Sophocles Antigone 252

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Creon

1261 Woe for the sins of a darkened soul, stubborn sins, fraught with death! Ah, ye behold us, the sire who hath slain, the son who hath perished! Woe is me, for the wretched blindness of my counsels! Alas, my son, thou hast died in thy youth, by a timeless doom, woe_is_me!—thy spirit hath fled,—not by thy folly, but by mine own!

Antigone. Sophocles. Cambridge, UK. 1904.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by Tufts University.

Current edition Experimental

English (Sir Richard Jebb1, 1904) (OCR draft) (English) (English (Sir Richard Jebb1, 1904))

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (12)

Greek (L. Benloew, 1858) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (L. Benloew, 1858)) — 252 focus

ὅπως δ᾽ ὁ πρῶτος ἡμὶν ἡμεροσκόπος

Greek (A. Boeckh, 1884) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. Boeckh, 1884)) — 252 focus

λεπτὴ δ᾽, ἄγος φεύγοντος ὥς, ἐπῆν κόνις.

Greek (F. H. Bothe, 1806) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. H. Bothe, 1806)) — 252 focus

δείκνυσι, πᾶσι θαῦμα δυσχερὲς παρῆν·

Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) — 252 focus

τροχοῖσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἄσημος οὑργάτης τις ἦν.

Greek (A. Colonna, 1978) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. Colonna, 1978)) — 252 focus

τροχοῖσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἄσημος οὑργάτης τις ἦν.

Greek (A. Dain, 1955) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. Dain, 1955)) — 252.mvp-line-252 focus

τροχοῖσιν, ἀλλ’ ἄσημος οὑργάτης τις ἦν.

Greek (R. D. Dawe, 1979) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (R. D. Dawe, 1979)) — 252 focus

τροχοῖσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἄσημος οὑργάτης τις ἦν.

Greek (G. Hermann, 1830) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (G. Hermann, 1830)) — 252 focus

τροχοῖσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἄσημος οὑργάτης τις ἦν.

Greek (R. C. Jebb, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (R. C. Jebb, 1906)) — 252 focus

τροχοῖσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἄσημος οὑργάτης τις ἦν.

Greek (A. C. Pearson, 1924) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. C. Pearson, 1924)) — 252.mvp-line-252 focus

τροχοῖσιν, ἀλλ᾽ ἄσημος οὑργάτης τις ἦν.

Antigone (OCR draft) Experimental (Antigone) — 252 focus

τροχοῖσιν, ἀλλʼ ἄσημος οὑργάτης τις ἦν.

Greek (K. Reinhardt, 1949) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (K. Reinhardt, 1949)) — 252 focus

τροχοῖσιν, ἀλλ' ἄσημος ἡμὶν οὑργάτης τις ἦν.

Translations (9)

German (A. Boeckh, 1884) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (A. Boeckh, 1884)) — 252 focus

CHOR.

O Seher, welch ein richtig Wort doch sprachest du!

Spanish (J. A. Bolufer, 1921) (OCR draft) Experimental (Spanish (J. A. Bolufer, 1921)) — 252 focus

EL MENSAJERO

Pues vamos a verlo yéndonos a palacio; no sea que algo reprimido oculte secretamente en su irritado corazón; porque bien dices que el demasiado silencio es cosa grave.

Latin (F. H. Bothe, 1806) (OCR draft) Experimental (Latin (F. H. Bothe, 1806)) — 252 focus

Chorus

1257 Atqui eccum advenit rex ipse, monumentum insigne manibus gestans, haud alienae, si fas est dicere, crimen, sed suae ipsius noxae.

English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906)) — 252 focus

CR

Alas!

I have learnt it now. But then upon my head

Some God had smitten with dire weight of doom;

And plunged me in a furious course, woe is me!

Discomforting and trampling on my joy.
1275

Woe! for the bitterness of mortal pain!

German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 237 focus

Was ist's, warum befiel dich solche Bangigkeit?

Der Wächter.

Erst laß dir sagen, was mich selbst betrifft: die That

Verübt' ich nicht, noch sah ich, wer der Thäter war;

Und nur mit Unrecht widerführe mir ein Leid.
240

Kreon.

Du zielst behutsam und verschanzest dich geschickt

Ringsher; du bringst uns, seh' ich wohl, ein schweres Wort.

Der Wächter.

Das Arge freilich regt die Furcht gewaltig auf.

Kreon.

Nun, wirst du reden endlich und dann weiter geh'n?

Der Wächter.

Wohlan, so sag' ich's: Einer, der sofort verschwand,
245

Begrub den Todten eben, hat mit trocknem Staub

Bestreut den Leichnam, und geweiht, was üblich ist.

Kreon.

Was sagst du? Wer auf Erden hat sich deß erkühnt?

Der Wächter.

Ich weiß es nicht; denn weder eines Beiles Hieb

War dort, noch einer Hacke Wurf, der Boden dicht
250

Und fest und bruchlos, auch mit Wagenrädern nicht

Befahren; spurlos blieb es, wer der Thäter war.

Und wie es uns der erste Tageswächter zeigt,¹

Erschien es Allen unerklärlich wunderbar.

Die Leiche war verschwunden, nicht begraben zwar;
255

Dünn, wie den Fluch zu meiden, lag der Staub darauf.²

Von einem Raubthier oder Hund war keine Spur,

Die hergekommen und an ihr herumgezerrt.

Nun schollen böse Reden auf einander los,

Der Wächter zich den Wächter; wohl auch endet' es
260

Zulezt mit Schlägen; Keiner war zu wehren da.

Denn Einer wie der Andre war der Thäter hier,

Und Keiner überführbar; Jeder stritt es ab.

Mit Händen fassen wollten wir ein glühend Erz,³

Durch Feuer gehen, schwören bei den Göttern selbst,
265

Daß wir es nicht verübten noch im Bunde sei'n

Mit Einem, der's ersonnen oder ausgeführt.

Am Ende, da kein Forschen mehr uns weiter half,

Sprach Einer, der uns alle zwang, vor Furcht das Haupt

Zur Erd' hinabzusenken denn wir wußten nicht
270

Zu widersprechen, noch wiefern wir, thäten wir's,

Uns helfen könnten dieser rieth, man müsse dir

Die Sache hinterbringen, nicht verheimlichen.

Und seine Meinung siegte: mich Unseligen

Verdammt zu diesem schönen Glück des Looses Wurf.
275

Nun steh' ich hier, nicht willig vor Unwilligen:

Niemand ja liebt den Boten unwillkommner Mähr.

Der Chor.

English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 252 focus

Chorus
1270

O king ! thy justice comes too late.
1270

Spanish (A. G. Garbin, 1889) (OCR draft) Experimental (Spanish (A. G. Garbin, 1889)) — 252 focus

EL CORO

¿Qué nueva desgracia ocurrida á nuestros reyos vienes á anunciarnos?

German (F. Hölderlin, 1804) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (F. Hölderlin, 1804)) — 252 focus

KREON

Was ist denn schlimmer noch, als das, was schlimm ist?

English (Sir Richard Jebb2, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb2, 1904)) — 332-380 focus

Chorus

Wonders are many, and none is more wonderful than man.

This power spans the sea, even when it surges white before the gales of the south-wind, and makes a path under swells that threaten to engulf him. Earth, too, the eldest of the gods, the immortal, the unwearied,
335

he wears away to his own ends, turning the soil with the offspring of horses as the plows weave to and fro year after year.
340

343

Chorus

The light-hearted tribe of birds

and the clans of wild beasts and the sea-brood of the deep he snares in the meshes of his twisted nets, and he leads them captive, very-skilled man. He masters by his arts
345

the beast who dwells in the wilds and roams the hills. He tames the shaggy-maned horse, putting the yoke upon its neck, and tames the tireless mountain bull.
350

354

Chorus

Speech and thought fast as the wind and the moods that give order to a city he has taught himself, and how to flee the arrows of the inhospitable frost under clear skies and the arrows of the storming rain.

He has resource for everything. Lacking resource in nothing he strides towards what must come. From Death alone he shall procure no escape, but from baffling diseases he has devised flights.
360

365

Chorus

Possessing resourceful skill, a subtlety beyond expectation he moves now to evil, now to good. When he honors the laws of the land and the justice of the gods to which he is bound by oath,
365

his city prospers. But banned from his city is he who, thanks to his rashness, couples with disgrace. Never may he share my home,
370

never think my thoughts, who does these things!
375

376

Enter the Guard, on the spectators’ left, leading in Antigone.

Chorus

What marvel sent by the gods is this?—I am bewildered! I know her. How can I deny that this girl is Antigone? O unhappy child

of your unhappy father, of Oedipus! What can this mean? What! Surely they are not bringing you captive for disobeying the King’s laws and being caught in lunacy?
380

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-763-1 This

κομμός

is composed of four strophes and four antistrophes, which correspond as follows. (1) 1st strophe 1261—1269=1st antistr. 1284—1292. (2) 2nd str. 1271—1277 =2nd ant. 1294—1300. (3) 3rd str. 1306—1311=3rd ant. 1328—1333. (4) 4th str. 1317—1325=4th ant. 1339— 1347.

mvp-comment-763-2 The lyric strophes and antistrophes are divided from each other by iambic trimeters, spoken by the Chorus or by the Messenger.—See Metrical Analysis.

mvp-comment-763-3 φρενῶν δυσφρόνων ¹

mvp-comment-763-4 στερεά ²