Sophocles Trachiniae 663-820

Richard Jebb (Translator)

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Trachiniae. Sophocles. Richard Jebb (Translator). Cambridge. 1892.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The Annenberg CPB/Project.

Current edition Experimental

Trachiniae (English) (Sophocles the plays and fragments, Part 5: The Trachiniae. Jebb, Richard Claverhouse, Sir, translator. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1892. (Modernized by Perseus.))

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (2)
Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) — 663 focus
γυναῖκες, ὡς δέδοικα μὴ περαιτέρω
πεπραγμέν' ᾖ μοι πάνθ᾽ ὅσ᾽ ἀρτίως ἔδρων.
τοιοῦτον ἐκβέβηκεν, οἷον, ἢν ἂν φράσω,
γυναῖκες, ὑμῖν θαῦμ᾽ ἀνέλπιστον μαθεῖν λαβεῖν μαθεῖν.
ᾧ γὰρ τὸν ἐνδυτῆρα πέπλον ἀρτίως
ἔχριον, ἀργῆτ᾽ οἰὸς οιὸς εὐείρῳ πόκῳ πόην,
675
τοῦτ᾽ ἠφάνισται, διάβορον διάβορον πρὸς οὐδενὸς
τῶν ἔνδον, ἀλλ᾽ ἐδεστὸν ἐξ αὑτοῦ αὐτοῦ ἁυτοῦ φθίνει
καὶ ψῇ κατ᾿ ἄκρας σπιλάδος. ὡς δ᾽ εἰδῇς ἅπαν,
ἢ τοῦτ᾽ ἐπράχθη, μείζον' ἐκτενῶ λόγον.
ὥστ᾽ οὐκ ἔχω τάλαινα ποῖ γνώμης πέσω·
705
ταρβεῖν μὲν ἔργα δείν δεῖν δείν' ἀναγκαίως ἔχει,
τὴν δ᾽ ἐλπίδ᾽ οὐ χρὴ τῆς τύχης κρίνειν πάρος.
εἰ χρὴ μαθεῖν σε, πάντα δὴ φωνεῖν χρεών.
ἅπας δ᾽ ἀνευφήμησεν ἄνευ φωνῆσ ἐν ἀνευφώνησεν ἀνεφώνησεν οἰμωγῇ λεώς,
τοῦ μὲν νοσοῦντος, τοῦ δὲ διαπεπραγμένου·
κοὐδεὶς ἐτόλμα τἀνδρὸς ἀντίον μολεῖν.
785
ἐσπᾶτο γὰρ πέδονδε καὶ μετάρσιος,
βοῶν, ἰύζων· ἀμφὶ δ᾽ ἐκτύπουν πέτραι,
Λοκρῶν ὄρειοι πρῶνες Εὐβοίας τ᾽ ἄκραι.
ἐπεὶ δ᾽ ἀπεῖπε, πολλὰ μὲν τάλας χθονὶ
ῥίπτων ἑαυτόν, πολλὰ δ᾽ οἰμωγῇ βοῶν,
790
τί σῖγ᾽ ἀφέρπεις ἐφέρπεις? οὐ κάτοισθ᾽ ὁθούνεκα
ξυνηγορεῖς σιγῶσα τῷ κατηγόρῳ;
Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 663-820 focus
Translations (4)
English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906)) — 663 focus
O how I fear, my friends, lest all too far
I have ventured in my action of to-day!
A thing is come to pass, which should I tell,
Will strike you with strange wonder when you learn.
For, O my friends, the stuff wherewith I dressed
That robe, a flock of soft and milkwhite wool,
Is shrivelled out of sight, not gnawn by tooth
Of any creature here, but, self-consumed,
Frittered and wasting on the courtyard-stones.
To let you know the circumstance at full,
I will speak on. Of all the Centaur-Thing,
When labouring in his side with the fell point
O’ the shaft, enjoined me, I had nothing lost,
But his vaticination in my heart
Remained indelible, as though engraved
With pen of iron upon brass. ’Twas thus:—
I was to keep this unguent closely hid
In dark recesses, where no heat of fire
Or warming ray might reach it, till with fresh
Anointing I addressed it to an end.
So I had done. And now this was to do,
Within my chamber covertly I spread
The ointment with piece of wool, a tuft
Pulled from a home-bred sheep; and, as ye saw,
I folded up my gift and packed it close
675
In hollow casket from the glaring sun.
675
But, entering in, a fact encounters me
675
Past human wit to fathom with surmise.
675
For, as it happened, I had tossed aside
675
The bit of wool I worked with, carelessly,
675
Into the open daylight, ’mid the blaze
675
Of Helios’ beam. And, as it kindled warm,
It fell away to nothing, crumbled small,
Like dust in severing wood by sawyers strewn.
So, on the point of vanishing, it lay.
But, from the place where it had lain, brake forth
A frothy scum in clots of seething foam,
Like the rich draught in purple vintage poured
From Bacchus’ vine upon the thirsty ground.
And I, unhappy, know not toward what thought
To turn me, but I see mine act is dire.
For wherefore should the Centaur, for what end,
Show kindness to the cause for whom he died?
That cannot be. But seeking to destroy
His slayer, he cajoled me. This I learn
Too late, by sad experience, for no good.
And, if I err not now, my hapless fate
Is all alone to be his murderess.
For, well I know, the shaft that made the wound
Gave pain to Cheiron, who was more than man;
And wheresoe’er it falls, it ravageth
All the wild creatures of the world. And now
This gory venom blackly spreading bane
From Nessus’ angry wound, must it not cause
The death of Heracles? I think it must.
Yet my resolve is firm, if aught harm him,
My death shall follow in the self-same hour.
She cannot bear to live in evil fame,
Who cares to have a nature pure from ill.
Horrid mischance must needs occasion fear.
But Hope is not condemned before the event.
Art thou to hear it? On, then, with my tale!
When after sacking Eurytus’ great city
He marched in triumph with first-fruits of war,—
There is a headland, last of long Euboea,
Surf-beat Cenaeum,—where to his father Zeus
He dedicates high altars and a grove.
There first I saw him, gladdened from desire.
And when he now addressed him to the work
Of various sacrifice, the herald Lichas
Arrived from home, bearing thy fatal gift,
The deadly robe: wherewith invested straight,
As thou hadst given charge, he sacrificed
The firstlings of the spoil, twelve bulls entire,
Each after each. But the full count he brought
Was a clear hundred of all kinds of head.
Then the all-hapless one commenced his prayer
In solemn gladness for the bright array.
But presently, when from the holy things,
And from the richness of the oak-tree core,
There issued flame mingled with blood, a sweat
Rose on his flesh, and close to every limb
Clung, like stone-drapery from the craftsman’s hand,
The garment, glued unto his side. Then came
The tearing pangs within his bones, and then
The poison feasted like the venomed tooth
Of murderous basilisk.—When this began,
He shouted on poor Lichas, none to blame
For thy sole crime, ‘What guile is here, thou knave?
What was thy fraud in fetching me this robe?’
He, all-unknowing, in an evil hour
Declared his message, that the gift was thine.
Whereat the hero, while the shooting spasm
Had fastened on the lungs, seized him by the foot
Where the ankle turns i’ the socket, and, with a thought,
Hurl’d on a surf-vex’d reef that showed i’ the sea:
And rained the grey pulp from the hair, the brain
Being scattered with the blood. Then the great throng
Saddened their festival with piteous wail
For one in death and one in agony.
And none had courage to approach my sire,—
Convulsed upon the ground, then tossed i’ the air
With horrid yells and crying, till the cliffs
Echoed round, the mountain-promontories
Of Locris, and Euboea’s rugged shore.
Wearied at length with flinging on the earth,
And shrieking oft with lamentable cry,
Cursing the fatal marriage with thyself
The all-wretched, and the bond to Oeneus’ house,
That prize that was the poisoner of his peace,
He lifted a wild glance above the smoke
That hung around, and ’midst the crowd of men
Saw me in tears, and looked on me and said,
‘O son, come near; fly not from my distress,
Though thou shouldst be consumèd in my death,
But lift and bear me forth; and, if thou mayest,
Set me where no one of mankind shall see me.
But if thy heart withhold thee, yet convey me
Out of this land as quickly as ye may.
Let me not die where I am now.’ We then,
Thus urgently commanded, laid him down
Within our bark, and hardly to this shore
Rowed him convulsed and roaring.—Presently,
He will appear, alive or lately dead.
Such, mother, is the crime thou hast devised
And done against our sire, wherefore let Right
And Vengeance punish thee!—May I pray so?
I may: for thou absolv’st me by thy deed,
Thou that hast slain the noblest of the Earth,
Thy spouse, whose like thou ne’er wilt see again.
Why steal’st thou forth in silence? Know’st thou not
Let her go off. Would that a sudden flood
815
Might sweep her far and swiftly from mine eye!
Why fondle vainly the fair-sounding name
Of mother, when her acts are all unmotherly?
Let her begone for me: and may she find
Such joy as she hath rendered to my sire!
820
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 663 focus
Ihr Frauen, ach, wie bangt mir, daß ich über Maß
Hinausgeschweist in Allem, was ich eben that!
Ein Wunder ist geschehen, das, erzähl' ich es,
Wohl eurem Ohr unglaublich klingen wird, o Frau'n.
Des wolligen Lammes Silbervließ, mit dem ich erst
Das Kleid bestrichen, welches ihn umhüllen soll,
Das ist verschwunden, nicht verzehrt von irgendwas
665
Im Hause; durch sich selber aufgezehrt, entschwand's,
Und stob hinweg vom Steine. Daß du ganz erkennst, 1
Wie dieses zugegangen, hol' ich weiter aus.
Was jenes Ungeheuer, als der bittre Pfeil
Ihm schmerzlich wühlt' im Busen, mir bedeutete,
670
Der Worte keins vergaß ich, nein, bewahrte sie,
Wie Schrift auf eh'rner Tafel, die niemals erlischt.
Mir war geboten, (und ich that nach diesem Wort,)
Den Liebeszauber tief im Haus zu bergen, stets
Vom Feuer fern, vom heißen Lichtstrahl unberührt,
675
Bis daß ich eben salbend ihn verwendete.
Und also that ich. Aber als die Stunde kam,
Bestrich ich heimlich im Gemach daheim mit Flaum,
Den ich vom Lamm der eignen Wollenheerde nahm,
Und legte wohlgefaltet, fern vom Sonnenstrahl,
680
In's hohle Kästchen das Gewand, wie ihr's geseh'n.
Doch wiederkommend seh' ich, was die Sprache nicht
Zu schildern weiß, was keines Menschen Geist erklärt.
Ich warf des Lammes Flocke so von ungefähr,
Als ich das Kleid bestrichen, auf den Boden hin 2
685
In Sonnenstrahlen. Als sie warm geworden hier,
Zerfloß sie ganz unkennbar und zerstob im Strahl,
Gestaltet so wie Spähne, die du wohl erblickst,
Nachdem der Säge scharfer Zahn das Holz durchfeilt.
So lag sie da zerfallen. Doch vom Boden, wo
690
Sie lag, da zischte Blasenschaum dicksprudelnd auf,
Wie wenn von Bacchos' Rebenstock der fette Trank 3
Des blauen Herbstes auf den Grund geschüttet wird.
Nun weiß ich nicht, ich Arme, was ich denken soll;
Denn Grauenvolles, seh' ich, ist durch mich gescheh'n.
695
Warum, wofür denn sollte sterbend auch das Thier
Wohlwollen mir erweisen, die ihm Tod gebracht?
Nein, nein! Vertilgen wollt' es seinen Mörder nur,
Und mich betrog es: allzuspät gewinn' ich jezt
Davon die Kunde, wo sie nicht mehr frommen kann.
700
Denn ich allein ja, wenn ein Wahn mich nicht berückt,
Ich werd' allein ihn tödten, ich Unselige.
Ich weiß, dem Gotte Cheiron auch schlug dies Geschoß 4
Die Todeswunde, jedes Wild, das dieser Pfeil
Berührte, findet seinen Tod: wie sollte nun
705
Das schwarze Blutgift, das in Nessos' Wunde trof,
Nicht auch Herakles tödten? Sicher, dünkt es mir.
Doch fest bin ich entschlossen: trifft den Gatten Tod,
Sterb' ich zugleich getroffen durch denselben Schlag.
Denn niedern Rufs zu leben, trägt die Freie nicht,
710
Die groß es achtet, nicht von niedrer Art zu sein.
Wohl unvermeidlich wohnt die Furcht bei schwerer That;
Doch richt' Erwartung vor der That Erfolge nicht.
Ziemt dir's zu wissen, Alles denn sei dir gesagt. 5
Als er, zerstörend Eurytos' ruhmvolle Stadt,
Mit Siegstrophä'n und stolzer Beute weiter 30g;
740
Jezt auf Euböa's meerumspültem Vorgebirg
(Kenäon heißt es) heiligt er dem Vater Zeus
Altäre samt des Haines dichtbelaubtem Raum,
Wo ich zuerst ihn wiedersah, sehnsüchtig froh.
Und als er eben rüsten will der Opfer viel,
745
Trifft unser Herold Lichas ein von unserm Haus,
Und bringt dem Vater dein Geschenk, das Todeskleid.
Mit diesem, so wie du's befahlst, umhüllt er sich,
Und schlachtet zwölf erles'ne Farren ohne Fehl,
Den schönsten Schmuck der Beute; doch im Ganzen führt
750
Er hundert Opferthiere dar aus allem Vieh.
Anfänglich heitern Sinnes, war der Arme wohl
Des Schmucks, des Festgewandes froh und betete:
Doch als die Flamme blutigroth vom hehren Mahl
Und aus der Fichte fettem Stamm aufloderte,
755
Trof heller Schweiß ihm durch die Haut, und fest umschlang
Das Kleid ihm alle Glieder, wie von Künstlerhand
Den Seiten angelöthet; sein Gebein durchdrang
Die wilde Zuckung folternd; dann, wie mörderisch
Feindsel'ger Schlangen grimmes Gift, verzehrt' es ihn.
760
Da rief er tobend nach dem Unglückseligen,
Dem Lichas, der nicht schuldig war an deiner That,
Mit welchen argen Künsten er dies Kleid gebracht.
Der weiß um Nichts, der Arme, sagt, von dir allein
Sei diese Gabe, wie er sie von dir empfing.
765
Und jener, als er solches hört und wilder Schmerz
Ihm durch das Eingeweide wühlt in reger Qual,
Faßt ihn am Beine, wo das Fußgelenke schließt,
Und schleudert ihn zum meerumspülten Felsen hin.
Und aus dem Haupthaar sprüzte weißes Hirn, ihm barst
770
Der Schädel mitten, und zugleich raun dichtes Blut.
Doch lauten Ruf des Jammers hob das ganze Volk,
Als hier der Eine raste, todt der Andre lag,
Und Keiner wagte wider ihn heranzugehn.
Denn nun zur Erde stürzt er, raffte dann sich auf,
775
Laut schreiend, heulend; Fels an Fels erdröhnte rings,
Der Lokrer Waldgebirge samt Euböa's Höh'n.
Doch als der Arme sich erschöpft, indem er oft
Umher sich warf am Boden, oft aufjammernd schrie,
Und Schmach gerufen über dein unseliges
780
Ehlager, arme Mutter, wie sein Leben ihm
Der Bund mit Deneus' edlem Haus verwüstete;
Da hob aus Qualm und Dampfe, der ihn rings umwogt,
Der Held des Auges wirren Blick, sah weinend mich
Dasteh'n im Volksgewühle, blickt mich an und ruft:
785
O komm heran, Sohn, fliehe nicht vor meinem Leid,
Auch wenn du sterben müßtest mit mir Sterbenden!
Nein, hebe mich von hinnen, birg am liebsten mich
In Deden, wo kein Menschenauge mich erspäht!
Ja, fühlst du Mitleid, führe mich aus diesem Land
790
Im schnellsten Schiffe, daß ich hier nicht sterben muß!
Nachdem er das geboten, hob ich ihn sofort
In einen Nachen; doch er stöhnt' in Zuckungen,
Wir konnten kaum hier landen, und ihr werdet gleich
Ihn schauen lebend oder kaum verblichen erst.
795
Dies, Mutter, dies ersannest, also thatest du
An meinem Vater: strafe dich Erinnys denn,
Die Nache Dike's! Ist es recht, ersleh' ich das;
Recht aber ist es, weil du kühn verhöhnt das Recht,
Und ihn, der Männer besten, der auf Erden war,
800
Gemordet, wie wohl keinen mehr dein Aug' erblickt!
(Deianeira geht ab.)
Was gehst du schweigend? Weißt du nicht, indem du schweigst,
Bekennst du dem dich schuldig, der dich schuldig fand?
English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 663 focus
Chorus.
Deianika. Alas ! my friends, I fear I've gone too far.
Oh ! 'twas wonderful !
For you shall hear it. Know then, the white wool
Wherein 1 wrapped th' anointed vest, untouched
By any hand, dropped self -consumed away,
And down the stone, e'en like a liquid, flowed
Dissolving — but 'tis fit I tell you all —
Whate'er the wounded centaur did enjoin me
Mindful to practise, sacred as the laws
On brazen tablets graved, I have performed :
Far from the fire, and from the sun's warm beams
He bade me keep the charm ; from every eye
In secret hid, till time should call on me
To anoint and use it. This was done : and now,
The fleece m secret plucked, the charm prepared,
Long from the sun within a chest concealed ;
At length I brought it forth, and sent the gift
675
To my Alcides, when behold a wonder,
675
Most strange for tongue to tell, or heart of man
675
E'en to conceive ! Perchance the wool I cast
675
Into the sunshine ; soon as it grew warm
675
It fell to dust, consuming all away
In most strange manner, then from th' earth uprose
In frothy bubbles, e'en as from the grape
In yellow autumn jBlows the purple wine.
I know not what to thinly ; but much I fear
I've done a horrid deed. For, why, my friends,
Why should the dying savage wish to serve
His murderer ? That could never be. Oh no !
He only meant by flattery to destroy
Me, his destroyer. Truth is come too late,
And I alone have slain my dear Alcides ;
I know that by his arrows Chiron fell,
I know whate'er they touched they still were fatal,
That very poison mingled with the blood
Of dying Nessus, will not that too kill
My Hercules? It must : but if he dies,
My resolution is to perish with him ;
Those, who their honour and their virtue prize,
Can never live with infamy and shame.
'Tis fit we tremble at a deed of horror ;
But 'tis not fitting, ere we know th' event,
To give up hope, and yield us to despair.
' If I must,
Observe me well : when Hercules, returned
From conquest, had laid waste the noble city
i Ee to Euboea came, where o'er the sea,
Which beats on every side, Oenseum's top
Hangs dreadful, thither to paternal Jove
His new raised altars in the leafy wood
He came to visit : there did my glad eyes
Behold Alcides first. As he prepared
The frequent victim, from the palace came
Lichas thy messenger, and wath him brought
The fatal gift : wrapped in the deadly garment
Without a blemish, firstlings of the spoil,
He slew ; together next a hundred fell.
The mingled fiock. Pleased with his gaudy vest,
And happy in it, he awhile remained,
Offering with joy his grateful sacrifice ;
But, lo ! when from the holy victim rose
The bloody flame, and from the pitchy wood
Exhaled its moisture, sudden a cold sweat
Bedewed his limbs, and to his body stuck
As by the hand of some artificer
Close joined to every part, the fatal vest ;
Convulsion racked his bones, and through his veins,
Like the fell serpent's deadly venom, raged ;
Then questioned he the wretched guiltless Lichas
By what detested arts he had procured
The poisoned garb ; he, ignorant of all,
Could only say it was the gift he brought
From Deianira. When Alcides heard it.
Tortured with pain, he took him by the foot,
And hurled him headlong on a pointed rock
That o'er the ocean hung; his brains dashed forth
With mingled blood flowed through his clotted hair
In horrid streams ; the multitude with shrieks
Lamented loud the fury of Alcides,
And Lichas' hapless fate ; none durst oppose
His raging frenzy ; prostrate on the earth
Kow would he lay and groan ; and now uprising
"Would bellow forth his griefs ; the mountain-tops
Of Locris, and Euboea's rocks returned
His dreadful cries ; then on the ground outstretched,
In bitterest wrath he cursed the nuptial bed
Of QEneus, and his execrations poured
On thee his worst of foes : at length his eyes,
Distorted forth from the surrounding smoke,
He cast on me, who midst attending crowds
Wept his sad fate ; " Approach," he cried, " my son,
Do not forsake thy father ; rather come
And share his fate than leave me here, oh ! haste.
And take me hence ; bear me where never eye
Of mortal shall behold me. O my child,
Let me not perish here." Thus spake my father,
And I obeyed : distracted with his pains
A vessel brings him to this place, and soon
Living or dead you will behold him here.
This have thy horrid machinations done
For thy Alcides : Oh ! may justice doom thee
To righteous punishment, if it be lawful
For me to call down vengeance on a mother.
As sure it is on one who hath disclaimed
All piety like thee ; the earth sustains not
A better man than him whom thou has murdered,
Nor shalt thou e'er behold his like again.
Whence this abrupt departure? Knowst thou
Let her be gone ; and may some prosperous
815
gale
815
Waft her far off, that these abhorring eyes
815
May never see her more ! What boots the name
815
Of raothei', when no longer she i:)erforms
815
A moihor's duty ? Let lier go in peace,
815
And for her kindness to my father soon
815
May she enjoy the blessing she bestowed !
815
True was the oracle divine,
Long since delivered from Dodona's shrine,
Which said, Alcides' woes should last
Till twelve revolving years were past;
Then should his labours end in sw^eet repose
Behold, my friends, 'tis come to pass,
'Tis all fultilled ; for who, alas !
In peaceful death, or toil or slavery knows ?
If deep within his tortured veins
The centaur's cruel poison reigns.
That from the Hydra's baleful breath
Destructive flowed, replete with death,
On him another sun shall never rise ;
The venom runs through every part.
And, lo ! to Nessus' direful art
Alcides falls a helpless sacrifice.
Poor Deianira long deplored
Her waning charms, and ever faithless lord ;
At length by evil counsel swayed
Her passion's dictates she obeyed,
Resolved Alcides' doubtful truth to prove ;
But now, alas ! laments his fate
In ceaseless woe, and finds too late
A dying husband, and a foreign love.
. Another death must soon succeed,
Another victim soon shall bleed,
Fatal, Alcides, was the dart
That pierced the rival monarch's heart,
And brought lole from her native land ;
From Yenus did our sorrows flow.
The secret spring of all our woe,
For nought was done but by her dread command.
Or I'm deceived, or I did hear loud shrieks
820
Within the palace ; 'twas the voice of one
820
In anguish ; doubtless some calamity
820
Hath fallen upon us now. What can it be 1
820
But see, yon matnon, with contracted brow
820
And unaccustomed sadness, comes to tell
820
The dreadful news.
820
English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 663 focus
I fear, my female friends, that I have done
More than became me in my late attempt.
A thing, my friends, hath happen'd far beyond
All thought, and big with wonder. You shall hear.
The soft wool sever'd from the snow-white fleece,
With which I lately ting'd the robe, at once
Wasted and, touch'd by none within the house,
Shrunk self-corroded into dust, and lay
A loose heap on the surface of the stone.
That thou may'st know each circumstance, distinct
Shall my relation be, and giv'n at large.
Whate'er the dying Centaur, 'midst the pangs
Of the keen arrow in his side infix'd,
Gave me in charge, I treasured in my heart,
As characters indelibly engraved
On brazen tablets: his instructions these,
And I obey'd them; from the blazing hearth,
And by the warm beams of the sun untouch'd,
Close-cover'd still to keep this potent charm
Fresh, till occasion should require its use.
I did so: and when now my thought resolved
To put its virtue to the proof, retired
In secret, wool from my domestic stores
I for the purpose took, and tinged the vest;
675
Then folded it, and laid it, as you saw,
675
In a close chest by the sun's beams untouch'd.
675
Again returning I beheld a sight
675
No language can express, nor could the thought
675
Of man conceive; the wool, wherewith I tinged
675
The vest, I chanced to throw where the sun's rays
Beam'd in full force; as it grew warm, it shrunk
And wasted on the ground, like the light dust
Which falls beneath the saw, like this it lay:
But soon the swelling mass in froth arose,
Fermenting like the grape's rich juice, that drops
Pour'd in grey autumn on the earth. My mind Ho
Is troubled, and perplex'd with fears: I see
That I have done some dreadful deed; for whence
This kindness by the dying Centaur shown,
Or why to me, through whom the savage died?
It is not so; but, wishing to destroy
The author of his wound, he filed his tongue
To sooth my ear with glozing courtesy.
This I too late perceive, for now to know
Avails not: I alone, ah wretched me!
(If with false fears my soul is not deceived)
Have wrought his ruin: well I know the shaft
That gave the wound; e'en Chiron the divine
Fell by its fatal point; to every beast
Its touch is death; and the black poison, mix'd
With the vile Centaur's blood, shall now destroy
My lord too. Such my fears. But should he die,
Fix'd is the purpose of my soul, with him
I too will die: for who could bear to live
With infamy, that has a sense of shame,
And a base nature holds in high disdain?
Horror at dreadful deeds must seize the soul;
But ere th' event hope should not be renounced.
If thou wou'dst know it, I must tell thee all.
The far-famed town of Eurytus destroy'd,
The trophies of his conquest, and the spoils
He to Cenæum brought, a rocky point
High-rising on the Eubean shore, and wash'd
On each side by the sea; his altars there,
And the green foliage of a grove, he raised
To Jove his father; there my longing eyes
With joy first saw him: but as he prepared
The various victims, hence his servant came,
The herald Lichas, and thy present brought,
The fatal vest: with this, for such thy charge,
He robed himself, and slew twelve beauteous bulls
Selected from the play; but to the god
An hundred various victims he had brought.
At first th' unhappy hero, with a mind
Cheerful and joying in his gorgeous robe,
Offer'd his vows; but when the bloody flame
Blazed from the hallow'd sacrifice, and heat
Glow'd from the unctuous firs, close to his sides
And to each limb, as by some artist fix'd,
The robe abhered; and through his bones shot fierce
Convulsive pains; then as the poisonous gore
Of the detested Hydra rankled deep,
He ask'd th' unhappy Lichas, for thy crime
In nothing blamable, by whose base arts
He brought this robe: unconscious what he brought
Th' ill-fated herald said, from thee alone
It was a present to his charge assign'd,
And brought as he received it. At these words,
Rack'd as he was with agonizing pains,
He seized him by the foot above the part
Where the joint bends, and dash'd him 'gainst the rock
Projecting o'er the waves that wash its sides;
A mingled mass of hair, and brains, and blood
Flow'd from his shatter'd head; th' assembled crouds
Lament the hero's sufferings, and the fate
Of Lichas; but of all the train not one
Had courage to approach him: to the ground
One while he bent convulsed; anon erect
He cried aloud; the promontories round,
The rocks of Locris, and Eubœa's heights
Resounded with his cries: but now grown faint,
And oft with anguish writhing on the earth,
With many a groan he cursed thy nuptial bed,
Inhuman as thou art, to his repose
So fatal; cursed thy father's bridal rites,
Whence to his life this pest. Then through the mist,
That darken'd o'er him, his distorted eyes
He rais'd, and saw me 'midst the numerous croud,
Weeping his fate; he look'd on me, and cried
My son, come to me; do not fly my ills,
Though with thy dying father thou shou'dst die;
But bear me hence, and see thou lay me where
No mortal may behold me: if thy soul
Is sensible of pity, from this land
Remove me; haste, that here I may not die.
Thus as he urged, we placed him in a bark,
And brought him to this shore, no easy task,
Roaring aloud through anguish; him thou soon
Or living wilt behold, or lately dead.
This 'gainst my father have thy arts devised,
This hast thou done, my mother; and this deed
May rigorous justice on thy head repay,
And the avenging Fury, if my pray'rs
Be righteous: they are righteous: thou hast cast
All that is righteous from thee, and hast slain
The best, the noblest man the earth could boast:
His equal never more shalt thou behold.
Without reply why dost thou haste away?
Nay, let her go; and may a favouring gale
815
Swell as she goes, and waft her from my sight.
815
Why should I cherish with a son's fond pride
The name of mother? Nothing hath she done
That shows a mother's part: let her then go,
And take this farewell with her, May she find
Such joys as to my father she hath given.
820

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-340-1 περαιτέρω 1

mvp-comment-341-1 Δῃάνειρα, τέκνον Οἰνέως 2

mvp-comment-342-1 ἀθυμῶ δ’, εἰ φανήσομαι 3

mvp-comment-343-1 οὐ δή 4 τι 5 ἐλπίδος 6 τι 7 δωρημάτων 8

mvp-comment-344-1 ὥστε μήποτ’ ἂν παραινέσαι 9 προθυμίαν … ἔργου 10 ἄδηλον 11 λαβεῖν 12

mvp-comment-345-1 εἰ διδακτόν 13

mvp-comment-346-1 οἷον, ἢν φράσω 14

mvp-comment-346-2 (1) To retain ὑμῖν 15 μαθεῖν 16

mvp-comment-346-3 (2) To read ὑμᾶς 17 ὑμῖν 18 φράσω 19

mvp-comment-346-4 Others, taking μαθεῖν 20 θαῦμ’ ἀνέλπιστον 21 ἂν φράσαι 22

mvp-comment-347-1 τὸν ἐνδυτῆρα πέπλον 23

mvp-comment-348-1 ἀργὴς … πόκος 24 ἀργῆτ’ … πόκῳ 25 ἀργῆτ’ 26 ἀργῆτα 27 τὸν ἐνδυτῆρα πέπλον 28

mvp-comment-348-2 Blaydes suggests

ἀργῆς οἰὸς εὐέρου πόκῳ
: but the usage of
ἀργός
precludes this. A change of ἀργὴς … πόκος 29 ἀργῆτ’ 30 πόκῳ 31 ᾧ 32 εὐέρου 33

mvp-comment-349-1 πρὸς οὐδενὸς 34 τῶν ἔνδον 35 τῶν ἐκτός 36 φθίνει 37

mvp-comment-350-1 ψῇ 38

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 39 σπιλάδος 40 σπ 41

mvp-comment-351-1 ἐκτενῶ 42

mvp-comment-352-1 γὰρ 43

mvp-comment-352-2 ὧν 44 θεσμῶν 45

mvp-comment-352-3 ὁ θὴρ Κένταυρος 46

mvp-comment-352-4 πονῶν πλευρὰν 47

mvp-comment-352-5 πικρᾷ 48

mvp-comment-352-6 προὐδιδάξατο 49

mvp-comment-353-1 θεσμῶν οὐδέν 50 ἐσῳζόμην 51

mvp-comment-354-1 χαλκῆς … δέλτου 52 θεσμῶν 53

mvp-comment-355-1 καίμοι 54 σῴζειν 55 προὐδιδάξατο 56 κἄδρων τοιαῦτα 57 τοιαῦτ’ ἔδρων 58

mvp-comment-356-1 ἄπυρον 59 ἄθικτον 60

mvp-comment-357-1 ἕως νιν 61

mvp-comment-357-2 που 62

mvp-comment-358-1 ἔχρισα μὲν 63 κἄθηκα 64 εἴσω δ’ 65 κατ’ οἶκον 66 ἐν δόμοις 67

mvp-comment-359-1 κτησίου 68

mvp-comment-360-1 ἀλαμπὲς ἡλίου 69

mvp-comment-361-1 ζυγάστρῳ 70

mvp-comment-361-2 κοίλῳ 71

mvp-comment-362-1 εἴσω δ’ ἀποστείχουσα 72

mvp-comment-362-2 φάτιν 73 ἄφραστον 74 ἀξύμβλητον 75 ἀνθρώπῳ μαθεῖν 76 ἀξύμβλητον 77

mvp-comment-363-1 κάταγμα 78

mvp-comment-363-2 προὔχριον 79 ἀκτῖν’ ἐς ἡλιῶτιν 80

mvp-comment-363-3 Wunder rashly rejects the verse. Dobree's objection to it seems to have been the repeated ἐς 81

mvp-comment-364-1 ῥεῖ 82

mvp-comment-364-2 κατέψηκται 83

mvp-comment-365-1 μορφῇ 84 μάλιστ’ εἰκαστὸν 85 ὥστε 86

mvp-comment-365-2 πρίονος ἐκβρώματ’ 87

mvp-comment-366-1 προπετές 88 προὔκειτ’, ἀναζέουσι 89 θρομβώδεις ἀφροί 90

mvp-comment-367-1 πίονος ποτοῦ γλ. ὀπώρας ἀπὸ Β. ἀμπέλου 91

mvp-comment-367-2 χυθέντος 92 Β. ἀπ’ ἀμπέλου 93

mvp-comment-367-3 For ὀπώρας 94 Βακχίας 95 πίονος 96

mvp-comment-368-1 ποῖ γνώμης πέσω 97

mvp-comment-369-1 ὁρῶ δέ μ’ … ἐξειργασμένην 98

mvp-comment-370-1 πόθεν 99 ἀντὶ τοῦ 100

mvp-comment-370-2 ἂν … παρέσχ’ 101

mvp-comment-370-3 ἧς … ὕπερ 102

mvp-comment-371-1 ἀποφθίσαι 103

mvp-comment-372-1 ἀρκεῖ 104

mvp-comment-372-2 ἄρνυμαι 105

mvp-comment-373-1 εἴ τι μὴ 106

mvp-comment-373-2 ψευσθήσομαι γνώμης 107

mvp-comment-374-1 ἄτρακτον 108

mvp-comment-374-2 θεὸν Χείρωνα 109

mvp-comment-374-3 πημήναντα 110

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 111 χὥσπερ 112

mvp-comment-375-1 ἐκ … σφαγῶν τοῦδε διελθὼν 113

mvp-comment-375-2 ἰὸς αἵματος 114

mvp-comment-375-3 τόνδε 115

mvp-comment-375-4 Others take ἐκ … τοῦδε 116 ὅδε 117 τοῦδ’ 118

mvp-comment-375-5 δόξῃ γοῦν ἐμῇ 119

mvp-comment-376-1 σφαλήσεται 120

mvp-comment-376-2 For σὺν 121

mvp-comment-377-1 προτιμᾷ 122 κακὴ 123

mvp-comment-378-1 ἔργα δείν’ 124

mvp-comment-378-2 ἐλπίδ’ 125

mvp-comment-379-1 τοῖς μὴ καλοῖς β. 126 προξενεῖ 127

mvp-comment-380-1 ἀμφὶ 128

mvp-comment-380-2 μὴ )ξ ἑκουσίας 129

mvp-comment-380-3 πέπειρα 130

mvp-comment-381-1 τοιαῦτα δ’ 131

mvp-comment-381-2 οἴκοι 132

mvp-comment-382-1 ἂν ἁρμόζοι 133

mvp-comment-382-2 τὸν πλείω λόγον 134 λέξεις 135

mvp-comment-382-3 μαστὴρ πατρὸς 136

mvp-comment-383-1 ἂν … εἱλόμην 137

mvp-comment-383-2 σε 138 ἓν 139 σε ἢ μηκέτ’ εἶναι 140 σε 141

mvp-comment-383-3 ἐκ τριῶν ἓν 142

mvp-comment-383-4 κεκλῆσθαι 143

mvp-comment-384-1 τί δ’ ἔστιν … πρός γ’ ἐμοῦ στυγού‐ 144 μενον 145 πρός γ’ ἐμοῦ 146

mvp-comment-385-1 τὸν δ’ ἐμὸν 147 δέ 148 λέγω 149 λέγω 150

mvp-comment-386-1 ἐξήνεγκας 151

mvp-comment-387-1 δν οὐχ ο<*>όν τε 152 μὴ οὐ 153 μὴ 154

mvp-comment-387-2 τὸ … φανθὲν 155 τὸ γὰρ 156

mvp-comment-387-3 τίς ἂν δύναιτ’ ἂν 157

mvp-comment-387-4 ἀγένητον 158

mvp-comment-387-5 744 f. For ἀνθρώπων 159

mvp-comment-387-6 ἄζηλον 160

mvp-comment-388-1 ἐν ὄμμασιν 161

mvp-comment-388-2 κατὰ γλῶσσαν 162

mvp-comment-389-1 ἐμπελάζεις … καὶ παρίστασαι 163

mvp-comment-390-1 εἰ χρὴ μαθεῖν σε 164

mvp-comment-391-1 ὅθ’ εἷρπε 165

mvp-comment-392-1 τροπαῖα 166 ἀκροθίνια 167

mvp-comment-393-1 ἀκτή … ἔστιν 168

mvp-comment-393-2 Κήναιον 169

mvp-comment-393-3 πατρῴῳ 170 βωμοὺς ὁρίζει 171

mvp-comment-393-4 τεμενίαν … φυλλάδα 172 ἄσμενος πόθῳ 173

mvp-comment-394-1 πολυθύτους … σφαγὰς 174

mvp-comment-395-1 κῆρυξ ἀπ’ οἴκων … οἰκεῖος 175 οἰκεῖος 176

mvp-comment-396-1 προὐξεφίεσο 177

mvp-comment-397-1 ταυροκτονεῖ 178 συμμιγῆ βοσκήματα 179

mvp-comment-397-2 ἐντελεῖς 180

mvp-comment-397-3 βοῦς 181 ταυροκτονεῖ 182

mvp-comment-397-4 προσῆγε 183

mvp-comment-398-1 ἵλεῳ 184

mvp-comment-399-1 κόσμῳ τε … καὶ στολῇ 185

mvp-comment-399-2 Several critics alter κατηύχετο 186 κατήρχετο 187

mvp-comment-399-3 But κατηύχετο 188

mvp-comment-400-1 σεμνῶν ὀργίων … φλὸξ 189

mvp-comment-400-2 πιείρας δρυός 190

mvp-comment-401-1 ἱδρὼς 191 ἀρτίκολλος, ὥστε τέκτονος 192

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 193

mvp-comment-401-4 ὀστέων 194 ἀντίσπαστος 195 ἀδαγμός 196

mvp-comment-402-1 ἐχίδνης … ὣς 197

mvp-comment-402-2 ἐδαίνυτο 198

mvp-comment-403-1 )βόησε 199

mvp-comment-403-2 μηχαναῖς 200

mvp-comment-404-1 ἔλεξεν 201

mvp-comment-405-1 πλευμόνων 202

mvp-comment-406-1 ἄρθρον ᾗ λυγίζεται 203

mvp-comment-407-1 ἐκ πόντου 204

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 205

mvp-comment-408-2 μυελὸν 206

mvp-comment-408-3 διασπαρέντος 207 μέσου 208

mvp-comment-409-1 ἀνηυφήμησεν οἰμωγῇ 209

mvp-comment-410-1 ἰύζων 210

mvp-comment-411-1 Λοκρῶν τ’ ὄρειοι πρῶνες 211 τ’ 212 Λοκρῶν 213 ἄκραι 214 ἄκρα 215

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 216

mvp-comment-413-1 δυσπάρευνον 217 λέκτρον 218

mvp-comment-413-2 ἐνδατούμενος 219

mvp-comment-413-3 τὸν Οἰνέως γάμον 220

mvp-comment-414-1 προσέδρου 221

mvp-comment-414-2 λιγνύος 222

mvp-comment-414-3 διάστροφον 223

mvp-comment-415-1 συνθανεῖν 224

mvp-comment-416-1 ἔξω 225 ἆρον 226

mvp-comment-416-2 The reasons for preferring Wakefield's με θὲς 227 μέθες 228 μέθες 229

mvp-comment-416-3 ὅπου … μή τις ὄψεται 230

mvp-comment-417-1 εἰ δ’ οἶκτον ἴσχεις 231 εἰ δ’ οἶκτος ἴσχει ς’. 232

mvp-comment-417-2 ἀλλά 233 αὐτοῦ 234

mvp-comment-417-3 θάνω 235

mvp-comment-418-1 τοσαῦτ’ 236

mvp-comment-418-2 ἐπισκήψαντος 237

mvp-comment-419-1 σφε 238 ἐκέλσαμεν 239 θέντες 240

mvp-comment-420-1 ἢ ζῶντ’ … ἢ τεθνηκότ’ 241

mvp-comment-421-1 βουλεύσας’ 242

mvp-comment-421-2 δρῶς’ 243

mvp-comment-421-3 ποίνιμος 244

mvp-comment-421-4 Δίκη 245

mvp-comment-421-5 ἐπεύχομαι 246

mvp-comment-421-6 εἰ θέμις … θέμις δ’ 247

mvp-comment-421-7 προὔβαλες 248

mvp-comment-421-8 μοι 249

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 250 ἔριν 251

mvp-comment-422-1 σῖγ’ 252

mvp-comment-422-2 815 f. The place of ὀφθαλμῶν ἐμῶν 253 οὖρος 254

mvp-comment-422-3 αὐτῇ 255

mvp-comment-422-4 καλός 256

mvp-comment-423-1 γὰρ 257

mvp-comment-423-2 ὄγκον 258

mvp-comment-423-3 τρέφειν 259

mvp-comment-423-4 μηδὲν 260 ἥτις 261

mvp-comment-424-1 ἀλλ’ ἑρπ. χαίρουσα 262

mvp-comment-424-2 τήνδ’ 263

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

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).