Theognis poems
Theognis(540 BC - 480 BC / Greece)
Fragments - Lines 0173 - 0178
- by Theognis 41
Of all things it is poverty that most subdues a noble man,More even than hoary old age, Kyrnos, or fever;
Indeed, to avoid it one should even throw oneself into the sea's
Deep gulfs, Kyrnos, or off sheer cliffs.
For the man subdued by poverty can neither say
Nor do anything, because his tongue is tied.
Fragments - Lines 0213 - 0218
- by Theognis 39
My heart, display toward all your friends a changeful character,Adding into it the disposition that each one has.
Adopt the disposition of the octopus, crafty in its convolutions, which takes on
The appearance of whatever rock it has dealings with.
At one moment follow along this way, but at the next change the color of your skin:
You can be sure that cleverness proves better than inflexibility.