Sophocles Oedipus Tyrannus 216

Lewis Campbell (Translator)

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Your prayers are answered. Succour and relief
Are yours, if ye will heed my voice and yield
What help the plague requires. Hear it from me,
Who am hitherto a stranger to the tale,
As to the crime. Being nought concerned therewith,
I could not of myself divine the truth.
220
But now, as one adopted to your state,
To all of you Cadmeans I speak this:
Whoe’er among you knoweth the murderer
Of Laius, son of royal Labdacus,
Let him declare the deed in full to me.
225
First, if the man himself be touched with fear,
Let him depart, carrying the guilt away;
No harm shall follow him:—he shall go free.
Or if there be who knows another here,
Come from some other country, to have wrought
This murder, let him speak. Reward from me
230
And store of kind remembrance shall be his.
But if ye are silent, and one present here
Who might have uttered this, shall hold his peace,
As fearing for himself, or for his friend,
What then shall be performed, hear me proclaim.
235
I here prohibit all within this realm
Whereof I wield the sceptre and sole sway,
To admit the murderer, whosoe’er he be,
Within their houses, or to speak with him,
Or share with him in vow or sacrifice
240
Or lustral rite. All men shall thrust him forth,
240
Our dark pollution, so to me revealed
By this day’s oracle from Pytho’s cell.
So firm is mine allegiance to the God
And your dead sovereign in this holy war.
Now on the man of blood, whether he lurk
245
In lonely guilt, or with a numerous band,
I here pronounce this curse:—Let his crushed life
Wither forlorn in hopeless misery.
Next, I pray Heaven, should he or they be housed
With mine own knowledge in my home, that I
250
May suffer all I imprecate on them.
Last, I enjoin each here to lend his aid
For my sake, and the God’s, and for your land
Reft of her increase and renounced by Heaven.
It was not right, when your good king had fallen,

Oedipus Tyrannus. Sophocles. Lewis Campbell (Translator). London, New York and Toronto. 1906.

Current edition Experimental

English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) (English) (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906))

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (2)
Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) — 216 focus
αἰτεῖς· ἃ δ᾽ αἰτεῖς, τἄμ᾽ ἐὰν θέλῃς ἔπη
κλύων δέχεσθαι τῇ νόσῳ θ' ὑπηρετεῖν,
ἀλκὴν λάβοις ἂν κἀνακούφισιν κακῶν·
ἁγὼ ξένος μὲν τοῦ λόγου τοῦδ᾽ ἐξερῶ,
ξένος δὲ τοῦ πραχθέντος. οὐ γὰρ ἂν μακρὰν
220
ἴχνευον αὐτός, μὴ οὐκ ἔχων τι σύμβολον.
νῦν δ᾽, ὕστερος γὰρ ἀστὸς εἰς ἀστοὺς τελῶ,
ὑμῖν προφωνῶ πᾶσι Καδμείοις τάδε·
ὅστις ποθ᾽ ὑμῶν Λάϊον τὸν Λαβδάκου
κάτοιδεν ἀνδρὸς ἐκ τίνος διώλετο,
225
τοῦτον κελεύω πάντα σημαίνειν ἐμοί·
κεἰ μὲν φοβεῖται, τοὐπίκλημ᾽ ὑπεξελὼν
αὐτὸς καθ᾽ αὑτοῦ· πείσεται γὰρ ἄλλο μὲν
ἀστεργὲς οὐδέν, γῆς δ᾽ ἄπεισιν ἀσφαλής·
εἰ δ᾽ αὖ τις ἄλλον οἶδεν ἐξ ἄλλης χθονὸς
230
τὸν αὐτόχειρα, μὴ σιωπάτω· τὸ γὰρ
κέρδος τελῶ ἐγὼ χἠ χάρις προσκείσεται.
εἰ δ᾽ αὖ σιωπήσεσθε, καί τις ἢ φίλου
δείσας ἀπώσει τοὔπος ἢ χαὐτοῦ τόδε,
ἁκ τῶνδε δράσω, ταῦτα χρὴ κλύειν ἐμοῦ.
235
τὸν ἄνδρ᾽ ἀπαυδῶ τοῦτον, ὅστις ἐστί, γῆς
τῆσδ᾽, ἧς ἐγὼ κράτη τε καὶ θρόνους νέμω,
μήτ᾽ ἐσδέχεσθαι μήτε προσφωνεῖν τινά,
μήτ᾽ ἐν θεῶν εὐχαῖσι μήτε θύμασιν
κοινὸν ποιεῖσθαι, μήτε χέρνιβος νέμειν·
240
ὠθεῖν δ᾽ ἀπ᾿ οἴκων πάντας, ὡς μιάσματος
τοῦδ᾽ ἡμὶν ὄντος, ὡς τὸ Πυθικὸν θεοῦ
[36 a.
μαντεῖον ἐξέφηνεν ἀρτίως ἐμοί.
ἐγὼ μὲν οὖν τοιόσδε τῷ τε δαίμονι
τῷ τ᾿ ἀνδρὶ τῷ θανόντι σύμμαχος πέλω·
245
κατεύχομαι δὲ τὸν δεδρακότʼ, εἴτε τις
εἷς ὢν λέληθεν εἶτε πλειόνων μέτα,
κακὸν κακῶς νιν *ἄμορον ἐκτρῖψαι βίον.
ἐπεύχομαι δ᾽, οἴκοισιν εἰ ξυνέστιος
ἐν τοῖς ἐμοῖς γένοιτ' ἐμοῦ συνειδότος,
250
παθεῖν ἅπερ τοῖσδ᾽ ἀρτίως ἠρασάμην.
ὑμῖν δὲ ταῦτα πάντ᾽ ἐπισκήπτω τελεῖν,
ὑπέρ τ᾿ ἐμαυτοῦ, τοῦ θεοῦ τε, τῆσδέ τε
γῆς ὧδ᾽ ἀκάρπως κἀθέως ἐφθαρμένης.
Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 216-462 focus
Translations (4)
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 216 focus
Du flehst, und was du flehest, wird, wofern du mich
Anhörst und willig förderst, was der Seuche wehrt,
Dir werden - Rettung und der Noth Erleichterung.
Und also red' ich, weil ich fremd der Kunde bin,
220
Wie fremd der Unthat: ich allein, ich käme ja
Nicht weit im Forschen, ohne Spur und Zeichen sonst.
Nun (denn ich trat auch später erst als Bürger ein)
Erklär' ich frei vor allem Kadmosvolke dies.
Wenn euer Einem Kunde ward, von wessen Hand
225
Getroffen fiel der Labdakide Laïos,
Gebiet' ich, daß er Alles mir verkündige,
Selbst wenn davor ihm bangte, weil er wider sich
Zeugschaft erheben müßte; denn ihm widerfährt
Nichts Arges, straflos soll er aus dem Lande zieh'n.
230
Kennt aber Iemand einen Mann aus fremdem Land
Als Thäter, er verschweig' es nicht; ich werde selbst
Den Lohn an ihn bezahlen, und noch Dank dazu.
Doch wenn ihr schweigt, und Einer, um den Freund besorgt,
Mein Wort verachtet, oder um sich selber bang;
235
So sollt ihr hören, was ich dann zu thun beschloß.
Den Mann verbiet' ich, wer er sei, in diesem Land,
Worin Gewalt mir und der Thron beschieden ward,
Gastfreundlich aufzunehmen, noch zu grüßen ihn,
Noch bei der Götter Dienste, noch an Opfern ihm
240
Antheil zu gönnen oder an geweihter Flut: 1
Von eurer Schwelle stoßet ihn als einen Gräul,
Der uns verunreint, wie des Gottes pythisches
Orakel heute deutlich uns geoffenbart.
245-So Jedes ordnend, will ich treu dem Gotte, will
245
Dem hingeschiednen Manne treu zur Seite steh'n.
Dem Thäter aber fluch' ich, ob er seine That
Allein verübt im Dunkel, ob mit Mehreren:
Er friste schnöd ein schnödes Leben ohne Glück!
Ich flehe, mir, wofern ich selber wissentlich
250
An meinem Herd als Hausgenossen ihn gepflegt,
Das Leid zu senden, das ich jezt ihm angewünscht.
Doch euch gebiet' ich dringend, daß ihr alles dies
Für mich vollendet, für den Gott und dieses Land,
Das blütenlos und gottverlassen untergeht.
255
English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 216 focus
CHORUS, the People assembled.
English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 216 focus
Well are thy vows address'd; nor vain those vows,
But of much force, and lenient of our ills,
Wou'dst thou with deep regard attend my words,
Which I, to each related circumstance
A stranger, and a stranger to the deed,
220
Shall speak; for far my search could not extend,
Having no mark to guide my steps. But now
A Theban late enroll'd, to all of Thebes
I give this charge. Whoe'er among you knows
By whom the son of Labdacus was slain,
225
Him I command t' unfold the whole to me.
But if, through conscious guilt, he fears t' avow
The deed, and charge himself; no harsher doom
Awaits him, than to leave this land, unhurt.
But if among you be a man, who knows
230
Another, of another realm, whose hand
Was with this blood polluted, let him speak,
And not conceal the murderer; for from me
Ample shall be his recompense, and thanks
Added besides. But if ye will not speak,
235
If fearing for himself, or for a friend,
There be a man that disregards my words,
What then shall be my solemn mandate hear.
That man let none within this realm, whose throne,
Whose empire I command, beneath his roof
240
The altars round a mournful band,
The wives, the hoary matrons, stand,
And heave the suppliant sigh.
With deep sighs mix'd the hallow'd strain
Bursts fervent to the skies :
Deign then, O radiant Pallas, deign
In all thy might to rise.
From this fierce pow'r which raging round
Unarm'd inflicts thy fiery wound,
250
Daughter of Jove, my country save;
Hence, goddess, hence the fury sweep
To Amphitrite's chambers deep,
Or the rough Euxine wave!
English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904)) — 216-460 focus

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-157-1 αἰτεῖς 1 ἃ δ’ αἰτεῖς 2 τἄμ’ 3

mvp-comment-158-1 κλύων 4 δέχεσθαι 5 τῇ νόσῳ ὑπηρετεῖν 6

mvp-comment-159-1 ἀλκὴν 7 ἀνακούφισιν 8 κακῶν 9

mvp-comment-160-1 ἁγὼ ξένος μὲν 10

mvp-comment-161-1 ξένος 11

mvp-comment-162-1 τοῦ πραχθέντος 12

mvp-comment-163-1 οὐ γὰρ ἂν μακρὰν … ἴχνευον 13 αὐτός 14

mvp-comment-164-1 νῦν δ’ 15 ὕστερος 16 εἰς ἀστοὺς τελῶ 18 ἀστὸς εἰς ἀστοὺς 19

mvp-comment-165-1 κεἰ μὲν φοβεῖται τοὐπίκλημ’ ὑπεξελεῖν 20 ὑπεξελεῖν | αὐτὸν καθ’ αὑτοῦ 21 κελεύω 22 ὑπεξελεῖν τὸ ἐπίκλημα 23

mvp-comment-166-1 ἀβλαβής 24

mvp-comment-167-1 ἄλλον … ἐξ ἄλλης χθονὸς 25

mvp-comment-168-1 τὸ κέρδος 26

mvp-comment-169-1 προσκείσεται 27

mvp-comment-170-1 φίλου, αὑτοῦ 28

mvp-comment-170-2 φίλου δείσας 29 τοὔπος … τόδε 30

mvp-comment-171-1 ἀπαυδῶ 31 τινα γῆς τῆσδε 32 μήτ’ ἐσδέχεσθαι μήτε προσφωνεῖν 33 τὸν ἄνδρα τοῦτον, ὅστις ἐστί 34 γῆς 35 μήτε … μήτε 36 ἐσδέχεσθαι 37 προσφωνεῖν 38 εὐχαῖσι 39 θύμασιν 40 θύμασιν 41 εὐχαῖσι 42 μήτε κοινὸν ποιεῖσθαι 43 ἐν … εὐχαῖσι μήτε θύμασιν 44

mvp-comment-172-1 κοινὸν 45 χέρνιβος 46

mvp-comment-173-1 ὠθεῖν δὲ 47

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

mvp-comment-175-1 κατεύχομαι 48 κατεύχομαι 49 εἴτε τις 50 τις 51 εἷς 52 τις 53

mvp-comment-176-1 νιν ἄμορον 54 νιν 55 κακὸν κακῶς 56

mvp-comment-177-1 ἐπεύχομαι 57 οἴκοισιν … ξυνέστιος 58

mvp-comment-178-1 τοῖσδ’ 59

mvp-comment-179-1 ἀκάρπως κἀθέως 60

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

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.