γένοιτο δ᾽ ἂν ἐμμελὴς ἡ ἀνάπαυσις αὐτοῖς, εἰ τοῖς τοιούτοις τῶν ἀναγνωσμάτων ὁμιλοῖεν, ἃ μὴ μόνον ἐκ τοῦ ἀστείου τε καὶ χαρίεντος ψιλὴν παρέξει τὴν ψυχαγωγίαν, ἀλλά τινα καὶ θεωρίαν οὐκ ἄμουσον ἐπιδείξεται, οἷόν τι καὶ περὶ τῶνδε τῶν συγγραμμάτων αὐτοὺς φρονήσειν ὑπολαμβάνω· οὐ γὰρ μόνον τὸ ξένον τῆς ὑποθέσεως οὐδὲ τὸ χαρίεν τῆς προαιρέσεως ἐπαγωγὸν ἔσται αὐτοῖς οὐδ᾽ ὅτι ψεύσματα ποικίλα πιθανῶς τε καὶ ἐναλήθως ἐξενηνόχαμεν, ἀλλ᾽ ὅτι καὶ τῶν ἱστορουμένων ἕκαστον οὐκ ἀκωμῳδήτως ᾔνικται πρός τινας τῶν παλαιῶν ποιητῶν τε καὶ συγγραφέων καὶ φιλοσόφων πολλὰ τεράστια καὶ μυθώδη συγγεγραφότων, οὓς καὶ ὀνομαστὶ ἂν ἔγραφον, εἰ μὴ καὶ αὐτῷ σοι ἐκ τῆς ἀναγνώσεως φανεῖσθαι ἔμελλον.

    γένοιτο δ᾽ ἂν...εἰ ὁμιλοῖεν: future less vivid condition (S. 2329; G. 651), “it would be...if they should...”

    γένοιτο: aor. opt. of γίγνομαι.

    τοιούτοις...ἃ: correlatives, “these sorts of readings, (the kind) which ...”

    παρέξει...ἐπιδείξεται: futures of παρέχω and ἐπιδείκνυμι, “not only will provide...but also will exhibit.”

    οὐκ ἄμουσον: “not without taste,” note the frequent use of litotes in this passage (litotes is a weak positive statement created by negating an already negative quality--e.g., "the movie was not bad").

    οἷόν τι: “just such a thing...”

    αὐτοὺς φρονήσειν: indirect statement after ὑπολαμβάνω, “I assume that they will think.

    ἐπαγωγὸν ἔσται αὐτοῖς “will be pleasing to them.”

    οὐδ᾽ ὅτι...ἀλλ᾽ ὅτι: “not just because...but also because.”

    ἐξενηνόχαμεν: perf. act. 1 pl. of ἐκφέρω, “I have expressed” (pl. rendered as sing.: S. 1008; cf. S. 1006).

    τῶν ἱστορουμένων ἕκαστον: "each of the things recounted," "each episode."

    οὐκ ἀκωμῳδήτως ᾔνικται: "not uncomically alludes to," "satirically hints at." ἀκωμῳδήτως occurs only here in extant Greek. Note the litotes.

    ᾔνικται: perf. mid. 3 sg. of αἰνίσσομαι, “makes hinting reference to," perfect tense referring to an enduring result (S. 1946).

    συγγεγραφότων: perf. part. act. gen. pl. of συγγράφω, agreeing with ποιητῶν,συγγραφέων, and φιλοσόφων: “those who have written.”

    ἂν ἔγραφον, εἰ μὴ...ἔμελλον: present contrary-to-fact condition, “I would write their names if they were not bound to be evident to you.”

    αὐτῷ σοι: “to you (the reader) yourself.” αὐτῷ is here intensive, not reflexive.

    φανεῖσθαι: fut. infin. of φαίνομαι after ἔμελλον.

    VERB LIST

    ἐμμελής, -ές: suitable, in good taste

    ἀνάπαυσις, -εως, ἡ: relaxation, rest, recreation

    ἀνάγνωσμα, -ατος, τό: a reading, a passage read aloud

    ὁμιλέω: attend to, busy oneself with

    ἀστεῖος, -α, -ον: urbane, elegant, witty, refined

    χαρίεις, -εσσα, -εν: graceful, beautiful, lovely

    ψιλός, -ή, -όν: pure, mere

    ψυχαγωγία, ἡ: amusement, pleasure, delight

    θεωρία, ἡ: spectacle; theoretical view, insight

    ἄμουσος, -ον: without the Muses, inelegant

    ἐπιδείκνυμι: exhibit

    σύγγραμμα, -ατος, τό: a writing, treatise, book

    ὑπολαμβάνω: assume, suppose, believe

    ξένος, -η, -ον: strange, unusual

    ὑπόθεσις, -εως, ἡ: subject matter, composition

    χαρίεις, -εσσα, -εν: graceful, beautiful, lovely

    προαίρεσις, -εως, ἡ: style

    ἐπαγωγός, -όν: attractive, alluring

    ψεῦσμα, -ατος, τό: a fiction

    ποικίλος, -η, -ον: intricate, complex, subtle artful

    πιθανῶς: plausibly, true to nature, naturalistically

    ἐναλήθως: in accordance with truth, with an element of truth

    ἐκφέρω: deliver, express, produce

    ἱστορέω: give an account of what one has learnt, record

    ἀκωμῳδήτως: unfunnily, uncomically

    αἰνίσσομαι: speak in riddles; hint at

    συγγραφεύς, -έως, ὁ: an historian

    φιλόσοφος, ὁ: a lover of wisdom, philosopher

    τεράστιος, -ον: monstrous; miraculous

    μυθώδης, -ες: legendary, fabulous

    συγγράφω: write, note down

    ὀνομαστί: by name

    ἀνάγνωσις, -εως, ἡ: recognition; reading

    φαίνομαι: appear

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    Suggested Citation

    Eric Casey, Evan Hayes, and Stephen Nimis, Lucian True History. Carlisle, Pennsylvania: Dickinson College Commentaries, 2023. ISBN: .
    https://dcc.dickinson.edu/lucian-true/book-1/1-2