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Λυσιστράτη

μὰ τὴν Ἀφροδίτην οὐ σύ γʼ, ἀλλʼ ἢ χαλκίον

ἔχειν τι φαίνει κοῖλον· εἴσομαι δʼ ἐγώ.
750

ὦ καταγέλαστʼ ἔχουσα τὴν ἱερὰν κυνῆν

κυεῖν ἔφασκες;

Γυνὴ Γ

καὶ κυῶ γε νὴ Δία.

Λυσιστράτη

τί δῆτα ταύτην εἶχες;

Γυνὴ Γ

ἵνα μʼ εἰ καταλάβοι

ὁ τόκος ἔτʼ ἐν πόλει, τέκοιμʼ ἐς τὴν κυνῆν

ἐσβᾶσα ταύτην, ὥσπερ αἱ περιστεραί.
755

Λυσιστράτη

τί λέγεις; προφασίζει· περιφανῆ τὰ πράγματα.

οὐ τἀμφιδρόμια τῆς κυνῆς αὐτοῦ μενεῖς;

Γυνὴ Γ

ἀλλʼ οὐ δύναμαι ʼγωγʼ οὐδὲ κοιμᾶσθʼ ἐν πόλει,

ἐξ οὗ τὸν ὄφιν εἶδον τὸν οἰκουρόν ποτε.

Γυνὴ Α

ἐγὼ δʼ ὑπὸ τῶν γλαυκῶν γε τάλαινʼ ἀπόλλυμαι
760

ταῖς ἀγρυπνίαισι κακκαβαζουσῶν ἀεί.

Λυσιστράτη

ὦ δαιμόνιαι παύσασθε τῶν τερατευμάτων.

ποθεῖτʼ ἴσως τοὺς ἄνδρας· ἡμᾶς δʼ οὐκ οἴει

ποθεῖν ἐκείνους; ἀργαλέας γʼ εὖ οἶδʼ ὅτι

ἄγουσι νύκτας. ἀλλʼ ἀνάσχεσθʼ ὦγαθαί,
765

καὶ προσταλαιπωρήσατʼ ἔτʼ ὀλίγον χρόνον,

ὡς χρησμὸς ἡμῖν ἐστιν ἐπικρατεῖν, ἐὰν

μὴ στασιάσωμεν· ἔστι δʼ ὁ χρησμὸς οὑτοσί.

Γυνὴ Α

λέγʼ αὐτὸν ἡμῖν ὅ τι λέγει.

Λυσιστράτη

σιγᾶτε δή.

ἀλλʼ ὁπόταν πτήξωσι χελιδόνες εἰς ἕνα χῶρον,
770

τοὺς ἔποπας φεύγουσαι, ἀπόσχωνταί τε φαλήτων,

παῦλα κακῶν ἔσται, τὰ δʼ ὑπέρτερα νέρτερα θήσει

Ζεὺς ὑψιβρεμέτης—

Γυνὴ Α

ἐπάνω κατακεισόμεθʼ ἡμεῖς;

Λυσιστράτη

ἢν δὲ διαστῶσιν καὶ ἀναπτῶνται πτερύγεσσιν

ἐξ ἱεροῦ ναοῖο χελιδόνες, οὐκέτι δόξει
775

ὄρνεον οὐδʼ ὁτιοῦν καταπυγωνέστερον εἶναι.

Γυνὴ Α

σαφής γʼ ὁ χρησμὸς νὴ Δίʼ.

Λυσιστράτη

ὦ πάντες θεοί,

μή νυν ἀπείπωμεν ταλαιπωρούμεναι,

ἀλλʼ εἰσίωμεν. καὶ γὰρ αἰσχρὸν τουτογὶ

ὦ φίλταται, τὸν χρησμὸν εἰ προδώσομεν.
780

Lysistrata. Aristophanes. ed. F. W. Hall, ed. William M. Geldart. Oxford. 1907.

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The Annenberg CPB/Project.

Current edition Perseus

Λυσιστράτη (Greek) (Aristophanes. Aristophanis Comoediae, Vol. 2. Hall, F. W. and Geldart, William M., editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1907.)

Translations (2)

Lysistrata (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Jack Lindsay). Migrated from Perseus legacy XML; source wording and notes retained. See TEI header and migration inventory.) — 749 focus

LYSISTRATA

By Aphrodite, it isn't. Your belly's hollow,

And it has the feel of metal.... Well, I soon can see.

You hussy, it's Athene's sacred helm,

And you said you were with child.

3RD WOMAN

And so I am.
940

LYSISTRATA

Then why the helm?

3RD WOMAN

So if the throes should take me

Still in these grounds I could use it like a dove

As a laying-nest in which to drop the child.

LYSISTRATA

More pretexts! You can't hide your clear intent,
945

And anyway why not wait till the tenth day

Meditating a brazen name for your brass brat?

WOMAN

And I can't sleep a wink. My nerve is gone

Since I saw that snake-sentinel of the shrine.

WOMAN

And all those dreadful owls with their weird hooting!
950

Though I'm wearied out, I can't close an eye.

LYSISTRATA

You wicked women, cease from juggling lies.

You want your men. But what of them as well?

They toss as sleepless in the lonely night,

I'm sure of it. Hold out awhile, hold out,
955

But persevere a teeny-weeny longer.

An oracle has promised Victory

If we don't wrangle. Would you hear the words?

WOMEN

Yes, yes, what is it?

LYSISTRATA

Silence then, you chatterboxes.
960

Here—

Whenas the swallows flocking in one place from the hoopoes

Deny themselves love's gambols any more,

All woes shall then have ending and great Zeus the Thunderer

Shall put above what was below before.
965

WOMEN

Will the men then always be kept under us?

LYSISTRATA

But if the swallows squabble among themselves and fly away

Out of the temple, refusing to agree,

Then The Most Wanton Birds in all the World

They shall be named for ever. That's his decree.
970

WOMAN

It's obvious what it means.

LYSISTRATA

Now by all the gods

We must let no agony deter from duty,

Back to your quarters. For we are base indeed,

My friends, if we betray the oracle.
975

She goes out.

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.) — 749 focus

Lysistrata: By Aphrodite, not you, but either a bronze statue

Lysistrata: It shows a hollow thing; I will find out.

750

Lysistrata: O wretch, you who hold the sacred dog!

Lysistrata: Did you say that you were pregnant?

WOMAN: And I am indeed pregnant, by Zeus.

Lysistrata: But then, what did you have?

Woman G: so that she might catch me

Woman G: The interest is still in the city, may it be born into the bag!

Woman G: having stepped inside this one, just like the doves.

755

Lysistrata: What are you saying? You are making excuses; the situation is clear.

Lysistrata: Will you not endure the testicles of his dog?

Woman 3: But I can't, I beg you, not even sleep in the city,

Woman G: Ever since I saw the house-destroying snake once.

Woman A: But I, poor wretch, am perishing from the owls.

760

Woman A: While the pots are making noise with sleepless women.

Lysistrata: O you wretched women, stop your soothsayings.

Lysistrata: Perhaps you miss the men; but you do not think of us.

Lysistrata: Do you long for them? I well know how tiresome they are.

Lysistrata: They bring on the night. But endure, you good women,

765

Lysistrata: And work hard for a little while longer,

Lysistrata: as the oracle is for us to rule, if

Lysistrata: Let us not quarrel; for here is the oracle.

Woman A: Tell us what he says.

Lysistrata: Be quiet now.

Lysistrata: but whenever the swallows take flight to one place,

770

Lysistrata: Having fled the ephors, let them abstain from their phalluses,

Lysistrata: there will be an end to evils, but the upper ones will be made lower.

Lysistrata: Zeus the high-thunderer—

Woman A: Shall we lie on top?

Lysistrata: But if they should be separated and spread their wings with feathers,

Lysistrata: Swallows from the holy temple, you will no longer appear.

775

Lysistrata: A bird is not at all more belligerent.

Woman A: Clear indeed is the oracle, by Zeus.

Lysistrata: O all you gods,

Lysistrata: let us not now go away in distress,

Lysistrata: But let us go in. For this is shameful too.

Lysistrata: O dearest friends, if we betray the oracle.

780

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

754. mvp-tlg0019-tlg007-sanjaya-com-eng1-31

Line 754

ὁ τόκος ἔτʼ ἐν πόλει, τέκοιμʼ ἐς τὴν κυνῆν

The line relies on a pun between the noun τόκος (interest on money, birth) and the verb τέκοιμι (I might give birth). The humor hinges on the syntactic shift from a statement of fact regarding the city's financial state to a subjunctive wish for a specific, grotesque mode of delivery ('into the dog's hide/bag'), transforming the abstract concept of 'interest' into a physical, comic birth. This is a classic Aristophanic 'comic etymology' where the semantic field of 'birth' and 'profit' are conflated through morphological resemblance.

757. mvp-tlg0019-tlg007-sanjaya-com-eng1-32

Line 757

οὐ τἀμφιδρόμια τῆς κυνῆς αὐτοῦ μενεῖς;

The phrase τἀμφιδρόμια τῆς κυνῆς is a specific reference to the 'double-running' or 'crossing' of a dog's harness (the straps that go around the neck and chest), a metaphor for the entanglements or constraints of domestic life. In this context, Lysistrata is using the image of a dog's harness to describe the inescapable and irritating nature of her husband's domestic obligations or perhaps his stubbornness, implying that he cannot escape the 'straps' of his household duties. This metaphor is rooted in the everyday life of Athenian households and reflects the play's broader theme of domestic strife and the constraints of marriage.

759. mvp-tlg0019-tlg007-sanjaya-com-eng1-33

Line 759

ἐξ οὗ τὸν ὄφιν εἶδον τὸν οἰκουρόν ποτε.

The adjective οἰκουρόν (oikouron) is a hapax legomenon in Aristophanes, formed from οἶκος (house) and ἔρρω (I run), meaning 'house-running' or 'household-running'. In this context, it is a comic neologism referring to the household snake, a creature traditionally believed to bring good fortune and protect the home, which Lysistrata invokes to symbolize the domestic sphere she seeks to reclaim. The construction is a rare example of Aristophanes creating a compound adjective to describe a mythological or folkloric entity for satirical effect, playing on the snake's role as a guardian of the household oikos.

771. mvp-tlg0019-tlg007-sanjaya-com-eng1-34

Line 771

τοὺς ἔποπας φεύγουσαι, ἀπόσχωνταί τε φαλήτων,

The verb ἀπόσχωνταί is a future middle indicative of ἀπέχω, used here with the genitive φαλήτων ('penises') to mean 'refrain from' or 'abstain from'. While ἀπέχω with the genitive is standard for physical holding or separation, the specific construction of the future middle with a genitive of the object being avoided in this imperative context (implied by the participle φεύγουσαι) reflects the comic tone of a threat or command. The form φαλήτων is the genitive plural of φαλλός, a term for the phallus, which in the context of the chorus of women (Lysistrata) alludes to the specific sexual abstinence they are enforcing upon the men, contrasting with the 'penises' (φαλλοί) worn by the male chorus in the preceding scenes of the play. This usage highlights the central theme of the play: the strategic withholding of sexual access as a political tool.

Aristophanes Lysistrata 749

ed. F. W. Hall, ed. William M. Geldart

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Λυσιστράτη

μὰ τὴν Ἀφροδίτην οὐ σύ γʼ, ἀλλʼ ἢ χαλκίον

ἔχειν τι φαίνει κοῖλον· εἴσομαι δʼ ἐγώ.
750

ὦ καταγέλαστʼ ἔχουσα τὴν ἱερὰν κυνῆν

κυεῖν ἔφασκες;

Γυνὴ Γ

καὶ κυῶ γε νὴ Δία.

Λυσιστράτη

τί δῆτα ταύτην εἶχες;

Γυνὴ Γ

ἵνα μʼ εἰ καταλάβοι

ὁ τόκος ἔτʼ ἐν πόλει, τέκοιμʼ ἐς τὴν κυνῆν

ἐσβᾶσα ταύτην, ὥσπερ αἱ περιστεραί.
755

Λυσιστράτη

τί λέγεις; προφασίζει· περιφανῆ τὰ πράγματα.

οὐ τἀμφιδρόμια τῆς κυνῆς αὐτοῦ μενεῖς;

Γυνὴ Γ

ἀλλʼ οὐ δύναμαι ʼγωγʼ οὐδὲ κοιμᾶσθʼ ἐν πόλει,

ἐξ οὗ τὸν ὄφιν εἶδον τὸν οἰκουρόν ποτε.

Γυνὴ Α

ἐγὼ δʼ ὑπὸ τῶν γλαυκῶν γε τάλαινʼ ἀπόλλυμαι
760

ταῖς ἀγρυπνίαισι κακκαβαζουσῶν ἀεί.

Γυνὴ Α

λέγʼ αὐτὸν ἡμῖν ὅ τι λέγει.

Γυνὴ Α

ἐπάνω κατακεισόμεθʼ ἡμεῖς;

Λυσιστράτη

ἢν δὲ διαστῶσιν καὶ ἀναπτῶνται πτερύγεσσιν

ἐξ ἱεροῦ ναοῖο χελιδόνες, οὐκέτι δόξει
775

ὄρνεον οὐδʼ ὁτιοῦν καταπυγωνέστερον εἶναι.

Γυνὴ Α

σαφής γʼ ὁ χρησμὸς νὴ Δίʼ.

Λυσιστράτη

ὦ πάντες θεοί,

μή νυν ἀπείπωμεν ταλαιπωρούμεναι,

ἀλλʼ εἰσίωμεν. καὶ γὰρ αἰσχρὸν τουτογὶ

ὦ φίλταται, τὸν χρησμὸν εἰ προδώσομεν.
780

Current edition Perseus

LYSISTRATA

By Aphrodite, it isn't. Your belly's hollow,

And it has the feel of metal.... Well, I soon can see.

You hussy, it's Athene's sacred helm,

And you said you were with child.

3RD WOMAN

And so I am.
940

LYSISTRATA

Then why the helm?

3RD WOMAN

So if the throes should take me

Still in these grounds I could use it like a dove

As a laying-nest in which to drop the child.

LYSISTRATA

More pretexts! You can't hide your clear intent,
945

And anyway why not wait till the tenth day

Meditating a brazen name for your brass brat?

WOMAN

And I can't sleep a wink. My nerve is gone

Since I saw that snake-sentinel of the shrine.

WOMAN

And all those dreadful owls with their weird hooting!
950

Though I'm wearied out, I can't close an eye.

WOMEN

Yes, yes, what is it?

LYSISTRATA

Silence then, you chatterboxes.
960

Here—

Whenas the swallows flocking in one place from the hoopoes

Deny themselves love's gambols any more,

All woes shall then have ending and great Zeus the Thunderer

Shall put above what was below before.
965

WOMEN

Will the men then always be kept under us?

LYSISTRATA

But if the swallows squabble among themselves and fly away

Out of the temple, refusing to agree,

Then The Most Wanton Birds in all the World

They shall be named for ever. That's his decree.
970

WOMAN

It's obvious what it means.

LYSISTRATA

Now by all the gods

We must let no agony deter from duty,

Back to your quarters. For we are base indeed,

My friends, if we betray the oracle.
975

Commentary

Line 754

Line 757

Line 759

Line 771

Stable identifiers

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Λυσιστράτη μὰ τὴν Ἀφροδίτην οὐ σύ γʼ, ἀλλʼ ἢ χαλκίον ἔχειν τι φαίνει κοῖλον· εἴσομαι δʼ ἐγώ. 750 ὦ καταγέλαστʼ ἔχουσα τὴν ἱερὰν κυνῆν κυεῖν ἔφασκες;

Γυνὴ Γ καὶ κυῶ γε νὴ Δία.

Λυσιστράτη τί δῆτα ταύτην εἶχες;

Γυνὴ Γ ἵνα μʼ εἰ καταλάβοι ὁ τόκος ἔτʼ ἐν πόλει, τέκοιμʼ ἐς τὴν κυνῆν ἐσβᾶσα ταύτην, ὥσπερ αἱ περιστεραί. 755

Λυσιστράτη τί λέγεις; προφασίζει· περιφανῆ τὰ πράγματα. οὐ τἀμφιδρόμια τῆς κυνῆς αὐτοῦ μενεῖς;

Γυνὴ Γ ἀλλʼ οὐ δύναμαι ʼγωγʼ οὐδὲ κοιμᾶσθʼ ἐν πόλει, ἐξ οὗ τὸν ὄφιν εἶδον τὸν οἰκουρόν ποτε.

Γυνὴ Α ἐγὼ δʼ ὑπὸ τῶν γλαυκῶν γε τάλαινʼ ἀπόλλυμαι 760 ταῖς ἀγρυπνίαισι κακκαβαζουσῶν ἀεί.

Γυνὴ Α λέγʼ αὐτὸν ἡμῖν ὅ τι λέγει.

Γυνὴ Α ἐπάνω κατακεισόμεθʼ ἡμεῖς;

Λυσιστράτη ἢν δὲ διαστῶσιν καὶ ἀναπτῶνται πτερύγεσσιν ἐξ ἱεροῦ ναοῖο χελιδόνες, οὐκέτι δόξει 775 ὄρνεον οὐδʼ ὁτιοῦν καταπυγωνέστερον εἶναι.

Γυνὴ Α σαφής γʼ ὁ χρησμὸς νὴ Δίʼ.

Λυσιστράτη ὦ πάντες θεοί, μή νυν ἀπείπωμεν ταλαιπωρούμεναι, ἀλλʼ εἰσίωμεν. καὶ γὰρ αἰσχρὸν τουτογὶ ὦ φίλταται, τὸν χρησμὸν εἰ προδώσομεν. 780

Current edition Perseus

LYSISTRATA By Aphrodite, it isn't. Your belly's hollow, And it has the feel of metal.... Well, I soon can see. You hussy, it's Athene's sacred helm, And you said you were with child.

3RD WOMAN And so I am. 940

LYSISTRATA Then why the helm?

3RD WOMAN So if the throes should take me Still in these grounds I could use it like a dove As a laying-nest in which to drop the child.

LYSISTRATA More pretexts! You can't hide your clear intent, 945 And anyway why not wait till the tenth day Meditating a brazen name for your brass brat?

WOMAN And I can't sleep a wink. My nerve is gone Since I saw that snake-sentinel of the shrine.

WOMAN And all those dreadful owls with their weird hooting! 950 Though I'm wearied out, I can't close an eye.

WOMEN Yes, yes, what is it?

LYSISTRATA Silence then, you chatterboxes. 960 Here— Whenas the swallows flocking in one place from the hoopoes Deny themselves love's gambols any more, All woes shall then have ending and great Zeus the Thunderer Shall put above what was below before. 965

WOMEN Will the men then always be kept under us?

LYSISTRATA But if the swallows squabble among themselves and fly away Out of the temple, refusing to agree, Then The Most Wanton Birds in all the World They shall be named for ever. That's his decree. 970

WOMAN It's obvious what it means.

LYSISTRATA Now by all the gods We must let no agony deter from duty, Back to your quarters. For we are base indeed, My friends, if we betray the oracle. 975

Commentary

Line 754

Line 757

Line 759

Line 771

Stable identifiers

Λυσιστράτη

μὰ τὴν Ἀφροδίτην οὐ σύ γʼ, ἀλλʼ ἢ χαλκίον

ἔχειν τι φαίνει κοῖλον· εἴσομαι δʼ ἐγώ.
750

ὦ καταγέλαστʼ ἔχουσα τὴν ἱερὰν κυνῆν

κυεῖν ἔφασκες;

Γυνὴ Γ

καὶ κυῶ γε νὴ Δία.

Λυσιστράτη

τί δῆτα ταύτην εἶχες;

Γυνὴ Γ

ἵνα μʼ εἰ καταλάβοι

ὁ τόκος ἔτʼ ἐν πόλει, τέκοιμʼ ἐς τὴν κυνῆν

ἐσβᾶσα ταύτην, ὥσπερ αἱ περιστεραί.
755

Λυσιστράτη

τί λέγεις; προφασίζει· περιφανῆ τὰ πράγματα.

οὐ τἀμφιδρόμια τῆς κυνῆς αὐτοῦ μενεῖς;

Γυνὴ Γ

ἀλλʼ οὐ δύναμαι ʼγωγʼ οὐδὲ κοιμᾶσθʼ ἐν πόλει,

ἐξ οὗ τὸν ὄφιν εἶδον τὸν οἰκουρόν ποτε.

Γυνὴ Α

ἐγὼ δʼ ὑπὸ τῶν γλαυκῶν γε τάλαινʼ ἀπόλλυμαι
760

ταῖς ἀγρυπνίαισι κακκαβαζουσῶν ἀεί.

Γυνὴ Α

λέγʼ αὐτὸν ἡμῖν ὅ τι λέγει.

Γυνὴ Α

ἐπάνω κατακεισόμεθʼ ἡμεῖς;

Λυσιστράτη

ἢν δὲ διαστῶσιν καὶ ἀναπτῶνται πτερύγεσσιν

ἐξ ἱεροῦ ναοῖο χελιδόνες, οὐκέτι δόξει
775

ὄρνεον οὐδʼ ὁτιοῦν καταπυγωνέστερον εἶναι.

Γυνὴ Α

σαφής γʼ ὁ χρησμὸς νὴ Δίʼ.

Λυσιστράτη

ὦ πάντες θεοί,

μή νυν ἀπείπωμεν ταλαιπωρούμεναι,

ἀλλʼ εἰσίωμεν. καὶ γὰρ αἰσχρὸν τουτογὶ

ὦ φίλταται, τὸν χρησμὸν εἰ προδώσομεν.
780

LYSISTRATA

By Aphrodite, it isn't. Your belly's hollow,

And it has the feel of metal.... Well, I soon can see.

You hussy, it's Athene's sacred helm,

And you said you were with child.

3RD WOMAN

And so I am.
940

LYSISTRATA

Then why the helm?

3RD WOMAN

So if the throes should take me

Still in these grounds I could use it like a dove

As a laying-nest in which to drop the child.

LYSISTRATA

More pretexts! You can't hide your clear intent,
945

And anyway why not wait till the tenth day

Meditating a brazen name for your brass brat?

WOMAN

And I can't sleep a wink. My nerve is gone

Since I saw that snake-sentinel of the shrine.

WOMAN

And all those dreadful owls with their weird hooting!
950

Though I'm wearied out, I can't close an eye.

WOMEN

Yes, yes, what is it?

LYSISTRATA

Silence then, you chatterboxes.
960

Here—

Whenas the swallows flocking in one place from the hoopoes

Deny themselves love's gambols any more,

All woes shall then have ending and great Zeus the Thunderer

Shall put above what was below before.
965

WOMEN

Will the men then always be kept under us?

LYSISTRATA

But if the swallows squabble among themselves and fly away

Out of the temple, refusing to agree,

Then The Most Wanton Birds in all the World

They shall be named for ever. That's his decree.
970

WOMAN

It's obvious what it means.

LYSISTRATA

Now by all the gods

We must let no agony deter from duty,

Back to your quarters. For we are base indeed,

My friends, if we betray the oracle.
975