Our love of what is beautiful does not lead to extravagance; our love of the things of the mind does not make us soft.
PericlesIn private matters everyone is equal before the law. In public matters, when it is a question of putting power and responsibility into the hands of one man rather than another, what counts is not rank or money, but the ability to do the job well.
PericlesFor grief is felt not so much for the want of what we have never known, as for the loss of that to which we have been long accustomed.
PericlesHaving knowledge but lacking the power to express it clearly is no better than never having any ideas at all.
PericlesOur form of government does not enter into rivalry with the institutions of others. Our government does not copy our neighbors', but is an example to them. It is true that we are called a democracy, for the administration is in the hands of the many and not of the few. But while there exists equal justice to all and alike in their private disputes, the claim of excellence is also recognized; and when a citizen is in any way distinguished, he is preferred to the public service, not as a matter of privilege, but as the reward of merit
Pericles