a man is nothing but breath and shadow
From LSJ
εἰς τετρημένον πίθον ἀντλεῖν → run water into a punctured pitcher, to the perforated jar bale water, labour in vain, labor in vain
Translations
ἄνθρωπός ἐστι πνεῦμα καὶ σκιὰ μόνον
English: man is but a breath and a shadow, a man is nothing but breath and shadow, human being is only a breath and a shadow (Sophocles, Fragmenta, 13); French: l'homme n'est que souffle et ombre; Italian: l'uomo non è che soffio e ombra; Spanish: el hombre es solamente un soplo y una sombra; Latin: nil aliud ac umbra atque flatus est homo, homo ventus solum et umbra; Dutch: een mens is slechts wind en schaduw; Modern Greek: ο άνθρωπος είναι μόν' ανάσα και σκιά
