From the book
Stobaeus, Volume I
John Stobaeus · Diotimos Editions · 2026
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At a Glance
- The wordStruphnos and stuphnos belong to the vocabulary of astringency, a constricting or drying sensation.
- In StobaeusAn explanation of color compares compression and dispersal across different senses, invoking tastes that contract or irritate the tongue.
- In this edition“Astringent” makes the contracting sensation explicit; “harsh” alone obscures the local distinction.
- A place to beginAstringency enters an analogy between effects in sight, touch, and taste.
- English renderings
- astringent; contracting; puckering
Meaning
Struphnos and stuphnos belong to the vocabulary of astringency, a constricting or drying sensation. The local contrast matters more than a single fixed English equivalent.
Use in the book
An explanation of color compares compression and dispersal across different senses, invoking tastes that contract or irritate the tongue. The taste account itself distinguishes a stronger roughening, called astringent, from a milder austere effect. These comparisons use familiar bodily experiences to explain differences in sensation.
Places to read
Translation in this edition
“Astringent” makes the contracting sensation explicit; “harsh” alone obscures the local distinction.
Source note
Wachsmuth, volume I, printed pp. 150, 494. The two Greek forms are related in use but should not be collapsed into a claim that every occurrence has exactly the same physiological explanation.