Fragments of Comic WisdomἈποσπάσματα περὶ Κωμικῆς Σοφίας
Epicharmus of Syracuse Fragments of Comic Wisdom PDF
The Fragments of Comic Wisdom is a modern scholarly title for a collection of excerpts from the lost comedies of Epicharmus of Syracuse, an early Greek comic playwright active in the late sixth and early fifth centuries BCE. As no complete play by Epicharmus survives, our knowledge of his work depends entirely on quotations preserved by later authors. This particular designation groups those fragments that exhibit a pronounced philosophical or gnomic character, offering pithy advice and parodying intellectual discourse. The original works from which these fragments derive were performed in the thriving cultural center of Syracuse and covered a wide range of subjects.
The content of these fragments reveals a playwright engaged with the intellectual currents of his time through the medium of comedy. They include philosophical parody and debate on fundamental topics such as the nature of reality, the divine, and ethics, often delivered through the interactions of stock comic characters. Alongside this, the fragments are rich in moralizing, proverbial advice concerning practical life and behavior. Epicharmus also employed burlesque treatments of myth and the gods, while his comedies simultaneously featured vivid depictions of everyday Sicilian life. The transmission of this material is entirely indirect, relying on citations by later philosophers and compilers including Plato, Aristotle, and Athenaeus; there exists no continuous manuscript tradition for his plays. Modern authoritative collections, such as Poetae Comici Graeci, systematically compile these scattered excerpts.
The significance of Epicharmus in the history of Western drama is considerable. Ancient authorities regarded him as a foundational figure: Plato referred to him as "the prince of comedy," and Aristotle credited him with the invention of comic plot structure. The philosophical tenor of much of his surviving work led both ancient and later readers to view him not merely as an entertainer but as a forerunner to more formal philosophical thought, blending popular wisdom with comic invention. His influence helped shape the development of comedy as a literary genre.
| 1 | καδδαιμονέcτεροc |
| 2 | τεῖδ’ ἔνεcτι πολλὰ καὶ παν[τ]οῖα, τοῖc χρήcαιό κα ποτὶ φίλον, πὸτ ἐχθρὸν ἐν δίκαι λέγων, ἐ̣ν ἁλίαι, ποτὶ πονηρόν, ποτὶ καλόν τε κἀγαθόν, ποτὶ ξένον, ποτὶ δύcηριν, ποτὶ πάροινον, ποτὶ βάναυcον, εἴτε τιc ἄ̣λλ’ ἔ̣χ̣ει κακόν τι, καὶ τούτοιcι κέντρα τεῖδ’ ἐνό. ἐ̣ν̣ δ̣ὲ καὶ γνῶμαι cοφαὶ τεῖδ’ αἷcιν ε[ἰ] πείθοιτό τιc, δ̣εξ̣ι̣ώ̣τερόc τέ κ’ εἴη βελτίων τ’ ἐc πά[ν]τ’ ἀνήρ. κο]ὔ τι πολλὰ δεῖ λ̣έ̣γ̣[ε]ι̣ν̣, ἀλλ’ ἓμ μόνον [τ]ο̣ύτων ἔποc̣ ποττὸ πρᾶγμα ποτιφέροντα τῶ̣νδ̣’ ἀ̣ε̣[ὶ] τὸ cυμφέρον, αἰτίαν γὰρ ἦχον ὡc ἄλλωc μὲν εἴην̣ [δ]εξ̣ι̣όc, μακρολόγοc δ’, οὔ κα δυναίμαν ἐμ β̣[ρ]αχε̣ῖ γνώμα̣[c λέγ]ειν· ταῦτα δὴ̣ ’γὼν εἰcακούcαc cυντίθημι τὰν τέχναν τάνδ̣’, ὅ̣[π]ωc εἴπηι τι〈c〉· ‚Ἐπίχαρμοc cοφόc τιc ἐγένετο [πόλλ’ ὃc εἶ]π̣’ ἀcτεῖα καὶ παντο̣ῖ̣α̣ καθ̣’ ἓ̣ν̣ [ἔποc] λ̣έγ̣ων̣ [πεῖραν] αὐταύτου διδοὺc ὡc καὶ β[ραχ [ ..... ]ε μαθὼν ἅπαc ἀνὴρ φαν̣[ [ ..... ] . ηc̣ει ποτ’ οὐδέν’ ἔποc ἀπ[ [ ...... ]οντα λυπήcει τι τῶνδ̣[ [ ...... ]τρ̣[ .. ]α δρῶντα τοῖcδ[ [ ...... ]ορ̣η̣τε πολυμαθη̣ [ [ ...... ]ων[ .. ]ρ̣τ̣[ .. ] ἐρῶ δὲ καὶ τ[ [ ...... ]ιτε τούτο ιc γα κακ̣ὰ̣ [ ... ]χειν [ [ἄλλοc ἄ]λλωι γὰρ [γ]έγηθε κοὔ τι ταυ[τ [ ...... ]ε̣ πάντα δεῖ τάδ’ ὡc ε̣[ [ ...... ἔ]πειτα δ’ ἐν καιρῶι λε[γ [ ......... ]ε̣ι̣μα βραχὺc οι̣[ . . . . . . . . . . . . |
| 3 (n) | Ἐπ]ιχάρμο[υ]. [τοὺc τρόπουc χείρω γυναῖ]κ̣α φάμ’ ἐγὼ τῶν θηρ[ίων] [εἶμεν. ὅcτιc γ]ὰρ λέοντι cῖτον ἢ πότον [φέρει] ἢ κυcὶν Μολοccικοῖc[ιν ἢ ... ,〉 [θῆρε]c αἰκάλλοντι το[ῖ]cι[ν εὖ ποιεῦcιν εὐμενεῖc], ἁ [γ]υνὰ δὲ τὸν τρέφοντ̣α̣ [πρῶτον εἴθιcται δακεῖν]. |
| 4 | τὸ δὲ γαμεῖν ὅμοιόν ἐcτι τῷ τρὶc ἓξ ἢ τρεῖc μόνουc ἀπὸ τύχηc βαλεῖν· ἐὰν μὲν γὰρ λάβῃc τεταγμένην τοῖc τρόποιc καὶ τἄλλ’ ἄλυπον, εὐτυχήcειc τῷ γάμῳ· εἰ δὲ καὶ φιλέξοδόν τε καὶ λάλον καὶ δαφιλῆ, οὐ γυναῖχ’ ἕξειc, διὰ βίου δ’ ἀτυχίαν κοcμουμέναν. |
| 5 | ποτεκλεπτόμαν |
| 6 | ἁ κίccα τὰν Σειρῆνα μιμουμέν α , |