Προσπάλτιοι (fr. 263)

355

Text This is the punctuation of the line proposed by Goossens and adopted
by Kassel-Austin (seemingly with misgivings, given the mention of Austin’s
conjecture ή—i. e. TI analyzed as a misread H—in the apparatus). Meineke and
Kock opted for a single question mark at the end of the line, taking τί in the
sense “Why?”.
Priscian apparently read infinitive κατακροάσθαι, an aural error for
κατακροάσθε (a correction by Ή. C.”—probably Henry Cotton, a sub-librarian
at the Bodleian at the time—printed in the 1820 Oxford revision of Johannes
Scapula’s 1580 Lexicon Graecolatinum novum).
Interpretation Addressed to a group (hence plural κατακροάσθε), presum-
ably by a dithyrambic poet (see below). The question is more open than it
would have been with a form of ού (“Did you listen?”, not “Didn’t you listen?”,
which would imply that the addressees could reasonably be expected to have
done so).
κατακροάσθε The verb (modelled on καθοράω, “observe”) is attested
nowhere else before the Roman period and thus suggests an interest in linguis-
tic innovation (cf. below on μουσοδονήματα). The prefix is intensifying (LSJ
s.v. κατά E.V), “listen closely, intently”. For the simplex, see fr. 102.7 with n.
For τί; alone, accompanied by no particle or verb, as an expression of
puzzlement introducing an incredulous question (~ “What in the world?”; cf.
colloquial English “What?”, as in “What? Are you crazy?”), cf. Ar. Ach. 750;
Av. 1569, 1604, 1641. τί δ’; is used in a similar way at Ar. Ra. 73; Ec. 135, 525,
76 2,186 as is τί δέ; at Ar. Nu. 481; Ra. 798; Pl. 1150, at all which points simple
τί; is possible and ought perhaps to be printed (and see frr. 99.103 with n.;
234 with n.).
μουσοδονήματα is attested nowhere else and appears to be a parody of
high-style dithyrambic coinages, like Aristophanes’ ύφαντοδόνητος (Av. 942;
lyric, a dithyrambic poet modifying Pindar), άεροδόνητος (Av. 1385; the dith-
yrambic poet Cinesias is speaking), πτεροδόνητος (Av. 1390; the dithyrambic
poet Cinesias is speaking) and οίστροδόνητος (Ar. Th. 324; lyric; also attested
at A. Supp. 573); cf. A. Supp. 16 οίστρόδονος; [A.] PR 788 πολύδονος; Sarati
1996. 117. For δονέω (properly “shake”; poetic vocabulary) used of the produc-
tion of music, cf. Ar. Av. 1183 with Dunbar 1995 ad loc.·, Pi. P. 10.39; N. 7.81.

186

τί δ’; at Ar. Av. 23 (thus Wilson 2007) is merely a bad conjecture by Dindorf.