LIBRARY OF THE University of California. RECEIVED BY EXCHANGE Class 7^7 ^77 o The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy IN THE LIGHT OF Homeric Usage BY HORACE LEONARD JONES, A.M. A THESIS Prksexted to the University Faculty of Cornell University for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHH^OSOPHY 1909 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy IN THE UGHT OF Homeric Usage BY HORACE LEONARD JONES, A.M. A THESIS Presented to the University Faculty of Cornell University for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY 1909 Of THE UNWERSITY Of 4-^ FRBSS OF ANDRUS & CHURCH Ithaca, N. Y. CONTENTS. Chapter I (Pari One). Natural Objects. PAGE Introduction i A. Extent and Mass Group, Indefinite 9 1. Place, quarter, region, shore, grove, thicket 9 (a) Place, region, (b) Grove, thicket. 2. Stream, water, bath, frost, dew, blood 13 (a) Stream, water, (b) Bath, (c) Dew, frost, blood. 3. Dust, sand 15 4. Meal, dinner 16 5. Flesh, meat 17 6. Articles of wear 17 (a) Cloak, robe, girdle, (b) Veil, (c) Wreath, crown, head- band. B. The Body Group 21 1. Face, forehead, mouth, eye, jaw, cheek, chin, throat, neck 22 (a) Face, forehead, mouth, eye. (b) Jaw, cheek, chin, throat, (c) Neck. 2. Breast, lung, side, bosom, shoulder, back, diaphragm, midriff, heart, gall 25 (a) Breast, lung, side, bosom, shoulder, (b) Back, (c) Dia- phragm, midriff, heart, gall. 3. Hair, beard 30 C. The Instrument Group 31 1. Arms 31 (a) Bow, sword, arrow, (b) Shield, sheath. 2. Domestic Articles 35 (a) Axe, brooch, goad, sickle, (b) Rule, anvil, ladder, mirror. 3. Insignia of authority — Sceptre, wand 37 4. Vehicles and parts thereof 40 (a) Chariot, (b) Rim, axle. 5. Woven and linked articles 44 (a) Chain, (b) Noose, net. 6. Letter, writing tablet 48 D. The House Group 49 1. House 4g 2. Temple 59 3. Tent 60 (a) Tent, (b) Chamber, apartment, (c) Cave, lair. 4. Throne, seat 67 207797 ii Contents. 5. Gate, door 74 6. Bed, couch 76 7. Altar, foundation, pillar 78 8. Tomb, casket — . 80 Chapter I {^Part Two). Abstract Nouns. 1. Murder, DEATH 83 2. Power, dominion, authority 93 3. Marriage, WEDLOCK 96 4. Other ABSTRACTS 99 (a) Of emotion, passion, affliction, (b) Distributives, (c) Of theft. Chapter I {Part Three). Studies in Metre. 10 Chapter II. The Pronoun. A. Homer . 127 1. Pluralis Societatis 128 2. Pluralis Modestiae 130 3. Pluralis Maiestatis 130 B. Tragedy .,. 132 1. Aeschylus 132 The Plurales (a) Societatis, ib) Modestiae, (c) Maiestatis. 2. Sophocles — the same , 134 3. Euripides — the same 137 • 4. Enallage of number in general 138 (a) The chorus, (b 1 Trimeter verse. Chapter III Nouns Referring to Perso?is. A. Homer AND Pindar 141 B. Tragedy 142 I. The Allusive Plural of Respect 143 Contents. iii 2. The Allusive Plural of Relationship 150 (a) Parent, (b) Child. 3. Member of family in general 155 (a) Third person plural pronoun. (b) Masculine and neuter plural adjectives. 4 The Allusive Plural of Reserve 158 (a) The criminal, (b) The dead. 5. Neuter and abstract plurals 163 (a) Neuters in -/xa, and adjectival substantives. (b) Abstracts. Greek Index 165 *^ Of THE UNIVERSITY Of INTRODUCTION. The subject here considered has naturally received limited at- tention in the Greek Grammars. Kiihner' refers to the more important uses of the poetic plural as follows: "Die Dichter gebrauchen den Plural oft um den Ausdruck zu amplifizieren (Pluralis Maiestaticus)," adding such words as aK^irTpa, 6p6voL, fX€T(u, TdoL Zwischen diesem Gebrauch des Plurals und dem des zugehorigen Singulars wurde ein Unter- schied empfunden, der die Dichter, namentlich die Tragiker, veranlasste, die pluralische Form «is oyxov t^s Ae'^cws zu bevor- zugen und sie auch da zu verwenden, wo man sich in der gewohn- lichen Umgangssprache des Singulars bediente (sog. Pluralis maiestaticus) : Z. B. pxixaipai, a/crjirTpa, dpovoL." Gildersleeve^ under the head of " Pluralis Maiestatis " classifies 86fj.oL, ixiyapa, ydfioi, TaaL : " The use of the plural often gives the idea of fulness." But Sasse* has chosen to employ the term in reference to the pronoun " nos" as found in imperial edicts, in the utterances of those in authority. So too the expression is employed by Gerber^, Volp", Draeger", Buttmann** and others. There is cer- tainly no uniformity in its use either in general works or com- mentaries. Apparently it does not occur in all Classical Latin literature, but was a late invention of some Jewish Bible com- 'Griechische Grammatik, Vol. I, p. 17 f. (1898). " Griechische Grammatik^, Miiller's Handbuch, II, i, p. 369 f. 'Greek Syntax, p. 26, § 52. *Denumero plurali qui vocatur maiestatis (1889). * Die Sprache als Kunst, Vol. I, p. 502 (1885 ). *De usu numeri pluralis Aeschyleo et Sophocleo (1888). 'Historische Syntax der lateinischen Sprache, Vol. I, p. 26 (1878). * Grammar of the New Testament Greek (Trans.) p. 131 (1880). 2 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. mentator^ who desired a special term for the Hebraic plurals elohim, adonim (God, L,ord), the plural being so used by the Hebrews out of reverence for the Deity', as was thought. Ember^ however, ignores the " Pluralis Maiestatis," choosing instead * ' Pluralis Inteusivus ' ' to designate a wide class of Hebraic plurals. As will appear later, such an appellation can hardly express the force of Aristotle's oyxos ; nor is it natural to make it em- brace such uses as those referred to by the Pseudo-Longinus (below), together with the various ones so classified by gram- marians and commentators. In the interest of clearness, the term should be limited at least to (i) the first person plural pronoun as employed by dignitaries ; (2) plurals used in reference to a royal personage,* as e.g. Sto-Trorai, KvpioL, KOLpavoi; and (3) plurals of royal appurtenances, as 6p6voL, (TKYiTTTpa. But inasmuch as there is a "Pluralis Modestiae' ' in both Greek and I^atin which is applied to the plural pronoun when used for the sake of modesty, a similar restriction of the ' ' Plu- ralis Maiestatis" is likewise desirable. In this way confusion is entirely avoided, and the term finds its most appropriate appli- cation. As for the plural nouns referring to but one person, the term Allusive is a fitting general term, which will include what we shall here call the plural of Respect ( e.g. Seo-Trorat), of Relation- ship {e.g. ol TCKovTcs, TCKra, 01 <^ikoi) and of Reserve {e.g. ol ovei<;, ol Kara y^s). The plural of other nouns, whether concrete or abstract, often carries with it the idea of oyxos, fulness ; it has a poetic force and mission. 'So Reuchlin, quoted by Maas, Archiv, Vol. 12, p. 481. * But cf. Tobler, Zeitschrift fiir Volkerpsychologie, Vol. 14, p. 416, where the plural forms are explained as not originally concrete : ' ' Elohim, Gottheit ( ' himmlische Machte' ) im Gegenteil zu dem spatern streng mono- theistischen Jahveh, Jehova" ; also: " Adonim, Inbegriflf der Herrschafts- rechte, als verkorpert in einer Person gedacht wie Ital. podestd (potestas)." ^'The Pluralis Intensivus in Hebrew, Johns Hopkins Dissertations, 1905. * Though the term was invented for just such a class of words, yet as a rule they are not even included under that head. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 3 Aristotle is the first, so far as is known, to call at- tention to the subject. In his Te^vi; ^^y^opiK-t^ he says : ets oyKov 8c t^s Xc^ews crv/A^aXAerat raSe Kal to ev TroAAa irotetv, OTrep 01 iroirjTal ttolovctlv' evos ovtos Xi/xcvos ofwos A-cyovcri Xi/xevas CIS A^^atKOvs ' Kat ScXtov /u,€v atSt iroXvdvpoL S«MrTv;(ai.' The latter passage should be eliminated at once from con- sideration. Hermann and Paley, whom Cope* quotes ap- provingly, observe that Aristotle mistook Euripides' meaning : for the epithet TroKvdvpoi shows that the plural means the several layers of the tablets and only in case the poet had written Sc'Atoi would he have taken the liberty Aristotle ascribed to him. Strikingly enough the plural of the same word is used referring to the same SeXros in the same tragedy, verse 787 : TaS' cOK\€L to. iirl tov OISittov (o ydfioi, ya/AOi, ev(Ta6' i7ju.a9 Kat <^UT£u(ravTas TToXtv dvcLTe TavTov criTipfxa, KaTrtSeti^are TTttTcpas, a8e\(f>ov6voi. Aristotle obviously did not have the following passage in mind : iva T£ Sopara jU,€/u,ovc Baia Sl ifxbv ovojJM TacrS^ AvAtSos (TTtVOTTOpOLCnV OpiXOli,^ where if one harbor alone is meant oyK09 and o-TtvoTropota-iv would be contradictory. Here, as often in Euripides, the plural seems conventional *; and it may be said that metre alone often directs Enallage.^ As Aristotle, so the Pseudo-Ivonginus had in mind a particular class of words, such as yd/Aoi above mentioned ; their passing comments, meant to be neither general nor universal, should not be pressed too far. The latter does not fail to see that the plural often serves a poetic, a dramatic purpose ; and that the reverse process may have the same object: "In each case the ornamental effect is the same ; the unexpected change from singular to plural is a mark of emotion." ® So far as I am aware, antiquity presents no further literature on the subject ; neither has a part of the plural uses been ^ Soph. Frag. Adesp. 289. ' Menexenus 245 D. » I. T. 1495-1497. *Note e. g. Ale. 165 : iK SVAoCcra Kedpivwv BojAwv (chest) iffOiJTa. * See Pari Three of Chapter I. « UepX ui/'oi/j, Chapter XXIV : oXtiov d'ijr' dfKpoiv tov Kbfffxov ravrbv ol/jLai- Sttov re yiip iviKii, iirapx^t TO. 6v6fxaTa, t6 TroWd Troieiv avrh, irapb, d6^av i/XTradovs. The Poetic Phiral of Greek Tragedy. 5 treated for all Tragedy nor have all the uses been treated for a part of Tragedy.' Consequently it has seemed worth while to investigate with a fair degree of completeness the representative uses of the poetic plural. It abounds in Greek Tragedy and is in fact a marked characteristic there. Is it a creation of Tragedy ? Or did it receive impulses from earlier sources ? Homer is not only a great fountain source of subject matter for Greek poetry, but traces of Homeric influence in forms and diction are more far-reaching than one might suspect. This in- fluence is clearly shown in Chapter I, where so many uses of the plural for the singular seem to be nothing more than Homeric reminiscences. The same causes that produced analogous for- mations there, operated in Tragedy to effect plural uses of words which were foreign to Homer. And so it is the purpose of this dissertation to trace out in Homer, so far as they occur, the uses of the poetic plural as found in Tragedy, and to show the energetic progression of the plural tendency in the latter — from Aeschylus to Euripides. This purpose affords an opportunity in the case of nouns re- ferring to natural objects and of abstract nouns to investigate the pluralia tantum of Homer and other words whose plural occurs for the singular there, insofar as they appear in, or influence, the forms of Tragedy ; to show the influence of analogy in the transition of kindred words from singular to plural ; to see where the plural presents a fuller concept' or even a different one, and where the plural is expressive of poetic feeling ' ; to show that metrical convenience has exercised an important influence for the plural in Tragedy, as also in Homer ; and that in some cases the plural is hardly more than a mere convention — especially to Euripides. 1 The separate works on diflferent phases of the subject and for certain portions of Tragedy are mentioned later. * As mentioned by Aristotle (see p. 3). ^ As suggests Pseudo-Iyonginus (seep. 3 f. ). 6 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. As for the plural pronouns of the first person, the same uses occur in Homer as in Tragedy — rare in the former, but in the latter common and often serving a dramatic purpose. The poetic plural alluding to one individual — Chapter III — is of rather frequent occurrence, but aside from a so-called "generalizing plural," common to the prose and verse of many languages, its use falls within lines pretty well defined. In not a few instances where the plural occurs, only one person can be thought of ; in such cases at least the Allusive Plural is ap- parently confined to Tragedy. As will be seen, it serves a pur- pose not only poetic but at times peculiarly dramatic. The term Poetic Plural is here used not merely of plurals con- fined to poetry, — though such is usually the case, — for that would exclude much that occurs in the poetic diction of Plato or Isocra- tes. The word ^avaros stands in prose for the death of one or many, but Plato has the plural in the following passage^ : ■t\ ovK olarda OTL to fx-q ireLOofxevov (z. e. tovs ttci^o^ci/ovs ) dTt/u,tai5 re Kal ^prjfxxKTL KoX dava,TOi6iTov aUL ; and Vergil's Aeneid VIII, 729, per clipeimi Vulcani, dona parentis. This theory explains the neuter plural subject of the singular verb in Greek ; ultimately various plurals of Homer are traced to feminine singular nouns, as those of symmetrical parts of the body, e. g. wpbawwa. 8 The Poetic plural of Greek Tragedy. plural adjectives along with such Indo-European feminines shows that in Homer's time the singular notion was lost or faint. ^ Brugmanu^ speaks approvingly of Schmidt's theory. It remains to mention the recent work of Witte,'' which did not reach my hand till the material had been gathered and in- dependent conclusions reached as to the influence of metre ( " Verszwang " ) upon the shifting of number in poetry. He treats in detail the operation of this influence in Homer (to which the work is chiefly devoted) and also offers valuable studies for Tragedy, to some of which reference is made at the proper place.* His work, however, applies only to Chapter I of this dissertation. ^ Indicative of this, too, is the appearance of singular forms side by side with the -a form of the plural. Cf. irp6ao)Trov, irp6aioira ; but note that a form TrpoffdnraTa also appears (see p. 23). ' Grundriss der vergleichenden Grammatik der indogermanischen Sprache, Vol. II, p. 682, Strassburg, 1892. ^ Singular und Plural — Forschungen iiber Form und Geschichte der griechischen Poesie, Teubner, Leipsic, 1907. * The citations in this work are numbered according to the following editions : Homer and Sophocles — Dindorf ; Aeschylus — Weil ; Euripides — Nauck ; Tragicae Dictionis Index — Nauck. The readings adopted how- ever are independent of any single edition. Unless some specific note to the contrary is given, the ms. authority is followed where the reading per- taining to the subject in hand is disputed. CHAPTER I. PART ONE. NATURAL OBJECTS. A. Extent and Mass Group, Indefinite. Mention is here made of a large class of nouns whose plural gives a sense of indefiniteness, vagueness — suggesting usually the parts that go to make up the whole. PLACE, QUARTER, REGION, SHORE, GROVE, THICKET. (a) Place, region. The most frequent Homeric words are oyQai, lyioves (Attic l/oves), dfCTat, A.i/u,e'v£s. The following figures show the persistence in general of Homeric influence : Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. oyBax 3 13 2 2 I yoves 6 6 I 2 oiKTai 14 5 5 7 14 5 15 25 At/U,CVC5 25 9 3 5 I 9 5 (I). oVat'. Cf. A 487, 17 fxev To^ofievT] Ktlrai Trorafxolo trap 6\6ai, with Ant 1 132, Nvo-aiW 6/0€(ov Kwrtr^peis.ox^ai. In the latter case the word probably appears in an original meaning — " hills,"" and therefore is not dualistic in origin. ^ Prom. 810, Sept. 392 ; Ant. 1132 (ch), Phil. 726 (ch) ; Hel. 491. ' Cf. EUendt, Lexicon Sophocleum, Berlin, 1872. lO The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. (2). govts. ^ (3). aKrai"^ (4). Xi/xeves : — The lone plural use in Sophocles^ is probably a true one. In view of the quotation from Aristotle* — Ai/xeVas ets 'AxaiKovs — note the appearance of the word in * 745 : (For ingenious Phoenicians wrought the cup, brought it over the sea), (TTrjcroiV 8'cv Xifiiveaai 0oavTi 8e SSipov eSwKav,^ of but one harbor. In such an isolated verse, the long form of the dative was obviously convenient for the poet, while at the same time the plural involves the poetic (oyKos) notion.® A large number of words poetically employed in the plural and to be explained as analogous to the above are found in Tragedy, though not in Hamer.^ Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. opfioi 3 3 3 I 2 aiyvaXoL 4 I I pryyfuvei 16 o I KoX-TTOl 14 18 4 I I I 6 (5). OpfWI.. To be compared are a-Tevoiropouriv op/Aois^ and AwptSos opfxov aias.' (6). atyiaXoiV^ ^Agam. 1 159 ; Or. 994 (ch), Tro. 826 (ch). ^ Cy. V 98, oLKTal airoppuyes . . . ., Trpo/SX^res, where the plural means rocky, projecting parts. » Phil. 936. * See Introduction, p. 3 ; also chapter on metre. * Cf. also 5 846, V 96. ^(ry] definition of plural — "inlets," "bays" — in Autenrieth's Homeric Dictionary (trans. Keep), 1904. ' Excepting 7reS/a and KhXiroi mentioned in table. * /. e. once only in this sense — meaning ^«//jr in general. 9 1 A. 1497 (ch). '"Hec. 450. "Sing.— IT. 425 ; plur.— I A. 210 (ch). The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. II (7). pT/y/u-tvcs. Note the lone use in Tragedy, I T. 253 : aKpai^ CTTi prjyfxZcTLV a$€vov iropov. (8). koXttol. In Homer the plural is used of one bosom in I 570 ; but the plural in the sense of gulf, c 52, is a true one, as also in Pers. 539. Ant. 1 121, Ai;ovs €v KoA.7rot5, i. e. the plain of Eleusis, or perhaps the bay of Eleusis. Euripides has only the plural.* (9). fxvxoL^ presents interesting poetic variations : Homer M 23, (^l\6ve<:) (pevyovres Tri/XTrAaat /i,v;(ous' \ifi€vo<; evopfiov. Tro. 84, -TrXfjcrov 8c v€Kp5)v koIXov Eu/3otas fxv)(QV. I A. 660, ws iroXvv oLTnjaOa )(p6vov ev AvAtSos /x.v;i(oTs. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides ■ Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. (10) rOTTOl 8 12 12 II 3 4 (fl) ^Sypoi* 33 4 I 15 5 5 (12) SdTTtha' 10 I 5 7 (13) TTCS^' "5 i^ 4 4 4 8 7 19 (14). Trayoi. * I T. 1291 f. : aifivov ^pira^ \ap6trres iv K6\woi.ffiv 'EXXdSos vewj. Tro. 130 (ch) : alai Tpolas iv KiXirois. Other instances are Rhes. 354 (ch), Hel. 1146 (ch), Ion 889 (ch). Frag- 1132, 34- "^ Singular and plural respectively as follows : Homer 19-1. Aeschylus 8-2, Sophocles 0-4, Euripides 5-24. ' Cf. iv fjivxv ■'■oi' y^tfiivos, Thuc. VII, 52. *C/. Herod. IX, 25. * For ydireda see Lexicons. * But ir^Soi/ is invariably singular ; Homer 2, Aeschylus 24, Sophocles 16, Euripides 35. ' A true plural — all the plains. * Singular and plural respectively: Homer 0-2 ("Cliffs," e 405, 411), Aeschylus 8-1 (Frag. 304, 10), Sophocles 3-5, (Ant. 411, Trach. 634 ch. Frags. 86, 353, 248-3), Euripides 5-2 (Or. 1651, I T. 1470)- 12 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. To be compared are such as the following : Kox irplv (T 'Apet'ois Iv Trayois ^ i/'t^^ous tcras Kpivaa , Opea-ra k.t.X. and TOLOvTov auToTs "Apcos ev^ovXov irdyov k.t.X. ^ Naturally grouping with Trayoi are the four following : • Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. (15) ox^ot* 4 I I I 15 2 (16) aKOTnai" ^3 4 I 2 4 (17) Kprj/XVOL^ 4 2 2 2 2 (18) kAitvcs^ I I 2 3 2 Other plural uses by analogy are the three : Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing." Plur. (19) opoi* I I 3 2 I 9 18 (20) opia I 2 (21) opta-fJMTa I 4 (b). Grove, thicket. Reference is here made to Spv/iol^ and Xoxfjuai^^. As for 8pv[x.oi, only the neuter heteroclite form appears in Homer (the Odyssey), * Cf. also Or. 1651, irdyoKXiv iv 'Apeloifftv. ^IT. 1470 f. 3 OC. 947- ''Cy. Homeric ^x^*?. Plural: Agam. 1161 ; Phil. 729; Tro. 801, IT. 1375. ^ Plural : Eur. El. 447, Hel. 769, 1324, Phoen. 233. * Plural : Aj. 721, Soph. Frag. 505 ; Hipp. 124, Phoen. 1315. ' Plural : n 390 ; Cyc. 27, Ale. 578. * Homeric form oCpos, meaning landmark in the singular (* 405), and boundary in the plural (M 421 ). "Aeschylus has the word once in the plural along with 7rd7ot (Frag. 304, 10- dpvfioiis iprifjLoiis ij irdyovs dTToiKlffei) ; Sophocles the singular once and Euripides twice singular, once plural (Bacch. 1229). '"Singular occtirs Bacch. 730 ; plural ib. 957. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 13 being plural only, while \6yjxja.i occurs there once and in the singular. Clearly 8pu/u.a is the starting point for the plurals of Tragedy. 2. STREAM, WATER, BATH, FROST, DEW, BLOOD. (a). Stream, water. All in the table following occur in Homer except SuippoaC ; as the figures show, the Homeric impulse toward the plural is* strong. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. (I) pUOpa 22 2 I 4 4 (2) poat ° 18 2 I I 24 (3) Tnjyai 6 6 8 2 4 15 (4) irpo\oaL ■ 4 2 (5) KVfJMTa 78 30 14 2 2 13 17 (6) ^Sara lOI I 8 5 2 25 9 (7) BiappoaC 3 (b). Bath. Homer leads the way with the plurale is followed in Tragedy by viVrpa. With Homeric TroSaviTrr/oa, which appears twice,' tantum Xovrpd, which the latter compare the plural only. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. AovTpa VlTTTpa 8 7 I I 9 ,8 2 ^'■343, 504. 14 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy . (c).^ Dew, frost, blood. (i). Bpoa-oL — not Homeric, but analogous to the Homeric t£/oo-ai ( ' ' dewdrops " ) . (2), wdyoi — not Homeric in this sense.'' Agam. 335 : Traywv Spocrwv T'dTraAXaycvTcs. Analogically atfMTa has a place here rather than in the Body Group.' Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Spoo-oi* 2 2 I 10 4 Trayot* I 3 I aijxara 117 51 8 27 I 100 10 (3). at/xara. Where the plural is employed, we should think, probably, of the streams or drops of blood, even where more than one indi- vidual is referred to. Aeschylus : (a). In the literal sense, singular 39, plural 5 times. Agam. 1293, at/AttTcov evOvrja-LfJLWV aTroppvevTwv, streams of blood — of CaS- sandra only. The plural has a similar meaning in Eum. i66ch., Cho. 66 ch. Of more than one person are Agam. 15 10 ch., o/xoo-TTO/oois kirippoaxfTiv aXp.6.ruiv^ and Kum. 253, 6(TfJLr} ftpoT€L(i}v aifJLOLTcov fik irpocryfXa. 1 One would expect to list vi.6voL. (b). Meaning ^<7«/.r of blood — Ale. 496 ; and also I T. 73 : k^ al/xa.T(i}v yovv ^dv6^ e)(ei dpiyKiiifiara.* (c). Relationship — Ion 693, aXXtov alfxAroiv, but of two persons, Xuthus and the alien mother. Peile* thinks " aifmra in the plural, of itself generally denotes dlood shed by violence.'' But might he not have said the same of the singular? In Tragedy, blood is commonly shed by violence, and furthermore the singular appears there almost in the ratio of ten to one ! It seems nearer the truth to say the plural affords a fuller, more vivid, more poetic concept — as witnesses the fact that the plural occurs oftener in the choral passages. 3 DUST, SAND. The poetic plural here, as in other languages, vividly com- prehends the whole as made up of its parts. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Pliir. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. KOviaC 4 17 16 50 1 I 4 2 2 ' Supp. 265, Cho. 284, 932. *Or. 1548 ch., Phoen. 1052 ch., 1292 ch., Here. Fur. 894 ch., El. 1172 {^vecxphvoiaiv at/xaaiv). * Cy. O T. 496, iirlKOvpos dd-^\dp€a, xtTwvc? are always genuine plurals in Homer. It will be noted that Sophocles re- sists the general movement toward the plural. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. et/xaTa' 2 78 T 4* 2 I I 3 ttcttXoi 9 7 ' 3 15 4 I 9 84 (f>dpea 24 5 3 2 5 I 3 13 ;(ITU)V€S 54 16 2 5 I ' C/. vestes, common in Latin poetry. ' Singular merely 2 538, 1 501. 'Plurals : Cho. 81, Agam. 921, 960, 963; OR. 1268 ; I A. 73, HeL 1574, Hec. 342. *True plurals. *^ Of THE UNIVERSITY Of 1 8 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. ( I ) (.HXJOfTO.. O T. 1268-69 : aTTOCTTracras yap eijuarwv yfiV(jr\ka.rovL awfiaTi. Verse 468 : (Xerxes) prj$a<: 8c TreVXous KdvaKWKuo-as Atyv. With these compare the singular of the same robe in verses 1030 and 1060. In Eum. 352 and Supp. 457 the whole chorus may be referred to. Soph. Frag. 406 : TreVAovs (pallium^) re vrjaai AtvoyeveT? T'cTrevSuras. Euripides has both the singular and plural for one and the same robe : the singular in Medea 786, ACTTTOV T£ 7r€7rAoV Kol TtAoKOV ^pVCTT^XaTOV, and also in verses 949, 982 ; but the plural appears in verses 1065, 1159, 1188, 1214 of the same play. Verse ii59is: Xa^ovcra TrcTrAovs TrotKtAovs ^/uttiVt^cto. A similar contrast occurs in the Bacchae 935 (plural) and 938 (singular). 1 Cy. Soph. Frag. 924, wiirXov .... irepovls, and Med. 786. Also c/_ irep6vai, p. 36, and note. ^Plurals: Sept. loi, Agam. 232, 1126, 1580, Cho. 30, 1000, Eum. 352, Supp. 235, 432, 457, Pers. 125, 182, 199, 468, Frag. 297 ; Soph. Frag. 406 ; Eur. (see the few cited. ) ^ Cf. Ellendt, op. cit., p. 621. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 19 Here may be added a word which probably stands under the influence of ttcVAoi : (3). IZivai} To be compared are Aesch. Supp. 457, €;(a) crTp6ov<: ^wvas T€ (rvAAa/3as ttcttAwv and Bacch. 935 : ^clival Tc crot )((xXL/3aX(i>fJi.€6' T]8rj ; and verse 923 of the same play, XcvKCJV T€ iriirkoiv /icXaves (TToX/Jioi. (7). x^viBux is not found in Homer at all, but it appears twice in Tragedy, where it is plural.^ (b). Veil. (l). Kp7;8«/u,va.® For Homer compare t 346 (singular), C 100 (true plural) and the four uses of the plural for the singular — a 334, tt 416, o- 210, Phoen. 1490 : KpaStjtxva SiKOvcra Ko/Aas oltt e/u,as. ^ Homer, singular 6 ; Aesch. singular 2, plural i ; Eur. singular 2, plural i. '^Cf. also Or. 840, 1436, IT. 1149, Hipp. 126, Eur. El. 543- ' Hermann, Hartung, Markland, Musgrave, Kirchhoff, Rauchenstein propose unnecessary emendations. * Non-Homeric ; Cho. 29, Supp. 715, (true plurals); Euripides — singular, Ale. 216, And. 148, and plural, Ale. 819, 923, Here. Fur. 526, Tro. 258. ^A very rare word, but I find the'singular in Herodotus I, 195. * Homer singular 7, plural 7 ; Euripides plural 2 times. 'Homer has the plural twice in a metaphorical sense, (11 100, v 388), and is followed by Euripides in Tro. 508 ; but in the same sense Hesiod has the singular (Sc. 105). 20 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. (2). KaXv/i/iara — appears but once in Homer, O 93, singular. In Tragedy' it appears once in the singular, five times in the plural. (c). Wreath, crown, liead-band. Homer presents as the regular form of (rrc/x/Aa the plural which occurs A 14, 373. The one use of the singular seems to be accounted for on purely metrical grounds.* Analogous plurals are here listed with orc/A/^Ta as follows : Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. are/xfJuiTa I 2 10 a-T€r] 2 3 I I 9 (TT€aVOl I 2 I 26 13 TrXoKOt I I 4 3 fiLTpai 4 3 2 avaSea-fiai I I avahrifXXiTa I I (i). a-TcfxiJuxTa^ occurs plural for singular in Eur. Supp. 470 : Xvaavra crtfiva (TTe/x/AciTwv iKT-qpui. Also in Ion 1310, Or. 12. (2). (rrif^-q just as also crK^TTTpa is singular in meaning Agam. 1264-65 : Tt 8^T €fMLVTrj<; KaraycAwT* l^co raSc, Kai (TKrjirTpa Kat fjiavreta Trepl 8epr] (TT€rj ; Compare the singular in Cho. 1035 : ^vv TwSe 6aX\ei irpoaL^opxu. O T. 912—13 : TttS' €V X€pOLV (TT€r) Xafiova-rj Ko.TndvfiLa.fxaTa. * Singular Soph. El. 1468. Plural Agam. 11 78 (one veil) Cho. 494 (one net) ; Aj. 245, Trach. 1078 ; I T. 372. * See this word in Part Three of this chapter. •Plurals: Eur. Supp. 36, 470, Ion 224, 522, 1310, 1338, 1389, Or. 12, And. 894, Bacch. 350. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 21 Euripides •} Especially noteworthy is Phoen. 858, oiwvov iOefJLrjv KaWiviKa aa crTetfirj, where o-tc'c^t; is identical with avov in verse 856. See also I A. 1513. (3). (TT€aVOl.^ The poetical plural appears in Ale. 796 and 832 in the ex- pression (rT£a ;(pvavov in verse 984. (7). avaSrjfULTa. To be compared are the two following citations from Euripides : Hipp. 82-83, KOfirj^ ava.8r]/JLa Sc'^oi and El. 882, Se^ai Kofirj^ t of hair in Cho. 197, Aj. 1179. Euripides singular — Med. 786, 842, 1 186, El. 527 ; plural Ion 1266, Here. Fur. 233, El. 778. * Cf. Pindar O. XIII, 45 ; vXdKoi aeKlvuv (parsley wreath). 22 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. presents a case of ofXfjuiTa for the lone eye of the Cyclops, of w/xoi for one shoulder, or of 8o/xoi for a cedar-chest ! Just as the plural was natural to Homer in ojx^ara (plurale tantum, 14 times), 6<^6a\fioC (generally plural there), irapeiaC (plurale tantum, 19 times), pTvts (singular 4, plural 11 times), so the plural seems to involve a dual notion in other words as applied to parts of the body of a symmetrical nature. On the other hand, the singular predominates in Homer for o-To/Att (singular 25, plural 3 times), fteVwTrov (singular 11, plural I time), avx^v (singular 36, plural i time), fjL€Td(f>p€vov (singular 15, plural I time), arepva (singular 14, plural 4 times) ; as for V778US, it is always singular in Homer and Tragedy. But the plural form of a-T-qOr) (singular 36, plural 146) and vu>Ta (singular 9, plural 22) persisted strongly. A review of the various words and their uses shows a recipro- cal analogy at work, singular to plural and vice versa. I. FACE, FORRHEAD, MOUTH, EYE, JAW, CHEEK, CHIN, THROAT, NECK. (a). The face, forehead, mouth, eye. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. TrpoawTTa I' 9 I 3 6 3 Pas sim )MeTW7ra II I I I I 2 I 2 ar 6 p.aT a 25 3 33 3 24 3 40 ' 4 o/Xfj/iTa 14 23 32 32 29 79 87 Kopai I 25 ( I ) . TrpoawTTa. The plural commonly means but one face both in Homer and Tragedy, except in Aeschylus — where every plural is genuine. 'Since the metre favors the singular in S 24 (note the agreeing adjective) the singular is probably thus to be accounted for. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 23 " This applies also to the long form of Homer — Trpoo-wTrara^ (of one person H 212, o- 192). J. H. H. Schmidt^ thus interprets the plural of vTrwma : "Denn warend die Stirn als Einheit erscheint ' ' (why not Zweiheit in Trpoo-wTra as well as vTrwTTwx?) " ist das untere' Gesicht bis zum Munde und Kinn hin — und nur dieses wird gemeint sein — durch die Nase in zwei gleiche Teile geteilt und jede Backe erscheint als ein selbstandiger Teil des Gesichtes." ' Spitta's* explanation of the force of the plural — " pulchritudinem niirum quantum auget " is rightly condemned by Juhl.* Ovid's hostilia Ora {jaws) canum is dualistic. As for Traged)^ Kummerer" (approved by Volp) rightly says » " Die Erklarung, der Plural bezeichne Mienen, Ziige, der Singu- lar aber Gesicht, scheint gezwungen, da in den meisten Fallen der Singular eben so gut mit Ziigen, Mienen iibergesetzt werden kann."' The inner meaning* of the word is shown to be dual by its composition — 6\p. Soph. Frag. 787, 6 (even of the moon's face) : wairep (tcAtJvt/s oi/'ts . . . f.p\(.Tai via Trpoautira KaWvvovapov io^. Here Trpoo-wTra is probably best taken as referring to the eastern facade only, whose architectural face, symmetrically divided, is boldly compared to the human face.'' ^J. Schmidt (1. c, p. 404 f. ) thinks 7rp6(rwira is the Ace. sing, of the -n stem. This long form seems surely to be a formation on the analogy of 6fjLfj.aTa. See note 5, p. 7, and note i, p. 8. ' Synonymik der Griechischen Sprache, Vol. IV, Leipsic, 1886. ^ (Tf. Gildersleeve op. cit., p. 24. * Quaestiones Vergilianae, 1867. * Op. cit., p. 9 : "In plurali solo pulchritudinis notio non inest." *Op. cit., p. 4. '' Cy. for example Ant. 1241 and Soph. El. 1297. * Cy. Pollux II, 53, where irpoffuira is defined as the bones next to the nose, under the eyes ; to this the Scholiast added — ririv wp6<7o\piv da-d ^ipovi rb- 6\ov. * Variously construed is wpda-uTra here : as meaning images of Apollo and. Diana (Heath), the sun and moon — symbols of Apollo and Diana (Paley),. statues (Hermann), the eastern and western fa$ades, etc. 24 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. (2). ix€T(OTra. In Homer the plural occurs once — of one person (C 107). Similarly the plural appears in Hel. 1567-68 : fxovdfJLirvKov 8k McvcXcws i/'j/;(tov 8eprjV fxeToyird t t^iirtifTtv cicr^^vat Sop v. (3). (TToiJMTa. The plurals of Homer and Aeschylus are true ones ; but only one mouth is meant in Trach. 937-8 : dja<^t' VLV yowfi€vo<; ovt' dfxcl>nri7rTwv arofjiacriv, dWd irXevpoOtv. So too in Ale. 402-3 : KaXovfuu o (tSs TTOTl (TOl(TL TTtTVtOV (TTOfJUKTLV V£0(r(rOS. (4). ofifiara. Though plurale tantum in Homer, the singular is about as frequent in Tragedy as the plural ; the singular is often poetic. Euripides reaches an extreme in applying the plural to the Cyclops' eye — Cyc. 459, 470, 511. But the singular for the same appears in verse 600 and elsewhere. (5). Kopai. lyike ofxiMTa, Kopai is of the Cyclops' eye in Cyc. 463, 611. (b). Jaw, cheek, chin, throat. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur Sing. Plur. yevves^ 3^ I 2 2 16 6 y£i/£ta 7 3 2 I II yevetiaSes I 2 I 9 3 XaifxoL 5 5 6 ( I ) . yevues shows a marked movement towards the plural in Euripides. It affords an interesting comparison with a-Tofxara. The former, though plurale tantum in Homer, assumes the singu- ' Cf. yafi4>7]\ati — not only plurale tantum but also restricted to dative only— Homer 3, Prom. 353, Eur. Ion 159, 1495. ^ For example A 416. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 25 lar in Sophocles, and in Euripides is even used collectively* like On the other hand the singular of the latter prevails con- sistently, — but in Euripides even the plural is used of one eye. The analogical influence is reciprocally active.* (2). yevcia. The only plural found is in Sophocles O T. 1277, of the bloody cheeks of Oedipus. (3). ycvctaScs.' The plural means cheeks Ion 1460 — 61 {Creiisa to Ion) : vvv 8c yevf.ia(TLV trapa. (tWcv ttvco) fMaKapnnToxa^ TV)(pv(T lySoms. (4). XaifjLOL. The poetic plural does not appear before Euripi- des. Where the meaning is restricted to gullet, the plural does not occur.* Plural for the singular are Or. 1472 ch., Phoen. 1092, Heracleidae 822,* Ion 1065. Probably the plural should convey a dualistic notion of the throat. (c). Neck — avyevvi.^ The poetic plural appears only in Soph. Frag. 598, 4 : ^rt? (irciXo?) .... Bf.po6pov ttwAwv ckAj^c. 2. LUNG, SIDE, BOSOM, SHOULDER, BREAST, BACK, DIAPHRAGM, MIDRIFF, HEART, GALL. The principal Homeric words obtaining here are ari^Or] and p€V€s. The former is found but twice in Tragedy,^ and nowhere ^ Phoen. 63, riKPwv yivvi indv ; Cf. ib. 32, plural of one person. *These two words approach in meaning as ^. ^. Ant. 121, aZ/xciTwv yiwcnv irXriffdiivai. ' The plural in Homer means beard. See' p. 30. *Kse.g. Ion 1037: KiLvirep [irdfui) 5ii\Bri Xaifibv. * For Xoi/iwv ^poTfLuv, see Allusive Plural, Chap. III. * Homer singular 31, plural i ; Aeschylus singular 2, plural i ; Sophocles singular 2, plural i ; Euripides singular 7, plural 4. 'Sept. 865, and 663: Uveirai \6yos ar-qdiuv, but the Coryphaeus includes the chorus. 26 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. of one person. It is represented largely by crripva. and f^pivvi^ the latter being very common. Homer Sing. Plur. ^pkvvi 51 36 290 146 (a). Breast, lung, side, bosom, shoulder. (i). (TTepva.^ Already in Homer^ arepva had been used three times of one person — T 194, N 282, 290. The following suggest the dual idea : r 194, ivpvrepos S'w/xoto-iv tSc a-ripvoLcnv iSeaOaL. Trach. 567—8, es 8k TrXtyfiovas arepvwv BieppoL^rjaev . Kur. Frag. 323 : to.)^ av irpb's ayKaXalai kol crTepvots* ifjioi^ TTTjSwv aOvpoi. Aeschylus has the plural of one person three times, two of which are Prom. 65, and Cho. 746 — tv)(ovt' ifji.r]v ijXywev evorcpvots (jtpeva. To the above are here added certain words, together with analogous plurals, which not only pertain to one person, but ia some cases undergo a still further restriction in meaning : ( I ) . TrXivpai. Compare Trach. 930-31, opSifjitv avTTjV d/xtjiiirX^yL cjyaa-ydvw TrXevpav v(ji r^irap koI (f)piva<; ireTrXriyfXivrjv, with Ant. 1236, rjpuaf. TrAeupais p-iaaov ey^o^. ^SeeWitte: " Wenn (tttjOos von deni Korperteil als solchem gesagt ist stehe im allgemeinen der Singular ; plurale tantum dagegen sei das Wort, wenn es ' animus' bedeute. Ganz natiirlicli : in alien diesen Fallen ist rj<; c/t^s vya^ a7ro$€vovTo — the dual notion of the word stands out prominently. Trach. 924-25 : y ^vtnyXaTOS irpovKUTO /laoTTcov ttc/oovi's. The plural strictl}' interpreted, would seejn to mean merely the left breast, since it was the Greek custom to clasp the brooch at the left shoulder.* (5). w/MOL is rather loosely used in a choral passage of Orestes, verses 1471-73 : oifxoi^ api(TTepoL(TLV dvaKXacas Seprjv Tratctv Xaifjuav I/acAAcv cos. ' Cf. A 468 vXevpa oijTr](Te ^vffTCf x'^^'^'Jp^'- Eltnsley thinks the tragic poets used the feminine noun only in the singular and that only the heteroclite neuter plurale tantum appears in the plural there ( note to Herac. 824 ) ; so also Porson (note to Hec. 820, Or. 217). ' Homer once in singular — A 528 ; plural always in Tragedy, but in Trach. 1054 mss. L'r favor singular. ^ Occurs Homer singular 17, Aeschylus singular 3, Sophocles plural 2, Euripides more often the singular. *€/. Jebb's note, s. v., p. 136. 28 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. With this compare the singular in IT. 1381 : Xafioiv OpiaTyjoivixOeh Odvrj. * Cf. B 308, ivd' itfxivi] fidya a^/ia- dpdKuu iirl vQra Sa(poiv6$ which Vergil imitates, Aeneid II, 474 — Lubrica convolvit sublato pectore terga. Juhl (p. 12) and Spitta (p. 21) rightly see in the plural a vivid picture of the coils. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 29 In the transferred sense the word seems to be a favorite one of Euripides. He speaks of the backs of the sea, of the sky, of the earth, of the chariot, of the rock, the plural clearly involving the oyKos notion, quantity' or extent. The poetic value of the plural is at once apparent in such passages as Hipp. 128 ch., vwTa TTCTpas evoAt'ov,* I T. 46, ^^ovos 8c vtora creio'^vai (raAa>, Hel. 129, -TTOLOiaiv iv vwToio-t TTOvTuis dAos.' (c). Diaphragm, midriff, heart, gall. (i) ^/oeVes is plural in its earliest use, meaning midriff, parts about the heart ; then heart, breast, mind, m.anife stations of m.ind — and is synonymous with (rnqOrj when the latter has a figurative meaning, Juhl* following Ameis holds that for Homer the singular has only a psychic, and never a literal meaning. As for Tragedy, however, the plural is employed in the meaning of ajiimus, mens^, while in at least one instance the plural means praecordia^ — Aeschylus Prom. 881 : where ^pcm clearly equals 8idpayfm, metrical convenience proba- bly being responsible for the singular. As in Homer, so in Tragedy, the plural prevails.' Aeschylus : The plural equals Kap8ia in the Prom. 361 and Eum. 159. Sophocles : The plural is of one heart in Trach. 931. Euripides presents no departure from the uses found in Aeschylus and Sophocles. 1 Cf. Juhl, p. 12, and Spitta p. 5. * Strictly speaking, such plurals are genuine — each wave being a vwrov. 'Here as in El. 731 ch., and Frag. 114, 3, the plural assumes the indefinite force of rdwoi, xdpoi. *L,. c, p. 17. * See Dindorf, l/cxicon Aeschyleum, p. 383, and Volp, 1. c, p. 50. * Not so recognized by Dindorf and Volp. ' Occurs Aesch. sing. 52, plur. 62 ; Soph. sing. 29, plur. 37. Euripides has both numbers passim, the plural being the more frequent. 30 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. As the following verses show, there is no clear distinction in number : Prom. 781, ^v iyypd(f>ov oil fivrjixocnv SeXrois p€vp€v6'i SiXroLcn Tovs e/Aovs Xoyous. (2). TrpaTTiSesMs to be closely identified with ^/3€vcs. Its singu- lar appears only twice, and in Euripides^ ; these two instances are to be charged to the influence of cjiprjv probably. (3). xo'^«' is found but once in the plural — Ant. 1009-10 : Kol /iCTdtpO-lOl ;!(oAat SiceTTretpovTO. Kummerer^ with some reserve explains the plural by Stiicke der Galle which seems right. The gall-bladder burst and the particles were scattered into the air. 3. HAIR AND BEARD. A review of words in this class shows for Tragedy a decided tendency toward the singular, but it seems well to include them for the purpose of comparison. The collective notion is especially persistent in Aeschylus and Sophocles. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. ycvetaScs I 2 I 9 3 tOtipai 5 I I 2 I Tptx« 14 8 5 I 5 I ^aiTtti 3 14 I I 14 3 KOpjOX 10 3 I 6 2 29 15 ■Uses: Homer plural u ; Aeschylus plural 3; Euripides singular 2, plural 3. 'Bacch. 427, 999. 'Op. cit., p. 7. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 3 1 (i). 'ycv€6a8£s. (For the plural meaning cheeks in Tragedy, see page 25). (2). iOeipaL. The plural carries a sense of vagueness in Cho. 175 — ttocW v 54 II 7 I 7 3 43 12 ^dayava 22 3 I 4 2 3 (i). Toia in Homer not infrequently has a plural significance, meaning the whole bow equipment — TrSo-av rrjv ToiiKrjv a-Ktv-qv^ — as for example in $ 490-2 : . . . SeiiTeprj 8'ap' air" (Ofnav olvvto^ To^a . . . razees (.KirnrTOv o'kttol, and H 140 : ovveK ap' ov rd^oto-t /Jui^icrKeTo 8ovpL tc /xaKpiS. The plural also expresses the abstract idea of archery, as in>. B 178 : that is T^S TO^iKrjs ifXTTiipias. But the plural is also found there in the sense of one bow. For example, in Book XXI of the Odyssey the one bow is referred to 40 times by the singular and 9 times by the plural. In Tragedy the plural is relatively far more common, the meaning at times being restricted even to the arrow. Agam. 510, Apollo's bow ; Cho. 694, Curse's bow ; Eum. 627-8, To^ois is equivalent to /SeAei : ov n dovpioa r6^oLopftdv The arrows alone are meant in Phil. 652, as Ellendt'' points. out, but the meaning is not so restricted in verse 654 : Cf. Juhl, p. 34. ' Cy. Here. Fur. 160 f : rd^a, KdKia-Tov 8w\ov. *0p. cit., p. 740: " Arcus nee vapappvrjpai. nee dTra/xeXeto-^ai potuit, sed sagittae". Cf. also Phil. 1303. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 33 $t. ct /AOi Ti To^wv TtiivS aTrr/fieXrjfJLivov. TrapeppvrjKev , ws A.i7ra> /iat/ to) Xa/Seiv. NE. ^ Tavra yap rot kXuvo. t6$' a vvv €X"'- Euripides affords the same uses as Sophocles and Aeschylus. Of one bow, Med. 632-4 : fXTJTTOT W SiaiTOlV CTT i/Xol Ifxipio -)(p(.cra(T advKTOv oiordv.' In Ion 524 To^a clearly means only the arrows, or perhaps one arrow : ovK aTraWatu, irplv etcra) Tofa TrAcv/jtovwv Xafieiv ; (2). fi^Xr]. Cho. 160-1 : €v xepoiv ttoXlvtov iv tpyto fiiXr] VittoAAwv 'Ap-qs, where ^eXrj seems to assume the meaning of rd^a and mean one bow as indicated by the bow- epithet^ TroAivTova. Sophocles : , In the Philoctetes there is, apparently, a loose interchange of fieXrj and Tola, each meaning bow, arrow, or both, — verse 140, ySe'Atcri ToTs 'HpaKAe'ovs ; verse 1 98, relvai to. ^cwv' afxd^rjra fitXr] ; verse 1287, Stxov Se x^'-po'* f'l «a<-^s /ScAt; raSc; verses 1302-3, ri. Aeschylus : One would rather expect the singular in Cho. 163 ch. : cr^eoia t avTOKwira vwp.u)v $icl>r)' Sophocles : In Ant. 820 the plural calls attention to the sword as such. As the singular in Aj. 30* shows, the plural in verse 231 is of 1 Cy. Or. 268, Supp. 886, Here. Fur. 366, 1090, 1098. *See e 266, Herodotus VII, 69, Trach. 511. ' Apollo (OeQv) provided Heracles with bow and arrows. * TijSwiTa ireBla ffijv veoppdvTif) |f(?)€t. 34 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. the hero's one sword, but suggests probably the number of objects slaughtered, the sword- thrusts : (TvyKaraKTas KtXaivots iiecnv ySora Koi ^OTrjpae(Ttv onSapeoKTi-v "AiSa. Hades is hardly pictured as holding many swords in hand, but rather as meting out death in many forms, by many thrusts.' One would surely expect the singular" in And. 821-22 : tlpyovr) Ka6apTraZ,ov(Tiv i$ai.povp.(.voL. (4). dayava. As Or. 1035-36^ (where the singular is found) clearly shows, the plural of verse 953 is singular in meaning : aXX f.vTpeint,€ dcryav' rj jip6\ov 8epr). The general movement toward the plural enlists as poetic plurals the two following, if Volp be accepted for the latter : (5). lot.' Trach. 573-74 = rj p.€Xayxo\ov^ €/3aif/ev lovs dpifJLfxa Aepvatas vSpa's. That only one arrow is meant, is seen in verse 567 — ^k€v Kop.-iJTrjv lov. Jebb'^ thinks the plural suggests the double barb of the arrow. (6). dyKuAat. OT. 204 : )(pv(rod,(Tyavov d(Tyavov Kwirrj^ Ka^iov / €^£iA.k« koXcov. 2. DOMESTIC ARTICLES. (a). Axe, brooch, goad, sickle. (i). yeia;6s is plurale tantum in Homer, having there a dual force in a different meaning— Jaws. ^ The same dual notion is probably transferred to its secondary meaning — axe — as is sug- gested in Eur. Frag. 530, 6 : TTcAeKcws 8c BCarofiov yewv IttoAA' 'AyKaios. ' So does Witte, op. cit., p. 31. 'Kummerer : " So kann man nur an den einen Schilddenken ; Sophokles will durch dx- a"""", die personificirte Peste von Kriegsgotte unterscheiden. " *Cy. Kaibel, Sophokles Electra, note s. v. * Cy. irepi/3oXds, ib. Phoen. 276. (f>4p is (T/coretvAj irepijSoXds fiedw ^loi. *See p. 24. 36 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. So too the word means axe in Soph. El. 196-197 ch. : OTf. 01 7ray^aA.Ka)v dvTata ycvuwv^ wpfjidOi^ TrAaya. ( 2 ) . TTCpovat. Sophocles OT. 1268-69 : aTTOO-Trao-as yap ei/Aarcov )(pv(Tr)XdTov^ Trepovas air avT^s. Phoen. 804-5 : weX€<: OiStTToSav Opeij/ai fipi0'i iK^oXov oiKoiv ^pv(ro8eTOL<: Trepovats CTTicra/AOv. Here ma}^ be added, too, Euripides Bacchae 98. These plurals may be singular in force" ; and Trach. 924-25 would so suggest : Xvei Tov avTrjs ttcttAov y ^varjXaro'i irpovKUTo fxaaruiv Trcpovts. (3). TTopTrai.^ The same applies here as to Trepovai. Phoen. 62 : Oedipus — •}(pvcr'q\a.TOi'i TrdpTraicriv atp,a^as K6pa<;. (4). Kevrpa. As Trepovai, SO Kevrpa in OT. 1318 : KevTpiav Tc ToivS* olfTTpijfia koX p.vrjp.r] KaKwv. So, too, but one goad is meant, in Phoen. 177-178 : 0)5 drpe/AaTa Kevrpa kol cruxfipova TTwXoiS p.€Ta(f>€paL^r^5 just as he possesses powers ( KpaTT). ) * The dual in OC. S48, 1 109 refers of course to Antigone and Istnene. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 39 OC. 448-49 : TO) S'dvTi Tov (^ucravTos ciAecr^iyv Bpovovi Koi aicrjiTTpa Kpaivtw Kai Tvpa.wf.vtLv -)(9qv6%. For Euripides may be cited tbe following verses where the plural has the same force as those above: El. 11, Here. Fur. 213/ 1167, lA. 1 194, IT. 187, Or. 437, 1058, Phoen. 52, 73, 80, 514, 591, 601, 1253, Ion 660, But the singular means more than the mere sceptre in Phil. 139-140:* Ktti yvci/xa Trap otw to Oiiov A109 (TKrJTTTpov avdaaiToi. Once even in Aeschylus the plural is literal but singular in meaning — the Agam. 1265': Kol (TKrJTTTpa Kai fiavTfla rrtpi Seprj aT€6voiaL XV^' yavpovTai Xa/Sciv. Here. Fur. 1103-04 : dAA ovTi 2icru<^£tov eiaopm Trerpov IIAouTwva T ov8k aKrJTTTpa ^TqfvqTpo^ Koprjs. (2). BaKTpa* is used for one wand in Euripides, probably on the analogy of similar literal uses of (ncrj-n-Tpa there. Ion 216-7 : ^p6fuo€p , w tckvov. ^ Here. Fur. 254 has a true plural. * So EUendt Lex. p. 686 : " Medium propriae et tralatae huiusce significa- tionis locum obtinet. ' For such passages as this and the following see chapter on metre, s. v. It is easy to see the convenience of the plural. * Non-Homeric ; Aesch. sing, i, plur. i (true plur. ) ; Eur. sing. 4, plur. 4. 40 Ihe Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 4. VEHICLES AND PARTS THEREOF. Kummerer' in treating the problem of ap/xa (as also other neu- ters in -/u«) for Tragedy, considers the plural usages analogous to the substantive neuter plural of the participle : that is ap/xara equals ■^pfioaixiva {^things fitted together')!'' The root of the, word is ar, as Kummerer, Volp^ and Juhl* assert, yet no satisfactory explanation is presented for the use of the plural in Tragedy. Juhl is silent for Homer and so are Kummerer and Volp for Tragedy. For our purpose recourse must be had to Homer. There as well as in Tragedy both plural and singular are used of one chariot,^ but the plural is more frequent than the singular. In the Odyssey the singular does not appear at all. The plurals of Homer clearly show traces of metrical con- venience and this it is that serves largely to sustain the plural in Tragedy. The transition in Homer was particularly easy in view of the Homeric plurale tantum oxea, which occurs there 37 times" ; it does not, however, appear in Tragedy, but is repre- sented there by the masculine o^oi.' A comparison of the uses in Homer and Tragedy easily ac- counts for the rather free play toward the plural in the latter. It is a question whether the plural should convey the notion of a vehicle as made up of its parts, the things fitted together ; the Homeric a<^' hnrtav {i. e. apfmro^) and iTTTTiov iTn/3aLV€L suggest that the plural apfiara may have corresponded earlier to our collo- quial rig — either ittttol or ap/xara being at times mutually inclusive, 'Op. cit., II, p. 14. ^Volp combats their view on p. 42, but apparently accepts it on p. 54. •''Op. cit., p. 54. *Op. cit., p. 36. ^£. g. E 237 : dWA (ri y''aiirhs eXavvi t^' dp/xara Kal Te(h I'ttttw. So too ib. 239 and elsewhere, ^ Witte ingeniously notes how inconvenient the tribrach d!x«a was for heroic verse, and regards the persistent plural a proof of the original plu- rality of the word. ^ This word occurs but once in Homer — e 404 — where it means harbors. The Poetic Phiral of Greek Tragedy. (a) Chariot. 41 Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. ap/MttTtt 21 46 5 5 2' 15 29 oyr]\jja.ra 3 I I II 6 8l(f}pOL 82 7' I I 6 4 5 Sxoi i' 4 ii 2 2 8 17 aaTLvat I (l). ap/M. Pers. 190-191 : KaT€i)(€ KaTrpdvvev ap/juiaiv' 8 vtto ^€vyvv(Tiv avrttt , where the plural is for the singular as also in Choephori 795, with which compare verse 660. Here. Fur. 880-882 : /Se^aKtv ev 8ipoLaLV a ttoXuotovos apfiaai 8'cv8i8o>(n Kevrpov. Here apfjuiai is of one team, meaning really iTnTois, while 8L€p(o epva'S Kopr], (3). 8cpoi..^ The plural first appears in Sophocles of one chariot — El. 49-50 :; a6\oi(Ti nv^j/coTcriv 6k rpo^-qXaroiv 8tputv KvAicr^eis. Similiarly verses 510-512 ; '7ray)(^pvcrwv e/c Btffypwv SvcTTavois aiKtiats irpoppit.O'i iKpi(f>9eL<;, and also verse 742* : i}pp.aO' 6 TX-qfJiwv 6p66<: i$ opOuiv Sifjipwv. Hel. 724-5 : (TV S'ev Stcf)pOL^^ (Tvv Ts TrdSa, and Soph. El. 727 : fjLerwTra a-v/XTratovai BapKatois o^ots. Euripides' does not fail to press o^os into varied service^ 1 Plurals — lA. 610, 616, Rhes. 392, Phoen. 44, Supp. 662, Frag. 779, 6. Some of the singulars are Hipp. 1233, Tro. 884, Med. 1321, Rhes. 621, Ale. 67. ^Similarly ib. 616 and Phoen. 44. ' Literally the chariot-board, where the ■^c/oxos and the Trapai^dr-ns stood. Note the word's etymology (5i5o -\- (pipui). ■•See also ib. 710, 723, 750. ^ See also ib. 1040, Phoen. 2, IT. 214. * In OT. 808 Doederlein (followed by Hartung, Dindorf, Nauck) reada 6xous, while Jebb, Bbeling and others follow the text which is very difficult to construe. ' Occurs sing. Med. 1123, Hipp. 1166, 1212, 1229, lA. 623, Tro. 856, El. 999, Rhes. 190 ; plur. Phoen. 1190, And. 1019, Tro. 569, 626, Hipp. 1225, IT. 370, Bach. 191, Hel. 1040, El. 969, 1135, lA. 146, 599, 613, Rhes. 416, Supp. 316 (Pierson, Dindorf and Hermann read X^xoi^s) 674, 676, Bacch, P- 33 TTiel^Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 43 In I A. 146-7 the word virtually means the wheels by reason of the adjective : Tpo')(aXdl(Tiv o\OL<: TrapafJieul/afJievr) iralSa KOfxiS^ova ivOdB' ain^vr]. But merely the chariot is meant in verse 599 : rrjv /SactActav Be^wfied' o^idv. So too in verse 613, but the singular appears in verse 623 : Other poetic plurals are Hipp. 1225,' Tro. 569, El. 966, 1135, Hel. 1040, and Bacch. 1333-4: o^ov 38 Ta/XV£ V€OVS OpTTT/KaS Iv apfULTOi aVTUyCS* €L€V. E 728 — 80101 8c Trepi8pofJU>i avTvye's iiaiv. The plural in Tragedy meaning the chariot may be considered a figure of speech, the number being analogical to apfmra ; or else the plural may be merely a Homeric reminiscence. Aj. 1030 : 'Ekto)/) ^iOiTTrjpi Trpi(T$(x<; tTTTriKoiv c^ avTuywv ktc. Soph. El. 746 : Koi dvTuytDV ijiXurdiv ktc. ^Cf. apixoLTusv 6x°^ (it). 1 166), ridpiirwov 6xov (ib. 1212), r^rpojpov ^xok (ib. 1229). ' The ms. reading ^x"" seems impossible. As against the prevalent reading 6xov (Dind., Week., Paley), the plural is preferable. So Witte, p. 200. ' A true plural appears in H. Horn. Ven. 13; but rf. Anacreon 20, 12 — iiri^alvet aoLTiviwv. * Homer sing. 9, plur. 4 ; Soph. plur. 2 ; Eur. sing. 7, plur. 3. 44 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. Eur. Rhes. 567-68 : ouK, dWa. 8e(Tfia TrwAi/cwv ck avrvytav xAd^ei aihrfpov. Compare Phoeu. 1 193 where the plural is of more than one chariot, and Rhes. 236, Hipp. 1231 where the singular is used of one chariot. (2) amoves." Hipp. 1 234-35 (of o'^^ axle) : (Tvpiyyes t avo) rpo^Siv iirySwv a$6vwv T'ivrjXaTa. 5. WOVEN AND LINKED ARTlCIvES — CHAIN, NOOSE, NET. Enallage of number is particularly free here. Where the plural occurs of one instrument, it probably conveys a fuller concept — the constituent parts of the whole. (a). Chain. Homer presents Sea/xot together with its heteroclite form SiafjMTa.' Of all the uses of the two words there, however, I find the plural for the singular but once ; the latter so appears in X 468.' ( I ) . SecTfxot. * To be compared are Prom. 96-97 : TOiovS 6 veos rayos fiaKapwv i^rfvp €7r 6/xoi 8evyydvo} : In the latter case Suas would encourage the plural. ' Occurs Homer sing. 5, plur. i (true plur. ) ; Aesch. one true plural ; Soph. sing. I (El. 745) ; Eur. plur. 2. * For convenience the two are classified separately. • So Autenrieth, Homeric Dictionary. ■• Occurs Homer sing. 20, plur. 1 1 ( probably true plural in each case, but note S 379, Kdirre 5^ Befffwijs, i. e., rivets, as Leaf takes it) ; Aesch. sing. 4, plur. 9 (Prom. 6, 113, 155, 176, 509, 525, 770, 1006, Frag. 235, 2) ; Soph. sing, i, plur. 3 (Aj. 62, 72, Frag. 60) ; Eur. sing. 3, plur. ig. ^ Cf. BeiTfid, ib. 513. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 45 In the two passages following, the bond made by the reins is meant — Hipp. 1236-7 : avTos 8 6 tXtJ/xcov lyviaKTiv c/X7r\aK£is dtafjiov Svcre^rjvvaTov eAKcrai Se^ci's, and verses 1244-4.6 : )(S> /xkv €K Sctr/xoiv \vO(l<; TfXrjTiiiV IfXaVTiiiV OV KOLTOLO OTW TpOTTiU- (2). 8co-/xa' (Homer, Sea-fmra). Prom. 513 : wSe StafjM. vyydvoi, with which compare 8€o-/oiovs in verse 525. (3). Becrfua/juLTa is in Tragedy twice — a plurale tantum — Pers. 745 and Soph. Frag. 26. (b). Noose, net. Of all the words under this head only three appear in Homer, and not one of the three has the plural for the singular there. The figures show for Sophocles and Euripides a strong shift toward the plural. The three in Homer are : Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. /3poxoi I i» 2 I 9 21 « s 28 7 3 2 2 6 2 2 SlKTVa I 7 I I 3 NOOSE. (l). ^poxoi. Or. 1035-6 (of one noose as Ppoxovin verse 953 shows) : Set 8 7] Pp6xov<; aiTTUV Kp€fjiao^ driytiv Xf-pC ' Plurale tantum both in Homer and Tragedy : Homer 3, Aeschylus 3, Euripides 14. ' Occurs in x 472, where the plural is really a true one ; cf. ^p6xo<- there with ?pK€t, V. 469. The nooses about the several necks are the meshes of a net, as it were. * Only once used in this sense in Homer and there it is singular. 46 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. Similar instances are And. 843, Ti /AC ftp6)(iov £ipyci5, Hipp. 779/ yvvy, Kpf.iia(TTolr)6poi(TL (literally : entangled in the sword-bearing meshes of the nets, i. e. shall suffer the peril of the sword. ^ For a contrast of IpKt] and Bea-p-oi, see Soph. El. 837 ; for that of epKi^ and fipoxoi., compare Eur. El. 155. (1). €pKrj. ^So also Tro. 1012 and elsewhere. * Occurs Aeschylus plur. 3 (true plurals) ; Sophocles sing, i, plural i. * Only here in Tragedy. ♦Occurs Aeschylus sing, i (Bum. 346) ; Sophocles sing, i (OT. 1374); Buripides sing. 5, plur. 6. * See ib. verse 136. * Cf. ib. verse 779 — iv /Spoxots. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 47 Agam. 161 1 : tSovra TovTov t^s ^iKr]<: iv IpKitriv. Aj. 59-60: cyo) ^ ^oitcovt' avBpa fxavLacTiv vocois uiTpvvov, eiai^aWov eis ^pKf] KaKo,. Soph. El. 837-38 : oT8a yap avaKT 'Ap,OevTa yvvaiKUiv (where epKtcTL is of a single necklace). Eur. El. 154-5: 6\6fxevov SoA.tbis ^po^oiv IpKtaiv. Bacch. 957-8 : Koi p,r]v 80KW (TL\6po}v yap Trapa(Taivei fipoTov eis dpKvaol3epav vyrj Orfpav i$o} ov^.* (3). StKTva.'* Eur. plur. 3 (Or. 1315, Phoen. 263, Bacch. 1206). ' Cy. use of singular ib. Med. 986, and Herac. 441 : TOtov de yalas ipKos ovk dai 2 I I 6 6 iviaToXxLi * 4 4 II The notion involved in ypd/ifxara, ypa.<^a.i finds a parallel in such an expression as Tdyyeypafifiiva.^ Referring to the same letter in the Iphigenia among the Tauri are the following : Sc'Atou (727), ypa(f)yv (762), 8eA.Toio-tv (787), ■ypa<^as (735), exio-ToXat (.767). ypap.fMTa (745), Tdyyeypafx.fi€va (763). A similar free Enallage of number obtains for opKo<:^ in Tragedy. (4). SeXroL resists the plural, but in certain instances yields.' The two cases in Aeschylus and Sophocles are used in a meta- phorical sense, but Euripides has the poetic plural in a literal sense. ^ Cy. Frag. Adesp. 300 : iv rots ifiavrov 5ikti5o« aXdxronai. "Aesch. sing. 2, plur. 2 ; Eur. sing, i ; Frag. 754), plur. 2. *The plural in Eur. Bacch. 1241 has another meamng— prey. * In A.eschylus and Sophocles always equals mandata. * I. T. 760, 763. ® Cf. e. g. IT. 768, (5 padlois SpKottn irepipoKovffd fie with verse 790 : rbv 5'8pKov KOTc6/iO(r' inireddxrofiev. While the plural suggests metrical con- venience, it apparently conveys the notion of the stipulations in the oath. ' Uses — Aesch. plur. i ; Soph. sing. 3, plur. i ; Eur. sing. 26, plur. 4 (lA. 116, 798, IT. 787, Frag. 369, 6). The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 49 Prom. 781 : r^v iyypd(j)ov (tv fivrjfioaiv SeArois p€vS>v. Soph. Frag. 540: 6e<: 8'cv (f>pev6% ScA-Toion tovfmTa, Softoi gebrauchen, ohne dass die Beziehung auf die Theile des Hauses bemerkbar ware." ' The explanation is at once ingenious and plausible, but it seems incorrect for two reasons : ( i ) The expression rot wko- Sofirifieva for house is not to be found in Greek Literature * ; if Sw/iara is analogous thereto, we should expect to find it actually existent. (2) The evidence at hand points to an original sin- gular for house, and to the fact that the plural could easily have represented a combination of simple structures into a complex one. As J. Schmidt^ points out, the earliest Homeric form was ' Cf. ib. 760 : ^i* diXrov irrvxais. *Op. cit.. Vol. II, p. 14. * In like manner he would explain dpfiara (^ to. ijpfjMa-ii^va), ^evy/jLara [=^ tA * cy: voip, p. 42. * Op. cit., pp. 221-223. 50 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. Sw, which was originally singular.' I venture to suggest that the early singular points to the time of the primitive hut of one chamber." When first used the plural did not mean things built, but rather a plurality of chambers. When the singular was used the notion was one of unity, and when the plural occurred, the notion was one of unity in the light of its parts — chambers. Juhl for Homer, and Spitta for Vergil attempt to explain the plural as meaning ' ' magnum vel magnificum vel amplum aedi- ficium, quod dicimus Palast." But such a distinction cannot hold for the word as late as Homer, and certainly not for Tragedy or Vergil. The plural hardly does more than afford a distributive as against a collective notion, for both numbers are often applied to the same structure, as e. g. the palace of Odysseus.' The cedar-chest of Alcestis* was far from being a " Palast "! To Euripides the plural there is a mere convention. An example of Sw/ua ^ in the sense of one chamber appears in z 313-317: ( ' The word is always found in the sixth foot, and in 22 of 23 places has a singular modifier as ^.^. ^M^repo v. In one instance (X 501 ) it appears un- modified by an adjective — i% iraripos 8u. In Hesiod's Theogony 933 (xpi^cca 5w) the plural adjective does not oppose the view taken, for it cannot be considered the reminiscence of an earlier usage. Our word is there thrown out of its formal position anyway {i. e. the sixth foot). This solitary use of 5w as plural may be explained as that of an obsolete singular noun following by analogy the Homeric Swyuara. ^ In reference to the oriental ' ' joint undivided family ' ' , see Sterrett's Iliad, p. 222, where he says: "When a young man marries, he needs but one chamber ( cone ) ; as his family increases other cone-chambers are built by the side of this original cone-chamber. As each child marries, other cone- chambers are built .... until finally the establishment of a patriarch consists of a great collection of isolated, but juxtaposed and intercommuni- cating chambers, each with its own cone roof with a hole at the apex for the exit of the smoke. ' ' 'This palace is designated by d6fj.os, dd/Moi, 8Qfia, ddfiara. oIkos, fiiyapov, and niyapa ! *Alc. 160 f : iK S'eXovcra Kedplvwv ddfjLuv j icrd^ra. ° Cf. Lat. aedes which occurs regularly in the plural in the sense of dwelling, but the singular is used for ietnple (Neue, Formenlehre der L,ateinischen Sprache, Vol. I, p. 675, Leipsic, 1902). The singular appears of one room in a dwelling also, — e. g. Plautus Asinaria 220, Aedis nobis areast. Cf. also the very elastic use of niyapov which occurs often in Homer, but never in Tragedy. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 51 'Ektcop Sc 7r/3os Siafiar' A\e$dv8poio /8e/3r;K£i Kakd, TO. p auTos erev^e cvv avSpacriv ol tot dpurroi Tjcrav ivl Tpotrj cyot/3(oAaKt T€ktovcs avSpcs. o( 01 iiroirjcrav OaXafJMv koI Swfxa koL avXrjv iyyvBi Tt TipidpiOLO koL "^KTopo'i iv ttoXci aKprj.^ Here a distinction is forced between the plural and singular, Sta/juLTa being the whole house, Sw/ia the male apartments, OdXafiov the woman's apartments, and avKi^v the court. These studies show for Homer in general, however, that in speaking of the whole house, he is free to use either number of 8iafw., 86fio€(TTLOV<; i\$y fidWio. KaT oIkov is a Stereotyped phrase * meaning within the house as against outside the gates ; and if so taken here, So/iois must be regarded as referring to the woman's apartments (yvvaiKwvms).* Such a restricted meaning the plural has in the Odyssey.® Euripides : Both numbers appear in the different meanings. Of one literal house compare Or. 179, Tov 'Aya/u,c/u,voviov ctti 86fwv • with Hec. 59, aycT*, 2) TratSes , T-qv ypavv rrpo Bop-wv. Of one house (family), compare I A. 1030 : p.r]Sk iraTptZov 86p.ov ato";(vv(c) and verse 930 : ov TTOv vocrovvras 6tiois equal to " domi." oIkos is used in Homer at least twice of one chamber — r 18 {i.e. the atrium), and probably o 356, r5i4. In this regard Volp's view is not objectionable. Cf. Bekker's Charikles in the house-description — "die Zimmer, ohoi oder dlK-^/jLara" — Vol.11, p. 136. ®f 303 : dW bvbr 6.v ae 56ixoi KfKvduxri Kal avXi^. Cf. also Agam. 851 (above quoted) and the restricted meaning referred to in Euripides (following). 54 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. Of one temple compare Ion 1275 : dXA* ovTC Pv elv Nictov noXtv TjKtLV tipaaKe, SwfJLaTwv ctcra> ^c^w;. So also Ale. 546 : ■qyov (TV, ToivSc S(i}fmTpovpov ifioC and verses 146-147 : OTTOTttV Sk p.6\r) Seivos 68tTT/s tS)v8 €k fiiXddpoyv. Euripides : The word appears twice of the Cyclops' cave.* (5) o-Tcyai.' Aeschylus * : The plural is usually synonymous with ScSftara, which it follows by analogy. The plurals in Eum. 56, and Prom, jog^gjypsy wagon-homes — are true ones. The singular occurs of one chamber in Frag. 124, 2 — iv dvSpcta crreyrj. Sophocles : The stereotyped phrase Kara o-rtyas is common* (compare KttT OIKOV). * Weil needlessly emends to plural. Wecklein brackets 1435-1438. 'Cyc. 491, 511. Where the plural is used for a cave, it is always genitive. The genitive singular of the word is avoided both in Homer and Tragedy, occurring but once in the latter — Euripides. *The neuter noun (rr^yos (tectum) is non- Homeric, but occurs in Tragedy, Aesch. 2, Soph. 3, Eur. 8. Strangely it invariably resists analogical in- fluence in favor of the plural and remains singular. * Occurs here sing. 6, plur. 4 ; Soph. sing. 21, plur. 10 ; in Eur. common in both nimibers, being plural for singular 36 times (see Kummerer, p. 8). *OT. 637, OC. 339, El. 282, 1308, Phil. 1262. 5 8 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. The singular clearly means one room in OT. 1262 : €kXlV€ KolXa KXfjdpa KafJ^TTLTTTU (TTeyr)' The singular ' is twice used of Philoctetes' cave and the plural once (Phil. 286, 1262 respectively). , Euripides : Both plural and singular are used of the Cyclops' cave.^ Even in the plural the word seems to mean one chamber, Med. 1 142-3 ^ cyo) Sk KavTos rj8ovrj<; viro aT€yaoi* naturally follows o-rcyas in plural uses. Aeschylus Supp. 647-8 : TOV OVTIS av 8o)U,OS €\0}V (TT 6p6(f>WV fXUllVOVTa. Compare the two following from Euripides — Ion 1143 : irpSroK /Acv opocjxi) TTTepvya Trepi/SaXXet ttc'ttAwv (Ike roof- tree of the tent) and verses 89-90 : (Tfi.vpvTjov'i (i.e. vaov) $ot/3ou 7r€T€Tai. (7) Ilcpya/xa^ (arces). Aeschylus Prom. 955-56 : VC'OV V€Ol KpaTUTi KOX hoKilTt 8^ vaUiv awevdrj iripyafx^a) .* Phil. 346-47 : o)S ov difxi^ yiyvoir', cttci KaTii^OiTo Trarrjp c/xos , to. irepyap. aXXov r/ p. cAetv. ' The singular means grave Ant. 888, and dungeon El. 282. ' Cy! Cyc. 91 (sing. ) and ib. 29 (plur. ), So too the plural in IT. 263. 'So also Med. 1164, but cf. ib. 1180 for the singular. * Occurs in Homer only fl 451, where it is a collective singular of reeds for thatching ; Aescb. plur. i ; Soph. sing, i ; Eur. sing, i, plur. i. ^ Homer sing. 3 (masc. forms) ; Aesch. plur. i ; Soph. plur. 4 ; Eur. only plural, except Tro. 1065, lA. 773. Cf. Herod. VII, 43 : t6 Ilptd/uoi/ Ilipyanov. * According to Servius (note, Vergil Aeneid II 556) we would have here a true plural: " propter Pergama quae altissima fuerunt, ex quibus omnia alta aedificia pergama vocantur sicut Aeschylus dicit ". {Cf. Ebeling Lex, Soph.). The Poetic Phiral of Greek Tragedy 59 In Euripides also the plural is not infrequently used of one citadel,' and there as elsewhere is probably poetic. 2. THE TEMPLE. Analogous to the above are the frequent poetic uses of the plural for temple. As has already been seen the words above are often used for a temple in both numbers.^ The plural usage is naturally extended to words whose regular meaning is temple. In Homer, however, no such influence was effective. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. avoKTOpa. (Ut. king's dwelling) vaot {vrjoi) o 12 o o 1* o o o I' 2 o 4* 2» 13' Passim ® The adjectival substantives XPWVP'^ aod /navrcui which occur in the sense of temple, shrine are for convenience listed here. (3) XPW'VP"^ is non-Homeric, and outside of Euripides (i.e. in Aeschylus and Sophocles') is found only in the plural. Aeschylus Eum. 194-195 : oi) )(pr)aTr]pLOLS €v Toi'' ffs rb KpvrJTL<; icr^aivova-a fiavrelov 6eov, with which compare verse 66 : TjKovai TTpos fiavrel AttoAAwvos rdSe. 3- TENT, CHAMBER, CAVE, LAIR. The leading words in this group are three : KAio-tai, OdXafioi, avTpa.^ The plural of the first often occurs for the singular in Homer.* This is true once of OdXap-oi, but avrpa is a singular only in Homer. As will be seen there is a strong movement toward the plural in Tragedy — in the case of these as well as numerous others subjected to analogical influence. (a) Tent. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. kXktuil 66 54 I I I I 3 (TKrjvaL 2 2 3 4 10 (TKrjvwfiaTa I* I 3 iQther singulars : Ion 512, 1336. 'Sing. I (Bum, 4 — oracular seat ) , plur. 2 ; but in Sophocles sing. 2 in sense of oracular seat — El. 33, OT. 243. 'See Ebeling lyex. Horn., p. 824. * The Homeric figures for the three words mentioned are as follows : KXialai — Sing. 66, plur. 54. ddXa/jLoi — Sing. 64, plur. 7, dvrpa — Sing. 12, plur. o. ^ The form here is dTLV oiprj. Euripides has no poetic plural of kKlo-uil in this sense, but in another sense it occurs.^ (2) (TKTJVaC} In all the five uses here — both singular and plural, the tent of Ajax is referred to. As for Euripides, compare the singular of Hec. 53, Rhes. 45, with the plural of Tro. 139, 176 : in every case the reference is to Agamemnon's tent.* (3) (TKr/via/JLaTa. The plurals of Cyc. 324 and Ion 1 133 are singular in meaning. (b) Chamber, apartment. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. 1 Plur Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. ^oAa/uH 64 7 2 4 i» 7 31 cSitfAia 2 3 2 aiXai 45 I 3 4 13 i» av8p5>vts 2 vapOeviave^ I 8 ^cvwves 2 vvp.(la 1 2 3 eipKTal 1 2 ' Cf. the sing. ib. 1407. "^ E.g. Ale. 993-94, where the original force appears (KXipw) : yevvaiordrav di iraffav i^ev^oi KKurlaii Slkoitiv. ' Cf. Eur. I A. I, where dbfiuv equals ^ KpvTTTOfieva 8'cv TVfi^rjpei Oakaifiiit KaTi.^(.v\$ij. The poetic plural does not occur in Euripides. (4) dvSpoives. Agam. 242-244 ch. : ^irci iroAAoKK 7raT/jo9 KOT dvSpcovav evrpaTre'^ov? l/ieA.i/'cv (the dining room). -Cho. 712 : ay avTov cts avhpSiva% €v$evov^ 86fio)v (the guest-chamber). (5) Trap^tvoivcs. Prom. 645-46 of lo's room) : da yap oiJ/ck €VW\oi TroyXevfievcu es irapuevSyva^ tows c/lu)v9 Traprjyopovv kt€. Phoen. 193-4 • Hat. — l fiwfiov (TTavTts «u(o;(^Te /x€, and verse 593 : SaAos S'lcrto^cv avAiwv w6u Kanvov. (3) daXdfxxu.* Euripides has the plural for the cave of Trophonius — Ion 392-394 : €i(Top(o yap tvyevrj Troaiv Hov^ov TreAtts Brj tovSc ras TpotovLOv AtTTOVTa OaXdfJiai kt€. Phoen. 931-2 (the dragon's den) : Set TovSc OaXoLfxai-i, ov SpaKwv 6 yrjytvr)^ cye'vtTO ^LpKr)vyq. vqSaTi, in which case aiXitov of course is lairs of beasts, a true plural. While TreXare is strange here, it is not impossible ; and if the mss. be fol- lowed, aiXliov is best taken as above suggested. ^ Cf. the common phrase kut' ohov. * Homer e 432 6a\dnr}s. ^The singular in Phil. 1328 — " shrine." The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 67 Ion 300 (of the cave of Trophonius): (TT/KOTS 8'€V(rTp€€l T pO0}VLOV . When the meaning is that of a sacred enclosure, even when referring to a cily, city-walls, the singular is used.' Kummerer's suggestion, therefore, that the one plural here is on the analogy of Tet'xi?? Tfvpyoi cannot be right ; rather vaoC or avrpa. 4- THRONE, SEAT. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. 1 Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. 1 Sing. Plur. dpovoi 34 19 6 14 i 1 I 17 6 15 daKOL' 4 2« 2 I 1 I I I 8 fBpai 5 7* 6 9 15 4 26 21 iSpava 3 4 1 I I (i) 6p6voi.* In Homer the sense is always literal and the plural is nowhere to be found for the singular." As for Tragedy, the earlier uses of the plural in an apparently singular meaning involve, I believe, a concept which is really plural, just as in the case of crKrjirTpa.^ The following studies seem to prove this a general principle. If Euripides uses the plural of one ordinary seat, it may be said that this is not the only instance where with him convention has superseded pre- cedent or logic. *See Supp. 30, Bacch. 11, Rhes. 591, Phoen. 1751. * Homer — duKos, d6uKos. * True plurals. * In origin, of literal sense: i/dhra — support; hence Opivos — seat, chair; then ' ' sella excelsior et honoratior. ' ' ^ E.g. S 238 (notice 5cDpa) : bOipa. S^ roi iuxru Kal^v dp6vov, Ap€vos (fiikov dpovov, as also Sept. 409-10 : fiaX €vy€vfj T€ KOI Tov Aia^vvrjs dpovov Tip.S>vTa. In Supp. 208 the Coryphaeus is speaking for the whole chorus : OiXoip! av ^Srj aol 7r«Aas dpovovs «X'^''- The following citations serve to show that the plural is not merely the throne but has a much fuller concept, — it connotes the prerogatives, rights, privileges of the royal office ; the ab- stract notion in fact is paramount. Prom. 767 : ^ Trpos 8dpxipTO9 IV 6p6v. OC. 237 : T^crS' (y^s), ^s eyij} KpaTtj re koi 6p6vov^ ve/jua. Verses 1 267-68 : aXX' tv a.iro(TTf.pi 8 i(T$i^fJuiTa OpOVVT CKtlVO) TavTa KTe. Soph. Frag. 144 : av S'iv Bpovoiai ypap.pA.T(av TTTV^as l^wv vep.' £t Tts ou Trapeo'Tiv bs ^W(0)u.oo"£v. ' However, ddKijua may mean supplication here. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 71 There is a sense of vagueness in the plural when applied to the throne of Zeus, such as is noted in similar uses of cSpoi and ISpava' — Ant. 1040-41 : ov8" £t QiXovu q\ Z17V09 aicToi ^opav epeLV viv dpTToi^ovTcs e? Aios dpovov^, that is, the sky-throne of Zeus, symbolical of his manifold powers (Kpa.Tr)), which comprehend all those of lesser potentates. Similarly those of an Agamemnon or an Oedipus embrace the chief command over various subordinate rulers. Euripides ^ : Similar to the common uses of Aeschylus and Sophocles are those of the Phoen. 74-75 : Kade^tT ap)(rjira vea- pa )(a.pL(rL Trapa Aios 0p6voLei.^. Hel. 241-43 : d Sc )(pv(reoi<; 9p6voi Zeu, Trap' 'Hpas ap opas dp6v(ov raSc ; In Rhes. 269 the plural may have merely the literal idea : ovK oTaOa 8(Ji>pxi Tovp-ov rj Opovov^ Trarpos; Euripides reaches the extreme in using the plural for one literal seat — Med. 1 163-4 : KaireLT dvao-rao" c/c dp6vu>v 8iip)(erai. Med. 1169-70 : ;;(((>pet Tpifiovfra KUiXa kox ix6\i$d,vei dpovouTiv €fx,Tr€arov(ra fxrj ^a/iai Treo-ctv. Med. 1190 : €vy€L S'dvacTTao"' ck Opovniv Trvpovfievrj. Ale. 945-6 : ywaiKos euvds evT av eto-tSo) kcvoi? 6p6vOV<; tIv oXfTLV t^c, where dp6vov<; is as eui/ds probably singular in sense. Or. 1408-9 : ot 8c Trpos 9p6vovL\aL crreyai, frtfivoL T€ OaKOL 8at/xov€S T avTijX.101, where the meaning is probably singular/ The plural in OC. 9-10 may be corrupt : aXX (!) TCKVov OaKOKTiv £1 Ttva )8X€7reis ^ irpos )8e/37;A,ois 17 irpos aX(T€cnv Oetov. The manuscript reading is hard to sustain/ Euripides has the plural in singular meaning, Phoen. 839-40 : oiwvwr/iaT* opviOmv ixadtav 6d.K0L(TLV iv upoZcriv, with which compare Ant. 999-1000, where the same Tiresias is speaking : CIS yap TTaXaiov OoLkov opviOoaKoirov (3) 'V'-' Prom. 389 : tj T' dyvCi>v. Sophocles* Aj. 194 (of one seat apparently) : dAA' dva ii iSpdvv. 5- GATE, DOOR. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. TTvXai 63 39 5 II I 82 dvpax 9 62 I 5 I 5 dvperpa 4 I 5 irpodvpa 14 9 0* 2 ' C/. also Bacch. 410 with ib. 952. ' In Pers. 4 the plural means the palace or treasury of Xerxes (see Hesiod V 49)- ' Used as Opdvoi in Soph. Ant. 104 1 — is Aibs dpbvovs. *In O C. 176 and 233 the plural has the vague sense of herabouts, quarters, while the particular idea is indicated ib. 192 f. In Tro. 538 the word refers to the temple of Pallas. * Unless Wolf's conjecture wpodipuv be accepted for El. 109. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 75 These words commonly refer to but one entrance. Starting with Homer — TnJAat and dupai have a dualistic force as the modi- fying adjectives show in the two passages following, M 453-456 : ws 'Ektwp XOv'i (raviStov ^epc Aoav atipa^ at pa TTuAas cipvvTO irvKa a-TL^ap(odpayyo<: rdaK ivap/xoaw )^€pai. ( 2 ) Ovpai.. ' On both words cf. Witte (p. 21). He points out that the Skt. dvdr is Imost plurale tantum in the RV and AV, and that dur is plurale tantum. His conclusion that the singular irvXyj is a development of poetic license and not a pure Attic form has considerable weight. He claims rightly that the Homeric Bvpa^e and the Attic Oipaai point to the plural as the original num- ber {Cf. also Skutsch, Archiv fiir Lateinische Lexicographic und Gram- matik, XV, 1906, pp.45 ff. ). He would find poetic excuse for the singulars in Ant. 1186, Aj. 11, Eur. Frag. 781, 45. But cf. Aristarchus on I 473 : ^' 6Ti.v\i}BvvTiK(as dipas &vrl rov ffijpav " (Lehrs, De Aristarchi Studiis Ho- tnericis,'^ p. 125 f. ). * Of these onlj' dvriOvpa is Homeric and occurs there once — in the singular. • Person attempts to read the lone singular out of Euripides ( n ote to Or. 1080), but EUendt rightly upholds it (Lex. Soph., p. 683). 76 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. Compare the singular of Cyc. 502, dvpav Tt<; oi^ci fioL ; with the plural in verse 635, rjfj.ei<; fiev ipv Kopa, where Ae^ca is equivalent to yvvij.' (3) A.€KT/)a. ' In this sense the plural occurs but three times. ^ Homer has the form KoTroi in the singular ten times. ' See on these words under head of ' ' Metre. ' ' Also cf. Witte, op. cit. , pp. 208 f. and pp. 221 f. * E.^. Ale. 186, 1062, Cyc. 999, Hipp. 180, Or. 35, 44, 88. ^£.£^. Ale. 175, ifted. 180, Or. 313. • Cf. similar use of w/*0««x Ant. 568 and of yd/Mi ib. Trach. 1139, Med. 18. 78 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. • Of one bed are, for example, Pers. 704, OC. 527, Ant. 862, Phil. 699, OT. 260 ; and so very often in Euripides. (4) evvat. Agam. 1192-93 : €v /xipei 8 dTrcTTTverav evvas a8e\ov tw irarovvTi 8v(r/u,£V£is. Cho. 318 : ev6a yUs eivarifipiov. * dpfiara S'&n ^wfioun rldei, Kara Xira Trerdaaai (see Leaf, Vol. I, p. 361). '/3(«>yti6s ^ j8c£(rij (step). When the i^xdpa was away there were several steps in the ascent (Volp, op. cit., p. 52). The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 79 Homer provides no precedent for the poetic plurals co-xapai, xpTpi'Sc?, iirUpava which apparently stand under the influence of fitO/JMl. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. ^(aixoi 15 5' 16 I2» 3 8 48 26 iS Td\L(rTa TrpooTToXcov fio\v Se TrpoxvTa/iovs,* ToiaS' cwcttcdv CTrr;. (2) co^apai. * True plurals. *Sing. OC. 888, 1158, Frag. 341; plur.. Ant. 1006, 1016, OT. 16, OC. 898, Trach. 238, 754, 904, 993. - * But this is not surely of one altar ('see Volp, however, op. cit., p. 53. ) * Mentioned in the singular ib. 1 158. *So also I T. 405. Cf. the singular in El. 792, IT. 72, 705. 8o The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy . Eur. Supp. 290 : (r€iJ,vaZ(Ti Arjovs c(r^apais ' Trapr)fJL€vrj. And. 1 102 : Xa/8ovT«s yf^v i(T)(apai<; ^ T'c^eora/xtv. Phoen. 284 : fiavrela (Ttfiva Ao^iov t kir idri arvkos, ws t8oii fioi Sofiiav irarpioiov, ck 8 emKpdvwv * ko/jui^ $av6aOl.* ' Cf. iffxipav, ib. I2CK). ^(y. iffxdpny, ib. 1138. * Cf. iffxdpap, Herac. 121. * Cy. Kpriirls ^ufiuiv, Trach. 993, and KaQv Kpifirls, Pers. 815. * Cf. &vaKr6puv Kprpridos, And. 1 1 1 1 f . *Cf. the other use of the word (singular), Hipp. 201. ' T^ix^oi is of frequent occurrence both in Homer and Tragedy but it en- tirely resists the poetic plural. * Occurs Homer sing. 9 (sepultura) ; Aesch. sing. 16, plur. 2. (Sept. 914- true plural, and Eum. 767) ; Soph. sing. 33, plur. 5 (all poetic plurals). Eu- ripides has both numbers often, but the plural never occurs in sense of tomb. The Poetic Phiral of Greek Tragedy. 8i Volp says : ' 'Nam cum ra^os sepulturam significet, de sepulcro legitur Ta<^oi.'" This is misleading, for the singular is frequently used in the meaning of tomb, while the plural is rare in any sense. Campbell concludes that ' ' The use of the plural may perhaps point to the various ceremonials of burial, or to the number of tombs in the place where Polybus was gathered to his forefathers. ' ' That the latter notion is present is suggested by certain passages in Herodotus ^ ; that the former can hardly be, may be seen in OT. 942 and other places where the deceased is represented as already cV Ta<^ois ; that all five uses of the plural in Sophocles are poetic, and can be explained on metrical grounds is shown on another page— in the section on Metre. Eum. 767 : avToi yap 17/Lici; ovtcs cv ra^ots t6t(.. Here 17/icrs might be regarded as including both Orestes and his contemporaries. The very fact that Ta<^os occurs in the plural without any constraint of metre assures this — for elsewhere in Tragedy the plural has an explanation on that ground. And yet if ly/itts is a Pluralis Maiestatis,' Ta<^os may be plural by attraction. OT. 942 * : ov S^t' €7r£t viv ddvaroi iv Td(i)V(ii TOvSc fir) OdiTTtLV OflOi^ fOf TovSc ddiTTiov avTos CIS Taa.oi ; and II, 169 : iv r^ffi iraTpcotricn Ta(pya^ ^ j delvaL KcXcvci ere kt€. In the citations from Herodotus (page 81, note 2) the plural certainly means one tomb and equals ra^ois. Jebb, however, thinks the word " has its ordinary sense ' rites of sepulture' " in Ajax 1090. The meaning oi grave seems surely more natural in the three instances above, and furthermore only the plural is found where such a meaning seems apparent. (3; KeSpoi'^ is used poetically of a cedar-casket in Ale. 365-6 : iv Toicn aurats yap /u.'fTricr/ciyi/'w KcSpois (rot TOvcrSe Oeivat. The plural carries with it a sense of vagueness just as ttcjoi/SoAwv in Tro. 1141, where KeSpov appears in sense of casket : dW dvTL KeSpov TTCpi^dAoDV TC AaiVCDV. ' For this, at least, the notion of place where many are buried is not present. ''Occurs Eur. sing. 3, plur. i. CHAPTER I. PART TWO. Abstract Nouns. MURDER, DEATH. Of the words following only six occur in Homer : <^ovatV 4>6voi, OdvaTot, alfJMTa,^ fwpot, irXrjyai. Of these only <^oi/at,<^ovot, TrAiyyat and ddvaroi are found in the plural there. <^dvoi is a plurale tan- tum both there and elsewhere. The lone plural of ddvaroL has a particular meaning,^ while that of 6voL*^ too is probably a true plural. The primary impulse arising in Homer — in ovai, apparently — effects marked traces in Tragedy, where the poetic usage is seen not only in Homeric words but also in later formations as the tables under this head show. (a) Murder. Homer Aeschylus 1 Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. 1 Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. ovai o 2 O I o 3 2 6voi 45 I 31 1 I : 29 6 165 6 a-ayai o O i(2)| 5(6) I 5 19 27 TrkrjyaL 3 6 5 9 6 4 5 4 adyui o o 3 I 10 20 TrXr^y/xara o o o o 1 2 (Tayiaa-fiot o o o o I Sui6opaL o o I o I 2 2 2 7rpodyfMiTa o o I o 1 J 3 3(4) ' Limited to the dative plural with prepositions ifi^tl and iv. ' For the uses of aifiara in this sense, see pages 14-15. '/i 31 : irdvTes fi^v (XTvyepol Odvaroi. deiXoun ^poTouri {i.e. all kinds of deaths). ♦X612. 84 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. (i) 4>ovai.^ The force is singular in Agam. 447 : Tov 8'iv 6vOL. In Eum. 843-845 the plural is a true one, since the tribunal is permanent : CTTci 8k wpdyfjua 8€vp' iTreaKrjif/ev ToSt (f>6v(av SiKaoras opKtovs * aipovfievrj dcafjiov TOV £ts aTra.'T* iyw 6rj6vovopas TOV (TOV Si^/cas (TTo/ouxTos, OS tyw TaXas 7]V€yKOV aK(OV. The context shows that ^ovovs refers merely to one murder — that of Laius by Oedipus ; otherwise it might include the attend- ants. The three plurals of the passage are highly rhetorical and seem to magnify the enormity of Creon' s charge. Same play, verses 989-90 : ovep€i'i crv fioL 6voi may have been used by reason of the influence of atVj' seems fanciful : atVc nowhere else appears as a plural companion of cfidvoT ! \. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 85 Soph. El. 11-13 : oQfv are. Trarpo? «»c 6vwv iyu> irore irpo^ crrj^ o/juiifiov Koi KaaiyvrjTj]^ Aaj3cjv T]veyKa (i.e. Agamemnon). Trach. 557-58 : o (8a)pov)7rats It ovaa tw 8a(rvaT€pvov irapa NeO'CTOU 6LVOVT6vo)v ^ dveiXofXTjv. Ion 1026 (of Ion alone) : auTou wv avTov kt€iv , Iv afivqati 6vovs. As for Sophocles two uses of the plural from his latest ' play would easily allow a substitution of the singular — so far as metre is concerned ; but in them the plural seems to av^oid specific reference, — the notion of murder is generalized. In the passage above quoted from Euripides — it is the only poetic plural there — the meaning is approximately : /Cill him here, and then thou canst deny guilt of murdering anybody. (3). aayaL. Agam. 1599 : d/xTrtTTTci S'aTTo o-c^ya?' ipStv, where more than one are thought of. ' For 4>6vuv here Bergk would read 4>ovS)v ; and so Dindorff emends 6vuv seems right " on the ground that " here we ex- pect a word which will directly suggest the wounds. ' ' Against any changes the following reasons seem conclusive : (i) The mss. authority; (2) There is no precedent for the genitive of ooval — it occurs in the dative only and in a prepositional phrase always ; (3) (pdvuv does suggest a wound, often xaG&nin^ blood a.s e.g. in 12 610: oi ^kv Up' ivvrjfMip Kiar iv (povip and Aesch. Eum. 184, dpofji^ovi 6vov, Eur. Hec. 241, araXay/wl 6vov which equals rj ar], respectively, suggests itself. In 187 the statement is general : 66aXixayai(n is a bold enallage for alfmat (which is often similarly used in the plural) and is simply proleptic. There is not sufhcient warrant for the meaning usually given — throat} As often the word means gash, woti7id, in this particular case having especial reference to the blood. Eum. 450-1 : cot' av Trpos dvSpos at/Aaros Kadapcriov (T(}>ayal Ka$ai/xd$(0(Ti veoOi^Xov )8otou. The plural is of one animal and clearly equals alfmra'' in force. Sophocles has the one singular with the five plurals — Ajax 915-918 : KaXvil/u) ay'f)v where some editors strangely read ai/xaroacpayris : a-ayTjs, as Bloomfield notes. ' The array of authority for this meaning includes Bloomfield, Ruhnken, Paley, Sidgwick, Kummerer, Din dor f (Lex. Aesch.), Steph. Thes., Liddell and Scott. The following passages are summoned for support : Koivbv 5i fiipoi aiix^vos /cat (rr-ffdovi ff4>ay-fi ( Arist. Hist. An., I, 14), and t6 ^ios Kadeiayat (quoted p. 87). ''See on at^iOTo:, pp. 14-15. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 87 El. 37 : 8oA.oiayds (of both Aegisthus and Clytemnestra) . Electra 568 : ov Kara crayas iKKOfJLird(TaL6peTrTov alfjux twi/ c/xwv (Taywv iveyKrj ;(€po"tv, r) /AcAay^oXovs e/3ai{/€V tows OpifJLfux Aepvatas uSpas ktc, {(T<^j.yS)v being the wound inflicted by the one arrow'); similarly ayS)v verse 717, but in verse 756 the plural is of several victims : TioKvOvrovi T(.v\(.iv aayd d-n-wXecrav . (5) crayLO}v clvek aTTwddv. Or. 658 (of Iphigenia) : d 8' AvXtdyL €firj<; ofJiXKTiropov . Or. 1284-5 (of Helen) : TL fieXXtO' ol Kar oTkov iv rjcrv^ia (Tdyui oivt (8) SiAKfyOopai. OT. 572-3 : oiiOovveK, ei fxr] crol iwrjXOe, 70.(78 e)U,as ovK dv TvoT elire Aatov SLa(j>6opd<: (of Eaius only and equals ovov^ ) . Sophocles OC. 551-2 : TToAAtov aKovitiv €v T£ Tw 7ra/30s xpovw Tas alfuiTr]pa6opev is preferable. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 89 Phoen. 870 : at $ alfiaTiDTrol Scpy/xarwv Bui6opal 6tu>v (ro<^tcr/ixi /caTriSei^is 'EAAaSi. (9) TrpoadyfJuiTa. Compare the two following citations from Euripides/ both plural and singular being used of the same victim — Hec. 41-42 : atTCi S'aSekdyrjv Tr]v IfJirjv Tiokv^evriv TvfX.^*^ (fyiXov 7rp6(TayfJia Kai yepa? Aa^ctv • Hec. 265 : EAevT/v viv atTCiv XPW toi*^!}* Trpoavy6vTtL\ov Trp6(r^ayfjui kol dvTrjpiov 'ApTC/ilSl. (b) Death. Homer Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. Sing. Plur. 6dvaTOi 136 I 20 5 18 4 92 6 dvpuoLTa i I .0 8 .10 10 fiopoi 14 45 I 20 2 22 6opaL i' I I I Bva/JML 2 I KaraxTKai^Ku, 4 I I I 3 'In El. ii74themss. ha.v& vpoirtftdeyfidTuv, but Musgrave and Nauck do well to read irpoacpayjudTuv. 90 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. ( I ) Bavaroi. Aeschylus' Again. 1337-39 ch. : vvv 8 £1 Trporepuyv al/x' airoTiau Kai ToidL Oavovai aXXtav TTOtvas Oava-TOiv CTriKpaivei. Cho. 50-53 ch. : 10) KaracTKacjial SofJLwv dvr}Xt.oi /3poToaTvyei<; ov6OL KaXvTTTOvcn So^ous SecrTTOTWi' davoLTOLcri. The piling up of the plurals in these choral passages promotes dignity and elevation of style. OavdTwv, OavdroLo-i,^ and BecnroTdv all refer to Agamemnon, while rots davovai alludes to Iphigenia. Sophocles : The death of many is meant in OC. 1200, but El. 203-06 can mean only that of Agamemnon : o) vvi, o) SeLTTVwv dpprjTuiv iKTrayA. a^drf TOis e/Aos tSe Trar-qp OavoLTOv; ai/cets 8t8u/u,aiv )^€ipdiv. Trach. 1275-76 (of Deianira's death) : AtiTTOu iJ,r)oe (TV, irapOiv ctt oikwv yLicyaA.ovs fjikv ihoxxra vcous davdrov;. OT. 491-3 : Trpos OTOV Si] fiaadvw €7ri TCLV eTTt'Sa/Aov (fydrtv elp.' OlSiiroBa Aa/JSaxt'Sats CTTi/coDpos dSrjXwv 6avdT(i}v'\ Euripides* has the plural for the singular in only two places — El. 482-5 : ^ In three instances more than one person is referred to. For a similar usage in Plato, see page 6. See Sept. 877, 894, Agam. 1573. ^So Volp, and Jebb (note to Soph. El. citing Cho. 53), but Witte wrongly : ' ' Der Plural anstatt des Singulars ist zuerst bei Sophokles El. 204 belegt " (p. 254). ' Cy. aljudruv inlKovpo^, Eur. El. 188. * The plural occurs Or. 1641, Med. 197, Ale. 886, Here. Fur. 629, El. 484, Frag. 964, 4. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 91 TOiydp 6viov VTTO Sepav Oif/Ofjuai aifia ^vdev o"i8a/3(i», and Frag. 964., 4 : vyd<; T e/xavTu) TrpoTt^cts Trarpas e/A^S davdrovii ^ T'dwpors. The following facts appear : (i) The poetic plural is usually in choral passages — the place where one sees the tendency toward elevation in style, toward generalizing, and avoiding the spe- cific ^ ; (2) The plural for the singular is an extension, no doubt, of the plural use where more than one person is referred to ; (3) Another influence at work is that of analogy*; (4) The metre is in some instances particularly favorable to the plural. Seidler" observes that the plural is used especially of a violent death. Peile has expressed the same view for af/uaTa." But it is extremely doubtful whether in any of the words of this nature ♦^he notion of violence is a common result of plurality'. Then, too, the singular prevails in Tragedy in the ratio of eight to one *, and whatever the number a death in Tragedy is usually violent ! In Soph. El. 206, davdrovi may have the force of death-blows, closely approaching ■K\-r]ya.i, aayd^ as e.g. in Kaparofiovi (Tayd<;^. Kaibel *" considers davaToxK a plural by attraction of ox^ ; his ob- ^ I.e. Clytemnestra alone. * Probably influenced by €crTiwv. In Sophocles the word is plurale tantum^ while the singular and plural occur with about equal frequency in Euripides. Just as 6v/jMTo6opaL. Agam, 406 : ayovird r dvTi€pvov 'lAtw f^dopav, .with which compare the plural in verse 814 : kAuovtcs dvhpodvrJTa': 'lAt'ov dopd<;, where the adjective avSpoOvrjras is distributive and projects its plural notion into the noun. Compare Eur. Frag. 813, 2 : TTOVOl Sc KOLV 66pCU TToAAttl jSlOV iviuriv. (5) SvapxiL is commonly found in the plural both in prose and poetry. By a striking transfer of meaning it once equals ddvaroi — Aesch. Frag. 69 : cVi 8vaL ^ . Sept. 46 : TToAct Karao-Kai^os Sevres (the plural suggesting manifold deeds of destruction). In Cho. 50 the plural is highly poetic ' : 10) KaTaal 86fx.(DV. Euripides : Compare Hel. 196, ' lAi'ov KaTaaKadv with such uses of the plural as appear in the Phoen. 1196, irvpyiov KaTa(TKa<^do-vyj. Same play verse 744 : dfJuxpTavw yap ras ifj,a<; dpp(as^ (T€J3o>v, ■my royal prerogatives. Verses 796-7 : Twv fxeydXwv Tra/ocS/oos e v dp^al^ dia-fitav, ^ with which compare OC. 1267 : Zrjvl (rvvOaKO<; dpovmv AiScos, and same play 1382 : \lk7} $vve8popovovcrL Brjfxov ixtl^ov, ovres ovSeves, where apxah approaches dpovoi (compare cv ^povois rjfievoi^) just as the latter often approaches the abstract notion of apxai (2) KpoLTTi is always singular in Homer (30 times), but the plural is frequent in Tragedy, The uses in Tragedy are defined by Kummerer ' as follows : (a) Kraftige gewaltsame Handlungen. (b) Vorrang, Oberhand, Sieg. (c) Herrschaft, Regierung. He should have added a fourth class where the meaning is concrete (just as sometimes apx«0 — i.e. the word is used of the person who exercises authority. In this sense, however, the word appears only in Aeschylus and is singular in each case*. The third class marks the uses to be noted here'. In this sense Aeschylus has the plural* in Pers. 785 : aTravres i\p.Ci.€vyova IjJLipotvTa ydfiov ^pvcr^s 'Apo8ltt]i. In Aeschylus * the plural pertains to but one marriage — six times. In Sophocles^ the plural commonly refers to but one marriage. The plural has a concrete force ^ and serves a dramatic purpose in Trach. 1139 : ws 7rpoa ydfwir'ilaav eCKairlvai rt. ' So Leaf inlerprets ydfioi, quoting Monro. •'Not found as a substantive in Euripides. *Prom. 559, 739, 947, Sept. 779, A.gam. 1156, Supp. 331. * Plurals: OC. 526, 751, 945, 962, 978. 989, OT. 825, 1403, 1492, El. 494. 971, Trach. 504, 546, 843, 1139, Ant. 575, 870, Frag. 561. * Similarly vu/i^tio (Med. 18, Tro. 7), X^x«* (Eur. El. 481), wfupeiiMra (And. 193), vvix(t>(VTr)pia (Tro. 252). 98 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. ofivvfJii Twv crtov fXTjiroB a\f/a(T6ai ydfio>v ' and Med, 18 : yafxoiuiJiv (marriage as such) okvov aXyuTTOv Icr^^ov, a tis AtT(ji)A.is yvvj. Same play verse 920 : w \^xv '^^ '^"' vvp.(f)d' ifxA (bridal chamber). But Ant. 568 (of the fiancee ') : aXXa KTcvets vvfi^ua tov aavrov T€kvov ; ( 3 ) VVIX(f>€VfW.Ta . OT. 980 : orv 8' eh TO. firjTpb^ fJirj (j>oftov vvp.<^e.vpAiTa^ Tro. 419-20 : CTTOV Se flOl TT/aos vaus, Kokov vvp.<^€.vp.a (bride^) tw (TTpaTrjXaTr) with which compare the plural in Euripides Andromache 192-193 : ctTT (0 veavt t yvTqcTLiav wfJLrjp€i Koi j(dAov veaviSos At'ywv TaS (c). (2) fiaviai. Prom. 878-79 : viro fi av or^aKcAos nal (f)pevoTr\.r)y€L^ fxavLai (^fits of madness^ OdXirova-L. Similarly in verse 1057 : Ti X"^? /u,avtti)v ; Ant. 960-61 ^ ; Kttvos CTTcyvw /xav6ais xf/avwv £ov ^cov cv Kf.pTOfxioi% yAwo-erais. 1 The mere figures would be misleading. In Homer the meaning is re- stricted to seat of the life-principle, seat of anger; but in Attic the plural denotes the outward manifestations. ^ Ajax 640, Ant. 354 (d7o/oadlTO. There is apparently no call for a sharp distinction nor indeed is there any such distinction. Note that (i) each verse is isolated ; (2) vocrwv could take the place of voaov, while on the other hand voaw could not be employed in the latter unless the verse should be entirely reconstructed ; (3) both verses are spoken by the same person, in close succession. A similar freedom of Enallage is observable where the plural equals [Mviai (throes of /re?t2y) , as in Soph. A j. 5 9-60 : eyo) 8c (fiOiTwvT avSpa fxavLacnv^ vo(rots airpwov, and same play 66 : Seii^u) Sc Kai (Toi ti/v8c irepiffHivrj voaov. For Euripides may be noted Or. 280-81 : al(T)(yvofiaL ere /AcraStSovs ttovwv Cjhojv o)(\ov Teirape^wv irapOevw vdcrots ifxal6opdapfidKoiaiv rj Traywv / TC^^vaitrtv rj 6tSiv KXowais, where K\oTrai<; may stand under the influence of T€;^aio-iv,* the plural suggesting the devices employed in a given theft. It is to be noted that the plural — of the theft of one person — originated in a choral passage, where as has been seen already innovations more often make their initial appearance. A strange extension of plural usage is that of Hel. 1765 : eirei kAottois eras ck hofxtav iSt^aro (17 vrjaos), where KAoTras ^Tas). * Or 56\oi as in Eur. Here. Fur. 100. *Sept. 351, Supp. 510. * Here may be added, too, avapnayds, Hel. 49 ff. Ko/yC} fxiv ivOdd' etfj.', 6 S^ddXios ir6ffis ffTpdrevfi ddpoiffas rd% i/xas dvapirayis $i)p^ iropevdels'I\iov irupd/jLara. CHAPTER I. PART THREE. Thus far, attention has been paid to the force of the plural when used for the singular, and the different poetic purposes the same serves, only occasional references however being made to the question of metre. Metre should certainly not be neglected in the study of the subject as has been the case in the disserta- tions of Juhl, Kummerer and Volp ; for metrical influence is to be seen both in Homer and Tragedv. If the poet of Tragedy employed the plural purposely in every case to give a sense of vagueness, fullness, complexity, or for some other rhetorical or dramatic purpose, the causes of Enallage would be purely psychological. But if in many instances a free change of number suggests caprice ; if in a given verse which is grammatically isolated there is a plural where the singular would hardly be possible from a metrical standpoint ; if certain plural uses seem practically a convention — as in Euripides especially ; if the difference in meaning between the singular and plural is indis- tinguishable, there is good reason for recognizing metre as a very important factor in the heavy shift toward the plural, and so to (i) Homeric usage, (2) analogy, and (3) the frequent poetic value of the plural, is added another contributing cause — (4) metrical convenience. Metre. The metrical causes contributing most largely to plural usage are : (i) Avoidance of hiatus ; (2) The fact that irrational syl- lables are allowable only in the odd feet of the iambic trimeter and in the even feet of the trochaic tetrameter catalectic ' ; (3) The elective forms of the dative plural.'' ' Cf. Schmidt, Rhythmic and Metric, p. 84. ^ As e.g. S6/101S, 86fj,oiffi, S6/jioi(Tt.v ; KoLran, Koiraun, KolTcnariv ; Hp/jiaffi, dpfxaffiv. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 105 For the trimeter especially two things are noticeable : ( i ) Metrical convenience gives an impetus toward the plural to second declension nouns of pyrrhic sequence, as^.^. 8o'/aos', ya/xos, o\ovpfi€voi fiaCvovfTLV i$ oiKUiv iroBa. Ale. 496 : (parvus 1801s av ai/Matrtv TrcvpfjL€va<: . In the former, note the long form of the modifying adjective ; in the latter, the ending -o-iv which makes a long syllable. avaBtj/JUiTa, Metre determines the number in the only instances of this word, which are found in Hipp. 83 : ava,8r)fjia Si$ai \€ip6 Sofioiv irdpoiKOv ©€Tt8os €19 avaKTopov, r and verses 1 17-19 : w ywat, a ©eViSo? SarrcSov Kttt dvaKTopa Oaa— Sapov ovSk AciVcis. a.vTpa\ That Tragedy upon the whole has a preference for the plural has proof : ( i ) The singular may be metrically convenient in (e.g.) Phil. 27, an isolated verse : 8okG> yap olov eliras avrpov etcropav as also in Eum. 193 and Aesch. Frag. 261 : (2) No metrica reason can be assigned for the plural of Aj. 1263 : Ti's av Trap avT/jois 66pvfio<; lO-Tarai ^orjs ; (3) In Euripides' Cyclops where the singular occurs three times and the plural fourteen times of the same cave, the singular in each case may be accounted for, but not so with the plural ; it is actually preferred e.g. in verse 100 : SaTvpwv TTpos avrpois tov8 o/aiXov elaopui and in verse 288 : /XT] TXrjiyp,€vov^ ^evovs* As for verses 87 and 426, the singular is purely metrical, while clearness of expression is apparently responsible for avrpov : KatTOi vyoLix av, KaK^e^i^K avrpov "^ fj,v)(C)v. In Ion 958, however, the singular appears where the plural is equally admissible : Kai TTtos €V dvrpw iralSa aov Aitteiv ctAi^s ; dvTiOvpa. Compare the lone uses of Homer and Tragedy— tt 159: arrj oe Kar dvriOvpov kXktit^s 'Ohvcrqi avel(ra, Sophocles Electra 1433 : ISdre Kar dvriOvpwv oaov rd)^LaTva<; oirahoi, KaKKOfxlt^iB appara apiraL. The poetic plural appears once — in Ion 191-92 : Acpvaiov vhpav ivaipei ^uo"€ais apTrais 6 A109 Trais, where the dative singular both of adjective and noun would be difl&cult of use. dpTovai*. The poetic plural occurs only in Sophocles Ant. 54 : TrAcKTaiortv aprdvaLai A.a))8aTai fiiov (where the long dative form is doubly convenient). Compare the singular in OT. 1266 : XaXa Kp€pxi6pov TTwXfDV €kAj^£ ^idvos i$avy€(TT€pO)V. jSaKTpa. The poetic plural is in Euripides only. Phoen. 17 19 ch.: (SoiKTpa Trp6(Tov crv fivT^fx-ocnv ScAtois p€V(ii>v . Soph. Frag. 540 : ^€S 8'iv <^/0£VOS ScAtOWTI ToilS C/AOVS Ad/jovs. IT. 787 : TctS* ecTTi rdv ScXtolctl cyyeypa/A/xeva with" which compare Sc'Atou in verse 727. The precedent of Homer has persistent weight in Tragedy. The two uses of the singular are Ale. 183-4 : Kvvet 8k TrpocTTriTvovcra, ttSv^ 8c Se/tviov o(f>6aXfJiOTeyKTio Sevevrai irXrjixfivpihL, and Or. 229-30 : [iSov.] i\ov TOi T

8e(r/u.or9 deiKCis Kat Sua? iKvyydvoi '. Compare Soph. El. 749-50 : (TTparos S'oTTCJS opa vtv iKTrtirrwKOTa 8LL SpvfiOL<; ol€pOV ^LXpv(Tov 7rr]<: Aa/3a)v €^«TAk€ KoXiOV KTC. KprjTrtSis^. IT. 990-1 : rjvLK av Kcvas Kprpn8a<: tvprj XaiVas dyoA/Aaros Ion 38 : ^vcyKtt Koi TOV Trai&i KprpriStov Itti. In the above, hiatus is avoided or a long syllable effected by the plural. So also a long syllable is effected in the seventh foot of Ion 510 : irp6(nro\oi yvvaiKCs, at t5)v8 dfil KprpriSa^ 86fiL€arav A.at/u,u)v l3poT€L(ov eidvi ovpLov 6vov. Ion 1064^65 : 17 drjKTov $to^ rj XxtLfjiwv i^dxpu fipo^pv dfx.(f>l Seiprjv. 'Occurs Homer i-o, Aeschylus 3-2, Sophocles 5-2, Euripides ii-io. '^Occurs only in Aeschylus i-o, Sophocles i-o, Euripides 4-5. * Occurs Homer 5-0, Euripides 5-6. 1 16 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. XeKTpa}. In all Tragedy the singular appears 12 times, the plural 93 times, XcKTpov being the only form of the singular used. Aeschy- lus does not have the singular at all. Sophocles avoids the singular, using it only where it prevents a hiatus, and the same is usually true for Buripides. The plural therefore seems to be the conventional form for Tragedy : certainly metre can af- ford no thoroughgoing explanation. Xexn"- For all Tragedy the figures are : singular 80, plural 47 — while the Homeric figures are : singular 22, plural 27. The drift in Tragedy is clearly toward the singular, if the ratio be compared with that of Homer. For Aeschylus and Sophocles we have the singular 13, the plural 8 times ; of these Aex°5 ( ^^/t^*''''('')> ^ex^f(Taa<: iv Xo^/iiais 6pvidov Sk v 7r/3os T^s davova-q% rrja-^ CTrccTKi^TrTOu fi6p Cyc. 480. KaCroi vyoLfji av, KaK^ejSrjK avTpov ijlv)(S>v. vaoi *. The poetic plural does not appear till Euripides, but with him it is common, e. g. 8 times in the IT. and 10 times in the Ion, the singular occurring but once in both plays. Compare Ion 38-39 : Tov TraiSa KprpriSiav ctw TLdrjfii vaou TovSe ktc. with verse 314 of the same play : vaotcri 8 oiKcts TOLac8' rj Kara (rreyas ; Also note verse 1384 of the same play : 0) oiTS)VT^ av8pa fiavidaiv voaoi^ wTpwov (noting the form of the adjective), with verse 66 : Sct'^w 8c Kol av7] voaov. But especially — seepage lOi on the uses in OT. 960-962. voaroi. The plural first arose no doubt as a distributive referring to various individuals*. Aj. 900 : b)/i.oi ifiSiv voaroiv. But the plural occurs only 3 times in Tragedy '. Soph. El. 194 : olKTpa fiiv voaroi^ avSa. wfKJytla. Note metrical adaptation in Ant. 1205 : Kl)/U,<^£rOV 'AtSoV KOlXoV tla fiaLVOfl€V , and Trach. 920 : [eXe^cv] . w X.€)(rj rt koi w(X(f>el' ifia *. vCiTa *, Only four illustrative examples are cited — Prom. 429-30 : yas ovpdviov re iroXav vcirois VTTOOTeyci^ci. Trach. 1047 : Kol X^P^'' '^'^^ vwTOKn fxx))(dri(Ta€p€l ; 1 Cy. Eur. Or. 270 : el /*' iK^o^ohv fjMvidffiv \vada\fj.ov, ib. 636. * Cf. K6pas, ib. 61 r. ^lA. 132 1, lA. 1497. ' Cy. Aupldos Spfiov, Hec. 450. The Poetic Phiral of Greek Tragedy. 121 In our field the first poetic plural appears in Sophocles, where in each case the plural suggests metrical convenience. Soph. Frag. 611 : oxois 'AKco-o-aioio-iv i/x^efSio^ voSa (note the consonantal ending of the noun and the adjective form). Soph. El. 727 : fxeTMira crvfiiraiovaL Ba/jKatois o\ok. The free play of metre on number may be seen in IT. 613 : (TV 8\ a» TtKVOV ftOL AtlTTC 7rtoA.tKOUS O^OVi, • where the fifth foot obviously needs the plural, but compare verse 623 : TeKvov, KaO€v8r)ov Stoto-ouff'. €v6a viKrjaai (re XPV^ with OC. 947-8 : ToiovTOv avTois Aptos £v)8ovAov Trdyov cyo) $vvr]8r] \66viov ovB , b? ktc. TTcVAot. There is a marked shift to the plural in Aeschylus and Euri- pides, independent of mere metrical considerations. For figures and citations see pages 17-18. trofyirai '. Referring to the suicide of Oedipus, Euripides has the plural in Phoeu. 62 : » Occurs Homer o-i, Aeschylus 4-1, Sophocles 2-2, Euripides 8-17. ^Cf. Kepbviti OT. 1269; Phoen. S05 ; Bacch. 98 ; and irtpovh, Trach. 925. 122 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. \pv6oyyoi ci pTjyfUV€r] ; * Homer 0-0, Aeschylus 0-2, Sophocles 2-3, Euripides 4-10. * Homer 34-2, Aeschj'lus 2-4, Sophocles 4-5, Euripides 7-19. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 123 And. 1223-4 • OVK€t' eCTTl fJMl TToAt? a-KrJTTTpa rippiToi raSc. Eur. El. 321-2 : Kol arKrjTp €v oU 'lijWrja-LV icrrpar-qXaTUj (with which compare the alternative — Kai aKrJTTTpov iv o) EAAT;€i.ov tlvopC) irirpov nXovTwva T ovSc (TKrjiTTpa ArjfjLTfTpo^ Koprj^. For Other citations pertaining to the fuller meaning of the word, and convenient u.ses of the plural see pages 38-39. (TTtflfJiaTa. Compare Tragedy's Homeric precedent : A 2S : /JLTfj vv TOi ov )(paia-iJ.rj (TKrJTrTpov kol rj ®. Compare Agam. 1264-65 : Tc SrJT efULVTTJs KaTayiKiar' «;^a) raSe Koi a-KrJTTTpa kol /uavrcut Trepi Sepjy (rretfirj ; 1 All in Euripides, e. g. Supp. 470 and Or. 12. * Homer 14-5, Aeschylus 0-5, Sophocles 2-8, Euripides 4-28. 'Trach. 482, Soph. Frag. 196 ; Here. Fur. 893, 1004, Here. 563. *Eur. Supp. 979. * Witte, (op. cit., p. 213) citing irp6i (rripvois of IT. 233, thinks the plural imperative here, but the fact that this usage is in Euripides, and is in a cho- ral passage, is sufficient to offset any objection. * Homer 0-0, Aeschylus 2-3, Sophocles o-i, Euripides 1-9. 1 24 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. with Cho. 1035 : ^vv TwSc BaXkiZ Kat (TT€tf>ei -Trpoai^ofiai. In the former case metre would suffer the singular of neither orKrJTTTpa nor aTtiftrj (note the adjective /lavrela). (TTOfJMTa '. The poetic plural appears in Sophocles and Euripides. Trach. 938 : OVT dfl^lTriTTTCOV (TTOfJiaaiV. Ale. 402-3 : Ka\ovfw.i 6 6a\ix6oi. 't s For all Tragedy : singular 14, plural 66 times. In Sophocles the ratio is 5 to i, and in Euripides 12 to i in favor of the plural. Of the four singulars in Sophocles *, three have the form ro^ov and are used metri gratia ; the lone use of the genitive singular^ * Homer 25-3, Aeschylus 33-3, Sophocles 24-3, Euripides 40-4. * Homer 9-0, Aeschylus 16-2, Sophocles 33-5, Euripides passimin both numbers. See page 81. ^Horner 72-41, Aeschylus 6-6, Sophocles 4-24, Euripides 3-36. *Phil. 288, 1 128, Trach. 266, Soph. Frag. 875. * Trach. 266. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 125 there however apparently has no explanation. In Euripides the singular appears three times ' in the form ro^ov, and serves met- rical convenience in each case. It seems clear, then, that the plural was the preferred form for Tragedy : a marked advance beyond the ratio set by Homeric usage. uSara * . IT. 1 192 : -Kyjpfiuxriv v&£r vft.evai.ov cutv^cos with verse 693 of the same play : oTav d(ryav ^ ^p6\ov Biprj, and verses 1035-6 : StT S'lJ fip6}(ovo<; drfytiv X'P'- The singular in the former would be impossible without a re- construction of the line. 6ivovTo<: Ik 6vo}v dvciXo/Aiyv, El. 1 1 : oOiv at Trarpos €k 6vo}v cyci ttotc. ' Bacch. 1066, Supp. 745, Frag. 785, 2. * Homer loo-i, Aeschylus 8-0, Sophocles 5-2, Euripides 25-9. * Cf. the lone use of the plural in Homer, the Odyssey — v 109 : iv S'tiSar ' alevdovra, where the cause of the plural was metre no doubt. *In Euripides usually synonymous with ydfwi ; sing. 13, plur. 15 there. ^ Homer 22-3, Aeschj'lus i-o, Sophocles 4-0, Euripides 2-3. •Homer 45-1, Aeschylus 31- 1, Sophocles 29-6, Euripides 165-6. 126 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. S>flOt. Compare the plural of Or. 1471-73 ch.: wfioi^ a,piaLveTO tpya, KaiTVOv 8 oiov opSifJiev airo x$ov6i alaaovra — p. 203). At the beginning of the fifth century A. D. the Pluralis Maiestatis occurs relieved of any idea of association, being the mark of dignified utter- ances of the crown, pope, or bishop (Cf. Basse's Reviewer, Archiv, vol. 6, pp. 284 f., 1889). At the end of the fifth century even vos and vester became quite common, " quand on s' adressait a un superieur, comme un pape a un empereur, un ^veqne a un pape on un empereur, un citoyen quelconque h tout repr^sentant de I'autorite ci\ale religieuse " (Chatelain, E., " Le pluriel de respect en latin," Revue de Philologie, vol. IV, p. 129, 1880). For the classical period Draeger (op. cit., vol. I, p. 25) and others recog- nize only the Pluralis Modestiae, which is very common. But Dr. Conway has recently argued for nos as a plural of " Dignity "or " Superiority " in Cicero's Letters : " Nos had come to be used by a speaker of himself alone when he thought not of the ego he was to his own consciousness, but of the person visible or admirable to his neighbors" (Cambridge Philological Transactions, 1899 ; see also Purser's Review of the same in the Classical Review, 1900). • This verse is quoted by Plutarch who mentions iiiuv as used avrl rod i/xoi, adding rbv vXriOvvriKdv dvTl rod iviKov rLdriffiv [De Vita et Poesi Hotneri, B 56). The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 129 I ascended a rocky cliff and stood where there was no sign of man or beast, but ive saw only smoke issuing from the earth. A 561-2 (Odysseus to Ajax) : aXK dye Scv/jo, ava^, Iv iirwi koX fivOov oKovfTig^ rffX€Ttpov Sd/Miacrov Sk fi€vodiJ.rjv arap kuI 8!opa OLOUXTOflCV WS TO TTCipOS "Tip KT€ I never expected to see you, but we shall continue to make gifts, etc. TT 44-45 (Telemachus to Odysseus) : . r\(TO, ^€tv ■ y]p.tiaXTg Kar' ovciSc' €\evav p.rjT€pt $ yjp.tT€pri irapd tc p.vrj(TTrjpp^y (k 99) and rjp.iT(.pov (X562) include the companions; SiSuio-o/icv (V358) refers to Telemachus also (see context) ; r}p.€i ' ' Selbstgef iihl " ( ad loc. Homer's Odyssee, Gotha, 1886-88). 'So Monro : " Telemachus takes care to associate the others, especially Eumaeus, in the reception of the stranger and the ownership of the home- stead " (Note ad loc. Homer's Odyssey, Bks. XIH-XXIV, Oxford, 1901). 'So taken and cited by Gildersleeve, op. cit., p. 27. 1 30 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. The same is true of rjfxerepov (A. 562) : Odysseus employs the singu- lar through his narrative, but in addressing Ajax he has mod- estly distributed the responsibility. The quick change from efx.rj to rjixtriprj in x 463-464 is signifi- cant : the latter apparently denotes dignity, for Telemachus is now commander issuing orders, ". . . . who heaped disgrace up- on my head and upon the mother of a man like me." PLURALIS MODESTIAE. In the following case, the plural is of Odysseus alone — t 344-6 : ovSe yvvT} ttoSos aif/eraL ■^fi^repoio Tao)v, ai TOi 85tfjM Kara SprjtTTtLpaL latriv, el firj Tts ypr)vt£io, ver.se 348). There seems to be in -^fxtTepoio a fine touch of modesty (pretended of course) — just such as helps him to accomplish his designs. 3- PLURALIS MAIESTATIS. It would be difficult to find any one associated with the speaker in the four instances following. N 257-8 (Meriones to Idomeneus) : TO w yap (cyxo?) na-Tcau^afxtv, o Trplv t^eaKOv acnriSa ^r]i6fioi,o ySaXwv vir(.pyjvopiovTO(TL vavTiXoiv Sikyjv (TTpoftovfieO ( a ) — We call upon the gods, though they know etc., — (a generalized statement). The following is colloquial and natural — Cho. 176 (Electra to Chorus) : auToTaiv yuCiv Kapra Trpoo-^cpi^s iSctv — This lock of hair is very similar to ours, i. e. , that of our family, but one would have expected avr^ e/xot^ In Agam. 1058 Clytemnestra generalizes with fine dramatic effect in cA-Trio-acri : ' The plural pronoun for the singular is frequent in Isocrates, e. g. V, 105 (to Philip) : vvv bk (po^ovfjMi 'fj.'fi Tivts iiriTifi'^aujffiv ij/jup, ei vvv ToKfiipvfv ffol irapaiveiv Kre. Similarly the plural is used in Xenophon Cyr. I, i, and else- where in prose. But Tragedy is the field of its flourishing. *(a) If a true plural, a distinctness in the hair of the members of the family must be assumed, as contrasted with that of others ; (b) Cf. i/xov, ib. 172; (c) Metre is probably effective here, for the line is isolated and the long dative form aiTouxiv is particularly convenient. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 1 33 0)5 ovirorr (^■^fxiv) tXiriaairi. TrjvS' c^€tv X^-P^^ — / had never hoped to have the pleasure. Clytemnestra associates others with herself purposely and then too there may be in the plural a sarcastic tinge of affected modesty. To draw the line is sometimes difficult but the pronouns in the citations under the two heads following appear to involve but one person. (b) PLURALIS MODESTIAE. Cho. 428 : KpoTTjTov afiov^ Kal iravadXiov Kapa. Cho. 437-38 (Orestes) : c/cari 8 afiav Xipiov €ireiT iyitt voarLaa^ oXoifJuav — (She shall atone ....), so far as depends upon my hands; and then may I etc. Eum. 451-53 (Orestes to Athena) : TToAai TT/oos oAAois TavT a.up(t>fu6a oiKOUTi Kai fiarolaL kul puTOi? iropoL^ — Long since have I purged myself at other homes etc. — (c) PLURALIS MAIEvSTATIS. Cho. 672-73 (Clytemnestra to Orestes) : €1 oAAo Trpo^ai hv. ti ySouAitoTcpov avBpSitv T08 iariv tpyov, ots [\TaToy (Xerxes). See Chap. Ill, 3, b. ' Volp makes iinai here a Pluralis Maiestatis, but it clearly includes the chorus of seamen. *Op. cit., p. 22. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 135 (b) PLURALIS MODESTIAE. Trach. 630-32 (Deianira) : SeSoiKa yap /i.^ irp^ Xtyois OLV Tov wodov tov i$ e/u,ov, TTplv etScvai TaKcldev (.1 irodovfitda — I fear it would be anticipating , to mention my own longing be- fore learning whether I am, longed for there. Deianira clearly hides her identity in the plural, and its force is obviously in the direction of modesty ; the abrupt change after Sc'Soixa and e/AoO seems only to emphasize this point. Electra 399 : irtaovfi.tO' , el XPV- ""aTpi Tifnapovfjievoi, where Electra speaking of herself uses the masculine plural '. Aj. 1400-01 (Odysseus) : dAA' T^deXov /Ltev «i 8* /mtJ (ttl (tol iKov ■7rpd1~9 (Messenger) : lov lov- iSpaSeiav 17/u.as dp' 6 T-qvBt Tr)v 686v El. 772 (Pae4agogus) : fiarrjv ap ■ffp.tl'i, ws coixev, rfKO/xev. (c) PLURALIS MAIESTATIS.' Ant. 634 (Creon to Haemon) : rj aol ixkv i^/acis Travraxfj 8pwvT€poveiv vtt' avSp6v(Tiv ; — /s a man of my age actually to take lessons from a youth ? Similarly OT. 435-36 (Tiresias to Oedipus) : rjfl(Xv(rav, £/u,<^povcs. 3. EURIPIDES. It will suffice to mention some of the more striking uses of the Pluralis Modestiae and Pluralis Maiestatis. (a) PLURALIS MODESTIAE. I A. 1 215' (Iphigenia in supplicating her father) : TttUTtt yap 8vvaifi€$ av. IT. 368 (Iphigenia quoting former words to father) : 17/u.eis 8 6XXvfx.€a6a Trp6<: aWev. IT.* 605 (Orestes of himself alone) : riiJ,a<; 8' 6 ^prj^wv ktcivcto). In El. 555 there is a striking use of the plural, in which one may discern a touch of art (Electra speaks to Orestes whom she has not yet recognized) : ovTos Tov afi.6v ■' TraTcp' tOpeif/ev, w $€V€ {i. e. o/8i//Aat ) , the plural twice (^)u.as, a-Tevofxev) ; here too the Coryphaeus is acting. The Coryphaeus surely obligates the whole chorus in Euripides Hipp. 713-14: OfivvfiL (Ttfxvqv "AprefiLV Aios Kopr/v firjSkv KaKwv (Ttitv eis do<; Setifctv ttotc. Other shifts in number are in Aj. 1218-21 : cyw cXtvoro-o/tev, and the same play, verses 804-05 : TOLOvTov icr/Acv dpTL yap Kayw S6p.oi<;, 0rycr€u, TrdpufiL troiv KaKwv irevdi^TpLa, and Soph. El. 1230-31 : bpS)p,€v, Zi Tral, Kairl (TVfxopaL(Tt fioi ' yeyrjdo^ tpiru SaKpvov ofxpArtav diro. When the chorus is addressed the same freedom of change is noted, as in Agam. 1184 where Clytemnestra says futpTvpelTe, but in verse 1196, iKpxLpTvprjdov ; the singular shows a direction of at- * The abrupt change to fxol forcefully indicates the individual act not only of the Coryphaeus but each member of the chorus. We may suppose that each one wept, following the leader : just as it may be assumed that the chorus followed him by some act or gesture whenever they could thus second his sentiment. The Pdetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 139 tention to the Coryphaeus. Similarly Eum. 180-1, oTroAAao-o-co^c Xa)8ovo-a, and Ion 750-r, /^t^vvo-ctc /8aA.€is. So also both numbers often appear close together in a choral part as, for example, in Aesch. Supp. 777-79 : ri TTCUTOfieo'da ; ttoI vy(i>fjL€v Attuis )($ov6<; , KcXaivov ct Ti Kev66<: ctrri irov ; /xe'Aas ycvoi'/xav xaTrvo? (and in verse 782 — opoifiav), and IT. 1494-96 : 8pd(TOfAey SeSey/xai. It is useless therefore to try to locate definitely Plurals of Modesty or Majesty in such passages as those above cited. (b) THE TRIMETER. In the course of one actor's remarks the plural and singular often appear in close connection. The change is often #coto o-weo-tv, and the construction loose, but not unnatural. Such is the case in Eum. 141-42 ' : cvSeis ; di/i'oTto) KaTroXaKTioraa virvov i8(afxt6' ii TL TOvSe poLfJLtov fiara. It would seem difficult to ascribe any reason other than caprice, or convenience of metre, for such changes — in close proximity — as in (e.g.) Phil. 1393-4 : TL S^T* av i7/A£is Spuifjiiv, £1 povTiovfi€6a ^ypidifitOa SoKova (a) . . . . fi€ rjadoixriv /* (t) avTeTifioiprjadfiriv /■*(') .... afivrffiov^ .... wfJi€a<: )^€Lpuiv vyov rfvia criyaXnevTa — P'or the smooth reins had slipped out of their hands. The pro- noun refers to but one person '. Homer conceals the unimpor- tant detail as to who was driving by the convenient plural. In each of the two passages following the plural alludes to but one individual — ^ 1 84—5 : Kcio-' ovTo) ;^aAorov rot ipurd€vto<; Kpovtiuvos TrauTLV ipi^efxevai, irorafiolo wep CKyeyaoiTi — Lie thus ; it is hard for thee to contend with an offspring of Cronion, though thou art sprung from a river-god. ^ 498—9 : ArjTol iyio 8c roi ov tl /Jui)(^aofiar dpyaXcov 8k TrXrjKTL^icrd a\6)(OL(TL Aios ve€\rfyep€Tao — Leto /shall not fight with thee at all ; it is a grievous thing to exchange blows with a wife of Zeus. The plural envelops the person in a class, thus bringing out in clear relief the notion of relationship at the expense of indivi- duality. As will be seen later such uses are of frequent occur- rence in Tragedy. In Pindar are found a few instances of the plural when the al- lusion is to but one individual^: Fragmentum 75, 12, Trarepwy (Zeus); Fragmentum 13, ywatxaiv (Semele) ; Olympian ~VII, 10, ^ Cf. Monro and Leaf, note ad loc. ' Edition — Bergk, Poetae Lyrici Graeci, Leipsic, 1878. 142 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. vtKti>vT€vov. ' See Introduction, p. 2. ' Similar to the citation from the pseudo-Longinus ( see p. 4 ) are Agam. 1439 (Clytemnestra) : 'Kpv(T-qU(i)v fxilXiyixa rCbv w' 'lMv(i. e. folks of the Chryseis sort), Rhes. 866 : oiK olBa Toi>s (7oi)j ovs X^yeis'Odvffffias. Cf. Plautus, Curculio 546 : Quos Summanos somnias ? What Sutntnanuses are you talking abotit ? The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 143 In each case ' the plural directs attention to the class and away from the individual, though as often the one person alluded to is perfectly clear. This, however, is common in both prose and poetry of various languages '. But other uses are not uncommon in Tragedj- . One parent may be referred to in the plural, or one child may be so desig- nated ; the plural may serve the purpose of caution or reserve ; it becomes the means of respectful reference to one in authority ; it may avoid a specific charge against a murderer ; it may refer to a deceased person in a general and thus reverent way. The vagueness of oracular, and the generality of legal, phraseology appear in Tragedy — to serve dramatic purpose, to heighten sus- pense, to retard the action of the plot. I. THE ALLUSIVE PLURAL OF RESPECT*. Before coming to nouns pertaining to persons, it may be noted that the plural is sometimes used in an allusion to one god. Prom. 659-60* : Tl xpV 8piXa, where ^aifuxTiv" alludes to Zeus particularly, if not only ; for to him alone is there any occasion vpdaviLv iXa. ' So also Prom. 225. ■^To be distinguished is such a use of the plural as e. g. that of Cho. 336-37: Td<^oj h'lKiTo,^ (;. e. me Electra) diStKrai irYddas {i. c. Orestes) 6'6nolus, where the plural emphasizes the state of each, etc., but can refer in each case to merely the one individual. Cf. the Scholiast : " u«t7>v fiiv ifjA^ (pvydSa 5i 'Op^ffr-qv.'^ ' The three divisions here made of the Allusive Plural — Respect, Relation- ship, Reserve — are of course somewhat arbitrary ; the distinction cannot be sharp e. g. between ol Kolpavoi (Respect) and oi Karb, t^j (Reserve), for both ideas are present. * Cf. ib. 149 : vioi yhp olaKovbpjoi Kparovc' 'OXA/xirov, i. e. Zeus. So the scho- liast : '' 6lpxovtk, ijTot 6 ZtiJy. " The context here, however, does not argfue for respect on the part of the chorus ; nor for caution, as the following verse shows ( Zeus aJdiruK Kparvvu). The plural is not specific ; it serves as a rhe- torical step towards the direct charge just quoted. * The scholiast merely : "toTs 5alfwtuv ireiffdeh Kara^evdeadal fiov. ' Cy. Paul's "powers that be," Romans 13, i. 146 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. Each of the plurals above listed alludes to some particular in- dividual, and in a number of instances the plural cannot even suggest more than one person. A survey of all the examples leads to three observations : ( i ) The plural is used merely to re- fer to some authority not definitely known or to avoid persona- ting some authority in question. I A. 304 (Menelaus to Slave) : a.TT(XQ(. Xi'av SecTTroTaMTi Tritrros £i — Away ! Thou art too loyal to thy master (Agamemnon only). Aesch. Supp. 184 (Danaus) : ro.^ av 7rp6ov Tvpdvv(i>v 7} Kpdrrj Trapc'^t/xev — Cf. verse 251 where Pelasgus calls himself d/t>x»ry^Ti7j. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy 147 If we, despite the law, stand against the decree or might of a ' king (alluding to Creon^). Ant. 67 (Ismene) : ' T0T5 €v TcAci y3c^o»(ri Treiaofjuai — I shall obey the powers that be (Creon). Ant. 1057 (Creon to Tiresias) ; a/3 olada rayous ovras av A.€yjys Xcytoi/ ; — Dost thou kfiow that what thou say est is of thy king f (3) The plural is most commonly used as a means of respect- ful reference to one in authority ; here too the office of the supe- rior is magnified, and caution or reserve on the part of the speaker implied. ScOTTOTat. Agam. 32 (the Guard) : TO. Seo-TTOToiv ( Agamemnon ) yap €v irfxrovra ^^ao/uu. So too Agamemnon is meant in Cho. 52-53' : 8v6oi KoXviTTovai. So/iovs 8€(nroTwv davaTOiXTLV. Hec. 557 (Talthybius) : Kairei toS titTrjKovac Sco-ttotwv Ittov, where Agamemnon alone is meant. In verse 1237 of the same play Hecuba says to Agamemnon : SccTTToTas 8'ov XoiBopS) But since thou art a king, I do not rail at thee. Eur. Tro. 663-64 (Andromache) : TovSc (Hector) 8'av (TT€pyov(T ifiavrrj^ Sco-ttotcus fiun^vofuu, Pyrrhus alone being meant. Ion 755 (Nurse) : dAA* ^ Tt OedTOi(Ti SccTTroToiv (Xuthus) vocrd. So Admetus is alluded to by SearroTaiai in Ale. 138, and Aga- memnon by 8«cr7roTtiiv in lA, 312, but both statements are gnomic. ' Note that very frequently the plural of a noun referring to persons finds its best translation in the English indefinite article. ^ So o'iSe in verse 927 is Creon. ' On this passage see p. 90. 148 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. Med. 61-62 (Nurse) : w fxlopo^, £1 )(^pri SecTTroTas etTrciv raSc — O/i, Ihe foolish one (Medea) , if I may thus speak of my (a) mistress ' . Similarly Creusa is mentioned by the chorus in Ion 233. It is noteworthy that the speaker in each of these citations is either a slave * or the chorus. KVptOt. Cho. 688-90 (Orestes to Clytemnestra) : £1 §£ Tvy^avo) TOis Kvpioicrt Kal irpocrrJKOvaLV Ac'ywv OVK oTSa, TOV T£KOVTa 8'£lKOS £lS€'vat Whether perchance I am, addressing the authority of the house or a relative of his, I do not know, but it is proper for the parent to learn of it. The humble attitude of Orestes goes far to disguise him. In verse 658 of the same play, the plural does not involve both Aegisthus and Clytemnestra : from the standpoint of the pretended friend it means simply the chief person of the palace, whoever that might be : ayy£XX£ Toicri KvpioLcn BwfjLaTwv (says Orestes). ■ Aj. 733-4 (Messenger): dAA' rifiiv Atas ttov (ttlv ws pd(r(o rdSe ; Tois KvpLOL<: yap irdvTa )(^pr] Sr/Xovv Aoyov. ol KpaTovvra. Cho. 716-7 (Clytemnestra to Orestes) : i7)U,£ts Sk ravra toTs Kparovfn Sto/xaTtov KOLV(oa-oixev (that is, Aegisthus * alone.) OT. 530 (Chorus to Creon) : * But SiffTTOLva is found nowhere in Tragedy in the plural. When a woman is spoken of in the plural the masculine is always used. *As for Andromache (who speaks in Tro. 664, cited p. 147), Tro. 660 shows her attitude : SovKvlktu d'iv avdevrQv J)6jiioij. 'oi /cpaToOvTfs, meaning Aegisthus and being in the mouth of Clytemnes- tra, has a ring of insincerity about it for us ! It is much for her to acknowledge. The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. r 49 ovK otS' a yap SpSta oi K/oarovvTcs (Oedipus) opu) \ IT. 1 30 1 (Chorus to Messenger) : OVK €1 KpaTOVVTWV (Thoas) TT/OOS TTuAttS OtTOV Ta;(os ; 01 Kotpavot. Agam. 54.9 (Clytemnestra to the Chorus) : Kal TTuis ; dTTovTtuv Koipdvoiv Irptts nvas ; What ? Afraid of somebody because the King is away ? There would seem to be no point in making Koipavwv include Meuelaus. It is much more forceful to make it the herald's respectful sub- stitute for 'Ayafi€fivovoi, as Aeschylean usage warrants. Med. 875 (Medea) : €)(6pa. Sk yaui<% Koipavois KaOiarafuu. oi Tvpawoi. OT. 1096 (Chorus) : w? iirl rjpa f^ipovra Tois lftxu,% Tv/jawots * — (^Thou, O Cithaeron art praised in our choral song^ since thou art a joy to my ruler (that is Oedipus). Similarly the chorus uses rvpawmv in lA. 470 ; and the chorus mentions Creousa as twv c/awv Tu/jawwv in Ion 236. o\ avaKT€S '. OC. 294-5 (Chorus) : TOWS 8c T^v)(Oi. OC. 1087 (Chorus) : yas TatrSc 8ap.ov\OL^. • ' ' These nobles of Thebes have no eyes for indiscretion in their sovereign master" (Jebb ad loc. ). Cf. vs. 1223 f. ' Cf. the blunt rbv rvpawov OldlTovv of Creon, ib. 513. 'In Aesch. Supp. 514 the statement is gnomic ; the King Pelasgus thus " gracefully " (See Tucker, note ad loc. ) alludes to himself. It is not neces- sary to amend the ms. dvdKTwv to "yvvaLKdv as do many scholars. I50 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. where 8a/«.ovxois is bfst taken as meaning Theseus, just as he alone seems to be meant in the same plaj^ verse 1667 (Chorus) : ttot) 8 a* T£ iraiSev ^01 ■7rpoTr€fi{j/avT€^ i\wv. ol /SatrtXcts. Ale. 131-2 (Chorus) : TravTa yap T^8r) TcreAco-Tai ySao-jAeOo-i (that is, Admetus' alone). Similarly the chorus refers to Eurystheus in Herac. 294. 2. THE ALLUSIVE PLURAL OF RELATIONSHIP, (a) PARENT. Aeschylus Sophocles Euripides 01 T£KOVT£S Pers. 245, Cho. 329, 681 I A. 689 01 TtKOfltVOl Cho. 419 01 TOKtlS Cho. 384, Eum. 152 El. rSy. Hec. 403 01 TTttTCpCS Cho. 865 01 yovct? El. 146, 241, OT. 436, 1495 ol v T€KOfi€vu>v ^ — What might we say rightly f Oh what wrongs have we sujfered at the hands of— yes, her that gave jis birth f Similarly tokixxtl in verse 384 is best taken as referring simply to Clytemnestra : TOKtvat, S'o/xwst'TcA.eiTai — But still, for a mother vengeance is on the way. Same play, verse 865 (Chorus) : Trarepiav ffl^ti ficyav oX/Sov, that is, Agamemnon, but of course iraTipntv might have the idea of the accumulated wealth of the house. Ion 560 (Ion) : ri diyo) 8rjd' 01 fx €v(Tav ; — Am I really embracing him that begot me (that is, Xuthus) ? So too Xuthus alone is meant in verse i56i,(<^voravT€vcra(riv ( Merope ) yo/uni *So I A. 689 f : It grieves a father (toi>j Teicivrai) to give up a child. Hec. 403 is similar. ^Cf. ib. 681 f.: irp6s Toi)s TtKbvTai .... TedveQr' Opitrry^v elwi. The plural may be father, mother, or both. To all that know in this case (and that includes the pretending Orestes), it means Clytemnestra alone. Cf. the generalizing masculine singular, ib. 690. 152 The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. The messenger has just announced the death of Polybus. Soph. El. 185-86 (Electra) : dAA' e/A£ \xkv 6 ttoAvs aTroXeXonrtv ^8rf PioTOS dv€A,7rwrTOs , ov8' ct' dpKO)' dris av€v tok€(ov KaraTaKOfJiat., alluding especially to her father Agamemnon'. Meineke, fol- lowed by Nauck and Jebb, emends the manuscript reading to T€K€v ^ Jebb states three reasons for accepting the change : ( i ) " She is saying that the best days of her life have gone by with- out giving her anything to hope for. It would be inappropriate to justify this (as the causal arts does) by saying that she is pining away 'without parents', or a husband's care, while the mention of children is perfectly in place." (2) " The very order of words, T€K€(i)v .... dvrjp, is confirmed by vs. 164 f., aT€Kvo<: .... dvv/x<^euTos." (3) " If To/ceW be right it means that, while Agamemnon is dead, the living Clytemnestra is a mttjp a/xrjrwfy (1154) : but this is forced." But it seems to be unnecessary to deviate from the mss. : ( i ) Electra says her life is without hope ; she not only has in mind her deceased father but the fact that he is not present to guaran- tee her a happy wedding, such as would befit" a princess. This point of view satisfies the requirement of those who desire to read t£K€W. (2) The unvarying authority of the manuscripts for TOK€6€ip€ Koi Tovs TratSas Tous ifiovs yarxwe. The context shows that Euphiletus had only one child, which he calls iratStbv * here and there in the speech. The plural directs attention to the child as such : the law which prohibits placing a stigma of shame upon a child is broken. The same idea stands out clearly in the Tenth Speech '', where the speaker refers to himself alone : Ttdvavai fikv vir6 twv ixdpCtv, aiTtiav 8'l^etv vtto twv TraiSwv — [ What would be more dreadful to my father than] to die at the hand of an enemy, but to suffer the repute of being m.urdered by a child of his. OC. 969-70 preserves, apparently, the plural of an oracle : Oedipus — CTTci SiSa^ov, v. n dicraTOv Trarpl ^ri\avpov etSes, avrov twvS' (iTroT/jOTr^v TcXciv, TO, 8'dya^' iKTeXrj ycviaOai (tol tc kol tc/cvois aWev Kol TToAet i\oL'i re TrStri. Very strangely some of the editors — even Weil and Wecklein ' — read tc'kvo), but the mss. have the plural. The scholiast cor- rectly interprets by "tw 'Eepirj" ; following which Wecklein makes the change " 8l6tl fx6vo<; 6 'B' wv ov XPW ^^^ °*'* ''"' (locaste) ov xprjv 6fxi\uiv, ovs T€ (Oedipus) /«.' ovk «8ei KTavwv, and same play 1273-4 (Oedipus) : dAA* eV (TKOTO) TO XOITTOV OUS fXeV (locaste) OVK ISct oipouiO', ous 8' (Laius) €\prj^€v ov y vwo-ototTO , and OC. 547 (Oedipus) : *cai yap av, ous (Laius) €oveviXoi and ol <^tA.TaToi. The force of these plurals is essentially the same as (e. g.) yoms and rtKva ; they call attention particularly to the relation- ship, kinship. Cho. 234 (Orestes) : Tovs i^tAraTovs* (Clytemnestra) yap ol8a vwv ovras ttik/jous — For I know that she who is bound to us by the closest ties is our bitter enemy. Sapie play, verses 831-34 (the Chorus concerning Orestes) — IIe/3(r€ws T iv (jypealv KapSiav ava(T)^e6o)v Tots O'viro x^ovos L\oii;o-t, Sia to e'vat t^v 'AvTLyovrjv tov /Sao-tAtKoS yeVous. Jebb acquiesces in the statement ^ Cf. Eum. 100 where ^iXTdTwi* is probably of Orestes alone (Wecklein — "gemein von dem Sohne "). The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 157 on the ground that the guard is " a SovAos of the family," as the scholiast too doubtless thought. So far as I have been able to discover, such a notion in the plural of l\ovs Kalyovs may be a delicate way of saying new tnember offatnily. * Just as oi i\oi, so ol ix^po^ appears in Tragedy a few times referring to but one as in (i\ov — She (Scylla) induced by an enetny (Minos) ruined her dear father. Similarly Agamemnon is alluded toby Clytemnestra in Agam. 1374, Aegis- thus by Electra in Soph. El. 593. And so ix9^<^roi.(n Trach. 1237. * Schol. — " K&irX afUKpols ijAyas Sip/ww : kuI iirl eireK^ffiv aiT-^/xaffiv o6k &p LXTaT ^ (Xerxes) ev Ka/cois Tr/aoSwo-o/xev, Phil. 434 (Philoctetes) : HdrpoKXo^, OS (Tov irarpb'S fjv ra (fnXrara. Soph. El. 1208 (Electra to Orestes) : fxrj, irpb'S yevetbu, fxr] i^Xrj ra cftiXrara (i. e. the urn containing the supposed ashes of Orestes). Ion 521 (Xuthns to Ion) : (TW(f>povw, TO. tjuXraO cvpiov ei ^iXetv it^Ufjuai. I A. 458 (Agamemnon) : {Clytemnestra has come) to. cfyiXrara (/phigenia only) 8u>(Tova(a). 4. THE ALLUSIVE PLURAL' OF RESERVE.. Two classes of words come into observation here : those con- cerning crim,inals and the dead. In each case the plural avoids the specific, whether it be from caution, regard, or some other dramatic purpose. (a) THE CRIMINAL. As the Tenth Speech of Eysias shows, to accuse an innocent person of crime was an indictable offense. The speaker there whom Theomnestus had accused of murder repeatedly accuses his- slanderer of throwing away his shield ; but he carefully ^ Cf. also Lysias XIII, 46 and Demosthenes XVIII, 215. *Schol. " Toi)s ^tXTdrous. " The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. 159 avoids a specific charge by using the plural (toTs d7ro/3aXAov(n') and other means to keep himself without the pale of the law. The uses of the plural in Tragedy point back to the phaseology of the law for their origin ^ Agam. 1323-25 (Cassandra): T]kiov 8 iTrcv)(OfUu Trpos va-TaTov <^ci>9 rots ifxol^ TLfw.6poLov€vaL (Clytemnestra) rots rivetv 6fj.ov — I beseech the sun for my avengers to repay thy hatefil murderers. In Cho. 41 Tois KTttvovo-i is primarily (at least) of Clytemnestra who struck the blow *, while rov% yoM vkpQtv (verse 40) is of Agamemnon alone. Sophocles Antigone 1263-64 (Creon) : o) KTavovras re kox Qa.vovTa€VOfJM, Neoptolemus the son of the actual murderer being meant. The individual meant is not the material point : she is to be in a house stained with blood. She expresses the same sentiment in Tro. 660 : 8ovXcuo-(t) 8'cv au^cvTciv S6fJi.ois 5^ dv5po<(>6vovs i^eivai airoKTfiviiv kt€. See also Demos. Arist. § 51 and Antiphon Tetr. A. 7. | 8 (01 Krelvavres). ■'That Cassandra has Orestes in mind is shown by verses 1280-1 : ^|et yhp ijtxQv dXXos a5 rifjidopoi troivdrup TrarpSs. * Cf. Agam. 1633 ff. (Chorus to Aegisthus) : Thou didst plan, but didst not execute the deed. i6o The Poetic Plural of Greek Tragedy. T] Tap aavvirovs rows d(.ovS>vyd8a<; eKTre/xif/aLfitOa. More terrible irony ' can scarcely be imagined than this, or that of verses 122-23 where Creon says to Oedipus : Xrj(TTa<; €aaKC (rvvTv^ovTai; ov fxia. p(i>fxr) KTaveiv vlv, dXAa avv irXrjdtL ^^c/aoiv, with which compare verses 124-5 : TTWS ovv 6 Xrj(TTi^<;, et n firj $vv dpyvpw iirpdaaeT ivdevS , cs toS' av toA/xt/s €/8t; ; To the audience, Ar^o-ras is Oedipus alone ; to him it is more than one person as verses 842-4 show. The singular (verse 124J " may. only be an idiomatic way of speaking, but may also be a stroke of art in representing Oedipus as wholly careless about number of persons^." The plural thus assists in retarding the action of the plot to verses 842-44 when Oedipus says to locaste : AT^crTois e^atTKCs avrov dv8pa€p(av ; Mess. Te6va(TLv (Haemon) 01 8c (Creon) ^wvres amot davciv. Cho. Kol Tt's diix€vu)v (verse 403) all allude to Agamemnon ; the same is true of 01 ySs viral K£i/xfvoi and 01 $av6vT€t\oLav€pu>q ol)^OfJL€vwv €i$ Ai'8av iXiriS' vttol — o"€ts, KUT Cfxov TaKOfXiva^ p.a.\X.ov €irf.fil3aa.TOL<; otKais. Hermann deletes Trevpayfxevwv. Other editors (as a rule) read it and interpret as neuter, Schutz' alone regards it as mascu- line : ' ' Virorum olim occisorum sanguinem nova vindicta ex- piate." Blaydes reads 8ia7r€irpayp.ev€VT7]pUl, * Cf. especially the notes of Bloomfield, Hermann, Wecklein, Sidgwick and Verrall. ^ Cf. T 268 — xpi^^^s .... Swpa Qioio, Vergil Aen. VIII, 729 — Clipeum Vol- cani dona. » Similarly Hel. 1634, lA. 382. 164 The Poetic Plural of 'Greek Tragedy. where o-kotux w^Lt^tvTrjpia is concubine. For other similar uses of the neuter plural see apiaTela (Bacch. 1239), aKpodivia (Phoen. 203), (TvyKoifxrjfxaTa (And. 1 273). (b) ABSTRACTS. Trach. i 138-39 (Hyllus) : (TTepy-qiMi yap SoKovaa Trpoa-ftaXelv creOev aTn^/xirXa^ , ws irpoaeiSt Toi»s evSov ydp-ov^ — when she saw the bride (lole) within. Hyllus thus refers to lole whose name he avoids with con- tempt. Soph. El. 1232-1233 (Electra) : iw yovat yovai (T(j))U,aTO)v kp.01 ^lAraTwv — O thou offspring, offspring of the dearest life to me. yovai alludes merely to Orestes and o-w/Aarcuv to Agamemnon. As Jebb notes, o-w/ActTwv for (Tta/AaTos is " seemingly unique," but the influence of ^tXTaTwv which is so common for the singular easily accounts for enallage in cra)/u.a. To make yovat include Orestes is to me an un- tenable position, for it not only weakens the force of the senti- ment, but also renders the interpretation of aoifxaToiv extremely awkward. ^ Cf. lA. 271, ^appdpwp X'^P'-" Y^Mwi'. GREEK INDEX dyKvXai, 34 ayptvfuiTa, 48 ayxovax, 46 alyiaXot, lO, I05 aifmra, 14, 83, 105 ix/iove^, 37 aKTai, 9, 10 avaBeafiai, 20, 21 dvaSr/zAaTa, 20, 21, 105 amKTc?, 145, 149 avaKTopa, 59, 105 av8/9u>ve?, 61, 63 avTiOvpa, 76, 106 avrpa, 64, 65, 1 06 avTvycs, 43, 44 amoves, 44 apKvts, 47 apfiara, 40, 4 1 apirayaL, 103 apTrai, 36, 107 opravai, 46, 107 ^PX'^h 93. 94 apxr/iTai, 145 (01) a/o;(ovTes, 1 45 dcTTTt'StS, 35 avAai, 61, 62, 107 auAta, 64, 65, 108 avx€Vc9, 25, 108 /3dKTpa, 39, 108 )8a(rtA.«is, 145, 150 ^^V, 32, 33 ^po'xot, 45, 108 y3b)/xoi', 79 ya/ioi, 3, 97, 109, 163 y€V€ia, 24, 25 yevcuxScs, 24, 25, 30, 31 y«Ws, 24, 35, 109 y\ut(T(Tai, 102 yovai, 164 yoveis, 150 ypafifmra, 48 ypatf)ai, 48 SaiTc?, 16, 109 &i7re8a, 1 1 ScTirva, 16, I lO ScXtoi, 3, 48, 49, 1 10 hifivua., 77, 1 10 hcapA., 45 hffTiUK, 44, no, III BiCTfKopxiTa, 45 Seo-TTorai, 1 45, 1 47 ST/^Sxot, 145 Siappoai, 1 3 Buxdopai, 83, 88 StKTm, 45, 47, 48 Btt^poi, 41, 42, III 80X01, III 86/wi, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, III Spoaoi, 14, 112 Bpvfioi, 12, 112 Swr/mi, 89, 93 Sco/wTtt, 49, 50, 51, 52, 54, 55, 112 iSpai, 67, 73 f.8pava, 67, 74 cSwAia, 61, 62 idiipai, 30, 3 t cifiaTa, 17, 18 ctp/crai, 61, 64 cio-oSot, 76 ivoTTTpa, 37 irnKpava, 79, 80 CTTitTToAat', 48 «P'«'7. 45. 46, 47 coTia/xara, 1 6 1 66 Greek Index. iaxapai, 79, 80 evvaL, 77, 78 €vvaTripLa, J J, jS tvvrjfJuiTa, 77, 78 ewpat, 46, 113 ISivaL, 19, 113 rj6ve<;, 9, lO OaKOi, 67, 72, 73 OaXdfJMi, 64, 66 OdXafxoi, 61, 62, 113 ^avarot, 6, 89, 90, 9I, II3 (ot) ^avovTCS, 159, 161 doivdfiaTa, 16 Opovoi, 67,68,69, 70, 71, 72, dvfw.Ta, 89, 92 dvfxol,, 100, 102 OvpaL, 74, 75, 76 Ovptrpa, 74, 76 lot, 34 KaX-v/x/JuiTa, 20 Kavoves, 37 KaTaa-Ka'?> 32, 33 oTkoi, 51, 52, 53, 55, 56, 120 ofifiara, 22, 24, I20 o/oyat, 100 opia, 12 opiafiaTa, 12 opfxoL, 10, 120 opot, 12 6poavoi, 20, 21 o-T£'<^i;, 20, 123 ayui(TfJ.OL, 83, 88 ToyoC, 145 Taat, 81, 82 ra^ot, 80, 81, 124 TtKva, 152 (01) TCKop,£voi, 150 (01) TeKovTcs, 150 (ot €v) Te\a, 145 TOKCtS , I 50 To^a, 32, 124 TOTTOl, I I Tp'x«> 30. 31 Tvpawot, 145 v&zra, 13, 125 vfitvaioi, 97, 98, 125 <\>a.pta, 17, 19 ^d.(ryava, 32, 33, 1 25 Oof>ai, 89, 93 (01) <^iA.ot, 155 (ra) (f>i\rara, 1 57 (ot) ^iA.TaToi, 155 ovai, 83, 84 <^ovoi, 83, 84, 85, 125 <^OV£tS, 158, 159