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Καὶ—‘and thus.’ Here the πίστις B is summed up, preparatory to passing on to the προτροπή (exhortation). προσηκόντως τῇ πόλει—‘in a manner worthy of Athens.’ τοὺς λοιποὺς—=τοὺς λειπομένους of 41, 5. ἀσφαλεστέραν— sc. διάνοιαν, though they should pray for a spirit less fatal (in its results). This again shows that τύχη had, in Pericles' view, to some extent crossed the purpose of the fallen. εὔσεσθαι—for ἀσφάλεια is the gift of God alone. Cf. c. 87, 3. εὐτολμία depends on human resolution. λόγῳ—i.e. from the words of the orator. ὠφελίαν—explained in ὅσα ... ἀγαθὰ ἔνεστιν. (On the orthography, Herodian remarks ὠφέλεια: ποιητικώτερον διὰ τὸ ι_ καὶ παροξύνεται.) ἣν—with μηκύνοι. Cf. c. 42, 1. πρὸς—coram, with a verb of speaking. See c. 5, 7. Cf. III. 53, 4 πρὸς εἰδότας πάντα λελέξεται. καθ᾽ ἡμέραν—this daily contemplation of the greatness of Athens will lead to a lasting love for her: and that love should be an incentive to noble actions. τολμῶντες —‘by courage, by knowing what was their duty, and by their sense of honour in the hour of conflict.’ αὐτὰ—i.e. τὴν δύναμιν, but expressing the details of the power. Cf. c. 1. οὖν—‘on that account.’ κάλλιστον—because, while they contributed to the advancement of the state, they obtained a splendid return. ἔρανον—‘contribution’; both the association and the money subscribed to it were termed ἔρανος, which denotes combination for financial purposes of whatever kind. The object is τὴν ἀρετήν, κ. ἔρανον being predicate. προιέμενοι—stronger than the ordinary ἔρανον ἐσφέρειν, and used because it is the regular word for sacrificing anything for the state; e.g. Lysias 21, 12 ὑμῖν οὐδὲν προεῖνται τῶν σφετέρων αὐτῶν.
Κοινῇ ... ἰδίᾳ—the antithesis is as obvious as it is forcible. They gave their lives for the common good; they gained for themselves undying fame. γὰρ—Pericles refers to the distribution of profits made by a financial ἔρανος. (All this is quite clear when Andoc. I. 133-135 is compared: he speaks of the members of an ἔρανος got up by Agyrrhius to farm the tax on imports and exports; the object of the business-men who joined it was διανείμασθαι τὰ κοινά.) τὸν ἀγήρων ἔπαινον—the praise (which rewards good deeds). ἐλάμβανον—the tense represents the result of the act (διδόντες) as growing out of the act itself, as in Lat. ita vitas dederunt ut acciperent, contrasted with ita vitas dederunt ut acceperint. ἐπισημότατον—the pred. serves to connect the adj. with the rel. clause which follows. οὐκ ... μᾶλλον, ἀλλ᾽—cf. c. 40, 1; 44, 4; ἀλλὰ for ἢ (only after a neg.) gives greater emphasis to the second clause. παρὰ τῷ ἐντυχόντι ... καιρῷ—a curious expression, since παρὰ with dat. is confined to persons; ‘on every fitting occasion, whether by word or deed.’ This construction is only found when the thing is almost personified; here αἰείμνηστος παρὰ καιρῷ λόγου implies persons: in c. 89, 9 and VIII. 95, 4 Thuc. writes παρὰ ταῖς ναυσὶν εἶναι, in v. 26, 5 γενομένῳ παρ᾽ ἀμφοτέροις τοῖς πράγμασι. There is only one case in the orators, viz. Andoc. I. 116 ὴ στήλη παρ᾽ ᾗ ἕστηκας κελεύει.
Σημαίνει—c. 8, 3. Cf. v. 20, 2 ἐς τὰ προγεγενημένα σημαίνει. ἄγραφος μνήμη—cf. c. 38, 3, which shows that by τῆς γνώμης κ.τ.λ. is meant ‘engraved on the heart rather than in material records.’ The difficulty is to explain the art. with ἔργου; it is due to στηλῶν above, the records having been referred to in that word. As the memory is carried in men's hearts, it is confined to no particular country.
Τὸ εὔδαιμον ... τὸ δὲ ἐλεύθερον—predicates, the art. being added because the adj. is used as a noun. μὴ περιορᾶσθε—‘do not be too anxious about the dangers of war’; the advice is the result of the doctrine ‘happiness is attained by courage,—by retaining a cheerful spirit in peril,’ which cheerfulness Pericles claims to be characteristic of the Athenians as the result of their free institutions (39, 4), and now urges them to retain in the war.
Οὐ γὰρ—a paradox: misery is identical with cowardice, since cowardice must involve misery. Therefore those who are prosperous must avoid cowardice (i.e. be ready to sacrifice their lives), whereas to those who are already miserable cowardice involves no addition to their misery. This decides the meaning of περιορᾶσθε above. ἡ ἐναντία μεταβολὴ—‘the change from good to bad fortune.’ κινδυνεύεται—c. 35, 1. ἐν οἷς—‘in whose case.’ μάλιστα— ‘in comparison with others,’ as often. Cf. c. 49, 1, and μᾶλλον ἑτέρων. τὰ διαφέροντα—‘the difference.’
Μετὰ τοῦ—cf. I. 6, 5; VI. 65, 1. ‘Cowardice and disgrace together.’ κάκωσις—=ἡ ἐναντία μεταβολὴ above, according to the doctrine that cowardice is misery, and therefore to the prosperous involves degradation: κάκωσις: ταπείνωσις Hesych. μετὰ ῥώμης—‘when he is fired by courage and the general hope,’ viz. that his side will win. ἀναίσθητος— ‘painless.’
Commentary on Thucydides Book 2. E.C. Marchant. London. MacMillan & Company. 1891.
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