--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: So far has Athens left the rest of…" description: "\"So far has Athens left the rest of mankind behind in thought and expression that her pupils have become the teachers of the world, and she has made the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1c/isocrates-20066_athens_so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-manki_1521678.jpg" --- # So far has Athens left the rest of mankind behind in… ![“So far has Athens left the rest of mankind behind in thought and expression that her pupils have become the teachers of the world, and she has made the name of Hellas distinctive no longer of race but of intellect, and the title of Hellene a badge of education rather than of common descent.” quote by Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1c/isocrates-20066_athens_so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-manki_1521678.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1c/isocrates-20066_athens_so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-manki_1521678.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1c/isocrates-20066_athens_so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-manki_1521678.jpg) > “So far has Athens left the rest of mankind behind in thought and expression that her pupils have become the teachers of the world, and she has made the name of Hellas distinctive no longer of race but of intellect, and the title of Hellene a badge of education rather than of common descent.” [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Athens' cultural influence spreads through education, making intellect its defining trait rather than ethnicity. **In simple terms:** Athens is known for its intellectual legacy, not race. Key Takeaway Value education over heritage. Themes culture education identity intellectualism Mood proud reflective Type historical philosophical When to use this quote - teaching - public speaking - policy making - international relations Key Concepts Hellenism cultural diffusion Questions to Reflect On - How does education shape national identity? - Can culture outlast ethnicity? A Different Perspective Intellectual prestige can be challenged by political or economic decline. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Athens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/athens/) [Athens Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/athens-left-5626445/) [Badges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/badges/) [Behinds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behinds/) [Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/) [Descent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/descent/) [Distinctive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distinctive/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Expression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expression/) [Hellas Distinctive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hellas-distinctive-5626441/) [Hellene Badge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hellene-badge-5626443/) [Intellect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellect/) [Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind/) [Names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/names/) [Pupils](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pupils/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Teacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teacher/) [Title Hellene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/title-hellene-5626442/) [Titles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/titles/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [World Hellas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-hellas-5626444/) ## Related quotes > [The Parthenon is really only a farmyard over which someone put a roof; colonades and sculptures were added because there were people in Athens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/the-parthenon-is-really-only-a-farmyard-over-which-someone-put-a-roof/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Anacharsis coming to Athens, knocked at Solon's door, and told him that he, being a stranger, was come to be his guest, and contract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/anacharsis-coming-to-athens-knocked-at-solon-s-door-and-told-him-that/) [Plutarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plutarch/) > [The commonwealth of Athens is become a forest of beasts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/the-commonwealth-of-athens-is-become-a-forest-of-beasts/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I always look back to my first Olympic medal in 2004 in Athens. I was very new to the sport, and it was my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allyson-felix/i-always-look-back-to-my-first-olympic-medal-in-2004-in-athens-i-was/) [Allyson Felix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allyson-felix/) > [In the infancy of civilization, when our island was as savage as New Guinea, when letters and arts were still unknown to Athens, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-b-macaulay/in-the-infancy-of-civilization-when-our-island-was-as-savage-as-new/) [Thomas B. Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-b-macaulay/) > [I said it before we arrived in Athens, that we wanted to prove to the world that our bronze medal in Sweden was not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gianluca-basile/i-said-it-before-we-arrived-in-athens-that-we-wanted-to-prove-to-the/) [Gianluca Basile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gianluca-basile/) > [“South of Larissa the landscape began to change. Jude watched an irrigation machine like a giant stick insect creeping over a field, and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-alkazraji/south-of-larissa-the-landscape-began-to-change-jude-watched-an/) [Paul Alkazraji](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-alkazraji/) > [Athens will again be the host of the Games in 2004, but there are rumors that they might be switched if the Greeks don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-toomey/athens-will-again-be-the-host-of-the-games-in-2004-but-there-are/) [Bill Toomey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-toomey/) > [Misgovernment is of four kinds, often in combination. They are: 1) tyranny or oppression, of which history provides so many well-known examples that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-tuchman/misgovernment-is-of-four-kinds-often-in-combination-they-are-1/) [Barbara Tuchman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-tuchman/) > [You look around the world at geniuses, and they don't appear randomly, they appear in genius clusters. Athens in 50 BC, Florence 1500, Silicon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/you-look-around-the-world-at-geniuses-and-they-don-t-appear-randomly/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [The sophists were as a rule men who had traveled widely and seen different forms of government. Both conventions and local laws in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/the-sophists-were-as-a-rule-men-who-had-traveled-widely-and-seen/) [Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/) > [Athens, much like Austin, is a difficult music scene. There are so many musicians there that it is hard to get gigs and hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-smith/athens-much-like-austin-is-a-difficult-music-scene-there-are-so-many/) [Corey Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-smith/) > [Homer, Hesiod, Pythagoras, Plato, and Cicero, just to name a few, all lived in pagan societies. Some of the greatest political and military leaders…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-myers/homer-hesiod-pythagoras-plato-and-cicero-just-to-name-a-few-all-lived/) [Brendan Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-myers/) > [As for Aliki - if you were to stand in the middle of Rome and say the name Sophia Loren, or Paris and say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-smith/as-for-aliki-if-you-were-to-stand-in-the-middle-of-rome-and-say-the/) [Ali Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-smith/) > [It was appointed by law in Athens, that the obsequies of the citizens who fell in battle should be performed at the public expense,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-everett/it-was-appointed-by-law-in-athens-that-the-obsequies-of-the-citizens/) [Edward Everett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-everett/) ## More by Isocrates > [“It was the principle of this Court that deterrent laws, however strict, are useless without positive moral discipline; that the happiness of citizens depends,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/it-was-the-principle-of-this-court-that-deterrent-laws-however-strict/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [We should not call a city happy because it attracts masses of citizens from everywhere; a fortunate city is one in which the race…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/we-should-not-call-a-city-happy-because-it-attracts-masses-of/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [If all who are engaged in the profession of education were willing to state the facts instead of making greater promises than they can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/if-all-who-are-engaged-in-the-profession-of-education-were-willing-to/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [Be gracious to all men, but choose the best to be your friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/be-gracious-to-all-men-but-choose-the-best-to-be-your-friends/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [Oratory is good only if it has the qualities of fitness for the occasion, propriety of style, and originality of treatment, while in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/oratory-is-good-only-if-it-has-the-qualities-of-fitness-for-the/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [Consider that nothing in human life is stable; for then you will not exult overmuch in prosperity, nor grieve overmuch in adversity. Rejoice over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/consider-that-nothing-in-human-life-is-stable-for-then-you-will-not/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [“Their successors, instead of ruling for the good of their subjects, tyrannize for their own; and they met with the fate of tyrants. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/their-successors-instead-of-ruling-for-the-good-of-their-subjects/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [Let there be but two occasions for speech - when the subject is one which you thoroughly know and when it is one on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/let-there-be-but-two-occasions-for-speech-when-the-subject-is-one/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [Whetstones are not themselves able to cut, but make iron sharp and capable of cutting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/whetstones-are-not-themselves-able-to-cut-but-make-iron-sharp-and/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [And let no one suppose that I claim that just living can be taught for, in a word, I hold that there does not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/and-let-no-one-suppose-that-i-claim-that-just-living-can-be-taught/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [“Whom, then, do I call educated, since I exclude the arts and sciences and specialties? First, those who manage well the circumstances which they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/whom-then-do-i-call-educated-since-i-exclude-the-arts-and-sciences/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [It is not fitting that the evil produced by men should be imputed to things; let those bear the blame who make an ill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/it-is-not-fitting-that-the-evil-produced-by-men-should-be-imputed-to/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [“It is up-hill work to oppose our prejudices; we have a democracy, but freedom of speech is enjoyed only by the most foolish members…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/it-is-up-hill-work-to-oppose-our-prejudices-we-have-a-democracy-but/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [“Absolute power is universally coveted, though all know that an absolute ruler has an anxious life and usually a violent death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/absolute-power-is-universally-coveted-though-all-know-that-an/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) > [Spend your leisure time in cultivating an ear attentive to discourse, for in this way you will find that you learn with ease what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/spend-your-leisure-time-in-cultivating-an-ear-attentive-to-discourse/) [Isocrates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) [Explore all 31 Isocrates quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/) ## More Athens quotes > [The Parthenon is really only a farmyard over which someone put a roof; colonades and sculptures were added because there were people in Athens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/the-parthenon-is-really-only-a-farmyard-over-which-someone-put-a-roof/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [As for Aliki - if you were to stand in the middle of Rome and say the name Sophia Loren, or Paris and say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-smith/as-for-aliki-if-you-were-to-stand-in-the-middle-of-rome-and-say-the/) [Ali Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-smith/) > [Homer, Hesiod, Pythagoras, Plato, and Cicero, just to name a few, all lived in pagan societies. Some of the greatest political and military leaders…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-myers/homer-hesiod-pythagoras-plato-and-cicero-just-to-name-a-few-all-lived/) [Brendan Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-myers/) > [Athens, much like Austin, is a difficult music scene. There are so many musicians there that it is hard to get gigs and hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-smith/athens-much-like-austin-is-a-difficult-music-scene-there-are-so-many/) [Corey Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-smith/) > [The sophists were as a rule men who had traveled widely and seen different forms of government. Both conventions and local laws in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/the-sophists-were-as-a-rule-men-who-had-traveled-widely-and-seen/) [Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/) > [You look around the world at geniuses, and they don't appear randomly, they appear in genius clusters. Athens in 50 BC, Florence 1500, Silicon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/you-look-around-the-world-at-geniuses-and-they-don-t-appear-randomly/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [Misgovernment is of four kinds, often in combination. They are: 1) tyranny or oppression, of which history provides so many well-known examples that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-tuchman/misgovernment-is-of-four-kinds-often-in-combination-they-are-1/) [Barbara Tuchman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-tuchman/) > [Athens will again be the host of the Games in 2004, but there are rumors that they might be switched if the Greeks don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-toomey/athens-will-again-be-the-host-of-the-games-in-2004-but-there-are/) [Bill Toomey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-toomey/) > [“South of Larissa the landscape began to change. Jude watched an irrigation machine like a giant stick insect creeping over a field, and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-alkazraji/south-of-larissa-the-landscape-began-to-change-jude-watched-an/) [Paul Alkazraji](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-alkazraji/) > [I said it before we arrived in Athens, that we wanted to prove to the world that our bronze medal in Sweden was not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gianluca-basile/i-said-it-before-we-arrived-in-athens-that-we-wanted-to-prove-to-the/) [Gianluca Basile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gianluca-basile/) > [In the infancy of civilization, when our island was as savage as New Guinea, when letters and arts were still unknown to Athens, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-b-macaulay/in-the-infancy-of-civilization-when-our-island-was-as-savage-as-new/) [Thomas B. Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-b-macaulay/) > [I always look back to my first Olympic medal in 2004 in Athens. I was very new to the sport, and it was my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allyson-felix/i-always-look-back-to-my-first-olympic-medal-in-2004-in-athens-i-was/) [Allyson Felix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allyson-felix/) > [The commonwealth of Athens is become a forest of beasts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/the-commonwealth-of-athens-is-become-a-forest-of-beasts/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Anacharsis coming to Athens, knocked at Solon's door, and told him that he, being a stranger, was come to be his guest, and contract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/anacharsis-coming-to-athens-knocked-at-solon-s-door-and-told-him-that/) [Plutarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plutarch/) > [It was appointed by law in Athens, that the obsequies of the citizens who fell in battle should be performed at the public expense,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-everett/it-was-appointed-by-law-in-athens-that-the-obsequies-of-the-citizens/) [Edward Everett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-everett/) [Browse all 171 Athens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/athens/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "So far has Athens left the rest of mankind behind in thought and expression that her pupils have become the teachers of the world, and she has made the name of Hellas distinctive no longer of race but of intellect, and the title of Hellene a badge of education rather than of common descent.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Isocrates" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-mankind-behind-in-thought-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Athens" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-mankind-behind-in-thought-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1c/isocrates-20066_athens_so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-manki_1521678.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1c/isocrates-20066_athens_so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-manki_1521678.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1c/isocrates-20066_athens_so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-manki_1521678.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“So far has Athens left the rest of mankind behind in thought and expression that her pupils have become the…” — Isocrates", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Isocrates", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isocrates/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "So far has Athens left the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-mankind-behind-in-thought-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isocrates/so-far-has-athens-left-the-rest-of-mankind-behind-in-thought-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```