Aristophanes Clouds 1496

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Clouds. Aristophanes. . 2026-09-08.

Current edition Experimental

Commentary (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)
Νεφέλαι Perseus (Aristophanes. Aristophanis Comoediae, Vol. 1. Hall, F. W. and Geldart, William M., editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906.) — 1510-1511 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

1496. mvp-tlg0019-tlg003-sanjaya-com-eng1-101

Line 1496

διαλεπτολογοῦμαι ταῖς δοκοῖς τῆς οἰκίας;
The hapax legomenon διαλεπτολογοῦμαι (dia-lepto-logoumai) is a compound verb unique to this passage, formed from διά, λεπτός, and λέγω. While λεπτός typically denotes 'fine' or 'thin' in physical descriptions (e.g., fine air, thin air), here it modifies the manner of speaking to imply 'subtle' or 'sophisticated' argumentation. The prefix διά- suggests a thorough or scattered discourse. This neologism is a deliberate Aristophanic coinage mocking the Socratic habit of dissecting language and reality into increasingly abstract, 'thin' components, contrasting sharply with the concrete 'rafters' (δοκαί) of the house mentioned in the dative of separation.