Thucydides’ Melian Dialogue Warning

The phrase “the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must” appears in Greek historian Thucydides’ account of the Melian Dialogue during the Peloponnesian War in 416 BC. In the dialogue, Athenian envoys warned the neutral island of Melos that it must submit to Athenian rule or face destruction, arguing that power, not justice, decides outcomes in war. The Melians refused to surrender and chose to resist despite the overwhelming Athenian force. Athens later captured the island, executed the adult men, and enslaved the women and children.

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