Aristophanes Quotes

Socrate. Tiens-tu quelque chose ?
Strepsiade. Non, par Zeus, non certes.
Socrate. Rien du tout ?
Strepsiade. Rien... que ma verge dans ma main droite.

Leader of the Chorus: Let's see. What shall our city be called? [...] Euelpides: Some name borrowed from the clouds, from these lofty regions in which we dwell — in short, some well-known name. Pisthetaerus: Do you like Nephelococcygia? (tr. O'Neill 1938, Perseus)

Agathon: One must not try to trick misfortune, but resign oneself to it with good grace. (tr. Athen. 1912, vol. 2, p. 278) (tr. O'Neill 1938, Perseus)

You cannot teach a crab to walk straight.

MYRRHINE Why, you've no blanket. CINESIAS It's not the silly blanket's warmth but yours I want. MYRRHINE Never mind. You'll soon have both. I'll come straight back. CINESIAS The woman will choke me with her coverlets. MYRRHINE Get up a moment. CINESIAS I'm up high enough. MYRRHINE

WOMEN Well, I'll relate a rival fable just to show to you A different point of view: There was a rough-hewn fellow, Timon, with a face That glowered as through a thorn-bush in a wild, bleak place. He too decided on flight, This very Furies' son, All the world's ways to shun And hide from everyone, Spitting out curses on all knavish men to left and right. But though he reared this hate for men, He loved the women even then, And never thought them enemies. WOMAN O your jaw I'd like to break.

Hierocles: You will never make the crab walk straight. (tr. O'Neill 1938, Perseus)

Chorus [leader]: Come now, ye men, in nature darkling, like to the race of leaves, of little might, figures of clay, shadowy feeble tribes, wingless creatures of a day, miserable mortals, dream-like men. (tr. Hickie 1853, vol. 1, p. 338)

STREPSIADES. So the rear of a gnat is a trumpet. Oh! what a splendid discovery! Thrice happy Socrates! ‘Twould not be difficult to succeed in a law-suit, knowing so much about the gut of a gnat!

Leader of the Chorus: Weak mortals, chained to the earth, creatures of clay as frail as the foliage of the woods, you unfortunate race, whose life is but darkness, as unreal as a shadow, the illusion of a dream. (tr. O'Neill 1938, Perseus)

However, in the view of many Athenians he had, in effect, stolen the credit from Demosthenes. This point is frequently mentioned in the play. Knights was awarded first prize in the drama competition at the Lenaea festival in 424 BC.

There is no beast more stubborn than a woman.
And neither fire nor leopard is more ruthless.

Blepsidemus: There is no honest man! not one, that can resist the attraction of gold! (tr. O'Neill 1938, Perseus)

EL HOMBRE - ...No estamos acostumbrados a dar; solo nos gusta recibir, en lo cual imitamos a los dioses. Para convencerte, no tienes más que mirarles a las manos; sus imágenes, cuando les pedimos dones y mercedes, nos alargan las manos vueltas hacia arriba; no en actitud de dar sino de recibir.

Let each man exercise the art he knows.