Saturday, March 25, 2023

 

Insecurity

Pindar, Pythian Odes 4.272-273 (tr. John Sandys):
For, even for the feeble, it is an easy task to shake a city to its foundation, but it is indeed a sore struggle to set it in its place again.

ῥᾴδιον μὲν γὰρ πόλιν σεῖσαι καὶ ἀφαυροτέροις·
ἀλλ' ἐπὶ χώρας αὖτις ἕσσαι δυσπαλὲς
    δὴ γίνεται.
Commentators compare Theognis 845-846 (tr. Dorothea Wender):
A man's good luck can easily be spoiled;
But to improve bad luck is difficult.

εὖ μὲν κείμενον ἄνδρα κακῶς θέμεν εὐμαρές ἐστιν,
    εὖ δὲ θέμεν τὸ κακῶς κείμενον ἀργαλέον.


485 ἄνδρα codd: ἄστυ Bergk
Or, if Bergk's conjecture is adopted:
A town in a good condition is easy to destroy,
but it is hard to set aright one in a bad condition.
Related post: Easier to Tear Down Than to Build.



<< Home
Newer›  ‹Older

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?