Sophocles Electra 304

mvp-comment-714-1 The first part of the third

began, at 1098, with the entrance of Orestes. Now, after the (1232—1287), comes the second part, going down to the point at which the avengers pass into the house, followed by Electra.

mvp-comment-714-2 τὰ … περισς. τῶν λόγων ¹

mvp-comment-715-1 καὶ μήτε μήτηρ ²

mvp-comment-715-2 Conington ( Journ. of Philology, I. p. 156) supposes an allusion to Eur. El. 300—338 , where Electra, speaking to the disguised Orestes, mentions her own sufferings, her mother's splendours, and the insolence of Aegisthus. But such an allusion seems improbable: that speech is not long; it comes in with dramatic fitness; nor does it refer to the wasteful profusion of Aegisthus, which is the main point here. A later speech of Electra's in the same play ( Eur. El. 907—951 ) would in some respects suit the words here better; but that is spoken over the corpse of Aegisthus, and could scarcely be regarded as delaying the action.

mvp-comment-715-3 Another theory, that Sophocles alludes to the earlier part of the Choephori, is certainly mistaken. Possibly he had no particular work in view, but was merely glancing at a tendency which he had noticed in contemporary drama.

mvp-comment-716-1 πατρῴαν ³ δόμων ⁴ ἀντλεῖ, τὰ δ’ ἐκχεῖ ⁵

mvp-comment-716-2 ἐκχεῖ ⁶ διασπείρει μάτην ⁷ ἀντλεῖ ⁸

mvp-comment-717-1 χρόνου … καιρὸν ⁹

mvp-comment-717-2 ἐξείργοι ¹⁰

mvp-comment-717-3 Hermann took

as= , ‘the opportune moment of time.’ The meaning would then be that the might hinder them from seizing that moment. But the phrase is a strange one, scarcely to be justified by Sertor. 16, where is virtually personified,— .

mvp-comment-717-4 The schol. has:

. This only shows that he took as ‘opportunity,’ not as ‘due limit.’ It does not warrant the view that, instead of , he read or .

mvp-comment-718-1 φανέντες ¹¹ κεκρυμμένοι ¹² γελῶντας ¹³

mvp-comment-719-1 οὕτω δὲ ¹⁴ ὅπως ¹⁵

mvp-comment-719-2 )πιγνώσεται ¹⁶

mvp-comment-719-3 νῷν ¹⁷

mvp-comment-719-4 ἐπελθόντοιν δόμους ¹⁸

mvp-comment-720-1 μάτην ¹⁹ μὴ ²⁰ τῇ ²¹

mvp-comment-720-2 εὐτυχησωμεν ²²

1287. mvp-comment-606-1 As in O. C. 1702, 3 (where see note), the time of misery is continued in memory.

1288. mvp-comment-607-1 This line has been supposed to contain a criticism of the Choephori, where so much time is spent in the preliminaries of the assassination. But this is surely unnecessary, and without parallel in Sophocles, whose practice in this and other respects is not to be inferred from that of Euripides (Phoen. 751, 2, alib.).

1291. mvp-comment-608-1 See Essay on L. § 21. p. 32, 1.

1292. mvp-comment-609-1 'For such recital might prevent you from seizing the opportune moment.'

1295. mvp-comment-610-1 'We shall by our present enterprize frustrate our enemies in their exultation.' γελώντας is to be resumed as a supplementary predicate. For παύσομεν without an expressed participle, cp. supr. 796, οὐχ ὅπως σε παύσομεν.

1296. mvp-comment-611-1 οὕτω δέ] Sc. πρᾶσσε, understood from the general drift of the preceding words.

1296-1297. mvp-comment-612-1 ὅπως .. δόμους] ‘May not detect you by your glad countenance when we (Or. and Pyl.) have come into the house;' i.e. may not find out your secret and perceive the fact. νῷν is gen. absol.