Homer, Iliad XXII 473-515

ἀμφὶ δέ μιν γαλόῳ τε καὶ εἰνατέρες ἅλις ἔσταν,

αἵ ἑ μετὰ σφίσιν εἶχον ἀτυζομένην ἀπολέσθαι.

ἣ δ᾽ ἐπεὶ οὖν ἔμπνυτο καὶ ἐς φρένα θυμὸς ἀγέρθη475

ἀμβλήδην γοόωσα μετὰ Τρῳῇσιν ἔειπεν:

Ἕκτορ ἐγὼ δύστηνος: ἰῇ ἄρα γεινόμεθ᾽ αἴσῃ

ἀμφότεροι, σὺ μὲν ἐν Τροίῃ Πριάμου κατὰ δῶμα,

αὐτὰρ ἐγὼ Θήβῃσιν ὑπὸ Πλάκῳ ὑληέσσῃ

ἐν δόμῳ Ἠετίωνος, ὅ μ᾽ ἔτρεφε τυτθὸν ἐοῦσαν480

δύσμορος αἰνόμορον: ὡς μὴ ὤφελλε τεκέσθαι.

νῦν δὲ σὺ μὲν Ἀΐδαο δόμους ὑπὸ κεύθεσι γαίης

ἔρχεαι, αὐτὰρ ἐμὲ στυγερῷ ἐνὶ πένθεϊ λείπεις

χήρην ἐν μεγάροισι: πάϊς δ᾽ ἔτι νήπιος αὔτως,

ὃν τέκομεν σύ τ᾽ ἐγώ τε δυσάμμοροι: οὔτε σὺ τούτῳ485

ἔσσεαι Ἕκτορ ὄνειαρ ἐπεὶ θάνες, οὔτε σοὶ οὗτος.

ἤν περ γὰρ πόλεμόν γε φύγῃ πολύδακρυν Ἀχαιῶν,

αἰεί τοι τούτῳ γε πόνος καὶ κήδε᾽ ὀπίσσω

ἔσσοντ᾽: ἄλλοι γάρ οἱ ἀπουρίσσουσιν ἀρούρας.

ἦμαρ δ᾽ ὀρφανικὸν παναφήλικα παῖδα τίθησι:490

πάντα δ᾽ ὑπεμνήμυκε, δεδάκρυνται δὲ παρειαί,

δευόμενος δέ τ᾽ ἄνεισι πάϊς ἐς πατρὸς ἑταίρους,

ἄλλον μὲν χλαίνης ἐρύων, ἄλλον δὲ χιτῶνος:

τῶν δ᾽ ἐλεησάντων κοτύλην τις τυτθὸν ἐπέσχε:

χείλεα μέν τ᾽ ἐδίην᾽, ὑπερῴην δ᾽ οὐκ ἐδίηνε.495

τὸν δὲ καὶ ἀμφιθαλὴς ἐκ δαιτύος ἐστυφέλιξε

χερσὶν πεπλήγων καὶ ὀνειδείοισιν ἐνίσσων:

ἔρρ᾽ οὕτως: οὐ σός γε πατὴρ μεταδαίνυται ἡμῖν.

δακρυόεις δέ τ᾽ ἄνεισι πάϊς ἐς μητέρα χήρην

Ἀστυάναξ, ὃς πρὶν μὲν ἑοῦ ἐπὶ γούνασι πατρὸς500

μυελὸν οἶον ἔδεσκε καὶ οἰῶν πίονα δημόν:

αὐτὰρ ὅθ᾽ ὕπνος ἕλοι, παύσαιτό τε νηπιαχεύων,

εὕδεσκ᾽ ἐν λέκτροισιν ἐν ἀγκαλίδεσσι τιθήνης

εὐνῇ ἔνι μαλακῇ θαλέων ἐμπλησάμενος κῆρ:

νῦν δ᾽ ἂν πολλὰ πάθῃσι φίλου ἀπὸ πατρὸς ἁμαρτὼν505

Ἀστυάναξ, ὃν Τρῶες ἐπίκλησιν καλέουσιν:

οἶος γάρ σφιν ἔρυσο πύλας καὶ τείχεα μακρά.

νῦν δὲ σὲ μὲν παρὰ νηυσὶ κορωνίσι νόσφι τοκήων

αἰόλαι εὐλαὶ ἔδονται, ἐπεί κε κύνες κορέσωνται

γυμνόν: ἀτάρ τοι εἵματ᾽ ἐνὶ μεγάροισι κέονται510

λεπτά τε καὶ χαρίεντα τετυγμένα χερσὶ γυναικῶν.

ἀλλ᾽ ἤτοι τάδε πάντα καταφλέξω πυρὶ κηλέῳ

οὐδὲν σοί γ᾽ ὄφελος, ἐπεὶ οὐκ ἐγκείσεαι αὐτοῖς,

ἀλλὰ πρὸς Τρώων καὶ Τρωϊάδων κλέος εἶναι.

515

ὣς ἔφατο κλαίουσ᾽, ἐπὶ δὲ στενάχοντο γυναῖκες.

Andromache laments the death of her husband, speaking especially of the wretched fate that awaits their son Astyanax as an orphan.

Andromache’s lament for Hector brings Book Twenty-Two to a close. As so often, the poet uses traditional forms to create a vividly individual portrait. [read full essay

473: ἔσταν: root aor. > ἵστημι.

474: αἵ: “who,” relative. : = αὐτήν,  Andromache. μετὰ σφίσιν εἶχον: “were holding (her) between them.” σφίσιν: dat. pl. 3rd pers. pronoun > σφεῖς (Monro 102). ἀτυζομένην ἀπολέσθαι: “shocked almost to death,” a loosely attached, blended infinitive of purpose/result (de Jong; see Goodell 565).

475: ἔμπνυτο: “she began to breath in,” “she revived,” inceptive aor. mid. with no difference from the active (Goodell 464). ἐς φρένα θυμὸς ἀγέρθη: when a person faints, the thumos is weakened, but does not leave the body. Upon regaining consciousness, the thumos is collected again (de Jong). ἀγέρθη: 3rd sg. aor. pass. > ἀγείρω.

477: δύστηνος: predicate, supply εἰμί. ἄρα γεινόμεθ᾽: “it turns out, we were born,” ἄρα + impf. indicates that the predestination of an event is realized ex post facto (de Jong on line 356). ἰῇαἴσῃ: “for one and the same lot,” “for a single fate,” dat. of accompanying circumstance (de Jong). ἰῇ: fem. dat. sg. of εἷς, μία, ἕν.

478: σὺ μὲναὐτὰρ ἐγὼ: “you … but I.”

479: Θήβῃσιν: “in Thebe,” dat. place where without preposition. Thebe is attested in both singular and plural. Thebe, modern Edremit, (not to be confused with either Egyptian or Boeotian Thebes), was a city in the so-called Plain of Thebe, south of Troy. See 6.397.

480: : “who,” demonstrative pronoun as relative, masc. sg.

481: ὡς μὴ ὤφελλε τεκέσθαι: “how I wish he had never begotten me,” impossible past wish introduced by ὡς + aor. > ὀφέλλω (Att. ὀφείλω), with aor. mid. inf. > τίκτω (see LSJ s.v. ὀφείλω II.3)

482: νῦν δὲ: “but as it is,” “but now," commonly follows past potential and contrary-to-fact conditions to return the reader to what is, in fact, true. δόμους: acc. place to which without preposition (Goodell 533). ὑπὸ κεύθεσι γαίης: “down in the recesses of the earth,” best taken as an apposition to δόμους.

483: ἔρχεαι: = ἔρχε(σ)αι, 2nd sg. pres. > ἔρχομαι. στυγερῷ ἐνὶ πένθεϊ: “wrapped in hateful mourning,” the otherwise rare use of the preposition + dat. πένθεϊ here makes the picture more graphic (de Jong).

484: χήρην: “as a widow,” predicative of ἐμέ. νήπιος αὔτως: “just an infant,” see 6.400.

485: ὃν: “whom.” τέκομεν: aor. > τίκτω. τ’… τε: “both … and.”

485–486: τούτῳ, οὗτος: i.e. Astyanax, the πάϊς δ’ ἔτι νήπιος of line 484, dat. of interest (Goodell 523).

486: ἔσσεαι: = ἔσσεσαι, 2nd sg. dep. mid fut. > εἰμί. ὄνειαρ: neut. sg. nom. predicate. ἐπεὶ: “since.” θάνες: unaugmented 2nd sg. aor. > θνήσκω.

487–489: ἤν περ: “even if,” περ introduces a concessive condition. ἤν περφύγῃἔσσοντ᾽: “even if he escapes at least from the war with the Greeks, he will,” ἤν (= ἐάν) + aor. subj. > φεύγω introducing a future-more-vivid condition (εἰ κε/ἄν + subj., fut. ind. > εἰμί).

488: τοι: “to be sure, you know,” particle.

489: ἔσσοντ᾽: = ἔσσονται, “(there) will be.” οἰἀρούρας: “his fields,” possessive dat. sg. personal pronoun.

490: τίθησι: “makes (x) (y),” pres. > τίθημι + double acc. (Goodell 534).

491: πάντα δ’ ὑπεμνήμυκε: “he is downcast utterly.” πάντα is adverbial acc., ὑπεμνήμυκε is most likely pf. with reduplication > ὑπ-ημύω, though this compound occurs only here (de Jong). δεδάκρυνται: “are covered in tears,” pf. pass.

492: δευόμενος: “lacking (food and drink),” the verb is often used in connection with food (de Jong). ἄνεισι: 3rd sg. fut. > ἄν-ειμι.

493: ἄλλονἄλλον: “one … another.” χλαίνης, χιτῶνος: genitives after verb of touching or grabbing, ἐρύω (Monro 151.a).

494: τῶν δ᾽ ἐλεησάντων: “(one of) these, taking pity.” τῶν, the demonstrative pronoun, is a partitive genitive with τις, modified by aor. ptc. ἐλεησάντων.

495: ἐδίην(ε) … ἐδίηνε: aorists > διαίνω, the repetition intensifies the picture of the boy only wetting his lips but not really quenching his thirst (de Jong).

496: τὸν δὲ: “this one,” Astyanax. καὶ: “even,” adverbial. ἀμφιθαλὴς: “(someone) with both parents,” the only occurrence of this term in Homer.

497: πεπλήγως: nom. sg. reduplicated aor. ptc. > πλήσσω. ὀνειδείοισιν: "with reproachful (words)," "with insults."

498: ἔρρ’ οὕτως: “get lost,” lit. “go as you are,” = ἔρρε, pres. imper. > ἔρρω, according to the scholia, this expression is coarse and colloquial. σός γε πατὴρ: “your father,” emphatic. ἡμῖν: “among us,” dat. governed by μετα- of μεταδαίνυται.

499: ἄνεισι: see line 492.

500: πρὶν: “previously,” adverbial.

501: οἶον: “only,” modifies μυελὸν. ἔδεσκε: “would/used to eat,” -σκ- indicates iterative impf. and customary action (Monro 48–49). οἰῶν: “of sheep,” accent may be on penult or ultima, gen. pl. either οἴων or οἰῶν. δημόν: “fat,” (not δῆμον, “people”).

502: ὅθ᾽: = ὅτε, “whenever,” ὅτε + aor. opt. ἕλοι > αἱρέω, in a general temporal clause in secondary sequence (Monro 308.1d). ἕλοι: supply Astyanax as missing direct object. παύσαιτό: aor. opt. in same general temporal clause, governing a supplementary ptc.

503: εὕδεσκ᾽: = εὕδεσκε “would/used to sleep,” another iterative impf., here > εὕδω.

504: εὐνῇ ἔνι: = ἐν εὐνῇ, anastrophe. θαλέων: > θάλεα, “good cheer, happy thoughts,” gen. with ἐμπλησάμενος. κῆρ: “heart,” not to be confused with κήρ, “death.”

505: ἂνπάθῃσι: “he will suffer,” anticipatory subj. (an independent equivalent to a future-less-vivid condition), thematic aor. subjunctive with athematic ending > πάσχω, see lines130, 244, 246 (Monro 292.b). ἀπὸἁμαρτὼν: > ἀφαμαρτάνω, “lose, be deprived of,”  tmesis, nom. sg. 2nd aor. ptc.

507: σφιν: dat. of interest. οἶος γάρ ἔρυσο: “for you alone protected,” 2nd aor. mid. > ῥύομαι.

509: ἐπεί κε κορέσωνται: “when(ever) the dogs have their fill.” ἐπεί κε = ἐπειδάν, the subjunctive is future in sense (Monro 296).

510: γυμνόν: warriors lacking armor are called “naked.” τοι: = σοι, possessive dat. sg. personal pronoun. κέονται: pres. 3rd pl. > κεῖμαι.

511: τετυγμένα: pf. pass. ptc. > τεύχω. χερσὶ: dat. pl. of means > χείρ.

512: πυρὶ κηλέῳ: “in blazing fire,” dat. of means or place where.

513–514: “(an act which is) no benefit to you (apposition), since you will not lie in them, but in order for there to be kleos (for you) on the part of the Trojan men and women (final-consecutive infinitive)” (de Jong; see Smyth 2011).

513: οὐδὲνὄφελος: neut. sg. acc. in apposition to line 512, i.e., the ritual burning will serve no benefit to Hector, who will remain without a funeral pyre. ἐπεὶ: “since.” ἐγκείσεαι: 2nd sg. fut. > ἔγ-κειμαι. αὐτοῖς: the clothing, dat. governed by ἐν- of ἔγ-κειμαι.

514: κλέος εἶναι: “to be glory,” i.e. “that there be glory (for you),” loosely attached infinitive of purpose/result, describing the intent behind the burning of the clothing. πρὸς: “in the eyes of/before…” + gen., expresses the point of view of a person (Monro 208).

515: ἔφατο: impf. mid. > φημί, mid. with no difference from the active. κλαίουσ᾽: = κλαίουσα, pres. ptc. ἐπὶ δὲ: “and in addition,” adverbial (see 22.429), “joined her in lament.”

μιν: him, her, it

γάλοως, dat. sing. and nom. pl. γαλόῳ: a husband's sister, sister-in-law

εἰνάτερες: a husband's brothers' wives

ἅλις: in heaps, crowds, swarms, in abundance, in plenty

οἱ (enclitic, dat. 3rd pers. pron.): (to) him, (to) her

σφεῖς, σφείων gen., σφίσι(ν) or σφί(ν) dat., σφέας acc.: (pl. 3rd pers. pron.) them

ἀτύζω: to be distraught from fear, mazed, bewildered

ἐμπνέω: to breathe, draw breath475

φρήν φρενός ἡ: heart, mind

ἀγείρω ἤγειρα ἀγήγερμαι ἠγέρθην: to bring together, gather together

ἀμβλήδην: adv. with sudden bursts

γοάω: to wail, groan, weep

Τρώϊος: Trojan

Ἕκτωρ: Hector, the most distinguished warrior of the Trojans, son of Priam and Hecabe, and husband of Andromache.

δύστηνος: wretched, unhappy, unfortunate

ἄρα, ῥά (enclit.), ἄρ, ῥ᾿: so, then, as you know, you know, it seems. Very often it marks an action as natural, or reminds of something recently said. It also marks transitions.

γείνομαι, aor. ἐγείναο: to be born; (aor.) begot, bore

αἶσα: share, lot, allotted portion, term of life; κατὰ αἶσαν, as is due

Τροία or Τροίη: Troy

Πρίαμος: Priam, son of Laomedon. King of Troy.

δῶμα –ατος τό: a house

ἀτάρ: but, yet

Θηβη: Theba, a Cilician town in the Troad (at the foot of Mt. Placus, an eastern spur of Mt. Ida), under the rule of Andromache's father Eetion; it was sacked by Achilles.

Πλάκος: a mountain above the city of Thebe

ὑλήεις -ήεσσα -ῆεν: woody, wooded

δόμος -ου, ὁ: a house, home480

Ἠετίων, -ωνος: Eetion, king of Hypoplacian Theba near Troy, father of Hector's wife Andromache; slain by Achilles on the capture of Theba.

τυτθός: little, small

δύσμορος: unfortunate, unhappy

αἰνόμορος: ill-starred

ὀφείλω, aor. ὄφελ(λ)ον or ὤφελ(λ)ον: should have, ought to have. With αἴθε and ὡς it is used to express a wish which cannot be realized: αἴθ᾿ ὄφελες ἄγαμος ἀπολέσθαι: if only you had died unmarried.

ᾍδης, gen. Ἀίδεω and Ἄϊδος, dat. Ἄϊδι, Ἀϊδωνῆι: Hades, god of the unseen lower world. His realm is the home of the dead, and in the Iliad it is beneath the earth, while in the Odyssey Odysseus sails to it, across Oceanus, and finds in it a faint, ghostly imitation of life on earth.

κεῦθος –εος τό: the depths

γαῖα –ας ἡ: a land, country

στυγερός: hated, abominated, loathed

πένθος –εος τό: grief, sadness, sorrow

χήρα: bereft of a husband, a widow

μέγαρον –ου τό: large room, main hall (in the center) of the house; pl. dwelling, house, palace.

νήπιος -α -ον: infant, childish

αὔτως: in this very manner, even so, just so, as it is, merely; νήπιον αὔτως 'merely a child'

δυσάμμορος: most miserable485

ὄνειαρ –ατος τό: help, support, profit

πολύδακρυς: tearful

Ἀχαιός: Achaian

τοι: let me tell you, surely

κῆδος –εος τό: grief, sorrow, woe

ὀπίσω or ὀπίσσω: backwards, in the future

ἀπουρίζω: will mark off

ἄρουρα: cultivated land, plowed field, wheat field

ἦμαρ –ατος τό: day

ὀρφανικός: orphaned, fatherless490

παναφῆλιξ –ικος: bereft of companions

ὑπεμνήμυκε: bows his head down, is cast down

δακρύω, aor. partic. δακρύσας, perf. mid. δεδάκρυσαι, δεδάκρυνται: to weep, shed tears; to be in tears, be bathed in tears

παρειά: the cheek

ἄνειμι, pres. partic. ἀνιόντα: to come back, return

ἑταῖρος –ου ὁ: a comrade, companion, mate

χλαῖνα -ης ἡ: chlaena, cloak, mantle

ἐρύω: to drag, pull, tear; draw up, raise, balance

χιτών –ῶνος ὁ: chiton, tunic

ἐλεέω, aor. ἐλέησε: to pity, take pity

κοτύλη: a cup

ἐπέχω, 2nd aor. ἐπέσχον, ἐπέσχε, aor. partic. ἐπισχών: to hold to (a person or to his lips)

χεῖλος –εος τό: lip495

διαίνω, aor. ἐδίηνε(ν): to wet, moisten

ὑπερῴη: palate

ἀμφιθαλής: blooming on both sides, i.e with both parents living

δαιτύς –ύος ἡ: a feast

στυφελίζω, aor. ἐστυφέλιξε(ν), aor. inf. στυφελίξαι: to strike, smite, thrust, drive away

πλήσσω, aor. πλῆξε(ν), 2nd aor. inf. πεπληγέμεν, 2nd perf. partic. πεπληγώς: to strike, smite

ὀνείδειος:reproachful, ὀνειδείοις ἐπέεσσι with words of reproach, with insulting words

ἐνίσσω: to scold, reproach

ἔρρω, imperat. ἔρρε, ἐρρέτω, partic. ἔρρων: to go or move with difficulty; ἔρρε, off with you!

μεταδαίνυμαι: to feast with, dine with (+dat)

δακρυόεις: tearful, weeping

Ἀστυάναξ -ακτος: Astyanax, Hector's son, also known as Scamandrius500

ἑός ἑή ἑόν: his, her own

γόνυ, gen. γόνατος or γούνατος: knee

μυελός: marrow

ἔδω: to eat

ὄις ὄιος: sheep

πίων πίονος: fat, rich, fertile

δημός ὁ: fat

ὕπνος –ου ὁ: sleep, slumber

νηπιαχεύω: to be childish, play like a child

εὕδω, impf. εὗδε, εὗδον, iterat. εὕδεσκε: to sleep, rest

λέκτρον: a couch, bed

ἀγκαλίς –ίδος ἡ: arm

τιθήνη: a nurse

εὐνή: a bed, couch

μαλακός: soft, gentle

θάλεα –ων τά: good cheer, happy thoughts

ἐμπίμπλημι ἐμπλήσω ἐνέπλησα ἐμπέπληκα ἐμπέπλησμαι ἐωεπλήθην: fill quite full

κῆρ κῆρος τό: the heart

φίλος –η –ον: friend; loved, beloved, dear505

Τρῶες: Trojans

ἐπίκλησις: a name

οἷος –α –ον: of what sort, what kind of, what, such as, as

πύλη –ης ἡ: one wing of a pair of double gates; (pl.) gate

κορωνίς: curved

νόσφι: apart, separate, far from (+gen)

τοκεύς –ῆος ὁ: a parent

αἰόλος: quick-moving, swift, squirming

εὐλή: a worm, maggot

κύων κυνός ὁ or ἡ: a dog

κορέννυμι, aor. opt. κορέσειεν, aor. mid. κορεσσάμεθα, aor. mid. subj. κορέσωνται, perf. κεκόρησθε: to sate, satiate, satisfy; mid. to have one's fill

γυμνός –ή –όν: naked, unclad, unmarried510

εἷμα –ατος τό: a garment, clothing

λεπτός: fine, delicate

χαρίεις –ίεσσα –ίεν: graceful, beautiful, pleasing; superl. χαριέστατος

τεύχω τεύξω ἔτευξα τέτευχα τέτυγμαι ἐτύχθην: to make ready, make, build, work

ἤτοι: now surely, truly, = μέν

καταφλέγω: to burn down, consume

κήλεος: burning, blazing

ὄφελος –εος τό: advantage, use

ἔγκειμαι: to lie in

κλέος –έος τό: glory

κλαίω, opt. κλαίοισθα, impf. κλαῖε, fut. κλαύσομαι, κλαύονται: to weep, lament, wail515

στενάχω, impf. mid. στενάχοντο: to sigh, groan

article nav

Suggested Citation

Thomas Van Nortwick and Geoffrey Steadman, Homer: Iliad 6 and 22. Carlisle, Pennsylvania: Dickinson College Commentaries, 2018. ISBN: 978-1-947822-11-5.https://dcc.dickinson.edu/homer-iliad/homer-iliad-xxii-473-515