Callinus fr. 1 & 5

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jeidsath
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Callinus fr. 1 & 5

Post by jeidsath »

μέχρις τέο κατάκεισθε; κότ’ ἄλκιμον ἕξετε θυμόν, 1 ὦ νέοι; οὐδ’ αἰδεῖσθ’ ἀμφιπερικτίονας 2 ὧδε λίην μεθιέντες; ἐν εἰρήνηι δὲ δοκεῖτε 3 ἧσθαι, ἀτὰρ πόλεμος γαῖαν ἅπασαν ἔχει 4
Until when/what do you sit? When will you have strong spirits, young men? Don't you feel shame before those dwelling round about, being so lackadaisical? Do you think that you sit in peace? But war grasps all the land.
......... (5) καί τις ἀποθνήσκων ὕστατ’ ἀκοντισάτω. (5)
and let everyone about to die cast a javelin at the last.
τιμῆέν τε γάρ ἐστι καὶ ἀγλαὸν ἀνδρὶ μάχεσθαι 6 γῆς πέρι καὶ παίδων κουριδίης τ’ ἀλόχου 7 δυσμενέσιν· θάνατος δὲ τότ’ ἔσσεται, ὁππότε κεν δὴ 8 Μοῖραι ἐπικλώσωσ’. ἀλλά τις ἰθὺς ἴτω 9 ἔγχος ἀνασχόμενος καὶ ὑπ’ ἀσπίδος ἄλκιμον ἦτορ (10) ἔλσας, τὸ πρῶτον μειγνυμένου πολέμου. 11
It's something honorable (epic τε?) and glorious for a man to fight for his land and his children and his wedded wife against the enemy. Death will be that time, whenever the fates spin [it to be]. But let everyone charge straight holding up his lance having squeezed (conformed?) his stout heart under his shield
οὐ γάρ κως θάνατόν γε φυγεῖν εἱμαρμένον ἐστὶν 12 ἄνδρ’, οὐδ’ εἰ προγόνων ἦι γένος ἀθανάτων. 13 πολλάκι δηϊοτῆτα φυγὼν καὶ δοῦπον ἀκόντων 14 ἔρχεται, ἐν δ’ οἴκωι μοῖρα κίχεν θανάτου, (15)
For there is no way for fated man to fear death, not even if it is a family descended from immortal ancestors. Often a man goes fleeing death and the thud of javelins and in his house has found the fate of death.
ἀλλ’ ὁ μὲν οὐκ ἔμπης δήμωι φίλος οὐδὲ ποθεινός· 16
τὸν δ’ ὀλίγος στενάχει καὶ μέγας ἤν τι πάθηι· 17
λαῶι γὰρ σύμπαντι πόθος κρατερόφρονος ἀνδρὸς 18
θνήσκοντος, ζώων δ’ ἄξιος ἡμιθέων· 19
ὥσπερ γάρ μιν πύργον ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖσιν ὁρῶσιν· (20)
ἔρδει γὰρ πολλῶν ἄξια μοῦνος ἐών. 21
But he will not find [himself] a friend or longed for to those at home. Both great and small will groan for the [one who does not flee], if he suffers anything. For the entire people regrets the loss of the dauntless man, but alive he is accounted a demigod. For they see him in their eyes as if he is a tower (cf. Ps 61:3). For what he works has the worth of many, though he is but one.
νῦν δ’ ἐπὶ Κιμμερίων στρατὸς ἔρχεται ὀβριμοεργῶν
But now the army comes against the savage Cimmerians.
“One might get one’s Greek from the very lips of Homer and Plato." "In which case they would certainly plough you for the Little-go. The German scholars have improved Greek so much.”

Joel Eidsath -- jeidsath@gmail.com

Hylander
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Re: Callinus fr. 1 & 5

Post by Hylander »

μέχρις τέο -- best translated "how long?"

ἄλκιμον -- "brave"

ἐν εἰρήνηι δὲ δοκεῖτε ἧσθαι -- δὲ and the following ἀτὰρ show that this is not a question: "you think you're sitting around in peace/you seem to be sitting around in peace but/yet/when . . .

ἀτὰρ πόλεμος γαῖαν ἅπασαν ἔχει -- ". . . but/yet/when war is occupying the whole land".

καί τις ἀποθνήσκων ὕστατ’ ἀκοντισάτω -- better "let anyone [who is dying] cast one last javelin as he dies".

ἔλσας -- "having covered", "shielding", "protecting".

τὸ πρῶτον μειγνυμένου πολέμου -- "as soon as battle/fighting is engaged"

δηϊοτῆτα φυγὼν -- "fleeing combat"

ἐν δ’ οἴκωι μοῖρα κίχεν θανάτου, -- the subject is μοῖρα: "but the fate of death reaches him in his house". κίχεν -- gnomic aorist

ἀλλ’ ὁ μὲν . . . τὸν δ’ - "but the one man [who takes flight in battle] . . . , while the other man [who stands firm] . . . "

δήμωι -- "to the community". The ideas is not just "those at home", but rather the community he must face if he flees as a coward. λαῶι in 18 is semantically equivalent.

ζώων δ’ -- "and [ not 'but' here] if he lives . . . ": δ’ marks the opposition between dying and living, but it's not a contrast between a negative and a positive: the alternatives are both positive outcomes for the brave man (at least from Callinus' perspective) -- a big funeral if he dies and life-long honor if he lives -- which is why it's best not to shirk death by fleeing from the field.

λαῶι γὰρ σύμπαντι πόθος κρατερόφρονος ἀνδρὸς θνήσκοντος, ζώων δ’ ἄξιος ἡμιθέων -- I would suggest translating to make it clear that λαῶι σύμπαντι is syntactically part of both elements of the antithesis if he dies/if he lives: something like "for the whole community grieves for a brave man if he dies, and if he survives treats him as a demigod." θνήσκοντος and ζώων are circumstantial, presenting chiastically two opposing possibilities: what happens if the brave man dies in battle/what happens if he survives. Best translate as conditionals.

νῦν δ’ ἐπὶ Κιμμερίων στρατὸς ἔρχεται ὀβριμοεργῶν -- ἐπὶ . . . ἔρχεται is tmesis for ἐπέρχεται: "but now the army of the destructive Cimmerians is advancing/attacking". This is a separate fragment.

But why did you skip Mimnermus 1?
Bill Walderman

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jeidsath
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Re: Callinus fr. 1 & 5

Post by jeidsath »

Thanks!
καί τις ἀποθνήσκων ὕστατ’ ἀκοντισάτω -- better "let anyone who is dying cast one last javelin"
I've been trying to guess what could have gone in the missing section just before that. I feel that there are a number of sections from Tyrtaeus that could almost do it (in sentiment), but it's hard for me to figure out what would both motivate τις ἀποθνήσκων and contrast μεθιέντες.
But why did you skip Mimnermus 1?
I'll do it next.
“One might get one’s Greek from the very lips of Homer and Plato." "In which case they would certainly plough you for the Little-go. The German scholars have improved Greek so much.”

Joel Eidsath -- jeidsath@gmail.com

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Re: Callinus fr. 1 & 5

Post by Hylander »

The missing hexameter would have been an exhortation to engage or die in battle.

I made some edits just a little while ago. Hope you caught them.
Bill Walderman

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