{"id":1321,"date":"2019-08-16T17:30:53","date_gmt":"2019-08-16T21:30:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/?p=1321"},"modified":"2019-08-16T17:30:53","modified_gmt":"2019-08-16T21:30:53","slug":"prompt-1-slang-words","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/2019\/08\/16\/prompt-1-slang-words\/","title":{"rendered":"Prompt 1: Slang Words"},"content":{"rendered":"

Unfortunately, I wasn\u2019t able to find any native speakers of Ancient Greek to discuss slang words, but in our readings we\u2019ve examined some works by Aristophanes who is known for his use of more colloquial language. So when I was talking to my professor about our sources of slang from Ancient Greece, she directed me to some specific terms from Aristophanes\u2019 comedies and the terms I\u2019ll be examining more closely are: \u03c4\u1fb6\u03bd, \u03c3\u03bf\u03c6\u03b9\u03c3\u03c4\u03ae\u03c2, and a passage from The <\/em><\/span>Akharnians<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"Since I took breaks from studying Ancient Greek by traveling around the Irish countryside, I thought that I’d share some of my favorite pictures of different places throughout this post. So here is the coastline of Inishmore, one of the Aran Islands off the Cliffs of Moher<\/p>\n

\u03c4\u1fb6\u03bd is a vocative, or direct address, meaning sir or gentlemen. The most well-known use of the vocative (in my opinion) comes from Shakespeare when Julius Caesar says \u201cEt tu, Brute,\u201d <\/span>Brute<\/span><\/i> is the vocative form of Brutus. But \u03c4\u1fb6\u03bd is indeclinable, meaning it doesn\u2019t serve any purpose outside of addressing someone and it has a nuanced meaning, as the textbook notes that it is condescendingly used. In context, two characters of Aristophanes\u2019 <\/span>Birds<\/span><\/i>, Dikaiopolis and the rhapsode, or a reciter of Homeric poetry, are having a conversation about Pericles, the Athenian general at the beginning of the Peloponnesian War, and they hold very different opi<\/span>nions about. The rhapsode is of the mind that Pericles was the best thing to happen to Athens, while Dikaiopolis blames Pericles for forcing him off of his farm and for the death of his entire family in the city. But the rhapsode doesn\u2019t know this yet, so when he says, \u201cWhat are you saying, sir?\u201d he is incredulous.<\/p>\n

\"\"This was taken on Garnish Island, off the coast of Glenfarriff in Co. Cork<\/p>\n

On a side note, the textbook my class uses is British and for the most part, I don\u2019t see any real difference between British and American English when it comes to studying Ancient Greeks. We don\u2019t talk about soccer\/football or fries\/chips and grammatically, I couldn\u2019t tell the difference between British and American English before this course. But now I know that British English uses shall and will differently than American English to denote a threat or intention, as well as some other aspects of grammar. But the exact translation of \u03c4\u1fb6\u03bd is \u201cmy dear chap\u201d and that is something that makes the textbook uniquely British.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"Molls Gap in Kenmare, on a tour of the Ring of Kerry<\/p>\n

\u03c3\u03bf\u03c6\u03b9\u03c3\u03c4\u03ae\u03c2 – This is an interesting word because a sophist was a tutor, typically of subjects such as rhetoric, philosophy, or politics, for young intellectuals of the wealthy upper class in 4th and 5th BC Athens. Socrates, according to Plato, was not a sophist, as he did not accept payment and disputed with sophists of that day. Yet in reading <\/span>Clouds<\/span><\/i> by Aristophanes, we meet the character, more a caricature, of Socrates and other sophists who are depicted as airheads (they have their head in the clouds and no grasp on reality) and thieves who take money from their students and teach them nonsense. Sophists in Athens really were highly criticized for accepting payment for their teachings, we know this from Plato\u2019s account of Socrates\u2019s trial and Plato is credited with defining the modern term sophist to mean a teacher of deception and false logic. I haven\u2019t read Plato\u2019s <\/span>Sophist<\/span><\/i>, so I can\u2019t give his full account on the differences between a sophist, a philosopher, and a statesman. But Aristophanes uses the word, \u03c3\u03bf\u03c6\u03b9\u03c3\u03c4\u03ae\u03c2, in its more colloquial meaning and gives these philosophers the appearance of swindlers and cheaters, and makes Socrates their leader, which was used against him at his trial for corrupting the youth of Athens.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"The coastline at Carrickfinn Beach, right next to the Donegal Airport, which was voted the most scenic airport in the world<\/p>\n

The word \u03c3\u03bf\u03c6\u03b9\u03c3\u03c4\u03ae\u03c2 is not an inappropriate, unsuitable for innocent ears, per se, but one must consider the implication of calling someone a sophist, whether they simply mean a teacher or a deceitful one. In the context of calling Socrates as sophist as compared to calling Gorgias, one of the founders of sophistry, the same would be very different situations. Regardless of a positive or negative view on sophistry, Gorgias was a sophist and calling him as such is a statement of fact. Whether to criticize or praise him for his skills and work would depend on who was speaking and to whom.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"This is a picture of the Lake Isle of Innisfree, from the poem by W.B. Yeats, on Lake Gill by Sligo<\/p>\n

Coming to the last example, I\u2019ll admit that when I first read colloquial\/slang words, my mind immediately went to curses. Then I considered in which situations are curse words appropriate to use? Not school assignments, that\u2019s for sure. Nonetheless, I thought that a curse would make for an interesting examination of language. In this passage from The <\/em>Akharnians<\/em>, the chorus is cursing Lamachus, who was an Athenian general in the Peloponnesian War, and subsequently mocked by Aristophanes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>\u03c4\u03bf\u1fe6\u03c4\u03bf<\/span> \u03bc\u1f72\u03bd<\/span> \u03b1\u1f50\u03c4\u1ff7<\/span> \u03ba\u03b1\u03ba\u1f78\u03bd<\/span> \u1f15\u03bd<\/span>, <\/span>\u03ba\u1f86\u03b8\u1fbd<\/span> \u1f15\u03c4\u03b5\u03c1\u03bf\u03bd<\/span> \u03bd\u03c5\u03ba\u03c4\u03b5\u03c1\u03b9\u03bd\u1f78\u03bd<\/span> \u03b3\u03ad\u03bd\u03bf\u03b9\u03c4\u03bf<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u1f20\u03c0\u03b9\u03b1\u03bb\u1ff6\u03bd<\/span> \u03b3\u1f70\u03c1<\/span> \u03bf\u1f34\u03ba\u03b1\u03b4\u1fbd<\/span> \u1f10\u03be<\/span> \u1f31\u03c0\u03c0\u03b1\u03c3\u03af\u03b1\u03c2<\/span> \u03b2\u03b1\u03b4\u03af\u03b6\u03c9\u03bd<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u03b5\u1f36\u03c4\u03b1<\/span> \u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u03ac\u03be\u03b5\u03b9\u03ad<\/span> \u03c4\u03b9\u03c2<\/span> \u03b1\u1f50\u03c4\u03bf\u1fe6<\/span> \u03bc\u03b5\u03b8\u03cd\u03c9\u03bd<\/span> \u03c4\u1fc6\u03c2<\/span> \u03ba\u03b5\u03c6\u03b1\u03bb\u1fc6\u03c2<\/span> \u1f48\u03c1\u03ad\u03c3\u03c4\u03b7\u03c2<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u03bc\u03b1\u03b9\u03bd\u03cc\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03c2<\/span>: <\/span>\u1f41<\/span> \u03b4\u1f72<\/span> \u03bb\u03af\u03b8\u03bf\u03bd<\/span> \u03b2\u03b1\u03bb\u03b5\u1fd6\u03bd<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u03b2\u03bf\u03c5\u03bb\u03cc\u03bc\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03c2<\/span> \u1f10<\/span>\u03bd<\/span> \u03c3\u03ba\u03cc\u03c4\u1ff3<\/span> \u03bb\u03ac\u03b2\u03bf\u03b9<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u03c4\u1fc7<\/span> \u03c7\u03b5\u03b9\u03c1\u1f76<\/span> \u03c0\u03ad\u03bb\u03b5\u03b8\u03bf\u03bd<\/span> \u1f00\u03c1\u03c4\u03af\u03c9\u03c2<\/span> \u03ba\u03b5\u03c7\u03b5\u03c3\u03bc\u03ad\u03bd\u03bf\u03bd<\/span>:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u1f10\u03c0\u1fb4\u03be\u03b5\u03b9\u03b5\u03bd<\/span> \u03b4\u1fbd<\/span> \u1f14\u03c7\u03c9\u03bd<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u03c4<\/span>\u1f78\u03bd<\/span> \u03bc\u03ac\u03c1\u03bc\u03b1\u03c1\u03bf\u03bd<\/span>, <\/span>\u03ba\u1f04\u03c0\u03b5\u03b9\u03b8\u1fbd<\/span> \u1f01\u03bc\u03b1\u03c1\u03c4\u1f7c\u03bd<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u03b2\u03ac\u03bb\u03bf\u03b9<\/span> \u039a\u03c1\u03b1\u03c4\u1fd6\u03bd\u03bf\u03bd<\/span>.\u201d (Aristophanes, The<\/em> <\/span>Akharnians<\/span><\/i>, ll.1164-1174)<\/span><\/p>\n

As for the English translation,<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s one curse for him; and here\u2019s another, to happen to him in the night.<\/span><\/p>\n

As he walks home shivering after galloping his horse,<\/span><\/p>\n

I hope some drunkard\u2014 mad Orestes!<\/span> \u2014<\/span><\/p>\n

knocks him on the head; and when he wants to grab a stone<\/span><\/p>\n

I hope in the darkness he grabs in his hand a fresh-shat turd,<\/span><\/p>\n

and holding that glittering missile\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

let him charge at his foe, then miss him<\/span><\/p>\n

and hit Cratinus!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Translation from: https:\/\/www.loebclassics.com\/view\/aristophanes-acharnians\/1998\/pb_LCL178.209.xml<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"The train station and Cobh Heritage Center, Co. Cork<\/p>\n

As a note, Orestes was the son of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, a figure from Euripides\u2019s plays, the Oresteia<\/em> trilogy, and serves as a metaphor for madness and aggression, while Cratinus was the name of a rival of Aristophanes. In looking at different translations of this passage, I was struck by the variety of nuances I was able to find. I chose this translation because it stuck to the original Greek as closely as possible, instead of aiming for the gist of the meaning and getting lost in euphemisms. The meaning is clear as there’s no double entendre or beating around the bush, and Aristophanes is crass. Instead of using curse words, the chorus members are trying to curse Lamachus. The one curse for him that proceeds this one is that sometime when he’s very hungry and just about to take a bite of his food that a dog will come and steal it from him.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"A regatta in Kinsale, Co. Cork<\/p>\n

All three of these examples of slang or colloquialisms come from Aristophanes\u2019s plays and to understand how or why they\u2019re used, I will explain a bit about Greek drama. Comedy is the surviving source for some of the closest looks into the daily life of 5th century BC Athenians. The theater was a time and place where all people, regardless of social class, age, gender, and so forth, let loose and social bearings became unmoored. The comic poets took everyday situations, archetypes of society, and exaggerated them, or turned them on their head. Aristophanes in particular was known for his accuracy in the portrayal of Athenian life, and was known as the Father of Comedy. Personally, I liked reading his works because translating dialogue went much faster than prose. His works were meant as pleasure for the people, not to impress them with displays of oratory prowess. These comedies were written for the popular crowd, Athenians of every age and status, and specifically written to engage with the audience, with the chorus of a play often breaking the fourth wall to directly address the crowd. Greek comedy explored taboo subjects, political and religious tensions, and used language that wasn\u2019t allowed in everyday interactions or other surviving works of Ancient Greek, such as oratorical speeches or epic poetry. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Unfortunately, I wasn\u2019t able to find any native speakers of Ancient Greek to discuss slang words, but in our readings we\u2019ve examined some works by Aristophanes who is known for his use of more colloquial language. So when I was talking to my professor about our sources of slang from Ancient Greece, she directed me … Continue reading Prompt 1: Slang Words<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3391,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"aside","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[125],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1321","post","type-post","status-publish","format-aside","hentry","category-ireland","post_format-post-format-aside"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1321","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3391"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1321"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1321\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1404,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1321\/revisions\/1404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1321"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1321"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/sla2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1321"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}