Sophocles Ajax 1-170

Richard Jebb (Translator)

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Ajax. Sophocles. Richard Jebb (Translator). Cambridge. 1893.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The Annenberg CPB/Project.

Current edition Experimental

Ajax (English) (Sophocles the plays and fragments, Part 7: The Ajax. Jebb, Richard Claverhouse, Sir, translator. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1891. (Modernized by Perseus.))

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (4)
Αἴας μαστιγοφόρος First1KGreek (Sophocles. Sophoclis Aiax. Lobeck Christian, editor. Berlin: Weidmann, 1866.) — 1-171 focus
Αἴας First1KGreek (Sophocles. Sophoclis Fabulae. Pearson, Alfred Chilton, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1924.) — 1-171 focus
Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) — 1 focus
ἀεὶ μέν, ὦ παῖ Λαρτίου Λαρτίου λᾶρτίου, δέδορκά σε
1
πεῖράν τιν' ἐχθρῶν ἁρπάσαι θηρώμενον·
καὶ νῦν ἐπὶ σκηναῖς σε ναυτικαῖς ὁρῶ
Αἴαντος, ἔνθα τάξιν ἐσχάτην ἔχει,
πάλαι κυνηγετοῦντα καὶ μετρούμενον
5
ἴχνη τὰ κείνου τὰ ᾿κείνου τἀκείνου νεοχάραχθ᾽ νεοχάρακτ᾽ νεοχάρακθ', ὅπως ἴδῃς
εἴτ᾿ ἔνδον εἴτ᾿ οὐκ ἔνδον. εὖ δέ σ᾽ ἐκφέρει
ἔγνων, Ὀδυσσεῦ, καὶ πάλαι φύλαξ ἔβην
τῇ σῇ πρόθυμος εἰς ὁδὸν κυναγίᾳ.
τί δρᾷς, ᾿Αθάνα; μηδαμῶς σφ᾽ ἔξω ἔξω σφ᾽ ἔξω κάλει.
εἶεν, τί γὰρ δὴ παῖς ὁ τοῦ Λαερτίου,
ποῦ σοι τύχης ἕστηκεν ἔστηκεν; ἢ πέφευγέ σε;
Τελαμώνιε παῖ, τῆς ἀμφιρύτου
Σαλαμῖνος ἔχων βάθρον ἀγχιάλου,
135
Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 1-171 focus
Translations (4)
English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906)) — 1 focus
Oft have I seen thee, Laërtiades,
1
Intent on some surprisal of thy foes;
1
As now I find thee by the seaward camp,
Where Aias holds the last place in your line,
Lingering in quest, and scanning the fresh print
Of his late footsteps, to be certified
If he keep house or no. Right well thy sense
Hath led thee forth, like some keen hound of Sparta!
The man is even but now come home, his head
5
And slaughterous hands reeking with ardent toil.
5
Thou, then, no longer strain thy gaze within
Yon gateway, but declare what eager chase
Thou followest, that a god may give thee light.
I knew thy doubts, Odysseus, and came forth
Zealous to guard thy perilous hunting-path.
My Queen! what dost thou? Never call him forth.
Good. Next inform us of Laërtes’ son;
How stands his fortune? Hast thou let him go?
Telamonian child, whose hand
Guards our wave-encircled land,
Salamis that breasts the sea,
Good of thine is joy to me;
But if One who reigns above
Smite thee, or if murmurs move
From fierce Danaäns in their hate
Full of threatening to thy state,
All my heart for fear doth sigh,
Shrinking like a dove’s soft eye.
Hardly had the darkness waned,
When our ears were filled and pained
With huge scandal on thy fame.
Telling, thine the arm that came
To the cattle-browsèd mead,
Wild with prancing of the steed,
And that ravaged there and slew
With a sword of fiery hue
All the spoils that yet remain,
By the sweat of spearmen ta’en.
Such report against thy life,
Whispered words with falsehood rife,
Wise Odysseus bringing near
Shrewdly gaineth many an ear:
Since invention against thee
Findeth hearing speedily,
Tallying with the moment’s birth;
And with loudly waxing mirth
Heaping insult on thy grief,
Each who hears it glories more
Than the tongue that told before.
Every slander wins belief
Aimed at souls whose worth is chief:
Shot at me, or one so small,
Such a bolt might harmless fall.
Ever toward the great and high
Creepeth climbing jealousy
Yet the low without the tall
Make at need a tottering wall
Let the strong the feeble save
And the mean support the brave.
135
Ah! ’twere vain to tune such song
135
’Mid the nought discerning throng
135
Who are clamouring now ’gainst thee
135
Long and loud, and strengthless we,
135
Mighty chieftain, thou away,
135
To withstand the gathering fray
135
Flocking fowl with carping cry
135
Seem they, lurking from thine eye,
135
Till the royal eagle’s poise
135
Overawe the paltry noise
135
Till before thy presence hushed
135
Sudden sink they, mute and crushed.
135
Did bull slaying Artemis, Zeus’ cruel daughter
135
(Ah, fearful rumour, fountain of my shame!)
135
Prompt thy fond heart to this disastrous slaughter
135
Of the full herd stored in our army’s name!
135
Say, had her blood stained temple missed the kindness
135
Of some vow promised fruit of victory,
135
Foiled of some glorious armour through thy blindness,
135
Or fell some stag ungraced by gift from thee?
135
Or did stern Ares venge his thankless spear
135
Through this night foray that hath cost thee dear!
135
For never, if thy heart were not distracted
135
By stings from Heaven, O child of Telamon,
135
Wouldst thou have bounded leftward, to have acted
135
Thus wildly, spoiling all our host hath won!
135
Madness might fall some heavenly power forfend it
135
But if Odysseus and the tyrant lords
135
Suggest a forged tale, O rise to end it,
135
Nor fan the fierce flame of their withering words!
135
Forth from thy tent, and let thine eye confound
135
The brood of Sisyphus that would thee wound!
135
Too long hast thou been fixed in grim repose,
135
Heightening the haughty malice of thy foes,
135
That, while thou porest by the sullen sea,
135
Through breezy glades advanceth fearlessly,
135
A mounting blaze with crackling laughter fed
135
From myriad throats; whence pain and sorrow bred
135
Within my bosom are establishèd.
135
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 1 focus
Zu jeder Stunde treff' ich dich, Laertes' Sohn, 1
1
Wie du, den Feind zu greifen, seine Fährt' erspürst;
Auch nun gewahr' ich, wie du hier am Schiffsgezelt 2
Des Ajas, der des Lagers lezte Reihe hält,
Schon lange schleichst und lauerst und von seinem Tritt
5
Die frischgeprägten Spuren prüfst, um auszuspäh'n,
Ob innen er, ob außen: glücklich führt dich auch
Dein Schritt an's Ziel, scharfwitternd, gleich dem Sparterhund. 3
Denn eben ist er innen, und von Schweiße triest
Das Haupt des Mannes und die mordbewehrte Hand.
10
Und nöthig hast du weiter nicht, am Thore hier
Hineinzulauschen; aber sprich, warum du so
Voll Eifer spähtest, gerne geb' ich dir Bescheid.
Ich weiß, Odysseus, und ich ging dir lange schon,
Ein treuer Schuz, auf deinem Späherpfade nach.
Was thust du, Pallas? Nimmermehr ruf' ihn heraus -
Gut; welches Schicksal aber traf Laertes' Sohn?
Was thatst du diesem? Oder ist er dir entfloh'n?
Telamonischer Sohn, der Salamis' Höh'n 9
Am ringsumwogten Gestade beherrscht,
135
Ich freue mich, lächelt das Glück dir.
Doch wann Zeus' Groll und ein zorniges Wort
Aus Danaermunde dich feindlich betraf,
Da faßt mich die Angst, ich erbebe vor Furcht,
Wie das Auge des flatternden Täubchens. 10
140
So hat von der jüngst entschwundenen Nacht
Uns mächtiger Schreck und Entsezen erfüllt
Bei dem schmähenden Ruf, du hab'st in der Au,
In der Rosse Gefild' einstürmend, dem Heer
Das erbeutete Vieh,
145
Das übrig allein von dem Raube noch war,
Mit flammendem Eisen gemordet.
Solch höhnende Reden ersinnt uns keck,
Und zischelt Odysseus Allen in's Ohr,
Und sie glauben ihm leicht; denn er meldet von dir,
150
Was gerne man glaubt, und wer es vernimmt,
Der freut sich noch mehr, denn der es erzählt,
Treibt Spott mit deiner Bedrängniß.
Denn send' auf mächtige Geister den Pfeil,
Nie fehlst du das Ziel; wer aber von uns
155
Solch Arges erzählt, dem glauben sie nicht.
Stets kriecht ja der Neid an die Großen heran.
Und dennoch sind, von den Großen getrennt,
Die Geringen der Burg ein betrüglicher Schuz;
Mit dem Großen ja hebt der Geringe sich leicht,
160
Und der Große, gestüzt von dem Kleinen, empor.
Doch ist es unmöglich, der Thoren Geschlecht
Von diesem Gesez zu belehren.
Solch alberner Männer Geschrei stürmt, Herr,
Auf dich, und uns ward nimmer die Kraft,
165
Dawider zu steh'n, so gesondert von dir.
Denn, flohen sie dir aus den Blicken hinweg,
Dann tosen sie laut, wie Vögel im Schwarm;
Doch bebten sie scheu vor dem mächtigen Aar,
Und verkröchen, sobald du plözlich erschienst,
170
Sich alsbald schweigend und lautlos.
Strophe.
English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 1 focus
Son of Laertes, thy unwearied spirit
1
Is ever watchful to surprise the foe ;
1
I have observed thee wandering midst the tents
At th' utmost verge, and meas'ring o'er his steps
But late impressed ; like Sparta's hounds of scent
Sagacious dost thou trace him, nor in vain ;
5
For know, the man thou seekst is not far from thee :
Yonder he lies, with reeking brow and hands
Deep-stained with gore ; cease then thy search, and tell
me
Wherefore thou com'st, that so I may inform
Thy doubting mind, and best assist thy purpose.
Minerva, dearest of th' immortal powers,
not, that well-known
Doth like the Tyrrhene trump awake my soul,
Right hast thou s£iid, I come to search my foe,
15
A deed of horror hath he done this night,
15
If it be he, for yet we are to know
The certain proof, and therefoi'e came I here
A willing messenger : the cattle all,
Our flocks and herds, are with their shepherds slain.
One of our spies, who saw him on the plain,
His sword still reeking with fresh blood, confirmed it
Instant 1 fled to search him, and sometimes
I trace his footsteps, which again I lose
I know not how ; in happy hour thou com'st
To aid me, Goddess ; thy pi'otecting hand
20
Hath ruled me ever, and to thee I trust
20
My future fate.
'Min. I know it well, Ulysses,
And therefore come to guard and to assist thee
Propitious to thy purpose.
Do I right,
My much -loved mistress 1
Mix. Doubtless; his foul deed
Doth well deserve it.
What wouldst thou do, Minerva ? Do not call
Did th' Atridae feel
Thy vengeful arm ?
Sad news indeed thou bringst of that brave
man :
135
English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 1 focus
Son of Laertes, oft have I observed
1
Thy watchful promptness 'gainst the foe to seize
1
Each fit occasion; and I see thee now
Ranging long time around the naval tent
Marking the fresh impression of his steps,
That thou may'st know if in the tent he rests.
Well hast thou traced him, like the Spartan hound
Of scent sagacious: in the tent he rests,
Sweat from his temples streaming, and his hands
5
With slaughter stain'd; to cast thy searching eye
5
Within these gates is needless; but declare
The cause productive of this anxious toil,
That by my knowledge thou may'st be inform'd.
Most friendly to me! Well, O queen, I know
Thy voice, though thou not seen; it strikes my sense
Clear as the Tuscan trumpet's brass-tuned notes.
Just is thy knowledge that my circling step
Traces a foe, Ajax, whose arm sustains
The broad circumference of the massy shield;
Him, and none other, long time have I traced.
This night against us he hath done a deed
Which reason starts at, if the deed be his,
For we know nothing certain, but are lost
In doubt: mine therefore is it to sustain
This voluntary toil; for all our herds,
Prize of our arms, the herdsmen too we find
Fresh slaughter'd by some wasting hand; to him
The general voice this odious deed imputes: {
And one, who, as he walk'd the nightly round,
Descried him bounding o'er the fields alone,
The blood fresh dropping from his sword, to me
Disclosed it: instant on his steps I press
Tracing their marks, now certain, now, perplex'd.
But opportune thy coming; for thy hand
Hath been in all my actions pasty irall
Of future enterprise shall be my guide. מה
I know it well; and friendly to thy search
Attended thee a guardian on thy way.
come forth before the tent.
75
Well: but that other from Laertes sprung.
O son of Telamon, whose ample sway
Deep-rooted in the sea, that rolls around,
The strong based shores of Salamis obey,
When with success and glory thou art crown'd
My heart beats high with joy: but when the hand
Of angry Jove afflicts thee, or thy fame
Greece taints with envious and malignant blame,
I fear, I tremble like the fluttering dove...
Such terrors now around us blackening stand:
For slander says that o'er the pastured plain
By thee this night the flocks, the herds were slain,
Spoils of the ravaged vales, (O deed abhorr'd!)
Slain by thy flaming sword.
Such tales Ulysses with insidious art
Against thee forms, and whispers in each ear;
His specious fictions all believe who hear,
Feeling more joy than cheers th' inventor's heart,
And with malicious insults mocks thy woes.
Who wings his shafts against the great and high,
Unerring to the mark beholds them fly:
'Gainst me their aim they lose.
Envy crawls on, the potent keen to wound;
Yet, when the hour brings danger forth, the low
Without them are a tottering bulwark found;
These in the great their strong protectors know,
The great by these protected firmly stand.
But to th' insensate wisdom speaks in vain :
Such this tumultuous train,
And to repel their insults weak our hand,
Weak without thee: for now, escaped thy sight,
Like flocks of birds they scream, and vex the ear:
Wou'dst thou, O king, appear,
With awe they view the lordly vulture's flight,
And all their clamorous cries are hush'd through fear.
135
Thee hath the Virgin Huntress sprung from Jove,
135
Whose altars o'er the Scythian Taurus flame,
135
(O wild report, thou parent of our shame !)
135
Urged 'mongst the herds with slaughtering rage to rove,
135
To her no honours for some conquest paid?
135
Didst thou the glorious spoils of war detain?
135
Were her loved hinds beneath thy arrows slain,
135
As fearless o'er some hallow'd vale they stray'd?
135
Did the stern god, that in th' ensanguin'd field
135
Lifts high his blazing shield,
135
In vengeance send, defrauded of his right,
135
The frenzy of the night?
135
For never, did thy sense its seat maintain,
135
O son of Telamon, with rage possest
135
Wou'dst thou spread carnage o'er the pastured plain.
135
Heav'n-sent this wild disease hath fired thy breast.
135
O Phœbus, and thou ruler of the sky,
135
Avert this ill report! To blast thy fame
135
If the great kings, and chiefs of mighty name,
135
In secret basely forge this calumny,
135
Or he of the accurst Sisyphian race,
135
Yield not to the disgrace;
135
Nor, thine eye fix'd within thy naval tent,
135
The vile report augment.
135
Rise, king of Salamis, assert thy fame:
135
Why to thy seat thus fixed? Thy long delay
135
Adds to this heav'n-sent mischief fiercer flame.
135
For uncontroll'd the insults of thy foes,
135
Like fires exposed to winds, now force their way.
135
No bounds the spreading slander knows;
135
From tongue to tongue the taunts, the mockings roll;
135
And anguish rends my soul.
135

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-1-1 Prologue. Athena confirms the surmise of Odysseus as to the guilt of Ajax; shows her favourite his afflicted foe; and points the moral.

mvp-comment-1-2 ἀεὶ μέν 1 καὶ νῦν 2

mvp-comment-1-3 Λαρτίου 3

mvp-comment-2-1 πεῖράν τιν’ ἐχθρῶν ἁρπάσαι 4 ἐχθρῶν 5 ἁρπάσαι 6 θηρώ‐ 7 μενον 8

mvp-comment-2-2 Athena's words are illustrated by the action of Odysseus against Palamedes (Xen. Mem. 4. 2. 33),—by his capture of Helenus ( Ph. 606),—his designs on Philoctetes,—his theft of the Palladium ( Ov. Met. 13. 99 ),—and his nocturnal expedition with Diomedes ( Il. 10).

mvp-comment-3-1 σκηναῖς … ναυτικαῖς 9

mvp-comment-3-2 The Homeric

κλισία
was a wooden hut ( Il. 24. 448 ff.). By
σκηνή
, an Athenian in the poet's day would usually understand a tent of skins, such as was commonly used by soldiers (Xen. An. 1. 5. 10).

mvp-comment-4-1 τάξιν ἐσχάτην 10

mvp-comment-5-1 κυνηγετοῦντα 11

mvp-comment-5-2 μετρούμενον 12

mvp-comment-6-1 νεοχάρακτα 13

mvp-comment-7-1 εἴτ’ ἔνδον εἴτ’ οὐκ ἔνδον 14

mvp-comment-7-2 ἐκφέρει 15

mvp-comment-8-1 κυνὸς Λακαίνης 16

mvp-comment-8-2 The use of the feminine gender by Sophocles here may be illustrated by Aristotle's remark,—

αἱ Λάκαιναι κύνες αἱ θήλειαι εὐφυέστεραι τῶν ἀρρένων εἰσίν
,— i.e., ‘of a finer intelligence’ ( ib. p. 608 a 27).—Cp. Shakesp. Midsummer-Night's Dream 4. 1. 124 , where Theseus says,
My hounds are bred out of the Spartan kind | ... A cry more tuneable | Was never holla'd to, nor cheer'd with horn, | In Crete, in Sparta, nor in Thessaly.

mvp-comment-8-3 εὔρινος 17

mvp-comment-9-1 τυγχάνει 18

mvp-comment-10-1 στάζων ἱδρῶτι 19

mvp-comment-11-1 παπταίνειν 20 εἴσω 21

mvp-comment-12-1 ἔργον 22

mvp-comment-12-2 ἐννέπειν δ’ 23

mvp-comment-12-3 ὅτου χάριν 24

mvp-comment-13-1 σπουδὴν ἔθου τήνδ’ 25

mvp-comment-14-1 ὦ φθέγμ’ Ἀθάνας 26

mvp-comment-14-2 φιλτάτης ἐμοὶ θεῶν 27

mvp-comment-15-1 κἂν ἄποπτος ᾖς ὅμως 28

mvp-comment-15-2 When Ajax comes forth, he, indeed, appears to see her (v. 91,

ὦ χαῖρ’ Ἀθάνα, κ.τ.λ.
); while to Tecmessa she is invisible (301). But this, again, would not be inconsistent with Greek belief. In Il. 22. 277 Athena restores the spear to Achilles, yet is unseen by Hector. In Il. 1. 198 she appears to Achilles, but the others see her not.

mvp-comment-15-3 For

ἄποπτος
as=‘ out of sight,’ cp. El. 1488 (of Aegisthus)
πρόθες | ἄποπτον ἡμῶν
: Dionys. Hal. 2. 54
ἐν ἀπόπτῳ τίθενται τὸν χάρακα
(‘in a place out of sight’). It may be added that we might suppose Athena to be invisible to Odysseus now, without necessarily excluding the idea that she becomes visible to him at a later moment in the dialogue. Thus in Eur. Hipp. 1391 the presence of Artemis is known to Hippolytus only by a divine fragrance, though to the spectators she is doubtless visible; but a little later he beholds her (1440).—See Appendix.

mvp-comment-16-1 ξυναρπάζω φρενί 29

mvp-comment-17-1 κώδωνος … Τυρσηνικῆς 30

mvp-comment-17-2 As to the gender of

κώδων
, De Sens. 6 p. 446 b 22 has
τῆς κώδωνος
(bell). In Ar. Pax 1078 the words
χἡ κώδων ἀκαλανθίς
are said to mean a kind of hound. But
κώδων
(bell) is masc. with Thuc. , Strabo, Plutarch, Diodorus and Lucian.

mvp-comment-18-1 ἐπέγνως 31 εὖ 32

mvp-comment-19-1 βάσιν κυκλοῦντ’ 33

mvp-comment-19-2 τῷ σακεσφόρῳ 34

mvp-comment-20-1 ἄσκοπον 35

mvp-comment-20-2 ἔχει περάνας 36

mvp-comment-20-3 εἴργασται 37

mvp-comment-21-1 τρανές 38

mvp-comment-21-2 ἀλώμεθα 39

mvp-comment-22-1 )θελοντής 40

mvp-comment-22-2 ὑπεζύγην 41

mvp-comment-23-1 κατηναρισμένας 42

mvp-comment-23-2 ἐκ χειρὸς 43

mvp-comment-23-3 αὐτοῖς ποιμνίων ἐπιστάταις 44

mvp-comment-23-4 ἐπιστάταις 45

mvp-comment-24-1 πᾶς τις 46

mvp-comment-24-2 νέμει 47 τρέπει 48

mvp-comment-25-1 τις 49

mvp-comment-25-2 ὀπτὴρ 50

mvp-comment-26-1 πεδία 51

mvp-comment-26-2 νεορράντῳ 52 πηδῶντα 53

mvp-comment-27-1 φράζει τε κἀδήλωσεν 54

mvp-comment-28-1 κατ’ ἴχνος 55

mvp-comment-28-2 σημαίνομαι 56

mvp-comment-29-1 τὰ δ’ ἐκπέπληγμαι 57

mvp-comment-29-2 ὅτου 58 ὅπου 59

mvp-comment-30-1 καιρὸν 60

mvp-comment-30-2 τά τ’ οὖν 61

mvp-comment-31-1 ἔβην … εἰς ὁδόν 62

mvp-comment-31-2 κυναγίᾳ 63

mvp-comment-32-1 ἦ καί 65

mvp-comment-32-2 πρὸς καιρὸν 66

mvp-comment-33-1 ὡς 67 σοι 68

mvp-comment-34-1 πρὸς τί 69

mvp-comment-34-2 ᾖξεν 70

mvp-comment-34-3 δυσλόγιστον 71 δυσλόγιστον 72 τί 73

mvp-comment-35-1 βαρυνθεὶς 74

mvp-comment-35-2 ὅπλων 75 Ἀχιλλείων 76

mvp-comment-36-1 τί δῆτα 77

mvp-comment-36-2 ἐπεμπίπτει 78 τήνδε … βάσιν 79

mvp-comment-37-1 ἐν ὑμῖν 80

mvp-comment-38-1 ἦ καὶ 81

mvp-comment-38-2 ὡς ἐπ’ Ἀργείοις 82

mvp-comment-39-1 κἂν ἐξεπράξατ’ 83

mvp-comment-40-1 ποίαισι 84 ταῖσδε 85 ποίαισι 86

mvp-comment-41-1 νύκτωρ 87

mvp-comment-42-1 ἦ καὶ 88

mvp-comment-42-2 παρέστη 89

mvp-comment-43-1 καὶ δὴ 90 δισσαῖς … στρατηγίσιν πύλαις 91

mvp-comment-44-1 καὶ πῶς 92 ἐπέσχε 93 φόνου 94 μαιμῶσαν 95

mvp-comment-45-1 ἐγώ 96

mvp-comment-45-2 δυσφόρους 97

mvp-comment-46-1 γνώμας 98 λήμας 99

mvp-comment-46-2 Join τῆς ἀνηκέστου χαρᾶς 100 γνώμας 101

mvp-comment-46-3 Others take the gen. as depending on ἀπείργω 102 βαλοῦσα 103

mvp-comment-47-1 πρός τε ποίμνας 104

mvp-comment-47-2 σύμμικτά τε … φρουρήματα 105 λείας 106 βουκόλων 107

mvp-comment-48-1 ἄδαστα 108 ἄδαστα 109

mvp-comment-49-1 ἔκειρε … φόνον 110

mvp-comment-49-2 πολύκερων φόνον 111

mvp-comment-50-1 ῥαχίζων 112

mvp-comment-50-2 κἀδόκει μὲν 113

mvp-comment-51-1 φοιτῶντ’ 114

mvp-comment-52-1 ὤτρυνον, εἰσέβαλλον 115

mvp-comment-52-2 εἰς ἕρκη κακά 116

mvp-comment-53-1 κἄπειτ’ ἐπειδὴ 117

mvp-comment-53-2 ἐλώφησεν 118

mvp-comment-53-3 πόνου 119

mvp-comment-54-1 αὖ 120

mvp-comment-55-1 ἄνδρας 121

mvp-comment-55-2 εὔκερων 122

mvp-comment-56-1 καὶ σοὶ 123

mvp-comment-56-2 δείξω … περιφανῆ 124

mvp-comment-56-3 θροῇς 125

mvp-comment-57-1 μηδὲ συμφορὰν δέχου τὸν ἄνδρα 126 δέχου 127

mvp-comment-57-2 ἀποστρόφους 128 ἀπείρξω … εἰ<*>ιδεῖν 129

mvp-comment-57-3 These three verses have been rejected (cr. n.), on the ground that, after this promise from Athena, Odysseus had no cause to feel the alarm which he shows in vv. 74 ff., or to ask the question (v. 84) which elicits a renewal of that promise (85). But the poet wished to render the preparation for the hero's entrance as impressive as possible; and chose, therefore, to represent Odysseus—a brave man—as still uneasy, until the assurance given to him had been repeated in a yet more explicit and emphatic form.

mvp-comment-58-1 οὗτος 130

mvp-comment-58-2 σὲ τὸν 131

mvp-comment-58-3 αἰχμαλωτίδας 132

mvp-comment-58-4 ἀπευθύνοντα 133

mvp-comment-58-5 Cp. Eur. Andr. 719

ὧδ’, ὦ κάκιστε, τῆσδ’ ἐλυμήνω χέρας; | βοῦν ἢ λέοντ’ ἤλπιζες ἐντείνειν βρόχοις;
(‘strain with cords’). Ajax fancies himself to be tying the hands of human prisoners behind them, when he fastens the fore feet of an ox or sheep to its hind feet. Cp. 299 .

mvp-comment-59-1 τί δρᾷς 134

mvp-comment-59-2 μηδαμῶς σφ’ ἔξω κάλει 135

mvp-comment-60-1 οὐ σῖγ’ ἀνέξει μηδὲ δειλίαν ἀρεῖ 136

mvp-comment-60-2 σῖγ’ ἀνέξει 137

mvp-comment-60-3 δειλίαν ἀρεῖ 138 ἀρεῖς 139 α^ 140

mvp-comment-61-1 ἔνδον ἀρκείτω μένων 141

mvp-comment-62-1 τί μὴ γένηται 142

mvp-comment-62-2 ἀνὴρ 143

mvp-comment-63-1 ἐχθρός γε 144

mvp-comment-64-1 οὔκουν γέλως ἥδιστος 145

mvp-comment-65-1 ἐμοὶ μὲν 146

mvp-comment-66-1 φρονοῦντα γὰρ 147

mvp-comment-66-2 ἐξέστην 148

mvp-comment-67-1 οὐδὲ νῦν 149

mvp-comment-68-1 ὀφθαλμοῖς … τοῖς αὐτοῖς 150

mvp-comment-69-1 δεδορκότα 151

mvp-comment-70-1 γένοιτο 152

mvp-comment-70-2 μέντἂν 153

mvp-comment-70-3 θεοῦ 154

mvp-comment-71-1 μένοιμ’ ἄν 155

mvp-comment-71-2 ἤθελον δ’ ἂν 156

mvp-comment-71-3 ἐκτὸς ὢν τυχεῖν 157

mvp-comment-72-1 οὗτος 158

mvp-comment-72-2 Αἴας 159

mvp-comment-72-3 τῆς συμμάχου 160

mvp-comment-73-1 Ajax enters from the tent, carrying the heavy, blood-stained thong, with which he has been scourging the cattle (241 f.). Hence the title

μαστιγοφόρος
(see Argument to the Play).

mvp-comment-73-2 Διογενὲς τέκνον 161

mvp-comment-74-1 παρέστης 162

mvp-comment-74-2 στέψω 163

mvp-comment-74-3 λαφύροις 164 παγχρύσοις 165

mvp-comment-75-1 ἐκεῖνο 166

mvp-comment-75-2 ἔγχος 167

mvp-comment-75-3 εὖ 168 πρὸς Ἀργείων στρατῷ 169

mvp-comment-76-1 τὸ μή 170

mvp-comment-77-1 ᾔχμασας χέρα 171 πρὸς 172 ᾕμαξας 173

mvp-comment-78-1 ὥστ’ 174

mvp-comment-78-2 Αἴαντ’ 175

mvp-comment-79-1 τὸ σὸν 176

mvp-comment-80-1 θανόντες … ἀφαιρείσθων 177

mvp-comment-80-2 τἄμ’ 178

mvp-comment-81-1 εἶεν 179

mvp-comment-81-2 τί γὰρ δὴ 180

mvp-comment-81-3 ποῦ σοι τύχης ἕστηκεν 181

mvp-comment-81-4 σοι 182

mvp-comment-82-1 τοὐπίτριπτον 183 κίναδος 184

mvp-comment-82-2 ἐξήρου μ’ ὅπου 185

mvp-comment-83-1 ἔγωγ’ 186

mvp-comment-83-2 Ὀδυσσέα 187

mvp-comment-83-3 ἐνστάτην 188

mvp-comment-84-1 ἥδιστος 189

mvp-comment-85-1 κίον’ ἑρκείου στέγης 190 κίον’ 191

mvp-comment-85-2 δεθεὶς πρὸς κίον’ 192

mvp-comment-85-3

δεῖν πρὸς κίονα
(properly, ‘to take and bind to a pillar’), not πρὸς κίονι 193

mvp-comment-86-1 ἐργάσει 194 ἐργάσῃ 195

mvp-comment-87-1 πρὶν ἂν … φοινιχθεὶς θάνῃ 196

mvp-comment-87-2 φοινιχθεὶς 197

mvp-comment-88-1 αἰκίσῃ 198

mvp-comment-89-1 χαίρειν … σ’ ἐφίεμαι 199

mvp-comment-89-2 χαίρειν … τἄλλα 200

mvp-comment-90-1 σὺ σ’ οὖν 201

mvp-comment-90-2 τέρψις ἥδε σοι τὸ δρᾶν 202

mvp-comment-90-3 χρῶ χειρί, φείδου 203

mvp-comment-90-4 μηδὲν 204 ὧν 205

mvp-comment-91-1 τοῦτο σοὶ δ’ ἐφίεμαι 206

mvp-comment-92-1 ὁρᾷς 207 τὴν … ἰσχὺν ὅση 208

mvp-comment-92-2 τὴν θεῶν ἰσχὺν 209

mvp-comment-93-1 τίς ἂν ηὑρέθη 210

mvp-comment-93-2 προνούστερος 211

mvp-comment-93-3 δρᾶν … τὰ καίρια 212

mvp-comment-94-1 ἐγὼ μὲν 213 καίπερ 214

mvp-comment-95-1 ἄτῃ συγκατέζευκται 215

mvp-comment-96-1 οὐδὲν τὸ τούτου 216

mvp-comment-97-1 εἴδωλ’ … σκιάν 217

mvp-comment-98-1 αὐτὸς 218

mvp-comment-99-1 ὄγκον 219

mvp-comment-99-2 ἄρῃ 220 α^ 221 ἄρῃς 222

mvp-comment-100-1 βρίθεις 223

mvp-comment-100-2 μακροῦ 224

mvp-comment-100-3 πλούτου βάθει 225 βάρει 226

mvp-comment-101-1 ἡμέρα 227

mvp-comment-101-2 κλίνει 228

mvp-comment-101-3 κἀνάγει 229

mvp-comment-102-1 κακούς 230

mvp-comment-103-1 Τελαμώνιε παῖ 231

mvp-comment-103-2 Σαλαμῖνος 232 βάθρον 233

mvp-comment-103-3 τῆς ἀμφιρύτου Σαλαμῖνος … ἀγχιάλου 234 τῆς ἀμφιρύτου 235 ἀγχιάλου 236

mvp-comment-103-4

ἀγχίαλος
was properly said of a place on the sea-coast ( Il. 2. 640
Χαλκίδα τ’ ἀγχίαλον
). In Aesch. Pers. 888 it is a mere general epithet for islands (Lemnos, Icaros, etc.). Here, in the Athenian poet's mind, it has its proper sense, for he is thinking of Salamis as a fringe of the Attic coast; and it is again the Athenian's point of view which interprets the true relation of
ἀγχιάλου
to
ἀμφιρύτου
.

mvp-comment-103-5 ἔχων 237

mvp-comment-104-1 σὲ μὲν εὖ πράσσοντ’ ἐπιχαίρω 238

mvp-comment-105-1 πληγὴ Διὸς 239

mvp-comment-105-2 ζαμενὴς 240

mvp-comment-105-3 λόγος … κακόθρους 241

mvp-comment-105-4 ἐπιβῇ 242

mvp-comment-106-1 πεφόβημαι 243

mvp-comment-106-2 πτηνῆς 244

mvp-comment-106-3 ὄμμα πελείας 245

mvp-comment-107-1 τῆς νῦν φθιμένης νυκτὸς 246

mvp-comment-107-2 ἐπὶ δυσκλείᾳ 247

mvp-comment-108-1 τὸν ἱππομανῆ λειμῶν’ 248

mvp-comment-109-1 βοτὰ καὶ λείαν 249 λοιπὴ 250

mvp-comment-109-2 αἴθωνι σιδήρῳ 251

mvp-comment-110-1 ψιθύρους 252

mvp-comment-110-2 πᾶσιν Ὀδυσσείς 253

mvp-comment-111-1 εὔπειστα 254 εὔπειστα 255 εὔπιστα 256

mvp-comment-112-1 τοῦ λέξαντος 257

mvp-comment-113-1 ἄχεσιν καθυβρίζων 258

mvp-comment-114-1 τῶν … μεγάλων ψυχῶν 259

mvp-comment-114-2 ἱεὶς 260

mvp-comment-114-3 ἁμάρτοις 261 ἁμάρτοι 262

mvp-comment-114-4 κατὰ δ’ ἄν τις ἐμοῦ 263

mvp-comment-115-1 τὸν ἔχονθ’ 264

mvp-comment-115-2 ὁ φθόνος 265

mvp-comment-116-1 πύργου ῥῦμα 266

mvp-comment-117-1 μετὰ 267 ὑπό 268

mvp-comment-117-2 ὀρθοῖθ’ 269

mvp-comment-118-1 τούτων γνώμας 270 προδιδάσκειν 271

mvp-comment-119-1 τοιούτων 272

mvp-comment-119-2 ἀπαλέξασθαι 273

mvp-comment-120-1 ἀλλ’ ὅτε γὰρ δὴ … πτήξειαν ἄφωνοι 274 δ’ 275

mvp-comment-120-2 (1) ἀλλὰ 276

mvp-comment-120-3 (2) ἀλλὰ … γὰρ 277

mvp-comment-120-4 (3) The reading μέγαν αἰγυπιὸν δ’ ὑποδείσαντες 278 ἀπέδραν 279

mvp-comment-120-5 (4) This reading is confirmed by the fact that since ὑποδείσαντες 280

mvp-comment-120-6 ὅτε … δὴ 281

mvp-comment-120-7 ἀπέδραν 282

mvp-comment-120-8 αἰγυπιὸν 283

mvp-comment-120-9 τάχ’ ἂν 284 ἐξαίφνης 285 πτήξειαν 286

mvp-comment-120-10 σιγῇ πτήξειαν ἄφωνοι 287

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

1-3. mvp-comment-1-1

Athena's eye is ever on Odysseus, and she is now come from Olympus to succour him. Infra l. 36.
ἀεὶ μὲν ... καὶ νῦν] The structure is paratactic; i.e. 'As I have ever seen thee... so now I see thee...' Essay on Language, § 36. p. 68.

2. mvp-comment-2-1 (1) 'In quest to snatch some exploit on a foe,' i.e. seeking to effect some surprise against a foe. Or, (2) 'Seeking to foil (or detect) some enemy's attempt.' The latter (2) is simpler, and πεῖρα is used of the attempt of Ajax, infr. 290, 1057; but the former (1) is on the whole more probable. For Athena does not profess to know the circumstances until l. 36. She asks for information, and only assumes, what is evident, that Odysseus is engaged in some hostile adventure. This aspect of his character appears in the tenth Iliad. Cp. infr. 18, ἐπέγνως εὖ μ᾿ ἐπ᾿ ἀνδρὶ δυσμενεῖ | βάσιν κυκλοῦντ᾽. ἁρπάσαι is to seize, i. e. 'to effect suddenly.' θηρώμενον introduces the image of the huntsman continued in l. 5, and combined with that of the hound in ll. 7, 8. ἁρπάσαι θηρώμενον is substituted for πειρώμενον, so as to convey the notion of surprise. ἁρπάσαι is an epexegetic infinitive, after which the accusative πεῖραν is to be resumed. The meaning of ἁρπάσαι in (2) supr. viz. 'to arrest' is less natural than that given in (1).

3. mvp-comment-3-1 σκηναῖς] The κλισίαι of the Homeric hero. Cp. infr. 192-3.

4. mvp-comment-4-1 ἔνθα. ἔχει] Il. 11. 7, 8; Eur. I. A. 292. This position of Ajax' tent enables him the more easily to steal forth unobserved at last, infr. 690 ff.

5. mvp-comment-5-1 κυνηγετοῦντα, which has no object, resumes θηρώμενον. μετρούμενον] 'Scanning attentively.' The middle voice marks the mental nature of the act; not measuring with a line, but scanning with the eye.

6. mvp-comment-6-1 νεοχάραχθ'] Ajax has but recently returned, dragging the cattle with him, infr. 296. Odysseus has tracked him so far, but the confused struggle at the tent-door has made it uncertain whether he is not gone forth again.

7-8. mvp-comment-7-1 εὖ δέ σ᾽ ἐκφέρει, κ.τ.λ.] Odysseus is like a huntsman who is led to the right point by the scent of a keen Spartan hound. The dog is introduced to complete the image. Cp. infr. 19, 32. Is εὔρινος (1) nom. or (2) gen.? εὔρις occurs in Aesch. Ag. 1093, and the authorities for εὔρινος are late. But the sentence is more balanced if the epithet is taken by hypallage with βάσις, and the abstract noun is somewhat abrupt by itself. Cp. the forms εὔτριχος, εὔθριξ· εὔζυγος, εὔζυξ.

10. mvp-comment-8-1 With χέρας supply not merely ἱδρῶτι, but some word such as φόνῳ or αἵματι, to be gathered from ξιφοκτόνους.

11. mvp-comment-9-1 εἴσω.. παπταίνειν] 'To strain thine eyes to look within.' παπταίνειν is to gaze anxiously or wistfully. οὐδὲν ἔργον with the inf. recurs infr. 852.

13. mvp-comment-10-1 σπουδὴν ἔθου τήνδ'] 'You are thus busily engaged.' Cp. O. T. 134, τήνδ᾽ ἔθεσθ᾽ ἐπιστροφήν.

14-15. mvp-comment-11-1 Odysseus has but a dim and distant vision of the goddess, though her voice is clearly heard by him. She is his special patron. Phil. 134, Νίκη τ' ᾿Αθάνα πολιάς, ἢ σώζει μ' ἀεί. He reflects how intimately familiar to him is the voice, which from such a distance thrills him as with a trumpet call.

15. mvp-comment-12-1 ὡς εὐμαθές σου, κ.τ.λ.] 'How clearly discernible is thy sound unto my ear.' Shak. Mids. N. D. 3. 2, 'Mine ear, I thank it, brought me to thy sound.' For the transition from the voice to the person, cp. O. C. 324, 5, ὦ δισσὰ πατρὸς καὶ κασιγνήτης ἐμοὶ | ἥδιστα προσφωνήμαθ', ὡς ὑμᾶς, κ.τ.λ.

16. mvp-comment-13-1 The present tense in ἀκούω.. ξυναρπάζω is general, not 'now,' but 'always,' hence the contingent supposition κἂν ..ᾖς, and the words καὶ νῦν in l. 18.

18. mvp-comment-14-1 ἐπέγνως εὖ μ'] 'You rightly apprehend that I-.' For ἐπέγνων in the sense of detecting or discovering, cp. Aesch. Ag. 1598 ἔργον οὐ καταίσιον: Thuc. 1. 132, § 5, ἵνα, ἦν ἐπιγνοὺς .. μεταγράψαι αἰτήσῃ, μὴ ἐπιγνῷ. ἐπί] 'With a design upon.' Cp. Eur. Hipp. 32, Ἱππολύτῳ δ᾽ ἔπι | .. ὠνόμαζεν ἱδρῦσθαι θεάν.

19. mvp-comment-15-1 βάσιν κυκλοῦντ'] 'Ranging to and fro,' like a questing hound. Cp. infr. 20, ἰχνεύω. In Ant. 226, κυκλῶν ἐμαυτόν is 'often turning round.'

21. mvp-comment-16-1 πρᾶγος ἄσκοπον] 'An amazing deed:' i.e. not only mysterious, but of inconceivable enormity. See E. on L. § 51. p. 96, and cp. El. 864, ἄσκοπος ὁ λώβα.

23. mvp-comment-17-1 ἀλώμεθα] 'We are bewildered.' Cp. the use of πλανᾶσθαι in Plato, Soph. 230 Β, ἅτε πλανωμένων τὰς δόξας ῥᾳδίως ἐξετάζουσιν: Hdt. 6. 37, πλανωμένων.. ἐν τοῖσι λόγοισι, τὸ θέλει τὸ ἔπος εἶναι.

25. mvp-comment-18-1 εὑρίσκομεν] A vivid present, like φράζει, infr. 31.

27. mvp-comment-19-1 ἐκ χειρός] 'By hand of man,'— not by wild beasts, or lightning, or other visitation of heaven. αὐτοῖς ποιμνίων ἐπιστάταις] 'Together with the guardians of the flock.' The death of the shepherds is again referred to, infr. 232. 360, and was a necessary incident of the slaughter. Cp. Il. 18. 529, of the ambush attacking the herd, κτεῖνον δ᾽ ἐπὶ μηλοβοτῆρας. And for the expression, cp. Plat. Legg. 10. 906 A, ἢ γεωργοῖς περὶ φυτῶν γένεσιν .. ἢ καὶ ποιμνίων ἐπιστάταις. Some have wrongly explained the words of the shepherd dogs, which are mentioned by Tecmessa, infr. 297, but are not likely to occur to Odysseus. The well-known idiom, αὐτοῖς ἀνδράσι, etc., seems to arise out of the dative of concomitant circumstances. See E. on L. § 11. p. 18c, and cp. O. T. 25, φθίνουσα .. κάλυξιν.

28. mvp-comment-20-1 τήνδ᾽.. αἰτίαν] 'This blame,' i.e. the blame of this deed. νέμει has weaker MS. authority than τρέπει, which is, however, too physical a word in this connection, even though the dative ἐκείνῳ for εἰς ἐκεῖνον οἱ ἐπ᾿ ἐκείνῳ ( cp. infr. 772), might be defended. νέμειν is a favourite word with Sophocles. τρέπει is due to a gloss. See Scholia.

29. mvp-comment-21-1 τις ὀπτήρ] 'A scout,' viz. one of the look-out men of the host, who naturally brings his information to Odysseus as the centre of intelligence. Cp. infr. 379, Phil. 1013.

30. mvp-comment-22-1 πηδῶντα πεδία] 'Bounding along the plain.' Accus. of the sphere of motion. E. on L. § 16. p. 23 c.

31. mvp-comment-23-1 φράζει τε κἀδήλωσεν] 'Gives intimation' (of the fact) 'and pointed out' (the direction).

32. mvp-comment-24-1 κατ᾽ ἴχνος ἄσσω] 'Dart upon the track' (thus shown). καὶ τὰ μὲν σημαίνομαι] 'And some indication I find.' The word is used of dogs in hunting; Opp. Cyn. 1. 454, μυξωτῆρσι.. σημήναντο.

33. mvp-comment-25-1 κοὐκ ἔχω μαθεῖν ὅπου] 'And cannot tell where he is,' i.e. (1) εἴτ᾿ ἔνδον εἴτ᾿ οὐκ ἔνδον (l. 7, supr.), 'whether he is in the tent or no.' Or (2) more generally (sc. ὁ αἴτιος), 'where is the object of my search?' i.e. whether in following Ajax I am really on the right track. Odysseus is describing his per-

33. mvp-comment-25-2 plexity before the coming of Athena, and in these words simply confesses that he is at fault. He is speaking of his own past impressions, and here and supr. 1. 23 does not at once realize what he has been told by Athena in ll. 7-10. As in O. T. 359, Trach. 184, the imperfect or gradual recognition of what has been said adds to the dramatic effect. Another reading is κοὐκ ἔχω μαθεῖν ὅτου, in which ὅτου, sc. τὸ πρᾶγμά ἐστι, also gives a fair sense, but is not, like οὐκ ἔχω μαθεῖν ὅπου, an idiom of Greek tragedy. Others supply τὰ ἴχνη at once with ὅτου and with τὰ μὲν .. τὰ δέ. But the reference of the articles in this context can hardly be so precise as to be equivalent to τὰ μὲν τῶν ἰχνῶν, κ.τ.λ., nor would ἐκπέπληγμαι be used in such a connection. The Scholia show that ὅπου was read, and that its interpretation was thought doubtful.

34. mvp-comment-26-1 καιρὸν = ἐς καιρόν] Cp. infr. 1316, 1168; or possibly an adverbial accusative, cp. Pind. Pyth. 1. 156, καιρὸν εἰ φθέγξαιο. Sο καιρῷ = ἐν καιρῷ, O. T. 1516.

34-35. mvp-comment-27-1 τὰ τ᾿ οὖν πάρος, κ.τ.λ.] 'My whole course whether past or to come is guided by thy will.' οὖν, as in in εἴτ᾽ οὖν, emphasizes the comprehensiveness of the expression. κυβερνῶμαι is passive, and πάντα adv. accus. Or (2) κυβερνῶμαι may be middle, 'I guide (i.e. suffer to be guided) all my actions by thy hand.' In this way of taking the words the force of the middle voice of κυβερνῶμαι is unusual, but that of the instrumental dative is more regular.

36. mvp-comment-28-1 ἔγνων refers not to 34, 5, but to the preceding lines.

36-37. mvp-comment-29-1 φύλαξ ἔβην, κ.τ.λ.] The order ἰς ἔβην εἰς ὁδὸν πρόθυμος φύλαξ τῇ σῇ κυναγίᾳ, ' I came upon my path as a zealous guardian for thy chase.' E. on L. § 12. p. 19.

38. mvp-comment-30-1 ἡ καί] ‘And is my endeavour really well-directed?' ἡ asks the question with eager interest.

39. mvp-comment-31-1 ὡς ἔστιν ἀνδρός, κ.τ.λ.] Sc. οὕτω νόει. σοι] Cp. Ant. 37, οὕτως ἔχει σοι ταῦτα. Ε. on L. § 13. p. 19 e.

40. mvp-comment-32-1 'With what intent did he break forth in this ill-judged violence?' For the epithet, cp. infr. 230, παραπλήκτῳ χερί. It is unnecessary to suppose that άΐσσω is transitive here. Cp. the construction of 1. 42.

41. mvp-comment-33-1 'Incensed with wrath because of the arms of Achilles.' A word on this subject is enough for Odysseus, to whom the arms had been adjudged. He understands at once that harm had been intended to himself and the generals.

42. mvp-comment-34-1 'But why, then, this raid upon the flock? The construction of ὅπλων, as genitive of the reason after βαρυνθείς, is assisted by the substantive χόλῳ preceding.

44. mvp-comment-35-1 'And was this blow, then, really aimed against the Argives?'

45. mvp-comment-36-1 κἂν ἐξεπράξατ'] 'He would actually have accomplished his design.' The middle voice is preferable as the harder reading, and signifies that the plan and execution would have been alike Ajax' own.

46. mvp-comment-37-1 'What bold attempt inspired by recklessness do your words imply ( ταῖσδε)?'

47. mvp-comment-38-1 δόλιος] i.e. ἐπὶ δόλῳ, 'With crafty intent.' E. on L. §23. p. 39.

48. mvp-comment-39-1 παρέστη] Sc. ἡμῖν.

49. mvp-comment-40-1 καὶ δή] ‘ Actually.’

50. mvp-comment-41-1 Join ἐπέσχε φόνου. μαιμῶσαν is more expressive than the v. τ. διψῶσαν, which is probably meant to be construed with φόνου. For πῶς, 'How came it that-?' cp. O. T. 1177, πῶς δῆτ᾿ ἀφῆκας;

51. mvp-comment-42-1 ἀπείργω] The vivid present (see v. rr.) is preferable to the aorist, as the less obvious reading. Join ἀπείργω with χαρᾶς, which is added in further explanation. δυσφόρους γνώμας] ‘Overpowering fancies.' δύσφορος has been supposed to be here equivalent το παράφορος, 'false,' or 'misleading;' but this, (though a possible association of the word) is unnecessary. The natural meaning of 'grievous,' 'intolerable,' is slightly modified by the association of 'hard to resist,' or 'bear up against.' Ajax could not withstand the fatal illusion.

52. mvp-comment-43-1 τῆς ἀνηκέστου χαρᾶς] ‘From his fatal pleasure.' The harm once done would have been irrevocable. For χαpâς, cp. infr. 114, ἐπειδὴ τέρψις ἥδε σοι τὸ δρᾶν.

53-54. mvp-comment-44-1 πρός τε ποίμνας.. φρουρήματα] 'I turned him off upon the flocks, and the mixed charge of the herdsmen that was not yet divided from the spoil,' i. e. simply the sheep and oxen. Schndw. distinguishes between the sheep, which he assumes to have been kept in common to be slaughtered as food, and the oxen, which were gradually distributed as booty. That no such exact definition is intended here is proved by supr. 25-7, λείας ἁπάσας .. αὐτοῖς ποιμνίων ἐπιστάταις. The words λείας ἄδαστα are added, to show that the act of Ajax would provoke the whole army to be enraged against him with one consent. Cp. infr. 145-6, 408-9.

55. mvp-comment-45-1 ἔκειρε is imperfect. The syllable κειρ is echoed in πολύκερων. The cognate accusative and hypallage together cannot be literally rendered in English. 'He made bloody havoc with the horned multitude, felling them on all sides of him.'

57. mvp-comment-46-1 ἔχων] ‘Having them in his power.' μέν (l. 56) with δέ in l. 59, contrasts the belief of Ajax with the reality described in 59, 60. Or, possibly (2) μέν points forward to a dé which is lost in l. 58, 1.ε. ἐστὶ μὲν .. ἐστὶ δὲ .. Cp. Ant. 165-7, τοῦτο μὲν .. τοῦτ᾽ αὖθις.

58. mvp-comment-47-1 i.e. ἔσθ' ὅτε ἐδόκει κτείνειν ἄλλους τῶν στρατηλατῶν, ἄλλοτε ἄλλον, ('somebody else, now one and now another,') ἐμπίτνων, sc. τῇ ἀγέλῃ.

59-60. mvp-comment-48-1 (1) And as the man ranged to and fro, I urged him with maddening frenzy, and drave him into the evil net;' or (2), construing μανιάσιν νόσοις with φοιτώντα, ‘As he bounded to and fro in frenzy, I urged and drave him,' etc. In the latter case the expression is proleptic. The Scholion οι ἕρκη, εἰς ἐρινῦν κακήν, perhaps conceals a v. r. eἰς ἄρκυν κακήν. But cp. Od. 21. 238, 384, ἀνδρῶν ἡμετέροισιν ἐν ἕρκεσι.

61. mvp-comment-49-1 'And then, when he had remission of this toil.' πόνου, the more general word, is better than φόνου, which is tautological. πόνου in connection with the preceding words, implies that the vain task was imposed on Ajax by the will of Athena.

63. mvp-comment-50-1 ποίμνας τε πάσας] When the chief of the flock were bound and dragged away, the rest would follow. Cp. infr. 296.

64. mvp-comment-51-1 εὔκερων] This epithet applies to the sheep as well as to the kine.

65. mvp-comment-52-1 συνδέτους is rather 'tied together' than bound hand and foot.'

66. mvp-comment-53-1 (1) 'Come, I will show thee this affliction in full sight.' περιφανή predicative. Or (2), taking the word attributively, 'this signal frenzy.' Cp. infr. 81 and note, infr. 229.

67. mvp-comment-54-1 ὡς .. θροῇς]· That you may noise it abroad.' Cp. infr. 149, εἰς ὦτα φέρει πᾶσιν Ὀδυσσεύς.

68. mvp-comment-55-1 συμφορὰν δέχου τὸν ἄνδρα] 'Look for his coming as a misfortune:' sc. ὡς συμφοράν. Cp. Ο. C. 142, μή μ', ἱκετεύω, προσίδητ᾽ ἄνομον. And see E. on L. § 39. p. 73.

69-70. mvp-comment-56-1 ὀμμάτων .. εἰσιδεῖν] I will divert the effluence of his eyes, and debar them from the sight of you.' ἀποστρόφους is predicative: i.e. ἀποστρέφουσα αὐτάς. On the ancient theory of vision and its effect on language, see E. on L. $ 54. p. 99. μή is omitted after εἴργω, as after κωλύω: i.e. τὸ μὴ εἰσιδεῖν νιν σὴν πρόσοψιν, ‘I will turn away the light of his eyes, so that your form shall be invisible to him.' Cp. Phil. 1407, εἴρξω πελάζειν.

71. mvp-comment-57-1 Athena faces the tent and raises her voice.

72. mvp-comment-58-1 ἀπευθύνοντα has been taken literally, 'to bind straight or fast.' But although the image of a constrained position is suggested by the word, it retains its more general meaning of 'reducing to order or subjection,' as in Eur. Bacch. 884-6, ἀπευθύνει δὲ βροτῶν | τοὺς τ᾿ ἀγνωμοσύναν τιμῶντας καὶ μὴ τὰ θεῶν | αὔξοντας ξὺν μαινομένᾳ δόξα.

74. mvp-comment-59-1 σφ', although omitted by L, is probably genuine.

75. mvp-comment-60-1 μηδὲ δειλίαν ἀρεῖς] ‘And not give way to cowardice.' See E. on L. § 30. p. 52 d. ἀρεῖ, which Schndw. and Dindorf prefer, would mean, 'Do not bring upon yourself the imputation of cowardice,' a less appropriate expression.

76. mvp-comment-61-1 ἔνδον ἀρκείτω μένων] 'Enough that he is there, but let him not come forth.' E. on L. § 36. p. 63 а.

77. mvp-comment-62-1 'For fear of what? Is he now for the first time a man?' Athena ironically rallies Odysseus on his fear of seeing the madman. As Odysseus presently finds, Ajax in his madness is to be pitied, not to be feared. For the emphatic ἀνήρ, cp. Ο. C. 393, ὅτ' οὐκέτ᾽ εἰμί, τηνικαῦτ᾽ ἄρ᾽ εἴμ᾿ ἀνήρ ; Others take the words to mean, 'Up to this time was he not a (mortal) man?' in which is implied the thought, 'Is he more than a man now?' In either case the general meaning is, 'You used not to be afraid of him; why should you be so now?'

79. mvp-comment-63-1 γελᾶν] The epexegetic infinitive follows the adjective ἥδιστος, and εἰς ἐχθρούς is to be taken both with γέλως and γελάν. 'Is not laughter pleasantest at foes?'

81. mvp-comment-64-1 περιφανώς may be taken either with (1) μεμηνότα, or (2) with ἰδεῖν. Other uses of περιφανῶς are in favour of (1).

81. mvp-comment-64-2 the former (1), but it makes better sense to join the adverb here with the whole expression; i.e. not. 'You shrink from seeing a man who is clearly insane,' but, 'You shrink from seeing plainly a man's madness.' Cp. infr. 229, περίφαντος. The same meaning may be obtained, however, by supposing the adverb in (1) to be used proleptically, (3) 'You shrink from seeing a man's madness clearly shown.'

84. mvp-comment-65-1 ὀφθαλμοῖς γε] γε adds emphasis; i.e. though his mind is alienated, he surely has not changed eyes.

85. mvp-comment-66-1 καὶ δεδορκότα) καὶ = καίπερ. Cp. Pind. Ol. 7. 55, αἱ δὲ φρενῶν ταραχαὶ παρέπλαγξαν καὶ σοφόν.

86. mvp-comment-67-1 μένταν] • Well, after all.' μέντοι admits and enforces the correcting statement, which it sets over against that which is corrected, viz. l. 84. For γένοιτ' ἂν.. πᾶν, cp. Hdt. 4. 195, εἴη δ᾽ ἂν πᾶν.

88. mvp-comment-68-1 μένοιμ' ἄν] I shall have to stay. ἐκτός] 'Out of the way,' as in ἐκτὸς κλαυμάτων, πημάτων ('out of harm's way'). See L. and S. s. v.

90. mvp-comment-69-1 Athena affects to rally Ajax for disregarding her help on this occasion, as he had before scornfully rejected it. Cp. infr. 774, 5. This helps to bring out his unconsciousness of her displeasure. τῆς συμμάχου] Cp. l. 60.

91. mvp-comment-70-1 Ajax enters with the scourge in his hand. It is from this scene that the play takes its name of Alaς μαστιγοφόρος. ll. 91-3 may be contrasted with 176 foll. Ajax is not by nature impious, although in the pride of his youth he may have been guilty of impiety; but he speaks to the goddess with the blunt familiarity of a comrade in arms. καί in l. 92 has an encouraging, almost patronizing, sound.

93. mvp-comment-71-1 στέψω] 'I will grace' or 'honour' thee.

94. mvp-comment-72-1 ἐκεῖνο] 'That other thing.' For a similar emphatic use of the pronoun (with comic exaggeration), cp. Aristoph. Nub. 655-7, οὐ γάρ, ᾠζυρέ, τούτων ἐπιθυμῶ μανθάνειν οὐδέν. ΣΩ. τί δαί; | ΣΤ. ἐκεῖν ἐκεῖνο, τὸν ἀδικώτερον λόγον.

96. mvp-comment-73-1 κόμπος πάρεστι] 'I am free to boast' (of that).

97. mvp-comment-74-1 πρὸς ᾿Ατρείδαισιν ἤχμασας χέρα] 'Did you make an armed attack upon the Atreidae?' The construction with πρός is continued from l. 95. χέρα, ας supr. 40, is cogn. accus. in the sense of 'a violent act.' Cp. Trach. 355. Musgr. conj. ήμαξας. Cp. infr. 453. The use of χέρα here as cogn. accus. without an epithet is somewhat singular.

98. mvp-comment-75-1 οἵδ'] He believes them to be lying dead within the tent. Cp. infr. 237 ff.

101. mvp-comment-76-1 εἰεν, τί γὰρ δή] «Enough. For I would know.' She professes to turn her thoughts from the Atreidae to Odysseus, who is more interesting as the especial enemy of Ajax.

102. mvp-comment-77-1 ποῦ σοι τύχης ἕστηκεν ;] · What have you done with him? Where stands he now?' σοι implies that Odysseus is in Ajax' power.

103. mvp-comment-78-1 τοὐπίτριπτον κίναδος] «The accursed fox.' The verbal, by a sort of prolepsis, expresses what ought to be. Cp. the Homeric οὐλόμενος. -The fox is at once noxious and cunning.

104. mvp-comment-79-1 The stop after ἔγωγ' makes the expression more pointed, and agrees better with the use of λέγω than if ἔγωγ᾽ Οδυσσέα, κ.τ.λ. were read. ἐνστάτην] 'Opponent.' Cp. Thuc. 8. 69, ἤν τις ἐνιστῆται τοῖς ποιουμένοις.

105. mvp-comment-80-1 ἥδιστος] 'Most welcome.' Cp. Εl. 929, ἡδύς, οὐδὲ μητρὶ δυσχερής.

106. mvp-comment-81-1 θακεῖ] The ram taken for Odysseus had already been made to sit upwards against the pillar ( infr. 240, cp. 108).

107. mvp-comment-82-1 κερδάνῃς] This is said in bitter irony. Ajax is not gaining but losing all.

108. mvp-comment-83-1 κίον᾿ ἑρκείου στέγης] ‘The roof-supporting pillar of my house.'

110. mvp-comment-84-1 It has been thought necessary to alter this line because of the pleonasm of θάνῃ, which, however, is natural enough after the interruption. Cp. Trach. 1130-3, τέθνηκεν . . πρὶν ὡς χρῆν σφ᾽ ἐξ ἐμῆς θανεῖν χερός: Phil. 1329-1334, παῦλαν .. μήποτ᾿ ἂν τυχεῖν | νόσου βαρείας.. | πρὶν ἂν | τῶν παρ᾿ ἡμῖν ἐντυχὼν ᾿Ασκληπιδῶν | νόσου μαλαχθῇς τῆσδε. The principal notion is expressed by the participle. 'He shall not die till he is whipped to death.' πρῶτον resumes πρὶν ἄν, l. 108. φοινιχθείς] «Crimsoned.' The word conveys the murderous energy of Ajax' mood.

111. mvp-comment-85-1 Athena affects pity for Odysseus in order to rouse Ajax more, and so to make the situation more striking to Odysseus.

112. mvp-comment-86-1 'In all else, Athena, I would have thee to enjoy thy will.' For the construction, cp. Aesch. Cho. 1038-9.

114. mvp-comment-87-1 σὺ δ᾽ οὖν] 'Well, and you for your part.' τέρψις ἥδε.. τὸ δρᾶν] i. e. τέρψις τὸ δρᾶν ὧδε. Essay on L. § 35. p. 60.

116. mvp-comment-88-1 τοῦτό σοι δ' ἐφίεμαι] These words have been unnecessarily altered by some editors because of the postponement of δέ. For the omission of the vocative, giving a tone of peremptoriness and familiarity, cp. O. Τ. 637, οὐκ εἰ σύ τ' οἴκους, κ.τ.λ. The proximity of ἐφίεμαι in 112 suggests the repetition of the word in a slightly different sense.

117. mvp-comment-89-1 Ajax retires into the hut.

119-120. mvp-comment-90-1 τίς ἄν σοι.. εὑρέθη] 'Whom could you have found, if you had sought for such a one formerly?' The aorist with av here denotes possibility in past time, as in Trach. 707, 8, πόθεν γὰρ ἂν .. | ἐμοὶ παρέσχ᾽ εὔνοιαν? προνούστερος] The Ajax of Sophocles is clear-sighted as well as prompt in action. This touch prepares us for his profound feeling of the situation, when he awakes from his madness. Cp. Il. 7. 197, where Ajax says, Οὐ γάρ τις με βίῃ γε ἑκὼν ἀέκοντα δίηται, | οὐδὲ μὲν ἰδρείῃ, κ.τ.λ.

121. mvp-comment-91-1 For this division of the senarius, cp. El. 1302.

122. mvp-comment-92-1 ἔμπης (or ἔμπας) is to be joined in sense with ἐποικτείρω. It is strange that Hermann should have joined it to δύστηνον. Like ὅμως, εὐθύς, and other words, which strictly belong to the apodosis, ἔμπας verbally adheres to the protasis. Cp. infr. 563.

123. mvp-comment-93-1 'Because he is fast yoked with an evil doom.' The calamity from which he cannot disengage himself is imagined as a yokefellow of Ajax that is too strong for him.

128. mvp-comment-94-1 αὐτός] Odysseus is warned not to do as Ajax had done. Cp. infr. 773. Hence the emphatic pronoun.

129. mvp-comment-95-1 μηδ' ὄγκον ἄρῃ μηδέν'] 'Nor take on thee a lofty mien.' The middle voice (see above, l. 75) is here more appropriate. Cp. the expression ὄγκον περιθείναί τινι, Plut. Pericl. 4.

130. mvp-comment-96-1 χειρί] 'In might.' μακροῦ πλούτου βάθει] The v. r. βάρει may be supported from Eur. El. 1287, δότω πλούτου βάρος, but is less likely with βρίθεις preceding than βάθει, for which, cp. βαθύπλουτος. μακρός in poetry is often equivalent to μέγας. L. and S. s. v. 1. 4. Some new verb, such as πληθύεις, is to be supplied with βάθει.

131. mvp-comment-97-1 ἡμέρα] 'Time in its course,' i. e. ἡ ἀεὶ οὖσα ἡμέρα. For this generalized use, cp. especially infr. 624, παλαίᾳ ἕντροφος ἁμέρα: Ο. C. 1138, ἐς τόδ' ἡμέρας. For the sentiment, cp. Ant. 1158-60, τύχη γὰρ ὀρθοῖ καὶ τύχη καταρρέπει | τὸν εὐτυχοῦντα τὸν τε δυστυχοῦντ᾽ ἀεί· | καὶ μάντις οὐδεὶς τῶν καθεστώτων βροτοῖς. But the point here lies in the combination of the two γνῶμαι. The two considerations are urged side by side, that Fortune is unstable, and that God cares for the righteous. Therefore, do not trust to fortune, but be righteous.

131-132. mvp-comment-98-1 'Time makes all human things to set and rise again, but the gods love the righteous, while they abhor the wicked."

132-133. mvp-comment-99-1 σώφρονας .. κακούς] For the inexact antithesis of the general to the specific word, see Essay on L. § 51. p.97.

134-200. mvp-comment-100-1 The first part of the parodos consists of six anapaestic systems (ll. 134-171), during the recitation of which the Chorus pace to and fro in the orchestra, before the tent of Ajax. This long-continued movement, which betokens the restless anxiety of the mariners for their prince, also strikes a note in harmony with the feelings of the spectator, to whom the horror that is going on within has already been revealed. He knows that their dreadful apprehensions are only too true. It is followed by a strophe, antistrophe, and epode (ll. 172-200), which mark the climax of their agitation before the entrance of Tecmessa.

134. mvp-comment-101-1 Τελαμώνιε] Cp. Pind. Pyth. 2. 35, ὦ Δεινομένειε παῖ.

135. mvp-comment-102-1 ἔχων] ‘Lord of-.' Cp. Pind. Nem. 4. 78, Αἴας Σαλαμῖν ἔχει πατρώαν. ἀγχιάλου] 'Seaward.' The ancient town of Salamis was on the side of the island towards the open sea, Strabo, 9, p. 393. Cp. Pind. Ol. 10. 99, εἰναλία τ' Έλευσις : Aesch. Pers. 887.

136. mvp-comment-103-1 σὲ μέν] The Attic' accusative after the intransitive verb (Essay on L. §§ 16. p. 23) here assists the antithesis το σὲ δ᾽ ὅταν... ἐπιβῇ, κ.τ.λ.

137-138. mvp-comment-104-1 'But when a stroke from Zeus, or angry clamour from the Danaï assails thee with evil-boding words.'

139-140. mvp-comment-105-1 'I shrink and quiver with fear like the eye of any fluttering dove.' ὄkvos is the fear that paralyses action. The eye, as the part which expresses fear, is put for the whole. Cp. the expression of Keble, 'Tenderer than a dove's soft eye.' Cp. also the uses of χείρ, πούς, κάρα, βία, σθένος, στόμα, in denoting persons. πτηνῆς suggests something that is easily fluttered. Pierson's conj. φήνης ὡς ὄμμα πελειάς, ' As the dove fears the sight (?) of the falcon,' is unnecessary and tasteless. The image of the falcon would be a bad preparation for that of the small birds, 141 φθιμένης] Cp. Od. 11. 330, πρὶν γάρ κεν καὶ νὺξ φθῖτ᾽ ἄμβροτος. The genitive is in a somewhat loose connection with what follows; either (1) with ὀλέσαι, 'that in the night that is just gone thou didst destroy;' or (2) with θόρυβοι, ' in respect of the now-past night.'

142. mvp-comment-106-1 'A terrible rumour afflicts us.'

143. mvp-comment-107-1 ἐπὶ δυσκλείᾳ] ‘Threatening dishonour.' ἐπί from meaning purpose, as in ἐπὶ διαφθορῇ (Hdt. 4. 164), ἐπὶ θανάτῳ (Hdt. 9. 37), comes to express tendency. ἱππομανή] 'Where the steeds run wild,' or 'gallop at will.' Lit. 'raving with horses.' Essay on L. § 55. p. 102. The cattle were temporarily kept in the meadow where the horses of the chieftains used to be turned out to graze. The word suggests their movements, 'Fetching mad bounds, bellowing, and neighing loud,' when freed from harness and the stall.

144. mvp-comment-108-1 λειμῶν᾽ ἐπιβάντ'] The accusative implies not merely that the meadow was entered, but that it was swiftly reached.

145-146. mvp-comment-109-1 λείαν, ἥπερ δορίληπτος ἔτ᾿ ἦν λοιπή] «The cattle that still remained of those taken in war;' i. e. ἐκ τῆς δοριλήπτου λείας. Cp. supr. 53, 4, σύμμικτά τε | λείας ἄδαστα βουκόλων φρουρήματα.

147. mvp-comment-110-1 κτείνοντ'] We pass from the momentary conception of the act ( ὀλέσαι) to the continuous description of it: hence the present participle. Cp. supr. ll. 55 foll. Here, as elsewhere, the choric part contains a reminiscence of the dialogue.

148. mvp-comment-111-1 These words obviously refer to the report brought by Odysseus after receiving full information from Athena. Cp. supr. 67. But, if so, some time must be supposed to have elapsed after his exit before the entrance of the chorus.

150. mvp-comment-112-1 καὶ σφόδρα πείθει] ‘And wins much credence.' vûv is to be joined with εὔπειστα. 'Things of which it is now easy to persuade men:' now, since Ajax' defeat in the contest for the arms, which is known to have enraged him. Cp. infr. 929-36 and note.

152-153. mvp-comment-113-1 'And each who hears rejoices, more than him who spake, to insult over thy woes.' The participle is added to complete the sense of χαίρων. ἄχεσιν is dative of the cause or occasion. Cp. infr. 955.

155. mvp-comment-114-1 ἁμάρτοι] For the omission of τις, which is supplied in the next sentence, see Essay on L. § 39. P. 72, 3. This is the harder and more dignified reading.

157. mvp-comment-115-1 ἔρπει implies a stealthy advance, differing from στείχει, which would signify open menace. Cp. Pind. Nem. 8. 36, ἅπτεται δ᾽ ἐσλῶν ἀεί, χειρόνεσσι δ᾽ οὐκ ἐρίζει: Pyth. 11. 45, 6. ἴσχει γὰρ ὄλβος οὐ μείονα φθύνον· | ὁ δὲ χαμηλὰ πνέων ἄφαντον βρέμει.

158-159. mvp-comment-116-1 Some have here supposed a metaphor from building, large and small stones together making the strongest wall. This is fanciful, and not contained in the words; but in any case πύργου ῥῦμα is a 'tower of defence' (Essay on L. § 10. p. 17, 6), and not 'means of defending a tower,' because ῥύεσθαι can hardly mean 'to man,' although in Aesch. S. c. T. 823, it is used of the Divine protection of Thebes. For the whole phrase, cp. Od. 11. 556 (said with reference to Ajax): τοῖος γάρ σφιν πύργος ἀπώλεο: Alc. fr. 23, ἄνδρες πόληος πύργος ἀρεύϊοι : Aesch. Pers. 347.

160-161. mvp-comment-117-1 ἄριστ᾽ ἂν. ὀρθοῖθ᾽'Will best be made secure.' Cp. Thuc. 6. 18, § 4, ὁμοῦ δὲ τό τε φαῦλον καὶ τὸ μέσον καὶ τὸ πάνυ ἀκριβὲς ἂν ξυγκραθὲν μάλιστ᾽ ἂν ἰσχύειν. βαιός] Lit. 'few,' hence 'feeble.'

161. mvp-comment-118-1 ὑπό marks that the lesser are to serve the greater: μετά, that the great require the cooperation of the less.

162-163. mvp-comment-119-1 'But foolish men cannot be instructed in these truths.' τούτων γνώμας = ' right judgments about these things.'

164. mvp-comment-120-1 τοιούτων, sc. οὕτως ἀνοήτων. 'So foolish are they that clamour against thee,' that there is no hope of bringing them to a better mind.

165. mvp-comment-121-1 πρὸς ταῦτ᾽ ἀπαλέξασθαι] Sc. ταῦτα. 'This being so, we have no strength to avert this.'

167. mvp-comment-122-1 'But then the truth is that when they have escaped from thine eye.' γάρ covers the whole sentence, and the emphasis is on the latter part, viz. μέγαν, κ.τ.λ. The Chorus mean to say: 'Though we are weak, yet Ajax is strong, and the clamour will subside when he appears.'

169. mvp-comment-123-1 The correction of Dawes, which restores the metre by the insertion of δέ, is probably right. For the meaning, cp. Alc. fr. 27. ἔπταζον ὥστ᾽ ὄρνιθες ὦκυν | αἴετον ἐξαπίνας φάνεντα, which also helps to support the punctuation in l. 170.

170. mvp-comment-124-1 τάχ᾿ ἄν] 'Soon would they.'