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Those who really deserve praise are the people who, while human enough to enjoy power, nevertheless pay more attention to justice than they are compelled to do by their situation.

Thucydides

People get into the habit of entrusting the things they desire to wishful thinking, and subjecting things they don’t desire to exhaustive thinking.
THUCYDIDES

Desire Habit People Subject Thinking Trust
We Greeks believe that a man who takes no part in public affairs is not merely lazy, but good for nothing.
THUCYDIDES

Believe Goodness Man Public
Mankind apparently find it easier to drive away adversity than to retain prosperity.
THUCYDIDES

Drive Easy Finding Kind Man Prosperity
Now the only sure basis of an alliance is for each party to be equally afraid of the other.
THUCYDIDES

Afraid Basis Equality Fear Party
So little trouble do men take in the search after truth; so readily do they accept whatever comes first to hand.
THUCYDIDES

Acceptance Hands Man Search Trouble Truth
The peoples of the Mediterranean began to emerge from barbarism when they learned to cultivate the olive and the vine.
THUCYDIDES

Beginning Cultivation Learning People
I dread our own mistakes more than the enemy’s intentions.
THUCYDIDES

Enemy Intention Mistake Myself
Concessions to adversaries only end in self reproach, and the more strictly they are avoided the greater will be the chance of security.
THUCYDIDES

Adversity Avoid Chance End Greatness Security Strict
Self-control is the chief element in self-respect, and respect of self, in turn, is the chief element in courage.
THUCYDIDES

Chief Control Courage Element Respect
It is the habit of mankind to entrust to careless hope what they long for, and to use sovereign reason to thrust aside what they do not desire.
THUCYDIDES

Desire Habit Hope Kind Man Reason
We secure our friends not by accepting favours but by doing them.
THUCYDIDES

Acceptance Action Friendship Security
What made the war inevitable was the growth of Athenian power and the fear which this caused in Sparta.
THUCYDIDES

Fear Growth Reason War
When will there be justice in Athens? There will be justice in Athens when those who are not injured are as outraged as those who are.
THUCYDIDES

Angry Hurt Injury Justice
An avowal of poverty is no disgrace to any man; to make no effort to escape it is indeed disgraceful.
THUCYDIDES

Effort Escape Grace Man Poverty
Speculation is carried on in safety, but, when it comes to action, fear causes failure.
THUCYDIDES

Action Carry Failure Fear Safety
For they had learned that true safety was to be found in long previous training, and not in eloquent exhortations uttered when they were going into action.
THUCYDIDES

Action Learning Safety Training True

Those who really deserve praise are the people who, while human enough to enjoy power, nevertheless pay more attention to justice than they are compelled to do by their situation.

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Those who really deserve praise are the people who, while human enough to enjoy power, nevertheless pay more attention to justice than they are compelled to do by their situation.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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