Aristophanes Knights 284

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Knights. Aristophanes. . 2026-09-08.

Current edition Experimental

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

Provisional text from uncorrected OCR; expect errors.

Editions (1)
Ἱππῆς Perseus (Aristophanes. Aristophanis Comoediae, Vol. 1. Hall, F. W. and Geldart, William M., editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906.) — 284 focus
Translations (1)
Knights (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Anonymous; 1938 compilation). Migrated from Perseus legacy XML; source wording and notes retained. See TEI header and migration inventory.) — 284 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

292. mvp-tlg0019-tlg002-sanjaya-com-eng1-4

Line 292

βλέψον ἔς μʼ ἀσκαρδάμυκτος.
The term ἀσκαρδάμυκτος (askar-damuktos) is a hapax legomenon in Aristophanic comedy, coined by the poet to describe a specific type of coarse, obscene gesture (typically a middle finger or a similar hand sign) intended to provoke or mock. While the exact gesture is debated, the compound's construction (potentially from *askaros* meaning 'filthy' or 'unclean' and *damuktos* 'muted' or 'pressed') reflects Aristophanes' characteristic invention of 'word-magic' to convey physical vulgarity through lexical innovation. The imperative βλέψον (look at me) followed immediately by this noun creates a jarring syntactic juxtaposition that functions as a direct visual challenge, shifting the focus from the addressee's gaze to the speaker's own provocative posture.