Battle of Frogs and Mice, Byzantine ProsodyΒατραχομυομαχία
Parodist Anonymous Battle of Frogs and Mice, Byzantine Prosody PDF
The Batrachomyomachia, or Battle of Frogs and Mice, is a short comic epic poem of uncertain date, traditionally but erroneously attributed to Homer. Composed by an anonymous author in literary Homeric Greek and dactylic hexameter, the work is a parody that applies the elevated style and formal conventions of heroic poetry to a trivial conflict between animals. The narrative commences when the frog king Physignathos accidentally drowns his mouse guest, Psicharpax, after offering him a ride across a pond, thereby violating the sacred laws of hospitality. This incident provokes a declaration of war, leading to the mustering of armies, elaborate arming scenes where the combatants equip themselves with household items like needles and nutshells, and a council of the gods who debate intervention. The poem systematically lampoons epic tropes found in Homer’s Iliad, including detailed catalogues, boastful speeches, and divine machinations, all rendered absurd by the lowly stature of the protagonists. Modern scholarship generally places its composition in the Hellenistic period or the early Roman Imperial era. It was likely intended for a literate audience capable of appreciating the satirical contrast between its grandiose style and ridiculous subject matter. The poem survives in its entirety through medieval manuscript tradition, having been preserved as a standard component of the Byzantine school curriculum used for teaching Homeric Greek. It typically runs to approximately 300 lines, though textual variations exist, particularly regarding the identity of the deity who ultimately resolves the conflict.
| unit_1 | οὐδέποτε πτολέμοιο κακὴν ἀπέφυγον ἀϋτήν, ἀλλ’ εὐθὺς μετὰ μῶλον ἰὼν προμάχοισιν ἐμίχθην. ἄνθρωπον οὐ δέδια καί περ μέγα σῶμα φοροῦντα, ἀλλ’ ἐπὶ λέκτρον ἰὼν ἄκρον δάκτυλον δάκνω, καὶ πτέρνης λαβόμην, καὶ οὐ πόνος ἵκανεν ἄνδρα, νήδυμος οὐκ ἀπέφυγεν ὕπνος δάκνοντος ἐμεῖο. ἀλλὰ δύω μάλα πάντα τὰ δείδια πᾶσαν ἐπ’ αἶαν, κίρκον καὶ γαλέην, οἵ μοι μέγα πένθος ἄγουσιν, καὶ παγίδα στονόεσσαν, ὅπου δολόεις πέλε πότμος· πλεῖστον δὴ γαλέην περιδείδια, ἥ τις ἀρίστη, ἣ καὶ τρωγλοδύνοντα κατὰ τρώγλην ἐρεείνει. |
| unit_2 | ποινὴν ἀντέκτισίν τ’ ὀρθὴν ὅς κ’ ἀποδώσει ποινὴν σὺ τίσεις μυῶν στρατῷ οὐδ’ ὑπαλύξεις καί ῥα κραιπνότατος μοίρας μυσὶν ἄγγελος ἦλθεν ἣν παγίδα καλέουσι, μυῶν ὀλέτειραν ἐοῦσαν. ὡς βατράχων στρατὸς ἔβρεμεν εὖτε γιγάντων καὶ μῦες κενταύρων μεγαλαύχων ἦσαν ὁμοῖοι Ἀρτοφάγος δὲ Πολύφωνον κατὰ γαστέρα τύψε· ἤριπε δὲ πρηνής, ψυχὴ δὲ μελέων ἐξέπτη. Λιμνόχαρις δ’ ὡς εἶδεν ἀπολλύμενον Πολύφωνον, Τρωγλοδύτην ἁπαλοῖο δι’ αὐχένος τρῶσεν ἐπιφθὰς πέτρῳ μυλοειδέϊ· τὸν δὲ σκότος ὄσσε κάλυψε· |
| unit_3 | Ὠκιμίδην δ’ ἄχος εἷλε καὶ ἤλασεν ὀξέϊ σχοίνῳ οὐδ’ ἐξέσπασεν ἔγχος ἐναντίον· ὡς δ’ ἐνόησε Λειχήνωρ δ’ αὐτοῖο τιτύσκετο δουρὶ φαεινῷ καὶ βάλεν, οὐδ’ ἀφάμαρτε καθ’ ἧπαρ· ὡς δ’ ἐνόησε Κοστοφάγον φεύγοντα βαθείαις ἔμπεσεν ὄχθαις. ἀλλ’ οὐδ’ ὣς ἀπέληγε μάχης ἀλλ’ ἤλασεν αὐτόν· κάππεσε δ’, οὐκ ἀνένευσεν, ἐβάπτετο δ’ αἵματι λίμνη πορφυρέῳ, αὐτὸς δὲ παρ’ ἠιόν’ ἐξετανύσθη, χορδῇσιν λιπαρῇσί τ’ ἐπορνύμενος λαγόνεσσιν. |
| unit_4 | Ὑδρόχαρις δ’ ἔπεφνεν Πτερνοφάγον βασιλῆα, ἔσχατος δ’ ἐκ λίμνης ἀνεδύσετο, τείρετο δ’ αἰνῶς ἥρωας κρατερούς, ἀλλ’ ἔδυνε βένθεσι λίμνης μεριδάρπαξ ὄρχαμος μιμούμενος αὐτὸν ἄρηα ὃς μόνος ἐν μύεσσιν ἀρίστευεν καθ’ ὅμιλον αὐτὸς δ’ ἑστήκει γαυρούμενος κατὰ λίμνην οὐ μικρόν με πλήσσει μεριδάρπαξ ὃς κατὰ λίμνην κινείσθω τιτανοκτόνον ὀβριμοεργόν ᾧ Τιτᾶνας πέφνες ἀρίστους ἔξοχα πάντων αὐτὰρ ἔπειτα κεραυνὸν δειμαλέον διὸς ὅπλον ἧκ’ ἐπιδινήσας· ὁ δ’ ἄρ’ ἔπτατο χειρὸς ἄνακτος |