§1362καὶ τὸν Σιμωνίδην ἔφασκʼ εἶναι κακὸν ποιητήν.
And he claimed that Simonides was a bad poet.
§1363κἀγὼ μόλις μὲν ἀλλʼ ὅμως ἠνεσχόμην τὸ πρῶτον·
And I, with difficulty at first, but nevertheless endured.
§1364ἔπειτα δʼ ἐκέλευσʼ αὐτὸν ἀλλὰ μυρρίνην λαβόντα §1365τῶν Αἰσχύλου λέξαι τί μοι· κᾆθʼ οὗτος εὐθὺς εἶπεν· §1366ἐγὼ γὰρ Αἰσχύλον νομίζω πρῶτον ἐν ποιηταῖς, §1367ψόφου πλέων ἀξύστατον στόμφακα κρημνοποιόν; §1368κἀνταῦθα πῶς οἴεσθέ μου τὴν καρδίαν ὀρεχθεῖν;
But then I bid him at least to take a myrtle branch and recite to me some of Aeschylus; and then he straightway said: “For do I indeed think Aeschylus is first among poets, a fellow full of noise, incoherent, bombastic, and a cliff-creator?” And at this, how do you think my heart leapt?
§1369ὅμως δὲ τὸν θυμὸν δακὼν ἔφην,
σὺ δʼ ἀλλὰ τούτων §1370λέξον τι τῶν νεωτέρων, ἅττʼ ἐστὶ τὰ σοφὰ ταῦτα. §1371ὁ δʼ εὐθὺς ᾖσʼ Εὐριπίδου ῥῆσίν τινʼ, ὡς ἐκίνει §1372ἀδελφὸς ὦλεξίκακε τὴν ὁμομητρίαν ἀδελφήν.
Nevertheless, biting my anger, I said: “Then you, at least instead of these, recite some of those newer ones, whatever these clever things are.” And he straightway sang a speech of Euripides, how a brother — O warder-off of evil! — moved his uterine sister with passion.
§1373κἀγὼ οὐκέτʼ ἐξηνεσχόμην, ἀλλʼ εὐθέως ἀράττω §1374πολλοῖς κακοῖς καἰσχροῖσι· κᾆτʼ ἐντεῦθεν, οἷον εἰκός, §1375ἔπος πρὸς ἔπος ἠρειδόμεσθʼ· εἶθʼ οὗτος ἐπαναπηδᾶ, §1376κἄπειτʼ ἔφλα με κἀσπόδει κἄπνιγε κἀπέθλιβεν.
And I could no longer endure it, but straightway struck him with many bad and shameful words; and then from there, as was likely, we thrust word against word; then he leapt upon me, and then he bruised me, and beat me, and choked me, and crushed me.
Pheidippides: Was it not then justly, since you do not praise Euripides, who is the wisest?
§1379σοφώτατόν γʼ ἐκεῖνον·
Strepsiades: He the wisest!
ὦ — τί σʼ εἴπω;
O — what shall I call you?
§1379bἀλλʼ αὖθις αὖ τυπτήσομαι.
But I shall be beaten again.
§1379cνὴ τὸν Δίʼ ἐν δίκῃ γʼ ἄν.
Pheidippides: By Zeus, justly indeed.
§1380καὶ πῶς δικαίως;
Strepsiades: And how justly?
ὅστις ὦ ʼναίσχυντέ σʼ ἐξέθρεψα, §1381αἰσθανόμενός σου πάντα τραυλίζοντος, ὅ τι νοοίης.
Since I, you shameless wretch, brought you up, understanding all your baby-talk, whatever you meant.
§1382εἰ μέν γε βρῦν εἴποις, ἐγὼ γνοὺς ἂν πιεῖν ἐπέσχον· §1383μαμμᾶν δʼ ἂν αἰτήσαντος ἧκόν σοι φέρων ἂν ἄρτον· §1384κακκᾶν δʼ ἂν οὐκ ἔφθης φράσας, κἀγὼ λαβὼν θύραζε §1385ἐξέφερον ἂν καὶ προὐσχόμην σε·
If indeed you said ‘bryn’, I, understanding, would hold out drink to you; and when you asked for ‘mamman’, I would come bringing bread to you; and you would no sooner say ‘kakkan’, and I, taking you, would carry you out of doors and hold you out.
σὺ δʼ ἐμὲ νῦν ἀπάγχων §1386βοῶντα καὶ κεκραγόθʼ ὅτι §1387χεζητιῴην, οὐκ ἔτλης §1388ἔξω ʼξενεγκεῖν ὦ μιαρὲ §1389θύραζέ μʼ, ἀλλὰ πνιγόμενος §1390αὐτοῦ ʼποίησα κακκᾶν.
But you now, choking me as I am shouting and crying out that I want to ease myself, did not have the heart to carry me out, you wretch, out of doors, but being choked, I did ‘kakkan’ right there!
Chorus: I think indeed that the hearts of the younger men are leaping to hear what he will say.
§1393εἰ γὰρ τοιαῦτά γʼ οὗτος ἐξειργασμένος §1394λαλῶν ἀναπείσει, §1395τὸ δέρμα τῶν γεραιτέρων λάβοιμεν ἂν §1396ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ ἐρεβίνθου.
For if he, having done such things, will persuade us by talking, we would not buy the skin of the older men even for a chickpea.
It is your task, O mover and shaker of new words, to seek some persuasion, so that you will seem to speak justly.
§1399ὡς ἡδὺ καινοῖς πράγμασιν καὶ δεξιοῖς ὁμιλεῖν, §1400καὶ τῶν καθεστώτων νόμων ὑπερφρονεῖν δύνασθαι.
Pheidippides: How sweet it is to associate with new and clever affairs, and to be able to look down on the established laws!
§1401ἐγὼ γὰρ ὅτε μὲν ἱππικῇ τὸν νοῦν μόνῃ προσεῖχον, §1402οὐδʼ ἂν τρίʼ εἰπεῖν ῥήμαθʼ οἷός τʼ ἦν πρὶν ἐξαμαρτεῖν· §1403νυνὶ δʼ ἐπειδή μʼ οὑτοσὶ τούτων ἔπαυσεν αὐτός, §1404γνώμαις δὲ λεπταῖς καὶ λόγοις ξύνειμι καὶ μερίμναις, §1405οἶμαι διδάξειν ὡς δίκαιον τὸν πατέρα κολάζειν.
For when I was paying attention to horsemanship alone, I was not able to say even three words before making a mistake; but now since this man himself made me cease from those things, and I live with subtle thoughts, arguments, and contemplations, I think I shall show that it is just to chastise one's father.
§1406ἵππευε τοίνυν νὴ Δίʼ, ὡς ἔμοιγε κρεῖττόν ἐστιν
Strepsiades: Ride horses then, by Zeus!
§1407ἵππων τρέφειν τέθριππον ἢ τυπτόμενον ἐπιτριβῆναι.
Since for me it is better to feed a four-horse chariot team than to be beaten and destroyed.
§1408ἐκεῖσε δʼ ὅθεν ἀπέσχισάς με τοῦ λόγου μέτειμι, §1409καὶ πρῶτʼ ἐρήσομαί σε τουτί· παῖδά μʼ ὄντʼ ἔτυπτες;
Pheidippides: But I will return to where you broke me off from the argument, and first I will ask you this: did you beat me when I was a child?
§1410ἔγωγέ σʼ εὐνοῶν τε καὶ κηδόμενος.
Strepsiades: Yes, wishing you well and caring for you.
§1410bεἰπὲ δή μοι, §1411οὐ κἀμέ σοι δίκαιόν ἐστιν εὐνοεῖν ὁμοίως §1412τύπτειν τʼ, ἐπειδήπερ γε τοῦτʼ ἐστʼ εὐνοεῖν τὸ τύπτειν;
Pheidippides: Tell me then, is it not just for me also to wish you well in the same way, and to beat you, since indeed to beat is to wish well?
For why indeed should your body be exempt from blows, but mine not?
καὶ μὴν ἔφυν ἐλεύθερός γε κἀγώ.
And indeed I also was born free.
§1415κλάουσι παῖδες, πατέρα δʼ οὐ κλάειν δοκεῖς;
Children weep, and do you think a father should not weep?
§1416φήσεις νομίζεσθαι σὺ παιδὸς τοῦτο τοὔργον εἶναι· §1417ἐγὼ δέ γʼ ἀντείποιμʼ ἂν ὡς δὶς παῖδες οἱ γέροντες· §1418εἰκὸς δὲ μᾶλλον τοὺς γέροντας ἢ νέους τι κλάειν, §1419ὅσῳπερ ἐξαμαρτάνειν ἧττον δίκαιον αὐτούς.
You will say that this is established by custom to be the child's lot; but I would reply that old men are twice children; and it is more reasonable for the old to weep than the young, by as much as it is less just for them to do wrong.
§1420ἀλλʼ οὐδαμοῦ νομίζεται τὸν πατέρα τοῦτο πάσχειν.
Strepsiades: But nowhere is it customary for a father to suffer this!
§1421οὔκουν ἀνὴρ ὁ τὸν νόμον θεὶς τοῦτον ἦν τὸ πρῶτον §1422ὥσπερ σὺ κἀγώ, καὶ λέγων ἔπειθε τοὺς παλαιούς;
Pheidippides: Was not indeed the one who established this law originally a man, just like you and me, and did he not persuade the ancients by speaking?
§1423ἧττόν τι δῆτʼ ἔξεστι κἀμοὶ καινὸν αὖ τὸ λοιπὸν §1424θεῖναι νόμον τοῖς υἱέσιν, τοὺς πατέρας ἀντιτύπτειν;
Is it then any less permitted for me also in the future to establish a new law for sons, to beat their fathers in return?
§1425ὅσας δὲ πληγὰς εἴχομεν πρὶν τὸν νόμον τεθῆναι, §1426ἀφίεμεν, καὶ δίδομεν αὐτοῖς προῖκα συγκεκόφθαι.
But as many blows as we received before the law was established, we remit, and we grant them to have beaten us for free.
§1427σκέψαι δὲ τοὺς ἀλεκτρυόνας καὶ τἄλλα τὰ βοτὰ ταυτί, §1428ὡς τοὺς πατέρας ἀμύνεται· καίτοι τί διαφέρουσιν §1429ἡμῶν ἐκεῖνοι, πλήν γʼ ὅτι ψηφίσματʼ οὐ γράφουσιν;
But look at the cocks and these other beasts, how they defend themselves against their fathers; and yet how do they differ from us, except indeed that they do not write decrees?