Complete Works of Isocrates by Isocrates

Author:Isocrates
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Ancient Classics
Publisher: Delphi Classics
Published: 2016-11-12T05:00:00+00:00

To Nicocles

Πρὸς Νικόκλεα

[1] οἱ μὲν εἰωθότες, ὦ Νικόκλεις, τοῖς βασιλεῦσιν ὑμῖν ἐσθῆτας ἄγειν ἢ χαλκὸν ἢ χρυσὸν εἰργασμένον ἢ τῶν ἄλλων τι τῶν τοιούτων κτημάτων, ὧν αὐτοὶ μὲν ἐνδεεῖς εἰσιν ὑμεῖς δὲ πλουτεῖτε, λίαν ἔδοξαν εἶναί μοι καταφανεῖς οὐ δόσιν ἀλλ᾽ ἐμπορίαν ποιούμενοι, καὶ πολὺ τεχνικώτερον αὐτὰ πωλοῦντες τῶν ὁμολογούντων καπηλεύειν:

[1] When men make it a habit, Nicocles, to bring to you who are rulers of kingdoms articles of dress or of bronze or of wrought gold, or other such valuables of which they themselves have need and you have plenty, it seems to me all too evident that they are not engaged in giving but in bargaining, and that they are much more skillful in disposing of their wares than those who are professedly in trade.

[2] ἡγησάμην δ᾽ ἂν γενέσθαι ταύτην καλλίστην δωρεὰν καὶ χρησιμωτάτην καὶ μάλιστα πρέπουσαν ἐμοί τε δοῦναι καὶ σοὶ λαβεῖν, εἰ δυνηθείην ὁρίσαι ποίων ἐπιτηδευμάτων ὀρεγόμενος καὶ τίνων ἀπεχόμενος ἄριστ᾽ ἂν καὶ τὴν πόλιν καὶ τὴν βασιλείαν διοικοίης.

τοὺς μὲν γὰρ ἰδιώτας ἐστὶ πολλὰ τὰ παιδεύοντα, μάλιστα μὲν τὸ μὴ τρυφᾶν ἀλλ᾽ ἀναγκάζεσθαι περὶ τοῦ βίου καθ᾽ ἑκάστην τὴν ἡμέραν βουλεύεσθαι,

[2] For my part, I should think that this would be the finest and the most serviceable present and the most suitable for me to give and for you to receive — I could prescribe what pursuits you should aspire to and from what you should abstain in order to govern to the best advantage your state and kingdom.

For when men are in private life, many things contribute to their education: first and foremost, the absence of luxury among them, and the necessity they are under to take thought each day for their livelihood;

[3] ἔπειθ᾽ οἱ νόμοι καθ᾽ οὓς ἕκαστοι πολιτευόμενοι τυγχάνουσιν, ἔτι δ᾽ ἡ παρρησία καὶ τὸ φανερῶς ἐξεῖναι τοῖς τε φίλοις ἐπιπλῆξαι καὶ τοῖς ἐχθροῖς ἐπιθέσθαι ταῖς ἀλλήλων ἁμαρτίαις: πρὸς δὲ τούτοις καὶ τῶν ποιητῶν τινες τῶν προγεγενημένων ὑποθήκας ὡς χρὴ ζῆν καταλελοίπασιν: ὥστ᾽ ἐξ ἁπάντων τούτων εἰκὸς αὐτοὺς βελτίους γίγνεσθαι.

[3] next, the laws by which in each case their civic life is governed; furthermore, freedom of speech and the privilege which is openly granted to friends to rebuke and to enemies to attack each other’s faults; besides, a number of the poets of earlier times have left precepts which direct them how to live; so that, from all these influences, they may reasonably be expected to become better men.

[4] τοῖς δὲ τυράννοις οὐδὲν ὑπάρχει τοιοῦτον, ἀλλ᾽ οὓς ἔδει παιδεύεσθαι μᾶλλον τῶν ἄλλων, ἐπειδὰν εἰς τὴν ἀρχὴν καταστῶσιν, ἀνουθέτητοι διατελοῦσιν: οἱ μὲν γὰρ πλεῖστοι τῶν ἀνθρώπων αὐτοῖς οὐ πλησιάζουσιν, οἱ δὲ συνόντες πρὸς χάριν ὁμιλοῦσι. καὶ γὰρ τοι κύριοι γιγνόμενοι καὶ χρημάτων πλείστων καὶ πραγμάτων μεγίστων, διὰ τὸ μὴ καλῶς χρῆσθαι ταύταις ταῖς ἀφορμαῖς πεποιήκασιν ὥστε πολλοὺς ἀμφισβητεῖν, πότερόν ἐστιν ἄξιον ἑλέσθαι τὸν βίον τὸν τῶν ἰδιωτευόντων μὲν ἐπιεικῶς δὲ πραττόντων, ἢ τὸν τῶν τυραννευόντων.

[4] Kings, however, have no such help; on the contrary, they, who more than other men should be thoroughly trained, live all their lives, from the time when they are

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.