FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72   73   74   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82  
83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   >>   >|  
ut being less platitudinous. Their talk is all of "inevitable war" and "stripping for the fray," "vindicating rights," "tyranny" and "traitors," "spoliation," "innovation," and "striking good blows for the cause"; at least it was twenty-three hundred years ago. _Men Chorus._ This is not a time for slumber; now let all be bold and free, Strip to meet the great occasion, vindicate our rights with me. I can smell a deep, surprising Tide of Revolution rising, Odour as of folk devising Hippias's tyranny. And I feel a dire misgiving, Lest some false Laconians, meeting in the house of Cleisthenes, Have inspired these wretched women all our wealth and pay to seize. Pay from whence I get my living. Gods! to hear these shallow wenches taking citizens to task, Prattling of a brassy buckler, jabbering of a martial casque! Gods! to think that they have ventured with Laconian men to deal, Men of just the faith and honour that a ravening wolf might feel! Plots they're hatching, plots contriving, plots of rampant Tyranny; But o'er US they shan't be Tyrants, no, for on my guard I'll be, And I'll dress my sword in myrtle, and with firm and dauntless hand, Here beside Aristogeiton resolutely take my stand, Marketing in arms beside him. This the time and this the place When my patriot arm must deal a --blow upon that woman's face. One is tempted to quote Mr. Rogers indefinitely; indeed, there are a score of good things to which we would gladly call attention. Having warned readers that this version is not a translation in the sense that the versions of _The Frogs_ and _The Birds_ are, we can, with a clear conscience, urge all to read it who care for good literature or are interested in political ideas. They will not be disappointed; only, we would suggest to those whose Greek has grown a little rusty that a literal translation in French or German would be a suitable companion for the English paraphrase. Without it, they will hardly understand what provoked Plato's splendid compliment and would bring down upon the author, were he alive, the rigours of our English law. FOOTNOTES: [9] "The Lysistrata of Aristophanes, acted at Athens in the year B.C. 411." The Greek Text Re
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72   73   74   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82  
83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
rights
 

English

 

tyranny

 
translation
 

readers

 

warned

 

Rogers

 

indefinitely

 

version

 

attention


gladly

 
things
 

Having

 
resolutely
 
Marketing
 

Aristogeiton

 

myrtle

 

dauntless

 

tempted

 

patriot


conscience

 

paraphrase

 

companion

 

Without

 

understand

 
suitable
 

German

 

Lysistrata

 

literal

 

French


FOOTNOTES

 

rigours

 
author
 

compliment

 

provoked

 

splendid

 

Aristophanes

 

versions

 

Athens

 

literature


interested
 
suggest
 

disappointed

 

political

 

vindicate

 
surprising
 

occasion

 
Revolution
 
misgiving
 

Laconians