[B-Greek] An old excuse

George F Somsel gfsomsel at yahoo.com
Sat Dec 6 11:03:12 EST 2008


While I recall reading portion of Herodotus when I took Greek in college (along with numberous other authors such as Xenophon, Plato, Homer, etc), I haven't read much Herodotus since then unless I ran across a particular reference so that my reading of Herodotus since then has been rather helter-skelter.  I recently ran across an article by Jan-Wim Wisselius in the _Journal of Hebrew Scriptures_, vol 3 (2000-2001) in which the author contends that 
 
"First the global structure. The structure of the literary back-bone of the work, the history of the people of Israel from the patriarch Abraham until their arrival in the Land of Canaan and their conquest of it in the book of Joshua, clearly derives from the Historiesof Herodotus of Halicarnassus …"
 
Ben Zvi, E., ed. (2000-2001). Journal of Hebrew scriptures: Volume 3 (jhs.3.2.4). Edmonton: Journal of Hebrew Scriptures.
 
I therefore decided to begin at the beginning and proceed through Herodotus.  I quickly ran across this passage.
 
τὸ μέν νυν ἁρπάζειν γυναῖκας ἀνδρῶν ἀδίκων νομίζειν ἔργον εἶναι, τὸ δὲ ἁρπασθεισέων σπουδήν ποιήσασθαι τιμωρέειν ἀνοήτων, τὸ δὲ μηδεμίαν ὤρην ἔχειν ἁρπασθεισέων σωφρόνων: δῆλα γὰρ δὴ ὅτι, εἰ μὴ αὐταὶ ἐβούλοντο, οὐκ ἂν ἡρπάζοντο
 
TO MEN NUN hARPAZEIN GUNAIKAS ANDRWN ADIKWN NOMIZEIN ERGON EINAI, TO DE hARPASQEISEWN SPOUDHN POIHSASQAI TIMWREEIN ANOHTWN, TO DE MHDEMIAN WRHN EXEIN hARPASQEISEWN SWFRONWN: DHLA GAR DH hOTI, EI MH AUTAI EBOULONTO, OUK AN hHRPAZONTO
 
It seems that the excuse hasn't changed much in the meantime.

 george
gfsomsel 


… search for truth, hear truth, 
learn truth, love truth, speak the truth, hold the truth, 
defend the truth till death.


- Jan Hus
_________ 


      


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