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Thucydides and Oracles
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 11 October 2013
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‘Thucydides does not himself speak the language of religion.’ Thus K. J. Dover summarizes the communisopinio about Thucydides' attitude towards religion. He is supposed to have been sceptical of oracles and to have rejected them as a form of superstition. This view is not, in my opinion, warranted by the evidence. The object of this paper will be to show that Thucydides accepted oracles, like his pious contemporaries Herodotus and Sophocles, and indeed that he exhibited a consistent interest in oracular puzzles and their correct interpretation.
Of the references to oracles in the History some do not merit extensive discussion since they are neutral in tone, and it is evident that Thucydides reports these oracles without any intention of making a special point: no criticism is involved in any of these omitted passages.
The oracles on which I will base my argument are united by having ambiguity as a common characteristic. Oracular ambiguity was ‘an article of Delphic belief’, and was accepted as a fact by the ancients.
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- Copyright © The Society for the Promotion of Hellenic Studies 1981
References
1 Dover, K. J., Thucydides, G&R New Surveys vii (Oxford 1973) 42Google Scholar.
2 Bockshammer, , Die sittlich-religiöse Anschauung des Thukydides (Tübingen 1862) 19;Google ScholarClassen, J.Steup, J., Thukydides i 5 (Berlin 1919) lxi Ixii;Google ScholarZeller, E., Die Philosophie der Griechen ii. 1 (Berlin 1888) 24;Google ScholarMeuss, H., ‘Thukydides und die religiöse Aufklärung’, Neue jb. f. kl. Phil. cxlv (1892) 226–7;Google ScholarAlfred, and Croiset, Maurice, Histoire de la littérature grecque iv (Paris 1900) 110–11;Google ScholarGomperz, Th., Greek Thinkers, trans. Magnus, L., (London 1901) 510;Google ScholarBury, J. B., The Ancient Greek Historians (New York 1909) 129;Google ScholarNestle, W., ‘Thukydides und die Sophistik’, Neue jb. f. kl. Phil. xxxiii (1914)Google Scholar = Griechische Studien (Stuttgart 1948) 335;Google ScholarSchmid, W.—Stählin, R., Geschichte der griechischen Literatur i (München 1920) 115;Google ScholarLatte, K., ‘Orakel’, RE xviii. 1 (1939) 852;Google Scholar J. Notopoulos, ‘Thucydides' Prognosis and the Oracles’, CW (1945) 29–30; Strasburger, H., ‘Die Entdeckung der politischen Geschichte durch Thukydides’, Saeculum v (1954)Google Scholar= Wege der Forschung, Thukydides, ed. Herter, H., (Darmstadt 1968) 453Google Scholar n. 85; Parke, H. W.—Wormell, D. F. W., The Delphic Oracle i (Oxford 1956) 180;Google ScholarFinley, M., ‘Thucydides the Moralist’, in Aspects of Antiquity (New York 1950) 49;Google Scholarde Romilly, J., Thucydides and Athenian Imperialism (Oxford 1972) 288Google Scholar. Exceptions are Strauss, L., ‘Preliminary Observations on the Gods in Thucydides' Work’, Interpretation iv (1974) 3Google Scholar and Oost, S. I., ‘Thucydides and the Irrational: Sundry Passages’, CPh lxx (1975) 188Google Scholar ff.
3 The oracles not discussed are (1) i 25.1: The Epidamnians ask Delphi what to do, and (2) i 25.2 give their city to the Corinthians following the oracle's advice. (3) i 28.2: The Corcyreans and the Corinthians refer their dispute to Delphi. (4) i 103.2: The helots surrender to the Spartans who had received an oracle to let the suppliant of Zeus at Ithome go. One could argue that Thucydides implies that the oracle was fulfilled; at any rate there is no criticism. (5) i 134.4: Apollo orders the Spartans to make emends for the death of Pausanias. (6) iii 92.5: The Spartans ask Delphi about the colonization of Herakleia. Thucydides does not accuse Delphi for the failure of the colony but rather the harsh Spartan leadership. See also Strauss (n. 2) 4. (7) i 118.3: Apollo told the Spartans that if they put all their strength into war they would win. Although Nestle (n. 2) 335 and others assume that Thucydides is being critical of Delphi, there is no criticism in the wording of the passage. (8) v 16.2: The enemies of the Spartan king Pleistoanax accuse him of bribing the Pythia. Thucydides makes no comment. (9) iii 104.1: Thucydides relates how the Athenians purified Delos in compliance with ‘a certain oracle’. The vagueness of the expression, especially when contrasted with ‘by the god's command’ (v 32.1) implies that Thucydides did not vouch for the genuineness of the oracle which ordered a sacrilegious purification. See Roscher, W., Lehen, Werk und Zeitalter des Thukydides (Göttingen 1842) 219–20,Google Scholar and Klix, G., Thukydides und die Volksreligion (Zülichau 1854) 28Google Scholar.
4 Fontenrose, J., The Delphic Oracle (Berkeley 1978) 236Google Scholar. Fonten-rose argues that obscure oracles were not genuine but agrees that ambiguity was ‘an article of Delphic belief’. Herodotus makes a big point because one particular oracle was clear (viii 77). The epithet Loxias may have been given to Apollo because of his ‘crooked’, that is ambiguous oracles. See LSJ.
5 Hdt. iii 58, 65; Soph. Trach. 1145–78, etc.
6 S. E. Basset, ‘1 COR. 13.12, βλέπομεν γὰρ ἄρτι δι ἐσóπτρου ἑν αἰνίγματι, J. Biblical Lit. (1928) 233.
7 Meuss (n. 2) 226 thinks that Thucydides is being critical.
8 Roscher (n. 3) 224; Classen-Steup5 (n. 2) lxii n. 86.
9 A. W. Gomme, HCT ad loc., was puzzled at the digression and concluded that Thucydides included the story because he was interested in the natural phenomenon of silting.
10 Strauss (n. 2) 10 Cf. also Hdt. i 68: Lichas discovers the true meaning of the oracle concerning the tomb of Orestes.
11 Nestle (n. 2) 336. Also Jevons, F. B., A History of Greek Literature (London 1886) 337Google Scholar. Gomme (ad loc.) detects irony.
12 Oost (n. 2) 189, 194.
13 Gomme ad loc.; Classen-Steup5 lxiii.
14 Thus Gomperz (n. 2) 510. See also Roscher (n. 3) 336; Parke and Wormell (n. 2) 190.
15 Gomme ad loc.
16 Lys. xvi 15; Pl. Gorg. 459e; Isoc. xii 127; Dio Cass. lxix 4.
17 See Hdt ix 16.2 for example. In a recent article, (B1CS xxvi [1979] 45 ff.) A. Powell concludes that πρóοιδα means ‘secularly based knowledge’ and not prophecy. He adduces a number of parallels which, however, prove that in all cases πρóοιδα means knowledge acquired beforehand: future generations will have knowledge of the symptoms of the Plague beforehand (ii 48.3); Alcibiades had knowledge of the enemy's plans (viii 51.3) etc. This shows that although the knowledge is secularly based, it is fore-knowledge, not foresight. Thus, the possibility that πρóοιδα implies rational calculation has to be given up in favour of knowledge based on a divine source.
18 Classen–Steup5ad loc. Gomme (ad loc.) rejected the emendation because even προᾴδω implies knowledge beforehand.
19 Aesch. ii 163.
20 Oost (n. 2) 194 concludes that Thucydides contradicts himself in what he says about oracles.
21 Classen–Steup5 lxi; Schmid-Stählin (n. 2) 115; Croiset (n. 2) 11; Meuss (n. 2) 227; von Fritz, K.Die griechische Geschichtsschreibung i Berlin 1967) 542;Google Scholar Oost (n. 2) 192 thinks that Thucydides may have disbelieved the oracle at first but then become convinced of its veracity. R. Crawley's translation is typical of the above attitudes:‘… an instance of faith in oracles being for once justified by the event’.
22 ‘To maintain obstinately’ is a more proper translation of the word than ‘to have faith in’. See LSJ which gives this meaning as one of the primary ones. See also Thuc. ii 44.3, iv 23.1, vii 49.4 for the same use of the word.
23 Parke and Wormell (n. 2) ii xx; K. Latte (n. 2) 852; Oliver, H. D., The Athenian Expounders of the Sacred and Ancestral Law (Baltimore 1950) 9–10;Google Scholar Fontenrose (n. 4) 145 ff.
24 Ar. Birds 950–91, Knights 109–10.
25 Denied by Nestle (n. 2) 335.
26 Soph. OT 711–12; Pl. Rep. 427c.
27 Fr. 93 DK, ap. Plut. Mor. 404d.
Translations of Greek are mine. I am grateful to Prof. H. Lloyd-Jones and Dr. C. Macleod for valuable comments and suggestions.
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