- 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-grc2:3.53.1-3.53.4
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-26
The Plataean spokesmen begin their speech, expressing their fear of facing an unfair trial despite having surrendered out of trust in the Spartans, and explaining why they feel compelled to speak rather than remain silent.
‘τὴν μὲν παράδοσιν τῆς πόλεως, ὦ Λακεδαιμόνιοι, πιστεύσαντες ὑμῖν ἐποιησάμεθα, οὐ τοιάνδε δίκην οἰόμενοι ὑφέξειν, νομιμωτέραν δέ τινα ἔσεσθαι, καὶ ἐν δικασταῖς οὐκ ἂν ἄλλοις δεξάμενοι,1 ὥσπερ καὶ ἐσμέν, γενέσθαι [ἢ ὑμῖν], ἡγούμενοι τὸ ἴσον μάλιστ’ ἂν φέρεσθαι.
‘Lacedaemonians, we made the surrender of our city trusting in you, not thinking that we should have to undergo a trial of this kind, but expecting that it would be something more in accordance with law; and we should not have consented to stand before any other judges—as indeed we now do—believing that in your hands we should most surely receive fair treatment.
νῦν δὲ φοβούμεθα μὴ ἀμφοτέρων ἅμα ἡμαρτήκαμεν·2 τόν τε γὰρ ἀγῶνα περὶ τῶν δεινοτάτων εἶναι εἰκότως ὑποπτεύομεν καὶ ὑμᾶς μὴ οὐ κοινοὶ ἀποβῆτε,3 τεκμαιρόμενοι4 προκατηγορίας τε ἡμῶν οὐ προγεγενημένης ᾗ χρὴ ἀντειπεῖν (ἀλλ’ αὐτοὶ λόγον ᾐτησάμεθα) τό τε ἐπερώτημα βραχὺ ὄν, ᾧ τὰ μὲν ἀληθῆ ἀποκρίνασθαι ἐναντία γίγνεται, τὰ δὲ ψευδῆ ἔλεγχον ἔχει.
But now we fear that we have been mistaken on both points at once; we naturally suspect that our trial is for life and death, and we dread lest you should not prove impartial. We infer this because no formal accusation has been previously made against us for us to answer (on the contrary, we ourselves requested permission to speak), and also because the question asked is so brief, to which to answer the truth is to our disadvantage, while to answer what is false is easily refuted.
πανταχόθεν δὲ ἄποροι καθεστῶτες ἀναγκαζόμεθα καὶ ἀσφαλέστερον δοκεῖ εἶναι εἰπόντας τι κινδυνεύειν· καὶ γὰρ ὁ μὴ ῥηθεὶς λόγος τοῖς ὧδ’ ἔχουσιν αἰτίαν ἂν παράσχοι ὡς, εἰ ἐλέχθη, σωτήριος ἂν ἦν.5
Finding ourselves utterly helpless, we are forced to speak, and it seems safer to run the risk after saying something; for to men in our situation, the word left unspoken might cause them to complain that, if only it had been spoken, it would have saved them.
χαλεπῶς δὲ ἔχει ἡμῖν πρὸς τοῖς ἄλλοις καὶ ἡ πειθώ. ἀγνῶτες μὲν γὰρ ὄντες ἀλλήλων ἐπεσενεγκάμενοι μαρτύρια ὧν ἄπειροι ἦτε ὠφελούμεθ’ ἄν· νῦν δὲ πρὸς εἰδότας πάντα λελέξεται, καὶ δέδιμεν οὐχὶ μὴ προκαταγνόντες ἡμῶν τὰς ἀρετὰς ἥσσους εἶναι τῶν ὑμετέρων ἔγκλημα αὐτὸ ποιῆτε, ἀλλὰ μὴ ἄλλοις χάριν φέροντες ἐπὶ διεγνωσμένην κρίσιν καθιστώμεθα.
Moreover, in addition to our other difficulties, our power of persuasion is also at a disadvantage. If we were strangers to one another, we might benefit by bringing forward evidence of things of which you were ignorant; but now everything will be spoken to those who already know it all. And we fear, not that you have already judged our virtues to be inferior to yours and will make this very thing an accusation, but rather that we are being brought to a trial where the verdict has already been decided, in order to gratify others.’
- 3.53.1δεξάμενοι
A participle expressing condition, accompanied by the particle ἄν (with οὐκ ἂν ἄλλοις), indicating a past contrary-to-fact condition or potential choice ('we would not have accepted'). It governs the following infinitive γενέσθαι ('to stand before').
- 3.53.2μὴ ἀμφοτέρων ἅμα ἡμαρτήκαμεν
The verb of fearing φοβούμεθα is followed by μή with the indicative past, expressing a present fear or suspicion regarding an event that has already occurred in the past ('lest we have been mistaken on both points').
- 3.53.2ὑμᾶς μὴ οὐ κοινοὶ ἀποβῆτε
A case of prolepsis (anticipation), where 'you' (ὑμεῖς), which should be the subject of the dependent clause, is anticipated as the object of the main clause (ὑμᾶς). The double negative μὴ οὐ with the subjunctive expresses a negative apprehension ('fear lest you should not prove').
- 3.53.2τεκμαιρόμενοι
This participle governs two elements showing the grounds for inference, but they are coordinated in an asymmetrical structure (anacoluthon): the former is a genitive absolute (προκατηγορίας ... οὐ προγεγενημένης), and the latter is an accusative participle phrase (τό τε ἐπερώτημα βραχὺ ὄν).
- 3.53.3εἰ ἐλέχθη, σωτήριος ἂν ἦν
A past contrary-to-fact conditional sentence within an appositive ὡς clause (εἰ with indicative past, with ἄν and indicative past in the apodosis), expressing a past unrealized hypothesis: 'if only it had been spoken, it would have saved them.'