Ajax

Sophocles

Sophocles the plays and fragments, Part 7: The Ajax. Jebb, Richard Claverhouse, Sir, translator. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1891.

  1. Remember to what sort of man you show this kindness!
Odysseus
  1. The man was once my enemy, yes, but he was also noble.
Agamemnon
  1. Why do you do this? Why do you so respect an enemy’s corpse?
Odysseus
  1. I yield to his excellence much more than his hostility.
Agamemnon
  1. Men who act as you do are the unstable sort in humankind.
Odysseus
  1. Quite the majority of men, I assure you, are friendly at one time, and bitter at another.
Agamemnon
  1. So then, are these the type of friends that you recommend we make?
Odysseus
  1. It is not my habit to recommend an inflexible spirit.