Introduction
Plutarch has been discussing at length (the incongruity has to be passed over) the annoyance of people who talk too much. The insatiable prattlers, he says, should consider how we admire men of few words; and he gave some examples, from the Spartans, who rebuffed Philip of Macedon, to the god Apollo, who would rather be obscure than wordy.
And we must be careful to offer to chatterers examples of this terseness, so that they may see how charming and how effective they are. For example: “The Spartans to Philip: Dionysius in Corinth.”* And again, when Philip wrote to them,* “If I invade Laconia, I shall turn you out,” they wrote back, “If.”* And when King Demetrius was annoyed and shouted, “Have the Spartans sent only one envoy to me?”, the envoy replied undismayed, “One to one.”*
And among the men of old also sententious* speakers are admired, and upon the temple of the Pythian Apollo the Amphictyons inscribed, not the Iliad and the Odyssey or the paeans of Pindar, but “Know thyself”, and “Avoid extremes” and ”Give a pledge and mischief is at hand,” admiring, as they did, the compactness and simplicity of the expression which contains within a small compass a well-forged sentiment. And is not the god himself fond of conciseness and brevity in his oracles, and is he not called Loxias because he avoids prolixity rather than obscurity?*
Précis
Plutarch cited some examples of times when speech has been arrestingly brief. The Spartans, he recalled, responded to Philip of Macedon’s threats with a single word, and were almost as short with Demetrius of Syracuse. Apollo’s temple at Delphi was inscribed with epigrams, not epic verse, and Apollo himself was willing to sacrifice clarity in the quest for brevity.
(59 / 60 words)
Plutarch cited some examples of times when speech has been arrestingly brief. The Spartans, he recalled, responded to Philip of Macedon’s threats with a single word, and were almost as short with Demetrius of Syracuse. Apollo’s temple at Delphi was inscribed with epigrams, not epic verse, and Apollo himself was willing to sacrifice clarity in the quest for brevity.
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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: because, despite, must, otherwise, ought, since, whether, who.
Word Games
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.
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.
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