Euenius · lines 73–76
Euenius is furious at the trick, but he gets what he chose, and the gods give him the gift of prophecy · Tales from Herodotus · GCSE Greek · OCR J292/02
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SubjectObjectVerbDativePrepositionConjunctionAdverb
Greek
English
73ὁ μὲν δὴ πρὸς ταῦτα δεινὰ ἐποιεῖτο, ἐντεῦθεν πυθόμενος
74τὸν πάντα λόγον, ὡς ἐξαπατηθείς·
At this he was furious, now that he had heard the whole story, believing that he had been deceived;
74οἱ δὲ διδόασιν αὐτῷ
75ἃ εἵλετο.
but they gave him what he had chosen.
75καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα αὐτίκα ἔμφυτον μαντικὴν
76εἶχεν ὥστε καὶ ὀνομαστὸς γενέσθαι.
And immediately after this he had an inborn gift of prophecy, so that he even became famous.
Style notes this section · 10Word order · 2Repetition and structure · 3Word choice · 3Grammar · 2
73–74
ὁ μὲν … οἱ δὲContrast (μέν ... δέ)
he … but they
His fury is set against the citizens calmly handing over what he asked for, so the reader sees the deal stand regardless.
73
δεινὰ ἐποιεῖτοCharacterisation
he was furious
A strong phrase for outrage, which shows how bitterly Euenius feels he has been treated.
74
τὸν πάντα λόγονEmphasis
the whole story
He learns everything at once, so the reader can imagine the shock of discovering the trick.
74
ὡς ἐξαπατηθείςPoint of view
believing he had been deceived
Ὡς gives the reason as Euenius sees it, so the reader sees events through his eyes without Herodotus taking sides.
74
διδόασινHistoric present
they give
The present tense among past tenses makes the handover brisk and final.
75
ἃ εἵλετοEmphatic position
what he had chosen
The sentence ends on his own choice, which reminds the reader that he got exactly what he asked for.
75
αὐτίκαRepetition
immediately
Αὐτίκα echoes line 48: the gift comes as quickly as the blight did, so the reader sees the gods keep their word.
75
ἔμφυτον μαντικὴνVivid detail
an inborn gift of prophecy
The gift is part of his very nature, which makes up for his lost eyes with a different kind of sight.
76
ὀνομαστὸς γενέσθαιEmphatic position
to become famous
The story ends on his fame rather than his anger, so the reader is left with his reward.
76
ὀνομαστὸςRing structure
famous
His fame fulfils the gods' promise in line 57 that many would call him blessed, which rounds off the story neatly.
Questions to think about · 3
- Do you sympathise with Euenius' anger? Give reasons for and against.
- Why might the gods' gift be worth more to Euenius than anything the Apollonians could give him?
- What does the story of Euenius suggest about the difference between human justice and the justice of the gods?
Blindness and prophecy background
Greek myth often pairs the loss of sight with a different kind of sight. Teiresias, the most famous seer of all, is blind: in one version Hera struck him blind and Zeus, unable to undo another god's act, gave him prophecy in return. The prophet Phineus was blinded too, and Homer's bard Demodocus in the Odyssey lost his eyes but was given the gift of song. Euenius fits this pattern: the gods cannot give back his eyes, so they give him an inner sight instead. Prophecy often ran in families in Greece, and Herodotus tells the story because Euenius' son Deiphonus was serving as a seer with the Greek fleet in 479 BC.
Vocabulary in this section · 27 wordsVocabulary tester
ὁ, ἡ, τό the; (ὁ μέν) he
μέν on the one hand
δή indeed, so then
πρός (+ acc.) at, in answer to
οὗτος, αὕτη, τοῦτο this; (pl.) these things
δεινός, -ή, -όν terrible, dreadful
ποιέω do, make
ἐντεῦθεν thereupon, then
πυνθάνομαι find out by enquiry, learn
πᾶς, πᾶσα, πᾶν all, every; whole
λόγος, -ου, ὁ word, story, account
ὡς as, on the grounds that
ἐξαπατάω deceive, cheat
δέ and, but
δίδωμι give
αὐτός, -ή, -ό him, her, it
ὅς, ἥ, ὅ who, which
αἱρέω take; (middle) choose
καί and
μετά (+ acc.) after
αὐτίκα at once, immediately
ἔμφυτος, -ον natural, inborn
μαντική, -ῆς, ἡ the power of prophecy
ἔχω have
ὥστε so that, with the result that
ὀνομαστός, -ή, -όν famous
γίγνομαι become, be, happen