His genius prospered in its works and its rewards. He himself enjoyed good fortune for a long time; but during this prolonged happiness he was intermittently dealt severe blows: his exile, the collapse of his political cause, the death of his daughter, his end so sad and bitter. Of all these reverses, he bore none as became a man except his death, and that seems not altogether undeserved to the fair-minded because he suffered nothing at the hands of his victorious enemy more cruel than he would have inflicted had the same opportunity been his. But if we weigh his defects against his virtues, he was a great man who deserved to be remembered and who needed a Cicero to sing his praises.

LRB 13 February 1992 | PDF Download