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Article ON THE PASSIONS OF THE ANCIENTS. ← Page 3 of 4 →
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On The Passions Of The Ancients.
him either an egregious fool , or a mad barbarian , to run from one end of the world to the other , to cut people ' s throats , and then sit him down aud ciy , because it was not in his power to do them any more mischief . The conduct of Achilles seems altogether as exceptionable as that of Alexander ; for though it is probable that he meant to appease the manes of his friend Patroclusin the insults he offered to the expiring
, Hector , as well as to the remains of that immortal hero , it is , for the sake of his reputation , much to be wished that he could have given a more generous proof of his affection , as this circumstance proves him entirely divested of every sentiment of that humanity which should adorn the heart of a conqueror . The exemplary friendship of Cato and Lucius demands our
admiration , though the , former , notwithstanding all that can possibly be urged in his behalf , has , upon the whole , but little claim to our esteem . When we see him pent up in Utica with a few faithful friends , making a noble stand against the arms of Cassar , we commiserate his . misfortunes , , and while we admire his inflexible perseverance in a virtuous cause , see in him ( as Mr . Pope elegantly expresses it ) " A great man
struggling in the storms of fate . " But oh what a falling off was there ! Had Cato , after a glorious though ineffectual struggle to preserve the liberties of his country inviolate , submitted to the clemency of Csesar ( who certainly held his virtues in the highest veneration ) , it is not to be doubted but he would have treated him as became a generous conqueror : but Cato ' s pride absolutel y forbad a submission to the
victor , and made him prefer an inglorious death to a life of virtuous obscurity . For if we even admit that there was a necessity that he should die ( which I cannot conceive there was ) it was certainly in his power to have met death in a more honourable manner : for by this last action of his life he has not only cancelled all its former glories , but , in my . opinion , forfeited all pretensions to the character of a good and
virtuous man . The admirers of Cato , aware of the infamy which his fall will reflect on his memory to the latest posterity , have attempted to exculpate the action , by taking a comparative view ofthe age in which he lived , and the present ; but , unfortunately for them , this palliation cannot reasonably be admitted ; for though the moderns are blessed with superior conceptions of the rewards and punishments of futurity , the Greek
and Roman philosophers furnished them with precepts which expressly forbad a . practice so horrid as suicide . ' Ail the indulgences and favours which Julius Ceesar was continually showering on Affranius , could not secure him the friendship of that ungrateful villain , who had actually formed a conspiracy to assassinate Caesarwhich was ripe for executionwhen Serviilusone of Affranius ' s
, , , slaves , who was admitted among the number of assassins , flattered by the hope of a great reward ,, discovered the plot to Ca ; sar : but upon finding himself disappointed in his expectations , he had the insolence to charge Ca ? sar with ingratitude , before the assembled senate , for not having rewarded him according to his demerits , for discovering the
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On The Passions Of The Ancients.
him either an egregious fool , or a mad barbarian , to run from one end of the world to the other , to cut people ' s throats , and then sit him down aud ciy , because it was not in his power to do them any more mischief . The conduct of Achilles seems altogether as exceptionable as that of Alexander ; for though it is probable that he meant to appease the manes of his friend Patroclusin the insults he offered to the expiring
, Hector , as well as to the remains of that immortal hero , it is , for the sake of his reputation , much to be wished that he could have given a more generous proof of his affection , as this circumstance proves him entirely divested of every sentiment of that humanity which should adorn the heart of a conqueror . The exemplary friendship of Cato and Lucius demands our
admiration , though the , former , notwithstanding all that can possibly be urged in his behalf , has , upon the whole , but little claim to our esteem . When we see him pent up in Utica with a few faithful friends , making a noble stand against the arms of Cassar , we commiserate his . misfortunes , , and while we admire his inflexible perseverance in a virtuous cause , see in him ( as Mr . Pope elegantly expresses it ) " A great man
struggling in the storms of fate . " But oh what a falling off was there ! Had Cato , after a glorious though ineffectual struggle to preserve the liberties of his country inviolate , submitted to the clemency of Csesar ( who certainly held his virtues in the highest veneration ) , it is not to be doubted but he would have treated him as became a generous conqueror : but Cato ' s pride absolutel y forbad a submission to the
victor , and made him prefer an inglorious death to a life of virtuous obscurity . For if we even admit that there was a necessity that he should die ( which I cannot conceive there was ) it was certainly in his power to have met death in a more honourable manner : for by this last action of his life he has not only cancelled all its former glories , but , in my . opinion , forfeited all pretensions to the character of a good and
virtuous man . The admirers of Cato , aware of the infamy which his fall will reflect on his memory to the latest posterity , have attempted to exculpate the action , by taking a comparative view ofthe age in which he lived , and the present ; but , unfortunately for them , this palliation cannot reasonably be admitted ; for though the moderns are blessed with superior conceptions of the rewards and punishments of futurity , the Greek
and Roman philosophers furnished them with precepts which expressly forbad a . practice so horrid as suicide . ' Ail the indulgences and favours which Julius Ceesar was continually showering on Affranius , could not secure him the friendship of that ungrateful villain , who had actually formed a conspiracy to assassinate Caesarwhich was ripe for executionwhen Serviilusone of Affranius ' s
, , , slaves , who was admitted among the number of assassins , flattered by the hope of a great reward ,, discovered the plot to Ca ; sar : but upon finding himself disappointed in his expectations , he had the insolence to charge Ca ? sar with ingratitude , before the assembled senate , for not having rewarded him according to his demerits , for discovering the