Aristophanes Thesmophoriazusae 101

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

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Ἀγάθων

ἱερὰν χθονίαις δεξάμεναι

λαμπάδα κοῦραι ξὺν ἐλευθέρᾳ

πατρίδι χορεύσασθε βοάν.

Χορὸς Ἀγάθωνος

τίνι δαιμόνων ὁ κῶμος;

λέγε νυν. εὐπίστως δὲ τοὐμὸν
105

δαίμονας ἔχει σεβίσαι.

Ἀγάθων

ἄγε νυν ὄλβιζε Μοῦσα

χρυσέων ῥύτορα τόξων

Φοῖβον, ὃς ἱδρύσατο χώρας

γύαλα Σιμουντίδι γᾷ.
110

Χορὸς Ἀγάθωνος

χαῖρε καλλίστας ἀοιδᾶς

Φοῖβʼ ἐν εὐμούσοισι τιμαῖς

γέρας ἱερὸν προφέρων.

Ἀγάθων

τάν τʼ ἐν ὄρεσι δρυογόνοισι

κόραν ἀείσατʼ
115

Ἄρτεμιν ἀγροτέραν.

Χορὸς Ἀγάθωνος

ἕπομαι κλῄζουσα σεμνὸν

γόνον ὀλβίζουσα Λατοῦς

Ἄρτεμιν ἀπειρολεχῆ.

Ἀγάθων

Λατώ τε κρούματά τʼ Ἀσιάδος
120

ποδὶ †παράρυθμʼ εὔρυθμα Φρυγίων

διανεύματα Χαρίτων†.

Χορὸς Ἀγάθωνος

σέβομαι Λατώ τʼ ἄνασσαν

κίθαρίν τε ματέρʼ ὕμνων

ἄρσενι βοᾷ δόκιμον,
125

τᾷ φάος ἔσσυτο δαιμονίοις θεοῦ ὄμμασιν

ἁμετέρας τε διʼ αἰφνιδίου ὀπός. ὧν χάριν

ἄνακτʼ ἄγαλλε Φοῖβον τιμᾷ.

χαῖρʼ ὄλβιε παῖ Λατοῦς.

Μνησίλοχος

ὡς ἡδὺ τὸ μέλος ὦ πότνιαι Γενετυλλίδες
130

καὶ θηλυδριῶδες καὶ κατεγλωττισμένον

καὶ μανδαλωτόν, ὥστʼ ἐμοῦ γʼ ἀκροωμένου

ὑπὸ τὴν ἕδραν αὐτὴν ὑπῆλθε γάργαλος.

καί σʼ ὦ νεανίσχʼ ὅστις εἶ, κατʼ Αἰσχύλον

ἐκ τῆς Λυκουργείας ἐρέσθαι βούλομαι.
135

ποδαπὸς ὁ γύννις; τίς πάτρα; τίς ἡ στολή;

τίς ἡ τάραξις τοῦ βίου; τί βάρβιτος

λαλεῖ κροκωτῷ; τί δὲ λύρα κεκρυφάλῳ;

τί λήκυθος καὶ στρόφιον; ὡς οὐ ξύμφορον.

τίς δαὶ κατόπτρου καὶ ξίφους κοινωνία;
140

τίς δʼ αὐτὸς ὦ παῖ; πότερον ὡς ἀνὴρ τρέφει;

καὶ ποῦ πέος; ποῦ χλαῖνα; ποῦ Λακωνικαί;

ἀλλʼ ὡς γυνὴ δῆτʼ· εἶτα ποῦ τὰ τιτθία;

τί φῄς; τί σιγᾷς; ἀλλὰ δῆτʼ ἐκ τοῦ μέλους

ζητῶ σʼ, ἐπειδή γʼ αὐτὸς οὐ βούλει φράσαι;
145

Ἀγάθων

ὦ πρέσβυ πρέσβυ, τοῦ φθόνου μὲν τὸν ψόγον

ἤκουσα, τὴν δʼ ἄλγησιν οὐ παρεσχόμην·

ἐγὼ δὲ τὴν ἐσθῆθʼ ἅμα γνώμῃ φορῶ.

χρὴ γὰρ ποιητὴν ἄνδρα πρὸς τὰ δράματα

ἃ δεῖ ποιεῖν πρὸς ταῦτα τοὺς τρόπους ἔχειν.
150

αὐτίκα γυναικεῖʼ ἢν ποιῇ τις δράματα,

μετουσίαν δεῖ τῶν τρόπων τὸ σῶμʼ ἔχειν.

Thesmophoriazusae. 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

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

Translations (1)

Thesmophoriazusae (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Anonymous; 1938 compilation). Migrated from Perseus legacy XML; source wording and notes retained. See TEI header and migration inventory.) — 101 focus

Agathon now sings a selection from one of his tragedies, taking first the part of the leader of the chorus and then that of the whole chorus.

Agathon

Damsels, with the sacred torch in hand, unite your dance to shouts of joy in honor of the nether goddesses; celebrate the freedom of your country.

Agathon's Chorus

To what divinity is your homage addressed? 105 I wish to mingle mine with it.

Agathon

Oh! Muse! glorify Phoebus with his golden bow, who erected 110 the walls of the city of the Simois.

Agathon's Chorus

To thee, oh Phoebus, I dedicate my most beauteous songs; to thee, the sacred victor in the poetical contests.

Agathon

115 And praise Artemis too, the maiden huntress, who wanders on the mountains and through the woods—

Agathon's Chorus

I, in my turn, celebrate the everlasting happiness of the chaste Artemis, the mighty daughter of Leto!

Agathon

120 —and Leto and the tones of the Asiatic lyre, which wed so well with the dances of the Phrygian Graces.

Agathon's Chorus

I do honor to the divine Leto and to the lyre, the mother of songs 125 of male and noble strains. The eyes of the goddess sparkle while listening to our enthusiastic chants. Honor to the powerful Phoebus! Hail! blessed son of Leto.

Mnesilochus

130 Oh! ye venerable Genetyllides, what tender and voluptuous songs! They surpass the most lascivious kisses in sweetness; I feel a thrill of delight pass up me as I listen to them. To EuripidesYoung man, if you are one, 135 answer my questions, which I am borrowing from Aeschylus' “Lycurgeia.” Whence comes this androgyne? What is his country? his dress? What contradictions his life shows! A lyre and a hair-net! A wrestling school oil flask and a girdle! What could be more contradictory? 140 What relation has a mirror to a sword? To AgathonAnd you yourself, who are you? Do you pretend to be a man? Where is your tool, pray? Where is the cloak, the footgear that belong to that sex? Are you a woman? Then where are your breasts? Answer me. But you keep silent. Oh! 145 just as you choose; your songs display your character quite sufficiently.

Agathon

Old man, old man, I hear the shafts of jealousy whistling by my ears, but they do not hit me. My dress is in harmony with my thoughts. 150 A poet must adopt the nature of his characters. Thus, if he is placing women on the stage, he must contract all their habits in his own person.