Sophocles Oedipus at Colonus 607

Richard Jebb (Translator)

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Oedipus at Colonus. Sophocles. Richard Jebb (Translator). Cambridge. 1889.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The Annenberg CPB/Project.

Current edition Experimental

Oedipus at Colonus (English) (Sophocles the plays and fragments, Part 2: The Oedipus at Colonus. Jebb, Richard Claverhouse, Sir, translator. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1889. (Modernized by Perseus.))

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (2)
Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) — 607 focus
ὦ φίλτατʼ Αἰγέως παῖ, μόνοις οὐ γίγνεται
θεοῖσι γῆρας οὐδὲ κατθανεῖν ποτε,
τὰ δʼ ἄλλα συγχεῖ πάνθʼ ὁ παγκρατὴς χρόνος.
φθίνει μὲν ἰσχὺς γῆς, φθίνει δὲ σώματος,
610
θνήσκει δὲ πίστις, βλαστάνει δʼ ἀπιστία,
καὶ πνεῦμα ταὐτὸν οὔποτʼ οὔτʼ ἐν ἀνδράσιν
φίλοις βέβηκεν οὔτε πρὸς πόλιν πόλει.
τοῖς μὲν γὰρ ἤδη, τοῖς δʼ ἐν ὑστέρῳ χρόνῳ
τὰ τερπνὰ πικρὰ γίγνεται καὖθις φίλα.
615
καὶ ταῖσι Θήβαις εἰ τανῦν εὐημερεῖ
καλῶς *τὸ πρὸς σέ, μυρίας ὁ μυρίος
χρόνος τεκνοῦται νύκτας ἡμέρας τʼ ἰών,
ἐν αἷς τὰ νῦν ξύμφωνα δεξιώματα
δόρει διασκεδῶσιν ἐκ σμικροῦ λόγου·
620
ἵνʼ οὑμὸς εὕδων καὶ κεκρυμμένος νέκυς
ψυχρός ποτʼ αὐτῶν θερμὸν αἷμα πίεται,
εἰ Ζεὺς ἔτι Ζεὺς χὠ Διὸς Φοῖβος σαφής.
ἀλλʼ οὐ γὰρ αὐδᾶν ἡδὺ τἀκίνητʼ ἔπη,
ἔα μʼ ἐν οἷσιν ἠρξάμην, τὸ σὸν μόνον
625
πιστὸν φυλάσσων, κοὔποτʼ Οἰδίπουν ἐρεῖς
ἀχρεῖον οἰκητῆρα δέξασθαι τόπων
τῶν ἐνθάδʼ, εἴπερ μὴ θεοὶ ψεύσουσί με.
Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 607 focus
Translations (4)
English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906)) — 607 focus
Dear son of Aegeus, to the Gods alone
Comes never Age nor Death. All else i’ the world
Time, the all subduer, merges in oblivion.
Earth and men’s bodies weaken, fail, and perish.
610
Faith withers, breach of faith springs up and glows
And neither men nor cities that are friends
Breathe the same spirit with continuing breath.
Love shall be turned to hate, and hate to love
With many hereafter, as with some to-day.
615
And though, this hour, between great Thebes and thee
No cloud be in the heaven, yet moving Time
Enfolds a countless brood of days to come,
Wherein for a light cause they shall destroy
Your now harmonious league with severing war,
620
Even where my slumbering form, buried in death,
Coldly shall drink the life blood of my foes,
If Zeus be Zeus, and his son Phoebus true.
I would not speak aloud of mysteries.
Then let me leave where I began. Preserve
625
Thine own good faith, and thou shalt never say,
Unless Heaven’s promise fail me, that for nought
Athens took Oedipus to dwell with her.
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 607 focus
O Sohn des Aegeus, theurer Mann, den Göttern nur
605
Naht nie das Alter, ihnen naht niemals der Tod.
Doch alles Andre stürzt die Allgewalt der Zeit:
Die Kraft der Erde welkt, es welkt des Leibes Kraft;
Hin stirbt die Treue, Treuebruch sprießt hoch empor.
Und ohne Wandel athmet nie derselbe Hauch
610
Der Lieb' in Männerherzen, noch bei Volk und Volk.
Denn heute dort, hier morgen wandelt sich die Gunst
In bittern Hader, und in Huld sich wieder um.
Und wenn des Friedens heller Tag die Theber jezt
Mit dir vereinigt, doch gebiert in ihrem Lauf
615
Endlose Zeit endlose Nächte, Tage noch,
Worin die heute festverbundnen Hände sich
Um leichten Vorwand trennen durch des Speers Gewalt,
Wo mein entschlafner und im Grab geborgner Leib
Erkaltet einst ihr warmes Herzblut trinken wird,
620
Wenn Zeus noch Zeus, und sein Apollon Wahres spricht.
Doch sag' ich ungern, was ich nicht enthüllen darf;
Dir gnüge denn mein erstes Wort, und wahre mur 1
Das deine treulich; und gewiß, dann klagst du nie,
Es sei ein unnüz werthlos Haupt in Dedipus
625
Dem Land erschienen, lügen mir die Götter nicht.
English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 607 focus
Dearest fon of Ægeus,
From age and death exempt, the gods alone
Immortal and unchangeable remain,
Whilst all things else fall by the hand of Time,
The universal conqueror. Earth laments
610
Her fertile powers exhausted. Human strength
Is withered soon. E'en faith and truth decay,
That Thebes shall yield
And from their ashes fraud and falsehood rise.
Nor friendship long from mjtn to man endures,
615
Or realm to realm. To each successive rise
Bitter and sweet, and happiness and woe.
Athens and Thebes thou seest united now,
And all is well; but passing time shall bring
The fatal day (and slight will be the cause)
620
That soon shall change the bonds of amity
620
And holy faith, for feuds and deadliest hate.
Then, buried long in earth, shall this cold corse
Drink their warm blood, which from the mutual wound
Frequent shall flow. It must be as I tell thee.
If Jove be Jove, and great Apollo true.
625
But why should I reveal the fixed decree
Of all-deciding Heaven ? Permit me now
To end where I began. Thy plighted faith
O king ! already hath this man declared
The same goodwill to thee and to our country.
Thes. Can I reject benevolence and love
Like this, my friends? Oh no ! the common rites
Of hospitality, this altar here,
The witness of our mutual vows, forbid it ;
He comes a suppliant to the goddesses,
And pays no little tribute both to me
630
And to my kingdom ; he shall find a seat
630
Within my realms, for I revere his virtues.
630
If here it pleaseth him to stay, remember \to the Chorus
630
'Tis my command you guard this stranger well ;
630
If thou wouldsb rather go with me, thou mayst ;
630
I leave it to thy choice. \To CEdipus.
630
English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Robert Potter, 1788)) — 607 focus
O friendly son of Ægeus, to the gods
Alone is giv'n exemption from old age
And death; all else th' all-powerful hand of time
Crumbles to dust. The vigour of the earth,
The vigour of the body wastes away;
610
Faith withers to the root, and Perfidy
Puts forth fresh branches. So in men, in states
Leagued now in friendship, the same spirit long
Never remains; but what is grateful now,
Instant to some, to some in distant time,
615
Becomes detested, then delights again.
So now though all is amity and peace.
'Twixt thee and Thebes, yet ever-changing time
Will, in its progress, ever-changing nights
And days beget, in which your plighted hands,
Arm'd for a trivial cause, shall burst your leagues;
620
That my cold corse, at rest beneath the earth,
Shall drink their warm blood, if Jove reigns supreme
And Phœbus, son of Jove, declares the truth.
But to unfold what silence ought to veil
Delights me not; permit me to proceed
625
In what I first began; keep but thy faith,
Thou didst receive an useless habitant
(Unless the gods beguile me) to this land.

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-454-1 γῆρας … κατθανεῖν 1

mvp-comment-455-1 συγχεῖ 2

mvp-comment-455-2 παγκρατὴς 3

mvp-comment-456-1 φθίνει μὲν … φθίνει δὲ 4

mvp-comment-456-2 γῆς 5

mvp-comment-457-1 βλαστάνει 6

mvp-comment-458-1 πνεῦμα 7

mvp-comment-459-1 βέβηκεν 10

mvp-comment-459-2 πόλει 11

mvp-comment-460-1 τοῖς μὲν γὰρ ἤδη 12

mvp-comment-460-2 ἤδη 13

mvp-comment-460-3 καὖθις φίλα 14

mvp-comment-461-1 Θήβαις 15

mvp-comment-462-1 καλῶς 16

mvp-comment-462-2 τὰ 17

mvp-comment-462-3 τὸ πρὸς σέ 18

mvp-comment-462-4 ὁ μυρίος 19

mvp-comment-463-1 τεκνοῦται 20

mvp-comment-463-2 ἰών 21

mvp-comment-464-1 ἐν αἷς 22

mvp-comment-464-2 δεξιώματα 23

mvp-comment-465-1 δόρει διασκεδῶσιν 24

mvp-comment-465-2 δόρει 25

mvp-comment-466-1 ἵν’ 26

mvp-comment-466-2 εὕδων 27

mvp-comment-467-1 ψυχρὸς … θερμὸν 28

mvp-comment-468-1 σαφής 29

mvp-comment-469-1 τἀκίνητα 30

mvp-comment-470-1 ἔα με 31

mvp-comment-470-2 τὸ σὸν … πιστὸν φυλάσσων 32

mvp-comment-471-1 εἴπερ μὴ ψεύσουσι 33

mvp-comment-471-2 εἴπερ 34

mvp-comment-472-1 πάλαι 36

mvp-comment-473-1 ἐφαίνετο τελῶν 37

mvp-comment-474-1 δῆτ’ 38

mvp-comment-474-2 ἐκβάλοι 39

mvp-comment-475-1 ὅτῳ 40

mvp-comment-475-2 κοινή 41

mvp-comment-475-3 αἰέν 42

mvp-comment-475-4 δορύξενος 43

mvp-comment-475-5 Wecklein brackets the whole passage from 632

ὅτῳ
down to 637
τὴν τοῦδε
as
"a later addition,"
because (1) there could be no
ξενία
when Oedipus did not even know the name of Theseus (68), and (2)
σεβισθεὶς
in 636 is suspicious. On this, see ad loc. As to (1), the
ξενία
to which Theseus refers is not a personal friendship, but a hereditary alliance between the royal houses, as in Eur. Suppl. 930 Polyneices (whom he had not seen before) is his
ξένος
. Cp. on 619
. After Wecklein's excision, we have
τίς δῆτ’ ἂν ἀνδρὸς εὐμένειαν ἐκβάλοι
τοιοῦδε; χώρᾳ δ’ ἔμπαλιν κατοικιῶ
. This is incoherent.

mvp-comment-476-1 ἀφιγμένος 44

mvp-comment-476-2 δασμός 45

mvp-comment-477-1 The aor. σεβισθεὶς only here:

σεβίζειν
1007 ,
σεβίσασα
Ant. 943 ,
σεβίζομαι 46
Aesch. Suppl. 922 . In later Gk. the pass. aor. of σεβάζομαι was deponent, as Anth. P. 7. 122
αἴ, αἲ Πυθαγόρης τί τόσον κυάμους ἐσεβάσθη;
It appears rash to deny that ἐσεβίσθην could be so used. The deponent use of
ἐσέφθην
is attested only by Plat. Phaedr. 254 B
( σεφθεῖσα )
, and Hesych. 1. 1456
ἐσέφθην· ἐσεβάσθην, ἡσύχασα, ᾐσχύνθην. Σοφοκλῆς Δαιδάλῳ
(fr. 168 Nauck).

mvp-comment-477-2 ἐκβαλῶ 47

mvp-comment-478-1 ἔμπολιν 48

mvp-comment-478-2 ἔμπαλιν 49

mvp-comment-478-3 δέ 50

mvp-comment-479-1 σέ 51

mvp-comment-480-1 εἰ δὲ τόδε — στείχειν μετ’ ἐμοῦ, — ἡδύ ἐστι — δίδωμί σοι, τούτων κρίναντι ( ὁπότερον βούλει ), χρῆσθαι ( αὐτᾦ 52

mvp-comment-480-2 τούτων 53

mvp-comment-480-3 δίδωμι … χρῆσθαι 54

mvp-comment-480-4 With

εἴτ’ ἐμοῦ
, the constr. would be,
εἴτε μετ’ ἐμοῦ στείχειν
(
ἡδὺ αὐτῷ ἐστι, στείχειν πάρεστιν
), a word expressing consent being evolved from
τάξω
. But (1) this is harsher than O. T. 91
εἰ τῶνδε χρῄζεις πλησιαζόντων κλύειν
ἕτοιμος εἰπεῖν, εἴτε καὶ στείχειν ἔσω
 (
χρῄζεις
), where
ἕτοιμος
is more easily fitted to the second clause; though somewhat similar is Eur. Ion 1120
πεπυσμέναι γάρ, εἰ θανεῖν ἡμᾶς 55 χρεών,
ἥδιον ἂν θάνοιμεν, εἴθ’ ὁρᾶν φάος
 (
χρεών
), sc.
ἥδιον ἂν ὁρῷμεν
. And (2) in proposing the second alternative,—that Oed. should accompany him,—it is more suitable that he should address Oed. himself.

mvp-comment-480-5 τῇδε 56

mvp-comment-480-6 ξυνοίσομαι 57

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

609. mvp-comment-337-1 συγχεῖ Obliterates, and so destroys. Cp. Hdt. 4. 127, συγχέειν τοὺς πατρωΐους τάφους: 7. 115, τὴν ὁδὸν .. οὐ συγχέουσι : Eur. Ι. Α. 37, καὶ ταὐτὰ πάλιν γράμματα συγχεῖς: Plat. Theaet. 194 E, ἀσαφῆ δὲ (ἴσχουσι) καὶ οἱ τὰ ὑγρὰ (ἔχοντες μνημεῖα) ὑπὸ γὰρ τοῦ συγχεῖσθαι ταχὺ γίγνεται ἀμυδρά. Essay on Language p. 105.

609. mvp-comment-337-2 παγκρατής i. e. πάντα κρατῶν. Allmastering. Cp. ὁ παγκρατὴς ὕπνος, Αj. 675.

610. mvp-comment-338-1 φθίνει.. φθίνει Ε. on L. § 44. p.83. 612,13. καὶ πνεῦμα ταὐτὸν .. πόλει] 'And the same spirit does not last between friend and friend, nor between city and city. By a metaphor derived from the most ancient, and not altogether lost in modern times, the feeling of love or hatred is regarded as a breathing or exhalation. Cp. Aesch. Agam. 1206, ἀλλ᾽ ἦν παλαιστὴς κάρτ᾿ ἐμοὶ πνέων χάριν: Aesch. Cho. 34, κότον πνέων: ib. 952, ὀλέθριον πνέουσ᾽ ἐν ἐχθροῖς κότον: Aesch. Suppl. 30, δέξαιθ'.. αἰδοίῳ πνεύματι χώρας: Plut. Dion. p. 197, τὸ τῶν δημαγωγῶν πνεῦμα. Hence a change of feeling is further compared to a change of wind, as in Aesch. Ag. 219, φρενὸς πνέων δυσσεβῆ τροπαίαν. For the thought, cp. Aj. 679 ff. ὅ τ᾽ ἐχθρὸς ἡμῖν ἐς τοσόνδ' ἐχθαρτέος κ.τ.λ.

613. mvp-comment-339-1 βέβηκεν Almost = ἔστιν, -see Essay on Language p. 97,-but (in relation to πνεῦμα) retaining the notion of fixity or continued movement. For the perfect of βαίνω, expressing a settled state or condition, cp. esp. infra 1684, νῷν δ᾽ ὀλεθρία νὺξ ἐπ᾿ ὄμμασιν βέβακε.

615. mvp-comment-340-1 καὖθις φίλα It often happens in Greek that both sides of a complex statement are put forward when only one is relevant. Cp. Aj. 679 ff. quoted above, Trach. 134-135, τῷ δ᾽ ἐπέρχεται | χαίρειν τε καὶ στέρεσθαι. But the poet may have chosen to indicate the possibility of future reconcilement between Athens and Thebes.

616. mvp-comment-341-1 εἰ Emphatic, =κεί. Cp. Ant. 551, εἰ γέλωτ᾽ ἐν σοὶ γελῶ. Essay on Language § 28. p. 47.

616-617. mvp-comment-342-1 εὐημερεί καλῶς *τό Elmsley mentions that some MSS. give τέ acgive cented, which may be a remaining trace of the original reading τό or τά, εὐημερεῖ καλῶς τε, i. e. quasi eὖ καλῶς τε ἡμερεῖ, is indefensible, and the objection to the tautology καλῶς εὐημερεῖ is unfounded. See Essay on Language § 40. p. 75. And though on the part of Thebes towards you all be now serene as heart can wish. εὐημερεῖ continues the metaphor in πνεῦμα. τὸ πρὸς σε is epexegetic of the impersonal subject of εὐημερεῖ. All looks fair and well in relation to you:' or (bringing out the image a little more), There is no cloud in the heavens between Thebes and you. For the construction, cp. supra, πρὸς πόλιν πόλει, and Hdt. 3. 49. εἰ μέν νυν Περιάνδρου τελευτήσαντος τοῖσι Κορινθίοισι φίλα ἦν πρὸς Κερκυραίους.

617-618. mvp-comment-343-1 μυρίας .. ἰών There are countless nights and days which time begets in his onward course. For the form of sentence. cp. El. 1364-1366, τοὺς γὰρ ἐν μέσῳ λόγους, πολλαὶ κυκλοῦνται νύκτες ἡμέραι τ᾽ ἴσαι, αἱ ταῦτά σοι δείξουσιν, Ηλέκτρα, σαφή-a passage which also illustrates the present tense, as used of something future but certain.

619-620. mvp-comment-344-1 ἐν αἷς .. δεξιώματα In which they will sunder with the sword on slight pretext your now well-plighted fellowship. The letter corresponding to a in L is rather an unfinished ∞ ( x ) than an a.

620. mvp-comment-345-1 ἐκ σμικροῦ λόγου Out of a small occasion. Cp. Εl. 415-416, πολλά τοι σμικροὶ λόγοι | ἔσφηλαν ἤδη καὶ κατώρθωσαν βροτούς.

621. mvp-comment-346-1 ἵν' On the very spot where. 623. Cp. Aj. 783, εἰ Κάλχας σοφός.

624. mvp-comment-347-1 τἀκίνητα For κινεῖν of breaking silence, cp. Ant. 1060, τἀκίνητα διὰ φρενῶν: Ο. Τ. 354, οὕτως ἀναιδῶς ἐξεκίνησας τόδε | τὸ ῥῆμα; 625-626. τὸ σὸν μόνον | πιστὸν φυλάσσων] Either, (1) ‘Only keeping care- fully thine own good faith, or (with πιστόν as supplementary predicate), (2) Only keeping thine own part faithful. The position of πιστόν favours (2).

630. mvp-comment-348-1 ἐφαίνετο is subjective middle.

630. mvp-comment-348-2 ἡ δορύξενος ἑστία The hearth of warlike friendship, the article introducing a general notion, as in Tr. 398, τὸ πιστὸν τῆς ἀληθείας. See Essay on Language § 21. p. 34. The abstract is express- Declared on his own part, or Declared through the concrete; i. e. ἑστία is ed himself ready to perform (ἐφαίνετο τελῶν). Essay on Language § 31. p. 53, d. Cp. Ο. Τ. 148, ὧν ὅδ᾽ ἐξαγγέλλεται: Aj. 1376-1377, τἀπὸ τοῦδ᾽ ἀγγέλλομαι.. εἶναι φίλος.

632-633. mvp-comment-349-1 ὅτου.. ἑστία Whose friendly alliance, first of all, has been ever known amongst us as a common possession; the family of Cadmus being πρόξενοι of Athens and not merely ξένοι of Theseus;

publicum hospitium dicit, ut opponatur ἰδιοξένῳ.
Linw. Or (2), reading ὅτῳ with Suidas, Who, first of all, has a home and place of defence always open to him in our land;' κοινή, in right of a mutual bond. Semper apud se paratum esse Oedipo hospitium pro mutua quadam vel inter ipsos vel inter majores eorum necessitudine.' Herm. Euripides represents Polynices as having been the ξένος of Theseus: Eur. Suppl. 930. For the alliance supposed to exist between Athens and Thebes, cp. supr. 606, 616, 618, infr. 758, 929. used for ξενία, like δόρυ for. πόλεμος. For the expression of a similar feeling, cp. Plat. Legg. 1. 642 Β, τυγχάνει ἡμῶν ἡ ἑστία τῆς πόλεως οὖσα ὑμῶν πρόξενος.

633. mvp-comment-350-1 αἰέν On all occasions,' i. e. independently of his other claims on us.

634-635. mvp-comment-351-1 ἔπειτα.. τίνει The sentence returns from the relative to an independent construction. Essay on Language p. 64. Theseus with noble brevity, (supr. 569), gives two or more reasons in one. Oedipus is (1) an ally, (2) a suppliant claiming Divine protection, (3) he promises to secure victory for Athens.

637. mvp-comment-352-1 ἔμπαλιν On the contrary. The conjectural emendation ἔμπολιν (Musgr.) is unnecessary, and if it were accepted the opposition of clauses would not be sufficiently marked by δé. The word ἔμπολις occurs only once, infra 1156. ('Non opus ἔμπαλιν : fortius ἔμπολιν.' Herm.)

638. mvp-comment-353-1 εἰ δ΄.. μίμνειν δέ = But with regard to the particular spot, referring to the comprehensive word χώρᾳ preceding.

640. mvp-comment-354-1 τούτων, κ.τ.λ. A general apodosis relating to both the preceding clauses is substituted for the apodosis of the latter clause.

640. mvp-comment-354-2 τούτων . . κρίναντι χρῆσθαι χρῆσθαι, sc. τῷ ἑτέρῳ. To make choice between these alternatives and use the one so chosen.' Cp. Ο. Τ. 640, δρᾶσαι.. δυοῖν ἀποκρίνας κακοῖν.