Livy

Livy (c. 59 BCE-17 CE)

"Are we never to make changes? Because a thing had not been done before--and in a young country there are lots of things which have not been done before--is that a reason for never doing it, however great the benefits it may bring?"

• From a speech attributed to the tribune Canuleius by Livy in the History of Rome (Book 4, chapter 3), translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 2002.

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Josephus

Josephus (c. 37/38-100)

"I fail to see how victory over a feeble enemy can be any indication of power."

• The Jewish War (Book I, section 8) by Josephus, translated by Martin Hammond (Oxford University Press, 2017).

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Livy

Livy (c. 59 BCE-17 CE)

"Men fighting for their own liberty and prestige are very different creatures from men who are called upon to use their judgement, unclouded by passion, when the fight is over."

• The History of Rome (Book 4, section 6) by Livy, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 2002.

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Tacitus

Tacitus (c. 56/57-117)

"As our bodies, which grow so slowly, perish in a flash, so too the mind and its interests can be more easily crushed than brought again to life. Idleness gradually becomes sweet, and we end by loving the sloth that at first we loathed."

• From the Agricola (section 3) by Tacitus, translated by Harold Mattingly and edited by J. B. Rives. New York: Penguin Classics, 2009.

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Livy

Livy (c. 59 BCE-17 CE)

"The truth is that our communal life is poisoned by political discord and party strife, and it was that which raised his hopes of destroying us, seeing as he did, your lust for liberty in perpetual conflict with our lust for power, and each party's loathing of the representative magistracies of the other."

• The History of Rome (Book 3, section 67) by Livy, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 2002.

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Livy

Livy (c. 59 BCE-17 CE)

"True moderation in the defence of political liberties is indeed a difficult thing: pretending to want fair shares for all, every man raises himself by depressing his neighbour; our anxiety to avoid oppression leads us to practise it ourselves; the injustice we repel, we visit in turn upon others, as if there were no choice except to do it or to suffer it."

• The History of Rome (Book 3, section 65) by Livy, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 2002.

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Livy

Livy (59 BCE-17 CE)

"Put it to the test..any time you please, and you will soon see that the self-seeking and cupidity of tyrants is no match for honest indignation fighting to throw off its chains."

• From a speech attributed to Marcus Horatius Barbatus by Livy in the History of Rome (Book 5, chapter 39), translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 2002.

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Plutarch

Plutarch (c. 50-120)

"So very difficult a matter is it to trace and find out the truth of any thing by history, when, on the one hand, those who afterwords write it find long periods of time intercepting their view, and, on the other hand, the contemporary records of any actions and lives, partly through envy and ill-will, partly through favor and flattery, pervert and distort truth."

• Plutarch in Parallel Lives (Life of Pericles, 13.12). The edition used here is from the Harvard Classics series, edited by Charles W. Eliot, and published by P. F. Collier & Son (1909, 1937).

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Livy

Livy (c. 59 BCE-17 CE)

"Learn by another's sorrow to avoid it for yourselves."

• The History of Rome (Book 3, section 30) by Livy, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 2002.

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Cassius Dio

Cassius Dio (163-235)

"Let no man be the object of your jealousy, and when you compete with one another let it not be for the personal advantage of this man or that, but to ensure the safety and prosperity of the city."

• From a speech attributed to Octavian/Augustus in Cassius Dio's The Roman History (Book 53, chapter 10), translated by Ian Scott-Kilvert (Penguin Classics, 1987).

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Plutarch

Plutarch (c. 50-120)

"Moral good is a practical stimulus; it is no sooner seen, than it inspires an impulse to practise; and influences the mind and character not by a mere imitation which we look at, but, by the statement of the fact, creates a moral purpose which we form."

• Quote by Plutarch in Parallel Lives (Life of Pericles). The edition used here is from the Harvard Classics series, edited by Charles W. Eliot, and published by P. F. Collier & Son (1909, 1937).

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Tacitus

Tacitus (c. 56-117)

"Let it be clear to those inclined to admire unlawful acts that even under bad emperors men can be great, and that a sense of duty and discretion, if backed by ability and energy, can reach that peak of honour that many have stormed by precipitous paths, winning fame, without serving country, through an ostentatious death."

• From the Agricola (section 42) by Tacitus, translated by Harold Mattingly and edited by J. B. Rives. New York: Penguin Classics, 2009.

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Livy

Livy (c. 59 BCE-17 CE)

"One cannot hope for accuracy when dealing with a past so remote and with authorities so antiquated."

• The History of Rome (Book 2, section 21) by Livy, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 2002.

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Livy

Livy (c. 59 BCE - 17 CE)

"Shared danger is the strongest of bonds; it will keep men united in spite of mutual dislike and suspicion."

• The History of Rome (Book 2, section 39) by Livy, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 2002.

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Procopius

Procopius (c. 490-565)

"While cleverness is appropriate to rhetoric, and inventiveness to poetry, truth alone is appropriate to history."

• From The History of the Wars (Book I, section 1) by Procopius, translated by H. B. Dewing (Harvard University Press, originally published 1914).

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Severus of Minorca

Severus of Minorca (flourished c. 418)

"As I see it, you thirst for our blood, while we thirst for your salvation."

• Quote from Severus of Minorca's Letter on the Conversion of the Jews, translated by Scott Bradbury (Clarendon Press, 1996), and reprinted in Christianity in Late Antiquity, edited by Bart D. Ehrman and Andrew S. Jacobs
  (Oxford University Press, 2004).

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Livy

Livy (c. 59 BCE-17 CE)

"Political decisions, however, always have been, and always will be, influenced for ill by party spirit and concern for property."

• The History of Rome (Book 2, section 29) by Livy, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 2002. 

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Marcus Aurelius

Marcus Aurelius (c. 121-180)

"Look within; within is the fountain of all good. Such a fountain, where springing waters can never fail, so thou dig still deeper and deeper."

• From the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, Book VII, meditation XXXI, (Xist Publishing edition, 2015).

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Cassius Dio

Cassius Dio (c. 163-235)

"Those who make statements which lack credibility not only fail to convince others, but create the impression that they themselves are imposters."

• From a speech attributed to Octavian in Cassius Dio's The Roman History (Book 53, chapter 3), translated by Ian Scott-Kilvert (Penguin Classics, 1987).

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Livy

Livy (c. 59 BCE-17 CE)

"That [communal] sense - the only true patriotism - comes slowly and springs from the heart: it is founded upon respect for the family and love of the soil."

• The History of Rome (Book 2, section 1) by Livy, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt. New York: Penguin Classics, 2002.

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