Sófocles Antigone 138

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CREONTE
Así, hijo mío, conviene que lo tomes a pechos para posponerlo todo a la opinión de tu padre. Por esto, pues, desean los hombres engendrar y tener en casa hijos obedientes, para que rechacen con ofensa a los enemigos y honren al amigo lo mismo que a su padre. Quien cria cría hijos que no le reporten ningún provecho, ¿qué podrás decir de él sino que engendró molestias para si sí y risa abundante para sus enemigos? Nunca jamás, ¡oh hijo!, te rinda el placer de manera que abdiques de tu razón por culpa de una mujer, sabiendo qué frío resulta el abrazo cuando tienes en casa por esposa a una mujer mala. ¿Pues què qué plaga puede resultar mayor que una mala compañera? Despreciándola, pues, como a una perversa, deja que esa muchacha se case con otro en el infierno. Porque cuando a ella cogi cogí yo públicamente, a ella sola entre todos los ciudadanos, desobedeciendo mis órdenes, no he de quedar como un farsante ante la ciudad, sino que la mataré, aunque implore a Júpiter, protector de la familia; porque si a los deudos, por el parentesco, les he de tolerar sus rebeldías, con mayor razón a los que no sean de la familia; porque el hombre que sea cuidadoso en los asuntos domésticos, será también justo en los asuntos de la ciudad; pero quien atropellándolo todo, o quebranta las leyes o piensa mandar de los que gobiernan, ése no es posible que obtenga mi alabanza; porque a quien la ciudad coloca en el trono, a ése hay que obedecer en las cosas pequeñas, en las justas y en las que no sean ni pequeñas ni justas. Y un hombre tal no puedo dudar yo que es el que gobierna bien y quiere ser bien gobernado; ése, en el tumulto de la batalla, permanecerá firme en su lugar, como fiel y valiente defensor. No hay mayor mal que la anarquia anarquía: ella arruina las ciudades, ella introduce la discordia en las familias, ella rompe y pone en fuga al ejército del aliado; pero la obediencia salva las más veces la vida de los que cumplen con su deber. Así hay que defender el orden y la disciplina, y no dejarse nunca dominar por una mujer. Mejor es, si es preciso, caer ante un hombre; que así nunca podrán decir que somos inferiores a una hembra.

Antigone. Sófocles. Madrid. 1921.

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Current edition Experimental

Spanish (J. A. Bolufer, 1921) (OCR draft) (Spanish) (Spanish (J. A. Bolufer, 1921))

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (12)
Greek (L. Benloew, 1858) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (L. Benloew, 1858)) — 138 focus
εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλᾳ τὰ μὲν,
Greek (A. Boeckh, 1884) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. Boeckh, 1884)) — 138 focus
ἑπτὰ λοχαγοὶ γὰρ ἐφ᾽ ἑπτὰ πύλαις
Greek (F. H. Bothe, 1806) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. H. Bothe, 1806)) — 138 focus
εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλᾳ τὰ μὲν,
Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) — 138 focus
εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλᾳ τὰ μέν·
Greek (A. Colonna, 1978) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. Colonna, 1978)) — 138 focus
εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλᾳ τὰ μέν,
Greek (A. Dain, 1955) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. Dain, 1955)) — 138.mvp-line-138 focus
εἶχε δ’ ἄλλᾳ τὰ μέν,
Greek (R. D. Dawe, 1979) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (R. D. Dawe, 1979)) — 138 focus
εἶχε δ᾽ †ἄλλα τὰ δ᾽ ἄλλα
Greek (G. Hermann, 1830) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (G. Hermann, 1830)) — 138 focus
εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλᾳ μὲν ἄλ-
Greek (R. C. Jebb, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (R. C. Jebb, 1906)) — 138 focus
εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλᾳ τὰ μέν, 5
Greek (A. C. Pearson, 1924) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. C. Pearson, 1924)) — 138.mvp-line-138 focus
εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλᾳ τὰ μέν,
Antigone (OCR draft) Experimental (Antigone) — 138 focus
εἶχε δʼ ἄλλᾳ τὰ μέν,
Greek (K. Reinhardt, 1949) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (K. Reinhardt, 1949)) — 138 focus
εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλαι τὰ μέν,
Translations (10)
German (A. Boeckh, 1884) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (A. Boeckh, 1884)) — 138 focus
KREON
Du bist verhafst mir, du sowie dein Ehebett.
560
Latin (F. H. Bothe, 1806) (OCR draft) Experimental (Latin (F. H. Bothe, 1806)) — 138 focus
Creon
Scilicet hoc animo te esse par est, cedant ut omnia patris voluntati. Propterea enim cupit vir quiviscumque liberos suscipere sibi subditos et educere domi, ut et paternos inimicos ulciscantur male, amicosque eodem, quo pater, prosequantur honore; qui vero cumque liberos genuit inutiles, quid illum dicas aliud, quam sibi compedes, genuisse, multumque inimicis risum? Ne nunc ergo, nate, voluptate victus, mulierisque cupidine, sanam mentem abiicias, et hoc tene, frigere amplexum pravae mulieris, quam quis domi consortem tori habeat. Quod enim peius esse possit ulcus, quam malus amicus? Quare tamquam malivolam despuens, puellam illam sine apud Orcum, cui voluerit, nubere: ego enim, postquam illam manifesto deprehendi unam ex omni civitate edicto meo parere recusantem, haud sane committam,ut me falsi arguant cives, sed illam occidam. Proinde Iovem imploret cognationis praesidem! nam qui mihi genere coniuncti sunt, si eos mihi immorigeros esse patiar, similes profecto habebo extrarios. Quicumque enim familiam probe regit, is et in administranda civitate iustus videbitur: quicumque vero inobediens vel leges violat, vel imperare magistratibus cogitat, non est ut is laudem a me consequatur. Scilicet quem Civitas summae rerum praefecerit , ei parere oportet tenues, pariter in iustis iniustisque rebus, et qui sic animatus sit, hunc virum nullus dubiiem, quin recte imperare possit, aliusque subiectus imperio iussa rite exsequi velit, et belli in procella, jussus, mansurus sit, iustum se praebens fortemque adiutorem. Licentia enim maius haud aliud est malum: haec quippe civitates perdit, haec subvertit domos, haec socios in fugam coniicit: atque iis, qui recti in acie steterunt, saluti plerumque fuit obedientia. Sic vindicare oportet reges, neque omnino feminae cedendum: satius est enim, siquidem de statu deiici necesse est, a viro vinci, nec mulieribus ignaviores esse dicamur.
English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906)) — 138 focus
CR
That, O my son! should be thy constant mind,
In all to bend thee to thy father’s will.
640
Therefore men pray to have around their hearths
Obedient offspring, to requite their foes
With harm, and honour whom their father loves;
But he whose issue proves unprofitable,
Begets what else but sorrow to himself
645
And store of laughter to his enemies?
Make not, my son, a shipwreck of thy wit
For a woman. Thine own heart may teach thee this;—
There’s but cold comfort in a wicked wife
Yoked to the home inseparably. What wound
650
Can be more deadly than a harmful friend?
Then spurn her like an enemy, and send her
To wed some shadow in the world below!
For since of all the city I have found
Her only recusant, caught in the act,
655
I will not break my word before the State.
I will take her life. At this let her invoke
The god of kindred blood! For if at home
I foster rebels, how much more abroad?
Whoso is just in ruling his own house,
660
Lives rightly in the commonwealth no less:
But he that wantonly defies the law,
Or thinks to dictate to authority,
Shall have no praise from me. What power soe’er
The city hath ordained, must be obeyed
665
In little things and great things, right or wrong.
The man who so obeys, I have good hope
Will govern and be governed as he ought,
And in the storm of battle at my side
Will stand a faithful and a trusty comrade.
670
But what more fatal than the lapse of rule?
This ruins cities, this lays houses waste,
This joins with the assault of war to break
Full numbered armies into hopeless rout;
And in the unbroken host ’tis nought but rule
675
That keeps those many bodies from defeat,
I must be zealous to defend the law,
And not go down before a woman’s will.
Else, if I fall, ’twere best a man should strike me;
Lest one should say, ‘a woman worsted him.’
680
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 141 focus
Denn Sieben, um sieben Thore gestellt,
Mann wider den Mann, sie ließen dem Zeus,
Dem Verleiher des Siegs, die gediegene Wehr. 1
Nur das schreckliche Paar, von dem Einen gezeugt
Mit demselben Gemahl, die wider sich selbst
145
Mit siegendem Speer einstürmten, umfing
Des gemeinsamen Todes Verhängniß.
Zweite Gegenstrophe.
English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 138 focus
Haemon
Thtit thou shouldst listen to him ; so to thee
Spanish (A. G. Garbin, 1889) (OCR draft) Experimental (Spanish (A. G. Garbin, 1889)) — 138 focus
CREONTE
El Orco se encargará de romper esos lazos.
German (F. Hölderlin, 1804) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (F. Hölderlin, 1804)) — 138 focus
CHOR
Mein König, billig ist es, wenn er an der Zeit spricht,
Zu lernen, aber du von dem auch. Denn
Mit zweien Stimmen wurde recht gesprochen.
English (Sir Richard Jebb1, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb1, 1904)) — 138 focus
Creon
Yea, this, my son, should be thy heart’s fixed 640 law,—in_all things to obey thy father’s will, 'Tis for this that men pray to see dutiful children grow up around them in their homes,—that such may requite their father’s foe with evil, and honour, as their father doth, his friend. But he who begets unprofitable children—what shall we say that he hath sown, but — troubles for himself, and much triumph for his foes? Then do not thou, my son, at pleasure’s beck, dethrone thy reason for a woman’s sake; knowing that this is 650 a joy that soon grows cold in clasping arms,—an evil woman to share thy bed and thy home. For what wound could strike deeper than a false friend? Nay, with loathing, and as if she were thine enemy, let this girl go to find a husband in the house of Hades. For since I have taken her, alone of all the city, in open disobedience, I will not make myself a liar to my people—I will slay her. So let her appeal as she will to the majesty of kindred blood. If I am to nurture mine own kindred in 660 naughtiness, needs must I bear with it in aliens. He who does his duty in his own household will be found righteous in the State also. But if any one transgresses, and does violence to the laws, or thinks to dictate to his rulers, such an one can win no praise from me. No, whomsoever the city may appoint, that man must be obeyed, in little things and great, in just things and unjust; and I should feel sure that one who thus obeys would be a good ruler no less than a good subject, and 670 in the storm of spears would stand his ground where he was set, loyal and dauntless at his comrade’s side.
But disobedience is the worst of evils. This it is that ruins cities; this makes homes desolate; by this, the ranks of allies are broken into headlong rout; but, of the lives whose course is fair, the greater part owes safety to obedience. Therefore we must support the cause of order, and in no wise suffer a woman to worst us. Better to fall from power, if must, by a man’s 680 hand; then we should not be called weaker than a woman.
English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 138 focus
Chorus
872
To act with piety denotes a soul
English (Sir Richard Jebb2, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb2, 1904)) — 162-330 focus

Commentary

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

222. mvp-comment-135-1 The emphatic position of ἄνδρας at the beginning of the line shows that the word is intended to mark Creon's unconsciousness of the real source of danger. So infr. 1. 248. Cp. Aesch. Ag. 1110: O. T. 928, al. So ὑπ᾿ ἐλπίδων shows how incapable he is of divining the motive of Antigone.