Are you a Solon or an Aesop?

Solon was a great and wise lawgiver from Athens.  While he was at the court of the wealthy King Croesus of Lydia, he could not help but notice the extravagant belongings and furnishings.  Croesus, pointing around to all his wealth, asked Solon:  "Do you know any man happier than I?"

Solon retold the story of fellow citizens who were, by his account, happier than the wealthy Croesus.  One man had a reputation for honesty and, when he died in the service of Athens, he left behind reputable sons.  Other happy men earned a peaceful and tranquil death after providing a great service to their mother.

"Croesus at once judged Solon to be a strange and uncouth fellow, since he did not make an abundance of gold and silver his measure of happiness, but admired the life and death of an ordinary private man more than all this display of power and sovereignty."

It so happened that Aesop, the great fabulist and former slave, was also at the court of King Croesus and overheard this exchange.  He feared that Solon had angered the King, so Aesop sought out Solon to give some advice.  Aesop said, "Either we must not come to mighty men at all, or we must try to please them."  But Solon replied: "Either we must not come to mighty men, or we must tell them the truth."

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It is neither easy nor pleasant to "speak truth to power."  Ofttimes, we fear personal repercussions that may arise if we express our true feelings or opinions.  In tough economic times, we fear the loss of our jobs, or even the loss of special attention or privileges that come with being on someone's "good side."

Aesop certainly would understand this fear.  As a former slave, he undoubtedly knew the degradation that comes with the denial of freedoms, choices and privileges.  Even if he had been well treated for the time, Aesop would have known that, as a slave, he had to subvert his own opinions and desires to those of his master.  

Solon had no such experiences.  He had been born a free citizen of the great city-state of Athens.  Though economically troubled in the early sixth century BCE, Athens had its greatest years ahead of it.  Solon, according to the ancient sources, was responsible for laying the foundation for Athenian democracy and broadening the participation in its decision-making processes.  His power over other men came from the power of his reason, the power of his ability to communicate, the power of his ideas.

As educators, we are in a unique situation.  Our students and their families are often voiceless or believe themselves to powerless before the education bureaucracy that lies before them.  They know that the testing regime does nothing for their children.  They understand that employees deserve a living wage.  But they so often stand silent because they do not know where to begin, how to start, or what to say.  Just like employees, they fear the repercussions.

We can be their voice.

Today, stand up and speak like Solon for your students and their families.

Today, speak truth to power.

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I retold a version of this story when I accepted the Shirley Cromer Leadership Award in Fall 2010.  Some people have asked about it since then, but I've added the more complete version here.

If you want the "original" - or at least one of various translations, you can go to:

http://www.ahistoryofgreece.com/biography/solon.htm 

http://perseus.tufts.edu/hopper  Plutarch's Solon, Chapters 27 and 28