Essays in Portraiture Defended (17)

LYCINUS Noblest of women, it is true I praised you, as you say, highly and immoderately; but I do not see what commendation I bestowed as great as the encomium which you have pronounced upon yourself in extolling your reverence for the gods. Really, this is more than all that I said about you, and you ‘must forgive me that I did not add this trait to your likeness; it escaped me because I did not know about it, for there is no other which I should have preferred to represent. So in that particular at least I not only did not go beyond bounds, it seems to me, with my praises, but actually said far less than I should. Think what an important point I omitted there—how very significant as evidence of sterling character and sound judgement! For those who assiduously reverence what pertains to the gods will surely be above reproach in their relations with mankind. So if the speech absolutely must be revised and the portrait corrected, I should not venture to take a single thing away from it, but will add this detail to cap, as it were, and crown the complete work.

There is one thing, however, for which I admit that I am very grateful to you. After I had praised the reasonableness of your character and the fact that the present exalted state of your fortunes has not engendered in you any arrogance or pride, you confirmed the truth of my praise by censuring what you did censure in my speech. Not to catch greedily at such praise, but to blush for it and say that it is too high for you betokens a reasonable and unassuming disposition. But the more you manifest that attitude toward praise itself, the more worth of extravagant praise you prove yourself! Really the thing, despite you, has come to a pass where the remark of Diogenes applies. When he was asked how one could become famous, he answered: “If he were to scorn fame!” If I myself should be asked: “Who are most worthy of praise?” I should answer: “Those who are unwilling to be praised!”