Antiphanes

Antiphanes (Ancient Greek: Ἀντιφάνης, Antiphánēs; c. 408 – 334 BC) was a playwright of Middle Comedy. He is regarded as one of the most important writers of Middle Comedy alongside Alexis. He reputedly wrote as many as 365 comedies, and 140 titles are known. None of his plays survives intact.

Quotes

• πενθεῖν δὲ μετρίως τοὺς προσήκοντας φίλους·
  οὐ γὰρ τεθνᾶσιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν αὐτὴν ὁδόν,
  ἣν πᾶσιν ἐλθεῖν ἐστ᾿ ἀναγκαίως ἔχον,
  προεληλύθασιν.
  • Weep not, though loss of friends be sore;
    They are not dead, but gone before,
    Gone by the road that all must tread.
  • Frg. 54.1–4 K.-A. (tr. F. A. Paley, 1889)

• ὀλίγον τὸ καλόν ἐστι πανταχοῦ
  καὶ τίμιον.
  • Beauty is rare and should be ever prized.
  • Frg. 59 K.-A. (tr. F. A. Paley, 1889)

• οὐθεὶς πώποτε,
  ὦ δέσποτ᾿, ἀπέθαν᾿ ἀποθανεῖν πρόθυμος ὤν,
  τοὺς γλιχομένους δὲ ζῆν κατασπᾷ τοῦ σκέλους
  ἄκοντας ὁ Χάρων ἐπὶ τὸ πορθμεῖόν τ᾿ ἄγει
  σιτιζομένους καὶ πάντ᾿ ἔχοντας ἀφθόνως.
  ὁ δὲ λιμός ἐστιν ἀθανασίας φάρμακον.
  • None ever die who wish; 'tis those that gloat
    On life that Charon hurries to his boat;
    Seized by the leg, dragged off against their will,
    E'en while of food and drink they take their fill.
    Those who to immortality aspire
    Short fare soon serves to cure of their desire.
  • Frg. 86 K.-A. (tr. F. A. Paley, 1889)

• ὅστις τέχνην κατέδειξε πρῶτον τῶν θεῶν,
  οὗτος μέγιστον εὗρεν ἀνθρώποις κακον.
  • Who of the gods first taught the artist's craft
    Laid on the human race their greatest curse.
  • Frg. 121.1–2 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• ἐπὶ χρήμασιν δ᾿ ὢν ἔμπορος φρονεῖ μέγα,
  ὧν ἐστι πάντων ἐνίοτ᾿ ἄνεμος κύριος.
  • Though profits large to rich shipowners fall,
    The wind it is that really owns it all.
  • Frg. 149 K.-A. (tr. F. A. Paley, 1889)

• ἀρετὴ τὸ προῖκα τοῖς φίλοις ὑπηρετεῖν.
  • True virtue serves a friend, nor looks for pay.
  • Frg. 208 K.-A. (tr. F. A. Paley, 1889)

• σοφόν γε τοί τι πρὸς τὸ βουλεύειν ἔχει
  τὸ γῆρας, ὡς δὴ πόλλ᾿ ἰδόν τε καὶ παθόν.
  • Old age, for it has seen and suffered much,
    Brings aye some wisdom to the council board.
  • Frg. 218 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• ἆρ᾿ ἐστὶ λῆρος πάντα πρὸς τὸ χρυσίον.
  • All else is nonsense in compare with gold.
  • Frg. 229.1 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• κρύψαι, Φειδία,
  ἅπαντα τἆλλά τις δύναιτ᾿ ἂν πλὴν δυοῖν,
  οἶνόν τε πίνων εἰς ἔρωτά τ᾿ ἐμπεσών.
  ἀμφότερα μηνύει γὰρ ἀπὸ τῶν βλεμμάτων
  καὶ τῶν λόγων ταῦθ᾿· ὥστε τοὺς ἀρνουμένους
  μάλιστα τούτους καταφανεῖς ποιεῖ.
  • Phidias, all other things may men conceal
    Save two, that they've drunk wine or fall'n in love;
    Both these by word and look do men betray,
    So that the very fact of their denial
    But makes the case more clear.
  • Frg. 232 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• ὡς δυστυχεῖς, ὅσοισι τοῦ κέρδους χάριν
  ἐπίπροσθε τἀισχρὰ φαίνετ᾿ εἶναι τῶν καλῶν·
  ἐπισκοτεῖ γὰρ τῷ φρονεῖν τὸ λαμβάνειν.
  • Unhappy they who for the sake of profit
    Prefer the ugly to the beautiful.
    Their mind's o'ershadowed by the lust of gain.
  • Frg. 244 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• ἐγὼ γυναικὶ δ᾿ ἕν τι πιστεύω μόνον,
  ἐπὰν ἀποθάνῃ μὴ βιώσεσθαι πάλιν,
  τὰ δ᾿ ἄλλ᾿ ἀπιστῶ πανθ᾿ ἕως ἂν ἀποθάνῃ.
  • One single thing I trust a woman saying,
    To other statements no attention paying:
    'When I am dead, I won't return to grieve you.'
    Till death takes place, in naught else I'll believe you.
  • Frg. 245 K.-A. (tr. F. A. Paley, 1889)

• καλῶς πένεσθαι μᾶλλον ἢ πλουτεῖν κακῶς·
  τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἔλεον, τὸ δ᾿ ἐπιτίμησιν φέρει.
  • Choose honest poverty, not dishonest wealth;
    The one earns pity, the other but reproof.
  • Frg. 258 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• ὁ δὲ πλοῦτος ἡμᾶς, καθάπερ ἰατρὸς κακός,
  τυφλοὺς βλέποντας παραλαβὼν πάντας ποιεῖ.
  • Wealth, like the quacks who sore eyes seeing find,
    Takes us clear sighted, but it leaves us blind.
  • Frg. 259 K.-A. (tr. F. A. Paley, 1889)

• οὐκ ἔστιν οὐδὲν λεγόμενον μακρῶς, ὅτε
  ὁ λέγων ὑποτάττει τοῖς λόγοις τὰ πράγματα.
  • 'Tis ne'er tall talk
    When he who speaks matches his words with deeds.
  • Frg. 266 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• τὸ μὴ συνειδέναι γὰρ αὑτοῦ τῷ βίῳ
  ἀδίκημα μηδὲν ἡδονὴν πολλὴν ἔχει.
  • To be conscious to one's self of having committed no unjust act throughout life is the cause of much pleasure.
  • Frg. 267 K.-A. (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1873)

• οὐκ ἔστιν οὐδὲν βαρύτερον τῶν φορτίων
  ὄντως γυναικὸς προῖκα πολλὴν φερομένης.
  • A wife who brings with her a dowry rich
    Is heaviest burden that a man may bear.
  • Frg. 270 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• ὁ μηθὲν ἀδικῶν οὐθενὸς δεῖται νόμου.
  • He needs no law who never falls from justice.
  • Frg. 281 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• τῆς ἐπιμελείας δοῦλα πάντα γίγνεται.
  • To diligence all things become subservient.
  • Frg. 283 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• τρόπος δίκαιος κτῆμα τιμιώτατον.
  • Habits of justice are a most valuable possession.
  • Frg. 284 K.-A. (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1873)

• λύπη μανίας ὁμότοιχος εἶναί μοι δοκεῖ.
  • Methinks that grief is madness' next door neighbour.
  • Frg. 287 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• ἐν γῇ πένεσθαι μᾶλλον ἢ πλουτοῦντα πλεῖν.
  • 'Tis better to be poor on land than rich and go to sea.
  • Frg. 290 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

• πενία γάρ ἐστιν ἡ τρόπων διδάσκαλος.
  • Poverty is the schoolmaster of character.
  • Frg. 322 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

Misattributed

• τὰ πονηρὰ κέρδη τὰς μὲν ἡδονὰς ἔχει
  μικράς, ἔπειτα δ᾿ ὕστερον λύπας μακράς.
  • Ill-gotten gains may some small pleasures give,
    But in the end bring untold misery.
  • Alexis, frg. 68 K.-A. (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897); misattributed to Antiphanes due to a confusion in Stobaeus, Anthology, III.10.22.

References

Text

• Kassel, Rudolf; Austin, Colin. Poetae Comici Graeci, vol. II Agathenor-Aristonymus. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 1991.

Translations

• Harbottle, Thomas Benfield. Dictionary of Quotations (Classical). London: Swan Sonnenschein, 1897. Internet Archive
• Paley, Frederick Apthorp. Fragments of the Greek Comic Poets. London: Swan Sonnenschein, 1889, pp. 18–51. Internet Archive
• Ramage, Craufurd Tait. Beautiful Thoughts from Greek Authors. Liverpool: Edward Howell, 1873, pp. 37–41. Google Books