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

προθεῖναι—of the orators.

πιστήν—‘hope relying on (the speaker's) eloquence,’ is contrasted with ‘hope gained by bribery (of the speaker),’ cf. c. 38, 2; one speaker's eloquence, another's venality, may prompt him to take up the cause of Lesbos.

ξυγγνώμην ἁμαρτεῖν ἀνθρωπίνως λήψονται—‘that they will be excused for having erred humanly,’ i.e. through human frailty not deliberately: πῶς ἂν τό γ᾽ ἄκον πρᾶγμ᾽ ἂν εἰκότως ψέγοις; Soph. OC. 977. 4

ἄκοντες—the οὐ applies to this also, but is attracted to the verb.

ξύγγνωμον = ξυγγνώμης ἄξιον, as also, perhaps, in IV. 98, but not elsewhere.

τότε—supply διεμαχεσάμην (the same idiom in I. 86 and VI. 60). But μὴ λύειν τὰ π., which came into question only in the second meeting, causes some difficulty. We must assume either (1) that the sentence is developed as it proceeds, μὴ λύειν τὰ π. not being supplied with τότε, or else, (2) that πρῶτον (διεμαχεσάμην) means that Cleon had already in the previous meeting seen that there would be an agitation for revision. (I prefer the second solution. Brevity would excuse προδεδογμένα as applied to a vote to be passed. The voting at the first meeting must have been close; and c. 36, 3 suggests anxiety about getting it carried out. Krüger had noticed that τότε πρῶτον is unsatisfactory according to the usual explanation: I think there must be a point in πρῶτον, as in Aristoph. Eq. 339 πρῶτα διαμαχοῦμαι.）

ἐπιεικείᾳ—‘generosity,’ ‘consideration for others.’

τοὺς ὁμοίους—variously rendered as ‘like minded,’ or ‘situated as we are,’ i.e. equals, not subjects. For the latter, it is claimed that ἐξ ἀνάγκης points to unwilling subjects; and sentiment so arrogant might well be attributed to Cleon.

ἕξουσι . . ἀγῶνα—sarcastic, implying ‘if they must have their ἀγών’; cf. c. 38, 4.

καὶ μή — there is implied prohibition, hence μή The choice of the constr. is no doubt influenced by the previous καὶ μή.

τὸ παθεῖν εὖ—the excellent return they will get is a bribe from the Mytilenaeans. It appears that a few years later Cleon himself was said to have made something out of the troubles of Mytilene.

καὶ τὸ λοιπόν—‘in the future as in the past.’

ὁμοίως . . ὑπολειπομένους—the conjecture ὁμοίως seems to be clearly right. Even when ὁμοίους is rendered ‘consistent’ and taken as pred, with ὑπολειπομένους, it remains very awkward that ἐπιτηδείους and πολεμίους imply ἡμῖν, whereas ὁμοίους must imply ἑαυτούς. The previous ὁμοίους used in a quite different sense in this series of closely connected sentences is against the adj. ὁμοίως τε καὶ οὐδὲν ἧσσον is a Thucydidean way of saying ‘just as must as before.’

πειθόμενοι μέν—the steps of the argument, which is difficult to follow to ἀνδραγαθίζεσθαι and has given rise to much discussion, are as follows: (1) if you punish M., you will act as Justice and Interest alike demand; (2) it may be said that Justice is on their side and against you (εἰ γάρ); (3) even if it is, you must follow the dictates of Interest (εἰ δὲ δή).

οὐ χαριεῖσθε—because they will still hate you.

δικαιώσεσθε—‘you will punish yourselves’ (instead of them) by proclaiming to all that you have no right to exert authority. εἰ γάρ—γάρ does not introduce the reason for the preceding statement, but = ‘it is true that,’ as in c. 43, 5 (Stahl in Rhein. Mus. 1901). οὐ χρεών is acc. abs. On the form of condition (cf. I. 38, VI. 92) Goodwin points out that it is “a perfectly natural combination, each part having its proper force.” If they were justified, you must have no right to your empire: εἰ δὲ δὴ . . κολάζεσθαι (mid ) proceeds on this assumption. If you persist in ruling (τοῦτο δρᾶν), even though you have no right to do so, then your interests require that you punish them, as you have others. The only alternative (ἤ=‘otherwise’) is, you must give up empire; you must run no risks (ἐκ τοῦ ἀκινδύνου=ἀκινδύνως) and play an honourable part.

παύεσθαι . . ἀνδραγαθίξεσθαι — Cleon echoes words attributed to Pericles at II. 63. ἀνδραγαθίζομαι was, it would seem, in use among the aristocrats who favoured a peace policy; cf. for the noun with ‘a political or social reference’ c. 57, 1, 64, 4 (Neil, Append. to Aristoph. Eq.).

τῇ τε αὐτῇ ζημίᾳ—viz. as that by which τά τε δίκαια . . καὶ τὰ ξύμφορα ποιήσετε—the one I recommend. (a) This is usually explained, after the schol., ‘the same that they would have inflicted on you had they succeeded.’ But (1) it is unlikely that ζημία would be used without explanation, of the destruetion Mytilene had sought to bring on Athens: and (2) τῇ αύτῇ can only be so explained by the assumption that the sentence, simple in form, is strangely confused in thought. We need such an addition as in II. 67 τοῖς αὐτοῖς ἀμύνεσθαι οἶσπερ καὶ . . ὑπῆρξαν. (b) Steup explains ‘the same as you agreed to yesterday,’ but this seems a strange way of saying ‘uphold your decision.’ Also the reference in τῇ αὐτῇ should be found in the context immediately preceding; c. 62 τῇ μέντοι αὐτῇ ἰδέᾳ. VII 39, 1. The reference in the version given above is. it is true. a little remote. but εἰ δὲ δὴ . . ἀνδραγαθίζεσθαι is practically parenthetical.

οἱ διαφεύγοντες—cf. οἱ διαβάλλοντες c. 4, οἱ ἐπαγόμενοι II. 2, οἱ προδιδόντες II. 5. The temporal force is lost, and the partic. becomes a substantive. But the plot is referred to in aorist, as having preceded the escape.

ἐπεξέρχονται καὶ διολλύναι—‘follow up (the wrong they inflict) even to the length of destroying their enemy utterly.’ The MSS. have διόλλυνται, which can only yield a very artificial sense. Their own utter destruction is not what they seek. The inf. is of purpose.

ὑφορώμενοι ‘eyeing with misgiving.’ All edd. refer to the famous ‘odisse quem laeseris’ of Tac. for the sentiment.

ὁ γὰρ . . παθών—this applies to Athens, which has been attacked ἄνευ προφάσεως. ‘He who has been injured needlessly is more dangerous when he has escaped (the plot to destroy him), than an enemy on equal terms,’ i.e. where equal offence has been given on both sides. Mytilene knew Athens would be implacable if she escaped.

γενόμενοι . . τῇ γνώμῃ—‘place yourselves in thought as near (the moment of) the injury as possible, and (think) how.’ γ. τῇ γνώμῃ=διανοηθέντες (I. 143). (Possibly τότ᾽ is lost after παντός.) 44

ἀνταπόδοτε ‘repay.’ Cf. “Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord: I will repay.”

πρὸς τὸ παρὸν αὐτίκα with μαλακισθέντες, ‘at their present plight,’ for τὸ αὐτίκα παρόν: the position of the adv. is not very rare in tragedy, e.g. Aesch. PV. 1013 τῷ φρονοῦντι μὴ καλῶς (Jebb on Soph. OT. 1294). Here αὐτίκα gains emphasis in contrast with ποτέ by its position. For the pleonasm edd. compare I. 95 ἐν τῷ τύτε παρόντι, I. 123 τῶν ἔπειτα μελλόντων. (παραυτίκα has been conjectured for παρὸν αὐτίκα, and τότε for ποτέ.) 48

παράδειγμα σαφὲς καταστήσατε . . ζημιωσόμενον—for the partic., as with δηλοῦν, δῆλον or φανερὸν ποιεῖν, cf. Soph. El. 24 σαφῆ σημεῖα φαίνεις ἐσθλὸς εἰς ἡμᾶς γεγώς. τόδε—ὅδε referring to what precedes, as often in speeches.