- Source
- Aristophanes. Aristophanis Comoediae, Vol. 1. Hall, F. W. and Geldart, William M., editors. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906.
- 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:tlg0019.tlg002.humanitext-grc2:1181-1256
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-27
Cleon and the Sausage-Seller compete by offering food to Demus, but Cleon's deceit is exposed when his food chest is searched. Finally, the Sausage-Seller is revealed to match the conditions of the prophecy, and the defeated Cleon surrenders his position.
ἡ Γοργολόφα σʼ ἐκέλευε τουτουὶ φαγεῖν
Cleon: The Gorgon-crested goddess ordered you to eat this elater (cake),
ἐλατῆρος, ἵνα τὰς ναῦς ἐλαύνωμεν καλῶς.1
so that we may steer (elauunomen) our ships well.
λαβὲ καὶ ταδί νυν.
Sausage-Seller: Take these as well now.
καὶ τί τούτοις χρήσομαιτοῖς ἐντέροις;
Demus: And what shall I do with these entrails?
ἐπίτηδες αὔτʼ ἔπεμψέ σοιἐς τὰς τριήρεις ἐντερόνειαν ἡ θεός·
Sausage-Seller: On purpose the Goddess sent them to you as an “internal lining (enteroneia)” for your triremes;
ἐπισκοπεῖ γὰρ περιφανῶς τὸ ναυτικόν.
for she clearly watches over the navy.
ἔχε καὶ πιεῖν κεκραμένον τρία καὶ δύο.
Cleon: Have also this drink, mixed three to two.
ὡς ἡδὺς ὦ Ζεῦ καὶ τὰ τρία φέρων καλῶς.
Demus: By Zeus, how sweet it is, and how well it bears the three parts!
ἡ Τριτογενὴς γὰρ αὐτὸν ἐνετριτώνισεν.
Sausage-Seller: Yes, for Tritogeneia herself tripled-watered (enetritonisen) it.
λαβέ νυν πλακοῦντος πίονος παρʼ ἐμοῦ τόμον.
Cleon: Take now a slice of rich cake from me.
παρʼ ἐμοῦ δʼ ὅλον γε τὸν πλακοῦντα τουτονί.
Sausage-Seller: And from me, this whole cake here!
ἀλλʼ οὐ λαγῷʼ ἕξεις ὁπόθεν δῷς, ἀλλʼ ἐγώ.
(To Cleon) But you won’t have any hare’s meat from where you can give it, but I will.
οἴμοι, πόθεν λαγῷά μοι γενήσεται;
Cleon: Alas, from where will hare’s meat come to me?
ὦ θυμὲ νυνὶ βωμολόχον ἔξευρέ τι.
O my soul, now find some knavish trick!
ὁρᾷς τάδʼ ὦ κακόδαιμον;
Sausage-Seller: Do you see this, you miserable fellow?
ὀλίγον μοι μέλει·
Cleon: I care little; for over there, some envoys
ἐκεινοιὶ γὰρ ὡς ἔμʼ ἔρχονταί τινεςπρέσβεις ἔχοντες ἀργυρίου βαλλάντια.
with purses of money are coming to me.
ποῦ ποῦ;
Sausage-Seller: Where, where?
τί δέ σοι τοῦτʼ; οὐκ ἐάσεις τοὺς ξένους;
Cleon: What is that to you? Won’t you leave the strangers alone?
ὦ Δημίδιον ὁρᾷς τὰ λαγῷʼ ἅ σοι φέρω;
Sausage-Seller: O dear Demus, do you see the hare’s meat that I bring you?
οἴμοι τάλας ἀδίκως γε τἄμʼ ὑφήρπασας.
Cleon: Alas, wretched me! You have unjustly snatched away my property.
νὴ τὸν Ποσειδῶ καὶ σὺ γὰρ τοὺς ἐκ Πύλου.
Sausage-Seller: By Poseidon, for you did the same to those from Pylos.
εἴπʼ, ἀντιβολῶ, πῶς ἐπενόησας ἁρπάσαι;
Demus: Tell me, I entreat you, how did you think of snatching it?
τὸ μὲν νόημα τῆς θεοῦ, τὸ δὲ κλέμμʼ ἐμόν.
Sausage-Seller: The idea was the Goddess’s, but the theft was mine.
ἐγὼ δʼ ἐκινδύνευσʼ, ἐγὼ δʼ ὤπτησά γε.
Cleon: But I ran the risk, and I did the roasting!
ἄπιθʼ· οὐ γὰρ ἀλλὰ2 τοῦ παραθέντος ἡ χάρις.
Demus: Go away; for indeed, the gratitude belongs to the one who served it.
οἴμοι κακοδαίμων, ὑπεραναιδευθήσομαι.
Cleon: Alas, miserable me! I shall be out-impudenced.
τί οὐ διακρίνεις Δῆμʼ ὁπότερός ἐστι νῷν
Sausage-Seller: Why don’t you decide, Demus, which of us two is
ἀνὴρ ἀμείνων περὶ σὲ καὶ τὴν γαστέρα;
the better man towards you and your stomach?
τῷ δῆτʼ ἂν ὑμᾶς χρησάμενος τεκμηρίῳδόξαιμι κρίνειν τοῖς θεαταῖσιν σοφῶς;
Demus: By using what proof indeed would I seem to the spectators to judge wisely?
ἐγὼ φράσω σοι. τὴν ἐμὴν κίστην ἰὼν
Sausage-Seller: I will tell you. Go and take my food-chest
ξύλλαβε σιωπῇ καὶ βασάνισον ἅττʼ ἔνι,
in silence, and examine what is inside,
καὶ τὴν Παφλαγόνος· κἀμέλει κρινεῖς καλῶς.
and also that of the Paphlagonian; and surely you will judge well.
φέρʼ ἴδω τί οὖν ἔνεστιν;
Demus: Let me see, what then is inside?
οὐχ ὁρᾷς κενὴν
Sausage-Seller: Don’t you see it is empty,
ὦ παππίδιον; ἅπαντα γάρ σοι παρεφόρουν.
my dear grandpapa? For I brought everything out for you.
αὕτη μὲν ἡ κίστη τὰ τοῦ Δήμου φρονεῖ.
Demus: This chest indeed minds the interests of Demus.
βάδιζέ νυν καὶ δεῦρο πρὸς τὴν Παφλαγόνος.
Walk now also over here to that of the Paphlagonian.
ὁρᾷς τάδʼ;
Do you see this?
οἴμοι τῶν ἀγαθῶν ὅσων πλέα.
Alas, how full of good things it is!
ὅσον τὸ χρῆμα τοῦ πλακοῦντος ἀπέθετο·
What a huge quantity of cake he stored away!
ἐμοὶ δʼ ἔδωκεν ἀποτεμὼν τυννουτονί.
And to me he gave only a tiny piece, cutting off just this much!
τοιαῦτα μέντοι καὶ πρότερόν σʼ ἠργάζετο·
Sausage-Seller: Indeed, he used to do such things to you before too;
σοὶ μὲν προσεδίδου μικρὸν ὧν ἐλάμβανεν,
he would give you a tiny bit of what he received,
αὐτὸς δʼ ἑαυτῷ παρετίθει τὰ μείζονα.
but he would set the larger share before himself.
ὦ μιαρὲ κλέπτων δή με ταῦτʼ ἐξηπάτας;
Demus: O rascal, so you were deceiving me by stealing these things?
ἐγὼ δέ τυ ἐστεφάνιξα κἀδωρησάμαν.3
And yet I crowned you and gave you gifts!
ἐγὼ δʼ ἔκλεπτον ἐπʼ ἀγαθῷ γε τῇ πόλει.
Cleon: But I was stealing for the good of the city!
κατάθου ταχέως τὸν στέφανον, ἵνʼ ἐγὼ τουτῳὶ
Demus: Lay down the crown quickly, so that I may place it
αὐτὸν περιθῶ.
upon this man here.
κατάθου ταχέως μαστιγία.
Sausage-Seller: Lay it down quickly, you whipping-post!
οὐ δῆτʼ, ἐπεί μοι χρησμός ἐστι Πυθικὸς
Cleon: Surely not, since I have a Pythian oracle
φράζων ὑφʼ οὗ †δεήσει μʼ† ἡττᾶσθαι μόνου.
declaring by whom alone I must be defeated.
τοὐμόν γε φράζων ὄνομα καὶ λίαν σαφῶς.
Sausage-Seller: Declaring indeed my name, and very clearly too!
καὶ μήν σʼ ἐλέγξαι βούλομαι τεκμηρίῳ,
Cleon: And yet I wish to test you by proof,
εἴ τι ξυνοίσεις τοῦ θεοῦ τοῖς θεσφάτοις.
to see if you agree at all with the god’s predictions.
καί σου τοσοῦτον πρῶτον ἐκπειράσομαι·
And first I will make this trial of you:
παῖς ὢν ἐφοίτας ἐς τίνος διδασκάλου;
When you were a boy, whose school did you attend?
ἐν ταῖσιν εὕστραις κονδύλοις ἡρμοττόμην.4
Sausage-Seller: In the singeing-pits I was shaped by fists.
πῶς εἶπας; ὥς μου χρησμὸς ἅπτεται φρενῶν.
Cleon: What did you say? How the oracle touches my heart! Well,
εἶεν.ἐν παιδοτρίβου δὲ τίνα πάλην ἐμάνθανες;
at the trainer’s, what kind of wrestling did you learn?
κλέπτων ἐπιορκεῖν καὶ βλέπειν ἐναντίον·
Sausage-Seller: To steal, commit perjury, and look people straight in the face.
ὦ Φοῖβʼ Ἄπολλον Λύκιε τί ποτέ μʼ ἐργάσει;
Cleon: O Phoebus Apollo of Lycia, what will you do to me indeed?
τέχνην δὲ τίνα ποτʼ εἶχες ἐξανδρούμενος;
And what trade did you have when you became a man?
ἠλλαντοπώλουν καί τι καὶ βινεσκόμην.
Sausage-Seller: I sold sausages and also practiced prostitution.
οἴμοι κακοδαίμων· οὐκέτʼ οὐδέν εἰμʼ ἐγώ.
Cleon: Alas, miserable me! I am no longer anything.
λεπτή τις ἐλπίς ἐστʼ ἐφʼ ἧς ὀχούμεθα.
There is some slender hope on which we are carried.
καί μοι τοσοῦτον εἰπέ· πότερον ἐν ἀγορᾷ
Just tell me this: did you sell sausages in the marketplace
ἠλλαντοπώλεις ἐτεὸν ἢ ʼπὶ ταῖς πύλαις;
really, or at the gates?
ἐπὶ ταῖς πύλαισιν, οὗ τὸ τάριχος ὤνιον.
Sausage-Seller: At the gates, where the salted fish is sold.
οἴμοι πέπρακται τοῦ θεοῦ τὸ θέσφατον.
Cleon: Alas, the oracle of the god has been fulfilled!
κυλίνδετʼ εἴσω τόνδε τὸν δυσδαίμονα.
Roll this unhappy man inside.
ὦ στέφανε χαίρων ἄπιθι, κεἴ σʼ ἄκων ἐγὼ
O crown, farewell and depart, even if unwillingly I
λείπω· σὲ δʼ ἄλλος τις λαβὼν κεκτήσεται,
leave you; some other man will receive and possess you,
κλέπτης μὲν οὐκ ἂν μᾶλλον, εὐτυχὴς δʼ ἴσως.
no greater thief indeed, but perhaps more fortunate.
Ἑλλάνιε Ζεῦ σὸν τὸ νικητήριον.
Sausage-Seller: O Hellenic Zeus, yours is the victory!
ὦ χαῖρε καλλίνικε καὶ μέμνησʼ ὅτι
Phanos: O hail, glorious victor, and remember that
ἀνὴρ γεγένησαι διʼ ἐμέ· καί σʼ αἰτῶ βραχύ,
you have become a man through me; and I ask you a small thing,
ὅπως ἔσομαί σοι Φανὸς ὑπογραφεὺς δικῶν.
so that I may be Phanos, your scribe of lawsuits.
- 1182ἐλατῆρος, ἵνα τὰς ναῦς ἐλαύνωμεν καλῶς
A wordplay between ἐλατήρ ('a flat cake') and the verb ἐλαύνω ('to row, drive ships'). Eating the cake is humorously connected to enabling the navy to row and advance their ships.
- 1205οὐ γὰρ ἀλλὰ
An idiomatic colloquial phrase meaning 'for indeed' or 'because... and nothing else'. It rejects Cleon's claim of having roasted the meat, asserting strongly that the gratitude belongs solely to the one who actually served it.
- 1225ἐγὼ δέ τυ ἐστεφάνιξα κἀδωρησάμαν
The Doric accusative pronoun τυ is used instead of the standard Attic σέ ('you'). The verb form ἐστεφάνιξα also replaces the standard Attic ἐστεφάνωσα. This dialectal shift reflects Demus speaking in a temporarily solemn or peculiar tone.
- 1236κονδύλοις ἡρμοττόμην
An imperfect passive of ἁρμόζω ('to fit together, shape'), meaning 'I was shaped/molded by fists'. It humorously describes the Sausage-Seller's harsh and violent upbringing in terms of physical education.