E.C. Marchant, Commentary on Thucydides: Book 3

αὐτῶν—vaguely referring to the ill deeds previously described. προυτολμήθη—προ- denotes before the rest of Greece.

καὶ ὁπόσα—the καί is probably answered by οἴ τε μή κτλ. below. The first clause requires ἄν, which has perhaps fallen out either after ὁπόσα or δράσειαν.

ὑπὸ τῶν . . παρασχόντων with ἀρχόμενοι. Hitherto they have been ruled oppressively by those who now give opportunity for revenge. Instead of παρασχόντων something like ἤδη παρεχόντων seems required. The oligarchs are meant.

διὰ πάθους . . ἔχειν—there has been much discussion of these words. τινες and μάλιστα δ᾽ seem to show that διὰ πάθους must be intended as a contrast to πενίας . . ἀπαλλαξείοντες, passion versus sheer poverty. But πάθος=‘emotion’ or ‘passion’ occurs nowhere else before Aristotle: in Thuc. it=‘a disaster.’ (To take τὰ τῶν πέλας as equivalent to τοὺς πέλας, and διὰ πάθους ἔχειν like δι᾽ ὀργῆς ἔχειν does not get over the difficulty, and does not yield a proper contrast.)

ἐπὶ πλεονεξίᾳ—i.e prompted by oppression, poverty or downright passion

ἀπὸ ἴσου—‘on equal terms’ with their adversaries already. Only here in Thuc. in place of ἀπὸ τοῦ ἴσου.

ἐπέλθοιεν—sc. ἄν from the previous sentences. The omission is rather awkward and unusual in so long a sentence.

ὠμῶς and

ἀπαραιτήτως only here in Thuc.