- Source
- Euripides. Euripidis Fabulae, Vol. I. Murray, Gilbert, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1902.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0006.tlg002.humanitext-grc2:640-717
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-27
Admetus and his father Pheres engage in a fierce confrontation, accusing each other of selfishness and cowardice, which completely ruptures their relationship.
ἔδειξας εἰς ἔλεγχον ἐξελθὼν1 ὃς εἶ,
You have shown, having come to the test, who you are,
καί μ’ οὐ νομίζω παῖδα σὸν πεφυκέναι.
and I do not consider myself to have been born your child.
ἦ τἄρα πάντων διαπρέπεις ἀψυχίᾳ,
Surely then you excel all in cowardice,
ὃς τηλικόσδ’ ὢν κἀπὶ τέρμ’ ἥκων βίου
who, being of such an age and having come to the boundary of life,
οὐκ ἠθέλησας οὐδ’ ἐτόλμησας θανεῖν
were not willing nor did you dare to die
τοῦ σοῦ πρὸ παιδός, ἀλλὰ τήνδ’ εἰάσατε
in place of your own child, but you two allowed this
γυναῖκ’ ὀθνείαν, ἣν ἐγὼ καὶ μητέρα
foreign woman to die, whom I might justly regard alone as both mother
πατέρα τέ γ’ ἐνδίκως ἂν ἡγοίμην μόνην.
and father.
καίτοι καλόν γ’ ἂν τόνδ’ ἀγῶν’ ἠγωνίσω,
And yet, you would have fought a noble contest,
τοῦ σοῦ πρὸ παιδὸς κατθανών, βραχὺς δέ σοι
dying in place of your own child, and for you
πάντως ὁ λοιπὸς ἦν βιώσιμος χρόνος.
at any rate the remaining time to live was short.
καὶ μὴν ὅσ’ ἄνδρα χρὴ παθεῖν εὐδαίμονα
And indeed, as many things as a happy man ought to experience,
πέπονθας· ἥβησας μὲν ἐν τυραννίδι,
you have experienced; you spent your youth in royal power,
παῖς δ’ ἦν ἐγώ σοι τῶνδε διάδοχος δόμων,
and I was your child, the successor of this house,
ὥστ’ οὐκ ἄτεκνος κατθανὼν ἄλλοις δόμον
so that you were not going to die childless and leave the house
λείψειν ἔμελλες ὀρφανὸν διαρπάσαι.
desolate for others to plunder.
οὐ μὴν ἐρεῖς γέ μ’ ὡς ἀτιμάζοντα σὸν
Surely you will not say that, because I dishonored your
γῆρας θανεῖν προύδωκας, ὅστις αἰδόφρων
old age, you abandoned me to die, I who was most
πρὸς σ’ ἦ μάλιστα· κἀντὶ τῶνδέ μοι χάριν
respectful towards you; and in return for this,
τοιάνδε καὶ σὺ χἡ τεκοῦσ’ ἠλλαξάτην.
you and she who bore me have made such a return to me.
τοιγὰρ φυτεύων παῖδας οὐκέτ’ ἂν φθάνοις,2
Therefore you cannot be too quick in begetting children,
οἳ γηροβοσκήσουσι καὶ θανόντα σε
who will nourish your old age and, when you are dead,
περιστελοῦσι καὶ προθήσονται νεκρόν.
shroud you and lay out your corpse.
οὐ γάρ σ’ ἔγωγε τῇδ’ ἐμῇ θάψω χερί·
For I indeed will not bury you with this hand of mine;
τέθνηκα γὰρ δὴ τοὐπὶ σέ·3 εἰ δ’ ἄλλου τυχὼν
for as far as lies in you, I am dead; but if, having found another
σωτῆρος αὐγὰς εἰσορῶ, κείνου λέγω
savior, I look upon the light, I say that I am his
καὶ παῖδά μ’ εἶναι καὶ φίλον γηροτρόφον.
child and his loving nourisher in old age.
μάτην ἄρ’ οἱ γέροντες εὔχονται θανεῖν,
In vain, then, do old men pray to die,
γῆρας ψέγοντες καὶ μακρὸν χρόνον βίου·
complaining of old age and the long time of life;
ἢν δ’ ἐγγὺς ἔλθῃ θάνατος, οὐδεὶς βούλεται
but if death comes near, no one wishes
θνῄσκειν, τὸ γῆρας δ’ οὐκέτ’ ἔστ’ αὐτοῖς βαρύ.
to die, and old age is no longer heavy to them.
παύσασθʼ· ἅλις γὰρ ἡ παροῦσα συμφορά·
Cease; for the present misfortune is enough.
ὦ παῖ, πατρὸς δὲ μὴ παροξύνῃς φρένας.
O child, do not provoke the mind of your father.
ὦ παῖ, τίν’ αὐχεῖς, πότερα Λυδὸν ἢ Φρύγα
O child, whom do you think you are driving with insults, whether a Lydian or a Phrygian
κακοῖς ἐλαύνειν ἀργυρώνητον σέθεν;
bought with your silver?
οὐκ οἶσθα Θεσσαλόν με κἀπὸ Θεσσαλοῦ
Do you not know that I am a Thessalian, and born of a Thessalian
πατρὸς γεγῶτα γνησίως ἐλεύθερον;
father, genuinely free?
ἄγαν ὑβρίζεις, καὶ νεανίας λόγους
You insult too much, and throwing youthful words
ῥίπτων ἐς ἡμᾶς οὐ βαλὼν οὕτως ἄπει.
at us, you shall not go away having hit us in this way.
ἐγὼ δέ σ’ οἴκων δεσπότην ἐγεινάμην
I begot you to be master of this house,
κἄθρεψʼ, ὀφείλω δ’ οὐχ ὑπερθνῄσκειν σέθεν·
and brought you up, but I am not bound to die for you;
οὐ γὰρ πατρῷον τόνδ’ ἐδεξάμην νόμον,
for I did not receive this as an ancestral custom,
παίδων προθνῄσκειν πατέρας, οὐδ’ Ἑλληνικόν.
that fathers should die for their children, nor as a Greek one.
σαυτῷ γὰρ εἴτε δυστυχὴς εἴτ’ εὐτυχὴς
For you were born, whether unfortunate or fortunate,
ἔφυς· ἃ δ’ ἡμῶν χρῆν σε τυγχάνειν, ἔχεις.
for yourself; and what you ought to receive from us, you have.
πολλῶν μὲν ἄρχεις, πολυπλέθρους δέ σοι γύας
You rule over many, and many acres of land
λείψω· πατρὸς γὰρ ταὔτ’ ἐδεξάμην πάρα.
I shall leave to you; for I received these same things from my father.
τί δῆτά σ’ ἠδίκηκα; τοῦ σ’ ἀποστερῶ;
In what then have I wronged you? Of what do I deprive you?
μὴ θνῇσχ’ ὑπὲρ τοῦδ’ ἀνδρός, οὐδ’ ἐγὼ πρὸ σοῦ.
Do not die for this man, nor do I for you.
χαίρεις ὁρῶν φῶς· πατέρα δ’ οὐ χαίρειν δοκεῖς;
You rejoice seeing the light; do you think your father does not rejoice?
ἦ μὴν πολύν γε τὸν κάτω λογίζομαι
Indeed, I reckon that the time below is long,
χρόνον, τὸ δὲ ζῆν μικρόν, ἀλλ’ ὅμως γλυκύ.
and life is short, but nevertheless sweet.
σὺ γοῦν ἀναιδῶς διεμάχου τὸ μὴ θανεῖν,
You at any rate shamelessly fought against dying,
καὶ ζῇς παρελθὼν τὴν πεπρωμένην τύχην,
and you live, having bypassed your destined fate,
ταύτην κατακτάς· εἶτ’ ἐμὴν ἀψυχίαν
having killed her; then do you speak of my cowardice,
λέγεις, γυναικός, ὦ κάκισθʼ, ἡσσημένος,
having been defeated, o worst of men, by a woman,
ἣ τοῦ καλοῦ σοῦ προύθανεν νεανίου;
who died in place of you, the handsome youth?
σοφῶς δ’ ἐφηῦρες ὥστε μὴ θανεῖν ποτε,
Intelligently indeed you discovered a way never to die,
εἰ τὴν παροῦσαν κατθανεῖν πείσεις ἀεὶ
if you will always persuade your current wife to die
γυναῖχ’ ὑπὲρ σοῦ· κᾆτ’ ὀνειδίζεις φίλοις
for you; and then do you reproach your friends
τοῖς μὴ θέλουσι δρᾶν τάδʼ, αὐτὸς ὢν κακός;
who do not wish to do this, being yourself a coward?
σίγα· νόμιζε δʼ, εἰ σὺ τὴν σαυτοῦ φιλεῖς
Be silent; and reflect, if you love your own
ψυχήν, φιλεῖν ἅπαντας· εἰ δ’ ἡμᾶς κακῶς
life, that everyone loves theirs; and if you speak ill
ἐρεῖς, ἀκούσῃ πολλὰ κοὐ ψευδῆ κακά.
of us, you shall hear many and not false evils.
πλείω λέλεκται νῦν τε καὶ τὰ πρὶν κακά·
Too many evils have been spoken now and before;
παῦσαι δέ, πρέσβυ, παῖδα σὸν κακορροθῶν.
but cease, old man, reviling your child.
λέγʼ, ὡς ἐμοῦ λέξαντος·4 εἰ δ’ ἀλγεῖς κλύων
Speak, since I have spoken; and if you suffer hearing
τἀληθές, οὐ χρῆν σ’ εἰς ἔμ’ ἐξαμαρτάνειν.
the truth, you ought not to have wronged me.
σοῦ δ’ ἂν προθνῄσκων μᾶλλον ἐξημάρτανον.
And would I have erred more, dying in place of you?
ταὐτὸν γὰρ ἡβῶντ’ ἄνδρα καὶ πρέσβυν θανεῖν;
For is it the same thing, for a man in his prime and an old man to die?
ψυχῇ μιᾷ ζῆν, οὐ δυοῖν, ὀφείλομεν.
We are bound to live with one life, not with two.
καὶ μὴν Διός γε μείζονα ζῴης χρόνον.
And indeed, may you live a longer time than Zeus!
ἀρᾷ γονεῦσιν οὐδὲν ἔκδικον παθών;
Do you curse your parents, having suffered nothing unjust?
μακροῦ βίου γὰρ ᾐσθόμην ἐρῶντά σε.
Yes, for I perceived you desiring a long life.
ἀλλ’ οὐ σὺ νεκρὸν ἀντὶ σοῦ τόνδ’ ἐκφέρεις;
But are you not carrying out this corpse in place of yourself?
σημεῖα τῆς σῆς, ὦ κάκιστʼ, ἀψυχίας.
Proofs of your cowardice, o worst of men!
- 640εἰς ἔλεγχον ἐξελθὼν
The participle ἐξελθών modifies the subject, expressing time or circumstance: "when put to the test" or "having come to the proof."
- 662οὐκέτ’ ἂν φθάνοις
The idiom "οὐκ ἂν φθάνοιμι + participle" expresses an urgent recommendation to do something immediately. Here it is used with the participle φυτεύων ("begetting").
- 666τοὐπὶ σέ
Crasis of τὸ ἐπὶ σέ. An adverbial accusative phrase meaning "as far as you are concerned" or "as far as lies in your power."
- 708ὡς ἐμοῦ λέξαντος
Genitive absolute with the conjunction ὡς, indicating a subjective premise or assertion: "on the understanding that I have spoken [all I had to say]."