Works and Days

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For the 2020 film, see The Works and Days.
Works and Days
by
Didactic poem
Meterdactylic hexameter
Publication date700 BC
Lines828
Full text
Hesiod, the Homeric Hymns and Homerica/Works and Days at Wikisource

Works and Days (

didactic poem written by ancient Greek poet Hesiod around 700 BC. It is in dactylic hexameter and contains 828 lines. At its center, the Works and Days is a farmer's almanac
in which Hesiod instructs his brother Perses in the agricultural arts.

Scholars have seen this work against a background of agrarian crisis in mainland Greece, which inspired a wave of

aetiologies for the toil and pain that define the human condition - the story of Prometheus and Pandora, and the so-called Myth of Five Ages
.

Synopsis

In Works and Days, Hesiod describes himself as the heir of a farm bequeathed to his brother Perses and him. Perses, though, apparently squandered his wealth and came back for what is owned by Hesiod. Perses went to the law and bribed the lords to judge in his favour. The poem contains a sharp attack against unjust

bribes as they render their unfair verdicts. Hesiod seems to have thought that instead of giving him money or property, which he will again spend in no time, teaching him the virtues of work
and impart his wisdom, which can be used to generate an income, would be better.

Like the Theogony, Works and Days begins with a hymnic invocation to the Muses, albeit much shorter (10 lines to the Theogony's 115) and with a different focus. The poet invokes the "Pierian Muses" to sing of their father Zeus and his control of the fates of mankind. Through the power of Zeus, men might be famous or nameless; he easily strengthens and oppresses the strong, reduces the conspicuous and raises up the inconspicuous; easily he straightens the crooked and withers the many.[1] Hesiod then appeals to Zeus to guide his undertaking: "Hearken, seeing and hearing, and through justice put straight the laws; and may I speak the truth to Perses."

Engraving of the myth of Pandora based on a painting by F. S. Church

Hesiod begins the poem proper by directly engaging with the content of the Theogony. There was after all not one Eris (Ἔρις, "Strife"), as in that poem,[2] but two: one is quite blameworthy and provokes wars and disagreement among mankind; but the other is commended by all who know her, for she compels men to work honorably, rivaling each other:[3]

Hesiod encourages Perses to avoid the bad Eris and not let her persuade him to frequent the arguments in the agora, but to focus on working for his livelihood.[4] Family business follows, as Hesiod implores his brother to join him in sorting out their fraternal discord through the "justice of Zeus". It comes out that they had previously divided their patrimony, but that Perses claimed more than his fair share by influencing "bribe-devouring kings" (δωροφάγοι βασιλεῖς, dōrophagoi basileis).[5]

The following few hundred verses—by far the most famous portion of the poem—comprise a series of mythological examples and gnomic statements outlining Hesiod's conception of justice and the necessity of work, with the ostensible goal of persuading Perses to follow a proper path in life. The first lesson is about why the immortals keep an easy livelihood hidden from mankind: the story of Prometheus and Pandora is the answer. In the Theogony, Pandora and the "tribe of women" had been sent as a plague upon man in punishment for Prometheus's attempt to deceive Zeus of his deserved portion when men and gods were dividing a feast, and for his subsequent theft of fire.[6] In the Works and Days, Hesiod proceeds directly to the theft of fire and punishment. Zeus instructed the gods to build an "evil" for mankind: that is, Pandora, whom Prometheus's brother Epimetheus accepted from Hermes despite his brother's warnings never to accept gifts from the gods.[7] Before Pandora's arrival, man had lived free from evils, toil and illness, but she had been given a jar which contained all these curses; this she opened, releasing all its contents but Elpis (Ἔλπις, "Hope" or "Expectation").[8]

Lucas Cranach the Elder, The Golden Age (c. 1530)

The

Nemesis will depart the earth, leaving behind ills against which there will be no bulwark.[14]

The kings are now addressed, as Hesiod relates the fable of the nightingale and the hawk to them. A hawk flying high in the air had a nightingale in its talons. The smaller bird was shrieking and crying, to which the hawk responded:

The next section is composed largely of superstitions related to running a productive farm. There are also more general words of advice given for how to be successful, such as not putting off work for the next day.[16] It gives instructions to tell slaves, indications on when is the right time to harvest certain plants, based in Greek Mythology, and examples of when to go sailing.

Traditional Customs follows, the verses including instruction on when one should marry, to avoid items containing “mischief” such as uncharmed pots, and other superstitions. The final section is about auspicious days of the month, telling what days will likely he prosperous and what days to avoid actions such as shearing, sowing, or procreating.[17]

Editions and translations

Critical editions

  • Rzach, A. (1908), Hesiodi Carmina (2nd rev. ed.), Leipzig{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link).  Link to text – Editio maior.
  • Rzach, A. (1913), Hesiodi Carmina (3rd rev. ed.), Leipzig,
    ISBN 3-598-71418-1{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
    ). – Editio minor.
  • Wilamowitz-Moellendorf, U. von (1928), Hesiodos' Erga, Berlin{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link). – With introduction and commentary (in German); omits the "Days".
  • Sinclair, T. A. (1932), Hesiod, Works and Days, London{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link). – With introduction and commentary.
  • ISBN 0-19-814005-3{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
    ). – With introduction and commentary.
  • Oxford Classical Text
    .

Translations

Notes

  1. ^ The Works and Days is sometimes called by the Latin translation of the title, Opera et Dies. Common abbreviations are WD and Op for Opera.

References

  1. ^ Works and Days 3–8.
  2. ^ Cf. Theog. 225–6.
  3. ^ WD 11–26.
  4. ^ WD 27–34.
  5. ^ WD 35–9.
  6. ^ Theog. 535–70.
  7. ^ WD 59–89.
  8. ^ WD 90–105. There is some debate about the simple and obvious translation of "elpis" as "hope". Some scholars argue that is really should be translated as "expectation" since the root word is from "suppose". And in this context it is argued that what was left in the jar was not Hope as we know it, but the "expectation of ills" so that Man would be unpleasantly surprised by ills that befell him instead of expecting them. Confer W.J. Verdenius, Commentary on Hesiod, et al. Also written in Tandy and Neale's translation of Works and Days. p.64, note 37.
  9. ^ WD 106–201.
  10. ^ WD 109–26.
  11. ^ WD 127–42.
  12. ^ WD 143–55.
  13. ^ WD 156–73.
  14. ^ WD 174–201.
  15. ^ WD 207–11.
  16. ^ "HESIOD, WORKS AND DAYS - Theoi Classical Texts Library". www.theoi.com. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  17. ^ "Works and Days | Greek mythology, Ancient Greece, Hesiod | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2023-12-05.

Works cited

External links

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