Aristophanes Clouds 626

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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.) — 627-888a focus
Translations (2)
Clouds Perseus (Aristophanes. The Comedies of Aristophanes, Vol. I. Hickie, William James, translator. Bohn: London, 1853.) — 627 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.) — 627 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

626. mvp-tlg0019-tlg003-sanjaya-com-eng1-44

Line 626

κατὰ σελήνην ὡς ἄγειν χρὴ τοῦ βίου τὰς ἡμέρας.
The phrase 'κατὰ σελήνην' (according to the moon) is a crucial crux here: it likely represents a corrupt or idiosyncratic reading for 'κατὰ τὴν σελήνην' or, more plausibly in the context of the Clouds' mockery of Socrates, a deliberate absurdity where the moon is personified as a guide. The construction 'ὡς ἄγειν χρὴ' (as one must lead) with the accusative and infinitive following the prepositional phrase creates a syntactic ambiguity: does 'ὡς' introduce a comparative clause of manner ('as one leads') or a result clause ('so as to lead')? In the context of the play, this ambiguity reinforces the Clouds' presentation of Socrates' teachings as a bizarre, pseudo-scientific regimen that treats celestial bodies as navigational instruments for daily life, a point of contention that aligns with the historical caricature of Socrates' alleged 'daimonion' and his focus on natural philosophy.