NEW TRANSLATION Thisvolumebringstogetherthethree most originaland influential ancient Greek treatisesonliterature. Aristotle'sPoeticscontainshistreatment of Greektragedy:itshistory,nature,and conventions,withdetailsonpoeticdic-tion.StephenHalliwellmakesthisseminal vvorknewlyaccessiblewithareliabletext " and atranslationthatisboth accurate and readable.Hisauthoritativeintroduction tracesthe\vork'sdebttoearliertheorists (especiallyPlato),itsdistinctiveargument, andthereasonsbehinditsenduringrele-vance. The essay OntheSublime,usually attributed to"Longinus"(identityuncertain),was probablycomposedinthefirstcentury A.D.;itssubjectisthe of greatness("thesublime")inwriting,with analysisofillustrativepassagesranging fromHomerandSapphotoPlatoand Genesis.Inthisedition,DonaldRussellhas judiciouslyrevisedandnewlyannotated thetextandtranslationbyW.Hamilton Fyfeandprovidesanewintroduction. ThetreatiseOnStyle,ascribedtoan(again unidentifiable)Demetrius,\vasperhaps composedduringthesecondcenturyB.c. Itseemstoreflectthetheoreticalenergy ofHellenisticrhetoricalworksnowlost, andisnotableparticularlyforitstheory andanalysisof fourdistinctstyles(grand, elegant, plain, and fprceful).Doreen Innes' Continuedonbackflap THELOEBCLASSICALLIBRARY FOUNDEDBYJAMESLOEB EDITEDBY G.P.GOOLD PREVIOUSEDITORS T.E.PAGEE.CAPPS W.H.D.ROUSEL.A.POST E.H.WARMINGTON ARISTOTLE XXIII LCL199 ARISTOTLE POETICS EDITEDANDTRANSLATEDBY STEPHENHALLIWELL LONGINUS ONTHESUBLIME TRANSLATIONBYW.H.FYFE REVISEDBYDONALDRUSSELL DEMETRIUS ONSTYLE ' EDITEDANDTRANSLATEDBY DOREENC.INNES BASEDONW.RHYSROBERTS HARVARDUNIVERSITYPRESS CAMBRIDGE,MASSACHUSETTS LONDON,ENGLAND 1995 J!JJ!l UllU!Jillll s l, ,' Copyright1995 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College All rights reserved Libra-ry of Congress Cataloging-in-PublicationData Aristotle. [Poetics.English] Poetics I Aristotle; edited and translated by Stephen Halliwell. On the sublime I Lon gin us; edited and translated by '\iV.Hamilton Fyfe; revised by Donald Russell. On style I Demetrius; edited and translated by Doreen C. Innes; based on the translation by W.Rhys Roberts. p.em.- (Loeb classical library; Ll99) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-674-9956.3-5 _1.Greek literature-Translations into English. 2.Greek literature-History and criticism-Theory) etc. 3.Style, Literary-Early works to 1800. 4.Literary forn1-Early works to 1800. 5.Aesthetics, Ancient.6.Sublime, The. PA362l.A 75199594-5113808.2-dc20 Typeset by Chiron,Inc,Cambridge,Massachusetts. Printed in Great Britain by St Edm,undsbury Press Ltd, Bury St Edmunds,Suffolk, on acid-free paper. Bound by Hunter & Foulis Ltd, Edinburgh,Scotland. CONTENTS POETICS1 Introduction3 Text and Translation27 ONTHESUBLIME143 Introduction145 Text and Translation159 ON.STYLE309 Introduction311 Text and Translation343 INDEXTOPOETICS527 INDEXTOONTHESUBLIME530 INDEXTOONSTYLE532 ARISTOTLE POETICS EDITEDANDTRANSLATEDBY STEPHENHALLIWELL INTRODUCTION Aristotle'sPoeticsoccupiesahighlyspecial,indeed unique,position in thelong history of Westernattitudes toliterature.It is,in the first place, the earliest surviving work to be exclusively concerned with the discussion and analysis of poetry asan art,and this fact has turned it into a document standing apparently near the very beginning of,and effectively inaugurating,an entire tradition of lit-erarytheoryandcriticism.Inpart,thisistheresultof considerable sincetherehadbeenearlier Greek authors who had devoted writings (now lost) to the subject of poetry, aswell asthinkers,above all Plato, who hadexaminedliterarywor.ksinrelationtodifferently definedsetsof concerns(philosophical,historical,bio-graphical,etc.).Moreover,if thePoeticsinaugurateda tradition of thought, it isfar fromobvious that it did so in virtueof anydirectorpersistentinfluenceuponsubse-quent critics of antiquity.In the ancient world itself,the treatiseseems never to havebeen widely known or read, thoughthat isnot to deny the existence of recurrent ele-mentsofAristotelianismwithinthedevelopmentof Greco-Roman literary criticism.1 What may now look to 1 ThisAristotelianismmayhavestemmedpartlyfromAr. 's published dialogue On Poets, as well asfrom the writings of Peri-patetics such as Theophrastus and Neoptolemus ofPariurn. 3 INTRODUCTION our retrospectivegazetobe the "inaugural"significance of thePoeticsowesmuchtothe wayin whichthe work wasrediscovered,disseminated,andestablishedas canonicalbycertainsixteenth-centuryItaliantheorists and their successors elsewhere inEurope.In that sense, the book'suniquenessisfarfrombeing a pure reflection of its original creation or purpose, and is intimately bound up with itsinvolvement in the construction of competing views of literary criticism since the Renaissance. Yet it would, for all that, be superficial to suppose that the status of the Poetics isirredeemably a consequence of historicalaccidentand arbitrariness.Weneed only con-siderthatevensinceitsdeclinefromthepreeminence andauthority withwhich,aslateastheeighteenthcen-tury, it had been endowed by neoclassicists, it has contin-ued tenaciously toprovideavaluablepoint of reference within the debates of literary criticism and theory-even, oftenenough,forthose . whohavefounditscontents uncongenial.Attheveryleast,therefore,weneedto recognise that the work's own character, despite the many difficultieswhichithasalwaysposedforinterpreters, lendsitselfwithpeculiarforcetouse(andabuse)in urgent,continuingdisputesaboutthenature,form,and valueof literature.Totrytounderstandthischaracter, weneedtoapproachitagainstthebackgroundof the work's historical setting. The Poetics,like virtually allthe extant worksof Aris-totle,representssomethinginthenatureofteaching materialsor"lecturenotes,"producednotasatextfor private reading by anyone interested, but for instructional useinaneducationalcontext.Inviewof thiscircum-stance, with itsimplication of a lessthan tidy occasion of 4 INTRODUCTION composition(stillless, it isnot surprising thatwecannotsafelydatetheworktoasinglepointin Aristotle'scareer.Anindefiniteamountof revisionand redrafting isreadily conceivable, especially given some of thework'smanylooseends;andcertainsectionsmay originallyhavebeencompiledatappreciablydifferent timesfromoneanother.Chs.XX-XXII,forexample, whichdiscuss"diction," lexis,in termsthat aremore lin-guisticthanstylistic,arecloselyrelated tobk.IIIof the Rhetoric and to De I nterpretatione, both of which there is some reason to suppose were of relatively early date.But otherelementsinthePoetics,suchastheviewsonthe relationbetweenactionandcharacterinch.VI,might suggestamorematurestageof Aristotle'sthinking-in thisparticular case,a stage reflected in some of the ideas of theethicaltreatises.Wecanbefairlyconfidentthat thePoeticswasmostly compiled later than both thedia-logueOnPoets(to which 54bl8. isprobably areference) and the six-book discussion of interpretative difficulties in Homer,HomericProblemS(ofwhichPoeticsch.XXV appears to provide a summary).All in all, it is highly plau-sible that the Poetics, whatever its history of composition, wasat any rate available foruse during the finalphase of Aristotle'scareer,afterthefoundingof hisownschool, the Lyceum, at Athens in 335.2 WhyshouldAristotle,whosesupremeintellectual interestslayelsewhere,haveconcernedhimselfphilo-sophicallywithpoetry?Wecanidentify,tobeginwith, bothageneralandamorespecificimpetusbehindhis 2 Halliwell ( 1986), appendix 1, collects views and evidence on the date of the Poetics. 5 INTRODUCTION decision to address(and,indeed, to help define)the sub-ject: the first,a response to poetry's vital, long established importancewithinGreekcultureandeducation,andits consequentinterestforaphilosopher widelyconcerned withtheforcesinfluencing the lifeand mind of hissoci-ety;the second,a reaction to the passionate critique-by turns,moralistic,psychological,political,and religious-which Plato had directed, especially in bks.2-3 and 10 of hisRepublic,againstbothHomericepicandAthenian drama.Withintheimmediatecontextof Atheniancul-ture,wherehewasfirstamemberof Plato'sAcademy (367-47)andlatertheheadoftheLyceum(335-23), Aristotle even came to develop a documentary interest in thehistory of Atticdrama.Whatever therelationshipof the Poeticsto the works which he compiled on theatrical records, 3itisclearthathediscernedanimportancein drama: which prompted him to make it, together with the two great Homeric epics,. the basisof a freshand distinc-tive approach to "poetry in general" (47a8 )-an approach which expresses not 'only his divergences fromPlato=-sand other earlier thinkers'viewson thesubject,but alsothe concepts, methods, and tendencies of his own philosophi-cal outlook. Inattemptingtocharacterisewhatwasdistinctive aboutthePoetics,wecannot dobetter thanconcentrate onwhatmightbecalledits"foundational"strategy.By thisImeanitsexplicitattempttoscrutinisepoetry ina systematicandanalyticmanner-beginning,intypical Aristotelianfashion,fromwhataretaken tobe themost fundamentalpropositionsaboutthefieldofenquiry 3Details in DFA 2,pp. 70-71. 6 INTRODUCTION ("firstprinciples,"47al2-13);developinganargun1ent whosemainstagesarecarefullysignalled,oftenbythe introduction and definition of key tenns,and whosepro-gressive plan ishighlighted by a large number of cross ref-erences;and striving,if lessthan perfectly (at any rate in thesurvivingstateof thetext),tomaketheconnections between itsbasic tenets and itsindividual judgements as tightaspossible.Thisfoundationalquality,withits implicitfaithinarationalprocedureofcriticism,has elicitedadmirationinsomereaders,anddiscomfortin others.Whatispertinenthereisthatitisthisaspect morethan any other which,sofar aswe cantell,marked off Aristotle's undertaking from those of his predecessors, andwhichhasmadethePoeticsanabiding paradigmof theapplicationofintellectualmethodandconceptual precision to the interpretation of literature. If weseektoclarifywhatisentailedbyAristotle's attempttoconstructastablefr-ameworkfortheunder-standing of Greek poetry, at least three essential elerrtents in hisperspective can be isolated.The firstisthe placing of poetry,alongsidethevisualarts,music,anddancing, withina general category of artistic n1imesisor represen-tation.Thisdimensionofthework,whichgivesits thoughtabreadthof reflectivenessthatwasnotloston post-Renaissancedevelopersof n1imeticistaesthetics,is initiallyprominentintheprinciplesanddistinctionsset out in chs.I-IV.But it recurs at a number of later points, includingtherepeatedanalogiesbetweenpoetryand painting,and the pregnant remarks onthe multiplerela-tionshipofmimeticartto"life''inch.XXV.Ideasof mimesishad been activeinagreat deal of earlier Greek thinking about poetry and other arts.Aristotle hasdebts 7 INTRODUCTION to thistradition; hisaccount of mimetic modes in ch.III, for example, isclosely related to Plato Republic 3.392d ff. ButunlikePlato,orindeedanyotherpredecessorof whom we know,Aristotleperceives a functionformime-siswhichdoesnotthreatentoreduceittoastaticor inflexiblemodel of artistic activity.Without ever offering adefinitionof theterm(aperhapssagaciousreticence), Aristotleemploysmimesisasasuppleconceptofthe humanpropensitytoexploreanunderstandingofthe world-aboveall,of humanexperienceitself-through fictiverepresentationandimaginative"enactment"of experience.His viewsare sketched, not fully elaborated, but we can see that they hope to connect art to a vital part of human nature (48b5 ff)and that they discern in poetry a capacity toconvey ideas whosedepth Aristotleregards asreachingtowardsthesignificanceof the''universar, (ch.IX). TheseconddistinctiveelementinthePoetics,per-spectiveisthe recognition that poetry hasa history of its own,and thatthishistory isindispensablefortheinter-pretation of certain conventions and possibilities of poetic practice.Literary criticismandliterary history arehere simultaneously delineatedand conceptually intertwined. Thisaspect of Aristotle,sapproach isparticularly obvious inchs.IV-V,wherehereconstructsthepatternsof cul-turalevolutionwhichsawtragedyandcomedyemerge fromtheearlierbranchesofseriousandhumorous poetry.It must be added that, somewhat ironically (given hisowncomments,inchs.IXand XXIII,on the chroni-cle-typecharacterof history),Aristotle,sperspectiveon poetichistoryishardlystraightforwardorfac-tual.It is, on the contrary, permeated by an interpretative 8 INTRODUCTION vision-aVISionofpoetichistoryasanareainwhich "nature,"workingofcoursethroughhumannature (48b4-5)yet promoting practiceswhichhaveadynamic of their own(49al5, 24,60a4),brings into being the dis-tinctculturalforms,thepoetickindsorgenres,which countastheprimarymaterialforAristotle'sanalysisof poetry. Thementionof genresbringsustothethird,and in somewaysthemostimportant,elementof thePoetics which deserves to be highlighted in an introduction.The establishment and deployment of a concept of genre lies at the basis of Aristotle's enquiry; the main purpose of the schemeofmimeticmedia,objects,andmodesinchs. I-III isprecisely to suggest how genres can be delimited intermsoftheirparticularcombinationsof thesefea-tures.It isalso the steadiness of focusupon genres which wasto be subsequently responsible for a large part of the work'sappeal to,and influence hamartiaand catharsis-which, not least by their intrigu-ing elusiveness, provide material for ongoing controversy. It may now be worth drawing the explicit moral that this 18 Forthisandother interpretationsof catharsis,seeHalli-well (1986) ch. 6 and appendix 5. 19 INTRODUCTION combinationof themethodicalandthesuggestive,the analyticandtheelliptical,issurely oneof themainrea-sonswhythetreatisehasrecurrentlystimulatedsuch interest and such sharp reactions, both positive and nega-tive,fromliterarycriticsandtheoristsbetweenthe sixteenthcentury andthepresent.Partly becauseof its frequentterseness,partlyonaccountofthedamaged state in which it has reached us, the Poetics isa document which somewhat offsets its intellectually orderly and pro-gressive approach with elements which have the effect of encouraging an indefiniteprocessof reflectionand rein-terpretation.For thisand other reasonsthe treatise has, sinceitslateRenaissance"rediscovery''inItaly,main-tained a persistent statusasa conspicuous point of refer-ence-arepeatedlycitedmodel(whetherforgoodor bad,dependingontheinterpreter'sownallegiances)of certainkindsof assumptionsand judgementsaboutthe natureof literary works, yetamodelwhichneverquite permitsthereadingof itsargumentstoreachapoint of equilibrium. No other document has had a history parallel to that of the Poetics:a canonical text for neoclassical thinkers, and in fieldsbeyond those of literature itself,over a period of twoandahalfcenturies;alocusofkeenlycontested debate, as well asa certain amount of revisionist interpre-tation, during the rise of Romantic conceptions of art; and asporadically cited workevenintheheavily ideological eraof modernhermeneuticsandliterary theory.l9It is 19 Ihavediscussed aspectsof the Poetics'reception in three publications:Halliwell(1986)ch.10,(1987)pp. 17-28,and the Epilogue in Rorty (1992), pp. 409-424. 20 INTRODUCTION temptingtosaythatthislong,sometimesfraughtstory hasleftitsscarsonthework'sstanding.Butithasalso markeditoutasasomewhatindomitable"survivor," whosehistoricallyformativeroleand continued salience nooneinterestedinthedevelopmentof Westernatti-tudes to literature can afford to ignore. Textand translation The text printed has been broadly based on the edition by Rudolf Kassel,Aristotelis deArte PoeticaLiber (Oxford: ClarendonPress,1965;corr.repr.,1968).But aswellas sometimespreferring differentreadingsfromKassel's,I haveoccasionallyrepunctuatedthetextandintroduced someadditional paragraph divisions.Ihavealsodeliber-ately printed as"clean" a text as possible, minimising such things as editor-ial brackets. In keeping with the aims of t h ~Loeb series, the appa-ratus criticus ishighly selective; its guiding purpose isnot togivefullinformation about the textual tradition, but to notify(orremind)interested readersof salient elements oftextualuncertainty.Theapparatusisaccordingly limitedlargelytothosecontextswhereaconjectural emendation isprinted, or where the manuscript evidence containsvariantswithsubstantiveimplicationsforthe sense.It should be noted, additionally, that I do not men-tion places where readings taken from recentiores involve apracticallycertaincorrectionofthemedievalmanu-scripts;IdonotrecorddifferencesbetweenAandB whichareinconsequentialforthemeaning,evenwhere theymay be important for understanding the textual tra-ditionassuch;andIcitethemedievalLatintranslation 21 INTRODUCTION and theArabictranslationonly forafewstriking points, not assupplementary evidence to the manuscripts. The following abbreviations are used in the apparatus; theintroductiontoKassel'seditionshouldbeconsulted for further details: A:lOth cent. ms., Parisinus gr.1741. Arab.:readings implied by the lOth cent. Arabic trans-lation from an earlier Syriac translation of the Poetics. B:14th cent.rns.,Riccardianus gr.46(which hassub-stantial lacunae at 1447a8-48a29, and 146lb3-62al8). Lat.:readingsimpliedbytheLatintranslationof William of Moerbeke, completed in 1278. rec.:readingsofoneormoreRenaissancems. (15th/16th cent.) Thetranslationprintedherewasdraftedwithoutrefer-ence to the version which Ipublished in 1987 (seeBibli-ography).Whilesubsequentcomparisonofsamples yieldedsome silnilarities of wording between the two,in mostcasesIhavenottakenanyactivestepstoremove these.Thepresenttranslationaimstogiveasomewhat closer rendering than the earlier, though Ihave continued tofollowtheprincipleof preferring,whereverreason-able,intelligibilityinEnglishtoaliteralnesswhich requires knowledge of Greek to decode. The following conventions in the translation should be noted: < > = words deemed to be missing from the Greek text and conjecturally supplied by editors. ( ) =parts of the text conveniently rendered asparen-theses; round brackets are used more often in the transla-tion than in the Greek text. 22 INTRODUCTION [ ] =transliterated Greek terms or translations of such terms, included to clarify verbal points. BIBLIOGRAPHY Thefollowingabbreviatedreferencesareusedinthe notes to the translation (abbreviations for ancient authors andworksgenerallyfollowtheOxfordClassicalDictio-nary, see belo"', though I use Ar.not Arist. for Aristotle). DFA2:Pickard-Cambridge, Arthur. The Dramatic Fes-tivalsof Athens,rev.J.GouldandD. M.Lewis.Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1968. DK:Diels,H.,and vV.Kranz edd.DieFragmenteder Vorsokratiker.7th ed. Berlin: Wiedmann, 1954. Gigon:Gigon,0. ed.AristotelisOperaIll: Librorum, Deperditorum Fragntenta.Berlin: de Gruyter, 1987. Nauck:Nauck,August.TragicorumGraecorum Frag-menta. 2nd ed. Leipzig: Teubner,J889. OCD:TheOxfordClassicalDictionary,ed.N.G.L. Hammond &H. H.Scullard.2nd ed.Oxford:Clarendon Press, 1970. PCG:Kassel,R.,andC.Austinedd.PoetaeComici Graeci.Berlin: de Gruyter, 1983-. PMG:PoetaeMeliciGraeci,ed.D. L.Page.Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1962. P.Oxy.:TheOxyrynchusPapyri.J_Jondon:Egypt Exploration Society, 1898-. TrGF:TragicorumGraecorumFragmenta,ed.B. Snell et al.Gottingen: Vandenhoeck &Ruprecht,1971--. Rose:Rose,V.Aristotelisquiferebanturlibronun fragmenta.Leipzig: Teubner, 1886. West:vVest,M.L.IambietElegiGraeci.2nded. Oxford:Clarendon Press, 1989-92. 23 INTRODUCTION Thefollowingselectionofpublicationsisrestrictedto writingsinEnglish;worksinotherlanguagescanbe tracedthroughthebibliographiesinmanyof theitems listed here. Commentaries Bywater,Ingram.AristotleontheArt of Poetry.Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1909. Else,GeraldF.Poetics:theArgument.Cam-bridge, Mass.:Harvard University Press, 1957. Lucas,D.W.AristotlePoetics.Oxford:Clarendon Press, 1968. Monographs Belfiore,ElizabethS.TragicPleasures:AristotleonPlot andEmotion.Princetop.:PrincetonUniversityPress, 1992. Halliwell,Stephen.Poetics.London:Duck-worth, 1986. House,Humphrey.Aristotle"sPoetics.London:Rupert Hart-Davis, 1956. Translations Thefollowingcontainextensiveannotationor commen-tary. Golden,Leon,and0.B.Hardison.Aristotle"sPoetics:a TranslationandCommentaryforStudentsof Litera-ture.Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1968. 24 INTRODUCTION Halliwell,Stephen.ThePoeticsof Aristotle:Translation and Commentary.London: Duckworth, 1987. Hubbard,Margaret.sPoetics.NewYork:Norton, 1982. Janko,Richard.AristotlePoetics.Indianapolis:Hackett, 1987. Other works Cave,Terence.Recognitions: AStudy inPoetics.Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1988. Gallop,David. "Animals in the Poetics.'' Oxford Studies in Ancient Philosophy (Oxford), 8 (1990), 145-171. Halliwell,Stephen. "The Importance of Plato and Aristo-tleforAesthetics."inJ.J.Cleary(ed.)Proceedingsof theBostonAreaColloquiumihAncientPhilosophy, vol.5.Lanham:University. Press of America,1991, pp. 321-348. --"AristotelianMimesisReevaluated."Journalof theHistoryofPhilosophy(Chicago),28(1990), 487-510. Heath,Malcolm.I fLVELf.LEJ\1\ELELV'Y]E'TLOE ,...'...,'...... '' EK7TOO"WVKaL7TOLWVEO"'TLfLOpLWV,OEKaL7TEpL TWVa'A.'A.wvoa-aEO"TLfLE8o8ov,'A.ywfLEV aptaf.LEVOLKa'TacPVO"LV1TpW'TOVa1TO'TWV7TpW'TWV. E7T07TOLLa KatE'TL8 KatKataVAYJTL-151r AEtO"TYJKa'i traa-atrvyxavova-tv ofJa-aLTOa-vvo'A.ov8d'A'A TpLa-tv,yap v1 fLLfLEta-8aL ETEpa ''' ''/e/'' T([JKaLfLY}'TOVaV'TOV7p01TOV.W0"1TEpyapKaL XPWfLaO"LKat 7TOAAafLLfLOVV'TaL a1TEL- ( olfLEV8Laol88ta 20ETEpot88taovTwKav /e/''""'/' a1Taa-aLfLEV1TOLOVVTaLTYJVfLLfLYJO"LVEV KatAoyqJKatapfLOVLft,8' 1 vForchhammer: yvELA aAmajorgenreofchorallyric,performedinhonourof Dionysus; cf. 49al0-ll for its relation to tragedy. 28 I POETICS IWearetodiscussbothpoetryingeneralandthe capacity of each of its genres; the canons of plot construc-tionneededforpoeticexcellence;alsothenumberand character ofcomponents, together with the other topicswhichbelong tothesameenquiry-beginning,as is natural, from first principles. Now,epicandtragicpoetry,aswellascomedy, dithyramb,aandmostmusicforauloshandlyre,areall, takenasa whole,kinds of mimesis. cBut they differ from oneanotherinthreerespects:namely,byproducing mimesisin different media, of different objects, or in dif-ferent modes.Just as people (some by formal skill, others byaknack)usecoloursandshapestorendermimetic imagesof many things, while others again use the voice,d sotooallthepoeticartsmentioned producemimesisin rhythm,language,andmelody,whether separately or in b Areed pipe(akintoanoboe)used toaccompany partsof drama and some other forms of poetry, but also for purely instru-mental music; cf. 48a9, 6lal8, b31. c The foundational aesthetic concept of the Poetics;my trans-lation generally retains the Greek noun, but sometimes, to avoid awkwardness,I use the verb "represent."See the Introduction. d Forvocalmimicry,includingthatofactors;cf.Rh. 1404a21-3. 29 ARISTOTLE fLEfLtyp.ivotc;oiovapfLOVLC?:fLEVKaLpv()!Lfi?XPWfLEVat / '\''e{)'.,,fLOVOVYJ'TEa VI\ Y}'TtKY)KatYJKtapUT'TtKY)KaVEt'TtVEc; E'TEpatrvyxavwa-tvoila-at'TOtavrat1 'TTJV8vvaJ.LtV, 25otovrwva-vpiyywv,avrfi?8rfi?pv()J.Lfi?2 xwptc; app.oviac; 'TWVopxYJ(T'TWV( KaLyap Dta'TWV a-XYJJ.La'Tt,OJ.LEVWVpv{)p.wvfLtfLOVV'TatKaLKat naOYJKaL 84 J.LOVOV'TOLe;'Aoyotc;t./-nAoLc;Tj 'TOLe;p.i.rpotc;KaL'TOV'TOtc;llrEJ.Ltyvva-aJ.LE'T'aAA rr}Awv 7b e///'"'/'/5 144EtEVt'TtVtyEvEtXPWfJ-EVYJTWVJ.LErpwvavwVVJ.LOc; rvyxavEtoila-a 6 J.LEXPt'TOVvvvov8f.vyapavexot-'/' / J.LEVovoJ.Laa-atKotvovrove;Katt:::..Evapxov /'''\/ 10p.tp.ovc;Katrove; 1\0yovc:;,ovoEEtrtc;ota rptp.erpwvTjEAEYELWVTj'TWVaAAwv'TtVWV'TWV'TOtOV-'"''/\'/ rwvnototroTYJVJ.LLJ.LY)a-tv.7ri\Y)VotavpwnotyEa-vv-rfi?fLE'TpqJ'TO7rOtELVEAEyEt07rOtovc;rove;8 E7r07T"Otovc;OVOJ.LU,OV(TtV,. ovxwe;Ka'Ta'TTJVJ.LLfJ-Y)(TtV ''\ \''"'''// 157rOtY)'Tac;al\1\aKOLVYJKa'Ta'TOfLE'TpOVnpoa-ayopEVOV-'TEc;KaLyapavlarptKOVTjcpva-tKOV 7 'TL8ul.'TWV /'.rh/ \'"''/(}fLE'TpWVOV'TWKai\ELVELWaa-tvOVOEVOE Kotvovea-rtveOJ.LrrJP(fJKat'EJ.LnE8oKAELnAT]vro 30 1 rotavratrec.: om. A 2 pvOfL iJ p.,f.vortp.,aA.ta-Ta1TEtpaTatv1rop.,iav1TEpio8ovEivatp.,tKpov 8E1To1rodadopta-roc; Tipxp6v4/Ka'iTOVT4J8tacPpEt,KaiTotTo1rpwTov op.,oiwc;EVTaLc;Tpayq}8iatc;TOVTOE1TOLOVVKULEVTOLe; :)// 3'''3/',..., E1TE(TLV.fLEpYJ0E(TTLTafLEVTUVTa,TaOELOLaTYJ'l Tpay4}8iac;8L01TEpoa-TLc;1TEpLTpay4}8iac;oi8Ea-1TOV-8aiac;KULcPaVAYJc;,oi8EKa'i1TEpLE1TWV"a fLEVyap E1T01TOtLaEXEL,V1TapxELTVTpayq}8iq..,a 8avrv,ov /3,...,3/ 1TUVTaEVTYJE1T01TOLLq_... ITEpLp.,f.voiJvTijc;E.v fLLp.,YJTLKijc;KaL 1TEpLK(J)fL4}8iac;va-rEpovE.povp.,Ev1TEpL8rpay4}8iac; AE'}'W/LEVavaA.af3ovTEc;3 p:vTijc;EKTWVELPYJfLEVWVTOV YLVOfLEVOVopovTijc;ova-iac;.E(TTLVovvTpayq}8ia p.,ip.,YJa-Lc;a-1Tov8aiac;KaLTEAEiac;p.,EyEOoc; EXOV(TYJ'l, A.oyq}xwp'ic;EKU(TTq}4 TWVEl8wv EVTOLe;p.,opioLc;,8pwvTWVKaLov8L'a1TayyEALac;,8L' A.ovKaLcP6f3ov1TEpaivova-aTTJVTWVTOLOVTWV 1Ta0YJp.,aTwv5 KaOapa-Lv.A.E.yw8p.,f.v 1 fLEVTOVTyrwhitt: fLOVOVAB 2''\'K1''\'B' fLETafLET povAoycpasse: fLET povfLETaAoyov:fLETpov fLEya'AovA 46 3 ava'Aaf3ovTEt;;Bernays: U1TO- AB 4 EKU(J"TWReiz:-ovAB 5 TrafJYJfLUTwvB:fLafJYJfLUTwvA Lat. POETICS6 Epicmatchestragedy totheextentof beingmimesis of elevated mattersa in metrical language; but they differ inthat epic hasanunchangingmetreand isinnarrative mode.bThey alsodiffer in length:tragedy tends sofar as possibletostay withinasinglerevolutionof thesun,or close to it, while epic isunlimited in time span and isdis-tinctive in this respect (though to begin with the poets fol-lowed thissame practice in tragedy asin epic).Epic and tragedyhavesomecomponentsincommon,butothers arepeculiartotragedy.Sowhoeverknowsaboutgood andbadtragedyknowsthesameaboutepic,asepic's resourcesbelong totragedy,cbut tragedy'sarenotallto be found in epic. VIWeshalllaterdiscusstheartofmimesisinhexa-meters,daswellascomedy.eButletusnowdiscuss tragedy,takingupthedefinitionofitsessencewhich emerges f r o ~what has already been said.Tragedy,then, ismimesisof an action which iselevated, complete,and of magnitude;in languageembellished by distinctforms in its sections; employing the mode of enactment, not nar-rative;andthroughpityandfearaccomplishingthe a Or "characters"; for "elevated" see on 49b24. b Cf.thedistinctionsinchs.I-III;Homer'scombinationof narrative with personation (48a21-2) is here left aside. cCf. 62al4-15. d I.e. epic; cf. 59al7. eThe discussion of comedy islost;cf.on 62bl9,and see the Introduction at n. 5. fSpoudaios,the same adj.used for characters at e.g.48a2;it denotes ethical distinction and gravity of tone.Cf.the Introduc-tion. 47 30 35 1450a 5 10 ARISTOTLE \/'3/e(}''e/1' 1\0yovTOVEXOVTapvfJ-OVKaLapfJ-OVLav,TOo '""''/3/// ELOEO""LTOOLafJ-ETpWVEVLafl-OVOV7TEpaLVE-() '/\t!/'/\)' / a- aLKaL1Tai\L1JETEpaOLa E7TELOE1TpaTT01J-1TOLOVJJTaL fJ-LfJ-YJO""LV,1TPWT01JfJ-EV avELYJTLfJ-OpLOJJ 0-;- \/'\/(;)/'"" ELTaf1-EJ\01TOLLaKaL1\ES Ellyap7TOLOVJJTaL rT]vfl-Lfl-YJO""LV.A.E.yw8fJ-EVavTT]vri]vTWV //()\/'c.\'/ fJ-ETpWVO""VVEO""LV,fJ-1\01TOLLaVOE0TYJVOVVaf.LLV cpavEpavEXEL1raa-av.E7TEt8 ea-TL / e'""/c.\'/ 1TpaTTETaLOEV1TOTLVWJJ1TpaTT01JTW1JavayKYJ1TOL-/-;- /'-;-()''/ ELVaLKaTaTETOYJ KaLTYJVOLaJJOLaV ( oLayapTovTwvKat Etvaicpafl-Ev2''/'/', KaLKaTa KaLTvyxavova-LKaLa1To-//)3/ ""'/(;e TvyxavoVa-L ,EO""TLVOE fJ-EV1Tpas 0 .iJ A.E.ywyap!LiJ()ovTovTovTTJVa-vv-8Ea-LvTwv1rpayf.Larwv,. Ta8E Ka8'o -;- /A,.'// , ELVaL'Paf.LEVOLaJJOLaVOE,EJJ t!l\/,//.,,,,A,./ a1TOOELKJJVaa-LJJTLYJKaLa1TO'PaLJJOVTaL yvwfl-YJV.dvayKYJ fl-EPYJ -;- t!l(;(}'c.\/''e ""ELJJaLEs,Ka01TOLaEO""TLJJYJrpayqJOLa.TaVTa0 EO""Tt KatTj()YJKatKatOLaVOLaKatKatf.LEAo1ToLia.f.LEVyapf.LLf.LOVVTaL,ovofl-EPYJ '/e ""t!l""/' EO""TLV, OEf.LLf.LOVJJTaL,EV,aOEfJ-LfJ-OVVTaL,TpLa,KaL 1TapaTaVTaOVOEJJ.fJ-EVoilvOVKoA.[yoL 1 apfJ-OVtavKULfJ-tAoc;AB:KULfJ-del. Tyrwhitt 2 postTLvac;seq.1rec/JvKEVatTLa8voTwv7rpatEwvEivat, Otavota[ -av,A]KaL in AB: 1rEcPVKEv...sed. Else 3 T-ryc;B:om. A 48 POETICS6 catharsis aof such emotions.Iuse for lan-guagewithrhythmand melody,andudistinctforms"for thefactthatsomepartsareconveyedthroughmetrical speechalone,othersagainthroughsong.Sinceactors render the mimesis,some part of tragedy will,in the first place,necessarilybethearrangementof spectacle;bto which can be added lyric poetry and diction, for these are themediainwhichtheyrenderthemimesis.By "diction"cImean theactualof themetrical speech; the sense of "lyric poetry"is entirely clear.Since tragedyismimesisof anaction,andtheactioniscon-ductedbyagentswhoshouldhavecertainqualitiesin bothcharacterandthought(asitisthesefactorswhich allowustoascribequalitiesto their actionstoo,and it is intheiractionsthatallmenfindsuccessor failure),the plotisthemimesisoftheaction-forIuseccplot"to denotethe .constructionof events,cccharacter"tomean that in virtue of which we ascribecertain qualitiesto the agents, and ccthought" to cover the parts in which, through speech,theydemonstratesomethingordeclaretheir views.Tragedy asa whole, therefore, must have sixcom-ponents, which give it itsqualities-namely, plot, charac-ter,diction,thought,spectacle,andlyricpoetry.The media of the mimesis are two components, itsmode one, anditsobjectsthree;etherearenoothers.Now,these aTheterm(themostcontroversialinthework)isnever defined;cf.the Introduction.bI.e.the visual aspectsof the action,esp.theappearanceof theagents;cf.theend of ch.VI andthestartofch.XIV.cLexis:seechs.XIX-XXII. d Melopoiiacovers the sung parts of tragedy.eThis matches thecomponents withchs.I-III'sscheme:media=diction,lyric poetry; mode = spectacle (i.e. enactment); objects =plot, charac-ter, thought. 49 ARISTOTLE ,""1/""''2"' avTwvKEXPYJVTaL ELoEa-tvKatyapEXEL 1rav El1TELV 1 KatKatf.LV{)ovKatLVKat /\'///"''/ KatOLaVOLaVf.LEYLO"TOVOETOVTWV ''e""//e'15EO"TLVYJTWV1Tpayf.LaTwv YJyapTpaycpota //.)''()/'\\'/(:3' EO"TLVOVKavpW1TWVal\1\a1Tpas KaL /3/''"'/'/'/ c LOV,KatEVOaLf.LOVLaKaLKaKOOaLf.LOVLaEV1T pas EL .)/''/\1"1c /.)/.)/ EfTTLV,KatTO 1rpasEO"TLV,OV.)'''''"'()/'"' '' ELfTLVOEKaraf.LEVTaYJYJ1TOLOL KaTaOE / c.)"'/.,,.)/"' ' 1rpasYJTOVVaVTLOV.OVKOVVTa ''()//'\ \''''() 20YJYJf.LLf.LYJfTWVTaL1TpaTTova-tv,aAAa TaYJYJa-Vf.L1TEpt-\/3/ '/(: '/ Aaf.Lavova-tvota1rpaswa-TETa1Tpayf.LaTa '""()/\1"1 /' /\/ KaL0f.LV TOOE f.LEYL-/,,,,'/ c'.,,/ a-Tova1ravTwv.ETLavEvf.LEV1rpas ovKav yEvotTo "'/,,'.)()1"1/',,'1"1/ rpaycpota,avEvoEYJwvYEVOLTavatyaprwvvEwv 1"1 \/.)/() .)/' 25TWV1TAELO"TWVaYJTpaycpotaLELO"LV,KaL '\\'.....1''"" Z"" 1TOLYJTaL1TOI\I\OLTOLOV'TOL,, OLOVKatTWVypao/EWVEV-t.'II\//() 'II\/ S01\VYVWTOV1TE1TOVEV"0f.LEVyap01\V- S ypacpT] ovSevEXELETLav OfJ T]Ot-''\/(:4'/;;- /'/ KatAES ELKaLOLaVOU!:EVOV1TOLYJ-30a-Etopyov,aAAa1roAvf.LaAAov ///'?.,,''/()' KWI\VEtTOtaVTaEtVatOtaavYEVECTatKat 8vvaTayEvo-()at,Ka()'oavTwv , ECTTtV. TWV8a1TAwv1 JLV()(t)VKat1TpatEwvalElo-tvXEtpt-o-Tat- A.yw8'E1TEt-o-o8uv8'Y}JLV()ovE.v ({>TaE1TEto-o8taJLET'aAAYJAaovT'OVT'avayK'Y} 35Eivat.rotavrat81TotovvTatv1ToJLEVTwvcpavA.wv "" '/e' ""'{)""'' 1TOt'Y}TWVOtV1TOOETWVayaWVOtae/2'/'""'' aywvtCTJLaTayap Kat1Tapa 1452a8vvaJLtV rovJLV()ov 8t-a-/"''/r''"'c""'' '/ CTTp6pELVavayKasOVTatTOE1TEtOEOVJLOVOV ECTTt Yj aAAaKatcpo{3Epwv ''\1"\1"\'3/'/\4t:! Kat- 1\EEtVWV,TaVTaOEyt-VETatKatjLal\tCTTaOTaV YEVYJTat1TapaDt'aAA YJAa.TOyapeavJLa-'t:!t:!(;1"\\\.,,,,'1"\,/' CTTOV. Ec.:,EtjLai\1\0VTJEta1TOTOVaVTOfLaTOVKat 5TYJ'Opf.a-rnavEyvwp[a-()YJEK EKEtvov2 DE'TTJV'IcpLyEVEtavEDEL8vo!LEVofJvTOV!LV(}ov!LEPYJravr'ECT'TL,1rEpt1rE-''II\I(}I\ TELa.KatrptrovoE1rarovrwvoE I\\)I-'II()I 101rEpt1rETEta!LEVKatEtpYJrat,1ra oE ECTTL cp()aprtKTJoDVVYJpa,oiovOL'TEEVr(i> cpavEp(i>eava'TOLKa'ial1rEpLwDvvtaLKa'i Ka'i ,..., oa-arotavra. XIIMEpYJ8 !LEV ELDEa-tDELxpij-() I'I\ \\\'t.\ (TaL1rp07EpovEL'lrO/LEV,KaraOE'TO'TTOCTOVKaLa ,...,I 'I1\' 15otatpEtTatKEXWPLCT!LEVaraoEEa-rtv, E'TTELCT- -'I(;I\I\\I\ OOLOVEsxoptKOV,Kat'TOV'TOV'TO/LEV 'TO \I\\eI,...,\\ OECT'TaCTL/LOV,KOLVa/LEVa1raV'TWVravra,LOLaOETa a'TTO Ka'iKO!L!LO[.ECT'TLVDE oA.ov TO1rp0xopov7rapo8ov,E'Tr-66 1 ETt8AB:Vahlen 2 EKEivovBywater:-wAB r I POETICS12 relationtoinanimateandevenchancethings,anditis alsopossibletorecognisethatsomeonehasorhasnot committed a deed.But the kind most integral to the plot andactionisthe onedescribed:sucha joint recognition andreversal will yield either pity or fear,just the typeof actions of which tragedy is taken to be a mimesis; besides, bothadversityandprosperity willhingeuponsuchcir-cumstances.Now,becauserecognitionisrecognition between people, asomecasesinvolveonly the relation of one party to the other (when the other,s identity isclear), while in others there isneed for double recognition: thus, Iphigeneia wasrecognised by Orestesthrough thesend-ingof the letter,but forIphigeneia to recognise hisrela-tion to herself required a further recognition. b These, then, are two components of the plot-reversal andrecognition.Athird issuffering.Of these,reversal 1 andrecognitionhavebeenexplained,andsufferingisa :destructive or painful action, such as public deaths, physi-1cal agony, woundings, etc. ~ I IWespokeearliercof the componentsof tragedythat mustbeusedasbasicelements;but itsformalanddis-cretesectionsareasfollows:prologue,episode,exodos, choralunit (further divisibleinto parodosand stasimon). These are common to all plays, but actors, songs and kom-moiarespecial to some.The prologue isthe whole por-tionof a tragedy prior to the chorus, parodos;an episode a Ar.ignoresrecognitionofinanimateobjects,mentioned above. b Eur. IT 727-841. cCf. esp. 50a9-14. 67 ARISTOTLE 20EUTODLOVDEfLEpoc;oA.ovrpaycpDtac;TOoAwv xopLKWVJ.LEAWV,DEfLEpoc;oAovTpaycpDtac; fLE()'0OVKEO"'TLxopovJ.LEAoc;xopLKOVDE1TapoDoc; J.LEV1TpWTYJA.E.f,c;OAYJ1 xopov,O"TaO"LfLOVDEJ.LEAOc; ,...., )I'I'xopov'TOaVEVaVa1TaLO"TOVKaLTpoxaLOV,KOJ.LfLOc;OE ()pY]voc;KOLVOc;xopovKata1TOO"KYJViJc;.fLEPYJDETpa-25ycpDiac;oic;J.LEVwc;2 ELDEO"LDELxpiJa-{)at,1Tp07Epov ''''(.\,....,EL7TafLEV,KaTaoETO7TOa-ovKaLELc;aoLaLpELTaLKEXW-1,....,,,IX pLO"fLEVaTaVTEO"'TLV.! XIIIDEDELO"Toxa,Ea-{}at,Kata DELEVAa/3ELa-{}at, I'I()'I() ',....,O"VVLO"TaVTac;TOVc;fLVOVc;KaL11'0EVEO"TaL'TOT'Y]c; 7paycpDtac;epyov,avELY]AEKTEOVTOLe;vvv 30ElpYJfLEVoLc;.ollvDE'ia-vv()Ea-LvEivaLTYJc; KaAALO"T'Y]c;rpaycpDiac;a7TA Y]vaAAa1TE7TAEYJ.LEVYJV Kat-ravTYJV KaLeAEELvwvEivaL ( rovToyaptDLovToLaVTYJc;a-rLv), 7TpW'TOVJ.LEVDYJAOVOTLOVTETOVc;E1TLELKELc;avDpac;DEL J.LEra{3aA.A.ovrac;c/)aivEa-()a, EvTvxiac;Elc;Dva-Tv-35 I''.J..f3'' ''\',...., ' \ \' XLav,ovyap'PoEpovovoEEAEELvovTOVTOaAAaJ.LLa-1' '()''(;'I'' povEO"TLV"OVTETOVc;fLOXYJpOVc;EsaTVXLac;ELc;EVTV-1' ',...., '''I XLav,arpaycpooTaTovyapTOVTEO"TL1TaVTWV,ovoEv yapexE"J>vDEL,ovTEyappw1TovovTEeAEEL-1453avovOVTEcpo{3EpovEO"TLV"ovD'allTOV1TOVYJ-''(;'I'II'' povEsEVTVXLac;ELc;ova-TVXLavfLETa1TL1TTELV"TOJ.LEV '.J..\1() ,,II yap'fJLAavpw1rovEXOLavYJTOLaVTYJa-va-Taa-Lc; 1 oAYJSusemihl: oA.ovAB2 EtOEo-Lrec.: om. AB aUsually accompanying their entrance onto the scene. 68 POETICS13 isthewholeportionofatragedybetweencomplete choral songs;the exodos isthe whole portion of a tragedy following the finalchoral song.Of choral units,the paro-dosisthe firstcomplete utterancea of the chorus;a stasi-monisachoralsongwithoutanapaesticandtrochaic rhythms;hakommosisadirgesharedbetweenchorus andactors.Wespokeearlierofthecomponentsof tragedy that must be used asbasic elements, while its for-mal and discrete sections are the ones given. XIIINext,after the foregoing discussion, we must consider whatshould be aimed at and avoided in the construction of plots, and how tragedy's effect is to be achieved.Since, then,thestructureof thefinesttragedyshouldbecom-plexnotsimple, caswellasrepresentingfearfuland pitiableevents(forthisisthespecialfeatureofsuch mimesis),itis,tobeginwith,clearthatneithershould decent men be shown changing from prosperity to adver-sity,asthisisnot fearfulnor yet pitiable but repugnant, d northedepravedchanging fromadversity toprosperity, becausethisistheleasttragicofall,possessingnone ofthenecessaryqualities,sinceitarousesneither fellow-feelingenorpitynorfear.Nor,again,should tragedyshowthevery wickedpersonfallingfrompros-peritytoadversity:suchapatternmightarousefellow-feeling,butnotpityorfear,sincetheoneisfelt h Bothdoinfactoccurinstasima;Ar.maybethinkingof "recitative" units, such asthe marching anapaests of choral paro-doi, or trochaic tetrameters (see on 49a21). cIn the senses defined in ch. X.d Cf. 53b39, 54a3. ePhilanthri5pia:adisputedconcept;itmayentaileithera broadly humane sympathy (even with some forms of merited suf-fering), or a basic sense ofCf. 56a21. 69 ARISTOTLE '\ \',,''\,,,/.../ Q(:'''''/ a/\1\OVTEE/\EOVOVTE'POtJOV,0fLEVyap 7TEpLTOVava-Ea-T LV8va-TvxovvTa,o87TEptTOVOfLOLov 5( 1 fLEV7TEptTov87TEptTov ) :J/'\',,,/...f3':J/' OfLOLOV,W/, VELVKaLyapEs ETEYJCTaVEVTaVa.Ea-TtVOE Ka'i EK7TapaA.oyLa-fLOVTov0EaTpov, 2 oiov vrf!!'08va-a-Etrf!!l/JEv8ayy'AcpToJ.LEVyap To '/3''\ \ //(' EVTELVELV,a/\1\0VOEfLYJOEVa,7TE7TOLYJJ.LEVOVV7TOTOV '('{)',,'/ c!1/ .rh/ 7TOtYJTOVKatV7TO KatEtyETOros ov6yYJyvw-() 4c.\'(/' ('5'/' O"EO"at0OVXEwpaKEt.TOOE OtEKEtVOVava-158taTovTov7Totfja-at7Taa-wv8{3E'Aria-TYJ avTwvTwv 7Tpayp_,aTwv,8t'ElKoTwv, oiovf.vOl87To8tKa'iTD'Ie/>tyEvEiq_ '''Q'\(J'(J,...,/(' yapfJOVf\E(J"at,E7TtEtVatypafLJ.LaTa.atyap ""'I''//' TOtaVTaLfLOVataVEVTWV7TE7TOtYJfLEVWVCTYJfLEtWVKat 207TEpt8Epa[wv.8evrEpaL8al EKa-vA.A.oyta-J.LOV. A""''''{) 1 '""'\ 1 C XVIIuELoE J.LVa-vvta-TavatKatTYJAEs Eta-vv-' r(J '\'',(J, atOTtfLal\tCJTa7Tp0OJ.LJ.LaTWVTtEfLEVOV" '.,,'/(,..., '' OVTWyapavEVapyEa-TaTaopwvW0"7TEp7Tap86 1 ecpYJB Arab.: om. A 2 (JeaTpovAB:OaTepovHermann 3'I'CBA EV'TELVELVOV:Om. 4 yvwa-ea-OatA:evTeivetvB 5 8t'AB:8-ryTyrwhitt POETICS17 sophist in Iphigeneia's case:it wasprobable, he said, that Orestesshould reason that hissister had been sacrificed, and his fate was to be sacrificed too.Also in Theodectes'a Tydeus,the reflection that having come to find his son he wasdoomedhimself.Again,theinstanceinthe Phineidae:b when the women saw the place, they inferred it wastheir destiny to die there, where they had also been exposed.Thereisalsocompoundrecognitionwhich dependsontheaudience'smistakenreasoning,asin OdysseustheFalseMessenger:cthat heand nooneelse couldbendthebowiscontrivedbythepoetanda premise,evenifhesaidhewouldrecognisethebow which he had not seen; but to have him recognised by this m e a n s ~when he wasexpected to cause recognition in the other way,involves falsereasoning.Best of all isrecogni-tion ensuing from the events themselves, where the emo-tionalimpa.ctcomesfromaprobablesequence,asin Sophocles' Oedipus and the Iphigeneia (where it is proba-blesheshould wanttoentrust aletter).dFor onlysuch recognitionsdo without contrived tokensand necklaces. Second-best are those by reasoning. XVIIOne should construct plots, and work them out in dic-tion,with thematerial asmuchaspossible in themind's eye.In thisway,by seeing thingsmost vividly,asif pre-sent at theactual events,one willdiscover what isappo-aRhetorician,tragedian, and friend of Ar.'s;OCD s.v.Noth-ing is known of this play (TrG F I 233). bI.e.the sons of Phineus (subject of tragedies by Aesch.and Soph.); but the ref.isopaque (TrGF II 22),and we cannot iden-tify the women mentioned. c Apparently an unknown tragedy (TrGF II 15), related to the eventsofHom.Od.bk.21;thefollowingclausesareirre-deemably dark.dEur. IT 578 ff. 87 ARISTOTLE ' .,,\(}/'/"" 25KatYJKtCTTaav1\aVavotTaV7rEVaVTta.lJ'Y}fLEtOlJ0 Tovrovo f.nETtfLaToKapKivcp.o yap tEpovdvriEL,0opwvTa lf.AavOavEv,E71"L88va-xEpavavTwvTovrorwv0EaTwv. ,'""/r / ocraoEovvaTovKaL CTXYJ!Laa-tv 30vov7rL0avwTaTOLyapdno OtEV naOEcrivELCTLV,KatXELfLaLVEt0Kat xaAE7raLVEL0 aAY]OtvwTaTa.DLOEvc/>v-TJ71"0tYJTLKTJECTTtV fLaVLKOV"TOVTWVyapOLfLEV \''/'/\/ EV7rl\aCTTOLOtOEEKCTTaTLKOLELCTLV. TE ''/I"\'/ KaLOELKaLaVTOV7rOLOVVTaEKTL-1455b0Ecr0aLKaOoAov,ElO'E7rELcro8tovvKatnapa-,\/' .,,(}1"'\(}'(}/\ TEtVELV.1\EYWOEavEWpEL(JatTOKa01\0V, oiovKa'idcf>a-OvcracrLV,8 aAAYJVxwpav,EVn OvELVTij (} 1"'\ /"'// 5ECf?,TaVTYJVElJXETYJVLEpWCTVVYJV"XPOVC!}OEVCTTEpov crvv{3YJf.AOEtVTO8OTt avEtAEV0 f.AOEtVEKELKatf.c/>'0Tt8TOV 1 opwvra TOVBeari}vAB:TOVe.sed. Butcher 2 avr1}r;AB:avr1}r;r1}r;Tynvhitt 3 AB:11-aAAovTyrwhitt 4 postseq. 8ufrt-vaalriavE.gwrovKa86A.ovin AB:Sui ...KaB.sed. Christ aSeeon54b23.Bothplayandsituationreferredtoare unknown; TrGF I 211-12. b TheGreek verb impliesthat the work washissed off stage; cf. 56a18-19, 59b31. 88 r POETICS17 siteandnotmisscontradictions.Anindicationof thisis the criticism that was made of Carcinus:a Amphiaraus was returningfromashrine,whichwasn1issedbyonewho failedtovisualiseit;inperformancetheaudiencewas annoyedat thisand the play foundered. bSofaraspossi-ble,one should also work out the plot in gestures, since a naturalaffinitymakesthoseinthegripof emotionsthe mostconvincing,and thetruest distressor anger iscon-veyedbyonewhoactuallyfeelsthesethings.cHence poetry istheworkof agifted person,ordof arnanic:of thesetypes,theformerhaveversatileimaginations,the latter get carried away.With both ready-made stories and hisowninventions, ethe poet should lay out thegeneralf structure,andonlythendevelopthesequenceof episodes.For what Imean by contemplating the general structure,takethe Iphigeneia.g A girl wassacrificed,and vanishedwithouttracefromhersacrificers;settledina differentcountry,whereitw a ~acustomtosacrifice strangers to the goddess, she became priestess of this rite. Later,thepriestess>brotherhappenedtoarrivethere (thatthegod>soracletoldhimtogothere,and forwhat cAr. implies that acting out a role will help to induce the con-comitant feelings. d A textual emendation would make this .. rather than," on the grounds that .. manic" sounds too passionate for the psychology of composition posited by Ar. eCf. 5lbl5-26. f K.atholou,the same term as.. universal" at 5lb8-9: the sense isnotdifferent here(itreferstothe kindsof event),thoughits emphasis is more limited than in ch. IX. g Eur. IT. 89 10 15 20 ARISTOTLE '''''' '!)//' (J'EV,Ka'Ta'TOEL1TWVO'TLOVKapaJ.LOVOV'T'Y}V \A..''\ \''''()1"1 ''1"\() aOEJ\'f''Y}Val\1\aKataV'TOVEOEL'TV'Y}VaL,KatEV'TEVEV e/'1"1 e(}/''/ 'Y}(J'W'T'Y}pta.fLE'Ta'TaV'TaOE'YJO'Y}V1TOEV'Ta'TaOVO-',...!)/',...'' fLa'TaE1TEL(J'00LOVV"OEEa-'TaLOLKELa'TaE1TEL(J'-o8ta,otovEV70'OpEa-'TYJJLavia8t' 'Aij0YJKa'i a-wTYJpia8u1 f.vfLEVo?JvSpa-''//e '// JLaa-LV'TaE1TEL(J'OOLa(J'VV'TOfLa,'Y}0E1T01TOUa fL'Y}KVVE'TaL.yap ov1 0 '/',.../!)/\\'' f(J''TLV" E'T'Y}1TOJ\J\aKat1Tapa-A..\/e',...IT'/!)/ 'f'VJ\a'T'TOfLEVOVV1TO'TOVKatfLOVOV !)/',...!)/ '/ '/ E'TLoE'TWVOLKOL EXOV'TWVwa-TETaXP'YJfLaTa e'/'\/(}''e''{3 V1TOfLV'Y}(J''T'Y}pWVaVaJ\L(J'Kf(J'atKat'TOVVLOVE1TLOV-\/(j'' 'A..,...()/'' AEVEa- at,oEa'f'LKVEL'TatXELJLaa-Katava-,''()/''''/()' E1TL fLEVf(J'W'Y}0 f.xOcn0EtpE.'TOfLEVofJvLDLOV'TOV'TO,'Ta8' a'A'AaE1TELa-OCLa. XVIII!)'Ea-Tt8 TofLEV To8 \/''!)/(;(}'!)/,...!)/(}\\/ 'TafLEVEs WEVKatEVLa'TWVf(J'WEV 5 e ' \'e\/\/' 2'Y} 'TOOEJ\OL1TOV'Y} 1\EYWOEOE(J'LVfLEV '5''''',...//,.../.., ELVaL'T'Y}Va1T fLEXPL'TOV'TOV'TOV0 ea-xa'TOVE(J''TLV ol5fLE7a{3aivELEV'Tvxiav:ry a'Tvxiav,ltva-LV8 a1TO JLE7a{3a-JLEXPL wa-1TEpf.v70AvyKEL708Eo-OEK70V fLEVTaTE1Tpo1TEnpayJLvaKa'iT]Tov 301Tatoiov'AKa'i1TalttvaV'TWV* * * 'A 8' 1 ovArab.: om. AB 90 POETICS18 purpose,isoutsidetheplot).Capturedafter hisarrival, and on the point of being sacrificed, he caused hisrecog-nition-whether asin Euripides, or asPolyidusa designed it,by saying(aswasprobable) that it wasnot just hissis-ter's but hisown fate too to be sacrificed-and hence was rescued.The next stage isto supply names and devise the episodes;butcaremustbetakentokeeptheepisodes integral: thus, in Orestes' case, the mad fitthat caused his capture, and his rescue by purification. b Now,in plays the episodesareconcise,butepicgainslengthfromthem. The Odyssey's story isnot long:a man isaway from home manyyears;heiswatchedbyPoseidon,andisolated; moreover,affairsathomearesuchthathispropertyis consumed by suitors,andhissonconspiredagainst;but he returnsafter shipwreck,allowssome people to recog-nisehim,andlaunchesanattackwhichbringshisown survivaland hisenemies'destruction.That isthe essen-tial core; the rest is episodes. IIEvery tragedy hasbothacomplicationcanddenoue-ment: the complication comprises events outside the play, andoftensomeof thosewithinit;theremainderisthe denouement.Idefinethecomplicationasextending fromthebeginningdtothefurthestpointbeforethe transformationtoprosperityoradversity;andthede-nouement asextending fromthebeginning of thetrans-formationtilltheend.Thus,inTheodectes'Lynceuse thecomplicationcoverstheprecedingevents,the aSee on 55a6.hIT 281 ff,1029 ff. cNot to be confused with the "complex" plot of ch. X etc. d Of the imagined "action," not necessarily of the play. eTrGF I 232; cf. 52a27-9.Theodectes: see on 55a9. 2 Ava-ts8'T]rec., Arab.: 8T)(om.Ava-ts) AB 91 ARISTOTLE a1ro rov8avarovfLEXP"rov 8EL81JELCTt'TECTCTapa( rocravrayapKat rafLEP1JEAEX()1J ),fLEV7TE7TAEYJ.LEV1J, 'TOoAov ''/''/e 8/ ECT'TLV7TEpt7TE'TELaKat1JOE7Ta'YJ'TLK1J, 'c'I C/c''()/c OLOVOL'TEKatOL1JOE1JLK1J,OLOVat 1456 m()/'cII\/''/c1c\""' a' Kat0 'TOOE'TE'Taprov1Ja'lTI\1], oiovaL'TE Kat0KatocraEV p.,alttcrrafLEVoilva1Tavra8Et7TEtpacr8atEXELV, ' /'/'\1'"\\'c ELOEfL1J,'TafLEYLCT'TaKat1TI\ELCT'Ta,'TEKat1'"\,./.,.1'"\'//' VVVCTVKOtpaV'TOVCTLVYEYOVO'TWVyap 5Ka()'EKacrrov dya()wv7TOL1Jrwv,EKacrrovrov l8iovdya{)oiJ 'TOVEVaV7TEp{3aAAELV.8iKaLOV ' \'','\/ OEKatrpaycpotaVai\1\'Y]VKat'T'Y]VaV'T'Y]V1\EYELV ov8Evt2 r0p.,v{)qJ'TOV'TO8f.,6JvKat 1roAAot8EllAvovcrt 8E'L8 10 '1 ,./.,.3''""'0'' }/\\/ ap.,'f'waEtKparEtcrat . .XP1JoE07TEpELP1JTat'lTOI\1\a- Ka.t 7TOLELVE1T01TOttKovcrvcrr1Jp.,a ,' \/'\/8 rpaycpotaV-E7T01TOLLKOVOE1\EYW'TO1TOAVfLVOV-oiovEL 'TOV oAov7TOLOLp.,v8ov.EKEL fLEVyap8La'TO Aap.,f3avELrafLEP1J'TO7rpE7TOV 1 U1TAijBursian:B: A:ol/JtsBywater 2 ovDEVL Zeller: ovSevAB 3 af.LcpwaEtKporEt(J"OatA(KparEt(J"OatVahlen):Uf.LcpOrEpa aVTtKpOTEL(J"OatB:aprLKpOTEt(TOatImmisch a This claim (perhaps spurious) does not match the enumera-tion of components at 50a7-14.Cf. 59b8-9. b "Suffering"asdefined inch.XI.Playsabout Ajax,such as Soph.'s,wouldcentreonhissuicide;thoseaboutlxion,onhis punishment on the wheel in Hades. 92 r POETICS18 seizureofthechild,andagaintheir* * * ,whilethe denouementrunsfromtheaccusationof murder tothe end.There are four types of tragedy (asthat isthe num-ber of components wementioned) :athecomplex,whose essenceisreversalandrecognition;thekindrichin suffering,hsuchasthoseabout AjaxandIxion;thechar-acter-based, such asPhthiotidesc and Peleus;d and, fourth, ,e such asPhorcides,Prometheus,and those setinHades.Now,ideally oneshouldstrivetohaveall qualities;failingthat,the best and the most,especially in view of current censure of the poets:because there have beenpoetsgoodinvariousrespects,peopleexpectthe individualtosurpassthe special quality of each of them. It isrightto count playsasdifferent or thesameprinci-pallyby plot:that is,"the same"meanshaving thesame complicationanddenouement.Manypoetshandlethe complication'Yell,thedenouementbadly:butconstant proficiency in both isneeded.Asnoted several times, the poetmustremember toavoidturningatragedy intoan epic structure (by "epic,, I mean with a multiple plot), say bydramatisingtheentireplotoftheIliad.Inepic, becauseof itslength,the sectionstakeon an aptmagni-tude,butinplaysitfgoesquiteagainstexpectation. c Women of Phthia, perhaps Sop h.'s play of this name: its sub-ject is unknown; TrGF IV 481-2. d Both Soph. and Eur. wrote plays about P.,father of Achilles. eThe text isbadly damaged here;the passage needs a ref.to the"simple" tragedy (ch.X,cf.59b9).Phorcides,"Daughters of Phorcys"(guardiansof theGorgons),maybeAesch.'sworkof that name(TrGFIII 361:a satyr play?),asmay Prometheus:but wecannot be sure. f I.e. a plot of epic scope. 93 ARISTOTLE /{)' ,.../\'''e/\ p.eyEEV0 opap.acrt1TOI\V1TapaTYJVV1TOAYJ-5 ,',,a/,.../t:l/'I\ /t:l \ 1o.ytVa1TOfJatVEt.O"YJfLELOV0,OO"OL1TEpcrtV1\LOV01\Y]V 7ToL7JcravKatKaTa W(J1TEp1 N u5{3YJVKatW(J1TpEK1TL1TTOV(JtV ,...'/ r''''A/()'C /' 7TtKatyaWVEs 7T(JEVEV //, ,.../',,... 'TOV'Tcyf.LOV2 208avp.acrTct>TpayLKovyapTovToKatcPtAav8pw1rov. ,...t:/eA...'''/(J'TLV0TOVTO,OTaV0 fLEVfLETa 0 W(J1TpKat0fLEVaDL-DEEcrTtv8ETOVTOKatwcr1TEp 'A/()\/,''/()\ \''' yaWV1\EYEL,yapytV0"at1TOI\I\aKaL1rapa ',/''' t:le\a/ 2570 KatTOVxopov0EVaOEtV1TOI\afLfJaVELV 'TWVV1TOKpLTWV,Katp.optovEivaLTOVoAovKatcrvv-W(J1TEpEvpL1TLDYJdA.A.'W(J1TEp!ocPo-KAE'i. DE Ta 3 OV0Ev4 p.aAAov 'TOVp.vfJovE(J'TtV"Dtop.{3oALp.a / c'A/(),.../ ([-OOV(JtV1TpWTOVaps _ya 'TOVTOLOVTOV. 30Kat'TOLTtDLacPEPELp.f36A.t-p.a1/:DEtvElpi}crLv \\' \\e/.,,'/t:l \ a/\1\0Va/\1\0apfLOTTOtYJ1Tt(JOOtOV01\0V; XIXITEptfLEVo:Ov'TWVaAAwvEl8wv5 ELPYJTaL,Aot1TOV8E 94 1 Vahlen 2 rHartung: cPfLt.A 7 8Eo8wpo/'.,,' f.LOV,TOOEEKO""YJf.LatVOVTWVo-vyKEtTat.EtYJ0avKat Tpt1TAovvKatTETpa1TAovvovof.LaKat1ToAAa1TAovv, otovTa1TOAAaTWVMao-o-aAtWTWV, 3 JJ* * *4 ':>//'.,,/.,,\I"\ .a1TaVOEOVOf.LaEO""TLVYJKVptOVYJy 1\WTTa 1 KararoReiz: roKaraAB 2 ovofLaTLVahlen: AB 3 Maa-ua.A.uvrwvDiels (ex Arab.): fLeyaJuwrwvAB 4lacunamstat.edd.(cf.Arab.:"supplicansdominocaelo-rum") 102 'XX1 I POETICS21 respectively.An inflection is the feature of a noun or verb whichsignifiescaseCTOVfLETpovfLrrJKEtv8apfjA.yw8oiov f.av EK1TltEtOVWV nO"VYKEtfLEVYJ,W0"1TEp 1 asconi. Vahlen:A 2 avayvwa-EtMaggi:avayvwpia-ELA 3 i}otovMaggi: fotovB: A 4 f.LLaSpengel: f.LLaAB a The point concerns acting style,not choice of roles;Callip-pides: see 61b35. bAr.probably thinks of reading aloud; cf.50b18-19, 53b3-6. 138 1 POETICS26 movement(anymorethanalldancing)shouldbe eschewed,but only that of crude performers,aswith the complaintlevelledagainstCallippidesandnowother actors,regardingportrayalsoflowwomen. aBesides, tragedyachievesitseffectevenwithoutactors,move-ments, just like epic; reading makes its qualities clear. bSo iftragedyisotherwisesuperior,thisdefectcneednot adhere to it.Add the fact that tragedy possesses all epic,s resources(it can even use itsmetre),d aswell ashaving a substantial role for musice and spectacle, which engender themost vivid pleasures/ Again,tragedy has vividness in bothreadingandperformance.Also,tragedyexcelsby achievingthegoalofitsmimesisinashorterscope; greaterconcentrationismorepleasurablethandilution overalongperiod:supposesomeoneweretoarrange Sophocles,Oedipusinasmany hexametersastheIliad. Also,them i ~ e s i sof epicpoetsislessunified(asignof thisisthatanyepicyieldsseveraltragedies) ,gsothatif they composeasingleplot,it willseemeither truncated (if itsexpositionisbrief)ordiluted(if itcomportswith the length that suitsepic metre).hBy the latter Imean a structureof multipleactions,iinthewaythattheIliad cI.e. vulgar performance practices. d Hexameters are in fact infrequent in tragedy. eMousikemustherebeequivalenttomelos,.. melody,"at 47b25,andtomelopoii'a,.. lyricpoetry,"at49b33etc.;epic recitals were accompanied by music of a plainer kind. f Cf. and contrast 50bl5-20. g But cf. 59b2-7. h Epic'shexatnetersuitsitsnature,incl.itslength:cf. 59b30-60a5. iCf. 59bl. 139 10 15 ARISTOTLE EXEL1TOAAaTOLaVTapi.pYJKat7}'Oova-aivera[fLOL ... ) 12.4-13.1:Following the lacuna,wefindtheauthor still discussingamplification,withacomparisonbetween Cicero and Demosthenes, and an example of art of combining abundance with sublimity. 13.2-14:The mention of Plato raises the question of imi-tationasameansofattainingsublin1ity,sincePlato drewonHomer,andweshoulddrawon,andtryto think like, the great men of the past. 15:Phantasia-visualization or imagination-as a means tosublimity;thedifferencebetweenrhetoricaland poetical visualization. (iii) 16-17:General introduction to the discussionof figures (16-29),includingadetailedexaminationofthe MarathonoathinDemosthenes(decorona208),and adviceonconcealingone'singenuity,soasnottobe suspected of trickery: the best concealment is sublimity and emotion. 18:Rhetorical questions.A lacuna follows. 19:Asyndeton. 20-21:Anaphora and asyndeton. 22:Hyperbaton, including a detailed analysis of a passage in Herodotus. 150 INTRODUCTION 23-24:Polyptoton, singular for plural, plural for singular. 25:Historic present. 26-27:Vividsecondperson;abruptintroductionof direct speech. 28-29:Periphrasis. 29.2:Summary,emphasizingagainthecloselinks between emotion and sublimity. (iv) 30:Introductiontothesectiononlanguage.Alacuna follows. 31:The discussion isnow about metaphor, and especially vivid and idiomatic examples. 32:Criticismof Caecilius'rulethatoneshouldnotuse morethan two or threemetaphorson any one theme: examplesfromDemosthenes,Xenophon,andPlato's Timaeus.Caecilius'criticismofPlatoandexcessive enthusiasm for Lysiasare seen to be motivated by con-tentiousness.. 33-35:A "digression," to which Wilamowitz gave the title Regelund Genie.(It isthemost eloquent part of the book, and central to its message.)Genius, even when it makesmistakes,ispreferabletoimpeccablemedi-ocrity.Mechanical criticism would prefer Hyperides to Demosthenes,andweseethistobeabsurd;thegap between Plato and Lysias is infinitely wider.Our admi-ration goes to the greatest works of nature, not to mere prettiness,andhencealsototheproductsof natural genius, which all ages admire. 37:Beginningof adiscussionof similes.Alacunafol-lows. 38:Hyperbole. 151 INTRODUCTION (v) 39-42:Wordarrangement:examplesofthewaysin whichrhythm isdecisivein producing sublime effects, andcommonwordscanbegivengrandeurbyskilful placing. Dangers of excessive rhythmization and brevity. 43.1-5:seemstobelongunder of words''not under We have a lengthy discussion of apassageofTheopompus,inwhichtheeffectofa grand situation ismarred by the intrusion of common-place words and details. 43.6:Ingeneral,theoppositesof thedevicesthatpro-ducesublimitywillproduceitsopposite,lownessof style. 44.1-11:The deeper causesof failureare examined in a dialogue, in which an unnamed philosopher makes the casethat it islossof liberty that producesthe current dearthofloftywriting,andtheauthorattributesit rather to moral decline .. 44.12:Transitiontothepromiseddiscussionof 7raO'YJ, broken off short in our text. A little about the background "Theappearanceof thisunknownGreek... hassome-thingmiraculousabout it."Ernst Curtius(LatinLitera-tureandtheEuropeanMiddleAges,399[E.T.]),in companywithmany,exaggerates.ItisLonginus'elo-quence,andthefactthatnosimilarworksurvives,that haveledpeopletothinkhimmoremysteriousthanhe really is.In fact he represents a tradition. The basic divisionbetween grand and ordinary styles goesbackalongwayinGreekthinking:theaywv 152 r I INTRODUCTION between Aeschylusand Euripides in Aristophanes' Frogs isaclassicalexpressionofthecontrast.Indeed,later rhetoriciansevenfounditinHomer,whocontrasts Menelaus'rapid,clearspeechwithOdysseus'"winter snows'' (Iliad 3.214).A third manner-the smoothness of !socrates,orthehoneyedwordsofNestor(Iliad 1.243)-was,itseems,addedlater;andtheresulting three-styletheory iscanonical inCicero,Quintilian,and much later criticis1n.This development isnot really rele-vanttoLonginus,whoisconcerned onlytoidentify the characteristicsthat mark out the emotionally intense and elevated from the merely pleasing and soothing.Nor isit precisely astyle-a xapaKr-r}pOrgenusdicendi-that is hissubject:thisisbetter describedasatoneof writing, attainableonly asa consequence of a developed intellec-tual and emotional response to life.This isnot to say that hisis co.nceptually unique in ancient criticism; but it resembles not so much the genera dicendi as what Diony-siuscalls''additionalvirtues"(epithetoiaretai),thepos-sessionof whichlendsaparticularcharactertowriters whoalreadypossessthe"necessaryvirtues"ofpurity, clarity,and brevity.Evencloser,perhaps,arecertainof theideai-formsortonesof speech-identifiedbythe second-centuryrhetorHermogenesandothersofthe sameperiod.AccordingtoHermogenes,alltheseideai couldbe foundinDemosthenes;but oncedetectedand isolated,theycouldbecomepatternsforimitation. Amongtheseideaiwere(TEfJ-VOTYJ andporYJ solemnityandvehemence;andthese,andotherslike them,weresharplyopposedtotheideaiof charmand delicacy,in a general contrast very like that which Longi-nusdrawsbetweenHyperidesandDemosthenes.(The 153 INTRODUCTION translation of Hermogenes by Cecil Wooten, Chapel Hill, 1988,maybeconsultedtoformanotionof thistheory anditsimplications.)ButnoteveninHermogenesis there sodetailed,comprehensive,and enthusiastic adis-cussion of the high tone asin our treatise.Moreover, it is sharplydistinguishedfromanythingHermogeneswrote by itsfirmmoralbasis.For Hermogenes,anyonecould chooseto writegrandly if heselected hissubject appro-priatelyandfollowedthesuggestionslaiddownabout vocabulary,figures,sentencestructure,andrhythm;for our author,it isonlypossibleif youreallydevelopyour intellect and your emotions, by the study of the classics, to thepoint whenhighthoughtsandtheirdueexpression come more or less instinctively to mind.This kind of atti-tude isquite common in the imperial period,and seems tohaveappealed especially toRomans.It isprimarily a response on the part of teachers of rhetoric to accusations made by philosophers that their art was amoral, and could beusedindifferentlyfor'goodorbadends.Longinus' warmdefenceofPlatoagainstCaecilius(andindeed Dionysius)and hisassignment of themoralargument in chapter 44 to himself rather than to any philosopher point inthe samedirection;he wishestocommend himself to Terentianus not only asa technical teacher but asa guide torightattitudesin life.Only thuscan hisconcern with Homer and classical poetry and his insistence on the need to look to posterity be seen to be uuseful to public men," dvopacrt- ashe puts it in the pref-ace (1.2). 154 ~ I INTRODUCTION Influence Parisinus2036wascopiedforBessarionin1468,and at leastonceagainlaterinthecentury.Othercopiesof these copies were also made, and Latin translations circu-latedinmanuscriptbeforethefirstprintededitions (1554-5) and printed Latin translations (1566,1572).But the work made little impact on the literary world at large untilmuchlater.TheItaliantranslationofNiccoloda Falgano( 1560)remainedinmanuscript;thefirstpub-lishedEnglishversionisbyJohnHall(1652).Allwas changedin1674byBoileau'sTraitedusublimeoudu merveilleuxdanslediscours,traduit dugrecdeLongin. Thismade"Longinus"acentraltextinEuropeancriti-cismthroughout the eighteenth century.In England,its influencewasfirstadvancedbyJohnDennis'Advance-ment and Reformationof Poetry(1701),and Groundsof CriticisminPoetry(1704).Nodoubtthebook'smoral stancewascongenialtoat;hinkerwhoregardedreligion and"enthusiasticpassion"asthenaturalsubjectsof poetry.But Dryden and Addison were alsofamiliar with it,SirJoshuaReynolds'DiscoursesonPaintingadapt many of itsideas,Gibbon and Dr.Johnson both admired it, and Burke at least used it asa starting point of specula-tion, though the main contentions of TheSublime and the BeautifulgofarbeyondLonginus'scope.Thiseigh-teenth-centuryadmirationfadedwiththecomingof Romanticism, when that liberty of thought and compara-tivefreedomfromrule which Longinusauthorized came 1 tobetakenforgrantedandnolongerneededspecial jdefence.The eloquence of the book, however, has always 1continuedtoearnitenthusiasticreadersandawide 11 I I I I ' 155 INTRODUCTION response; the wealth of learned work on its text and inter-pretation, and the special place it always holds in histories of criticism, are testimony to its enduring significance. Text The text rests on Parisinus 2036 (P), supplemented by the apographa in twoplaces wherePwasdamaged after the primary copiesweretaken(viz. Kav... TJpKeo-0YJV [8.1-9.4]andTOE1T'ovpavov... l8a-Oat[9.4-9.10]) andalsoby twomiscellanies(Parisinus985and itscopy Vaticanus285)whichalonepreservethe"fragmentum Tollianum,'' viz.... Oewp[av(2.3).Our brief and veryselectiveapparatusmentionsalso(asCCKmarg.") somevariants(conjectures,nodoubt)inthemarginof CantabrigiensisKK.VI.34,acopyofBessarion'scopy, made by Francesco Porto,apparently in connection with the preparation of the Aldine edition of 1555. Translation Thisisarevisionof W.HamiltonFyfe'sversion,andI havetriednottotamper withitwhereitdidnotseem positively misleading.Thus Ihave left the poetical quota-tionsfor the most part asthey were,though their style is now very dated,andmadeevenmoreartificialby Fyfe's attempt to render Greek hexameters into English hexam-eters.IhavealsoleftsomeofFyfe'snotes,buthave replacedorsuppliedothers.Thetextandpunctuation have also been revised. 156 l INTRODUCTION BIBLIOGRAPHY The literature on On theSublimeisvast.Apart fromthe bibliographies in the principal editions (see below), there arebibliographiesbyD. S.Marin(Bibliographyof the EssayonTheSublime,privatelyprinted,1967)andby D. Tavani(La .filologia recentedi frontealPeriHypsous, Rome1971),andasurveyarticlebyG.Martanoin ANRW II, 32.1(1984), 364-403. Ofoldereditions,thoseofJ.Toll(Utrecht1694), J.Toup(Oxford1778),B. Weiske(Leipzig1809,Oxford 1820) are especially worth consulting.The fullest appara-tusandlistof conjecturesistobefoundin0. Jahn-J.Vahlen,DionysiiLonginidesublimitateliber,4thed. (1910), re-issued with index by H.D. Blume (1967). Theprincipalmoderneditionswithcommentary are those ofW. RhysRoberts (Cambridge, 2nd ed.1907; con-tainsalsoa translation),D. A.Russell(Oxford 1964),and C.M.Mazzucchi(Milan1992;especiallyusefulforits studyof theRenaissancetraditionof thetext).A.Ros-tagni's edition (Milan 194 7) is also of importance. Translationsareinnumerable.Boileau'swaswell editedbyC.-H.Boudhors(Paris1942).Contemporary Englishversionsincludethoseby G.M.A.Grube(New York1957),T.S.Dorsch(inPenguinClassicalLiterary Criticism1965),D. A.Russell(in Ancient Literary Criti-cism,Oxford1972,and World'sClassicsClassicalLiter-aryCriticism,Oxford1985).Theversionof W.Smith (London1739)isagoodexampleofaneighteenth-century rendering. Brief general interpretationsaretobe foundinmost manualsof thehistory of criticism:e.g.G.M.A.Grube, 157 INTRODUCTION TheGreekandRomanCritics,London1965,340-353; G. A.Kennedy,TheArt of Rhetoric in the Roman World, Princeton 1972, 369-377; D. A.Russell in G.A.Kennedy (ed.),CambridgeHistoryof LiteraryCriticismi(1990) 306-311. Other contributions to interpretation which should be speciallynotedare:WBuhler,BeitriigezurErkliirung derSchriftvomErhabenen,1964;J.Bompaire,"Le pathosdansletraiteduSublime,"RevuedesEtudes Grecques86(1973)323-343;D. A.Russell,"Longinus Revisited,"MnemosyneIV34(1981)72-86;E. Matelli, ''StrutturaeStiledel1rep't Aevum61(1987) 137-207. OnLonginus,influence,seeespecially:S.H.Monk, TheSublime,New York1935;M.H.Abrams, TheMirror and the Lamp,New Yorkand London1953;T.R.Henn, LonginusandEnglishCriticism,Cambridge1934; A.Rosenberg, Longinus it?:England his zum Ende des18. Jahrhunderts,diss.Berlin,1917;J.Brody,Boileauand Longinus,Geneva1958;K.Maurer,"BoileausUeber-setzung,,inLeClassicismea Rome',(EntretiensHardt XXV,1979) 213-257. 158 r I IIEPIT ' I ' O T ~ TIEPI 1T',,..... K\ ""(.,' .0fLEVTOVatKLI\.LOVa-vyypap.,p.,aTLOV,01TEpt TJfLLV oia-f}a Kotvfj,IToa-TOVfLLETEpEvrtav1 cpiATaTE,Ta1TEtvorEpov ',/.,./,..... f) /'t:!,...../ E'flaVYJV1TOKatYJKLa-TaTWVKatptWV cpa1TTOfLEVOVov1TOAArr}vTEwcpAetav, p.,aAta-Ta DE'ia-Toxa,Ea-8atTovypacpovTa,1TEpt1Totovv '/,,'2''/\/,.....Evrvyxavova-tv,ELYE1TLovEtv ,//'...,,.....(;/'/ a1TaLTOVfLEVWV,1TpOTEpOVfLEVTOVOELS at TLTOV1TOKEL-DEvTpov8rfj rfjSvvafLEL8Kvptwr-pov, avTJfLLVaVTOTOVTOKa'iSt'6JvTLVWVp.,E8-/'"t:!K"\,..... " OOWVKTYJTOV'YEVOL'TO,01TOLOVfLEVTL V1TUPXELTOvt/JYJAOV8ulp.,vpiwvoa-wv dyvoova-t ,..... /'t:!/'e,.....1TEtpaTaLOELKVVVat,TOOEOLOTOVTp01TOVEaVTWV 1TpoayEtVL(JXVOLfLEVUV E1TLDoa-tv,OVKoi8' OVKdvayKaLOV1TapAt-\',,'',t:! 21TEV1TI\.Y]VTOVTOVLfLEVTOVavopaOVX alrtaa-8atTWVEKAEAELfLfLEVWV',, c,,..... ,' ,\/' Kat as LOVE1TaLVELV.E1TEL0EVEKEI\EV(JWKat Tt1TEp'iV1TOfLVYJp.,aria-a-1 iPA.wpEvTLavP,corr.Manutius. 2 Ely'Spengel: ELT'. 160 ONTHESUBLIME 1.Youknow,mydearPostumiusTerentianus,that when we were studying together Caecilius'a little treatise on the Sublime it appeared to us to fall below the level of the subject and to failto address the 1nain points, or ren-der itsreaders very much of that assistance which should bean author'schief aim,seeing that there are tworequi-sitesineverysystematictreatise:theauthormustfirst definehissubject,andsecondly,thoughthisisreally more importaJ?-t, he must show us how and by what means wemayreachthegoalourselves.Caecilius,however, endeavouring by a thousand instances to demonstrate the natureof the sublime,asthough we know nothing about it,apparentlythoughtitunnecessarytodealwiththe meansbywhichwemaybeenabledtodevelopour naturestosome degree of grandeur.Still,we ought per-hapsrather to praise our author for the mere conception of suchatreatiseandthetroublespentuponitthanto blamehimforhisomissions.Butsinceyouhavenow askedmeinmy tum topreparesomenoteson thesub-limeforyourownsake,letusthenseewhethermy aCaeciliusof Caleacte inSicily wasanoted rhetoricianand historian,contemporarywithDionysiusof Halicamassus,and saidtohavebeenaJew.SeeE. Ofenloch,CaeciliiFragmenta (1907) for a full (but uncritical) collection of material. 161 LONGINUS ()Oatxaptv,cpepE,EtTL8iJDOKOVfLEVdv8pa(JL7TOALTL- TE8EWPYJKEVaL E7TL(JKEtf}(.VfLE8a. 1 8Faber, perhaps rightly. 162 r ONTHESUBLIME1 obseiVationshaveany valueforpublic speakers;and you yourself, my friend, will, I am sure, do what duty and your heartalikedictateand giveme the benefit of your unbi-asedjudgementindetail.Forhespokewellwho,in answertothequestion,uwhat havewein common with thegods?>>said/ '():>/ 7TUpEVvpcrovEKUI\Et.ECTTtOE7TU aKat-'':>/()'1"1,().,,:>/:>/() povKatKEVOVEVaf.LTJOEt7TU TJUf.LETpovEVa f.LETpiovoe'i.1ro'A'Aayapwa-1repeK TtvsTa ,1"1,2c1"1' f.LTJKETtTOV totaEUVTWVKatcrxo-\',../....,'()-';'',(), 1\tKa7Tapa'PEPOVTUL7TUYJ,EtTaOVOEV7TE7TOVO- aCTXTJf.LOVOVCTtVovK1r'AiJv1rep'if.LEVTwv7TaeTJTt-l"l"''\\c1"1,,, KWVTjf.LtVU7TOKEtTat 4.8aTepov8JJvEL1TOf.LEV,'Aeyw8Tovtfivxpov, 0 dviJpraf.LEVa'A'Aa Ka'i A.6ywvEVLOTE OVK7To'Avta-Twp, ,,\', \\.,', \, 7TI\T}VUf\J{OTptWVf.LEVc,,,() c' :>/ Uf.LUpTTJf.LUTWV,averratcrOEtOtWV,V1TOOEEpw-TOV aE'iKtVELVEK7TL1TTWV 2To1Tatoaptwoea-TaTov. 8 (.'.,,,,''\,'\{3cK'\ EVTJOVO,E1TEtOTjTU7TI\EtW7TpOEI\UEV0E7Tatvwv, A'AetavopovTOVf.LEJ'UVTTJV, Acriav 1 Wilamowitz, for 2/",./.../1 /T/e OJ.LJ.LaTEXWVo/YJCTLV.0J.LEVTOL,./.../'',./.../""1--1,./...""' o/WpLOVOVOETOVTOt:;:::;EVO'PWVTLTO tfivxpovKaTEAL'TTEv.1>YJa-tyovvE'1TtTov'A '2''',f,'e//'""' KaTaTOTYJVETEp(f!OEOOJ.LEVYJVEKTWVava-\/e/'\0 ""ee ._,/.,,'/ Kai\V'TTTTJPLWVap'1Taa-aVTaa'TTEI\ELV,0avE'TTOLYJ-6CTEVEVJ.LTJ exwv;"TL80 TaA.A.a ITAaTwv;OE.A.wvEL'TTEtV crYJa-iv Orr}a-ova-LvKV'1Ta- Kat'1TaALv8TELxwv,& ME.yLAAE,eywtvfLcPEPOLfLYJVllvTfj!.'1TapTYJTOKaOev-1DELVE.avEVTfjyfjKaTaKELJ.LEVaTaTELXYJKatJ.LTJ '/0"''/'/' E1T'aVLCTTaa- aL.KaLTOpOOOTELOVOV'1T0ppw,TO 1 Kayser deleted lrafLOV... cf>YJcriv.The introduction of the Homeric parallel is very abrupt. 2 KaraReiske, for Kat. 174 ONTHESUBLIME4 Spartans asfrommarble statues, and could aseasily catch theeyeof abronzefigure;indeed youmight wellthink themasmodest asthemaidensintheir eyes.,,aIt would havebetter suited Amphicratesthan Xenophontospeak of the pupilsinour eyesasmodestmaidens.Andfancy believingthateverysinglemanofthemhadmodest pupils,whenthey say that peopleshow their immodesty innothingsomuchastheir eyes!Why,a violentman is called ''Heavy with wine,with the eyesof adog.,,bHow-ever,Timaeus,layinghandsasitwereonstolengoods, could not leave even this frigid conceit to Xenophon.For example,speaking of Agathocleswhen he carried off his cousinfromtheunveilingceremonycalthoughshehad beengiveninmarriagetoanother,hesays,"Whocould havedonesuchathing,hadhenotharlotsinsteadof maidensinhiseyes?,,And what of theotherwisedivine Plato?"They willinscribeand storeinthetemples,,,he says,"cypressmemorials,,,meflning woodentablets:and again,"Asforwalls,Megillus,Iwouldconsentwith Sparta to let the wallslie slumbering on theground and neverriseagain. ,,dHerodotus,phraseforfairwomen aThemanuscripttraditionof Xenophon,Resp.Lac.3.5has "maidens in their chambers" (rwvev 1rap8vwv), but Stobaeus(Flor.CXLIV.2.23Hense) hasthe same reading as Longinus,whichinvolvesapunonthetwomeaningsof KDp'YJ, "girl,"and"pupiloftheeye"(pupula)-asensepresumably derivedfromthefactthat,ifyoulookintosomeone'spupil closely,youseeadoll-likeimageof yourself.b Achillesto Agamemnon,Iliad1.225.cI.e.onthethirddayafterthe marriage,whenthebridefirstappearedunveiled.Agathocles ruledSyracuse,317-287B.C.;thisstoryisnotmentioned elsewhere.d Laws 5.741C, 6.778D, freely quoted. 175 LONGINUS 'i"'''''i"'' aa-xTJf.LOVELVTovatwva. 5 '' 3/'' .1TaVTaf.LEVTOLTaaO"Ef.LVaOLaf.LLaV ',./.,.'i"''\/'/ '''/ Ef.L\f'Vf.TaL aLTLaV,OLaTO1TEpLKatvoa-1Tov8ov,1TEp'io 8i}f.LcLALa-Taol vvv.acp'fhvyap raya{)a,a-xEDova1T'avTwv /'''i"''{),./.,.\i"'' '/,./.,. TOVTWVKaLTaKaKaYEVVaO"aL\f'LJ\f.L.0f.Vf.1TL\f'OpOV O"VVTaYf.LcLTWVKar6p{)wa-LVTaTf.KaAATJ EPf.LTJ-/''''//' KaLTaV'YTJKaLaL'YJOOVaL,KaL avTaTaVTa,Ka{)a1TEp apxa'i 'c{)/'i"'''/{)' KaLV1TOf.O"f.l.SKaLTWVf.VaVTLWVKaLO"TaVTaL.TOL-i"'\/'Q\'1'Q\''' OVTOV KaLaLf.LETatJOJ\aLKaLV1TEpfJOJ\aLKaLTa \{)// t 'i"''3/'/ 1T J\ T}VVTLKa Of.Ls Of-LEV0,f.V E1Tf.LTaTOVKLVOVVOV, ovEXELVEOLKaO"LV.DL01TEpavayKaLOV1J8TJDLa1TOpELV ''{){),. /''/ KaLV1TOTLEO"at,OLOTOVT po1TOV EKcpevyELVDVVcLf.LE{)a. 6 3/EI-;- ,./.,./\3/I{)'' .O"TLOf.,W f.LTLVa1TEpL1TOLTJO"aLf.LEEV /{)'i"''''\ '{)'I KaapavTOVKaTai\T}f.LaV f.1TLO"TTJ-'' //'i"'' \ f.LT}VKaLf.1TLKpLO"LV.KaLTOLTO7rpayf.LaOVO"J\T}1TTOV"T} yaprwv'A6ywv7ToA'A f.a-TLrEAEv-raZovE1TLYEVVT}f.La.ovf.LTJVa'A'A'' El1TELVEV1Tapay-yEAf.LaTL,EVTf.v{)E.v1TO{)EvTTJVDtayvwa-LVaVTWV 'l'f() ovKaovvaTov 1TOPL'=>Ea- at. 1 tJ-ETacpopa'iWilamowitz 176 ONTHESUBLIME4-7 isnot much better: "torments for eyes" he calls them. a Yet hehassomeexcuse,forinHerodotusthisissaidby the barbarians, who are,moreover, in their cups.Yeteven in themouthsof suchcharactersastheseit isnotrightto display the triviality of one'smind before anaudience of all the ages. 5.However,allthese lapsesfromdignity in literature spring fromthe same cause,namely that passion for nov-elty of thought which is the particular craze of the present day.For our virtues and vices spring from much the same sources.And so while beauty of style,sublimity, yes,and charmtoo,allcontributetosuccessfulcomposition,yet these same thingsare the source and groundwork no less of failurethanof success.And wemustsaythesame,I suppose,aboutvarietyofconstruction,hyperbole,and theuseof pluralsforsingulars.Wewillshow laterhthe dangerwhichtheyseemtoustoinvolve.Wearethus bound at this stage to raise and propose the answer to the questionhow wecanavoidthefaultsthatgosoclosely with the elevated style. 6.And this, my friend, is the way:first of all to obtain a clearknowledgeandappreciationof whatisreallysub-lime.But this isnot an easy thing to grasp: judgement in literatureistheultimatefruitof ripeexperience.How-ever,if Imust speak of precept, it isperhaps not impossi-blethatatruediscernmentinsuchmattersmaybe derived from some such considerations as the following. aHerodotus5.18,inanamusingaccountofthewaythe 1Macedonians entertained the Persian invaders of Greece. I.h In chapters 23 and 38. 177 LONGINUS 7.El8vat cptA'TU'TE,8to'Tt,Ka8a7TEpKavTip KOtvipf34!ov8vV7TapxetfLEya,oil'TOKa'TacppovELV ,/'e'\""''/c ' E(J"'TtVfLE'ya,OtOV7TI\OVTOt'TtfLaLOOS aLTVpaVVLOEc;KaL ':>/ \\!1/\'':>/ c(}/ O(J"aO'YJUI\1\UEXEL7TOI\VTOEs wev7TpO(J"TpayqJoOVfLE-vovov8' 1 av TipYEcppoVLfLqJdya8a V7TEp{3a'A-\'e',''rl-.""',(}',/ 1\0VTa,WVUV'TO'TO7TEpt"PpOVELVayaOVOVfLE-Tptov-8aVfLU,OV(J"Lyovv'TWVEXOVTWVavraf.La'A'Aov '/!1/''\I./e TOVc;OVVafLEVOVc;EXELVKatOLa V7TEp-opwvTac;-rf18E7TovKatE7Ttrwv8t'Y]pfLvwvE:v '\/,///(} f.La(J"tKUL1\0yotc;E7TL(J"KE7T'TEOV,fL'Y}TLVaf.LEYEOVc; cpavTa(J"tavxotTotaV'T'Y}VfJ7To'Av7Tpo(J"KEL'Tat'TOelK-ij \/,/ "''\\ 7TpO(J"aVa7TI\a'T'TOfLEVOV,ava7TTV'T'TOfLEVaOEai\1\Wc; EVpL(J"KOtTOxavva,6Jv'TOVOaVfLU,EtV'TO7TEptcppovELV 2EVYEVE(J"7Epov.cpv(J"ELyap7TWc;V7TO'Ta'A'Y]Oovc;vt/Jovc; :7TatperaTETJfLWVT]t/JvxiJKatyavpovTt7Tapa-(J"T'Y}f.La 2 Aaf.Lf3avov(J"a'YJPOV'TaLxapac;KatfLEya-\/e''/ :>/3Aavxtac;,we;aVT'Y}yevV'Y}(J"a(J"a07TEp'Y}KOV(J"EV.orav oiJvv7r'dv8poc;Ef.Lcppovoc;KatEfL7TEtpov'Aoywv7TOA-\/,//'\rl-./' 1\aKLc;UKOVOfLEVOVTL7Tpoc;fLEyai\O!.ppO(J"VV'Y}VT'YJV t/Jvxi}vf.LiJo-vv8taTt8fJf.L'Y/8'E:yKa'TaAEL7TYJrfl8tavotq., 7TAELOVrov'AeyofLEVOVTOdvaOewpoVfLEVOV,1Tt7T'TYJ8', .,,,'3',""',,/(;,.,, avaVTO(J"VVEXEc;E7Tt(J"K07TYJc;,Etc;a7TaVs 'Y}(J"LV,OVKav ET'd'A'Y]8Ec; EL'Y}fLEXPL(J"qJ,OfLE-vov.'TOV'TOyapTipOV'T tfLEya,oil7TOAA ,ryfLEVT] 8v(J"Ko'Aoc;8,f.La'A'Aov8'T] l(J"xvpa8T] Kat1 ov8'Reiske, for OVK. 178 T r ONTHESUBLIME7 7.Wemust realize,dear friend,that asin our every-day lifenothing isreally great which it isa mark of great-nesstodespise,Imean,forinstance,wealth,position, reputation,sovereignty,andalltheotherthingswhich possessa very grand exterior, nor would a wiseman think thingssupremely good,contempt for which isitself emi-nently good-certainly men feel less admiration for those whohavethesethingsthanforthosewhocouldhave them but are big enough to slight them-well, so it is with theloftystyleinpoetryandprose.Wemustconsider whethersomeof thesepassageshavemerely somesuch outwardshowofgrandeurwitharichlayerofcasual accretions,and whether, if all this ispeeled off,they may not tum out to be empty bombast which it ismore noble todespise than to admire.For the true sublime naturally elevatesus:uplifted with a senseof proud exaltation, we arefillediwth joy and pride,asif wehad ourselvespro-duced the very thing we heard..If,then,aman of sense, well-versedinliterature,after hearingapassageseveral times findsthat it does not affect him with a sense of sub-limity,and doesnot leavebehind in hismind more food for thought than the words at first suggest, but rather that onconsideration it sinksinto the bathetic, then it cannot really be the true sublime, if its effect does not outlast the momentofutterance.Forwhatistrulygreatbears repeatedconsideration;it isdifficult,nay,impossible,to resistitseffect;andthememoryof itisstubbornand 2 1TapaUTYJfLUManutius, for avaUTYJfLU. 3''''P.c,,' av avToearce, ror avEvTO. 179 LONGINUS 4 c.'/\ \'/r ''\0''' OEKal\aVOfLt:;,EV'f'TJKatai\T}tVaTaOta '3I'""c.'/'""3' apECTKOVTaKatTraCTtV.OTaVyap aTrO 8tacp6pwvETrtTTJDEVjLaTwv{3wvT]AtKtwv 'A6ywv1 EVTtKatTaVTOVa!La7TEptTWVavTWVaTraa-tV ""/0'c.' 3(;3,../...ItI'I OOKYJ,TOTJ aCTVfLtpWVWV Kata-vyKaTa-0 ''' ""OYII3'\ TTJVE7TtTqJaVfLa:;,OjLEVqJ7TtCTTtVta-xvpavl\ajL-{3avEtKataVajLcptAEKTOV. 8 'E''/e.,, I/ .1Tf.tOE7TEVTE, avEt1TOt 1TTJ'Yat ela-tval yoVtfLWTaTat,1TpOV1TOKEtjLE- wa-Trep Kotvov 7TEVTE EVT(i>'AE.yetv""''I'''/ OVOEV,TrpWTOV/l-EVKatKpaTtCTTOVTO7TEptVOTJ-a8pe7r1}{3o'Aov, Kav 1TEpt wptCTajLEOa.DEVTEpov8TOa-cpo8povKatv0ova-ta-'10'\\'e' 'e'""('',/,' a-TtKOJ:JTraal\1\at fLEVovoavTat TovKaTa '\1'0""/e\, :J/, TOTri\EOVav atI\Ot1TatoTJOTJKat 8u1 iJ 1TotaTwvTr'Aa-' ""''/01 oe7TOVTavTa,TajLEV aTepa \1(:'' /e1,../...1'e' Of.Of.TJyevvata 1/\'/'\''e'' f.LEPTJTral\tVOVOfLaTWVTEEKI\O'YTJKatTJTp07TtKTJKat I\I(;/'/()3/' 7TE7TOtTJfLEVYJ 1TEjL1TTTJOf.f.LE'YEatTtaKat \/''e"" e''C/ a-vyKI\ELOVCTaTa1rp0aTraVTa,YJEV tWf.LaTt 'I/0,.1...1 '3/ Katotapa-Eta-vv 'PEPEOTJTaEf.LTrEptEX0/1-f.Va ()'tI /I',/,/()"" Kaf.KaCTTYJVtoEaVTOVTWVf.7TLCTKE'f'WfLEa,TOCTOVTOV / .....//tK1\OTtTWV1TVTf.f.LOpLWV0ECTTtV 1 xpovwv Richards, TPO'Tf'WlJMorus. 180 r T ( ' ONTHESUBLIME7-8 indelible.To speak generally, you should consider that to be beautifully and truly sublime which pleases all people atalltimes.For whenmen whodiffer in their pursuits, theirlives,theirtastes,theirages,theirlanguages,aall agreetogetherinholdingoneandthesameviewabout the same writings, then the unanimous verdict, asit were, of such discordant judges makes our faithin the admired passage strong and indisputable. 8.There are,one may say,some fivemost productive sources of the sublime in literature, the common ground-work,asit were, of all fivebeing competence in speaking, withoutwhichnothingcanbedone.Thefirstandmost powerfulisthepowerofgrandconceptions-!have definedthisinmy book on Xenophonh-and the second istheinspirationof vehement emotion.Thesetwocon-stituentsof the sublime are forthe most part congenital. Buttheotherthreecomepartlyfromart,namelythe proper construction of figures-.thesebeing of courseof two kinds, figuresof thought and figuresof speech-and, overandabovethese,nobilityof language,whichagain mayberesolvedintochoiceof wordsandtheuseof metaphorandelaborateddiction.Thefifthcauseof grandeur,whichgivesformtoallthosealreadymen-tioned,isdignifiedand elevated word-arrangement.Let usthenconsider allthat isinvolvedunder eachof these heads,merelyprefacingthis,thatCaeciliushasomitted aTextunsure:thesuggestedemendationsmean"dates"or "manners." h This book is lost. 181 r LONGINUS c.\"\1: ''i' L},i'\,\\','1:2a1TapEI\I/lTEV, KaLTO afLEI\EL.al\1\ELJ.LEV !"'.':Jt.rl.." 1I r''n"' EVTLTaVTaJ.Lo/W,TOTE KaLTO1TaU'YJTLKOV,KaL (;,!"'.i'i',\\i' \' EOOS EVaVTqJ1TaVT'YJa-VVV1TapXELVTEKaL ,./...//''/L}' crVJ.L1TEo/VKEVaL,OLaJ.LapTaVEL"KaLyap1TaU'YJTLVaOLE-a-TWTaKatTa1TELVUEVpLa-KETaL,KafJa1TEpOlKTOL \!"'..rl..'{3':Jt\\\' 1I r"'n I\V1TaLo/0OL,KaLEJ.L1Tai\LV1TOI\I\aOLXa ',:J/\\'''''A\,KaLTa1TEpL 1TOLTfj1TapaTETOAJ.LYJJ.LEVa :J/0,'0, \i'/L}/,' a-a-avE1TVI\VfL1TqJJ.LEJ.LacravuEJ.LEV"avTap 1r':J/ Ocra-n IT'ljALOVElvoa-ic/JvAAov,tv':J/ ELY]" '',:JI!"'.r, " KaLTOETLE1TLo/EpOJ.LEVOV ""'C"\ KaL vvKEVEs ETEI\Ea-a-av. 3 i''!"'.1:/',i''' 1rapayEJ.LYJV PYJTOpa-LTaEYKWJ.LLaKaLTa1TOJ.L-'',''':J/''1: 1, t\',(; 1TLKaKaLE1TLOELKTLKaTOVJ.LEVoyKOVKaLTOEs i'/L} i'''\!"'. 1TEpLEXEL,oEX'YJPEVELKaTaTo1TI\EL-a-TovoOEvi]KLa-TaTWVPYJTOpwvOteyKw-4 '.,,:J/\1: ,'L}!"'.,J.LLaa-TLKOL'YJEJ.L1Tai\LVOLE1TaLVETLKOLEL0 -;- "\'C

',/< 1:>1K"\' aV1Tai\LVEs01\0VJ.L'YJEVOJ.LL(F'EV0TO ,L}',2'

'\!"'.''!"'.' Ta1TOTEa-VVTEI\ELVKaLOLaTOVT ,1: i'/:J/(;i'/L} OVX'YJY'YJa-aTO as LOV,1TaVVOL'YJ1TaT'Y}TaLuap-pwvyapac/JoptcraLJ.LYJVav, J.LEyaA'ljyopov,wa-1TEp 1:'i'''i''L}!"'. V1TO KaL E1TL1Tvf.ov3 Ka'iolovE'ic/Jot{3a,ov 9.OvJ.LTJVdA.A.'E1TEtTTJVKpaTia-T'YJVJ.Lo'ipave1r-1 add.Manutius. 2 add. Faber. 182 ONTHESUBLIME8-9 someof thesefiveclasses,oneobviousomissionbeing thatof emotion.Nowif hethoughtthatsublimityand emotion were the same thing,and that one alwaysessen-tiallyinvolvedtheother,heiswrong.For onecanfind emotionsthataremeananddevoidofsublimity,for instancefeelingsof pity,grief,andfear.Ontheother hand,many sublime passagesarequite without emotion. Examplesarecountless:takeforinstancethe poefsdar-ing lies about the Aloadae:a Ossa then up on Olympus they strove to set, then upon Ossa Pelion, ashiver with leaves, to build them a ladder to Heaven; and the still greater exaggeration that follows, Andwould have done it as well. Thenagainintheoratorstheil:eulogiesandceremonial speechesand show piecesalwaysinclude touchesof dig-nityandsublimity,yetareusually voidof emotion.The result isthat emotional orators excel least in eulogy, while panegyrists equally lack emotional power.If, on the other hand,itneverentered headthatemotion sometimescontributestowardssublimity,andhethere-foreomitteditasundeservingofmention,thengreat indeed is his mistake.I would confidently lay it down that nothing makessomuch for grandeur asgenuine emotion intheright place.It inspiresthe wordsasit were Vlitha finefrenzy and fillsthem with divine spirit. 9.Now,since the first,Imean natural, greatness plays aOdyssey 11.315. 3Morus, for EK7Tvov. 183 LONGINUS ,,...."''\\',....\, '\,./.,., EXEL'TWVai\1\WVTO1rpwTov,1\eywoETO KavTav8a,KatElowpYJTOvTo1rpO..-yf.Laf.Lii'A'Aov ,"'()'"',''',, K'T'Y}'TOV, Ka0(]"0VOLOV'TEavaTpE-.J..'''8'el'I'' 2"+'ELVTaf.LEYEYJKatwa-1rEpaEL1TOL-,....III.J..II ELVyEvvatov 'Ttva, Tpo1rov; yypa4>a1TOVKatE'TEpw8L'TO'TOLOV'TOV" f.LEya'Ao- o8EvKatoixa 8avf.La,E-,,/,\'(}'e'"'''''' 'TaL1TO'TE 'Y}KaEaV'T'Y}VEVVOLaOLaV'TO'TOf.LEya-Aoc/Jpov, T]'TOVEVN EKviq-f.LEya 3Katvl/JYJAOTEpov'Aoyov.1TpW'TOVoilv'TO oiJ yivETaL1TpOV1TO'Tt8Ea-8atdvayKa'iov, EXELV 8E'iTOVd'AYJB-ryTa1TEtvovc/JpoV'Y}f.LUKat OVOEyapoiov'TEf.LLKpaKat00VA01TpE1T-ry ,./.,.,....''I'el\'{3' Kat1Tap01\0V'TOVLOV 8avf.Laa-Tov'TLKatTov !1/(;I\'e\II'''' LOV"f.LEyai\OLOEOL1\QYOL'TOV'TWVKa'Ta'TOWV 4av Ci.>a-tvaiEVVOLaL.TaVTYJKat f.La'A.ta-Ta Ef.L1Tt1T'TELTav1TEpc/Jvii o yap ,....IT1,./.,.1ee''''181 'T(f)apf.LEVLWVL"f'YJa-avTLEywf.LEVYJPKEa- YJV... ...'TOE7T'ovpavova1TO Otaa-TYJf.La.Kat'TOV'T' alJEL1TOL ovf.LUAAov Tj 1 plostawholequaternion(8pages)aftera8perrYJf3o'Aov (above,8.1);butthetwoouterpagesarepreservedincopies madewhenthedamagewasless;thesehoweverfailusatthis point.presumes at EV8c/>aELKato'AEa-a-ov(9.10). aOdyssey11.543-67.Ajax,summoned fromHades,refuses 184 r ONTHESUBLIME9 a greaterpartthanalltheothers,heretoo,evenif it is ratheragiftthananacquiredquality,weshouldstilldo our utmost to train our minds into sympathy with what is nobleand,asit were,impregnatethemagainandagain withloftythoughts."How?"youwillask.Well,else-where I have written something like this, "Sublimity is the echo of a noble mind."And so even without being spoken thebare idea often of itself winsadmiration for itsinher-entgrandeur.How grand,forinstance,isthesilenceof AjaxintheSummoningof theGhosts, amoresublime thananyspeech!In thefirstplace,then,it isabsolutely necessary tostate whencegreatnesscomes,and toshow thatthethoughtof thegenuineoratormustbeneither smallnor ignoble.For it isimpossiblethat thosewhose thoughtsandhabitsalltheirliveslongarepettyand servileshouldproduceanythingwonderful,worthyof immortal life.No,a grand style isthe natural product of thosewhoseideasareweighty.Thisiswhysplendid remarkscome particularly tomen of high spirit.Alexan-der's answer to Parmenio when he said ~ ~ F o rmy part I had been content ... "h [Six pages are lost here.] . . .thedistancebetweenearthandheaven.One mightsay too that thismeasured the stature not of Strife tospeaktoOdysseus,becauseheisstillangryattheawardof Achilles' armour to Odysseus rather than to himself. b Thestory(toldinmostof the historiansof Alexander:see e.g.Plutarch,Alexander29),andperhapsderivedfromCallis-thenes,isthat Dariusoffered Alexander territory and one of his daughtersinmarriage;Parmeniosaid"If IwereAlexander,I should have accepted," and Alexander replied .. If Iwere Parme-nio,so should I." 185 LONGINUS /'?'//' / ,'i"\ 5fLETpov.cpaVOfLOLovyETOcrtooEtovE1TLTYJc; 'A\/"' / '''A/ (}/ XJ\VOc;,ELYEcrtooovKatTYJVCT1TtoaETEov, ''''/'\'\ \'/ OVyapOELVOVE1TOL YJCTETOELOWJ\OV,aJ\J\a/LLCTYJTOV.0 i"\(}/ / OE1TWc;fLE'YEVVELTaoaLfLOVLa; t:/'i"\\/''"'/ YJfLEVOc;EVCTK01TLYJ,J\EVCTCTWVE1TLOLV01Ta1TOVTOV, Tocrcrove1rtO pwcrKovcrt0EwvvlfiYJXEEc;t1T1TOL. avTWVKOCTfLLK(i>OLaCTTrJfLaTLKaTafLETpli. /'";''.,,'/{3\'i"\/ TLc;OVVOVKavELKOTWc;OLaTYJVV1TEpOJ\ YJVTOVfLE'YE-Oovc;OTLavOLe; oc/JopfLrJCTWCTLVOL i"\(}i"\t:/'/(}'/'// TWVEWVL1T1TOL,OVKEEVpYJCTOVCTLVEVKOCTfL(fJT01TOV; 6V1TEpc/JviiKatTaE1TLTijc;0Eo!Lax[ac;c/JavTacrJ.LaTa CtfLcPLS fLEyac;ovpavoc;0vAV!L1TOc; TE. EOOELCTEVS'V1TEVEp()Ev f.vE.pwv'Ai"owvEvc;, OEtcrac;8'EK()p6vovaATOKatraxE,!LrlOL "' E1TELTa aEvidently Iliad 4.442: 186 Small is the crest that she rears at the first,but behold her thereafter Planting her head in the skies, while she treads with her feet on the earth. ONTHESUBLIME9 somuchasofHomer.aQuiteunlikethisisdescription of Gloom, if indeed we are right in adding the Shield to the list ofworks:h Mucus from her nostrils was running. Hehasmadetheimagenot terrible,but repulsive.But see how Homer magnifies the powers of heaven: Far as a man can see with his eyes in the shadowy distance, Keeping his watch on a hilltop, agazeer the wine-dark ocean, So far leap at a bound the high-neighing horses of heaven.c Heusesacosmicintervaltomeasuretheirstride.So supreme isthe grandeur of this, one might well say that if thehorsesof heaventaketwoconsecutivestridesthere willthen be no place foundforthemin the world.Mar-velloustooisthe picture of hisBattleof the Gods: Blared round about like a trumpet the firmament vast and Olympus; Shuddering down in the depths, the king of the dead, Aldoneus, b Shieldof Heracles267.AristophanesofByzantiumwas amongthe ancient scholars whoregarded theShield asperhaps not Hesiod's, but Apollonius and others took it to be genuine. cIliad 5.770-2. 187 LONGINUS ya'iav IToo-EtDawvf.voo-1-xOwv, ,/ ()""'''()/,../../ OLKta0V1JTOto-tKataavaTOL(Tto/aVt1], \/',///()/ o-p..EpoaAEvpwEvTa,TaTo-TvyEovo-tEot1Tp. ETatp,p..E.vEK a /()""',""' //, fJapwv avTovoEyvp..vovp..EvovTapTapov,ava-' ""'\'/""'/\a / TP01T1JVoOI\OVKatotao-Tao-tvTOVKoo-p..ovAap..fJa-/()',ovTaTo1rpE1rov. yapp..otDoKEt /()""'// Tpavp..aTaEWV/'/()/,../..'','""' oaKpvaoEo-p..a1ra1J1rap..o/vpTa p..Ev1TtTWV 'I'AtaKWVavO oo-ovE1TtTfjDvvap..Et 1T0t1]KEVat, Sa'A'A'rf]p..tvp..E.v Svo-Datp..ovovo-tva1TOKEiTat'Atp..T]vKaKwvo TWV0Ewv8'ovTTJVcpvo-tv,a'A'AaTTJVaTvxiavE1TOt1]-,/\' ""'''()/ 8(T1JatWVtOV.1TOI\V0TWV1TptT1JVEop..axtaV ,/'//'A../',, \\/ \ 1rapa'+'va-LvKaLa AA [ v1reK8avaToLo] 3 f.LEVa-vvEf.L-//{)'!>/e/'{3/,..... 1TL1TTOVTL1TaELTO Eaa-aVLCYEV,TTJOE TOV a-vv()'A.il/JELTO U1TE1TAaa-aTO 1 Manutius: P has a1TEipyEL. 2 OVKOVVa1TELPYEL(omitted by Robortello) may be a gloss on pvKEL(so Ruhnken, Mazzucchi). 3 [ v1TEKOavarot-o]deleted by "G.S.A."(1811). 202 ONTHESUBLIME10 one example of many: He fell on the host asa wave of the sea on a hurry-ing vessel, Rising up under the clouds, a boisterous son of the storm-wind. The good ship is lost in the shroud of the foam,and the breath of the tempest Terribly roars in the sails; and in their heart trem-ble the sailors, By the breadth of a hand swept out from under the jaws of destruction. a Aratus, too, tried to adapt this same idea: Only the tiniest plank now bars them from bitter destruction. b But he has demeaned the idea and made it pretty instead ofawe-inspiring.Moreover,hedismissesthedanger whenhesays,"Theplankbarsthemfromdestruction." Whythen,itkeepsitof(Homer,ontheotherhand, instead of dismissing the danger once and forall,depicts thesailorsasbeingallthetime,againandagain,with every wave on the very brink of death.Moreover, by forc-ingintoanabnormalunionprepositionsnotusually compoundedchehastorturedhislanguageintoconfor-mitywiththeimpendingdisaster,magnificentlyfigured thedisasterbythecompressionofhislanguage,and a Iliad 15.624-8. h Aratus, Phaenomena 299. c I.e.1nreK is a compound of 1nro ('under') and EK('from'). 203 LONGINUS '/,,/,...\/l;,.../' KatfLOVOVOVKEVETV7TWCTEVTYJ EtTOVKLVOVVOVTO /eee'f)/rf..../"'3/ \\e 7tOtWJ.LaV7TEKavaTOtO'YEPOVTat.OVK0 E7TtTovvavayiov,KatE7TtTil1Tpoa-ayye-\IeAf) /tt t/''1'"rf..../ 1\tf!- 0U.'YJfLOCT ECT7TEpafLEVyapTJVo/TJCTtV. '\ \'''C'e 13/'1 al\1\a ox Et7TOtapta-TtVOTJV E7TtCTVVEfJ1]Kav,ovSv3/ \',/ / aCTEfLVOV'YJCTXOI\tKOVOtafLECTOV. \I'""''('/\e',fr/1\VfLatVETatyapTavTaTOOI\OV,wa-avet17 apatWJ.LaTaEfL7TOtOVVTa fLEYEf)TJCTVVOtKOOO-fLOVfLEVa 3 Ti7aA_A_'YJA_aCTXECTEtCTVVTETEtXtCTfLEVa. 11. ECTTtapETTJKat KaAova-tvavfTJa-tv,OTaVDEXOfLEVWVTWV7TpayJ.La-',/' ,/\\' TWVKataywvwvKaTa TE ''/\('/e1'\/ KatETEpaE7TEtCTKVKI\OVfLEVa 2J.Leyf)'rJ E7TEta-ayTJTatKaTaE7TtTaa-tv. 4 TovTo 3/ /3// OEEtTEOtaT07TTJYOptav,.EtTEOEtVWCTtV,'YJ7TpayJ.LaTWV KaTaa-KEvwvE7Ttppwa-tv,EtT'E7TOtKoDofLiav5 pywv T]1rafJwv(J.LvptatyaptOE atTWV yivotTO, '/('/'e1e / XP'YJytvwa-KEtvTovPTJTOpa, ovoevavTov-f)'e'/'('1,fr 1\\'' TWVKaaVTOCTVCTTat'Y]TEI\EtOV,7TI\1]VEt EVapa iliaEVTWV8' 1 add. Ruhnken. 2 add. Roberts. 3 a-vvoLKoDofLOVfLEVaKmarg.,Manutius:Phasa-vvoLKovo-, fLOVfLEVa. 4 E7rtraa-LvWilamowitz, for E7rt{3aa-Lv. 5 E7rotKoDof.LtavK marg., Portus: P has E7rOLKovofLtav. 204 ONTHESUBLIME10-11 almoststampedonthedictionthepreciseformof the danger-''swept out fromunder the jaws of destruction.'=-Comparabletothisisthepassageof Archilochusabout theshipwreckaandthedescriptionof thearrivalof the newsin Demosthenes."Now it wasevening," etc.b What they havedone isto clean up,asit were, the very best of themainpoints,and tofitthem together,allowingnoth-ingaffectedorundignifiedorpedantictointervene. Thesethingsruinthe whole,by introducing,asit were, gapsandcrevicesintomasseswhicharebuilttogether, walled in by their mutual relationships. 11.Closely allied to the merits set out above is what is calledamplification.Wheneverthesubjectmatterand the issuesadmit of several freshstarts and halting-places fromsectiontosection,thenonegreatphraseafter another iswheeled into place with increasing force.This maybedol}eeitherbythedevelopmentof acommon-place,or by exaggeration,or by layingstressonfactsor arguments,or by carefulbuild-upof actionsor feelings. Thereareindeedcountlesskindsof amplification.Still thespeakermustrecognizethatnoneof thesemethods canachieveitsgoalonitsown,withoutsublimity.One may indeed very well make an exception where the effect required isone of commiseration or depreciation,but in aArchilochus frr.105-6 West. b Decorona169:"Now it wasevening,andtherecameone withamessageforthe prytaneis,thatElatea had fallen";there followsa vivid description of the ensuing panic at Athens.Elatea fell to Philip late in 339. 205 LONGINUS 'l:.I'"\ ,,\'',.1.,.1\ aJ\J\WV'Y}TtKWVOTOV1TEpav TOV'fJ'Y}J\OV tPVXTJV yapaTOVEtKat KEVOVTatTOEf.L1TpaKTOVaVTWV1-LTJ vt{lEa-ta-vv-3E1TtppwvVVf.LEVOV.iJf.LEVTOL(napEtTOV ELp'Y}-f.LEVOVTUVVV1TapayyEAAOf.LEVa( 1TEptypaTjyap EKEtVOTWVaKpwvA'YJf.Lf.LaTWVKatEVOT'Y}Taa-vv-KatTLVtKa86'A.ovTWVavtrr}a-EWV1Tapa'A'AaTTEt TUvtfi'YJ, EVEKa(nopt-I a-TEOV. 12. f.LEVoilvTWVTExvoypawv Ef.LOty'OVK 'I (;I',./.,.I\II{} aEa-Tt,'Paa-t, f.LEYE 1TEpt-{} 'I'"\II''1\' Tt OVVaTatyapaf.LEJ\EtKat KatKatTp01TWVElvatE1TEtDTjKaKEtva 'Aoy([)1TEptTL8'Y}a-t1TOtOVTt EjLOt8II'''I',....e'(}(} yapOV'TtfLEyaTOaywvtO"fLa,TOtOVTOVV7TOTtEO"at 1"\ \'I''()'', 'TWVtOtWV1\0'YWVOtKaO"TYJptOVKatEarpovKatEV \/) where Seven resistless captains o'er a shield Black-bound with hide have slit a bullock's throat, And dipped their fingers in the bullock's blood, Swearing a mighty oath by War and Havoc And Panic, bloodshed's lover _b and all pledge themselves to each other to die ~ ~ a p a r tfrom pity,"andthoughhesometimesintroducesunworked ideas,all woolly,asit were,and tangled,Euripides' com-petitivenessleadshimalsotoembarkonthesameper-ilous path.Aeschylus uses a startling phrase of Lycurgus's palace,magically possessed at theappearanceof Diony-sus, The palace is possessed, the roof turns bacchanal. c Euripidesexpressedthesameidea differently,softening it down, And all the mountain Turned bacchanal with them.d TrojanHorse;if so,"horse-loving"isanapttaunt.Presumably Longinus means us to recall more of the speech than these open-ingwords.bSevenagainstThebes42-6:"apartfrompity" comesfromthesame passage(51).cAeschylusfr.58Radt, fromthe Lycurgeia, the trilogy dealing with