Sophocles Oedipus at Colonus 84

Robert Potter (Translator)

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Chorus
To none is vengeance destined, who repay.
Wrongs first received; and fraud opposed to fraud
Brings on the first deceiver punishment,
Not grace. So then, since thou hast left those seats,
230
Hence with thy utmost speed, and quit this land,
230
Nor further violate my country's peace.
230
Strangers revering virtue, since your minds
Are adverse to my father old and blind,
Hearing report of deeds to which his will
Consented not, yet me, unhappy me,
Ye generous strangers, pity; I implore
Your pity, for my father I implore,
Blushing as to your eyes my eyes I raise,
Yet as deriving from your source my blood,
Pray you to reverence his afflicted age:
How godlike this! On you our hopes depend.
Assent, refuse not to my pray'rs this grace,
235
I beg by all your souls hold dear, your wives,
235
Your children, by your duty, by the god.
235
View mortal man, none ever will you find,
If the god force him, that can shun his fate.

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)) — 84 focus
ὦ πότνιαι δεινῶπες, εὖτε νῦν ἕδρας
Greek (F. Storr, 1912) (OCR draft) Experimental (Greek (F. Storr, 1912)) — 117-253b focus
Translations (4)
English (Lewis Campbell, 1906) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Lewis Campbell, 1906)) — 84 focus
OED
Know ye of one
220
Begotten of Laius?
220
German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review) (OCR draft) Experimental (German (J. J. C. Donner, 1875; OCR review)) — 75 focus
Um nicht zu irren, höre noch: (denn edel scheinst
75
Du mir von Anseh'n, außer daß dies Loos dich traf;)
Bleib' hier, o Fremdling, wo du mir zuerst erschienst,
Bis ich Kolonos' Bürgern, nicht dem Volk der Stadt, 1
Den Fall zu melden gehe; die entscheiden dann,
Ob hier du bleiben, ob du wieder ziehen sollst.
80
Oedipus. Antigone.
English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Thomas Francklin, 1758–1759)) — 84 focus
Oedipus
May he come
In happy hour to Athens and to me !
He will ; what good man doth not love his country ?
English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904) (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Sir Richard Jebb, 1904)) — 118-250 focus

Commentary

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

mvp-comment-172-1 οὐδενὶ μοιριδία τίσις ἔρχεται 1

mvp-comment-172-2 ὧν 2

mvp-comment-172-3 With Wunder's ἃν some construe:— οὐδενὶ τὸ τίνειν ἃ ἂν προπάθῃ ἔρχεται μοιριδία τίσις , "for no one retaliation becomes (= γίγνεται ) a fate-doomed punishment": but could the τίσις itself thus stand for the cause of the τίσις ? The ὧν of the MSS. is confirmed by other passages where, instead of an acc. governed by the infin., we have a gen. depending on another word, and then the infin. added epexegetically: El. 542

ἵμερον τέκνων … ἔσχε δαίσασθαι
: Plat. Crito 52B
οὐδ’ ἐπιθυμία σε ἄλλης πόλεως οὐδ’ ἄλλων νόμων ἔλαβεν εἰδέναι
 : Rep. 443 B
ἀρχόμενοι τῆς πόλεως οἰκίζειν
 .

mvp-comment-173-1 ἀπάτα δ’ 3

mvp-comment-173-2 ἀπάτα ἑτέρα 4

mvp-comment-173-3 παραβαλλ 6

mvp-comment-174-1 ἑδράνων 8

mvp-comment-175-1 χρέος … προσάψῃς 9

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

229. mvp-comment-133-1 To no man cometh punishment from the fates for a matter in which he has been the first to suffer, that he κ.τ.λ. should be punished for this:' 1. ε. τίσις (τούτων), ὧν (genitive of relation) προπάθῃ, τὸ τίνειν, sc. τούτων τίσιν. Cp. infr. 271, ὅστις παθὼν μὲν ἀντέδρων, For the construction of ὧν, cp. Ant. 1194-1195, τί γάρ σε μαλθάσσοιμ᾽ ἄν, ὧν ἐσύστερον ψεῦσται φανούμεθ᾽; “For why should I soothe thee with a tale, in regard to which we shall presently be found false speakers?' See Essay on Language § 9. p. 13 This is better than (2) to make τίνειν = τίνεσθαι, ('nemo punitur ob injuriam prius acceptam, si eam rependit,' Herm., διὰ τὸ τιμωρεῖν ὑπὲρ ὧν προπάθῃ. . λείπει ἡ διά, Schol.): or (3) to make τὸ τίνειν the object of προπάθῃ; retribution for an act, of which he has already suffered the retribution: or (4) taking the genitive as after προ in comp. to render, that he should suffer for an act previously to which he has been wronged.' The chorus feel the gravity of their position in breaking a promise made in presence of the Erinyes, but plead that it was made under a false impression. Cp. Aesch. Fr. 294, ἀπάτης δικαίας οὐκ ἀποστατεῖ θεός. The form μοιράδιος, see v. rr., is questionable.

230. mvp-comment-134-1 For the collocation of words, cp. Phil. 138, τέχνα γὰρ τέχνας ἑτέρας προὔχει: Eur. Bacch. 905, ἕτερα δ᾽ ἔτερος ἕτερον ὄλβῳ καὶ δυνάμει παρῆλθεν. But deception, matching deception, makes return, not of good, but of evil.

233. mvp-comment-135-1 τῶνδ᾽ ἑδράνων The exact words of the promise (supr. 176) are repeated in retracting the promise.

234. mvp-comment-136-1 ἄφορμος ἐμᾶς χθονός The explanation of the Scholiast, ἄφορμος, ἀφορμηθείς, has been commonly accepted; but the derivation from ὅρμος gives more point, and is supported by the language of Oedipus, supr. 148. (1) Leaving my land;' (2) Driven from the harbour of my land. 235. Lest you bring some further burden on my state. χρέος, lit, debt. obligation, here, by a litotes, the obligation of removing pollution.