Thoughts of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus · Emperor of Rome Marcus Aurelius
14. Men despise one another and flatter one another; and men wish to
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raise themselves above one another, and crouch before one another.
15. How unsound and insincere is he who says, I have determined to deal with thee in a fair way!—What are thou doing, man? There is no occasion to give this notice. It will soon show itself by acts. The voice ought to be plainly written on the forehead. Such as a man's character is,+ he immediately shows it in his eyes, just as he who is beloved forthwith reads everything in the eyes of lovers. The man who is honest and good ought to be exactly like a man who smells strong, so that the bystander as soon as he comes near him must smell whether he choose or not. But the affectation of simplicity is like a crooked stick.[A] Nothing is more disgraceful than a wolfish friendship [false friendship]. Avoid this most of all. The good and simple and benevolent show all these things in the eyes, and there is no mistaking.
[A] Instead of [Greek: skalmê] Saumaise reads [Greek: skambê]. There is a Greek proverb, [Greek: skambon xylon oudepot orthon]: "You cannot make a crooked stick straight."
The wolfish friendship is an allusion to the fable of the sheep and the wolves.
