[328] ἐγὼ δ᾽ οὐ μή ποτε ἐκφήνω τὰ ἐμὰ (ὡς ἂν μὴ εἴπω τὰ σὰ) κακά I will never reveal my (not to call them thy) griefs. τὰ ἐμὰ κακά,= those secrets touching Oedipus which lie heavy on the prophet's soul: τὰ σὰ κακά, those same secrets in their import for Oedipus. We might render ὡς ἂν εἴπω μὴ τὰ σ᾽ either (i) as above, or (ii) “in order that I may not utter thy griefs.” But (i) is preferable for these reasons: —(1) The subjunct. εἴπω with μή was familiar in such phrases. Plat. Rep. 487d “τοὺς μὲν πλείστους καὶ πάνυ ἀλλοκότους γιγνομένους, ἵνα μὴ παμπονήρως εἴπωμεν,” “becoming very strange persons, —not to use a more unqualified epithet”: Plat. Rep. 507d “οὐδ᾽ ἄλλαις πολλαῖς, ἵνα μὴ εἴπω ὅτι οὐδεμιᾷ, τοιούτου προσδεῖ οὐδενός,” i.e. few, —not to say none: Plat. Hippias Min. 372d “τοιοῦτός εἰμι οἷός πέρ εἰμι, ἵνα μηδὲν ἐμαυτὸν μεῖζον εἵπω,”—to say nothing more of myself. The substitution of ὡς ἂν for the commoner ἵνα in no way alters the meaning. For ὡς ἂν μή, cp. Aristoph. Birds 1508 “τουτὶ ... τὸ σκιάδειον ὑπέρεχε ι ἄνωθεν, ὡς ἂν μή μ᾽ ἴδωσιν οἱ θεοί.” For ὡς ἂν εἴπω μὴ instead of ὡς ἂν μὴ εἴπω, cp. 255, Soph. Phil. 66 “εἰ δ᾽ ἐργάσει ι μὴ ταῦτα.” Soph. OC 1365 “εἰ δ᾽ ἐξέφυσα τάσδε μὴ 'μαυτῷ τροφούς.” Hdt. 7.214 “εἰδείη γὰρ ἂν καὶ ἐὼν μὴ Μηλιεὺς ... τὴν ἀτραπόν.” (2) The emphatic position of τἄμ᾽ suits this version. (3) ἐκφήνω is more forcible than εἴπω. If the meaning were, “I will not reveal my griefs, in order that I may not mention (εἴπω) thy griefs,” the clauses would be ill-balanced. See Appendix, n. on vv. 328 f.
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