Aristotle · Complete work
Chapter 16
Chapter 16 of 26. Read it here for reference, or continue through the entire work without leaving the reader.
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ἀναγνώρισις δὲ τί μέν ἐστιν, εἴρηται πρότερον· εἴδη[Bekker 1454b line 20]δὲ ἀναγνωρίσεως, πρώτη μὲν ἡ ἀτεχνοτάτη καὶ ᾗ πλείστῃ χρῶνται δι’ ἀπορίαν, ἡ διὰ τῶν σημείων.τούτων δὲ τὰ μὲν σύμφυτα, οἷον λόγχην ἣν φοροῦσι Γηγενεῖςἢ ἀστέρας οἵους ἐν τῷ Θυέστῃ Καρκίνος, τὰ δὲ ἐπίκτητα, καὶ τούτων τὰ μὲν ἐν τῷ σώματι, οἷον οὐλαί, τὰ δὲ ἐκτός, οἷον τὰ[Bekker 1454b line 25]περιδέραια καὶ οἷον ἐν τῇ Τυροῖ διὰ τῆς σκάφης.ἔστιν δὲ καὶ τούτοις χρῆσθαι ἢ βέλτιον ἢ χεῖρον, οἷον Ὀδυσσεὺς διὰ τῆς οὐλῆς ἄλλως ἀνεγνωρίσθη ὑπὸ τῆς τροφοῦ καὶ ἄλλως ὑπὸ τῶν συβοτῶν·εἰσὶ γὰρ αἱ μὲν πίστεως ἕνεκα ἀτεχνότεραι, καὶ αἱ τοιαῦται πᾶσαι, αἱ δὲ ἐκ περιπετείας, ὥσπερ[Bekker 1454b line 30]ἡ ἐν τοῖς Νίπτροις, βελτίους.δεύτεραι δὲ αἱ πεποιημέναι ὑπὸ τοῦ ποιητοῦ, διὸ ἄτεχνοι. οἷον Ὀρέστης ἐν τῇ Ἰφιγενείᾳ ἀνεγνώρισεν ὅτι Ὀρέστης· ἐκείνη μὲν γὰρ διὰ τῆς ἐπιστολῆς, ἐκεῖνος δὲ αὐτὸς λέγει ἃ βούλεται ὁ ποιητὴς ἀλλ’[Bekker 1454b line 35]οὐχ ὁ μῦθος·διὸ ἐγγύς τι τῆς εἰρημένης ἁμαρτίας ἐστίν, ἐξῆν γὰρ ἂν ἔνια καὶ ἐνεγκεῖν. καὶ ἐν τῷ Σοφοκλέους Τηρεῖ ἡ τῆς κερκίδος φωνή.ἡ τρίτη διὰ μνήμης, τῷ αἰσθέσθαι[Bekker 1455a][Bekker 1455a line 1]τι ἰδόντα, ὥσπερ ἡ ἐν Κυπρίοις τοῖς Δικαιογένους, ἰδὼν γὰρ τὴν γραφὴν ἔκλαυσεν, καὶ ἡ ἐν Ἀλκίνου ἀπολόγῳ, ἀκούων γὰρ τοῦ κιθαριστοῦ καὶ μνησθεὶς ἐδάκρυσεν, ὅθεν ἀνεγνωρίσθησαν.τετάρτη δὲ ἡ ἐκ συλλογισμοῦ, οἷον ἐν Χοηφόροις, ὅτι[Bekker 1455a line 5]ὅμοιός τις ἐλήλυθεν, ὅμοιος δὲ οὐθεὶς ἀλλ’ ἢ Ὀρέστης, οὗτος ἄρα ἐλήλυθεν. καὶ ἡ Πολυίδου τοῦ σοφιστοῦ περὶ τῆς Ἰφιγενείας· εἰκὸς γὰρ ἔφη τὸν Ὀρέστην συλλογίσασθαι ὅτι ἥ τ’ ἀδελφὴ ἐτύθη καὶ αὐτῷ συμβαίνει θύεσθαι. καὶ ἐν τῷ Θεοδέκτου Τυδεῖ, ὅτι ἐλθὼν ὡς εὑρήσων τὸν υἱὸν αὐτὸς[Bekker 1455a line 10]ἀπόλλυται. καὶ ἡ ἐν τοῖς Φινείδαις· ἰδοῦσαι γὰρ τὸν τόπον συνελογίσαντο τὴν εἱμαρμένην ὅτι ἐν τούτῳ εἵμαρτο ἀποθανεῖν αὐταῖς, καὶ γὰρ ἐξετέθησαν ἐνταῦθα.ἔστιν δέ τις καὶ συνθετὴ ἐκ παραλογισμοῦ τοῦ θεάτρου, οἷον ἐν τῷ Ὀδυσσεῖ τῷ[Bekker 1455a line 14]ψευδαγγέλῳ· τὸ μὲν γὰρ τὸ τόξον ἐντείνειν, ἄλλον δὲ[Bekker 1455a line 14a]μηδένα, πεποιημένον ὑπὸ τοῦ ποιητοῦ καὶ ὑπόθεσις,[Bekker 1455a line 14b]καὶ εἴ γε τὸ τόξον ἔφη γνώσεσθαι ὃ οὐχ[Bekker 1455a line 15]ἑωράκει· τὸ δὲ ὡς δι’ ἐκείνου ἀναγνωριοῦντος διὰ τούτου ποιῆσαι παραλογισμός.πασῶν δὲ βελτίστη ἀναγνώρισις ἡ ἐξ αὐτῶν τῶν πραγμάτων, τῆς ἐκπλήξεως γιγνομένης δι’ εἰκότων, οἷον ἐν τῷ Σοφοκλέους Οἰδίποδι καὶ τῇ Ἰφιγενείᾳ· εἰκὸς γὰρ βούλεσθαι ἐπιθεῖναι γράμματα. αἱ γὰρ τοιαῦται[Bekker 1455a line 20]μόναι ἄνευ τῶν πεποιημένων σημείων καὶ περιδεραίων.δεύτεραι δὲ αἱ ἐκ συλλογισμοῦ.
Mouseia
Mouseia’s complete machine-assisted Musean translation, made directly from all 26 Ancient Greek chapters with all 279 Bekker markers preserved for fidelity, technical precision, clarity, and structure.
What recognition is has been stated earlier. As for the kinds[Bekker 1454b line 20]of recognition, the first is the least artistic and the one poets use most often from lack of invention: recognition through signs.Some of these are congenital, such as the lance-mark borne by the Earthborn,or stars like those Carcinus uses in Thyestes; others are acquired, and of these some are on the body, such as scars, while others are external, such as[Bekker 1454b line 25]necklaces and, in Tyro, the recognition by means of the cradle.These signs too may be used either better or worse. Odysseus, for example, was recognized by his scar in one way by his nurse and in another by the swineherds;for recognitions introduced merely to establish identity are less artistic, as are all others of that kind, while those arising from a reversal, as[Bekker 1454b line 30]in the Washing, are better.Second are recognitions contrived by the poet, and therefore inartistic. For example, in Iphigenia Orestes reveals that he is Orestes: she is recognized through the letter, but he himself says what the poet wishes him to say rather than what[Bekker 1454b line 35]the plot requires.This therefore comes close to the error just mentioned, since he could have brought some tokens with him. Another example is the voice of the shuttle in Sophocles’ Tereus.The third kind is recognition through memory, when the sight[Bekker 1455a][Bekker 1455a line 1]of something awakens awareness, as in Dicaeogenes’ Cyprians, where the man wept upon seeing the painting; and in the tale told to Alcinous, where Odysseus, hearing the lyre-player and remembering, shed tears, and thus they were recognized.The fourth kind is recognition through inference, as in the Libation Bearers:[Bekker 1455a line 5]someone resembling me has arrived; no one resembles me except Orestes; therefore Orestes has arrived. There is also the recognition concerning Iphigenia proposed by Polyidus the sophist; for he said it was natural that Orestes should infer that, since his sister had been sacrificed, it was now his own fate to be sacrificed. And in Theodectes’ Tydeus, the inference is that, having come in hopes of finding his son, he himself[Bekker 1455a line 10]perishes. Another example occurs in the Daughters of Phineus: when they saw the place, they inferred their fate, that they were destined to die there, for there too they had been exposed as infants.There is also a composite recognition arising from false inference on the audience’s part, as in Odysseus the[Bekker 1455a line 14]False Messenger. For the ability to string the bow, when no one else[Bekker 1455a line 14a]could, is a contrivance and an assumption made by the poet,[Bekker 1455a line 14b]even if Odysseus said he would recognize the bow, which he had not[Bekker 1455a line 15]seen; but to make the recognition occur through this, on the supposition that he would be recognized by that means, is false inference.The best recognition of all is that which arises from the events themselves, when the startling disclosure comes about through probable incidents, as in Sophocles’ Oedipus and in Iphigenia; for it is probable that she would wish to entrust a letter. Such recognitions[Bekker 1455a line 20]alone dispense with contrived signs and necklaces.Second best are those that arise from inference.
Mouseia
Mouseia’s complete Plain English edition, made independently and directly from all 26 Ancient Greek chapters with all 279 Bekker markers preserved.
What recognition is has been stated earlier. As for the kinds[Bekker 1454b line 20]of recognition, the first is the least artistic and the one poets use most often through lack of resources: recognition by signs.Some of these signs are congenital, such as the spearhead that the Earthborn bearor stars like those Carcinus uses in Thyestes; others are acquired, and of these some are on the body, such as scars, while others are external, such as[Bekker 1454b line 25]necklaces and, in Tyro, the recognition by means of the little boat.These signs too can be used either better or worse. Odysseus, for example, is recognized by his scar in one way by his nurse and in another by the swineherds.Recognitions introduced merely to establish identity are less artistic, as are all recognitions of this kind; but those that arise from a reversal, such as[Bekker 1454b line 30]the recognition in The Washing, are better.The second kind consists of recognitions invented by the poet, and for that reason they are inartistic. For example, in Iphigenia Orestes reveals that he is Orestes: she is recognized through the letter, while he himself says what the poet, rather than[Bekker 1454b line 35]the plot, wants him to say.This is therefore close to the error just mentioned, since he could have brought some tokens as well. Another example is the voice of the shuttle in Sophocles’ Tereus.The third kind is recognition through memory, when someone perceives[Bekker 1455a][Bekker 1455a line 1]something upon seeing it, as in Dicaeogenes’ Cyprians, where the man wept when he saw the painting, and in Odysseus’s narrative to Alcinous, where he shed tears when he heard the lyre player and remembered; and by these reactions they were recognized.The fourth kind is recognition by inference, as in The Libation Bearers:[Bekker 1455a line 5]“Someone resembling me has arrived; no one resembles me except Orestes; therefore Orestes has arrived.” Another is the recognition concerning Iphigenia proposed by the sophist Polyidus, for he said that it was probable that Orestes would infer that his sister had been sacrificed and that it was now happening to him to be sacrificed as well. Another occurs in Theodectes’ Tydeus: having come in the belief that he would find his son, he himself[Bekker 1455a line 10]perishes. Another is the recognition in The Daughters of Phineus: when they saw the place, they inferred their fate, namely that they were destined to die there, since they had also been exposed there as infants.There is also a kind compounded from the audience’s false inference, as in Odysseus the[Bekker 1455a line 14]False Messenger. The fact that he could string the bow while no one else[Bekker 1455a line 14a]could was invented by the poet and made a premise,[Bekker 1455a line 14b]even if he said that he would recognize the bow, which he had not[Bekker 1455a line 15]seen; but to arrange matters as though he would be recognized by that means is a false inference.The best recognition of all is the one that arises from the events themselves, when the astonishment comes about through probable events, as in Sophocles’ Oedipus and in Iphigenia, for it is probable that she would want to entrust a letter. Such recognitions[Bekker 1455a line 20]alone occur without invented signs and necklaces.Second best are recognitions by inference.