644-645.
mvp-comment-434-1
'A calamity such as no life of any son of Aeacus hath ever known, but only he.' Bergk's conj.,
δίων Αἰακιδᾶν, has been widely received. But
αἰών involves only an ordinary use of abstract for concrete, and agrees better with the figurative word
ἔθρεψεν.
646.
mvp-comment-435-1
If the conjecture advanced on l. 593
supr. is correct. Tecmessa and the child Eurysaces have remained on the stage in silence during the first stasimon. Ajax now unexpectedly comes forth, sword in hand, and addresses the chorus. That he dissembles with them, so far as to lead them to believe that he has abandoned his purpose of suicide, is obvious, because necessary to the situation, and is further evident on comparing 667 foll. with 835 foll., where his inmost feeling is expressed. But, just as the speech of Deianira which deceives Lichas, Trach. 436-69, contains a real indication of her character, so the studiously ambiguous words of Ajax here are the expression of an actual change of mood, -a new phase in the progress of mental recovery. The act which he contemplates is the same which he has intended from the moment of his first awakening, but he regards it in a different temper. Calm resolution has taken the place of rage, and proud submission to the inevitable that of rebellious fury. (
Cp. supr. 389.) And like Antigone, when the struggle is past, he feels the pain of parting from what has brightened life for him; he knows what is implied in leaving Tecmessa and the child. With exquisite truth as well as subtlety, Sophocles has made Ajax express his feeling and intention in words which essentially convey his true meaning, but successfully veil it from those who, if they had divined it, would have interfered. (
Supr. 329, 483). They, on the other hand, are only too readily deceived, -Tecmessa through the difficulty of believing that Ajax is hiding truth from her, and both she and the chorus through their wishes being stronger than their fears. To dissemble under any circumstances has been thought inconsistent with the native dignity of Ajax. But if this be so, it only renders the tragic contrast between his nature and his circumstances more complete. Concealment is no doubt foreign to the original bent of such a proud heroic soul. But Destiny has brought him to a point where it is inevitable, and the more so because of his first undisguised utterance,
supr. 470, foll. Let a man's native character be what it will, the passion of suicide brings with it the means for its own realization. The time that Ajax has spent within the tent appears 'like an age' to him, and he begins by reflecting generally, in a meditative tone, on the changes that are wrought by Time. He wonders at his own calmness, and professes to wonder at his change of mind.
647.
mvp-comment-436-1
φύει ἄδηλα] 'Rears out of darkness.'
Cp. Hes. Op. 6,
καὶ ἄδηλον ἀέξει. The present is used of a continual process, as in Il. 6. 147, 8,
φύλλα τὰ μέν τ' ἄνεμος χαμάδις χέει, ἄλλα δε θ' ὕλη | τηλεθύωσα φύει. E. on L. § 32. p. 54.
ἄδηλα (sc.
ὄντα) may be regarded as =
ἐξ ἀδήλων (E. on L. § 38. p. 71), but also expresses the obscurity of the first beginnings and early preparations of all things.
Cp. Shak. 2 Hen. IV. 3. 1, 'Things | As yet not come to life, which in their seeds | And weak beginnings lie intreasured, Such things become the hatch and brood of time.' As in
supr. 476,
προσθεῖσα κἀναθεῖσα, the latter part of the antithesis is most dwelt upon, viz.
καὶ φανέντα κρύπτεται, ‘And buries them in himself, after they are come into being,' although the suppression of the old purpose is virtually the revelation of the new. For
φανέντα, cf. Ο. C. 974,
φανεὶς δύστηνος, ὡς ἐγὼ 'φάνην. On the meaning of the middle voice, see Essay on L. § 31. p. 53 (where
ἑαυτήν should be
ἑαυτόν-not Earth but Time), and
cp. Aesch. Cho. 127,
καὶ γαῖαν αὐτήν, ἢ τὰ πάντα τίκτεται ('brings forth of herself').
648.
mvp-comment-437-1
ἄελπτον] An allusion to Archil. Fr. 76,
χρημάτων ἄελπτον οὐδέν ἐστιν οὐδ᾽ ἀπώμοτον. Cp. Ant. 388,
ἄναξ, βροτοῖσιν οὐδὲν ἐστ᾽ ἀπώμοτον. ἁλίσκεται] 'Is overcome.'
Cp. the use of
αἱρέω in Ant. 606,
τὰν οὔθ᾽ ὕπνος αἱρεῖ ποθ' ὁ παντογήρως.
649.
mvp-comment-438-1
'Even (
καί) the awe-inspiring oath and steeled resolve.' Neither men's resolutions, nor the sanctions by which they try to strengthen them, are permanent.
Cp. Thuc. 3. 83,
οὐ γὰρ ἦν ὁ διαλύσων οὔτε λόγος ἐχυρὸς οὔτε ὅρκος φοβερός. καί has been changed to
χαί, perhaps rightly, but see Essay on L. § 21. p. 33 b.
650-651.
mvp-comment-439-1
'Since even I, who then (
supr. 470 foll.) showed such awful resolve, hard as iron hardened in the surge-even I have lost my manhood's edge, being softened by this woman.' The clause with
ws relates to what precedes, as in Phil. 202 foll.
προὐφάνη κτύπος, φωτὸς σύντροφος ὡς τειρομένου *του.
τὰ δεινά is cogn. accus.;
cp. Ant. 408,
πρὸς σοῦ τὰ δείν᾽ ἐκεῖν᾽ ἐπηπειλημένοι. Ιη
βαφή there is perhaps a reminiscence of
supr. 351, 2,
οἷον ἄρτι κῦμα φοινίας ὑπὸ ζάλης ἀμφίδρομον κυκλεῖται. βαφῇ, an instrumental dative, depends on the idea of hardening contained in
ἐκαρτέρουν. For similar datives with active verbs,
cp. Ant. 335,
χειμερίῳ νότῳ χωρεῖ, ibid. 589,
Θρῄσσαισιν .. ἐπιδράμῃ πνοαῖς. The abruptness of this construction goes for nothing when weighed against the absurdity of joining
βαφῇ σιδηρὸς ὡς ἐθηλύνθην στόμα, 'My edge is abated, as that of iron is by the surge': although much ingenuity has been spent in defending this way of taking the words.
στόμα, as Ajax intends his speech to be apprehended, can only mean 'edge,' i.e. 'resolution,' although by a mental reservation he may understand himself to mean 'my speech (only) is softened.'
652-653.
mvp-comment-440-1
'I am wrung with pity at the thought of leaving her,' i.e. as he wishes to be understood, 'I cannot leave her for pity,' as he understands himself, 'I feel pity in leaving her.'
654-655.
mvp-comment-441-1
πρὸς λειμώνας] ‘Τo the bathing-place in the meadow by the cliff,' i. e. where the level ground narrows towards the promontory of Rhoeteum. It is probably meant that Ajax really bathes in fresh water before his last solemn act.
Cp. Eur. Alc. 159,
ὕδασι ποταμίοις. . ἐλούσατ᾽.
655-656.
mvp-comment-442-1
ἁγνίσας.. ἐξαλεύσωμαι] Το the chorus and Tecmessa
ἁγνίσας means 'by purging away,' viz in the fresh running water; to Ajax himself, 'after washing off.'
Cp. Shak. Macbeth, 2.2. 67, 'A little water clears us of this deed.'
657.
mvp-comment-443-1
'And having gone to a place where I may find a place untrodden.'
χώρον is first acc. of place after
μολών, and secondly
ἀστιβῆ χῶρον is accusative with
κίχω. Essay on L. § 36. pp. 66, 7.
658.
mvp-comment-444-1
τόδ' ἔγχος τούμόν] ‘This my sword.'
Cp. infr. 815-22, 834,899.909. 1025, 1034. Does Ajax destroy himself with the sword with which he slew the cattle? There would be a certain plausibility in his professing an intention of burying the offending weapon (
ἔχθιστον βελῶν) out of sight. But this is nowhere distinctly indicated, and the elaborate reasons connected with Hector tend rather to show that the blade had not previously been used. It is the possession and not the employment of it that is dwelt upon as of evil omen.
658-659.
mvp-comment-445-1
κρύψω.. ὀρύξας] There is again an intentional ambiguity between 'I will bury out of sight' and 'I will hide' (in my body) 'after planting' (in the earth).
γαίας, 'Somewhere in earth,' a partitive genitive of place, to be resumed with
ἕνθα. Essay on L. § 10. p. 15. A construction is easily obtained by supplying
που, the antecedent of
ἔνθα. ἔχθιστον is ambiguous between 'most hostile,'
cp. infr. 817 foll., and 'most hateful.'
660.
mvp-comment-446-1
These words are purposely ominous of Ajax' real intention. The imperative continues the prohibitive notion of
μή in the preceding line.
Cp. El. 436 foll.
κρύψον νιν, ἔνθα μή ποτ᾽ εἰς εὐνὴν .. | .. πρόσεισι .. ἀλλ᾽ ὅταν θάνῃ | κειμήλι᾿ αὐτῇ . . σωζέσθω.
661.
mvp-comment-447-1
The vivid
χειρί brings before us the scene of the exchange described by Teucer
infr. 1029 foll.
665.
mvp-comment-448-1
Cp. Eur. Med. 618,
κακοῦ γὰρ ἀνδρὸς δῶρ᾽ ὄνησιν οὐκ ἔχει.
666.
mvp-comment-449-1
τοιγάρ] «Therefore,' since I am thus out of favour and pursued by divine displeasure,
supr. 656, 663.
667.
mvp-comment-450-1
Ajax understands in his own mind, 'I will not submit to them except in death.'
Cp. Ant. 926,
παθόντες ἂν ξυγγνοῖμεν ἡμαρτηκότες.
668.
mvp-comment-451-1
τί μή;]
Cp. Aesch. Ag. 672,
λέγουσιν ἡμᾶς ὡς ὀλωλότας· τί μή; The v. r.
τιμῆ (V Pal., i.e.
τιμῇ), suggested by
τιμαῖς in
infr. 670, is a curious instance of the uncertainty that crept in when the quantities of syllables were forgotten.
669.
mvp-comment-452-1
τὰ δεινὰ καὶ τὰ καρτερώτατα] 'Things dread and masterful,' such as Winter, Night, and Tempest:
τὰ δεινά as in Ant. 334,
πολλὰ τὰ δεινά. For the thought,
cp. esp. Heraclitus, Fragm. 29 (ed. Bywater),
ἥλιος οὐχ ὑπερβήσεται μέτρα· εἰ δὲ μή, ἐρινύες μιν δίκης ἐπίκουροι ἐξευρήσουσι: Plat. Rep. 6. 500 C,
εἰς τεταγμένα ἄττα καὶ κατὰ ταὐτὰ ἀεὶ ἔχοντα ὁρῶντας καὶ θεωμένους οὔτ᾽ ἀδικοῦντα οὔτ᾽ ἀδικούμενα ὑπ᾿ ἀλλήλων, κόσμῳ δὲ πάντα καὶ κατὰ λόγον ἔχοντα, ταῦτα μιμεῖσθαι. As Schndw. observes, these common-places from Ajax' lips have a peculiarly ironical significance.
670.
mvp-comment-453-1
τιμαῖς] «Το authority:' literally, 'to official rank.' For
τιμή of an official appointment,
cp. Hdt. 7. 36,
οἶσι προσεκέετο αὕτη ἡ ἄχαρις τιμή: Ar. Pol. 3. 10, 4,
τιμὰς λέγομεν τὰς ἀρχάς. For
τοῦτο μέν with only
δé to follow,
cp. Ο. C. 440,
τοῦτο μὲν.. οἱ δ᾽ ἐπωφελεῖν, κ.τ.λ. νιφοστιβεῖς | χειμῶνες] «The wintry months whose track is marked with snow.' This (=
νιφόεντας ἔχων τοὺς στίβους) agrees better with the meaning of other compounds such as
χθονοστιβής (O.T. 301), and with the personification in
ἐκχωροῦσιν, than · 'piled with snows' (L. and S.)-'Winter withdraws his snowy footsteps.'
672.
mvp-comment-454-1
νυκτὸς αἰανὴς κύκλος] 'The weary round of Night,' which like other periods of time, is imagined as a moving sphere.
Cp. ἐνιαυτοῦ κύκλον, Eur. Or. 1645.
αἰανής] Here, as in l. 8,
εὔρινος, it is doubted whether the adj. is in the nominative or genitive,
αἰανής or
αἰανῆς. Both forms (
αἰανής, -és and
aἰανός, -ή, -όν), occur in tragedy, and the balance of the sentence is rather in favour of the nominative. See Essay on L. § 42. p. 80.
αἰανής, if derived from
aleí, has also a false association from
aủaî. See Essay on L. § 54. p. 99.
673.
mvp-comment-455-1
'For Day with his white steeds (
λευκόπωλος ἡμέρα, Aesch. Pers. 386) to make his light arise.' (L. and S. s. v.
φλέγω, Α. ⅱ.)
674.
mvp-comment-456-1
ἐκοίμισε] 'Allows to rest.' Gnomic aorist. As, in
δειλίαν ἀρεῖς, supr. 75, a passive state is expressed actively (Essay on L. § 30. p. 52), so here a negative or privative act is conceived as positive.
Cp. λύει, infr. 676. This helps the vividness of the personification. As is observed by Schndw. and G. Wolff, contrary powers are naturally assigned to the same divine being. Thus Aeolus in Od. 10. 21 is
ταμίης ἀνέμων. ἠμὲν παυέμεναι ἠδ᾽ ὀρνύμεν ὅν κ᾽ ἐθέλῃσιν, and Horace says of the South wind, '
quo non arbiter Hadriae major, tollere seu ponere vult freta.' In Il. 8. 486. the light of the setting sun is described as
ἕλκον νύκτα μέλαιναν ἐπὶ ζείδωρον ἄρουραν.
675.
mvp-comment-457-1
ἐν δ'] 'And moreover.' Sleep is not originally thought of as amongst the 'dread and masterful powers,' but is now added to the list.
678.
mvp-comment-458-1
* ἐγῷδα] ‘I am sure of it'-(that I shall know how to act with moderation). The common reading,
ἐγὼ δ' ἐπίσταμαι γάρ-can only be justified by supposing
ἡμεῖς in 677 to mean mankind in general, in which case the opposition with
dé is possible, though not very clear. But with
μαθησόμεσθα preceding (l. 667),
ἡμεῖς (unless with further explanation, as in
supr. 125) must be equivalent to
ἐγώ. And the use of
δὲ .. γάρ without apodosis is not supported by Aesch. Cho. 66,
ἐμοὶ δ᾽ ἀναγκὰν γὰρ ἀμφίπτολιν, κ.τ.λ., which is the nearest parallel. (For a superfluous
ἐγώ with
δé in apodosi,
cp. Hdt. 4. 99,
ὃς δὲ.. μὴ παραπέπλωκε, ἐγὼ δὲ ἄλλως δηλώσω.) Porson's conjecture, which is here received, requires a very slight alteration,
ῶι for
ὡ.
ἐγῷδα is idiomatic, and the form of asseveration suits with the dissembling nature of the speech.
ἐπίσταμαι γὰρ ἀρτίως] ‘For I have lately learnt '-Ajax continues the vein of commonplace, with which his real feelings are interwoven. In his own heart he means that the judgment of the arms has taught him the hollowness of friendship. But by putting the other side of the antithesis foremost he veils this sentiment under the general maxim which counsels moderation in love and hatred-
ἀθάνατον ἔχθραν μὴ φύλασσε, θνητὸς ὤν.
680.
mvp-comment-459-1
In expressing his real feeling, Ajax passes out of the impersonal mode of speaking.
682.
mvp-comment-460-1
Ср. О. С. 612, 3,
καὶ πνεῦμα ταὐτόν, κ.τ.λ.
682.
mvp-comment-460-2
τοῖς πολλοῖσι γὰρ..] He recollects his cue, and again generalizes.
Cp. Aesch. Ag. 838-840,
εἰδὼς λέγοιμ' ἄν, εὐ γὰρ ἐξεπίσταμαι, | ὁμιλίας κάτοπτρον, εἴδωλον σκιᾶς, | δοκοῦντας εἶναι κάρτα πρευμενεῖς ἐμοί.
684.
mvp-comment-461-1
ἀμφὶ .. τούτοισιν] 'For what concerns this, viz. my relation to the Atreidae, 'all shall go well.' Tecmessa need not fear lest the pride of Ajax should lead him into farther trouble.
685-686.
mvp-comment-462-1
εἴσω . . κέαρ]
εἴσω ἐλθοῦσα εὔχου θεοῖς τελεῖσθαι διὰ τέλους (ἐκεῖνα) ὧν τὸ ἐμὸν κέαρ ἐpᾷ. Tecmessa will pray that Ajax may escape from the wrath of Athena. In doing so she will unconsciously pray for the consummation of his present desires in death. The solemn phrase
διὰ τέλους .. τελεῖσθαι is prompted by the latter feeling.
687-688.
mvp-comment-463-1
ταὐτὰ τῇδέ μοι τάδε | τιμᾶτε] 'Honour these my wishes equally with her.'
ταὐτά, an adverbial accusative, like
κοινά in Ant. 546,
μή μοι θάνῃς σὺ κοινά. The eightfold alliteration with
τ in these two lines gives the effect of suppressed earnestness.
689.
mvp-comment-464-1
In this veiled manner Ajax conveys his last request to Teucer.
Cp. supr. 567,
infr. 827, 8, 990, 1.
690.
mvp-comment-465-1
The intentional vagueness, by which Ajax conceals his purpose from Tecmessa and the chorus, has an impressive solemnity for the spectator.
691.
mvp-comment-466-1
τάχ᾽ ἂν.. ἴσως] ‘Ere long, methinks.'
692.
mvp-comment-467-1
σεσωσμένον] His hearers understand, 'Freed from further evil,' as having appeased the gods and submitted to the Atreidae: to himself he means, 'Having done with evils, because no trouble can affect the dead.' Exit Ajax towards the country. Tecmessa and the child withdraw into the hut. The proscenium is vacant.
693-718.
mvp-comment-468-1
The following ode is the clearest instance in Sophocles of the hyporchema, or song accompanied with dancing. In substance it may be compared with Trach. 205-224, Ο. Τ. 1086-1109, Ant. 1115-1154. The metrical scheme of στρ. and ἀντ. is as follows:...
693.
mvp-comment-469-1
'My heart is thrilled with a new hope, and mounts on wings of joy.' For the aorist (of the immediate past), see Essay on L. § 32. p. 55.
ἔρως is here used of a sudden and intense hope.
Cp. Ant. 617,
πολλοῖς δ᾽ ἀπάτα κουφονόων ἐρώτων (sc.
& .. ἐλπίς).
695.
mvp-comment-470-1
Pan is associated both with Marathon and Salamis, where Psyttaleia was his haunt according to Aeschylus: Pers. 448,
ἣν ὁ φιλόχορος | Πὰν ἐμβατεύει. ἁλίπλαγκτε] As in the invocation to Sleep in Phil. 828,
εὐαὲς . . ἔλθοις, the attribute which is part of the prayer is put in the vocative. 'Come, roving over the sea, leaving the snow-smitten ridges of Cyllene.' Cyllene is clearly visible from the Acropolis, and in spring and early summer (1874) is covered with snow. The side it presents to Athens is long and precipitous.
697.
mvp-comment-471-1
θεῶν χοροποί᾽ ἄναξ] (
θεων). 'Thou lord, who of the gods art he that frames the dance.' For this partitive genitive,
cp. O. C. 868, 9,
θεῶν | ὁ πάντα λεύσσων ἥλιος. ὅπως μοι .. ξυνὼν ἰάψεις] «Το fling into... I pray thee, along with me.'
μοι is dativus ethicus, but to be resumed with
ξυνών.
698.
mvp-comment-472-1
Νύσια Κνώσσια] Nysa, whether imagined as in Euboea or elsewhere, and Cnossus in Crete, were associated with the legend of Dionysus.
Cp. the Cnossian dancing ground of Ariadne in Il. 18. 591,
οἷον ποτ᾿ ἐνὶ Κνωσῷ εὐρείῃ | Δαίδαλος ἤσκησεν καλλιπλοκάμῳ ᾿Αριάδνῃ. 'Wilde Tänze fänden zu Ehren Dionys zu Nysa Statt, und an der Theodaisien Anfangs April zu Knossos auf Kreta' (G. Wolff).
αὐτοδαῆ] 'Spontaneous,' said with reference to Pan, 'which no man hath taught thee,'
cp. Aesch. Prom. 301,
αὐτόκτιτ᾽ ἄντρα, 'caves formed by thyself' (said to Oceanus).
700.
mvp-comment-473-1
ἰάπτειν = 'to set in sudden and swift motion.'
703.
mvp-comment-474-1
πελαγέων]
πελαγεῶν. For the Icarian sea,
cp. Hdt. 6. 95, 6.
704.
mvp-comment-475-1
εὔγνωστος] 'Easy to be known;' i. e.
ἐναργής, in his proper, unmistakable form: 'Nunquam humeris positurus arcum, | Qui rore puro Castaliae lavit | Crines solutos, qui Lyciae tenet | Dumeta natalemque silvam, | Delius et Patareus Apollo' (Hor. Carm. 3. 4. 60).
Cp. Trach. 207,
τὸν εὐφαρέτραν.
706.
mvp-comment-476-1
(1) The dangerous condition of Ajax was like a dark veil upon the eyes of the Salaminians, saddening for them even the light of day. ('A web is woven across the sky,' Tennyson, In Memoriam.)
Cp. especially
supr. 139, 140, 200. 'Now the cruel power has withdrawn the dreadful sorrow that oppressed our eyes.' Ares, as in O. T. 189, is the god of destruction, with an association from the violent rage in which Ajax' troubles began. Or (2) the Salaminians, like Tecmessa,
supr. 269, identify themselves with Ajax, from whose eyes (
supr. 51, 447) the distraction caused by his vehement rage is now removed. For the expression in either case,
cp. supr. 674 and note: Il. 13. 444,
ἔνθα δ᾽ ἔπειτ᾿ ἀφίει μένος όβριμος Άρης.
708.
mvp-comment-477-1
(1) 'Now, Zeus, thou shalt bring near bright genial day to our swift sea-going ships.' The meaning is half figurative, half literal. It is still morning (
καὶ ἀέξεται ἱερὸν ἦμαρ), and the Salaminians feel that the return of day-light is in keeping with the return of cheerfulness within them. For the figurative meaning,
cp. especially Aesch. Cho. 961, 972,
πάρα τὸ φῶς ἰδεῖν: Pers. 301. Otherwise, (2)
πελάσαι may be intransitive, 'Light shall come near the ships,' in which case
ὦ Zeῦ is an ejaculation. For this,
cp. Phil. 400,
ἰὼ μάκαιρα, κ.τ.λ.
711-712.
mvp-comment-478-1
The Chorus in their delight at the pious intentions expressed by Ajax,
supr. 655, 6, 666, 7, describe them in exaggerated language, and speak of them as already performed.
714.
mvp-comment-479-1
These words are an echo of Ajax' reflection,
supr. ll. 646, 7. The words
τε καὶ φλέγει, which are added in the MSS., are not improbable in themselves.
Cp. supr. 476 and note. But there is nothing to correspond to them in the strophe, and the metre as it stands in the text is more probable than it would be with the addition of
10-2. The interpolation may be accounted for by supposing a marginal quotation, as in 554
supr.
715.
mvp-comment-480-1
ἐξ ἀέλπτων] 'When we had despaired.'
Cp. supr. 648.
716.
mvp-comment-481-1
μετανεγνώσθη] 'Has been converted.' Ajax,
supr. 651, attributed the change in himself to the persuasion of Tecmessa.
717.
mvp-comment-482-1
θυμῶν] This reading, which occurs in some MSS., is nearer to
θυμόν, the reading of L, than the conj.
θυμοῦ T', which has been commonly adopted. For the poetical plural, 'outbursts of wrath,'
cp. Trach. 882,
τίνες νόσοι; and see Essay on L. § 20. p. 30. The plural of
θυμός occurs in Plat. Phil. 40 E: Legg. 11. 934 Α,
ὁ δὲ .. ἐν φόβοις δειλίας, ἡ τισιν ἐπιθυμίαις ἡ φθόνοις ἢ θυμοῖς δυσιάτοις γιγνόμενος. (
νεικέων.)
719.
mvp-comment-483-1
The proscenium has been vacant during the preceding ode. A single figure is now seen approaching from the opposite direction to that in which Ajax went forth. The man proves to be Teucer's forerunner. The effect of the following scene is twofold. On the one hand, the Chorus and Tecmessa are roused from their security, and go anxiously in search of Ajax. We are thus made aware that the crisis of the drama is approaching. But, on the other hand, the bearing of the prophet to Teucer, as reported by the messenger, and the tenor of his prophecy, assure the spectator that the anger of Athena against Ajax is not lasting, and hold forth a vague promise of final peace.
ἄνδρες φίλοι] The messenger, who is one of Teucer's men, thus assures the mariners of his continued friendship in their master's hour of need.
τὸ πρῶτον stands in apposition with the sentence,
Τεύκρος παρέστι, which, as Hermann says, must be held as equivalent to
Teῦκρον παρεῖναι. Ср. О. Т. 1234, 5,
ὁ μὲν τάχιστος τῶν λόγων εἰπεῖν τε καὶ | μαθεῖν, τέθνηκε θεῖον Ἰοκάστης κάρα. The abruptness of this gives some colour to Musgrave's conjecture,
ἄνδρες, φίλον τὸ πρῶτον ἀγγεῖλαι θέλω.
724-725.
mvp-comment-484-1
'For when they knew him from afar off as he approached, they surrounded him.'
Cp. infr. 1046,
μαθεῖν γὰρ ἐγγὺς ὧν οὐ δυσπετής.
726.
mvp-comment-485-1
κἀπιβουλευτοῦ στρατοῦ] 'And who was guilty of plotting against the army.'
στρατοῦ is genitive of the object.
727.
mvp-comment-486-1
ὡς connects
οὐκ ἀρκέσοι, κ.τ.λ. with
ἤρασσον, the clause
τὸν .. ἀποκαλοῦντες being parenthetical. They said,
ὦ τοῦ μανέντος .. ξύναιμε, οὐκ ἀρκέσεις, κ.τ.λ. The verb
ἀρκεῖν is used absolutely in the original sense of 'to ward off danger,' and this uncommon use is supplemented by the epexegetic clause.
730.
mvp-comment-487-1
διεπεραιώθη] Lit. 'were passed from either side,' ie. 'crossed blades.' Not merely 'were unsheathed.'
731.
mvp-comment-488-1
δραμοῦσα τοῦ προσωτάτω] 'When it had run to an extreme.' The partitive genitive is merely idiomatic, and does not limit the force of the expression. Essay on L. § 10. p. 16 (bis).
732.
mvp-comment-489-1
'Through elders interposing with their words.' For
ev instrumental, see Essay on L. § 19. p. 28, and
cp. Trach. 887,
στονόεντος ἐν τομᾷ σιδάρου.
733.
mvp-comment-490-1
'Where is our Ajax?'
ἡμίν is dative of the person interested. Ср.
supr. 332,
ἡμῖν τὸν ἄνδρα διαπεφοιβάσθαι κακοίς.
734.
mvp-comment-491-1
τοῖς κυρίοις] 'Το those principally concerned.'
Cp. Aesch. Cho. 688, 9,
εἰ δὲ τυγχάνω | τοῖς κυρίοισι καὶ προσήκουσιν λέγων, | οὐκ οἶδα.
735-736.
mvp-comment-492-1
νέας .. τρόποις] 'Having changed his purpose in unison with his change of mood.' The Chorus believe that Ajax, having learnt submission, is gone forth to purify himself in the fresh water at the corner of the bay.
Supr. 654 foll.
737.
mvp-comment-493-1
ἰοὺ ἰού] The messenger perceives that the fate of Ajax is sealed, and raises the same cry of horror that Oedipus utters (O. T. 1182) when he discovers the truth.
738.
mvp-comment-494-1
βραδείαν is predicative and adverbial,= 'too late.'
Cp. the use of
πικρός, e.g.
infr. 1239.
740.
mvp-comment-495-1
'And what is there lacking to the fulfilment of the present need?'
χρείας τῆσδ', 'the need implied in Teucer's sending you,
τήνδε τὴν ὁδόν, supr. 738.
743.
mvp-comment-496-1
τοι] 'We can tell you.'
τοι here expresses the consciousness of contributing pertinent information.
743-744.
mvp-comment-497-1
πρὸς τὸ κέρδιστον.. γνώμης] 'His thoughts having taken the happiest turn.' For the genitive,
cp. Trach. 705,
ποῖ γνώμης πέσω; Ant. 42,
ποῦ γνώμης ποτ' εἶ;
744.
mvp-comment-498-1
χόλου] 'In respect of' (lit. 'from') 'their wrath.'
746.
mvp-comment-499-1
The name of Calchas, and the thought of his foreknowledge, strike the hearers with an expectant awe.
748.
mvp-comment-500-1
καὶ παρὼν ἐτύγχανον] 'For I was there to hear and see.' An expansion of
παρών, the coordinate for the participial construction. See Essay on L. § 36. p. 68; also § 32. p. 55.
749.
mvp-comment-501-1
Calchas, who alone knows the future, is not carried away by the rage which possesses the host, but simply warns Teucer in a friendly tone that the wrath of the gods is against Ajax for this one day. This attitude of the prophet is emphasized by the pleonastic iteration,
ἐκ. κύκλου μεταστὰς οἷος .. δίχα, and by the periphrasis in l. 753.
συνέδρου . . κύκλου] 'The circle of the lords who sate in council,' with the
ἀγορά of the Achaeans gathered round.
751-752.
mvp-comment-502-1
Join
δεξιὰν θείς.
752.
mvp-comment-503-1
παντοίᾳ τέχνῃ] 'By all manner of means:' to be joined with
εἶρξαι.
753.
mvp-comment-504-1
κατ᾿ ἡμαρ.. τόδε] 'For the day whose light is with us now and here,' i. e. to-day.
754.
mvp-comment-505-1
ἀφέντα agrees with
Τεύκρον, the subject of
ἐᾶν.
756.
mvp-comment-506-1
τῇδε θήμέρᾳ is more probable, because simpler, than
τῇδ' ἔθ᾽ ἡμέρᾳ.
757.
mvp-comment-507-1
ὡς ἔφη λέγων] · As his words declared.' The messenger is careful to make it clear that the assertion is the prophet's, and not his own.
Cp. Creon in Ο. Τ. 110,
ἐν τῇδ᾽ ἔφασκε γῇ. For this periphrasis,
cp. Hdt. 1. 118,
τῷ τε γὰρ πεποιημένῳ, ἔφη λέγων, ἐς τὸν παῖδα τοῦτον ἔκαμνον μεγάλως, κ.τ.λ. Abicht observes that it is commonly used, as here, in passing to direct speech from indirect.
758.
mvp-comment-508-1
τὰ.. περισσὰ κἀνόνητα σώματα] 'Men grown too great to be of profit.'
Cp. Shakespeare, Julius Caesar, 1. 2. 149, 50, 'Upon what meat doth this our Caesar feed, | That he is grown so great?' Ib. I. 1. 77, 8, 'These growing feathers plucked from Caesar's wing, | Will make him fly an ordinary pitch.'
760.
mvp-comment-509-1
ὅστις] · 'When any one.' Essay on L. § 22. p. 35, 2.
760-761.
mvp-comment-510-1
ἀνθρώπου φύσιν | βλαστών] 'Being but of human mould.' An unusual cognate accusative, to be partly accounted for by the frequent use of
φύσιν as an accusative of respect. See Essay on L. § 17. p. 25; and
cp. especially Trach. 1062,
γυνὴ δέ, θήλυς οὖσα κοὐκ ἀνδρὸς φύσιν.
762.
mvp-comment-511-1
εὐθύς belongs in meaning to
εὑρέθη in the following line.
763.
mvp-comment-512-1
πατρός may be either (1) genitive of derivation, 'A foolish son of a wisely speaking father,' for which,
cp. Ant. 38,
ἐσθλῶν κακή: or (2) genitive absolute, 'Foolish, although his father advised him well.' The former (1) is nearer to the truth.
764.
mvp-comment-513-1
αὐτὸν ἐννέπει] 'Charged him.'
Cp. Ο. Τ. 350,
ἐννέπω σέ, κ.τ.λ.
765.
mvp-comment-514-1
μὲν .. δ΄] The 'paratactic' structure (Essay on L. § 36. p. 68) gives additional emphasis.
769.
mvp-comment-515-1
ἐπισπάσειν] 'That I shall cull perforce,' as if plucking a branch from a tree. (Aesch. Pers. 475.)
Cp. Shak. 1 Hen. IV. 1.3: 'Hot. By heaven, methinks it were an easy leap | To pluck bright honour from the pale-faced moon; | Or dive into the bottom of the deep, | Where fathom-line doth never touch the ground, | And pluck up drowned honour by the locks; | So he that doth redeem her thence might wear | Without corrival all her dignities.'
770.
mvp-comment-516-1
τοσόνδ' .. μύθον] 'So high the vaunt he uttered.'
Cp. supr. 386,
μηδὲν μέγ' εἴπῃς: 422, 3,
ἔπος | ἐξερέω μέγα.
771.
mvp-comment-517-1
δίας ᾿Αθάνας] 'Regarding glorious Athena.' An extreme instance of the genitive of respect. Essay on L. § 9. p. 13,
infr. 790, 792. The sentence is changed from
δίας Αθάνας ότρυνούσης, or
αὐδωμένης.
773.
mvp-comment-518-1
ηὐδᾶτ'] For
αὐδᾶν, ‘to command,'
cp. O. C. 864,
αὐδῶ σιωπᾶν, and for the middle v. (of unasked, spontaneous utterance), Phil. 130,
οὗ δῆτα, τέκνον, ποικίλως αὐδωμένου. δεινὸν ἄρρητόν τ' ἔπος] ' A fearfully impious word.'
775.
mvp-comment-519-1
καθ᾿ ἡμᾶς) 'In my part of the line;
κατά, as in Hdt. 2. 121. § 4,
ὡς δὲ κατὰ τοὺς φυλάσσοντας ἦν: Xen. Hell. 4. 2. 18,
οἱ μὲν ᾿Αθηναῖοι κατὰ Λακεδαιμονίους ἐγένοντο. Hermann renders, 'Per me, quantum in me est,' which is rather =
τὸ καθ' ἡμᾶς (
cp. Hdt. 7. 158).
οὔποτ' ἐκρήξει] 'Shall never burst forth,' like a river breaking its banks. 'Postquam..duo acies manum aliquandiu conseruerunt, si alterutra subito in fugam se converterit, eleganter pugna ipsa, tanquam obicibus antea coërcita, in eam partem
ἐκρήσσειν [
ἐκρῆξαι] dicatur.' Musgr.
Cp. the Homeric
πολέμοιο γέφυραι, in which the opposing armies are thought of as the sides of a torrent.
776.
mvp-comment-520-1
The correction suggested by Hermann,
τοι for
τοῖς, although not quite necessary (for
τοιοίσδε might =
τοιοίσδε πεφυκόσιν), is extremely probable.
776-777.
mvp-comment-521-1
ἀστεργῆ .. ὀργήν] • He hath won him the unenviable guerdon of the goddess' wrath.'
ἀστεργῆ is more forcible when taken thus passively than if supposed to mean 'unloving,' which would add nothing to the notion of
ὀργὴν. For
ἐκτήσατο, of something bad,
cp. especially Aesch. S. c. T. 1017 (of Polynices),
ἄγος δὲ καὶ θανὼν κεκτήσεται.
779.
mvp-comment-522-1
The genitive
αὐτοῦ shows that
σωτήριοι has nearly the force of a substantive.
780.
mvp-comment-523-1
On this form of the senarius, generally marking some
empressement, see above on l. 294.
ἐξ ἔδρας] 'From where I sate,' viz. amongst the Achaeans who were looking on at the council.
781.
mvp-comment-524-1
τάσδ' ἐπιστολάς] 'This charge,' viz. that implied in
supr. 753-5. Teucer remains to watch over his brother's interests in the assembly.
782.
mvp-comment-525-1
Τεύκρος]) The proper name is added after the article in further explanation.
φυλάσσειν] The epexegetic infinitive is occasioned by the addition of
Τεύκρος. εἰ δ᾽ ἀπεστερήμεθα] 'But if we are frustrated;' i. e. if the
δαίμων of Ajax has prevented us from carrying out our intention. For
ἀποστερεῖν of prevention,
cp. Aesch. Suppl. 1063,
Ζεὺς ἀποστεροίη γάμον. This meaning is more forcible, although less obvious, than that of Badham's ingenious conjecture,
εἰ δ᾽ ἄρ᾽ ὑστερήκαμεν.
783.
mvp-comment-526-1
The idiomatic
ἁνὴρ κεῖνος avoids the association of the name
Alas with the ill-omened
οὐκ ἔστιν.
784.
mvp-comment-527-1
'O cruelly vexed Tecmessa, born to woe!' The exact association conveyed in
Sata is difficult to seize. Perhaps from meaning 'hostile,' it comes to mean 'treated as an enemy,' and so 'cruelly afflicted' by the gods.
785.
mvp-comment-528-1
'Come and see what news this man is telling.'
Cp. Phil. 504,
χρὴ δ᾽ ἐμὲ | σκοπεῖν ὅπως σου μηδὲν ἐξαμαρτήσω.
814.
mvp-comment-529-1
καὶ ποδῶν is added to define
ἔργου further. Exeunt Chorus severally by the two side doors.
Cp. supr. 805.
815-865.
mvp-comment-530-1
The scene is changed to a wooded place (
infr. 892) not far from the camp (
infr. 874-8), where Ajax is disclosed, somewhat retired, but so that both he and the projecting point of the sword which he has planted in the ground, are visible to the spectators.
815.
mvp-comment-531-1
ὁ.. σφαγεύς] Either (1) 'the slayer,' or (2) 'the sacrificer;' probably the former (1).
ἕστηκεν .. ἄν] 'Stands so as he may prove most keen:' whetted not only with the grind-stone, but with the hate of Hector who gave it, the enmity of the Trojan soil in which it is fixed, the determined will of Ajax and his care in executing that will. The sword thus ordered cannot fail of its effect.
816.
mvp-comment-532-1
εἴ τῳ.. σχολή] These words mark Ajax' feeling of the extreme deliberateness of his act. After long repression he is at leisure not only to make elaborate preparations, but also to reason over what he is about to do. For the language,
cp. Thuc. 2. 45,
εἰ δέ με δεῖ καὶ γυναικείας τι ἀρετῆς . μνησθῆναι, βραχεία παραινέσει ἅπαν σημανῶ. The clause is rather to be connected with what follows than with what precedes. (Others would supply
ἦν, and render 'If one had but time to make reflections'). The indefinite
Te has an ironical effect, and also somewhat of solemnity, like the impersonal expression in Shakespeare, Julius Caesar, 5. 1: 'O, that a man might know | The end of this day's business ere it come!'
817-818.
mvp-comment-533-1
ἀνδρὸς ὁρᾶν] 'Of Hector, who of men not Greek was by me most hated and abhorred.'
ἀνδρός adds a touch of distinction to the name which follows.
Cp El. 45,
παρ᾿ ἀνδρὸς Φανοτέως ἥκων. By the addition of
ξένων he reserves his chief hatred for the Argives.
820.
mvp-comment-534-1
The reading
σιδηροβρώτηῃ is not impossible.
Cp. Ο. Τ. 80, 1,
τύχῃ ·· σωτῆρι, and note. The iteration of
ἔπηξα after
πέπηγε, supr. 819, strengthens our impression of the firmness with which the sword was fastened in the earth.
821.
mvp-comment-535-1
εὖ περιστείλας) 'Carefully securing it.' He had trodden the earth about it, as if planting a young tree.
822.
mvp-comment-536-1
εὐνούστατον..θανεῖν] 'So as most kindly to provide for me a speedy death,'
εὐνούστατον is supplementary predicate with
ἔπηξα. Essay on L. § 23, P. 38, § 38, p. 71.
θανεῖν is epexegetic =
ὥστε θανείν. Ajax has but two desires, that his death may be (1) certain, (2) swift. His preparation of the sword secures both ends in one.
823.
mvp-comment-537-1
οὕτω μὲν εὐσκευοῦμεν] 'So well provided with an instrument am I.'
μέν is resumed from
supr. 815.
824.
mvp-comment-538-1
καὶ γὰρ εἰκός] These words are characteristic of the indomitable hero, who, in his supreme hour, addresses the sovereign of the gods as his kinsman. (
Cp. supr. 387,
προγόνων προπάτωρ.)
825.
mvp-comment-539-1
λαχεῖν, if the true reading, is epexegetic, the accusative
γέρας being governed, primarily, by
αἰτήσομαι. But
λαβεῖν may be right. See v. rr.
826.
mvp-comment-540-1
κακὴν φάτιν] A rumour of evil sound. In the 'clairvoyance' of this moment Ajax imagines the effect which the news of his death would have on Teucer, as also,
infr. 850, on his mother. It has been supposed that
infr. 998,
ὀξεῖα γὰρ .. θανών indicates the answer of Zeus to this prayer. But, although this is possible, such a rumour is sufficiently accounted for by what passes at
supr. 749 foll., especially the words in l. 783,
οὐκ ἔστιν ἄνηρ κεῖνος.
828.
mvp-comment-541-1
περί]
Cp. infr. 899,
φασγάνῳ περιπτυχής. νεορράντῳ] 'Then freshly streaming.' For this vivid touch,
cp. infr. 898,
ἀρτίως νεοσφαγής. He does not mention Tecmessa.
830.
mvp-comment-542-1
ῥιφθῶ .. ἕλωρ] 'I be cast forth, exposed to dogs and birds for a prey.'
833-834.
mvp-comment-543-1
'And that the leap wherewith I plunge this sword into my side may be swift and without a struggle.'
πηδήματι has been interpreted of the involuntary spring upwards at the moment of the sword piercing the heart; but it is rather, more simply, the act of falling on the sword. Ajax prays that this may be unattended with convulsions, and may lead directly to the consummation.
835.
mvp-comment-544-1
ἀεὶ . . παρθένους]
Cp. especially, Aesch. Eum. 69, 70,
παλαιαὶ παῖδες, αἷς οὐ μίγνυται | θεῶν τις, οὐδ᾽ ἄνθρωπος, οὐδὲ θήρ ποτε.
836.
mvp-comment-545-1
Ср. О. С. 42,
τὰς πάνθ᾽ ὁρώσας Εὐμενίδας, κ.τ.λ.
837.
mvp-comment-546-1
μαθεῖν] The inf. depends on the general notion in
καλῶ, the full expression,
καλῶ ἀρωγούς, being partly lost sight of.
839-842.
mvp-comment-547-1
See v. rr. The reasons for rejecting these four lines may be briefly given. The allusion to the death of Agamemnon, which is the chief point in them, interferes with the poetical simplicity of the passage, and is moreover not applicable to Menelaus. The emphatic use of
αὐτοσφαγής in two different senses in the same line is awkward, and like an imitation.
φίλιστος occurs nowhere else, and
τώς not elsewhere in Sophocles; and
ἐκγόνων seems to have arisen from a confusion of the death of Agamemnon with that of Clytemnestra, together with an attempt to include the fate of Odysseus.
1
839-842.
mvp-comment-547-2
839 ff.
καί σφας κακοὺς κάκιστα καὶ πανωλέθρους | ξυναρπάσειαν, ὥσπερ εἰσορῶσ' ἐμὲ | αὐτοσφαγῆι πίπτοντα, τὼς αὐτοσφαγεὶς | πρὸς τῶν φιλίστων ἐκγόνων ὀλοίατο LAL Pal. Vat. ac. (Variants:
αὐτοσφαγῆ Α.
αὐτοσφαγεῖσ CA.
ἐκγονων L.
καὐτοσφαγεῖς Pal.
τως αὐτοσφαγεῖς Vat. ac.
ὣς αὐτοσφαγεῖς V.
ἐκγόνων Vat. a.)
844.
mvp-comment-548-1
'Flesh yourselves unsparingly on all the populous host.'
μὴ φείδεσθε is introduced
dià mésou. The
πάνδημος στρατός of the Achaeans is contrasted with the Argive chiefs.
847.
mvp-comment-549-1
ἐπισχὼν .. ἡνίαν] ‘Checking thy rein.' Instead of saying
ἐπέχειν ἅρμα, or
ἵππους, the means, or more immediate object, is put into the accusative.
847.
mvp-comment-549-2
χρυσόνωτον] ‘Gilded,' viz, having the upper surface studded with gold.
848.
mvp-comment-550-1
ἄτας.. ἐμόν] 'My troubles and my fate.' This is not a mere pleonasm. The
ἅται may include his first provocation of Athena as well as his wild actions since; the word
μόρον is specially applicable to his death.
849.
mvp-comment-551-1
τῇ τε δυστήνῳ τροφῷ] Either (1) 'and the unhappy one who nursed my infancy;' or (2) 'and the unhappy one who tends on him.' According to (1) Ajax in thinking of his mother with special tenderness, speaks of her as the one who nursed him at her breast (
ἥ μ' ἔτεχ᾽, ἤ μ᾿ ἔθρεψε, Od. 2. 131.) According to (2) he is thinking of the dreary household at Salamis, where she who had been the wife of Telamon's youth was now the nurse of his declining years.
Cp. Od. 24. 211,
ἐν δὲ γυνὴ Σικελὴ γρηὺς πέλεν, ἤ ῥα γέροντα | ἐνδυκέως κομέεσκεν ἐπ᾿ ἀγροῦ, νόσφι πόληος.
851.
mvp-comment-552-1
Cp. Eur. Med. 1176,
εἶτ' ἀντίμολπον ἡκεν ὀλολυγῆς μέγαν | κωκυτόν.
852.
mvp-comment-553-1
'But I have nought to do with vain laments for this.'
οὐδὲν ἔργον, lit. 'It is no part of the business in hand.'
853.
mvp-comment-554-1
σὺν τάχει τινί] 'And that with speed.' The addition of the indefinite pronoun, as in
ἀνύσας τι ('with something of haste'), has an effect of peremptoriness.
856.
mvp-comment-555-1
τὸ νῦν] By hypallage for
τῆς νῦν, giving a lighter rhythm.
857.
mvp-comment-556-1
προσεννέπω is introduced by an expansion similar to that in Aesch. Prom. 91,
καὶ τὸν πανόπτην κύκλον ἡλίου καλῶ, and then becomes the governing word.
858.
mvp-comment-557-1
κοὔποτ᾽ αὖθις] Sc.
προσαυδήσω.
Cp. Ant. 808, 9,
νέατον δὲ φέγγος λεύσσουσαν ἀελίου | κοὔποτ᾽ αὖθις.
859.
mvp-comment-558-1
ὦ φέγγος] He passionately resumes his invocation (856-8), and as his heart goes forth with the universal sunlight, he again (as in 846) fixes his thoughts on home.
860.
mvp-comment-559-1
πατρῷον ἑστίας βάθρον] 'Hearth-stone of my sire.' See Essay on L. § 42. p. 80 γ.
861.
mvp-comment-560-1
κλειναί]
Cp. supr. 596, and note. The glory of Athens, like that of Salamis, is anticipated.
861.
mvp-comment-560-2
τὸ σύντροφον γένος] 'And ye, her race, among whom I was brought up.' These words, in which Ajax adopts the Athenians as brethren of the Aeacidae, are well calculated to move the Athenian audience.
862-864.
mvp-comment-561-1
After bidding farewell to Salamis and Athens, he is returning to his purpose, when his eye falls on the fresh waters in which he has lately bathed (
supr. 654); and they remind him of his Trojan environment of the last ten years. To this also he bids an affectionate farewell.
864.
mvp-comment-562-1
The repetition of his own name by Ajax here is significant. Still conscious of his greatness, he imagines all Nature as moved at his departure.
865-866.
mvp-comment-563-1
Ajax having fallen upon his sword at the back of the proscenium, and the orchestra as well as the stage being otherwise vacant, the Chorus re-enter by the two side doors, the first
ἡμιχορίον coming in on the spectator's left, as if from the east. Before the opening of the strophe,
infr. 879, they have taken up their position in the orchestra.
