977.
mvp-comment-568-1
Why should man fear, seeing that Fortune rules his life and he has no clear foreknowledge of anything?' ἄνθρωπος] Quite general, as in O. C. 1153, πρᾶγος δ᾽ ἀτίζειν οὐδὲν ἄνθρωπον χρεών. For the sentiment, cp. Thuc. 4.62, τὸ δὲ ἀστάθμητον τοῦ μέλλοντος, κ.τ.λ.
979.
mvp-comment-569-1
''Tis best to live by chance, as best one may.' Cp. Eur. Hipp. 261 ff. For the asyndeton, cp. supr. 945.
979.
mvp-comment-569-2
ὅπως δύναιτο is the more generalized form of ὅπως ἂν δύνηται. Cp. 315, ἀφ᾿ ὧν ἔχοι τε καὶ δύναιτο ; and see Essay on Language § 36. p. 61.
981.
mvp-comment-570-1
Cp. Hdt. 6. 107: Plat. Rep. 9. 571 C.
987.
mvp-comment-571-1
Either, 'And yet your father's death is a great eye to see with, i. e.
may well open your eyes, or with a further association, 'And yet your father's death throws a cheering light on these matters.' Cp. Pind. Pyth. 5. 17, ἐπεὶ συγγενὴς ὀφθαλμός, κ.τ.λ., and Τι. 203-204, ἄελπτον ὄμμ᾽ ἐμοὶ | φήμης ἀνασχὸν τῆσδε.
991.
mvp-comment-572-1
What is there in her (or in regard to her) which tends to give you alarm?' The genitive is continued from 988 τῆς ζώσης, 990 Μερόπης, and may be viewed either as a genitive of respect, or of origin. Essay on Language pp. 13, 14. 66. Here, as elsewhere in this part of the play, the serene courtesy of the dialogue contrasts with the approaching horror.
997.
mvp-comment-573-1
ἡ Κόρινθος ἐξ ἐμοῦ. . ἀπῳκεῖτο (1) Corinth as a dwelling-place has long been set far away from me.' For this inversion (instead of my dwelling-place has been removed from Corinth'), cp. supr. 762 and note. Essay on Language § 42. p. 80; or (2) Corinth has been avoided (livedaway from) by me' = ἀπῴκουν Κορίνθου. For the preference for the passive form in either case, see Essay on Language pp. 53, 54. The effect here is to bring into greater prominence Oedipus' love for Corinth.
997.
mvp-comment-573-2
ἐξ ἐμοῦ Either away from me,' or
by my act. The v. τ. ἀπώκιστ᾽ (ἀπῴκιστο) is plausible (cp. Plat. Polit. 284 Ε, ὁπόσα εἰς τὸ μέσον ἀπῳκίσθη τῶν ἐσχάτων), but the perfect and not the pluperfect is the tense required.
999.
mvp-comment-574-1
The natural simplicity of these words, said in the presence of Jocasta, contrasts terribly to the spectator with the unconsciousness of them. See 1371, foll., ἐγὼ γὰρ οὐκ οἶδ᾽ ὄμμασιν ποίοις βλέπων, κ.τ.λ. And cp. Aesch. Cho. 690-691, τὸν τεκόντα δ᾽ εἰκὸς εἰδέναι, said by Orestes before Clytemnestra.
1002-1003.
mvp-comment-575-1
τί οὐχὶ . . ἐξελυσάμην ;]
Had I not better, etc.? For this common idiom, cp. Aesch. Prom. 747-748, τί. . οὐκ ἐν τάχει | ἔρριψ᾿ ἐμαύτην, κ.τ.λ.
1004.
mvp-comment-576-1
ἀξίαν
Worth having, i. e.
ample. For this absolute use of ἄξιος, cp. Od. 20. 383, ὅθεν κέ τοι ἄξιον ἄλφοι : Plat. Rep. 6. 504 Ε, ἄξιον τὸ διανόημα. 1005 τοῦτ᾽ ἀφικόμην]
For this I came. The accusative in apposition, expressing purpose. Cp. O. C. 1291, ἃ δ' ἦλθον ἤδη σοι θέλω λέξαι, πάτερ.
1006.
mvp-comment-577-1
That I might reap some benefit from you in your returning home.' σοῦ is (1) genitive of origin, (2) gen. absolute. Essay on Language § 9. P. 14.
1007.
mvp-comment-578-1
τοῖς φυτεύσασιν 1012. τῶν φυτευσάντων] He expresses his particular fear in the general form which the prophecy (793) had originally suggested. See 1012, 1013, τοῦτό μ' εἰσαεὶ φοβεί.
1008.
mvp-comment-579-1
ὦ παὶ This address comes somewhat strangely from the servant to the king, but is explained by the simplicity of heroic times, and by the circumstance that the aged speaker claims to have been a kind of fosterfather to Oedipus. Cp. El. 1220, where Electra, in addressing the supposed young stranger, uses in her excitement the address suitable for her brother.
1008.
mvp-comment-579-2
καλῶς
Clearly. O. C. 269-270, καλῶς | ἔξοιδα : Plat. Rep. 6, p. 506 В.
1010.
mvp-comment-580-1
φεύγεις Here, as in supr. 948, the notion of exile is combined with the more general notion of avoidance.
1011.
mvp-comment-581-1
Aldus and some MSS. have ταρβῶν. The variation of reading is like that in O. C. 1300: L. κλύω, Par. Α. κλύων. In both places the indicative is more forcible.
1011.
mvp-comment-581-2
σαφής
True, as in 390, ποῦ σὺ μάντις εἶ σαφής;
1012.
mvp-comment-582-1
τῶν φυτευσάντων Here, as in supr. 988, τῆς ζώσης, the gen. expresses rather arising from,' than
appertaining to. ' A pollution arising to you from your parents.' For the construction, see Essay on Language § 10. p. 14.
1013.
mvp-comment-583-1
τοῦτο. φοβεῖ
That is just the fear which is ever haunting me.
1014.
mvp-comment-584-1
Then shall I tell you that your apprehensions are unreasonable?
1014.
mvp-comment-584-2
πρὸς δίκης, like πρὸς τρόπου, etc.,
justly. So in El. 1211, πρὸς δίκης γὰρ οὐ στένεις.
1015.
mvp-comment-585-1
Observe the emphatic position of παῖς and ἔφυν.
1016.
mvp-comment-586-1
σοι.. οὐδὲν ἐν γένει
Of no kin to thee. Eur. Alc. 904, ἐμοί τις ἦν ἐν γένει, ᾧ, κ.τ.λ.
1018.
mvp-comment-587-1
The rusticity of the messenger shows itself in this blunt speech.
1019.
mvp-comment-588-1
And how can a father be held equal to one who is no father?'
1019.
mvp-comment-588-2
τῷ μηδενί μηδενί is probably masculine='ei, qui nullus est,' and may be best explained as = τῷ μηδὲν (i. e. μηδαμῶς) φύσαντι.
To one who is nothing of the kind. The pronoun helps to make the negative more absolute. Cp. Theaet. 169 Α, ἐμὲ μὲν τῷ σῷ ἑταίρῳ . . ἐπαμύνειν, σὲ δὲ μηδενί : i. e. That I am bound to help and you not at all.' The negative is similarly strengthened in El. 276, ἐρινὸν οὔτιν᾽ ἐκφοβουμένη. Ib. 1215, ἄτιμος οὐδενὸς σύ. Aesch. Ag. 185, μάντιν οὔτινα ψέγων. Hdt. 3. 135, ἀπ᾿ οὐδενὸς δολεροῦ νόου. See Essay on Language § 22. p. 36. καὶ πῶς expresses incredulity; cp. Aesch. Suppl. 509, καὶ πῶς βέβηλον ἄλσος ἂν ῥύοιτό με ;
1021.
mvp-comment-589-1
ἀντὶ τοῦ .. ὠνομάζετο 'Why ἐπεστάτουν] then did he call me his child? For the use of the middle voice, see Essay on Language § 31. p. 53, 6.
1025.
mvp-comment-590-1
ἢ τεκών For this use of the aor. part. active of τίκτω, cp. О. С. 1108, τῷ τεκόντι πᾶν φίλον. The question is inconsistent with the assertion of the ἄγγελος in 1020, and hence the reading has been suspected and τυχών (from 1039) or κιχών, which of the two is more probable, has been substituted. But Oedipus need not be supposed to have weighed the words οὔτ᾽ ἐκεῖνος οὔτ᾽ ἐγώ. Cp. supr. 360 and note. And the same train of thought which leads him to ask this question, reappears in his colloquy with the βοτήρ, 1. 1162, πόθεν λαβών ; οἰκεῖον, ἢ ἐξ ἄλλου τινός; See also ll. 1062-1063. He is ready for any disclosure. When Caesar, who has just consented that Decius shall tell the senators he is not well, says immediately afterwards
Shall Caesar send a lie? no one is found to complain of dramatic inconsistency. Shak. Jul. Caes. 1, 3.
1029.
mvp-comment-591-1
ἐπὶ θητείᾳ πλάνης ‘And going from place to place to work for hire.' For ἐπί, see Essay on Language $ 19. p. 27. Oedipus dwells on this point as indicating the possible lowness of his origin. Ср. 1062.
1030.
mvp-comment-592-1
σοῦ δ This correction, which Elmsley made from conjecture, is found in Flor. Γ. δέ may express the opposition between the insignificant station of the ποιμήν and his importance to Oedipus. The reading of L. and most MSS. σοῦ γ'.. σωτήρ γε was, however, approved by Hermann, who quotes Heindorf on Plat. Euthyd. 277 A. Cp. also O. C. 387, 977, 1278, 1409.
1031.
mvp-comment-593-1
Oedipus is touched with pity for his former self. Cp. Shak. Temp. 1.2, 'Miranda. Alack, for pity ! | I, not remembering how I cried out then, | Will cry it o'er again: it is a hint, | That wrings mine eyes to 't.' The question is suggested to Oedipus by the word σωτήρ; i. e.
From what pain that I was suffering in my misfortunes did you rescue me? but is introduced by the poet, as the Scholiast properly observes, in order to lead to the mention of the personal mark (compare the scar of Ulysses in the Odyssey) by which the conviction of the truth is brought home to Jocasta. In his eagerness to
delve to the root the mystery of his birth, Oedipus is wholly unconscious of the effect which the successive answers have upon the mind of the queen-the horror of whose discovery is the chief interest of this part of the play, and who may be supposed to remain immoveable until her outbreak in l. 1056. The same explanation applies to l. 1037, which adds poignancy to the stroke.
1034.
mvp-comment-594-1
ποδοῖν ἀκμάς
Thy feet. ἀκμάς, like ἄρθρα supr., simply adds definiteness to πόδας: cp. ἄκρος.
1035.
mvp-comment-595-1
ὄνειδος (τοῦτο) ἀνειλόμην Α cruel shame I got from my swaddling bands.' Cp. Pind. Nem. 7. 56, τυχεῖν δ᾽ ἕν᾿ ἀδύνατον εὐδαιμονίαν ἅπασαν ἀνελόμενον. The genitive is to be taken with the verb in the sense of derivation; only differing in being more metaphorical from the construction of El. 1139, 40, παμφλέκτου πυρὸς | ἀνειλόμην, ὡς εἰκός, ἄθλιον βάρος. Cp. supr. 1012. Eustath. 86. 16, 1097. 25 quotes καλόν γ᾽ ὄνειδος, which has been thought to be an error of memory, as these words occur in the Medea of Euripides, with whose style they are more in accordance. Eur. Med. 514.
1037.
mvp-comment-596-1
Triclinius rightly says, ἀσύνετον καὶ ἀνακόλουθον πρὸς τὰ ἐπαγόμενα, τὸ νομίζειν ἐρωτᾶν τὸν Οἰδιπόδα, εἰ ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς ἢ τῆς μητρὸς ὠνομάσθη. The words refer not to the preceding line, but to the cruel treatment of the child. Was it my mother's doing, or my father's?' See on 1031.
1042.
mvp-comment-597-1
δήπου τις
I am pretty sure that they called him one of Laius people.'
1044.
mvp-comment-598-1
βοτήρ The word recals to the chorus and the spectators, though not to Oedipus, his saying in 836. 7, τοσοῦτόν ἐστί μοι τῆς ἐλπίδος, τὸν ἄνδρα τὸν βοτῆρα προσμεῖναι μόνον. Cp. also 1049 with 761.
1045.
mvp-comment-599-1
ὥστ᾽ ἰδεῖν ἐμέ
So that I may see him.
1050.
mvp-comment-600-1
The very moment for full discovery is come. Essay on Language § 39. 1. a, p. 72.
1050.
mvp-comment-600-2
τάδε Oedipus is now thinking only of the question of his birth, although his expression has a much wider import.
1051.
mvp-comment-601-1
οὐδέν᾽ ἄλλον Sc. ἐννέπειν.
1053.
mvp-comment-602-1
The chorus point to Jocasta, with what effect on her and the spectator may be imagined. But they have as yet no suspicion of the truth. merely conjecturing that Jocasta must know the history of the servant of Laius, and that he who is now over the flock (761) may have been the shepherd of former time.
1054.
mvp-comment-603-1
Lady, do you remember the man whose coming we just now desired? Is he the man he speaks of? Cp. Τr. 417, τὴν αἰχμάλωτον, ἣν ἔπεμψας ἐς δόμους κάτοισθα δήπου; ib. 1191, οἶσθ᾽ οὖν τὸν Οἴτης Ζηνὸς ὕψιστον πάγον; 1219, τὴν Εὐρυτείαν οἶσθα δῆτα παρθένον; The indefinite ὅντινα marks Oedipus' uncertainty about the identity of the βοτήρ. Cp. Hdt. 4. 8, ἐς γῆν ταύτην, ἤντινα νῦν Σκύθαι νέμονται. Badham conjectures νοεῖς ἐκεῖνον ὄνθ᾽ ὃν ἀρτίως | μολεῖν ἐφιέμεσθα; τόνδ' οὗτος λέγει; The reading of LA. τόν θ' οὗτος λέγει, may be rendered,
Do you remember the man whom we were just now sending for, and of whom he (the ἄγγελος) speaks? This, however, appears to be hardly the meaning required by the context, for the chorus has only expressed their belief that he is the same man, and has appealed to Jocasta to confirm this. A slight alteration, not altogether without MS. authority, gives τόνδ' οὗτος λέγει; as in the text.
1056.
mvp-comment-604-1
τί δ᾽ ὅντιν' ε. Cp. Aesch. Prom. 766, τί δ᾽ ὅντιν᾽; οὐ γὰρ ῥητὸν αὐδᾶσθαι τόδε, and for a similar ellipse, Plat. Legg. 1. 645 D, οὐδέν πω πρὸς ὅ τι.
Why ask of whom he spoke? Jocasta, starting from a reverie, utters this abruptly.
1059.
mvp-comment-605-1
φανῶ
Bring to light. Supr. 132.
1061.
mvp-comment-606-1
ἅλις νοσοῦσ᾽ ἐγώ
My trouble is enough.
It is enough that I am tormented without your knowing. Cp. Ar. Eth. Ν. 9, 11, ὅθεν τὸ ἅλις ἐγὼ δυστυχῶν. For the adverb as predicate, see Essay on Language § 24. p. 40.
1062.
mvp-comment-607-1
οὐδ᾽ ἂν *εἰ τρίτης This reading involves a simpler change than οὐδ' ἐὰν τρίτης, which may be right however. For el with the subj., see Essay on Language § 27: p. 44. And although av with future cannot be defended, yet a change of construction may fairly be supposed, like that which accounts for the apparent solecism in Aj. 405-409, εἰ.. πᾶς .. στρατὸς δίπαλτος ἄν με χειρὶ φονεύοι: i. e. The expression is equivalent to σὺ οὐκ ἐκφανεῖ κακή, οὐδ᾽ ἂν (ἐκφανείης κακή), εἰ, κ.τ.λ. ' οὐδ᾽ ἂν εἰ planè eadem ratione dicitur quâ κἂν εἰ, in quo av ad suppressum aliquem optativum pertinet.' Herm.
1062.
mvp-comment-607-2
τρίτης.. μητρὸς..τρίδουλος Though my mother, and my mother's mother, and the mother of this last, were slaves.' Cp. Plat. Legg. 6. 777 Α, οὐ τρὶς μόνον ἄλλα πολλάκις ἀπεργάζονται δούλας. Jocasta knows that the real horror is the nobility of his birth.
1066.
mvp-comment-608-1
φρονοῦσά γ᾽ εὐ
With clear knowledge. Ср. 1038.
1067.
mvp-comment-609-1
τὰ λῷστα.. ταῦτα ‘This which you call the best'-that I do not learn my origin.
1069.
mvp-comment-610-1
Will some one go and fetch the herdsman hither for me?' ἄξει here is more peremptory than οὐκ ἄξει; just as ἆρα; is stronger than ἆρ' οὐ; see Essay on Language § 29. p. 50.
1070.
mvp-comment-611-1
πλουσίῳ .. γένει
Her wealthy lineage. The word πλούσιος is used sarcastically. Cp. Εl. 361, σοὶ δὲ πλουσία | τράπεζα κείσθω.
1071.
mvp-comment-612-1
ἰοὺ ἰού An exclamation of horror and wonder. Cp. Τr. 1143, ἰοὺ ἰοὺ δύστηνος, οἴχομαι τάλας.
1072.
mvp-comment-613-1
ἄλλο δ᾽ οὔποθ᾽ ὕστερον
And no word any more for ever.
