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The peoples of the Mediterranean began to emerge from barbarism when they learned to cultivate the olive and the vine.

Thucydides

He passes through life most securely who has least reason to reproach himself with complaisance toward his enemies.
THUCYDIDES

Enemy Himself Life Reason Secure
It is a general rule of human nature that people despise those who treat them well, and look up to those who make no concessions.
THUCYDIDES

Concession Human Nature People Rule Treat
Don’t confuse meaning with truth.
THUCYDIDES

Confusion Meaning One Liner Truth
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
Those who have experienced good and bad luck many times have every reason to be skeptical of successes.
THUCYDIDES

Experience Reason Success Time
We secure our friends not by accepting favours but by doing them.
THUCYDIDES

Acceptance Action Friendship Security
Hope is an expensive commodity. It makes better sense to be prepared.
THUCYDIDES

Better Expensive Hope Item Preparation Sense
Three of the gravest failings, want of sense, of courage, or of vigilance.
THUCYDIDES

Courage Failure Need Sense
Right, as the world goes, is only in question between equals in power, while the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.
THUCYDIDES

Equality Power Question Right Strong Suffering Weakness World
The strength of an Army lies in strict discipline and undeviating obedience to its officers.
THUCYDIDES

Discipline Lying Obedience Strength Strict
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
For men naturally despise those who court them, but respect those who do not give way to them.
THUCYDIDES

Man Natural Respect Way
The growth of the power of Athens, and the alarm which this inspired in Sparta, made war inevitable.
THUCYDIDES

Alarm Growth Power War
It is useless to attack men who could not be controlled even if conquered, while failure would leave us in an even worse position.
THUCYDIDES

Attack Conquer Control Failure Man Position Worst
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
The Thracian people, like the bloodiest of the barbarians, being ever most murderous when it has nothing to fear.
THUCYDIDES

Blood Fear Murder Nature People

The peoples of the Mediterranean began to emerge from barbarism when they learned to cultivate the olive and the vine.

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The peoples of the Mediterranean began to emerge from barbarism when they learned to cultivate the olive and the vine.

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