τῶν γὰρ ἡμαρτημένων: “"there are remedies for the faults committed (i.e. if Oed. will return to Thebes with Polyneices), while there is no possibility of adding to them."” In this appeal for pardon, the “"faults"” most naturally mean those committed by the speaker; but the vague phrase which he has chosen permits the thought that there have been errors on both sides. προσφορὰ implies at once a confession and an assurance: the son has behaved as ill as possible; he could not, even if he would, add to his offence. Hartung's ἀναφορά could not mean what he intends, “"there is no possibility of recalling the past,"” but only, “"there is no possibility of referring the blame elsewhere,"”—of putting it on other shoulders.
This text is part of:
Sophocles: The Plays and Fragments, with critical notes, commentary, and translation in English prose. Part II: The Oedipus Coloneus. Sir Richard C. Jebb. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press. 1899.
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