Humanitext Reader

Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §2.36.1-2.36.4

Praise of the Ancestors and the Road to Greatness

Passage 182 of 917 · Greek

Summary

Pericles begins his main speech by praising the ancestors, the fathers, and the current generation for building Athens' empire, maintaining its freedom, and establishing its self-sufficiency. He then states that instead of reciting specific military exploits, he will first explain the principles, constitution, and habits that made the city great.

§2.36.1‘ἄρξομαι δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν προγόνων πρῶτον· δίκαιον γὰρ αὐτοῖς καὶ πρέπον δὲ ἅμα ἐν τῷ τοιῷδε τὴν τιμὴν ταύτην τῆς μνήμης δίδοσθαι.
‘I will begin first with our ancestors; for it is both just and at the same time fitting that this honor of remembrance should be given to them on such an occasion.
τὴν γὰρ χώραν οἱ αὐτοὶ αἰεὶ οἰκοῦντες διαδοχῇ τῶν ἐπιγιγνομένων μέχρι τοῦδε ἐλευθέραν δι’ ἀρετὴν παρέδοσαν.
For, always inhabiting the same land through a succession of generations down to the present, they have by their valor handed it down free.
§2.36.2καὶ ἐκεῖνοί τε ἄξιοι ἐπαίνου καὶ ἔτι μᾶλλον οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν· κτησάμενοι γὰρ πρὸς οἷς ἐδέξαντο ὅσην ἔχομεν ἀρχὴν οὐκ ἀπόνως ἡμῖν τοῖς νῦν προσκατέλιπον.
And both they are worthy of praise, and still more our fathers; for, having acquired in addition to what they received as much empire as we now possess, they left it to us of the present generation not without labor.
§2.36.3τὰ δὲ πλείω αὐτῆς αὐτοὶ ἡμεῖς οἵδε οἱ νῦν ἔτι ὄντες μάλιστα ἐν τῇ καθεστηκυίᾳ ἡλικίᾳ ἐπηυξήσαμεν καὶ τὴν πόλιν τοῖς πᾶσι παρεσκευάσαμεν καὶ ἐς πόλεμον καὶ ἐς εἰρήνην αὐταρκεστάτην.
And we ourselves who are now still here, especially those of us who are in the settled age of life, have increased the greater part of it, and have made the city in all respects most self-sufficient both for war and for peace.
§2.36.4ὧν ἐγὼ τὰ μὲν κατὰ πολέμους ἔργα, οἷς ἕκαστα ἐκτήθη, ἢ εἴ τι αὐτοὶ ἢ οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν βάρβαρον ἢ Ἕλληνα πολέμιον ἐπιόντα προθύμως ἠμυνάμεθα, μακρηγορεῖν ἐν εἰδόσιν οὐ βουλόμενος ἐάσω· ἀπὸ δὲ οἵας τε ἐπιτηδεύσεως ἤλθομεν ἐπ’ αὐτὰ καὶ μεθ’ οἵας πολιτείας καὶ τρόπων ἐξ οἵων μεγάλα ἐγένετο, ταῦτα δηλώσας πρῶτον εἶμι καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν τῶνδε ἔπαινον, νομίζων ἐπί τε τῷ παρόντι οὐκ ἂν ἀπρεπῆ λεχθῆναι αὐτὰ καὶ τὸν πάντα ὅμιλον καὶ ἀστῶν καὶ ξένων ξύμφορον εἶναι ἐπακοῦσαι αὐτῶν.
Of these things, the warlike deeds by which each acquisition was made, or any occasion where we ourselves or our fathers zealously warded off an invading enemy, whether barbarian or Greek, I will pass over, not wishing to make a long speech among those who already know; but by what kind of principles of life we rose to this position, and under what constitution and from what habits of character our greatness grew—having first made these clear, I will then proceed to the praise of these men, thinking that on the present occasion it would not be improper for them to be spoken of, and that it is beneficial for the whole assembly, both of citizens and of strangers, to listen to them.

Notes

  1. §2.36.1δίκαιον γὰρ αὐτοῖς καὶ πρέπον δὲ ἅμα — The dative `αὐτοῖς` (to them) functions as the indirect object of the passive infinitive `δίδοσθαι` (to be given) in a sentence with the impersonal adjectives `δίκαιον` and `πρέπον`. The position of `δέ` in the combination `καὶ ... δέ` expresses a cumulative sense ("and at the same time also").
  2. §2.36.2πρὸς οἷς ἐδέξαντο — An instance of the attraction of the relative pronoun. The phrase would regularly be `πρὸς τούτοις ἃ ἐδέξαντο` (in addition to those things which they received), but the antecedent `τούτοις` is omitted, and the relative pronoun `ἃ` (accusative object) is attracted into the dative case `οἷς` governed by the preposition `πρός`.
  3. §2.36.4ὧν ἐγὼ τὰ μὲν κατὰ πολέμους ἔργα... ἐάσω — The genitive relative pronoun `ὧν` at the beginning of the sentence functions as a relative connection (or partitive genitive), referring to the entire content of the preceding sentence (the acquisition and self-sufficiency of the empire) and meaning "of these things". The core of the main clause is `ὧν ἐγὼ τὰ μὲν ... ἐάσω` (of these, on the one hand, I will omit the deeds), with the conditional clause `ἢ εἴ τι ... ἠμυνάμεθα` standing in apposition or parallel relation to `τὰ ... ἔργα`.
  4. §2.36.4ἀπὸ δὲ οἵας τε ἐπιτηδεύσεως ἤλθομεν ἐπ’ αὐτὰ — The word `οἵας` is an indirect interrogative adjective, and the subject of `ἤλθομεν` is "we". In the phrase `ἐπ’ αὐτά` (to them), the pronoun `αὐτά` refers to the greatness and self-sufficient state of the city described in the previous sentences. This whole indirect question clause serves as the object of the participle `δηλώσας` (having made clear).

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §2.36.1-2.36.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:2.36.1-2.36.4

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