1.34 | Dickinson College Commentaries

Ὁ δὲ ὑπερθαυμάσας καὶ αὐτὸς ἐν μέρει τὰ καθ᾽ αὑτὸν διεξῄει λέγων, «Τὸ μὲν γένος εἰμί, ὦ ξένοι, Κύπριος, ὁρμηθεὶς δὲ κατ᾽ ἐμπορίαν ἀπὸ τῆς πατρίδος μετὰ παιδός, ὃν ὁρᾶτε, καὶ ἄλλων πολλῶν οἰκετῶν ἔπλεον εἰς Ἰταλίαν ποικίλον φόρτον κομίζων ἐπὶ νεὼς μεγάλης, ἣν ἐπὶ στόματι τοῦ κήτους διαλελυμένην ἴσως ἑωράκατε. μέχρι μὲν οὖν Σικελίας εὐτυχῶς διεπλεύσαμεν· ἐκεῖθεν δὲ ἁρπασθέντες ἀνέμῳ σφοδρῷ τριταῖοι ἐς τὸν ὠκεανὸν ἀπηνέχθημεν, ἔνθα τῷ κήτει περιτυχόντες καὶ αὔτανδροι καταποθέντες δύο ἡμεῖς μόνοι τῶν ἄλλων ἀποθανόντων, ἐσώθημεν. θάψαντες δὲ τοὺς ἑταίρους καὶ ναὸν τῷ Ποσειδῶνι δειμάμενοι τουτονὶ τὸν βίον ζῶμεν, λάχανα μὲν κηπεύοντες, ἰχθῦς δὲ σιτούμενοι καὶ ἀκρόδρυα. πολλὴ δέ, ὡς ὁρᾶτε, ἡ ὕλη, καὶ μὴν καὶ ἀμπέλους ἔχει πολλάς, ἀφ᾽ ὧν ἡδύτατος οἶνος γεννᾶται· καὶ τὴν πηγὴν δὲ ἴσως εἴδετε καλλίστου καὶ ψυχροτάτου ὕδατος. εὐνὴν δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν φύλλων ποιούμεθα, καὶ πῦρ ἄφθονον καίομεν, καὶ ὄρνεα δὲ θηρεύομεν τὰ εἰσπετόμενα, καὶ ζῶντας ἰχθῦς ἀγρεύομεν ἐξιόντες ἐπὶ τὰ βραγχία τοῦ θηρίου, ἔνθα καὶ λουόμεθα, ὁπόταν ἐπιθυμήσωμεν. καὶ μὴν καὶ λίμνη οὐ πόρρω ἐστὶν σταδίων εἴκοσι τὴν περίμετρον, ἰχθῦς ἔχουσα παντοδαπούς, ἐν ᾗ καὶ νηχόμεθα καὶ πλέομεν ἐπὶ σκάφους μικροῦ, ὃ ἐγὼ ἐναυπηγησάμην. ἔτη δέ ἐστιν ἡμῖν τῆς καταπόσεως ταῦτα ἑπτὰ καὶ εἴκοσι.

notes

The man tells his story and gives information about the many other inhabitants of the whale.

ὑπερθαυμάσας: aor. part. of ὑπερθαυμάζω, "being amazed."

ἐν μέρει: "in turn."

τὰ καθ᾽ αὑτὸν: “about his own adventures,” (for the article, see S. 1153c).

διεξῄει: impf. of διεξέρχομαι, “he began relating” (inchoative imperfect: S. 1900).

τὸ γένος: “by race” (S. 1600 and 1601b).

ὁρμηθείς: aor. part. nom. sg. of ὁρμάω, “having set out.”

κατ᾿ ἐμπορίαν: "in search of trade."

διαλελυμένην: perf. part. acc. sg. of διαλύω, “wrecked."

ἑωράκατε: perf. 2 pl. of ὁράω, "you have seen."

διεπλεύσαμεν: aor. 1 pl. of διαπλέω, "we sailed."

ἁρπασθέντες: aor. part. pass. of ἁρπάζω, “having been taken."

τριταῖοι...ἀπηνέχθημεν: aor. pass. 1 pl. of ἀποφέρω, "on the third day we were carried from our course."

περιτυχόντες: aor. part. of περιτυγχάνω, "after falling in with (+ dat.)."

καταποθέντες: aor. pass. of καταπίνω, "after being gulped down."

τῶν ἄλλων ἀποθανόντων: "after the others died," (S. 2058 and 2070; G. 589 and 590).

ἀποθανόντων: aor. part. of ἀποθνῄσκω.

ἐσώθημεν: aor. pass. of σῴζω, "we were saved."

δειμάμενοι: aor. part. mid. of δέμω, "having built."

τουτονὶ τὸν βίον ζῶμεν: "we live this life here" (for the deictic iota used for emphasis, see S. 333g; for the internal acc., see S. 1554a).

καὶ μὴν καί: "and in truth also (it has)..." (S. 2921).

ἴσως εἴδετε: aor. 2 pl. of ὁράω, "you probably saw."

ὄρνεα...εἰσπετόμενα: "the birds that fly in" (lit. "birds...the ones that fly in") (G. 552b).

ἐξιόντες: pres. part. of ἐξέρχομαι, "by going into."

ἔνθα καὶ λουόμεθα: pres. mid., "where we also wash ourselves."

ὁπόταν ἐπιθυμήσωμεν: "whenever we wish" (G. 627; S. 2399).

ἐπιθυμήσωμεν: aor. subj. of ἐπιθυμέω.

σταδίων εἴκοσι τὴν περίμετρον: "twenty stades in circumference" (for the gen. of measure, see S. 1325; for the acc. see S. 1600 and 1601b).

ἐναυπηγησάμην: aor. 1 sg. dep. of ναυπηγέομαι, "I built (the ship) myself."

τῆς καταπόσεως: "since we were gulped down" (lit. "since the gulping down"), gen. to express the original starting event in a period of time (see Jerram ad loc. and cf. S. 1446). It is more common to see this use of the gen. with ἐκ or ἀπό.

vocabulary

VERB LIST

ὑπερθαυμάζω: wonder exceedingly

διεξέρχομαι: go through, recount

Κύπριος, -α, -ον: of Cyprus, Cyprian

ἐμπορία, ἡ: commerce, trade

πατρίς, -ίδος, ἡ: fatherland

οἰκέτης, -ου, ὁ: a house-slave, servant

Ἰταλία, ἡ: Italy

ποικίλος, -η, -ον: many-colored; diversified, manifold

φόρτος, ὁ: a load, a ship's freight or cargo

κῆτος, -ους, τό: a sea-monster, huge fish

διαλύω: break apart, wreck

Σικελία, ἡ: Sicily

εὐτυχῶς: successfully, with good fortune

διαπλέω: sail across

ἐκεῖθεν: from that place, thence

ἁρπάζω: take up, carry off

ἄνεμος, ὁ: wind

σφοδρός, -ά, -όν: excessive, violent

τριταῖος, -α, -ον: on the third day, three days after

ὠκεανός, ὁ: the ocean

ἀποφέρω: carry off or away; pass. be carried off course

ἔνθα: there; rel. adv. where

περιτυγχάνω: fall in with, meet with, encounter (+ dat.)

αὔτανδρος, -ον: together with the men, men and all

καταπίνω: gulp down, swallow

θάπτω: bury, honor with funeral rites

ἑταῖρος, ὁ: a comrade, companion, mate

Ποσειδῶν, -ῶνος, ὁ: Poseidon

δέμω: build

λάχανα, τά: vegetables, greens

κηπεύω: grow, raise in a garden

ἰχθύς, -ύος, ὁ: a fish

σιτέομαι: eat

ἀκρόδρυα, τά: fruit, produce

ὕλη, ἡ: a forest

ἄμπελος, ἡ: a grape vine, tendril

οἶνος, ὁ: wine

γεννάω: produce, yield

πηγή, ἡ: spring

κάλλιστος, -η, -ον: most beautiful

ψυχρός, -ά, -όν: cold, chill

εὐνή, ἡ: a bed

φύλλον, τό: a leaf

ἄφθονος, -ον: plentiful

καίω: kindle, light (a fire)

ὄρνεον, τό: a bird

θηρεύω: hunt, go hunting

εἰσπέτομαι: fly in

ἀγρεύω: catch

ἐξέρχομαι: go out

βραγχία, τά: the gills

θηρίον, τό: a wild animal, beast

λούω: wash, bathe

ὁπόταν: whenever (+ subj.)

ἐπιθυμέω: desire, wish

λίμνη, ἡ: a pool, lake

πόρρω: far off

εἴκοσι: twenty

περίμετρος (sc. γραμμή), ἡ: the circumference

παντοδαπός, -ή, -όν: of every kind, of all sorts

νήχομαι: swim

σκάφος, -ους, τό: the hull of a ship; a boat

ναυπηγέω: build ships

κατάποσις, -εως, ἡ: a gulping down, swallowing

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