Caryne demosthenes biography for kids

Prologue (A general introduction to Demosthenes and Cicero)

Whoever it was, Sosius, that wrote the poem in honour of Alcibiades, upon his winning the chariot race at the Olympian Games (whether it were Euripides, as is most commonly thought, or some other person), he tells us, that to a man's being happy it is in the first place requisite he should be born in "some famous city." But for him that would attain to true happiness, which for the most part is placed in the qualities and disposition of the mind, it is, in my opinion, of no disadvantage to be of a mean, obscure country [omission]…for virtue, like a strong and durable plant, may take root and thrive in any place where it can lay hold of an ingenuous nature, and a mind that is industrious.

I, for my part, shall desire that for any deficiency of mine in right judgment or action, I myself may be, as in fairness, held accountable, and shall not attribute it to the obscurity of my birthplace.

But if any man undertake to write a history that has to be collected from materials gathered by observation, and the reading of works not easy to be got in all places, nor written always in his own language, but many of them foreign and dispersed in other hands: for him, undoubtedly, it is in the first place and above all things most necessary to reside in some great and famous city thoroughly inhabited, where men do delight in good and virtuous things, because there are commonly plenty of all sorts of books, and upon inquiry may hear and inform himself of such particulars as, having escaped the pens of writers, are more faithfully preserved in the memories of men, lest his work be deficient in many things, even those which it can least dispense with.

But I myself, that dwell in a poor little town, and yet do remain there willingly lest it should become less: whilst I was in Italy, and at Rome, I had no leisure to study and exercise the Latin tongue, as well for the great business I had then to do, as also to satisfy them that came to learn philosophy of me; so that even somewhat too late, and now in my latter time, I began to take my Latin books in my hand.

But, on the other side, Demosthenes, associating himself with the ambassadors that came from Athens, used his utmost endeavours and gave them his best assistance in persuading the cities to fall unanimously upon the Macedonians, and to drive them out of Greece. French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau admired Demosthenes and wrote a book about him.

Historian George Grote noted that Demosthenes saw the danger from Philip early on. His master granted him, and being acquainted with the keepers of the hall door where this matter was to be pleaded, he so entreated them, that they placed his scholar in a very good place, where being set at his ease, he might both see and hear all that was done, and no man could see him.

He often repeated things to make them stick in the audience's minds. After a first failed attack against the Locrians, the Amphictyonic Council gave command of its forces to Philip. Such were the sad predictions uttered by the Pythian priestess, and this old oracle cited out of the Sibyl's verses:--

The battle on Thermodon that shall be
Safe at a distance I desire to see,
For, like an eagle, watching in the air,
Conquered shall weep, and conqueror perish there.

[Omission for length: argument over the identity of Thermodon]

But of Demosthenes, it is said that he had such great confidence in the Grecian forces, and was so excited by the sight of the courage and resolution of so many brave men ready to engage the enemy, that he would by no means endure they should give any need to oracles, or hearken to prophecies; but gave out that he suspected even the prophetess herself, as if she had been tampered with to speak in favour of Philip.

And from whence can a man take greater comfort for his troubles and griefs at home, when the commonwealth doth well, than to join their private griefs with common joys, to the end, that the better may obscure and take away the worse?

But thus far I digressed from my history, enlarging this matter, because Aeschines, in his oration touching this matter, did move the people's hearts too much to "womanish" sorrow.

Reading for Lesson Seven

The cities of Greece, being again stirred up by Demosthenes, made a new league again together.

By this, being convinced how much grace and ornament language acquires from action, he began to esteem it a small matter, and as good as nothing for a man to exercise himself in declaiming, if he neglected enunciation and delivery. His style matched his strong feelings. During this time, he wrote speeches attacking people who tried to remove tax exemptions or supported corruption.

A year later, he warned that Philip was as dangerous as the king of Persia.

In 352 BC, Athenian troops stopped Philip at Thermopylae. The Assembly ignored Philip's complaints about Demosthenes and ended the peace treaty. Satyrus, repeating them after him, gave them quite another grace, with such a pronunciation, comely gesture, and modest countenance becoming the verses, that Demosthenes thought them clean changed.

In 357 BC, he was one of the first to volunteer as a trierarch, sharing the costs of a ship. However, Aeschines was found not guilty by a small number of votes.

In 343 BC, Macedonian forces were fighting in Epirus, and in 342 BC, Philip fought in Thrace. Pytheas (who had prosecuted Demosthenes), and Callimedon, called the Crab, both fled from Athens, and taking sides with Antipater [that is, to promote the Macedonian cause], went about with his friends and ambassadors to keep the other Grecians from revolting and taking part with the Athenians.

Demosthenes took a practical approach and advised this in his speech On the Peace.

Second and Third Philippics (344–341 BC)

In 344 BC, Demosthenes traveled to the Peloponnese to try and get cities to leave Macedon's influence. And at all times, he must stay loyal.