Menander Γνῶμαι Μονόστιχοι

[Kuba26]

The following translations are an attempt at some lines of Menander's Γνῶμαι Μονόστιχοι, I would love to hear your comments on my efforts. Thanks in advance!

56. Ἄξεις ἀλύπως τὸν βίον χωρὶς γάμου.
You will lead a life without pain, without a wedding.

217. Ἡ δὲ παράκαιρος ἡδονὴ τίκτει βλάβην.
For ill-timed pleasure bring harm.

293. Κακὸν φέρουσι καρπὸν οἱ κακοὶ φίλοι.
The bad friends bring bad fruit.

303. Καλὸν φέρουσι καρπὸν οἱ σεμνοὶ τρόποι.
The honourable manners bring good fruit.

316. Λῦπαι γὰρ ἀνθρώποισι τίκτουσιν νόσους.
For pains bear sickness to men.

 

[Aurifex]

56. It would be more idiomatic if it read: "You will...if you don't marry."
217. "bring" should be "brings".
293. You need to drop the article, and "bear...fruit" might be better.
303. Again, you need to drop the article, and "bear" may be preferable to "bring".
316. Λῦπαι might be better as "sorrows". The same could be said for ἀλύπως in 56, mutatis mutandis.
"Bear sickness to men" isn't very idiomatic.

 

[Kuba26]

56. It would be more idiomatic if it read: "You will...if you don't marry."

Thanks for the feedback!

217. "bring" should be "brings".

Typo

 

[Pacifica]

Also, "for" probably doesn't belong in 217.

 

[Kuba26]

Also, "for" probably doesn't belong in 217.

Good point, I noticed that. What happened is this: I typed my translations in the top post and rather lazily copied Menander's lines from a site instead of copying them from my book - in my Hansen & Quinn it says 217. Ἡ γὰρ παράκαιρος ἡδονὴ τίκτει βλάβην.

 

[Pacifica]

Ah, I see.

 

[Aurifex]

Also, "for" probably doesn't belong in 217.

It's a bit academic now, given Kuba26's clarification, but my answer to your post would have been "possibly doesn't belong and possibly does. "
See Denniston, The Greek Particles, p.169: "δέ for γάρ, οὖν (or δή), ἤ. δέ is not infrequently used where the context admits, or even appears to demand, γάρ (or, occasionally, οὖν or ἤ)".

It would be impossible to know the precise force of δέ here when there is such limited context.

 

[Pacifica]

Ah, ok.