Living
Maxims of Theognis: Company with the noble: but
Translated by Rev. J. Banks (Bohn, 1856) · From Hesiod, Callimachus and Theognis (Bohn, 1856)
Company with the noble: but never follow the base, whensoever you are finishing a journey or your traffic. Of the noble noble is the answer, noble the works: but of the baser sort the winds carry away the worthless words. From evil-company come ills: and well wilt thou too understand this, since thou hast erred against the mighty immortals.
This translation is printed as prose in its source edition.
Codex Note
Literal prose translation by the Rev. J. Banks (Bohn, 1856), printed as prose: the plain-sense companion to Frere’s verse version. Banks’s hyphenated compounds are his own.
Cite this poem
MLA
Megara, Theognis of. “Maxims of Theognis: Company with the noble: but.” Translated by Rev. J. Banks. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/theognis/347/.
Chicago
Megara, Theognis of. “Maxims of Theognis: Company with the noble: but.” Translated by Rev. J. Banks. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/theognis/347/.
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