§4.77.1ὑπὲρ ἀναγκαίων καὶ κοινῶν πραγμάτων τοὺς λόγους μέλλων πρὸς ὑμᾶς ποιεῖσθαι, ἄνδρες πολῖται, περὶ ἐμαυτοῦ πρῶτον ὀλίγα βούλομαι προειπεῖν· ἴσως γάρ τισιν ὑμῶν, μᾶλλον δʼ ἀκριβῶς οἶδʼ ὅτι πολλοῖς τεταράχθαι δόξω τὴν διάνοιαν, ἀνὴρ οὐ φρενήρης περὶ τῶν μεγίστων ἐπιχειρῶν λέγειν, ᾧ κηδεμόνων οὐχ ὑγιαίνοντι δεῖ.
Citizens, as I am about to address you concerning urgent and public matters, I wish first to say a few words about myself; for perhaps to some of you, or rather, I know for certain to many, I shall seem to have a distracted mind—a man of unsound intellect attempting to speak on the most important affairs, who, as one not in his right mind, stands in need of guardians.
§4.77.2ἴστε δὴ τὴν κοινὴν ὑπόληψιν, ἣν περὶ ἐμοῦ πάντες εἴχετε ὡς ἠλιθίου, ψευδῆ γενομένην καὶ οὐχ ὑπʼ ἄλλου τινὸς κατασκευασθεῖσαν, ἀλλʼ ὑπʼ ἐμοῦ.
You know indeed that the common opinion which you all held of me as a fool was false, and was contrived by no one else, but by myself.
ὁ δʼ ἀναγκάσας με μήθʼ ὡς ἡ φύσις ἠξίου μήθʼ ὡς ἥρμοττέ μοι ζῆν, ἀλλʼ ὡς Ταρκυνίῳ τʼ ἦν βουλομένῳ κἀμοὶ συνοίσειν ἔδοξεν, ὁ περὶ τῆς ψυχῆς φόβος ἦν.
And that which forced me to live neither as nature demanded nor as became me, but as was pleasing to Tarquinius and as seemed likely to be of advantage to myself, was the fear for my life.
§4.77.3πατέρα γάρ μου Ταρκύνιος ἀποκτείνας ἅμα τῷ παραλαβεῖν τὴν ἀρχήν, ἵνα τὴν οὐσίαν αὐτοῦ κατάσχοι πολλὴν σφόδρα οὖσαν, καὶ ἀδελφὸν πρεσβύτερον, ὃς ἔμελλε τιμωρήσειν τῷ θανάτῳ τοῦ πατρός, εἰ μὴ γένοιτο ἐκποδῶν, ἀφανεῖ θανάτῳ διαχρησάμενος, οὐδʼ ἐμοῦ δῆλος ἦν φεισόμενος ἐρήμου τῶν ἀναγκαιοτάτων γεγονότος, εἰ μὴ τὴν ἐπίθετον ἐσκηψάμην μωρίαν.
For Tarquinius, having killed my father as soon as he seized the power, in order to possess himself of his estate, which was very large, and having put to death by a secret murder my elder brother, who would have avenged our father's death had he not been removed, was clearly not going to spare me either, who was left destitute of my nearest relations, unless I had feigned this assumed foolishness.
§4.77.4τοῦτό με τὸ πλάσμα πιστευθὲν ὑπὸ τοῦ τυράννου μὴ ταὐτὰ παθεῖν ἐκείνοις ἐρρύσατο καὶ μέχρι τοῦ παρόντος διασέσωκε χρόνου·
This pretense, being believed by the tyrant, rescued me from suffering the same fate as they did, and has preserved me until the present time.
νῦν δʼ αὐτὸ πρῶτον, ἥκει γὰρ ὁ καιρός, ὃν εὐχόμην τε καὶ προσεδεχόμην, πέμπτον ἤδη τοῦτο καὶ εἰκοστὸν ἔτος φυλάξας ἀποτίθεμαι.
But now at last, for the opportunity has come which I used to pray for and expect, I lay it aside, after having maintained it now for twenty-five years.
καὶ τὰ μὲν περὶ ἐμοῦ τοσαῦτα.
And so much for what concerns myself.