Sophocles Antigone 39

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Guard

liege, I will not say that I come breathless from speed, or that I have plied a nimble foot ; for often did my thoughts make me pause, and wheel round in my path, to return. My mind was holding large discourse with me; ‘Fool, why goest thou to thy certain doom ?’ ‘Wretch, tarrying again? And if Creon hears this from 230 another, must not thou smart for it?’ So debating, I went on my way with lagging steps, and thus. a short road was made long. At last, however, it carried the day that I should come hither—to thee; and, though my tale be nought, yet will I tell it; for_I_come with C a good grip on one hope,—that I can suffer nothing but ate what is my fate.

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)) — 39 focus

τί δ᾽, ὦ ταλαίφρων, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Greek (A. Boeckh, 1884) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. Boeckh, 1884)) — 39 focus

τί δ᾽, ὦ ταλαῖφρον, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Greek (F. H. Bothe, 1806) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. H. Bothe, 1806)) — 39 focus

τί δ᾽, ὦ ταλαίφρων, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) — 39 focus

τί δ᾽, ὦ ταλαῖφρον, εἰ τάδ' ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Greek (A. Colonna, 1978) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. Colonna, 1978)) — 39 focus

τί δ᾽, ὦ ταλαῖφρον, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Greek (A. Dain, 1955) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. Dain, 1955)) — 39.mvp-line-39 focus

τί δ’, ὦ ταλαῖφρον, εἰ τάδ’ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Greek (R. D. Dawe, 1979) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (R. D. Dawe, 1979)) — 39 focus

τί δ᾽, ὦ ταλαῖφρον, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Greek (G. Hermann, 1830) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (G. Hermann, 1830)) — 39 focus

τί δ᾽, ὦ ταλαῖφρον, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Greek (R. C. Jebb, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (R. C. Jebb, 1906)) — 39 focus

τί δ᾽, ὦ ταλαῖφρον, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Greek (A. C. Pearson, 1924) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (A. C. Pearson, 1924)) — 39.mvp-line-39 focus

τί δ᾽, ὦ ταλαῖφρον, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Antigone (OCR draft) Experimental (Antigone) — 39 focus

τί δʼ, ὦ ταλαῖφρον, εἰ τάδʼ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Greek (K. Reinhardt, 1949) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (K. Reinhardt, 1949)) — 39 focus

τί δ᾽, ὦ ταλαῖφρον, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐν τούτοις, ἐγὼ

Translations (10)

German (A. Boeckh, 1884) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (A. Boeckh, 1884)) — 39 focus

CHOR

Niemand ist also thöricht, daſs er sterben will.

Spanish (J. A. Bolufer, 1921) (OCR draft) Experimental (Spanish (J. A. Bolufer, 1921)) — 39 focus

El Centinela

¡Rey!, no diré que llego sin aliento por venir de prisa y a todo correr, porque con frecuencia me he parado a pensar, dando vueltas por el camino, si me volvería atrás. Mi corazón me decía muchas veces aconsejándome : «¡Infeliz!, ¿por qué vas adonde la pagarás así que llegues? ¡Desgraciado!, ¿persistes aún? Y si Creonte se enterase de esto por otro hombre, ¿cómo tú no lo habías de sentir?» Revolviendo tales pensamientos venia venía lenta y pausadamente; de modo que un camino breve me ha resultado largo. Al fin me decidi decidí a llegar a tu presencia; y aunque nada te pueda aclarar, hablaré, sin embargo; pues vengo fortalecido con la esperanza de que no me podrá pasar nada fuera de lo que me tenga reservado el destino.

Latin (F. H. Bothe, 1806) (OCR draft) Experimental (Latin (F. H. Bothe, 1806)) — 39 focus

Custos

Haud equidem, o rex, dixero, anhelantem me esse, quod citato gressu celeriterque venerim: moras enim solicitudinum multas inveni, in via subinde me ipsum circumagens, ut referrem pedem. Anima enim saepius me alloquebatur: Miser, cur tendis eo, ubi poenas dabis, simul ac veneris? at enim resistes, miser? haec etiamsi ex quopiam alio resciverit Creon, quinam, sodes, malum effugies? Talia volutans animo, tardo iter confeci, quamvis alioqui celer, sicque longa fit brevis via. Tandem tamen consultissimum visum est huc venire: dicam autem, tametsi nihili sit, quod proferam: hac enim spe fretus venio, nihil me aliud passurum esse, nisi quod fatale sit.

English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906)) — 39 focus

WATCHMAN

().

My lord, I am out of breath, but not with speed.

I will not say my foot was fleet. My thoughts

Cried halt unto me ever as I came
225

And wheeled me to return. My mind discoursed

Most volubly within my breast, and said—

Fond wretch! why go where thou wilt find thy bane?

Unhappy wight! say, wilt thou bide aloof?

Then if the king shall hear this from another,

How shalt thou ’scape for ’t? Winding thus about
230

I hasted, but I could not speed, and so

Made a long journey of a little way.

At last ‘yes’ carried it, that I should come

To thee; and tell thee I must needs; and shall,

Though it be nothing that I have to tell.

For I came hither, holding fast by this—
235

Nought that is not my fate can happen to me.

German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 39 focus

Was kann ich, wenn dies also steht, Unselige,¹

Hier, lösend oder bindend, uns zum Frommen thun?
40

Antigone.

Sieh, ob du helfen, ob die Mühe theilen wirst

Ismene.

Bei welchem Unterfangen? Wo geräthst du hin?

Antigone.

Ob du den Todten, mir gesellt, aufnehmen willst!

Ismene.

Ihn denn bestatten willst du, dem Verbot zum Troz?

Antigone.

Ja, meinen Bruder und den deinen, wenn auch du
45

Nicht willst; denn niemals soll man mich Verrathes zeih'n!²

Ismene.

Tollkühne, während Kreon's Wort es dir verwehrt?

Antigone.

Fern halten darf mich dieser nie von meiner Pflicht.

Ismene.

Weh mir! Bedenk', o Schwester, wie der Vater uns,

Mit Haß und Hohn belastet, ruhmlos unterging,
50

Nachdem er selbst um Gräuel, die er selbst enthüllt,

Der Augen Sterne sich zerriß mit eigner Hand;

Wie dann die Mutter, Mutter ihm und Weib zugleich,

Schmachvoll mit frevlem Strange sich das Leben nahm;

Zum dritten, wie die Brüder beid' an Einem Tag
55

Im Wechselmord sich ein gemeinsam Todesloos,

Die Armen, schufen, Einer durch des Andern Hand!

Wir sind allein jezt übrig; du bedenke denn,

Wie schmählich wir verdürben, wenn wir wider Necht

Der Herrscher Ausspruch und Gewalt mißachteten.
60

Wohl mußt du doch erwägen, daß wir Frauen sind,

Und nicht geschaffen, Männern kühn im Kampf zu steh'n,

Dann aber, daß wir, weil beherrscht von Stärkeren,

Hier folgen müssen und sogar in Härterem.

Drum will ich jene, die der Erde Schooß verbirgt,³
65

Anfleh'n um Nachsicht, weil Gewalt mich bindet hier,

Und ihm gehorchen, dem die Macht geworden ist;

Denn Unverstand ist's, über seine Kraft zu thun.

English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 39 focus

Messenger

First for myself ; I merit not thy wrath ;

It was not I, nor have I seen the man

Who did the guilty deed.
240

Spanish (A. G. Garbin, 1889) (OCR draft) Experimental (Spanish (A. G. Garbin, 1889)) — 39 focus

CREONTE

Que seáis severamente inflexibles con los que osaren desobedecer mis mandatos.

German (F. Hölderlin, 1804) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (F. Hölderlin, 1804)) — 39 focus

DER BOTE

Mein König, difsmal plaudr’ ich nicht, wie mich

Die othemlose Schnelle bring’, und wie

Sich leicht gehoben mir der Fuls. Denn öfters

Hielt mich die Sorg’ und wendet auf dem Wege

Mich um zur Rükkehr. Denn die Seele sang
235

Mir träumend viel. Wo gehst du hin, du Armer!

Wohin gelangt, giebst du die Rechenschaft ?

Bleibst du zurük, Unglüklicher ? so aber

Wird Kreon es von einem andern hören.

Wie kümmerst du defswegen denn dich nicht?
240

Derlei bedenkend, gieng ich müfsig langsam,

Und so wird auch ein kurzer Weg zum weiten.

Zulezt hat freilich diess gesiegt, ich soll

Hieher, und wenn mein Sorgen auch für nichts ist,

So sprech’ ich doch. Denn in der Hoffnung komm’ ich,
245

Es folge nur, dem, wasich that, was noth ist.

English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 39 focus

Messenger
CREON, MESSENGER, ANTIGONE, CHORUS.

What hath befall'n? Hath justice reach'd th' offence?

Never should man, O king, on oath protest

Against a deed; some unseen cause may rise,

And show his former resolution built

On false foundations. By thy threats appall'd
405

I rashly said I never would return;
405

Yet with a joy beyond, above all hope,
405

English (Sir Richard Jebb2, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb2, 1904)) — 1-98 focus

1

Antigone

Ismene, my sister, true child of my own mother, do you know any evil out of all the evils bequeathed by Oedipus that Zeus will not fulfil for the two of us in our lifetime? There is nothing—no pain, no ruin,
1

no shame, nor dishonor—that I have not seen in your sufferings and mine. And now what is this new edict that they say the general has just decreed to all the city? Do you know anything? Have you heard? Or does it escape you that
5

evils from our enemies are on the march against our friends?
10

Ismene

To me no word of our friends, Antigone, either bringing joy or bringing pain has come since we two were robbed of our two brothers who died in one day by a double blow.

And since the Argive army has fled during this night, I have learned nothing further, whether better fortune is mine, or further ruin.
15

Antigone

I knew it well, so I was trying to bring you outside the courtyard gates to this end, that you alone might hear.

Ismene

Hear what? It is clear that you are brooding on some dark news.
20

Antigone

Why not? Has not Creon destined our brothers, the one to honored burial, the other to unburied shame? Eteocles, they say, with due observance of right and custom, he has laid in the earth

for his honor among the dead below. As for the poor corpse of Polyneices, however, they say that an edict has been published to the townsmen that no one shall bury him or mourn him, but instead leave him unwept, unentombed, for the birds a pleasing store
25

as they look to satisfy their hunger. Such, it is said, is the edict that the good Creon has laid down for you and for me—yes, for me—and it is said that he is coming here to proclaim it for the certain knowledge of those who do not already know. They say that he does not conduct this business lightly,
30

but whoever performs any of these rites, for him the fate appointed is death by public stoning among the entire city. This is how things stand for you, and so you will soon show your nature, whether you are noble-minded, or the corrupt daughter of a noble line.
35

39

Ismene

Poor sister, if things have come to this, what would I

profit by loosening or tightening this knot?
40

Antigone

Consider whether you will share the toil and the task.

Ismene

What are you hazarding? What do you intend?

Antigone

Will you join your hand to mine in order to lift his corpse?

Ismene

You plan to bury him—when it is forbidden to the city?

Antigone

Yes, he is my brother, and yours too, even if you wish it otherwise. I will never be convicted of betraying him.
45

Ismene

Hard girl! Even when Creon has forbidden it?

Antigone

No, he has no right to keep me from my own.

Ismene

Ah, no! Think, sister, how our father

perished in hatred and infamy, when, because of the crimes that he himself detected, he smashed both his eyes with self-blinding hand; then his mother-wife, two names in one, with a twisted noose destroyed her life;
50

lastly, our two brothers in a single day, both unhappy murderers of their own flesh and blood, worked with mutual hands their common doom. And now we, in turn—we two who have been left all alone—consider how much more miserably we will be destroyed, if in defiance of the law
55

we transgress against an autocrat’s decree or his powers. No, we must remember, first, that ours is a woman’s nature, and accordingly not suited to battles against men; and next, that we are ruled by the more powerful, so that we must obey in these things and in things even more stinging.
60

I, therefore, will ask those below for pardon, since I am forced to this, and will obey those who have come to authority. It is foolish to do what is fruitless.
65

69

Antigone

I would not encourage you—no, nor, even if you were willing later,

would I welcome you as my partner in this action. No, be the sort that pleases you. I will bury him—it would honor me to die while doing that. I shall rest with him, loved one with loved one, a pious criminal. For the time is greater
70

that I must serve the dead than the living, since in that world I will rest forever. But if you so choose, continue to dishonor what the gods in honor have established.
75

Ismene

I do them no dishonor. But to act in violation of the citizens’ will—of that I am by nature incapable.

Antigone

You can make that your pretext! Regardless, I will go now to heap a tomb over the brother I love.
80

Ismene

Oh no, unhappy sister! I fear for you!

Antigone

Do not tremble for me. Straighten out your own destiny.

Ismene

Then at least disclose the deed to no one before you do it.

Conceal it, instead, in secrecy—and so, too, will I.
85

Antigone

Go on! Denounce it! You will be far more hated for your silence, if you fail to proclaim these things to everyone.

Ismene

You have a hot heart for chilling deeds.

Antigone

I know that I please those whom I am most bound to please.

Ismene

Yes, if you will also have the power. But you crave the impossible.
90

Antigone

Why then, when my strength fails, I will have finished.

Ismene

An impossible hunt should not be tried in the first place.

Antigone

If you mean that, you will have my hatred, and you will be subject to punishment as the enemy of the dead.

But leave me and the foolish plan I have authored to suffer this terrible thing, for I will not suffer anything so terrible that my death will lack honor.
95

Ismene

Go, then, if you so decide. And of this be sure: though your path is foolish, to your loved ones your love is straight and true. Exit Antigone on the spectators’ left. Ismene exits into the palace.

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-82-1 πυρφόρος ¹

mvp-comment-82-2 βακχεύων ²

mvp-comment-82-3 ῥιπαῖς...ἀνέμων ³

mvp-comment-83-1 εἶχε δ’ ἄλλᾳ τὰ μέν ⁴ εἶχε δ’ ἄλλαι τὰ μὲν ἄλλαι τὰ δ’ ἐπ’ ἄλλοις ⁵ τὰ μέν ⁶ ἄλλα δέ ⁷ τὰ μέν ⁸ ἄλλᾳ ⁹

mvp-comment-83-2 ἐπενώμα ¹⁰ στυφελίζων ¹¹

mvp-comment-83-3 δεξιόσειρος ¹²

mvp-comment-83-4 The old v.l. δεξιόχειρος ¹³

mvp-comment-84-1 ἑπτὰ λοχαγοί ¹⁴

mvp-comment-84-2 ἴσοι πρὸς ἴσους ¹⁵

mvp-comment-84-3 Ζηνὶ τροπαίῳ ¹⁶

mvp-comment-84-4 πάγχαλκα τέλη ¹⁷

mvp-comment-84-5 It was the ordinary practice to set up a

τρόπαιον

(old

αττ.τροπαῖον

) after a victory, on the spot where it had been won, or, in the case of a sea-fight, on the nearest land ( Thuc. 2.92 ). Such a trophy ordinarily consisted of shields, helmets, and weapons, conspicuously displayed on wooden supports, and dedicated, with an inscription, to a deity. Cp. Eur. Phoen. 1473 (of the Thebans after the victory)

οἱ μὲν Διὸς τροπαῖον ἵστασαν βρέτας

(i.e. a wooden image of

Ζεὺς Τροπαῖος

), |

οἱ δ’ ἀσπίδας συλῶντες Ἀργείων νεκρῶν | σκυλεύματ’ εἴσω τειχέων ἐπέμπομεν

. Part of the armour would be affixed to the walls of Theban temples (cp. Aesch. Ag. 577 , Th. 276 ).

mvp-comment-85-1 πλὴν τ. στυγεροῖν ¹⁸ πατρός ¹⁹

mvp-comment-85-2 καθ’ αὑτοῖν ²⁰

mvp-comment-85-3 δικρατεῖς λόγχας ²¹

mvp-comment-85-4 στήσαντε ²²

mvp-comment-86-1 ἀλλὰ γάρ ²³ γάρ ²⁴ γάρ ²⁵

mvp-comment-86-2 μεγαλώνυμος ²⁶

mvp-comment-86-3 πολυαρμάτῳ ²⁷

mvp-comment-86-4 ἀντιχαρεῖσα ²⁸

mvp-comment-87-1 ἐκ...πολέμων τῶν νῦν ²⁹ ἐκ ³⁰ νῦν ³¹

mvp-comment-87-2 θέσθαι ³² θέσθε ³³ παννυχίοις ³⁴

mvp-comment-87-3 ὁ Θήβας ³⁵ ἐλελίχθων ³⁶

mvp-comment-87-4 Βάκχιος ³⁷

mvp-comment-87-5 ἄρχοι ³⁸

mvp-comment-88-1 ἀλλὰ … γάρ ³⁹ Κρέων ⁴⁰

mvp-comment-88-2 Μενοικέως ⁴¹

mvp-comment-88-3 νεοχμὸς νεαραῖσι ⁴²

mvp-comment-88-4 their equivalents. See Appendix I prefer the first of these views. An anapaest or spondee, meaning ‘ruler,’ has probably dropped out before νεοχμός ⁴³ κρείων ⁴⁴ ἄρχων ⁴⁵ ταγός ⁴⁶

mvp-comment-88-5 θεῶν … συντυχίαις ⁴⁷ ἐπί ⁴⁸

mvp-comment-89-1 μῆτιν ἐρέσσων ⁴⁹

mvp-comment-89-2 σύγκλητον ⁵⁰

mvp-comment-89-3 προὔθετο ⁵¹ λέσχην ⁵²

mvp-comment-89-4 not the meeting, but the discussion which is to take place there: thus the poet's phrase, true to Attic usage, corresponds with

γνώμας προθεῖναι

rather than with

ἐκκλησίαν προθεῖναι

. Herod. uses

λέσχη

of a public discussion (9. 71): cp. O. C. 167 . The midd. προὔθετο ⁵³

mvp-comment-89-5 κοινῷ κ. πέμψας ⁵⁴

mvp-comment-91-1 There is a general dramatic analogy between this speech and that of Oedipus in O. T. 216 —275. In each case a Theban king addresses Theban elders, announcing a stern decree, adopted in reliance on his own wisdom, and promulgated with haughty consciousness of power; the elders receive the decree with a submissive deference under which we can perceive traces of misgiving; and as the drama proceeds, the elders become spectators of calamities occasioned by the decree, while its author turns to them for comfort.

mvp-comment-91-2 τὰ μὲν δὴ πόλεος . . ὑμᾶς δ’ ⁵⁵

mvp-comment-91-3 πόλεος ⁵⁶ πολλῷ σάλῳ σείσαντες ⁵⁷

mvp-comment-91-4 The image of the State as a ship dates in Greek literature from Alcaeus (whom Horace copied, Carm. 1. 14 ), fr. 18. The ship of Alcaeus is labouring in the trough of a wild sea,—water is coming in,—the sail is torn,—the anchor will not hold:

νᾶϊ φορήμεθα σὺν μελαίνᾳ | χείμωνι μοχθεῦντες μεγάλῳ μάλα, κ.τ.λ.

It is only through Heracleides Alleg. Homer. 5 that we know the meaning of Alcaeus to have been figurative and political. Aesch. often uses the image ( Aesch. Th. 2 , Aesch. Th. 62 , Aesch. Th. 208 etc.). Creon returns to it at 189. It is peculiarly well suited to his point,—the unity of the public interest.

mvp-comment-91-5 ὤρθωσαν ⁵⁸

mvp-comment-92-1 ἐκ πάντων ⁵⁹ δίχα ⁶⁰

mvp-comment-92-2 ἔστειλ’ ἱκέσθαι ⁶¹ τοῦτο μέν ⁶²

mvp-comment-92-3 σέβοντας ⁶³

mvp-comment-92-4 θρόνων . . κράτη ⁶⁴

mvp-comment-93-1 ἡνίκ’ Οἰδίπους ⁶⁵ κείνων ⁶⁶ κείνων παῖδας ⁶⁷ ἡνίκ’ . . ὤρθου πόλιν ⁶⁸ ἐπεὶ διώλετο ⁶⁹ τοῦτο μέν . . τοῦτ’ αὖθις ⁷⁰

mvp-comment-93-2 καί ⁷¹ καί ⁷²

mvp-comment-93-3 ἐμπέδοις φρονήμασιν ⁷³ ἐμπέδους ⁷⁴ ἐμπέδοις ⁷⁵

mvp-comment-94-1 ὅτε ⁷⁶

mvp-comment-94-2 πρὸς διπλῆς μ. ⁷⁷ διπλῆς . . μίαν ⁷⁸

mvp-comment-94-3 παίσαντες . . πληγέντες ⁷⁹

mvp-comment-94-4 αὐτόχειρι … μιάσματι ⁸⁰

mvp-comment-95-1 ἐγὼ . . δή ⁸¹

mvp-comment-95-2 κράτη ⁸²

mvp-comment-95-3 γένους κατ’ ἀγχιστεῖα τῶν ὀλ. ⁸³

mvp-comment-96-1 ἀμήχανον δέ ⁸⁴ δέ ⁸⁵ δέ ⁸⁶

mvp-comment-96-2 Demosthenes, in his speech on the Embassy (343 B.C.), quotes this passage (vv. 175—190) as illustrating maxims

mvp-comment-96-3 which Aeschines had violated, though, accustomed as he had been to play tritagonists' parts, he ought to have known them by heart (or. 19 § 247).

mvp-comment-97-1 ψυχήν ⁸⁷ φρόνημα ⁸⁸ γνώμην ⁸⁹

mvp-comment-98-1 ἀρχαῖς ⁹⁰ νόμοισιν ⁹¹

mvp-comment-98-2 ἐντριβής ⁹²

mvp-comment-98-3 φανῇ ⁹³

mvp-comment-99-1 ἐμοὶ γάρ ⁹⁴ γάρ ⁹⁵ πᾶσαν … πόλιν ⁹⁶

mvp-comment-99-2 μὴ … ἅπτεται ⁹⁷ ὅστις μὴ ἅπτεται ⁹⁸

mvp-comment-99-3 ἐκ φ. του ⁹⁹

mvp-comment-99-4 ἐγκλῄσας ἔχει ¹⁰⁰

mvp-comment-99-5 νῦν τε καὶ πάλαι ¹⁰¹

mvp-comment-100-1 μείζον’ ¹⁰² ἀντὶ τῆς...πάτρας ¹⁰³ ἤ ¹⁰⁴ μεῖζον ¹⁰⁵

mvp-comment-100-2 οὐδαμοῦ λέγω ¹⁰⁶

mvp-comment-101-1 ἐγὼ γάρ ¹⁰⁷ γάρ ¹⁰⁸ τοῦτο γιγνώσκων ¹⁰⁹ ἴστω ¹¹⁰

mvp-comment-102-1 οὔτ’ ἂν σιωπήσαιμι ¹¹¹

mvp-comment-103-1 στείχουσαν ἀστοῖς ¹¹² ὁμοῦ ¹¹³

mvp-comment-103-2 ἀντὶ τῆς σωτηρίας ¹¹⁴ τῆς ¹¹⁵

mvp-comment-104-1 ἄνδρα δυσμενῆ χθονός ¹¹⁶

mvp-comment-104-2 ἐμαυτῷ ¹¹⁷ φίλον ¹¹⁸ θείμην ¹¹⁹

mvp-comment-105-1 ἡ σῴζουσα ¹²⁰

mvp-comment-105-2 ταύτης ¹²¹ ὀρθῆς ¹²²

mvp-comment-105-3 τοὺς φίλους ποιούμεθα ¹²³

mvp-comment-105-4

εὐτυχούσῃ πολλῷ μᾶλλον διασῴζεται

. ‘Pericles Thucydidis 11. 60 Sophoclem videtur respexisse, vel eum Sophocles,’ is Dobree's remark ( Adv. 2. 37 ); but there is no adequate ground for such a view. The verbal coincidence of

ὀρθῆς

with

ὀρθουμένην

may well have been accidental. What is really common to poet and historian is the general sentiment of Periclean Athens. For another example of this, cp. O. C. 116 n.

mvp-comment-106-1 νόμοισι ¹²⁴

mvp-comment-106-2 αὔξω ¹²⁵

mvp-comment-107-1 ἀδελφὰ τῶνδε ¹²⁶

mvp-comment-107-2 τῶν ἀπ’ Οἰδίπου ¹²⁷

mvp-comment-108-1 δορί ¹²⁸ δόρει ¹²⁹

mvp-comment-109-1 τὰ πάντ’ ἐφαγνίσαι ¹³⁰ ἐπί ¹³¹ ἐφαγνίσαι ¹³² ἀφαγνίσαι ¹³³ ἀπό ¹³⁴

mvp-comment-110-1 τοῖς ἀρίστοις ¹³⁵

mvp-comment-110-2 ἔρχεται κάτω ¹³⁶

mvp-comment-111-1 L has Πολυνείκην ¹³⁷

mvp-comment-111-2 λέγω ¹³⁸

mvp-comment-112-1 γτ=ν πατρῴαν . . καὶ θεοὺς . . πρῆσαι ¹³⁹

mvp-comment-112-2 θ. τοὺς ἐγγενεῖς ¹⁴⁰

mvp-comment-112-3 κατελθών ¹⁴¹

mvp-comment-112-4 γ)θέλησε μέν … ἠθέλ. δέ ¹⁴² ἠθέλησε μὲν ¹⁴³

mvp-comment-112-5 πρῆσαι ¹⁴⁴

mvp-comment-112-6 κατ’ ἄκρας ¹⁴⁵

mvp-comment-112-7 αἵματος κ. πάσασθαι ¹⁴⁶

mvp-comment-112-8 τοὺς δὲ … ἄγειν ¹⁴⁷

mvp-comment-113-1 The traditional ἐκκεκηρῦχθαι τάφῳ ¹⁴⁸ ἐκκεκήρυκται τάφῳ ¹⁴⁹ ἐκκεκηρῦχθαι λέγω ¹⁵⁰ τάφῳ ¹⁵¹ κτερίζειν ¹⁵² τάφῳ ¹⁵³ κτερίζειν ¹⁵⁴ μήτε ¹⁵⁵ κωκῦσαι ¹⁵⁶ τάφῳ ¹⁵⁷ λέγω ¹⁵⁸ τάφῳ ¹⁵⁹ ἐκκεκ ¹⁶⁰

mvp-comment-114-1 ἐᾶν δ ¹⁶¹ ἄθαπτον, αἰκισθέντ’ ἰδεῖν ¹⁶² δέμας καὶ πρὸς οἰωνῶν καὶ πρὸς κυνῶν ἐδεστόν ¹⁶³ αἰκισθέντ ¹⁶⁴ αἰκισθέντ ¹⁶⁵ ἐδεστόν ¹⁶⁶ αἰκισθέν τ’, δέμας ¹⁶⁷

mvp-comment-114-2 δέμας ¹⁶⁸

mvp-comment-114-3 ἰδεῖν ¹⁶⁹

mvp-comment-115-1 φρόνημα ¹⁷⁰

mvp-comment-115-2 ἔκ γ’ ἐμοῦ ¹⁷¹

mvp-comment-116-1 The MSS. have τιμὴν προέξουσ’ ..τῶν ἐνδ. ¹⁷² τιμήν ¹⁷³ τιμῆ ¹⁷⁴ προσέξους ¹⁷⁵

mvp-comment-117-1 τιμήσεται ¹⁷⁶

mvp-comment-118-1 I print Dindorf's κἀς ¹⁷⁷ καὶ ¹⁷⁸ σοὶ ταῦτ’ ἀρέσκει ¹⁷⁹ Κρέον ¹⁸⁰ ταὔτ ¹⁸¹ ταῦτ’ ¹⁸²

mvp-comment-119-1 In παντί πού γ’ ¹⁸³ σοί γ’ … που ¹⁸⁴ ἔνεστι ¹⁸⁵ χὡπόσοι ζῶμεν ¹⁸⁶ πέρι ¹⁸⁷

mvp-comment-120-1 ὡς ἂν … ἦτε ¹⁸⁸ πῶς ἂν … εἶτε ¹⁸⁹

mvp-comment-120-2 σκοποί ¹⁹⁰

mvp-comment-120-3 νυν ¹⁹¹ νῦν ¹⁹²

mvp-comment-120-4 τῶν εἰρ ¹⁹³

mvp-comment-121-1 πρόθες τοῦτο ¹⁹⁴ βαστάζειν ¹⁹⁵

mvp-comment-121-2 τοῦ νεκροῦ γ’ ¹⁹⁶

mvp-comment-122-1 τί δῆτ’ ἂν … ἐπεντέλλοις ¹⁹⁷

mvp-comment-122-2 The reading ἄλλῳ ¹⁹⁸ τοῦτο ¹⁹⁹

mvp-comment-122-3 ἐπιχωρεῖν ²⁰⁰

mvp-comment-122-4 ἀπιστοῦσιν ²⁰¹

mvp-comment-122-5 τάδε, ²⁰²

mvp-comment-123-1 ὃς ²⁰³ ἐρᾷ ²⁰⁴

mvp-comment-123-2 καὶ μὴν ²⁰⁵ γε ²⁰⁶ μισθός ²⁰⁷

mvp-comment-123-3 requital of disobedience is that.’ For

καὶ μήν

so used, cp. O. T. 836 , 1004 f., El. 556 .

mvp-comment-123-4 τὸ κέρδος ²⁰⁸

mvp-comment-123-5 διώλεσεν ²⁰⁹

mvp-comment-124-1 ἐρῶ μὲν οὐχ ²¹⁰

mvp-comment-124-2 ὅπως ²¹¹

mvp-comment-124-3 τάχους ὕπο ²¹² τάχους ²¹³

mvp-comment-125-1 ἐξάρας ²¹⁴

mvp-comment-125-2 φροντίδων ²¹⁵ ἐπιστάσεις ²¹⁶

mvp-comment-125-3 ὁδοῖς ²¹⁷

mvp-comment-125-4 κυκλῶν ²¹⁸

mvp-comment-126-1 ψυχὴ γὰρ ηὔδα ²¹⁹ πολλὰ ²²⁰ μυθουμένη ²²¹

mvp-comment-127-1 τάλας … τλήμων ²²²

mvp-comment-127-2 μένεις ²²³ μενεῖς ²²⁴ αὖ ²²⁵

mvp-comment-127-3 πῶς … οὐκ ²²⁶

mvp-comment-127-4 ἀλγυνεῖ ²²⁷

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

135. mvp-comment-82-1 πυρφόρος With the fire in his hand, with which he had threatened the town. O. C. 1318: Aesch. S. c. T. 422, ff.

135. mvp-comment-82-2 ὁρμᾷ Observe the tautology after ὁρμῶντ', supra.

136-137. mvp-comment-83-1 Had breathed against us in frenzy with blasts of malignant winds. Cp. infra 929-930: O. C. 612 and note: Aesch. S. c. T. 115, πνοαῖς Ἄρεος.

138. mvp-comment-84-1 εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλᾳ τὰ μέν· κτ.λ.] This was in one direction: whilst on other men terrible fortune was dispensed by mighty Ares rushing on them like a steed harnessed upon our right hand. For the use of ἔχω with the locative adv., see L. and S. s. v. ἔχω, Β. 11. Ι. The reading in the text is suggested by that of V (Ven. 468), a MS. of the 13th century, which, together with many obvious corruptions, has preserved some good readings. See on O. T. 1526. This MS. reading is curiously near the conj. of Musgrave, εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλᾳ τὰ δείν᾽. The epithet, as read in the text, may be suggested by a forefeeling of what is coming. Even the end of Capaneus is less awful than that of Eteocles and Polynices (144 ff.). Hermann's reading, εἶχε δ᾽ ἄλλᾳ μὲν ἄλ | λᾳ· τὰ δ᾽ ἐπ᾿ ἄλλοις, makes good enough sense; Plat. Rep. 2. 369 Β, οὕτω δὴ ἄρα παραλαμβάνων ἄλλος ἄλλον ἐπ᾿ ἄλλου, τὸν δ᾽ ἐπ᾿ ἄλλου χρείᾳ : but the synaphea between the cretics and the choriambi is questionable. And the same objection applies to Wecklein's εἶχε δ' ἄλλᾳ τὰ τοῦδ᾽· | ἄλλα δ᾽ ἐπ᾿ ἄλλοις.

140. mvp-comment-85-1 δεξιόσειρος The War-god taking part with Thebes and bounding hither and thither over the plain is compared to the σειραῖος ἵππος, whose free action was so important at critical moments in the chariot-race. Cp. El. 721-722, δεξιὸν δ᾽ ἀνεὶς | σειραῖον ἵππον εἶργε τὸν προσκείμενον: Aesch. Agam. 841-842, μόνος δ' Οδυσσεύς, ὅσπερ οὐχ ἑκὼν ἔπλει | ζευχθείς ἕτοιμος ἦν ἐμοὶ σειραφόρος. The reading δεξιόχειρος is probably erroneous. It is acknowledged as a variant by the Scholiast.

141. mvp-comment-86-1 Capaneus, who is one of the seven adversaries, is already disposed of. But the general description in 141-143, is only preparatory to the chief statement, 144-147, from which, however, the chorus pass quickly, as they approach it with aversion. What is of the best omen must be kept to the front. For ἴσοι πρὸς ἴσους, cp. Hdt. 9. 49, ἴσοι πρὸς ἴσους ἄριθμον μαχεσόμεθα.

142-143. mvp-comment-87-1 'Left the tribute of their brazen panoplies to Zeus, who turns the battle.'

144-147. mvp-comment-88-1 Neither could despoil the other, since both were slain. And the citizens could not dedicate to Zeus arms polluted with kindred blood.

145. mvp-comment-89-1 αὑτοῖν i. e. ἀλλήλοιν: ἑαυτούς, ἀλλήλους. Hesych.

146. mvp-comment-90-1 δικρατεῖς λόγχας στήσαντε Having pointed their two spears, of which either was victorious. The spears are not hurled, as commonly in the Iliad, but held firmly as the combatants rush at each other. Cp. Hom. Il. 4. 307 (quoted by Donaldson), ὃς δέ κ᾿ ἀνὴρ ἀπὸ ὧν ὀχέων ἕτερ᾽ ἅρμαθ' ἵκηται | ἔγχει ὀρεξάσθω, ἐπεὶ ἢ πολὺ φέρτερον οὕτως.

147. mvp-comment-91-1 'Both have their portion in mutual death: i.e. Each strove for sole inheritance, but they share equally-in a death;' which each has given and each has received. See on l. 57. The spirit of the words is the same as those of Aesch. S. c. T. 726 ff.: O. C. 790.

149. mvp-comment-92-1 ἀντιχαρεῖσα Exchanging looks of joy. Cp. χαίρειν γέλωτι, Χen. Cyr. 8.1.33.

149. mvp-comment-92-2 Θήβη, as in Pindar, is the personification of Θήβαι, for which it is used consistently throughout this play. Cp. Od. 7. 80, εὐρυάγυιαν Ἀθήνην.

150. mvp-comment-93-1 ἐκ μὲν δὴ πολέμων .. λησμοσύvav Turning from the present wars, appoint ye forgetfulness of them. For the pleonastic use of ἐκ, see Essay on Language § 19. p. 27. The reading θέσθαι, which has good MS. authority and preserves the metrical correspondence with l. 137, is retained by some editors as an infinitive for imperative. Cp. infr. 1142, μολεῖν. For the expression, cp. Eur. Phoen. 1584,5, ὡς ὥρα τάφου | μνήμην τίθεσθαι.

153. mvp-comment-94-1 παννυχίοις Cp. Ο. Τ. 1090: Aesch. Ag. 23, 24. καὶ χορῶν κατάστασιν | πολλῶν ἐν Ἄργει τῆσδε συμφορᾶς χάριν.

153. mvp-comment-94-2 ὁ Θήβας δ'. . ἄρχοι And let Bacchus, Thebe's God. who shakes the earth (with revelry), lead on the dance. Schol. ὁ Θήβας Βακχεῖος, ὁ Θηβαγενὴς Διόνυσος, ὁ τῆς Θήβης πολίτης, ὁ ἐλελίχθων, ἄρχοι τῆς χορείας. See Essay on Language § 9. p. 11.

156. mvp-comment-95-1 The metre requires either the addition of one (or three) anapaests or the omission of νεοχμός. Dindorf's supposition that νεοχμός νεαραῖσι has grown in some way out of νεοχμοῖσι is in itself probable enough, but the omission of some word like *ἄρχων after βασιλεύς is equally so. The spectator is thus reminded that Creon is young in power.

157-158. mvp-comment-96-1 νεαραῖσι .. συντυχίαις In consequence of the recent god-sent fortune. These words are to be joined with the whole sentence, though chiefly with ἐρέσσων. Creon's accession, his coming, and the counsel which he brings, all follow closely on the events of the war. The question is, what is that counsel?

159. mvp-comment-97-1 τίνα δή This is preferable to τινὰ δή, which Aldus printed from Ven. 467 (V3).

159. mvp-comment-97-2 On ἐρέσσων = Moving, Advancing. see Essay on Language p. 87, and cp. Aj. 251, τοίας ἐρέσσουσιν ἀπειλάς.

160-161. mvp-comment-98-1 ὅτι. προὔθετο That he hath appointed. ὅτι gives the reason of the question.

160. mvp-comment-99-1 σύγκλητον Specially convened. The word is used, after the analogy of the σύγκλητος ἐκκλησία at Athens, for an assembly specially summoned by the στρατηγός. λέσχη is less formal than βουλή. Cp. Ο. C. 166.

161. mvp-comment-100-1 προὔθετο The middle voice implies that Creon had summoned the elders of his own motion. So καλέσσατο of Achilles in Il. 1. 54.

162. mvp-comment-101-1 κοινῷ κηρύγματι πέμψας Having cited us by a message sent to us all.

162. mvp-comment-101-2 κοινῷ = Inclusive. πέμψας] i. e. στείλας πομποῖσιν, as Creon expresses himself in ll. 164-165. 162-210. Creon's first error is not mere self-will, but an excessive zeal for the honour of the state, to which all private feelings must give way (183-184, 187-190). His spirit of self-assertion is however already felt, esp. in ll. 173, 191, 207-10. And the unconsciousness of one young in power is shown in the self-inculpating words in ll. 175-177. He characteristically dwells on the virtue of loyalty (165-169, 209-210) and the crime of rebellion (199-202): and his passionate nature is betrayed by the exaggerated expression in l. 208. Cp. O. T. 216 ff. and note. The frequent occurrence of the Ist personal pronoun is a significant feature of both these speeches.

162. mvp-comment-101-3 τὰ μὲν δὴ πόλεος As for the state. This form of expression suits the introduction of a subject before the form of sentence is determined. πόλιν, rather than τὰ πόλεος, is the object of σείσαντες and ὤρθωσαν.

162. mvp-comment-101-4 ἀσφαλῶς Unharmed, = ἄνεν τοῦ σφαλῆναι,

163. mvp-comment-102-1 ὥρθωσαν Have righted the vessel of the state.

165-166. mvp-comment-103-1 τὰ Λαΐου. κράτη Knowing that you ever duly reverenced the enthroned authority of Laius. Λαΐου is governed by θρόνων κράτη taken as one word, θρόνων being added to supplement κράτη. σέβοντας and μένοντας, infr. 166, 169, are imperfects = ὅτι ἐσέβετε .. ἐμένετε,

167. mvp-comment-104-1 ὤρθου Kept on a safe course: i. e. Governed prosperously. The word recalls the happiness of the first period of Oedipus' rule. Cp. Plat. Men. P. 99 C, ᾗ οἱ πολιτικοὶ ἄνδρες χρώμενοι τὰς πόλεις ὀρθοῦσιν : Phaedr. 244 B. 168-169. ἀμφὶ .. φρονήμασιν]. Ye still remained loyal to their issue with unshaken minds. ἀμφί, Surrounding, as ready to defend. The apodosis is made to suit the latter protasis, ἐπεὶ διώλετο, and that of the former protasis, ἡνίκ' . . πόλιν (viz. ἐκείνῳ ὁμοίως πειθομένους οι the like), is thus absorbed.

167. mvp-comment-104-2 κείνων . . παῖδας i. e. Sons of Oedipus and grandsons of Laius.

172. mvp-comment-105-1 αὐτόχειρι Fratricidal. See Essay on Language p. 91.

174. mvp-comment-106-1 γένους κατ᾿ ἀγχιστεῖα By privilege of being nearest in kindred (ὡς ἀγχιστεύων) to the dead. Cp. πρωτεία, etc.

175. mvp-comment-107-1 παντὸς ἀνδρός Of any man, and therefore of me.

176. mvp-comment-108-1 ψυχήν. . φρόνημα.. γνώμην As observed in the Essay on Language pp. 91-3, the opposition between these words is chiefly formal. So far as there is any difference between them, ψυχήν is mind, or nature, φρόνημα, spirit, or way of thinking, (cp. infr. 207), and γνώμην, judgment or meaning.

176-177. mvp-comment-109-1 πρὶν ἂν ἀρχαῖς.. φανῇ “Until he be seen in his true colours through being tried in office and administration.' According to the saying of Bias, ἀρχὴ τὸν ἄνδρα δείξει (Arist. Eth. Nic. 5. 1. 16). There is an allusion to the detection of spurious coin through wear. Cp. Aesch. Ag. 390-392, κακοῦ δὲ χαλκοῦ τρόπον | τρίβῳτε καὶ προσβολαῖς | μελαμπαγὴς πέλει | δικαιωθείς (where Herm. says, 'Vereor autem ne non de lapide Lydio loquatur poeta, sed aes adulterinum dicat, quod usu tritum amisso falso splendore cognoscitur'): Hdt. 7. 10, ὥσπερ τὸν χρυσὸν τὸν ἀκήρατον, αὐτὸν μὲν ἐπ᾿ ἑαυτοῦ οὐ διαγινώσκομεν, ἐπεὰν δὲ

178. mvp-comment-110-1 ἐμοὶ γάρ The connection is not strictly logical. γάρ explains not the difficulty of discerning the difference between rulers, but the essential point on which the difference turns. In setting forth this, Creon also declares the spirit of his own policy. He is feeling his way with the elders, of whose submission he is not perfectly sure, and beats about the bush before coming to the point with them. Hence he repeats the same thought in different words.

178-183. mvp-comment-111-1 The sentiment of these lines is closely parallel to Plat. Legg. 9. 856 B, ὃς ἂν ἄγων εἰς ἀρχὴν ἄνθρωπον δουλῶται μὲν τοὺς νόμους, ἑταιρείας δὲ τὴν πόλιν ὑπήκοον ποιῇ, καὶ βιαίως δὲ πᾶν τοῦτο πράττων καὶ στάσιν ἐγείρων παρανομῇ· τοῦτον δὴ διανοεῖσθαι δεῖ πάντων πολεμιώτατον ὅλῃ τῇ πόλει, τὸν δὲ κοινωνοῦντα μὲν τῶν τοιούτων μηδενί, τῶν μεγίστων δὲ μετέχοντα ἀρχῶν ἐν τῇ πόλει, λεληθότα τε ταῦτα αὐτὸν ἢ μὴ λεληθότα, δειλίᾳ δ᾽ ὑπὲρ πατρίδος αὑτοῦ μὴ τιμωρούμενον, δεῖ δεύτερον ἡγεῖσθαι τὸν τοιοῦτον πολίτην κακῇ.

180. mvp-comment-112-1 ἐγκλείσας Locked up. Cp. Shakespeare, Richard II, 1. 3,

Within my mouth you have engaoled my tongue, | Doubly portcullised with my teeth and lips.

Infr. 505, εἰ μὴ γλῶσσαν ἐγκλείσαι φόβος.

182. mvp-comment-113-1 μείζον᾽.. ἀντί Essay on Language § 19. p. 27. Cp. Od. 7. 216, στυγερῇ ἐπὶ γαστέρι κύντερον.

183. mvp-comment-114-1 οὐδαμοῦ λέγω Plat. Gorg. 456 C, οὐδαμοῦ ἂν φανῆναι, supr. 32. 184 ff. Having shown what makes the good and bad ruler, Creon declares his own intentions, first generally, and then (192 ff.) with reference to Eteocles and Polynices. γάρ implies that his opinion will be proved by his acts. In both statements (178-183, 184-190) the stress is laid on the duty of renouncing friendship with the public enemy (182-183, 187-188), which is the ground of the present edict, Polynices being presumably Creon's private friend: supr. 174.

186. mvp-comment-115-1 στείχουσαν ἀστοῖς Menacing my people. Cp. supr. l. 10: Aesch. Prom. 1089-1090, τοιάδ᾽ ἐπ᾿ ἐμοὶ ῥιπὴ Διόθεν, | τεύχουσα φόβον, στείχει φανερῶς. For the dative, Essay on Language § 12. p. 18.

187. mvp-comment-116-1 δυσμενή χθονός Who is my country's foe. The genitive avoids the awkwardness of two datives, χθονί and ἐμαυτῷ, coming close together.

189-190. mvp-comment-117-1 She it is who preserves us, and we make friends only while she carries us in the course of public safety; i. e. The friendship that is made against the interest of the state is hollow and insecure. Cp. Thuc. 2. 60: (Pericles loq.) ἐγὼ γὰρ ἡγοῦμαι πόλιν πλείω ξύμπασαν ὀρθουμένην ὠφελεῖν τοὺς ἰδιώτας, ἢ καθ᾿ ἕκαστον τῶν πολιτῶν εὐπραγοῦσαν, ἀθρόαν δὲ σφαλλομένην, κ.τ.λ.: Zaleuc. ap. Stob. (Mullach, p. 543), πόλις γὰρ εὖ ἀγομένη μεγίστη ὄρθωσίς ἐστι, καὶ ἐν τούτῳ πάντα ἔνι, καὶ τούτου σωζομένου πάντα σώζεται καὶ τούτου φθειρομένου πάντα διαφθείρεται: Shakespeare. King John, 3. 1, Pand.

All form is formless, order orderless, | Save what is opposite to England's love.

On the change of pronouns (ἥδε.. ταύτης), see Essay on Language § 22. p. 32. The article in τοὺς φίλους points the reference to ll. 182-183.

191. mvp-comment-118-1 τοιοίσδε νόμοισι By such principles as these. Cp. infr. 908, τίνος νόμου δὴ ταῦτα πρὸς χάριν λέγω;

192. mvp-comment-119-1 ἀδελφὰ τῶνδε i. e. In full accord with them. Cp. Plat. Rep. 4. 421 C, ἆρ᾽ οὖν .. καὶ τὸ τούτου ἀδελφὸν δύξω σοι μετρίως λέγειν; Lys. 2. 64, ἀδελφὰ τὰ βουλεύματα τοῖς ἔργοις : Ο. C. 1262, ἀδελφὰ . . τούτοισιν.

193. mvp-comment-120-1 τῶν ἀπ᾿ Οιδίπου For the pleo- 190 195 200 nastic use of the preposition, see above 150, 182, and notes.

195. mvp-comment-121-1 πάντ᾿ ἀριστεύσας δορί After proving himself in all ways the bravest in the war. For the aor., cp. Hdt. 9. 74, alib.

196. mvp-comment-122-1 τὰ πάντ᾽ ἐφαγνίσαι ‘Το add all sacred offerings.'

199. mvp-comment-123-1 θεοὺς τοὺς ἐγγενεῖς The gods of his race; i. e. Those honoured by the Cadmeans. The gods of the race also include the ancestors of the race. Infr. 938, θεοὶ προγενεῖς.

201. mvp-comment-124-1 πρῆσαι κατάκρας The city (γῆν = πόλιν) is thought of as the main object of the verb.

201. mvp-comment-124-2 ἠθέλησε δ' The correspondence of clauses (with μέν and δέ) is not perfect, the antithesis being due to afterthought.

201. mvp-comment-124-3 αἵματος .. πάσασθαι ‘Το repast him with blood of his own kin.' The expression suits the Epic colouring of the whole speech.

202. mvp-comment-125-1 τοὺς δέ The rest; i. e. Those not slain, as implied in the opposition το αἵματος κοινοῦ πάσασθαι. 203.

202. mvp-comment-125-2 ἐκκεκήρυκται Musgrave's correction has been generally adopted, lopted, and is probably right. The impersonal verb gives absoluteness to the expression. Wolff construes the inf. with λέγω in 198 (deleting the comma after τοῦδε), and Wecklein reads λέγω for τάφῳ. The slight corruption is probably due to a reminiscence of supr. 27.

205. mvp-comment-126-1 δέμας is accusative of limitation, and ἄθαπτον and ἐδεστόν are masculine. To leave him unburied, to have his flesh consumed by birds and dogs.

206. mvp-comment-127-1 αἰκισθέντ᾿ ἰδεῖν A spectacle of indignity. Lit. Outraged to behold. The infinitive is added after the participle, which is masculine.

207. mvp-comment-128-1 Cp. 176, ψυχήν τε καὶ φρόνημα καὶ γνώμην.

209-210. mvp-comment-129-1 θανών | καὶ ζῶν In death as well as in life. The first word is the more emphatic. Essay on Language p. 78.

211-212. mvp-comment-130-1 For the construction of the accusatives τὸν .. δύσνουν. . τὸν εὐμενῆ, after σοὶ ταῦτ᾽ ἀρέσκει as = οὕτω τάσσεις, or the like, cр. О. С. 1120, τέκν᾽ εἰ φανέντ᾽ ἄελπτα μηκύνω λόγον, and see Essay on Language § 16. p. 22. No emendation is necessary.

213. mvp-comment-131-1 παντί πού γ᾽ ἔνεστί σοι γε has been thought a useless insertion, and Dindorf reads πάντι που πάρεστί σοι. But δέ γε is not unsuitable to the connection, introducing the second premiss of an implied argument. The words of the chorus express the barest acquiescence in the will of the ruler. Cp. infr. 509, σοὶ δ᾽ ὑπίλλουσι στόμα. They hide their disapproval, and that is all. Cp. Richard III, 4. 2, 21, Buck. Your grace may do your pleasure.

215. mvp-comment-132-1 ὡς ἂν.. εἰρημένων Sc. οὕτω πράσσετε. The subjunctive with ὡς ἄν follows the implied imperative. Act, then, so as to see my words obeyed. Cp. Ο. Τ. 325, ὡς οὖν μηδ᾽ ἐγὼ ταὐτὸν πάθω : Plat. Phaedo 59 Ε, παραγγέλλουσιν, ὅπως ἂν τῇδε τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τελευτήσῃ. The ellipse is idiomatic. It is not to be supposed either that Creon hesitates, or that the elders interrupt him.

218. mvp-comment-133-1 τί.. ἔτι 'What means then this charge further given by you to another?' τοῦτο, cogn. acc. = σκοποὶ εἶναι τῶν εἰρημένων : τί, suppl. predic. = With what meaning?' To what effect? ἄλλῳ = to another than the appointed guards. ἄλλο gives a poorer sense, What then is this other thing which you enjoin besides?

220. mvp-comment-134-1 ὃς .. ἐρᾷ As to be in love with death. For the irregular correlative (οὕτω .. ὅς), see Essay on Language § 22. p. 36. There is a confusion of οὐκ ἔστιν ὃς ἐρᾷ and οὐκ ἔστιν οὕτω μῶρος ὥστε ἐρᾶν.

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.

223-330. mvp-comment-136-1 The half-comic or rustic character of the watchman in this play is an extension of the common character of the messenger, whose natural rudeness of speech and thought brings into greater prominence the horror or pathos of the events he describes. The grotesqueness disappears when he speaks of the action of Antigone in 407-440. The employment of this artifice by Sophocles arises from the same motive to which Shakespeare gave a far wider range in such creations as the gravediggers in Hamlet, and the rural fellow in Antony and Cleopatra. The Messenger in the Trachiniae, the Corinthian in the Oedipus Tyrannus, Menelaus in the Ajax, the pretended Shipmaster in the Philoctetes, afford the same sort of contrast to the more tragic personages: and the superstition of the Coloniatae may be compared with the cowardice of the Phrygian slave in the Orestes of Euripides.

223-330. mvp-comment-136-2 The vulgarity of the common-place Athenian of the fifth century в.с. takes the form of misplaced subtlety of wit. Cp. Shak. Hamlet, 5. 1 ,

We must speak by the card, or equivocation will undo us. The age is grown so picked, that the toe of the peasant comes so near the heel of the courtier, he galls his kibe.

223-224. mvp-comment-137-1 I am out of breath, but not with speed. It is not that I ran nimbly hither. Aristotle, Rhet. 3. 14. § 10, quotes 223 thus, Ἄναξ, ἐρῶ μὲν οὐχ ὅπως σπουδῆς ὕπο.., adding, as if from the reply of Creon, τί φροιμιάζῃ; But it is as unsafe to follow his authority in this line, as it would be to substitute τί φροιμιάζῃ for εὖ γε στοχάζει in l. 241. It is evident that he is quoting from memory: and, although it is curious that the Scholiast uses the same word in his explanation, οὐ τοῦτο λέγω, ὅτι μετὰ σπουδῆς ἀσθμαίνων πρὸς σὲ πορεύομαι, yet this does not amount to a proof that this is the right reading. σπουδῆς may be the word which would be more naturally used in prose, but it is less pointed than τάχους in this connection. κοῦφον ἐξάρας πόδα is added in explanation of τάχους ὕπο. ἐξάρας, having set forth from the point of departure, like αἴρειν στόλον.

225. mvp-comment-138-1 For I had many stoppages by reason of thoughts, i. e. My thoughts cried halt to me (ἐπέστησάν με) again and again. Cp. Αj. 869, κοὐδεὶς ἐφίσταταί με συμμαθεῖν τόπος. The genitive φροντίδων is part causal, My thoughts checked me,' and part final, I stopped to think.

226. mvp-comment-139-1 ὁδοῖς As I came. Essay on Language § 14. p. 20. Ср. О. С. 553, ὁδοῖς ἐν ταῖσδ᾽ ἀκούων. Hearing of you on your coming hither.

227. mvp-comment-140-1 This mockery of dialectic is curiously significant of the earlier stage of rhetoric.

229. mvp-comment-141-1 κεἰ has the authority of the oldest MS. The reading of Par. A, καὶ .. ἀνδρός, has a certain liveliness, but is perhaps too abrupt.