And are not those who indicate by signs, without a word, what must be done, praised and admired exceedingly? So Heracleitus,* when his fellow-citizens asked him to propose some opinion about concord, mounted the platform, took a cup of cold water, sprinkled it with barley-meal, stirred it with penny-royal, drank it up, and departed, thus demonstrating to them that to be satisfied with whatever they happen upon and not to want expensive things is to keep cities in peace and concord.
And Scilurus,* king of the Scythians, left behind him eighty sons; when he was dying, he asked for a bundle of spear-shafts and bade his sons take it and break it in pieces, tied closely together as the shafts were. When they gave up the task, he himself drew all the spears out one by one and easily broke them in two, thus revealing that the harmony and concord of his sons was a strong and invincible thing, but that their disunion would be weak and unstable.
From On Talkativeness 511, in ‘Plutarch’s Moralia’ Vol. VI translated (1962) by W. C. Helmbold.
* Heraclitus (540-?480 BC) was a philosopher born in Ephesus in Asia Minor (in modern-day Turkey).
* Penny-royal is mentha pulegium, a herb with a strong aroma of spearmint, used by the ancient Greeks for bath fragrance, as a kitchen herb and as an insect repellent.
* Scilurus, a Scythian king reigning during the 2nd century BC. His kingdom was seated in Neapolis in the northern part of the Crimea, in what is now Russia.
Questions for Critics
1. What is the author aiming to achieve in writing this?
2. Note any words, devices or turns of phrase that strike you. How do they help the author communicate his ideas more effectively?
3. What impression does this passage make on you? How might you put that impression into words?
Based on The English Critic (1939) by NL Clay, drawing on The New Criticism: A Lecture Delivered at Columbia University, March 9, 1910, by J. E. Spingarn, Professor of Comparative Literature in Columbia University, USA.
Précis
Some, Plutarch went on, are so economical in their speech that they let actions speak for them. To recommend frugal living, Heraclitus tossed back a glass of water mixed with whatever he found on the table. Scilurus of Scythia, likewise, taught his sons to understand the strength in brotherly unity not with words, but with a bundle of arrows. (59 / 60 words)
Some, Plutarch went on, are so economical in their speech that they let actions speak for them. To recommend frugal living, Heraclitus tossed back a glass of water mixed with whatever he found on the table. Scilurus of Scythia, likewise, taught his sons to understand the strength in brotherly unity not with words, but with a bundle of arrows.
Variations: 1.increase the length of this precis to exactly 65 words. 2.reduce the length of this precis to exactly 55 words. 3.introduce one of the following words into the precis: about, because, if, just, must, ought, until, who.
Archive
Word Games
Sevens Based on this passage
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
Variations: 1.expand your answer to exactly fourteen words. 2.expand your answer further, to exactly twenty-one words. 3.include one of the following words in your answer: if, but, despite, because, (al)though, unless.
Jigsaws Based on this passage
Express the ideas below in a single sentence, using different words as much as possible. Do not be satisfied with the first answer you think of; think of several, and choose the best.
Spinners Find in Think and Speak
For each group of words, compose a sentence that uses all three. You can use any form of the word: for example, cat → cats, go → went, or quick → quickly, though neigh → neighbour is stretching it a bit.
This exercise uses words found in the accompanying passage.
1 Close. Die. Two.
2 But. May. Only.
3 Back. Thyself. Well.
Variations: 1. include direct and indirect speech 2. include one or more of these words: although, because, despite, either/or, if, unless, until, when, whether, which, who 3. use negatives (not, isn’t, neither/nor, never, nobody etc.)
High Tiles Find in Think and Speak
Make words (three letters or more) from the seven letters showing below, using any letter once only. Each letter carries a score. What is the highest-scoring word you can make?
Your Words ()
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Grok : Ask Grok
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