1. 15. Klopffechter im Cothurne, prize-fighters 'in buskins,' i.e. on the stage, in the drama; the ' buskin ' was the traditional weai of Greek tragedy, as the ' sock ' of Greek Comedy.
1. 17. der sogenannten Senecaschen Tragödien, ' of the tragedies ascribed to Seneca; ' ' sogenannt,' so called, because there is doubt con- cerning the authorship of these tragedies. They were Latin imitations of second-rate Greek Originals, more fitted for declamation than the actual stage, but unfortunately became the model of the French classical drama.
234 NOTES.
1. 21. lernten alle Natur verkennen, ' learned to mistake all that was natural,' i. e. acquired a taste for what was unnatural.
1. 2 2. allenfalls, ' at the utmost.' ein Ktesias. There has been some doubt as to the person alluded to in this passage. Blümner's hypothesis seeins probable, \nz. that Lessing meant to write Kte?ilau3 or Ktesilas. This is the name of a sculptor mentioned by Pliny (xxxiv. 77), one of whose statues represented a dying warrior.
1. 25. musste auf Bombast und Rodomontaden verfallen, ' could not fail to degenerate into bombast and rodomontade.' ' Der Bombast ' is the English ' bombast,' inflated speech, in German ' ^Yortschwall ' or ' Schwulst der Rede; ' it signifies originally a material consisting of silk and colton (in medieval Latin bombacinium, from bombax, cotton). ' Die Rodomontade ' is nsed for the German ' Gross-sprecherei,' in English ' bragging.' The word is derived from Rodomonte, the name of a gigantic Moorish hero in Ariosto's Orlando Furioso (xlvi. 106,. He boastingly challenges all the paladins of Charlemagne to fight with him at the same time.
1. 28. Die Klagen sind eines Menschen — a Latin construction {hominis sunt); we expect in German 'sind diejenigen eines Men- schen.'
P. 40, 1. 2. er hat auch allem andern weislich t^orgebauet, was man sonst aus der Anmerkung des Engländers wider ihn erin- nern könnte. ' Vorbauen,' c. dat. to raise a wall in anticipation of an attack; i. e. to anticipate, to forestall. Translate: ' but has, at the same time, wisely forestalled every objection one could raise against him from the remarks of the Englishman.' ' Erinnern,' like Latin ' memorare,' in sense of ' make mention of.'
1. 8. Wie sollen sich also diejenigen verhalten; 'sich verhalten,' se habere; ' die Sache verhält sich so,' 7es ita se habet. Cp. ' Ich ver- halte mich ruhig,' I keep quiet. Translate: ' How thcn are those to demean themsclves? ' 1. IG. Sollen sie sich...stellen? 'arethey to pretend?' Cp. ' Er stellt sich beleidigt,' he pretends to be offended.
1. 15. Dadurch nämlich, dass die Nebenpersonen ihr eigenes Interesse haben, (He has done so) ' by imparling to the bystanders an interest of their own.'
1. 16. dass der Eindruck, — 'dadurch' is understood before 'dass,' — ' by contriving that the impression,' etc.
1. 23. Neoptolemus had first abetted Odyssens in his treacherons design to rob Philoctetes of his bow under the pretence of bringing him back to his country; but his noble heart is deeply moved at the sight of the misery of Philoctetes, and his remorse incrcases when the latter places the bow in his band without suspicion. This festeres him to his better nalure.
1. 27. Zufall; here 'access of bis malady,' ' fits.' kann dieser Zufall; conditional sentencc.
1. 29. in sich zu gehen, to enter into themselves; i. e. ' to look into their own hearts.'
P. 41, 1. I. den TsTeoptolem bei...erhalten haben, 'would have maintained X. in bis dissinuilation ' = had P. been master of bini- self, X. would have continued bis deccit.
1. 3. damit seinen künftigen Reisegeföhrten das Verspre- chen, ihn mit sich zu nehmen, nicht zu bald gereue, ' lest bis future travelling companions should too soon repent the promise to carry bim away witb tbem.'
1. 7. diese Umkehr, tbis ' conversion,' or return of N. to bis better seif.
1. 13. Affect, See on p. 24; bere another 'emotion' in tbe by- standers.
I. 14. In tbe play called the ' Tracbinian women,' Deianeira, Her- cules' wife, sends bim a robe given ber by Nessus, a centaur wbom Hercules bad killed. Sbe intends it to act as a pbiltre, to bring back to her ber husband's love. But tbe dead centaur's blood acts as a violent poison, putting tbe wearer to borrible torture. Wben Hercules leams that tbe robe was that of the dead Xessus, he recognises tbe fulfilment of tbe Oracle wbicb told bim be should die by tbe band of no living man. For X^essus (wvrä fifKretvev Oavwv, ' thougb dead, slew me living.'
1. 17. den Lichas, bis friend and messenger, the innocent bearer of the poisoned garment.
1. 24. Schattirung, ' colouring,* tbe usnal word for 'sbade,' 'tinge,' as ' eine dunklere Schattirung,' ' a darker sbade.' Frencb nuance.
P. 42, 1. I. dass sein sterblicher Theil über den unsterblichen so viel vermocht habe; — ' vermögen' witb ' über,' to prevail over; — ' that bis mortal nature prevailed so mucb over bis immortal.'
1. 3. "Wir Neuem glauben keine Halbgötter, 'We modern people do not believe in tbe existence of demigods.' We should expect 'glauben an keine Halbgötter.' Thus tbe Greeks said i'o;u<,'«(j' Ö€üus, and Milton, S. A. 1. 595 ' Unless there be wbo tbink not God at all.'
1. 4. soll empfinden und handeln, 'is expected to feel and to act.'
1. 7. bis zur Illusion bringen könne, ' can bring so home to us as to create an illusion.'
1. 10. ein Garrick; tbe fame of tbe great Englisb actor (i 716-1779) spread rapidly over Germany, so that bis name is used bere as meaning tiie higbest perfection of bis art.
235 NOTES.
1. 12. die Skaevopoeie, the Greek word is ffKtvoirotfa, which means the making of the masks, and then the 'mechanic apparatus' of the stage in general.
1. 13. in einer VoUkomnienlieit, 'venture to think that they rcached a peifection,' etc.
V.
P. 43, 1. 6. Bartholomäus Marliani, an Italian antiquary of the sixteenth Century.
1. 10. von ohngefahr, — üsually 'von ungefähr,' — ' accidentally.' 1. II. sollten gefallen sein, 'auf etwas fallen,' or, 'verfallen,' to light upon anything. die sich nichts vs^eniger, als von selbst dar- bieten, ' which do not by any means naturally suggest themselves.' See 1. 1 2. wenn es auf die Ehre der Erfindung und des ersten Ge- dankens ankomme, 'if the question was raised as to the honour of the invention and of the first idea.'
P. 44, 1. 3. als der Künstler den Dichter nachgeahmt; Herder thought that there was a distinction in meaning between ' nachahmen ' with the acc. and the dat., corresponding to the two kinds of Imitation distinguished by Lessing in the beginning of chap. vii. He says ' Eintn nachahmen heisst, den Gegenstand, das Werk des andern nachmachen; einem nachahmen aber, die Art und Weise von dem Andern entlehnen, diesen oder einen ähnlichen Gegenstand zu behandeln.' But Lessing does not observe this distinction, using accus, and dat. without difference of meaning.
1. 5. Macrobius, a Latin writer of the fifth Century A. D. He wrote a book entitled Saturnalia; a collection of discussions on the Saturnalia, the Roman deities, and the poetry of Virgil. Pisander, a Greek poet of the seventh Century B. c, who ^vrote an Epic poem called 'YLpaKKua.
1. 7. schulkundig = ' a thing that every school-boy knew.* 1. II. "Wäre nun also auch, etc. — a concessive sentence; 'thus then, even if,' etc.
1. 12. so brauchten, 'had no need to draw their guidance.' 1. 14. von depends upon ' Muthmassung,' ' the conjecture of, i. e. asto the age in which they lived' — that the aitists must have been later than Virgil.
1. 17. Ausflucht, 'means of escape'; from 'fliehen.' P. 45, 1. 3. muss die griechische Tradition völlig nach seinem Gutdünken umgeschmolzen haben, ' must have recast the Greek tradition entirely according to his pleasurc' 1. 7. so können sie nicht wohl anders als nach seiner Zeit gelebt haben, ' it is natural to suppose that they lived after him.'
1. 9. Quintus Calaber, or Quintus Smyrnaeus, lived probably at the end of the fourth Century a.D. He wrote a poem Titpi tu/v napaKftnofii- vcüv 'Oß-qpci), i.e. on things omittcd by Homer; it treated of the events of the Trojan war from the death of Hector to the retum of the Greeks.
1. II. welchen sich dieser dadurch zuziehet, 'which he draws lipon himself by so doing.' äussert sich bei ihm ganz anders, ' finds in his narrative very different expression.'
1. 15. Erst, da er blind noch nicht aufhört, ' Then only when he, though blind, does not cease,' etc. 'Erst,' originally, first; then, for the first time; therefore, ' not before,' ' only.'
1. 21. Dem Laokoon selbst geschieht von ihnen nichts, ' Lao- coon himself suffers no injury from them.'
1. 24. des Lykophron; Lessing alludes to a passage from the Alexandra of Lycophron, a long iambic monologue, in which Cassandra prophesies the fall of Troy. Lycophron was a grammarian and poet who lived at Alexandria about 270 b.c.
1. 27. "War er aber, dieser Umstand, bei den Griechen allge- mein angenommen, ' but if this incident had been generally adopted among the Greeks'; 'er' anticipates 'dieser Umstand.'
1. 29. und schwerlich wurde es sich getroffen haben, ' and it would scarcely have chanced.' ' Es trifft sich,' it happens, by accident.
P. 46, 1. 4. nach ihm zu arbeiten, ' to take his desciiption as their model.' Auf diesem Punkte, meine ich, müsste man bestshen, 'on this point, methinks, one would have to insist.' Cp. ' Er besteht auf seiner Fordenmg,' he insists upon his demand; 'Er bestand darauf, dass ich das Geschenk annahm,' he insisted upon my accepting the present. 'Aus etwas bestehen,' to consist of.
Note I. welches Eumolp bei dem Petron auslegt, 'which Eu- molpus describes in Petronius.' Titus Petronius Arbiter, at first a favourite, then a victini of Nero, by whom he was forced to commit suicide, in 67 A.D. He is the author of the Satirica, a novel partly in verse, partly in prose, in which he describes the manners of Rome under the first emperors. In this book Petronius introduces a poet, whom he calls Eumolpus, and who is made to describe famous pictures from a Gallery which existed at Naples. Virgil, Aeneid, lib. ii. 199-224 is thus translated by W. Morris: — ' But now another, greater hap, a very birth of fear, "Was thrust before us wretched ones, our sightless hearts to stir.
Laocoon, chosen out by lot for mighty Neptune's priest, XOTES.
Wonld sacrifice a mighty bull at altars of the feast; When lo, away from Tenedos, o'er quiet of the main (I tremble in the tale) we see huge coils of serpents twain Breasting the sea, and side by side swift making for the shore; Whose fronts amid the flood -were strained, and high tbeir cres3 upbore, Blood-red above the waves, the rest swept o'er the sea behind, And all the unmeasured backs of them coil upon coli they wind, While sends the sea great sounds of foam. And now the meads they gained, The burning eyes with flecks of blood and streaks of fire are stained, Their mouths with hisses all fulfilled are licked by flickerir.g tongne. Bloodless we flee the sight, but they fare steadfastly along Unto Laocoon; and first tach serpent round doth reach One little body of his sons, and knitting each to each, And winding round and round about the unhappy body gnaws: And then himself, as sword in hand anigh for help he draws, They seize and bind about in coils most huge, and presently Are folded twice about his midst, twice round his neck they tie Their scaly backs, and hang above with head and toppling mane. \Vhile he both striveth with his hands to rend their folds atwain, His fillets covered o'er with blood and venom black and feil. And starward sendeth forth a cry most horrible, The roaring of a wounded bull who flees the altar-hom. And shakelh from his crest away the axe uiihandy bome.'
'But other portents follow. Where the reef Of lofty Tenedos holds off the sea, Where swelling surges rise, and where the wave Leaps back divided. baffled by the calm. As, when the night is still, the sound of oars Is bome afar, whea squadrons press the deep, And 'neath its pinewood load the lashed sea gp"oans; \Ve tum to look: Serpents, a winding pair The billows bear to the rocks; their arching breasts Like tall prows cutting, dash aside the spray. Loud sound their lashing tails, above the sea Glitter their crests, and fire with lightning flash The main; the billows shudder as they hiss. We gazed in horror. Hallowed by their wreaths And rieh embioidered priestly robes stood there Laocoon's sons, twin pledges thcy of love; Whom sudden the quick-darting serpents wind In their huge coils; they raise their little hands Up to their heads; neither will save himself; Each to his brother pays that loving due; Even in death each for the other fears. See, now the father heaps his death on theirs, A helpless helper. On the serpents rush Glutted with death ere now, and drag him do\Tn. The priest a victim by his altars lies.'
H. Sp. Wilkinson.
H. Sp. Wilkinson.
P. 48, 1. 1. Ich empfinde sehr wohl, wie viel dieser Wahrschein- lichkeit zur historischeu Gewissheit mangelt, ' I feel aoutely how much this probability falls short of historical certainty-' 1. 4. dass man sie als eine Hypothese kann gelten lassen, ' that one can allow it to have currency; ' i. e. ' that one can admit it as a hypothesis.'
1. 5. nach welcher der Kritiker seine Betrachtungen anstellen darf, 'which the critic may use as a basis for his observations.'
1. 6. Bewiesen, hypothetical ' whether proved er no.'
P. 49, 1. 3. Vielleicht, dass, 'it may be that.'
1. 7. der von einer ungemein malerischen Phantasie zeiget: ' zeigen ' is frequently used, erroneously, for ' zeugen,' to give evidence. Tr.: 'which gives evidence of a highly artistic imagination.'
1. 9. Montfaucon will ihn bei dem Dichter nicht finden, ' Mont faucon declares that he does not find it in the poet.'
1. 21. Nach ihrer Grösse, ' owing to,' or 'considering their size.'
1. 25. verschlungen, * encircled; ' 'verschlingen' may mean to ' entangle ' or to ' devour.'
1. 27. lässt ihn sattsam empfinden, ' makes us sufficiently conscious of it,' as ' er lässt mich seine Ueberlegenheit empfinden.'
P. 50, 1. 2. des Donatus; Tiberius Claudius Donatus, a commen- tator on Virgil, of the fourth Century a. d.
1. 3. entwischt, ' escaped the notice of.' in deren verständiges Auge alles, was ihnen vortheilhaft werden kann, so schnell und deutlich einleuchtet; an uncommon construction of ' einleuchten.' This verb gcnerally means ' to be evident to,' with dative of person. See below, p. 58, 1. 5. The passage may be translated: ' upon whose penetrating sight everything that can become usefui to them flashes with such rapidity and clearness.'
1. 20. This passage will at once become piain, if we arrange it in the foUowing way: ' In Ansehung der Verstrickung der Schlangen (' in regard to the coiling convolutions of the serpents ') fanden die Künstler es 240 NOTES.
zuträglich ('expedient'), nichts weiter von dem Dichter zu entlehnen als diese Freiheit der Arme.'
P. 51, 1. 6. das Gift.., the poison goes straight for the face, mean- ing that the serpents endeavour to fix their poisonous fangs there; in the marble they bite the body.
1. 18. würde vmter Pressungen und Aufschwellnngen ersehie- nen sein, 'would have been seen amidst compressions and dis- tei.tions.' After worden understand wären, ' would have been pro- düced.'
1. 22. die pyramidalisclie Zuspitzung, *the tennination of the gronp in a pyramid or apex.' (This appearance would not be so striking if Laokoon's right arm were touching his head, as probably in the original.')
1. 23. und die aus dieser "Wulst...gemacht, * and the pointed heads of the snakes projecting from this swoUen mass into the air would have produced such a sudden falling off in proportion; ' i. e. the narrow heads would have been all out of proportion with the thick double folds below.
1. 28. sich, zu binden, ' to adhere to,' i.e. 'to foUow blindly.'
1. 5. unbeschadet, ' without damage,' ' detriment,' ' prejudice to,' more usually with the genitive, as ' seiner Ehre unbeschadet.'
1. 7. einer Art von Unbeweglichkeit, ' a kind of immobility, or immoveability, very favourable to the artistic Prolongation of the same posture.' He means that if the marble shows us a movement arrested in its progress, it is well that it should show us the cause of the arrest.
1. 15. als die andere, auf die sie alle fallen, 'as the other (diffcr- ence) which they have all remarked.'
1. 16. anzupreisen, ' to praise to US; ' ' anpreisen ' is usually said of a shopkeeper who cries up his wares.
1. 21. eine grosse Ungereimtheit, 'a great absurdity;' from 'der Reim,' the rhyme; ' sich reimen,' to rhyme (as neuter verb'; metaphori- cally, to be in harmony. ' Das reimt sich nicht, das ist ungereimt,' that is not in harmony with sense, it is absurd.
1. 24. ein Fehler wider das Uebliche, ' an error against the con- ventional.'
P. 53, 1. I. als in den Gewändern tadelhaft werden müssen, ' than to be forced to expose oneself to ccnsure on account of the drapery.'
1. 3. bei dem Einwtirfe, ' at this objection '; synonymous with ' der Einwand,' or, ' die Einwendung.' Cp. ' er hat immer etwas einzu- wenden,' or, ' Einwände zu machen,' he has always some objection to raise.
1. 14. und ist es ihnen gleich viel, ' is it the same to them," or, ' is it of no importance to them? ' 1. 18. Laokoon habe es bei dem Virgil, oder habe es nicht, ' whether I.aocoon has robes in Virgil or not.' sein Leiden ist ihr an jedem Theile seines Körpers einmal so sichtbar wie das andere; 'ihr' refers to 'Einbildungskraft,' ' for the Imagination'; ' einmal wie das andere ' instead of ' das eine Mal wie das andere Mal,' ' in the one case as in the other '; i. e. with or without garments.
P. 54, 1. 3. für sie, ' for the Imagination.'
1. 10. wird von dem giftigen Geifer durchnetzt und entheiliget, ' is soaked and dcsecrated with the poisonous foam.'
1. II. Nebenbegrjff, ' subordinate idea.'
1. 14. um ein grosses, ' by much.' For um, with comparisons and implied comparisons, see Eve, G. G. § 408.
1. 20. auf die völlige Entbehrung desselben führte; ' desselben ' refers to ' das Uebliche ' — ' led them to dispense altogetber with the conventional.'
VI.
P. 55, 1. 2. gereicht ihnen nicht zxir Verkleinerung, ' does not tend to lessen their merit.' Cp. ' Das gereicht mir zur Freude,' 'id mihi gaudio est.'
I. 5. ohne sich.. zu lassen, ' without allowlng themselves to be led astray by him.' Eve, G. G. § 486; compare below, p. 82, 1. 11.
1. 8. selbst zu denken, ' to exercise independent thought.'
1. 12. soll implies an hypothesis = ' let us suppose that,' etc.
1. 15. wüsste ich nicht, 'I could not say that,' etc. Thus 'nicht dass ich wüsste ' = ' not that I know.' The imperfect is like the English 'I could not say'='I do not know'; for the subjunctive compare the French ' je ne sache pas,' ' que je sache,' = ' as far as I know.'
1. 16. überschwenglich, ' supremely,' properly ' abundantly.'
P. 56, 1. 7. nicht brauchen können, ' could not have used.' See 1. 7. Der Satz leidet also seine Einschränkung, i. e. the axiom requires limitation = thcre are cxceptions to it.
1. 15. aus der Geistigkeit ihrer Bilder, ' the spirituality of its Images,' i. e. they are apprehended by the mind only.
1. 16. ohne dass eines das andere deckt oder schändet, ' without concealing or injuring each other.'
1. 17. es.. thun, i. e. get in one another's way. Die natürlichen Zeichen, ' natural signs ' or ' Symbols,' really represcnting, not con- ventionally standmg for, the things themselves.
R 242 NOTES.
1. 22. Ich will sagen, 'I mean,' or 'I will put it thus' — 'in other words.'
1. 17,. auf der Fläche, ' on the flat,' i. e. the painter's canvas.
1. 26. Ohnstreitig, obsolete for ' unstreitig,' ' undoubtedly.'
P. 57, 1. 3. das Widerspiel, syn. ' das Gegentheil,' ' the con- trary.'
1. 5. so kann ich mir von allen ihren Abweichungen Rede und Antwort geben, ' I can account for all their deviations.' We say coUoquially ' give chaptcr and verse for.'
1. 13. vor sich selbst, obsolete, instead of 'für sich selbst,' = independently.
Note I.
The Poem of Jacobus Sadoletus on the Statue of Laocoon.
' From heaped-up mound of earth and from the heart Of mighty ruins, lo! long time once more Has brought Laocoon home, who stood of old In princely palaces and graced thy halls, Imperial Titus. Wrought by skill divine (E'en leamed ancients saw no nobler work), The stalüe now from darkness saved retums To see the stronghold of Rome's second life. What shall begin and what shall end my lay? The hapless father and his children twain? The snakes of aspect dire in winding coils? The serpents' ire, their knotted tails, their bites, The anguish, real, though but marble, dies! The mind recoils and pity's seif appalled, Gazing on voiceless statues beats her breast. Two serpents flushed with rage gather in coils To one loose ring, and glide in winding orbs, And wrap three bodies in their twisted chain. Scarce can the eyes endure to look upoa The dreadful dcath, the cruel tragedy. One serpent darling at Laocoon's seif, Enwraps him all, above, below; then strikes AVith poisonous bitc his side; the body shrinks From such cmbrace. Behold the writhing limbs, The side that Starts recoiling from the wound. By keen pain goaded and the serpent's bite Laocoon groans, and struggling from his side To }>luck the cruel tceth, in agony His left hand grapples with the serpent's neck.
LAOKOON, VI. 243 The sinews tighten, and the gathered strength Of all his body strains his arm in vain; Poison o'ercomes him; wounded sore he groans. The other serpent now with sudden glide Returned, darts under him its shiny length, Kntwines his knees below and binds them fast. The knees press outward, and the leg compressed By tightening windings swells; tlie blood confined Chokes up the vitals and swells black the veins. His sons no less the same wild strength attacks, And strangles them with swift embrace and tears Their little limbs; e'en now the gory breast Of one whose dying voice his father calls Has been its pasture; round him wrap its coils And crush him in the mighty winding folds. The other boy, unhurt, unbitten yet, Uplifts his foot to unloose the serpent's tail; His father's anguish seen he Stands aghast, Transfixed with horror — his loud wailings stay, His falling teardrops stay — in double drcad.
Then ye, the makers of so great a work, Great workmen, still in Listing fame renowned (Although by better deeds a deathless name Is sought, although to soine 'twas given to leave A higher talent far to Coming glory).
'Tis noble still tö seize what chance is given For praise, and strive the highest peak to gain.
'Tis yours with living shapes to quicken stone, To give hard märble feeling tili it breathes.
We gaze Upon the passion, anger, pain, \Ve all but hear the groans, so great your skill, You famous Rhodes of old extolled. Long time The graces of your art lay low; again Roma sees tbem in a new day's kindly light, She honours them wiih many a looker on, And on the ancicnt work new charms are shcd.
Then better far by talent or by toil To increase the span of fate, than still increase Or pride or wealth or cmpty luxury.' — H. Sp. Wilkinson.
P. 59, 1. 2. dass er sich...errathen zu lassen; ' that he would hardly havc been content merely to suggest, as it were (to leave to mere conjecture), the entwining of all three bodies in one knot.'
1. 7- vorstechen, ' to become conspicuous.'
244 Ä'OTES.
1. 10. würde ihr (i. e. der Verstrickung) in dem Schatten...gegeben haben, ' might possibly have laid n von- important stress on it in the shade in which the poet feit bound to leave it.'
1. 19. was hätte...unangedeutet zu lassen; translate: ' what could have so irresistibly compelled him to leave entirely unexpressed the idea of manly bearing and high-souled patience which arises out of tl^is combination of pain and beauty? ' 1. 27. Richardson, Jonathan, an English painter and critic, 1665- 1745, wrote a treatise on painting and sculpture, chiefly known by Rntgen's French translation (Amsterdam, 1728).
1. 31. nicht genug bestürmen konnte, 'could not sufficiently assail ' = tried all he could to awaken, or importune. mich befremdet nicht das Geschrei, ' it is not the shriek that surprises me.'
P. 60, 1. I. ■wann, as hypothetic conjunction; obsolete for ' wenn.'
1. 3. solle, ' was intended to.'
1. 9. aus einem malerischen Augenpunkte, ' from a painter's point of view.'
1. 1 2. neben einander, ' standing side by side,' opposed to auf einander below.
1. 13. übersehen, ' take in,' ' embrace,' in one glance.
1. 19. Es sei denn dass, ' Unless indeed,' properly ' only grant Enwraps him all, above, below; then strikes ^Vith poisonous bite his side; — The other serpent now with sudden glide Retumed, darts under him its shiny length; Entwines his knees below and binds them fast.' I. 7. i. e. Virgil would have made them more picturesque than Sadolet.
1. II. 'and presently They are folded twice about his midst, twice round his neck they tie Their scaly backs, and hang above with head and toppling mane.' 1. 14. dabei refers to Züge. ' It Tour imngination') must not tarry there.' sie muss sie nicht aurs reine zu bringen suchen, ' imagi- nation must not endeavour to make a clear, definite picture of them.' The metaphor is explained by the phrases ' in's Reine schreiben.' to copy out fair; 'aufs Reine kommen mit,' to settle with, to see clear; ' Ich bin mit mir im Reine,' I have made up my mind.
1. 17. Sobald sie hierauf verfallt, 'as soon as it attempts that.'
LAOKOON. VII. 245 1. 20. Wären aber auch schon, concessive sentence; ' but even,' ' granted that.'
1. 24. über die Noth (hinaus), more than is necessary.
1. 27. Nicht das Ganze, supply ' hat man nachahmen wollen.'
P. 62, 1. I. Ausser dem Historischen = apart from that which the Story furnished.
1. 14. der Vorsatz den Dichter nachzuahmen noch dabei bestehen kann, ' his intention to imitate the poet is still compatible with them.' ' Dabei ' and ' dazu ' both refer to ' Veränderungen.'
1. 18. die berührten Abweichungen = ' the dcviations mentioned above.'
1. 21. können weiter nichts damit wollen, 'wollen' here = ' mean'; translate: ' can only mean...' ' damit ' = by their assertion.
VII.
P. 63, 1. 8. das Schild; Lessing gives to this word always ihe neuter gender; the language of to-day distinguishes between ' der Schild,' pl. 'die Schilde,' the shield, and 'das Schild,' pl. 'die Scliilder,' the signboard.
1. 13. mit, used as an adverb, ' at the same time,' ' also.'
1. 14. ein Theil des Schildes; Lessing uses ' Theil' here as a neuter word. In the meaning of a j^art of a whole it is now used as a masculine; in the scnse of a share, a portion, it is neuter: e. g. ' Du hast dein Theil,' you have got your share: * Er hat das bessere Theil erwählt,' he has chosen the better lot.
P. 64, 1. 2. er arbeitet als Genie, ' lie works as an original genius,' i. e. his work is original, a werk of genius. sein Vorwurf...Natur sein, a concessive sentence: whether his subject is a work of other arts or a work of nature.
1. 10. so kann es nicht fehlen, dass, ' it cannot be wanting that ' — i. e. ' the necessary result is.'
I. 13. Beeiferung gewesen (supply wäre); ' Beeiferung,' 'emulation,' now commonly ' Wetteifer.'
II. 14-21. Diese TJebereinstimmungen...erweisen. The sense is: ' when we find contemporaneous artists and poets agreeing in things no longer existing, such points of agreement may lead 10 mutual illustrations.' In the ne.xt sentence ' suchen ' (with the clause ' dadurch dass...macht und...andichtet,' depending on it) is the subject of * heisst.* ' To try to deck out (' aufstutzen ' = ' ausschmücken,' trim up, make pretty, adorn) such illustrations by trcating accident as design, and ascribing to the poet in every triviality a rcference 24^ ÄVTES.
('Augenmerk ' = ' an eye to,' ' a glance at ') to this statue or that paint- ing, is to render him a very doubtful Service.'
1. 20. andichtet; cp. ' er dichtet mir diese Gesinnung an,' he falsely ascribes to me these sentiments.
1. 23. wenn Gott will, colloqiiial phrase like our 'goodness knows' = 'nodoubt.' Frostig = ' cold,' ' lifeless.'
1. 26. Spence; Joseph Spence, born at Winchester in 1698, died in 1 768; for ten years professor of poetry at Oxford. In 1747 he published a work entitled ' Polymetis,' written in dialogues. N. Tindal pub- lished an extract from it under the name of ' Guide to Classical Learning.'
1. 27. in einer...we should say ' wilh very familiär acquaintance ' etc., ' in ' appears to be used to avoid repctilion of ' mit.'
P. 65, 1. 3. und aus den Dichtern...herzuholen, 'and to draw from the poets in return explanations as to ancient works of art as yet unexplained.'
1. 8. Valerius Flaccus: a Roman poet, who died in 89 A. D. In his Argonautica, vi. 55 (a passnge quoted and illustrated by Spence in his sixth Dialogue, p. 50) Flaccus mentions that thesoldiers of the Scythian king Colaxes wore the insignia of Jove, viz. the lightning, on their cuirasses, a custom at a later time adopted by the Roman legions.
1. 14. in eben der schwebenden Stellung, *in the same hovering attitude' (pendens).
1. 15. Joseph Addison wrote a dialogue of Ancient Mcdals; See the Introduction, p. xiii.
P. 66, 1. 2. Juvenal; this poet in his eleventh satire is speaking of the early days of the Republic, when the soldier was ignorant of the fine arts, but adorned his horse and his arms with trappings made from the fragments of broken cups, and his helmet with the symbols of the great- ness of Rome, such as the she-wolf with the twin-founders of Rome and the god Mars. Comp. Juvenal, Sat. xi. 100-107: •Tunc rudis et Graias mirari nescius artcs Urbibus eversis, praedarum in parte reperta Magnorum artiticum frangebat pocula miles;, t -"[•vo^iv • V Ut phalcris gauderet equus, caelataque cassis -'-■'"^ • ' » Romuleae simulacra ferae mansuescere jussae Imperii fato, gcminos sub rupe Quirinos Ac nudam effigiem clypeo fulgentis et hasta Pendentisque Dei perituro ostenderet hosti.'
The last lincs of tliis passage were considercd obscurc on account of the Word pendentis. Addison in his 'Travels,' p. 1S2, and after him Spence, explained it by adducing a Roman coin of the time of the later eniperovs, whcre Mars is represented suspcnded in the air over the LAOKOON. VIT. 247