Classical Greek Online
Lesson 10
Winfred P. Lehmann and Jonathan Slocum
Little is known of Pausanias. He was apparently born in Lydia. On the basis of references in his work, as to contemporary Roman emperors, it is concluded that he lived from approximately 120-180 AD. He traveled widely throughout the eastern Mediterranean area, including Italy. While aware of his limitations as a writer and interests, we are grateful to him for his information on the highlights of Greek civilization before many of them were damaged or destroyed.
Reading and Textual Analysis
Pausanias's Description of Greece reports his travels in Attica, the Peloponnese and central Greece. As in the selection below, he provides a straightforward account of sites, especially the most famous for their art or architecture, amplified by accounts of people. He is not highly regarded for his style, nor for the insight that distinguishes the histories of Herodotus and Thucycides. But his descriptions inform us of the state of the magnificent products of the important period of Greek civilization, such as that of the Parthenon before it was blown up by an explosion of munitions in the 17th century. The description is very detailed, extending through ten books. In addition to its content, the selection here, Attica xxii: 4-5, may illustrate that the language conforms to the standards of the classical period.
kai es de tên akropolin estin esodos mia.
- kai
-- conjunction;<kai> and-- and - es
-- preposition;<es> towards-- to - de
-- particle;<de> and, on the other hand-- but - tên
-- article; accusative singular feminine of<ho> the-- the - akropolin
-- noun; accusative singular feminine of<akropolis> Acropolis-- Acropolis - estin
-- verb; 3rd person singular present of<eimi> I am-- there is - esodos
-- noun; nominative singular feminine of<esodos> entrance-- entrance - mia
-- number; nominative singular feminine of<heis> one-- (only)one
heteran de ou parechetai, pasa apotomos ousa kai teichos echousa echuron.
- heteran
-- adjective; accusative singular feminine of<heteros> other-- another - de
-- particle;<de> and, on the other hand-- and - ou
-- particle;<ou> not-- not - parechetai
-- verb; 3rd person singular present middle of<parechô> provide-- it does... provide - pasa
-- adjective; nominative singular feminine of<pas> all, every-- everywhere - apotomos
-- adjective; nominative singular feminine of<apotomos> precipitous-- precipitous - ousa
-- verb; nominative singular feminine of present participle of<eimi> I am-- being - kai
-- conjunction;<kai> and-- and - teichos
-- noun; accusative singular neuter of<teichos> wall-- wall - echousa
-- verb; nominative singular feminine of present participle of<echô> have-- having - echuron
-- adjective; accusative singular neuter of<echuros> strong, secure-- strong
ta de propulaia lithou leukou tên orophên echei kai kosmô kai megethei tôn lithôn mechri ge kai emou proeiche.
- ta
-- article; nominative plural neuter of<ho> the-- the - de
-- particle;<de> and, on the other hand-- and - propulaia
-- noun; nominative plural neuter of<propulaia> gateway-- gateway - lithou
-- noun; genitive singular masculine of<lithos> stone-- marble - leukou
-- adjective; genitive singular masculine of<leukos> white-- of white - tên
-- article; accusative singular feminine of<ho> the-- the - orophên
-- noun; accusative singular feminine of<orophê> roof-- a roof - echei
-- verb; 3rd person singular present of<echô> have-- has - kai
-- conjunction;<kai> and-- and - kosmô
-- noun; dative singular masculine of<kosmos> beauty, order, world-- in beauty - kai
-- conjunction;<kai> and-- and - megethei
-- noun; dative singular neuter of<megethos> size-- size - tôn
-- article; genitive plural masculine of<ho> the-- the - lithôn
-- noun; genitive plural masculine of<lithos> stone-- stones - mechri
-- preposition;<mechri> until-- until - ge
-- particle;<ge> indeed-- ... - kai
-- conjunction;<kai> and-- ... - emou
-- pronoun; genitive singular masculine of<egô> I-- my time - proeiche
-- verb; singular present of<proeichô> to be superior, excel-- is unexcelled
tas men oun eikonas tôn hippeôn ouk echô saphôs eipein, eite hoi paides eisin hoi Xenophôntos eite allôs es euprepeian pepoiêmenai.
- tas
-- article; accusative plural feminine of<ho> the-- (regarding) the - men
-- particle;<men> on the one hand-- on the one hand - oun
-- adverb;<oun> indeed-- indeed - eikonas
-- noun; accusative plural feminine; of<eikôn> image, portrait-- statues - tôn
-- article; genitive plural masculine of<ho> the-- of the - hippeôn
-- noun; genitive plural masculine of<hippeus> horseman-- horsemen - ouk
-- particle;<ouk> not-- not - echô
-- verb; 1st person singular present of<echô> have-- I can - saphôs
-- adverb;<saphôs> truly-- truly - eipein
-- verb; aorist infinitive of<legô> say-- say - eite
-- conjunction;<eite> whether...or-- whether - hoi
-- article; nominative plural masculine of<ho> the-- the - paides
-- noun; nominative singular masculine of<pais> child-- sons - eisin
-- verb; 3rd person plural present of<eimi> I am-- they are - hoi
-- article; nominative plural masculine of<ho> the-- the - Xenophôntos
-- noun; genitive singular masculine of<Xenophôn> Xenophon-- of Xenophon - eite
-- conjunction;<eite> whether...or-- or - allôs
-- adverb;<allôs> otherwise, especially-- otherwise - es
-- preposition;<es> towards-- for - euprepeian
-- noun; accusative singular feminine of<euprepeia> appearance, beauty-- beauty - pepoiêmenai
-- verb; participle perfect middle of<poieô> make, do-- produced
tôn de propulaiôn en dexia Nikês estin Apterou naos.
- tôn
-- article; genitive plural neuter of<ho> the-- of the - de
-- particle;<de> and, on the other hand-- on the other hand - propulaiôn
-- noun; genitive plural neuter of<propulaia> gateway-- gateway - en
-- preposition;<en> in-- on - dexia
-- noun; dative singular feminine of<dexia> the right hand-- the right - Nikês
-- noun; genitive singular feminine of<Nikê> Victory-- Victory - estin
-- verb; 3rd person singular present of<eimi> I am-- is - Apterou
-- adjective; genitive singular feminine of<Apteros> Wingless-- of Wingless - naos
-- noun; nominative singular masculine of<naos> temple-- the temple
enteuthen hê thalassa esti sunoptos, kai tautê hripsas Aigeus heauton hôs legousin eteleutêsen.
- enteuthen
-- adverb;<enteuthen> from there-- from there - hê
-- article; nominative singular feminine of<ho> the-- the - thalassa
-- noun; nominative singular feminine of<thalassa> sea-- sea - esti
-- verb; 3rd person singular present of<eimi> I am-- is - sunoptos
-- adjective; nominative singular feminine of<sunoptos> visible-- visible - kai
-- conjunction;<kai> and-- and - tautê
-- demonstrative pronoun; dative singular feminine of<houtos> this-- there - hripsas
-- verb; nominative singular masculine of aorist participle of<hriptô> throw down-- threw . . . down - Aigeus
-- noun; nominative singular masculine of<Aigeus> Aegeus-- Aegeus - heauton
-- reflexive pronoun; accusative singular masculine of<heautos> himself-- himself - hôs
-- conjunction;<hôs> as, thus-- as - legousin
-- verb; 3rd person plural present of<legô> say-- they say - eteleutêsen
-- verb; 3rd person singular aorist of<teleuteô> finish, die-- died
anêgeto men gar hê naus melasin histiois hê tous paidas pherousa es Krêtên.
- anêgeto
-- verb; 3rd person singular present middle of<anagomai> put out to sea-- put out to sea - men
-- particle;<men> on the one hand-- on the one hand - gar
-- conjunction;<gar> for-- for - hê
-- article; nominative singular feminine of<ho> the-- the - naus
-- noun; nominative singular feminine of<naus> ship-- ship - melasin
-- adjective; dative plural neuter of<melan> black-- with black - histiois
-- noun; dative plural neuter of<histion> sail-- sails - hê
-- article; nominative singular feminine of<ho> the-- the - tous
-- article; accusative plural masculine of<ho> the-- the - paidas
-- noun; accusative plural masculine of<pais> child-- children - pherousa
-- verb; nominative singular feminine of participle of<pherô> bear, bring, carry-- carrying - es
-- preposition;<es> towards-- to - Krêtên
-- noun; accusative singular feminine of<Krêtê> Crete-- Crete
Thêseus de -- eplei gar tolmês ti echôn es ton Minô kaloumenon tauron
- Thêseus
-- noun; nominative singular masculine of<Thêseus> Theseus-- Theseus - de
-- particle;<de> and, on the other hand-- on the other hand - eplei
-- verb; 3rd person singular imperfect of<pleô> sail-- was sailing - gar
-- conjunction;<gar> for-- indeed - tolmês
-- noun; genitive singular feminine of<tolma> courage, venture-- of a venture - ti
-- indefinite pronoun; accusative singular neuter of<tis> someone, something-- something - echôn
-- verb; nominative singular masculine of present participle of<echô> have-- having - es
-- preposition;<es> towards-- against - ton
-- article; accusative singular masculine of<ho> the-- the - Minô
-- noun; genitive singular masculine of<Minos> Minos-- of Minos - kaloumenon
-- verb; accusative singular masculine of present participle passive of<kaleô> call, summon-- so called - tauron
-- noun; accusative singular masculine of<tauros> bull-- bull
pros ton patera proeipe chrêsesthai tois histiois leukois, ên opisô pleê tou taurou kratêsas.
- pros
-- preposition;<pros> to-- to - ton
-- article; accusative singular masculine of<ho> the-- his - patera
-- noun; accusative singular masculine of<patêr> father-- father - proeipe
-- verb; 3rd person singular aorist of<pro-legô> say beforehand-- had said . . . beforehand - chrêsesthai
-- deponent verb; infinitive middle of<chraomai> need, use-- (he would) use - tois
-- article; dative plural neuter of<ho> the-- the - histiois
-- noun; dative plural neuter of<histion> sail-- sails - leukois
-- adjective; dative plural neuter of<leukos> white-- with white - ên
-- conjunction;<ên> if-- if - opisô
-- adverb;<opisô> back-- back - pleê
-- verb; 3rd person singular present optative of<pleô> sail-- he would sail - tou
-- article; genitive singular masculine of<ho> the-- the - taurou
-- noun; genitive singular masculine of<tauros> bull-- bull - kratêsas
-- verb; nominative singular masculine of aorist participle of<krateô> hold fast, take to heart; rule, conquer-- having conquered
toutôn lêthên eschen Ariadnên aphêrêmenos.
- toutôn
-- demonstrative pronoun; genitive plural neuter of<houtos> this-- these (things) - lêthên
-- noun; accusative singular feminine of<lêthê> forgetting-- (him) to forget - eschen
-- verb; 3rd person singular aorist of<echô> have-- caused - Ariadnên
-- noun; accusative singular feminine of<Ariadnê> Ariadne-- Ariadne - aphêrêmenos
-- verb; nominative singular masculine of passive participle of<aphaireô> take away-- having lost
entautha Aigeus hôs eiden histiois melasi tên naun komizomenên, hoia ton paida tethnanai dokôn, apheis auton diaphtheiretai.
- entautha
-- adverb;<entautha> then, there-- then - Aigeus
-- noun; nominative singular masculine of<Aigeus> Aegeus-- Aegeus - hôs
-- conjunction;<hôs> as, thus-- when - eiden
-- verb; 3rd person singular aorist of<eidon> saw-- saw - histiois
-- noun; dative plural neuter of<histion> sail-- sails - melasi
-- adjective; dative plural neuter of<melan> black-- with black - tên
-- article; accusative singular feminine of<ho> the-- the - naun
-- noun; accusative singular feminine of<naus> ship-- ship - komizomenên
-- verb; accusative singular feminine of passive participle of<komizô> provide for-- traveling - hoia
-- relative pronoun; accusative neuter plural of<hoios> like, such that-- that - ton
-- article; accusative singular masculine of<ho> the-- his - paida
-- noun; accusative singular masculine of<pais> child-- son - tethnanai
-- verb; infinitive perfect of<thnêskô> die-- had died - dokôn
-- verb; present participle nominative singular masculine of<dokeô> seem, think-- thinking - apheis
-- verb; nominative singular masculine of aorist participle of<aphiêmi> send forth, throw down, permit, forgive-- throwing ...down - auton
-- pronoun; accusative singular masculine of<autos> oneself, he-- himself - diaphtheiretai
-- verb; 3rd person singular present middle of<diaphtheirô> destroy, kill-- killed himself
Lesson Text
kai es de tên akropolin estin esodos mia. heteran de ou parechetai, pasa apotomos ousa kai teichos echousa echuron. ta de propulaia lithou leukou tên orophên echei kai kosmô kai megethei tôn lithôn mechri ge kai emou proeiche. tas men oun eikonas tôn hippeôn ouk echô saphôs eipein, eite hoi paides eisin hoi Xenophôntos eite allôs es euprepeian pepoiêmenai. tôn de propulaiôn en dexia Nikês estin Apterou naos. enteuthen hê thalassa esti sunoptos, kai tautê hripsas Aigeus heauton hôs legousin eteleutêsen. anêgeto men gar hê naus melasin histiois hê tous paidas pherousa es Krêtên. Thêseus de -- eplei gar tolmês ti echôn es ton Minô kaloumenon tauron pros ton patera proeipe chrêsesthai tois histiois leukois, ên opisô pleê tou taurou kratêsas. toutôn lêthên eschen Ariadnên aphêrêmenos. entautha Aigeus hôs eiden histiois melasi tên naun komizomenên, hoia ton paida tethnanai dokôn, apheis auton diaphtheiretai.
Translation
There is only one entry to the Acropolis. It does not provide another, being precipitous everywhere and having a strong wall. And the gateway has a roof of white marble, and is unexcelled for the beauty and size of its stones to my day. Regarding the statues of the horsemen, I cannot truly say whether they are the sons of Xenophon or whether they were produced especially for beauty. And on the right of the gateway is the temple of Wingless Victory. From here the sea is visible, and here, as they say, Aegeus throwing himself down died. For the ship carrying the children to Crete put out to sea with black sails. But Theseus, was sailing on something of a venture against the bull of Minos, so called. He had said to his father beforehand that he would sail back with white sails, having conquered the bull. But having lost Ariadne caused him to forget these things. Then Aegeus, when from this point he saw the ship traveling with black sails, thinking that his son had died, throwing himself down killed himself.
References
46. Texts.
Editors have worked with Greek texts since the Alexandrian period, when the texts of Homer were essentially fixed. Western scholars have continued the tradition as in the Teubner publications, those published by the Clarendon Press, and so on. If one examines an edited text with extensive introduction and commentary, such as Hesiod: Works and Days, M. L. West, ed. xiii, 399 pp. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1978), the information provided is enormous. The author states that he "perused" over six hundred texts when producing his book. As noted in the comments to the selection included here, the differences between his text and others, however, are slight.
Unless a text with extensive commentary is desired, readers of the Greek texts will do well to use the editions of the Loeb Classical Library, which have the added advantage of including translations. They are readily available from the Harvard University Press (Cambridge, MA 02138). The texts have been widely read in schools and universities, such as those of Xenophon, Plato and Homer have been published with introductions and commentaries, often also with glossaries. Or commentaries may be published separately, such as A Commentary on Herodotus by W. W. How and J. Wells, 2 vols., 456 and 445 pp. (Oxford: Clarendon, 1912, often reprinted). References may be found in catalogues of libraries and publishers, and increasingly on web sites.
47. Grammars.
Similarly, grammars of Greek are based on long attention. The fullest grammar is that of Eduard Schwyzer, Griechische Grammatik, I-III. Munich: Beck, 1939-53. For ready reference, most readers will find useful a shorter grammar, such as that of Herbert Weir Smyth, Greek Grammar (1920), revised by Gordon M. Messing, Harvard University Press (1956).
For a historical treatment, see the Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin by Carl Darling Buck (Chicago: University Press, 1933). A successor is the New Comparative Grammar of Greek and Latin, by Andrew L. Sihler (Oxford: University Press, 1995); it is written like a novel -- no references, no bibliography.
48. Dictionaries.
Dictionaries of various extent are readily available. An Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon, founded upon the seventh edition of Liddell and Scott's Greek-English Lexicon (Oxford: Clarendon: 1989) provides good coverage for texts of every type.
49. Specialized handbooks.
Catalogues in libraries and lists of publishers are excellent sources for handbooks dealing with all aspects of Greek culture and history. A highly interesting work for information on oral epic and especially Homer is The Making of Homeric Verse, the Collected Papers of Milman Parry, Adam Parry, ed. (New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987). While no Mycenaean texts have been included here, chiefly because of their brevity, readers may wish to consult Documents in Mycenaean Greek, by Michael Ventris and John Chadwick (Cambridge: University Press, 1956). The sub-title reads: Three hundred selected tablets from Knossos, Pylos and Mycenae with commentary and vocabulary. A History of Greece to 322 B.C. by N.G.L. Hammond (Oxford: Clarendon, 1986, 3rd ed.) provides broad coverage, dealing also with dialects, literature, art and thought. A Smaller Classical Dictionary, ed. E. H. Blakeney (New York: Dutton, 1928) provides compact entries on persons, places and things in the Roman and Greek world. One should not overlook the essays in encyclopedias, such as those in the celebrated 13th edition of the Encyclopedia Brittanica. These deal with various aspects of culture and history.
50. The Legacy of the Greek World.
The legacy of the Greek world on western civilization is evident in all aspects of political and cultural life. Democratic government had its start there. The works of Thucydides, Demosthenes, Plato and Aristotle among others provided many of the principles as well as intellectual support for civil arrangements.
In literature the Homeric poems have been a constant inspiration, as translations, commentaries and references indicate. The great tragedians, Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides, as well as the author of comedies, Aristophanes, are similarly admired, as well as lyric poets like Pindar. The influence of Greek art and architecture, whether produced by unknown artists or sculptors like Phidias, is visible on government buildings throughout the western world.
While Greek religion maintains interest for mythology and literature, the wide adoption of Christianity is evident in the maintenance of the New Testament and the majority of early commentary, as of St. Augustine, through the Greek language. The three creeds, the Apostle's, the Nicaean, the Athanasian, were all formulated in Greek. And while Roman culture has been influential in these fields as well, it owes much to the heritage of the earlier Greek culture, as in matters like the alphabet. The Greeks may have adopted it and other items from other cultures, but they reshaped them and passed them on in improved form to lands much larger than their small area. As a result especially of Alexander's conquests, Greek civilization and culture influenced the entire Mediterranean and surrounding areas, with lasting effects on far larger areas.