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Aristophanes · Peace Εἰρήνη

Aristophanes, Peace 459–519: Episode: the pulling of Peace

Ancient Sources / Aristophanes / Peace / 459–519

Hermes directs the Chorus as they haul on the ropes, while Trygaeus scolds the Boeotians and the Argives who do not pull, and Hermes sends the Megarians away and tells the Athenians to stop wrangling at law. At last the farmers pull alone, and Peace is lifted out with her two attendants, Harvesthome and Mayfair.

Lines 459–519 · 448 words · click a number to copy its link
459–473
Ἑρμῆς 459ὦ εἶα. Χορός 460εἶα μάλα. Ἑρμῆς ὦ εἶα. Χορός εἶα ἔτι μάλα. Ἑρμῆς ὦ εἶα, ὦ εἶα. Τρυγαῖος ἀλλʼ οὐχ ἕλκουσʼ ἅνδρες ὁμοίως. 465οὐ ξυλλήψεσθʼ; οἷʼ ὀγκύλλεσθʼ· οἰμώξεσθʼ οἱ Βοιωτοί. Ἑρμῆς εἶά νυν. Τρυγαῖος εἶα ὦ. Χορός ἀλλʼ ἄγετε ξυνανέλκετε καὶ σφώ. Τρυγαῖος 470οὔκουν ἕλκω κἀξαρτῶμαι κἀπεμπίπτω καὶ σπουδάζω; Χορός πῶς οὖν οὐ χωρεῖ τοὔργον; Τρυγαῖος ὦ Λάμαχʼ ἀδικεῖς ἐμποδὼν καθήμενος.

HERMES Yo ho! pull away.

CHORUS Keep it up a little longer.

HERMES Pull, pull, pull, pull.

TRYGAEUS Ah they don’t pull all alike. Cease your craning: ’tis but feigning: Pull, Boeotians! or I’ll strike.

HERMES Yo ho! pull away.

TRYGAEUS Pull away, away, away.

CHORUS (To Trygaeus and Hermes.) Verily you should be helping us too.

TRYGAEUS (Indignantly.) Don’t I strain, might and main, Cling and swing, tug and haul?

CHORUS Yet we don’t advance at all.

TRYGAEUS Now don’t sit there and thwart us, Lamachus. We don’t require your Bugaboo, my man.

HERMES These Argives, too, they give no help at all.

474–486
Τρυγαῖος 474οὐδὲν δεόμεθʼ ὦνθρωπε τῆς σῆς μορμόνος. Ἑρμῆς 475οὐδʼ οἵδε γʼ εἷλκον οὐδὲν ἁργεῖοι πάλαι ἀλλʼ ἢ κατεγέλων τῶν ταλαιπωρουμένων, καὶ ταῦτα διχόθεν μισθοφοροῦντες ἄλφιτα. Τρυγαῖος ἀλλʼ οἱ Λάκωνες ὦγάθʼ ἕλκουσʼ ἀνδρικῶς. Χορός ἆρʼ οἶσθʼ ὅσοι γʼ αὐτῶν ἔχονται τοῦ ξύλου, 480μόνοι προθυμοῦντʼ· ἀλλʼ ὁ χαλκεὺς οὐκ ἐᾷ. Ἑρμῆς οὐδʼ οἱ Μεγαρῆς δρῶσʼ οὐδέν· ἕλκουσιν δʼ ὅμως γλισχρότατα σαρκάζοντες ὥσπερ κυνίδια, ὑπὸ τοῦ γε λιμοῦ νὴ Δίʼ ἐξολωλότες. Τρυγαῖος οὐδὲν ποιοῦμεν ὦνδρες· ἀλλ ὁμοθυμαδὸν 485ἅπασιν ἡμῖν αὖθις ἀντιληπτέον. Ἑρμῆς ὦ εἶα.

HERMES They only laugh at us, our toils and troubles, And all the while take pay from either side.

TRYGAEUS But the Laconians, comrade, pull like men.

HERMES Ah, mark, ’tis only such as work in wood That fain would help us: but the smith impedes,

TRYGAEUS And the Megarians do no good: they pull, though Scrabbling away like ravenous puppy dogs. Good lack! they’re regularly starved and ruined.

CHORUS We make no way, my comrades: we must try A strong pull, and a long pull, all together.

HERMES Yo ho! pull away.

TRYGAEUS Keep it up a little longer.

HERMES Yo ho! pull away.

487–504
Τρυγαῖος 487εἶα μάλα. Ἑρμῆς ὦ εἶα. Τρυγαῖος εἶα νὴ Δία. Χορός 490μικρόν γε κινοῦμεν. Τρυγαῖος οὔκουν δεινὸν […] τοὺς μὲν τείνειν τοὺς δʼ ἀντισπᾶν; πληγὰς λήψεσθʼ ὦργεῖοι. Ἑρμῆς εἶά νυν. Τρυγαῖος 495εἶα ὦ. Χορός ὡς κακόνοι τινές εἰσιν ἐν ἡμῖν. Τρυγαῖος ὑμεῖς μὲν γοῦν οἱ κιττῶντες τῆς εἰρήνης σπᾶτʼ ἀνδρείως. Χορός ἀλλʼ εἴσʼ οἳ κωλύουσιν. Ἑρμῆς 500ἄνδρες Μεγαρῆς οὐκ ἐς κόρακας ἐρρήσετε; μισεῖ γὰρ ὑμᾶς ἡ θεὸς μεμνημένη· πρῶτοι γὰρ αὐτὴν τοῖς σκορόδοις ἠλείψατε. καὶ τοῖς Ἀθηναίοισι παύσασθαι λέγω ἐντεῦθεν ἐχομένοις ὅθεν νῦν ἕλκετε·

TRYGAEUS Yes, by Zeus! a little stronger.

CHORUS Very slow, now we go.

TRYGAEUS What a shameful dirty trick! Some are working, others shirking, Argives, ye shall feel the stick.

HERMES Yo ho! pull away.

TRYGAEUS Pull away, away, away.

CHORUS Some of you still are designing us ill.

TRYGAEUS Ye who fain Peace would gain, Pull and strain, might and main.

CHORUS Some one’s hindering us again.

HERMES Plague take you, men of Megara; get out! The Goddess hates you: she remembers well ’Twas you that primed her up at first with garlic. Stop, stop, Athenians: shift your hold a little; It’s no use pulling as you’re now disposed. You don’t do anything but go to law. No, if you really want to pull her out,

505–519
Ἑρμῆς 505οὐδὲν γὰρ ἄλλο δρᾶτε πλὴν δικάζετε. ἀλλʼ εἴπερ ἐπιθυμεῖτε τήνδʼ ἐξελκύσαι, πρὸς τὴν θάλατταν ὀλίγον ὑποχωρήσατε. Χορός ἄγʼ ὦνδρες αὐτοὶ δὴ μόνοι λαβώμεθʼ οἱ γεωργοί. Ἑρμῆς χωρεῖ γέ τοι τὸ πρᾶγμα πολλῷ μᾶλλον ὦνδρες ὑμῖν. Χορός 510χωρεῖν τὸ πρᾶγμά φησιν· ἀλλὰ πᾶς ἀνὴρ προθυμοῦ. Τρυγαῖος οἵ τοι γεωργοὶ τοὔργον ἐξέλκουσι κἄλλος οὐδείς. Χορός ἄγε νυν ἄγε πᾶς. Ἑρμῆς καὶ μὴν ὁμοῦ ʼστιν ἤδη. Χορός μή νυν ἀνῶμεν ἀλλʼ ἐπεντείνωμεν 515ἀνδρικώτερον. Ἑρμῆς ἤδη ʼστὶ τοῦτʼ ἐκεῖνο. Χορός ὦ εἶα νῦν, ὦ εἶα πᾶς. ὦ εἶα εἶα εἶα εἶα εἶα εἶα. ὦ εἶα εἶα εἶα εἶα εἶα πᾶς.

HERMES Stand back a trifle further towards the sea.

CHORUS Come, let us farmers pull alone, and set our shoulders to it,

HERMES Upon my word you’re gaining ground: I think you’re going to do it.

CHORUS He says we’re really gaining ground: cheer up, cheer up, my hearty.

TRYGAEUS The farmers have it all themselves, and not another party.

CHORUS Pull again, pull, my men, Now we’re gaining fast. Never slacken, put your back in, Here she comes at last. Pull, pull, pull, pull, every man, all he can; Pull, pull, pull, pull, pull, Pull, pull, pull, pull, all together. (Peace is lifted out with her two attendants, Harvesthome and Mayfair.)

People and places in this passage

Passages in other works that tell of the same people and places, oldest and closest first.

  1. Aristophanes, Plutus 1097–1170Episode: Hermes comes begging
  2. Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound 944–1006Exodos: Hermes demands the secret
  3. Homer, The Homeric Hymns 4.445–580Hymn 4 to Hermes (5): the lyre and the reconciliation

English translation by Benjamin Bickley Rogers (1913). Original text: Greek text: F. W. Hall and W. M. Geldart (eds.), Aristophanis Comoediae, Oxford Classical Texts, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906-1907, as digitised by Perseus. English: Benjamin Bickley Rogers, The Peace of Aristophanes, London: George Bell and Sons, 1913.

Greek text and translation from the Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University, Greek: CC BY-SA 4.0 (Perseus Digital Library); translation public domain (Rogers). Introductions, summaries and notes © GreekMythology.com.