§368μή, δέσποτʼ Αἴας, λίσσομαί σʼ, αὔδα τάδε.
No, master Ajax, I beseech you, do not speak such words.
§369οὐκ ἐκτός;
Will you not go outside?
οὐκ ἄψορρον ἐκνεμῇ πόδα;
Will you not turn back and withdraw your foot?
§370αἰαῖ αἰαῖ.
Alas, alas!
§371ὦ πρὸς θεῶν ὕπεικε καὶ φρόνησον εὖ.
Oh, by the gods, yield and return to your right mind.
§372ὢ δύσμορος, ὃς χεροῖν §373μεθῆκα τοὺς ἀλάστορας, §374ἐν δʼ ἑλίκεσσι βουσὶ καὶ §375κλυτοῖς πεσὼν αἰπολίοις §376ἐρεμνὸν αἷμʼ ἔδευσα.
Oh, wretched me, who let those cursed men escape from my hands, but falling upon the crumpled-horned cattle and famous flocks of goats, shed their dark blood.
§377τί δῆτʼ ἂν ἀλγοίης ἐπʼ ἐξειργασμένοις;
Why indeed should you grieve over what has been done?
§378οὐ γὰρ γένοιτʼ ἂν ταῦθʼ ὅπως οὐχ ὧδʼ ἔχοι.
For it is not possible that these things should not be as they are.
§379ἰὼ πάντα δρῶν, ἁπάντων τʼ ἀεὶ §380κακῶν ὄργανον, τέκνον Λαρτίου, §381κακοπινέστατόν τʼ ἄλημα στρατοῦ, §382ἦ που πολὺν γέλωθʼ ὑφʼ ἡδονῆς ἄγεις.
Oh, you who do everything, and of all evils always the instrument, son of Lartios, and the most filthy knave of the army, surely you are having a great laugh in your pleasure.
§383ξὺν τῷ θεῷ πᾶς καὶ γελᾷ κὠδύρεται.
With the god's help, every man both laughs and laments.
§384ἴδοιμι δή νιν, καίπερ ὧδʼ ἀτώμενος.
May I indeed see him, even though I am thus distressed.
§385ἰώ μοί μοι.
Oh, alas for me!
§386μηδὲν μέγʼ εἴπῃς· οὐχ ὁρᾷς ἵνʼ εἶ κακοῦ;
Speak no proud word; do you not see where you are in evil?
§387ὧ Ζεῦ, προγόνων πάτερ, §388πῶς ἂν τὸν αἱμυλώτατον, §389ἐχθρὸν ἄλημα, τούς τε δισ- §390σάρχας ὀλέσσας βασιλῆς, §391τέλος θάνοιμι καὐτός;
Oh Zeus, father of my ancestors, how might I, having destroyed that most cunning, hated knave, and the two ruling kings, at last die myself also?
When you pray for these things, pray that I may die together with you; for why must I live when you are dead?
§394ἰώ, §394aσκότος, ἐμὸν φάος, §395ἔρεβος ὦ φαεννότατον, ὡς ἐμοί, §396ἕλεσθʼ ἕλεσθέ μʼ οἰκήτορα, §397ἕλεσθέ μʼ· οὔτε γὰρ θεῶν γένος §398οὔθʼ ἁμερίων ἔτʼ ἄξιος §400βλέπειν τινʼ εἰς ὄνασιν ἀνθρώπων.
Oh, darkness, my light, Erebus, most radiant to me, as for my part, take me, take me to dwell with you, take me; for I am no longer worthy to look upon either the race of the gods or the breed of short-lived men for any benefit.
But the daughter of Zeus, the mighty goddess, tortures me to my destruction.
§403ποῖ τις οὖν φύγῃ;
Whither then can one flee?
§404ποῖ μολὼν μενῶ;
Whither shall I go and remain?
§405εἰ τὰ μὲν φθίνει, §406φίλοι, τίσις δʼ ἐμοῦ πέλας, §407μώραις δʼ ἄγραις προσκείμεθα, §408πᾶς δὲ στρατὸς δίπαλτος ἄν §409με χειρὶ φονεύοι.
If my past glories perish, O friends, and vengeance is near me, and I am devoted to foolish prey, and the whole army, wielding weapons with both hands, would slay me.
Oh, wretched me, that a useful man should speak such things, which before this he would never have dared to say.
§412ἰὼ §412aπόροι ἁλίρροθοι §413πάραλά τʼ ἄντρα καὶ νέμος ἐπάκτιον, §414πολὺν πολύν με δαρόν τε δὴ §415κατείχετʼ ἀμφὶ Τροίαν χρόνον· §416ἀλλʼ οὐκέτι μʼ, οὐκ ἔτʼ ἀμπνοὰς §417ἔχοντα· τοῦτό τις φρονῶν ἴστω.
Oh, sea-echoing paths, and caves by the shore, and woodland by the beach, a long, long, and weary time indeed did you keep me around Troy; but no longer shall you keep me, no longer drawing breath; let any wise man know this.
§418ὦ Σκαμάνδριοι §419γείτονες ῥοαί, §420ἐύφρονες Ἀργείοις, §421οὐκέτʼ ἄνδρα μὴ §422τόνδʼ ἴδητʼ, ἔπος §423ἐξερῶ μέγʼ, οἷ- §424ον οὔτινα Τροία στρατοῦ §425δέρχθη χθονὸς μολόντʼ ἀπὸ §426Ἑλλανίδος· τανῦν δʼ ἄτι- §427μος ὧδε πρόκειμαι.
O Scamandrian neighboring streams, kindly to the Argives, no longer shall you see this man, a word proud indeed shall I speak: such a man as Troy has never seen in the army that came from the land of Greece; but now, dishonored thus I lie low.
Indeed I cannot prevent you, nor know how to let you speak, fallen into such evils.
§430αἰαῖ·
Alas!
τίς ἄν ποτʼ ᾤεθʼ ὧδʼ ἐπώνυμον §431τοὐμὸν ξυνοίσειν ὄνομα τοῖς ἐμοῖς κακοῖς;
Who would ever have thought that my name, so named, would harmonize with my evils?
For now indeed I can wail "Aiai" twice and thrice; for such are the evils I meet with.
§434ὅτου πατὴρ μὲν τῆσδʼ ἀπʼ Ἰδαίας χθονὸς §435τὰ πρῶτα καλλιστεῖʼ ἀριστεύσας στρατοῦ §436πρὸς οἶκον ἦλθε πᾶσαν εὔκλειαν φέρων· §437ἐγὼ δʼ ὁ κείνου παῖς, τὸν αὐτὸν ἐς τόπον §438Τροίας ἐπελθὼν οὐκ ἐλάσσονι σθένει, §439οὐδʼ ἔργα μείω χειρὸς ἀρκέσας ἐμῆς, §440ἄτιμος Ἀργείοισιν ὧδʼ ἀπόλλυμαι.
My father indeed, from this Idaean land, having won the first prize of valor from the army, returned home bearing all glory; but I, his son, having come to this same place of Troy with no less strength, and having achieved no lesser deeds with my own hand, am thus perishing dishonored by the Argives.
§441καίτοι τοσοῦτόν γʼ ἐξεπίστασθαι δοκῶ, §442εἰ ζῶν Ἀχιλλεὺς τῶν ὅπλων τῶν ὧν πέρι §443κρίνειν ἔμελλε κράτος ἀριστείας τινί, §444οὐκ ἄν τις αὔτʼ ἔμαρψεν ἄλλος ἀντʼ ἐμοῦ.
And yet, this much at least I think I know well: if Achilles were alive, and about his own armor were about to judge the prize of valor to anyone, no other would have snatched them instead of me.
But now the Atreidae have managed it for a man of wicked heart, having pushed aside the victories of this man.
§447κεἰ μὴ τόδʼ ὄμμα καὶ φρένες διάστροφοι §448γνώμης ἀπῇξαν τῆς ἐμῆς, οὐκ ἄν ποτε §449δίκην κατʼ ἄλλου φωτὸς ὧδʼ ἐψήφισαν.
And if this eye and distorted mind of mine had not darted away from my purpose, never again would they have voted such a judgment against another man.
§450νῦν δʼ ἡ Διὸς γοργῶπις ἀδάματος θεὰ §451ἤδη μʼ ἐπʼ αὐτοῖς χεῖρʼ ἐπευθύνοντʼ ἐμὴν §452ἔσφηλεν ἐμβαλοῦσα λυσσώδη νόσον, §453ὥστʼ ἐν τοιοῖσδε χεῖρας αἱμάξαι βοτοῖς· §454κεῖνοι δʼ ἐπεγγελῶσιν ἐκπεφευγότες, §455ἐμοῦ μὲν οὐχ ἑκόντος· εἰ δέ τις θεῶν §456βλάπτοι, φύγοι τἂν χὡ κακὸς τὸν κρείσσονα.
But now the grim-eyed, invincible goddess, daughter of Zeus, even as I was stretching forth my hand against them, baffled me by casting upon me a raving disease, so that I stained my hands with the blood of such beasts as these; and they have escaped and laugh at me, though against my will; but if any of the gods should harm him, even the coward might escape the stronger man.
§457καὶ νῦν τί χρὴ δρᾶν;
And now, what must I do?
ὅστις ἐμφανῶς θεοῖς §458ἐχθαίρομαι, μισεῖ δέ μʼ Ἑλλήνων στρατός, §459ἔχθει δὲ Τροία πᾶσα καὶ πεδία τάδε.
I who am visibly hated by the gods, and the army of the Greeks detests me, and all Troy and these plains hate me.
Shall I cross the Aegean sea, leaving the naval stations and leaving the Atreidae alone, to go home?
And what kind of face shall I show, appearing to my father Telamon?
πῶς με τλήσεταί ποτʼ εἰσιδεῖν
How will he ever bear to look upon me