33 Pear

33 Pear西洋梨 

ὄγχνη pear-tree, Pirus communis

Kingdom:      Plantae

(unranked):   Angiosperms

(unranked):   Eudicots

(unranked):   Rosids

Order:    Rosales

Family:    Rosaceae

Genus:    Pyrus

Species:   P. communis

Odyssey 24. 205-301

下面場景轉到Odysseus走道田莊探視年邁的父親。這田莊是Laertes親手打造，旁邊還有住屋、棚舍，所以老人家可以遠離城市生活。但是，Odysseus並不打算馬上和父親相擁相認，他想看看父親是不是還認得他，所以Odysseus走進父親的果園，遠遠地看父親孤零零一人，川著骯髒的衣服，衣服全是補丁，帶著牛皮護腿，頭戴羊皮帽。站在一棵梨樹下，Odysseus望著年老的父親，不禁悲從中來，淚潸潸：

http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0135%3Abook%3D24%3Acard%3D232

ὣς εἰπὼν δμώεσσιν ἀρήϊα τεύχε᾽ ἔδωκεν.

οἱ μὲν ἔπειτα δόμονδε θοῶς κίον, αὐτὰρ Ὀδυσσεὺς

ἆσσον ἴεν πολυκάρπου ἀλωῆς πειρητίζων.

οὐδ᾽ εὗρεν Δολίον, μέγαν ὄρχατον ἐσκαταβαίνων,

οὐδέ τινα δμώων οὐδ᾽ υἱῶν: ἀλλ᾽ ἄρα τοί γε

αἱμασιὰς λέξοντες ἀλωῆς ἔμμεναι ἕρκος

ᾤχοντ᾽, αὐτὰρ ὁ τοῖσι γέρων ὁδὸν ἡγεμόνευε.

τὸν δ᾽ οἶον πατέρ᾽ εὗρεν ἐϋκτιμένῃ ἐν ἀλωῇ,

λιστρεύοντα φυτόν: ῥυπόωντα δὲ ἕστο χιτῶνα

ῥαπτὸν ἀεικέλιον, περὶ δὲ κνήμῃσι βοείας

κνημῖδας ῥαπτὰς δέδετο, γραπτῦς ἀλεείνων,

χειρῖδάς τ᾽ ἐπὶ χερσὶ βάτων ἕνεκ᾽: αὐτὰρ ὕπερθεν

αἰγείην κυνέην κεφαλῇ ἔχε, πένθος ἀέξων.

τὸν δ᾽ ὡς οὖν ἐνόησε πολύτλας δῖος Ὀδυσσεὺς

γήραϊ τειρόμενον, μέγα δὲ φρεσὶ πένθος ἔχοντα,

στὰς ἄρ᾽ ὑπὸ βλωθρὴν ὄγχνην κατὰ δάκρυον εἶβε.

(Odyssey 24. 219-234)

γηράσκω grow old

βλωθρός tall

ὄγχνη pear-tree, Pirus communis

http://records.viu.ca/~johnstoi/homer/odyssey24.htm

Odysseus spoke,

then gave his battle weapons to his servants.

They quickly went inside the house. Then Odysseus,   

walking out to test his father, came up beside

the fruitful vineyard and from there continued down

to the extensive orchard, where he failed to find

Dolius or any sons of his father’s slaves.

They’d gone off to gather large rocks for the wall

around the vineyard, with the old man in the lead.

In the well-established vineyard he found his father.

He was digging round a plant, all by himself,

dressed in a filthy, shabby, patched-up tunic.

Around his legs he’d tied shin pads stitched from ox-hide

to protect himself from scratches, and on his hands  

he had on gloves, since there were thistles in that spot.

On his head he wore a goatskin hat. In these clothes

he was dealing with his grief. When lord Odysseus,

who had endured so much, saw him worn down with age

and carrying so much heavy sorrow in his heart,

he stood under a tall pear tree and shed a tear...

第244-248行會在提到Laertes的果園除了梨樹，還有無花果、葡萄、橄欖、和蔬菜等等。雖然，離家二十年的Odysseus看見這幕很感傷，但是我也看見，老年的Laertes在自己的田地與果園中，自得其樂，至少，還有體力忙著田裡的事。

下面圖片資料來源: http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/Mythology/Laertes.html

以下圖片資料來源: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Pear

梵谷的畫

Small Pear Tree in Blossom, 1888

Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890)

• Oil on Canvas, 73 x 46 cm
• Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam (Vincent van Gogh Foundation)
• F 405