Antiphanes, Antigone, and The Meaning of Life

Antiphanes was one of the great playwrights of Middle Comedy. He really deserves an edition & commentary to go with Hunter's Eubulus (1983) and Arnott's Alexis (1996). The Suda gives us a classic biographical trope, saying that he was the son of slaves... yadda yadda... good for him if true... The Suda also tells us that he won 13 victories, 8 apparently at the Lenaia (from the victor's list inscriptions) - the other 5 presumably at the City Dionysia. He produced plays from 385 BCE onwards (Anon. De. Com). Based on the number of titles we have (approx. 140) he must have had a fairly long and productive career. 

One of my favourite fragments of Antiphanes (fr. 228 KA, play unknown) is preserved in the epitome of Athenaeus' Deipnosophistae, how lucky we are! It also crops up in Eustathius' commentary on the Odyssey - surprise, surprise. We're in Book 1 and amongst the characteristic chaos of miscellany we get a few thoughts on drinking, specifically in the context of the Dogstar's reputed tendency to dry things out - including people's organs! The solution, of course, is to keep one's innards moist with wine, which brings us to a great piece of advice from Antiphanes.

Here's the text from Kaibel's edition of the Deipnosophistae. Neither Olson's Loeb Bk. 1 p. 127 nor the Kassel-Austin fragment differ from it too significantly. I have, with Olson, deleted the interpolated line which Kaibel and Kassel-Austin print in brackets.

So those that drink go with the flow and live a long and beautiful life. Those that don't, sensible sticks in the mud, are destroyed by the current. What wonderful imagery, where did Antiphanes get it? 

Sophocle's Antigone, where else? Creon's son Haemon, Antigone's betrothed, is the font of this piece of wisdom. Haemon is desperate to persuade the despicable Creon (complaints to oudenmoimelei@nugastheatri.com) to forgive Antigone and spare her from execution. The example of the unbending tree which is uprooted is followed by a nice ship of state simile. Haemon's point is that Creon must be ready to make concessions when it is advantageous to everyone. To resist means destruction. I still remember reading Haemon's speech very early in the morning (in a haze of Drum) before my Greek tragedy class during my undergrad - those were the days! Here's the original version then with a plain translation (compare Jebb's):

The irony, or better the profundity of Haemon's advice is that it could also be applied to Antigone. What happens when one Sophoclean hero comes up against another? Unstoppable forces and immovable objects. Neither yield and both are destroyed... 

So drink! But not like a Sophoclean hero who doesn't know when to stop. Admit it when you're wrong, but don't always go with the flow...