Colloquial Expressions in Euripides 3515024891 [PDF]

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HERMES ZEITSCHRIFT FUTR KLASSISCHE PHILOLOGIE

E I N Z E L S C H R I F T E N · H E F T 38

COLLOQUIAL EXPRESSIONS IN EURIPIDES BY

P.T. STEVENS

FRANZ STEINER YERLAG GMBH .WIESBADEN

N U N C CO G NO SCO EX PARTE

THOMAS J. BATA LIBRARY TRENT UNIVERSITY

P. T. STEVENS C O L L O Q U IA L

E X P R E S S IO N S

IN

E U R IP ID E S

HERMES ZEITSCHRIFT FIJR KLASSISCHE PHILOLOGIE

EINZELSCHRIFTEN H ERAUSGEGEBEN VON

H O R S T B R A U N E R T f ■K A R L B O C H N E R W O LFG A N G KULLM ANN

HEFT 38

COLLOQUIAL EXPRESSIONS IN EURIPIDES BY P. T.

STEV EN S

FRANZ STEIN ER VERLAG GMBH · W IESBADEN 1976

COLLOQUIAL EXPRESSIONS IN EURIPIDES

BY P. T. STEVENS

FRANZ ST E IN E R VERLAG GMBH · WIESBADEN

Stevens, Phillip T. Colloquial expressions in Euripides. — 1. A ufl. — Wiesbaden : Steiner, 1976. (Hermes : E inzelschr.; Bd. 38) ISBN 3-515-02489-1

A lle R ech te v o rb eh alten O h n e au sd rtick lich e G e n c h m ig u n g des V crlages ist es au ch n ic h t g e stattet, das W e rk o d e r cin zeln e l e i l e d araus n a c h z u d ru c k e n o d e r a u f p h o to rr.ech an isch em W ege (P h o to k o p ie , M ik ro k o p ic u sw .) zu v crv ielfaltig cn . © 1976 by F ran z S teiner V crlag G m b H , W iesbaden! Satz u n d D ru c k : W erk - u n d F c in d ru c k c re i D r. A lex an d er K re b s, lie m sb a c h /B e rg str. P rin te d in G erm an y

CONTENTS I n tr o d u c tio n .............................................................................................................

1

C olloquial expressions .........................................................................................

10

A. B. C. D. E.

E x ag g eratio n : e m p h a s is ................................................................................ Pleonastic o r lengthened form s o f e x p re s s io n ........................................ U n d erstatem en t: i r o n y .................................................................................. B revity: e llip s e .................................................................................................. In terjections and E xpressions used to attract attention o r m aintain c o n ta c t................................................................................................................. P a rtic le s............................................................................................................... M etaphorical e x p re ss io n s ............................................................................. M isc e lla n eo u s................................................................................................... C olloquial form s and syntax .....................................................................

10 19 23 27

N o te on the distrib u tio n o f colloquial e x p re ss io n s .....................................

64

N o te on the stylistic and dram atic significance o f colloquial expressions

66

Select b ib lio g r a p h y ...............................................................................................

69

Index o f colloquial w ords and expressions ..................................................

71

F. G. H. I.

33 44 49 52 59

IN T R O D U C T IO N T h e language o f A ttic T ragedy in speeches and dialogue, taken as a whole, is evidently a Kunstsprache, b u t we m ight expect that current conversational idiom w ould have som e influence; indeed it is now generally recognised th at colloquial expressions do in fact occur in the extant plays, especially in E uripides, and m ost com m entators on his plays describe certain w ords and phrases as obvious colloquialism s o r as probable or possible colloquial­ isms. As far as I know tw o articles and a chapter o f a book have been devoted to this topic: in 1901 C. A m a t i published a collection o f colloquial expres­ sions in E u rip id e s1, p ro v id in g in m ost instances som e examples from Old C om edy as the criterion o f colloquial character; in 1936 J. S m e r e k a included in a study o f som e aspects o f the language o f E uripides a chapter on col­ lo q u ialism 2, giving m any alleged examples b u t m arred by lack o f discrim ­ ination and absence o f any indication o f the criteria ad o p ted ; in 1937 I p ublished som e additions to A m a t i ’s list, w ith a m ore detailed discussion o f the evidence for colloquial u sag e3. In the present m o n o g rap h I offer a m ore com prehensive collection o f examples, including those previously published (except that I have om itted some o f A m a t i ’s examples w hich I n o w th ink unjustified), tog eth er w ith a fuller discussion o f the criteria for inclusion and an attem p t to estim ate the stylistic and dram atic significance o f colloquial language in E u rip id e s32. B efore considering the evidence for colloquial usage in the last decades o f fifth century A thens it w ill perhaps be advisable to make clear w hat I m ean by colloquial, w ith reference to other levels o f speech from which this elem ent in E uripides is to be distinguished. A possible classification

1 S tu d lt 9, 1901, 125-248. 2 Studia E u rip id ea, L eopoli 1936, ch. IV D e serm onis cotidiani et orationis solutae au ctoritate. 3 C lQ u 31, 193-7, 182-191, rep rin ted in : E u rip id es (W ege der F o rschung L X X X IX ), hrsg. v . E . R. S c h w i n g e , D arm stad t 1969, 104—123. 3aI am grateful for the help and en co u rag em en t o f a n u m b er o f scholars, including the late J. D. D e n n isto n , P ro fesso r H . L loyd-Jones and especially Professor K. J. D over, w ho read the ty p escrip t and sent valuable com m ents. I should like to thank the T rustees o f the H enry B ro w n F u n d for a gen ero u s g ran t tow ards the cost o f publication.

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o f language is into four levels: poetic, prosaic, neutral and colloquial. In o u r ow n language there is generally no difficulty ab o u t differentiating betw een these levels, th o u g h in m odern E n g lish distinctively poetic diction has alm ost ceased to exist. In ancient G reek poetic language in diction, form and syntax is an im p o rtan t and easily recognisable feature; betw een the other three levels discrim ination is liable to be m ore difficult in a foreign and especially a dead language: we lack the native speaker’s intuitive perception o f such nuances, and the facts o f usage and d istrib u tio n may be m isleading, particularly in G reek w here so small a p ro p o rtio n o f ancient G reek literature is now extant. If we have in m ind a different line o f division, betw een the em otional and intellectual aspects o f language, then there is som ething in com m on betw een poetry, im passioned oratory and colloquial speech4, since they all at times use language em otionally and all m ake free use o f certain general types o f expression, such as pleonasm , m etaphor and hyperbole. T he result o f such com m on characteristics is that a colloquialism w ould often be less incongruous in poetry than a distinctively prosaic w o rd or phrase, and that it may be m ore difficult to establish the colloquial character o f a given phrase. In E uripides, as in all A ttic T ragedy, there is clearly a poetic colouring, derived partly from w ords w hich in form and m eaning w ould be recognised as characteristic o f epic and lyric poetry and alien from ordinary speech, for example com pounds such as καλλιπύργωτος and άσπιδηφόρος. Such w ords, how ever, are n o t com m on in E uripidean dialogue, and p oetic diction here consists m ainly o f w ords for w hich there was a norm al A ttic equivalent, such as φάσγανον for ξίφος, δώμα for οικία, εύφρόνη for νύξ. Some o f these “ p o etic” w ords w ere apparently in everyday use in n on-A ttic dialects, for example the D oric μολεΐν for έλθεΐν and Ionic εύφρόνη for νύξ, and th o u g h an A thenian w ould n o t him self use μολεΐν5, it cannot have sounded u n ­ familiar. It is given to an A thenian in Ar. Eq. 21 ft., in order to lead up to the com pound αύτομολεΐν, w hich was norm al A ttic, and in T rag ed y έλθεΐν

Cf. E. L o f s t e d t , Syntactica II, L und 1956, o65 : Sie sind (die Poesie u n d die U m gangssprache), kurz ausgedruckt, im G egensatz zu r kiihlen, k o rrek t dahinschreitenden N orm alprosa, die beiden w arm eren S tila rte n .” 5 T he few examples (apart from its use by non-A thenians) in O ld C o m ed y (C ratin .l 11 ; Ar. Fr. Inc. 697; Strattis Fr. 41) are p robably paratragic or otherw ise exceptional. It first appears in prose in X en. A n . 7 .1 .3 3 , w here it is given to a Boeotian. For a discussion w ith reference to literary and epigraphical evidence see L. G a u t i e r , La Langue de X e n o p h o n , G eneva 1911, 29-30.

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and μολεΐν often appear in close ju x tap o sitio n 6. T hus no special incongruity need have been felt at the juxtaposition o f μολα>ν and the colloquial εύ έποίησε in E. Med. 4 7 2 7. T he poetic colouring o f tragic dialogue appears o f course n o t only in diction b u t in form s o f w ords, syntax, idiom , w ord ord er and so on. T hus in E. Med. 1073—1074 ευδαιμονοΐτον, αλλ εκεί’ τα δ ενθάδε πατήρ άφείλετ’, w here the p o ig n an t sim plicity is achieved partly by the use o f neutral diction,5 there is still a slight touch o f rem oteness in the absence o f the article w ith πατήρ. As regards form o f w ords the ditferences from norm al A ttic are n o t very great. T he A ttic provincialism s ττ and pp were naturally avoided, b u t the form s w ith σσ and ρσ w ere in use in historical prose and m ust have been fam iliar on the lips o f fo reig n ers8. T hus in τί πράσσεις; the non-A ttic form w o uld n o t necessarily deny the colloquial character o f the p h ra se 9. Prosaic w ords in E nglish, i.e. w ords that w ould produce a slight effect o f in co n g ru ity in a poetic context o r in ordinary conversation, are generally technical or sem i-technical term s o f science, m edicine, law and the rest, specially coined for a specific purpose and generally derived from Latin or G reek, such as “ therm odynam ics” , “ bilateral” , “ m etabolism ” . Fifth century A thens probably saw the beginnings o f technical vocabularies, and occa­ sionally a foreign source m ight be used, e.g. a D o ric w ord m ight be taken over as a m ilitary term . G enerally how ever special senses were assigned to ordinary A ttic w ords o r new w ords form ed from existing G reek stem s; parodies in A risto p h a n e s10 im ply a tendency in certain circles to coin nouns in -σις and adjectives in -ικός. In E uripides there are som e w ords that may well carry w ith them som ething o f the atm osphere o f a medical o r rhetorical

6 E .g . I T 515 καί μήν ποθεινός γ ’ ήλθες έξ ’Ά ργους μολών; A le. 539-540; H F 531-532; Ion 332; Or. 738. μολών is particularly com m o n at the end o f a line and in the passages cited and m any o th ers m etrical convenience m ay have d eterm ined the choice, b u t in m any it has n o t, e.g. Med. 776, w here μολόντι is first w ord. 7 See below p. 54. 8 It w o u ld n o t be su rp risin g if the influx o f strangers to A thens, as visitors o r settlers, affected the speech o f native A thenians, th o u g h in the w ell-know n passage in Ps. X en. A th . Pol. II 8 έπειτα φωνήν πασαν άκούοντες έξελέξαντο τοΰτο μέν έκ τής τοϋτο δέ έκ τής- καί οί μέν 'Έλληνες ιδία μάλλον καί φωνή καί διαίτη καί σχήματι χρώνται, ’Α θηναίοι δέ κεκραμένη έξ απάντων των Ελλήνων καί βαρβάρων the a u th o r’s personal bias has led him to exaggerate. In A ttic vase inscriptions we find e.g. b o th Κασσάνδρα and the atticised Καττάνδρα; see P. K r e t s c h m e r , D ie G riechischen V aseninschriften, ih rer Sprache nach u ntersucht, Giiterslo h 1894, 76-78, and A. T h u m b , D ie G riechische Sprache im Z eitalter des H ellenism us, S trafiburg 1901, 56. 9 See below p. 41. 10 A r. E q . 1378-1381; N ub. 317—318. O n -σις nouns see E . W . H a n d l e y , Eranos 51, 1 9 5 3 ,1 2 9 -1 4 2 .

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treatise o r o f philosophical argum ent, e.g. διάγνωσής, ελκώδης, βούλησής, λελογισμένος. These and many o ther w ords are certainly confined to E uripides and prose w riters as far as o u r evidence goes, b u t in view o f the im m ense quantity o f fifth century tragic dialogue no longer extant we do n o t know how far this is due to chance. A w o rd is presum ably m ore likely to be distinc­ tively prosaic if there is a norm al poetic equivalent, and it cannot, for instance, be accidental that the simple verb κτείνω is norm al in poetry and in all three tragedians, and th at the prose form άποκτείνω is fo u n d once in Aeschylus, never in Sophocles, and about forty-five times in E uripides. N eutral language consists o f the sort o f w ords and expressions th at have no special connotation and are equally at hom e in any context. T he general im pression, shared by ancient and m odern critics, o f greater sim plicity o f diction in E uripides as com pared w ith A eschylus and even Sophocles is probably due mainly to the higher p ro p o rtio n o f neutral language in his plays. Lastly by colloquial I mean n o t merely w ords and expressions th at are likely to occur in ordinary conversation, since this consists largely o f n eutral language, bu t the kind o f language th a t in a poetic o r prosaic context w ould stand o u t how ever slightly as having a distinctively conversational flavour. In G reek some w ords, at any rate in certain senses, are in them selves collo­ quial, b u t m ore often it is a m atter o f idiom and usage. V ery often a slight change in m eaning o r in the form o f a phrase will rem ove its colloquial character, or even a change o f context. F o r exam ple A m a t i cites as colloquial the use o f φαίνεσθαι to denote som eone’s arrival in E. H F 705, Ba. 646 and Ph. 1747, and W il a m o w it z (on E. H F 705) notes “ aus d er U m gangssprache” , citing as evidence PI. Prt. 309 A πόθεν, ώ Σώκρατες, φαίνη; “ W here have you appeared from , Socrates?” H ere the verb probably is colloquial, b u t only because it is a dignified w o rd deliberately used in a trivial context. In H F 705, how ever, εξω κέλευε τώνδε φαίνεσΟαι δόμων “ Bid them a p p e a r. . . ” the G reek is no m ore colloquial than the E nglish “ ap p ear” in that context. A gain in Ar. Thesm. 220 γενναίος εί “ y o u ’re very g o o d ” (th an k in g fo r the loan o f a razor) is probably a colloquial exaggeration, but the same phrase γενναία γάρ εί in L A . 1411 has its full m eaning and is not co llo q u ial11. F or the last thirty years o f the fifth century the best evidence for colloquial usage is provided by the com ic dram atists. T he language o f A ttic Vase Inscriptions is naturally lim ited in range, and th o u g h it tells us som ething o f the characteristics o f popular speech, on the w hole it is below the level 11 O u r ow n language show s how easily one could go w ro n g ; e.g. both “ lo ” and “ b e h o ld ” are poetic/archaic, yet the expression “ lo and b e h o ld ” may be heard in any casual co n ­ versation.

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o f colloquialism found in T ragedy. T h e language o f O ld Com edy also in­ cludes m uch th at was clearly regarded as beneath the dignity o f Tragedy, n o t only ordinary term s for sex organs, various bodily functions and the like and slang equivalents (m ost o f w hich are also excluded from N ew C om edy) b u t also dim inutives. These are very com m on in A ristophanes and perhaps also characteristic o f colloquial speech, b u t are hardly ever found in T ra g e d y 12. A t the o th e r extrem e the language o f many A ristophanic lyrics is n o t relevant for o u r purpose, and examples o f paratragic usage m u st o f course be excluded. T he latter can generally be identified w ith o u t difficulty, th o u g h occasionally w hen a particular expression is found in A ristophanes and E uripides b u t n o t elsew here in T ragedy there may be d o u b t w h eth er it is colloquial o r A ristophanes is deliberately intro d u cin g a characteristic E u ripidean tu rn o f p h ra s e ; here the evidence o f prose dialogue may serve as a c h ec k 13. F o r the same perio d H erodotus can also be used as evidence, especially in passages o f dialogue b u t also perhaps in narrative, w here the occurrence o f colloquial w ords is attested by “ L ong in u s” 14. N o d o u b t the diction o f H ero d o tu s is m ainly neutral, and indeed to A thenian ears m ight well have a slight poetic tinge ow ing to the use o f Ionic w ords, such as εύφρόνη, w hich in A thens belonged to the language o f p o etry ; b u t I take it that the colloquial character o f an expression is if anything confirm ed by occurrence in H e­ ro d o tu s, especially in d ia lo g u e 15. In the early fo u rth century we have the evidence o f the conversational parts o f the prose dialogues o f Plato and X en o p h o n . T he m any styles o f Plato include the conversational style, w hich presum ably reflects the collo­ quial idiom o f contem porary A thenian society16. A t ab o u t the same period and in the fo u rth century the A ttic O rators are also relevant, w ith certain distinctions. O n the w hole their vocabulary and idiom are m ainly neutral 12 A n exception is χλανίδι,ον, E. Or. 42; Sup. 110. C haerem on fr. 14,9. Fr. T rag . A desp. 7; it m av have ceased to be felt as a dim inutive. 13 See p. 39 below on σον έ'ργον. 14 Ιίερί "ϊ'ψους c. 31, w here κατεκρεουργήθη (7. 181) is cited as a w ord that grazes the very edge o f vulg arity b u t is saved by its expressiveness. In c. 43 several w ords in H dt. are censured as being below th e dignity o f the subject. 15 W i l a m o w i t z (on E. H F 575) suggests th at Ionian n o tio n s o f propriety differed from A ttic, so th a t an Ionic w riter m ig h t naturally use w ords or expressions that in A ttic w ould be felt as so m ew h at coarse or colloquial. His exam ple is κλοάειν λέγω (4.127) w hich is n o t found in T rag ed y (for the m ore polite colloquialism χαίρειν λέγω see below p. 26). Cf. also παχύς alm ost “ blo ated a risto c rat” , w hich is used in serious narrative in H d t. (e.g.5. 30,77) b u t in A ttic only in A risto p h an es (E q . 1139; P ax. 839; Vesp. 287). 16 F o r a g o o d acco u n t see H . T h e s l e f f , Studies in the Styles o f Plato, H elsinki 1967, esp. 63—80.

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o r prosaic. T here is, how ever, as we m ig h t expect, som e difference in this respect betw een public and private speeches. In Lysias the everyday nature o f some o f the incidents dealt w ith and the deliberate sim plicity o f style to suit clients for w hom the speeches w ere w ritten p ro v id e a context in w hich it is n o t surprising to find w ords and expressions w hich are, to judge by O ld Com edy, collo q u ial17. Similarly in som e private speeches o f D em o sth e­ nes a colloquial touch w ould help to m aintain the illusion that the w ords are those o f a plain m a n 18. In the public speeches o f D em osthenes and A eschines the style in narrative and argum ent is generally rather m ore form al, b u t even in these speeches, especially in the frequent rhetorical questions, im aginary retorts and scraps o f im aginary dialogue, the o rato rs avail th em ­ selves o f the v ig o u r and expressiveness o f obviously colloquial id io m 19, including some w ords and form s that are confined to D em osthenes and C om ­ edy and are apparently too strongly colloquial for T rag e d y 20. T ow ards the end o f the century fu rth er evidence for colloquialism is p rovided by N ew Com edy, in w hich the diction and idiom are likely to be m odelled on the speech o f everyday life. A t ab o u t the same tim e the Char­ acters o f T heophrastus can also be used, especially w here the a u th o r quotes rem arks supposed to be typical o f the type he is describing. These w riters are adm ittedly a century later than E uripides, bu t their evidence should, I think, be regarded as valid, at anyrate in confirm ation of earlier evidence. In the third century and later we have g o o d evidence for the colloquial speech o f that period in the Ptolem aic papyri and N ew T estam ent G reek, and there is further m aterial in the Mimes o f H erodas and the m ore con­ versational idylls o f T heocritus, especially the fifteenth. All this is n o t too far rem oved in time or place to have some confirm atory value. Lastly, I have occasionally cited parallels from colloquial Latin, for w hich the evidence is m uch fu ller21, and from m odern G reek and oth er m odern languages. C olloquial speech, at anyrate in m ost E u ro p ean lan­ guages, has certain general characteristics, such as various kinds o f ellipse and the substitution for plain statem ent o f exaggeration o r deliberate E .g. the dim inutives οίκίδιον (1.9) δωμάτιον (1. 17); άφικνοϋμαι ώς τον και τό ν (1 .2 3 ); see W. L. D e v r i e s , E thopoiia, A R hetorical Study o f the Types o f C haracter in the O ratio n s o f Lysias, th o u g h he som ew hat exaggerates the extent to w hich language is used fo r ch ar­ acterisation. 18 T he opening sentence o f lv is a g o o d example. 111 D EN NiSTON ,The G reek Particles, O xford 1954, lxxiv observes “ T he vividness o f D .’s style leads him to em ploy a n u m b er o f lively conversational idiom s w hich are not found in the o th e r o ra to rs.” 20 E .g. >Mh γρυ, confined to D . and O ld Com edy. 21 See e.g. J . B. H o e m a n n , Lateinische U m gangssprache, H eidelberg 1936;J. M a r o u z e a u T rait£ de Stylistique A ppliqude au Latin, Pans 1946, 156-189.

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u n d e rsta te m e n t—·; and the parallels I have cited are included partly as a m atter o f interest, partly because they may offer slight confirm ation o f colloquial character. F o r a given expression in E uripides to be reckoned as colloquial its occurrence elsew here in suitable contexts is o f course n o t e n o u g h ; it m ust also be in the m ain confined to such contexts. T hus we should expect to find no exam ples in Epic and C horal Lyric poetry o r in the prose o f A ntiphon, T hucydides and Isocrates. O n the o th e r hand no hard and fast rule can be m ade, since there are hardly any w riters o f w hom we could be sure that they w o uld never adm it a colloquial expression. It has been suggested by m o d ern critics that certain w ords in H om er may be co llo q u ial2223, th ough w e have no means o f confirm ing this, and D e n n isto n suspects “ that the particles H o m er em ploys w ere, in the main, those o f everyday speech” 2425 and that, for instance, “ τιή found only in H om er, H esiod and A ttic Comedy was colloquial from first to last, th o u g h it seems to have gone o u t o f use before the days o f Plato and X e n o p h o n ” . T hus I take it that the colloquial character o f άτάρ in the fifth century is at anyrate n o t disproved by its use in H o m e r2o. In the personal elegiac, iambic and lyric poetry o f the seventh and sixth centuries the subject m atter and style are such that an occasional colloquialism is n o t su rp risin g 26, and generally speaking I have n o t regarded these w riters as negative evidence. E ven in the m ore stately choral lyric o f P in d ar we have in P A . 87 the colloquial ου τί που, bu t here P indar purports to give us the actual w ords o f a bystander. A m ong prose w riters, A n tip h o n ’s style tends to be som ew hat stiff and form al, b u t in O r. 5. 43 we have the colloquial ού γαρ δήπου ούτω κακοδαίμων εγώ ώ στε... “ I w asn’t such a con­ fo u n d ed fo o l” and in 5.41 the parenthetic πώς γάρ. In Thucydides, apart from τα όπλα ταυτί in the exceptional passage o f lively dialogue in 3. 113,4, w e find in 3. 75 the apparently colloquial ούδέν υγιές; it is relevant that this and som e o th e r possible colloquialism s in Thucydides are in passages o f v irtu al reported speech, b u t in plain narrative ολίγου “ alm ost” , probably colloquial in fifth century A ttic, occurs in 4. 124. 1 and 8. 35. 3.

22 F o r the persistence o f certain types o f colloquial idiom over long periods see D . T a b a c h o v it z , PJA nom enes lingu istiq u es du vieux grec dans le grec de la basse 6poque, M H elv. 3, 1946, 144-179. 23 See W. B. S tanford on Od. 14.467, 508, and cf. A r n o ld , Lectures on T ranslating H o m er, L on d o n 1896, 88. In H esiod IF .D . 26 γαστέρερ may be colloquial; seeM . L. W h s t , ad loc. 24 G reek Particles lxxv. 25 See also on δαί p.45 below . 26 E .g. T h eo g n is 788 ούδέν άρ’ ήν: 1045 ναι μά Δ ί’.

In tro d u c tio n

Aeschylus and Sophocles are som ew hat anom alous. I have fo r con­ venience included examples from fragm ents o f satyric dram as along w ith those from tragedies, th o u g h the form er are certainly n o t negative evidence, and may som etim es be regarded as confirm ation. I have regarded examples from the tragedies as negative evidence to the extent th at frequent occurrence in Aeschylus and Sophocles tells against the colloquial character o f a given expression and suggests that it belongs rath er to w hat may be called the “ dialogue style” 27. O n the o th er hand colloquial expressions are certainly adm itted by bo th these dram atists28, including, for instance, the clearly colloquial εύ γε {Phil. 327), w hich is n o t fo u n d in E u rip id e s29. I f therefore the general picture strongly suggests the colloquial character o f an expres­ sion I have n o t autom atically rejected it on the g ro u n d that it occurs in Aeschylus o r Sophocles, especially in the Prometheus and Philoctetes. This procedure may seem rather arbitrary, b u t it illustrates the fact th at no precise specification is possible and each instance m ust be considered on its m erits. F o r this reason it seemed necessary to p resent the evidence in sufficient detail to enable scholars to judge for them selves. A few w ords are necessary on the form in w hich the follow ing m aterial is arranged. Exam ples o f colloquial w ords and expressions are g ro u p ed in the follow ing categories: A. E xaggeration: em phasis. B. Pleonastic or lengthened form s o f expression. C. U n d erstatem en t: iro n y 30. D . B revity: ellipse. E . Interjections and expressions used to attract atten tio n o r m aintain contact. F. M etaphorical expressions (not already included). G . Particles (not already included). H . M iscellaneous. I. C olloquial form s and syntax. It will be evident that the division is n o t on a uniform prin cip le; some m ight be called psychological categories, others are gram m atical. It is also clear that these categories are n o t m utually exclusive; e.g. an exam ple o f colloquial exaggeration may also be m etaphorical. H o w ev er this g ro u p in g , th o u g h in some respects anom alous in conception and arbitrary in execution, makes it possible to illustrate some general tendencies o f colloquial speech. 27 W. B. S t a n f o r d , Aeschylus in his Style, D u b lin 1942, has an interestin g account o f colloquialism s, am ong w hich he includes exam ples o f “ staccato p h rasin g ” , such as E u . 431 πώς δ ή ; δίδαξον. των σοφών γάρ ού πένει, and Pr. 259; cf. also S. O C 1099. I should regard such effects as belonging to the essential nature o f dram atic dialogue rath er than being distinctively colloquial. We should also expect that som e uses o f particles w ould belong to q uestion and answ er as such, w h atev er th eir tone. I have included only those that are alm ost confined to E u ripides and colloquial sources. 28 F o r a collection, w hich does not claim to be com plete, see C lQ u 39, 1945, 95-105. 29 Aeschylus is the only tragic d ram atist to use the A ristophanic μάλλά {Cho. 918). 30 A. and C. are o f course b o th ways o f giving em phasis, as contrasted w ith plain exact statem ent. C. is perhaps specially characteristic o f G reek ; see K . L a m m e r m a n n , V on der attischen U rbanitat und ih rer A u sw irk u n g in der Sprache, G o ttin g en 1935.

In tro d u c tio n

9

W ithin each g ro u p the o rd er is alphabetical, generally according to the first w o rd , and any particular w o rd o r phrase can easily be located from the Index. R eferences and q u o tations are norm ally in the follow ing o rd er: 1) Evidence fo r colloquialism : C om edy, O ld, M iddle and N ew ; H ero d o tu s, Plato, X e n o p h o n , O ra to rs; later w riters, papyri, H ellenistic G reek ; colloquial Latin and o th e r languages. 2) E uripides. 3) A eschylus and Sophocles. 4) N eg ative evidence, o f w hich there will norm ally be none. Exam ples from A ttic T ragedy are intended to be com plete, and unless otherw ise indicated are in iam bic trim eters o r trochaic tetram eters. In E uripides there are a few examples o f colloquialism in recitative anapaests, as m ig h t be expected, and I have n o t regarded the rare occurrences in lyric dialogue (as contrasted w ith the m ore form al stasima) as outw eighing good positive evidence. Exam ples from colloquial sources are n o t necessarily com plete, especially w hen a w ord o r phrase is very com m on in A ristophanes o r P lato ; w here evidence for colloquialism is scanty I have endeavoured to give as m uch as possible. W hen an English equivalent is offered for a G reek expression it does n o t, o f course, p u rp o rt to be a suitable translation in every passage cited. References to G reek authors are norm ally to the latest edition in the O .C .T . series, or w here this is n o t available to the T eu b n er series. F o r the fragm ents o f Sophocles references are to P ea r so n , and for the Comic fragm ents to K ock and D e m ia n c z u k Supplem entum Com icum . O ther editions are referred to w hen necessary.

C O L L O Q U IA L E X P R E S S IO N S A. E x a g g era tio n : em p h a sis 1. άγχόνη in the w eakened sense “ tro u b le ” , “ annoyance” . A r. Ach. 125 ταΰτα δήτ’ ούκ άγχόνη; “ Isn ’t this h an g n ab le?” (R ennie): Aeschin. 2,38 (w hen Philip refused to speak to D em osthenes) τούτο δ’ ήν άρα άγ/όνη τούτω : Luc. Tim. 45 άγχόνη γάρ άν το πράγμα γένοιτο αύτοΐς. Cf. crux in colloquial Latin, e.g. Plaut. Bacc. 584 quae te mala crux agitat? In E nglish “ a hanging m a tte r” is som etim es used in a rather different sense but w ith similar colloquial exaggeration. E. Held. 244 ούκ έλευθέραν οίκεΐν δοκήσω γαΐαν, Άργεάυν δ’ οκνω / ίκέτας προδοΰναι- καί τάδ’ άγχόνης πέλας. O n άγχόνης πέλας Pearson c o m m e n ts: “ T he colloquial character o f the phrase is show n by A eschin. 2 ,3 8 ” ; b u t if D em ophon is saying that the disgrace o f su rrendering suppliants w ould alm ost drive him to suicide, then άγχόνη has its full literal sense and is no m ore colloquial here than in e.g. E. A n . 816 δέσποιναν εϊργουσ’ άγχόνης, and S. O.T. 1374 έργα κρείσσον’ άγχόνης. In E. Ba. 246 ταΰτ’ ούχί δεινής άγχόνης έστ’ άξια, ύβρεις ύβρίζειν οστις έστίν ό ξένος; if the reference is to suicide there is some exaggeration, b u t the elaboration o f the phrase makes a difference, and in any case the reference is probably to h an g in g as a punishm ent, in w hich case άγχόνη has its literal sense. In Semon, 1, 18 we have άγχόνην άφαντο, and in A .’s satyric Diet. (Fr. 4 7 4 .1 4 Μ) άγχόνην άρ’ άψομαι, w here L o b e l translates “ k n o t the n o o se” and com pares E nglish slang “ kick the b u ck et” . H ere again άγχόνη has its full literal sense, and th o u g h the phrase is m ore direct and forcible than such poetic periphrases as E. Ale. 230 βρόχω δέρην ούρανίω πελάσσαι, it is do u b tfu l w hether it can be regarded as colloquial.

2 . ανω κ ά τ ω : 1) “ U pside d o w n ” “ In co n fu sio n ” . Ar. Pax. 1180 τούς μεν έγγράφοντες ήμών τούς δ’ άνω τε καί κάτω έξαλείφοντες: “ H aphazardly” , “ indiscrim inately” (P la t n a u er ) : Eq. 866: Nub. 616: Fr. Com. Adesp. 583 ως τούτο δ' ειδεν, εύΟύς ήν άνω κάτω. PI. Tht. 153D γένοιτ’ άν το λεγόμενον άνω κάτω πάντα: Prt. 361 C: D . 18. I l l (λόγους) άνω καί κάτω διακυκών: 9.36. T he usual colloquial phrase was

A. E x a g g e ra tio n : em phasis

11

perhaps άνω κάτω, the longer form being used occasionally, som etim es for m etrical reasons. F o r an am pler form o f this phrase cf. H dt. 3. 3. Αίγυπτου τά μέν άνω κάτω θήσω, τά δέ κάτω άνω. C om pare m odern G reek, e.g. (from a novel) ένα τηλεγράφημα πού τον έκανε άνω-κάτω “ a telegram w hich completely upset h im ” . E. H F 1307 άνδρ Ελλάδος τον πρώτον...άνω κάτω στρέψασα: Βα. 349 άνω κάτω τά πάντα συγχέας όμοΰ: ibid. 602 (lyr.) άνω κάτω τιθείς... μέλαΟρα31: Fr. 600 τον νόμον άνω τε καί κάτω ταράσσων. F o r a m ore elaborate variation cf. Tro. 1243 θεός έστρεψε τάνω περιβαλών κάτω /θονός. A. Fr. 311 (probably from a sa'tyric play) (ΰς) δονούσα καί στρέφουσα τύρβ’ άνω κ ά τω : Eu. 650 τά 8’ άλλα πάντ’ άνω τε καί κάτω στρέφων. C o n trast the m ore elaborate expression in Pi. Ol. 12.6 πόλλ’ άνω τά δ’ αύ κάτω ... κυλίνδοντ’ ελπίδες. 2) “ U p and d o w n ” , “ T o and fro ” . T his use, fairly com m on in E., Comedy and Plato and never in A. o r S., may also be colloquial; it is n o t always distinct from 1), since it som etim es conveys the n o tio n o f confusion or instability. A r. A v . 3 άνω κάτω πλανύττομεν: Ach. 21 άνω καί κ ά τω : Lys. 709: M en. Κ. 1 ,3 : pro bably Frs. 140 and 447 (see K o e r t e ad loc.). PI. (in the m et. sense o f exam ining all possibilities) Phd. 96 A πολλάκις έμαυτόν άνω κάτω μετέβαλλον σκοπών Tht. 195 C όταν άνω κάτίυ τούς λόγους έλκη τ ις : Phaedr. 272 Β et saep. : (in the sense o f confusion or instability) Grg. 4 9 3 A μεταπίπτειν άνω κάτω: Hipp. Min. 3 76C άνω καί κάτω πλα.νώμαι: D . 2. 16 στρατείαις ταΐς άνω κάτω : D in. 1 .1 7 άνω καί κάτω μεταβαλόμενος (con­ trasted w ith keeping to the same policy). E. I T 282 κάρα τε διετίναξ’ άνο.» κάτω : Sup. 689 τούς άνω τε καί κάτω φορουμένους: ΕΙ. 842 παν δέ σώμ’ άνω κάτω ήσπαιρεν: Ph. 181 άνω τε καί κάτω τείχη μετρώ ν: H F 953 ό δ’ είρπ’ άνω τε καί κάτω: Βα. 741 ριπτόμεν’ άνω τε καί κ ά τω : ibid. 753. 3. άποκτείνειν “ T o irrita te ” : “ T o be the death o f ’. A ntiph. Fr. 52. 5 άποκτενεΐς άρά μ’ εί μη γνωρίμω ς... φράσεις. As, how ever, άποκτείνω in all senses is far less com m on in C om edy than άπόλλυμι32, so in this particular use άπολεΐς is the norm al w ord. Ar. Th. 1073 άπολεΐς μ’ ώ γραυ στωμυλλομένη: Ach. 470: V . 1202: A ntiph. Fr. 222. Pherecr. Fr. 108, 20. M en. Djsc. 412: Fr. 612, 1 : Sam. 528 άλλ’ άποκτενεΐς πριν είπεΐν.

31 In view o f the colloquial associations o f this phrase DODDsAendering “ making high things lo w ” is rather too stately, in spite of the lyric metre and poetic μέλαΟρα. 32 F o r A ristophanesT oD D ’s Index gives άποκτείνιυ 11; άπόλλυμι at least 167. F o r the Comic F rag m en ts M e i n e k e gives άποκτείνω 6; άπόλλυμι at least 45.

Colloquial expressions

άποΟνήσκειν, έκθνήσκειν are used in the co rresp o n d in g sense in A ntiph. Fr. 190 όρώντες έξέθνησκον επί του πράγματι. A r. Ach. 15. C om pare enicare in colloquial Latin, e.g. Plaut. True. 119 (in answ er to a repeated huc respice) O h! enicas me m iseram . T er. Eun. 554. E. Hip. 1064 οίμοι33, το σεμνόν ώς μ’ άποκτενεί το σόν. Or. 1027 σύ μή μ’ άπόκτειν’ ... τά δε παρόντ’ έα κακά. A g ath o n Fr. 13 άπολεΐς μ’ έρωτουν. 4. βρέχεσΟαι: “ T o be soaked” (of hard drinking). E ubul. Fr. 126 βεβρεγμένος ήκου και κεκωθωνισμένος: M en. E pit. 170 όχλος τις έρχεθ’ ύποβεβρεγμένουν: Dysc.23\ : ibid. 950 βραχεΐσα (or βρεχεΐσα). Luc. D . Dial. 23, 2 έν τω συμποσίου ίκανώς ύποβεβρεγμένοι: A lciphr. Ep. IV . 13. 12 (Loeb) ύποβεβρεγμέναι. Cf. PI. Snip. 176 B βεβαπτισμένος in the same sense, and the com m on use o f madere in colloquial Latin. E. E l. 326 μέθη δέ βρεχθείς. C ontrast the m ore form al ύπερπλησθείς μέθη in S. O T 779. 5. γέρων τύμβος and sim ilar expressions. “ O ld m an w ith one fo o t in the grave” . In ancient w riters on C om edy τυμβογέροντες is cited as one o f th e m ocking term s applied to old m en, along w ith Κρόνοι, Βεκκεσέληνοι, πρωτοσέληνοι; see D emian ’CXu k , Supp. Com . p. 26. So also τύμβος alone in A r. Lys. 372 τί δαί σύ πυρ, ώ τύμβ’, έχουν; cf. in colloquial Latin sepulcrum , e.g. Plaut. Pseud. 412 ex hoc sepulcro vetere viginti m inas eefodiam . E. Held. 166 (contem ptuous) εί γέροντας είνεκα τύμβου, το μηδέν οντος.,.ές άντλον έμβήση πόδα: Med. 1209 (self-pitying) τίς τον γέροντα τύμβον ορφανόν σέθεν τίθησιν; In these passages the cu rren t expression is slightly m odified, b u t the tone is probably still colloquial. T here may be a similar instance o f colloquial exaggeration in the use o f νεκρός in E. Or. 83—84 πάρεδρος άθλιου νεκρού/νεκρός γάρ ούτος ούνεκα σμικράς πνοής. Cf. M en. Kol. 50 πέρυσιν πτουχός ήσθα καί νεκρούς, / νυνί δέ πλουτειε, w here S a n d b a c h notes “ as we m ight say ‘a skeleton’” , and com pares Sannyrion fr. 2 K Μέλητον τον από Ληναίου νεκρόν. 6. έρρειν, άπέρρειν and o th er com pounds, generally in the im perative or an equivalent, in the sense “ be o ff w ith y ou” . C om pare άποφθείρεσθαι. Ar. V. 147 άτάρ ούκ έσερρήσεις γ ε 34; “ G et inside, dam n you !” (M acD ow ell) : P ax 1294 απερρε: Hub. 183'. C ratin. 123 ούκ άπερρήσεις συ θάττον; O ften :i:i O n ο’ίμο'. see p. 17. :u R l m s i . i -.v ’s

em endation, prim ed in O C T , is not necessary.

A. E x a g g e ra tio n : em phasis

13

stren g th en ed , e.g. Ar. PI. 604 έ'ρρ’ ές κόρακας : P ax 500 ούκ ές κόρακας έρρήσετε; Pherecr. 70, 5. H erod. 8. 59 ερρ’ έκ προσώπου: T heoc. 20. 2 έρρ’ άπ’ έμεΐο. Ε. A lc. 734 έ'ρρων νυν.,.γηράσκετε: Med. 1364 ερρ’, αίσγροποιέ: H F 261 άπέρρων... ύβριζε: H ip. 973 εξερρε: ΕΙ. 952 ερρ’, ούδέν είδους...: Λ η . 1223 σκήπρά τ’ έρρέτω τάδε (ly r.): Ph. 624 έρρέτω πρόπας δόμος: perhaps also Held. 67 άπερρ’35: Fr. 1125 ερρ’ ίω ν36. S. O C 1383 σύ δ’ ερρ’ άπόπτυστός37. έ'ρρειν is fairly com m on in H om er and elegiac po etry b u t is n o t found in th e A ttic orators o r the historians, except in X en o p h o n , e.g. Cyr. 6. 1. 3 έ'ρρει τάμα παντελώς, w here it may be due to D o rian influence; in H G 1. 1. 23 ερρει τα καλα the w ord is given to a D orian speaker. It also appears as a legal term in Elean and L ocrian inscriptions o f the fifth cen tu ry 38, and six times in late Platonic dialogues and L etters. In n o n -A ttic G reek it w ould count as a κύριον όνομα; in fifth century A thens its status seems doubtful. In Tragedy it is n o t rare in the heightened language o f lyric, e.g. A. A g. 419 ερρει πάσ’ Ά φροδίτα: S. O T 910 ερρει δέ τα θεία. O n the o th er hand its use in Comedy, especially in im precations, im plies th a t the w o rd was accepted in to ordinary A ttic speech, so th at possibly examples o f the same usage in T ragedy, confined to E uripides except for O C 1383, should be regarded as colloquial. So perhaps also H orn. II. 22. 498 ερρ’ ούτως: A rchil. 6. 4 άσπίς εκείνη έρρέτω. 7. εύδαιμονοίης “ Bless y o u ” , used as an expression o f thanks. A r. Ach. 446 δώ σω ... Εύδαιμονοίης39: ibid. 457 φευ- εύδαιμονοίης “ O h, 1 say, bless y o u :” Ra. 1417 (here perhaps ironical). E. Ph. 1086 εύδαιμονοίης. πώς γάρ Ά ρ γ ε ίω ν ...; Ale. 1137 εύδαιμονοίης, καί σ’ ό φιτεύσας πατήρ σωζοι: ΕΙ. 231 εύδαιμονοίης, μισθόν ήδιστον πόνων: Hyps. Fr. 64, 69-70 (B ond) εύδαιμονοίης, άξιος γάρ, ώ ξένε. Εύδαιμονοίης δήτα. P ea rso n (on Ph. 1086) observes th a t here εύδαιμονοίης is a conventional expression o f gratitu d e and regards it as colloquial: so also W il a m o w it z o n H F 275. In the o th e r exam ples in E ., how ever, it may be used m ore literally, and in any case if it w ere colloquial w e m ig h t expect m ore examples in C om edy and elsew here. Its lim itation to E ur. and A r. and the context in Ach. suggest th a t A r. is m erely im itating a favourite E uripidean w o rd 40;

35 If we accept, w ith P earso n

, Cobet ’s correction o f the M SS άπαιρ’.

36 SeeNAucK ad loc. 37 In the sam e sentence συλλαβίόν may also be colloquial. 38 See E . S c h w y z e r , D ialecto ru m G raecaru m exem pla epigraphica potiora, Leipzig 1923, 415. 39 But th e text is d o u b tfu l, and εύ σοι γένοιτο (ap. A thenaeus) may be right. 40 T h e verb εύδοαμονεΐν occurs 31 tim es in E., once in S. and never in A.

C olloquial expressions

14

certainly this is n o t the regular form ula fo r thanks, w hich is norm ally a phrase w ith καλώς o r έπαινεΐν41. 8. ήκιστα. ‘O f course n o t” . A r. Nub. 316, 380: V . 48: A v. 126: PI. 2 0 3 ,4 4 0 (ήκιστα πάντων), 1157: Tim ocl. 8 (ήκιστα γε). PI. R. 449 B (ήκιστα γ ε ) : Grg. 46 9 C: Smp. 2 0 2 D et saep. C om pare L atin minime, minime gentium, ήκιστα in this sense does n o t seem to have survived into m odern G reek. E. Hec. 997: H ip. 1014 (ήκιστά γε, answ ering the speaker’s ow n q u e stio n ): H F 299: Supp. 538: Hel. 1428: Or. 846: I A 1442: Cy. 124,220. S. E l. 82, 800: O T 623, 1386 (ήκιστά γ ε ) : Tr. 319: Ph. 522. 9. θαυμασίως (θαυμαστά) ώς and sim ilar expressions. A r. Ec. 386 ύπερφυώς ώς: PI. 750. H dt. 3. 113 θεσπέσιον ώς ήδύ: 4. 194 άφθονοι ίσοι. PI. Tht. 150D θαυμαστόν ίσον: ibid. 193D θαυμασίως ώς: Grg. 471 A, 496C : Phd. 6 6 Α ύπερφυώς ώς. D . 29. 1 θαυμασίως ώς. Cf. L atin mire quam, e.g. Cic. A tt. 1. 11. 3. E . I A 943 θαυμαστά δ’ ώς άνάξι’ ήτιμασμένη, w here θαυμαστά is probably an adverbial accusative. E n g l a n d , follow ing N a u c k and H e r m a n n , rejects this line on the g ro u n d th at θαυμαστά ώς is late G reek and the latter p a rt is taken from Hel. 455; b u t cf. S. Fr. Inc. 960 θαυμαστά γάρ το τόξον ώς ολισθάνει, and the close resem blance to Hel. 455 proves n o thing. 10. κακοδαίμων: “ p o o r devil” : also as a term o f abuse “ you w re tc h ” . A r. V ery com m on, e.g. Eq. 1 : PI. 386 : T o d d gives som e seventy examples. Pherecr. Fr. 117: A ntiph. Fr. 282: M en. Epit. 564: Frs. 88, 666. Fr. Com. A desp. 646 ούτος, καθεύδεις, ώ κακόδαιμον; PI. R. 440A ; Smp. 173D. In Men. 78A the w o rd seems to be used m ore seriously. In the O rators the only exam ple is A nt. 5. 43 ού γάρ δήπου ουτω κακοδαίμο^ν εγώ ώ σ τε..., w here it is probably colloquial: “ I w asn ’t such a confounded f o o l...” T he w eakened sense o f this w ord is sh o w n by A r. Ec. 1102άρ’ ού κακοδαίμων είμί; βαρυδαίμο^ν μέν ούν; cf. also τρισκακοδαίμων. C ontrast the poetic δυσδαίμίυν, three times each in A. and S., tw enty-one times in Ε. Ε. Hip. 1362 (anap.) τον κακοδαίμονα καί κατάρατον. I include this w ord because the positive evidence, to g eth er w ith the avoidance o f the w ord elsew here in tragedy in favour o f δυσδαίμων and 41 See p. 54.

A. E x ag g eratio n : em phasis

15

βαρυδαίμων, suggest th a t E . is here using a w o rd th at w ould norm ally have a colloquial fla v o u r42, th o u g h he is probab ly go in g back to its original, literal m eaning “ ill-starred” . T h o m p s o n (on PI. Men. 7 8 A) may be right th a t ‘this w o rd , like o u r ‘G o d fo rsak en ’, th o u g h vulgarly abused, was capable on occasion o f carrying the full w eight o f an aw ful m eaning” . T hus E. p ro b ably counted on the tragic context to restore the full m eaning and suppress trivial associations. κατάρατος is sim ilar, b u t the literal and w eakened senses seem m ore clearly to coexist. It is m uch less com m on than κακοδαίμων in Com edy (nine tim es in Ar. and eight in the Com ic F ragm ents), th o u g h the w eakened sense is particularly well illustrated in Ar. V . 1157 ύπολύου τάς καταράτους έμβάδας “ U nfasten the blasted shoes” . O n the o th er hand it occurs eight tim es in E. in its literal sense, generally in anapaests o r lyric m etres, and in S. O T 1345 τον καταρατότατον, έτι δέ καί Οεοΐς έχθρότατον43. T h ere are no exam ples in Plato, b u t κατάρατος as a term o f abuse occurs several tim es in D em osthenes. T here is a sim ilar contrast betw een the colloquial use of δύστηνος, e.g. A r. Ec. 763 ώ δύστηνε “ my p o o r fellow ” and its tragic use, as in S. O T 1071 ίου, ιού, δύστηνε. 11. κ α κώ ς (άπ)ολούμενος.

A r. P ax 2 δος αύτώ, τώ κάκιστ’ άπολουμένω “ G ive it to him , blast him ” ; Thesm. 879 πείθει τι τούτω τώ κακώς άπολουμένω; in the vocative Ec. 1076 ώ κάκιστ’ άπολούμεναι Α ν. 1467: Ach. 778, 924: PI. 456, 713. Ε. Held. 874 ελεύθεροι δέ τού κακώς ολουμένου / Εύρυσθέως έ'σεσθε: Cy. 474 του Κύκλωπος τού κακώς ολουμένου. T he use o f the simple verb, norm al in poetry, may make the phrase slightly less colloquial. 12. κλαίειν standing alone, o r κλαίων w ith a verb, in the sense “ sm art for so m eth in g ” . A r. Ach. 822 κλάων μεγαριεϊς: P a x 255 et saep. E up. Fr. 209 έκεΐνος άμέλει κλαύσεται. Still m ore idiom atically w here κλάων is used elliptically, e.g. Ar. Ach. 827 ού γάρ φανώ τούς πολεμίους; Δι. κλάων γε σύ. C om pare H or. Sat. 2. 1. 44 (perhaps an im itation o f the G reek idiom ) ille qu i me c o m m o rit...flebit. E . A n . 577 πριν κλαίειν τιν ά : H ip. 1086 κλαίω ν τις τ ε θ η ζ ε τ α ι: Held. 2 70: A n . 634, 7 5 8 : Sup. 458 κλαίω ν αν ή λθες: Ι Α 306. Probably Tel. fr. 10 (A u s t in

= FI a n d l e y

- R ea p . 7) κ λ α ίω [v] πλανήσει.

42 Cf.WiLAMOWiTZ on E. H F 440. 43 θεοί; εχθρός was sim ilarly used colloquially in a w eakened sense, e.g. M en. Perk. 268 άλαζών καί θεοϊσιν έχΟρός εΐ.

C olloquial expressions

A. Sup. 925 κλαίοις άν εί ψαύσειας: S. A n t. 754: OT. 401, 1152. This sense o f κλαίειν probably goes back to H orn. II. 2. 263 αύτόν δέ κλαίοντα θοάς επί νήας άφήσω πεπλήγων άγορήθεν, w here κλαίοντα means sm arting under the blow s o f O dysseus rath er than m erely w eeping. In fifth century A thens at any rate it seems to be colloquial. C ontrast various poetic m odifications in the tragedians, e.g. A. A g. 1628 καί ταΰτα τάπη κλαυμάτων άρχηγενή : S. E l. 911 μηδέ... έξεστ’ άκλαύστω ... άποστήναι: A n t. 931 (lyr.) τοΐσιν άγουσιν κλαύμαθ’ υπάρξει βραδύτητας υπέρ: Ph. 1260 ΐσως άν έκτος κλαυμάτων εχοις πόδα44. 13. μαινοίμην γάρ άν. “ I should be a fo o l” . T h e phrase is in o rig in elliptical, and w hen it follows a negative o r virtu al negative means “ I should be a fool (if I did)” so that the best renderin g is som etim es “ I ’m n o t such a fo o l” , or, w hen it follows a positive statem ent, “ I should be a fool (if I d id n ’t)” and so “ O f course I d o ” . Ar. Th. 196 μή νυν έλπίσης το σόν κακόν ήμάς ύφέξειν- καί γάρ άν μαινοίμεθ’ ά ν: ΡΙ. 1070 μά την Έ κάτην ού δήτα- μαινοίμην γάρ άν. C om pare Th. 470 μισώ τον άνδρ’ εκείνον, εί μή μαίνομαι: Nub. 660. D . 19. 138 ζητή πόλλ’ άναλίσκειν, έξον έλ ά ττω ...; μαίνοιτο μένταν: Prooem . 1453 ού χείρους υμάς ήγοΰμαι Θηβαίων (καί γάρ άν μαινοίμην) : [PL] E ryx. 395 Ε άγαθόν ήγή τό πλουτεΐν; Έ γ ω γ ε νή Δία - ή γάρ άν μαινοίμην. Ε. Ι Α 1256 φιλώ τ ’ έμαυτου τέκνα- μαινοίμην γάρ άν. Cf. Ι Α 388—389 εί δ’ ... μετετέθην ... μαίνομαι; “ am I a fo o l” ? 14. μάλιστα (som etim es strengthened by γε o r πάντων) in assenting to a request o r answ ering a question. “ C ertainly” : “ O f course” : “ V ery m uch so” . Ar. μάλιστα P ax 834: Ec. 1128: PI. 827. μάλιστάγε N u. 253, 672: Ra. 125: Fr. 149, 7. μάλιστα πάντων Α ν . 1531 : Ec. 768. M en. Epitr. 554 μάλιστα. PI. μάλιστα Prt. 311 E : Grg. M I C et saep. μ. πάντων Phdr. 2 6 2 C: R. 3 6 8 E : Phlb. 11C. C om pare the use o f μάλιστα as an expression o f assent in m odern colloquial G reek ( T h u m b , § 283) and maxime in the same sense in colloquial Latin. Ε. μάλιστα Med. 677 θέμις μέν ήμάς χρησμόν είδέναι θεού; μάλιστα: ibid. 944: Held. 641,794: Hec. 989, 1004: Tr. 63: Hei. 1415: Or. 235: Ba. 812. In Or. 1108 μάλιστα confirm s the statem ent o f the previous speaker, μάλιστά γε Hei. 851 (answ ering the speaker’s ow n rhetorical question): I A 364 (con­ firm ing the speaker’s ow n statem ent). S. μάλιστα O T 1044, 1173: E l. 386. μ. γε O T 994: Tr. 669. μ. πάντων El. 665. 44 A variation o f the p ro v erb ial έκτος πηλοϋ πόδας έ'χειν (Z en o b . I ll 62); cf. E . Held. 109 καλόν δέ γ ’ έξω πραγμάτων έ'χειν πόδα.

A. Exaggeration: emphasis

17

15. μάλλον μάλλον and sim ilar phrases. A r. Nub. 1288 πλέον πλέον τάργύριον άεί γίγνεται: Ra. 1001 εΐτα μάλλον μάλλον θίξεις: A ntiph. Fr. 10 μεΐζον μεΐζον: Alexid. Fr. 29 το πρώτον ήσυχη, επειτα μάλλον μάλλον: Fr. 181 : Anaxil. Fr. 32. H erod. 4. 61 κεΐνται ocl σάρκες ota θερμά, θερμά πηδεΰσαι. So in L atin magis magis increbrescunt Cat. 64. 275. Cf. m o d ern G reek κάτω κάτω “ rig h t d o w n ” and French a qui mieux mieux. E. I T 1406 μάλλον δέ μάλλον προ; πέτρας ήεί σκάφος. In S. Fr. 201 μίαν μίαν is apparently colloquial fo r κατά μίαν; see P e a r so n ad loc., and cf. δύο δύο in A IT . ( B lass - D e b r u n n e r § 298) 16. μή ζωήν: “ I ’m dam ned if 1 w ill” . A r. Lys. 531 μή νυν ζωήν: Nub. 1255 θήσω πρυτανεΓ, ή μηκέτι ζωήν εγώ “ Γ11 take you to court, dam ned if 1 w o n ’t ” . In Ra. \Ί Ί άναβιοίην νυν πάλιν is the com ic equivalent w hen a dead m an is speaking. E. Sup. 454 μή ζωήν ετι / εί τάμά τέκνα προς βίαν νυμφεύσεται: Or. 1147 μή γάρ ούν ζωήν ετι, / ήν μή ’π ’ εκείνη φάσγανον σπασώμεθα. 17. οϊμοι expressing annoyance or im patience; norm ally in tragedy it is an expression o f g rief o r pity. A r .Nub. 788 τις ήν έν ή ’ματτόμεθα μέντοι τάλφιτα; οϊμοι, τις ήν; “ O h, w hat was it?” Eq. 97: Nub. 57: Th. 781. Especially com m on w ith ώς, e.g. Nub. 1238 οϊμ’ ώς καταγελάς: Α ν . 1501: Th. 920: Pherecr. Fr. 108, 20: M en. Dysc. 167. E. H ip. 1064 οϊμοι, το σεμνόν ώς μ’ άποκτενεΐ45 το σόν: Βα. 805 οϊμοι, τόδ’ ήδη δόλιον έ'ς με μηχανα “ O h, n ow this is som e tr ic k ...” S. A n t. 320 οϊμ’ ώς λάλημα δήλον έκπεφυκός εϊ: ibid. 86 οϊμοι, καταύδα “ O h, denounce it” . 18. πονεΐν in w eakened sense. E. Ph. 614 Polyneices, o rd ered to leave T hebes, replies ειμι, μή πόνει “ I ’m going, d o n ’t w o rry ” : E l. 1007 (in a slightly different sense) μή σύ μοι πόνει “ please d o n ’t b o th e r” . T hese uses o f πονεΐν sound colloquial, b u t I know o f no examples in com edy o r prose dialogue. 19. φθείρεσθαι and com pounds, used in the im perative m ood (or its equiv­ alent) in dismissal com bined w ith im precation. “ T o Hell w ith you” . A r. Ach. 460 φθείρου λαβών τόδ’ : Eq. 892 ούκ ές κόρακας άποφΟερεΐ; Νιώ. 789: ΡΙ. 598 φθείρου: ibid. 610: Fr. 59 (D em .) ούκ άποφΟερεΐ, κάθαρμα; Sannyr. 45 On άποκτείνειν, also colloquial in this sense, see p. 11.

C olloquial expressions

Fr. 10: M en. Peric. 526 ούκ είσφθερεΐσθε Οαττον υμείς εκποδών; Sam. 373, 574, 627: 57,6.343. H erod. 6. 15 εκποδών ήμΐν φθείρεσθε, νοόβυστρ’. Ε. Η F 1290 ού γης τήσδ’ άποφθαρήσετοα; A n . 708 εί μή φθερή τήσδ’ .. άπό στέγης: ibid. 715 φθείρεσθε τήσδε, δμώ ες: Held. 284 φθείρου: Fr. 610 φθείρου. In the colloquial idiom the idea o f dism issal is m uch m ore p ro m in en t than the literal sense o f destruction, and the usage is an instance o f colloquial exaggeration. In A ristophanes and H erodas it generally am ounts m erely to an expression o f im patience, and the sense is som ething like “ As lo n g as you clear out o f here, you can go to Hell fo r all I care” ; com pare A r. P ax 72 έκφθαρείς ούκ οΐδ’ οποί,. In the exam ples from E uripides th e force o f φθείρου may be nearer to its literal sense th an in A ristophanes, b u t the em phasis is mainly on angry and im p atien t dism issal, so that they to o fall w ithin the sphere o f the colloquial. C om pare other colloquial uses o f φθείρεσθοα, e.g. D . 21. 139 φθείρεσθοα προς τούς πλουσίους “ to go running o ff to the rich ” : perhaps M en. Dysc. 101 εκεί περί,φθεί,ρόμενον άχράδας w here L loyd - J ones translates “ p ro w lin g ro u n d the pears, curse him ” . F or different views o f the passage see H a n d l e y , ad loc.

B. P le o n a stic or le n g th en ed form s o f expression 1. ούτω G enerally follow ing adverbs, especially άπλώς' and ραδίως, and reinforcing th eir m eaning. “ Q u ite sim ply” . A r. V . 634 οΰτω ραδίως (M a c d o w el l translates “ so easily” , referring back to 513—525, b u t this is a bit rem ote): Ec. 666 ούχ ύβριεΐται φαύλους ούτως, b u t th e sense here may be “ n o t so lightly (as he did before)” . PI. απλώς ούτως Grg. 468C : Smp. 180C: R. 331C : ραδίως ούτω R. 377B: 3 7 8 A : Lg. 79 9 D : 81 7 C. D . 18. 126 ραδίως ούτως: 19. 36 άντικρυς ούτωσί: 20. 97 σαφώς γ ’ ούτωσί: sim ilarly w ith an adjective, D . 21. 71 έν συνουσία τινί καί διατριβή ούτως ιδία “ q u ite p riv ate” . T h eo cr. 14. 27 άσυ/α ούτως “ just on the q u iet” . E . Sup. 1186 ραδίως ούτω: I Λ ί 899 άπλώς ούτω. T h e same usage is also fo u n d in H om er, b u t only in the phrase μάψ ούτω II. 2. 120: 20. 29846. 2. πολλού (γε) δει: “ F ar from it” . PI. Grg. 4 7 4 B πολλοΰ γε δει: ibid. 5 1 0 E άρ’ ούν καί το μή άδικεΐν; ή πολλού δει, είπ ε ρ ...; D . 18. 47 άλλ’ ούκ εστι ταΰτα- πόθεν; πολλοΰ γε καί δει: 20. 106: 21. 71: 29. 40. Ε. Tel. Fr. 709 καθήσθ’ αν έν δόμοισιν; ή πολλού γε δει47. T his phrase w hen standing alone, w ith o u t an in fin itiv e48, and used as a stren g th en ed form o f the n e g ativ e 49, seems to be conversational in the fo u rth century, and possibly in th e tim e o f E uripides, th o u g h contem porary evidence is la ck in g 50. C ontrast the m ore elaborate form o f expression in A. Pr. 961 μή τί σοι δοκώ τ α ρ β ε ΐν ...; πολλού γε καί τού παντός ελλείπω. 46 F o r a n o th e r colloquial use o f οΰτο;ς see below p .5 6. 47 N auck prints a full stop after δει, but perhaps it is better to take the phrase as inter­ rogative here, as in PL Grg. 510 E . 48 E xpressions like έλα/ίστου έδέτ^σε διαφθεϊραι (T huc. 2. 77, 5) and uses o f πολλοΰ δει with an infinitive in P lato are different. 49 F o r πολλοΰ δει as a m ore forcible equivalent o f ού com pare PI. Grg. 517 A πολλοΰ γε δει μή ποτέ τις έργάσηται... 50 A r. A ch . 543 (cited by L SJ) is p aratragic, and in fact E. Fr. 709 is its source.

C olloquial expressions

3. τό w ith genitive used periphrastically fo r the simple n oun. Som e­ tim es it is possible to assign som e force to the article, e.g. “ the state or condition o f som ething” , b u t even so it adds practically n o th in g to the m eaning o f the noun. M en. fr. 340 ( K o e r t e ) μικρόν τι το βίου καί στενόν ζώμεν χρόνον. PI. Phdr. 23 0 C πάντων δέ κομψότατον τό τής πόας: R. 5 6 3 C το των θηρίων... όσω έλευθερώτερά έστιν (perhaps “ the co ndition o f w ild beasts” ): ibid. 571 A το των επιθυμιών. In T huc. 7. 61. 3 (in a speech) το τής τύχης καν μεθ’ ημών έλπισάντες στήναι D o v e r takes the phrase to m ean “ the c o n trib u tio n o f chance to the situ atio n ” , b u t if T huc. had w ritten την τύχην the sense w ould have been practically the sam e; so also 7. 62. 2 το τής επιστήμης51. E. Ion 742 ιδού- το του ποδος μέν βραδύ, το τού δέ νοΰ ταχύ “ T h e old fo o t’s a bit s lo w ...” Tro. 43 το του θεού τε παραλιπά>ν τό τ ’ εύσεβές “ au m epris du dieu” (P a r m e n t ie r ) : ibid. 616 το τής άνάγκης δεινόν: Ale. 785 το τής τύχης γάρ αφανές οί προβήσεται: Ι Α 1403: in I T 120 ού γάρ το τού θεού γ ’ αίτιον γενήσεται, θεού gives doub tfu l sense and som e editors p rin t W e i l ’s το τοΰδε. C om pare the periphrastic use o f the article w ith prepositions replacing a simple genitive. A r. Thes. 1188 καλή το σκήμα περί το πόστιον. H d t. 1. 67 κατά τον κατά Κροΐσον χρόνον: PL Phdr. 27 9 Α κατά τούς περί Λυσίαν λόγους “ according to Lysias’ argum ents” : D . 19. 76 τού περί Φωκέας ολέθρου. E. Tro. 426 οί περί τυράννους καί πόλεις ύπηρέται. T h e frequency o f such periphrastic uses in Ptolem aic p a p y ri52 suggests that in th at p erio d and probably earlier this was a p o p u lar usage, th o u g h lack o f evidence from Com edy makes it d o u b tfu l for the fifth century. 4. χρήμα is used in various colloquial idiom s, o f w hich those th a t are found in Tragedy may be roughly classified as fo llo w s53: 1. χρήμα used pleonastically. A r. Lys. 677 ίππικώτατον γάρ έστι χ. κάποχον γυνή: PI. Com. 98: Fr. Com. A desp. 1260. M en. A sp. 244.

51 τά - 7 ' -Jy/yf is rather different, since the plural suggests the ups and dow ns o f fortune. 52 See R udbrrg , Ad usum circum scribentem praep. G raecarum adnotationes. E ranos 19, 1919; 1 7 3 ff.; K u iir in g , De p raep o sitio n ib u s G raecis in chartisA egvptiis quaestionesselectae pp. 12-15; ClQu 30, 1936, 211-215. See L . B l r g s o n , E ranos 65, 1967, 79—115 for a rather m o r e elaborate classification o f p eriphrastic uses o f χρήμα. He also discusses in detail the use o f χρήμα in post-classical w riters.

B. Pleonastic or len g th en ed form s o f expression

21

H d t. 3. 53 τυραννίς χ. σφαλερόν54: 3. 80: 4. 150: 8. 16. PL Ion 534B κούφον γάρ χ. ποιητής: Grg. 485Β : Men. 97E . X en. Cyr. 1 .4 .8 . T heocr. 15,23 σοφόν τοι χ. άνθρωπος. Ε . A n . 727 άνειμένον τι χ. πρεσβυτών γένος: Or. 70 άπορον χ. δυστυχών δομος: Fr. 96 σκαιόν τι χ. πλούτος ή τ ’ άπειρία: Fr. 317, 4 εχθρόν χ. πρεσβύτης ανηρ. Perhaps also Βα. 1152 οιμαι δ’ αύτό καί σοφώτατον / θνητοΐσιν είναι χρήμα τοΐσι χρωμένοις55. 2. χρήμα used periphrastically w ith a genitive. A r. Nub. 2 το χ. των νυκτών όσον: IX. 933 κλέπτον το χ. τάνδρός “ W hat a th iev in g th in g ...” : 150: Eq. 1219: 826: A*. 1278: Lys. 83, 1031, 1085: Ec. 394: PI. 894: Fr. 67: Telecl. fr. 1, 15. H d t. 1. 36 ύός χ. μέγα άνεφάνη: 7. 188 τού χειμώνος χ. άφόρητον: 3. 109. Ρ1. R. 567 Ε μακάριον λέγεις τυράννου χ . : Tbeaet. 209 E. Cf. Plaut. Am ph. 633 satin parva res est voluptatum? U ssh er (on A r. Ec. 394) com pares an Irish p h rase expressing sm allness “ a w eethin” o f... (i.e. a wee th in g o f...). So also in G erm an “ ein kleines D ing von einem Z w e rg ” . E. Sup. 953 σμικρόν το χ. τού βίου: A n . 181 έπίφθονόν τοι χ. Οηλείας φρενός: ibid. 957 σοφόν τι χ. τού διδάξαντος βροτούς...: Ph. 198 φιλόψογον δέ χ. θηλείων έ’φυ. S. Fr. 401 {Meleager) συός μέγιστον χ. T his use o f χρήμα is fairly com m on in the A tticists (S c h m id , A tt. II p. 166), b u t it p ro b ab ly began as a colloquial usage and was felt to be such in the fifth and fo u rth centuries, (πράγμα is so used in Com edy, e.g. Alex. fr. 179 πράγμα μέγα φρέατος.) 3. χρήμα “ the th in g ” , i.e. the state o f affairs. A r. V . 799 όρα το / . : Ra. 795 το χ. άρ’ έσται; Lys. 660 κάπιδοίσειν μοι δοκεΐ το χ. μάλλον : Ρ α χ 38 μιαρόν το χ. H d t. 4. 150 ές αφανές χ. άποστέλλειν αποικίαν. PI. Ale. II 147C ύπερφυώς δή το χ. ούς δύσγνωστον φαίνεται. Ε . ΕΙ. 606 εύρημα γάρ τοι χ. γίγνεται τόδε, κοινή μετασχεΐν: Or. 912 όμοιον γάρ το χ. γίγνεται τώ τούς λόγους λέγοντι καί τιμωμένω: Fr. 339 σκαιόν τι δή τό χ. ... όστις θέλει... S. Ph. 1265 κακόν τό χ . : Tr. 1136 άπαν το χ., ήμαρτε “ the w hole th in g is ...” Ichn. 38, 136, 365. 4. τί χρήμα as subject o r object o f a verb expressed o r u n d ersto o d , and used pleonastically for τί. L. B e r g s o n m aintains th a t this phrase connotes 54 In som e exam ples, w here the con n ectio n w ith χρασθαι is latent, the usage is n o t entirely pleo n astic; e.g. τυραννίς is n o t m erely σφαλερόν τι but σφαλερόν χρήμα “ a slippery thing to h a n d le ” . So also Ba. 1152, w h ere the connection is explicit. ■is χ τ ή μ α O rio n : χ ρ ή μ α P et Chr. Pat. M u r r a y fo r χ ρ ή μ α .

prints κ τ ή μ α b u t D o d d s in his note argues

C olloquial expressions

excitem ent o r im patience, b u t I d o u b t w hether, especially in E uripides, it is m ore than a m annerism , som etim es m etrically convenient. Ar. Nub. 816 τί χ. πάσχεις; V . 266 τί χ. πέπονθε; ibid. 697 ούκ οίδ’ δ τι χ. με π ο ιείς: Tb. 270: V . 834 τί ποτέ το χ. C om pare Italian “ che cosa?” for “ w h a t” ? E. (w ith verb expressed) w ith δραν: Med. 693, 748: Ion 343, 1348: I T 738, 938, 1215: Hel. 782, 826: Or. 849, 1186, 1583. W ith πάσχειν H ip. 909: Or. 395. W ith o th er v e rb s : Sup. 115: Med. 868: Hec. 754: Ion 266, 276: Hel. 1238: Or. 757. (W ith verb understood, gen. έστι) Hip. 905 έ'α, τί χρήμα; A n . 896: H F 525: Or. 1573. τί χρήμα standing alone: A n . 901: Sup. 92: H F 714: Ion 1002: E l. 751, 901: I A 726. A. Ch. 10 τί χ. λεύσσοο: Pr. 298: A g. 1306 τί δ’ έστι χ . ; Ch. 885 (all fro m th e last plays). Ag. 85 τί χρέος; is a less co llo q u ial v a ria n t; see F r a e n k e l ad loc. S. A j. 288 τί χ. δρας; A n t. 1049 άρα φράζεται; τί χ . ; Ph. 1231 τί χ. δράσεις; Ο Γ 1129: E l. 390. 5. τί χρήμα equivalent to τί in the sense “ w hy” ? E. A le. 512: Held. 633, 646, 709: Hec. 977: Sup. 92: H F 1179: Ion 255: E l. 831: Or. 111. This use seems to be confined to E uripides.

C. U n d erstatem en t: irony 1. αληθές; used ironically: “ Is th a t so ?” “ In d eed ?” A r. Ach. 557 αληθές, ώπίτριπτε καί μιαρώτατε; Eq. 89 αληθές, ούτος; Nub. 841: V . 1223. 1412: Α ν . 174, 1048,1606: Lys. 433: PI. 123,429. (Ra. 840 = E . Fr. 8 8 5) 56. C om pare itane? in colloquial L atin, e.g. Plaut. True. 291: Ter. And. 643. E. Fr. Inc. 885 αληθές, ώ παΐ τής θαλασσίας θεού. A lso Cy. 241. S. A n t. 758: O T 350. 2. οιμαι, generally w ith μέν o r γε, strictly d en o tin g contrast w ith certainty b u t actually m aking a confident assertion. A r. Th. 26 όρας το θύριον τούτο; Μν. νή τον 'Ηρακλέα, οίμαί γε. “ I should th in k I d o !” Ra. 491 ανδρείά γ ’ ώ ΙΙόσειδον. Δι. οίμαι νή Δία: Ach. 9 19 57: P ax 863: Th. 594 ούκ οϊομαι ’γω γ ’ ££Ι should think n o t indeed” . M en. Sam. 77 εγώ μέν ο’ίομαι “ I should think you w ill” . A ndoc. De M jst. 22 ταυτί έλεγεν άν . . ή ου; εγώ μέν οίμ α ι: X. Mem. 4. 2. 37 καί δήμον άρ’ οίσθα τί έστιν; οιμαι έγω γε5859: ibid. 4. 6. 3: Lys. 26. 8: PI. Crit. 4 7 D . In X. Mem. 3. 14. 2 οίμαι is sim ilarly used w ith the ironical πω in ούκ οίμαί πω επί τούτω γε όψοφάγοι καλούνται “ I have yet to le a rn ...” D em . 20. 4 άρ’ οΰν θησόμεθα ν ό μ ο ν ...; έγώ μέν ούκ οίμαι. E. A le. 780 τά θνητά πράγματ’ οίδας ήν εχει φύσιν; οίμαι μέν ου- πόθεν γάρ; ibid. 794 οίμαι μέν: Ι Α 392 (a sim ilar use in parenthesis) ή δέ γ ’ ’Ελπίς, οιμαι μέν, θεός. A p art from the above type o f expression, οιμαι may som etim es have a colloquial flav o u r; e.g. in the p arenthetic use in w hich, by characteristic A ttic u n d erstatem ent, it generally means “ no d o u b t” “ o f course” and occurs in A r. and often in E ur. and orators. A r. Nub. 1185: P ax 1286: A v . 75. D em . 20. 60, 113, 162 et saepM 56 R. A . N e i l (on A r. E q. 89), follow ing T h o m a s M a g i s t e r , says “ confined to p o ets” ; b u t its frequency in com edy suggests that it is not poetic b u t a colloquial expression no longer c u rren t in the later fo u rth century and so n o t fo u n d in prose dialogue or in the orators. 57 T he Bude edition (van Daele) rightly translates “ sans d o u te ” . 58 T he phrase occurs, in a series o f replies, betw een πάντως δήπου and πώς γάρ οΰ; and does n o t den o te less confidence than either. 59 S eeJ. W a c k e r n a g e l , K leine Schriften, G o ttin g e n 1955, 784ff.

Colloquial expressions

E. Ale. 565: Held. 511 (bitterly ironical): ibid. 968: Med. 311, 331": H ip. 458: E l. 1124: Ba. 321 [Rh.] 750. A. Cho. 758 (spoken by N u rse): Pr. 758, 968 (b o th in stichom ythia). S. A n t. 1051: Ph. 498 (bitterly iro n ical)60. Fr. 583, 4. 3. ου τί που, ου που in incredulous o r relu ctan t questions. (D . p. 492.) ου τί που is invariable in Ar. and P I.; the sh o rter form , perhaps used by E ur. for m etrical convenience, is pro b ab ly also colloquial. It tends to be confused w ith ή που and ουπω61. A r .N ub. 1260: P ax 1211: A v . 443: Lys. 354: Ra. 522, 526: Ec. 329, 372. PI. Tht. 146A : R. 362D. Scol. A non. 894 (in a statem ent) φίλταθ’ Ά ρμ όδι’, ου τί που τέθνηκας “ Y ou are n o t dead, I th in k ” . E. ου τί που: H F 966: Ion 1113: Hel. 95, 475, 541: Or. 1510. (here grim ly ironical) ου τί που κραυγήν έ'θηκας; “ Y ou d id n ’t, I suppose, m ake a n o ise?” In the follow ing passages ου που is read by m ost editors (ή που o r ουπω being occasional variants): E l. 235, 630: Hel. 575, 600, 791: I T 930: I A 670. In the follow ing ου που is generally accepted as a co rrection .of ουπω : Sup. 153: H F 1101, 1173: Hel. 135. T he em endation o f the M S reading ή που to ου που in the follow ing passages is do u b tfu l, since either com bination w ill fit m any contexts: Med. 69562, 1308: Or. 435, 844. A. Pr. 247 μή πού τι προύβης τώνδε καί περαιτέρω; S. Ph. 1233 ου τί που δούναι νοείς; Pi. Ρ. 4. 87 (in a statem ent) ου τί που ούτος ’Απόλλων. As this p u rp o rts to be the rem ark o f a bystander, it need n o t co n trad ict the colloquial char­ acter o f the expression. 4. ούκ αν φθάνοις w ith a participle: “ Y ou w o u ld n ’t be to o s o o n ...” i.e. “ H u rry up and do som ething” 63. Less com m only in the first and third persons, to indicate that som ething is going to be done at once. A r. (im perative sense) Ec. 118 ούκ αν φθάνοις το γένειον άν περιδουμένη: ΡΙ. 485, 874, 1133: Α ν. 1018 ώς ούκ οιδ’ αν εί φθα ίης άν (sc. ύπάγω ν): (future sense) Fr. A desp. 599 ούκ άν φθάνοιμι την μάχαιραν παρακονών. 60 F. E l l e n d t , Lexicon S ophocleum , Berlin 18722, 521 is m istaken in o b serv in g “ vis verbi ειρωνική a Sophocleis abest.” 01 R. K an n ic h t (on Hel. 135) draw s atten tio n to a tendency o f T riclinios to “ c o rre c t” ου που to ή που, and has an in terestin g n o te on these variants in relation to the h isto ry o f the text o f Euripides. 62 H ere MuRRAYand P ace accept W itzsch el ’s ού που, since incredulity is m ost ap p ro p riate, w hereas in 1308 the m ore open q u estio n , perhaps sarcastic, is appropriate. 63 See K . L a m w e r m a n n : V on d er attischen U rb an itat un d ihrer A u sw irk u n g in der Sprache 77-78.

C. U n d erstatem en t: irony

25

H d t. (im perative) 7. 162 ούκ άν φθάνοιτε άπαλλασσόμενοι: PI. (im perative) Smp. 1 8 5 E : Phd. 100C : (future) Euthd. 27 2 D ούκ άν φθάνοις άκούων “ Y ou shall hear at once ’ : Smp. 2 1 4 E : X. Alem. 2. 3. 11 ούκ άν φθάνοις λέγουν “ H urry u p and tell me : ibid. 3. 11. 1. D. 25. 40 τούς γευομένους κύνας των προβάτων κατακοπτειν φασί δεΐν, ώ στ’ ούκ άν φθάνοι κατακοπτόμενος “ T h e sooner h e’s ch o p p ed up the b e tte r” . E . (im perative) Pile. 662 φυτεύων παΐδας ούκέτ’ άν φθάνοις: Held. 721: Tr. 456 : I T 245 : Or. 1551 : (probably future) Or. 936 ού φθάνοιτ’ ετ’ άν θνήσκοντες: ibid. 941 ού φθάνοι θνήσκων τις άν, θνήσκειν being used as the passive o f κτείνειν: “ Y ou will pro m p tly be killed” . 5. Indefinite τις, τι used to d enote a) som eone o f im portance; b) w ith λέγειν, som ething o f value. Also λέγειν ούδέν in the contrary sense. a) C ratin. Fr. 54 βουλομένους τινάς είναι: M en. Fr. 156 K. PI. Λ ρ . 41 E ο’ίονταί τι είναι: Grg. 4 7 2A : Euthyd. 303C : Phdr. 2 4 2 E : D. 21. 213 το δοκ ειν τινές είναι: T heoc. 11. 79 κάγώ τις φαίνομαι ήμεν. C om pare Cic. A tt. 3. 15. 8 meque ...velis esse aliquem: Ju v . 1. 73 si vis esse aliquid... So in E nglish, “ W hen everyone is som ebody, T hen no o n e’s any­ b o d y ” . Similarly in French quelqPun. E. Held. 973 φημί κάμ’ είναι τινα: E l. 939 ηύχεις τις είναι: Ιοη 596 ήν ζητώ τις είναι. b) A r. V . 75 άλλ’ ούδέν λέγει: 649 ήν μή τι λέγης: Eq. 334 ούδέν λέγει το σωφρόνως τραφήναι et saep. A ntiph. F r. 194, 6 ούκ οιδ’ δ τι λέγεις- ούδέν λέγεις γάρ. PI. Cra. 4 0 4 Α κινδυνεύεις τι λέγειν et saep. D . 39. 13 σκοπεΐτ’ άν τι δοκώ λέγειν. Ε. H E 219 ήν τί σοι δοκώ λέγειν: Βα. 479 τούτ’ αύ παρωχέτευσας εύ κούδέν λέγουν: Sup. 596 αρετή δ’ ούδέν λέγει64 βρότοισι “ means n o th in g ” (cf. Ar. Eq. 334). 5. O T 1475 λέγω τι; “ A m I rig h t? ” 6. υγιές ούδέν: “ N o g o o d ” . A r. Ach. 956 πάντιυς μέν οίσεις ούδέν υγιές: Th. 636 άπόδυσον αύτόν- ούδέν υγιές γάρ λέγει: Ec. 32565: PI. 50, 274, 355, 362, 870: ΡΙ. 37 υγιές μηδέ Ιν: Th. 394 τάς ούδέν ύγιές: M en. Sik. 152-153 μηδέ εν ποιεΐν ύγιές. Lys. 9. 4 επί μηδέν! ύγιεΐ κατειλέχθαι: D . 18. 242 κίναδος τάνθρώπιον... ούδέν έξ άρ/ής ύγιές πεποιηκός... αύτοτραγικος πίθηκος: 19. 12, 171: D in. 1. 48: Ρ1. Phd. 6 9 Β : R. 603Β : Phdr. 2 4 2 Ε et saep. 64 So LP and O .C .T . Some ed ito rs p rin t φέρει LA «5 N a u c k , T .G .F . Fr. A desp. 52, but there is no evidence that the line is taken from a tragedy.

Colloquial expressions

E . A n . 952 υγιές γάρ ούδέν αί θύραθεν είσοδοι δρώσιν γυναικών: ibid. 448: Hei. 746: Ph. 201: Βα. 262: Fr. 493, 5: 659, 5: 824: Cy. 259. S. Ph. 1006 ώ μηδέν υγιές... φρονών. Thuc. 3. 75. 4 ώς ούδέν αύτών υγιές διανοουμένων. Cf. 4. 22. 2 εϊ τι υγιές διανοούνται. B oth examples occur, in effect, in reported conversation. 7. χαίρειν depending on έαν, λέγειν o r κελεύειν, and used to express dis­ regard, dismissal, re p u d ia tio n 66. A r. Th. 64 τούτον μέν έα χαίρειν “ N ev er m ind h im ” : PL 1187: Ach. 200 χαίρειν κελεύων: Α ν. 1581: Stratt. Fr. 41. H dt. έαν χαίρειν 4. 112: 6. 23: 9. 41, 45: Lys. 1. 36: PI. έαν χαίρειν Grg. 458 B: R. 358 B et saep. λέγειν χαίρειν R. 406 D : Phd. 6 4 C et saep. E. E l. 400 βροτών δέ μαντικήν χαίρειν έ ώ : H ip. 113 την σήν δέ Κύπριν πόλλ’ έγώ χαίρειν λέγω : ibid. 1059 : Fr. 1025 τάς θνητών.. .χαίρειν κελεύου ... προθυμίας: Frs. 23, 388, 1049. Cy. 319. Presum ably the ironical χαίρειν λέγω was m ore polite than κλαίειν λέγω in the same sense (H dt. 4. 127: E. Cy. 174, 340, 701: Ar. e.g. V . 584 bu t never in tragedy), b u t was probably felt as som ew hat colloquial, w hereas the simple χαίρειν was n o t, th o u g h it may convey a sim ilar sense o f dismissal o r repudiation, e.g. E. Med. 1048 χαιρέτω βουλεύματα “ Farew ell, my plans” . N o t in A. or S. except in m odified form s, e.g. A. A g. 572 καί πολλά χαίρειν συμφοραΐς καταξιώ67: S. TV. 819 έρπέτω χαίρουσα “ g o o d riddance” ; o r w hen the phrase has its literal m eaning and is n o t colloquial: S. E l. 1456 πολλά χαίρειν μ’ εϊπας. 66 Apparently also a colloquial expression for polite refusal; cf. Plut. M o r . 2 2 E έν τη συνήθεια καλώς φαμέν εχειν και χαίρειν κελεύομεν όταν μή δεώμεθα μηδέ λαμβάνωμεν. 67 καταξιώ in this sense seems to be unique; see F ra e n k el Λί/ loc .

D . B revity: e llip se 1. άμεινον sc. έστι “ I t’s b e tte r.” standing as a separate sentence, and similar expressions. E. Hyps. 1 v 21, com m ents “ this laconic answ er does n o t recur in trag edy or A risto p h an es” . T here are, how ever, examples o f similar ellipse: A r. Eq. 37 ού χείρον: M en. Dysc. 149 βέλτιον: ibid. 220 πονηρόν “ it’s a bad business” : ibid. 870 τοιούτος “ H e ’s like th a t” : Sam. 71 γελοΐον “ T h a t’s rid icu lo u s” . Sim ilar ellipses are com m on in Platonic dialogue, e.g. δήλον “ O b v io u sly ” : άδύνατον “ I t’s im possible” . (In A r. Eq. 98 άγαθ’, w hich N e i l calls “ a colloquial re to rt” is, as B o n d says, som ew hat different, since it is the object o f a verb repeated from έργάσει in 97.) E. Hyps. loc. cit. άμεινον, in answ er to τί δήτα θύειν δ ε ι...; Sup. 1069 ομοιον “ I t ’s all the sam e” : Med. 925 ούδέν “ I t’s n o th in g ” 68: A n . 86 κίνδυνος “ I t’s risk y ” . B

ond

, on

2. αύτο τούτο “ just th a t” “ precisely” . M en. Sik. 372 ή σώζετ’, αύτό τούτο “ o r is she safe, just th a t? ” PI. R. 379 A 5 άλλ’ αύτο δή τούτο, οί τύποι...τίνες άν είεν; “ on just that p o in t...” Ale. I 109 Β7 ώδε λ έγεις...; Ά ύτό τούτο “ Precisely” . F o r the same expression in extended form see M en. Sik. 374 ζώ. τούτ’ έ’χοιμ ’ άν αύτό σοι φράσαι. Ε . Or. 665 έρεΐς, άδύνατον- αύτό τούτο “ quite so” : I A 1351 μών κόρην σώζων έμήν; Αύτό τούτο. 3. εν (or εις) w ith a genitive, due to ellipse o f a w o rd for “ house” o r “ tem ple” in the dative (or accusative)69, excluding the universally com m on έν (εις) "A ιδού. A r. Eq. 1238 έν παιδοτρίβου: Nub. 973: Lys. 407 έν των δημιουργών: Thes. 795 έν άλλοτρίων V . 123 εις ’Ασκληπιού: ΡΙ. 621 : Lys. 1064 εις εμού: ibid. 1211: 68 In S. Track. 413 ούδέν in answ er to τί ποτέ ποικίλας έχεις; is not elliptical in the same sense. 69 T h e less probable view that such phrases developed from local genitives w ith added prepositions is rightly rejected by E. S c h w y z e r , Griechische G ram m atik, M iinchen 1953, II. 120.

28

Colloquial expressions

1C 1250 εις Φιλοκτήμονος. M en. Dysc. 25 έν γειτόνων: Peric. 147. H d t. 1. 36. 1 έν Κροίσου: 5. 51 ές του Κλεομένεος: 4. 5. 4 ές έωυτοϋ: 4. 76. 3: 6. 69. 1 : 6. 57. 2 ές ’Απόλλωνος: 8. 134. 1 : 1.35 4 έν ήμετέρου. PI. Theaet. 206Α έν κιθαριστοΰ: /V /. 320 Α έν Άρίφρονος: ibid. 3 2 6 C. So also in A ttic defixiones e.g. έν γειτόνων. E. Ale. 761 των έν Ά δμητου κακών: /