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Line 868

καὶ Παρμένων αἴρεσθε τὴν παμπησίαν.

The vocative Παρμένων is a comic invention for the historical Parmenion, the famous general of Philip II and Alexander the Great. Aristophanes exploits the phonetic similarity between the general's name and the verb παρμένων (having stood by/remaining), creating a pun on the adjective παμπησίαν (completely/utterly, from πᾶς + πᾶσις, literally 'all-together'). The humor relies on the audience recognizing the general's name as a vocative address while simultaneously parsing the word as a command to 'choose the all-together [thing]', a syntactic ambiguity central to the wordplay.

Ecclesiazusae. 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)

Ἐκκλησιάζουσαι Perseus (Aristophanes. Aristophanis Comoediae, Vol. 2. Hall, F. W. and Geldart, William M., editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1907.) — 877 focus

Γραῦς Α

τί ποθʼ ἅνδρες οὐχ ἥκουσιν; ὥρα δʼ ἦν πάλαι·

ἐγὼ δὲ καταπεπλασμένη ψιμυθίῳ

ἕστηκα καὶ κροκωτὸν ἠμφιεσμένη

ἀργός, μινυρομένη τι πρὸς ἐμαυτὴν μέλος,
880

παίζουσα. πῶς ἂν περιλάβοιμʼ αὐτῶν τινὰ

παριόντα; Μοῦσαι δεῦρʼ ἴτʼ ἐπὶ τοὐμὸν στόμα,

μελύδριον εὑροῦσαί τι τῶν Ἰωνικῶν.

Νεᾶνις

νῦν μέν με παρακύψασα προὔφθης ὦ σαπρά.

ᾤου δʼ ἐρήμας οὐ παρούσης ἐνθάδε
885

ἐμοῦ τρυγήσειν καὶ προσάξεσθαί τινα

ᾄδουσʼ· ἐγὼ δʼ ἢν τοῦτο δρᾷς ἀντᾴσομαι.

κεἰ γὰρ διʼ ὄχλου τοῦτʼ ἐστὶ τοῖς θεωμένοις,

ὅμως ἔχει τερπνόν τι καὶ κωμῳδικόν.

Γραῦς Α

τούτῳ διαλέγου κἀποχώρησον· σὺ δὲ
890

φιλοττάριον αὐλητὰ τοὺς αὐλοὺς λαβὼν

ἄξιον ἐμοῦ καὶ σοῦ προσαύλησον μέλος.

Γραῦς Α

εἴ τις ἀγαθὸν βούλεται παθεῖν

τι, παρʼ ἐμοὶ χρὴ καθεύδειν.

οὐ γὰρ ἐν νέαις τὸ σοφὸν ἔνεστιν
895

ἀλλʼ ἐν ταῖς πεπείραις·

οὐδέ τις στέργειν ἂν ἐθέλοι μᾶλλον ἢ ʼγὼ

τὸν φίλον ᾧπερ ξυνείην,

ἀλλʼ ἐφʼ ἕτερον ἂν πέτοιτο.

Translations (2)

Ecclesiazusae (OCR draft) Experimental (English (Anonymous; 1938 compilation). Migrated from Perseus legacy XML; source wording and notes retained. See TEI header and migration inventory.) — 877 focus

Exit laughing. Interlude of dancing by the Chorus.

The scene shifts to a different section of Athens and the two houses are now to be thought of as those of two prostitutes.

First Old Woman
Leaning out of the window of one house.

How is this? no men are coming? And yet it must be fully time! Then it is for naught that I have painted myself with white lead, dressed myself in my beautiful yellow robe, 880 and that I am here, frolicking and humming between my teeth to attract some passer-by! Oh, Muses, alight upon my lips, inspire me with some soft Ionian love-song!

Young Girl
In the window of the other house.

You putrid old thing, you have placed yourself at the window before me. 885 You were expecting to strip my vines during my absence and to trap some man in your snares with your songs. If you sing, I shall follow suit; all this singing will weary the spectators, but is nevertheless very pleasant and very diverting.

First Old Woman
Thumbing her nose at the Young Girl.

890 Ha! here is an old man; take him and lead him away. To the flute-player.As for you, you young flute-player, let us hear some airs that are worthy of you and me.

She sings.

Let him who wishes to taste pleasure come to my side. 895 These young things know nothing about it; it's only the women of ripe age who understand the art of love, and no one could know how to fondle the lover who possessed me so well as myself; the young girls are all flightiness.

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.) — 877 focus

OLD WOMAN A: Why aren't the men coming yet? It has been time long ago;

Old Woman A: But I am completely whitened with white lead.

OLD WOMAN A: I am standing and wearing a saffron robe.

Old Woman A: "Idle, humming some tune to myself,"

880

OLD WOMAN A: Playing. How could I catch one of them?

OLD WOMAN A: Passing by? Muses, come here to my mouth,

Old Woman A: having found some Ionian honeycomb.

Young woman: now indeed, as you leaned over, you got ahead of me, you rotten one.

Neainis: You thought that the girl was absent from here.

885

Young Woman: that I shall harvest and bring someone.

Young Woman: Singing: 'But if you do this, I will sing the same.'

Young Woman: For even if it is through a crowd, this is [visible] to the spectators,

Young Woman: Nevertheless, it has something pleasant and comic.

Old Woman A: Talk to this man and then withdraw; but you...

890

Old Woman A: Having taken the pipes, you pipe-player, play your tune.

Old Woman A: A song worthy of you and me, play it a little.

Old Woman A: if someone wishes to suffer something good.

OLD WOMAN A: What, must I sleep at my place?

Old Woman A: for wisdom is not in young people.

895

Grave A: But on the cliffs;

There is no one who would rather love than I.

The old woman A: the friend with whom I lived,

Old Woman A: But she would turn to another thing.

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

868. mvp-tlg0019-tlg010-sanjaya-com-eng1-33

Line 868

καὶ Παρμένων αἴρεσθε τὴν παμπησίαν.

Aristophanes Ecclesiazusae 868

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Line 868

Current edition Experimental

Γραῦς Α

τούτῳ διαλέγου κἀποχώρησον· σὺ δὲ
890

φιλοττάριον αὐλητὰ τοὺς αὐλοὺς λαβὼν

ἄξιον ἐμοῦ καὶ σοῦ προσαύλησον μέλος.

First Old Woman
Thumbing her nose at the Young Girl.

890 Ha! here is an old man; take him and lead him away. To the flute-player.As for you, you young flute-player, let us hear some airs that are worthy of you and me.

She sings.

Let him who wishes to taste pleasure come to my side. 895 These young things know nothing about it; it's only the women of ripe age who understand the art of love, and no one could know how to fondle the lover who possessed me so well as myself; the young girls are all flightiness.

Commentary

Line 868

Stable identifiers

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Line 868

Current edition Experimental

Γραῦς Α τούτῳ διαλέγου κἀποχώρησον· σὺ δὲ 890 φιλοττάριον αὐλητὰ τοὺς αὐλοὺς λαβὼν ἄξιον ἐμοῦ καὶ σοῦ προσαύλησον μέλος.

First Old Woman Thumbing her nose at the Young Girl. 890 Ha! here is an old man; take him and lead him away. To the flute-player.As for you, you young flute-player, let us hear some airs that are worthy of you and me.

She sings. Let him who wishes to taste pleasure come to my side. 895 These young things know nothing about it; it's only the women of ripe age who understand the art of love, and no one could know how to fondle the lover who possessed me so well as myself; the young girls are all flightiness.

Commentary

Line 868

Stable identifiers

Γραῦς Α

τούτῳ διαλέγου κἀποχώρησον· σὺ δὲ
890

φιλοττάριον αὐλητὰ τοὺς αὐλοὺς λαβὼν

ἄξιον ἐμοῦ καὶ σοῦ προσαύλησον μέλος.

First Old Woman
Thumbing her nose at the Young Girl.

890 Ha! here is an old man; take him and lead him away. To the flute-player.As for you, you young flute-player, let us hear some airs that are worthy of you and me.

She sings.

Let him who wishes to taste pleasure come to my side. 895 These young things know nothing about it; it's only the women of ripe age who understand the art of love, and no one could know how to fondle the lover who possessed me so well as myself; the young girls are all flightiness.