Sophocles Oedipus at Colonus 344

Robert Potter (Translator)

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Theseus
1139
who sav'd us; it is meet
Thou learn from him: so shall my words be brief.

Oedipus at Colonus. Sophocles. Robert Potter (Translator). London. 1820.

Current edition Experimental

English (Robert Potter, 1788) (OCR draft) (English) (English (Robert Potter, 1788))

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (2)
Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (Lewis Campbell, 1879)) — 344 focus
σφὼ δʼ ἀντʼ ἐκείνων τἀμὰ δυστήνου κακὰ
Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 254-509 focus
Translations (4)
English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906)) — 344 focus
CR
No longer will I curb my wrath. Though lonely
And cumbered by mine age, I will bear off
This man!
875
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 337 focus
Ha, dieses Paar von Brüdern, das Aegyptos' Art
So ganz in Sinn und Leben sich zum Muster nahm!
Dort bleibt das Volk der Männer allezeit daheim 1
Am Webestuhle sizen, und die Frau'n ergeh'n
335
Sich draußen, schaffend, was die Noth des Lebens heischt.
So walten jene, welchen hier um mich zu sein
Oblag, o Kinder, Mädchen gleich, im Haus daheim;
Ihr aber müht statt ihrer euch um mein Geschick,
Das jammervolle; diese, seit aus junger Zucht
340
Sie frisch heranwuchs und erstarkt am Körper war,
Irrt' auf der herben Wanderfahrt mit mir herum,
Kastlos den Greis geleitend; oft umhergescheucht
Durch wilde Wälder, ohne Nahrung, unbeschuht,
Ost auch mit Regenschauern und der Sonne Brand
345
Mühselig ringend, achtet sie des Hauses Hut
Und Fülle nichtig, hat der Vater Pflege nur.
(zu Ismene)
Du, Tochter, brachtest früher schon dem Vater stets,
Geheim vor Kadmos' Volke, jeden Götterspruch,
Der über dieses Haupt erscholl; du standest ihm
350
Zur Seite treulich, als man ihn vom Land verstieß.
Und welche Kunde bringst du jezt dem Vater, Kind?
Was trieb vom Heimatherde dich zur Fahrt hinaus?
Nicht leer ja kommst du, (dessen bin ich ganz gewiß,)
Nicht, ohne daß du Schrecken mir verkündigest.
355
English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 344 focus
Chorus
1491
Oh ! haste, my son ;
At Neptune's altar leave the sacrifice
And hither fly, for Ql^ dipus, to thee
And to tliy country grateful, waits to pay
Thy bounties. Haste, O Theseus ! to receive them.
English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904)) — 254-507 focus

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-821-1 οὔτ’ εἴ τι κ.τ.λ. 1

mvp-comment-821-2 θαυμάσας ἔχω 2

mvp-comment-822-1 οὔτ’ 3

mvp-comment-823-1 γὰρ 4

mvp-comment-824-1 δείκνυμι δ’ 5

mvp-comment-824-2 The usu. constr. is

ψεύδειν τινά τινος
, while
ψεύδειν τινά τι
is comparatively rare: and so here οὐδέν seems to be adv., while ὧν (=
τούτων ἅ
) is gen. after ἐψευσάμην . So I should take Plat. Legg. 921A
τὴν τιμὴν τῶν ἔργων ὀφειλέτω ὧν ἂν τὸν ἐκδόντα ψεύσηται
,
"of which he has disappointed the contractor,"
—though an attraction of acc. into gen. is equally possible.

mvp-comment-824-3 ὤμοσα 6

mvp-comment-825-1 For the gen. with ἀκραιφνεῖς cp. 1519: Eur. Hipp. 949

κακῶν ἀκήρατος
.

mvp-comment-826-1 ᾑρέθη 7

mvp-comment-827-1 λόγος 8

mvp-comment-827-2 λόγος 9

mvp-comment-827-3 ἐμπέπτωκεν 10

mvp-comment-827-4 συμβαλοῦ γνώμην 11

mvp-comment-828-1 εἰπεῖν θαυμάσαι 14

mvp-comment-829-1 ἄνθρωπον 15

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

1139. mvp-comment-612-1 μήκος . . ἔθου Essay on Language § 40. p. 75. The slight formality of this expression and of θαυμάσας ἔχω belongs to the dignified courtesy of Theseus manner. It has not moved my wonder, that in the delight of having your children here you have been led to prolong your talk with them. For this use of τίθεσθαι, cp. Ο. Τ. 134, ἐπαξίως γὰρ Φοῖβος, ἀξίως δὲ σὺ | πρὸ τοῦ θανόντος τήνδ᾽ ἔθεσθ᾽ ἐπιστροφήν : Ant. 151, θέσθε λησμοσύναν.

1141. mvp-comment-613-1 Nor that in choosing to converse with them you thought not first of me.' The genitive to be supplied with τοὐμοῦ is not ἔπους, but something more general, e. g. μέρους. Elms. reads οὔτ᾽, perhaps rightly. τῶνδε is objective genitive, or rather expresses a reciprocal relation.

1142. mvp-comment-614-1 γάρ, as in 1121, refers to the general meaning of the preceding sentence. There is no need of an apology, for that gives me no offence.

1145. mvp-comment-615-1 ὧν The genitive is gen. of respect after ἐψευσάμην, and also partitive after οὐδέν.

1145. mvp-comment-615-2 ὤμοσ' Supr. 1039-1040.

1147. mvp-comment-616-1 ἀκραιφνεῖς τῶν κατηπειλημένων Untouched by the harm that VOL. I. CC was threatened them.' 1140 1145 1148. This is not the place for an episode like the description of the Isthmian races in El. 680, foll., or the history of Oedipus in O. T. 777. foll. The end is near, and the interview with Polynices is yet to come. The necessary omission is accounted for by the tender age of Antigone (1116-1118), and the magnanimity of Theseus, who prefers doing to speaking of his deeds. Cp. El. 1364 ff., τοὺς γὰρ ἐν μέσῳ λόγους, κ.τ.λ., Shak. Coriolanus, 1. 9, Pray now, no more: my mother, | Who has a charter to extol her blood, | When she does praise me, grieves me..... I have some wounds upon me, and they smart | To hear themselves remembered. an

1149. mvp-comment-617-1 ἅ γ' εἴσει.. ξυνών Since you will learn this without my telling you in conversation with your children here.Illud quaeri potest, verba τί δεῖ μάτην κομπεῖν utrum cum sequentibus construenda sint, quo facto quasi quaedam aposiopesis erit post ᾑρέθη, sint precedentibus jungenda, quo illa ἅ γ' εἴσει, explicationis causa adjecta esse censendum: an denique cum utrisque sint nexa: quod ego quidem nescio an praeferendum sit, quia saepe ita media inter duas protases est apodosis: de qua figura saepius alibi monitum.' Hermann. ye shows that the words are added in explanation. For αὐτός, cp. infra 1155, ὡς μὴ εἰδότ', αὐτόν, κ.τ.λ.

1150-1151. mvp-comment-618-1 But impart to us your counsel on a matter that has just now fallen in my way as I was coming hither. The construction of the antecedent λόγος is left undetermined, and this imperfect or pendent construction is smoothed over by the attraction, for which see Essay on Language § 35. P. 59, and cp. Eur. Or. 591 ff. Ἀπόλλων ὃς στόμα νέμει σαφέστατον, τούτῳ ..

1150-1151. mvp-comment-618-2 πιθόμενος τὴν τεκοῦσαν ἔκτανον.

1151. mvp-comment-619-1 συμβαλοῦ γνώμην In Hdt. 8.61, πόλιν γὰρ τὸν Θεμιστοκλέα παρεχόμενον, οὕτω ἐκέλευε γνώμας συμβάλλεσθαι, and Plat. Polit. 298 C, γνώμην συμβαλέσθαι, the phrase means to take part in conference. So Theseus may be supposed courteously to ask Oedipus for his opinion, although he might use authority. See below, 11. 1178, 1348. Otherwise (2), συμβαλοῦ γνώμην, sc. τῷ λόγῳ, may mean,' Bring your thought to bear on this matter, i. e. consider it. Cp. the Epic σὺ δ᾽ ἐνὶ φρεσὶ βάλλει σῇσιν. This is more consistent with the position of Oedipus, of which, however, Theseus is not yet thoroughly informed.

1152. mvp-comment-620-1 It is a small thing to tell of, and yet singular.' 1153. The Scholiast, who interprets ἄνθρωπον δέ φησιν ὄντα οὐδὲν πρᾶγμα κακίζειν δεῖ, must have read as in the text. πρᾶγος is too general a word to stand alone, as it must if we read οὐδέν᾿ ἀνθρώπων. For ἄνθρωπον, cp. Ο. Τ. 977, τί δ᾽ ἂν φοβοῖτ᾽ ἄνθρωπος, ᾧ τὰ τῆς τύχης | κρατεῖ, πρόνοια δ᾽ ἐστὶν οὐδενὸς σαφής; Man, who is the creature of circumstance, may not neglect anything that occurs.