-86-4 ἡνίκα χώρας ἀπείη βεβώς τρίμ. χρόνον κἀνιαύς 105
mvp-comment-86-5 τότε χρείη σφε ἢ θανεῖν τῷδε τῷ χρ., ἢ … ζῆν 106 ὡς 107
mvp-comment-86-6 I leave the MS. τρίμηνον … κἀνιαύσιος 108 κἀνιαύσιον 109 χρόνον … χρόνῳ … χρόνου 110
mvp-comment-86-7 ὑπεκδραμόντα 111 χρόνου τέλος 112 ὑπεκδρ 113 ὑπερδραμόντα 114
mvp-comment-86-8 The arguments which have been brought against vv. 166—168 are examined in the Appendix.
mvp-comment-87-1 τοιαῦτ’ ἔφραζε … πόνων 115 τῶν Ἡρακλείων πόνων 116
mvp-comment-87-2
(1) It is a gen. of connection, equiv. to the gen. with
περί, and going with the whole phrase
εἱμαρμένα ἐκτελευτᾶσθαι
117
mvp-comment-87-3 (2) It is also possible, though less probable, that the gen. should be taken as partitive with ἐκτελευτᾶσθαι 118
mvp-comment-87-4 (3) πόνων 119 πρὸς θεῶν εἱμαρμένα 120
mvp-comment-87-5 (4) πόνων 121 ἐκτελευτᾶσθαι 122
mvp-comment-88-1 ὡς τὴν παλαιὰν φηγὸν 123
mvp-comment-88-2 Others understand:—(1) ‘by the agency of two doves’: i.e., the signs from the oak were somehow combined with, or explained by, signs derived from birds. (2) ‘The oak spake from between two doves’; i.e. a symbolical dove, of stone or metal, stood on either side of the tree. The Appendix will show what can be said for or against each of these theories. Here it may be noted that neither seems to accord so well with the phrase αὐδῆσαι ἐκ 124
mvp-comment-88-3 Δωδῶνι 125
mvp-comment-89-1 ναμέρτεια 126
mvp-comment-89-2 τῶνδε 127 ναμέρτεια 128 συμβαίνει 129 ὡς 130 τελεσθῆναι χρεών 131 ὡς 132 ᾧ 133
mvp-comment-89-3
Others understand:—(1) ‘The true fulfilment of these words
as (
ὡς) they are to be accomplished’; or (2) ‘the truth of the prediction
that (
ὡς) these things are to be accomplished.’
mvp-comment-89-4 This is one of those passages in which the manner of Sophocles recalls that of Vergil. The general meaning is simple and clear<*> but a verbal analysis demands the nicest care.
mvp-comment-90-1 ἡδέως 134
mvp-comment-90-2 φόβῳ 135 ταρβοῦσαν 136
mvp-comment-91-1 εὐφημίαν 137
mvp-comment-91-2 πρὸς χαρὰν λόγων 138
mvp-comment-92-1 πρῶτος ἀγγέλων 139
mvp-comment-93-1 γὰρ 140
mvp-comment-93-2 κρατοῦντα 141
mvp-comment-93-3 ἀπαρχὰς 142 τοῖς ἐγχωρίοις 143
mvp-comment-94-1 τίνα … τόνδε 144
mvp-comment-95-1 πολύζηλον 145
mvp-comment-95-2 φανέντα 146
mvp-comment-95-3 κράτει νικηφόρῳ 147
mvp-comment-96-1 ἀστῶν ἢ ξένων 148
mvp-comment-97-1 βουθερεῖ 149
mvp-comment-98-1 τοι 150
mvp-comment-99-1 εἴπερ εὐτυχεῖ 151
mvp-comment-99-2
193 (
ἄπεστιν),
οὐκ εὐμ. χρώμενος
152
mvp-comment-100-1 Μηλιεὺς 153
mvp-comment-100-2 ἅπας 154
mvp-comment-101-1 κρίνει 155
mvp-comment-101-2 παραστάς 156 κύκλῳ 157 περιστάς 158
mvp-comment-101-3 βῆναι 159
mvp-comment-102-1 τὸ γὰρ ποθοῦν 160 τὸ … ποθοῦν 161 τὰ γὰρ ποθείν’ 162
mvp-comment-102-2 (1) If τὸ … ποθοῦν 163
mvp-comment-102-3 (2) τὸ ποθοῦν ἐκμαθεῖν 164 ἐκμαθεῖν 165 τὸ ποθοῦν 166
mvp-comment-102-4 (3) It remains, then, to take τὸ ποθοῦν 167
mvp-comment-103-1 οὐχ ἑκών, ἑκοῦσι δὲ 168
mvp-comment-104-1 τὸν Οἴτης ἄτομον … λειμῶν’ 169 ἄτομον 170
mvp-comment-105-1 ἀλλὰ 171 σὺν χρόνῳ 172
mvp-comment-106-1 εἴσω 173 ἔσω 174
mvp-comment-106-2 στέγης … αὐλῆς 175
mvp-comment-106-3 ὄμμα φήμης τῆσδε, ἄελπτον ἐμοὶ ἀνασχόν 176
mvp-comment-106-4 The wording here, ὡς … ἀνασχόν 177 τῆσδε 178 τῆσδ’ ὃ 179 ἄελπτον 180
mvp-comment-107-1
This lively ‘dance-song’ (
ὑπόρχημα) is the direct response of the Chorus to Deianeira's appeal (202
φωνήσατ’),—expressing their delight at the good news. As Dr. W. Christ, who calls it ‘a paean to Artemis and Apollo,’ justly remarks (
Metrik § 443), its contents clearly point to a distribution of the verses between different singers. (1) The first part, down to v. 215 (
Νύμφας), is an invitation to song and dance; this would be given either by the coryphaeus, or by the leader of one semichorus. (2) The second part, vv. 216—220 (
ἀείρομ’...ἅμιλλαν), is the response, delivered by the leader of the other semichorus. (3) Then, at v. 221, the whole Chorus joins in with the refrain of the paean,
ἰὼ ἰὼ Παιάν. (4) The coryphaeus then gives the last three verses, which introduce the next scene.—For the metres, see Metrical Analysis.
mvp-comment-107-2 ἀνολολυξάτω 181 δόμοις 182 ἁ 183 ὁ 184 δόμοις 185 ἐφεστίοις 186 ἐν δὲ κοινὸς ἀρσένων 187
mvp-comment-107-3 Hence we have to choose between these views, of which I prefer the first. (1) ἁ μελλόνυμφος 188 ἁ μελλόνυμφος 189 δόμος … ὁ μελλόνυμφος 190
mvp-comment-107-4 ἀνολολυξάτω 191
mvp-comment-107-5 δόμοις 192 ἀλαλαῖς 193
mvp-comment-108-1 κοινὸς 194 τὸν εὐφ. Ἀπ 195 ἴτω κλαγγὰ 196
mvp-comment-109-1 ἀνάγετ’ 197
mvp-comment-110-1 Ἄρτεμιν Ὀρτυγίαν 198
mvp-comment-110-2
Artemis was worshipped on the coasts near Malis (637 n.), but we have no proof that the name
Ὀρτυγία was specially given to her there. Perhaps the poet uses it here merely as one of her standing epithets.
mvp-comment-110-3 ἐλαφαβόλον 199
mvp-comment-110-4 ἀμφίπυρον 200
mvp-comment-110-5 Νύμφας 201
mvp-comment-111-1 ἀείρομ’ 202
mvp-comment-112-1 τὸν αὐλόν 203 ὦ τύραννε 204 τᾶς ἐμᾶς φρενός 205
mvp-comment-113-1 ἰδού μ’ 206 εὐοῖ 207 ἀναταράσσει 208
mvp-comment-113-2 ὁ κισσός 209
mvp-comment-113-3 βακχίαν … ἅμιλλαν 210
mvp-comment-114-1 ἰὼ ἰὼ Παιάν 211
mvp-comment-115-1 ἵδ’ 212 ἴδε ἴδ’ 213
mvp-comment-116-1 τάδ’ 214
mvp-comment-116-2 ἐναργῆ 215 ἀντίπρῳρα 216
mvp-comment-117-1 οὐδέ μ’ ὄμματος φρουρὰν παρῇλθε 217 παρῆλθε 218 φρουρὰ 219
mvp-comment-118-1 προὐννέπω 220
mvp-comment-118-2 φέρεις 221 καὶ 222
mvp-comment-119-1 ἀλλ’ 223
mvp-comment-120-1 κατ’ ἔργου κτῆσιν 224
mvp-comment-120-2 ἄνδρα γὰρ 225
mvp-comment-120-3 καλῶς πράσσοντ’ 226 καλῶς 227 καλά 228
mvp-comment-121-1 ἃ πρῶτα βούλομαι 229 ‐εα 230
mvp-comment-122-1 ἔγωγέ τοι 231
mvp-comment-122-2 ἔλειπον 232 ζῶντα 233 τε καί 234 ἰσχύοντα 235 καί 236 θάλλοντα 237
mvp-comment-123-1 ποῦ γῆς 238 πατρῴας εἴτε βαρβάρου 239 εἴτε 240 εἴτε 241
mvp-comment-123-2 ποῦ γῆς; πατρῴας εἴτε βαρβάρου; λέγε 242
mvp-comment-123-3 ποῦ γῆς; πατρῴας εἴτε βαρβάρου, λέγε 243
mvp-comment-123-4 πατρῴας 244
mvp-comment-124-1 Εὐβοίς 245
mvp-comment-124-2 ὁρίζεται βωμοὺς 246 βωμοὺς 247
mvp-comment-124-3 τέλη τ’ ἔγκαρπα 248
mvp-comment-125-1 εὐκταῖα … ἢ )πὸ μαντείας 249
mvp-comment-125-2 φαίνων 250
mvp-comment-126-1 εὐχαῖς 251
mvp-comment-126-2 ἀνάστατον 252
mvp-comment-127-1 ὧν 253
mvp-comment-127-2 ἐν ὄμμασιν 254
mvp-comment-128-1 τοῦ ποτ’ εἰσὶ 255 ἐκεῖνος 256
mvp-comment-129-1 οἰκτραὶ γάρ 257
mvp-comment-129-2 ξυμφοραὶ 258 ξυμφορᾷ 259
mvp-comment-130-1 ἐξείλεθ’ 260 αὑτῷ 261 θεοῖς 262
mvp-comment-131-1 ἦ κἀπὶ 263
mvp-comment-131-2 ἄσκοπον 264
mvp-comment-131-3 ἡμερῶν 265 ἀνήριθμον 266 χρόνον 267
mvp-comment-131-4
The form
ἀνήριθμος is of a frequent type. When the second part of a compound adj. has a disyllabic stem (usu. a verbal stem), beginning with a short vowel, this vowel may be lengthened. Such forms were oft. convenient in poetry (as
ἀνήροτος, εὐήνεμος, φιλήρετμος), but many of them were equally current in good prose (as
ἀνήκεστος, ἀνήνυτος, ἀνηλεῶς, εὐώνυμος). The restriction of
ἀνήριθμος to classical poetry and late prose (as Athen. p. 253 F) is not due to 1ts form, but to the fact that classical prose preferred
ἀναρίθμητος. Tragedy uses
ἀνάριθμος (
α^) where it suits the metre (as in
El.225
). In Theocr. 15. 45
ἀνάριθμοι (
α—) is Doric for
ἀνήριθμοι.
mvp-comment-132-1 τὸν μὲν πλεῖστον … χρόνον 268 ὡς φήσ’ αὐτός 269
mvp-comment-133-1 ἐμποληθείς 270
mvp-comment-133-2 τοῦ λόγου … φθόνον 271
mvp-comment-133-3 προσεῖναι 272
mvp-comment-133-4 ὅτου 273 ὅτου 274 τοῦ λόγου 275
mvp-comment-133-5 πράκτωρ φανῇ 276
mvp-comment-133-6 The meaning is:—‘You may think that the humiliation of Heracles ought not to be related by his servant to his wife. But this humiliation was imposed by Zeus himself, and can therefore be related without reflecting upon Heracles.’
mvp-comment-134-1 κεῖνος δὲ 277 ἐν Λυδοῖς 278 χρόνον 279
mvp-comment-134-2 πραθεὶς … Ὀμφάλῃ 280
mvp-comment-134-3
Two tragic poets of the fifth century B.C., Ionof Chios and Achaeus, had written an
Ὀμφάλη σατυρική. Two poets of the Middle Comedy, Antiphanes (Athen. 112 C) and Cratinus jun. (id. 669 B) wrote an
Ὀμφάλη, picturing Heracles abandoned to sensuous pleasures. Itis the more noteworthy how Sophocles, in lightly touching on this episode, has guarded his hero's dignity. For he speaks only of servile
labours for the Lydian taskmistress (70
It, 356
); and marks how the bondsman felt his disgrace (254).
mvp-comment-135-1 ἐνιαυτὸν 281
mvp-comment-136-1 λαβὼν 282
mvp-comment-137-1 ὅρκον αὑτῷ προσβαλὼν 283
mvp-comment-137-2 ἦ μὴν 284
mvp-comment-137-3 τὸν ἀγχιστῆρα τοῦδε τοῦ πάθους 285
mvp-comment-137-4 No emendation is probable. Nauck's αὐτόχειρα 286
mvp-comment-138-1 ξὺν παιδὶ καὶ γυναικὶ 287 παισὶ 288
mvp-comment-138-2 ἔτι 289
mvp-comment-139-1 κοὐχ ἡλίωσε τοὔπος 290
mvp-comment-139-2 ὅθ’ ἁγνὸς ἦν 291 ἁγνός 292
mvp-comment-140-1 στρατὸν … ἐπακτὸν 293
mvp-comment-140-2 ἔρχεται 294
mvp-comment-140-3 πόλιν τὴν Εὐρυτείάν 295
mvp-comment-141-1 ἐφέστιον 296 ἐς δόμους 297 ἐλθόντ’ … ἐφέστιον 298
mvp-comment-142-1 ξένον παλαιὸν ὄντα 299
mvp-comment-143-1 ἐπερρόθησε 300
mvp-comment-143-2
From
ἐπερρόθησε a verb of more general sense, such as
ὕβρισε, is to be supplied with
ἀτηρᾷ φρενί
301
γόγοις
302
φρενί
303
δείπνοις δ’
304
mvp-comment-143-3 Others understand :—‘railed against him both with (rude) words and with evil intent.’ To this there are two objections. (1) Since all the supposed affronts are then verbal, the antithesis would require an epithet for λόγοις 305 ἀτηρᾷ 306 πολλὰ μὲν … πολλὰ δέ 307
mvp-comment-143-4 The text is clearly (I think) sound. It is unwarrantable, as it is undesirable, to strike out πολλὰ δ’ … χεροῖν μὲν 308
mvp-comment-144-1 λέγων χεροῖν μὲν 309 δὲ 310 λέγων 311
mvp-comment-144-2 τῶν ὧν τέκνων 312
mvp-comment-144-3 λείποιτο 313
mvp-comment-145-1 φωνεῖ δὲ 314 ῥαίοιτο 315
mvp-comment-145-2 ἀνδρὸς … ἐλευθέρου 316 δοῦλος 317
mvp-comment-145-3 ῥαίοιτο 318
mvp-comment-145-4
The conject.
φανεὶς δὲ δοῦλος ἀνδρος
ἀντ’ ἐλευθέρου (cr. n.) has been received by several edd., who cite
Ai.1020
δοῦλος λόγοισιν ἀντ’ ἐλευθέρου φανείς. There, however, the force of
φανείς depends on
λόγοισιν: ‘represented,’ ‘made out,’ in his taunting words, to be a slave. Here
φανείς would mean simply, ‘found to be.’
mvp-comment-145-5 δείπνοις 319
mvp-comment-145-6 ᾠνωμένος 320
mvp-comment-145-7 ἔρριψεν ἐκτὸς αὐτόν 321
mvp-comment-145-8 ὧν ἔχων χόλον 322
mvp-comment-146-1 αὖθις 323
mvp-comment-146-2 Τιρυνθίαν … κλιτύν 324 υ^ 325 κλιτύν 326
mvp-comment-146-3 ἵππους νομάδας 327 νομάδας 328
mvp-comment-147-1 ἄλλοσ’ … ὄμμα, θατέρᾳ δὲ νοῦν ἔχοντ’ 329 θατέρᾳ 330 ἄλλοσε 331
mvp-comment-147-2 πυργώδους πλακός 332
mvp-comment-148-1 ὁ τῶν ἁπάντων 333
mvp-comment-149-1 πρατόν νιν ἐξέπεμψεν 334 οὐδ’ ἠνέσχετο 335 ὁθούνεκ’ 336 μοῦνον 337
mvp-comment-150-1 ἠμύνατο 338
mvp-comment-151-1 χειρουμένῳ 339
mvp-comment-151-2 οὐδὲ δαίμονες 340
mvp-comment-152-1 κεῖνοι δ’ 341
mvp-comment-152-2 ὑπερχλίοντες 342
mvp-comment-152-3 ἐκ γλώσσης κακῆς 343
mvp-comment-152-4 282 For αὐτοὶ μὲν 344 κεῖνοι 345 πόλις δὲ 346
mvp-comment-152-5 οἰκήτορες 347
mvp-comment-153-1 τάσδε 348 ἅσπερ 349 ἐξ ὀλβίων 350
mvp-comment-154-1 χωροῦσι πρὸς σέ 351
mvp-comment-154-2 πόσις τε … ἐγὼ δὲ 352 ἐφεῖτο 353 τελῶ 354
mvp-comment-155-1 ἁγνὰ θύματα 355 τῆς ἁλώσεως 356
mvp-comment-156-1 φρόνει νιν ὡς ἥξοντα 357 νιν 358 ὡς 359
mvp-comment-157-1 καλῶς 360
mvp-comment-158-1 νῦν σοι τέρψις ἐμφανὴς κυρεῖ 361
mvp-comment-158-2 τῶν μὲν 362 τὰ δὲ 363
mvp-comment-159-1 πανδίκῳ φρενί 364
mvp-comment-160-1 τῇδε 365 τοῦτο 366
mvp-comment-160-2 The rejection of this verse (see cr. n.) would be deplorable. Deianeira rejoices, but <*>ls a certain sadness, and knows that she cannot help showing it; all the more she wishes to assure them how real her joy is.
mvp-comment-161-1 τοῖσιν εὖ σκοπουμένοις 367
mvp-comment-161-2 ταρβεῖν τὸν εὖ πράσσοντα 368
mvp-comment-161-3 This shadow which flits across Deianeira's joy is the more dramatically impressive for the spectators, because it arises so naturally out of her tender sympathy for the captives. It is a touch worthy of the greatest master.
mvp-comment-162-1 ἐμοὶ … εἰσέβη 369
mvp-comment-162-2 δεινὸς 370
mvp-comment-163-1 ἀπάτορας 371
mvp-comment-163-2 301 f. For ἴσως 372 ἐξ ἐλευθέρων ἀνδρῶν 373 ἀνδρῶν 374 ἀπάτορας 375
mvp-comment-164-1 ὦ Ζεῦ τροπαῖε 376
mvp-comment-164-2 τοὐμὸν σπέρμα 377
mvp-comment-164-3 χωρήσαντα 378 εἰς 379 πρὸς 380 σε 381 που 382
mvp-comment-165-1 μηδ’, εἴ τι δράσεις 383 εἰ 384 ζώσης 385
mvp-comment-165-2 This verse is a development of μή ποτ’ εἰσίδοιμι 386
mvp-comment-165-3
The objection to the verse as illogical assumes that the
δέ in
μηδέ
387
mvp-comment-166-1 τεκνοῦσσα 388 τεκοῦσα 389
mvp-comment-166-2 πρὸς … φύσιν 390 πάντων … τῶνδε 391
mvp-comment-166-3 γενναία 392
mvp-comment-167-1 ὁ φιτύσας πατήρ 393
mvp-comment-167-2 ᾤκτισα 394
mvp-comment-167-3 ὅσῳπερ 395 μόνη 396
mvp-comment-167-4 φρονεῖν οἶδεν 397 φρονεῖν 398
mvp-comment-167-5 314 f. For καὶ 399 κρίνοις 400
mvp-comment-167-6 γέννημα τῶν ἐκεῖθεν 401 οὐκ ἐν ὑστάτοις 402
mvp-comment-168-1 μὴ τῶν τυράννων 403
mvp-comment-168-2 Εὐρύτου σπορά τις ἦν 404 τις 405
mvp-comment-169-1 ἀνιστόρουν 406
mvp-comment-169-2 μακράν 407
mvp-comment-170-1 ξυνεμπόρων 408
mvp-comment-170-2 ἔχεις 409
mvp-comment-170-3 ἤνυτον 410
mvp-comment-171-1 ἀλλ’ ἡμὶν 411
mvp-comment-172-1 καὶ 412 ξυμφορά 413
mvp-comment-173-1 οὔ τἄρα 414 οὐδὲν ἐξ ἴσου 415 τῷ γε πρόσθεν χρόνῳ 416 ἐξ ἴσου 417 διοίσει 418 γλῶσσαν 419 διοίσει 420
mvp-comment-173-2 ἤτις 421
mvp-comment-173-3 οὐδαμὰ 422
mvp-comment-174-1 οὔτε μείζον’ οὔτ’ ἐλάσσονα 423
mvp-comment-175-1 ὠδίνουσα … βάρος 424
mvp-comment-176-1 διήνεμον 425 πάτραν 426
mvp-comment-176-2 ἡ … τὐχη 427
mvp-comment-176-3 αὐτῇ γ’ 428 γ’ 429
mvp-comment-176-4 συγγνώμην ἔχει 430
mvp-comment-177-1 ἡ δ’ οὖν 431 ἡ δ’ 432 ἥδ’ 433
mvp-comment-177-2 οὕτως ὅπως ἥδιστα 434
mvp-comment-177-3
331 Among the attempts to amend
λύπην...λύπην (cr. n.), the two best, I think, are, (1)
ἄλλην … λύπην
435
λύπην … διπλῆν
436
διπλῆν
437
mvp-comment-177-4 Almost all edd. retain the optat. λάβοι 438 λάβῃ 439
mvp-comment-178-1 οἷ θέλεις σπεύδῃς 440
mvp-comment-178-2 ἐγὼ δὲ 441 σύ θ’ 442
mvp-comment-178-3 ἐξαρκῆ τιθῶ 443
mvp-comment-179-1
The
ἄγγελος (180), who has listened in silence, now places himself between Deianeira and the door through which she is about to follow Lichas and the captives.
mvp-comment-179-2 αὐτοῦ γε πρῶτον βαιὸν ἀμμείνας’ 444 γε 445
mvp-comment-179-3 ἀμμείνας’ 446
mvp-comment-180-1 ἄνευ 447 τ’ 448 μάθῃς 449 μάθῃς 450 ἐκμάθῃς 451 οὕστινας 452
mvp-comment-180-2 ὧν τ’ οὐδὲν εἰσήκουσας 453
mvp-comment-181-1 πάντ’ 454
mvp-comment-182-1 τί δ’ ἔστι 455
mvp-comment-182-2 τοῦ 456
mvp-comment-182-3 ἐφίστασαί με 457 τήνδε βάσιν 458
mvp-comment-182-4
The midd.
ἐφίσταμαι does not elsewhere occur in a causal sense (except in the aor., as
Xen.
Cyr.8. 2. 19
φρουροὺς ἐπεστησά μην). But the causal use of
καθίσταμαι (
Aesch.
Eum.706
φρούρημα γῆς καθίσταμαι ,
Thuc.2. 6
τά τ’ ἐν τῇ πόλει καθίσταντο) appears to warrant a like use of
ἐφίσταμαι, where, as here, the context helps to explain it. Cp. also
Plat.
Tim. 63 C
γεώδη γένη διϊστάμενοι, ‘separating.’ [But we cannot properly compare
O. C.916
παρίστασαι, ‘you bring
to your own side,’ ‘subjugate’: nor
Plat.
Rep. 565C
ἕνα τινὰ...δῆμος εἴωθε...προΐστασθαι ἑαυτοῦ: where there is a special reason for using the midd.] The midd.
προσορωμένα in
Soph.
O. C.244
is similarly unique, and has a like justification.
mvp-comment-182-5
A fact which confirms this view is that
ἐφιστάναι, ἐφίστασθαι were regularly used with ref. to a halt.
Xen.
An.2. 4. 26
ἐπορεύετο δὲ ἄλλοτε καὶ ἄλλοτε ἐφιστάμενος. ὅσον δὲ χρόνον τὸ ἡγούμενον τοῦ στρατεύματος ἐπιστήσειε, τοσοῦτον ἦν ἀνάγκη χρόνον δἰ ὅλου τοῦ στρατεύματος γίγνεσθαι τὴν ἐπίστασιν. (For
ἐπίστασις, ‘a halt,’ cp.
Soph.
Ant.225
n.) Polyb. 16. 34. 2
ἐπιστήσαντες...τὴν ὁρμήν.
Diod.17. 112
τὴν ὁδὸν...ἐπιστήσας.
Plut.
Cim. 1
ἐπιστήσας...τὴν πορείαν. Arrian 5. 16. 1
ἐπέστησε τοὺς ἱππέας τοῦ πρόσω.
mvp-comment-182-6 Another explanation is: τοῦ με ἐφίστασαι 459 τήνδε βάσιν 460 με 461 μοι 462 τοῦ 463 ἐφ’ οὗ 464 με 465
mvp-comment-183-1 οὐδὲ τὸν πάρος … οὐδὲ νῦν 466 οὐδὲ 467 οὔτε 468
mvp-comment-183-2 μάτην 469
mvp-comment-183-3 δοκῶ 470
mvp-comment-184-1 ἐκείνους 471 τούτους δ’ ἔα 472 ἄνευ τῶνδ’ 473
mvp-comment-184-2 ἢ )μοὶ ταῖσδέ τ’ 474
mvp-comment-185-1 σοὶ ταῖσδέ τ’ οὐδὲν εἴργεται 475 οὐδὲν 476 σοὶ ταῖσδέ τ’ 477
mvp-comment-186-1 καὶ δὴ 478
mvp-comment-186-2 χὡ λόγος σημαινέτω 479
mvp-comment-187-1 δίκης ἐς ὀρθόν 480
mvp-comment-187-2 ἢ νῦν … ἢ πρόσθεν … παρῆν 481 κακός 482
mvp-comment-188-1 ἃ μὲν γὰρ ἐξείρηκας 483
mvp-comment-188-2 ἀγνοία 484
mvp-comment-189-1 μαρτύρων 485
mvp-comment-189-2 Εὔρυτόν θ’ ἕλοι τήν θ’ ὑψίπ. Οἰχαλίαν 486
mvp-comment-189-3 τὴν ὑψίπυργον 487
mvp-comment-189-4 Οἰχαλίαν 488
mvp-comment-190-1 μόνος θεῶν 489
mvp-comment-190-2 θέλξειεν 490
mvp-comment-191-1 οὐ τἀπὶ Λυδοῖς 491 ὑπ’ 492 ἐπ’ 493 τἀπὶ 494 ἐπ’ 495
mvp-comment-191-2 πόνων λατρεύματ’ 496
mvp-comment-191-3 ὁ ῥιπτὸς … μόρος 497
mvp-comment-191-4 Heracles had really killed Iphitus. The denial here refers only to the place which the murder held in the story told by Lichas. Heracles was instigated, not by the Lydian servitude which punished his crime, or by those affronts (262 ff.) which Lichas represented as having moved him to the crime, but, in reality, by the refusal of Eurytus to give him Iolè.
mvp-comment-192-1 ὃν 498 ὃ 499 ὃν … παρώσας 500
mvp-comment-193-1 ἀλλ’ ἡνίκ’ 501 οὐκ ἔπειθε 502
mvp-comment-193-2 τὸν φυτοσπόρον 503
mvp-comment-194-1 κρύφιον ὡς ἔχοι λέχος 504 αἰτίαν 505
mvp-comment-194-2 ἑτοιμάσας 506
mvp-comment-194-3 362—
mvp-comment-195-1 ἐπιστρατεύει … ἄνακτα πατέρα 507 τόνδ’ 508 τῶνδ’ 509
mvp-comment-195-2
(1) It was needless to say that the girl's
πατρίς was also the realm of Eurytus:
cp. 244
f.: 283 ff.: 315. The excuse must be that the Messenger himself had not yet said so; he is wordy, and anxious, in his own fashion, to be lucid. The reading
τόνδ’
510
τῶνδ’
511
mvp-comment-195-3 (2) Heracles is subject to ἐπιστρατεύει 512 κτείνει 513 εἶπε 514 δεσπόζειν 515 εἶπε 516
mvp-comment-195-4
(3) At v. 377 Deianeira asks,
ἆρ’ ἀνώνυμος |
πέφυκεν
; i.e., ‘is she of obscure birth?’—and then, for the first time, learns that the girl's father is
Eurytus. So she must have understood
ἄνακτα
517
mvp-comment-195-5 The only course which removes all these three difficulties is Hartung's,—who brackets the words τὴν ταύτης … πατέρα 518
mvp-comment-195-6
Others read
τῶν Εὐρύτου
τόνδ’, rendering: ‘in which (Lichas) said that Heracles (
τόνδ’) holds’ [or ‘wishes to hold’] the throne of Eurytus.’ But Heracles simply laid Oechalia waste; there was no question of his reigning there.—Wecklein ingeniously reads
τὸν ἐργάτην
519
τῶνδ’
520
mvp-comment-195-7 For the change of tenses, cp. Ant.406 n.
mvp-comment-196-1 ἥκει 521 ἔπερσε 522 ἐντεθέρμανται 523 ἥκει 524
mvp-comment-196-2 δόμους ὡς τούσδε 525
mvp-comment-197-1 οὐδ’ εἰκός 526
mvp-comment-197-2 ἐντεθέρμανται 527 ἐν‐ 528 ἐκ‐ 529
mvp-comment-198-1 πρὸς μέσῃ Τραχινίων ἀγορᾷ 530 ἐν 531
mvp-comment-198-2 ἀγορᾷ 532
mvp-comment-198-3 Join ὡσαύτως ἐμοί 533
mvp-comment-199-1 τὸ δ’ ὀρθὸν 534
mvp-comment-200-1 ποῦ … πράγματος 535
mvp-comment-200-2 ὑπόστεγον 536
mvp-comment-201-1 ὦ δὐστηνος 537 πέφυκεν 538
mvp-comment-201-2 This question seems strange after the words κτείνει τ’ ἄνακτα πατέρα τῆσδε 539
mvp-comment-201-3 διώμνυτο 540
mvp-comment-202-1 ἦ κάρτα 541
mvp-comment-202-2 The conject. ὄνομα 542 ὄμμα 543 ἆρ’ ἀνώνυμος πέφυκεν 544 ὄνομα 545 φύσιν 546 κατ’ ὄμμα 547
mvp-comment-202-3 φύσιν 548
mvp-comment-202-4 In some ancient texts this verse was given to Deianeira. Among recent editors, Paley shares that view. But: (1) If Deianeira has already answered her own question, the Messenger's speech opens weakly with v. 380. (2) It agrees best with the practice of Sophocles to suppose that ἦ κάρτα 549 ἢ 550 ἦ 551 φύσιν 552 διώμνυτο 553
mvp-comment-203-1 πατρὸς μὲν οὖσα 554 Ἰόλη )καλεῖτο 555 ποτέ 556 )καλεῖτο 557 οὖσα 558
mvp-comment-203-2 Ἰόλη 559
mvp-comment-203-3 τῆς 560
mvp-comment-204-1 βλάστας 561
mvp-comment-204-2 οὐδὲν ἱστορῶν 562
mvp-comment-204-3 Many editors place a comma after ἐφώνει 563 δῆθεν 564 δῆθεν 565 οὐδὲν ἱστορῶν 566
mvp-comment-205-1 ὄλοιντο 567
mvp-comment-205-2
The comment is aimed at Lichas in the first instance; but its vague form seems purposed, so that the hearers may extend it, if they please, to Heracles. Deianeira herself is in doubt whether the dissimulation practised by Lichas was prompted by her lord (449): Lichas explains that it was not so (479 f.). The schol.'s paraphrase shows that he wished to punctuate thus:
ὄλοιντο, μή τι πάντες, οἱ κακοί, etc.: ‘perish, not all men, but the evil; and (especially) he,’ etc.
mvp-comment-205-3 τὰ δὲ 568 δὲ 569
mvp-comment-205-4 μὴ 570 πρέπονθ’ αὑτῷ 571
mvp-comment-206-1 ποεῖν 572
mvp-comment-207-1 πεύθου 573 πυθοῦ 574
mvp-comment-207-2 σαφῆ 575
mvp-comment-208-1 οὐκ ἀπὸ γνώμης 576
mvp-comment-208-2
The accent in L here,
ἄπο γνώμης, represents the theory that this prep. should be paroxytone when it means ‘at a distance from,’ as in the phrases cited above, and in
ἀπὸ τείχεος (
Il.9. 353
),
ἀπὸ σεῖο (
ib. 437), etc. But this was merely a refinement due to comparatively late grammarians: see Ellendt,
Lex. Soph. p. 79
a: Matthiae
Gr. § 572 n.
b.
mvp-comment-209-1 οὐκ ἐμῶν ὑπ’ ἀγγέλων 577 αὐτόκλητος 578
mvp-comment-210-1 ὡς ὁρᾷς 579 εἰσορᾷς 580 εἰσορᾷς 581 ὡς 582 ἕρποντος ἐμοῦ, εἰσορᾷς 583 ὡς ἕρποντος ἐμοῦ 584 εἰσορᾷς 585 εἰσορᾷς ὡς ἕρποντος ἐμοῦ 586 εἰσορᾷς 587
mvp-comment-210-2 As regards ὡς ὁρᾷς 588 ὡς 589
mvp-comment-211-1 ἐκ ταχείας 590
mvp-comment-211-2 σὺν χρόνῳ … βραδεῖ 591
mvp-comment-211-3 πρὶν ἡμᾶς κἀννεώσασθαι λόγους 592
mvp-comment-212-1 ἦ καὶ 593
mvp-comment-212-2 τὸ πιστὸν τῆς ἀλη‐ 594 θείας 595
mvp-comment-212-3 νεμεῖς 596
mvp-comment-212-4 Even without the hint in the schol. (cr. n.), it would have been clear that νεμεῖς 597 νέμεις 598
mvp-comment-213-1
As to Nauck's change in the order of these verses (cr. n.), it is enough to observe that (1) Lichas could not reply to the question of his
δέσποινα with such a rebuff as
σὺ δ’ εἰς τί δή με
599
τόλμησον εἰπεῖν, εἰ φρονεῖς
600
mvp-comment-214-1 οὗτος, βλέφ’ ὧδε 601
mvp-comment-215-1 σὺ δ’ 602
mvp-comment-216-1 τόλμησον 603
mvp-comment-216-2 εἰ φρονεῖς 604
mvp-comment-216-3 ἱστορῶ 605
mvp-comment-216-4 406 f. If δάμαρτα 606 δεσπότιν 607 θ’ 608 δ’ 609 δέ … δέ 610 τε … τε. — λεύσσων μάταια 611
mvp-comment-217-1 δίκαια 612
mvp-comment-218-1 δίκαιος 613
mvp-comment-219-1 ποικίλας 614
mvp-comment-220-1 ἱστορούμενος 615
mvp-comment-221-1 κάτοισθα 616
mvp-comment-222-1 ἣν ὑπ’ ἀγνοίας ὁρᾷς 617 ὑπ’ ἀγνοίας 618 ὑπ’ ἀγνοίας 619
mvp-comment-222-2 On the whole, I do not feel sure that there is a corruption. If there is, it probably lies deep. Some conjectures are noticed in the Appendix.
mvp-comment-223-1 τίς πόθεν μολὼν 620
mvp-comment-224-1 πολλοῖσιν ἀστῶν 621 ποίοις ἐν ἀνθρώποισι 622
mvp-comment-224-2 ἀγορᾷ 623
mvp-comment-224-3 ταῦτά 624 γ’ 625 γε 626
mvp-comment-224-4 425 If the MS. ναί 627 γε 628 κλύειν 629 ναί 630
mvp-comment-224-5 ταὐτὸ 631
mvp-comment-224-6 426 The antithesis is between the whole phrases, δόκησιν 632 ἐξακριβῶσαι 633
mvp-comment-225-1 ποίαν δόκησιν 634
mvp-comment-226-1 ἐγὼ δάμαρτα 635
mvp-comment-226-2 431 The emphatic σοῦ 636 σου 637 ἤκουσεν 638 ἤκουσα 639
mvp-comment-227-1 ἡ Λυδία 640 ἡ Λυδία 641 ὁ τῆσδ’ ἔρως φανείς 642 ὡς ταύτης πόθῳ 643
mvp-comment-228-1 ἀποστήτω 644
mvp-comment-229-1 πρός σε τοῦ … Διός 645
mvp-comment-229-2 νάπος 646
mvp-comment-229-3 ἐκκλέψῃς λόγον 647
mvp-comment-230-1 Deianeira argues:—(1) 438 —448: he need not fear that she will feel rancour against Heracles or Iolè: (2) 449—454: falsehood would be disgraceful for him,—and, if his motive were kind, useless: (3) 455 f.: detection would be certain: (4) 457 ff.: he need not be afraid of paining her. (5) In vv. 461— 467 she returns to the first topic.
mvp-comment-230-2 κακῇ 648
mvp-comment-230-3 τἀνθρώπων 649
mvp-comment-230-4 πέφυκεν 650 πεφύκας’ 651
mvp-comment-231-1 Ἔρωτι μέν νυν 652
mvp-comment-231-2 πύκτης ὅπως 653
mvp-comment-231-3 οὐ καλῶς φρονεῖ 654
mvp-comment-232-1 ἄρχει καὶ θεῶν 655
mvp-comment-233-1 κἀμοῦ γε 656 γε 657
mvp-comment-233-2 πῶς δ’ οὐ 658
mvp-comment-233-3 οἵας γ’ ἐμοῦ 659 γε 660
mvp-comment-233-4
Wunder and Nauck reject this beautiful verse, because: (1) by
κἀμοῦ γε Deianeira implies that she is stronger than the gods; and also that she has been untrue to her husband: (2) she cannot assume that Iolè returns the passion of Heracles; nor does Iolè's feeling come into account here.
mvp-comment-234-1 τὠμῷ τ’ ἀνδρὶ 661 τε 662 ἢ 663
mvp-comment-234-2 τῇδε τῇ νόσῳ 664
mvp-comment-234-3 μεμπτός 665
mvp-comment-235-1 τοῦ μηδὲν αἰσχροῦ 666 μηδ’ ἐμοὶ κακοῦ τινος 667 τοῦ 668
mvp-comment-235-2
This is a remarkable passage, and it is of some moment to understand it rightly. The meaning is not merely that Iolè's relation to Heracles was excused by the omnipotence of Erôs. Concubinage (
παλλακία) was not merely tolerated by Athenian opinion, but, in some measure, protected by law (see
e.g. ,
Lys. or. 1 § 31
:
Isae. or. 8 § 39
). Its relation to the life of the family is illustrated by the
Andromachè of Euripides; for though Andromachè is Trojan, and Hermionè Spartan, the sentiments are Athenian. A wife (
γαμετὴ γυνή) who tolerates a
παλλακή is there represented as proving her goodness of heart (
ἀρετή, 226), and her wise moderation (938—942); she ought to be consoled by her higher place, and by the advantage which her children will have over the
νόθοι.
mvp-comment-235-3 But is Deianeira in earnest here; or is she feigning acquiescence, to reassure Lichas? Presently she tells the Chorus that she cannot endure to share her home with Iolè (539—546). Probably Sophocles meant her to be sincere in both places. The faith in her own power to bear the trial is natural at this moment of excitement and suspense. Not less so is the reaction, when she knows the worst, and has had time to think.
mvp-comment-236-1 οὐκ ἔστι ταῦτ)· ἀλλ’ 669 οὐκ ἔστι ταῦτα 670
mvp-comment-236-2 μαθὼν … ἐκμανθάνεις 671
mvp-comment-237-1 αὑτὸν 672 ὀφθήσει 673
mvp-comment-238-1 κὴρ 674 πρόσεστιν 675
mvp-comment-239-1 ὅπως δὲ λήσεις 676 ὅπως δὲ λήσεις 677
mvp-comment-240-1 δέδοικας … ταρβεῖς 678
mvp-comment-240-2 τοῦτο 679
mvp-comment-241-1 πλείστας ἀνὴρ εἷς 680
mvp-comment-241-2 ἔγημε 681
mvp-comment-241-3 The legendary loves of Heracles were as numerous as the local myths which claimed Heracleid <*>escent for clans or houses. Thus his bride Megara connected him with Thebes; Astydameia, with Thessaly; Astyochè, with Epeirus; Epicastè, with Elis; Parthenopè, with Arcadia; Chalciopè, with Cos; the Thespiades, with Sardinia; and so forth. The number of his sons finally grew to about seventy, whose mothers are enumerated by Apollodorus (2. 7. 8).
mvp-comment-242-1 ἠνέγκατ’ 682
mvp-comment-242-2 ἥδε τε, οὐδ’ εἰ … ἐντακείῃ 683 ἂν 684 οὐδ’ 685 εἰ 686 ἂν 687
mvp-comment-242-3 ἐντακείη τῷ φιλεῖν 688
mvp-comment-242-4 ἐντακείη 689 τῷ φιλεῖν 690
mvp-comment-242-5 The conject. ἐκτακείη 691
mvp-comment-243-1 ᾤκτιρα 692 δὴ 693
mvp-comment-244-1 ῥείτω κατ’ οὖρον 694 ἴτω 695 οὖρον 696
mvp-comment-244-2 κακὸν 697
mvp-comment-244-3 πρὸς ἄλλον 698 κακὸν 699 πρὸς ἄλλον εἶναι 700
mvp-comment-245-1 πιθοῦ λεγούσῃ 701 πείθου 702 πιθοῦ 703 γυναικὶ τῇδε 704
mvp-comment-246-1 ἀλλ’ 705 θνητὴν φρονοῦσαν θνητὰ 706 ἀγνώμονα 707
mvp-comment-247-1 κρύψομαι 708
mvp-comment-248-1 ἔστιν γὰρ οὕτως 709
mvp-comment-249-1 ταύτης ὁ δεινὸς ἵμερος 710 ὁ δεινὸς 711
mvp-comment-249-2 ποθ’ 712
mvp-comment-249-3 διῆλθε 713 τῆσδ’ 714 ταύτης 715
mvp-comment-249-4 ἡ πολύφθορος 716
mvp-comment-249-5 πατρῷος 717
mvp-comment-250-1 καὶ τὸ πρὸς κείνου 718
mvp-comment-251-1 εἴ τι τήνδ’ ἁμαρτ. 719
mvp-comment-251-2 νέμεις 720
mvp-comment-252-1 γε μὲν δὴ 721 ἐπεὶ 722
mvp-comment-253-1 στέργε 723 ἐς 724
mvp-comment-253-2 ἐμπέδως 725 ἐμπέδους 726
mvp-comment-253-3 488 f. Either τἄλλ’ 727 χεροῖν 728
mvp-comment-254-1 καὶ 729 φρονοῦμεν 730
mvp-comment-255-1 νόσον γ’ ἐπακτὸν ἐξαρούμεθα 731 ἐπακτὸν 732 γε 733 ἐξαρούμεθα 734
mvp-comment-255-2 Others understand:—(1) ‘I shall not heighten the trouble already brought upon me by others’ (viz., the introduction of Iolè into the house, 376). But this sense for ἐξαρούμεθα 735 γε 736 νόσημ’ 737
mvp-comment-255-3 θεοῖσι δυσμαχοῦντες 738
mvp-comment-256-1 λόγων τ’ 739
mvp-comment-256-2 λόγων … ἐπιστολὰς 740
mvp-comment-257-1 προσαρμόσαι 741
mvp-comment-257-2
This is the first mention of the fateful gift. An unobtrusive significance is given to it by two traits of expression. (1)
δῶρα is drawn into the relative clause (
O. C.907
n.), and resumed, with a light emphasis, in
καὶ ταῦτ’: cp.
Ph.1247
ἅ γ’ ἔλαβες βουλαῖς ἐμαῖς, |
πάλιν μεθεῖναι ταῦτα. (2) A pause follows the second foot of the verse (
ἄγῃς).
Cp. 27
n.
mvp-comment-257-3 ἄγῃς 742 φέρῃς 743 δίκαια 744
mvp-comment-257-4 ὧδε 745 σὺν π. στόλῳ 746
mvp-comment-258-1 μέγα τι σθένος … νίκας 747
mvp-comment-258-2 ἐκφέρεται 748
mvp-comment-259-1 θεῶν 749 παρέβαν 750
mvp-comment-259-2 Κρονίδαν 751
mvp-comment-260-1 τὸν ἔννυχον Ἅιδαν 752
mvp-comment-261-1 Ποσειδάωνα 753
mvp-comment-261-2 τινάκτορα γαίας 754
mvp-comment-262-1 ἐπὶ τάνδ’ … ἄκοιτιν 755
mvp-comment-262-2
Other explanations of
ἀμφίγυοι here are these:—(1) ‘With massive limbs,’—
ἀμφί being intensive. (2) ‘Dexterous combatants’: cp.
ἀμφιδέξιος. (3) ‘Of dissimilar forms,’—
i.e., man and bull.
mvp-comment-262-3 κατέβαν 756
mvp-comment-263-1 πάμπληκτα 757
mvp-comment-263-2 παγκόνιτά τ’ 758
mvp-comment-263-3 ἐξῆλθον ἄεθλ’ 759
mvp-comment-263-4 ἄεθλα 760 ἀγώνων 761
mvp-comment-264-1 ποταμοῦ σθένος 762
mvp-comment-264-2 φάσμα ταύρου 763
mvp-comment-264-3
Acheloüs fights, then, as the
ἐναργὴς ταῦρος,—not merely as the
ἀνδρείῳ κύτει βούπρῳρος (12). Sophocles is here following the traditional version. The Homeric Scamander, in conflict with Achilles,
roars ‘like a bull’ (
μεμυκὼς ἠΰτε ταῦρος,
Il.21. 237
).
ἐντεῦθεν ὁρμηθέντες (says the schol. there)
τὸν Ἀχελῷον ἐταύρωσαν Ἡρακλεῖ ἀγωνιζόμενον. The taurine form was given to Acheloüs, in that combat, by Archilochus (schol.
ib.), by Pindar (schol.
Il.21. 194
), and by the logographer Pherecydes (
Apollod.2. 6. 5
): perhaps, too, by Panyasis, the author of an epic
Ἡράκλεια. An engraved gem in the British Museum (King,
Antique Gems II. pl. 34, fig. 3) shows Acheloüs as a bull, preparing to butt at Heracles. The gem is older than the time of Sophocles, and may, as Mr. Murray S. thinks, have followed the rendering of this subject on the still more archaic throne of Apollo at Amyclae (
Paus.3. 18. 5
). Cp. n. on 520. This fight was a favourite theme in art: for the literature, see Roscher,
Lex.p. 9.
mvp-comment-264-4 Ovid ( Met. 9. 1—100 ) departs from the old Greek version: his Acheloüs begins the fight in quasi-human form,—then turns into a serpent (63) ,—and then, as a last resource into a bull (80) .
mvp-comment-265-1 ἀπ’ Οἰνιαδᾶν 764
mvp-comment-265-2 Oeniadae was some twelve miles W.S.W. of Pleuron. As Heracles arrives from his famous home to the east, so it is fitting that the river-god should come from the western town which was a chief seat of his worship. The head of the Acheloüs appears on coins of Oeniadae.
mvp-comment-266-1 Βακχίας 765
mvp-comment-266-2 ἀπὸ 766 ἄπο 767
mvp-comment-267-1 παλίντονα 768
mvp-comment-267-2 λόγχας 769
mvp-comment-267-3 ῥόπαλον 770 λόγχας 771 ῥόπαλον 772 τόξα 773
mvp-comment-268-1 ἀολλεῖς 774 ἐς μέσον 775
mvp-comment-269-1 μόνα δ’ 776
mvp-comment-269-2 ἐν μέσῳ 777
mvp-comment-269-3 ῥαβδονόμει 778
mvp-comment-269-4 Aphroditè is here the only person near the two combatants ( ξυνοῦσα 779
mvp-comment-270-1 τότ’ ἦν χερός 780 χερὸς πάταγος 781 ἀμφίπλεκτοι κλίμακες 782 μετώπων πλήγματα 783
mvp-comment-270-2 For ἦν 784 ἦν δὲ 785
mvp-comment-271-1 ἀνάμιγδα 786
mvp-comment-271-2 κεράτων 787
mvp-comment-272-1 ἦν 788
mvp-comment-272-2 ἀμφίπλεκτοι κλίμακες 789
mvp-comment-272-3
At any rate
κλιμακίζω was a familiar term in Greek wrestling: cp. Plato comicus
Πρέσβεις fr. 2
χαίρεις, οἶμαι, μεταπεττεύσας αὐτὸν διακλιμακίσας τε (explained by Hesych. as
διαπαλαίσας). For a like use of wrestling terms, cp.
Ar.
Eq.262
f. —One of the subjects on the archaic throne of Apollo at Amyclae was
ἡ πρὸς Ἀχελῷον Ἡρακλέους πάλη (
Paus.3. 18. 5
).
mvp-comment-273-1 μετώπων … πλήγματα 790
mvp-comment-274-1 τηλαυγεῖ 791
mvp-comment-274-2 ὄχθῳ 792
mvp-comment-274-3 τὸν ὃν 793
mvp-comment-275-1 †ἐγὼ δὲ μάτηρ† μὲν οἷα φράζω 794
mvp-comment-275-2
The true key to this passage depends on observing the sequence of topics. (1) In 517—522,
τότ’ ἦν χερός...στόνος ἀμφοῖν, we have a brief picture of the fight. (2) Then vv. 523—525,
ἁ δ’ εὐῶπις...ἀκοίταν, mark Deianeira's suspense. (3) Next comes the obscure parenthesis,
ἐγὼ δὲ...φράζω. (4) And then we
return, at v. 527, to Deianeira's suspense,—not, however, in a form which adds anything new to vv. 523 —525, but in one which merely repeats their substance:—
τὸ δ’ ἀμφινείκητον...ἀμμένει.
mvp-comment-275-3
Now, to justify such a repetition, it is manifest that (2) and (4) should be separated, not by a mere parenthesis, such as (3) now is, but by some further allusion to
the fight. This inference is strengthened by the phrase,
τὸ δ’ ἀμφινείκητον ὄμμα νύμφας, which gains point if a reference to the
νεῖκος has immediately preceded.
mvp-comment-275-4 I believe that ἐγὼ 795 ἀγὼν 796 φράζω 797 ἀγὼν δὲ μαργᾷ μέν, οἷα φράζω 798 τὸ δ’ ἀμφινείκητον 799
mvp-comment-276-1 ὄμμα 800 ὄμμα νύμφας 801
mvp-comment-276-2 ἐλεινὸν ἀμμένει 802
mvp-comment-277-1 κἀπὸ ματρὸς ἄφαρ βέβακεν 803
mvp-comment-277-2 ἄφαρ 804
mvp-comment-278-1 ὥστε 805 ὥσπερ 806
mvp-comment-278-2 πόρτις ἐρήμα 807
mvp-comment-279-1 ἦμος 808 τῆμος 809
mvp-comment-279-2 ὁ ξένος 810
mvp-comment-279-3 θροεῖ 811
mvp-comment-279-4 ταῖς αἰχμ. παισὶν 812
mvp-comment-279-5 ὡς ἐπ’ ἐξόδῳ 813 ἐπ’ ἐξόδῳ 814
mvp-comment-279-6 θυραῖος 815
mvp-comment-280-1 τὰ μὲν 816 τὰ δ’ 817
mvp-comment-280-2 χερσὶν 818
mvp-comment-280-3 συγκατοικτιουμένη 819
mvp-comment-281-1 κόρην 820 ἐζευγμένην 821
mvp-comment-282-1 παρεισδέδεγμαι 822 φόρ‐ 823 τον 824 παρεισδέδεγμαι 825
mvp-comment-282-2 λωβητὸν 826
mvp-comment-282-3 ἐμπόλημα 827
mvp-comment-282-4 τῆς ἐμῆς φρενός 828 λωβητὸν 829
mvp-comment-283-1 δὔ οὖσαι 830
mvp-comment-283-2 μιᾶς ὑπὸ χλαίνης 831
mvp-comment-283-3 ὑπαγκάλισμα 832
mvp-comment-283-4
Mr Murray S. has shown me a curious illustration of this passage. A vase of the 6th cent. B.C., now in the British Museum, depicts two women under the same
χλαῖνα,—a symbolical representation, perhaps, of a common grief.
mvp-comment-284-1 ὁ … ἡμῖν καλούμενος 833
mvp-comment-284-2 πιστός 834
mvp-comment-285-1 οἰκούρια 835 τοῦ μακροῦ χρόνου 836
mvp-comment-286-1 οὐκ ἐπίσταμαι 837
mvp-comment-286-2 τῇδε τῇ νόσῳ 838
mvp-comment-287-1 τὸ δ’ αὖ ξυνοικεῖν 839
mvp-comment-288-1
The text of this passage is, I believe, sound, though the diction is bold, and somewhat careless. The
one
ἥβη (Iolè's) is growing to the perfect flower, while the other (Deianeira's) is declining. (Cp.
Ar.
Lys.596
τῆς δὲ γυναικὸς σμικρὸς ὁ καιρός.) In what follows, these points may be noted.
mvp-comment-288-2 (1) ὧν 840 ὧν 841
mvp-comment-288-3 (2) τῶν δ’ ὑπεκτρέπει πόδα 842
mvp-comment-288-4 (3) ἀφαρπάζειν 843
mvp-comment-288-5 (4) ὀφθαλμὸς 844
mvp-comment-289-1 ταῦτ’ οὖν 845
mvp-comment-289-2 καλῆται 846 καλεῖται 847 καλῆται 848
mvp-comment-289-3 ἀνήρ 849
mvp-comment-290-1 ἀλλ’ οὐ γάρ 850
mvp-comment-290-2 553 f. The MSS. have ᾗ δ’ ἔχω 851 λυτήριον λύπημα 852 λύπημα 853 λώφημα 854
mvp-comment-290-3
Deianeira is here speaking of an expedient which gives her some hope, indeed, but no assured confidence (590 f.). This exactly suits the usage of
λωφᾶν and its derivatives, which denote the
alleviation of evil,—not its complete removal. Cp.
Ai.61
ἐπειδὴ τοῦδ’ ἐλώφησεν πόνου.
Thuc.6. 12
ἀπὸ νόσου μεγάλης καὶ πολέμου βραχύ τι λελωφήκα<*>εν.
Plat.
Legg. 854 C
ἐὰν μέν σοι δρῶντι ταῦτα λωφᾷ τι τὸ νόσημα. Thuc. uses
λώφησις, ‘abatement’ (
4. 81
τοῦ πολέμου). Deianeira, in bethinking her of the philtre, has found that which holds out a promise of deliverance, and
assuages, though it does not cure, her pain,—a
λυτήριον λώφημα.
mvp-comment-290-4
The attempted versions of
λυτήριον λύπημα have been these:—(1) With a comma after
τῇδ’: ‘a thing to grieve this girl, for my deliverance’:—a grammatically sound phrase, but wholly unsuited to Deianeira, whose aim is to be
more loved than Iolè (584 ff.),—but not to pain her. (2) Taking
λυτήριον as=
λυτόν: ‘how I find that my pain is remediable.’ This is impossible. (3) Governing
λύπημα by
λυτήριον: ‘how I have a thing to remedy my pain.’ Also impossible.
mvp-comment-290-5 Paley, changing ἔχω 855 ἔχει 856
mvp-comment-291-1 ἦν μοι 857
mvp-comment-291-2 ποτὲ 858 δῶρον 859 θηρός 860
mvp-comment-291-3 παλαιὸν 861 ἀρχαίου 862
mvp-comment-291-4 θηρός 863
mvp-comment-291-5 λέβητι 864
mvp-comment-292-1 δασυστέρνου 865
mvp-comment-292-2 παρὰ Νέσσου 866 ἐκ φονῶν 867 φόνων 868
mvp-comment-292-3 The name Νέσσος 869
mvp-comment-293-1 τὸν βαθύρρουν … Εὔηνον 870
mvp-comment-293-2
The association of Nessus with the Evenus well illustrates the significance of the Centaur as a personification of a ravaging torrent. (Cp. Mr Sidney Colvin in
Journ. of Hellen. Stud. vol. I. p. 160: also Mure,
Tour in Greece, I. 170.) In
Ov.
Met.2. 638
a daughter of the Centaur Cheiron is called Ocyroe (
Ὠκυρόη), because born
‘Fluminis in rapidi ripis.’
mvp-comment-293-3 ποταμὸν … βροτοὺς … )πόρευε 871 )πόρευε 872 θοῦ 873
mvp-comment-294-1 τὸν πατρῷον … στόλον 874 ἑσπόμην 875
mvp-comment-294-2
The soundness of the words is confirmed by their dramatic fitness. There is a tacit contrast in her thoughts between herself and the new paramour; she thinks of the long-past day when her father gave her to her husband, and sent her forth with him. The words also accord with that tone of passivity in which she has already spoken of her marriage (6—27). She welcomed Heracles as a deliverer, and has learned to love him; but she had no voice in the bestowal of her hand.— Cp. fr. 521 (the young girl is happy at home, but the bride is
sent forth by her parents to a doubtful fate):
αἳ νέαι μὲν ἐν πατρὸς |
ἥδιστον, οἶμαι, ζῶμεν ἀνθρώπων βίον· | ... |
ὅταν δ’ ἐς ἥβην ἐξικώμεθ’ ἔμφρονες, |
ὠθούμεθ’ ἔξω.—See Appendix.
mvp-comment-294-3 εὖνις 876
mvp-comment-295-1 φέρων ἐπ’ ὤμοις 877
mvp-comment-295-2 ἦ 878 ἦν 879
mvp-comment-295-3 μέσῳ πόρῳ 880
mvp-comment-295-4 ἐκ δ’ ἤϋσ’ ἐγώ 881
mvp-comment-296-1 ἐπιστρέψας 882
mvp-comment-296-2 κομήτην 883
mvp-comment-296-3 πλεύμονας 884 ν 885 λ 886 λ 887 λ 888 ν 889
mvp-comment-296-4 ἐκθνῄσκων 890
mvp-comment-296-5 569 ff. For τοσοῦτον 891
mvp-comment-296-6 τῶν ἐμῶν … πορθμῶν 892
mvp-comment-297-1 ἐὰν γὰρ … ὕδρας 893 τῶν ἐμῶν σφαγῶν 894 ἀμφίθρεπτον 895 ἐνέγκῃ χερσίν 896 ᾗ μελαγχόλους 897 μελαγχόλους 898 ἰούς 899
mvp-comment-297-2 θρέμμα … ὕδρας 900
mvp-comment-297-3
Others explain thus:—‘If thou gather the blood from my wound, clotted around (
the arrow), at the place where the hydra has tinged it,’ etc.,
i.e., at the arrow's
head. This is quite possible, but is open to objections. (1) The language in 557 f. (
παρὰ Νέσσου...ἐκ φονῶν) implies that she obtained the blood directly from the body, not from the arrow-head. (2) The phrase
ἐνέγκῃ χερσίν
901
mvp-comment-297-4 If we adopted the conjecture μελάγχολος … ἰός 902 θρέμμα 903 ἔβαψεν 904
mvp-comment-297-5
Ovid describes the incident thus:—The arrow is withdrawn, and the blood flows from the wound,
mixtus Lernaei tabe veneni: Nessus then presents Deianeira with a garment steeped in the blood (
velamina tincta cruore):
Met.9. 129
ff.
mvp-comment-298-1 ὥστε μήτιν’ εἰσιδὼν στέρξει 905
mvp-comment-298-2 ἀντὶ σοῦ 906
mvp-comment-299-1 ἐννοήσας’ 907
mvp-comment-299-2 δόμοις 908 ἐγκεκλῃμένον 909
mvp-comment-300-1 χιτῶνα τόνδ’ 910
mvp-comment-300-2 ἔβαψα 911
mvp-comment-300-3 προσβαλοῦς’ 912
mvp-comment-301-1 πεπείρανται 913
mvp-comment-302-1 κακὰς δὲ τόλμας 914
mvp-comment-302-2 μήτ’ ἐπισταίμην …, μήτ’ ἐκμάθοιμι 915
mvp-comment-302-3 στυγῶ 916
mvp-comment-303-1 φίλτροις δ’ ἐάν πως 917 μεμηχάνηται τοὔργον 918
mvp-comment-303-2 ὑπερβαλώμεθα 919
mvp-comment-303-3 τὴν παῖδα 920 θέλκτροισι 921
mvp-comment-303-4 εἴ τι μὴ 922
mvp-comment-303-5 μάταιον 923
mvp-comment-303-6 εἰ δὲ μή 924
mvp-comment-304-1 πίστις 925
mvp-comment-304-2 590 f. The whole phrase οὕτως ἔχει 926 γε 927 πίστις 928
mvp-comment-304-3 ὡς 929 οὕτως 930
mvp-comment-304-4 τὸ μὲν δοκεῖν 931
mvp-comment-304-5 πείρᾳ δ’ οὐ προσωμίλησα 932
mvp-comment-305-1 δρῶσαν 933 γνῶμα 934
mvp-comment-306-1 ἀλλ’ αὐτίκ’ 935 ἐλεύσεται 936
mvp-comment-307-1 μόνον 937
mvp-comment-307-2 παρ’ ὑμῶν 938 παρ’ ὑμῖν 939 στεγώμεθ’ 940
mvp-comment-307-3 αἰσχύνῃ πεσεῖ 941
mvp-comment-308-1 τῷ μακρῷ χρόνῳ 942
mvp-comment-309-1 αὐτὰ … ταῦτα 943 καὶ 944 πράσσω 945 ἠγορῶ 946
mvp-comment-309-2 ταναϋφῆ 947 τόνδε γ’ εὐϋφῆ 948 ἀϋφῆ 949 ταναϋφῆ 950 γε 951
mvp-comment-309-3 πέπλον 952 τόνδε 953
mvp-comment-310-1 φράζ’ ὅπως μηδεὶς … ἀμφιδύσεται 954
mvp-comment-311-1 ἕρκος ἱερὸν 955 ἐφέστιον σέλας 956
mvp-comment-312-1 φανερὸς 957 ἐμφανῶς 958 σταθεὶς 959
mvp-comment-313-1 ηὔγμην 960
mvp-comment-314-1 πανδίκως 961 στελεῖν 962 σωθέντ’ 963 πανδίκως 964
mvp-comment-315-1 καινῷ καινὸν 965
mvp-comment-315-2
As to the wearing of new, or freshly washed, garments on such occasions, cp.
Od.4. 750
(Penelope is to pray to Athena)
καθαρὰ χροῒ εἵμαθ’ ἑλοῦσα.
mvp-comment-316-1 καὶ τῶνδ’ ἀποίσεις 966
mvp-comment-316-2 ἐπὸν μαθήσεται 967 ἐπ’ ὄμμα θήσεται 968 ν 969 μ 970 εὐμαθὲς … μαθήσεται 971 ὃ 972 ἐπιθήσεται ὄμμα 973
mvp-comment-317-1 νόμον 974
mvp-comment-317-2 τὸ μὴ )πιθυμεῖν πομπὸς ὢν 975
mvp-comment-318-1 ὅπως ἂν 976 χάρις 977 ἁπλῆ 978 διπλῆ 979 κείνου τε κἀμοῦ 980 ξυνελθοῦς’ 981
mvp-comment-319-1 εἴπερ Ἑρμοῦ 982
mvp-comment-319-2 πομπεύω 983 τέχνην 984 βέβαιον 985
mvp-comment-319-3 οὔ τι μὴ 986 οὔ τοι μὴ 987
mvp-comment-319-4 τὸ μὴ οὐ 988
mvp-comment-319-5 ἄγγος 989
mvp-comment-319-6 ὡς ἔχει 990
mvp-comment-320-1 λόγων … πίστιν 991
mvp-comment-320-2 ἐφαρμόσαι 992
mvp-comment-320-3 λέγεις 993 ἔχεις 994 ἔχει 995 ἐφεῖς’ 996
mvp-comment-321-1 στείχοις ἂν ἤδη 997
mvp-comment-322-1 σεσωσμένα 998
mvp-comment-322-2 627 f. For ἀλλὰ … μὲν δὴ 999 αὐτὴν 1000 αὐτήν θ’ 1001 τὰ τῆς ξένης προσδέγματα 1002 αὐτὴν ὡς ἐδεξάμην φίλως 1003 οἶσθα 1004 τὰ τῆς ξένης προσδέγματα 1005 φίλως 1006 αὐτήν θ’ 1007 θ’ 1008
mvp-comment-323-1 ἐκπλαγῆναι 1009
mvp-comment-324-1 πρὼ| 1010
mvp-comment-324-2 μὴ … λέγοις ἂν 1011
mvp-comment-324-3 τὸν ἐξ ἐμοῦ 1012
mvp-comment-325-1 τἀκεῖθεν 1013 εἰδέναι 1014 εἰ ποθούμεθα 1015 δέδοικα 1016 ἐμοῦ 1017
mvp-comment-326-1 <*> ναύλοχα 1018
mvp-comment-326-2 θερμὰ λουτρὰ 1019 να<*>λοχα 1020 πετραῖα 1021
mvp-comment-326-3 ναύλοχα 1022
mvp-comment-326-4 πάγους Οἴτας 1023
mvp-comment-326-5 παραναιετάοντες 1024
mvp-comment-326-6 οἵ 1025 τε 1026
mvp-comment-326-7 χρυσαλακάτου τ’ ἀκτὰν κόρας 1027
mvp-comment-326-8 χρυσαλακάτου 1028
mvp-comment-327-1 ἔνθ’ Ἑλλάνων 1029
mvp-comment-327-2 Ἑλλάνων 1030
mvp-comment-327-3 ἀγοραὶ Πυλάτιδες 1031
mvp-comment-327-4 κλέονται 1032
mvp-comment-328-1 ἀναρσίαν 1033
mvp-comment-328-2 ἐπάνεισιν 1034
mvp-comment-328-3 θείας … μούσας 1035 ἀντίλυρον 1036
mvp-comment-328-4 ἀχῶν 1037 ἰάχων 1038
mvp-comment-329-1 ὁ Διὸς … Ἀλκμήνας κόρος 1039
mvp-comment-330-1 σοῦται 1040 σεῦται 1041
mvp-comment-330-2 πάσας 1042
mvp-comment-331-1 ὃν ἀπόπτολιν εἴχομεν 1043
mvp-comment-331-2 παντᾷ 1044 ἀπόπτολιν 1045
mvp-comment-331-3 δυοκαιδεκάμηνον … χρόνον 1046
mvp-comment-331-4 πελάγιον 1047
mvp-comment-332-1 ἁ δέ οἱ … δάμαρ 1048 οἱ 1049
mvp-comment-333-1 τάλαιναν 1050 τάλαινα 1051
mvp-comment-333-2 ὤλλυτο 1052
mvp-comment-334-1 Ἄρης 1053
mvp-comment-334-2 οἰστρηθεὶς 1054 αὖ 1055 οἱ 1056 στρωθεὶς 1057
mvp-comment-334-3 ἐξέλυσ’ ἐπίπονονἁμέραν 1058 ἐπίπονον ἁμέραν 1059
mvp-comment-335-1 ὄχημα ναὸς 1060
mvp-comment-336-1 πρὶν … ἀνύσειε 1061
mvp-comment-337-1 ἑστίαν 1062
mvp-comment-337-2 ἀμείψας 1063
mvp-comment-337-3 κλῄζεται θυτήρ 1064
mvp-comment-338-1 πανίμερος 1065 πανάμερος 1066
mvp-comment-339-1 τᾶς πειθοῦς παγχρίστῳ 1067
mvp-comment-339-2 Let us now examine the text in detail.
mvp-comment-339-3 (1) παγχρίστῳ 1068
mvp-comment-339-4 (2) The words ἐπὶ προφάσει θηρός 1069 φάρους 1070
mvp-comment-339-5 (3) For συγκραθεὶς 1071
mvp-comment-339-6 There remains, however, the metrical discrepancy between συγκραθεὶς 1072 ἐξέλυς’ 1073 ἐξείλυς’ 1074 συντακεὶς 1075
mvp-comment-339-7
Either
συγκραθείς or
συντακείς would here admit a secondary sense, unconsciously prophetic of the dire event (833
προστακέντος ἰοῦ: 836
προστετακώς),— like
προσαρμόσαι in 494.—For other views, see Appendix.
mvp-comment-340-1 περαιτέρω 1076
mvp-comment-341-1 Δῃάνειρα, τέκνον Οἰνέως 1077
mvp-comment-342-1 ἀθυμῶ δ’, εἰ φανήσομαι 1078
mvp-comment-343-1 οὐ δή 1079 τι 1080 ἐλπίδος 1081 τι 1082 δωρημάτων 1083
mvp-comment-344-1 ὥστε μήποτ’ ἂν παραινέσαι 1084 προθυμίαν … ἔργου 1085 ἄδηλον 1086 λαβεῖν 1087
mvp-comment-345-1 εἰ διδακτόν 1088
mvp-comment-346-1 οἷον, ἢν φράσω 1089
mvp-comment-346-2 (1) To retain ὑμῖν 1090 μαθεῖν 1091
mvp-comment-346-3 (2) To read ὑμᾶς 1092 ὑμῖν 1093 φράσω 1094
mvp-comment-346-4 Others, taking μαθεῖν 1095 θαῦμ’ ἀνέλπιστον 1096 ἂν φράσαι 1097
mvp-comment-347-1 τὸν ἐνδυτῆρα πέπλον 1098
mvp-comment-348-1 ἀργὴς … πόκος 1099 ἀργῆτ’ … πόκῳ 1100 ἀργῆτ’ 1101 ἀργῆτα 1102 τὸν ἐνδυτῆρα πέπλον 1103
mvp-comment-348-2
Blaydes suggests
ἀργῆς οἰὸς εὐέρου πόκῳ: but the usage of
ἀργός precludes this. A change of
ἀργὴς … πόκος
1104
ἀργῆτ’
1105
πόκῳ
1106
ᾧ
1107
εὐέρου
1108
mvp-comment-349-1 πρὸς οὐδενὸς 1109 τῶν ἔνδον 1110 τῶν ἐκτός 1111 φθίνει 1112
mvp-comment-350-1 ψῇ 1113
mvp-comment-350-2
Such is the only sense which the words will bear. They are perhaps corrupt. Sophocles has the dat. plur.
σπιλάδεσσι, in the ordinary sense, ‘sea-rocks,’ in fr. 341; but the sense of the sing. here is peculiar. And vv. 695—698 would naturally suggest that she had thrown the tuft at once on the ground, rather than on a stone from which it afterwards crumbled down.
mvp-comment-350-3 Possibly the true reading is κατ’ ἄκρας σπόδιον 1114 σπιλάδος 1115 σπ 1116
mvp-comment-351-1 ἐκτενῶ 1117
mvp-comment-352-1 γὰρ 1118
mvp-comment-352-2 ὧν 1119 θεσμῶν 1120
mvp-comment-352-3 ὁ θὴρ Κένταυρος 1121
mvp-comment-352-4 πονῶν πλευρὰν 1122
mvp-comment-352-5 πικρᾷ 1123
mvp-comment-352-6 προὐδιδάξατο 1124
mvp-comment-353-1 θεσμῶν οὐδέν 1125 ἐσῳζόμην 1126
mvp-comment-354-1 χαλκῆς … δέλτου 1127 θεσμῶν 1128
mvp-comment-355-1 καίμοι 1129 σῴζειν 1130 προὐδιδάξατο 1131 κἄδρων τοιαῦτα 1132 τοιαῦτ’ ἔδρων 1133
mvp-comment-356-1 ἄπυρον 1134 ἄθικτον 1135
mvp-comment-357-1 ἕως νιν 1136
mvp-comment-357-2 που 1137
mvp-comment-358-1 ἔχρισα μὲν 1138 κἄθηκα 1139 εἴσω δ’ 1140 κατ’ οἶκον 1141 ἐν δόμοις 1142
mvp-comment-359-1 κτησίου 1143
mvp-comment-360-1 ἀλαμπὲς ἡλίου 1144
mvp-comment-361-1 ζυγάστρῳ 1145
mvp-comment-361-2 κοίλῳ 1146
mvp-comment-362-1 εἴσω δ’ ἀποστείχουσα 1147
mvp-comment-362-2 φάτιν 1148 ἄφραστον 1149 ἀξύμβλητον 1150 ἀνθρώπῳ μαθεῖν 1151 ἀξύμβλητον 1152
mvp-comment-363-1 κάταγμα 1153
mvp-comment-363-2 προὔχριον 1154 ἀκτῖν’ ἐς ἡλιῶτιν 1155
mvp-comment-363-3 Wunder rashly rejects the verse. Dobree's objection to it seems to have been the repeated ἐς 1156
mvp-comment-364-1 ῥεῖ 1157
mvp-comment-364-2 κατέψηκται 1158
mvp-comment-365-1 μορφῇ 1159 μάλιστ’ εἰκαστὸν 1160 ὥστε 1161
mvp-comment-365-2 πρίονος ἐκβρώματ’ 1162
mvp-comment-366-1 προπετές 1163 προὔκειτ’, ἀναζέουσι 1164 θρομβώδεις ἀφροί 1165
mvp-comment-367-1 πίονος ποτοῦ γλ. ὀπώρας ἀπὸ Β. ἀμπέλου 1166
mvp-comment-367-2 χυθέντος 1167 Β. ἀπ’ ἀμπέλου 1168
mvp-comment-367-3 For ὀπώρας 1169 Βακχίας 1170 πίονος 1171
mvp-comment-368-1 ποῖ γνώμης πέσω 1172
mvp-comment-369-1 ὁρῶ δέ μ’ … ἐξειργασμένην 1173
mvp-comment-370-1 πόθεν 1174 ἀντὶ τοῦ 1175
mvp-comment-370-2 ἂν … παρέσχ’ 1176
mvp-comment-370-3 ἧς … ὕπερ 1177
mvp-comment-371-1 ἀποφθίσαι 1178
mvp-comment-372-1 ἀρκεῖ 1179
mvp-comment-372-2 ἄρνυμαι 1180
mvp-comment-373-1 εἴ τι μὴ 1181
mvp-comment-373-2 ψευσθήσομαι γνώμης 1182
mvp-comment-374-1 ἄτρακτον 1183
mvp-comment-374-2 θεὸν Χείρωνα 1184
mvp-comment-374-3 πημήναντα 1185
mvp-comment-374-4
Ovid varies the story. Heracles visited Cheiron on Mount Pelion; a poisoned arrow chanced to fall from the hero's quiver on the left foot of the Centaur.
Virus edax superabat opem...Nona dies aderat, cum tu, iustissime Chiron, | Bis septem stellis corpore cinctus eras.
(
Fast. 5. 387—414.)
mvp-comment-374-5 χὧνπερ 1186 χὥσπερ 1187
mvp-comment-375-1 ἐκ … σφαγῶν τοῦδε διελθὼν 1188
mvp-comment-375-2 ἰὸς αἵματος 1189
mvp-comment-375-3 τόνδε 1190
mvp-comment-375-4 Others take ἐκ … τοῦδε 1191 ὅδε 1192 τοῦδ’ 1193
mvp-comment-375-5 δόξῃ γοῦν ἐμῇ 1194
mvp-comment-376-1 σφαλήσεται 1195
mvp-comment-376-2 For σὺν 1196
mvp-comment-377-1 προτιμᾷ 1197 κακὴ 1198
mvp-comment-378-1 ἔργα δείν’ 1199
mvp-comment-378-2 ἐλπίδ’ 1200
mvp-comment-379-1 τοῖς μὴ καλοῖς β. 1201 προξενεῖ 1202
mvp-comment-380-1 ἀμφὶ 1203
mvp-comment-380-2 μὴ )ξ ἑκουσίας 1204
mvp-comment-380-3 πέπειρα 1205
mvp-comment-381-1 τοιαῦτα δ’ 1206
mvp-comment-381-2 οἴκοι 1207
mvp-comment-382-1 ἂν ἁρμόζοι 1208
mvp-comment-382-2 τὸν πλείω λόγον 1209 λέξεις 1210
mvp-comment-382-3 μαστὴρ πατρὸς 1211
mvp-comment-383-1 ἂν … εἱλόμην 1212
mvp-comment-383-2 σε 1213 ἓν 1214 σε ἢ μηκέτ’ εἶναι 1215 σε 1216
mvp-comment-383-3 ἐκ τριῶν ἓν 1217
mvp-comment-383-4 κεκλῆσθαι 1218
mvp-comment-384-1 τί δ’ ἔστιν … πρός γ’ ἐμοῦ στυγού‐ 1219 μενον 1220 πρός γ’ ἐμοῦ 1221
mvp-comment-385-1 τὸν δ’ ἐμὸν 1222 δέ 1223 λέγω 1224 λέγω 1225
mvp-comment-386-1 ἐξήνεγκας 1226
mvp-comment-387-1 δν οὐχ ο<*>όν τε 1227 μὴ οὐ 1228 μὴ 1229
mvp-comment-387-2 τὸ … φανθὲν 1230 τὸ γὰρ 1231
mvp-comment-387-3 τίς ἂν δύναιτ’ ἂν 1232
mvp-comment-387-4 ἀγένητον 1233
mvp-comment-387-5 744 f. For ἀνθρώπων 1234
mvp-comment-387-6 ἄζηλον 1235
mvp-comment-388-1 ἐν ὄμμασιν 1236
mvp-comment-388-2 κατὰ γλῶσσαν 1237
mvp-comment-389-1 ἐμπελάζεις … καὶ παρίστασαι 1238
mvp-comment-390-1 εἰ χρὴ μαθεῖν σε 1239
mvp-comment-391-1 ὅθ’ εἷρπε 1240
mvp-comment-392-1 τροπαῖα 1241 ἀκροθίνια 1242
mvp-comment-393-1 ἀκτή … ἔστιν 1243
mvp-comment-393-2 Κήναιον 1244
mvp-comment-393-3 πατρῴῳ 1245 βωμοὺς ὁρίζει 1246
mvp-comment-393-4 τεμενίαν … φυλλάδα 1247 ἄσμενος πόθῳ 1248
mvp-comment-394-1 πολυθύτους … σφαγὰς 1249
mvp-comment-395-1 κῆρυξ ἀπ’ οἴκων … οἰκεῖος 1250 οἰκεῖος 1251
mvp-comment-396-1 προὐξεφίεσο 1252
mvp-comment-397-1 ταυροκτονεῖ 1253 συμμιγῆ βοσκήματα 1254
mvp-comment-397-2 ἐντελεῖς 1255
mvp-comment-397-3 βοῦς 1256 ταυροκτονεῖ 1257
mvp-comment-397-4 προσῆγε 1258
mvp-comment-398-1 ἵλεῳ 1259
mvp-comment-399-1 κόσμῳ τε … καὶ στολῇ 1260
mvp-comment-399-2 Several critics alter κατηύχετο 1261 κατήρχετο 1262
mvp-comment-399-3 But κατηύχετο 1263
mvp-comment-400-1 σεμνῶν ὀργίων … φλὸξ 1264
mvp-comment-400-2 πιείρας δρυός 1265
mvp-comment-401-1 ἱδρὼς 1266 ἀρτίκολλος, ὥστε τέκτονος 1267
mvp-comment-401-2
Some have supposed that the
χιτών is compared to (stone or bronze) drapery on a statue.
τέκτων could certainly mean a sculptor:
Eur.
Alc.348
σοφῇ δὲ χειρὶ τεκτόνων τὸ σὸν δέμας |
εἰκασθέν. But: (1) There would be little point in comparing a real robe to an imitation in art. (2) Cp. fr. 430. 4, where Pelops is responding, with his eyes, to the glance of Hippodameia, and the discreet limit which the lover's instinct observes is compared to the line traced by a craftsman's rule;—
ἴσον μετρῶν ὀφθαλμόν, ὥστε τέκτονος |
παρὰ στάθμην ἰόντος ὀρθοῦται κανών. There, then, as here, the simile is from a mechanical process: the
τέκτων is suggested there by
ἴσον μετρῶν, as here by
ἀρτίκολλος.
mvp-comment-401-3 ἅπαν κατ’ ἄρθρον 1268
mvp-comment-401-4 ὀστέων 1269 ἀντίσπαστος 1270 ἀδαγμός 1271
mvp-comment-402-1 ἐχίδνης … ὣς 1272
mvp-comment-402-2 ἐδαίνυτο 1273
mvp-comment-403-1 )βόησε 1274
mvp-comment-403-2 μηχαναῖς 1275
mvp-comment-404-1 ἔλεξεν 1276
mvp-comment-405-1 πλευμόνων 1277
mvp-comment-406-1 ἄρθρον ᾗ λυγίζεται 1278
mvp-comment-407-1 ἐκ πόντου 1279
mvp-comment-407-2
The name ‘Lichades’ was given to some rocky islets just S. of C. Cenaeum, in the narrow strait dividing it from the promontory of Cnemīdes on the Locrian coast.
Strabo 9.
p. 426
ἐνταῦθα καὶ αἱ Λιχάδες καλούμεναι τρεῖς νῆσοι πρόκεινται, ἀπὸ Λίχα τοὔνομα ἔχουσαι. Cp. Aesch. fr. 29, quoted on 237 f.
Ovid
Met. 9. 226
Nunc quoque in Euboico scopulus brevis emicat alte | Gurgite, et humanae servat vestigia formae; | Quem quasi sensurum nautae calcare verentur, | Appellantque Lichan. —
Λίχας perh.=
λίθος: cp.
ὄρνιχος, ὄρνιθος (Preller 2. 255 n. 2).
mvp-comment-408-1 κόμης … μυελὸν ἐκραίνει 1280
mvp-comment-408-2 μυελὸν 1281
mvp-comment-408-3 διασπαρέντος 1282 μέσου 1283
mvp-comment-409-1 ἀνηυφήμησεν οἰμωγῇ 1284
mvp-comment-410-1 ἰύζων 1285
mvp-comment-411-1 Λοκρῶν τ’ ὄρειοι πρῶνες 1286 τ’ 1287 Λοκρῶν 1288 ἄκραι 1289 ἄκρα 1290
mvp-comment-411-2 Seneca's equivalent for this passage is curious: he describes the hero's cries as re-echoed from Chalcis (50 miles off), from Cape Caphareus (upwards of 100), and from ‘all the Cyclades’! ( Herc. Oet. 803 ff.)
mvp-comment-412-1 ἀπεῖπε … ῥίπτων 1291
mvp-comment-413-1 δυσπάρευνον 1292 λέκτρον 1293
mvp-comment-413-2 ἐνδατούμενος 1294
mvp-comment-413-3 τὸν Οἰνέως γάμον 1295
mvp-comment-414-1 προσέδρου 1296
mvp-comment-414-2 λιγνύος 1297
mvp-comment-414-3 διάστροφον 1298
mvp-comment-415-1 συνθανεῖν 1299
mvp-comment-416-1 ἔξω 1300 ἆρον 1301
mvp-comment-416-2 The reasons for preferring Wakefield's με θὲς 1302 μέθες 1303 μέθες 1304
mvp-comment-416-3 ὅπου … μή τις ὄψεται 1305
mvp-comment-417-1 εἰ δ’ οἶκτον ἴσχεις 1306 εἰ δ’ οἶκτος ἴσχει ς’. 1307
mvp-comment-417-2 ἀλλά 1308 αὐτοῦ 1309
mvp-comment-417-3 θάνω 1310
mvp-comment-418-1 τοσαῦτ’ 1311
mvp-comment-418-2 ἐπισκήψαντος 1312
mvp-comment-419-1 σφε 1313 ἐκέλσαμεν 1314 θέντες 1315
mvp-comment-420-1 ἢ ζῶντ’ … ἢ τεθνηκότ’ 1316
mvp-comment-421-1 βουλεύσας’ 1317
mvp-comment-421-2 δρῶς’ 1318
mvp-comment-421-3 ποίνιμος 1319
mvp-comment-421-4 Δίκη 1320
mvp-comment-421-5 ἐπεύχομαι 1321
mvp-comment-421-6 εἰ θέμις … θέμις δ’ 1322
mvp-comment-421-7 προὔβαλες 1323
mvp-comment-421-8 μοι 1324
mvp-comment-421-9
Others understand: (1) ‘you have
thrown this very justice
as a shield (
πρόβλημα) over my action’ (Paley);
i.e., ‘have made it right for me to do so.’ (2) ‘You have given me the right to do so’ (lit., ‘placed’ that right ‘at my disposal’).—Wunder, changing
θέμιν
1325
ἔριν
1326
mvp-comment-422-1 σῖγ’ 1327
mvp-comment-422-2 815 f. The place of ὀφθαλμῶν ἐμῶν 1328 οὖρος 1329
mvp-comment-422-3 αὐτῇ 1330
mvp-comment-422-4 καλός 1331
mvp-comment-423-1 γὰρ 1332
mvp-comment-423-2 ὄγκον 1333
mvp-comment-423-3 τρέφειν 1334
mvp-comment-423-4 μηδὲν 1335 ἥτις 1336
mvp-comment-424-1 ἀλλ’ ἑρπ. χαίρουσα 1337
mvp-comment-424-2 τήνδ’ 1338
mvp-comment-425-1 ἴδ’ 1339
mvp-comment-425-2 προσέμειξεν 1340 παλαιφάτου 1341
mvp-comment-426-1 θεοπρόπον 1342
mvp-comment-426-2 τᾶς παλαιφάτου προνοίας 1343
mvp-comment-427-1 ὅ τ’ 1344 ἅ τ’ 1345 ὃν 1346
mvp-comment-427-2 ἔλακεν 1347
mvp-comment-427-3 ἐκφέροι 1348
mvp-comment-427-4 δωδέκατος ἄροτος 1349
mvp-comment-427-5 This is the only passage of the play which mentions the period of twelve years. In 44 f. and 164 f., the reference is merely to the fifteen months which, when Heracles left home, were still wanting to those twelve years. It may be asked, then, whence the Chorus derive their knowledge of the twelve years; for Deianeira, in 155 ff., speaks as if they had not then heard of the oracle. The answer is simply that this inconsistency of detail was overlooked by the poet; the term of twelve years was in his mind, as a familiar part of the story; and he forgot that, if the Chorus were to know it, Deianeira ought to have mentioned it.
mvp-comment-427-6 Needless difficulties have been made by assuming that the allusion here must be to the fifteen months of 44 f. and 164 f. Even then, however, it has to be supposed that ‘twelve months’ are put loosely for ‘fifteen.’
mvp-comment-427-7 ἄροτος 1350
mvp-comment-427-8 ἀναδοχὰν τελεῖν 1351 πόνων 1352 τελεῖν 1353
mvp-comment-428-1 αὐτόπαιδι 1354
mvp-comment-428-2 ἔμπεδα 1355
mvp-comment-428-3 κατουρίζει 1356
mvp-comment-429-1 ὁ μὴ λεύσσων 1357
mvp-comment-429-2 ἐπίπονον … λατρείαν 1358 πόνων 1359
mvp-comment-430-1 φονίᾳ νεφέλᾳ 1360
mvp-comment-430-2
Others understand: (1) ‘in the Centaur's deadly
net.’
νεφέλη was a kind of bird-net used by fowlers: in
Anthol. 6. 11. 2 it is called
λεπτόμιτος, ‘of fine texture,’ and distinguished from the hunter's
δολιχὸν δίκτυον .
Cp. 1052
ὑφαντὸν ἀμφίβληστρον, and 1057
πέδῃ. But it seems doubtful whether this use of
νεφέλη would have been suitable to Tragedy. (2) ‘The deadly envelopment,’—
i.e., the robe, compared to a cloud which obscures the sun.
mvp-comment-430-3 Κενταύρου … δολοποιὸς ἀνάγκα 1361
mvp-comment-430-4 χρίει 1362
mvp-comment-430-5 πλευρά 1363
mvp-comment-430-6
834 The MSS. have
ὃν
τέκετο θάνατος,
ἔτεκε δ’ αἰόλος δράκων. This has been explained as if
θάνατος were the father and the
δράκων (hydra) the mother. But usage does not warrant such a pointed antithesis between
τίκτομαι (midd.) and
τίκτω. The poets apply either voice to either parent: see,
e.g.,
Il.6. 154
ὁ δ’ ἄρα Γλαῦκον τέκεθ’ υἱόν, |
αὐτὰρ Γλαῦκος ἔτικτεν ἀμύμονα Βελλεροφόντην:
ib. 2. 728
ἔτεκεν Ῥήνη, and 742
τέκετο κλυτὸς Ἱπποδάμεια. Lobeck's correction of
ἔτεκε
1364
ἔτρεφε
1365
αἰόλος
1366
mvp-comment-431-1 ἀέλιον 1367 α^ 1368
mvp-comment-432-1 ὕδρας … φάσματι 1369 προστετακὼς 1370 μελαγχαίτα δ’ 1371 φάσματι 1372
mvp-comment-432-2 μελαγχαίτα 1373
mvp-comment-433-1 ἄμμιγα 1374
mvp-comment-434-1 It has long been the general belief that the words νέσου 1375 νέσσου 1376 θ’ ὕπο 1377 μελαγχαίτα 1378
mvp-comment-434-2 Here I may briefly state my own conclusions. (1) μελαγχαίτα 1379
mvp-comment-434-3
(2) Comparing v. 830 with v. 840, we see that the words
ἔχοι θανὼν λατρείαν in 830 correspond metrically with
‐α^ κέντρ’ ἐπιζέσαντα. The words
ἔτι ποτ’ ἔτ’ ἐπίπονον in 830 ought therefore to correspond with what stands between
αἰκίζει in 839 and the
α^ before
κέντῤ in 840: viz., acc. to the MSS.,
νέσου (or
νέσσου )
θ’ ὕπο φοίνια δολόμυθ‐.
mvp-comment-434-4 (3) Now, if νέσου θ’ ὕπο 1380 ὑπόφονα 1381 δολόμυθα 1382 φόνια δολιόμυθα 1383 ὕπο 1384
mvp-comment-434-5 (4) But a closer adherence to the MS. text becomes possible, if, with Gleditsch, we read Νέσσου ὑποφόνια δολιόμυθα κέντρ’ ἐπιζέσαντα 1385 ἔτι ποτ’ ἔτ’ ἐπίπονον <πόνων> ἔχοι θανὼν λατρείαν 1386
mvp-comment-435-1 ὧν … ἄοκνος 1387 ἄοκνον 1388
mvp-comment-436-1 προσορῶσα 1389 προορῶσα 1390
mvp-comment-437-1 ἀΐσσουσαν 1391 ἀϊσσόντων 1392 γάμων 1393
mvp-comment-438-1 τὰ μὲν αὐτὰ προσέβαλε 1394
mvp-comment-438-2
The MS. reading,
τὰ μὲν
οὔ τι προσέβαλε, is explained to mean, ‘part she did not
comprehend’ (schol.
οὐκ ἔγνω, οὐ συνῆκεν ):
i.e., she had, indeed, a secret purpose, but she did not know the deadly nature of the unguent. To this there are two objections. (1) The supposed sense of
προσέβαλε is unexampled:
cp. 580
n. (2) The proper antithesis is lost; for
τὰ ἀπ’ ἀλλόθρου γνώμας μολόν<*>) <*>ought to be opposed to her own designs or acts; but those things which she ‘did not comprehend’ were just those which ‘came from the alien will.’
mvp-comment-438-3 ἀλλόθρου 1395
mvp-comment-438-4 ὀλεθρίαισι συναλλαγαῖς 1396
mvp-comment-438-5 ὀλεθρίαισι 1397 ὀλεθρίαις 1398
mvp-comment-439-1 ἦ που 1399
mvp-comment-439-2 ὀλοὰ 1400
mvp-comment-439-3 στένει 1401 ἦ που ἄρ’ ἀλασταίνει 1402 αἰάζει 1403 στένει 1404
mvp-comment-440-1 χλωρὰν … ἄχναν 1405
mvp-comment-440-2 τέγγει … ἄχναν 1406
mvp-comment-440-3 850 f. The μοῖρα 1407 ἐρχομένα 1408 ἄταν 1409
mvp-comment-440-4 δολίαν 1410
mvp-comment-440-5 προφαίνει 1411
mvp-comment-441-1 ἔρρωγεν παγὰ δακρύων 1412
mvp-comment-442-1 κέχυται νόσος 1413
mvp-comment-442-2 ὦ πόποι 1414
mvp-comment-442-3 ἀναρσίων 1415
mvp-comment-442-4 The doubt as to the reading here is confined to the words between πόποι 1416 ἐπέμολε 1417
mvp-comment-442-5 It seems almost certain that Ἡρακλέους 1418 δόμοις 1419 δόμοισι 1420 <ὕπ)> οὔπω <τοῦδε σῶμ)> ἀγακλειτόν 1421
mvp-comment-442-6 οἰκτίσαι 1422
mvp-comment-443-1 κελαινὰ 1423
mvp-comment-443-2 προμάχου 1424
mvp-comment-443-3 αἰχμᾷ 1425
mvp-comment-443-4 θοὰν 1426
mvp-comment-443-5 αἰπεινᾶς 1427
mvp-comment-444-1 ἀμφίπολος 1428 ἄναυδος 1429 α 1430
mvp-comment-444-2 The ‘silence’ of Aphroditè means that the passion of Heracles had not been avowed as his motive for the war ( cp. 358 ). She has been revealed as the φανερὰ πράκτωρ 1431
mvp-comment-445-1
These eight verses form an epode to the stasimon; three persons take part in the delivery, viz., the two
παραστάται, or leaders of
ἡμιχόρια (HM. A, HM. B), and the coryphaeus (XO.). The third part (868—870) is best assigned to the coryphaeus, who usually announces a new comer, and who would naturally conduct the dialogue with the
τροφός. Similar epodes to stasima are
Eur.
H. F. 815
—821, and
Eur.
Hipp. 1143
— 1152, in each of which three parts can be distinguished. (See W. Christ,
Metrik, § 723, p. 653 2nd ed.)
mvp-comment-445-2
The motive of the whole passage from 863 to 898 is the dramatic necessity of making an impressive preparation for the Nurse's
ῥῆσις. It rests with the Chorus alone to do this, since no actor is present.
mvp-comment-445-3 Hermann supposed that, after the three leading choreutae had spoken (863 —870), each of the other twelve in turn took part in the dialogue. But this seems improbable.
mvp-comment-445-4 μάταιος 1432
mvp-comment-446-1 τί φημί 1433 τὶ φημί 1434
mvp-comment-447-1 οὐκ ἄσημον 1435 ἀλλὰ δυστυχῆ 1436
mvp-comment-447-2 καινίζει 1437
mvp-comment-447-3 869 The MS. reading, ἀήθης 1438
mvp-comment-447-4 The conjecture ἀηδὴς 1439
mvp-comment-447-5 Surely ἀήθης 1440 ἀ 1441 γ 1442 ηθής 1443
mvp-comment-448-1 σημανοῦσα 1444 σημαίνουσα 1445
mvp-comment-449-1 Ἡρακλεῖ τὸ πόμπιμον 1446
mvp-comment-450-1 καινοποιηθὲν 1447
94-140. mvp-comment-81-1 Parodos. Where in the wide world is Heracles, reposing in what continent, or by what narrow sea? Tell us, bright, all-beholding Sun! For our Deianira, for whose hand he fought, wears out her soul in thinking of him on her lonely couch; so ceaseless are the toils that crowd upon him like stormy billows. But God hath hitherto protected him; wherefore let not hope weary, O my queen. No life is without pain, but, by Divine ordinance, grief succeeds to joy and joy to grief. Remember this and hope the best. Zeus cannot leave his offspring to destruction.' The metre beginning with an iambic rhythm passes quickly into dactylo-trochaic, changing again in the epode to iambo-trochaic (with occasional syncope), then to pure iambics, ending with a bacchius followed by three trochees.
110. mvp-comment-92-1 ἐνθυμίοις . . ἀνανδρώτοισι] 'On a bed of care, to which no husband comes.' ἐνθυμίοις, Haunted by care or thought' (see Scholia), rather than 'Weighing on the mind' (although some good critics are satisfied with this). The dative is one of place or circumstance (= ἐν), not of cause or reason. Deianira is not worn out with thinking that she wants her husband, but pines with anxiety on her widowed bed. The Scholiast explains ἐνθυμίοις, ταῖς μεριμνητικαῖς, ταῖς πολυφροντίστοις. This meaning of ἐνθύμιος = ἐνθυμίας πλήρης, although singular, is not impossible. Cp. O. C. 240, and see Essay on L. § 50. p. 94, § 42. p. 80. ἀνανδρώτοισι, 'Not visited by a husband.' The verbal notion is hard to render, but adds vividness to the idea of bereavement.
111. mvp-comment-93-1 κακὰν . . αἶσαν] 'Unhappy one (δύστανον), forecasting an evil fortune.' For ἐλπίζουσαν, cp. Αj. 606, κακὰν ἐλπίδ᾽ ἔχων, and note.
112. mvp-comment-94-1 πολλά, expressing the primary notion of the sentences, belongs in the first instance to the apodosis, in which βιότου πολύπονον is substituted for πάθη or whatever word was at first intended, whereupon πολλά falls into a secondary agreement with κύματα. 'As many as are the waves,' not, 'Like the many waves.'
114. mvp-comment-95-1 ἀκάμαντος νότου, βορέα, are not simply genitives in regimen, like κύματα παντοίων ἀνέμων, Il. 2. 396, but either (1) genitives of the cause, or (2) genitives absolute = νότου συνεχῶς πνέοντος. For the former (1), cp. Eur. Or. 497, πληγεὶς θυγατρὸς τῆς ἐμῆς ὑπὲρ κάρα. And, for the latter (2), O. С. 1588, ὑφηγητῆρος οὐδενὸς φίλων. ἐν is required by the metre. 'For many as are the waves one sees passing and coming on anew over the wide sea, from the south or else the north wind blowing unweariedly, even so manifold in troubles is the life which, like a Cretan sea, sustains,-ay, and glorifies, our hero of Cadmus' race.'
115. mvp-comment-96-1 βάντ᾽ ἐπιόντα τε] Not, 'Coming and going,' or, 'Falling and rising, but, '(One) having gone and (another) coming on.' Cp. II. 4. 422, 3, ὡς δ᾽ ὅτ᾽ ἐν αἰγιαλῷ πολυηχέϊ κῦμα θαλάσσης | ὄρνυτ' ἐπασσύτερον Ζεφύρου ὕπο κινήσαντος : 13. 798, (κύματα) πρὸ μέν τ᾽ ἄλλ᾽ αὐτὰρ ἔπ᾿ ἄλλα. For the meaning given to βάντα, cp. Ant. 120, ἔβα, and note. ἴδοι] The change to the subjunctive, in accordance with Homeric idiom, is unnecessary. Ср. О. С. 1172, ὅν γ' ἐγὼ ψέξαιμί τι: Hdt. 2. 93, ἵνα δὴ μὴ ἁμάρτοιεν τῆς ὁδοῦ. And see Essay on L. § 36. p. 61. Several editions read ἴδοις, with του in 114. But for the ellipse of tis, see Essay on L. § 39. p. 72, 3. οὕτω δέ] δέ ' in apodosi,' as in El. 27, ὡσαύτως δὲ σύ, κ.τ.λ.
116. mvp-comment-97-1 Καδμογενῆ] Heracles, having been born at Thebes, was claimed as a Theban hero, and therefore of the stock of Cadmus by adoption. τρέφει τὸ δ᾽ αὔξει] (1) ‘Surrounds and also magnifies.' For a similar idiomatic use of τὸ δέ, cp. Thuc. 1. 107, τὸ δέ τι καὶ ἄνδρες τῶν ᾿Αθηναίων ἐπῆγον αὐτούς, ib. 7. 48, τὸ δέ τι καὶ τὰ τῶν πολεμίων ἐλπίδος τι ἔτι παρείχε. The words τὸ δ᾽ αὔξει are διὰ μέσου. It has been thought that τρέφειν and αὔξεις are too near one another in meaning to point an antithesis, and στρέφει for τρέφει has been proposed. For this, more recently, Hense has substituted στερεῖ. But the words are not an application of the simile, as though Heracles was now engulphed and now uplifted by the billow, but express a new thought: and both words have a different meaning in tragic poetry from that which belongs to them in prose. For τρέφειν of the circumstances or surroundings of a life, ср. О. Т. 374, μιᾶς τρέφει πρὸς νυκτός. And, for αὔξειν, Το magnify,' ib. 1090, 1, μὴ οὐ σέ γε καὶ πατριώταν Οἰδίπου καὶ τροφὸν καὶ ματέρ᾽ αὔξειν. The words τὸ δ' αὔξει are added by the Chorus (though logically inconsistent with ἀλλά in what follows), because of their strong wish to suggest cheerful thoughts to Deianira. In this case, the remaining words may be taken in one of two ways, either (α) supposing a slight inversion and alternation of clauses, the order may be πολύπονον πέλαγος βιότου, ὥσπερ Κοήσιον (πέλαγος), 'A troubled sea of life, as it were a Cretan sea.' Or (b) As it were a Cretan sea of troubles that constitutes his life.' (2) Hermann joins τὸ δ' αὔξει βιότου πολύπονον, 'As it were a Cretan sea surrounds Heracles and increases this toilsomeness of his life.' The Cretan sea was wider than the Aegean and no less subject to storms. Cp. Hor. Od. 1. 26. 1, ‘tristitiam et metus | tradam protervis in mare Creticum portare ventis.' For the concrete imagery, cp. Ο. Τ. 194, εἴτ᾿ ἐς μέγαν θάλαμον ᾿Αμφιτρίτας | εἴτ᾿ ἐς τὸν ἀπόξενον ὅρμον | Θρήκιον κλύδωνα.
120. mvp-comment-98-1 ἀναμπλάκητον "Αιδα δόμων] 'Some deity, never suffering him to fall, keeps him away from the halls of Hades.' For gen. see E. on L. § 8. p. 11.
121. mvp-comment-99-1 ὧν] In respect whereof,' to be joined with ἐπιμεμφομένα and repeated with οἴσω. The genitive of respect is here assisted by ἐπί in composition. See Essay on L. § 54. pp. 99, 100. ἁδεῖα μέν, ἀντία δ΄ οἴσω] 'I will offer counsel in a pleasant vein, albeit contrary counsel.' The transition from the subject to the object is hardly more violent than in l. 63. δούλη μέν, εἴρηκεν δ᾽ ἐλείθερον λόγον. The only difference is that δούλη is full predicate (= δούλη ἐστί) and ἁδεῖα supplementary predicate (=ἁδεῖα οὖσα). And for ἡδὺς = φέρων ἡδέα, cp. Ο. Τ. 82, ἀλλ᾽ εἰκάσαι μέν, ἡδύς. Musgrave's correction, αἰδοῖα, has since been modified by Blaydes and Hense to δέδοικα, ἔδεισα.
124. mvp-comment-100-1 ἀποτρύειν] Suffer to wear out,' = ἐἂν ἀποτρύεσθαι. Cp. such expressions as αἴρειν θυμόν = To allow passion to rise.' E. on L. § 30. p. 52 d.
125. mvp-comment-101-1 ἐλπίδα τὰν ἀγαθάν] Good hope opposed to the expectation of evil, which might be called κακὴ ἐλπίς, as in Aj. 606.
126. mvp-comment-102-1 ἀνάλγητα] Lit. 'Things without pain,' i. e. 'A tranquil existence.' For this use of the neuter adj. cp. Aj. 885, σχέτλια γάρ, κ.τ.λ., Ο. C. 537.
127. mvp-comment-103-1 ἐπέβαλε] Gnomic aorist = 'Doth not send. ἐπιβάλλειν is used as in ἐπιβάλλειν ζημίαν. “The lot which Zeus imposes on mortals is never exempt from grief.' ἐπὶ . . κυκλοῦσιν] Grief and joy come circling round to all, i.e. Grief succeeds to joy and joy to grief. For the tmesis, see Essay on L. § 18. p. 27. ἐπί marks succession in time, as in ἐπήλυθον ὧραι. οἷον . . κέλευθοι] 'Like the circling course of the Bear, i. e. As the constellation now is high in heaven, and now all but touches the horizon, so man's life is elevated and depressed. Others, without the comma, read χαράν, 'A circling course like that of the Bear brings round joy and grief to all.'
133. mvp-comment-104-1 αἰόλα] Glimmering,' or 'Palpitating,' rather than Spangled.' Cp. Εl. 106, ἄστρων ῥιπάς. For the repetition of the same word with some difference of meaning, see Essay on L. § 44. pp. 83. 4.
135. mvp-comment-105-1 βέβακε] Sc. ὁ πλοῦτος ἢ αἱ κῆρες. τῷ δ'] (1) ‘And to him,' viz. from whom the sorrow or the wealth has departed, 'comes in turn either rejoicing or loss.' Or (2) To another man.' In this case χαίρειν τε καὶ στέρεσθαι means, 'To be glad and again (afterwards) 'to lose.' The point, however, is not that sorrow passes from one to another, but rather that sorrows and joys alternate in the same life.
136. mvp-comment-106-1 ἃ (1) is resumed by apposition in τάδε, cp. Eur. Andr. 1115, ὧν Κλυταιμνήστρας τόκος εἷς ἦν ἁπάντων τῶνδε μηχανορράφος. 'Which truths I bid thee also, who art a Queen, to hold fast in looking forward.' Or (2), with Hermann, 'In respect of which truths (ἃ) I bid thee ever be hopeful regarding this' (τάδε), viz. the fortune and return of Heracles. Cp. Ant. 897, κάρτ᾽ ἐν ἐλπίσιν τρέφω, κ.τ.λ.
140. mvp-comment-107-1 τέκνοισι .. ἄβουλον] ‘Without providence for his children.' 'Filiis male consulentem.' For the vague plural, cp. 1268, οἱ φύσαντες καὶ κλῃζόμενοι πατέρες, κ.τ.λ. Hermann has remarked that the images chosen in the beginning of this ode all harmonize with the mood of Deianira (the vanishing of beauteous night, the fiery death of day, etc.), just as all cheering topics are suggested towards the end.
141. mvp-comment-108-1 ὡς ἀπεικάσαι] ‘Το hazard a conjecture.' Hermann lays down the rule that ἀπεικάζω always implies comparison, and he therefore reads ἐπεικάσαι here. But ἀπο- in ἀπεικάζω may have the same force as in ἀπομαντεύομαι, ἀποκινδυνεύω, ἀποδείκνυμαι, of something done (as we say 'right off') on the spur of the moment.
142. mvp-comment-109-1 πάθημα.. θυμοφθορῶ] There is an opposition between the outward accident and the inward feeling. The one the maidens know, but not the other.
143. mvp-comment-110-1 μήτ᾽ . . νῦν δ'] The antithesis is strengthened as the sentence grows. 'I would not have you learn by experience, but, as yet, you know nothing of it.' Hence δέ answering τε. Essay on L. § 36. p. 65 f.
144-145. mvp-comment-111-1 τὸ γὰρ . . αὑτοῦ, κ.τ.λ.] ‘For youth is nurtured in places of its own where no experience of sorrow reaches.' τοιοίσδε] Hermann missed the correlative of τοιοίσδε, and thought he had found it in the conjectural emendation χώροις, ἵν᾽ αὑτοῦ. Of this and many other attempted changes of this passage, it may be said that they are either too abrupt or destroy simplicity. τοιύσδε, like ὅδε, often in Sophocles refers to what has preceded, and may here be easily referred to ἄπειρος εἶ, 'Such,' i. e. as I see in you. You are ignorant of my sorrow, for youth is so placed' (as to be ignorant of sorrow). Essay on L. § 22. pp. 35, 6 , and for the emphasis on αὑτοῦ, see Essay on L. § 9. p. 12 b , and ср. О. С. 659, 60, ὁ νοῦς ὅταν αὑτοῦ γένηται. For the possessive following a descriptive adjective, cp. O. T. 1462, ταῖν δ᾽ ἀθλίαιν οἰκτραῖν τε παρθένοιν ἐμαῖν. βόσκεται] The image is that of a young plant, as in Aj. 558, τέως δὲ κούφοις πνεύμασιν βόσκου.
145. mvp-comment-112-1 θεοῦ] Of the sun. Cp. Eur. Alc. 722, φίλον τὸ φέγγος τοῦτο τοῦ θεοῦ, φίλον : Med. 352, εἴ σ' ἡ ᾿πιοῦσα λαμπὰς ὄψεται θεοῦ. The whole passage recalls Od. 4. 566, 5. 478 foll., 6. 43.
146. mvp-comment-113-1 πνευμάτων οὐδέν] The emphatic repetition of the negative immediately before the verb is idiomatic. Cp. infr. 1013, οὐ πῦρ, οὐκ ἔγχος τις ὀνήσιμον οὐκ ἀποτρέψει. κλονεῖ] The verb is adapted to the nearest subject. No heat offends, no rain disturbs, no wind ruffles it.' οὐδέν is substantive, i. e. πνεῦμα is not to be supplied. No breath of winds, not, No wind of all the winds.' Cp. Ant. 499, 500, τῶν σῶν λόγων . . οὐδέν.
147-148. mvp-comment-114-1 ἡδοναῖς ἄμοχθον ἐξαίρει βίον ἐς τοῦθ'] 'But it grows up' (lit. rears its life) 'amid delights, knowing not pain, even (f) to that point.' For ἐξαίρει = ἔχει ἐξαιρόμενον, αρ. ἀποτρύειν supr. 125 and note. The word suits with the simile from a young plant, for which, cp. Il. 18. 56, ὁ δ᾽ ἀνέδραμεν ἔρνεϊ ἴσος.
148. mvp-comment-115-1 γυνή] ‘A woman.' The word refers less here to the marriage-relationship than to the position of a matron.
149. mvp-comment-116-1 ἐν νυκτί] 'In a night,' i. e. the night of marriage. Cp. Fr. 521. 11, ἐπειδὰν εὐφρόνη ζεύξῃ μία : Eur. Fr. 660, λέγουσιν ὡς μί' εὐφρόνη χαλᾷ | τὸ δυσμενὲς γυναικὸς εἰς ἀνδρὸς λέχος. Musgrave and Hermann join ἐν νυκτὶ φροντίδων, 'Anxiety by night.'
150. mvp-comment-117-1 ἤτοι . . φοβουμένη] 'Being in fear either on her husband's account or for her children.' This verse has been unnecessarily suspected. The language is not quite accurate, but the meaning is clear, the sentence being continued as if λάβῃ were ἄρξηται ἔχειν.
151. mvp-comment-118-1 τις] The indefinite pronoun here in the apodosis refers more pointedly to the persons addressed than supr. 148. See Essay on L. § 22. p. 36. 4. εἰσίδοιτο] The middle has some such force as 'might see of himself.' αὑτοῦ] The masculine is often used where women are spoken of in a general way Essay on L § 20. p. 30.
152. mvp-comment-119-1 κακοῖσιν οἷς] i. e, τὰ κακὰ οἷς. For the attraction, see Essay on L. § 35. p. 59 , and cp. O. C. 1150, 1, λόγος δ᾽ ὃς ἐμπέπτωκεν ἀρτίως ἐμοὶ .. συμβαλοῦ γνώμην.
153. mvp-comment-120-1 δή] 'As you well know.'
154. mvp-comment-121-1 οἷον οὔπω πρόσθεν] Sc. εἶπον, implied in ἐκλαυσάμην.
157. mvp-comment-122-1 The δέλτος mentioned above (l. 47) contained Heracles' memorandum of the oracle received at Dodona, infr. 1165. In giving this to Deianira before leaving home, he also told her by word of mouth what disposition of his property he desired in case of his death. ἐγγεγραμμένην ξυνθήμαθ'] Having notes inscribed on it. The word ξύνθημα occurs in two places of the O. C., (1) in the singular, of a sign, l. 46, (2) of the record of an agreement, l. 1594. Neither of these meanings exactly suits the context here. A closer parallel is the expression ξυνθήματα κρυπτὰ χαράξας, which appears on an altar in the Museum at Athens, on which certain hierophantic symbols are inscribed. Here it clearly refers to the oracular indication of the doom of Heracles as inscribed on the tablet. The testamentary instructions which are further mentioned were given orally. For the construction of the accusative with the passive verb, see Essay on L. § 16. p. 236. Heracles might be said ἐγγράψαι τὴν δέλτον (οι τῇ δέλτῳ) ξυνθήματα.
159. mvp-comment-123-1 πολλοὺς ἀγῶνας ἐξιών] ‘Though he had gone forth on many labours,' ἀγῶνας is in a similar construction with ὁδύν in l. 155: the labour and the journey to meet the labour being included in one conception. The resumption of πρόσθεν οὐ . . ποτέ in οὔπω, after the intermediate clause, helps to point the antithesis in the following line. Cp. the emphatic repetition in Shaks. Jul. Caesar, 1. 3, 'But never till to-night, never till now, Did I go through a tempest dropping fire." φράσαι in what follows is (1) To show,' (2) 'To explain.'
160. mvp-comment-124-1 ὡς . . . εἶρπε] 'He went with the mien of one.' ἕρπω is a picturesque word, calling up the act of motion to the eye.
161. mvp-comment-125-1 ἔτ᾿ οὐκ ὤν] Already doomed.' Cp. Phil. 1217, ἔτ᾿ οὐδέν εἰμι (where there is the same inversion of οὐκέτι).
161-162. mvp-comment-126-1 ὅ τι κτῆσιν] 'What I must appropriate as my marriage portion; lit. Possession having to do with my marriage.' The MSS. read ὅτι, which may be right, implying that Deianira (knowing the amount of her marriage portion) was to select from the property of Heracles to that amount before dividing the remainder. But ὅ τι agrees better with ἣν in the next clause, and with the situation.
162. mvp-comment-127-1 ἣν τέκνοις] This may refer, as Schndw. supposes, to the partition of the Peloponnese among the Heracleidae. Cp. the anonymous mention of Eurystheus and Ceyx above, ll. 35, 40, and see Eur. H. F. 462 foll., σοὶ μὲν γὰρ ῎Αργος ἔνεμ᾽ ὁ κατθανὼν πατήρ, κ.τ.λ.
163. mvp-comment-128-1 ἣν .. νέμοι] What share of their father's land he assigned for distribution to his children (severally). τέκνοις is short for ἑκάστῳ τέκνων. The scribe who wrote μένειν seems to have understood, The part that remained after the marriage portion was taken out.'
164. mvp-comment-129-1 χρόνον] Víz. a time when it would be known whether the will was to be at once executed or not. τρίμηνον] Sc. χρόνον, to be repeated as accus. of duration with ἀπείη.
165. mvp-comment-130-1 The nom. ἐνιαύσιος, if right, is occasioned by the addition of βεβώς, and is to be explained, after the analogy of χρόνιος, τριταῖος, etc., like Aj. 217, νύκτερος ἀπελωβήθη: ib. 602, μηνῶν ἀνήριθμος .. τρυχόμενος. E. on L. § 23. p. 39 €. Deianira quotes Heracles as telling her what conclusion to draw, if he were absent more than fifteen months. These lines have been suspected, chiefly on account of their tautology, which may be excused by the all-importance of the time to Deianira, and the difficulty which the Greeks felt in defining notions of time. Essay on L. § 48. p. 91. τότε belongs to the whole sentence, τῷδε τῷ χρόνῳ to θανεῖν only. Then the decree of fate should take effect either for him to die within that time,' etc.
167. mvp-comment-131-1 τοῦτο · τοῦ χρόνου τέλος] 'This appointed period of time;' lit. 'This completion in respect of the time.' The conjecture τοῦδε for τοῦτο rather weakens the expression. ὑπεκδραμόντα] 'Having escaped from,' i.e. 'Having passed the danger of.' Burges conj. ὑπερδραμόντα. But the text is more expressive, dimly suggesting the image of a danger to be escaped.
169. mvp-comment-132-1 τοιαῦτα.. πόνων] 'Such he said was the Heaven-appointed issue of the labours of Heracles.' τοιαῦτα, to which εἱμαρμένα adheres, is the 'cognate subject' of ἐкτελευτᾶσθαι ( Essay on L. § 17. p. 25 c ); i. e. if the expression were turned actively, it would stand thus, τὸν Ἡρακλῆ τελευτᾷν τοιαῦτα (= τοιαύτην τελευτὴν) τῶν πόνων, ' That Heracles should find such an end of his labours.' Cp. Thuc. 2. 13, τὰ δὲ πολλὰ τοῦ πολέμου γνώμῃ καὶ χρημάτων περιουσίᾳ κρατεῖσθαι. The genitive may be taken as one of respect, but is assisted by ἐκ in ἐκτελευτᾶσθαι ('Such issue from his labours'). The present tense is often used in prophecies. Aesch. Prom. 848, ἐνταῦθα δή σε Ζεὺς τίθησιν ἔμφρονα. The wording of the oracle may have been τοιαύτην τελευτὴν ἐκτελευτᾷ Ἡρακλῆς τῶν ἑαυτοῦ πόνων. This is another example of Sophocles' fondness for the passive voice. See Essay on L. § 31. p. 54. There is no reason for doubting the genuineness of these two lines, which is confirmed by the Sophoclean character of the construction. ἔφραζε . . ἔφασκε] Sc. ὁ Ἡρακλῆς.
172. mvp-comment-133-1 δισσῶν ἐκ πελειάδων] Sophocles does not explain the manner in which the oracle at Dodona had been given: but vaguely combines the talking oak (Aesch. Prom. 832) with the prophetic pigeons (Hdt. 2. 55, where, however, of the two birds only one comes to Dodona).
173. mvp-comment-134-1 ναμέρτεια] 'The true fulfilment of these words as predestined (ὡς χρεών) comes to pass about this time.' τῶνδε ναμέρτεια almost = τάδε ναμερτῆ ὄντα, with some thought of the etymological meaning (νη, ἁμαρτάνω). For τάδε of the prophecy and event in one, cp. Ο. Τ. 901, εἰ μὴ τάδε χειρόδεικτα πᾶσιν ἁρμόσει βροτοῖς. συμβαίνει] For συμβαίνειν of the issue or fulfilment of an oracle, cp. Thuc. 2. 17, καί μοι δοκεῖ τὸ μαντεῖον τοὐναντίον ξυμβῆναι ἡ προσεδέχοντο.
173-174. mvp-comment-135-1 χρόνου | τοῦ νῦν παρόντος] The dative of time would be too precise and matter-of-fact to express Deianira's meaning, with reference to an emergency, which had not actually arisen. But in using the genitive she does not mean to be indefinite. The fulfilment belongs to the hour that now is here.'
175. mvp-comment-136-1 So that in the midst of a sweet slumber, I start up in fear and dread.' Cp. Plat. Rep. 1. 330 Ε. καὶ ἐκ τῶν ὕπνων, ὥσπερ οἱ παῖδες, θαμὰ ἐγειρόμενος, δειμαίνει. φόβῳ is a causal dative (with ἐκπηδᾶν). ταρβοῦσαν is added in explanation of φόβῳ. εἰ] To think that it is possible,' cp. infr. 666, ἀθυμῶ δ᾽ εἰ φανήσομαι. For this ethical use of ci, which is frequent in Greek (Od. 21. 253) see Essay on L. § 28. p. 46 5.
176. mvp-comment-137-1 εἴ με χρὴ μένειν] 'That I may have to live on.' μένειν has a pathetic force, i.e. to endure, when he is gone. Cp. Phil. 1368, καὐτὸς ἐν Σκύρῳ μένων | ἔα κακῶς αὐτοὺς ἀπόλλυσθαι κακούς.
177. mvp-comment-138-1 φωτός] φώς appears for the most part to have two senses in Sophocles, (1) rather depreciatory, An inconsiderable person,' eg. O. C. 1018, ἀμαυρῷ φωτί : (2) here and in Aj. 807, ἔγνωκα γὰρ δὴ φωτὸς ἠπατημένη, ‘Α husband.
178. mvp-comment-139-1 εὐφημίαν νῦν ἴσχε] 'Say now no more.' Deianira's last words were not auspicious, and the Chorus warn her not to continue them for fear of crossing with an evil omen one who seemed to be a messenger of good tidings. εὐφήμει is an injunction to silence, but generally with reference to some unlucky word that has been or is likely to be said. For the form of expression, cp. Phil. 807, ἀλλ᾽, ὦ τέκνον, καὶ θάρσος ἴσχ᾽, κ.τ.λ. Others would explain, 'Speak no more sadly,' for you will now have cause for joy.
179. mvp-comment-140-1 καταστεφή] O. T. 83, Aesch. Ag. 493. πρὸς χαρὰν λόγων] To be joined with καταστεφή στείχοντα in one phrase. Coming garlanded, like a messenger of joy.' πρὸς χάριν λόγων would merely mean, 'To do the office of a messenger.'
180. mvp-comment-141-1 πρῶτος ἀγγέλων] This busy-body, who is somewhat like the Φύλαξ in the Antigone, though not quite so mean, has rushed in before Lichas in the hope of getting some reward (infr. 191).
183. mvp-comment-142-1 ἀπαρχάς] Including the captives, see below, l. 245.
184. mvp-comment-143-1 Deianira is too much overcome by the announcement to realise it at once. Cp. Phil. 917-19, ib. 1380, where an unwelcome statement is received in the same vacant way: O. Τ. 359, λέγ᾽ αὖθις, ὡς μᾶλλον μάθω : Aesch. Ag. 268, πῶς φής; πέφευγε τοὔπος ἐξ ἀπιστίας.
186. mvp-comment-144-1 σὺν κράτει νικηφόρῳ] · Bringing with him triumphant conquest.'
188. mvp-comment-145-1 βουθερεῖ] 'Where the oxen in summer feed.' The summer grass is the harvest (θέρος) of the cattle. This is more picturesque (esp. with ἄτομον λειμώνα following, infr. 200) than Bovθόρῳ, 'Where the oxen leap.'
189. mvp-comment-146-1 τοῦ] (a) With κλύων, (b) with ἀπῇξα.
190. mvp-comment-147-1 τοι] 'Το say sooth.' The particle introduces the avowal of his motive. Cp. esp. El. 1468, 9. ὅπως | τὸ συγγενές τοι κἀπ᾿ ἐμοῦ θρήνων τύχῃ. The candour of the messenger here resembles that of the Corinthian in O. T. 1005, καὶ μὴν μάλιστα τοῦτ᾽ ἀφικόμην, ὅπως | σοῦ πρὸς δόμους ἐλθόντος εὖ πράξαιμί τι. Cp. also the Old Man in the Electra, when assuming a similar character, 772, μάτην ἄρ᾽ ἡμεῖς, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἥκομεν.
192. mvp-comment-148-1 αὐτός] 'Lichas himself.' εἴπερ εὐτυχεῖ] Sc. ὁ Λίχας. If all is well with him.'
193. mvp-comment-149-1 οὐκ εὐμαρείᾳ χρώμενος πολλῇ] 'Being not altogether his own master; i. e. he is detained, not quite of his own free will.
194. mvp-comment-150-1 Μηλιεύς .. λεώς] The Melian people and the Trachinians are the same in the mind of Sophocles. Cp. his indifference about Calydon and Pleuron in l. 7. The gentile substantive is used for the adjective, as often elsewhere. 'All the Melian folk press round and question him (cp. infr. 314), nor can he advance a step.'
195. mvp-comment-151-1 κρίνει . . ἔχει] There is no difficulty in the change of subject. See Essay on L. § 36. p. 65.
196. mvp-comment-152-1 τὸ . . ποθοῦν.. ἐκμαθεῖν] Το satisfy his longing with full information.' For this use of the active neuter participle, see Essay on L. § 30. p. 51. The abstract notion is here put for the object, the desire of knowledge, for the knowledge desired. Cp. Shak. Temp. 1. 2. 176, For still 'tis beating in my mind.'
197. mvp-comment-153-1 οὐκ ἂν μεθεῖτο] (1) 'Refuse to let him go. The third person is used as the first might have been, οὐκ ἂν μεθείμην σε, 'I will not let thee go.' See Aristophanes, Ran. 830, οὐκ ἂν μεθείμην τοῦ θρόνου: Αj. 313, εἰ μὴ φανοίην, and note. Or (2), 'He is not likely to be let go.' καθ' ἡδονήν] ‘To their heart's content.' κατά, as in κατὰ νοῦν.
198. mvp-comment-154-1 οὐχ ἑκών, ἑκοῦσι δέ] 'Not of his will, but by theirs.' Cp. Odyss. 5. 155, παρ᾿ οὐκ ἐθέλων ἐθελούσῃ.
200. mvp-comment-155-1 foll. The mention of the precinct on Mount Oeta, which was sacred to Zeus (infr. 436, 1191), is preparatory to the death of Heracles on that spot. ἄτομον, * Inviolate.' Cp. Hymn Merc. 72, where the oxen of the gods are λειμῶνες ἀκηράσιοι, a Cretan inscription (Corp. Inscr. 2. 1103), ἵνα μηθεὶς ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ τοῦ Διὸς τοῦ Δικταίου μήτε ἐννέμῃ μήτε ἐναυλοστατῇ μήτε σπείρῃ μήτε ξυλεύῃ : Eur. Hipp. 73, σοὶ τόνδε πλεκτὸν στέφανον ἐξ ἀκηράτου, κ.τ.λ.: Hom H. Ven. 269, 70, ἑστᾶσ᾽ ἠλίβατοι· τεμένη δέ ἑ κικλήσκουσιν | ἀθανάτων· τὰς δ᾽ οὔτι βροτοὶ κείρουσι σιδήρῳ.
201. mvp-comment-156-1 ἀλλὰ σὺν χρόνῳ] 'At length, though late.' Cp. Ant. 552, τί δῆτ᾽ ἂν ἀλλὰ νῦν σ᾽ ἔτ᾿ ὠφελοῖμ᾽ ἐγώ ;
202-203. mvp-comment-157-1 αἵ τ᾿ εἴσω στέγης.. αἵ τ᾿ ἐκτὸς αὐλῆς] The variety of expression has little or no significance. Deianira addresses herself to the women who belong to the house, as well as to the Chorus who have come to visit her, and are standing before the gates.
203-204. mvp-comment-158-1 We now reap the gladness of a vision of hope that has arisen unexpectedly on me in the utterance of this auspicious word.' On the mixed metaphor, see Essay on L. § 58. p. 105. ὄμμα] The notions of an act and of an object of vision, as well as of the instrument, are contained in this word. See Essay on L. § 54. p. 99. Hence it comes to mean anything which suddenly affects (1) the eye, or (2) (metaphorically) the mind. Cp. esp. El. 902, 3, ἐμπαίει τί μοι | ψυχῇ ξύνηθες ὄμμα. ἐμοί is in construction with ἀνασχόν, and also with ἄελπτον. φήμης is genitive of origin. The news is regarded as a star or sun from which the new light proceeds. For ἀνασχεῖν of a sudden event, cp. Hdt. 7. 14, τάδε τοι ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀνασχήσειν.
205-224. mvp-comment-159-1 The Chorus in response to Deianira raise this strain, accompanied, at least in the latter part of it (216 foll.), with dancing, or some rapid motion to and fro. Cp. Aj. 693-717, О. Т. 1086–1109, Ant. 1115-1152, for similar expressions of hope before some catastrophe. See also O. C. 1044 foll., El. 1384-1397. The maidens who are come to visit Deianira (1) challenge the maidens within the house to shout for joy, and (2) invite the young men to accompany them; (3) they encourage each other to raise the hymn to Artemis, (4) they dance under the excitement of the flute and the thyrsus, (5) they call attention to the coming of Lichas with the captives. These quick changes mark the feeling of trepidation which the situation is calculated to produce.
205. mvp-comment-160-1 ἀνολολύξατε δόμοις] There is no cause for changing the MS. reading of this line, which, as Hermann pointed out, has the same metre as El. 1384, ἴδεθ᾽ ὅπου προνέμεται. The plur. imperative is addressed to all within the house (young men and maidens), who are mentioned separately afterwards.
206. mvp-comment-161-1 ὁ μελλόνυμφος is either (1) used collectively-the indefinite singular for the indefinite plural ( Essay on L. § 20. p. 31 )-or (2) there is an ellipse of χόρος (κατὰ σύνεσιν). The former (1) is more probable, and the gender is to be accounted for, as in l. 151 supr., τὴν αὑτοῦ σκοπῶν πρᾶξιν. The word μελλόνυμφος may be suggested by Deianira's description in ll. 144-150. Those to whom marriage is in futurity. Such echoes of the dialogue are frequent in the choric songs. ἐν δέ] · And therewith.' Essay on L. § 18. p. 26. κοινός] Mingling' with the voices of the maidens. Cp. O. C. 1500, τίς αὖ παρ᾽ ὑμῶν κοινὸς ἠχεῖται κτύπος; κοινὸς feminine occurs only here.
207. mvp-comment-162-1 ἴτω] Nauck well quotes Fr. 435, ἴτω δὲ Πυθιὰς βοὰ θεῷ : Eur. Fr. Phaeth. 775, l. 52, ἴτω τελεία γάμων ἀοιδά. τὸν .. προστάταν] The accusative is governed by the general notion of celebrating' implied in the preceding words. See E. on L. § 16. p. 23. εὐφαρέτραν] ‘Lord of the quiver,' an epithet which either (1) simply brings the figure of the god vividly before the eye, cp. ἀργυρότοξος, or (2) implies his propitious power.
209. mvp-comment-163-1 προστάταν] “The protector,' Apollo προστάτης οι προστατήριος, is rightly invoked by those within the house, as having his altar at the gate. El. 637-
210. mvp-comment-164-1 παιᾶνα παιᾶν] The repetition imitates the hymn itself, in which the same sounds would be often renewed. ἀνάγετε] Cp. Eur. Phoen. 1350, ἀνάγετε κωκυτόν. ὦ παρθένοι] The Chorus now address themselves, as below l. 821, ἴδ᾽ οἷον, ὦ παῖδες, προσέμιξεν ἄφαρ, κ τ.λ.
211. mvp-comment-165-1 βοᾶτε τὰν .. "Αρτεμιν] ‘Call aloud the name of Artemis.' Cp. supr. 207. ὁμόσπορον] ‘His sister. See the Homeric Hymn to Apollo, ll. 14 foll., and the Hymn to Artemis, l. 2.
212. mvp-comment-166-1 Ὀρτυγίαν] Two accounts are given of the use of this epithet: (1) that as, according to the Scholiast of Apollonius Rhodius, the name Ortygia primarily belonged to Artemis as worshipped in Aetolia, she is so named here in compliment to Deianira: (2) that Artemis Ortygia was believed to haunt some place in the neighbourhood of Trachis. The latter is confirmed by l. 637, and by the most natural meaning of γείτονας in this passage, viz. 'in our neighbourhood.' The comparison of the Syracusan Ortygia (Pind. Pyth. 2. 10, 11, 'Ορτυγίαν ποταμίας ἕδος᾿ Αρτέμιδος) may suggest that the goddess was imagined to haunt wooded promontories or peninsulas, which had been left wild from being difficult of access. The quail (ὄρτυξ) may have been peculiarly abundant in such places. For γείτονας, i.e. Μηλιάδας, cp. Phil. 725, Μηλιάδων νυμφᾶν, κ.τ.λ.
214. mvp-comment-167-1 ἀμφίπυρον] Artemis is commonly represented with a torch in either hand. Cр. О. Т. 207, 8, τάς τε πυρφόρους | ᾿Αρτέμιδος αἴγλας ξὺν αἷς | Λύκι᾿ ὄρεα διάσσει.
216. mvp-comment-168-1 This line seems to mark the point where the dance, or the rapid movement of the Chorus, begins. The elision of the termination in ἀείρομαι is very unusual.
216. mvp-comment-168-2 ἀείρομ᾽ οὐδ᾽ ἀπώσομαι τὸν αὐλόν] 'I am uplifted, and will not repel the flute;' i.e. I will yield to its power. The following words are not addressed to Deianira, but are an apostrophe to the power of the flute, 'The sovran of the willing soul' (as Gray calls the lyre, in summing up the first Pythian), which is compelling them to the dance. Cp. Αj. 693, περιχαρής δ᾽ ἀνεπτάμαν.
219-220. mvp-comment-169-1 ἰδοὺἅμιλλαν] • Behold even now (glory to Iacchos), the ivy stirs up my soul, and makes me quick to turn in' (or 'into') 'the Bacchic course!' The ivy upon their brows, or wound about the thyrsus, with which they incite each other to the dance. βακχίαν .. ἅμιλλαν is probably acc. in app. with the action of ὑποστρέφων. Turning me' either in,' or 'into the Bacchic course.' Others, with the Scholiast, would render, Converting my soul (from sorrow) to the Bacchic dance.'
222. mvp-comment-170-1 ἰὼ, ἰὼ Παιάν] The Chorus are just leading up the Paean, which from its monotony could not have been continued with dramatic effect, when Lichas arrives, and they break off. The correction of the text is due to Dindorf, who also reads γυναικῶν. But there is no reason to assume that the three lines must be alike. The iambic tripody with a pause makes a good transition to the other form, CICIC!!. (Qy. ἰδέ· | ἴδ᾽ ὦ φ. γ.?)
223-224. mvp-comment-171-1 τάδ' .. ἐναργῆ] ‘Here is the thing face to face, present and palpable to sight.' ἐναργῆ] 'Beyond the possibility of mistake.'
225-226. mvp-comment-172-1 ὄμματος .. στόλον] The subject of παρῆλθε is the vague τάδε (l.223) resumed with more distinctness in τόνδε .. στόλον : i. e. οὐ παρῆλθέ μ' ὅδε ὁ στόλος, μὴ λεύσσειν αὐτόν. παρῆλθε, 'Escaped,' as in Dem. 550. 26, τουτὶ .. μικροῦ παρῆλθέ με εἰπεῖν, 'I see it, dear friends, nor hath this escaped the vigilance of my eye.' τόνδε, sc. ὄντα τοιόνδε. For the second acc. (με governed by ὀμμ. Φ. π. = ἔλαθε) see Essay on L. § 16. p. 23 , and cp. Ο. C. 113, καὶ σύ μ᾿ ἐξ ὁδοῦ πόδα | κρύψον. While Musgrave's correction is adopted in the text, as having a high degree of probability, the MS. reading may be defended as meaning, 'Vigilance has not (so) passed from my eye.' But such a meaning of παρῆλθε is questionable.
226. mvp-comment-173-1 μὴ λεύσσειν] Although μὴ οὐ would be in place here, we are not in a position to say that μή by itself is wrong.
227-228. mvp-comment-174-1 χρόνῳ | πολλῷ] Cp. Phil. 715, δεκέτει χρόνῳ: Aesch. Ag. 521, δέξασθε κύσμῳ βασιλέα πολλῷ χρόνῳ. χαρτὸν φέρεις] For the direct address following the third person, cp. Ο. Τ. 162, καὶ Φοῖβον ἑκαβόλον .. προφάνητε. There is an obvious play of words, to which καί gives emphasis, Joy to thee, herald, if thou bringest joyful news. For the order of words, ср. О. С. 665, Φοῖβος εἰ προϋπεμψέ σε.
229. mvp-comment-175-1 ἀλλ᾽ εὐ μὲν ἵγμεθ᾽] ἀλλά sets aside the doubt expressed in εἰ . . φέρεις. Cp. Phil. 232, ἀλλ᾽, ὦ ξέν᾽, ἴσθι τοῦτο πρῶτον, κ.τ.λ., ‘Our coming is happy, be assured, and happily are we addressed, lady, as the deed which has been achieved is happy.'
230. mvp-comment-176-1 κατ᾿ ἔργου κτῆσιν = ὥσπερ ἔργῳ ἐκτησάμεθα, sc. ἀγαθά implied in ev. ἄνδρα.. ἔπη] 'He who is fortunate cannot fail to win good words.' For ἀνάγκη, which may seem rather abrupt, cp. 295, πολλή ᾿στ᾿ ἀνάγκη τῇδε τοῦτο συντρέχειν, where, as here, the expression is stronger than the thought, 'It cannot be otherwise,' meaning only, 'It is but natural.'
232. mvp-comment-177-1 φίλτατ᾿ ἀνδρῶν] For the affectionate address arising simply from the effusion of joy, cp. Εl. 1227, ὦ φίλταται γυναῖκες, ὦ πολίτιδες, κ.τ.λ. Lichas has also, of course, a claim on Deianira's gratitude for having brought the news. βούλομαι] Sc. διδαχθῆναι.
233. mvp-comment-178-1 προσδέξομαι] Deianira, in her eager questioning, goes beyond what Lichas could possibly tell.
234. mvp-comment-179-1 ἔλειπον] For the tense, see on l. 47. When I took leave of him he was, etc. ἰσχύοντά τε | καὶ ζῶντα] i. e. 'Not only alive but strong.' See Essay on L. § 41. p. 78 b.
235. mvp-comment-180-1 θάλλοντα] Flourishing,' as one who has lately done great things.
236. mvp-comment-181-1 Where in the world either of his own land or of lands beyond?' Cp. supr. 73 for a similar condensed question. Like the Chorus, Deianira is all uncertainty as to Heracles' whereabouts, and her imagination wanders far. In supr. 163 the words πατρώας γῆς denoted the Peloponnese, as the inheritance of the sons of Heracles. Here (γῆς) πατρώας refers to Hellas generally, either (1) simply as the native land of Heracles, or (2) as the land which was under the especial protection of his father Zeus. Cp. Aesch. Fr. 157-
237. mvp-comment-182-1 ἀκτή τις ἔστ᾽ Εὐβοιΐς, ἔνθ'] The usual formula in describing the place where anything occurred (l. 752, Ant. 966, Homer passim). ὁρίζεται] «He consecrates.' The word is literally applicable to the τέμενος, whose bounds were marked out, but is extended to the altar and what is placed on it.
238. mvp-comment-183-1 τέλη τ' ἔγκαρπα] The 'tribute of fruitful things' is (1) that proportion of the produce of the τέμενος which was to be devoted to the immediate service of the god. Or (2) more generally, 'Offerings of the fruits of the earth.'
239. mvp-comment-184-1 εὐκταῖα φαίνων] Το fulfil a vow.' For φαίνειν of the practical manifestation of an intention, cp. O. C. 721, νῦν σοὶ τὰ λαμπρὰ ταῦτα δὴ φαίνειν ἔπη: Hdt. 3. 36, εὔνοιαν φαίνων.
240. mvp-comment-185-1 εὐχαῖς] ‘By reason of the vow he vowed.' For the dative of the reason, cp. infr. 1127, τοῖς γε πρόσθεν ἡμαρτημένοις. This is the reading of L supported by the lemma of the Scholiast, and is also the harder reading. On these accounts it is preferred to εὐκταῖ', the reading of Par. A, although the latter is equally good in point of sense. ἀνάστατον] Proleptic. 'He conquered and made homeless.
243. mvp-comment-186-1 ξυμφορᾷ] 'Unless they deceive me by their misfortune,' i.e. Unless I am led by their unhappy looks to pity them more than they deserve. This, the reading of the diorthotes of L, which Schndw. adopted, is better than ξυμφορα, which is found in other MSS., because Deianira's feeling is better expressed by making the maidens the subject of the sentence, than if ξυμφοραὶ = αἱ ξυμφοραὶ αὐτῶν were the nominative.
245. mvp-comment-187-1 καὶ θεοῖς] Cp. Eur. Ion 309, 10, τοῦ θεοῦ καλοῦμαι δοῦλος, εἰμί τ', ὦ γύναι. ΚΡ. ἀνάθημα πόλεως, ἤ, κ.τ.λ.: Phoen. 220, 1, ἴσα δ᾽ ἀγάλμασι χρυσοτεύκτοις Φοίβῳ λάτρις γενόμαν. κριτόν] Choice.' Cp. Pind. Pyth. 4. 89, κριτὸν εὑρήσει . . γένος, but the word here retains more of the verbal meaning = ἔκκριτον.
246. mvp-comment-188-1 And was it by that city that he was absent during the vast time of which the days could not be numbered?' ἄσκοπον] That cannot be taken into the eye (or the mind). Essay on L. § 51. p. 96.
247. mvp-comment-189-1 For βεβώς here, see on l. 41. ἡμερῶν ἀνήριθμον] For the gen., cp. Ο. Τ. 178, ὧν πόλις ἀνάριθμος ὄλλυται, and note.
248ff. mvp-comment-190-1 The falsehood of Lichas consists, not in the story of the servitude of Heracles to Omphale, which, whether true or false, was matter of common rumour (ll. 67 foll.), but in his assigning this as the reason for the conquest of Oechalia.
248. mvp-comment-191-1 τὸν.. πλεῖστον] Viz. twelve months out of the fifteen (l. 253).
249. mvp-comment-192-1 ὥς φησ᾿ αὐτός 253 ὡς αὐτὸς λέγει] The word of Heracles himself is required to confirm a statement so degrading to him.
250-251. mvp-comment-193-1 τοῦ λόγου δ᾽ οὐ χρὴ φθόνον .. προσεῖναι] 'And, lady, this must be heard without offence, as all things must in which the hand of Zeus is seen.' The expression is generalized in the relative clause. Hence the subjunctive.
251. mvp-comment-194-1 τοῦ λόγου is an objective genitive, - 'Envy at the word' or 'tale.' Ζεύς, κ.τ.λ.] Infr. 275.
252. mvp-comment-195-1 πραθείς repeats ἐμποληθείς with less attempt at softening the harsh fact. Cp. 276. Lichas purposely enlarges on the trouble that is past in order to lighten by contrast the effect of the discovery which must soon be made.
254. mvp-comment-196-1 He was so stung by incurring this dishonour.' For ὄνειδος = Disgrace,' cp. O. C. 967, 984, О. Т. 1035, 1494.
255. mvp-comment-197-1 Cp. with ὅρκον.. προσβαλών the expressions ὅρκον ἐπελαύνειν and προσάγειν τινί in Hdt. 1. 146, 6. 62.
256. mvp-comment-198-1 τὸν ἀγχιστῆρα] 'The causer.' This being a verbal form cannot be the equivalent of ἀγχιστεύς, which is from ἄγχιστος, ας ἀριστεύς from ἄριστος. Whether a verb ἀγχίζω existed or not, it is presupposed in the formation of ἀγχιστήρ, which can only mean, 'Him who brought on' (Seidler). 'He expressly swore that he would reduce to slavery the man who brought this trouble.' αὐτόχειρα has been conjectured, but this word could hardly be applied to Eurytus with reference to the bondage of Heracles. There Eurytus was only μεταίτιος, an accomplice before the fact, which was the work of Zeus.
257. mvp-comment-199-1 ξὺν παιδί] In Odyss. 9. 199, οὖνεκά μιν σὺν παιδὶ περισχόμεθ' ἠδὲ γυναικί, there is a various reading παισί, but there is nothing improbable in the collective use of the singular here. Essay on L. § 20. p. 31, 2.
258. mvp-comment-200-1 οὐχ ἡλίωσε] 'He made not void;' i. e, amply fulfilled. ἁγνός] 'Clean,' i. e. free. The bondage was a pollution incurred by the murder of Iphitus and at the same time an expiation of it. There may also have been some formal expiation not expressly mentioned. When this was over, he was pure, and might therefore look for success.
259. mvp-comment-201-1 ‘στρατὸν .. ἐπακτόν, quem dicit Sophocles, Arcades fuisse et Malienses et Locros Epicnemidios perhibet Apollodorus, 2. 7, 7; solos Arcades nominat Diodorus, 4. 37.' Herm. The point is one of no importance to the action. πόλιν] Accusative of motion to. Essay on L. § 16. p. 22.
260. mvp-comment-202-1 τόνδε] Sc. τὸν Εύρυτον. Α simple instance of the construction κατὰ σύνεσιν. Essay on L. § 36. p. 64. μεταίτιον] Alone partner with Zeus in the blame of this calamity.' Cp. Aesch. Eum. 199, 200, αὐτὸς σὺ τούτων οὐ μεταίτιος πέλει, | ἀλλ᾽ εἰς τὸ πᾶν ἔπραξας ὢν παναίτιος.
261. mvp-comment-203-1 μόνον βροτῶν] Cp. 355, μόνος θεῶν.
262. mvp-comment-204-1 ἐφέστιον, | ξένον παλαιὸν ὄντα] Coming to be received at his hearth, having been a friend of old.'
263-264. mvp-comment-205-1 πολλὰ μὲν πολλὰ δέ] 'Brake forth against him with rude words and with evil intent.' The antithetical repetition adds emphasis. Eurytus not only spoke badly, but meant badly. See Essay on L. § 40. p. 76. ἀτηρᾷ φρενί] 'With mischief-meaning mind.' Cp. Phil. 1272, πιστός, ἀτηρὸς λάθρᾳ.
265. mvp-comment-206-1 ἄφυκτα.. βέλη] The bow and arrows afterwards bequeathed to Philoctetes. Cp. Phil. 105.
266. mvp-comment-207-1 τῶν ὧν.. κρίσιν] ‘He came behind his (Eurytus') sons in fitness to compete with the bow;' (i.e. πρὸς τὸ τόξῳ κρίνεσθαι.)
267. mvp-comment-208-1 φωνεῖ δέ] 'And he utters the word.' This emphatic resumption of λέγων may be justified by the extraordinary nature of the reproach. Such a use of φωνεῖν is rare, but cp. O. Τ. 780, καλεῖ παρ᾿ οἶνῳ, κ.τ.λ.: Αj. 1047, οὗτος, σὲ φωνῶ, κ.τ.λ., and see above, λόγοις ἐπερρόθησε. The word suggests the loud tones in which the reproach was uttered. For the 'return to the indicative,' see Essay on L. § 36. p. 64 b. Most MSS. have φώνει, the imperfect without augment. Brunck substituted for this the vivid present. Hermann suspected the word, and conjectured φανείς. I formerly suggested φύσει (ΙΙ. 19. 95 foll., O. С. 1295).
268. mvp-comment-209-1 ῥαίοιτο] 'Was being crushed,' viz. by Eurystheus. Cp. Aesch. Prom. 189, ὅταν ταύτῃ ῥαισθῇ. δείπνοις] ‘At a feast. O. Τ. 779 and note. ἦν οἰνώμενος] Sc. ὁ Ἡρακλῆς. Ας Epic and Ionic forms are sometimes employed in narration, it is not worth while to alter the MS. reading to ᾠνώμενος here. Cp. μοῦνον, l. 277.
270. mvp-comment-210-1 αὖθις] ‘Again,' on another occasion. Τιρυνθίαν πρὸς κλιτύν] Το the Tirynthian height.'
271. mvp-comment-211-1 ἵππους νομάδας] ‘His horses, which had been loose at pasture.' His mind was following the horses, wondering where they were. This gave Heracles the opportunity for his single act of guile.
273. mvp-comment-212-1 Hurled him from the towering cliff.' ἀπ᾿ ἄκρας . . πυργώδους πλακός, From the tower-like crown of the cliff,' is an expression which recalls the appearance of Tiryns as seen from below.
275. mvp-comment-213-1 τῶν ἁπάντων] Of all, and not only of Heracles, to whom therefore he could not forgive this wrong.
276-277. mvp-comment-214-1 οὐδ᾽ ἠνέσχετο, | ὁθούνεκ'] 'And would not endure it, that-.' μοῦνον ἀνθρώπων] Unlike the rest of those whom he had slain. See the story of Iphitus told in Od. 21. 14-41.
278. mvp-comment-215-1 εἰ . . ἠμύνατο] ‘If he had made requital openly.'
279. mvp-comment-216-1 Zeus manifestly would have consented' either (1) to his being justly punished,' or (2) 'to his justly punishing him.' In the former case, (1) χειρουμένῳ used passively involves a change of subject. In the latter, (2) the same word used actively is without an object. τοι gives a note of preparation for what follows, in which the connection, though not fully expressed, is obvious; viz. 'Zeus punished Heracles for his guile, certainly not out of any love for Eurytus' proud race, who for their over-weening insolence have now been destroyed.' So Lichas returns from the digression, with which he laboured to assign a motive for the siege of Oechalia. His prolixity in doing this (which has brought the passage under suspicion), is really a stroke of art, by which the poet reminds the spectators of the simplicity of the real motive.
280. mvp-comment-217-1 'It is not to be supposed that the gods any more than men favour the proud.' Of this the ruin of Oechalia is a proof.
281. mvp-comment-218-1 κεῖνοι] 'And they too'-Eurytus and his sons, who must be supposed to have joined with him in his transgression. ἐκ γλώσσης κακῆς] 'With reviling words.' ἐκ here denotes rather the manner than the origin of the offence. ὑπερχλίοντες is in the imperfect tense. See Essay on L. § 32. p. 54 , and cp. Thuc. 3. 9. § 3, ἐν τῇ εἰμήνῃ τιμώμενοι.
282. mvp-comment-219-1 ῞Αιδου οἰκήτορες] Cp. infr. 1161, ὅστις "Αιδου φθίμενος οἰκήτωρ πέλοι.
283. mvp-comment-220-1 τάσδε] For this attraction of the antecedent, see Essay on L. § 35. p. 59, and cp. supr. 152.
284. mvp-comment-221-1 ἐξ ὀλβίων] Sc. οὐσῶν. As if the sentence were ἐξ ὀλβίων ἄζηλοι γενόμενοι.
286. mvp-comment-222-1 πιστὸς ὢν κείνῳ] Deianira remembers this afterwards, ll. 617-20.
287. mvp-comment-223-1 αὐτὸν . . ἐκεῖνον] Resumed in νιν, l. 289, where Hense unnecessarily conjectures φρόνησον. ἁγνὰ θύματα] ‘'Pure sacrifices,' consecrating the victory by acknowledging the help of the gods.
288. mvp-comment-224-1 τῆς ἁλώσεως] For the capture,' as a thank-offering. To be joined with θύματα. Essay on L. § 10. p. 15 d. πατρῴῳ Ζηνί] Schndw. says that although Zeus was the father of Heracles he was here worshipped by him as the god of the whole race (of Amphitryon?). But Zeus was πατρῷος to Heracles in a peculiar sense-'The Zeus of fatherhood,' i e. 'The author of being.' Cp. infr. 753. Qy. φρονεῖν (see v. rr.)?
290. mvp-comment-225-1 καλῶς λεχθέντος] ‘Of many words fair to hear this is the fairest.' πολλοῦ has been questioned and ὅλου conjectured by Otto Hense. But ὅλου is inexact. For the account of Heracles' bondage to Omphale (ll. 248-53) was not fair to hear.'
292. mvp-comment-226-1 i. e. You have not only the words of Lichas, but the presence of the captives, to vouch for the coming of Heracles. That which assures the joy of Deianira is to be the cause of her misery. So little does the 'coming event cast its shadow before.' Cp. 862.
294. mvp-comment-227-1 πανδίκῳ φρενί] 'With a heart that has every reason to rejoice':-πανδίκως τῇ φρενί.
295. mvp-comment-228-1 'This cannot fail' either (1) 'to coincide with that' (the joy with the news), or (2) 'to coincide in this way.' In (1) τῇδε = τῇ πράξει. In (2) τῇδε is adverbial and τοῦτο is the news and the rejoicing in one. The former (1) is best. Such news must needs be met by such rejoicing.' This line, with many others that could be dropped without ruining the connection, has been needlessly suspected as an interpolation.
296. mvp-comment-229-1 ἔνεστι τοῖσιν εὖ σκοπουμένοις] Either (1) There is occasion in the eyes of those who consider well' (the middle voice occurs in O. Τ. 964, τί δῆτ᾽ ἄν, ὦ γύναι, σκοποῖτό τις, κ.τ.λ.): -the dative, as in O. T. 616, καλῶς ἔλεξεν εὐλαβουμένῳ πεσεῖν : -or (2), 'There is room, when things are well considered.' In this case the dative is governed by ἐν in ἔνεστι.
298. mvp-comment-230-1 For οἶκτος of pity mixed with apprehension, cp. Eur. Med. 931, εἰσῆλθέ μ' οἶκτος εἰ γενήσεται τάδε. δεινός] Overpowering,' of strong feeling. Cp. infr. 476, ταύτης ὁ δεινὸς ἵμερος: Plat. Theaet. 169 Β, οὕτω τις ἔρως δεινὸς ἐνδέδυκε τῆς περὶ ταῦτα γυμνασίας.
300. mvp-comment-231-1 Homeless, because Oechalia was destroyed; Fatherless,' because its chief men had been slain in battle.
301. mvp-comment-232-1 πρίν] In their former life, when they had a home.
302. mvp-comment-233-1 δοῦλον) The adjectival use of δοῦλος, which occurs here and supr. l. 53, is not found in earlier Greek.
303. mvp-comment-234-1 τροπαῖε] 'Giver of victory." Deianira has been commonly understood to address Zeus thus as the averter of evil (ἀποτρόπαιος). But elsewhere τροπαίος means the god who turns armies in battle. On this occasion Zeus has driven the army of Oechalia before Heracles and his allies. Deianira apprehends the possibility of some descendant of the Heracleidae being similarly defeated and made captive through the same god favouring another race.
304. mvp-comment-235-1 ποι after the verb of motion = που.
305. mvp-comment-236-1 τῆσδέ γε ζώσης ἔτι, Sc. δράσειας
306. mvp-comment-237-1 ὁρωμένη) The middle adds a touch of feeling, like the ethical dative, Le Looking at them with reflection. Cp. Ο. Τ. 1487, νοούμενος τὰ λοιπὰ τοῦ πικροῦ βίου.
307. mvp-comment-238-1 Iole is naturally silent and downcast in the presence of Deianira, who in her quick sympathy interprets this as an expression of sorrow. The foremost captive, she observes, shows more feeling than the rest (312).
308. mvp-comment-239-1 τεκνοῦσσα (see v. rr.) is obtained from the lemma of the Scholiast. φύσιν] 'Appearance.' Cp. O. Т. 740, 1, φύσιν τιν εἶχε, φράζε.
309. mvp-comment-240-1 πάντων. . τῶνδε] Sc. τοῦ ἄνδρα τε καὶ τέκνα σχεῖν.
313. mvp-comment-241-1 φρονεῖν οἶδεν] 'Has the sense to feel her position." See note on 307. For this pleonastic use of οἶδεν = ἐπίσταται. cp. Hom. Il. 7. 238, οἶδ᾽ ἐπὶ δεξιά, εἶδ' ἐπ᾿ ἀριστερὰ νωμῆσαι βῶν: Phil. 1010, ὃς οὐδὲν ἤδη πλὴν τὸ προσ ταχθὲν ποιεῖν: Arist. Vesp. 376, ν᾽ εἰδῇ μὴ πατεῖν τὰ τῶν θεῶν ψηφίσματα.
314. mvp-comment-242-1 τί δ' ἄν με καὶ κρίνοις; καὶ opposes the question to the reply. I cannot answer, and why should you ask??
315. mvp-comment-243-1 τῶν ἐκεῖθεν] Sc. γεννημάτων. Ср. О. Т. 1167, τῶν Λαΐου τοίνυν τις ἦν γεννημάτων. οὐκ ἐν ὑστάτοις] 'Not far down.' The phrase is equivalent to an attributive adjective agreeing with γέννημα.
316. mvp-comment-244-1 μὴ τῶν τυράννων] Sc. γέννημα. 'Can she have been of the royal stock?' Εὐρύτου σπορά τις ἦν] Either (1) 'Is it possible she is Eurytus' offspring?' τις = πως. See Essay on L. § 22. p. 36, sub fin., and cp. Ó. T. 1167, quoted above. Or (2) Had Eurytus any offspring?" So Hermann.
317. mvp-comment-245-1 οὐδ᾽ ἀνιστόρουν μακράν] 'I did not carry my inquiries far.'
318. mvp-comment-246-1 τῶν ξυνεμπόρων] Of those travelling with her and you,' viz. the other captives. ἔχεις = πέπυσαι. Cp. Phil. 789, ἔχετε τὸ πρᾶγμα.
319. mvp-comment-247-1 τοὐμὸν ἔργον] The herald's task of bringing the captives home.
320. mvp-comment-248-1 Deianira, baffled in her compassionate eagerness, now turns to Iole herself in a tone of entreaty. ἀλλά belongs to ἐκ σαυτῆς or to the whole sentence, not to ἡμίν. (Cр. О. С. 238, ὦ ξένοι, . . ἀλλ᾽ ἐπεί, κ.τ.λ.)
321. mvp-comment-249-1 καὶ ξυμφορά τοι] These words express Deianira's strong sympathy. 'Verily, I am distressed not to know who thou art.' A narrator might say of her in the language of Herodotus, καὶ συμφορὴν ἐποιέετο, τὸ μὴ εἰδέναι τὴν ξείνην ἥ τις εἴη. It has been observed that the particles ἐπεὶ καί τοι are not found together elsewhere. But each of the three words has a distinct and apposite meaning. 'For' (ἐπεί) ‘I tell you' (τοι) 'I am even' (καί) ' distressed.' γε simply emphasizes σé, i. e. 'You, who have awakened such an interest in me.'
322ff. mvp-comment-250-1 Lichas hurriedly interposes to prevent disclosure with a significant warning to Iole to hold her peace. The first Scholiast's explanation of these words gives a rational meaning: ἐὰν αἰδουμένη σε φθέγξηται, κατ᾿ οὐδὲν ἄρα ἐξίσου τῷ πρόσθεν χρόνῳ προκομίσειεν (ἂν ?) αὐτῆς τὴν γλῶσσαν· τὸν γὰρ πρὸ τοῦ χρόνου ἐσιώπα: i.e. he understands the stress of the sentence to be on the words οὐδὲν ἐξ ἴσου τῷ γε πρόσθεν χρόνῳ ( Essay on L. § 24. p. 40 ). It will not be in accordance with (her demeanour in) the previous time that she will bring out her tongue (if she does so).' The doubt is whether διαφέρειν can mean, 'To bring between the lips,' and so answer the προκομίζειν of the Scholiast. Wakefield's conjecture διήσει, ' Will let pass through her lips,' is supported by Ο. C. 963 (ὅστις φόνους . .) τοῦ σοῦ διῆκας στόματος. Hermann explained the words to mean, Just as hitherto (τῷ γε πρόσθεν ἐξ ἴσου χρόνῳ) she will maintain an even tenour (οὐδὲν διοίσει) as to her tongue.' Dindorf (agreeing with the second Scholiast), 'She will not employ her tongue' (οὐ.. διοίσει οι διήσει γλῶσσαν) 'inconsistently with what she has done hitherto.'
323-324. mvp-comment-251-1 οὐδαμὰ | προὔφηνεν] ‘Made no sign.
325. mvp-comment-252-1 But travailing with the weight of her calamity she has wept over it ever since.' The accusative is to be joined both with ὠδίνουσα and δακρυρροεῖ. Cp. Shak. Pericles, 5. 1, 'I am great with woe and shall deliver weeping.'
327. mvp-comment-253-1 διήνεμον] It is difficult to determine whether this is (1) a mere epithet, 'Wind-swept,' like the Homeric ἠνεμόεσσα, descriptive of a city on a hill, or (2) a supplem. pred. = διήνεμον οὖσαν, ‘Desolate,' 'Open to the winds.' The first (1) may be supported by comparing several picturesque touches in this play, but the other (2) is more dramatic. Both are given in the scholia, ἔρημον (2), ὕψηλον (1). ἡ δέ τοι] This is better than ἥδε τοι, which leaves an unmeaning asyndeton. Her case is unfortunate, I mean for herself, but suggests a reason for indulgence' (on our part); i. e. 'Her misfortune may excuse her silence.'
328. mvp-comment-254-1 For ἔχει, cp. Thuc. 2. 41. § 3, ἀγανάκτησιν ἔχει ('Gives cause for complaint'): Eur. Phoen. 995, τοὐμὸν δ᾽ οὐχὶ συγγνώμην ἔχει.
329. mvp-comment-255-1 ἥδ᾽ οὖν] ἡ δ' οὖν is sometimes read here, as in O. T. 669. But while δέ is unnecessary, the opposition of πάντες in what follows is enough to justify the use of the demonstrative ἥδε. στέγας] For the accus. cp. 58, δύμους.
330. mvp-comment-256-1 ἥδιστα] For this sense of ἡδύς, ср. О. C. 639, 40, εἰ δ᾽ ἐμοῦ στείχειν μέτα | τόδ᾽ ἡδύ.
331. mvp-comment-257-1 This line in LA (see v. rr.) has manifestly suffered from corruption, some other word being replaced either by the first or the second λύπην. The Triclinian reading which is adopted in the text, although possibly due to conjecture, is more probable than any other of the various changes which have been proposed. It is not necessary to change λάβοι το λάβῃ. The optative slightly varies the expression, I would not have her,' etc.
333. mvp-comment-258-1 For τε.. δέ, see Essay on L. §36. p. 65 f , and cp. supr. 143. The antithesis is introduced after the sentence is begun. οἱ θέλεις] Viz. to rejoin Heracles.
334. mvp-comment-259-1 ἐξαρκή] ‘As they should be.' Cp. infr. 625.
335. mvp-comment-260-1 ἀμμείνασα] Sc. χωροῖς ἄν. Ср. Phil. 645, χωρῶμεν, ἔνδοθεν λαβών. For the use of the participle with ye = 'Not until,' cp. Plat. Phaedr. 228 D, δείξας γε πρῶτον, ὦ φιλότης, κ.τ.λ. The "Αγγελος is rude, and something of a busy-body, but honest and well-meaning.
336. mvp-comment-261-1 ἄνευ τῶνδε] When Lichas and the captives are not present.'
337. mvp-comment-262-1 ἐκμάθῃς θ' ἃ δεῖ] The change from τε to γε in AVR is an attempt to simplify the sentence, but still leaves an awkward resumption. The Αγγελος, full of the importance of his message, and yet afraid to speak it too soon, hurries over the latter part of the sentence, 'That you may learn, first who they are whom you are taking within, and then what else is hidden from you, and (in short) that you may learn fully what you ought to know.'
338. mvp-comment-263-1 l. 338 is characteristic of the man's self-importance. There is a certain ὄγκος in the postponement of γάρ (Aj. 522, El. 492); and the expression πάντ᾽ ἐπιστήμη, 'Knowledge as to all things, Absolute knowledge,' has also a mockheroic (almost 'Pistol'-like) air.
339. mvp-comment-264-1 τί δ᾽ ἐστί] 'What is the matter? Why do you stay my footsteps here with your interruption?" τοῦ for τίνος = τίνος ἕνεκα. See Essay on L. § 10. p. 15 d. The punctuation (that of L) is rendered probable by comparing Ο. Τ. 938, τί δ᾽ ἔστι; ποίαν δύναμιν ὧδ᾽ ἔχει διπλῆν ; ἐφίστασαι] The present middle of ἵστημι is used transitively in Hdt. 7. 9, πολέμους ἵστανται, 'They set up wars amongst themselves.' παρίστασθαι is so used by Sophocles, O. C. 916, ἄγεις θ' ἃ χρήζεις καὶ παρίστασαι βίᾳ, and by other writers: καθίσταμαι by Eur. Suppl. 522, πόλεμον οὐ καθίσταμαι: προίστασθαι by Plato and Demosthenes : διίστασθαι by Plato, Tim. 63 C. It is therefore possible that ἐφίστασθαι here and in Aj. 869 (ἐπίσταται MSS.) may mean, 'To arrest.' τήνδε . . βάσιν] The second accusative expresses the respect in which Deianira was stopped: 'In this going,' i.e. in going, as I have just begun to do. The above interpretation, which is that of the Scholiast, agrees better with the context than if ἐφίστασαι were taken intransitively: Why do you stand before me in this your coming?' See esp. l. 335, αὐτοῦ. . ἀμμείνασα, and 340, σταθεῖσα.
341. mvp-comment-265-1 μάτην] 'Without result,' i.e. without the event proving the truth of my words. δοκῶ] Sc. τὸν μῦθον μάτην ἀκούσεσθαί σε,
342. mvp-comment-266-1 ἐκείνους] Those other people, who were here a little while ago. It may be remarked, as exemplifying the dramatic manner of Sophocles, that the words ἄνευ τῶνδε in l. 336 are unobserved by Deianira. Cp. O.Т. 360, and note.
344. mvp-comment-267-1 οὐδὲν εἴργεται] Sc. τάδε λεχθῆναι. For the passive, cp. Thuc. 8. 54, ὥστε μηκέτι διαμέλλεσθαι. τούτους] Though further off than the Chorus, Lichas and the captives are still imagined as within sight through the open door, and within call.
345. mvp-comment-268-1 χώ λόγος σημαινέτω] ‘Now then let your speech declare your meaning.' Deianira is impatient of the air of mystery which the man has hitherto assumed. For λόγος personified, ср. О. С. 574, χώ λόγος διέρχεται: Fr. inc. 782, διχοστατῶν λόγος. σημαίνειν, without an expressed object, occurs several times in Sophocles and Thucydides; and in Xenophon, Mem. 1. 1. § 4, τὸ δαιμόνιον γὰρ ἔφη σημαίνειν.
346. mvp-comment-269-1 ἀνὴρ ὅδ'] 'Lichas here' (pointing indoors). Cp. τούτους, supr. 344.
347. mvp-comment-270-1 δίκης ἐς ὀρθόν] Truly and uprightly. For δίκη in this sense, cp. Ant. 538, οὐκ ἐάσει τοῦτό σ᾽ ἡ δίκη. κακός] Sc. ἐστί. 'He is behaving badly.'
348. mvp-comment-271-1 δίκαιος] Honest.'
349. mvp-comment-272-1 πᾶν ὅσον νοεῖς] ‘All that thou knowest.'
353. mvp-comment-273-1 ἕλοι] 'Subdued,' viz. killed Eurytus and destroyed Oechalia. For a similar double use of εἶλον, cp Pind. Οl. 1. 142, ἕλεν δ' Οἰνομάου βίαν | παρθένον τε σύνευνον.
354-355. mvp-comment-274-1 Ἔρως.. μόνος θεῶν, κ.τ.λ.] The god of love, and no other, had moved him to this feat of arms.' αἰχμάσαι τάδε] 'Το enter on this warlike enterprise.’ τάδε, cognate accusative.
356-357. mvp-comment-275-1 τἀπὶ . . λατρεύματα] (1) 'Not the toilsome service at the bidding of the Lydians or of Omphale.' Or (2) the preposition may have the merely locative sense in the first instance, and the different meaning, 'In the power of,' with the second word. The labours which he performed among the Lydians and in the service of Omphale.' ἐπί = ' In the power of.' Cp. О. С. 66, ἄρχει τις αὐτῶν, ἢ ἐπὶ τῷ πλήθει λόγος;
357. mvp-comment-276-1 ὁ ῥιπτὸς.. μόρος] ‘The death by hurling from the rock. For a use of the passive of ῥίπτω (with cognate subject) corresponding to this use of the verbal adj.. cp. the oracle in Hdt. 1. 62, ἔρριπται δ᾽ ὁ βόλος (‘Now the cast is made'), τὸ δὲ δίκτυον ἐκπεπέτασται. Cp. also Eur. Or. 990, 1, Μυρτίλου φόνον | δικών, and see Essay on L. § 53. p. 98.
358. mvp-comment-277-1 ov] Referring to "Έρως, the most important subject in the preceding lines. Cp. Ο. C. 86, 7, Φοίβῳ τε καμοί, κ.τ.λ., ὅς, κ.τ.λ. The conjectures ἅ and ὅ are quite unnecessary. παρώσας] « Having thrust aside,' cp. Eur. El. 1037, τἄνδον παρώσας λέκτρα: Plat. Rep. 5. p. 471 C, δ.. παρωσάμενος .. πάντα ταῦτα εἴρηκας. ἔμπαλιν λέγει] 'Tells a different (lit. opposite) tale.'
359. mvp-comment-278-1 οὐκ ἔπειθε] 'He could not persuade.' The imperfect implies that his suit was continued for some time. φυτοσπόρος is originally ὁ σπείρας τὸ φυτόν,
360. mvp-comment-279-1 κρύφιον . . λέχος] ‘In secret marriage,' - accusative in apposition with the action.
362-363. mvp-comment-280-1 These lines have been censured for their tautology, and justly enough; but they are in character with the speaker, who, like the Φύλαξ in the Antigone, has already shown a fondness for false emphasis and superfluous words. The words ἄνακτα πατέρα τῆσδε in l. 364 are in the same manner. ἐν ἡ τὸν Εὔρυτον τόνδ' εἶπε δεσπόζειν θρόνων] 'The same wherein he told us that Eurytus of whom he spake was master of the throne.' The Messenger wants to impress on Deianira that this part of what she has heard need not be unsaid. The reading τῶνδε (see v. rr.) involves a still more superfluous use of the demonstrative.
365. mvp-comment-281-1 ὡς] Hermann's note in defence of ὡς shows a wise caution. He thinks that the rule of grammarians that ὡς for πρός can only be used with persons may be extended so as to cover a case of this kind where the house includes the inmates of the house. It is certainly better to retain a reading which, for anything we know, may be specially suited to express an authorized mission, such as that of Iole under charge of Lichas. ἥκει] 'Heracles is come.' After the words of Lichas in supr. 289, the arrival of Heracles is regarded as an accomplished fact.
366. mvp-comment-282-1 ἀφροντίστως] 'Without special care,' as he would have done, if she had merely fallen to his lot as part of the spoil. Cp. supr. 283-6.
367. mvp-comment-283-1 μηδὲ προσδόκα τόδε] ‘Nay, do not look for that.' μηδέ is rather adversative to Deianira's previous impression than to the preceding words. Others have taken it to mean, 'As it is not the fact, so neither must you think it.' Cp. Aesch. Ag. 879, μηδὲ θαυμάσῃς τόδε, where there is a similar doubt.
368. mvp-comment-284-1 ἐντεθέρμανται] ἐνθερμαίνειν may surely mean ἐντὸς θερμαίνειν, ας ἐμπιμπλάναι means ἐντὸς πιμπλάναι, and unless we are to get rid of all ἅπαξ λεγόμενα, there is no good reason for exchanging this, at some one's suggestion, for ἐκτεθέρμανται, because the Scholiast explains the word by ἐκκέκανται and ἐκθερμαίνειν means somewhere, 'To chafe the limbs.' The addition of this line is suited to the character of the Messenger, whose garrulity unconsciously rubs the sore.
371. mvp-comment-285-1 πρὸς μέσῃ.. ἀγορᾷ] ‘Near the midst of the Trachinians' public place.' Lichas was standing in the midst of the ἀγορά, his audience were standing near. The expression is varied infr. 423. The word μέσῃ marks the publicity of Lichas' statement. See note on O. T. 808.
373. mvp-comment-286-1 ἐξελέγχειν] Sc. αὐτόν. · Clearly to convict him.' εἰ δὲ μὴ λέγω φίλα] From the signs of emotion which she shows, and perhaps instructed by the gestures of the Chorus, the man perceives at last how Deianira is wounded. Ср. О. Т. 746, and note. For φίλα, cp. Phil. 1178, φίλα μοι, φίλα ταῦτα παρήγγειλας.
374. mvp-comment-287-1 οὐχ ἥδομαι] ‘I am sorry.' Cp. Eur. Med. 136, οὐδὲ συνήδομαι, ὦ γύναι, ἄλγεσι δώματος, ἐπεί μοι φίλον κέκρανται.
375. mvp-comment-288-1 ποῦ . . πράγματος] ‘Where am 1?' Cp. Αj. 314, κἀνήρετ᾽, ἐν τῷ πράγματος κυροί ποτέ.
376-377. mvp-comment-289-1 What undermining trouble have I welcomed in beneath my roof?' Cp. Ant. 531, σὺ δ᾽, ἢ κατ᾿ οἴκους ὡς ἔχιδν᾽ ὑφειμένη | λήθουσά μ᾽ ἐξέπινες. ὦ δύστηνος] Sc. ἐγώ. Cp. 375, 1143, 1243, О. Т. 1155, О. С. 318. ἆρ᾿ ἀνώνυμος] Deianira thus dwells bitterly on the deceit of Lichas, whereupon the literal Messenger proclaims Iole's name.
379. mvp-comment-290-1 καὶ κατ᾿ ὄμμα καὶ φύσιν] ‘In birth, as in appearance.'
380. mvp-comment-291-1 πατρός.. Εὐρύτου] 'Taking lineage from Eurytus for her sire.' Ср. Phil. 260, ὦ παῖ πατρὸς ἐξ ᾿Αχιλλέως : Εl. 365, νῦν δ᾽ ἐξὸν πατρὸς .. παῖδα κεκλῆσθαι, καλοῦ τῆς μητρός: Ο. C. 215, τίνος εἶ σπέρματος, ὦ ξένε, φώνει, πατρόθεν. ποτέ] Once.' Cp. supr. 301, and the Homeric εἴ ποτ᾽ ἔην γε (Il. 3. 180).
381. mvp-comment-292-1 'Of whose origin he had not a word to say, pretending forsooth to have made no inquiry.' Cp. supr. 317.
382. mvp-comment-293-1 οὐδὲν ἱστορῶν] 'Because he did not inquire' at that former time. ὅτι (τότε) οὐδὲν ἱστόρει. Cp. supr. 281, ὑπερχλίοντες, and note.
383. mvp-comment-294-1 ὅλοιντο μή τι πάντες οἱ κακοί] The Chorus in a sort of aside, which Deianira is too absorbed to perceive (see infr. 386, ἐκπεπληγμένη), thus covertly direct their indignation at some one. Is this Lichas or Heracles? The prevarication of Lichas is hardly a sufficient cause for such an outburst, and the phrase 'unbecoming to himself' has no significance in relation to him. It is more probable that the Trachinian women, unheard by Deianira, thus breathe a curse on the unfaithfulness of Heracles. It should be remembered that he is not their master, so that the analogy of Medea, 83, 4, ὅλοιτο μὲν μή, δεσπότης γάρ ἐστ᾽ ἐμός, | ἀτὰρ κακός γ᾽ ὧν ἐς φίλους ἁλίσκεται, is rather in favour of this interpretation than against it. Cp. Phil. 451, 2, ποῦ χρὴ τίθεσθαι ταῦτα, ποῦ δ' αἰνεῖν, ὅταν | τὰ θεῖ᾽ ἐπαινῶν τοὺς θεοὺς εὕρω κακούς ;
386. mvp-comment-295-1 (I ask you because) ' I am struck dumb by what is now reported.'
387. mvp-comment-296-1 σαφῆ] ‘Clear truth.'
388. mvp-comment-297-1 εἰ . . θέλοις] 'If you chose to press him hard with questioning.'
389. mvp-comment-298-1 καὶ γὰρ. λέγεις] ‘For your words are not unwise.' οὐκ ἄπο γνώμης = πρὸς γνώμης. 'Thought' in such expressions = ' Wise thought,' or 'Wisdom.'
390. mvp-comment-299-1 This line, which in the Laurentian MS. is expressly given to the Chorus, has been transferred by Hermann and recent editors to the Messenger (cp. El. 772, μάτην ἄρ᾽ ἡμεῖς, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἥκομεν), on the ground that the Chorus were bound in any case to stay where they were, and moreover were helpless in this matter. But (a) τί χρὴ ποιεῖν ; does not mean, 'How shall we help you?' but, What shall we do about staying where we are?' (b) The Ajax and Eumenides show that the Chorus sometimes left the scene, and the objection is irrelevant, for the illusion of the theatre may be carried so far as to ignore stage necessities in imagination. Cp. Aesch. Prom. 1058 foll., where Hermes advises the ocean-nymphs to fly, and El. 1399, ἀλλὰ σῖγα πρόσμενε. (c) The answer of Deianira is perfectly consistent with the coryphaeus having asked, Shall we some of us accompany you, or all wait till you come back?' but is unmeaning as a reply to the question, 'Shall I wait here while you go in, or shall I go away?' which is the only sense the line will bear if given to the Messenger.
391. mvp-comment-300-1 οὐκ . . ἀγγέλων] Sc. κλητός, which is suggested by αὐτόκλητος following.
394. mvp-comment-301-1 εἰσορᾷς] Wunder conjectures ὡς ὁρᾷς. Dindorf, on the other hand, suggests that Sophocles may have used εἰσορᾷς here for the parenthetical opas to avoid the repetition of ὡs. But the parenthetical opas is interrogative, and that is unsuitable here. The best explanation of the words as they stand is to suppose that they are a confusion of two constructions, (1) ὡς εἰσορᾶς ἐμὲ ἕρποντα, (2) ὡς ἕρποντος ἐμοῦ.
395. mvp-comment-302-1 ἐκ ταχείας] For this adverbial expression, cp. infr. 727, ἐξ ἑκουσίας : Plat. Soph. p. 231 C, τὰς ἁπάσας μὴ ῥάδιον εἶναι διαφεύγειν. ὁρμῆς, or some such word, can easily be supplied. But the ellipse has become idiomatic.
395. mvp-comment-302-2 σὺν χρόνῳ βραδεῖ] 'So tardily.' Cp. Ο. С. 1602, ταχεῖ ξὺν χρόνῳ. For the meaning, cp. supr. 44, 5, χρόνον γὰρ οὐχὶ βαιόν, ἀλλ᾽ ἤδη δέκα | μῆνας πρὸς ἄλλοις πέντ᾽ ἀκήρυκτος μένει
396. mvp-comment-303-1 καὶ νεώσασθαι] ‘Before I have conversed again with you.' Hermann conjectures κάννεώσασθαι, - i. e. καὶ ἀνανεώσασθαι, cp. Od. 10. 192, ἀννεῖται. But he was hardly justified in condemning νεώσασθαι. See Essay on L. § 55. p. 101, 4. The meaning is, 'Before we can have fresh interchange of talk,' rather than, 'Before we have renewed the talk we had with you just now.'
398. mvp-comment-304-1 ἢ καὶ . . νέμεις] ‘And dost thou maintain the faithful spirit of truth?" For νέμεις, 'Dost possess, wield, use,' cp. Aesch. Ag. 685, γλῶσσαν ἐν τύχᾳ νέμων. For τὸ πιστὸν τῆς ἀληθείας, cp. Thuc. 2. 40, ἐλευθερίας τῷ πιστῷ: ib. 6. 72, τὸ πιστὸν τῆς ἐπιστήμης.
399. mvp-comment-305-1 ὧν γε = (νέμω ἀλήθειαν) τούτων ἅ.
402. mvp-comment-306-1 Ср. О. Τ. 1121, δεῦρό μοι φώνει βλέπων, The Messenger rudely calls Lichas' attention to himself. Here and elsewhere in this scene (see v. rr.) the traditional reading confuses the persons of Lichas and the Messenger.
403. mvp-comment-307-1 The reading ἐρωτήσασ' (cp. 412) has suggested to some editors a transposition of the lines, which is quite unnecessary. Thus Dindorf (Oxford, 1869) reads ΔΗ. 400, ΛΙ. 403, ΔΗ. 404, ΛΙ. 401, ΑΓ. 402. But Lichas is too courteous to Deianira and too self-possessed to have addressed so rude a question to her, instead of answering at once, and if he had done so would not have emphasized the pronoun σύ: whereas it is quite natural that he should turn abruptly on the Messenger without giving him a direct answer. And 404 suits better with the peremptoriness of the "Αγγελος than with the character of Deianira.
404. mvp-comment-308-1 τόλμησον εἰπεῖν] ‘Say frankly.' τολμᾶν is one of those words which, like ἐπιχειρεῖν, are not to be pressed too closely when used as auxiliaries. Cp. Ο. C. 184, τόλμα . . ἀποστυγεῖν: Εl. 1051, οὔτε γὰρ σὺ τἄμ᾽ ἔπη τολμᾶς ἐπαινεῖν, κ.τ.λ : Aesch. Prom. 999, 1000, τόλμησον . . ὀρθῶς φρονεῖν. εἰ φρονεῖς] «If you have the sense to know it; i.e. If your lie has not 'made such a sinner of your memory' as to make you forget to whom you spoke. Hermann strangely understands the "Αγγελος to speak ironically, as if the Messenger thought that Lichas would not dare to answer the question if he were in his right mind.
406. mvp-comment-309-1 δάμαρτά θ' Ηρακλέους] Several editors propose to read δ' for θ'.
407. mvp-comment-310-1 λεύσσων μάταια] ‘If I have not lost the sight of my eyes.' Cp. infr. 863, πότερον ἐγὼ μάταιος. Lichas professes to be shaken by the rudeness of the question, so as for the moment almost to doubt his eyesight. For the adverbial use of the accusative plural, cp. Eur. Alc. 413, ἀνόνατ᾽ ἐνύμφευσας.
408. mvp-comment-311-1 For the repetition of τοῦτο, see on supr. 362, and cp. O. T. 1013, τοῦτ᾽ αὐτὸ . . τοῦτό μ᾽ εἰσαεὶ φοβεῖ. σου μαθεῖν] ‘To understand from you.' Cp. O. Τ. 575, ἐγὼ δὲ σου | μαθεῖν δικαιῶ ταὔθ᾽ ἅπερ κἀμοῦ σὺ νῦν.
409. mvp-comment-312-1 δίκαια γάρ] 'Yes, for it is right,' that I should acknowledge this. δίκαιος only means 'true' in this indirect way, viz. because it is right to speak the truth. Cp. supr. 347.
410. mvp-comment-313-1 What punishment would you accept? i.e. do you allow that you deserve?' Cp. Ο.Τ. 944, εἰ μὴ λέγω τἀληθές, ἀξιῶ θανεῖν.
412. mvp-comment-314-1 τί ποτε ποικίλας ἔχεις ;] · What riddle have you devised?' Cp. infr. 1121, οὐδὲν ξυνίημ᾽ ὧν σὺ ποικίλλεις πάλαι,
413. mvp-comment-315-1 τοῦτο δρῶν] Sc. ποικίλλων, 'Keeping up a mystery.'
414. mvp-comment-316-1 μῶρος .. σέθεν] ‘I have been a fool in listening to you for so long.'
415. mvp-comment-317-1 ού] Sc. οὐκ ἄπει. Not until being asked you have answered one little word.' See note on O. Т. 360.
416. mvp-comment-318-1 Speak what you will-indeed you have enough to say.'
418. mvp-comment-319-1 κάτοισθα δήπου ;] 'You know, I presume?' Cp. infr. 1219, τὴν Εὐρυτείαν οἶσθα δῆτα παρθένον ;
419. mvp-comment-320-1 ἣν ὑπ᾿ ἀγνοίας ὁρᾷς] 'Whom you regard with strangeness. For ὑπό with the genitive, where (as in some uses of the dative, Essay on L. § 14. p. 20, 1 ) the notion of cause passes into that of manner, or accompaniment, cp. Εl. 630, ὑπ᾿ εὐφήμου βοῆς : Εur. Hipp. 1299, ὑπ᾿ εὐκλείας θανεῖν. Iole is not present; therefore ὁρᾷς must refer to the behaviour of Lichas in the former scene. Schndw. conjectured ἧς σύ γ᾽ ἀγνοεῖς γονάς.
423. mvp-comment-321-1 πολλοῖσιν ἀστῶν] The dative answers ποίοις ἐν ἀνθρώποισι in l. 421, so that ev is easily supplied. Essay on L. §35. p. 60.
424. mvp-comment-322-1 ταῦτά γ'] 'This, ay, this!' γε adds emphasis to ταῦτα, but also qualifies the whole sentence as affirming what Lichas denies.
425. mvp-comment-323-1 ναί has sometimes been omitted, as a gloss on ye in this line. But the pause, with the interjection extra metrum, expresses very naturally the momentary confusion of Lichas. ταὐτὸ δ᾽ οὐχί] The negative is emphasized by being postponed. Essay on L. § 41. p. 78, γ.
426. mvp-comment-324-1 δόκησιν εἰπεῖν] ‘Το state an impression and to speak with exactness.'
427. mvp-comment-325-1 ποίαν δόκησιν] 'Impression quotha!' The only example of this idiom in tragedy. Cp. O. T. 1145, ὦ τάν in the mouth of the Corinthian messenger in where see note.
430. mvp-comment-326-1 τόνδε.. ξένοs] Cp. supr. 98, and note.
432. mvp-comment-327-1 πόλις .. πᾶσα] (1) i. e. πᾶσα ἡ πόλις, i.e. Oechalia. πᾶσα marks that the whole city was ruined for one maid. Cp. infr. 466. Or (2) the expression is at first general, 'A whole city,' and passes on to the particular (433, αὐτήν), as often happens in Thucydides. κοὐχ ἡ Λυδία] The sense is here improved by adopting the reading of Paris A. and other MSS., involving a very slight and probable change from κουχί, the reading of L.
433. mvp-comment-328-1 φανείς] «Having arisen; i. e 'Having proved to be a fact in the life of Heracles. (Not, 'Having been disclosed.')
435. mvp-comment-329-1 νοσοῦντι.. σώφρονος] • Το talk idly to a madman is unworthy of a man in his senses.'
436ff. mvp-comment-330-1 In this speech of Deianira, although she dissembles her jealousy in order to draw the truth from Lichas, yet the real gentleness of her character is also expressed. Cр. l. 445 with infr. 543-4.
436. mvp-comment-331-1 πρός σε τοῦ, κ.τ.λ.] This peculiar inversion seems to belong to the later manner of Sophocles. Cр. О. С. 250, 1333, Phil. 468.
437. mvp-comment-332-1 ἐκκλέψῃς λόγον] Cheat me of the truth.' ἐκκλέπτειν here is to deprive by falsehood. λόγον, ‘The true account.' Cp. Aesch. Prom. 783, μηδ' ἀτιμάσῃς λόγους.
439. mvp-comment-333-1 Either (1) To be always glad is not granted by Nature to the same person,' or (2) 'He' (man, ἄνθρωπος, implied in τὰ ἀνθρώπων) ‘is not of a nature to delight always in the same things.' For (1) cp. Thuc. 2. 64, πάντα γὰρ πέφυκε καὶ ἐλασσοῦσθαι: El. 859, πᾶσι θνατοῖς ἔφυ μόρος. And, for (2), Phil. 88, ἔφυν γὰρ οὐδὲν ἐκ τέχνης πράσσειν κακῆς. The first meaning is more pathetic, and on the whole preferable, although the second may be thought to suit better with Deianira's present purpose (see especially l. 448). For the indefinite or collective singular alternating with the plural in (2), see Essay on L. § 20. p. 31, 3.
441. mvp-comment-334-1 μέν has no distinct antithesis, but prepares for ἀλλὰ . . ἀλλά in ll. 449, 453. Cp. with εἰς χεῖρας ἰέναι the old English expression, To go to buffets.'
443-444. mvp-comment-335-1 καὶ θεῶν. . κἀμοῦ γε] 'Even over the gods, and certainly over me.'
444ff. mvp-comment-336-1 The following quotation from La Fameuse Comédienne is believed to record the personal experience of Molière: My passion has risen to such a height that it goes the length of entering with sympathy into her concerns; and when I consider how impossible it is for me to overcome my love for her, I say to myself that she may have the same difficulty in subduing her inclinations, and I feel accordingly more disposed to pity her than to blame her.' -See Molière, in Blackwood's Foreign Classics, p. 106. οἷας γ᾽ ἐμοῦ] 'I mean one who is a woman as I am.' Cp. infr. 447. For the attraction (= οῖα ἐγώ εἰμι), see Essay on L. § 35. p. 59 , and cp. Plato, Soph. 237 C, χαλεπὸν ἥρου καὶ οἴῳ γε ἐμοὶ παντάπασιν ἄπορον.
445. mvp-comment-337-1 τε.. 447. ἤ ἤ is substituted for the second τε as the disjunctive nature of the sentence becomes more prominent. See Essay on L. § 36. p. 65 f , and cp. Plat. Theaet. 143 C, περὶ αὐτοῦ τε .. ἢ αὖ περὶ τοῦ ἀποκρινομένου . .
446. mvp-comment-338-1 μεμπτός εἰμι] 'Feel reproachfully. For this use of the verbal adjective, cp. supr. 357, ὁ ῥιπτὸς Ἰφίτου μόρος, and note. The force of the verbal here is, 'Touched with a feeling of blame,' 'Affected with displeasure' = μομφὴν ἔχων (Αj. 180). μαίνομαι] Cp. Aj. 1330, ἡ γὰρ εἴην οὐκ ἂν εὐ φρονῶν: Aesch. Ag. 1064, ἦ μαίνεταί γε καὶ κακῶν κλύει φρενῶν, κ.τ.λ.
447. mvp-comment-339-1 μεταιτίᾳ] ‘Of that which is in no way disgraceful '-because shared by so many. ἐρᾷς· τί τοῦτο θαῦμα; σὺν πολλοῖς βροτῶν, Eur. Hipp. 439.
448. mvp-comment-340-1 μηδ᾽ ἐμοὶ κακοῦ τινος] ‘Nor at all involving mischief to me.' The indefinite pronoun has an adverbial force. Essay on L. § 22. p. 36, sub fin. From the point of view which she is trying to put before Lichas, Deianira still holds her position as the wife of Heracles. See below, l. 550.
449. mvp-comment-341-1 οὐκ ἔστι ταῦτα] 'There is no such thing,' as this jealous feeling you are afraid to wound.
450. mvp-comment-342-1 ἐκμανθάνεις] ἐκ is repeated from ἐκ κείνου, without adding to the meaning. Essay on L. § 55. p. 101.
451. mvp-comment-343-1 If you are your own instructor in this,' i. e. if you are not acting on instructions from another.
452. mvp-comment-344-1 γενέσθαι χρηστός] ‘Το prove yourself good.' Cp. Thuc. 3. 14. § 2, γίγνεσθε.. ἄνδρες οἴουσπερ ὑμᾶς οἵ τε Ἕλληνες ἀξιοῦσι, κ.τ.λ. ὀφθήσει] Cp. Ant. 709, ὤφθησαν κενοί.
453. mvp-comment-345-1 ἐλευθέρῳ . . καλή] i. e. εἰ ἐλεύθερός τις ὢν ψευδὴs καλεῖται, πρόσεστιν αὐτῷ οὐ καλὴ αὕτη ἡ κήρ. For προσεῖναι of a moral attribute, cp. Isocr. Panathen. p. 250, ἣν περὶ ἀνδρὸς τοιούτου διαλεγόμενος παραλίπω τι τῶν ἐκείνῳ τε προσόντων ἀγαθῶν κἀμοὶ προσηκόντων εἰπεῖν : ib. 256 C.
455. mvp-comment-346-1 The same inverted style, occasioned by Deianira's earnestness, is continued in ll. 458, 9. As to any way of concluding detection, neither is that feasible for you.'
457. mvp-comment-347-1 κεἰ μὲν δέδοικας] A suppressed antithesis is slightly hinted in μέν : viz. 'And if you are not afraid, why not have told me?' Ср. О. Т. 227, κεί μὲν φοβεῖται, κ.τ.λ. οὐ καλῶς] «Unworthily, because groundlessly. For the variation in δέδοικας .. ταρβεῖς. cp. Ο. Τ. 54.
458. mvp-comment-348-1 τὸ μὴ πυθέσθαι] i. e. Τo remain in suspense, when the doubt has once been suggested.
460. mvp-comment-349-1 For ἀνὴρ εἷς, cp. Ο. Τ. 1380, and note.
462. mvp-comment-350-1 ἠνέγκατο] 'Has obtained.' φέρεσθαι is to carry away with oneself either good or evil. Cp Plat. Legg. 6. 762 Α, ἀνείδη φερέσθωσαν: Rep. 3. 406 Β, καλὸν (ironical) .. τὸ γέρας .. ἠνέγκατο. ἥδε τ'] We should rather have expected δέ, but te may have been preferred for the sake of euphony. There are already four d's in the line.
463. mvp-comment-351-1 ἐντακείη τῷ φιλεῖν] The subject may be (1) Iole. Hermann defends this by referring to l. 444. But, taking into account the whole connection, and also the meaning of φιλεῖν, which implies active rather than passive affection (cp. O. C. 1617 foll., τὸ γὰρ φιλεῖν οὐκ ἔστιν ἐξ ὅτου πλέον, κ.τ.λ.), it is better to suppose (2) a change of subject, or rather a reversion to the main subject, with the Scholiast and Mr. Blaydes. 'And she shall not, though he were irrevocably steeped in his affection' (for her). ἐντακῆναι is used of that which adheres indissolubly. Cp. El. 1311, μισός τε γὰρ παλαιὸν ἐντέτηκέ μοι, and especially Plat. Symp. 183 E, ὁ δὲ τοῦ ἤθους χρηστοῦ ὄντος ἐραστὴς διὰ βίου μένει, ἅτε μονίμῳ συντακείς.
468. mvp-comment-352-1 ῥείτω κατ᾿ οὗρον] 'Drift down the wind.' Nauck and Blaydes conjecture ἴτω, which is the more ordinary expression (Aesch. S. c. T. 690, ἴτω κατ' οὗρον κῦμα Κωκυτοῦ λάχον . . πᾶν τὸ Λαΐου γένος. Cp. Ο. Τ. 1458, ἀλλ᾽ ἡ μὲν ἡμῶν μοῖρ᾽, ὅποιπερ εἶσ', ἴτω). But it may be urged that ταῦτα suggests not the image of a vessel, but rather of things drifting along a surface-current made by the wind. The expression is thus more suggestive of a passive and insensible motion.
469. mvp-comment-353-1 'Though you may be false to others yet be ever true to me.' The structure is paratactic. Essay on L. § 36. p. 68. Blaydes conjectures εἶναι πρὸς ἄλλους, which removes the emphatic word from the first place in the line. Essay on L. § 41. p. 77
470-471. mvp-comment-354-1 Yield to her good persuasion, so hereafter you will find no fault with her, while you will have gained our gratitude.' For οὐ μέμψει, cp. Aesch. S. c. Τ. 560, ἢ ἐξωθεν εἴσω τῷ φέροντι μέμψεται. γυναικὶ τῇδε is governed by μέμψει and is opposed to ἐμοῦ.
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.'
474. mvp-comment-356-1 οὐδὲ κρύψομαι] ‘And will not hide what I know.' οὐ κρύψω τὸ ἐμόν. Cp. the use of the middle voice in ἀγγέλλομαι, Αj. 1376. Essay on L. § 31. p. 53 d.
476. mvp-comment-357-1 ταύτης] What follows is epexegetic of οὕτως, κ.τ.λ. Hence the asyndeton. ὁ δεινὸς ἵμερος] The article is not to be explained by mere emphasis (Schndw.), but by reference to that which is already before the mind, viz. the strange fit of passion which led Heracles to destroy Oechalia. Hence ταύτης is the real predicate. The strong feeling which moved him was the desire for her.'
477. mvp-comment-358-1 διῆλθε, καί] Cp. supr. 469, and note. ἡ πολύφθορος] 'That ill-starred city,' whose fate is known to us. πολύφθορος, 'Abounding in ruin,' hints comprehensively at the condition of a conquered town.
478. mvp-comment-359-1 πατρῷος] 'Of her sires.'
479. mvp-comment-360-1 δεῖ γάρ, κ.τ.λ.] Cp. supr. 449. i.e. While telling the truth, I must also (καί) clear him as far as I can.
480. mvp-comment-361-1 εἶπε] i. e. ἐκέλευσε.
481-482. mvp-comment-362-1 τὸ σὸν.. στέρνον is to be taken after δειμαίνων, as well as after ἀλγύνοιμι.
483. mvp-comment-363-1 εἴ τι τήνδ᾽ ἁμαρτίαν νέμεις] ‘If at all you reckon this a sin.' τήνδε = τόδε, attracted to the predicate ἁμαρτίαν.
484. mvp-comment-364-1 ἐπεί γε μὲν δή] 'However, since you are now made acquainted with all.' For the collocation of particles, cp. Eur. Hel. 1259, διδούς γε μὲν δὴ δυσγενές μηδὲν δίδου.
485. mvp-comment-365-1 'Alike for his sake and your own. For κοινήν, cp. Pind. O1. 2. 89, Πυθῶνι .. Ἰσθμοῖ τε κοιναὶ χάριτες: Pyth. 5. 137, σφὸν ὄλβον νἱῷ τε κοινὰν χάριν.
486. mvp-comment-366-1 στέργε τὴν γυναῖκα] "Take kindly to the woman.'
487. mvp-comment-367-1 ἐμπέδως] Nauck's correction, ἐμπέδους, is not necessary.
488-489. mvp-comment-368-1 It is strange that these lines should have been suspected by some modern critics. A ῥῆσις often ends with a couplet not much in point. Cp. Aj. 1038, 9, 1089, 90, 1262, 3, Ant. 506, 7, 679, 80, Ó. C. 798, 9, 935, 6, 1153. But these lines are not pointless, for it is the complete and irresistible strength of the passion for Iole, which, as Lichas views the matter, clinches the necessity for Deianira's prudent acquiescence.
489. mvp-comment-369-1 εἰς ἅπαντα] 'Utterly.' ἔφυ] Cp. Phil. 1052, νικᾶν γε μέντοι πανταχοῦ χρήζων ἔφυν. The word here implies the argument, 'It was in his nature,' and therefore not to be avoided.
490. mvp-comment-370-1 καί marks the correspondence between Lichas' advice and Deianira's state of mind. 'So am I minded.' Cp. Plat. Theaet. 166 D, ἀλλ᾿ αὐτὸν τοῦτον καὶ λέγω σοφόν.
491. mvp-comment-371-1 κοὔτοι.. γε] 'Yea, and I certainly will not.' νόσον . . ἐπακτὸν ἐξαρούμεθα] This may be taken in one of three ways: (1) 'I will not cause to arise for myself a self-sought mischief,' (2) 'I will not aggravate the trouble, which then would be (in so far) of my own seeking' (ἐπακτόν, proleptic = ὥστε ἐπακτὸν ἔχειν αὐτήν), (3) ‘I will not aggravate the mischief thus brought in from without.' For (3), cp. infr. 536 foll., Eur. Phoen. 343, γάμων ἐπακτὸν ἄταν. But (2) agrees better with the intention of Deianira's present speech.
493-494. mvp-comment-372-1 And that thou mayest also carry gifts, wherewith it is meet to make return for what is given.' For ταῦτα supplying the antecedent, see Essay on L. § 40. p. 75, 2. προσαρμόσαι contains no allusion to the dress fitting the frame of Heracles (Blaydes, cp. infr. 768, ἀρτίκολλοs), but to the imagined adaptation of the love-charm to its purpose. To Lichas the phrase only means, 'To make a suitable return.' And possibly no more is intended by the poet. Cp. infr. 687, and note. The irony of ll. 495, 6 is brought out by comparing infr. ll. 540-2, τοιάδ᾽ Ἡρακλῆς . . οἰκούρι᾽ ἀντέπεμψε τοῦ μακροῦ χρόνου.
498-530. mvp-comment-373-1 The power of Aphrodite here, as in Ant. 781 foll., is regarded more with awe than with delight. It has been now exemplified in Iole's conquest of Heracles, so cruel to Deianira, and destined to be so calamitous to all concerned (infr. l.872). The maidens in their sympathy with Deianira recall the time when the same power had driven heroes to do battle for her, and when she was carried triumphantly from her mother's side. There is a close correspondence, as elsewhere, between this lyric strain and passages in the preceding senarii. Cp. esp. ll. 4-40, 142-150, 441-3,465-7. The ode consists of a strophe, antistrophe, and epode, in which logaoedic rhythms are varied with anapaestic and iambic metres. The anapaests (cp. O. T. 469, 470, 479, 480) indicate the coming on of the combatants; the interrupted rhythms of the epode help to express the struggle between them, while the happy issue is marked by the trochaics and glyconics at the close.
498. mvp-comment-374-1 (1) 'Aphrodite ever advances unchecked in mighty conquering force' (ἐκφέρεται, passive; cp. the intransitive use of the active in Il. 23. 759, ἔκφερ᾿ Οϊλιάδης : σθένος, adverbial accusative); (2) Aphrodite ever exhibits mighty conquering force' (ἐκφέρεται, subjective middle, σθένος, accusative in regimen); or (3) Aphrodite ever wins great might of victory' (σθένος, accusative in regimen ; ἐκφέρεται, 'dative-like' middle). (2) may be rejected as bad Greek, though it pleased Hermann; (1) is preferable to (3), as more poetical, and in better keeping with the style of the ode, and also because (3) seems to require κράτος (which Mr. Blaydes proposes) instead of σθένος, which denotes rather the act than the result of victory. For a similar doubt, cp. Hdt. 4. 129, ταῦτα μέν νυν ἐπὶ σμικρόν τι ἐφέροντο τοῦ πολέμου.
499. mvp-comment-375-1 τὰ μὲν θεῶν] Supr. 443: Ant. 786, οὔτ᾽ ἀθανάτων φύξιμος οὐδείς.
500. mvp-comment-376-1 παρέβαν] In Greek, a thought or feeling which is made the subject of reflection is often spoken of in the aorist, and not, as in English, in the present tense. Cp. Αj. 693. ἔφριξ᾽ ἔρωτι, κ.τ.λ. This idiom is analogous to the aorist of the immediate past (τί εἶπας, etc.). Essay on L. § 32. p. 55. So in Pindar we have κατέβαν, Οl. 7. 23: ἔμολον, Ο1. 14. 26 : ἐπέβαν, ἔσταν, Nem. 1. 26-9: and μετέσταν in Aesch. Suppl. 538. οὐ λέγω] The words imply a dislike for myths that are lowering to the gods. Cp. Pind. Pyth. 1, and, for the expression, El. 1467, εἰ δ᾽ ἔπεστι Νέμεσις, οὐ λέγω.
502-503. mvp-comment-377-1 The love of Hades for Persephone, of Poseidon for Amymone, Tyro, etc.
504. mvp-comment-378-1 ἐπὶ τάνδ᾽.. ἄκοιτιν] It makes little difference whether ἄκοιτιν is taken as predicate or, better, as a proleptic expression: - To win this bride,' rather than, 'To win this lady as a wife.' Cp. infr. 525.
505. mvp-comment-379-1 * τίνες] This word was added by Hermann, who observes that it may have been lost from the repetition of the letters τιν (άκοιτιν, τίνες). λέγω οι ἐρῶ is understood from οὐ λέγω supr., the positive elicited from the negative.
505. mvp-comment-379-2 κατέβαν] Sc. ἐς μέσον (l. 514). Cp. Hdt. 5. 22, ᾿Αλεξάνδρου . ἀεθλεύειν ἑλομένου, καὶ καταβάντος ἐπ᾿ αὐτὸ τοῦτο.
503. mvp-comment-380-1 Essay on L. § 36. p. 64. This is better than with Schndw. to suppose a transition to direct interrogation, which is too abrupt. *τίνες ἀμφίγυοι] (1) 'What all-accomplished champions.' ἀμφίγυοι has been differently explained. (2) 'Diversely armed,' Herm. (3) 'Both strong of limb,' Schndw., who compares such compounds as δικρατεῖς, δισσάρχας, etc. The more obvious meaning given by Liddell and Scott suits better with the description which follows. Each combatant was able every way, like a spear sharpened at both ends, ready to make and to parry various forms of attack: infr. 516-9. There is an etymological reference to γυῖον, 'Active in every limb.' This interpretation agrees also with πάμπληκτα, which signifies, 'Carried on with blows of every kind.'
506. mvp-comment-381-1 παγκόνιτα] Either (1) Amidst clouds of dust,' the force of παν- in composition being slightly different in this and the preceding word. See E. on L. § 55. p. 101, 6, and § 53. p. 98 , or (2) With various stirrings of the dust,' i.e. With various kinds of contest.' Cp. παγκράτιον. Blaydes reads παγκόνιτ᾽ ἐπεξῆλθον, needlessly substituting a prosaic for a poetical word. For the accusative, cp. supr. 159, πολλοὺς ἀγῶνας ἐξιών, infr. 562, τὸν πατρῷον.. στόλον . . ἑσπόμην. ἄεθλα] This word in the plural is sometimes equivalent to ἆθλος, e.g. Phil. 507, δυσοίστων πόνων ἆθλα, which also illustrates the periphrasis here. See L. and S. s. v. ἆθλον. The addition of a nearly synonymous word in the genitive is a not uncommon way of expanding and so emphasizing an idea. Essay on L. § 10. p. 17, 6.
507. mvp-comment-382-1 ποταμοῦ σθένος] An Epic expression. Cp. Il. 18. 607, ποταμοῖο μέγα σθένος Ὠκεανοῖο : ib. 486, τό τε σθένος Ωρίωνος : ib. 13. 248, σθένος Ἰδομενῆος. It is also used by Pindar and Aeschylus.
507-508. mvp-comment-383-1 ὑψίκερω τετραόρου | φάσμα ταύρου] Eustathius, p. 573, 27, reads τετράορον, but he quotes elsewhere as in the text, and the epithets redoubled about the same word are more impressive in this connection. τετράοροι ἵπποι in Od. 13. 81 are τέσσαρες ὁμοῦ ἀείροντες ἅρμα. Sophocles here employs the word in a new sense, = ἐπὶ τέσσαρσιν ἀειρόμενος, 'Upborne by fourfold means,' = 'four-footed.' This gives the Achelõus an advantage against his biped antagonist, and so lends additional terror to the description. φάσμα is in apposition with ποταμοῦ σθένος, ί.ε. σθεναρὸς ποταμός, ταῦρος παραφαινόμενος. The word φάσμα, like our 'apparition,' implies something which produces a strange impression through the eye. Cp. infr. 836, 7, δεινοτάτῳ ὕδρας . . φάσματι. Achelous enters the contest ἐναργὴς ταῦρος, supr. l. 11. Ср. Il. 21. 237, 8, τοὺς ἔκβαλλε θύραζε, μεμυκὼς ἠὔτε ταῦρος, | χέρσονδε.
510. mvp-comment-384-1 ἀπ᾿ Οἰνιαδᾶν] According to Hellenic notions each of the competitors for a prize must have a city. Achelous hails from Oeniadae, the city at his mouth, where he was probably worshipped, and had a τέμενος βωμός τε θυήεις.
510. mvp-comment-384-2 Βακχίας . . Θήβας] For Thebes as the city of Heracles, see above, l. 116, Καδμογενή. The word Bακχίας commends him to the favour of the Dionysiac worshippers. Cp. Ant. 1135 foll., Θηβαίας ἐπισκοποῦντ᾽ ἀγυιάς· | τὰν ἐκ πασᾶν τιμᾶς | ὑπερτάταν πόλεων. The emphasis on Θήβας is strengthened by the order of words, παλίντονα being interposed. This epithet has been explained as specially descriptive of a bow like the Scythian, whose ends turned outwards. But it is rather = 'elastic,' as a general epithet of the bow: i. e. Drawing against that which draws it. Cp. Heracl. Fr. 56, ed. Byw. παλίντονος ἁρμονίη κόσμου, ὅκωσπερ λύρης καὶ τόξου : ΙΙ. 8. 266, παλίντονα τόξα τιταίνων,
513. mvp-comment-385-1 παῖς Διός] The name is not required after this full description of the hero who is always in our thoughts. ἀολλεῖς] 'With collected might.' The Scholiast drily says, καταχρηστικῶς εἶπεν ἐπὶ δύο τὸ ἀολλεῖς. But the word is graphically descriptive of the confused contest as it appeared to an awe-stricken spectator. The meeting of the hero and the monster was as if two armies clashed. There is the same straining of language as in τετραόρου, supra. Cp. Milton, Par. Lost, Bk. 2. ll. 636 foll., where Satan is compared to a fleet at sea: ib. 714, 18, 'As when two black Clouds, | With Heaven's Artillery fraught, come rattling on | Over the Caspian, then stand front to front| Hovering a space, till winds the signal blow | To join their dark encounter in mid air.'
514. mvp-comment-386-1 ἱέμενοι λεχέων] 'Eager for the bridal.' See Essay on L. § 56. p. 102 , and cp. Il. 23. 371, πάτασσε δὲ θυμὸς ἑκάστου | νίκης ἱεμένων. μόνα] The combat was manifold, but one power, that of the Goddess of Love (supr.497-506), presided over the whole.
515. mvp-comment-387-1 εὔλεκτρος.. Κύπρις] ‘Aphrodite, the giver of desired marriage.' So εύχλοος Δημήτηρ is Demeter who gives abundant herbage. ῥαβδονόμει ξυνοῦσα] 'Was there directing all. The ῥαβδονόμος, οι ῥαβδοῦχος, was not the βραβευτής οι βραβεύς (in this case Ζεὺς ἀγώνιος) who awarded the prize, but the regulator of the contest, who was not necessarily the same person. Cp. Plat. Prot. 338 A (Hippias loq.), πείθεσθέ μοι ῥαβδοῦχον καὶ ἐπιστάτην καὶ πρύτανιν ἑλέσθαι, ὃς ὑμῖν φυλάξει τὸ μέτριον μῆκος τῶν λέγων ἑκατέρου.
517. mvp-comment-388-1 Schndw. regards this line as a hendiadys describing the noise made by hand and bow together, 'There was the sound of the hand, the sound of the bow, i. e. the sound of the hand upon the bow. But χερός rather means, Of blows with the fist,' and in τόξων πάταγος is included, besides the twang of the bow, the whizz and loud impact of the arrow. Musgrave objects to τόξων as unsuited for close fighting (cp. Hdt. 3.78. § 3), and absurdly suggests ταρσῶν. The arrows might be delivered before closing, or Heracles might retire a few paces. But it is needless to press the details of the description, which is meant to suggest in a few words the incidents of a varied encounter. Cp. the meeting of Satan and Death in Milton, or of Christian and Apollyon in the Pilgrim's Progress.
519. mvp-comment-389-1 ἀνάμιγδα] Therewithal.' The crashing blows of the bull's horns were mingled with the twanging of the bow, etc., in a confused noise. The more usual form is ἄμμιγα.
520. mvp-comment-390-1 ἦν] This, the so-called 'schema Pindaricum,' does not occur elsewhere in Sophocles. Cp. Eur. Ion 1146, ἐνῆν δ'.. ὑφαί: Hes. Theog. 321, τῆς δ᾽ ἦν τρεῖς κεφαλαί. It only happens where the verb precedes the noun, and it is here used for the sake of the emphatic repetition of ἦν ἦν-ἦν. Recent philology inclines to consider ἦν in such cases not as the 3rd person singular, but as a dialectical form of ἦσαν.
520. mvp-comment-390-2 ἀμφίπλεκτοι κλίμακες] Twistings and mountings on the back. The κλίμαξ was a trick in wrestling. Hermann conjectures the nature of it to have been that mentioned by Ovid, Met. 9. 51, in describing this very contest, viz. the act of giving the adversary a sudden push so as to turn him round, and then trying to throw him by mounting on his back. For the use of the verbal ἀμφίπλεκτοι, cp. supr. 357, ῥιπτός and note, and see Hdt. 3. 78, συμπλακέντος Γωβρύεω τῷ Μάγῳ.
521. mvp-comment-391-1 μετώπων.. πλήγματα] 'Blows given with the forehead-of Achelous. Cp. Ovid, Met. 9. 44, 5, Totoque ego pectore pronus | Et digitos digitis, et frontem fronte premebam.'
522. mvp-comment-392-1 στόνος] 'Groanings'-not from pain, but from the extremity of effort.
523. mvp-comment-393-1 foll. Cp. supr. 24, ἐγὼ γὰρ ἥμην ἐκπεπληγμένη φόβῳ. ὁ δ᾽ εὐῶπις ἁβρά] The Chorus, who have only seen Deianira as a careworn matron, delight in imagining her tender beauty as a girl.
524. mvp-comment-394-1 τηλαυγεῖ] 'Far-glancing.' Explained by τηλεσκόπῳ; ἱ.ε. τῆλε πέμπουσα τὰς αὐγὰς τῶν ὀμμάτων. Where a rising-ground gave a distinct view of the fight.' Paley.
526. mvp-comment-395-1 ἐγὼ δὲ μάτηρ μὲν οἷα φράζω] The interpretation of one Scholiast, ἐγὼ παρεῖσα τὰ πολλά, τὰ τέλη λέγω τῶν πραγμάτων, seems to point to a lost various reading, in which τὰ τερμόνια, or something of the kind, was written for μάτηρ μὲν οἷa. It is another question whether the conjecture founded upon this, τὰ τέρματ᾽ οἷα, gives better sense than the reading in the text, which is explained in the first scholion: ἐγώ, φησὶν ἐνδιαθέτως, ὡσεὶ μήτηρ λέγω. The Chorus had not been present at that distant scene, but in imagining it they feel a mother's tenderness for her, who 'with much, much more dismay Beheld the fight than those who made the fray.' (Shak. Merchant of Venice, 3. 2. 61, 2.)
527. mvp-comment-396-1 τὸ δ᾽.. ἀμμένει] 'And she for whom they fought, with anxious looks awaits her lord.' δé, as in prose δ' οὖν, here resumes the clause τὸν ὂν. ἀκοίταν after the parenthesis. This makes easier the omission of the object after ἀμμένει, which has been felt as a difficulty:-i.e. ἡ νύμφη, περιμάχητος οὖσα ἀμφοῖν, ἐλεινῶς θεωμένη ἀναμένει τὸν νικῶντα. Her eye' or 'gaze' ( Essay on L. § 54. p. 99 ) is made the subject because she is intently looking on, and not merely, as the Scholiast says, because the most beautiful part is put for the whole. Cp. Aj. 140, πτηνῆς ὡς ὄμμα πελείας.
528. mvp-comment-397-1 ἐλεινόν] 'Deserving pity,' because distracted with doubt and fear. Cp. O. C. 317, 8, καὶ φημὶ κἀπύφημι, κοὐκ ἔχω τί φῶ, | τάλαινα.
529. mvp-comment-398-1 κἀπὸ ματρός, κ.τ.λ.] 'And all at once she leaves her mother's side.' In the manner of this brief and rapid lyric strain, the Chorus pass from the midst of the contest to its final issue.
530. mvp-comment-399-1 ὥστε πόρτις ἐρήμα] ‘Like a heifer taken from the mother' whom she often misses; with an allusion to the solitary and wandering life which Deianira has led since her marriage day.
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.
532. mvp-comment-401-1 ὡς ἐπ᾿ ἐξόδῳ] 'With his departure in view.' Cp. El. 1322.
533. mvp-comment-402-1 θυραῖος] The masc. for the fem. form occurs more readily where a woman is speaking to women. Cp. supr. 151; El. 313; Essay on L. § 20. p. 30.
534. mvp-comment-403-1 χερσὶν ἄ] For the postponement of the initial word, see Essay on L. § 41. p. 78. τὰ μὲν . . τὰ δέ are adverbial accusatives = 'Partly,' not antecedents to the relatives. Cp. infr. 843, 4.
535. mvp-comment-404-1 οἷα πάσχω] 'For the treatment I receive.' In what follows she takes up the latter topic first. συγκατοικτιουμένη] 'To implore commiseration.' For the effect of the middle voice, cp. Hdt. 1. 114, ἀποικτίζετο τῶν ὑπὸ Κύρου ἤντησε.
536. mvp-comment-405-1 οἶμαι δ᾽ οὐκέτι] Sc. κόρην εἶναι.
537. mvp-comment-406-1 παρεισδέδεγμαι] παρα- implies, * At unawares,' (as we say, 'By a side wind.')
538. mvp-comment-407-1 'A piece of merchandize which inflicts an outrage on me.' As in supr. 33, the expression is adapted to the simile. The figure is not that of overloading, which could have no meaning here, but simply that of a cargo which in some way proves disastrous. There is a play on the word ἐμπόλημα, which is an accusative in apposition, not to φόρτον, but to the action of παρεισδέδεγμαι. The line may be thus paraphrased: ὥστε τούτῳ τῷ ἐμπολήματι ἐμπολᾶσθαι καὶ λελωβῆσθαι καὶ τὴν ἐμὴν Φρένα. λωβητόν is the verbal of the cognate passive, = ἐπὶ λωβῇ πραττόμενον. Essay on L. § 53. p. 98. Hermann and others explain the words to mean, A cruel return for my faithfulness of soul. But τῆς ἐμῆς φρενός is merely a periphrasis like ἡ ἐμὴ ψυχή in Ant. 559. Cp. Phil. 1281, and especially Ant. 1063, ὡς μὴ ᾿μπολήσων ἴσθι τὴν ἐμὴν φρένα.
540. mvp-comment-408-1 ὑπαγκάλισμα] 'Clasped in one embrace.' Cp. Ant. 650, ψυχρὸν παραγκάλισμα τοῦτο γίγνεται. The sense of μιᾶς is continued : i. e. μ. ΰ. χ. ἐν ὑπαγκάλισμα. τοιάδ᾽ Ἡρακλῆς, κ.τ.λ.] This, the single expression of bitterness on Deianira's part, tends to confirm the interpretation given supr. of ll. 383, 4. Ср. Shak. Othello, 4. 2. 107, Des. 'Tis meet I should be used so, very meet.'
541. mvp-comment-409-1 ἡμῖν is to be taken with πιστὸς κἀγαθός, rather than with καλούμενος (which is added to complete the sense). ἡμῖν is also resumed with ἀντέπεμψε, 'Heracles, so faithful and kind to me (as he was reputed), has sent me such wages in return for my long service in keeping the house.'
542. mvp-comment-410-1 τοῦ μακροῦ χρόνου] A genitive like that in μηνὸς μίσθον. τοῦ μ. χρ. sc. τῆς οἰκουρίας. For the sense, cp. Eur. H. F. 1371-3, σε τ᾽ οὐχ ὁμοίως, ὦ τάλαιν', ἀπώλεσα, | ὥσπερ σὺ τἀμὰ λέκτρ᾽ ἔσωζες ἀσφαλῶς | μακρὰς διαντλοῦσ᾽ ἐν δόμοις οἰκουρίας.
543. mvp-comment-411-1 οὐκ ἐπίσταμαι] 'I cannot.' Cp. Ant. 686, μήτ' ἐπισταίμην λέγειν.
544. mvp-comment-412-1 νοσοῦντι, κ.τ.λ.] ‘Though often taken with this malady:' viz. with love. Cp. supr. 445 and note. The clause is concessive.
545. mvp-comment-413-1 τὸ δ᾽ αὖ ξυνοικεῖν] The article, for which cp. Ant. 78, τὸ δὲ | βίᾳ πολιτῶν δρᾶν ἔφυν ἀμήχανος, gives indignant emphasis to the antithesis. That Heracles' affections should go forth to others is something to bear that the rival should have a position in the household is intolerable. For τίς ἂν δύναιτο, cp. Eur. Med. 1044, οὐκ ἂν δυναίμην· χαιρέτω βουλεύματα | τὰ πρόσθεν.
546. mvp-comment-414-1 γάμων] γάμος is not strictly reserved for the κουριδίη ἄλοχος. Cp. Eur. Hel. 190.
547. mvp-comment-415-1 ἥβην, κ.τ.λ.] The contrast is developed as the sentence proceeds. Cp. O. C. 1649, ἄνδρα, τὸν μέν, κ.τ.λ. τὴν μέν] i.e. τῆσδε μέν. Cp. Aj. 114, τέρψις ἥδε, and note.
548. mvp-comment-416-1 ὧν, κ.τ.λ.] 'From which' (viz. from those whose youth advances) 'the eye is wont to cull the bloom; but from the other,' etc. The expression is not clear, but the meaning is obvious, and the text is not corrupt. For the relative referring to the former of two expressions, see Essay on L. § 41. p. 78 , and cp. O. C. 86, 7, Φοίβῳ τε κἀμοὶ .. ὅς μοι. And, for the generic relative plural with a singular antecedent, cp. Thuc. 6. 12, 13, νεωτέρῳ.. | οὓς ἐγὼ ὁρῶν νῦν ἐνθάδε.
549. mvp-comment-417-1 ὑπεκτρέπει πόδα] Sc. ὁ ἵμερος understood in the personified ὀφθαλμός. The crowding of images is certainly rather bold. For the general sense, cp. Plato, Symp. 195, 6, especially the words ἀνανθεῖ γὰρ καὶ ἀπηνθηκότι καὶ σώματι καὶ ψυχῇ καὶ ἄλλῳ ὅτῳοῦν οὐκ ἐνίζει ἔρως.
550. mvp-comment-418-1 ταῦτ᾽ οὖν φοβοῦμαι] 'This then is my fear;' i, e. τοῦτον τὸν φόβον φοβοῦμαι, ταῦτα refers to what precedes, and is further explained by what follows. The distinction between πόσις and ἀνήρ, 'husband' or 'lord,' and 'mate,' is readily intelligible.
554. mvp-comment-419-1 λυτήριον] Cp. Ο. Τ. 392, ἠύδας ἐκλυτήριον. †λύπημα] The MS. reading, λυτήριον λύπημα, has not been successfully explained. λυτήριον cannot be taken as a verbal noun governing an accusative. Nor is it satisfactory to postpone the comma and render, 'A vexation for Iole that will deliver me.' Herm. conjectures λ. κήλημα, which may be right, but anticipates too much. A more general word seems to be required. νόημα is suggested by the resumption in l. 578, and the first syllable may have been lost from or preceding or νοῦν coming in the line above. Other conjectures are λυτήριόν τι πημονῆς (Ziel), and Mr. Paley's ἢ δ᾽ ἔχει . . λυτήριον λύπημα. To this last it may be objected that the use of the first person (ἔχω) is more expressive of Deianira's sanguine mood. A third way of interpreting the words as they stand may be suggested, viz. taking λυτήριον passively, agreeing with λύπημα: 'I will tell you a way in which I find the grief remediable.' For the passive use, see Essay on L. § 53. p. 99 , and for the redundant antecedent, ib. § 40. p. 75, 2.
555. mvp-comment-420-1 ἦν κεκρυμμένον] I had, hidden in an urn of bronze, the gift I once long ago received from the old Centaur.' ποτέ is to be taken closely with δῶρον. Cp. Ο. Τ. 1043, ἢ τοῦ τυράννου τῆσδε γῆς πάλαι ποτέ; For ἀρχαῖος in the sense of old,' cp. Ο. C. 112, χρόνῳ παλαιοί. παλαιός and ἀρχαῖος convey more of a sense of awe or wonder as attaching to old age, than γέρων οι γεραιός. The Centaur is thought of as an old-world creature belonging to a state of things that is passed away.
557. mvp-comment-421-1 παρά = from a person = (i.e. by his will), ἐκ = out of a place.
558. mvp-comment-422-1 φόνων] Bergk conjectures φονῶν. Cp infr. l. 573, σφαγῶν.
559. mvp-comment-423-1 τὸν . . ποταμόν.. πόρευε] Cp. Plat. Theaet. 199 E, ὁ τὸν ποταμὸν καθηγούμενος. The epithet βαθύρρουν accounts for mortals needing the Centaur's help.
561. mvp-comment-424-1 ἐρέσσων, which is added to explain the instrumental dative κώπαις, is of course not resumed with λαίφεσιν.
562. mvp-comment-425-1 τὸν πατρῷον.. στόλον] 'On that journey on which my father sent me forth.' viz. When he gave me in marriage. The expression is more natural if we imagine Oeneus as having accompanied them part of the way. This accusative is in a loose construction with the sentence (in apposition to the action). Cp. Ο. C. 1400, 1401, οἷον ἆρ᾽ ὁδοῦ τέλος |῎Αργους ἀφωρμήθημεν.
563. mvp-comment-426-1 ξὺν Ἡρακλεῖ] · With Heracles at my side.' The preposition is not required with ἑσπόμην following, but the fulness of expression marks the closeness of her relation to Heracles.
564. mvp-comment-427-1 ἡνίκ᾽ ἦν μέσῳ πόρῳ] 'When he was at the middle of the crossing.' Cobet would read ἢ 'v ('I was in'). Dindorf and Nauck also prefer the first person. But there is no sufficient reason for this, and the locative dative presents no difficulty.
565. mvp-comment-428-1 ματαίαις] · Wanton' Cp. Aesch. Suppl. 229, and the use of ματάζων in Ο. Τ. 891.
566. mvp-comment-429-1 ἐπιστρέψας] The middle voice is more usual. Here τόξον οι βέλος may be supplied in thought. The word always implies a sudden movement. χεροῖν] Either (1) From' (gen.), or (2) With' (dat.) his hands.'
567. mvp-comment-430-1 κομήτην] The feather of the arrow which is elsewhere imagined as a swift wing, is here figured as its hair.
568. mvp-comment-431-1 στέρνων] Governed of δια- in διερροίζησεν. ἐκθνήσκων] Αs he breathed his last.' This compound is elsewhere used figuratively, as in γέλῳ ἔκθανον, Od. 18. 100, (' died outright [as it were] with laughter'); and from Plato onwards, To faint or fall into a trance,' is the accepted meaning of the word.
570-571. mvp-comment-432-1 τῶν ἐμῶν.. πορθμῶν] For this use of the possessive adjective, cp. Ο. Τ. 572, 3, τὰς ἐμὰς . . Λαΐου διαφθοράς.
572. mvp-comment-433-1 γάρ introduces the explanatory statement, answering τοσόνδε. τῶν ἐμῶν σφαγῶν is (a) possessive genitive with αΐμα, and also (b) ablative genitive with ἐνέγκῃ, 'Bear from my wound the clotted gore of my wound.'
573-574. mvp-comment-434-1 ᾗ.. ὕδρας] 'At the place where the arrows had been tinged with black venom from the Lernaean hydra,' i.e. From that part of the wound where a dark tinge shows a trace of the hydra's venom in which the arrows were dipped.' The blood would be more clotted about the wound because of the venom, and the part of the blood most affected by the venom would be preternaturally dark. Observe the unconscious tautology in θρέμμα after ἀμφίθρεπτον, and for the periphrasis, cp. the uses of φάσμα in ll. 509,837. θρέμμα is merely expletive. See Essay on L. § 10. p. 17. Madvig's reading, adopted by Paley, is μελάγχολος. ἰός. θρέμμα is then the issue.'
577. mvp-comment-435-1 στέρξει] The future indicative after ὥστε μή is curious. Ср. О. Т. 411, ὥστ᾽ οὐ Κρέοντος προστάτου γεγράψομαι. Several MSS. and Hermann read στέρξαι; but the nominative is then unaccountable. If the text is right, we must suppose a return to the indicative from the infinitive which should have followed ὥστε μή. ἀντὶ σοῦ πλέον] 'Before thee:' a twofold expression including 'Instead of thee' and 'More than thee.' Cp. Ant. 182, 3, μείζον᾽ . . ἀντὶ τῆς αὑτοῦ πάτρας.
578. mvp-comment-436-1 τοῦτ᾽ ἐννοήσασ'] 'Bethinking me of this.' See the conjectural reading νόημα supr. l. 554, note, which this would seem to resume. δόμοις] Probably a cabinet or closet, which would exclude the light. Cp. Eur. Alc. 160, 1, ἐκ δ᾽ ἑλοῦσα κεδρίνων δόμων | ἐσθῆτα κόσμον τ᾽ εὐπρεπῶς ἠσκήσατο, where the 'cedarn habitation' of the dress is a sort of wardrobe.
580. mvp-comment-437-1 ἔβαψα] Sc. τούτῳ from τοῦτο supr. προσβαλοῦσ᾽ ὅσα | ζῶν κεῖνος εἶπε] 'With such addition as the Centaur, while yet alive, enjoined.' This refers to the manner of application, or of preparation for immediate use - cp. infr. ll. 680-7-and not (as Schndw. supposes) to something added to or mingled with the blood. The words need not include more than the precautions on which she afterwards lays such stress:-infr. 684-92. Others take προσβαλοῦσα (sc. τὸν νοῦν) to mean, 'Giving careful heed to. Cp. infr. 844, and note.
581. mvp-comment-438-1 πεπείρανται] An Epic word. Cp. Od. 12. 37, 8, ταῦτα μὲν οὕτω πάντα πεπείρανται.
582-584. mvp-comment-439-1 κακὰς δὲ .. φίλτροις δὲ..] The repetition of dé indicates the contention of opposing thoughts. Cp. O. С. 1014, 5, ὁ ξεῖνος, ὦναξ, χρηστός, αἱ δὲ συμφοραὶ | αὐτοῦ πανώλεις, ἄξιαι δ᾽ ἀμυναθεῖν. τάς τε τολμώσας] Sc. τὰς τοιαύτας τόλμας.
585. mvp-comment-440-1 ἐφ' Ἡρακλεῖ] 'Upon Heracles;' i.e. used with the view of influencing him. Cp. Eur. Hipp. 32, Ἱππολύτῳ δ᾽ ἔπι, κ.τ.λ.
586. mvp-comment-441-1 μεμηχάνηται τούργον] The means have been contrived.'
587. mvp-comment-442-1 εἰ δὲ μή] But if otherwise, I will proceed no further,' i.e. εἰ δοκῶ πράσσειν ματαιόν τι. τι in the preceding clause is to be taken, not with δοκώ, but with πράσσειν. Cp. Εl. 31, εἰ μή τι καιροῦ τυγχάνω. Deianira promises to desist, if the Chorus think her unwise. But when Lichas appears, she forgets everything in the eagerness of her purpose, and their faltering dissuasion is lost upon her.
588. mvp-comment-443-1 πίστις . . 590. ἡ πίστις] The πίστις of which the Chorus speaks is more objective = Ground of confidence; that which Deianira means is more subjective, = 'The confidence I have.'
589. mvp-comment-444-1 οὐ . . κακῶς expresses a cautious approval. Cp. Fr. 154, ἔχοιμ᾽ ἂν αὐτὸ μὴ κακῶς ἀπεικάσαι.
590. mvp-comment-445-1 γ' marks the limitation under which she assents to εἴ τις ἐστὶ πίστις supra.
591. mvp-comment-446-1 ἔνεστι] Sc. τῇ πίστει or τῷ βουλεύματι. πείρᾳ δ᾽ οὐ προσωμίλησά πω.] - But I have not yet made acquaintance with the proof of it; i.e. My plan has not been tested by experience.
593. mvp-comment-447-1 γνῶμα] The meaning of words signifying mental processes or results is not yet fixed in tragic diction, and is still relative to the several meanings of the corresponding verb. Thus γνῶμα = ἐγνωσμένον τι, which in the present context would signify, Anything clearly discerned or determined.' μὴ πειρωμένη = εἰ μὴ πεῖραν λάβοις.
594. mvp-comment-448-1 αὐτίκ᾽ εἰσόμεσθα] Deianira, in her eagerness, under-estimates the time that must still pass before Heracles' arrival. It is thus that tragic feeling helps the conventional abridgment of time that is necessary to the composition of tragedy : πόνου γὰρ ἄκρον οὐκ ἔχει χρόνον. τόνδε] Lichas, whom she does not care to name, and who is treated slightingly throughout. His fate 'is but a trifle here' (Shak. K. Lear, 5. 3. 295).
595. mvp-comment-449-1 ἐλεύσεται] 'He will make his way' to Cenaeum, where his master is.
596. mvp-comment-450-1 στεγοίμεθ'] She expresses a wish and not a command, and this in the passive voice, not only as a gentler, but also as a more earnest way of speaking. Might I only have my secret well kept by you.' σκότῳ] i. e. ἐν σκότῳ, 'Under covert of darkness:' the dative of place passing into a dative of circumstance. Essay on L. § 11. p. 18, § 14. p. 20.
597. mvp-comment-451-1 The dative αἰσχύνῃ is either (1) causal By reason of shame,' or (2) = ès αἰσχύνην: cp. Ο. C. 483, αὐτῇ . . τιθείς : infr. 789, χθονὶ ῥίπτων ἑαυτόν: probably the former (1). E. on L. § 11. p. 18, 3 a.
599. mvp-comment-452-1 ὡς .. βραδείς] 'Since we are belated by reason of the length of time,' viz. which we are spending in the fulfilment of our mission.
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.
607. mvp-comment-456-1 μήθ᾽ ἔρκος ἱερὸν μήτ' ἐφέστιον σέλας] 'Nor sacred enclosure' (because there would be fire upon the hearth or altar there), 'nor hearth-lit flame.' ἐφέστιον has generally been referred to the private hearth as distinguished from the public altar. But a doubt is thrown on this distinction by the use of ἑστίαν in l. 658.
608. mvp-comment-457-1 φανερὸν ἐμφανής] The reading of Triclinius (also according to Blaydes of Par. A), is here better than that of L, φανερὸς ἐμφανής.
609. mvp-comment-458-1 ἡμέρᾳ ταυροσφάγῳ] For the gladness implied in this phrase, cp. the Biblical expression, 'As in a day of slaughter,' and Pind. Nem. 6. 69, ἐν ἀμφικτιύνων | ταυροφόνῳ τριετηρίδι. The meaning of the phrase, 'A day when the greatest victims are sacrificed,' is illustrated by infr. 760 foll.
611. mvp-comment-459-1 πανδίκως] This word is rightly taken by Mr. Paley and Otto Hense with the following line:-'I would array him rightly in this robe.' On πανδίκως see above, l. 294.
612. mvp-comment-460-1 στελεῖν] That I would array him.' Cp. Eur. Bacch. 827, 8, ΔΙ. ἐγὼ στελῶ σε δωμάτων εἴσω μολών. | ΠΕ. τίνα στολήν; ἢ θῆλυν; ἀλλ᾽ αἰδώς μ' ἔχει.
613. mvp-comment-461-1 The words καινῷ καινόν, as Dindorf observes, are thrown together according to a very frequent idiom, for which, cp. especially Αj. 467, μόνος μόνοις. The meaning of καινόν is therefore not to be pressed. But it may hint the appropriateness of the new robe to Heracles' first appearance after his long absence.
614. mvp-comment-462-1 εὐμαθὲς ἐπ᾿ ὄμμα θήσεται] 'Which his eye, that lights on this firm seal, will easily discern.' Against the conjecture of Billerbeck, ἐπὸν μαθήσεται, it may be urged that the tautology εὐμαθές μαθήσεται is singularly ungraceful (Dindorf has accordingly introduced the further conjecture εὐθέως, and Mr. Paley that of ὄμμα θείς, for εὐμαθές) and that ἐπών adds nothing to the sense. On the other hand the reading in the text requires εὐμαθές to have an active meaning, and ő to be governed κατὰ σύνεσιν by the whole clause. The expression ἐπιθήσεται ὄμμα also appears strange. But for the two former objections, see Essay on L. § 53. p. 99, supr. 136, and note; and for the last-mentioned expression, cp. Il 10. 46, ῾Εκτορέοις ἄρα μᾶλλον ἐπὶ φρένα θῆχ᾽ ἱεροῖσιν. σφραγίδος ἕρκος is simply A safeguard consisting of a seal,' without any reference to the rim of the seal. Cp. Pind. Nem. 10. 66, ἐν ἀγγέων ἕρκεσιν παμποικίλοις.
616. mvp-comment-463-1 νόμον] Rule of conduct,' as in Ant. 191, τοιοῖσδ᾽ ἐγὼ νόμοισι τήνδ' αὔξω πόλιν. See Essay on L. p. 88 , and cp. infr. 1177, 8, νόμον . . πειθαρχεῖν πατρί.
617. mvp-comment-464-1 περισσὰ δρᾶν] Το act beyond thine office.' The meaning of περισσός is relative to the circumstances in question. Here it conveys a rebuke for Lichas' previous conduct, rather than a warning not to break the seal, etc. Cp. περισσὰ πράσσειν in Ant. 68.
619. mvp-comment-465-1 ἐξ ἁπλῆς διπλῆ] The favour which Lichas has hitherto sought is 'single,' being that of Heracles alone. Cp. supr. 286, πιστὸς ὢν κείνῳ, and note.
620. mvp-comment-466-1 πομπεύω τέχνην = χρῶμαι πομπίμῳ τέχνῃ, just as τυμβεῦσαι χοάς in Εl. 406 = χέαι ἐπιτυμβίους χοάς. The chief stress is on βέβαιον. If this art of Hermes which I practise be securely mine; i. e. 'May I lose it, if I play false.'
621. mvp-comment-467-1 οὗ τι μὴ σφαλῶ γ᾽ ἐν σοί] i. e. οὐ μὴ τι σφαλῶ ἐν σοί γε. “I will not offend in anything concerning thee.
622. mvp-comment-468-1 τόδ᾽ ἄγγος] 'This casket.' ἄγγος here is the κοῖλον ζύγαστρον (infr. 692) in which Deianira had enclosed the robe. ὡς ἔχει] • As it is,' ie. With the seal unbroken.
623. mvp-comment-469-1 λόγων τε πίστιν ὧν ἔχεις ἐφαρμόσαι] ‘And add thereto the fitting assurance of thy very words.' The Scholiasts misinterpret this passage, taking ἐφαρμόσαι (which they must have read ἐφάρμοσαι) for an imperative. The use of the word ἁρμόζω, cp. supr. l. 494, προσαρμόσαι, has no reference (as Schndw. supposes) to the closely-fitting robe (πλευραῖσιν ἀρτίκολλος, infr. l. 768). ἔχεις has been suspected: but cp. El. 934, 5, λόγους τοιούσδ᾽ ἔχουσ': Ant. 635,6, σύ μοι γνώμας ἔχων | χρηστὰς ἀπορθοῖς. ἔχω has a wide range of meaning in Sophocles. Thus explained, the line may be translated, And adding therewith faithfully the words you use,' referring to ll. 604-613. The words λόγων πίστιν may be explained as = λόγους πιστῶς λεχθέντας (abstract for concrete), cp. supr. l. 173, τῶνδε ναμέρτεια= τάδε νημερτῶς γενησόμενα. But λόγων πίστιν may also mean, 'A verbal confirmation,' and the words of Deianira, including ll. 614.5, may be regarded as the proof that Lichas is to give of the reality of his mission from her. The seal would be enough, but the repetition of her vow, and the injunction not to display the robe too soon (of which Lichas did not know the real reason) may have been felt by him to add likelihood to his assertion that this was Deianira's gift. Cp. infr. ll. 775, 6, τὸ σὸν μόνης δώρημ᾽ ἔλεξεν. ἔχεις then = παρέχεις, and, possibly, ἥν should be read for ὧν.
628. mvp-comment-470-1 αὐτήν θ] The opposition between Iole and her reception is merely verbal, but it justifies the position of αὐτήν. See v. rr.
631. mvp-comment-471-1 πρώ] «Τoo soon.' λέγοις ἄν] Sc. εἰ λέγοις. The construction remains unaffected by μή. • I fear it is too soon for you to speak of my affection, before I know if on his side there is affection for me.' εἰδέναι τἀκεῖθεν, εἰ ποθούμεθα, sc. ἐκεῖ, is said by the same idiom as εἰδέναι τινά, εἰ κάμνει, and the like. γάρ gives the reason for not adding more, the assurance of her love being that which in other circumstances she would have added.
633. mvp-comment-472-1 foll. The Chorus invite all the countries around Trachis to rejoice with them at the approach of Heracles, whose triumph the welcome flute will soon proclaim. He comes, long-waited for, to her who pined in thought for him. His own right arm hath freed him from toil. Let not the oars of his vessel tarry! Let him leave the sacrifice; and let the charm of Nessus draw him gently home.' The ode consists of two strophes and antistrophes of logaoedic verse, in which the alternation of quick and slow movements reflects the alternate eagerness and patience of expectancy.
633-635. mvp-comment-473-1 'Ye dwellers by the hot springs near the haven and the rock, and by the Oetean heights.' Hot springs were sacred to Heracles (Aristoph. Nub. 1047, etc.). Hence Thermopylae (where there was an altar to him, Hdt. 7. 176) had a special interest in his return. ναύλοχα καὶ πετραῖα] ‘By the roadstead and the rocks.' For the use of adjectives in general indications of place, see Essay on L. § 23. p. 39. Others take ναύλοχα substantively, but this makes an awkward division of the sentence. λουτρά no less than πάγους is governed of παραναιετάοντες: The word πάγος is used of the summit of Mount Oeta, infr. l. 1191, but πάγοι here include the rocky region to the north and east of the mountain. See Hdt. 7.198.
635. mvp-comment-474-1 μέσσαν] i. e. Surrounded by the lands of Euboea, Trachis, and Phthiotis.
636. mvp-comment-475-1 λίμναν is here descriptive of a land-locked sea, like the Gulf of Volo, although in the Homeric use, of which this is a reminiscence, it is sometimes applied to more open waters, as also in Soph. Fr. 432, ἐπ᾿ οἶδμα λίμνας, a phrase which is ridiculed as an affectation by Aristophanes, Av. 1337, 8.
637. mvp-comment-476-1 χρυσηλάκατος is the Homeric epithet of Artemis, χρυσηλακάτου κελαδεινῆς. In whatever sense the word was originally used, Sophocles is thinking here of the bright arrows of the goddess, for which, cp. O. T. 207, ᾿Αρτέμιδος αἴγλας, κ.τ.λ., and note. ἀκτάν] The word signifies a jutting foreland, or cliff, such as elsewhere, as in Salamis and at Artemisium in Euboea, was dedicated to the divine huntress. Cp. supr. l. 212, Ορτυγίαν, and note.
638-639. mvp-comment-477-1 Where are the famous gatherings of Hellenes in the Council of Pylae.' Ἑλλάνων ἀγοραὶ Πυλάτιδες are the meetings of the Amphictyonic Council at Pylae.' Cp. Hdt. 7. 200, 201. *κλέονται (cp. infr. l. 659, ἔνθα κλήζεται θυτήρ : Eur. Οr. 331, ἵνα μεσόμφαλοι λέγονται μυχοί), although a conjectural reading, is more probable, because more poetical, than καλεῦνται, which in this connection could hardly mean anything but are summoned.'
640. mvp-comment-478-1 καλλιβόαs] With delightful sound.' Cp. Simon. Fr. 46, ἐπείπερ ἄρξατο τερπνοτάτων μελέων ὁ καλλιβίας πολύχορδος αὐλός: Aristoph. Av. 682, καλλιβύαν . . αὐλόν. βοή is used of musical sounds in Il. 18. 495, αὐλοὶ φόρμιγγές τε βοὴν ἔχον. ὑμῖν . . ἐπάνεισιν] • Will arise over you.' The sound will travel far and high.
641. mvp-comment-479-1 ἀναρσίαν] 'Unwelcome.' Cp. Herod. 3. 10, ἀνάρσιον πρῆγμα, and the use of δάϊος in Aesch. Pers. 257, νεόκοτα καὶ δάϊα.
642-643. mvp-comment-480-1 θείας | ἀντίλυρον μούσας] Sweet as the lyre of Heavenly Muse.' The flute was commonly associated, not with Apollo and the Muses, but with ruder powers. But the joy which it now proclaimed would make it as musical as the lyre.
644. mvp-comment-481-1 ὁ γὰρ Διὸς ᾿Αλκμήνας κόρος] 'Alcmena's man-child begotten of Zeus.' The Triclinian reading omitting τε is adopted on the ground of metre.
645-646. mvp-comment-482-1 πάσας ἀρετᾶς | λάφυρα] 'Spoils, such as are the meed of supreme valour.' wâs is here intensive- not 'All' but 'Uttermost.'
647. mvp-comment-483-1 ὃν ἀπόπτολιν εἴχομεν] ie. ὃς ἦν ἀπόπτολις ἡμῖν. 'Whose absence we endured.'
648. mvp-comment-484-1 πάντα.. χρόνον] 'All a twelve-month's time.' πάντα has been changed to παντᾶ for the sake of the metre; but, as Linwood observes, this adverb is nowhere used of time. It is better therefore to retain πάντα and to divide the lines as above, unless we suspect some deeper corruption. Or, if παντᾶ is read, it may be possibly explained of direction, 'Looking all ways for him.' Cp. supr. 96 foll. δυοκαιδεκάμηνον] Heracles had been absent fifteen months. The Chorus are less precise than Deianira in counting the days. They know that a full twelve-month has elapsed. And the time of chief anxiety had been the last year, on which the issue of Heracles' fortune hung. See especially infr. ll. 824-6, ὁπότε τελεόμηνος ἐκφέροι δωδέκατος ἄροτος, ἀναδοχὰν τελεῖν πόνων τῷ Διὸς αὐτόπαιδι.
649. mvp-comment-485-1 πελάγιον] 'Far at sea.' The expression is metaphorical, as in O. C. 662, 3, φανήσεται | μακρὸν τὸ δεῦρο πέλαγος. The meaning is that the place of his abode was as unknown as that of a vessel which, after leaving the shore, has passed beyond the horizon.
650. mvp-comment-486-1 ὁ δὲ οἱ] In Lyric poetry the habit of allowing a hiatus before of is retained from the Epic style.
651. mvp-comment-487-1 * τάλαιναν, Dindorf's correction of τάλαινα, removes an unpleasing tautology, and improves at once the metre and the sense.
652. mvp-comment-488-1 πάγκλαυτος] Cp. supr. ll. 105 foll.
654-655. mvp-comment-489-1 Hoc innuit chorus: quum Hercules diu ubi esset ignoratus, longe dissitas regiones peragrasset, nunc bellum quod exarserit, sustulit labores.' Herm. The War-god stung to fury' is a lyrical condensation of ll. 359-365. in which Lichas described the sudden levying of the war against Eurytus. For the personification, cp. Aj. 706, ἔλυσεν αἰνὸν ἄχος ἀπ᾿ ὀμμάτων ᾿Αρης, and note. The conjectures αὖ στρωθείς, οἱ στρωθείς, though receiving some plausibility from a late variant οἰστρωθείς, are really worthless. ἐξέλυσ᾽ ἐπίπονον ἁμέραν] ‘Has freed him from the day of toil. The phrase ἐπίπονος ἁμέρα is formed on the analogy of δούλιον ἦμαρ, ἐλεύθερον ἦμαρ, and the like, in Epic Greek. For the accusative, cp. Ο. Τ. 35, ἐξέλυσας .. δασμόν. The day of toil' is the succession of labours, which had weighed on the life of Heracles, and through him on Deianira. Cp. infr. l.825, ἀναδοχὰν τελεῖν πόνων, κ.τ.λ.
655. mvp-comment-490-1 πολύκωπον όχημα] Literally, The many-oared car. The expression is figurative, for there is no reason to suppose that here or in Aesch. Prom. 468, ὄχημα is generalised as it is in Plato, Polit. 288 A, 289 B, to signify literally, Any means of locomotion.'
656. mvp-comment-491-1 ἀνύσειε] The optative follows the previous optative, and continues the expression of desire.
657. mvp-comment-492-1 νασιῶτιν ἑστίαν] ‘The island altar,' viz. of Zeus Cenaeus in Euboea.
659. mvp-comment-493-1 ἀμείψας] 'Passing from.' Cp. Phil. 1262. The other construction, τήνδε τὴν πόλιν ἀμείψας ἐκ νησιωτίδος ἑστίας, would have been equally possible. κλήζεται] Viz. since the report of Lichas, ll. 237, 8.
660. mvp-comment-494-1 πανάμερος] Either (1) All day long, i. e. not breaking the journey (cp. infr. 740); or (2) All docile,' from ἥμερος, i. e. cured of his passion.
661-662. mvp-comment-495-1 τᾶς πειθοῦς παγχρίστῳ συγκεραθείς] «Steeped in the full anointing of persuasion: i. e. penetrated with the virtue of the charm through which persuasion works. Cp. Pind. Pyth. 5. 24, τεᾷ τοῦτο μιγνύμενον φρενί: Hdt. 4. 152, φιλίαι . . συνεκρήθησαν. Prof. Paley, metri gratia, conjectures συντακείς. παγχρίστῳ has been suspected. But such a substantival use of the adjective does not seem impossible here. Cp. Εl. 851 foll. πανσύρτῳ παμμήνῳ, κ.τ.λ., where, however, the text is probably corrupt.
662. mvp-comment-496-1 ἐπὶ προφάσει θηρός] · By the Centaur's precept.' πρόφασις here may mean 'Fore-telling, just as πρόφατος in Pind. Olymp. 8. 16 means 'Proclaimed.' Or if πρόφατον be, as some allege, = πρόφαντον, then προφάσει may have the meaning of προφάνσει. Cp. ἔμφασις, and Hdt. 6. 129, ἐκφάσιος. In either case it is quite unnecessary to adopt an inferior reading (ἐπιπόνων ἁμερᾶν) in the strophe (l. 655). The proscenium having been vacant during the preceding ode, Deianira- with changed countenance (?) - comes forth from the house.
663. mvp-comment-497-1 περαιτέρω] · Too far,' = περαιτέρω (l. e. πέρα) τοῦ δέοντος. The comparative form strengthens the notion already contained in πέρα.
665. mvp-comment-498-1 τέκνον Οἰνέως] The formality of address reflects the solemnity of Deianira's tone.
666. mvp-comment-499-1 εἰ, κ.τ.λ.] Cp. supr. 176, and note.
668. mvp-comment-500-1 οὐ δή introduces a question about something which is suspected to be true, but is either too strange, or too good, or, as here, too bad, to be at once believed. τι] Sc. λέγεις. τῶν δωρημάτων is a vague genitive, as if with the ellipse of περί. Essay on L. § 9. р. 13. 3. Ср. О. Т. 701, Κρέοντος, οἷά μοι βεβουλευκὼς ἔχει. For the dative Ἡρακλεῖ governed by the verbal noun, cp. supr. 603, δώρημ᾽ ἐκείνῳ τἀνδρί.
669-670. mvp-comment-501-1 προθυμίαν | ἄδηλον, κ.τ.λ.] To have zeal where they have not certainty in anything which they do.' The adjective belongs in sense rather to ἔργου. Cp. infr. 817, 8, ὄγκον . . ὀνόματος μητρῷον. For προθυμίαν ἔργου λαβεῖν = προθύμως ἔργου ἅπτεσθαι, cp. Ant. 301, παντὸς ἔργου δυσσέβειαν εἰδέναι.
672. mvp-comment-502-1 οἷον.. μαθεῖν] For the construction, cp. Aristoph. Plut. 349, ποῖός τις; -Οἷος -ἣν μὲν κατορθώσωμεν, εὖ πράττειν ἀεί.
673. mvp-comment-503-1 ὑμῖν] We must suppose an ellipse of ἂν γενέσθαι οἱ ἂν γένοιτο, to which μαθεῖν is epexegetic.
674. mvp-comment-504-1 ἐνδυτῆρα] Cp. Aesch. Eum. 1028, φοινικοβάπτοις ἐνδυτοῖς ἐσθήμασιν. Ενδυτός non simpliciter quod induitur significat, sed quod ornatus causa'-Hermann, who compares Eur. Iph. Aul. 1073, 4. ἐνδύτ᾽ ἐκ θεᾶς ματρὸς δωρήματα (the arms of Achilles), Troad. 258, ἐνδυτῶν στεφέων ἱεροὺς στολμούς. The word has acquired from early use a solemn association, in addition to the original simple meaning of 'put on.' Cp. the word 'vestment' in English.
675. mvp-comment-505-1 ἀργῆτ] i. e. ἀργῆτι. The elision of ι of the dative, although rare, certainly occurs in Epic Greek, and it is therefore not irrational to admit the licence here and in O. C. 1435, and also in Aesch. Pers. 855, ὑπαντιάζειν παίδ' ἐμῷ, which there is no ground for altering. ἀργῆτα, agreeing with πέπλον, could only mean, I made the garment bright with anointing,'-a poor and ridiculous sense. The synizesis supposed by Hermann (ἀργῆτι οἷos) is practically equivalent to the elision. εὐείρῳ] For the twofold epithet, see Essay on L. § 23. p. 37. The brightness and freshness of the piece of wool increased the marvel of its rapid disappearance.
676. mvp-comment-506-1 πρὸς οὐδενὸς τῶν ἔνδον] 'Not by anything in the house' (οὐδενός, neut.). The conjecture τῶν ἐκτός (Of things foreign to it') is quite unnecessary.
677. mvp-comment-507-1 φθίνει] For the return to the indicative, see Essay on L. § 36. p. 64.
678. mvp-comment-508-1 Several editors have objected to Ψῇ having an intransitive meaning = καταψήχεται, and have accordingly suspected the reading. But the intransitive use of the active verb (see Essay on L. § 53. p. 98 ), however singular, is more probable than any conjecture that has been made. The word, so understood, naturally prepares the way for the description in ll. 698-700. κατ᾿ ἄκρας σπιλάδος] «Upon the stones.' We are to imagine the courtyard, where Deianira had flung down the flock of wool, to have been paved with small round stones.
680-681. mvp-comment-509-1 πονῶν πλευρὰν πικρᾷ γλωχίνι] 'When suffering in his side from the cruel barb.' The alliteration is suggestive of struggle and difficulty. Although πικρὸς ὀϊστός (according to Buttmann) is The sharp arrow, the meaning is different in Sophocles, - viz. 'Bitter,' i. e. 'Painful.'
682. mvp-comment-510-1 θεσμών] The awe which attended his dying moments gave to the Centaur's precepts the force of a Divine ordinance. Hence they had remained fixed in Deianira's memory.
683. mvp-comment-511-1 i.e. ὅπως ἐν χαλκῇ δέλτῳ δύσνιπτον γραφήν.
684. mvp-comment-512-1 This verse has been condemned by critics since Wunder, -unnecessarily. Although it repeats and expands what is already said, this is expressive of the perturbation of Deianira's mind, and of her effort in collecting her thoughts. She returns upon her steps several times in telling her story. See ll. 678, 698; 675, 690, 695; 685, 691.
687. mvp-comment-513-1 ἕως .. που] Until, having laid it freshly on, I should apply it to some use.' The retention of av in oblique narrative, although singular, is not indefensible, and was defended by Hermann on l. 3. See also l. 164 and v. rr. Elmsley conjectured ἕως νιν.
689. mvp-comment-514-1 ἔχρισα] 'I applied the unguent.' The object (πέπλον) is easily supplied. Cp. inf. 696, ᾧ προὔχριον. μέν prepares for the contrast between the care taken with the robe and the neglect of the bit of wool. But Deianira's speech is not logically coherent, and d' in l. 693 does not answer to μέν here. κατ᾿ οἶκον ἐν δόμοις] ‘In a chamber of the house." Another instance of redundancy arising from the same cause- the intentness of Deianira's thought. She is showing how closely she had observed the precept ἐν μυχοῖς σώζειν ἕως . . ἀρμόσαιμί που.
690. mvp-comment-515-1 κτησίου βοτοῦ] Either (1) one of the home flock, as distinguished from those in distant pastures, or (2) simply a sheep from the flock.' λάχνῃ, Wool,' is a more general word than μαλλῷ, 'Sheep's-wool.'
692. mvp-comment-516-1 ζυγάστρῳ] The ἄγγος mentioned above. l.622. It was a box with strong fastenings. See L. and S. s. v.
693. mvp-comment-517-1 ἀποστείχουσα] ‘Returning,' from before the gate.
693-694. mvp-comment-518-1 φάτιν μαθεῖν] Α thing beyond the hearer's thought, beyond the guess of man to understand.' φάτιν .. ἄφραστον = οἷον θαῦμ᾽ ἀνέλπιστον μαθεῖν, supr. ll. 672, 3. ἄφραστος is that 'which from its strangeness escapes or baffles the mind,' as ἄσκοπος is, 'What from its vastness escapes or baffles the eye.' For the infin. cp. Aesch. Suppl. 94, κατιδεῖν ἄφραστοι.
695. mvp-comment-519-1 κάταγμα] 'The bit of wool that I had pulled.' κατάγειν is properly, To pull out before spinning, so as to be ready for the distaff. See Plat. Polit. 282 E. πως] Nescio quo modo; indicating the carelessness of the act.
696. mvp-comment-520-1 προὔχριον] Prepared (the robe) by anointing.' Supr. 675, 689.
697. mvp-comment-521-1 ἀκτῖν᾽ ἐς ἡλιῶτιν] 'Into the bright sunshine.' Added to explain φλόγα.
698. mvp-comment-522-1 ῥεῖ.. ἄδηλον] It melts all out of sight,' i. e. dissolves and disappears. καὶ κατέψηκται χθονί] And is crumbled on the ground; i.e. The shrunken morsels that remain appear like a crumbling substance.
699. mvp-comment-523-1 εἰκαστὸν ὥστε] The comparison begins afresh with ὥστε, as if εἰκαστόν had not preceded. See Essay on L. § 40. p. 75, 5. ὥστε.. ξύλου] 'As, where wood is severed, you may see the morsels bitten out by the saw; i.e. it had the appearance of sawdust,
701. mvp-comment-524-1 προπετές] This has been commonly explained, 'On the ground,' or 'Thrown away:' as if κεῖται προπετές were simply = προκεῖται. But the radical meaning of προπετής is rather, 'Ready to fall' than Having fallen.' See L. and S. s. v. And on comparing infr. l.976, Menand. Παρακ. 2, Eur. Alc. 909, Hec. 152, a more probable explanation seems to be, On the point of dissolution,' 'About to perish,' or 'disappear.' The wool has all but crumbled away when the froth exudes from the ground. ὅθεν] The adverb of place being added to particularize ἐκ γῆς, ὅθεν takes the case of its antecedent (= κεῖθεν οὗ), just as ὧν is often = τούτων ἅ.
702. mvp-comment-525-1 προὔκειτο] 'It lay exposed.' θρομβώδεις ἀφροί] Clots of foam.'
703. mvp-comment-526-1 γλαυκῆς .. ἀμπέλου] · As when in bloomy vintage-time the rich liquor pressed from Bacchus' vine is spilt upon the ground.' γλαυκῆς ὀπώρας is to be taken (1) with the whole sentence, as a genitive of time or circumstance, rather than (2) in regimen with ποτοῦ. On the other hand, Βακχίας ἀπ᾿ ἀμπέλου is to be joined with ποτοῦ rather than with χυθέντος. The venom frothed like the spilth of new-made wine.
705. mvp-comment-527-1 ποῖ γνώμης πέσω] «Whither finally to rush in thought.' πέσω (more than μόλω) expresses the violence of the disturbance in Deianira's mind. Cp. the Homeric use of ὁρμαίνειν.
706. mvp-comment-528-1 ὁρῶ δέ μ'.. ἐξειργασμένην] She sees her error as clearly as if it were the act of another. Hence the accusative.
707. mvp-comment-529-1 πόθεν.. ἀντὶ τοῦ] 'Whence? From what motive?' The abruptly repeated question is quite in keeping with the rest of the speech, and there is no reason for any change in the reading.
708. mvp-comment-530-1 ἧς.. ὕπερ.] On whose account.' He was slain in vindication of Deianira's honour.
714. mvp-comment-531-1 τὸν . . ἄτρακτον] The arrows of Heracles, all alike dipped in the poison of the Hydra, are poetically spoken of as one. βαλόντ'] Sc. τὸν Νέσσον. θεόν] Chiron was a son of Cronus.
715. mvp-comment-532-1 χώσπερ ἄν is more forcible than Wakefield's conjecture χὧνπερ ἄν. • Even as it touches, even so it destroys;' i.e. As sure as it touches, so surely it kills.' Cp. Ar. Pax, 24.
716. mvp-comment-533-1 ἐκ δὲ τοῦδ᾽ ὅδε, κ.τ.λ.] 'And must not the dark gory venom from his (Nessus') wound be fatal to him (Heracles) too?' τοῦδε, sc. τοῦ Νέσσου, from the implied object of βαλόντα, supra. For the repetition of the same pronoun, ср. О. С. 1405-1413.
717. mvp-comment-534-1 ἰὸς αἵματος is the 'poison consisting of the (envenomed) blood.'
719. mvp-comment-535-1 δέδοκται] Sc. ἐμοί from ἐμé in l. 720. Observe the unconscious tautology in δόξῃ (718).. δέδοκται. σφαλήσεται] i. e. πείσεταί τι. 'If he shall come to harm.' A euphemism for θανεῖται.
720. mvp-comment-536-1 ταύτῃ σὺν ὁρμῇ] 'Together with that fall, I too shall die with him.' ὁρμή is 'sudden departure,' the impetus which carries Heracles away. Ср. Aesch. Ag. 1388, θυμὸν ὁρμαίνει: Eur. Alc. 901, 2, ὁμοῦ χθονίαν λίμνην διαβάντε. She will not follow, she will rush from life together with him. The conjecture ταὐτῇ makes no difference to the sense. Cp. Aj. 497. Others understand the words to mean, 'The same impulse which made me do the deed, shall make me die with him.'
721-722. mvp-comment-537-1 'She who cares to live nobly cannot endure ill fame.'
723. mvp-comment-538-1 ἔργα δεινά] (1) ‘A terrible fact,' such as the portent of the crumbling piece of wool. Or (2) 'Actions which are fearful,' as the sending of the robe now proves to have been.
724. mvp-comment-539-1 τὴν δ᾽ ἐλπίδ᾽ οὐ χρὴ .. κρίνειν] This has been explained in two different ways: (1) 'One ought not to judge of a hope,' and (2) One ought not to decide one's judgment of the future.' The first suits the context best. The 'hope' is that with which Deianira had sent the robe (cp. supr. l. 667), and the Chorus urge that it is too soon to condemn that hope as having been ill-founded.
726. mvp-comment-540-1 ἥ τις .. προξενεῖ] Mr. Blaydes unnecessarily questions the indicative here. It makes the reference to the actual circumstances more pointed.
727. mvp-comment-541-1 ἐξ ἑκουσίας] For this adverbial expression, cp. supr. l. 395.
728. mvp-comment-542-1 Cp. Thuc. 3. 40, ξύγγνωμον δ' ἐστὶ τὸ ἀκούσιον, πέπειρα is (a) predicative, (b) attributive, as part of the antecedent of τῆς.
729-730. mvp-comment-543-1 i. e. That is for you to say, who have no share in the crime, but not for me, who have committed it.' *οἴκοι] At home,' i. e. within the sphere of his own life. The MS. reading οἴκοις is indefensible. For the figure, cp. O. T. 1390, τὴν φροντίδ᾽ ἔξω τῶν κακῶν οἰκεῖν γλυκύ.
731-733. mvp-comment-544-1 These quiet words precede the climax of horror. Cp. O. T. 1110, and note. ἁρμόζοι, sc. τῷ καιρῷ, i.e. καιρὸς εἴη. τὸν πλείω λόγον] 'Anything more which you have to say.' Cp. Eur. Med. 609, ὡς οὐ κρινοῦμαι τώνδέ σοι τὰ πλείονα.
732. mvp-comment-545-1 εἰ μή τι λέξεις] · Unless you mean to speak.'
733. mvp-comment-546-1 μαστὴρ . . ᾤχετο] Cp. O. C. 35, σκοπὸς προσήκεις: ib. 70, πομπὸς μόλοι.
734. mvp-comment-547-1 The pronominal phrase, ἐκ τριῶν ἓν, takes the place of an infinitive, of which σε is the subject. Cp. similar constructions with δυοῖν θάτερον, οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἤ, τί ἄλλο ἤ, and the like expressions.
738. mvp-comment-548-1 τί.. στυγούμενον] These words have been needlessly suspected. The abstract use of the neuter participle is more easily explained in the passive than in the active voice (e.g. τὸ .. ποθοῦν, supra 196). 'What cause of dislike is there that proceeds from me?' i.e. 'What cause have I given for your abhorrence?' See E. on L. § 31. p. 54.
739-740. mvp-comment-549-1 τὸν δ᾽ ἐμὸν λέγω | πατέρα] Hyllus corrects himself, as if he had admitted too much in speaking of his father as Deianira's husband. Thy husband? no, I mean my father.' Cp. infr. 807. τῇδ᾽ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ] This shows that the action is imagined as lasting only for a day. Cp. supr. 660, πανάμερος, and note.
741. mvp-comment-550-1 τίν᾿ ἐξήνεγκας.. λόγον] ‘What hast thou uttered?" Deianira, stunned by her anguish, falters this out half-consciously. τίνα is nearly = οἷον. Cp. Εl. 388, τίν', ὦ τάλαινα, τόνδ᾽ ἐπηράσω λόγον ; ἐξήνεγκας] ἐκφέρειν is literally to produce that which one has in possession.
742-743. mvp-comment-551-1 τὸ.. φανθέν] 'That which has come into existence,' superasque evasit in auras.
743. mvp-comment-552-1 τίς ἂν δύναιτ' ἄν] For a similar reduplication of av in an emphatic passage, cp. O. T. 339, 40, τίς γὰρ τοιαῦτ᾽ ἂν οὐκ ἂν ὀργίζοιτ᾽ ἔπη | κλύων; Suidas (s. v. rr.) has preserved the true reading, for ἀγέννητον is unsuitable here.
745. mvp-comment-553-1 ἄζηλον = ἀνόλβιον. So horrible a deed.' Cp. Εl. 1455, ἄζηλος θέα.
746-747. mvp-comment-554-1 αὐτὸς .. πατρός] Nauck's inversion of these words injures the effect. αὐτός is made much stronger by being separated from δεδορκώς and put first in the sentence.
748. mvp-comment-555-1 ἐμπελάζεις .. παρίστασαι] Historical present. τἀνδρί is pronominal = 'to him.' These words are said in a subdued tone. Though heart-broken, she still wishes to hear more of Heracles.
749. mvp-comment-556-1 If you must know, then I must tell all.' εἰ χρὴ μαθεῖν σε] Wunder explained this: Dignane sit cui rem exponat, iratus Hyllus dubitat.' The words may also convey his feeling of horror in telling her the consequence of her crime. πάντα] 'All,' and not merely the answer to Deianira's last question. Hyllus is in too impatient a mood to tell his story piecemeal.
750-753. mvp-comment-557-1 ὅθ᾽ εἶρπε.. ἀκτή τις . . ἐστίν] Cp. supr. 237, and especially Eur. Hippol. 1198, ἐπεὶ δ᾽ ἔρημον χῶρον εἰσεβάλλομεν, ἀκτή τίς ἐστι, .. . . ἔνθεν τις ἠχὼ .. .. βρόμον μεθῆκεν. See also Aesch. Fr. 29, Εὐβοΐδα καμπὴν ἀμφὶ Κηναίου Διὸς | ἀκτήν, κατ᾿ αὐτὸν τύμβον ἀθλίου Λίχα.
752. mvp-comment-558-1 Εὐβοίας ἄκρον] 'At the extreme end of Euboea.' ἄκρον is an adjective, rather than a substantive='A point of Euboea.'
754. mvp-comment-559-1 By a slight variation of expression ὁρίζει is here active, whereas ὁρίζεται in l. 237 is in the middle voice. See Essay on L. § 30. p. 516. τεμενίαν τε φυλλάδα] τέμενος πολύφυλλον, Schol.
755. mvp-comment-560-1 ἄσμενος πόθῳ] 'Rejoicing, for I longed to see him. The joy of Hyllus at finding his father was in proportion to his longing for him; hence the latter is represented as occasioning the former.
756. mvp-comment-561-1 πολυθύτους τεύχειν σφαγάς] To commence the slaying of many victims.' πολυθύτους = πολλῶν θυμάτων.
757. mvp-comment-562-1 οἰκεῖος] «His own,' i. e. attached to his person. This word denotes the relation of Lichas to Heracles. Deianira, to the Trachinian maidens, supr. l. 531, speaks of him as ὁ ξένος, i. e, as not belonging to Trachis.
759. mvp-comment-563-1 ὡς σὺ προὐξεφίεσο] Supr. ll. 608, 9, 623, and note. Hyllus heard Deianira's charge repeated by Lichas.
760. mvp-comment-564-1 ταυροκτονεῖ.. βοῦς] «Was engaged in sacrificing twelve entire (or perfect) cattle, the firstlings of the spoil. For the redundant expression, see Essay on L. § 40. p. 75; § 55. p. 101 , and cp. El. 190, οἰκονομῶ θαλάμους. ἔχων marks the continuity of the act = ἐπέχων, ἐντελεῖς is either (1) Unblemished,' or (2) ‘Entire' =ἐνόρχους, so that ἐντελεῖς βοῦς = ταύρους.
762. mvp-comment-565-1 προσῆγε] Sc. τοῖς βώμοις.
764. mvp-comment-566-1 κόσμῳ τε καὶ στολῇ is either (1) a hendiadys for κόσμῳ στολῆς. “The ornate raiment,' or (2) implies that the dress was accompanied with ornaments, such as a brooch, etc.
765. mvp-comment-567-1 σεμνῶν ὀργίων] 'From the solemn sacrifices.' Abl. gen. assisted by ἀπό in what follows.
766. mvp-comment-568-1 πιείρας δρυός] Hermann, following a suggestion of the Scholiast, imagines δρῦς here to be the pine, or rather a general word for tree. This is disproved by comparing infr. 1195. The oak is naturally preferred in sacrificing to Zeus. πιείρας then refers not to the special peculiarity of the wood, but generally to the sap, or essential oil, or whatever the flame is supposed to feed on, as R. Browning says, 'Tasting some richness caked in the core of the tree.' (Balaustion).
767. mvp-comment-569-1 ἱδρὼς ἀνῄει] We may either read thus, or ἱδρῶτ᾽ ἀνίει. See v. rr. The breaking forth of the sweat is the first symptom of the activity of the poison. προσπτύσσετο] 'Was clinging.' This is the reading of the MSS., and was retained by Hermann. See on O. C. 1624, θώϋξεν. Musgrave conj. προσπτύσσεται.
768. mvp-comment-570-1 ἀρτίκολλος] Fast-glued,' not, 'Lately glued,' as the Scholiast supposed. ὥστε τέκτονος] Sc. κολλήσαντος, Like the work of a carpenter.' τέκτονος is a genitive absolute passing into the genitive of cause. Essay on L. § 9. pp. 13, 14.
769. mvp-comment-571-1 ἅπαν κατ' ἄρθρον] ‘At every joint,' i. e, showing every curve of the body. ἦλθε] 'Came on.' Cp. O. T. 681, δόκησις ἄγνως λόγων ἦλθε. ὀστέων ἀδαγμὸς ἀντίσπαστος] ‘Racking pains in the bones.' ὀστέων ἀδαγμός is, A shooting pain in the bones,' just as ὀμμάτων φόβον is, 'A fear in the eyes,' O. C. 729, 30.
770. mvp-comment-572-1 ἀντίσπαστος] ‘In contrarium vellens.' Wakefield.
771. mvp-comment-573-1 ἐδαίνυτο] 'It began devouring.' Sc. ὁ ἰός, to be supplied from ἰὸς ὥς. The thing compared is again absorbed in the comparison (cp. supr. 32, 3, 537,8) Hyllus infers the presence of poison from the effect.
772. mvp-comment-574-1 βόησε] The absence of the augment in a narrative passage may be justified by many examples, but it is a point of little importance whether we read βόησε or ᾿βόησε.
773. mvp-comment-575-1 τοῦ σοῦ κακοῦ] Cp. Ο. Τ. 572, 3, τὰς ἐμὰς | οὐκ ἄν ποτ' εἶπε Λαΐου διαφθοράς.
774. mvp-comment-576-1 For ποίαις, κ.τ.λ., depending on βόησε, cp. Ο. Τ. 780, καλεῖ.. ὡς εἴην, κ.τ.λ., supr. 267.
775. mvp-comment-577-1 μόνης] · And of no other,' a form of asseveration. Cp. O. C. μύνης τάδ' ἐστὶ δῆλον Ἰσμήνης κάρα,
776. mvp-comment-578-1 ἔλεξεν] Sc. εἶναι. Cp. infr. 1128, ἐρεῖς (SC. πρέπειν). ὥσπερ ἦν ἐσταλμένον] Either (1) ‘As had been given him in charge.' Or (2) taking δώρημα as the subject, - Even as it had been sent forth. The robe had been sent expressly as Deianira's gift, supr. l. 603.
779. mvp-comment-579-1 μάρψας ποδός] Cp. Eur. Cycl. 400, τὸν δ᾽ αὖ τένοντος ἁρπάσας ἄκρου ποδός. ἄρθρον ᾗ λυγίζεται] 'Where the joint moves about.'-At the ankle-socket.
780. mvp-comment-580-1 ῥιπτεῖ] Editors have changed this to ῥίπτει. Cp. Αj. 239. The derivative is more emphatic. Cp. φορῶ and φέρω. πρὸς ἀμφίκλυστον ἐκ πόντου πέτραν] (1) 'On a spray-washed island-rock that jutted from the sea.' ἐκ πόντου, SC. προφαινόμενov, -a descriptive phrase to be taken with the whole clause. Or (2) On a rock washed all around with waves from the sea.' The 'rock' is one of those known in historical times ας Λιχάδες νῆσοι.
781-782. mvp-comment-581-1 κόμης.. ὁμοῦ.] ‘And out through the hair he sprinkles a grey pulp, the brain being scattered about and blood therewith.' μέσον κάρα is a periphrasis for ἐγκέφαλος. κόμης is ablative genitive assisted by ἐκ in ἐκραίνει. Cp. supr. 765. There remains the question whether the subject of ἐκραίνει is (1) Lichas, or (2) Heracles. The latter (2) is stronger and more probable, the consequence of the action being identified in the rapid narrative with the action itself. For the former (1), cp. Aj. 918, 9, φυσῶντ᾽ ἄνω .. αἷμ᾿ ἀπ᾿ οἰκείας σφαγῆς.
784. mvp-comment-582-1 'For the frenzy of the one and for the violent end of the other.'
785. mvp-comment-583-1 τἀνδρὸς μολείν] • To approach my father.' That the pronominal use of ἀνήρ implies no coldness or indifference is clear from this passage, and from supr. l. 748.
786. mvp-comment-584-1 ἐσπᾶτο.. μετάρσιος] « For the convulsion pulled him to the ground, then threw him up into the air.'
787. mvp-comment-585-1 ἐκτύπουν] Diog. L. 10. 137, in quoting the passage, gives ἔστενον,
788. mvp-comment-586-1 Cp. II. 2. 528, Λοκρῶν, οἱ ναίουσι πέρην ἱερῆς Εὐβοίας.
789. mvp-comment-587-1 χθονί] For this 'pregnant' use of the locative dative = is χθόνα, CP. Εl. 747, τοῦ δὲ πίπτοντος πέδῳ.
791. mvp-comment-588-1 τὸ δυσπάρευνον .. ταλαίνης] 'Harping bitterly on his ill-assorted marriage with you, the wretched woman.' ἐνδατούμενος is more literally, Reproachfully dilating upon.' See L. and S. s. v. Heracles, in his half-articulate outcry (infr. 1031-1111), continually introduces Deianira, and his fatal marriage with her.
792. mvp-comment-589-1 τὸν Οἰνέως γάμον] ‘His alliance with the house of Oeneus,' which had seemed a prize worth the contest with Achelous.
794. mvp-comment-590-1 ἐκ προσέδρου λιγνύος] From the clinging smoke.' This has been interpreted to mean the dimness of vision induced by the disease, metaphorically spoken of as a blinding smoke. Schndw, rightly explains it to mean the smoke from the hecatomb, clinging about the place of sacrifice, and perhaps parted for the moment by a puff of wind. As Heracles had been standing by the sacrifices, the smoke would be most dense immediately around him, and would aggravate his torment. His distraction is calmed for the moment when the thick cloud which enveloped him is parted, and his eye rests upon his son.
795. mvp-comment-591-1 στρατῷ] 'Multitude' = λεώς, supr. l. 783. Cp. El. 749, στρατὸς δ' ὅπως ὁρᾷ νιν ἐκπεπτωκότα,
799. mvp-comment-592-1 Hermann rightly prefers μέθες to the conjecture με θές. The notion of 'removing out of the way,' which is contained in μέθες, suits the context here. The case is different in infr. l. 1254, ἐς πυράν με θῇς.
800. mvp-comment-593-1 Ср. О. Т. 1410-12, ἔξω μέ που ἐκρίψατ᾽, ἔνθα μήποτ᾽ εἰσόψεσθ᾽ ἔτι.
801. mvp-comment-594-1 εἰ δ᾽ οἶκτον ἴσχεις] ‘But if your feelings will not allow of that.' οἶκτος is' weak emotion,' as in O. C. 1636, οὐκ οἴκτου μέτα. If Hyllus is too soft-hearted to leave Heracles in a desert place, he is at least to remove him from Euboea, where his enemies would rejoice over his sufferings (Schndw.).
802. mvp-comment-595-1 πόρθμευσον] 'Ferry me' across the strait.
803. mvp-comment-596-1 ἐν μέσῳ σκάφει] ‘In the hollow of the ship.'
807. mvp-comment-597-1 πατρὶ.. ἐμῷ] The dative of reference, instead of the more regular ἐς τὸν πατέρα.
809. mvp-comment-598-1 εἰ θέμις δ', ἐπεύχομαι] For similar hesitation in uttering a curse, cp. Phil. 961, 2, ὄλοιο μή πω, πρὶν μαθοιμ᾽ εἰ καὶ πάλιν | γνώμην μετοίσεις· εἰ δὲ μή, θάνοις κακῶς. Hyllus' hesitation, however, is only momentary, and is overcome by the apparently overwhelming evidence of his mother's guilt.
810. mvp-comment-599-1 τὴν θέμιν σὺ προὔβαλες] 'You have given me this right,' i.e. have made this lawful for me by your crime.
813-814. mvp-comment-600-1 Deianira has no words wherewith to answer the reproaches of her son. She goes silently and undefended to her death, already heart-broken by having done what she greatly feared to do, and rendered yet more desolate by the rebuke of her child. She enters the house by the central door.
815-816. mvp-comment-601-1 οὗρος καλός] 'Fair be the wind that carries her away out of my sight!' καλός, which is the better reading, is sufficiently supported by the Scholiast. For οὗρος, cp. Ο. Τ. 195, ἔπουρον, and note. Join ἄπωθεν ὀφθαλμῶν ἐμῶν. The inversion gives greater force both to ἐμῶν and to καλός.
816. mvp-comment-602-1 foll. Why vainly keep the high-sounding name of mother for one whose deeds are all unmotherly?' Although ὄγκον ἄλλως might stand alone='A solemn mockery, it is better here to join ἄλλως with τρέφειν. μητρῷον ὄγκον ὀνόματος = ὀγκῶδες ὄνομα μητρός. See Essay on L. § 42. p. 8ο γ.
818. mvp-comment-603-1 ἥτις] For the implied antecedent, cp. O. C. 263 foll. κάμοιγε ποῦ ταῦτ᾽ ἐστιν, οἵτινες βάθρων, κ.τ.λ.
819. mvp-comment-604-1 χαίρουσα] ‘And joy go with her,' said ironically, like oὗpos, supr.; i. e. I willingly give her leave to go. τὴν δὲ τέρψιν, κ.τ.λ.] « And may that joy be hers, -even that, which she gives to my father!' ἥν] The careless rhythm, with the monosyllable in synaphea, suits with the mood of Hyllus, in which, wrought upon by strong passion, he lightly casts off his mother. Exit Hyllus to the courtyard (L).
821ff. mvp-comment-605-1 The Chorus, in an ode which marks the chief peripeteia, (a) pronounce that the doom of Heracles is now inevitable; (b) express their pity for Deianira, who is the unconscious instrument of the calamity, and whom they imagine as 'shedding tender tears;' (c) look apprehensively for what is still to come; (d) hint darkly at the love of Iole, which has been the silent but effectual cause of all this ruin.
821ff. mvp-comment-605-2 The chief metrical peculiarities of the ode are, (1) the frequency of resolutions, and (2) the accumulation of long syllables. The former (1), denoting excitement, is more prominent in the first strophe and antistrophe (a'), the latter (2), expressing sadness, in the second (β΄). In ll. 3-5 of ß' there are corruptions of the text both in strophe and antistrophe, and the metre is consequently uncertain.
821. mvp-comment-606-1 ἴδ᾽.. ὦ παῖδες] 'See, children, in what strange wise the prophetic word comes suddenly to pass.' So close a combination of singular and plural is unusual even in a chorus, but ἴδε, being virtually an interjection, loses the meaning of the inflection, and is used here, like the Homeric ἰδé, as = ἰδού. προσέμιξεν] • Has arrived;' i.e. is come to its fulfilment, and has touched our life. ὦ παῖδες] Cp. infr. l. 871. ἄφαρ] This Epic and Lyric word occurs four times in the Trachiniae, and nowhere else in Sophocles. See Essay on L. § 57. p. 104.
822. mvp-comment-607-1 θεοπρόπον] 'Prophetic, or Inspired.' θεοπρόπος is more commonly used of persons; but cp. O. C. 239, 40, ἔργων | ἀκόντων : ib. 977.
823. mvp-comment-608-1 τᾶς παλαιφάτου προνοίας] 'Of the prescience that revealed itself of old.'
824. mvp-comment-609-1 *ἅ τ᾽ ἔλακεν) The MS. reading, ὅ τ' ἔλακεν, has been variously explained: (1) (ὅ, neuter) Which sounded to this effect, viz. τὸ ἔπος; (2) (ὅ, neuter) Which he uttered,' viz. θεός, implied in θεοπρόπον; (3) (ὅ, masc.) • Who declared,' again referring to θεός; (4) (ὅτε) When he (θεός) declared.' The conjectural reading ἅ τε, already adopted by some editors, gives a clearer sense and also secures perfect metrical correspondence to the antistrophe. 'Which' (sc. ἡ πρόνοια) ‘declared.' If ὅ is read, the first (1) of the above-mentioned interpretations should be adopted. ὁπότε . . ἄροτος] 'When the twelfth year, with its full tale of months, should come to an end.' For ἐκφέροι, ср. О. С. 1424, ὡς ἐς ὀρθὸν ἐκφέρει, and note. And for ἄροτοs, cp. supr. 69, τὸν παρελθόντ᾽ ἄροτον.
825. mvp-comment-610-1 ἀναδοχὰν τελεῖν πόνων] (The undertaking' (rather than the succession') 'of labours should terminate.' τελεῖν (fut.), (1) like ἐκφέροι, is used absolutely, for which, cp. El. 1419, τελοῦσ᾽ ἀραί, or (2) = 'The year should end his toils.' For the meaning, cp. ll. 164-172. And for ἀναδοχὴ πόνων, cp. supr. ll. 27-35- τῷ . . αὐτόπαιδι] 'For the very son of Zeus.'
826. mvp-comment-611-1 ὀρθῶς | ἔμπεδα κατουρίζει] (1) 'Comes safely into harbour with straight course; i.e. attains fulfilment without failure. For the image, cp. Aesch. Suppl. 432, ἐξοκέλλεται: Ο.Τ. 1315, δυσούριστον, and note: El. 502, and note. τάδε implies that the fulfilment is already visible. 'Lo, where the foretold event is sailing into port!' Or (2) taking κατουρίζει actively, and supplying either τὸ ἔπος οι ἡ πρόνοια as the subject, And it brings this safely into haven, certainly fulfilled.'
830. mvp-comment-612-1 θανών, ‘After death,' is not a mere resumption of μὴ λεύσσων, but contains a pathetic argument, 'Seeing that he is dead and gone.' σφε] Sc. τὸν Ἡρακλῆ, implied in ὁ μὴ λεύσσων supr. l. 828.
831. mvp-comment-613-1 σφε... χρίει δολοποιὸς ἀνάγκα] Fate working by guile is stinging him.' The craft of Nessus was the means employed by Fate. φονίᾳ νεφέλᾳ] Gory cloud,' or 'envelopment.' Some have supposed a metaphorical application of the secondary use of νεφέλη = ' A net.' (L. and S. 5. ν. νεφέλη, III). And an association from this meaning may have been present. Cp. infr. 1052. But the less definite image is more impressive.
833. mvp-comment-614-1 πλευρά] Hermann's authority is in favour of connecting this word with χρίει. But on the whole, although the construction of the accusative is unusual, it seems better to take it with προστακέντος. Cp. infr. ll. 1053 foll. πλευραῖσι γὰρ προσμαχθέν, κ.τ.λ. Sc. προστακέντος αὐτῷ πλευρά.
834. mvp-comment-615-1 ὃν τέκετο.. δράκων] 'Which Death begat upon the spotted snake.' Hermann says here, ῎Ετρεφε δ' Lobeckius ad Aj. p. 327. Injuriâ, ut puto, haerent interpretes in verbis τέκετο et ἔτεκε: quae etsi promiscuè usurpantur, tamen proprie medii verbi potestas patri magis quam matri convenit: et sic videtur hic Sophocles distinxisse: quem generit mors, peperit autem draco.' The a of ἀέλιος is made short here and in Euripides, Med. 1252, Ion 122.
835. mvp-comment-616-1 ἕτερον ἢ τανῦν] Cp. Ant. 808-10, νέατον . . φέγγος .. κοῦποτ᾽ αὖθις, and note.
836. mvp-comment-617-1 προστετακώς. Sc. εἰ προστέτακε. See note on θανών, in supr. l. 830. φάσματι] Heracles 'cleaves to the Hydra, that terrible shape.' The meaning is that the evil nature of the poison is of the essence of the Hydra. But the word for 'essence' was not yet invented, and the terrible 'aspect' of the Hydra is used to symbolize this idea. Cp. supr. ll. 508, 9, ὑψίκερω τετραόρου | φάσμα ταύρου. For the whole expression, cp. Plat. Symp. 183 Ε, ἅτε μονίμῳ συντακείς.
837-840. mvp-comment-618-1 'And therewithal break forth upon him to torment him the piercing wounds of the dark-haired one, envenomed through crafty speech and secret thoughts of blood.' In the plague now afflicting Heracles, there was present the venom of the Lernaean Hydra, and there was also another element, inseparably mingled with this, viz. the murderous will of Nessus, operating through his crafty speech. Although the adjective ὑποφόνιος is not found elsewhere (see L. and S. s. v. ὑποφόνια), it is rightly retained here by Hermann, and helps to emphasize the combination of craft and cruelty in the Centaur. (There may also be an allusion to the blood of Nessus, which cried for revenge. See Essay on L. p. 103, 4. ) The words Νέσου θ', which occur in the MSS., may be a corruption of Νέσσου θηρός, a double gloss on μελαγχαίτα. As Hermann observes, this epithet is used for the proper name by a sort of Epic liberty, which is the more excusable with Κενταύρου preceding in l.831. μελαγχαίτης is an epithet of the Centaur Mimas in Hes. Scut. 186. μελαγχαίτα κέντρα are the stinging wounds inflicted by Nessus. They are called ὑποφόνια because stealthily destroying life, (and also because imbued with the blood of one who was slain;) δολόμυθα, because they were inflicted through crafty words; and they are said to have broken forth' upon him, because of the malady which they produced. Cp. supr. ll. 767 foll., also Aesch. S. c. Τ. 709, ἐξέζεσεν γὰρ Οἰδίπου κατεύγματα. See Essay on L. § 56. pp. 102, 3.
841. mvp-comment-619-1 foll. In places like this, where there is reason to suspect error both in the strophe and antistrophe, emendation must be more than ever uncertain. A reading of ll. 853, 4 consistent with the metre is obtained in the text by omitting πω and altering the position of οὐκ and of ἀγακλειτόν. The reconciliation of ll. 845, 855, is more difficult. Either (1) the line is a lyrical senarius (without caesura), in which case the corruption is in the antistrophe (qy. ἰὼ κελαινὸν αἰμ᾿ ἀπροσμάχου δορός?), or (2) the metre of l.855 is to be followed, and ὀλεθρίαις is corrupt (qy. ἀτηραῖσι συναλλαγαῖς?).
841-850. mvp-comment-620-1 "Which this poor lady, seeing great calamity fast coming upon her house, a strange new marriage being imminent, in one way did not understand at all (844. note), but for the unwitting act which arose from an alien will in consequence of a fatal meeting, over that methinks she groans in her misery, over that methinks she drops the fresh dew of abundant tears." ἄοκνον] Not shrinking,' i.e. Pressing on.
842. mvp-comment-621-1 προσορῶσα δόμοις = ὁρῶσα πρὸς δόμοις. Cp. supr. ll. 376, 7, τίν' εἰσδέδεγμαι πημονὴν ὑπόστεγον | λαθραῖον ; νέων] Not merely new, but also 'strange,' or 'unprecedented.' Cp. Phil. 784, καί τι προσδοκῶ νέον. ἀἴσσόντων] Cp. for the personification, Εl. 492, ἄλεκτρ᾽ ἄνυμφα γὰρ ἐπέβα μιαιφόνων | γάμων ἁμιλλήμαθ' οἶσιν οὐ θέμις, Ant. 10, πρὸς τοὺς φίλους στείχοντα τῶν ἐχθρῶν κακά.
844. mvp-comment-622-1 οὗ τι προσέβαλε] (1) 'Had no perception.' Schol. συνῆκεν, and so Herm. This assumes that προσβάλλειν τι (γνώμῃ) = προσβάλλειν γνώμην τινί. (2) Αnother meaning is, however, not to be rejected, viz. οὗ τι πρ. 'Had no part in bringing to pass.' In one aspect the deed was not hers at all, in another aspect it was hers, but done unwittingly. And she repents bitterly of her unwitting crime. Cp. infr. l. 1051, καθῆψεν, κ.τ.λ., and especially Aesch. Pers. 781, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ κακὸν τοσόνδε προσέβαλον πόλει: Eur. Med. 637 foll. μηδέποτ᾽ ἀμφιλόγους ὀργὰς ἀκόρεστά τε νείκη | προσβάλοι δεινὰ Κυπρίς. In either case, the words τὰ μὲν .. τὰ δ' are added by an afterthought. The Chorus intend to speak of Deianira's repentance, but cannot do so without first declaring her innocence. τὰ μὲν . . τὰ δέ are not really different parts of the action, but the action regarded in different points of view. ἀλλόθρου] - Alien,' not merely as of another race of men, but of a race different from man, viz. of the Centaur.
845. mvp-comment-623-1 γνώμας] «Intention,' or 'Determination.' Cp. esp. Aj. 744, Phil. 962, 1192. ὀλεθρίαις ξυναλλαγαῖς Hermann follows Triclinius in reading ὀλεθρίαισι συναλλαγαῖς. But the text remains uncertain. See above, note on 841 foll. The dative is that of the cause. For the meaning of ξυναλλαγαῖς, cp. Ο. Т. 1130, ἢ ξυνήλλαξάς τί πω;
846-847. mvp-comment-624-1 ἢ που.. ἢ που] This is more forcible than ή που.. ή που, the MS. reading. The accents are not clear in L. ὀλοά] This word may be either (1) fem. sing., ' undone,' as in El. 843, or (2) neut. plur. adv. 'despairingly,' (so Schndw.). For the latter, cp. Il. 23. 10, ἐπεί κ᾿ ὀλοοῖο τεταρπώμεσθα γόοιο. But the former is more poetical, because fixing attention on the person of Deianira. Cp. supr. 111, δύστανον, and note; and, for the meaning of the adjective in this case, infr. 878, τάλαιν ὀλεθρία.
849. mvp-comment-625-1 χλωρὰν.. ἄχναν] Tender dew.' χλωρός is a difficult word in Sophocles, because, as Bacon observes, words like 'hard,' 'soft,' moist,' 'dry,' being imperfectly abstracted from experience, have many secondary meanings. Tears are 'soft, 'tender,' 'moist, because 'the melting mood' does not suit the 'hard' temper, and dry eyes' give evidence of a dry,' unsympathizing soul. Again, χλωρὸν αἷμα, infr. l. 1055, is 'the blood which keeps the body flexible and fresh; while χλωρὰ ψάμαθος, in Aj. 1064, is literally the 'moist,' 'dank,' 'clammy' sand.
850. mvp-comment-626-1 τέγγει.. ἄχναν] The cognate accusative is substituted for the accusative in regimen after τέγγω. So Pind. Nem. 10. 75, has τέγγων δάκρυα.
851. mvp-comment-627-1 προφαίνει] 'Portends.' Cp. Hdt. 1. 210, τῷ δὲ ὁ δαίμων προέφαινε, ὡς αὐτὸς μὲν τελευτήσειν αὐτοῦ ταύτῃ μέλλοι, ἡ δὲ βασιληΐη αὐτοῦ περιχωρέοι ἐς Δαρεῖον : ib. 3.65; 7. 37, εἴρετο τοὺς μάγους τὸ θέλει προφαίνειν τὸ φάσμα. δολίαν] (1) The calamity is the more cruel because of the bright hopes out of which it springs. Cp. El. 489-91, ἃ δεινοῖς | κρυπτομένα λόχοις | χαλκόπους ᾿Ερινύς. This is better than (2) to suppose a reference to the fraud of Nessus, repeating the notion of δολόμυθα above.
852. mvp-comment-628-1 ἔρρωγεν παγὰ δακρύων] The Scholiast, Hermann. and Schndw. suppose the Chorus to be speaking of their own tears, and to say in effect, 'I begin to weep.' But this would come tamely in the midst of a lofty and condensed lyric strain. It seems better to take these words as parallel to those which follow, and to understand them to mean, A flood-gate of tears is burst open,' i.e. 'A calamity has arisen, for which tears will flow in large measure.'
853. mvp-comment-629-1 κέχυται νόσος] 'A trouble has begun to flow.' νόσος, as elsewhere in Sophocles, is to be taken in the general sense of Trouble,' 'Calamity.' The meaning is the same as that expressed by Heracles himself, infr. ll. 1046-1053. The words are immediately suggested by the 'diffused malady' induced by the poisoned robe, but much more than this is included in the thought.
854-855. mvp-comment-630-1 ἀναρσίων.. οἰκτίσαι] ‘Greater than any of the famous woes that from enemies of Heracles came erewhile against him so as to move compassion.' ἀναρσίων, genitive of origin: Ἡρακλέα, as object of ἐπέμολε, to be supplied from 'Ηρακλέους: οἰκτίσαι, an active infinitive added epexegetically, like εὐδαιμονίσαι in O. C. 144. In speaking of 'pity' the Chorus are thinking more of the present trouble than of those with which they compare it.
856. mvp-comment-631-1 κελαινά] 'Dark point of the champion spear.' Cp. Αj. 231, κελαινοῖς ξίφεσι. There is probably an association (as the Scholiast observes) between dark and deadly, the hue of the metal bearing some relation to the nether gloom to which its victims were despatched. But there is also the notion of a weapon which has been dulled and darkened by frequent use in war.
857. mvp-comment-632-1 προμάχου δορός] (1) 'Spear that fought for men. For this sense of πρόμαχος, cp. Aesch. S. c. T. 419, 482, and, for the general meaning, infr. 1010-2. There was a statue of 'Hρακλῆς Πρόμαχος in the 'Ηράκλειον at Thebes, Paus. 9. 11, 4. (2) Others prefer the meaning 'foremost in fight.'
858. mvp-comment-633-1 τότε) At the time of the capture of Oechalia, before the sacrifices at Cenaeum. θοάν, 'Swiftly borne away,' = ταχέως φερομένην. The word expresses not only the rapidity of Heracles' movements and of Iole's, who accompanied him, but the sudden change in the life of the young creature which such a marriage must have made. Cp. supr. 144 foll 529, 30, κἀπὸ ματρὸς ἄφαρ βέβακεν ώστε πόρτις ερήμα.
859. mvp-comment-634-1 αἰχμᾷ. At the point of the spear; ie. Having achieved her in war
860. mvp-comment-635-1 ἀμφίπολος.. άναυδος" (1) But the silent though manifest minister and agent of all this was the Goddess of Love herself' Cp. supr. 355 foll. 475 foll. Or (2) supposing the words ἀμφίπολος άναυδος to contain an allusion to Iole. But 'tis manifest that the agent in all this has been the Goddess of Love under the guise of a silent hand-maid. The attributes assigned to the goddess are suggested by the circumstances. Iole came as a hand-maiden, and remained obstinately silent supr. ll. 283, 4, 322 foll., 532). But under the deceptive appearance of this mute hand-maid there lurked the terrible destructive power of Aphrodite, who busied herself in silence to work the will of Fate that is now clearly revealed. Such is probably the meaning of this obscure expression which need not, however, be suspected because it is obscure.
863ff. mvp-comment-636-1 The proscenium has been vacant since the exit (severally) of Deianira and Hyllus. A sound of wailing is now heard from within.
863. mvp-comment-637-1 μάταιος] 'Silly,' i, e. 'Alarmed without cause. For the masc. form, cp. supr. l. 151, and note.
864. mvp-comment-638-1 οἴκτου) «Cry of sorrow. Cp. Αj. 895, οἴκτῳ τῷδε συγκεκραμένην, and for ὑρμασμένου, Springing forth, ib. 892, βοὴ . . ἐξέβη κάπους.
865. mvp-comment-639-1 τί φημί What is this?' For this expression and for the broken line here and in l. 868, cp. O. T. 1471. The three couplets are probably spoken by different members of the Chorus.
866. mvp-comment-640-1 οὐκ ἄσημον «A sound of wailing that is not ambiguous but full of sorrow. Cp. O. C. 1501, Ant. 1209. The conjectural reading, οὐκ εύσημον, ἀλλὰ δυστυχῆ, introduces a false and meaningless antithesis.
867. mvp-comment-641-1 τι καινίζει i.e. καινόν τι έχει.
869. mvp-comment-642-1 ἀήθης] This has been unnecessarily changed to ἀηδής, which should rather mean 'sullen' than 'sad,' and at all events expresses the same thing with συνοφρυωμένη. «Strange, 'Unlike herself,' is a meaning which aptly suits the place, and is properly made more definite by the addition of καὶ συνωφρυωμένη.
870. mvp-comment-643-1 σημαίνουσα] Declaring. The correction σημανοῦσα, “Το declare,' is possibly right; but the present tense may suitably call attention to the gestures of the Τροφός, before she speaks.
871. mvp-comment-644-1 οὐ σμικρών] That the gift has caused evil is already known, the extent of the evil to the house at Trachis is only now revealed.
872. mvp-comment-645-1 Ἡρακλεῖ τὸ πόμπιμον] The adj. is added to explain τὸ δῶρον, because the dative alone would have been an imperfect construction with δῶρον. For the passive meaning of πόμπιμον (which recalls the mission of Lichas, supr. ll. 600 foll.), cp. esp. supr. 822, О. С. 487, τὸν ἱκέτην σωτήριον.
873. mvp-comment-646-1 καινοποιηθέν] Freshly wrought,' i.e. since the news of Heracles' agony were brought by Hyllus.