Humanitext Reader

Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §4.62.1-4.62.4

The Benefits of Peace and the Uncertainty of the Future

Passage 427 of 917 · Greek

Summary

Hermocrates argues for the necessity of making peace among the Sicilian cities as the best way to safeguard their individual interests and honors, stressing the unpredictability of the future and the value of mutual precaution.

§4.62.1‘καὶ τὸ μὲν πρὸς τοὺς Ἀθηναίους τοσοῦτον ἀγαθὸν εὖ βουλευομένοις εὑρίσκεται· §4.62.2τὴν δὲ ὑπὸ πάντων ὁμολογουμένην ἄριστον εἶναι εἰρήνην πῶς οὐ χρὴ καὶ ἐν ἡμῖν αὐτοῖς ποιήσασθαι;
"And while such great advantage is found in our relations with the Athenians if we deliberate well, how can we not also make peace among ourselves, which is acknowledged by all to be the best thing?
ἢ δοκεῖτε, εἴ τῴ τι ἔστιν ἀγαθὸν ἢ εἴ τῳ τὰ ἐναντία, οὐχ ἡσυχίαν μᾶλλον ἢ πόλεμον τὸ μὲν παῦσαι ἂν ἑκατέρῳ, τὸ δὲ ξυνδιασῶσαι, καὶ τὰς τιμὰς καὶ λαμπρότητας ἀκινδυνοτέρας ἔχειν τὴν εἰρήνην, ἄλλα τε ὅσα ἐν μήκει λόγων ἄν τις διέλθοι, ὥσπερ περὶ τοῦ πολεμεῖν;
Or do you think, if someone possesses something good or someone else its opposite, that quietude rather than war would not put an end to the latter for each, and preserve the former, and that peace would not keep honors and splendors more free from danger, and all the other things which one might go through at length, just as in the case of war?
ἃ χρὴ σκεψαμένους μὴ τοὺς ἐμοὺς λόγους ὑπεριδεῖν, τὴν δὲ αὑτοῦ τινὰ σωτηρίαν μᾶλλον ἀπ’ αὐτῶν προϊδεῖν.
Considering these things, you must not disregard my words, but rather foresee in them each your own safety.
§4.62.3καὶ εἴ τις βεβαίως τι ἢ τῷ δικαίῳ ἢ βίᾳ πράξειν οἴεται, τῷ παρ’ ἐλπίδα μὴ χαλεπῶς σφαλλέσθω, γνοὺς ὅτι πλείους ἤδη καὶ τιμωρίαις μετιόντες τοὺς ἀδικοῦντας καὶ ἐλπίσαντες ἕτεροι δυνάμει τινὶ πλεονεκτήσειν, οἱ μὲν οὐχ ὅσον οὐκ ἠμύναντο, ἀλλ’ οὐδ᾽ ἐσώθησαν, τοὺς δ’ ἀντὶ τοῦ πλέον ἔχειν προσκαταλιπεῖν τὰ αὑτῶν ξυνέβη.
And if anyone thinks that he will achieve something surely, either by justice or by force, let him not be grievously baffled by what happens contrary to expectation, knowing that many before now, both pursuing wrongdoers with vengeance and others hoping to gain advantage by some power, have resulted in the former not only failing to avenge themselves but not even being saved, and the latter, instead of having more, leaving behind even what was their own.
§4.62.4τιμωρία γὰρ οὐκ εὐτυχεῖ δικαίως, ὅτι καὶ ἀδικεῖται· οὐδὲ ἰσχὺς βέβαιον, διότι καὶ εὔελπι.
For vengeance does not succeed just because it is justly sought, since it is a response to injustice; nor is strength secure just because it is hopeful.
τὸ δὲ ἀστάθμητον τοῦ μέλλοντος ὡς ἐπὶ πλεῖστον κρατεῖ, πάντων τε σφαλερώτατον ὂν ὅμως καὶ χρησιμώτατον φαίνεται· ἐξ ἴσου γὰρ δεδιότες προμηθίᾳ μᾶλλον ἐπ’ ἀλλήλους ἐρχόμεθα.
But the unpredictability of the future rules for the most part, and though it is the most deceptive of all things, it nevertheless appears to be the most useful; for because we are equally afraid, we approach one another with greater precaution."

Notes

  1. 4.62.2τὸ μὲν ... τὸ δέ — The former "tὸ μὲν" refers to "τὰ ἐναντία" (disadvantages/misfortunes) in the preceding conditional clause, while the latter "τὸ δὲ" refers to "ἀγαθόν" (advantages/good things). The particle "ἂν", which qualifies the infinitives "παῦσαι" and "ξυνδιασῶσαι", imparts a potential or hypothetical force (would stop / would preserve) corresponding to the conditional clause "εἴ τῳ...".
  2. 4.62.3πλείους ἤδη ... οἱ μὲν ... τοὺς δ᾽ ... ξυνέβη — A striking example of anacoluthon. The plural subjects with nominative participles ("πλείους ἤδη ... ἕτεροι ..."), which began as the subject of the "ὅτι" clause, split in the second half; one part ("οἱ μὲν") remains in the nominative as the subject of the indicative verbs ("οὐκ ἠμύναντο, ἐσώθησαν"), while the other part ("τοὺς δέ") shifts into the accusative as the subject of the infinitive ("προσκαταλιπεῖν") dependent on the impersonal verb "ξυνέβη".
  3. 4.62.4τιμωρία γὰρ οὐκ εὐτυχεῖ δικαίως, ὅτι καὶ ἀδικεῖται — The clause means "Vengeance does not succeed naturally (or justly) merely because it is a response to injustice (literally, 'because one is also wronged')." The adverb "δικαίως" refers both to the moral justice of the vengeance (implied by "ἀδικεῖται") and to the expected certainty of its successful outcome.

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §4.62.1-4.62.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:4.62.1-4.62.4

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.