three notes on statius

8/13/2019 Three Notes on Statius

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Three Notes on StatiusAuthor(s): John P. CookeReviewed work(s):Source: Classical Philology, Vol. 41, No. 2 (Apr., 1946), pp. 102-105Published by: The University of Chicago PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/267360.

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102 NOTES AND DISCUSSIONS751. 54; on eAp'apco,69. 25; on the meaning ofo6taL,Aco,80. 30; on Agamemnonin Sophocles,851. 21; on the form eVpO'L77J,144. 23; on thesource of the expression iri-,uaar71s,461. 66; onthe plot of the Philoctetes, 1695. 59.

Consideringthe large number of Sophocleanfragments which have survived, Eustathius'references to lost plays (27 quotations, 33 cita-tions) are not so abundant as might be ex-pected. It is likely that Eustathius derived allthese citations from earlier sources, since heexpressly names some of theworkswhich heused, and otherwise the context and the pres-ence of devices of indirect quotation suggestthat they are not independent, as would be un-likely also on general grounds. Even so, hiscitation of fragments is significant. Besides theplaceswhere Eustathius alonenow preservesthequotation for us,23the citations are valuablefor variants,24explanation of the meaning ofthe fragment,25and description of plots. Eust.1479. 11 is a main source of information on theplot of the Hermione, and 1796. 52 records asignificant fact about the Euryalus. The Com-mentaries furnish quotations from the follow-ing plays: Aegeus, Frag. 1926 (881. 24); Aethio-pians, Frag. 28 (752. 32); Alexandros,Frag. 94(533. 39); Alcmaeon, Frag. 108 (1448. 6);Amycus, Frag. 111 (1534. 15); Andromeda,Frag. 127 (1205. 58); Achilleos Erastai, Frag.154 (1872. 13); Thamyras,Frag. 237 (358. 40);Ichneutai, Frags. 314, 275 (899. 16); Cedalion,Frags. 329 (1404. 13)and 330 (1023. 2); Larisai-oi, Frag. 378 (1319. 48); Lemniai, Frag. 387

23 E.g., Frags. 237, 479, 716, 720, 790, 791, 793,794, 1006, 1046, 1062, 1069.24 E.g., Frags. 154, 330, 395, 885.25E.g., Frags. 181 (where he paraphrases), 272,387, 479, 776.26 The fragments are cited according to Pearson'sedition.

(1405. 58); Manteis, Frag. 395 (835. 9); Naup-lius, Frag. 429 (1397. 28; cf. 1396. 60); Odys-seusAcanthoplex,Frags. 454 (1675. 52) and 458(66. 34); Palamedes, Frag. 479 (228. 5, 1397.9); Banqueters,Frag. 565 (1828. 29). Unknownplays: Frags. 760 (1944. 26); 776 (980. 45); 790(1237. 23); 791 (1495. 45); 793 (1625. 46; cf.777. 62); 794 (1923. 62); 885 (1493. 35); 1121(1538. 15). In addition to quotations, thereare these references to lost plays: Aichmalo-tides, Frag. 43 (1017. 10); Marriage of Helen,Frag. 181 (1205. 3); Inachus, Frag. 272 (302.26); Iphigeneia, Frag. 311 (870. 29); Triptol-emtns,Frags. 596 (914. 36) and 611 (870. 27);Phinewus,rag. 716 (1496.53 *); Phoenix, Frags.718 (1822. 18) and 720 (1088. 36); Chryses,Frag. 730 (1564. 32). Unknown plays: Frags.756 (1136. 58); 906 (1023. 15); 929 (692. 12);1006 (1405. 31); 1046 (1562. 39); 1048 (1856.13); 1049 (1439. 36); 1056 (407. 37); 1062(1761. 28); 1069 (877. 59; 1648. 63); 1084 (948.20); 1086 (295. 5); 1087 (890. 15); 1093 (1908.41); 1105 (1496. 35).27 Finally, there are re-marks on the Antenoridae (405. 30); a detailabout the Niobe (1367. 22); and informationabout the Nausicaa (381. 10, 1553. 66).28

HAROLD W. MILLERFURMAN UNIVERSITY27 In 1135. 19, Eustathius records a word 7raXMrpAre-Xoy,as used by Sophocles. The word does not occurin the extant tragedies, nor is it listed by Nauck orPearson. Elsewhere, it is found only in Pindar 0. 2. 37.28 Eustatliius sometimes errs. Thus, in 867. 62 and1389. 9, he attributes to Sophocles words which actual-ly come from Xenophon (Mem. iii. 13. 4) and the

Titanomachia (Frag. ep. 4 [Kinkel]), respectively. Hissource for both was apparently Athen. 277d. In 1872.66 he quotes and attributes to Sophocles a line whichprobably refers to Aeschylus Ag. 270. In 436. 44 he at-tributes to Sophocles, Euripides' Medea 746. In 264.21he attributes to the Trachiniae a form which doubt-less derived from the elegy written by Sophocles forArchelaus.

THREE NOTES ON STATIUSThe apostolic precept "Quod bonum esttenete" is one which all students of Statiusshould take to heart. For the more carefullywe trace the interpretation of his poems, es-pecially the Thebais, the more clearly do wesee that it has suffered from a peculiar tend-ency to backslide. Well-grounded explanationswhich were common property a century or

more ago have repeatedly been discarded for

novelties-novelties which, upon the mostcharitable estimate, betray a degree of care-lessness that is out of place in serious scholar-ship.

A passage in Book x of the Thebais willserve as a first example. Tiresias declares that,if Thebes is to be saved from the Argives, thelatest-born of the Spartoi must be sacrificed


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NOTES AND DISCUSSIONS 103to atonefor the blood-guiltwhichCadmus n-curredby slayingthe famousanguisMartius.In accordancewith this oracle, therefore,Menoeceus,Creon'sson, stabs himself on theThebanrampartsand, as he doesso, flingshisbody ntothemidstof theforces ightingontheplainbelow:iamquentramurosnullo udore eceptumgaudentes eroa erunt;abscesserat ltroTantalidum enerata ohors.... IThe interpretatiorovided n the Delphinedi-tion of Statius2 correctlyparaphrases heseversesasfollows:"Thebani xultantesportantintra mceniaHero6m nullo labore recupera-tum: acies enim Argivorumvenerata ultrodiscesserat."3And the eighteenth-centuryversetranslationby W. L. Lewis showsa cleargraspof the poet'smeaning:

Now to the walls of Thebes with joyful careThe hero'scorse, with easeobtain'd,they bear.The Greeks with decent reverencesurveyThe solemnpomp, and willinglygive way.4The gist of the passage, hen, is that, althoughthe Thebans might have expected a bitterstrugglewiththeArgives o recover heirbene-factor's body,5 the Argives were filled withsuch aweat Menoeceus'devotiohat they vol-untarilywithdrewand made no effortto cap-tureandwithholdhis corpse.This interpretationremainedundisputeduntil late in the nineteenthcentury.6 n 1884,

I Vss. 783-85.2 Paris, 1685. It is reprinted in various later edi-tions.3 A note in the Delphin edition (ad loc.) alludes to aprevious discussion of this passage and shows that ithad rested on misanderstanding: "Nullo sudore] Cor-rigit Peyraredus [Jean de Peyrarede, a seventeenth-century French scholar] multo, quia per medias aciesperrumpere illis [the Thebans] opus fuit, ut corpusextraherent; nam se supra medias acies jecerat. Sedfallitur; dicit enim infra Poeta veneratum Argivorumexercitum ultro abscessisse."4 Oxford, 1767. Although the modern reader natu-rally regards the Thebans, too, as Greeks and may,therefore, feel that "Greeks" is not a happy renderingof Tantalidum, one may point out that in the Thebaisthe word Graius is generally used to designate thePeloponnesian forces as opposed to the Thebans, whoin many respects are given the character of barbari.5 Cf. the numerous struggles over the dead bodies

of fallen warriors in Homer and other ancient epics,passim. For an example in the Thebais, cf. ix. 86 ff.6 J. A. Amar and N. E. Lemaire (in their edition[Paris, 1825-30]) reprinted the Delphin note withoutfurther comment, and Wartel's translation (in Ni-sard's Collection des auteurs latins avec la traduction enfranQais, Vol. XXIII [Paris, 18781) is quite satisfactory.

Philip Kohlmann's edition appeared.7 Kohl-mann made no comment on the passage in hisapparatus, but his "Index nominum" suggestsa novel exegesis.8 In it he lists Tantalidum (vs.785) under Tantalis and says "TantalidumX 785 cohors (mulierum Argivarum)," confus-ing Tantalidum, the genitive plural of Tanta-lides, -ae, with Tantalidum, the genitive pluralof Tantalis, -idis. Several years later, AlfredKlotz produced a new edition.9 It representeda great improvement upon Kohlmann's work.But in the revised "Index nominum," which areviewer hailed as "ein riihmliches Zeugnis furdie Sorgfalt des Editors,"10 we read, againunder Tantalis, "plur. mulieres Argivae: Th.10, 785 Tantalidum venerata cohors."I Klotzhad revised Kohlmann's wording. One wonderswhether lie had checked the passage. Finally,in the recently published Concordance12 heform Tantalidum is once more listed underTantalis."3

If this new explanation of Tantalidum is duesolely to negligence, it is reprehensible. Forscholars who make Statius their specialtyshould be expected to provide us with sounderinformation about his poetry than is obtain-able elsewhere.14If, on the other hand, thisexplanation is made in all seriousness, one canonly say that it is absurd. For what is this"cohort" of Argive women doihg on the battle-field before Thebes at this moment? Variouspassages in the poem"5make it quite clear that

7 Leipzig: B. G. Teubner.8 P. 463. Lemaire's "Index" (p. 605) had listedTantalidae (with a reference to the present passage)apart from Tantalis.9 Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1908.10 R. Helm, in Berl. phil. Wchnschr., XXIX (1909),977.11 P. 570.12 Roy J. Deferrari and Sister M. Clement Eagan,

A Concordance of Statius (Brookland, D.C., 1943),p. 827.13 Since the authors seem to have based their workexclusively on Garrod's text, it is unlikely that thisparticular error is due to the influence of Kohlmannor Klotz.14 It is interesting to note that Raphael Kiihnerlisted Tantalidum as gen. pl. of Tantalides in hisAusfiihrliche Grammatik der lateinischen Sprache, I

(1st ed.; Hannover, 1877), 260 (sec. 95, 8 [c]). Theseventh ed. of Georges' Latin-German lexicon (1880)likewise classifles the form correctly. I mention thesebooks rather than others because they must have beenavailable to Kohlmann and Klotz.15Cf., e.g., Theb. Iii. 374 f., 707-10; iv. 16-31, 89-92; ix. 570 ft.; x. 49-53; xi. 140 ft. Assuming, however,


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104 NOTES AND DISCUSSIONSthe Argive women remained at home when themen set out for Thebes. There were no Ama-zons or Camillas in the Argive camp; themother of Parthenopaeus, Atalante the hunt-ress, who might have assumed such a role,'6did not leave Arcadia. Not even a Briseis ac-companied the Argives.'7The interpretation ofTantalidum which was current over two hun-dred years ago is still valid, and it is a pleasureto see that J. H. Mozley's version accepts it.18The mulieres Argivae, one hopes, will not bementioned again in connection with this pas-sage.

In the third book of the Thebais'9the rela-tives of the men whom Tydeus slew in noc-turnal combat20pour forth from Thebes to re-cover their bodies and cremate them. Amongthe mourners is a woman named Ide, whosegrief is described at some length.2'Ofthis wom-an, Mozley says: "A Theban mother, not else-where mentioned; the names of her sons arenot given."22The first part of Mozley's com-ment is correct: this Ide is not mentioned else-where. But the second part is mistaken. Any-one who compares verses 629-43 of Book iiwith verses 133 f., 147-49, 151-53, and 165 f.of the present episode will see that Statius isreferring to the same pair of brothers in bothcases. Since this is so, we may state23that thename of one of the Thespiadae, Ide's sons, wasPeriphas.This observation is by no means new. It canbe traced back-beyond the seventeenth cen-that the Argive women were actually present, why,one wonders, should they alone withdraw and leavethe Argive men in the ranks? Why, too, should theirretirement facilitate the recovery of Menoeceus' body?

16Cf. Theb. iv. 248-50, 322-27; and H. J. Rose,A Handbook of Greek Mythology (New York, 1929),p. 259.

17 During the games at Nemea, Adrastus gives hisdefeated son-in-law a famula Achaea as a consolationprize (T*b. vi. 549). But she is simply a reminiscenceof Hom. II. xxiii. 704 f., and plays no further part inthe poem.18 Cf. his translation (London, 1928) In the "LoebClassical Library": "of its own accord the Tantalidhost in reverence withdrew." It would have been bet-ter to render the tense of abscesserat more accurately.

Furthermore, the average reader, for whom this serieswas designed, needs a short note on "Tantalid." Ifthe note is omitted, "Argive" would be a more intelli-gible translation.19 Vss. 114 ff. 21 Cf. iii. 133-68.20 Cf. ii. 527 if. 22 Op. cit., note on vs. 134.23 On the basis of ii. 631.

tury this time-to the commentary of "Lac-tantius Placidus," who says of Ide: "nomen estmulieris, cuius duos filios geminos a Tydeodiximus interemptos."24Although Mozley's note on Ide betrays asomewhat less intimate acquaintance with thepoem-in this respect, at least-than the me-dieval commentator possessed, neverthelesshis slip is trifling in comparison with the onewhich the authors of the Concordance25avemade in connection with these same brothers.They have listed Thespiadae (ii. 629 and iii. 14)under Thespias, thereby transforming theminto women 26Could they have been thinkingof the Muses?27

Facilis descensus Averni. Our final illustra-tion takes us from the battlefield to the Styx.In Silvae v. 1, Statius consoles Abascantus,who is mourning over the death of his wife,Priscilla. Toward the close of the poem headdresses the young husband as follows:Quidnunc immodicos, uvenumlectissime,fletuscorde foves longumquevetas exiredolorem?nempe times, ne CerbereosPriscillatremescatlatratus?tacet ille piis ne tardioradsitnavita proturbetqueadis?vehit ille merentesprotinuset manesplacidus ocat hospite cumba.28The Delphin editor paraphrased "ne tardior.... vadis" thus: "[Nempe metuis] ne lentioradveniat navita [Charon], repellatque eam abaquis [of the Styx]?"29Vollmer makes no comment on proturbetquevadis, but in his collection of Statius' auctoreshe includes Verg. Aen. vi. 411 f.: "inde aliasanimas .... deturbat."30The parallelism-be-tween deturbatand proturbets interesting, but

24 Ad iii. 134. Cf. his comments on ii. 635 and 642.Lactantius' inference was accepted by Beraldus, theDelphin editor (cf. his notes on iii. 134, 147, 148, 149,and 152) and by Klotz (cf. his "Index nominum,"s.vv. "Periphas" and "Thespiadae").25 Cf. n. 12.26 Thespiades, -ae (nom. pl., Thespiadae) and Thes-

pias, -adis (nom. pl., Thespiades) are not the same.The authors of the Concordance, one might add, havealso classifled Thespiaden (Theb. ix. 293) under Thes-pias.

27 Cf. OV. Met. v. 310: "Thespiades, certate, deae."28 Vss. 247-52. Italics mine.29 D. A. Slater's version (Oxford, 1908) is good:"Or [do you fearl that the Ferryman will be slow toapproach, or else drive her from the ferry?" But vadis,as the Vergilian parallels show, implies more than theskiff itself.soCf. Vollmer's ed. (Leipzig, 1898), p. 180.


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NOTES AND DISCUSSIONS 105there the similarity ends. Abascantus is afraidthat Charon will refuse to ferry Priscilla acrossthe Styx promptly and will keep her waitingon this side of the river. The notion is the sameas that which underlies Verg. Aen. vi. 315 f.:

navita sed tristis nunc hos nunc accipit illos,ast alios longesummotos rcetharena.31In Mozley's hands, verse 251 undergoes a

curious transformation: "[Fearest thou] lestthe sailor be slow to draw nigh her, or disturbheron thewaters?"32 n the light of the Vergili-an parallels, it is not worth while to spend timerefuting this interpretation, but one can hard-ly refrain from speculating how it arose. Wasit caused by a confusion of proturbetand per-

a' talics mine. Cf. Norden's comments on thispart of Book vi; and Henry W. Prescott, The Develop-ment of Virgil's Art (Chicago, 1927), pp. 379-81.32 Op. Cit., I, 287. Italics mine.

turbet?Did the translator visualize Charon asa reckless navigator? Or-pro pudor -was hethinking of Landor's "Dirce"?

Stand close around,ye Stygian set,WithDirce in one boat conveyedOr Charon,seeing, may forgetThat he is old and she a shade.33But however we account for Mozley's oddrendering of verse 251, his mistake is one moreproof that, where Statius is concerned, modernscholarship has often failed to "hold fast thatwhich is good."

JOHN P. COOKEUNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO

33 Landor's conception of Charon may have itsorigin somewhere in Greek or Latin literature, but Icannot cite a parallel. However, even if parallels wereforthcoming, they would not affect the meaning of thepresent passage.

THE RETURN OF PERSEPHONEThe Eleusinian mysteries-the ancientfertility rites of the Attic village of Eleusis,held at the time of the autumn sowing andsymbolizing or seeking to assist the rebirth of

the dead plant-world each year-were trans-figured into a ritual that symbolized the hopeof human immortality. The beautiful HomericHymn to Demeter (ii) is in part an aetiologicalmyth, in which the institution of the cult isconnected with the story of the loss, by thegoddess Demeter, of her daughter Persephoneand of her recovery.Martin P. Nilsson has convincingly argued'that Demeter is not, as has often been sup-

posed, the "earth-mother" but is rather avegetation goddess and, in particular, is thet'grain-mother."2 Sir J. G. Frazer held asimilar view and pointed out that, in theHymn, Demeter is strongly opposed to Earth.Her daughter, "the maid," or Kore, is com-pelled to dwell during one-third of the year inthe nether world, though she is allowed tocome up and spend the remaining two-thirdsof the year in the upper world. During which1 Archiv filr Religionswissenschaft, XXXII (1935),79-141; Greek Popular Religion (New York, 1940), pp.50-55; cf. also p. 24.2 For the opposite view (AIAJrqp=F rp) seeH. Diels, "Ein Orphischer Demeterhymnus," Fest-schriftfiir T. Gomperz (Wien, 1902), pp. 1-15; 0. Kern,Orph. frag. 47.

third of the year is the Maid below? The usualinterpretation is that she is below during thecold winter months and above during thewarmer months. Thus Allen-Halliday-Sikes(ed. Hom. Hymns [2d ed.; Oxford, 1936],pp. 115-17) write of "the annual decay ofwinter and the resurrection of spring" and ofcults whose object is to insure "the rebirth ofvegetation in spring"; and Frazerwrites of the"return in spring" of Persephone. This, how-ever, as Nilsson further argues,3and as F. M.Cornford had already suggested,4 is the errorof scholars dwelling in a northern climate. Themonths when Kore is absent are not the winterseason, when, as a matter of fact, the fields inMediterranean lands are green with grass andwinter wheat (sown the previous autumn);they are rather the parched summer monthsafter the spring harvest, when the seed isstored in silos underground-in the realm ofPlouton (= Ploutos, "wealth," the garneredgrain kept for food, also stored underground injars). One might almost say of these lands thatin winter the trees, except for certain ever-green varieties, seem dead, while grass andcereal crops are growing, whereas in summerthe seed of the grain will not sprout and grow

3 Archiv, pp. 105-8; Greek Pop. Rel., pp. 51-53.4 Essays and Studies Presented to W. Ridgeway(Cambridge, 1913), pp. 153-66.

three notes on statius

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