Demosthenes

Demosthenes (Δημοσθένης, Dēmosthénēs; 384 BC – 12 October 322 BC) was a prominent Greek statesman and orator of ancient Athens, generally considered the greatest of the Greek orators.

Quotes

Greek text cited from M. R. Dilts, Demosthenis Orationes, vols. I–IV (Oxford, 2002–2009).

I. First Olynthiac (349/8 BC)

πρὸς γὰρ τὸ τελευταῖον ἐκβὰν ἕκαστον τῶν προϋπαρξάντων κρίνεται.
- Every advantage in the past is judged in the light of the final issue.
- I.11 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

ἐπειδὰν ἅπαντα ἀκούσητε κρίνατε, μὴ πρότερον προλαμβάνετε.
- When you have heard all the evidence give your decision, but prejudge nothing.
- I.14 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897

τὸ μὲν οὖν ἐπιτιμᾶν ἴσως φήσαι τις ἂν ῥᾴδιον καὶ παντὸς εἶναι, τὸ δ᾿ ὑπὲρ τῶν παρόντων ὅ τι δεῖ πράττειν ἀποφαίνεσθαι, τοῦτ᾿ εἶναι συμβούλου.
- To find fault, some one may say, is easy, and in every man's power; but to point out the proper course to be pursued in the present circumstances, that is the proof of a wise councellor.
- Ι.16 (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1873)
Compare Plutarch, On Listening to Lectures, 40e:
τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἀντειπεῖν οὐ χαλεπὸν ἀλλὰ καὶ πάνυ ῥᾴδιον εἰρημένῳ λόγῳ· τὸ δ᾿ ἕτερον ἀνταναστῆναι βελτίονα παντάπασιν ἐργῶδες.
It is a thing of no great difficulty to raise objections against another man's oration,—nay, it is a very easy matter; but to produce a better in its place is a work extremely troublesome. (tr. W. W. Goodwin, 1871)

δεῖ δὲ χρημάτων, καὶ ἄνευ τούτων οὐδὲν ἔστι γενέσθαι τῶν δεόντων.
- Only money we must have, and without money nothing can be done that ought to be done.
- I.20 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

τὸ γὰρ εὖ πράττειν παρὰ τὴν ἀξίαν ἀφορμὴ τοῦ κακῶς φρονεῖν τοῖς ἀνοήτοις γίγνεται.
- For great and unexpected successes are often the cause of the foolish rushing into acts of extravagance.
- I.23 (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1864)

πολλάκις δοκεῖ τὸ φυλάξαι τἀγαθὰ τοῦ κτήσασθαι χαλεπώτερον εἶναι.
- It often proves harder to keep than to win prosperity.
- I.23 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

II. Second Olynthiac (349/8 BC)

οὐ γὰρ ἔστιν, οὐκ ἔστιν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, ἀδικοῦντα καὶ ἐπιορκοῦντα καὶ ψευδόμενον δύναμιν βεβαίαν κτήσασθαι.
- It is impossible, men of Athens, impossible to gain permanent power by injustice, perjury, and falsehood.
- ΙΙ.10 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)
  - Alternate translation (T. Leland, 1756):
  - For it is not, no, Athenians! it is not possible to found a lasting power upon injustice, perjury, and treachery.

ὥσπερ γὰρ οἰκίας, οἶμαι, καὶ πλοίου καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τῶν τοιούτων τὰ κάτωθεν ἰσχυρότατα εἶναι δεῖ, οὕτω καὶ τῶν πράξεων τὰς ἀρχὰς καὶ τὰς ὑποθέσεις ἀληθεῖς καὶ δικαίας εἶναι προσήκει.
- For a house, I take it, or a ship or anything of that sort must have its chief strength in its substructure; and so too in affairs of state the principles and the foundations must be truth and justice.
- II.10 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

ἅπας μὲν λόγος, ἂν ἀπῇ τὰ πράγματα, μάταιόν τι φαίνεται καὶ κενόν.
- All speech is vain and empty unless it be accompanied by action.
- II.12 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

αἱ γὰρ εὐπραξίαι δειναὶ συγκρύψαι τὰ τοιαῦτα ὀνείδη.
- For success is apt to cover a multitude of faults.
- II.20 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)
Compare Demosthenes, Answer to Philip's Letter (authorship disputed), XI.13 :
αἱ γὰρ εὐπραξίαι δειναὶ συγκρύψαι καὶ συσκιάσαι τὰς ἁμαρτίας τῶν ἀνθρώπων εἰσίν.
For success has a great tendency to conceal and throw a veil over the evil deeds of men. (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1864)

οὐκ ἔνι δ᾿ αὐτὸν ἀργοῦντα οὐδὲ τοῖς φίλοις ἐπιτάττειν ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ τι ποιεῖν, μή τί γε δὴ τοῖς θεοῖς.
- One who is himself idle cannot possibly call upon his friends, much less upon the gods, to work for him.
- II.23 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

III. Third Olynthiac (349/8 BC)

ῥᾷστον ἁπάντων ἐστὶν αὑτὸν ἐξαπατῆσαι· ὃ γὰρ βούλεται, τοῦθ᾿ ἕκαστος καὶ οἴεται, τὰ δὲ πράγματα πολλάκις οὐχ οὕτω πέφυκεν.
- The easiest thing in the world is self-deceit; for every man believes what he wishes, though the reality is often different.
- III.19 (tr. C. R. Kennedy, 1852)
  - Alternate translation (R. Andrews, 1987):
  - A man is his own easiest dupe, for what he wishes to be true he generally believes to be true.
Compare Caesar, Gallic War, III.18:
fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt.
People readily believe in something they want. (tr. C. Damon, 2025)

ἔστι δ᾿ οὐδέποτ᾿, οἶμαι, μέγα καὶ νεανικὸν φρόνημα λαβεῖν μικρὰ καὶ φαῦλα πράττοντας· ὁποῖ᾿ ἄττα γὰρ ἂν τὰ ἐπιτηδεύματα τῶν ἀνθρώπων ᾖ, τοιοῦτον ἀνάγκη καὶ τὸ φρόνημα ἔχειν.
- You cannot, I suppose, have a proud and chivalrous spirit if your conduct is mean and paltry; for whatever a man's actions are, such must be his spirit.
- III.32 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

IV. First Philippic (352/1 BC)

φύσει δ᾿ ὑπάρχει τοῖς παροῦσι τὰ τῶν ἀπόντων, καὶ τοῖς ἐθέλουσι πονεῖν καὶ κινδυνεύειν τὰ τῶν ἀμελούντων.
- It is only natural that the share of the absentees should fall to those who are present, and that of the indifferent to those who are willing to incur toil and danger.
- IV.5 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

οἱ δὲ τῶν πραγμάτων οὐ μένουσι καιροὶ τὴν ἡμετέραν βραδυτῆτα καὶ εἰρωνείαν.
- The opportunities of fortune wait not for our dilatoriness and reluctance.
- IV.37 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

δεῖ τοὺς ὀρθῶς πολέμῳ χρωμένους οὐκ ἀκολουθεῖν τοῖς πράγμασιν, ἀλλ᾿ αὐτοὺς ἔμπροσθεν εἶναι τῶν πραγμάτων.
- Those who would wage war successfully must not wait upon events but anticipate them.
- IV.39 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

ὑμεῖς δέ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, πλείστην δύναμιν πάντων ἔχοντες, τριήρεις, ὁπλίτας, ἱππέας, χρημάτων πρόσοδον, τούτων μὲν μέχρι τῆς τήμερον ἡμέρας οὐδενὶ πώποτε εἰς δέον τι κέχρησθε, οὐδὲν δ᾿ ἀπολείπετε, ὥσπερ οἱ βάρβαροι πυκτεύουσιν, οὕτω πολεμεῖν Φιλίππῳ. καὶ γὰρ ἐκείνων ὁ πληγεὶς ἀεὶ τῆς πληγῆς ἔχεται, κἂν ἑτέρωσε πατάξῃ τις ἐκεῖσε ἐισὶν αἱ χεῖρες· προβάλλεσθαι δ᾿ ἢ βλέπειν ἐναντίον οὔτ᾿ οἶδεν οὔτ᾿ ἐθέλει.
- But you, Athenians, possessing unsurpassed resources—fleet, infantry, cavalry, revenues— have never to this very day employed them aright, and yet you carry on war with Philip exactly as a barbarian boxes. The barbarian, when struck, always clutches the place; hit him on the other side and there go his hands. He neither knows nor cares how to parry a blow or how to watch his adversary.
- IV.40 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

νικῴη δ᾿ ὅ τι πᾶσιν μέλλει συνοίσειν.
- Whatever shall be to the advantage of all, may that prevail!
- IV.51 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

VI. Second Philippic (343/2 BC)

οὐ γὰρ ἀσφαλεῖς ταῖς πολιτείαις αἱ πρὸς τοὺς τυράννους αὗται λίαν ὁμιλίαι.
- For those close and intimate alliances with despots are never safe to free states.
- VI.21 (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1864)

ἓν δέ τι φυλακτήριον, ὃ πᾶσι μέν ἐστ᾿ ἀγαθὸν καὶ σωτήριον, μάλιστα δὲ τοῖς πλήθεσι πρὸς τοὺς τυράννους. τί οὖν ἐστι τοῦτο; ἀπιστία. ἂν ταύτην σῴζητε, οὐδὲν μὴ δεινὸν πάθητε.
- But there is one common bulwark which the instinct of sensible men possesses within itself, a good and safe one for all, but invaluable for democracies against tyrants. And what is that bulwark? It is mistrust. If you preserve it, no harm can touch you.
- VI.24 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

βασιλεὺς γὰρ καὶ τύραννος ἅπας ἐχθρὸς ἐλευθερίᾳ καὶ νόμοις ἐνάντιος.
- For every king, every despot is the sworn foe of freedom and of law.
- VI.25 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)

οὐ φυλάξεσθ᾿ ὅπως, ἔφην, μὴ πολέμου ζητοῦντες ἀπαλλαγῆναι δεσπότην εὕρητε;
- Beware, said I, lest, seeking to be rid of war, you find a master.
- VI.25 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1930)
  - Alternate translation (K. Freeman, 1952):
  - Beware lest in your anxiety to avoid war you obtain a master.

VIII. On the Chersonese (341 BC)

οὐ γὰρ ἔστιν, οὐκ ἔστι τῶν ἔξω τῆς πόλεως ἐχθρῶν κρατῆσαι, πρὶν ἂν τοὺς ἐν αὐτῇ τῇ πόλει κολάσητ᾿ ἐχθρούς.
- It is impossible, absolutely impossible, to overcome our enemies abroad, until we have subdued the enemies within our gates.
- VIII.61 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

δεῖ [. . .] τὸ βέλιστον ἀεί, μὴ τὸ ῥᾷστον ἅπαντας λέγειν.
- It behooves us all to say what is best, not what is easiest.
- VIII.72 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

XV. For the Liberty of the Rhodians (351/0 BC)

δεῖ γὰρ τοὺς εὐτυχοῦντας περὶ τῶν ἀτυχούντων ἀεὶ φαίνεσθαι τὰ βέλτιστα βουλευομένους, ἐπειδήπερ ἄδηλον τὸ μέλλον ἅπασιν ἀνθρώποις.
- Those enjoying prosperity should always be ready to assist the unfortunate, for no one can say what the future may bring forth.
- XV.21 (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1873)

τῶν μὲν γὰρ ἰδίων δικαίων τῶν ἐν ταῖς πολιτείαις οἱ νόμοι κοινὴν τὴν μετουσίαν ἔδοσαν καὶ ἴσην καὶ τοῖς ἀσθενέσιν καὶ τοῖς ἰσχυροῖς· τῶν δ᾿ Ἑλληνικῶν δικαίων οἱ κρατοῦντες ὁρισταὶ τοῖς ἥττοσι γίγνονται.
- For in civil society the rights of individuals, without reference to their power or weakness in the state, are determined by the laws. But in national concerns the powerful always prescribe to the weaker.
- XV.29 (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1873)

XVI. For the Megalopolitans (352 BC)

χαλεπὸν τὰ βέλτιστα λέγειν ἐστί.
- It is difficult always to say exactly the right thing.
- XVI.2 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

XVIII. On the Crown (330 BC)

ἕτερον δέ, ὃ φύσει πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις ὑπάρχει, τῶν μὲν λοιδοριῶν καὶ τῶν κατηγοριῶν ἀκούειν ἡδέως, τοῖς ἐπαινοῦσι δ᾿ αὑτοὺς ἄχθεσθαι.
- It is the natural disposition of all men to listen with pleasure to abuse and slander of their neighbour, and to hear with impatience those who utter praises of themselves.
- XVIII.3 (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1864)

εἶτ᾿, οἶμαι, συμβέβηκε τοῖς μὲν πλήθεσιν ἀντὶ τῆς πολλῆς καὶ ἀκαίρου ῥαθυμίας τὴν ἐλευθερίαν ἀπολωλεκέναι, τοῖς δὲ προεστηκόσι καὶ τἄλλα πλὴν ἑαυτοὺς οἰομένοις πωλεῖν πρώτους ἑαυτοὺς πεπρακόσιν αἰσθέσθαι.
- In the result, of course, the excessive and inopportune apathy of the common people has been punished by the loss of their independence, while their leaders, who fancied they were selling everything except themselves, discover too late that their own liberty was the first thing they sold.
- XVIII.46 (tr. C. A. Vince, J. H. Vince, 1926)

ὁ γὰρ τὸ σπέρμα παρασχών, οὗτος τῶν φύντων κακῶν αἴτιος.
- For the sower of the seed is assuredly the author of the whole harvest of mischief.
- XVIII.159 (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1864)

ἣν γὰρ ὁ βέλτιστα πράττειν νομίζων καὶ ἀρίστην ἔχειν οἰόμενος οὐκ οἶδεν εἰ μενεῖ τοιαύτη μέχρι τῆς ἑσπέρας.
- The man who is in the highest state of prosperity, and who thinks his fortune most secure, knows not if it will remain unchanged till the evening.
- XVIII.252 (tr. C. T. Ramage, 1864)

ἐγὼ νομίζω τὸν μὲν εὖ παθόντα δεῖν μεμνῆσθαι πάντα τὸν χρόνον, τὸν δὲ ποιήσαντα εὐθὺς ἐπιλελῆσθαι. [. . .] τὸ δὲ τὰς ἰδίας εὐεργεσίας ὑπομιμνήσκειν καὶ λέγειν μικροῦ δεῖν ὅμοιόν ἐστι τῷ ὀνειδίζειν.
- My view is that the recipient of a benefit ought to remember it all his life, but that the benefactor ought to put it out of his mind at once. [. . .] To remind a man of the good turns you have done to him is very much like a reproach.
- XVIII.269 (tr. C. A. Vince, J. H. Vince, 1926)

τί δὲ μεῖζον ἔχοι τις ἂν εἰπεῖν ἀδίκημα κατ᾿ ἀνδρὸς ῥήτορος ἢ εἰ μὴ ταὐτὰ φρονεῖ καὶ λέγει;
- What worse charge can any one bring against an orator than that his words and his sentiments do not tally?
- XVIII.282 (tr. H. Brougham, 1840)

δύο δ᾿, ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τὸν φύσει μέτριον πολίτην ἔχειν δεῖ (οὕτω γάρ μοι περὶ ἐμαυτοῦ λέγοντι ἀνεπιφθονώτατον εἰπεῖν), ἐν μὲν ταῖς ἐξουσίαις τὴν τοῦ γενναίου καὶ τοῦ πρωτείου τῇ πόλει προαίρεσιν διαφυλάττειν, ἐν παντὶ δὲ καιρῷ καὶ πράξει τὴν εὔνοιαν· τούτου γὰρ ἡ φύσις κυρία, τοῦ δύνασθαι δὲ καὶ ἰσχύειν ἕτερα.
- There are two traits, men of Athens, that mark the disposition of the well-meaning citizen;—that is a description I may apply to myself without offence. When in power, the constant aim of his policy should be the honour and the ascendancy of his country; and on every occasion and in all business he should preserve his loyalty. That virtue depends on his natural disposition: ability and success depend upon other considerations.
- XVIII.321 (tr. C. A. Vince, J. H. Vince, 1926)

XIX. On the Embassy (343 BC)

τὰ πεπραγμένα αὐτὰ βοᾷ.
- The facts speak for themselves.
- XIX.81 (H. P. Jones, 1901)
Compare Cicero, Pro Milone, 53:
res loquitur ipsa, iudices, quae semper valet plurimum.
The facts, O judges, speak for themselves; facts, which are always of the greatest weight in a cause. (tr. C. D. Yonge, 1852)

XX. Against Leptines (354 BC)

φύσεως κακίας σημεῖόν ἐστιν ὁ φθόνος.
- Envy is a sign of an evil nature.
- XX.140 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

τὸ μέλλον ἄδηλον πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις, καὶ μικροὶ καιροὶ μεγάλων πραγμάτων αἴτιοι γίγνονται.
- No man can tell what the future may bring forth, and small opportunities are often the beginning of great enterprises.
- XX.162 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

XXI. Against Meidias (348/7 BC)

οὐ γὰρ ἡ πληγὴ παρέστησε τὴν ὀργήν, ἀλλ᾿ ἡ ἀτιμία.
- It is not the blow that rouses anger but the disgrace.
- XXI.72 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

ὁρᾶτε δέ· αὐτίκα δὴ μάλα, ἐπειδὰν ἀναστῇ τὸ δικαστήριον, εἷς ἕκαστος ὑμῶν, ὁ μὲν θᾶττον ἴσως, ὁ δὲ σχολαίτερον, οἴκαδε ἄπεισιν οὐδέν γε φροντίζων οὐδὲ μεταστρεφόμενος οὐδὲ φοβούμενος, οὔτ᾿ εἰ φίλος οὔτ᾿ εἰ μὴ φίλος αὐτῷ συντεύξεταί τις, οὐδέ γε εἰ μέγας ἢ μικρός, οὐδ᾿ εἰ ἰσχυρὸς ἢ ἀσθενής, οὐδὲ τῶν τοιούτων οὐδέν. τί δήποτε; ὅτι τῇ ψυχῇ τοῦτ᾿ οἶδε καὶ θαρρεῖ καὶ πεπίστευκε τῇ πολιτείᾳ, μηδένα ἕλξειν μηδ᾿ ὑβριεῖν μηδὲ τυπτήσειν.
- Just think. The instant this court rises, each of you will walk home, one quicker, another more leisurely, not anxious, not glancing behind him, not fearing whether he is going to run up against a friend or an enemy, a big man or a little one, a strong man or a weak one, or anything of that sort. And why? Because in his heart he knows, and is confident, and has learned to trust the State, that no one shall seize or insult or strike him.
- XXI.221 (tr. J. H. Vince, 1935)

XXIV. Against Timocrates (352 BC)

τίς οὖν μόνη φυλακὴ καὶ δικαία καὶ βέβαιος τῶν νόμων; ὑμεῖς οἱ πολλοί.
- Who then are the only just and firm supporters of the law? You, the people.
- XXIV.37 (tr. T. B. Harbottle, 1897)

Attributed

ὑπόκρισις, ὑπόκρισις, ὑπόκρισις.
- Delivery, delivery, delivery.
- Response when asked to name the three most important components of rhetoric. Reported by Cicero, Brutus 142:
  - Ut verum videretur in hoc illud, quod Demosthenem ferunt ei, qui quaesivisset quid primum esset in dicendo, actionem, quid secundum idem, et idem tertium respondisse.
  - You can see by his example how all this bears out the truth of the dictum attributed to Demosthenes; who when asked what was first in oratory replied to his questioner, 'action,' what second, 'action,' and again third, 'action.' (tr. G. L. Hendrickson, 1939)
- Also reported by pseudo-Plutarch, Lives of the Ten Orators, 845b:
  - ἐρομένου αὐτόν ⟨τινος⟩ τί πρῶτον ἐν ῥητορικῇ, εἶπεν 'ὑπόκρισις'· καὶ τί δεύτερον 'ὑπόκρισις'· καὶ τί τρίτον 'ὑπόκρισις'.
  - When someone asked him what was the first thing in oratory, he replied "Delivery," and what the second, "Delivery," and the third, "Delivery." (tr. H. N. Fowler, 1936)
- Further noted by Quintilian, Institutio Oratoria, XI.3.6 and Longinus, Art of Rhetoric, 195.5–9.

ὑμεῖς ἐμοὶ ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι συμβούλῳ μέν, κἂν μὴ θέλητε, χρήσεσθε· συκοφάντῃ δ᾿ οὐδ᾿ ἂν θέλητε.
- Men of Athens, you will have use of my services as a counsellor, even if you do not want them, but not as a false accuser, even if you do.
- On his refusal to take up a prosecution he disapproved of. Reported from a lost work of Theophrastus by Plutarch, Demosthenes 14.4:
  - ἱστορεῖ δὲ καὶ Θεόφραστος, ὅτι τῶν Ἀθηναίων ἐπί τινα προβαλλομένων αὐτὸν κατηγορίαν, εἶθ᾿ ὡς οὐχ ὑπήκουε θορυβούντων, ἀναστὰς εἶπεν· "ὑμεῖς ἐμοὶ ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι συμβούλῳ μέν, κἂν μὴ θέλητε, χρήσεσθε· συκοφάντῃ δ᾿ οὐδ᾿ ἂν θέλητε."
  - And also Theophrastus reports that when the Athenians proposed him (Demosthenes) for a certain prosecution and then raised a tumult because he did not accept, he rose and said, "Men of Athens, you will have use of my services as a counsellor, even if you do not want them, but not as a false accuser, even if you do." (tr. W. W. Fortenbaugh et al., 1993)

οὐκ ὠνοῦμαι μυρίων δραχμῶν μεταμέλειαν.
- I will not buy regret for ten thousand drachmas.
- Response when the courtesan Lais demanded an exorbitant fee for her affections. Reported from a lost work of Sotion by Aulus Gellius, Attic Nights, I.8.3–6:
  - Lais, inquit, Corinthia ob elegantiam venustatemque formae grandem pecuniam demerebat, conventusque ad eam ditiorum hominum ex omni Graecia celebres erant, neque admittebantur nisi qui dabat quod poposcerat: poscebat autem illa nimium quantum. [. . .] Ad hanc ille Demosthenes clanculum adit et ut sibi copiam sui faceret petit. At Lais μυρίας δραχμάς poposcit. [. . .] Tali petulantia mulieris atque pecuniae magnitudine ictus expavidusque Demosthenes avertitur et discedens [. . .] οὐκ ὠνοῦμαι inquit μυρίων δραχμῶν μεταμέλειαν.
  - Lais of Corinth, [Sotion] says, used to gain a great deal of money by the grace and charm of her beauty, and was frequently visited by wealthy men from all over Greece; but no one was received who did not give what she demanded, and her demands were extravagant enough. [. . .] The great Demosthenes approached her secretly and asked for her favours. But Lais demanded ten thousand drachmas. [. . .] Amazed and shocked at the woman's great impudence and the vast sum of money demanded, Demosthenes turned away, remarking as he left her: [. . .] I will not buy regret for ten thousand drachmas. (tr. J. C. Rolfe, 1927)

ἀνὴρ ὁ φεύγων καὶ πάλιν μαχήσεται.
- The man who runs away will fight again.
- On his fleeing the battle of Chaeronea. Reported by Aulus Gellius, Attic Nights, XVII.21.30–31:
  - post deinde aliquanto tempore Philippus apud Chaeroneam proelio magno Athenienses vicit. Tum Demosthenes orator ex eo proelio salutem fuga quaesivit, cumque id ei quod fugerat probrose obiceretur, versu illo notissimo elusit: ἀνὴρ (inquit) ὁ φεύγων καὶ πάλιν μαχήσεται.
  - Then some little time afterwards Philip defeated the Athenians in the great battle at Chaeronea. At that time the orator Demosthenes sought safety in flight from the battlefield, and when he was bitterly taunted with his flight he jestingly replied in the well-known verse: The man who runs away will fight again. (tr. J. C. Rolfe, 1927)
- Also in the Monosticha attributed to Menander, no. 56 Jäkel. However, linguistic evidence in the cited Greek verse suggests a date of composition considerably later than Demosthenes' time (T. Kock, 1886:98).

ἀλλ᾿ οὐ τὸ μέγα εὖ ἐστι, τὸ δὲ εὖ μέγα.
- It's not what's great that is good, but what's good that is great.
- Reported by Stobaeus, Anthology III.4.49:
  - Δημοσθένης ὁ ῥήτωρ θεασάμενός τινα δημαγωγὸν ἀφυῆ μέγα βοῶντα ἔφη 'ἀλλ᾿ οὐ τὸ μέγα εὖ ἐστι, τὸ δὲ εὖ μέγα'.
  - Demosthenes the orator, seeing an inept demagogue shouting loudly, said: It's not what's great that is good, but what's good that is great.
- Elsewhere attributed to the aulete Caphisias (Athenaeus 629b, Diogenes Laertius VII.21).
- The most widely circulated paraphrase is first found in Proverbs; or, the Manual of Wisdom (Oxford, 1803), p. 118:
  - Every thing great is not always good, but all good things are great.

Misattributed

The readiest and surest way to get rid of censure, is to correct ourselves.
- Paraphrased from Plato, Apology of Socrates 39d:
  - εἰ γὰρ οἴεσθε ἀποκτείνοντες ἀνθρώπους ἐπισχήσειν τοῦ ὀνειδίζειν τινὰ ὑμῖν ὅτι οὐκ ὀρθῶς ζῆτε, οὐ καλῶς διανοεῖσθε· οὐ γὰρ ἐσθ᾿ αὕτη ἡ ἀπαλλαγὴ οὔτε πάνυ δυνατὴ οὔτε καλή, ἀλλ᾿ ἐκείνη καὶ καλλίστη καὶ ῥᾴστη, μὴ τοὺς ἄλλους κολούειν ἀλλ᾿ ἑαυτὸν παρασκευάζειν ὅπως ἔσται ὡς βέλτιστος.
  - For if you think that by putting people to death you’ll prevent anyone remonstrating with you for not living your lives in the right way, you’re not thinking straight. You see this is not a very practicable or honorable way to get out of it. But the best and easiest way is not to restrain everyone else, but prepare oneself to be the best possible. (tr. C. Emlyn-Jones, W. Preddy, 2017)
- The paraphrase was made by Jacques de Tourreil, in his introduction to Demosthenes (Philippiques de Demosthene, Paris, 1701, p. 115), with attribution to Plato. The English comes from a translation of Tourreil, in Several Orations of Demosthenes (London, 1702), p. 146.
- First attributed to Demosthenes in Laconics; or Instructive Miscellanies (Philadelphia, 1827), p. 50.

Clouds cannot cover secret places, nor denials conceal truth.
- Recorded in N. Ling, Politeuphuia. Wits Common-wealth (London, 1597), f. 150r, without attribution. First attributed to Demosthenes in the 1647 edition, but does not occur in his writings.

As a vessel is known by the sound, whether it be whole or broken; so are men proved by their speech, whether they be wise or foolish.
- Robert Cawdrey, A Treasurie or Store-house of Similies (London, 1600), p. 750; the collection's non-scriptural similes were apparently composed by Cawdrey himself (R. H. Bowers, 1957:177).
- First attributed to Demosthenes in the 1688 edition of N. Ling's Politeuphuia. Wits Common-wealth.
Compare Plato, Theaetetus 179d, Philebus 55c and Plutarch, How to Tell a Flatterer From a Friend 64d.

What we have in us of the image of God, is the love of truth and justice.
- First appears in The Moralist; or a Collection of Maxims, Observations, &c. (Liverpool, 1800), p. 12, attributed to Demosthenes; not known to occur in his works.

The end of wisdom is consultation and deliberation.
- Mangled quotation from the Funeral Oration (itself of disputed authorship), LX.17:
  - ἔστιν γάρ, ἔστιν ἁπάσης ἀρετῆς ἀρχὴ μὲν σύνεσις, πέρας δ᾿ ἀνδρεία.
  - For of all virtue, I say, and I repeat it, the beginning is understanding and the fulfilment is courage. (tr. N. W. DeWitt, N. J. DeWitt, 1949)
- The corrupt form appears to be misremembered from a rendering of this passage in John Florio's translation of Montaigne's essays (The Essayes . . . of Lo: Michaell de Montaigne, London, 1603, p. 194):
  - It is a saying of Demosthenes, (as some report,) That consultation and deliberation, is the beginning of all vertues, and constancie, the end and perfection.
- First appears in print in the July 1824 issue of The European Magazine (vol. 86, p. 29), attributed to Demosthenes.

Quotes about Demosthenes

εἴπερ ἴσην γνώμῃ ῥώμην, Δημόσθενες, εἶχες,
οὔποτ᾿ ἂν Ἑλλήνων ἦρξεν Ἄρης Μακεδών.
- If thy strength had only been equal to thy purposes, Demosthenes,
  Never would the Greeks have been ruled by a Macedonian Ares.
- Anonymous epigram (tr. B. Perrin, 1919) inscribed on the base of a statue of Demosthenes erected in 280/279 BC by his nephew Demochares (D. L. Page, Further Greek Epigrams [Cambridge, 1981], p. 447)

Of orators, if I must choose you any, it shall be Demosthenes, both for the argument he handles, and for that his eloquence is more proper to a statesman than Cicero's.
- Francis Bacon, Advice to Fulke Greville on his studies, quoted in The Oxford Authors: Francis Bacon, ed. Brian Vickers (1996), p. 105

Nam plane quidem perfectum et quoi nihil admodum desit Demosthenem facile dixeris. Nihil acute inveniri potuit in eis causis quas scripsit, nihil, ut ita dicam, subdole, nihil versute, quod ille non viderit; nihil subtiliter dici, nihil presse, nihil enucleate, quo fieri possit aliquid limatius; nihil contra grande, nihil incitatum, nihil ornatum vel verborum gravitate vel sententiarum, quo quicquam esset elatius.
- For the perfect orator and the one who lacks absolutely nothing you would without hesitation name Demosthenes. Ingenuity however acute, however subtle, however shrewd would fail to discover any point in the orations from his hand which he has overlooked; in diction nothing more finished than the simplicity, the compression, the directness of his style; and again nothing more elevated than the sublimity, the passion, the dignity and beauty, whether of his words or of his sentiments.
- Cicero, Brutus, 35 (tr. G. L. Hendrickson, 1939)

Demosthenes would have saved his country had it consented to be saved.
- Georges Clemenceau, Demosthenes, tr. C. M. Thompson (Boston-New York, 1926), p. 8

Demosthenes met war with war only because submitting to brute force can give but a debasing peace. The strong who hold all the rewards in their hands had no degrading attraction for him. At one stroke and for always he gave himself to that subtly inconsequential people — inconsequential because its yoked strength and weakness pulled against each other as they were alternately attracted by the fleeting flatteries it was eager to give and to receive. In the worst trials, respectful of the Athenian ideal to which he had consecrated his life, he remained immutably faithful to his City and to Hellas, through which the civilization that we glory in was enabled to live and flourish.
- Georges Clemenceau, Demosthenes, tr. C. M. Thompson (Boston-New York, 1926), pp. 148-149

We have in Demosthenes an exceptional example of a type rare even in later antiquity and therefore of inestimable value to us: for here is one man of the ancient world whom we can know not merely as a walking canon of virtue, the hero of some largely fictitious school of biography patched together a century or more after his death, but as a real person in a real environment, waging a lifelong struggle against all his human frailties.
- Werner Jaeger, Demosthenes. The Origin and Growth of His Policy, tr. E. S. Robinson (Cambridge, 1938), p. 22

Νά! Αὐτὸς ἦτον ἄνθρωπος.
- That was a man.
- Adamantios Korais; his final words, on a portrait of Demosthenes. Reported by S. Mamoukas, 1881:157, from the testimony of K. Pitzipios, the only witness of Korais' death.

λέγουσι δ᾿ αὐτὸν [. . .] κατιόντα ἐπὶ τὸ Φαληρικὸν πρὸς τὰς τῶν κυμάτων ἐμβολὰς τὰς σκέψεις ποιεῖσθαι, ἵν᾿, εἴ ποτε θορυβοίη ὁ δῆμος, μὴ ἐκσταίη.
- They say that [. . .] he used to go down to the shore at Phalerum and address his remarks to the roar of the waves, that he might not be disconcerted if the people should ever make a disturbance.
- Pseudo-Plutarch, Lives of the Ten Orators, 844d–f (tr. H. N. Fowler, 1936)

Quorum longe princeps Demosthenes ac paene lex orandi fuit: tanta vis in eo, tam densa omnia, ita quibusdam nervis intenta sunt, tam nihil otiosum, is dicendi modus, ut nec quod desit in eo nec quod redundet invenias.
- Of these [sc. the Greek orators], Demosthenes was far the greatest, almost a law of oratory in himself: such is his force, the concentration of his thought, his muscular firmness, his economy, his control—one feels there is nothing lacking and nothing superfluous.
- Quintilian, Institutio Oratoria, X.1.76 (tr. D. A. Russell, 2002)

Do you remember that in classical times when Cicero had finished speaking, the people said, "How well he spoke" but when Demosthenes had finished speaking, they said, "Let us march."
- Adlai Stevenson, introducing John F. Kennedy in 1960, as quoted in Adlai Stevenson and The World: The Life of Adlai E. Stevenson‎ (1977) by John Bartlow Martin, p. 549

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