Editing Telephus (section)

==The silence of Telephus==
Presumably Sophocles' ''Aleadae'' (''The Sons of Aleus'') told how Telephus, while still in Arcadia, prior to going to Mysia in search of his mother, killed Aleus' sons, thereby fulfilling the oracle. Ancient sources confirm the killing, however virtually nothing is known of how this may have come about.<ref>Lloyd-Jones, [https://books.google.com/books?id=voiup-mz2CkC&pg=PA33 p. 33]; Gantz, p. 429; Jebb, Headlam and Pearson, [https://books.google.com/books?id=R1qaCxoc90UC&pg=PA47 Vol 1. pp. 47&ndash;48]; Frazer's note 1 to Apollodorus, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Apollod.+2.7.4 2.7.4]; [[Gaius Julius Hyginus|Hyginus]], ''[[Fabulae]]'' 244; ''Appendix Proverbiorum'', 2.85 (Leutsch and Schneidewin, [https://archive.org/stream/corpusparoemiog00unkngoog#page/n467 pp. 411&ndash;412]). Sophocles' ''Aleadae'' frs. 84, 86, and 87 (Lloyd-Jones, pp. 36&ndash;39) hint at the possibility of a scene in which the uncles impugned Telephus' illegitimate birth.</ref>

The murder of his uncles would have caused Telephus to become religiously polluted, and in need of purification, and apparently, Greek religious practice required criminal homicides to remain silent until their blood-guilt could be expiated.<ref>Sommerstein, [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/aeschylus-attributed_fragments/2009/pb_LCL505.151.xml p. 150]; Lloyd-Jones, [https://books.google.com/books?id=voiup-mz2CkC&pg=PA216 p. 216&mdash;217]; Kerényi, p. 339; Frazer's note 2 to Apollodorus, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Apollod.+2.7.4 2.7.4]; Margoliouth, [https://books.google.com/books?id=E0tFAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA217 p. 217]; [[Aeschylus]], ''[[Oresteia#The Eumenides|Eumenides]]'' [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Aesch.+Eum.+448 448&mdash;450];  Compare with [[Herodotus]] [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Hdt.+1.35 1.35].</ref> [[Aristotle]] in the ''[[Poetics]]'', in a reference to Telephus' appearance in some play he calls the ''Mysians'', mentions "the man who came from Tegea to Mysia without speaking".<ref>[[Aristotle]], ''[[Poetics]]'' [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0056%3Asection%3D1460a 1460a 30&ndash;32]. Both Aeschylus and Sophocles wrote plays about Telephus, called ''Mysians'', but since Sophocles, ''Mysians'' fr. 411 seems to imply that Telephus has spoken,  that play is generally ruled out, see Sommerstein, [https://www.loebclassics.com/view/aeschylus-attributed_fragments/2009/pb_LCL505.151.xml p. 150]; Lloyd-Jones, [https://books.google.com/books?id=voiup-mz2CkC&pg=PA216 p. 216&mdash;217]; Jebb, Headlam and Pearson, [https://books.google.com/books?id=enUmCztpbI0C&pg=PA70 Vol 2, p. 71]; Post, [https://books.google.com/books?id=fHjPAAAAMAAJ&dq=Telephus+silence&pg=PA16 p. 16].</ref> And indeed, the silence of Telephus was apparently "proverbial".<ref>Frazer's note 1 to Apollodorus, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Apollod.+2.7.4 2.7.4]; Lloyd-Jones, [https://books.google.com/books?id=voiup-mz2CkC&pg=PA216 p. 216].</ref> The comic poet [[Alexis (poet)|Alexis]] writes about a voracious dinner guest who like "Telephus in speechless silence sits, / Making but signs to those who ask him questions", presumably too intent on eating to converse.<ref>Quoted by [[Athenaeus]], ''[[Deipnosophistae|The Deipnosophists]]'' [https://archive.org/stream/deipnosophistsor02atheuoft#page/664/mode/2up 10.18, Vol. II p. 664]</ref> And another comic poet [[Amphis]], complains about fishmongers who "mute they stand like Telephus", going on to say that the comparison of the fishmongers to Telephus is apt since "they all are homicides".<ref>Quoted by [[Athenaeus]], ''[[Deipnosophistae|The Deipnosophists]]'' [https://archive.org/stream/deipnosophistsor01atheuoft#page/356/mode/2up 6.5, Vol. I p. 356].</ref>