“The absence of romance in my history will, I fear, detract somewhat from its interest; but if it be judged useful by those inquirers who desire an exact knowledge of the past as an aid to the interpretation of the future, which in the course of human things must resemble if it does not reflect it, I shall be content. In fine, I have written my work, not as an essay which is to win the applause of the moment, but as a possession for all time.”
Thucydides
History of the Peloponnesian War (Primary source)
The History of the Peloponnesian War is about what happens when a rising power threatens an established one. Spoiler: nothing good.
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“Right, as the world goes, is only in question between equals in power, while the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.”
— Thucydides Primary source“The growth of the power of Athens, and the alarm which this inspired in Lacedaemon [Sparta], made war inevitable.”
— Thucydides Primary source“I think the two things most opposed to good counsel are haste and passion; haste usually goes hand in hand with folly, passion with coarseness and narrowness of mind.”
— Thucydides Primary source“So little pains do the vulgar take in the investigation of truth, accepting readily the first story that comes to hand.”
— Thucydides Primary source“We cannot hope to build a better world without improving the individual. Toward this end, each of us must work toward his own highest development, accepting at the same time his share of responsibility in the general life of humanity—our particular duty being to help those to whom we feel we can be most useful.”
— Marie Curie Secondary source“Someone once said that history is written by the victors. He probably was not the greatest of all victors, if only because his name has been utterly forgotten.”
— Winston Churchill Disputed“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”
— Eleanor Roosevelt Disputed“Time after time, history ran over the luddites and romanticists, those who sought to restore the old and delay the new. And every time, history did it with faster, more reliable and more advanced vehicles.”
— Winston Churchill DisputedHistory Timeless Objectivity Reality