Humanitext Reader

Aristophanes · Wealth §383-459

The Appearance of Poverty and Her Denunciation

Passage 6 of 16 · Greek

Summary

Chremylus and Blepsidemus plan to take Plutus to the temple of Asclepius to cure his blindness, but they are suddenly confronted and fiercely denounced by the goddess Poverty (Penia), whom they try to resist despite their fear.

§383ἱκετηρίαν ἔχοντα μετὰ τῶν παιδίων §384καὶ τῆς γυναικός, κουʼ διοίσοντʼ ἄντικρυς §385τῶν Ἡρακλειδῶν οὐδʼ ὁτιοῦν τῶν Παμφίλου.
carrying a suppliant's branch with his children and his wife, and not differing at all from the Heracleidae of Pamphilus.
§386οὒκ ὦ κακόδαιμον, ἀλλὰ τοὺς χρηστοὺς μόνους §387ἔγωγε καὶ τοὺς δεξιοὺς καὶ σώφρονας §388ἀπαρτὶ πλουτῆσαι ποιήσω.
No, you unlucky man, but I will make only the honest, the clever, and the temperate rich henceforth.
§388bτί σὺ λέγεις;
What are you saying?
§389οὕτω πάνυ πολλὰ κέκλοφας;
Have you stolen so very much?
§389bοἴμοι τῶν κακῶν,
Oh, what trouble!
§390ἀπολεῖς.
You will be ruined.
§390bσὺ μὲν οὖν σεαυτόν, ὥς γʼ ἐμοὶ δοκεῖς.
Rather, you will ruin yourself, so it seems to me.
§391ουʼ δῆτʼ, ἐπεὶ τὸν Πλοῦτον ὦ μόχθηρε σὺ §392ἔχω.
Not at all, since, you wretched man, Plutus I have.
§392bσὺ Πλοῦτον;
You have Plutus?
ποῖον;
What kind?
§392cαὐτὸν τὸν θεόν.
The god himself.
§393καὶ ποῦ ʼστιν;
And where is he?
§393bἔνδον.
Inside.
§393cποῦ;
Where?
§393dπαρʼ ἐμοί.
With me.
§3933παρὰ σοί;
With you?
§393fπάνυ.
Yes, indeed.
§394οὐκ ἐς κόρακας;
Go to the crows!
Πλοῦτος παρὰ σοί;
Plutus with you?
§394bνὴ τοὺς θεούς.
By the gods.
§395λὲγεις ἀληθῆ;
Are you telling the truth?
§395bφημί.
I say so.
§395cπρὸς τῆς Ἑστίας;
By Hestia?
§396νὴ τὸν Ποσειδῶ.
By Poseidon.
§396bτὸν θαλάττιον λέγεις;
Do you mean the god of the sea?
§397εἰ δʼ ἔστιν ἕτερός τις Ποσειδῶν, τὸν ἕτερον.
If there is some other Poseidon, by that other one.
§398εἶτʼ οὐ διαπέμπεις καὶ πρὸς ἡμᾶς τοὺς φίλους;
Then do you not send some to us, your friends?
§399οὐκ ἔστι πω τὰ πράγματʼ ἐν τούτῳ.
Matters are not yet at that point.
§399bτί φῄς;
What do you mean?
§400οὐ τῷ μεταδοῦναι;
Not at the point of sharing?
§400bμὰ Δία.
By Zeus, no.
δεῖ γὰρ πρῶτα §400cτί;
For first we must— What?
§401βλέψαι ποιῆσαι νώ— §401bτίνα βλέψαι;
make him see, we two— Make whom see?
φράσον.
Tell me.
§402τὸν Πλοῦτον ὥσπερ πρότερον ἑνί γέ τῳ τρόπῳ.
Plutus, in some way or other, as before.
§403τυφλὸς γὰρ ὄντως ἐστί;
For is he really blind?
§403bνὴ τὸν οὐρανόν.
By heaven, yes.
§404οὐκ ἐτὸς ἄρʼ ὡς ἔμʼ ἦλθεν οὐδεπώποτε.
No wonder then that he never came to me!
§405ἀλλʼ ἢν θεοὶ θέλωσι, νῦν ἀφίξεται.
But if the gods will, he shall arrive now.
§406οὔκουν ἰατρὸν εἰσάγειν ἐχρῆν τινά;
Ought we not then to bring in some doctor?
§407τίς δῆτʼ ἰατρός ἐστι νῦν ἐν τῇ πόλει;
What doctor is there now in the city?
§408οὔτε γὰρ ὁ μισθὸς οὐδὲν ἔστʼ οὔθʼ ἡ τέχνη.
For neither is there any pay, nor is there any art.
§409σκοπῶμεν.
Let us consider.
§409bἀλλʼ οὐκ ἔστιν.
But there is none.
§409cοὐδ ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ.
Neither does it seem so to me.
§410μὰ Δίʼ ἀλλʼ ὅπερ πάλαι παρεσκευαζόμην §411ἐγώ, κατακλίνειν αὐτὸν εἰς Ἀσκληπιοῦ §412κράτιστόν ἐστι.
By Zeus, but what I was preparing long ago, to lay him down in the temple of Asclepius, is the best.
§412bπολὺ μὲν οὖν νὴ τοὺς θεούς.
Very much so, by the gods.
§413μή νυν διάτριβʼ ἀλλʼ ἄνυε πράττων ἕν γέ τι.
Do not delay then, but make haste to do at least this one thing.
§414καὶ δὴ βαδίζω.
Indeed I am going.
§414bσπεῦδέ νυν.
Hurry then.
§414cτοῦτʼ αὐτὸ δρῶ.
I am doing just that.
§415ὦ θερμὸν ἔργον κἀνόσιον καὶ παράνομον §416τολμῶντε δρᾶν ἀνθρωπαρίω κακοδαίμονε— §417ποῖ ποῖ;
O hot deed, and unholy, and lawless, which you two wretched little men dare to commit— Whither, whither?
τί φεύγετον;
Why do you flee?
οὐ μενεῖτον;
Will you not stay?
§417bἩράκλεις.
Heracles!
§418ἐγὼ γὰρ ὑμᾶς ἐξολῶ κακοὺς κακῶς· §419τόλμημα γὰρ τολμᾶτον οὐκ ἀνασχετόν, §420ἀλλʼ οἷον οὐδεὶς ἄλλος οὐδεπώποτε §421οὔτε θεὸς οὔτʼ ἄνθρωπος· ὥστʼ ἀπολώλατον.
For I will destroy you, evil ones, in an evil way; for you are daring a daring deed not to be borne, but such as no one else ever yet dared, neither god nor man; so you two are ruined.
§422σὺ δʼ εἶ τίς;
And who are you?
ὠχρὰ μὲν γὰρ εἶναί μοι δοκεῖς.
For you seem to me to be pale.
§423ἴσως Ἐρινύς ἐστιν ἐκ τραγῳδίας· §424βλέπει γέ τοι μανικόν τι καὶ τραγῳδικόν.
Perhaps she is an Erinys from a tragedy; at any rate she looks mad and tragic.
§425ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἔχει γὰρ δᾷδας.
But she does not have torches.
§425bοὐκοῦν κλαύσεται.
Then she shall howl.
§426ὄιεσθε δʼ εἶναι τίνα με;
And who do you think I am?
§426bπανδοκεύτριαν §427ἢ λεκιθόπωλιν.
An innkeeper or a seller of pulse-soup.
οὐ γὰρ ἂν τοσουτονὶ §428ἀνέκραγες ἡμῖν οὐδὲν ἠδικημένη.
For otherwise you would not have cried out so loud at us, having been wronged in nothing.
§429ἄληθες;
Really?
οὐ γὰρ δεινότατα δεδράκατον §430ζητοῦντες ἐκ πάσης με χώρας ἐκβαλεῖν;
Have you not done the most terrible things, seeking to cast me out from every land?
§431οὔκουν ὑπόλοιπον τὸ βάραθρόν σοι γίγνεται;
Is not the Pit left for you?
§432ἀλλʼ ἥτις εἶ λέγειν σʼ ἐχρῆν αὐτίκα μάλα.
But who you are, you ought to have said immediately.
§433ἣ σφὼ ποιήσω τήμερον δοῦναι δίκην §434ἀνθʼ ὧν ἐμὲ ζητεῖτον ἐνθένδʼ ἀφανίσαι.
She who will make you two pay the penalty today for trying to make me disappear from here.
§435ἆρʼ ἐστὶν ἡ καπηλὶς ἡκ τῶν γειτόνων, §436ἣ ταῖς κοτύλαις ἀεί με διαλυμαίνεται;
Is she the tavern-keeper from the neighborhood, who always cheats me with her measures?
§437Πενία μὲν οὖν, ἣ σφῷν ξυνοικῶ πόλλʼ ἔτη.
Nay, it is Poverty, who has lived with you two for many years.
§438ἄναξ Ἄπολλον καὶ θεοί, ποῖ τις φύγῃ;
Lord Apollo and gods, whither can one flee?
§439οὗτος τί δρᾷς;
You there, what are you doing?
ὦ δειλότατον σὺ θηρίον·
O you most cowardly beast!
§440οὐ παραμενεῖς;
Will you not stay?
§440bἥκιστα πάντων.
Least of all.
§440cοὐ μενεῖς;
Will you not stay?
§441ἀλλʼ ἄνδρε δύο γυναῖκα φεύγομεν μίαν;
But shall we, two men, flee from one woman?
§442Πενία γάρ ἐστιν ὦ πόνηρʼ, ἧς οὐδαμοῦ §443οὐδὲν πέφυκε ζῷον ἐξωλέστερον.
For she is Poverty, you wretch, than whom no more destructive creature has ever existed anywhere.
§444στῆθʼ, ἀντιβολῶ σε, στῆθι.
Stand, I entreat you, stand!
§444bμὰ Δίʼ ἐγὼ μὲν οὔ.
By Zeus, not I indeed.
§445καὶ μὴν λέγω, δεινότατον ἔργον παρὰ πολὺ §446ἔργων ἁπάντων ἐργασόμεθʼ, εἰ τὸν θεὸν §447ἔρημον ἀπολιπόντε ποι φευξούμεθα §448τηνδὶ δεδιότε, μηδὲ διαμαχούμεθα.
And yet I say, we shall perform by far the most terrible deed of all deeds, if leaving the god deserted we flee somewhere, fearing this woman, and do not fight it out.
§449ποίοις ὅπλοισιν ἢ δυνάμει πεποιθότες;
Trusting in what weapons or power?
§450ποῖον γὰρ οὐ θώρακα, ποίαν δʼ ἀσπίδα §451οὐκ ἐνέχυρον τίθησιν ἡ μιαρωτάτη;
For what breastplate, what shield, does this most abominable woman not put in pawn?
§452θάρρει· μόνος γὰρ ὁ θεὸς οὗτος οἶδʼ ὅτι §453τροπαῖον ἂν στήσαιτο τῶν ταύτης τρόπων.
Have courage; for I know that this god alone can set up a trophy over her ways.
§454γρύζειν δὲ καὶ τολμᾶτον ὦ καθάρματε, §455ἐπʼ αὐτοφώρῳ δεινὰ δρῶντʼ εἰλημμένω;
Do you even dare to mutter, you scum, having been caught in the act of doing terrible things?
§456σὺ δʼ ὦ κάκιστʼ ἀπολουμένη τί λοιδορεῖ §457ἡμῖν προσελθοῦσʼ οὐδʼ ὁτιοῦν ἀδικουμένη;
And you, you utterly accursed woman, why do you abuse us, coming up to us when you have been wronged in nothing?
§458οὐδὲν γὰρ ὦ πρὸς τῶν θεῶν νομίζετε §459ἀδικεῖν με τὸν Πλοῦτον ποιεῖν πειρωμένω
By the gods, do you think you do no wrong in trying to make Plutus see?

Notes

  1. 384κουʼ διοίσοντʼ — Future participle masculine accusative singular of διαφέρω (crasis of καὶ οὐ διοίσοντα), meaning "and not differing." It modifies the accusative "someone" (τινά) in §382, indicating that the suppliant's appearance is indistinguishable from the famous theatrical scene.
  2. 401βλέψαι ποιῆσαι νώ — A combination of the infinitives ποιῆσαι (causative "to make") and βλέψαι ("to see"). νώ (dual accusative "we two") is the subject of the infinitive ποιῆσαι, meaning "that we two make him see."
  3. 451οὐκ ἐνέχυρον τίθησιν — An idiomatic expression meaning "to put in pawn." The negative οὐκ modifies the verb, creating a rhetorical question: "what breastplate or shield does this most abominable woman (Poverty) not put in pawn?" (implying she forces everything to be pawned).

Cite this passage

Aristophanes, Wealth §383-459. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0019.tlg011.humanitext-grc2:383-459

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