The Polity of the Athenians and the Lacedaemonians
- Language:
- English
- Status:
- Complete work
- Authorship:
- Attributed (authorship debated)
- Condition of the text:
- No scanning noise detected (automatic measure over the whole text, not checked by hand)
- Extent:
- ~20,400 words · 97 passages
Cite this work
- APAXenophon. (n.d.). The Polity of the Athenians and the Lacedaemonians. Digital reproduction: SigPhi. https://sigphiai.com/en/works/xenophon/the-polity-of-the-athenians-and-the-lacedaemonians
- MLAXenophon. The Polity of the Athenians and the Lacedaemonians. Digital reproduction, SigPhi, https://sigphiai.com/en/works/xenophon/the-polity-of-the-athenians-and-the-lacedaemonians.
- ChicagoXenophon. The Polity of the Athenians and the Lacedaemonians. Digital reproduction, SigPhi. https://sigphiai.com/en/works/xenophon/the-polity-of-the-athenians-and-the-lacedaemonians.
Reference to the edition that SigPhi reproduces: SigPhi is its digital reproduction, not its publisher. The edition's year is not in the metadata (hence "n.d."), and the translator appears only when recorded.
What it is about
Two short texts on how Sparta and Athens were organised.
Context and history
The Spartan one is Xenophon's; the Athenian, traditionally ascribed to him, is by an unknown hand known as the Old Oligarch. That second is remarkable for attacking Athenian democracy while conceding that it works very well for its own ends — an opponent who actually argues.
Editorial context, not a citable source: unlike the passages of the work itself, these statements cannot be checked against the corpus.
There is just one thing which the Athenians lack. Supposing that they were the inhabitants of an island, (16) and were still, as now, rulers of the sea, they would have had it in their power to work whatever mischief they liked, and to suffer no evil in return (as long as they kept command of the sea), neither the ravaging of their territory nor the expectation of an enemy's approach. Whereas at present the farming portion of the community and the wealthy landowners are ready (17) to cringe before the enemy overmuch, whilst the People, knowing full well that, come what may, not one stock or stone of their property will suffer, nothing will be cut down, nothing burnt, lives in freedom from alarm, without fawning at the enemy's approach. Besides this, there is another fear from which they would have been exempt in an island home--the apprehension of the city being at any time betrayed by their oligarchs (18) and the gates thrown open, and an enemy bursting suddenly in. How could incidents like these have taken place if an island had been their home? Again, had they inhabited an island there would have been no stirring of sedition against the people; whereas at present, in the event of faction, those who set it in foot base their hopes of success on the introduction of an enemy by land. But a people inhabiting an island would be free from all anxiety on that score. Since, however, they did not chance to inhabit an island from the first, what they now do is this--they deposit their property in the islands, (19) trusting to their command of the sea, and they suffer the soil of Aticca to be ravaged without a sigh. To expend pity on that, they know, would be to deprive themselves of other blessings still more precious. (20) (16) See Thuc. i. 143. Pericles says: "Reflect, if we were islanders, who would be more invulnerable? Let us imagine that we are." (17) Or, "are the more ready to cringe." See, for the word {uperkhontai}, "Pol. Lac.…
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