Sophocles Oedipus at Colonus 589

ed. Lewis Campbell

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κεῖνοι κομίζειν κεῖσʼ ἀναγκάζουσί με.

Oedipus at Colonus. Sophocles. ed. Lewis Campbell. Oxford. 1879.

Current edition Experimental

Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) (Greek) (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879))

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (1)
Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 549-667 focus
Translations (2)
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 579 focus
Und welchen Vortheil bietest du zum Lohne mir?
English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904)) — 549-665 focus

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-442-1 Kayser's ἄναξ, χρῄζουσι (for ἀναγκάζουσι ) is exactly what the sense requires, and is fairly near to the MS. reading, while the latter is (I think) certainly corrupt. The verse must not be considered alone, but in close connection with 590, and with the whole context. It has been rendered:—(1)

"They are for compelling ( my protectors ) to convey me to Thebes."
But the ellipse of
τινά
before
κομίζειν
is intolerable. And the protectors could not be required to do more than surrender him. Therefore it is no cure to propose εἴ σ’ (for
κεῖσ’
)
ἀναγκάσουσί με
. To read
σε
for
με
merely shifts the first difficulty, and leaves the second. (2)
"They are for putting constraint on me, so as to carry (me) to Thebes."
Such an epexegesis by the act. infin. is impossible here. Who could write
ἀναγκάζει σε ἄγειν ἐκεῖσε
, meaning,
"he is forcing thee, so as to take (thee) thither"
? (3)
κομίζειν
has been taken as=
"to return,"
=
κομίζεσθαι
. This needs no comment. We want either: (1) instead of κομίζειν , a word=
" to return "
; but
κατελθεῖν
is very unlikely, and no other substitute is obvious: or (2) instead of ἀναγκάζουσι , a word =
"they wish , seek. "
That the fault lies in
ἀναγκάζουσι
is very strongly suggested by 590, where L has ἀλλ’ εἰ θέλοντ’ ἄν γ’ , evidently corrupted, by dittographia of
γ’
, from
ἀλλ’ εἰ θέλοντά γ’
, which L2 has. This gives a clear and fitting sense, if in 589 we read ἄναξ, χρῄζουσί με . All the trouble, for the MSS. and for the edd., has arisen from
ἀναγκάζουσι
. Hence (1) Goebel, ἀλλ’ οὐ θελόντων ,
"but if they do not wish thee"
(
φεύγειν
): (2) Reisig, ἀλλ’ εἰ θέλοντάς γ’ ,
"but what if it be not seemly for thee to shun them when willing (to receive thee)?"
Both these are forced. Campbell supplies
εἰ βούλοιντο κομίζειν
to explain
θέλοντα
, keeping L's
θέλοντ’ ἄν
: but
ἄν
can stand with a partic. only when the latter is equiv. to an apodosis, as it is in 761. So far as the tense of
ἀναγκάζουσι
is concerned, a change to the fut. is no gain: it is the pres. of tendency or intention. But the whole mention of compulsion or violence is premature in 589. Oed. leads very gently up to the disclosure of his sons' unnatural conduct (599).

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

589. mvp-comment-325-1 ἀναγκάζουσι If this is the right reading, which, from the frequent confusion of and o, is not quite certain (cp. 603), the present is used with future meaning, as in Aesch. Prom. 513, ὧδε δεσμὰ φυγγάνω: ib. 525, δεσμοὺς ἀεικεῖς καὶ δύας ἐκφυγγάνω. Cp. Phil. 1379, κἀποσώζοντας νόσου. The subject of κομίζειν (sc. τινά, cp. infr. 933) is to be gathered from the context. They will enforce my being taken thither;' i. e. They will force the consent of Theseus and the Athenians to this. Universe eos intelligit, qui tradendi Oedipi potestatem habeant. Herm. Another rendering has been proposed - They will use compulsion against me to carry me back thither.' But such a use of ἀναγκάζω with the infinitive is inadmissible.