If you must break the law, do it to seize power: in all other cases observe it.
Julius CaesarRead
After divorce of Pompeia in 62 BC I feel that members of my family should never be suspected of breaking the law. -Meos tam suspicione quam crimine iudico carere oportere
Interpretation
Julius Caesar emphasizes the importance of family reputation and integrity over legal accusations.
In this quote, Julius Caesar reflects on the aftermath of his divorce from Pompeia, illustrating the significance he places on the honor and standing of his family. He advocates for the idea that family members should remain above suspicion of wrongdoing, conveying a broader message about the moral responsibility of individuals and maintaining a clean reputation in the eyes of society.
In practice
During a family gathering, one might invoke this quote to discuss the importance of upholding family values.
If you must break the law, do it to seize power: in all other cases observe it.
War gives the right to the conquerors to impose any condition they please upon the vanquished.
I have always reckoned the dignity of the republic of first importance and preferable to life.
As a rule, men worry more about what they can't see than about what they can.
All bad precedents begin as justifiable measures.
No one is so brave that he is not disturbed by something unexpected.
That fiend!" Mr. Darling would cry, and Nana's bark was the echo of it, but Mrs. Darling never upbraided Peter; there was something in the right-hand corner of her mouth that wanted her not to call Peter names.
When you are young, you think it's going to be solved by love. But it never is. Being close -- as close as you can get -- to another person only makes clear that impassable distance between you.' If being in love only made people more lonely, why would everyone want it so much?' Because of the illusion. You fall in love, it's intoxicating, and for a little while you feel like you've actually become one with the other person. Merged souls and so on. You think you'll never be lonely again.
It was as if my father had given me, by way of temperament, an impossibly wild, dark, and unbroken horse. It was a horse without a name, and a horse with no experience of a bit between its teeth. My mother taught me to gentle it; gave me the discipline and love to break it; and- as Alexander had known so intuitively with Bucephalus- she understood, and taught me, that the beast was best handled by turning it toward the sun.
I try to open up my heart as much as I can and keep a real keen eye out that I don't get sentimental. I think we're all afraid to reveal our hearts. It's not at all in fashion.
In the taxi I let my hand lie on her leg like a promise, but I had no intention of keeping my promise.
I always try to remain aware that what affects others affects me, too.
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