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Commentary on lines 601–750

τῆσδε τῆς γνώμης Sc. τῆς τῶν ἐρώντων τυραννίδος.

τλαίην Sc. τοῦτο, implied in τῆσδε τῆς γνώμης. It is unnecessary to supply an infinitive.

ἔλεγχον For proof. Accusative in apposition to the sentence.

τοῦτο μὲν .. τοῦτ᾽ ἄλλο are also in the same construction.

Πυθώδ᾽ ἰὼν πεύθου Cp. supr. 70, 71, and note.

τοῦτ᾽ ἄλλο This more, with passionate emphasis instead oἱ τοῦτο δέ. Cp. the Homeric ἄλλο δέ τοι ἐρέω. Α different variation occurs in Ant. 165-168, τοῦτο μὲν .. τοῦτ᾽ αὖθις.

τῷ τερασκόπῳ The diviner. Creon, to soothe Oedipus, joins with him in speaking lightly of the seer.

Then take and slay me,-not by thy single voice, for thou shalt have mine as well.' 608. The meaning of χωρίς, which is used absolutely, must be determined from the antithesis of the preceding lines. Without inquiry.The latter word is implied in ἐάν με τῷ τερασκόπῳ λάβῃς, κ.τ.λ.

γνώμῃ The dative is causal, By reason of an unproved suspicion.' Be not led by a vague notion to accuse me of your own mere will.

μάτην Without cause.

τὸν παρ᾽ αὑτῷ βίοτον The life which is very near to him. Cp. Plat. Rep. 3. 413 C, τοῦ παρ᾽ αὑτοῖς δόγματος. The preposition assists the figure by which the life (compared to a friend) is represented as an object of affection distinct from the man himself. For the ellipse of τις, see Essay on Language § 39, p. 72-73, and cp. supr. 516. 614-615. Cp. Solon. Fr. 9. Δείξει δὲ μανίην μὲν ἐμὴν βαιὸς χρόνος ἀστοῖς : Chaeremon Fr. 21, χρόνος δίκαιον ἄνδρα μηνύει ποτέ: Pind. Ol. 10. 54· 616. His words are good for one who would avoid falling. Cp. Plat. Rep. 331 Β, εἰς τοῦτο ἀνδρὶ νοῦν ἔχοντι πλοῦτον χρησιμώτατον εἶναι.

φρονεῖν is to be repeated with both adjectives. Swift is not sure in thought. For the inf. cp. Pind. Ol. 13.48.

When my secret enemy is one who advances swiftly.' ταχύς τις is supplementary predicate after χωρῇ. Cp. Αj. 1266, φεῦ, τοῦ θανόντος ὡς ταχεῖά τις βροτοῖς | χάρις διαρρεῖ καὶ προδοῦσ᾽ ἁλίσκεται: Phil. 519, μὴ νῦν μέν τις εὐχερὴς παρῇς. And for the article with the subject in such a connection, cp. Ant. 951, ὁ μοιριδία τις δύνασις δεινά. 624-625. The text of these lines is probably defective. Two things seem clear; (1) that line 625 is more appropriate to Creon than to Oedipus, You speak as if you would not relent nor believe me. (MS. Farn. had upe. before this line by p. m.) Cp. infr. 646, πίστευσον, Οἰδίπους, τάδε: 650, τί σοὶ θέλεις δῆτ᾽ εἰκάθω; Αj. 371, ὦ πρὸς θεῶν ὕπεικε καὶ φρόνησον εὖ: and (2) that line 624 is addressed by Oedipus to Creon, and conveys a threat: When you have given an example of the crime of envy. Cp. Ant. 308, πρὶν ἂν | ζῶντες κρεμαστοὶ τήνδε δηλώσηθ ὕβριν: ib. 325-326, έξερεῖθ᾽ ὅτι | τὰ δειλὰ κέρδη πημονὰς ἐργάζεται: Τr. 1110-1111, ἵν᾽ ἐκδιδαχθῇ πᾶσιν ἀγγέλλειν ὅτι | καὶ ζῶν κακούς γε καὶ θανὼν ἐτισάμην: Ant. 1242-1243, δείξας ἐν ἀνθρώποισι τὴν ἀβουλίαν, | ὅσῳ μέγιστον ἀνδρὶ πρόσκειται κακόν (ⅰ.e. προδείξας οἷόν ἐστι τὸ κακῶς βουλεύειν) : Pind. P. 2. 42. By transposing 624-625, as Haase suggested, a kind of meaning may be brought out. My desire for you is death, not banishment. You speak as if you would not relent. I will relent when you are made an example of the sin of envy (and not before). (My envy is) that I see you to be unwise. But the transitions are too violent. Again, 623-624, may be read continuously, and the loss of a single line supposed after 625. I would have you be (not banished but) slain, when you have first been made an example of the crime of envy (in the manner of your death). You speak as if you would not relent nor believe me. ['And you speak like a rebel.'] Because I see you blind. But the insertion (διὰ μέσου) οἱ οὐ φυγεῖν, and the abruptness of ὅταν προδείξῃς, may be thought to prevent the two lines from coalescing into a harmonious sentence. In this case the most probable inference would be that one or more lines have been lost before 624 and after 625. The old explanations of the Scholiast, When you have shown the nature of the grudge I bear you,' sc. oἷός ἐστιν ὁ ἐμὸς πρὸς σὲ φθόνος (cp. supr. 605 ff.), or of Hermann, When you have shown the nature of your grudge against me, or of the ancient gloss, When you have first explained:-oh! what a thing envy is!' are untenable, especially because they afford no natural explanation of l. 625. The broken lines (626 foll.) mark the climax of the altercation. Cp. O. C. 832, 885.

εἰ δὲ ξυνίης μηδέν But how if you are wholly in the dark? The strong expression, while suiting the passion of Creon, also suggests a truth of which he is ignorant. For el cp. Aesch. Suppl. 511, ἀλλ᾽ εἰ δρακόντων δυσφρόνων ἐχθίοσιν.

ἀρκτέον γ' ὅμως] Yes, authority must be maintained even then. The verbal here belongs to the impersonal passive verb. For the verbal of the passive, cp. Fr. 27 N.: Dem. c. Dinarch. 176, οὐ καταπληκτέον ἐστίν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι.

οὔτοι.. ἄρχοντος No, I am not bound to obey (οὐκ ἀρκτέον ἐμοὶ) one who rules badly. ἄρχοντος is (1) gen. abs., or (2) = ἐξ ἄρχοντος : cp. Ant. 63, ἀρχόμεσθ' ἐκ κρεισσόνων. But see Essay on Language § 39. pp. 72. 3.

ὦ πόλις πόλις Oedipus appeals to the citizens to rebuke the disloyal utterance of Creon: cp. O.C.833: or, perhaps, apostrophizes the state, whose safety is menaced by the indulgence of such a spirit.

κἀμοὶ πόλεως μέτεστιν I too have a claim upon the state. Not only as a citizen (cp. Ant. 737, πόλις γὰρ οὐκ ἔσθ᾽ ἥτις ἀνδρός ἐσθ᾽ ἑνός), but as the brother of the queen, whose right was prior to that of Oedipus himself. Cp. 577-581. Oedipus appeals to his loyal citizens against the insubordination of Creon, who replies that he also has a right in the state. As his temper rises, he no longer acknowledges that he owes his influence to Oedipus. The disadvantage under which Oedipus labours, as the stranger prince, is subtly maintained throughout. The chorus interpose in their character of mediator, not to take part with either disputant, but to appease the strife.

ὑμῖν Cp. O. C. 81, ἢ βέβηκεν ἡμὶν ὁ ξένος ;

5. What mean you, miserable men, by raising this senseless altercation?' For the article, cp. Phil. 327, 8, τίνος γὰρ ὧδε τὸν μέγαν χόλον κατ᾿ αὐτῶν ἐγκαλῶν ἐλήλυθας; The conjecture τί τήνδ' ἄβουλον, though plausible at first sight, has the effect of weakening the natural emphasis on ἄβουλον.

στάσιν γλώσσης War of words.

οὐδ᾽ ἐπαισχύνεσθε And are not ashamed. The force of τί is continued. For this punctuation, which on the whole seems preferable to ἐπήρασθ᾽; οὐδ'-cp. Αj. 1307, ὠθεῖς-, οὐδ᾽ ἐπαισχύνει λέγων; For the other way of dividing the sentence, And are ye not ashamed, cp. Phil. 929, οἱ' ἠπάτηκας· οὐδ᾽ ἐπαισχύνει μ᾿ ὁρῶν; The former is more suitable to the reproachful tone of Jocasta here.

σύ τ' The omission of the noun vocative in addressing Oedipus gives a peremptory tone to Jocasta's speech. For the prep. with the 2nd word, cp. supr. 93, 4.

τὸ μηδὲν ἄλγος ‘And do not raise into importance a trouble which is not worth speaking of;'-because all private griefs are as nothing in the calamity of the state. The full expression would be τὸ μηδὲν ὂν ἄλγος. Essay on Language §39. p. 72, c. ib. p. 48.

δικαιοῖ, Thinks fit, or intends. Cp. Hdt. 3. 36, ταῦτα δέ μιν ποιεῦντα ἐδικαίωσε Κροῖσος .. νουθετῆσαι.

δυοῖν ἀποκρίνας κακοῖν Having made selection between two evils. There are two objections to this line on the ground of metre; the o lengthened before up (cp. Aesch. Prom. 24, ἀποκρύψει φάος), and the scansion of δυοῖν as a monosyllable, the only parallel to which in Greek tragic verse is Ἐρινννων, in Iph. Taur. 970, 1456. (See, however, Hes. Scut. 3, Ἠλεκτρύωνος: cp. ib. 16.) The two metrical exceptions are singular. But it is not likely that the verse is corrupt. No interpolator would have introduced a word so rare in later Greek as ἀποκρίνας in this sense. (Cp. Hdt. 6. 130.) None of the attempted emendations are satisfactory. Critics have noticed what was hardly worth noticing, the discrepancy between l. 641. and 623, and it has been proposed to interpret δεινά as implying that after making selection Oedipus had chosen death as the punishment. But such slight inconsistencies are neither undramatic nor unnatural.

These words, though epexegetic of the participle, are in apposition with δρᾶσαι.

τοὐμὸν σῶμα My person. Cp. Ο. C. 355, ἃ τοῦδ᾽ ἐχρήσθη σώματος. The language has some of the formality of an indictment.

For the alternation of clauses, see Essay on Language § 41, p. 77.

πίστευσον τάδε Cp. Eur. Hel. 710, λόγοις δ᾽ ἐμοῖσι πίστευσον τάδε.

τόνδ' .. θεῶν The word ἀραῖος implied an appeal to the Gods.

θεῶν Not objective gen. = The oath sworn by the Gods; but rather, This divine or sacred oath. The oath is regarded as a sacred presence and almost personified. Cp. O. C. 1767, χώ πάντ' ἀΐων Διὸς ὅρκος: Xen. Anab. 3. I, 22. Ant. 607. Thuc. 5. 30, θεῶν. . κώλυμα = θεῖον κώλυμα.

foll. Sophocles has here employed the chorus with great skill. Without any pause in the action, which must be continued until the colloquy between Jocasta and Oedipus has taken place, the short musical strains which allay the exasperation of Oedipus and assure him of his people's loyalty, also relieve the mind of the spectator from the tension caused by the preceding dialogue, and prepare him to give undivided attention to the central scene-in which the first doubt is suggested to the mind of Oedipus, while the impious confidence of στρ. α. ト Jocasta is revealed. Lines from 649 to 659 correspond to 678-688, and lines 660-668 correspond to 689-697. In this commation cretic and dochmiac measures are varied with iambic and trochaic rhythms. The 2nd strophe begins with a molossus. The frequent antispastic or syncopated movement has the effect of expressing the disturbed feelings of the chorus. The scansion is as follows:- つしかし alc D ככמו στρ. β. - - C دد 10 つ داد 다 UCICI 11 つ دد IDID 스 C CICICICI トー 스 ווכ 스 ככון ICC CCI 1 D DO

πιθοῦ θελήσας, κ.τ.λ. We pray thee bend thy will to our request, and calm thy mind, O king. The chorus are encouraged by Jocasta's reference to them in l. 648.

φρονήσας = returning to a proper of thi things. Cp. Aj. 371, ὕπεικε καὶ φρόνησον εὖ. See above l. 626. sense

ἐν ὅρκῳ μέγαν Great in the power of his oath. Cp. Phil. 185-186, ἕν τ᾽ ὀδύναις ὁμοῦ λιμῷ τ' οἰκτρός.

Otherwise φράζε δή τί φής; But cp. Phil. 559, φράσον δ᾽ ἅπερ γ᾽ ἔλεξας.

Cp. Stephanus. Thes. v. ἐναγῆ.

ἐναγής, like ἀραῖος (276) or ὅρκιος (Ant. 305) = ἐν ὅρκῳ μέγας, i. e. the curse which he has invoked should protect him from rash accusation. Some editors have preferred ἀναγῆ, which is a conjecture supported by the mention of the word in Hesychius as = καθαρός, but the word is pointless and unmeaning here.

Antiphon. p. 136, ἐγὼ μὲν γάρ σοι φανερὰν τὴν πρόνοιαν εἰς ἐμὲ ἀποδείκνυμι, σὺ δὲ με ἐν ἀφανεῖ λόγῳ ζητεῖς ἀπολέσαι. This parallel supports the reading λόγῳ, and the hiatus may be obviated by reading λόγῳ σ᾽ ἄτιμον βαλεῖν (Herm.). Others read μηδέποτ' αἰτίᾳ σὺν ἀφανεῖ λόγων. But the hiatus at the end of a dochmiac metre is not impossible. Join βαλεῖν ἄτιμον ἐν αἰτίᾳ. The reading ἐκβαλεῖν may have arisen from an attempt to explain βαλεῖν. That you should never accuse and dishonour with an obscure suspicion your friend, who has invoked a curse upon his head. Cp. 648, γνώμῃ ἀδήλῳ. 658-659. Because Oedipus believes that Creon has conspired with Teiresias to charge him with the murder of Laius.

οὐ τόν Cp. 1088, Ant. 758, Ε1. 1063, 1239, Eur. Ion 870.

πρόμον Foremost of the hosts of heaven. It is not easy to say in what sense the sun is spoken of as first or foremost. He is invoked as the god who brings all things to light (Hymn. Hom. Dem. 62, θεῶν σκοπὸν ἠδὲ καὶ ἀνδρῶν: Il. 3.277, Ἠέλιός θ᾽, ὃς πάντ᾽ ἐφορᾶς καὶ πάντ᾽ ἐπακούεις), and with reference to the intention of the person speaking, may be regarded as first of Gods; i. e. the author of light and illumination in all things. Cp. O. C. 868-870, ὁ πάντα λεύσσων “Ἥλιος δοίη βίον, κ.τ.λ. Or he is imagined as the vanguard of Heaven, standing before the rest as the champion. Welcker compares Fr. 875, Ἠέ- λιος οἰκτείρειέ με, | ὃν οἱ σοφοὶ λέγουσι γεννητὴν θεῶν | καὶ πατέρα πάντων. But this is a philosophical conceit, which could not properly find place here.

ὅ τι πύματον i. e. as the Scholiast explains, ἀπώλειαν ἥτις ἐσχάτη. Cp. supr. 344. For πύματον, cp. O. С. 1235, ἐπιλέλογχε πύματον.

φθίνουσα here does not correspond with the line 694 in the antistrophe. Dindorf has therefore proposed to read φθινάς for φθίνουσα. But as a still slighter alteration in the antistrophe, πόνοισι for πόνοις, reconciles the two lines, it has been adopted. For the combination of cretic and trochaic metre, cp. 1. 651. καὶ in 666 is against metre.

προσάψει Sc. γᾶ. If she is to add to her former evils these which come from you. Cp. Eur. Med. 78, εἰ κακὸν προσοίσομεν νέον παλαιῷ. Ε. on L. p. 52.

ἐλεινόν Which does move me. The adjective is so placed, with pathos, in order to increase the antithesis to what follows. Essay on Language § 23. p. 37.

You show yourself to be sullen in yielding. ὤν is dropped dropped or absorbed in the participle. στυγνός echoes στυγήσεται and has a neuter meaning = tristis, morose.

βαρὺς δ', ὅταν θυμοῦ περάσῃς And intolerable when you exceed in wrath. θυμοῦ is genitive of place, like σοφίας in πόρρω σοφίας ἐλαύνειν (Plat. Crat. 410 E). Essay on Language p 16, 3, d. βαρύς expresses the something dangerous in a passionate man. Cp. 546, Ant. 767, νοῦς δ᾽ ἐστὶ τηλικοῦτος ἀλγήσας βαρύς. The other explanation: You are dangerous even when you come to an end of your wrath (ὅταν ἐπὶ πέρας ἔλθῃς τῆς ὀργῆς Schol.)-is objectionable on two grounds-(1) because presenting a mere repetition under the form of antithesis; (2) because θυμοῦ περᾶν, in the sense of to pass out of anger, is too harsh for Sophocles. Also (3) because some Greek word is needed to give the sense of even. The use of περâν in either case is metaphorical. For περᾶν, to go far, cp. О. С. 155, περῖς γάρ, περᾷς.

Nature justly ordains that such dispositions shall be most grievous to themselves, i. e. ἑαυταῖς μάλιστα ἀλγειναί.

οὔκουν 'Will you not, then,'i. e. Since I am so disagreeable.

ἀγνῶτος Without discernment. ἐν τοῖσδε] In their minds. Cp. Ant. 459, ἐν θεοῖσι τὴν δίκην δώσειν: ib. 925, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐστὶν ἐν θεοῖς καλά.

ἴσος Either (1) just (cp. Phil. 685, ἴσος ἔν γ᾽ ἴσοις ἀνήρ), or (2) ‘'as I was before,' = ἴσος καὶ πρὸ τοῦ, cp. supr. 53, ἴσος γενοῦ. (2) is best.

μαθοῦσά γ'.. τύχη Sc. ἐσκομιῶ αὐτόν. I will do so when I hear what has happened. Cp. Plat. Phaedr. 228 D, δείξας γε πρῶτον, ὦ φιλότης, κ.τ.λ. ..

δόκησις λόγων Α vague suspicion arose in talk.' λόγων, a descriptive genitive, arising out of, connected with. ἀγνώς] = ἄνευ γνώσεως, Without knowledge. δάπτει δέ καί implies There was a vague suspicion, which, although unjust, nevertheless stings. Schol. κἂν τὸ συνειδὸς ἐρρωμένον ἡ. For δάπτει, cp. Od. 16. 92, καταδάπτετ᾿ ἀκούοντος φίλον ἦτορ: Pind. Nem. 8. 23.

ἀμφοῖν ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῖν Sc. ἦλθε;

καὶ τίς ἦν λόγος And what was in dispute? 684. This line is divided like 655, to which it is antistrophic.

αὐτοῦ μένειν That the dispute should remain where it is, an evasive answer. The v. rr. here are curious.

Do you see what you have come to, honest man as you are, in trying to assuage and blunt my wrath?" I.e. Do you see in what a dilemma your well meant intercession has placed you? You are pressed to rehearse the charge against me, which you durst not support, but which you would not allow me to repel.

παριείς Endeavouring to slacken or divert. Cp. Eur. Cycl. 310, πάρες τὸ μάργον σῆς γνάθου. Cp. also the use of the passive voice in El. 545, παίδων πόθος παρεῖτο. The chorus again earnestly disclaim the imputation of disloyalty. My king, I have said it not once alone, but let me assure thee, that I were clearly insensate, void of wisdom, to cast off thee, who gavest good speed to my dear land, when distraught with miseries, and now, too, if thou canst, be our good guide.

εἰ . . νοσφίζομαι Το desert thee, lit. to put thee from me. The present indicative with ei, by representing the supposed case as actual, adds emphasis. Cp. the use of the present for the future. And see Essay on Language § 28. p. 46. Herm. conjectured σ᾽ ἐνοσφιζόμαν.

ἀλύουσαν =' At her wit's end,' has been plausibly but unnecessarily changed to σαλεύουσαν.

κατ᾿ ὀρθὸν οὔρισας Didst speed on her right course. The image is rather that of a breeze, or of a favouring deity, than of a good pilot. For τε followed by δé, see Essay on Language p. 65. Others read ὅστ' in 694.

εἰ δύναιο The reading is not certain; but, for the ellipse of the imperative of εἰμί or γίγνομαι in supplication, see Essay on Language § 39. p. 72. Ср. Ο. C. 1480, ἵλαος, ὦ δαίμων, ἵλαος : El. 1434, τάδ᾽ ὡς πάλιν.

καμ i. e. Let not me be ignorant of what the elders know.

ὅτου .. πράγματος] For what reason. For the separation of the words, giving emphasis to the interrogative, cp. Phil. 598-599, τίνος δ' Ἀτρείδαι τοῦδ᾽ ἄγαν οὕτω χρόνῳ | τοσῷδ᾽ ἐπεστρέφοντο πράγματος χάριν ;

μῆνιν.. στήσας Cp. Phil. 1263, τίς αὖ παρ᾿ ἄντροις θόρυβος ἵσταται βοῆς;

ἐς πλέον Lit. To a greater amount, i.e. more. As he turned from 02 Creon to the chorus l. 671, so now being angry with them he turns gladly to Jocasta. With equal impetuosity he breaks away from her, infr. 1078. ..

Κρέοντος Answering ὅτου πράγματος, and therefore in the same case, but with a slightly different force. It is about Creon. For a similar pendent genitive, cp. Αj. 771, δίας Ἀθάνας ἡνίκ᾽ ὀτρύνουσά νιν, κ.τ.λ.: ib. 792.

Speak, if in making the charge, you will tell plainly the cause of quarrel.' τὸ νεῖκος is governed κατὰ σύνεσιν by ἐγκαλῶν, which implies φράζων. Jocasta expresses her impatience at being kept in uncertainty.

αὐτὸς ξυνειδώς Was he himself in the secret? Cp. supr. 330.

'Neither' (μὲν οὖν) : (he has fastened the charge on me) by bringing in a rascally prophet. 706. (1) As to what affects himself he keeps his utterance wholly free; i. e. He will not commit himself in a word.

ἐλευθεροῖ, according to this interpretation, not acquits,' excuses, but = keeps out of reach of blame, ἔξω βαρείας αἰτίας ἐλεύθερον, Ant. 445; Aesch. Eum. 175, οὔποτ᾽ ἐλευθεροῦται. πᾶν is adverbial as in Aj. 275, λύπῃ πᾶς ἐλήλαται. Or (2) τό γ᾽ εἰς ἑαυτόν may be the direct accusative and πᾶν στόμα adverbial. He uses all his power of speech to free his own actions from blame. Cp. El. 596-597, ἢ πᾶσαν ἵης γλῶσσαν, ὡς τὴν μητέρα | κακοστομοῦμεν. The former explanation is more in accordance with usage.

ὧν λέγεις πέρι = περὶ τούτων ὧν λέγεις, Relieving your mind on the subject of which you speak. The simple genitive would have been enough: cp. Hdt. 4. 157, οὐ γὰρ δή σφεας ἀπίει ὁ θεὸς τῆς ἀποικίης, But περί is added pleonastically.

The reading of M., ἐμοῦ τ' ἄκουσον, deserves notice. For σοι, see Essay on Language p. 19.

ἐστὶ .. ἔχον 'Nothing in the life of mortals has anything to do with prophetic art. For this rare use of the active voice of ἔχω, cp. esp. Hdt. 3. 128, γραψάμενος πολλά, καὶ περὶ πολλῶν ἔχοντα πρηγμάτων: Aesch. Eum. 445. 6, οὐδ᾽ ἔχει μύσος πρὸς χειρὶ τὴμῇ (?). The middle voice has this meaning, e.g. in Il. 9.102, σέο δ᾽ ἔξεται ὅττι κεν ἄρχῃ. For the active in place of middle, see Essay on Language pp. 51, 98. This interpretation alone suits the context; the other possible explanation, No mortal creature has any share in the prophetic art (which has led to the conjecture λαχόν), might agree with the temper of the chorus (499, foll.), but not with that of Jocasta, who is rejecting all prophecies alike, though she makes the slight admission in 711-712, οὐκ ἐρῶ Φοίβου γ᾿ ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῦ. Cp., however, Hdt. 2. 83. Μαντικὴ δὲ αὐτοῖσι ὧδε διακέεται· ἀνθρώπων μὲν οὐδενὶ προσκέεται ἡ τέχνη, τῶν δὲ θεῶν μετεξετέροισι.

ἥξοι Cp. О. С. 1472-1473, ἥκει τῷδ᾽ ἐπ᾿ ἀνδρὶ θέσφατος βίου τελευτή: Αj. 186, ἥκοι γὰρ ἂν θεία νόσος: ib. 278, 9, μὴ ἐκ θεοῦ πληγή τις ἥκῃ. The accusative is justified by the general meaning of the sentence and by the infinitive, of which it is partly the subject. The conjecture ἕξοι is suggested by Phil. 331, ἐπεὶ γὰρ ἔσχε μοῖρ᾽ Ἀχιλλέα θανεῖν, but is less pointed here.

ξένοι i. e. Not only not his offspring, but of a different race, as coming not from Thebes but from the opposite direction (734). Cp. supr. 122 foll.

ἐν τριπλαῖς ἁμαξιτοῖς These words, which give Oedipus the first suspicion of the truth (see 750), are intended by Jocasta to show the fortuitous nature of the occurrence.

But as to the child that was born, three days had not intervened, when he tied its feet together and cast it by the hands of others upon a trackless mountain.' It is uncertain whether διέσχον is intransitive or active. In the latter case the word may be taken (1) in the sense of 'divided the day of the child's birth' from his death, i. e. τὸν παῖδα γιγνόμενον καὶ ἀποθνήσκοντα, (Hdt. 9. 51, διέχων ἀπ᾿ ἀλλήλων τὰ ῥέεθρα). Three days did not divide the birth of the child from-what followed. Cp. the Latin, Nec longum tempus et...: or, (2) not three days continued the growth of the child. Cp.

διεγένετο in Thuc. 5. 16. Otherwise (3) taking βλάστας as a pendent accusative. But as for the growth of the child, three days had not fully passed. (2) is best.

καί Temporal = when.

εἰς ἄβατον ὄρος An undivided tribrach occurs again in 826, πατέρα κατακτανεῖν : 1496, τὸν πατέρα πατήρ: Aj. 459, καὶ πεδία τάδε. Hence the metrical rhythm is defensible, while the natural rhythm of the words is rather injured by transposing to ἄβατον εἰς ὄρος.

ἤνυσεν ·Made good his prophecy.'

τὸ δεινόν Accus. in apposition with θανεῖν, governed by ἤνυσεν. There is no reason for preferring παθεῖν. The words of the prophecy are repeated. Cp. О. С. 970, πρὸς παίδων θανεῖν.

τοιαῦτα So futile have been the determinations of prophecy.

ὧν.. χρείαν ἐρευνᾷ Of whatsoever things God searcheth out the use,' i.e. ὧν χρείαν ἔχων (χρήζων), ἐρευνᾷ αὐτά. For what God needs to search out, he will easily bring to light without our help. (Cp. Shak. Macb. 1. 3, If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, Without my stir.) Jocasta in renouncing prophecy unconsciously expresses the exact truth. Apollo is already working out his purpose, and vindicating the power of his prophet. Cp. 1. 747.

What distraction and perturbation of soul possesses me, my queen, on hearing the words you have just uttered!

Of what nature is the anxiety which alters your tone and makes you say this? The genitive is causal. Cp. Aj. 1116, τοῦ δὲ σοῦ ψόφου | οὐκ ἂν στραφείην. The verb is used metaphorically to express Oedipus' sudden change of mood from 705-706 supr. Others explain it to mean a change of gesture merely.

Such was the rumour, which has not yet died away.' O. C. 517, τό τοι πολὺ καὶ μηδαμὰ λῆγον.

οὗτος refers to the words ἐν τριπλαῖς ἁμαξιτοῖς, supr. 761, which have brought the image of the place vividly before the mind of Oedipus.

I. e. The two roads from Delphi and Daulia meet there.

τοῖσδ' Since these things happened. For the dative, cp. Hdt. 2. 145, Ἡρακλέϊ ὅσα φασὶ εἶναι ἔτεα ἐς Ἄμασιν βασιλέα: ib. 13: Thuc. 1. 13, 4, ἔτη δὲ μάλιστα καὶ ταύτῃ ἑξήκοντα καὶ διακόσιά ἐστι μέχρι τοῦ αὐτοῦ χρόνου: ib. 3. 29.

I. e. The announcement was publicly made, just before your elevation to the sovereignty of this land.

The absence of caesura gives this line the effect of an agonized, convulsive utterance.

Why do you take this to heart?' i.e. Why are you apprehensive that Zeus has some design against you? Cp. Hdt. 7. 37, ἰδύντι .. τοῦτο τῷ Ξέρξῃ ἐπιμελὲς ἐγένετο : Thuc. 5. 16, ἐς ἐνθυμίαν ..προβαλλόμενος.

τὸν. . ἔχων But say, what was the appearance of Laius, and what ripe stage of blooming life was his?

φύσιν Appearance. Cp. Aesch. Suppl. 496, Ar. Vesp. 1071.

τίνα ἀκμὴν ἤβης ἔχων For the irregular construction, -ἔχων (sc. ἦν) corresponding to εἶχε,-cp. Hdt. 8. 38, μέζονας ἢ κατὰ ἀνθρώπων φύσιν ἔχοντας. The participle is added, if φύσιν τίν' εἶχε were τίς ἣν φύσιν;

ἥβη is used not only of early manhood but of youthful vigour in more advanced age. Od. 16. 174. For this idea cp. Aesch. S. c. Τ. 11, 12, καὶ τὸν ἔξηβον χρόνῳ | βλαστημὸν ἀλδαίνοντα σώματος πολύν. Shak. Ant. and Cleo. 4. 8, Though grey Do something mingle with our younger brown, yet ha we A brain that nourishes our nerves, and can Get goal for goal of youth. ἀκμὴν ἥβης is a courteous expression, softening the abruptness of the inquiry.

The white locks were just beginning to grow.' χνοάζω is usually applied to the first appearance of the beard in youth; here, to the first sprinkling of grey, as a sign of advancing age. Cp. Hom. Od. 6. 226, where the sprinkling of salt on the hair of Ulysses from the sea spray is called χνοῦς, -ἐκ κεφαλῆς δ᾽ ἔσμηχεν ἁλὸς χνόον ἀτρυγέτοιο. And for λευκανθές, which is proleptic = ὥστε λευκανθὲς εἶναι, cp. Hdt. 8. 27, where λευκανθίζειν is used of men who have been whitened with chalk.

The natural answer of Jocasta is at the same time an obscure intimation of the likeness of the father to the son.

'That I have just been unwittingly making myself the object of a terrible curse; i. e. οὐκ εἰδὼς προβάλλειν. Essay on Language § 42. p. 80.

Jocasta is seized with a vague horror on hearing the words of Oedipus and seeing his gesture.

I am terribly afraid that the prophet may be the reverse of blind." Cp. 371, τυφλὸς τὰ τ᾽ ὦτα τόν τε νοῦν τὰ τ᾿ ὄμματ' εἶ.

ἂν δ' is preferred on metrical grounds; but cp. 537, 768, 937. The accus. is governed both by μαθοῦσα and ἐρῶ.

μαθοῦσα When I understand what it is you ask.

βαιός With a scanty following. Cp. 179, ἀνάριθμος, and note. Essay on Language § 23. p. 39.

Oedipus Tyrannus. Lewis Campbell. ed. Lewis Campbell. Oxford. 1879.

Current edition Experimental

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

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (2)

Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) — 616 focus

καλῶς ἔλεξεν εὐλαβουμένῳ πεσεῖν,

ἄναξ· φρονεῖν γὰρ οἱ ταχεῖς οὐκ ἀσφαλεῖς.

Οἰδίπους

ὅταν ταχύς τις οὑπιβουλεύων λάθρα

χωρῇ, ταχὺν δεῖ κἀμὲ βουλεύειν πάλιν.

εἰ δ᾽ ἡσυχάζων προσμενῶ, τὰ τοῦδε μὲν
620

πεπραγμέν᾽ ἔσται, τἀμὰ δ᾽ ἡμαρτημένα.

Κρέων

τί δῆτα χρῄζεις; ἦ με γῆς ἔξω βαλεῖν;

Οἰδίπους

ἥκιστα· θνήσκειν οὐ φυγεῖν σε βούλομαι

ὅταν προδείξῃς οἷόν ἐστι τὸ φθονεῖν.

*Κρέων

ὡς οὐχ ὑπείξων οὐδὲ πιστεύσων λέγεις;
625

Κρέων

οὐ γὰρ φρονοῦντά σ᾽ εὖ βλέπω.

Οἰδίπους

τὸ γοῦν ἐμόν.

Κρέων

ἀλλ᾽ ἐξ ἴσου δεῖ κἀμόν.

Οἰδίπους

ἀλλ᾽ ἔφυς κακός.

[40 a.

Κρέων

εἰ δὲ ξυνίης μηδέν;

Οἰδίπους

ἀρκτέον γ᾽ ὅμως.

Κρέων

οὔτοι κακῶς γ᾽ ἄρχοντος.

Οἰδίπους

ὦ πόλις πόλις.

Κρέων

κἀμοὶ πόλεως μέτεστιν, οὐχὶ σοὶ μόνῳ.
630

Χορός

παύσασθ᾽, ἄνακτες· καιρίαν δ᾽ ὑμῖν ὁρῶ

τήνδ᾽ ἐκ δόμων στείχουσαν Ἰοκάστην, μεθ᾿ ἧς

τὸ νῦν παρεστὸς νεῖκος εὖ θέσθαι χρεών.

Ἰοκάστη

τί τὴν ἄβουλον, ὦ ταλαίπωροι, στάσιν

γλώσσης ἐπήρασθ', οὐδ᾽ ἐπαισχύνεσθε, γῆς
635

οὕτω νοσούσης, ἴδια κινοῦντες κακά;

οὐκ εἶ σύ τ᾽ οἴκους σύ τε, Κρέον, κατὰ στέγας,

καὶ μὴ τὸ μηδὲν ἄλγος εἰς μέγ' οἴσετε;

Κρέων

ὅμαιμε, δεινά μ' Οἰδίπους ὁ σὸς πόσις

δρᾶσαι δικαιοῖ, δυοῖν ἀποκρίνας κακοῖν,
640

ἢ γῆς ἀπῶσαι πατρίδος, ἢ κτεῖναι λαβών.

Οἰδίπους

ξύμφημι· δρῶντα γάρ νιν, ὦ γύναι, κακῶς

εἴληφα τοὐμὸν σῶμα σὺν τέχνῃ κακῇ.

Κρέων

μή νυν ὀναίμην, ἀλλ᾽ ἀραῖος, εἴ σέ τι

δέδρακ, ὀλοίμην, ὧν ἐπαιτιᾷ με δρᾶν.
645

Ἰοκάστη

ὦ πρὸς θεῶν πίστευσον, Οἰδίπους, τάδε,

μάλιστα μὲν τόνδ᾽ ὅρκον αἰδεσθεὶς θεῶν,

ἔπειτα κἀμὲ τούσδε θ᾽ οἳ πάρεισί σοι.

α

Χορός

πιθοῦ θελήσας φρονήσας τ᾽, ἄναξ, λίσσομαι.

Οἰδίπους

τί σοι θέλεις δῆτ᾽ εἰκάθω;
650

Χορός

τὸν οὔτε πρὶν νήπιον νῦν τ᾽ ἐν ὅρκῳ μέγαν καταίδεσαι.

Οἰδίπους

οἶσθ᾽ οὖν ἃ χρῄζεις;

Χορός

οἶδα.

Οἰδίπους

φράζε δή, τί φής.

Χορός

τὸν ἐναγῆ φίλον μήποτ᾽ ἐν αἰτίᾳ

σὺν ἀφανεῖ λόγῳ †ἄτιμον βαλεῖν.

Οἰδίπους

εὖ νυν ἐπίστω, ταῦθ᾽ ὅταν ζητῇς, ἐμοὶ

ζητῶν ὄλεθρον ἢ φυγὴν ἐκ τῆσδε γῆς.

β

Χορός

οὐ τὸν πάντων θεῶν θεὸν πρόμον
660

Ἅλιον· ἐπεὶ ἄθεος ἄφιλος ὅ τι πύματον

ὀλοίμαν, φρόνησιν εἰ τάνδ᾽ ἔχω.

ἀλλά μοι δυσμόρῳ γᾶ φθίνουσα
665

τρύχει ψυχάν, *τάδ᾽ εἰ κακοῖς κακὰ

προσάψει τοῖς πάλαι τὰ πρὸς σφῶν.

Οἰδίπους

ὁ δ᾽ οὖν ἰτω, κεἰ χρή με παντελῶς θανεῖν,

ἢ γῆς ἄτιμον τῆσδ᾽ ἀπωσθῆναι βίᾳ.
670

τὸ γὰρ σόν, οὐ τὸ τοῦδ᾽, ἐποικτείρω στόμα

ἐλεινόν· οὗτος δ᾽, ἔνθ᾽ ἂν ᾖ, στυγήσεται.

Κρέων

στυγνὸς μὲν εἴκων δῆλος εἶ, βαρὺς δ᾽, ὅταν

θυμοῦ περάσῃς, αἱ δὲ τοιαῦται φύσεις

αὐταῖς δικαίως εἰσὶν ἄλγισται φέρειν.
675

Οἰδίπους

οὔκουν μ᾽ ἐάσεις κἀκτὸς εἶ;

Κρέων

πορεύσομαι,

σοῦ μὲν τυχὼν ἀγνῶτος, ἐν δὲ τοῖσδ᾽ ἴσος.

α

Χορός

γύναι, τί μέλλεις κομίζειν δόμων τόνδ᾽ ἔσω;

Ἰοκάστη

μαθοῦσά γ' ἥτις ἡ τύχη.
680

Χορός

δόκησις ἀγνὼς λόγων ἦλθε, δάπτει δὲ καὶ τὸ μὴ ἐνδικον.

Ἰοκάστη

ἀμφοῖν ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῖν;

Χορός

ναίχι.

Ἰοκάστη

καὶ τίς ἦν λόγος;

Χορός

ἅλις ἔμοιγ', ἅλις, γᾶς προπονουμένας,
685

φαίνεται ἔνθ᾽ ἔληξεν, αὐτοῦ μένειν.

Οἰδίπους

ὁρᾷς ἵνʼ ἥκεις, ἀγαθὸς ὢν γνώμην ἀνήρ,

τοὐμὸν παριεὶς καὶ καταμβλύνων κέαρ.

β

Χορός

ὦναξ, εἶπον μὲν οὐχ ἅπαξ μόνον,

ἴσθι δὲ παραφρόνιμον, ἄπορον ἐπὶ φρόνιμα
690

πεφάνθαι μ' ἄν, εἴ σε νοσφίζομαι,

ὅς τ᾿ ἐμὰν γᾶν φίλαν ἐν πόνοισιν

ἀλύουσαν κατ᾿ ὀρθὸν οὔρισας,
695

τανῦν δ᾽ εὔπομπος, εἰ δύναιο.

Ἰοκάστη

πρὸς θεῶν δίδαξον κἄμʼ, ἄναξ, ὅτου ποτὲ

μῆνιν τοσήνδε πράγματος στήσας ἔχεις.

Οἰδίπους

ἐρῶ· σὲ γὰρ τῶνδ᾽ ἐς πλέον, γύναι, σέβω·
700

Κρέοντος, οἷά μοι βεβουλευκὼς ἔχει.

Ἰοκάστη

λέγ', εἰ σαφῶς τὸ νεῖκος ἐγκαλῶν ἐρεῖς.

Οἰδίπους

φονέα με φησὶ Λαΐου καθεστάναι.

Ἰοκάστη

αὐτὸς ξυνειδώς, ἢ μαθὼν ἄλλου πάρα;

Οἰδίπους

μάντιν μὲν οὖν κακοῦργον εἰσπέμψας, ἐπεὶ
705

τό γ᾽ εἰς ἑαυτὸν πᾶν ἐλευθεροῖ στόμα.

Ἰοκάστη

σύ νυν ἀφεὶς σεαυτὸν ὧν λέγεις πέρι

ἐμοῦ ᾿πάκουσον καὶ μάθ᾽ οὕνεκ' ἐστί σοι

βρότειον οὐδὲν μαντικῆς ἔχον τέχνης.

φανῶ δέ σοι σημεῖα τῶνδε σύντομα.
710

χρησμὸς γὰρ ἦλθε Λαΐῳ ποτ', οὐκ ἐρῶ

Φοίβου γ᾿ ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῦ, τῶν δ᾽ ὑπηρετῶν ἄπο,

ὡς αὐτὸν ἥξοι μοῖρα πρὸς παιδὸς θανεῖν,

ὅστις γένοιτ᾽ ἐμοῦ τε κἀκείνου πάρα.

καὶ τὸν μέν, ὥσπερ γ᾿ ἡ φάτις, ξένοι ποτὲ
715

λῃσταὶ φονεύουσ᾽ ἐν τριπλαῖς ἁμαξιτοῖς·

παιδὸς δὲ βλάστας οὐ διέσχον ἡμέραι

τρεῖς, καί νιν ἄρθρα κεῖνος ἐνζεύξας ποδοῖν

ἔρριψεν ἄλλων χερσὶν εἰς ἄβατον ὄρος.

κἀνταῦθ᾽ Ἀπόλλων οὔτ᾽ ἐκεῖνον ἤνυσεν
720

φονέα γενέσθαι πατρὸς οὔτε Λάϊον,

τὸ δεινὸν οὑφοβεῖτο, πρὸς παιδὸς θανεῖν.

τοιαῦτα φῆμαι μαντικαὶ διώρισαν,

ὧν ἐντρέπου σὺ μηδέν· ὧν γὰρ ἂν θεὸς

χρείαν ἐρευνᾷ ῥᾳδίως αὐτὸς φανεῖ.
725

Οἰδίπους

οἷόν μ᾽ ἀκούσαντ᾽ ἀρτίως ἔχει, γύναι,

ψυχῆς πλάνημα κἀνακίνησις φρενῶν.

Ἰοκάστη

ποίας μερίμνης τοῦθ᾽ ὑποστραφεὶς λέγεις;

Οἰδίπους

ἔδοξ᾽ ἀκοῦσαι σοῦ τόδ᾽, ὡς ὁ Λάϊος

κατασφαγείη πρὸς τριπλαῖς ἁμαξιτοῖς.
730

Ἰοκάστη

ηὐδᾶτο γὰρ ταῦτ᾽ οὐδέ πω λήξαντ' ἔχει.

Οἰδίπους

καὶ ποῦ᾽ σθ᾽ ὁ χῶρος οὗτος οὗ τόδ᾽ ἦν πάθος;

Ἰοκάστη

Φωκὶς μὲν ἡ γῆ κλῄζεται, σχιστὴ δ᾽ ὁδὸς

ἐς ταὐτὸ Δελφῶν κἀπὸ Δαυλίας ἄγει.

Οἰδίπους

καὶ τίς χρόνος τοῖσδ᾽ ἐστὶν οὐξεληλυθώς;
735

Ἰοκάστη

σχεδόν τι πρόσθεν ἢ σὺ τῆσδ᾽ ἔχων χθονὸς

ἀρχὴν ἐφαίνου τοῦτ᾽ ἐκηρύχθη πόλει.

Οἰδίπους

ὦ Ζεῦ, τί μου δρᾶσαι βεβούλευσαι πέρι;

Ἰοκάστη

τί δ᾽ ἐστί σοι τοῦτ᾽, Οἰδίπους, ἐνθύμιον;

Οἰδίπους

μήπω μ' ἐρώτα· τὸν δὲ Λάϊον φύσιν
740

τίνʼ εἶχε φράζε, τίνα δ᾽ ἀκμὴν ἥβης ἔχων.

Ἰοκάστη

μέγας, χνοάζων ἄρτι λευκανθὲς κάρα,

μορφῆς δὲ τῆς σῆς οὐκ ἀπεστάτει πολύ.

Οἰδίπους

οἴμοι τάλας· ἔοικ᾿ ἐμαυτὸν εἰς ἀρὰς

δεινὰς προβάλλων ἀρτίως οὐκ εἰδέναι.
745

Ἰοκάστη

πῶς φῄς; ὀκνῶ τοι πρὸς σ᾽ ἀποσκοποῦσ᾽, ἄναξ.

Οἰδίπους

δεινῶς ἀθυμῶ μὴ βλέπων ὁ μάντις ᾖ.

δείξεις δὲ μᾶλλον, ἢν ἓν ἐξείπῃς ἔτι.

Ἰοκάστη

καὶ μὴν ὀκνῶ μέν, ἂν δ᾽ ἔρῃ μαθοῦσ᾽ ἐρῶ.

Οἰδίπους

πότερον ἐχώρει βαιός, ἢ πολλοὺς ἔχων
750

ἄνδρας λοχίτας, οἷʼ ἀνὴρ ἀρχηγέτης;

Ἰοκάστη

πέντ᾽ ἦσαν οἱ ξύμπαντες, ἐν δ᾽ αὐτοῖσιν ἦν

κῆρυξ· ἀπήνη δ᾽ ἦγε Λάϊον μία.

Οἰδίπους

αἰαῖ, τάδ᾽ ἤδη διαφανῆ. τίς ἦν ποτὲ

ὁ τούσδε λέξας τοὺς λόγους ὑμῖν, γύναι;
755

Ἰοκάστη

οἰκεύς τις, ὅσπερ ἵκετ᾽ ἐκσωθεὶς μόνος.

Οἰδίπους

ἦ κἀν δόμοισι τυγχάνει τανῦν παρών;

Ἰοκάστη

οὐ δῆτʼ· ἀφ᾽ οὗ γὰρ κεῖθεν ἦλθε καὶ κράτη

σέ τ᾽ εἶδ' ἔχοντα Λάϊόν τ᾿ ὀλωλότα,

ἐξικέτευσε τῆς ἐμῆς χειρὸς θιγὼν
760

ἀγρούς σφε πέμψαι κἀπὶ ποιμνίων νομάς,

ὡς πλεῖστον εἴη τοῦδ᾽ ἄποπτος ἄστεως·

κἄπεμψ᾽ ἐγώ νιν· ἄξιος γὰρ *ὥς γ᾽ ἀνὴρ

δοῦλος φέρειν ἦν τῆσδε καὶ μείζω χάριν.

Οἰδίπους

πῶς ἂν μόλοι δῆθ᾽ ἡμὶν ἐν τάχει πάλιν;
765

Ἰοκάστη

πάρεστιν. ἀλλὰ πρὸς τί τοῦτ᾽ ἐφίεσαι;

Οἰδίπους

δέδοικ᾿ ἐμαυτόν, ὦ γύναι, μὴ πόλλ᾽ ἄγαν

εἰρημέν᾽ ᾖ μοι διʼ ἅ νιν εἰσιδεῖν θέλω.

Ἰοκάστη

ἀλλ᾽ ἵξεται μέν· ἀξία δέ που μαθεῖν

κἀγὼ τά γ᾽ ἐν σοὶ δυσφόρως ἔχοντ᾽, ἄναξ.
770

Οἰδίπους

Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 649-698 focus

Χορός

πιθοῦ θελήσας φρονήσας τʼ, ἄναξ, λίσσομαι.

Οἰδίπους

τί σοι θέλεις δῆτʼ εἰκάθω;
650

Χορός

τὸν οὔτε πρὶν νήπιον νῦν τʼ ἐν ὅρκῳ μέγαν καταίδεσαι.

Οἰδίπους

οἶσθʼ οὖν ἃ χρῄζεις;

Χορός

οἶδα.

Οἰδίπους

φράζε δὴ τί φής.

Χορός

τὸν ἐναγῆ φίλον μήποτʼ ἐν αἰτίᾳ
655

σὺν ἀφανεῖ λόγῳ σʼ ἄτιμον βαλεῖν.

Οἰδίπους

εὖ νυν ἐπίστω, ταῦθʼ ὅταν ζητῇς, ἐμοὶ

ζητῶν ὄλεθρον ἢ φυγὴν ἐκ τῆσδε γῆς.

660

Χορός

οὐ τὸν πάντων θεῶν θεὸν πρόμον
660

Ἅλιον· ἐπεὶ ἄθεος ἄφιλος ὅ τι πύματον

ὀλοίμαν, φρόνησιν εἰ τάνδʼ ἔχω.

ἀλλά μοι δυσμόρῳ γᾶ φθινὰς
665

τρύχει ψυχάν, τάδʼ εἰ κακοῖς κακὰ

προσάψει τοῖς πάλαι τὰ πρὸς σφῷν.

Οἰδίπους

ὁ δʼ οὖν ἴτω, κεἰ χρή με παντελῶς θανεῖν

ἢ γῆς ἄτιμον τῆσδʼ ἀπωσθῆναι βίᾳ.
670

τὸ γὰρ σόν, οὐ τὸ τοῦδʼ, ἐποικτίρω στόμα

ἐλεινόν· οὗτος δʼ ἔνθʼ ἂν ᾖ στυγήσεται.

Κρέων

στυγνὸς μὲν εἴκων δῆλος εἶ, βαρὺς δʼ, ὅταν

θυμοῦ περάσῃς· αἱ δὲ τοιαῦται φύσεις

αὑταῖς δικαίως εἰσὶν ἄλγισται φέρειν.
675

Οἰδίπους

οὔκουν μʼ ἐάσεις κἀκτὸς εἶ;

Κρέων

πορεύσομαι,

σοῦ μὲν τυχὼν ἀγνῶτος, ἐν δὲ τοῖσδʼ ἴσος.

679

Χορός

γύναι, τί μέλλεις κομίζειν δόμων τόνδʼ ἔσω;

Ἰοκάστη

μαθοῦσά γʼ ἥτις ἡ τύχη.
680

Χορός

δόκησις ἀγνὼς λόγων ἦλθε, δάπτει δὲ καὶ τὸ μὴ ʼνʼδικον.

Ἰοκάστη

ἀμφοῖν ἀπʼ αὐτοῖν;

Χορός

ναίχι.

Ἰοκάστη

καὶ τίς ἦν λόγος;

Χορός

ἅλις ἔμοιγʼ, ἅλις, γᾶς προπονουμένας,
685

φαίνεται ἔνθʼ ἔληξεν αὐτοῦ μένειν.

Οἰδίπους

ὁρᾷς ἵνʼ ἥκεις, ἀγαθὸς ὢν γνώμην ἀνήρ,

τοὐμὸν παριεὶς καὶ καταμβλύνων κέαρ;

Χορός

ὦναξ, εἶπον μὲν οὐχ ἅπαξ μόνον,
690

ἴσθι δὲ παραφρόνιμον, ἄπορον ἐπὶ φρόνιμα

πεφάνθαι μʼ ἄν, εἴ σʼ ἐνοσφιζόμαν,

ὅς τʼ ἐμὰν γᾶν φίλαν ἐν πόνοις

ἀλύουσαν κατʼ ὀρθὸν οὔρισας,
695

τανῦν τʼ εὔπομπος, ἂν γένοιο.

Ἰοκάστη

πρὸς θεῶν δίδαξον κἄμʼ, ἄναξ, ὅτου ποτὲ

μῆνιν τοσήνδε πράγματος στήσας ἔχεις.

Οἰδίπους

ἐρῶ· σὲ γὰρ τῶνδʼ ἐς πλέον, γύναι, σέβω·
700

Κρέοντος, οἷά μοι βεβουλευκὼς ἔχει.

Ἰοκάστη

λέγʼ, εἰ σαφῶς τὸ νεῖκος ἐγκαλῶν ἐρεῖς.

Οἰδίπους

φονέα με φησὶ Λαΐου καθεστάναι.

Ἰοκάστη

αὐτὸς ξυνειδὼς ἢ μαθὼν ἄλλου πάρα;

Οἰδίπους

μάντιν μὲν οὖν κακοῦργον εἰσπέμψας, ἐπεὶ
705

τό γʼ εἰς ἑαυτὸν πᾶν ἐλευθεροῖ στόμα.

Ἰοκάστη

σύ νυν ἀφεὶς σεαυτὸν ὧν λέγεις πέρι

ἐμοῦ ʼπάκουσον, καὶ μάθʼ οὕνεκʼ ἐστί σοι

βρότειον οὐδὲν μαντικῆς ἔχον τέχνης.

φανῶ δέ σοι σημεῖα τῶνδε σύντομα.
710

χρησμὸς γὰρ ἦλθε Λαΐῳ ποτʼ, οὐκ ἐρῶ

Φοίβου γʼ ἄπʼ αὐτοῦ, τῶν δʼ ὑπηρετῶν ἄπο,

ὡς αὐτὸν ἕξοι μοῖρα πρὸς παιδὸς θανεῖν,

ὅστις γένοιτʼ ἐμοῦ τε κἀκείνου πάρα.

καὶ τὸν μέν, ὥσπερ γʼ ἡ φάτις, ξένοι ποτὲ
715

λῃσταὶ φονεύουσʼ ἐν τριπλαῖς ἁμαξιτοῖς·

παιδὸς δὲ βλάστας οὐ διέσχον ἡμέραι

τρεῖς, καί νιν ἄρθρα κεῖνος ἐνζεύξας ποδοῖν

ἔρριψεν ἄλλων χερσὶν ἄβατον εἰς ὄρος.

κἀνταῦθʼ Ἀπόλλων οὔτʼ ἐκεῖνον ἤνυσεν
720

φονέα γενέσθαι πατρὸς οὔτε Λάϊον

τὸ δεινὸν οὑφοβεῖτο πρὸς παιδὸς θανεῖν.

τοιαῦτα φῆμαι μαντικαὶ διώρισαν,

ὧν ἐντρέπου σὺ μηδέν· ὧν γὰρ ἂν θεὸς

χρείαν ἐρευνᾷ, ῥᾳδίως αὐτὸς φανεῖ.
725

726

Οἰδίπους

οἷόν μʼ ἀκούσαντʼ ἀρτίως ἔχει, γύναι,

ψυχῆς πλάνημα κἀνακίνησις φρενῶν.

Ἰοκάστη

ποίας μερίμνης τοῦθʼ ὑποστραφεὶς λέγεις;

Οἰδίπους

ἔδοξʼ ἀκοῦσαι σοῦ τόδʼ, ὡς ὁ Λάϊος

κατασφαγείη πρὸς τριπλαῖς ἁμαξιτοῖς.
730

Ἰοκάστη

ηὐδᾶτο γὰρ ταῦτʼ οὐδέ πω λήξαντʼ ἔχει.

Οἰδίπους

καὶ ποῦ ʼσθʼ ὁ χῶρος οὗτος οὗ τόδʼ ἦν πάθος;

Ἰοκάστη

Φωκὶς μὲν ἡ γῆ κλῄζεται, σχιστὴ δʼ ὁδὸς

ἐς ταὐτὸ Δελφῶν κἀπὸ Δαυλίας ἄγει.

Οἰδίπους

καὶ τίς χρόνος τοῖσδʼ ἐστὶν οὑξεληλυθώς;
735

Ἰοκάστη

σχεδόν τι πρόσθεν ἢ σὺ τῆσδʼ ἔχων χθονὸς

ἀρχὴν ἐφαίνου, τοῦτʼ ἐκηρύχθη πόλει.

Οἰδίπους

ὦ Ζεῦ, τί μου δρᾶσαι βεβούλευσαι πέρι;

Ἰοκάστη

τί δʼ ἐστί σοι τοῦτʼ, Οἰδίπους, ἐνθύμιον;

Οἰδίπους

μήπω μʼ ἐρώτα· τὸν δὲ Λάϊον φύσιν
740

τίνʼ ἦλθε φράζε, τίνα δʼ ἀκμὴν ἥβης ἔχων.

Ἰοκάστη

μέγας, χνοάζων ἄρτι λευκανθὲς κάρα,

μορφῆς δὲ τῆς σῆς οὐκ ἀπεστάτει πολύ.

Οἰδίπους

οἴμοι τάλας· ἔοικʼ ἐμαυτὸν εἰς ἀρὰς

δεινὰς προβάλλων ἀρτίως οὐκ εἰδέναι.
745

Ἰοκάστη

πῶς φῄς; ὀκνῶ τοι πρός σʼ ἀποσκοποῦσʼ, ἄναξ.

Οἰδίπους

δεινῶς ἀθυμῶ μὴ βλέπων ὁ μάντις ᾖ·

δείξεις δὲ μᾶλλον, ἢν ἓν ἐξείπῃς ἔτι.

Ἰοκάστη

καὶ μὴν ὀκνῶ μέν, ἃ δʼ ἂν ἔρῃ μαθοῦσʼ ἐρῶ.

750

Οἰδίπους

πότερον ἐχώρει βαιὸς ἢ πολλοὺς ἔχων
750

ἄνδρας λοχίτας, οἷʼ ἀνὴρ ἀρχηγέτης;

Ἰοκάστη

πέντʼ ἦσαν οἱ ξύμπαντες, ἐν δʼ αὐτοῖσιν ἦν .

κῆρυξ· ἀπήνη δʼ ἦγε Λάϊον μία.

Οἰδίπους

αἰαῖ, τάδʼ ἤδη διαφανῆ. τίς ἦν ποτε

ὁ τούσδε λέξας τοὺς λόγους ὑμῖν, γύναι;
755

Ἰοκάστη

οἰκεύς τις, ὅσπερ ἵκετʼ ἐκσωθεὶς μόνος.

Οἰδίπους

ἦ κἀν δόμοισι τυγχάνει τανῦν παρών;

Ἰοκάστη

οὐ δῆτʼ· ἀφʼ οὗ γὰρ κεῖθεν ἦλθε καὶ κράτη

σέ τʼ εἶδʼ ἔχοντα Λάϊόν τʼ ὀλωλότα,

ἐξικέτευσε τῆς ἐμῆς χειρὸς θιγὼν
760

ἀγρούς σφε πέμψαι κἀπὶ ποιμνίων νομάς,

ὡς πλεῖστον εἴη τοῦδʼ ἄποπτος ἄστεως.

κἄπεμψʼ ἐγώ νιν· ἄξιος γὰρ οἷʼ ἀνὴρ

δοῦλος φέρειν ἦν τῆσδε καὶ μείζω χάριν.

Οἰδίπους

πῶς ἂν μόλοι δῆθʼ ἡμὶν ἐν τάχει πάλιν;
765

Ἰοκάστη

πάρεστιν· ἀλλὰ πρὸς τί τοῦτʼ ἐφίεσαι;

Οἰδίπους

δέδοικʼ ἐμαυτόν, ὦ γύναι, μὴ πόλλʼ ἄγαν

εἰρημένʼ ᾖ μοι διʼ ἅ νιν εἰσιδεῖν θέλω.

Ἰοκάστη

ἀλλʼ ἵξεται μέν· ἀξία δέ που μαθεῖν

κἀγὼ τά γʼ ἐν σοὶ δυσφόρως ἔχοντʼ, ἄναξ.
770

771

Οἰδίπους

κοὐ μὴ στερηθῇς γʼ, ἐς τοσοῦτον ἐλπίδων

ἐμοῦ βεβῶτος. τῷ γὰρ ἂν καὶ μείζονι

λέξαιμʼ ἂν ἢ σοί, διὰ τύχης τοιᾶσδʼ ἰών;

ἐμοὶ πατὴρ μὲν Πόλυβος ἦν Κορίνθιος,

μήτηρ δὲ Μερόπη Δωρίς. ἠγόμην δʼ ἀνὴρ
775

ἀστῶν μέγιστος τῶν ἐκεῖ, πρίν μοι τύχη

τοιάδʼ ἐπέστη, θαυμάσαι μὲν ἀξία,

σπουδῆς γε μέντοι τῆς ἐμῆς οὐκ ἀξία.

ἀνὴρ γὰρ ἐν δείπνοις μʼ ὑπερπλησθεὶς μέθῃ

καλεῖ παρʼ οἴνῳ, πλαστὸς ὡς εἴην πατρί.
780

κἀγὼ βαρυνθεὶς τὴν μὲν οὖσαν ἡμέραν

μόλις κατέσχον, θἀτέρᾳ δʼ ἰὼν πέλας

μητρὸς πατρός τʼ ἤλεγχον· οἱ δὲ δυσφόρως

τοὔνειδος ἦγον τῷ μεθέντι τὸν λόγον.

κἀγὼ τὰ μὲν κείνοιν ἐτερπόμην, ὅμως δʼ
785

ἔκνιζέ μʼ ἀεὶ τοῦθʼ· ὑφεῖρπε γὰρ πολύ.

λάθρᾳ δὲ μητρὸς καὶ πατρὸς πορεύομαι

Πυθώδε, καί μʼ ὁ Φοῖβος ὧν μὲν ἱκόμην

ἄτιμον ἐξέπεμψεν, ἄλλα δʼ ἄθλια

καὶ δεινὰ καὶ δύστηνα προύφηνεν λέγων,
790

ὡς μητρὶ μὲν χρείη με μιχθῆναι, γένος δʼ

ἄτλητον ἀνθρώποισι δηλώσοιμʼ ὁρᾶν,

φονεὺς δʼ ἐσοίμην τοῦ φυτεύσαντος πατρός.

κἀγὼ ʼπακούσας ταῦτα τὴν Κορινθίαν,

ἄστροις τὸ λοιπὸν ἐκμετρούμενος, χθόνα
795

ἔφευγον, ἔνθα μήποτʼ ὀψοίμην κακῶν

χρησμῶν ὀνείδη τῶν ἐμῶν τελούμενα.

στείχων δʼ ἱκνοῦμαι τούσδε τοὺς χώρους, ἐν οἷς

σὺ τὸν τύραννον τοῦτον ὄλλυσθαι λέγεις.

800

Οἰδίπους

καί σοι, γύναι, τἀληθὲς ἐξερῶ. τριπλῆς
800

ὅτʼ ἦ κελεύθου τῆσδʼ ὁδοιπορῶν πέλας,

ἐνταῦθά μοι κῆρύξ τε κἀπὶ πωλικῆς

ἀνὴρ ἀπήνης ἐμβεβώς, οἷον σὺ φῇς,

ξυνηντίαζον· κἀξ ὁδοῦ μʼ ὅ θʼ ἡγεμὼν

αὐτός θʼ ὁ πρέσβυς πρὸς βίαν ἠλαυνέτην.
805

κἀγὼ τὸν ἐκτρέποντα, τὸν τροχηλάτην,

παίω διʼ ὀργῆς· καί μʼ ὁ πρέσβυς ὡς ὁρᾷ,

ὄχου παραστείχοντα τηρήσας, μέσον

κάρα διπλοῖς κέντροισί μου καθίκετο.

οὐ μὴν ἴσην γʼ ἔτισεν, ἀλλὰ συντόμως
810

σκήπτρῳ τυπεὶς ἐκ τῆσδε χειρὸς ὕπτιος

μέσης ἀπήνης εὐθὺς ἐκκυλίνδεται·

κτείνω δὲ τοὺς ξύμπαντας. εἰ δὲ τῷ ξένῳ

τούτῳ προσήκει Λαΐου τι συγγενές,

τίς τοῦδέ γʼ ἀνδρός ἐστιν ἀθλιώτερος;
815

τίς ἐχθροδαίμων μᾶλλον ἂν γένοιτʼ ἀνήρ;

ὃν μὴ ξένων ἔξεστι μηδʼ ἀστῶν τινι

δόμοις δέχεσθαι μηδὲ προσφωνεῖν τινα,

ὠθεῖν δʼ ἀπʼ οἴκων. καὶ τάδʼ οὔτις ἄλλος ἦν

ἢ ʼγὼ ʼπʼ ἐμαυτῷ τάσδʼ ἀρὰς ὁ προστιθείς.
820

λέχη δὲ τοῦ θανόντος ἐκ χεροῖν ἐμαῖν

χραίνω, διʼ ὧνπερ ὤλετʼ· ἆρʼ ἔφυν κακός;

ἆρʼ οὐχὶ πᾶς ἄναγνος; εἴ με χρὴ φυγεῖν,

καί μοι φυγόντι μἤστι τοὺς ἐμοὺς ἰδεῖν

μηδʼ ἐμβατεύειν πατρίδος, ἢ γάμοις με δεῖ
825

μητρὸς ζυγῆναι καὶ πατέρα κατακτανεῖν

Πόλυβον, ὃς ἐξέφυσε κἀξέθρεψέ με.

ἆρʼ οὐκ ἀπʼ ὠμοῦ ταῦτα δαίμονός τις ἂν

κρίνων ἐπʼ ἀνδρὶ τῷδʼ ἂν ὀρθοίη λόγον;

μὴ δῆτα, μὴ δῆτʼ, ὦ θεῶν ἁγνὸν σέβας,
830

ἴδοιμι ταύτην ἡμέραν, ἀλλʼ ἐκ βροτῶν

βαίην ἄφαντος πρόσθεν ἢ τοιάνδʼ ἰδεῖν

κηλῖδʼ ἐμαυτῷ συμφορᾶς ἀφιγμένην.

834

Χορός

ἡμῖν μέν, ὦναξ, ταῦτʼ ὀκνήρʼ· ἕως δʼ ἂν οὖν

πρὸς τοῦ παρόντος ἐκμάθῃς, ἔχʼ ἐλπίδα.
835

Οἰδίπους

καὶ μὴν τοσοῦτόν γʼ ἐστί μοι τῆς ἐλπίδος,

τὸν ἄνδρα τὸν βοτῆρα προσμεῖναι μόνον.

Ἰοκάστη

πεφασμένου δὲ τίς ποθʼ ἡ προθυμία;

Οἰδίπους

ἐγὼ διδάξω σʼ· ἢν γὰρ εὑρεθῇ λέγων

σοὶ ταὔτʼ, ἔγωγʼ ἂν ἐκπεφευγοίην πάθος.
840

Ἰοκάστη

ποῖον δέ μου περισσὸν ἤκουσας λόγον;

Οἰδίπους

λῃστὰς ἔφασκες αὐτὸν ἄνδρας ἐννέπειν

ὥς νιν κατακτείνειαν. εἰ μὲν οὖν ἔτι

λέξει τὸν αὐτὸν ἀριθμόν, οὐκ ἐγὼ ʼκτανον·

οὐ γὰρ γένοιτʼ ἂν εἷς γε τοῖς πολλοῖς ἴσος·
845

εἰ δʼ ἄνδρʼ ἕνʼ οἰόζωνον αὐδήσει, σαφῶς

τοῦτʼ ἐστὶν ἤδη τοὔργον εἰς ἐμὲ ῥέπον.

Ἰοκάστη

ἀλλʼ ὡς φανέν γε τοὔπος ὧδʼ ἐπίστασο,

κοὐκ ἔστιν αὐτῷ τοῦτό γʼ ἐκβαλεῖν πάλιν·

πόλις γὰρ ἤκουσʼ, οὐκ ἐγὼ μόνη, τάδε.
850

εἰ δʼ οὖν τι κἀκτρέποιτο τοῦ πρόσθεν λόγου,

οὔτοι ποτʼ, ὦναξ, σόν γε Λαΐου φόνον

φανεῖ δικαίως ὀρθόν, ὅν γε Λοξίας

διεῖπε χρῆναι παιδὸς ἐξ ἐμοῦ θανεῖν.

καίτοι νιν οὐ κεῖνός γʼ ὁ δύστηνός ποτε
855

κατέκτανʼ, ἀλλʼ αὐτὸς πάροιθεν ὤλετο.

ὥστʼ οὐχὶ μαντείας γʼ ἂν οὔτε τῇδʼ ἐγὼ

βλέψαιμʼ ἂν εἵνεκʼ οὔτε τῇδʼ ἂν ὕστερον.

Οἰδίπους

καλῶς νομίζεις· ἀλλʼ ὅμως τὸν ἐργάτην

πέμψον τινὰ στελοῦντα μηδὲ τοῦτʼ ἀφῇς.
860

Ἰοκάστη

πέμψω ταχύνασʼ· ἀλλʼ ἴωμεν ἐς δόμους·

οὐδὲν γὰρ ἂν πράξαιμʼ ἂν ὧν οὐ σοὶ φίλον.

Translations (5)

English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906)) — 616 focus

Prudence bids hearken to such words, my lord,

For fear one fall. Swift is not sure in counsel.

OED

When he who hath designs on me is swift

In his advance, I must bethink me swiftly.

Should I wait leisurely, his work hath gained
620

Achievement, while my plans have missed success.

CR

What would you then? To thrust me from the land?

OED

Nay, death, not exile, is my wish for thee,

When all have seen what envy brings on men.

[ You’ll ne’er relent nor listen to my plea.]

OED

You’ll ne’er be governed or repent your guilt.
625

CR

Because I see thou art blind.

OED

Not to my need.

CR

Mine must be thought of too.

OED

You are a villain.

CR

How if thy thought be vain?

OED

Authority

Must be maintained.

CR

Not when authority

Declines to evil.

OED

O my citizens!

CR

I have a part in them no less than you.
630

LEADER OF CH

Cease, princes. Opportunely I behold

Jocasta coming toward you from the palace.

Her presence may attune your jarring minds.

JOCASTA
Enter JOCASTA .

Unhappy that ye are, why have ye reared

Your wordy rancour ’mid the city’s harms?

Have you no shame, to stir up private broils
635

In such a time as this? Get thee within! ()

And thou too, Creon! nor enlarge your griefs

To make a mountain out of nothingness.

CR

Sister, thy husband Oedipus declares

One of two horrors he will wreak on me,
640

Banishment from my native land, or death.

OED

Yea, for I caught him practising, my queen,

Against our person with malignant guile.

CR

May comfort fail me, and a withering curse

Destroy me, if I e’er planned aught of this.
645

JO

I pray thee, husband, listen to his plea;

Chiefly respecting his appeal to Heaven,

But also me, and these who stand by thee.

CH. 1

Incline to our request

Thy mind and heart, O King!

OED

What would you I should yield unto your prayer?
650

CH. 2

Respect one ever wise,

Whose oath protects him now.

OED

Know ye what thing ye ask?

CH. 3

I know.

OED

Then plainly tell.

CH. 4

Thy friend, who is rendered sacred by his oath,

Rob not of honour through obscure surmise.

OED

In asking that, you labour for my death

Or banishment. Of this be well assured.

CH. 5

No, by the Sun I swear,
660

Vaunt-courier of the host of heaven.
660

For may I die the last of deaths,

Unblest of God or friend,

If e’er such thought were mine.

But oh! this pining land
665

Afflicts my sorrow-burdened soul,

To think that to her past and present woe

She must add this, which springs to her from you.

OED

Then let him range, though I must die outright,

Or be thrust forth with violence from the land!
670

—Not for his voice, but thine, which wrings my heart:

He, wheresoe’er he live, shall have my hate.

CR

You show yourself as sullen when you yield,

As unendurable in your fury’s height.

Such natures justly give themselves most pain.
675

OED

Let me alone, then, and begone!

CR

I go,

Untainted in their sight, though thou art blind.

CH. 1

Lady, why tarriest thou

To lead thy husband in?

JO

Not till I learn what mischief is befallen.
680

CH. 2

A dim, unproved debate.

Reproach, though unfounded, stings.

JO

From both?

CH. 3

From both alike.

JO

How caused?

CH. 4

Enough for me,
685

Amply enough it seems, when our poor land
685

Is vexed already, not to wake what sleeps.

OED

().

See where thine honest zeal hath landed thee,

Bating my wrath, and blunting my desire!

CH. 5

My prince, I say it again:

Assure thee, I were lost to sense,

Infatuate, void of wholesome thought,
690

Could I be tempted now

To loose my faith from thee,

Who, when the land I love

Laboured beneath a wildering load,
695

Didst speed her forth anew with favouring gale.
695

Now, too, if but thou may’st, be her good guide.

JO

Let not thy queen be left in ignorance

What cause thou hadst to lift thy wrath so high.

OED

I’ll tell thee, lady, for I honour thee
700

More than these citizens. ’Twas Creon there,
700

And his inveterate treason against me.

JO

Accuse him, so you make the quarrel plain.

OED

He saith I am the murderer of the King.

JO

Speaks he from hearsay, or as one who knows?

OED

He keeps his own lips free: but hath suborned
705

A rascal soothsayer to this villany.

JO

Hearken to me, and set your heart at rest

On that you speak of, while I make you learn

No mortal thing is touched by soothsaying.

Of that I’ll give thee warrant brief and plain.
710

Word came to Laius once, I will not say

From Phoebus’ self, but from his ministers,

The King should be destroyed by his own son,

If son were born to him from me. What followed?

Laius was slain, by robbers from abroad,
715

Saith Rumour, in a cross-way! But the child

Lived not three days, ere by my husband’s hand

His feet were locked, and he was cast and left

By messengers on the waste mountain wold.

So Phoebus neither brought upon the boy
720

His father’s murder, nor on Laius

The thing he greatly feared, death by his son.

Such issue came of prophesying words.

Therefore regard them not. God can himself

With ease bring forth what for his ends he needs.
725

OED

What strange emotions overcloud my soul,

Stirred to her depths on hearing this thy tale!

JO

What sudden change is this? What cares oppress thee?

OED

Methought I heard thee say, King Laius

Was at a cross-road overpowered and slain?
730

JO

So ran the talk that yet is current here.

OED

Where was the scene of this unhappy blow?

JO

Phocis the land is named. The parted ways

Meet in one point from Dauha and from Delphi.

OED

And since the event how much of time hath flown?
735

JO

’Twas just ere you appeared with prospering speed

And took the kingdom, that the tidings came.

OED

What are thy purposes against me, Zeus?

JO

Why broods thy mind upon such thoughts, my king?

OED

Nay, ask me not! But tell me first what height
740

Had Laius, and what grace of manly prime?

JO

Tall, with dark locks just sprinkled o’er with grey:

In shape and bearing much resembling thee.

OED

O heavy fate! How all unknowingly

I laid that dreadful curse on my own head!
745

JO

How?

I tremble as I gaze on thee, my king!

OED

The fear appals me that the seer can see.

Tell one thing more, to make it doubly clear!

JO

I am lothe to speak, but, when you ask, I will.

OED

Had he scant following, or, as princes use,
750

Full numbers of a well-appointed train?

JO

There were but five in all: a herald one;

And Laius travelled in the only car.

OED

Woe! woe! ’Tis clear as daylight. Who was he

That brought you this dire message, O my queen?
755

JO

A home-slave, who alone returned alive.

OED

And is he now at hand within the house?

JO

No, truly. When he came from yonder scene

And found thee king in room of Laius murdered,

He touched my hand, and made his instant prayer

That I would send him to o’erlook the flocks
760

And rural pastures, so to live as far

As might be from the very thought of Thebes.

I granted his desire. No servant ever

More richly merited such boon than he.

OED

Can he be brought again immediately?
765

JO

Indeed he can. But why desire it so?

OED

Words have by me been uttered, O my queen,

That give me too much cause to wish him here.

JO

Then come he shall. But I may surely claim

To hear what in thy state goes heavily.
770

OED

German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 616 focus

Sein Wort beachte, wer sich vor dem Falle scheut,

König; denn die Schnellentschloss'nen straucheln leicht.
610

Oedipus.

Kommt Einer, der mir heimlich nachstellt, schnell daher,

So muß auch ich schnell wider ihn entschlossen sein.

Denn wollt' ich sorglos harren, ist, was jener sinnt,

Zum Ziel gelangt, und mein Beginnen ist umsonst.

Kreon.

Was also willst du? Treibst du mich zum Land hinaus?
615

Oedipus.

Mit nichten: sterben sollst du, nicht von hinnen flieh'n.

Kreon.

Sobald du zeigtest, was du so mir grollen darfst.

Oedipus.

Nicht unterwerfen willst du dich und glaubst mir nicht?

Kreon.

Nicht klug ja bist du, seh' ich wohl.

Nicht minder mußt du mir es sein.
620

Und wenn du irrtest? Für mich gewiß.

Du bist ein Schalk!

Oedipus.

Doch gehorchen mußt du mir.

Kreon.

Dem ungerechten Herrscher nie!

Oedipus.

Stadt, o Stadt!

Kreon.

Theilnahme gönnt auch mir die Stadt, nicht dir allein.

Der Chor.

Laßt ab, Gebieter! Ganz gelegen seh' ich euch

Iokasten aus dem Hause nah'n, mit welcher ihr
625

Den jezt erhobnen Hader wohl vermitteln müßt.

Jokaste. Die Vorigen.

Jokaste.

Was weckt ihr unbesonnen, ihr Unseligen,

Der Zungen Aufruhr und erröthet nicht und schafft

Euch eignes Leid noch, während also krankt das Land?

Geh du nach Hause, du, o Kreon, eile heim,
630

Und macht zu großem Leide nicht ein eitles Nichts!

Kreon.

Schwester, Arges mir zu thun sinnt Dedipus,

Dein Gatte, der von zweien Uebeln eines mir,

Flucht aus der Heimat oder hier den Tod, verhängt.

Oedipus.

So ist es: eben überführt' ich ihn, o Frau,
635

Der Böses meinem Leben sann mit böser List.

Kreon.

Nie sei ich glücklich, will, verflucht, zu Grunde geh'n,

That ich dir Eines, wessen du mich schuldig nenust!

Jokaste.

O bei den Göttern, glaube diesem Wort, o Herr,

Vor Allem scheuend, was er hier den Göttern schwur,
640

Dann mich und diese Männer, die dir nahe steh'n!

Der Chor.

Gib willig nach, Herr, o gib klüglich nach, fleh' ich dir!

Oedipus.

Wo, willst du, daß ich folgen soll?

Der Chor.

Der nie zuvor thöricht war,

Nun durch Eid heilig ist, veracht' ihn nicht!¹
645

Oedipus.

Bedenkst du, was du forderst?

Der Chor.

Ia!

Oedipus.

So rede denn!

Der Chor.

wirf auf den Freund, der durch den Fluch sich band,

Nicht ehrlose Schuld in grundlosem Wahn.

Oedipus.

So wisse: wenn du dieses willst, so willst du mein

Verderben oder meine Flucht aus diesem Land.
650

Der Chor.

Nein, bei'm Gott, aller Götter erstem, dem Helios!²

Freundlos, ohne Gott, mög' in Graus

Ich hinsterben, heg' ich solch argen Sinn!

Doch das Land schmerzt mich tief, das in Sammer schwindet,³

Wenn sich noch zur alten Noth
655

Gesellt dies neue Leid von euch her.

Oedipus.

So mag er gehen, müßt' ich ganz verderben auch,

Und würd' ich ehrlos mit Gewalt vom Land gejagt.

Die Klage deines Mundes, nicht die seine, stimmt

Mich milder; dieser, wo er sei, bleibt mir verhaßt.
660

Kreon.

Voll Hasses, seh' ich, gibst du nach; doch wann der Zorn

Verbraust, bereust du. Solcher Art Naturen sind

Sich selbst mit Recht unleidlich und die herbste Qual.

Oedipus.

So laß mich und entferne dich!

Kreon.

Ich eile fort,

Von dir verkannt, vor diesen aber rein, wie sonst.
665
Oedipus. Jokaste. Der Chor. (ab.)

Der Chor.

Warum, o Frau, säumst du noch, führst den Mann nicht in's Haus?

Jokaste.

Erst möcht' ich wissen, was gescheh'n.

Der Chor.

Verdacht entspann sich ohne Grund;

Denn es kränkt auch das ungerechte Wort.

Jokaste.

Durch Schuld der Beiden?
670

Der Chor.

Freilich.

Jokaste.

Und wie kam es so?

Der Chor.

Sei es genug, genug bei der gemeinen Noth!

Ruhe der Hader dort, wo er sein Ende fand!

Oedipus.

Sieh, wo du hinkommst, wenn du, Mann von edler Art,

Von mir dich abkehrst, meinen Zorn zu brechen suchst.

Der Chor.

Nicht Einmal nur, o König, sagt' ich es; wisse denn:
675

Ein sinnloser Thor müßt' ich sein,

Fürst, hielt' ich nicht an dir fest und treu,

Der du mein theures Land, das in Noth umhertrieb,

Unter guten Wind gelenkt:

Auch jezt führ' uns auf rechtem Pfade!
680

Jokaste.

Bei allen Göttern, offenbar' auch mir, o Fürst,

Um welche That dir solcher Groll die Brust erfüllt.

Oedipus.

So höre (denn dich acht' ich mehr als diese, Frau,)

Von Kreon, was er Arges mir ersonnen hat.

Jokaste.

Sprich, wenn du wahrhaft ihn des Streites zeihen kannst.
685

Oedipus.

Von meinen Händen, sagt er aus, fiel Laïos.

Jokaste.

Aus eignem Anschau'n oder auf ein fremdes Wort?

Oedipus.

Den Tückebold, den Seher, schickt er mir daher,

Und rein von Allem hält er sich den eignen Mund.

Jokaste.

Entschlag' um diese Dinge dich der Sorge nun,
690

Und höre mich und wisse: nie befand sich noch

Ein sterblich Wesen im Besiz der Seherkunst.

Hiefür Beweise geb' ich dir in kurzem Wort.

Einst ward ein Spruch dem Laïos, ich behaupte nicht

Von Phöbos selbst, nein aus der Diener Munde nur:
695

Ihm sei das Loos beschieden, durch des Sohnes Hand

Zu sterben, den er zeugen würd' aus meinem Schooß.

Und den erschlugen, wie der Ruf uns meldete,

Einst fremde Räuber auf dem dreigespalt'nen Weg;

Der Sprößling aber hatte noch drei Tage nicht
700

Geseh'n, da jener mit gebundnen Füßen ihu

In öd' Gebirge werfen hieß durch fremde Hand.

So hat's Apollon nicht erfüllt, daß er den Mord

An seinem Vater übte, noch daß Laïos

Das Grause, das ihn schreckte, litt durch Sohneshand.⁴
705

Und solches hatten Sehersprüche vorbestimmt;

Drum achte nicht auf diese. Was der Gott einmal

Werth achtet auszugründen, leicht enthüllt er's selbst.

Oedipus.

Frau, wie befällt mich plözlich über deinem Wort

Irrsal des Geistes, wie bewegt's mein Innerstes!
710

Jokaste.

Welch neue Sorge regt dich auf, wie sprichst du so?

Oedipus.

Du sagtest eben, mein' ich, daß den Laïos

Auf dreigespaltnem Wege schlug die Mörderhand.

Jokaste.

So ward's erzählt, und noch verklang die Sage nicht.

Oedipus.

Wo liegt die Gegend, da der Mord vollendet ward?
715

Jokaste.

Das Land benennt sich Phokis, und zwei Wege zieh'n

Sich dort in Eins, von Delphi her und Daulia.

Oedipus.

Und welche Zeit ist über dem vorbeigefloh'n?

Jokaste.

Nur wenig früher, ehe du als Herrscher hier

Auftrat'st im Lande, ward es kundgethan der Stadt.
720

Oedipus.

Was hast du, Zeus, beschlossen wider mich zu thun?

Jokaste.

Wie mag dir dies zu Herzen gehen, Dedipus?

Oedipus.

Noch frage das nicht; aber wie war Laïos

Gestaltet, sage, wie gereift in Manneskraft?

Jokaste.

Groß war er; eben graute kaum sein wollig Haar;⁵
725

Auch wich die Bildung nicht um viel von deiner ab.

Oedipus.

Weh, weh mir! Also hätt' ich selbst unwissentlich

Mich heut in grause Flüche wohl hinabgestürzt!

Jokaste.

Was sagst du? Zitternd scheu' ich, Herr, dich anzuseh'n.

Oedipus.

Voll Grau'n erfaßt mich's, daß der Deuter sehend war.
730

Doch klarer wird mir's, wenn du nur noch Eines sagst.

Jokaste.

Wohl zittr' ich; dennoch, was du fragst, erwide' ich dir.

Oedipus.

Zog Laïos nur mit Wenigen, oder folgten ihm

Zahlreiche Krieger als des Landes hohem Herrn?

Jokaste.

Es waren fünf in Allem, unter ihnen Ein
735

Herold, und bloß Ein Wagen trug den Laïos.

Oedipus.

Weh, wehe! Schon ist Alles klar! Wer war es denn,

Der diese Botschaft euch gebracht, o Königin?

Ein Diener, der allein gerettet wiederkam.

Und ist er hier anwesend und im Hause noch?
740

Jokaste.

Nicht mehr. Sobald er, heimgekehrt, in deiner Hand

Die Macht gewahrte, Laïos gestorben sah,

So bat er innig, meine Hand ergreifend, ihn

Auf's Land hinauszusenden zu der Heerden Hut,

Um weit vom Anblick dieser Stadt entfernt zu sein.
745

Und ich entließ ihn; denn er schien, als treuer Knecht,

Mir größrer Wohlthat würdig noch denn dieser Gunst.

Oedipus.

käm' er ohne Säumen uns hieher zurück!

Das kann er; doch zu welchem Zwecke willst du dies?

Mir bangt, o Fürstin, daß ich allzuviel bereits
750

Geredet, weßhalb mich verlangt den Mann zu seh'n.

Jokaste.

So mag er kommen. Doch auch ich bin würdig wohl,

Zu hören, was dir, König, so das Herz beschwert.

Oedipus.

English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 616 focus

O king ! his caution merits your regard ;

Who judge in haste do seldom judge aright.

Oedipus

When they are quick who plot against my life,

'Tis fit I should be quick in my defence ;

If I am tame and silent, all they wish
620

Will soon be done, and CEdipus must fall.

Creon

What wouldst thou have ? my banishment ?

Oedipus

Thy death,

Creon

But first inform me wherefore I should die.
625

Oedipus

Dost thou rebel then ? Wilt thou not submit ?
625

Creon

Not when I see thee thus deceived.

Oedipus

'Tis fit

I should defend my own.

Creon

And so should I.

Oedipus

Thou art a traitor.

Creon

AVhat if it should prove

I am not so.

Oedipus

A king must be obeyed.

Creon

Not if his orders are unjust.

Oedipus

O Thebes !

O citizens !

Creon

I too can call on Thebes \
630

She is my country.
630

Chorus

Oh ! no more, my lords ;

For see, Jocasta comes in happiest hour

To end your contest.

Jocasta
Scene III.

C'reon, OIdipus, Chorus.

Joe. Whence this sudden tumult ?
635

O princes ! Is this well, at such a time

With idle broils to multiply the woes

Of wretched Thebes? Home, home, for shame ! nor

thus

With private quarrels swell the public ruin.

Creon

Sister, thy husband hath most basely used

me;

He threatens me with banishment or death.
640

GEdi. I do confess it ; for he did conspire
640

With vile and Avicked arts against my life.

Creon

Oh ! may I never prosper, but accursed,

XJnpitied, perish if I ever did.

Joe. Believe him, CEdipus ; revere the gods

Whom he contests, if thou dost love Jocasta ;
645

Thy subjects beg it of thee.
645

Chorus

Hear, O king !

Consider, we entreat thee.

Think you I'll e'er submit to him?

Chorus
(Em. What wouldst have ?

Revere

His character, his oath, both pleading for him.

Oedipus

But know you what you ask?

Chorus

We do.

Chorus
(Edi. What is it ?

We ask thee to believe a guiltless friend,

Nor cast him forth dishonoured thus, on slight

Suspicion's weak surmise.

Oedipus

Bequesting this,

You do request my banishment, or death.

Chorus

No ; by yon leader of the heavenly host,
660

iao

Th' immortal sun, 1 liail not such a thought ;

I only felt for Thebes' distressful state,
665

And would not have it by domestic strife

Embittered thus.

Oedipus

Why, let liim then depart :

If G^dipus must die, or leave his country

For shameful exile, be it so ; 1 yield
670

To thy request, not his ; for hateful still

Shall Cieon ever be.

Creon

Thy stubborn soul

Bends with reluctance, and when anger fiies it

Is terrible ; but natures formed like thine

Are their own punishment.
675

Oedipus

Wilt thou not hence 1

Wilt not begone ?

Creon

I go ; thou knowst me not ;

But these will do me justice. [Exit Creon.

Jocasta
Scene IV.

(EdIPUS, ChORUS.

Chorus

Princess, now

Persuade him to retire.

Joe. First, let me know

The cause of this dissension.

Chorus

From reports

Uncertain, and suspicions most injurious.

The quarrel rose.

Joe. Was th' accusation mutual 1

Chorus

It was.
685

Joe. AVhat followed then ?

Chorus

Ask me no more ;

Enough 's already known ; we '11 not repeat
690

The woes of hapless Thebes.

. CEdi. You are all blind,

Insensible, unjust; you love me not,
695

Yet boast your piety.

Jocasta

I said before.

Again I say, that not to love my king

E'en as myself, would mark me for the worst

Of men. For thou didst save expiring Thebes.

Chorus

I'll tell thee, my Jocasta, for thou knowst

The love I bear thee, what this wicked Creon

Did artfully devise against me.

Joe. Speak it,

If he indeed be guilty.

That I did murder Laius.

Joe. Spake he this

As knowing it himself, or from another ?

And sharpens every tongue against his king.

Joe. Let not a fear perplex thee, (Edipus ;

Mortals know nothing of futurity,

And these prophetic seers are all impostors ;

I'll prove it to thee. Know then, Laius once,

Not from Apollo, but his priests, received

An oracle, which said it was decreed
755

He should be slain by his own son, the offspring
755

Of Laius and Jocasta. Yet he fell
755

By strangers, murdered, for so fame reports,
755

By robbers, in the place where_three Avays meet.
755

A son was born, but ere three days had passed
755

The infant's feet were bored. A servant took
755

And left him on the pathless mountain's top.
755

To perish there. Thus Phoebus ne'er decreed
755

That he should kill his father, or that Laius,
755

Which much he feared, should by his son be slain.
755

Such is the truth of oracles. Henceforth
755

Regard them not. What heaven would have us know,}'
755

It can with ease unfold, and will reveal it. ^
755

Oedipus
(Edi. Creon says (Edi. He had suborned that evil-working priest,

What thou hast said, Jocasta, much disturbs

me;

I tremble at it.

Joe. Wherefore shouldst thou fear ?

Oedipus

Methought I heard thee say, Laius was slain
765

Where three ways meet.
765

Joe. 'Twas so reported then,
765

And is so still.
765

Oedipus

Where happened the misfortune 1

Joe. In Phocis, where the roads unite that lead ^

To Delphi and to Daulia.

Joe. A little time ere you began to reign

O'er Thebes, we heard it.

Oedipus
(Edi. How long since ?

English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 616 focus

Doth himself equal wrong as if he threw

His life away, which is most dear to him.
625

This thou wilt know in time; for time alone

Shows a just man; the base a day unveils.

Chorus

His words are wise: beware, O king, nor err

Through passion: quick resolves are oft unsafe.

Oedipus

When quick the lurking traitor 'gainst my life

Advances, me behoves a quick defence:

If I am still, and linger, his designs

Will be achiev'd, and my slow measures fail.

What wou'dst thou then? My exile from this land ?

Oedipus

No: not thy exile would I, but thy death.

Creon

When thou hast shown me guilty of some crime.

Oedipus

Thou speak'st as one refusing to obey.

Creon

Because I see thee not by wisdom ruled.

Oedipus

For mine own welfare wisely I provide.

Creon

Mine claims an equal care.
630

But thou art base.
630

What, though no crime thou know'st?
630

Thou shou'dst not be a tyrant.
630

I will be king.
630

Thebes, O Thebes!
630

Thebes is not thine alone: some share is mine.
630

Chorus

Princes forbear: in happy hour, behold,

Jocasta comes; her prudence may prevail,

And in this fiery contest mediate peace.

Jocasta
JOCASTA, CŒDIPUS, CREON, CHORUS.

Why, indiscreetly why this strife of words,

Unhappy princes, have you raised, nor blush,

Creon

Your country with afflictions thus oppress'd,

To stir up private contest? Wilt not thou
640

Nor add a causeless grief to weighty woes?

Alas, my sister, with injurious rage

Exile or death, against me to enforce.
645

Oedipus
Enter these gates? Thou, Creon, hence depart,

I own it: for I found him with base arts

Against my person plotting base designs.

If I have done this, of this heinous charge

If I am guilty, let me not enjoy

The light of heav'n, but fall a wretch accurs'd.

Believe him, I conjure thee by the gods,

Jocasta

In this believe him, Edipus; regard

His sacred oath, and me, and these thy friends.

Chorus

I too entreat thee, be persuaded, king:

What wou'dst thou I should yield?

With wisdom yield.

Chorus

To reverence him, not weakly justified

Oedipus

Know'st thou what thou wou'dst ask?

Chorus

Full well.

Oedipus

Then speak..

Before, but by his oath more strongly now.

Chorus

On dark suspicion charge not, nor disgrace

With blame a friend, who thus attests the gods.

Oedipus

Now be assured that, seeking this, thou seek'st

My ruin, or my exile from this land.

Chorus

No: by the brightest of the pow'rs of heav'n,
660

The Sun, of every god, of every friend
660

Abandon'd may I perish, sunk in deep

Perdition, if I e'er had such a thought.

My country's ruin rends my bleeding heart:
665

And greater were my grief, to former ills,

If ills were added from your contest sprung.

Oedipus

Then let him go, e'en though I needs must die,

Or from this country with disgrace be driven.
670

Thy mournful plea, not his, my pity moves;

Him shall my hate, where'er he goes, pursue..

Creon

Harsh art thou e'en in yielding; when thy rage

Works its fell purpose, dreadful: souls like thine

Justly bring keenest tortures on themselves.
675

Oedipus

Then leave me to myself: begone.

Creon

I go,

To thee perchance not known; but still by these,

Just to my innocence, in honour held.

Chorus
CEDIPUS, JOCASTA, CHORUS.

Why, lady, this delay to lead him hence ?

Jocasta

First what hath happen'd here I wish to know.

Chorus

Words of dark import gave suspicion birth :

Hence an injurious charge which gnaws the heart.

Jocasta

From each to each?

E'en so.

And what the cause?

Chorus

Enough, for me enough, my country sunk
685

With such afflictions, where they cease to cease.

Oedipus

I know thee wise and good; why then persist

Thus to depress me, and to damp my heart?

Chorus

Let me repeat what I before declared.

Know then, O king, I must be deem'd of sense

Bereft, and lost to wisdom, if in thought
690

I could abandon thee. Thou once didst raise

This my dear country when with ills depress'd;

If thou hast pow'r, to safety guide us now.

Now, by the gods, inform me whence this rage,
695

That with such fury flames, O king, arose.

Oedipus

I will inform thee (for than these more high

Jocasta

I reverence thee) of Creon's base designs.

Speak, if accusing him thy proof be clear.

Oedipus

He saith I murder'd Laius.

Said he this

Jocasta

On his own knowledge, or from others heard?

Oedipus

The prophet prompt to mischief he suborn'd,
705

Whose rude licentious tongue knows no restraint.
705

Think of thyself, respecting this, no more.
705

Hear me, and be assured no mortal man
705

Knows by prophetic art events to come ;
705

Of this I give thee a decisive proof.
705

To Laius once an oracle announced
705

(I will not say that from the god it came,
705

But from his ministers) that time should bring
705

On him this fate, to fall beneath a son
705

That should his birth from him and me derive.
705

Yet foreign ruffians him, as fame reports,
705

Murder'd where three ways meet. A son was born;

Not three days pass'd, the infant's feet he bound,

Piercing the nerves, and by another's hand

Upon a desert mountain cast him forth.

The consummation then, that he should slay

His father, or that Laius by his son

Should fall, a fate so dreadful to his thoughts,

Phœbus achieved not; yet th' oracular voice

Decreed these things: regard them not: the god,

What from his hallow'd shrine he gave command

To trace, to your inquiries will disclose.

Oedipus

What wild amazement, lady, at thy words

Seizes my troubled thoughts, and shakes my soul.

Jocasta

What perturbation moves thee thus to speak?

Oedipus

Methought I heard thee say that Laius fell,

Murder'd by ruffian force, where three ways meet
730

Jocasta

Such was the rumour then: it still prevails.

Oedipus

Where? In what land befel this dire event?

Jocasta

Phocis the realm is call'd; the separate roads

From Delphi and from Daulia there unite.

Oedipus

What length of time, since this was done, hath pass'd?
735

Jocasta

Short time before the regal crown of Thebes

Shone on thy brows, these tidings reach'd the state.

Oedipus

To me, O Jove, what fate hast thou decreed ?

Jocasta

Why hath a thought like this possess'd thy soul ?

Oedipus

No questions now; but tell me what the form
740

Of Laius, what his stature, and his age.

Jocasta

Tall, and of manly port; his locks just tinged

With gray; his form not much unlike to thine.

Oedipus

O wretched me! Unweeting on myself

What dreadful curses have I here denounced!
745

Jocasta

Why this? I tremble as I look on thee.

Oedipus

Greatly I fear the prophet sees too well.

Yet one thing more : That will give clearer light.

Jocasta

I tremble; yet whate'er I know will speak.

Oedipus

Went he with few; or, as became a king,
750

With many guards attendant on his state?
750

Without more train than five, an herald one

Of these; a single chariot bore the king.

Oedipus

Ah wretched me! All now is clear indeed.

Jocasta

What man was he who this relation brought ?

Jocasta

A menial servant, who alone escaped.

Oedipus

Is he now here attending in the house ?

Jocasta

No: for returning thence when thee he saw

Holding the sovereign power, and Laius dead,

Touching my hand me suppliant he implored
760

Some rural charge among the pastured herds

To give him, that within the walls of Thebes

He seldom might be seen: I sent him: this,

And greater grace he, though a slave, deserved.

Oedipus

Let him with swiftest speed then be recall'd.
765

Jocasta

He shall. But why to see him this desire ?

Oedipus

I for myself have fears: much hath been said,

Which prompts my eager wish to see this man.

Jocasta

He soon will come. But am not I, O king,

Worthy what thus distracts thy thoughts to know ?
770

Oedipus

English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904)) — 649-698 focus

Chorus

Consent, reflect, listen, my king, I beg you.

Oedipus

What would you have me grant you?
650

Chorus

Respect him who was in the past not foolish, and who now is strong in his oath.

Oedipus

Do you understand what you crave?

Chorus

I do.

Oedipus

Tell me, then, what you mean.
655

Chorus

That you should never use an unproved rumor to cast a dishonoring charge on the friend who has bound himself with a curse.

Oedipus

Then be quite aware that when you seek this you are seeking death or exile from this land for me.

660

Chorus

No, by the god that stands at the head of all the host of the gods, no, by the sun. Unblest, unbefriended, may I die the worst possible death, if I have this thought!
660

But my unhappy soul is worn by the withering of the land, as well as by the thought that our old sorrows should be crowned by new ones arising from the two of you.
665

Oedipus

Then let him go, though I am surely doomed to be killed

or thrust dishonored from the land. Your words, not his, move me to compassion; but he, wherever he be, shall be hated.
670

Creon

You are truly sullen in yielding, as you are vehement in the excesses of your wrath. But such natures are

justly most difficult for themselves to bear.
675

Oedipus

Will you not be gone and leave me in peace?

Creon

I will go on my way. I have found you undiscerning, but in the view of these men I am just. He exits.

678

Chorus

Lady, why do you hesitate to take this man into the house?

Iocasta

I will, when I have learned what has happened.
680

Chorus

Blind suspicion, bred of talk, arose, and injustice inflicts wounds.

Iocasta

On both sides?

Chorus

Yes.

Iocasta

And what was the story?

Chorus

It is enough, I think, enough, when our land is already vexed, that the matter should rest where it stopped.
685

Oedipus

Do you see to what you have come, for all your noble intent, in seeking to slacken and blunt my zeal?

Chorus

King, I have said it more than once—

be sure that I would have proved myself a madman, bankrupt in sane counsel, if I forsook you—you, who gave a true course to my beloved country when it was
690

distraught with troubles, and who now are likely to prove our prospering guide.
695

Iocasta

In the name of the gods, tell me, king, the reason that you have conceived this steadfast wrath.

Oedipus

That I will do, for I honor you, lady, above these men. Creon is the cause, and the plots he has laid against me.
700

Iocasta

Come, tell me how the argument began.

Oedipus

He says that I stand guilty of Laius’ blood.

Iocasta

On his own knowledge or on hearsay from another?

Oedipus

He has made a rascal seer his mouth piece: as for himself, he keeps his lips wholly pure.
705

Iocasta

Then absolve yourself of the things about which you are speaking. Listen to me, and take comfort in learning that nothing of mortal birth shares in the science of the seer.

I will give you a pithy proof of this. An oracle came to Laius once—I will not say from Phoebus himself, but from his ministers—saying that he would suffer his doom at the hands of the child to be born to him and me.
710

And Laius—as, at least, the rumor goes—was murdered one day by foreign robbers at a place where the three highways meet. And the child’s birth was not yet three days past, when Laius pinned his ankles together and had him thrown, by others’ hands, on a remote mountain.
715

So, in that case, Apollo did not bring it to pass that the child should become the slayer of his father, or that Laius should suffer that which he feared, death at the hands of his child: thus the messages of the seer’s art had mapped out the future. Pay them no regard. Whatever necessary event
720

the god seeks, he himself will easily bring to light.
725

726

Oedipus

What restlessness of soul, lady, what tumult has come upon me since I heard you speak!

Iocasta

What anxiety has startled you, that you say this?

Oedipus

I thought that I heard this from you—that Laius

was slain where the three roads meet.
730

Icasta

Yes, that was the report, and so it is still thought.

Oedipus

And where is the place where this occurred?

Iocasta

The land is called Phocis ; the branching forks lead to the same spot from Delphi and from Daulia.

Oedipus

And how much time has passed since these events took place?
735

Iocasta

The news was announced to the town shortly before you first attained power over this land.

Oedipus

O Zeus, what have you decreed for me?

Iocasta

Why, Oedipus, does this matter weigh upon your heart?

Oedipus

Do not ask me yet. Tell me rather what stature Laius had, and how ripe his manhood was.
740

Iocasta

He was tall—the silver just lightly strewn among his hair—and his form was not greatly unlike your own.

Oedipus

Unhappy that I am! I think that I have

laid myself under a terrible curse without realizing it.
745

Iocasta

How do you mean? I tremble when I look at you, my lord.

Oedipus

I have dread fears that the seer can see. But you will reveal the matter better if you tell me one thing more.

Iocasta

Indeed, though I tremble, I will hear and answer all that you ask.

750

Oedipus

Did he go with a small force, or like a chieftain, with many armed followers?
750

Iocasta

Five they were in all—a herald among them—and there was one carriage which bore Laius.

Oedipus

Alas! It is all clear now! Who gave you this information, lady?
755

Iocasta

A servant, the only survivor who returned home.

Oedipus

Is he by any chance in the house now?

Iocasta

No. Soon after he returned and found you ruling in Laius’ stead,

he pled with me, with hand laid on mine, to send him to the fields, to the pastures of the flocks, that he might be far from the sight of this town. And I sent him; he was worthy, for a slave, to win even a larger favor than that.
760

Oedipus

Would, then, that he return to us without delay!
765

Iocasta

That is easy. But why do you enjoin this?

Oedipus

I fear, lady, that my words have been rash, and therefore I wish to see him.

Iocasta

He will come. But I think that

I too have a claim to learn what lies heavy on your heart, my king.
770

771

Oedipus

It will not be kept from you, now that my forebodings have advanced so far. To whom more than to you would I speak in suffering such a fortune as this? My father was Polybus of Corinth ,

my mother the Dorian Merope. I was considered the greatest of the folk in that town, until a chance event befell me, worthy, indeed, of wonder, though not of my overreaction regarding it. At a banquet, a man drunk with wine
775

cast it at me that I was not the true son of my father. And I, vexed, restrained myself for that day as best as I could, but on the next went to my mother and father and questioned them. They were angry at the one who had let this taunt fly.
780

So I had comfort about them, but the matter rankled in my heart, for such a rumor still spread widely. I went to Delphi without my parents’ knowledge, and Phoebus sent me forth disappointed of the knowledge for which I had come,
785

but in his response set forth other things, full of sorrow and terror and woe: that I was fated to defile my mother’s bed, that I would reveal to men a brood which they could not endure to behold, and that I would slay the father that sired me. When I heard this, I turned in flight from the land of Corinth ,
790

from then on thinking of it only by its position under the stars, to some spot where I should never see fulfillment of the infamies foretold in my evil fate. And on my way I came to the land in which you say that this prince perished.
795

800

Now, lady, I will tell you the truth. When on my journey I was near those three roads, there I met a herald, and a man in a carriage drawn by colts, as you have described. The leader and the old man
800

himself tried to thrust me rudely from the path. Then, in anger, I struck the one pushing me aside, the driver, and the old man, when he saw this, watched for the moment I was passing, and from his carriage, brought his double goad straight down on my head.
805

Yet he was paid back with interest: with one swift blow from the staff in this hand he rolled right out of the carriage onto his back. I slew every one of them. But if this stranger had any tie of kinship to Laius,
810

who is now more wretched than this man before you? What mortal could be proved more hateful to the gods? No stranger, no citizen, is allowed to receive him at home, it is unlawful for anyone to accost him, and all must push him from their homes. And this—this curse—
815

was laid on me by no other mouth than my own. And I pollute the bed of the slain man with the hands by which he perished. Am I now vile? Oh, am I not utterly unclean, seeing that I must be banished, and in banishment neither see my own people,
820

nor set foot in my own land, or else be joined in wedlock to my mother, and slay my father Polybus, who sired and reared me? Then would he who judged these things to be sent down by some cruel divinity not be right about Oedipus?
825

Prevent, prevent, you pure and awful gods, me from ever seeing that day! No, may I be swept away from all men, before I see myself visited with that brand of doom.
830

834

Chorus

To us, king, these things are fraught with fear. Yet have hope, until at least you have gained full knowledge

from the one who saw the deed.
835

Oedipus

I have, in truth, this much hope alone: I await the man summoned from the pastures.

Iocasta

And what do you want from him when he appears?

Oedipus

I will tell you. If his story is found

to match withwith yours, I at least, will stand clear of disaster.
840

Iocasta

And what special note did you hear from me?

Oedipus

You said that he spoke of Laius as slain by robbers. If, then, he still speaks of several as before, I was not the slayer:

a solitary man could not be considered the same as that band. But if he names one lonely wayfarer, then beyond doubt this guilt rests upon me.
845

Iocasta

Be assured that thus, at least, the tale was first told. He cannot revoke that,

for the city heard it, not I alone. But even if he should diverge somewhat from his former story, never, king, can he show that the murder of Laius, at least, is truly square with the prophecy, for Loxias plainly said that he was to die at the hand of my child.
850

How was it then that that poor innocent never slew him, but perished first? From now on then, as far as divination goes, I would not look to my right hand or my left.
855

Oedipus

You are right. But nevertheless send someone to fetch the peasant,

and do not neglect this matter.
860

Iocasta

I will send for him without delay. But let us go into the house: I will do nothing which does not please you. Exeunt Oedipus and Iocasta.

Notes on the current edition

Oedipus Tyrannus

1. Campbell cites line 699, which is not represented by the same numbered line span in the Storr reference XML; the link targets the narrowest available Storr passage, 698-700.

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-137-1 Ἄρεά τε ¹ μαλερόν ² ἄχαλκος ἀσπίδων ³

mvp-comment-138-1 περιβόατον ⁴ ἀντιάζω ⁵

mvp-comment-139-1 νωτίσαι ⁶ δράμημα ⁷ πάτρας ⁸

mvp-comment-140-1 ἔπουρον ⁹ μέγαν | θάλαμον Ἀμφιτρίτας ¹⁰ μέγαν ¹¹

mvp-comment-141-1 ἀπόξενον ¹²

mvp-comment-141-2 ἀπόξενος ὅρμος ¹³

mvp-comment-142-1 τελεῖν γὰρ … ἔρχεται ¹⁴ τελεῖν ¹⁵ τελεῖν ¹⁶ τέλει ¹⁷

mvp-comment-142-2 εἰ … ἀφῇ ¹⁸

mvp-comment-143-1 ἐπ’ … ἔρχεται ¹⁹

mvp-comment-144-1 τόν ²⁰

mvp-comment-145-1 Λύκειε ²¹

mvp-comment-146-1 ἀγκυλᾶν ²²

mvp-comment-147-1 ἐνδατεῖσθαι ²³

mvp-comment-148-1 προσταθέντα ²⁴

mvp-comment-149-1 Ἀρτέμιδος αἴγλας ²⁵

mvp-comment-150-1 Λύκῑ ὄρεα διᾴσσει ²⁶ Λύκια ²⁷

mvp-comment-151-1 τὸν χρυσομίτραν ²⁸

mvp-comment-152-1 τᾶσδ’ ἐπώνυμον γᾶς ²⁹

mvp-comment-153-1 οἰνῶπα … εὔιον ³⁰

mvp-comment-154-1 Μαινάδων ὁμόστολον ³¹

mvp-comment-155-1 ἀγλαῶπι ³² σύμμαχον ³³

mvp-comment-156-1 τὸν ἀπότιμον ³⁴

mvp-comment-156-2 θεόν ³⁵

mvp-comment-157-1 αἰτεῖς ³⁶ ἃ δ’ αἰτεῖς ³⁷ τἄμ’ ³⁸

mvp-comment-158-1 κλύων ³⁹ δέχεσθαι ⁴⁰ τῇ νόσῳ ὑπηρετεῖν ⁴¹

mvp-comment-159-1 ἀλκὴν ⁴² ἀνακούφισιν ⁴³ κακῶν ⁴⁴

mvp-comment-160-1 ἁγὼ ξένος μὲν ⁴⁵

mvp-comment-161-1 ξένος ⁴⁶

mvp-comment-162-1 τοῦ πραχθέντος ⁴⁷

mvp-comment-163-1 οὐ γὰρ ἂν μακρὰν … ἴχνευον ⁴⁸ αὐτός ⁴⁹

mvp-comment-164-1 νῦν δ’ ⁵⁰ ὕστερος ⁵¹ εἰς ἀστοὺς τελῶ ⁵³ ἀστὸς εἰς ἀστοὺς ⁵⁴

mvp-comment-165-1 κεἰ μὲν φοβεῖται τοὐπίκλημ’ ὑπεξελεῖν ⁵⁵ ὑπεξελεῖν | αὐτὸν καθ’ αὑτοῦ ⁵⁶ κελεύω ⁵⁷ ὑπεξελεῖν τὸ ἐπίκλημα ⁵⁸

mvp-comment-166-1 ἀβλαβής ⁵⁹

mvp-comment-167-1 ἄλλον … ἐξ ἄλλης χθονὸς ⁶⁰

mvp-comment-168-1 τὸ κέρδος ⁶¹

mvp-comment-169-1 προσκείσεται ⁶²

mvp-comment-170-1 φίλου, αὑτοῦ ⁶³

mvp-comment-170-2 φίλου δείσας ⁶⁴ τοὔπος … τόδε ⁶⁵

mvp-comment-171-1 ἀπαυδῶ ⁶⁶ τινα γῆς τῆσδε ⁶⁷ μήτ’ ἐσδέχεσθαι μήτε προσφωνεῖν ⁶⁸ τὸν ἄνδρα τοῦτον, ὅστις ἐστί ⁶⁹ γῆς ⁷⁰ μήτε … μήτε ⁷¹ ἐσδέχεσθαι ⁷² προσφωνεῖν ⁷³ εὐχαῖσι ⁷⁴ θύμασιν ⁷⁵ θύμασιν ⁷⁶ εὐχαῖσι ⁷⁷ μήτε κοινὸν ποιεῖσθαι ⁷⁸ ἐν … εὐχαῖσι μήτε θύμασιν ⁷⁹

mvp-comment-172-1 κοινὸν ⁸⁰ χέρνιβος ⁸¹

mvp-comment-173-1 ὠθεῖν δὲ ⁸²

mvp-comment-174-1 These six verses are placed by some editors between 272 and 273. See Appendix.

mvp-comment-175-1 κατεύχομαι ⁸³ κατεύχομαι ⁸⁴ εἴτε τις ⁸⁵ τις ⁸⁶ εἷς ⁸⁷ τις ⁸⁸

mvp-comment-176-1 νιν ἄμορον ⁸⁹ νιν ⁹⁰ κακὸν κακῶς ⁹¹

mvp-comment-177-1 ἐπεύχομαι ⁹² οἴκοισιν … ξυνέστιος ⁹³

mvp-comment-178-1 τοῖσδ’ ⁹⁴

mvp-comment-179-1 ἀκάρπως κἀθέως ⁹⁵

mvp-comment-180-1 εἰκὸς ἦν ⁹⁶

mvp-comment-180-2 οὕτως ⁹⁷

mvp-comment-181-1 βασιλέως τ’ ⁹⁸

mvp-comment-182-1 κυρῶ τ’ ἐγὼ ⁹⁹

mvp-comment-183-1 ὁμόσπορον ¹⁰⁰

mvp-comment-184-1 κοινῶν παίδων κοινὰ ἦν ἂν ἐκπεφυκότα ¹⁰¹ κοινῶν ¹⁰² εἰ κείνῳ γένος | μὴ δυστύχησεν ¹⁰³

mvp-comment-185-1 νῦν δ’ ¹⁰⁴

mvp-comment-185-2 ἐνήλατο ¹⁰⁵

mvp-comment-186-1 ἀνθ’ ὧν ¹⁰⁶ ὦν ¹⁰⁷

mvp-comment-186-2 τάδ’ ¹⁰⁸ ὑπερμαχοῦμαι ¹⁰⁹

mvp-comment-187-1 ὑπερμαχοῦμαι ¹¹⁰

mvp-comment-187-2 κἀπὶ πάντ’ ἀφίξομαι ¹¹¹ ζητῶν ¹¹²

mvp-comment-188-1 τῷ Λαβδακείῳ παιδὶ ¹¹³ Λαβδακείῳ—Πολυδώρου ¹¹⁴

mvp-comment-189-1 construe: καὶ εὔχομαι τοῖς ταῦτα μὴ δρῶσιν ¹¹⁵ θεοὺς ἀνιέναι αὐτοῖς μήτ’ ἄροτόν τινα γῆς, μήτ’ οὖν γυναικῶν παῖδας ¹¹⁶ θεοὺς ¹¹⁷ ἀνιέναι ¹¹⁸ εὔχομαι ¹¹⁹

mvp-comment-190-1 μήτ’ οὖν ¹²⁰

mvp-comment-191-1 φθερεῖσθαι ¹²¹

mvp-comment-192-1 τοῖς ἄλλοισι ¹²²

mvp-comment-192-2 ἔστ’ ἀρέσκοντ’ ¹²³ ἥ τε σύμμαχος Δίκη ¹²⁴

mvp-comment-193-1 εὖ ¹²⁵

mvp-comment-193-2 ὥσπερ μ’ ἀραῖον ¹²⁶ ὧδε ¹²⁷

mvp-comment-193-3 ἀραῖον ¹²⁸

mvp-comment-194-1 γὰρ ¹²⁹ ἔκτανον ¹³⁰

mvp-comment-195-1 δεῖξαι ¹³¹ τὸ ζήτημα ¹³² τόδ’ εἰπεῖν ¹³³ ὅστις εἴργασται ¹³⁴ τὸ ζήτημα ¹³⁵

mvp-comment-196-1 ἃν μὴ θέλωσιν ¹³⁶ ἃν ¹³⁷ οὐδ’ ἂν εἷς ¹³⁸

mvp-comment-197-1 ἐκ τῶνδε ¹³⁹ δεύτερα ¹⁴⁰

mvp-comment-197-2 ἂν λέγοιμι ¹⁴¹

mvp-comment-198-1 τὸ μὴ οὐ ¹⁴²

mvp-comment-199-1 ἄνακτ’ ¹⁴³

mvp-comment-199-2 ταὐτὰ ὁρῶντα ¹⁴⁴ ὁρῶντα ¹⁴⁵ ταὐτὰ ¹⁴⁶ ἄνακτ’ ¹⁴⁷

mvp-comment-200-1 οὐκ ἐν ἀργοῖς τοῦτο ¹⁴⁸ ἐπραξάμην ¹⁴⁹ ἐν ¹⁵⁰ ἀργοῖς ¹⁵¹

mvp-comment-201-1 διπλοῦς | πομπούς ¹⁵²

mvp-comment-202-1 μὴ παρὼν θαυμάζεται ¹⁵³

mvp-comment-203-1 τά γ’ ἄλλα … ἔπη ¹⁵⁴ κωφὰ ¹⁵⁵

mvp-comment-204-1 τὰ ποῖα ¹⁵⁶

mvp-comment-205-1 ὁδοιπόρων ¹⁵⁷

mvp-comment-206-1 τὸν δ’ ἰδόντ’ ¹⁵⁸ ἰδόντα ¹⁵⁹

mvp-comment-207-1 The subject to ἔχει ¹⁶⁰

mvp-comment-207-2 δείματός γ’ ¹⁶¹

mvp-comment-208-1 τὰς σὰς … ἀράς ¹⁶² τοιάσδε ¹⁶³

mvp-comment-208-2 οὑξελέγξων ¹⁶⁴

mvp-comment-209-1 ᾧ ¹⁶⁵

mvp-comment-210-1 ἐμπέφυκεν ¹⁶⁶

mvp-comment-210-2 ἀνθρώπων μόνῳ ¹⁶⁷

mvp-comment-211-1 ὦ πάντα νωμῶν ¹⁶⁸

mvp-comment-211-2 διδακτά τε—ἄρρητά τε ¹⁶⁹

mvp-comment-212-1 οὐράνιά τε καὶ χθονοστιβῆ ¹⁷⁰

mvp-comment-213-1 μέν ¹⁷¹ φρονεῖς δ’ ¹⁷² δὲ ¹⁷³ φρονεῖς ¹⁷⁴

mvp-comment-214-1 ἧς ¹⁷⁵ προστάτην ¹⁷⁶

mvp-comment-215-1 μοῦνον ¹⁷⁷

mvp-comment-216-1 εἰ καὶ μὴ κλύεις ¹⁷⁸

mvp-comment-217-1 μαθόντες εὖ ¹⁷⁹

mvp-comment-218-1 ἀπ’ οἰωνῶν φάτιν ¹⁸⁰ φάτιν ¹⁸¹

mvp-comment-218-2 ἄλλην ὁδόν ¹⁸²

mvp-comment-219-1 ῥῦσαι σεαυτὸν ¹⁸³ ῥῦσαι μίασμα ¹⁸⁴

mvp-comment-219-2 πᾶν μίασμα ¹⁸⁵

mvp-comment-219-3 τοῦ τεθνηκότος ¹⁸⁶ πᾶν ¹⁸⁷ μίασμα ¹⁸⁸ ῥῦσαι ¹⁸⁹

mvp-comment-220-1 ἐν σοὶ ¹⁹⁰

mvp-comment-220-2 ἄνδρα ¹⁹¹ ὠφελεῖν ¹⁹² ἀφ’ ὦν ἔχοι τε καὶ δύναιτο ¹⁹³

mvp-comment-221-1 λύῃ ¹⁹⁴ τέλη λύῃ ¹⁹⁵

mvp-comment-221-2 ταῦτα γὰρ ¹⁹⁶

mvp-comment-222-1 διώλεσ’ ¹⁹⁷

mvp-comment-223-1 τί δ’ ἔστιν; ¹⁹⁸

mvp-comment-224-1 διοίσω ¹⁹⁹

mvp-comment-224-2 πίθῃ ²⁰⁰

mvp-comment-225-1 οὔτ’ ἔννομ’ ²⁰¹

mvp-comment-226-1 ἀποστερῶν ²⁰²

mvp-comment-226-2 φάτιν ²⁰³

mvp-comment-227-1 ὁρῶ γὰρ ²⁰⁴

mvp-comment-228-1 πρὸς καιρόν ²⁰⁵

mvp-comment-228-2 ὡς οὖν ²⁰⁶ μηδέ ²⁰⁷ μηδ’ ἐγώ ²⁰⁸ μὴ λέγων ²⁰⁹

mvp-comment-229-1 μὴ πρὸς θεῶν ²¹⁰

mvp-comment-229-2 φρονῶν γ’ ²¹¹

mvp-comment-230-1 ἐγὼ δ’ οὐ μή ποτε ἐκφήνω τὰ ἐμὰ (ὡς ἂν μὴ εἴπω τὰ σἂ κακά ²¹² τὰ ἐμὰ κακά ²¹³ τὰ σὰ κακά ²¹⁴ ὡς ἂν ²¹⁵ ὡς ἂν μή ²¹⁶ ὡς ἂν εἴπω μὴ ²¹⁷ τἄμ’ ²¹⁸ ἐκφήνω ²¹⁹ εἴπω ²²⁰

mvp-comment-231-1 ξυνειδὼς ²²¹

mvp-comment-232-1 ἐγὼ οὔτ’ ²²²

mvp-comment-232-2 ταῦτ’ ²²³

mvp-comment-233-1 πέτρου | φύσιν ²²⁴

mvp-comment-234-1 ποτέ ²²⁵

mvp-comment-235-1 ἀτελεύτητος ²²⁶

mvp-comment-236-1 ἐμέμψω ²²⁷ ὁμοῦ | ναίουσαν ²²⁸ τὴν σὴν ²²⁹ ὁμοῦ ναίουσαν ²³⁰ κατεῖδες ²³¹

mvp-comment-237-1 ἀλλ’ ἐμὲ ψέγεις ²³²

mvp-comment-238-1 The emphasis on τοιαῦτα ²³³ οὐκ ²³⁴ ἂν ²³⁵

mvp-comment-239-1 ἃ … ἀτιμάζεις πόλιν ²³⁶ ἀτιμάζεις ²³⁷

mvp-comment-240-1 ἥξει γὰρ αὐτά ²³⁸ ἥξει ²³⁹ αὐτά ²⁴⁰

mvp-comment-241-1 οὐκοῦν ἅ γ’ ἥξει ²⁴¹ χρὴ ²⁴² καὶ σὲ ²⁴³ καὶ ²⁴⁴ σὲ ²⁴⁵ λέγειν ²⁴⁶ ἥξει ²⁴⁷ ἅ γ’ ἥξει ²⁴⁸ γε ²⁴⁹

mvp-comment-242-1 οὐκ ἂν πέρα φράσαιμι ²⁵⁰

mvp-comment-242-2 ἥτις ἀγριωτάτη ²⁵¹

mvp-comment-243-1 καὶ μὴν ²⁵² γε ²⁵³

mvp-comment-243-2 ὡς ὀργῆς ἔχω ²⁵⁴ παρήσω … οὐδὲν ²⁵⁵ ἅπερ ξυνίημ’ ²⁵⁶ ξυνίημι ²⁵⁷ γὰρ ²⁵⁸ ἴσθι ²⁵⁹

mvp-comment-244-1 καὶ ξυμφυτεῦσαι … εἰργάσθαι θ’. καί … τε ²⁶⁰ καί ²⁶¹ ξυμφυτεῦσαι ²⁶²

mvp-comment-244-2 ὅσον ²⁶³ μὴ καίνων ²⁶⁴

mvp-comment-245-1 καὶ τοὔργον … τοῦτο ²⁶⁵

mvp-comment-246-1 ἄληθες; ²⁶⁶ ἐννέπω σὲ … ἐμμένειν ²⁶⁷

mvp-comment-247-1 ᾦπερ προεῖπας ²⁶⁸ ᾦπερ ²⁶⁹

mvp-comment-248-1 ὡς ὄντι … μιάστορι ²⁷⁰ ἐμέ ²⁷¹

mvp-comment-249-1 ἐξεκίνησας ²⁷²

mvp-comment-250-1 καὶ ποῦ ²⁷³ ποῦ ²⁷⁴ καί ²⁷⁵ τοῦτο φεύγειν ²⁷⁶

mvp-comment-251-1 ἰσχῦον ²⁷⁷

mvp-comment-251-2 τρέφω ²⁷⁸

mvp-comment-251-3 τέχνης ²⁷⁹

mvp-comment-252-1 προὐτρέψω ²⁸⁰

mvp-comment-253-1 ἢ κπειρᾷ λέγων; ²⁸¹ λέγων ²⁸² λέγων ²⁸³ λέγων ²⁸⁴

mvp-comment-254-1 οὐχ ὥστε γ’ ²⁸⁵ γνωστόν ²⁸⁶

mvp-comment-255-1 οὖ ζητεῖς ²⁸⁷

mvp-comment-256-1 ἀλλ’ οὔ τι χαίρων ²⁸⁸ πημονὰς ²⁸⁹

mvp-comment-257-1 εἴπω ²⁹⁰

mvp-comment-258-1 σὺν τοῖς φιλτάτοις ²⁹¹

mvp-comment-259-1 ἵν’ εἶ κακοῦ ²⁹²

mvp-comment-260-1 ἦ καὶ ²⁹³

mvp-comment-261-1 πλὴν σοί· σοὶ δὲ ²⁹⁴

mvp-comment-262-1 ἄθλιος ²⁹⁵

mvp-comment-263-1 οὐδεὶς ²⁹⁶ ὃς οὐχὶ ²⁹⁷

mvp-comment-264-1 μιᾶς τρέφει πρὸς νυκτός ²⁹⁸ μιᾶς ²⁹⁹

mvp-comment-265-1 ( οὐκ ἐγώ σε βλάψω), οὐ γὰρ μοῖρα ³⁰⁰

mvp-comment-266-1 ἐκπρᾶξαι ³⁰¹ τάδε ³⁰²

mvp-comment-267-1 Κρέων δὲ ³⁰³

mvp-comment-268-1 τῷ πολυζήλῳ βίῳ ³⁰⁴ ὑπερφέρουσα ³⁰⁵ πολυζήλῳ ³⁰⁶ τέχνη τέχνης | ὑπερφέρουσα ³⁰⁷

mvp-comment-269-1 παρ’ ὑμῖν … φυλάσσεται ³⁰⁸ φυλάσσεται ³⁰⁹

mvp-comment-270-1 δωρητόν, οὐκ αἰτητόν ³¹⁰

mvp-comment-271-1 ταύτης ³¹¹

mvp-comment-272-1 ὑφεὶς ³¹² μάγος ³¹³ ἀγύρτης ³¹⁴

mvp-comment-273-1 ἀγύρτην ³¹⁵

mvp-comment-273-2 ἐν τοῖς κέρδεσιν ³¹⁶

mvp-comment-274-1 ἐπεὶ ³¹⁷

mvp-comment-274-2 ποῦ; ³¹⁸

mvp-comment-274-3 εἶ σαφής ³¹⁹

mvp-comment-275-1 κύων ³²⁰

mvp-comment-275-2 ῥαψῳδὸς ³²¹

mvp-comment-276-1 τό γ’ αἴνιγμ’ ³²² ὁ ἐπιών ³²³

mvp-comment-276-2 διειπεῖν ³²⁴

mvp-comment-277-1 ἣν οἴτ’ ἀπ’ οἰωνῶν ἔχων οὔτ’ ἐκ θεῶν του γνωτὸν ³²⁵ προὐφάνης ³²⁶ ἀπ’ ³²⁷ ἐκ ³²⁸ προὐφάνης ³²⁹ ἀπό ³³⁰ ἐκ ³³¹ θεῶν του ³³² γνωτόν ³³³

mvp-comment-277-2 μολών ³³⁴

mvp-comment-278-1 ὁ μηδὲν εἰδὼς ³³⁵

mvp-comment-279-1 πέλας ³³⁶

mvp-comment-280-1 κλαίων ³³⁷

mvp-comment-280-2 ὁ συνθεὶς ³³⁸

mvp-comment-281-1 ἀγηλατεῖν = τὸ ἄγος ἐλαύνειν(see on 98), in this case ἀνδρηλατεῖν (100), to expel the μιάστωρ. Hdt. 5.72

Κλεομένης … ἀγηλατέει ἑπτακόσια ἐπίστια

(households) Ἀθηναίων. The smooth breathing is supported by Hesychius, by the grammarians in Bekker's Anecd. 1.328.32, and by most MSS. of Soph.; while the aspirate is given by L here, by Eustathius (1704, 5), and by Suidas, who quotes this verse. Curtius distinguishes (1) ἀγ‐, ἄγ‐ος, guilt, object of awe, whence ἐναγής: Skt. ag-as, vexation, offence: Etym. sect. 116: (2) root ἅγ, ἅζ‐ο‐μαι reverence, ἅγ‐ιο‐ς holy, ἁγ‐νό‐ς pure: Skt. jage(jaegea_-mi), reverence, consecrate: Etym. sect. 118. In Aesch. Lib. 154 and Soph. Ant. 775 he would with Herm. write ἅγος as = “consecrated offering.” In both places, however, ἄγος(= piaculum) satisfies the sense (see n. on Soph. Ant. 775 ); and for ἅγος there is no other evidence. But this, at least, seems clear: the compound synonym for τὸ ἄγος ἐλαύνειν( Thuc. 1.126 ) should be written ἀγηλατεῖν. δόκεις ³³⁹

mvp-comment-282-1 παθὼν ³⁴⁰

mvp-comment-282-2 οἶά ³⁴¹ περ φρονεῖς ³⁴²

mvp-comment-283-1 ὀργῇ ³⁴³

mvp-comment-283-2 καὶ τὰ σ’ ³⁴⁴

mvp-comment-284-1 τόδε ³⁴⁵ λύσομεν ³⁴⁶

mvp-comment-285-1 εἰ καὶ ³⁴⁷ εἰ καὶ ³⁴⁸

mvp-comment-285-2 ἐξισωτέον ³⁴⁹

mvp-comment-286-1 Λοξίᾳ ³⁵⁰

mvp-comment-286-2 ὥστ’ οὐ κρέοντος ³⁵¹

mvp-comment-286-3 γεγράψομαι ³⁵² Κρέοντος ³⁵³

mvp-comment-287-1 λέγω δ’ ³⁵⁴

mvp-comment-287-2 τυφλόν μ’ ὠνείδισας ³⁵⁵

mvp-comment-288-1 σὺ καὶ δέδορκας ³⁵⁶

mvp-comment-289-1 ἔνθα ναίεις ³⁵⁷

mvp-comment-290-1 ἆρ’ οἶσθα ³⁵⁸ καὶ ³⁵⁹

mvp-comment-291-1 ἀμφιπλὴξ ³⁶⁰ μητρός, πατρός ³⁶¹

mvp-comment-292-1 δεινόπους ³⁶²

mvp-comment-293-1 Βλέποντα ³⁶³ βλέπειν σκότον ³⁶⁴

mvp-comment-294-1 βοῆς δὲ ³⁶⁵ λιμήν ³⁶⁶

mvp-comment-295-1 ποῖος Κιθαιρὼν ³⁶⁷

mvp-comment-295-2 τὸν ὑμέναιον ὃν εἰσέπλευσας ³⁶⁸ δόμοις ³⁶⁹

mvp-comment-295-3 εὐπλοίας τυχών ³⁷⁰

mvp-comment-296-1 ἄλλων δὲ ³⁷¹ ἄλλων πλῆθος κακῶν ³⁷²

mvp-comment-297-1 ἅ σ’ ἐξισώσει ³⁷³ ἅ σ’ ³⁷⁴

mvp-comment-298-1 τοὐμὸν στόμα ³⁷⁵

mvp-comment-298-2 προπηλάκιζε ³⁷⁶

mvp-comment-298-3 ἐκτριβήσεται ³⁷⁷

mvp-comment-299-1 οὐκ εἰς ὄλεθρον; ³⁷⁸

mvp-comment-299-2 πάλιν ἄψορρος ³⁷⁹ οἴκων τῶνδ’ ³⁸⁰ ἀποστραφείς ³⁸¹

mvp-comment-300-1 ἱκόμην … ἐκάλεις ³⁸²

mvp-comment-301-1 σχολῇ σ’ ἄν ³⁸³

mvp-comment-301-2 οἴκους ³⁸⁴

mvp-comment-301-3 ἐστειλάμην ³⁸⁵

mvp-comment-302-1 τοιοίδ’ ³⁸⁶ μῶροι … ἔμφρονες ³⁸⁷

mvp-comment-302-2 ὡς μὲν σοὶ δοκεῖ. σοὶ ³⁸⁸ σοὶ ³⁸⁹ γονεῦσι ³⁹⁰ δοκεῖ ³⁹¹ σοὶ ³⁹² δοκεῖ ³⁹³ ὡς μὲν σοὶ ³⁹⁴ ὡς δοκεῖ ³⁹⁵

mvp-comment-302-3 γονεῦσι ³⁹⁶

mvp-comment-303-1 ἐκφύει ³⁹⁷

mvp-comment-304-1 οὔκουν κ.τ.λ. ³⁹⁸

mvp-comment-304-2 τοιαῦτ’ ὀνείδιζέ (μοι ³⁹⁹

mvp-comment-304-3 τοιαῦτα … οἷς ⁴⁰⁰

mvp-comment-305-1 αὕτη γε μέντοι ⁴⁰¹ γε ⁴⁰² μέντοι ⁴⁰³ γε ⁴⁰⁴

mvp-comment-305-2 τύχη ⁴⁰⁵

mvp-comment-305-3 ἐξέσωσ’ ⁴⁰⁶

mvp-comment-306-1 κομιζέτω δῆθ’ ⁴⁰⁷

mvp-comment-306-2 ἐμποδὼν ⁴⁰⁸ παρὼν ⁴⁰⁹ σύ γε ⁴¹⁰

mvp-comment-307-1 ἀλγύνοις ⁴¹¹

mvp-comment-308-1 πρόσωπον ⁴¹²

mvp-comment-308-2 οὐκ ἔσθ’ ὅπου ⁴¹³

mvp-comment-309-1 λέγω δέ σοι ⁴¹⁴

mvp-comment-309-2 τὸν ἄνδρα τοῦτον … οὗτός ἐστιν ⁴¹⁵

mvp-comment-310-1 ἀνακηρύσσων φόνον ⁴¹⁶

mvp-comment-311-1 τὸν Λαΐειον ⁴¹⁷

mvp-comment-311-2 ξένος μέτοικος ⁴¹⁸

mvp-comment-311-3 εἶτα δὲ ⁴¹⁹ ἐνθάδε. —ἐγγενὴς ⁴²⁰

mvp-comment-312-1 τῇ ξυμφορᾷ ⁴²¹

mvp-comment-312-2 ἐκ δεδορκότος ⁴²²

mvp-comment-313-1 ξένην ἔπι ⁴²³

mvp-comment-313-2 γαῖαν ⁴²⁴ προδεικνὺς ⁴²⁵ ξένην ⁴²⁶ γαῖαν ⁴²⁷

mvp-comment-314-1 ξυνὼν ⁴²⁸

mvp-comment-314-2 ἀδελφὸς αὑτὸς ⁴²⁹ ἀδελφὸς ⁴³⁰ αὐτὸς ⁴³¹ ἀδελφὸς καὶ πατὴρ ⁴³² αὑτός ⁴³³

mvp-comment-315-1 ὁμόσπορος ⁴³⁴

mvp-comment-316-1 λάβῃς ἐψ. ⁴³⁵

mvp-comment-317-1 φάσκειν ⁴³⁶

mvp-comment-317-2 μαντικῇ ⁴³⁷

mvp-comment-318-1 θεσπιέπεια ⁴³⁸

mvp-comment-318-2 δελφὶς πέτρα ⁴³⁹

mvp-comment-318-3 εἶπε τελέσαντα ⁴⁴⁰

mvp-comment-319-1 ἄρρητ’ ἀρρήτων ⁴⁴¹

mvp-comment-320-1 ἀελλάδων ⁴⁴²

mvp-comment-321-1 ἵππων ⁴⁴³

mvp-comment-322-1 στεροπαῖς ⁴⁴⁴

mvp-comment-322-2 γενέτας ⁴⁴⁵

mvp-comment-323-1 Κῆρες ⁴⁴⁶

mvp-comment-323-2 ἀναπλάκητοι ⁴⁴⁷

mvp-comment-324-1 ἔλαμψε ⁴⁴⁸

mvp-comment-324-2 τοῦ νιφόεντος ⁴⁴⁹

mvp-comment-325-1 Join τὸν ἄδηλον ἄνδρα ⁴⁵⁰ πάντα ⁴⁵¹ πάντα ⁴⁵²

mvp-comment-326-1 πέτρας ἰσόταυρος ⁴⁵³ ἰσόταυρος ⁴⁵⁴

mvp-comment-327-1 χηρεύων ⁴⁵⁵

mvp-comment-328-1 τὰ μεσόμφαλα γᾶς μαντεῖα ⁴⁵⁶

mvp-comment-328-2 ἀπονοσφίζων ⁴⁵⁷

mvp-comment-329-1 ζῶντα ⁴⁵⁸

mvp-comment-329-2 περιποτᾶται ⁴⁵⁹

mvp-comment-330-1 The Chorus have described the unknown murderer as they imagine him—a fugitive in remote places. They now touch on the charge laid against Oedipus, —but only to say that it lacks all evidence. δεινὰ μὲν οὖν ⁴⁶⁰ δὲ ⁴⁶¹ λέξω ⁴⁶²

mvp-comment-330-2 δεινὰ ⁴⁶³ ταράσσει ⁴⁶⁴ δοκοῦντα, ἀποφάσκοντα ⁴⁶⁵ ἀποφάσκοντα ⁴⁶⁶ δοκοῦντα ⁴⁶⁷ δοκοῦντα ⁴⁶⁸ ἀποφάσκοντα ⁴⁶⁹

mvp-comment-331-1 λέξω ⁴⁷⁰

mvp-comment-331-2 ἐνθάδε ⁴⁷¹ ὀπίσω ⁴⁷²

mvp-comment-332-1 ἢ Λαβδακίδαις ἢ τῷ Πολύβου ⁴⁷³ ἔκειτο ⁴⁷⁴

mvp-comment-333-1 πρὸς ὅτου ⁴⁷⁵ γὰρ ἐπ’ αὐτῷ ⁴⁷⁶ βασανίζων ⁴⁷⁷ πρὸς ὅτου δὴ βασανίζων βασάνῳ ⁴⁷⁸ πρὸς ⁴⁷⁹ βασάνῳ ⁴⁸⁰

mvp-comment-334-1 ἐπὶ φάτιν εἶμι ⁴⁸¹

mvp-comment-335-1 The gen. θανάτων ⁴⁸² ἐπίκουρος ⁴⁸³ Θανάτων ⁴⁸⁴

mvp-comment-336-1 It is true ( οὖν ⁴⁸⁵ μέν ⁴⁸⁶ ἀληθής ⁴⁸⁷ σοφίᾳ ⁴⁸⁸

mvp-comment-337-1 πλέον φέρεται ⁴⁸⁹

mvp-comment-338-1 παραμείψειεν ⁴⁹⁰

mvp-comment-339-1 πρὶν ἴδοιμ’ ⁴⁹¹

mvp-comment-339-2 ὀρθὀν ⁴⁹² ὀρθόν ⁴⁹³ ἔπος ⁴⁹⁴

mvp-comment-340-1 καταφαίην ⁴⁹⁵

mvp-comment-341-1 ἐπ’ αὐτῷ ⁴⁹⁶

mvp-comment-341-2 πτερόεσσα … κόρα ⁴⁹⁷

mvp-comment-342-1 Βασάνῳ ⁴⁹⁸ ἁδύπολις ⁴⁹⁹

mvp-comment-342-2 ἁδύπολις ⁵⁰⁰

mvp-comment-343-1 τῷ ⁵⁰¹

mvp-comment-343-2 ἀπ’ ⁵⁰²

mvp-comment-344-1 ἀτλητῶν ⁵⁰³

mvp-comment-345-1 πρός γ’ ἐμοῦ ⁵⁰⁴ φέρον ⁵⁰⁵

mvp-comment-346-1 For the single εἴτε ⁵⁰⁶

mvp-comment-346-2 φέρον ⁵⁰⁷

mvp-comment-347-1 βίου τοῦ μακρ ⁵⁰⁸ βίος μακραίων ⁵⁰⁹

mvp-comment-348-1 εἰς ἁπλοῦν ⁵¹⁰ φέρει ἐς μέγιστον ⁵¹¹

mvp-comment-349-1 ἀλλὰ … μὲν δὴ ⁵¹²

mvp-comment-349-2 ἦλθε … τάχ’ ἂν ⁵¹³

mvp-comment-350-1 I formerly kept τοῦ πρὸς δ’, with L. But the anastrophe of πρός seems to be confined to instances in which it is immediately followed by an attributive genitive, equiv. to an epithet: see on 178. For πρὸς τοῦ δ’ we could indeed cite Aesch. Eum. 593

πρὸς τοῦ δ’ ἐπείσθης καὶ τίνος βουλεύμασιν;

But I now prefer τοὔπος δ’ ⁵¹⁴

mvp-comment-351-1 ηὐδᾶτο ⁵¹⁵

mvp-comment-352-1 The reading ἐξ ὀμμάτων δ’ ὀρθῶν τε ⁵¹⁶ ἐξ ὀμμάτων ὀρθῶν δὲ ⁵¹⁷ δ’ ⁵¹⁸ τε ⁵¹⁹ δέ ⁵²⁰ τε ⁵²¹ ἐξ ⁵²² ὀμμάτων ὀρθῶν ⁵²³

mvp-comment-353-1 οὐκ οἶδ’ ⁵²⁴

mvp-comment-354-1 Join οὗτος σύ ⁵²⁵

mvp-comment-354-2 τόλμης ⁵²⁶

mvp-comment-354-3 τοσόνδε τόλμης‐πρόσωπον ⁵²⁷

mvp-comment-355-1 φονεὺς ὢν κ.τ.λ. ⁵²⁸

mvp-comment-356-1 τῆς ἐμῆς ⁵²⁹ τοῦδε τἀνδρός ⁵³⁰

mvp-comment-357-1 ἔν μοι ⁵³¹ ἐν ἐμοί ⁵³² ἐμοὶ ⁵³³ μοι ⁵³⁴ μοι ⁵³⁵ ἰδών ⁵³⁶

mvp-comment-357-2 ἰδών … ἐν ⁵³⁷ ποεῖν; ⁵³⁸

mvp-comment-358-1 ἢ τοὔργον ⁵³⁹ ἰδών ⁵⁴⁰

mvp-comment-358-2 γνωριοῖμι ⁵⁴¹ γνωριοῖμι ⁵⁴²

mvp-comment-359-1 ἢ οὐκ ⁵⁴³

mvp-comment-359-2 ἀλεξοίμην ⁵⁴⁴

mvp-comment-360-1 πλήθους ⁵⁴⁵ Φίλων ⁵⁴⁶ χρήμασιν ⁵⁴⁷

mvp-comment-361-1 ὃ ⁵⁴⁸

mvp-comment-362-1 οἶσθ’ ὡς πόησον; ⁵⁴⁹

mvp-comment-363-1 For κακὸς ⁵⁵⁰ σοῦ ⁵⁵¹

mvp-comment-363-2 ηὕρηκ’ ⁵⁵²

mvp-comment-364-1 τοῦτ’ αὐτὸ ⁵⁵³

mvp-comment-364-2 ὡς ἐρῶ ⁵⁵⁴

mvp-comment-365-1 κτῆμα ⁵⁵⁵

mvp-comment-365-2 αὐθαδίαν ⁵⁵⁶

mvp-comment-365-3 τοῦ νοῦ χωρίς ⁵⁵⁷

mvp-comment-366-1 ἢ οὐκ ⁵⁵⁸

mvp-comment-367-1 While such words as ἀριστόμαντις, ὀρθόμαντις are seriously used in a good sense, σεμνόμαντις ⁵⁵⁹

mvp-comment-368-1 αὑτός ⁵⁶⁰

mvp-comment-369-1 δέδρακε ⁵⁶¹

mvp-comment-369-2 οὐ γὰρ ἐννοῶ ⁵⁶²

mvp-comment-370-1 χειρώματι ⁵⁶³

mvp-comment-371-1 μακροὶ ⁵⁶⁴ μακροὶ ⁵⁶⁵ παλαιοί ⁵⁶⁶

mvp-comment-372-1 ἐν τῇ τέχνῃ ⁵⁶⁷ ἐν ⁵⁶⁸

mvp-comment-373-1 οὐδαμοῦ ⁵⁶⁹ ἑστῶτος πέλας ⁵⁷⁰

mvp-comment-374-1 παρέσχομεν ⁵⁷¹

mvp-comment-375-1 τοσόνδε γ’ ⁵⁷² τὸ σὸν δέ γ’ ⁵⁷³ τοσόνδε ⁵⁷⁴ οἶσθα ⁵⁷⁵

mvp-comment-376-1 The simple answer would have been: —“that you prompted him to make his present charge”: but this becomes: —“that, if you had not prompted him, he would never have made it.” ξυνῆλθε ⁵⁷⁶

mvp-comment-376-2 τὰς ἐμὰς ⁵⁷⁷ τάσδ’ ἐμὰς ⁵⁷⁸

mvp-comment-376-3 οὐκ ἂν εἶπε τὰς ἐμὰς Λαΐου διαφθοράς ⁵⁷⁹ διαφθοράς ⁵⁸⁰

mvp-comment-377-1 To write σοῦ ⁵⁸¹ σου ⁵⁸² κἀμοῦ. —μαθεῖν ταὔθ’ ⁵⁸³ ταῦθ’ ⁵⁸⁴

mvp-comment-378-1 οὐ γὰρ δὴ ⁵⁸⁵

mvp-comment-379-1 γήμας ἔχεις ⁵⁸⁶

mvp-comment-380-1 γῆς ⁵⁸⁷ ἄρχεις· ἴσον νέμων ⁵⁸⁸ ταὐτά ⁵⁸⁹

mvp-comment-381-1 ᾖ θέλουσα ⁵⁹⁰

mvp-comment-381-2 τρίτος ⁵⁹¹ ἐμοῦ ⁵⁹²

mvp-comment-382-1 ἐνταῦθα γὰρ ⁵⁹³

mvp-comment-383-1 διδοίης λόγον ⁵⁹⁴

mvp-comment-384-1 οὔτ’ αὐτὸς ⁵⁹⁵

mvp-comment-385-1 ἐκ σοῦ ⁵⁹⁶

mvp-comment-385-2 φέρω ⁵⁹⁷

mvp-comment-386-1 κἂν ἄκων ⁵⁹⁸ καὶ ⁵⁹⁹

mvp-comment-387-1 οὔπω ⁶⁰⁰

mvp-comment-387-2 τὰ σὺν κέρδει καλά ⁶⁰¹

mvp-comment-388-1 πᾶσι χαίρω ⁶⁰² πᾶσι χαίρω ⁶⁰³

mvp-comment-389-1 ἐκκαλοῦσι ⁶⁰⁴

mvp-comment-390-1 τὸ … τυχεῖν ⁶⁰⁵ ἅπαντ’ ⁶⁰⁶ τυχεῖν ⁶⁰⁷ αὐτοῖσι ⁶⁰⁸ αὐτοῖς, πᾶν ⁶⁰⁹ ἅπαν ⁶¹⁰ ἐνταῦθα ⁶¹¹

mvp-comment-391-1 πῶς δῆτ’ ⁶¹²

mvp-comment-392-1 οὐκ ἂν γένοιτο ⁶¹³ καλῶς φρονῶν ⁶¹⁴

mvp-comment-393-1 ἔλεγχον ⁶¹⁵

mvp-comment-394-1 τοῦτ’ ἄλλο ⁶¹⁶

mvp-comment-394-2 τῷ τερασκόπῳ ⁶¹⁷

mvp-comment-395-1 χωρὶς ⁶¹⁸

mvp-comment-396-1 τὸν παρ’ αὑτῷ βίοτον ⁶¹⁹

mvp-comment-396-2 φιλεῖ ⁶²⁰ αὑτῷ ⁶²¹

mvp-comment-397-1 χρόνος ⁶²²

mvp-comment-397-2 κακὸν δὲ ⁶²³

mvp-comment-398-1 The infin. Φρονεῖν ⁶²⁴

mvp-comment-399-1 ταχύς τις χωρῇ ⁶²⁵

mvp-comment-400-1 τί δῆτα χρῄζεις; … τὸ γοῦν ἐμόν ⁶²⁶ ὡς ἂν ⁶²⁷ οὐ γὰρ ⁶²⁸ οὐ γὰρ ⁶²⁹

mvp-comment-401-1 ἀρκτέον ⁶³⁰

mvp-comment-402-1 ἄρχοντος ⁶³¹

mvp-comment-402-2 ὧ πόλις πόλις ⁶³²

mvp-comment-403-1 πόλεως ⁶³³ μέτεστιν οὐχὶ ⁶³⁴

mvp-comment-404-1 οἴκους ⁶³⁵ εἶ ⁶³⁶ κατὰ ⁶³⁷ στέγας ⁶³⁸

mvp-comment-405-1 τὸ μηδὲν ἄλγος ⁶³⁹ εἰς μέγα φέρειν ⁶⁴⁰

mvp-comment-406-1 δυοῖν … ἀποκρίνας κακοῖν ⁶⁴¹ δυοῖν ⁶⁴² δυοῖν ⁶⁴³ ἀποκρίνας ⁶⁴⁴ δυοῖν ⁶⁴⁵ δρᾶν ⁶⁴⁶ ἀπῶσαι, κτεῖναι ⁶⁴⁷ ἀπο‐κρίνας ⁶⁴⁸ ἀποκρίνας ⁶⁴⁹

mvp-comment-407-1 δρῶντα κακῶς τοὐμὸν σῶμα ⁶⁵⁰

mvp-comment-408-1 ἀραῖος ⁶⁵¹

mvp-comment-409-1 ὅρκον θεῶν ⁶⁵²

mvp-comment-410-1 The κομμός (see p. 9) has a composite strophic arrangement: (1) 1st strophe, 649-659, (2) 2nd strophe, 660-668; answering respectively to (3) 1st antistr., 678-688, (4) 2nd antistr., 689-697.

mvp-comment-411-1 θελήσας ⁶⁵³

mvp-comment-411-2 φρονήσας ⁶⁵⁴

mvp-comment-412-1 εἰκάθω ⁶⁵⁵

mvp-comment-413-1 οὔτε πρὶν … νῦν τε ⁶⁵⁶

mvp-comment-413-2 μέγαν ⁶⁵⁷ ἐν ὅρκῳ ⁶⁵⁸

mvp-comment-414-1 “That thou shouldest never lay under an accusation ( ἐν αἰτίᾳ βαλεῖν ⁶⁵⁹ ἄτιμον ⁶⁶⁰ σὺν ἀφανεῖ λόγῳ ⁶⁶¹ ἐναγἦ” ⁶⁶² ἐν αἰτίᾳ βαλεῖν ⁶⁶³

mvp-comment-415-1 οὐ τὸν ⁶⁶⁴

mvp-comment-415-2 πρόμον ⁶⁶⁵

mvp-comment-416-1 ὅ τι πύματόν ⁶⁶⁶ ὀλοίμαν ⁶⁶⁷

mvp-comment-417-1 τὰ δ’—σφῷν ⁶⁶⁸ τὰ δ’ ⁶⁶⁹ γᾶ φθίνουσα ⁶⁷⁰ τάδ’ ⁶⁷¹

mvp-comment-417-2 προσάψει ⁶⁷² τὰ δ’ ⁶⁷³

mvp-comment-418-1 ὁ δ’ οὖν ⁶⁷⁴

mvp-comment-419-1 ἐλεινόν ⁶⁷⁵

mvp-comment-419-2 στυγήσεται ⁶⁷⁶

mvp-comment-420-1 στυγνὸς … περάσῃς ⁶⁷⁷

mvp-comment-420-2 βαρὺς ⁶⁷⁸

mvp-comment-420-3 περάσῃς ⁶⁷⁹

mvp-comment-420-4 θυμοῦ ⁶⁸⁰ μὲν ⁶⁸¹ δὲ ⁶⁸²

mvp-comment-421-1 ἀγνῶτος ⁶⁸³

mvp-comment-421-2 ἐν δὲ τοῖσδ’ ἴσος· ἐν ⁶⁸⁴

mvp-comment-421-3 ἴσος ⁶⁸⁵

mvp-comment-422-1 Creon leaves the scene. The Chorus wish Iocasta to withdraw Oedipus also, that he may be soothed in the house: but she wishes first to learn how the dispute began.

mvp-comment-423-1 μαθοῦσά γ’ ⁶⁸⁶

mvp-comment-424-1 δόκησις … λόγων ⁶⁸⁷ ἀγνὼς ⁶⁸⁸

mvp-comment-424-2 δάπτει δὲ ⁶⁸⁹ δὲ ⁶⁹⁰ καὶ ⁶⁹¹

mvp-comment-424-3 δάπτει ⁶⁹²

mvp-comment-425-1 ἀμφοῖν ἀπ’ αὐτοῖν ⁶⁹³

mvp-comment-425-2 λόγος ⁶⁹⁴

mvp-comment-426-1 προπονουμένας ⁶⁹⁵

mvp-comment-427-1 The evasive answer of the Chorus has nettled Oedipus by implying that the blame was divided, and that both parties ought to be glad to forget it. He could never forget it (672).

mvp-comment-427-2 ὁρᾷς ἵν’ ἥκεις ⁶⁹⁶

mvp-comment-428-1 παριεὶς ⁶⁹⁷ τοὐμὸν κέαρ ⁶⁹⁸ καταμβλύνων ⁶⁹⁹ παριεὶς ⁷⁰⁰ τοὐμὸν ⁷⁰¹ κέαρ ⁷⁰²

mvp-comment-429-1 ἐπὶ φρόνιμα ⁷⁰³

mvp-comment-430-1 πεφάνθαι ἂν ⁷⁰⁴ ἐνοσφιζόμαν ⁷⁰⁵

mvp-comment-431-1 ὅς τε ⁷⁰⁶ οὔρισας ⁷⁰⁷

mvp-comment-432-1 ἀλύουσαν ⁷⁰⁸

mvp-comment-433-1 ἂν γένοιο ⁷⁰⁹ εἰ δύναιο γενοῦ ⁷¹⁰ εἰ δύνᾳ γενοῦ ⁷¹¹ εἰ δύναιο ⁷¹² δύνᾀ γενοῦ ⁷¹³ εἰ δύναιο ⁷¹⁴ εἰ γένοιο ⁷¹⁵ ἂν γένοιο ⁷¹⁶ εἰ δύναιο ⁷¹⁷ ἂν γένοιο ⁷¹⁸ εἰ δύναιο ⁷¹⁹ εἶ τό γ’ ἔν σοι ⁷²⁰

mvp-comment-434-1 κἄμ’ ⁷²¹

mvp-comment-434-2 ὅτου … πράγματος ⁷²²

mvp-comment-434-3 στήσας ἔχεις ⁷²³

mvp-comment-435-1 τῶνδ’ ἐς πλέον ⁷²⁴

mvp-comment-435-2 Κρέοντος ⁷²⁵

mvp-comment-435-3 βεβουλευκὼς ⁷²⁶

mvp-comment-436-1 λέγ’ ⁷²⁷ εἰ σαφῶς ἐρεῖς ⁷²⁸

mvp-comment-436-2 ἐγκαλεῖν νεῖκός ⁷²⁹

mvp-comment-437-1 αὐτὸς ξυνειδώς ⁷³⁰

mvp-comment-437-2 μὲν οὖν ⁷³¹

mvp-comment-438-1 τό γ’ εἰς ἑαυτὸν ⁷³² πᾶν ἐλευθεροῖ ⁷³³

mvp-comment-439-1 ἀφεὶς σεαυτόν ⁷³⁴

mvp-comment-440-1 μάθ’ ⁷³⁵

mvp-comment-440-2 σοι ⁷³⁶ ἐστὶν ἔχον ⁷³⁷ τέχνης ⁷³⁸ ἐστὶν ἔχον ⁷³⁹

mvp-comment-441-1 οὐκ ἐρῶ ⁷⁴⁰

mvp-comment-442-1 ἥξοι ⁷⁴¹ αὐτὸν ⁷⁴² ἥξοι ⁷⁴³

mvp-comment-443-1 ὅσεις γένοιτ’ ⁷⁴⁴

mvp-comment-444-1 ξένοι ⁷⁴⁵

mvp-comment-445-1 See on 733.

mvp-comment-446-1 διέσχον ⁷⁴⁶

mvp-comment-446-2 βλάστας ⁷⁴⁷ διέσχον ⁷⁴⁸

mvp-comment-447-1 καί ⁷⁴⁹

mvp-comment-447-2 ἄρθρα ποδοῖν ⁷⁵⁰ ἐνζεύξας ⁷⁵¹

mvp-comment-448-1 εἰς ἄβατον ὄρος ⁷⁵²

mvp-comment-449-1 κἀνταῦθ’ ⁷⁵³

mvp-comment-450-1 It is more likely that, as our MSS. suggest, παθεῖν ⁷⁵⁴ θανεῖν ⁷⁵⁵

mvp-comment-451-1 τοιαῦτα … διώρισαν ⁷⁵⁶ φῆμαι ⁷⁵⁷

mvp-comment-452-1 ὧν χρείαν ἐρευνᾷ ⁷⁵⁸

mvp-comment-453-1 The mention of “ three roads” (716) has startled Oedipus. He now asks concerning (1) the place, (2) the time, (3) the person. The agreement of (1) with (2) dismays him; that of both with (3) flashes conviction to his mind.

mvp-comment-454-1 πλάνημα ⁷⁵⁹

mvp-comment-455-1 ποίας μερ. ὑποστρ. ⁷⁶⁰

mvp-comment-456-1 λήξαντ’ ⁷⁶¹

mvp-comment-457-1 σχιστὴ δ’ ὁδός ⁷⁶²

mvp-comment-458-1 ταὐτὸ ⁷⁶³ ἀπὸ ⁷⁶⁴

mvp-comment-459-1 τοῖσδ’ ⁷⁶⁵

mvp-comment-460-1 σχεδόν τι πρόσθεν ⁷⁶⁶

mvp-comment-461-1 ὦ Ζεῦ ⁷⁶⁷

mvp-comment-462-1 ἐνθύμιον ⁷⁶⁸

mvp-comment-463-1 I do not believe that Soph., or any Greek, could have written φύσιν | τίν’ εἶχε, φράζε, τίνα δ’ ἀκμὴν ἥβης ἔχων ⁷⁶⁹ τίνος ⁷⁷⁰ τίνα δ’ ⁷⁷¹

mvp-comment-464-1 χνοάζων λευκανθὲς κάρα ⁷⁷²

mvp-comment-465-1 τάλāς ⁷⁷³

mvp-comment-465-2 ἔοικα … οὐκ εἰδέναι ⁷⁷⁴

mvp-comment-466-1 καὶ μὴν ⁷⁷⁵

mvp-comment-466-2 ἃνδ’ ⁷⁷⁶

mvp-comment-467-1 βαιός ⁷⁷⁷

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

151-215. mvp-comment-104-1 Outstretched in fear we listen awfully for thy propitious voice, oh sweet-tongued utterance of Heaven. Paean, be our speed! What thing new or old in season due dost thou disclose? Tell us, thou voice, child of bright Hope divine. Athena, Goddess, daughter of the Highest, first hear our cry; thou, Artemis, on thine encircled throne, and archer Phoebus, come in threefold might to save! if ever heretofore ye banished sorrow from our state, now too appear! For, oh! I am overwhelmed; all my host is in disarray; and there is no thought to save; Earth's buds are nipped, and human births prevented by the pains of death: soul after soul takes flight with fearful speed, and poor uncared-for corpses choke with pestilence our unpeopled clime. Wives, mothers, sadly suppliant, at various altars groan; the voice of lamentation mingles with the thrilling hymn. Athena, send us help. and cause yon flaming author of destruction, who with dire noise advances, quickly to reverse his speed and fly our land, whether to Ocean or the restless Pontic sea. Day ruins what night spares. O Father, blast the plague-god with thy lightning. Let thine arrows, O Apollo, be showered to protect us, and Artemis' bright torches from the Lycian hills; and thou, O ruddy crowned Bacchus of the joyous rout, with trooping Maenads, patron of Thebes, draw near. and flash thy brand against the god whom gods disown.' The opening of this parodos is of the nature of a paean (1. 186), or hymn to Apollo as the god of victory or salvation. The stately dactylic measures, corresponding in strophe and antistrophe even to the division of the words (cp. 153, 162, 158, 166), are only once interrupted, as the chorus march towards the altar, by the more meditative iambic rhythm (11. 152, 160), and by the anacrusis in ll. 154, 163. The increasing excitement of the chorus is shown in the second strophe and antistrophe, by iambic and trochaic rhythms with resolution of the arsis, by the union of dactyls and trochees in logaoedic lines, and by the more frequent anacruses. The bright Paean notes give way to tones of sadness, echoing the στονόεσσα γήρυς (11. 186-187). The scheme of στρ. and ἀντ. β'. is the following (ll. 167-178=11. 179-189) :- LÚC CCC CICI lúc Ca CICICCICCICCIK ICC ICC ICC ICC 기 100 100 100 CUCCICCIC CICCICCIC LUCCICCICC ICICII In the concluding strophe and antistrophe (γ'.) there is only one dactylic line, just as there was one iambic in the first. The other rhythms are iambic and trochaic, with occasional syncope of the thesis (or change to the cretic rhythm). The movement, though still full of excitement, becomes more energetic and determined towards the close. The scansion is as follows:- C CCICICICIC- 기 つつ 기 00 ト KCICICI トー 1くらいCICICII The rhythm of the whole ode, which is unusually wild and full of transitions, shows a progress from flowing dactylic numbers to iambics and trochaics, which are interrupted here and there by syncope of the thesis, or in other words, by an antispastic effect, corresponding to the distraction of the thought.

188. mvp-comment-129-1 ὧν ὕπερ Either (1) in whose behalf, or (2) for the relief of all which woe.' The latter is preferable, because including a reference to the immediate context, and because if persons were meant, the simple dative would be the more natural expression. Cp. Thuc. 5. 69, ὑπὲρ ἀρχῆς ἅμα καὶ δουλείας.

188. mvp-comment-129-2 θύγατερ Διός Ἀθήνα.

189. mvp-comment-130-1 εὐῶπα Cp. Ant. 100-101, ἀκτὶς ἀελίου τὸ κάλλιστον ἑπταπύλῳ φανὲν Θήβᾳ τῶν προτέρων φάος: Aesch. Cho. 484, εὔμορφον κράτος.

190. mvp-comment-131-1 Ἄρεα Ἀρσα. Any hostile and deadly influence is personified as "Apns. Cp. Aj. 706, where the madness of Ajax is so named. The plague, already personified as θεός (27). here receives a more distinct personality.

190. mvp-comment-131-2 μαλερόν The Homeric epithet of fire, extended by Aeschylus to other destructive things (πύθῳ μαλερῷ, Pers. 62), is here given to the pestilence which is represented under the image of fire.

190. mvp-comment-131-3 ἄχαλκος ἀσπίδων Without brazen shield. Ἄρης ἄχαλκος ἀσπίδων, The god of war without the weapons of war. Cp. οἴστρου ἄρδις .. ἄπυρος in Aesch. Prom. 880. For similar oxymora, see Essay on Language § 37. p. 70.

191. mvp-comment-132-1 φλέγει με The πυρφόρος θεός is imagined as kindling the flame of calamity.

191. mvp-comment-132-2 περιβόατος With loud cries. The paeans and groans arising from the plague are compared to the shouts and cries which attend the onset of the god of battles. Cp. Aesch. Suppl. 682, λοιγὸς .. βοὰν ἕνδημον ἐξοπλίζων.

191. mvp-comment-132-3 ἀντιάζων Confronting, in the hostile sense. Cp. Hdt. 2. 141, ἀντιάζων τὸν Αραβίων στρατόν.

192. mvp-comment-133-1 παλίσσυτον δράμημα νωτίσαι

192. mvp-comment-133-2 πάτρας Το turn his course backward from my land. The infinitive is governed by the general notion of causing implied in πέμψον, and the accusative παλίσσυτον δράμημα is cognate, at first probably intended to follow some verb of motion (such as δραμεῖν), for which νωτίσαι is substituted in order to add force to παλίσσυτον. Ε. on L. § 40, 5. p. 75. Cp. Eur. Andr. 1141, οἱ δ᾽ ὅπως πελειάδες | ἱέρακ᾿ ἰδοῦσαι πρὸς φυγὴν ἐνώτισαν. πάτρας is ablative gen. And let the fiery War-god, who now, without brazen arms, amidst loud cries advances to destroy me, turn away from my fatherland and speed back again.

194. mvp-comment-134-1 ἔπουρον Carried by the breeze. The word occurs actively, Tr. 954, ἔπουρος ἑστιῶτις αὔρα, ἥτις μ' ἀποικίσειεν ἐκ τόπων. But the passive use is found in Clem. Alex. (130, ἔπουρος πνεύματι ἀληθείας), who probably had some earlier authority for this use of the word. Cp.

194. mvp-comment-134-2 ἐπουρίζω. The special meaning of oὗρος, a favouring wind, is not here used ironically, as in Tr. 815-816, οὗρος ὀφθαλμῶν ἐμῶν | αὐτῇ γένοιτ' ἄπωθεν ἑρπούσῃ καλός, but is lost in the compound. See Essay on Language p. 90, and cp. Tr. 467, 8, ταῦτα μὲν .. ῥείτω κατ' οὗρον. This reading (which is slightly confirmed by the gloss ταχύν in L³) is preferable to ἄπουρον, (1) because yielding a more natural rhythm, (2) because ἄπουρον, though an early reading, acknowledged by the Scholiast, is probably an emendation. It occurs nowhere else, and may have arisen from the apparent necessity of connecting the adj. with πάτρας, which was supposed to begin the new line (p. 145, note), and seemed to want a construction.

195. mvp-comment-135-1 θάλαμον Ἀμφιτρίτας Cp. infr. 1411; 2, θαλάσσιον | ἐκρίψατ᾽. The Atlantic rather than the Mediterranean is meant. The Atlantic and Euxine were known as the two farthest seas. Cp. Eur. Hipp. 3, ὅσοι τε πόντου, τερμόνων τ' Ἀτλαντικῶν ναίουσιν εἴσω.

196. mvp-comment-136-1 ἀπόξενος is stronger than ἄξενος: Repelling strangers. Cp. ἀπότιμος, ἀπόμισθος. For the expression, cp. Phil. 217, ναὸς ἄξενον ὅρμον; and for this epithet of the Pontus, Pind P. 4. 203, σὺν νότου δ᾽ αὔραις ἐπ᾿ ἀξείνου στόμα πεμπόμενοι ἤλυθον . φοίνισσα δὲ Θρηϊκίων ἀγέλα ταύρων ὑπᾶρχεν.

196. mvp-comment-136-2 ὅρμον It has been proposed to read ὅρμων. But the change is unnecessary, and rather weakens the verbal contrast.

196. mvp-comment-136-3 ὅρμος is a place of anchorage. Cp. Eur. Hec. 450, τῷ πρὸς οἶκον ἀφίξομαι, ἢ Δωρίδος ὅρμον αἴαs; The article is more idiomatic if ὅρμον is retained. The difficulty has been occasioned hy the apposition of an abstract to a concrete word. Essay on Language p. 56 a.

198. mvp-comment-137-1 τέλει γὰρ εἴ τι νὺξ ἀφῇ For if night at her close leave anything unharmed, this day assails (ἐπέρχεται). For ei with subj., see Essay on Language § 27. p. 44. And for the personification of the words of time, cp. Tr. 29-34, νὺξ γὰρ εἰσάγει καὶ νὺξ ἀπωθεῖ .. τοιοῦτος αἰών ..

198. mvp-comment-137-2 ἀεὶ τὸν ἄνδρ᾽ ἔπεμπε. It has been proposed to read τελεῖ γάρ' εἴ τι, κ.τ.λ. For the destruction is complete: etc. (Cp. Εl. 1417, τελοῦσ᾽ ἀραί : Tr. 825-826, ἀναδοχὰν τελεῖν πόνων τῷ Διὸς αὐτόπαιδι.) But the asyndeton and the break in the rhythm of the short iambic line are against this. One Scholiast makes τέλει adverbial, and connects it with ἐπέρχεται in the sense of finally or completely, and some would render, If night leaves aught of the work undone, day goes thoroughly at this. Others propose τελεῖν, If night omit to finish any work. An improvement on this last suggestion would be to read τεμεῖν (aor., cp. Plat. Prot. 338 A). For if night leave aught unravaged. Cp. Eur. Hec. 1204, ἢ σῆς ἔμελλον γῆς τεμεῖν βλαστήματα; But the Scholiast of L is perhaps right in rendering, εἰ γάρ τι νὺξ ἀφῇ .. ἐπὶ τῷ ἑαυτῆς τέλει ἀβλαβές, μὴ φθάσασα αὐτὸ ἀπολέ σαι. For this use of the dative, cp. El. 194, οἰκτρὰ μὲν νόστοις αὐδά : Pind. Pyth. 1.35, τελευτᾷ φερτέρου νόστου τυχεῖν.

200. mvp-comment-138-1 τόν As in Hom. Il. 18. 89, etc.

200. mvp-comment-138-2 ໖ (-) Herm. proposed râv for the missing syllable, and this receives some confirmation from the variant in F.

203. mvp-comment-139-1 Λύκει᾿ ἄναξ His altar is before their eyes. Cp. 1. 919. Either (1) τε is correlative to re in l. 205, and a new beginning is made with the strophe: or (2) τε is a conjunction ('And') as in supr. 190, and is postponed, like δέ, after the vocative. The former (1) is more probable. For the twofold invocation, cp. Aesch. S. c. Τ. 145-150. ἀγκυλᾶν is poetical plural.

205. mvp-comment-140-1 βέλεα βελεα, θέλοιμ᾽ ἂν .. ἐν-

205. mvp-comment-140-2 δατεῖσθαι I would see showered. ἐνδατεῖσθαι to be taken passively in the sense of distributing or dispensing. So the Scholiast, whose interpretation is confirmed by the prep. ἀπό, which is more naturally explained as dependent on the verb. For the rare passive, see Essay on Language p. 53.

205. mvp-comment-140-3 ἀδάματα notwithstanding the order, is an epithet, but an emphatic epithet. Cp. infr. 671-672, τὸ γὰρ σόν, οὐ τὸ τοῦδ᾽, ἐποικτείρω στόμα | ἐλεινόν. Essay on Language § 23. p. 37.

206. mvp-comment-141-1 ἀρωγὰ προσταθέντα ‘Set forth to protect and succour me.' The 1st aorist passive of προΐστημι is rare, but so also is παρεστάθην, which occurs in the senarii, l. 911 ; cp. also Tr. 340, σταθεῖσ᾽ ἄκουσον. This is more probable than either προσ-ταθέντα (προστείνω οςcurs nowhere and would be meaningless here) or προσταχθέντα, which has been conjectured, but is hardly metrical (see ll. 192-193). The arrows of Apollo are spoken of in language properly applicable to persons, as if they were an amy bringing relief. There is also an allusion to Apollo's attribute as προστατήριος, Εl. 637. Cp. Aesch. Theb. 145, Λύκει᾿ ἄναξ, Λύκειος γενοῦ στρατῷ δαΐῳ: ib. 8, Ζεὺς ἀλεξητήριος ἐπώνυμος γένοιτο.

208. mvp-comment-142-1 Λύκι᾿ ὄρεα (ὄρεα) Echoing Λύκει᾿ ἄναξ, which therefore seems in this passage to be associated with the Lycian worship of Apollo; though differently interpreted in Εl. 6, 7, τοῦ λυκοκτόνου θεοῦ | ἀγορὰ Λύκειος.

208. mvp-comment-142-2 Μαινάδων 209. τὸν χρυσομίτραν ὁμόστολον] Cp. Lucian. Dial. Deorum, 18. 1, μίτρᾳ ἀναδεδεμένος τὴν κόμην, τὰ πολλὰ δὲ μαινομέναις ταῖς γυναιξὶ συνών. And for the Maenads, cp. Ant. 1122.

210. mvp-comment-143-1 τᾶσδ᾽ ἐπώνυμον γᾶς Who bears the name of this land; i. e. who is called Θηβαῖος (ὁ Θήβας ἐλελίχθων Βάκχιος, Bacchus, Thebe's earth-shaking god,' Ant. 154: Καδμείας νύμφας άγαλμα, ib. 1115), rather than (2) Who gives a surname to Βακχεία Θήβῃ.

211. mvp-comment-144-1 εὔιον From εὐοῖ, Author of joy, as ἰήϊος (from in) is helper in sorrow. The feeling which prompts the cry becomes the attribute of the god to whom it is addressed.

212. mvp-comment-145-1 The reading μονόστολον, (easily accounted for where the letters µ and ✓ are so frequent as in 11. 209 ff.) has obtained a strong hold of the MSS, but is generally accompanied by glosses which belong to the other reading, e.g. συνόμιλον, συγχορευτάν.

214. mvp-comment-146-1 A word = πυρφόρῳ is omitted.

215. mvp-comment-147-1 ἀπότιμον Dishonoured, put far from honour. The idea is that expressed in the words addressed by Zeus to Ares, Il. 5. 888 ff., τὸν δ' ἄρ᾽ ὑπόδρα ἰδὼν προσέφη νεφεληγερέτα Ζεύς, | μή τί μοι, ἀλλοπρόσαλλε, παρεζόμενος μινύριζε. | ἔχθιστος δέ μοί ἐσσι θεῶν οἱ Ολυμπον ἔχουσιν· | αἰεὶ γάρ τοι ἔρις τε φίλη, πόλεμοί τε μάχαι τε: with which cp. Il. 18.107, ὡς ἔρις ἔκ τε θεῶν ἔκ τ' ἀνθρώπων ἀπόλοιτο. Cp. also the expression about the house of Hades, τά τε στυγέουσι θεοί περ (Il. 20.65), and the hard names given to the Erinnyes by Apollo in Aesch. Eum., esp. 73, μισήματ' ἀνδρῶν καὶ θεῶν Ὀλυμπίων: ib. 191, ἀπόπτυστοι θεοῖς.

215. mvp-comment-147-2 θεόν θεον: treated in the meter as a single syllable.

215. mvp-comment-147-3 In the many transitions of this chorus the same deities are addressed more than once. In the spirit of polytheism the same gods are called by different names or surnames according to the attributes which are invoked.

219. mvp-comment-148-1 Oed. has reentered before the last words of the chorus, to whose leader he gives an authoritative answer, as being now possessed through Creon of the mind of Apollo. In reading this speech it is necessary to bear in mind the importance which the Greeks attached to a curse and to words spoken in unconsciousness of their real import.

219. mvp-comment-148-2 ἁγὼ .. ἐξερῶ ἅ, sc. ἔπη from 216.

216. mvp-comment-149-1 ἃ δ' αἰτεῖς The antecedent to the relative is in no definite construction. The sentence is broken off and resumed in ἀλκὴν λάβοις ἄν (cp. El. 1364, τοὺς γὰρ ἐν μέσῳ λόγους, κ.τ.λ.), and the antec. of a may be regarded as the remote accusative of the sentence, governed by the notion of obtaining' implied in ἀλκὴν λάβοις ἄν, κ.τ.λ.

217. mvp-comment-150-1 τῇ νόσῳ θ᾽ ὑπηρετεῖν And to obey the requirements of the disease. Cp. El. 1305-1306, οὐ γὰρ ἂν καλῶς ὑπηρετοίην τῷ παρόντι δαίμονι.

219-220. mvp-comment-151-1 ξένος μὲν . . πραχθέντος] Who am a stranger with respect to this affair; ay, and to the rumour concerning it. ξένος, i. e. ignorant, as one who at the time of the murder, and of the talk which followed it, was not a citizen of Thebes. Cp. Plat Apol. 17 D, ξένως ἔχω τῆς ἐνθάδε λέξεως. The formal emphasis with which Oedipus dwells on his relation to the inquiry, (ξένος μὲν .. ξένος δέ) throws a strong light on his unconsciousness of the real situation. Cp. infr. 259-260, ἔχων μὲν .. ἔχων δέ, κ.τ.λ.

220-221. mvp-comment-152-1 οὐ γὰρ ἂν .. σύμβολον These words assign a further reason why Oedipus has remained a stranger to the affair. For I had no clue to guide me and so could not have followed an inquiry far. He offers this excuse for having hitherto neglected what he now feels to be an imperative duty. Cp. supr. 108-109, 128. 9. 133-134, infr. 566-567. It has been objected to this interpretation that οὐ γὰρ ἄν necessarily means, Else had I not, (sc. εἰ μὴ ξένος ἦν). Cp. infr. 11. 318, 1456-1457. But no such rule is absolute in tragic Greek, and no tenable interpretation has been based on this way of taking the words. The suppressed clause is εἰ ἴχνευον, and the general meaning is I could not be otherwise than a stranger. Although the more usual mode of connexion would be πῶς γὰρ-; the negative form, οὐ γάρ, κ.τ.λ., is here more dignified. For μακράν, cp. Tr. 317, οὐδ᾽ ἀνιστόρουν μακράν.

220-221. mvp-comment-152-2 αὐτός By myself, unaided. Cp. Ο. C. 1154-1155, δίδασκέ με | ὡς μὴ εἰδότ᾽ αὐτόν. κ.τ.λ. This is more pointed than αὐτό, the reading of L and most MSS.

220-221. mvp-comment-152-3 μὴ οὐκ ἔχων τι σύμβολον Having no clue. These words are epexegetic of αὐτός. For μὴ οὐ with the participle, μη see Essay on Language p. 49, and cp. Hdt. 6.106, μὴ οὐ πλήρεος ἔοντος τοῦ κύκλου, i. e. If the disk were not full, which it was not.' So here, Unless I had something to guide me, and I had nothing.' The word σύμβολον (for which see Ar. Pol. 4. 7, Pind. Ol. 12. 7), would cause a thrill of horror to the spectators, when they reflected that Oedipus had Laius' blood upon his hand, and the stamp of his likeness upon his person.

222. mvp-comment-153-1 νῦν δ᾽ i.e. since the oracle has come.

222. mvp-comment-153-2 ὕστερος γὰρ ἀστὸς εἰς ἀστοὺς τελῶ Oedipus, as a popular ruler, bases his proclamation on his right of citizenship, rather than on any higher pretension. But now I proclaim to you no longer as a stranger but as a citizen, though subsequently enrolled. Sc. ὕστερος τῶν ἄλλων ἀστῶν and ὕστερος τοῦ πραχθέντος. ἀστός is said with allusion to ξένος. Teiresias includes both in ξένος.. μέτοικος, infr. 452. αὐτός. (I too') occurs for ἀστός in some MSS. But see Essay on Language § 44 f. p. 83.

222. mvp-comment-153-3 τελῶ Cp. Hdt. 2. 51, Ἀθηναίοισι ..

222. mvp-comment-153-4 ἤδη τηνικαῦτα ἐς Ἕλληνας τελέουσι.

223. mvp-comment-154-1 προφωνῶ resumes ἐξερῶ (1. 219) after the digression.

227-229. mvp-comment-155-1 The apodosis of this sentence is dropped in Oedipus' haste to give the assurance contained in πείσεται, κ.τ.λ., and is imperfectly resumed in ἄπεισιν. The subject is changed from anyone who has knowledge of the deed, to the murderer, to whom αὐτός refers. Some obscurity also arises from the appeal to fear (cp. infr. 234, 294) being combined with the attempt to soothe it (cp. Τr. 457, κεὶ μὲν δέδοικας, οὐ καλῶς ταρβεῖς). μέν in 227 points to the opposite supposition:-'he may be one incapable of fear.' (1) And let the man himself, if he be touched with fear, inform against himself, by taking the guilt away with him. For he shall suffer no further penalty, but shall be unmolested in his departure from the land.' i. e. Instead of waiting for others to convict him, let him convict himself by going into voluntary exile, and taking the offence from the land. The words καθ' αὑτοῦ are to be construed κατὰ σύνεσιν with l. 226, sc. ποιείτω τάδε, self-banishment being in this case equivalent to self-impeachment :- Let Or (2) ὑπεξελών may be understood proleptically, and σημαινέτω supplied from κελεύω σημαίνειν, supra. him inform against himself, and clear the guilt away.

227-229. mvp-comment-155-2 Οι (3) ὑπεξελών is to be taken in the unusual sense of drawing forth from concealment. Let him obey me by divulging the crime against himself. The last interpretation (3) is the simplest (cp. Pind. N. 4. 8); but the first (1) is on the whole the most probable. The gentleness of Oedipus towards the supposed self-convicted criminal is contrasted with the fierceness of his self-reproach in 11. 1369 foll., 1449 foll., infra.

229. mvp-comment-156-1 ἀσφαλής Unharmed. ἀβλα βής, which occurs in the text of A, and most MSS, and has been written as a v. r. by a hand of the 15th century on the mg. of L, although a good word (see esp. Thuc. 5. 18, § 3), is more likely to be a gloss than ἀσφαλής, which is therefore preferred. ἀβλαβής would have required no explanation, whereas ἀσφαλής here and in O. C. 1288 =ἄνευ τοῦ σφαλῆναι, without receiving hurt. Cp. Pind. Pyth. 3. 86.

230-232. mvp-comment-157-1 The duty of the citizens generally is clear. The only cases requiring special mention are those of the murderer (αὐτός), should conscience incline him to obey, and of information against a foreigner by one of his fellows. Cp. l. 233. ἢ φίλου. This is the case contemplated in these lines. Α μέτοικος might hesitate to do what was required of the citizens, unless specially assured that he would equally receive the reward. And some one resident in Thebes might be a fellow countryman of the stranger-robbers (1. 715), who had killed Laius in the triple way. The obscurity of expression arises from the effort to adapt the language to the case of Oedipus. The οἰκέτης was in the position of knowing another from another land. Contrast ll. 231-232, with ll. 1159, 1160, and cp. 1004. For the form of expression, ἄλλον ἐξ ἄλλης χθονός, cp. Eur. Ion 1057, ἄλλος ἄλλων ἀπ᾿ οἴκων .. πλὴν τῶν εὐγενετᾶν Ἐρεχθειδᾶν. 231. The transitive use of σιωπάω is later than Sophocles.

232. mvp-comment-158-1 χή χάρις προσκείσεται And he shall have store of gratitude besides, i. e. he will be regarded as a benefactor of the city. Cp. Thuc. 1. 129, κεῖταί σοι εὐεργεσία ἐν τῷ ἡμετέρῳ οἴκῳ ἐσαεὶ ἀνάγραπτος : Phil. 557-558, ἡ χάρις ...

232. mvp-comment-158-2 προσφιλὴς μενεῖ: Plat. Rep. 1. 345 A, οὔτοι κακῶς σοι κείσεται ὅ τι ἂν ἡμᾶς τοσούσδε ὄντας εὐεργετήσῃς.

234. mvp-comment-159-1 ἀπώσει τούπος (1) Shall repel this charge either from a friend for whom he fears, or from himself. τούπος, SC. τὸ ἐπίκλημα τοῦ φύνου. Or (2), Shall reject my word in fear either for a friend or for himself. ἀπώσει opp. to δέχεσθαι, l. 217 . (1) is best. The words φίλου and αὐτοῦ are each in a double construction with δείσας and ἀπώσει.

235. mvp-comment-160-1 This might be construed to mean, My own lips shall declare my future; and δράσω marks that all which follows is delivered by Oedipus as his act and deed. Cp. infr. 819-820.

236. mvp-comment-161-1 τὸν ἄνδρα.. τοῦτον It appears doubtful at first sight whether this refers to the murderer or to the concealer of the crime. That the first is the correct explanation is proved by the following reasons. (1) That no sufficient meaning can otherwise be given to τοῦδε in line 242. (2) That in 11. 817 foll., ᾧ μὴ ξένων ἔξεστι μηδ᾽ ἀστῶν τινὰ | δόμοις δέχεσθαι, μηδὲ προσφωνεῖν τινά, | ὠθεῖν δ᾽ ἀπ᾿ οἴκων, Oedipus applies 11. 235 foll. to himself, if guilty of the murder. (3) This gives more point to ὅστις ἐστί. ἄνδρα is governed by εἰσδέχεσθαι. γῆς τῆσδε is partitive genitive governed by τινά. Anyone in all this land.

240. mvp-comment-162-1 χέρνιβος For this gen. sing. (which besides coming from the first hand of L, better suits with κοινόν than χέρνιβας does), see L. and S. s. v.

241. mvp-comment-163-1 ὠθεῖν Sc. κελεύω understood from ἀπανδῶ. Essay on Language p. 64. 1 а.

246-251. mvp-comment-164-1 The formality of the language marks the solemnity of the curse. Some editors, following Ribbeck, have placed these lines after l. 272, on the ground that the plural τοῖσδε in the words ἅπερ τοῖσδ᾽ ἀρτίως ἠρασάμην, has no proper antecedent, for Oedipus is speaking of one murderer not of many; and they would suppose the error to have been caused by the recurrence of ὑμῖν δὲ in l. 273. But the plural, referring to some person or persons unknown, is sufficiently justified by εἴτε πλειόνων μέτα, and for the vague reference of the pronoun ὅde, see Essay on Language § 22. p. 34. Oedipus is careless about the number; cp. supr. 107, 124 and note. The curse also falls indirectly on those who disobey the commands in 11. 224-232, and 236-241. A slight inaccuracy of language is no sufficient reason for such a transposition. The conjecture requires a further conjecture: ie. the words must (1) have been omitted, then (2) have been written in the margin, and then (3) must have been wrongly inserted before ὑμῖν δέ, l. 252 , instead of before ὑμῖν δέ, l. 273 . It may be observed, in defence of the existing text, that the curse on the malefactor naturally precedes the curse on those who disobey the edict. The emphasis is on κατεύχομαι. τὸν δεδρακότα is added instead of a pronoun, referring to τὸν ἄνδρα τοῦτον, because of τῷ δαίμονι and τῷ θανόντι coming between. The words ἅπερ .. ἠρασάμην include 11. 236 ff.

248. mvp-comment-165-1 κακὸν κακῶς .. βίον Wear out his wretched life in wretchedness and misfortune.

249-251. mvp-comment-166-1 ἐπεύχομαι .. παθεῖν And I pray, moreover, that I may suffer. Cp. Plat. Critias, p. 120 B.

249-251. mvp-comment-166-2 εἰ .. γένοιτο If at any moment he were to be-. The unconsciousness of Oedipus is again strongly indicated.

254. mvp-comment-167-1 Ruined with sterility and the frown of Heaven. Essay on Language p. 40. a.

256. mvp-comment-168-1 ἀκάθαρτον Sc. τὸ πρᾶγμα, repeated in a slightly different sense. τὸ πρᾶγμα is (1) the duty of expiating, (2) the pollution itself.

257-269. mvp-comment-169-1 Every line calls attention to the real position of Oedipus, of which he is profoundly unconscious. (1) ὁμόσπορον, cp. 1. 460; (2) κοινῶν παίδων, cp. Ο. C. 535, κοιναί γε πατρὸς ἀδελφεαί; (3) εἰ κείνῳ γένος μὴ ᾿δυστύχησεν (Oedipus says this in ignorance of Laius having had a child; but he unwittingly expresses the fact of his own misfortune); (4) 1. 263. which points to the curse pursuing Laius and his offspring; (5) the words ὡσπερεὶ τοὺμοῦ πατρός. The effect of all this on the spectators may be imagined. Yet every word is suitable to the apparent situation and to the generous character of Oedipus.

257. mvp-comment-170-1 The death of the monarch was not like a common death.

258. mvp-comment-171-1 ἐπεὶ κυρῶ *γ' ἐγώ The MSS. read 7', which may be explained on the supposition that the subordinate anti- thesis with μέν and δέ in 259-260, has superseded the primary structure of the sentence. But perhapsy' should be read, giving a slight emphasis to κυρῶ, Since it so happens that I, Oedipus modestly referring his position to fortune.

260. mvp-comment-172-1 ὁμόσπορον = ὑπ᾿ ἀμφοῖν σπειρομένην. Essay on Language p. 98.

261. mvp-comment-173-1 κοινῶν τε παίδων κοίν᾿ ἄν For the repetition of κοινός, see Essay on Language § 44. P. 75, f. And had he but prospered in his issue, there had been the common bond between us of a common family. These words are the continuation of ὁμόσπορον. The emphatic repetition suggests the horror of the real situation. For the gen., cp. О. С. 923, φωτῶν ἀθλίων ἱκτήρια.

263. mvp-comment-174-1 But now Fortune has smitten him:' i. e. he has died without having children.

264. mvp-comment-175-1 ἀνθ᾽ ὧν Resuming the deferred apodosis of 258 foll. ἐπεί, κ.τ.λ. after the digression (κοινῶν .. τύχη); i. e. And being his successor and having these common interests with him, etc.

264. mvp-comment-175-2 τάδ᾽ .. ὑπερμαχοῦμαι For the accusative, cp. O. C. 344-345, τἀμὰ δυστήνου κακὰ | ὑπερπονεῖτον

267. mvp-comment-176-1 τῷ Λαβδακείῳ παιδί The dative either (1) depends on the notion of help or vindication continued from ὑπερμαχοῦμαι, to which the mind reverts as the chief word, or (2) is dependent on τὸν αὐτόχειρα τοῦ φόνου. For (2), cp. Ar. Poet. 1452 α. τὸν αἴτιον τοῦ θανάτου τῷ Μίτυϊ. 267-268. Cp. Hdt. 5. 59, ταῦτα ἡλικίην ἂν εἴη κατὰ Λάϊον τὸν Λαβδάκου τοῦ Πολυδώρου τοῦ Κάδμου. The genealogy belongs to the formal style of the proclamation.

269. mvp-comment-177-1 τοῖς μὴ δρῶσιν, governed by εὔχομαι, is resumed in αὐτοῖς after ἀνιέναι, and is the subject (i. e. αὐτούς) of φθερείσθαι.

269. mvp-comment-177-2 θεούς The dative (θεοῖς), which would be the natural case after εὔχομαι, is attracted to the subject of ἀνιέναι. I pray the gods not to let any harvest spring for them from the ground, nor fruit of the womb from their women. For ἀνιέναι in the latter sense, cp. infr. 1405, ἀνεῖτε ταὐτὸν σπέρμα. The MS. reading γῆν involves too harsh a change of subject in what follows (μήτ᾽ οὖν γυναικῶν παῖδας), and would require θεοῖς, as in Vat. a. For the tenor of these words, cp. the curse of Cambyses in Hdt. 3. 65, καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ποιεῦσι ὑμῖν γῆ τε καρπὸν ἐκφέροι, κ.τ.λ. 274-275. May justice, taking your part, and all the gods dwell with you evermore to bless you. σύμμαχος occurs frequently in Aeschylus as an attribute of Δίκη. See esp. Cho. 497, δίκην ἴαλλε σύμμαχον φίλοις. The tone of the preceding speech as a royal proclamation may be contrasted with that of Creon in Ant. 163-210. In both there is a mixture of self-confidence with the strain of patriotism. But in Creon these motives appear as the bare assertion of a right, in Oedipus as a spirit of generous readiness to serve the state. In both there is an unconsciousness of the situation. But whereas Creon's unconsciousness involves moral blindness and ignorance of self, that of Oedipus is rendered more pathetic by the purity of his intentions.

276. mvp-comment-178-1 ὥσπερ μ' ἀραῖον ἔλαβες Ας feeling the power of your curse.' Cp. Aesch. Cho. 108, λέγοις ἂν ὥσπερ ᾐδέσω, κ.τ.λ. For ἔλαβες, cp. Hdt. 3. 74. πίστι τε λαβόντες καὶ ὁρκίοισι; and for the construction with the adjective, O. C. 284, ὥσπερ ἔλαβες τὸν ἱκέτην ἐχέγγυον. See also Ant. 305, ὅρκιος δέ σοι λέγω. For the redundant antecedent in ὧδε,

278. mvp-comment-179-1 τὸ δὲ ζήτημα is the subject of what follows, in which εἰπεῖν is epexegetic.

279. mvp-comment-180-1 τόδε is to be taken separately, as acc. after εἰπεῖν, referring to ὅστις εἴργασταί ποτε. But for the inquiry, it behoved Phoebus, who imposed it, to tell this, who can have wrought the deed. Cp. supr. 150, infr. 306. 282-283. I would mention what seems to me the next best thing after that. Next or third best, leave it not unsaid. Logical exactness is not required in such idiomatic expressions. Cp. Eur. Hel. 1417, αὖθις κελεύω, καὶ τρίτον γ', εἴ σοι φίλον. Be it second or third best, out with what you have to say. 284, foll. I know one above other men. who being a king, sees with the eyes of king Phoebus, of whose lips one inquiring into this may learn the very truth.'

284. mvp-comment-181-1 ἄνακτ' Od. 11. 144 (Τειρεσίη), εἰπέ, ἄναξ, πῶς, κ.τ.λ.

285-286. mvp-comment-182-1 παρ' οὗ .. σκοπῶν παρ' οὗ is in two constructions: (1) with ἐκμάθοι, from whom one might learn this clearly; (2) with σκοπών, if we viewed it in the light of his words.

287. mvp-comment-183-1 ἐν ἀργοῖς .. ἐπραξάμην A verbal contrast like ἐν σκότῳ.. ὀψοίατο (infr. 1273). But neither have I done this as one of my omissions, i. e. I have not left this undone. Essay on Language p. 69. For the subjective use of the middle voice in ἐπραξάμην, see Essay on Language § 31. p. 53, d, and for ἀργοῖς, cp. O. C.1605; Eur. Phoen. 766, ἓν δ᾽ ἐστὶν ἡμῖν ἀργόν, εἴ τι θέσφατον | οἰωνόμαντις Τειρεσίας ἔχει φράσαι. but the possibility of finding and questioning this man does not yet occur to Oedipus. The general effect of 11. 116 119, was to reduce the available evidence to the lowest point. It is only afterwards, when he begins to suspect the truth, that Oedipus catches at straws.

288. mvp-comment-184-1 Κρέοντος εἰπόντος Cp. 1. 555.

289. mvp-comment-185-1 I have long been wondering he should not be here. μὴ παρὼν = εἰ μὴ πάρεστι. Teiresias is slow to come, as when he comes he is slow to speak. For the use of the passive in θαυμάζεται, see Essay on L, § 31. p. 53. He has long been wondered at by me; i. e. I have long been wondering about him.

290. mvp-comment-186-1 Certainly what other rumours there were, told nothing, and are forgotten.

290. mvp-comment-186-2 ἄλλα, i. e. other than we may hope to hear from Phoebus or his prophet.

290. mvp-comment-186-3 κωφά, lit. dumb, i.e. giving no clear intelligence. The chorus allude for a moment to the report which Creon spoke of ll. 122-123; but this slight clue is again broken off by the entrance of Teiresias, to be resumed afterwards.

292-293. mvp-comment-187-1 He was said to have been murdered by some unknown travellers (coming towards Thebes). Creon spoke (1. 118) of one eye-witness having escaped, and bringing a confused account,

293. mvp-comment-188-1 ἤκουσα κἀγώ Supr. 122.

293. mvp-comment-188-2 τὸν δ᾽ ἰδόντ᾽ οὐδεὶς ὁρᾷ But no eyewitness is forthcoming. The article is general, not referring to the individual mentioned in l. 119, whom Oedipus has for the present forgotten. This suits the place better than the conjecture τὸν δὲ δρῶντα, which is weak and tautological. For ἰδόντα ὁρᾷ, cp. 1133-1134, εὐ γὰρ οἶδ᾽ ὅτι | κάτοιδεν.

294. mvp-comment-189-1 ἀλλ᾽ .. μέρος But if he is at all capable of fear. The plural expresses the general notion. Others read δείματός γ' (see v. rr.), in which ye must be taken with the whole sentence. ἔχει, sc. ὁ φονεύς. The transition to the murderer as being the foremost person in the thoughts of all present (supr. 227) is again easily made, without requiring the correction δρῶντ' in 293.

296. mvp-comment-190-1 When a man is not afraid to do the deed, words do not daunt him.' 297. Authorities are nearly balanced between οὐξελέγχων and οὐξελέγξων. The former has a slight preponderance in being the first hand of L, and appearing (with the variant of.) in most of the earlier MSS. This, however, is not sufficient to decide between letters so often confounded as ξ and χ. Common usage is in favour of the future (Ant. 261, οὐδ᾽ ὁ κωλύσων παρῆν). The present tense, if genuine, is expressive of certainty. There is one who convicts him; i. e. He is already convicted, for Teiresias is here. Cp. 356, πέφευγα. For the use of the present participle without special reference to present time, see Essay on Language § 32. p. 55.

300. mvp-comment-191-1 This use of νωμῶν, without τῇ φρενί or the like addition, is perhaps assisted by a supposed connection with νοέω. See Essay on Language p. 100, and cp. Plat. Crat. 411 D, ἡ γνώμη παντάπασι δηλοῖ γονῆς σκέψιν καὶ νώμησιν, τὸ γὰρ νωμᾶν καὶ τὸ σκοπεῖν ταὐτόν: Hdt. 4. 128, νωμῶντες σῖτα ἀναιρεομένους. Cp. Od. 13. 255, αἰὲν ἐνὶ στήθεσσι νόον πολυκερδέα νωμῶν: Aesch. S. c. T. 24, ἐν ὠσὶ νωμῶν καὶ φρεσὶν πυρὸς δίχα χρηστηρίους ὄρνιθας ἀψευδεῖ τέχνη. Ο thou that wieldest in thy thought all knowledge and all mysteries, both of things in Heaven, and things on earth.

303. mvp-comment-192-1 νόσῳ Not the plague only, but the distress generally. Cp. supr. 60, νοσεῖτε πάντες, 305. εἰ καὶ μὴ κλύεις τῶν ἀγγέλων] (1) Even if the messengers have not told you, which I dare say they have; i. e. The report is true, even if it has not reached you yet. Or, (2) If you have not heard from the messengers as well as from me;' i. e. I tell you, in case your guides have not. In the latter case, which is the more probable (cp. supr. 329, note, 325), καί is used ὑπερβάτως. For this, cp. Thuc. 5. 45, καὶ ἦν εἰς τὸν δῆμον ταῦτα λέγωσιν. Nothing is gained by transposing εἰ μὴ καί; still less by reading εἴ τι μή. The repetition of the same words (supr. 302) is no cause for suspicion. Essay on Language § 44.

307. mvp-comment-193-1 μόνην Emphatic: this, and no other. Cp. 68, ἴασιν μόνην: Phil. 61, μόνην ἔχοντες τήνδ' ἅλωσιν Ἰλίου: Thuc. 8.81, πιστεῦσαι δ᾽ ἂν μόνως Ἀθηναίοις εἰ, κ.τ.λ.

308. mvp-comment-194-1 μαθόντες εὐ Having carefully ascertained. εὖ as in εὖ σκοπῶν (68): the order as in Ant. 166, σέβοντας εὖ. 310, foll. δ' οὖν resumes from 304. δé is slightly adversative between Φοῖβος and σύ, οὖν connects the human prophecy with the divine. Phoebus answers thus and do not thou withhold any intimation, whether derived from birds or from any other way of divination at thy command.' For the coordination of εἴ τιν'.. ὁδόν, with ἀπ᾿ οἰωνῶν, cp. Phil. 468-469, πρὸς νῦν σε πατρὸς .. πρός τ᾽ εἴ τί σοι κατ' οἶκών ἐστι προσφιλές: and for μαντικῆς ὁδόν cp. 67, πολλὰς δ᾽ ὁδοὺς ἐλθόντα φροντίδος πλάνοις : Aesch. Prom. 484, τρόπους δὲ πολλοὺς μαντικῆς ἐστοίχισα: ib. 497, δυστέκμαρτον εἰς τέχνην ὥδωσα θνητούς.

313. mvp-comment-195-1 ῥῦσαι δέ And clear away. The double application of ῥῦσαι cannot be expressed in one word in English. The evil from which deliverance is sought is made the object of the verb of deliverance. Cp. Eur. Iph. A. 1383, ταῦτα πάντα κατθανοῦσα ῥύσομαι. Although this involves a slight change of construction, it is better than to take μίασμα ας = τὸ μεμιασμένον, what lies under pollution. Even if such a rendering be not impossible, the line so explained adds nothing to what is already said.

314-315. mvp-comment-196-1 ἀφ᾽ ὧν ἔχοι For the mood, cp. 979, ὅπως δύναιτό τις, and see Essay on Language § 36. p. 61. ἄνδρα is subject: cp. Ant. 710, ἀλλ᾽ ἄνδρα, κεἴ τις ἢ σοφός, τὸ μανθάνειν | πόλλ᾽ αἰσχρὸν οὐδέν. 'It is a man's noblest endeavour to use whatever power he may have in doing benefits.' 316 ff. The presence and voice of Oedipus make Teiresias feel the impossibility of speaking his message. Cp. infr. 447.

314-315. mvp-comment-196-2 φεῦ, φεῦ .. φρονοῦντι How terrible it is to know, when knowing profits not! φρονεῖν often implies a feeling or intelligence of the situation. Essay on Language p. 93, 6, Τr. 1145, φρονῶ δὴ ξυμφορᾶς ἵν᾽ ἕσταμεν : Αj. 942, σοὶ μὲν δοκεῖν ταῦτ᾽ ἔστ᾽, ἐμοὶ δ᾽ ἄγαν φρονεῖν. So in this play, 302, фро- νεῖς δ᾽ ὅμως, 326, μὴ .. φρονῶν γ᾽ ἀποσταφῇς, 328, πάντες γὰρ οὐ φρονεῖτε. Cp. with the present passage, Hdt. I. 46, where Croesus tries the oracles, ὅ τι φρονέοιεν .. εἰ φρονέοντα τὴν ἀληθηΐην εὑρεθείη. For the subjunct. in a relative clause without av, see Essay on Language §27. p. 45. The indicative λύει would make the application of the maxim too pointed. This is the only place where the expression, τέλη λύειν, occurs. λυσιτελεῖν is frequent in prose writers, and Euripides has repeatedly used the simple λύειν in this sense. The present expression appears to be an etymological analysis of λυσιτελέω. The use of λύει in El. 1005, λύει γὰρ ἡμᾶς οὐδέν, This tends not at all to free us, is not really similar. With the sentiment, cp. Hdt. 9. 16, ἐχθίστη ὀδύνη πολλὰ φρονέοντα μηδενὸς κρατέειν.

317. mvp-comment-197-1 ταῦτα γάρ γάρ assigns a reason for φεῦ, κ.τ.λ. Why do I speak thus? Because had I remembered this, which I well knew, I had not come hither.

319. mvp-comment-198-1 What is the matter? How gloomily thou comest in!' Cp. Ant. 997, τί δ᾽ ἔστιν; ὡς .. φρίσσω.

320-321. mvp-comment-199-1 Let me go home. If you grant me this, you and I will bear our part in the sequel more easily. Cp. Hdt. 1. 25, τὸν .. πόλεμον διενείκας.

322. mvp-comment-200-1 οὔτ᾽ ἔννομα Unlawful, namely, for the prophet of the state to refuse his service to the state.

322. mvp-comment-200-2 προσφιλή The correction -és may have been suggested by ἔννομον, which is against metre.

324. mvp-comment-201-1 φώνημα refers not only to the earnest entreaty in the last speech, but also to 305-315.

325. mvp-comment-202-1 It is needless to suppose an aposiopesis. The implied clause is to be sought from what precedes; viz. ταῦτ' εἶπον, or τήνδ' ἀποστερῶ φάτιν, My motive is, that I may not be in the same case with you. I see that thy word is against thy interest, and I would not fall into the same error. Cp. ὅπως μή. ὡς μηδέ here = ὡς μὴ καί, i. e. μηδὲ = μὴ δέ.

326. mvp-comment-203-1 φρονῶν γ' Referring to φροveῖν, supr. 316, which has raised Oedipus' hopes.

327. mvp-comment-204-1 ἱκτήριοι The chorus also (having been engaged in supplication in various parts of the city, supr. 19) are in the guise of suppliants.

328. mvp-comment-205-1 πάντες .. οὐ φρονεῖτ Cp. Ant. 1048, Τειρ. ἆρ' οἶδεν ἀνθρώπων τις, ἆρα φράζεται; 328-329. ἐγὼ δ᾽ οὐ μή ποτε τἄμ᾽ ὡς ἂν εἴπω μὴ τὰ σ᾽ ἐκφήνω κακά] But I will never disclose my evils: (I say mine) that I may not say thine. (τὰ ἐμὰ κακά, the evils that I know, τὰ σὰ κ., the evils that you have to suffer.) Unless μή in l. 329 is taken as a mere rhetorical repetition of the former μή, like οὐκ in Ant. 6, (which does not seem probable after οὐ μή, and gives a poor meaning to the preceding words, as if the motive Teiresias had for speaking were merely that he might say his say, or as if he could speak and yet be silent), the only tenable explanation of the words as they stand is (1) to take ὡς ἂν εἴπω μὴ τὰ σὰ as a separate clause, with the ellipse of λέγω, as in the familiar idioms ὡς ἂν εἰδῆτε (Aesch. Cho. 1021) and ἵνα μὴ εἴπω (Lat. ne dicam, Eng. 'Not to say-') Plat. Rep. 6. 487. D etc. (For ὡς ἂν μή, cp. Fr. 736, l. 11 , and, for μή postponed, Phil. 653, ὡς λίπω μή τῳ λαβεῖν. And this is probably right, although a simpler context may be obtained (2) by transposing εἴπω and changing one letter: ἐγὼ δ᾽ οὐ μή ποτε | εἴπω τάδ', ὡς ἂν μὴ τὰ σ᾽ ἐκφήνω κακά. (For τάδε = τήνδε τὴν φάτιν, cp. infr. 377.) τἄμ᾽ ἐξενείπω was the conjecture of Brunck.

330. mvp-comment-206-1 ξυνειδὼς οὐ φράσεις 'Being privy to the deed, will you refuse to tell?"

332. mvp-comment-207-1 ταῦτ᾽ | ἄλλως (MSS, as in all similar cases, ταῦ | τ᾿ ἄλλως). The running together of the verses here is expressive of of risi rising passion. Cp. Phil. 263. The only other instance of such an elision, except with the particles δ' and 7', is in O. C. 1164, μολόντ' αἰτεῖν, where, however, the reading is questioned. This freedom is peculiar to Sophocles.

334. mvp-comment-208-1 καὶ γάρ, κ.τ.λ. Oedipus says this to excuse the strong words ὦ κακῶν κάκιστε. For the transitive use of op- γαίνω here, cp. Ο. C. 1282, δυσχεράναντα.

336. mvp-comment-209-1 άτεγκτος κατελεύτητος Immovable and impracticable.

337. mvp-comment-210-1 ὀργήν My harsh or stubborn temper, referring really to ἄτεγκτος, whilst echoing the sound of ὀργάνειας.

337. mvp-comment-210-2 τὴν σὴν δ᾽ ὁμοῦ ναίουσαν οὐ κατεῖδες Thine own that dwells at hand thou seest not. Oedipus is ignorant of his own passion, as he is of other things and persons that are too close to him.- You blame me, but know not the consequences in which your own intemperate haste will involve you. These words do not, as the Schol. frigidly suggests, contain a direct allusion to Jocasta. Cp. infr. 612 and note.

340. mvp-comment-211-1 ἅ is accusative in apposition; i.e. ἀτιμάζεις = λέγεις ἀτιμάζων. The repetition of av gives emphasis to τοιαῦτα.

341. mvp-comment-212-1 ἥξει... αὐτά (My silence makes no difference) for it will come of itself, i. e. without the intervention of my prophecy. For the vague subject, which here assists the effect of mystery, cp. Hdt. 7. 8. § 11.

342. mvp-comment-213-1 καί to be taken ὑπερβάτως with λέγειν, And what will happen, ought you not also to tell?

345. mvp-comment-214-1 οὐδὲν .. ἅπερ οὐδέν is not adverbial. Supply τούτων. And I certainly will not refrain in my anger from uttering fully what I perceive. ὡς ὁ. ἔ. = οὕτως ὀργῆς ἔχων, ὡς ἔχω. Now that I am roused so far. Cp. Phil. 374-376.

347. mvp-comment-215-1 ξυμφυτεῦσαι.. καίνων ‘Τo have been privy to the plot and to have done the murder, all but the fatal stroke.' Cp. Τr. 1214, ὅσον .. μὴ ποτιψαύων.

350. mvp-comment-216-1 ἄληθες Indeed! The anger of Teiresias becomes uncontrollable, as that of Creon does where he uses the same expression in Ant. 758. It is an idiomatic utterance of extreme impatience, and nearly corresponds to the 'Is't possible?' of Cassius in J. C. 4, 3: i. e. it does not ask ironically, Is such a statement true? but indignantly, Has such a thing really been said? 353. For the change to the dative, which avoids ambiguity, see Essay on Language p.64.

354. mvp-comment-217-1 ἐξεκίνησας expresses the surprise of Oedipus at the astounding boldness of the accusation. The same astonishment is expressed in καὶ ποῦ; which is much more suitable to the passion of Oedipus than the ironical καί που. Have you so shamelessly broken silence with such a word as this? And what escape then can you hope to find? ἐκκινεῖν is to start or put in motion. Cp. El. 567. The word which Teiresias has set going will not easily be laid to rest.

356-361. mvp-comment-218-1 'I have escaped, for I keep in my bosom the might of truth.'-'By whom instructed? You never learnt this from your art.'-'By you; you prompted my unwilling tongue.'-'To utter έ λέγειν cett.

356-361. mvp-comment-218-2 προὐτρέψω C2A. προύγρ. ἦν ξυνῆκας ΑΕ. ἢ πειρᾷ Γ. (359-360 in mg. Vat. a.) what? Repeat, that I may better understand.'- Was my speech so dark, or are you tempting me in talk?' (or, reading λέγειν, ' to speak further').- I cannot say it was intelligible, speak it again.'

360. mvp-comment-219-1 λόγῳ is nearer to the first hand of L. than λέγειν, which has, however, considerable authority. For οὐχ ὥστε γ' εἰπεῖν, cp. 1128, (τὸν ἄνδρα .. οἶσθά που μαθών; οὐχ ὥστε γ' εἰπεῖν ἐν τάχει μνήμης ὕπο). The reply refers, as often elsewhere (supr. 100), to the former of the two alternative questions, i. e. I did not understand in such a sense as to say that I know. The words of Teiresias (350-353) were not obscure, but their meaning was too strange to be received at once, and Oedipus in his anger affects to treat them as a riddling utterance of the seer. The apparent platitude indicates the difficulty that Oedipus has in receiving the new idea. Cp. infr. 439, Τr. 184, τίν' εἶπας, ὦ γεραιέ, τόνδε μοι λόγον; Aesch. Agam. 268, πῶς φής; πέφευγε τούπος ἐξ ἀπιστίας. Oι οὐχ ὥστε, κ.τ.λ., may be otherwise explained, I am not likely to provoke you to an intelligible utterance. For the form γνωστόν, see on O. C. 1360.

362. mvp-comment-220-1 τἀνδρὸς οὐ ζητεῖς Sc. τὸν φονέα. Essay on Language § 39. P. 73.

363. mvp-comment-221-1 You shall suffer for thus repeating the word of evil.' For πημονὰς ἐρεῖς, cp. O. C. 542-544, ἔθου φόνον .. πατρός ; Ο. παπαῖ, δευτέραν ἔπαισας, ἐπὶ νόσῳ νόσον. And, for the plural, infr. 571-572.

365. mvp-comment-222-1 μάτην Without result. 367. The participle, ὁμιλοῦντα, has the chief emphasis. Essay on Language p. 77.

368. mvp-comment-223-1 γεγηθώς Stronger than χαίρων. Do you think you will always speak thus and glory in it? Cp. Fr. 526, θάρσει· λέγων τἀληθὲς οὐ σφαλεῖ ποτε.

370. mvp-comment-224-1 πλήν is here used without ἄλλος or a negative preceding. There is (for other men), but not for you, for you are blind, not in eyes only, but in ears and mind.' For the alliteration, of which this is an extreme case, see Essay on Language § 44. p. 82. And for the order of the words, in which what is obvious comes last, ib. § 41. p. 78.

372. mvp-comment-225-1 Unhappy, truly, art thou in uttering this reproach, which all this people will soon cast on thee. γε means Whatever may be true of me.

374. mvp-comment-226-1 μιᾶς.. νυκτός 'Thou livest under one perpetual night. The lives of other men depend on the succession of many nights and days. That of Teiresias is merged in an unbroken night. The surroundings of a life are said to foster it. Cp. Aj. 859-863, Tr. 116. Oedipus understands 372-373 as conveying an idle threat. Cp. Ant. 752, ἢ κἀπαπειλών, κ.τ.λ.

376. mvp-comment-227-1 The erroneous reading in the MSS. may have arisen from a mistimed recollection of infr. 448. ،

377. mvp-comment-228-1 ἐκπρᾶξαι To execute this. For τάδε, cp. supr. 341 and note. The other meaning of ἐκπρᾶξαι, to exact payment or to avenge, is not found elsewhere in Sophocles, and is not wanted here.

378. mvp-comment-229-1 Thy invention.' Cp. infr. 387. Creon had suggested sending for Teiresias, as was mentioned casually supr. 288, and is also associated in the mind of Oedipus with the oracle of Apollo.

379. mvp-comment-230-1 Nay, Creon is no bane to theethou art thine own bane. Note the emphatic use of δέ, connecting the reply immediately with the preceding words. Cp. El. 399, 400, πεσούμεθ', εἰ χρή, πατρὶ τιμωρούμενοι. ΧΡ. πατὴρ δὲ τούτων, οἶδα, συγγνώμην ἔχει. For σοὶ= σαυτῷ, see Essay on Language § 41. p. 79. Without seeming to hear the reply, Oedipus is hurried away by his own preconceived thoughts.

380-403. mvp-comment-231-1 The general meaning of these lines is as follows. Yes, Creon has set him on, for envy, to hurl me from power. Creon, my right hand! O how the success of another awakes ambition and poisons hearts! And what an instrument! Thou crafty seer, whose eyes are only open for gain, am I not a truer prophet than thou ever wast? Did not the Sphinx fall before my simple skill, when thy magic and thy inspiration failed? And you think to stand at Creon's right hand, when you have ousted me? He and you alike will soon repent your hypocrisy. Nothing but your age protects you from immediate punishment.'

380. mvp-comment-232-1 τέχνη τέχνης ὑπερφέρουσα Skill surpassing skill. Cp. Phil. 138-140, τέχνα γὰρ τέχνας ἑτέρας προὔχει καὶ γνώμα παρ' ὅτῳ τὸ θεῖον Διὸς σκῆπτρον ἀνάσσεται. Oedipus alludes to his success in solving the riddle, γνώμῃ κυρήσας, 398. τῷ πολυζήλῳ βίῳ is the dative of place transferred to circumstance. (1) In the muchenvied life,' i. e. In a brilliant state of life such as mine.' To this ὁ φθόνος in the lines following seems to correspond. Or perhaps (2) more generally, In life which is full of contention. (3) Others make the genitive equivalent to a dative ='belonging to,' cp. Pind. N. 3. 10. ὁ φθόνος = sc. ὃν ἔχετε, How great is the envy that is stored up with you. To be envied, according to Greek notions, was fortunate, but perilous. Cp. Thuc. 2. 64, ὅστις δ᾽ ἐπὶ μεγίστοις τὸ ἐπίφθονον λαμβάνει, ὀρθῶς βουλεύεται : Pind. P. 1. 85, κρείσσων γὰρ οἰκτιρμοῦ φθόνος.

382. mvp-comment-233-1 φυλάσσεται Is treasured up. An Homeric expression. (II. 16. 30, χόλος ὃν σὺ φυλάσσεις.) Cp. O. C. 1212, σκαιοσύναν φυλάσσων. For the passive, see Essay on Language § 31. p. 54.

383. mvp-comment-234-1 γε implies This rule of mine, which surely might have been free from envy, since I never asked for it, but the city gave it me.'

385. mvp-comment-235-1 ὁ πιστός Ironical. Cp. Tr. 540, Ἡρακλῆς | ὁ πιστός, κ.τ.λ.

385. mvp-comment-235-2 οὐξ ἀρχῆς φίλος Cp. Aesch. Prom. 304-305, τὸν Διὸς φίλον, τὸν συγκαταστήσαντα τὴν τυραννίδα. ταύτης is ablative genitive after ἐκβαλεῖν, but the poet passes almost unconsciously from the one genitive to the other.

386-388. mvp-comment-236-1 Desires secretly to undermine and dethrone me, suborning this weaver of intrigues, this wizard, this crafty mendicant, who has an eye for his gains only, but has no eye for his art.' μάγον, as properly applicable to a barbarian soothsayer, and ἀγύρτην, to the lowest class of priests in Greece, are opprobrious words.

387. mvp-comment-237-1 ὑφείς Suborning. Cp. ὑποβάλλω.

388-389. mvp-comment-238-1 Cp. Ant. 1055, τὸ μαντικὸν γὰρ πᾶν φιλάργυρον γένος.

390. mvp-comment-239-1 ποῦ = ' On what occasion? i. e. When have you been a true prophet? Cp. supr. 355, infr. 720, ἐνταῦθα.

391. mvp-comment-240-1 ῥαψῳδός = Songstress. but also (with allusion to the supposed etymology from ῥάπτειν ᾠδήν) weaver of intricate songs. Cp. μηχανορράφος. κύων = Monster. Cp. Aesch. Fragm. 252, Σφίγγα δυσαμερίαν πρύτανιν κύνα.

394. mvp-comment-241-1 διειπεῖν To tell distinctly, to explain. 395. (1) And this you showed that you had not either from birds, nor yet had known from any of the gods. οὐ..

394. mvp-comment-241-2 προὐφάνης ἔχων = προὐφάνης οὐκ ἔχων. The ignorance of the prophet on this occasion was a strange phenomenon, to which Oedipus calls attention. Or (2) You were not found to have. 396. There is an intentional assonance here, but without any distinct playing upon the word. Cp. supr. 70, 1, infr. 603-604. See Essay on Language § 44. p. 83, and for μηδέν, ib. p. 48, 2, b. Cp. supr. 367.

394. mvp-comment-241-3 ἔπαυσά νιν The personal pronoun viv refers to the Sphinx and not to her riddle. Hence ἔπαυσα is better than the conjectural ἔλυσα.

401. mvp-comment-242-1 χώ συνθεὶς τάδε Thuc. 8. 68, ὁ .. τὸ πρᾶγμα ξυνθεὶς .. Ἀντιφῶν ἦν. 390 395 400 397. εἰδώς] γνώμῃ CA Pal.

402. mvp-comment-243-1 ἁγηλατήσειν The future tense rather belongs to κλαίων; You shall suffer for attempting to drive out pollution. Cp. Ant. 754, κλαίων φρενώσεις. To your own hurt will you and the plotter of this, methinks, drive out pollution. Cp. Hom. Il. 16. 623, τῷ κε τάχα στυγερῶς πολέμου ἀπερωήσειας.

402. mvp-comment-243-2 εἰ δέ, κ.τ.λ. Cp. Od. 23. 24, σὲ δὲ τοῦτό γε γῆρας ὀνήσει.

402. mvp-comment-243-3 ἐδόκεις γέρων εἶναι] But for the feeling that you are an old man, i. e. If I did not see, or if I did not remember, that you are an old man. δοκεῖν is not intended to throw doubt upon the fact, but simply to express the feeling of Oedipus. Essay on Language § 50. 6. b. p. 95. Ср. Τr. 57, τοῦ καλῶς πράσσειν δοκεῖν: Hdt. 4.114, εἰ βούλεσθε.. δοκέειν εἶναι δικαιότατοι. For the unconscious tautology in δοκῶν, δοκεῖς, ᾿δόκεις, see Essay on Language pp. 83, 84, and cp. infr. 519.

403. mvp-comment-244-1 παθὼν ἔγνως ἄν Cp. Hes. Op. 218, παθὼν δὲ τε νήπιος ἔγνω. You should have learnt from suffering what a spirit you are showing. Cp. Aesch. S. c. Τ. 550, τύχοιεν ὧν φρονοῦσιν. And, for οἷόσπερ in this connection, О. С. 896, οἱάπερ πέπονθ᾽ ἀκήκοας.

404. mvp-comment-245-1 εἰκάζουσι indicates the modest reserve with which the chorus express their view of what is passing between those above them. Cp. infr. 530.

406. mvp-comment-246-1 ὅπως is at first put in construction with δεῖ (cp. Αj. 556), but this being feeble is strengthened by the resumption in the words τόδε σκοπεῖν. For λύειν, = ' to meet effectually,' cp. Plat. Rep. 8. 556 Α, ᾗ αὖ κατὰ ἕτερον νόμον τὰ τοιαῦτα λύεται. Here it is partly to meet an obligation, partly to remove a difficulty.'

408-409. mvp-comment-247-1 ἐξισωτέον .. ἀντιλέξαι One point of equality must be maintained,the right of making full reply. ἴσα is added pleonastically. See Essay on Language § 40. 5. p. 76. τὸ .. ἀντιλέξαι is (1) accusative in regimen, or (2) epexegetic infinitive after ἐξισωτέον. For this impersonal passive, see Essay on Language § 31. 3. c. p. 54, and cp. infr. 628, ἀρκτέον.

409-411. mvp-comment-248-1 τοῦδε .. γεγράψομαι I too am lord of my speech, for my life is bound to Loxias and not to you. And being his servant, I shall not be enrolled under the protection of Creon. In respect of speech the prophet has authority, as the king has in matters of state. Cp. Ant. 993-994. The metic had need of a προστάτης, not the free citizen, still less one who is the retainer of a god.

412. mvp-comment-249-1 λέγω δ' And I reply. Continuing the sense from ἀντιλέξαι.

412. mvp-comment-249-2 τυφλόν, sc. ὡς ὄντα. See Essay on Language § 39, I. c. p. 72.

413. mvp-comment-250-1 A more pointed way of saying, σὺ καὶ δεδορκὼς οὐ βλέπεις ἵν᾽ εἰ κακοῦ. Cp. 419. See Essay on Language § 36, В. 8. p. 68.

414. mvp-comment-251-1 ἔνθα ναίεις i. e. In your own country and in your father's house.

415. mvp-comment-252-1 ἆρ᾽ οἶσθ᾽ ἀφ᾽ ὧν εἰ This question first re-awakens in Oedipus the old desire to know his birth. Cp. 437, 451.

415. mvp-comment-252-2 καί Moreover.

417. mvp-comment-253-1 ἀμφιπλήξ On both sides lashing thee. The twofold curse reminds the poet of the favourite image of the διπλῆ μάστιξ.

417. mvp-comment-253-2 τοῦ σοῦ Ε. on L. p. 33. 6. b, infr. 459.

418. mvp-comment-254-1 As the sentence proceeds. the image of the curse becomes more distinct and personal. Cp. El. 491, χαλκόπους Ἐρινύς.

419. mvp-comment-255-1 Thy now clear sight thenceforth seeing darkness only. Essay on Language p. 70.

420-421. mvp-comment-256-1 ποῖος οὐκ ἔσται λιμήν i. e. τίς τόπος οὐκ ἔσται λιμήν; ποῖος Κιθαιρών, i.e. πῶς οὐχὶ Κιθαιρών, κ.τ.λ. The second ποῖος is used by a sort of attraction or echo from the previous clause, and may be explained by the adverbial use of the pronoun noticed in Essay on Language pp. 59, 83. This is better than to suppose Κιθαιρών to be put by synecdoche for any mountain. Cp. Phil. 451, ποῦ χρὴ τίθεσθαι ταῦτα .. ποῦ δ' αἰνεῖν; where similarly the meaning of ποῦ varies in the two members of the sentence.

422. mvp-comment-257-1 The favorite image of a haven, already present to the mind in another connection (420), is applied to the marriage of Oedipus with the queen. Cp. infr. 1208 foll. The marriage and the marriage-song are identified. as elsewhere. When thou hast learnt the nature of that marriage, into which in yonder halls thou wast carried with full sail, to find no shelter there. δόμοις is added to indicate the meaning of the image that follows. Cp. Tr. 538. (Others take öv as cogn. accus., not = λιμένα but πλοῦν, and δόμοις as = εἰς δόμους. For this cp. Eur. H. F. 242.) 425. 'Which will show you in your true relation to yourself and to your children: i. e. Which will show you what you are, and that you are the brother of your children.

426. mvp-comment-258-1 τοὐμὸν στόμα 'The word in my mouth; i. e. Me and my prophecies. Cp. Ο. C. 794, τὸ σὸν δ᾽ ἀφῖκται δεῦρ᾽ ὑπόβλητον στόμα.

428. mvp-comment-259-1 κάκιον. . ἐκτριβήσεται Shall be more cruelly rooted out. Cp. amongst other places, Hdt. 6. 86, ἐκτέτριπταί τε πρόρριζος ἐκ Σπάρτης: ib. 6. 37. The position of κάκιον is very emphatic.

430. mvp-comment-260-1 The two pauses in the same line mark intense excitement.

431. mvp-comment-261-1 οἴκων The genitive is to be taken with both phrases, ἄψορρος ἄπει and ἀποστραφείς. Will you not return and begone from the house? Observe the angry repetition both of sound and meaning.

434. mvp-comment-262-1 ἐστειλάμην Would have had thee conducted to my house; referring to the διπλοί πομποί. The verb is causa- tive as in Ant. 164-165, πομποῖσιν ..

434. mvp-comment-262-2 ἔστειλα. The middle voice here expresses more of personal feeling and is in harmony with οἴκους τοὺς ἐμούς.

436. mvp-comment-263-1 οἱ σ᾽ ἔφυσαν The repetition of the same verb (ἔφυμεν, l. 435 ) is another instance of accidental tautology. Cp. infr. 519. The double phrase (γον. οἵ σ' ἔφν.) is intended to draw the attention of Oedipus to the mystery of his birth. The construction of the dative has to be supplied from ἔφυμεν, ὡς .. δοκεῖ, SC. ἐδοκοῦμεν φῦναι.

437. mvp-comment-264-1 μεῖνον. (430, note.) Teiresias had turned to go. δé connects the question immediately with the speech of Teiresias. ἐκφύει, historical present.

438. mvp-comment-265-1 This day shall give thee birth and bring thee to nought.' 441. Reproach me with these things if you will, but you will find me great in them. For the sarcastic imperative, cp. Εl. 794, ὕβριζε, κ.τ.λ.: Aj. 971, ὑβριζέτω : Aesch. Prom. 82, ἐνταῦθα νῦν ὕβριζε.

442. mvp-comment-266-1 That glory of yours has been your ruin.' τύχη refers to μέγαν. The glory of which you speak. The word is much more appropriate than τέχνη (Bentley), which implies praise, and is rather applicable to the μαντική of Teiesias than to the γνώμη of Oedipus. Gravius est τύχη ut plura complectens. Erfurdt. Cp. supr. 423, εὐπλοίας τυχών. Teiresias assigns to Fortune what Oedipus (supr. 398) attributed to Wit. Cp. Thuc. 1. 144, γνώμῃ πλείονι ἢ τύχῃ καὶ τόλμῃ μείζονι ἢ δυνάμει.

443. mvp-comment-267-1 Oedipus, although curious about his parentage, cares not to ask further about the threat of ruin, but falls back on his devotion to the state.

445. mvp-comment-268-1 ὡς .. ὀχλεῖς Being present and in our way, you trouble us. σύ is brought in to mark the antithesis. Essay on Language § 41. e. p. 79. The reading of most MSS, σύ γ', may be defended if γε belongs to the whole sentence, assenting to l. 444. 447 ff. I will tell my message ere I go, not fearing thy frown, for thou hast no power to destroy me.' The speech of Teiresias is now as clear as his former words were dark; although his meaning is still an enigma to Oedipus.

447. mvp-comment-269-1 εἰπὼν ἄπειμ᾽ ὧν οὖνεκ᾽ ἦλθον The position of εἰπών here (having the first arsis of the line) is very emphatic. Cp. supr. 428, and see Essay on Language § 41. P. 77.

448. mvp-comment-270-1 πρόσωπον Cp. Hor. Od. 3. 3. 4. Nec vultus instantis tyranni Mente quatit solida.

448. mvp-comment-270-2 οὐ γὰρ . . ὀλεῖς Thou hast no power to ruin me. Cp. supr. 355. Essay on Language § 24. p. 41. Teiresias' habitual respect for Oedipus struggles with his prophetic knowledge, even now that he has help of anger.' ὅπου and ποῦ are used as nearly equivalent to ὅπως, πῶς. Cp. Αj. 1100, ποῦ σὺ στρατηγεῖς τοῦδε; 1103, οὐδ᾽ ἔσθ᾽ ὅπου σοί, κ.τ.λ.

449. mvp-comment-271-1 τοῦτον Essay on Language § 22. p. 35; and § 35. p. 59.

450. mvp-comment-272-1 ἀπειλῶν Supr. 233 foll.

452. mvp-comment-273-1 λόγῳ In appearance. Cp. El. 63, 1217.

452. mvp-comment-273-2 ἐγγενὴς . . Θηβαῖος A native Theban, i.e. not only of Theban extraction, but at once born in the country and belonging to the race. Cp. Hdt. 2. 47, where Αἰγύπτιοι ἐγγενέες means the opposite of τὸ ἀνέκαθεν Αἰγύπτιοι.

453. mvp-comment-274-1 οὐδ᾽ ἡσθήσεται, κ.τ.λ. Nor will he be gladdened by his fortune. The use of the third person adds to the impressiveness of the prophecy.

456. mvp-comment-275-1 Groping his way. σκήπτρῳ προδεικνύς, lit. 'Pointing before him with a staff. For the order of words, see Essay on Language § 41. p. 77.

457. mvp-comment-276-1 αὐτός The MS. reading agrees better with αὑτοῦ in the previous line than αὑτός, which some editors have substituted. He shall prove to be to his own children, with whom he lives, himself their brother as well as father. (αὐτὸς τοῖς αὑτοῦ παισὶν ἀδελφός.) For the slight pleonasm in ξυνών, cp. Aj. 267, κοινὸς ἐν κοινοῖσι λυπεῖσθαι ξυνών. The horror of the relationship is increased by his having lived with them in ignorance of it for so long.

459. mvp-comment-277-1 And of his mother and wife—her husband as well as son. The collocation of γυναικὸς υἱὸς is intentionally suggestive.

459. mvp-comment-277-2 τοῦ πατρός The article points to Laius, his father, of whom so much has been lately said. And of his murdered sire at once the incestuous rival and the murderer.

460. mvp-comment-278-1 ὁμόσπορος τὴν αὐτὴν σπείρων γυναῖκα, Schol. Cp. Eur. Or. 476, where Menelaus says to Tyndareus, χαῖρε, Ζηνὸς ὁμόλεκτρον κάρα. The same word is used passively in 260. The seven καί's have a cumulative force. καί with the imperative = And now. 461. For με omitted see Essay on Language §39. P. 73-

462. mvp-comment-279-1 φρονεῖν To have intelligence, as in 316. Cp. 11. 390-396.

463-511. mvp-comment-280-1 Where is the accursed one, whom Apollo has marked as the perpetrator of the terrible deed? Now should he fly far away, with a step swifter than that of steeds, the daughters of the wind. For the son of Zeus, clothed in armour, leaps upon him with flashing fire, and the inevitable Fates are following him. He is roaming in forests and amongst desert caves, but he shall find no refuge. The forlorn man cannot put away from him the oracles that come from the centre of the earth.

463-511. mvp-comment-280-2 I tremble to think of the answer which the seer has given; and I hover in uncertainty, seeing neither what is, nor what will be. I neither know nor have known any strife between the house of Labdacus and the son of Polybus, and without proof, I will not give up Oedipus on an uncertain surmise. There is no knowing whether the voice of the prophet is the voice of God. But one man may be wiser than another. And of mortals who so wise as Oedipus? We have proof of this and of his good- Ist strophe and antistr. logaoedic or glyconic, ness to our state. Therefore I will think no harm of him.

463-511. mvp-comment-280-3 The first strophe and antistrophe refer to the proclamation of Oedipus reporting the answer of the oracle; the second to the words of Teiresias, which contained the only answer yet given to the question which the oracle left obscure. The differing metres of the first and second strophe and antistrophe contrast the eager resolution of the chorus to find the murderer, with the wavering excitement which the words of Teiresias have awakened, distracting them between their loyalty to Oedipus and their reverence for the seer. The first strophe commences with a strain half grave, half light, which is stirred into a quicker motion in the glyconics (lines 466-468), where the flight of the fugitive is described and grows faster and also weightier in the description of the tramp of his pursuers (lines 469 ff.). In the second strophe the alternation of the mind of the Chorus is indicated in the uneven Ionic rhythm. followed by rapid anapaestic clcclcc dimeters marking the climax of feeling. 2nd str. and antistr. Ionic a minore with anacrusis and pauses. 100- D 100–110)|10) 10)||10)|[110)]110) 463. The διορθωτής of the Laurentian MS. has written εἶπε over another word (ειδε?) and Flor. Γ. gives εἶδε, above 100which a later hand has written εἶπε as a v. r. Both readings are noticed by the Scholiast. The construction with the participle is at first sight rather in favour of εἶδε (or οἶδε). But cp. El. 318, О. С. 1580, ξυντομωτάτως μὲν ἂν τύχοιμι λέξας Οἰδίπουν ὀλωλότα, and infr. 1214, δικάζει .. τεκνοῦντα, εἶπε is much better suited to the context. The voice which the Pythia interpreted came from the rock.

465. mvp-comment-281-1 For ἄρρητ' ἀρρήτων, see Essay on Language § 40, 4. p. 75.

466. mvp-comment-282-1 ἀελλάδων Said to be = ἀελλαίων. But may not some of the force of the patronymic be retained, = 'Swift daughters of the storm'? See the fable in II. 20. 223.

467. mvp-comment-283-1 σθεναρώτερον is better taken as an adjective agreeing with πόδα than as an adverb. Cp. Il. 10.358, λαιψηρὰ δὲ γούνατ' ἐνώμα. Ε. on L. § 9. p. 13.

470. mvp-comment-284-1 πυρὶ καὶ στεροπαῖς Το follow ἔνοπλος ἐπενθρώσκει. The son of Zeus leaps armed upon him, with fiery bolts. The avenging power of Phoebus is referred to his father Zeus (the πυρφόρος ἀστεροπητής, Phil. 1198), whose lightning he hurls, and by whose prophetic power he is inspired. Cp. supr. 151.

472. mvp-comment-285-1 Κήρες The meaning of this word varies between (1) lot or des- tiny, (2) misfortune, (3) death. The Κῆρες have not the independent authority of the Mοίραι, but are rather the subordinate ministers who execute the Divine will.

473. mvp-comment-286-1 ἔλαμψε . φάμα The command flashed forth. Cp. 186, παιὰν δὲ λάμπει : Pind. O1. 1. 23, λάμπει . . κλέος.

475. mvp-comment-287-1 πάντ᾿ ἰχνεύειν πάντα is neuter plural adverbial: to track by all means, rather than masculine subject of ἰχνεύειν, for every one to track.

478. mvp-comment-288-1 The reading of the inferior MSS., although yielding an unlikely rhythm, is given in the text as most probably representing the true meaning. ἅτε has been read with some probability for ὡς. The reading of L., even if the adj. were here permissible (see Essay on Language § 23, €. p. 39) is impossible on account of the strained use of metaphor. Prof. E. L. Lushington has suggested ἰσόταυρος. Cp. Virgil's description, Georg. 3. 203, of the solitary vanquished bull; 11. 481, 2, suggest that he is also seeking refuge from the breese.

479. mvp-comment-289-1 χηρεύων Forlorn, 'Cut off from fellowship; alluding to the curse under which the murderer lay, 236, foll. N2

480. mvp-comment-290-1 τὰ μεσόμφαλα γᾶς .. μαντεία The oracles from the central spot of earth. yâs is part. gen. after the adjective of place. Cp. Strabo, 9. p. 419, τῆς Ἑλλάδος ἐν μέσῳ πώς ἐστι τῆς συμπάσης .. καὶ ἐκάλεσαν τῆς γῆς ὄμφαλον.

480. mvp-comment-290-2 ἀπονοσφίζων Putting away from him, i.e. avoiding. An inverted expression, like ἀποκρύπτειν γῆν.

481. mvp-comment-291-1 ἀεί to be taken equally with ζῶντα and περιποτᾶται. And they will not die, but still live and move around him. The chorus look to the ends of the earth for the man whom they have just seen before the palace; for him, who, instead of avoiding the oracle, embraces and is seeking to obey it.

483. mvp-comment-292-1 Fearfully does the wise augur trouble me.' For the ellipse of the object με, see Essay on Language § 39. P. 73. μὲν οὖν marks the transition to a course of thought which is not final; to this ἀλλά, κ.τ.λ. 497 ff. is afterwards opposed.

483. mvp-comment-292-2 δεινά is adverbial acc., and δοκοῦντα, ἀποφάσκοντα acc. masc. agreeing with με understood. Neither entertaining the suggestion nor denying. For δοκεῖν absolute, cp. El. 61, δοκῶ μέν, alib., Αj. 942, σοὶ μὲν δοκεῖν ταῦτ᾽ ἔστ᾽ ἐμοὶ δ᾽ ἄγαν φρονεῖν : Τr. 590, 1, ὡς τὸ μὲν δοκεῖν ἔνεστι. This interpretation is supported by the words, ὅ, τι λέξω δ᾽ ἀπορῶ, which are added in explanation. Others take δεινά ταράσσει, κ.τ.λ., to mean suggests dire conflicting thoughts, which neither affirm their object nor deny.

486. mvp-comment-293-1 πέτομαι δ᾽ ἐλπίσιν And I hover in uncertain expectation. Cp. Eur. Bacch. 332, νῦν γὰρ πέτει τε καὶ φρονῶν οὐδὲν φρονεῖς: infr. 771-772, és τοσοῦτον ἐλπίδων ἐμοῦ βεβῶτος.

487. mvp-comment-294-1 Not seeing clearly either the present or the future. Cp. ὁ γὰρ οἷος ὅρα πρόσσω καὶ ὀπίσσω, Il. 18.250; Od. 24.452. The Greeks imagined the future as coming on behind the present and so hidden by it.

487. mvp-comment-294-2 ἢ.. ἤ What quarrel lay between them on either side. The disjunctive form of expression gives emphasis to each of the proper names. The same emphatic strain is continued with οὔτε οὔτε. Cp. Hdt. 7. 54, οὐκ ἔχω ἀτρεκέως διακρίναι, οὔτε εἰ . . οὔτε εἰ, κ.τ.λ.

488. mvp-comment-295-1 ἔκειτο Lit. Was laid up, (cp. 232, ἡ χάρις προσκείσεται), but this meaning is almost lost, and the word has little more than the force of the substantive verb.

492. mvp-comment-296-1 The corresponding line of the antistrophe exceeds this by--, and the slight obscurity of the present passage makes it more probable that one or two words have been lost here, than that γὰρ ἐπ᾿ αὐτῷ has been interpolated in l. 507. The addition of τινὸς ἀνδρῶν, or some such words, would make the sense clearer, and in any case ὅτου is masculine. What quarrel lay between them I never learnt from any man at whose word I might go, proof in hand, against the popular fame of Oedipus. For the use of πρός with the active verb, cp. Τr. 935, ἄκουσα πρὸς τοῦ θηρὸς ἔρξειεν τάδε. βασάνῳ εἶμι = ἐλέγξων εἶμι. For the instrumental dative = ξὺν βασάνῳ, see Essay on Language § 14. 1. p. 20.

495. mvp-comment-297-1 ἐπὶ .. εἶμι is a case of tmesis. For the constr. cp. II. 11. 367, τοὺς ἄλλους ἐπιείσομαι.

496. mvp-comment-298-1 Going to the aid of the Labdacidae on account of a mysterious death. Cp. Eur. El. 138, αἱμάτων ἐπίκουρος.

498. mvp-comment-299-1 ὅ τ᾿ Ἀπόλλων Who is again regarded as the προφήτης of Zeύς. See l. 151, and note.

500. mvp-comment-300-1 πλέον ἢ ἐγὼ φέρεται Attains more than I. Cp. Hdt. 8. 29, πρόσθε τε γὰρ ἐν τοῖσι Ἕλλησι, .. πλέον αἰεί κοτε ὑμέων ἐφερόμεθα· νῦν τε παρὰ τῷ βαρβάρῳ τοσοῦτον δυνάμεθα ὥστε, κ.τ.λ.: Ε1. 1095-1096, τῶνδε φερομέναν ἄριστα.

501. mvp-comment-301-1 κρίσις οὐκ ἔστιν ἀληθής There is no sure way of determining. Cp. Pind. fr. Paean. 39, τί δ' ἔλπεαι σοφίαν ἐμμέναι, ᾆτ᾽ ὀλίγον τοι ἀνὴρ ὑπὲρ ἀνδρὸς ἰσχύει; οὐ γὰρ ἔσθ᾽ ὅπως τὰ θεῶν βουλεύματ᾽ ἐρευνάσαι βροτέᾳ φρενί.

502. mvp-comment-302-1 παραμείψειεν Might pass, as in a race. Cp. Pind. Pyth. 2. 50, θεός, ὁ καὶ πτερόεντ' αἰετὸν κίχε καὶ θαλασσαῖον παραμείβεται δελφίνα. On the use of the active for the middle voice, see Essay on Language p. 98.

503. mvp-comment-303-1 πρὶν ἴδοιμ The optative (instead of ἂν ἴδω) is occasioned by ката- φαίην ἄν.

503. mvp-comment-303-2 ὀρθὸν ἔπος A clear or certain utterance, i. e. one proved by the fact.

503. mvp-comment-303-3 ἡδύπολισ MSS. τῷ] τῶ(1) L. Cp. 853, τόν γε Λαΐου φόνον φανεῖ δικαίως ὀρθόν : Ant. 1178, ὦ μάντι, τοῦπος ὡς ἄρ᾽ ὀρθὸν ἥνυσας : Pind. Pyth. 6. 19.

503. mvp-comment-303-4 μεμφομένων Gen. absolute.

503. mvp-comment-303-5 καταφαίην Ar. Met. 3. 6. 11, ἀδύνατον ἅμα καταφάναι καὶ ἀποφάναι.

510. mvp-comment-304-1 βασάνῳ In actual proof. Dative of circumstance. Cp. 494. The same word repeated in a different connexion. The words φανερά, ὤφθη, βασάνῳ, are intended to contrast the clear evidence in Oedipus' favour with the uncertainty of the suspicion against him.

510. mvp-comment-304-2 ἁδύπολις = ἡδὺς τῇ πόλει. Cp. ὑψίπολις = ὑψηλὸς ἐν πόλει, Ant. 370.

510. mvp-comment-304-3 τῷ Epicè, Therefore.'

513. mvp-comment-305-1 Creon enters (right) from the city. In the first episode the action was strikingly rapid. It contained the two great movements of the proclamation of Oedipus and the prophecy of Teiresias, with only sufficient pause between them (ll. 276-296) to give effect to the latter. Now follows a period of suspense, for which the wavering tones of the last chorus have prepared the way. The scene is of unusual length, ll. 512-862, but is divided by the short lyric measures (commatica) in 11. 649-668, 678-696. Cp. O. C. 833 ff, 876 ff. The entrance of Jocasta (1. 634) prepares new complications.

515. mvp-comment-306-1 ἀτλητών Unable to endure it. The verb is formed after the analogy οἱ ἀλαστέω, ἀελπτέω, etc.

515. mvp-comment-306-2 ἐν ταῖς ξυμφοραῖς ταῖς νῦν In the present crisis.

516. mvp-comment-307-1 πρός γ᾿ ἐμοῦ The variety of reading has been caused by the ellipse of τι, for which cp. El. 1322-1323, ὡς ἐπ᾿ ἐξόδῳ κλύω | τῶν ἔνδοθεν χωροῦντος, SC.

516. mvp-comment-307-2 τινός. The emphatic ἐμοῦ is better here than μου. That in this emergency he has suffered at my hands aught tending to his harm by word or deed.

518. mvp-comment-308-1 I care not to prolong my life.'

518. mvp-comment-308-2 τοῦ μακραίωνος. The article as with words of number and quantity, e.g. Ο. C. 1211, τοῦ πλέονος μέρους. Cp. Αj. 473, τοῦ μακροῦ χρήζειν βίου. For the use of the compound, see Essay on Language p. 101.

519. mvp-comment-309-1 ἁπλοῦν, though opposed to μέγιστον, is not = σμικρόν, but points to the manifold nature of the injury as expressed in 521-522, This word affects me with loss not only in one respect, but does me the most serious injury.' For the unconscious tautology in the repetition of φέρει after φέρον, φέροντι, cp. infr. 524-527, γνώμῃ, γνώμαις, γνώμῃ.

522. mvp-comment-310-1 The leader of the chorus is allied to the royal house, infr. 1225.

524. mvp-comment-311-1 βιασθέν is not to be repeated with γνώμῃ, which is dative of cause. The charge may have been made in the violence of anger, and not advisedly.

525. mvp-comment-312-1 τοῦ πρός From whom proceeded this? i. e. On whose authority was it said? The inversion in this passage has suggested the v. r. τοῦπος found in FL³, which is also supposed to correspond better with the answer of the chorus. But the change is unnecessary. The order of words is singular, but is suited to express the excitement of Creon. Cp. the position of ὅτι, and Ar. Εq. 32, ποῖον βρέτας πρός; There is no real difficulty in reconciling the question to the answer. Creon asks, 'From whom came the intimation?" To which the chorus answers, The thing was said, but I cannot tell you on what ground or authority: γνώμῃ τίνι referring to τοῦ πρός, κ.τ.λ. For γνώμῃ φρενῶν, cp. Ant. 1090, τὸν νοῦν .. τῶν φρενῶν.

528. mvp-comment-313-1 Were his eyes and his mind clear, when this accusation was uttered against : me by him?' Most MSS. omitting δ' in the first place, waver between ὀρθῶν τε and ὀρθῶν δέ. But δ' before ὀρθῶν is not devoid of authority.

529. mvp-comment-314-1 Observe the continued use of the passive voice. Essay on Language §. 31. pp. 53-54. Creon still avoids the direct mention of Oedipus as his accuser; and the chorus use the same reserve.

530. mvp-comment-315-1 ἃ γὰρ .. οὐχ ὁρῶ I have no eye to see what rulers do. 532 foll. Insolent, what mean you by coming hither, you that have aimed at my life and sought to subvert my sovereignty? Unsupported by friends, how could you expect to succeed or to elude my vigilance? Did you take me for a coward or a fool?'

530. mvp-comment-315-2 οὗτος, σύ This punctuation is more forcible than οὗτος σύ, and has also better authority. The inversion of πῶς σύ accords with the feeling of the speech. Essay on Language § 41. p. 78. See below, l. 1121 .

532. mvp-comment-316-1 τοσόνδ᾽ ἔχεις τόλμης πρόσωπον Have you such a face of brass? i. e. τοσαύτης τόλμης πρόσωπον. A case of hypallage.

534. mvp-comment-317-1 The ind. ἵκου is more forcible than the infinitive, as dwelling on the 542.8] fact, and not merely marking its connexion with the preceding statement. The words ἐμφανῶς, ἐναργής, in what follows, are very characteristic of the passionate self-confidence of Oedipus.

537. mvp-comment-318-1 ἐν ἐμοί, like ἃ δ᾽ ἂν ἔρῃ, infr. 749, is an apparent violation of the rule that the 2nd and 3rd syllables of a trisyllabic foot must be in the same word. But ev is a preposition which adheres to its case.

538. mvp-comment-319-1 ὡς, κ.τ.λ. depends, κατὰ τὸ σημαινόμενον, οη καταφρονήσας, or the like, implied in ἰδὼν . . ἐν ἐμοί. Either supposing that I would not detect the stealthy approaches of this plot of yours, or that I would not resist it when observed.' The MS. reading -κούκ may be compared with Il. 2. 289, ἢ παῖδες νεαροὶ χῆραί τε γυναῖκες, or ἤ in this case may be explained as = ' or;' but the correction ἢ ἡ οὐκ seems far more probable. The former alternative implies μωρίαν, the latter δειλίαν. For the synizesis, cp. infr. 555, ἢ οὐκ ἔπειθες.

538. mvp-comment-319-2 γνωρίσοιμι follows the MSS. against the Atticists.

541. mvp-comment-320-1 πλήθους καὶ φίλων Cp. supr. 470, πυρὶ καὶ στεροπαῖς.

543. mvp-comment-321-1 οἶσθ᾿ ὡς ποίησον Do you know what I bid you do?" An idiomatic confusion of οἶσθ ὡς ποιήσεις with ποίησον. See Essay on Language $ 36. p. 66.

545. mvp-comment-322-1 You are a clever talker; but I am slow to learn of you (alluding to μαθών in the preceding line), for I have found you dangerous and hostile to me. Cp. Plat. Rep. 2. 358 Α, ἀλλ᾽ ἐγώ τις, ὡς ἔοικε, δυσμαθής.

547. mvp-comment-323-1 τοῦτ᾽ αὐτό This very point, viz. whether I am hostile to you.

549. mvp-comment-324-1 Cp. Aesch. Prom. 1012, αὐθαδία γὰρ τῷ φρονοῦντι μὴ καλῶς | αὐτὴ καθ᾿ αὑτὴν οὐδενὸς μεῖον σθένει.

552. mvp-comment-325-1 ὑφέξειν τὴν δίκην ‘Το be made to answer for it.' Oedipus has an uneasy feeling that Creon may think himself above the law. This Creon deprecates.

553-554. mvp-comment-326-1 ὸ . . πάθημα is both governed by δίδασκε and to be resumed with παθεῖν. Tell me your injury, what injury you say you have received. Cp. infr. 604.

555. mvp-comment-327-1 ἔπειθες Referring to Κρέοντος εἰπόντος in 288, a slight touch, which has prepared the way for the present scene.

556. mvp-comment-328-1 τὸν σεμνόμαντιν ἄνδρα The solemn prophet. σεμνός has frequently the ironical sense of pretentious. Cp. 953, τὰ σέμν᾿ ἵν᾿ ἥκει τοῦ θεοῦ μαντεύματα: Αj. 1107, τὰ σέμν᾽ ἔπη: Aesch. Prom. 953, σεμνόστομός γε καὶ φρονήματος πλέως. ..

557. mvp-comment-329-1 αὑτὸς τῷ βουλεύματι And I still hold to the advice I gave. Cp. Thuc. 2. 61, καὶ ἐγὼ μὲν ὁ αὐτός εἰμι καὶ οὐκ ἐξίσταμαι : Phil. 521, τότ᾽ οὐκέθ᾽ αὑτὸς τοῖς λόγοις τούτοις φανῆς. τῷ βουλεύματι is (1) dative of identity with αὑτός rather than (2) of manner. Cp. Hdt. 3. 119, εἰ συνέπαινοί εἰσι τῷ πεποιημένῳ. For the other view (2), cp. Thuc. 3.38, ἐγὼ μὲν οὖν ὁ αὐτὸς εἰμι τῇ γνώμῃ.

561. mvp-comment-330-1 It would be a long reckoning of distant times.'

562. mvp-comment-331-1 ἐν τῇ τέχνη Practising his art. Cp. Plat. Prot. 317 C, πολλά γε ἔτη ἤδη εἰμὶ ἐν τῇ τέχνη.

565. mvp-comment-332-1 Either on no occasion when I was standing near, οὐδαμοῦ simply repeating the negative in οὐκοῦν, οτ, τεsolving οὐδαμοῦ into two words, ('not,' 'anywhere'), certainly not, when I was standing anywhere near. The former is preferable. See Essay on Language § 41. p 77; and for the transference of the adverb of place to time, ibid. § 24. p. 41, supr. 1. 390.

566. mvp-comment-333-1 τοῦ θανόντος Gen. of respect.

567. mvp-comment-334-1 παρέσχομεν The compound verb is used in the reply, partly for the sake of variety, but also with a slight alteration of sense. But did you have no enquiry about the deed? Of course we held an enquiry. παρέσχομεν has a more active meaning, and implies more effort (='dare operam') than ἔσχετε. The word is used here as in El. 1144-1145, (τροφῆς) τὴν ἐγὼ θάμ᾿ ἀμφὶ σοὶ πόνῳ γλυκεῖ παρέσχον.

568. mvp-comment-335-1 ὁ σοφός Cp. 563.

569. mvp-comment-336-1 ἐφ᾽ οἷς = ἐπὶ τούτοις ἅ. The spectator would not feel, as the reader is apt to do, that the question of Oedipus calls attention to a real inconsistency in the fable. Cp. supr. 103 ff.

570. mvp-comment-337-1 τοσόνδε γ' The MS. reading τοσὸν δέ γ' (i. e. τὸ σὸν δέ γ') looks like an early correction. On the other hand, the simple τόσον hardly occurs elsewhere in Sophocles (unless in Tr. 53, κἀμὲ χρὴ φράσαι τόσον, where τὸ σόν is preferable). But cp. Hdt. 4. 197, τόσον δὲ ἔτι ἔχω εἰπεῖν. The abruptness caused by omitting δε is rather expressive. τοσόνδε refers to what is coming. There is one thing which you know and can tell clearly.'

570. mvp-comment-337-2 οἶσθα.. λέγοις.. φρονών He echoes Creon's words, οὐκ οἶδα μὴ φρονῶ σιγᾶν.

571. mvp-comment-338-1 οἰδά γ᾽ If I do know it. γε points the reference to the preceding line.

572. mvp-comment-339-1 τὰς ἐμάς The article refers to Teiresias' words, 362, φονέα σε φημί, κ.τ.λ. He would not have spoken, as he did, of my being Laius murderer.' Cp Eur. (?) Rhes. 438, σὺ κομπεῖς τὰς ἐμὰς ἀμύστιδας. The poet may also have intended the expression to be ambiguous, and to mean in the ear of the spectator, he would not have told of my murder of Laius. For the plural, ср. О. С. 962, ὅστις φόνους μοι καὶ γάμους καὶ συμφοράς, κ.τ.λ.

575. mvp-comment-340-1 ταύθ' Adv. accus. Just as. Cp 579, ἄρχεις . . ταὐτά.

576. mvp-comment-341-1 The compound verb answers the simple as in 567. Do your best to learn. Cp. 129, ἐξειδέναι: Hdt. 7. 28, ἐξέμαθον καὶ εὗρον, κ.τ.λ. The present tense has the inchoative meaning.

577. mvp-comment-342-1 γήμας ἔχεις You have in marriage.

578. mvp-comment-343-1 ἄρνησις οὐκ ἔνεστιν There is no possibility of denying.

579. mvp-comment-344-1 ἄρχεις δ᾽ ἐκείνῃ ταὐτά You share your power with her. Creon implies that Jocasta is queen in her own right. Cp. 630, note.

579. mvp-comment-344-2 γῆς ἴσον νέμων Holding with her an equal portion in the land. The dative is resumed in thought. Cp. Thuc. 6. 16, 4, ἢ τὰ ἴσα νέμων τὰ ὁμοῖα ἀνταξιούτω.

582. mvp-comment-345-1 True, and that is just what marks you as a bad friend. Oedipus assents to Creon's statement of his own position, and retorts that his nearness to the throne only aggravates the case against him.

583. mvp-comment-346-1 The argument of Creon resembles that with which Histiaeus soothes the suspicion of Darius, Hdt. 5.106, τί δ' ἂν ἐπιδιζήμενος ποιέοιμι ταῦτα; τεῦ δὲ ἐνδεὴς ἐών; τῷ πάρα μὲν πάντα ὅσα περ σοί, πάντων δὲ πρὸς σέο βουλευμάτων ἐπακούειν ἀξιεῦμαι.

583. mvp-comment-346-2 Not so; if you would but reason with yourself, as I reason with you.' σοί is absorbed in σαντῷ : i. e. σαυτῷ ὡς ἐγὼ σοί. For the expression, cp. Hdt. 1. 209; 2. 162; 3.25; 4. 102; 6.138.

586. mvp-comment-347-1 ἄτρεστον εὔδοντ Hom. Od. 13. 92, δὴ τότε γ᾿ ἀτρέμας εἶδε.

587-589. mvp-comment-348-1 For the position of the words οὔτ᾽ αὐτὸς .. οὔτ᾽ ἄλλος, cp. Phil. 88, 9, ἔφυν γὰρ οὐδὲν ἐκ τέχνης πράσσειν κακῆς | οὔτ᾽ αὐτός, οὔθ᾽, ὥς φασιν, οὑκφύσας ἐμέ.

588. mvp-comment-349-1 τύραννα For τύραννος adj. cp. Ant. 1169, τύραννον σχῆμα.

590. mvp-comment-350-1 φέρω Ι obtain.' Cp. О. С. 5, 6, τοῦ μικροῦ δ᾽ ἔτι μεῖον φέροντα,

592. mvp-comment-351-1 How then can the possession of sovereignty be pleasanter to me than to have a power and authority that is free from annoyance?'

594. mvp-comment-352-1 οὔπω Surely I am not so far gone in self-deceit. πω adds emphasis to the negative. See note on 105, οὐ γὰρ εἰσεῖδόν γέ πω.

595. mvp-comment-353-1 τὰ σὺν κέρδει καλά Glory with advantage. Creon's present δυναστεία had the reality of both. Sovereignty might bring him outward brilliancy, but not solid gain.

596. mvp-comment-354-1 πᾶσι χαίρω (1) I am happy in the sight of all. Cp. Eur. Med. 509, πολλαῖς μακαρίαν. The recognition of happiness is an element of happiness to the sensitive Greek (as to Croesus in the story of Herodotus); and the happy man is saluted by all (πᾶς ἀσπάζεται), just as the unfortunate is passed by without regard. Cp Thuc. 6. 16, ὥσπερ δυστυχοῦντες οὐδὲ προσαγορευόμεθα. Or (2) I take pleasure in all men' (as having no enemy). Cp. Od. 19. 462-463, τῷ μὲν χαῖρον νοστήσαντι. Other renderings are, I am happy in my relations with all; I am happy in all ways (πᾶσι neuter); and, All bid me rejoice. (Cp. χαῖρέ μοι.) 597. ἐκκαλοῦσί με is Invite me forth, or, Take me aside, e. g. from the palace or the council for private conference, as an important person. Cp. 951, τί μ' ἐξεπέμψω δεῦρο τῶνδε δωμάτων; Ant. 18: Eur. Bacch. 170, τίς ἐν πύλαισι; Κάδμον ἐκκάλει δόμων: Αj. 749-750, ἐκ γὰρ ξυνέδρου καὶ τυραννικοῦ κύκλου | Κάλχας μεταστὰς οἷος Ἀτρειδῶν δίχα, κ.τ.λ. Aristoph. Ach. 400-402: Hdt. 8. 79, ἐξεκαλέετο. The conjecture of L. Dindorf, αἰκάλλουσι, suggests a disagreeable association of mean flattery. The word αἰκάλλω occurs only once in tragedy, and then in reproach. Eur. Andr. 630, πρόδοτιν αἰκάλλων κύνα.

598. mvp-comment-355-1 τὸ γὰρ . . ἔνι For their success all depends on this; viz. on paying court to me. The text is uncertain, but here, as in a few other passages (cp. supr. 221), Flor. F. may have preserved an older reading. The absence of caesura is not a fatal objection to the reading αὐτοὺς ἅπαντ᾽. Cp. infr. 856. And for the accus. cp. Eur. Or. 761, τύχοις ἂν .. ὅσον θέλεις. But Flor. F. certainly gives a better line, and the correction ἅπαντ' may be conjectural.

599. mvp-comment-356-1 κεῖν κεῖνο, τὸ ἄρχειν ξὺν φόβοισι, τὴν τυραννίδα.

599. mvp-comment-356-2 ἀφεὶς τάδε] Cp. Macb. 1. 7, I have won | Golden opinions from all sorts of people | That would be worn now in their newest gloss, | Not cast aside so soon.' Ib. 2. 1, 'M. It shall make honour for you. B. So I lose none | In seeking to augment it, .... | I shall be counselled. But Creon's notion of honour' is more external than Banquo's.

600. mvp-comment-357-1 No mind that has a right sense of things can turn to evil. For the order of words, see Essay on Language § 41, p. 77. Creon thus sums up his previous argument. None can have wicked schemes whose judgment is not blind.' L

601. mvp-comment-358-1 τῆσδε τῆς γνώμης Sc. τῆς τῶν ἐρώντων τυραννίδος.

602. mvp-comment-359-1 τλαίην Sc. τοῦτο, implied in τῆσδε τῆς γνώμης. It is unnecessary to supply an infinitive.

603. mvp-comment-360-1 ἔλεγχον For proof. Accusative in apposition to the sentence.

603. mvp-comment-360-2 τοῦτο μὲν .. τοῦτ᾽ ἄλλο are also in the same construction.

603. mvp-comment-360-3 Πυθώδ᾽ ἰὼν πεύθου Cp. supr. 70, 71, and note.

605. mvp-comment-361-1 τοῦτ᾽ ἄλλο This more, with passionate emphasis instead oἱ τοῦτο δέ. Cp. the Homeric ἄλλο δέ τοι ἐρέω. Α different variation occurs in Ant. 165-168, τοῦτο μὲν .. τοῦτ᾽ αὖθις.

605. mvp-comment-361-2 τῷ τερασκόπῳ The diviner. Creon, to soothe Oedipus, joins with him in speaking lightly of the seer.

606. mvp-comment-362-1 Then take and slay me,-not by thy single voice, for thou shalt have mine as well.' 608. The meaning of χωρίς, which is used absolutely, must be determined from the antithesis of the preceding lines. Without inquiry.The latter word is implied in ἐάν με τῷ τερασκόπῳ λάβῃς, κ.τ.λ.

606. mvp-comment-362-2 γνώμῃ The dative is causal, By reason of an unproved suspicion.' Be not led by a vague notion to accuse me of your own mere will.

609. mvp-comment-363-1 μάτην Without cause.

612. mvp-comment-364-1 τὸν παρ᾽ αὑτῷ βίοτον The life which is very near to him. Cp. Plat. Rep. 3. 413 C, τοῦ παρ᾽ αὑτοῖς δόγματος. The preposition assists the figure by which the life (compared to a friend) is represented as an object of affection distinct from the man himself. For the ellipse of τις, see Essay on Language § 39, p. 72-73, and cp. supr. 516. 614-615. Cp. Solon. Fr. 9. Δείξει δὲ μανίην μὲν ἐμὴν βαιὸς χρόνος ἀστοῖς : Chaeremon Fr. 21, χρόνος δίκαιον ἄνδρα μηνύει ποτέ: Pind. Ol. 10. 54· 616. His words are good for one who would avoid falling. Cp. Plat. Rep. 331 Β, εἰς τοῦτο ἀνδρὶ νοῦν ἔχοντι πλοῦτον χρησιμώτατον εἶναι.

617. mvp-comment-365-1 φρονεῖν is to be repeated with both adjectives. Swift is not sure in thought. For the inf. cp. Pind. Ol. 13.48.

618. mvp-comment-366-1 When my secret enemy is one who advances swiftly.' ταχύς τις is supplementary predicate after χωρῇ. Cp. Αj. 1266, φεῦ, τοῦ θανόντος ὡς ταχεῖά τις βροτοῖς | χάρις διαρρεῖ καὶ προδοῦσ᾽ ἁλίσκεται: Phil. 519, μὴ νῦν μέν τις εὐχερὴς παρῇς. And for the article with the subject in such a connection, cp. Ant. 951, ὁ μοιριδία τις δύνασις δεινά. 624-625. The text of these lines is probably defective. Two things seem clear; (1) that line 625 is more appropriate to Creon than to Oedipus, You speak as if you would not relent nor believe me. (MS. Farn. had upe. before this line by p. m.) Cp. infr. 646, πίστευσον, Οἰδίπους, τάδε: 650, τί σοὶ θέλεις δῆτ᾽ εἰκάθω; Αj. 371, ὦ πρὸς θεῶν ὕπεικε καὶ φρόνησον εὖ: and (2) that line 624 is addressed by Oedipus to Creon, and conveys a threat: When you have given an example of the crime of envy. Cp. Ant. 308, πρὶν ἂν | ζῶντες κρεμαστοὶ τήνδε δηλώσηθ ὕβριν: ib. 325-326, έξερεῖθ᾽ ὅτι | τὰ δειλὰ κέρδη πημονὰς ἐργάζεται: Τr. 1110-1111, ἵν᾽ ἐκδιδαχθῇ πᾶσιν ἀγγέλλειν ὅτι | καὶ ζῶν κακούς γε καὶ θανὼν ἐτισάμην: Ant. 1242-1243, δείξας ἐν ἀνθρώποισι τὴν ἀβουλίαν, | ὅσῳ μέγιστον ἀνδρὶ πρόσκειται κακόν (ⅰ.e. προδείξας οἷόν ἐστι τὸ κακῶς βουλεύειν) : Pind. P. 2. 42. By transposing 624-625, as Haase suggested, a kind of meaning may be brought out. My desire for you is death, not banishment. You speak as if you would not relent. I will relent when you are made an example of the sin of envy (and not before). (My envy is) that I see you to be unwise. But the transitions are too violent. Again, 623-624, may be read continuously, and the loss of a single line supposed after 625. I would have you be (not banished but) slain, when you have first been made an example of the crime of envy (in the manner of your death). You speak as if you would not relent nor believe me. ['And you speak like a rebel.'] Because I see you blind. But the insertion (διὰ μέσου) οἱ οὐ φυγεῖν, and the abruptness of ὅταν προδείξῃς, may be thought to prevent the two lines from coalescing into a harmonious sentence. In this case the most probable inference would be that one or more lines have been lost before 624 and after 625. The old explanations of the Scholiast, When you have shown the nature of the grudge I bear you,' sc. oἷός ἐστιν ὁ ἐμὸς πρὸς σὲ φθόνος (cp. supr. 605 ff.), or of Hermann, When you have shown the nature of your grudge against me, or of the ancient gloss, When you have first explained:-oh! what a thing envy is!' are untenable, especially because they afford no natural explanation of l. 625. The broken lines (626 foll.) mark the climax of the altercation. Cp. O. C. 832, 885.

628. mvp-comment-367-1 εἰ δὲ ξυνίης μηδέν But how if you are wholly in the dark? The strong expression, while suiting the passion of Creon, also suggests a truth of which he is ignorant. For el cp. Aesch. Suppl. 511, ἀλλ᾽ εἰ δρακόντων δυσφρόνων ἐχθίοσιν.

628. mvp-comment-367-2 ἀρκτέον γ' ὅμως] Yes, authority must be maintained even then. The verbal here belongs to the impersonal passive verb. For the verbal of the passive, cp. Fr. 27 N.: Dem. c. Dinarch. 176, οὐ καταπληκτέον ἐστίν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι.

629. mvp-comment-368-1 οὔτοι.. ἄρχοντος No, I am not bound to obey (οὐκ ἀρκτέον ἐμοὶ) one who rules badly. ἄρχοντος is (1) gen. abs., or (2) = ἐξ ἄρχοντος : cp. Ant. 63, ἀρχόμεσθ' ἐκ κρεισσόνων. But see Essay on Language § 39. pp. 72. 3.

629. mvp-comment-368-2 ὦ πόλις πόλις Oedipus appeals to the citizens to rebuke the disloyal utterance of Creon: cp. O.C.833: or, perhaps, apostrophizes the state, whose safety is menaced by the indulgence of such a spirit.

630. mvp-comment-369-1 κἀμοὶ πόλεως μέτεστιν I too have a claim upon the state. Not only as a citizen (cp. Ant. 737, πόλις γὰρ οὐκ ἔσθ᾽ ἥτις ἀνδρός ἐσθ᾽ ἑνός), but as the brother of the queen, whose right was prior to that of Oedipus himself. Cp. 577-581. Oedipus appeals to his loyal citizens against the insubordination of Creon, who replies that he also has a right in the state. As his temper rises, he no longer acknowledges that he owes his influence to Oedipus. The disadvantage under which Oedipus labours, as the stranger prince, is subtly maintained throughout. The chorus interpose in their character of mediator, not to take part with either disputant, but to appease the strife.

631. mvp-comment-370-1 ὑμῖν Cp. O. C. 81, ἢ βέβηκεν ἡμὶν ὁ ξένος ;

634. mvp-comment-371-1 5. What mean you, miserable men, by raising this senseless altercation?' For the article, cp. Phil. 327, 8, τίνος γὰρ ὧδε τὸν μέγαν χόλον κατ᾿ αὐτῶν ἐγκαλῶν ἐλήλυθας; The conjecture τί τήνδ' ἄβουλον, though plausible at first sight, has the effect of weakening the natural emphasis on ἄβουλον.

634. mvp-comment-371-2 στάσιν γλώσσης War of words.

634. mvp-comment-371-3 οὐδ᾽ ἐπαισχύνεσθε And are not ashamed. The force of τί is continued. For this punctuation, which on the whole seems preferable to ἐπήρασθ᾽; οὐδ'-cp. Αj. 1307, ὠθεῖς-, οὐδ᾽ ἐπαισχύνει λέγων; For the other way of dividing the sentence, And are ye not ashamed, cp. Phil. 929, οἱ' ἠπάτηκας· οὐδ᾽ ἐπαισχύνει μ᾿ ὁρῶν; The former is more suitable to the reproachful tone of Jocasta here.

637. mvp-comment-372-1 σύ τ' The omission of the noun vocative in addressing Oedipus gives a peremptory tone to Jocasta's speech. For the prep. with the 2nd word, cp. supr. 93, 4.

638. mvp-comment-373-1 τὸ μηδὲν ἄλγος ‘And do not raise into importance a trouble which is not worth speaking of;'-because all private griefs are as nothing in the calamity of the state. The full expression would be τὸ μηδὲν ὂν ἄλγος. Essay on Language §39. p. 72, c. ib. p. 48.

640. mvp-comment-374-1 δικαιοῖ, Thinks fit, or intends. Cp. Hdt. 3. 36, ταῦτα δέ μιν ποιεῦντα ἐδικαίωσε Κροῖσος .. νουθετῆσαι.

640. mvp-comment-374-2 δυοῖν ἀποκρίνας κακοῖν Having made selection between two evils. There are two objections to this line on the ground of metre; the o lengthened before up (cp. Aesch. Prom. 24, ἀποκρύψει φάος), and the scansion of δυοῖν as a monosyllable, the only parallel to which in Greek tragic verse is Ἐρινννων, in Iph. Taur. 970, 1456. (See, however, Hes. Scut. 3, Ἠλεκτρύωνος: cp. ib. 16.) The two metrical exceptions are singular. But it is not likely that the verse is corrupt. No interpolator would have introduced a word so rare in later Greek as ἀποκρίνας in this sense. (Cp. Hdt. 6. 130.) None of the attempted emendations are satisfactory. Critics have noticed what was hardly worth noticing, the discrepancy between l. 641. and 623, and it has been proposed to interpret δεινά as implying that after making selection Oedipus had chosen death as the punishment. But such slight inconsistencies are neither undramatic nor unnatural.

641. mvp-comment-375-1 These words, though epexegetic of the participle, are in apposition with δρᾶσαι.

643. mvp-comment-376-1 τοὐμὸν σῶμα My person. Cp. Ο. C. 355, ἃ τοῦδ᾽ ἐχρήσθη σώματος. The language has some of the formality of an indictment.

644-645. mvp-comment-377-1 For the alternation of clauses, see Essay on Language § 41, p. 77.

646. mvp-comment-378-1 πίστευσον τάδε Cp. Eur. Hel. 710, λόγοις δ᾽ ἐμοῖσι πίστευσον τάδε.

647. mvp-comment-379-1 τόνδ' .. θεῶν The word ἀραῖος implied an appeal to the Gods.

647. mvp-comment-379-2 θεῶν Not objective gen. = The oath sworn by the Gods; but rather, This divine or sacred oath. The oath is regarded as a sacred presence and almost personified. Cp. O. C. 1767, χώ πάντ' ἀΐων Διὸς ὅρκος: Xen. Anab. 3. I, 22. Ant. 607. Thuc. 5. 30, θεῶν. . κώλυμα = θεῖον κώλυμα.

648. mvp-comment-380-1 foll. Sophocles has here employed the chorus with great skill. Without any pause in the action, which must be continued until the colloquy between Jocasta and Oedipus has taken place, the short musical strains which allay the exasperation of Oedipus and assure him of his people's loyalty, also relieve the mind of the spectator from the tension caused by the preceding dialogue, and prepare him to give undivided attention to the central scene-in which the first doubt is suggested to the mind of Oedipus, while the impious confidence of στρ. α. ト Jocasta is revealed. Lines from 649 to 659 correspond to 678-688, and lines 660-668 correspond to 689-697. In this commation cretic and dochmiac measures are varied with iambic and trochaic rhythms. The 2nd strophe begins with a molossus. The frequent antispastic or syncopated movement has the effect of expressing the disturbed feelings of the chorus. The scansion is as follows:- つしかし alc D ככמו στρ. β. - - C دد 10 つ داد 다 UCICI 11 つ دد IDID 스 C CICICICI トー 스 ווכ 스 ככון ICC CCI 1 D DO

649. mvp-comment-381-1 πιθοῦ θελήσας, κ.τ.λ. We pray thee bend thy will to our request, and calm thy mind, O king. The chorus are encouraged by Jocasta's reference to them in l. 648.

649. mvp-comment-381-2 φρονήσας = returning to a proper of thi things. Cp. Aj. 371, ὕπεικε καὶ φρόνησον εὖ. See above l. 626. sense

654. mvp-comment-382-1 ἐν ὅρκῳ μέγαν Great in the power of his oath. Cp. Phil. 185-186, ἕν τ᾽ ὀδύναις ὁμοῦ λιμῷ τ' οἰκτρός.

655. mvp-comment-383-1 Otherwise φράζε δή τί φής; But cp. Phil. 559, φράσον δ᾽ ἅπερ γ᾽ ἔλεξας.

656. mvp-comment-384-1 Cp. Stephanus. Thes. v. ἐναγῆ.

656. mvp-comment-384-2 ἐναγής, like ἀραῖος (276) or ὅρκιος (Ant. 305) = ἐν ὅρκῳ μέγας, i. e. the curse which he has invoked should protect him from rash accusation. Some editors have preferred ἀναγῆ, which is a conjecture supported by the mention of the word in Hesychius as = καθαρός, but the word is pointless and unmeaning here.

657. mvp-comment-385-1 Antiphon. p. 136, ἐγὼ μὲν γάρ σοι φανερὰν τὴν πρόνοιαν εἰς ἐμὲ ἀποδείκνυμι, σὺ δὲ με ἐν ἀφανεῖ λόγῳ ζητεῖς ἀπολέσαι. This parallel supports the reading λόγῳ, and the hiatus may be obviated by reading λόγῳ σ᾽ ἄτιμον βαλεῖν (Herm.). Others read μηδέποτ' αἰτίᾳ σὺν ἀφανεῖ λόγων. But the hiatus at the end of a dochmiac metre is not impossible. Join βαλεῖν ἄτιμον ἐν αἰτίᾳ. The reading ἐκβαλεῖν may have arisen from an attempt to explain βαλεῖν. That you should never accuse and dishonour with an obscure suspicion your friend, who has invoked a curse upon his head. Cp. 648, γνώμῃ ἀδήλῳ. 658-659. Because Oedipus believes that Creon has conspired with Teiresias to charge him with the murder of Laius.

660. mvp-comment-386-1 οὐ τόν Cp. 1088, Ant. 758, Ε1. 1063, 1239, Eur. Ion 870.

660. mvp-comment-386-2 πρόμον Foremost of the hosts of heaven. It is not easy to say in what sense the sun is spoken of as first or foremost. He is invoked as the god who brings all things to light (Hymn. Hom. Dem. 62, θεῶν σκοπὸν ἠδὲ καὶ ἀνδρῶν: Il. 3.277, Ἠέλιός θ᾽, ὃς πάντ᾽ ἐφορᾶς καὶ πάντ᾽ ἐπακούεις), and with reference to the intention of the person speaking, may be regarded as first of Gods; i. e. the author of light and illumination in all things. Cp. O. C. 868-870, ὁ πάντα λεύσσων “Ἥλιος δοίη βίον, κ.τ.λ. Or he is imagined as the vanguard of Heaven, standing before the rest as the champion. Welcker compares Fr. 875, Ἠέ- λιος οἰκτείρειέ με, | ὃν οἱ σοφοὶ λέγουσι γεννητὴν θεῶν | καὶ πατέρα πάντων. But this is a philosophical conceit, which could not properly find place here.

661. mvp-comment-387-1 ὅ τι πύματον i. e. as the Scholiast explains, ἀπώλειαν ἥτις ἐσχάτη. Cp. supr. 344. For πύματον, cp. O. С. 1235, ἐπιλέλογχε πύματον.

665. mvp-comment-388-1 φθίνουσα here does not correspond with the line 694 in the antistrophe. Dindorf has therefore proposed to read φθινάς for φθίνουσα. But as a still slighter alteration in the antistrophe, πόνοισι for πόνοις, reconciles the two lines, it has been adopted. For the combination of cretic and trochaic metre, cp. 1. 651. καὶ in 666 is against metre.

667. mvp-comment-389-1 προσάψει Sc. γᾶ. If she is to add to her former evils these which come from you. Cp. Eur. Med. 78, εἰ κακὸν προσοίσομεν νέον παλαιῷ. Ε. on L. p. 52.

672. mvp-comment-390-1 ἐλεινόν Which does move me. The adjective is so placed, with pathos, in order to increase the antithesis to what follows. Essay on Language § 23. p. 37.

673. mvp-comment-391-1 You show yourself to be sullen in yielding. ὤν is dropped dropped or absorbed in the participle. στυγνός echoes στυγήσεται and has a neuter meaning = tristis, morose.

673. mvp-comment-391-2 βαρὺς δ', ὅταν θυμοῦ περάσῃς And intolerable when you exceed in wrath. θυμοῦ is genitive of place, like σοφίας in πόρρω σοφίας ἐλαύνειν (Plat. Crat. 410 E). Essay on Language p 16, 3, d. βαρύς expresses the something dangerous in a passionate man. Cp. 546, Ant. 767, νοῦς δ᾽ ἐστὶ τηλικοῦτος ἀλγήσας βαρύς. The other explanation: You are dangerous even when you come to an end of your wrath (ὅταν ἐπὶ πέρας ἔλθῃς τῆς ὀργῆς Schol.)-is objectionable on two grounds-(1) because presenting a mere repetition under the form of antithesis; (2) because θυμοῦ περᾶν, in the sense of to pass out of anger, is too harsh for Sophocles. Also (3) because some Greek word is needed to give the sense of even. The use of περâν in either case is metaphorical. For περᾶν, to go far, cp. О. С. 155, περῖς γάρ, περᾷς.

674-675. mvp-comment-392-1 Nature justly ordains that such dispositions shall be most grievous to themselves, i. e. ἑαυταῖς μάλιστα ἀλγειναί.

676. mvp-comment-393-1 οὔκουν 'Will you not, then,'i. e. Since I am so disagreeable.

677. mvp-comment-394-1 ἀγνῶτος Without discernment. ἐν τοῖσδε] In their minds. Cp. Ant. 459, ἐν θεοῖσι τὴν δίκην δώσειν: ib. 925, εἰ τάδ᾽ ἐστὶν ἐν θεοῖς καλά.

677. mvp-comment-394-2 ἴσος Either (1) just (cp. Phil. 685, ἴσος ἔν γ᾽ ἴσοις ἀνήρ), or (2) ‘'as I was before,' = ἴσος καὶ πρὸ τοῦ, cp. supr. 53, ἴσος γενοῦ. (2) is best.

680. mvp-comment-395-1 μαθοῦσά γ'.. τύχη Sc. ἐσκομιῶ αὐτόν. I will do so when I hear what has happened. Cp. Plat. Phaedr. 228 D, δείξας γε πρῶτον, ὦ φιλότης, κ.τ.λ. ..

681. mvp-comment-396-1 δόκησις λόγων Α vague suspicion arose in talk.' λόγων, a descriptive genitive, arising out of, connected with. ἀγνώς] = ἄνευ γνώσεως, Without knowledge. δάπτει δέ καί implies There was a vague suspicion, which, although unjust, nevertheless stings. Schol. κἂν τὸ συνειδὸς ἐρρωμένον ἡ. For δάπτει, cp. Od. 16. 92, καταδάπτετ᾿ ἀκούοντος φίλον ἦτορ: Pind. Nem. 8. 23.

682. mvp-comment-397-1 ἀμφοῖν ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῖν Sc. ἦλθε;

682. mvp-comment-397-2 καὶ τίς ἦν λόγος And what was in dispute? 684. This line is divided like 655, to which it is antistrophic.

686. mvp-comment-398-1 αὐτοῦ μένειν That the dispute should remain where it is, an evasive answer. The v. rr. here are curious.

687-688. mvp-comment-399-1 Do you see what you have come to, honest man as you are, in trying to assuage and blunt my wrath?" I.e. Do you see in what a dilemma your well meant intercession has placed you? You are pressed to rehearse the charge against me, which you durst not support, but which you would not allow me to repel.

687-688. mvp-comment-399-2 παριείς Endeavouring to slacken or divert. Cp. Eur. Cycl. 310, πάρες τὸ μάργον σῆς γνάθου. Cp. also the use of the passive voice in El. 545, παίδων πόθος παρεῖτο. The chorus again earnestly disclaim the imputation of disloyalty. My king, I have said it not once alone, but let me assure thee, that I were clearly insensate, void of wisdom, to cast off thee, who gavest good speed to my dear land, when distraught with miseries, and now, too, if thou canst, be our good guide.

691. mvp-comment-400-1 εἰ . . νοσφίζομαι Το desert thee, lit. to put thee from me. The present indicative with ei, by representing the supposed case as actual, adds emphasis. Cp. the use of the present for the future. And see Essay on Language § 28. p. 46. Herm. conjectured σ᾽ ἐνοσφιζόμαν.

695. mvp-comment-401-1 ἀλύουσαν =' At her wit's end,' has been plausibly but unnecessarily changed to σαλεύουσαν.

695. mvp-comment-401-2 κατ᾿ ὀρθὸν οὔρισας Didst speed on her right course. The image is rather that of a breeze, or of a favouring deity, than of a good pilot. For τε followed by δé, see Essay on Language p. 65. Others read ὅστ' in 694.

696. mvp-comment-402-1 εἰ δύναιο The reading is not certain; but, for the ellipse of the imperative of εἰμί or γίγνομαι in supplication, see Essay on Language § 39. p. 72. Ср. Ο. C. 1480, ἵλαος, ὦ δαίμων, ἵλαος : El. 1434, τάδ᾽ ὡς πάλιν.

698. mvp-comment-403-1 καμ i. e. Let not me be ignorant of what the elders know.

698. mvp-comment-403-2 ὅτου .. πράγματος] For what reason. For the separation of the words, giving emphasis to the interrogative, cp. Phil. 598-599, τίνος δ' Ἀτρείδαι τοῦδ᾽ ἄγαν οὕτω χρόνῳ | τοσῷδ᾽ ἐπεστρέφοντο πράγματος χάριν ;

699. mvp-comment-404-1 μῆνιν.. στήσας Cp. Phil. 1263, τίς αὖ παρ᾿ ἄντροις θόρυβος ἵσταται βοῆς;

700. mvp-comment-405-1 ἐς πλέον Lit. To a greater amount, i.e. more. As he turned from 02 Creon to the chorus l. 671, so now being angry with them he turns gladly to Jocasta. With equal impetuosity he breaks away from her, infr. 1078. ..

701. mvp-comment-406-1 Κρέοντος Answering ὅτου πράγματος, and therefore in the same case, but with a slightly different force. It is about Creon. For a similar pendent genitive, cp. Αj. 771, δίας Ἀθάνας ἡνίκ᾽ ὀτρύνουσά νιν, κ.τ.λ.: ib. 792.

702. mvp-comment-407-1 Speak, if in making the charge, you will tell plainly the cause of quarrel.' τὸ νεῖκος is governed κατὰ σύνεσιν by ἐγκαλῶν, which implies φράζων. Jocasta expresses her impatience at being kept in uncertainty.

704. mvp-comment-408-1 αὐτὸς ξυνειδώς Was he himself in the secret? Cp. supr. 330.

705. mvp-comment-409-1 'Neither' (μὲν οὖν) : (he has fastened the charge on me) by bringing in a rascally prophet. 706. (1) As to what affects himself he keeps his utterance wholly free; i. e. He will not commit himself in a word.

705. mvp-comment-409-2 ἐλευθεροῖ, according to this interpretation, not acquits,' excuses, but = keeps out of reach of blame, ἔξω βαρείας αἰτίας ἐλεύθερον, Ant. 445; Aesch. Eum. 175, οὔποτ᾽ ἐλευθεροῦται. πᾶν is adverbial as in Aj. 275, λύπῃ πᾶς ἐλήλαται. Or (2) τό γ᾽ εἰς ἑαυτόν may be the direct accusative and πᾶν στόμα adverbial. He uses all his power of speech to free his own actions from blame. Cp. El. 596-597, ἢ πᾶσαν ἵης γλῶσσαν, ὡς τὴν μητέρα | κακοστομοῦμεν. The former explanation is more in accordance with usage.

707. mvp-comment-410-1 ὧν λέγεις πέρι = περὶ τούτων ὧν λέγεις, Relieving your mind on the subject of which you speak. The simple genitive would have been enough: cp. Hdt. 4. 157, οὐ γὰρ δή σφεας ἀπίει ὁ θεὸς τῆς ἀποικίης, But περί is added pleonastically.

708. mvp-comment-411-1 The reading of M., ἐμοῦ τ' ἄκουσον, deserves notice. For σοι, see Essay on Language p. 19.

708. mvp-comment-411-2 ἐστὶ .. ἔχον 'Nothing in the life of mortals has anything to do with prophetic art. For this rare use of the active voice of ἔχω, cp. esp. Hdt. 3. 128, γραψάμενος πολλά, καὶ περὶ πολλῶν ἔχοντα πρηγμάτων: Aesch. Eum. 445. 6, οὐδ᾽ ἔχει μύσος πρὸς χειρὶ τὴμῇ (?). The middle voice has this meaning, e.g. in Il. 9.102, σέο δ᾽ ἔξεται ὅττι κεν ἄρχῃ. For the active in place of middle, see Essay on Language pp. 51, 98. This interpretation alone suits the context; the other possible explanation, No mortal creature has any share in the prophetic art (which has led to the conjecture λαχόν), might agree with the temper of the chorus (499, foll.), but not with that of Jocasta, who is rejecting all prophecies alike, though she makes the slight admission in 711-712, οὐκ ἐρῶ Φοίβου γ᾿ ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῦ. Cp., however, Hdt. 2. 83. Μαντικὴ δὲ αὐτοῖσι ὧδε διακέεται· ἀνθρώπων μὲν οὐδενὶ προσκέεται ἡ τέχνη, τῶν δὲ θεῶν μετεξετέροισι.

713. mvp-comment-412-1 ἥξοι Cp. О. С. 1472-1473, ἥκει τῷδ᾽ ἐπ᾿ ἀνδρὶ θέσφατος βίου τελευτή: Αj. 186, ἥκοι γὰρ ἂν θεία νόσος: ib. 278, 9, μὴ ἐκ θεοῦ πληγή τις ἥκῃ. The accusative is justified by the general meaning of the sentence and by the infinitive, of which it is partly the subject. The conjecture ἕξοι is suggested by Phil. 331, ἐπεὶ γὰρ ἔσχε μοῖρ᾽ Ἀχιλλέα θανεῖν, but is less pointed here.

715. mvp-comment-413-1 ξένοι i. e. Not only not his offspring, but of a different race, as coming not from Thebes but from the opposite direction (734). Cp. supr. 122 foll.

716. mvp-comment-414-1 ἐν τριπλαῖς ἁμαξιτοῖς These words, which give Oedipus the first suspicion of the truth (see 750), are intended by Jocasta to show the fortuitous nature of the occurrence.

717-718. mvp-comment-415-1 But as to the child that was born, three days had not intervened, when he tied its feet together and cast it by the hands of others upon a trackless mountain.' It is uncertain whether διέσχον is intransitive or active. In the latter case the word may be taken (1) in the sense of 'divided the day of the child's birth' from his death, i. e. τὸν παῖδα γιγνόμενον καὶ ἀποθνήσκοντα, (Hdt. 9. 51, διέχων ἀπ᾿ ἀλλήλων τὰ ῥέεθρα). Three days did not divide the birth of the child from-what followed. Cp. the Latin, Nec longum tempus et...: or, (2) not three days continued the growth of the child. Cp.

717-718. mvp-comment-415-2 διεγένετο in Thuc. 5. 16. Otherwise (3) taking βλάστας as a pendent accusative. But as for the growth of the child, three days had not fully passed. (2) is best.

718. mvp-comment-416-1 καί Temporal = when.

719. mvp-comment-417-1 εἰς ἄβατον ὄρος An undivided tribrach occurs again in 826, πατέρα κατακτανεῖν : 1496, τὸν πατέρα πατήρ: Aj. 459, καὶ πεδία τάδε. Hence the metrical rhythm is defensible, while the natural rhythm of the words is rather injured by transposing to ἄβατον εἰς ὄρος.

720. mvp-comment-418-1 ἤνυσεν ·Made good his prophecy.'

722. mvp-comment-419-1 τὸ δεινόν Accus. in apposition with θανεῖν, governed by ἤνυσεν. There is no reason for preferring παθεῖν. The words of the prophecy are repeated. Cp. О. С. 970, πρὸς παίδων θανεῖν.

723. mvp-comment-420-1 τοιαῦτα So futile have been the determinations of prophecy.

724. mvp-comment-421-1 ὧν.. χρείαν ἐρευνᾷ Of whatsoever things God searcheth out the use,' i.e. ὧν χρείαν ἔχων (χρήζων), ἐρευνᾷ αὐτά. For what God needs to search out, he will easily bring to light without our help. (Cp. Shak. Macb. 1. 3, If chance will have me king, why, chance may crown me, Without my stir.) Jocasta in renouncing prophecy unconsciously expresses the exact truth. Apollo is already working out his purpose, and vindicating the power of his prophet. Cp. 1. 747.

726-727. mvp-comment-422-1 What distraction and perturbation of soul possesses me, my queen, on hearing the words you have just uttered!

728. mvp-comment-423-1 Of what nature is the anxiety which alters your tone and makes you say this? The genitive is causal. Cp. Aj. 1116, τοῦ δὲ σοῦ ψόφου | οὐκ ἂν στραφείην. The verb is used metaphorically to express Oedipus' sudden change of mood from 705-706 supr. Others explain it to mean a change of gesture merely.

731. mvp-comment-424-1 Such was the rumour, which has not yet died away.' O. C. 517, τό τοι πολὺ καὶ μηδαμὰ λῆγον.

732. mvp-comment-425-1 οὗτος refers to the words ἐν τριπλαῖς ἁμαξιτοῖς, supr. 761, which have brought the image of the place vividly before the mind of Oedipus.

734. mvp-comment-426-1 I. e. The two roads from Delphi and Daulia meet there.

735. mvp-comment-427-1 τοῖσδ' Since these things happened. For the dative, cp. Hdt. 2. 145, Ἡρακλέϊ ὅσα φασὶ εἶναι ἔτεα ἐς Ἄμασιν βασιλέα: ib. 13: Thuc. 1. 13, 4, ἔτη δὲ μάλιστα καὶ ταύτῃ ἑξήκοντα καὶ διακόσιά ἐστι μέχρι τοῦ αὐτοῦ χρόνου: ib. 3. 29.

736. mvp-comment-428-1 I. e. The announcement was publicly made, just before your elevation to the sovereignty of this land.

738. mvp-comment-429-1 The absence of caesura gives this line the effect of an agonized, convulsive utterance.

739. mvp-comment-430-1 Why do you take this to heart?' i.e. Why are you apprehensive that Zeus has some design against you? Cp. Hdt. 7. 37, ἰδύντι .. τοῦτο τῷ Ξέρξῃ ἐπιμελὲς ἐγένετο : Thuc. 5. 16, ἐς ἐνθυμίαν ..προβαλλόμενος.

740-741. mvp-comment-431-1 τὸν. . ἔχων But say, what was the appearance of Laius, and what ripe stage of blooming life was his?

740-741. mvp-comment-431-2 φύσιν Appearance. Cp. Aesch. Suppl. 496, Ar. Vesp. 1071.

740-741. mvp-comment-431-3 τίνα ἀκμὴν ἤβης ἔχων For the irregular construction, -ἔχων (sc. ἦν) corresponding to εἶχε,-cp. Hdt. 8. 38, μέζονας ἢ κατὰ ἀνθρώπων φύσιν ἔχοντας. The participle is added, if φύσιν τίν' εἶχε were τίς ἣν φύσιν;

740-741. mvp-comment-431-4 ἥβη is used not only of early manhood but of youthful vigour in more advanced age. Od. 16. 174. For this idea cp. Aesch. S. c. Τ. 11, 12, καὶ τὸν ἔξηβον χρόνῳ | βλαστημὸν ἀλδαίνοντα σώματος πολύν. Shak. Ant. and Cleo. 4. 8, Though grey Do something mingle with our younger brown, yet ha we A brain that nourishes our nerves, and can Get goal for goal of youth. ἀκμὴν ἥβης is a courteous expression, softening the abruptness of the inquiry.

742. mvp-comment-432-1 The white locks were just beginning to grow.' χνοάζω is usually applied to the first appearance of the beard in youth; here, to the first sprinkling of grey, as a sign of advancing age. Cp. Hom. Od. 6. 226, where the sprinkling of salt on the hair of Ulysses from the sea spray is called χνοῦς, -ἐκ κεφαλῆς δ᾽ ἔσμηχεν ἁλὸς χνόον ἀτρυγέτοιο. And for λευκανθές, which is proleptic = ὥστε λευκανθὲς εἶναι, cp. Hdt. 8. 27, where λευκανθίζειν is used of men who have been whitened with chalk.

744. mvp-comment-433-1 The natural answer of Jocasta is at the same time an obscure intimation of the likeness of the father to the son.

745. mvp-comment-434-1 'That I have just been unwittingly making myself the object of a terrible curse; i. e. οὐκ εἰδὼς προβάλλειν. Essay on Language § 42. p. 80.

746. mvp-comment-435-1 Jocasta is seized with a vague horror on hearing the words of Oedipus and seeing his gesture.

747. mvp-comment-436-1 I am terribly afraid that the prophet may be the reverse of blind." Cp. 371, τυφλὸς τὰ τ᾽ ὦτα τόν τε νοῦν τὰ τ᾿ ὄμματ' εἶ.

749. mvp-comment-437-1 ἂν δ' is preferred on metrical grounds; but cp. 537, 768, 937. The accus. is governed both by μαθοῦσα and ἐρῶ.

749. mvp-comment-437-2 μαθοῦσα When I understand what it is you ask.

750. mvp-comment-438-1 βαιός With a scanty following. Cp. 179, ἀνάριθμος, and note. Essay on Language § 23. p. 39.

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Commentary on lines 601–750

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καλῶς ἔλεξεν εὐλαβουμένῳ πεσεῖν, ἄναξ· φρονεῖν γὰρ οἱ ταχεῖς οὐκ ἀσφαλεῖς.

Κρέων τί δῆτα χρῄζεις; ἦ με γῆς ἔξω βαλεῖν;

Οἰδίπους ἥκιστα· θνήσκειν οὐ φυγεῖν σε βούλομαι ὅταν προδείξῃς οἷόν ἐστι τὸ φθονεῖν.

*Κρέων ὡς οὐχ ὑπείξων οὐδὲ πιστεύσων λέγεις; 625

Κρέων οὐ γὰρ φρονοῦντά σ᾽ εὖ βλέπω.

Οἰδίπους τὸ γοῦν ἐμόν.

Κρέων ἀλλ᾽ ἐξ ἴσου δεῖ κἀμόν.

Οἰδίπους ἀλλ᾽ ἔφυς κακός. [40 a.

Κρέων εἰ δὲ ξυνίης μηδέν;

Οἰδίπους ἀρκτέον γ᾽ ὅμως.

Κρέων οὔτοι κακῶς γ᾽ ἄρχοντος.

Οἰδίπους ὦ πόλις πόλις.

Κρέων κἀμοὶ πόλεως μέτεστιν, οὐχὶ σοὶ μόνῳ. 630

Χορός παύσασθ᾽, ἄνακτες· καιρίαν δ᾽ ὑμῖν ὁρῶ τήνδ᾽ ἐκ δόμων στείχουσαν Ἰοκάστην, μεθ᾿ ἧς τὸ νῦν παρεστὸς νεῖκος εὖ θέσθαι χρεών.

Ἰοκάστη

Κρέων ὅμαιμε, δεινά μ' Οἰδίπους ὁ σὸς πόσις δρᾶσαι δικαιοῖ, δυοῖν ἀποκρίνας κακοῖν, 640 ἢ γῆς ἀπῶσαι πατρίδος, ἢ κτεῖναι λαβών.

Οἰδίπους ξύμφημι· δρῶντα γάρ νιν, ὦ γύναι, κακῶς εἴληφα τοὐμὸν σῶμα σὺν τέχνῃ κακῇ.

Κρέων μή νυν ὀναίμην, ἀλλ᾽ ἀραῖος, εἴ σέ τι δέδρακ, ὀλοίμην, ὧν ἐπαιτιᾷ με δρᾶν. 645

Ἰοκάστη ὦ πρὸς θεῶν πίστευσον, Οἰδίπους, τάδε, μάλιστα μὲν τόνδ᾽ ὅρκον αἰδεσθεὶς θεῶν, ἔπειτα κἀμὲ τούσδε θ᾽ οἳ πάρεισί σοι. α

Χορός

πιθοῦ θελήσας φρονήσας τ᾽, ἄναξ, λίσσομαι.

Οἰδίπους τί σοι θέλεις δῆτ᾽ εἰκάθω; 650

Χορός τὸν οὔτε πρὶν νήπιον νῦν τ᾽ ἐν ὅρκῳ μέγαν καταίδεσαι.

Οἰδίπους οἶσθ᾽ οὖν ἃ χρῄζεις;

Χορός οἶδα.

Οἰδίπους φράζε δή, τί φής.

Χορός τὸν ἐναγῆ φίλον μήποτ᾽ ἐν αἰτίᾳ σὺν ἀφανεῖ λόγῳ †ἄτιμον βαλεῖν.

Οἰδίπους εὖ νυν ἐπίστω, ταῦθ᾽ ὅταν ζητῇς, ἐμοὶ ζητῶν ὄλεθρον ἢ φυγὴν ἐκ τῆσδε γῆς. β

Χορός

Κρέων στυγνὸς μὲν εἴκων δῆλος εἶ, βαρὺς δ᾽, ὅταν θυμοῦ περάσῃς, αἱ δὲ τοιαῦται φύσεις αὐταῖς δικαίως εἰσὶν ἄλγισται φέρειν. 675

Οἰδίπους οὔκουν μ᾽ ἐάσεις κἀκτὸς εἶ;

Κρέων πορεύσομαι, σοῦ μὲν τυχὼν ἀγνῶτος, ἐν δὲ τοῖσδ᾽ ἴσος. α

Χορός

γύναι, τί μέλλεις κομίζειν δόμων τόνδ᾽ ἔσω;

Ἰοκάστη μαθοῦσά γ' ἥτις ἡ τύχη. 680

Χορός δόκησις ἀγνὼς λόγων ἦλθε, δάπτει δὲ καὶ τὸ μὴ ἐνδικον.

Ἰοκάστη ἀμφοῖν ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῖν;

Χορός ναίχι.

Ἰοκάστη καὶ τίς ἦν λόγος;

Χορός ἅλις ἔμοιγ', ἅλις, γᾶς προπονουμένας, 685 φαίνεται ἔνθ᾽ ἔληξεν, αὐτοῦ μένειν.

Οἰδίπους ὁρᾷς ἵνʼ ἥκεις, ἀγαθὸς ὢν γνώμην ἀνήρ, τοὐμὸν παριεὶς καὶ καταμβλύνων κέαρ. β

Ἰοκάστη πρὸς θεῶν δίδαξον κἄμʼ, ἄναξ, ὅτου ποτὲ μῆνιν τοσήνδε πράγματος στήσας ἔχεις.

Οἰδίπους

ἐρῶ· σὲ γὰρ τῶνδ᾽ ἐς πλέον, γύναι, σέβω· 700 Κρέοντος, οἷά μοι βεβουλευκὼς ἔχει.

Ἰοκάστη λέγ', εἰ σαφῶς τὸ νεῖκος ἐγκαλῶν ἐρεῖς.

Οἰδίπους φονέα με φησὶ Λαΐου καθεστάναι.

Ἰοκάστη αὐτὸς ξυνειδώς, ἢ μαθὼν ἄλλου πάρα;

Οἰδίπους μάντιν μὲν οὖν κακοῦργον εἰσπέμψας, ἐπεὶ 705 τό γ᾽ εἰς ἑαυτὸν πᾶν ἐλευθεροῖ στόμα.

Οἰδίπους

οἷόν μ᾽ ἀκούσαντ᾽ ἀρτίως ἔχει, γύναι, ψυχῆς πλάνημα κἀνακίνησις φρενῶν.

Ἰοκάστη ποίας μερίμνης τοῦθ᾽ ὑποστραφεὶς λέγεις;

Οἰδίπους ἔδοξ᾽ ἀκοῦσαι σοῦ τόδ᾽, ὡς ὁ Λάϊος κατασφαγείη πρὸς τριπλαῖς ἁμαξιτοῖς. 730

Ἰοκάστη ηὐδᾶτο γὰρ ταῦτ᾽ οὐδέ πω λήξαντ' ἔχει.

Οἰδίπους καὶ ποῦ᾽ σθ᾽ ὁ χῶρος οὗτος οὗ τόδ᾽ ἦν πάθος;

Ἰοκάστη Φωκὶς μὲν ἡ γῆ κλῄζεται, σχιστὴ δ᾽ ὁδὸς ἐς ταὐτὸ Δελφῶν κἀπὸ Δαυλίας ἄγει.

Οἰδίπους καὶ τίς χρόνος τοῖσδ᾽ ἐστὶν οὐξεληλυθώς; 735

Ἰοκάστη σχεδόν τι πρόσθεν ἢ σὺ τῆσδ᾽ ἔχων χθονὸς ἀρχὴν ἐφαίνου τοῦτ᾽ ἐκηρύχθη πόλει.

Οἰδίπους ὦ Ζεῦ, τί μου δρᾶσαι βεβούλευσαι πέρι;

Ἰοκάστη τί δ᾽ ἐστί σοι τοῦτ᾽, Οἰδίπους, ἐνθύμιον;

Οἰδίπους μήπω μ' ἐρώτα· τὸν δὲ Λάϊον φύσιν 740 τίνʼ εἶχε φράζε, τίνα δ᾽ ἀκμὴν ἥβης ἔχων.

Ἰοκάστη μέγας, χνοάζων ἄρτι λευκανθὲς κάρα, μορφῆς δὲ τῆς σῆς οὐκ ἀπεστάτει πολύ.

Οἰδίπους οἴμοι τάλας· ἔοικ᾿ ἐμαυτὸν εἰς ἀρὰς δεινὰς προβάλλων ἀρτίως οὐκ εἰδέναι. 745

Ἰοκάστη πῶς φῄς; ὀκνῶ τοι πρὸς σ᾽ ἀποσκοποῦσ᾽, ἄναξ.

Οἰδίπους δεινῶς ἀθυμῶ μὴ βλέπων ὁ μάντις ᾖ. δείξεις δὲ μᾶλλον, ἢν ἓν ἐξείπῃς ἔτι.

Ἰοκάστη καὶ μὴν ὀκνῶ μέν, ἂν δ᾽ ἔρῃ μαθοῦσ᾽ ἐρῶ.

Οἰδίπους

πότερον ἐχώρει βαιός, ἢ πολλοὺς ἔχων 750 ἄνδρας λοχίτας, οἷʼ ἀνὴρ ἀρχηγέτης;

Ἰοκάστη πέντ᾽ ἦσαν οἱ ξύμπαντες, ἐν δ᾽ αὐτοῖσιν ἦν κῆρυξ· ἀπήνη δ᾽ ἦγε Λάϊον μία.

Οἰδίπους αἰαῖ, τάδ᾽ ἤδη διαφανῆ. τίς ἦν ποτὲ ὁ τούσδε λέξας τοὺς λόγους ὑμῖν, γύναι; 755

Ἰοκάστη οἰκεύς τις, ὅσπερ ἵκετ᾽ ἐκσωθεὶς μόνος.

Οἰδίπους ἦ κἀν δόμοισι τυγχάνει τανῦν παρών;

Οἰδίπους πῶς ἂν μόλοι δῆθ᾽ ἡμὶν ἐν τάχει πάλιν; 765

Ἰοκάστη πάρεστιν. ἀλλὰ πρὸς τί τοῦτ᾽ ἐφίεσαι;

Οἰδίπους δέδοικ᾿ ἐμαυτόν, ὦ γύναι, μὴ πόλλ᾽ ἄγαν εἰρημέν᾽ ᾖ μοι διʼ ἅ νιν εἰσιδεῖν θέλω.

Ἰοκάστη ἀλλ᾽ ἵξεται μέν· ἀξία δέ που μαθεῖν κἀγὼ τά γ᾽ ἐν σοὶ δυσφόρως ἔχοντ᾽, ἄναξ. 770

Οἰδίπους

καλῶς ἔλεξεν εὐλαβουμένῳ πεσεῖν,

ἄναξ· φρονεῖν γὰρ οἱ ταχεῖς οὐκ ἀσφαλεῖς.

Κρέων

τί δῆτα χρῄζεις; ἦ με γῆς ἔξω βαλεῖν;

Οἰδίπους

ἥκιστα· θνήσκειν οὐ φυγεῖν σε βούλομαι

ὅταν προδείξῃς οἷόν ἐστι τὸ φθονεῖν.

*Κρέων

ὡς οὐχ ὑπείξων οὐδὲ πιστεύσων λέγεις;
625

Κρέων

οὐ γὰρ φρονοῦντά σ᾽ εὖ βλέπω.

Οἰδίπους

τὸ γοῦν ἐμόν.

Κρέων

ἀλλ᾽ ἐξ ἴσου δεῖ κἀμόν.

Οἰδίπους

ἀλλ᾽ ἔφυς κακός.

[40 a.

Κρέων

εἰ δὲ ξυνίης μηδέν;

Οἰδίπους

ἀρκτέον γ᾽ ὅμως.

Κρέων

οὔτοι κακῶς γ᾽ ἄρχοντος.

Οἰδίπους

ὦ πόλις πόλις.

Κρέων

κἀμοὶ πόλεως μέτεστιν, οὐχὶ σοὶ μόνῳ.
630

Χορός

παύσασθ᾽, ἄνακτες· καιρίαν δ᾽ ὑμῖν ὁρῶ

τήνδ᾽ ἐκ δόμων στείχουσαν Ἰοκάστην, μεθ᾿ ἧς

τὸ νῦν παρεστὸς νεῖκος εὖ θέσθαι χρεών.

Κρέων

ὅμαιμε, δεινά μ' Οἰδίπους ὁ σὸς πόσις

δρᾶσαι δικαιοῖ, δυοῖν ἀποκρίνας κακοῖν,
640

ἢ γῆς ἀπῶσαι πατρίδος, ἢ κτεῖναι λαβών.

Οἰδίπους

ξύμφημι· δρῶντα γάρ νιν, ὦ γύναι, κακῶς

εἴληφα τοὐμὸν σῶμα σὺν τέχνῃ κακῇ.

Κρέων

μή νυν ὀναίμην, ἀλλ᾽ ἀραῖος, εἴ σέ τι

δέδρακ, ὀλοίμην, ὧν ἐπαιτιᾷ με δρᾶν.
645

Ἰοκάστη

ὦ πρὸς θεῶν πίστευσον, Οἰδίπους, τάδε,

μάλιστα μὲν τόνδ᾽ ὅρκον αἰδεσθεὶς θεῶν,

ἔπειτα κἀμὲ τούσδε θ᾽ οἳ πάρεισί σοι.

α

Οἰδίπους

τί σοι θέλεις δῆτ᾽ εἰκάθω;
650

Χορός

τὸν οὔτε πρὶν νήπιον νῦν τ᾽ ἐν ὅρκῳ μέγαν καταίδεσαι.

Οἰδίπους

οἶσθ᾽ οὖν ἃ χρῄζεις;

Χορός

οἶδα.

Οἰδίπους

φράζε δή, τί φής.

Χορός

τὸν ἐναγῆ φίλον μήποτ᾽ ἐν αἰτίᾳ

σὺν ἀφανεῖ λόγῳ †ἄτιμον βαλεῖν.

Οἰδίπους

εὖ νυν ἐπίστω, ταῦθ᾽ ὅταν ζητῇς, ἐμοὶ

ζητῶν ὄλεθρον ἢ φυγὴν ἐκ τῆσδε γῆς.

β

Κρέων

στυγνὸς μὲν εἴκων δῆλος εἶ, βαρὺς δ᾽, ὅταν

θυμοῦ περάσῃς, αἱ δὲ τοιαῦται φύσεις

αὐταῖς δικαίως εἰσὶν ἄλγισται φέρειν.
675

Οἰδίπους

οὔκουν μ᾽ ἐάσεις κἀκτὸς εἶ;

Κρέων

πορεύσομαι,

σοῦ μὲν τυχὼν ἀγνῶτος, ἐν δὲ τοῖσδ᾽ ἴσος.

α

Ἰοκάστη

μαθοῦσά γ' ἥτις ἡ τύχη.
680

Χορός

δόκησις ἀγνὼς λόγων ἦλθε, δάπτει δὲ καὶ τὸ μὴ ἐνδικον.

Ἰοκάστη

ἀμφοῖν ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῖν;

Χορός

ναίχι.

Ἰοκάστη

καὶ τίς ἦν λόγος;

Χορός

ἅλις ἔμοιγ', ἅλις, γᾶς προπονουμένας,
685

φαίνεται ἔνθ᾽ ἔληξεν, αὐτοῦ μένειν.

Οἰδίπους

ὁρᾷς ἵνʼ ἥκεις, ἀγαθὸς ὢν γνώμην ἀνήρ,

τοὐμὸν παριεὶς καὶ καταμβλύνων κέαρ.

β

Ἰοκάστη

πρὸς θεῶν δίδαξον κἄμʼ, ἄναξ, ὅτου ποτὲ

μῆνιν τοσήνδε πράγματος στήσας ἔχεις.

ἐρῶ· σὲ γὰρ τῶνδ᾽ ἐς πλέον, γύναι, σέβω·
700

Κρέοντος, οἷά μοι βεβουλευκὼς ἔχει.

Ἰοκάστη

λέγ', εἰ σαφῶς τὸ νεῖκος ἐγκαλῶν ἐρεῖς.

Οἰδίπους

φονέα με φησὶ Λαΐου καθεστάναι.

Ἰοκάστη

αὐτὸς ξυνειδώς, ἢ μαθὼν ἄλλου πάρα;

Οἰδίπους

μάντιν μὲν οὖν κακοῦργον εἰσπέμψας, ἐπεὶ
705

τό γ᾽ εἰς ἑαυτὸν πᾶν ἐλευθεροῖ στόμα.

οἷόν μ᾽ ἀκούσαντ᾽ ἀρτίως ἔχει, γύναι,

ψυχῆς πλάνημα κἀνακίνησις φρενῶν.

Ἰοκάστη

ποίας μερίμνης τοῦθ᾽ ὑποστραφεὶς λέγεις;

Οἰδίπους

ἔδοξ᾽ ἀκοῦσαι σοῦ τόδ᾽, ὡς ὁ Λάϊος

κατασφαγείη πρὸς τριπλαῖς ἁμαξιτοῖς.
730

Ἰοκάστη

ηὐδᾶτο γὰρ ταῦτ᾽ οὐδέ πω λήξαντ' ἔχει.

Οἰδίπους

καὶ ποῦ᾽ σθ᾽ ὁ χῶρος οὗτος οὗ τόδ᾽ ἦν πάθος;

Ἰοκάστη

Φωκὶς μὲν ἡ γῆ κλῄζεται, σχιστὴ δ᾽ ὁδὸς

ἐς ταὐτὸ Δελφῶν κἀπὸ Δαυλίας ἄγει.

Οἰδίπους

καὶ τίς χρόνος τοῖσδ᾽ ἐστὶν οὐξεληλυθώς;
735

Ἰοκάστη

σχεδόν τι πρόσθεν ἢ σὺ τῆσδ᾽ ἔχων χθονὸς

ἀρχὴν ἐφαίνου τοῦτ᾽ ἐκηρύχθη πόλει.

Οἰδίπους

ὦ Ζεῦ, τί μου δρᾶσαι βεβούλευσαι πέρι;

Ἰοκάστη

τί δ᾽ ἐστί σοι τοῦτ᾽, Οἰδίπους, ἐνθύμιον;

Οἰδίπους

μήπω μ' ἐρώτα· τὸν δὲ Λάϊον φύσιν
740

τίνʼ εἶχε φράζε, τίνα δ᾽ ἀκμὴν ἥβης ἔχων.

Ἰοκάστη

μέγας, χνοάζων ἄρτι λευκανθὲς κάρα,

μορφῆς δὲ τῆς σῆς οὐκ ἀπεστάτει πολύ.

Οἰδίπους

οἴμοι τάλας· ἔοικ᾿ ἐμαυτὸν εἰς ἀρὰς

δεινὰς προβάλλων ἀρτίως οὐκ εἰδέναι.
745

Ἰοκάστη

πῶς φῄς; ὀκνῶ τοι πρὸς σ᾽ ἀποσκοποῦσ᾽, ἄναξ.

Οἰδίπους

δεινῶς ἀθυμῶ μὴ βλέπων ὁ μάντις ᾖ.

δείξεις δὲ μᾶλλον, ἢν ἓν ἐξείπῃς ἔτι.

Ἰοκάστη

καὶ μὴν ὀκνῶ μέν, ἂν δ᾽ ἔρῃ μαθοῦσ᾽ ἐρῶ.

πότερον ἐχώρει βαιός, ἢ πολλοὺς ἔχων
750

ἄνδρας λοχίτας, οἷʼ ἀνὴρ ἀρχηγέτης;

Ἰοκάστη

πέντ᾽ ἦσαν οἱ ξύμπαντες, ἐν δ᾽ αὐτοῖσιν ἦν

κῆρυξ· ἀπήνη δ᾽ ἦγε Λάϊον μία.

Οἰδίπους

αἰαῖ, τάδ᾽ ἤδη διαφανῆ. τίς ἦν ποτὲ

ὁ τούσδε λέξας τοὺς λόγους ὑμῖν, γύναι;
755

Ἰοκάστη

οἰκεύς τις, ὅσπερ ἵκετ᾽ ἐκσωθεὶς μόνος.

Οἰδίπους

ἦ κἀν δόμοισι τυγχάνει τανῦν παρών;

Οἰδίπους

πῶς ἂν μόλοι δῆθ᾽ ἡμὶν ἐν τάχει πάλιν;
765

Ἰοκάστη

πάρεστιν. ἀλλὰ πρὸς τί τοῦτ᾽ ἐφίεσαι;

Οἰδίπους

δέδοικ᾿ ἐμαυτόν, ὦ γύναι, μὴ πόλλ᾽ ἄγαν

εἰρημέν᾽ ᾖ μοι διʼ ἅ νιν εἰσιδεῖν θέλω.

Ἰοκάστη

ἀλλ᾽ ἵξεται μέν· ἀξία δέ που μαθεῖν

κἀγὼ τά γ᾽ ἐν σοὶ δυσφόρως ἔχοντ᾽, ἄναξ.
770

Χορός

πιθοῦ θελήσας φρονήσας τʼ, ἄναξ, λίσσομαι.

Οἰδίπους

τί σοι θέλεις δῆτʼ εἰκάθω;
650

Χορός

τὸν οὔτε πρὶν νήπιον νῦν τʼ ἐν ὅρκῳ μέγαν καταίδεσαι.

Οἰδίπους

οἶσθʼ οὖν ἃ χρῄζεις;

Χορός

οἶδα.

Οἰδίπους

φράζε δὴ τί φής.

Χορός

τὸν ἐναγῆ φίλον μήποτʼ ἐν αἰτίᾳ
655

σὺν ἀφανεῖ λόγῳ σʼ ἄτιμον βαλεῖν.

Οἰδίπους

εὖ νυν ἐπίστω, ταῦθʼ ὅταν ζητῇς, ἐμοὶ

ζητῶν ὄλεθρον ἢ φυγὴν ἐκ τῆσδε γῆς.

Κρέων

στυγνὸς μὲν εἴκων δῆλος εἶ, βαρὺς δʼ, ὅταν

θυμοῦ περάσῃς· αἱ δὲ τοιαῦται φύσεις

αὑταῖς δικαίως εἰσὶν ἄλγισται φέρειν.
675

Οἰδίπους

οὔκουν μʼ ἐάσεις κἀκτὸς εἶ;

Κρέων

πορεύσομαι,

σοῦ μὲν τυχὼν ἀγνῶτος, ἐν δὲ τοῖσδʼ ἴσος.

Χορός

γύναι, τί μέλλεις κομίζειν δόμων τόνδʼ ἔσω;

Ἰοκάστη

μαθοῦσά γʼ ἥτις ἡ τύχη.
680

Χορός

δόκησις ἀγνὼς λόγων ἦλθε, δάπτει δὲ καὶ τὸ μὴ ʼνʼδικον.