Most of those who have spoken here before me have commended the lawgiver who added
this oration to our other funeral customs. It seemed to them a worthy thing that
such an honor should be given at their burial to the dead who have fallen on the
field of battle. But I should have preferred that, when men's deeds have been
brave, they should be honored in deed only, and with such an honor as this public
funeral, which you are now witnessing. Then the reputation of many would not have
been imperiled on the eloquence or want of eloquence of one, and their virtues
believed or not as he spoke well or ill. For it is difficult to say neither too
little nor too much; and even moderation is apt not to give the impression of
truthfulness. The friend of the dead who knows the facts is likely to think that
the words of the speaker fall short of his knowledge and of his wishes; another
who is not so well informed, when he hears of anything which surpasses his own
powers, will be envious and will suspect exaggeration. Mankind are tolerant of
the praises of others so long as each hearer thinks that he can do as well or
nearly as well himself, but, when the speaker rises above him, jealousy is aroused
and he begins to be incredulous. However, since our ancestors have set the seal
of their approval upon the practice, I must obey, and to the utmost of my power
shall endeavor to satisfy the wishes and beliefs of all who hear me.
I will speak first of our ancestors,
for it is right and seemly that now, when we are lamenting the dead, a tribute
should be paid to their memory. There has never been a time when they did not
inhabit this land, which by their valor they will have handed down from generation
to generation, and we have received from them a free state. But if they were
worthy of praise, still more were our fathers, who added to their inheritance,
and after many a struggle transmitted to us their sons this great empire. And
we ourselves assembled here today, who are still most of us in the vigor of
life, have carried the work of improvement further, and have richly endowed
our city with all things, so that she is sufficient for herself both in peace
and war. Of the military exploits by which our various possessions were acquired,
or of the energy with which we or our fathers drove back the tide of war, Hellenic
or Barbarian, I will not speak; for the tale would be long and is familiar to
you. But before I praise the dead, I should like to point out by what principles
of action we rose ~ to power, and under what institutions and through what manner
of life our empire became great. For I conceive that such thoughts are not unsuited
to the occasion, and that this numerous assembly of citizens and strangers may
profitably listen to them.
Our form of government does not
enter into rivalry with the institutions of others. Our government does not
copy our neighbors', but is an example to them. It is true that we are called
a democracy, for the administration is in the hands of the many and not of the
few. But while there exists equal justice to all and alike in their private
disputes, the claim of excellence is also recognized; and when a citizen is
in any way distinguished, he is preferred to the public service, not as a matter
of privilege, but as the reward of merit. Neither is poverty an obstacle, but
a man may benefit his country whatever the obscurity of his condition. There
is no exclusiveness in our public life, and in our private business we are not
suspicious of one another, nor angry with our neighbor if he does what he likes;
we do not put on sour looks at him which, though harmless, are not pleasant.
While we are thus unconstrained in our private business, a spirit of reverence
pervades our public acts; we are prevented from doing wrong by respect for the
authorities and for the laws, having a particular regard to those which are
ordained for the protection of the injured as well as those unwritten laws which
bring upon the transgressor of them the reprobation of the general sentiment.
And we have not forgotten to provide
for our weary spirits many relaxations from toil; we have regular games and
sacrifices throughout the year; our homes are beautiful and elegant; and the
delight which we daily feel in all these things helps to banish sorrow. Because
of the greatness of our city the fruits of the whole earth flow in upon us;
so that we enjoy the goods of other countries as freely as our own.
Then, again, our military training
is in many respects superior to that of our adversaries. Our city is thrown
open to the world, though and we never expel a foreigner and prevent him from
seeing or learning anything of which the secret if revealed to an enemy might
profit him. We rely not upon management or trickery, but upon our own hearts
and hands. And in the matter of education, whereas they from early youth are
always undergoing laborious exercises which are to make them brave, we live
at ease, and yet are equally ready to face the perils which they face. And here
is the proof: The Lacedaemonians come into Athenian territory not by themselves,
but with their whole confederacy following; we go alone into a neighbor's country;
and although our opponents are fighting for their homes and we on a foreign
soil, we have seldom any difficulty in overcoming them. Our enemies have never
yet felt our united strength, the care of a navy divides our attention, and
on land we are obliged to send our own citizens everywhere. But they, if they
meet and defeat a part of our army, are as proud as if they had routed us all,
and when defeated they pretend to have been vanquished by us all.
If then we prefer to meet danger
with a light heart but without laborious training, and with a courage which
is gained by habit and not enforced by law, are we not greatly the better for
it? Since we do not anticipate the pain, although, when the hour comes, we can
be as brave as those who never allow themselves to rest; thus our city is equally
admirable in peace and in war. For we are lovers of the beautiful in our tastes
and our strength lies, in our opinion, not in deliberation and discussion, but
that knowledge which is gained by discussion preparatory to action. For we have
a peculiar power of thinking before we act, and of acting, too, whereas other
men are courageous from ignorance but hesitate upon reflection. And they are
surely to be esteemed the bravest spirits who, having the clearest sense both
of the pains and pleasures of life, do not on that account shrink from danger.
In doing good, again, we are unlike others; we make our friends by conferring,
not by receiving favors. Now he who confers a favor is the firmer friend, because
he would rather by kindness keep alive the memory of an obligation; but the
recipient is colder in his feelings, because he knows that in requiting another's
generosity he will not be winning gratitude but only paying a debt. We alone
do good to our neighbors not upon a calculation of interest, but in the confidence
of freedom and in a frank and fearless spirit. To sum up: I say that Athens
is the school of Hellas, and that the individual Athenian in his own person
seems to have the power of adapting himself to the most varied forms of action
with the utmost versatility and grace. This is no passing and idle word, but
truth and fact; and the assertion is verified by the position to which these
qualities have raised the state. For in the hour of trial Athens alone among
her contemporaries is superior to the report of her. No enemy who comes against
her is indignant at the reverses which he sustains at the hands of such a city;
no subject complains that his masters are unworthy of him. And we shall assuredly
not be without witnesses; there are mighty monuments of our power which will
make us the wonder of this and of succeeding ages; we shall not need the praises
of Homer or of any other panegyrist whose poetry may please for the moment,
although his representation of the facts will not bear the light of day. For
we have compelled every land and every sea to open a path for our valor, and
have everywhere planted eternal memorials of our friendship and of our enmity.
Such is the city for whose sake these men nobly fought and died; they could
not bear the thought that she might be taken from them; and every one of us
who survive should gladly toil on her behalf.
I have dwelt upon the greatness
of Athens because I want to show you that we are contending for a higher prize
than those who enjoy none of these privileges, and to establish by manifest
proof the merit of these men whom I am now commemorating. Their loftiest praise
has been already spoken. For in magnifying the city I have magnified them, and
men like them whose virtues made her glorious. And of how few Hellenes 1
can it be said as of them, that their deeds when weighed in the balance have
been found equal to their fame! I believe that a death such as theirs has been
the true measure of a man's worth; it may be the first revelation of his virtues,
but is at any rate their final seal. For even those who come short in other
ways may justly plead the valor with which they have fought for their country;
they have blotted out the evil with the good, and have benefited the state more
by their public services than they have injured her by their private actions.
None of these men were enervated by wealth or hesitated to resign the pleasures
of life; none of them put off the evil day in the hope, natural to poverty,
that a man, though poor, may one day become rich. But, deeming that the punishment
of their enemies was sweeter than any of these things, and that they could fall
in no nobler cause, they determined at the hazard of their lives to be honorably
avenged, and to leave the rest. They resigned to hope their unknown chance of
happiness; but in the face of death they resolved to rely upon themselves alone.
And when the moment came they were minded to resist and suffer, rather than
to fly and save their lives; they ran away from the word of dishonor, but on
the battlefield their feet stood fast, and in an instant, at the height of their
fortune, they passed away from the scene, not of their fear, but of their glory.
Such was the end of these men;
they were worthy of Athens, and the living need not desire to have a more heroic
spirit, although they may pray for a less fatal issue. The value of such a spirit
is not to be expressed in words. Any one can discourse to you for ever about
the advantages of a brave defense, which you know already. But instead of listening
to him I would have you day by day fix your eyes upon the greatness of Athens,
until you become filled with the love of her; and when you are impressed by
the spectacle of her glory, reflect that this empire has been acquired by men
who knew their duty and had the courage to do it, who in the hour of conflict
had the fear of dishonor always present to them, and who, if ever they failed
in an enterprise, would not allow their virtues to be lost to their country,
but freely gave their lives to her as the fairest offering which they could
present at her feast. The sacrifice which they collectively made was individually
repaid to them; for they received again each one for himself a praise which
grows not old, and the noblest of all tombs, I speak not of that in which their
remains are laid, but of that in which their glory survives, and is proclaimed
always and on every fitting occasion both in word and deed. For the whole earth
is the tomb of famous men; not only are they commemorated by columns and inscriptions
in their own country, but in foreign lands there dwells also an unwritten memorial
of them, graven not on stone but in the hearts of men. Make them your examples,
and, esteeming courage to be freedom and freedom to be happiness, do not weigh
too nicely the perils of war. The unfortunate who has no hope of a change for
the better has less reason to throw away his life than the prosperous who, if
he survive, is always liable to a change for the worse, and to whom any accidental
fall makes the most serious difference. To a man of spirit, cowardice and disaster
coming together are far more bitter than death striking him unperceived at a
time when he is full of courage and animated by the general hope.
Wherefore I do not now pity the
parents of the dead who stand here; I would rather comfort them. You know that
your dead have passed away amid manifold vicissitudes; and that they may be
deemed fortunate who have gained their utmost honor, whether an honorable death
like theirs, or an honorable sorrow like yours, and whose share of happiness
has been so ordered that the term of their happiness is likewise the term of
their life. I know how hard it is to make you feel this, when the good fortune
of others will too often remind you of the gladness which once lightened your
hearts. And sorrow is felt at the want of those blessings, not which a man never
knew, but which were a part of his life before they were taken from him. Some
of you are of an age at which they may hope to have other children, and they
ought to bear their sorrow better; not only will the children who may hereafter
be born make them forget their own lost ones, but the city will be doubly a
gainer. She will not be left desolate, and she will be safer. For a man's counsel
cannot have equal weight or worth, when he alone has no children to risk in
the general danger. To those of you who have passed their prime, I say: "Congratulate
yourselves that you have been happy during the greater part of your days; remember
that your life of sorrow will not last long, and be comforted by the glory of
those who are gone. For the love of honor alone is ever young, and not riches,
as some say, but honor is the delight of men when they are old and useless.
To you who are the sons and brothers
of the departed, I see that the struggle to emulate them will be an arduous
one. For all men praise the dead, and, however preeminent your virtue may be,
I do not say even to approach them, and avoid living their rivals and detractors,
but when a man is out of the way, the honor and goodwill which he receives is
unalloyed. And, if I am to speak of womanly virtues to those of you who will
henceforth be widows, let me sum them up in one short admonition: To a woman
not to show more weakness than is natural to her sex is a great glory, and not
to be talked about for good or for evil among men.
I have paid the required tribute,
in obedience to the law, making use of such fitting words as I had. The tribute
of deeds has been paid in part; for the dead have them in deeds, and it remains
only that their children should be maintained at the public charge until they
are grown up: this is the solid prize with which, as with a garland, Athens
crowns her sons living and dead, after a struggle like theirs. For where the
rewards of virtue are greatest, there the noblest citizens are enlisted in the
service of the state. And now, when you have duly lamented, every one his own
dead, you may depart.
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