Lucian of Samosata, Juppiter Tragoedus, Austin Morris Harmon (Translator), 1

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ATHENA

Yea, thou sire of us all, son of Cronus, supreme among rulers,

Here at thy knees I beseech it, the grey-eyed Tritogeneia:

Speak thy thought, let it not lie hid in thy mind, let us know it.

What is the care that consumeth thy heart and thy soul with its gnawing?

Wherefore thy deep, deep groans, and the pallor that preys on thy features?¹

ZEUS

There’s nothing dreadful to express in speech,

No cruel hap, no stage catastrophe

That I do not surpass a dozen lines!²

ATHENA

Apollo! what a prelude to your speech!³

ZEUS

O utter vile hell-spawn of mother earth,

And thou, Prometheus—thou hast hurt me sore!

ATHENA

What isit? None will hear thee but thy kin.

ZEUS

Thundering stroke of my whizzing bolt, what a deed shalt thou do me!

HERA

Lull your anger to sleep, Zeus, seeing that I’m no hand either at comedy or at epic like these two, nor have I swallowed Euripides whole so as to be able to play up to you in your tragedy réle.

Juppiter Tragoedus. Lucian of Samosata. Austin Morris Harmon (Translator). United States. Perseus 5.0.

Funding provided by National Endowment for the Humanities.

Current edition Perseus

Zeus Rants (English) (Lucian, Vol. 2. Harmon, Austin Morris, editor. London: William Heinemann, Ltd.; Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1915.)

Editions (1)

Ζεὺς Τραγῳδός Perseus (Lucian, Vol. 2. Harmon, Austin Morris, editor. London: William Heinemann, Ltd.; Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1915.) — 1 focus

Ἑρμῆς

Ὦ Ζεῦ, τί σύννους κατὰ μόνας σαυτῷ λαλεῖς,

ὠχρὸς περιπατῶν, φιλοσόφου τὸ χρῶμʼ ἔχων;

ἐμοὶ προσανάθου, λαβέ με σύμβουλον πόνων,

μὴ καταφρονήσῃς οἰκέτου φλυαρίας.

Ἀθήνη

ναὶ πάτερ ἡμέτερε, Κρονίδη, ὕπατε κρειόντων,

γουνοῦμαί σε θεὰ γλαυκῶπις, τριτογένεια,

ἐξαύδα, μὴ κεῦθε νόῳ, ἵνα εἴδομεν ἤδη,

τίς μῆτις δάκνει σε κατὰ φρένα καὶ κατὰ θυμόν,

ἢ τί βαρὺ στενάχεις ὦχρός τέ σε εἷλε παρειάς;

Ζεύς

οὐκ ἔστιν οὐδὲν δεινὸν ὧδʼ εἰπεῖν ἔπος,

οὐδὲ πάθος οὐδὲ συμφορὰ τραγῳδική,

ἣν οὐκ ἰαμβείοις ὑπερπαίω¹ δέκα.

Ἀθήνη

Ἄπολλον, οἵοις φροιμίοις ἄρχῃ λόγου;

Ζεύς

ὦ παγκάκιστα χθόνια γῆς παιδεύματα,

σύ τʼ, ὦ Προμηθεῦ, οἷά μʼ εἴργασαι κακά.

Ἀθήνη

τί δʼ ἐστί; πρὸς χορὸν γὰρ οἰκείων ἐρεῖς.

Ζεύς

ὦ μεγαλοσμαράγου στεροπᾶς ῥοίζημα, τί² ῥέξεις;

Ἥρα

Κοίμισον ὀργάν, εἰ μὴ κωμῳδίαν, ὦ Ζεῦ, δυνάμεθα ὑποκρίνεσθαι μηδὲ ῥαψῳδεῖν ὥσπερ οὗτοι μηδὲ τὸν Εὐριπίδην ὅλον καταπεπώκαμεν, ὥστε σοι ὑποτραγῳδεῖν.

Translations (2)

Zeus Tragoedus Perseus (The Works of Lucian of Samosata, Vol. 3. Fowler, Henry Watson and Fowler, Francis George, translators. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1905.) — 1 focus

Hermagoras

Wherefore thus brooding, Zeus? wherefore apart, And palely pacing, as Earth’s sages use? Let me thy counsel know, thy cares partake; And find thy comfort in a faithful fool.

Athene

Cronides, lord of lords, and all our sire, I clasp thy knees; grant thou what I require; A boon the lightning-eyed Tritonia asks: Speak, rend the veil thy secret thought that masks; Reveal what care thy mind within thee gnaws, Blanches thy cheek, and this deep moaning draws,

Zeus

Speech hath no utterance of surpassing fear, Tragedy holds no misery or woe, But our divinest essence soon shall taste.

Athene

Alas, how dire a prelude to thy tale!

Zeus

O brood maleficent, teemed from Earth’s dark womb!

And thou, Prometheus, how hast thou wrought me woe!

Athene

Possess us; are not we thine own familiars?

Zeus

With a whirr and a crash

Let the levin-bolt dash—Ah, whither?

Heracles

A truce to your passion, Zeus. We have not these good people’s gift for farce or recitation; we have not swallowed Euripides whole, and cannot play up to you.

Zeus the Tragedian Perseus (Selections from Lucian. Smith, Emily James, translator. New York: Harper Brothers, 1892.) — 1 focus

Hermes

O Zeus, why wand'rest, self-communing, lone,

And sicklied o'er with this pale student's hue?

Make me the partner of thy sorrow's load,

Nor scorn the prattle of a lowly friend.

Athene

Yea, sire, great Kronides, our father and highest of rulers,

I, the clear-eyed and divine, the Trito-born, clasp thee imploring.

Hide not thy grief in thine heart. Tell it forth that thy children may know it.

What biting care dost thou hold in thy brain and thy bosom? What anguish

Wrings that deep groan from thy soul and yellows thy fair, ruddy color?

Zeus

There no woe that happens, sooth to tell,

No pain, no chance-born theme of tragedy,

Of which the godhead beareth not the load.

Athene

Great heav'n! What prologue doth begin his tale.

Zeus

O earthy offspring of the earth, fell race,

And thou, Prometheus, what woe hast thou wrought!

Athene

What is 't? We are the band of thine own kin.

Zeus

Thunderbolt, sounding afar, how shall thy hurtling crash save me?

Hera

Keep your temper, Zeus, since I cannot answer you in comedy metre as the others do, nor have I swallowed Euripides whole so as to take my part in the drama when you give me the cue.

Notes on the current edition

Zeus Rants

1. Compare this parody on Homer with Iliad 1, 363 (=Od. 1, 45); 8, 31; 3. 35.

2. A parody on the opening lines of the Orestes of Euripides.

3. Euripides, Hercules Furens 538.

Lucian of Samosata Juppiter Tragoedus 1

Austin Morris Harmon (Translator)

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HERMES

What ails you, Zeus, in lone soliloquy

To pace about all pale and scholar-like?

Confide in me, take me to ease your toils:

Scorn not the nonsense of a serving-man.

ZEUS

There’s nothing dreadful to express in speech,

No cruel hap, no stage catastrophe

That I do not surpass a dozen lines!²

ATHENA

Apollo! what a prelude to your speech!³

ZEUS

O utter vile hell-spawn of mother earth,

And thou, Prometheus—thou hast hurt me sore!

ATHENA

What isit? None will hear thee but thy kin.

ZEUS

Thundering stroke of my whizzing bolt, what a deed shalt thou do me!

HERA

Lull your anger to sleep, Zeus, seeing that I’m no hand either at comedy or at epic like these two, nor have I swallowed Euripides whole so as to be able to play up to you in your tragedy réle.

Current edition Perseus

Ζεύς

οὐκ ἔστιν οὐδὲν δεινὸν ὧδʼ εἰπεῖν ἔπος,

οὐδὲ πάθος οὐδὲ συμφορὰ τραγῳδική,

ἣν οὐκ ἰαμβείοις ὑπερπαίω¹ δέκα.

Ἀθήνη

Ἄπολλον, οἵοις φροιμίοις ἄρχῃ λόγου;

Ζεύς

ὦ παγκάκιστα χθόνια γῆς παιδεύματα,

σύ τʼ, ὦ Προμηθεῦ, οἷά μʼ εἴργασαι κακά.

Ἀθήνη

τί δʼ ἐστί; πρὸς χορὸν γὰρ οἰκείων ἐρεῖς.

Ζεύς

ὦ μεγαλοσμαράγου στεροπᾶς ῥοίζημα, τί² ῥέξεις;

Hermagoras

Wherefore thus brooding, Zeus? wherefore apart, And palely pacing, as Earth’s sages use? Let me thy counsel know, thy cares partake; And find thy comfort in a faithful fool.

Athene

Cronides, lord of lords, and all our sire, I clasp thy knees; grant thou what I require; A boon the lightning-eyed Tritonia asks: Speak, rend the veil thy secret thought that masks; Reveal what care thy mind within thee gnaws, Blanches thy cheek, and this deep moaning draws,

Zeus

Speech hath no utterance of surpassing fear, Tragedy holds no misery or woe, But our divinest essence soon shall taste.

Athene

Alas, how dire a prelude to thy tale!

Zeus

O brood maleficent, teemed from Earth’s dark womb!

And thou, Prometheus, how hast thou wrought me woe!

Athene

Possess us; are not we thine own familiars?

Zeus

With a whirr and a crash

Let the levin-bolt dash—Ah, whither?

Heracles

A truce to your passion, Zeus. We have not these good people’s gift for farce or recitation; we have not swallowed Euripides whole, and cannot play up to you.

Hermes

O Zeus, why wand'rest, self-communing, lone,

And sicklied o'er with this pale student's hue?

Make me the partner of thy sorrow's load,

Nor scorn the prattle of a lowly friend.

Zeus

There no woe that happens, sooth to tell,

No pain, no chance-born theme of tragedy,

Of which the godhead beareth not the load.

Athene

Great heav'n! What prologue doth begin his tale.

Zeus

O earthy offspring of the earth, fell race,

And thou, Prometheus, what woe hast thou wrought!

Athene

What is 't? We are the band of thine own kin.

Zeus

Thunderbolt, sounding afar, how shall thy hurtling crash save me?

Hera

Keep your temper, Zeus, since I cannot answer you in comedy metre as the others do, nor have I swallowed Euripides whole so as to take my part in the drama when you give me the cue.

Notes on the current edition

Stable identifiers

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

Search the Perseus Catalog for:

HERMES What ails you, Zeus, in lone soliloquy To pace about all pale and scholar-like? Confide in me, take me to ease your toils: Scorn not the nonsense of a serving-man.

ZEUS There’s nothing dreadful to express in speech, No cruel hap, no stage catastrophe That I do not surpass a dozen lines! 2

ATHENA Apollo! what a prelude to your speech! 3

ZEUS O utter vile hell-spawn of mother earth, And thou, Prometheus—thou hast hurt me sore!

ATHENA What isit? None will hear thee but thy kin.

ZEUS Thundering stroke of my whizzing bolt, what a deed shalt thou do me!

HERA Lull your anger to sleep, Zeus, seeing that I’m no hand either at comedy or at epic like these two, nor have I swallowed Euripides whole so as to be able to play up to you in your tragedy réle.

Current edition Perseus

Ζεύς οὐκ ἔστιν οὐδὲν δεινὸν ὧδʼ εἰπεῖν ἔπος, οὐδὲ πάθος οὐδὲ συμφορὰ τραγῳδική, ἣν οὐκ ἰαμβείοις ὑπερπαίω 1 δέκα.

Ἀθήνη Ἄπολλον, οἵοις φροιμίοις ἄρχῃ λόγου;

Ζεύς ὦ παγκάκιστα χθόνια γῆς παιδεύματα, σύ τʼ, ὦ Προμηθεῦ, οἷά μʼ εἴργασαι κακά.

Ἀθήνη τί δʼ ἐστί; πρὸς χορὸν γὰρ οἰκείων ἐρεῖς.

Ζεύς ὦ μεγαλοσμαράγου στεροπᾶς ῥοίζημα, τί 2 ῥέξεις;

Hermagoras Wherefore thus brooding, Zeus? wherefore apart, And palely pacing, as Earth’s sages use? Let me thy counsel know, thy cares partake; And find thy comfort in a faithful fool.

Athene Cronides, lord of lords, and all our sire, I clasp thy knees; grant thou what I require; A boon the lightning-eyed Tritonia asks: Speak, rend the veil thy secret thought that masks; Reveal what care thy mind within thee gnaws, Blanches thy cheek, and this deep moaning draws,

Zeus Speech hath no utterance of surpassing fear, Tragedy holds no misery or woe, But our divinest essence soon shall taste.

Athene Alas, how dire a prelude to thy tale!

Zeus O brood maleficent, teemed from Earth’s dark womb! And thou, Prometheus, how hast thou wrought me woe!

Athene Possess us; are not we thine own familiars?

Zeus With a whirr and a crash Let the levin-bolt dash—Ah, whither?

Heracles A truce to your passion, Zeus. We have not these good people’s gift for farce or recitation; we have not swallowed Euripides whole, and cannot play up to you.

Hermes O Zeus, why wand'rest, self-communing, lone, And sicklied o'er with this pale student's hue? Make me the partner of thy sorrow's load, Nor scorn the prattle of a lowly friend.

Zeus There no woe that happens, sooth to tell, No pain, no chance-born theme of tragedy, Of which the godhead beareth not the load.

Athene Great heav'n! What prologue doth begin his tale.

Zeus O earthy offspring of the earth, fell race, And thou, Prometheus, what woe hast thou wrought!

Athene What is 't? We are the band of thine own kin.

Zeus Thunderbolt, sounding afar, how shall thy hurtling crash save me?

Hera Keep your temper, Zeus, since I cannot answer you in comedy metre as the others do, nor have I swallowed Euripides whole so as to take my part in the drama when you give me the cue.

Notes on the current edition

Stable identifiers

HERMES

What ails you, Zeus, in lone soliloquy

To pace about all pale and scholar-like?

Confide in me, take me to ease your toils:

Scorn not the nonsense of a serving-man.

ZEUS

There’s nothing dreadful to express in speech,

No cruel hap, no stage catastrophe

That I do not surpass a dozen lines!²

ATHENA

Apollo! what a prelude to your speech!³

ZEUS

O utter vile hell-spawn of mother earth,

And thou, Prometheus—thou hast hurt me sore!

ATHENA

What isit? None will hear thee but thy kin.

ZEUS

Thundering stroke of my whizzing bolt, what a deed shalt thou do me!

HERA

Lull your anger to sleep, Zeus, seeing that I’m no hand either at comedy or at epic like these two, nor have I swallowed Euripides whole so as to be able to play up to you in your tragedy réle.

Ζεύς

οὐκ ἔστιν οὐδὲν δεινὸν ὧδʼ εἰπεῖν ἔπος,

οὐδὲ πάθος οὐδὲ συμφορὰ τραγῳδική,

ἣν οὐκ ἰαμβείοις ὑπερπαίω¹ δέκα.

Ἀθήνη

Ἄπολλον, οἵοις φροιμίοις ἄρχῃ λόγου;

Ζεύς

ὦ παγκάκιστα χθόνια γῆς παιδεύματα,

σύ τʼ, ὦ Προμηθεῦ, οἷά μʼ εἴργασαι κακά.

Ἀθήνη

τί δʼ ἐστί; πρὸς χορὸν γὰρ οἰκείων ἐρεῖς.

Ζεύς

ὦ μεγαλοσμαράγου στεροπᾶς ῥοίζημα, τί² ῥέξεις;

Hermagoras

Wherefore thus brooding, Zeus? wherefore apart, And palely pacing, as Earth’s sages use? Let me thy counsel know, thy cares partake; And find thy comfort in a faithful fool.

Athene

Cronides, lord of lords, and all our sire, I clasp thy knees; grant thou what I require; A boon the lightning-eyed Tritonia asks: Speak, rend the veil thy secret thought that masks; Reveal what care thy mind within thee gnaws, Blanches thy cheek, and this deep moaning draws,

Zeus

Speech hath no utterance of surpassing fear, Tragedy holds no misery or woe, But our divinest essence soon shall taste.

Athene

Alas, how dire a prelude to thy tale!

Zeus

O brood maleficent, teemed from Earth’s dark womb!

And thou, Prometheus, how hast thou wrought me woe!

Athene

Possess us; are not we thine own familiars?

Zeus

With a whirr and a crash

Let the levin-bolt dash—Ah, whither?

Heracles

A truce to your passion, Zeus. We have not these good people’s gift for farce or recitation; we have not swallowed Euripides whole, and cannot play up to you.

Hermes

O Zeus, why wand'rest, self-communing, lone,

And sicklied o'er with this pale student's hue?

Make me the partner of thy sorrow's load,

Nor scorn the prattle of a lowly friend.

Zeus

There no woe that happens, sooth to tell,

No pain, no chance-born theme of tragedy,

Of which the godhead beareth not the load.

Athene

Great heav'n! What prologue doth begin his tale.

Zeus

O earthy offspring of the earth, fell race,

And thou, Prometheus, what woe hast thou wrought!

Athene

What is 't? We are the band of thine own kin.

Zeus

Thunderbolt, sounding afar, how shall thy hurtling crash save me?

Hera

Keep your temper, Zeus, since I cannot answer you in comedy metre as the others do, nor have I swallowed Euripides whole so as to take my part in the drama when you give me the cue.