Mrs. Eddy Mentioned Them October 8, 1955 Issue

Demosthenes, 384 B.C.?–322 B.C.

[Mentioned in Miscellaneous Writings, p. 345]

Demosthenes , orator and patriot, was born in Athens when its political glory had begun to fade. Having been left an orphan at the age of 7 and having a delicate constitution that did not permit him to take part in the exercises and games at the gymnasium, which played such a role in the training of the Athenian youth, Demosthenes had a lonely childhood. He early cherished the ambition to become an orator and studied with 2 eminent teachers of rhetoric. He had his first success when he prosecuted his guardians for squandering the inheritance left him by his father.

Almost at once Demosthenes came forward as a speaker in the assemblies of the people. But now several defects in his speech showed up, and he was not successful. Besides working with a famous actor to correct these defects, he began a rigorous program of self-training. He retreated to a room underground where, before a mirror, he practiced gestures and to make his diction clear spoke with pebbles in his mouth. To overcome shortness of breath, he recited verses while running up hills; and to become used to the movements of the assembly, he declaimed along the seashore. He also studied books on the art of rhetoric, and he himself wrote on topics of the day.

His favorite theme was the reestablishment of the glory of Athens, whereby she would become the representative head of Greece. With the threat of conquest by Philip of Macedon, Demosthenes intensified his efforts. In 352 b.c. he delivered his first Philippic, which was a stirring appeal to his countrymen to rouse themselves to their danger. His eloquence won him a seat in the conucil. From then on he urged the Athenians to resist conquest and finally succeeded in getting the enemy cities of Thebes and Athens to unite. They were, however, defeated at Chaeronea. As a reward for his services the Athenians gave him a golden crown. This procedure was attacked by a rival orator, but Demosthenes in his Oration on the Crown so ably defended his policy of resistance to Philip that his rival left Athens. The death of Philip's son was the signal for Demosthenes to urge the Greeks again to begin their struggle. Still another defeat forced Demosthenes to flee, and rather than be captured, he took his own life.

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Demosthenes, 384 B.C.?–322 B.C.

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