Aristophanes Birds 1150

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Birds. 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)
Ὄρνιθες Perseus (Aristophanes. Aristophanis Comoediae, Vol. 1. Hall, F. W. and Geldart, William M., editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906.) — 1148 focus
Translations (3)
Birds Perseus (Aristophanes. The Complete Greek Drama, Vol. 2. Anonymous, translator. O'Neill, Eugene; Oates, Whitney Jennings, editors. New York: Random House, 1938 (printing).)

No corresponding passage available

Birds (OCR draft) Experimental (Anonymous translation, 1938 compilation; legacy Perseus source migration. Preserved separately from the revised canonical perseus-eng2 at the project owner's request.) — 1148 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.) — 1148 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

1150. mvp-tlg0019-tlg006-sanjaya-com-eng1-75

Line 1150

ἐπέτοντʼ ἔχουσαι κατόπιν †ὥσπερ παιδία
The text is corrupt at the phrase †ὥσπερ παιδία. The dagger (†) indicates a lacuna or a conjectural emendation in the critical apparatus. While some manuscripts read ὥσπερ παιδία ('like children'), the context of birds flying in formation following one another often suggests a comparison to a military formation or a specific natural phenomenon (e.g., geese). Editors like Hermann and others have proposed alternatives such as ὥσπερ περὶ τὸν ἄνθρωπον or other constructions, but the most significant textual crux involves the word παιδία itself, which some argue is a later gloss or a corruption of a word like περὶ τὴν ἄνθρωπον or similar, though the standard critical editions (e.g., Kock, Diggle) often retain παιδία with the understanding that it refers to the chaotic or specific flight patterns of young birds, contrasting with the disciplined flight of the birds in the play. However, the most robust textual issue is the presence of the dagger, signaling that the phrase is not securely transmitted and that the comparison 'like children' may be a secondary addition or a corruption of a more precise simile regarding flight formation, such as 'like a flock' or 'in order'.