Aristophanes Wasps 855

Wasps. 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)
Σφῆκες Perseus (Aristophanes. Aristophanis Comoediae, Vol. 1. Hall, F. W. and Geldart, William M., editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906.) — 863-890a focus
Translations (2)
Wasps (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Anonymous; 1938 compilation). Migrated from Perseus legacy XML; source wording and notes retained. See TEI header and migration inventory.) — 863 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.) — 863 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

855. mvp-tlg0019-tlg004-sanjaya-com-eng1-43

Line 855

ἐγὼ γὰρ εἶχον τούσδε τοὺς ἀρυστίχους.
The adjective ἀρυστίχους is a hapax legomenon in Aristophanes, derived from the verb ἀρυστός (drawn up) or potentially related to the noun ἄρυστος (drawn, as in a list). In the context of the play, where Bdelycleon is listing the crimes of the old men, this likely refers to the 'list of charges' or 'indictment' drawn up against them, playing on the technical legal sense of drawing up a bill of indictment (ἄρρησις). The term is highly specialized, marking the specific legal procedure of compiling a list of accusations, which is central to the satirical critique of the law courts in the play.