The Enemy of Greatness - SL#4

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Towards the end of the year 432 BC, the citizens of Athens received some very disturbing news.

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Representatives of the city-state of Sparta had just arrived in town with an ultimatum: If Athens didn’t give up its empire and control over its allies, Sparta would declare war.

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A few days later, the Athenian Assembly gathered on the Pnyx Hill to debate the Spartan offer. Thousands of men filled the hillside, but only a few dared to speak. Amid the noise, one figure rose above the rest: Pericles.

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Pericles was an old man whom the Athenians deeply respected. He had dedicated his life to leading Athens toward democracy and reason. Naturally, when he spoke, the people listened.

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What he proposed was unprecedented. Instead of surrendering Athens’ empire or rushing into reckless war with Sparta, he urged the Athenians to defend their walls, rely on their fleet, and wait until Spartan forces grew fatigued and gave up. He warned them that their greatest enemy would not only be Sparta, but their own impatience and pride.

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The Assembly agreed to Pericles’ proposal, and soon after, the Spartans declared war.

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For the first years of the war, the Athenians defended their territory without striking back. But just one year after it began, a devastating plague struck Athens.

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Pericles himself caught the plague and became gravely ill. The Spartan offensive was so relentless that many Athenians began to lose hope. After Pericles’ death in 429 BC, the War Party in Athens rose to power, feeding on the people’s growing desperation.

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Ultimately, under the leadership of the hawks (the Athenian War Party), Athens decided to invade Sicily. The campaign aimed to expand Athenian power and weaken Spartan allies, and so they sent hundreds of ships and tens of thousands of men across the sea.

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But the attack turned into a disaster, weakening Athens and setting the stage for its eventual fall.

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The fall of Athens tragically illustrates the cost of emotional compulsivity.

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Impatience is the enemy of greatness.

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Because no matter the genius, victory can be swift, but greatness takes time.

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If you move as if it’s owed to you, you won’t leave space for your efforts to pay off.

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All the best,

Hugo Ares,
Student of life.

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