Aoidoi.org: two Greeks overcome, Ibycus and Sappho

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annis
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Aoidoi.org: two Greeks overcome, Ibycus and Sappho

Post by annis »

For a contrast to the political and missionary zeal on the open board, I offer two poems about being overcome by passion of a different sort.

Ibycus 287, the one where he says, and I tremble at his approach // like a yoke-worn, prize-winning horse nearing old age // unwillingly goes to contest with swift chariot. This might even be a complete poem.

Sappho 31, he seems to me, that man, as lucky as the gods, who across from you, sitting near, listens to you sweetly speaking... This one breaks off mid-strophe, as is, alas, all too common with what remains of Sappho's works.
William S. Annis — http://www.aoidoi.org/http://www.scholiastae.org/
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;

whiteoctave
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Post by whiteoctave »

marvellous work!
the sappho poem was famously translated, of course, by Catullus (51):

Ille mi par esse deo videtur,
ille, si fas est, superare divos,
qui sedens adversus identidem te
spectat et audit
dulce ridentem, misero quod omnes
eripit sensus mihi, nam simul te,
Lesbia, aspexi, nihil est super mi
vocis in ore,

lingua sed torpet, tenuis sub artus
flamma demanat, sonitu suopte
tinitant aures, gemina teguntur
lumina nocte.

Otium, Catulle, tibi molestum est.
Otio exsultas nimiumque gestis.
Otium et reges prius et beatas
perdidit urbes.


there is understandable doubt about whether the last verse should be placed in this poem.

~D

chad
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Post by chad »

hi will, i just read through both and they're excellent, in particular the sappho commentary: as a beginner i love being able to open a commentary and read the text from start to end without opening a dictionary or grammar. i really like how you've put in commentary for nearly every word: it means you can take from the commentary as much or as little as you need.

i confess i haven't read through some of your earlier commentaries on aoidoi which don't have the same level of commentary: they're in the "come back later when i know a bit more" folder, but these recent commentaries of yours are perfect: i can stop thinking about the morphology and concentrate on how the words go together :) :)

annis
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Post by annis »

whiteoctave wrote:there is understandable doubt about whether the last verse should be placed in this poem.
Oh, yes. I try to avoid lengthy textual debates in the Aoidoi commentaries, but for that line I probably should add a comment. The line does jump out.
William S. Annis — http://www.aoidoi.org/http://www.scholiastae.org/
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;

annis
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Post by annis »

chad wrote:hi will, i just read through both and they're excellent, in particular the sappho commentary: as a beginner i love being able to open a commentary and read the text from start to end without opening a dictionary or grammar.
That's the goal! Glad you like it.

I should say that Sappho is always going to get more commentary than, say, an Anacreontic. The language is so much more remote from what we see most of the time.
i confess i haven't read through some of your earlier commentaries on aoidoi which don't have the same level of commentary: they're in the "come back later when i know a bit more" folder,
Which ones? I can elaborate as I translate them to the PDF format I'm using.
William S. Annis — http://www.aoidoi.org/http://www.scholiastae.org/
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;

PeterD
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Re: Aoidoi.org: two Greeks overcome, Ibycus and Sappho

Post by PeterD »

annis wrote:For a contrast to the political and missionary zeal on the open board, I offer two poems about being overcome by passion of a different sort.
Thank you, Annis.
Fanatical ranting is not just fine because it's eloquent. What if I ranted for the extermination of a people in an eloquent manner, would that make it fine? Rather, ranting, be it fanatical or otherwise, is fine if what is said is true and just. ---PeterD, in reply to IreneY and Annis

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