Scholia: Ajax Choral Ode 569 - 645

Clark, Brian R. / Ajax
  • Created on 2018-05-08 03:26:40
  • Modified on 2018-05-08 04:57:36
  • Translated by Brian Clark
  • Aligned by Clark, Brian R.
Ἑλληνική Transliterate
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596 κλεινὰ Σαλαμίς . συγκέκλειται Αἴας διαχρησόμενος ἑαυτόν , ἔπειτα δὲ οἱ ἀπὸ τοῦ χοροῦ λόγον περιπαθῆ διεξίασι · πρὸς μὲν γὰρ αὐτὸν λέγειν οὐκ ἦν εἰσελθόντα ἤδη γέγονε δὲ αὐτοῖς ἀπολόφυρσις ἐπὶ τὰ οἰκεῖα · καὶ ἔχει ἀκολουθίαν τὰ χορικά · ἀπεστερημένοι γὰρ τοῦ ἄρχοντος καὶ ἄλλην ἀποστροφὴν οὐκ ἔχοντες περὶ τῆς πατρίδος τὸν λόγον ποιοῦνται ἐκτιθέμενοι ἐν οἷς εἰσι χαλεποῖς καὶ ἐν οἷς ἔσονται οἱ γονεῖς αὐτοῦ πυθόμενοι ταῦτα .

596 τὸ ἦθος ἐμιμήσατο τῶν ἀφεστώτων τῆς οἰκείας · ὁπόταν γὰρ δυσχερές τι ἀπαντᾷ μακαρίζειν εἰώθασι τὰς πατρίδας .

604 ἀνήριθμος αἰὲν εὐνόμᾳ : ἀνήριθμος ἐν οὐδενὶ ἀριθμῷ ταττόμενος ἀλλὰ περιερριμμένος · εὐνόμᾳ δὲ ἤτοι τῷ εὐνομουμένῳ καὶ δικαίῳ εὐνόμᾳ λειμῶνι τῷ καλὰς νομὰς ἔχοντι · τὸ δὲ ἑξῆς , παλαιὸς ἀφʼ οὔ χρόνος αἰὲν εὐνόμᾳ χρόνῳ τρυχόμενος Ἰδαίᾳ μίμνω λειμωνίᾳ ποίᾳ μήλων ἀνήριθμος , κακὴν ἐλπίδα ἔχων Ἰδαίᾳ δὲ οἷον ἐν τῷ τῆς Ἴδης χωρίῳ τῆς χλοερᾶς καὶ λειμῶνας ἐχούσης καὶ ποίμνας διάγων .

606 κακὴν ἐλπίδα ἔχων πῶς με δεῖ τὸν Ἅιδην ἀνύσειν ἀντὶ τοῦ οὐδὲν ἀγαθὸν προσδοκῶν ἀλλὰ κακῶς τελευτήσειν ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ ἐλπίζων .

609 καί μοι δυσθεράπευτος Αἴας : οἷον πρὸς τοῖς πρώτοις κακοῖς ὥσπερ δεύτερόν ἐστί μοι κακὸν τὸ τοῦ Αἴαντος ξυνεστηκός · τοῦτο γὰρ δηλοῖ τὸ ἔφεδρος · ἔφεδρος δέ ἐστιν ἐν τοῖς ἀγῶσιν μὴ πλανώμενος εἰς τὸ ἀγωνίζεσθαι τοῖς νικῶσιν · ἐνταῦθα οὖν φησιν ὅτι ἔσχατος καὶ ὡς ἔφεδρος ἐλείφθη μοι Αἴας εἰς κακόν .

614 νῦν δʼ αὖ φρενὸς οἰοβώτας : αὐθαίρετος , ὡς ἂν εἴποι τις αὐτὸς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ διάνοιαν βόσκων καὶ μηδενὶ πειθόμενος μονωθεὶς ἐκ τῆς φρενὸς μονότροπος , μεμονωμένος τῷ λογισμῷ ποιμαίνων τὴν ἑαυτοῦ διάνοιαν καὶ μόναρχος ὢν τῷ λογισμῷ οἷον διεσθίων αὐτοῦ τὴν φρένα παρὰ τὴν βόσιν βαίνων ἐν ἐρημίᾳ διὰ τὸ συγκεκλεικέναι ἑαυτόν · καὶ ὅμοιόν ἐστι τῷ ὃν θυμὸν κατέδων , πάτον ἀνθρώπων ἀλεείνων · φρενὸς οἰοβώτας οὐ σὺν φρεσὶν ἀλλʼ ἐκτὸς φρενῶν διάγων .

618 τὰ δὲ πρότερα μέγιστα τῆς ἀρετῆς τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ ἔργα ἐν ὀλιγωρίᾳ εἰσὶ παρὰ τοῖς Ἀτρείδαις · οὕτω , τὰ δὲ πρότερα αὐτοῦ ἀνδραγαθήματα φροῦδα παρὰ τοῖς Ἀτρείδαις .

620 ἄφιλα παρὰ φίλοις : παρὰ τοῖς πρῴην αὐτοῦ φίλοις , νῦν δὲ πάντων ἐπιλελησμένοις · ἄφιλα παρʼ ἀφίλοις ἐχθρὰ παρʼ ἐχθροῖς .

622 ἐντεθραμμένη τῷ παλαιῷ χρόνῳ οἷον τῇ ἡλικίᾳ ἀντὶ τοῦ πολυετής · δὲ νοῦς , ὄντως που τῇ παλαιᾷ ἡμέρᾳ τουτέστι τῷ παλαιῷ χρόνῳ ἔντροφος · τὸ δὲ λευκῷ γήρᾳ , κατὰ κοινοῦ τὸ ἔντροφος , μήτηρ αὐτοῦ .

626 φρενομόρως : ἀντὶ εἰς τὴν μοῖραν τῶν φρενῶν νοσοῦντα ἐστι φρενοβλαβῶς , μανικῶς .

628 οὐδʼ οἰκτρᾶς γόον ὄρνιθος : οἷον οὐ μέτριον · ἀναστρεπτέον δέ · ἄρχει γὰρ τοῦ λόγου τὸ οὐ ἵνʼ οὐκ αἴλινον οὐδʼ οἰκτρᾶς γόον ἀηδοῦς ἥσει ἀλλʼ ὀξυτόνους μὲν ᾠδὰς καὶ τὰ ἐξῆς .

628 ἥσει γόον οὐ μέτριον κατὰ τὴν ἀηδόνα ἀλλʼ ὀξύν · ἀηδὼ δὲ κατὰ Μιτυληναίους .

634 περιπαθῶς πρόσθεσις τῆς πολιᾶς .

635 κρείσσων γὰρ Ἅιδᾳ κεύθων : κρείσσων γάρ ἐστιν τεθνηκὼς ζῶν καὶ νοσῶν μάτην ἐστι μεμηνώς · μάτην γὰρ νοσεῖν τὸ ἀθεραπεύτως μαίνεσθαι · οὐ λέγει δὲ ὅτι ὅταν αὐτὸν πύθηται τετελευτηκότα . γὰρ μεμηνὼς καὶ τὰς φρένας διεφθαρμένος κρείσσων Ἅιδᾳ κεύθων οἷον ἄμεινον τῷ μεμηνότι ἐξιέναι τοῦ βίου · οἷον μήτηρ ἡγήσεται κρείσσονα τὸν θάνατον τῆς τοῦ Αἴαντος μανίας .

636 ὃς ἄνωθεν κατὰ πατρῴας γενεᾶς ἄριστος ἥκων ( λείπει γὰρ τὸ ἄριστος ) ὥστε προέχειν ἀπάντων τῶν Ἑλλήνων κατὰ γένος νῦν οὐκέτι τοῖς πρώτοις ἤθεσιν ἐμμένει .

64l ἀπέστρεψε τὸν λόγον πρὸς τὸν Τελαμῶνα , οἴαν σε μένει πυθέσθαι , τοιαύτην ἄτην οἴαν οὐδεὶς πέπονθεν τῶν Αἰακιδῶν · παραμυθία γάρ ἐστι τὸ μετέχειν τινὰ τῶν τοῦ γένους τῶν αὐτῶν κακῶν .
596 : Ajax is shut in , dealing with himself . but then those from the chorus enter , deeply moved by the speech . They did not speak to him who had entered already , but there were these lamentations for the household . And the choral matters have the next place . For they are deprived of their leader and since they do not have any other recourse concerning their fatherland , they deliver the speech , putting forth ones in which there are difficulties and ones in which his parents will learn these things about him .

596 : the disposition mimicked those who are far away from home . For whenever one meets difficulty in any way , they are accustomed to consider their fatherland blessed .

604 : ἀνήριθμος means being arranged in no number but being thrown about all around . εὐνόμᾳ means truly under good laws and well-ordered social laws , or it means in a meadow that has a good pasture . The sequence is " the former time from which I , being consumed in a well-lawed time , stay in the Idean meadow of the kind with uncountable sheep , having a wicked hope in . " And Ἰδαίᾳ is such as in the space of Ida , verdant and having meadows and leading through flocks .

606 : Having a wicked hope how it is necessary for me to reach Hades instead of expecting nothing good but he hopes falsely to meet his end in war .

609 : such as towards the first evils as the second evil for me is the one joined to Ajax . For this is clear in ἔφεδρος . ἔφεδρος means the one in contests not having wandered into contending with the victorious . Therefore here he says that the further one and as one fighting next , Ajax was left by me to his evil .

614 : self-incured , as whenever someone themselves says , feeding on their own thought and being persuaded by no one , or having been made isolated from their mind or solitary , left alone in the reasoning , or grazing on one ' s own thought and being a single ruler in the reasoning or such as eating through one ' s own mind for food or one walking solitude through one ' s own confinement . Like in the line " ὃν θυμὸν κατέδων , πάτον ἀνθρώπων ἀλεείνων ( Iliad 6 . 202 ) . " or feeding alone on one ' s mind without a mind but leading through the mind .

618 : The previous greatest deeds of his of excellence of of inferior things are in contempt for the sons of Atreus . Or thus , the previous brave things of his have disappeared from the sons of Atreus

620 : for those who are recently his friends , but now have forgotten all . Or lack of love for the unfriendly , hatred for his enemies

622 : She was a companion for former time such as in a life time , instead of after many years . The sense is really I suppose she a companion for a former day , that is for a former time . The phrase δὲ λευκῷ γήρᾳ , commonly is the word ἔντροφος , his mother .

626 : in place of to the fate of the minds being ill , he is acting derangedly , madly .

628 : such as not moderate . one must invert it . for he stars his speech with the word οὐ in order that she might not send forth neither a lament nor the wail of the piteous nightingale , but shrieking songs even is the order .

628 : she sends forth a wail not moderately that befits a nightingale , but sharply . ἀηδὼ is the name according to those from Mitylene .

634 : The addition of the word πολιᾶς is deeply moving .

635 : For either the one having died or the one living is better , and he is insane without reason and has gone mad . For to be insane without reason is to be mad incurable . He does not say he has learned when he will die . For having gone mad and having destroyed his mind , he is better being hidden in Hades , such as it is better for one who is has gone mad to depart from life . Such as his mother considers that death is better than the madness of Ajax .

636 : He coming as the best from high up according to his paternal lineage ( for ἄριστος is left out ) with the result that he supersedes all of the Greeks according to his race does not yet remain the custom for the elites .

641 : He turned away from the speech to Telamon , namely οἵαν σε μένει πυθέσθαι , this sort of destruction such that no one of the descendants of Aeacus had suffered . For the solution is to share something of the evils of their own race .

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