Aristophanes Knights 624

ed. F. W. Hall, ed. William M. Geldart

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Knights. Aristophanes. ed. F. W. Hall, ed. William M. Geldart. Oxford. 1906.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The Annenberg CPB/Project.

Current edition Perseus

Ἱππῆς (Greek) (Aristophanes. Aristophanis Comoediae, Vol. 1. Hall, F. W. and Geldart, William M., editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906.)

Translations (2)
Knights (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Anonymous; 1938 compilation). Migrated from Perseus legacy XML; source wording and notes retained. See TEI header and migration inventory.) — 624 focus
English (Sanjaya, generated; selected passages) (OCR draft) Experimental (Source: pnadelofficial/aristophanes-sanjaya, commit c319590c139e5603e71f0699caa0663d823af8ad. Machine-generated source annotations retained; see Sanjaya import audit for coverage and limitations.) — 624 focus

Commentary

Commentary (Sanjaya, generated; selected passages) (OCR draft) (Source: pnadelofficial/aristophanes-sanjaya, commit c319590c139e5603e71f0699caa0663d823af8ad. Machine-generated source annotations retained; see Sanjaya import audit for coverage and limitations.) focus

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Line 628

κρημνοὺς †ἐρείδων† καὶ ξυνωμότας λέγων
The text presents a well-known crux at this juncture. The verb ἐρείδων (leaning/supporting) is metrically and syntactically awkward in this context, leading scholars such as Hermann and Dindorf to propose the conjecture ἐρείδων for ἐρείδων, or more commonly, to emend the text to κρημνοὺς ἐρείδων (supporting the cliffs) as a metaphor for 'fomenting' or 'propping up' the state's foundations, though others like Dobree have suggested ἐρείδων might be a corruption of ἐπείδων (following/attacking) or related to a lost phrase. The most widely accepted solution, supported by the context of the Demos's corruption by the Paphlagonian (Cleon), is to read κρημνοὺς as a metaphor for 'precipices' or 'ruin' and ἐρείδων as 'supporting' in the sense of 'propping up the state's foundations' (i.e., maintaining a precarious position), but the manuscript tradition is corrupt here, and the exact sense of the verb in relation to 'cliffs' remains a subject of textual debate.

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Line 630

ἐγένεθʼ ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ ψευδατραφάξυος πλέα,
The adjective ψευδατραφάξυος is a hapax legomenon in Aristophanes, constructed as a compound of ψευδής, ἀτράξ (or ἀτράκτος, 'distaff'), and ὕξυος (or ὕξυς, 'wooden'), creating a neologism describing someone who is 'deceptively distaff-made' or 'counterfeitly wooden.' This coinage likely mocks the character's artificiality or constructed nature within the play's satirical context, as no exact parallel exists in extant Attic prose or poetry.

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κἄγωγʼ ὅτε δὴ γʼνων ἐνδεχομένην τοὺς λόγους
The phrase κἄγωγʼ ὅτε δὴ γʼνων ἐνδεχομένην τοὺς λόγους presents a syntactic crux regarding the participle ἐνδεχομένην. While the participle is in the feminine accusative singular, agreeing with the implied subject of the infinitive (or the subject of the main clause if the construction is interpreted differently), the verb ἐνδέχομαι typically governs an accusative of the thing expected or a genitive of the person from whom it is expected. Here, τοὺς λόγους is accusative, suggesting 'expecting the words' or 'the words being expected,' but the construction lacks a clear governing verb in the finite form that would license the participle's case and number in this specific context. The δὴ γʼ is a common emphatic particle combination, but the syntactic relationship between the participle and the preceding clause requires careful analysis to determine whether the participle modifies the subject of the main clause or stands as an independent temporal clause.

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Βερέσχεθοί τε καὶ Κόβαλοι καὶ Μόθων,
The verb βερέσχεθαι is a hapax legomenon in extant comedy, appearing only here in Aristophanes. While the form is clearly a middle/passive present indicative second person plural, the root is obscure. It is often conjectured to be related to βερέσχειν (to be angry or vexed), but the semantic fit in this list of names is difficult; some scholars suggest a dialectal form or a corruption for a different verb, perhaps related to dancing or leaping, given the context of a procession of rustic figures. The lack of clear attestation makes this a significant crux for textual critics.

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Line 639

ἐκ δεξιᾶς ἀπέπαρδε καταπύγων ἀνήρ.
The verb ἀπέπαρδε (aorist active indicative of παρδαίνω) is a rare hapax legomenon in extant literature, formed from the compound of παρά and the root of πέρδομαι (to fart). Its usage here is a deliberate comic neologism characteristic of Aristophanic grotesquerie, where the prefix παρά intensifies the action to imply 'farting off to the side' or 'farting with a sideways motion,' enhancing the physical absurdity of the scene where a man is depicted defecating or flatulating while moving. This construction exemplifies the playwright's tendency to coin verbs to describe specific, often scatological, bodily functions with precise, exaggerated directional nuance.

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Line 647

εἶτʼ ἐστεφάνουν μʼ εὐαγγέλια· κἀγὼ φρασα
The verb φράζω here is used in its specialized legal sense of 'to deliberate' or 'to take counsel' (often followed by a clause of what is being decided), rather than its more common meanings of 'to show' or 'to tell'. In the context of the Paphlagonian (Cleon) and the Sausage-Seller's contest for power, the Sausage-Seller's response 'and I deliberated' implies a moment of political calculation or strategic decision-making in response to the flattery of 'good news' (εὐαγγέλια), highlighting the cynical, pragmatic nature of the political maneuvering at the heart of the play's satire.

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οἱ δʼ ἀνεκρότησαν καὶ πρὸς ἔμʼ ἐκεχήνεσαν.
The verb ἐκεχήνεσαν derives from κηχάνω, a rare verb meaning 'to hiss' or 'to make a hissing noise,' specifically used to describe the sound of disapproval made by an audience. Its use here, paired with ἀνεκρότησαν ('they clapped'), creates a vivid auditory contrast between approval and rejection, a common feature of the comic chorus's interaction with the protagonist.