These sections constitute the introduction (prooivmion), the speaker's opening comments which were designed to ensure the jurors' goodwill and attentiveness. "The methods employed to achieve this.......included, respectively, praising or flattering the jurors and highlighting the disadvantages under which he (the defendant) was speaking; direct appeal to the jurors and stressing the importance or improbability of the case, and its interest both for the defendant and for the jurors and the state itself; enabling the jurors to follow intelligently the narrative of events." (Edwards)
Section 1
MacDowell comments that this section along with 6, 7, and part of 9, seems to be taken from a collection of introductory passages for orators. He notes that the same passages, not quite word for word, are used by Lysias (19.2-5 and 11), and have some detected reminiscences elsewhere.
 | th;n paraskeuhvn (an expression which here carries the implication of bribery and corruption) is the object of epivstasqe several lines below. The prominent position of this word at the beginning of the sentence is deliberate, highlighting the extensive preparations made by Andocides' enemies against him. "It is common for an Attic orator to point to the elaborate preparations made by his opponent, implying that such preparations would be unnecessary if the case were not weak." (MacDowell)
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| w{stv ejme kakw'" poiei'n: w{ste is used with the infin. poiei'n to express a consequence or effect: (the preparation and eagerness of my enemies) such as to do me harm. See JACT pp. 300-01.
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| dikaivw" kai; ajdivkw" is a common cliché found again in sec. 135 of this speech. Translate: by fair means or foul.
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 | ejx ajrch'"...ajfikovmhn: The reference is to Andocides' return from his exile to Athens in 403.
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| kai; uJmi'n....pollou' tucei'n: Literally: both the things easy for you to grant and valuable for me to obtain.
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| ejnqumhqh'nai: infin. after an implied dehvsomai uJmw'n: (I shall ask you) to bear in mind.
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| oujdemia'"...paramei'nai: a gen. absolute construction with a dependent infin. Literally: there being no compulsion for me to remain here.
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| ejgguhtav" refers to sureties or guarantors, persons who were prepared to guarantee that an accused person would appear for trial. In the case of certain offences an accused person could be released on bail on condition that he came up with three guarantors of the same property class as himself. If he then failed to appear for trial, his guarantors could be liable to the penalties prescribed for the offence on which he had been charged.
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| gnwvsesqai ta; divkaia: gnwvsesqai is the fut. infin. of gignwvskw, which here has the meaning "make judgment". The infin. belongs with the preceding uJmi'n; so too periovyesqai. Literally: (trusting especially in justice, and then also in you) to be going to make fair judgment and not to be going to allow.... swvsein is a further infin. in the series.
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| kai; tou;" o{rkou"...oi[sein: Literally: and (in accordance with) the oaths, having sworn which you are going to cast your vote. Note the regular use of the fut. infin. (here oi[sein) after mevllw.
We might translate the section as a whole thus: Firstly, gentlemen, please bear in mind that I have come here today not because of any compulsion to remain here (i.e. in Athens); I have neither provided guarantors nor been kept in prison. Rather, I put my faith especially in justice and then also in you, (believing) that you would make right judgment and not allow me to be unjustly destroyed by my enemies. I believe that you would much sooner save me justly, in accordance both with your laws and with the oaths which you have sworn before you proceed to cast your vote.
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| ejqelovntwn...kaqistamevnwn: ejqelovntwn is often used, as here, with adverbial force. In this context, it "modifies" kaqistamevnwn. Translate: those voluntarily submitting themselves to the dangers (of the courts).
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| uJpomei'nai: to stay and face trial.
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| katagnovnte" auJtw'n aJdikivan: (and thus) having passed judgment on themselves. katagnovnte" is the 2nd aor. participle of katagignwvskw, which is here used with the accus. denoting the offence, and the gen. of the persons so charged. Two more instances of this construction follow. It is regular with compounds of katav of this class, although in general verbs of accusing, convicting, condemning etc. take a gen. denoting the crime and an accus. of the person; see Goodwin, Greek Grammar, secs. 1121, 1123.)
According to Andocides, those who failed to stay to face trial were in this case virtually passing judgment on themselves - i.e. admitting their guilt.
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| oJpovsoi....uJpevmeinan: all those who remained, confident in their innocence
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Section 4
| aujtivka here means "for example". The following ejgwv is inserted for emphasis. It anticipates the ejgwv in the wJ" a[ra clause.
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| pollw'n ajpaggellovntwn: gen. absolute followed by an indirect statement.
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| wJ" a[ra introduces an indirect statement after levgoien. It is used to indicate that the speaker, who is quoting the words of his enemies, does not accept the truth of what they say.
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| uJpomeivnaimi oijchvsomai: The two verbs are linked by the following te. Note the change from opt. to indic. mood. The opt. is in the main clause of a conditional statement (apodosis) with the "if" clause (protasis) suppressed: (my enemies claimed) that I would not stay and face trial (if I were accused). The following clause with the indic. oijchvsomai indicates a clear statement of fact (at least in the view of Andocides' enemies): but that I would certainly go into exile.
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| w|/: dat. of the rel. pronoun referring to Andocides; the dat. is used with e[xesti: "it is possible" Understand w|/ again with pleuvsanti...; in this case it is dat. after e[sti didomevnh: to whom having sailed (= if he sailed) to Cyprus.... much good land is being offered.
It is possible that the offer of land came from Euagoras, then king of Salamis in Cyprus, who was eager to attract Greek settlers to his kingdom. Other references, however, suggest that Andocides was not on good terms with Euagoras.
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| dwrea; uJpavrcousa: a gift (already) belonging (to him).
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| a[lloqi....oujk a;n dexaivmhn: "For a Greek, exile and the consequent denial of burial in his homeland were worse than death." (Edwards)
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| th'" povlew" diakeimevnh": gen. absolute; even if is implied in this participial phrase: even if the city were in as bad a state (as my enemies say).
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| ai{ i[sw"....dokou'sin: i[sw" belongs with dokou'sin, pavnu with eujtucei'n: which perhaps seem to be very well off...
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| diabolh'" refers to prejudice against the accused.
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| w{ste uJma'"....tw'n kathgoroumevnwn: (they have been so clearly proved liars) that (= with the result that) you would far more readily have punished the accusers than...
w{ste introduces a result clause, containing the accus. and infin. construction uJma'"... labei'n. divkhn labei'n means "to punish", used with parav + the gen. of the person(s) punished. polu; h{dion: far more readily. h{dion is the comparative adverb formed from hJduv. "A prosecutor who failed to obtain at least one-fifth of the jury's votes at the end of the case was in fact liable to punishment. In public cases he paid a fine of 1000 drachmas and also suffered 'loss of rights' (ajtimiva). This evidently included loss of the right to bring prosecutions of the same type in the future." (MacDowell)
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| oiJ de; au|: others again....
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| ta; yeudh' is here a cognate accus. used with marturhvsante": having given false evidence. Cf. marturei'n ajkohvn: to give hearsay evidence. For information on the cognate accusative, see Goodwin, Greek Grammar, sec. 1051.
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| eJavlwsan par! ujmi'n: (Others again)....were convicted before you. eJavlwsan is 3rd plur. 2nd aor. indic. of the verb aJlivskomai, which is used as the passive of aiJrevw. In a legal context, the verb means "to be convicted". The offenders would actually have been convicted by a jury panel. But uJmi'n can appropriately be used here since jury panels performed their tasks on behalf of and as representatives of the whole citizen body.
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| hJnivk!...peponqovsin: at a time when (hJnivk!) it was no longer of any advantage to their victims. peponqovsin is the perf. partic. (dat. plur.) of pavscw.
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| eij me;n... h] mhv: whether the accusation is serious or not.
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| oi|ovn....lovgwn: oi|on te (ejstiv) is a relatively common expression meaning "it is possible". It is followed here by the infin. gnw'nai: it is possible (for you) to judge from the words of the prosecutor. This construction appears in the next sentence as well.
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| ejk tw'n teleutaivwn lovgwn: from the end of the story - "i.e. events after Andocides' return to Athens, which he does not begin to relate until sec. 71." (Edwards)
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| tou" yhfivsmato" tou' !Isotimivdou: The decree is referred to again in sec. 71. It prohibited anyone who had committed impiety and had confessed his guilt from entering the agora or the temples of Athens. Andocides was accused by Cephisius of violating this decree by attending the performance of the Eleusinian Mysteries. See further discussion of this in the Background Information.
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| ta; me;n ou\n....uJpevmeina: Literally: So I think that you personally are prepared to make a just decision (ta; divkaia gignwvskein), trusting in whom I stayed to face trial. oi|sper is dat. after pisteuvsa". Its antecedent is uJma'".
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| peri; pleivstou tou'to poioumevnou": considering this thing as most important. poiei'n in the middle voice can have the meaning "consider, reckon, esteem", and is often used in association with a prepositional phrase to indicate the value placed on something.
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| yhfivzesqai: the infin. phrase provides the substance of the preceding tou'to: (considering this the most important thing, namely) to vote according to your oaths.
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| ajkovntwn....e[cein: "ouj, instead of mhv, shows that Andocides is referring to some particular persons (his prosecutors and their friends), not to a whole class. He means not 'it holds the state together, against the will of those who do not wish it to be held together'....but 'it holds the state together, to the frustration of certain persons who desire its dissolution.'" (MacDowell)
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| met! eujnoiva" mou: mou is here an objective gen. Translate: with goodwill towards me.
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| rJhvmata qhreuvein: Literally: to hunt after my words. Andocides is asking the jury not to try to catch him out by seizing on any verbal mistakes he might make in the presentation of his defence.
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| dia; tevlou": from beginning to end.
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| tovte h[dh: then at last.
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| th'" aijtiva" refers to the initial accusation which led to the formal proceedings (e[ndeixi") against Andocides.
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| peri; tw'n musthrivwn: This refers to part of the charge (aijtiva) laid against Andocides - i.e. the "profanation of the Mysteries", dealt with immediately below. The other part of the charge concerned the mutilation of the hermae, the statues of Hermes, dealt with in secs. 34 ff.
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| ejmoi;....wJmolovghtai: Literally: no act of impiety has been committed by me, no information laid, no (guilt) admitted.
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Section 11
| ejkklhsiva: This was not a regular meeting of the Assembly, which was known as an ejkklhsiva kuriva, but an extraordinary meeting (ejkklhsiva suvgklhto") called after the crisis arising from the mutilation of the hermae and just prior to the departure of the fleet on the Sicilian expedition.
Nicias was a politician and general noted for his moderate line in the Athenian political scene and his attempts to conclude a lasting peace with Sparta. He played a major role in bringing about the peace treaty concluded with Sparta in 421 - a treaty which, as we have noted, became known as the "Peace of Nicias". However, his plans for a permanent peace were overturned by the aggressive policies of Alcibiades, the principal advocate of the expedition to Sicily. Although Nicias argued strongly against the expedition, which would in effect lead to a fresh outbreak of war with Sparta, he was appointed one of its leaders, along with Alcibiades and Lamachus.
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| trihvrh" hJ strathgiv": the general's flagship.
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| ajrei'sqai: fut. infin. (after mevllete) of the verb ai[rw "take up, raise". In the middle voice, the verb can have the meaning "undertake, embark on". Thus kivndunon ajrei'sqai: "to (be going to) embark on danger.
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| a[deian: immunity. "An offender might be excused punishment, by vote of the assembly, if he gave information against his accomplices; but if his information was found to be false, the penalty was death." (MacDowell)
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| qeravpwn....musthvria: Literally: a slave of one of the men here will tell to you the Mysteries (though) being a non-initiate. The fact that a non-initiate could describe the secret rites would demonstrate that they had been carried out by initiates in the presence of persons who had no right to know such things. The performers would thus have been guilty of serious sacrilege.
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| crh'sqe....dokh'/: treat me in whatever way seems fitting to you.
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| ejxavrnou o[nto": denying the charge. (e[xarno" eijmiv = "I deny".)
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| toi'" prutavnesi: The Standing Committee of the Council of Five Hundred. The Council was made up of 50 representatives from each of the ten tribes, and each group of 50 served as the Council's Standing Committee for a period of approximately 36 days in a year. During this period the committee was virtually in continuous session, in order to deal with any sudden state emergencies. They met in the circular tholos building, which lay at the south west corner of the Agora next to the Council House.
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| tou;" ajmuhvtou" metasthvsasqai: to dismiss the uninitiated. This was to prevent them learning any of the secret rites from what the slave might reveal.
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| aujtou;" ijevnai: Note the switch to an accus. and infin. construction where we might have expected aujtoi'", parallel with the preceding toi'" prutavnesi after e[doxe.
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| [polevmarcon]: The square brackets indicate that this word should be deleted from the manuscript reading. Various suggestions have been made to account for the error. MacDowell suggests that it "originated from a gloss on !Alkibiavdou written by someone who did not realise that in 415 the commander of a military or naval expedition was not the polemarch, and who wished to distinguish this Alcibiades from (for example) the one mentioned in sec. 65." Another suggestion is that the text should read !Arcebiavdou tou' Polemavrcou: (a slave of) Archebiades, son of Polemarchos. But the reading remains uncertain.
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| Poulutivwno": "Poulytion's house was a magnificent one...in a stoa by the road leading to the Thrasian gate (later known as the Dipylon), on the west side of the city. Isokrates 16.6 also mentions this celebration in Poulytion's house; he adds the detail sundeipnou'nte", which indicates that the affair was a party game rather than a religious seance." (MacDowell)
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| touvtou" me;n aujtou;"....poiou'nte": (he said that) these men were the actual performers.
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| sumparei'nai... a[llou": a[llou" is the accus. subject of sumparei'nai and oJra'n: (he said.....) that others too were present and saw what happened.
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kaiv moi ....ta; ojnovmata: moi is an ethic dative. This kind of dat. has no close grammatical relationship with the rest of the sentence, and is often used as a means of gaining the attention of the person to whom it is addressed. In English, we might translate with a phrase like "Look here!" or "I tell you", and sometimes simply (as here) "Please". The instruction to take the list and read out the names is given to the clerk of the court.
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Section 14
| moi: Another ethic dative, used closely with the imperative kavlei.
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| h\sqa...h\n....: MacDowell notes that this is the only instance in Athenian speeches where a witness is questioned, though a speaker sometimes questions his opponent.
zhththv": I.e. one of the commissioners on the panel set up to investigate the mutilation of the hermae.
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| Deutevra .. mhvnusi": This second laying of information occurred after Alcibiades' departure on the Sicilian expedition.
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| mevtoiko": The term "metic" or "resident alien" refers to a free person living in Athens who had none of the usual rights of citizenship, such as the right to take part or vote in the political assemblies.
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| kai; peri;....h[/dei: and also (to give) the information which he knew about the mutilation of the hermae.
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| yhfisamevnh": Understand a[deian.
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| aujtokravtwr: I.e. the Council in dealing with the profanation of the Mysteries (as also with the mutilation of the hermae) was given full authority to act on behalf of the whole assembly. Such authority could be granted to the Council in times of crisis where prompt action was considered essential. Normally such matters as the granting of immunity from prosecution were dealt with by the whole Assembly.
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| w[/conto ejp! aujto;n Mevgaravde: they (i.e. officials acting on behalf of the Council) went to Megara to fetch him.
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| mevmnhsqe....a{panta: Recall that all these things are also being admitted to you. mevmnhsqe is the perf. imperative form of mimnhvskw, used in a present sense. |