FRIEDRICH De Theognide Megarensi - The Nietzsche Channel · PREFACE The work presented here is a...

FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE

DeTheognideMegarensi

Nietzsche on Theognis of Megara

A Bilingual Edition Translated by R. M. Kerr

T H ET H E N I E T Z S C H EN I E T Z S C H E C H A N N E LC H A N N E L

Friedrich Nietzsche

De Theognide Megarensi

Nietzsche on Theognis of MegaraA bilingual edition

Translated by R. M. Kerr

editio electronica

_________________________________________T H E N I E T Z S C H E C H A N N E L M M X V

Copyright Proprietas interpretatoris Roberti Martini Kerrii

anno 2015Omnia proprietatis iura reservantur et vindicantur.

Imitatio prohibita sine auctoris permissione. Non licet pecuniam expetere pro aliquo, quod

partem horum verborum continet; liber pro omnibus semper gratuitus erat et manet.

Sic rerum summa novatur semper, et inter se mortales mutua vivunt.

augescunt aliae gentes, aliae invuntur, inque brevi spatio mutantur saecla animantum

et quasi cursores vitai lampada tradiunt.

- Lucretius - - de Rerum Natura, II 75-9 -

PREFACE

The work presented here is a translation of FriedrichNietzsches Valediktionsarbeit (school exit-thesis) forthe Landesschule Pforta in Schulpforta (Saxony-Anhalt)presented on September 7th 1864. It has hitherto largelygone unnoticed, especially in anglophone Nietzsche stud-ies. At the time though, the work helped to establish thereputation of the then twenty year old Nietzsche andconsiderably facilitated his later academic career. By allaccounts, it was a considerable achievement, especiallyconsidering when it was written: it entailed an expertknowledge, not just of classical-philological literature,but also of codicology. The recent judgement by JENSEN(2014:99): It is a piece that, had Nietzsche never writtenanother word, would have assured his place, albeit quitea small one, in the history of German philology sums thematter up quite eloquently.

Nietzsche later continued his Theognis studies, thesubject of his first scholarly article, as a student atLeipzig, in 1867 to some extent a summary of thepresent work a critical review in 1869, as well as quotesin several letters from 1864 on. An adroit summary ofNietzsches views on Theognis can be found in KGW I/3,Sommer 1864 18[4], 469f. (translation taken from NIETZ-SCHE 1998:133): Theognis appears as a finely formed no-bleman who has fallen on bad times, with the passions ofa nobleman such as his time loved, full of fatal hatred to-ward the upward striving masses, tossed about by a sadfate that wore him down and made him milder in manyrespects. He is a characteristic image of that old, ingeni-ous somewhat spoiled and no longer firmly rooted bloodnobility, placed at the boundary of an old and a new era,a distorted Janus-head, since what is past seems so beau-tiful and enviable, that which is coming something thatbasically has an equal entitlement seems disgustingand repulsive; a typical head for all those noble figureswho represent the aristocracy prior to a popular revolu-tion and who struggle for the existence of the class ofnobles as for their individual existence.

Interestingly, the present work demonstrates howmany of Nietzsches later views and preoccupations werealready espoused by the adolescent: most noteworthy, the

birth of the young genealogist of morals the notions ofgood and bad are defined in relation to types of indi-vidual. Nonetheless, the view of nobility espoused byNietzsche seems somewhat anachronistic for Theognisand the former would furthermore seem to blame thenobles for their own moral degradation. However, a longscholarly introduction, besides well exceeding the abilit-ies and expertise of the undersigned, seems unwarranted,especially due to the recent publication of the finevolume edited by JENSEN HEITH, above all the afore-mentioned contribution. Those with a serious interest inthe subject matter will do well to also consult the transla-tions and commentaries of NEGRI (1985) and WOLLEK(2010), which were also occasionally consulted in the pre-paration of the present work.

The Latin and Greek text is that of the state of the artcritical edition (COLLI MONTINARI 2006). The translationattempts to follow Nietzsche's rather cumbersome Latinquite closely, and claims no literary merits. Naturally, theEnglish rendering is not envisaged as a replacement forthe Latin original, which is therefore also presented here.The Greek text of Theognis was also translated by the un-dersigned, whereby some attempt was made to renderthese passages as they were understood by Nietzsche. Al-though the current critical edition of the Theognidea(WEST 1989) was consulted, the text used by Nietzschehas been retained. With regard to questions concerningTheognis and the elegies attributed to him, SELLE (2008)should be consulted.

Originally the present volume was intended as a con-tribution to a more ambitious project. This has since thenproven infeasible. The undersigned decided thence tomake the translation available in this form, as this oftenoverlooked work is of pivotal interest in the study ofNietzsche, and his thinking, and certainly worthy of awider audience. Especially in this day and age, in whicheducation has increasingly become a contentless busi-ness, where routinely mindless administrators and man-agers, apotheosised thaumavores, are often hailed as thenew profits of financialisation, the labour of an admit-tedly talented teenager but a century and a half ago hasshockingly become largely unintelligible. One can onlyimagine what Theognis and Nietzsche might have madeof our current institutions of learning.

It remains for me to thanks some friends for their kindassistance in the preparation of this work: Scott Galimoreand David Porreca (both of Waterloo ON) were kindenough to read previous drafts and correct numerous in-accuracies. Renato Cristi (also of Waterloo) was a tirelesscommentator in the early stages of the project. I am fur-thermore most indebted to The Nietzsche Channelwhich was most gracious in its willingness to host thispublication. Naturally, none of the above are culpable forthe remaining shortcomings.

Robert Martin KerrErm/Drenthe

February 2015

Bibliography

COLLI MONTINARI 2006: G. Colli M. Montinari (edd.),Friedrich Nietzsche: De Theognide Megarensi, Kriti-sche Gesamtausgabe (KGW), Vol. I 3 (Berlin: de Gruy-ter): 420-462.

JENSEN, A. K. 2014: Nietzsche's Valediction and First Art-icle: The Theognidea in Jensen Heith 2014: 99-114.

JENSEN HEITH 2014: A. K. Jensen H. Heith (edd.),Nietzsche as a Scholar of Antiquity (New York: Blooms-bury).

NEGRI 1985: A. Negri, Friedrich Nietzsche. Teognide di Me-gara (Rome: Laterza).

NIETZSCHE 1867: F. Nietzsche, Zur Geschichte der Theog-nideischen Spruchsammlung, Rheinisches Museum frPhilologie 22: 161-200.

NIETZSCHE 1869: F. Nietzsche, Theognidis Elegi. E codi-cibus Mutinensi, Veneto 522 Vaticano 915, ed. Christo-phorus Ziegler [Tbingen: Laupp, 1868] in Literari-sches Centralblatt fr Deutschland, Nr. 6: 144.

NIETZSCHE 1998: F. Nietzsche, On the Genealogy of Mor-ality: A Polemic. Translated by M. Clark A. J.Swensen (Cambridge MA: Hackett).

SELLE 2008: H. Selle, Theognis und die Theognidea (Berlin:de Gruyter).

WEST 21989: M. L. West, Iambi et elegi Grci ante Alexan-drum cantati Vol. 1 (Oxford: Clarendon Press).

WOLLEK 2010: Ch. Wollek, Die lateinischen Texte des Sch-lers Nietzsche (Marburg: Tectum).

Nietzsche, De Theognide Megarensi

De Theognide Megarensi

I. De Theognidis et de Megarensium illa tate rebus.1. Conversiones reipublic Megarensium sexto sculo

adumbrantur.2. Theognidis vit anni computando explorantur.3. Singuli ejus vit casus e carminibus ipsius possunt co-

gnosci. 54. Welckerus Theognidis vitam in alium ordinem redigit.

II. De Theognidis carminibus.5. De ejus carminum Fortuna et de veterum judiciis.6. Recentiorum hominum de Theognidea poesi judicia.7. Theognis carminibus ad Cyrnum compositis non in-

scripsit: .8. H elegi non sunt composit certa et circumscripta 5

vit ejus parte.9. Theognis his elegiis affectus animique sensus exprimit,

nunquam vero agit ut prcepta more magistri det.10. Item carmina convivalia non sunt ad certam ejus vit

partem referenda. 1011. De quibusdam Theognide poeseos artibus.12. Argumenta convivalium carminum exponuntur.13. De Cyrno et de elegiis ad eum compositis.

III. Theognidis de deis, de moribus, de rebus publicis opinio-nes examinantur.

14. Qui factum sit, ut ejus de rebus publicis, de deis, dehominibus arctis vinculis inter se cohrerent opinio-nes?

15. Quibus in rebus nobilium Grci dignitas et auctori- 5tas sit posita.

16. Theognis num in opinionibus etiam in omnium rerumcommutatione sibi constiterit?

17. Quibus ex indiciis conici possit Theognidem senem asuis pristinis judiciis aliquid recessisse? 10

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On Theognis of Megara

I. On the conditions of Theognis and Megara at that time.1. The revolutions in the city-state of Megara in the sixth cen-

tury are described.2. The age of Theognis is calculated.3. Some events from his life can be identified in his poems.4. Welcker has described the life of Theognis differently.

II. On the poems of Theognis.5. The fate of his poems and the judgement of the Ancients.6. The judgement of later critics on Theognis poetry.7. Theognis did not superscript the poems written for Cyrnus

with maxims.8. The elegies were not written at a certain or particular moment 5

of his life.9. Through these elegies, Theognis expresses moods and feel-

ings, but he never gives advice in the manner of a teacher.10. In the same fashion, the drinking songs can also not be at-

tributed to a specific period of his life. 1011. Some techniques of Theognis poetry.12. Traits of the drinking songs are portrayed.13. Cyrnus and the elegies written for him.

III. Theognis views about gods, morals and states are investigated.14. Why is it that his opinions about states, gods and people are

closely interconnected?15. In what with regard to Greek nobility lie the roots of dignity

and respect?16. Did Theognis remain true to his beliefs when he redefined 5

all values?17. From which signs can one determine that the agedTheognis

departed from his previous convictions?

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Fr. Th. Welcker,1 qui in qustionibus Theognideis adhucsuo jure primum obtinet locum, cum princeps carminibustransponendis et in meliorem ordinem digerendis operamdedit, tum diligentissime omnibus veterum testimoniis, spe 15disjectis et discrepantibus, collatis summaque cum sagacitateperquisitis, his ejectis, illis correctis, accuratius et rectiusquam priores editores et de genereTheognide poeseos et depoet temporibus Megarensiumque civitate judicavit. Quasqustiones ne quis a viro doctissimo jam absolutas credat 20et eo deductas, ut fere nihil novum adici possit: unum illudmonendum est usque ad id temporis certamen philologorumprcipue de ratione critica, qu ad Theognidem adhibendasit, non esse compositum, ita ut rectissime Bernhardy2 inqustionibus Theognideis latum patere et examinandi et 25conjiciendi campum dixerit.

Atque ctera Welckero me assentiri non abnuerim, sedilla duo vereor ut ei possim concedere: unum quod de Theo-gnidis vita e carminibus perspicienda dixit, qua in re nescio anmultum certius et rectius possit statui, alterum quodTheogni- 30di magnam partem carminum, qu hodie ejus nomine feran-tur, inprimis omnia carmina convivalia et potoria abjudican-da esse censuit atque omnino genus ejus poeseos esse gnomi-cum plerumque demonstrare studuit. Prterea nemo, quoadsciam, quanti momenti esset Theognis ad ethicam rationem 35ejus tatis cognoscendam, exponere conatus est, quamquamin hac re Welckeri vestigia erant sequenda, qui summoperein his qustionibus versatus primus de usu verborum et civili novam rectamque protulit sententiam.

Quare mihi primum tempora Theognidis civitatisque 40Megarensium statum perscrutari liceat: dein de Theognidisscriptis qurendum est; eorum genuinum nomen, formam,argumentum accuratius opus est examinemus: deniqueethic rationis ejus tatis, qua floruerit poeta, ex illiuscarminibus explorand faciam periculum. 45

Cum vero me vix in litterarum quasi limine versantempudor quidam deterreat, quominus cum viro prstantissimo

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Friedrich Theodore Welcker rightfully takes first place in ques-tions regarding Theognis. He was the first to translate the poems,to order them in a better sequence, especially because he collected 10many, often scattered and contradictory testimonies. He studiedthese with great astuteness, discarding some and improving oth-ers. He judged more accurately and correctly the style of Theog-nis poetry, the times of the poet and the citizens of Megara. Al-though these questions have been answered by that most learned 15man, nobody would believe that no new contributions can be made.One need only remember the dispute of philologists concerning the[proper] procedure of [textual] criticism to be applied to Theognis[scil. his works]. This has not been solved, as Bernhardy has rightlypointed out, and with regard to the problems pertaining to Theog- 20nis work, he noted that it was a field [open] to research and con-jecture.

I should not deny that I will generally concur with Welcker, butI fear that there are two points in which I am unable to agree withhim. Firstly, with regard to what can be determined about the life of 25Theognis from his poems -- I do not doubt that it is possible to gleanmore certain and correct information. Second, Welcker denies theauthorship of a large part ofTheognis poems, especially nearly all ofthe convivial and drinking anthems; he also attempts to show thatthis type of poetry is generally gnomic. Moreover, no one, to my 30knowledge, has attempted to demonstrate how important Theognisis for understanding the ethical thinking of his time, although hintsof this line of inquiry can be found in Welcker, who, well versed inthese questions, was the first to propose a new and correct inter-pretation concerning the political use of the terms good and bad. 35

Therefore firstly the times of Theognis and the condition of thecitizenry of Megara are to be investigated; then it will be necessaryto examine the form and argument of Theognis writings; finally, Iwill attempt to distill the ethical ideas in the period of the poetsfloruit by means of his poems. 40

Although a certain fear inhibits me who is hardly on thethreshold of scholarship from competing with a distinguished

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certare eique in pluribus rebus adversari audeam: nihil habereme profiteor, quo me excusem, nisi illud quod ei, qui meumin Theognide studium excitavit, gratias ita referre studeo, ut 50ejus viam, quam princeps ingressus sit, intento animo sequaret ubi deflectere mihi visa sit, modeste consignem.

I DeTheognidis et de Megarensium illius ta-te rebus.

1. Etiam in Megarensium civitate, ut in fere omnibus Doriumcivitatibus, nobiles, penes quos imperium sacrorumque ad-ministratio erat, incolas antiquitus in his finibus insedentes 55et remotos ab urbe et paupertate pressos incultosque tenue-rant. Sed paulatim cum Megarensium mercatura magis efflo-resceret coloniis in uberrimis regionibus conditis, e quibuset opes et luxus ad originem redundarunt: dissensiones interoptumates et plebem exort sunt, unde factum est utTheage- 60nes multitudine adjutus, cujus animos sibi conciliaverat, re-rum potiretur, eadem astutia usus, qua fere omnes tyranni usisunt. Arist. rhet. 1, 2, 19.3 Polit. V, 4, 5.4 Si vero quo temporeid factum sit, qurimus, nihil omnino pro certo haberi po-test nisi eum tyrannidem exercuisse, cum Cylon Athenis re- 65gnum adfectasset.5 Neque constat, quo anno ab optumatibusexpulsus sit, quamquam id verisimile est factum esse cirann sexcent a. C. n.

Cum vero in hoc sextum sculum major vit Theognidispars inciderit, primum opus est testimonia veterum colliga- 70mus, quibus de rerum Megarensium eo tempore statu aliquidadferatur: qu scilicet pauca et parva sunt.

Anno 570 bellum, quod inter Athenienses et Megaren-ses de insula Salamine exarserat et ancipiti eventu gestumerat, ita finitum est, ut utraque civitas Spartanos arbitros su- 75merent; qui concilio e quinque viris composito hanc insulamAtheniensibus adtribuerunt, quamquam Megarenses et san-guine eis propiores et simili reipublic gerend genere cumeis erant conjuncti.

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I. ON THE CONDITIONS OF THEOGNIS AND THE MEGARIANS AT THAT TIME.

man and contradicting him on many points; in my defence, I notethat it is my way of expressing gratitude to the person who inspiredme to the study of Theognis: by following the path he first took 45and reporting humbly where, in my opinion, a new direction seemsappropriate.

I On the conditions of Theognis and theMegarians at that time.

1. Among the citizenry of Megara as with nearly every com-munity of the Dorians the power and the administration of the 50sacrawas controlled by the nobility who since time immemorial hadkept the indigenous inhabitants out of the city by means of oppres-sion and ignorance. Gradually though, due to the colonies foun-ded in fertile regions from which riches and luxuries flowed backto the metropolis, dissension appeared between the optimates and 55the plebeians. That is what enabled Theagenes to gain power withthe help of the multitude whose mind he had won over, whereby heemployed that shrewdness which nigh all tyrants make use of (cf.Aristotle Rhetorics i, 2, 19; Politics 5, 4, 5). If, however, we were toask ourselves when this happened, nothing is certain except that he 60established the tyranny after Cylon of Athens had obtained power.It is also not certain in which year he was expelled by the optimates,although this was probably around 600 bc.

Since it is in this sixth century that most of Theognis life tran-spired, it is first of all necessary to collect the testimonies of the An- 65cients who provide us with information on the condition of Megarain this period. These, however, are but few and brief.

In 570 the war between Athens and Megara over the island ofSalamis was kindled and brought to an indecisive end. It was agreedby both cities that Sparta should be chosen as an arbitrator. Sparta, 70by means of a council of five men, allotted the island to Athens,although theMegariansweremore related to Salamis both qua bloodand with regard to the administration of public affairs.

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Anno 559 quem statuunt Clinton6 et Raoul-Rochette7 80Megarenses coloniam Heracleam Ponticam8 deduxerunt: ubicum multa alia ex Dorium institutis, tum phyl eodem mo-do, quo erant Megar, divis videntur demonstrare, id quodconjecit Pla de tyrannide I, 84,9 post expulsum Theagenemmajorem partem optumatium a popularibus vexatam e fini- 85bus migrasse et novas sedes qusivisse. Fortasse hac rationealiquamdiu animi sedati sunt, cum plebs tot nobiles e patriacessisse vidisset.

Summi veromomenti sunt tres loci Plutarchi et Aristotelisquos describamus opus est. 90

Plut.Qust. Gr. 18. -, : 1 , , - 95 : , . -, , .

Arist. pol. v, 4, 3. - 100 : , -, , , - . V, 2, 6. . 105

iv, 12, 10. , , .

Ex his locis apparet haud multo post Theagenem expul- 110sum optumatium cum plebejis novum exortum esse certa-men vel ut accuratius dicam, divitum cum pauperibus, cumTheagene imperium obtinente multi viderentur divitias asse-

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In 559, according to Clinton and Rochette, the Megariansfounded the colony of Heraclea Pontica. Here, like in many other 75Dorian colonial foundations, they divided the phylae as theywere in Megara which seems to indicate as Pla (Tyrannus I, 84)conjectured, that, after the expulsion of Theagenes a large numberof the optimates, having been harassed by the populares, emigratedand sought out a new abode. It is possible that for some time 80thereafter tempers were assuaged because the plebeians saw thatso many nobles had left their native land.

Of great importance in this regard are three passages from Plut-arch and Aristotle which we must cite here.

Plutarch, Greek Questions 18. After expelling the tyrant, 85Theagenes, for a short time the Megarians were of sound mind withrespect to affairs of the state. Afterward, according to Plato, becausethe demagogues had enticed them with the taste of liberty, theybecame entirely corrupt. The poor behaved insolently towards the rich,occupying their houses, demanding to feast sumptuously lest they 90carry them [scil. the rich] away by force and with insults. Finally,they enacted a law to demand back from lenders the interest whichthey had already paid, calling it return interest.

Aristotle, Politics V, 4, 3. Megaras democracy was destroyed ina similar fashion. The demagogues, so as to have money to distrib- 95ute to the people, kept on expelling many of the notables, until theyformed a large body of exiles. These then returned and defeated thepeople in a battle and founded the oligarchy. V, 2, 6 The democracy ofthe Megarians was destroyed by disorderliness and anarchy after they[scil. the well-to-do] had been defeated. 100

IV, 12. 10. Either all of the citizens appoint these men [magis-trates], or some, and either from each or just from a specific classdefined by honour, birth, virtue or some other such factor such as atMegara where only those who had returned from exile and fought to-gether against the people were eligible. 105

These passages make it clear that not long after the expulsionof Theagenes, a new war between the optimates and the plebeiansbroke out or to be more precise, between the rich and poor, sinceduring the reign of Theagenes many born as plebeians seem to have

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cuti esse etiam de plebe nati, contra vero multi nobiles agriset opibus privati essent. Quo in certamine plebem illam qui- 115dem vicisse, sed mox ab hominibus seditiosis corruptam etdissolutam factam esse, ita, ut instituerent, quadecretum est, ut quod usuris pernumeratum esset debitoribusredderetur a creditoribus ; ut in domos ingruerent et hospi-tium postularent; denique ut multos nobiles bonis spoliarent 120et e finibus ejicerent. Quos diu exulantes tandem in patriamcongregatos rediisse et prlio commisso denuo imperium ci-vitatis arripuisse et obtinuisse. Nihil vero statuas de tempo-re, quo id sit factum: id unum constat anno quingentesimodecimo jam fuisse optumates restitutos, cum hoc anno et po- 125steris Lacedmonii non impediti spius per Isthmum irent,ut Hippiam10 ex regno, quod usurpaverat, expellerent: quodfieri non potuit, si id temporis penes populares summa rerumfuisset. Optumates autem ab illo anno usque ad bella Persicaet proxima tempora perpetuam obtinuerunt dominationem, 130quamquam ne hoc quidem certis testimoniis affirmari potest.Memori vero traditum est a. 468 iterum nobiles exules a ple-be factos esse et multitudinis restitutum esse dominatum.

2. In horum temporum spatium, cujus lineas quoad pos-sim adumbrare conatus sum, incidit Theognidis vita, quam 135si ad hunc rerum ordinem, quem descripsimus, accommoda-mus, non nulla accuratius definire possumus, quam ex illispaucis veterum testimoniis definiri licuit. Hanc autem vitamnon est unde cognoscamus nisi ex paucis Suid aliorumquescriptorum locis et inprimis ex ipsius poet carminibus. De 140anno igitur, quo poeta natus sit, habet Suidas:11 . . cui, si interpretamur natus, non estcredendum. Est enim in Hieronymi chronico12 Ol. 59 Theo-gnis clarus poeta habetur et chron. Paschal. Ol. 57 . .13 Cyrill contra Juli i, p. 1314 Ol. 58 . 145. Suidas igitur aut erravit aut vocabulo nihilvoluit significare nisi fuit eo tempore vel inclaruit.

Cum igitur ex locis, quos attuli, pro explorato habendum

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become rich whereas many nobles were robbed of their fields and 110riches. In this war, the plebeians seem to have won, but were sooncorrupted and divided by the seditious men, so that they introducedreturn interest which decreed that the interest already paid was tobe returned to the debtor by the creditor. They then occupied thehouses of the rich and demanded hospitality. Finally, many rich 115were robbed of their goods and expelled from the area. These, how-ever, returned home after a long exile, rekindled the fight and gainedpower over the citizenry and held on to it. We can say nothing asto when this happened except that in 510 the optimates were againrestored to power because in this year the Lacedaemonians increas- 120ingly crossed the Isthmuswithout hindrance to expel Hippias fromthe rule he had assumed which would not have been possible hadthe populares been in power. The optimates were then continu-ally in power from this year until the Persian Wars and thereafter although this cannot be ascertained by evidence. It is nonethe- 125less recorded that in 468 the nobles were once again expelled by theplebeians and the rule of the masses was again restored.

2. In the time frame whose lines I have tried to sketch as wellas is possible lies Theognis life, which, should we adhere to thissuccession of events, we are unable to describe with more accuracy 130than is permitted by the few testimonies of the Ancients. We cannotlearn about this life except through the few passages of the Suda,other authors and above all from the works of the poet himself. Asto the year in which the poet was born, the Suda has Theogniswas present [gegons] in the 59t Olympiad for which interpreting 135gegons as born is not credible. In fact Hieronymus Chroniclenotes Theognis was considered a famous poet in the 59 Olympiadwhilst the Chron. Paschal. has for Olympiad 57 Theognis known asa poet and Cyrillus Contra Iulianum I p. 13 has for Olympiad 58Theognis well-known.The Suda is either mistaken or merely wishes 140to signify with the word gegons that he lived at this time or hewas famous.

If, from the passages which I have cited, the poet had started to

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sit c. Ol. 58 poetam primum inclaruisse, non crediderim idprius esse factum quam vicesimum annum ageret. Neque po- 150test multo post eum annum factum esse, cum Theognis anno479 admodum senex vixerit. Hac ratione statuimus poetamnon multo ante annum vit nonagesimum obiisse: quod for-tasse non videtur credibile, cum Iones, ut e Mimnermi frag-mento15 conicere licet, raro ultra septuagesimum annum vi- 155xisse videantur, Attici vero et fortasse etiam affines Mega-renses non ultra octogesimum, id quod Solonis versus adhucexstantes (Bergk, 20)16 docent. Quare coacti sumus ut huncannorumnumerum, quem statuimus, aliquid tamquam coarc-temus et in angustiores fines crceamus. 160

Examinemus igitur opus est, num vere vixerit poeta a.479; id vero unice potest concludi ex versibus 773-82, qui-bus poeta Phbum implorat, ut ab urbe averruncet Persarumadvenientem exercitum, ut populi ineunte vere hecatombasmittant et cantibus ludisque festum dei rite celebrent: sese 165vero timere discordiam ( ) inter Grcos ex-ortam. Quos versus non posse ad alium annum referri Dunc-ker17 censet: sed quidni?

Prter hos versus etiam v. 757-768 videntur referendi essead bellum Persicum, quibus poeta hilariter et jocose ad biben- 170dum invitat.

. , , . 175

Profecto num scripsit hc poeta instante bello periculosissi-mo? Tunc erat bibendum? Atque quid suppliciter rogat poe-ta? Ut dei averruncent senectutem. Id rogat poeta nonagena-rius?

Censeo igitur hos versus ad prorsus aliud tempus perti-nere, ad Harpagi18 expeditionis tempus, quam eum suscepisse 5est verisimile a. 546. Tunc ille terror Grcis injectus est, quem

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become famous by the 58 Olympiad, then this is unlikely to haveoccurred before his twentieth year. In any case, it can not have been 145much after this year because Theognis was still alive as an old manin 479. For this reason, we can conclude that the poet died shortlybefore his ninetieth birthday. This might not seem plausible becausethe Ionians, as can be concluded from the fragment ofMimnermus,seldom surpassed the age of seventy, and the Attic Greeks as well as 150possibly also the closely relatedMegarians did not surpass eighty, asthe extant verses of Solon teach (Bergk, 20). For this reason we areforced to take the number of years which we have determined andsomehow shorten them and place them within more narrow limits.

It is therefore necessary to investigate whether the poet could 155actually have been alive in 479. This can only be concluded fromthe verses 773-83 in which the poet implores Phoebus to avertthe advancing army of the Persians so that the people could sendhecatombs at the beginning of spring and, along with songs andgames celebrate an appropriate festival for the god. He himself 160feared discord (people-destroying discord) among the Greeks.Duncker is of the opinion that these verses can only refer to thisyear and no other. But why not?

Besides these, verses, 757-68 also appear to refer to the PersianWars, which the poet merrily and jovially calls to drink: 165

Not fearing the war of the MedesLiving blissfully without worriesBeing merry and far from evil spirits,Accursed age and ultimate death

Would the poet really have written such at the beginning of a mostdangerous war with the Persians? Would there then have been timeto drink? And what does the poet request suppliantly? That thegods postpone old age. Is this what a nonagenarian poet requests?

I am thus of the opinion that these verses refer to a completelydifferent period, namely that of Harpagus expedition which he in 5all likelihood undertook in 546. At that time, dread overtook the

13


memorat in loco laudato Theognis et etiam Herodotus notis-simis verbis; tunc Grc urbes in Europa sit metuebant, nePers in occupandis urbibus pergerent; tunc discordi intergentes exort sunt, ad quas referenda est ( ); 10tunc poeta admodum juvenis nihil antiquius habuit, quam utpulcra frueretur juventute et ut quam longissime senectus etmors abessent.

Sic nobis ab annis quos statuimus recedere licet, sed nonultra annum 484 quo Gelon Syracusarum tyrannus Megaram 15Hyblam19 expugnavit. Est autem apud Suidam: . . . Qu verba Mller Dor. II, 50920ita vult intellecta, ut Megara Hybla obsessa dicatur et genetivus subjecti sit; id mihi valde placet, quam- 20quam verborum positionem esse inusitatam concedo. Haudenim recte illud Suid de Gelone Syracusas occupante accep-tum est; quem non vi potitum esse urbe constat, sed a populosponte traditam in fidem accepit. Obsessa autem est Megara(Her. 7, 15621 circ. Ol. 74, 2 vel anno 483, 84. Ergo Theognis 25484 etiam vixit, fortasse etiam postero anno. Statuimus igi-tur poetam inclaruisse c. a. 543, fortasse natum esse c. a. 563,obiisse a. 483 vel paullo postea.

Fuit vero Theognis inter exules optumates, cum ante ex-ilium acerrime contra populares eorumque instituta luctatus 30esset. Ipse memorat eo tempore, quo se jam fugere cpis-set juventus, se paupertate et acerbis maledicentium conviciisvexatum esse.

, , : 35 , , .

Quamquam his acerbitatibus eo tempore non tam vehemen-ter affectum eum esse ex sedata voce, qua poeta in his versi-bus utitur, conicere possumus, quam eum alio tempore fuis-

14


Greeks which Theognis in a famous passage and also Herodotuswith well-known words memorialise. This was when the Greek cit-ies in Europe feared that the Persians would continue to seize cities this is when the discord arose among the peoples to which the 10people-destroying discord refers. At this time, the still youthful poetwished for nothing less than to enjoy a pleasant youth and that oldage and death be kept as distant as possible.

Thus we must work back from the year which we have determ-ined, but not past 484, the year inwhichGelon the tyrant of Syracuse 15conquered Hyblaea. The Suda also mentions Theognis of Megara inSicily; he wrote an elegy for those rescued during the siege of the Syra-cusans. These words were understood by Mller Dor. II, 509 tomean that Megara besieged Hyblaea and that of the Syracusans is tobe taken as a subjective genitive. This appeals to me very much, yet 20I must admit that the word-order is somewhat unusual. The pas-sage of the Suda about Gelon invading Syracuse is incorrect it isknown that he did not take the city by force, but received it fromthe people voluntarily. Megara (Herodotus 7, 156) though was be-sieged approximately at the time of the Olympiad 74.2 or the year 25483/4. Hence, Theognis was still alive in 484, perhaps also in the fol-lowing year. We can thus determine that the poet became famous in543, was born possibly in 563 and died in 483 or possibly somewhatlater.

Theognis was therefore among the exiled optimates because be- 30fore the exile he had strongly resisted the populares and their in-stitutions. He himself remembers how at that time he had alreadytried to flee, being harassed by both poverty and the severe abusesof his slanderers.

I worry not about the poverty consuming me 35Nor of my enemies evil slanderBut youth beloved now fleeting I do mournAnd that grievous age now approaching

We can nonetheless suspect, due to the moderate tone whichthe poet uses in these verses, that at this time he was not yet asplagued by anguish as at other moments in his life which many

15


se multa carmina docent. Videntur igitur hi versus in illiuscertaminis primordiis compositi esse, e quo victus bonisqueprivatus cessit et exulavit. Id vero unum apparet non ante 5tricesimum poet annum i.e. 533 hoc carmen scriptum esse(ob verba ). Quare facere non pos-sumus, quin intra a. 530 et 510 Theognidem et exulasse etSiciliam, Eubam, Lacedmonem peragrasse et in patriamrediisse statuamus. 10

Jam restat, ut ea, qu Theognis de Megarensium civitateet civilibus perturbationibus tradat, concinere doceam cumpaucis Plutarchi et Aristotelis testimoniis.

Quod facile est intellectu, si verba inter se comparandajuxta scripta aspexeris. 15

V. 4, 3 V. 46

Q. 18 - 50 20 677 Q. 18 - 41 25 -

.quib. v. conf. v. 44, 45.

Licet versuum sententi sint subobscur, nunquam oblivi-scamur scriptos esse sub dominatione atrocissima, ut poetaindiciis uti cogeretur, cum libera vox et oratio terrore tam-quam exclusa esset. Atque poeta ipse illud carmen, quo de-speratum urbis statum imagine navis periclitantis depingit,ita finit: 5

16


poems demonstrate. These verses then seem to have been writtenat the beginning of a conflict from which he would depart intoexile, vanquished and robbed of personal property. This passage, 5however, would not seem to have been written before the thirtiethyear of the poet, i.e. 533 (on account of the words But youth belovednow fleeting I do mourn). Thus we can only conclude that Theogniswent into exile between 530 and 510, travelled to Sicily, Euboeaand Lacedaemon and then returned home. 10

I need now only compare what has been transmitted about thecitizenship of Megara by Theognis and about the civil wars withsome testimonies of Plutarch and Aristotle.

This is easy to understand if one studies the passages to be com-pared next to one another. 15

V. 4, 3 The demagogues in order v. 46 For the sake of profit andto have funds to distribute to the powerpeople. 50 Profits that bring with them

public baseness.Q. 18 The poor inflicted 677f. They snatch with force, or- 20all with outrageous violence der is in ruin, spoils they no ordained return interest. longer divide equally.Q. 18 They came to their senses 41f. The citizens though are used when the demagogues poured to reason them absolute liberty like Their leaders though headed for 25free wine they became utterly great destruction.corrupt. Comp. these with vv. 44-45

It may well be that the meaning of the verses is unclear. Onemust though never forget that they were written during an atro-cious tyranny so that the poet only insinuates because free speechwas made impossible by the reign of terror. The poet himself endsthe poem by portraying the desperate condition of the city as if itwere a foundering ship [680]: 5

I speak my oracles in riddles for the good

17


, .

3. Cum igitur tempora, quibus fuit poeta, investigaverimannosque computando definire studuerim, cumque rerumMegarensium statum, quem Theognis carminibus attigit, 10paucis descripserim, accuratius singuli casus, quorummentiofit in carminibus, inter se connectendi et ad certum ordinemdirigendi sunt: quam rem quamvis gravem a Welckeroprtermissam doleo.

Constat igitur Theognidem nobili genere ortum ado- 15lescentem oblectationibus vacavisse, cum hac tateMegarensium nobiles jam ab antiqua morum integritatedegenerassent et luxuria mollitiaque quadam correpti essent.Ad hanc juvenilem animi hilaritatem et levitatem spectant

v. 1122 . 201153

567

Sed jam ingruebant reipublic tempestates neque jam ei li-cuit securam et jucundam agere vitam. In dies enim prcep-ta, quibus institutus jam a puero erat, non modo a plebejisilludi, sed etiam ab optumatibus neglegi observavit. Prser-tim cum nobilem sanguinem novorum hominum conjugiiscontaminatum vidisset, summa cum indignatione certamen 5contra ingruentia reipublic mala suscepit et quacunque po-tuit acerbitate et degeneres nobiles castigavit plebejosque ho-mines flagrantissimo cum odio perstrinxit. Nihil vero magisquandam ejus animi superbiam iramque infregit, quam quod,dummodo vitam servare vellet, ad plebem propius accedere 10ejusque studiis invitus favere cogebatur. Id unum dumtaxat eum ut sua bona sibi servaret, cum aliorum opesa popularibus arriperentur, aliquamdiu gratiam plebis aucu-pari studuisse: quod primum quidem succedere visum est, utscriberet: 15

18


but the bad too will understand if they are prudent

3. I have attempted to investigate the period in which the poetlived and to calculate the years of his life. I have also briefly dis-cussed the condition of the Megarians at the same time, something 10Theognis touches upon in his poems. Now then, some other eventswhich are mentioned in the poems still need to be joined togetherand put in a logical sequence I regret that this important matterwas neglected by Welcker.

It is therefore certain that Theognis, of noble stock, was ex- 15posed in adolescence to pleasure since in this period the Megariannobles had abandoned the old values and through luxury had be-come somewhat soft. This youthful gaiety and frivolity is referredto by the verses:

1222 My heart melted with youth and riches 201153f. May I be allowed, aloof of evil cares, to live in wealth,

unharmed 567 I play with delight in youthful prime

Yet the storms were already falling upon the republic and it wasno longer possible to lead a secure and agreeable life. He in factperceived daily how not only the customs in which he had beenbrought up with since his childhood were ridiculed by the plebeians,but were also being neglected by the optimates. This was especiallythe case when he saw noble blood being contaminated throughmar- 5riages with upstarts. He would then take up with indignation thestruggle against the badness assailing the republic and by whatso-ever means he was able, castigated the degenerate nobles and chas-tised the plebeians with a burning hatred. In truth, nothing checkedhis fighting spirit and anger than in order to save his life, he was 10forced to associate himself with the plebeians and albeit grudginglysupport their objectives. One thing is certain, that in order to savehis goods although the goods of others had been robbed by thepopulares he took pains for a while to strive after the gratitudeof the plebeians, something he seems to have achieved because he 15writes:

19


, .

tamen eum fefellit, cum adversarii, qui ejus nobilitatis stu-dium specie popularis animi male tectum perspexerunt, eibona eriperent et ejus vitam in summum periculum vocarent.

:

Summa igitur penuria pressus, ab inimicis illusus, molestussuis amicis, immo proditus ab amicis, quod valde queritur,fugere constituit et primum dubitavit, num suam uxorem si recte video Argyrin secum duceret et ipsi adulescentuloCyrno, quem paterno animo diligebat, proposuit, num fortesecum itineris et fug labores sustinere vellet. Non autem sa- 5tis apparet, num hi eum secuti sint necne. In Btia verobenigne speravit se exceptum iri ab optumatibus Lebade ur-bis, cum nobiles Megarensium a. 559 recordaretur in conden-da Heraclea Pontica a Btiis optume adjutos esse. Numvere eo venerit, non adseverare ausus sim. Id vero, quod ipse 10memorat, certum est eum in Sicilia diu esse versatum et Suid testimonio, quodjam attulimus, confirmatur et Plat. Legg. I, p. 630,22 qui eum vocat, unde error priorumTheognidis editorum fluxit, qui statuerent natum esse poetam 15Megar Hybl. Sed multis exemplis doceri potest eximioslitterarum artiumque laude viros cives coloniarum et origi-num et fuisse et vocatos esse, veluti Archilochum Parium etThasium, Protagoram et Hecatum juniorem Tejos et Abde-ritas, Terpandrum Botium et Lesbium, Mimnermum Colo- 20phonium et Smyrnum.

In Sicilia exiliummediocriter toleravisse se ipse profiteturet si quis cupere velit, qu sit suarum rerum conditio, nun-

20


By good faith I lost wealth, by bad faith saved it, The verdict of both is equally bitter.

He was nonetheless mistaken, since his adversaries seeingthrough the poorly disguised zeal of the nobleman appearing to bepopularly-minded, robbed him of his goods and brought his life ingreat danger.

Oh wretched me a mockery unto my enemies

Oppressed by extreme destitution, mocked by his enemies, irksometo his friends who to his great lament even betrayed him, he de-cided to flee. Initially, he doubted whether to take his wife shouldI see this correctly Agyris with him, also proposing to the adoles-cent Cyrnus, to whom he bore a fatherly disposition, whether hemight not take on with him the exertions of the journey and flight. 5It does not become sufficiently clear whether they followed him ornot. In Boeotia he, however, hoped to be favourably received by theoptimates of the city of Lebadea because he remembered that in 559,when the Megarian nobles were founding Heraclea Pontica, theywere most optimally aided by the Boeotians. I would not hazard a 10guess as to whether he actually went there. What he himself re-calls is certain, namely that he spent a long while on Sicily (and wasgiven presents there by the citizenry of Megara Hyblaea) which isalso confirmed by the testimony of the Suda previously cited and byPlato (Laws i p. 630) who refers to him as a citizen of the Megarians 15on Sicily. This is the source from which the error of the first Theog-nide editors emanates, who state that the poet was born at MegaraHyblaea. It is, however, possible to show with many examples thatthose distinguished by fame in letters and the arts were known to becitizens of both the colonies as well as of the founding cities, such 20as Archilochus of both Paros and Thassos, Protagoras and Hectaeusthe Younger of both Abdera and Teos, Terpander of both Boeotiaand Lesbos, and Mimnermus of both Colophon and Smyrna.

He reported to enduring the Sicilian exile tolerably well. If onewould desire to know what his living conditions were, he let it be 25

21


tiari jubet:

, . 25

Exilii molestia ea re inprimis videtur deminuta esse, quod ex-ulantes optumates per mutua commercia communi consiliosemper id agebant, ut in patriam restituerentur suamque pri-stinam dignitatem recuperarent. Ex Sicilia in Eubam Theo-gnis navi advectus esse videtur, cujus insul nobiles, quibuserant opibus et luxu, magnifice et splendide exulem excepe- 5runt. Ultimam vero exilii partem Spart degit, ut ita dicam,in nobilitatis sede, undemaxime exules sperabant se auxiliumcontra suos malos cives accepturos esse. Qu spes eos vide-tur non fefellisse. Non enim est credibile hos exules sua solavi, non ab aliis adjutos in patriam irrupisse, plebem vicisse, 10rerum iterum potitos esse.

Hc fere omnia, qu de ejus vita ante exilium et in exi-lio peracta explorata habeamus: restat, ut qu poeta de ulti-ma vit parte significaverit, perscrutemur, pauca scilicet ne-que gravia. In rebus publicis majoremoderatione, quam antea 15versatus est, ita ut ipsa ejus in plebem indignatio et odium vi-deretur consenuisse.

Valde quidem doluit asperis calamitatibus, quibus optu-mates sibi amicissimi et in suam salutem bene meriti duarumurbium profligati sunt, Cerinthi et Megar Hybl, id quod 20jam commemoravimus. Ceterum a severis prceptis, quibussuam juventutem aluerat, senex magis magisque recessit, cu-jus rei certa indicia deprehendere possumus. Demorte jam di-ximus nihil constare: secutam esse verisimile est paulo posta. 484, cum de Megara a Gelone capta audivisset et dolore 25mstitiaque consumeretur.

4. Cum igitur vitam Theognidis paucis adumbraverimus,Welckerum aggrediamur opus est, qui prorsus aliter singulasres disponat novamque rerum seriem connectat.Theognidem

22


made known:

Good yet hard, also hard but good

The irksomeness of exile would seem to have been diminished bythe fact that the noble exiles were continually striving, through re-ciprocal trade and common experience, to be restored to their nativecity and to regain their former rank. From Sicily, Theognis seemsto have travelled by boat to Euboea. The nobles of this island, whoenjoyed opulence and luxury, received the exiles generously and 5nobly. The last part of his exile, however, he spent in Sparta amongthe resident nobility from whom, as it were, the exiles expected toreceive the most help against their wicked fellow citizens. They donot seem to have been deceived in this hope. It is really not conceiv-able that these exiles, by their own might, without the aid of others 10were able to forcibly return to their native city, defeat the plebeiansand again take charge of the political institutions.

This is nearly everything which we can relate with certaintyabout his life before and during exile. There only remains to be ex-amined what the poet relates about the last part of his life which 15is neither much nor important. In public affairs, he remained moremoderate than previously, so that even his own disdain and hatredagainst the plebeians seems to have faded.

He suffered intensely from the cruel misfortunes throughwhich the optimates, who had been most friendly to him and most 20meritorious with regard to his well-being, were done away with intwo cities, namely Cerinthus and Megara Hyblaea, which we havealready noted. For the rest, as an old man, he continually distancedhimself from the austere precepts, about which we have been ableto derive certain information, that he had cherished in his youth. 25We have already said that nothing at present is certain regardinghis death. It is most probable that it followed shortly after 484when he had heard that Megara had been captured by Gelon andhe was consumed by grief and sorrow.

4. Now that we have briefly sketched the life of Theognis, we 30must then address Welcker, who, briefly stated, arranges someevents differently and joins them into a new sequence of events. He

23


enim dicit, ut in libro suo abunde faciat palam, inter exules 30fuisse optumates et scripsisse eo tempore, quo principatuseorum post victam pugna plebem restitutus denuo popularistatui cessisset, qui ad Ol. 89, 1 usque teneret. Patrimonium,si cum reliquorum turba quod valde dubium una regressus[esset,] recepisset poeta, tunc certe ei iterum demptum esse. 35Quo dum possessores de plebe gaudere, dum honores man-dari hominibus a republica antea prohibitis et nobilem adeosanguinem victrici factioni sponte concesso connubiorum ju-re, novorum hominum conjugiis maculatum videret, indigna-tionem videri versum fecisse. 40

Quid igitur fit? Nonne res mirum in modum discindun-tur?

Profecto mult oriuntur difficultates, quarum gravissu-mam elegisse sufficiat. A. 510 imperium fuit penes optuma-tes; post hunc annum paulatim omnia illa mala irrepsisse in 45rempublicam Welckerus censet, in qu acerbissime invectusest Theognis. At quid fecit poeta ante hunc annum? Nihilnescripsit? Sane scripsit: ex exilio misit elegias ad Cyrnum v.1197. Et jam ante exilium 53-60:

, , 50 , , . , :23 . ; 55

Qui versus fieri non potest ut ad has dissensiones civiles,quas Welcker dicit, referri possint, cum eis plebeji ante hasperturbationes rure pellibus amicti degisse dicantur, urbemhaudminus quam cervi fugientes: quod cum ratione historicanon quadraret quoniam plebeji jam prima reipublic conver-sione in urbem ingruebant et diu se in luxuriam et licentiam 5

24


says, as he makes unambiguously and abundantly clear in his book,that Theognis was namely among the exiled nobles and wrote ata time during which the optimates, who had been in power after 35their victory over the plebeians, again had had to retreat from therule of the populares, until the 89 Olympiad. The poet supposedlyrecovered his property, if he which is quite dubious returnedtogether with the others, whereupon it was certainly taken awayfrom him again. Then, when he saw propertied men from the 40plebeians enjoying themselves those who had formerly beendisenfranchised from public life being entrusted with honours aswell as with noble blood, which after the right of marriage hadvoluntarily been given to the victorious party, was being defiled byunions with upstarts his indignation would seem to have been 45made into verse.

What happened then? Are the events then not torn asunderwondrously?

Certainly, many difficulties arise, of which it is sufficient tosingle out the most severe. In 510, the optimates were in power 50 after this year Welcker proposes that all that badness, whichso vexed Theognis, gradually crept into the state. But what hadthe poet done before this year? Had he not written anything?Certainly he had written from exile he sent elegies to Cyrnus,such as v. 1197. And also before exile he had composed vv. 53-60: 55

Cyrnus, though the citys still a city, the inhabitants are others;Those who previously had known neither order nor laws,But wore out goat skins clothing their sides,They dwelt there like deer beyond this city.And now, son of Grabbedalot, theyre the good, those once noble 60Now are servile. Can anyone bear to see such?

It is not possible that these verses can be taken to refer to the civiluprisings of whichWelcker speaks, since the plebeians, allegedly be-fore the disturbances, dwelt in the countryside clothed in hides, hav-ing then fled from the city like deer. This does not square with his-torical reckoning because the plebeians already had forced their wayinto the city during the first republican uprising and had already for 5

25


effundebant; his versibus apparet describi rerum statum, inquo urbs ante exilium Theognidis fuerit. Tunc igitur jam dignitatem usurpaverant: tunc Theo-gnidi bona vi erepta sunt:

10: .

Tunc Theognis summa penuria vexatus illas elegias compo-suit, quibus vehementissime exsecaretur.

Quid igitur demonstravimus? Eadem, qu poetaWelkeri quidem sententia post exilium perpessus est,jam ante exilium perpessum esse, ita ut omnes res tamquamiterarentur. 5

At qua necessitate coacti sumus, ut tam contorte interpre-taremur? Num versus extant, quibus hanc rerum iterationemsignificare videatur poeta? Non extant, nulla urguet necessi-tas.

Quamquam non abnuerim cum ea ratione, qua ego vitam 10poet descripserim, non prorsus congruere prter Welcke-rum eorum, qui omnino vitam poet, sive obiter, sive copio-sius narraverint, judicia et rationem. Fere unusquisque eorumin hac illa re suam propriam secutus est viam, quammagis in-geniose, quam acute et ad historicam veritatem accommoda- 15te nobis proposuit. Sic K. O. Mller: Bei einer gewaltsamenVertheilung des Grundbesitzes war Theognis, der gerade aufeiner Seereise abwesend war, des reichen Erbes seiner Vterberaubt worden.24 Sed hc (1202), ex quo uno vo-cabulo fluxit hc conjectura, est ipsum exilium, quamquam 20nemo hoc e Mlleri verbis conicere potest.

Jam restat, ut colligam et summatim repetam, de quibusrebus scriptum sit.

a. 563? Theognis Megar natus est.543? primum poeta inclaruit. 25533 certamen contra populares incepit.

26


a long time been lavishing upon themselves lust and licentiousness.These verses describe the condition of the state before Theognisexile. Therefore, at that time, those once servile had usurped thedignity of the good that is when the possessions of Theogniswere forcibly taken from him: 10

my possessions by force Theyve robbed. I, like a dog, did cross the torrentShaking off all from myself in the swollen river.

It was then, harassed by extreme destitution, that he composedthose elegies in which poverty was heftily cursed.

What then have we shown? That according to Welcker, whatthe poet endured after returning from exile, he had already enduredbefore being exiled as if all events were being repeated.

What compels us to accept this contorted interpretation? Are 5there perchance any verses in which the poet may be perceived tointimate the repetition of events? Since such verses do not exist,nothing compels us.

Nonetheless, I do not deny that the method by which I havedelineated the life of the poet does not entirely coincide with the 10judgements and computation besides those of Welcker of allwho have recounted the life of the poet whether in passing or indetail. Almost every one of them followed their own way in thismatter, some more ingenious than shrewd, others more adapted tohistorical truth than would suggest itself to us. So, for example K. 15O. Mller: due to a forcible redistribution of property, Theognis, whohappened to be on a sea-voyage, was robbed of his fathers rich in-heritance. But this sea-voyage (1202), and from this one word thisconjecture originates, is the exile itself, although no one might con-clude such from Mllers words. 20

What remains is to synthesise and summarily note what is stillto be written about.

563? Theognis born at Megara543? Initial fame as a poet533 The struggle against the populares begins 25

27


530-10 bonisque privatus penuriaque confectus exula-vit, versatus est in Sicilia, Eub, Spart, cumceteris exulibus rediit, plebe prlio victa pristi-nam recuperavit dignitatem. 30

506 Cerinthi nobiles a plebe expulsos elegia questusest.

484 in Megaram Hyblam a Gelone captam elegiamcomposuit.Haud multo post obiit. - 35

II De Theognidis scriptis.

5. Utrum veterum, inprimis Xenophontis et Isocratis deTheo-gnidis poesi judicia sequerer an nostratum vestigia in re per-quam controversa ingrederer, diu multumque dubitavi. Illosenim tati ejus propiores nescio an verisimilius sit de eo rec-tius judicasse, quam nos recentiores viros: quibus non minus 40obstat, quod eis e misera carminum farragine coniciendumest, non e totis integrisque carminibus, quam illud, quod apudveteres scriptores, ut docuimus, cum de ejus temporibus pa-trique conditione, tum de ejus vita manca et rara est memo-ria. 45

Cum vero nuperrime in qustionibusTheognideis diutiusversatus essem et ipsius Theognidis reliquias identidem per-lustrassem, neque illis neque his omnibus in partibus suffra-gandum esse mihi persuasi.

Ut enim paucis complectamur, qu veteres diversis an- 50tiquitatis temporibus de Theognide poeseos genere judica-verint: Isocratis tas in eo magistrum morum severissimumvidit; in ejus libro vel (Xen. in Stob. Serm. 88, p. 499)25 (a. Rand: Platon. cf. leg.I p. 630. Isocrat. ad Nicoclem c. 1226), qui liber jam in puero- 55rum discentium usum abiit, fortasse ne integer quidem, sed

28

II. ON THE WRITINGS OF THEOGNIS

530-10 Robbed of his goods and consumed by destitution hewent into exile; he abided on Sicily, Euboea and atSparta. With the other exiles he returned after theplebeians were beaten in combat and recovered hisformer dignity. 30

506 He complained that the nobles of Cerinthos were drivenout by the plebeians.

484 He composed an elegy about Megara Hyblaea capturedby Gelon.

Not long thereafter he passed away. 35

II On the Writings of Theognis

5. I have long and often been uncertain whether I should specific-ally follow the judgements of Xenophon and Isocrates, or rather inthe footsteps of our more recent scholars in this most controver-sial matter. I do not know whether those who lived closer to the 40era of Theognis judged more correctly than those of us who cameafterwards. It is no less problematic, that due to the poor hodge-podge arrangement of the poems we must make guesses, thoughnot with the complete and intact poems as did the older writers aswe have shown, with regard to not only his era and the condition 45of his homeland, but also especially regarding his life, memory isdefective and incomplete.

Because most recently I have meditated upon questions con-cerning Theognis and have myself gone through what survives ofTheognis repeatedly, I have convinced myself that neither one nor 50the other position is to be supported in all facets.

We should briefly consider how the Ancients in different peri-ods of Antiquity judged the poetry of Theognis. In the age of Iso-crates, he was seen as a very strict teacher of morality see hisbook Writing on Men or On Perfection and Badness (Xenophon cited 55by Stobaeus; and note also Plato, Laws 630, Isocrates, To Nicoles2.43). Theognis book had already been used to teach boys. Pos-sibly it was no longer intact, but only in excerpts of maxims which

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sententiarum excerpta, qu memori mandare discipuli ju-bebantur (a. Rand: Isocr. ad Nicocl. init. Aeschin. c. Ctesiph.p. 525 Reiske27). Ex qua libri fortuna nescio an omnium vete-rum judiciorum, qu post Xenophontem prolata sint, caus- 60s repetend sint. Cum enim pueri litterarum adhuc rudesut Theognidi operam darent ediscendo coacti essent et ex eoquasi omnis doctrin elementa haurire jussi essent: factumest ut Theognidis versus quidem in vulgarem et cotidianumusum abirent et spissime in sermone citarentur, id quod nos 65e veterum scriptis cognovimus, in quibus hic illic aliquaTheo-gnidis sententia laudatur poetam vero Theognidem, nonmagistrum fuisse mox obliti esse videntur veteres. Unde rec-te intellegi possunt Plutarchi verba in aud. poet. c. 2 p. l6,28qui Theognidis dicit sententias () esse , qui 70ut solutam orationem effugiant metro et numero pro vehicu-lo () utantur. Accedit quod integra Theognidis carminapaulatim prorsus evanuerunt, cum pueris ex iis nihil utile essecenserent nisi has excerptas sententias: quis vero vir non seindignum habuit iterum ad puerorum rudimenta accedere? 75Id quod dilucidis verbis dicit Dio I p. 74: (,) ;29

Ex hac carminum fortuna caussa est repetenda, cur nobiscarmina inmiserrima conditione, disjecta et interrupta, mixtacum parodiis aliorumque poetarum versibus tradita sint:Quo 80vero tempore homo sciolus, qui litteratum egit, versus Theo-gnidis ex aliis scriptoribus et ex illis sententiarum excerptiscollectos in unum congesserit, de hac re id unum statuam jamStobum librum in eandem formam redactum, qua nunc ex-staret, manu trivisse: cui, quod a Bergkio accurate doctum 85est, etiam id addam nullo pacto id esse factum ante Cyril-lum (433); hic enimTheognidem fatetur scripsisse . Quibus ex ver-bis apparet quantopere ille Theognis quem Cyrillus tanquam 90nutrimentum infantium censuit, ab hocTheognide abhorrue-rit, quem hodie, mixtum cum amatoriis, potoriis, quin etiam

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students were made to memorise (note Isocrates, To Nicoles, andAeschines,Against Ctesiphon 3.32). From the fate of this book, pos- 60sibly all of the opinions can be derived which were proffered afterXenophon. Because boys, still uncultivated in learning, were giventhe work of Theognis in order to commit it to memory, so as to de-rive from it the rudiments of all knowledge, the verses of Theognisachieved common and daily usage and were very often quoted in 65discussions, as we know from the writings of the Ancients in whichan axiom of Theognis is praised here and there so that it seemsthat the Ancients soon forgot that Theognis was in reality a poetand not a teacher. From this it is possible to correctly understandthe words of Plutarch (Quomodo adolescens poetas audire debeat 2) 70who says that the dicta are propositions which in order to avoid epis-tolatory style use metre and rhythm as a vehicle. Furthermore, theintact poems of Theognis gradually faded away entirely because itwas thought that nothing from these was useful for boys except forthe excerpted dicta and truly which man would not find it un- 75dignified to return to his earliest schooldays? This is what Dio saysquite clearly: What is there in them (Theognis, Phocylides) by whicha man like you or me could profit?

From this fate of Theognis poems one can derive the reasonwhy they have been transmitted to us in a most deplorable condi- 80tion dispersed, broken asunder and mixed together with parod-istic verses of other poets. I would contend that at the time in whicha scholiast who studied literature would have gathered together theverses of Theognis, collected into one volume from other authorsand from excerpts of dicta, from those efforts Stobaeus would have 85copied by hand that one book, reduced to the same formwhich existstoday. This has been accurately demonstrated by Bergk, to whichI would only add that this could not have been undertaken beforeCyril of Alexandria [444 ce]. The latter states namely that Theog-nis wrote Simple and ingenious anthologies, which nurses show to 90young girls and tutors to young boys when advising them. It becomesclear from these words how greatly thisTheognis which Cyril hasdeemed baby food differs from the Theognis who we have today:

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obscenis fragmentis, ex rudi et indigesta conflatum farraginehabemus.30

Ut igitur, cur a veterum de Theognide judiciis receden- 95dum esse censeam, paucis expromam: nemo, quoad sciam,tempora quibus floreret poeta ejusque vitam perscrutari stu-duit, nemo legit Theognidem, ut ejus poesi delectaretur, sedplerique ut sententias morales ex eo carperent et ediscerent.Nemo denique operam dedit, ut carmina incorrupta et inte- 100gra ad posteros transirent: Theognidi vero id contigit, quodHoratius a se deprecatur: Sat. I, 10 An tua demens Vilibus inludis dictari carmina velis? Non ego.

6. Priusquam nostris temporibus memoria rerum antiqua-rum adhiberetur ad Theognidis reliquias recte intelligendas, 105fieri non potuit quin docti homines perverse de Theognidejudicarent: quamquam non tam perverse, quam eis judican-dum esset, nisi pudor restitisset et nimia qudam antiquitatisstimatio quominus clarissimo Grcorum poet obtrecta-rent. Unus omniumGoethe ingenue quid sibi ipsi visum sit de 110Theognide, ingenue hisce verbis profitetur (Goethe, ges. Wer-ke, Band V, 54931): So erinnre ichmich ganz wohl, dawir unsin jngerer Zeit mit demTheognis zu wiederholtenMalen ab-geqult und ihm als einem pdagogisch gesinnten, rigorosenMoralisten einigen Vortheil abzugewinnen gesucht, jedoch 115immer vergebens, deshalb wir ihn denn abermals bei Seitelegten. Erschien er uns doch als ein trauriger griechischerHypochondrist. Denn wie konnte wohl eine Stadt, ein Staatso verderbt sein, da es den Guten durchaus schlecht, denSchlechten gewiss gut gienge, in dem Grade, da ein recht- 120licher, wohl denkender Mann den Gttern alle Rcksichtenauf redliches und tchtiges Wollen abzusprechen verharrte?Wir schrieben diese widerwrtigen Ansichten der Welt einereigensinnigen Individualitt zu und wendeten unsere Bem-

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a potpourri of amatory and drinking songs, and even obscene frag-ments all brought together as an unskilled and unordered hodge- 95podge.

Therefore, so that I may briefly explain why I am of the opin-ion that the judgements of the Ancients must be revised: no oneto my knowledge has made the effort to investigate the life andtimes of the poet; no one read Theognis in order to be delighted 100by his poetry. Rather almost everyone read Theognis to extractand memorise his moral sentences. Lastly, no one made any effortto transmit the poems uncorrupted and intact to following gener-ations. Truly, Theognis has met with what was so deprecated byHorace (Satyrarum 1.10: 74-76): What, would you be such a fool as 105to be ambitious that your verses should be taught in petty schools?Not in my case.

6. Prior to our times in which historical records of the ancientworld are brought to bear in order properly to understand the rem-nants of Theognis, it could only be that scholars judged Theognis 110wrongly although not as wrongly as theywould have had to judgeTheognis were it not that a sense of propriety held them back andhad not a certain inestimable appreciation of Antiquity preventedthemdisparaging a very famousGreek poet. It was onlyGoethewhocandidly expressed what he himself saw of value in Theognis with 115these candid words: (W. Goethe, Gesammelte Werke Vol. 5, p. 549):I remember very well that we in our youth repeatedly struggled withTheognis and thought him a pedagogically oriented rigorous moralistfrom whom we sought to procure some benefit without ever succeed-ing. Therefore we put him aside again and again. He came across to 120us as a miserable (un-)Greek hypochondriac. For how could a city oryet a state be so depraved that the good ones fared badly and the badby all accounts fared well, and in such a measure that an upstandingand right-thinking man would insist on denying the benevolent natureof the gods? We attributed these objectionable opinions to an idiosyn- 125cratic individualism and turned our attentions reluctantly to his merryand cheerful compatriots.

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hungen unwillig an die heiteren und frohsinnigen seiner Lan- 125desgenossen.

Sed ipse Goethe egregie, quantopere suammutaverit sen-tentiam, cum res Megarenses poetque casus ex bonis histo-ricis cognovisset, his verbis expromit: Nun aber, durch treff-liche Alterthumskenner und durch die neuesteWeltgeschich- 130te belehrt, begreifen wir seinen Zustand und wissen den vor-zglichen Mann nher zu kennen und zu beurtheilen. Me-gara, seine Vaterstadt, durch Altreiche, herkmmlich Adligeregiert und im Laufe seiner Zeit durch Einherrschaft gede-mthigt, dann durch Volksbergewicht zerrttet. Die Besit- 135zenden, Gesitteten, huslich und reinlich Gewhnten werdenaufs Schmhlichste ffentlich bedrngt und bis in ihr inner-stes Familienbehagen verfolgt, gestrt, verwirrt, erniedrigt,beraubt, vernichtet oder vertrieben, und mit dieser Klasse,zu der er sich zhlt, leidet Theognis alle mglichen Unbil- 140den. Nun gelangen dessen rthselhaften Worte zum vollstenVerstndni, da uns bekannt wird, da ein Emigrierter die-se Elegien gedichtet und geschrieben. Bekennen wir nur inhnlichen Fllen, da wir ein Gedicht wie Dantes Hlle we-der denken noch begreifen knnen, wenn wir nicht stets im 145Auge behalten, da ein grosser Geist, ein entschiedenes Ta-lent, ein wrdiger Brger aus einer der bedeutendsten Std-te jener Zeit, zusammen mit seinen Gleichgesinnten von derGegenpartei in den verworrensten Tagen aller Vorzge undRechte beraubt ins Elend getrieben worden. 150

Cui judicio cum in Universum suffragandum esse cen-seam, non dubito quin in singulis hujus judicii partibus hocillud accuratius atque clarius expromi possit: quin etiam errorinest in verbis et ille quidem in ipsa re, quod Goethe omneselegias ab exule poeta compositas esse arbitratur, cum ne ma- 155jor quidem pars earum in exilio scripta sit. Sed facile est intel-lectu, unde fluxerit hic error: et jam attigimus, quod copiosiusexplicare et in clariore luce ponere harum erit paginarum.

In quatuor igitur locis deinceps explanandis primum ver-sabitur nostra oratio: censeo enim

1. Theognidem suis carminibus ad Cyrnum compositisnon inscripsisse neque , 160

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Yet Goethe himself expresses with the following words just howgreatly he changed his opinion once he had learnt from good histor-ians about ancient Megara and the misfortunes of the poet: Once 130informed by excellent classicists and by modern historical research, wecan better understand his situation and are better able to know the em-inent man. Megara, his native city, ruled by the old moneyed, conven-tionally known as nobles, was, during the course of time, humiliatedby monocracy and then shattered by the populist preponderance. The 135propertied, the cultured, those accustomed to tidy domesticity, weremost ignominiously beset in public, and their most intimate familialbliss haunted, disrupted, disturbed, humiliated, robbed, destroyed ordriven away and along with this class, among which he countedhimself, Theognis suffered all manner of tribulations. Now his enig- 140matic words can be understood most completely when one learns thatan migr composed and wrote these elegies. We must then admit thatwe can neither imagine nor understand a poem such as Dantes In-ferno if we do not bear inmind that a great intellect, a decisive talent, aworthy citizen from one of the most important cities of that time, who, 145together with his like-minded fellows, was robbed of all privileges andrights and driven into penury during those most tumultuous times.

Although I recommend that, generally speaking, this judgementis to be supported, I do not doubt that in some parts of it, this orthat could be expressed more accurately and clearly. Furthermore, 150Goethes words are erroneous in that he believed that all of the ele-gies were composed by the poet during exile, although not even thegreater part of these were written then. Yet it is easy to understandthe cause of this error. And thus we touch upon what is to be setforth in greater detail and described more clearly in these pages. 155

Our discourse will deal with four points to be explained sub-sequently. I believe that:

1. Theognis did not entitle the poems he composed for CyrnusGnomonology nor Practical Maxims for Cyrnus.

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2. Has elegias non esse compositas certa et circumscriptavit ejus parte,

3. Immo vero his elegiis poetam in omnibus vit tatibusaffectus suos animique sensus expressisse, nunquamautem id egisse, ut prcepta daret magistri loco, 165

4. Item carmina convivalia et potoria non esse ad certamvit ejus tatem referenda.

7. Primum quem dixi locum, quamquam jamWelcker eumpropemodum ita expedivit, ut nihil mihi relinqueretur quod 170adjicerem, tamen a Bernhardyo hisce verbis berlieferter Ti-tel perturbatum miror. Si vero quritur,cur diutius in hac re levissima, quam significasse sufficiat,verser: cum poesin Theognideam non fuisse gnomicam de-monstrare conemur, primum inscriptionem solitam, qua vul- 175go libellus fertur, opus est avellamus, ne quis futilissimo hu-jus tituli argumento utatur ad demonstrandum, gnomicamesse ejus poesin. In brevi Suid ad Th. adnotatione h adCyrnum elegi ter memorantur diversis semper nominibus , , cujus testimo- 180nio nemo dubitabit quin nihil sit adtribuendum, cum sibi nonconstet et mirum in modum in hoc nomine fluctuet. A Plu-tarcho32 carmina Theognidea vocantur, a Stepha-no Byzantio33 et Aphthonio34 . Ac redeundum estad ea, qu de Theognideorum fato in hujus capitis initio di- 185xi: his titulis (, , ) significantur illasententiarum excerpta, qu memoravi.

Antiquissimum de inscriptione controversa testimoniumexstat apud Platonem in Menone p. 95: . ; . ; . , et 190sequuntur versus, qui etiam nunc leguntur.35

De his verbis scrupulum injecit Schneidewin, cum ex in-terrogatione ; et ex responso -

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2. These elegies were not composed at a specific or definedperiod in his life.

3. Indeed, in these elegies the poet evinces all phases of his life, 160his affection and intellect, though this was never done in or-der that he give precepts in a teachers stead.

4. Similarly, the banquet and drinking anthems are not to berelated to a specific moment in his life.

7. With respect to the first point, although Welcker explained 165it in such a way that there is nothing left for me to say, I am nev-ertheless surprised that the subject has been thrown into confusionby these words from Bernhardy traditional title Practical Maximsfor Cyrnus. If, however, it is asked why I dwell on this trivial mat-ter extendedly merely mentioning it would have sufficed my 170reply is that I wish to demonstrate that the poetry of Theognis wasnot gnomic, and therefore it is first of all necessary that the title bywhich the manuscript is transmitted be removed, so that no one willuse this worthless title to prove that Theognis poetry was gnomic.In a short note on Theognis in the Suda, the elegies to Cyrnus are 175mentioned thrice, always by different names: Practical Maxims forCyrnus, Gnomonology and Exhortations. No one doubts that nothingis to be added to this testimony because it contradicts itself and, ina surprising manner, fluctuates in the title it gives. The poems ofTheognis are called Gnomonologies by Plutarch and Exhortations 180by Stephen of Byzantium and Aphtonius. And besides we mustreturn to the things I have said about the fate of the Theognide cor-pus at the beginning of this chapter the titles (Practical maxims,Gnomonologies and Exhortations) refer to those excerpts of maximswhich I have already mentioned. 185

The oldest testimony to the controversial title is found in PlatosMeno: 95d: Socrates butTheognis the poet also says, you remember,the very same thing?; Meno In which poems?; Socrates In the ele-gies. And following this are the verses as they are still read today.

Schneidewin is somewhat troubled by these words because from 190the question In which poems? and from the answer In the elegies,

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conjiciendum esse diceret Theognidem etiam alius gene-ris carmina prter elegias scripsisse: quod valde dubium, im- 195mo vero rejiciendum est, dummodo recte interpretemur: ; in qualibus versibus? (ut Arist. Nub. 63836) velin qualibus sententiis? (ut Ar. Thesm. 113, Av. 507). Si verohc verba eam vim, quam Schneidewin vult, haberent, of-fenderem in ; scriberem potius vel 200 ; in quo poemate?37 Scilicet non prorsus congruitresponsum; sed hc respondendi ratio est usitatissima in fa-miliari sermone.

Cum igitur Plato, quem integra cognovisse carmina per-quam est verisimile, illa vocet, non est cur dubite- 205mus, quin hoc nomine ipseTheognis inscripserit sua carmina.Alios vero titulos jam recte vidit Welcker non indices esse li-bro alicui peculiares, sed varia gnomic poeseos vocabula.

8. Progredimur ad alterum locum, quem gravissimum pu-to, cum in eo plerumque peccatum esse videatur: ita ut ipse 210verear, ne in hac re controversa peccem.

Goethe vel Weber, cujus sententiam secutus est hasad Cyrnum elegias ab exule poeta compositas esse censet,Welcker ab tate provecto ac laborante inopia, cum ex ex-ilio rediisset, simili modo Bernhardy: Da Theognis die Gno- 215men im hohen Alter abfate, darf man aus Stellen wie 527 ni-cht folgern, sondern nur nach dem Ton der geselligen Lieder1077 ff. 1131 ff.; C. O. Mller post exilium, cumTheognis labo-res et certamina, qumulto ante perpessus esset, describeret.En, tanta est inter viros doctissimos de hac re judicii differen- 220tia. Unus omnium optime Duncker, Gr. hist. quamquamde Theognide non seorsum agit, videtur in eandem senten-tiam abire, quam ego valde probo et solam probabilem mihipersuasi: Theognidem per totam vitam facta sensaque singu-lis tatibus consignasse et his elegiis mandasse. Quod facere 225non possum quin ita demonstrem, ut elegiarum fragmenta,

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he seems to draw the conclusion thatTheognis must also have writ-ten poems in other genres besides elegies. This is very doubtful,and on the contrary, it certainly must be rejected if only because Inwhich poems? must be correctly interpreted as in which verses 195(as in Aristophanes, Clouds 638) or in which lines (as in Aris-tophanes, Thesmophoriazusae 113, Birds 507). If these words reallyhad the force which Schneidewin wants, I must take exception to Inwhich poems and would rather write In which poem? Certainlythis answer is not an exact fit, but this manner of answering is the 200one most commonly used in familiar speech.

As Plato, who in all likelihood was acquainted with the unmu-tilated poems, refers to the aforementioned as elegies, there is noreason why we should doubt thatTheognis himself actually entitledhis poems with this name. With regard to the other titles, Wel- 205cker already correctly saw that they are not titles belonging to somebook, but rather variant terms referring to gnomic poetry.

8. Let us now move on to the second point, which I consider tobe the most important one because it seems that many have erredwith regard to it. Thus I myself fear that I fall short in this contro- 210versial matter.

Goethe, or rather Weber, whose opinion he has followed, be-lieves that the elegies to Cyrnus were composed by the poet duringexile. In contrast, Welcker thinks they were written by poet afterhe had returned from exile, age-worn and poverty-stricken. A sim- 215ilar view is held by Bernhardy: That Theognis composed the poemsas a very old man cannot be concluded from passages such as 527,but only from the tone of the banquet poems 1077ff. and 1131ff. K.O. Mller also thinks that they were written after Theognis returnfrom exile because Theognis describes the hardships and struggles 220that he endured much earlier. There are so many different opinionsamong scholars in this matter! Only one of these is really sound,namely that of Dunker in his Greek History. Although he does notdeal with Theognis specifically, he seems to be of the same opin-ion with which I am very much in agreement with. I am convinced 225that this is the most probable view, namely that Theognis recorded

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quas certa vit tate scriptas esse per se intellegatur, eligamet inter se connexa proponam.

v. 53-58 ut jam docuimus183-90 2301109-14173-8538 ante exilium conscripti833-361103-4

(elegi sola talia fragmenta, in quibus nomen Cyrni exstat, ne 235quis dubitet, num vere hc fragmenta ex illis ad Cyrnum ele-giis sint sumpta)

v. 209-10 in exilio conscripti1197-1202

v. 549-54 post exilium conscripti. 240805-10783-88

Maximam harum elegiarum partem his temporibus essecompositam non abnuerim, quibus Theognis acerbissimis ca-lamitatibus afflictus, de sua reipublicque salute desperans 245asperis urguentibus doloribus spissime in poeseos tanquamportum confugeret: i. e. ante exilium.

9. His qu modo scripsi jam tertium illud, quod proposui,breviter attigi, quod quidem, si recte video, sponte sequitur,dummodo alterum locum recte explanaverimus. 250

Apud veteres Grcos carmina elegiaca ad modos tibivel etiam ad lyr canebantur; fuit enim apud illos maximapoeseos cum arte musica conjunctio et necessitudo. Qui ususTheognidis tate nondum evanuit, cum ejus carmina affec-

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his deeds and experiences at separate times throughout his entirelife and consigned these as elegies. Yet I cannot maintain this un-less I first show that I have selected the fragments of elegies whichwere self-evidently written at a specific period of his life, and then 230demonstrate that these elegies are interconnected.

v. 53-58 As we have already shown183-901109-14173-85 235

textsuperscript38 written before exile833-361103-4

(I have only chosen those remnants in which the name of Cyrnus isattested, so that no one may doubt that these remnants really have 240been selected from those elegies for Cyrnus).

v. 209-10 Written in exile1197-1202

v. 549-54 Written after exile.805-10 245783-88

I do not deny that the largest part of these elegies were com-posed during the time in which Theognis was most harshly afflictedby calamities. Despairing for the welfare of both himself and hisrepublic, he very often took refuge from the crushing indignities in 250poetry as if it were a safe harbour that is before exile.

9. I have briefly touched upon the third point which I proposedin what I have written above. If I see it correctly, then it can onlyreally follow provided that I have explained the second point cor-rectly. 255

In the ancient world, elegiac poems were sung to the music offlutes and also lyres the ancient Greeks truly saw a very closeconnexion and bond between poetry and music. In Theognis time,this custom had not yet disappeared as his songs expressed moods

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tus et motus animi exprimerent ideoque cantui essent accom- 255modata. Habent igitur etiam Theognidis ampliora fragmentaid sibi proprium, ut ab animo commoto et affectibus incitatoproficiscantur: in plerisque enim his reliquiis, in quibus nonsola sententia moralis inest, expressum videris vel aliquemdolorem acerbissimum vel iram in plebejos inexstinctam vel 260patri exilio adempt desiderium vel curam de Cyrni salu-te sollicitudinemque. Nunquam vero cognoveris magistrumseverum morosumque qui id unum agit, ut prcepta discipu-lum doceat. Id quidem non est infitiandum multas res, quasmemoretTheognis, jam in se habere aliquam doctrinam; quin 265etiam nihil magis ille videtur metuisse, quam ne adulescensCyrnus, quem ut filium diligebat, ab optimatium prceptisvitqu genere degeneraret; qua re eum quam gravissimemonet, ne unquam a via, quam semel ingressus sit, absce-dat: sperat per hunc adolescentem vetera nobilitatis instituta, 270quorum acerrimus est propugnator, propagatum iri neque ab-surdum nescio an videatur, quod Theognidem cum illo Schil-leri Posa comparo, qui totus in rerum humanarum studio ver-satus39 in amico Carolo eumhominem adamet, quem aliquan-do sua consilia speret machinaturum esse: qua re non dubitat 275suam vitam hisce consiliis huicque amico devovere.

Equidem cum talia in legendo Theognide animo volveresoleam, nullo pacto gnomicam invenio poesin: quamquamlubenter unumquemque concedo, qui non histori cogni-tione institutus accedat ad Theognidem, aliquid simile se 280invenire putaturum esse, ac Salomonis proverbia, quibuscumre vera Julianus contulit Theognidea.40 Qua re non estsupervacaneum Goethii verba describere, qu ad hc,qu dixi, pulcerrime pertineant: Wir sind gewohnt, dieuerungen eines Dichters, von welcher Art sie auch sein 285mgen, ins Allgemeine zu deuten und sie unsern Umstnden,wie es sich eben schicken will, anzupassen. Dadurch erhaltenfreilich viele Stellen einen ganz andern Sinn, als in demZusammenhang, woraus sie gerissen; ein Sprichwort desTerenz nimmt sich im Munde des Alten oder des Knechtes 290

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and passions of the soul and for that reason were adapted to singing. 260Thusmost of the fragments ofTheognis share the characteristic thatthey were performed in an agitated spirit and with a roused mood.Because in most of these fragments, in which not only moral teach-ings are contained, you may see either the most harsh pain and un-quenchable hatred against the plebeians expressed, or longing for 265the homeland stolen by exile, as well as concern and anxiety for thewell-being of Cyrnus. You will never, however, perceive a strict andpedantic teacher who only aims to teach precepts to his pupil. It in-deed cannot be denied that many things to which Theognis relateshave some instructional content; especially since he did not seem 270to fear anything more than that young Cyrnus, whom he loved as ason, would depart from the teachings of the optimates and their wayof life, which is why he warned him most seriously that he shouldnever ever depart from the way which he had once embarked upon.He hoped that through this youth the old institutions of the nobles, 275whose biggest proponent he was, would be preserved. Perhaps itwill not seem absurd that I compare Theognis with Schillers Mar-quis of Posa, who, wholly versed in the study of human affairs,loved in Don Carlos the man who he hoped would one day realisehis plans which is why he did not hesitate to devote his life to 280those plans and to that friend.

For my part, when reading Theognis, I can discover nothinggnomic in his poetry, although I readily admit that anyone who ap-proaches Theognis not having a foundation in the study of historywill find something apparently similar to the Proverbs of Solomon, 285with which Julianus indeed did compareTheognis works. For thisreason, it is not superfluous to quote the words of Goethe whichpertain quite well to that what I have said: We are used to interpret-ing the statements of a poet regardless of their nature in a generalfashion and to adapt them to circumstances as they momentarily suit 290us. Thereby, many passages receive an entirely different meaning thanin the context from which they were taken. A proverb of Terrence takeson a different meaning in the mouth of an elder or a slave or even onthe page of a family album.

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ganz anders aus als auf dem Blatte eines Stammbuchs.Qua re longe a Plutarchi judicio abhorreo, quod nuper

Teuffel his verbis approbavit doch hat schon Plutarch denwesentlich prosaischen Charakter seiner Dichtung richtig er-kannt. Contra, si quid videtur in ejus reliquiis sententiosum 295 neque pauc esse videntur solius argumenti sententiosi ego id doleo quod tales versus, ex connexu et ordine genuinoseparati, quando et quibus in casibus a Theognide compositisint, jam non potest perspici.

10. Iam ultima restat qustio quamvis non levis, qu de 300carminibus convivalibus potoriisque agit. Id quidem facilli-me potest demonstrari hc carmina diversis temporibus esseconscripta, si exceperis senectutem; e qua jam a natura ple-rumque exclusa videtur jocosa hilaritas amorisque gaudia.

v. 1119-22 ab adulescente compositi 305773-82756-691153-54

v. 1017-22 ab adulto juvene 1129-32 310

v. 1087-90 Spart ab exule.879-84

In nullo carmine convivali cum nomen Cyrni, percrebrum inomnibus aliis elegiis, exstet, jam inde concludere possum, idquod Welcker concedit non locum habuisse in gnomologia 315illa carmina: omnino autem poet non licuit ad adulescen-tem, quem optimis prceptis informare voluit, dedicare car-mina potoria et amatoria. Sed Welcker ne seorsum quidemhc carmina edita esse, cum tota fere antiquitas de eis tace-ret, et Theognis a Dione, scriptore illo peritissimo, ab amato- 320riorum et convivalium carminum poetis aperte discerneretur,affirmat. Narrat enim Alexandrum rogatum a patre, quid es-set quod solum e poetis Homerum legerer, respondisse nonomnem poesin regem decere.

44


For this reason, I completely disagree with the opinion of Plut- 295arch which Teuffel recently endorsed with these words: Plutarchalready correctly discerned the fundamentally prosaic character of hispoetry. On the contrary, should something in his fragments appearsententious, and not a few appear to be so, based solely on their con-tent, it pains me that such verses, deprived of their original context 300and order, their rhyme and the circumstances in which Theogniscomposed them, can no longer be determined.

10. Now remain

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