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ἄλγος, nom., sc.ἐστί”: παρ᾽ οὐδέν,

adv.: ‘is a pain in no appreciable degree,’ is a pain not worth a thought: as he might have said, “οὐδαμοῦ ἄλγος ἐστί”. The normal use of “παρ᾽ οὐδέν”, ‘of no account,’ is either (a) with the verb “εἶναι”, as O. T. 982ταῦθ᾽ ὅτῳ παρ᾽ οὐδέν ἐστι”, or (b) with a verb meaning ‘to esteem,’ as above, v. 34, “τὸ πρᾶγμ᾽ ἄγειν οὐχ ὡς παρ᾽ οὐδέν”. The only peculiarity here is that, instead of a word in the general sense, ‘is esteemed’ (“ἄγεται”), we have a virtual equivalent, tinged with the special thought of the moment, viz., ‘is a pain.’ Exactly so in El. 1327 we have “πότερα παρ᾽ οὐδὲν τοῦ βίου κήδεσθ᾽ ἔτι”, instead of “πότερα παρ᾽ οὐδὲν τὸν βίον ἄγετε”. Thus the suspicions as to the genuineness of “παρ᾽ οὐδὲν ἄλγος” are illusory.

ἀλλ᾽ ἄν. For the position of “ἄν” (to which objection has been taken) cp. El. 333ἀλγῶ 'πὶ τοῖς παροῦσιν: ὥστ᾽ ἄν, εἰ σθένος λάβοιμι, δηλώσαιμ᾽ ἂν οἷ᾽ αὐτοῖς φρονῶ”: ib. 439ἀρχὴν δ᾽ ἄν, εἰ μὴ τλημονεστάτη γυνὴ πασῶν ἔβλαστε, τάσδε δυσμενεῖς χοὰς οὐκ ἄν ποθ᾽, ὅν γ᾽ ἔκτεινε, τῷδ᾽ ἐπέστεφε”.


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hide References (4 total)
  • Commentary references from this page (4):
    • Sophocles, Electra, 1327
    • Sophocles, Electra, 333
    • Sophocles, Electra, 439
    • Sophocles, Oedipus Tyrannus, 982
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