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Leader of the Chorus
Hi! Epops! do you hear me? Epops
What's the matter? Leader of the Chorus
Take them off to dine well and call your mate, the melodious Procne, whose songs are worthy of the Muses; [660] she will delight our leisure moments.
Pisthetaerus
Oh! I conjure you, accede to their wish; for this delightful bird will leave her rushes at the sound of your voice; for the sake of the gods, let her come here, so that we may contemplate the nightingale. Epops
[665] Let it be as you desire. Come forth, Procne, show yourself to these strangers. Procne appears; she resembles a young flute-girl.
Pisthetaerus
Oh! great Zeus! what a beautiful little bird! what a dainty form! what brilliant plumage! Do you know how dearly I should like to get between her thighs? Euelpides
[670] She is dazzling all over with gold, like a young girl. Oh! how I should like to kiss her! Pisthetaerus
Why, wretched man, she has two little sharp points on her beak! Euelpides
I would treat her like an egg, the shell of which we remove before eating it; I would take off her mask and then kiss her pretty face. Epops
[675] Let us go in. Pisthetaerus
Lead the way, and may success attend us.Epops goes into the thicket, followed by Pisthetaerus and Euelpides.
Aristophanes. Birds. The Complete Greek Drama, vol. 2. Eugene O'Neill, Jr. New York. Random House. 1938.
The Annenberg CPB/Project provided support for entering this text.