[Julie Steiner]

MELEAGER'S BEE POEM--THE ORIGINAL GREEK:

Meleager's bee poem (AP 5.163 = 50 Gow-Page)

Ἀνθοδίαιτε μέλισσα, τί μοι χροὸς Ἡλιοδώρας
.....ψαύεις ἐκπρολιποῦσ' εἰαρινὰς κάλυκας;
ἦ σύ γε μηνύεις ὅτι καὶ γλυκὺ καὶ †δύσοιστον
.....πικρὸν ἀεὶ κραδίᾳ κέντρον Ἔρωτος ἔχει;
ναὶ δοκέω τοῦτ' εἶπας· ἰὼ ϕιλέραστε, παλίμπους
.....στεῖχε· πάλαι τὴν σὴν οἴδαμεν ἀγγελίην.

†Or δύσπιστον, or δυσόϊστον, or δυσύποιστον. Also, any of these four options could have the ending ων instead of ον, making it an adverb.


THE ENGLISH PROSE CRIB:

(1) Flower-dwelling bee, why, for my benefit, are you are touching (verb ψαύεις in L2) Heliodora's skin, (2) having left behind the springtime blossoms? (3) Can it be that you indicate that she posesses (verb ἔχει in L4) something both sweet and †insufferable, (4) bitter always to the heart--the sting of Eros? (5) Yes, I suppose that is what you were saying. O, friend of lovers, go (verb στεῖχε in L6) back: (6) long have I understood your message.

†Or "unfaithful", or "hard to stand". Any of these options could also be taken as an adverb modifying "bitter".


THE ELEGIAC DISTICH RECIPE, if you choose to attempt it:

The hexameter line:
— ︶︶ — ︶︶ — |︶|︶ — ︶︶ — |︶︶ — ︶
i.e. - uu - uu - |u|u - uu - |uu - u , in simpler text

The pentameter line:
.....— ︶︶ — ︶︶ — | — ︶︶ — ︶︶ ︶
i.e. - uu - uu - | - uu - uu u

— , i.e. - = one long syllable
︶︶, i.e. uu = either one long syllable or two short syllables
︶, i.e. u = either one long syllable or one short syllable (line-ending syllables seem longer, anyway)
| = possible location of the line's caesura (a significant break between words--usually between syntactical units. One per line, but three possible locations in the hexameter line; only one in the pentameter line.)