Elementary Greek Grammar: PART V: VERSIFICATION

1. Every verse is composed of portions called feet. Thus we have four feet in each of these verses: —

φήσο|μεν πρὸς | τοὺς στρα|τηγούς. |

Fár from | mórtal | cáres re|tréating. |

2. In each foot there is a certain part on which falls a special stress of voice called ictus (stroke), and another part on which there is no such stress. The part of the foot on which the ictus falls is called the arsis, and the rest of the foot is called the thesis. [1] The regular alternation of arsis and thesis in successive feet produces the rhythm (harmonious movement) of the verse.

[1]: The terms ἄρσις (raising) and θέσις (placing), as they were used by nearly all the Greek writers on Rhythm, referred to the raising and putting down of the foot in marching, dancing, or beating time, so that θέσις denoted the part of the foot on which the ictus fell, and ἄρσις the lighter part. Most of the Roman writers, however, inverted this use, and referred arsis to the raising of the voice and thesis to the lowering of the voice in reading. The prevailing modern use of these terms unfortunately follows the Roman writers.

3. In this English verse (as in all English poetry) the rhythm depends entirely on the ordinary accent of the words, with which the ictus coincides. In the Greek verse, however, the ictus is entirely independent of the word-accent; and the feet (with the ictus marked) are φήσο, μέν προς, τούς στρα, τήγους. In Greek poetry a foot consists of a regular combination of syllables of a certain length; and the place of the ictus here depends on the quantity (i.e. the length or shortness) of the syllables which compose the foot, the ictus naturally falling upon a long syllable (§ 285, 3). The regular alternation of long and short syllables in successive feet makes the verse metrical, i.e. measured in its time. The rhythm of a Greek verse thus depends closely on its metre, i.e. on the measure or quantity of its syllables.

Note. The fundamental distinction between ancient and most modern poetry is simply this, that in modern poetry the verse consists of a regular combination of accented and unaccented syllables, while in ancient poetry it consists of a regular combination of long and short syllables. The rhythm is the one essential requisite in the external form of all poetry, ancient and modern; but in ancient poetry, rhythm depends on metre and not at all on accent; in modern poetry it depends on accent, and the quantity of the syllables (i.e. the metre) is generally no more regarded than it is in prose. Both are equally rhythmical; but the ancient is also metrical, and its metre is the basis of its rhythm. What is called metre in English poetry is strictly only rhythm. [1] It is to a great extent uncertain how the Greeks distinguished or reconciled the stress of voice which constituted the ictus and the raising of tone which constituted the word-accent. Any combination of the two is now very difficult, and for most persons impossible. In reading Greek poetry we usually mark the Greek ictus by our accent, which is its modern representative, and neglect the word-accent or make it subordinate to the ictus. Care should always be taken in reading to distinguish the words, not the feet.

[1]: The change from metrical to accentual rhythm can best be seen in modern Greek poetry, in which, even when the forms of the ancient language are retained, the rhythm is generally accentual and the metre is no more regarded than it is in English poetry. These are the first two verses in a translation of the Odyssey: —

Ψάλλε τὸν | ἄνδρα, Θεϊά, τὸν πο|λύτροπον, | ὅστις το|σούτους

Τόπους δι|ῆλθε, πορ|θήσας τῆς | Τροίας τὴν | ἔνδοξον | πόλιν.

The original verses are: —

Ἄνδρα μοι | ἔννεπε, | Μοῦσα, πο|λύτροπον, | ὃς μάλα | πολλὰ

Πλάγχθη, ἐ|πεὶ Τροί|ης ἱερὸν πτολί|εθρον ἔ|περσεν.

If the former verses set our teeth on edge, it is only through force of acquired habit; for these verses have much more of the nature of modern poetry than the Homeric originals, and their rhythm is precisely what we are accustomed to in English.

1. The unit of measure in Greek verse is the short syllable (⏑), which has the value of ♪ or an eighth note in music. This is called a time or mora. The long syllable (–) has twice the length of a short one, and has the value of a quarter note or ♩ in music.

2. Feet are distinguished according to the number of times which they contain. The most common feet are the following: –

(a) Of Three Times (in 3/8 time)

(b) Of Four Times (in 2/4 time)

(c) Of Five Times (in 5/8 time)

(d) Of Six Times (in 3/4 time)

For the dochmius, ⏑ – – | ⏑ –, see § 302.

Note. The feet in 3/8 time (a), in which the arsis is twice as long as the thesis, form the double class (γένος διπλάσιον), as opposed to those in 2/4 time (b), in which the arsis and thesis are of equal length, and which form the equal class (γένος ἴσον). The more complicated relations of arsis and thesis in the feet of five and six times are not considered here.

3. The ictus falls naturally on a long syllable. The first syllable of the trochee and the dactyl, and the last syllable of the iambus and the anapaest, therefore, form the arsis, the remainder of the foot being the thesis; as –́ ⏑, –́ ⏑ ⏑, ⏑ –́, ⏑ ⏑ –́.

Note 1. When a long syllable in the arsis is resolved into two short syllables (§ 286, 1), the ictus properly belongs on the two taken together, but in reading it is usually placed on the first. Thus a tribrach used for a trochee (–́ ⏑) is ⏑́ ⏑ ⏑; one used for an iambus (⏑ –́) is ⏑ ⏑́ ⏑. So a spondee used for a dactyl is –́ –; one used for an anapaest is – –́. Likewise a dactyl used for an anapaest (– ⏑ ⏑ for – – for ⏑ ⏑ –) is – ⏑́ ⏑. The only use of the tribrach and the chief use of the spondee are to represent other feet which have their arsis naturally marked by a long syllable.

Note 2. Although the principal ictus (which alone has been considered) falls on the arsis, there is generally also a subordinate ictus on the thesis or on some syllable of the thesis. (See § 299.)

4. A verse is sometimes introduced by an incomplete foot, consisting of one or two syllables equivalent in time to the thesis of the fundamental foot of the verse. This is called an anacrusis (ἀνάκρουσις, upward beat). (See § 289, 8, N.) The mark of anacrusis is a following (:). For the basis, introducing a logaoedic verse, see § 299, 2.

1. A long syllable, being the metrical equivalent of two short ones (§ 285, 1), is often resolved into these; as when a tribrach ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ stands for a trochee – ⏑ or an iambus ⏑ –. On the other hand, two short syllables are often contracted into one long syllable; as when a spondee – – stands for a dactyl – ⏑ ⏑ or an anapaest ⏑ ⏑ –. The mark for a long resolved into two short is – with ⏑ ⏑ above; that for two short contracted into one long is ⏑⏑ with – above.

2. A long syllable in the arsis may be prolonged so as to have the measure of three or even four short syllables. A single syllable may thus represent a whole foot, including both arsis and thesis: this is called syncope. A syllable which includes three times is marked ⌞ (a dotted quarter note); one which includes four times is marked ⊔ (a half note).

3. On the other hand, a long syllable may in certain cases be shortened so as to take the place of a short syllable in verse. Such a syllable is called irrational, and is marked >. The foot in which it occurs is also called irrational (ποὺς ἄλογος). Thus, in ἀλλ᾽ ἀπ᾽ ἐχθρῶν (–́ ⏑ | –́ >), the apparent spondee which takes the place of the second trochee is called an irrational trochee; in δοῦναι δίκην (> –́ | ⏑ –́) that which takes the place of the first iambus is called an irrational iambus.

4. A similar shortening occurs in the so-called cyclic dactyl (marked –⏑) and cyclic anapaest (marked ⏑–), which have the time of only three short syllables instead of four. The cyclic dactyl takes the place of a trochee – ⏑, especially in logaoedic verses (§ 300). The cyclic anapaest takes the place of an iambus ⏑ –, and is found especially in the iambic trimeter of comedy (§ 293, 4).

5. The last syllable of every verse is common, and may be considered long or short to suit the metre, without regard to its usual quantity. It is called syllaba anceps. But the continuous systems described in § 298 allow this only at the end of the last verse.

1. A rhythmical series is a continuous succession of feet of the same measure. A verse may consist of one such series, or of several such united. Thus the verse

πολλὰ τὰ δεινά, κοὐδὲν ἀν|θρώπου δεινότερον πέλει

consists of a First Glyconic (§ 300, 4), – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ | – ⏑ | ⌞ (at the end of a verse, – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ | – ⏑ | – ∧), followed by a Second Glyconic, – > | – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ | – ∧. Each part forms a series, the former ending with the first syllable of ἀνθρώπου (see above); and either series might have formed a distinct verse. A rhythmical series generally ends after the arsis of the third foot in the dactylic hexameter (§ 295, 4). See § 288.

2. The verse must close in such a way as to be distinctly marked off from what follows.

(a.) It must end with the end of a word.

(b.) It allows the last syllable (syllaba anceps) to be either long or short (§ 286, 5).:

(c.) It allows hiatus (§ 8) before a vowel beginning the next verse.

3. A verse which has an unfinished foot at the close is called catalectic (καταληκτικός, stopped short). A complete verse is called acatalectic.

4. The time of the omitted syllable or syllables in a catalectic verse is filled by a pause. A pause of one time, equivalent to a short syllable (⏑), is marked ∧ (for Λ, the initial of λεῖμμα); a pause of two times (–) is marked ∧ with – above it.

1. Caesura (i.e. cutting) of the foot occurs whenever a word ends before a foot is finished; as in three cases in the following verse: -

πολλὰς | δ᾽ ἰφθί|μους ψυ|χὰς Ἄϊ|δι προΐ|αψεν.

This becomes important only when it coincides with the caesura of the verse (as after ἰφθίμους). This caesura is a pause within a foot introduced to make the verse more melodious or to aid in its recital, regularly occurring at the end of a rhythmical series which does not end the verse (§ 287, 1). In some verses its place is fixed: see § 293, 4; § 295, 4.

2. When the end of a word coincides with the end of a foot, the double division is called diaeresis (διαίρεσις, division); as after the first foot in the line just quoted. Diaeresis becomes important only when it coincides with a natural pause in the verse produced by the ending of a rhythmic series; as in the trochaic tetrameter (§ 291, 2) and the dactylic pentameter (§ 295, 5).

Note. The following verse of Aristophanes (Clouds, 519), in trochaic (3/8) rhythm, shows the irrational long (§ 286, 3) in the first, second, and sixth feet; the cyclic dactyl (§ 286, 4) in the third; syncope (§ 286, 2) in the fourth; and at the end catalexis and pause (§ 287, 3 and 4) with syllaba anceps (§ 286, 5): —

τἀληθῆ νὴ | τὸν Διό|νυσον τὸν | ἐκθρέ|ψαντα | με.

– > | – > | –⏑ | ⌞ || – ⏑ | – > | – ⏑ | – ∧

A rhythmical series (§ 287, 1) ends with the penult of Διόνυσον. This is a logaoedic verse, called Eupolidean (§ 300, 7).

1. Verses are called Trochaic, Iambic, Dactylic, &c., from their fundamental foot.

2. In most kinds of verse, a monometer consists of one foot, a dimeter of two feet, a trimeter, tetrameter, pentameter, or hexameter of three, four, five, or six feet. But in trochaic, iambic, and anapaestic verses, which are measured by dipodies (i.e. pairs of feet), a monometer consists of one dipody (or two feet), a dimeter of four feet, a trimeter of six feet, and a tetrameter of eight feet. In most kinds of verse, there are catalectic as well as acatalectic forms (§ 287, 3).

3. Rhythms are divided into rising and falling rhythms.

In rising rhythms the arsis follows the thesis, as in the iambus and anapaest; in falling rhythms the thesis follows the arsis, as in the trochee and the dactyl.

Note. It will be seen that prefixing an anacrusis (§ 285, 4) of the same time as the thesis to a falling rhythm will change it to a rising rhythm; as – ⏑ | – ⏑ with ⏑ prefixed becomes ⏑ – | ⏑ – | ⏑; and – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – with ⏑ ⏑ prefixed becomes ⏑ ⏑ – | ⏑ ⏑ – | ⏑ ⏑ –. Many modern writers treat all iambic and anapaestic verses as trochaic and dactylic with anacrusis;

as ⏑ : – ⏑ | – ⏑ | – ⏑ for ⏑ – | ⏑ – | ⏑ – | ⏑ ∧;

and ⏑ ⏑ : – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – ∧ for ⏑ ⏑ – | ⏑ ⏑ – | ⏑ ⏑ –.

4. In Greek poetry, the same kind of verse may be repeated without interruption, as in the heroic hexameter (§ 295, 4) and the iambic trimeter of the drama (§ 298, 4). Secondly, similar verses may be combined into distichs (§ 295, 5) or into simple systems (§ 298). Thirdly, in lyric poetry, verses may be combined into strophes of complex rhythmical and metrical structure, with antistrophes corresponding to them in form.

In the following sections, the principal rhythms found in Greek poetry are described.

§ 290

Trochaic verses are measured by dipodies (§ 289, 2). The irrational trochee – > (§ 286, 3) in the form of a spondee can stand in the second place of each trochaic dipody; so that the dipody has the form – ⏑ | – >. In trochaic verse, therefore, the tribrach ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ can stand in any place for the trochee – ⏑; and the (apparent) spondee can stand in all the even places, that is, in the second part of every dipody. An apparent anapaest (⏑ ⏑ > for – >) is sometimes used as the equivalent of the irrational trochee. The cyclic dactyl –⏑ (§ 286, 4) sometimes stands for the trochee in proper names in both parts of the dipody.

§ 291

The following are the most common trochaic verses: —

1. The dimeter (acatalectic and catalectic): –

φήσομεν πρὸς | τοὺς στρατηγούς. – ⏑ – > | – ⏑ – ⏑

ψυχαγωγεῖ | Σωκράτης. – ⏑ – > | – ⏑ – ∧

2. The tetrameter catalectic, consisting of seven feet and a syllable, or of the two preceding verses combined. There is a regular diaeresis (§ 288, 2) after the second dipody, where the first rhythmical series ends (§ 287, 1). See § 293, 3.

ὦ σοφώτα|τοι θεαταί, || δεῦρο τὸν νοῦν | πρόσχετε.

– ⏑ – ⏑ | – ⏑ – > || – ⏑ – > | – ⏑ – ∧

In English poetry each series is generally made a separate verse; as

Téll me nót in moúrnful númbers,

Lífe is bút an émpty dréam.

3. The Ithyphallic, which is a trochaic tripody, not allowing irrational feet, –

μήποτ᾽ ἐκτακείη. – ⏑ | – ⏑ | – ⏑

For trochaic systems see § 298, Note.

§ 292

Iambic verses are measured by dipodies (§ 289, 2). The irrational iambus > – (§ 286, 3) in the form of a spondee can stand in the first place of each iambic dipody, so that the dipody has the form > – | ⏑ –. In iambic verse, therefore, the tribrach ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ can stand in any place for the iambus ⏑ –; and the (apparent) spondee can stand in all the odd places, that is, in the first part of every dipody. An apparent dactyl (> ⏑ ⏑ for > –) is sometimes used as the equivalent of the irrational iambus; and the cyclic anapaest ⏑– (§ 286, 4) is used for the iambus in both parts of the dipody, especially by the Attic comedians (§ 293, 4).

§ 293

The following are the most common iambic verses: —

1. The monometer, –

πρὸς τὴν θεόν. > – | ⏑ –

2. The dimeter (acatalectic and catalectic), -

ζηλῶ σε τῆς | εὐβουλίας. > – ⏑ – | > – ⏑ –

καὶ τὸν λόγον | τὸν ἥττω. > – ⏑ – | ⏑ – ⏑ ∧, where the last ∧ has – above.

3. The tetrameter catalectic, consisting of seven feet and a syllable, or of the two preceding verses combined. There is a regular diaeresis (§ 288, 2) after the second dipody, where the first rhythmical series ends (§ 287, 1). See § 291, 2.

εἴπερ τὸν ἄνδρ᾽ | ὑπερβαλεῖ, || καὶ μὴ γέλωτ᾽ | ὀφλήσεις.

In English poetry each series is generally made a separate verse; as

A cáptain bóld | of Hálifax

Who lived in cóun|try quárters.

4. The TRIMETER ACATALECTIC, the most common of all iambic verses, in which most of the dialogue of the Attic drama is composed. It never allows any substitution in the last foot. With this exception it may have the tribrach in any place. The irrational iambus > – in the form of a spondee can stand in the first place of every dipody. The tragedians allow the (apparent) dactyl > ⏑ ⏑ only in the first and third places, and the cyclic anapaest only in the first place; but in proper names they allow the anapaest in every place except the last. The comedians allow the dactyl > ⏑ ⏑ in all the odd places, and the cyclic anapaest in every place except the last (§ 292). The most common caesura is that after the thesis of the third foot.

The following scheme shows the tragic and the comic iambic trimeter compared, – the forms peculiar to comedy being enclosed in [ ].

In general the tragedians avoid the feet of three syllables, even where they are allowed. The following are examples of both the tragic and the comic form: –

(Tragic)

χθονὸς μὲν εἰς | τηλουρὸν ἥκομεν πέδον,

Σκύθην ἐς οἶμον, ἄβατον εἰς | ἐρημίαν.

Ἥφαιστε, σοὶ | δὲ χρὴ μέλειν | ἐπιστολάς.

(Comic)

ὦ Ζεῦ βασιλεῦ· | τὸ χρῆμα τῶν | νυκτῶν ὅσον

ἀπέραντον· οὐδέποθ᾽ ἡμέρα | γενήσεται;

ἀπόλοιο δῆτ᾽, | ὦ πόλεμε, πολ|λῶν οὕνεκα.

The Iambic Trimeter appears in English as the Alexandrine, which is seldom used except at the end of a stanza: –

And hópe to mérit Héaven by mák|ing Eárth a Héll.

For iambic systems, see § 298.

§ 294

The only regular substitute for the dactyl is the spondee, which arises by contraction of the two short syllables of the dactyl (– – from – ⏑ ⏑).

§ 295

The following are the most common dactylic verses: —

1. The dimeter, –

μυστοδό|ϊκος δόμος – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑

μοῖρα δι|ώκει – ⏑ ⏑ | – –

2. The trimeter (acatalectic and catalectic), -

ἁδυμε|λῆ κελα|δήσω. – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – –

παρθένοι | ὀμβροφό|ροι – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – ∧, where the last ∧ has – above.

3. The tetrameter (acatalectic and catalectic), -

οὐρανί|οις τε θε|οῖς δω|ρήματα. – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – – | – ⏑ ⏑

ἔλθετ᾽ ἐ|ποψόμε|ναι δύνα|μιν. – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – ∧ where the last ∧ has – above.

4. The Heroic hexameter, the Homeric verse. It always has a spondee in the last place, often in the first four places, seldom in the fifth (the verse being then called spondaic). There is commonly a caesura in the third foot, either after the arsis or (rather more frequently) dividing the thesis. There is sometimes a caesura after the arsis of the fourth foot, and rarely one in the thesis. The caesura after the arsis is called masculine, that in the thesis feminine or trochaic. A diaeresis after the fourth foot, common in bucolic poetry, is called bucolic. For examples see the Iliad and Odyssey.

5. The elegiac distich consists of an heroic hexameter followed by the so-called Elegiac pentameter. This last verse consists really of two dactylic trimeters with syncope (§ 286, 2) in the last measure; as, –

Παλλὰς Ἀ|θηναίη || χεῖρας ὕ|περθεν ἔ|χει.

– ⏑ ⏑ | – – | ⌞ || – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | ⌞

At the end of the pentameter verse we can place – ∧ (where the last ∧ has – above) (§ 287, 4) in place of ⌞. This metre probably arose from a repetition of the first penthemim (πενθ-ημι-μερές, five half feet) of the hexameter. But syllaba anceps (§ 286, 5) and hiatus (§ 8) are not allowed after the first trimeter, but only at the end of the verse (§ 287, 2). The last two complete feet are always dactyls. A diaeresis (§ 288, 2) divides the two parts of the verse. The following is an Elegiac Distich: —

τίς δὲ βίος, τί δὲ | τερπνόν, ἄ|νευ χρυσέ|ης Ἀφρο|δίτης;

– ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | – –

τεθναί|ην ὅτε | μοι || μηκέτι | ταῦτα μέ|λοι.

– – | – ⏑ ⏑ | ⌞ || – ⏑ ⏑ | – ⏑ ⏑ | ⌞

Note. In the Homeric verse and in Lyric poetry, a long vowel or a diphthong is often shortened at the end of a word when the next word begins with a vowel. E.g.

ὦ πόποι, | ἦ μάλα | δὴ μετε|βούλευσαν θεοὶ | ἄλλως.

χρυσέῳ ἀ|νὰ σκή|πτρῳ, καὶ ἐ|λίσσετο | πάντας Ἀ|χαιούς (§ 10).

This sometimes occurs in the middle of a word. Sometimes a short final vowel occurs in Homer where a long one is required by the verse. This can often be explained by supposing a following semi-vowel to have been doubled in pronunciation. Many anomalies in Homeric quantity are explained by the omission of Vau or Digamma (§ 1, Note 2); as τοῖόν οἱ (– – –) for τοῖόν Fοι.

§ 296

Anapaestic verses are measured by dipodies (§ 289, 2). The spondee and the dactyl (– – and – ⏑ ⏑) may stand for the anapaest.

Note. The long syllable of an anapaest is rarely resolved into two short, making ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ for ⏑ ⏑ –.

§ 297

The following are the most common anapaestic verses: —

1. The monometer, –

2. The dimeter acatalectic, –

And the ólive of péace | sends its bránches abroad.

3. The dimeter catalectic, or paroemiac, -

The Lórd | is advánc|ing. Prépare | ye!

4. The tetrameter catalectic, consisting of seven feet and a syllable, or of the two preceding verses combined. There is a regular diaeresis after the second dipody. See § 291, 2.

πρόσχετε τὸν νοῦν | τοῖς ἀθανάτοις || ἡμῖν, τοῖς αἰ|ὲν ἐοῦσι,

τοῖς αἰθερίοις, | τοῖσιν ἀγήρῳς, || τοῖς ἄφθιτα μη|δομένοισιν.

§ 298

An anapaestic system consists of a series of anapaestic dimeters acatalectic, with occasionally a monometer, ending always with the paroemiac (or dimeter catalectic). These are very frequently employed in both tragedy and comedy. E.g.

δέκατον μὲν ἔτος τόδ᾽ ἐπεὶ Πριάμου

μέγας ἀντίδικος,

Μενέλαος ἄναξ ἠδ᾽ Ἀγαμέμνων,

διθρόνου Διόθεν καὶ δισκήπτρου

τιμῆς ὀχυρὸν ζεῦγος Ἀτρειδᾶν,

στόλον Ἀργείων χιλιοναύταν

τῆσδ᾽ ἀπὸ χώρας

ἦραν, στρατιῶτιν ἀρωγάν.

Note. Iambic and trochaic systems are sometimes formed on the same principle, consisting of iambic or trochaic dimeters acatalectic, with occasionally a monometer, ending always with a dimeter catalectic.