Sophocles Ajax 74

mvp-comment-59-1 τί δρᾷς ¹

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

mvp-comment-60-1 οὐ σῖγ’ ἀνέξει μηδὲ δειλίαν ἀρεῖ ³

mvp-comment-60-2 σῖγ’ ἀνέξει ⁴

mvp-comment-60-3 δειλίαν ἀρεῖ ⁵ ἀρεῖς ⁶ α^ ⁷

mvp-comment-61-1 ἔνδον ἀρκείτω μένων ⁸

mvp-comment-62-1 τί μὴ γένηται ⁹

mvp-comment-62-2 ἀνὴρ ¹⁰

mvp-comment-63-1 ἐχθρός γε ¹¹

mvp-comment-64-1 οὔκουν γέλως ἥδιστος ¹²

mvp-comment-65-1 ἐμοὶ μὲν ¹³

mvp-comment-66-1 φρονοῦντα γὰρ ¹⁴

mvp-comment-66-2 ἐξέστην ¹⁵

mvp-comment-67-1 οὐδὲ νῦν ¹⁶

mvp-comment-68-1 ὀφθαλμοῖς … τοῖς αὐτοῖς ¹⁷

mvp-comment-69-1 δεδορκότα ¹⁸

mvp-comment-70-1 γένοιτο ¹⁹

mvp-comment-70-2 μέντἂν ²⁰

mvp-comment-70-3 θεοῦ ²¹

mvp-comment-71-1 μένοιμ’ ἄν ²²

mvp-comment-71-2 ἤθελον δ’ ἂν ²³

mvp-comment-71-3 ἐκτὸς ὢν τυχεῖν ²⁴

mvp-comment-72-1 οὗτος ²⁵

mvp-comment-72-2 Αἴας ²⁶

mvp-comment-72-3 τῆς συμμάχου ²⁷

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

(see Argument to the Play).

mvp-comment-73-2 Διογενὲς τέκνον ²⁸

mvp-comment-74-1 παρέστης ²⁹

mvp-comment-74-2 στέψω ³⁰

mvp-comment-74-3 λαφύροις ³¹ παγχρύσοις ³²

mvp-comment-75-1 ἐκεῖνο ³³

mvp-comment-75-2 ἔγχος ³⁴

mvp-comment-75-3 εὖ ³⁵ πρὸς Ἀργείων στρατῷ ³⁶

mvp-comment-76-1 τὸ μή ³⁷

mvp-comment-77-1 ᾔχμασας χέρα ³⁸ πρὸς ³⁹ ᾕμαξας ⁴⁰

mvp-comment-78-1 ὥστ’ ⁴¹

mvp-comment-78-2 Αἴαντ’ ⁴²

mvp-comment-79-1 τὸ σὸν ⁴³

mvp-comment-80-1 θανόντες … ἀφαιρείσθων ⁴⁴

mvp-comment-80-2 τἄμ’ ⁴⁵

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.