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Euripides · Rhesus §1-96

Report of Greek Disarray and Hector's Call to Arms

Passage 1 of 11 · Greek

Summary

Trojan sentinels awaken Hector in the night to report burning torches and confusion in the Greek camp. Hector interprets this as an attempt to escape and wants to attack, but the Chorus advises caution just as Aeneas arrives to ask about the situation.

§1— Βᾶθι πρὸς εὐνὰς τὰς Ἑκτορέους.
— Go to the bed of Hector.
§2τίς ὑπασπιστῶν ἄγρυπνος βασιλέως, §3ἢ τευχοφόρων;
Who of the king's shield-bearers is awake, or of his armed men?
§4— δέξαιτο νέων κληδόνα μύθων, §5οἳ τετράμοιρον νυκτὸς φυλακὴν §6πάσης στρατιᾶς προκάθηνται.
— Let him receive the message of new words, who, for the fourfold watch of the night, sit in front of the whole army as sentinels.
§7— ὄρθου κεφαλὴν πῆχυν ἐρείσας, §8λῦσον βλεφάρων γοργωπὸν ἕδραν, §9λεῖπε χαμεύνας φυλλοστρώτους, §10Ἕκτορ· καιρὸς γὰρ ἀκοῦσαι.
— Raise your head, leaning on your elbow, loosen the fierce slumber of your eyelids, leave your leaf-strewn bed of grass, Hector; for it is time to hear.
§11τίς ὅδʼ;
Who is this?
ἦ φίλιος φθόγγος·
Surely a friendly voice.
τίς ἀνήρ;
What man is it?
§12τί τὸ σῆμα;
What is the watchword?
θρόει·
Speak.
§13τίνες ἐκ νυκτῶν τὰς ἡμετέρας §14κοίτας πλάθουσʼ;
Who are they that from the night approach our bed?
ἐνέπειν χρή.
You must speak.
§15φύλακες στρατιᾶς.
Sentinels of the army.
§15bτί φέρῃ θορύβῳ;
Why do you come in haste?
§16θάρσει.
Take courage.
§16bθαρσῶ.
I do take courage.
§17μῶν τις λόχος ἐκ νυκτῶν;
Is there some ambush in the night?
§17cτί σὺ γὰρ §18φυλακὰς προλιπὼν κινεῖς στρατιάν, §19εἰ μή τινʼ ἔχων νυκτηγορίαν;
For why do you, leaving your guard-posts, stir up the army, unless you have some night-tidings?
§20οὐκ οἶσθα δορὸς πέλας Ἀργείου §21νυχίαν ἡμᾶς §22κοίταν πανόπλους κατέχοντας;
Do you not know that close to the Argive spear we are keeping our nightly watch, fully armed?
§23— ὁπλίζου χέρα· συμμάχων, §24Ἕκτορ, βᾶθι πρὸς εὐνάς, §25ὄτρυνον ἔγχος αἴρειν, ἀφύπνισον.
— Arm your hand; go to the beds of the allies, Hector, urge them to raise the spear, awaken them.
§26— πέμπε φίλους ἰέναι ποτὶ σὸν λόχον, §27ἁρμόσατε ψαλίοις ἵππους.
— Send friends to go to your own company, harness the horses with bridles.
§28— τίς εἶσʼ ἐπὶ Πανθοΐδαν, §29ἢ τὸν Εὐρώπας, Λυκίων ἀγὸν ἀνδρῶν;
— Who will go to the son of Panthoos, or to the son of Europa, the leader of the Lycian men?
§30— ποῦ σφαγίων ἔφοροι;
— Where are the inspectors of the sacrifices?
§31— ποῦ δὲ γυμνήτων μόναρχοι §32τοξοφόροι τε Φρυγῶν;
— And where are the leaders of the light-armed troops, and the archers of the Phrygians?
§33— ζεύγνυτε κερόδετα τόξα νευραῖς.
— Bind the horn-tipped bows with strings.
§34τὰ μὲν ἀγγέλλεις δείματʼ ἀκούειν, §35τὰ δὲ θαρσύνεις, κοὐδὲν καθαρῶς.
Some of what you report is fearful to hear, while other parts encourage, and nothing is clear.
§36ἀλλʼ ἦ Κρονίου Πανὸς τρομερᾷ §37μάστιγι φοβῇ;
But are you terrified by the trembling whip of Cronian Pan?
§38τί θροεῖς;
What are you saying?
τί σε φῶ §39νέον ἀγγέλλειν;
What shall I say you are reporting anew?
πολλὰ γὰρ εἰπὼν §40οὐδὲν τρανῶς ἀπέδειξας.
For though you say many things, you have made nothing clear.
§41— πύρʼ αἴθει στρατὸς Ἀργόλας, §42Ἕκτορ, πᾶσαν ἀνʼ ὄρφναν, §43διειπετῆ δὲ ναῶν πυρσοῖς σταθμά.
— The Argive army is lighting fires, Hector, through the whole night, and the ship-stations are bright with torches.
§44πᾶς δʼ Ἀγαμεμνονίαν προσέβα στρατὸς §45ἐννύχιος θορύβῳ σκηνάν, §46νέαν τινʼ ἐφιέμενοι §47βάξιν.
And the whole army has rushed to the tent of Agamemnon in nightly tumult, desiring some new order.
οὐ γάρ πω πάρος ὧδʼ ἐφοβήθη §48ναυσιπόρος στρατιά.
For never before was the seafaring army so terrified.
§49σοὶ δʼ, ὑποπτεύων τὸ μέλλον, §50ἤλυθον ἄγγελος, ὡς §51μήποτʼ ἐς ἐμέ τινα μέμψιν εἴπῃς.
Suspecting what is to come, I came to you as a messenger, so that you might never direct any blame against me.
§52ἐς καιρὸν ἥκεις, καίπερ ἀγγέλλων φόβον· §53ἅνδρες γὰρ ἐκ γῆς τῆσδε νυκτέρῳ πλάτῃ §54λαθόντες ὄμμα τοὐμὸν ἀρεῖσθαι φυγὴν §55μέλλουσι·
You have come in good time, though you bring tidings of fear; for the men are about to take flight from this land by night, escaping my sight.
σαίνει μʼ ἔννυχος φρυκτωρία.
The nightly torchlight pleases me.
§56ὦ δαῖμον, ὅστις μʼ εὐτυχοῦντʼ ἐνόσφισας §57θοίνης λέοντα, πρὶν τὸν Ἀργείων στρατὸν §58σύρδην ἅπαντα τῷδʼ ἀναλῶσαι δορί.
O deity, who snatched from me, when I was successful, the Argive army, like a lion from its feast, before I could utterly destroy them all with this spear.
§59εἰ γὰρ φαεννοὶ μὴ ξυνέσχον ἡλίου §60λαμπτῆρες, οὔτἂν ἔσχον εὐτυχοῦν δόρυ, §61πρὶν ναῦς πυρῶσαι καὶ διὰ σκηνῶν μολεῖν §62κτείνων Ἀχαιοὺς τῇδε πολυφόνῳ χερί.
For if the bright lamps of the sun had not closed in, I would not have stayed my successful spear, before burning their ships and passing through their tents, slaying the Achaeans with this slaughtering hand.
§63κἀγὼ μὲν ἦ πρόθυμος ἱέναι δόρυ §64ἐν νυκτὶ χρῆσθαί τʼ εὐτυχεῖ ῥύμῃ θεοῦ· §65ἀλλʼ οἱ σοφοί με καὶ τὸ θεῖον εἰδότες §66μάντεις ἔπεισαν ἡμέρας μεῖναι φάος §67κἄπειτʼ Ἀχαιῶν μηδένʼ ἐν χέρσῳ λιπεῖν.
Indeed, I was eager to launch my spear in the night and use the favorable rush of the god; but the wise seers who know divine things persuaded me to wait for the light of day, and then to leave none of the Achaeans on the mainland.
§68οἳ δʼ οὐ μένουσι τῶν ἐμῶν θυοσκόων §69βουλάς· ἐν ὄρφνῃ δραπέτης μέγα σθένει.
But they do not wait for the counsels of my seers; in the darkness, a runaway has great strength.
§70ἀλλʼ ὡς τάχιστα χρὴ παραγγέλλειν στρατῷ §71τεύχη πρόχειρα λαμβάνειν λῆξαί θʼ ὕπνου, §72ὡς ἄν τις αὐτῶν καὶ νεὼς θρῴσκων ἔπι §73νῶτον χαραχθεὶς κλίμακας ῥάνῃ φόνῳ, §74οἳ δʼ ἐν βρόχοισι δέσμιοι λελημμένοι §75Φρυγῶν ἀρούρας ἐκμάθωσι γαπονεῖν.
But we must as quickly as possible order the army to take up arms and cease from sleep, so that some of them, even as they leap onto the ships, may be wounded in the back and drench the ladders with blood, and others, taken captive in bonds, may learn to cultivate the Phrygian fields.
§76Ἕκτορ, ταχύνεις πρὶν μαθεῖν τὸ δρώμενον· §77ἅνδρες γὰρ εἰ φεύγουσιν οὐκ ἴσμεν τορῶς.
Hector, you are hastening before learning what is being done; for we do not know clearly if the men are fleeing.
§78τίς γὰρ πύρʼ αἴθειν πρόφασις Ἀργείων στρατόν;
For what is the reason for the Argive army to light fires?
§79οὐκ οἶδʼ· ὕποπτον δʼ ἐστὶ κάρτʼ ἐμῇ φρενί.
I do not know; but it is very suspicious to my mind.
§80πάντʼ ἂν φοβηθεὶς ἴσθι, δειμαίνων τόδε.
Know that you should fear everything, dreading this.
§81οὔπω πρὶν ἧψαν πολέμιοι τοσόνδε φῶς.
Never before did the enemy kindle such a light.
§82οὐδʼ ὧδέ γʼ αἰσχρῶς ἔπεσον ἐν τροπῇ δορός.
Nor did they ever fall so shamefully in the defeat of the spear.
§83σὺ ταῦτʼ ἔπραξας· καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ νῦν σκόπει.
You accomplished this; and now consider what remains.
§84ἁπλοῦς ἐπʼ ἐχθροῖς μῦθος ὁπλίζειν χέρα.
Against enemies, the simple word is to arm the hand.
§85καὶ μὴν ὅδʼ Αἰνέας καὶ μάλα σπουδῇ ποδὸς §86στείχει, νέον τι πρᾶγμʼ ἔχων φίλοις φράσαι.
And look, here comes Aeneas in great haste of foot, walking, having some new matter to tell his friends.
§87Ἕκτορ, τί χρῆμα νύκτεροι κατὰ στρατὸν §88τὰς σὰς πρὸς εὐνὰς φύλακες ἐλθόντες φόβῳ §89νυκτηγοροῦσι καὶ κεκίνηται· στρατός;
Hector, why have the sentinels by night in the army, coming to your bed in fear, spoken in the night, and why has the army been stirred up?
§90Αἰνέα, πύκαζε τεύχεσιν δέμας σέθεν.
Aeneas, encase your body in armor.
§91τί δʼ ἔστι;
What is it?
μῶν τις πολεμίων ἀγγέλλεται §92δόλος κρυφαῖος ἑστάναι κατʼ εὐφρόνην;
Has some secret guile of the enemy been reported to be set during the night?
§93φεύγουσιν ἅνδρες κἀπιβαίνουσιν νεῶν.
The men are fleeing and embarking on the ships.
§94τί τοῦδʼ ἂν εἴποις ἀσφαλὲς τεκμήριον;
What reliable proof of this can you state?
§95αἴθουσι πᾶσαν νύκτα λαμπάδας πυρός· §96καί μοι δοκοῦσιν οὐ μενεῖν ἐς αὔριον,
They are burning torches of fire all night; and to me they seem not likely to remain until tomorrow.

Notes

  1. §5οἳ τετράμοιρον νυκτὸς φυλακὴν πάσης στρατιᾶς προκάθηνται — The relative pronoun οἳ refers to the sentinels mentioned in §4. The verb προκάθηνται takes the accusative φυλακὴν as a cognate accusative or an accusative of extent of action ("to sit as a guard"). πάσης στρατιᾶς is a genitive modifying φυλακὴν ("guard of the whole army").
  2. §19εἰ μή τινʼ ἔχων νυκτηγορίαν — εἰ μή ("unless") governs the participle ἔχων, forming an elliptical conditional clause meaning "unless you have some nightly message." It limits the action of the main verb κινεῖς ("you stir up").
  3. §54λαθόντες ὄμμα τοὐμὸν ἀρεῖσθαι φυγὴν μέλλουσι — The verb μέλλουσι ("they are about to") governs the future infinitive ἀρεῖσθαι (from αἴρω in the middle voice, used here with φυγὴν to mean "to take flight" or "to escape"). The participle λαθόντες (from λανθάνω) takes the accusative object ὄμμα τοὐμὸν ("escaping my sight").
  4. §60οὔτἂν ἔσχον εὐτυχοῦν δόρυ — οὔτἂν is a crasis of οὔτε and ἂν. This forms the apodosis of the past counterfactual conditional clause introduced by εἰ... μὴ ξυνέσχον in §59. The past indicative ἔσχον (from ἔχω, here meaning "to check" or "to restrain") with ἂν expresses "I would not have held back my successful spear."
  5. §72ὡς ἄν τις αὐτῶν καὶ νεὼς θρῴσκων ἔπι νῶτον χαραχθεὶς κλίμακας ῥάνῃ φόνῳ — ὡς ἄν introduces a purpose clause with the subjunctive ῥάνῃ (from ῥαίνω "to drench/sprinkle"). νεὼς ἔπι is an anastrophe (hyperbaton) where the preposition ἔπι is placed after the genitive noun νεὼς it governs, meaning "onto the ship." The participles θρῴσκων ("leaping") and χαραχθεὶς ("wounded/slashed") modify τις.

Cite this passage

Euripides, Rhesus §1-96. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0006.tlg019.humanitext-grc2:1-96

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