Reading Passages. Classical Readings

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1 Reading Passages Assignment For each of the following Greek sentences: 1). Write each one out in Greek and read it aloud; 2) Parse each verb and noun; and 3) Translate each sentence into English. Classical Readings 1. The Titan Prometheus has been bound to a cliff face in the Caucasus mountains on the orders of Zeus, king of the Olympian gods. Once he is bound, Prometheus sings about his suffering, but then suddenly stops and says: καίτοι τί φηµι; καίτοι = form of καί used to change topics Aeschylus Prometheus Bound A chorus of the daughters of the god of the Ocean come visit Prometheus and learn of his punishment. When Prometheus explains that his punishment can end only when Zeus wills it so, the chorus asks in despair: τίς ἐλπίς; Aeschylus Prometheus Bound During the Trojan War, the great Greek warrior Ajax becomes embroiled in a controversy and eventually commits suicide. His wife (and former prisoner of war) says of his enemies: Αἴας γὰρ αὐτοῖς οὐκέτ ἐστίν Αἴας Αἴαντος ὁ Ajax οὐκέτ = οὐκέτι no longer Sophocles Ajax Ajax s half-brother, Teucer, defends the fallen warrior s reputation, which angers the general of the Greek forces, Agamemnon. Here Agamemnon sarcastically quotes Teucer to his face: ἀλλ αὐτὸς ἄρχων, ὡς σὺ φής, Αἴας ἔπλει. Αἴας αντος ὁ Ajax ἔπλει (3 rd sg) sailed σύ (nom sg) you Sophocles Ajax 1234

2 5. After the Trojan War, Agamemnon returns home and is murdered by his wife, Clytemnestra (in retaliation for Agamemnon murdering their daughter Iphigenia before the war). Two of their other children, sister Electra and brother Orestes, later meet and conspire to take vengeance on their own mother. In preparation, Electra sings in part: δαιµόνιον αὐτὸ τίθηµ ἐγώ. δαιµόνιον (nom/acc sg) τό divine ἐγώ (nom sg) I Sophocles Electra Notes: δαιµόνιον and αὐτὸ are in apposition. τίθηµ in this context is best translated as ordain, reckon 6. After Electra and Orestes kill their mother, Orestes falls ill and hallucinates. At one point, his uncle Menelaus (Agamemnon s brother) visits and asks: τίς σε ἀπόλλυσιν νόσος; νόσος (nom sg) ὁ disease σε (acc sg) you Euripides Orestes Ion is a young man who has been raised as an orphan at a temple, ever since he was left there as an infant. Now the priestess of the temple is giving Ion the cradle in which he was found, so that he can search for his parents: ὦ παῖ, καὶ τάδ ἀποδίδωµί σοι. ὦ O! (used when calling out to someone) Euripides Ion Another famous orphan was Oedipus. In this scene, he is trying to discover who his birth parents were. He has found the shepherd who originally took the baby Oedipus from his original parents. At one point the shepherd says that the queen of the city (who is also Oedipus wife) knows the origin of the baby Oedipus. Oedipus then asks: ἦ γὰρ δίδωσιν ἥδε σοι; ἦ (sets up a yes/no question) Sophocles Oedipus Tyrannos

3 9. Later, Oedipus, old, blind and in exile, comes to the Athenian suburb of Colonus, along with his daughter Antigone, where his other daughter, Ismene, joins them. Then Antigone tells Oedipus that Polynices (their brother/son/uncle) has just arrived. πάρεστι δεῦρο Πολυνείκης ὅδε. Polynices enters and says: οἴµοι, δεῦρο here οἴµοι (a cry of pain) πάρειµι be present Πολυνείκης (nom sg) ὁ Polynices Sophocles Oedipus at Colonus As he prepares to invade Thebes and attack his brother, Polynices responds to his mother s request that the brothers meet and try one last time to settle their differences. He says: µῆτερ, πάρειµι µῆτερ mother Euripides Phoenician Women In Euripides satyrical version of Odysseus encounter with the Cyclops (originally from Odyssey book 9), Silenus takes the bowl of wine and the Cyclops asks: ἰδού. τί δῆτα τὸν κρατῆρ ὄπισθ ἐµοῦ τίθης; δῆτα (emphasizes preceding word) ἐµοῦ (gen. sg.) me ἰδού Look! Hey! κρατῆρ = κρατῆρα < κρατήρ ρος ὁ bowl (for wine) ὄπισθ = ὄπισθε behind Euripides Cyclops In an alternate (lost) version of Aristophanes Peace, the goddess of farming plays a role. She appears and says that she is closely related to Peace, at which point someone asks her: σοὶ δ ὄνοµα δὴ τί ἐστιν; to which the goddess responds: ὅ τι; Γεωργία. Γεωργία (nom sg) ἡ Agriculture, Farming δή (emphasizes preceding word) - 3 -

4 Aristophanes Peace fr In another comedy, the tragedian Euripides is in trouble with the women of Athens for his unflattering portrayal of them on stage. He sends one of his in-laws to spy on the women, but he ends up captured. Euripides later comes in disguise to rescue his kinsman from a guard: Archer guard: ὄνοµα δέ σοι τί ἐστιν; Euripides: Ἀρτεµισία. Ἀρτεµισία (nom sg) ἡ Artemesia (a famous naval commander from the Persian wars) Aristophanes Thesmophoriazusae The historian Thucydides counts the ships lost in a naval battle: αὐτοὶ δὲ πέντε καὶ δέκα ναῦς ἀπολλύασιν. δέκα ten ναῦς (acc pl) ἡ ships πέντε five Thucydides The intellectual and teacher Isocrates is listing things that people do in order to better themselves and receive a superior education at Athens: ἀλλὰ δῆλον ὅτι καὶ πλέουσι καὶ χρήµατα διδόασιν καὶ πάντα ποιοῦσιν. δῆλον [supply ἐστίν] (nom sg) τό clear πάντα (nom/acc pl) τό anything & everything πλέουσι (3 rd pl) sail ποιοῦσιν (3 rd pl) do χρῆµα ατος τό thing (pl.) money Isocrates Here Socrates is trying to determine the nature and origin of words: τίς παραδίδωσιν ἡµῖν τὰ ὀνόµατα οἷς χρώµεθα; ἡµῖν (dat pl) us χρώµεθα (1 st pl) use (takes a dative object) Plato Cratylus 388d Biblical Readings 1. From a koine Greek translation of an ancient Jewish prayer: - 4 -

5 καὶ πτωχοῦ καὶ πένητος ἡ ἐλπὶς τίς ἐστιν, εἰ µὴ σύ, κύριε; κύριε Lord! πένης -ητος ὁ poor man πτωχοῦ (gen sg) ὁ beggar σύ (nom. sg.) you Psalm of Solomon 5:11 The fifth book of Moses (the last of the collection called in Greek the Πεντάτευχος Pentateuch, which refers to its five volumes) is known in English as Deuteronomy (from Greek Δευτερονόµιον "second law ). It consists primarily of speeches by Moses to the Israelites, renewing and refining religious practice. Substantial portions consist of rules and regulations, and as such often have a repeated pattern and formula. The next several sentences give examples of slight variations on a phrase repeated often in Deuteronomy. 2. Moses recalls that he said to the Israelites that they had come: ἕως τοῦ ὄρους τοῦ Αµορραίου, ὃ ὁ κύριος ὁ θεὸς ἡµῶν δίδωσιν ὑµῖν. Αµορραίου (gen sg) τό Amorite ἕως as far as ἡµῶν our θεός (nom sg) ὁ god κύριος (nom sg) ὁ lord ὄρους (gen sg) τό mountain, hill ὑµῖν (dat pl) y all LXX Deut. 1:20 3. Moses recalls the report of the Valley of Eshcol: Ἀγαθὴ ἡ γῆ, ἣν κύριος ὁ θεὸς ἡµῶν δίδωσιν ἡµῖν. ἀγαθὴ (nom sg) ἡ good γῆ (nom sg) ἡ earth, land ἡµῖν (dat pl) us ἡµῶν our θεός (nom sg) ὁ god κύριος (nom sg) ὁ lord LXX Deut. 1:25 4. Moses relays the Lord s promise that the Israelites will consume: πάντα τὰ σκῦλα τῶν ἐθνῶν, ἃ κύριος ὁ θεός σου δίδωσίν σοι ἐθνῶν (gen pl) τό nation, people θεός (nom sg) ὁ god κύριος (nom sg) ὁ lord - 5 -

6 πάντα (acc pl) τό all σκῦλα (acc pl) τό spoils, prizes of war σου your LXX Deut. 7:16 5. At Gerasa, Jesus meets a man possessed by a spirit (πνεῦµα). After he commands the spirit to exit the man, he asks: Τί ὄνοµά σοι; to which the spirit replies Λεγιὼν ὄνοµά µοι, ὅτι πολλοί ἐσµεν. λεγιών -ωνος ὁ = Latin legio (a Roman unit of troops) µοι (dat sg) me πολλοί (nom pl) ὁ many Κατὰ Μᾶρκον 5:9 6. At dinner, after Jesus forgives a woman s sins, others sitting at the table ask: Τίς οὗτός ἐστιν ὃς καὶ ἁµαρτίας ἀφίησιν; ἁµαρτίας (acc pl) ἡ sins οὗτος (nom sg) ὁ this Κατὰ Λουκᾶν 7:49 7. When the blind man reports that he was healed by Jesus, others ask him: Ποῦ ἐστιν ἐκεῖνος; ποῦ where? Κατὰ Ἰωάννην 9:12 8. At Simon s house, Peter answers a call from men sent by Cornelius: Ἰδοὺ ἐγώ εἰµι ὃν ζητεῖτε τίς ἡ αἰτία δι ἣν πάρεστε; αἰτία (nom sg) ἡ cause, reason δι = διά because of ἐγώ (nom sg) I ζητεῖτε (2 nd pl) seek ἰδού Look! Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων 10:21-6 -

7 9. Paul says he is unfit to be called an apostle, χάριτι δὲ θεοῦ εἰµι ὅ εἰµι. θεοῦ (gen sg) ὁ god χάρις χάριτος ἡ grace Πρὸς Κορινθίους α 15: Paul warns that God destroys anyone who destroys his temple: ὁ γὰρ ναὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ἅγιός ἐστιν, οἵτινές ἐστε ὑµεῖς. ἅγιος (nom sg) ὁ holy θεοῦ (gen sg) ὁ god ναός (nom sg) ὁ temple ὑµεῖς (nom pl) y all Πρὸς Κορινθίους α 3: Paul urges Christians to take the helmet of salvation καὶ τὴν µάχαιραν τοῦ πνεύµατος, ὅ ἐστιν ῥῆµα θεοῦ θεοῦ (gen sg) ὁ God µάχαιραν (acc sg) ἡ sword ῥῆµα -ατος τό speech Πρὸς Ἐφεσίους 6: From the Book of Revelation, a lamb that has: κέρατα ἑπτὰ καὶ ὀφθαλµοὺς ἑπτά, οἵ εἰσιν τὰ [ἑπτὰ] πνεύµατα τοῦ θεοῦ... ἑπτά seven θεοῦ (gen sg) ὁ God κέρας κέρατος τό horn ὀφθαλµούς (acc pl) ὁ eyes Ἀποκάλυψις Ἰωάννου 5:6-7 -

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