Ρόθος w w. 406 Persów Ajschylosa
Ρόθος in Aeschylus, Persae 406

Summary/Abstract: This paper discusses what is said to be one of Aeschylus' gravest mistakes in Persae: namely, the fact that a Persian messenger seems to be depicted as one not knowing his own language. Many scholars have read the play in the following way: the Persian messenger describing the Battle of Salamis is unable to understand Persian murmurs--yet, oddly enough, he is able to repeat verbatim Greek war cries. Such interpretations fail to take into account manifold meanings of the Ρόθος noun. The author of the paper analyses connotations and denotations of both the said noun and its Archaic and Classical derivatives. Subsequently, Ρόθος is analysed in the context of the messenger's speech. Findings of these analyses reveal that Ρόθος used in the context of human speech denotes a kind of verbal or vocal reaction to an event-in the said case, the murmur of panic let out by Persians as they realized they had been outwitted by Greeks. Consequently, the author demonstrates that the said usage of that noun was not a mistake on Aeschylus' part, but a conscious word choice.

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