Humanitext Reader

Euripides · Rhesus §180-279

Dolon's Departure and News of Rhesus' Arrival

Passage 3 of 11 · Greek

Summary

Promised the horses of Achilles as his reward, Dolon disguises himself in a wolf's skin and sets out for the Achaean camp, while the Chorus prays for his safe return. Afterward, a shepherd arrives to announce to Hector the approach of the Thracian king Rhesus as an ally.

§180θεοῖσιν αὐτὰ πασσάλευε πρὸς δόμοις.
Nail those to the temples of the gods.
§181τί δῆτα μεῖζον τῶνδέ μʼ αἰτήσεις γέρας;
What reward greater than these, then, will you ask of me?
§182ἵππους Ἀχιλλέως· χρὴ δʼ ἐπʼ ἀξίοις πονεῖν §183ψυχὴν προβάλλοντʼ ἐν κύβοισι δαίμονος.
The horses of Achilles; for one must labor for a worthy reward when risking one's life on the dice of fortune.
§184καὶ μὴν ἐρῶντί γʼ ἀντερᾷς ἵππων ἐμοί· §185ἐξ ἀφθίτων γὰρ ἄφθιτοι πεφυκότες §186τὸν Πηλέως φέρουσι θούριον γόνον· §187δίδωσι δʼ αὐτοὺς πωλοδαμνήσας ἄναξ §188Πηλεῖ Ποσειδῶν, ὡς λέγουσι, πόντιος.
Indeed, you are rivaling me for the horses I desire; for, immortal born of immortal parents, they carry the impetuous son of Peleus; and Poseidon, the ruler of the sea, having tamed them, gave them to Peleus, as they say.
§189ἀλλʼ οὔ σʼ ἐπάρας ψεύσομαι· δώσω δέ σοι, §190κάλλιστον οἴκοις κτῆμʼ, Ἀχιλλέως ὄχον.
But I will not deceive you after encouraging you; I will give you the chariot of Achilles, the fairest possession for your house.
§191αἰνῶ· λαβὼν δʼ ἄν φημι κάλλιστον Φρυγῶν §192δῶρον δέχεσθαι τῆς ἐμῆς εὐσπλαγχνίας.
I accept; and receiving it, I say that I accept the fairest gift among the Phrygians for my courage.
§193σὲ δʼ οὐ φθονεῖν χρή· μυρίʼ ἔστιν ἄλλα σοι, §194ἐφʼ οἷσι τέρψῃ τῆσδʼ ἀριστεύων χθονός.
And you must not begrudge me; there are ten thousand other things for you to enjoy as the ruler of this land.
§195μέγας ἀγών, μεγάλα δʼ ἐπινοεῖς ἑλεῖν· §196μακάριός γε μὴν κυρήσας ἔσῃ.
Great is the contest, and great are the things you scheme to win; yet, if you succeed, you will be blessed.
§197πόνος ὅδʼ εὐκλεής· §198μέγα δὲ κοιράνοισι γαμβρὸν πέλειν.
This labor is glorious; and to be a son-in-law to rulers is a great thing.
§199τὰ θεόθεν ἐπιδέτω Δίκα, §200τὰ δὲ παρʼ ἀνδράσιν τέλειά σοι φαίνεται.
May Justice from the gods look upon these things; for the promises from men seem secured for you.
§201στείχοιμʼ ἄν· ἐλθὼν δʼ ἐς δόμους ἐφέστιος §202σκευῇ πρεπόντως σῶμʼ ἐμὸν καθάψομαι, §203κἀκεῖθεν ἥσω ναῦς ἐπʼ Ἀργείων πόδα.
I will go; and going to my home, I will clothe myself in a fitting garb, and from there I will direct my feet to the ships of the Argives.
§204ἐπεὶ τίνʼ ἄλλην ἀντὶ τῆσδʼ ἕξεις στολήν;
For what other garment will you have instead of this?
§205πρέπουσαν ἔργῳ κλωπικοῖς τε βήμασι.
One suited to the deed and to stealthy steps.
§206σοφοῦ παρʼ ἀνδρὸς χρὴ σοφόν τι μανθάνειν· §207λέξον, τίς ἔσται τοῦδε σώματος σαγή;
One should learn something clever from a clever man; tell me, what will be the equipment for your body?
§208λύκειον ἀμφὶ νῶτʼ ἐνάψομαι δορὰν §209καὶ χάσμα θηρὸς ἀμφʼ ἐμῷ θήσω κάρᾳ, §210βάσιν τε χερσὶ προσθίαν καθαρμόσας §211καὶ κῶλα κώλοις, τετράπουν μιμήσομαι §212λύκου κέλευθον πολεμίοις δυσεύρετον, §213τάφροις πελάζων καὶ νεῶν προβλήμασιν.
I will fasten a wolf's skin around my back, and place the beast's gaping jaws around my head; and fitting its front paws to my hands and its limbs to my limbs, I will imitate the four-footed gait of a wolf, hard for enemies to detect, as I approach the trenches and the barriers of the ships.
§214ὅταν δʼ ἔρημον χῶρον ἐμβαίνω ποδί, §215δίβαμος εἶμι· τῇδε σύγκειται δόλος.
But when I enter an empty space on foot, I will walk on two legs; in this way is my trick arranged.
§216ἀλλʼ εὖ σʼ ὁ Μαίας παῖς ἐκεῖσε καὶ πάλιν §217πέμψειεν Ἑρμῆς, ὅς γε φηλητῶν ἄναξ.
May Hermes, the son of Maia, escort you safely there and back, since he is indeed the lord of thieves.
§218ἔχεις δὲ τοὔργον· εὐτυχεῖν μόνον σε δεῖ.
You have your task; you need only to be fortunate.
§219σωθήσομαί γε καὶ κτανὼν Ὀδυσσέως §220οἴσω κάρα σοι — σύμβολον δʼ ἔχων σαφὲς §221φήσεις Δόλωνα ναῦς ἐπʼ Ἀργείων μολεῖν — §222ἢ παῖδα Τυδέως· οὐδʼ ἀναιμάκτῳ χερὶ §223ἥξω πρὸς οἴκους πρὶν φάος μολεῖν χθόνα.
I shall return safely, and having slain Odysseus, I will bring his head to you—having clear proof, you will say that Dolon went to the ships of the Argives—or the son of Tydeus; and I will not return to my home with bloodless hand before light comes upon the earth.
§224Θυμβραῖε καὶ Δάλιε καὶ Λυκίας §225ναὸν ἐμβατεύων §226Ἄπολλον, ὦ δία κεφαλά, μόλε τοξή- §227ρης, ἱκοῦ ἐννύχιος §229καὶ γενοῦ σωτήριος ἀνέρι πομπᾶς §230ἁγεμὼν καὶ ξύλλαβε Δαρδανίδαις, §231ὦ παγκρατές, ὦ Τροΐας §232τείχη παλαιὰ δείμας.
O Apollo of Thymbra and Delos, who frequentest the temple of Lycia, O divine presence, come with your bow, arrive in the night, and become the savior and leader of his path, and assist the sons of Dardanus, O all-powerful one, who built the ancient walls of Troy.
§233μόλοι δὲ ναυκλήρια, καὶ στρατιᾶς §234Ἑλλάδος διόπτας §235ἵκοιτο, καὶ κάμψειε πάλιν θυμέλας οἴ- §236κων πατρὸς Ἰλιάδας.
May he reach the ships, and return as a scout of the Hellenic army, and turn back again to the altars of his father's Ilian home.
§237Φθιάδων δʼ ἵππων ποτʼ ἐπʼ ἄντυγα βαίη, §238δεσπότου πέρσαντος Ἀχαιὸν Ἄρη, §240τὰς πόντιος Αἰακίδᾳ §241Πηλεῖ δίδωσι δαίμων.
And may he one day mount the chariot of Phthian horses, after his master has destroyed the Achaean war, those which the sea god gave to Peleus, the son of Aeacus.
§243ἐπεὶ πρό τʼ οἴκων πρό τε γᾶς ἔτλα μόνος §244ναύσταθμα βὰς κατιδεῖν· ἄγαμαι §245λήματος· ἦ σπανία τις §246τῶν ἀγαθῶν, ὅταν ᾖ §247δυσάλιος ἐν πελάγει §248καὶ σαλεύῃ §250πόλις.
Since for his house and for his land he dared alone to go and view the naval stations; I admire his courage; indeed, rare is the noble man when the city is in distress on the deep and tossed on the waves.
ἔστι Φρυγῶν τις ἔστιν ἄλκιμος· §251ἔνι δὲ θράσος ἐν αἰχ- §252μᾷ· πόθι Μυσῶν ὃς ἐμὰν §253συμμαχίαν ἀτίζει;
There is a brave man among the Phrygians, there is courage in battle; where is that Mysian who disdains my alliance?
§254τίνʼ ἄνδρʼ Ἀχαιῶν ὁ πεδοστιβὴς σφαγεὺς §255οὐτάσει ἐν κλισίαις, τετράπουν §256μῖμον ἔχων ἐπιγαίου §257θηρός;
Which of the Achaeans will the earth-treading slaughterer stab in their tents, keeping the four-footed imitation of a land beast?
ἕλοι Μενέλαν, §258κτανὼν δʼ Ἀγαμεμνόνιον §259κρᾶτʼ ἐνέγκοι §260Ἑλένᾳ κακόγαμβρον ἐς χέρας γόον, §261ὃς ἐπὶ πόλιν, ὃς ἐπὶ §262γᾶν Τροΐαν χιλιόναυν §263ἤλυθʼ ἔχων στρατείαν.
May he capture Menelaus, and having slain Agamemnon, bring his head into the hands of Helen, as a cause of grief for her bad marriage, she who came against the city, against the land of Troy, leading an expedition of a thousand ships.
§264ἄναξ, τοιούτων δεσπόταισιν ἄγγελος §265εἴην τὸ λοιπὸν οἷά σοι φέρω μαθεῖν.
O King, may I be the bearer of such messages to my masters in the future as I bring now for you to learn.
§266ἦ πόλλʼ ἀγρώταις σκαιὰ πρόσκειται φρενί· §267καὶ γὰρ σὺ ποίμνας δεσπόταις τευχεσφόροις §268ἥκειν ἔοικας ἀγγελῶν ἵνʼ οὐ πρέπει.
Truly, many clumsy thoughts belong to rustics; for you too seem to have come to report to armored masters about flocks where it is not appropriate.
§269οὐκ οἶσθα δῶμα τοὐμὸν ἢ θρόνους πατρός, §270οἷ χρῆν γεγωνεῖν σʼ εὐτυχοῦντα ποίμνια;
Do you not know my home or my father's thrones, where you should have shouted your prosperous flocks?
§271σκαιοὶ βοτῆρές ἐσμεν· οὐκ ἄλλως λέγω.
We are ignorant shepherds; I do not say otherwise.
§272ἀλλʼ οὐδὲν ἧσσον σοι φέρω κεδνοὺς λόγους.
But nonetheless I bring you good words.
§273παῦσαι λέγων μοι τὰς προσαυλείους τύχας· §274μάχας πρὸ χειρῶν καὶ δόρη βαστάζομεν.
Cease telling me of the fortunes of the sheepfolds; we hold battles and spears in our hands.
§275τοιαῦτα κἀγὼ σημανῶν ἐλήλυθα· §276ἀνὴρ γὰρ ἀλκῆς μυρίας στρατηλατῶν §277στείχει φίλος σοὶ σύμμαχός τε τῇδε γῇ.
I have come to signal such things too; for a man leading an army of infinite valor is marching as a friend and ally to you and this land.
§278ποίας πατρῴας γῆς ἐρημώσας πέδον;
Leaving the soil of what ancestral land empty?
§279Θρῄκης· πατρὸς δὲ Στρυμόνος κικλήσκεται.
Of Thrace; and his father is called Strymon.

Notes

  1. 191λαβὼν δʼ ἄν φημι... δέχεσθαι — The particle ἄν accompanies the infinitive δέχεσθαι, forming an accusative-and-infinitive construction representing the apodosis of a potential condition ("I would receive..."). Inside the indirect discourse introduced by φημί, the participle λαβών acts as a conditional participle ("if I receive it").
  2. 211τετράπουν μιμήσομαι λύκου κέλευθον — Although τετράπουν could formally modify κέλευθον ("the four-footed path"), it is syntactically better understood as a predicative adjective modifying the subject of μιμήσομαι or acting adverbially ("I, on all fours, will imitate the gait of a wolf"), which fits the preceding context of matching front and hind limbs (lines 210–211).
  3. 233κάμψειε πάλιν θυμέλας — The optative κάμψειε expresses a wish. Historically a chariot-racing term meaning "to round the turning-post," it is used here metaphorically to mean that Dolon will safely double back or return from his hazardous scouting mission to his starting point (his father's home or the altars of Ilios).
  4. 243ὅταν ᾖ δυσάλιος ἐν πελάγει καὶ σαλεύῃ πόλις — A general conditional clause introduced by ὅταν with the subjunctives ᾖ and σαλεύῃ ("whenever the city..."). This utilizes the traditional "ship of state" metaphor, where the city (πόλις) is likened to a vessel tossed in the deep sea during a storm.
  5. 266ἦ πόλλʼ ἀγρώταις σκαιὰ πρόσκειται φρενί — The verb πρόσκειται is used in a semi-impersonal way with the dative (ἀγρώταις φρενί) to mean "many clumsy/foolish things are attached to, or inherent in, the minds of rustics."

Cite this passage

Euripides, Rhesus §180-279. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0006.tlg019.humanitext-grc2:180-279

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