Sophocles Oedipus at Colonus 720cont2

Lewis Campbell (Translator)

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Thou unabashed in knavery, who canst frame
For every cause the semblance of a plea
Pranked up with righteous seeming, why again
Would’st thou contrive my ruin, and attempt
To catch me where I most were grieved being caught?
Beforetime, when my self-procurèd woes
Were plaguing me, and I would fain have rushed
To instant banishment, thou wouldst not then
Grant this indulgence to my keen desire.
But when I had fed my passion to the full,
And all my pleasure was to live at home,
Then ’twas thy cue to expel and banish me,
Nor was this name of kindred then so dear.
Now once again, when thou behold’st this city
And people joined in friendly bands with me,
Thou wouldst drag me from my promised resting-place,
Hiding hard policy with courtly show.
Strange kindness, to love men against their will!
Suppose, when thou wert eager in some suit,
No grace were granted thee, but all denied,
And when thy soul was sated, then the boon

Oedipus at Colonus. 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)) — 720 focus
ὦ πλεῖστʼ ἐπαίνοις εὐλογούμενον πέδον,
720
νῦν σοὶ τὰ λαμπρὰ ταῦτα δὴ φαίνειν ἔπη.
Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 720-1043 focus
Translations (4)
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 720 focus
O Flur, mit höchsten Ruhmes Preis verherrlichet,
Nun gilt es, mun bewähre dieser Rede Glanz!
English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 720 focus
OEdipus, Chorcs.
Creon, with a numerous band
Of followers, comes this way.
If ever, help me.
725
Most honoured citizens,
I see you look with eyes of fear upon me,
Without a cause ; for know, I came not here
730
Intending aught of violence or ill
Against a city so renowned in Greece
As yours hath ever been ; I only came,
Commissioned by the State of Thebes, to fetch
This old man back, if by persuasion mild
735
I could induce him to return \ not sent
By one alone, but the united voice
Of a whole people, who assigned the task
To me because, by blood united to him,
I felt for his misfortunes as my own.
740
Come therefore, Qlldipus, attend me home ;
Thebes calls thee back, thy kingdom now demands thee —
By me she calls thee ; listen to thy friend,
For surely Creon were the worst of men.
745
If he could look on woes like thine unmoved
When I behold thee, in a foreign land
A wretched wanderer, forced to beg thy bread
From place to place, with this unhappy maid,
Whom little did I think to see exposed
750
To misery and shame, of nuptial rites
Hopeless, and thus bereft of every aid, —
Oh ! 'tis reproach and infamy to us
And to our race ; but 'tis already known,
And cannot be concealed. O CEdipus !
755
I here beseech thee, by our country's gods,
Return to Thebes ; bid thou a kind farewell —
For she deserves it — to this noble city,
But still remember thy own dearer country.
English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 720 focus
For Morian Jove with guardian care
720
Delights to see it flourish fair;
720
And Pallas, fav'ring, from the skies
720
Rolls the blue lustre of her eyes.
720
My voice yet once more let me raise,
720
Yet other glories to relate :
720
A potent God for these we praise,
720
His presents to this favour'd state;
The Steed obedient to the rein,
And safe to plough the subject main.
Our highest vaunt is this, thy grace,
Saturnian Neptune, we behold
The ruling Curb emboss'd with gold
Control the Courser's managed pace.
Though loud, O king, thy billows roar,
Our strong hands grasp the well-form'd oar;
And, while the Nereids round it play,
Light cuts our bounding bark its way.
O happy land, for many glories famed.
Behoves thee now assert this splendid praise,
English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904)) — 720-1042 focus

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-548-1 ὀμμάτων 1

mvp-comment-548-2 εἰληφότας 2

mvp-comment-548-3 νεώρη 3

mvp-comment-549-1 ὃν 4

mvp-comment-550-1 ὡς 5

mvp-comment-550-2 δρᾶν τι 6

mvp-comment-551-1 εἴ τιν’ 7

mvp-comment-552-1 τηλικόσδ’ 8

mvp-comment-553-1 οὐκ ἐξ ἑνὸς στείλαντος 9

mvp-comment-553-2 ἀστῶν 10

mvp-comment-554-1 ἧκέ μοι γένει 11

mvp-comment-554-2 γένει 12

mvp-comment-555-1 εἰς πλεῖστον πόλεως 13

mvp-comment-555-2 εἰς 14

mvp-comment-556-1 ἀλλ’ 15

mvp-comment-557-1 δικαίως 16

mvp-comment-557-2 ἐκ δὲ τῶν 17

mvp-comment-558-1 ὅσῳπερ 18

mvp-comment-558-2 πλειστον … κάκιστος 19

mvp-comment-559-1 ξένον 20

mvp-comment-559-2 ἐπὶ μιᾶς πρ 21

mvp-comment-560-1 τὴν 22

mvp-comment-560-2 τάλας 23

mvp-comment-561-1 οὐκ ἔδοξα πεσεῖν ἄν 24

mvp-comment-561-2 ἐς τοσοῦτον αἰκίας 25

mvp-comment-561-3 ὅσον 26

mvp-comment-561-4 ἥδε δύσμορος 27

mvp-comment-562-1 τὸ σὸν κάρα 28

mvp-comment-563-1 πτωχῷ 29

mvp-comment-563-2 τηλικοῦτος 30

mvp-comment-564-1 τοὐπιόντος 31

mvp-comment-565-1 ἆῤ 32

mvp-comment-565-2 ὦ τάλας 33

mvp-comment-566-1

"I have uttered a cruel reproach against my kindred and myself. But indeed the reproach is one that cannot be hid, so long as thou and thy daughter are seen wandering thus. Hide it, then, thou (no one else can)—by coming home."
Unless we correct νυν to νιν (=
τὰ ἐμφανῆ
), it is better to place a point, and not merely a comma, at κρύπτειν :
" But (I have some excuse) for ,"
etc.,—the elliptical use of ἀλλ’ οὐ γάρ , as at 988, El. 595 , Tr. 552 . So the schol.:
ὥστε συγγνώμης εἰμὶ ἄξιος λέγων· οὐ γὰρ δύναμαι κρύπτειν
. With only a comma at
κρύπτειν, ἀλλά
would belong to κρύψον :
"But,— since it is impossible, etc.—hide thou,"
—when the position of νυν is awkward.—So in O. T. 1424 Creon urges the Theban elders to take Oed. into the house, forbidding them
τοιόνδ’ ἄγος | ἀκάλυπτον οὕτω δεικνύναι
.

mvp-comment-567-1 πρὸς θεῶν πατρῴων 34

mvp-comment-568-1 θελήσας 36

mvp-comment-568-2 ἄστυ 37

mvp-comment-569-1 εἰπών 38

mvp-comment-569-2 ἡ δ’ οἴκοι 39

mvp-comment-570-1 παντὸς 40

mvp-comment-570-2 ἂν φέρων 41

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

729. mvp-comment-404-1 ὁρῶ . . ἐπεισόδου I see that a sudden fear has overcast your eyes at my coming in. ὀμμάτων is a genitive of place, or of the part affected. For εἰληφότας, cp. Αj. 345, τάχ᾽ ἄν τιν αἰδῶ κἀπ᾿ ἐμοὶ βλέψας λάβοι: Eur. Suppl. 1050. ὀργὴν λάβοις ἂν τῶν ἐμῶν βουλευμάτων | κλύων: Plat. Soph. 243 C, ταὐτὸν τοῦτο πάθος εἰληφότες ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ. And for the whole expression, Aesch. Eum. 407, θαῦμα δ᾽ ὄμμασιν πάρα: Eur. I. A. 1128, Ar. Vesp. 447-

731. mvp-comment-405-1 μήτ᾿ ἀφῆτ᾽ ἔπος κακόν As often happens, the sentence passes out of the relative construction. Cp. supr. 467.

732. mvp-comment-406-1 Creon endeavours to allay the alarm occasioned by his coming, and to win confidence by dwelling (1) on his own age and apparent feebleness, (2) on the age and condition of Oedipus, which needed protection at home, (3) on his intention to use persuasion only. (4) on the public authority and responsibility of his mission, (5) on his personal and private motives for undertaking it.

734. mvp-comment-407-1 εἴ τιν᾿ Ἑλλάδος For the attraction, cp. Aj 488. εἴπερ τινὸς σθένοντος ἐν πλούτῳ Φρυγῶν. Ε. on L. § 35. p. 60.

735. mvp-comment-408-1 ἄνδρα τόνδε τηλικόνδ᾽ ἀπεστάλην The text, while giving a more natural order of the words than the VOL. I. Aa ï conjecture τηλικόσδ' ἀπεστάλην, is also capable of a suitable meaning. Creon, wishing to show the reasonableness of his coming, points to the extreme age and feebleness of Oedipus as a ground for inducing him to return under the protection of Thebes. There is a peculiar emphasis on the words τηλικόνδε and πείσων, i. e. To induce this poor old man by persuasion only to return home.' For the combination of the demonstrative with the pronominal adj., cp. Phil. 128, τοῦτον τὸν αὐτὸν ἄνδρα: ib. 572 πρὸς ποῖον ἂν τόνδ'..;

738. mvp-comment-409-1 οὔνεχ᾽ ἡκέ μοι γένει Since kindred makes it incumbent on me. For ἧκε, the simple for the compound verb, see Essay on Language p. 101-104, and cp. Phil. 141, σὲ δ', ὦ τέκνον, τόδ᾽ ἐλήλυθεν πᾶν κράτος ὠγύγιον. And for a similar use of προσήκει, cp. Hdt. 8. 100, οὐδὲν πρὸς Πέρσας τοῦτο προσήκει τὸ πάθος.

739. mvp-comment-410-1 εἰς πλεῖστον πόλεως Above all that are in the city.

742. mvp-comment-411-1 δικαίως Rightfully. Cp. Aj. 1108-1110, τόνδε δ'.. εἰς ταφᾶς ἐγὼ θήσω δικαίως.

742. mvp-comment-411-2 ἐκ δὲ τῶν] Essay on Language § 21. p. 30.

743. mvp-comment-412-1 πλεῖστον .. κάκιστος Cp. Phil. 631, τῆς πλεῖστον ἐχθίστης ἐμοὶ | κλύοιμ' ἐχίδνης.

745. mvp-comment-413-1 ὄντα μὲν. ἀλήτην A stranger, and not only so, but ever wandering.

746. mvp-comment-414-1 ἐπὶ προσπόλου μιᾶς With the support of one attendant. ἐπί, as it were leaning on. The expression is analogous to ὁρμεῖν ἐπ᾿ ἀγκύρας, Hdt. 7.188.

749. mvp-comment-415-1 ὅσον i. e. εἰς ὅσον, one preposition, as frequently happens, sufficing both for antecedent and relative.

751. mvp-comment-416-1 τηλικοῦτος At her age, i. e. just approaching womanhood. Cp. supr. 345-346, ἐξ ὅτου νέας | τροφῆς ἔληξε καὶ κατίσχυσεν δέμας. For the termination, cp. El. 614. 753 ff. Alas, I have uttered a sad reproach upon thee and me and our whole race. And yet, what is openly displayed cannot be concealed: wherefore do you, Oedipus. be induced by me to return voluntarily to thy city and palace and to hide thy disgrace there. For ἆρα, see Essay on Language § 29. p. 50. Creon professes to be horror-struck at his own words (ἆρ᾽ ἄθλιον τοὔνειδος, κ.τ.λ.): but excuses himself by the publicity which Oedipus gives to their common calamity in wandering from home. It rests with him to bury the reproach within the palace walls, where his daughter at least will find protection, and his kindred will not have the shame of seeing him an outcast. Cp. O. Τ. 1425, foll. τὴν γοῦν .. φλόγα | αἰδεῖσθ᾽ ἄνακτος Ἡλίου, τοιόνδ᾽ ἄγος | ἀκάλυπτον οὕτω δεικνύναι, κ.τ.λ.: Εl. 624-625, σύ τοι λέγεις νιν, οὐκ ἐγώ. σὺ γὰρ ποιεῖς | τοὔργον· τὰ δ᾽ ἔργα τοὺς λόγους εὑρίσκεται.

757. mvp-comment-417-1 θελήσας Consenting. Cp. Ο. Τ. 649, πιθοῦ θελήσας, κ.τ.λ.

758. mvp-comment-418-1 τήνδε τὴν πόλιν φίλως εἰπών First giving words of friendship to this city: for she deserves them well.' giving

759. mvp-comment-419-1 ἡ δ᾽ οἴκοι Sc. πόλις, cp. supr. 433, τὴν .. αὐτίχ᾽ ἡμέραν. ‘But the city you have left behind, which so long nourished you, has by right a stronger claim to be reverenced by you.'

760. mvp-comment-420-1 δίκῃ Essay on Language § 14. p. 20.

760. mvp-comment-420-2 σέβοιτο For the passive, which occurs here only, see Essay on Language § 31. p. 54.

760. mvp-comment-420-3 πάλαι i. e. in his prosperity, which is now regarded as long past.

761-762. mvp-comment-421-1 κἀπὸ .. ποικίλον Who out of every cause wouldst bring some subtle fabrication of a just plea.Cp. infr. 806-807, ἄνδρα δ᾽ οὐδέν᾽ οἶδ᾽ ἐγὼ | δίκαιον, ὅστις ἐξ ἅπαντος εὖ λέγει. The present participle, as in Phil. 1052, νικᾶν γε μέντοι πανταχοῦ χρήζων ἔφυν, is used to express a quality without reference to time (Essay on Language § 32. p. 55), and is combined with ἄν, so that ἂν φέρων = ὅστις ἂν φέροις.