User Tools

Site Tools


antisthenes_of_athens:plutarch_life_of_pericles_1

Antisthenes of Athens | Plutarch, Life of Pericles 1

<blockquote>Such objects are to be found in virtuous deeds; these implant in those who search them out a great and zealous eagerness which leads to imitation. In other cases, admiration of the deed is not immediately accompanied by an impulse to do it. Nay, many times, on the contrary, while we delight in the work, we despise the workman, as, for instance, in the case of perfumes and dyes; we take a delight in them, but dyers and perfumers we regard as illiberal and vulgar folk. Therefore it was a fine saying of Antisthenes, when he heard that Ismenias was an excellent piper: “But he's a worthless man,” said he, “otherwise he wouldn't be so good a piper.” And so Philip once said to his son, who, as the wine went round, plucked the strings charmingly and skilfully, “Art not ashamed to pluck the strings so well?” It is enough, surely, if a king have leisure to hear others pluck the strings, and he pays great deference to the Muses if he be but a spectator of such contests.

Source: The Parallel Lives by Plutarch published in Vol. III of the Loeb Classical Library edition, 1916.
Source</blockquote>

antisthenes_of_athens/plutarch_life_of_pericles_1.txt · Last modified: 2014/03/02 14:40 by frank

Except where otherwise noted, content on this wiki is licensed under the following license: Public Domain
Public Domain Donate Powered by PHP Valid HTML5 Valid CSS Driven by DokuWiki