Sophocles Philoctetes 199

mvp-comment-473-1 ὦ φέγγος ¹ τό τ’ ²

mvp-comment-473-2 ἐλπίδων ἄπιστον ³ οἰκούρημα ⁴

mvp-comment-474-1 τοῦτ’ ⁵ ἐξηύχης’ ⁶ τλῆναι ⁷ ἂν ⁸ τλῆναι ⁹ ἐξηύχης’ ¹⁰

mvp-comment-474-2 μεῖναι ¹¹ τἀμὰ πήματα ¹²

mvp-comment-474-3 ξυνωφελοῦντά μοι ¹³

mvp-comment-475-1 οὔκουν ¹⁴

mvp-comment-475-2 εὐφόρως ¹⁵ εὐπόρως ¹⁶

mvp-comment-476-1 κἀξ εὐγενῶν ¹⁷ ἐν εὐχερεῖ ἔθου ¹⁸

mvp-comment-476-2 γέμων ¹⁹

mvp-comment-477-1 λήθη ²⁰

mvp-comment-477-2 δή ²¹

mvp-comment-478-1 σύ μ’ αὐτὸς … ποτέ ²² κόπος ²³ ού μ’ αὐτὸς ἆρον, σύ με κατάστησον ²⁴

mvp-comment-478-2 νῦν δ’ αἶρε σαυτόν ²⁵ ἵν’, ἡνίκ’ ἂν κόπος μ’ ἀπαλλάξῃ ποτέ ²⁶

mvp-comment-478-3 ZippmannA. , whom Nauck and Cavallin follow in their texts, deletes both v. 880 and v. 889 as spurious, and transposes 879 to a place between 888 and 890. His two main objections to the traditional text are:—Why should Ph. , formerly so eager to start, now wish to wait till his

has passed off? (880). And why should he desire to rise before that moment, instead of resting on the ground? The view of the whole situation which I have given above will show why I believe the traditional text to be sound.

mvp-comment-479-1 ἐπίσχωμεν ²⁷ τὸ πλεῖν ²⁸

867-871. mvp-comment-609-1 Just when the plot against his peace is being urged most vehemently, Philoctetes awakes, and pours out touching words of unsuspecting thankfulness for the patient care, of which he little knows the motive. He throws himself afresh on Neoptolemus, and will have no support but his.

867-868. mvp-comment-610-1 ὦ φέγγος.. ξένων] 'Light after sleep, how welcome! And how surpassing fondest hope, the patient tendance of these friends!" For the construction of φέγγος and οἰκούρημα, cp. Trach. 1046, 7, ὦ πολλὰ . . μοχθήσας ἐγώ. διάδοχον] 'Succeeding, taking the place of (in my experience). ἐλπίδων ἄπιστον] 'Beyond the belief of expectation,' i.e. which I could not have believed beforehand. οἰκούρημα] More concrete than οἰκουρία = 'Act of keeping watch.' οἰκουρεῖν is, ‘Το keep watch over a person's property and interests in his absence.' So Neoptolemus has guarded the bow and the person of Philoctetes during his prostration, from the thievish attempt which he most feared.

869. mvp-comment-611-1 οὐκ ἂν ἐξηύχησα] 'I could not once have vaunted.' The aorist implies 'for a single moment,' and is thus more forcible here than the imperfect would have been.

871. mvp-comment-612-1 μεῖναι has been unreasonably suspected. Cavallin conjectures ἰδεῖν.

872. mvp-comment-613-1 οὔκουν ᾿Ατρείδαι] 'It was not the Atreidae, who-.' οὖν marks the reasonableness of Philoctetes' doubt, which was in accordance with the conduct of the Atreidae. *εὐφόρως] This seems the simplest correction of εὐπόρως. See Essay on L. § 55. p. 101. Others prefer εὐπετῶς, comparing Fr. 523, χρεὼν | τὰ θειᾶ θνητοὺς ὄντας εὐπετῶς φέρειν. Οr, εὐλόφως. Paley retains εὐπόρως.

874. mvp-comment-614-1 κἀξ εὐγενῶν] The frequent allusions to his father have a constraining power over the heart of Neoptolemus.

875. mvp-comment-615-1 ἐν εὐχερεῖ ἔθου] ‘Took as a light burden.'

876. mvp-comment-616-1 βοῆς] This reference of Philoctetes to his own cries makes us feel how involuntary they were. He knew them as an inseparable accompaniment of his presence anywhere.

877. mvp-comment-617-1 καὶ νῦν] Cp. O. T. 52, 3, ὄρνιθι γὰρ καὶ τὴν τότ᾽ αἰσίῳ τύχην | παρέσχες ἡμῖν, καὶ τανῦν ἴσος γενοῦ.

879. mvp-comment-618-1 Nauck, following A. Zippmann, transposes this line to before 890 and rejects 880 and 889. The apparent coldness of Neoptolemus, who in 886 ignores this appeal of Philoctetes to him, may, however, be accounted for by supposing that his consciousness of acting a part makes him less forward with the show of sympathy, now that his emotions are really stirred.

880. mvp-comment-619-1 Philoctetes is not yet confident that his powers are fully returned. The habit of lying perdu after each attack makes him less prompt to move. But he feels that he must be ready to start as soon as he can. (But qy. ἡ. ἀ. τὸ πνεῦμ᾽ ἀπ. ποτέ? Cp. supr. 639, 40.)