A more vehement reply is recorded to have been made by Aristides the Locrian, one of Plato’s companions, to Dionysius the elder, who demanded one of his daughters in marriage: “I had rather,” he said to him, “see the virgin in her grave than in the palace of a tyrant.”
And when Dionysius, enraged at the affront, made his sons be put to death a while after, and then again insultingly asked, whether he were still in the same mind as to the disposal of his daughters, his answer was, “I cannot but grieve at the cruelty of your deeds, but am not sorry for the freedom of my own words."
tl;dr:
Aristides has pretty daughters, and Dionysius, the Greek tyrant of Syracuse, demanded one in marriage. Aristides says “I’d rather she die then marry you.” So later on, Dionysius has Aristedes’ sons put to death, and comes back, saying, “You still feel the same way after that?” And Aristides says, “I’m horrified by your actions, but I stand by what I said.”
Source:
Plutarch, John Dryden, and Arthur Hugh Clough. "Timoleon." Plutarch's Lives. New York: Modern Library, 2001. 330. Print.
Further Reading:
Dionysius I of Syracuse / Διονύσιος ὁ Πρεσβύτερος (Dionysius the Elder)
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