Wednesday, July 17, 2024
Life
Antiphon the Sophist, fragment 50 (tr. Kathleen Freeman):
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Life is like a day-long watch, and the length of life is like one day, as it were, on which having seen the light we pass on our trust to the next generation.The same, tr. Daniel W. Graham:
τὸ ζῆν ἔοικε φρουρᾷ ἐφημέρῳ τό τε μῆκος τοῦ βίου ἡμέρᾳ μιᾷ, ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, ᾗ ἀναβλέψαντες πρὸς τὸ φῶς παρεγγυῶμεν τοῖς ἐπιγιγνομένοις ἑτέροις.
Living is like a day's watch, and the length of life as a single day, so to speak, in which, as we look up at the light, we hand over our duties to others who come after.The same, tr. André Laks and Glenn W. Most:
Living is like a day-long sentry duty, and the whole length of life is like a single day, as it were, during which no sooner have we raised our eyes toward the light than we pass on the baton to other people who come after us.
