κακογείτονα=“κακῶν” (or “κακοῖς”) “γείτονα”, a neighbour to his sufferings: i.e., one to be near him while he suffers. The word does not imply (as some have objected), ‘a neighbour in (i.e., sharing in) his sufferings.’ Nor is there any ground for saying that “κακογείτων” could mean only “κακὸς γείτων”. Compounds to which “κακός” gives the first part are of two classes, according as the “κακο-” element is (1) adj. or (2) subst. In class (1) there are again two types. (a) The commonest is that of “κακόβιος”, =“κακὸν βίον ἔχων”: i.e., the compound denotes ‘possessing’ the subst. as qualified by “κακός”. (b) A rarer, chiefly poet., type is that of “Κακοΐλιος” as simply=“κακὴ Ἴλιος”. In class (2) (a) the “κακο-” is most often equiv. to the subst. “κακόν” or “κακά” in the acc., governed by a verb: as “κακοποιός”=“κακὰ ποιῶν”. (b) But sometimes this “κακο-” represents a gen. or dat., depending on another noun: thus “κακόμαντις”, ‘prophet of evil’ ( Aesch. Pers. 10 etc.)=“κακῶν μάντις”. Cratinus used “κακόδουλος” as = “κακὸς δούλοις” (‘cruel to slaves’), “Θρᾷτται” fr. 7. And so “κακογείτων” could belong either to (1) b,= “κακὸς γείτων”: or, as it actually does here, to (2) b, “κακῶν γείτων”. Cp. “ἁλιγείτων, ἀστρογείτων, ἀστυγείτων”. The schol. joined κακογείτονα as epithet with στόνον: “παρ᾽ ᾧ δὴ τὸν κακὸν γείτονα, τὸν αἱματηρὸν στόνον, ἀποκλαύσειε”. And so Cavallin. Bugge, again, takes κακογείτονα as a subst., ‘his evil neighbour’ (i.e. ‘his disease’),—governed by “στόνον ...ἀποκλαύσειε”: comparing El. 123“τάκεις ...οἰμωγὰν” | ...“Ἀγαμέμνονα”.
This text is part of:
Sophocles: The Plays and Fragments, with critical notes, commentary, and translation in English prose. Part IV: The Philoctetes. Sir Richard C. Jebb. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press. 1932.
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