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The Eloquent Peasant & the Plea for Justice
A robbed peasant pleads so eloquently for justice that the magistrate keeps him talking.
In this classic Middle Kingdom tale, a peasant who has been robbed pleads his case before a high official in nine eloquent speeches, insisting that those in power do ma'at — that they judge fairly and defend the powerless against the strong. The official, impressed by his eloquence, deliberately prolongs the case to hear more. The work is a sustained meditation on justice and the moral obligations of authority.
Key passages(1)
Very high
So act accordingly! and your share of the cargo will be what you seize, at every embankment. It is known: and every man in your environment is corrupt. none sleeping whom you roused, uneducated whom y
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