Humanitext Reader

Herodotus · Histories §1.4.1-1.4.4

Expedition to Troy as the Origin of Persian Enmity

Passage 4 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

According to the Persian account, the Greeks' massive expedition against Troy was the beginning of the major conflict between Asia and Europe, leading the Persians to permanently view the Greeks as their enemies.

§1.4.1μέχρι μὲν ὤν τούτου ἁρπαγάς μούνας εἶναι παρʼ ἀλλήλων, τὸ δὲ ἀπὸ τούτου Ἕλληνας δὴ μεγάλως αἰτίους γενέσθαι· προτέρους γὰρ ἄρξαι στρατεύεσθαι ἐς τὴν Ἀσίην ἢ σφέας ἐς τὴν Εὐρώπην.
Up to this point, then, they say there were only mutual abductions, but after this the Greeks were indeed greatly to blame; for they were the first to begin making a military expedition into Asia, before they themselves did into Europe.
§1.4.2τὸ μέν νυν ἁρπάζειν γυναῖκας ἀνδρῶν ἀδίκων νομίζειν ἔργον εἶναι, τὸ δὲ ἁρπασθεισέων σπουδήν ποιήσασθαι τιμωρέειν ἀνοήτων, τὸ δὲ μηδεμίαν ὤρην ἔχειν ἁρπασθεισέων σωφρόνων· δῆλα γὰρ δὴ ὅτι, εἰ μὴ αὐταὶ ἐβούλοντο, οὐκ ἂν ἡρπάζοντο.
Now, they hold that to carry off women is the deed of unjust men, but to make a serious effort to avenge them when carried off is the deed of foolish men, whereas to pay no regard to them when carried off is the deed of wise men; for it is indeed clear that, if they themselves had not wished it, they would not have been carried off.
§1.4.3σφέας μὲν δὴ τοὺς ἐκ τῆς Ἀσίης λέγουσι Πέρσαι ἁρπαζομενέων τῶν γυναικῶν λόγον οὐδένα ποιήσασθαι, Ἕλληνας δὲ Λακεδαιμονίης εἵνεκεν γυναικὸς στόλον μέγαν συναγεῖραι καὶ ἔπειτα ἐλθόντας ἐς τὴν Ἀσίην τὴν Πριάμου δύναμιν κατελεῖν.
The Persians say that they themselves, those of Asia, made no account of their women being carried off, but the Greeks, for the sake of a Lacedaemonian woman, assembled a great expedition, and then, having come to Asia, destroyed the power of Priam.
§1.4.4ἀπὸ τούτου αἰεὶ ἡγήσασθαι τὸ Ἑλληνικὸν σφίσι εἶναι πολέμιον.
Since then, they have always considered the Hellenic race to be hostile to them.
τὴν γὰρ Ἀσίην καὶ τὰ ἐνοικέοντα ἔθνεα βάρβαρα οἰκηιεῦνται οἱ Πέρσαι, τὴν δὲ Εὐρώπην καὶ τὸ Ἑλληνικόν ἥγηνται κεχωρίσθαι.
For the Persians claim Asia and the barbarian nations inhabiting it as their own, but they consider Europe and the Hellenic world to be distinct from them.

Notes

  1. 1.4.2ἀνδρῶν ἀδίκων — These genitives (ἀνδρῶν ἀδίκων, ἀνοήτων, σωφρόνων) are genitives of characteristic or possession, meaning 'it is characteristic of' or 'it is the part of' such men.
  2. 1.4.2ἁρπασθεισέων — This participle occurs twice. The first can be taken either as a genitive absolute ('when they have been carried off') or as referring to the abducted women. The second is the objective genitive governed by the phrase ὤρην ἔχειν ('to care for').
  3. 1.4.2εἰ μὴ αὐταὶ ἐβούλοντο, οὐκ ἂν ἡρπάζοντο — An unreal (contrary-to-fact) conditional sentence representing a past or general truth, using the imperfect indicative with the particle ἄν. It means 'if they themselves had not wished it, they would not have been carried off.'
  4. 1.4.4ἥγηνται — The third-person plural perfect middle-passive of the verb ἡγέομαι. Here it expresses a present settled state of mind: 'they consider (Europe and the Hellenic world) to be separated.'

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §1.4.1-1.4.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.4.1-1.4.4

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