About Thucydides
Thucydides was a Greek historian and general who lived between 460-395 BCE. He is known for writing the History of the Peloponnesian War, a detailed account of the war between Athens and Sparta that lasted from 431-404 BCE. This work is considered one of the first great works of history and is still widely read and studied today.
Thucydides served as a general during the war and was exiled from Athens after losing a battle. He used his time in exile to research and write his history of the war, drawing on his own experiences as well as other sources. His work is known for its impartiality, attention to detail, and for its use of speeches to explain the motives and actions of the main actors in the war.
Thucydides' History is also considered a pioneering work of political realism, as it emphasizes the role of power and self-interest in the relations between states, and it doesn't hesitate to show the darker side of human nature. He also wrote on the geography, ethnography, and the causes of the war. His work had an important influence on later historians and political thinkers, and it is still considered a valuable source of information about ancient Greece and a classic in the Western historical tradition.
Top 12 most motivational quotes from Thucydides
- “Self-control is the chief element in self-respect, and self-respect is the chief element in courage.”
- “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.”
- “A collision at sea will ruin your entire day”
- “It is frequently a misfortune to have very brilliant men in charge of affairs. They expect too much of ordinary men.”
- “They whose minds are least sensitive to calamity, and whose hands are most quick to meet it, are the greatest men and the greatest communities.”
- “A man who has the knowledge but lacks the power clearly to express it is no better off than if he never had any ideas at all.”
- “My work is not a piece of writing designed to meet the needs of an immediate public, but was done to last for ever.”
- “Peace is an armistice in a war that is continuously going on.”
- “War is a matter not so much of arms as of money.”
- “You should punish in the same manner those who commit crimes with those who accuse falsely.”
- “Ignorance is bold, and knowledge is reserved”
- “I am more afraid of our own blunders than of the enemy's devices.”
Reactie plaatsen
Reacties