Pausanias Analysis

Passage 4.9.8

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Passage 4.9.8: Aristodemos kills his daughter to prove she bore no child

Mythic Non-skeptical

Greek Text

ξυγγενέσθαι τε τῇ παιδὶ καὶ κύειν ἐξ αὐτοῦ. τέλος δὲ ἐς τοσοῦτον Ἀριστόδημον προήγαγεν ὡς ἐκμανέντα ὑπὸ τοῦ θυμοῦ τὴν θυγατέρα ἀποκτεῖναι· μετὰ δὲ ἀνέτεμνε καὶ ἐπεδείκνυεν αὐτὴν οὐκ ἔχουσαν ἐν γαστρί. παρὼν δὲ Ἐπήβολος ἐκέλευεν ἄλλον τινὰ τὸν θυγατέρα ἐπιδώσοντα γενέσθαι· τῆς γὰρ τοῦ Ἀριστοδήμου πλέον εἶναί σφισιν ἀποθανούσης οὐδέν· φονεῦσαι γὰρ τὸν πατέρα αὐτήν, θεοῖς δὲ οἷς ἡ Πυθία προσέταξεν οὐ θῦσαι.

English Translation

He had intercourse with the girl and she became pregnant by him. In the end, Aristodemos was driven into such fury that, enraged by his anger, he killed his daughter. Afterwards, he cut her open and showed that her womb contained no child. Epibolos, who was present, urged the people to assign another to hand over his daughter, since the death of Aristodemos's daughter had been of no benefit to them. He explained that Aristodemos had murdered his own child, yet had not sacrificed her to the gods as the Pythian oracle had commanded.

Proper Nouns

god (θεός) deity
Pythia (Πυθία) person
Aristodemos (Ἀριστόδημος) person
Epibolos (Ἐπήβολος) person
Also in: 4.9.5 4.10.5
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