- Source
- Thucydides. Historiae, Vol 1-2. Jones, Henry Stuart, editor. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1910. (1942 printing).
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.140.1-1.140.5
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-23
Pericles addresses the assembly, reaffirming his policy of refusing to yield to the Spartans, and exposes Sparta's systematic ambitions for domination hidden behind demands such as the repeal of the Megarian decree.
‘τῆς μὲν γνώμης, ὦ Ἀθηναῖοι, αἰεὶ τῆς αὐτῆς ἔχομαι,1 μὴ εἴκειν Πελοποννησίοις, καίπερ εἰδὼς τοὺς ἀνθρώπους οὐ τῇ αὐτῇ ὀργῇ ἀναπειθομένους τε πολεμεῖν καὶ ἐν τῷ ἔργῳ πράσσοντας,2 πρὸς δὲ τὰς ξυμφορὰς καὶ τὰς γνώμας τρεπομένους. ὁρῶ δὲ καὶ νῦν ὁμοῖα καὶ παραπλήσια ξυμβουλευτέα μοι ὄντα, καὶ τοὺς ἀναπειθομένους ὑμῶν δικαιῶ τοῖς κοινῇ δόξασιν, ἢν ἄρα τι καὶ σφαλλώμεθα, βοηθεῖν, ἢ μηδὲ κατορθοῦντας τῆς ξυνέσεως μεταποιεῖσθαι. ἐνδέχεται γὰρ τὰς ξυμφορὰς τῶν πραγμάτων οὐχ ἧσσον ἀμαθῶς χωρῆσαι ἢ καὶ τὰς διανοίας τοῦ ἀνθρώπου· δι’ ὅπερ καὶ τὴν τύχην, ὅσα ἂν παρὰ λόγον ξυμβῇ, εἰώθαμεν αἰτιᾶσθαι.
”Athenians, I always hold to the same opinion, which is not to yield to the Peloponnesians, although I know that men do not preserve the same passion when they are persuaded to go to war as when they are acting in the actual deed, but change their judgments according to their fortunes. I see, indeed, even now that similar and almost identical advice must be given by me, and I demand that those of you who are persuaded should support our common decisions, even if we should meet with some failure, or else, if we succeed, not to claim any share in the sagacity of those decisions. For it is possible for the course of events to proceed no less unpredictably than the designs of man; which is why we are accustomed to blame Fortune for whatever happens contrary to calculation.
‘Λακεδαιμόνιοι δὲ πρότερόν τε δῆλοι ἦσαν ἐπιβουλεύοντες ἡμῖν καὶ νῦν οὐχ ἥκιστα. εἰρημένον3 γὰρ δίκας μὲν τῶν διαφορῶν ἀλλήλοις διδόναι καὶ δέχεσθαι, ἔχειν δὲ ἑκατέρους ἃ ἔχομεν, οὔτε αὐτοὶ δίκας πω ᾔτησαν οὔτε ἡμῶν διδόντων δέχονται, βούλονται δὲ πολέμῳ μᾶλλον ἢ λόγοις τὰ ἐγκλήματα διαλύεσθαι, καὶ ἐπιτάσσοντες ἤδη καὶ οὐκέτι αἰτιώμενοι πάρεισιν.
The Lacedaemonians were clear before this too in plotting against us, and now not least. For although it has been agreed that we should give and accept arbitration for our differences and that each should hold what we have, they have neither ever requested arbitration themselves nor do they accept it when we offer it, but they wish to settle their complaints by war rather than by negotiation, and they are already here issuing orders and no longer making accusations.
Ποτειδαίας τε γὰρ ἀπανίστασθαι κελεύουσι καὶ Αἴγιναν αὐτόνομον ἀφιέναι καὶ τὸ Μεγαρέων ψήφισμα καθαιρεῖν· οἱ δὲ τελευταῖοι οἵδε ἥκοντες καὶ τοὺς Ἕλληνας προαγορεύουσιν αὐτονόμους ἀφιέναι.
For they order us to raise the siege of Potidaea, to leave Aegina independent, and to rescind the Megarian decree; and these last ones who have arrived even proclaim that we must leave all the Greeks independent.
ὑμῶν δὲ μηδεὶς νομίσῃ περὶ βραχέος ἂν πολεμεῖν,4 εἰ τὸ Μεγαρέων ψήφισμα μὴ καθέλοιμεν, ὅπερ μάλιστα προύχονται, εἰ καθαιρεθείη, μὴ ἂν γίγνεσθαι τὸν πόλεμον, μηδὲ ἐν ὑμῖν αὐτοῖς αἰτίαν ὑπολίπησθε ὡς διὰ μικρὸν ἐπολεμήσατε.
But let no one of you think that we would be going to war over a trifle if we do not rescind the Megarian decree—which they especially put forward as their pretext, claiming that if it were rescinded the war would not happen—nor leave behind any self-reproach among yourselves that you went to war for a small matter.
τὸ γὰρ βραχύ τι τοῦτο πᾶσαν ὑμῶν ἔχει τὴν βεβαίωσιν καὶ πεῖραν τῆς γνώμης. οἷς5 εἰ ξυγχωρήσετε, καὶ ἄλλο τι μεῖζον εὐθὺς ἐπιταχθήσεσθε ὡς φόβῳ καὶ τοῦτο ὑπακούσαντες· ἀπισχυρισάμενοι δὲ σαφὲς ἂν καταστήσαιτε αὐτοῖς ἀπὸ τοῦ ἴσου ὑμῖν μᾶλλον προσφέρεσθαι.
For this trifle contains the entire confirmation and test of your resolution. If you yield to them on this, you will immediately be ordered to do some other greater thing, on the ground that you complied with this too out of fear; but by taking a firm stand you would make it clear to them that they must deal with you on an equal footing.”
- 1.140.1τῆς μὲν γνώμης ... ἔχομαι
The middle verb ἔχομαι takes the genitive case, meaning "to cleave to" or "to hold fast to". τῆς αὐτῆς also agrees with this genitive, and μὴ εἴκειν is an explanatory infinitive in apposition to the noun phrase.
- 1.140.1εἰδὼς τοὺς ἀνθρώπους οὐ τῇ αὐτῇ ὀργῇ ἀναπειθομένους τε πολεμεῖν καὶ ἐν τῷ ἔργῳ πράσσοντας
The participle εἰδὼς (from οἶδα) takes τοὺς ἀνθρώπους as the accusative subject in an indirect discourse construction, with the participles ἀναπειθομένους, πράσσοντας, and τρεπομένους functioning as accusative complements.
- 1.140.2εἰρημένον
The neuter accusative singular of the perfect passive of λέγω (εἴρηται), used here as an accusative absolute, conveying a concessive force: "although it has been agreed/stipulated."
- 1.140.4περὶ βραχέος ἂν πολεμεῖν
The infinitive πολεμεῖν with ἂν represents the apodosis in indirect discourse corresponding to the conditional clause εἰ ... μὴ καθέλοιμεν. In direct discourse, this would be a potential optative (ἂν πολεμοῖμεν) or an irrealis indicative (ἂν ἐπολεμοῦμεν).
- 1.140.5οἷς
A relative pronoun in the dative case, referring back to the Lacedaemonians (or their demands) and functioning as the object of the verb ξυγχωρήσετε ("to yield to").
Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-21)
- 2026-09-21 AI review — note 1