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Eris In Euripides

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 September 2009

John R. Wilson
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Extract

As a goddess Eris or Strife plays no role at all in Greek religion and an extremely restricted role in Greek literature. In èpic she briefly appears in the preliminaries to the Judgement of Paris, but is normally confined to emblematic appearances in mass battle scenes. As a concept Hesiod gives her some importance by distinguishing between a good and an evil Eris. Generally, though, whether as a goddess or a concept, eris remains inconspicuous until Euripides gives the word a thematic importance in a number of his works. This is most obvious in Andromache and most impressive in a nearly unbroken series of plays starting with Helenand ending with the posthumous Iphigeneia in Aulis.

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Type
Research Article
Information
Greece & Rome , Volume 26 , Issue 1 , April 1979, pp. 7 - 20
Copyright
Copyright © The Classical Association 1979

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References

Notes

1. The problem of when the apple entered the tradition has been fully discussed by Severyns, A., ‘Pomme de discorde et Jugement des déesses’, Pboibos 5 (1950–1951), 147–72Google Scholar. Oddly enough, the archaeological evidence all depicts the Krisis and not the Eris and (except for the Cypria itself) the same applies to the literary evidence until the Hellenistic period. In his summary of the Cypria Proclus (Chrest. 102, 14 Allen) merely says: “EΡιζ … νεĩμοζ πεΡι κáλλονζ ένισιν. The epitome of pseudo-Apollodorus is fuller (Apollodorus, Ep. 3. 2): μηλον π7egr;Ρι κάλλονζ “EΡιζ έμβάλλει. Severyns, (op. cit. 156–2Google Scholar) argues that in his original text [Apollodorus] wrote νεικοζ πεΡι κάλλονζ EΡιζέμβάλλει on the model of the Homeric [EΡιζ] νεικοζ… έμβαλε (II. 4. 445) and that later on a reader, ‘hanté par l’ histoire de la pomme’, substituted μέλονfor νεικον. It seems more likely, however, that the Epitome shows an abbreviation rather than a substitution, and that in the full version pseudo-Apollodorus wrote, e. g., μλον άνάμέσον Ριψασα, νεικοζ πεΡι κάλλονζ έμάλλει (cf. Tzetzes’ commentary on Lycophron, Schol. Lye. 93, p. 51 Scheer, discussed by Severyns, op. cit. 165). There is no compelling reason to read the apple either out of [Apollodorus] or the Cypria.

2. ‘Das Parisurteu’ in Tradition und Geist, gesammelte Essays zur Dichtung (Göttingen, 1960), pp. 16–36Google Scholar. For judicious comments on Reinhardt's essay see Stinton, T. C. W., Euripides and the Judgement of Paris (London, 1965), pp. 1–4Google Scholar. See most recently Walcot, P., ‘The Judgement of Paris’, G & R 24 (1977), 31–9Google Scholar.

3. The Judgement is mentioned in Sophocles’ Poimenes, but this drama, if not actually a satyr play, is satyric in character, alternating between the rustic (frs. 502, 521 Pearson) and the burlesque (frs. 501, 498, 507). Also compare fr. 510 with fr. 484 (the latter from a satyr play).

4. See Eduard Fraenkel in his commentary ad loc.

5. See Jouan, François, Euripide et les légendes des chants cypriens (Paris, 1966), p. 100Google Scholar.

6. See Dugas, Charles, ‘Tradition littéraire et tradition graphique dans l'antiquité grecque’, AC 6 (1937), 5 ff., esp. p. 12, and fig. 5Google Scholar.

7. Jouan, , op. cit., n. 5, pp. 29 and 43Google Scholar, supposes a moral purpose in Zeus’ plan in the Cypria. But the actual lines from the Cypria in fr. 1 do not support this view, which rests entirely on the interpretation of the scholion that quotes them.

8. For an attempted harmonization of these two functions of Zeus see Richard Kannicht's edition (Heidelberg, 1969) ad w. 31–6.

9. For the text and interpretation of these lines see Kannicht ad loc. For the equation of Eris with Helen cf. Aeschylus, Ag. 1455–61.

10. The image of the referee at 703 (spoken by the Old Servant) suggests a parallel between the krisis exercised by Paris and the krisis of war presided over by the eidolon.

11. For this translation see A. M. Dale's commentary (Oxford, 1967) ad loc. For other possibilities see Kannicht.

12. Cf. Romilly, J. de, ‘Les Phéniciennes d'Euripide et l'actualité dans la tragédie grecque’, RPh 39 (1965), 34Google Scholar: ‘Les Pbéniciennes, drame de l'eris, dénoncent done un mal profond, qui tient à la jalousie des individus et trouve son seul remede dans le sacrifice ’

13. For the text see Vincenzo di Benedetto's edition (Florence, 1965) ad w. 12 ff.

14. For another quarrel between the Atreidae see Telephus, frs. 772 and 773 N.

15. For the sincerity of Menelaus see Bogaert, Raymond, ‘Le revirement de Méné’, LEC 33 (1965), 3–11Google Scholar.

16. For the philotimia of Odysseus as a characteristic vice in the late plays see Romilly, de, op. cit., n. 12, pp. 39–40Google Scholar.

17. A play on eris/eros is also sensed by Kenneth Cavander. See the introduction to his translation (Englewood Cliffs, 1973). For other puns on eris cf. Aeschylus, Ag. 1461 and Sept. 723/726.

18. The text here should read either Eris, Eris or erin erin (cf. 183), not the rhetorically feeble eris erin.

19. Iphigeneia's naiveté is tragic, and compares with that of Phrixos in Phrixos B (another late play). The plot, as recent discoveries indicate (see most fully Looy, Herman van, Zes verloren Tragedies van Euripides (Brussels, 1964), pp. 132–84)Google Scholar, is probably faithfully recounted by Hyginus. It includes a jealous stepmother who first causes a famine and then procures a false oracle demanding the sacrifice of her stepson as the price of ending it. Phrixus is thoroughly duped, and freely resolves to sacrifice himself for the good of the community. So, too, Iphigeneia believes the propaganda (exposed as such earlier in the play) on the necessity of a crusade and freely offers herself for the cause. Are Agamemnon and the Greek army then forced to live up to the fraudulent ideals that Iphigeneia has consecrated?