- 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-grc2:5.106.1
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-04
The Melians argue that precisely because the Lacedaemonians prioritize their own interest, they will not wish to abandon Melos, their colony, as doing so would destroy their credibility among their allies and benefit their enemies.
ΜΗΛ. ἡμεῖς δὲ κατ’ αὐτὸ τοῦτο1 ἤδη καὶ μάλιστα πιστεύομεν τῷ ξυμφέροντι αὐτῶν, Μηλίους ἀποίκους ὄντας μὴ βουλήσεσθαι προδόντας2 τοῖς μὲν εὔνοις τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἀπίστους καταστῆναι, τοῖς δὲ πολεμίοις ὠφελίμους.
MEL.: But it is for this very reason that we now place our trust most of all in their interest: that they will not wish, by betraying us, the Melians, who are their colonists, to become untrustworthy to those of the Greeks who are well-disposed to them, and useful to their enemies.
- 5.106.1κατ’ αὐτὸ τοῦτο
In response to the Athenians' previous assertion that the Lacedaemonians equate expediency with justice, this phrase means "precisely for this very reason (namely, that they are driven by self-interest)," turning the Athenians' own argument back against them.
- 5.106.1Μηλίους ἀποίκους ὄντας μὴ βουλήσεσθαι προδόντας
The subject of the infinitive μὴ βουλήσεσθαι (which depends on the main verb πιστεύομεν) is the Lacedaemonians (with the accusative pronoun αὐτούς omitted). "Μηλίους ἀποίκους ὄντας" ("the Melians, who are [their] colonists") serves as the direct object of the active participle "προδόντας" ("by betraying"), which itself agrees in the accusative plural with the omitted subject of the infinitive.