48. murus quod fuit: that which was a wall. In EUR. Helen. 108, Teucer tells Helen in Egypt that Troy has been so completely destroyed: ὥστ ̓ οὐδ ̓ ἴχνος γε τειχέων εἶναι σαφές: 'that there is not even a clear trace of walls.' Compare VERG. Aen. x. 60: Atque solum quo Troia fuit. 49. Troia durante: while Troy stood. 50. vir...abest: and my husband is absent, to be separated from me for all time. carendus: a rare personal construction, perhaps in imitation of the Greek; cf. utor, etc. The prose would be: viro mihi caren dum est. ox. 52. incola... arat: which the victorious settler plows with his captured This distich or the following should be omitted. 53. resecanda... humus: the soil, rich with Trojan blood, produces abundant harvests for the scythe to reap. Take resęcanda with humus, though it is doubtful if the construction, resecare humum, can be paralleled. luxuriat: lit. is rank, is covered with rank growth. Compare HoR. O. II. 1, 29: Quis non Latino sanguine pinguior Campus? 55. virum: Gen. Plural: 33, 4; A. & G. 40, e; B. 25, 6; H. 52, 3. With this line, compare VERG. Georg. 1. 493 ff. 57. victor abes: though victorious, thou art absent. morandi: sc. sit. 58. in quo orbe: in what part of the world. cruelly hidest. 60. mihi: Dat. of Agent. retained with 2; H. 374, 1. quae causa lateas ferreus: thou multa: object of rogatus; inner obj. the pass.: G. (L. Ed.) 339, n. 4; A. & G. 239, R.; B. 178, For the sense, compare HOMER, Od. XIV. 126: ὃς δὲ κ' ἀλητεύων ̓Ιθάκης ἐς δῆμον ἵκηται, ἐλθὼν ἐς δέσποιναν ἐμὴν ἀπατήλια βάζει. ἡ δ' εὖ δεξαμένη φιλέει καὶ ἕκαστα μεταλλᾷ: 'whoever comes wandering to the land of Ithaca, goes to my mistress and tells her deceptive tales, and she receives him with hearty welcome and questions him closely.' 61. quam reddat: to deliver; Relative clause of Design. 63. Pylon: Local Accusative. Neleus, Nestor's father. Neleia adjective derived from 64. Misimus: here Ovid changes the original. that sends Telemachus. Compare Od. 1. 93. HOMER, Od. XVII. 114: In Homer it is Athena incerta, etc.: compare αὐτὰρ Οδυσσῆος ταλασίφρονος οὔ ποτ' ἔφασκεν ζωοῦ οὐδὲ θανόντος ἐπιχθονίων τευ ἀκοῦσαι: 'but concerning the stout-hearted Ulysses, whether living or dead, he said he had never heard from any mortal.' 65. Sparte quoque nescia veri: Ovid omits the rumors in regard to Calypso which Telemachus reports to his mother in HOMER, Od. xvii. 141-146. veri: the truth; Objective Genitive. 66. lentus abes: dost thou loiter? standing. 67. Utilius, etc.: it would be better if the walls of Phoebus were still starent: 597; A. & G. 308, 310; B. 304, 1, 305, 1; H. 510, 507, n. 7. moenia Phoebi: compare Her. xvI. 180: Moenia Phoebeae structa canore lyrae. The authorities are at variance in regard to the building of the walls of Troy. Some attribute the work to Apollo, others to Poseidon (Neptune), others to both, etc. 68. levis in my fickleness. of Troy. votis i.e. prayers for the destruction 69. pugnares: Indirect Question and Attraction. The sequence of the Imperfect Subjunctive is regularly past, as here: 517; A. & G. 287, g; B. 268, 5; H. 495, III. 71. timeam: to fear; Indirect Question, but the Subjunctive would have been used in the direct: 465; A. & G. 34, b; B. 315, 3; H. 484, v. 72. in curas meas: for my anxiety. area lata: a broad field. 75. quae vestra libido est: such is the lust of you men; G. (L. Ed.) 616, n. 2; B. 251, 4, d; H. 453, 4, n. Compare PROP. IV. 18, 1: Obicitur totiens a te mihi nostra libido: crede mihi, vobis imperat ista magis, etc. 76. peregrino amore: by the love of some stranger. 77. quam sit tibi rustica coniunx: how unpolished thy wife is; compare Her. XII. 175. 79. Fallar: a Wish. crimen: charge, accusation, insinuation. tenues vanescat in auras: a common expression with Ovid. Compare Her. XII. 85. 80. revertendi liber: being free to return. An Objective Genitive with liber is a very rare construction. 82. cogit is urging. increpat usque is constantly chiding. Ovid's account is not quite justified by Homer. moras: i.e. my delay in marrying again; not, 'thy delay in returning,' as the old commentators. inmensas: immoderate, unreasonable. increpet: 607; A. & G. dicar: 553, 4, R. 1; A. & G. 331, i; 83. Increpet usque licet: let him chide on. 266; B. 308, a; H. 515, II. B. 295, 6; H. 502, 1. 85. pietate mea: my devotion to thee, rather than to him. The word usually means devotion to the gods or to one's parents, but is also used in other cases of great affection. 86. frangitur is influenced. strains his force. vires temperat ipse suas himself re 87. Dulichii, etc.: compare HOMER, Od. 1. 245 (and xvi. 122) : ὅσσοι γὰρ νήσοισιν ἐπικρατέουσιν ἄριστοι, Δουλιχίῳ τε Σάμῃ τε καὶ ὑλήεντι Ζακύνθῳ, κτλ : 'for all the chiefs who hold sway over the islands of Dulichium, Same, and woody Zacynthus,' etc. 88. turba, etc. are besieging me as suitors, a wanton throng. According to HOMER, Od. XVI. 247, the number was 108. 90. viscera, etc.: they are to me a thorn in the flesh, to thee ruthless destroyers of property; compare HOMER, Od. xiv. 92 (and xvi. 315): κτήματα δαρδάπτουσιν ὑπέρβιον, οὐδ' ἔπι φειδώ : they insolently waste our possessions and there is no sparing.' 91. Medontaque dirum: According to HOMER, Od. XXII. 357, Medon, the herald, was friendly to Telemachus. It is inexplicable how Ovid could class him among the suitors and call him dirus. 93. quos omnis: all of whom. disgrace. turpiter absens: being absent to thy 94. tuo partis sanguine rebus: property acquired by thy blood. 95. egens: the needy, the beggar. sense, compare HOMER, Od. xvII. 212: edendi: to be eaten; for the ἔνθα σφέας ἐκίχαν υἱὸς Δολίοιο Μελανθεὺς δεῖπνον μνηστήρεσσι : 'there they were met by Melanthius, son of Dolius, driving goats, a feast for the suitors.' 96. damna: losses. 100. dum parat ire: according to Homer the suitors tried to intercept Telemachus on his return. 102. Ille, etc.: i.e. may he survive us and honor us with the last rites when we are dead. The ut clause explains hoc. 103. Hac faciunt: on our side are. 104. cura: keeper, guardian; personal. 105. ut qui: as one who, since he: 633; A. & G. 320, e; B. 283, 3, a ; H. 517, 3, 1. erat tuenda: ought to be protected; 108. illa (sc. aetas): his youth. Indicative in the Periphrastic: 597, 3; A. & G. 308, c; B. 304, 3, b; H. 511, 2. 109. pellere: Complementary Infinitive to mihi sunt vires tectis: from the house. 110. citius at once, Greek Oâoσov. = possum. portus et aura: We are the storm-tossed ship, be thou a harbor to give us refuge; nay more, a favoring breeze to carry us safely into the port. For aura, compare EUR. Androm. 554 : πρῶτον μὲν οὖν κατ' οὗρον ὥσπερ ἱστίοις 'first, then, I will send a favoring breeze upon her as upon sails.' For portus, compare ibid. 748 : χείματος γὰρ ἀγρίου τυχοῦσα λιμένας ἦλθες εἰς εὐηνέμους : 'for, after encountering a raging storm, thou hast come into sheltered harbors'; and 891: ὦ ναυτίλοισι χείματος λιμὴν φανεὶς ̓Αγαμέμνονος παῖ: 'O son of Agamemnon, who hast appeared as a harbor to sailors in time of storm'; and Ov. Trist. v. 6, 2: Qui mihi confugium, qui mihi portus eras. Most late editors read, by emendation, portus et ara, supporting it by Ex P. 11. 8, 68: Vos eritis nostrae portus et ara fugae. In either case, the metaphor is somewhat mixed. For a similar mixture, compare II. SAMUEL, 2: The Lord is my rock and my fortress-my shield—my high tower, and my refuge.' 111. mollibus annis: in his tender years; compare 1. 108: Telemachusque puer. He is still regarded as a boy, though he is twenty years old. He was a child at the breast when Ulysses departed; compare Od. XI. 448. 112. in patrias, etc.: ought to be trained to be like his father, taught his father's accomplishments. 113. Respice, etc.: have regard for Laertes, that thou mayest now close his eyes; another reason for haste. Most commentators take ut condas as dependent upon sustinet. ... 114. sustinet is bearing (as a burden), is living, is dragging out. extremum fati diem: the last days of his life; compare HOMER, Od. XI.195: ἔνθ' ὅ γε κεῖτε ἀχέων, μέγα δὲ φρεσὶ πένθος ἀέξει σὺν νόστον ποθέων, χαλεπὸν δ' ἐπὶ γῆρας ἱκάνει : 'there he lies grieving and cherishes a mighty sorrow in his heart, longing for thy return, and old age comes upon him as a heavy burden.' 116. facta to have become. ut: though, even if; a frequent use in OVID 608; A. & G. 313, a; B. 308; H. 515, III. Compare Her. vii. 15 : Ut terram invenias, quis eam tibi tradet habendam. : 2. MEDEA TO JASON. HER. XII.-1. Colchorum regina: when I was queen of the Colchians. She was the daughter of Aeetes, the king. tibi vacavi: I had leisure for thee, did not refuse to listen. 2. ars mea subject of ferret. Medea was a famous magician. 3. sorores Parcae, the three Fates: Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos. They are supposed to spin out and determine the fate of each individual at his birth. 4. debuerant: ought to have. For the mood, compare erat tuenda, Her. I. 108. evoluisse for the sake of the metre, instead of evolvisse ; it would ordinarily be Present Infinitive. Ovid and the other poets often use the Perfect Infinitive like the Greek aorist, without distinct refer ence to past time. Often there is no difference of meaning between the Perfect and the Present. Compare Her. III. 40: Her. III. 117: Her. IV. quae dare debueras. Tutius est iacuisse toro. non est contemnere tutum. 5. potui mori: I could have died. 7-10. Compare EUR. Med. 1 ff. Εἴθ' ὤφελ' ̓Αργοῦς μὴ διαπτάσθαι σκάφος 'Would that the hull of the Argo had never flown through the dark Symplegades to the land of the Colchians; would that the pine had never been felled in the groves of Pelion and had never been rowed by the hands of the heroic chieftains who went in quest of the golden fleece for Pelias.' 8. Phrixeam ovem: i.e. the golden fleece of the ram on which Phrixus rode through the air over the Hellespont. His sister Helle fell off and was drowned, and so gave her name to the waters. The ram was sacrificed and his skin carefully preserved by the Colchians. It was in search of this that Jason came. Pelias arbor i.e. the ship (Argo) made out of the pine-tree cut on Mt. Pelion. 9. Magnetida: Magnesian; i.e. Thessalian. Magnesia was a district of Thessaly. The adjective agrees with Argo, which is Accusative. 10. Phasiacam: Phasis is a river of Colchis. 11. plus aequo: more than they ought. 13. aut for this use of aut as the correlative of a question, compare Her. x. 111: Crudeles somni, quid me tenuistis inertem ? nova: the Argo was the first ship. 14. audacis: goes with viros. and Am. III. 10, 41: Optavit Minos similes sibi legifer annos. anhelatos in ignes: into the breathed flames. praemedicatus: he had received from Medea an ointment which made him proof against fire. 16. inmemor Aesonides: the ungrateful son of Aeson; i.e. Jason. Ovid is fond of these patronymics. 17. Semina: i.e. the dragon's teeth, from which immediately sprang a crop of armed men. visurus: see Appendix. |