6o / Thucydides: Prelude to War

political enemies were m o u n t i n g an effort to ostracize h i m . De­

spite the support o f the youthful Pericles, the Athenians d i d in

fact ostracize Themistocles at some point late i n the 470s. T h e

exact chronology o f these events unfortunately cannot be estab­

lished. Pericles seems to have cultivated the association w i t h the

great hero o f Salamis throughout his career.

I suspect the historian has more in m i n d here than f itt ingly

int roduc ing Pericles. As Thucydides is about to embark on his ac­

count o f the great war between the Athenians and the Lacedae­

monians, these reminders o f Pausanias, the Spartan victor at

Plataea, and o f Themistocles, the Athenian victor at Salamis,

seem somehow particularly appropriate. They had been allies, as

had their t w o countries, in the miraculous victory over the Per­

sians i n 480 and 479. These t w o men , whatever their flaws, 9 had

been authentic war heroes, the most famous Greeks o f their t ime.

T h e accounts o f their fall f rom grace among their o w n people

and their ignominious deaths—they ought not to have died so—

strike a regretful tone that surely is appropriate to the extended

tale o f war that w i l l now unfo ld . I do not mean just the defeat o f

Athens. If , as I t h i n k most probable, Thucydides composed this

passage at or near the end o f the war, he and his audience knew

that an important factor i n the eventual victory o f the Pelopon-

nesians was that they received money f rom their old enemy Per­

sia to b u i l d a fleet against the Athenians. There was a tragedy

manifest i n that for all Hellenes.

9. T h u c y d i d e s (1.95, 130-131) describes Pausanias 's h i g h - h a n d e d arrogant

behavior; H e r o d o t u s reports several examples o f alleged corrupt behavior on

T h e m i s t o c l e s ' part ( t a k i n g a n d m a k i n g bribes at 8.4-5, t a k i n g credit for some

one else's ideas at 8.58.2, double d e a l i n g at 8.110, a n d greed at 8.112).

Thucydides' Portrait

of Pericles I I The First Campaign and

the Funeral Oration

T h e actual narrat ive o f the war starts i n book 2. Indeed , T h u c y ­

dides opens book 2 w i t h the f o l l o w i n g words: " N o w f r o m this

point begins the war o f the Athenians and Peloponnesians and

their allies." H e gives Pericles t w o speeches i n this book, the

famed funeral orat ion i n sections 35-46 and a final speech ra l ly ­

i n g the Athenians to stay the course i n sections 60—64.' H e also

summarizes in section 13 Pericles' exhortat ion to his fe l low c i t i ­

zens as they faced the fact o f actual invasion.

As the Peloponnesian invading force was starting out , K i n g

Archidamus, leader o f the Spartans, sent a final ambassador to

Athens. T h e Athenians d i d not a d m i t h i m into the city or to the

assembly, for Pericles as general had passed a measure that forbade

1. T h i s final speech w i l l be presented a n d discussed i n the next chapter.

6l

6 2 / Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration

receiving a herald or embassy o f the Lacedaemonians when they

were on the march (2.12.2). Suspecting that his o w n estates, w h i c h

were i n the path o f the invading force, m i g h t be spared by K i n g

Archidamus either out o f f r iendship—they were f r iends—or

w i t h the purpose o f creating i l l feeling against h i m , Pericles, w h o

was one o f the generals, announced i n the assembly that i f his

property was spared, he w o u l d give i t to the city. H e thus avoided

suspicion on this account (2.13.1). We hear nothing more about

this property.

Thucydides 2.13.2-14

(13.2) Pericles continued to advise in the present crisis

what he had in the past, namely, to prepare for war and to

bring their possessions in from the fields, not to go forth to

battle, but to come into the city and safeguard i t , to outfit the

Heet wherein lay their strength, and to keep their allies in

hand. He affirmed that their strength came from their spend­

able income and that they would in most respects prevail be­

cause of this strategy and the abundance o f their money. He

bade them be of good cheer, since the city had roughly 600

talents income a year as tribute from the allies apart from

other revenue. There remained still on the Acropolis 6,000

talents of silver coinage—at the most it had amounted to

9,700, but some had been spent for the Propylaea and the

other buildings and for Potidaea. This sum did not include

the uncoined gold and silver contained in private and public

dedications, the holy regalias for processions and the games,

the Persian booty, and other such, which came to not less than

500 talents. Moreover, the possessions from other temples

added not a little that they might use and, i f they were forced

to do i t , they could avail themselves of the gold of the goddess

herself. He revealed that the statue had 40 talents' weight o f

Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration I 63

pure gold and that it was all removable. : I f they used it for

their own preservation, they would need to replace it exactly.

I n this way, he encouraged them about their financial re­

sources. They had, he reminded them, 13,000 infantry, not

counting the 16,000 on guard duty in the forts and on the

walls. (So great a number were on guard when the enemy first

attacked; they were drawn from the very old, the very young,

and from the metics who were of infantry status. They needed

so many because the wall from Phaleron to the city circuit was

35 stades I4 miles]; the guarded part o f the circuit was 43

stades [about 5 miles]. The part that was unguarded is the

stretch between the Long Wal l and the wall from Phaleron

[see map 3]. The Long Walls to Piraeus cover 40 stades |about

4 1/2 miles], of which the outer was manned. The wall sur­

rounding Piraeus and Munychia was 60 stades [roughly 7 1/2

miles], half of which was under guard.) He revealed that there

were 1,200 cavalry including mounted archers, 1,600 archers,

and 300 seaworthy triremes. These were the resources that the

Athenians possessed, and not less in each category, when the

initial attack o f the Peloponnesians was imminent and they

were on the brink o f the war. In addition, Pericles repeated his

usual arguments to demonstrate that they would be victorious

in the war.

(14) The Athenians were persuaded by his words and

brought in from the fields their children and wives, as well as

the furnishings in their homes and the woodwork that they re­

moved from these dwellings. Their sheep and cattle they sent

across to Euboea and nearby islands. The move was hard on

most o f them because they were always accustomed to live out

in the fields.

2. T h i s is a reference to the gold a n d ivory statue o f A t h e n a created

idias that a d o r n e d the interior o f the P a r t h e n o n . See above, p. 40.

64 / Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration

Circuit

Map 3. Piraeus and the Long Walls

Faced w i t h the actual invasion, Thucydides is at pains here to

show Pericles i n act ion. H e is one o f the generals i n the first

campaign. H e prevents craven deal ing w i t h an enemy w h o is on

the move and steadfastly repeats for his citizens his strategic

policy, namely, to b r i n g themselves and their property w i t h i n

the walls and to rely on their fleet. H e reminds t h e m i n detail o f

their vast economic and strategic resources, p o i n t i n g out that

they w i l l be the winners . H e exhorts t h e m to leave the country­

side to the i n v a d i n g Peloponnesians. Near ly his first act o n the

approach o f the enemy was to promise to t u r n his o w n property

over to the Athenians i f i t escaped devastation. Good leaders,

Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration I 65

and Pericles is consummately a good leader, do not ask their f o l ­

lowers to do a n y t h i n g they are not w i l l i n g to do. T h e y lead by

example, just as Pericles does here.

T h e Peloponnesian a rmy approached At t i ca i n the spr ing o f

431 (see m a p 4). Proceeding to the border for t at Oenoe, K i n g

A r c h i d a m u s halted the army for a siege apparently i n hopes

that the Athenians w o u l d yet make some concessions (2.18). A f ­

ter fa i l ing to take Oenoe and hear ing n o t h i n g f r o m the A t h e n i ­

ans, the k i n g encamped his a rmy at Eleusis i n the T h r i a s i a n

P la in , one o f the places most i m p o r t a n t i n the religious life o f

the Athenians , and started to devastate the area. Surely he ex­

pected the Athenians to come out i n defense o f the sacred land

o f Eleusis. Except for some m i n o r cavalry act ion, they d i d not

respond. H e then proceeded t o w a r d the most heavily populated

suburb o f Athens , Acharnae, w h i c h supplied 3,000 m e n , one o f

the largest contingents o f A t h e n i a n infantry . Moreover , i n con­

trast to Archidamus 's devastation o f the te r r i tory o f Eleusis,

w h i c h could not be seen f r o m Athens , his occupation o f Achar ­

nae was h igh ly provocative, since i t was visible f r o m the city

walls. H i s strategy qui te obviously was to provoke the A t h e n i ­

ans into fighting a pitched land battle (2.19—20). I t nearly

w o r k e d , indeed w o u l d have, had not Pericles exerted firm lead­

ership i n the face o f heavy cr i t i c i sm.

Thucydides 2.21.2-22.2

(21.2) When they saw the army at Acharnae just 60 stades

[about 7 1/2 miles] from the city, they no longer thought it bear­

able, but it seemed terrible that their land was being ravaged be­

fore their very eyes, an abomination that the young had never

witnessed nor had the old, except at the time o f the Persian

Wars. It seemed a good idea to everyone, but especially to the

Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration I 67

young, to go out and not to ignore it. Gathering in groups, they

argued heatedly, some urging them to sally forth, others forbid­

ding it. Soothsayers chanted many prophecies that each sought

out according to his inclination. The Acharnians thought they

had the greatest stake in the matter, since it was their land that

was being destroyed, and pressed vigorously for an attack. The

city was stirred up in every way. They angrily blamed Pericles

and remembered nothing that he had advised in the past. Rather

they bad-mouthed him, because, although a general, he would

not lead them out. (22) They considered him responsible for

everything that they were suffering. Since he realized that they

were angered for the moment and not thinking clearly and since

he believed that his strategy of not giving battle was correct, he

allowed no assemblies or other meetings. He kept them from

erring, which they would have done had they met in anger

rather than with reasoned counsel. He safeguarded the city and,

to the extent possible, maintained calm. He had a policy of con­

tinually sending out cavalry to prevent raiding parties from the

army from attacking the fields near the city.

Pericles is here portrayed as acting firmly, some m i g h t say h i g h ­

handedly, i n the face o f very heated opposit ion. As general he

prevented meetings that were sure to result i n poor decision­

m a k i n g . A t the same t ime as he refused to a l low a pitched battle,

w h i c h he k n e w they w o u l d lose, he mol l i f i ed at least some by us­

i n g the cavalry to harass the Peloponnesians w h o approached too

near the city. T h e result was a standoff. K i n g A r c h i d a m u s d i d

not lay siege to the city o f Athens. Since it was supplied w i t h a m ­

ple food by the fleet, he k n e w that he could not starve i t out and

take i t , so he soon w i t h d r e w . T h e Athenians spent the rest o f the

spr ing and the summer o f 431, the first year o f the war, using

their fleet for r a i d i n g expeditions against the Peloponnesians and

68 / Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration

their allies and securing allies for themselves. I n the late summer,

the Athenian army, under the leadership o f Pericles, invaded the

ter r i tory o f Megara (see map 4) i n force and , after lay ing i t waste,

ret ired to Athens (2.31). T h i s retaliation no doubt d i d m u c h to

cool the ardor o f the youngbloods w h o had wished to take the

field against the Peloponnesians.

I n the winter , perhaps November , o f 431 the Athenians held

a state funeral for the fallen o f the first year's campaigns. Per i ­

cles was elected by his fe l low citizens to deliver the eulogy. As a

type, the funeral orat ion over the city's fallen soldiers was ev i ­

dently an A t h e n i a n invent ion . Thucydides ' version is by univer­

sal acclaim one of the greatest speeches ever w r i t t e n .

Thucydides 2.34.8-46

(34.8) Pericles the son o f Xanthippus was elected to speak

over the fallen o f this first year. A n d when the time came, he

proceeded from the grave marker to a high speaker's platform

constructed so that he might be heard by as much of the gath­

ering as possible, and spoke as follows.

(35) "The majority of those who have spoken here in the past

praise the man who instituted this speech by law 3 on the

grounds that it is a fine custom for an oration to be delivered

over the war dead. But for my part it appears sufficient to honor

men who were brave in action also by our action, such as this

burial that you see prepared at public expense.'1 It does not seem

sensible for the brave deeds o f many to be risked on one man's

ability to speak persuasively or not. Indeed, in a situation where

3. W e do not k n o w w h o that was, a lthough Solon a n d Cleisthenes are

considered likely candidates. N a t u r a l l y , the A t h e n i a n s in the audience k n e w

perfectly wel l to w h o m Pericles was referring.

4. T h o s e w h o had fallen each year were buried as a g r o u p w i t h marble

slabs listing their names placed over their remains.

Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration I 69

perceptions o f the truth are so divided, it is a hard thing for a

man to speak in a measured way. The hearer, who knows and is

well disposed, perhaps might think that what has been said

comes up somewhat short o f what he wishes and knows. The

one who has no knowledge might suspect from envy that things

are exaggerated, should he hear anything that exceeds his own

capabilities. Praise accorded to others, I remind you, is palatable

only so long as an individual thinks that he also could have ac­

complished the exploits he hears. Men envy and even disbelieve

anything that overshoots this l imit . However, since our ances­

tors of old approved this custom, it is now incumbent upon me,

obedient to the law, to make the effort, trying to achieve to the

greatest degree what each of you wants and thinks.

(36) " I take my beginning first of all from our ancestors. It

is both right and fitting to give honored remembrance to them

on this occasion, for they through successive generations al­

ways inhabited this land and by their courage passed it down

to us free and independent. They are worthy of praise, and

even more so are our fathers, who increasing what they re­

ceived by painful trials left to us the great empire we now pos­

sess. We too, the men in the maturity of our years, have

augmented the greater parts of the empire and made our city

the most self-sufficient in every way for war and for peace. I

do not wish to speak at length to you what you know perfectly

well , so 1 shall pass over our exploits in war that added to our

rule, whether those we ourselves wrought or those o f our fa­

thers exacting revenge from barbarian or Greek foes who at­

tacked us. Rather, the pursuits through which we have

reached this pinnacle and the sort of government and lifestyle

that have made us preeminent, these I shall first elucidate be­

fore I turn to the eulogy of these men. I t is entirely fitting on

this occasion that these things be uttered and it is an advantage

that the whole crowd here, both citizens and foreigners, hear

them.

jo I Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration

(37) "Our constitution does not out of envy imitate the laws

of our neighbors; rather than copy others, we provide a para­

digm for them. In name, indeed, it is styled democracy be­

cause we handle our affairs not for the advantage of the few

but for the many. Even so, by law everyone has an opportunity

to participate in private disputes; for public office a man is pre­

ferred according to his worth , as each distinguishes himself in

something, not by the luck of the draw more than as a result of

his excellence. If, on the other hand, a man is poor but has

some service to offer the city, he is not prevented by the obscu­

rity of his reputation. We conduct public business openly, and,

as to the natural suspicion that men have of others' pastimes,

we do not get angry at our neighbor i f he acts according to his

own inclination nor cast at him ugly looks, harmless, but caus­

ing resentment. We are completely at ease in our private af­

fairs and are most law-abiding in our public dealings because

of fear, paying obedience to those in office and to the laws, es­

pecially those that help the wronged and those unwritten ones

that, when violated, bring universal shame.

(38) "Moreover, as a matter of policy we have provided the

most respites from daily toils, employing throughout the year

games and festivals as well as elegant private displays. The

daily enjoyment they afford drives away care. On account of

the greatness of our city all things, in addition, pour into it

from all over the earth. It falls thus to us to enjoy wi th the same

familiarity the goods of other peoples as we do our own.

(39) " I n the pursuit of war we differ from our enemies as

follows. We keep our city open and never use deportation as a

means o f preventing someone from learning or seeing a secret

by which an enemy might be aided i f he got wind of i t . 1 We

place little trust in secret preparations and deceits, but rather

5. T h i s is a direct reference to the Spartans, whose secrecy a n d deportation

o f foreigners (cf. 1.144; above, p. 56) w a s w e l l k n o w n , i f rather exaggerated.

Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration I 71

rely on our own high-spirited bravery. In their upbringing our

enemies from the time they are youngsters cultivate courage

through painful training; as for us, although we grow up in a

more relaxed environment, we confront equivalent dangers no

less courageously. As proof, the Lacedaemonians do not march

into our territory by themselves, but wi th all their allies. We

by contrast attack nearby territories by ourselves, and, al­

though fighting in a strange land against those defending their

own homes, we usually prevail easily. Because o f the attention

we pay to our fleet and because we dispatch our men on land

to many places, no enemy has ever encountered our full might.

Should they, encountering a small part of our forces, prevail

over some of us, they boast that they have repulsed us all. Sim­

ilarly, when they have been defeated, they claim to have been

bested by all o f us. Yet, since we are wi l l ing to face danger

wi th easy-hearted confidence rather than from painful prac­

tice, and wi th a courage not engendered by laws but by our

natural dispositions, we have the added bonus o f not wearing

ourselves out over troubles that might be. However, when we

do encounter troubles, we show ourselves no less bold than

those who are always fretting. Both for these things that I have

enumerated and for others I say that our city deserves to be

admired.

(40) "We love beauty w i t h economy, and we pursue wis­

dom, but w i t h no softness. We accept wealth as an opportu­

nity for action, not as an occasion for boasting. 6 As for

poverty, it is no disgrace to admit i t , but quite a disgrace not

6. T h u c y d i d e s depicts Pericles as p l a c i n g a lot o f e m p h a s i s in this speech

o n wealth a n d poverty, the r ich a n d poor. T h e creation o f oppositions o f this

k i n d is i n part a rhetorical strategy, but it m a y w e l l reflect the i m p o r t a n c e P e r ­

icles placed o n financial resources. I n any case, at 1.141.2-5 (above, p. 53) a n d

2.13.2-6 (above, pp. 62-63) T h u c y d i d e s has Pericles stress A t h e n s ' treasury

a n d the i n c o m e from A t h e n s ' allies as a n i m p o r t a n t factor i n his confidence

72 / Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration

to avoid it actively. Most of our citizens can handle compe­

tently both private and public affairs, but even those focused

primarily on their own businesses understand public affairs

adequately. We alone regard a man who does not participate

in the affairs o f the city to be not 'apolitical,' but useless. In

addition, we Athenians can at least judge rightly, i f we do not

actually formulate, our course of action, since we do not be­

lieve that discussion is a detriment to action, but rather we

consider it harmful not to be informed by discussion before

proceeding to do what is necessary. We stand out in that we

are especially daring and unusually able to calculate the risks

associated w i t h what we are about to attempt. By contrast, ig­

norance imparts daring to other men, whereas reasoned cal­

culation causes them to hesitate. Men who understand w i t h

absolute clarity both the terrors and the joys of mortal danger

and are not on this account dissuaded from it might justly, in

my estimation, be accounted the most courageous. I n addi­

t ion, w i t h respect to general goodness we act opposite to most

men. We acquire friends not through accepting kindnesses

but by conferring them. He who confers the favor is the surer

friend, I assure you, because he acts to preserve the obligation

due h im through kindness to the recipient. The one who

owes the favor is less enthusiastic a friend, because he knows

that he w i l l return it not as an act o f noblesse oblige, but from

obligation. Furthermore, we alone assist people not by calcu­

lating expediency, but by fearlessly trusting our freedom.

(41) " A l l in al l , I say that our entire city is the education o f

Hellas, and I think that from among us individually the city

that the A t h e n i a n s w i l l be victorious in their conflict w i t h the Spartans.

C l e a r l y , money, financial w h e r e w i t h a l , was important both for i n d i v i d u a l s

a n d for states to flourish. I n A t h e n s , however, in contrast to m u c h o f G r e e c e , a

poor person could participate i n public life. Pericles ' institution o f pay for jury

duty in no s m a l l measure m a d e this possible.

Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration I 73

provides men self-sufficient for every sort of enterprise and

endowed w i t h unusual grace. That these are not merely

boastful words for the present occasion but, in fact, the t ruth

is shown by the power that has accrued to the city from this

lifestyle. Our city alone of all current ones comes to a test

more powerful than its reputation. This city alone causes nei­

ther chagrin in its warr ing foes that they have been beaten by

lesser men nor blame among its subjects that they are not

ruled by worthy men. We are a source o f admiration for men

now and for generations to come. Since we display power that

is witnessed by all w i t h great proofs, we require no Homer to

praise us nor any other whose words fill us w i t h momentary

pleasure, but whose account the true extent o f our deeds w i l l

render hollow. Rather, our daring has made every sea and

land accessible to us, and everywhere we have left undying

memorials o f our failures and our successes. For this glorious

city, then, these men fought and nobly died rather than see it

lost, and it is right that every one o f us who survives also toil

on its behalf.

(42) " I have expatiated at length on the attributes o f our

city to persuade you that what is at stake for us is not the

same as for those who have nothing similar and, at the same

time, to make glorious w i t h proofs the eulogy I now deliver

over these fallen. Indeed, the most important parts of that eu­

logy have now been uttered. The courage o f these men and o f

men like them has added to the sheen of glory for which I

have praised our city. Moreover, not for many Hellenes would

it be the case, as it is for these men, that the account o f their

deeds in fact matched their actions. The fine bravery o f an i n ­

dividual , it appears to me, death in battle either first intimates

or completely confirms. It is generally just, even in the case o f

those who might not have been totally admirable in other re­

spects, to give first place to courage displayed against the en­

emy on behalf o f their country. Effacing evil w i t h good, they

74 / Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration

accomplished more for the common good than the harm they

did privately. Be that as it may, the men we praise here today

did not put off the evil day. They were not unmanned, nei­

ther the men of means preferring continued enjoyment o f

their wealth nor the paupers by the prospect of accumulating

wealth and escaping poverty. Rather, they considered the

punishment of the enemy more desirable than their own

dreams. Since they believed it the most beautiful of risks, they

wished to pursue the enemy and to postpone their own de­

sires. They consigned to hope the uncertainty of future suc­

cess and trusted themselves to take boldly in hand what was

in front o f them. T h i n k i n g that fighting and dying were

preferable to giving in and surviving, they avoided shameful

repute and endured w i t h their bodies the ultimate deed. I n

the briefest moment of fortune, at the height of glory, not

fear, they found release.

(43) "Indeed, these men, as I have described them, fit­

tingly became their city. As for the rest of us, it is right to

pray for a less dangerous, but no less courageous, resolve in

the face o f the enemy. Consider the gain not just in words o f

the sort that someone might utter at length to you who al­

ready know it very well as he spouts the benefits in repelling

your foes; rather, contemplate every day the real power o f

our city and become its lovers. A n d i f it has a glorious repu­

tation, keep in mind that men achieved it in the past by their

daring, by doing their duty, and w i t h pride in their deeds. I f

they failed in some venture, they did not then think it right

to deprive their city of their valor but offered it to the city as

their finest contribution. Relinquishing their bodies for the

common good, they received praise that is ever young and

the most notable tomb, not that in which they rest, but one

where their glory on any occasion o f speech or action is pre­

served eternally. The whole earth is the tomb of famous men

and not only do the inscriptions in their family plots signal it

Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration I 75

but even among strangers an unwrit ten remembrance o f

their courage more than their deeds dwells in each man.

Therefore take them as your models, and, judging that hap­

piness comes from freedom and freedom from courage, do

not overlook dangers from the enemy. Wretches, for whom

there is no prospect of good, would not more rightly be

prodigal o f their lives than those like yourselves, for whom

there is risk o f a major reversal o f their good fortune i f they

continue to live, and i f they falter at a l l , their fall would be

greatest. For a wise man craven cowardice is more painful

than a death that happens suddenly amidst courage and com­

mon aspirations.

( 4 4 ) "For these reasons, I do not weep for the parents o f these

men who are here today, rather I hope to comfort you. You

know that you were reared in a world of many changing for­

tunes. Fortunate are those who, like these men, meet an end

most glorious, even as you meet pain, and those to whom the

length of life has been allotted such that their happiness termi­

nates with their death. I know that it is hard to persuade you o f

this when you wi l l often have reminders of what you once en­

joyed, when you see the happiness of others. There is no pain

when someone is deprived of good things that he has not experi­

enced; pain comes from losing the good that one has grown ac­

customed to. It is right for those of you who are still of an age to

have children to bear up in the hope of them. Their advent wi l l

blur for some of you privately the memory of those you have

lost, and it wi l l be a twofold advantage to the city in not being

emptied of men and for its security. As to the latter, it is not pos­

sible for someone to advise on public policy fairly or justly who

does not also, when offering counsel, put his own children

equally at risk. Those of you who are past that age believe that

the greater part of your life during which you were fortunate

was to your gain and that the rest wi l l be brief. Be cheered by

the glory of your sons. Love o f honor alone is ageless. In feeble

yb I Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration

old age, money does not, as some claim, afford pleasure; only

honor can do that.

(45) "To the children here present and brothers, you have a

great challenge. It is always the custom to praise the one gone,

and perhaps in exaggeration o f their excellence you may be

counted not quite up to them, but a bit inferior. Envy exists as

a stumbling block to the l iving; the dead receive praise w i t h

uncontested goodwil l . I f it is necessary that I also be mindful

of the excellence of the wives who w i l l now be widows, I shall

indicate it all w i t h a brief admonition. Great glory w i l l come

to you i f you live up to your existing natures, and greatest w i l l

be hers who is least spoken of among men whether for her

excellence or for blame. 7

( 4 6) " I have now said as the law requires what useful I had

to say, and the buried have received their honor. The city wi l l

raise their children from this time unti l adulthood at public ex­

pense. We award this valuable garland of victory to them and

to their survivors because those who bestow the greatest prizes

for valor have the best citizens. But now, having mourned for

your loved ones, depart."

T h i s magnif icent speech is a eulogy o f Athens as m u c h as i t is

praise o f the fallen. After a preamble (35) i n w h i c h Pericles belit­

tles the importance o f words as opposed to the deeds o f the men

w h o d i e d — o n e th inks o f Lincoln's famous words i n the Gettys­

b u r g Address, "the w o r l d w i l l l i t t le note nor l o n g remember

what we say here, but it can never forget what they d i d h e r e " —

and an i n t r o d u c t i o n (36) i n w h i c h he praises their forebears for

7. Pericles grants the wives o f the fallen this br ief m e n t i o n as he comes to

his close; this i n j u n c t i o n to t h e m , austere i n the extreme, no doubt reflects a

w i d o w ' s traditionally passive role in the G r e e k w o r l d . W i d o w s w e r e to raise

the c h i l d r e n a n d were not free to remarry. T h e y had no public role.

Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration I 77

the great empire that they now possess, Pericles turns to the m a i n

topic o f his speech, praise o f the A t h e n i a n way o f life and f o r m o f

government (37-41). T h e n he praises the dead whose heroism

has made the city what i t is (42), exhorts the l i v i n g to be lovers o f

their city and to emulate these dead, w h o have received imper­

ishable glory (43). H e consoles briefly the parents (44), sons,

brothers, and wives (45) and finally pronounces the rites at an

end and invites the mourners to depart (46).

A m o n g many memorable phrases, " o u r entire city is the

education o f Hel las" (41.1) and " the whole earth is the t o m b o f

famous m e n " (43.3) stand out. I n the end, however, the speech is

notable for what it leaves out . There are no specifics, no

ind iv idua l is named, t h o u g h undoubtedly some commanders

and leading citizens had fallen d u r i n g the year. F u r t h e r m o r e ,

Pericles makes almost no ment ion o f any details o f present or

past campaigns. W e l e a r n n o t h i n g about w h i c h contingents suf­

fered the greatest casualties and where. I n t a l k i n g o f the power

and greatness o f the city, he makes no ment ion o f the Parthenon

and the other bui ldings on the Acropol is , the great b u i l d i n g pro­

g r a m that he had promoted and that in many people's eyes gave

visible expression to Athens ' m i g h t . Perhaps he felt no need to,

for the speech was given just outside the m a i n gate o f the city.

T h e Acropol is , then , was in plain v iew for m u c h o f his audience.

Even after 2,500 years these bui ld ings are stil l impressive. I n ­

stead, he focuses in lofty, often abstract language on the present

greatness o f the Athenians , their government and way o f life.

T h e delivery of the speech itself was an act meant to exemplify

Athens. By exalt ing their city, Pericles exalted its dead, each and

every one equally. T o have died for such a great city is, as he pres­

ents i t , both ennobl ing and, in an abstract way, consoling.

78 / Thucydides: First Campaign and Funeral Oration

T h i s is notably not p r i m a r i l y a speech o f consolation; i t does

not offer comfor t on a personal level. As Thucyd ides presents

h i m here, Pericles comes across as p r o u d and austere. One can­

not t h i n k , for example, that the w i d o w s w i l l have been m u c h

encouraged to hear that their greatest g lory is to be "least spo­

ken o f a m o n g m e n " (45). Moreover , r i g h t at the opening i n his

first words (35), he sets h i m s e l f apart. H e w i l l not say w h a t the

m a j o r i t y has said on these occasions. H i s tone t o w a r d his a u d i ­

ence t h r o u g h o u t is didactic .

Thucydides' Portrait

of Pericles I I I Plague, Last Speech, and Final Tribute

F o l l o w i n g immediate ly on the funeral o ra t ion , that b r i l l i a n t ac­

count o f A t h e n i a n democracy del ivered by the city's greatest

statesman, and standing i n juxtaposi t ion to i t , is Thucydides '

c l inical ly v i v i d descript ion o f the plague that attacked the city

l ike an i n v a d i n g a r m y (2.47-54). Thucydides details the symp­

toms of the disease and its inexorable progression both t h r o u g h

the bodies o f those infected and t h r o u g h the city. Easily spread,

the plague had a devastating effect on the populace, w h o had

come in f r o m the countryside and were c r o w d e d into the city. 1

1. Despite T h u c y d i d e s ' very detailed description, m o d e r n authorities have

not been able to identify the disease w i t h certainty. S m a l l p o x , typhus, measles,

typhoid fever, a n d i n f l u e n z a are frequently m e n t i o n e d , but none quite suits

the pathology of the disease. It appears very probable, in v i e w o f the fact that

m a n y disease-causing m i c r o o r g a n i s m s mutate rapidly, that the particular dis­

ease T h u c y d i d e s described no longer exists or is no longer as v irulent .

7''