A monologue from the dialogues of Lucian
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HANNIBAL: I think we can all agree that the highest praise is due to those who have fought their particular way to greatness by obscurity—who include pulled themselves up by way of a own bootstraps—clothed themselves in power, and proven themselves worthy of that authority. I entered The country of spain with simply a handful of guys, fought bravely, proved me personally a leader, and eventually—as a direct result my exploits—was honored together with the supreme command. I conquered the Celtiberians, subdued Traditional western Gaul, crossed the Alps, overran the valley from the Po, sacked town following town, manufactured myself master of the flatlands, approached the bulwarks with the capital, and in one day variety such a host that their finger-rings had been measured simply by bushels, and the rivers were bridged by way of a bodies. Contrary to Alexander in this article, I under no circumstances pretended to be a god, hardly ever related thoughts of my personal mother—I manufactured no secret that I was simple flesh and blood. My rivals had been the most competent generals in the world, commanding the best soldiers in the world. I under no circumstances warred with Medes or perhaps Assyrians, who fly ahead of they are attacked and deliver the success to you aren’t the valor to take this. Alexander, alternatively, in elevating and extending the dominion he inherited coming from his father, was only following the route set out to get him simply by Fortune. This “fabled conqueror” no faster crushed his puny adversaries in the victories of Naturels and Arbela, than this individual forsook the traditions of his country and resided the life of a Persian, acknowledging the praise of his subjects, giving his good friends over to the executioner, or perhaps assassinating all of them at his own desk! I always respectable the freedom of my country—never attempted to subjugate her to get my own personal beauty. I clarified when the lady called. And when the adversary with their enormous armament penetrated Libya, I laid apart the benefits of my personal office and submitted to my sentence in your essay without a mussitation, mutter, muttering. Yet Alexander would phone me a barbarian because Now i am unskilled in Greek culture—because I didn’t want to recite Homer. I acknowledge, I under no circumstances enjoyed the benefits of Aristotles instruction like he performed. I had to create due with such features as had been mine by nature. And it is about these reasons that I state pre-eminence. I really do not refuse that my own rival has all the shine that connects to the putting on of a diadem, and Seems told that, for Macedonians, such things have got charms. Although I do not believe this kind of constitutes a higher claim than the courage and genius of just one who owed nothing to Good fortune, and anything to his personal resolution.
