Boulesis, prohairesis, orexis -- and their Grecian/Griceian implicatures

by JLS
for the GC

The late M. Frede in his 1998 U. of C. Berkeley "Classical Literature" lectures, "A free will: the origin of the notion in Ancient thought"

mentions

Aristotle on nominal constructions:

boulesis
prohairesis
orexis

But it's best to always stick with the verb.

Here below.

From Liddell/Scott,

ὀρέγω , Od.17.366, E.Ph.1710 (lyr.), etc.; Ion. and later Prose, Hdt. 2.2, Arist.HA497b27, etc.: impf.

A.

“ὤρεγον” Pi.P.4.240, App.BC4.126 :
fut. “ὀρέξω” Il.13.327, E.Med.902 :
aor. “ὤρεξα” Il.23.406, Trag. (S.OC846, etc.), and sts. in Prose, Pl.Phd.117b, X.An.7.3.29:—Med.and Pass., Il.24.506, Th.2.65, etc.:
fut. “ὀρέξομαι” E.Hel.353, Pl.R.486a (ἐπ-): aor. “ὠρεξάμην” Il.23.99, E.HF16, etc.: rare in Prose, X.Mem.1.2.15 ; also ὠρέχθην ib.16, Ages.1.4, Smp.8.35, Hp.Ep.17, Epicur.Sent.7, Fr.187, as well as in E.（Hel.1238) (not in Hom.): pf. “ὤρεγμαι” Hp.Oss.18 ; redupl. 3pl. ὀρωρέχαται, plpf. -έχατο, Il.16.834, 11.26.—Cf. ὀρέγνυμι, ὀριγνάομαι :—

MEANINGS:

"reach,"

"stretch,"

"stretch out,"

“χεῖρ᾽ ὀρέγων” Od.17.366 ; “εἰς οὐρανόν” Il.15.371, Od.9.527 ; χεῖρας ἐμοὶ ὀρέγοντας, in entreaty, 12.257, cf. Plu.Cam.36 ; “μοι . . λεχέων ἐκ χεῖρας ὄρεξας” Il.24.743 ; “πρός τινα” Pi. P.4.240, cf. S.OC846, etc. ; Ὅμηρον . . , ἐφ᾽ ὃν πᾶσαι χεῖρ᾽ ὀρέγουσι πόλεις, to claim him, APl.4.294.

2.

reach out, hold out, hand, give,

“κοτύλην καὶ πύρνον” Od.15.312 ; “δέπας” Il.24.102 ; “ὁπποτέροισι πατὴρ Ζεὺς κῦδος ὀρέξῃ” 5.33, cf. 17.453, Hes.Th.433 ; “ἠέ τῳ εὖχος ὀρέξομεν, ἦέ τις ἡμῖν” Il.12.328, cf. S.Ph.1203 (lyr.); “ὀ. πλοῦτόν τινι” Pi.P.3.110 ; “τέλος ἔμπεδον” Id.N.7.58 ; “ὤρεξε τὴν κύλικα τῷ Σωκράτει” Pl.Phd.117b ; later βοήθειαν ὀρέξαι τοῖς ἀδικουμένοις extend help, POxy.902.11 (v A.D.).

II. Med. and Pass.,

1. abs.,

stretch oneself out,
stretch forth one's hand,

Od.21.53 ; “ἀνδρὸς . . ποτὶ στόμα χεῖρ᾽ ὀρέγεσθαι” Il.24.506 (but “χεῖρας ὀρεξαμένου” having lent a helping hand, Epigr.Gr.448.4 (Syria)); “ὀρεξαμένη ἀπὸ δίφρου” Hes.Sc.456; ὠρέξατο χερσὶ φίλῃσι, χειρὶ σκαιῇ, Il.23.99, Hes.Th.178 ; ἔγχει ὀρεξάσθω let him lunge with the spear (from the chariot), Il.4.307 ; “πρόσθεν Ἄρης ὠρέξαθ᾽ ὑπὲρ ζυγὸν . . ἔγχεϊ χαλκείῳ” 5.851 ; ποσσὶν ὀρωρέχαται πολεμίζειν, of horses, they galloped to the fight, 16.834; ὀρέξατ᾽ ἰών he stretched himself as he went, i.e. made a stride, 13.20 ; ὀρωρέχατο προτὶ δειρήν were stretched out towards the neck, 11.26 ; of fish, rise at the bait, “καί τις τῶν τραφερῶν ὠρέξατο” Theoc. 21.44 ; for A.Ag.1111, v. ὄρεγμα 1.1.

2. c. gen., reach at or to a thing, grasp at, οὗ παιδὸς ὀρέξατο he reached out to his child, Il.6.466, cf. Od.11.392 ; in a hostile sense, aim at, assail, hit, τοῦ δ᾽ ἀντίθεος Θρασυμήδης ἔφθη ὀρεξάμενος . . ὦμον hit him first on the shoulder, Il.16.322 ; ib.314, a gen. pers. must be supplied, ἔφθη ὀρεξάμενος πρυμνὸν σκέλος; so in 23.805 ὁππότερός κε φθῇσιν ὀρεξάμενος χρόα καλόν; “δηΐων ὀρέγοιτ᾽ ἐγγύθεν ἱστάμενος” Tyrt.12.12 ; also of a suppliant, τί χρῆμα θηρῶσ᾽ ἱκέτις ὠρέχθης ἐμοῦ; E.Hel.1238.

b. metaph.,

reach after,
grasp at,
yearn for,

“γάμων” Id.Ion842 ; “τῶν μεγίστων” Id.Fr.240; “ἀπεόντων” Democr.202; “ζωῆς” Id.205 : freq. in Att. Prose, Antipho 2.2.12, Th.3.42, Pl.R.439b,485d, etc.; “ὀ. τοῦ πρῶτος ἕκαστος γίγνεσθαι” Th.2.65 : so c. inf., “πόλιν ὠρέξατ᾽ οἰκεῖν” E.HF16 ; “ὀ. τοιοῦτος γενέσθαι” Pl. Prt.326a ; “οὐδέποτε ὠρέχθην τοῖς πολλοῖς ἀρέσκειν” Epicur.Fr.187 : also, abs., yearn, desire, “πάσῃσιν ὀρέξαιτο πραπίδεσσιν” Emp.129.4 ; “θυμὸς ὀρέξατο γηθοσύνῃσιν” A.R.2.878 ; “ὀρεγόμεθα κατὰ τὴν βούλευσιν” Arist.EN1113a12 ; cf. ὀρεκτός, ὄρεξις.

3. c. acc., σῖτόν τ᾽ ὄρεξαι take food, E.Or.303 (v.l. σίτων); αἰώρημα διὰ δέρης ὀρέξομαι I will put the noose on my neck, Id.Hel.353 (lyr.).