§82bεἰπέ μοι, φιλεῖς ἐμέ;
Strepsiades: Tell me, do you love me?
§83νὴ τὸν Ποσειδῶ τουτονὶ τὸν ἵππιον.
Pheidippides: Yes, by this Poseidon of the horses.
§84μὴ ʼμοί γε τοῦτον μηδαμῶς τὸν ἵππιον·
Strepsiades: No, by no means name this "Equestrian" to me!
§85οὗτος γὰρ ὁ θεὸς αἴτιός μοι τῶν κακῶν.
For this god is the cause of my troubles.
But if indeed you love me from your heart, my boy, obey me.
§87bτί οὖν πίθωμαι δῆτά σοι;
Pheidippides: What then should I obey you in?
Strepsiades: Change your ways as quickly as possible, and go learn what I shall advise.
§90λέγε δή, τί κελεύεις;
Pheidippides: Say then, what do you command?
§90bκαί τι πείσει;
Strepsiades: And will you obey?
§91bδεῦρό νυν ἀπόβλεπε.
Strepsiades: Look over here now.
§92ὁρᾷς τὸ θύριον τοῦτο καὶ τᾠκίδιον;
Do you see this little door and this little house?
§93ὁρῶ.
Pheidippides: I see it.
τί οὖν τοῦτʼ ἐστὶν ἐτεὸν ὦ πάτερ;
But what indeed is this, father?
§94ψυχῶν σοφῶν τοῦτʼ ἐστὶ φροντιστήριον.
Strepsiades: This is the "Thinkery" of wise souls.
§95ἐνταῦθʼ ἐνοικοῦσʼ ἄνδρες, οἳ τὸν οὐρανὸν §96λέγοντες ἀναπείθουσιν ὡς ἔστιν πνιγεύς, §97κἄστιν περὶ ἡμᾶς οὗτος, ἡμεῖς δʼ ἄνθρακες.
In there dwell men who, by speaking, persuade us that the heaven is an oven, and that it is around us, and we are coals.
These men teach, if anyone gives them money, how to win by speaking both just and unjust causes.
§100εἰσὶν δὲ τίνες;
Pheidippides: And who are they?
Strepsiades: I don't know the exact name, they are subtle thinkers, gentlemen.
§103αἰβοῖ πονηροί γʼ, οἶδα.
Pheidippides: Ugh! Villains, I know them.
τοὺς ἀλαζόνας §104τοὺς ὠχριῶντας τοὺς ἀνυποδήτους λέγεις, §105ὧν ὁ κακοδαίμων Σωκράτης καὶ Χαιρεφῶν.
You mean those braggarts, those pale-faced ones, those barefoot fellows, among whom are the wretched Socrates and Chaerephon.
§105bἢ ἢ σιώπα·
Strepsiades: Shh! Be quiet!
μηδὲν εἴπῃς νήπιον.
Don't say anything foolish.
But if you care at all for your father's barley, give up horsemanship and become one of them for me.
Pheidippides: I wouldn't do it, by Dionysus, not even if you gave me the pheasants that Leogoras breeds.
Strepsiades: Go, I entreat you, O dearest of men to me, go and be taught.
§111bκαὶ τί σοι μαθήσομαι;
Pheidippides: And what shall I learn for you?
Strepsiades: They say that both arguments are with them, the stronger, whatever it is, and the weaker.
Of these two arguments, the weaker, they say, wins though speaking the more unjust things.
§116ἢν οὖν μάθῃς μοι τὸν ἄδικον τοῦτον λόγον, §117ἃ νῦν ὀφείλω διὰ σέ, τούτων τῶν χρεῶν §118οὐκ ἂν ἀποδοίην οὐδʼ ἂν ὀβολὸν οὐδενί.
If then you learn this unjust argument for me, of those debts which I now owe because of you, I would not pay back even an obol to anyone.
Pheidippides: I cannot obey; for I would not dare to look upon the knights, with my complexion completely ruined.
§121οὐκ ἄρα μὰ τὴν Δήμητρα τῶν γʼ ἐμῶν ἔδει, §122οὔτʼ αὐτὸς οὔθʼ ὁ ζύγιος οὔθʼ ὁ σαμφόρας· §123ἀλλʼ ἐξελῶ σʼ ἐς κόρακας ἐκ τῆς οἰκίας.
Strepsiades: Then, by Demeter, you shall not eat of my goods, neither you, nor your yoke-horse, nor your branded horse; but I will drive you out of the house to the crows.
Pheidippides: Well, my uncle Megacles will not look on and see me horse-less.
ἀλλʼ εἴσειμι, σοῦ δʼ οὐ φροντιῶ.
I am going in, and I will pay no heed to you.
§126ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ ἐγὼ μέντοι πεσών γε κείσομαι, §127ἀλλʼ εὐξάμενος τοῖσιν θεοῖς διδάξομαι §128αὐτὸς βαδίζων ἐς τὸ φροντιστήριον.
Strepsiades: But I certainly will not lie down having fallen; but having prayed to the gods, I will be taught by going myself to the Thinkery.
How then, being an old man, forgetful and slow, shall I learn the splinters of precise arguments?
§131ἰτητέον.
I must go.
τί ταῦτʼ ἔχων στραγγεύομαι, §132ἀλλʼ οὐχὶ κόπτω τὴν θύραν;
Why do I linger and delay, instead of knocking on the door?
παῖ παιδίον.
Boy! Slave!
§133βάλλʼ ἐς κόρακας·
Disciple: Go to the crows!
τίς ἐσθʼ ὁ κόψας τὴν θύραν;
Who is it that knocked on the door?
§134Φείδωνος υἱὸς Στρεψιάδης Κικυννόθεν.
Strepsiades: Strepsiades, son of Pheidon, from Cicynna.
§135ἀμαθής γε νὴ Δίʼ ὅστις οὑτωσὶ σφόδρα §136ἀπεριμερίμνως τὴν θύραν λελάκτικας §137καὶ φροντίδʼ ἐξήμβλωκας ἐξηυρημένην.
Disciple: Ignorant indeed, by Zeus, who has so violently and thoughtlessly kicked the door, and caused a discovered thought to miscarry.
§138σύγγνωθί μοι· τηλοῦ γὰρ οἰκῶ τῶν ἀγρῶν.
Strepsiades: Forgive me; for I live far away in the country.
§139ἀλλʼ εἰπέ μοι τὸ πρᾶγμα τοὐξημβλωμένον.
But tell me the matter that was miscarried.
§140ἀλλʼ οὐ θέμις πλὴν τοῖς μαθηταῖσιν λέγειν.
Disciple: But it is not lawful to tell except to disciples.
Strepsiades: Tell me then with confidence; for I here have come as a disciple to the Thinkery.
§143λέξω.
Disciple: I will speak.
νομίσαι δὲ ταῦτα χρὴ μυστήρια.
But you must consider these things as mysteries.
§144ἀνήρετʼ ἄρτι Χαιρεφῶντα Σωκράτης §145ψύλλαν ὁπόσους ἅλλοιτο τοὺς αὑτῆς πόδας· §146δακοῦσα γὰρ τοῦ Χαιρεφῶντος τὴν ὀφρῦν §147ἐπὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν τὴν Σωκράτους ἀφήλατο.
Just now Socrates asked Chaerephon how many of its own feet a flea could jump; for, having bitten Chaerephon's eyebrow, it leaped onto the head of Socrates.
§148πῶς δῆτα διεμέτρησε;
Strepsiades: How indeed did he measure it?
§148bδεξιώτατα.
Disciple: Most cleverly.
§149κηρὸν διατήξας, εἶτα τὴν ψύλλαν λαβὼν §150ἐνέβαψεν ἐς τὸν κηρὸν αὐτῆς τὼ πόδε, §151κᾆτα ψυχείσῃ περιέφυσαν Περσικαί.
Having melted wax, then taking the flea, he dipped its two feet into the wax, and then, when it cooled, Persian slippers grew around them.
§152ταύτας ὑπολύσας ἀνεμέτρει τὸ χωρίον.
Unfitting these, he measured the distance.
§153ὦ Ζεῦ βασιλεῦ τῆς λεπτότητος τῶν φρενῶν.
Strepsiades: Great Zeus, what subtlety of mind!
Disciple: What indeed would you say if you heard another thought of Socrates?
§155bποῖον;
Strepsiades: What kind of thought?
ἀντιβολῶ κάτειπέ μοι.
I entreat you, tell me.
§156ἀνήρετʼ αὐτὸν Χαιρεφῶν ὁ Σφήττιος §157ὁπότερα τὴν γνώμην ἔχοι, τὰς ἐμπίδας §158κατὰ τὸ στόμʼ ᾄδειν ἢ κατὰ τοὐρροπύγιον.
Disciple: Chaerephon of Sphettus asked him which opinion he held, that gnats sing through the mouth or through the rump.
§159τί δῆτʼ ἐκεῖνος εἶπε περὶ τῆς ἐμπίδος;
Strepsiades: What indeed did he say about the gnat?
§160ἔφασκεν εἶναι τοὔντερον τῆς ἐμπίδος §161στενόν· διὰ λεπτοῦ δʼ ὄντος αὐτοῦ τὴν πνοὴν §162βίᾳ βαδίζειν εὐθὺ τοὐρροπυγίου· §163ἔπειτα κοῖλον πρὸς στενῷ προσκείμενον
Disciple: He said that the intestine of the gnat is narrow; and that because of its being narrow, the breath goes with force straight to the rump; then, a hollow part joined to the narrow part—