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Athenaeus, The Learned Banqueters (Deipnosophistae) 604d · 604d

Practising generalship

Ion of Chios — παῖδα,
Sophocles — ‘ μελετῶ, εἶπεν, στρατηγεῖν, ὦ ἄνδρες· ἐπειδήπερ Περικλῆς ποιεῖν μέν ⟨ με ⟩ ἔφη, στρατηγεῖν δ’ οὐκ ἐπίστασθαι. ἆρ’ οὖν οὐ κατ’ ὀρθόν μοι πέπτωκεν τὸ στρατήγημα;’
Ion of Chios — τοιαῦτα πολλὰ δεξιῶς ἔλεγέν τε καὶ ἔπρησσεν ὅτε πίνοι [ ἢ πράσσοι ]. τὰ μέντοι πολιτικὰ οὔτε σοφὸς οὔτε ῥεκτήριος ἦν, ἀλλ’ ὡς ἄν τις εἷς τῶν χρηστῶν Ἀθηναίων.’
Myrtilus, citing Hieronymus of Rhodes — καὶ Ἱερώνυμος δ’ ὁ Ῥόδιος ἐν τοῖς Ἱστορικοῖς Ὑπομνήμασίν φησιν ὅτι Σοφοκλῆς εὐπρεπῆ παῖδα ἔξω τείχους ἀπήγαγε χρησόμενος αὐτῷ. ὁ μὲν οὖν

…boy. “I am practising generalship, gentlemen,” he said. “Pericles said I knew how to write poetry but not how to command an army. Didn't my stratagem turn out just right?” He said and did many clever things like this when he was drinking [or acting]. In politics, though, he was neither skilled nor effective, just like any decent Athenian.” And Hieronymus of Rhodes says in his Historical Notes that Sophocles took a good-looking boy outside the city walls to have sex with him. So the…

Word by word

Ion of Chios

παῖδαpaîdaboy,

Sophocles

‘μελετῶmeletôI am practising,εἶπενeîpenhe said,στρατηγεῖνstratēgeîngeneralship,ὦô—ἄνδρεςándresgentlemen·ἐπειδήπερepeidḗpersinceΠερικλῆςPeriklêsPericlesποιεῖνpoieînto write poetryμένmén—⟨μεmeI⟩ἔφηéphēsaid,στρατηγεῖνstratēgeînto command an armyδ’d’butοὐκouknotἐπίστασθαιepístasthaiknew how.ἆρ’âr’—οὖνoûnsoοὐounotκατ’kat’—ὀρθόνorthónrightμοιmoifor meπέπτωκενpéptōkenturned outτὸtòmyστρατήγημαstratḗgēmastratagem;’

Ion of Chios

τοιαῦταtoiaûtasuch thingsπολλὰpollàmanyδεξιῶςdexiôscleverlyἔλεγένélegénhe saidτεte—καὶkaìandἔπρησσενéprēssendidὅτεhótewhenπίνοιpínoihe was drinking[ἢḕorπράσσοιprássoiacting].τὰtà—μέντοιméntoibutπολιτικὰpolitikàin politicsοὔτεoúteneitherσοφὸςsophòsskilledοὔτεoútenorῥεκτήριοςrhektḗrioseffectiveἦνênhe was,ἀλλ’all’butὡςhōslikeἄνán—τιςtisanyεἷςheîsoneτῶνtônof theχρηστῶνchrēstôndecentἈθηναίωνAthēnaíōnAthenians.’

Myrtilus, citing Hieronymus of Rhodes

καὶkaìandἹερώνυμοςHierṓnymosHieronymusδ’d’—ὁho—ῬόδιοςRhódiosof RhodesἐνeninτοῖςtoîshisἹστορικοῖςHistorikoîsHistoricalὙπομνήμασίνHypomnḗmasínNotesφησινphēsinsaysὅτιhótithatΣοφοκλῆςSophoklêsSophoclesεὐπρεπῆeuprepêgood-lookingπαῖδαpaîdaboyἔξωéxōoutsideτείχουςteíchousthe wallsἀπήγαγεapḗgagetookχρησόμενοςchrēsómenosto have sex withαὐτῷautôihim.ὁhotheμὲνmèn—οὖνoûnso

The setting

Sophocles explains himself to the table with a joke about his military career. Then Myrtilus adds a second, much less flattering story. Grapevine: Ion was an eyewitness; Hieronymus of Rhodes wrote about 150 years after Sophocles died.

A note on this passage

Sophocles really was elected general, probably in 441 BC, and the joke depends on it. Pericles, his colleague, had teased him that he was a poet and no soldier; now he has carried off a perfectly executed manoeuvre at dinner. Ion ends with a fair, slightly dry verdict: charming over wine, no politician.<br><br>Then the source changes, and so should our trust. Hieronymus of Rhodes was a philosopher writing in the 3rd century BC, long after Sophocles' death, and his collection of anecdotes is lost. The word Myrtilus uses, “to use” the boy, is the ordinary Greek way of saying sex, and Greek readers would hear it plainly.

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