,,the  ,,republic ,,of ,,plato          
,,jowett    ,london    ,,henry ,,frowde 
,,oxford ,,university ,,press           
,,warehouse  ,,amen ,,corner1 ,e4 ,c4   
,,the  ,,republic ,,of ,,plato          
,,translated ,,into ,,english    ,,with 
,,introduction1 ,,analysis  ,,marginal  
,,analysis1 ,,and ,,index    ,,by    ,b4
 ,,jowett1 ,m4,a4    ,,master ,,of      
,,balliol ,,college  ,,regius           
,,professor ,,of ,,greek ,,in ,,the     
,,university ,,of ,,oxford  ,,doctor    
,,in ,,theology ,,of ,,the ,,university 
,,of ,,leyden    ,,the ,,third ,,edition
    ,,revised ,,and ,,corrected         
,,throughout    ,oxford    ,,at ,,the   
,,clarendon ,,press    ,m ,,dccc        
,,lxxxviii    ,all rights reserved      
,,to ,,my ,,former ,,pupils  ,,in       
,,balliol ,,college  ,,and ,,in ,,the   
,,university ,,of ,,oxford1  ,,who      
,,during ,,forty-,,six ,,years  ,,have  
,,been ,,the ,,best ,,of ,,friends ,,to 
,,me1  ,,this ,,volume ,,is ,,inscribed1
  ,,in ,,grateful ,,recognition  ,,of   

,,their ,,never ,,failing ,,attachment4 
,,preface4      ,,in publishing a third 
edition of the ,republic of ,plato      
7originally  included in my edition of  
,plato's works71 ,i have to acknowledge 
the  assistance of several friends1     
especially of my secretary1 ,mr4        
,matthew  ,knight1 now residing for his 
health at ,davs1 and of ,mr4 ,frank     
,fletcher1  ,exhibitioner of ,balliol   
,college4 ,to their accuracy and        
scholarship ,i am  under great          
obligations4 ,the excellent index1 in   
which are contained  references to the  
other dialogues as well as to the       
,republic1 is entirely  the work of ,mr4
 ,knight4 ,i am also considerably       
indebted to ,mr4 ,j4 ,w4  ,mackail1     
,fellow of ,balliol ,college1 who read  
over the whole book in the  previous    
edition1 and noted several inaccuracies4
    ,the additions and alterations both 
in the introduction and in the text1    
affect at least a third of the work4    
,having regard to the extent of these   

alterations1 and to the annoyance  which
 is felt by the owner of a book at the  
possession of it in an  inferior form1  
and still more keenly by the writer     
himself1 who must  always desire to be  
read as he is at his best1 ,i have      
thought that some  persons might like to
 exchange for the new edition the       
separate edition of  the ,republic      
published in #ahha1 to which this       
present volume is the  successor4 ,i    
have therefore arranged that those who  
desire to make this  exchange1 on       
depositing a perfect copy of the former 
separate edition with  any agent of the 
,clarendon ,press1 shall be entitled to 
receive the new  edition at half-price4 
,it is my hope to issue a revised       
edition of the remaining ,dialogues in  
the  course of a year4                  
,,introduction ,,and ,,analysis4        
,sidenote3 ,republic4 ,introduction4    
,,the ,republic of ,plato is the longest
 of his works with the exception of  the
 ,laws1 and is certainly the greatest of

 them4 ,there are nearer  approaches to 
modern metaphysics in the ,philebus and 
in the ,sophist2 the  ,politicus or     
,statesman is more ideal2 the form and  
institutions of the  ,state are more    
clearly drawn out in the ,laws2 as works
 of art1 the  ,symposium and the        
,protagoras are of higher excellence4   
,but no other  ,dialogue of ,plato has  
the same largeness of view and the same 
perfection  of style2 no other shows an 
equal knowledge of the world1 or        
contains more  of those thoughts which  
are new as well as old1 and not of one  
age only  but of all4 ,nowhere in ,plato
 is there a deeper irony or a greater   
wealth  of humour or imagery1 or more   
dramatic power4 ,nor in any other of his
  writings is the attempt made to       
interweave life and speculation1 or to  
connect politics with philosophy4 ,the  
,republic is the centre around which    
the other ,dialogues may be grouped2    
here philosophy reaches the highest     
point 7cp4 especially in ,books ,v1     

,,vi1 ,,vii7 to which ancient thinkers  
ever  attained4 ,plato among the        
,greeks1 like ,bacon among the moderns1 
was the  first who conceived a method of
 knowledge1 although neither of them    
always  distinguished the bare outline  
or form from the substance of truth2 and
  both of them had to be content with an
 abstraction of science which was  not  
yet realized4 ,he was the greatest      
metaphysical genius whom the world  has 
seen2 and in him1 more than in any other
 ancient thinker1 the germs of  future  
knowledge are contained4 ,the sciences  
of logic and psychology1  which have    
supplied so many instruments of thought 
to after-ages1 are  based upon the      
analyses of ,socrates and ,plato4 ,the  
principles of  definition1 the law of   
contradiction1 the fallacy of arguing in
 a circle1  the distinction between the 
essence and accidents of a thing or     
notion1  between means and ends1 between
 causes and conditions2 also the        
division  of the mind into the rational1

 concupiscent1 and irascible elements1  
or of  pleasures and desires into       
necessary and unnecessary--these ii and 
other  great forms of thought are all of
 them to be found in the ,republic1 and 
were probably first invented by ,plato4 
,the greatest of all logical truths1    
and the one of which writers on         
philosophy are most apt to lose sight1  
the  difference between words and       
things1 has been most strenuously       
insisted on  by him 7cp4 ,rep4 #ded ,a2 
,polit4 #bfa ,e2 ,cratyl4 #dce1 #dcf    
ff471 although he  has not always       
avoided the confusion of them in his own
 writings 7e4g4  ,rep4 #dfc ,e74 ,but he
 does not bind up truth in logical      
formulae1--logic is  still veiled in    
metaphysics2 and the science which he   
imagines to  'contemplate all truth and 
all existence' is very unlike the       
doctrine of  the syllogism which        
,aristotle claims to have discovered    
7,soph4 ,elenchi #cc4  #ah74    ,neither
 must we forget that the ,republic is   

but the third part of a still  larger   
design which was to have included an    
ideal history of ,athens1 as  well as a 
political and physical philosophy4 ,the 
fragment of the ,critias  has given     
birth to a world-famous fiction1 second 
only in importance to  the tale of ,troy
 and the legend of ,arthur2 and is said 
as a fact to have  inspired some of the 
early navigators of the sixteenth       
century4 ,this  mythical tale1 of which 
the subject was a history of the wars of
 the  ,athenians against the ,island of 
,atlantis1 is supposed to be founded    
upon  an unfinished poem of ,solon1 to  
which it would have stood in the same   
relation as the writings of the         
logographers to the poems of ,homer4 ,it
  would have told of a struggle for     
,liberty 7cp4 ,tim4 #be ,c71 intended to
  represent the conflict of ,persia and 
,hellas4 ,we may judge from the noble   
commencement of the ,timaeus1 from the  
fragment of the ,critias itself1 and    
from the third book of the ,laws1 in    

what manner ,plato would have treated   
this high argument4 ,we can only guess  
why the great design was abandoned2     
perhaps because ,plato became sensible  
of some incongruity in a fictitious     
history1 or because he had lost his     
interest in it1 or because advancing    
years forbade the completion of it2 and 
we may please ourselves with the  fancy 
that had this imaginary narrative ever  
been finished1 we should have  found    
,plato himself sympathising with the    
struggle for ,hellenic  independence    
7cp4 ,laws iii4 #fih ff471 singing a    
hymn of triumph over  ,marathon and     
,salamis1 perhaps making the reflection 
of ,herodotus where he  contemplates the
 growth of the ,athenian empire--',how  
brave a thing is  freedom of speech1 iii
 which has made the ,athenians so far   
exceed every  other state of ,hellas in 
greatness6' or1 more probably1          
attributing the  victory to the ancient 
good order of ,athens and to the favour 
of ,apollo  and ,athene 7cp4 ,introd4 to

 ,critias74    ,again1 ,plato may be    
regarded as the 'captain' 7,greek3      
a7rchgo_/s7 or  leader of a goodly band 
of followers2 for in the ,republic is to
 be found  the original of ,cicero's ,de
 ,republica1 of ,st4 ,augustine's ,city 
of ,god1 of  the ,utopia of ,sir ,thomas
 ,more1 and of the numerous other       
imaginary ,states  which are framed upon
 the same model4 ,the extent to which   
,aristotle or the  ,aristotelian school 
were indebted to him in the ,politics   
has been little  recognised1 and the    
recognition is the more necessary       
because it is not  made by ,aristotle   
himself4 ,the two philosophers had more 
in common than  they were conscious of2 
and probably some elements of ,plato    
remain still  undetected in ,aristotle4 
,in ,english philosophy too1 many       
affinities may be  traced1 not only in  
the works of the ,cambridge ,platonists1
 but in great  original writers like    
,berkeley or ,coleridge1 to ,plato and  
his ideas4 ,that  there is a truth      

higher than experience1 of which the    
mind bears witness  to herself1 is a    
conviction which in our own generation  
has been  enthusiastically asserted1 and
 is perhaps gaining ground4 ,of the     
,greek  authors who at the ,renaissance 
brought a new life into the world ,plato
 has  had the greatest influence4 ,the  
,republic of ,plato is also the first   
treatise upon education1 of which the   
writings of ,milton and ,locke1         
,rousseau1 ,jean ,paul1 and ,goethe are 
the legitimate descendants4 ,like ,dante
  or ,bunyan1 he has a revelation of    
another life2 like ,bacon1 he is        
profoundly impressed with the unity of  
knowledge2 in the early ,church he      
exercised a real influence on theology1 
and at the ,revival of ,literature  on  
politics4 ,even the fragments of his    
words when 'repeated at  second-hand'   
7,symp4 #bae ,d7 have in all ages       
ravished the hearts of men1  who have   
seen reflected in them their own higher 
nature4 ,he is the father  of idealism  

in philosophy1 in politics1 in          
literature4 ,and many of the  latest    
conceptions of modern thinkers and      
statesmen1 such as the unity of         
knowledge1 the reign of law1 and the    
equality of the sexes1 have been        
anticipated in a dream by him4          
99       99       99       99       99  
,the argument of the ,republic is the   
search after ,justice1 the nature of    
which is first hinted at by ,cephalus1  
the just and blameless iv old  man--then
 discussed on the basis of proverbial   
morality by ,socrates and               
,polemarchus--then caricatured by       
,thrasymachus and partially explained by
  ,socrates--reduced to an abstraction  
by ,glaucon and ,adeimantus1 and having 
become invisible in the individual      
reappears at length in the ideal ,state 
which is constructed by ,socrates4 ,the 
first care of the rulers is to be       
education1 of which an outline is drawn 
after the old ,hellenic model1          
providing only for an improved religion 

and morality1 and more simplicity  in   
music and gymnastic1 a manlier strain of
 poetry1 and greater harmony of  the    
individual and the ,state4 ,we are thus 
led on to the conception of a  higher   
,state1 in which 'no man calls anything 
his own1' and in which there  is neither
 'marrying nor giving in marriage1' and 
'kings are philosophers'  and           
'philosophers are kings2' and there is  
another and higher education1           
intellectual as well as moral and       
religious1 of science as well as of art1
  and not of youth only but of the whole
 of life4 ,such a ,state is hardly to   
be realized in this world and quickly   
degenerates4 ,to the perfect ideal      
succeeds the government of the soldier  
and the lover of honour1 this again     
declining into democracy1 and democracy 
into tyranny1 in an imaginary but       
regular order having not much           
resemblance to the actual facts4 ,when  
'the  wheel has come full circle' we do 
not begin again with a new period of    

human life2 but we have passed from the 
best to the worst1 and there we  end4   
,the subject is then changed and the old
 quarrel of poetry and  philosophy which
 had been more lightly treated in the   
earlier books of the  ,republic is now  
resumed and fought out to a conclusion4 
,poetry is  discovered to be an         
imitation thrice removed from the truth1
 and ,homer1 as  well as the dramatic   
poets1 having been condemned as an      
imitator1 is sent  into banishment along
 with them4 ,and the idea of the ,state 
is supplemented  by the revelation of a 
future life4    ,the division into      
books1 like all similar divisions1#a is 
probably later  than the age of ,plato4 
,the natural divisions are five in      
number2--7#a7 ,book  ,i and the first   
half of ,book ,,ii down to the paragraph
 beginning1 ',i had  always admired the 
genius of ,glaucon and ,adeimantus1'    
which is  introductory2 the first book  
containing a refutation of the popular  
and  sophistical notions of justice1 and

 concluding1 like some of the earlier   
,dialogues1 without arriving at any     
definite result4 ,to this is appended a 
restatement of the nature of justice v  
according to common opinion1 and  an    
answer is demanded to the               
question--,what is justice1 stripped of 
appearances8 ,the second division 7#b7  
includes the remainder of the second    
and the whole of the third and fourth   
books1 which are mainly occupied  with  
the construction of the first ,state and
 the first education4 ,the  third       
division 7#c7 consists of the fifth1    
sixth1 and seventh books1 in  which     
philosophy rather than justice is the   
subject of enquiry1 and the  second     
,state is constructed on principles of  
communism and ruled by  philosophers1   
and the contemplation of the idea of    
good takes the place of  the social and 
political virtues4 ,in the eighth and   
ninth books 7#d7 the  perversions of    
,states and of the individuals who      
correspond to them are  reviewed in     

succession2 and the nature of pleasure  
and the principle of  tyranny are       
further analysed in the individual man4 
,the tenth book 7#e7 is  the conclusion 
of the whole1 in which the relations of 
philosophy to  poetry are finally       
determined1 and the happiness of the    
citizens in this  life1 which has now   
been assured1 is crowned by the vision  
of another4    ,footnote #a3 ,cp4 ,sir  
,g4 ,c4 ,lewis in the ,classical        
,museum1 vol4 ii4 p4 #a4    ,or a more  
general division into two parts may be  
adopted2 the first 7,books  ,i-,,iv7    
containing the description of a ,state  
framed generally in accordance  with    
,hellenic notions of religion and       
morality1 while in the second 7,books   
,v-,x7 the ,hellenic ,state is          
transformed into an ideal kingdom of    
philosophy1 of which all other          
governments are the perversions4 ,these 
two  points of view are really opposed1 
and the opposition is only veiled by    
the genius of ,plato4 ,the ,republic1   

like the ,phaedrus 7see ,introduction to
  ,phaedrus71 is an imperfect whole2 the
 higher light of philosophy breaks      
through the regularity of the ,hellenic 
temple1 which at last fades away  into  
the heavens 7#eib ,b74 ,whether this    
imperfection of structure arises  from  
an enlargement of the plan2 or from the 
imperfect reconcilement in  the writer's
 own mind of the struggling elements of 
thought which are now  first brought    
together by him2 or1 perhaps1 from the  
composition of the  work at different   
times--are questions1 like the similar  
question about  the ,iliad and the      
,odyssey1 which are worth asking1 but   
which cannot have a  distinct answer4   
,in the age of ,plato there was no      
regular mode of  publication1 and an    
author would have the less scruple in   
altering or  adding to a work which was 
known only to a few of his friends4     
,there is no  absurdity in supposing    
that he may have laid his labours aside 
for a time1  or turned from one work to 

vi another2 and such interruptions would
 be  more likely to occur in the case of
 a long than of a short writing4 ,in all
  attempts to determine the             
chronological order of the ,platonic    
writings on  internal evidence1 this    
uncertainty about any single ,dialogue  
being  composed at one time is a        
disturbing element1 which must be       
admitted to  affect longer works1 such  
as the ,republic and the ,laws1 more    
than shorter  ones4 ,but1 on the other  
hand1 the seeming discrepancies of the  
,republic  may only arise out of the    
discordant elements which the           
philosopher has  attempted to unite in a
 single whole1 perhaps without being    
himself able  to recognise the          
inconsistency which is obvious to us4   
,for there is a  judgment of after ages 
which few great writers have ever been  
able to  anticipate for themselves4     
,they do not perceive the want of       
connexion in  their own writings1 or the
 gaps in their systems which are visible

 enough  to those who come after them4  
,in the beginnings of literature and    
philosophy1 amid the first efforts of   
thought and language1 more              
inconsistencies occur than now1 when the
 paths of speculation are well  worn and
 the meaning of words precisely defined4
 ,for consistency1 too1 is  the growth  
of time2 and some of the greatest       
creations of the human mind  have been  
wanting in unity4 ,tried by this test1  
several of the ,platonic  ,dialogues1   
according to our modern ideas1 appear to
 be defective1 but the  deficiency is no
 proof that they were composed at       
different times or by  different hands4 
,and the supposition that the ,republic 
was written  uninterruptedly and by a   
continuous effort is in some degree     
confirmed by  the numerous references   
from one part of the work to another4   
,the second title1 ',concerning         
,justice1' is not the one by which the  
,republic is quoted1 either by          
,aristotle or generally in antiquity1   

and1  like the other second titles of   
the ,platonic ,dialogues1 may therefore 
be  assumed to be of later date4        
,morgenstern and others have asked      
whether the  definition of justice1     
which is the professed aim1 or the      
construction of  the ,state is the      
principal argument of the work4 ,the    
answer is1 that the  two blend in one1  
and are two faces of the same truth2 for
 justice is the  order of the ,state1   
and the ,state is the visible embodiment
 of justice  under the conditions of    
human society4 ,the one is the soul and 
the other  is the body1 and the ,greek  
ideal of the ,state1 as of the          
individual1 is a  fair mind in a fair   
body4 ,in ,hegelian phraseology the     
state is the reality  of vii which      
justice is the idea4 ,or1 described in  
,christian language1  the kingdom of    
,god is within1 and yet developes into a
 ,church or external  kingdom2 'the     
house not made with hands1 eternal in   
the heavens1' is  reduced to the        

proportions of an earthly building4 ,or1
 to use a ,platonic  image1 justice and 
the ,state are the warp and the woof    
which run through  the whole texture4   
,and when the constitution of the ,state
 is completed1  the conception of       
justice is not dismissed1 but reappears 
under the same  or different names      
throughout the work1 both as the inner  
law of the  individual soul1 and finally
 as the principle of rewards and        
punishments  in another life4 ,the      
virtues are based on justice1 of which  
common honesty  in buying and selling is
 the shadow1 and justice is based on the
 idea of  good1 which is the harmony of 
the world1 and is reflected both in the 
institutions of states and in motions of
 the heavenly bodies 7cp4 ,tim4  #dg74  
,the ,timaeus1 which takes up the       
political rather than the ethical  side 
of the ,republic1 and is chiefly        
occupied with hypotheses concerning  the
 outward world1 yet contains many       
indications that the same law is        

supposed to reign over the ,state1 over 
nature1 and over man4    ,too much1     
however1 has been made of this question 
both in ancient and  modern times4      
,there is a stage of criticism in which 
all works1 whether of  nature or of art1
 are referred to design4 ,now in ancient
 writings1 and  indeed in literature    
generally1 there remains often a large  
element which  was not comprehended in  
the original design4 ,for the plan grows
 under the  author's hand2 new thoughts 
occur to him in the act of writing2 he  
has not  worked out the argument to the 
end before he begins4 ,the reader who   
seeks  to find some one idea under which
 the whole may be conceived1 must       
necessarily seize on the vaguest and    
most general4 ,thus ,stallbaum1 who is  
dissatisfied with the ordinary          
explanations of the argument of the     
,republic1 imagines himself to have     
found the true argument 'in the         
representation of human life in a ,state
 perfected by justice1 and governed     

according to the idea of good4' ,there  
may be some use in such general         
descriptions1 but they can hardly be    
said to express the design of the       
writer4 ,the truth is1 that we may as   
well speak of many designs as of one2   
nor need anything be excluded from the  
plan of a great work to which the  mind 
is naturally led by the association of  
ideas1 and which does not  interfere    
with the general purpose4 ,what kind or 
degree of viii unity is  to be sought   
after in a building1 in the plastic     
arts1 in poetry1 in  prose1 is a problem
 which has to be determined relatively  
to the  subject-matter4 ,to ,plato      
himself1 the enquiry 'what was the      
intention of  the writer1' or 'what was 
the principal argument of the ,republic'
 would  have been hardly intelligible1  
and therefore had better be at once     
dismissed 7cp4 the ,introduction to the 
,phaedrus1 vol4 i474    ,is not the     
,republic the vehicle of three or four  
great truths which1 to  ,plato's own    

mind1 are most naturally represented in 
the form of the ,state8  ,just as in the
 ,jewish prophets the reign of ,messiah1
 or 'the day of the  ,lord1' or the     
suffering ,servant or people of ,god1 or
 the ',sun of  righteousness with       
healing in his wings' only convey1 to us
 at least1  their great spiritual       
ideals1 so through the ,greek ,state    
,plato reveals to  us his own thoughts  
about divine perfection1 which is the   
idea of  good--like the sun in the      
visible world2--about human perfection1 
which is  justice--about education      
beginning in youth and continuing in    
later  years--about poets and sophists  
and tyrants who are the false teachers  
and  evil rulers of mankind--about 'the 
world' which is the embodiment of       
them--about a kingdom which exists      
nowhere upon earth but is laid up in    
heaven to be the pattern and rule of    
human life4 ,no such inspired creation  
is at unity with itself1 any more than  
the clouds of heaven when the sun       

pierces through them4 ,every shade of   
light and dark1 of truth1 and of        
fiction which is the veil of truth1 is  
allowable in a work of  philosophical   
imagination4 ,it is not all on the same 
plane2 it easily  passes from ideas to  
myths and fancies1 from facts to figures
 of speech4  ,it is not prose but       
poetry1 at least a great part of it1 and
 ought not to  be judged by the rules of
 logic or the probabilities of history4 
,the  writer is not fashioning his ideas
 into an artistic whole2 they take      
possession of him and are too much for  
him4 ,we have no need therefore to      
discuss whether a ,state such as ,plato 
has conceived is practicable or not1  or
 whether the outward form or the inward 
life came first into the mind of  the   
writer4 ,for the practicability of his  
ideas has nothing to do with  their     
truth 7v4 #dgb ,d72 and the highest     
thoughts to which he attains may  be    
truly said to bear the greatest 'marks  
of design'--justice more than  the      

external frame-work of the ,state1 the  
idea of good more than justice4  ,the   
great science of dialectic or the       
organisation of ideas has no real       
content2 but is only a type of the      
method or ix spirit in which the  higher
 knowledge is to be pursued by the      
spectator of all time and all           
existence4 ,it is in the fifth1 sixth1  
and seventh books that ,plato reaches   
the 'summit of speculation1' and these1 
although they fail to satisfy the       
requirements of a modern thinker1 may   
therefore be regarded as the most       
important1 as they are also the most    
original1 portions of the work4    ,it  
is not necessary to discuss at length a 
minor question which has been  raised by
 ,boeckh1 respecting the imaginary date 
at which the conversation  was held 7the
 year #daa ,b4,c4 which is proposed by  
him will do as well as  any other72 for 
a writer of fiction1 and especially a   
writer who1 like  ,plato1 is notoriously
 careless of chronology 7cp4 ,rep4 i4   

#ccf1 ,symp4 #aic  ,a1 etc471 only aims 
at general probability4 ,whether all the
 persons  mentioned in the ,republic    
could ever have met at any one time is  
not a  difficulty which would have      
occurred to an ,athenian reading the    
work forty  years later1 or to ,plato   
himself at the time of writing 7any more
 than to  ,shakespeare respecting one of
 his own dramas72 and need not greatly  
trouble us now4 ,yet this may be a      
question having no answer 'which is     
still worth asking1' because the        
investigation shows that we cannot argue
  historically from the dates in ,plato2
 it would be useless therefore to  waste
 time in inventing far-fetched          
reconcilements of them in order to      
avoid chronological difficulties1 such1 
for example1 as the conjecture of  ,c4  
,f4 ,hermann1 that ,glaucon and         
,adeimantus are not the brothers but the
  uncles of ,plato 7cp4 ,apol4 #cd ,a71 
or the fancy of ,stallbaum that ,plato  
intentionally left anachronisms         

indicating the dates at which some of   
his  ,dialogues were written4           
99       99       99       99       99  
,the principal characters in the        
,republic are ,cephalus1 ,polemarchus1  
,thrasymachus1 ,socrates1 ,glaucon1 and 
,adeimantus4 ,cephalus appears in the   
introduction only1 ,polemarchus drops at
 the end of the first argument1 and     
,thrasymachus is reduced to silence at  
the close of the first book4 ,the  main 
discussion is carried on by ,socrates1  
,glaucon1 and ,adeimantus4 ,among  the  
company are ,lysias 7the orator7 and    
,euthydemus1 the sons of ,cephalus  and 
brothers of ,polemarchus1 an unknown    
,charmantides--these are mute  auditors2
 also there is ,cleitophon1 who once    
interrupts 7#cdj ,a71 where1 as  in the 
,dialogue which bears his name1 he      
appears as the friend and ally of       
,thrasymachus4    x ,cephalus1 the      
patriarch of the house1 has been        
appropriately engaged  in offering a    
sacrifice4 ,he is the pattern of an old 

man who has almost  done with life1 and 
is at peace with himself and with all   
mankind4 ,he  feels that he is drawing  
nearer to the world below1 and seems to 
linger  around the memory of the past4  
,he is eager that ,socrates should come 
to  visit him1 fond of the poetry of the
 last generation1 happy in the          
consciousness of a well-spent life1 glad
 at having escaped from the  tyranny of 
youthful lusts4 ,his love of            
conversation1 his affection1 his        
indifference to riches1 even his        
garrulity1 are interesting traits of    
character4 ,he is not one of those who  
have nothing to say1 because their      
whole mind has been absorbed in making  
money4 ,yet he acknowledges that  riches
 have the advantage of placing men above
 the temptation to  dishonesty or       
falsehood4 ,the respectful attention    
shown to him by  ,socrates1 whose love  
of conversation1 no less than the       
mission imposed  upon him by the        
,oracle1 leads him to ask questions of  

all men1 young and  old alike 7cp4 i4   
#cbh ,a71 should also be noted4 ,who    
better suited to raise  the question of 
justice than ,cephalus1 whose life might
 seem to be the  expression of it8 ,the 
moderation with which old age is        
pictured by  ,cephalus as a very        
tolerable portion of existence is       
characteristic1 not  only of him1 but of
 ,greek feeling generally1 and contrasts
 with the  exaggeration of ,cicero in   
the ,de ,senectute4 ,the evening of life
 is  described by ,plato in the most    
expressive manner1 yet with the fewest  
possible touches4 ,as ,cicero remarks   
7,ep4 ad ,attic4 iv4 #af71 the aged     
,cephalus would have been out of place  
in the discussion which follows1 and    
which he could neither have understood  
nor taken part in without a  violation  
of dramatic propriety 7cp4 ,lysimachus  
in the ,laches1 #hi74    ,his 'son and  
heir' ,polemarchus has the frankness and
 impetuousness of  youth2 he is for     
detaining ,socrates by force in the     

opening scene1 and  will not 'let him   
off' 7v4 #ddi ,b7 on the subject of     
women and children4  ,like ,cephalus1 he
 is limited in his point of view1 and   
represents the  proverbial stage of     
morality which has rules of life rather 
than  principles2 and he quotes         
,simonides 7cp4 ,aristoph4 ,clouds1     
#acee ff47 as  his father had quoted    
,pindar4 ,but after this he has no more 
to say2 the  answers which he makes are 
only elicited from him by the dialectic 
of  ,socrates4 ,he has not yet          
experienced the influence of the        
,sophists like  ,glaucon and xi         
,adeimantus1 nor is he sensible of the  
necessity of  refuting them2 he belongs 
to the pre-,socratic or pre-dialectical 
age4 ,he  is incapable of arguing1 and  
is bewildered by ,socrates to such a    
degree  that he does not know what he is
 saying4 ,he is made to admit that      
justice  is a thief1 and that the       
virtues follow the analogy of the arts4 
,from his  brother ,lysias 7contra      

,eratosth4 p4 #aba7 we learn that he    
fell a victim to  the ,thirty ,tyrants1 
but no allusion is here made to his     
fate1 nor to the  circumstance that     
,cephalus and his family were of        
,syracusan origin1 and  had migrated    
from ,thurii to ,athens4    ,the        
',chalcedonian giant1' ,thrasymachus1 of
 whom we have already heard in  the     
,phaedrus 7#bfg ,d71 is the             
personification of the ,sophists1       
according to  ,plato's conception of    
them1 in some of their worst            
characteristics4 ,he is  vain and       
blustering1 refusing to discourse unless
 he is paid1 fond of  making an oration1
 and hoping thereby to escape the       
inevitable ,socrates2  but a mere child 
in argument1 and unable to foresee that 
the next 'move'  7to use a ,platonic    
expression7 will 'shut him up' 7vi4 #dhg
 ,b74 ,he has  reached the stage of     
framing general notions1 and in this    
respect is in  advance of ,cephalus and 
,polemarchus4 ,but he is incapable of   

defending them  in a discussion1 and    
vainly tries to cover his confusion with
 banter and  insolence4 ,whether such   
doctrines as are attributed to him by   
,plato were  really held either by him  
or by any other ,sophist is uncertain2  
in the  infancy of philosophy serious   
errors about morality might easily grow 
up--they are certainly put into the     
mouths of speakers in ,thucydides2 but  
we are concerned at present with        
,plato's description of him1 and not    
with  the historical reality4 ,the      
inequality of the contest adds greatly  
to the  humour of the scene4 ,the       
pompous and empty ,sophist is utterly   
helpless in  the hands of the great     
master of dialectic1 who knows how to   
touch all the  springs of vanity and    
weakness in him4 ,he is greatly         
irritated by the  irony of ,socrates1   
but his noisy and imbecile rage only    
lays him more and  more open to the     
thrusts of his assailant4 ,his          
determination to cram down  their       

throats1 or put 'bodily into their      
souls' his own words1 elicits a  cry of 
horror from ,socrates4 ,the state of his
 temper is quite as worthy of  remark as
 the process of the argument4 ,nothing  
is more amusing than his  complete      
submission when he has been once        
thoroughly beaten4 ,at first he  seems  
to continue xii the discussion with     
reluctance1 but soon with  apparent     
good-will1 and he even testifies his    
interest at a later stage by  one or two
 occasional remarks 7v4 #dej ,a1 ,b74   
,when attacked by ,glaucon 7vi4  #dhi   
,c1 ,d7 he is humorously protected by   
,socrates 'as one who has never  been   
his enemy and is now his friend4' ,from 
,cicero and ,quintilian and from        
,aristotle's ,rhetoric 7iii4 i4 #g2 ii4 
#bc1 #bi7 we learn that the ,sophist    
whom ,plato has made so ridiculous was a
 man of note whose writings were        
preserved in later ages4 ,the play on   
his name which was made by his          
contemporary ,herodicus 7,aris4 ,rhet4  

ii4 #bc1 #bi71 'thou wast ever bold in  
battle1' seems to show that the         
description of him is not devoid of     
verisimilitude4    ,when ,thrasymachus  
has been silenced1 the two principal    
respondents1  ,glaucon and ,adeimantus1 
appear on the scene3 here1 as in ,greek 
tragedy  7cp4 ,introd4 to ,phaedo71     
three actors are introduced4 ,at first  
sight the  two sons of ,ariston may seem
 to wear a family likeness1 like the two
  friends ,simmias and ,cebes in the    
,phaedo4 ,but on a nearer examination of
  them the similarity vanishes1 and they
 are seen to be distinct characters4    
,glaucon is the impetuous youth who can 
'just never have enough of  fetching'   
7cp4 the character of him in ,xen4 ,mem4
 iii4 #f72 the man of  pleasure who is  
acquainted with the mysteries of love   
7v4 #dgd ,d72 the  'juvenis qui gaudet  
canibus1' and who improves the breed of 
animals  7v4 #dei ,a72 the lover of art 
and music 7iii4 #cih ,d1 ,e7 who has all
 the  experiences of youthful life4 ,he 

is full of quickness and penetration1   
piercing easily below the clumsy        
platitudes of ,thrasymachus to the real 
difficulty2 he turns out to the light   
the seamy side of human life1 and  yet  
does not lose faith in the just and     
true4 ,it is ,glaucon who seizes  what  
may be termed the ludicrous relation of 
the philosopher to the world1  to whom a
 state of simplicity is 'a city of      
pigs1' who is always prepared  with a   
jest 7iii4 #cih ,c1 #djg ,a2 v4 #dej1   
#dea1 #dfh ,c2 vi4 #eji ,c2 ix4 #ehf7   
when the argument offers him an         
opportunity1 and who is ever ready to   
second the humour of ,socrates and to   
appreciate the ridiculous1 whether in   
the connoisseurs of music 7vii4 #eca    
,a71 or in the lovers of theatricals    
7v4 #dge ,d71 or in the fantastic       
behaviour of the citizens of democracy  
7viii4 #eeg foll474 ,his weaknesses are 
several times alluded to by ,socrates   
7iii4 #djb ,e2 v4 #dgd ,d1 #dge ,e71    
who1 however1 will not allow him to be  

attacked by his brother ,adeimantus     
7viii4 #edh ,d1 ,e74 ,he is a soldier1  
and1  like ,adeimantus1 has been xiii   
distinguished at the battle of ,megara  
7#cfh ,a1 anno #def87444 ,the character 
of ,adeimantus is deeper and graver1    
and the profounder objections are       
commonly put into his mouth4 ,glaucon is
  more demonstrative1 and generally     
opens the game4 ,adeimantus pursues the 
argument further4 ,glaucon has more of  
the liveliness and quick sympathy of    
youth2 ,adeimantus has the maturer      
judgment of a grown-up man of the world4
  ,in the second book1 when ,glaucon    
insists that justice and injustice shall
  be considered without regard to their 
consequences1 ,adeimantus remarks  that 
they are regarded by mankind in general 
only for the sake of their              
consequences2 and in a similar vein of  
reflection he urges at the  beginning of
 the fourth book that ,socrates fails in
 making his citizens  happy1 and is     
answered that happiness is not the first

 but the second  thing1 not the direct  
aim but the indirect consequence of the 
good  government of a ,state4 ,in the   
discussion about religion and mythology1
  ,adeimantus is the respondent 7iii4   
#cgf-cih71 but ,glaucon breaks in with a
  slight jest1 and carries on the       
conversation in a lighter tone about    
music  and gymnastic to the end of the  
book4 ,it is ,adeimantus again who      
volunteers the criticism of common sense
 on the ,socratic method of  argument   
7vi4 #dhg ,b71 and who refuses to let   
,socrates pass lightly over  the        
question of women and children 7v4      
#ddi74 ,it is ,adeimantus who is the    
respondent in the more argumentative1 as
 ,glaucon in the lighter and more       
imaginative portions of the ,dialogue4  
,for example1 throughout the greater    
part of the sixth book1 the causes of   
the corruption of philosophy and the    
conception of the idea of good are      
discussed with ,adeimantus4 ,at p4 #ejf 
,c1  ,glaucon resumes his place of      

principal respondent2 but he has a      
difficulty  in apprehending the higher  
education of ,socrates1 and makes some  
false  hits in the course of the        
discussion 7#ebf ,d1 #ebg ,d74 ,once    
more ,adeimantus  returns 7viii4 #edh7  
with the allusion to his brother        
,glaucon whom he  compares to the       
contentious ,state2 in the next book    
7ix4 #egf7 he is again  superseded1 and 
,glaucon continues to the end 7x4 #fba  
,b74    ,thus in a succession of        
characters ,plato represents the        
successive stages  of morality1         
beginning with the ,athenian gentleman  
of the olden time1 who  is followed by  
the practical man of that day regulating
 his life by  proverbs and saws2 to him 
succeeds the wild generalization of the 
,sophists1 and lastly come the young    
disciples of the great teacher1 who     
know the sophistical arguments xiv but  
will not be convinced by them1  and     
desire to go deeper into the nature of  
things4 ,these too1 like  ,cephalus1    

,polemarchus1 ,thrasymachus1 are clearly
 distinguished from one  another4       
,neither in the ,republic1 nor in any   
other ,dialogue of ,plato1 is a  single 
character repeated4    ,the delineation 
of ,socrates in the ,republic is not    
wholly consistent4 ,in  the first book  
we have more of the real ,socrates1 such
 as he is depicted  in the ,memorabilia 
of ,xenophon1 in the earliest ,dialogues
 of ,plato1 and in  the ,apology4 ,he is
 ironical1 provoking1 questioning1 the  
old enemy of the  ,sophists1 ready to   
put on the mask of ,silenus as well as  
to argue  seriously4 ,but in the sixth  
book his enmity towards the ,sophists   
abates2  he acknowledges that they are  
the representatives rather than the     
corrupters of the world 7vi4 #dib ,a74  
,he also becomes more dogmatic and      
constructive1 passing beyond the range  
either of the political or the          
speculative ideas of the real ,socrates4
 ,in one passage 7vi4 #ejf ,c7 ,plato   
himself seems to intimate that the time 

had now come for ,socrates1 who had     
passed his whole life in philosophy1 to 
give his own opinion and not to be      
always repeating the notions of other   
men4 ,there is no evidence that  either 
the idea of good or the conception of a 
perfect state were  comprehended in the 
,socratic teaching1 though he certainly 
dwelt on the  nature of the universal   
and of final causes 7cp4 ,xen4 ,mem4 i4 
#d2 ,phaedo  #ig72 and a deep thinker   
like him1 in his thirty or forty years  
of public  teaching1 could hardly have  
failed to touch on the nature of family 
relations1 for which there is also some 
positive evidence in the  ,memorabilia  
7,mem4 i4 #b1 #ea foll474 ,the ,socratic
 method is nominally  retained2 and     
every inference is either put into the  
mouth of the  respondent or represented 
as the common discovery of him and      
,socrates4 ,but  any one can see that   
this is a mere form1 of which the       
affectation grows  wearisome as the work
 advances4 ,the method of enquiry has   

passed into a  method of teaching in    
which by the help of interlocutors the  
same thesis  is looked at from various  
points of view4 ,the nature of the      
process is  truly characterized by      
,glaucon1 when he describes himself as a
 companion  who is not good for much in 
an investigation1 but can see what he is
 shown  7iv4 #dcb ,c71 and may1 perhaps1
 give the answer to a question more     
fluently  than another 7v4 #dgd ,a2 cp4 
#chi ,a74    ,neither can we be         
absolutely certain that ,socrates       
himself xv taught the  immortality of   
the soul1 which is unknown to his       
disciple ,glaucon in the  ,republic 7x4 
#fjh ,d2 cp4 vi4 #dih ,d1 ,e2 ,apol4    
#dj1 #da72 nor is there any  reason to  
suppose that he used myths or           
revelations of another world as a       
vehicle of instruction1 or that he would
 have banished poetry or have  denounced
 the ,greek mythology4 ,his favourite   
oath is retained1 and a  slight mention 
is made of the daemonium1 or internal   

sign1 which is  alluded to by ,socrates 
as a phenomenon peculiar to himself 7vi4
 #dif ,c74 ,a  real element of ,socratic
 teaching1 which is more prominent in   
the ,republic  than in any of the other 
,dialogues of ,plato1 is the use of     
example and  illustration 7,greek3 ta   
phortika au7t prosphe_/rontes1 iv4 #ddb 
,e73  ',let us apply the test of common 
instances4' ',you1' says ,adeimantus1   
ironically1 in the sixth book1 'are so  
unaccustomed to speak in images4'  ,and 
this use of examples or images1 though  
truly ,socratic in origin1 is  enlarged 
by the genius of ,plato into the form of
 an allegory or parable1  which embodies
 in the concrete what has been already  
described1 or is  about to be described1
 in the abstract4 ,thus the figure of   
the cave in  ,book ,,vii is a           
recapitulation of the divisions of      
knowledge in ,book ,,vi4 ,the  composite
 animal in ,book ,,ix is an allegory of 
the parts of the soul4 ,the  noble      
captain and the ship and the true pilot 

in ,book ,,vi are a figure of  the      
relation of the people to the           
philosophers in the ,state which has    
been  described4 ,other figures1 such as
 the dog 7ii4 #cge ,a1 ,d2 iii4 #djd ,a1
 #daf  ,a2 v4 #dea ,d71 or the marriage 
of the portionless maiden 7vi4 #die1    
#dif71 or  the drones and wasps in the  
eighth and ninth books1 also form links 
of  connexion in long passages1 or are  
used to recall previous discussions4    
,plato is most true to the character of 
his master when he describes him as     
'not of this world4' ,and with this     
representation of him the ideal state   
and the other paradoxes of the ,republic
 are quite in accordance1 though  they  
cannot be shown to have been            
speculations of ,socrates4 ,to him1 as  
to  other great teachers both           
philosophical and religious1 when they  
looked  upward1 the world seemed to be  
the embodiment of error and evil4 ,the  
common sense of mankind has revolted    
against this view1 or has only          

partially admitted it4 ,and even in     
,socrates himself the sterner judgement 
of the multitude at times passes into a 
sort of ironical pity or love4 ,men  in 
general are incapable of philosophy1 and
 are therefore at enmity with  the      
philosopher2 but their misunderstanding 
of him xvi is unavoidable  7vi4 #did    
foll42 ix4 #ehi ,d73 for they have never
 seen him as he truly is in  his own    
image2 they are only acquainted with    
artificial systems possessing  no native
 force of truth--words which admit of   
many applications4 ,their  leaders have 
nothing to measure with1 and are        
therefore ignorant of their  own        
stature4 ,but they are to be pitied or  
laughed at1 not to be quarrelled  with2 
they mean well with their nostrums1 if  
they could only learn that  they are    
cutting off a ,hydra's head 7iv4 #dbf   
,d1 ,e74 ,this moderation  towards those
 who are in error is one of the most    
characteristic features  of ,socrates in
 the ,republic 7vi4 #dii-ejb74 ,in all  

the different  representations of       
,socrates1 whether of ,xenophon or      
,plato1 and amid the  differences of the
 earlier or later ,dialogues1 he always 
retains the  character of the unwearied 
and disinterested seeker after truth1   
without  which he would have ceased to  
be ,socrates4           99       99     
99       99       99    ,leaving the    
characters we may now analyse the       
contents of the ,republic1  and then    
proceed to consider 7#a7 ,the general   
aspects of this ,hellenic  ideal of the 
,state1 7#b7 ,the modern lights in which
 the thoughts of ,plato  may be read4   
99       99       99       99       99  
,sidenote3 ,republic ,i4 ,analysis4     
,,book ,i4 ,the ,republic opens with a  
truly ,greek scene--a festival in honour
  of the goddess ,bendis which is held  
in the ,piraeus2 to this is added the   
promise of an equestrian torch-race in  
the evening4 ,the whole work is         
supposed to be recited by ,socrates on  
the day after the festival to a  small  

party1 consisting of ,critias1 ,timaeus1
 ,hermocrates1 and another2  this we    
learn from the first words of the       
,timaeus4    ,when the rhetorical       
advantage of reciting the ,dialogue has 
been gained1  the attention is not      
distracted by any reference to the      
audience2 nor is  the reader further    
reminded of the extraordinary length of 
the narrative4  ,of the numerous        
company1 three only take any serious    
part in the  discussion2 nor are we     
informed whether in the evening they    
went to the  torch-race1 or talked1 as  
in the ,symposium1 through the night4   
,the manner  in which the conversation  
has arisen is described 99,stephanus    
#cbg99 as  follows3--,socrates and his  
companion ,glaucon are about to leave   
the  festival when they are detained by 
a message from ,polemarchus1 who        
speedily appears accompanied by         
,adeimantus1 the brother of ,glaucon1   
and  with playful violence compels them 
to remain1 promising them not only  xvii

 the torch-race1 99#cbh99 but the       
pleasure of conversation with the       
young1 which to ,socrates is a far      
greater attraction4 ,they return to the 
house of ,cephalus1 ,polemarchus'       
father1 now in extreme old age1 who is  
found sitting upon a cushioned seat     
crowned for a sacrifice4 ',you should   
come to me oftener1 ,socrates1 for ,i am
 too old to go to you2 and at my  time  
of life1 having lost other pleasures1 ,i
 care the more for  conversation4'      
99#cbi99 ,socrates asks him what he     
thinks of age1 to which the  old man    
replies1 that the sorrows and           
discontents of age are to be  attributed
 to the tempers of men1 and that age is 
a time of peace in which  the tyranny of
 the passions is no longer felt4 ,yes1  
replies ,socrates1 but  the world will  
say1 ,cephalus1 that you are happy in   
old age because you  are rich4 ',and    
there is something in what they say1    
,socrates1 but not so  much as they     
imagine-- 99#ccj99 as ,themistocles     

replied to the ,seriphian1  ,neither    
you1 if you had been an ,athenian1 nor  
,i1 if ,i had been a  ,seriphian1 would 
ever have been famous1 ,i might in like 
manner reply to  you1 ,neither a good   
poor man can be happy in age1 nor yet a 
bad rich man4'  ,socrates remarks that  
,cephalus appears not to care about     
riches1 a quality  which he ascribes to 
his having inherited1 not acquired them1
 and would  like to know what he        
considers to be the chief advantage of  
them4 ,cephalus  answers that when you  
are old the belief in the world below   
grows upon  you1 and then to have done  
justice and never to have been compelled
 to do  injustice through poverty1      
99#cca99 and never to have deceived     
anyone1 are  felt to be unspeakable     
blessings4 ,socrates1 who is evidently  
preparing for  an argument1 next asks1  
,what is the meaning of the word        
'justice'8 ,to tell  the truth and pay  
your debts8 ,no more than this8 ,or must
 we admit  exceptions8 ,ought ,i1 for   

example1 to put back into the hands of  
my friend1  who has gone mad1 the sword 
which ,i borrowed of him when he was in 
his  right mind8 ',there must be        
exceptions4' ',and yet1' says           
,polemarchus1 'the  definition which has
 been given has the authority of        
,simonides4' ,here  ,cephalus retires to
 look after the sacrifices1 and         
bequeaths1 as ,socrates  facetiously    
remarks1 the possession of the argument 
to his heir1  ,polemarchus4444          
,sidenote3 ,republic ,i4 ,introduction4 
,the description of old age is finished1
 and ,plato1 as his manner is1 has      
touched the key-note of the whole work  
in asking for the definition of         
justice1 first suggesting the question  
which ,glaucon afterwards pursues       
respecting external goods1 and preparing
 for xviii the concluding mythus  of the
 world below in the slight allusion of  
,cephalus4 ,the portrait of the  just   
man is a natural frontispiece or        
introduction to the long discourse      

which follows1 and may perhaps imply    
that in all our perplexity about the    
nature of justice1 there is no          
difficulty in discerning 'who is a just 
man4' ,the first explanation has been   
supported by a saying of ,simonides2    
and now ,socrates has a mind to show    
that the resolution of justice into  two
 unconnected precepts1 which have no    
common principle1 fails to satisfy  the 
demands of dialectic4    ,sidenote3     
,republic ,i4 ,analysis4    444 99#ccb99
 ,he proceeds3 ,what did ,simonides mean
 by this saying of his8 ,did  he mean   
that ,i was to give back arms to a      
madman8 ',no1 not in that case1  not if 
the parties are friends1 and evil would 
result4 ,he meant that you  were to do  
what was proper1 good to friends and    
harm to enemies4' ,every  act does      
something to somebody2 and following    
this analogy1 ,socrates asks1  ,what is 
this due and proper thing which justice 
does1 and to whom8 ,he is  answered that
 justice does good to friends and harm  

to enemies4 ,but in  what way good or   
harm8 ',in making alliances with the    
one1 and going to war  with the other4' 
,then in time of peace what is the good 
of justice8 99#ccc99  ,the answer is    
that justice is of use in contracts1 and
 contracts are money  partnerships4     
,yes2 but how in such partnerships is   
the just man of more  use than any other
 man8 ',when you want to have money     
safely kept and not  used4' ,then       
justice will be useful when money is    
useless4 ,and there is  another         
difficulty3 justice1 like the art of war
 or any other art1 must be  of          
opposites1 99#ccd99 good at attack as   
well as at defence1 at stealing as  well
 as at guarding4 ,but then justice is a 
thief1 though a hero  notwithstanding1  
like ,autolycus1 the ,homeric hero1 who 
was 'excellent  above all men in theft  
and perjury'--to such a pass have you   
and ,homer and  ,simonides brought us2  
though ,i do not forget that the        
thieving must be for  the good of       

friends and the harm of enemies4 ,and   
still there arises  another question3   
,are friends to be interpreted as real  
or seeming2  enemies as real or seeming8
 99#cce99 ,and are our friends to be    
only the good1  and our enemies to be   
the evil8 ,the answer is1 that we must  
do good to our  seeming and real good   
friends1 and evil to our seeming and    
real evil  enemies--good to the good1   
evil to the evil4 ,but ought we to      
render evil  for evil at all1 when to do
 so will only make men more evil8 ,can  
justice  produce injustice any more than
 the art of horsemanship xix can make   
bad  horsemen1 or heat produce cold8    
,the final conclusion is1 that no sage  
or  poet ever said that the just return 
evil for evil2 this was a maxim of  some
 rich and mighty man1 ,periander1       
99#ccf99 ,perdiccas1 or ,ismenias the   
,theban 7about ,b4,c4 #cih-cha74444     
99       99       99       99       99  
,sidenote3 ,republic ,i4 ,introduction4 
,thus the first stage of aphoristic or  

unconscious morality is shown to be     
inadequate to the wants of the age2 the 
authority of the poets is set  aside1   
and through the winding mazes of        
dialectic we make an approach to  the   
,christian precept of forgiveness of    
injuries4 ,similar words are  applied by
 the ,persian mystic poet to the ,divine
 being when the  questioning spirit is  
stirred within him3--',if because ,i do 
evil1 ,thou  punishest me by evil1 what 
is the difference between ,thee and me8'
 ,in this  both ,plato and ,khyam rise  
above the level of many ,christian 787  
theologians4 ,the first definition of   
justice easily passes into the  second2 
for the simple words 'to speak the truth
 and pay your debts' is  substituted the
 more abstract 'to do good to your      
friends and harm to your  enemies4'     
,either of these explanations gives a   
sufficient rule of life for  plain men1 
but they both fall short of the         
precision of philosophy4 ,we may  note  
in passing the antiquity of casuistry1  

which not only arises out of  the       
conflict of established principles in   
particular cases1 but also out  of the  
effort to attain them1 and is prior as  
well as posterior to our  fundamental   
notions of morality4 ,the               
'interrogation' of moral ideas2 the     
appeal to the authority of ,homer2 the  
conclusion that the maxim1 ',do good  to
 your friends and harm to your enemies1'
 being erroneous1 could not have  been  
the word of any great man 7cp4 ii4 #chj 
,a1 ,b71 are all of them very           
characteristic of the ,platonic         
,socrates4           99       99        
99       99       99    ,sidenote3      
,republic ,i4 ,analysis4    444 ,here   
,thrasymachus1 who has made several     
attempts to interrupt1 but has  hitherto
 been kept in order by the company1     
takes advantage of a pause and  rushes  
into the arena1 beginning1 like a savage
 animal1 with a roar4  ',socrates1' he  
says1 'what folly is this8--,why do you 
agree to be  vanquished by one another  

in a pretended argument8' ,he then      
prohibits all  the ordinary definitions 
of justice2 99#ccg99 to which ,socrates 
replies that  he cannot tell how many   
twelve is1 if he is forbidden to say #b 
x #f1 or  #c x #d1 or #f x #b1 or #d x  
#c4 ,at first ,thrasymachus is reluctant
 to argue2 but  at length1 99#cch99 with
 a promise of payment on the part of xx 
the company  and of praise from         
,socrates1 he is induced to open the    
game4 ',listen1' he  says1 'my answer is
 that might is right1 justice the       
interest of the  stronger3 now praise   
me4' ,let me understand you first4 ,do  
you mean that  because ,polydamas the   
wrestler1 who is stronger than we are1  
finds the  eating of beef for his       
interest1 the eating of beef is also for
 our  interest1 who are not so strong8  
,thrasymachus is indignant at the       
illustration1 and in pompous words1     
apparently intended to restore dignity  
to the argument1 he explains his meaning
 to be that the rulers make laws  for   

their own interests4 99#cci99 ,but      
suppose1 says ,socrates1 that the ruler 
or stronger makes a mistake--then the   
interest of the stronger is not his     
interest4 ,thrasymachus is saved from   
this speedy downfall by his disciple    
,cleitophon1 who introduces the word    
'thinks2' 99#cdj99 --not the actual     
interest of the ruler1 but what he      
thinks or what seems to be his          
interest1 is justice4 ,the contradiction
 is escaped by the unmeaning  evasion3  
for though his real and apparent        
interests may differ1 what the  ruler   
thinks to be his interest will always   
remain what he thinks to be  his        
interest4    ,of course this was not the
 original assertion1 nor is the new     
interpretation accepted by ,thrasymachus
 himself4 ,but ,socrates is not         
disposed to quarrel about words1 if1 as 
he significantly insinuates1 his        
adversary has changed his mind4 ,in what
 follows ,thrasymachus does in fact     
withdraw his admission that the ruler   

may make a mistake1 for he affirms  that
 the ruler as a ruler is infallible4    
99#cda99 ,socrates is quite ready to    
accept the new position1 which he       
equally turns against ,thrasymachus by  
the help of the analogy of the arts4    
99#cdb99 ,every art or science has an   
interest1 but this interest is to be    
distinguished from the accidental       
interest of the artist1 and is only     
concerned with the good of the things   
or persons which come under the art4    
,and justice has an interest which is   
the interest not of the ruler or judge1 
but of those who come under his  sway4  
,thrasymachus is on the brink of the    
inevitable conclusion1 when he makes a  
bold diversion4 99#cdc99 ',tell me1     
,socrates1' he says1 'have you a nurse8'
  ,what a question6 ,why do you ask8    
',because1 if you have1 she neglects you
  and lets you go about drivelling1 and 
has not even taught you to know the     
shepherd from the sheep4 ,for you fancy 
that shepherds and rulers never  think  

of their own interest1 but only of their
 sheep or subjects1 xxi  whereas the    
truth is that they fatten them for their
 use1 sheep and  subjects alike4 ,and   
experience proves that in every relation
 of life the  just man is the loser and 
the unjust the gainer1 99#cdd99         
especially where  injustice is on the   
grand scale1 which is quite another     
thing from the  petty rogueries of      
swindlers and burglars and robbers of   
temples4 ,the  language of men proves   
this--our 'gracious' and 'blessed'      
tyrant and the  like--all which tends to
 show 7#a7 that justice is the interest 
of the  stronger2 and 7#b7 that         
injustice is more profitable and also   
stronger than  justice4'                
,thrasymachus1 who is better at a speech
 than at a close argument1 having       
deluged the company with words1 has a   
mind to escape4 99#cde99 ,but the others
  will not let him go1 and ,socrates    
adds a humble but earnest request that  
he will not desert them at such a crisis

 of their fate4 ',and what can ,i do    
more for you8' he says2 'would you have 
me put the words bodily into your       
souls8' ,god forbid6 replies ,socrates2 
but we want you to be consistent in  the
 use of terms1 and not to employ        
'physician' in an exact sense1 and  then
 again 'shepherd' or 'ruler' in an      
inexact1--if the words are strictly     
taken1 the ruler and the shepherd look  
only to the good of their people or     
flocks and not to their own3 whereas you
 insist that rulers are solely  actuated
 by love of office4 ',no doubt about    
it1' replies ,thrasymachus4  99#cdf99   
,then why are they paid8 ,is not the    
reason1 that their interest is  not     
comprehended in their art1 and is       
therefore the concern of another  art1  
the art of pay1 which is common to the  
arts in general1 and therefore  not     
identical with any one of them8 99#cdg99
 ,nor would any man be a ruler  unless  
he were induced by the hope of reward or
 the fear of  punishment2--the reward is

 money or honour1 the punishment is the 
necessity of being ruled by a man worse 
than himself4 ,and if a ,state 7or      
,church7 were composed entirely of good 
men1 they would be affected by the  last
 motive only2 and there would be as much
 'nolo episcopari' as there is  at      
present of the opposite4444             
,sidenote3 ,republic ,i4 ,introduction4 
,the satire on existing governments is  
heightened by the simple and  apparently
 incidental manner in which the last    
remark is introduced4 ,there  is a      
similar irony in the argument that the  
governors of mankind do not  like being 
in office1 and that therefore they      
demand pay4    ,sidenote3 ,republic ,i4 
,analysis4    444 ,enough of this3 the  
other assertion of ,thrasymachus is far 
xxii more  important--that the unjust   
life is more gainful than the just4     
99#cdh99 ,now1  as you and ,i1 ,glaucon1
 are not convinced by him1 we must reply
 to him2 but  if we try to compare their
 respective gains we shall want a judge 

to  decide for us2 we had better        
therefore proceed by making mutual      
admissions  of the truth to one another4
    ,thrasymachus had asserted that     
perfect injustice was more gainful than 
perfect justice1 and after a little     
hesitation he is induced by ,socrates   
99#cdi99 to admit the still greater     
paradox that injustice is virtue and    
justice vice4 ,socrates praises his     
frankness1 and assumes the attitude of  
one whose only wish is to understand the
 meaning of his opponents4 ,at the  same
 time he is weaving a net in which      
,thrasymachus is finally enclosed4  ,the
 admission is elicited from him that the
 just man seeks to gain an  advantage   
over the unjust only1 but not over the  
just1 while the unjust  would gain an   
advantage over either4 ,socrates1 in    
order to test this  statement1 employs  
once more the favourite analogy of the  
arts4 99#cej99 ,the  musician1 doctor1  
skilled artist of any sort1 does not    
seek to gain more  than the skilled1 but

 only more than the unskilled 7that is  
to say1 he  works up to a rule1         
standard1 law1 and does not exceed it71 
whereas the  unskilled makes random     
efforts at excess4 ,thus the skilled    
falls on the  side of the good1 and the 
unskilled on the side of the evil1 and  
the just  is the skilled1 and the unjust
 is the unskilled4    ,there was great  
difficulty in bringing ,thrasymachus to 
the point2 the day  was hot and he was  
streaming with perspiration1 and for the
 first time in  his life he was seen to 
blush4 ,but his other thesis that       
injustice was  stronger than justice has
 not yet been refuted1 and ,socrates now
 proceeds  to the consideration of this1
 which1 with the assistance of          
,thrasymachus1  he hopes to clear up2   
the latter is at first churlish1 but in 
the  judicious hands of ,socrates is    
soon restored to good humour3 99#cea99  
,is  there not honour among thieves8 ,is
 not the strength of injustice only a   
remnant of justice8 ,is not absolute    

injustice absolute weakness also8       
99#ceb99 ,a house that is divided       
against itself cannot stand2 two men who
  quarrel detract from one another's    
strength1 and he who is at war with     
himself is the enemy of himself and the 
gods4 ,not wickedness therefore1  but   
semi-wickedness flourishes in states1--a
 remnant of good is needed in  order to 
make union in action possible1--there is
 no kingdom of evil in  this world4     
xxiii ,another question has not been    
answered3 ,is the just or the unjust    
the happier8 ,to this we reply1 that    
every art has an end and an excellence  
or virtue by which the end is           
accomplished4 ,and is not the end of the
 soul  happiness1 and justice the       
excellence of the soul by which         
happiness is  attained8 99#ced99        
,justice and happiness being thus shown 
to be inseparable1  the question whether
 the just or the unjust is the happier  
has  disappeared4    ,thrasymachus      
replies3 ',let this be your             

entertainment1 ,socrates1 at the        
festival of ,bendis4' ,yes2 and a very  
good entertainment with which your      
kindness has supplied me1 now that you  
have left off scolding4 ,and yet not  a 
good entertainment--but that was my own 
fault1 for ,i tasted of too many        
things4 ,first of all the nature of     
justice was the subject of our enquiry1 
and then whether justice is virtue and  
wisdom1 or evil and folly2 and then  the
 comparative advantages of just and     
unjust3 and the sum of all is that  ,i  
know not what justice is2 how then shall
 ,i know whether the just is  happy or  
not8444    ,sidenote3 ,republic ,i4     
,introduction4    ,thus the sophistical 
fabric has been demolished1 chiefly by  
appealing to  the analogy of the arts4  
',justice is like the arts 7#a7 in      
having no  external interest1 and 7#b7  
in not aiming at excess1 and 7#c7       
justice is to  happiness what the       
implement of the workman is to his      
work4' ,at this the  modern reader is   

apt to stumble1 because he forgets that 
,plato is writing  in an age when the   
arts and the virtues1 like the moral and
 intellectual  faculties1 were still    
undistinguished4 ,among early enquirers 
into the  nature of human action the    
arts helped to fill up the void of      
speculation2  and at first the          
comparison of the arts and the virtues  
was not perceived  by them to be        
fallacious4 ,they only saw the points of
 agreement in them  and not the points  
of difference4 ,virtue1 like art1 must  
take means to an  end2 good manners are 
both an art and a virtue2 character is  
naturally  described under the image of 
a statue 7ii4 #cfa ,d2 vii4 #edj ,c72   
and there  are many other figures of    
speech which are readily transferred    
from art to  morals4 ,the next          
generation cleared up these             
perplexities2 or at least  supplied     
after ages with a further analysis of   
them4 ,the contemporaries of  ,plato    
were in a state of transition1 and had  

not yet fully realized the  common-sense
 distinction of ,aristotle1 that 'virtue
 is concerned with  action1 art with    
production' 7,nic4 ,eth4 vi4 #d71 or    
that 'virtue implies  intention and     
constancy of purpose1' xxiv whereas 'art
 requires  knowledge only' 7,nic4 ,eth4 
vi4 #c74 ,and yet in the absurdities    
which follow  from some uses of the     
analogy 7cp4 i4 #ccc ,e1 #ccd ,b71 there
 seems to be an  intimation conveyed    
that virtue is more than art4 ,this is  
implied in the  reductio ad absurdum    
that 'justice is a thief1' and in the   
dissatisfaction which ,socrates         
expresses at the final result4    ,the  
expression 'an art of pay' 7i4 #cdf ,b7 
which is described as 'common to  all   
the arts' is not in accordance with the 
ordinary use of language4 ,nor  is it   
employed elsewhere either by ,plato or  
by any other ,greek writer4 ,it  is     
suggested by the argument1 and seems to 
extend the conception of art to  doing  
as well as making4 ,another flaw or     

inaccuracy of language may be  noted in 
the words 7i4 #cce ,c7 'men who are     
injured are made more unjust4'  ,for    
those who are injured are not           
necessarily made worse1 but only harmed 
or ill-treated4    ,the second of the   
three arguments1 'that the just does not
 aim at excess1'  has a real meaning1   
though wrapped up in an enigmatical     
form4 ,that the  good is of the nature  
of the finite is a peculiarly ,hellenic 
sentiment1  which may be compared with  
the language of those modern writers who
 speak  of virtue as fitness1 and of    
freedom as obedience to law4 ,the       
mathematical  or logical notion of limit
 easily passes into an ethical one1 and 
even  finds a mythological expression in
 the conception of envy 7,greek3        
phtho_/nos74 ,ideas of measure1         
equality1 order1 unity1 proportion1     
still  linger in the writings of        
moralists2 and the true spirit of the   
fine arts  is better conveyed by such   
terms than by superlatives4      ',when 

workmen strive to do better than well1  
,they do confound their skill in        
covetousness4'                          
7,king ,john1 ,act iv4 ,sc4 #b47    ,the
 harmony of the soul and body 7iii4 #djb
 ,d71 and of the parts of the  soul with
 one another 7iv4 #ddb ,c71 a harmony   
'fairer than that of musical  notes1' is
 the true ,hellenic mode of conceiving  
the perfection of human  nature4    ,in 
what may be called the epilogue of the  
discussion with ,thrasymachus1  ,plato  
argues that evil is not a principle of  
strength1 but of discord and            
dissolution1 just touching the question 
which has been often treated in  modern 
times by theologians and philosophers1  
of the negative nature of  evil 7cp4 on 
the other hand x4 #faj74 ,in the last   
argument we trace the  germ of the xxv  
,aristotelian doctrine of an end and a  
virtue directed  towards the end1 which 
again is suggested by the arts4 ,the    
final  reconcilement of justice and     
happiness and the identity of the       

individual  and the ,state are also     
intimated4 ,socrates reassumes the      
character of a  'know-nothing2' at the  
same time he appears to be not wholly   
satisfied  with the manner in which the 
argument has been conducted4 ,nothing is
  concluded2 but the tendency of the    
dialectical process1 here as always1 is 
to enlarge our conception of ideas1 and 
to widen their application to  human    
life4           99       99       99    
99       99    ,sidenote3 ,republic     
,,ii4 ,analysis4    ,,book ,,ii4        
,thrasymachus is pacified1 99#ceg99 but 
the intrepid ,glaucon insists  on       
continuing the argument4 ,he is not     
satisfied with the indirect manner  in  
which1 at the end of the last book1     
,socrates had disposed of the  question 
',whether the just or the unjust is the 
happier4' ,he begins by  dividing goods 
into three classes3--first1 goods       
desirable in themselves2  secondly1     
goods desirable in themselves and for   
their results2 thirdly1  goods desirable

 for their results only4 ,he then asks  
,socrates in which of  the three classes
 he would place justice4 99#ceh99 ,in   
the second class1  replies ,socrates1   
among goods desirable for themselves and
 also for their  results4 ',then the    
world in general are of another mind1   
for they say that  justice belongs to   
the troublesome class of goods which are
 desirable for  their results only4'    
,socrates answers that this is the      
doctrine of  ,thrasymachus which he     
rejects4 ,glaucon thinks that           
,thrasymachus was too  ready to listen  
to the voice of the charmer1 and        
proposes to consider the  nature of     
justice and injustice in themselves and 
apart from the results  and rewards of  
them which the world is always dinning  
in his ears4 ,he will  first of all     
speak of the nature and origin of       
justice2 secondly1 of the  manner in    
which men view justice as a necessity   
and not a good2 and  thirdly1 he will   
prove the reasonableness of this view4  

',to do injustice is said to be a good2 
to suffer injustice an evil4 ,as the    
evil is discovered by experience to be  
greater than the good1 99#cei99 the     
sufferers1 who cannot also be doers1    
make a compact that they will have      
neither1 and this compact or mean is    
called justice1 but is really the       
impossibility of doing injustice4 ,no   
one would observe such a compact if  he 
were not obliged4 ,let us suppose that  
the just and unjust have two  rings1    
like that of ,gyges xxvi in the         
well-known story1 which make them       
invisible1 99#cfj99 and then no         
difference will appear in them1 for     
every one  will do evil if he can4 ,and 
he who abstains will be regarded by the 
world  as a fool for his pains4 ,men may
 praise him in public out of fear for   
themselves1 but they will laugh at him  
in their hearts4 7,cp4 ,gorgias1  #dhc  
,b47    ',and now let us frame an ideal 
of the just and unjust4 ,imagine the    
unjust  man to be master of his craft1  

seldom making mistakes and easily       
correcting them2 having gifts of money1 
speech1 strength-- 99#cfa99 the         
greatest villain bearing the highest    
character3 and at his side let us  place
 the just in his nobleness and          
simplicity--being1 not  seeming--without
 name or reward--clothed in his justice 
only--the best of  men who is thought to
 be the worst1 and let him die as he has
 lived4 ,i  might add 7but ,i would     
rather put the rest into the mouth of   
the  panegyrists of injustice--they will
 tell you7 that the just man will be    
scourged1 racked1 bound1 will have his  
eyes put out1 and will at last be       
crucified literally impaled--and all    
this because he ought to have  preferred
 seeming to being4 99#cfb99 ,how        
different is the case of the unjust  who
 clings to appearance as the true       
reality6 ,his high character makes him  
a ruler2 he can marry where he likes1   
trade where he likes1 help his  friends 
and hurt his enemies2 having got rich by

 dishonesty he can worship  the gods    
better1 and will therefore be more loved
 by them than the just4'    ,i was      
thinking what to answer1 when           
,adeimantus joined in the already       
unequal fray4 ,he considered that the   
most important point of all had been    
omitted3--',men are taught to be just   
for the sake of rewards2 99#cfc99       
parents and guardians make reputation   
the incentive to virtue4 ,and other     
advantages are promised by them of a    
more solid kind1 such as wealthy        
marriages and high offices4 ,there are  
the pictures in ,homer and ,hesiod of   
fat sheep and heavy fleeces1 rich       
corn-fields and trees toppling with     
fruit1 which the gods provide in this   
life for the just4 ,and the ,orphic     
poets add a similar picture of another4 
,the heroes of ,musaeus and ,eumolpus   
lie on couches at a festival1 with      
garlands on their heads1 enjoying as    
the meed of virtue a paradise of        
immortal drunkenness4 ,some go further1 

and speak of a fair posterity in the    
third and fourth generation4 ,but the   
wicked they bury in a slough and make   
them carry water in a sieve3 and in     
this life they xxvii attribute to them  
the infamy which ,glaucon was  assuming 
to be the lot of the just who are       
supposed to be unjust4    99#cfd99      
',take another kind of argument which is
 found both in poetry and               
prose3--,virtue1 as ,hesiod says1 is    
honourable but difficult1 vice is  easy 
and profitable4 ,you may often see the  
wicked in great prosperity and  the     
righteous afflicted by the will of      
heaven4 ,and mendicant prophets  knock  
at rich men's doors1 promising to atone 
for the sins of themselves  or their    
fathers in an easy fashion with         
sacrifices and festive games1 or  with  
charms and invocations to get rid of an 
enemy good or bad by divine  help and at
 a small charge2--they appeal to books  
professing to be written  by ,musaeus   
and ,orpheus1 and carry away the minds  

of whole cities1 and  promise to get    
souls out of purgatory2 and if we refuse
 to listen to  them1 99#cfe99 no one    
knows what will happen to us4    ',when 
a lively-minded ingenuous youth hears   
all this1 what will be his  conclusion8 
,will he1 in the language of ,pindar1   
make justice his high  tower1 or fortify
 himself with crooked deceit8 ,justice1 
he reflects1  without the appearance of 
justice1 is misery and ruin2 injustice  
has the  promise of a glorious life4    
,appearance is master of truth and lord 
of  happiness4 ,to appearance then ,i   
will turn1--,i will put on the show of  
virtue and trail behind me the fox of   
,archilochus4 ,i hear some one saying   
that wickedness is not easily concealed1
 to which ,i reply that nothing  great  
is easy4 ,union and force and rhetoric  
will do much2 and if men say  that they 
cannot prevail over the gods1 still how 
do we know that there  are gods8 ,only  
from the poets1 who acknowledge that    
they may be appeased  by sacrifices4    

99#cff99 ,then why not sin and pay for  
indulgences out of your  sin8 ,for if   
the righteous are only unpunished1 still
 they have no further  reward1 while the
 wicked may be unpunished and have the  
pleasure of  sinning too4 ,but what of  
the world below8 ,nay1 says the         
argument1 there  are atoning powers who 
will set that matter right1 as the      
poets1 who are  the sons of the gods1   
tell us2 and this is confirmed by the   
authority of  the ,state4    ',how can  
we resist such arguments in favour of   
injustice8 ,add good  manners1 and1 as  
the wise tell us1 we shall make the best
 of both worlds4  ,who that is not a    
miserable caitiff will refrain from     
smiling at the  praises of justice8     
,even if a man knows the better part he 
will not be  angry with others2 for he  
knows also that xxviii more than human  
virtue  is needed to save a man1 and    
that he only praises justice who is     
incapable  of injustice4    ',the origin
 of the evil is that all men from the   

beginning1 heroes1 poets1  instructors  
of youth1 have always asserted the      
temporal dispensation1  the honours and 
profits of justice4 99#cfg99 ,had we    
been taught in early  youth the power of
 justice and injustice inherent in the  
soul1 and unseen  by any human or divine
 eye1 we should not have needed others  
to be our  guardians1 but every one     
would have been the guardian of himself4
 ,this is  what ,i want you to show1    
,socrates2--other men use arguments     
which rather  tend to strengthen the    
position of ,thrasymachus that might is 
right2 but  from you ,i expect better   
things4 ,and please1 as ,glaucon said1  
to exclude  reputation2 let the just be 
thought unjust and the unjust just1 and 
do you  still prove to us the           
superiority of justice4'444             
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,ii4              
,introduction4    ,the thesis1 which for
 the sake of argument has been          
maintained by ,glaucon1  is the converse
 of that of ,thrasymachus--not right is 

the interest of the  stronger1 but right
 is the necessity of the weaker4        
,starting from the same  premises he    
carries the analysis of society a step  
further back2--might is  still right1   
but the might is the weakness of the    
many combined against  the strength of  
the few4    ,there have been theories in
 modern as well as in ancient times     
which have  a family likeness to the    
speculations of ,glaucon2 e4g4 that     
power is the  foundation of right2 or   
that a monarch has a divine right to    
govern well  or ill2 or that virtue is  
self-love or the love of power2 or that 
war is  the natural state of man2 or    
that private vices are public benefits4 
,all  such theories have a kind of      
plausibility from their partial         
agreement  with experience4 ,for human  
nature oscillates between good and evil1
 and  the motives of actions and the    
origin of institutions may be explained 
to  a certain extent on either          
hypothesis according to the character or

 point  of view of a particular thinker4
 ,the obligation of maintaining         
authority  under all circumstances and  
sometimes by rather questionable means  
is felt  strongly and has become a sort 
of instinct among civilized men4 ,the   
divine  right of kings1 or more         
generally of governments1 is one of the 
forms  under which this natural feeling 
is expressed4 ,nor again is there any   
evil  which has not some accompaniment  
of good or pleasure2 nor any good xxix  
which is free from some alloy of evil2  
nor any noble or generous thought  which
 may not be attended by a shadow or the 
ghost of a shadow of  self-interest or  
of self-love4 ,we know that all human   
actions are  imperfect2 but we do not   
therefore attribute them to the worse   
rather than  to the better motive or    
principle4 ,such a philosophy is both   
foolish and  false1 like that opinion of
 the clever rogue who assumes all other 
men to  be like himself 7iii4 #dji ,c74 
,and theories of this sort do not       

represent  the real nature of the       
,state1 which is based on a vague sense 
of right  gradually corrected and       
enlarged by custom and law 7although    
capable also  of perversion71 any more  
than they describe the origin of        
society1 which  is to be sought in the  
family and in the social and religious  
feelings of  man4 ,nor do they represent
 the average character of individuals1  
which  cannot be explained simply on a  
theory of evil1 but has always a        
counteracting element of good4 ,and as  
men become better such theories  appear 
more and more untruthful to them1       
because they are more conscious  of     
their own disinterestedness4 ,a little  
experience may make a man a  cynic2 a   
great deal will bring him back to a     
truer and kindlier view of  the mixed   
nature of himself and his fellow men4   
,the two brothers ask ,socrates to prove
 to them that the just is happy when    
they have taken from him all that in    
which happiness is ordinarily  supposed 

to consist4 ,not that there is 7#a7 any 
absurdity in the attempt to  frame a    
notion of justice apart from            
circumstances4 ,for the ideal must      
always be a paradox when compared with  
the ordinary conditions of human  life4 
,neither the ,stoical ideal nor the     
,christian ideal is true as a fact1  but
 they may serve as a basis of education1
 and may exercise an ennobling          
influence4 ,an ideal is none the worse  
because 'some one has made the          
discovery' that no such ideal was ever  
realized4 7,cp4 v4 #dgb ,d47 ,and in a  
few exceptional individuals who are     
raised above the ordinary level of      
humanity1 the ideal of happiness may be 
realized in death and misery4 ,this  may
 be the state which the reason          
deliberately approves1 and which the    
utilitarian as well as every other      
moralist may be bound in certain cases  
to prefer4    ,nor again1 7#b7 must we  
forget that ,plato1 though he agrees    
generally with  the view implied in the 

argument of the two brothers1 is not    
expressing  his own final conclusion1   
but rather xxx seeking to dramatize one 
of the  aspects of ethical truth4 ,he is
 developing his idea gradually in a     
series  of positions or situations4 ,he 
is exhibiting ,socrates for the first   
time  undergoing the ,socratic          
interrogation4 ,lastly1 7#c7 the word   
'happiness'  involves some degree of    
confusion because associated in the     
language of  modern philosophy with     
conscious pleasure or satisfaction1     
which was not  equally present to his   
mind4    ,glaucon has been drawing a    
picture of the misery of the just and   
the  happiness of the unjust1 to which  
the misery of the tyrant in ,book ,,ix  
is  the answer and parallel4 ,and still 
the unjust must appear just2 that is    
'the homage which vice pays to virtue4' 
,but now ,adeimantus1 taking up the     
hint which had been already given by    
,glaucon 7ii4 #ceh ,c71 proceeds to show
  that in the opinion of mankind justice

 is regarded only for the sake of       
rewards and reputation1 and points out  
the advantage which is given to  such   
arguments as those of ,thrasymachus and 
,glaucon by the conventional  morality  
of mankind4 ,he seems to feel the       
difficulty of 'justifying the  ways of  
,god to man4' ,both the brothers touch  
upon the question1 whether  the morality
 of actions is determined by their      
consequences 7cp4 iv4 #dbj  foll472 and 
both of them go beyond the position of  
,socrates1 that justice  belongs to the 
class of goods not desirable for        
themselves only1 but  desirable for     
themselves and for their results1 to    
which he recalls them4  ,in their       
attempt to view justice as an internal  
principle1 and in their  condemnation of
 the poets1 they anticipate him4 ,the   
common life of ,greece  is not enough   
for them2 they must penetrate deeper    
into the nature of  things4    ,it has  
been objected that justice is honesty in
 the sense of ,glaucon and  ,adeimantus1

 but is taken by ,socrates to mean all  
virtue4 ,may we not more  truly say that
 the old-fashioned notion of justice is 
enlarged by  ,socrates1 and becomes     
equivalent to universal order or        
well-being1 first  in the ,state1 and   
secondly in the individual8 ,he has     
found a new answer to  his old question 
7,protag4 #cbi71 'whether the virtues   
are one or many1'  viz4 that one is the 
ordering principle of the three others4 
,in seeking to  establish the purely    
internal nature of justice1 he is met by
 the fact  that man is a social being1  
and he tries to harmonise the two       
opposite  theses as well as he can4     
,there is no more inconsistency in this 
than was  inevitable in his age and     
country2 xxxi there is no use in turning
 upon  him the cross lights of modern   
philosophy1 which1 from some other point
 of  view1 would appear equally         
inconsistent4 ,plato does not give the  
final  solution of philosophical        
questions for us2 nor can he be judged  

of by our  standard4    ,the remainder  
of the ,republic is developed out of the
 question of the sons  of ,ariston4     
,three points are deserving of remark in
 what immediately  follows3--,first1    
that the answer of ,socrates is         
altogether indirect4 ,he  does not say  
that happiness consists in the          
contemplation of the idea of  justice1  
and still less will he be tempted to    
affirm the ,stoical paradox  that the   
just man can be happy on the rack4 ,but 
first he dwells on the  difficulty of   
the problem and insists on restoring man
 to his natural  condition1 before he   
will answer the question at all4 ,he too
 will frame an  ideal1 but his ideal    
comprehends not only abstract justice1  
but the whole  relations of man4 ,under 
the fanciful illustration of the large  
letters he  implies that he will only   
look for justice in society1 and that   
from the  ,state he will proceed to the 
individual4 ,his answer in substance    
amounts  to this1--that under favourable

 conditions1 i4e4 in the perfect ,state1
  justice and happiness will coincide1  
and that when justice has been once     
found1 happiness may be left to take    
care of itself4 ,that he falls into     
some degree of inconsistency1 when in   
the tenth book 7#fab ,a7 he claims to   
have got rid of the rewards and honours 
of justice1 may be admitted2 for  he has
 left those which exist in the perfect  
,state4 ,and the philosopher  'who      
retires under the shelter of a wall'    
7vi4 #dif7 can hardly have been         
esteemed happy by him1 at least not in  
this world4 ,still he maintains the     
true attitude of moral action4 ,let a   
man do his duty first1 without asking   
whether he will be happy or not1 and    
happiness will be the inseparable       
accident which attends him4 ',seek ye   
first the kingdom of ,god and his       
righteousness1 and all these things     
shall be added unto you4'    ,secondly1 
it may be remarked that ,plato preserves
 the genuine character of  ,greek       

thought in beginning with the ,state and
 in going on to the  individual4 ,first 
ethics1 then politics--this is the order
 of ideas to us2  the reverse is the    
order of history4 ,only after many      
struggles of thought  does the          
individual assert his right as a moral  
being4 ,in early ages he is  not one1   
but one of many1 the citizen of a ,state
 which is prior to him2  and he xxxii   
has no notion of good or evil apart from
 the law of his  country or the creed of
 his church4 ,and to this type he is    
constantly  tending to revert1 whenever 
the influence of custom1 or of party    
spirit1  or the recollection of the past
 becomes too strong for him4            
,thirdly1 we may observe the confusion  
or identification of the individual  and
 the ,state1 of ethics and politics1    
which pervades early ,greek             
speculation1 and even in modern times   
retains a certain degree of  influence4 
,the subtle difference between the      
collective and individual  action of    

mankind seems to have escaped early     
thinkers1 and we too are  sometimes in  
danger of forgetting the conditions of  
united human action1  whenever we either
 elevate politics into ethics1 or lower 
ethics to the  standard of politics4    
,the good man and the good citizen only 
coincide in  the perfect ,state2 and    
this perfection cannot be attained by   
legislation  acting upon them from      
without1 but1 if at all1 by education   
fashioning  them from within4           
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,ii4 ,analysis4   
444 ,socrates praises the sons of       
,ariston1 99#cfh99 'inspired offspring  
of the  renowned hero1' as the elegiac  
poet terms them2 but he does not        
understand  how they can argue so       
eloquently on behalf of injustice while 
their  character shows that they are    
uninfluenced by their own arguments4 ,he
  knows not how to answer them1 although
 he is afraid of deserting justice  in  
the hour of need4 ,he therefore makes a 
condition1 that having weak eyes  he    

shall be allowed to read the large      
letters first and then go on to the     
smaller1 that is1 he must look for      
justice in the ,state first1 and will   
then proceed to the individual4 99#cfi99
 ,accordingly he begins to construct    
the ,state4    ,society arises out of   
the wants of man4 ,his first want is    
food2 his second  a house2 his third a  
coat4 ,the sense of these needs and the 
possibility of  satisfying them by      
exchange1 draw individuals together on  
the same spot2  and this is the         
beginning of a ,state1 which we take the
 liberty to invent1  although necessity 
is the real inventor4 ,there must be    
first a husbandman1  secondly a builder1
 thirdly a weaver1 to which may be added
 a cobbler4  ,four or five citizens at  
least are required to make a city4      
99#cgj99 ,now men  have different       
natures1 and one man will do one thing  
better than many2  and business waits   
for no man4 ,hence there must be a      
division of labour  into different      

employments2 into wholesale and retail  
trade2 into workers1  and makers of     
workmen's xxxiii tools2 into shepherds  
and husbandmen4  ,a city which includes 
all this will have far exceeded the     
limit of four or  five1 and yet not be  
very large4 99#cga99 ,but then again    
imports will be  required1 and imports  
necessitate exports1 and this implies   
variety of  produce in order to attract 
the taste of purchasers2 also merchants 
and  ships4 ,in the city too we must    
have a market and money and retail      
trades2  otherwise buyers and sellers   
will never meet1 and the valuable time  
of the  producers will be wasted in vain
 efforts at exchange4 ,if we add hired  
servants the ,state will be complete4   
,and we may guess that 99#cgb99         
somewhere  in the intercourse of the    
citizens with one another justice and   
injustice  will appear4    ,here follows
 a rustic picture of their way of life4 
,they spend their days  in houses which 
they have built for themselves2 they    

make their own  clothes and produce     
their own corn and wine4 ,their         
principal food is meal  and flour1 and  
they drink in moderation4 ,they live on 
the best of terms  with each other1 and 
take care not to have too many children4
 ',but1' said  ,glaucon1 interposing1   
'are they not to have a relish8'        
,certainly2 they  will have salt and    
olives and cheese1 vegetables and       
fruits1 and chestnuts  to roast at the  
fire4 '',tis a city of pigs1 ,socrates4'
 ,why1 ,i replied1  what do you want    
more8 ',only the comforts of            
life1--sofas and tables1 also  sauces   
and sweets4' ,i see2 you want not only a
 ,state1 but a luxurious  ,state2 and   
possibly in the more complex frame we   
may sooner find justice  and injustice4 
,then 99#cgc99 the fine arts must go to 
work--every conceivable  instrument and 
ornament of luxury will be wanted4      
,there will be dancers1  painters1      
sculptors1 musicians1 cooks1 barbers1   
tire-women1 nurses1  artists2 swineherds

 and neatherds too for the animals1 and 
physicians to  cure the disorders of    
which luxury is the source4 ,to feed all
 these  superfluous mouths we shall need
 a part of our neighbour's land1 and    
they  will want a part of ours4 ,and    
this is the origin of war1 which may be 
traced to the same causes as other      
political evils4 99#cgd99 ,our city will
  now require the slight addition of a  
camp1 and the citizen will be  converted
 into a soldier4 ,but then again our old
 doctrine of the division  of labour    
must not be forgotten4 ,the art of war  
cannot be learned in a  day1 and there  
must be a natural aptitude for military 
duties4 ,there will  be some warlike    
natures 99#cge99 who have this          
aptitude--dogs keen of scent1  swift of 
foot to pursue1 and strong of limb to   
fight4 ,and xxxiv as  spirit is the     
foundation of courage1 such natures1    
whether of men or  animals1 will be full
 of spirit4 ,but these spirited natures 
are apt to  bite and devour one another2

 the union of gentleness to friends and 
fierceness against enemies appears to be
 an impossibility1 and the  guardian of 
a ,state requires both qualities4 ,who  
then can be a guardian8  ,the image of  
the dog suggests an answer4 99#cgf99    
,for dogs are gentle to  friends and    
fierce to strangers4 ,your dog is a     
philosopher who judges by  the rule of  
knowing or not knowing2 and philosophy1 
whether in man or  beast1 is the parent 
of gentleness4 ,the human watchdogs must
 be  philosophers or lovers of learning 
which will make them gentle4 ,and how   
are they to be learned without          
education8    ,but what shall their     
education be8 ,is any better than the   
old-fashioned  sort which is            
comprehended under the name of music and
 gymnastic8 99#cgg99  ,music includes   
literature1 and literature is of two    
kinds1 true and false4  ',what do you   
mean8' he said4 ,i mean that children   
hear stories before they  learn         
gymnastics1 and that the stories are    

either untrue1 or have at most  one or  
two grains of truth in a bushel of      
falsehood4 ,now early life is  very     
impressible1 and children ought not to  
learn what they will have to  unlearn   
when they grow up2 we must therefore    
have a censorship of nursery  tales1    
banishing some and keeping others4 ,some
 of them are very improper1  as we may  
see in the great instances of ,homer and
 ,hesiod1 who not only  tell lies but   
bad lies2 stories about ,uranus and     
,saturn1 99#cgh99 which are  immoral as 
well as false1 and which should never be
 spoken of to young  persons1 or indeed 
at all2 or1 if at all1 then in a        
mystery1 after the  sacrifice1 not of an
 ,eleusinian pig1 but of some           
unprocurable animal4  ,shall our youth  
be encouraged to beat their fathers by  
the example of  ,zeus1 or our citizens  
be incited to quarrel by hearing or     
seeing  representations of strife among 
the gods8 ,shall they listen to the     
narrative of ,hephaestus binding his    

mother1 and of ,zeus sending him flying 
for helping her when she was beaten8    
,such tales may possibly have a         
mystical interpretation1 but the young  
are incapable of understanding          
allegory4 99#cgi99 ,if any one asks what
 tales are to be allowed1 we will       
answer that we are legislators and not  
book-makers2 we only lay down the       
principles according to which books are 
to be written2 to write them is  the    
duty of others4    xxxv ,and our first  
principle is1 that ,god must be         
represented as he is2  not as the author
 of all things1 but of good only4 ,we   
will not suffer the  poets to say that  
he is the steward of good and evil1 or  
that he has two  casks full of          
destinies2--or that ,athene and ,zeus   
incited ,pandarus to  break the treaty2 
or that 99#chj99 ,god caused the        
sufferings of ,niobe1 or of  ,pelops1 or
 the ,trojan war2 or that he makes men  
sin when he wishes to  destroy them4    
,either these were not the actions of   

the gods1 or ,god was  just1 and men    
were the better for being punished4 ,but
 that the deed was  evil1 and ,god the  
author1 is a wicked1 suicidal fiction   
which we will  allow no one1 old or     
young1 to utter4 ,this is our first and 
great  principle--,god is the author of 
good only4    ,and the second principle 
is like unto it3--,with ,god is no      
variableness or  change of form4 ,reason
 teaches us this2 for if we suppose a   
change in ,god1  he must be changed     
either by another or by himself4 ,by    
another8--but the  best works of nature 
and art 99#cha99 and the noblest        
qualities of mind are  least liable to  
be changed by any external force4 ,by   
himself8--but he  cannot change for the 
better2 he will hardly change for the   
worse4 ,he  remains for ever fairest and
 best in his own image4 ,therefore we   
refuse to  listen to the poets who tell 
us of ,here begging in the likeness of a
  priestess or of other deities who     
prowl about at night in strange         

disguises2 all that blasphemous nonsense
 with which mothers fool the  manhood   
out of their children must be           
suppressed4 99#chb99 ,but some one will 
say that ,god1 who is himself           
unchangeable1 may take a form in        
relation to  us4 ,why should he8 ,for   
gods as well as men hate the lie in the 
soul1 or  principle of falsehood2 and as
 for any other form of lying which is   
used  for a purpose and is regarded as  
innocent in certain exceptional         
cases--what need have the gods of this8 
,for they are not ignorant of  antiquity
 like the poets1 nor are they afraid of 
their enemies1 nor is any  madman a     
friend of theirs4 99#chc99 ,god then is 
true1 he is absolutely true2  he changes
 not1 he deceives not1 by day or night1 
by word or sign4 ,this is  our second   
great principle--,god is true4 ,away    
with the lying dream of  ,agamemnon in  
,homer1 and the accusation of ,thetis   
against ,apollo in  ,aeschylus4444      
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,ii4              

,introduction4    ,in order to give     
clearness to his conception of the      
,state1 ,plato proceeds  to trace the   
first principles of mutual need and of  
xxxvi division of  labour in an         
imaginary community of four or five     
citizens4 ,gradually this  community    
increases2 the division of labour       
extends to countries2 imports           
necessitate exports2 a medium of        
exchange is required1 and retailers sit 
in the market-place to save the time of 
the producers4 ,these are the steps  by 
which ,plato constructs the first or    
primitive ,state1 introducing the       
elements of political economy by the    
way4 ,as he is going to frame a second  
or civilized ,state1 the simple         
naturally comes before the complex4 ,he 
indulges1 like ,rousseau1 in a picture  
of primitive life--an idea which has    
indeed often had a powerful influence on
 the imagination of mankind1 but  he    
does not seriously mean to say that one 
is better than the other 7cp4           

,politicus1 p4 #bgb72 nor can any       
inference be drawn from the description 
of  the first state taken apart from the
 second1 such as ,aristotle appears to  
draw in the ,politics1 iv4 #d1 #ab 7cp4 
again ,politicus1 #bgb74 ,we should not 
interpret a ,platonic dialogue any more 
than a poem or a parable in too  literal
 or matter-of-fact a style4 ,on the     
other hand1 when we compare the  lively 
fancy of ,plato with the dried-up       
abstractions of modern treatises  on    
philosophy1 we are compelled to say with
 ,protagoras1 that the 'mythus  is more 
interesting' 7,protag4 #cbj ,d74        
,several interesting remarks which in   
modern times would have a place in a    
treatise on ,political ,economy are     
scattered up and down the writings of   
,plato3 cp4 especially ,laws1 v4 #gdj1  
,population2 viii4 #hdg1 ,free ,trade2  
xi4 #iaf-g1 ,adulteration2 #ibc-d1      
,wills and ,bequests2 #icj1 ,begging2   
,eryxias1  7though not ,plato's71 ,value
 and ,demand2 ,republic1 ii4 #cfi ff41  

,division of  ,labour4 ,the last        
subject1 and also the origin of ,retail 
,trade1 is treated  with admirable      
lucidity in the second book of the      
,republic4 ,but ,plato  never combined  
his economic ideas into a system1 and   
never seems to have  recognized that    
,trade is one of the great motive powers
 of the ,state and  of the world4 ,he   
would make retail traders only of the   
inferior sort of  citizens 7,rep4 ii4   
#cga2 cp4 ,laws1 viii4 #hdg71 though he 
remarks1 quaintly  enough 7,laws1 ix4   
#iah ,d71 that 'if only the best men and
 the best women  everywhere were        
compelled to keep taverns for a time or 
to carry on retail  trade1 etc41 then we
 should knew how pleasant and agreeable 
all these  things are4'    ,the         
disappointment of ,glaucon at the 'city 
of pigs1' the ludicrous  description of 
the ministers of luxury in the more     
refined xxxvii ,state1  and the         
afterthought of the necessity of        
doctors1 the illustration of the  nature

 of the guardian taken from the dog1 the
 desirableness of offering  some almost 
unprocurable victim when impure         
mysteries are to be  celebrated1 the    
behaviour of ,zeus to his father and of 
,hephaestus to his  mother1 are touches 
of humour which have also a serious     
meaning4 ,in  speaking of education     
,plato rather startles us by affirming  
that a child  must be trained in        
falsehood first and in truth afterwards4
 ,yet this is  not very different from  
saying that children must be taught     
through the  medium of imagination as   
well as reason2 that their minds can    
only  develope gradually1 and that there
 is much which they must learn without  
understanding 7cp4 iii4 #djb ,a74 ,this 
is also the substance of ,plato's  view1
 though he must be acknowledged to have 
drawn the line somewhat  differently    
from modern ethical writers1 respecting 
truth and falsehood4  ,to us1 economies 
or accommodations would not be allowable
 unless they were  required by the human

 faculties or necessary for the         
communication of  knowledge to the      
simple and ignorant4 ,we should insist  
that the word was  inseparable from the 
intention1 and that we must not be      
'falsely true1'  i4e4 speak or act      
falsely in support of what was right or 
true4 ,but ,plato  would limit the use  
of fictions only by requiring that they 
should have a  good moral effect1 and   
that such a dangerous weapon as         
falsehood should be  employed by the    
rulers alone and for great objects4     
,a ,greek in the age of ,plato attached 
no importance to the question whether   
his religion was an historical fact4 ,he
 was just beginning to be conscious     
that the past had a history2 but he     
could see nothing beyond ,homer and     
,hesiod4 ,whether their narratives were 
true or false did not seriously  affect 
the political or social life of ,hellas4
 ,men only began to suspect  that they  
were fictions when they recognised them 
to be immoral4 ,and so in  all          

religions3 the consideration of their   
morality comes first1 afterwards  the   
truth of the documents in which they are
 recorded1 or of the events  natural or 
supernatural which are told of them4    
,but in modern times1 and  in           
,protestant countries perhaps more than 
in ,catholic1 we have been too  much    
inclined to identify the historical with
 the moral2 and some have  refused to   
believe in religion at all1 unless a    
superhuman accuracy was  discernible in 
every part of the record4 ,the facts of 
an ancient xxxviii  or religious history
 are amongst the most important of all  
facts2 but they  are frequently         
uncertain1 and we only learn the true   
lesson which is to be  gathered from    
them when we place ourselves above them4
 ,these reflections  tend to show that  
the difference between ,plato and       
ourselves1 though not  unimportant1 is  
not so great as might at first sight    
appear4 ,for we should  agree with him  
in placing the moral before the         

historical truth of  religion2 and1     
generally1 in disregarding those errors 
or misstatements of  fact which         
necessarily occur in the early stages of
 all religions4 ,we know  also that     
changes in the traditions of a country  
cannot be made in a day2  and are       
therefore tolerant of many things which 
science and criticism  would condemn4   
,we note in passing that the allegorical
 interpretation of mythology1 said  to  
have been first introduced as early as  
the sixth century before ,christ  by    
,theagenes of ,rhegium1 was well        
established in the age of ,plato1 and   
here1 as in the ,phaedrus 7#bbi-cj71    
though for a different reason1 was      
rejected by him4 ,that anachronisms     
whether of religion or law1 when men    
have reached another stage of           
civilization1 should be got rid of by   
fictions is in accordance with universal
 experience4 ,great is the art of       
interpretation2 and by a natural        
process1 which when once discovered was 

always going on1 what could not be      
altered was explained away4 ,and so     
without any palpable inconsistency there
 existed side by side two forms of      
religion1 the tradition inherited or    
invented by the poets and the  customary
 worship of the temple2 on the other    
hand1 there was the religion  of the    
philosopher1 who was dwelling in the    
heaven of ideas1 but did not  therefore 
refuse to offer a cock to sculapius1 or 
to be seen saying his  prayers at the   
rising of the sun4 ,at length the       
antagonism between the  popular and     
philosophical religion1 never so great  
among the ,greeks as in  our own age1   
disappeared1 and was only felt like the 
difference between  the religion of the 
educated and uneducated among ourselves4
 ,the ,zeus of  ,homer and ,hesiod      
easily passed into the 'royal mind' of  
,plato 7,philebus1  #bh72 the giant     
,heracles became the knight-errant and  
benefactor of  mankind4 ,these and still
 more wonderful transformations were    

readily  effected by the ingenuity of   
,stoics and neo-,platonists in the two  
or three  centuries before and after    
,christ4 ,the ,greek and ,roman         
religions were  gradually permeated by  
the spirit of philosophy2 having lost   
their xxxix  ancient meaning1 they were 
resolved into poetry and morality2 and  
probably  were never purer than at the  
time of their decay1 when their         
influence  over the world was waning4   
,a singular conception which occurs     
towards the end of the book is the lie  
in the soul2 this is connected with the 
,platonic and ,socratic doctrine  that  
involuntary ignorance is worse than     
voluntary4 ,the lie in the soul is  a   
true lie1 the corruption of the highest 
truth1 the deception of the  highest    
part of the soul1 from which he who is  
deceived has no power of  delivering    
himself4 ,for example1 to represent ,god
 as false or immoral1 or1  according to 
,plato1 as deluding men with appearances
 or as the author of  evil2 or again1 to

 affirm with ,protagoras that 'knowledge
 is sensation1'  or that 'being is      
becoming1' or with ,thrasymachus 'that  
might is right1'  would have been       
regarded by ,plato as a lie of this     
hateful sort4 ,the  greatest            
unconsciousness of the greatest untruth1
 e4g4 if1 in the language  of the       
,gospels 7,john iv4 #da71 'he who was   
blind' were to say ',i see1' is  another
 aspect of the state of mind which      
,plato is describing4 ,the lie in  the  
soul may be further compared with the   
sin against the ,holy ,ghost 7,luke     
xii4 #aj71 allowing for the difference  
between ,greek and ,christian modes of  
speaking4 ,to this is opposed the lie in
 words1 which is only such a  deception 
as may occur in a play or poem1 or      
allegory or figure of speech1  or in any
 sort of accommodation1--which though   
useless to the gods may be  useful to   
men in certain cases4 ,socrates is here 
answering the question  which he had    
himself raised 7i4 #cca ,c7 about the   

propriety of deceiving a  madman2 and he
 is also contrasting the nature of ,god 
and man4 ,for ,god is  ,truth1 but      
mankind can only be true by appearing   
sometimes to be partial1  or false4     
,reserving for another place the greater
 questions of religion or  education1 we
 may note further1 7#a7 the approval of 
the old traditional  education of       
,greece2 7#b7 the preparation which     
,plato is making for the  attack on     
,homer and the poets2 7#c7 the          
preparation which he is also making  for
 the use of economies in the ,state2    
7#d7 the contemptuous and at the  same  
time euphemistic manner in which here as
 below 7iii4 #cij7 he alludes  to the   
,chronique ,scandaleuse of the gods4    
99       99       99       99       99  
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,iii4 ,analysis4  
,,book ,,iii4 99#chf99 ,there is another
 motive in purifying religion1 which is 
to  banish fear2 for no man can be      
courageous who is xl afraid of death1 or
  who believes the tales which are      

repeated by the poets concerning the    
world below4 ,they must be gently       
requested not to abuse hell2 they may be
  reminded that their stories are both  
untrue and discouraging4 ,nor must  they
 be angry if we expunge obnoxious       
passages1 such as the depressing  words 
of ,achilles--',i would rather be a     
serving-man than rule over all the      
dead2' and the verses which tell of the 
squalid mansions1 the senseless         
shadows1 the flitting soul mourning over
 lost strength and youth1 99#chg99  the 
soul with a gibber going beneath the    
earth like smoke1 or the souls of  the  
suitors which flutter about like bats4  
,the terrors and horrors of  ,cocytus   
and ,styx1 ghosts and sapless shades1   
and the rest of their  ,tartarean       
nomenclature1 must vanish4 ,such tales  
may have their use2 but  they are not   
the proper food for soldiers4 ,as little
 can we admit the  sorrows and          
sympathies of the ,homeric              
heroes3--,achilles1 the son of  ,thetis1

 in tears1 throwing ashes on his head1  
or pacing up and down the  sea-shore in 
distraction2 or ,priam1 the cousin of   
the gods1 crying aloud1  rolling in the 
mire4 ,a good man is not prostrated at  
the loss of children  or fortune4       
,neither is death terrible to him2 and  
therefore lamentations  over the dead   
should not be practised by men of note2 
99#chh99 they should be  the concern of 
inferior persons only1 whether women or 
men4 ,still worse is  the attribution of
 such weakness to the gods2 as when the 
goddesses say1  ',alas6 my travail6' and
 worst of all1 when the king of heaven  
himself  laments his inability to save  
,hector1 or sorrows over the impending  
doom  of his dear ,sarpedon4 ,such a    
character of ,god1 if not ridiculed by  
our  young men1 is likely to be imitated
 by them4 ,nor should our citizens be   
given to excess of laughter--',such     
violent delights' are followed by a     
violent re-action4 ,the description in  
the ,iliad of the gods shaking their    

sides at the clumsiness of ,hephaestus  
will not be admitted by us4  ',certainly
 not4'    ,truth should have a high     
place among the virtues1 for falsehood1 
as we  were saying1 is useless to the   
gods1 and only useful to men as a       
medicine4  ,but this employment of      
falsehood must remain a privilege of    
state2 the  common man must not in      
return tell a lie to the ruler2 any more
 than the  patient would tell a lie to  
his physician1 or the sailor to his     
captain4    ,in the next place our youth
 must be temperate1 and temperance      
consists in  self-control and obedience 
to authority4 ,that is a xli lesson     
which  ,homer teaches in some places3   
',the ,achaeans marched on breathing    
prowess1  in silent awe of their        
leaders2'--but a very different one in  
other  places3 ',o heavy with wine1 who 
hast the eyes of a dog1 but the heart of
 a  stag4' 99#cij99 ,language of the    
latter kind will not impress            
self-control on  the minds of youth4    

,the same may be said about his praises 
of eating and  drinking and his dread of
 starvation2 also about the verses in   
which he  tells of the rapturous loves  
of ,zeus and ,here1 or of how           
,hephaestus once  detained ,ares and    
,aphrodite in a net on a similar        
occasion4 ,there is a  nobler strain    
heard in the words3--',endure1 my soul1 
thou hast endured  worse4' ,nor must we 
allow our citizens to receive bribes1 or
 to say1  ',gifts persuade the gods1    
gifts reverend kings2' or to applaud the
 ignoble  advice of ,phoenix to         
,achilles that he should get money out  
of the ,greeks  before he assisted them2
 or the meanness of ,achilles himself in
 taking  gifts from ,agamemnon2 99#cia99
 or his requiring a ransom for the body 
of  ,hector2 or his cursing of ,apollo2 
or his insolence to the river-god       
,scamander2 or his dedication to the    
dead ,patroclus of his own hair which   
had been already dedicated to the other 
river-god ,spercheius2 or his  cruelty  

in dragging the body of ,hector round   
the walls1 and slaying the  captives at 
the pyre3 such a combination of meanness
 and cruelty in  ,cheiron's pupil is    
inconceivable4 ,the amatory exploits of 
,peirithous and  ,theseus are equally   
unworthy4 ,either these so-called sons  
of gods were not  the sons of gods1 or  
they were not such as the poets imagine 
them1 any  more than the gods themselves
 are the authors of evil4 ,the youth who
  believes that such things are done by 
99#cib99 those who have the blood of    
heaven flowing in their veins will be   
too ready to imitate their example4     
,enough of gods and heroes2--what shall 
we say about men8 ,what the poets  and  
story-tellers say--that the wicked      
prosper and the righteous are           
afflicted1 or that justice is another's 
gain8 ,such misrepresentations  cannot  
be allowed by us4 ,but in this we are   
anticipating the definition of  justice1
 and had therefore better defer the     
enquiry4    ,the subjects of poetry have

 been sufficiently treated2 next follows
 style4  ,now all poetry is a narrative 
of events past1 present1 or to come2 and
  narrative is of three kinds1 the      
simple1 the imitative1 and a composition
  of the two4 ,an instance will xlii    
make my meaning clear4 99#cic99 ,the    
first  scene in ,homer is of the last or
 mixed kind1 being partly description   
and  partly dialogue4 ,but if you throw 
the dialogue into the 'oratio obliqua1' 
the passage will run thus3 99#cid99 ,the
 priest came and prayed ,apollo that    
the ,achaeans might take ,troy and have 
a safe return if ,agamemnon would  only 
give him back his daughter2 and the     
other ,greeks assented1 but  ,agamemnon 
was wroth1 and so on--,the whole then   
becomes descriptive1 and  the poet is   
the only speaker left2 or1 if you omit  
the narrative1 the  whole becomes       
dialogue4 ,these are the three          
styles--which of them is to be  admitted
 into our ,state8 ',do you ask whether  
tragedy and comedy are to be  admitted8'

 ,yes1 but also something more--,is it  
not doubtful whether our  guardians are 
to be imitators at all8 ,or rather1 has 
not the question been  already answered1
 for we have decided that one man cannot
 in his life play  many parts1 any more 
than 99#cie99 he can act both tragedy   
and comedy1 or be  rhapsodist and actor 
at once8 ,human nature is coined into   
very small  pieces1 and as our guardians
 have their own business already1 which 
is the  care of freedom1 they will have 
enough to do without imitating4 ,if they
  imitate they should imitate1 not any  
meanness or baseness1 but the good      
only2 for the mask which the actor wears
 is apt to become his face4 ,we  cannot 
allow men to play the parts of women1   
quarrelling1 weeping1  scolding1 or     
boasting against the gods1--least of all
 when making love or  in labour4 ,they  
must not represent slaves1 or bullies1  
or 99#cif99 cowards1  drunkards1 or     
madmen1 or blacksmiths1 or neighing     
horses1 or bellowing  bulls1 or sounding

 rivers1 or a raging sea4 ,a good or    
wise man will be  willing to perform    
good and wise actions1 but he will be   
ashamed to play  an inferior part which 
he has never practised2 and he will     
prefer to  employ the descriptive style 
with as little imitation as possible4   
99#cig99  ,the man who has no           
self-respect1 on the contrary1 will     
imitate anybody and  anything2 sounds of
 nature and cries of animals alike2 his 
whole  performance will be imitation of 
gesture and voice4 ,now in the          
descriptive  style there are few        
changes1 but in the dramatic there are a
 great many4  ,poets and musicians use  
either1 or a compound of both1 and this 
compound  is very attractive to youth   
and their teachers as well as to the    
vulgar4  ,but our ,state in which one   
man plays one part only is not adapted  
for  complexity4 99#cih99 ,and when one 
of these polyphonous pantomimic         
gentlemen  offers to exhibit xliii      
himself and his poetry we will show him 

every  observance of respect1 but at the
 same time tell him that there is no    
room  for his kind in our ,state2 we    
prefer the rough1 honest poet1 and will 
not  depart from our original models    
7ii4 #cgi foll42 cp4 ,laws1 vii4 #hag74 
,next as to the music4 ,a song or ode   
has three parts1--the subject1 the      
harmony1 and the rhythm2 of which the   
two last are dependent upon the  first4 
,as we banished strains of lamentation1 
so we may now banish the  mixed ,lydian 
harmonies1 which are the harmonies of   
lamentation2 and as our  citizens are to
 be temperate1 we may also banish       
convivial harmonies1 such  as the       
,ionian and pure ,lydian4 99#cii99 ,two 
remain--the ,dorian and ,phrygian1  the 
first for war1 the second for peace2 the
 one expressive of courage1  the other  
of obedience or instruction or religious
 feeling4 ,and as we  reject varieties  
of harmony1 we shall also reject the    
many-stringed1  variously-shaped        
instruments which give utterance to     

them1 and in  particular the flute1     
which is more complex than any of them4 
,the lyre and  the harp may be permitted
 in the town1 and the ,pan's-pipe in the
 fields4  ,thus we have made a purgation
 of music1 and will now make a purgation
 of  metres4 99#djj99 ,these should be  
like the harmonies1 simple and suitable 
to  the occasion4 ,there are four notes 
of the tetrachord1 and there are three  
ratios of metre1 #c_/b1 #b_/b1 #b_/a1   
which have all their characteristics1   
and  the feet have different            
characteristics as well as the rhythms4 
,but about  this you and ,i must ask    
,damon1 the great musician1 who speaks1 
if ,i  remember rightly1 of a martial   
measure as well as of dactylic1         
trochaic1  and iambic rhythms1 which he 
arranges so as to equalize the syllables
 with  one another1 assigning to each   
the proper quantity4 ,we only venture to
  affirm the general principle that the 
style is to conform to the subject  and 
the metre to the style2 and that the    

simplicity and harmony of the  soul     
should be reflected in them all4 ,this  
principle of simplicity has to  be      
learnt by every one in the days of his  
youth1 99#dja99 and may be gathered     
anywhere1 from the creative and         
constructive arts1 as well as from the  
forms of plants and animals4    ,other  
artists as well as poets should be      
warned against meanness or              
unseemliness4 ,sculpture and painting   
equally with music must conform to  the 
law of simplicity4 ,he who violates it  
cannot be allowed to work in our  city1 
and to corrupt the taste of our         
citizens4 ,for our guardians must  grow 
up1 not amid images of xliv deformity   
which will gradually poison  and corrupt
 their souls1 but in a land of health   
and beauty where they  will drink in    
from every object sweet and harmonious  
influences4 ,and of  all these          
influences the greatest is the education
 given by music1 which  finds a way into
 the innermost soul and 99#djb99 imparts

 to it the sense of  beauty and of      
deformity4 ,at first the effect is      
unconscious2 but when  reason arrives1  
then he who has been thus trained       
welcomes her as the  friend whom he     
always knew4 ,as in learning to read1   
first we acquire the  elements or       
letters separately1 and afterwards their
 combinations1 and  cannot recognize    
reflections of them until we know the   
letters  themselves2--in like manner we 
must first attain the elements or       
essential  forms of the virtues1 and    
then trace their combinations in life   
and  experience4 ,there is a music of   
the soul which answers to the harmony of
  the world2 and the fairest object of a
 musical soul is the fair mind in  the  
fair body4 ,some defect in the latter   
may be excused1 but not in the  former4 
99#djc99 ,true love is the daughter of  
temperance1 and temperance is  utterly  
opposed to the madness of bodily        
pleasure4 ,enough has been said of      
music1 which makes a fair ending with   

love4    ,next we pass on to gymnastics2
 about which ,i would remark1 that the  
soul  is related to the body as a cause 
to an effect1 and therefore if we       
educate the mind we may leave the       
education of the body in her charge1 and
  need only give a general outline of   
the course to be pursued4 ,in the first 
place the guardians must abstain from   
strong drink1 for they should be the    
last persons to lose their wits4        
99#djd99 ,whether the habits of the     
palaestra  are suitable to them is more 
doubtful1 for the ordinary gymnastic is 
a  sleepy sort of thing1 and if left off
 suddenly is apt to endanger health4    
,but our warrior athletes must be       
wide-awake dogs1 and must also be inured
  to all changes of food and climate4   
,hence they will require a simpler kind 
of gymnastic1 akin to their simple      
music2 and for their diet a rule may be 
found in ,homer1 who feeds his heroes on
 roast meat only1 and gives them no     
fish although they are living at the    

sea-side1 nor boiled meats which        
involve an apparatus of pots and pans2  
and1 if ,i am not mistaken1 he  nowhere 
mentions sweet sauces4 ,sicilian cookery
 and ,attic confections and  ,corinthian
 courtezans1 which are to gymnastic what
 ,lydian and ,ionian  melodies are to   
music1 must be forbidden4 99#dje99      
,where gluttony and  intemperance       
prevail the town quickly fills xlv with 
doctors and  pleaders2 and law and      
medicine give themselves airs as soon as
 the freemen  of a ,state take an       
interest in them4 ,but what can show a  
more disgraceful  state of education    
than to have to go abroad for justice   
because you have  none of your own at   
home8 ,and yet there is a worse stage of
 the same  disease--when men have       
learned to take a pleasure and pride in 
the twists  and turns of the law2 not   
considering how much better it would be 
for them  so to order their lives as to 
have no need of a nodding justice4 ,and 
there  is a like disgrace in employing a

 physician1 not for the cure of wounds  
or  epidemic disorders1 but because a   
man has by laziness and luxury          
contracted diseases which were unknown  
in the days of ,asclepius4 ,how  simple 
is the ,homeric practice of medicine4   
,eurypylus after he has been  wounded   
99#djf99 drinks a posset of ,pramnian   
wine1 which is of a heating  nature2 and
 yet the sons of ,asclepius blame       
neither the damsel who gives  him the   
drink1 nor ,patroclus who is attending  
on him4 ,the truth is that  this modern 
system of nursing diseases was          
introduced by ,herodicus the  trainer2  
who1 being of a sickly constitution1 by 
a compound of training  and medicine    
tortured first himself and then a good  
many other people1 and  lived a great   
deal longer than he had any right4 ,but 
,asclepius would not  practise this art1
 because he knew that the citizens of a 
well-ordered  ,state have no leisure to 
be ill1 and therefore he adopted the    
'kill or  cure' method1 which artisans  

and labourers employ4 ',they must be at 
their  business1' they say1 'and have no
 time for coddling3 if they recover1    
well2 if they don't1 there is an end of 
them4' 99#djg99 ,whereas the rich man   
is supposed to be a gentleman who can   
afford to be ill4 ,do you know a  maxim 
of ,phocylides--that 'when a man begins 
to be rich' 7or1 perhaps1 a  little     
sooner7 'he should practise virtue'8    
,but how can excessive care of  health  
be inconsistent with an ordinary        
occupation1 and yet consistent  with    
that practice of virtue which           
,phocylides inculcates8 ,when a student 
imagines that philosophy gives him a    
headache1 he never does anything2 he  is
 always unwell4 ,this was the reason why
 ,asclepius and his sons practised  no  
such art4 ,they were acting in the      
interest of the public1 and did not     
wish to preserve useless lives1 or raise
 up a puny offspring to wretched  sires4
 99#djh99 ,honest diseases they honestly
 cured2 and if a man was  wounded1 they 

applied the proper remedies1 and then   
let him eat and drink  what he liked4   
,but xlvi they declined to treat        
intemperate and worthless  subjects1    
even though they might have made large  
fortunes out of them4  ,as to the story 
of ,pindar1 that ,asclepius was slain by
 a thunderbolt for  restoring a rich man
 to life1 that is a lie--following our  
old rule we  must say either that he did
 not take bribes1 or that he was not the
 son of  a god4    ,glaucon then asks   
,socrates whether the best physicians   
and the best judges  will not be those  
who have had severally the greatest     
experience of  diseases and of crimes4  
,socrates draws a distinction between   
the two  professions4 ,the physician    
should have had experience of disease in
 his  own body1 for he cures with his   
mind and not with his body4 99#dji99    
,but the  judge controls mind by mind2  
and therefore his mind should not be    
corrupted by crime4 ,where then is he to
 gain experience8 ,how is he to be  wise

 and also innocent8 ,when young a good  
man is apt to be deceived by            
evil-doers1 because he has no pattern of
 evil in himself2 and therefore  the    
judge should be of a certain age2 his   
youth should have been innocent1  and he
 should have acquired insight into evil 
not by the practice of it1  but by the  
observation of it in others4 ,this is   
the ideal of a judge2 the  criminal     
turned detective is wonderfully         
suspicious1 but when in company  with   
good men who have experience1 he is at  
fault1 for he foolishly  imagines that  
every one is as bad as himself4 ,vice   
may be known of virtue1  but cannot know
 virtue4 ,this is the sort of medicine  
and this the sort of  law which will    
prevail in our ,state2 99#daj99 they    
will be healing arts to  better natures2
 but the evil body will be left to die  
by the one1 and the  evil soul will be  
put to death by the other4 ,and the need
 of either will  be greatly diminished  
by good music which will give harmony to

 the soul1  and good gymnastic which    
will give health to the body4 ,not that 
this  division of music and gymnastic   
really corresponds to soul and body2 for
  they are both equally concerned with  
the soul1 which is tamed by the one  and
 aroused and sustained by the other4    
,the two together supply our  guardians 
with their twofold nature4 ,the         
passionate disposition when it  has too 
much gymnastic is hardened and          
brutalized1 the gentle or  philosophic  
temper which has too much music becomes 
enervated4 99#daa99 ,while  a man is    
allowing music to pour like water       
through the funnel of his ears1  the    
edge of his soul gradually wears away1  
and the passionate or spirited  element 
is melted out of him4 ,too little xlvii 
spirit is easily  exhausted2 too much   
quickly passes into nervous             
irritability4 ,so1 again1  the athlete  
by feeding and training has his courage 
doubled1 but he soon  grows stupid2 he  
is like a wild beast1 ready to do       

everything by blows and  nothing by     
counsel or policy4 ,there are two       
principles in man1 reason and  passion1 
and to these1 99#dab99 not to the soul  
and body1 the two arts of  music and    
gymnastic correspond4 ,he who mingles   
them in harmonious concord  is the true 
musician1--he shall be the presiding    
genius of our ,state4    ,the next      
question is1 ,who are to be our rulers8 
,first1 the elder must rule  the        
younger2 and the best of the elders will
 be the best guardians4 ,now  they will 
be the best who love their subjects     
most1 and think that they  have a common
 interest with them in the welfare of   
the state4 ,these we  must select2 but  
they must be watched at every epoch of  
life to see  whether they have retained 
the same opinions and held out against  
force  and enchantment4 99#dac99 ,for   
time and persuasion and the love of     
pleasure  may enchant a man into a      
change of purpose1 and the force of     
grief and  pain may compel him4 ,and    

therefore our guardians must be men who 
have been  tried by many tests1 like    
gold in the refiner's fire1 and have    
been passed  first through danger1 then 
through pleasure1 and at every age have 
come  out of such trials victorious and 
without stain1 in full command of       
themselves and their principles2 having 
all their faculties in harmonious       
exercise for their country's good4      
,these shall receive the highest honours
  both in life and death4 99#dad99 7,it 
would perhaps be better to confine the  
term 'guardians' to this select class3  
the younger men may be called           
'auxiliaries4'7    ,and now for one     
magnificent lie1 in the belief of which1
 ,oh that we could  train our           
rulers6--at any rate let us make the    
attempt with the rest of  the world4    
,what ,i am going to tell is only       
another version of the legend  of       
,cadmus2 but our unbelieving generation 
will be slow to accept such a  story4   
,the tale must be imparted1 first to the

 rulers1 then to the  soldiers1 lastly  
to the people4 ,we will inform them that
 their youth was a  dream1 and that     
during the time when they seemed to be  
undergoing their  education they were   
really being fashioned in the earth1 who
 sent them up  when they were ready2 and
 that they must protect and cherish her 
whose  children they are1 and regard    
xlviii each other as brothers and       
sisters4  ',i do not wonder at your     
being ashamed to propound such a        
fiction4' ,there  is more behind4       
99#dae99 ,these brothers and sisters    
have different natures1  and some of    
them ,god framed to rule1 whom he       
fashioned of gold2 others he  made of   
silver1 to be auxiliaries2 others again 
to be husbandmen and  craftsmen1 and    
these were formed by him of brass and   
iron4 ,but as they are  all sprung from 
a common stock1 a golden parent may have
 a silver son1 or  a silver parent a    
golden son1 and then there must be a    
change of rank2 the  son of the rich    

must descend1 and the child of the      
artisan rise1 in the  social scale2 for 
an oracle says 'that the ,state will    
come to an end if  governed by a man of 
brass or iron4' ,will our citizens ever 
believe all  this8 ',not in the present 
generation1 but in the next1 perhaps1   
,yes4'    ,now let the earthborn men go 
forth under the command of their rulers1
 and  look about and pitch their camp in
 a high place1 which will be safe       
against enemies from without1 and       
likewise against insurrections from     
within4 ,there let them sacrifice and   
set up their tents2 99#daf99 for        
soldiers they are to be and not         
shopkeepers1 the watchdogs and guardians
  of the sheep2 and luxury and avarice  
will turn them into wolves and  tyrants4
 ,their habits and their dwellings      
should correspond to their  education4  
,they should have no property2 their pay
 should only meet their  expenses2 and  
they should have common meals4 ,gold and
 silver we will tell  them that they    

have from ,god1 and this divine gift in 
their souls they  must not 99#dag99     
alloy with that earthly dross which     
passes under the name  of gold4 ,they   
only of the citizens may not touch it1  
or be under the same  roof with it1 or  
drink from it2 it is the accursed thing4
 ,should they ever  acquire houses or   
lands or money of their own1 they will  
become  householders and tradesmen      
instead of guardians1 enemies and       
tyrants  instead of helpers1 and the    
hour of ruin1 both to themselves and the
 rest  of the ,state1 will be at hand4  
99       99       99       99       99  
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,iii4             
,introduction4    ,the religious and    
ethical aspect of ,plato's education    
will hereafter be  considered under a   
separate head4 ,some lesser points may  
be more  conveniently noticed in this   
place4    #a4 ,the constant appeal to   
the authority of ,homer1 whom1 with     
grave irony1  ,plato1 after the manner  
of his age1 summons as a xlix witness   

about  ethics and psychology1 as well as
 about diet and medicine2 attempting to 
distinguish the better lesson from the  
worse 7#cij71 sometimes altering the    
text from design 7#chh1 and1 perhaps1   
#chi72 more than once quoting or        
alluding to ,homer inaccurately 7#cia1  
#djf71 after the manner of the early    
logographers turning the ,iliad into    
prose 7#cic71 and delighting to draw    
far-fetched inferences from his words1  
or to make ludicrous applications  of   
them4 ,he does not1 like ,heracleitus1  
get into a rage with ,homer and         
,archilochus 7,heracl4 ,frag4 #aai1 ed4 
,bywater71 but uses their words and     
expressions as vehicles of a higher     
truth2 not on a system like ,theagenes  
of ,rhegium or ,metrodorus1 or in later 
times the ,stoics1 but as fancy may     
dictate4 ,and the conclusions drawn from
 them are sound1 although the  premises 
are fictitious4 ,these fanciful appeals 
to ,homer add a charm to  ,plato's      
style1 and at the same time they have   

the effect of a satire on  the follies  
of ,homeric interpretation4 ,to us 7and 
probably to himself71  although they    
take the form of arguments1 they are    
really figures of  speech4 ,they may be 
compared with modern citations from     
,scripture1 which  have often a great   
rhetorical power even when the original 
meaning of the  words is entirely lost  
sight of4 ,the real1 like the ,platonic 
,socrates1 as  we gather from the       
,memorabilia of ,xenophon1 was fond of  
making similar  adaptations 7i4 #b1 #eh2
 ii4 #f1 #aa74 ,great in all ages and   
countries1 in  religion as well as in   
law and literature1 has been the art of 
interpretation4    #b4 ',the style is to
 conform to the subject and the metre to
 the style4'  ,notwithstanding the      
fascination which the word 'classical'  
exercises over  us1 we can hardly       
maintain that this rule is observed in  
all the ,greek  poetry which has come   
down to us4 ,we cannot deny that the    
thought often  exceeds the power of     

lucid expression in schylus and ,pindar2
 or that  rhetoric gets the better of   
the thought in the ,sophist-poet        
,euripides4  ,only perhaps in ,sophocles
 is there a perfect harmony of the two2 
in him  alone do we find a grace of     
language like the beauty of a ,greek    
statue1 in  which there is nothing to   
add or to take away2 at least this is   
true of  single plays or of large       
portions of them4 ,the connection in the
 ,tragic  ,choruses and in the ,greek   
lyric poets is not unfrequently a       
tangled thread  which in an age before  
logic the poet was unable to draw out4  
,many  thoughts and feelings mingled in 
his mind1 and he had no power of        
disengaging or l arranging them4 ,for   
there is a subtle influence of  logic   
which requires to be transferred from   
prose to poetry1 just as the  music and 
perfection of language are infused by   
poetry into prose4 ,in all  ages the    
poet has been a bad judge of his own    
meaning 7,apol4 #bb ,b72 for he  does   

not see that the word which is full of  
associations to his own mind  is        
difficult and unmeaning to that of      
another2 or that the sequence which  is 
clear to himself is puzzling to others4 
,there are many passages in some  of our
 greatest modern poets which are far too
 obscure2 in which there is  no         
proportion between style and subject1 in
 which any half-expressed  figure1 any  
harsh construction1 any distorted       
collocation of words1 any  remote       
sequence of ideas is admitted2 and there
 is no voice 'coming  sweetly from      
nature1' or music adding the expression 
of feeling to  thought4 ,as if there    
could be poetry without beauty1 or      
beauty without  ease and clearness4 ,the
 obscurities of early ,greek poets arose
 necessarily  out of the state of       
language and logic which existed in     
their age4 ,they  are not examples to be
 followed by us2 for the use of language
 ought in  every generation to become   
clearer and clearer4 ,like ,shakespeare1

 they were  great in spite1 not in      
consequence1 of their imperfections of  
expression4  ,but there is no reason for
 returning to the necessary obscurity   
which  prevailed in the infancy of      
literature4 ,the ,english poets of the  
last  century were certainly not        
obscure2 and we have no excuse for      
losing what  they had gained1 or for    
going back to the earlier or            
transitional age  which preceded them4  
,the thought of our own times has not   
out-stripped  language2 a want of       
,plato's 'art of measuring' is the real 
cause of the  disproportion between     
them4    #c4 ,in the third book of the  
,republic a nearer approach is made to a
 theory  of art than anywhere else in   
,plato4 ,his views may be summed up as  
follows3--,true art is not fanciful and 
imitative1 but simple and  ideal1--the  
expression of the highest moral energy1 
whether in action or  repose4 ,to live  
among works of plastic art which are of 
this noble and  simple character1 or to 

listen to such strains1 is the best of  
influences1--the true ,greek atmosphere1
 in which youth should be brought  up4  
,that is the way to create in them a    
natural good taste1 which will  have a  
feeling of truth and beauty in all      
things4 ,for though the poets are  to be
 expelled1 still art is recognized as   
another aspect of li  reason--like love 
in the ,symposium1 extending over the   
same sphere1 but  confined to the       
preliminary education1 and acting       
through the power of  habit 7vii4 #ebb  
,a72 and this conception of art is not  
limited to strains  of music or the     
forms of plastic art1 but pervades all  
nature and has a  wide kindred in the   
world4 ,the ,republic of ,plato1 like   
the ,athens of  ,pericles1 has an       
artistic as well as a political side4   
,there is hardly any mention in ,plato  
of the creative arts2 only in two or    
three passages does he even allude to   
them 7cp4 ,rep4 iv4 #dbj2 ,soph4 #bcf   
,a74 ,he is not lost in rapture at the  

great works of ,phidias1 the            
,parthenon1 the ,propylea1 the statues  
of ,zeus or ,athene4 ,he would probably 
have regarded any abstract truth of     
number or figure 7#ebi ,e7 as higher    
than the greatest of them4 ,yet it is   
hard to suppose that some influence1    
such as he hopes to inspire in youth1   
did not pass into his own mind from  the
 works of art which he saw around him4  
,we are living upon the fragments  of   
them1 and find in a few broken stones   
the standard of truth and beauty4  ,but 
in ,plato this feeling has no           
expression2 he nowhere says that beauty 
is the object of art2 he seems to deny  
that wisdom can take an external  form  
7,phaedrus1 #bej ,e72 he does not       
distinguish the fine from the           
mechanical arts4 ,whether or no1 like   
some writers1 he felt more than he      
expressed1 it is at any rate remarkable 
that the greatest perfection of  the    
fine arts should coincide with an almost
 entire silence about them4 ,in  one    

very striking passage he tells us that a
 work of art1 like the ,state1  is a    
whole2 and this conception of a whole   
and the love of the newly-born          
mathematical sciences may be regarded1  
if not as the inspiring1 at any  rate as
 the regulating principles of ,greek art
 7cp4 ,xen4 ,mem4 iii4 #aj4 #f2  and    
,sophist1 #bce1 #bcf74    #d4 ,plato    
makes the true and subtle remark that   
the physician had better  not be in     
robust health2 and should have known    
what illness is in his own  person4 ,but
 the judge ought to have had no similar 
experience of evil2 he  is to be a good 
man who1 having passed his youth in     
innocence1 became  acquainted late in   
life with the vices of others4 ,and     
therefore1 according  to ,plato1 a judge
 should not be young1 just as a young   
man according to  ,aristotle is not fit 
to be a hearer of moral philosophy4 ,the
 bad1 on the  other hand1 have a        
knowledge of vice1 but no knowledge lii 
of virtue4 ,it  may be doubted1 however1

 whether this train of reflection is    
well founded4  ,in a remarkable passage 
of the ,laws 7xii4 #iej ,b7 it is       
acknowledged that  the evil may form a  
correct estimate of the good4 ,the union
 of gentleness  and courage in ,book ii4
 at first seemed to be a paradox1 yet   
was  afterwards ascertained to be a     
truth4 ,and ,plato might also have found
 that  the intuition of evil may be     
consistent with the abhorrence of it    
7cp4  infra1 ix4 #ehb74 ,there is a     
directness of aim in virtue which gives 
an  insight into vice4 ,and the         
knowledge of character is in some degree
 a  natural sense independent of any    
special experience of good or evil4     
#e4 ,one of the most remarkable         
conceptions of ,plato1 because un-,greek
 and  also very different from anything 
which existed at all in his age of the  
world1 is the transposition of ranks4   
,in the ,spartan state there had been   
enfranchisement of ,helots and          
degradation of citizens under special   

circumstances4 ,and in the ancient      
,greek aristocracies1 merit was         
certainly  recognized as one of the     
elements on which government was based4 
,the  founders of states were supposed  
to be their benefactors1 who were raised
  by their great actions above the      
ordinary level of humanity2 at a later  
period1 the services of warriors and    
legislators were held to entitle them   
and their descendants to the privileges 
of citizenship and to the first  rank in
 the state4 ,and although the existence 
of an ideal aristocracy is  slenderly   
proven from the remains of early ,greek 
history1 and we have a  difficulty in   
ascribing such a character1 however the 
idea may be defined1  to any actual     
,hellenic state--or indeed to any state 
which has ever  existed in the          
world--still the rule of the best was   
certainly the  aspiration of            
philosophers1 who probably accommodated 
a good deal their  views of primitive   
history to their own notions of good    

government4 ,plato  further insists on  
applying to the guardians of his state a
 series of  tests by which all those who
 fell short of a fixed standard were    
either  removed from the governing body1
 or not admitted to it2 and this        
'academic' discipline did to a certain  
extent prevail in ,greek states1        
especially in ,sparta4 ,he also         
indicates that the system of caste1     
which  existed in a great part of the   
ancient1 and is by no means extinct in  
the  modern ,european world1 should be  
set aside from time to time in favour of
  merit4 ,he is aware how deeply the    
greater part of liii mankind resent  any
 interference with the order of society1
 and therefore he proposes his  novel   
idea in the form of what he himself     
calls a 'monstrous fiction4'  7,compare 
the ceremony of preparation for the two 
'great waves' in ,book v47  ,two        
principles are indicated by him3 first1 
that there is a distinction of  ranks   
dependent on circumstances prior to the 

individual3 second1 that  this          
distinction is and ought to be broken   
through by personal qualities4  ,he     
adapts mythology like the ,homeric poems
 to the wants of the state1  making 'the
 ,phoenician tale' the vehicle of his   
ideas4 ,every ,greek state  had a myth  
respecting its own origin2 the ,platonic
 republic may also have  a tale of      
earthborn men4 ,the gravity and         
verisimilitude with which the  tale is  
told1 and the analogy of ,greek         
tradition1 are a sufficient             
verification of the 'monstrous          
falsehood4' ,ancient poetry had spoken  
of a  gold and silver and brass and iron
 age succeeding one another1 but ,plato 
supposes these differences in the       
natures of men to exist together in a   
single state4 ,mythology supplies a     
figure under which the lesson may be    
taught 7as ,protagoras says1 'the myth  
is more interesting'71 and also  enables
 ,plato to touch lightly on new         
principles without going into  details4 

,in this passage he shadows forth a     
general truth1 but he does not  tell us 
by what steps the transposition of ranks
 is to be effected4 ,indeed  throughout 
the ,republic he allows the lower ranks 
to fade into the  distance4 ,we do not  
know whether they are to carry arms1 and
 whether in  the fifth book they are or 
are not included in the communistic     
regulations  respecting property and    
marriage4 ,nor is there any use in      
arguing strictly  either from a few     
chance words1 or from the silence of    
,plato1 or in  drawing inferences which 
were beyond his vision4 ,aristotle1 in  
his  criticism on the position of the   
lower classes1 does not perceive that   
the  poetical creation is 'like the air1
 invulnerable1' and cannot be           
penetrated by the shafts of his logic   
7,pol4 #b1 #e1 #ah foll474    #f4 ,two  
paradoxes which strike the modern reader
 as in the highest degree  fanciful and 
ideal1 and which suggest to him many    
reflections1 are to be  found in the    

third book of the ,republic3 first1 the 
great power of music1  so much beyond   
any influence which is experienced by us
 in modern times1  when the art or      
science has been far more developed1 and
 has found liv  the secret of harmony1  
as well as of melody2 secondly1 the     
indefinite and  almost absolute control 
which the soul is supposed to exercise  
over the  body4    ,in the first we     
suspect some degree of exaggeration1    
such as we may also  observe among      
certain masters of the art1 not unknown 
to us1 at the  present day4 ,with this  
natural enthusiasm1 which is felt by a  
few only1  there seems to mingle in     
,plato a sort of ,pythagorean reverence 
for numbers  and numerical proportion to
 which ,aristotle is a stranger4        
,intervals of  sound and number are to  
him sacred things which have a law of   
their own1  not dependent on the        
variations of sense4 ,they rise above   
sense1 and  become a connecting link    
with the world of ideas4 ,but it is     

evident that  ,plato is describing what 
to him appears to be also a fact4 ,the  
power of a  simple and characteristic   
melody on the impressible mind of the   
,greek is  more than we can easily      
appreciate4 ,the effect of national airs
 may bear  some comparison with it4     
,and1 besides all this1 there is a      
confusion  between the harmony of       
musical notes and the harmony of soul   
and body1  which is so potently inspired
 by them4    ,the second paradox leads  
up to some curious and interesting      
questions--,how  far can the mind       
control the body8 ,is the relation      
between them one of  mutual antagonism  
or of mutual harmony8 ,are they two or  
one1 and is either  of them the cause of
 the other8 ,may we not at times drop   
the opposition  between them1 and the   
mode of describing them1 which is so    
familiar to us1  and yet hardly conveys 
any precise meaning1 and try to view    
this composite  creature1 man1 in a more
 simple manner8 ,must we not at any rate

 admit that  there is in human nature a 
higher and a lower principle1 divided by
 no  distinct line1 which at times break
 asunder and take up arms against one   
another8 ,or again1 they are reconciled 
and move together1 either  unconsciously
 in the ordinary work of life1 or       
consciously in the pursuit  of some     
noble aim1 to be attained not without an
 effort1 and for which  every thought   
and nerve are strained4 ,and then the   
body becomes the good  friend or ally1  
or servant or instrument of the mind4   
,and the mind has  often a wonderful and
 almost superhuman power of banishing   
disease and  weakness and calling out a 
hidden strength4 ,reason and the        
desires1 the  intellect and the senses  
are brought into harmony and obedience  
so as to  form a lv single human being4 
,they are ever parting1 ever meeting2   
and  the identity or diversity of their 
tendencies or operations is for the     
most part unnoticed by us4 ,when the    
mind touches the body through the       

appetites1 we acknowledge the           
responsibility of the one to the other4 
,there is a tendency in us which says   
',drink4' ,there is another which says1 
',do not drink2 it is not good for you4'
 ,and we all of us know which is the    
rightful superior4 ,we are also         
responsible for our health1 although    
into  this sphere there enter some      
elements of necessity which may be      
beyond our  control4 ,still even in the 
management of health1 care and thought1 
continued over many years1 may make us  
almost free agents1 if we do not  exact 
too much of ourselves1 and if we        
acknowledge that all human freedom  is  
limited by the laws of nature and of    
mind4    ,we are disappointed to find   
that ,plato1 in the general condemnation
 which  he passes on the practice of    
medicine prevailing in his own day1     
depreciates the effects of diet4 ,he    
would like to have diseases of a        
definite character and capable of       
receiving a definite treatment4 ,he is  

afraid of invalidism interfering with   
the business of life4 ,he does not      
recognize that time is the great healer 
both of mental and bodily  disorders2   
and that remedies which are gradual and 
proceed little by  little are safer than
 those which produce a sudden           
catastrophe4 ,neither  does he see that 
there is no way in which the mind can   
more surely  influence the body than by 
the control of eating and drinking2 or  
any  other action or occasion of human  
life on which the higher freedom of the 
will can be more simple or truly        
asserted4    #g4 ,lesser matters of     
style may be remarked4 7#a7 ,the        
affected ignorance of  music1 which is  
,plato's way of expressing that he is   
passing lightly over  the subject4 7#b7 
,the tentative manner in which here1 as 
in the second  book1 he proceeds with   
the construction of the ,state4 7#c7    
,the description  of the ,state         
sometimes as a reality 7#chi ,d2 #daf   
,b71 and then again as a  work of       

imagination only 7cp4 #ecd ,c2 #eib ,b72
 these are the arts by which  he        
sustains the reader's interest4 7#d7    
,connecting links 7e4g4 #djh ,c with    
#cgi71 or the preparation 7#cid ,d7 for 
the entire expulsion of the poets in    
,book x4 7#e7 ,the companion pictures of
 the lover of litigation and the        
valetudinarian 7#dje71 the satirical    
jest about the maxim of ,phocylides     
7#djg71 the manner in which lvi the     
image of the gold and silver citizens   
is taken up into the subject 7#daf ,e71 
and the argument from the practice  of  
,asclepius 7#djg71 should not escape    
notice4           99       99       99  
99       99    ,sidenote3 ,republic     
,,iv4 ,analysis4    ,,book ,,iv4        
99#dai99 ,adeimantus said3 ',suppose a  
person to argue1 ,socrates1 that  you   
make your citizens miserable1 and this  
by their own free-will2 they  are the   
lords of the city1 and yet instead of   
having1 like other men1  lands and      
houses and money of their own1 they live

 as mercenaries and are  always mounting
 guard4' 99#dbj99 ,you may add1 ,i      
replied1 that they receive no  pay but  
only their food1 and have no money to   
spend on a journey or a  mistress4      
',well1 and what answer do you give8'   
,my answer is1 that our  guardians may  
or may not be the happiest of men1--,i  
should not be  surprised to find in the 
long-run that they were1--but this is   
not the aim  of our constitution1 which 
was designed for the good of the whole  
and not  of any one part4 ,if ,i went to
 a sculptor and blamed him for having   
painted  the eye1 which is the noblest  
feature of the face1 not purple but     
black1  he would reply3 ',the eye must  
be an eye1 and you should look at the   
statue  as a whole4' ',now ,i can well  
imagine a fool's paradise1 in which     
everybody  is eating and drinking1      
clothed in purple and fine linen1 and   
potters lie  on sofas and have their    
wheel at hand1 that they may work a     
little when  they please2 99#dba99 and  

cobblers and all the other classes of a 
,state lose  their distinctive          
character4 ,and a ,state may get on     
without cobblers2 but  when the         
guardians degenerate into boon          
companions1 then the ruin is  complete4 
,remember that we are not talking of    
peasants keeping holiday1  but of a     
,state in which every man is expected to
 do his own work4 ,the  happiness       
resides not in this or that class1 but  
in the ,state as a whole4  ,i have      
another remark to make3--,a middle      
condition is best for artisans2  they   
should have money enough to buy tools1  
and not enough to be  independent of    
business4 ,and will not the same        
condition be best for our  citizens8 ,if
 they are poor1 they will be mean2      
99#dbb99 if rich1 luxurious  and lazy2  
and in neither case contented4 ',but    
then how will our poor city  be able to 
go to war against an enemy who has      
money8' ,there may be a  difficulty in  
fighting against one enemy2 against two 

there will be none4  ,in the first      
place1 the contest will be lvii carried 
on by trained  warriors against         
well-to-do citizens3 and is not a       
regular athlete an easy  match for two  
stout opponents at least8 ,suppose also1
 that before engaging  we send          
ambassadors to one of the two cities1   
saying1 ',silver and gold we  have not2 
do you help us and take our share of the
 spoil2'--who would  fight against the  
lean1 wiry dogs1 when they might join   
with them in  preying upon the fatted   
sheep8 ',but if many states join their  
resources1  shall we not be in danger8' 
,i am amused to hear you use the word   
'state'  of any but our own ,state4     
99#dbc99 ,they are 'states1' but not 'a 
state'--many  in one4 ,for in every     
state there are two hostile nations1    
rich and poor1  which you may set one   
against the other4 ,but our ,state1     
while she remains  true to her          
principles1 will be in very deed the    
mightiest of ,hellenic  states4    ,to  

the size of the state there is no limit 
but the necessity of unity2 it  must be 
neither too large nor too small to be   
one4 ,this is a matter of  secondary    
importance1 like the principle of       
transposition which was  intimated in   
the parable of the earthborn men4 ,the  
meaning there implied  was that every   
man should do that for which he was     
fitted1 and be at one  with himself1 and
 then the whole city would be united4   
,but all these  things are secondary1 if
 education1 which is the great matter1  
be duly  regarded4 99#dbd99 ,when the   
wheel has once been set in motion1 the  
speed is  always increasing2 and each   
generation improves upon the preceding1 
both  in physical and moral qualities4  
,the care of the governors should be    
directed to preserve music and gymnastic
 from innovation2 alter the songs  of a 
country1 ,damon says1 and you will soon 
end by altering its laws4 ,the  change  
appears innocent at first1 and begins in
 play2 but the evil soon  becomes       

serious1 working secretly upon the      
characters of individuals1 then  upon   
social and commercial relations1 and    
lastly upon the institutions of  a      
state2 and there is ruin and confusion  
everywhere4 99#dbe99 ,but if  education 
remains in the established form1 there  
will be no danger4 ,a  restorative      
process will be always going on2 the    
spirit of law and order  will raise up  
what has fallen down4 ,nor will any     
regulations be needed for  the lesser   
matters of life--rules of deportment or 
fashions of dress4 ,like  invites like  
for good or for evil4 ,education will   
correct deficiencies and  supply the    
power of self-government4 ,far be it    
from us to enter into the  lviii        
particulars of legislation2 let the     
guardians take care of  education1 and  
education will take care of all other   
things4    ,but without education they  
may patch and mend as they please2 they 
will  make no progress1 any more than a 
patient who thinks to cure himself by   

some favourite remedy and will not give 
up his luxurious mode of living4        
99#dbf99 ,if you tell such persons that 
they must first alter their habits1     
then they grow angry2 they are charming 
people4 ',charming1--nay1 the very      
reverse4' ,evidently these gentlemen are
 not in your good graces1 nor the  state
 which is like them4 ,and such states   
there are which first ordain  under     
penalty of death that no one shall alter
 the constitution1 and then  suffer     
themselves to be flattered into and out 
of anything2 and he who  indulges them  
and fawns upon them1 is their leader and
 saviour4 ',yes1 the  men are as bad as 
the states4' ,but do you not admire     
their cleverness8  ',nay1 some of them  
are stupid enough to believe what the   
people tell  them4' ,and when all the   
world is telling a man that he is six   
feet high1  and he has no measure1 how  
can he believe anything else8 ,but don't
 get  into a passion3 to see our        
statesmen trying their nostrums1        

99#dbg99 and  fancying that they can cut
 off at a blow the ,hydra-like rogueries
 of  mankind1 is as good as a play4     
,minute enactments are superfluous in   
good  states1 and are useless in bad    
ones4    ,and now what remains of the   
work of legislation8 ,nothing for us2   
but to  ,apollo the god of ,delphi we   
leave the ordering of the greatest of   
all  things--that is to say1 religion4  
,only our ancestral deity sitting upon  
the centre and navel of the earth will  
be trusted by us if we have any  sense1 
in an affair of such magnitude4 ,no     
foreign god shall be supreme in  our    
realms4444    ,sidenote3 ,republic ,,iv4
 ,introduction4    ,here1 as ,socrates  
would say1 let us 'reflect on' 7,greek3 
skopmen7 what  has preceded3 thus far we
 have spoken not of the happiness of the
  citizens1 but only of the well-being  
of the ,state4 ,they may be the         
happiest of men1 but our principal aim  
in founding the ,state was not to  make 
them happy4 ,they were to be guardians1 

not holiday-makers4 ,in this  pleasant  
manner is presented to us the famous    
question both of ancient and  modern    
philosophy1 touching the relation of    
duty to happiness1 of right to  utility4
    ,first duty1 then happiness1 is the 
natural order of our moral ideas4 ,the  
utilitarian principle is valuable as a  
corrective of lix error1 and  shows to  
us a side of ethics which is apt to be  
neglected4 ,it may be  admitted further 
that right and utility are co-extensive1
 and that he who  makes the happiness of
 mankind his object has one of the      
highest and  noblest motives of human   
action4 ,but utility is not the         
historical basis  of morality2 nor the  
aspect in which moral and religious     
ideas commonly  occur to the mind4 ,the 
greatest happiness of all is1 as we     
believe1 the  far-off result of the     
divine government of the universe4 ,the 
greatest  happiness of the individual is
 certainly to be found in a life of     
virtue  and goodness4 ,but we seem to be

 more assured of a law of right than we 
can  be of a divine purpose1 that 'all  
mankind should be saved2' and we infer  
the one from the other4 ,and the        
greatest happiness of the individual may
  be the reverse of the greatest        
happiness in the ordinary sense of the  
term1 and may be realised in a life of  
pain1 or in a voluntary death4          
,further1 the word 'happiness' has      
several ambiguities2 it may mean either 
pleasure or an ideal life1 happiness    
subjective or objective1 in this  world 
or in another1 of ourselves only or of  
our neighbours and of all men           
everywhere4 ,by the modern founder of   
,utilitarianism the self-regarding and  
disinterested motives of action are     
included under the same term1 although  
they are commonly opposed by us as      
benevolence and self-love4 ,the word    
happiness has not the definiteness or   
the sacredness of 'truth' and  'right'2 
it does not equally appeal to our higher
 nature1 and has not sunk  into the     

conscience of mankind4 ,it is associated
 too much with the  comforts and        
conveniences of life2 too little with   
'the goods of the soul  which we desire 
for their own sake4' ,in a great trial1 
or danger1 or  temptation1 or in any    
great and heroic action1 it is scarcely 
thought of4  ,for these reasons 'the    
greatest happiness' principle is not the
 true  foundation of ethics4 ,but though
 not the first principle1 it is the     
second1 which is like unto it1 and is   
often of easier application4 ,for the   
larger part of human actions are neither
 right nor wrong1 except in so far  as  
they tend to the happiness of mankind   
7cp4 ,introd4 to ,gorgias and           
,philebus74    ,the same question       
reappears in politics1 where the useful 
or expedient  seems to claim a larger   
sphere and to have a greater authority4 
,for  concerning political measures1 we 
chiefly ask3 ,how will they affect the  
happiness of mankind8 ,yet here too we  
may observe that what we term           

expediency is merely the law of lx right
 limited by the conditions of  human    
society4 ,right and truth are the       
highest aims of government as well  as  
of individuals2 and we ought not to lose
 sight of them because we  cannot       
directly enforce them4 ,they appeal to  
the better mind of nations2  and        
sometimes they are too much for merely  
temporal interests to resist4  ,they are
 the watchwords which all men use in    
matters of public policy1 as  well as in
 their private dealings2 the peace of   
,europe may be said to  depend upon     
them4 ,in the most commercial and       
utilitarian states of society  the power
 of ideas remains4 ,and all the higher  
class of statesmen have in  them        
something of that idealism which        
,pericles is said to have gathered  from
 the teaching of ,anaxagoras4 ,they     
recognise that the true leader of  men  
must be above the motives of ambition1  
and that national character is  of      
greater value than material comfort and 

prosperity4 ,and this is the  order of  
thought in ,plato2 first1 he expects his
 citizens to do their  duty1 and then   
under favourable circumstances1 that is 
to say1 in a  well-ordered ,state1 their
 happiness is assured4 ,that he was far 
from  excluding the modern principle of 
utility in politics is sufficiently     
evident from other passages2 in which   
'the most beneficial is affirmed to  be 
the most honourable' 7v4 #deg ,b71 and  
also 'the most sacred' 7v4 #deh ,e74    
,we may note 7#a7 ,the manner in which  
the objection of ,adeimantus here1 as   
in ii4 #ceg foll41 #cfc2 vi4 ad init41  
etc41 is designed to draw out and       
deepen the argument of ,socrates4 7#b7  
,the conception of a whole as lying at  
the foundation both of politics and of  
art1 in the latter supplying the  only  
principle of criticism1 which1 under the
 various names of harmony1  symmetry1   
measure1 proportion1 unity1 the ,greek  
seems to have applied to  works of art4 
7#c7 ,the requirement that the ,state   

should be limited in  size1 after the   
traditional model of a ,greek state2 as 
in the ,politics of  ,aristotle 7vii4   
#d1 etc471 the fact that the cities of  
,hellas were small is  converted into a 
principle4 7#d7 ,the humorous pictures  
of the lean dogs and  the fatted sheep1 
of the light active boxer upsetting two 
stout gentlemen  at least1 of the       
'charming' patients who are always      
making themselves  worse2 or again1 the 
playful assumption that there is no     
,state but our  own2 or the grave irony 
with which the statesman is excused who 
believes  that he is six feet high      
because he is told so1 and having       
nothing to  measure with is to be       
pardoned for his ignorance--he is too   
lxi amusing  for us to be seriously     
angry with him4 7#e7 ,the light and     
superficial  manner in which religion is
 passed over when provision has been    
made for  two great principles1--first1 
that religion shall be based on the     
highest  conception of the gods 7ii4    

#cgg foll471 secondly1 that the true    
national  or ,hellenic type shall be    
maintained4444    ,sidenote3 ,republic  
,,iv4 ,analysis4    ,socrates proceeds3 
,but where amid all this is justice8    
,son of ,ariston1  tell me where4 ,light
 a candle and search the city1 and get  
your brother  and the rest of our       
friends to help in seeking for her4     
',that won't do1'  replied ,glaucon1    
'you yourself promised to make the      
search and talked  about the impiety of 
deserting justice4' ,well1 ,i said1 ,i  
will lead the  way1 but do you follow4  
,my notion is1 that our ,state being    
perfect will  contain all the four      
virtues--wisdom1 courage1 temperance1   
justice4 99#dbh99  ,if we eliminate the 
three first1 the unknown remainder will 
be justice4    ,first then1 of wisdom3  
the ,state which we have called into    
being will be  wise because politic4    
,and policy is one among many kinds of  
skill1--not  the skill of the carpenter1
 or of the worker in metal1 or of the   

husbandman1 but the skill of him who    
advises about the interests of the      
whole ,state4 ,of such a kind is the    
skill of the guardians1 99#dbi99 who are
 a  small class in number1 far smaller  
than the blacksmiths2 but in them is    
concentrated the wisdom of the ,state4  
,and if this small ruling class have    
wisdom1 then the whole ,state will be   
wise4    ,our second virtue is courage1 
which we have no difficulty in finding  
in  another class--that of soldiers4    
,courage may be defined as a sort of    
salvation--the never-failing salvation  
of the opinions which law and  education
 have prescribed concerning dangers4    
,you know the way in which  dyers first 
prepare the white ground and then lay on
 the dye of purple or  of any other     
colour4 ,colours dyed in this way become
 fixed1 and no soap or  lye will ever   
wash them out4 99#dcj99 ,now the ground 
is education1 and the  laws are the     
colours2 and if the ground is properly  
laid1 neither the soap  of pleasure nor 

the lye of pain or fear will ever wash  
them out4 ,this  power which preserves  
right opinion about danger ,i would ask 
you to call  'courage1' adding the      
epithet 'political' or 'civilized' in   
order to  distinguish it from mere      
animal courage and from a higher courage
 which  may hereafter be discussed4     
lxii ,two virtues remain2 temperance and
 justice4 ,more than the preceding      
virtues 99#dca99 temperance suggests the
 idea of harmony4 ,some light is  thrown
 upon the nature of this virtue by the  
popular description of a man  as 'master
 of himself'--which has an absurd sound1
 because the master is  also the        
servant4 ,the expression really means   
that the better principle in  a man     
masters the worse4 ,there are in cities 
whole classes--women1 slaves  and the   
like--who correspond to the worse1 and a
 few only to the better2  and in our    
,state the former class are held under  
control by the latter4  ,now to which of
 these classes does temperance belong8  

',to both of them4'  ,and our ,state if 
any will be the abode of temperance2 and
 we were right in  describing this      
virtue as a harmony which is diffused   
through the whole1  99#dcb99 making the 
dwellers in the city to be of one mind1 
and attuning the  upper and middle and  
lower classes like the strings of an    
instrument1  whether you suppose them to
 differ in wisdom1 strength or wealth4  
,and now we are near the spot2 let us   
draw in and surround the cover and      
watch with all our eyes1 lest justice   
should slip away and escape4 ,tell  me1 
if you see the thicket move first4      
',nay1 ,i would have you lead4' ,well   
then1 offer up a prayer and follow4 ,the
 way is dark and difficult2 but we  must
 push on4 ,i begin to see a track4      
',good news4' ,why1 ,glaucon1 our       
dulness of scent is quite ludicrous6    
,while we are straining our eyes into   
the distance1 justice is tumbling out at
 our feet4 ,we are as bad as people     
looking for a thing which they have in  

their hands4 ,have you forgotten our    
old 99#dcc99 principle of the division  
of labour1 or of every man doing his    
own business1 concerning which we spoke 
at the foundation of the  ,state--what  
but this was justice8 ,is there any     
other virtue remaining  which can       
compete with wisdom and temperance and  
courage in the scale of  political      
virtue8 ,for 'every one having his own' 
is the great object of  government2     
99#dcd99 and the great object of trade  
is that every man should  do his own    
business4 ,not that there is much harm  
in a carpenter trying to  be a cobbler1 
or a cobbler transforming himself into a
 carpenter2 but  great evil may arise   
from the cobbler leaving his last and   
turning into a  guardian or legislator1 
or when a single individual is trainer1 
warrior1  legislator1 all in one4 ,and  
this evil is injustice1 or every man    
doing  another's business4 ,i do not say
 that as yet we are in a condition to   
arrive at a final conclusion4 ,for the  

lxiii definition which we believe  to   
hold good in states has still to be     
tested by the individual4 ,having  read 
the large letters we will now come back 
to the small4 ,from the two  together a 
brilliant light may be struck out4444   
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,iv4              
,introduction4    ,socrates proceeds to 
discover the nature of justice by a     
method of  residues4 ,each of the first 
three virtues corresponds to one of the 
three  parts of the soul and one of the 
three classes in the ,state1 although   
the  third1 temperance1 has more of the 
nature of a harmony than the first two4 
,if there be a fourth virtue1 that can  
only be sought for in the relation  of  
the three parts in the soul or classes  
in the ,state to one another4 ,it  is   
obvious and simple1 and for that very   
reason has not been found out4  ,the    
modern logician will be inclined to     
object that ideas cannot be  separated  
like chemical substances1 but that they 
run into one another and  may be only   

different aspects or names of the same  
thing1 and such in this  instance       
appears to be the case4 ,for the        
definition here given of justice  is    
verbally the same as one of the         
definitions of temperance given by      
,socrates in the ,charmides 7#afb ,a71  
which however is only provisional1 and  
is afterwards rejected4 ,and so far from
 justice remaining over when the  other 
virtues are eliminated1 the justice and 
temperance of the ,republic  can with   
difficulty be distinguished4 ,temperance
 appears to be the virtue  of a part    
only1 and one of three1 whereas justice 
is a universal virtue of  the whole     
soul4 ,yet on the other hand temperance 
is also described as a  sort of harmony1
 and in this respect is akin to justice4
 ,justice seems to  differ from         
temperance in degree rather than in     
kind2 whereas temperance  is the harmony
 of discordant elements1 justice is the 
perfect order by  which all natures and 
classes do their own business1 the right

 man in the  right place1 the division  
and co-operation of all the citizens4   
,justice1  again1 is a more abstract    
notion than the other virtues1 and      
therefore1  from ,plato's point of view1
 the foundation of them1 to which they  
are  referred and which in idea precedes
 them4 ,the proposal to omit temperance 
is a mere trick of style intended to    
avoid monotony 7cp4 vii4 #ebh74         
,there is a famous question discussed in
 one of the earlier ,dialogues of       
,plato 7,protagoras1 #cbi1 #ccj2 cp4    
,arist4 ,nic4 ,ethics1 vi4 #ac4 #f71    
',whether  the virtues are one or many8'
 ,this receives an answer which is to   
the  effect that there are four cardinal
 virtues lxiv 7now for the first time   
brought together in ethical philosophy71
 and one supreme over the rest1  which  
is not like ,aristotle's conception of  
universal justice1 virtue  relative to  
others1 but the whole of virtue relative
 to the parts4 ,to this  universal      
conception of justice or order in the   

first education and in the  moral nature
 of man1 the still more universal       
conception of the good in  the second   
education and in the sphere of          
speculative knowledge seems to  succeed4
 ,both might be equally described by the
 terms 'law1' 'order1'  'harmony2' but  
while the idea of good embraces 'all    
time and all  existence1' the conception
 of justice is not extended beyond man4 
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,iv4 ,analysis4   
444 ,socrates is now going to identify  
the individual and the ,state4 ,but     
first he must prove that there are three
 parts of the individual soul4 ,his     
argument is as follows3--,quantity makes
 no difference in quality4 ,the word    
'just1' whether applied to the          
individual or to the ,state1 has the    
same  meaning4 ,and the term 'justice'  
implied that the same three principles  
in  the ,state and in the individual    
were doing their own business4 ,but are 
they really three or one8 ,the question 
is difficult1 and one which can  hardly 

be solved by the methods which we are   
now using2 but the truer and  longer way
 would take up too much of our time4    
',the shorter will satisfy  me4' ,well  
then1 you would admit that the qualities
 of states mean the  qualities of the   
individuals who compose them8 ,the      
,scythians and ,thracians  are          
passionate1 our own race intellectual1  
99#dcf99 and the ,egyptians and         
,phoenicians covetous1 because the      
individual members of each have such and
  such a character2 the difficulty is to
 determine whether the several          
principles are one or three2 whether1   
that is to say1 we reason with one  part
 of our nature1 desire with another1 are
 angry with another1 or  whether the    
whole soul comes into play in each sort 
of action4 ,this  enquiry1 however1     
requires a very exact definition of     
terms4 ,the same  thing in the same     
relation cannot be affected in two      
opposite ways4 ,but  there is no        
impossibility in a man standing still1  

yet moving his arms1 or  in a top which 
is fixed on one spot going round upon   
its axis4 ,there is no  necessity to    
mention all the possible exceptions2    
99#dcg99 let us  provisionally assume   
that opposites cannot do or be or suffer
 opposites in  the same relation4 ,and  
to the class of opposites belong assent 
and  dissent1 desire and avoidance4 ,and
 one form lxv of desire is thirst and   
hunger3 and here arises a new           
point--thirst is thirst of drink1 hunger
 is  hunger of food2 not of warm drink  
or of a particular kind of food1        
99#dch99  with the single exception of  
course that the very fact of our        
desiring  anything implies that it is   
good4 ,when relative terms have no      
attributes1  their correlatives have no 
attributes2 when they have attributes1  
their  correlatives also have them4 ,for
 example1 the term 'greater' is simply  
relative to 'less1' and knowledge refers
 to a subject of knowledge4 ,but on  the
 other hand1 a particular knowledge is  

of a particular subject4 ,again1  every 
science has a distinct character1 which 
is defined by an object2  medicine1 for 
example1 is the science of health1      
although not to be  confounded with     
health4 99#dci99 ,having cleared our    
ideas thus far1 let us  return to the   
original instance of thirst1 which has a
 definite  object--drink4 ,now the      
thirsty soul may feel two distinct      
impulses2 the  animal one saying        
',drink2' the rational one1 which says  
',do not drink4'  ,the two impulses are 
contradictory2 and therefore we may     
assume that they  spring from distinct  
principles in the soul4 ,but is passion 
a third  principle1 or akin to desire8  
,there is a story of a certain ,leontius
 which  throws some light on this       
question4 ,he was coming up from the    
,piraeus  outside the north wall1 and he
 passed a spot where there were dead    
bodies  lying by the executioner4 ,he   
felt a longing desire to see them and   
also an  abhorrence of them2 at first he

 turned away and shut his eyes1 then1   
99#ddj99  suddenly tearing them open1 he
 said1--',take your fill1 ye wretches1  
of the  fair sight4' ,now is there not  
here a third principle which is often   
found  to come to the assistance of     
reason against desire1 but never of     
desire  against reason8 ,this is passion
 or spirit1 of the separate existence of
  which we may further convince         
ourselves by putting the following      
case3--,when a man suffers justly1 if he
 be of a generous nature he is not      
indignant at the hardships which he     
undergoes3 but when he suffers          
unjustly1 his indignation is his great  
support2 hunger and thirst cannot  tame 
him2 the spirit within him must do or   
die1 until the voice of the  shepherd1  
that is1 of reason1 bidding his dog bark
 no more1 is heard  within4 ,this shows 
that passion is the ally of reason4     
99#dda99 ,is passion  then the same with
 reason8 ,no1 for the former exists in  
children and  brutes2 and ,homer affords

 a proof of the distinction between them
 when he  says1 ',he smote his breast1  
and thus rebuked his soul4'    lxvi ,and
 now1 at last1 we have reached firm     
ground1 and are able to  infer that the 
virtues of the ,state and of the        
individual are the same4  ,for wisdom   
and courage and justice in the ,state   
are severally the wisdom  and courage   
and justice in the individuals who form 
the ,state4 ,each of the  three classes 
will do the work of its own class in the
 ,state1 and each  part in the          
individual soul2 reason1 the superior1  
and passion1 the  inferior1 99#ddb99    
will be harmonized by the influence of  
music and  gymnastic4 ,the counsellor   
and the warrior1 the head and the arm1  
will act  together in the town of       
,mansoul1 and keep the desires in proper
  subjection4 ,the courage of the       
warrior is that quality which preserves 
a  right opinion about dangers in spite 
of pleasures and pains4 ,the wisdom of  
the counsellor is that small part of the

 soul which has authority and  reason4  
,the virtue of temperance is the        
friendship of the ruling and the        
subject principles1 both in the ,state  
and in the individual4 ,of justice we   
have already spoken2 and the notion     
already given of it may be confirmed  by
 common instances4 ,will the just state 
or the just individual 99#ddc99  steal1 
lie1 commit adultery1 or be guilty of   
impiety to gods and men8  ',no4' ,and is
 not the reason of this that the several
 principles1 whether  in the state or in
 the individual1 do their own business8 
,and justice is  the quality which makes
 just men and just states4 ,moreover1   
our old  division of labour1 which      
required that there should be one man   
for one  use1 was a dream or            
anticipation of what was to follow2 and 
that dream has  now been realized in    
justice1 which begins by binding        
together the three  chords of the soul1 
and then acts harmoniously in every     
relation of life4  99#ddd99 ,and        

injustice1 which is the insubordination 
and disobedience of the  inferior       
elements in the soul1 is the opposite of
 justice1 and is  inharmonious and      
unnatural1 being to the soul what       
disease is to the body2  for in the soul
 as well as in the body1 good or bad    
actions produce good  or bad habits4    
,and virtue is the health and beauty and
 well-being of the  soul1 and vice is   
the disease and weakness and deformity  
of the soul4    99#dde99 ,again the old 
question returns upon us3 ,is justice or
 injustice the  more profitable8 ,the   
question has become ridiculous4 ,for    
injustice1 like  mortal disease1 makes  
life not worth having4 ,come up with me 
to the hill  which overhangs the city   
and look down upon the single form of   
virtue1 and  the infinite forms of vice1
 lxvii among which are four special     
ones1  characteristic both of states and
 of individuals4 ,and the state which   
corresponds to the single form of virtue
 is that which we have been  describing1

 wherein reason rules under one of two  
names--monarchy and  aristocracy4 ,thus 
there are five forms in all1 both of    
states and of  souls4444    ,sidenote3  
,republic ,,iv4 ,introduction4    ,in   
attempting to prove that the soul has   
three separate faculties1 ,plato  takes 
occasion to discuss what makes          
difference of faculties4 ,and the       
criterion which he proposes is          
difference in the working of the        
faculties4  ,the same faculty cannot    
produce contradictory effects4 ,but the 
path of  early reasoners is beset by    
thorny entanglements1 and he will not   
proceed  a step without first clearing  
the ground4 ,this leads him into a      
tiresome  digression1 which is intended 
to explain the nature of contradiction4 
,first1 the contradiction must be at the
 same time and in the same  relation4   
,secondly1 no extraneous word must be   
introduced into either of  the terms in 
which the contradictory proposition is  
expressed3 for  example1 thirst is of   

drink1 not of warm drink4 ,he implies1  
what he does  not say1 that if1 by the  
advice of reason1 or by the impulse of  
anger1 a  man is restrained from        
drinking1 this proves that thirst1 or   
desire under  which thirst is included1 
is distinct from anger and reason4 ,but 
suppose  that we allow the term 'thirst'
 or 'desire' to be modified1 and say an 
'angry thirst1' or a 'revengeful        
desire1' then the two spheres of desire 
and anger overlap and become confused4  
,this case therefore has to be          
excluded4 ,and still there remains an   
exception to the rule in the use of  the
 term 'good1' which is always implied in
 the object of desire4 ,these  are the  
discussions of an age before logic2 and 
any one who is wearied by  them should  
remember that they are necessary to the 
clearing up of ideas  in the first      
development of the human faculties4     
,the psychology of ,plato extends no    
further than the division of the soul   
into the rational1 irascible1 and       

concupiscent elements1 which1 as far as 
we know1 was first made by him1 and has 
been retained by ,aristotle and         
succeeding ethical writers4 ,the chief  
difficulty in this early analysis of    
the mind is to define exactly the place 
of the irascible faculty 7,greek3       
thumo_/s71 which may be variously       
described under the terms righteous     
indignation1 spirit1 passion4 ,it is the
 foundation of courage1 which  includes 
in ,plato lxviii moral courage1 the     
courage of enduring pain1  and of       
surmounting intellectual difficulties1  
as well as of meeting  dangers in war4  
,though irrational1 it inclines to side 
with the rational3  it cannot be aroused
 by punishment when justly inflicted3 it
 sometimes  takes the form of an        
enthusiasm which sustains a man in the  
performance of  great actions4 ,it is   
the 'lion heart' with which the reason  
makes a treaty  7ix4 #ehi ,b74 ,on the  
other hand it is negative rather than   
positive2 it is  indignant at wrong or  

falsehood1 but does not1 like ,love in  
the ,symposium  and ,phaedrus1 aspire to
 the vision of ,truth or ,good4 ,it is  
the peremptory  military spirit which   
prevails in the government of honour4   
,it differs  from anger 7,greek3        
o7rg_/71 this latter term having no     
accessory notion  of righteous          
indignation4 ,although ,aristotle has   
retained the word1 yet we  may observe  
that 'passion' 7,greek3 thumo_/s7 has   
with him lost its  affinity to the      
rational and has become                 
indistinguishable from 'anger'  7,greek3
 o7rg_/74 ,and to this vernacular use   
,plato himself in the ,laws  seems to   
revert 7ix4 #hcf ,b71 though not always 
7v4 #gca ,a74 ,by modern  philosophy    
too1 as well as in our ordinary         
conversation1 the words anger  or       
passion are employed almost exclusively 
in a bad sense2 there is no  connotation
 of a just or reasonable cause by which 
they are aroused4 ,the  feeling of      
'righteous indignation' is too partial  

and accidental to admit  of our         
regarding it as a separate virtue or    
habit4 ,we are tempted also to  doubt   
whether ,plato is right in supposing    
that an offender1 however justly        
condemned1 could be expected to         
acknowledge the justice of his sentence2
  this is the spirit of a philosopher or
 martyr rather than of a criminal4      
,we may observe 7p4 #ddd ,d1 ,e7 how    
nearly ,plato approaches ,aristotle's   
famous thesis1 that 'good actions       
produce good habits4' ,the words 'as    
healthy practices 7,greek3              
e7pitdeu_/mata7 produce health1 so do   
just  practices produce justice1' have a
 sound very like the ,nicomachean       
,ethics4  ,but we note also that an     
incidental remark in ,plato has become a
  far-reaching principle in ,aristotle1 
and an inseparable part of a great      
,ethical system4    ,there is a         
difficulty in understanding what ,plato 
meant by 'the longer  way' 7#dce ,d2 cp4
 infra1 vi4 #ejd73 he seems to intimate 

some metaphysic  of the future which    
will not be satisfied with arguing from 
the principle  of contradiction4 ,in the
 sixth and seventh books 7compare       
,sophist and  ,parmenides7 he has given 
lxix us a sketch of such a metaphysic2  
but when  ,glaucon asks for the final   
revelation of the idea of good1 he is   
put off  with the declaration that he   
has not yet studied the preliminary     
sciences4  ,how he would have filled up 
the sketch1 or argued about such        
questions  from a higher point of view1 
we can only conjecture4 ,perhaps he     
hoped to  find some a priori method of  
developing the parts out of the whole2  
or  he might have asked which of the    
ideas contains the other ideas1 and     
possibly have stumbled on the ,hegelian 
identity of the 'ego' and the           
'universal4' ,or he may have imagined   
that ideas might be constructed in  some
 manner analogous to the construction of
 figures and numbers in the             
mathematical sciences4 ,the most certain

 and necessary truth was to ,plato  the 
universal2 and to this he was always    
seeking to refer all knowledge or       
opinion1 just as in modern times we seek
 to rest them on the opposite pole  of  
induction and experience4 ,the          
aspirations of metaphysicians have      
always  tended to pass beyond the limits
 of human thought and language3 they    
seem  to have reached a height at which 
they are 'moving about in worlds        
unrealized1' and their conceptions1     
although profoundly affecting their  own
 minds1 become invisible or             
unintelligible to others4 ,we are not   
therefore surprized to find that ,plato 
himself has nowhere clearly  explained  
his doctrine of ideas2 or that his      
school in a later generation1  like his 
contemporaries ,glaucon and ,adeimantus1
 were unable to follow him  in this     
region of speculation4 ,in the ,sophist1
 where he is refuting the  scepticism   
which maintained either that there was  
no such thing as  predication1 or that  

all might be predicated of all1 he      
arrives at the  conclusion that some    
ideas combine with some1 but not all    
with all4 ,but he  makes only one or two
 steps forward on this path2 he nowhere 
attains to  any connected system of     
ideas1 or even to a knowledge of the    
most  elementary relations of the       
sciences to one another 7see infra74    
99       99       99       99       99  
,sidenote3 ,republic ,v4 ,analysis4     
,,book ,v4 99#ddi99 ,i was going to     
enumerate the four forms of vice or     
decline  in states1 when                
,polemarchus--he was sitting a little   
farther from me than                    
,adeimantus--taking him by the coat and 
leaning towards him1 said something  in 
an undertone1 of which ,i only caught   
the words1 ',shall we let him off8'     
',certainly not1' said ,adeimantus1     
raising his voice4 ,whom1 ,i said1 are  
you  lxx not going to let off8 ',you1'  
he said4 ,why8 ',because we think that  
you are not dealing fairly with us in   

omitting women and children1 of whom    
you have slily disposed under the       
general formula that friends have all   
things in common4' ,and was ,i not      
right8 ',yes1' he replied1 'but there   
are  many sorts of communism or         
community1 and we want to know which of 
them is  right4 ,the company1 as you    
have just heard1 are resolved to have a 
further  explanation4' 99#dej99         
,thrasymachus said1 ',do you think that 
we have come  hither to dig for gold1 or
 to hear you discourse8' ,yes1 ,i said2 
but the  discourse should be of a       
reasonable length4 ,glaucon added1      
',yes1 ,socrates1  and there is reason  
in spending the whole of life in such   
discussions2 but  pray1 without more    
ado1 tell us how this community is to be
 carried out1  and how the interval     
between birth and education is to be    
filled up4'  ,well1 ,i said1 the subject
 has several difficulties--,what is     
possible8 is  the first question4 ,what 
is desirable8 is the second4 ',fear     

not1' he  replied1 'for you are speaking
 among friends4' ,that1 ,i replied1 is a
 sorry  consolation2 ,i shall destroy my
 friends as well as myself4 99#dea99    
,not that  ,i mind a little innocent    
laughter2 but he who kills the truth is 
a  murderer4 ',then1' said ,glaucon1    
laughing1 'in case you should murder us 
we  will acquit you beforehand1 and you 
shall be held free from the guilt of    
deceiving us4'    ,socrates             
proceeds3--,the guardians of our state  
are to be watch-dogs1 as we  have       
already said4 ,now dogs are not divided 
into hes and shes--we do not  take the  
masculine gender out to hunt and leave  
the females at home to  look after their
 puppies4 ,they have the same           
employments--the only  difference       
between them is that the one sex is     
stronger and the other  weaker4 ,but if 
women are to have the same employments  
as men1 they must  have the same        
education--they must be taught music and
 gymnastics1 and the  art of war4       

99#deb99 ,i know that a great joke will 
be made of their riding on  horseback   
and carrying weapons2 the sight of the  
naked old wrinkled women  showing their 
agility in the palaestra will certainly 
not be a vision of  beauty1 and may be  
expected to become a famous jest4 ,but  
we must not mind  the wits2 there was a 
time when they might have laughed at our
 present  gymnastics4 ,all is habit3    
people have at last found out that the  
exposure  is better than the concealment
 of the lxxi person1 and now they laugh 
no  more4 ,evil only should be the      
subject of ridicule4    99#dec99 ,the   
first question is1 whether women are    
able either wholly or  partially to     
share in the employments of men4 ,and   
here we may be charged  with            
inconsistency in making the proposal at 
all4 ,for we started  originally with   
the division of labour2 and the         
diversity of employments  was based on  
the difference of natures4 ,but is there
 no difference between  men and women8  

,nay1 are they not wholly different8    
,there was the  difficulty1 ,glaucon1   
which made me unwilling to speak of     
family relations4  ,however1 when a man 
is out of his depth1 whether in a pool  
or in an ocean1  he can only swim for   
his life2 and we must try to find a way 
of escape1 if  we can4    99#ded99 ,the 
argument is1 that different natures have
 different uses1 and the  natures of men
 and women are said to differ4 ,but this
 is only a verbal  opposition4 ,we do   
not consider that the difference may be 
purely nominal  and accidental2 for     
example1 a bald man and a hairy man are 
opposed in a  single point of view1 but 
you cannot infer that because a bald man
 is a  cobbler a hairy man ought not to 
be a cobbler4 ,now why is such an       
inference erroneous8 ,simply because the
 opposition between them is partial     
only1 like the difference between a male
 physician and a female physician1  not 
running through the whole nature1 like  
the difference between a  physician and 

a carpenter4 ,and if the difference of  
the sexes is only that  the one beget   
and the other bear children1 this does  
not prove that they  ought to have      
distinct educations4 99#dee99 ,admitting
 that women differ from  men in         
capacity1 do not men equally differ from
 one another8 ,has not  nature scattered
 all the qualities which our citizens   
require  indifferently up and down among
 the two sexes8 and even in their       
peculiar  pursuits1 are not women often1
 though in some cases superior to men1  
ridiculously enough surpassed by them8  
,women are the same in kind as men1  and
 have the same aptitude or want of      
aptitude for medicine or gymnastic  or  
war1 99#def99 but in a less degree4 ,one
 woman will be a good guardian1  another
 not2 and the good must be chosen to be 
the colleagues of our  guardians4 ,if   
however their natures are the same1 the 
inference is that  their education must 
also be the same2 there is no longer    
anything  unnatural or impossible in a  

woman learning music lxxii and          
gymnastic4  ,and the education which we 
give them will be the very best1 far    
superior  to that of cobblers1 and will 
train up the very best women1 and       
nothing  can be more advantageous to the
 ,state than this4 99#deg99 ,therefore  
let them  strip1 clothed in their       
chastity1 and share in the toils of war 
and in the  defence of their country2 he
 who laughs at them is a fool for his   
pains4    ,the first wave is past1 and  
the argument is compelled to admit that 
men  and women have common duties and   
pursuits4 ,a second and greater wave is 
rolling in--community of wives and      
children2 is this either expedient or   
possible8 ,the expediency ,i do not     
doubt2 ,i am not so sure of the         
possibility4 ',nay1 ,i think that a     
considerable doubt will be entertained  
on both points4' ,i meant to have       
escaped the trouble of proving the      
first1  but as you have detected the    
little stratagem ,i must even submit4   

99#deh99  ,only allow me to feed my     
fancy like the solitary in his walks1   
with a  dream of what might be1 and then
 ,i will return to the question of what 
can  be4    ,in the first place our     
rulers will enforce the laws and make   
new ones  where they are wanted1 and    
their allies or ministers will obey4    
,you1 as  legislator1 have already      
selected the men2 and now you shall     
select the  women4 ,after the selection 
has been made1 they will dwell in common
 houses  and have their meals in common1
 and will be brought together by a      
necessity more certain than that of     
mathematics4 ,but they cannot be        
allowed to live in licentiousness2 that 
is an unholy thing1 which the  rulers   
are determined to prevent4 ,for the     
avoidance of this1 99#dei99 holy        
marriage festivals will be instituted1  
and their holiness will be in           
proportion to their usefulness4 ,and    
here1 ,glaucon1 ,i should like to ask   
7as ,i know that you are a breeder of   

birds and animals71 ,do you not take    
the greatest care in the mating8        
',certainly4' ,and there is no reason to
  suppose that less care is required in 
the marriage of human beings4 ,but  then
 our rulers must be skilful physicians  
of the ,state1 for they will  often need
 a strong dose of falsehood in order to 
bring about desirable  unions between   
their subjects4 ,the good must be paired
 with the good1 and  the bad with the   
bad1 and the offspring of the one must  
be reared1 and of  the other destroyed2 
in this way the flock will be preserved 
in prime  condition4 99#dfj99 ,hymeneal 
festivals will be celebrated at times   
fixed with  an eye to population1 and   
the brides and bridegrooms will lxxiii  
meet at  them2 and by an ingenious      
system of lots the rulers will contrive 
that the  brave and the fair come       
together1 and that those of inferior    
breed are  paired with inferiors--the   
latter will ascribe to chance what is   
really  the invention of the rulers4    

,and when children are born1 the        
offspring of  the brave and fair will be
 carried to an enclosure in a certain   
part of  the city1 and there attended by
 suitable nurses2 the rest will be      
hurried  away to places unknown4 ,the   
mothers will be brought to the fold and 
will  suckle the children2 care however 
must be taken that none of them         
recognise their own offspring2 and if   
necessary other nurses may also be      
hired4 ,the trouble of watching and     
getting up at night will be transferred 
to attendants4 ',then the wives of our  
guardians will have a fine easy time    
when they are having children4' ,and    
quite right too1 ,i said1 that they     
should4    ,the parents ought to be in  
the prime of life1 which for a man may  
be  reckoned at thirty years--from      
twenty-five1 99#dfa99 when he has       
'passed the  point at which the speed of
 life is greatest1' to fifty-five2 and  
at  twenty years for a woman--from      
twenty to forty4 ,any one above or below

  those ages who partakes in the        
hymeneals shall be guilty of impiety2   
also  every one who forms a marriage    
connexion at other times without the    
consent of the rulers4 ,this latter     
regulation applies to those who are     
within the specified ages1 after which  
they may range at will1 provided  they  
avoid the prohibited degrees of parents 
and children1 or of brothers  and       
sisters1 which last1 however1 are not   
absolutely prohibited1 if a             
dispensation be procured4 ',but how     
shall we know the degrees of affinity1  
when all things are common8' ,the answer
 is1 that brothers and sisters are  all 
such as are born seven or nine months   
after the espousals1 and their  parents 
those who are then espoused1 99#dfb99   
and every one will have many  children  
and every child many parents4           
,socrates proceeds3 ,i have now to prove
 that this scheme is advantageous  and  
also consistent with our entire polity4 
,the greatest good of a ,state  is      

unity2 the greatest evil1 discord and   
distraction4 ,and there will be  unity  
where there are no private pleasures or 
pains or interests--where if  one member
 suffers all the members suffer1 if one 
citizen is touched all  are quickly     
sensitive2 and the least hurt to the    
little finger of the  ,state runs       
through the whole body and vibrates to  
the soul4 ,for the true  lxxiv ,state1  
like an individual1 is injured as a     
whole when any part is  affected4       
99#dfc99 ,every ,state has subjects and 
rulers1 who in a democracy  are called  
rulers1 and in other ,states masters3   
but in our ,state they are  called      
saviours and allies2 and the subjects   
who in other ,states are  termed slaves1
 are by us termed nurturers and         
paymasters1 and those who  are termed   
comrades and colleagues in other places1
 are by us called  fathers and brothers4
 ,and whereas in other ,states members  
of the same  government regard one of   
their colleagues as a friend and another

 as an  enemy1 in our ,state no man is a
 stranger to another2 for every citizen 
is  connected with every other by ties  
of blood1 and these names and this way  
of speaking will have a corresponding   
reality--brother1 father1 sister1       
mother1 repeated from infancy in the    
ears of children1 will not be mere      
words4 99#dfd99 ,then again the citizens
 will have all things in common1 in     
having common property they will have   
common pleasures and pains4    ,can     
there be strife and contention among    
those who are of one mind2 or  lawsuits 
about property when men have nothing but
 their bodies which they  call their    
own2 or suits about violence when every 
one is bound to defend  himself8        
99#dfe99 ,the permission to strike when 
insulted will be an  'antidote' to the  
knife and will prevent disturbances in  
the ,state4 ,but no  younger man will   
strike an elder2 reverence will prevent 
him from laying  hands on his kindred1  
and he will fear that the rest of the   

family may  retaliate4 ,moreover1 our   
citizens will be rid of the lesser evils
 of life2  there will be no flattery of 
the rich1 no sordid household cares1 no 
borrowing and not paying4 ,compared with
 the citizens of other ,states1 ours    
will be ,olympic victors1 and crowned   
with blessings greater still--they  and 
their children having a better          
maintenance during life1 and after      
death an honourable burial4 99#dff99    
,nor has the happiness of the individual
  been sacrificed to the happiness of   
the ,state 7cp4 iv4 #dai ,e72 our       
,olympic  victor has not been turned    
into a cobbler1 but he has a happiness  
beyond  that of any cobbler4 ,at the    
same time1 if any conceited youth begins
 to  dream of appropriating the ,state  
to himself1 he must be reminded that    
'half is better than the whole4' ',i    
should certainly advise him to stay     
where he is when he has the promise of  
such a brave life4'    ,but is such a   
community possible8--as among the       

animals1 so lxxv also  among men2 and if
 possible1 in what way possible8 ,about 
war there is no  difficulty2 the        
principle of communism is adapted to    
military service4  ,parents will take   
their children to look on at a battle1  
99#dfg99 just as  potters' boys are     
trained to the business by looking on at
 the wheel4 ,and  to the parents        
themselves1 as to other animals1 the    
sight of their young  ones will prove a 
great incentive to bravery4 ,young      
warriors must learn1  but they must not 
run into danger1 although a certain     
degree of risk is  worth incurring when 
the benefit is great4 ,the young        
creatures should be  placed under the   
care of experienced veterans1 and they  
should have  wings--that is to say1     
swift and tractable steeds on which they
 may fly  away and escape4 99#dfh99 ,one
 of the first things to be done is to   
teach a  youth to ride4    ,cowards and 
deserters shall be degraded to the class
 of husbandmen2  gentlemen who allow    

themselves to be taken prisoners1 may be
 presented to  the enemy4 ,but what     
shall be done to the hero8 ,first of all
 he shall be  crowned by all the youths 
in the army2 secondly1 he shall receive 
the  right hand of fellowship2 and      
thirdly1 do you think that there is any 
harm  in his being kissed8 ,we have     
already determined that he shall have   
more  wives than others1 in order that  
he may have as many children as         
possible4  ,and at a feast he shall have
 more to eat2 we have the authority of  
,homer  for honouring brave men with    
'long chines1' which is an appropriate  
compliment1 because meat is a very      
strengthening thing4 ,fill the bowl     
then1 and give the best seats and meats 
to the brave--may they do them  good6   
,and he who dies in battle will be at   
once declared to be of the  golden race1
 and will1 as we believe1 become one of 
,hesiod's guardian  angels4 99#dfi99 ,he
 shall be worshipped after death in the 
manner prescribed  by the oracle2 and   

not only he1 but all other benefactors  
of the ,state who  die in any other way1
 shall be admitted to the same honours4 
,the next question is1 ,how shall we    
treat our enemies8 ,shall ,hellenes be  
enslaved8 ,no2 for there is too great a 
risk of the whole race passing  under   
the yoke of the barbarians4 ,or shall   
the dead be despoiled8  ,certainly not2 
for that sort of thing is an excuse for 
skulking1 and has  been the ruin of many
 an army4 ,there is meanness and        
feminine malice in  making an enemy of  
the dead body1 when the soul which was  
the owner has  fled-- lxxvi like a dog  
who cannot reach his assailants1 and    
quarrels  with the stones which are     
thrown at him instead4 ,again1 the arms 
of  ,hellenes should not be offered up  
in the temples of the ,gods2 99#dgj99   
they  are a pollution1 for they are     
taken from brethren4 ,and on similar    
grounds  there should be a limit to the 
devastation of ,hellenic territory--the 
houses should not be burnt1 nor more    

than the annual produce carried off4    
,for war is of two kinds1 civil and     
foreign2 the first of which is properly 
termed 'discord1' and only the second   
'war2' and war between ,hellenes is  in 
reality civil war--a quarrel in a       
family1 which is ever to be regarded  as
 unpatriotic and unnatural1 99#dga99 and
 ought to be prosecuted with a view  to 
reconciliation in a true phil-,hellenic 
spirit1 as of those who would  chasten  
but not utterly enslave4 ,the war is not
 against a whole nation who  are a      
friendly multitude of men1 women1 and   
children1 but only against a  few guilty
 persons2 when they are punished peace  
will be restored4 ,that is  the way in  
which ,hellenes should war against one  
another--and against  barbarians1 as    
they war against one another now4       
',but1 my dear ,socrates1 you are       
forgetting the main question3 ,is such a
  ,state possible8 ,i grant all and more
 than you say about the blessedness of  
being one family--fathers1 brothers1    

mothers1 daughters1 going out to war    
together2 but ,i want to ascertain the  
possibility of this ideal ,state4'  ,you
 are too unmerciful4 99#dgb99 ,the first
 wave and the second wave ,i have       
hardly escaped1 and now you will        
certainly drown me with the third4 ,when
  you see the towering crest of the     
wave1 ,i expect you to take pity4 ',not 
a  whit4'    ,well1 then1 we were led to
 form our ideal polity in the search    
after  justice1 and the just man        
answered to the just ,state4 ,is this   
ideal at all  the worse for being       
impracticable8 ,would the picture of a  
perfectly  beautiful man be any the     
worse because no such man ever lived8   
,can any  reality come up to the idea8  
,nature will not allow words to be fully
  realized2 99#dgc99 but if ,i am to try
 and realize the ideal of the ,state in 
a  measure1 ,i think that an approach   
may be made to the perfection of which  
,i dream by one or two1 ,i do not say   
slight1 but possible changes in the     

present constitution of ,states4 ,i     
would reduce them to a single one--the  
great wave1 as ,i call it4 ,until1 then1
 kings are philosophers1 or             
philosophers are kings1 cities will     
never cease from ill3 no1 nor the       
lxxvii human race2 nor will our ideal   
polity ever come into being4  ,i know   
that this is a hard saying1 which few   
will be able to receive4  ',socrates1   
all the world will take off his coat and
 rush upon you with  sticks and stones1 
99#dgd99 and therefore ,i would advise  
you to prepare an  answer4' ,you got me 
into the scrape1 ,i said4 ',and ,i was  
right1' he  replied2 'however1 ,i will  
stand by you as a sort of do-nothing1   
well-meaning ally4' ,having the help of 
such a champion1 ,i will do my best  to 
maintain my position4 ,and first1 ,i    
must explain of whom ,i speak and  what 
sort of natures these are who are to be 
philosophers and rulers4 ,as  you are a 
man of pleasure1 you will not have      
forgotten how indiscriminate  lovers are

 in their attachments2 they love all1   
and turn blemishes into  beauties4 ,the 
snub-nosed youth is said to have a      
winning grace2 the beak  of another has 
a royal look2 the featureless are       
faultless2 the dark are  manly1 the fair
 angels2 the sickly have a new term of  
endearment invented  expressly for them1
 which is 'honey-pale4' 99#dge99 ,lovers
 of wine and lovers  of ambition also   
desire the objects of their affection in
 every form4 ,now  here comes the       
point3--,the philosopher too is a lover 
of knowledge in  every form2 he has an  
insatiable curiosity4 ',but will        
curiosity make a  philosopher8 ,are the 
lovers of sights and sounds1 who let out
 their ears  to every chorus at the     
,dionysiac festivals1 to be called      
philosophers8'  ,they are not true      
philosophers1 but only an imitation4    
',then how are we to  describe the      
true8'    ,you would acknowledge the    
existence of abstract ideas1 99#dgf99   
such as  justice1 beauty1 good1 evil1   

which are severally one1 yet in their   
various  combinations appear to be many4
 ,those who recognize these realities   
are  philosophers2 whereas the other    
class hear sounds and see colours1 and  
understand their use in the arts1 but   
cannot attain to the true or waking     
vision of absolute justice or beauty or 
truth2 they have not the light of       
knowledge1 but of opinion1 and what they
 see is a dream only4 ,perhaps he  of   
whom we say the last will be angry with 
us2 can we pacify him without  revealing
 the disorder of his mind8 ,suppose we  
say that1 if he has  knowledge we       
rejoice to hear it1 but knowledge must  
be of something which  is1 as ignorance 
is of something which is not2 99#dgg99  
and there is a third  thing1 which both 
is and is not1 and is matter of opinion 
only4 ,opinion  and knowledge1 then1    
having distinct objects1 must also be   
distinct  faculties4 ,and lxxviii by    
faculties ,i mean powers unseen and     
distinguishable only by the difference  

in their objects1 as opinion and        
knowledge differ1 since the one is      
liable to err1 but the other is         
unerring and is the mightiest of all our
 faculties4 ,if being is the object  of 
knowledge1 99#dgh99 and not-being of    
ignorance1 and these are the  extremes1 
opinion must lie between them1 and may  
be called darker than the  one and      
brighter than the other4 ,this          
intermediate or contingent matter is    
and is not at the same time1 and        
partakes both of existence and of       
non-existence4 99#dgi99 ,now ,i would   
ask my good friend1 who denies abstract 
beauty and justice1 and affirms a many  
beautiful and a many just1 whether      
everything he sees is not in some point 
of view different--the beautiful  ugly1 
the pious impious1 the just unjust8 ,is 
not the double also the half1  and are  
not heavy and light relative terms which
 pass into one another8  ,everything is 
and is not1 as in the old riddle--',a   
man and not a man shot  and did not     

shoot a bird and not a bird with a stone
 and not a stone4' ,the  mind cannot be 
fixed on either alternative2 and these  
ambiguous1  intermediate1 erring1       
half-lighted objects1 which have a      
disorderly  movement in the region      
between being and not-being1 are the    
proper matter  of opinion1 99#dhj99 as  
the immutable objects are the proper    
matter of  knowledge4 ,and he who       
grovels in the world of sense1 and has  
only this  uncertain perception of      
things1 is not a philosopher1 but a     
lover of  opinion only4444           99 
99       99       99       99           
,sidenote3 ,republic ,v4 ,introduction4 
,the fifth book is the new beginning of 
the ,republic1 in which the  community  
of property and of family are first     
maintained1 and the  transition is made 
to the kingdom of philosophers4 ,for    
both of these  ,plato1 after his manner1
 has been preparing in some chance words
 of ,book  ,,iv 7#dbd ,a71 which fall   
unperceived on the reader's mind1 as    

they are  supposed at first to have     
fallen on the ear of ,glaucon and       
,adeimantus4 ,the  'paradoxes1' as      
,morgenstern terms them1 of this book of
 the ,republic will  be reserved for    
another place2 a few remarks on the     
style1 and some  explanations of        
difficulties1 may be briefly added4     
,first1 there is the image of the waves1
 which serves for a sort of scheme  or  
plan of the book4 ,the first wave1 the  
second wave1 the third and  greatest    
wave come rolling in1 and we hear the   
roar of them4 ,all that can  be said of 
the extravagance of ,plato's proposals  
is anticipated by  himself4 ,nothing is 
more admirable than the lxxix hesitation
 with which  he proposes the solemn     
text1 ',until kings are philosophers1'  
c42 or the  reaction from the sublime to
 the ridiculous1 when ,glaucon describes
 the  manner in which the new truth will
 be received by mankind4    ,some       
defects and difficulties may be noted in
 the execution of the  communistic plan4

 ,nothing is told us of the application 
of communism to  the lower classes2 nor 
is the table of prohibited degrees      
capable of being  made out4 ,it is quite
 possible that a child born at one      
hymeneal festival  may marry one of its 
own brothers or sisters1 or even one of 
its parents1  at another4 ,plato is     
afraid of incestuous unions1 but at the 
same time he  does not wish to bring    
before us the fact that the city would  
be divided  into families of those born 
seven and nine months after each        
hymeneal  festival4 ,if it were worth   
while to argue seriously about such     
fancies1 we  might remark that while all
 the old affinities are abolished1 the  
newly  prohibited affinity rests not on 
any natural or rational principle1 but  
only upon the accident of children      
having been born in the same month and  
year4 ,nor does he explain how the lots 
could be so manipulated by the          
legislature as to bring together the    
fairest and best4 ,the singular         

expression 7#dfj ,e7 which is employed  
to describe the age of  five-and-twenty 
may perhaps be taken from some poet4    
,in the delineation of the philosopher1 
the illustrations of the nature of      
philosophy derived from love are more   
suited to the apprehension of  ,glaucon1
 the ,athenian man of pleasure1 than to 
modern tastes or feelings  7cp4 v4 #dgd1
 #dge74 ,they are partly facetious1 but 
also contain a germ of  truth4 ,that    
science is a whole1 remains a true      
principle of inductive as  well as of   
metaphysical philosophy2 and the love of
 universal knowledge is  still the      
characteristic of the philosopher in    
modern as well as in  ancient times4    
,at the end of the fifth book ,plato    
introduces the figment of contingent    
matter1 which has exercised so great an 
influence both on the ,ethics and       
,theology of the modern world1 and which
 occurs here for the first time in  the 
history of philosophy4 ,he did not      
remark that the degrees of knowledge  in

 the subject have nothing corresponding 
to them in the object4 ,with him  a word
 must answer to an idea2 and he could   
not conceive of an opinion  which was an
 opinion about nothing4 ,the influence  
of analogy led him to  invent 'parallels
 and conjugates' and to overlook facts4 
,to us lxxx some  of his difficulties   
are puzzling only from their simplicity3
 we do not  perceive that the answer to 
them 'is tumbling out at our feet4' ,to 
the  mind of early thinkers1 the        
conception of not-being was dark and    
mysterious 7,sophist1 #bed ,a72 they did
 not see that this terrible  apparition 
which threatened destruction to all     
knowledge was only a  logical           
determination4 ,the common term under   
which1 through the accidental  use of   
language1 two entirely different ideas  
were included was another  source of    
confusion4 ,thus through the ambiguity  
of ,greek3 dokein1  phai_/netai1        
e7_/oiken1 k4t4l41 ,plato1 attempting to
 introduce order into  the first chaos  

of human thought1 seems to have confused
 perception and  opinion1 and to have   
failed to distinguish the contingent    
from the  relative4 ,in the ,theaetetus 
the first of these difficulties begins  
to  clear up2 in the ,sophist the       
second2 and for this1 as well as for    
other  reasons1 both these dialogues are
 probably to be regarded as later than  
the ,republic4           99       99    
99       99       99    ,sidenote3      
,republic ,,vi4 ,analysis4    ,,book    
,,vi4 99#dhd99 ,having determined that  
the many have no knowledge of true      
being1 and have no clear patterns in    
their minds of justice1 beauty1  truth1 
and that philosophers have such         
patterns1 we have now to ask  whether   
they or the many shall be rulers in our 
,state4 ,but who can doubt  that        
philosophers should be chosen1 if they  
have the other qualities which  are     
required in a ruler8 99#dhe99 ,for they 
are lovers of the knowledge of the      
eternal and of all truth2 they are      

haters of falsehood2 their meaner       
desires are absorbed in the interests of
 knowledge2 they are spectators of  all 
time and all existence2 99#dhf99 and in 
the magnificence of their  contemplation
 the life of man is as nothing to them1 
nor is death fearful4  ,also they are of
 a social1 gracious disposition1 equally
 free from  cowardice and arrogance4    
,they learn and remember easily2 they   
have  harmonious1 well-regulated minds2 
truth flows to them sweetly by nature4  
,can the god of ,jealousy himself       
99#dhg99 find any fault with such an    
assemblage of good qualities8    ,here  
,adeimantus interposes3--',no man can   
answer you1 ,socrates2 but every  man   
feels that this is owing to his own     
deficiency in argument4 ,he is  driven  
from one position to another1 until he  
has nothing more to say1  just as an    
unskilful player at draughts is reduced 
to his last move by a  more skilled     
opponent4 ,and yet all the time he may  
be right4 lxxxi ,he  may know1 in this  

very instance1 that those who make      
philosophy the  business of their lives1
 generally turn out rogues if they are  
bad men1  and fools if they are good4   
,what do you say8' ,i should say that he
 is  quite right4 ',then how is such an 
admission reconcileable with the        
doctrine that philosophers should be    
kings8'    99#dhh99 ,i shall answer you 
in a parable which will also let you see
 how poor  a hand ,i am at the invention
 of allegories4 ,the relation of good   
men to  their governments is so         
peculiar1 that in order to defend them  
,i must take  an illustration from the  
world of fiction4 ,conceive the captain 
of a ship1  taller by a head and        
shoulders than any of the crew1 yet a   
little deaf1 a  little blind1 and rather
 ignorant of the seaman's art4 ,the     
sailors want to  steer1 although they   
know nothing of the art2 and they have a
 theory that  it cannot be learned4 ,if 
the helm is refused them1 they drug the 
captain's  posset1 bind him hand and    

foot1 and take possession of the ship4  
,he who  joins in the mutiny is termed a
 good pilot and what not2 they have no  
conception that the true pilot must     
observe the winds and the stars1 and    
must be their master1 whether they like 
it or not2--such an one would be  called
 by them fool1 prater1 star-gazer4      
99#dhi99 ,this is my parable2 which ,i  
will beg you to interpret for me to     
those gentlemen who ask why the         
philosopher has such an evil name1 and  
to explain to them that not he1 but     
those who will not use him1 are to blame
 for his uselessness4 ,the  philosopher 
should not beg of mankind to be put in  
authority over them4  ,the wise man     
should not seek the rich1 as the proverb
 bids1 but every man1  whether rich or  
poor1 must knock at the door of the     
physician when he has  need of him4 ,now
 the pilot is the philosopher--he whom  
in the parable they  call star-gazer1   
and the mutinous sailors are the mob of 
politicians by  whom he is rendered     

useless4 ,not that these are the worst  
enemies of  philosophy1 who is far more 
dishonoured by her own professing sons  
when  they are corrupted by the world4  
99#dij99 ,need ,i recall the original   
image of  the philosopher8 ,did we not  
say of him just now1 that he loved truth
 and  hated falsehood1 and that he could
 not rest in the multiplicity of        
phenomena1 but was led by a sympathy in 
his own nature to the  contemplation of 
the absolute8 ,all the virtues as well  
as truth1 who is  the leader of them1   
took up their abode in his soul4 ,but as
 you were  observing1 if we turn aside  
to view the reality1 we see lxxxii that 
the  persons who were thus described1   
with the exception of a small and       
useless  class1 are utter rogues4       
,the point which has to be considered1  
is the origin of this corruption in     
nature4 99#dia99 ,every one will admit  
that the philosopher1 in our            
description of him1 is a rare being4    
,but what numberless causes tend to     

destroy these rare beings6 ,there is no 
good thing which may not be a cause  of 
evil--health1 wealth1 strength1 rank1   
and the virtues themselves1 when  placed
 under unfavourable circumstances4 ,for 
as in the animal or vegetable  world the
 strongest seeds most need the          
accompaniment of good air and  soil1 so 
the best of human characters turn out   
the worst when they fall  upon an       
unsuitable soil2 whereas weak natures   
hardly ever do any  considerable good or
 harm2 they are not the stuff out of    
which either  great criminals or great  
heroes are made4 99#dib99 ,the          
philosopher follows  the same analogy3  
he is either the best or the worst of   
all men4 ,some  persons say that the    
,sophists are the corrupters of youth2  
but is not  public opinion the real     
,sophist who is everywhere present--in  
those very  persons1 in the assembly1 in
 the courts1 in the camp1 in the        
applauses and  hisses of the theatre    
re-echoed by the surrounding hills8     

,will not a young  man's heart leap amid
 these discordant sounds8 and will any  
education save  him from being carried  
away by the torrent8 ,nor is this all4  
,for if he  will not yield to opinion1  
there follows the gentle compulsion of  
exile or  death4 ,what principle of     
rival ,sophists or anybody else can     
overcome in  such an unequal contest8   
,characters there may be more than      
human1 99#dic99  who are                
exceptions--,god may save a man1 but not
 his own strength4 ,further1  ,i would  
have you consider that the hireling     
,sophist only gives back to the  world  
their own opinions2 he is the keeper of 
the monster1 who knows how  to flatter  
or anger him1 and observes the meaning  
of his inarticulate  grunts4 ,good is   
what pleases him1 evil what he dislikes2
 truth and beauty  are determined only  
by the taste of the brute4 ,such is the 
,sophist's  wisdom1 and such is the     
condition of those who make public      
opinion the  test of truth1 whether in  

art or in morals4 ,the curse is laid    
upon them of  being and doing what it   
approves1 and when they attempt first   
principles  the failure is ludicrous4   
,think of all this and ask yourself     
whether the  world is more likely to be 
a believer in the unity of the idea1 or 
in the  multiplicity of phenomena4 ,and 
the world if not a believer lxxxiii in  
the idea cannot be a philosopher1       
99#did99 and must therefore be a        
persecutor  of philosophers4 ,there is  
another evil3--the world does not like  
to lose  the gifted nature1 and so they 
flatter the young ,alcibiades into a    
magnificent opinion of his own capacity2
 the tall1 proper youth begins to       
expand1 and is dreaming of kingdoms and 
empires4 ,if at this instant a  friend  
whispers to him1 ',now the gods lighten 
thee2 thou art a great fool'  and must  
be educated--do you think that he will  
listen8 ,or suppose a  better sort of   
man who is attracted towards philosophy1
 will they not make  ,herculean efforts 

to spoil and corrupt him8 99#die99 ,are 
we not right in  saying that the love of
 knowledge1 no less than riches1 may    
divert him8  ,men of this class ,critias
 often become politicians--they are the 
authors  of great mischief in states1   
and sometimes also of great good4 ,and  
thus  philosophy is deserted by her     
natural protectors1 and others enter in 
and  dishonour her4 ,vulgar little minds
 see the land open and rush from the    
prisons of the arts into her temple4 ,a 
clever mechanic having a soul  coarse as
 his body1 thinks that he will gain     
caste by becoming her suitor4  ,for     
philosophy1 even in her fallen estate1  
has a dignity of her own--and  he1 like 
a bald little blacksmith's apprentice as
 he is1 having made some  money and got 
out of durance1 washes and dresses      
himself as a bridegroom  and marries his
 master's daughter4 99#dif99 ,what will 
be the issue of such  marriages8 ,will  
they not be vile and bastard1 devoid of 
truth and nature8  ',they will4' ,small1

 then1 is the remnant of genuine        
philosophers2 there  may be a few who   
are citizens of small states1 in which  
politics are not  worth thinking of1 or 
who have been detained by ,theages'     
bridle of ill  health2 for my own case  
of the oracular sign is almost unique1  
and too  rare to be worth mentioning4   
,and these few when they have tasted the
  pleasures of philosophy1 and have     
taken a look at that den of thieves and 
place of wild beasts1 which is human    
life1 will stand aside from the storm   
under the shelter of a wall1 and try to 
preserve their own innocence and  to    
depart in peace4 ',a great work1 too1   
will have been accomplished by  them4'  
,great1 yes1 but not the greatest2 for  
man is a social being1 and  can only    
attain his highest development in the   
society which is best  suited to him4   
99#dig99 ,enough1 then1 of the causes   
why philosophy has such an evil name4   
,another question is1 ,which of existing
 states is suited to her8 ,not one of   

them2 at present she is like some exotic
 seed lxxxiv which degenerates  in a    
strange soil2 only in her proper state  
will she be shown to be of  heavenly    
growth4 ',and is her proper state ours  
or some other8' ,ours in all  points but
 one1 which was left undetermined4 ,you 
may remember our saying  that some      
living mind or witness of the legislator
 was needed in states4  ,but we were    
afraid to enter upon a subject of such  
difficulty1 and now the  question recurs
 and has not grown easier3--,how may    
philosophy be safely  studied8 ,let us  
bring her into the light of day1 and    
make an end of the  inquiry4    ,in the 
first place1 ,i say boldly that nothing 
can be worse than the  present mode of  
study4 99#dih99 ,persons usually pick up
 a little philosophy  in early youth1   
and in the intervals of business1 but   
they never master  the real difficulty1 
which is dialectic4 ,later1 perhaps1    
they occasionally  go to a lecture on   
philosophy4 ,years advance1 and the sun 

of philosophy1  unlike that of          
,heracleitus1 sets never to rise again4 
,this order of  education should be     
reversed2 it should begin with          
gymnastics in youth1  and as the man    
strengthens1 he should increase the     
gymnastics of his soul4  ,then1 when    
active life is over1 let him finally    
return to philosophy4 ',you  are in     
earnest1 ,socrates1 but the world will  
be equally earnest in  withstanding     
you--no more than ,thrasymachus4' ,do   
not make a quarrel  between             
,thrasymachus and me1 who were never    
enemies and are now good  friends       
enough4 ,and ,i shall do my best to     
convince him and all mankind of  the    
truth of my words1 or at any rate to    
prepare for the future when1 in  another
 life1 we may again take part in similar
 discussions4 ',that will be  a long    
time hence4' ,not long in comparison    
with eternity4 ,the many will  probably 
remain incredulous1 for they have never 
seen the natural unity of  ideas1 but   

only artificial juxtapositions2 not free
 and generous thoughts1  but tricks of  
controversy and quips of law2-- 99#dii99
 a perfect man ruling  in a perfect     
state1 even a single one they have not  
known4 ,and we foresaw  that there was  
no chance of perfection either in states
 or individuals  until a necessity was  
laid upon philosophers--not the rogues1 
but those  whom we called the useless   
class--of holding office2 or until the  
sons of  kings were inspired with a true
 love of philosophy4 ,whether in the    
infinity of past time there has been1 or
 is in some distant land1 or ever  will 
be hereafter1 an ideal such as we have  
described1 we stoutly maintain  that    
there has been1 is1 and lxxxv will be   
such a state whenever the  ,muse of     
philosophy rules4 99#ejj99 ,will you say
 that the world is of another  mind8 ,o1
 my friend1 do not revile the world6    
,they will soon change their  opinion if
 they are gently entreated1 and are     
taught the true nature of  the          

philosopher4 ,who can hate a man who    
loves him8 ,or be jealous of one  who   
has no jealousy8 ,consider1 again1 that 
the many hate not the true but  the     
false philosophers--the pretenders who  
force their way in without  invitation1 
and are always speaking of persons and  
not of principles1  which is unlike the 
spirit of philosophy4 ,for the true     
philosopher  despises earthly strife2   
his eye is fixed on the eternal order in
  accordance with which he moulds       
himself into the ,divine image 7and not 
himself only1 but other men71 and is the
 creator of the virtues private as  well
 as public4 ,when mankind see that the  
happiness of states is only to  be found
 in that image1 will they be angry with 
us for attempting to  delineate it8     
',certainly not4 ,but what will be the  
process of  delineation8' 99#eja99 ,the 
artist will do nothing until he has made
 a tabula  rasa2 on this he will        
inscribe the constitution of a state1   
glancing  often at the divine truth of  

nature1 and from that deriving the      
godlike  among men1 mingling the two    
elements1 rubbing out and painting in1  
until  there is a perfect harmony or    
fusion of the divine and human4 ,but    
perhaps  the world will doubt the       
existence of such an artist4 ,what will 
they  doubt8 ,that the philosopher is a 
lover of truth1 having a nature akin to 
the best8--and if they admit this will  
they still quarrel with us for  making  
philosophers our kings8 ',they will be  
less disposed to quarrel4'  99#ejb99    
,let us assume then that they are       
pacified4 ,still1 a person may  hesitate
 about the probability of the son of a  
king being a philosopher4  ,and we do   
not deny that they are very liable to be
 corrupted2 but yet  surely in the      
course of ages there might be one       
exception--and one is  enough4 ,if one  
son of a king were a philosopher1 and   
had obedient  citizens1 he might bring  
the ideal polity into being4 ,hence we  
conclude  that our laws are not only the

 best1 but that they are also possible1 
though not free from difficulty4    ,i  
gained nothing by evading the           
troublesome questions which arose       
concerning women and children4 ,i will  
be wiser now and acknowledge that we    
must go to the bottom of another        
question3 ,what is to be the education  
of  our guardians8 ,it was lxxxvi agreed
 that they were to be lovers of their   
country1 99#ejc99 and were to be tested 
in the refiner's fire of pleasures  and 
pains1 and those who came forth pure and
 remained fixed in their  principles    
were to have honours and rewards in life
 and after death4 ,but  at this point1  
the argument put on her veil and turned 
into another path4  ,i hesitated to make
 the assertion which ,i now             
hazard1--that our guardians  must be    
philosophers4 ,you remember all the     
contradictory elements1 which  met in   
the philosopher--how difficult to find  
them all in a single person6            
,intelligence and spirit are not often  

combined with steadiness2 the  stolid1  
fearless1 nature is averse to           
intellectual toil4 ,and yet these       
opposite elements are all necessary1 and
 therefore1 as we were saying  before1  
the aspirant must be tested in pleasures
 and dangers2 and also1 as  we must now 
further add1 99#ejd99 in the highest    
branches of knowledge4 ,you  will       
remember1 that when we spoke of the     
virtues mention was made of a  longer   
road1 which you were satisfied to leave 
unexplored4 ',enough seemed  to have    
been said4' ,enough1 my friend2 but what
 is enough while anything  remains      
wanting8 ,of all men the guardian must  
not faint in the search  after truth2 he
 must be prepared to take the longer    
road1 or he will never  reach that      
higher region which is above the four   
virtues2 and of the  virtues too he must
 not only get an outline1 but a clear   
and distinct  vision4 7,strange that we 
should be so precise about trifles1 so  
careless  about the highest truths67    

',and what are the highest8' 99#eje99   
,you to  pretend unconsciousness1 when  
you have so often heard me speak of the 
idea  of good1 about which we know so   
little1 and without which though a man  
gain the world he has no profit of it6  
,some people imagine that the good  is  
wisdom2 but this involves a circle1--the
 good1 they say1 is wisdom1  wisdom has 
to do with the good4 ,according to      
others the good is pleasure2  but then  
comes the absurdity that good is bad1   
for there are bad pleasures  as well as 
good4 ,again1 the good must have        
reality2 a man may desire the           
appearance of virtue1 but he will not   
desire the appearance of good4 ,ought   
our guardians then to be ignorant of    
this supreme principle1 99#ejf99 of     
which every man has a presentiment1 and 
without which no man has any real       
knowledge of anything8 ',but1 ,socrates1
 what is this supreme principle1        
knowledge or pleasure1 or what8 ,you may
 think me troublesome1 but ,i say  that 

you have no business to be always       
lxxxvii repeating the doctrines  of     
others instead of giving us your own4'  
,can ,i say what ,i do not know8  ',you 
may offer an opinion4' ,and will the    
blindness and crookedness of  opinion   
content you when you might have the     
light and certainty of  science8 ',i    
will only ask you to give such an       
explanation of the good as  you have    
given already of temperance and         
justice4' ,i wish that ,i could1  but in
 my present mood ,i cannot reach to the 
height of the knowledge of  the good4   
99#ejg99 ,to the parent or principal ,i 
cannot introduce you1 but to  the child 
begotten in his image1 which ,i may     
compare with the interest on  the       
principal1 ,i will4 7,audit the account1
 and do not let me give you a  false    
statement of the debt47 ,you remember   
our old distinction of the many         
beautiful and the one beautiful1 the    
particular and the universal1 the       
objects of sight and the objects of     

thought8 ,did you ever consider that    
the objects of sight imply a faculty of 
sight which is the most complex  and    
costly of our senses1 requiring not only
 objects of sense1 but also a  medium1  
which is light2 without which the sight 
will not distinguish  between colours   
and all will be a blank8 99#ejh99 ,for  
light is the noble bond  between the    
perceiving faculty and the thing        
perceived1 and the god who  gives us    
light is the sun1 who is the eye of the 
day1 but is not to be  confounded with  
the eye of man4 ,this eye of the day or 
sun is what ,i call  the child of the   
good1 standing in the same relation to  
the visible world  as the good to the   
intellectual4 ,when the sun shines the  
eye sees1 and in  the intellectual world
 where truth is1 there is sight and     
light4 ,now that  which is the sun of   
intelligent natures1 is the idea of     
good1 the cause of  knowledge and truth1
 yet other and fairer than they are1    
99#eji99 and  standing in the same      

relation to them in which the sun stands
 to light4 ,o  inconceivable height of  
beauty1 which is above knowledge and    
above truth6  7',you cannot surely mean 
pleasure1' he said4 ,peace1 ,i replied47
 ,and this  idea of good1 like the sun1 
is also the cause of growth1 and the    
author  not of knowledge only1 but of   
being1 yet greater far than either in   
dignity and power4 ',that is a reach of 
thought more than human2 but1 pray1  go 
on with the image1 for ,i suspect that  
there is more behind4' ,there is1  ,i   
said2 and bearing in mind our two suns  
or principles1 imagine further  their   
corresponding worlds--one of the        
visible1 the other of the  intelligible2
 you may assist your fancy by figuring  
the distinction under  the image        
lxxxviii of a line divided into two     
unequal parts1 and may  again subdivide 
each part into two lesser segments      
representative of the  stages of        
knowledge in either sphere4 ,the lower  
portion of the lower or  visible sphere 

will consist of shadows and reflections1
 99#eaj99 and its  upper and smaller    
portion will contain real objects in the
 world of nature  or of art4 ,the sphere
 of the intelligible will also have two 
divisions1--one of mathematics1 in which
 there is no ascent but all is  descent2
 no inquiring into premises1 but only   
drawing of inferences4 ,in  this        
division the mind works with figures and
 numbers1 the images of which  are taken
 not from the shadows1 but from the     
objects1 although the truth  of them is 
seen only with the mind's eye2 and they 
are used as hypotheses  without being   
analysed4 99#eaa99 ,whereas in the other
 division reason uses  the hypotheses as
 stages or steps in the ascent to the   
idea of good1 to  which she fastens     
them1 and then again descends1 walking  
firmly in the  region of ideas1 and of  
ideas only1 in her ascent as well as    
descent1 and  finally resting in them4  
',i partly understand1' he replied2 'you
 mean that  the ideas of science are    

superior to the hypothetical1           
metaphorical  conceptions of geometry   
and the other arts or sciences1         
whichever is to be  the name of them2   
and the latter conceptions you refuse to
 make subjects  of pure intellect1      
because they have no first principle1   
although when  resting on a first       
principle1 they pass into the higher    
sphere4' ,you  understand me very well1 
,i said4 ,and now to those four         
divisions of  knowledge you may assign  
four corresponding faculties--pure      
intelligence  to the highest sphere2    
active intelligence to the second2 to   
the third1  faith2 to the fourth1 the   
perception of shadows--and the clearness
 of the  several faculties will be in   
the same ratio as the truth of the      
objects to  which they are related4444  
99       99       99       99       99  
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,vi4              
,introduction4    ,like ,socrates1 we   
may recapitulate the virtues of the     
philosopher4 ,in  language which seems  

to reach beyond the horizon of that age 
and country1  he is described as 'the   
spectator of all time and all           
existence4' ,he has  the noblest gifts  
of nature1 and makes the highest use of 
them4 ,all his  desires are absorbed in 
the love of wisdom1 which is the love of
 truth4  ,none of the graces of a       
beautiful soul are wanting in him2      
neither can he  fear death1 or think    
much of human life4 ,the ideal of modern
 lxxxix  times hardly retains the       
simplicity of the antique2 there is not 
the same  originality either in truth or
 error which characterized the ,greeks4 
,the  philosopher is no longer living in
 the unseen1 nor is he sent by an oracle
  to convince mankind of ignorance2 nor 
does he regard knowledge as a system  of
 ideas leading upwards by regular stages
 to the idea of good4 ,the  eagerness of
 the pursuit has abated2 there is more  
division of labour and  less of         
comprehensive reflection upon nature and
 human life as a whole2  more of exact  

observation and less of anticipation and
 inspiration4 ,still1  in the altered   
conditions of knowledge1 the parallel is
 not wholly lost2  and there may be a   
use in translating the conception of    
,plato into the  language of our own    
age4 ,the philosopher in modern times is
 one who fixes  his mind on the laws of 
nature in their sequence and connexion1 
not on  fragments or pictures of nature2
 on history1 not on controversy2 on the 
truths which are acknowledged by the    
few1 not on the opinions of the many4   
,he is aware of the importance of       
'classifying according to nature1' and  
will try to 'separate the limbs of      
science without breaking them' 7,phaedr4
  #bfe ,e74 ,there is no part of truth1 
whether great or small1 which he will   
dishonour2 and in the least things he   
will discern the greatest 7,parmen4     
#acj ,c74 ,like the ancient philosopher 
he sees the world pervaded by           
analogies1 but he can also tell 'why in 
some cases a single instance is         

sufficient for an induction' 7,mill's   
,logic1 #c1 #c1 #c71 while in other     
cases  a thousand examples would prove  
nothing4 ,he inquires into a portion of 
knowledge only1 because the whole has   
grown too vast to be embraced by a      
single mind or life4 ,he has a clearer  
conception of the divisions of  science 
and of their relation to the mind of man
 than was possible to the  ancients4    
,like ,plato1 he has a vision of the    
unity of knowledge1 not as  the         
beginning of philosophy to be attained  
by a study of elementary  mathematics1  
but as the far-off result of the working
 of many minds in  many ages4 ,he is    
aware that mathematical studies are     
preliminary to almost  every other2 at  
the same time1 he will not reduce all   
varieties of  knowledge to the type of  
mathematics4 ,he too must have a        
nobility of  character1 without which   
genius loses the better half of         
greatness4  ,regarding the world as a   
point in immensity1 and each individual 

as a link  in a never-ending chain of   
existence1 he will not think much of his
 own  life1 or be greatly afraid of     
death4    xc ,adeimantus objects first  
of all to the form of the ,socratic     
reasoning1 thus showing that ,plato is  
aware of the imperfection of his own    
method4 ,he brings the accusation       
against himself which might be brought  
against him by a modern logician--that  
he extracts the answer because he  knows
 how to put the question4 ,in a long    
argument words are apt to change  their 
meaning slightly1 or premises may be    
assumed or conclusions inferred  with   
rather too much certainty or            
universality2 the variation at each step
  may be unobserved1 and yet at last the
 divergence becomes considerable4       
,hence the failure of attempts to apply 
arithmetical or algebraic formulae  to  
logic4 ,the imperfection1 or rather the 
higher and more elastic nature  of      
language1 does not allow words to have  
the precision of numbers or of  symbols4

 ,and this quality in language impairs  
the force of an argument  which has many
 steps4    ,the objection1 though fairly
 met by ,socrates in this particular    
instance1  may be regarded as implying a
 reflection upon the ,socratic mode of  
reasoning4 ,and here1 as as at p4 #ejf  
,b1 ,plato seems to intimate that the   
time had come when the negative and     
interrogative method of ,socrates must  
be superseded by a positive and         
constructive one1 of which examples are 
given in some of the later dialogues4   
,adeimantus further argues that the     
ideal is wholly at variance with facts2 
for experience proves philosophers  to  
be either useless or rogues4 ,contrary  
to all expectation 7cp4 p4 #dig  for a  
similar surprise7 ,socrates has no      
hesitation in admitting the truth  of   
this1 and explains the anomaly in an    
allegory1 first characteristically      
depreciating his own inventive powers4  
,in this allegory the people are        
distinguished from the professional     

politicians1 and1 as elsewhere1 are     
spoken of in a tone of pity rather than 
of censure under the image of 'the      
noble captain who is not very quick in  
his perceptions4'    ,the uselessness of
 philosophers is explained by the       
circumstance that  mankind will not use 
them4 ,the world in all ages has been   
divided between  contempt and fear of   
those who employ the power of ideas and 
know no other  weapons4 ,concerning the 
false philosopher1 ,socrates argues that
 the best  is most liable to corruption2
 and that the finer nature is more      
likely to  suffer from alien conditions4
 ,we too observe that there are some    
kinds  xci of excellence which spring   
from a peculiar delicacy of             
constitution2  as is evidently true of  
the poetical and imaginative            
temperament1 which  often seems to      
depend on impressions1 and hence can    
only breathe or live  in a certain      
atmosphere4 ,the man of genius has      
greater pains and greater  pleasures1   

greater powers and greater weaknesses1  
and often a greater play  of character  
than is to be found in ordinary men4 ,he
 can assume the  disguise of virtue or  
disinterestedness without having them1  
or veil  personal enmity in the language
 of patriotism and philosophy1--he can  
say  the word which all men are         
thinking1 he has an insight which is    
terrible  into the follies and          
weaknesses of his fellow-men4 ,an       
,alcibiades1 a  ,mirabeau1 or a         
,napoleon the ,first1 are born either to
 be the authors of  great evils in      
states1 or 'of great good1 when they are
 drawn in that  direction4'    ,yet the 
thesis1 'corruptio optimi pessima1'     
cannot be maintained generally  or      
without regard to the kind of excellence
 which is corrupted4 ,the alien         
conditions which are corrupting to one  
nature1 may be the elements of  culture 
to another4 ,in general a man can only  
receive his highest  development in a   
congenial state or family1 among friends

 or  fellow-workers4 ,but also he may   
sometimes be stirred by adverse         
circumstances to such a degree that he  
rises up against them and reforms  them4
 ,and while weaker or coarser characters
 will extract good out of  evil1 say in 
a corrupt state of the church or of     
society1 and live on  happily1 allowing 
the evil to remain1 the finer or        
stronger natures may be  crushed or     
spoiled by surrounding influences--may  
become misanthrope and  philanthrope by 
turns2 or in a few instances1 like the  
founders of the  monastic orders1 or the
 ,reformers1 owing to some peculiarity  
in themselves  or in their age1 may     
break away entirely from the world and  
from the  church1 sometimes into great  
good1 sometimes into great evil1        
sometimes  into both4 ,and the same     
holds in the lesser sphere of a convent1
 a school1  a family4    ,plato would   
have us consider how easily the best    
natures are overpowered  by public      
opinion1 and what efforts the rest of   

mankind will make to get  possession of 
them4 ,the world1 the church1 their own 
profession1 any  political or party     
organization1 are always carrying them  
off their legs  and teaching them to    
apply high and holy names to their own  
prejudices and  interests4 xcii ,the    
'monster' corporation to which they     
belong judges  right and truth to be the
 pleasure of the community4 ,the        
individual  becomes one with his order2 
or1 if he resists1 the world is too much
 for  him1 and will sooner or later be  
revenged on him4 ,this is1 perhaps1 a   
one-sided but not wholly untrue picture 
of the maxims and practice of  mankind  
when they 'sit down together at an      
assembly1' either in ancient or  modern 
times4    ,when the higher natures are  
corrupted by politics1 the lower take   
possession of the vacant place of       
philosophy4 ,this is described in one of
  those continuous images in which the  
argument1 to use a ,platonic            
expression1 'veils herself1' and which  

is dropped and reappears at  intervals4 
,the question is asked1--,why are the   
citizens of states so  hostile to       
philosophy8 ,the answer is1 that they do
 not know her4 ,and yet  there is also a
 better mind of the many2 they would    
believe if they were  taught4 ,but      
hitherto they have only known a         
conventional imitation of  philosophy1  
words without thoughts1 systems which   
have no life in them2 a  divine person  
uttering the words of beauty and        
freedom1 the friend of  man holding     
communion with the ,eternal1 and seeking
 to frame the state in  that image1 they
 have never known4 ,the same double     
feeling respecting the  mass of mankind 
has always existed among men4 ,the first
 thought is that  the people are the    
enemies of truth and right2 the second1 
that this only  arises out of an        
accidental error and confusion1 and that
 they do not  really hate those who love
 them1 if they could be educated to know
 them4    ,in the latter part of the    

sixth book1 three questions have to be  
considered3 #ast1 the nature of the     
longer and more circuitous way1 which   
is contrasted with the shorter and more 
imperfect method of ,book ,,iv2 #bnd1   
the heavenly pattern or idea of the     
state2 #crd1 the relation of the        
divisions of knowledge to one another   
and to the corresponding faculties  of  
the soul4    #a4 ,of the higher method  
of knowledge in ,plato we have only a   
glimpse4  ,neither here nor in the      
,phaedrus or ,symposium1 nor yet in the 
,philebus or  ,sophist1 does he give any
 clear explanation of his meaning4 ,he  
would  probably have described his      
method as proceeding by regular steps to
 a  system of universal knowledge1 which
 inferred the parts from the whole      
rather than the whole from the parts4   
,this ideal logic is not practised by   
him xciii in the search after justice1  
or in the analysis of the parts  of the 
soul2 there1 like ,aristotle in the     
,nicomachean ,ethics1 he argues  from   

experience and the common use of        
language4 ,but at the end of the  sixth 
book he conceives another and more      
perfect method1 in which all  ideas are 
only steps or grades or moments of      
thought1 forming a connected  whole     
which is self-supporting1 and in which  
consistency is the test of  truth4 ,he  
does not explain to us in detail the    
nature of the process4 ,like  many other
 thinkers both in ancient and modern    
times his mind seems to be  filled with 
a vacant form which he is unable to     
realize4 ,he supposes the  sciences to  
have a natural order and connexion in an
 age when they can  hardly be said to   
exist4 ,he is hastening on to the 'end  
of the  intellectual world' without even
 making a beginning of them4    ,in     
modern times we hardly need to be       
reminded that the process of  acquiring 
knowledge is here confused with the     
contemplation of absolute  knowledge4   
,in all science a priori and a          
posteriori truths mingle in  various    

proportions4 ,the a priori part is that 
which is derived from the  most         
universal experience of men1 or is      
universally accepted by them2 the  a    
posteriori is that which grows up around
 the more general principles  and       
becomes imperceptibly one with them4    
,but ,plato erroneously imagines  that  
the synthesis is separable from the     
analysis1 and that the method of        
science can anticipate science4 ,in     
entertaining such a vision of a  priori 
knowledge he is sufficiently justified1 
or at least his meaning  may be         
sufficiently explained by the similar   
attempts of ,descartes1 ,kant1  ,hegel1 
and even of ,bacon himself1 in modern   
philosophy4 ,anticipations or           
divinations1 or prophetic glimpses of   
truths whether concerning man or        
nature1 seem to stand in the same       
relation to ancient philosophy which    
hypotheses bear to modern inductive     
science4 ,these 'guesses at truth' were 
not made at random2 they arose from a   

superficial impression of  uniformities 
and first principles in nature which the
 genius of the ,greek1  contemplating   
the expanse of heaven and earth1 seemed 
to recognize in the  distance4 ,nor can 
we deny that in ancient times knowledge 
must have stood  still1 and the human   
mind been deprived of the very          
instruments of  thought1 if philosophy  
had been strictly confined to the       
results of  experience4    xciv #b4     
,plato supposes that when the tablet has
 been made blank the  artist will fill  
in the lineaments of the ideal state4   
,is this a pattern  laid up in heaven1  
or mere vacancy on which he is supposed 
to gaze with  wondering eye8 ,the answer
 is1 that such ideals are framed partly 
by the  omission of particulars1 partly 
by imagination perfecting the form which
  experience supplies 7,phaedo1 #gd74   
,plato represents these ideals in a     
figure as belonging to another world2   
and in modern times the idea will       
sometimes seem to precede1 at other     

times to co-operate with the hand of    
the artist4 ,as in science1 so also in  
creative art1 there is a synthetical  as
 well as an analytical method4 ,one man 
will have the whole in his mind  before 
he begins2 to another the processes of  
mind and hand will be  simultaneous4    
#c4 ,there is no difficulty in seeing   
that ,plato's divisions of knowledge    
are based1 first1 on the fundamental    
antithesis of sensible and  intellectual
 which pervades the whole pre-,socratic 
philosophy2 in which is  implied also   
the opposition of the permanent and     
transient1 of the  universal and        
particular4 ,but the age of philosophy  
in which he lived  seemed to require a  
further distinction2--numbers and       
figures were  beginning to separate from
 ideas4 ,the world could no longer      
regard justice  as a cube1 and was      
learning to see1 though imperfectly1    
that the  abstractions of sense were    
distinct from the abstractions of mind4 
,between  the ,eleatic being or essence 

and the shadows of phenomena1 the       
,pythagorean  principle of number found 
a place1 and was1 as ,aristotle remarks1
 a  conducting medium from one to the   
other4 ,hence ,plato is led to introduce
 a  third term which had not hitherto   
entered into the scheme of his          
philosophy4 ,he had observed the use of 
mathematics in education2 they were  the
 best preparation for higher studies4   
,the subjective relation between  them  
further suggested an objective one2     
although the passage from one to  the   
other is really imaginary 7,metaph4 #a1 
#f1 #d74 ,for metaphysical and  moral   
philosophy has no connexion with        
mathematics2 number and figure are  the 
abstractions of time and space1 not the 
expressions of purely  intellectual     
conceptions4 ,when divested of metaphor1
 a straight line or a  square has no    
more to do with right and justice than a
 crooked line with  vice4 ,the          
figurative association was mistaken for 
a real one2 and thus the  three latter  

divisions of the ,platonic proportion   
were constructed4    xcv ,there is more 
difficulty in comprehending how he      
arrived at the  first term of the       
series1 which is nowhere else mentioned1
 and has no  reference to any other part
 of his system4 ,nor indeed does the    
relation of  shadows to objects         
correspond to the relation of numbers to
 ideas4  ,probably ,plato has been led  
by the love of analogy 7,timaeus1 p4 #cb
 ,b7 to  make four terms instead of     
three1 although the objects perceived in
 both  divisions of the lower sphere are
 equally objects of sense4 ,he is also  
preparing the way1 as his manner is1 for
 the shadows of images at the  beginning
 of the seventh book1 and the imitation 
of an imitation in the  tenth4 ,the line
 may be regarded as reaching from unity 
to infinity1 and is  divided into two   
unequal parts1 and subdivided into two  
more2 each lower  sphere is the         
multiplication of the preceding4 ,of the
 four faculties1  faith in the lower    

division has an intermediate position   
7cp4 for the use  of the word faith or  
belief1 ,greek3 pi_/stis1 ,timaeus1 #bi 
,c1 #cg ,b71  contrasting equally with  
the vagueness of the perception of      
shadows  7,greek3 ei7kasi_/a7 and the   
higher certainty of understanding       
7,greek3  dia_/noia7 and reason 7,greek3
 nous74    ,the difference between      
understanding and mind or reason        
7,greek3 nous7  is analogous to the     
difference between acquiring knowledge  
in the parts  and the contemplation of  
the whole4 ,true knowledge is a whole1  
and is at  rest2 consistency and        
universality are the tests of truth4 ,to
 this  self-evidencing knowledge of the 
whole the faculty of mind is supposed to
  correspond4 ,but there is a knowledge 
of the understanding which is           
incomplete and in motion always1 because
 unable to rest in the subordinate      
ideas4 ,those ideas are called both     
images and hypotheses--images because   
they are clothed in sense1 hypotheses   

because they are assumptions only1      
until they are brought into connexion   
with the idea of good4    ,the general  
meaning of the passage #ejh-eaa1 so far 
as the thought  contained in it admits  
of being translated into the terms of   
modern  philosophy1 may be described or 
explained as follows3--,there is a      
truth1  one and self-existent1 to which 
by the help of a ladder let down from   
above1 the human intelligence may       
ascend4 ,this unity is like the sun in  
the heavens1 the light by which all     
things are seen1 the being by which     
they are created and sustained4 ,it is  
the idea of good4 ,and the steps of  the
 ladder leading up to this highest or   
universal existence are the             
mathematical xcvi sciences1 which also  
contain in themselves an element  of the
 universal4 ,these1 too1 we see in a new
 manner when we connect them  with the  
idea of good4 ,they then cease to be    
hypotheses or pictures1 and  become     
essential parts of a higher truth which 

is at once their first  principle and   
their final cause4    ,we cannot give   
any more precise meaning to this        
remarkable passage1 but we  may trace in
 it several rudiments or vestiges of    
thought which are common  to us and to  
,plato3 such as 7#a7 the unity and      
correlation of the sciences1  or rather 
of science1 for in ,plato's time they   
were not yet parted off or              
distinguished2 7#b7 the existence of a  
,divine ,power1 or life or idea or      
cause or reason1 not yet conceived or no
 longer conceived as in the  ,timaeus   
and elsewhere under the form of a       
person2 7#c7 the recognition of  the    
hypothetical and conditional character  
of the mathematical sciences1  and in a 
measure of every science when isolated  
from the rest2 7#d7 the  conviction of a
 truth which is invisible1 and of a law1
 though hardly a  law of nature1 which  
permeates the intellectual rather than  
the visible  world4    ,the method of   
,socrates is hesitating and tentative1  

awaiting the fuller  explanation of the 
idea of good1 and of the nature of      
dialectic in the  seventh book4 ,the    
imperfect intelligence of ,glaucon1 and 
the reluctance of  ,socrates to make a  
beginning1 mark the difficulty of the   
subject4 ,the  allusion to ,theages'    
bridle1 and to the internal oracle1 or  
demonic sign1  of ,socrates1 which here1
 as always in ,plato1 is only           
prohibitory2 the  remark that the       
salvation of any remnant of good in the 
present evil state  of the world is due 
to ,god only2 the reference to a future 
state of  existence1 #dih ,d1 which is  
unknown to ,glaucon in the tenth book1  
#fjh ,d1  and in which the discussions  
of ,socrates and his disciples would be 
resumed2 the surprise in the answers at 
#dhg ,e and #dig ,b2 the fanciful  irony
 of ,socrates1 where he pretends that he
 can only describe the strange  position
 of the philosopher in a figure of      
speech2 the original  observation that  
the ,sophists1 after all1 are only the  

representatives and  not the leaders of 
public opinion2 the picture of the      
philosopher standing  aside in the      
shower of sleet under a wall2 the figure
 of 'the great beast'  followed by the  
expression of good-will towards the     
common people who  would not have       
rejected the philosopher if they had    
known him2 the 'right  noble thought'   
that the highest xcvii truths demand the
 greatest  exactness2 the hesitation of 
,socrates in returning once more to his 
well-worn theme of the idea of good2 the
 ludicrous earnestness of ,glaucon2  the
 comparison of philosophy to a deserted 
maiden who marries beneath  her--are    
some of the most interesting            
characteristics of the sixth book4      
,yet a few more words may be added1 on  
the old theme1 which was so oft         
discussed in the ,socratic circle1 of   
which we1 like ,glaucon and             
,adeimantus1 would fain1 if possible1   
have a clearer notion4 ,like them1 we   
are dissatisfied when we are told that  

the idea of good can only be  revealed  
to a student of the mathematical        
sciences1 and we are inclined to  think 
that neither we nor they could have been
 led along that path to any             
satisfactory goal4 ,for we have learned 
that differences of quantity cannot     
pass into differences of quality1 and   
that the mathematical sciences can      
never rise above themselves into the    
sphere of our higher thoughts1  although
 they may sometimes furnish symbols and 
expressions of them1 and  may train the 
mind in habits of abstraction and       
self-concentration4 ,the  illusion which
 was natural to an ancient philosopher  
has ceased to be an  illusion to us4    
,but if the process by which we are     
supposed to arrive at  the idea of good 
be really imaginary1 may not the idea   
itself be also a  mere abstraction8 ,we 
remark1 first1 that in all ages1 and    
especially in  primitive philosophy1    
words such as being1 essence1 unity1    
good1 have  exerted an extraordinary    

influence over the minds of men4 ,the   
meagreness  or negativeness of their    
content has been in an inverse ratio to 
their  power4 ,they have become the     
forms under which all things were       
comprehended4 ,there was a need or      
instinct in the human soul which they   
satisfied2 they were not ideas1 but     
gods1 and to this new mythology the  men
 of a later generation began to attach  
the powers and associations of  the     
elder deities4    ,the idea of good is  
one of those sacred words or forms of   
thought1 which  were beginning to take  
the place of the old mythology4 ,it     
meant unity1 in  which all time and all 
existence were gathered up4 ,it was the 
truth of all  things1 and also the light
 in which they shone forth1 and became  
evident  to intelligences human and     
divine4 ,it was the cause of all things1
 the  power by which they were brought  
into being4 ,it was the universal reason
  divested of a human personality4 ,it  
was the life as well as the xcviii      

light of the world1 all knowledge and   
all power were comprehended in it4  ,the
 way to it was through the mathematical 
sciences1 and these too were  dependent 
on it4 ,to ask whether ,god was the     
maker of it1 or made by it1  would be   
like asking whether ,god could be       
conceived apart from goodness1  or      
goodness apart from ,god4 ,the ,god of  
the ,timaeus is not really at  variance 
with the idea of good2 they are aspects 
of the same1 differing  only as the     
personal from the impersonal1 or the    
masculine from the  neuter1 the one     
being the expression or language of     
mythology1 the other  of philosophy4    
,this1 or something like this1 is the   
meaning of the idea of good as          
conceived by ,plato4 ,ideas of number1  
order1 harmony1 development may also  be
 said to enter into it4 ,the paraphrase 
which has just been given of it  goes   
beyond the actual words of ,plato4 ,we  
have perhaps arrived at the  stage of   
philosophy which enables us to          

understand what he is aiming at1  better
 than he did himself4 ,we are beginning 
to realize what he saw darkly  and at a 
distance4 ,but if he could have been    
told that this1 or some  conception of  
the same kind1 but higher than this1 was
 the truth at which  he was aiming1 and 
the need which he sought to supply1 he  
would gladly  have recognized that more 
was contained in his own thoughts than  
he  himself knew4 ,as his words are few 
and his manner reticent and tentative1  
so must the style of his interpreter be4
 ,we should not approach his  meaning   
more nearly by attempting to define it  
further4 ,in translating him  into the  
language of modern thought1 we might    
insensibly lose the spirit  of ancient  
philosophy4 ,it is remarkable that      
although ,plato speaks of the  idea of  
good as the first principle of truth and
 being1 it is nowhere  mentioned in his 
writings except in this passage4 ,nor   
did it retain any  hold upon the minds  
of his disciples in a later generation2 

it was  probably unintelligible to them4
 ,nor does the mention of it in         
,aristotle  appear to have any reference
 to this or any other passage in his    
extant  writings4           99       99 
99       99       99    ,sidenote3      
,republic ,,vii4 ,analysis4    ,,book   
,,vii4 99#ead99 ,and now ,i will        
describe in a figure the enlightenment  
or  unenlightenment of our              
nature3--,imagine human beings living in
 an  underground den which is open      
towards the light2 they have been there 
from  childhood1 having their necks and 
legs chained1 and can only see into the 
den4 xcix ,at a distance there is a     
fire1 and between the fire and the      
prisoners a raised way1 and a low wall  
is built along the way1 like the  screen
 over which marionette players show     
their puppets4 99#eae99 ,behind the     
wall appear moving figures1 who hold in 
their hands various works of art1  and  
among them images of men and animals1   
wood and stone1 and some of the         

passers-by are talking and others       
silent4 ',a strange parable1' he said1  
'and strange captives4' ,they are       
ourselves1 ,i replied2 and they see only
  the shadows of the images which the   
fire throws on the wall of the den2 to  
these they give names1 and if we add an 
echo which returns from the wall1  the  
voices of the passengers will seem to   
proceed from the shadows4  ,suppose now 
that you suddenly turn them round and   
make them look with pain  and grief to  
themselves at the real images2 will they
 believe them to be  real8 ,will not    
their eyes be dazzled1 and will they not
 try to get away  from the light to     
something which they are able to behold 
without  blinking8 99#eaf99 ,and suppose
 further1 that they are dragged up a    
steep and  rugged ascent into the       
presence of the sun himself1 will not   
their sight  be darkened with the excess
 of light8 ,some time will pass before  
they get  the habit of perceiving at    
all2 and at first they will be able to  

perceive  only shadows and reflections  
in the water2 then they will recognize  
the  moon and the stars1 and will at    
length behold the sun in his own proper 
place as he is4 ,last of all they will  
conclude3--,this is he who gives us  the
 year and the seasons1 and is the author
 of all that we see4 ,how will  they    
rejoice in passing from darkness to     
light6 ,how worthless to them will  seem
 the honours and glories of the den6    
,but now imagine further1 that  they    
descend into their old habitations2--in 
that underground dwelling  they will not
 see as well as their fellows1 99#eag99 
and will not be able to  compete with   
them in the measurement of the shadows  
on the wall2 there  will be many jokes  
about the man who went on a visit to the
 sun and lost  his eyes1 and if they    
find anybody trying to set free and     
enlighten one of  their number1 they    
will put him to death1 if they can catch
 him4 ,now the  cave or den is the world
 of sight1 the fire is the sun1 the way 

upwards is  the way to knowledge1 and in
 the world of knowledge the idea of good
 is  last seen and with difficulty1 but 
when seen is inferred to be the author  
of good and right--parent of the lord of
 light in this world1 and of truth  and 
understanding in the other4 c ,he who   
attains to the beatific vision  is      
always going upwards2 he is unwilling to
 descend into political  assemblies and 
courts of law2 for his eyes are apt to  
blink at the images  or shadows of      
images which they behold in them--he    
cannot enter into the  ideas of those   
who have never in their lives understood
 the relation of  the shadow to the     
substance4 99#eah99 ,but blindness is of
 two kinds1 and may  be caused either by
 passing out of darkness into light or  
out of light  into darkness1 and a man  
of sense will distinguish between them1 
and will  not laugh equally at both of  
them1 but the blindness which arises    
from  fulness of light he will deem     
blessed1 and pity the other2 or if he   

laugh  at the puzzled soul looking at   
the sun1 he will have more reason to    
laugh  than the inhabitants of the den  
at those who descend from above4 ,there 
is  a further lesson taught by this     
parable of ours4 ,some persons fancy    
that  instruction is like giving eyes to
 the blind1 but we say that the faculty 
of sight was always there1 and that the 
soul only requires to be turned  round  
towards the light4 ,and this is         
conversion2 other virtues are almost    
like bodily habits1 and may be acquired 
in the same manner1 but  intelligence   
has a diviner life1 and is              
indestructible1 turning either to  good 
or evil according to the direction      
given4 99#eai99 ,did you never observe  
how the mind of a clever rogue peers out
 of his eyes1 and the more clearly  he  
sees1 the more evil he does8 ,now if you
 take such an one1 and cut away  from   
him those leaden weights of pleasure and
 desire which bind his soul  to earth1  
his intelligence will be turned round1  

and he will behold the  truth as clearly
 as he now discerns his meaner ends4    
,and have we not  decided that our      
rulers must neither be so uneducated as 
to have no fixed  rule of life1 nor so  
over-educated as to be unwilling to     
leave their  paradise for the business  
of the world8 ,we must choose out       
therefore the  natures who are most     
likely to ascend to the light and       
knowledge of the  good2 but we must not 
allow them to remain in the region of   
light2 they  must be forced down again  
among the captives in the den to partake
 of  their labours and honours4 ',will  
they not think this a hardship8' ,you   
should remember that our purpose in     
framing the ,state was not that our     
citizens should do what they like1 but  
that they should serve the ,state  for  
the common good of all4 99#ebj99 ,may we
 not fairly say to our                  
philosopher1--,friend1 we do you no     
wrong2 for in other ci ,states          
philosophy grows wild1 and a wild plant 

owes nothing to the gardener1 but  you  
have been trained by us to be the rulers
 and kings of our hive1 and  therefore  
we must insist on your descending into  
the den4 ,you must1 each  of you1 take  
your turn1 and become able to use your  
eyes in the dark1 and  with a little    
practice you will see far better than   
those who quarrel  about the shadows1   
whose knowledge is a dream only1 whilst 
yours is a  waking reality4 ,it may be  
that the saint or philosopher who is    
best  fitted1 may also be the least     
inclined to rule1 but necessity is laid 
upon  him1 and he must no longer live in
 the heaven of ideas4 99#eba99 ,and this
  will be the salvation of the ,state4  
,for those who rule must not be those   
who are desirous to rule2 and1 if you   
can offer to our citizens a better  life
 than that of rulers generally is1 there
 will be a chance that the  rich1 not   
only in this world's goods1 but in      
virtue and wisdom1 may bear  rule4 ,and 
the only life which is better than the  

life of political  ambition is that of  
philosophy1 which is also the best      
preparation for the  government of a    
,state4    ,then now comes the          
question1--,how shall we create our     
rulers2 what way is  there from darkness
 to light8 ,the change is effected by   
philosophy2 it is  not the turning over 
of an oyster-shell1 but the conversion  
of a soul from  night to day1 from      
becoming to being4 ,and what training   
will draw the soul  upwards8 ,our former
 education had two branches1 gymnastic1 
which was  occupied with the body1 and  
music1 the sister art1 which infused    
99#ebb99 a  natural harmony into mind   
and literature2 but neither of these    
sciences  gave any promise of doing what
 we want4 ,nothing remains to us but    
that  universal or primary science of   
which all the arts and sciences are     
partakers1 ,i mean number or            
calculation4 ',very true4' ,including   
the art of  war8 ',yes1 certainly4'     
,then there is something ludicrous about

 ,palamedes  in the tragedy1 coming in  
and saying that he had invented number1 
and had  counted the ranks and set them 
in order4 ,for if ,agamemnon could not  
count  his feet 7and without number how 
could he87 he must have been a pretty   
sort of general indeed4 ,no man should  
be a soldier who cannot count1 and      
indeed he is hardly to be called a man4 
,but ,i am not speaking of these        
practical applications of arithmetic1   
99#ebc99 for number1 in my view1 is     
rather to be regarded as a conductor to 
thought and being4 ,i will explain  cii 
what ,i mean by the last                
expression3--,things sensible are of two
  kinds2 the one class invite or        
stimulate the mind1 while in the other  
the  mind acquiesces4 ,now the          
stimulating class are the things which  
suggest  contrast and relation4 ,for    
example1 suppose that ,i hold up to the 
eyes  three fingers--a fore finger1 a   
middle finger1 a little finger--the     
sight  equally recognizes all three     

fingers1 but without number cannot      
further  distinguish them4 ,or again1   
suppose two objects to be relatively    
great and  small1 these ideas of        
greatness and smallness are supplied not
 by the  sense1 but by the mind4        
99#ebd99 ,and the perception of their   
contrast or  relation quickens and sets 
in motion the mind1 which is puzzled by 
the  confused intimations of sense1 and 
has recourse to number in order to find 
out whether the things indicated are one
 or more than one4 ,number replies  that
 they are two and not one1 and are to be
 distinguished from one  another4       
,again1 the sight beholds great and     
small1 but only in a confused  chaos1   
and not until they are distinguished    
does the question arise of  their       
respective natures2 we are thus led on  
to the distinction between  the visible 
and intelligible4 ,that was what ,i     
meant when ,i spoke of  stimulants to   
the intellect2 ,i was thinking of the   
contradictions which  arise in          

perception4 ,the idea of unity1 for     
example1 like that of a  finger1 does   
not arouse thought unless involving some
 conception of  plurality2 99#ebe99 but 
when the one is also the opposite of    
one1 the  contradiction gives rise to   
reflection2 an example of this is       
afforded by  any object of sight4 ,all  
number has also an elevating effect2 it 
raises  the mind out of the foam and    
flux of generation to the contemplation 
of  being1 having lesser military and   
retail uses also4 ,the retail use is not
  required by us2 but as our guardian is
 to be a soldier as well as a           
philosopher1 the military one may be    
retained4 ,and to our higher purpose  no
 science can be better adapted2 but it  
must be pursued in the spirit of  a     
philosopher1 not of a shopkeeper4 ,it is
 concerned1 not with visible  objects1  
but with abstract truth2 for numbers are
 pure abstractions--the  true           
arithmetician indignantly denies that   
his unit is capable of  division4       

99#ebf99 ,when you divide1 he insists   
that you are only multiplying2  his     
'one' is not material or resolvable into
 fractions1 but an unvarying  and       
absolute equality2 and this proves the  
purely intellectual character  of his   
study4 ,note also the great power which 
arithmetic has of sharpening  the wits2 
no other discipline is equally ciii     
severe1 or an equal test  of general    
ability1 or equally improving to a      
stupid person4    ,let our second branch
 of education be geometry4 ',i can      
easily see1'  replied ,glaucon1 'that   
the skill of the general will be doubled
 by his  knowledge of geometry4' ,that  
is a small matter2 the use of geometry1 
to  which ,i refer1 is the assistance   
given by it in the contemplation of the 
idea of good1 and the compelling the    
mind to look at true being1 and not  at 
generation only4 ,yet the present mode  
of pursuing these studies1 as any  one  
who is the least of a mathematician is  
aware1 is mean and ridiculous2  they are

 made to look downwards to the arts1 and
 not upwards to eternal  existence4     
99#ebg99 ,the geometer is always talking
 of squaring1 subtending1  apposing1 as 
if he had in view action2 whereas       
knowledge is the real  object of the    
study4 ,it should elevate the soul1 and 
create the mind of  philosophy2 it      
should raise up what has fallen down1   
not to speak of  lesser uses in war and 
military tactics1 and in the improvement
 of the  faculties4    ,shall we        
propose1 as a third branch of our       
education1 astronomy8 ',very  good1'    
replied ,glaucon2 'the knowledge of the 
heavens is necessary at once  for       
husbandry1 navigation1 military         
tactics4' ,i like your way of giving    
useful reasons for everything in order  
to make friends of the world4 ,and      
there is a difficulty in proving to     
mankind that education is not only      
useful information but a purification of
 the eye of the soul1 which is  better  
than the bodily eye1 for by this alone  

is truth seen4 99#ebh99 ,now1  will you 
appeal to mankind in general or to the  
philosopher8 or would you  prefer to    
look to yourself only8 ',every man is   
his own best friend4' ,then  take a step
 backward1 for we are out of order1 and 
insert the third  dimension which is of 
solids1 after the second which is of    
planes1 and  then you may proceed to    
solids in motion4 ,but solid geometry is
 not  popular and has not the patronage 
of the ,state1 nor is the use of it     
fully  recognized2 the difficulty is    
great1 and the votaries of the study are
  conceited and impatient4 ,still the   
charm of the pursuit wins upon men1     
and1 if government would lend a little  
assistance1 there might be great        
progress made4 ',very true1' replied    
,glaucon2 'but do ,i understand you now 
to begin with plane geometry1 and to    
place next geometry of solids1 and      
thirdly1 astronomy1 or the motion of    
solids8' ,yes1 ,i said2 my hastiness    
has only hindered us4    civ ',very     

good1 and now let us proceed to         
astronomy1 about which ,i am  willing to
 speak in your lofty strain4 99#ebi99   
,no one can fail to see that  the       
contemplation of the heavens draws the  
soul upwards4' ,i am an  exception1     
then2 astronomy as studied at present   
appears to me to draw the  soul not     
upwards1 but downwards4 ,star-gazing is 
just looking up at the  ceiling--no     
better2 a man may lie on his back on    
land or on water--he may  look up or    
look down1 but there is no science in   
that4 ,the vision of  knowledge of which
 ,i speak is seen not with the eyes1 but
 with the mind4  ,all the magnificence  
of the heavens is but the embroidery of 
a copy which  falls far short of the    
divine ,original1 and teaches nothing   
about the  absolute harmonies or motions
 of things4 ,their beauty is like the   
beauty  of figures drawn by the hand of 
,daedalus or any other great artist1    
which  may be used for illustration1    
99#ecj99 but no mathematician would seek

 to  obtain from them true conceptions  
of equality or numerical relations4 ,how
  ridiculous then to look for these in  
the map of the heavens1 in which the    
imperfection of matter comes in         
everywhere as a disturbing element1     
marring the symmetry of day and night1  
of months and years1 of the sun and     
stars in their courses4 ,only by        
problems can we place astronomy on a    
truly  scientific basis4 ,let the       
heavens alone1 and exert the intellect4 
,still1 mathematics admit of other      
applications1 as the ,pythagoreans say1 
and we agree4 ,there is a sister science
 of harmonical motion1 adapted to  the  
ear as astronomy is to the eye1 and     
there may be other applications  also4  
,let us inquire of the ,pythagoreans    
about them1 not forgetting that  we have
 an aim higher than theirs1 which is the
 relation of these sciences  to the idea
 of good4 ,the error which pervades     
astronomy also pervades  harmonics4     
99#eca99 ,the musicians put their ears  

in the place of their minds4  ',yes1'   
replied ,glaucon1 ',i like to see them  
laying their ears alongside of  their   
neighbours' faces--some saying1 ,that's 
a new note1 others  declaring that the  
two notes are the same4' ,yes1 ,i said2 
but you mean the  empirics who are      
always twisting and torturing the       
strings of the lyre1  and quarrelling   
about the tempers of the strings2 ,i am 
referring rather to  the ,pythagorean   
harmonists1 who are almost equally in   
error4 ,for they  investigate only the  
numbers of the consonances which are    
heard1 and  ascend no higher1--of the   
true numerical harmony which is unheard1
 and is  only to be found in problems1  
they have not even a conception4 cv     
',that  last1' he said1 'must be a      
marvellous thing4' ,a thing1 ,i replied1
 which is  only useful if pursued with a
 view to the good4    ,all these        
sciences are the prelude of the strain1 
and are profitable if  they are regarded
 in their natural relations to one      

another4 ',i dare say1  ,socrates1' said
 ,glaucon2 'but such a study will be an 
endless business4'  ,what study do you  
mean--of the prelude1 or what8 ,for all 
these things are  only the prelude1 and 
you surely do not suppose that a mere   
mathematician  is also a dialectician8  
',certainly not4 99#ecb99 ,i have hardly
 ever known a  mathematician who could  
reason4' ,and yet1 ,glaucon1 is not true
 reasoning  that hymn of dialectic which
 is the music of the intellectual world1
 and  which was by us compared to the   
effort of sight1 when from beholding the
  shadows on the wall we arrived at last
 at the images which gave the  shadows8 
,even so the dialectical faculty        
withdrawing from sense arrives by  the  
pure intellect at the contemplation of  
the idea of good1 and never  rests but  
at the very end of the intellectual     
world4 ,and the royal road  out of the  
cave into the light1 and the blinking of
 the eyes at the sun  and turning to    
contemplate the shadows of reality1 not 

the shadows of an  image only--this     
progress and gradual acquisition of a   
new faculty of  sight by the help of the
 mathematical sciences1 is the elevation
 of the  soul to the contemplation of   
the highest ideal of being4    ',so far1
 ,i agree with you4 ,but now1 leaving   
the prelude1 let us proceed to  the     
hymn4 ,what1 then1 is the nature of     
dialectic1 and what are the paths  which
 lead thither8' 99#ecc99 ,dear ,glaucon1
 you cannot follow me here4 ,there  can 
be no revelation of the absolute truth  
to one who has not been  disciplined in 
the previous sciences4 ,but that there  
is a science of  absolute truth1 which  
is attained in some way very different  
from those  now practised1 ,i am        
confident4 ,for all other arts or       
sciences are relative  to human needs   
and opinions2 and the mathematical      
sciences are but a dream  or hypothesis 
of true being1 and never analyse their  
own principles4  ,dialectic alone rises 
to the principle which is above         

hypotheses1  converting and gently      
leading the eye of the soul out of the  
barbarous  slough of ignorance into the 
light of the upper world1 with the help 
of  the sciences which we have been     
describing--sciences1 as they are often 
termed1 although they require some other
 name1 implying greater clearness  than 
opinion and less clearness than science1
 and this in our previous  sketch cvi   
was understanding4 ,and so we get four  
names--two for  intellect1 and two for  
opinion1--reason or mind1 understanding1
 faith1  perception of shadows--        
99#ecd99 which make a proportion--being 
3 becoming 33  intellect 3 opinion--and 
science 3 belief 33 understanding3      
perception of  shadows4 ,dialectic may  
be further described as that science    
which defines  and explains the essence 
or being of each nature1 which          
distinguishes and  abstracts the good1  
and is ready to do battle against all   
opponents in the  cause of good4 ,to him
 who is not a dialectician life is but a

 sleepy dream2  and many a man is in his
 grave before his is well waked up4 ,and
 would you  have the future rulers of   
your ideal ,state intelligent beings1 or
 stupid  as posts8 ',certainly not the  
latter4' ,then you must train them in   
dialectic1 which will teach them to ask 
and answer questions1 and is the        
coping-stone of the sciences4           
99#ece99 ,i dare say that you have not  
forgotten how our rulers were chosen2   
and the process of selection may be     
carried a step further3--,as before1    
they must be constant and valiant1      
good-looking1 and of noble manners1 but 
now they must also have natural ability 
which education will improve2 that  is  
to say1 they must be quick at learning1 
capable of mental toil1  retentive1     
solid1 diligent natures1 who combine    
intellectual with moral  virtues2 not   
lame and one-sided1 diligent in bodily  
exercise and indolent  in mind1 or      
conversely2 not a maimed soul1 which    
hates falsehood and yet  99#ecf99       

unintentionally is always wallowing in  
the mire of ignorance2 not a  bastard or
 feeble person1 but sound in wind and   
limb1 and in perfect  condition for the 
great gymnastic trial of the mind4      
,justice herself can  find no fault with
 natures such as these2 and they will be
 the saviours of  our ,state2 disciples 
of another sort would only make         
philosophy more  ridiculous than she is 
at present4 ,forgive my enthusiasm2 ,i  
am becoming  excited2 but when ,i see   
her trampled underfoot1 ,i am angry at  
the authors  of her disgrace4 ',i did   
not notice that you were more excited   
than you  ought to have been4' ,but ,i  
felt that ,i was4 ,now do not let us    
forget  another point in the selection  
of our disciples--that they must be     
young  and not old4 ,for ,solon is      
mistaken in saying that an old man can  
be always  learning2 youth is the time  
of study1 and here we must remember that
 the  mind is free and dainty1 and1     
unlike the body1 must not be made to    

work  against the grain4 99#ecg99       
,learning should be at first a sort of  
play1 in  which the natural bent is cvii
 detected4 ,as in training them for war1
  the young dogs should at first only   
taste blood2 but when the necessary     
gymnastics are over which during two or 
three years divide life between  sleep  
and bodily exercise1 then the education 
of the soul will become a  more serious 
matter4 ,at twenty years of age1 a      
selection must be made of  the more     
promising disciples1 with whom a new    
epoch of education will  begin4 ,the    
sciences which they have hitherto       
learned in fragments will now  be       
brought into relation with each other   
and with true being2 for the  power of  
combining them is the test of           
speculative and dialectical  ability4   
,and afterwards at thirty a further     
selection shall be made of  those who   
are able to withdraw from the world of  
sense into the  abstraction of ideas4   
,but at this point1 judging from present

 experience1  there is a danger that    
dialectic may be the source of many     
evils4 ,the  danger may be illustrated  
by a parallel case3--,imagine a person  
who has  been brought up in wealth and  
luxury amid a crowd of flatterers1 and  
who  is suddenly informed that he is a  
supposititious son4 99#ech99 ,he has    
hitherto honoured his reputed parents   
and disregarded the flatterers1 and  now
 he does the reverse4 ,this is just what
 happens with a man's  principles4      
,there are certain doctrines which he   
learnt at home and which  exercised a   
parental authority over him4 ,presently 
he finds that  imputations are cast upon
 them2 a troublesome querist comes and  
asks1  ',what is the just and good8' or 
proves that virtue is vice and vice     
virtue1 and his mind becomes unsettled1 
and he ceases to love1 honour1 and  obey
 them as he has hitherto done4 99#eci99 
,he is seduced into the life of         
pleasure1 and becomes a lawless person  
and a rogue4 ,the case of such          

speculators is very pitiable1 and1 in   
order that our thirty years' old  pupils
 may not require this pity1 let us take 
every possible care that  young persons 
do not study philosophy too early4 ,for 
a young man is a sort  of puppy who only
 plays with an argument2 and is reasoned
 into and out of  his opinions every    
day2 he soon begins to believe nothing1 
and brings  himself and philosophy into 
discredit4 ,a man of thirty does not run
 on in  this way2 he will argue and not 
merely contradict1 and adds new honour  
to  philosophy by the sobriety of his   
conduct4 ,what time shall we allow for  
this second gymnastic training of the   
soul8--say1 twice the time required  for
 the gymnastics of the body2 six1 or    
perhaps five years1 to commence at      
thirty1 and then for fifteen cviii years
 let the student go down into  the den1 
and command armies1 and gain experience 
of life4 99#edj99 ,at fifty  let him    
return to the end of all things1 and    
have his eyes uplifted to the  idea of  

good1 and order his life after that     
pattern2 if necessary1 taking  his turn 
at the helm of ,state1 and training up  
others to be his  successors4 ,when his 
time comes he shall depart in peace to  
the islands of  the blest4 ,he shall be 
honoured with sacrifices1 and receive   
such worship  as the ,pythian oracle    
approves4    ',you are a statuary1      
,socrates1 and have made a perfect image
 of our  governors4' ,yes1 and of our   
governesses1 for the women will share in
 all  things with the men4 ,and you will
 admit that our ,state is not a mere    
aspiration1 but may really come into    
being when there shall arise            
philosopher-kings1 one or more1 who will
 despise earthly vanities1 and  will be 
the servants of justice only4 ',and how 
will they begin their  work8' 99#eda99  
,their first act will be to send away   
into the country all  those who are more
 than ten years of age1 and to proceed  
with those who  are left4444            
99       99       99       99       99  

,sidenote3 ,republic ,,vii4             
,introduction4    ,at the commencement  
of the sixth book1 ,plato anticipated   
his explanation  of the relation of the 
philosopher to the world in an allegory1
 in this1  as in other passages1        
following the order which he prescribes 
in  education1 and proceeding from the  
concrete to the abstract4 ,at the       
commencement of ,book ,,vii1 under the  
figure of a cave having an opening      
towards a fire and a way upwards to the 
true light1 he returns to view the      
divisions of knowledge1 exhibiting      
familiarly1 as in a picture1 the result 
which had been hardly won by a great    
effort of thought in the previous       
discussion2 at the same time casting a  
glance onward at the dialectical        
process1 which is represented by the way
 leading from darkness to light4  ,the  
shadows1 the images1 the reflection of  
the sun and stars in the water1  the    
stars and sun themselves1 severally     
correspond1--the first1 to the  realm of

 fancy and poetry1--the second1 to the  
world of sense1--the third1  to the     
abstractions or universals of sense1 of 
which the mathematical  sciences furnish
 the type1--the fourth and last to the  
same abstractions1  when seen in the    
unity of the idea1 from which they      
derive a new meaning  and power4 ,the   
true dialectical process begins with the
 contemplation of  the real stars1 and  
not mere reflections of them1 cix and   
ends with the  recognition of the sun1  
or idea of good1 as the parent not only 
of light  but of warmth and growth4 ,to 
the divisions of knowledge the stages of
  education partly answer3--first1 there
 is the early education of childhood    
and youth in the fancies of the poets1  
and in the laws and customs of the      
,state2--then there is the training of  
the body to be a warrior athlete1  and a
 good servant of the mind2--and thirdly1
 after an interval follows  the         
education of later life1 which begins   
with mathematics and proceeds to        

philosophy in general4    ,there seem to
 be two great aims in the philosophy of 
,plato1--first1 to  realize             
abstractions2 secondly1 to connect them4
 ,according to him1 the  true education 
is that which draws men from becoming to
 being1 and to a  comprehensive survey  
of all being4 ,he desires to develop in 
the human mind  the faculty of seeing   
the universal in all things2 until at   
last the  particulars of sense drop away
 and the universal alone remains4 ,he   
then  seeks to combine the universals   
which he has disengaged from sense1 not 
perceiving that the correlation of them 
has no other basis but the common  use  
of language4 ,he never understands that 
abstractions1 as ,hegel says1  are 'mere
 abstractions'--of use when employed in 
the arrangement of facts1  but adding   
nothing to the sum of knowledge when    
pursued apart from them1  or with       
reference to an imaginary idea of good4 
,still the exercise of the  faculty of  
abstraction apart from facts has        

enlarged the mind1 and played  a great  
part in the education of the human race4
 ,plato appreciated the  value of this  
faculty1 and saw that it might be       
quickened by the study of  number and   
relation4 ,all things in which there is 
opposition or proportion  are suggestive
 of reflection4 ,the mere impression of 
sense evokes no power  of thought or of 
mind1 but when sensible objects ask to  
be compared and  distinguished1 then    
philosophy begins4 ,the science of      
arithmetic first  suggests such         
distinctions4 ,there follow in order the
 other sciences of  plain and solid     
geometry1 and of solids in motion1 one  
branch of which is  astronomy or the    
harmony of the spheres1--to this is     
appended the sister  science of the     
harmony of sounds4 ,plato seems also to 
hint at the  possibility of other       
applications of arithmetical or         
mathematical  proportions1 such as we   
employ in chemistry and natural         
philosophy1 such  as the ,pythagoreans  

and even ,aristotle make use of in      
,ethics cx and  ,politics1 e4g4 his     
distinction between arithmetical and    
geometrical  proportion in the ,ethics  
7,book ,v71 or between numerical and    
proportional  equality in the ,politics 
7iii4 #h1 iv4 #ab1 c474    ,the modern  
mathematician will readily sympathise   
with ,plato's delight in  the properties
 of pure mathematics4 ,he will not be   
disinclined to say with  him3--,let     
alone the heavens1 and study the        
beauties of number and figure  in       
themselves4 ,he too will be apt to      
depreciate their application to the     
arts4 ,he will observe that ,plato has a
 conception of geometry1 in which       
figures are to be dispensed with2 thus  
in a distant and shadowy way  seeming to
 anticipate the possibility of working  
geometrical problems by a  more general 
mode of analysis4 ,he will remark with  
interest on the  backward state of solid
 geometry1 which1 alas6 was not         
encouraged by the  aid of the ,state in 

the age of ,plato2 and he will recognize
 the grasp of  ,plato's mind in his     
ability to conceive of one science of   
solids in motion  including the earth as
 well as the heavens1--not forgetting to
 notice the  intimation to which        
allusion has been already made1 that    
besides astronomy  and harmonics the    
science of solids in motion may have    
other applications4  ,still more will he
 be struck with the comprehensiveness of
 view which led  ,plato1 at a time when 
these sciences hardly existed1 to say   
that they must  be studied in relation  
to one another1 and to the idea of good1
 or common  principle of truth and      
being4 ,but he will also see 7and       
perhaps without  surprise7 that in that 
stage of physical and mathematical      
knowledge1 ,plato  has fallen into the  
error of supposing that he can construct
 the heavens  a priori by mathematical  
problems1 and determine the principles  
of  harmony irrespective of the         
adaptation of sounds to the human ear4  

,the  illusion was a natural one in that
 age and country4 ,the simplicity and   
certainty of astronomy and harmonics    
seemed to contrast with the variation   
and complexity of the world of sense2   
hence the circumstance that there  was  
some elementary basis of fact1 some     
measurement of distance or time or      
vibrations on which they must ultimately
 rest1 was overlooked by him4 ,the      
modern predecessors of ,newton fell into
 errors equally great2 and ,plato  can  
hardly be said to have been very far    
wrong1 or may even claim a sort  of     
prophetic insight into the subject1 when
 we consider that the greater  part of  
astronomy at the present day consists of
 abstract dynamics1 cxi  by the help of 
which most astronomical discoveries have
 been made4    ,the metaphysical        
philosopher from his point of view      
recognizes mathematics  as an instrument
 of education1--which strengthens the   
power of attention1  developes the sense
 of order and the faculty of            

construction1 and enables  the mind to  
grasp under simple formulae the         
quantitative differences of  physical   
phenomena4 ,but while acknowledging     
their value in education1 he  sees also 
that they have no connexion with our    
higher moral and  intellectual ideas4   
,in the attempt which ,plato makes to   
connect them1 we  easily trace the      
influences of ancient ,pythagorean      
notions4 ,there is no  reason to suppose
 that he is speaking of the ideal       
numbers at p4 #ebe ,e2  but he is       
describing numbers which are pure       
abstractions1 to which he  assigns a    
real and separate existence1 which1 as  
'the teachers of the art'  7meaning     
probably the ,pythagoreans7 would have  
affirmed1 repel all  attempts at        
subdivision1 and in which unity and     
every other number are  conceived of as 
absolute4 ,the truth and certainty of   
numbers1 when thus  disengaged from     
phenomena1 gave them a kind of          
sacredness in the eyes of  an ancient   

philosopher4 ,nor is it easy to say how 
far ideas of order and  fixedness may   
have had a moral and elevating influence
 on the minds of  men1 'who1' in the    
words of the ,timaeus1 'might learn to  
regulate their  erring lives according  
to them' 7#dg ,c74 ,it is worthy of     
remark that the  old ,pythagorean       
ethical symbols still exist as figures  
of speech among  ourselves4 ,and those  
who in modern times see the world       
pervaded by  universal law1 may also see
 an anticipation of this last word of   
modern  philosophy in the ,platonic idea
 of good1 which is the source and       
measure  of all things1 and yet only an 
abstraction4 7,cp4 ,philebus sub fin474 
,two passages seem to require more      
particular explanations4 ,first1 that   
which relates to the analysis of vision4
 ,the difficulty in this passage  may be
 explained1 like many others1 from      
differences in the modes of  conception 
prevailing among ancient and modern     
thinkers4 ,to us1 the  perceptions of   

sense are inseparable from the act of   
the mind which  accompanies them4 ,the  
consciousness of form1 colour1 distance1
 is  indistinguishable from the simple  
sensation1 which is the medium of them4 
,whereas to ,plato sense is the         
,heraclitean flux of sense1 not cxii the
  vision of objects in the order in     
which they actually present themselves  
to the experienced sight1 but as they   
may be imagined to appear confused  and 
blurred to the half-awakened eye of the 
infant4 ,the first action of  the mind  
is aroused by the attempt to set in     
order this chaos1 and the  reason is    
required to frame distinct conceptions  
under which the confused  impressions of
 sense may be arranged4 ,hence arises   
the question1 ',what is  great1 what is 
small8' and thus begins the distinction 
of the visible and  the intelligible4   
,the second difficulty relates to       
,plato's conception of harmonics4 ,three
  classes of harmonists are             
distinguished by him3--first1 the       

,pythagoreans1  whom he proposes to     
consult as in the previous discussion on
 music he was  to consult ,damon--they  
are acknowledged to be masters in the   
art1 but are  altogether deficient in   
the knowledge of its higher import and  
relation to  the good2 secondly1 the    
mere empirics1 whom ,glaucon appears to 
confuse  with them1 and whom both he and
 ,socrates ludicrously describe as      
experimenting by mere auscultation on   
the intervals of sounds4 ,both of  these
 fall short in different degrees of the 
,platonic idea of harmony1  which must  
be studied in a purely abstract way1    
first by the method of  problems1 and   
secondly as a part of universal         
knowledge in relation to the  idea of   
good4    ,the allegory has a political  
as well as a philosophical meaning4 ,the
 den  or cave represents the narrow     
sphere of politics or law 7cp4 the      
description of the philosopher and      
lawyer in the ,theaetetus1 #agb-agf71   
and  the light of the eternal ideas is  

supposed to exercise a disturbing       
influence on the minds of those who     
return to this lower world4 ,in other   
words1 their principles are too wide for
 practical application2 they are        
looking far away into the past and      
future1 when their business is with the 
present4 ,the ideal is not easily       
reduced to the conditions of actual     
life1  and may often be at variance with
 them4 ,and at first1 those who return  
are  unable to compete with the         
inhabitants of the den in the           
measurement of  the shadows1 and are    
derided and persecuted by them2 but     
after a while  they see the things below
 in far truer proportions than those who
 have  never ascended into the upper    
world4 ,the difference between the      
politician  turned into a philosopher   
and the philosopher turned into a       
politician1 is  symbolized by the two   
kinds of disordered eyesight1 cxiii the 
one which  is experienced by the captive
 who is transferred from darkness to    

day1 the  other1 of the heavenly        
messenger who voluntarily for the good  
of his  fellow-men descends into the    
den4 ,in what way the brighter light is 
to  dawn on the inhabitants of the lower
 world1 or how the idea of good is to   
become the guiding principle of         
politics1 is left unexplained by ,plato4
  ,like the nature and divisions of     
dialectic1 of which ,glaucon impatiently
  demands to be informed1 perhaps he    
would have said that the explanation    
could not be given except to a disciple 
of the previous sciences4 7,compare     
,symposium #baj ,a47    ,many           
illustrations of this part of the       
,republic may be found in modern        
,politics and in daily life4 ,for among 
ourselves1 too1 there have been two     
sorts of ,politicians or ,statesmen1    
whose eyesight has become disordered in 
two different ways4 ,first1 there have  
been great men who1 in the language  of 
,burke1 'have been too much given to    
general maxims1' who1 like ,j4 ,s4      

,mill or ,burke himself1 have been      
theorists or philosophers before they   
were politicians1 or who1 having been   
students of history1 have allowed  some 
great historical parallel1 such as the  
,english ,revolution of #afhh1 or       
possibly ,athenian democracy or ,roman  
,imperialism1 to be the medium through  
which they viewed contemporary events4  
,or perhaps the long projecting  shadow 
of some existing institution may have   
darkened their vision4 ,the  ,church of 
the future1 the ,commonwealth of the    
future1 the ,society of the  future1    
have so absorbed their minds1 that they 
are unable to see in their  true        
proportions the ,politics of to-day4    
,they have been intoxicated with  great 
ideas1 such as liberty1 or equality1 or 
the greatest happiness of  the greatest 
number1 or the brotherhood of humanity1 
and they no longer  care to consider how
 these ideas must be limited in practice
 or harmonized  with the conditions of  
human life4 ,they are full of light1 but

 the light  to them has become only a   
sort of luminous mist or blindness4     
,almost every  one has known some       
enthusiastic half-educated person1 who  
sees everything  at false distances1 and
 in erroneous proportions4    ,with this
 disorder of eyesight may be contrasted 
another--of those who see  not far into 
the distance1 but what is near only2 who
 have been engaged  all their lives in a
 trade or a profession2 who are limited 
to a set or  sect of their own4 ,men of 
this kind cxiv have no universal except 
their  own interests or the interests of
 their class1 no principle but the      
opinion of persons like themselves1 no  
knowledge of affairs beyond what  they  
pick up in the streets or at their club4
 ,suppose them to be sent into  a larger
 world1 to undertake some higher        
calling1 from being tradesmen to  turn  
generals or politicians1 from being     
schoolmasters to become                 
philosophers3--or imagine them on a     
sudden to receive an inward light  which

 reveals to them for the first time in  
their lives a higher idea of  ,god and  
the existence of a spiritual world1 by  
this sudden conversion or  change is not
 their daily life likely to be upset2   
and on the other hand  will not many of 
their old prejudices and narrownesses   
still adhere to  them long after they   
have begun to take a more comprehensive 
view of human  things8 ,from familiar   
examples like these we may learn what   
,plato meant by  the eyesight which is  
liable to two kinds of disorders4       
,nor have we any difficulty in drawing a
 parallel between the young  ,athenian  
in the fifth century before ,christ who 
became unsettled by new  ideas1 and the 
student of a modern ,university who has 
been the subject of  a similar          
'aufklrung4' ,we too observe that when  
young men begin to  criticise customary 
beliefs1 or to analyse the constitution 
of human  nature1 they are apt to lose  
hold of solid principle 7,greek3 a7_/pan
 to  be_/baion au7tn e7xoi_/chetai74    

,they are like trees which have been    
frequently transplanted4 ,the earth     
about them is loose1 and they have no   
roots reaching far into the soil4 ,they 
'light upon every flower1'  following   
their own wayward wills1 or because the 
wind blows them4 ,they  catch opinions1 
as diseases are caught--when they are in
 the air4 ,borne  hither and thither1   
'they speedily fall into beliefs' the   
opposite of  those in which they were   
brought up4 ,they hardly retain the     
distinction of  right and wrong2 they   
seem to think one thing as good as      
another4 ,they  suppose themselves to be
 searching after truth when they are    
playing the  game of 'follow my leader4'
 ,they fall in love 'at first sight'    
with  paradoxes respecting morality1    
some fancy about art1 some novelty or   
eccentricity in religion1 and like      
lovers they are so absorbed for a time  
in their new notion that they can think 
of nothing else4 ,the resolution of     
some philosophical or theological       

question seems to them more interesting 
and important than any substantial      
knowledge of cxv literature or  science 
or even than a good life4 ,like the     
youth in the ,philebus1 they are  ready 
to discourse to any one about a new     
philosophy4 ,they are generally  the    
disciples of some eminent professor or  
sophist1 whom they rather  imitate than 
understand4 ,they may be counted happy  
if in later years they  retain some of  
the simple truths which they acquired in
 early education1  and which they may1  
perhaps1 find to be worth all the rest4 
,such is the  picture which ,plato draws
 and which we only reproduce1 partly in 
his own  words1 of the dangers which    
beset youth in times of transition1 when
 old  opinions are fading away and the  
new are not yet firmly established4     
,their  condition is ingeniously        
compared by him to that of a            
supposititious son1  who has made the   
discovery that his reputed parents are  
not his real ones1  and1 in consequence1

 they have lost their authority over    
him4    ,the distinction between the    
mathematician and the dialectician is   
also  noticeable4 ,plato is very well   
aware that the faculty of the           
mathematician  is quite distinct from   
the higher philosophical sense which    
recognizes and  combines first          
principles 7#eca ,e74 ,the contempt     
which he expresses at p4  #ecc for      
distinctions of words1 the danger of    
involuntary falsehood1 the  apology     
which ,socrates makes for his           
earnestness of speech1 are highly       
characteristic of the ,platonic style   
and mode of thought4 ,the quaint  notion
 that if ,palamedes was the inventor of 
number ,agamemnon could not  have       
counted his feet2 the art by which we   
are made to believe that this  ,state of
 ours is not a dream only2 the gravity  
with which the first step  is taken in  
the actual creation of the ,state1      
namely1 the sending out of  the city all
 who had arrived at ten years of age1 in

 order to expedite the  business of     
education by a generation1 are also     
truly ,platonic4 7,for the  last1       
compare the passage at the end of the   
third book 7#dae ,d71 in which  he      
expects the lie about the earthborn men 
to be believed in the second            
generation47           99       99      
99       99       99    ,sidenote3      
,republic ,,viii4 ,analysis4    ,,book  
,,viii4 99#edc99 ,and so we have arrived
 at the conclusion1 that in the  perfect
 ,state wives and children are to be in 
common2 and the education  and pursuits 
of men and women1 both in war and peace1
 are to be common1  and kings are to be 
philosophers and warriors1 and the      
soldiers of the  ,state are to live     
together1 cxvi having all things in     
common2 and they  are to be warrior     
athletes1 receiving no pay but only     
their food1 from the  other citizens4   
,now let us return to the point at which
 we digressed4  ',that is easily done1' 
he replied3 ',you were speaking of the  

,state which  you had constructed1 and  
of the individual who answered to this1 
both of  whom you affirmed to be good2  
99#edd99 and you said that of inferior  
,states  there were four forms and four 
individuals corresponding to them1 which
  although deficient in various degrees1
 were all of them worth inspecting  with
 a view to determining the relative     
happiness or misery of the best or      
worst man4 ,then ,polemarchus and       
,adeimantus interrupted you1 and this   
led  to another argument1--and so here  
we are4' ,suppose that we put ourselves 
again in the same position1 and do you  
repeat your question4 ',i should  like  
to know of what constitutions you were  
speaking8' ,besides the perfect  ,state 
there are only four of any note in      
,hellas3--first1 the famous             
,lacedaemonian or ,cretan commonwealth2 
secondly1 oligarchy1 a ,state full of   
evils2 thirdly1 democracy1 which follows
 next in order2 fourthly1 tyranny1      
which is the disease or death of all    

government4 ,now1 ,states are not made  
of 'oak and rock1' but of flesh and     
blood2 and therefore as there are five  
,states there must be five human natures
 in individuals1 which correspond  to   
them4 ,and first1 there is the ambitious
 nature1 99#ede99 which answers to  the 
,lacedaemonian ,state2 secondly1 the    
oligarchical nature2 thirdly1 the       
democratical2 and fourthly1 the         
tyrannical4 ,this last will have to be  
compared with the perfectly just1 which 
is the fifth1 that we may know  which is
 the happier1 and then we shall be able 
to determine whether the  argument of   
,thrasymachus or our own is the more    
convincing4 ,and as before  we began    
with the ,state and went on to the      
individual1 so now1 beginning  with     
timocracy1 let us go on to the          
timocratical man1 and then proceed to   
the other forms of government1 and the  
individuals who answer to them4    ,but 
how did timocracy arise out of the      
perfect ,state8 ,plainly1 like all      

changes of government1 from division in 
the rulers4 ,but whence came  division8 
',sing1 heavenly ,muses1' as ,homer     
says2--let them condescend to  answer   
us1 as if we were children1 to whom they
 put on a solemn face in  jest4 ',and   
what will they say8' 99#edf99 ,they will
 say that human things are  fated to    
decay1 and even the perfect ,state will 
not escape from this law  of destiny1   
cxvii when 'the wheel comes full circle'
 in a period short  or long4 ,plants or 
animals have times of fertility and     
sterility1 which  the intelligence of   
rulers because alloyed by sense will not
 enable them  to ascertain1 and children
 will be born out of season4 ,for       
whereas divine  creations are in a      
perfect cycle or number1 the human      
creation is in a  number which declines 
from perfection1 and has four terms and 
three  intervals of numbers1 increasing1
 waning1 assimilating1 dissimilating1   
and  yet perfectly commensurate with    
each other4 ,the base of the number with

 a  fourth added 7or which is #c 3 #d71 
multiplied by five and cubed1 gives two 
harmonies3--the first a square number1  
which is a hundred times the base  7or a
 hundred times a hundred72 the second1  
an oblong1 being a hundred  squares of  
the rational diameter of a figure the   
side of which is five1  subtracting one 
from each square or two perfect squares 
from all1 and  adding a hundred cubes of
 three4 ,this entire number is          
geometrical and  contains the rule or   
law of generation4 ,when this law is    
neglected  marriages will be            
unpropitious2 the inferior offspring who
 are then born  will in time become the 
rulers2 the ,state will decline1 and    
education fall  into decay2 gymnastic   
will be preferred to music1 and the gold
 and silver  and brass and iron will    
form a chaotic mass-- 99#edg99 thus     
division will  arise4 ,such is the      
,muses' answer to our question4 ',and a 
true answer1 of  course3--but what more 
have they to say8' ,they say that the   

two races1 the  iron and brass1 and the 
silver and gold1 will draw the ,state   
different  ways2--the one will take to  
trade and moneymaking1 and the others1  
having  the true riches and not caring  
for money1 will resist them3 the contest
  will end in a compromise2 they will   
agree to have private property1 and     
will enslave their fellow-citizens who  
were once their friends and  nurturers4 
,but they will retain their warlike     
character1 and will be  chiefly occupied
 in fighting and exercising rule4 ,thus 
arises timocracy1  which is intermediate
 between aristocracy and oligarchy4     
,the new form of government resembles   
the ideal in obedience to rulers and    
contempt for trade1 and having common   
meals1 and in devotion to warlike  and  
gymnastic exercises4 ,but corruption has
 crept into philosophy1 and  simplicity 
of character1 which was once her note1  
is now looked for only  in the military 
class4 99#edh99 ,arts of war begin to   
prevail over arts of  peace2 the ruler  

is no longer a cxviii philosopher2 as in
 oligarchies1  there springs up among   
them an extravagant love of gain--get   
another man's  and save your own1 is    
their principle2 and they have dark     
places in which  they hoard their gold  
and silver1 for the use of their women  
and others2  they take their pleasures  
by stealth1 like boys who are running   
away from  their father--the law2 and   
their education is not inspired by the  
,muse1  but imposed by the strong arm of
 power4 ,the leading characteristic of  
this  ,state is party spirit and        
ambition4    ,and what manner of man    
answers to such a ,state8 ',in love of  
contention1'  replied ,adeimantus1 'he  
will be like our friend ,glaucon4' ,in  
that respect1  perhaps1 but not in      
others4 ,he is self-asserting and       
ill-educated1 99#edi99  yet fond of     
literature1 although not himself a      
speaker1--fierce with  slaves1 but      
obedient to rulers1 a lover of power and
 honour1 which he  hopes to gain by     

deeds of arms1--fond1 too1 of gymnastics
 and of hunting4  ,as he advances in    
years he grows avaricious1 for he has   
lost philosophy1  which is the only     
saviour and guardian of men4 ,his origin
 is as  follows3--,his father is a good 
man dwelling in an ill-ordered ,state1  
who  has retired from politics in order 
that he may lead a quiet life4 ,his     
mother is angry at her loss of          
precedence among other women2 she is    
disgusted at her husband's selfishness1 
and she expatiates to her son on  the   
unmanliness and indolence of his father4
 ,the old family servant takes  up the  
tale1 and says to the youth3--',when you
 grow up you must be more of  a man than
 your father4' 99#eej99 ,all the world  
are agreed that he who minds  his own   
business is an idiot1 while a busybody  
is highly honoured and  esteemed4 ,the  
young man compares this spirit with his 
father's words and  ways1 and as he is  
naturally well disposed1 although he has
 suffered from  evil influences1 he     

rests at a middle point and becomes     
ambitious and a  lover of honour4       
,and now let us set another city over   
against another man4 ,the next form of  
government is oligarchy1 in which the   
rule is of the rich only2 nor is it     
difficult to see how such a ,state      
arises4 ,the decline begins with the    
possession of gold and silver2 illegal  
modes of expenditure are invented2  one 
draws another on1 and the multitude are 
infected2 riches outweigh  virtue2      
99#eea99 lovers of money take the place 
of lovers of honour2 misers  of cxix    
politicians2 and1 in time1 political    
privileges are confined by  law to the  
rich1 who do not shrink from violence in
 order to effect their  purposes4       
,thus much of the origin1--let us next  
consider the evils of oligarchy4  ,would
 a man who wanted to be safe on a voyage
 take a bad pilot because he  was rich1 
or refuse a good one because he was     
poor8 ,and does not the  analogy apply  
still more to the ,state8 ,and there are

 yet greater evils3  two nations are    
struggling together in one--the rich and
 the poor2 and the  rich dare not put   
arms into the hands of the poor1 and are
 unwilling to  pay for defenders out of 
their own money4 ,and have we not       
already  condemned that ,state 99#eeb99 
in which the same persons are warriors  
as well  as shopkeepers8 ,the greatest  
evil of all is that a man may sell his  
property and have no place in the       
,state2 while there is one class which  
has enormous wealth1 the other is       
entirely destitute4 ,but observe that   
these destitutes had not really any more
 of the governing nature in them  when  
they were rich than now that they are   
poor2 they were miserable  spendthrifts 
always4 ,they are the drones of the     
hive2 only whereas the  actual drone is 
unprovided by nature with a sting1 the  
two-legged things  whom we call drones  
are some of them without stings and some
 of them have  dreadful stings2 in other
 words1 there are paupers and there are 

rogues4  ,these are never far apart2 and
 in oligarchical cities1 where nearly   
everybody is a pauper who is not a      
ruler1 you will find abundance of both4 
,and this evil state of society         
originates in bad education and bad     
government4    99#eec99 ,like ,state1   
like man1--the change in the latter     
begins with the  representative of      
timocracy2 he walks at first in the ways
 of his father1  who may have been a    
statesman1 or general1 perhaps2 and     
presently he sees  him 'fallen from his 
high estate1' the victim of informers1  
dying in  prison or exile1 or by the    
hand of the executioner4 ,the lesson    
which he  thus receives1 makes him      
cautious2 he leaves politics1 represses 
his  pride1 and saves pence4 ,avarice is
 enthroned as his bosom's lord1 and     
assumes the style of the ,great ,king2  
the rational and spirited elements  sit 
humbly on the ground at either side1 the
 one immersed in calculation1  the other
 absorbed in the admiration of wealth4  

,the love of honour turns  to love of   
money2 the conversion is instantaneous4 
,the cxx man is mean1  saving1 toiling1 
99#eed99 the slave of one passion which 
is the master of the  rest3 ,is he not  
the very image of the ,state8 ,he has   
had no education1 or  he would never    
have allowed the blind god of riches to 
lead the dance  within him4 ,and being  
uneducated he will have many slavish    
desires1 some  beggarly1 some knavish1  
breeding in his soul4 ,if he is the     
trustee of an  orphan1 and has the power
 to defraud1 he will soon prove that he 
is not  without the will1 and that his  
passions are only restrained by fear and
  not by reason4 ,hence he leads a      
divided existence2 in which the better  
desires mostly prevail4 99#eee99 ,but   
when he is contending for prizes and    
other distinctions1 he is afraid to     
incur a loss which is to be repaid  only
 by barren honour2 in time of war he    
fights with a small part of his         
resources1 and usually keeps his money  

and loses the victory4    ,next comes   
democracy and the democratic man1 out of
 oligarchy and the  oligarchical man4   
,insatiable avarice is the ruling       
passion of an  oligarchy2 and they      
encourage expensive habits in order that
 they may gain  by the ruin of          
extravagant youth4 ,thus men of family  
often lose their  property or rights of 
citizenship2 but they remain in the     
city1 full of  hatred against the new   
owners of their estates and ripe for    
revolution4  ,the usurer with stooping  
walk pretends not to see them2 he passes
 by1 and  leaves his sting--that is1 his
 money--in some other victim2 and many a
 man  has to pay the parent or principal
 sum multiplied into a family of        
children1 99#eef99 and is reduced into a
 state of dronage by him4 ,the only  way
 of diminishing the evil is either to   
limit a man in his use of his  property1
 or to insist that he shall lend at his 
own risk4 ,but the ruling  class do not 
want remedies2 they care only for money1

 and are as careless  of virtue as the  
poorest of the citizens4 ,now there are 
occasions on which  the governors and   
the governed meet together1--at         
festivals1 on a journey1  voyaging or   
fighting4 ,the sturdy pauper finds that 
in the hour of danger  he is not        
despised2 he sees the rich man puffing  
and panting1 and draws  the conclusion  
which he privately imparts to his       
companions1--'that our  people are not  
good for much2' and as a sickly frame is
 made ill by a mere  touch from without1
 or sometimes without external impulse  
is ready to fall  to pieces of itself1  
so from the least cause1 or with none at
 all1 the  city falls ill and fights a  
battle for life or death4 99#eeg99 ,and 
democracy  comes into cxxi power when   
the poor are the victors1 killing some  
and  exiling some1 and giving equal     
shares in the government to all the     
rest4    ,the manner of life in such a  
,state is that of democrats2 there is   
freedom  and plainness of speech1 and   

every man does what is right in his own 
eyes1  and has his own way of life4     
,hence arise the most various           
developments of  character2 the ,state  
is like a piece of embroidery of which  
the colours  and figures are the manners
 of men1 and there are many who1 like   
women and  children1 prefer this variety
 to real beauty and excellence4 ,the    
,state is  not one but many1 like a     
bazaar at which you can buy anything4   
,the great  charm is1 that you may do as
 you like2 you may govern if you like1  
let it  alone if you like2 go to war and
 make peace if you feel disposed1       
99#eeh99  and all quite irrespective of 
anybody else4 ,when you condemn men to  
death  they remain alive all the same2 a
 gentleman is desired to go into exile1 
and he stalks about the streets like a  
hero2 and nobody sees him or cares  for 
him4 ,observe1 too1 how grandly         
,democracy sets her foot upon all our   
fine theories of education1--how little 
she cares for the training of her       

statesmen6 ,the only qualification which
 she demands is the profession of       
patriotism4 ,such is democracy2--a      
pleasing1 lawless1 various sort of      
government1 distributing equality to    
equals and unequals alike4    ,let us   
now inspect the individual democrat2 and
 first1 as in the case of  the ,state1  
we will trace his antecedents4 ,he is   
the son of a miserly  oligarch1 and has 
been taught by him to restrain the love 
of unnecessary  pleasures4 ,perhaps ,i  
ought to explain this latter term3--    
99#eei99 ,necessary  pleasures are those
 which are good1 and which we cannot do 
without2  unnecessary pleasures are     
those which do no good1 and of which the
 desire  might be eradicated by early   
training4 ,for example1 the pleasures of
  eating and drinking are necessary and 
healthy1 up to a certain point2  beyond 
that point they are alike hurtful to    
body and mind1 and the excess  may be   
avoided4 ,when in excess1 they may be   
rightly called expensive  pleasures1 in 

opposition to the useful ones4 ,and the 
drone1 as we called  him1 is the slave  
of these unnecessary pleasures and      
desires1 whereas the  miserly oligarch  
is subject only to the necessary4       
,the oligarch changes into the democrat 
in the following manner3--,the youth    
who has had a miserly bringing up1 gets 
cxxii a taste of the drone's  honey2 he 
meets with wild companions1 who         
introduce him to every new  pleasure4   
,as in the ,state1 so in the individual1
 there are allies on both  sides1       
temptations from without and passions   
from within2 there is reason  also and  
external influences of parents and      
friends in alliance with the            
oligarchical principle2 99#efj99 and the
 two factions are in violent conflict   
with one another4 ,sometimes the party  
of order prevails1 but then again  new  
desires and new disorders arise1 and the
 whole mob of passions gets  possession 
of the ,acropolis1 that is to say1 the  
soul1 which they find  void and         

unguarded by true words and works4      
,falsehoods and illusions  ascend to    
take their place2 the prodigal goes back
 into the country of the  ,lotophagi or 
drones1 and openly dwells there4 ,and if
 any offer of alliance  or parley of    
individual elders comes from home1 the  
false spirits shut the  gates of the    
castle and permit no one to             
enter1--there is a battle1 and  they    
gain the victory2 and straightway making
 alliance with the desires1  they banish
 modesty1 which they call folly1 and    
send temperance over the  border4 ,when 
the house has been swept and garnished1 
they dress up the  exiled vices1 and1   
crowning them with garlands1 bring them 
back under new  names4 ,insolence they  
call good breeding1 anarchy freedom1    
waste  magnificence1 impudence courage4 
99#efa99 ,such is the process by which  
the  youth passes from the necessary    
pleasures to the unnecessary4 ,after a  
while he divides his time impartially   
between them2 and perhaps1 when he  gets

 older and the violence of passion has  
abated1 he restores some of the  exiles 
and lives in a sort of equilibrium1     
indulging first one pleasure  and then  
another2 and if reason comes and tells  
him that some pleasures  are good and   
honourable1 and others bad and vile1 he 
shakes his head and  says that he can   
make no distinction between them4 ,thus 
he lives in the  fancy of the hour2     
sometimes he takes to drink1 and then he
 turns  abstainer2 he practises in the  
gymnasium or he does nothing at all2    
then  again he would be a philosopher or
 a politician2 or again1 he would be a  
warrior or a man of business2 he is     
',every thing by starts and nothing     
long4'    99#efb99 ,there remains still 
the finest and fairest of all men and   
all  ,states--tyranny and the tyrant4   
,tyranny springs from democracy much as 
democracy springs from oligarchy4 ,both 
arise cxxiii from excess2 the one  from 
excess of wealth1 the other from excess 
of freedom4 ',the great  natural good of

 life1' says the democrat1 'is freedom4'
 ,and this exclusive  love of freedom   
and regardlessness of everything else1  
is the cause of the  change from        
democracy to tyranny4 ,the ,state       
demands the strong wine of  freedom1 and
 unless her rulers give her a plentiful 
draught1 punishes and  insults them2    
equality and fraternity of governors and
 governed is the  approved principle4   
,anarchy is the law1 not of the ,state  
only1 but of  private houses1 and       
extends even to the animals4 99#efc99   
,father and son1  citizen and foreigner1
 teacher and pupil1 old and young1 are  
all on a  level2 fathers and teachers   
fear their sons and pupils1 and the     
wisdom of  the young man is a match for 
the elder1 and the old imitate the      
jaunty  manners of the young because    
they are afraid of being thought morose4
  ,slaves are on a level with their     
masters and mistresses1 and there is no 
difference between men and women4 ,nay1 
the very animals in a democratic  ,state

 have a freedom which is unknown in     
other places4 ,the she-dogs are as  good
 as their she-mistresses1 and horses and
 asses march along with  dignity and run
 their noses against anybody who comes  
in their way4 ',that  has often been my 
experience4' ,at last the citizens      
become so sensitive  that they cannot   
endure the yoke of laws1 written or     
unwritten2 they would  have no man call 
himself their master4 ,such is the      
glorious beginning of  things out of    
which tyranny springs4 ',glorious1      
indeed2 but what is to  follow8' ,the   
ruin of oligarchy is the ruin of        
democracy2 99#efd99 for there  is a law 
of contraries2 the excess of freedom    
passes into the excess of  slavery1 and 
the greater the freedom the greater the 
slavery4 ,you will  remember that in the
 oligarchy were found two               
classes--rogues and paupers1  whom we   
compared to drones with and without     
stings4 ,these two classes are  to the  
,state what phlegm and bile are to the  

human body2 and the  ,state-physician1  
or legislator1 must get rid of them1    
just as the  bee-master keeps the drones
 out of the hive4 ,now in a democracy1  
too1  there are drones1 but they are    
more numerous and more dangerous than in
  the oligarchy2 there they are inert   
and unpractised1 here they are full of  
life and animation2 and the keener sort 
speak and act1 while the others  buzz   
about the bema and prevent their        
opponents from being heard4 ,and  there 
is another class in democratic ,states1 
cxxiv of respectable1  thriving         
individuals1 who can be squeezed when   
the drones have need of  their          
possessions2 99#efe99 there is moreover 
a third class1 who are the  labourers   
and the artisans1 and they make up the  
mass of the people4 ,when  the people   
meet1 they are omnipotent1 but they     
cannot be brought together  unless they 
are attracted by a little honey2 and the
 rich are made to  supply the honey1 of 
which the demagogues keep the greater   

part  themselves1 giving a taste only to
 the mob4 ,their victims attempt to     
resist2 they are driven mad by the      
stings of the drones1 and so become     
downright oligarchs in self-defence4    
,then follow informations and           
convictions for treason4 ,the people    
have some protector whom they nurse     
into greatness1 and from this root the  
tree of tyranny springs4 ,the nature  of
 the change is indicated in the old     
fable of the temple of ,zeus ,lycaeus1  
which tells how he who tastes human     
flesh mixed up with the flesh of other  
victims will turn into a wolf4 ,even so 
the protector1 who tastes human  blood1 
and slays some and exiles others with or
 without law1 who hints at  abolition of
 debts and division of lands1 99#eff99  
must either perish or  become a         
wolf--that is1 a tyrant4 ,perhaps he is 
driven out1 but he soon  comes back from
 exile2 and then if his enemies cannot  
get rid of him by  lawful means1 they   
plot his assassination4 ,thereupon the  

friend of the  people makes his         
well-known request to them for a        
body-guard1 which they  readily grant1  
thinking only of his danger and not of  
their own4 ,now let  the rich man make  
to himself wings1 for he will never run 
away again if he  does not do so then4  
,and the ,great ,protector1 having      
crushed all his  rivals1 stands proudly 
erect in the chariot of ,state1 a       
full-blown tyrant3  ,let us enquire into
 the nature of his happiness4    ,in the
 early days of his tyranny he smiles and
 beams upon everybody2 he is  not a     
'dominus1' no1 not he3 he has only come 
to put an end to debt and  the monopoly 
of land4 ,having got rid of foreign     
enemies1 99#efg99 he makes  himself     
necessary to the ,state by always going 
to war4 ,he is thus enabled  to depress 
the poor by heavy taxes1 and so keep    
them at work2 and he can  get rid of    
bolder spirits by handing them over to  
the enemy4 ,then comes  unpopularity2   
some of his old associates have the     

courage to oppose him4  ,the consequence
 is1 that he has to make a purgation of 
the ,state2 but1  unlike the physician  
who purges cxxv away the bad1 he must   
get rid of  the high-spirited1 the wise 
and the wealthy2 for he has no choice   
between  death and a life of shame and  
dishonour4 ,and the more hated he is1   
the  more he will require trusty guards2
 but how will he obtain them8 ',they    
will come flocking like birds--for pay4'
 ,will he not rather obtain them on  the
 spot8 ,he will take the slaves from    
their owners and make them his          
body-guard2 99#efh99 these are his      
trusted friends1 who admire and look up 
to  him4 ,are not the tragic poets wise 
who magnify and exalt the tyrant1 and   
say that he is wise by association with 
the wise8 ,and are not their  praises of
 tyranny alone a sufficient reason why  
we should exclude them  from our ,state8
 ,they may go to other cities1 and      
gather the mob about them  with fine    
words1 and change commonwealths into    

tyrannies and democracies1  receiving   
honours and rewards for their services2 
but the higher they and  their friends  
ascend constitution hill1 the more their
 honour will fail  and become 'too      
asthmatic to mount4' ,to return to the  
tyrant--,how will he  support that rare 
army of his8 ,first1 by robbing the     
temples of their  treasures1 which will 
enable him to lighten the taxes2 then he
 will take  all his father's property1  
and spend it on his companions1 male or 
female4  ,now his father is the demus1  
and if the demus gets angry1 99#efi99   
and says  that a great hulking son ought
 not to be a burden on his parents1 and 
bids  him and his riotous crew begone1  
then will the parent know what a monster
  he has been nurturing1 and that the   
son whom he would fain expel is too     
strong for him4 ',you do not mean to say
 that he will beat his father8'  ,yes1  
he will1 after having taken away his    
arms4 ',then he is a parricide  and a   
cruel1 unnatural son4' ,and the people  

have jumped from the fear of  slavery   
into slavery1 out of the smoke into the 
fire4 ,thus liberty1 when  out of all   
order and reason1 passes into the worst 
form of servitude4444           99      
99       99       99       99           
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,viii4            
,introduction4    ,in the previous books
 ,plato has described the ideal ,state2 
now he returns  to the perverted or     
declining forms1 on which he had lightly
 touched at  the end of ,book iv4 ,these
 he describes in a succession of        
parallels  between the individuals and  
the ,states1 tracing the origin of      
either in  the ,state or individual     
which has preceded them4 ,he begins by  
asking the  point at which he digressed2
 and is thus led shortly to recapitulate
 the  substance cxxvi of the three      
former books1 which also contain a      
parallel  of the philosopher and the    
,state4    ,of the first decline he     
gives no intelligible account2 he would 
not have  liked to admit the most       

probable causes of the fall of his ideal
 ,state1  which to us would appear to be
 the impracticability of communism or   
the  natural antagonism of the ruling   
and subject classes4 ,he throws a veil  
of  mystery over the origin of the      
decline1 which he attributes to         
ignorance  of the law of population4 ,of
 this law the famous geometrical figure 
or  number is the expression4 ,like the 
ancients in general1 he had no idea of  
the gradual perfectibility of man or of 
the education of the human race4  ,his  
ideal was not to be attained in the     
course of ages1 but was to spring  in   
full armour from the head of the        
legislator4 ,when good laws had been    
given1 he thought only of the manner in 
which they were likely to be  corrupted1
 or of how they might be filled up in   
detail or restored in  accordance with  
their original spirit4 ,he appears not  
to have reflected  upon the full meaning
 of his own words1 ',in the brief space 
of human life1  nothing great can be    

accomplished' 7x4 #fjh ,b72 or again1 as
 he afterwards  says in the ,laws 7iii4 
#fgf71 ',infinite time is the maker of  
cities4' ,the  order of constitutions   
which is adopted by him represents an   
order of  thought rather than a         
succession of time1 and may be          
considered as the  first attempt to     
frame a philosophy of history4    ,the  
first of these declining ,states is     
timocracy1 or the government of         
soldiers and lovers of honour1 which    
answers to the ,spartan ,state2 this is 
a government of force1 in which         
education is not inspired by the ,muses1
  but imposed by the law1 and in which  
all the finer elements of  organization 
have disappeared4 ,the philosopher      
himself has lost the love  of truth1 and
 the soldier1 who is of a simpler and   
honester nature1 rules  in his stead4   
,the individual who answers to timocracy
 has some noticeable  qualities4 ,he is 
described as ill educated1 but1 like the
 ,spartan1 a lover  of literature2 and  

although he is a harsh master to his    
servants he has no  natural superiority 
over them4 ,his character is based upon 
a reaction  against the circumstances of
 his father1 who in a troubled city has 
retired from politics2 and his mother1  
who is dissatisfied at her own          
position1 is always urging him towards  
the life of political ambition4  ,such a
 character may have had this origin1 and
 indeed ,livy attributes the  ,licinian 
laws to a cxxvii feminine jealousy of a 
similar kind 7vii4 #cd74  ,but there is 
obviously no connection between the     
manner in which the  timocratic ,state  
springs out of the ideal1 and the mere  
accident by which  the timocratic man is
 the son of a retired statesman4    ,the
 two next stages in the decline of      
constitutions have even less  historical
 foundation4 ,for there is no trace in  
,greek history of a polity  like the    
,spartan or ,cretan passing into an     
oligarchy of wealth1 or of the          
oligarchy of wealth passing into a      

democracy4 ,the order of history appears
  to be different2 first1 in the        
,homeric times there is the royal or    
patriarchal form of government1 which a 
century or two later was succeeded  by  
an oligarchy of birth rather than of    
wealth1 and in which wealth was  only   
the accident of the hereditary          
possession of land and power4           
,sometimes this oligarchical government 
gave way to a government based upon  a  
qualification of property1 which1       
according to ,aristotle's mode of using 
words1 would have been called a         
timocracy2 and this in some cities1 as  
at  ,athens1 became the conducting      
medium to democracy4 ,but such was not  
the  necessary order of succession in   
,states2 nor1 indeed1 can any order be  
discerned in the endless fluctuation of 
,greek history 7like the tides in  the  
,euripus71 except1 perhaps1 in the      
almost uniform tendency from  monarchy  
to aristocracy in the earliest times4   
,at first sight there  appears to be a  

similar inversion in the last step of   
the ,platonic  succession2 for tyranny1 
instead of being the natural end of     
democracy1 in  early ,greek history     
appears rather as a stage leading to    
democracy2 the  reign of ,peisistratus  
and his sons is an episode which comes  
between the  legislation of ,solon and  
the constitution of ,cleisthenes2 and   
some secret  cause common to them all   
seems to have led the greater part of   
,hellas at  her first appearance in the 
dawn of history1 e4g4 ,athens1 ,argos1  
,corinth1  ,sicyon1 and nearly every    
,state with the exception of ,sparta1   
through a  similar stage of tyranny     
which ended either in oligarchy or      
democracy4 ,but  then we must remember  
that ,plato is describing rather the    
contemporary  governments of the        
,sicilian ,states1 which alternated     
between democracy and  tyranny1 than the
 ancient history of ,athens or ,corinth4
    ,the portrait of the tyrant himself 
is just such as the later ,greek        

delighted to draw of ,phalaris and      
,dionysius1 in which1 as in the lives of
  mediaeval saints or mythic heroes1 the
 conduct and actions cxxviii of  one    
were attributed to another in order to  
fill up the outline4 ,there was  no     
enormity which the ,greek was not today 
to believe of them2 the tyrant  was the 
negation of government and law2 his     
assassination was glorious2  there was  
no crime1 however unnatural1 which might
 not with probability be  attributed to 
him4 ,in this1 ,plato was only following
 the common thought of  his countrymen1 
which he embellished and exaggerated    
with all the power of  his genius4      
,there is no need to suppose that he    
drew from life2 or that  his knowledge  
of tyrants is derived from a personal   
acquaintance with  ,dionysius4 ,the     
manner in which he speaks of them would 
rather tend to  render doubtful his ever
 having 'consorted' with them1 or       
entertained the  schemes1 which are     
attributed to him in the ,epistles1 of  

regenerating  ,sicily by their help4    
,plato in a hyperbolical and serio-comic
 vein exaggerates the follies of        
democracy which he also sees reflected  
in social life4 ,to him democracy is  a 
state of individualism or dissolution2  
in which every one is doing what  is    
right in his own eyes4 ,of a people     
animated by a common spirit of  liberty1
 rising as one man to repel the ,persian
 host1 which is the leading  idea of    
democracy in ,herodotus and ,thucydides1
 he never seems to think4  ,but if he is
 not a believer in liberty1 still less  
is he a lover of  tyranny4 ,his deeper  
and more serious condemnation is        
reserved for the  tyrant1 who is the    
ideal of wickedness and also of         
weakness1 and who in  his utter         
helplessness and suspiciousness is      
leading an almost impossible  existence1
 without that remnant of good which1 in 
,plato's opinion1 was  required to give 
power to evil 7,book i4 p4 #ceb74 ,this 
ideal of wickedness  living in helpless 

misery1 is the reverse of that other    
portrait of  perfect injustice ruling in
 happiness and splendour1 which first of
 all  ,thrasymachus1 and afterwards the 
sons of ,ariston had drawn1 and is also 
the reverse of the king whose rule of   
life is the good of his subjects4       
,each of these governments and          
individuals has a corresponding ethical 
gradation3 the ideal ,state is under the
 rule of reason1 not extinguishing  but 
harmonizing the passions1 and training  
them in virtue2 in the  timocracy and   
the timocratic man the constitution1    
whether of the ,state or  of the        
individual1 is based1 first1 upon       
courage1 and secondly1 upon the  love of
 honour2 this latter virtue1 cxxix which
 is hardly to be esteemed  a virtue1 has
 superseded all the rest4 ,in the second
 stage of decline the  virtues have     
altogether disappeared1 and the love of 
gain has succeeded to  them2 in the     
third stage1 or democracy1 the various  
passions are allowed  to have free play1

 and the virtues and vices are          
impartially cultivated4  ,but this      
freedom1 which leads to many curious    
extravagances of character1  is in      
reality only a state of weakness and    
dissipation4 ,at last1 one  monster     
passion takes possession of the whole   
nature of man--this is  tyranny4 ,in all
 of them excess--the excess first of    
wealth and then of  freedom1 is the     
element of decay4    ,the eighth book of
 the ,republic abounds in pictures of   
life and fanciful  allusions2 the use of
 metaphorical language is carried to a  
greater extent  than anywhere else in   
,plato4 ,we may remark1 7#a71 the       
description of the  two nations in one1 
which become more and more divided in   
the ,greek  ,republics1 as in feudal    
times1 and perhaps also in our own2     
7#b71 the  notion of democracy expressed
 in a sort of ,pythagorean formula as   
equality  among unequals2 7#c71 the free
 and easy ways of men and animals1 which
 are  characteristic of liberty1 as     

foreign mercenaries and universal       
mistrust  are of the tyrant2 7#d71 the  
proposal that mere debts should not be  
recoverable by law is a speculation     
which has often been entertained by     
reformers of the law in modern times1   
and is in harmony with the  tendencies  
of modern legislation4 ,debt and land   
were the two great  difficulties of the 
ancient lawgiver3 in modern times we may
 be said to  have almost1 if not quite1 
solved the first of these difficulties1 
but  hardly the second4    ,still more  
remarkable are the corresponding        
portraits of individuals3  there is the 
family picture of the father and mother 
and the old servant  of the timocratical
 man1 and the outward respectability and
 inherent  meanness of the oligarchical2
 the uncontrolled licence and freedom of
 the  democrat1 in which the young      
,alcibiades seems to be depicted1 doing 
right  or wrong as he pleases1 and who  
at last1 like the prodigal1 goes into a 
far country 7note here the play of      

language by which the democratic man is 
himself represented under the image of a
 ,state having a citadel and  receiving 
embassies72 and there is the wild-beast 
nature1 which breaks  loose in his      
successor4 ,the hit about the tyrant    
being a parricide2 the  representation  
of the tyrant's life as cxxx an obscene 
dream2 the  rhetorical surprise of a    
more miserable than the most miserable  
of men in  ,book ix2 the hint to the    
poets that if they are the friends of   
tyrants  there is no place for them in a
 constitutional ,state1 and that they   
are  too clever not to see the propriety
 of their own expulsion2 the continuous 
image of the drones who are of two      
kinds1 swelling at last into the        
monster drone having wings 7see infra1  
,book ix71--are among ,plato's  happiest
 touches4    ,there remains to be       
considered the great difficulty of this 
book of the  ,republic1 the so-called   
number of the ,state4 ,this is a puzzle 
almost as  great as the ,number of the  

,beast in the ,book of ,revelation1 and 
though  apparently known to ,aristotle1 
is referred to by ,cicero as a proverb  
of  obscurity 7,ep4 ad ,att4 vii4 #ac1  
#e74 ,and some have imagined that there 
is  no answer to the puzzle1 and that   
,plato has been practising upon his     
readers4 ,but such a deception as this  
is inconsistent with the manner in      
which ,aristotle speaks of the number   
7,pol4 v4 #ab1  #g71 and would have     
been ridiculous to any reader of the    
,republic who was acquainted with       
,greek mathematics4 ,as little reason is
 there for supposing that ,plato        
intentionally used obscure expressions2 
the obscurity arises from our want  of  
familiarity with the subject4 ,on the   
other hand1 ,plato himself  indicates   
that he is not altogether serious1 and  
in describing his number  as a solemn   
jest of the ,muses1 he appears to imply 
some degree of satire  on the symbolical
 use of number4 7,cp4 ,cratylus passim2 
,protag4 #cdb ff47    ,our hope of      

understanding the passage depends       
principally on an accurate  study of the
 words themselves2 on which a faint     
light is thrown by the  parallel passage
 in the ninth book4 ,another help is the
 allusion in  ,aristotle1 who makes the 
important remark that the latter part of
 the  passage 7from ,greek3 7n          
e7pi_/tritos puthmn1 k4t4l47 describes a
  solid figure4 ,some further clue may  
be gathered from the appearance of the  
,pythagorean triangle1 which is denoted 
by the numbers #c1 #d1 #e1 and in       
which1 as in every right-angled cxxxi   
triangle1 the squares of the two  lesser
 sides equal the square of the          
hypotenuse 7#cb  #db  #eb1 or  #i  #af  
#be74    ,footnote #b3 ,pol4 v4 #ab1    
#h3--';,he only says that nothing is    
abiding1 but  that all things change in 
a certain cycle2 and that the origin of 
the  change is a base of numbers which  
are in the ratio of #d 3 #c2 and this   
when  combined with a figure of five    
gives two harmonies2 he means when the  

number of this figure becomes solid4'   
,plato begins by speaking of a perfect  
or cyclical number 7cp4 ,tim4 #ci ,d71  
i4e4 a number in which the sum of the   
divisors equals the whole2 this is  the 
divine or perfect number in which all   
lesser cycles or revolutions are        
complete4 ,he also speaks of a human or 
imperfect number1 having four terms  and
 three intervals of numbers which are   
related to one another in certain       
proportions2 these he converts into     
figures1 and finds in them when they    
have been raised to the third power     
certain elements of number1 which give  
two 'harmonies1' the one square1 the    
other oblong2 but he does not say  that 
the square number answers to the divine1
 or the oblong number to the  human     
cycle2 nor is any intimation given that 
the first or divine number  represents  
the period of the world1 the second the 
period of the state1 or  of the human   
race as ,zeller supposes2 nor is the    
divine number afterwards  mentioned 7cp4

 ,arist474 ,the second is the number of 
generations or births1  and presides    
over them in the same mysterious manner 
in which the stars  preside over them1  
or in which1 according to the           
,pythagoreans1  opportunity1 justice1   
marriage1 are represented by some number
 or figure4  ,this is probably the      
number #baf4    ,the explanation given  
in the text supposes the two harmonies  
to make up  the number #hjjj4 ,this     
explanation derives a certain           
plausibility from the  circumstance that
 #hjjj is the ancient number of the     
,spartan citizens  7,herod4 vii4 #cd71  
and would be what ,plato might have     
called 'a number  which nearly concerns 
the population of a city' 7#ehh ,a72 the
 mysterious  disappearance of the       
,spartan population may possibly have   
suggested to him  the first cause of his
 decline of ,states4 ,the lesser or     
square 'harmony1'  of #djj1 might be a  
symbol of the guardians1--the larger or 
oblong  'harmony1' of the people1 and   

the numbers #c1 #d1 #e might refer      
respectively  to the three orders in the
 ,state or parts of the soul1 the four  
virtues1  the five forms of government4 
,the harmony of the musical scale1 which
 is  elsewhere used as a symbol of the  
harmony of the state 7,rep4 iv4 #ddc    
,d71  is also indicated4 ,for the       
numbers #c1 #d1 #e1 which represent the 
sides of  the ,pythagorean triangle1    
also denote the intervals of the scale4 
,the terms used in the statement of the 
problem may be cxxxii explained  as     
follows4 ,a perfect number 7,greek3     
te_/leios a7rithmo_/s71 as already      
stated1 is one which is equal to the sum
 of its divisors4 ,thus #f1 which is    
the first perfect or cyclical number1   
#a  #b  #c4 ,the words ,greek3  o7_/roi1
 'terms' or 'notes1' and ,greek3        
a7posta_/seis1 'intervals1' are         
applicable to music as well as to number
 and figure4 ,greek3 ,pr_/t is  the     
'base' on which the whole calculation   
depends1 or the 'lowest term'  from     

which it can be worked out4 ,the words  
,greek3 duna_/menai_/ te kai            
dunasteuo_/menoi have been variously    
translated--'squared and cubed'         
7,donaldson71 'equalling and equalled in
 power' 7,weber71 'by involution and    
evolution1' i4e4 by raising the power   
and extracting the root 7as in the      
translation74 ,numbers are called 'like 
and unlike' 7,greek3 o7moiounte_/s  te  
kai a7nomoiountes7 when the factors or  
the sides of the planes and  cubes which
 they represent are or are not in the   
same ratio3 e4g4 #h and  #bg  #bc and   
#cc2 and conversely4 ',waxing' 7,greek3 
au7_/xontes7 numbers1  called also      
'increasing' 7,greek3 u7perteleis7 are  
those which are  exceeded by the sum of 
their divisors3 e4g4 #ab and #ah are    
less than #af and  #ba4 ',waning'       
7,greek3 phthi_/nontes7 numbers1 called 
also 'decreasing'  7,greek3 e7llipeis7  
are those which succeed the sum of their
 divisors3  e4g4 #h and #bg exceed #g   
and #ac4 ,the words translated          

'commensurable and  agreeable to one    
another' 7,greek3 pros_/gora kai r7ta_/7
 seem to be  different ways of          
describing the same relation1 with more 
or less  precision4 ,they are equivalent
 to 'expressible in terms having the    
same  relation to one another1' like the
 series #h1 #ab1 #ah1 #bg1 each of which
  numbers is in the relation of #a and  
#a_/b to the preceding4 ,the 'base1' or 
'fundamental number1 which has #a_/c    
added to it' 7#a and #a_/c7  #d_/c or a 
musical fourth4 ,greek3 ,a7rmoni_/a is a
 'proportion' of numbers as of  musical 
notes1 applied either to the parts or   
factors of a single number  or to the   
relation of one number to another4 ,the 
first harmony is a  'square' number     
7,greek3 i7_/sn i7sa_/kis72 the second  
harmony is an  'oblong' number 7,greek3 
prom_/k71 i4e4 a number representing a  
figure  of which the opposite sides only
 are equal4 ,greek3 ,a7rithmoi a7po     
diame_/trn  'numbers squared from' or   
'upon diameters'2 ,greek3 r7tn          

'rational1' i4e4 omitting fractions1    
,greek3 a7r7r7_/tn1 'irrational1'  i4e4 
including fractions2 e4g4 #di is a      
square of the rational diameter of  a   
figure the side of which  #e3 #ej1 of an
 irrational diameter of the same4  ,for 
several of the explanations here given  
and for a good deal besides  ,i am      
indebted to an excellent article on the 
,platonic ,number by ,dr4  ,donaldson   
7,proc4 of the ,philol4 ,society1 vol4  
i4 p4 #ha ff474    cxxxiii ,the         
conclusions which he draws from these   
data are summed up by  him as follows4  
,having assumed that the number of the  
perfect or divine  cycle is the number  
of the world1 and the number of the     
imperfect cycle  the number of the      
state1 he proceeds3 ',the period of the 
world is defined  by the perfect number 
#f1 that of the state by the cube of    
that number or  #baf1 which is the      
product of the last pair of terms in the
 ,platonic  ,tetractys#c2 and if we take
 this as the basis of our computation1  

we  shall have two cube numbers 7,greek3
 au7x_/seis duna_/menai_/ te kai        
dunasteuo_/menai71 viz4 #h and #bg2 and 
the mean proportionals between  these1  
viz4 #ab and #ah1 will furnish three    
intervals and four terms1 and  these    
terms and intervals stand related to one
 another in the  sesqui-altera ratio1   
i4e4 each term is to the preceding as   
#c_/b4 ,now if  we remember that the    
number #baf  #h x #bg  #cc  #dc  #ec1   
and #cb  #db   #eb1 we must admit that  
this number implies the numbers #c1 #d1 
#e1 to  which musicians attach so much  
importance4 ,and if we combine the ratio
 #d_/c  with the number #e1 or multiply 
the ratios of the sides by the          
hypotenuse1  we shall by first squaring 
and then cubing obtain two expressions1 
which  denote the ratio of the two last 
pairs of terms in the ,platonic         
,tetractys1  the former multiplied by   
the square1 the latter by the cube of   
the number  #aj1 the sum of the first   
four digits which constitute the        

,platonic  ,tetractys4' ,the two ,greek3
 a7rmoni_/ai he elsewhere explains as   
follows3  ',the first ,greek3 a7rmoni_/a
 is ,greek3 i7_/sn i7sa_/kis e7katon    
tosauta_/kis1 in other words 7#d_/c x   
#e7b  #ajj x #bb_/cb4 ,the second       
,greek3 a7rmoni_/a1 a cube of the same  
root1 is described as #ajj  multiplied  
7,greek3 a7 by the rational diameter of 
#e diminished by unity1  i4e41 as shown 
above1 #dh3 7,greek3 b7 by two          
incommensurable diameters1  i4e4 the two
 first irrationals1 or #b and #c3 and   
7,greek3 g7 by the cube  of #c1 or #bg4 
,thus we have 7#dh  #e  #bg7 #ajj  #ajjj
 x #bc4 ,this second  harmony is to be  
the cube of the number of which the     
former harmony is the  square1 and      
therefore must be divided by the cube of
 #c4 ,in other words1  the whole        
expression will be3 7#a71 for the first 
harmony1 #djj_/i3 7#b71 for  the second 
harmony1 #hjjj_/bg4'    ,footnote #c3   
,the ,platonic ,tetractys consisted of a
 series of seven terms1  #a1 #b1 #c1 #d1

 #i1 #h1 #bg4    ,the reasons which have
 inclined me to agree with ,dr4         
,donaldson and also  with               
,schleiermacher in supposing that #baf  
is the ,platonic number of births  are3 
7#a7 that it coincides with the         
description of the number given in the  
first part of the passage 7,greek3 e7n 7
 pr_/t 444 cxxxiv  a7pe_/phsan73 7#b7   
that the number #baf with its           
permutations would have  been familiar  
to a ,greek mathematician1 though       
unfamiliar to us3 7#c7 that  #baf is the
 cube of #f1 and also the sum of #cc1   
#dc1 #ec1 the numbers #c1 #d1  #e       
representing the ,pythagorean triangle1 
of which the sides when squared  equal  
the square of the hypotenuse 7#cb  #db  
#eb73 7#d7 that it is also  the period  
of the ,pythagorean ,metempsychosis3    
7#e7 the three ultimate terms  or bases 
7#c1 #d1 #e7 of which #baf is composed  
answer to the third1 fourth1  fifth in  
the musical scale3 7#f7 that the number 
#baf is the product of the  cubes of #b 

and #c1 which are the two last terms in 
the ,platonic ,tetractys3  7#g7 that the
 ,pythagorean triangle is said by       
,plutarch 7de ,is4 et ,osir41  #cgc ,e71
 ,proclus 7super prima ,eucl4 iv4 p4    
#aaa71 and ,quintilian 7de ,musica  iii4
 p4 #aeb7 to be contained in this       
passage1 so that the tradition of the   
school seems to point in the same       
direction3 7#h7 that the ,pythagorean   
triangle is called also the figure of   
marriage 7,greek3 gam_/lion             
dia_/gramma74    ,but though agreeing   
with ,dr4 ,donaldson thus far1 ,i see no
 reason for  supposing1 as he does1 that
 the first or perfect number is the     
world1 the  human or imperfect number   
the state2 nor has he given any proof   
that the  second harmony is a cube4 ,nor
 do ,i think that ,greek3 a7r7r7_/tn de 
duein can mean 'two incommensurables1'  
which he arbitrarily assumes to  be #b  
and #c1 but rather1 as the preceding    
clause implies1 ,greek3 duein           
a7rithmoin a7po a7r7r7_/tn diame_/trn   

pempa_/dos1 i4e4 two square  numbers    
based upon irrational diameters of a    
figure the side of which is  #e  #ej x  
#b4    ,the greatest objection to the   
translation is the sense given to the   
words  ,greek3 e7pi_/tritos puthm_/n    
k4t4l41 'a base of three with a third   
added  to it1 multiplied by #e4' ,in    
this somewhat forced manner ,plato      
introduces  once more the numbers of the
 ,pythagorean triangle4 ,but the        
coincidences in  the numbers which      
follow are in favour of the explanation4
 ,the first  harmony of #djj1 as has    
been already remarked1 probably         
represents the  rulers2 the second and  
oblong harmony of #gfjj1 the people4    
,and here we take leave of the          
difficulty4 ,the discovery of the riddle
  would be useless1 and would throw no  
light on ancient mathematics4 ,the      
point of interest is that ,plato should 
have used such a symbol1 and that  so   
much of the ,pythagorean spirit should  
have prevailed in him4 ,his  general    

meaning is that divine creation is      
perfect1 and is represented or  presided
 cxxxv over by a perfect or cyclical    
number2 human generation is  imperfect1 
and represented or presided over by an  
imperfect number or  series of numbers4 
,the number #ejdj1 which is the number  
of the citizens in  the ,laws1 is       
expressly based by him on utilitarian   
grounds1 namely1 the  convenience of the
 number for division2 it is also made up
 of the first  seven digits multiplied  
by one another4 ,the contrast of the    
perfect and  imperfect number may have  
been easily suggested by the corrections
 of the  cycle1 which were made first by
 ,meton and secondly by ,callippus2 7the
  latter is said to have been a pupil of
 ,plato74 ,of the degree of importance  
or of exactness to be attributed to the 
problem1 the number of the tyrant  in   
,book ix4 7#gbi  #cfe x #b71 and the    
slight correction of the error in the   
number #ejdj_/ab 7,laws1 #gga ,c71 may  
furnish a criterion4 ,there is nothing  

surprising in the circumstance that     
those who were seeking for order in     
nature and had found order in number1   
should have imagined one to give law  to
 the other4 ,plato believes in a power  
of number far beyond what he could  see 
realized in the world around him1 and he
 knows the great influence  which 'the  
little matter of #a1 #b1 #c' 7vii4 #ebb 
,c7 exercises upon  education4 ,he may  
even be thought to have a prophetic     
anticipation of the  discoveries of     
,quetelet and others1 that numbers      
depend upon numbers2  e4g4--in          
population1 the numbers of births and   
the respective numbers of  children born
 of either sex1 on the respective ages  
of parents1 i4e4 on  other numbers4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,ix4 ,analysis4   
,,book ,,ix4 99#ega99 ,last of all comes
 the tyrannical man1 about whom we have 
to  enquire1 ,whence is he1 and how does
 he live--in happiness or in misery8    
,there is1 however1 a previous question 

of the nature and number of the         
appetites1 which ,i should like to      
consider first4 ,some of them are       
unlawful1 and yet admit of being        
chastened and weakened in various       
degrees  by the power of reason and law4
 ',what appetites do you mean8' ,i mean 
those  which are awake when the         
reasoning powers are asleep1 which get  
up and  walk about naked without any    
self-respect or shame2 and there is no  
conceivable folly or crime1 however     
cruel or unnatural1 of which1 in        
imagination1 they may not be guilty4    
',true1' he said2 'very true4' ,but     
when a man's pulse beats temperately2   
and he has supped on a feast of  reason 
and come to a knowledge of himself      
cxxxvi before going to rest1  99#egb99  
and has satisfied his desires just      
enough to prevent their  perturbing his 
reason1 which remains clear and         
luminous1 and when he is  free from     
quarrel and heat1--the visions which he 
has on his bed are least  irregular and 

abnormal4 ,even in good men there is    
such an irregular  wild-beast nature1   
which peers out in sleep4    ,to        
return3--,you remember what was said of 
the democrat2 that he was the  son of a 
miserly father1 who encouraged the      
saving desires and repressed  the       
ornamental and expensive ones2 presently
 the youth got into fine  company1 and  
began to entertain a dislike to his     
father's narrow ways2 and  being a      
better man than the corrupters of his   
youth1 he came to a mean1  and led a    
life1 not of lawless or slavish passion1
 but of regular and  successive         
indulgence4 ,now imagine that the youth 
has become a father1 and  has a son who 
is exposed to the same temptations1 and 
has companions who  lead him into every 
sort of iniquity1 and parents and       
friends who try to  keep him right4     
99#egc99 ,the counsellors of evil find  
that their only chance  of retaining him
 is to implant in his soul a monster    
drone1 or love2 while  other desires    

buzz around him and mystify him with    
sweet sounds and  scents1 this monster  
love takes possession of him1 and puts  
an end to  every true or modest thought 
or wish4 ,love1 like drunkenness and    
madness1  is a tyranny2 and the         
tyrannical man1 whether made by nature  
or habit1 is  just a drinking1 lusting1 
furious sort of animal4    ,and how does
 such an one live8 ',nay1 that you must 
tell me4' ,well then1  ,i fancy that he 
will live amid revelries and harlotries1
 and love will be  the lord and master  
of the house4 ,many desires require much
 money1 and so  he spends all that he   
has and borrows more2 and when he has   
nothing the  young ravens are still in  
the nest in which they were hatched1    
crying for  food4 99#egd99 ,love urges  
them on2 and they must be gratified by  
force or  fraud1 or if not1 they become 
painful and troublesome2 and as the new 
pleasures succeed the old ones1 so will 
the son take possession of the  goods of
 his parents2 if they show signs of     

refusing1 he will defraud and  deceive  
them2 and if they openly resist1 what   
then8 ',i can only say1 that  ,i should 
not much like to be in their place4'    
,but1 ,o heavens1 ,adeimantus1  to think
 that for some new-fangled and          
unnecessary love he will give up  his   
old father and mother1 best and dearest 
of friends1 or enslave them to  the     
fancies of the hour6 cxxxvii ,truly a   
tyrannical son is a blessing to  his    
father and mother6 ,when there is no    
more to be got out of them1 he  turns   
burglar or pickpocket1 or robs a temple4
 ,love overmasters the  thoughts of his 
youth1 and he becomes in sober reality  
the monster that he  was sometimes in   
sleep4 99#ege99 ,he waxes strong in all 
violence and  lawlessness2 and is ready 
for any deed of daring that will supply 
the  wants of his rabble-rout4 ,in a    
well-ordered ,state there are only a few
  such1 and these in time of war go out 
and become the mercenaries of a  tyrant4
 ,but in time of peace they stay at home

 and do mischief2 they are  the thieves1
 footpads1 cut-purses1 man-stealers of  
the community2 or if  they are able to  
speak1 they turn false-witnesses and    
informers4 ',no small  catalogue of     
crimes truly1 even if the perpetrators  
are few4' ,yes1 ,i said2  but small and 
great are relative terms1 and no crimes 
which are committed  by them approach   
those of the tyrant1 whom this class1   
growing strong and  numerous1 create out
 of themselves4 ,if the people yield1   
well and good1  but1 if they resist1    
then1 as before he beat his father and  
mother1 so now  he beats his fatherland 
and motherland1 and places his          
mercenaries over  them4 ,such men in    
their early days live with flatterers1  
and they  themselves flatter others1 in 
order to gain their ends2 99#egf99 but  
they  soon discard their followers when 
they have no longer any need of them2   
they are always either masters or       
servants1--the joys of friendship are   
unknown to them4 ,and they are utterly  

treacherous and unjust1 if the  nature  
of justice be at all understood by us4  
,they realize our dream2 and  he who is 
the most of a tyrant by nature1 and     
leads the life of a tyrant  for the     
longest time1 will be the worst of them1
 and being the worst of  them1 will also
 be the most miserable4    ,like man1   
like ,state1--the tyrannical man will   
answer to tyranny1 which is  the extreme
 opposite of the royal ,state2 for one  
is the best and the other  the worst4   
,but which is the happier8 ,great and   
terrible as the tyrant may  appear      
enthroned amid his satellites1 let us   
not be afraid to go in and  ask2 and the
 answer is1 that the monarchical is the 
happiest1 and the  tyrannical the most  
miserable of ,states4 99#egg99 ,and may 
we not ask the same  question about the 
men themselves1 requesting some one to  
look into them  who is able to penetrate
 the inner nature of man1 and will not  
be  panic-struck by the vain pomp of    
tyranny8 ,i will suppose that he        

cxxxviii is one who has lived with him1 
and has seen him in family life1  or    
perhaps in the hour of trouble and      
danger4    ,assuming that we ourselves  
are the impartial judge for whom we     
seek1 let  us begin by comparing the    
individual and ,state1 and ask first of 
all1  whether the ,state is likely to be
 free or enslaved--,will there not be a 
little freedom and a great deal of      
slavery8 ,and the freedom is of the bad1
  and the slavery of the good2 and this 
applies to the man as well as to the    
,state2 for his soul is full of meanness
 and slavery1 and the better part  is   
enslaved to the worse4 ,he cannot do    
what he would1 and his mind is full  of 
confusion2 he is the very reverse of a  
freeman4 99#egh99 ,the ,state will be   
poor and full of misery and sorrow2 and 
the man's soul will also be poor  and   
full of sorrows1 and he will be the most
 miserable of men4 ,no1 not the  most   
miserable1 for there is yet a more      
miserable4 ',who is that8' ,the         

tyrannical man who has the misfortune   
also to become a public tyrant4  ',there
 ,i suspect that you are right4' ,say   
rather1 ',i am sure2' conjecture  is out
 of place in an enquiry of this nature4 
,he is like a wealthy owner  of slaves1 
only he has more of them than any       
private individual4 ,you will  say1     
',the owners of slaves are not generally
 in any fear of them4' ,but  why8       
,because the whole city is in a league  
which protects the individual4  ,suppose
 however that one of these owners and   
his household is carried off  by a god  
into a wilderness1 where there are no   
freemen to help him--will  he not be in 
an agony of terror8-- 99#egi99 will he  
not be compelled to  flatter his slaves 
and to promise them many things sore    
against his will8  ,and suppose the same
 god who carried him off were to        
surround him with  neighbours who       
declare that no man ought to have       
slaves1 and that the  owners of them    
should be punished with death4 ',still  

worse and worse6 ,he  will be in the    
midst of his enemies4' ,and is not our  
tyrant such a captive  soul1 who is     
tormented by a swarm of passions which  
he cannot indulge2  living indoors      
always like a woman1 and jealous of     
those who can go out  and see the world8
    ,having so many evils1 will not the 
most miserable of men be still more     
miserable in a public station8 ,master  
of others when he is not master of      
himself2 like a sick man who is         
compelled to be an athlete2 the meanest 
of  slaves and the most abject of       
flatterers2 wanting all things1 and     
never  able to satisfy his desires2     
always in fear and distraction1 like the
  ,state of which he is the             
representative4 99#ehj99 cxxxix ,his    
jealous1  hateful1 faithless temper     
grows worse with command2 he is more and
 more  faithless1 envious1              
unrighteous1--the most wretched of men1 
a misery to  himself and to others4 ,and
 so let us have a final trial and       

proclamation2  need we hire a herald1 or
 shall ,i proclaim the result8 ',make   
the  proclamation yourself4' ,the son of
 ,ariston 7the best7 is of opinion that 
the best and justest of men is also the 
happiest1 and that this is he who  is   
the most royal master of himself2 and   
that the unjust man is he who is  the   
greatest tyrant of himself and of his   
,state4 ,and ,i add further--'seen  or  
unseen by gods or men4'    ,this is our 
first proof4 ,the second is derived from
 the three kinds of  pleasure1 which    
answer to the three elements of the     
soul--reason1 passion1  desire2 99#eha99
 under which last is comprehended       
avarice as well as sensual  appetite1   
while passion includes ambition1        
party-feeling1 love of  reputation4     
,reason1 again1 is solely directed to   
the attainment of truth1  and careless  
of money and reputation4 ,in accordance 
with the difference of  men's natures1  
one of these three principles is in the 
ascendant1 and they  have their several 

pleasures corresponding to them4        
,interrogate now the  three natures1 and
 each one will be found praising his own
 pleasures and  depreciating those of   
others4 ,the money-maker will contrast  
the vanity of  knowledge with the solid 
advantages of wealth4 ,the ambitious man
 will  despise knowledge which brings no
 honour2 whereas the philosopher will   
regard only the fruition of truth1 and  
will call other pleasures necessary     
rather than good4 99#ehb99 ,now1 how    
shall we decide between them8 ,is there 
any better criterion than experience and
 knowledge8 ,and which of the three  has
 the truest knowledge and the widest    
experience8 ,the experience of  youth   
makes the philosopher acquainted with   
the two kinds of desire1 but  the       
avaricious and the ambitious man never  
taste the pleasures of truth  and       
wisdom4 ,honour he has equally with     
them2 they are 'judged of him1' but  he 
is 'not judged of them1' for they never 
attain to the knowledge of true  being4 

,and his instrument is reason1 whereas  
their standard is only wealth  and      
honour2 and if by reason we are to      
judge1 his good will be the truest4     
,and so we arrive at the result that the
 pleasure of the rational part of  the  
soul1 and a life passed in such pleasure
 is the pleasantest4 99#ehc99 ,he  who  
has a right to judge judges thus4 ,next 
comes the life of ambition1  and1 in the
 third place1 that of money-making4     
cxl ,twice has the just man overthrown  
the unjust--once more1 as in an         
,olympian contest1 first offering up a  
prayer to the saviour ,zeus1 let him    
try a fall4 ,a wise man whispers to me  
that the pleasures of the wise are  true
 and pure2 all others are a shadow only4
 ,let us examine this3 ,is not  pleasure
 opposed to pain1 and is there not a    
mean state which is neither8  ,when a   
man is sick1 nothing is more pleasant to
 him than health4 ,but this  he never   
found out while he was well4 ,in pain he
 desires only to cease  from pain2 on   

the other hand1 when he is in an ecstasy
 of pleasure1 rest  is painful to him4  
,thus rest or cessation is both pleasure
 and pain4 ,but  can that which is      
neither become both8 ,again1 pleasure   
and pain are  motions1 and the absence  
of them is rest2 99#ehd99 but if so1 how
 can the  absence of either of them be  
the other8 ,thus we are led to infer    
that the  contradiction is an appearance
 only1 and witchery of the senses4 ,and 
these  are not the only pleasures1 for  
there are others which have no preceding
  pains4 ,pure pleasure then is not the 
absence of pain1 nor pure pain the      
absence of pleasure2 although most of   
the pleasures which reach the mind      
through the body are reliefs of pain1   
and have not only their reactions  when 
they depart1 but their anticipations    
before they come4 ,they can be  best    
described in a simile4 ,there is in     
nature an upper1 lower1 and middle      
region1 and he who passes from the lower
 to the middle imagines that he is      

going up and is already in the upper    
world2 and if he were taken back  again 
would think1 and truly think1 that he   
was descending4 ,all this  arises out of
 his ignorance of the true upper1       
middle1 and lower regions4  ,and a like 
confusion happens with pleasure and     
pain1 and with many other  things4      
99#ehe99 ,the man who compares grey with
 black1 calls grey white2 and  the man  
who compares absence of pain with pain1 
calls the absence of pain  pleasure4    
,again1 hunger and thirst are inanitions
 of the body1 ignorance  and folly of   
the soul2 and food is the satisfaction  
of the one1 knowledge  of the other4    
,now which is the purer                 
satisfaction--that of eating and        
drinking1 or that of knowledge8         
,consider the matter thus3 ,the         
satisfaction  of that which has more    
existence is truer than of that which   
has less4 ,the  invariable and immortal 
has a more real existence than the      
variable and  mortal1 and has a         

corresponding measure of knowledge and  
truth4 ,the soul1  again1 has more      
existence and truth and knowledge than  
the body1 and is  therefore more really 
satisfied and has a more cxli natural   
pleasure4  99#ehf99 ,those who feast    
only on earthly food1 are always going  
at random up  to the middle and down    
again2 but they never pass into the true
 upper  world1 or have a taste of true  
pleasure4 ,they are like fatted beasts1 
full  of gluttony and sensuality1 and   
ready to kill one another by reason of  
their insatiable lust2 for they are not 
filled with true being1 and their       
vessel is leaky 7cp4 ,gorgias1 #bdc ,a1 
foll474 ,their pleasures are mere       
shadows of pleasure1 mixed with pain1   
coloured and intensified by  contrast1  
and therefore intensely desired2 and men
 go fighting about them1  as            
,stesichorus says that the ,greeks      
fought about the shadow of ,helen at    
,troy1 because they know not the truth4 
,the same may be said of the passionate 

element3--the desires of the  ambitious 
soul1 as well as of the covetous1 have  
an inferior satisfaction4  ,only when   
under the guidance of reason do either  
of the other principles  do their own   
business 99#ehg99 or attain the pleasure
 which is natural to  them4 ,when not   
attaining1 they compel the other parts  
of the soul to  pursue a shadow of      
pleasure which is not theirs4 ,and the  
more distant they  are from philosophy  
and reason1 the more distant they will  
be from law and  order1 and the more    
illusive will be their pleasures4 ,the  
desires of love  and tyranny are the    
farthest from law1 and those of the king
 are nearest  to it4 ,there is one      
genuine pleasure1 and two spurious ones3
 the tyrant  goes beyond even the       
latter2 he has run away altogether from 
law and  reason4 ,nor can the measure of
 his inferiority be told1 except in a   
figure4 ,the tyrant is the third removed
 from the oligarch1 and has  therefore1 
not a shadow of his pleasure1 but the   

shadow of a shadow only4  ,the oligarch1
 again1 is thrice removed from the king1
 and thus we get the  formula #c x #c1  
which is the number of a surface1       
representing the shadow  which is the   
tyrant's pleasure1 and if you like to   
cube this 'number of  the beast1' you   
will find that the measure of the       
difference amounts to  #gbi2 the king is
 #gbi times more happy than the tyrant4 
,and this  extraordinary number is      
nearly equal to the number of days and  
nights in  a year 7#cfe x #b  #gcj72 and
 is therefore concerned with human life4
 99#ehh99  ,this is the interval between
 a good and bad man in happiness only3  
what  must be the difference between    
them in comeliness of life and virtue6  
,perhaps you may remember some one      
saying at the beginning of our          
discussion that the unjust man was      
profited if he had the cxlii  reputation
 of justice4 ,now that we know the      
nature of justice and  injustice1 let us
 make an image of the soul1 which will  

personify his  words4 ,first of all1    
fashion a multitudinous beast1 having a 
ring of heads  of all manner of animals1
 tame and wild1 and able to produce and 
change  them at pleasure4 ,suppose now  
another form of a lion1 and another of a
  man2 the second smaller than the      
first1 the third than the second2 join  
them together and cover them with a     
human skin1 in which they are           
completely concealed4 ,when this has    
been done1 let us tell the supporter  of
 injustice 99#ehi99 that he is feeding  
up the beasts and starving the man4     
,the maintainer of justice1 on the other
 hand1 is trying to strengthen the  man2
 he is nourishing the gentle principle  
within him1 and making an  alliance with
 the lion heart1 in order that he may be
 able to keep down  the many-headed     
hydra1 and bring all into unity with    
each other and with  themselves4 ,thus  
in every point of view1 whether in      
relation to pleasure1  honour1 or       
advantage1 the just man is right1 and   

the unjust wrong4    ,but now1 let us   
reason with the unjust1 who is not      
intentionally in error4  ,is not the    
noble that which subjects the beast to  
the man1 or rather to  the ,god in man2 
the ignoble1 that which subjects the man
 to the beast8 ,and  if so1 who would   
receive gold on condition that he was to
 degrade the  noblest part of himself   
under the worst8--who would sell his son
 or  daughter into the hands of brutal  
and evil men1 for any amount of money8  
,and will he sell his own fairer and    
diviner part without any compunction  to
 the most godless and foul8 99#eij99    
,would he not be worse than ,eriphyle1  
who sold her husband's life for a       
necklace8 ,and intemperance is the      
letting loose of the multiform monster1 
and pride and sullenness are the  growth
 and increase of the lion and serpent   
element1 while luxury and  effeminacy   
are caused by a too great relaxation of 
spirit4 ,flattery and  meanness again   
arise when the spirited element is      

subjected to avarice1  and the lion is  
habituated to become a monkey4 ,the real
 disgrace of  handicraft arts is1 that  
those who are engaged in them have to   
flatter1  instead of mastering their    
desires2 therefore we say that they     
should be  placed under the control of  
the better principle in another because 
they  have none in themselves2 not1 as  
,thrasymachus imagined1 to the injury of
  the subjects1 but for cxliii their    
good4 ,and our intention in educating   
the young1 is to give them self-control2
 99#eia99 the law desires to nurse up   
in them a higher principle1 and when    
they have acquired this1 they may go    
their ways4    ',what1 then1 shall a man
 profit1 if he gain the whole world' and
 become  more and more wicked8 ,or what 
shall he profit by escaping discovery1  
if  the concealment of evil prevents the
 cure8 ,if he had been punished1 the    
brute within him would have been        
silenced1 and the gentler element       
liberated2 and he would have united     

temperance1 justice1 and wisdom in his  
soul--a union better far than any       
combination of bodily gifts4 ,the man of
  understanding will honour knowledge   
above all2 in the next place he will    
keep under his body1 not only for the   
sake of health and strength1 but in     
order to attain the most perfect harmony
 of body and soul4 ,in the  acquisition 
of riches1 too1 he will aim at order and
 harmony2 he will not  desire to heap up
 wealth without measure1 but he will    
fear that the  increase of wealth will  
disturb the constitution of his own     
soul4 ,for the  same reason 99#eib99 he 
will only accept such honours as will   
make him a  better man2 any others he   
will decline4 ',in that case1' said he1 
'he will  never be a politician4' ,yes1 
but he will1 in his own city2 though    
probably  not in his native country1    
unless by some divine accident4 ',you   
mean that  he will be a citizen of the  
ideal city1 which has no place upon     
earth4'  ,but in heaven1 ,i replied1    

there is a pattern of such a city1 and  
he who  wishes may order his life after 
that image4 ,whether such a state is or 
ever will be matters not2 he will act   
according to that pattern and no        
other44444           99       99        
99       99       99    ,sidenote3      
,republic ,,ix4 ,introduction4    ,the  
most noticeable points in the #ith ,book
 of the ,republic are3--7#a7 the        
account of pleasure2 7#b7 the number of 
the interval which divides the king     
from the tyrant2 7#c7 the pattern which 
is in heaven4    #a4 ,plato's account of
 pleasure is remarkable for moderation1 
and in this  respect contrasts with the 
later ,platonists and the views which   
are  attributed to them by ,aristotle4  
,he is not1 like the ,cynics1 opposed to
  all pleasure1 but rather desires that 
the several parts of the soul shall     
have their natural satisfaction2 he even
 agrees with the ,epicureans in         
describing pleasure cxliv as something  
more than the absence of pain4  ,this is

 proved by the circumstance that there  
are pleasures which have no  antecedent 
pains 7as he also remarks in the        
,philebus71 such as the  pleasures of   
smell1 and also the pleasures of hope   
and anticipation4 ,in  the previous book
 7pp4 #eeh1 #eei7 he had made the       
distinction between  necessary and      
unnecessary pleasure1 which is repeated 
by ,aristotle1 and he  now observes that
 there are a further class of 'wild     
beast' pleasures1  corresponding to     
,aristotle's ,greek3 thrio_/ts4 ,he     
dwells upon the  relative and unreal    
character of sensual pleasures and the  
illusion which  arises out of the       
contrast of pleasure and pain1 pointing 
out the  superiority of the pleasures of
 reason1 which are at rest1 over the    
fleeting pleasures of sense and emotion4
 ,the pre-eminence of royal  pleasure is
 shown by the fact that reason is able  
to form a judgment of  the lower        
pleasures1 while the two lower parts of 
the soul are incapable  of judging the  

pleasures of reason4 ,thus1 in his      
treatment of pleasure1 as  in many other
 subjects1 the philosophy of ,plato is  
'sawn up into  quantities' by           
,aristotle2 the analysis which was      
originally made by him  became in the   
next generation the foundation of       
further technical  distinctions4 ,both  
in ,plato and ,aristotle we note the    
illusion under which  the ancients fell 
of regarding the transience of pleasure 
as a proof of  its unreality1 and of    
confounding the permanence of the       
intellectual  pleasures with the        
unchangeableness of the knowledge from  
which they are  derived4 ,neither do we 
like to admit that the pleasures of     
knowledge1  though more elevating1 are  
not more lasting than other pleasures1  
and are  almost equally dependent on the
 accidents of our bodily state 7cp4     
,introduction to ,philebus74    #b4 ,the
 number of the interval which separates 
the king from the tyrant1  and royal    
from tyrannical pleasures1 is #gbi1 the 

cube of #i4 ,which ,plato               
characteristically designates as a      
number concerned with human life1       
because nearly equivalent to the number 
of days and nights in the year4  ,he is 
desirous of proclaiming that the        
interval between them is  immeasurable1 
and invents a formula to give expression
 to his idea4 ,those  who spoke of      
justice as a cube1 of virtue as an art  
of measuring 7,prot4  #ceg ,a71 saw no  
inappropriateness in conceiving the soul
 under the figure  of a line1 or the    
pleasure of the tyrant as separated from
 the cxlv  pleasure of the king by the  
numerical interval of #gbi4 ,and in     
modern times  we sometimes use          
metaphorically what ,plato employed as a
 philosophical  formula4 ',it is not    
easy to estimate the loss of the tyrant1
 except  perhaps in this way1' says     
,plato4 ,so we might say1 that although 
the life  of a good man is not to be    
compared to that of a bad man1 yet you  
may  measure the difference between them

 by valuing one minute of the one at an 
hour of the other 7',one day in thy     
courts is better than a thousand'71 or  
you might say that 'there is an infinite
 difference4' ,but this is not so  much 
as saying1 in homely phrase1 ',they are 
a thousand miles asunder4'  ,and        
accordingly ,plato finds the natural    
vehicle of his thoughts in a            
progression of numbers2 this            
arithmetical formula he draws out with  
the  utmost seriousness1 and both here  
and in the number of generation seems to
  find an additional proof of the truth 
of his speculation in forming the       
number into a geometrical figure2 just  
as persons in our own day are apt  to   
fancy that a statement is verified when 
it has been only thrown into an         
abstract form4 ,in speaking of the      
number #gbi as proper to human life1 he 
probably intended to intimate that one  
year of the tyrannical  #ab hours  of   
the royal life4    ,the simple          
observation that the comparison of two  

similar solids is  effected by the      
comparison of the cubes of their sides1 
is the  mathematical groundwork of this 
fanciful expression4 ,there is some     
difficulty in explaining the steps by   
which the number #gbi is obtained2  the 
oligarch is removed in the third degree 
from the royal and  aristocratical1 and 
the tyrant in the third degree from the 
oligarchical2  but we have to arrange   
the terms as the sides of a square and  
to count the  oligarch twice over1 thus 
reckoning them not as  #e but as  #i4   
,the square  of #i is passed lightly    
over as only a step towards the cube4   
#c4 ,towards the close of the ,republic1
 ,plato seems to be more and more       
convinced of the ideal character of his 
own speculations4 ,at the end of  the   
#ith ,book the pattern which is in      
heaven takes the place of the city of   
philosophers on earth4 ,the vision which
 has received form and substance at  his
 hands1 is now discovered to be at a    
distance4 ,and yet this distant  kingdom

 is also the rule of man's life 7,bk4   
vii4 #edj ,e74 7',say not lo6  here1 or 
lo6 there1 for the kingdom of ,god is   
within you4'7 ,thus a note is  struck   
which prepares for the revelation of a  
future cxlvi life in the  following     
,book4 ,but the future life is present  
still2 the ideal of  politics is to be  
realized in the individual4           99
       99       99       99       99    
,sidenote3 ,republic ,x4 ,analysis4     
,,book ,x4 99#eie99 ,many things pleased
 me in the order of our ,state1 but     
there  was nothing which ,i liked better
 than the regulation about poetry4 ,the 
division of the soul throws a new light 
on our exclusion of imitation4 ,i  do   
not mind telling you in confidence that 
all poetry is an outrage on the         
understanding1 unless the hearers have  
that balm of knowledge which heals      
error4 ,i have loved ,homer ever since  
,i was a boy1 and even now he appears   
to me to be the great master of tragic  
poetry4 ,but much as ,i love the man1   

,i love truth more1 and therefore ,i    
must speak out3 and first of all1 will  
you explain what is imitation1 for      
really ,i do not understand8 ',how      
likely  then that ,i should understand6'
 99#eif99 ,that might very well be1 for 
the  duller often sees better than the  
keener eye4 ',true1 but in your presence
  ,i can hardly venture to say what ,i  
think4' ,then suppose that we begin in  
our old fashion1 with the doctrine of   
universals4 ,let us assume the          
existence of beds and tables4 ,there is 
one idea of a bed1 or of a table1  which
 the maker of each had in his mind when 
making them2 he did not make  the ideas 
of beds and tables1 but he made beds and
 tables according to the  ideas4 ,and is
 there not a maker of the works of all  
workmen1 who makes not  only vessels but
 plants and animals1 himself1 the earth 
and heaven1 and  things in heaven and   
under the earth8 ,he makes the ,gods    
also4 ',he must be  a wizard indeed6'   
,but do you not see that there is a     

sense in which you  could do the same8  
,you have only to take a mirror1 and    
catch the  reflection of the sun1 and   
the earth1 or anything else--there now  
you have  made them4 ',yes1 but only in 
appearance4' ,exactly so2 and the       
painter is  such a creator as you are   
with the mirror1 and he is even more    
unreal than  the carpenter2 although    
neither the carpenter 99#eig99 nor any  
other artist  can be supposed to make   
the absolute bed4 ',not if philosophers 
may be  believed4' ,nor need we wonder  
that his bed has but an imperfect       
relation  to the truth4 ,reflect3--,here
 are three beds2 one in nature1 which is
 made  by ,god2 another1 which is made  
by the carpenter2 and the third1 by the 
painter4 ,god only made one1 nor could  
he have made more than one2 for if      
there had been two1 there cxlvii would  
always have been a third--more  absolute
 and abstract than either1 under which  
they would have been  included4 ,we may 
therefore conceive ,god to be the       

natural maker of the  bed1 and in a     
lower sense the carpenter is also the   
maker2 but the painter  is rather the   
imitator of what the other two make2 he 
has to do with a  creation which is     
thrice removed from reality4 ,and the   
tragic poet is an  imitator1 and1 like  
every other imitator1 is thrice removed 
from the king  and from the truth4 ,the 
painter imitates not the original bed1  
99#eih99 but  the bed made by the       
carpenter4 ,and this1 without being     
really different1  appears to be        
different1 and has many points of view1 
of which only one is  caught by the     
painter1 who represents everything      
because he represents a  piece of       
everything1 and that piece an image4    
,and he can paint any other  artist1    
although he knows nothing of their arts2
 and this with sufficient  skill to     
deceive children or simple people4      
,suppose now that somebody came  to us  
and told us1 how he had met a man who   
knew all that everybody knows1  and     

better than anybody3--should we not     
infer him to be a simpleton who1  having
 no discernment of truth and falsehood1 
had met with a wizard or  enchanter1    
whom he fancied to be all-wise8 ,and    
when we hear persons saying  that ,homer
 and the tragedians know all the arts   
and all the virtues1 must  we not infer 
that they are under a similar delusion8 
99#eii99 they do not see  that the poets
 are imitators1 and that their creations
 are only  imitations4 ',very true4'    
,but if a person could create as well as
 imitate1  he would rather leave some   
permanent work and not an imitation     
only2 he  would rather be the receiver  
than the giver of praise8 ',yes1 for    
then he  would have more honour and     
advantage4'    ,let us now interrogate  
,homer and the poets4 ,friend ,homer1   
say ,i to him1  ,i am not going to ask  
you about medicine1 or any art to which 
your poems  incidentally refer1 but     
about their main subjects--war1 military
 tactics1  politics4 ,if you are only   

twice and not thrice removed from the   
truth--not  an imitator or an           
image-maker1 please to inform us what   
good you have ever  done to mankind8 ,is
 there any city which professes to have 
received laws  from you1 as ,sicily and 
,italy have from ,charondas1 99#fjj99   
,sparta from  ,lycurgus1 ,athens from   
,solon8 ,or was any war ever carried on 
by your  counsels8 or is any invention  
attributed to you1 as there is to       
,thales and  ,anacharsis8 ,or is there  
any cxlviii ,homeric way of life1 such  
as the  ,pythagorean was1 in which you  
instructed men1 and which is called     
after  you8 ',no1 indeed2 and           
,creophylus ,flesh-child was even more  
unfortunate  in his breeding than he was
 in his name1 if1 as tradition says1    
,homer in  his lifetime was allowed by  
him and his other friends to starve4'   
,yes1 but  could this ever have happened
 if ,homer had really been the educator 
of  ,hellas8 ,would he not have had many
 devoted followers8 ,if ,protagoras and 

,prodicus can persuade their            
contemporaries that no one can manage   
house or  ,state without them1 is it    
likely that ,homer and ,hesiod would    
have been  allowed to go about as       
beggars--,i mean if they had really been
 able to do  the world any good8--would 
not men have compelled them to stay     
where they  were1 or have followed them 
about in order to get education8 ,but   
they did  not2 and therefore we may     
infer that ,homer and all the poets are 
only  imitators1 who do but imitate the 
appearances of things4 99#fja99 ,for as 
a  painter by a knowledge of figure and 
colour can paint a cobbler without  any 
practice in cobbling1 so the poet can   
delineate any art in the colours  of    
language1 and give harmony and rhythm to
 the cobbler and also to the  general2  
and you know how mere narration1 when   
deprived of the ornaments  of metre1 is 
like a face which has lost the beauty of
 youth and never had  any other4 ,once  
more1 the imitator has no knowledge of  

reality1 but only  of appearance4 ,the  
painter paints1 and the artificer makes 
a bridle and  reins1 but neither        
understands the use of them--the        
knowledge of this is  confined to the   
horseman2 and so of other things4 ,thus 
we have three arts3  one of use1 another
 of invention1 a third of imitation2 and
 the user  furnishes the rule to the two
 others4 ,the flute-player will know the
 good  and bad flute1 and the maker will
 put faith in him2 but 99#fjb99 the     
imitator  will neither know nor have    
faith--neither science nor true opinion 
can be  ascribed to him4 ,imitation1    
then1 is devoid of knowledge1 being only
 a  kind of play or sport1 and the      
tragic and epic poets are imitators in  
the  highest degree4    ,and now let us 
enquire1 what is the faculty in man     
which answers to  imitation4 ,allow me  
to explain my meaning3 ,objects are     
differently seen  when in the water and 
when out of the water1 when near and    
when at a  distance2 and the painter or 

juggler makes use of this variation to  
impose  upon us4 ,and cxlix the art of  
measuring and weighing and calculating  
comes in to save our bewildered minds   
from the power of appearance2 for1  as  
we were saying1 99#fjc99 two contrary   
opinions of the same about the same  and
 at the same time1 cannot both of them  
be true4 ,but which of them is  true is 
determined by the art of calculation2   
and this is allied to the  better       
faculty in the soul1 as the arts of     
imitation are to the worse4 ,and  the   
same holds of the ear as well as of the 
eye1 of poetry as well as  painting4    
,the imitation is of actions voluntary  
or involuntary1 in which  there is an   
expectation of a good or bad result1 and
 present experience of  pleasure and    
pain4 ,but is a man in harmony with     
himself when he is the  subject of these
 conflicting influences8 ,is there not  
rather a  contradiction in him8 ,let me 
further ask1 whether 99#fjd99 he is more
 likely  to control sorrow when he is   

alone or when he is in company4 ',in the
  latter case4' ,feeling would lead him 
to indulge his sorrow1 but reason and   
law control him and enjoin patience2    
since he cannot know whether his        
affliction is good or evil1 and no human
 thing is of any great  consequence1    
while sorrow is certainly a hindrance to
 good counsel4 ,for  when we stumble1 we
 should not1 like children1 make an     
uproar2 we should  take the measures    
which reason prescribes1 not raising a  
lament1 but  finding a cure4 ,and the   
better part of us is ready to follow    
reason1 while  the irrational principle 
is full of sorrow and distraction at the
  recollection of our troubles4         
,unfortunately1 however1 this latter    
furnishes the chief materials of the    
imitative arts4 ,whereas reason is  ever
 in repose and cannot easily be         
displayed1 especially to a mixed        
multitude who have no experience of her4
 99#fje99 ,thus the poet is like the    
painter in two ways3 first he paints an 

inferior degree of truth1 and  secondly1
 he is concerned with an inferior part  
of the soul4 ,he indulges  the feelings1
 while he enfeebles the reason2 and we  
refuse to allow him to  have authority  
over the mind of man2 for he has no     
measure of greater and  less1 and is a  
maker of images and very far gone from  
truth4    ,but we have not yet mentioned
 the heaviest count in the              
indictment--the  power which poetry has 
of injuriously exciting the feelings4   
,when we hear  some passage in which a  
hero laments his sufferings at tedious  
length1 you  know that we sympathize    
with him and praise the poet2 and yet in
 our own  cl sorrows such an exhibition 
of feeling is regarded as effeminate and
  unmanly 7cp4 ,ion1 #ece ,e74 ,now1    
ought a man to feel pleasure in seeing  
another do what he hates and abominates 
in himself8 99#fjf99 ,is he not giving  
way to a sentiment which in his own case
 he would control8--he is off his  guard
 because the sorrow is another's2 and he

 thinks that he may indulge  his        
feelings without disgrace1 and will be  
the gainer by the pleasure4 ,but  the   
inevitable consequence is that he who   
begins by weeping at the sorrows  of    
others1 will end by weeping at his own4 
,the same is true of  comedy1--you may  
often laugh at buffoonery which you     
would be ashamed to  utter1 and the love
 of coarse merriment on the stage will  
at last turn you  into a buffoon at     
home4 ,poetry feeds and waters the      
passions and desires2  she lets them    
rule instead of ruling them4 ,and       
therefore1 when we hear the  encomiasts 
of ,homer affirming that he is the      
educator of ,hellas1 99#fjg99 and  that 
all life should be regulated by his     
precepts1 we may allow the  excellence  
of their intentions1 and agree with them
 in thinking ,homer a  great poet and   
tragedian4 ,but we shall continue to    
prohibit all poetry  which goes beyond  
hymns to the ,gods and praises of famous
 men4 ,not  pleasure and pain1 but law  

and reason shall rule in our ,state4    
,these are our grounds for expelling    
poetry2 but lest she should charge us   
with discourtesy1 let us also make an   
apology to her4 ,we will remind her     
that there is an ancient quarrel between
 poetry and philosophy1 of which  there 
are many traces in the writings of the  
poets1 such as the saying of  'the      
she-dog1 yelping at her mistress1' and  
'the philosophers who are  ready to     
circumvent ,zeus1' and 'the philosophers
 who are paupers4'  ,nevertheless we    
bear her no ill-will1 and will gladly   
allow her to return  upon condition that
 she makes a defence of herself in      
verse2 and her  supporters who are not  
poets may speak in prose4 ,we confess   
her charms2  but if she cannot show that
 she is useful as well as delightful1   
like  rational lovers1 we must renounce 
our love1 though endeared to us by early
  associations4 99#fjh99 ,having come to
 years of discretion1 we know that      
poetry is not truth1 and that a man     

should be careful how he introduces  her
 to that state or constitution which he 
himself is2 for there is a  mighty issue
 at stake--no less than the good or evil
 of a human soul4 ,and  it is not worth 
while to forsake justice and virtue cli 
for the  attractions of poetry1 any more
 than for the sake of honour or wealth4 
',i agree with you4'    ,and yet the    
rewards of virtue are greater far than  
,i have described4 ',and  can we        
conceive things greater still8' ,not1   
perhaps1 in this brief span of  life3   
but should an immortal being care about 
anything short of eternity8  ',i do not 
understand what you mean8' ,do you not  
know that the soul is  immortal8        
',surely you are not prepared to prove  
that8' ,indeed ,i am4 ',then  let me    
hear this argument1 of which you make so
 light4'    99#fji99 ,you would admit   
that everything has an element of good  
and of evil4  ,in all things there is an
 inherent corruption2 and if this cannot
 destroy  them1 nothing else will4 ,the 

soul too has her own corrupting         
principles1  which are injustice1       
intemperance1 cowardice1 and the like4  
,but none of  these destroy the soul in 
the same sense that disease destroys the
 body4  ,the soul may be full of all    
iniquities1 but is not1 by reason of    
them1  brought any nearer to death4     
,nothing which was not destroyed from   
within  ever perished by external       
affection of evil4 ,the body1 which is  
one thing1  99#faj99 cannot be destroyed
 by food1 which is another1 unless the  
badness of  the food is communicated to 
the body4 ,neither can the soul1 which  
is one  thing1 be corrupted by the body1
 which is another1 unless she herself is
  infected4 ,and as no bodily evil can  
infect the soul1 neither can any  bodily
 evil1 whether disease or violence1 or  
any other destroy the soul1  unless it  
can be shown to render her unholy and   
unjust4 ,but no one will  ever prove    
that the souls of men become more unjust
 when they die4 ,if a  person has the   

audacity to say the contrary1 the answer
 is--,then why do  criminals require the
 hand of the executioner1 and not die of
 themselves8  ',truly1' he said1        
'injustice would not be very terrible if
 it brought a  cessation of evil2 but ,i
 rather believe that the injustice which
 murders  others may tend to quicken and
 stimulate the life of the unjust4' ,you
 are  quite right4 ,if sin which is her 
own natural and inherent evil cannot    
destroy the soul1 hardly will anything  
else destroy her4 99#faa99 ,but the     
soul which cannot be destroyed either by
 internal or external evil must be      
immortal and everlasting4 ,and if this  
be true1 souls will always exist in  the
 same number4 ,they cannot diminish1    
because they cannot be destroyed2  nor  
yet increase1 for the increase of the   
immortal must come from  something clii 
mortal1 and so all would end in         
immortality4 ,neither is  the soul      
variable and diverse2 for that which is 
immortal must be of the  fairest and    

simplest composition4 ,if we would      
conceive her truly1 and so  behold      
justice and injustice in their own      
nature1 she must be viewed by  the light
 of reason pure as at birth1 or as she  
is reflected in philosophy  when holding
 converse with the divine and immortal  
and eternal4 ,in her  present condition 
we see her only like the sea-god        
,glaucus1 bruised and  maimed in the sea
 which is the world1 99#fab99 and       
covered with shells and  stones which   
are incrusted upon her from the         
entertainments of earth4    ,thus far1  
as the argument required1 we have said  
nothing of the rewards  and honours     
which the poets attribute to justice2 we
 have contented  ourselves with showing 
that justice in herself is best for the 
soul in  herself1 even if a man should  
put on a ,gyges' ring and have the      
helmet of  ,hades too4 ,and now you     
shall repay me what you borrowed2 and ,i
 will  enumerate the rewards of justice 
in life and after death4 ,i granted1 for

  the sake of argument1 as you will     
remember1 that evil might perhaps escape
  the knowledge of ,gods and men1       
although this was really impossible4    
,and  since ,i have shown that justice  
has reality1 you must grant me also that
  she has the palm of appearance4 ,in   
the first place1 the just man is known  
to the ,gods1 99#fac99 and he is        
therefore the friend of the ,gods1 and  
he will  receive at their hands every   
good1 always excepting such evil as is  
the  necessary consequence of former    
sins4 ,all things end in good to him1   
either in life or after death1 even what
 appears to be evil2 for the ,gods  have
 a care of him who desires to be in     
their likeness4 ,and what shall we  say 
of men8 ,is not honesty the best policy8
 ,the clever rogue makes a great  start 
at first1 but breaks down before he     
reaches the goal1 and slinks  away in   
dishonour2 whereas the true runner      
perseveres to the end1 and  receives the
 prize4 ,and you must allow me to repeat

 all the blessings  which you attributed
 to the fortunate unjust--they bear rule
 in the city1  they marry and give in   
marriage to whom they will2 and the     
evils which you  attributed to the      
unfortunate just1 do really fall in the 
end on the  unjust1 although1 as you    
implied1 their sufferings are better    
veiled in  silence4    99#fad99 ,but all
 the blessings of this present life are 
as nothing when  cliii compared with    
those which await good men after death4 
',i should  like to hear about them4'   
,come1 then1 and ,i will tell you the   
story of ,er1  the son of ,armenius1 a  
valiant man4 ,he was supposed to have   
died in  battle1 but ten days afterwards
 his body was found untouched by        
corruption  and sent home for burial4   
,on the twelfth day he was placed on the
 funeral  pyre and there he came to life
 again1 and told what he had seen in the
  world below4 ,he said that his soul   
went with a great company to a place1   
in which there were two chasms near     

together in the earth beneath1 and two  
corresponding chasms in the heaven      
above4 ,and there were judges sitting in
  the intermediate space1 bidding the   
just ascend by the heavenly way on the  
right hand1 having the seal of their    
judgment set upon them before1 while    
the unjust1 having the seal behind1 were
 bidden to descend by the way on  the   
left hand4 ,him they told to look and   
listen1 as he was to be their  messenger
 to men from the world below4 ,and he   
beheld and saw the souls  departing     
after judgment at either chasm2 some who
 came from earth1 were  worn and        
travel-stained2 others1 who came from   
heaven1 were clean and  bright4 ,they   
seemed glad to meet and rest awhile in  
the meadow2 here they  discoursed with  
one another of what they had seen in the
 other world4  99#fae99 ,those who came 
from earth wept at the remembrance of   
their sorrows1  but the spirits from    
above spoke of glorious sights and      
heavenly bliss4 ,he  said that for every

 evil deed they were punished           
tenfold--now the journey  was of a      
thousand years' duration1 because the   
life of man was reckoned as  a hundred  
years--and the rewards of virtue were in
 the same proportion4 ,he  added        
something hardly worth repeating about  
infants dying almost as soon  as they   
were born4 ,of parricides and other     
murderers he had tortures still  more   
terrible to narrate4 ,he was present    
when one of the spirits  asked--,where  
is ,ardiaeus the ,great8 7,this         
,ardiaeus was a cruel tyrant1 who  had  
murdered his father1 and his elder      
brother1 a thousand years before47      
,another spirit answered1 ',he comes not
 hither1 and will never come4 ,and ,i   
myself1' he added1 'actually saw this   
terrible sight4 ,at the entrance of  the
 chasm1 as we were about to reascend1   
,ardiaeus appeared1 and some other      
sinners--most of whom had been tyrants1 
but not all--and just as they  fancied  
that they were returning to life1 the   

chasm gave a roar1 99#faf99 and  then   
wild1 fiery-looking men who knew the    
cliv meaning of the sound1  seized him  
and several others1 and bound them hand 
and foot and threw them  down1 and      
dragged them along at the side of the   
road1 lacerating them and  carding them 
like wool1 and explaining to the        
passers-by1 that they were  going to be 
cast into hell4' ,the greatest terror of
 the pilgrims ascending  was lest they  
should hear the voice1 and when there   
was silence one by one  they passed up  
with joy4 ,to these sufferings there    
were corresponding  delights4    ,on the
 eighth day the souls of the pilgrims   
resumed their journey1 and in  four days
 came to a spot whence they looked down 
upon a line of light1 in  colour like a 
rainbow1 only brighter and clearer4 ,one
 day more brought  them to the place1   
and they saw that this was the column of
 light which  binds together the whole  
universe4 ,the ends of the column were  
fastened to  heaven1 and from them hung 

the distaff of ,necessity1 on which all 
the  heavenly bodies turned--the hook   
and spindle were of adamant1 and the    
whorl of a mixed substance4 ,the whorl  
was in form like a number of boxes      
fitting into one another with their     
edges turned upwards1 making together  a
 single whorl which was pierced by the  
spindle4 ,the outermost had the rim     
broadest1 and the inner whorls were     
smaller and smaller1 and had their  rims
 narrower4 ,the largest 7the fixed      
stars7 was spangled--the seventh  7the  
sun7 was brightest--the eighth 7the     
moon7 shone by the light of the         
seventh-- 99#fag99 the second and fifth 
7,saturn and ,mercury7 were most like   
one another and yellower than the       
eighth--the third 7,jupiter7 had the    
whitest light--the fourth 7,mars7 was   
red--the sixth 7,venus7 was in          
whiteness second4 ,the whole had one    
motion1 but while this was revolving  in
 one direction the seven inner circles  
were moving in the opposite1 with       

various degrees of swiftness and        
slowness4 ,the spindle turned on the    
knees  of ,necessity1 and a ,siren stood
 hymning upon each circle1 while        
,lachesis1  ,clotho1 and ,atropos1 the  
daughters of ,necessity1 sat on thrones 
at equal  intervals1 singing of past1   
present1 and future1 responsive to the  
music  of the ,sirens2 ,clotho from time
 to time guiding the outer circle with a
  touch of her right hand2 ,atropos with
 her left hand touching and guiding  the
 inner circles2 ,lachesis in turn       
putting forth her hand from time to     
time to guide both of them4 ,on their   
arrival the pilgrims went to  ,lachesis1
 and there was an interpreter who       
arranged them1 and taking from  her clv 
knees lots1 and samples of lives1 got up
 into a pulpit and said3  ',mortal      
souls1 hear the words of ,lachesis1 the 
daughter of ,necessity4 ,a  new period  
of mortal life has begun1 and you may   
choose what divinity you  please2 the   
responsibility of choosing is with      

you--,god is blameless4'  99#fah99      
,after speaking thus1 he cast the lots  
among them and each one took  up the lot
 which fell near him4 ,he then placed on
 the ground before them  the samples of 
lives1 many more than the souls present2
 and there were all  sorts of lives1 of 
men and of animals4 ,there were         
tyrannies ending in  misery and exile1  
and lives of men and women famous for   
their different  qualities2 and also    
mixed lives1 made up of wealth and      
poverty1 sickness  and health4 ,here1   
,glaucon1 is the great risk of human    
life1 and therefore  the whole of       
education should be directed to the     
acquisition of such a  knowledge as will
 teach a man to refuse the evil and     
choose the good4 ,he  should know all   
the combinations which occur in life--of
 beauty with  poverty or with           
wealth1--of knowledge with external     
goods1--and at last  choose with        
reference to the nature of the soul1    
regarding that only as  the better life 

which makes men better1 and leaving the 
rest4 ,and 99#fai99 a  man must take    
with him an iron sense of truth and     
right into the world  below1 that there 
too he may remain undazzled by wealth or
 the allurements  of evil1 and be       
determined to avoid the extremes and    
choose the mean4 ,for  this1 as the     
messenger reported the interpreter to   
have said1 is the true  happiness of    
man2 and any one1 as he proclaimed1 may1
 if he choose with  understanding1 have 
a good lot1 even though he come last4   
',let not the  first be careless in his 
choice1 nor the last despair4' ,he      
spoke2 and when  he had spoken1 he who  
had drawn the first lot chose a tyranny3
 he did not  see that he was fated to   
devour his own children--and when he    
discovered  his mistake1 he wept and    
beat his breast1 blaming chance and the 
,gods and  anybody rather than himself4 
,he was one of those who had come from  
heaven1  and in his previous life had   
been a citizen of a well-ordered ,state1

 but  he had only habit and no          
philosophy4 ,like many another1 he made 
a bad  choice1 because he had no        
experience of life2 whereas those who   
came from  earth and had seen trouble   
were not in such a hurry to choose4 ,but
 if a  man had followed philosophy while
 upon earth1 and had been moderately    
fortunate in his lot1 he might not only 
be happy here1 but his pilgrimage  both 
from and clvi to this world would be    
smooth and heavenly4 ,nothing  was more 
curious than the spectacle of the       
choice1 at once sad and  laughable and  
wonderful2 most of the souls only       
seeking to avoid their own  condition in
 a previous life4 99#fbj99 ,he saw the  
soul of ,orpheus changing  into a swan  
because he would not be born of a woman2
 there was ,thamyras  becoming a        
nightingale2 musical birds1 like the    
swan1 choosing to be men2  the twentieth
 soul1 which was that of ,ajax1         
preferring the life of a lion  to that  
of a man1 in remembrance of the         

injustice which was done to him in  the 
judgment of the arms2 and ,agamemnon1   
from a like enmity to human  nature1    
passing into an eagle4 ,about the middle
 was the soul of ,atalanta  choosing the
 honours of an athlete1 and next to her 
,epeus taking the  nature of a          
workwoman2 among the last was           
,thersites1 who was changing  himself   
into a monkey4 ,thither1 the last of    
all1 came ,odysseus1 and sought  the lot
 of a private man1 which lay neglected  
and despised1 and when he  found it he  
went away rejoicing1 and said that if he
 had been first  instead of last1 his   
choice would have been the same4 ,men1  
too1 were seen  passing into animals1   
and wild and tame animals changing into 
one another4    ,when all the souls had 
chosen they went to ,lachesis1 who sent 
with each of  them their genius or      
attendant to fulfil their lot4 ,he first
 of all  brought them under the hand of 
,clotho1 and drew them within the       
revolution  of the spindle impelled by  

her hand2 from her they were carried to 
,atropos1 who made the threads          
irreversible2 99#fba99 whence1 without  
turning  round1 they passed beneath the 
throne of ,necessity2 and when they had 
all  passed1 they moved on in scorching 
heat to the plain of ,forgetfulness and 
rested at evening by the river          
,unmindful1 whose water could not be    
retained in any vessel2 of this they had
 all to drink a certain  quantity--some 
of them drank more than was required1   
and he who drank  forgot all things4 ,er
 himself was prevented from drinking4   
,when they had  gone to rest1 about the 
middle of the night there were          
thunderstorms and  earthquakes1 and     
suddenly they were all driven divers    
ways1 shooting like  stars to their     
birth4 ,concerning his return to the    
body1 he only knew that  awaking        
suddenly in the morning he found himself
 lying on the pyre4    ,thus1 ,glaucon1 
the tale has been saved1 and will be our
 salvation1 if we  believe that the soul

 is immortal1 and hold fast to the clvii
 heavenly  way of ,justice and          
,knowledge4 ,so shall we pass undefiled 
over the river of  ,forgetfulness1 and  
be dear to ourselves and to the ,gods1  
and have a crown  of reward and         
happiness both in this world and also in
 the millennial  pilgrimage of the      
other4           99       99       99   
99       99    ,sidenote3 ,republic ,x4 
,introduction4    ,the ,tenth ,book of  
the ,republic of ,plato falls into two  
divisions3 first1  resuming an old      
thread which has been interrupted1      
,socrates assails the  poets1 who1 now  
that the nature of the soul has been    
analyzed1 are seen to  be very far gone 
from the truth2 and secondly1 having    
shown the reality of  the happiness of  
the just1 he demands that appearance    
shall be restored to  him1 and then     
proceeds to prove the immortality of the
 soul4 ,the argument1  as in the ,phaedo
 and ,gorgias1 is supplemented by the   
vision of a future  life4           99  

99       99       99       99    ,why   
,plato1 who was himself a poet1 and     
whose dialogues are poems and  dramas1  
should have been hostile to the poets as
 a class1 and especially  to the        
dramatic poets2 why he should not have  
seen that truth may be  embodied in     
verse as well as in prose1 and that     
there are some indefinable  lights and  
shadows of human life which can only be 
expressed in  poetry--some elements of  
imagination which always entwine with   
reason2 why  he should have supposed    
epic verse to be inseparably associated 
with the  impurities of the old         
,hellenic mythology2 why he should try  
,homer and  ,hesiod by the unfair and   
prosaic test of utility1--are questions 
which  have always been debated amongst 
students of ,plato4 ,though unable to   
give  a complete answer to them1 we may 
show--first1 that his views arose       
naturally out of the circumstances of   
his age2 and secondly1 we may elicit    
the truth as well as the error which is 

contained in them4    ,he is the enemy  
of the poets because poetry was         
declining in his own  lifetime1 and a   
theatrocracy1 as he says in the ,laws   
7iii4 #gja ,a71 had  taken the place of 
an intellectual aristocracy4 ,euripides 
exhibited the  last phase of the tragic 
drama1 and in him ,plato saw the friend 
and  apologist of tyrants1 and the      
,sophist of tragedy4 ,the old comedy was
  almost extinct2 the new had not yet   
arisen4 ,dramatic and lyric poetry1     
like every other branch of ,greek       
literature1 was falling under the power 
of rhetoric4 ,there was no 'second or   
third' to schylus and clviii  ,sophocles
 in the generation which followed them4 
,aristophanes1 in one of  his later     
comedies 7,frogs1 #hi foll471 speaks of 
'thousands of  tragedy-making           
prattlers1' whose attempts at poetry he 
compares to the  chirping of swallows2  
'their garrulity went far beyond        
,euripides1'--'they  appeared once upon 
the stage1 and there was an end of      

them4' ,to a man of  genius who had a   
real appreciation of the godlike schylus
 and the noble  and gentle ,sophocles1  
though disagreeing with some parts of   
their  'theology' 7,rep4 ii4 #chj71     
these 'minor poets' must have been      
contemptible  and intolerable4 ,there is
 no feeling stronger in the dialogues of
 ,plato  than a sense of the decline and
 decay both in literature and in        
politics  which marked his own age4 ,nor
 can he have been expected to look with 
favour on the licence of ,aristophanes1 
now at the end of his career1 who  had  
begun by satirizing ,socrates in the    
,clouds1 and in a similar spirit  forty 
years afterwards had satirized the      
founders of ideal commonwealths  in his 
,eccleziazusae1 or ,female ,parliament  
7cp4 x4 #fjf ,c1 and ,laws ii4 #feh     
ff42 #hag74    ,there were other reasons
 for the antagonism of ,plato to poetry4
 ,the  profession of an actor was       
regarded by him as a degradation of     
human  nature1 for 'one man in his life'

 cannot 'play many parts2' the          
characters  which the actor performs    
seem to destroy his own character1 and  
to leave  nothing which can be truly    
called himself4 ,neither can any man    
live his  life and act it4 ,the actor is
 the slave of his art1 not the master of
 it4  ,taking this view ,plato is more  
decided in his expulsion of the dramatic
  than of the epic poets1 though he must
 have known that the ,greek  tragedians 
afforded noble lessons and examples of  
virtue and patriotism1  to which nothing
 in ,homer can be compared4 ,but great  
dramatic or even  great rhetorical power
 is hardly consistent with firmness or  
strength of  mind1 and dramatic talent  
is often incidentally associated with a 
weak or  dissolute character4    ,in the
 ,tenth ,book ,plato introduces a new   
series of objections4 ,first1 he  says  
that the poet or painter is an imitator1
 and in the third degree  removed from  
the truth4 ,his creations are not tested
 by rule and measure2  they are only    

appearances4 ,in modern times we should 
say that art is not  merely imitation1  
but rather the expression of the ideal  
in forms of  sense4 ,even adopting the  
humble image of ,plato1 from which his  
argument  derives a colour1 we should   
maintain that the artist clix may       
ennoble  the bed which he paints by the 
folds of the drapery1 or by the feeling 
of  home which he introduces2 and there 
have been modern painters who have      
imparted such an ideal interest to a    
blacksmith's or a carpenter's shop4     
,the eye or mind which feels as well as 
sees can give dignity and pathos to  a  
ruined mill1 or a straw-built shed      
,rembrandt1 to the hull of a vessel     
'going to its last home' ,turner4 ,still
 more would this apply to the  greatest 
works of art1 which seem to be the      
visible embodiment of the  divine4 ,had 
,plato been asked whether the ,zeus or  
,athene of ,pheidias was  the imitation 
of an imitation only1 would he not have 
been compelled to  admit that something 

more was to be found in them than in the
 form of any  mortal2 and that the rule 
of proportion to which they conformed   
was  'higher far than any geometry or   
arithmetic could express8' 7,statesman1 
#beg ,a47    ,again1 ,plato objects to  
the imitative arts that they express the
 emotional  rather than the rational    
part of human nature4 ,he does not admit
  ,aristotle's theory1 that tragedy or  
other serious imitations are a          
purgation of the passions by pity and   
fear2 to him they appear only to  afford
 the opportunity of indulging them4 ,yet
 we must acknowledge that we  may       
sometimes cure disordered emotions by   
giving expression to them2 and  that    
they often gain strength when pent up   
within our own breast4 ,it is  not every
 indulgence of the feelings which is to 
be condemned4 ,for there  may be a      
gratification of the higher as well as  
of the lower--thoughts  which are too   
deep or too sad to be expressed by      
ourselves1 may find an  utterance in the

 words of poets4 ,every one would       
acknowledge that there  have been times 
when they were consoled and elevated by 
beautiful music or  by the sublimity of 
architecture or by the peacefulness of  
nature4 ,plato  has himself admitted1 in
 the earlier part of the ,republic1 that
 the arts  might have the effect of     
harmonizing as well as of enervating the
 mind2  but in the ,tenth ,book he      
regards them through a ,stoic or        
,puritan medium4  ,he asks only ',what  
good have they done8' and is not        
satisfied with the  reply1 that ',they  
have given innocent pleasure to         
mankind4'    ,he tells us that he       
rejoices in the banishment of the poets1
 since he has  found by the analysis of 
the soul that they are concerned with   
the  inferior faculties4 ,he means to   
say that clx the higher faculties have  
to do with universals1 the lower with   
particulars of sense4 ,the poets are  on
 a level with their own age1 but not on 
a level with ,socrates and ,plato2  and 

he was well aware that ,homer and       
,hesiod could not be made a rule of     
life by any process of legitimate       
interpretation2 his ironical use of them
  is in fact a denial of their          
authority2 he saw1 too1 that the poets  
were  not critics--as he says in the    
,apology1 ',any one was a better        
interpreter  of their writings than they
 were themselves' 7#bb ,c74 ,he himself 
ceased to  be a poet when he became a   
disciple of ,socrates2 though1 as he    
tells us of  ,solon1 'he might have been
 one of the greatest of them1 if he had 
not been  deterred by other pursuits'   
7,tim4 #ba ,c7 ,thus from many points of
 view  there is an antagonism between   
,plato and the poets1 which was         
foreshadowed  to him in the old quarrel 
between philosophy and poetry4 ,the     
poets1 as he  says in the ,protagoras   
7#caf ,e71 were the ,sophists of their  
day2 and his  dislike of the one class  
is reflected on the other4 ,he regards  
them both  as the enemies of reasoning  

and abstraction1 though in the case of  
,euripides more with reference to his   
immoral sentiments about tyrants and    
the like4 ,for ,plato is the prophet who
 'came into the world to convince       
men'--first of the fallibility of sense 
and opinion1 and secondly of the        
reality of abstract ideas4 ,whatever    
strangeness there may be in modern      
times in opposing philosophy to poetry1 
which to us seem to have so many        
elements in common1 the strangeness will
 disappear if we conceive of  poetry as 
allied to sense1 and of philosophy as   
equivalent to thought and  abstraction4 
,unfortunately the very word 'idea1'    
which to ,plato is  expressive of the   
most real of all things1 is associated  
in our minds with  an element of        
subjectiveness and unreality4 ,we may   
note also how he  differs from          
,aristotle who declares poetry to be    
truer than history1 for  the opposite   
reason1 because it is concerned with    
universals1 not like  history1 with     

particulars 7,poet4 c4 #i1 #c74    ,the 
things which are seen are opposed in    
,scripture to the things which are      
unseen--they are equally opposed in     
,plato to universals and ideas4 ,to him 
all particulars appear to be floating   
about in a world of sense2 they have  a 
taint of error or even of evil4 ,there  
is no difficulty in seeing that  this is
 an illusion2 for there is no more error
 or variation in an  individual man1    
horse1 clxi bed1 etc41 than in the class
 man1 horse1  bed1 etc42 nor is the     
truth which is displayed in individual  
instances  less certain than that which 
is conveyed through the medium of ideas4
 ,but  ,plato1 who is deeply impressed  
with the real importance of universals  
as  instruments of thought1 attributes  
to them an essential truth which is     
imaginary and unreal2 for universals may
 be often false and particulars  true4  
,had he attained to any clear conception
 of the individual1 which is  the       
synthesis of the universal and the      

particular2 or had he been able to      
distinguish between opinion and         
sensation1 which the ambiguity of the   
words ,greek3 do_/xa1 phai_/nesthai1    
ei7kos and the like1 tended to  confuse1
 he would not have denied truth to the  
particulars of sense4    ,but the poets 
are also the representatives of         
falsehood and feigning in  all          
departments of life and knowledge1 like 
the sophists and rhetoricians  of the   
,gorgias and ,phaedrus2 they are the    
false priests1 false prophets1  lying   
spirits1 enchanters of the world4 ,there
 is another count put into  the         
indictment against them by ,plato1 that 
they are the friends of the  tyrant1 and
 bask in the sunshine of his patronage4 
,despotism in all ages  has had an      
apparatus of false ideas and false      
teachers at its service--in  the history
 of ,modern ,europe as well as of       
,greece and ,rome4 ,for no  government  
of men depends solely upon force2       
without some corruption of  literature  

and morals--some appeal to the          
imagination of the masses--some         
pretence to the favour of heaven--some  
element of good giving power to  evil   
7cp4 i4 #ceb71 tyranny1 even for a short
 time1 cannot be maintained4  ,the      
,greek tyrants were not insensible to   
the importance of awakening in  their   
cause a ,pseudo-,hellenic feeling2 they 
were proud of successes at the  ,olympic
 games2 they were not devoid of the love
 of literature and art4  ,plato is      
thinking in the first instance of ,greek
 poets who had graced the  courts of    
,dionysius or ,archelaus3 and the old   
spirit of freedom is roused  within him 
at their prostitution of the ,tragic    
,muse in the praises of  tyranny4 ,but  
his prophetic eye extends beyond them to
 the false teachers  of other ages who  
are the creatures of the government     
under which they  live4 ,he compares the
 corruption of his contemporaries with  
the idea of a  perfect society1 and     
gathers up into one mass of evil the    

evils and errors  of mankind2 to him    
they are personified in the clxii       
rhetoricians1  sophists1 poets1 rulers  
who deceive and govern the world4    ,a 
further objection which ,plato makes to 
poetry and the imitative arts is  that  
they excite the emotions4 ,here the     
modern reader will be disposed to       
introduce a distinction which appears to
 have escaped him4 ,for the  emotions   
are neither bad nor good in themselves1 
and are not most likely  to be          
controlled by the attempt to eradicate  
them1 but by the moderate  indulgence of
 them4 ,and the vocation of art is to   
present thought in the  form of feeling1
 to enlist the feelings on the side of  
reason1 to inspire  even for a moment   
courage or resignation2 perhaps to      
suggest a sense of  infinity and        
eternity in a way which mere language is
 incapable of  attaining4 ,true1 the    
same power which in the purer age of art
 embodies  gods and heroes only1 may be 
made to express the voluptuous image of 

a  ,corinthian courtezan4 ,but this only
 shows that art1 like other outward     
things1 may be turned to good and also  
to evil1 and is not more closely        
connected with the higher than with the 
lower part of the soul4 ,all  imitative 
art is subject to certain limitations1  
and therefore necessarily  partakes of  
the nature of a compromise4 ,something  
of ideal truth is  sacrificed for the   
sake of the representation1 and         
something in the  exactness of the      
representation is sacrificed to the     
ideal4 ,still1 works  of art have a     
permanent element2 they idealize and    
detain the passing  thought1 and are the
 intermediates between sense and ideas4 
,in the present stage of the human mind1
 poetry and other forms of fiction  may 
certainly be regarded as a good4 ,but we
 can also imagine the existence  of an  
age in which a severer conception of    
truth has either banished or            
transformed them4 ,at any rate we must  
admit that they hold a different  place 

at different periods of the world's     
history4 ,in the infancy of  mankind1   
poetry1 with the exception of proverbs1 
is the whole of  literature1 and the    
only instrument of intellectual culture2
 in modern  times she is the shadow or  
echo of her former self1 and appears to 
have a  precarious existence4 ,milton in
 his day doubted whether an epic poem   
was  any longer possible4 ,at the same  
time we must remember1 that what ,plato 
would have called the charms of poetry  
have been partly transferred  clxiii to 
prose2 he himself 7,statesman #cjd7     
admits rhetoric to be the  handmaiden of
 ,politics1 and proposes to find in the 
strain of law 7,laws  vii4 #haa7 a      
substitute for the old poets4 ,among    
ourselves the creative  power seems     
often to be growing weaker1 and         
scientific fact to be more  engrossing  
and overpowering to the mind than       
formerly4 ,the illusion of the  feelings
 commonly called love1 has hitherto been
 the inspiring influence  of modern     

poetry and romance1 and has exercised a 
humanizing if not a  strengthening      
influence on the world4 ,but may not the
 stimulus which love  has given to fancy
 be some day exhausted8 ,the modern     
,english novel which  is the most       
popular of all forms of reading is not  
more than a century or  two old3 will   
the tale of love a hundred years hence1 
after so many  thousand variations of   
the same theme1 be still received with  
unabated  interest8    ,art cannot claim
 to be on a level with philosophy or    
religion1 and may  often corrupt them4  
,it is possible to conceive a mental    
state in which all  artistic            
representations are regarded as a false 
and imperfect expression1  either of the
 religious ideal or of the philosophical
 ideal4 ,the fairest  forms may be      
revolting in certain moods of mind1 as  
is proved by the fact  that the         
,mahometans1 and many sects of          
,christians1 have renounced the use  of 
pictures and images4 ,the beginning of a

 great religion1 whether  ,christian or 
,gentile1 has not been 'wood or stone1' 
but a spirit moving in  the hearts of   
men4 ,the disciples have met in a large 
upper room or in  'holes and caves of   
the earth'2 in the second or third      
generation1 they  have had mosques1     
temples1 churches1 monasteries4 ,and the
 revival or  reform of religions1 like  
the first revelation of them1 has come  
from  within and has generally          
disregarded external ceremonies and     
accompaniments4    ,but poetry and art  
may also be the expression of the       
highest truth and the  purest sentiment4
 ,plato himself seems to waver between  
two opposite  views--when1 as in the    
third ,book1 he insists that youth      
should be brought  up amid wholesome    
imagery2 and again in ,book x1 when he  
banishes the poets  from his ,republic4 
,admitting that the arts1 which some of 
us almost deify1  have fallen short of  
their higher aim1 we must admit on the  
other hand  that to banish imagination  

wholly would be suicidal clxiv as well  
as  impossible4 ,for nature too is a    
form of art2 and a breath of the fresh  
air  or a single glance at the varying  
landscape would in an instant revive and
  reillumine the extinguished spark of  
poetry in the human breast4 ,in the     
lower stages of civilization imagination
 more than reason distinguishes  man    
from the animals2 and to banish art     
would be to banish thought1 to  banish  
language1 to banish the expression of   
all truth4 ,no religion is  wholly      
devoid of external forms2 even the      
,mahometan who renounces the use  of    
pictures and images has a temple in     
which he worships the ,most ,high1 as   
solemn and beautiful as any ,greek or   
,christian building4 ,feeling too and   
thought are not really opposed2 for he  
who thinks must feel before he can      
execute4 ,and the highest thoughts1 when
 they become familiarized to us1  are   
always tending to pass into the form of 
feeling4    ,plato does not seriously   

intend to expel poets from life and     
society4 ,but  he feels strongly the    
unreality of their writings2 he is      
protesting  against the degeneracy of   
poetry in his own day as we might       
protest  against the want of serious    
purpose in modern fiction1 against the  
unseemliness or extravagance of some of 
our poets or novelists1 against  the    
time-serving of preachers or public     
writers1 against the  regardlessness of 
truth which to the eye of the           
philosopher seems to  characterize the  
greater part of the world4 ,for we too  
have reason to  complain that our poets 
and novelists 'paint inferior truth' and
 'are  concerned with the inferior part 
of the soul'2 that the readers of them  
become what they read and are           
injuriously affected by them4 ,and we   
look in  vain for that healthy          
atmosphere of which ,plato speaks1--'the
 beauty which  meets the sense like a   
breeze and imperceptibly draws the soul1
 even in  childhood1 into harmony with  

the beauty of reason4'    ,for there    
might be a poetry which would be the    
hymn of divine perfection1  the harmony 
of goodness and truth among men3 a      
strain which should renew  the youth of 
the world1 and bring back the ages in   
which the poet was  man's only teacher  
and best friend1--which would find      
materials in the  living present as well
 as in the romance of the past1 and     
might subdue to  the fairest forms of   
speech and verse the intractable        
materials of modern                     
civilisation1--which might elicit the   
simple principles1 or1 as ,plato  clxv  
would have called them1 the essential   
forms1 of truth and justice  out of the 
variety of opinion and the complexity of
 modern society1--which  would preserve 
all the good of each generation and     
leave the bad  unsung1--which should be 
based not on vain longings or faint     
imaginings1  but on a clear insight into
 the nature of man4 ,then the tale of   
love might  begin again in poetry or    

prose1 two in one1 united in the pursuit
 of  knowledge1 or the service of ,god  
and man2 and feelings of love might     
still  be the incentive to great        
thoughts and heroic deeds as in the days
 of  ,dante or ,petrarch2 and many types
 of manly and womanly beauty might      
appear  among us1 rising above the      
ordinary level of humanity1 and many    
lives  which were like poems 7,laws vii4
 #hag ,b71 be not only written1 but     
lived by  us4 ,a few such strains have  
been heard among men in the tragedies of
  eschylus and ,sophocles1 whom ,plato  
quotes1 not1 as ,homer is quoted by     
him1 in irony1 but with deep and serious
 approval1--in the poetry of  ,milton   
and ,wordsworth1 and in passages of     
other ,english poets1--first and  above 
all in the ,hebrew prophets and         
psalmists4 ,shakespeare has taught us   
how great men should speak and act2 he  
has drawn characters of a wonderful     
purity and depth2 he has ennobled the   
human mind1 but1 like ,homer 7,rep4 x4  

#eii foll471 he 'has left no way of     
life4' ,the next greatest poet of modern
  times1 ,goethe1 is concerned with 'a  
lower degree of truth'2 he paints the   
world as a stage on which 'all the men  
and women are merely players'2 he       
cultivates life as an art1 but he       
furnishes no ideals of truth and action4
  ,the poet may rebel against any       
attempt to set limits to his fancy2 and 
he  may argue truly that moralizing in  
verse is not poetry4 ,possibly1 like    
,mephistopheles in ,faust1 he may       
retaliate on his adversaries4 ,but the  
philosopher will still be justified in  
asking1 ',how may the heavenly gift  of 
poesy be devoted to the good of         
mankind8'    ,returning to ,plato1 we   
may observe that a similar mixture of   
truth and  error appears in other parts 
of the argument4 ,he is aware of the    
absurdity  of mankind framing their     
whole lives according to ,homer2 just as
 in the  ,phaedrus he intimates the     
absurdity of interpreting mythology upon

  rational principles2 both these were  
the modern tendencies of his own age1   
which he deservedly ridicules4 ,on the  
other hand1 his argument that  clxvi    
,homer1 if he had been able to teach    
mankind anything worth  knowing1 would  
not have been allowed by them to go     
about begging as a  rhapsodist1 is both 
false and contrary to the spirit of     
,plato 7cp4 ,rep4  vi4 #dhi ,a foll474  
,it may be compared with those other    
paradoxes of the  ,gorgias1 that ',no   
statesman was ever unjustly put to death
 by the city of  which he was the head'2
 and that ',no ,sophist was ever        
defrauded by his  pupils' 7,gorg4 #eai  
foll47444444    ,the argument for       
immortality seems to rest on the        
absolute dualism of soul  and body4     
,admitting the existence of the soul1 we
 know of no force which  is able to put 
an end to her4 ,vice is her own proper  
evil2 and if she  cannot be destroyed by
 that1 she cannot be destroyed by any   
other4 ,yet  ,plato has acknowledged    

that the soul may be so overgrown by the
  incrustations of earth as to lose her 
original form2 and in the ,timaeus he   
recognizes more strongly than in the    
,republic the influence which the body  
has over the mind1 denying even the     
voluntariness of human actions1 on the  
ground that they proceed from physical  
states 7,tim4 #hf1 #hg74 ,in the        
,republic1 as elsewhere1 he wavers      
between the original soul which has to  
be restored1 and the character which is 
developed by training and               
education444444    ,the vision of       
another world is ascribed to ,er1 the   
son of ,armenius1 who is  said by       
,clement of ,alexandria to have been    
,zoroaster4 ,the tale has  certainly an 
oriental character1 and may be compared 
with the pilgrimages  of the soul in the
 ,zend ,avesta 7cp4 ,haug1 ,avesta1 p4  
#aig74 ,but no trace of  acquaintance   
with ,zoroaster is found elsewhere in   
,plato's writings1 and  there is no     
reason for giving him the name of ,er   

the ,pamphylian4 ,the  philosophy of    
,heracleitus cannot be shown to be      
borrowed from ,zoroaster1  and still    
less the myths of ,plato4    ,the local 
arrangement of the vision is less       
distinct than that of the  ,phaedrus and
 ,phaedo4 ,astronomy is mingled with    
symbolism and mythology2  the great     
sphere of heaven is represented under   
the symbol of a cylinder  or box1       
containing the seven orbits of the      
planets and the fixed stars2  this is   
suspended from an axis or spindle which 
turns on the knees of  ,necessity2 the  
revolutions of the seven orbits         
contained in the cylinder  are guided by
 the fates1 and their harmonious motion 
produces clxvii the  music of the       
spheres4 ,through the innermost or      
eighth of these1 which is  the moon1 is 
passed the spindle2 but it is doubtful  
whether this is the  continuation of the
 column of light1 from which the        
pilgrims contemplate  the heavens2 the  
words of ,plato imply that they are     

connected1 but not the  same4 ,the      
column itself is clearly not of adamant4
 ,the spindle 7which is  of adamant7 is 
fastened to the ends of the chains which
 extend to the  middle of the column of 
light--this column is said to hold      
together the  heaven2 but whether it    
hangs from the spindle1 or is at right  
angles to  it1 is not explained4 ,the   
cylinder containing the orbits of the   
stars is  almost as much a symbol as the
 figure of ,necessity turning the       
spindle2--for the outermost rim is the  
sphere of the fixed stars1 and  nothing 
is said about the intervals of space    
which divide the paths of the  stars in 
the heavens4 ,the description is both a 
picture and an orrery1 and  therefore is
 necessarily inconsistent with itself4  
,the column of light is  not the ,milky 
,way--which is neither straight1 nor    
like a rainbow--but the  imaginary axis 
of the earth4 ,this is compared to the  
rainbow in respect  not of form but of  
colour1 and not to the undergirders of a

 trireme1 but  to the straight rope     
running from prow to stern in which the 
undergirders  meet4    ,the orrery or   
picture of the heavens given in the     
,republic differs in its  mode of       
representation from the circles of the  
same and of the other in  the ,timaeus4 
,in both the fixed stars are            
distinguished from the planets1  and    
they move in orbits without them1       
although in an opposite direction3  in  
the ,republic as in the ,timaeus 7#dj   
,b7 they are all moving round the  axis 
of the world4 ,but we are not certain   
that in the former they are  moving     
round the earth4 ,no distinct mention is
 made in the ,republic of the  circles  
of the same and other2 although both in 
the ,timaeus and in the  ,republic the  
motion of the fixed stars is supposed to
 coincide with the  motion of the whole4
 ,the relative thickness of the rims is 
perhaps  designed to express the        
relative distances of the planets4      
,plato probably  intended to represent  

the earth1 from which ,er and his       
companions are  viewing the heavens1 as 
stationary in place2 but whether or not 
herself  revolving1 unless this is      
implied in the revolution of the axis1  
is  uncertain 7cp4 ,timaeus74 ,the      
spectator clxviii may be supposed to    
look  at the heavenly bodies1 either    
from above or below4 ,the earth is a    
sort of  earth and heaven in one1 like  
the heaven of the ,phaedrus1 on the back
 of  which the spectator goes out to    
take a peep at the stars and is borne   
round in the revolution4 ,there is no   
distinction between the equator and  the
 ecliptic4 ,but ,plato is no doubt led  
to imagine that the planets have  an    
opposite motion to that of the fixed    
stars1 in order to account for  their   
appearances in the heavens4 ,in the     
description of the meadow1 and  the     
retribution of the good and evil after  
death1 there are traces of  ,homer4     
,the description of the axis as a       
spindle1 and of the heavenly bodies as  

forming a whole1 partly arises out of   
the attempt to connect the motions  of  
the heavenly bodies with the            
mythological image of the web1 or       
weaving  of the ,fates4 ,the giving of  
the lots1 the weaving of them1 and the  
making  of them irreversible1 which are 
ascribed to the three ,fates--,lachesis1
  ,clotho1 ,atropos1 are obviously      
derived from their names4 ,the element  
of  chance in human life is indicated by
 the order of the lots4 ,but chance1    
however adverse1 may be overcome by the 
wisdom of man1 if he knows how to       
choose aright2 there is a worse enemy to
 man than chance2 this enemy is         
himself4 ,he who was moderately         
fortunate in the number of the lot--even
  the very last comer--might have a good
 life if he chose with wisdom4 ,and  as 
,plato does not like to make an         
assertion which is unproven1 he more    
than confirms this statement a few      
sentences afterwards by the example of  
,odysseus1 who chose last4 ,but the     

virtue which is founded on habit is not 
sufficient to enable a man to choose2 he
 must add to virtue knowledge1 if  he is
 to act rightly when placed in new      
circumstances4 ,the routine of good     
actions and good habits is an inferior  
sort of goodness2 and1 as ,coleridge    
says1 ',common sense is intolerable     
which is not based on metaphysics1' so  
,plato would have said1 ',habit is      
worthless which is not based upon       
philosophy4'    ,the freedom of the will
 to refuse the evil and to choose the   
good is  distinctly asserted4 ',virtue  
is free1 and as a man honours or        
dishonours  her he will have more or    
less of her4' ,the life of man is       
'rounded' by  necessity2 there are      
circumstances prior to birth which      
affect him 7cp4  ,pol4 #bgc ,b74 ,but   
within the walls of necessity there is  
an open space in  which he is his own   
master1 clxix and can study for himself 
the effects  which the variously        
compounded gifts of nature or fortune   

have upon the  soul1 and act            
accordingly4 ,all men cannot have the   
first choice in  everything4 ,but the   
lot of all men is good enough1 if they  
choose wisely  and will live diligently4
    ,the verisimilitude which is given  
to the pilgrimage of a thousand years1  
by the intimation that ,ardiaeus had    
lived a thousand years before2 the      
coincidence of ,er coming to life on the
 twelfth day after he was supposed  to  
have been dead with the seven days which
 the pilgrims passed in the  meadow1 and
 the four days during which they        
journeyed to the column of  light2 the  
precision with which the soul is        
mentioned who chose the  twentieth lot2 
the passing remarks that there was no   
definite character  among the souls1 and
 that the souls which had chosen ill    
blamed any one  rather than themselves2 
or that some of the souls drank more    
than was  necessary of the waters of    
,forgetfulness1 while ,er himself was   
hindered  from drinking2 the desire of  

,odysseus to rest at last1 unlike the   
conception of him in ,dante and         
,tennyson2 the feigned ignorance of how 
,er  returned to the body1 when the     
other souls went shooting like stars to 
their birth1--add greatly to the        
probability of the narrative4 ,they are 
such touches of nature as the art of    
,defoe might have introduced when he    
wished to win credibility for marvels   
and apparitions4           99       99  
99       99       99    ,sidenote3      
,republic4 ,introduction4    ,there     
still remain to be considered some      
points which have been  intentionally   
reserved to the end3 7,i7 the           
,janus-like character of the  ,republic1
 which presents two faces--one an       
,hellenic state1 the other a  kingdom of
 philosophers4 ,connected with the      
latter of the two aspects are  7,,ii7   
the paradoxes of the ,republic1 as they 
have been termed by  ,morgenstern3      
7,greek3 a7 the community of property2  
7,greek3 b7 of  families2 7,greek3 g7   

the rule of philosophers2 7,greek3 d7   
the analogy  of the individual and the  
,state1 which1 like some other analogies
 in the  ,republic1 is carried too far4 
,we may then proceed to consider 7,,iii7
 the  subject of education as conceived 
by ,plato1 bringing together in a       
general  view the education of youth and
 the education of after-life2 7,,iv7 we 
may  note further some essential        
differences between ancient and modern  
politics which are suggested by the     
,republic2 clxx 7,v7 we may compare  the
 ,politicus and the ,laws2 7,,vi7 we may
 observe the influence exercised by     
,plato on his imitators2 and 7,,vii7    
take occasion to consider the nature and
  value of political1 and 7,,viii7 of   
religious ideals4    ,i4 ,plato         
expressly says that he is intending to  
found an ,hellenic ,state  7,book v4    
#dgj ,e74 ,many of his regulations are  
characteristically ,spartan2  such as   
the prohibition of gold and silver1 the 
common meals of the men1  the military  

training of the youth1 the gymnastic    
exercises of the women4  ,the life of   
,sparta was the life of a camp 7,laws   
ii4 #fff ,e71 enforced even  more       
rigidly in time of peace than in war2   
the citizens of ,sparta1 like  ,plato's1
 were forbidden to trade--they were to  
be soldiers and not  shopkeepers4       
,nowhere else in ,greece was the        
individual so completely  subjected to  
the ,state2 the time when he was to     
marry1 the education of  his children1  
the clothes which he was to wear1 the   
food which he was to  eat1 were all     
prescribed by law4 ,some of the best    
enactments in the  ,republic1 such as   
the reverence to be paid to parents and 
elders1 and some  of the worst1 such as 
the exposure of deformed children1 are  
borrowed from  the practice of ,sparta4 
,the encouragement of friendships       
between men and  youths1 or of men with 
one another1 as affording incentives to 
bravery1 is  also ,spartan2 in ,sparta  
too a nearer approach was made than in  

any other  ,greek ,state to equality of 
the sexes1 and to community of property2
 and  while there was probably less of  
licentiousness in the sense of          
immorality1 the tie of marriage was     
regarded more lightly than in the rest  
of ,greece4 ,the 'suprema lex' was the  
preservation of the family1 and the     
interest of the ,state4 ,the coarse     
strength of a military government was   
not favourable to purity and refinement2
 and the excessive strictness of  some  
regulations seems to have produced a    
reaction4 ,of all ,hellenes the         
,spartans were most accessible to       
bribery2 several of the greatest of them
  might be described in the words of    
,plato as having a 'fierce secret       
longing after gold and silver4' ,though 
not in the strict sense communists1  the
 principle of communism was maintained  
among them in their division of  lands1 
in their common meals1 in their slaves1 
and in the free use of one  another's   
goods4 ,marriage was a public           

institution3 and the women were         
educated by the ,state1 and sang and    
danced in public with the men4    clxxi 
,many traditions were preserved at      
,sparta of the severity with  which the 
magistrates had maintained the primitive
 rule of music and  poetry2 as in the   
,republic of ,plato1 the new-fangled    
poet was to be  expelled4 ,hymns to the 
,gods1 which are the only kind of music 
admitted  into the ideal ,state1 were   
the only kind which was permitted at    
,sparta4  ,the ,spartans1 though an     
unpoetical race1 were nevertheless      
lovers of  poetry2 they had been stirred
 by the ,elegiac strains of ,tyrtaeus1  
they had  crowded around ,hippias to    
hear his recitals of ,homer2 but in this
 they  resembled the citizens of the    
timocratic rather than of the ideal     
,state  7#edh ,e74 ,the council of elder
 men also corresponds to the ,spartan   
gerousia2 and the freedom with which    
they are permitted to judge about       
matters of detail agrees with what we   

are told of that institution4 ,once     
more1 the military rule of not spoiling 
the dead or offering arms at the        
temples2 the moderation in the pursuit  
of enemies2 the importance attached  to 
the physical well-being of the citizens2
 the use of warfare for the  sake of    
defence rather than of aggression--are  
features probably suggested  by the     
spirit and practice of ,sparta4    ,to  
the ,spartan type the ideal ,state      
reverts in the first decline2 and the   
character of the individual timocrat is 
borrowed from the ,spartan citizen4     
,the love of ,lacedaemon not only       
affected ,plato and ,xenophon1 but was  
shared by many undistinguished          
,athenians2 there they seemed to find a 
principle which was wanting in their own
 democracy4 ,the ,greek3  eu7kosmi_/a of
 the ,spartans attracted them1 that is  
to say1 not the  goodness of their laws1
 but the spirit of order and loyalty    
which  prevailed4 ,fascinated by the    
idea1 citizens of ,athens would imitate 

the  ,lacedaemonians in their dress and 
manners2 they were known to the         
contemporaries of ,plato as 'the persons
 who had their ears bruised1' like  the 
,roundheads of the ,commonwealth4 ,the  
love of another church or country  when 
seen at a distance only1 the longing for
 an imaginary simplicity in  civilized  
times1 the fond desire of a past which  
never has been1 or of a  future which   
never will be1--these are aspirations of
 the human mind which  are often felt   
among ourselves4 ,such feelings meet    
with a response in the  ,republic of    
,plato4    ,but there are other features
 of the ,platonic ,republic1 as1 for    
example1  the literary and philosophical
 education1 and the grace clxxii and    
beauty of life1 which are the reverse of
 ,spartan4 ,plato wishes to give his    
citizens a taste of ,athenian freedom as
 well as of ,lacedaemonian  discipline4 
,his individual genius is purely        
,athenian1 although in theory  he is a  
lover of ,sparta2 and he is something   

more than either--he has also  a true   
,hellenic feeling4 ,he is desirous of   
humanizing the wars of ,hellenes        
against one another2 he acknowledges    
that the ,delphian ,god is the grand    
hereditary interpreter of all ,hellas4  
,the spirit of harmony and the ,dorian  
mode are to prevail1 and the whole      
,state is to have an external beauty    
which is the reflex of the harmony      
within4 ,but he has not yet found out   
the truth which he afterwards enunciated
 in the ,laws 7i4 #fbh ,d7--that he  was
 a better legislator who made men to be 
of one mind1 than he who  trained them  
for war4 ,the citizens1 as in other     
,hellenic ,states1  democratic as well  
as aristocratic1 are really an upper    
class2 for1  although no mention is made
 of slaves1 the lower classes are       
allowed to  fade away into the distance1
 and are represented in the individual  
by the  passions4 ,plato has no idea    
either of a social ,state in which all  
classes  are harmonized1 or of a        

federation of ,hellas or the world in   
which  different nations or ,states have
 a place4 ,his city is equipped for war 
rather than for peace1 and this would   
seem to be justified by the ordinary    
condition of ,hellenic ,states4 ,the    
myth of the earth-born men is an        
embodiment of the orthodox tradition of 
,hellas1 and the allusion to the  four  
ages of the world is also sanctioned by 
the authority of ,hesiod and  the poets4
 ,thus we see that the ,republic is     
partly founded on the ideal of  the old 
,greek polis1 partly on the actual      
circumstances of ,hellas in  that age4  
,plato1 like the old painters1 retains  
the traditional form1 and  like them he 
has also a vision of a city in the      
clouds4    ,there is yet another thread 
which is interwoven in the texture of   
the  work2 for the ,republic is not only
 a ,dorian ,state1 but a ,pythagorean   
league4 ,the 'way of life' which was    
connected with the name of ,pythagoras1 
like the ,catholic monastic orders1     

showed the power which the mind of an   
individual might exercise over his      
contemporaries1 and may have naturally  
suggested to ,plato the possibility of  
reviving such 'mediaeval  institutions4'
 ,the ,pythagoreans1 like ,plato1       
enforced a rule of life and a  moral and
 intellectual training4 ,the influence  
ascribed to music1 which to  clxxiii us 
seems exaggerated1 is also a            
,pythagorean feature2 it is not  to be  
regarded as representing the real       
influence of music in the ,greek  world4
 ,more nearly than any other government 
of ,hellas1 the ,pythagorean  league of 
three hundred was an aristocracy of     
virtue4 ,for once in the  history of    
mankind the philosophy of order or      
,greek3 ko_/smos1 expressing  and       
consequently enlisting on its side the  
combined endeavours of the  better part 
of the people1 obtained the management  
of public affairs and  held possession  
of it for a considerable time 7until    
about ,b4,c4 #ejj74  ,probably only in  

,states prepared by ,dorian institutions
 would such a  league have been         
possible4 ,the rulers1 like ,plato's    
,greek3 phu_/lakes1  were required to   
submit to a severe training in order to 
prepare the way  for the education of   
the other members of the community4     
,long after the  dissolution of the     
,order1 eminent ,pythagoreans1 such as  
,archytas of  ,tarentum1 retained their 
political influence over the cities of  
,magna  ,graecia4 ,there was much here  
that was suggestive to the kindred      
spirit of  ,plato1 who had doubtless    
meditated deeply on the 'way of life of 
,pythagoras' 7,rep4 x4 #fjj ,b7 and his 
followers4 ,slight traces of            
,pythagoreanism are to be found in the  
mystical number of the ,state1 in the   
number which expresses the interval     
between the king and the tyrant1 in  the
 doctrine of transmigration1 in the     
music of the spheres1 as well as in  the
 great though secondary importance      
ascribed to mathematics in  education4  

,but as in his philosophy1 so also in   
the form of his ,state1 he goes far     
beyond the old ,pythagoreans4 ,he       
attempts a task really impossible1 which
  is to unite the past of ,greek history
 with the future of philosophy1         
analogous to that other impossibility1  
which has often been the dream of       
,christendom1 the attempt to unite the  
past history of ,europe with the        
kingdom of ,christ4 ,nothing actually   
existing in the world at all resembles  
,plato's ideal ,state2 nor does he      
himself imagine that such a ,state is   
possible4 ,this he repeats again and    
again2 e4g4 in the ,republic 7ix4 sub   
fin471 or in the ,laws 7,book v4 #gci71 
where1 casting a glance back on the     
,republic1 he admits that the perfect   
state of communism and philosophy was   
impossible in his own age1 though still 
to be retained as a pattern4 ,the  same 
doubt is implied in the earnestness with
 which he argues in the  ,republic 7v4  
#dgb ,d7 that ideals are none the worse 

because they cannot be  realized in     
fact1 and clxxiv in the chorus of       
laughter1 which like a  breaking wave   
will1 as he anticipates1 greet the      
mention of his proposals2  though like  
other writers of fiction1 he uses all   
his art to give reality  to his         
inventions4 ,when asked how the ideal   
polity can come into being1 he  answers 
ironically1 ',when one son of a king    
becomes a philosopher'2 he  designates  
the fiction of the earth-born men as 'a 
noble lie'2 and when  the structure is  
finally complete1 he fairly tells you   
that his ,republic  is a vision only1   
which in some sense may have reality1   
but not in the  vulgar one of a reign of
 philosophers upon earth4 ,it has been  
said that  ,plato flies as well as      
walks1 but this falls short of the      
truth2 for he  flies and walks at the   
same time1 and is in the air and on firm
 ground in  successive instants4        
,niebuhr has asked a trifling question1 
which may be briefly noticed in  this   

place--,was ,plato a good citizen8 ,if  
by this is meant1 ,was he loyal to      
,athenian institutions8--he can hardly  
be said to be the friend of  democracy3 
but neither is he the friend of any     
other existing form of  government2 all 
of them he regarded as 'states of       
faction' 7,laws viii4  #hcb ,c72 none   
attained to his ideal of a voluntary    
rule over voluntary  subjects1 which    
seems indeed more nearly to describe    
democracy than any  other2 and the worst
 of them is tyranny4 ,the truth is1 that
 the question  has hardly any meaning   
when applied to a great philosopher     
whose writings  are not meant for a     
particular age and country1 but for all 
time and all  mankind4 ,the decline of  
,athenian politics was probably the     
motive which  led ,plato to frame an    
ideal ,state1 and the ,republic may be  
regarded as  reflecting the departing   
glory of ,hellas4 ,as well might we     
complain of ,st4  ,augustine1 whose     
great work ',the ,city of ,god'         

originated in a similar  motive1 for not
 being loyal to the ,roman ,empire4     
,even a nearer parallel  might be       
afforded by the first ,christians1 who  
cannot fairly be charged  with being bad
 citizens because1 though 'subject to   
the higher powers1'  they were looking  
forward to a city which is in heaven4   
,,ii4 ,the idea of the perfect ,state is
 full of paradox when judged of         
according to the ordinary notions of    
mankind4 ,the paradoxes of one age  have
 been said to become the commonplaces of
 the next2 but the paradoxes  of ,plato 
are at least as paradoxical to us as    
they were to his  contemporaries4 ,the  
clxxv modern world has either sneered at
 them as  absurd1 or denounced them as  
unnatural and immoral2 men have been    
pleased  to find in ,aristotle's        
criticisms of them the anticipation of  
their own  good sense4 ,the wealthy and 
cultivated classes have disliked and    
also  dreaded them2 they have pointed   
with satisfaction to the failure of     

efforts to realize them in practice4    
,yet since they are the thoughts of  one
 of the greatest of human intelligences1
 and of one who had done most  to       
elevate morality and religion1 they seem
 to deserve a better treatment  at our  
hands4 ,we may have to address the      
public1 as ,plato does poetry1 and      
assure them that we mean no harm to     
existing institutions4 ,there are       
serious errors which have a side of     
truth and which therefore may fairly    
demand a careful consideration3 there   
are truths mixed with error of which  we
 may indeed say1 ',the half is better   
than the whole4' ,yet 'the half' may  be
 an important contribution to the study 
of human nature4    7,greek3 a7 ,the    
first paradox is the community of goods1
 which is  mentioned slightly at the end
 of the third ,book1 and seemingly1 as  
,aristotle observes1 is confined to the 
guardians2 at least no mention is  made 
of the other classes4 ,but the omission 
is not of any real  significance1 and   

probably arises out of the plan of the  
work1 which  prevents the writer from   
entering into details4    ,aristotle    
censures the community of property much 
in the spirit of modern  political      
economy1 as tending to repress industry1
 and as doing away with  the spirit of  
benevolence4 ,modern writers almost     
refuse to consider the  subject1 which  
is supposed to have been long ago       
settled by the common  opinion of       
mankind4 ,but it must be remembered that
 the sacredness of  property is a notion
 far more fixed in modern than in       
ancient times4 ,the  world has grown    
older1 and is therefore more            
conservative4 ,primitive  society       
offered many examples of land held in   
common1 either by a tribe or  by a      
township1 and such may probably have    
been the original form of landed        
tenure4 ,ancient legislators had        
invented various modes of dividing and  
preserving the divisions of land among  
the citizens2 according to  ,aristotle  

there were nations who held the land in 
common and divided the  produce1 and    
there were others who divided the land  
and stored the produce  in common4 ,the 
evils of debt and the inequality of     
property were far  greater in ancient   
than in modern clxxvi times1 and the    
accidents to  which property was subject
 from war1 or revolution1 or taxation1  
or other  legislative interference1 were
 also greater4 ,all these circumstances 
gave  property a less fixed and sacred  
character4 ,the early ,christians are   
believed to have held their property in 
common1 and the principle is  sanctioned
 by the words of ,christ himself1 and   
has been maintained as a  counsel of    
perfection in almost all ages of the    
,church4 ,nor have there  been wanting  
instances of modern enthusiasts who have
 made a religion of  communism2 in every
 age of religious excitement notions    
like ,wycliffe's  'inheritance of grace'
 have tended to prevail4 ,a like spirit1
 but fiercer  and more violent1 has     

appeared in politics4 ',the preparation 
of the ,gospel  of peace' soon becomes  
the red flag of ,republicanism4    ,we  
can hardly judge what effect ,plato's   
views would have upon his own           
contemporaries2 they would perhaps have 
seemed to them only an  exaggeration of 
the ,spartan commonwealth4 ,even modern 
writers would  acknowledge that the     
right of private property is based on   
expediency1 and  may be interfered with 
in a variety of ways for the public     
good4 ,any other  mode of vesting       
property which was found to be more     
advantageous1 would in  time acquire the
 same basis of right2 'the most useful1'
 in ,plato's words1  'would be the most 
sacred4' ,the lawyers and ecclesiastics 
of former ages  would have spoken of    
property as a sacred institution4 ,but  
they only meant  by such language to    
oppose the greatest amount of resistance
 to any  invasion of the rights of      
individuals and of the ,church4    ,when
 we consider the question1 without any  

fear of immediate application  to       
practice1 in the spirit of ,plato's     
,republic1 are we quite sure that the   
received notions of property are the    
best8 ,is the distribution of wealth    
which is customary in civilized         
countries the most favourable that can  
be  conceived for the education and     
development of the mass of mankind8 ,can
  'the spectator of all time and all    
existence' be quite convinced that one  
or two thousand years hence1 great      
changes will not have taken place in    
the rights of property1 or even that the
 very notion of property1 beyond  what  
is necessary for personal maintenance1  
may not have disappeared8 ,this  was a  
distinction familiar to ,aristotle1     
though likely to be laughed at  among   
ourselves4 ,such a change would not be  
greater than some other  changes through
 clxxvii which the world has passed in  
the transition  from ancient to modern  
society1 for example1 the emancipation  
of the serfs  in ,russia1 or the        

abolition of slavery in ,america and the
 ,west ,indies2 and  not so great as the
 difference which separates the ,eastern
 village  community from the ,western   
world4 ,to accomplish such a revolution 
in the  course of a few centuries1 would
 imply a rate of progress not more rapid
  than has actually taken place during  
the last fifty or sixty years4 ,the     
kingdom of ,japan underwent more change 
in five or six years than ,europe in    
five or six hundred4 ,many opinions and 
beliefs which have been cherished  among
 ourselves quite as strongly as the     
sacredness of property have  passed     
away2 and the most untenable            
propositions respecting the right of    
bequests or entail have been maintained 
with as much fervour as the most        
moderate4 ,some one will be heard to ask
 whether a state of society can be      
final in which the interests of         
thousands are perilled on the life or   
character of a single person4 ,and many 
will indulge the hope that our  present 

condition may1 after all1 be only       
transitional1 and may conduct to  a     
higher1 in which property1 besides      
ministering to the enjoyment of the     
few1 may also furnish the means of the  
highest culture to all1 and will be  a  
greater benefit to the public generally1
 and also more under the control  of    
public authority4 ,there may come a time
 when the saying1 ',have ,i not a  right
 to do what ,i will with my own8' will  
appear to be a barbarous relic  of      
individualism2--when the possession of a
 part may be a greater blessing  to each
 and all than the possession of the     
whole is now to any one4    ,such       
reflections appear visionary to the eye 
of the practical statesman1  but they   
are within the range of possibility to  
the philosopher4 ,he can  imagine that  
in some distant age or clime1 and       
through the influence of  some          
individual1 the notion of common        
property may or might have sunk as  deep
 into the heart of a race1 and have     

become as fixed to them1 as  private    
property is to ourselves4 ,he knows that
 this latter institution is  not more   
than four or five thousand years old3   
may not the end revert to  the          
beginning8 ,in our own age even ,utopias
 affect the spirit of  legislation1 and 
an abstract idea may exercise a great   
influence on  practical politics4       
,the objections that would be generally 
urged against ,plato's community of     
property1 are the old ones of           
,aristotle1 that motives clxxviii for   
exertion would be taken away1 and that  
disputes would arise when each was      
dependent upon all4 ,every man would    
produce as little and consume as much   
as he liked4 ,the experience of         
civilized nations has hitherto been     
adverse  to ,socialism4 ,the effort is  
too great for human nature2 men try to  
live in  common1 but the personal       
feeling is always breaking in4 ,on the  
other hand  it may be doubted whether   
our present notions of property are not 

conventional1 for they differ in        
different countries and in different    
states of society4 ,we boast of an      
individualism which is not freedom1 but 
rather an artificial result of the      
industrial state of modern ,europe4 ,the
  individual is nominally free1 but he  
is also powerless in a world bound  hand
 and foot in the chains of economic     
necessity4 ,even if we cannot  expect   
the mass of mankind to become           
disinterested1 at any rate we observe   
in them a power of organization which   
fifty years ago would never have  been  
suspected4 ,the same forces which have  
revolutionized the political  system of 
,europe1 may effect a similar change in 
the social and industrial  relations of 
mankind4 ,and if we suppose the         
influence of some good as well  as      
neutral motives working in the          
community1 there will be no absurdity in
  expecting that the mass of mankind    
having power1 and becoming enlightened  
about the higher possibilities of human 

life1 when they learn how much  more is 
attainable for all than is at present   
the possession of a favoured  few1 may  
pursue the common interest with an      
intelligence and persistency  which     
mankind have hitherto never seen4       
,now that the world has once been set in
 motion1 and is no longer held fast     
under the tyranny of custom and         
ignorance2 now that criticism has       
pierced  the veil of tradition and the  
past no longer overpowers the           
present1--the  progress of civilization 
may be expected to be far greater and   
swifter  than heretofore4 ,even at our  
present rate of speed the point at which
 we  may arrive in two or three         
generations is beyond the power of      
imagination  to foresee4 ,there are     
forces in the world which work1 not in  
an  arithmetical1 but in a geometrical  
ratio of increase4 ,education1 to use   
the expression of ,plato1 moves like a  
wheel with an ever-multiplying          
rapidity4 ,nor can we say how great may 

be its influence1 when it becomes       
universal1--when it has been inherited  
by many generations1--when it is  freed 
from the trammels clxxix of superstition
 and rightly adapted to  the wants and  
capacities of different classes of men  
and women4 ,neither do  we know how much
 more the co-operation of minds or of   
hands may be capable  of accomplishing1 
whether in labour or in study4 ,the     
resources of the  natural sciences are  
not half-developed as yet2 the soil of  
the earth1  instead of growing more     
barren1 may become many times more      
fertile than  hitherto2 the uses of     
machinery far greater1 and also more    
minute than at  present4 ,new secrets of
 physiology may be revealed1 deeply     
affecting human  nature in its innermost
 recesses4 ,the standard of health may  
be raised and  the lives of men         
prolonged by sanitary and medical       
knowledge4 ,there may be  peace1 there  
may be leisure1 there may be innocent   
refreshments of many  kinds4 ,the       

ever-increasing power of locomotion may 
join the extremes of  earth4 ,there may 
be mysterious workings of the human     
mind1 such as occur  only at great      
crises of history4 ,the ,east and the   
,west may meet together1  and all       
nations may contribute their thoughts   
and their experience to the  common     
stock of humanity4 ,many other elements 
enter into a speculation of  this kind4 
,but it is better to make an end of     
them4 ,for such reflections  appear to  
the majority far-fetched1 and to men of 
science1 commonplace4    7,greek3 b7    
,neither to the mind of ,plato nor of   
,aristotle did the  doctrine of         
community of property present at all the
 same difficulty1 or  appear to be the  
same violation of the common ,hellenic  
sentiment1 as the  community of wives   
and children4 ,this paradox he prefaces 
by another  proposal1 that the          
occupations of men and women shall be   
the same1 and  that to this end they    
shall have a common training and        

education4 ,male and  female animals    
have the same pursuits--why not also the
 two sexes of man8    ,but have we not  
here fallen into a contradiction8 for we
 were saying that  different natures    
should have different pursuits4 ,how    
then can men and  women have the same8  
,and is not the proposal inconsistent   
with our notion  of the division of     
labour8--,these objections are no sooner
 raised than  answered2 for1 according  
to ,plato1 there is no organic          
difference between  men and women1 but  
only the accidental one that men beget  
and women bear  children4 ,following the
 analogy of the other animals1 he       
contends that all  natural gifts are    
scattered about indifferently among both
 sexes1 though  there may be a          
superiority of degree clxxx on the part 
of the men4 ,the  objection on the score
 of decency to their taking part in the 
same  gymnastic exercises1 is met by    
,plato's assertion that the existing    
feeling  is a matter of habit4    ,that 

,plato should have emancipated himself  
from the ideas of his own  country and  
from the example of the ,east1 shows a  
wonderful independence  of mind4 ,he is 
conscious that women are half the human 
race1 in some  respects the more        
important half 7,laws vi4 #gha ,b72 and 
for the sake both  of men and women he  
desires to raise the woman to a higher  
level of  existence4 ,he brings1 not    
sentiment1 but philosophy to bear upon a
  question which both in ancient and    
modern times has been chiefly regarded  
in the light of custom or feeling4 ,the 
,greeks had noble conceptions of        
womanhood in the goddesses ,athene and  
,artemis1 and in the heroines  ,antigone
 and ,andromache4 ,but these ideals had 
no counterpart in actual  life4 ,the    
,athenian woman was in no way the equal 
of her husband2 she was  not the        
entertainer of his guests or the        
mistress of his house1 but only  his    
housekeeper and the mother of his       
children4 ,she took no part in  military

 or political matters2 nor is there any 
instance in the later ages  of ,greece  
of a woman becoming famous in           
literature4 ',hers is the greatest      
glory who has the least renown among    
men1' is the historian's conception  of 
feminine excellence4 ,a very different  
ideal of womanhood is held up by  ,plato
 to the world2 she is to be the         
companion of the man1 and to share  with
 him in the toils of war and in the     
cares of government4 ,she is to be      
similarly trained both in bodily and    
mental exercises4 ,she is to lose as    
far as possible the incidents of        
maternity and the characteristics of the
  female sex4    ,the modern antagonist 
of the equality of the sexes would argue
 that the  differences between men and  
women are not confined to the single    
point  urged by ,plato2 that            
sensibility1 gentleness1 grace1 are the 
qualities of  women1 while energy1      
strength1 higher intelligence1 are to be
 looked for  in men4 ,and the criticism 

is just3 the differences affect the     
whole  nature1 and are not1 as ,plato   
supposes1 confined to a single point4   
,but  neither can we say how far these  
differences are due to education and the
  opinions of mankind1 or physically    
inherited from the habits and opinions  
of former generations4 ,women have been 
always taught1 not exactly that  they   
are slaves1 but that they are in an     
inferior clxxxi position1 which  is also
 supposed to have compensating          
advantages2 and to this position  they  
have conformed4 ,it is also true that   
the physical form may easily  change in 
the course of generations through the   
mode of life2 and the  weakness or      
delicacy1 which was once a matter of    
opinion1 may become a  physical fact4   
,the characteristics of sex vary greatly
 in different  countries and ranks of   
society1 and at different ages in the   
same  individuals4 ,plato may have been 
right in denying that there was any     
ultimate difference in the sexes of man 

other than that which exists in         
animals1 because all other differences  
may be conceived to disappear in  other 
states of society1 or under different   
circumstances of life and  training4    
,the first wave having been passed1 we  
proceed to the second--community of     
wives and children4 ',is it possible8   
,is it desirable8' ,for as ,glaucon     
intimates1 and as we far more strongly  
insist1 ',great doubts may be           
entertained about both these points4'   
,any free discussion of the question  is
 impossible1 and mankind are perhaps    
right in not allowing the ultimate      
bases of social life to be examined4    
,few of us can safely enquire into the  
things which nature hides1 any more than
 we can dissect our own bodies4  ,still1
 the manner in which ,plato arrived at  
his conclusions should be  considered4  
,for here1 as ,mr4 ,grote has remarked1 
is a wonderful thing1  that one of the  
wisest and best of men should have      
entertained ideas of  morality which are

 wholly at variance with our own4 ,and  
if we would do  ,plato justice1 we must 
examine carefully the character of his  
proposals4  ,first1 we may observe that 
the relations of the sexes supposed by  
him are  the reverse of licentious3 he  
seems rather to aim at an impossible    
strictness4 ,secondly1 he conceives the 
family to be the natural enemy of  the  
state2 and he entertains the serious    
hope that an universal  brotherhood may 
take the place of private interests--an 
aspiration which1  although not         
justified by experience1 has possessed  
many noble minds4 ,on  the other hand1  
there is no sentiment or imagination in 
the connections  which men and women are
 supposed by him to form2 human beings  
return to  the level of the animals1    
neither exalting to heaven1 nor yet     
abusing the  natural instincts4 ,all    
that world of poetry and fancy which the
 passion of  love has called forth in   
modern literature and romance would have
 been  banished by ,plato4 ,the         

arrangements clxxxii of marriage in the 
,republic  are directed to one          
object--the improvement of the race4 ,in
 successive  generations a great        
development both of bodily and mental   
qualities might  be possible4 ,the      
analogy of animals tends to show that   
mankind can within  certain limits      
receive a change of nature4 ,and as in  
animals we should  commonly choose the  
best for breeding1 and destroy the      
others1 so there  must be a selection   
made of the human beings whose lives are
 worthy to be  preserved4    ,we start  
back horrified from this ,platonic      
ideal1 in the belief1 first1  that the  
higher feelings of humanity are far too 
strong to be crushed out2  secondly1    
that if the plan could be carried into  
execution we should be  poorly          
recompensed by improvements in the breed
 for the loss of the best  things in    
life4 ,the greatest regard for the      
weakest and meanest of human            
beings--the infant1 the criminal1 the   

insane1 the idiot1 truly seems to us    
one of the noblest results of           
,christianity4 ,we have learned1 though 
as yet  imperfectly1 that the individual
 man has an endless value in the sight  
of  ,god1 and that we honour ,him when  
we honour the darkened and disfigured   
image of ,him 7cp4 ,laws xi4 #ica ,a74  
,this is the lesson which ,christ taught
  in a parable when ,he said1 ',their   
angels do always behold the face of ,my 
,father which is in heaven4' ,such      
lessons are only partially realized in  
any age2 they were foreign to the age of
 ,plato1 as they have very  different   
degrees of strength in different        
countries or ages of the  ,christian    
world4 ,to the ,greek the family was a  
religious and customary  institution    
binding the members together by a tie   
inferior in strength to  that of        
friendship1 and having a less solemn and
 sacred sound than that of  country4    
,the relationship which existed on the  
lower level of custom1  ,plato imagined 

that he was raising to the higher level 
of nature and  reason2 while from the   
modern and ,christian point of view we  
regard him as  sanctioning murder and   
destroying the first principles of      
morality4    ,the great error in these  
and similar speculations is that the    
difference  between man and the animals 
is forgotten in them4 ,the human being  
is  regarded with the eye of a dog- or  
bird-fancier 7v4 #dei ,a71 or at best of
  a slave-owner2 the higher or human    
qualities are left out4 ,the breeder of 
animals aims chiefly at size or speed or
 strength2 in a few cases at  courage or
 temper2 most often the fitness of the  
animal for food is the  great           
desideratum4 clxxxiii ,but mankind are  
not bred to be eaten1 nor  yet for their
 superiority in fighting or in running  
or in drawing carts4  ,neither does the 
improvement of the human race consist   
merely in the  increase of the bones and
 flesh1 but in the growth and           
enlightenment of  the mind4 ,hence there

 must be 'a marriage of true minds' as  
well as of  bodies1 of imagination and  
reason as well as of lusts and          
instincts4 ,men  and women without      
feeling or imagination are justly called
 brutes2 yet  ,plato takes away these   
qualities and puts nothing in their     
place1 not even  the desire of a noble  
offspring1 since parents are not to know
 their own  children4 ,the most         
important transaction of social life1 he
 who is the  idealist philosopher       
converts into the most brutal4 ,for the 
pair are to  have no relation to one    
another1 except at the hymeneal         
festival2 their  children are not       
theirs1 but the state's2 nor is any tie 
of affection to  unite them4 ,yet here  
the analogy of the animals might have   
saved ,plato  from a gigantic error1 if 
he had 'not lost sight of his own       
illustration'  7ii4 #cge ,d74 ,for the  
'nobler sort of birds and beasts' 7v4   
#dei ,a7 nourish  and protect their     
offspring and are faithful to one       

another4    ,an eminent physiologist    
thinks it worth while 'to try and place 
life on a  physical basis4' ,but should 
not life rest on the moral rather than  
upon  the physical8 ,the higher comes   
first1 then the lower1 first the human  
and  rational1 afterwards the animal4   
,yet they are not absolutely divided2   
and  in times of sickness or moments of 
self-indulgence they seem to be only    
different aspects of a common human     
nature which includes them both4        
,neither is the moral the limit of the  
physical1 but the expansion and         
enlargement of it1--the highest form    
which the physical is capable of        
receiving4 ,as ,plato would say1 the    
body does not take care of the body1    
and still less of the mind1 but the mind
 takes care of both4 ,in all human      
action not that which is common to man  
and the animals is the  characteristic  
element1 but that which distinguishes   
him from them4 ,even  if we admit the   
physical basis1 and resolve all virtue  

into health of body  'la faon que notre 
sang circule1' still on merely physical 
grounds we  must come back to ideas4    
,mind and reason and duty and           
conscience1 under  these or other names1
 are always reappearing4 ,there cannot  
be health of  body without health of    
mind2 nor health of mind without the    
sense of duty  and the love of truth    
7cp4 ,charm4 #aef ,d1 ,e74    ,that the 
greatest of ancient philosophers should 
in his regulations  clxxxiv about       
marriage have fallen into the error of  
separating body and  mind1 does indeed  
appear surprising4 ,yet the wonder is   
not so much that  ,plato should have    
entertained ideas of morality which to  
our own age are  revolting1 but that he 
should have contradicted himself to an  
extent which  is hardly credible1       
falling in an instant from the heaven of
 idealism into  the crudest animalism4  
,rejoicing in the newly found gift of   
reflection1 he  appears to have thought 
out a subject about which he had better 

have  followed the enlightened feeling  
of his own age4 ,the general sentiment  
of  ,hellas was opposed to his monstrous
 fancy4 ,the old poets1 and in later    
time the tragedians1 showed no want of  
respect for the family1 on which  much  
of their religion was based4 ,but the   
example of ,sparta1 and perhaps  in some
 degree the tendency to defy public     
opinion1 seems to have misled  him4 ,he 
will make one family out of all the     
families of the state4 ,he will  select 
the finest specimens of men and women   
and breed from these only4    ,yet      
because the illusion is always returning
 7for the animal part of human  nature  
will from time to time assert itself in 
the disguise of philosophy  as well as  
of poetry71 and also because any        
departure from established  morality1   
even where this is not intended1 is apt 
to be unsettling1 it may  be worth while
 to draw out a little more at length the
 objections to the  ,platonic marriage4 
,in the first place1 history shows that 

wherever  polygamy has been largely     
allowed the race has deteriorated4 ,one 
man to  one woman is the law of ,god and
 nature4 ,nearly all the civilized      
peoples  of the world at some period    
before the age of written records1 have 
become  monogamists2 and the step when  
once taken has never been retraced4 ,the
  exceptions occurring among ,brahmins  
or ,mahometans or the ancient ,persians1
  are of that sort which may be said to 
prove the rule4 ,the connexions  formed 
between superior and inferior races     
hardly ever produce a noble  offspring1 
because they are licentious2 and because
 the children in such  cases usually    
despise the mother and are neglected by 
the father who is  ashamed of them4     
,barbarous nations when they are        
introduced by ,europeans  to vice die   
out2 polygamist peoples either import   
and adopt children from  other          
countries1 or dwindle in numbers1 or    
both4 ,dynasties and  aristocracies     
which have disregarded the laws of      

nature have decreased in  numbers and   
degenerated in clxxxv stature2 'mariages
 de convenance'  leave their enfeebling 
stamp on the offspring of them 77cp4    
,king ,lear1 ,act  i4 ,sc4 #b74 ,the    
marriage of near relations1 or the      
marrying in and in of  the same family  
tends constantly to weakness or idiocy  
in the children1  sometimes assuming the
 form as they grow older of passionate  
licentiousness4 ,the common prostitute  
rarely has any offspring4 ,by such      
unmistakable evidence is the authority  
of morality asserted in the  relations  
of the sexes3 and so many more elements 
enter into this  'mystery' than are     
dreamed of by ,plato and some other     
philosophers4    ,recent enquirers have 
indeed arrived at the conclusion that   
among  primitive tribes there existed a 
community of wives as of property1 and  
that the captive taken by the spear was 
the only wife or slave whom any  man was
 permitted to call his own4 ,the partial
 existence of such customs  among some  

of the lower races of man1 and the      
survival of peculiar  ceremonies in the 
marriages of some civilized nations1 are
 thought to  furnish a proof of similar 
institutions having been once universal4
 ,there  can be no question that the    
study of anthropology has considerably  
changed  our views respecting the first 
appearance of man upon the earth4 ,we   
know  more about the aborigines of the  
world than formerly1 but our increasing 
knowledge shows above all things how    
little we know4 ,with all the helps     
which written monuments afford1 we do   
but faintly realize the condition of    
man two thousand or three thousand years
 ago4 ,of what his condition was  when  
removed to a distance #bjj1jjj or       
#cjj1jjj years1 when the majority of    
mankind were lower and nearer the       
animals than any tribe now existing upon
  the earth1 we cannot even entertain   
conjecture4 ,plato 7,laws iii4 #fgf     
foll47 and ,aristotle 7,metaph4 xi4 #h1 
#ai1 #bj7 may have been more right  than

 we imagine in supposing that some forms
 of civilisation were  discovered and   
lost several times over4 ,if we cannot  
argue that all  barbarism is a degraded 
civilization1 neither can we set any    
limits to the  depth of degradation to  
which the human race may sink through   
war1  disease1 or isolation4 ,and if we 
are to draw inferences about the origin 
of marriage from the practice of        
barbarous nations1 we should also       
consider the remoter analogy of the     
animals4 ,many birds and animals1       
especially the carnivorous1 have only   
one mate1 and the love and care of      
offspring which seems to be natural is  
inconsistent clxxxvi with the  primitive
 theory of marriage4 ,if we go back to  
an imaginary state in which  men were   
almost animals and the companions of    
them1 we have as much right  to argue   
from what is animal to what is human as 
from the barbarous to the  civilized    
man4 ,the record of animal life on the  
globe is fragmentary1--the  connecting  

links are wanting and cannot be         
supplied2 the record of social  life is 
still more fragmentary and precarious4  
,even if we admit that our  first       
ancestors had no such institution as    
marriage1 still the stages by  which men
 passed from outer barbarism to the     
comparative civilization of  ,china1    
,assyria1 and ,greece1 or even of the   
ancient ,germans1 are wholly  unknown to
 us4    ,such speculations are apt to be
 unsettling1 because they seem to show  
that  an institution which was thought  
to be a revelation from heaven1 is only 
the growth of history and experience4   
,we ask what is the origin of  marriage1
 and we are told that like the right of 
property1 after many wars  and contests1
 it has gradually arisen out of the     
selfishness of  barbarians4 ,we stand   
face to face with human nature in its   
primitive  nakedness4 ,we are compelled 
to accept1 not the highest1 but the     
lowest  account of the origin of human  
society4 ,but on the other hand we may  

truly  say that every step in human     
progress has been in the same direction1
 and  that in the course of ages the    
idea of marriage and of the family has  
been  more and more defined and         
consecrated4 ,the civilized ,east is    
immeasurably  in advance of any savage  
tribes2 the ,greeks and ,romans have    
improved upon  the ,east2 the ,christian
 nations have been stricter in their    
views of the  marriage relation than any
 of the ancients4 ,in this as in so many
 other  things1 instead of looking back 
with regret to the past1 we should look 
forward with hope to the future4 ,we    
must consecrate that which we believe   
to be the most holy1 and that 'which is 
the most holy will be the most  useful4'
 ,there is more reason for maintaining  
the sacredness of the  marriage tie1    
when we see the benefit of it1 than when
 we only felt a  vague religious horror 
about the violation of it4 ,but in all  
times of  transition1 when established  
beliefs are being undermined1 there is a

  danger that in the passage from the   
old to the new we may insensibly let  go
 the moral principle1 finding an excuse 
for listening to the voice of  passion  
in the uncertainty of knowledge1 or the 
clxxxvii fluctuations of  opinion4 ,and 
there are many persons in our own day   
who1 enlightened by the  study of       
anthropology1 and fascinated by what is 
new and strange1 some  using the        
language of fear1 others of hope1 are   
inclined to believe that a  time will   
come when through the self-assertion of 
women1 or the rebellious  spirit of     
children1 by the analysis of human      
relations1 or by the force of  outward  
circumstances1 the ties of family life  
may be broken or greatly  relaxed4 ,they
 point to societies in ,america and     
elsewhere which tend to  show that the  
destruction of the family need not      
necessarily involve the  overthrow of   
all morality4 ,wherever we may think of 
such speculations1 we  can hardly deny  
that they have been more rife in this   

generation than in  any other2 and      
whither they are tending1 who can       
predict8    ,to the doubts and queries  
raised by these 'social reformers'      
respecting  the relation of the sexes   
and the moral nature of man1 there is a 
sufficient answer1 if any is needed4    
,the difference about them and us is    
really one of fact4 ,they are speaking  
of man as they wish or fancy him to  be1
 but we are speaking of him as he is4   
,they isolate the animal part of  his   
nature2 we regard him as a creature     
having many sides1 or aspects1  moving  
between good and evil1 striving to rise 
above himself and to become  'a little  
lower than the angels4' ,we also1 to use
 a ,platonic formula1 are  not ignorant 
of the dissatisfactions and             
incompatibilities of family life1  of   
the meannesses of trade1 of the         
flatteries of one class of society by   
another1 of the impediments which the   
family throws in the way of lofty  aims 
and aspirations4 ,but we are conscious  

that there are evils and  dangers in the
 background greater still1 which are not
 appreciated1  because they are either  
concealed or suppressed4 ,what a        
condition of man  would that be1 in     
which human passions were controlled by 
no authority1  divine or human1 in which
 there was no shame or decency1 no      
higher  affection overcoming or         
sanctifying the natural instincts1 but  
simply a  rule of health6 ,is it for    
this that we are asked to throw away the
  civilization which is the growth of   
ages8    ,for strength and health are   
not the only qualities to be desired2   
there  are the more important           
considerations of mind and character and
 soul4 ,we  know how human nature may be
 degraded2 we do not know how by        
artificial  means any improvement in the
 breed can be effected4 ,the problem is 
a  complex one1 for if we clxxxviii go  
back only four steps 7and these at      
least enter into the composition of a   
child71 there are commonly thirty       

progenitors to be taken into account4   
,many curious facts1 rarely admitting   
of proof1 are told us respecting the    
inheritance of disease or character     
from a remote ancestor4 ,we can trace   
the physical resemblances of parents    
and children in the same family--       
',sic oculos1 sic ille manus1 sic ora   
ferebat'2    but scarcely less often the
 differences which distinguish children 
both  from their parents and from one   
another4 ,we are told of similar mental 
peculiarities running in families1 and  
again of a tendency1 as in the  animals1
 to revert to a common or original      
stock4 ,but we have a difficulty  in    
distinguishing what is a true           
inheritance of genius or other          
qualities1  and what is mere imitation  
or the result of similar circumstances4 
,great  men and great women have rarely 
had great fathers and mothers4 ,nothing 
that we know of in the circumstances of 
their birth or lineage will  explain    
their appearance4 ,of the ,english poets

 of the last and two  preceding         
centuries scarcely a descendant         
remains1--none have ever been           
distinguished4 ,so deeply has nature    
hidden her secret1 and so ridiculous  is
 the fancy which has been entertained by
 some that we might in time by  suitable
 marriage arrangements or1 as ,plato    
would have said1 'by an  ingenious      
system of lots1' produce a ,shakespeare 
or a ,milton4 ,even  supposing that we  
could breed men having the tenacity of  
bulldogs1 or1  like the ,spartans1      
'lacking the wit to run away in battle1'
 would the  world be any the better8    
,many of the noblest specimens of the   
human race  have been among the weakest 
physically4 ,tyrtaeus or ,aesop1 or our 
own  ,newton1 would have been exposed at
 ,sparta2 and some of the fairest and   
strongest men and women have been among 
the wickedest and worst4 ,not by  the   
,platonic device of uniting the strong  
and fair with the strong and  fair1     
regardless of sentiment and morality1   

nor yet by his other device of          
combining dissimilar natures 7,statesman
 #caj ,a71 have mankind gradually       
passed from the brutality and           
licentiousness of primitive marriage to 
marriage ,christian and civilized4      
,few persons would deny that we bring   
into the world an inheritance of  mental
 and physical qualities derived first   
from our parents1 or through  them from 
some remoter ancestor1 clxxxix secondly 
from our race1 thirdly  from the general
 condition of mankind into which we are 
born4 ,nothing is  commoner than the    
remark1 that ',so and so is like his    
father or his  uncle'2 and an aged      
person may not unfrequently note a      
resemblance in a  youth to a            
long-forgotten ancestor1 observing that 
',nature sometimes skips  a generation4'
 ,it may be true also1 that if we knew  
more about our  ancestors1 these        
similarities would be even more striking
 to us4 ,admitting  the facts which are 
thus described in a popular way1 we may 

however remark  that there is no method 
of difference by which they can be      
defined or  estimated1 and that they    
constitute only a small part of each    
individual4  ,the doctrine of heredity  
may seem to take out of our hands the   
conduct of  our own lives1 but it is the
 idea1 not the fact1 which is really    
terrible  to us4 ,for what we have      
received from our ancestors is only a   
fraction of  what we are1 or may become4
 ,the knowledge that drunkenness or     
insanity has  been prevalent in a family
 may be the best safeguard against their
  recurrence in a future generation4    
,the parent will be most awake to the   
vices or diseases in his child of which 
he is most sensible within  himself4    
,the whole of life may be directed to   
their prevention or cure4  ,the traces  
of consumption may become fainter1 or be
 wholly effaced3 the  inherent tendency 
to vice or crime may be eradicated4 ,and
 so heredity1  from being a curse1 may  
become a blessing4 ,we acknowledge that 

in the  matter of our birth1 as in our  
nature generally1 there are previous    
circumstances which affect us4 ,but upon
 this platform of circumstances or      
within this wall of necessity1 we have  
still the power of creating a life  for 
ourselves by the informing energy of the
 human will4    ,there is another aspect
 of the marriage question to which      
,plato is a  stranger4 ,all the children
 born in his state are foundlings4 ,it  
never  occurred to him that the greater 
part of them1 according to universal    
experience1 would have perished4 ,for   
children can only be brought up in      
families4 ,there is a subtle sympathy   
between the mother and the child  which 
cannot be supplied by other mothers1 or 
by 'strong nurses one or  more' 7,laws  
vii4 #ghi ,e74 ,if ,plato's 'pen' was as
 fatal as the ,crches of  ,paris1 or the
 foundling hospital of ,dublin1 more    
than nine-tenths of his  children would 
have perished4 ,there would have been no
 need to expose or  put out of the way  

the weaklier children1 for they would   
have cxc died  of themselves4 ,so       
emphatically does nature protest against
 the destruction  of the family4        
,what ,plato had heard or seen of       
,sparta was applied by him in a mistaken
  way to his ideal commonwealth4 ,he    
probably observed that both the ,spartan
  men and women were superior in form   
and strength to the other ,greeks2 and  
this superiority he was disposed to     
attribute to the laws and customs       
relating to marriage4 ,he did not       
consider that the desire of a noble     
offspring was a passion among the       
,spartans1 or that their physical       
superiority was to be attributed        
chiefly1 not to their marriage customs1 
but to their temperance and training4   
,he did not reflect that ,sparta was    
great1 not in consequence of the        
relaxation of morality1 but in spite of 
it1 by virtue of a political principle  
stronger far than existed in any  other 
,grecian state4 ,least of all did he    

observe that ,sparta did not  really    
produce the finest specimens of the     
,greek race4 ,the genius1 the  political
 inspiration of ,athens1 the love of    
liberty--all that has made  ,greece     
famous with posterity1 were wanting     
among the ,spartans4 ,they had no       
,themistocles1 or ,pericles1 or         
,aeschylus1 or ,sophocles1 or ,socrates1
 or  ,plato4 ,the individual was not    
allowed to appear above the state2 the  
laws  were fixed1 and he had no business
 to alter or reform them4 ,yet whence   
has  the progress of cities and nations 
arisen1 if not from remarkable          
individuals1 coming into the world we   
know not how1 and from causes over      
which we have no control8 ,something too
 much may have been said in modern      
times of the value of individuality4    
,but we can hardly condemn too  strongly
 a system which1 instead of fostering   
the scattered seeds or  sparks of genius
 and character1 tends to smother and    
extinguish them4    ,still1 while       

condemning ,plato1 we must acknowledge  
that neither  ,christianity1 nor any    
other form of religion and society1 has 
hitherto  been able to cope with this   
most difficult of social problems1 and  
that  the side from which ,plato        
regarded it is that from which we turn  
away4  ,population is the most          
untameable force in the political and   
social world4  ,do we not find1         
especially in large cities1 that the    
greatest hindrance to  the amelioration 
of the poor is their improvidence in    
marriage8--a small  fault truly1 if not 
involving endless consequences4 ,there  
are whole  countries too1 such as       
,india1 or1 nearer home1 ,ireland1 in   
which a cxci  right solution of the     
marriage question seems to lie at the   
foundation of  the happiness of the     
community4 ,there are too many people on
 a given  space1 or they marry too early
 and bring into the world a sickly and  
half-developed offspring2 or owing to   
the very conditions of their  existence1

 they become emaciated and hand on a    
similar life to their  descendants4 ,but
 who can oppose the voice of prudence to
 the 'mightiest  passions of mankind'   
7,laws viii4 #hce ,c71 especially when  
they have been  licensed by custom and  
religion8 ,in addition to the influences
 of  education1 we seem to require some 
new principles of right and wrong in    
these matters1 some force of opinion1   
which may indeed be already heard       
whispering in private1 but has never    
affected the moral sentiments of        
mankind in general4 ,we unavoidably lose
 sight of the principle of utility1     
just in that action of our lives in     
which we have the most need of it4 ,the 
influences which we can bring to bear   
upon this question are chiefly          
indirect4 ,in a generation or two1      
education1 emigration1 improvements in  
agriculture and manufactures1 may have  
provided the solution4 ,the state       
physician hardly likes to probe the     
wound3 it is beyond his art2 a matter   

which he cannot safely let alone1 but   
which he dare not touch3      ',we do   
but skin and film the ulcerous place4'  
,when again in private life we see a    
whole family one by one dropping into   
the grave under the ,ate of some        
inherited malady1 and the parents       
perhaps  surviving them1 do our minds   
ever go back silently to that day       
twenty-five  or thirty years before on  
which under the fairest auspices1 amid  
the  rejoicings of friends and          
acquaintances1 a bride and bridegroom   
joined  hands with one another8 ,in     
making such a reflection we are not     
opposing  physical considerations to    
moral1 but moral to physical2 we are    
seeking to  make the voice of reason    
heard1 which drives us back from the    
extravagance  of sentimentalism on      
common sense4 ,the late ,dr4 ,combe is  
said by his  biographer to have resisted
 the temptation to marriage1 because he 
knew  that he was subject to hereditary 
consumption4 ,one who deserved to be    

called a man of genius1 a friend of my  
youth1 was in the habit of wearing  a   
black ribbon on his wrist1 in order to  
remind him that1 being liable to        
outbreaks of insanity1 he must not give 
way to the natural impulses of          
affection3 he died unmarried in a cxcii 
lunatic asylum4 ,these two little  facts
 suggest the reflection that a very few 
persons have done from a  sense of duty 
what the rest of mankind ought to have  
done under like  circumstances1 if they 
had allowed themselves to think of all  
the misery  which they were about to    
bring into the world4 ,if we could      
prevent such  marriages without any     
violation of feeling or propriety1 we   
clearly ought2  and the prohibition in  
the course of time would be protected by
 a 'horror  naturalis' similar to that  
which1 in all civilized ages and        
countries1 has  prevented the marriage  
of near relations by blood4 ,mankind    
would have been  the happier1 if some   
things which are now allowed had from   

the beginning  been denied to them2 if  
the sanction of religion could have     
prohibited  practices inimical to       
health2 if sanitary principles could in 
early ages  have been invested with a   
superstitious awe4 ,but1 living as we do
 far on  in the world's history1 we are 
no longer able to stamp at once with the
  impress of religion a new prohibition4
 ,a free agent cannot have his  fancies 
regulated by law2 and the execution of  
the law would be rendered  impossible1  
owing to the uncertainty of the cases in
 which marriage was to  be forbidden4   
,who can weigh virtue1 or even fortune  
against health1 or  moral and mental    
qualities against bodily8 ,who can      
measure probabilities  against          
certainties8 ,there has been some good  
as well as evil in the  discipline of   
suffering2 and there are diseases1 such 
as consumption1  which have exercised a 
refining and softening influence on the 
character4  ,youth is too inexperienced 
to balance such nice considerations2    

parents do  not often think of them1 or 
think of them too late4 ,they are at a  
distance  and may probably be averted2  
change of place1 a new state of life1   
the  interests of a home may be the cure
 of them4 ,so persons vainly reason when
  their minds are already made up and   
their fortunes irrevocably linked       
together4 ,nor is there any ground for  
supposing that marriages are to any     
great extent influenced by reflections  
of this sort1 which seem unable to  make
 any head against the irresistible      
impulse of individual attachment4       
,lastly1 no one can have observed the   
first rising flood of the passions in   
youth1 the difficulty of regulating     
them1 and the effects on the whole  mind
 and nature which follow from them1 the 
stimulus which is given to  them by the 
imagination1 without feeling that there 
is something  unsatisfactory in our     
method of cxciii treating them4 ,that   
the most  important influence on human  
life should be wholly left to chance or 

shrouded in mystery1 and instead of     
being disciplined or understood1  should
 be required to conform only to an      
external standard of  propriety--cannot 
be regarded by the philosopher as a safe
 or satisfactory  condition of human    
things4 ,and still those who have the   
charge of youth  may find a way by      
watchfulness1 by affection1 by the      
manliness and  innocence of their own   
lives1 by occasional hints1 by general  
admonitions  which every one can apply  
for himself1 to mitigate this terrible  
evil  which eats out the heart of       
individuals and corrupts the moral      
sentiments  of nations4 ,in no duty     
towards others is there more need of    
reticence and  self-restraint4 ,so great
 is the danger lest he who would be the 
counsellor  of another should reveal the
 secret prematurely1 lest he should get 
another too much into his power2 or fix 
the passing impression of evil by       
demanding the confession of it4    ,nor 
is ,plato wrong in asserting that family

 attachments may interfere with  higher 
aims4 ,if there have been some who 'to  
party gave up what was meant  for       
mankind1' there have certainly been     
others who to family gave up what  was  
meant for mankind or for their country4 
,the cares of children1 the  necessity  
of procuring money for their support1   
the flatteries of the rich  by the poor1
 the exclusiveness of caste1 the pride  
of birth or wealth1 the  tendency of    
family life to divert men from the      
pursuit of the ideal or the  heroic1 are
 as lowering in our own age as in that  
of ,plato4 ,and if we  prefer to look at
 the gentle influences of home1 the     
development of the  affections1 the     
amenities of society1 the devotion of   
one member of a  family for the good of 
the others1 which form one side of the  
picture1 we  must not quarrel with him1 
or perhaps ought rather to be grateful  
to him1  for having presented to us the 
reverse4 ,without attempting to defend  
,plato  on grounds of morality1 we may  

allow that there is an aspect of the    
world  which has not unnaturally led him
 into error4    ,we hardly appreciate   
the power which the idea of the ,state1 
like all other  abstract ideas1         
exercised over the mind of ,plato4 ,to  
us the ,state seems to  be built up out 
of the family1 or sometimes to be the   
framework in which  family and social   
life is contained4 ,but to ,plato in his
 present mood of  mind the family cxciv 
is only a disturbing influence which1   
instead of  filling up1 tends to        
disarrange the higher unity of the      
,state4 ,no  organization is needed     
except a political1 which1 regarded from
 another  point of view1 is a military  
one4 ,the ,state is all-sufficing for   
the wants  of man1 and1 like the idea of
 the ,church in later ages1 absorbs all 
other  desires and affections4 ,in time 
of war the thousand citizens are to     
stand  like a rampart impregnable       
against the world or the ,persian host2 
in time  of peace the preparation for   

war and their duties to the ,state1     
which are  also their duties to one     
another1 take up their whole life and   
time4 ,the  only other interest which is
 allowed to them besides that of war1 is
 the  interest of philosophy4 ,when they
 are too old to be soldiers they are to 
retire from active life and to have a   
second novitiate of study and           
contemplation4 ,there is an element of  
monasticism even in ,plato's  communism4
 ,if he could have done without         
children1 he might have converted  his  
,republic into a religious order4       
,neither in the ,laws 7v4 #gci ,b71 when
  the daylight of common sense breaks in
 upon him1 does he retract his  error4  
,in the state of which he would be the  
founder1 there is no marrying  or giving
 in marriage3 but because of the        
infirmity of mankind1 he  condescends to
 allow the law of nature to prevail4    
7,greek3 g7 ,but ,plato has an equal1   
or1 in his own estimation1 even  greater
 paradox in reserve1 which is summed up 

in the famous text1 ',until  kings are  
philosophers or philosophers are kings1 
cities will never cease  from ill4' ,and
 by philosophers he explains himself to 
mean those who are  capable of          
apprehending ideas1 especially the idea 
of good4 ,to the  attainment of this    
higher knowledge the second education is
 directed4  ,through a process of       
training which has already made them    
good citizens  they are now to be made  
good legislators4 ,we find with some    
surprise 7not  unlike the feeling which 
,aristotle in a well-known passage      
describes the  hearers of ,plato's      
lectures as experiencing1 when they went
 to a discourse  on the idea of good1   
expecting to be instructed in moral     
truths1 and  received instead of them   
arithmetical and mathematical formulae7 
that  ,plato does not propose for his   
future legislators any study of finance 
or  law or military tactics1 but only of
 abstract mathematics1 as a  preparation
 for the still more abstract conception 

of good4 ,we ask1 with  ,aristotle1     
,what is the use of a man knowing the   
idea of cxcv good1 if he  does not know 
what is good for this individual1 this  
state1 this condition  of society8 ,we  
cannot understand how ,plato's          
legislators or guardians are  to be     
fitted for their work of statesmen by   
the study of the five  mathematical     
sciences4 ,we vainly search in ,plato's 
own writings for any  explanation of    
this seeming absurdity4    ,the         
discovery of a great metaphysical       
conception seems to ravish the mind     
with a prophetic consciousness which    
takes away the power of estimating  its 
value4 ,no metaphysical enquirer has    
ever fairly criticised his own          
speculations2 in his own judgment they  
have been above criticism2 nor has  he  
understood that what to him seemed to be
 absolute truth may reappear in  the    
next generation as a form of logic or an
 instrument of thought4 ,and  posterity 
have also sometimes equally             

misapprehended the real value of his    
speculations4 ,they appear to them to   
have contributed nothing to the stock   
of human knowledge4 ,the idea of good is
 apt to be regarded by the modern       
thinker as an unmeaning abstraction2 but
 he forgets that this abstraction  is   
waiting ready for use1 and will         
hereafter be filled up by the divisions 
of knowledge4 ,when mankind do not as   
yet know that the world is subject to   
law1 the introduction of the mere       
conception of law or design or final    
cause1 and the far-off anticipation of  
the harmony of knowledge1 are great     
steps onward4 ,even the crude           
generalization of the unity of all      
things  leads men to view the world with
 different eyes1 and may easily affect  
their conception of human life and of   
politics1 and also their own conduct    
and character 7,tim4 #ij ,a74 ,we can   
imagine how a great mind like that of   
,pericles might derive elevation from   
his intercourse with ,anaxagoras        

7,phaedr4 #bgj ,a74 ,to be struggling   
towards a higher but unattainable       
conception is a more favourable         
intellectual condition than to rest     
satisfied in a narrow portion of        
ascertained fact4 ,and the earlier1     
which  have sometimes been the greater  
ideas of science1 are often lost sight  
of  at a later period4 ,how rarely can  
we say of any modern enquirer in the    
magnificent language of ,plato1 that    
',he is the spectator of all time and   
of all existence6'    ,nor is there     
anything unnatural in the hasty         
application of these vast  metaphysical 
conceptions to practical and political  
life4 ,in the first  enthusiasm of ideas
 men are apt to see them cxcvi          
everywhere1 and to  apply them in the   
most remote sphere4 ,they do not        
understand that the  experience of ages 
is required to enable them to fill up   
'the intermediate  axioms4' ,plato      
himself seems to have imagined that the 
truths of  psychology1 like those of    

astronomy and harmonics1 would be       
arrived at by  a process of deduction1  
and that the method which he has pursued
 in the  ,fourth ,book1 of inferring    
them from experience and the use of     
language1  was imperfect and only       
provisional4 ,but when1 after having    
arrived at the  idea of good1 which is  
the end of the science of dialectic1 he 
is asked1  ,what is the nature1 and what
 are the divisions of the science8 ,he  
refuses  to answer1 as if intending by  
the refusal to intimate that the state  
of  knowledge which then existed was not
 such as would allow the philosopher  to
 enter into his final rest4 ,the        
previous sciences must first be studied1
  and will1 we may add1 continue to be  
studied till the end of time1  although 
in a sense different from any which     
,plato could have conceived4  ,but we   
may observe1 that while he is aware of  
the vacancy of his own  ideal1 he is    
full of enthusiasm in the contemplation 
of it4 ,looking into  the orb of light1 

he sees nothing1 but he is warmed and   
elevated4 ,the  ,hebrew prophet believed
 that faith in ,god would enable him to 
govern the  world2 the ,greek           
philosopher imagined that contemplation 
of the good would  make a legislator4   
,there is as much to be filled up in the
 one case as in  the other1 and the one 
mode of conception is to the ,israelite 
what the  other is to the ,greek4 ,both 
find a repose in a divine perfection1   
which1  whether in a more personal or   
impersonal form1 exists without them and
  independently of them1 as well as     
within them4    ,there is no mention of 
the idea of good in the ,timaeus1 nor of
 the divine  ,creator of the world in   
the ,republic2 and we are naturally led 
to ask in  what relation they stand to  
one another4 ,is ,god above or below the
 idea of  good8 ,or is the ,idea of     
,good another mode of conceiving ,god8  
,the latter  appears to be the truer    
answer4 ,to the ,greek philosopher the  
perfection  and unity of ,god was a far 

higher conception than his personality1 
which  he hardly found a word to        
express1 and which to him would have    
seemed to  be borrowed from mythology4  
,to the ,christian1 on the other hand1  
or to the  modern thinker in cxcvii     
general1 it is difficult1 if not        
impossible1 to  attach reality to what  
he terms mere abstraction2 while to     
,plato this very  abstraction is the    
truest and most real of all things4     
,hence1 from a  difference in forms of  
thought1 ,plato appears to be resting on
 a creation  of his own mind only4 ,but 
if we may be allowed to paraphrase the  
idea of  good by the words 'intelligent 
principle of law and order in the       
universe1  embracing equally man and    
nature1' we begin to find a             
meeting-point  between him and          
ourselves4    ,the question whether the 
ruler or statesman should be a          
philosopher is one  that has not lost   
interest in modern times4 ,in most      
countries of ,europe  and ,asia there   

has been some one in the course of ages 
who has truly  united the power of      
command with the power of thought and   
reflection1 as  there have been also    
many false combinations of these        
qualities4 ,some kind  of speculative   
power is necessary both in practical and
 political life2  like the rhetorician  
in the ,phaedrus1 men require to have a 
conception of  the varieties of human   
character1 and to be raised on great    
occasions  above the commonplaces of    
ordinary life4 ,yet the idea of the     
philosopher-statesman has never been    
popular with the mass of mankind2       
partly because he cannot take the world 
into his confidence or make them        
understand the motives from which he    
acts2 and also because they are  jealous
 of a power which they do not           
understand4 ,the revolution which  human
 nature desires to effect step by step  
in many ages is likely to be            
precipitated by him in a single year or 
life4 ,they are afraid that in the      

pursuit of his greater aims he may      
disregard the common feelings of        
humanity1 he is too apt to be looking   
into the distant future or back into    
the remote past1 and unable to see      
actions or events which1 to use an      
expression of ,plato's 'are tumbling out
 at his feet4' ,besides1 as ,plato      
would say1 there are other corruptions  
of these philosophical statesmen4       
,either 'the native hue of resolution is
 sicklied o'er with the pale cast  of   
thought1' and at the moment when action 
above all things is required he  is     
undecided1 or general principles are    
enunciated by him in order to  cover    
some change of policy2 or his ignorance 
of the world has made him  more easily  
fall a prey to the arts of others2 or in
 some cases he has  been converted into 
a courtier1 who enjoys cxcviii the      
luxury of holding  liberal opinions1 but
 was never known to perform a liberal   
action4 ,no  wonder that mankind have   
been in the habit of calling statesmen  

of this  class pedants1 sophisters1     
doctrinaires1 visionaries4 ,for1 as we  
may be  allowed to say1 a little        
parodying the words of ,plato1 'they    
have seen bad  imitations of the        
philosopher-statesman4' ,but a man in   
whom the power of  thought and action   
are perfectly balanced1 equal to the    
present1 reaching  forward to the       
future1 'such a one1' ruling in a       
constitutional state1  'they have never 
seen4'    ,but as the philosopher is apt
 to fail in the routine of political    
life1 so  the ordinary statesman is also
 apt to fail in extraordinary crises4   
,when  the face of the world is         
beginning to alter1 and thunder is heard
 in the  distance1 he is still guided by
 his old maxims1 and is the slave of his
  inveterate party prejudices2 he cannot
 perceive the signs of the times2       
instead of looking forward he looks     
back2 he learns nothing and forgets     
nothing2 with 'wise saws and modern     
instances' he would stem the rising     

tide of revolution4 ,he lives more and  
more within the circle of his own       
party1 as the world without him becomes 
stronger4 ,this seems to be the  reason 
why the old order of things makes so    
poor a figure when confronted  with the 
new1 why churches can never reform1 why 
most political changes  are made blindly
 and convulsively4 ,the great crises in 
the history of  nations have often been 
met by an ecclesiastical positiveness1  
and a more  obstinate reassertion of    
principles which have lost their hold   
upon a  nation4 ,the fixed ideas of a   
reactionary statesman may be compared to
  madness2 they grow upon him1 and he   
becomes possessed by them2 no  judgement
 of others is ever admitted by him to be
 weighed in the balance  against his    
own4    7,greek3 d7 ,plato1 labouring   
under what1 to modern readers1 appears  
to  have been a confusion of ideas1     
assimilates the state to the individual1
  and fails to distinguish ,ethics from 
,politics4 ,he thinks that to be most   

of a state which is most like one man1  
and in which the citizens have the      
greatest uniformity of character4 ,he   
does not see that the analogy is  partly
 fallacious1 and that the will or       
character of a state or nation is       
really the balance or rather the surplus
 of individual wills1 which are  limited
 by the condition of having to act in   
common4 cxcix ,the movement  of a body  
of men can never have the pliancy or    
facility of a single man2  the freedom  
of the individual1 which is always      
limited1 becomes still more  straitened 
when transferred to a nation4 ,the      
powers of action and feeling  are       
necessarily weaker and more balanced    
when they are diffused through a        
community2 whence arises the often      
discussed question1 ',can a nation1 like
  an individual1 have a conscience8' ,we
 hesitate to say that the characters  of
 nations are nothing more than the sum  
of the characters of the  individuals   
who compose them2 because there may be  

tendencies in  individuals which react  
upon one another4 ,a whole nation may be
 wiser than  any one man in it2 or may  
be animated by some common opinion or   
feeling  which could not equally have   
affected the mind of a single person1 or
 may  have been inspired by a leader of 
genius to perform acts more than human4 
,plato does not appear to have analysed 
the complications which arise out  of   
the collective action of mankind4       
,neither is he capable of seeing that   
analogies1 though specious as arguments1
 may often have no foundation in  fact1 
or of distinguishing between what is    
intelligible or vividly present  to the 
mind1 and what is true4 ,in this respect
 he is far below ,aristotle1  who is    
comparatively seldom imposed upon by    
false analogies4 ,he cannot  disentangle
 the arts from the virtues--at least he 
is always arguing from  one to the      
other4 ,his notion of music is          
transferred from harmony of  sounds to  
harmony of life3 in this he is assisted 

by the ambiguities of  language as well 
as by the prevalence of ,pythagorean    
notions4 ,and having  once assimilated  
the state to the individual1 he imagines
 that he will  find the succession of   
states paralleled in the lives of       
individuals4    ,still1 through this    
fallacious medium1 a real enlargement of
 ideas is  attained4 ,when the virtues  
as yet presented no distinct conception 
to the  mind1 a great advance was made  
by the comparison of them with the arts2
  for virtue is partly art1 and has an  
outward form as well as an inward       
principle4 ,the harmony of music affords
 a lively image of the harmonies of  the
 world and of human life1 and may be    
regarded as a splendid  illustration    
which was naturally mistaken for a real 
analogy4 ,in the same  way the          
identification of ethics with politics  
has a tendency to give  definiteness to 
ethics1 and also to elevate and ennoble 
men's cc notions  of the aims of        
government and of the duties of         

citizens2 for ethics from  one point of 
view may be conceived as an idealized   
law and politics2 and  politics1 as     
ethics reduced to the conditions of     
human society4 ,there have  been evils  
which have arisen out of the attempt to 
identify them1 and this  has led to the 
separation or antagonism of them1 which 
has been introduced  by modern political
 writers4 ,but we may likewise feel that
 something has  been lost in their      
separation1 and that the ancient        
philosophers who  estimated the moral   
and intellectual wellbeing of mankind   
first1 and the  wealth of nations and   
individuals second1 may have a salutary 
influence on  the speculations of modern
 times4 ,many political maxims originate
 in a  reaction against an opposite     
error2 and when the errors against which
 they  were directed have passed away1  
they in turn become errors4           99
       99       99       99       99    
,,iii4 ,plato's views of education are  
in several respects remarkable2 like    

the rest of the ,republic they are      
partly ,greek and partly ideal1         
beginning  with the ordinary curriculum 
of the ,greek youth1 and extending to   
after-life4 ,plato is the first writer  
who distinctly says that education  is  
to comprehend the whole of life1 and to 
be a preparation for another in  which  
education begins again 7vi4 #dih ,d74   
,this is the continuous thread  which   
runs through the ,republic1 and which   
more than any other of his  ideas admits
 of an application to modern life4      
,he has long given up the notion that   
virtue cannot be taught2 and he is      
disposed to modify the thesis of the    
,protagoras1 that the virtues are one   
and not many4 ,he is not unwilling to   
admit the sensible world into his       
scheme of truth4 ,nor does he assert in 
the ,republic the involuntariness of    
vice1 which is maintained by him in the 
,timaeus1 ,sophist1 and ,laws 7cp4      
,protag4 #cde foll41 #ceb1 #cee2 ,apol4 
#be ,e2 ,gorg4 #dfh1 #eji ,e74 ,nor do  

the  so-called ,platonic ideas recovered
 from a former state of existence affect
  his theory of mental improvement4     
,still we observe in him the remains of 
the old ,socratic doctrine1 that true   
knowledge must be elicited from  within1
 and is to be sought for in ideas1 not  
in particulars of sense4  ,education1 as
 he says1 will implant a principle of   
intelligence which is  better than ten  
cci thousand eyes4 ,the paradox that the
 virtues are one1  and the kindred      
notion that all virtue is knowledge1 are
 not entirely  renounced2 the first is  
seen in the supremacy given to justice  
over the  rest2 the second in the       
tendency to absorb the moral virtues in 
the  intellectual1 and to centre all    
goodness in the contemplation of the    
idea  of good4 ,the world of sense is   
still depreciated and identified with   
opinion1 though admitted to be a shadow 
of the true4 ,in the ,republic he is    
evidently impressed with the conviction 
that vice arises chiefly from  ignorance

 and may be cured by education2 the     
multitude are hardly to be  deemed      
responsible for what they do 7v4 #dii   
,e74 ,a faint allusion to the  doctrine 
of reminiscence occurs in the ,tenth    
,book 7#fba ,a72 but ,plato's  views of 
education have no more real connection  
with a previous state of  existence than
 our own2 he only proposes to elicit    
from the mind that  which is there      
already4 ,education is represented by   
him1 not as the  filling of a vessel1   
but as the turning the eye of the soul  
towards the  light4    ,he treats first 
of music or literature1 which he divides
 into true and  false1 and then goes on 
to gymnastics2 of infancy in the        
,republic he takes  no notice1 though in
 the ,laws he gives sage counsels about 
the nursing of  children and the        
management of the mothers1 and would    
have an education  which is even prior  
to birth4 ,but in the ,republic he      
begins with the age  at which the child 
is capable of receiving ideas1 and      

boldly asserts1 in  language which      
sounds paradoxical to modern ears1 that 
he must be taught  the false before he  
can learn the true4 ,the modern and     
ancient  philosophical world are not    
agreed about truth and falsehood2 the   
one  identifies truth almost exclusively
 with fact1 the other with ideas4 ,this 
is the difference between ourselves and 
,plato1 which is1 however1 partly a     
difference of words 7cp4 supra1 p4      
xxxviii74 ,for we too should admit that 
a child must receive many lessons which 
he imperfectly understands2 he  must be 
taught some things in a figure only1    
some too which he can hardly  be        
expected to believe when he grows older2
 but we should limit the use of  fiction
 by the necessity of the case4 ,plato   
would draw the line  differently2       
according to him the aim of early       
education is not truth as a  matter of  
fact1 but truth as a matter of          
principle2 the child is to be  taught   
first simple religious truths1 and then 

simple moral truths1 and  insensibly to 
learn the lesson of good manners and    
good taste4 ,he ccii  would make an     
entire reformation of the old mythology2
 like ,xenophanes and  ,heracleitus he  
is sensible of the deep chasm which     
separates his own age  from ,homer and  
,hesiod1 whom he quotes and invests with
 an imaginary  authority1 but only for  
his own purposes4 ,the lusts and        
treacheries of the  gods are to be      
banished2 the terrors of the world below
 are to be  dispelled2 the misbehaviour 
of the ,homeric heroes is not to be a   
model for  youth4 ,but there is another 
strain heard in ,homer which may teach  
our  youth endurance2 and something may 
be learnt in medicine from the simple   
practice of the ,homeric age4 ,the      
principles on which religion is to be   
based are two only3 first1 that ,god is 
true2 secondly1 that he is good4        
,modern and ,christian writers have     
often fallen short of these2 they can   
hardly be said to have gone beyond them4

    ,the young are to be brought up in  
happy surroundings1 out of the way of   
sights or sounds which may hurt the     
character or vitiate the taste4 ,they   
are to live in an atmosphere of health2 
the breeze is always to be wafting  to  
them the impressions of truth and       
goodness4 ,could such an education be   
realized1 or if our modern religious    
education could be bound up with  truth 
and virtue and good manners and good    
taste1 that would be the best  hope of  
human improvement4 ,plato1 like         
ourselves1 is looking forward to        
changes in the moral and religious      
world1 and is preparing for them4 ,he   
recognizes the danger of unsettling     
young men's minds by sudden changes of  
laws and principles1 by destroying the  
sacredness of one set of ideas when     
there is nothing else to take their     
place4 ,he is afraid too of the         
influence of the drama1 on the ground   
that it encourages false sentiment1  and
 therefore he would not have his        

children taken to the theatre2 he       
thinks that the effect on the spectators
 is bad1 and on the actors still  worse4
 ,his idea of education is that of      
harmonious growth1 in which are         
insensibly learnt the lessons of        
temperance and endurance1 and the body  
and mind develope in equal proportions4 
,the first principle which runs  through
 all art and nature is simplicity2 this 
also is to be the rule of  human life4  
,the second stage of education is       
gymnastic1 which answers to the period  
of  muscular growth and development4    
,the simplicity which is enforced in    
music  is extended to gymnastic2 ,plato 
is aware that the training of the body  
may  be inconsistent with the cciii     
training of the mind1 and that bodily   
exercise may be easily overdone4        
,excessive training of the body is apt  
to  give men a headache or to render    
them sleepy at a lecture on philosophy1 
and this they attribute not to the true 
cause1 but to the nature of the         

subject4 ,two points are noticeable in  
,plato's treatment of                   
gymnastic3--,first1 that the time of    
training is entirely separated from  the
 time of literary education4 ,he seems  
to have thought that two things  of an  
opposite and different nature could not 
be learnt at the same time4  ,here we   
can hardly agree with him2 and1 if we   
may judge by experience1 the  effect of 
spending three years between the ages of
 fourteen and seventeen  in mere bodily 
exercise would be far from improving to 
the intellect4  ,secondly1 he affirms   
that music and gymnastic are not1 as    
common opinion  is apt to imagine1      
intended1 the one for the cultivation of
 the mind and  the other of the body1   
but that they are both equally designed 
for the  improvement of the mind4 ,the  
body1 in his view1 is the servant of the
  mind2 the subjection of the lower to  
the higher is for the advantage of      
both4 ,and doubtless the mind may       
exercise a very great and paramount     

influence over the body1 if exerted not 
at particular moments and by fits  and  
starts1 but continuously1 in making     
preparation for the whole of life4      
,other ,greek writers saw the           
mischievous tendency of ,spartan        
discipline  7,arist4 ,pol4 viii4 #d1  #a
 foll42 ,thuc4 ii4 #cg1 #ci74 ,but only 
,plato  recognized the fundamental error
 on which the practice was based4       
,the subject of gymnastic leads ,plato  
to the sister subject of medicine1      
which he further illustrates by the     
parallel of law4 ,the modern disbelief  
in medicine has led in this1 as in some 
other departments of knowledge1 to  a   
demand for greater simplicity2          
physicians are becoming aware that they 
often make diseases 'greater and more   
complicated' by their treatment of  them
 7,rep4 iv4 #dbf ,a74 ,in two thousand  
years their art has made but  slender   
progress2 what they have gained in the  
analysis of the parts is in  a great    
degree lost by their feebler conception 

of the human frame as a  whole4 ,they   
have attended more to the cure of       
diseases than to the  conditions of     
health2 and the improvements in medicine
 have been more than  counterbalanced by
 the disuse of regular training4 ,until 
lately they have  hardly thought of air 
and water1 the importance of which was  
well  understood by the ancients2 as    
,aristotle remarks1 ',air and water1    
being  the elements cciv which we most  
use1 have the greatest effect upon      
health' 7,polit4 vii4 #aa1  #d474 ,for  
ages physicians have been under the     
dominion of prejudices which have only  
recently given way2 and now there  are  
as many opinions in medicine as in      
theology1 and an equal degree of        
scepticism and some want of toleration  
about both4 ,plato has several good     
notions about medicine2 according to    
him1 'the eye cannot be cured without   
the rest of the body1 nor the body      
without the mind' 7,charm4 #aef ,e74 ,no
  man of sense1 he says in the ,timaeus1

 would take physic2 and we heartily     
sympathize with him in the ,laws when he
 declares that 'the limbs of the  rustic
 worn with toil will derive more benefit
 from warm baths than from  the         
prescriptions of a not over wise doctor'
 7vi4 #gfa ,c74 ,but we can  hardly     
praise him when1 in obedience to the    
authority of ,homer1 he  depreciates    
diet1 or approve of the inhuman spirit  
in which he would get  rid of invalid   
and useless lives by leaving them to    
die4 ,he does not seem  to have         
considered that the 'bridle of ,theages'
 might be accompanied by  qualities     
which were of far more value to the     
,state than the health or  strength of  
the citizens2 or that the duty of taking
 care of the helpless  might be an      
important element of education in a     
,state4 ,the physician  himself 7this is
 a delicate and subtle observation7     
should not be a man in  robust health2  
he should have1 in modern phraseology1 a
 nervous  temperament2 he should have   

experience of disease in his own person1
 in  order that his powers of           
observation may be quickened in the case
 of  others4    ,the perplexity of      
medicine is paralleled by the perplexity
 of law2 in  which1 again1 ,plato would 
have men follow the golden rule of      
simplicity4  ,greater matters are to be 
determined by the legislator or by the  
oracle of  ,delphi1 lesser matters are  
to be left to the temporary regulation  
of the  citizens themselves4 ,plato is  
aware that laissez faire is an important
  element of government4 ,the diseases  
of a ,state are like the heads of a     
hydra2 they multiply when they are cut  
off4 ,the true remedy for them is  not  
extirpation but prevention4 ,and the way
 to prevent them is to take  care of    
education1 and education will take care 
of all the rest4 ,so in  modern times   
men have often felt that the only       
political measure worth  having--the    
only one which would produce any certain
 or lasting effect1  was a measure of   

national education4 ,and in our own more
 than in any  previous age the necessity
 has been ccv recognized of restoring   
the  ever-increasing confusion of law to
 simplicity and common sense4    ,when  
the training in music and gymnastic is  
completed1 there follows the  first     
stage of active and public life4 ,but   
soon education is to begin  again from a
 new point of view4 ,in the interval    
between the ,fourth and  ,seventh ,books
 we have discussed the nature of        
knowledge1 and have thence  been led to 
form a higher conception of what was    
required of us4 ,for true  knowledge1   
according to ,plato1 is of abstractions1
 and has to do1 not with  particulars or
 individuals1 but with universals only2 
not with the  beauties of poetry1 but   
with the ideas of philosophy4 ,and the  
great aim of  education is the          
cultivation of the habit of abstraction4
 ,this is to be  acquired through the   
study of the mathematical sciences4     
,they alone are  capable of giving ideas

 of relation1 and of arousing the       
dormant energies  of thought4           
,mathematics in the age of ,plato       
comprehended a very small part of that  
which is now included in them2 but they 
bore a much larger proportion to  the   
sum of human knowledge4 ,they were the  
only organon of thought which  the human
 mind at that time possessed1 and the   
only measure by which the  chaos of     
particulars could be reduced to rule and
 order4 ,the faculty which  they trained
 was naturally at war with the poetical 
or imaginative2 and  hence to ,plato1   
who is everywhere seeking for           
abstractions and trying to  get rid of  
the illusions of sense1 nearly the whole
 of education is  contained in them4    
,they seemed to have an inexhaustible   
application1  partly because their true 
limits were not yet understood4 ,these  
,plato  himself is beginning to         
investigate2 though not aware that      
number and  figure are mere abstractions
 of sense1 he recognizes that the forms 

used  by geometry are borrowed from the 
sensible world 7vi4 #eaj1 #eaa74 ,he    
seeks  to find the ultimate ground of   
mathematical ideas in the idea of good1 
though he does not satisfactorily       
explain the connexion between them2 and 
in his conception of the relation of    
ideas to numbers1 he falls very far     
short of the definiteness attributed to 
him by ,aristotle 7,met4 i4 #h1  #bd2   
ix4 #ag74 ,but if he fails to recognize 
the true limits of mathematics1 he  also
 reaches a point beyond them2 in his    
view1 ideas of number become  secondary 
to a higher conception of knowledge4    
,the dialectician is as much  above the 
mathematician as the mathematician is   
above the ordinary man  7cp4 vii4 #ebf  
,d1 ccvi #eca ,e74 ,the one1 the        
self-proving1 the good which  is the    
higher sphere of dialectic1 is the      
perfect truth to which all  things      
ascend1 and in which they finally       
repose4    ,this self-proving unity or  
idea of good is a mere vision of which  

no  distinct explanation can be given1  
relative only to a particular stage in  
,greek philosophy4 ,it is an abstraction
 under which no individuals are         
comprehended1 a whole which has no parts
 7cf4 ,arist41 ,nic4 ,eth41 i4 #d74     
,the vacancy of such a form was         
perceived by ,aristotle1 but not by     
,plato4  ,nor did he recognize that in  
the dialectical process are included two
 or  more methods of investigation which
 are at variance with each other4 ,he   
did not see that whether he took the    
longer or the shorter road1 no  advance 
could be made in this way4 ,and yet such
 visions often have an  immense effect2 
for although the method of science      
cannot anticipate  science1 the idea of 
science1 not as it is1 but as it will be
 in the  future1 is a great and         
inspiring principle4 ,in the pursuit of 
knowledge we  are always pressing       
forward to something beyond us2 and as a
 false  conception of knowledge1 for    
example the scholastic philosophy1 may  

lead  men astray during many ages1 so   
the true ideal1 though vacant1 may draw 
all their thoughts in a right direction4
 ,it makes a great difference  whether  
the general expectation of knowledge1 as
 this indefinite feeling  may be termed1
 is based upon a sound judgment4 ,for   
mankind may often  entertain a true     
conception of what knowledge ought to be
 when they have  but a slender          
experience of facts4 ,the correlation of
 the sciences1 the  consciousness of the
 unity of nature1 the idea of           
classification1 the  sense of           
proportion1 the unwillingness to stop   
short of certainty or to  confound      
probability with truth1 are important   
principles of the higher  education4    
,although ,plato could tell us nothing1 
and perhaps knew that he  could tell us 
nothing1 of the absolute truth1 he has  
exercised an  influence on the human    
mind which even at the present day is   
not  exhausted2 and political and social
 questions may yet arise in which the   

thoughts of ,plato may be read anew and 
receive a fresh meaning4    ,the ,idea  
of good is so called only in the        
,republic1 but there are traces  of it  
in other dialogues of ,plato4 ,it is a  
cause as well as an idea1 and  from this
 point of view may be compared with the 
creator of the ,timaeus1  who out of his
 goodness created ccvii all things4 ,it 
corresponds to a  certain extent with   
the modern conception of a law of       
nature1 or of a  final cause1 or of both
 in one1 and in this regard may be      
connected with  the measure and symmetry
 of the ,philebus4 ,it is represented in
 the  ,symposium under the aspect of    
beauty1 and is supposed to be attained  
there  by stages of initiation1 as here 
by regular gradations of knowledge4     
,viewed subjectively1 it is the process 
or science of dialectic4 ,this is  the  
science which1 according to the         
,phaedrus1 is the true basis of         
rhetoric1 which alone is able to        
distinguish the natures and classes of  

men and things2 which divides a whole   
into the natural parts1 and reunites    
the scattered parts into a natural or   
organized whole2 which defines the      
abstract essences or universal ideas of 
all things1 and connects them2  which   
pierces the veil of hypotheses and      
reaches the final cause or first        
principle of all2 which regards the     
sciences in relation to the idea of     
good4 ,this ideal science is the highest
 process of thought1 and may be         
described as the soul conversing with   
herself or holding communion with       
eternal truth and beauty1 and in another
 form is the everlasting question  and  
answer--the ceaseless interrogative of  
,socrates4 ,the dialogues of  ,plato are
 themselves examples of the nature and  
method of dialectic4  ,viewed           
objectively1 the idea of good is a power
 or cause which makes the  world without
 us correspond with the world within4   
,yet this world without  us is still a  
world of ideas4 ,with ,plato the        

investigation of nature is  another     
department of knowledge1 and in this he 
seeks to attain only  probable          
conclusions 7cp4 ,timaeus1 #dd ,d74     
,if we ask whether this science of      
dialectic which ,plato only half        
explains  to us is more akin to logic or
 to metaphysics1 the answer is that in  
his  mind the two sciences are not as   
yet distinguished1 any more than the    
subjective and objective aspects of the 
world and of man1 which ,german         
philosophy has revealed to us4 ,nor has 
he determined whether his science  of   
dialectic is at rest or in motion1      
concerned with the contemplation of     
absolute being1 or with a process of    
development and evolution4 ,modern      
metaphysics may be described as the     
science of abstractions1 or as the      
science of the evolution of thought2    
modern logic1 when passing beyond the   
bounds of mere ,aristotelian forms1 may 
be defined as the science of  method4   
,the germ of ccviii both of them is     

contained in the ,platonic  dialectic2  
all metaphysicians have something in    
common with the ideas of  ,plato2 all   
logicians have derived something from   
the method of ,plato4 ,the  nearest     
approach in modern philosophy to the    
universal science of ,plato1  is to be  
found in the ,hegelian 'succession of   
moments in the unity of the  idea4'     
,plato and ,hegel alike seem to have    
conceived the world as the  correlation 
of abstractions2 and not impossibly they
 would have understood  one another     
better than any of their commentators   
understand them 7,swift's  ,voyage to   
,laputa1 c4 #hd74 ,there is1 however1 a 
difference between them3  for whereas   
,hegel is thinking of all the minds of  
men as one mind1 which  developes the   
stages of the idea in different         
countries or at different  times in the 
same country1 with ,plato these         
gradations are regarded only  as an     
order of thought or ideas2 the history  
of the human mind had not yet  dawned   

upon him4    ,footnote #d3 ',having a   
desire to see those ancients who were   
most renowned  for wit and learning1 ,i 
set apart one day on purpose4 ,i        
proposed that  ,homer and ,aristotle    
might appear at the head of all their   
commentators2  but these were so        
numerous that some hundreds were forced 
to attend in the  court and outward     
rooms of the palace4 ,i knew1 and could 
distinguish these  two heroes1 at first 
sight1 not only from the crowd1 but from
 each other4  ,homer was the taller and 
comelier person of the two1 walked very 
erect for  one of his age1 and his eyes 
were the most quick and piercing ,i ever
  beheld4 ,aristotle stooped much1 and  
made use of a staff4 ,his visage was    
meagre1 his hair lank and thin1 and his 
voice hollow4 ,i soon discovered  that  
both of them were perfect strangers to  
the rest of the company1 and  had never 
seen or heard of them before4 ,and ,i   
had a whisper from a ghost1  who shall  
be nameless1 ,that these commentators   

always kept in the most  distant        
quarters from their principals1 in the  
lower world1 through a  consciousness of
 shame and guilt1 because they had so   
horribly  misrepresented the meaning of 
these authors to posterity4 ,i          
introduced  ,didymus and ,eustathius to 
,homer1 and prevailed on him to treat   
them better  than perhaps they deserved1
 for he soon found they wanted a genius 
to  enter into the spirit of a poet4    
,but ,aristotle was out of all patience 
with the account ,i gave him of ,scotus 
and ,ramus1 as ,i presented them to     
him2 and he asked them whether the rest 
of the tribe were as great dunces  as   
themselves8'    ,many criticisms may be 
made on ,plato's theory of education4   
,while in some  respects he unavoidably 
falls short of modern thinkers1 in      
others he is in  advance of them4 ,he is
 opposed to the modes of education which
 prevailed  in his own time2 but he can 
hardly be said to have discovered new   
ones4 ,he  does ccix not see that       

education is relative to the characters 
of  individuals2 he only desires to     
impress the same form of the state on   
the  minds of all4 ,he has no sufficient
 idea of the effect of literature on the
  formation of the mind1 and greatly    
exaggerates that of mathematics4 ,his   
aim is above all things to train the    
reasoning faculties2 to implant in  the 
mind the spirit and power of            
abstraction2 to explain and define      
general notions1 and1 if possible1 to   
connect them4 ,no wonder that in the    
vacancy of actual knowledge his         
followers1 and at times even he himself1
  should have fallen away from the      
doctrine of ideas1 and have returned to 
that branch of knowledge in which alone 
the relation of the one and many  can be
 truly seen--the science of number4 ,in 
his views both of teaching  and training
 he might be styled1 in modern language1
 a doctrinaire2 after  the ,spartan     
fashion he would have his citizens cast 
in one mould2 he does  not seem to      

consider that some degree of freedom1 'a
 little wholesome  neglect1' is         
necessary to strengthen and develope the
 character and to  give play to the     
individual nature4 ,his citizens would  
not have acquired  that knowledge which 
in the vision of ,er is supposed to be  
gained by the  pilgrims from their      
experience of evil4    ,on the other    
hand1 ,plato is far in advance of modern
 philosophers and  theologians when he  
teaches that education is to be         
continued through life  and will begin  
again in another4 ,he would never allow 
education of some  kind to cease2       
although he was aware that the          
proverbial saying of ,solon1  ',i grow  
old learning many things1' cannot be    
applied literally4 ,himself  ravished   
with the contemplation of the idea of   
good1 and delighting in  solid geometry 
7,rep4 vii4 #ebh71 he has no difficulty 
in imagining that a  lifetime might be  
passed happily in such pursuits4 ,we who
 know how many  more men of business    

there are in the world than real        
students or  thinkers1 are not equally  
sanguine4 ,the education which he       
proposes for  his citizens is really the
 ideal life of the philosopher or man of
 genius1  interrupted1 but only for a   
time1 by practical duties1--a life not  
for the  many1 but for the few4    ,yet 
the thought of ,plato may not be wholly 
incapable of application to our  own    
times4 ,even if regarded as an ideal    
which can never be realized1 it  may    
have a great effect in elevating the    
characters of mankind1 and  raising them
 above the routine ccx of their ordinary
 occupation or  profession4 ,it is the  
best form under which we can conceive   
the whole of  life4 ,nevertheless the   
idea of ,plato is not easily put into   
practice4 ,for  the education of after  
life is necessarily the education which 
each one  gives himself4 ,men and women 
cannot be brought together in schools or
  colleges at forty or fifty years of   
age2 and if they could the result  would

 be disappointing4 ,the destination of  
most men is what ,plato would  call 'the
 ,den' for the whole of life1 and with  
that they are content4  ,neither have   
they teachers or advisers with whom they
 can take counsel in  riper years4      
,there is no 'schoolmaster abroad' who  
will tell them of their  faults1 or     
inspire them with the higher sense of   
duty1 or with the  ambition of a true   
success in life2 no ,socrates who will  
convict them of  ignorance2 no ,christ1 
or follower of ,christ1 who will reprove
 them of sin4  ,hence they have a       
difficulty in receiving the first       
element of  improvement1 which is       
self-knowledge4 ,the hopes of youth no  
longer stir  them2 they rather wish to  
rest than to pursue high objects4 ,a few
 only who  have come across great men   
and women1 or eminent teachers of       
religion and  morality1 have received a 
second life from them1 and have lighted 
a candle  from the fire of their genius4
    ,the want of energy is one of the   

main reasons why so few persons continue
  to improve in later years4 ,they have 
not the will1 and do not know the  way4 
,they 'never try an experiment1' or look
 up a point of interest for  themselves2
 they make no sacrifices for the sake of
 knowledge2 their  minds1 like their    
bodies1 at a certain age become fixed4  
,genius has been  defined as 'the power 
of taking pains'2 but hardly any one    
keeps up his  interest in knowledge     
throughout a whole life4 ,the troubles  
of a family1  the business of making    
money1 the demands of a profession      
destroy the  elasticity of the mind4    
,the waxen tablet of the memory which   
was once  capable of receiving 'true    
thoughts and clear impressions' becomes 
hard  and crowded2 there is not room for
 the accumulations of a long life       
7,theaet4 #aid ff474 ,the student1 as   
years advance1 rather makes an exchange 
of knowledge than adds to his stores4   
,there is no pressing necessity to      
learn2 the stock of ,classics or        

,history or ,natural ,science which was 
enough for a man at twenty-five is      
enough for him at fifty4 ,neither is it 
easy to give a definite answer to any   
one who asks how he is to improve4  ,for
 self-education consists in a ccxi      
thousand things1 commonplace in         
themselves1--in adding to what we are by
 nature something of what we are  not2  
in learning to see ourselves as others  
see us2 in judging1 not by  opinion1 but
 by the evidence of facts2 in seeking   
out the society of  superior minds2 in a
 study of lives and writings of great   
men2 in  observation of the world and   
character2 in receiving kindly the      
natural  influence of different times of
 life2 in any act or thought which is   
raised above the practice or opinions of
 mankind2 in the pursuit of some  new or
 original enquiry2 in any effort of mind
 which calls forth some  latent power4  
,if any one is desirous of carrying out 
in detail the ,platonic education of    
after-life1 some such counsels as the   

following may be offered to  him3--,that
 he shall choose the branch of knowledge
 to which his own mind  most distinctly 
inclines1 and in which he takes the     
greatest delight1  either one which     
seems to connect with his own daily     
employment1 or1  perhaps1 furnishes the 
greatest contrast to it4 ,he may study  
from the  speculative side the          
profession or business in which he is   
practically  engaged4 ,he may make      
,homer1 ,dante1 ,shakespeare1 ,plato1   
,bacon the friends  and companions of   
his life4 ,he may find opportunities of 
hearing the  living voice of a great    
teacher4 ,he may select for enquiry some
 point of  history or some unexplained  
phenomenon of nature4 ,an hour a day    
passed in  such scientific or literary  
pursuits will furnish as many facts as  
the  memory can retain1 and will give   
him 'a pleasure not to be repented of'  
7,timaeus1 #ei ,d74 ,only let him beware
 of being the slave of crotchets1 or  of
 running after a ,will o' the ,wisp in  

his ignorance1 or in his vanity of      
attributing to himself the gifts of a   
poet or assuming the air of a           
philosopher4 ,he should know the limits 
of his own powers4 ,better to build  up 
the mind by slow additions1 to creep on 
quietly from one thing to  another1 to  
gain insensibly new powers and new      
interests in knowledge1  than to form   
vast schemes which are never destined to
 be realized4 ,but  perhaps1 as ,plato  
would say1 ',this is part of another    
subject' 7,tim4 #hg  ,b72 though we may 
also defend our digression by his       
example 7,theaet4 #gb1  #gg74           
99       99       99       99       99  
,,iv4 ,we remark with surprise that the 
progress of nations or ccxii the        
natural growth of institutions which    
fill modern treatises on political      
philosophy seem hardly ever to have     
attracted the attention of ,plato and   
,aristotle4 ,the ancients were familiar 
with the mutability of human  affairs2  
they could moralize over the ruins of   

cities and the fall of  empires 7cp4    
,plato1 ,statesman #cja1 #cjb1 and      
,sulpicius' ,letter to ,cicero1  ,ad    
,fam4 iv4 #e72 by them fate and chance  
were deemed to be real powers1  almost  
persons1 and to have had a great share  
in political events4 ,the  wiser of them
 like ,thucydides believed that 'what   
had been would be  again1' and that a   
tolerable idea of the future could be   
gathered from the  past4 ,also they had 
dreams of a ,golden ,age which existed  
once upon a time  and might still exist 
in some unknown land1 or might return   
again in the  remote future4 ,but the   
regular growth of a state enlightened by
  experience1 progressing in knowledge1 
improving in the arts1 of which the     
citizens were educated by the fulfilment
 of political duties1 appears  never to 
have come within the range of their     
hopes and aspirations4 ,such a  state   
had never been seen1 and therefore could
 not be conceived by them4  ,their      
experience 7cp4 ,aristot4 ,metaph4 xi4  

#ba2 ,plato1 ,laws iii4 #fgf-i7 led     
them to conclude that there had been    
cycles of civilization in which the     
arts had been discovered and lost many  
times over1 and cities had been         
overthrown and rebuilt again and again1 
and deluges and volcanoes and  other    
natural convulsions had altered the face
 of the earth4 ,tradition  told them of 
many destructions of mankind and of the 
preservation of a  remnant4 ,the world  
began again after a deluge and was      
reconstructed out of  the fragments of  
itself4 ,also they were acquainted with 
empires of unknown  antiquity1 like the 
,egyptian or ,assyrian2 but they had    
never seen them  grow1 and could not    
imagine1 any more than we can1 the state
 of man which  preceded them4 ,they were
 puzzled and awestricken by the         
,egyptian  monuments1 of which the      
forms1 as ,plato says1 not in a figure1 
but  literally1 were ten thousand years 
old 7,laws ii4 #fef ,e71 and they       
contrasted the antiquity of ,egypt with 

their own short memories4    ,the early 
legends of ,hellas have no real         
connection with the later  history3 they
 are at a distance1 and the intermediate
 region is concealed  from view2 there  
is no road or path which leads from one 
to the other4 ,at  the beginning of     
,greek history1 in the vestibule of the 
temple1 is seen  standing first of all  
the figure of ccxiii the legislator1    
himself the  interpreter and servant of 
the ,god4 ,the fundamental laws which he
 gives  are not supposed to change with 
time and circumstances4 ,the salvation  
of  the state is held rather to depend  
on the inviolable maintenance of them4  
,they were sanctioned by the authority  
of heaven1 and it was deemed impiety  to
 alter them4 ,the desire to maintain    
them unaltered seems to be the  origin  
of what at first sight is very          
surprising to us--the intolerant  zeal  
of ,plato against innovators in religion
 or politics 7cp4 ,laws x4  #ijg-i72    
although with a happy inconsistency he  

is also willing that the  laws of other 
countries should be studied and         
improvements in legislation  privately  
communicated to the ,nocturnal ,council 
7,laws xii4 #iea1 #b74 ,the  additions  
which were made to them in later ages in
 order to meet the  increasing          
complexity of affairs were still        
ascribed by a fiction to the  original  
legislator2 and the words of such       
enactments at ,athens were  disputed    
over as if they had been the words of   
,solon himself4 ,plato hopes  to        
preserve in a later generation the mind 
of the legislator2 he would  have his   
citizens remain within the lines which  
he has laid down for them4  ,he would   
not harass them with minute regulations1
 he would have allowed  some changes in 
the laws3 but not changes which would   
affect the  fundamental institutions of 
the state1 such for example as would    
convert  an aristocracy into a          
timocracy1 or a timocracy into a popular
 form of  government4    ,passing from  

speculations to facts1 we observe that  
progress has been the  exception rather 
than the law of human history4 ,and     
therefore we are not  surprised to find 
that the idea of progress is of modern  
rather than of  ancient date2 and1 like 
the idea of a philosophy of history1 is 
not more  than a century or two old4 ,it
 seems to have arisen out of the        
impression  left on the human mind by   
the growth of the ,roman ,empire and of 
the  ,christian ,church1 and to be due  
to the political and social improvements
  which they introduced into the world2 
and still more in our own century to    
the idealism of the first ,french       
,revolution and the triumph of ,american
  ,independence2 and in a yet greater   
degree to the vast material prosperity  
and growth of population in ,england and
 her colonies and in ,america4 ,it is   
also to be ascribed in a measure to the 
greater study of the philosophy of      
history4 ,the optimist temperament of   
some great writers has ccxiv  assisted  

the creation of it1 while the opposite  
character has led a few to  regard the  
future of the world as dark4 ,the       
'spectator of all time and of  all      
existence' sees more of 'the increasing 
purpose which through the ages  ran'    
than formerly3 but to the inhabitant of 
a small state of ,hellas the  vision was
 necessarily limited like the valley in 
which he dwelt4 ,there  was no remote   
past on which his eye could rest1 nor   
any future from which  the veil was     
partly lifted up by the analogy of      
history4 ,the narrowness of  view1 which
 to ourselves appears so singular1 was  
to him natural1 if not  unavoidable4    
99       99       99       99       99  
,v4 ,for the relation of the ,republic  
to the ,statesman and the ,laws1 and the
  two other works of ,plato which       
directly treat of politics1 see the     
,introductions to the two latter2 a few 
general points of comparison may be     
touched upon in this place4    ,and     
first of the ,laws4 7#a7 ,the ,republic1

 though probably written at  intervals1 
yet speaking generally and judging by   
the indications of  thought and style1  
may be reasonably ascribed to the middle
 period of  ,plato's life3 the ,laws are
 certainly the work of his declining    
years1 and  some portions of them at any
 rate seem to have been written in      
extreme old  age4 7#b7 ,the ,republic is
 full of hope and aspiration3 the ,laws 
bear the  stamp of failure and          
disappointment4 ,the one is a finished  
work which  received the last touches of
 the author3 the other is imperfectly   
executed1 and apparently unfinished4    
,the one has the grace and beauty of    
youth3 the other has lost the poetical  
form1 but has more of the severity  and 
knowledge of life which is              
characteristic of old age4 7#c7 ,the    
most  conspicuous defect of the ,laws is
 the failure of dramatic power1 whereas 
the ,republic is full of striking       
contrasts of ideas and oppositions of   
character4 7#d7 ,the ,laws may be said  

to have more the nature of a sermon1    
the ,republic of a poem2 the one is more
 religious1 the other more              
intellectual4 7#e7 ,many theories of    
,plato1 such as the doctrine of ideas1  
the government of the world by          
philosophers1 are not found in the      
,laws2  the immortality of the soul is  
first mentioned in xii4 #iei1 #ifg2 the 
person of ,socrates has altogether      
disappeared4 ,the community of women and
  children is renounced2 the institution
 of common or public meals for women    
7,laws vi4 #gha7 is for the first time  
introduced ccxv 7,ar4 ,pol4 ii4 #f1     
#e74 7#f7 ,there remains in the ,laws   
the old enmity to the poets 7vii4 #hag71
  who are ironically saluted in         
high-flown terms1 and1 at the same time1
 are  peremptorily ordered out of the   
city1 if they are not willing to submit 
their poems to the censorship of the    
magistrates 7cp4 ,rep4 iii4 #cih74  7#g7
 ,though the work is in most respects   
inferior1 there are a few passages  in  

the ,laws1 such as v4 #gbg ff4 7the     
honour due to the soul71 viii4 #hce  ff4
 7the evils of licentious or unnatural  
love71 the whole of ,book x4            
7religion71 xi4 #iah ff4 7the dishonesty
 of retail trade71 and #ibc ff4         
7bequests71 which come more home to us1 
and contain more of what may be  termed 
the modern element in ,plato than almost
 anything in the ,republic4    ,the     
relation of the two works to one another
 is very well given3    7i7 by          
,aristotle in the ,politics 7ii4 #f1    
#a-e7 from the side of the  ,laws3--    
',the same1 or nearly the same1         
objections apply to ,plato's later work1
 the  ,laws1 and therefore we had better
 examine briefly the constitution which 
is therein described4 ,in the ,republic1
 ,socrates has definitely settled in    
all a few questions only2 such as the   
community of women and children1 the    
community of property1 and the          
constitution of the state4 ,the         
population  is divided into two         

classes--one of husbandmen1 and the     
other of warriors2  from this latter is 
taken a third class of counsellors and  
rulers of the  state4 ,but ,socrates has
 not determined whether the husbandmen  
and artists  are to have a share in the 
government1 and whether they too are to 
carry  arms and share in military       
service or not4 ,he certainly thinks    
that the  women ought to share in the   
education of the guardians1 and to fight
 by  their side4 ,the remainder of the  
work is filled up with digressions      
foreign to the main subject1 and with   
discussions about the education of  the 
guardians4 ,in the ,laws there is hardly
 anything but laws2 not much is  said   
about the constitution4 ,this1 which he 
had intended to make more of  the       
ordinary type1 he gradually brings round
 to the other or ideal form4  ,for with 
the exception of the community of women 
and property1 he supposes  everything to
 be the same in both states2 there is to
 be the same  education2 the citizens of

 both are to live free from servile     
occupations1  and there are to be common
 meals in both4 ,the only difference is 
that in  the ,laws the common meals are 
ccxvi extended to women1 and the        
warriors  number about #ejjj1 but in the
 ,republic only #ajjj4'    7ii7 by      
,plato in the ,laws 7,book v4 #gci      
,b-,e71 from the side of the            
,republic3--    ',the first and highest 
form of the state and of the government 
and of the  law is that in which there  
prevails most widely the ancient saying 
that  ,friends have all things in       
common4 ,whether there is now1 or ever  
will  be1 this communion of women and   
children and of property1 in which the  
private and individual is altogether    
banished from life1 and things which    
are by nature private1 such as eyes and 
ears and hands1 have become  common1 and
 all men express praise and blame1 and  
feel joy and sorrow1 on  the same       
occasions1 and the laws unite the city  
to the utmost1--whether  all this is    

possible or not1 ,i say that no man1    
acting upon any other  principle1 will  
ever constitute a state more exalted in 
virtue1 or truer  or better than this4  
,such a state1 whether inhabited by     
,gods or sons of  ,gods1 will make them 
blessed who dwell therein2 and therefore
 to this we  are to look for the pattern
 of the state1 and to cling to this1    
and1 as  far as possible1 to seek for   
one which is like this4 ,the state which
 we  have now in hand1 when created1    
will be nearest to immortality and unity
  in the next degree2 and after that1 by
 the grace of ,god1 we will complete    
the third one4 ,and we will begin by    
speaking of the nature and origin of    
the second4'    ,the comparatively short
 work called the ,statesman or          
,politicus in its  style and manner is  
more akin to the ,laws1 while in its    
idealism it rather  resembles the       
,republic4 ,as far as we can judge by   
various indications of  language and    
thought1 it must be later than the one  

and of course earlier  than the other4  
,in both the ,republic and ,statesman a 
close connection is  maintained between 
,politics and ,dialectic4 ,in the       
,statesman1 enquiries  into the         
principles of ,method are interspersed  
with discussions about  ,politics4 ,the 
comparative advantages of the rule of   
law and of a person  are considered1 and
 the decision given in favour of a      
person 7,arist4 ,pol4  iii4 #ae1 #af74  
,but much may be said on the other side1
 nor is the  opposition necessary2 for a
 person may rule by law1 and law may be 
so  applied as to be the living voice of
 the legislator4 ,as in the ,republic1  
there is a myth1 describing1 however1   
not a future1 but a former existence  of
 mankind4 ,the question is ccxvii asked1
 ',whether the state of  innocence which
 is described in the myth1 or a state   
like our own which  possesses art and   
science and distinguishes good from     
evil1 is the  preferable condition of   
man4' ,to this question of the          

comparative  happiness of civilized and 
primitive life1 which was so often      
discussed in  the last century and in   
our own1 no answer is given4 ,the       
,statesman1 though  less perfect in     
style than the ,republic and of far less
 range1 may justly  be regarded as one  
of the greatest of ,plato's dialogues4  
99       99       99       99       99  
,,vi4 ,others as well as ,plato have    
chosen an ideal ,republic to be the     
vehicle of thoughts which they could not
 definitely express1 or which went      
beyond their own age4 ,the classical    
writing which approaches most nearly  to
 the ,republic of ,plato is the ',de    
,republica' of ,cicero2 but neither in  
this nor in any other of his dialogues  
does he rival the art of ,plato4 ,the   
manners are clumsy and inferior2 the    
hand of the rhetorician is apparent  at 
every turn4 ,yet noble sentiments are   
constantly recurring3 the true  note of 
,roman patriotism--',we ,romans are a   
great people'--resounds through  the    

whole work4 ,like ,socrates1 ,cicero    
turns away from the phenomena of the    
heavens to civil and political life4 ,he
 would rather not discuss the 'two      
,suns' of which all ,rome was talking1  
when he can converse about 'the two     
nations in one' which had divided ,rome 
ever since the days of the ,gracchi4    
,like ,socrates again1 speaking in the  
person of ,scipio1 he is afraid lest  he
 should assume too much the character of
 a teacher1 rather than of an  equal who
 is discussing among friends the two    
sides of a question4 ,he  would confine 
the terms ,king or ,state to the rule of
 reason and justice1  and he will not   
concede that title either to a democracy
 or to a monarchy4  ,but under the rule 
of reason and justice he is willing to  
include the  natural superior ruling    
over the natural inferior1 which he     
compares to  the soul ruling over the   
body4 ,he prefers a mixture of forms of 
government  to any single one4 ,the two 
portraits of the just and the unjust1   

which  occur in the second book of the  
,republic1 are transferred to the       
state--,philus1 one of the              
interlocutors1 maintaining against his  
will the  necessity of injustice as a   
principle of government1 while the      
other1  ,laelius1 supports the opposite 
thesis4 ,his views of language and      
number  are derived ccxviii from ,plato2
 like him he denounces the drama4 ,he   
also  declares that if his life were to 
be twice as long he would have no time  
to read the lyric poets4 ,the picture of
 democracy is translated by him  word   
for word1 though he had hardly shown    
himself able to 'carry the jest'  of    
,plato4 ,he converts into a stately     
sentence the humorous fancy about the   
animals1 who 'are so imbued with the    
spirit of democracy that they make  the 
passers-by get out of their way' 7i4    
#db74 ,his description of the  tyrant is
 imitated from ,plato1 but is far       
inferior4 ,the second book is           
historical1 and claims for the ,roman   

constitution 7which is to him the       
ideal7 a foundation of fact such as     
,plato probably intended to have given  
to the ,republic in the ,critias4 ,his  
most remarkable imitation of ,plato is  
the adaptation of the vision of ,er1    
which is converted by ,cicero into the  
',somnium ,scipionis'2 he has           
'romanized' the myth of the ,republic1  
adding  an argument for the immortality 
of the soul taken from the ,phaedrus1   
and  some other touches derived from the
 ,phaedo and the ,timaeus4 ,though a    
beautiful tale and containing splendid  
passages1 the ',somnium ,scipionis'  is 
very inferior to the vision of ,er2 it  
is only a dream1 and hardly  allows the 
reader to suppose that the writer       
believes in his own creation4  ,whether 
his dialogues were framed on the model  
of the lost dialogues of  ,aristotle1 as
 he himself tells us1 or of ,plato1 to  
which they bear many  superficial       
resemblances1 he is still the ,roman    
orator2 he is not  conversing1 but      

making speeches1 and is never able to   
mould the  intractable ,latin to the    
grace and ease of the ,greek ,platonic  
dialogue4  ,but if he is defective in   
form1 much more is he inferior to the   
,greek in  matter2 he nowhere in his    
philosophical writings leaves upon our  
minds the  impression of an original    
thinker4    ,plato's ,republic has been 
said to be a church and not a state2 and
 such an  ideal of a city in the heavens
 has always hovered over the ,christian 
world1 and is embodied in ,st4          
,augustine's ',de ,civitate ,dei1' which
 is  suggested by the decay and fall of 
the ,roman ,empire1 much in the same    
manner in which we may imagine the      
,republic of ,plato to have been        
influenced by the decline of ,greek     
politics in the writer's own age4 ,the  
difference is that in the time of ,plato
 the degeneracy1 though certain1  was   
gradual and insensible3 whereas the     
taking of ,rome by the ,goths  stirred  
like an earthquake the age of ,st4      

,augustine4 ,men ccxix were  inclined to
 believe that the overthrow of the city 
was to be ascribed to  the anger felt by
 the old ,roman deities at the neglect  
of their worship4  ,st4 ,augustine      
maintains the opposite thesis2 he argues
 that the  destruction of the ,roman    
,empire is due1 not to the rise of      
,christianity1  but to the vices of     
,paganism4 ,he wanders over ,roman      
history1 and over  ,greek philosophy and
 mythology1 and finds everywhere crime1 
impiety and  falsehood4 ,he compares the
 worst parts of the ,gentile religions  
with the  best elements of the faith of 
,christ4 ,he shows nothing of the spirit
 which  led others of the early         
,christian ,fathers to recognize in the 
writings of  the ,greek philosophers the
 power of the divine truth4 ,he traces  
the  parallel of the kingdom of ,god1   
that is1 the history of the ,jews1      
contained in their scriptures1 and of   
the kingdoms of the world1 which are    
found in gentile writers1 and pursues   

them both into an ideal future4 ,it     
need hardly be remarked that his use    
both of ,greek and of ,roman historians 
and of the sacred writings of the ,jews 
is wholly uncritical4 ,the heathen      
mythology1 the ,sybilline oracles1 the  
myths of ,plato1 the dreams of          
,neo-,platonists are equally regarded by
 him as matter of fact4 ,he must be     
acknowledged to be a strictly polemical 
or controversial writer who makes  the  
best of everything on one side and the  
worst of everything on the  other4 ,he  
has no sympathy with the old ,roman life
 as ,plato has with ,greek  life1 nor   
has he any idea of the ecclesiastical   
kingdom which was to arise  out of the  
ruins of the ,roman empire4 ,he is not  
blind to the defects of  the ,christian 
,church1 and looks forward to a time    
when ,christian and ,pagan  shall be    
alike brought before the judgment-seat1 
and the true ,city of ,god  shall       
appear4444 ,the work of ,st4 ,augustine 
is a curious repertory of  antiquarian  

learning and quotations1 deeply         
penetrated with ,christian  ethics1 but 
showing little power of reasoning1 and a
 slender knowledge of  the ,greek       
literature and language4 ,he was a great
 genius1 and a noble  character1 yet    
hardly capable of feeling or            
understanding anything  external to his 
own theology4 ,of all the ancient       
philosophers he is most  attracted by   
,plato1 though he is very slightly      
acquainted with his  writings4 ,he is   
inclined to believe that the idea of    
creation in the  ,timaeus is derived    
from the narrative in ,genesis2 and he  
is strangely  taken with the coincidence
 787 of ,plato's saying that 'the       
philosopher  ccxx is the lover of ,god1'
 and the words of the ,book of ,exodus  
in which  ,god reveals himself to ,moses
 7,exod4 iii4 #ad7 ,he dwells at length 
on  miracles performed in his own day1  
of which the evidence is regarded by    
him as irresistible4 ,he speaks in a    
very interesting manner of the beauty   

and utility of nature and of the human  
frame1 which he conceives to afford  a  
foretaste of the heavenly state and of  
the resurrection of the body4 ,the  book
 is not really what to most persons the 
title of it would imply1 and  belongs to
 an age which has passed away4 ,but it  
contains many fine  passages and        
thoughts which are for all time4    ,the
 short treatise de ,monarchia of ,dante 
is by far the most remarkable of        
medival ideals1 and bears the impress of
 the great genius in whom ,italy  and   
the ,middle ,ages are so vividly        
reflected4 ,it is the vision of an      
,universal ,empire1 which is supposed to
 be the natural and necessary           
government of the world1 having a divine
 authority distinct from the  ,papacy1  
yet coextensive with it4 ,it is not 'the
 ghost of the dead ,roman  ,empire      
sitting crowned upon the grave thereof1'
 but the legitimate heir  and successor 
of it1 justified by the ancient virtues 
of the ,romans and  the beneficence of  

their rule4 ,their right to be the      
governors of the  world is also         
confirmed by the testimony of miracles1 
and acknowledged by  ,st4 ,paul when he 
appealed to ,csar1 and even more        
emphatically by ,christ  ,himself1 ,who 
could not have made atonement for the   
sins of men if ,he had  not been        
condemned by a divinely authorized      
tribunal4 ,the necessity for  the       
establishment of an ,universal ,empire  
is proved partly by a priori  arguments 
such as the unity of ,god and the unity 
of the family or nation2  partly by     
perversions of ,scripture and history1  
by false analogies of  nature1 by       
misapplied quotations from the classics1
 and by odd scraps and  commonplaces of 
logic1 showing a familiar but by no     
means exact knowledge  of ,aristotle 7of
 ,plato there is none74 ,but a more     
convincing argument  still is the       
miserable state of the world1 which he  
touchingly describes4  ,he sees no hope 
of happiness or peace for mankind until 

all nations of the  earth are           
comprehended in a single empire4 ,the   
whole treatise shows how  deeply the    
idea of the ,roman ,empire was fixed in 
the minds of his  contemporaries4 ,not  
much argument was needed to maintain the
 truth of a  theory which to his own    
ccxxi contemporaries seemed so natural  
and  congenial4 ,he speaks1 or rather   
preaches1 from the point of view1 not of
  the ecclesiastic1 but of the layman1  
although1 as a good ,catholic1 he is    
willing to acknowledge that in certain  
respects the ,empire must submit to  the
 ,church4 ,the beginning and end of all 
his noble reflections and of his        
arguments1 good and bad1 is the         
aspiration 'that in this little plot of 
earth belonging to mortal man life may  
pass in freedom and peace4' ,so         
inextricably is his vision of the future
 bound up with the beliefs and          
circumstances of his own age4    ,the   
',utopia' of ,sir ,thomas ,more is a    
surprising monument of his genius1  and 

shows a reach of thought far beyond his 
contemporaries4 ,the book was  written  
by him at the age of about #cd or #ce1  
and is full of the generous  sentiments 
of youth4 ,he brings the light of ,plato
 to bear upon the  miserable state of   
his own country4 ,living not long after 
the ,wars of the  ,roses1 and in the    
dregs of the ,catholic ,church in       
,england1 he is indignant  at the       
corruption of the clergy1 at the luxury 
of the nobility and gentry1  at the     
sufferings of the poor1 at the          
calamities caused by war4 ,to the eye   
of ,more the whole world was in         
dissolution and decay2 and side by side 
with the misery and oppression which he 
has described in the ,first ,book of    
the ,utopia1 he places in the ,second   
,book the ideal state which by the help 
of ,plato he had constructed4 ,the times
 were full of stir and intellectual     
interest4 ,the distant murmur of the    
,reformation was beginning to be heard4 
,to minds like ,more's1 ,greek          

literature was a revelation3 there had  
arisen  an art of interpretation1 and   
the ,new ,testament was beginning to be 
understood as it had never been before1 
and has not often been since1 in  its   
natural sense4 ,the life there depicted 
appeared to him wholly unlike  that of  
,christian commonwealths1 in which 'he  
saw nothing but a certain  conspiracy of
 rich men procuring their own           
commodities under the name and  title of
 the ,commonwealth4' ,he thought that   
,christ1 like ,plato1  'instituted all  
things common1' for which reason1 he    
tells us1 the  citizens of ,utopia were 
the more willing to receive his         
doctrines#e4 ,the  community of ccxxii  
property is a fixed idea with him1      
though he is  aware of the arguments    
which may be urged on the other side#f4 
,we wonder  how in the reign of ,henry  
,,viii1 though veiled in another        
language and  published in a foreign    
country1 such speculations could have   
been endured4    ,footnote #e3          

',howbeit1 ,i think this was no small   
help and furtherance in  the matter1    
that they heard us say that ,christ     
instituted among his1 all  things       
common1 and that the same community doth
 yet remain in the rightest  ,christian 
communities' 7,utopia1 ,english         
,reprints1 p4 #add74    ,footnote #f3   
',these things 7,i say71 when ,i        
consider with myself1 ,i hold  well with
 ,plato1 and do nothing marvel that he  
would make no laws for them  that       
refused those laws1 whereby all men     
should have and enjoy equal  portions of
 riches and commodities4 ,for the wise  
men did easily foresee  this to be the  
one and only way to the wealth of a     
community1 if equality  of all things   
should be brought in and established'   
7,utopia1 ,english  ,reprints1 p4 #fg1  
#fh74    ,he is gifted with far greater 
dramatic invention than any one who     
succeeded him1 with the exception of    
,swift4 ,in the art of feigning he is a 
worthy disciple of ,plato4 ,like him1   

starting from a small portion of fact1  
he founds his tale with admirable skill 
on a few lines in the ,latin  narrative 
of the voyages of ,amerigo ,vespucci4   
,he is very precise about  dates and    
facts1 and has the power of making us   
believe that the narrator  of the tale  
must have been an eyewitness4 ,we are   
fairly puzzled by his  manner of mixing 
up real and imaginary persons2 his boy  
,john ,clement and  ,peter ,giles1      
citizen of ,antwerp1 with whom he       
disputes about the precise  words which 
are supposed to have been used by the   
7imaginary7 ,portuguese  traveller1     
,raphael ,hythloday4 ',i have the more  
cause1' says ,hythloday1 'to  fear that 
my words shall not be believed1 for that
 ,i know how difficultly  and hardly ,i 
myself would have believed another man  
telling the same1 if  ,i had not myself 
seen it with mine own eyes4' ,or again3 
',if you had been  with me in ,utopia1  
and had presently seen their fashions   
and laws as ,i did  which lived there   

five years and more1 and would never    
have come thence1  but only to make the 
new land known here1' etc4 ,more greatly
 regrets that  he forgot to ask         
,hythloday in what part of the world    
,utopia is situated2  he 'would have    
spent no small sum of money rather than 
it should have  escaped him1' and he    
begs ,peter ,giles to see ,hythloday or 
write to him and  obtain an answer to   
the question4 ,after this we are not    
surprised to hear  that a ,professor of 
,divinity 7perhaps 'a late famous vicar 
of ,croydon in  ,surrey1' as the        
translator thinks7 is desirous of being 
sent thither as a  missionary by the    
,high ,bishop1 'yea1 and that he may    
himself be made  ,bishop of ,utopia1    
nothing doubting that he must obtain    
this ,bishopric with  suit2 and he      
counteth that a godly ccxxiii suit which
 proceedeth not of  the desire of honour
 or lucre1 but only of a godly zeal4'   
,the design may  have failed through the
 disappearance of ,hythloday1 concerning

 whom we  have 'very uncertain news'    
after his departure4 ,there is no doubt1
  however1 that he had told ,more and   
,giles the exact situation of the       
island1 but unfortunately at the same   
moment ,more's attention1 as he is      
reminded in a letter from ,giles1 was   
drawn off by a servant1 and one of  the 
company from a cold caught on shipboard 
coughed so loud as to prevent  ,giles   
from hearing4 ,and 'the secret has      
perished' with him2 to this day  the    
place of ,utopia remains unknown4       
,the words of ,phaedrus 7#bge ,b71 ',o  
,socrates1 you can easily invent        
,egyptians or anything1' are recalled to
 our mind as we read this lifelike      
fiction4 ,yet the greater merit of the  
work is not the admirable art1 but  the 
originality of thought4 ,more is as free
 as ,plato from the prejudices  of his  
age1 and far more tolerant4 ,the        
,utopians do not allow him who  believes
 not in the immortality of the soul to  
share in the administration  of the     

state 7cp4 ,laws x4 #ijh foll471        
'howbeit they put him to no  punishment1
 because they be persuaded that it is in
 no man's power to  believe what he     
list'2 and 'no man is to be blamed for  
reasoning in  support of his own        
religion#g4' ,in the public services 'no
 prayers be  used1 but such as every man
 may boldly pronounce without giving    
offence to  any sect4' ,he says         
significantly1 ',there be that give     
worship to a man  that was once of      
excellent virtue or of famous glory1 not
 only as ,god1 but  also the chiefest   
and highest ,god4 ,but the most and the 
wisest part1  rejecting all these1      
believe that there is a certain godly   
power unknown1  far above the capacity  
and reach of man's wit1 dispersed       
throughout all  the world1 not in       
bigness1 but in virtue and power4 ,him  
they call the  ,father of all4 ,to ,him 
alone they attribute the beginnings1 the
  increasings1 the proceedings1 ccxxiv  
the changes1 and the ends of all        

things4 ,neither give they any divine   
honours to any other than him4' ,so  far
 was ,more from sharing the popular     
beliefs of his time4 ,yet at the end  he
 reminds us that he does not in all     
respects agree with the customs and     
opinions of the ,utopians which he      
describes4 ,and we should let him have  
the benefit of this saving clause1 and  
not rudely withdraw the veil behind     
which he has been pleased to conceal    
himself4    ,footnote #g3 ',one of our  
company in my presence was sharply      
punished4 ,he1  as soon as he was       
baptised1 began1 against our wills1 with
 more earnest  affection than wisdom1 to
 reason of ,christ's religion1 and began
 to wax so  hot in his matter1 that he  
did not only prefer our religion before 
all  other1 but also did despise and    
condemn all other1 calling them profane1
  and the followers of them wicked and  
devilish1 and the children of           
everlasting damnation4 ,when he had thus
 long reasoned the matter1 they  laid   

hold on him1 accused him1 and condemned 
him into exile1 not as a  despiser of   
religion1 but as a seditious person and 
a raiser up of  dissension among the    
people' 7p4 #ade74    ,nor is he less in
 advance of popular opinion in his      
political and moral  speculations4 ,he  
would like to bring military glory into 
contempt2 he  would set all sorts of    
idle people to profitable occupation1   
including in  the same class1 priests1  
women1 noblemen1 gentlemen1 and 'sturdy 
and  valiant beggars1' that the labour  
of all may be reduced to six hours a    
day4 ,his dislike of capital punishment1
 and plans for the reformation of       
offenders2 his detestation of priests   
and lawyers#h2 his remark that          
'although every one may hear of ravenous
 dogs and wolves and cruel  man-eaters1 
it is not easy to find states that are  
well and wisely  governed1' are         
curiously at variance with the notions  
of his age and  indeed with his own     
life4 ,there are many points in which he

 shows a modern  feeling and a prophetic
 insight like ,plato4 ,he is a sanitary 
reformer2 he  maintains that civilized  
states have a right to the soil of waste
  countries2 he is inclined to the      
opinion which places happiness in       
virtuous pleasures1 but herein1 as he   
thinks1 not disagreeing from those      
other philosophers who define virtue to 
be a life according to nature4 ,he      
extends the idea of happiness so as to  
include the happiness of others2  and he
 argues ingeniously1 ',all men agree    
that we ought to make others  happy2 but
 if others1 how much more ourselves6'   
,and still he thinks that  there may be 
a more excellent way1 but to this no    
man's reason can attain  unless heaven  
should inspire him with a higher truth4 
,his ceremonies  before marriage2 his   
humane proposal that war should be      
carried on by  assassinating the leaders
 of the enemy1 may be compared to some  
of the  paradoxes of ,plato4 ,he has a  
charming fancy1 like the affinities of  

,greeks  and barbarians in the ,timaeus1
 that the ,utopians learnt the language 
of  the ,greeks with the more readiness 
because they were originally of the     
same race with them4 ,he is penetrated  
with the spirit of ,plato1 and quotes   
or adapts many ccxxv thoughts both from 
the ,republic and from the  ,timaeus4   
,he prefers public duties to private1   
and is somewhat impatient of  the       
importunity of relations4 ,his citizens 
have no silver or gold of their  own1   
but are ready enough to pay them to     
their mercenaries 7cp4 ,rep4 iv4  #dbb1 
#dbc74 ,there is nothing of which he is 
more contemptuous than the love  of     
money4 ,gold is used for fetters of     
criminals1 and diamonds and pearls  for 
children's necklaces#i4    ,footnote #h3
 ,compare his satirical observation3    
',they 7the ,utopians7 have  priests of 
exceeding holiness1 and therefore very  
few' 7p4 #aej74    ,footnote #i3 ,when  
the ambassadors came arrayed in gold and
 peacocks'  feathers 'to the eyes of all

 the ,utopians except very few1 which   
had been  in other countries for some   
reasonable cause1 all that gorgeousness 
of  apparel seemed shameful and         
reproachful4 ,in so much that they most 
reverently saluted the vilest and most  
abject of them for lords--passing  over 
the ambassadors themselves without any  
honour1 judging them by their  wearing  
of golden chains to be bondmen4 ,you    
should have seen children  also1 that   
had cast away their pearls and precious 
stones1 when they saw  the like sticking
 upon the ambassadors' caps1 dig and    
push their mothers  under the sides1    
saying thus to them--,look1 mother1 how 
great a lubber  doth yet wear pearls and
 precious stones1 as though he were a   
little child  still4 ,but the mother2   
yea and that also in good earnest3      
,peace1 son1  saith she1 ,i think he be 
some of the ambassadors' fools' 7p4     
#ajb74    ,like ,plato he is full of    
satirical reflections on governments and
 princes2  on the state of the world and

 of knowledge4 ,the hero of his         
discourse  7,hythloday7 is very         
unwilling to become a minister of state1
 considering  that he would lose his    
independence and his advice would never 
be  heeded#aj4 ,he ridicules the new    
logic of his time2 the ,utopians could  
never be made to understand the doctrine
 of ,second ,intentions#aa4 ,he is  very
 severe on the sports of the gentry2 the
 ,utopians count 'hunting the  lowest1  
the vilest1 and the most abject part of 
butchery4' ,he quotes the  words of the 
,republic in which the philosopher is   
described 'standing out  of the way     
under a wall until the driving storm of 
sleet and rain be  overpast1' which     
admit of a singular application to      
,more's own fate2  although1 writing    
twenty years before 7about the year     
#aead71 ccxxvi he  can hardly be        
supposed to have foreseen this4 ,there  
is no touch of satire  which strikes    
deeper than his quiet remark that the   
greater part of the  precepts of ,christ

 are more at variance with the lives of 
ordinary  ,christians than the discourse
 of ,utopia#ab4    ,footnote #aj3 ,cp4  
an exquisite passage at p4 #ce1 of which
 the conclusion  is as follows3 ',and   
verily it is naturally given 444        
suppressed and  ended4'    ,footnote    
#aa3 ',for they have not devised one of 
all those rules of  restrictions1       
amplifications1 and suppositions1 very  
wittily invented in  the small          
,logicals1 which here our children in   
every place do learn4  ,furthermore1    
they were never yet able to find out the
 second intentions2  insomuch that none 
of them all could ever see man himself  
in common1 as  they call him1 though he 
be 7as you know7 bigger than was ever   
any giant1  yea1 and pointed to of us   
even with our finger4'    ,footnote #ab3
 ',and yet the most part of them is more
 dissident from the  manners of the     
world now a days1 than my communication 
was4 ,but preachers1  sly and wily men1 
following your counsel 7as ,i suppose7  

because they saw  men evil-willing to   
frame their manners to ,christ's rule1  
they have  wrested and wried his        
doctrine1 and1 like a rule of lead1 have
 applied it  to men's manners1 that by  
some means at the least way1 they might 
agree  together4'    ,the ',new         
,atlantis' is only a fragment1 and far  
inferior in merit to the  ',utopia4'    
,the work is full of ingenuity1 but     
wanting in creative fancy1  and by no   
means impresses the reader with a sense 
of credibility4 ,in some  places ,lord  
,bacon is characteristically different  
from ,sir ,thomas ,more1  as1 for       
example1 in the external state which he 
attributes to the governor  of          
,solomon's ,house1 whose dress he       
minutely describes1 while to ,sir       
,thomas  ,more such trappings appear    
simple ridiculous4 ,yet1 after this     
programme of  dress1 ,bacon adds the    
beautiful trait1 'that he had a look as 
though he  pitied men4' ,several things 
are borrowed by him from the ,timaeus2  

but he  has injured the unity of style  
by adding thoughts and passages which   
are  taken from the ,hebrew ,scriptures4
    ,the ',city of the ,sun' written by 
,campanella 7#aefh-afci71 a ,dominican  
friar1 several years after the ',new    
,atlantis' of ,bacon1 has many          
resemblances to the ,republic of ,plato4
 ,the citizens have wives and  children 
in common2 their marriages are of the   
same temporary sort1 and  are arranged  
by the magistrates from time to time4   
,they do not1 however1  adopt his system
 of lots1 but bring together the best   
natures1 male and  female1 'according to
 philosophical rules4' ,the infants     
until two years of  age are brought up  
by their mothers in public temples2 and 
since  individuals for the most part    
educate their children badly1 at the    
beginning of their third year they are  
committed to the care of the ,state1    
and are taught at first1 not out of     
books1 but from paintings of all  kinds1
 which are emblazoned on the walls of   

the city4 ,the city has six  interior   
circuits of walls1 and an outer wall    
which is the seventh4 ,on  this outer   
wall are painted the figures of         
legislators and philosophers1  and      
ccxxvii on each of the interior walls   
the symbols or forms of some  one of the
 sciences are delineated4 ,the women    
are1 for the most part1  trained1 like  
the men1 in warlike and other exercises2
 but they have two  special occupations 
of their own4 ,after a battle1 they and 
the boys soothe  and relieve the wounded
 warriors2 also they encourage them with
 embraces  and pleasant words 7cp4      
,plato1 ,rep4 v4 #dfh74 ,some elements  
of the  ,christian or ,catholic religion
 are preserved among them4 ,the life of 
the  ,apostles is greatly admired by    
this people because they had all things 
in  common2 and the short prayer which  
,jesus ,christ taught men is used in    
their worship4 ,it is a duty of the     
chief magistrates to pardon sins1 and   
therefore the whole people make secret  

confession of them to the  magistrates1 
and they to their chief1 who is a sort  
of ,rector  ,metaphysicus2 and by this  
means he is well informed of all that is
 going  on in the minds of men4 ,after  
confession1 absolution is granted to the
  citizens collectively1 but no one is  
mentioned by name4 ,there also exists   
among them a practice of perpetual      
prayer1 performed by a succession of    
priests1 who change every hour4 ,their  
religion is a worship of ,god in        
,trinity1 that is of ,wisdom1 ,love and 
,power1 but without any distinction of  
persons4 ,they behold in the sun the    
reflection of ,his glory2 mere graven   
images they reject1 refusing to fall    
under the 'tyranny' of idolatry4        
,many details are given about their     
customs of eating and drinking1 about   
their mode of dressing1 their           
employments1 their wars4 ,campanella    
looks  forward to a new mode of         
education1 which is to be a study of    
nature1 and  not of ,aristotle4 ,he     

would not have his citizens waste their 
time in the  consideration of what he   
calls 'the dead signs of things4' ,he   
remarks that  he who knows one science  
only1 does not really know that one any 
more than  the rest1 and insists        
strongly on the necessity of a variety  
of knowledge4  ,more scholars are turned
 out in the ,city of the ,sun in one    
year than by  contemporary methods in   
ten or fifteen4 ,he evidently believes1 
like ,bacon1  that henceforward natural 
science will play a great part in       
education1 a  hope which seems hardly to
 have been realized1 either in our own  
or in any  former age2 at any rate the  
fulfilment of it has been long deferred4
    ,there is a good deal of ingenuity  
and even originality in this ccxxviii   
work1 and a most enlightened spirit     
pervades it4 ,but it has little or no   
charm of style1 and falls very far short
 of the ',new ,atlantis' of ,bacon1  and
 still more of the ',utopia' of ,sir    
,thomas ,more4 ,it is full of           

inconsistencies1 and though borrowed    
from ,plato1 shows but a superficial    
acquaintance with his writings4 ,it is a
 work such as one might expect to  have 
been written by a philosopher and man of
 genius who was also a friar1  and who  
had spent twenty-seven years of his life
 in a prison of the  ,inquisition4 ,the 
most interesting feature of the book1   
common to ,plato and  ,sir ,thomas      
,more1 is the deep feeling which is     
shown by the writer1 of the  misery and 
ignorance prevailing among the lower    
classes in his own time4  ,campanella   
takes note of ,aristotle's answer to    
,plato's community of  property1 that in
 a society where all things are common1 
no individual  would have any motive to 
work 7,arist4 ,pol4 ii4 #e1  #f73 he    
replies1 that  his citizens being happy 
and contented in themselves 7they are   
required to  work only four hours a     
day71 will have greater regard for their
 fellows  than exists among men at      
present4 ,he thinks1 like ,plato1 that  

if he  abolishes private feelings and   
interests1 a great public feeling will  
take  their place4    ,other writings on
 ideal states1 such as the ',oceana' of 
,harrington1 in  which the ,lord        
,archon1 meaning ,cromwell1 is          
described1 not as he was1 but  as he    
ought to have been2 or the ',argenis' of
 ,barclay1 which is an  historical      
allegory of his own time1 are too unlike
 ,plato to be worth  mentioning4 ,more  
interesting than either of these1 and   
far more ,platonic  in style and        
thought1 is ,sir ,john ,eliot's         
',monarchy of ,man1' in which the       
prisoner of the ,tower1 no longer able  
'to be a politician in the land of  his 
birth1' turns away from politics to view
 'that other city which is  within him1'
 and finds on the very threshold of the 
grave that the secret  of human         
happiness is the mastery of self4 ,the  
change of government in the  time of the
 ,english ,commonwealth set men thinking
 about first principles1  and gave rise 

to many works of this class4444 ,the    
great original genius of  ,swift owes   
nothing to ,plato2 nor is there any     
trace in the conversation or  in the    
works of ,dr4 ,johnson of any           
acquaintance with his writings4 ,he     
probably would have refuted ,plato      
without reading him1 in the same fashion
  in which he supposed himself to have  
refuted ,bishop ,berkeley's theory of   
the non-existence of matter4 ,if we     
ccxxix except the so-called ,english    
,platonists1 or rather ,neo-,platonists1
 who never understood their master1  and
 the writings of ,coleridge1 who was to 
some extent a kindred spirit1  ,plato   
has left no permanent impression on     
,english literature4           99       
99       99       99       99    ,,vii4 
,human life and conduct are affected by 
ideals in the same way that  they are   
affected by the examples of eminent men4
 ,neither the one nor the  other are    
immediately applicable to practice1 but 
there is a virtue  flowing from them    

which tends to raise individuals above  
the common  routine of society or trade1
 and to elevate ,states above the mere  
interests of commerce or the necessities
 of self-defence4 ,like the ideals  of  
art they are partly framed by the       
omission of particulars2 they require   
to be viewed at a certain distance1 and 
are apt to fade away if we attempt  to  
approach them4 ,they gain an imaginary  
distinctness when embodied in a  ,state 
or in a system of philosophy1 but they  
still remain the visions of  'a world   
unrealized4' ,more striking and obvious 
to the ordinary mind are  the examples  
of great men1 who have served their own 
generation and are  remembered in       
another4 ,even in our own family circle 
there may have been  some one1 a woman1 
or even a child1 in whose face has shone
 forth a  goodness more than human4 ,the
 ideal then approaches nearer to us1 and
 we  fondly cling to it4 ,the ideal of  
the past1 whether of our own past lives 
or of former states of society1 has a   

singular fascination for the minds  of  
many4 ,too late we learn that such      
ideals cannot be recalled1 though the   
recollection of them may have a         
humanizing influence on other times4    
,but  the abstractions of philosophy are
 to most persons cold and vacant2 they  
give light without warmth2 they are like
 the full moon in the heavens when      
there are no stars appearing4 ,men      
cannot live by thought alone2 the world 
of sense is always breaking in upon     
them4 ,they are for the most part       
confined to a corner of earth1 and see  
but a little way beyond their own  home 
or place of abode2 they 'do not lift up 
their eyes to the hills'2  they are not 
awake when the dawn appears4 ,but in    
,plato we have reached a  height from   
which a man may look into the distance  
7,rep4 iv4 #dde ,c7 and  behold the     
future of the world and of philosophy4  
,the ideal of the ,state  and of the    
life of the philosopher2 the ideal of an
 education ccxxx  continuing through    

life and extending equally to both      
sexes2 the ideal of  the unity and      
correlation of knowledge2 the faith in  
good and  immortality--are the vacant   
forms of light on which ,plato is       
seeking to  fix the eye of mankind4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,,viii4 ,two other ideals1 which never  
appeared above the horizon in ,greek    
,philosophy1 float before the minds of  
men in our own day3 one seen more       
clearly than formerly1 as though each   
year and each generation brought us     
nearer to some great change2 the other  
almost in the same degree retiring  from
 view behind the laws of nature1 as if  
oppressed by them1 but still  remaining 
a silent hope of we know not what hidden
 in the heart of man4  ,the first ideal 
is the future of the human race in this 
world2 the second  the future of the    
individual in another4 ,the first is the
 more perfect  realization of our own   
present life2 the second1 the abnegation
 of it3 the  one1 limited by experience1

 the other1 transcending it4 ,both of   
them have  been and are powerful motives
 of action2 there are a few in whom they
 have  taken the place of all earthly   
interests4 ,the hope of a future for the
  human race at first sight seems to be 
the more disinterested1 the hope of     
individual existence the more           
egotistical1 of the two motives4 ,but   
when  men have learned to resolve their 
hope of a future either for themselves  
or for the world into the will of       
,god--'not my will but ,thine1' the     
difference between them falls away2 and 
they may be allowed to make either  of  
them the basis of their lives1 according
 to their own individual  character or  
temperament4 ,there is as much faith in 
the willingness to  work for an unseen  
future in this world as in another4     
,neither is it  inconceivable that some 
rare nature may feel his duty to another
  generation1 or to another century1    
almost as strongly as to his own1 or    
that living always in the presence of   

,god1 he may realize another world as   
vividly as he does this4    ,the        
greatest of all ideals may1 or rather   
must be conceived by us under           
similitudes derived from human          
qualities2 although sometimes1 like the 
,jewish prophets1 we may dash away these
 figures of speech and describe the     
nature of ,god only in negatives4 ,these
 again by degrees acquire a positive    
meaning4 ,it would be well1 if when     
meditating on the higher truths either  
of ccxxxi philosophy or religion1 we    
sometimes substituted one form of       
expression for another1 lest through the
 necessities of language we should      
become the slaves of mere words4        
,there is a third ideal1 not the same1  
but akin to these1 which has a place  in
 the home and heart of every believer in
 the religion of ,christ1 and in  which 
men seem to find a nearer and more      
familiar truth1 the ,divine man1  the   
,son of ,man1 the ,saviour of mankind1  
,who is the first-born and head of  the 

whole family in heaven and earth1 in    
,whom the ,divine and human1 that  which
 is without and that which is within the
 range of our earthly  faculties1 are   
indissolubly united4 ,neither is this   
divine form of  goodness wholly         
separable from the ideal of the         
,christian ,church1 which is  said in   
the ,new ,testament to be ',his body1'  
or at variance with those  other images 
of good which ,plato sets before us4 ,we
 see ,him in a figure  only1 and of     
figures of speech we select but a few1  
and those the  simplest1 to be the      
expression of ,him4 ,we behold ,him in a
 picture1 but ,he  is not there4 ,we    
gather up the fragments of ,his         
discourses1 but neither do  they        
represent ,him as ,he truly was4 ,his   
dwelling is neither in heaven nor       
earth1 but in the heart of man4 ,this is
 that image which ,plato saw dimly  in  
the distance1 which1 when existing among
 men1 he called1 in the  language of    
,homer1 'the likeness of ,god' 7,rep4   

vi4 #eja ,b71 the likeness of  a nature 
which in all ages men have felt to be   
greater and better than  themselves1 and
 which in endless forms1 whether derived
 from ,scripture or  nature1 from the   
witness of history or from the human    
heart1 regarded as a  person or not as a
 person1 with or without parts or       
passions1 existing in  space or not in  
space1 is and will always continue to be
 to mankind the  ,idea of ,good4        
,,the ,,republic4    ,,book ,i          
,,persons ,,of ,,the ,,dialogue4        
,socrates1 who is the narrator4         
,cephalus4       ,glaucon4              
,thrasymachus4       ,adeimantus4       
,cleitophon4       ,polemarchus4        
,and others who are mute auditors4      
,the scene is laid in the house of      
,cephalus at the ,piraeus2 and the whole
  dialogue is narrated by ,socrates the 
day after it actually took place to     
,timaeus1 ,hermocrates1 ,critias1 and a 
nameless person1 who are introduced  in 
the ,timaeus4      99,ed4 ,steph4 #cbg99

 ,sidenote3 ,republic ,i4 ,socrates1    
,glaucon4 ,meeting of  ,socrates and    
,glaucon with ,polemarchus at the       
,bendidean festival4    ,i went down    
yesterday to the ,piraeus with ,glaucon 
the son of ,ariston1 that  ,i might     
offer up my prayers to the goddess#a2   
and also because ,i wanted  to see in   
what manner they would celebrate the    
festival1 which was a new  thing4 ,i was
 delighted with the procession of the   
inhabitants2 but that of  the ,thracians
 was equally1 if not more1 beautiful4   
99#cbg;,b99 ,when we had  finished our  
prayers and viewed the spectacle1 we    
turned in the direction  of the city2   
and at that instant ,polemarchus the son
 of ,cephalus chanced  to catch sight of
 us from a distance as we were starting 
on our way home1  and told his servant  
to run and bid us wait for him4 ,the    
servant took hold  of me by the cloak   
behind1 and said3 ,polemarchus desires  
you to wait4    ,footnote #a3 ,bendis1  
the ,thracian ,artemis4    ,i turned    

round1 and asked him where his master   
was4    ,there he is1 said the youth1   
coming after you1 if you will only wait4
    ,sidenote3 ,socrates1 ,polemarchus1 
,glaucon1 ,adeimantus1 ,cephalus4    #b 
99#cbg;,c99 ,certainly we will1 said    
,glaucon2 and in a few minutes          
,polemarchus appeared1 and with him     
,adeimantus1 ,glaucon's brother1        
,niceratus  the son of ,nicias1 and     
several others who had been at the      
procession4    ,polemarchus said to me3 
,i perceive1 ,socrates1 that you and    
your companion  are already on your way 
to the city4    ,you are not far wrong1 
,i said4    ,but do you see1 he         
rejoined1 how many we are8    ,of       
course4    ,and are you stronger than   
all these8 for if not1 you will have to 
remain  where you are4    ,may there not
 be the alternative1 ,i said1 that we   
may persuade you to let  us go8    ,but 
can you persuade us1 if we refuse to    
listen to you8 he said4    ,certainly   
not1 replied ,glaucon4    ,then we are  

not going to listen2 of that you may be 
assured4    99#cbh;,a99 ,sidenote3 ,the 
equestrian torch-race4    ,adeimantus   
added3 ,has no one told you of the      
torch-race on horseback in  honour of   
the goddess which will take place in the
 evening8    ,with horses6 ,i replied3  
,that is a novelty4 ,will horsemen carry
 torches and  pass them one to another  
during the race8    ,yes1 said          
,polemarchus1 and not only so1 but a    
festival will be celebrated  at night1  
which you certainly ought to see4 ,let  
us rise soon after supper  and see this 
festival2 there will be a gathering of  
young men1 and we will  have a good     
talk4 99#cbh;,b99 ,stay then1 and do not
 be perverse4    ,glaucon said3 ,i      
suppose1 since you insist1 that we must4
    ,very good1 ,i replied4             
,sidenote3 ,the gathering of friends at 
the house of ,cephalus4    ,accordingly 
we went with ,polemarchus to his house2 
and there we found his  brothers ,lysias
 and ,euthydemus1 and with them         

,thrasymachus the  ,chalcedonian1       
,charmantides the ,paeanian1 and        
,cleitophon the son of  ,aristonymus4   
,there too was ,cephalus the father of  
,polemarchus1 whom ,i had  not seen for 
a long time1 and ,i thought him very    
much aged4 99#cbh;,c99 ,he was  seated  
on a cushioned chair1 and had a garland 
on his head1 for he had  been           
sacrificing in the court2 and there were
 some other chairs in the  room arranged
 in a semicircle1 #c upon which we sat  
down by him4 ,he  saluted me eagerly1   
and then he said3--    ,sidenote3       
,cephalus1 ,socrates4    ,you don't come
 to see me1 ,socrates1 as often as you  
ought3 ,if ,i were still  able to go and
 see you ,i would not ask you to come to
 me4 ,but at my age  ,i can hardly get  
to the city1 and therefore you should   
come oftener to the  ,piraeus4          
99#cbh;,d99 ,for let me tell you1 that  
the more the pleasures of the  body fade
 away1 the greater to me is the pleasure
 and charm of  conversation4 ,do not    

then deny my request1 but make our house
 your resort  and keep company with     
these young men2 we are old friends1 and
 you will be  quite at home with us4    
,i replied3 ,there is nothing which for 
my part ,i like better1 ,cephalus1  than
 conversing with aged men2 99#cbh;,e99  
for ,i regard them as travellers who    
have gone a journey which ,i too may    
have to go1 and of whom ,i ought to     
enquire1 whether the way is smooth and  
easy1 or rugged and difficult4 ,and     
this is a question which ,i should like 
to ask of you who have arrived at  that 
time which the poets call the 'threshold
 of old age'--,is life harder  towards  
the end1 or what report do you give of  
it8    99#cbi;,a99 ,sidenote3 ,old age  
is not to blame for the troubles of old 
men4    ,sidenote3 ,the excellent saying
 of ,sophocles4    ,i will tell you1    
,socrates1 he said1 what my own feeling 
is4 ,men of my age  flock together2 we  
are birds of a feather1 as the old      
proverb says2 and at  our meetings the  

tale of my acquaintance commonly is--,i 
cannot eat1  ,i cannot drink2 the       
pleasures of youth and love are fled    
away3 there was a  good time once1 but  
now that is gone1 and life is no longer 
life4 99#cbi;,b99  ,some complain of the
 slights which are put upon them by     
relations1 and  they will tell you sadly
 of how many evils their old age is the 
cause4 ,but  to me1 ,socrates1 these    
complainers seem to blame that which is 
not really  in fault4 ,for if old age   
were the cause1 ,i too being old1 and   
every other  old man1 would have felt as
 they do4 ,but this is not my own       
experience1  nor that of others whom ,i 
have known4 ,how well ,i remember the   
aged poet  ,sophocles1 when in answer to
 the question1 99#cbi;,c99 ,how does    
love suit with  age1 ,sophocles1--are   
you still the man you were8 ,peace1 he  
replied2 most  gladly have ,i escaped   
the thing of which you speak2 ,i feel as
 if ,i had  escaped from a mad and      
furious master4 ,his words have often   

occurred to my  mind since1 and they    
seem as good to me now as at the time   
when he uttered  them4 #d ,for certainly
 old age has a great sense of calm and  
freedom2  when the passions relax their 
hold1 then1 as ,sophocles says1         
99#cbi;,d99 we are  freed from the grasp
 not of one mad master only1 but of     
many4 ,the truth  is1 ,socrates1 that   
these regrets1 and also the complaints  
about relations1  are to be attributed  
to the same cause1 which is not old age1
 but men's  characters and tempers2 for 
he who is of a calm and happy nature    
will  hardly feel the pressure of age1  
but to him who is of an opposite        
disposition youth and age are equally a 
burden4    ,sidenote3 ,it is admitted   
that the old1 if they are to be         
comfortable1  must have a fair share of 
external goods2 neither virtue alone nor
 riches  alone can make an old man      
happy4    ,i listened in admiration1 and
 wanting to draw him out1 that he might 
go  on-- 99#cbi;,e99 ,yes1 ,cephalus1 ,i

 said3 but ,i rather suspect that people
 in  general are not convinced by you   
when you speak thus2 they think that old
  age sits lightly upon you1 not because
 of your happy disposition1 but  because
 you are rich1 and wealth is well known 
to be a great comforter4    ,you are    
right1 he replied2 they are not         
convinced3 and there is something  in   
what they say2 not1 however1 so much as 
they imagine4 ,i might answer  them as  
,themistocles answered the ,seriphian   
who was abusing him and saying  that he 
was famous1 not for his own merits but  
because he 99#ccj;,a99 was an           
,athenian3 ',if you had been a native of
 my country or ,i of yours1 neither  of 
us would have been famous4' ,and to     
those who are not rich and are          
impatient of old age1 the same reply may
 be made2 for to the good poor man  old 
age cannot be a light burden1 nor can a 
bad rich man ever have peace  with      
himself4    ,may ,i ask1 ,cephalus1     
whether your fortune was for the most   

part inherited  or acquired by you8     
,sidenote3 ,cephalus has inherited      
rather than made a fortune2 he is       
therefore indifferent to money4         
,acquired6 99#ccj;,b99 ,socrates2 do you
 want to know how much ,i acquired8 ,in 
the  art of making money ,i have been   
midway between my father and            
grandfather3  for my grandfather1 whose 
name ,i bear1 doubled and trebled the   
value of  his patrimony1 that which he  
inherited being much what ,i possess    
now2 but  my father ,lysanias reduced   
the property below what it is at        
present3 and  ,i shall be satisfied if  
,i leave to these my sons not less but a
 little more  than ,i received4    ,that
 was why ,i asked you the question1 ,i  
replied1 because ,i see that you  are   
indifferent about money1 99#ccj;,c99    
which is a characteristic rather of     
those who have inherited their fortunes 
than of those who have acquired  them2  
the makers #e of fortunes have a second 
love of money as a creation  of their   

own1 resembling the affection of authors
 for their own poems1 or  of parents for
 their children1 besides that natural   
love of it for the  sake of use and     
profit which is common to them and all  
men4 ,and hence they  are very bad      
company1 for they can talk about nothing
 but the praises of  wealth4    ,that is
 true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,the      
advantages of wealth4    99#ccj;,d99    
,yes1 that is very true1 but may ,i ask 
another question8--,what do  you        
consider to be the greatest blessing    
which you have reaped from your  wealth8
    ,sidenote3 ,the fear of death and   
the consciousness of sin become more    
vivid in old age2 and to be rich frees a
 man from many temptations4    ,one1 he 
said1 of which ,i could not expect      
easily to convince others4 ,for  let me 
tell you1 ,socrates1 that when a man    
thinks himself to be near  death1 fears 
and cares enter into his mind which he  
never had before2 the  tales of a world 
below and the punishment which is       

exacted there of deeds  done here were  
once a laughing matter to him1          
99#ccj;,e99 but now he is  tormented    
with the thought that they may be true3 
either from the weakness  of age1 or    
because he is now drawing nearer to that
 other place1 he has a  clearer view of 
these things2 suspicions and alarms     
crowd thickly upon  him1 and he begins  
to reflect and consider what wrongs he  
has done to  others4 ,and when he finds 
that the sum of his transgressions is   
great he  will many a time like a child 
start up in his sleep for fear1 and he  
is  filled with dark forebodings4 ,but  
99#cca;,a99 to him who is conscious of  
no  sin1 sweet hope1 as ,pindar         
charmingly says1 is the kind nurse of   
his age3    ,sidenote3 ,the admirable   
strain of ,pindar4    ',hope1' he says1 
'cherishes the soul of him who lives in 
justice and  holiness1 and is the nurse 
of his age and the companion of his     
journey2--hope which is mightiest to    
sway the restless soul of man4'    ,how 

admirable are his words6 ,and the great 
blessing of riches1 99#cca;,b99 ,i do   
not say to every man1 but to a good man1
 is1 that he has had no occasion  to    
deceive or to defraud others1 either    
intentionally or unintentionally2  and  
when he departs to the world below he is
 not in any apprehension about          
offerings due to the gods or debts which
 he owes to men4 ,now to this peace  of 
mind the possession of wealth greatly   
contributes2 and therefore ,i say1      
that1 setting one thing against another1
 of the many advantages which  wealth   
has to give1 to a man of sense this is  
in my opinion the greatest4  #f         
,sidenote3 ,cephalus1 ,socrates1        
,polemarchus4    ,sidenote3 ,justice to 
speak truth and pay your debts4         
99#cca;,c99 ,well said1 ,cephalus1 ,i   
replied2 but as concerning justice1 what
 is  it8--to speak the truth and to pay 
your debts--no more than this8 ,and even
  to this are there not exceptions8     
,suppose that a friend when in his right

  mind has deposited arms with me and he
 asks for them when he is not in his    
right mind1 ought ,i to give them back  
to him8 ,no one would say that ,i  ought
 or that ,i should be right in doing so1
 any more than they would say  that ,i  
ought always to speak the truth to one  
who is in his condition4    99#cca;,d99 
,you are quite right1 he replied4       
,but then1 ,i said1 speaking the truth  
and paying your debts is not a  correct 
definition of justice4    ,sidenote3    
,this is the definition of ,simonides4  
,but you ought not on all  occasions to 
do either4 ,what then was his meaning8  
,quite correct1 ,socrates1 if ,simonides
 is to be believed1 said ,polemarchus   
interposing4    ,i fear1 said ,cephalus1
 that ,i must go now1 for ,i have to    
look after the  sacrifices1 and ,i hand 
over the argument to ,polemarchus and   
the company4    ,is not ,polemarchus    
your heir8 ,i said4    ,to be sure1 he  
answered1 and went away laughing to the 
sacrifices4    99#cca;,e99 ,tell me     

then1 ,o thou heir of the argument1 what
 did ,simonides say1  and according to  
you truly say1 about justice8    ,he    
said that the repayment of a debt is    
just1 and in saying so he appears  to me
 to be right4    ,i should be sorry to  
doubt the word of such a wise and       
inspired man1 but  his meaning1 though  
probably clear to you1 is the reverse of
 clear to me4  ,for he certainly does   
not mean1 as we were just now saying1   
that ,i ought  to return a deposit of   
arms or of anything else to one who asks
 for it  99#ccb;,a99 when he is not in  
his right senses2 and yet a deposit     
cannot be  denied to be a debt4         
,true4    ,then when the person who asks
 me is not in his right mind ,i am by no
 means  to make the return8             
,certainly not4    ,when ,simonides said
 that the repayment of a debt was       
justice1 he did not  mean to include    
that case8    ,certainly not2 for he    
thinks that a friend ought always to do 
good to a  friend and never evil4       

,sidenote3 ,socrates1 ,polemarchus4     
99#ccb;,b99 ,you mean that the return of
 a deposit of gold which is to the      
injury of the receiver1 if the two      
parties are friends1 is not the         
repayment of a debt1--that is what you  
would imagine him to say8    ,yes4      
,and are enemies also to receive what we
 owe to them8    ,to be sure1 he said1  
they are to receive what we owe them1   
and an enemy1  as ,i take it1 owes to an
 enemy that which is due or proper to   
him--that is  to say1 evil4 #g          
,simonides1 then1 after the manner of   
poets1 would seem to have spoken  darkly
 of the nature of justice2 99#ccb;,c99  
for he really meant to say that  justice
 is the giving to each man what is      
proper to him1 and this he  termed a    
debt4    ,that must have been his       
meaning1 he said4    ,by heaven6 ,i     
replied2 and if we asked him what due or
 proper thing is  given by medicine1 and
 to whom1 what answer do you think that 
he would  make to us8    ,he would      

surely reply that medicine gives drugs  
and meat and drink to  human bodies4    
,and what due or proper thing is given  
by cookery1 and to what8    99#ccb;,d99 
,seasoning to food4    ,and what is that
 which justice gives1 and to whom8      
,if1 ,socrates1 we are to be guided at  
all by the analogy of the preceding     
instances1 then justice is the art which
 gives good to friends and evil to      
enemies4    ,that is his meaning then8  
,i think so4    ,sidenote3              
,illustrations4    ,and who is best able
 to do good to his friends and evil to  
his enemies in  time of sickness8       
,the physician4    99#ccb;,e99 ,or when 
they are on a voyage1 amid the perils of
 the sea8    ,the pilot4    ,and in what
 sort of actions or with a view to what 
result is the just man  most able to do 
harm to his enemy and good to his       
friend8    ,in going to war against the 
one and in making alliances with the    
other4    ,but when a man is well1 my   
dear ,polemarchus1 there is no need of a

  physician8 #h    ,no4    ,and he who  
is not on a voyage has no need of a     
pilot8    ,no4    ,then in time of peace
 justice will be of no use8    ,i am    
very far from thinking so4              
99#ccc;,a99 ,you think that justice may 
be of use in peace as well as in war8   
,yes4    ,like husbandry for the        
acquisition of corn8    ,yes4    ,or    
like shoemaking for the acquisition of  
shoes1--that is what you mean8    ,yes4 
,and what similar use or power of       
acquisition has justice in time of      
peace8    ,sidenote3 ,justice is useful 
in contracts1    ,in contracts1         
,socrates1 justice is of use4    ,and by
 contracts you mean partnerships8       
,exactly4    99#ccc;,b99 ,but is the    
just man or the skilful player a more   
useful and better  partner at a game of 
draughts8    ,the skilful player4       
,and in the laying of bricks and stones 
is the just man a more useful or  better
 partner than the builder8    ,quite the
 reverse4    ,then in what sort of      

partnership is the just man a better    
partner than the  harp-player1 as in    
playing the harp the harp-player is     
certainly a better  partner than the    
just man8    ,in a money partnership4   
,yes1 ,polemarchus1 but surely not in   
the use of money2 for you do not want  a
 just man to be your counsellor in the  
purchase or sale of a horse2 a man  who 
is knowing about 99#ccc;,c99 horses     
would be better for that1 would he not8 
,certainly4    ,and when you want to buy
 a ship1 the shipwright or the pilot    
would be  better8    ,true4    ,then    
what is that joint use of silver or gold
 in which the just man is to  be        
preferred8    ,sidenote3 especially in  
the safe-keeping of deposits4    ,when  
you want a deposit to be kept safely4   
,you mean when money is not wanted1 but 
allowed to lie8 #i    ,precisely4       
,sidenote3 ,but not in the use of money3
 and if so1 justice is only useful  when
 money or anything else is useless4     
,that is to say1 justice is useful when 

money is useless8    99#ccc;,d99 ,that  
is the inference4    ,and when you want 
to keep a pruning-hook safe1 then       
justice is useful to  the individual and
 to the state2 but when you want to use 
it1 then the art  of the vine-dresser8  
,clearly4    ,and when you want to keep 
a shield or a lyre1 and not to use them1
 you  would say that justice is useful2 
but when you want to use them1 then the 
art of the soldier or of the musician8  
,certainly4    ,and so of all other     
things2--justice is useful when they are
 useless1 and  useless when they are    
useful8    ,that is the inference4      
99#ccc;,e99 ,then justice is not good   
for much4 ,but let us consider this     
further  point3 ,is not he who can best 
strike a blow in a boxing match or in   
any  kind of fighting best able to ward 
off a blow8    ,certainly4    ,and he   
who is most skilful in preventing or    
escaping#b from a disease is  best able 
to create one8    ,footnote #b3 ,reading
 ,greek3 phula_/xasthai kai lathein1    

7outos1 ktl4    ,true4    ,sidenote3 ,a 
new point of view3 ,is not he who is    
best able to do good best  able to do   
evil8    ,and he is the best guard of a 
camp who is best able to 99#ccd;,a99    
steal a  march upon the enemy8          
,certainly4    ,then he who is a good   
keeper of anything is also a good thief8
    ,that1 ,i suppose1 is to be         
inferred4    ,then if the just man is   
good at keeping money1 he is good at    
stealing it4    ,that is implied in the 
argument4    ,then after all the just   
man has turned out to be a thief4 ,and  
this is a  lesson which ,i suspect you  
must have learnt out of ,homer2         
99#ccd;,b99 for he1  speaking of        
,autolycus1 the maternal grandfather of 
,odysseus1 who is a  favourite of his1  
affirms that      ',he was excellent    
above all men in theft and perjury4'    
,and so1 you and ,homer and ,simonides  
are agreed that #aj justice is an art   
of theft2 to be practised however 'for  
the good of friends and for the  harm of

 enemies1'--that was what you were      
saying8    ,no1 certainly not that1     
though ,i do not now know what ,i did   
say2 but ,i  still stand by the latter  
words4    99#ccd;,c99 ,well1 there is   
another question3 ,by friends and       
enemies do we mean  those who are so    
really1 or only in seeming8             
,sidenote3 ,justice an art of theft to  
be practised for the good of friends    
and the harm of enemies4 ,but who are   
friends and enemies8    ,surely1 he     
said1 a man may be expected to love     
those whom he thinks good1  and to hate 
those whom he thinks evil4    ,yes1 but 
do not persons often err about good and 
evil3 many who are not  good seem to be 
so1 and conversely8    ,that is true4   
,then to them the good will be enemies  
and the evil will be their friends8     
,true4    ,and in that case they will be
 right in doing good to the evil and    
99#ccd;,d99  evil to the good8          
,clearly4    ,but the good are just and 
would not do an injustice8    ,true4    

,then according to your argument it is  
just to injure those who do no  wrong8  
,nay1 ,socrates2 the doctrine is        
immoral4    ,then ,i suppose that we    
ought to do good to the just and harm to
 the  unjust8    ,i like that better4   
,sidenote3 ,mistakes will sometimes     
happen4    ,but see the                 
consequence3--,many a man who is        
ignorant of human nature has  friends   
who are bad friends1 99#ccd;,e99 and in 
that case he ought to do harm  to them2 
and he has good enemies whom he ought to
 benefit2 but1 if so1 we  shall be      
saying the very opposite of that which  
we affirmed to be the  meaning of       
,simonides4    ,very true1 he said3 and 
,i think that we had better correct an  
error into  which we seem to have fallen
 in the use of the words 'friend' and   
'enemy4'    ,what was the error1        
,polemarchus8 ,i asked4    ,we assumed  
that he is a friend who seems to be or  
who is thought good4    ,sidenote3      
,correction of the definition4    ,and  

how is the error to be corrected8       
,sidenote3 ,to appearance we must add   
reality4 ,he is a friend who 'is' as    
well as 'seems' good1 ,and we should do 
good to our good friends and harm  to   
our bad enemies4    ,we should rather   
say that he is a friend who is1 as well 
as #aa seems1  good2 99#cce;,a99 and    
that he who seems only1 and is not good1
 only seems to be  and is not a friend2 
and of an enemy the same may be said4   
,you would argue that the good are our  
friends and the bad our enemies8        
,yes4    ,and instead of saying simply  
as we did at first1 that it is just to  
do  good to our friends and harm to our 
enemies1 we should further say3 ,it is  
just to do good to our friends when they
 are good and harm to our enemies  when 
they are evil8    99#cce;,b99 ,yes1 that
 appears to me to be the truth4    ,but 
ought the just to injure any one at all8
    ,undoubtedly he ought to injure     
those who are both wicked and his       
enemies4    ,sidenote3 ,to harm men is  

to injure them2 and to injure them is to
 make  them unjust4 ,but justice cannot 
produce injustice4    ,when horses are  
injured1 are they improved or           
deteriorated8    ,the latter4           
,deteriorated1 that is to say1 in the   
good qualities of horses1 not of  dogs8 
,yes1 of horses4    ,and dogs are       
deteriorated in the good qualities of   
dogs1 and not of  horses8    ,of course4
    99#cce;,c99 ,and will not men who   
are injured be deteriorated in that     
which is  the proper virtue of man8     
,certainly4    ,and that human virtue is
 justice8    ,to be sure4    ,then men  
who are injured are of necessity made   
unjust8    ,that is the result4         
,sidenote3 ,illustrations4    ,but can  
the musician by his art make men        
unmusical8    ,certainly not4    ,or the
 horseman by his art make them bad      
horsemen8    ,impossible4    ,and can   
the just by justice make men unjust1 or 
speaking 99#cce;,d99 generally1  can the
 good by virtue make them bad8          

,assuredly not4    ,any more than heat  
can produce cold8    ,it cannot4    ,or 
drought moisture8 #ab    ,sidenote3     
,socrates1 ,polemarchus1 ,thrasymachus4 
,clearly not4    ,nor can the good harm 
any one8    ,impossible4    ,and the    
just is the good8    ,certainly4        
,then to injure a friend or any one else
 is not the act of a just man1 but  of  
the opposite1 who is the unjust8    ,i  
think that what you say is quite true1  
,socrates4    99#cce;,e99 ,then if a man
 says that justice consists in the      
repayment of debts1  and that good is   
the debt which a just man owes to his   
friends1 and evil  the debt which he    
owes to his enemies1--to say this is not
 wise2 for it is  not true1 if1 as has  
been clearly shown1 the injuring of     
another can be in  no case just4    ,i  
agree with you1 said ,polemarchus4      
,sidenote3 ,the saying however explained
 is not to be attributed to any  good or
 wise man4    ,then you and ,i are      
prepared to take up arms against any one

 who attributes  such a saying to       
,simonides or ,bias or ,pittacus1 or any
 other wise man or  seer8    ,i am quite
 ready to do battle at your side1 he    
said4    99#ccf;,a99 ,shall ,i tell you 
whose ,i believe the saying to be8      
,whose8    ,i believe that ,periander or
 ,perdiccas or ,xerxes or ,ismenias the 
,theban1 or  some other rich and mighty 
man1 who had a great opinion of his own 
power1  was the first to say that       
justice is 'doing good to your friends  
and harm  to your enemies4'    ,most    
true1 he said4    ,yes1 ,i said2 but if 
this definition of justice also breaks  
down1 what  other can be offered8       
,sidenote3 ,the brutality of            
,thrasymachus4    99#ccf;,b99 ,several  
times in the course of the discussion   
,thrasymachus had made  an attempt to   
get the argument into his own hands1 and
 had been put down  by the rest of the  
company1 who wanted to hear the end4    
,but when  ,polemarchus and ,i had done 
speaking and there was a pause1 he could

 no  longer hold his peace2 and1        
gathering himself up1 he came at us like
 a  wild beast1 seeking to devour us4   
,we were quite panic-stricken at the    
sight of him4    ,he roared out to the  
whole company3 ,what folly1 ,socrates1  
has taken  possession of you all8       
99#ccf;,c99 ,and why1 sillybillies1 do  
you knock under to  one another8 ,i say 
that if you want really to know what    
justice is1 you  should not only ask but
 #ac answer1 and you should not seek    
honour to  yourself from the refutation 
of an opponent1 but have your own       
answer2 for  there is many a one who can
 ask and cannot answer4 99#ccf;,d99 ,and
 now ,i will  not have you say that     
justice is duty or advantage or profit  
or gain or  interest1 for this sort of  
nonsense will not do for me2 ,i must    
have  clearness and accuracy4           
,sidenote3 ,socrates1 ,thrasymachus4    
,i was panic-stricken at his words1 and 
could not look at him without           
trembling4 ,indeed ,i believe that if ,i

 had not fixed my eye upon him1  ,i     
should have been struck dumb3 but when  
,i saw his fury rising1 ,i looked  at   
him first1 and was 99#ccf;,e99 therefore
 able to reply to him4    ,thrasymachus1
 ,i said1 with a quiver1 don't be hard  
upon us4 ,polemarchus  and ,i may have  
been guilty of a little mistake in the  
argument1 but ,i can  assure you that   
the error was not intentional4 ,if we   
were seeking for a  piece of gold1 you  
would not imagine that we were 'knocking
 under to one  another1' and so losing  
our chance of finding it4 ,and why1 when
 we are  seeking for justice1 a thing   
more precious than many pieces of gold1 
do  you say that we are weakly yielding 
to one another and not doing our  utmost
 to get at the truth8 ,nay1 my good     
friend1 we are most willing and  anxious
 to do so1 but the fact is that we      
cannot4 ,and if so1 you people  who know
 all things should pity us and not be   
angry with us4    99#ccg;,a99 ,how      
characteristic of ,socrates6 he replied1

 with a bitter laugh2  --that's your    
ironical style6 ,did ,i not             
foresee--have ,i not already told  you1 
that whatever he was asked he would     
refuse to answer1 and try irony  or any 
other shuffle1 in order that he might   
avoid answering8    ,sidenote3 ,socrates
 cannot give any answer if all true     
answers are  excluded4    ,sidenote3    
,thrasymachus is assailed with his own  
weapons4    ,you are a philosopher1     
,thrasymachus1 ,i replied1 and well know
 that if you  ask a person what numbers 
make up twelve1 99#ccg;,b99 taking care 
to prohibit  him whom you ask from      
answering twice six1 or three times     
four1 or six  times two1 or four times  
three1 'for this sort of nonsense will  
not do for  me1'--then obviously1 if    
that is your way of putting the         
question1 no one  can answer you4 ,but  
suppose that he were to retort1         
',thrasymachus1 what do  you mean8 ,if  
one of these numbers which you interdict
 be the true answer  to the question1 am

 ,i falsely to say some other number    
which is not the  right one8--is        
99#ccg;,c99 that your meaning8'--,how   
would you answer him8    ,just as if the
 two cases were at all alike6 he said4  
#ad    ,sidenote3 ,socrates1            
,thrasymachus1 ,glaucon4    ,why should 
they not be8 ,i replied2 and even if    
they are not1 but only  appear to be so 
to the person who is asked1 ought he not
 to say what he  thinks1 whether you and
 ,i forbid him or not8    ,i presume    
then that you are going to make one of  
the interdicted answers8    ,i dare say 
that ,i may1 notwithstanding the danger1
 if upon reflection  ,i approve of any  
of them4    99#ccg;,d99 ,but what if ,i 
give you an answer about justice other  
and better1 he  said1 than any of these8
 ,what do you deserve to have done to   
you8    ,done to me6--as becomes the    
ignorant1 ,i must learn from the        
wise--that is  what ,i deserve to have  
done to me4    ,sidenote3 ,the ,sophist 
demands payment for his instructions4   

,the company  are very willing to       
contribute4    ,what1 and no payment6 a 
pleasant notion6    ,i will pay when ,i 
have the money1 ,i replied4    ,but you 
have1 ,socrates1 said ,glaucon3 and you1
 ,thrasymachus1 need be under  no       
anxiety about money1 for we will all    
make a contribution for ,socrates4      
99#ccg;,e99 ,yes1 he replied1 and then  
,socrates will do as he always does     
--refuse to answer himself1 but take and
 pull to pieces the answer of some  one 
else4    ,sidenote3 ,socrates knows     
little or nothing3 how can he answer8   
,and he is  deterred by the interdict of
 ,thrasymachus4    ,why1 my good friend1
 ,i said1 how can any one answer who    
knows1 and says  that he knows1 just    
nothing2 and who1 even if he has some   
faint notions of  his own1 is told by a 
man of authority not to utter them8 ,the
 natural  thing is1 that 99#cch;,a99 the
 speaker should be some one like        
yourself who  professes to know and can 
tell what he knows4 ,will you then      

kindly answer1  for the edification of  
the company and of myself8    ,glaucon  
and the rest of the company joined in my
 request1 and  ,thrasymachus1 as any one
 might see1 was in reality eager to     
speak2 for he  thought that he had an   
excellent answer1 and would distinguish 
himself4  ,but at first he affected to  
insist on my answering2 at length he    
consented  to begin4 99#cch;,b99        
,behold1 he said1 the wisdom of         
,socrates2 he refuses to  teach himself1
 and goes about learning of others1 to  
whom he never even  says ,thank you4    
,that ,i learn of others1 ,i replied1 is
 quite true2 but that ,i am ungrateful  
,i wholly deny4 ,money ,i have none1 and
 therefore ,i pay in praise1 which is   
all ,i have2 and how ready #ae ,i am to 
praise any one who appears to me to     
speak well you will very soon find out  
when you answer2 for ,i expect that  you
 will answer well4    ,sidenote3        
,socrates1 ,thrasymachus4    ,sidenote3 
,the definition of ,thrasymachus3       

',justice is the interest of the        
stronger or ruler4'    99#cch;,c99      
,listen1 then1 he said2 ,i proclaim that
 justice is nothing else than  the      
interest of the stronger4 ,and now why  
do you not praise me8 ,but of  course   
you won't4    ,let me first understand  
you1 ,i replied4 ,justice1 as you say1  
is the  interest of the stronger4 ,what1
 ,thrasymachus1 is the meaning of this8 
,you  cannot mean to say that because   
,polydamas1 the pancratiast1 is stronger
  than we are1 and finds the eating of  
beef conducive to his bodily  strength1 
that to 99#cch;,d99 eat beef is         
therefore equally for our good who  are 
weaker than he is1 and right and just   
for us8    ,that's abominable of you1   
,socrates2 you take the words in the    
sense which  is most damaging to the    
argument4    ,not at all1 my good sir1  
,i said2 ,i am trying to understand     
them2 and  ,i wish that you would be a  
little clearer4    ,well1 he said1 have 
you never heard that forms of government

 differ2 there  are tyrannies1 and there
 are democracies1 and there are         
aristocracies8    ,yes1 ,i know4    ,and
 the government is the ruling power in  
each state8    ,certainly4    ,sidenote3
 ,socrates compels ,thrasymachus to     
explain his meaning4    99#cch;,e99 ,and
 the different forms of government make 
laws democratical1  aristocratical1     
tyrannical1 with a view to their several
 interests2 and  these laws1 which are  
made by them for their own interests1   
are the  justice which they deliver to  
their subjects1 and him who transgresses
  them they punish as a breaker of the  
law1 and unjust4 ,and that is what  ,i  
mean when ,i say that in all states     
there is the same principle of  justice1
 which is the interest of the           
government2 and 99#cci;,a99 as the      
government must be supposed to have     
power1 the only reasonable conclusion   
is1 that everywhere there is one        
principle of justice1 which is the      
interest of the stronger4    ,now ,i    

understand you1 ,i said2 and whether you
 are right or not ,i will try  to       
discover4 ,but let me remark1 that in   
defining justice you have yourself  used
 the word 'interest' which you forbade  
me to use4 ,it is true1 however1  that  
in your definition the words 'of the    
stronger' are added4    99#cci;,b99 ,a  
small addition1 you must allow1 he said4
 #af    ,great or small1 never mind     
about that3 we must first enquire       
whether what  you are saying is the     
truth4 ,now we are both agreed that     
justice is  interest of some sort1 but  
you go on to say 'of the stronger'2     
about this  addition ,i am not so sure1 
and must therefore consider further4    
,proceed4    ,sidenote3 ,he is          
dissatisfied with the explanation2 for  
rulers may err4    ,i will2 and first   
tell me1 ,do you admit that it is just  
for subjects to  obey their rulers8     
,i do4    99#cci;,c99 ,but are the      
rulers of states absolutely infallible1 
or are they  sometimes liable to err8   

,to be sure1 he replied1 they are liable
 to err4    ,then in making their laws  
they may sometimes make them rightly1   
and  sometimes not8    ,true4    ,when  
they make them rightly1 they make them  
agreeably to their interest2  when they 
are mistaken1 contrary to their         
interest2 you admit that8    ,yes4      
,and the laws which they make must be   
obeyed by their subjects1--and that  is 
what you call justice8    ,doubtless4   
,sidenote3 ,and then the justice which  
makes a mistake will turn out to be  the
 reverse of the interest of the         
stronger4    99#cci;,d99 ,then justice1 
according to your argument1 is not only 
obedience to  the interest of the       
stronger but the reverse8    ,what is   
that you are saying8 he asked4    ,i am 
only repeating what you are saying1 ,i  
believe4 ,but let us consider3  ,have we
 not admitted that the rulers may be    
mistaken about their own  interest in   
what they command1 and also that to obey
 them is justice8 ,has  not that been   

admitted8    ,yes4    99#cci;,e99 ,then 
you must also have acknowledged justice 
not to be for the  interest of the      
stronger1 when the rulers               
unintentionally command things  to be   
done which are to their own injury4 ,for
 if1 as you say1 justice is  the        
obedience which the subject renders to  
their commands1 in that case1 ,o  wisest
 of men1 is there any escape from the   
conclusion that the weaker are          
commanded to do1 not what is for the    
interest1 but what is for the injury  of
 the stronger8    ,sidenote3 ,socrates1 
,cleitophon1 ,polemarchus1              
,thrasymachus4    ,nothing can be       
clearer1 ,socrates1 said ,polemarchus4  
#ag    99#cdj;,a99 ,yes1 said           
,cleitophon1 interposing1 if you are    
allowed to be his  witness4    ,but     
there is no need of any witness1 said   
,polemarchus1 for ,thrasymachus  himself
 acknowledges that rulers may sometimes 
command what is not for  their own      
interest1 and that for subjects to obey 

them is justice4    ,sidenote3          
,cleitophon tries to make a way of      
escape for ,thrasymachus by  inserting  
the words 'thought to be4'    ,yes1     
,polemarchus1--,thrasymachus said that  
for subjects to do what was  commanded  
by their rulers is just4    ,yes1       
,cleitophon1 but he also said that      
justice is the interest 99#cdj;,b99 of  
the stronger1 and1 while admitting both 
these propositions1 he further          
acknowledged that the stronger may      
command the weaker who are his subjects 
to do what is not for his own interest2 
whence follows that justice is the      
injury quite as much as the interest of 
the stronger4    ,but1 said ,cleitophon1
 he meant by the interest of the        
stronger what the  stronger thought to  
be his interest1--this was what the     
weaker had to do2  and this was affirmed
 by him to be justice4    ,those were   
not his words1 rejoined ,polemarchus4   
99#cdj;,c99 ,never mind1 ,i replied1 if 
he now says that they are1 let us accept

  his statement4 ,tell me1              
,thrasymachus1 ,i said1 did you mean by 
justice what  the stronger thought to be
 his interest1 whether really so or not8
    ,sidenote3 ,this evasion is         
repudiated by ,thrasymachus2            
,certainly not1 he said4 ,do you suppose
 that ,i call him who is mistaken the   
stronger at the time when he is         
mistaken8    ,yes1 ,i said1 my          
impression was that you did so1 when you
 admitted that the  ruler was not       
infallible but might be sometimes       
mistaken4    ,sidenote3 who adopts      
another line of defence3 ',no artist or 
ruler is ever  mistaken qua artist or   
ruler4'    99#cdj;,d99 ,you argue like  
an informer1 ,socrates4 ,do you mean1   
for example1  that he who is mistaken   
about the sick is a physician in that he
 is  mistaken8 or that he who errs in   
arithmetic or grammar is an             
arithmetician  or grammarian at the time
 when he is making the mistake1 in      
respect of the  mistake8 ,true1 we say  

that the physician or arithmetician or  
grammarian  has made a mistake1 but this
 is only a way of speaking2 for the fact
 is  that neither the grammarian nor any
 other person of skill ever makes a     
mistake in so far as he is what his name
 implies2 they none of them err  unless 
their skill fails them1 and then they   
cease to be skilled artists4  #ah ,no   
artist or sage or ruler errs at the time
 when he is what his name  implies2     
though he is commonly said to err1 and  
99#cdj;,e99 ,i adopted the  common mode 
of speaking4 ,but to be perfectly       
accurate1 since you are such  a lover of
 accuracy1 we should say that the ruler1
 in so far as he is a  ruler1 is        
unerring1 and1 99#cda;,a99 being        
unerring1 always commands that which  is
 for his own interest2 and the subject  
is required to execute his  commands2   
and therefore1 as ,i said at first and  
now repeat1 justice is the  interest of 
the stronger4    ,sidenote3 ,socrates1  
,thrasymachus4    ,indeed1              

,thrasymachus1 and do ,i really appear  
to you to argue like an  informer8      
,certainly1 he replied4    ,and do you  
suppose that ,i ask these questions with
 any design of injuring  you in the     
argument8    ,nay1 he replied1 'suppose'
 is not the word--,i know it2           
99#cda;,b99 but you will  be found out1 
and by sheer force of argument you will 
never prevail4    ,i shall not make the 
attempt1 my dear man2 but to avoid any  
misunderstanding occurring between us in
 future1 let me ask1 in what sense  do  
you speak of a ruler or stronger whose  
interest1 as you were saying1 he  being 
the superior1 it is just that the       
inferior should execute--is he a  ruler 
in the popular or in the strict sense of
 the term8    ,in the strictest of all  
senses1 he said4 ,and now cheat and play
 the  informer if you can2 ,i ask no    
quarter at your hands4 ,but you never   
will be  able1 never4    ,sidenote3 ,the
 essential meaning of words             
distinguished from their  attributes4   

99#cda;,c99 ,and do you imagine1 ,i     
said1 that ,i am such a madman as to try
 and  cheat1 ,thrasymachus8 ,i might as 
well shave a lion4    ,why1 he said1 you
 made the attempt a minute ago1 and you 
failed4    ,enough1 ,i said1 of these   
civilities4 ,it will be better that ,i  
should ask  you a question3 ,is the     
physician1 taken in that strict sense of
 which you  are speaking1 a healer of   
the sick or a maker of money8 ,and      
remember that  ,i am now speaking of the
 true physician4    ,a healer of the    
sick1 he replied4    ,and the           
pilot--that is to say1 the true         
pilot--is he a captain of sailors  or a 
mere sailor8    ,a captain of sailors4  
#ai    99#cda;,d99 ,the circumstance    
that he sails in the ship is not to be  
taken into  account2 neither is he to be
 called a sailor2 the name pilot by     
which he  is distinguished has nothing  
to do with sailing1 but is significant  
of his  skill and of his authority over 
the sailors4    ,very true1 he said4    

,now1 ,i said1 every art has an         
interest8    ,certainly4    ,for which  
the art has to consider and provide8    
,yes1 that is the aim of art4    ,and   
the interest of any art is the          
perfection of it--this and nothing      
else8    99#cda;,e99 ,what do you mean8 
,i mean what ,i may illustrate          
negatively by the example of the body4  
,suppose you were to ask me whether the 
body is self-sufficing or has  wants1 ,i
 should reply3 ,certainly the body has  
wants2 for the body may be  ill and     
require to be cured1 and has therefore  
interests to which the art  of medicine 
ministers2 and this is the origin and   
intention of medicine1  as you will     
acknowledge4 ,am ,i not right8          
99#cdb;,a99 ,quite right1 he replied4   
,sidenote3 ,art has no imperfection to  
be corrected1 and therefore no          
extraneous interest4    ,but is the art 
of medicine or any other art faulty or  
deficient in any  quality in the same   
way that the eye may be deficient in    

sight or the ear  fail of hearing1 and  
therefore requires another art to       
provide for the  interests of seeing and
 hearing--has art in itself1 ,i say1 any
 similar  liability to fault or defect1 
and does every art require another      
supplementary art to provide for its    
interests1 and that another and  another
 without end8 ,or have the arts to look 
only 99#cdb;,b99 after their own        
interests8 ,or have they no need either 
of themselves or of  another8--having no
 faults or defects1 they have no need to
 correct them1  either by the exercise  
of their own art or of any other2 they  
have only to  consider the interest of  
their subject-matter4 ,for every art    
remains pure  and faultless while       
remaining true--that is to say1 while   
perfect and  unimpaired4 ,take the words
 in your precise sense1 and tell me     
whether ,i am  not right4    ,yes1      
clearly4    ,sidenote3 ,illustrations4  
99#cdb;,c99 ,then medicine does not     
consider the interest of medicine1 but  

the  interest of the body8 #bj    ,true1
 he said4    ,nor does the art of       
horsemanship consider the interests of  
the art of  horsemanship1 but the       
interests of the horse2 neither do any  
other arts  care for themselves1 for    
they have no needs2 they care only for  
that which  is the subject of their art8
    ,true1 he said4    ,but surely1     
,thrasymachus1 the arts are the         
superiors and rulers of their  own      
subjects8    ,to this he assented with a
 good deal of reluctance4    ,then1 ,i  
said1 no science or art considers or    
enjoins the interest of the  stronger or
 superior1 but only the interest        
99#cdb;,d99 of the subject and  weaker8 
,he made an attempt to contest this     
proposition also1 but finally           
acquiesced4    ,then1 ,i continued1 no  
physician1 in so far as he is a         
physician1 considers  his own good in   
what he prescribes1 but the good of his 
patient2 for the  true physician is also
 a ruler having the human body as a     

subject1 and is  not a mere money-maker2
 that has been admitted8    ,yes4       
,and the pilot likewise1 in the strict  
sense of the term1 is a ruler of        
sailors and not a mere sailor8          
99#cdb;,e99 ,that has been admitted4    
,and such a pilot and ruler will provide
 and prescribe for the interest of  the 
sailor who is under him1 and not for his
 own or the ruler's interest8    ,he    
gave a reluctant ',yes4'    ,sidenote3  
,the disinterestedness of rulers4       
,then1 ,i said1 ,thrasymachus1 there is 
no one in any rule who1 in so far as  he
 is a ruler1 considers or enjoins what  
is for his own interest1 but  always    
what is for the interest of his subject 
or suitable to his art2 to  that he     
looks1 and that alone he considers in   
everything which he says and  does4     
99#cdc;,a99 ,when we had got to this    
point in the argument1 and every one saw
  that the definition of justice had    
been completely upset1 ,thrasymachus1   
instead of replying to me1 said3 ,tell  

me1 ,socrates1 have you got a nurse8    
,sidenote3 ,the impudence of            
,thrasymachus4    ,why do you ask such a
 question1 ,i said1 when you ought      
rather to be  answering8    ,because she
 leaves you to snivel1 and never wipes  
your #ba nose3 she has  not even taught 
you to know the shepherd from the sheep4
    ,what makes you say that8 ,i        
replied4    ,sidenote3 ,thrasymachus    
dilates upon the advantages of          
injustice1    ,sidenote3 especially when
 pursued on a great scale4    ,sidenote3
 ,tyranny4    99#cdc;,b99 ,because you  
fancy that the shepherd or neatherd     
fattens or tends  the sheep or oxen with
 a view to their own good and not to the
 good of  himself or his master2 and you
 further imagine that the rulers of     
states1  if they are true rulers1 never 
think of their subjects as sheep1 and   
that  they are not studying their own   
advantage day and night4 ,oh1 no2       
99#cdc;,c99  and so entirely astray are 
you in your ideas about the just and    

unjust as  not even to know that justice
 and the just are in reality another's  
good2  that is to say1 the interest of  
the ruler and stronger1 and the loss of 
the subject and servant2 and injustice  
the opposite2 for the unjust is  lord   
over the truly simple and just3 he is   
the stronger1 and his subjects  do what 
is for his interest1 and minister to his
 99#cdc;,d99 happiness1 which  is very  
far from being their own4 ,consider     
further1 most foolish ,socrates1  that  
the just is always a loser in comparison
 with the unjust4 ,first of  all1 in    
private contracts3 wherever the unjust  
is the partner of the just  you will    
find that1 when the partnership is      
dissolved1 the unjust man has  always   
more and the just less4 ,secondly1 in   
their dealings with the ,state3  when   
there is an income-tax1 the just man    
will pay more and the unjust  less on   
the same amount of income2 and when     
there is anything to be 99#cdc;,e99     
received the one gains nothing and the  

other much4 ,observe also what  happens 
when they take an office2 there is the  
just man neglecting his  affairs and    
perhaps suffering other losses1 and     
getting nothing out of the  public1     
because he is just2 moreover he is hated
 by his friends and  acquaintance for   
refusing to serve them in unlawful ways4
 ,but all this is  reversed in the case 
of the unjust man4 ,i am speaking1 as   
before1 99#cdd;,a99  of injustice on a  
large scale in which the advantage of   
the unjust is most  apparent2 and my    
meaning will be most clearly seen if we 
turn to that  highest form of injustice 
in which the criminal is the happiest of
 men1  and the sufferers or those who   
refuse to do injustice are the most     
miserable--that is to say tyranny1 which
 by fraud and force takes away the      
property of others1 not little by little
 but wholesale2 comprehending in  one1  
things sacred as well as profane1       
99#cdd;,b99 private #bb and public2 for 
which acts of wrong1 if he were detected

 perpetrating any one of them  singly1  
he would be punished and incur great    
disgrace--they who do such  wrong in    
particular cases are called robbers of  
temples1 and man-stealers  and burglars 
and swindlers and thieves4 ,but when a  
man besides taking away  the money of   
the citizens has made slaves of them1   
then1 instead of these  names of        
reproach1 he is 99#cdd;,c99 termed happy
 and blessed1 not only by the  citizens 
but by all who hear of his having       
achieved the consummation of  injustice4
 ,for mankind censure injustice1 fearing
 that they may be the  victims of it and
 not because they shrink from committing
 it4 ,and thus1 as  ,i have shown1      
,socrates1 injustice1 when on a         
sufficient scale1 has more  strength and
 freedom and mastery than justice2 and1 
as ,i said at first1  justice is the    
interest of the stronger1 whereas       
injustice is a man's own  profit and    
interest4    ,sidenote3 ,thrasymachus   
having made his speech wants to run     

away1 but is  detained by the company4  
99#cdd;,d99 ,thrasymachus1 when he had  
thus spoken1 having1 like a bath-man1   
deluged our ears with his words1 had a  
mind to go away4 ,but the company  would
 not let him2 they insisted that he     
should remain and defend his  position2 
and ,i myself added my own humble       
request that he would not leave  us4    
,thrasymachus1 ,i said to him1 excellent
 man1 how suggestive are your  remarks6 
,and are you going to run away before   
you have fairly taught or  learned      
whether they are true or not8           
99#cdd;,e99 ,is the attempt to determine
  the way of man's life so small a      
matter in your eyes--to determine how   
life may be passed by each one of us to 
the greatest advantage8    ,and do ,i   
differ from you1 he said1 as to the     
importance of the enquiry8    ,you      
appear rather1 ,i replied1 to have no   
care or thought about us1               
,thrasymachus--whether we live better or
 worse from not knowing what you  say   

you know1 is to you a matter of         
indifference4 99#cde;,a99 ,prithee1     
friend1  do not keep your knowledge to  
yourself2 we are a large party2 and any 
benefit which you confer upon us will be
 amply rewarded4 ,for my own part  ,i   
openly declare that ,i am not convinced1
 and that ,i do not believe  injustice  
to be more gainful than justice1 even if
 uncontrolled and  allowed to have free 
play4 ,for1 granting that there may be  
an unjust man  who is able to commit    
injustice either by fraud or force1     
still this does  not convince me of the 
#bc superior advantage of injustice1 and
 there may  be others who are in the    
same predicament with myself4 ,perhaps  
we may be  wrong2 99#cde;,b99 if so1 you
 in your wisdom should convince us that 
we are  mistaken in preferring justice  
to injustice4    ,sidenote3 ,the swagger
 of ,thrasymachus4    ,and how am ,i to 
convince you1 he said1 if you are not   
already convinced by  what ,i have just 
said2 what more can ,i do for you8      

,would you have me put  the proof bodily
 into your souls8    ,heaven forbid6 ,i 
said2 ,i would only ask you to be       
consistent2 or1 if you  change1 change  
openly and let there be no deception4   
,for ,i must remark1  ,thrasymachus1 if 
you will 99#cde;,c99 recall what was    
previously said1 that  although you     
began by defining the true physician in 
an exact sense1 you  did not observe a  
like exactness when speaking of the     
shepherd2 you  thought that the shepherd
 as a shepherd tends the sheep not with 
a view to  their own good1 but like a   
mere diner or banquetter with a view to 
the  pleasures of the table2 or1 again1 
as a trader for sale in the market1 and 
not as a shepherd4 99#cde;,d99 ,yet     
surely the art of the shepherd is       
concerned  only with the good of his    
subjects2 he has only to provide the    
best for  them1 since the perfection of 
the art is already ensured whenever all 
the  requirements of it are satisfied4  
,and that was what ,i was saying just   

now  about the ruler4 ,i conceived that 
the art of the ruler1 considered as     
ruler1 whether in a 99#cde;,e99 state or
 in private life1 could only regard the 
good of his flock or subjects2 whereas  
you seem to think that the rulers  in   
states1 that is to say1 the true rulers1
 like being in authority4    ,think6    
,nay1 ,i am sure of it4    ,sidenote3   
,the arts have different functions and  
are not to be confounded  with the art  
of payment which is common to them all4 
,then why in the case of lesser offices 
do men never take them willingly        
without payment1 unless under the idea  
that 99#cdf;,a99 they govern for the    
advantage not of themselves but of      
others8 ,let me ask you a question3 ,are
  not the several arts different1 by    
reason of their each having a separate  
function8 ,and1 my dear illustrious     
friend1 do say what you think1 that we  
may make a little progress4    ,yes1    
that is the difference1 he replied4     
,and each art gives us a particular good

 and not merely a general               
one--medicine1 for example1 gives us    
health2 navigation1 safety at sea1  and 
so on8    ,yes1 he said4 #bd            
99#cdf;,b99 ,and the art of payment has 
the special function of giving pay3 but 
we do not confuse this with other arts1 
any more than the art of the pilot  is  
to be confused with the art of medicine1
 because the health of the  pilot may be
 improved by a sea voyage4 ,you would   
not be inclined to say1  would you1 that
 navigation is the art of medicine1 at  
least if we are to  adopt your exact use
 of language8    ,certainly not4    ,or 
because a man is in good health when he 
receives pay you would not say  that the
 art of payment is medicine8    ,i      
should not4    ,nor would you say that  
medicine is the art of receiving pay    
because a man  takes fees when he is    
engaged in healing8    99#cdf;,c99      
,certainly not4    ,and we have         
admitted1 ,i said1 that the good of each
 art is specially  confined to the art8 

,yes4    ,then1 if there be any good    
which all artists have in common1 that  
is to be  attributed to something of    
which they all have the common use8     
,true1 he replied4    ,and when the     
artist is benefited by receiving pay the
 advantage is gained  by an additional  
use of the art of pay1 which is not the 
art professed by  him8    ,he gave a    
reluctant assent to this4    99#cdf;,d99
 ,then the pay is not derived by the    
several artists from their  respective  
arts4 ,but the truth is1 that while the 
art of medicine gives  health1 and the  
art of the builder builds a house1      
another art attends  them which is the  
art of pay4 ,the various arts may be    
doing their own  business and benefiting
 that over which they preside1 but would
 the artist  receive any benefit from   
his art unless he were paid as well8    
,i suppose not4    99#cdf;,e99 ,but does
 he therefore confer no benefit when he 
works for nothing8    ,certainly1 he    
confers a benefit4    ,sidenote3 ,the   

true ruler or artist seeks1 not his own 
advantage1 but the  perfection of his   
art2 and therefore he must be paid4     
,then now1 ,thrasymachus1 there is no   
longer any doubt that neither arts nor  
governments provide for their own       
interests2 but1 as we were before       
saying1 they rule and provide for the   
interests of their subjects who are  the
 weaker #be and not the stronger--to    
their good they attend and not to  the  
good of the superior4 ,and this is the  
reason1 my dear ,thrasymachus1  why1 as 
,i was just now saying1 no one is       
willing to govern2 because no one  likes
 to take in hand the reformation of     
evils which are not his concern  without
 remuneration4 99#cdg;,a99 ,for1 in the 
execution of his work1 and in  giving   
his orders to another1 the true artist  
does not regard his own  interest1 but  
always that of his subjects2 and        
therefore in order that  rulers may be  
willing to rule1 they must be paid in   
one of three modes of  payment1 money1  

or honour1 or a penalty for refusing4   
,sidenote3 ,three modes of paying       
rulers1 money1 honour1 and a penalty for
  refusing to rule4    ,what do you     
mean1 ,socrates8 said ,glaucon4 ,the    
first two modes of payment  are         
intelligible enough1 but what the       
penalty is ,i do not understand1 or  how
 a penalty can be a payment4    ,you    
mean that you do not understand the     
nature of this 99#cdg;,b99 payment      
which to the best men is the great      
inducement to rule8 ,of course you know 
that ambition and avarice are held to   
be1 as indeed they are1 a disgrace8     
,very true4    ,sidenote3 ,the penalty  
is the evil of being ruled by an        
inferior4    ,sidenote3 ,in a city      
composed wholly of good men there would 
be a great  unwillingness to rule4      
,sidenote3 ,thrasymachus maintains that 
the life of the unjust is better  than  
the life of the just4    ,and for this  
reason1 ,i said1 money and honour have  
no attraction for them2  good men do not

 wish to be openly demanding payment for
 governing and so  to get the name of   
hirelings1 nor by secretly helping      
themselves out of  the public revenues  
to get the name of thieves4 ,and not    
being ambitious  they do not care about 
honour4 ,wherefore necessity 99#cdg;,c99
 must be laid  upon them1 and they must 
be induced to serve from the fear of    
punishment4  ,and this1 as ,i imagine1  
is the reason why the forwardness to    
take office1  instead of waiting to be  
compelled1 has been deemed              
dishonourable4 ,now the  worst part of  
the punishment is that he who refuses to
 rule is liable to  be ruled by one who 
is worse than himself4 ,and the fear of 
this1 as ,i  conceive1 induces the good 
to take 99#cdg;,d99 office1 not because 
they would1  but because they cannot    
help--not under the idea that they are  
going to  have any benefit or enjoyment 
themselves1 but as a necessity1 and     
because  they are not able to commit the
 task of ruling to any one who is better

  than themselves1 or indeed as good4   
,for there is reason to think that if a 
city were composed entirely of good men1
 then to avoid office would be as  much 
an object of contention as to obtain    
office is at present2 then we  should   
#bf have plain proof that the true ruler
 is not meant by nature to  regard his  
own interest1 but that of his subjects2 
and every one who knew  this would      
choose rather to receive a benefit from 
another than to have  the trouble of    
conferring one4 99#cdg;,e99 ,so far am  
,i from agreeing with  ,thrasymachus    
that justice is the interest of the     
stronger4 ,this latter  question need   
not be further discussed at present2 but
 when ,thrasymachus  says that the life 
of the unjust is more advantageous than 
that of the  just1 his new statement    
appears to me to be of a far more       
serious  character4 ,which of us has    
spoken truly8 ,and which sort of life1  
,glaucon1  do you prefer8    ,sidenote3 
,socrates1 ,glaucon1 ,thrasymachus4     

,i for my part deem the life of the just
 to be the more advantageous1 he        
answered4    99#cdh;,a99 ,did you hear  
all the advantages of the unjust which  
,thrasymachus  was rehearsing8    ,yes1 
,i heard him1 he replied1 but he has not
 convinced me4    ,then shall we try to 
find some way of convincing him1 if we  
can1 that he  is saying what is not     
true8    ,most certainly1 he replied4   
,if1 ,i said1 he makes a set speech and 
we make another recounting all the      
advantages of being just1 and he answers
 and we rejoin1 there must be a         
numbering and measuring 99#cdh;,b99 of  
the goods which are claimed on either   
side1 and in the end we shall want      
judges to decide2 but if we proceed in  
our enquiry as we lately did1 by making 
admissions to one another1 we  shall    
unite the offices of judge and advocate 
in our own persons4    ,very good1 he   
said4    ,and which method do ,i        
understand you to prefer8 ,i said4      
,that which you propose4    ,well1 then1

 ,thrasymachus1 ,i said1 suppose you    
begin at the beginning and  answer me4  
,you say that perfect injustice is more 
gainful than perfect  justice8          
99#cdh;,c99 ,yes1 that is what ,i say1  
and ,i have given you my reasons4       
,and what is your view about them8      
,would you call one of them virtue and  
the other vice8    ,certainly4    ,i    
suppose that you would call justice     
virtue and injustice vice8    ,sidenote3
 ,a paradox still more extreme1 that    
injustice is virtue1    ,what a charming
 notion6 ,so likely too1 seeing that ,i 
affirm injustice to  be profitable and  
justice not4 #bg    ,sidenote3          
,socrates1 ,thrasymachus4    ,what else 
then would you say8    ,the opposite1 he
 replied4    ,and would you call justice
 vice8    ,no1 ,i would rather say      
sublime simplicity4    99#cdh;,d99 ,then
 would you call injustice malignity8    
,no2 ,i would rather say discretion4    
,and do the unjust appear to you to be  
wise and good8    ,yes1 he said2 at any 

rate those of them who are able to be   
perfectly  unjust1 and who have the     
power of subduing states and nations2   
but perhaps  you imagine me to be       
talking of cutpurses4 ,even this        
profession if  undetected has           
advantages1 though they are not to be   
compared with those  of which ,i was    
just now speaking4    99#cdh;,e99 ,i do 
not think that ,i misapprehend your     
meaning1 ,thrasymachus1  ,i replied2 but
 still ,i cannot hear without amazement 
that you class  injustice with wisdom   
and virtue1 and justice with the        
opposite4    ,certainly ,i do so class  
them4    ,now1 ,i said1 you are on more 
substantial and almost unanswerable     
ground2  for if the injustice which you 
were maintaining to be profitable had   
been  admitted by you as by others to be
 vice and deformity1 an answer might    
have been given to you on received      
principles2 but now ,i perceive that    
99#cdi;,a99 you will call injustice     
honourable and strong1 and to the unjust

  you will attribute all the qualities  
which were attributed by us before to   
the just1 seeing that you do not        
hesitate to rank injustice with wisdom  
and virtue4    ,you have guessed most   
infallibly1 he replied4    ,then ,i     
certainly ought not to shrink from going
 through with the argument  so long as  
,i have reason to think that you1       
,thrasymachus1 are speaking  your real  
mind2 for ,i do believe that you are now
 in earnest and are not  amusing        
yourself at our expense4    ,i may be in
 earnest or not1 but what is that to    
you8--to refute the  argument is your   
business4    ,sidenote3 refuted by the  
analogy of the arts4    99#cdi;,b99     
,very true1 ,i said2 that is what ,i    
have to do3 ,but will you be so  good as
 answer yet one more question8 ,does the
 just man try to gain any  advantage    
over the just8    ,far otherwise2 if he 
did he would not be the simple amusing  
creature which  he is4 #bh    ,and would
 he try to go beyond just action8    ,he

 would not4    ,and how would he regard 
the attempt to gain an advantage over   
the unjust2  would that be considered by
 him as just or unjust8    ,sidenote3   
,the just tries to obtain an advantage  
over the unjust1 but not  over the just2
 the unjust over both just and unjust4  
,he would think it just1 and would try  
to gain the advantage2 but he would  not
 be able4    ,whether he would or would 
not be able1 ,i said1 is not to the     
point4 99#cdi;,c99  ,my question is only
 whether the just man1 while refusing to
 have more than  another just man1 would
 wish and claim to have more than the   
unjust8    ,yes1 he would4    ,and what 
of the unjust--does he claim to have    
more than the just man and  to do more  
than is just8    ,of course1 he said1   
for he claims to have more than all men4
    ,and the unjust man will strive and 
struggle to obtain more than the unjust 
man or action1 in order that he may have
 more than all8    ,true4    ,we may put
 the matter thus1 ,i said--the just does

 not desire more than his  like but more
 than his unlike1 whereas the unjust    
desires more than both  his like and his
 unlike8    99#cdi;,d99 ,nothing1 he    
said1 can be better than that statement4
    ,and the unjust is good and wise1   
and the just is neither8    ,good again1
 he said4    ,and is not the unjust like
 the wise and good and the just unlike  
them8    ,of course1 he said1 he who is 
of a certain nature1 is like those who  
are  of a certain nature2 he who is not1
 not4    ,each of them1 ,i said1 is such
 as his like is8    ,certainly1 he      
replied4    ,sidenote3 ,illustrations4  
,very good1 ,thrasymachus1 ,i said2 and 
now to take the case of the arts3 you   
would admit that one man is a musician  
and 99#cdi;,e99 another not a musician8 
,yes4    ,and which is wise and which is
 foolish8    ,clearly the musician is   
wise1 and he who is not a musician is   
foolish4    ,and he is good in as far as
 he is wise1 and bad in as far as he is 
foolish8 #bi    ,yes4    ,and you would 

say the same sort of thing of the       
physician8    ,yes4    ,and do you      
think1 my excellent friend1 that a      
musician when he adjusts the  lyre would
 desire or claim to exceed or go beyond 
a musician in the  tightening and       
loosening the strings8    ,i do not     
think that he would4    ,but he would   
claim to exceed the non-musician8    ,of
 course4    99#cej;,a99 ,and what would 
you say of the physician8 ,in           
prescribing meats and  drinks would he  
wish to go beyond another physician or  
beyond the practice  of medicine8    ,he
 would not4    ,but he would wish to go 
beyond the non-physician8    ,yes4      
,sidenote3 ,the artist remains within   
the limits of his art3    ,and about    
knowledge and ignorance in general2 see 
whether you think that  any man who has 
knowledge ever would wish to have the   
choice of saying or  doing more than    
another man who has knowledge4 ,would he
 not rather say or  do the same as his  
like in the same case8    ,that1 ,i     

suppose1 can hardly be denied4    ,and  
what of the ignorant8 would he not      
desire to have 99#cej;,b99 more than    
either the knowing or the ignorant8     
,i dare say4    ,and the knowing is     
wise8    ,yes4    ,and the wise is good8
    ,true4    ,then the wise and good   
will not desire to gain more than his   
like1 but  more than his unlike and     
opposite8    ,i suppose so4    ,whereas 
the bad and ignorant will desire to gain
 more than both8    ,yes4    ,but did we
 not say1 ,thrasymachus1 that the unjust
 goes beyond both his  like and unlike8 
,were not these your words8    ,they    
were4    ,sidenote3 and similarly the   
just man does not exceed the limits of  
other  just men4    99#cej;,c99 ,and you
 also said that the just will not go    
beyond his like but his  unlike8 #cj    
,yes4    ,then the just is like the wise
 and good1 and the unjust like the evil 
and  ignorant8    ,that is the          
inference4    ,and each of them is such 
as his like is8    ,that was admitted4  

,then the just has turned out to be wise
 and good and the unjust evil and       
ignorant4    ,sidenote3 ,thrasymachus   
perspiring and even blushing4           
,thrasymachus made all these admissions1
 not fluently1 as 99#cej;,d99 ,i repeat 
them1 but with extreme reluctance2 it   
was a hot summer's day1 and the         
perspiration poured from him in         
torrents2 and then ,i saw what ,i had   
never  seen before1 ,thrasymachus       
blushing4 ,as we were now agreed that   
justice was  virtue and wisdom1 and     
injustice vice and ignorance1 ,i        
proceeded to  another point3    ,well1  
,i said1 ,thrasymachus1 that matter is  
now settled2 but were we not  also      
saying that injustice had strength2 do  
you remember8    ,yes1 ,i remember1 he  
said1 but do not suppose that ,i approve
 of what you  are saying or have no     
answer2 if however ,i were to answer1   
you would be  quite certain to accuse me
 of haranguing2 99#cej;,e99 therefore   
either permit  me to have my say out1 or

 if you would rather ask1 do so1 and ,i 
will  answer ',very good1' as they say  
to story-telling old women1 and will nod
  ',yes' and ',no4'    ,certainly not1  
,i said1 if contrary to your real       
opinion4    ,yes1 he said1 ,i will1 to  
please you1 since you will not let me   
speak4 ,what  else would you have8      
,nothing in the world1 ,i said2 and if  
you are so disposed ,i will ask and  you
 shall answer4    ,proceed4    ,then ,i 
will repeat the question which ,i asked 
before1 in 99#cea;,a99 order that  our  
examination of the relative nature of   
justice and injustice may be  carried on
 regularly4 ,a statement was made that  
injustice is stronger and  more powerful
 than justice1 but now justice1 having  
been identified with  wisdom and virtue1
 is easily shown to be stronger than    
injustice1 if  injustice is ignorance2  
this can no longer be questioned by any 
one4 ,but  ,i want to view the matter1  
,thrasymachus1 in a different way3      
99#cea;,b99 ,you  would not deny that a 

state may be #ca unjust and may be      
unjustly  attempting to enslave other   
states1 or may have already enslaved    
them1 and  may be holding many of them  
in subjection8    ,true1 he replied2 and
 ,i will add that the best and most     
perfectly unjust  state will be most    
likely to do so4    ,i know1 ,i said1   
that such was your position2 but what ,i
 would further  consider is1 whether    
this power which is possessed by the    
superior state  can exist or be         
exercised without justice or only with  
justice4    ,sidenote3 ,at this point   
the temper of ,thrasymachus begins to   
improve4 ,cp4  #e4 #dej ,a1 #f4 #dih ,c4
    99#cea;,c99 ,if you are right in    
your view1 and justice is wisdom1 then  
only  with justice2 but if ,i am right1 
then without justice4    ,i am          
delighted1 ,thrasymachus1 to see you not
 only nodding assent and  dissent1 but  
making answers which are quite          
excellent4    ,that is out of civility  
to you1 he replied4    ,you are very    

kind1 ,i said2 and would you have the   
goodness also to inform  me1 whether you
 think that a state1 or an army1 or a   
band of robbers and  thieves1 or any    
other gang of evil-doers could act at   
all if they injured  one another8       
99#cea;,d99 ,no indeed1 he said1 they   
could not4    ,but if they abstained    
from injuring one another1 then they    
might act  together better8    ,yes4    
,and this is because injustice creates  
divisions and hatreds and fighting1  and
 justice imparts harmony and friendship2
 is not that true1  ,thrasymachus8      
,sidenote3 ,perfect injustice1 whether  
in state or individuals1 is  destructive
 to them4    ,i agree1 he said1 because 
,i do not wish to quarrel with you4     
,how good of you1 ,i said2 but ,i should
 like to know also whether injustice1   
having this tendency to arouse hatred1  
wherever existing1 among slaves or      
among freemen1 will not make them hate  
one another and set them at  variance   
and render them incapable of common     

action8    ,certainly4    99#cea;,e99   
,and even if injustice be found in two  
only1 will they not quarrel  and fight1 
and become enemies to one another and to
 the just8    ,they will4    ,and       
suppose injustice abiding in a single   
person1 would your wisdom say  that she 
loses or that she retains her natural   
power8 #cb    ,let us assume that she   
retains her power4    ,yet is not the   
power which injustice exercises of such 
a nature that  wherever she takes up her
 abode1 whether in a city1 in an army1  
in a  family1 or in any other body1 that
 body is1 99#ceb;,a99 to begin with1    
rendered  incapable of united action by 
reason of sedition and distraction2 and 
does  it not become its own enemy and at
 variance with all that opposes it1 and 
with the just8 ,is not this the case8   
,yes1 certainly4    ,and is not         
injustice equally fatal when existing in
 a single person2 in  the first place   
rendering him incapable of action       
because he is not at  unity with        

himself1 and in the second place making 
him an enemy to himself  and the just8  
,is not that true1 ,thrasymachus8       
,yes4    ,and ,o my friend1 ,i said1    
surely the gods are just8    ,granted   
that they are4    99#ceb;,b99 ,but if   
so1 the unjust will be the enemy of the 
gods1 and the just  will be their       
friend8    ,feast away in triumph1 and  
take your fill of the argument2 ,i will 
not  oppose you1 lest ,i should         
displease the company4    ,sidenote3    
,recapitulation4    ,well then1 proceed 
with your answers1 and let me have the  
remainder of my  repast4 ,for we have   
already shown that the just are clearly 
wiser and  better and abler than the    
unjust1 and that the unjust are         
incapable of  common action2 99#ceb;,c99
 nay more1 that to speak as we did of   
men who are  evil acting at any time    
vigorously together1 is not strictly    
true1 for if  they had been perfectly   
evil1 they would have laid hands upon   
one another2  but it is evident that    

there must have been some remnant of    
justice in  them1 which enabled them to 
combine2 if there had not been they     
would have  injured one another as well 
as their victims2 they were but         
half-villains  in their enterprises2 for
 had they been whole villains1 and      
utterly  unjust1 they would have been   
utterly incapable of action4 99#ceb;,d99
 ,that1 as  ,i believe1 is the truth of 
the matter1 and not what you said at    
first4 ,but  whether the just have a    
better and happier life than the unjust 
is a  further question which we also    
proposed to consider4 ,i think that they
  have1 and for the reasons which ,i    
have given2 but still #cc ,i should like
  to examine further1 for no light      
matter is at stake1 nothing less than   
the  rule of human life4    ,proceed4   
,sidenote3 ,illustrations of ends and   
excellences preparatory to the  enquiry 
into the end and excellence of the soul4
    ,i will proceed by asking a         
question3 ,would you not say that a     

horse has  some end8    99#ceb;,e99 ,i  
should4    ,and the end or use of a     
horse or of anything would be that which
 could not  be accomplished1 or not so  
well accomplished1 by any other thing8  
,i do not understand1 he said4    ,let  
me explain3 ,can you see1 except with   
the eye8    ,certainly not4    ,or hear1
 except with the ear8    ,no4    ,these 
then may be truly said to be the ends of
 these organs8    ,they may4            
99#cec;,a99 ,but you can cut off a      
vine-branch with a dagger or with a     
chisel1  and in many other ways8    ,of 
course4    ,and yet not so well as with 
a pruning-hook made for the purpose8    
,true4    ,may we not say that this is  
the end of a pruning-hook8    ,we may4  
,then now ,i think you will have no     
difficulty in understanding my meaning  
when ,i asked the question whether the  
end of anything would be that which     
could not be accomplished1 or not so    
well accomplished1 by any other  thing8 
99#cec;,b99 ,i understand your meaning1 

he said1 and assent4    ,sidenote3 ,all 
things which have ends have also virtues
 and excellences by  which they fulfil  
those ends4    ,and that to which an end
 is appointed has also an excellence8   
,need ,i ask  again whether the eye has 
an end8    ,it has4    ,and has not the 
eye an excellence8    ,yes4    ,and the 
ear has an end and an excellence also8  
,true4    ,and the same is true of all  
other things2 they have each of them an 
end  and a special excellence8    ,that 
is so4    ,well1 and can the eyes fulfil
 their end if they are #cd wanting      
99#cec;,c99 in  their own proper        
excellence and have a defect instead8   
,how can they1 he said1 if they are     
blind and cannot see8    ,you mean to   
say1 if they have lost their proper     
excellence1 which is  sight2 but ,i have
 not arrived at that point yet4 ,i would
 rather ask the  question more          
generally1 and only enquire whether the 
things which fulfil  their ends fulfil  
them by their own proper excellence1 and

 fail of  fulfilling them by their own  
defect8    ,certainly1 he replied4    ,i
 might say the same of the ears2 when   
deprived of their own proper  excellence
 they cannot fulfil their end8    ,true4
    99#cec;,d99 ,and the same           
observation will apply to all other     
things8    ,i agree4    ,sidenote3 ,and 
the soul has a virtue and an end--the   
virtue justice1 the  end happiness4     
,well2 and has not the soul an end which
 nothing else can fulfil8 for  example1 
to superintend and command and          
deliberate and the like4 ,are not  these
 functions proper to the soul1 and can  
they rightly be assigned to  any other8 
,to no other4    ,and is not life to be 
reckoned among the ends of the soul8    
,assuredly1 he said4    ,and has not the
 soul an excellence also8    ,yes4      
99#cec;,e99 ,and can she or can she not 
fulfil her own ends when deprived of    
that excellence8    ,she cannot4        
,then an evil soul must necessarily be  
an evil ruler and superintendent1  and  

the good soul a good ruler8    ,yes1    
necessarily4    ,sidenote3 ,hence       
justice and happiness are necessarily   
connected4    ,and we have admitted that
 justice is the excellence of the soul1 
and  injustice the defect of the soul8  
,that has been admitted4    ,then the   
just soul and the just man will live    
well1 and the unjust man  will live ill8
    ,that is what your argument proves4 
99#ced;,a99 ,and he who lives well is   
blessed and happy1 and he who lives ill 
the reverse of happy8    ,certainly4    
,then the just is happy1 and the unjust 
miserable8 #ce    ,so be it4    ,but    
happiness and not misery is profitable4 
,of course4    ,then1 my blessed        
,thrasymachus1 injustice can never be   
more profitable than  justice4    ,let  
this1 ,socrates1 he said1 be your       
entertainment at the ,bendidea4         
,sidenote3 ,socrates is displeased with 
himself and with the argument4    ,for  
which ,i am indebted to you1 ,i said1   
now that you have grown gentle  towards 

me and have left off scolding4          
,nevertheless1 99#ced;,b99 ,i have not  
been well entertained2 but that was my  
own fault and not yours4 ,as an  epicure
 snatches a taste of every dish which is
 successively brought to  table1 he not 
having allowed himself time to enjoy the
 one before1 so have  ,i gone from one  
subject to another without having       
discovered what ,i sought  at first1 the
 nature of justice4 ,i left that enquiry
 and turned away to  consider whether   
justice is virtue and wisdom or evil and
 folly2 and when  there arose a further 
question about the comparative          
advantages of justice  and injustice1 ,i
 could not refrain from passing on to   
that4 ,and the result  of the whole     
discussion has been that ,i know nothing
 at all4 99#ced;,c99 ,for  ,i know not  
what justice is1 and therefore ,i am not
 likely to know whether  it is or is not
 a virtue1 nor can ,i say whether the   
just man is happy or  unhappy4          
,,book ,,ii4      ,sidenote3 ,republic  

,,ii4 ,socrates1 ,glaucon4              
99#ceg;,a99 ,with these words ,i was    
thinking that ,i had made an end of the 
discussion2 but the end1 in truth1      
proved to be only a beginning4 ,for     
,glaucon1 who is always the most        
pugnacious of men1 was dissatisfied at  
,thrasymachus' retirement2 he wanted to 
have the battle out4 ,so he said to  me3
 ,socrates1 do you wish really to       
persuade us1 or only to seem to         
99#ceg;,b99  have persuaded us1 that to 
be just is always better than to be     
unjust8    ,i should wish really to     
persuade you1 ,i replied1 if ,i could4  
,sidenote3 ,the threefold division of   
goods4    ,then you certainly have not  
succeeded4 ,let me ask you now3--,how   
would you  arrange goods--are there not 
some which we welcome for their own     
sakes1  and independently of their      
consequences1 as1 for example1 harmless 
pleasures and enjoyments1 which delight 
us at the time1 although nothing        
follows from them8    ,i agree in       

thinking that there is such a class1 ,i 
replied4    99#ceg;,c99 ,is there not   
also a second class of goods1 such as   
knowledge1  sight1 health1 which are    
desirable not only in themselves1 but   
also for  their results8    ,certainly1 
,i said4    ,and would you not recognize
 a third class1 such as gymnastic1 and  
the care  of the sick1 and the          
physician's art2 also the various ways  
of  money-making--these do us good but  
we regard them as disagreeable2 and no  
one would choose them 99#ceg;,d99 for   
their own sakes1 but only for the sake  
of  some reward or result which flows   
from them8    ,there is1 ,i said1 this  
third class also4 ,but why do you ask8  
,because ,i want to know in which of the
 three classes you would place  justice8
    99#ceh;,a99 ,in the highest class1  
,i replied1--among those goods which #cg
 he  who would be happy desires both for
 their own sake and for the sake of     
their results4    ,then the many are of 
another mind2 they think that justice is

 to be  reckoned in the troublesome     
class1 among goods which are to be      
pursued for  the sake of rewards and of 
reputation1 but in themselves are       
disagreeable  and rather to be avoided4 
,i know1 ,i said1 that this is their    
manner of thinking1 and that this was   
the thesis which ,thrasymachus was      
maintaining just now1 when he censured  
justice and praised injustice4 ,but ,i  
am too stupid to be convinced by him4   
,sidenote3 ,three heads of the          
argument3--#a4 ,the nature of justice3  
#b4  ,justice a necessity1 but not a    
good3 #c4 ,the reasonableness of this   
notion4    99#ceh;,b99 ,i wish1 he said1
 that you would hear me as well as him1 
and then  ,i shall see whether you and  
,i agree4 ,for ,thrasymachus seems to   
me1 like a  snake1 to have been charmed 
by your voice sooner than he ought to   
have  been2 but to my mind the nature of
 justice and injustice have not yet been
  made clear4 ,setting aside their      
rewards and results1 ,i want to know    

what  they are in themselves1 and how   
they inwardly work in the soul4 ,if you 
please1 then1 ,i will revive the        
argument of ,thrasymachus4 99#ceh;,c99  
,and first  ,i will speak of the nature 
and origin of justice according to the  
common  view of them4 ,secondly1 ,i will
 show that all men who practise justice 
do  so against their will1 of necessity1
 but not as a good4 ,and thirdly1  ,i   
will argue that there is reason in this 
view1 for the life of the unjust  is    
after all better far than the life of   
the just--if what they say is  true1    
,socrates1 since ,i myself am not of    
their opinion4 ,but still  ,i           
acknowledge that ,i am perplexed when ,i
 hear the voices of ,thrasymachus  and  
myriads of others dinning in my ears2   
and1 on the other hand1 ,i have         
99#ceh;,d99 never yet heard the         
superiority of justice to injustice     
maintained  by any one in a satisfactory
 way4 ,i want to hear justice praised in
  respect of itself2 then ,i shall be   

satisfied1 and you are the person from  
whom ,i think that ,i am most likely to 
hear this2 and therefore ,i will  praise
 the unjust life to the utmost of my    
power1 and my manner of  speaking will  
indicate the manner in which ,i desire  
to hear you too  praising justice and   
censuring injustice4 ,will you say      
whether you approve  of my proposal8    
,indeed ,i do2 nor can ,i imagine any   
theme about which a man of sense would  
oftener wish to converse4 #ch           
,sidenote3 ,glaucon4    99#ceh;,e99 ,i  
am delighted1 he replied1 to hear you   
say so1 and shall begin by  speaking1 as
 ,i proposed1 of the nature and origin  
of justice4    ,sidenote3 ,justice a    
compromise between doing and suffering  
evil4    ,they say that to do injustice 
is1 by nature1 good2 to suffer          
injustice1  evil2 but that the evil is  
greater than the good4 ,and so when men 
have  both done and suffered injustice  
and 99#cei;,a99 have had experience of  
both1  not being able to avoid the one  

and obtain the other1 they think that   
they  had better agree among themselves 
to have neither2 hence there arise laws 
and mutual covenants2 and that which is 
ordained by law is termed by them       
lawful and just4 ,this they affirm to be
 the origin and nature of  justice2--it 
is a mean or compromise1 between the    
best of all1 which is to  do injustice  
and not be punished1 and the worst of   
all1 which is to suffer  injustice      
without the power of retaliation2 and   
justice1 being at a middle  point       
between the two1 is tolerated not as a  
good1 but as the lesser evil1  and      
honoured by reason of the inability of  
men to do injustice4 99#cei;,b99 ,for   
no man who is worthy to be called a man 
would ever submit to such an  agreement 
if he were able to resist2 he would be  
mad if he did4 ,such is  the received   
account1 ,socrates1 of the nature and   
origin of justice4    ,sidenote3 ,the   
story of ,gyges4    ,sidenote3 ,the     
application of the story of ,gyges4     

,now that those who practise justice do 
so involuntarily and because they  have 
not the power to be unjust will best    
appear 99#cei;,c99 if we imagine        
something of this kind3 having given    
both to the just and the unjust power   
to do what they will1 let us watch and  
see whither desire will lead them2  then
 we shall discover in the very act the  
just and unjust man to be  proceeding   
along the same road1 following their    
interest1 which all  natures deem to be 
their good1 and are only diverted into  
the path of  justice by the force of    
law4 ,the liberty which we are supposing
 may be  most completely given to them  
in the form of such a power as is said  
to  have been 99#cei;,d99 possessed by  
,gyges1 the ancestor of ,croesus the    
,lydian#a4 ,according to the tradition1 
,gyges was a shepherd in the service  of
 the king of ,lydia2 there was a great  
storm1 and an earthquake made an        
opening in the earth at the place where 
he was feeding his flock4 ,amazed  at   

the sight1 he #ci descended into the    
opening1 where1 among other  marvels1 he
 beheld a hollow brazen horse1 having   
doors1 at which he  stooping and looking
 in saw a dead body of stature1 as      
appeared to him1  more than human1 and  
having nothing on but a gold ring2      
99#cei;,e99 this he  took from the      
finger of the dead and reascended4 ,now 
the shepherds met  together1 according  
to custom1 that they might send their   
monthly report  about the flocks to the 
king2 into their assembly he came having
 the ring  on his finger1 and as he was 
sitting among them he chanced to turn   
the  collet of the ring inside his hand1
 when instantly he became invisible to  
the rest of the company and they began  
to speak of him as if he were no  longer
 present4 99#cfj;,a99 ,he was astonished
 at this1 and again touching the  ring  
he turned the collet outwards and       
reappeared2 he made several trials  of  
the ring1 and always with the same      
result--when he turned the collet       

inwards he became invisible1 when       
outwards he reappeared4 ,whereupon he   
contrived to be chosen one of the       
messengers who were sent to the court2  
where as soon as he arrived 99#cfj;,b99 
he seduced the queen1 and with her help 
conspired against the king and slew him1
 and took the kingdom4 ,suppose now     
that there were two such magic rings1   
and the just put on one of them and  the
 unjust the other2 no man can be        
imagined to be of such an iron nature   
that he would stand fast in justice4 ,no
 man would keep his hands off what  was 
not his own when he could safely take   
what he 99#cfj;,c99 liked out of the    
market1 or go into houses and lie with  
any one at his pleasure1 or kill or     
release from prison whom he would1 and  
in all respects be like a ,god among    
men4 ,then the actions of the just would
 be as the actions of the unjust2  they 
would both come at last to the same     
point4 ,and this we may truly  affirm to
 be a great proof that a man is just1   

not willingly or because he  thinks that
 justice is any good to him             
individually1 but of necessity1 for     
wherever any one thinks that he can     
safely be unjust1 there he is unjust4   
,for 99#cfj;,d99 all men believe in     
their hearts that injustice is far more 
profitable to the individual than       
justice1 and he who argues as ,i have   
been supposing1 will say that they are  
right4 ,if you could imagine any one    
obtaining this power of becoming        
invisible1 and never doing any wrong or 
touching what was another's1 he would be
 thought by the lookers-on to be a  #dj 
most wretched idiot1 although they would
 praise him to one another's  faces1 and
 keep up appearances with one another   
from a fear that they too  might suffer 
injustice4 ,enough of this4    ,footnote
 #a3 ,reading ,greek3 ,gu_/n t          
,kroi_/sou tou ,ludou progo_/n4         
,sidenote3 ,the unjust to be clothed    
with power and reputation4    ,sidenote3
 ,the just to be unclothed of all but   

his virtue4    99#cfj;,e99 ,now1 if we  
are to form a real judgment of the life 
of the just and  unjust1 we must isolate
 them2 there is no other way2 and how is
 the  isolation to be effected8 ,i      
answer3 ,let the unjust man be entirely 
unjust1  and the just man entirely just2
 nothing is to be taken away from either
 of  them1 and both are to be perfectly 
furnished for the work of their         
respective lives4 ,first1 let the unjust
 be like other distinguished  masters of
 craft2 like the skilful pilot or       
99#cfa;,a99 physician1 who knows        
intuitively his own powers and keeps    
within their limits1 and who1 if he     
fails at any point1 is able to recover  
himself4 ,so let the unjust make his    
unjust attempts in the right way1 and   
lie hidden if he means to be great  in  
his injustice3 7he who is found out is  
nobody37 for the highest reach  of      
injustice is1 to be deemed just when you
 are not4 ,therefore ,i say that  in the
 perfectly unjust man we must assume the

 most perfect injustice2  there is to be
 no deduction1 but we must allow him1   
while doing the most  unjust acts1      
99#cfa;,b99 to have acquired the        
greatest reputation for justice4  ,if he
 have taken a false step he must be able
 to recover himself2 he must  be one who
 can speak with effect1 if any of his   
deeds come to light1 and  who can force 
his way where force is required by his  
courage and strength1  and command of   
money and friends4 ,and at his side let 
us place the just  man in his nobleness 
and simplicity1 wishing1 as ,aeschylus  
says1 to be and  not to seem good4      
,there must be no seeming1 99#cfa;,c99  
for if he seem to be  just he will be   
honoured and rewarded1 and then we shall
 not know whether  he is just for the   
sake of justice or for the sake of      
honours and rewards2  therefore1 let him
 be clothed in justice only1 and have no
 other covering2  and he must be        
imagined in a state of life the opposite
 of the former4 ,let  him be the best of

 men1 and let him be thought the worst2 
then he will  have been put to the      
proof2 and we shall see whether he will 
be affected  by the fear of infamy and  
its consequences4 ,and let him continue 
99#cfa;,d99  thus to the hour of death2 
being just and seeming to be unjust4    
,when both  have reached the uttermost  
extreme1 #da the one of justice and the 
other  of injustice1 let judgment be    
given which of them is the happier of   
the  two4    ,sidenote3 ,socrates1      
,glaucon4    ,heavens6 my dear ,glaucon1
 ,i said1 how energetically you polish  
them up for  the decision1 first one and
 then the other1 as if they were two    
statues4    ,sidenote3 ,the just man    
will learn by each experience that he   
ought to  seem and not to be just4      
,sidenote3 ,the unjust who appears just 
will attain every sort of  prosperity4  
,i do my best1 he said4 ,and now that we
 know what they are like there is no    
difficulty in tracing out the sort of   
life 99#cfa;,e99 which awaits either of 

them4 ,this ,i will proceed to describe2
 but as you may think the  description a
 little too coarse1 ,i ask you to       
suppose1 ,socrates1 that the  words     
which follow are not mine4--,let me put 
them into the mouths of the  eulogists  
of injustice3 ,they will tell you that  
the just man who is  thought unjust will
 be scourged1 racked1 bound--will have  
his eyes burnt  out2 and1 at last1 after
 suffering every kind of evil1 he will  
be impaled3  ,then he will understand   
that he 99#cfb;,a99 ought to seem only1 
and not to be1  just2 the words of      
,aeschylus may be more truly spoken of  
the unjust than  of the just4 ,for the  
unjust is pursuing a reality2 he does   
not live with a  view to appearances--he
 wants to be really unjust and not to   
seem only3--      ',his mind has a soil 
deep and fertile1 99#cfb;,b99    ,out of
 which spring his prudent counsels4'#b  
,in the first place1 he is thought just1
 and therefore bears rule in the  city2 
he can marry whom he will1 and give in  

marriage to whom he will2  also he can  
trade and deal where he likes1 and      
always to his own  advantage1 because he
 has no misgivings about injustice2 and 
at every  contest1 whether in public or 
private1 he gets the better of his      
antagonists1 and gains at their expense1
 and is rich1 and out of his gains  he  
99#cfb;,c99 can benefit his friends1 and
 harm his enemies2 moreover1 he can     
offer sacrifices1 and dedicate gifts to 
the gods abundantly and  magnificently1 
and can honour the gods or any man whom 
he wants to honour  in a far better     
style than the just1 and therefore he is
 likely to be  dearer than they are to  
the gods4 ,and thus1 ,socrates1 gods and
 men are  said to unite in making the   
life of the unjust better than the life 
of the  just4    ,footnote #b3 ,seven   
against ,thebes1 #egd4    ,sidenote3    
,adeimantus1 ,socrates4    99#cfb;,d99  
,i was going to say something in answer 
to ,glaucon1 when #db  ,adeimantus1 his 
brother1 interposed3 ,socrates1 he said1

 you do not suppose  that there is      
nothing more to be urged8    ,why1 what 
else is there8 ,i answered4    ,the     
strongest point of all has not been even
 mentioned1 he replied4    ,well1 then1 
according to the proverb1 ',let brother 
help brother'--if he  fails in any part 
do you assist him2 although ,i must     
confess that ,glaucon  has already said 
quite enough to lay me in the dust1 and 
take from me the  power of helping      
justice4    ,sidenote3 ,adeimantus4     
,sidenote3 ,adeimantus takes up the     
argument4 ,justice is praised and       
injustice blamed1 but only out of regard
 to their consequences4    ,sidenote3   
,the rewards and punishments of another 
life4    99#cfb;,e99 ,nonsense1 he      
replied4 ,but let me add something more3
 ,there is  another side to ,glaucon's  
argument about the praise and censure of
 justice  and injustice1 which is       
equally required in order to bring out  
what  ,i believe to be his meaning4     
,parents and tutors are always telling  

their  sons and their 99#cfc;,a99 wards 
that they are to be just2 but why8 not  
for the  sake of justice1 but for the   
sake of character and reputation2 in the
 hope  of obtaining for him who is      
reputed just some of those offices1     
marriages1  and the like which ,glaucon 
has enumerated among the advantages     
accruing to  the unjust from the        
reputation of justice4 ,more1 however1  
is made of  appearances by this class of
 persons than by the others2 for they   
throw in  the good opinion of the gods1 
and will tell you of a shower of        
benefits  which the heavens1 as they    
say1 rain upon the pious2 and this      
accords with  the testimony of the noble
 ,hesiod and ,homer1 the first of whom  
says1 that  the gods 99#cfc;,b99 make   
the oaks of the just--      ',to bear   
acorns at their summit1 and bees in the 
middle2    ,and the sheep are bowed down
 with the weight of their fleeces#c1'   
and many other blessings of a like kind 
are provided for them4 ,and ,homer  has 

a very similar strain2 for he speaks of 
one whose fame is--      ',as the fame  
of some blameless king who1 like a god1 
,maintains justice2 to whom the black   
earth brings forth 99#cfc;,c99    ,wheat
 and barley1 whose trees are bowed with 
fruit1    ,and his sheep never fail to  
bear1 and the sea gives him fish#d4'    
,still grander are the gifts of heaven  
which ,musaeus and his son#e  vouchsafe 
to the just2 they take them down into   
the #dc world below1  where they have   
the saints lying on couches at a feast1 
everlastingly  drunk1 crowned with      
garlands2 99#cfc;,d99 their idea seems  
to be that an  immortality of           
drunkenness is the highest meed of      
virtue4 ,some extend  their rewards yet 
further2 the posterity1 as they say1 of 
the faithful and  just shall survive to 
the third and fourth generation4 ,this  
is the style  in which they praise      
justice4 ,but about the wicked there is 
another  strain2 they bury them in a    
slough in ,hades1 and make them carry   

water in  a sieve2 also while they are  
yet living they bring them to infamy1   
and  inflict 99#cfc;,e99 upon them the  
punishments which ,glaucon described as 
the  portion of the just who are reputed
 to be unjust2 nothing else does their  
invention supply4 ,such is their manner 
of praising the one and censuring  the  
other4    ,footnote #c3 ,hesiod1 ,works 
and ,days1 #bcj4    ,footnote #d3       
,homer1 ,od4 xix4 #aji4    ,footnote #e3
 ,eumolpus4    ,sidenote3 ,men are      
always repeating that virtue is painful 
and vice  pleasant4    ,sidenote3 ,they 
are taught that sins may be easily      
expiated4    ,once more1 ,socrates1 ,i  
will ask you to consider another way of 
speaking  about justice and injustice1  
which is not confined to the poets1     
99#cfd;,a99  but is found in prose      
writers4 ,the universal voice of mankind
 is always  declaring that justice and  
virtue are honourable1 but grievous and 
toilsome2 and that the pleasures of vice
 and injustice are easy of  attainment1 

and are only censured by law and        
opinion4 ,they say also that  honesty is
 for the most part less profitable than 
dishonesty2 and they are  quite ready to
 call wicked men happy1 and to honour   
them both in public  and private when   
they are rich or in any other way       
influential1 while they  despise and    
overlook 99#cfd;,b99 those who may be   
weak and poor1 even though              
acknowledging them to be better than the
 others4 ,but most extraordinary of  all
 is their mode of speaking about virtue 
and the gods3 they say that the  gods   
apportion calamity and misery to many   
good men1 and good and  happiness to the
 wicked4 ,and mendicant prophets go to  
rich men's doors and  persuade them that
 they have a power committed to them by 
the gods of  making an atonement for a  
man's own or his ancestor's 99#cfd;,c99 
sins by  sacrifices or charms1 with     
rejoicings and feasts2 and they promise 
to harm  an enemy1 whether just or      
unjust1 at a small cost2 with magic arts

 and  incantations binding heaven1 as   
they say1 to execute their will4 ,and   
the  poets are the authorities to whom  
they appeal1 now smoothing the path of  
vice with the words of ,hesiod2-- #dd   
',vice may be had in abundance without  
trouble2 99#cfd;,d99 the way is smooth  
and her dwelling-place is near4 ,but    
before virtue the gods have set         
toil#f1'    and a tedious and uphill    
road3 then citing ,homer as a witness   
that the  gods may be influenced by men2
 for he also says3--      ',the gods1   
too1 may be turned from their purpose2  
and men pray to them    and avert their 
wrath by sacrifices and 99#cfd;,e99     
soothing entreaties1 and    by libations
 and the odour of fat1 when they have   
sinned and    transgressed#g4'    ,and  
they produce a host of books written by 
,musaeus and ,orpheus1 who were         
children of the ,moon and the           
,muses--that is what they say--according
 to  which they perform their ritual1   
and persuade not only individuals1 but  

whole cities1 that expiations and       
atonements for sin may be made by       
sacrifices and amusements which fill a  
vacant hour1 and are equally at the     
service of the living and the dead2 the 
latter 99#cfe;,a99 sort they call       
mysteries1 and they redeem us from the  
pains of hell1 but if we neglect  them  
no one knows what awaits us4            
,footnote #f3 ,hesiod1 ,works and ,days1
 #bhg4    ,footnote #g3 ,homer1 ,iliad1 
ix4 #dic4    ,sidenote3 ,the effects of 
all this upon the youthful mind4    ,he 
proceeded3 ,and now when the young hear 
all this said about virtue and  vice1   
and the way in which gods and men regard
 them1 how are their minds  likely to be
 affected1 my dear ,socrates1--those of 
them1 ,i mean1 who are  quickwitted1    
and1 like bees on the wing1 light on    
every flower1 and from  all that they   
hear are prone to draw conclusions as to
 what manner of  persons they should be 
and in what way they 99#cfe;,b99 should 
walk if they  would make the best of    

life8 ,probably the youth will say to   
himself in the  words of ,pindar--      
',can ,i by justice or by crooked ways  
of deceit ascend a loftier tower        
which may be a fortress to me all my    
days8'    ,sidenote3 ,the existence of  
the gods is only known to us through the
  poets1 who likewise assure us that    
they may be bribed and that they are    
very ready to forgive4    ,for what men 
say is that1 if ,i am really just and am
 not also thought just  profit there is 
none1 but the pain and loss on the other
 hand are  unmistakeable4 ,but if1      
though unjust1 ,i acquire the reputation
 of justice1  a heavenly life is        
promised to me4 99#cfe;,c99 ,since then1
 as philosophers  prove1 appearance     
tyrannizes over truth and is lord of    
happiness1 to  appearance ,i must devote
 myself4 ,i will describe around me a   
picture and  shadow of virtue to be the 
vestibule and exterior of my #de house2 
behind  ,i will trail the subtle and    
crafty fox1 as ,archilochus1 greatest of

 sages1  recommends4 ,but ,i hear some  
one exclaiming that the concealment of  
wickedness is often difficult2          
99#cfe;,d99 to which ,i answer1 ,nothing
 great is  easy4 ,nevertheless1 the     
argument indicates this1 if we would be 
happy1 to  be the path along which we   
should proceed4 ,with a view to         
concealment we  will establish secret   
brotherhoods and political clubs4 ,and  
there are  professors of rhetoric who   
teach the art of persuading courts and  
assemblies2 and so1 partly by persuasion
 and partly by force1 ,i shall make     
unlawful gains and not be punished4     
,still ,i hear a voice saying that the  
gods cannot be deceived1 neither can    
they be compelled4 ,but what if there   
are no gods8 or1 suppose them to have no
 care of human things--why in  either   
case 99#cfe;,e99 should we mind about   
concealment8 ,and even if there are     
gods1 and they do care about us1 yet we 
know of them only from tradition  and   
the genealogies of the poets2 and these 

are the very persons who say  that they 
may be influenced and turned by         
'sacrifices and soothing  entreaties and
 by offerings4' ,let us be consistent   
then1 and believe both  or neither4 ,if 
the poets speak truly1 why then we had  
better 99#cff;,a99 be  unjust1 and offer
 of the fruits of injustice2 for if we  
are just1 although  we may escape the   
vengeance of heaven1 we shall lose the  
gains of  injustice2 but1 if we are     
unjust1 we shall keep the gains1 and by 
our  sinning and praying1 and praying   
and sinning1 the gods will be           
propitiated1 and we shall not be        
punished4 ',but there is a world below  
in  which either we or our posterity    
will suffer for our unjust deeds4' ,yes1
  my friend1 will be the reflection1 but
 there are mysteries and atoning        
deities1 and these have great power4    
,that is 99#cff;,b99 what mighty cities 
declare2 and the children of the gods1  
who were their poets and prophets1  bear
 a like testimony4    ,sidenote3 ,all   

this1 even if not absolutely true1      
affords great excuse for  doing wrong4  
,on what principle1 then1 shall we any  
longer choose justice rather than  the  
worst injustice8 when1 if we only unite 
the latter with a deceitful  regard to  
appearances1 we shall fare to our mind  
both with gods and men1  in life and    
after death1 as the most numerous and   
the highest authorities  tell us4       
99#cff;,c99 ,knowing all this1          
,socrates1 how can a man who has any    
superiority of mind or person or rank or
 wealth1 be willing to honour  justice2 
or indeed to refrain from laughing when 
he hears #df justice  praised8 ,and even
 if there should be some one who is able
 to disprove the  truth of my words1 and
 who is satisfied that justice is best1 
still he is  not angry with the unjust1 
but is very ready to forgive them1      
because he  also 99#cff;,d99 knows that 
men are not just of their own free will2
 unless1  peradventure1 there be some   
one whom the divinity within him may    

have  inspired with a hatred of         
injustice1 or who has attained knowledge
 of the  truth--but no other man4 ,he   
only blames injustice who1 owing to     
cowardice  or age or some weakness1 has 
not the power of being unjust4 ,and this
 is  proved by the fact that when he    
obtains the power1 he immediately       
becomes  unjust as far as he can be4    
,sidenote3 ,men should be taught that   
justice is in itself the greatest  good 
and injustice the greatest evil4    ,the
 cause of all this1 ,socrates1 was      
indicated by us at the beginning of  the
 argument1 when my brother and ,i told  
you how astonished we were to  find that
 of all the professing 99#cff;,e99      
panegyrists of justice--beginning  with 
the ancient heroes of whom any memorial 
has been preserved to us1 and  ending   
with the men of our own time--no one has
 ever blamed injustice or  praised      
justice except with a view to the       
glories1 honours1 and benefits  which   
flow from them4 ,no one has ever        

adequately described either in verse  or
 prose the true essential nature of     
either of them abiding in the soul1  and
 invisible to any human or divine eye2  
or shown that of all the things  of a   
man's soul which he has within him1     
justice is 99#cfg;,a99 the greatest     
good1 and injustice the greatest evil4  
,had this been the universal strain1    
had you sought to persuade us of this   
from our youth upwards1 we should  not  
have been on the watch to keep one      
another from doing wrong1 but every  one
 would have been his own watchman1      
because afraid1 if he did wrong1 of     
harbouring in himself the greatest of   
evils4 ,i dare say that ,thrasymachus   
and others would seriously hold the     
language which ,i have been merely      
repeating1 and words even stronger than 
these about justice and injustice1      
grossly1 as ,i conceive1 perverting     
their true nature4 ,but ,i speak in this
  99#cfg;,b99 vehement manner1 as ,i    
must frankly confess to you1 because ,i 

want  to hear from you the opposite     
side2 and ,i would ask you to show not  
only  the superiority which justice has 
over injustice1 but what effect they    
have on the possessor of them which     
makes the one to be a good and the      
other an evil to him4 ,and please1 as   
,glaucon requested of you1 to #dg       
exclude reputations2 for unless you take
 away from each of them his true        
reputation and add on the false1 we     
shall say that you do not praise        
justice1 but the appearance of it2      
99#cfg;,c99 we shall think that you are 
only  exhorting us to keep injustice    
dark1 and that you really agree with    
,thrasymachus in thinking that justice  
is another's good and the interest  of  
the stronger1 and that injustice is a   
man's own profit and interest1  though  
injurious to the weaker4 ,now as you    
have admitted that justice is  one of   
that highest class of goods which are   
desired indeed for their  results1 but  
in a far greater 99#cfg;,d99 degree for 

their own sakes--like  sight or hearing 
or knowledge or health1 or any other    
real and natural and  not merely        
conventional good--,i would ask you in  
your praise of justice to  regard one   
point only3 ,i mean the essential good  
and evil which justice  and injustice   
work in the possessors of them4 ,let    
others praise justice  and censure      
injustice1 magnifying the rewards and   
honours of the one and  abusing the     
other2 that is a manner of arguing      
which1 coming from them1  ,i am ready to
 tolerate1 but from you who have spent  
your whole life in the  consideration of
 this question1 unless ,i hear          
99#cfg;,e99 the contrary from  your own 
lips1 ,i expect something better4 ,and  
therefore1 ,i say1 not only  prove to us
 that justice is better than injustice1 
but show what they  either of them do to
 the possessor of them1 which makes the 
one to be a  good and the other an evil1
 whether seen or unseen by gods and men4
    ,sidenote3 ,adeimantus1 ,socrates4  

,sidenote3 ,glaucon and ,adeimantus able
 to argue so well1 but unconvinced  by  
their own arguments4    ,i had always   
admired the genius of ,glaucon and      
,adeimantus1 but on hearing  these words
 ,i was quite delighted1 and said3      
99#cfh;,a99 ,sons of an illustrious     
father1 that was not a bad beginning of 
the ,elegiac verses which the  admirer  
of ,glaucon made in honour of you after 
you had distinguished  yourselves at the
 battle of ,megara3--      ',sons of    
,ariston1' he sang1 'divine offspring of
 an illustrious hero4'    ,the epithet  
is very appropriate1 for there is       
something truly divine in  being able to
 argue as you have done for the         
superiority of injustice1 and  remaining
 unconvinced by your own arguments4     
99#cfh;,b99 ,and ,i do believe that  you
 are not convinced--this ,i infer from  
your general character1 for had  ,i     
judged only from your speeches ,i should
 have mistrusted you4 ,but now1  the    
greater my confidence in you1 the       

greater is my #dh difficulty in  knowing
 what to say4 ,for ,i am in a strait    
between two2 on the one hand  ,i feel   
that ,i am unequal to the task2 and my  
inability is brought home to  me by the 
fact that you were not satisfied with   
the answer which ,i made to             
,thrasymachus1 proving1 as ,i thought1  
the superiority which justice has  over 
injustice4 ,and yet ,i cannot refuse to 
help1 while breath and speech  remain to
 me2 ,i am afraid that there would be an
 impiety in being present  when justice 
99#cfh;,c99 is evil spoken of and not   
lifting up a hand in her  defence4 ,and 
therefore ,i had best give such help as 
,i can4    ,sidenote3 ,the large        
letters4    ,glaucon and the rest       
entreated me by all means not to let the
 question  drop1 but to proceed in the  
investigation4 ,they wanted to arrive at
 the  truth1 first1 about the nature of 
justice and injustice1 and secondly1    
about their relative advantages4 ,i told
 them1 what ,i really thought1 that  the

 enquiry would be of a serious nature1  
and would require very good  eyes4      
99#cfh;,d99 ,seeing then1 ,i said1 that 
we are no great wits1 ,i think that  we 
had better adopt a method which ,i may  
illustrate thus2 suppose that a         
short-sighted person had been asked by  
some one to read small letters from  a  
distance2 and it occurred to some one   
else that they might be found in        
another place which was larger and in   
which the letters were larger--if  they 
were the same and he could read the     
larger letters first1 and then  proceed 
to the lesser--this would have been     
thought a rare piece of good  fortune4  
,very true1 said ,adeimantus2 but how   
does the illustration 99#cfh;,e99 apply 
to  our enquiry8    ,i will tell you1 ,i
 replied2 justice1 which is the subject 
of our enquiry1  is1 as you know1       
sometimes spoken of as the virtue of an 
individual1 and  sometimes as the virtue
 of a ,state4    ,true1 he replied4     
,and is not a ,state larger than an     

individual8    ,it is4    ,sidenote3    
,justice to be seen in the ,state more  
easily than in the  individual4    ,then
 in the larger the quantity of justice  
is likely to be larger and more  easily 
discernible4 ,i propose therefore that  
we enquire into the nature of  justice  
and injustice1 first as 99#cfi;,a99 they
 appear in the ,state1 and  secondly in 
the individual1 proceeding from the     
greater to the lesser and  comparing    
them4 #di    ,that1 he said1 is an      
excellent proposal4    ,and if we       
imagine the ,state in process of        
creation1 we shall see the  justice and 
injustice of the ,state in process of   
creation also4    ,i dare say4    ,when 
the ,state is completed there may be a  
hope that the object of our  search will
 be more easily discovered4             
99#cfi;,b99 ,yes1 far more easily4      
,but ought we to attempt to construct   
one8 ,i said2 for to do so1 as ,i am    
inclined to think1 will be a very       
serious task4 ,reflect therefore4    ,i 

have reflected1 said ,adeimantus1 and am
 anxious that you should proceed4       
,sidenote3 ,the ,state arises out of the
 wants of men4    ,a ,state1 ,i said1   
arises1 as ,i conceive1 out of the needs
 of mankind2 no  one is self-sufficing1 
but all of us have many wants4 ,can any 
other origin  of a ,state be imagined8  
,there can be no other4    99#cfi;,c99  
,then1 as we have many wants1 and many  
persons are needed to supply  them1 one 
takes a helper for one purpose and      
another for another2 and when  these    
partners and helpers are gathered       
together in one habitation the  body of 
inhabitants is termed a ,state4         
,true1 he said4    ,and they exchange   
with one another1 and one gives1 and    
another receives1  under the idea that  
the exchange will be for their good4    
,very true4    ,then1 ,i said1 let us   
begin and create in idea a ,state2 and  
yet the true  creator is necessity1 who 
is the mother of our invention4    ,of  
course1 he replied4    ,sidenote3 ,the  

four or five greater needs of life1 and 
the four or five  kinds of citizens who 
correspond to them4    99#cfi;,d99 ,now 
the first and greatest of necessities is
 food1 which is the  condition of life  
and existence4    ,certainly4    ,the   
second is a dwelling1 and the third     
clothing and the like4    ,true4    ,and
 now let us see how our city will be    
able to supply this great demand3  ,we  
may suppose that one man is a           
husbandman1 another a builder1 some one 
else a weaver-- #ej shall we add to them
 a shoemaker1 or perhaps some  other    
purveyor to our bodily wants8    ,quite 
right4    ,the barest notion of a ,state
 must include four or five men4         
99#cfi;,e99 ,clearly4    ,sidenote3 ,the
 division of labour4    ,and how will   
they proceed8 ,will each bring the      
result of his labours into  a common    
stock8--the individual husbandman1 for  
example1 producing for  four1 and       
labouring four times as long and as much
 as he need in the  provision of food   

with which he supplies others as well as
 himself2 or  will he have nothing to do
 with others and not be at the trouble  
of  producing for them1 but provide for 
himself alone 99#cgj;,a99 a fourth of   
the  food in a fourth of the time1 and  
in the remaining three fourths of his   
time be employed in making a house or a 
coat or a pair of shoes1 having no      
partnership with others1 but supplying  
himself all his own wants8              
,adeimantus thought that he should aim  
at producing food only and not at       
producing everything4    ,probably1 ,i  
replied1 that would be the better way2  
and when ,i hear you say  this1 ,i am   
myself reminded that we are 99#cgj;,b99 
not all alike2 there are  diversities of
 natures among us which are adapted to  
different  occupations4    ,very true4  
,and will you have a work better done   
when the workman has many  occupations1 
or when he has only one8    ,when he has
 only one4    ,further1 there can be no 
doubt that a work is spoilt when not    

done at the  right time8    ,no doubt4  
,for business is not disposed to wait   
until the doer of the business is at    
leisure2 but the doer must follow up    
what he 99#cgj;,c99 is doing1 and make  
the  business his first object4    ,he  
must4    ,and if so1 we must infer that 
all things are produced more plentifully
 and  easily and of a better quality    
when one man does one thing which is    
natural to him and does it at the right 
time1 and leaves other things4          
,undoubtedly4    ,sidenote3 ,the first  
citizens are3--#a4 a husbandman1 #b4 a  
builder4 #c4 a  weaver1 #d4 a shoemaker4
 ,to these must be added3--#e4 a        
carpenter1 #f4 a  smith1 etc41 #g4      
merchants1 #h4 retailers4    ,then more 
than four citizens will be required2 for
 the husbandman will not  make his own  
plough or mattock1 or #ea 99#cgj;,d99   
other implements of  agriculture1 if    
they are to be good for anything4       
,neither will the builder  make his     
tools--and he too needs many2 and in    

like manner the weaver and  shoemaker4  
,true4    ,then carpenters1 and smiths1 
and many other artisans1 will be sharers
 in  our little ,state1 which is already
 beginning to grow8    ,true4    ,yet   
even if we add neatherds1 shepherds1 and
 other herdsmen1 99#cgj;,e99 in  order  
that our husbandmen may have oxen to    
plough with1 and builders as  well as   
husbandmen may have draught cattle1 and 
curriers and weavers  fleeces and       
hides1--still our ,state will not be    
very large4    ,that is true2 yet       
neither will it be a very small ,state  
which contains all  these4    ,then1    
again1 there is the situation of the    
city--to find a place where  nothing    
need be imported is wellnigh impossible4
    ,impossible4    ,then there must be 
another class of citizens who will bring
 the required  supply from another city8
    ,there must4    99#cga;,a99 ,but if 
the trader goes empty-handed1 having    
nothing which they  require who would   
supply his need1 he will come back      

empty-handed4    ,that is certain4      
,and therefore what they produce at home
 must be not only enough for            
themselves1 but such both in quantity   
and quality as to accommodate those     
from whom their wants are supplied4     
,very true4    ,then more husbandmen and
 more artisans will be required8        
,they will4    ,not to mention the      
importers and exporters1 who are called 
merchants8    ,yes4    ,then we shall   
want merchants8    ,we shall4    ,and if
 merchandise is to be carried over the  
sea1 skilful 99#cga;,b99 sailors  will  
also be needed1 and in considerable     
numbers8    ,yes1 in considerable       
numbers4    ,then1 again1 within the    
city1 how will they exchange their #eb  
productions8 ,to secure such an exchange
 was1 as you will remember1 one of  our 
principal objects when we formed them   
into a society and constituted a        
,state4    ,clearly they will buy and   
sell4    ,then they will need a         
market-place1 and a money-token for     

purposes of  exchange4    ,certainly4   
,sidenote3 ,the origin of retail trade4 
99#cga;,c99 ,suppose now that a         
husbandman1 or an artisan1 brings some  
production to market1 and he comes at a 
time when there is no one to  exchange  
with him1--is he to leave his calling   
and sit idle in the  market-place8      
,not at all2 he will find people there  
who1 seeing the want1 undertake the     
office of salesmen4 ,in well-ordered    
states they are commonly those who are  
the weakest in bodily strength1 and     
therefore of little use for any other   
purpose2 their duty is 99#cga;,d99 to be
 in the market1 and to give money in    
exchange for goods to those who desire  
to sell and to take money from  those   
who desire to buy4    ,this want1 then1 
creates a class of retail-traders in our
 ,state4 ,is not  'retailer' the term   
which is applied to those who sit in the
 market-place  engaged in buying and    
selling1 while those who wander from one
 city to  another are called merchants8 

,yes1 he said4    99#cga;,e99 ,and there
 is another class of servants1 who are  
intellectually  hardly on the level of  
companionship2 still they have plenty of
 bodily  strength for labour1 which     
accordingly they sell1 and are called1  
if ,i do  not mistake1 hirelings1 hire  
being the name which is given to the    
price of  their labour4    ,true4       
,then hirelings will help to make up our
 population8    ,yes4    ,and now1      
,adeimantus1 is our ,state matured and  
perfected8    ,i think so4    ,where1   
then1 is justice1 and where is          
injustice1 and in what part of the      
,state did they spring up8              
99#cgb;,a99 ,probably in the dealings of
 these citizens with one another4 ,i    
cannot imagine that they are more likely
 to be found any where else4    ,i dare 
say that you are right in your          
suggestion1 ,i said2 #ec we had  better 
think the matter out1 and not shrink    
from the enquiry4    ,sidenote3 ,a      
picture of primitive life4    ,let us   

then consider1 first of all1 what will  
be their way of life1 now  that we have 
thus established them4 ,will they not   
produce corn1 and wine1  and clothes1   
and shoes1 and build houses for         
themselves8 ,and when they are  housed1 
they will work1 in summer1 commonly1    
stripped and barefoot1 but  99#cgb;,b99 
in winter substantially clothed and     
shod4 ,they will feed on  barley-meal   
and flour of wheat1 baking and kneading 
them1 making noble  cakes and loaves2   
these they will serve up on a mat of    
reeds or on clean  leaves1 themselves   
reclining the while upon beds strewn    
with yew or  myrtle4 ,and they and their
 children will feast1 drinking of the   
wine which  they have made1 wearing     
garlands on their heads1 and hymning the
 praises  of the gods1 in happy converse
 with one another4 99#cgb;,c99 ,and they
 will take  care that their families do 
not exceed their means2 having an eye to
  poverty or war4    ,sidenote3         
,socrates1 ,glaucon4    ,but1 said      

,glaucon1 interposing1 you have not     
given them a relish to their  meal4     
,true1 ,i replied1 ,i had forgotten2 of 
course they must have a relish--salt1   
and olives1 and cheese1 and they will   
boil roots and herbs such as country    
people prepare2 for a dessert we shall  
give them figs1 and peas1 and  beans2   
and they will roast myrtle-berries and  
acorns at the fire1 drinking  in        
moderation4 99#cgb;,d99 ,and with such a
 diet they may be expected to live in   
peace and health to a good old age1 and 
bequeath a similar life to their        
children after them4    ,yes1 ,socrates1
 he said1 and if you were providing for 
a city of pigs1 how  else would you feed
 the beasts8    ,but what would you     
have1 ,glaucon8 ,i replied4    ,why1 he 
said1 you should give them the ordinary 
conveniences of life4  ,people who are  
to be comfortable are accustomed to lie 
on sofas1 and dine  off tables1 and they
 should 99#cgb;,e99 have sauces and     
sweets in the modern  style4            

,sidenote3 ,a luxurious ,state must be  
called into existence1    ,yes1 ,i said1
 now ,i understand3 the question which  
you would have me  consider is1 not only
 how a ,state1 but how a luxurious      
,state is created2  and possibly there  
is no harm in this1 for in such a ,state
 we shall be  more likely to see how    
justice and injustice originate4 ,in my 
opinion the  true and healthy           
constitution of the ,state is the one   
which ,i have #ed  described4 ,but if   
you wish also to see a ,state at        
fever-heat1 ,i have no  objection4 ,for 
,i suspect that many will not be        
99#cgc;,a99 satisfied with the  simpler 
way of life4 ,they will be for adding   
sofas1 and tables1 and other  furniture2
 also dainties1 and perfumes1 and       
incense1 and courtesans1 and  cakes1 all
 these not of one sort only1 but in     
every variety2 we must go  beyond the   
necessaries of which ,i was at first    
speaking1 such as houses1  and clothes1 
and shoes3 the arts of the painter and  

the embroiderer will  have to be set in 
motion1 and gold and ivory and all sorts
 of materials  must be procured4        
99#cgc;,b99 ,true1 he said4             
,sidenote3 and in this many new callings
 will be required4    ,then we must     
enlarge our borders2 for the original   
healthy ,state is no  longer sufficient4
 ,now will the city have to fill and    
swell with a  multitude of callings     
which are not required by any natural   
want2 such as  the whole tribe of       
hunters and actors1 of whom one large   
class have to do  with forms and        
colours2 another will be the votaries of
 music--poets and  their attendant train
 of rhapsodists1 players1 dancers1      
contractors2 also  makers of divers     
kinds of articles1 99#cgc;,c99 including
 women's dresses4 ,and  we shall want   
more servants4 ,will not tutors be also 
in request1 and  nurses wet and dry1    
tirewomen and barbers1 as well as       
confectioners and  cooks2 and           
swineherds1 too1 who were not needed and

 therefore had no place  in the former  
edition of our ,state1 but are needed   
now8 ,they must not be  forgotten3 and  
there will be animals of many other     
kinds1 if people eat  them4             
,certainly4    99#cgc;,d99 ,and living  
in this way we shall have much greater  
need of  physicians than before8        
,much greater4    ,and the country which
 was enough to support the original     
inhabitants will  be too small now1 and 
not enough8    ,quite true4             
,sidenote3 ,the territory of our ,state 
must be enlarged2 and hence will  arise 
war between us and our neighbours4      
,then a slice of our neighbours' land   
will be wanted by us for pasture and    
tillage1 and they will want a slice of  
ours1 if1 like ourselves1 they  exceed  
the limit of necessity1 and give        
themselves up to the unlimited          
accumulation of wealth8    99#cgc;,e99  
,that1 ,socrates1 will be inevitable4   
,and so we shall go to war1 ,glaucon4   
,shall we not8    ,most certainly1 he   

replied4 #ee    ,then without           
determining as yet whether war does good
 or harm1 thus much  we may affirm1 that
 now we have discovered war to be       
derived from causes  which are also the 
causes of almost all the evils in       
,states1 private as  well as public4    
,undoubtedly4    ,and our ,state must   
once more enlarge2 and this time the    
enlargement will  be nothing short of a 
whole army1 which 99#cgd;,a99 will have 
to go out and  fight with the invaders  
for all that we have1 as well as for the
 things  and persons whom we were       
describing above4    ,why8 he said2 are 
they not capable of defending           
themselves8    ,sidenote3 ,war is an    
art1 and as no art can be pursued with  
success unless  a man's whole attention 
is devoted to it1 a soldier cannot be   
allowed to  exercise any calling but his
 own4    ,no1 ,i said2 not if we were   
right in the principle which was        
acknowledged  by all of us when we were 
framing the ,state3 the principle1 as   

you will  remember1 was that one man    
cannot practise many arts with success4 
,very true1 he said4    99#cgd;,b99 ,but
 is not war an art8    ,certainly4      
,and an art requiring as much attention 
as shoemaking8    ,quite true4          
,sidenote3 ,the warrior's art requires a
 long apprenticeship and many  natural  
gifts4    ,and the shoemaker was not    
allowed by us to be a husbandman1 or a  
weaver1  or a builder--in order that we 
might have our shoes well made2 but to  
him  and to every other worker was      
assigned one work for which he was by   
nature  fitted1 and 99#cgd;,c99 at that 
he was to continue working all his life 
long  and at no other2 he was not to let
 opportunities slip1 and then he would  
become a good workman4 ,now nothing can 
be more important than that the  work of
 a soldier should be well done4 ,but is 
war an art so easily  acquired that a   
man may be a warrior who is also a      
husbandman1 or  shoemaker1 or other     
artisan2 although no one in the world   

would be a good  dice or draught player 
who merely took up the game as a        
recreation1 and  had not from his       
earliest years devoted himself to this  
and nothing else8  ,no tools will make a
 man a skilled workman1 or master of    
defence1 nor be  of any use to him who  
has not learned how to handle them1 and 
has never  99#cgd;,d99 bestowed any     
attention upon them4 ,how then will he  
who takes up a  shield or other         
implement of war become a good #ef      
fighter all in a day1  whether with     
heavy-armed or any other kind of troops8
    ,yes1 he said1 the tools which would
 teach men their own use would be       
beyond price4    ,and the higher the    
duties of the guardian1 ,i said1 the    
more 99#cgd;,e99 time1  and skill1 and  
art1 and application will be needed by  
him8    ,no doubt1 he replied4    ,will 
he not also require natural aptitude for
 his calling8    ,certainly4            
,sidenote3 ,the selection of guardians4 
,then it will be our duty to select1 if 

we can1 natures which are fitted  for   
the task of guarding the city8    ,it   
will4    ,and the selection will be no  
easy matter1 ,i said2 but we must be    
brave and  do our best4    99#cge;,a99  
,we must4    ,is not the noble youth    
very like a well-bred dog in respect of 
guarding  and watching8    ,what do you 
mean8    ,i mean that both of them ought
 to be quick to see1 and swift to       
overtake  the enemy when they see him2  
and strong too if1 when they have caught
 him1  they have to fight with him4     
,all these qualities1 he replied1 will  
certainly be required by them4    ,well1
 and your guardian must be brave if he  
is to fight well8    ,certainly4    ,and
 is he likely to be brave who has no    
spirit1 whether horse or dog or  any    
other animal8 ,have you never observed  
99#cge;,b99 how invincible and          
unconquerable is spirit and how the     
presence of it makes the soul of any    
creature to be absolutely fearless and  
indomitable8    ,i have4    ,then now we

 have a clear notion of the bodily      
qualities which are required  in the    
guardian4    ,true4    ,and also of the 
mental ones2 his soul is to be full of  
spirit8    ,yes4    ,but are not these  
spirited natures apt to be savage with  
one another1 and  with everybody else8  
#eg    ,a difficulty by no means easy to
 overcome1 he replied4    99#cge;,c99   
,whereas1 ,i said1 they ought to be     
dangerous to their enemies1 and  gentle 
to their friends2 if not1 they will     
destroy themselves without  waiting for 
their enemies to destroy them4    ,true1
 he said4    ,what is to be done then8  
,i said2 how shall we find a gentle     
nature which  has also a great spirit1  
for the one is the contradiction of the 
other8    ,true4    ,sidenote3 ,the     
guardian must unite the opposite        
qualities of gentleness  and spirit4    
,he will not be a good guardian who is  
wanting in either of these two          
qualities2 and yet the combination of   
them 99#cge;,d99 appears to be          

impossible2 and hence we must infer that
 to be a good guardian is  impossible4  
,i am afraid that what you say is true1 
he replied4    ,here feeling perplexed  
,i began to think over what had         
preceded4--,my  friend1 ,i said1 no     
wonder that we are in a perplexity2 for 
we have lost  sight of the image which  
we had before us4    ,what do you mean8 
he said4    ,i mean to say that there do
 exist natures gifted with those        
opposite  qualities4    ,and where do   
you find them8    ,sidenote3 ,such a    
combination may be observed in the dog4 
,many animals1 ,i replied1 furnish      
examples of them2 our 99#cge;,e99 friend
 the  dog is a very good one3 you know  
that well-bred dogs are perfectly gentle
  to their familiars and acquaintances1 
and the reverse to strangers4    ,yes1  
,i know4    ,then there is nothing      
impossible or out of the order of nature
 in our  finding a guardian who has a   
similar combination of qualities8       
,certainly not4    ,would not he who is 

fitted to be a guardian1 besides the    
spirited nature1  need to have the      
qualities of a philosopher8    ,i do not
 apprehend your meaning4    99#cgf;,a99 
,the trait of which ,i am speaking1 ,i  
replied1 may be also seen in  the dog1  
and is remarkable in the animal4        
,what trait8    ,sidenote3 ,the dog     
distinguishes friend and enemy by the   
criterion of  knowing and not knowing3  
,why1 a dog1 whenever he sees a         
stranger1 is angry2 when an             
acquaintance1  he welcomes him1 although
 the one has #eh never done him any     
harm1 nor  the other any good4 ,did this
 never strike you as curious8    ,the   
matter never struck me before2 but ,i   
quite recognise the truth of your       
remark4    ,and surely this instinct of 
the dog is very charming2-- 99#cgf;,b99 
your dog is  a true philosopher4        
,why8    ,why1 because he distinguishes 
the face of a friend and of an enemy    
only by  the criterion of knowing and   
not knowing4 ,and must not an animal be 

a  lover of learning who determines what
 he likes and dislikes by the test of   
knowledge and ignorance8    ,most       
assuredly4    ,sidenote3 whereby he is  
shown to be a philosopher4    ,and is   
not the love of learning the love of    
wisdom1 which is philosophy8    ,they   
are the same1 he replied4    ,and may we
 not say confidently of man also1 that  
he who 99#cgf;,c99 is likely  to be     
gentle to his friends and acquaintances1
 must by nature be a lover  of wisdom   
and knowledge8    ,that we may safely   
affirm4    ,then he who is to be a      
really good and noble guardian of the   
,state will  require to unite in himself
 philosophy and spirit and swiftness and
  strength8    ,undoubtedly4            
,sidenote3 ,how are our citizens to be  
reared and educated8    ,then we have   
found the desired natures2 and now that 
we have found them1  how are they to be 
reared and educated8 ,is not this an    
enquiry which may  be expected to throw 
light 99#cgf;,d99 on the greater enquiry

 which is our  final end--,how do       
justice and injustice grow up in        
,states8 for we do not  want either to  
omit what is to the point or to draw out
 the argument to an  inconvenient       
length4    ,sidenote3 ,socrates1        
,adeimantus4    ,adeimantus thought that
 the enquiry would be of great service  
to us4    ,then1 ,i said1 my dear       
friend1 the task must not be given up1  
even if  somewhat long4    ,certainly   
not4    ,come then1 and let us pass a   
leisure hour in story-telling1 and our  
story  shall be the education of our    
heroes4    99#cgf;,e99 ,by all means4   
,and what shall be their education8 ,can
 we find a better #ei than the          
traditional sort8--and this has two     
divisions1 gymnastic for the body1 and  
music for the soul4    ,true4           
,sidenote3 ,education divided into      
gymnastic for the body and music for the
  soul4 ,music includes literature1     
which may be true or false4    ,shall we
 begin education with music1 and go on  

to gymnastic afterwards8    ,by all     
means4    ,and when you speak of music1 
do you include literature or not8    ,i 
do4    ,and literature may be either    
true or false8    ,yes4    99#cgg;,a99  
,and the young should be trained in both
 kinds1 and we begin with  the false8   
,i do not understand your meaning1 he   
said4    ,you know1 ,i said1 that we    
begin by telling children stories which1
 though  not wholly destitute of truth1 
are in the main fictitious2 and these   
stories are told them when they are not 
of an age to learn gymnastics4    ,very 
true4    ,that was my meaning when ,i   
said that we must teach music before    
gymnastics4    ,quite right1 he said4   
,sidenote3 ,the beginning the most      
important part of education4    ,you    
know also that the beginning is the most
 important 99#cgg;,b99 part of any      
work1 especially in the case of a young 
and tender thing2 for that is the  time 
at which the character is being formed  
and the desired impression is  more     

readily taken4    ,quite true4    ,and  
shall we just carelessly allow children 
to hear any casual tales which  may be  
devised by casual persons1 and to       
receive into their minds ideas  for the 
most part the very opposite of those    
which we should wish them to  have when 
they are grown up8    ,we cannot4       
,sidenote3 ,works of fiction to be      
placed under a censorship4    ,then the 
first thing will be to establish a      
censorship of 99#cgg;,c99 the  writers  
of fiction1 and let the censors receive 
any tale of fiction which  is good1 and 
reject the bad2 and we will desire      
mothers and nurses to tell  their       
children the authorised ones only4 ,let 
them fashion the mind with  such tales1 
even more fondly than they mould the    
body with their hands2  but most of     
those which are now in use must be      
discarded4 #fj    ,of what tales are you
 speaking8 he said4    ,you may find a  
model of the lesser in the greater1 ,i  
said2 99#cgg;,d99 for they  are         

necessarily of the same type1 and there 
is the same spirit in both of  them4    
,very likely1 he replied2 but ,i do not 
as yet know what you would term the     
greater4    ,sidenote3 ,homer and       
,hesiod are tellers of bad lies1 that is
 to say1 they  give false               
representations of the gods1    ,those1 
,i said1 which are narrated by ,homer   
and ,hesiod1 and the rest of the  poets1
 who have ever been the great           
story-tellers of mankind4    ,but which 
stories do you mean1 he said2 and what  
fault do you find with  them8    ,a     
fault which is most serious1 ,i said2   
the fault of telling a lie1 and1  what  
is more1 a bad lie4    ,but when is this
 fault committed8    99#cgg;,e99        
,whenever an erroneous representation is
 made of the nature of gods  and        
heroes1--as when a painter paints a     
portrait not having the shadow of  a    
likeness to the original4    ,yes1 he   
said1 that sort of thing is certainly   
very blameable2 but what are  the       

stories which you mean8    ,first of    
all1 ,i said1 there was that greatest of
 all lies in high places1  which the    
poet told about ,uranus1 and which was a
 bad lie too1--,i mean  what ,hesiod    
says that ,uranus did1 99#cgh;,a99 and  
how ,cronus retaliated on  him#h4 ,the  
doings of ,cronus1 and the sufferings   
which in turn his son  inflicted upon   
him1 even if they were true1 ought      
certainly not to be  lightly told to    
young and thoughtless persons2 if       
possible1 they had  better be buried in 
silence4 ,but if there is an absolute   
necessity for  their mention1 a chosen  
few might hear them in a mystery1 and   
they should  sacrifice not a common     
,eleusinian pig1 but some huge and      
unprocurable  victim2 and then the      
number of the hearers will be very few  
indeed4    ,footnote #h3 ,hesiod1       
,theogony1 #aed1 #dei4    ,why1 yes1    
said he1 those stories are extremely    
objectionable4    ,sidenote3 which have 
a bad effect on the minds of youth4     

99#cgh;,b99 ,yes1 ,adeimantus1 they are 
stories not to be repeated in our       
,state2  the young man should not be    
told that in committing the worst of    
crimes he  is far from doing anything   
outrageous2 and that even if he         
chastises his  father when he does      
wrong1 in whatever manner1 he will only 
be following  the example of the first  
and greatest among the gods4 #fa    ,i  
entirely agree with you1 he said2 in my 
opinion those stories are quite  unfit  
to be repeated4    ,sidenote3 ,the      
stories about the quarrels of the gods  
and their evil  behaviour to one another
 are untrue4    ,sidenote3 ,and         
allegorical interpretations of them are 
not understood by  the young4           
,neither1 if we mean our future         
guardians to regard the habit of        
quarrelling among themselves as of all  
things the basest1 should any word  be  
said to them of the wars in heaven1     
99#cgh;,c99 and of the plots and        
fightings of the gods against one       

another1 for they are not true4 ,no1 we 
shall never mention the battles of the  
giants1 or let them be embroidered  on  
garments2 and we shall be silent about  
the innumerable other quarrels  of gods 
and heroes with their friends and       
relatives4 ,if they would only  believe 
us we would tell them that quarrelling  
is unholy1 and that never  up to this   
time 99#cgh;,d99 has there been any     
quarrel between citizens2 this  is what 
old men and old women should begin by   
telling children2 and when  they grow   
up1 the poets also should be told to    
compose for them in a  similar spirit#i4
 ,but the narrative of ,hephaestus      
binding ,here his  mother1 or how on    
another occasion ,zeus sent him flying  
for taking her  part when she was being 
beaten1 and all the battles of the gods 
in  ,homer--these tales must not be     
admitted into our ,state1 whether they  
are  supposed to have an allegorical    
meaning or not4 ,for a young person     
cannot  judge what is allegorical and   

99#cgh;,e99 what is literal2 anything   
that he  receives into his mind at that 
age is likely to become indelible and   
unalterable2 and therefore it is most   
important that the tales which the      
young first hear should be models of    
virtuous thoughts4    ,footnote #i3     
,placing the comma after ,greek3        
grausi_/1 and not after  ,greek3        
gignome_/nois4    ,there you are right1 
he replied2 but if any one asks where   
are such models  to be found and of what
 tales are you speaking--how shall we   
answer him8    99#cgi;,a99 ,i said to   
him1 ,you and ,i1 ,adeimantus1 at this  
moment are not poets1  but founders of a
 ,state3 now the founders of a ,state   
ought to know the  general forms in     
which poets should cast their tales1 and
 the limits which  must be observed by  
them1 but to make the tales is not their
 business4    ,very true1 he said2 but  
what are these forms of theology which  
you mean8    ,sidenote3 ,god is to be   
represented as he truly is4             

,something of this kind1 ,i             
replied3--,god is always to be          
represented as he  truly is1 whatever be
 the sort of poetry1 epic1 lyric or     
tragic1 in which  the representation is 
given4    ,right4 #fb    99#cgi;,b99    
,and is he not truly good8 and must he  
not be represented as such8             
,certainly4    ,and no good thing is    
hurtful8    ,no1 indeed4    ,and that   
which is not hurtful hurts not8         
,certainly not4    ,and that which hurts
 not does no evil8    ,no4    ,and can  
that which does no evil be a cause of   
evil8    ,impossible4    ,and the good  
is advantageous8    ,yes4    ,and       
therefore the cause of well-being8      
,yes4    ,it follows therefore that the 
good is not the cause of all things1 but
 of  the good only8    99#cgi;,c99      
,assuredly4    ,sidenote3 ,god1 if he be
 good1 is the author of good only4      
,then ,god1 if he be good1 is not the   
author of all things1 as the many       
assert1 but he is the cause of a few    

things only1 and not of most things     
that occur to men4 ,for few are the     
goods of human life1 and many are the   
evils1 and the good is to be attributed 
to ,god alone2 of the evils the  causes 
are to be sought elsewhere1 and not in  
him4    ,that appears to me to be most  
true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,the       
fictions of the poets4    ,sidenote3    
,only that evil which is of the nature  
of punishment to be  attributed to ,god4
    ,then we must not listen to ,homer  
or to any other poet 99#cgi;,d99 who is 
guilty  of the folly of saying that two 
casks      ',lie at the threshold of    
,zeus1 full of lots1 one of good1 the   
other of    evil lots#aj1'    and that  
he to whom ,zeus gives a mixture of the 
two      ',sometimes meets with evil    
fortune1 at other times with good2'     
but that he to whom is given the cup of 
unmingled ill1      ',him wild hunger   
drives o'er the beauteous earth4'       
99#cgi;,e99 ,and again--      ',zeus1   
who is the dispenser of good and evil to

 us4'    ,and if any one asserts that   
the violation of oaths and treaties1 #fc
  which was really the work of          
,pandarus#aa1 was brought about by      
,athene and  ,zeus1 or that the strife  
and contention of the gods was          
instigated by  ,themis and ,zeus#ab1 he 
shall not have our approval2 neither    
will we allow  our young men to hear the
 words of ,aeschylus1 that              
99#chj;,a99 ',god plants guilt among men
 when he desires utterly to destroy a   
house4'    ,and if a poet writes of the 
sufferings of ,niobe--the subject of the
  tragedy in which these iambic verses  
occur--or of the house of ,pelops1 or   
of the ,trojan war or on any similar    
theme1 either we must not permit him  to
 say that these are the works of ,god1  
or if they are of ,god1 he must  devise 
some explanation of them such as we are 
seeking2 he must say that  99#chj;,b99  
,god did what was just and right1 and   
they were the better for being          
punished2 but that those who are        

punished are miserable1 and that ,god is
  the author of their misery--the poet  
is not to be permitted to say2 though   
he may say that the wicked are miserable
 because they require to be  punished1  
and are benefited by receiving          
punishment from ,god2 but that ,god     
being good is the author of evil to any 
one is to be 99#chj;,c99 strenuously    
denied1 and not to be said or sung or   
heard in verse or prose by any one      
whether old or young in any well-ordered
 commonwealth4 ,such a fiction is       
suicidal1 ruinous1 impious4    ,footnote
 #aj3 ,iliad1 xxiv4 #ebg4    ,footnote  
#aa3 ,iliad1 ii4 #fi4    ,footnote #ab3 
,ib4 xx4    ,i agree with you1 he       
replied1 and am ready to give my assent 
to the law4    ,let this then be one of 
our rules and principles concerning the 
gods1 to  which our poets and reciters  
will be expected to conform1--that ,god 
is not  the author of all things1 but of
 good only4    ,that will do1 he said4  
99#chj;,d99 ,and what do you think of a 

second principle8 ,shall ,i ask you     
whether ,god is a magician1 and of a    
nature to appear insidiously now in  one
 shape1 and now in another--sometimes   
himself changing and passing into  many 
forms1 sometimes deceiving us with the  
semblance of such  transformations2 or  
is he one and the same immutably fixed  
in his own  proper image8 #fd    ,i     
cannot answer you1 he said1 without more
 thought4    ,sidenote3 ,things must be 
changed either by another or by         
themselves4    ,well1 ,i said2 but if we
 suppose a change in anything1 that     
99#chj;,e99 change  must be effected    
either by the thing itself1 or by some  
other thing8    ,most certainly4    ,and
 things which are at their best are also
 least liable to be altered or          
discomposed2 for example1 when          
healthiest and strongest1 the human     
frame  is least liable to be affected by
 meats and drinks1 and the plant which  
is  in the fullest vigour also suffers  
least from winds or the heat of the sun 

or any similar causes4    ,of course4   
99#cha;,a99 ,and will not the bravest   
and wisest soul be least confused or    
deranged by any external influence8     
,true4    ,and the same principle1 as ,i
 should suppose1 applies to all         
composite  things--furniture1 houses1   
garments3 when good and well made1 they 
are  least altered by time and          
circumstances4    ,very true4           
99#cha;,b99 ,then everything which is   
good1 whether made by art or nature1 or 
both1 is least liable to suffer change  
from without8    ,true4    ,but surely  
,god and the things of ,god are in every
 way perfect8    ,of course they are4   
,sidenote3 ,but ,god cannot be changed  
by other2 and will not be changed by    
himself4    ,then he can hardly be      
compelled by external influence to take 
many shapes8    ,he cannot4    ,but may 
he not change and transform himself8    
,clearly1 he said1 that must be the case
 if he is changed at all4    ,and will  
he then change himself for the better   

and fairer1 or for the  worse and more  
unsightly8    99#cha;,c99 ,if he change 
at all he can only change for the worse1
 for we cannot  suppose him to be       
deficient either in virtue or beauty4   
,very true1 ,adeimantus2 but then1 would
 any one1 whether ,god or man1 desire   
to make himself worse8    ,impossible4  
,then it is impossible that ,god should 
ever be willing to #fe change2  being1  
as is supposed1 the fairest and best    
that is conceivable1 every ,god  remains
 absolutely and for ever in his own     
form4    ,that necessarily follows1 he  
said1 in my judgment4    99#cha;,d99    
,then1 ,i said1 my dear friend1 let none
 of the poets tell us that      ',the   
gods1 taking the disguise of strangers  
from other lands1 walk up and    down   
cities in all sorts of forms#ac2'    and
 let no one slander ,proteus and        
,thetis1 neither let any one1 either in 
tragedy or in any other kind of poetry1 
introduce ,here disguised in the        
likeness of a priestess asking an alms  

',for the life-giving daughters of      
,inachus the river of ,argos2'          
99#cha;,e99 --let us have no more lies  
of that sort4 ,neither must we have     
mothers under the influence of the poets
 scaring their children with a bad      
version of these myths--telling how     
certain gods1 as they say1 ',go about   
by night in the likeness of so many     
strangers and in divers forms2' but  let
 them take heed lest they make cowards  
of their children1 and at the  same time
 speak blasphemy against the gods4      
,footnote #ac3 ,hom4 ,od4 xvii4 #dhe4   
,heaven forbid1 he said4    ,but        
although the gods are themselves        
unchangeable1 still by witchcraft and   
deception they may make us think that   
they appear in various forms8           
,perhaps1 he replied4    ,sidenote3 ,nor
 will he make any false representation  
of himself4    ,well1 but can you       
imagine that ,god will be willing to    
lie1 whether in word  or deed1 or to put
 forth a phantom of himself8            

99#chb;,a99 ,i cannot say1 he replied4  
,do you not know1 ,i said1 that the true
 lie1 if such an expression may be      
allowed1 is hated of gods and men8      
,what do you mean8 he said4    ,i mean  
that no one is willingly deceived in    
that which is the truest and  highest   
part of himself1 or about the truest and
 highest matters2 there1  above all1 he 
is most afraid of a lie having          
possession of him4 #ff    ,still1 he    
said1 ,i do not comprehend you4         
99#chb;,b99 ,the reason is1 ,i replied1 
that you attribute some profound meaning
  to my words2 but ,i am only saying    
that deception1 or being deceived or    
uninformed about the highest realities  
in the highest part of themselves1      
which is the soul1 and in that part of  
them to have and to hold the lie1  is   
what mankind least like2--that1 ,i say1 
is what they utterly detest4    ,there  
is nothing more hateful to them4        
,and1 as ,i was just now remarking1 this
 ignorance in the soul of him who is    

deceived may be called the true lie2 for
 the lie in words is only a kind  of    
imitation and shadowy image of a        
previous affection of the soul1 not     
pure unadulterated 99#chb;,c99          
falsehood4 ,am ,i not right8            
,perfectly right4    ,sidenote3 ,the    
true lie is equally hated both by gods  
and men2 the  remedial or preventive lie
 is comparatively innocent1 but ,god can
 have no  need of it4    ,the true lie  
is hated not only by the gods1 but also 
by men8    ,yes4    ,whereas the lie in 
words is in certain cases useful and not
 hateful2 in  dealing with enemies--that
 would be an instance2 or again1 when   
those whom  we call our friends in a fit
 of madness or illusion are going to do 
some  harm1 then it is useful and is a  
sort of medicine or preventive2 also in 
the 99#chb;,d99 tales of mythology1 of  
which we were just now speaking--because
  we do not know the truth about ancient
 times1 we make falsehood as much  like 
truth as we can1 and so turn it to      

account4    ,very true1 he said4    ,but
 can any of these reasons apply to ,god8
 ,can we suppose that he is  ignorant of
 antiquity1 and therefore has recourse  
to invention8    ,that would be         
ridiculous1 he said4    ,then the lying 
poet has no place in our idea of ,god8  
,i should say not4    ,or perhaps he may
 tell a lie because he is afraid of     
enemies8    99#chb;,e99 ,that is        
inconceivable4    ,but he may have      
friends who are senseless or mad8       
,but no mad or senseless person can be a
 friend of ,god4    ,then no motive can 
be imagined why ,god should lie8        
,none whatever4 #fg    ,then the        
superhuman and divine is absolutely     
incapable of falsehood8    ,yes4        
,then is ,god perfectly simple and true 
both in word and deed#ad2 he  changes   
not2 he deceives not1 either by sign or 
word1 by dream or waking  vision4       
,footnote #ad3 ,omitting ,greek3 kata   
phantasi_/as4    99#chc;,a99 ,your      
thoughts1 he said1 are the reflection of

 my own4    ,you agree with me then1 ,i 
said1 that this is the second type or   
form in  which we should write and speak
 about divine things4 ,the gods are not 
magicians who transform themselves1     
neither do they deceive mankind in any  
way4    ,i grant that4    ,sidenote3    
,away then with the falsehoods of the   
poets6    ,then1 although we are        
admirers of ,homer1 we do not admire the
 lying dream  which ,zeus sends to      
,agamemnon2 neither will we praise the  
verses of  ,aeschylus in which ,thetis  
99#chc;,b99 says that ,apollo at her    
nuptials      ',was celebrating in song 
her fair progeny whose days were to be  
long1 and    to know no sickness4 ,and  
when he had spoken of my lot as in all  
things    blessed of heaven he raised a 
note of triumph and cheered my soul4    
,and    ,i thought that the word of     
,phoebus1 being divine and full of      
prophecy1    would not fail4 ,and now he
 himself who uttered the strain1 he who 
was    present at the banquet1 and who  

said this--he it is who has slain my    
son#ae4'    ,footnote #ae3 ,from a lost 
play4    99#chc;,c99 ,these are the kind
 of sentiments about the gods which will
 arouse  our anger2 and he who utters   
them shall be refused a chorus2 neither 
shall  we allow teachers to make use of 
them in the instruction of the young1   
meaning1 as we do1 that our guardians1  
as far as men can be1 should be  true   
worshippers of the gods and like them4  
,i entirely agree1 he said1 in these    
principles1 and promise to make them  my
 laws4          ,,book ,,iii4           
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,iii4 ,socrates1  
,adeimantus4    ,sidenote3 ,the         
discouraging lessons of mythology4      
99#chf;,a99 ,such then1 ,i said1 are our
 principles of theology--some tales are 
to be told1 and others are not to be    
told to our disciples from their  youth 
upwards1 if we mean them to honour the  
gods and their parents1 and  to value   
friendship with one another4    ,yes2   
and ,i think that our principles are    

right1 he said4    ,but if they are to  
be courageous1 must they not learn other
 lessons  besides these1 and lessons of 
such a kind as will take 99#chf;,b99    
away the  fear of death8 ,can any man be
 courageous who has the fear of death in
 him8    ,certainly not1 he said4       
,and can he be fearless of death1 or    
will he choose death in battle rather   
than defeat and slavery1 who believes   
the world below to be real and          
terrible8    ,impossible4    ,sidenote3 
,the description of the world below in  
,homer4    ,then we must assume a       
control over the narrators of this class
 of tales as  well as over the others1  
and beg them not simply to revile but   
rather to  commend the world below1     
99#chf;,c99 intimating to them that     
their descriptions  are untrue1 and will
 do harm to our future warriors4        
,that will be our duty1 he said4        
,sidenote3 ,such tales to be rejected4  
,then1 ,i said1 we shall have to        
obliterate many obnoxious passages1     

beginning with the verses1      ',i     
would rather be a serf on the land of a 
poor and portionless man than    rule   
over all the dead who have come to      
nought#a4'    ,we must also expunge the 
verse1 which tells us how ,pluto feared1
      99#chf;,d99 ',lest the mansions   
grim and squalid which the gods abhor   
should    be seen both of mortals and   
immortals#b4' #fi    ,and again3--      
',o heavens6 verily in the house of     
,hades there is soul and ghostly form   
but no mind at all#c6'    ,again of     
,tiresias3--      ',to him even after   
death did ,persephone grant mind1 that  
he alone    should be wise2 but the     
other souls are flitting shades#d4'     
,again3--      ',the soul flying from   
the limbs had gone to ,hades1 lamenting 
her fate1    leaving manhood and        
youth#e4'    ,again3--      99#chg;,a99 
',and the soul1 with shrilling cry1     
passed like smoke beneath the           
earth#f4'    ,and1--      ',as bats in  
hollow of mystic cavern1 whenever any of

 them has dropped    out of the string  
and falls from the rock1 fly shrilling  
and cling to    one another1 so did they
 with shrilling cry hold together as    
they    moved#g4'    99#chg;,b99 ,and we
 must beg ,homer and the other poets not
 to be angry if we  strike out these and
 similar passages1 not because they are 
unpoetical1 or  unattractive to the     
popular ear1 but because the greater the
 poetical  charm of them1 the less are  
they meet for the ears of boys and men  
who are  meant to be free1 and who      
should fear slavery more than death4    
,footnote #a3 ,od4 xi4 #dhi4            
,footnote #b3 ,il4 xx4 #fd4    ,footnote
 #c3 ,il4 xxiii4 #ajc4    ,footnote #d3 
,od4 x4 #die4    ,footnote #e3 ,il4 xvi4
 #hef4    ,footnote #f3 ,ib4 xxiii4     
#ajj4    ,footnote #g3 ,od4 xxiv4 #f4   
,undoubtedly4    ,also we shall have to 
reject all the terrible and appalling   
names which  describe the world         
below--,cocytus and ,styx1 99#chg;,c99  
ghosts under the earth1  and sapless    

shades1 and any similar words of which  
the very mention causes  a shudder to   
pass through the inmost soul of him who 
hears them4 ,i do not  say that these   
horrible stories may not have a use of  
some kind2 but there  is a danger that  
the nerves of our guardians may be      
rendered too excitable  and effeminate  
by them4    ,there is a real danger1 he 
said4    ,then we must have no more of  
them4    ,true4    ,another and a nobler
 strain must be composed and sung by us4
 #gj    ,clearly4    99#chg;,d99 ,and   
shall we proceed to get rid of the      
weepings and wailings of  famous men8   
,they will go with the rest4            
,sidenote3 ,the effeminate and pitiful  
strains of famous men1 and yet more  of 
the gods1 must also be banished4    ,but
 shall we be right in getting rid of    
them8 ,reflect3 our principle is  that  
the good man will not consider death    
terrible to any other good man  who is  
his comrade4    ,yes2 that is our       
principle4    ,and therefore he will not

 sorrow for his departed friend as      
though he had  suffered anything        
terrible8    ,he will not4    ,such an  
one1 as we further maintain1 is         
sufficient for himself 99#chg;,e99 and  
his own happiness1 and therefore is     
least in need of other men4    ,true1 he
 said4    ,and for this reason the loss 
of a son or brother1 or the deprivation 
of  fortune1 is to him of all men least 
terrible4    ,assuredly4    ,and        
therefore he will be least likely to    
lament1 and will bear with the  greatest
 equanimity any misfortune of this sort 
which may befall him4    ,yes1 he will  
feel such a misfortune far less than    
another4    ,then we shall be right in  
getting rid of the lamentations of      
famous men1  and making them over to    
women 7and not 99#chh;,a99 even to women
 who are good  for anything71 or to men 
of a baser sort1 that those who are     
being  educated by us to be the         
defenders of their country may scorn to 
do the  like4    ,that will be very     

right4    ,sidenote3 ,such are the      
laments of ,achilles1 and ,priam1 and of
 ,zeus when  he beholds the fate of     
,hector or ,sarpedon4    ,then we will  
once more entreat ,homer and the other  
poets not to depict  ,achilles#h1 who is
 the son of a goddess1 first lying on   
his side1 then on  his back1 and then on
 his face2 then starting up and sailing 
in a frenzy  along the shores of        
99#chh;,b99 the barren sea2 now taking  
the sooty ashes in  both his hands#i and
 pouring them over his head1 or weeping 
and wailing  in the various modes which 
,homer has delineated4 ,nor should he   
describe  ,priam the kinsman of the gods
 as praying and beseeching1             
',rolling in the dirt1 calling each man 
loudly by his name#aj4' #ga    ,still   
more earnestly will we beg of him at all
 events not to introduce the  gods      
lamenting and saying1      99#chh;,c99  
',alas6 my misery6 ,alas6 that ,i bore  
the bravest to my    sorrow#aa4'    ,but
 if he must introduce the gods1 at any  

rate let him not dare so  completely to 
misrepresent the greatest of the gods1  
as to make him say--      ',o heavens6  
with my eyes verily ,i behold a dear    
friend of mine chased    round and round
 the city1 and my heart is              
sorrowful#ab4'    ,or again3--          
',woe is me that ,i am fated to have    
,sarpedon1 dearest of 99#chh;,d99 men to
    me1 subdued at the hands of         
,patroclus the son of ,menoetius#ac4'   
,for if1 my sweet ,adeimantus1 our youth
 seriously listen to such unworthy      
representations of the gods1 instead of 
laughing at them as they ought1  hardly 
will any of them deem that he himself1  
being but a man1 can be  dishonoured by 
similar actions2 neither will he rebuke 
any inclination  which may arise in his 
mind to say and do the like4 ,and       
instead of having  any shame or         
self-control1 he will be always whining 
and lamenting on  slight occasions4     
,footnote #h3 ,il4 xxiv4 #aj4           
,footnote #i3 ,ib4 xviii4 #bc4          

,footnote #aj3 ,ib4 xxii4 #dad4         
,footnote #aa3 ,il4 xviii4 #ed4         
,footnote #ab3 ,ib4 xxii4 #afh4         
,footnote #ac3 ,ib4 xvi4 #dcc4          
99#chh;,e99 ,yes1 he said1 that is most 
true4    ,yes1 ,i replied2 but that     
surely is what ought not to be1 as the  
argument  has just proved to us2 and by 
that proof we must abide until it is    
disproved by a better4    ,it ought not 
to be4    ,sidenote3 ,neither are the   
guardians to be encouraged to laugh by  
the  example of the gods4    ,neither   
ought our guardians to be given to      
laughter4 ,for a fit of laughter  which 
has been indulged to excess almost      
always produces a violent  reaction4    
,so ,i believe4    ,then persons of     
worth1 even if only mortal men1 must not
 be represented as  overcome by         
laughter1 and still less must such a    
representation of the  gods be allowed4 
99#chi;,a99 ,still less of the gods1 as 
you say1 he replied4    ,then we shall  
not suffer such an expression to be used

 about the gods as  that of ,homer when 
he describes how      ',inextinguishable
 laughter arose among the blessed gods1 
when they saw    ,hephaestus bustling   
about the mansion#ad4'    ,on your      
views1 we must not admit them4 #gb      
,footnote #ad3 ,ib4 i4 #eii4    ,on my  
views1 if you like to father them on me2
 that we 99#chi;,b99 must not  admit    
them is certain4    ,sidenote3 ,our     
youth must be truthful1    ,again1 truth
 should be highly valued2 if1 as we were
 saying1 a lie is  useless to the gods1 
and useful only as a medicine to men1   
then the use of  such medicines should  
be restricted to physicians2 private    
individuals  have no business with them4
    ,clearly not1 he said4    ,then if  
any one at all is to have the privilege 
of lying1 the rulers of  the ,state     
should be the persons2 and they1 in     
their dealings either with  enemies or  
with their own citizens1 may be allowed 
to lie for the public  good4 ,but nobody
 else should 99#chi;,c99 meddle with    

anything of the kind2 and  although the 
rulers have this privilege1 for a       
private man to lie to them  in return is
 to be deemed a more heinous fault than 
for the patient or the  pupil of a      
gymnasium not to speak the truth about  
his own bodily illnesses  to the        
physician or to the trainer1 or for a   
sailor not to tell the  captain what is 
happening about the ship and the rest of
 the crew1 and how  things are going    
with himself or his fellow sailors4     
,most true1 he said4    99#chi;,d99 ,if1
 then1 the ruler catches anybody beside 
himself lying in the  ,state1      ',any
 of the craftsmen1 whether he be priest 
or physician or    carpenter#ae1'    he 
will punish him for introducing a       
practice which is equally subversive    
and destructive of ship or ,state4      
,footnote #ae3 ,od4 xvii4 #chc sq4      
,most certainly1 he said1 if our idea of
 the ,state is ever carried out#af4     
,footnote #af3 ,or1 'if his words are   
accompanied by actions4'    ,sidenote3  

and also temperate4    ,in the next     
place our youth must be temperate8      
,certainly4    ,are not the chief       
elements of temperance1 speaking        
99#chi;,e99 generally1  obedience to    
commanders and self-control in sensual  
pleasures8    ,true4    ,then we shall  
approve such language as that of        
,diomede in ,homer1      ',friend1 sit  
still and obey my word#ag1' #gc    and  
the verses which follow1      ',the     
,greeks marched breathing prowess#ah1   
4444 in silent awe of their             
leaders#ai1'    and other sentiments of 
the same kind4    ,footnote #ag3 ,il4   
iv4 #dab4    ,footnote #ah3 ,od4 iii4   
#h4    ,footnote #ai3 ,ib4 iv4 #dca4    
,we shall4    ,what of this line1       
',o heavy with wine1 who hast the eyes  
of a dog and the heart of a    stag#bj1'
    99#cij;,a99 and of the words which  
follow8 ,would you say that these1 or   
any  similar impertinences which private
 individuals are supposed to address to 
their rulers1 whether in verse or prose1

 are well or ill spoken8    ,footnote   
#bj3 ,ib4 i4 #bbe4    ,they are ill     
spoken4    ,they may very possibly      
afford some amusement1 but they do not  
conduce to  temperance4 ,and therefore  
they are likely to do harm to our young 
men--you  would agree with me there8    
,yes4    ,sidenote3 ,the praises of     
eating and drinking1 and the tale of the
  improper behaviour of ,zeus and ,here1
 are not to be repeated to the young4   
,sidenote3 ,the indecent tale of ,ares  
and ,aphrodite4    ,and then1 again1 to 
make the wisest of men say that nothing 
in his opinion  is more glorious than   
99#cij;,b99 ',when the tables are full  
of bread and meat1 and the cup-bearer   
carries round wine which he draws from  
the bowl and pours into the    cups1#ba'
    is it fit or conducive to temperance
 for a young man to hear such words8    
,or the verse      ',the saddest of     
fates is to die and meet destiny from   
hunger#bb'8    ,what would you say again
 to the tale of ,zeus1 who1 while other 

gods and  men were asleep and he the    
only person 99#cij;,c99 awake1 lay      
devising plans1  but forgot them all in 
a moment through his lust1 and was so   
completely  overcome at the sight of    
,here that he would not even go into the
 hut1 but  wanted to lie with her on the
 ground1 declaring that he had never    
been in  such a state of rapture before1
 even when they first met one another   
',without the knowledge of their        
parents#bc2' #gd    or that other tale  
of how ,hephaestus1 because of similar  
goings on1 cast a  chain around ,ares   
and ,aphrodite#bd8    ,footnote #ba3    
,ib4 ix4 #h4    ,footnote #bb3 ,ib4 xii4
 #cdb4    ,footnote #bc3 ,il4 xiv4 #bha4
    ,footnote #bd3 ,od4 viii4 #bff4     
,indeed1 he said1 ,i am strongly of     
opinion that they ought not to hear that
  sort of thing4    ,sidenote3 ,the     
opposite strain of endurance4           
99#cij;,d99 ,but any deeds of endurance 
which are done or told by famous men1   
these they ought to see and hear2 as1   

for example1 what is said in the        
verses1      ',he smote his breast1 and 
thus reproached his heart1 ,endure1 my  
heart2    far worse hast thou           
endured#be6'    ,footnote #be3 ,ib4 xx4 
#ag4    ,certainly1 he said4    ,in the 
next place1 we must not let them be     
receivers of gifts or lovers of  money4 
99#cij;,e99 ,certainly not4             
,sidenote3 ,condemnation of ,achilles   
and ,phoenix4    ,neither must we sing  
to them of      ',gifts persuading gods1
 and persuading reverend kings#bf4'     
,neither is ,phoenix1 the tutor of      
,achilles1 to be approved or deemed to  
have given his pupil good counsel when  
he told him that he should take the     
gifts of the ,greeks and assist them#bg2
 but that without a gift he should  not 
lay aside his anger4 ,neither will we   
believe or acknowledge ,achilles        
himself to have been such a lover of    
money that he took ,agamemnon's gifts1  
or that when he had received payment he 
restored the dead body of ,hector1  but 

that without payment he was unwilling to
 do so#bh4    ,footnote #bf3 ,quoted by 
,suidas as attributed to ,hesiod4       
,footnote #bg3 ,il4 ix4 #eae4           
,footnote #bh3 ,ib4 xxiv4 #age4         
99#cia;,a99 ,undoubtedly1 he said1 these
 are not sentiments which can be        
approved4    ,sidenote3 ,the impious    
behaviour of ,achilles to ,apollo and   
the river-gods2  his cruelty4    ,loving
 ,homer as ,i do#bi1 ,i hardly like to  
say that in attributing these  feelings 
to ,achilles1 or in believing that they 
are truly attributed to  him1 he is     
guilty of downright impiety4 ,as little 
can ,i believe the  narrative of his    
insolence to ,apollo1 where he says1    
',thou hast wronged me1 ,o far-darter1  
most abominable of deities4 ,verily     
,i would be even with thee1 if ,i had   
only the power#cj2'    99#cia;,b99 or   
his insubordination to the river-god#ca1
 on whose divinity he  is ready to lay  
hands2 or his offering to the dead      
,patroclus #ge of his  own hair#cb1     

which had been previously dedicated to  
the other river-god  ,spercheius1 and   
that he actually performed this vow2 or 
that he dragged  ,hector round the tomb 
of ,patroclus#cc1 and slaughtered the   
captives at  the pyre#cd2 of all this ,i
 cannot believe that he was guilty1 any 
more  than ,i can 99#cia;,c99 allow our 
citizens to believe that he1 the wise   
,cheiron's pupil1 the son of a goddess  
and of ,peleus who was the gentlest  of 
men and third in descent from ,zeus1 was
 so disordered in his wits as to  be at 
one time the slave of two seemingly     
inconsistent passions1 meanness1  not   
untainted by avarice1 combined with     
overweening contempt of gods and  men4  
,footnote #bi3 ,cf4 infra1 x4 #eie4     
,footnote #cj3 ,il4 xxii4 #ae sq4       
,footnote #ca3 ,ib4 xxi4 #acj1 #bbc sq4 
,footnote #cb3 ,il4 xxiii4 #aea4        
,footnote #cc3 ,ib4 xxii4 #cid4         
,footnote #cd3 ,ib4 xxiii4 #age4    ,you
 are quite right1 he replied4           
,sidenote3 ,the tale of ,theseus and    

,peirithous4    ,and let us equally     
refuse to believe1 or allow to be       
repeated1 the tale of  ,theseus son of  
,poseidon1 or of ,peirithous 99#cia;,d99
 son of ,zeus1 going forth  as they did 
to perpetrate a horrid rape2 or of any  
other hero or son of a  god daring to do
 such impious and dreadful things as    
they falsely ascribe  to them in our    
day3 and let us further compel the poets
 to declare either  that these acts were
 not done by them1 or that they were not
 the sons of  gods2--both in the same   
breath they shall not be permitted to   
affirm4 ,we  will not have them trying  
to persuade our youth that the gods are 
the  authors of evil1 and that heroes   
are no better than men--sentiments      
99#cia;,e99  which1 as we were saying1  
are neither pious nor true1 for we have 
already  proved that evil cannot come   
from the gods4    ,assuredly not4       
,sidenote3 ,the bad effect of these     
mythological tales upon the young4      
,and further they are likely to have a  

bad effect on those who hear them2  for 
everybody will begin to excuse his own  
vices when he is convinced that  similar
 wickednesses are always being          
perpetrated by--      ',the kindred of  
the gods1 the relatives of ,zeus1 whose 
ancestral altar1    the altar of ,zeus1 
is aloft in air on the peak of ,ida1'   
and who have      'the blood of deities 
yet flowing in their veins#ce4'    ,and 
therefore let us put an end to such     
tales1 lest they 99#cib;,a99 engender   
laxity of morals among the young4 #gf   
,footnote #ce3 ,from the ,niobe of      
,aeschylus4    ,by all means1 he        
replied4    ,but now that we are        
determining what classes of subjects are
 or are not to  be spoken of1 let us see
 whether any have been omitted by us4   
,the manner  in which gods and demigods 
and heroes and the world below should be
  treated has been already laid down4   
,very true4    ,sidenote3 ,misstatements
 of the poets about men4    ,and what   
shall we say about men8 ,that is clearly

 the remaining portion of  our subject4 
,clearly so4    ,but we are not in a    
condition to answer this question at    
present1 my  friend4    ,why not8       
,because1 if ,i am not mistaken1 we     
shall have to say that 99#cib;,b99 about
 men  poets and story-tellers are guilty
 of making the gravest misstatements    
when they tell us that wicked men are   
often happy1 and the good miserable2    
and that injustice is profitable when   
undetected1 but that justice is a  man's
 own loss and another's gain--these     
things we shall forbid them to  utter1  
and command them to sing and say the    
opposite4    ,to be sure we shall1 he   
replied4    ,but if you admit that ,i am
 right in this1 then ,i shall maintain  
that you  have implied the principle for
 which we have been all along           
contending4    ,i grant the truth of    
your inference4    99#cib;,c99 ,that    
such things are or are not to be said   
about men is a question  which we cannot
 determine until we have discovered what

 justice is1 and  how naturally         
advantageous to the possessor1 whether  
he seem to be just or  not4    ,most    
true1 he said4    ,enough of the        
subjects of poetry3 let us now speak of 
the style2 and when  this has been      
considered1 both matter and manner will 
have been completely  treated4    ,i do 
not understand what you mean1 said      
,adeimantus4    99#cib;,d99 ,then ,i    
must make you understand2 and perhaps ,i
 may be more  intelligible if ,i put the
 matter in this way4 ,you are aware1 ,i 
suppose1  that all mythology and poetry 
is a narration of events1 either past1  
present1 or to come8    ,certainly1 he  
replied4 #gg    ,and narration may be   
either simple narration1 or imitation1  
or a union of  the two8    ,that again1 
he said1 ,i do not quite understand4    
,sidenote3 ,analysis of the dramatic    
element in ,epic poetry4    ,i fear that
 ,i must be a ridiculous teacher when ,i
 have so much difficulty  in making     
myself apprehended4 ,like a bad speaker1

 therefore1 ,i will not  take the whole 
of the subject1 99#cib;,e99 but will    
break a piece off in  illustration of my
 meaning4 ,you know the first lines of  
the ,iliad1 in  which the poet says that
 99#cic;,a99 ,chryses prayed ,agamemnon 
to release his  daughter1 and that      
,agamemnon flew into a passion with him2
 whereupon  ,chryses1 failing of his    
object1 invoked the anger of the ,god   
against the  ,achaeans4 ,now as far as  
these lines1      ',and he prayed all   
the ,greeks1 but especially the two sons
 of ,atreus1    the chiefs of the       
people1'    the poet is speaking in his 
own person2 he never leads us to suppose
 that  he is any one else4 ,but in what 
follows he takes the person of ,chryses1
  and then he does all that he can      
99#cic;,b99 to make us believe that the 
speaker is not ,homer1 but the aged     
priest himself4 ,and in this double form
  he has cast the entire narrative of   
the events which occurred at ,troy and  
in ,ithaca and throughout the ,odyssey4 

,yes4    ,and a narrative it remains    
both in the speeches which the poet     
recites  from time to time and in the   
intermediate passages8    ,quite true4  
,sidenote3 ,epic poetry has an element  
of imitation in the speeches2 the  rest 
is simple narrative4    99#cic;,c99 ,but
 when the poet speaks in the person of  
another1 may we not say  that he        
assimilates his style to that of the    
person who1 as he informs  you1 is going
 to speak8    ,certainly4    ,and this  
assimilation of himself to another1     
either by the use of voice or  gesture1 
is the imitation of the person whose    
character he assumes8    ,of course4    
,then in this case the narrative of the 
poet may be said to proceed by way  of  
imitation8    ,very true4    ,sidenote3 
,illustrations from the beginning of the
 ,iliad4    ,or1 if the poet everywhere 
appears and never conceals 99#cic;,d99  
himself1 then  again the imitation is   
dropped1 and his poetry becomes simple  
narration4  ,however1 in order that ,i  

may #gh make my meaning quite clear1 and
 that  you may no more say1 ',i don't   
understand1' ,i will show how the change
  might be effected4 ,if ,homer had     
said1 ',the priest came1 having his     
daughter's ransom in his hands1         
supplicating the ,achaeans1 and above   
all  the kings2' and then if1 instead of
 speaking in the person of ,chryses1 he 
had continued in his own person1 the    
words would have been1 not imitation1   
but simple narration4 ,the passage would
 have run as follows 7,i am no poet1    
99#cic;,e99 and therefore ,i drop the   
metre71 ',the priest came and prayed the
  gods on behalf of the ,greeks that    
they might capture ,troy and return     
safely home1 but begged that they would 
give him back his daughter1 and  take   
the ransom which he brought1 and respect
 the ,god4 ,thus he spoke1 and  the     
other ,greeks revered the priest and    
assented4 ,but ,agamemnon was wroth1    
and bade him depart and not come again1 
lest the staff and chaplets of the  ,god

 should be of no avail to him--the      
daughter of ,chryses should not be      
released1 he said--she should grow old  
with him in ,argos4 ,and then he told   
him to go away and not to provoke him1  
if he intended to get home  unscathed4  
,and the old man went away in fear and  
99#cid;,a99 silence1 and1 when  he had  
left the camp1 he called upon ,apollo by
 his many names1 reminding  him of      
everything which he had done pleasing to
 him1 whether in building  his temples1 
or in offering sacrifice1 and praying   
that his good deeds  might be returned  
to him1 and that the ,achaeans might    
expiate his tears by  the arrows of the 
god1'--and so on4 99#cid;,b99 ,in this  
way the whole becomes  simple narrative4
    ,i understand1 he said4             
,sidenote3 ,tragedy and ,comedy are     
wholly imitative2 dithyrambic and some  
other kinds of poetry are devoid of     
imitation4 ,epic poetry is a            
combination of the two4    ,or you may  
suppose the opposite case--that the     

intermediate passages are  omitted1 and 
the dialogue only left4    ,that also1  
he said1 ,i understand2 you mean1 for   
example1 as in tragedy4    ,you have    
conceived my meaning perfectly2 and if  
,i mistake not1 what you  failed to     
apprehend before is now made 99#cid;,c99
 clear to you1 that poetry  and         
mythology are1 in some cases1 wholly    
imitative--instances of this are        
supplied by tragedy and comedy2 there is
 likewise the opposite style1 in  which 
the poet is the only speaker--of this   
the dithyramb affords the best  example2
 and the combination of both is found in
 epic1 and in several  other styles of  
poetry4 ,do ,i take you with me8 #gi    
,yes1 he said2 ,i see now what you      
meant4    ,i will ask you to remember   
also what ,i began by saying1 that we   
had done  with the subject and might    
proceed to the style4    ,yes1 ,i       
remember4    99#cid;,d99 ,in saying     
this1 ,i intended to imply that we must 
come to an  understanding about the     

mimetic art1--whether the poets1 in     
narrating  their stories1 are to be     
allowed by us to imitate1 and if so1    
whether in  whole or in part1 and if the
 latter1 in what parts2 or should all   
imitation be prohibited8    ,you mean1  
,i suspect1 to ask whether tragedy and  
comedy shall be admitted  into our      
,state8    ,sidenote3 ,a hint about     
,homer 7cp4 infra1 bk4 x47    ,yes1 ,i  
said2 but there may be more than this in
 question3 ,i really do not  know as    
yet1 but whither the argument may blow1 
thither we go4    ,and go we will1 he   
said4    ,sidenote3 ,our guardians ought
 not to be imitators1 for one man can   
only  do one thing well2    99#cid;,e99 
,then1 ,adeimantus1 let me ask you      
whether our guardians ought to be       
imitators2 or rather1 has not this      
question been decided by the rule       
already laid down that one man can only 
do one thing well1 and not many2  and   
that if he attempt many1 he will        
altogether fail of gaining much         

reputation in any8    ,certainly4       
,and this is equally true of imitation2 
no one man can imitate many things  as  
well as he would imitate a single one8  
,he cannot4    99#cie;,a99 ,then the    
same person will hardly be able to play 
a serious part in  life1 and at the same
 time to be an imitator and imitate many
 other parts  as well2 for even when two
 species of imitation are nearly allied1
 the  same persons cannot succeed in    
both1 as1 for example1 the writers of   
tragedy and comedy--did you not just now
 call them imitations8    ,yes1 ,i did2 
and you are right in thinking that the  
same persons cannot  succeed in both4   
,any more than they can be rhapsodists  
and actors at once8    ,true4           
99#cie;,b99 ,neither are comic and      
tragic actors the same2 yet all these   
things  are but imitations4    ,they are
 so4    ,sidenote3 he cannot even       
imitate many things4    ,and human      
nature1 ,adeimantus1 appears to have    
been #hj coined into yet  smaller       

pieces1 and to be as incapable of       
imitating many things well1 as  of      
performing well the actions of which the
 imitations are copies4    ,quite true1 
he replied4    ,if then we adhere to our
 original notion and bear in mind that  
our  guardians1 setting aside every     
other business1 are to 99#cie;,c99      
dedicate  themselves wholly to the      
maintenance of freedom in the ,state1   
making this  their craft1 and engaging  
in no work which does not bear on this  
end1 they  ought not to practise or     
imitate anything else2 if they imitate  
at all1  they should imitate from youth 
upward only those characters which are  
suitable to their profession--the       
courageous1 temperate1 holy1 free1 and  
the like2 but they should not depict or 
be skilful at imitating any kind  of    
illiberality or baseness1 lest from     
imitation they should come to be  what  
they imitate4 ,did 99#cie;,d99 you never
 observe how imitations1 beginning  in  
early youth and continuing far into     

life1 at length grow into habits  and   
become a second nature1 affecting body1 
voice1 and mind8    ,yes1 certainly1 he 
said4    ,sidenote3 ,imitations which   
are of the degrading sort4    ,then1 ,i 
said1 we will not allow those for whom  
we profess a care and of  whom we say   
that they ought to be good men1 to      
imitate a woman1 whether  young or old1 
quarrelling with her husband1 or        
striving and vaunting  against the gods 
in 99#cie;,e99 conceit of her happiness1
 or when she is in  affliction1 or      
sorrow1 or weeping2 and certainly not   
one who is in  sickness1 love1 or       
labour4    ,very right1 he said4        
,neither must they represent slaves1    
male or female1 performing the offices  
of slaves8    ,they must not4    ,and   
surely not bad men1 whether cowards or  
any others1 who do the reverse  of what 
we have just been prescribing1 who scold
 or mock or revile one  another in drink
 or out of drink1 or who in any other   
manner sin against  themselves and their

 neighbours in word or deed1 as the     
manner of such is4  99#cif;,a99 ,neither
 should they be trained to imitate the  
action or speech of  men or women who   
are mad or bad2 for madness1 like vice1 
is to be known  but not to be practised 
or imitated4    ,very true1 he replied4 
#ha    ,neither may they imitate smiths 
or other artificers1 or 99#cif;,b99     
oarsmen1 or  boatswains1 or the like8   
,how can they1 he said1 when they are   
not allowed to apply their minds to  the
 callings of any of these8    ,nor may  
they imitate the neighing of horses1 the
 bellowing of bulls1 the  murmur of     
rivers and roll of the ocean1 thunder1  
and all that sort of  thing8    ,nay1 he
 said1 if madness be forbidden1 neither 
may they copy the behaviour  of madmen4 
,you mean1 ,i said1 if ,i understand you
 aright1 that there is one sort of      
narrative style which may be employed by
 a truly 99#cif;,c99 good man when he   
has anything to say1 and that another   
sort will be used by a man of an        

opposite character and education4       
,and which are these two sorts8 he      
asked4    ,sidenote3 ,imitations which  
may be encouraged4    ,suppose1 ,i      
answered1 that a just and good man in   
the course of a narration  comes on some
 saying or action of another good       
man1--,i should imagine that  he will   
like to personate him1 and will not be  
ashamed of this sort of  imitation3 he  
will be most ready to play the part of  
the good 99#cif;,d99 man  when he is    
acting firmly and wisely2 in a less     
degree when he is overtaken  by illness 
or love or drink1 or has met with any   
other disaster4 ,but when  he comes to a
 character which is unworthy of him1 he 
will not make a study  of that2 he will 
disdain such a person1 and will assume  
his likeness1 if  at all1 for a moment  
only when he is performing some good    
action2 at other  times he will be      
ashamed to play a part which he has     
never practised1 nor  will he like to   
fashion and frame himself after the     

baser models2 he feels  the 99#cif;,e99 
employment of such an art1 unless in    
jest1 to be beneath him1  and his mind  
revolts at it4    ,so ,i should expect1 
he replied4    ,then he will adopt a    
mode of narration such as we have       
illustrated out of  ,homer1 that is to  
say1 his style will be both imitative   
and narrative2 but  there will be very  
little of the former1 and a great deal  
of the latter4  ,do you agree8          
,certainly1 he said2 that is the model  
which such a speaker 99#cig;,a99 must   
necessarily take4    ,sidenote3         
,imitations which are to be prohibited4 
,but there is another sort of character 
who will narrate anything1 and1 the     
worse he is1 the more unscrupulous he   
will be2 nothing will be too bad for    
him3 and he will be ready to #hb imitate
 anything1 not as a joke1 but in  right 
good earnest1 and before a large        
company4 ,as ,i was just now saying1  he
 will attempt to represent the roll of  
thunder1 the noise of wind and  hail1 or

 the creaking of wheels1 and pulleys1   
and the various sounds of  flutes1      
pipes1 trumpets1 and all sorts of       
instruments3 he will bark like a  dog1  
bleat like 99#cig;,b99 a sheep1 or crow 
like a cock2 his entire art will        
consist in imitation of voice and       
gesture1 and there will be very little  
narration4    ,that1 he said1 will be   
his mode of speaking4    ,these1 then1  
are the two kinds of style8    ,yes4    
,sidenote3 ,two kinds of style--the one 
simple1 the other multiplex4 ,there  is 
also a third which is a combination of  
the two4    ,and you would agree with me
 in saying that one of them is simple   
and has  but slight changes2 and if the 
harmony and rhythm are also chosen for  
their simplicity1 the result is that the
 speaker1 if he speaks correctly1  is   
always pretty much the same in style1   
and he will keep within the  limits of a
 single harmony 7for the changes are not
 great71 and in 99#cig;,c99  like manner
 he will make use of nearly the same    

rhythm8    ,that is quite true1 he said4
    ,whereas the other requires all     
sorts of harmonies and all sorts of     
rhythms1 if the music and the style are 
to correspond1 because the style  has   
all sorts of changes4    ,that is also  
perfectly true1 he replied4    ,and do  
not the two styles1 or the mixture of   
the two1 comprehend all  poetry1 and    
every form of expression in words8 ,no  
one can say anything  except in one or  
other of them or in both together4      
,they include all1 he said4             
,sidenote3 ,the simple style alone is to
 be admitted in the ,state2 the         
attractions of the mixed style are      
acknowledged1 but it appears to be      
excluded4    99#cig;,d99 ,and shall we  
receive into our ,state all the three   
styles1 or one  only of the two unmixed 
styles8 or would you include the mixed8 
,i should prefer only to admit the pure 
imitator of virtue4    ,yes1 ,i said1   
,adeimantus1 but the mixed style is also
 very charming3 and  indeed the         

pantomimic1 which is the opposite of the
 one chosen by you1 is  the most popular
 style with children and their          
attendants1 and with the  world in      
general4    ,i do not deny it4    ,but  
,i suppose you would argue that such a  
style is unsuitable 99#cig;,e99 to  our 
,state1 in which human nature is not    
twofold or manifold1 for one man  plays 
one part only8 #hc    ,yes2 quite       
unsuitable4    ,and this is the reason  
why in our ,state1 and in our ,state    
only1 we shall  find a shoemaker to be a
 shoemaker and not a pilot also1 and a  
husbandman  to be a husbandman and not a
 dicast also1 and a soldier a soldier   
and not  a trader also1 and the same    
throughout8    ,true1 he said4          
,sidenote3 ,the pantomimic artist is to 
receive great honours1 but he is to  be 
sent out of the country4    99#cih;,a99 
,and therefore when any one of these    
pantomimic gentlemen1 who are  so clever
 that they can imitate anything1 comes  
to us1 and makes a  proposal to exhibit 

himself and his poetry1 we will fall    
down and worship  him as a sweet and    
holy and wonderful being2 but we must   
also inform him  that in our ,state such
 as he are not permitted to exist2 the  
law will not  allow them4 ,and so when  
we have anointed him with myrrh1 and set
 a garland  of wool upon his head1 we   
shall send him away to another city4    
,for we mean  to employ for 99#cih;,b99 
our souls' health the rougher and       
severer poet or  story-teller1 who will 
imitate the style of the virtuous only1 
and will  follow those models which we  
prescribed at first when we began the   
education of our soldiers4    ,we       
certainly will1 he said1 if we have the 
power4    ,then now1 my friend1 ,i said1
 that part of music or literary         
education  which relates to the story or
 myth may be considered to be finished2 
for  the matter and manner have both    
been discussed4    ,i think so too1 he  
said4    99#cih;,c99 ,next in order will
 follow melody and song4    ,that is    

obvious4    ,every one can see already  
what we ought to say about them1 if we  
are to be  consistent with ourselves4   
,sidenote3 ,socrates1 ,glaucon4    ,i   
fear1 said ,glaucon1 laughing1 that the 
word 'every one' hardly includes  me1   
for ,i cannot at the moment say what    
they should be2 though ,i may  guess4   
,at any rate you can tell that a song or
 ode has three 99#cih;,d99 parts--the   
words1 the melody1 and the rhythm2 that 
degree of knowledge ,i may  presuppose8 
,yes1 he said2 so much as that you may4 
,and as for the words1 there will surely
 be no difference between words  which  
are and which are not set to music2 #hd 
both will conform to the  same laws1 and
 these have been already determined by  
us8    ,yes4    ,sidenote3 ,melody and  
rhythm4    ,and the melody and rhythm   
will depend upon the words8             
,certainly4    ,we were saying1 when we 
spoke of the subject-matter1 that we had
 no need  of lamentation and strains of 
sorrow8    ,true4    99#cih;,e99 ,and   

which are the harmonies expressive of   
sorrow8 ,you are musical1  and can tell 
me4    ,the harmonies which you mean are
 the mixed or tenor ,lydian1 and the    
full-toned or bass ,lydian1 and such    
like4    ,these then1 ,i said1 must be  
banished2 even to women who have a      
character  to maintain they are of no   
use1 and much less to men4              
,certainly4    ,in the next place1      
drunkenness and softness and indolence  
are utterly  unbecoming the character of
 our guardians4    ,utterly unbecoming4 
,sidenote3 ,the relaxed melodies or     
harmonies are the ,ionian and the       
,lydian4 ,these are to be banished4     
,and which are the soft or drinking     
harmonies8    99#cii;,a99 ,the ,ionian1 
he replied1 and the ,lydian2 they are   
termed 'relaxed4'    ,well1 and are     
these of any military use8    ,quite the
 reverse1 he replied2 and if so the     
,dorian and the ,phrygian are  the only 
ones which you have left4    ,i         
answered3 ,of the harmonies ,i know     

nothing1 but ,i want to have one        
warlike1 to sound the note or accent    
which a brave man utters in the hour  of
 danger and stern resolve1 or when his  
cause is failing1 and he is going  to   
wounds or 99#cii;,b99 death or is       
overtaken by some other evil1 and at    
every  such crisis meets the blows of   
fortune with firm step and a            
determination  to endure2 and another to
 be used by him in times of peace and   
freedom of  action1 when there is no    
pressure of necessity1 and he is seeking
 to  persuade ,god by prayer1 or man by 
instruction and admonition1 or on the   
other hand1 when he is expressing his   
willingness to yield to persuasion  or  
entreaty or admonition1 and which       
represents him when by prudent  conduct 
he has attained his end1 not carried    
away by his success1 but  acting        
moderately and wisely 99#cii;,c99 under 
the circumstances1 and  acquiescing in  
the event4 ,these #he two harmonies ,i  
ask you to leave2 the  strain of        

necessity and the strain of freedom1 the
 strain of the  unfortunate and the     
strain of the fortunate1 the strain of  
courage1 and  the strain of temperance2 
these1 ,i say1 leave4    ,and these1 he 
replied1 are the ,dorian and ,phrygian  
harmonies of which  ,i was just now     
speaking4    ,sidenote3 ,the ,dorian and
 ,phrygian are to be retained4    ,then1
 ,i said1 if these and these only are to
 be used in our songs and  melodies1 we 
shall not want multiplicity of notes or 
a panharmonic scale8    ,i suppose not4 
,then we shall not maintain the         
artificers of lyres with three corners  
and  complex scales1 or the makers of   
any other 99#cii;,d99 many-stringed     
curiously-harmonised instruments8       
,certainly not4    ,sidenote3 ,musical  
instruments--which are to be rejected   
and which  allowed8    ,but what do you 
say to flute-makers and flute-players8  
,would you admit  them into our ,state  
when you reflect that in this composite 
use of harmony  the flute is worse than 

all the stringed instruments put        
together2 even  the panharmonic music is
 only an imitation of the flute8        
,clearly not4    ,there remain then only
 the lyre and the harp for use in the   
city1 and the  shepherds may have a pipe
 in the country4    ,that is surely the 
conclusion to be drawn from the         
argument4    99#cii;,e99 ,the preferring
 of ,apollo and his instruments to      
,marsyas and his  instruments is not at 
all strange1 ,i said4    ,not at all1 he
 replied4    ,and so1 by the dog of     
,egypt1 we have been unconsciously      
purging the ,state1  which not long ago 
we termed luxurious4    ,and we have    
done wisely1 he replied4    ,then let us
 now finish the purgation1 ,i said4     
,next in order to harmonies1  rhythms   
will naturally follow1 and they should  
be subject to the same  rules1 for we   
ought not to seek out complex systems of
 metre1 or metres of  every kind1 but   
rather to discover what rhythms are the 
expressions of  99#djj;,a99 a courageous

 and harmonious life2 and when we have  
found them1 we  shall adapt the foot and
 the melody to words having a like      
spirit1 not the  words to the foot and  
melody4 ,to say what these rhythms are  
will be your  duty--you must teach me   
them1 as you have already taught me the 
harmonies4  #hf    ,sidenote3 ,three    
kinds of rhythm as there are four notes 
of the  tetrachord4    ,but1 indeed1 he 
replied1 ,i cannot tell you4 ,i only    
know that there are  some three         
principles of rhythm out of which       
metrical systems are framed1  just as in
 sounds there are four notes#cf out of  
which all the harmonies  are composed2  
that is an observation which ,i have    
made4 ,but of what sort  of lives they  
are severally the imitations ,i am      
unable to say4    ,footnote #cf3 i4e4   
the four notes of the tetrachord4       
99#djj;,b99 ,then1 ,i said1 we must take
 ,damon into our counsels2 and he will  
tell us what rhythms are expressive of  
meanness1 or insolence1 or fury1 or     

other unworthiness1 and what are to be  
reserved for the expression of  opposite
 feelings4 ,and ,i think that ,i have an
 indistinct recollection of  his        
mentioning a complex ,cretic rhythm2    
also a dactylic or heroic1 and he       
arranged them in some manner which ,i do
 not quite understand1 making the       
rhythms equal in the rise and fall of   
the foot1 long and short  alternating2  
and1 unless ,i am mistaken1 he spoke of 
an iambic as well as  of a trochaic     
rhythm1 99#djj;,c99 and assigned to them
 short and long  quantities4#cg ,also in
 some cases he appeared to praise or    
censure the  movement of the foot quite 
as much as the rhythm2 or perhaps a     
combination  of the two2 for ,i am not  
certain what he meant4 ,these matters1  
however1 as  ,i was saying1 had better  
be referred to ,damon himself1 for the  
analysis of  the subject would be       
difficult1 you know8    ,footnote #cg3  
,socrates expresses himself carelessly  
in accordance with his  assumed         

ignorance of the details of the subject4
 ,in the first part of the  sentence he 
appears to be speaking of paeonic       
rhythms which are in the  ratio of      
#c_/b2 in the second part1 of dactylic  
and anapaestic rhythms1  which are in   
the ratio of #a_/a2 in the last clause1 
of iambic and trochaic  rhythms1 which  
are in the ratio of #a_/b or #b_/a4     
,rather so1 ,i should say4    ,but there
 is no difficulty in seeing that grace  
or the absence of grace is  an effect of
 good or bad rhythm4    ,none at all4   
,sidenote3 ,rhythm and harmony follow   
style1 and style is the expression of   
the soul4    99#djj;,d99 ,and also that 
good and bad rhythm naturally assimilate
 to a good  and bad style2 and that     
harmony and discord in like manner      
follow style2  for our principle is that
 rhythm and harmony are regulated by the
 words1  and not the words by them4     
,just so1 he said1 they should follow   
the words4    ,and will not the words   
and the character of the style depend on

 the temper  of the soul8 #hg    ,yes4  
,and everything else on the style8      
,yes4    ,sidenote3 ,simplicity the     
great first principle2    ,then beauty  
of style and harmony and grace and good 
99#djj;,e99 rhythm depend  on           
simplicity1--,i mean the true simplicity
 of a rightly and nobly ordered  mind   
and character1 not that other simplicity
 which is only an euphemism  for folly8 
,very true1 he replied4    ,and if our  
youth are to do their work in life1 must
 they not make these  graces and        
harmonies their perpetual aim8    ,they 
must4    ,sidenote3 and a principle     
which is widely spread in nature and    
art4    99#dja;,a99 ,and surely the art 
of the painter and every other creative 
and  constructive art are full of       
them1--weaving1 embroidery1             
architecture1 and  every kind of        
manufacture2 also nature1 animal and    
vegetable1--in all of  them there is    
grace or the absence of grace4 ,and     
ugliness and discord and  inharmonious  

motion are nearly allied to ill words   
and ill nature1 as  grace and harmony   
are the twin sisters of goodness and    
virtue and bear  their likeness4        
,that is quite true1 he said4           
,sidenote3 ,our citizens must grow up to
 manhood amidst impressions of  grace   
and beauty only2 all ugliness and vice  
must be excluded4    99#dja;,b99 ,but   
shall our superintendence go no further1
 and are the poets only  to be required 
by us to express the image of the good  
in their works1 on  pain1 if they do    
anything else1 of expulsion from our    
,state8 ,or is the  same control to be  
extended to other artists1 and are they 
also to be  prohibited from exhibiting  
the opposite forms of vice and          
intemperance and  meanness and indecency
 in sculpture and building and the other
 creative  arts2 and is he who cannot   
conform to this rule of ours to be      
prevented  from practising his art in   
our ,state1 lest the taste of our       
citizens be  corrupted by him8 ,we would

 not have our guardians grow up amid    
images of  moral deformity1 as in some  
noxious pasture1 and there 99#dja;,c99  
browse and  feed upon many a baneful    
herb and flower day by day1 little by   
little1  until they silently gather a   
festering mass of corruption in their   
own  soul4 ,let our artists rather be   
those who are gifted to discern the true
  nature of the beautiful and graceful2 
then will our youth dwell in a land  of 
health1 amid fair sights and sounds1 and
 receive the good in  everything2 and   
beauty1 the effluence of fair works1    
shall 99#dja;,d99 flow  into the eye and
 ear1 like a health-giving breeze from a
 purer region1 and  #hh insensibly draw 
the soul from earliest years into       
likeness and  sympathy with the beauty  
of reason4    ,there can be no nobler   
training than that1 he replied4         
,sidenote3 ,the power of imparting grace
 is possessed by harmony4    ,and       
therefore1 ,i said1 ,glaucon1 musical   
training is a more potent  instrument   

than any other1 because rhythm and      
harmony find their way into  the inward 
places of the soul1 on which they       
mightily fasten1 imparting  grace1 and  
making the soul of him who is rightly   
educated graceful1 or of  him who       
99#dja;,e99 is ill-educated ungraceful2 
and also because he who has  received   
this true education of the inner being  
will most shrewdly  perceive omissions  
or faults in art and nature1 and        
99#djb;,a99 with a true  taste1 while he
 praises and rejoices over and receives 
into his soul the  good1 and becomes    
noble and good1 he will justly blame and
 hate the bad1  now in the days of his  
youth1 even before he is able to know   
the reason  why2 and when reason comes  
he will recognise and salute the friend 
with  whom his education has made him   
long familiar4    ,yes1 he said1 ,i     
quite agree with you in thinking that   
our youth should be  trained in music   
and on the grounds which you mention4   
,just as in learning to read1 ,i said1  

we were satisfied when we knew the      
letters of the alphabet1 which are very 
few1 in all their recurring sizes  and  
combinations2 not slighting them        
99#djb;,b99 as unimportant whether they 
occupy a space large or small1 but      
everywhere eager to make them out2 and  
not thinking ourselves perfect in the   
art of reading until we recognise  them 
wherever they are found#ch3    ,footnote
 #ch3 ,cp4 supra1 ,,ii4 #cfh ,d4        
,true--    ,or1 as we recognise the     
reflection of letters in the water1 or  
in a  mirror1 only when we know the     
letters themselves2 the same art and    
study  giving us the knowledge of both3 
,exactly--    ,sidenote3 ,the true      
musician must know the essential forms  
of virtue and  vice4    ,even so1 as ,i 
maintain1 neither we nor our guardians1 
whom 99#djb;,c99 we have  to educate1   
can ever become musical until we and    
they know the essential  forms of       
temperance1 courage1 liberality1        
magnificence1 and their kindred1  as    

well as the contrary forms1 in all their
 combinations1 and can  recognise them  
and their images wherever they are      
found1 not slighting  #hi them either in
 small things or great1 but believing   
them all to be  within the sphere of one
 art and study4    ,most assuredly4     
,sidenote3 ,the harmony of soul and body
 the fairest of sights4    99#djb;,d99  
,and when a beautiful soul harmonizes   
with a beautiful form1 and the  two are 
cast in one mould1 that will be the     
fairest of sights to him who  has an eye
 to see it8    ,the fairest indeed4     
,and the fairest is also the loveliest8 
,that may be assumed4    ,and the man   
who has the spirit of harmony will be   
most in love with the  loveliest2 but he
 will not love him who is of an         
inharmonious soul8    ,sidenote3 ,the   
true lover will not mind defects of the 
person4    ,that is true1 he replied1 if
 the deficiency be in his soul2 but if  
there  be any merely bodily defect in   
another he will 99#djb;,e99 be patient  

of it1  and will love all the same4     
,i perceive1 ,i said1 that you have or  
have had experiences of this sort1  and 
,i agree4 ,but let me ask you another   
question3 ,has excess of pleasure  any  
affinity to temperance8    ,how can that
 be8 he replied2 pleasure deprives a man
 of the use of his  faculties quite as  
much as pain4    ,or any affinity to    
virtue in general8    99#djc;,a99 ,none 
whatever4    ,any affinity to wantonness
 and intemperance8    ,yes1 the         
greatest4    ,and is there any greater  
or keener pleasure than that of sensual 
love8    ,no1 nor a madder4             
,sidenote3 ,true love is temperate and  
harmonious4    ,whereas true love is a  
love of beauty and order--temperate and 
harmonious8    ,quite true1 he said4    
,then no intemperance or madness should 
be allowed to approach true love8       
,certainly not4    ,sidenote3 ,true love
 is free from sensuality and coarseness4
    99#djc;,b99 ,then mad or intemperate
 pleasure must never be allowed to come 

near  the lover and his beloved2 neither
 of them can have any part in it if     
their love is of the right sort8    ,no1
 indeed1 ,socrates1 it must never come  
near them4    ,then ,i suppose that in  
the city which we are founding you would
 make a law  to the effect that a friend
 should use no other familiarity to his 
love  than a father would use to his #ij
 son1 and then only for a noble         
purpose1 and he must first have the     
other's consent2 and this rule is to    
limit him in 99#djc;,c99 all his        
intercourse1 and he is never to be seen 
going  further1 or1 if he exceeds1 he is
 to be deemed guilty of coarseness and  
bad taste4    ,i quite agree1 he said4  
,thus much of music1 which makes a fair 
ending2 for what should be the end  of  
music if not the love of beauty8    ,i  
agree1 he said4    ,sidenote3           
,gymnastic4    ,after music comes       
gymnastic1 in which our youth are next  
to be trained4    ,certainly4           
,gymnastic as well as music should begin

 in early years2 the training in it     
should be careful and should continue   
through life4 99#djc;,d99 ,now my belief
  is1--and this is a matter upon which  
,i should like to have your opinion in  
confirmation of my own1 but my own      
belief is1--not that the good body by   
any bodily excellence improves the soul1
 but1 on the contrary1 that the  good   
soul1 by her own excellence1 improves   
the body as far as this may be          
possible4 ,what do you say8    ,yes1 ,i 
agree4    ,sidenote3 ,the body to be    
entrusted to the mind4    ,then1 to the 
mind when adequately trained1 we shall  
be right in handing  over the more      
particular care of the body2 99#djc;,e99
 and in order to avoid  prolixity we    
will now only give the general outlines 
of the subject4    ,very good4    ,that 
they must abstain from intoxication has 
been already remarked by us2  for of all
 persons a guardian should be the last  
to get drunk and not know  where in the 
world he is4    ,yes1 he said2 that a   

guardian should require another guardian
 to take care  of him is ridiculous     
indeed4    ,but next1 what shall we say 
of their food2 for the men are in       
training for  the great contest of      
all--are they not8    ,yes1 he said4    
99#djd;,a99 ,and will the habit of body 
of our ordinary athletes be suited to   
them8    ,why not8    ,sidenote3 ,the   
usual training of athletes too gross and
 sleepy4    ,i am afraid1 ,i said1 that 
a habit of body such as they have is but
 a  sleepy sort of thing1 and rather    
perilous to health4 ,do you not observe 
that these athletes sleep away their #ia
 lives1 and are liable to most          
dangerous illnesses if they depart1 in  
ever so slight a degree1 from their     
customary regimen8    ,yes1 ,i do4      
,then1 ,i said1 a finer sort of training
 will be required for our warrior       
athletes1 who are to be like wakeful    
dogs1 and to see and hear with the      
utmost keenness2 amid the many changes  
of water and also of food1 of  summer   

heat and winter 99#djd;,b99 cold1 which 
they will have to endure when on  a     
campaign1 they must not be liable to    
break down in health4    ,that is my    
view4    ,the really excellent gymnastic
 is twin sister of that simple music    
which  we were just now describing4     
,how so8    ,sidenote3 ,military        
gymnastic4    ,why1 ,i conceive that    
there is a gymnastic which1 like our    
music1 is simple  and good2 and         
especially the military gymnastic4      
,what do you mean8    ,my meaning may be
 learned from ,homer2 he1 you know1     
feeds his heroes at  their feasts1 when 
they are campaigning1 on soldiers' fare2
 they have no  fish1 although they are  
on 99#djd;,c99 the shores of the        
,hellespont1 and they  are not allowed  
boiled meats but only roast1 which is   
the food most  convenient for soldiers1 
requiring only that they should light a 
fire1 and  not involving the trouble of 
carrying about pots and pans4    ,true4 
,and ,i can hardly be mistaken in saying

 that sweet sauces are nowhere          
mentioned in ,homer4 ,in proscribing    
them1 however1 he is not singular2 all  
professional athletes are well aware    
that a man who is to be in good         
condition should take nothing of the    
kind4    ,yes1 he said2 and knowing     
this1 they are quite right in not taking
 them4    ,sidenote3 ,syracusan dinners 
and ,corinthian courtezans are          
prohibited4    99#djd;,d99 ,then you    
would not approve of ,syracusan dinners1
 and the  refinements of ,sicilian      
cookery8    ,i think not4    ,nor1 if a 
man is to be in condition1 would you    
allow him to have a  ,corinthian girl as
 his fair friend8    ,certainly not4 #ib
    ,neither would you approve of the   
delicacies1 as they are thought1 of     
,athenian confectionary8    ,certainly  
not4    ,sidenote3 ,the luxurious style 
of living may be justly compared to the 
panharmonic strain of music4    ,all    
such feeding and living may be rightly  
compared by us 99#djd;,e99 to melody    

and song composed in the panharmonic    
style1 and in all the rhythms4          
,exactly4    ,there complexity          
engendered licence1 and here disease2   
whereas simplicity  in music was the    
parent of temperance in the soul2 and   
simplicity in  gymnastic of health in   
the body4    ,most true1 he said4       
99#dje;,a99 ,but when intemperance and  
diseases multiply in a ,state1 halls of 
justice and medicine are always being   
opened2 and the arts of the doctor  and 
the lawyer give themselves airs1 finding
 how keen is the interest  which not    
only the slaves but the freemen of a    
city take about them4    ,of course4    
,sidenote3 ,every man should be his own 
doctor and lawyer4    ,and yet what     
greater proof can there be of a bad and 
disgraceful state of  education than    
this1 that not only artisans and the    
meaner sort of people  need the skill of
 first-rate physicians and judges1 but  
also those who  would profess to        
99#dje;,b99 have had a liberal          

education8 ,is it not  disgraceful1 and 
a great sign of want of good-breeding1  
that a man should  have to go abroad for
 his law and physic because he has none 
of his own at  home1 and must therefore 
surrender himself into the hands of     
other men  whom he makes lords and      
judges over him8    ,of all things1 he  
said1 the most disgraceful4             
,sidenote3 ,bad as it is to go to law1  
it is still worse to be a lover of      
litigation4    ,would you say 'most1' ,i
 replied1 when you consider that there  
is a further  stage of the evil in which
 a man is not only a life-long litigant1
 passing  all his days in the courts1   
either as plaintiff or defendant1 but is
  actually led by his bad taste to pride
 himself on his litigiousness2 he       
imagines that he is 99#dje;,c99 a master
 in dishonesty2 able to take every      
crooked turn1 and wriggle into and out  
of every hole1 bending like a withy  and
 getting out of the way of justice3 and 
all for what8--in order to gain  small  

points not worth mentioning1 he not     
knowing that so to order his  life as to
 be able to do without a napping judge  
is a far higher and  nobler sort of     
thing4 ,is not that still more          
disgraceful8 #ic    ,yes1 he said1 that 
is still more disgraceful4    ,sidenote3
 ,bad also to require the help of       
medicine4    ,well1 ,i said1 and to     
require the help of medicine1 not when a
 wound has to  be cured1 or on occasion 
of an epidemic1 but 99#dje;,d99 just    
because1 by  indolence and a habit of   
life such as we have been describing1   
men fill  themselves with waters and    
winds1 as if their bodies were a marsh1 
compelling the ingenious sons of        
,asclepius to find more names for       
diseases1 such as flatulence and        
catarrh2 is not this1 too1 a disgrace8  
,yes1 he said1 they do certainly give   
very strange and newfangled names to    
diseases4    ,sidenote3 ,in the time of 
,asclepius and of ,homer the practice of
 medicine  was very simple4    ,yes1 ,i 

said1 and ,i do not believe that there  
were any such 99#dje;,e99 diseases  in  
the days of ,asclepius2 and this ,i     
infer from the circumstance that the    
hero ,eurypylus1 after he has been      
wounded in ,homer1 drinks a posset of   
,pramnian wine well 99#djf;,a99         
besprinkled with barley-meal and grated 
cheese1  which are certainly            
inflammatory1 and yet the sons of       
,asclepius who were  at the ,trojan war 
do not blame the damsel who gives him   
the drink1 or  rebuke ,patroclus1 who is
 treating his case4    ,well1 he said1  
that was surely an extraordinary drink  
to be given to a  person in his         
condition4    ,sidenote3 ,the nursing of
 disease began with ,herodicus4    ,not 
so extraordinary1 ,i replied1 if you    
bear in mind that in former days1  as is
 commonly said1 before the time of      
,herodicus1 the guild of ,asclepius  did
 not practise our present system of     
medicine1 which may be said to  educate 
diseases4 ,but ,herodicus1 being a      

trainer1 and himself of a sickly        
constitution1 by a combination of       
training and doctoring found 99#djf;,b99
 out  a way of torturing first and      
chiefly himself1 and secondly the rest  
of the  world4    ,how was that8 he     
said4    ,by the invention of lingering 
death2 for he had a mortal disease which
 he  perpetually tended1 and as recovery
 was out of the question1 he passed his 
entire life as a valetudinarian2 he     
could do nothing but attend upon        
himself1 and he was in constant torment 
whenever he departed in anything  from  
his usual regimen1 and so dying hard1 by
 the help of science he  struggled on to
 old age4    ,a rare reward of his      
skill6    99#djf;,c99 ,yes1 ,i said2 a  
reward which a man might fairly expect  
who never  understood that1 if          
,asclepius did not instruct his         
descendants in  valetudinarian arts1 the
 omission arose1 not #id from ignorance 
or  inexperience of such a branch of    
medicine1 but because he knew that in   

all  well-ordered states every          
individual has an occupation to which he
 must  attend1 and has therefore no     
leisure to spend in continually being   
ill4  ,this we remark in the case of the
 artisan1 but1 ludicrously enough1 do   
not  apply the same rule to people of   
the richer sort4    ,how do you mean8 he
 said4    ,sidenote3 ,the working-man   
has no time for tedious remedies4       
99#djf;,d99 ,i mean this3 ,when a       
carpenter is ill he asks the physician  
for a  rough and ready cure2 an emetic  
or a purge or a cautery or the knife1   
--these are his remedies4 ,and if some  
one prescribes for him a course of      
dietetics1 and tells him that he must   
swathe and swaddle his head1 and all    
that sort of thing1 he replies at once  
that he has no time to be ill1 and  that
 he sees no good in a life which is     
spent in nursing his disease to  the    
neglect of his customary employment2 and
 therefore 99#djf;,e99 bidding  good-bye
 to this sort of physician1 he resumes  

his ordinary habits1 and  either gets   
well and lives and does his business1   
or1 if his constitution  fails1 he dies 
and has no more trouble4    ,yes1 he    
said1 and a man in his condition of life
 ought to use the art of  medicine thus 
far only4    99#djg;,a99 ,has he not1 ,i
 said1 an occupation2 and what profit   
would there be  in his life if he were  
deprived of his occupation8    ,quite   
true1 he said4    ,but with the rich man
 this is otherwise2 of him we do not say
 that he has  any specially appointed   
work which he must perform1 if he would 
live4    ,he is generally supposed to   
have nothing to do4    ,then you never  
heard of the saying of ,phocylides1 that
 as soon as a man  has a livelihood he  
should practise virtue8    ,nay1 he     
said1 ,i think that he had better begin 
somewhat sooner4    ,sidenote3 ,the slow
 cure equally an impediment to the      
mechanical arts1 to  the practice of    
virtue    ,let us not have a dispute    
with him about this1 ,i said2 but rather

 ask  ourselves3 ,is the practice of    
virtue obligatory on 99#djg;,b99 the    
rich man1 or  can he live without it8   
,and if obligatory on him1 then let us  
raise a  further question1 whether this 
dieting of disorders1 which is an       
impediment to the application of the    
mind in carpentering and the  mechanical
 arts1 does not equally stand in the way
 of the sentiment of  ,phocylides8 #ie  
,of that1 he replied1 there can be no   
doubt2 such excessive care of the  body1
 when carried beyond the rules of       
gymnastic1 is most inimical to the      
practice of virtue4    ,sidenote3 and to
 any kind of study or thought4          
#ch,yes1 indeed1 ,i replied1 and equally
 incompatible with the management  of a 
house1 an army1 or an office of state2  
and1 what is most important of  all1    
irreconcileable with any kind           
99#djg;,c99 of study or thought or      
self-reflection--there is a constant    
suspicion that headache and giddiness   
are to be ascribed to philosophy1 and   

hence all practising or making trial  of
 virtue in the higher sense is          
absolutely stopped2 for a man is always 
fancying that he is being made ill1 and 
is in constant anxiety about the  state 
of his body4    ,footnote #ch3 ,making  
the answer of ,socrates begin at ,greek3
 kai gar  pros k4t4l4    ,yes1 likely   
enough4    ,sidenote3 ,asclepius would  
not cure diseased constitutions because 
they  were of no use to the ,state4     
,and therefore our politic ,asclepius   
may be supposed to have exhibited the   
power of his art only to persons who1   
being generally of healthy  constitution
 and habits of life1 had 99#djg;,d99 a  
definite ailment2 such as  these he     
cured by purges and operations1 and bade
 them live as usual1  herein consulting 
the interests of the ,state2 but bodies 
which disease had  penetrated through   
and through he would not have attempted 
to cure by  gradual processes of        
evacuation and infusion3 he did not want
 to lengthen  out good-for-nothing      

lives1 or to have weak fathers begetting
 weaker  sons2--if a man was not able to
 live in the ordinary way he had no     
business to cure him2 99#djg;,e99 for   
such a cure would have been of no use   
either to himself1 or to the ,state4    
,then1 he said1 you regard ,asclepius as
 a statesman4    ,sidenote3 ,the case of
 ,menelaus1 who was attended by the sons
 of  ,asclepius4    ,clearly2 and his   
character is further illustrated by his 
sons4 99#djh;,a99 ,note  that they were 
heroes in the days of old and practised 
the medicines of  which ,i am speaking  
at the siege of ,troy3 ,you will        
remember how1 when  ,pandarus wounded   
,menelaus1 they      ',sucked the blood 
out of the wound1 and sprinkled soothing
    remedies#ci1'    but they never     
prescribed what the patient was         
afterwards to eat or drink  in the case 
of ,menelaus1 any more than in the case 
of ,eurypylus2 the  remedies1 as they   
conceived1 were enough to heal any man  
who before he was  wounded was #if      

99#djh;,b99 healthy and regular in his  
habits2 and even though  he did happen  
to drink a posset of ,pramnian wine1 he 
might get well all  the same4 ,but they 
would have nothing to do with unhealthy 
and intemperate  subjects1 whose lives  
were of no use either to themselves or  
others2 the  art of medicine was not    
designed for their good1 and though they
 were as  rich as ,midas1 the sons of   
,asclepius would have declined to attend
 them4    ,footnote #ci3 ,iliad iv4     
#bah4    ,they were very acute persons1 
those sons of ,asclepius4    ,sidenote3 
,the offence of ,asclepius4             
,naturally so1 ,i replied4              
,nevertheless1 the tragedians and       
,pindar  disobeying our behests1        
although they acknowledge that          
,asclepius was the  son of ,apollo1 say 
also that he was bribed into healing a  
rich man who was  at the point of       
99#djh;,c99 death1 and for this reason  
he was struck by  lightning4 ,but we1 in
 accordance with the principle already  

affirmed by  us1 will not believe them  
when they tell us both2--if he was the  
son of a  god1 we maintain that he was  
not avaricious2 or1 if he was           
avaricious1 he  was not the son of a    
god4    ,all that1 ,socrates1 is        
excellent2 but ,i should like to put a  
question to  you3 ,ought there not to be
 good physicians in a ,state1 and are   
not the  best those who have treated the
 99#djh;,d99 greatest number of         
constitutions  good and bad8 and are not
 the best judges in like manner those   
who are  acquainted with all sorts of   
moral natures8    ,yes1 ,i said1 ,i too 
would have good judges and good         
physicians4 ,but do you  know whom ,i   
think good8    ,will you tell me8    ,i 
will1 if ,i can4 ,let me however note   
that in the same question you join  two 
things which are not the same4    ,how  
so8 he asked4    ,sidenote3 ,the        
physician should have experience of     
illness in his own  person2    ,why1 ,i 
said1 you join physicians and judges4   

,now the most skilful  physicians are   
those who1 from their youth upwards1    
have combined with the  knowledge of    
their art 99#djh;,e99 the greatest      
experience of disease2 they had  better 
not be robust in health1 and should have
 had all manner of diseases  in their   
own persons4 ,for the body1 as ,i       
conceive1 is not the instrument  with   
which they cure the body2 in that case  
we could not allow them ever  to be or  
to have been sickly2 but they cure the  
body with the mind1 and  the mind which 
has become and is sick can cure nothing4
 #ig    ,that is very true1 he said4    
,sidenote3 on the other hand1 the judge 
should not learn to know evil by  the   
practice of it1 but by long observation 
of evil in others4    99#dji;,a99 ,but  
with the judge it is otherwise2 since he
 governs mind by mind2  he ought not    
therefore to have been trained among    
vicious minds1 and to  have associated  
with them from youth upwards1 and to    
have gone through the  whole calendar of

 crime1 only in order that he may       
quickly infer the  crimes of others as  
he might their bodily diseases from his 
own  self-consciousness2 the honourable 
mind which is to form a healthy         
judgment should have had no experience  
or contamination of evil habits  when   
young4 ,and this is the reason why in   
youth good men often appear to  be      
simple1 and are 99#dji;,b99 easily      
practised upon by the dishonest1 because
  they have no examples of what evil is 
in their own souls4    ,yes1 he said1   
they are far too apt to be deceived4    
,therefore1 ,i said1 the judge should   
not be young2 he should have learned  to
 know evil1 not from his own soul1 but  
from late and long observation of  the  
nature of evil in others3 99#dji;,c99   
knowledge should be his guide1 not      
personal experience4    ,yes1 he said1  
that is the ideal of a judge4           
,sidenote3 ,such a knowledge of human   
nature far better and truer than that   
of the adept in crime4    ,yes1 ,i      

replied1 and he will be a good man      
7which is my answer to your  question72 
for he is good who has a good soul4 ,but
 the cunning and  suspicious nature of  
which we spoke1--he who has committed   
many crimes1  and fancies himself to be 
a master in wickedness1 when he is      
amongst his  fellows1 is wonderful in   
the precautions which he takes1 because 
he judges  of them by himself3 but when 
he gets into the company of men of      
virtue1  who have the experience of age1
 he appears to be a fool again1 owing to
  his unseasonable suspicions2          
99#dji;,d99 he cannot recognise an      
honest man1  because he has no pattern  
of honesty in himself2 at the same time1
 as the  bad are more numerous than the 
good1 and he meets with them oftener1 he
  thinks himself1 and is by others      
thought to be1 rather wise than foolish4
    ,most true1 he said4    ,then the   
good and wise judge whom we are seeking 
is not this man1 but the  other2 for    
vice cannot know virtue too1 but a      

virtuous nature1 educated by  time1 will
 acquire a knowledge 99#dji;,e99 both of
 virtue and vice3 the  virtuous1 and not
 the vicious1 man has wisdom--in my     
opinion4    ,and in mine also4 #ih      
,this is the sort of medicine1 and this 
is the sort of law1 which you will      
sanction in your state4 ,they will      
minister to 99#daj;,a99 better natures1 
giving health both of soul and of body2 
but those who are diseased in  their    
bodies they will leave to die1 and the  
corrupt and incurable souls  they will  
put an end to themselves4    ,that is   
clearly the best thing both for the     
patients and for the ,state4    ,and    
thus our youth1 having been educated    
only in that simple music which1  as we 
said1 inspires temperance1 will be      
reluctant to go to law4    ,clearly4    
99#daj;,b99 ,and the musician1 who1     
keeping to the same track1 is content to
  practise the simple gymnastic1 will   
have nothing to do with medicine  unless
 in some extreme case4    ,that ,i quite

 believe4    ,the very exercises and    
tolls which he undergoes are intended to
 stimulate  the spirited element of his 
nature1 and not to increase his         
strength2 he  will not1 like common     
athletes1 use exercise and regimen to   
develope his  muscles4    ,very right1  
he said4    ,sidenote3 ,music and       
gymnastic are equally designed for the  
improvement of  the mind4    99#daj;,c99
 ,neither are the two arts of music and 
gymnastic really designed1 as  is often 
supposed1 the one for the training of   
the soul1 the other for the  training of
 the body4    ,what then is the real    
object of them8    ,i believe1 ,i said1 
that the teachers of both have in view  
chiefly the  improvement of the soul4   
,how can that be8 he asked4    ,did you 
never observe1 ,i said1 the effect on   
the mind itself of exclusive  devotion  
to gymnastic1 or the opposite effect of 
an exclusive devotion to  music8    ,in 
what way shown8 he said4    ,sidenote3  
,the mere athlete must be softened1 and 

the philosophic nature  prevented from  
becoming too soft    99#daj;,d99 ,the   
one producing a temper of hardness and  
ferocity1 the other of  softness and    
effeminacy1 ,i replied4    ,yes1 he     
said1 ,i am quite aware that the mere   
athlete becomes too much of a  savage1  
and that the mere musician is melted and
 softened beyond what is  good for him4 
,yet surely1 ,i said1 this ferocity only
 comes from spirit1 which1 if  rightly  
educated1 would give courage1 but1 if   
too much intensified1 is  liable to     
become hard and brutal4 #ii    ,that ,i 
quite think4    99#daj;,e99 ,on the     
other hand the philosopher will have the
 quality of  gentleness4 ,and this also1
 when too much indulged1 will turn to   
softness1  but1 if educated rightly1    
will be gentle and moderate4    ,true4  
,and in our opinion the guardians ought 
to have both these qualities8           
,assuredly4    ,and both should be in   
harmony8    ,beyond question4           
99#daa;,a99 ,and the harmonious soul is 

both temperate and courageous8    ,yes4 
,and the inharmonious is cowardly and   
boorish8    ,very true4    ,sidenote3   
,music1 if carried too far1 renders the 
weaker nature  effeminate1 the stronger 
irritable4    ,and1 when a man allows   
music to play upon him and to pour into 
his soul  through the funnel of his ears
 those sweet and soft and melancholy    
airs of  which we were just now         
speaking1 and his whole life is passed  
in warbling  and the delights of song2  
in the first stage of the process the   
passion or  spirit which is in him is   
tempered like iron1 and made 99#daa;,b99
 useful1  instead of brittle and        
useless4 ,but1 if he carries on the     
softening and  soothing process1 in the 
next stage he begins to melt and waste1 
until he  has wasted away his spirit and
 cut out the sinews of his soul2 and he 
becomes a feeble warrior4    ,very true4
    ,if the element of spirit is        
naturally weak in him the change is     
speedily  accomplished1 but if he have a

 good deal1 then the power of music     
weakening the spirit renders him        
excitable2--on the least provocation he 
flames up at once1 and is 99#daa;,c99   
speedily extinguished2 instead of having
  spirit he grows irritable and         
passionate and is quite impracticable4  
,exactly4    ,sidenote3 ,and in like    
manner the well-fed athlete1 if he have 
no  education1    ,and so in gymnastics1
 if a man takes violent exercise and is 
a great  feeder1 and the reverse of a   
great student of music and philosophy1  
at  first the high condition of his body
 fills him with pride and spirit1 and   
he becomes twice the man that he was4   
#ajj    ,certainly4    ,sidenote3       
degenerates into a wild beast4    ,and  
what happens8 if he do nothing else1 and
 holds no 99#daa;,d99 converse with  the
 ,muses1 does not even that intelligence
 which there may be in him1  having no  
taste of any sort of learning or enquiry
 or thought or culture1  grow feeble and
 dull and blind1 his mind never waking  

up or receiving  nourishment1 and his   
senses not being purged of their mists8 
,true1 he said4    ,and he ends by      
becoming a hater of philosophy1         
uncivilized1 never using  the weapon of 
persuasion1--he is like a wild          
99#daa;,e99 beast1 all violence  and    
fierceness1 and knows no other way of   
dealing2 and he lives in all  ignorance 
and evil conditions1 and has no sense of
 propriety and grace4    ,that is quite 
true1 he said4    ,and as there are two 
principles of human nature1 one the     
spirited and the  other the             
philosophical1 some ,god1 as ,i should  
say1 has given mankind two  arts        
answering to them 7and only indirectly  
to the soul and body71 in  order that   
these 99#dab;,a99 two principles 7like  
the strings of an instrument7  may be   
relaxed or drawn tighter until they are 
duly harmonized4    ,that appears to be 
the intention4    ,sidenote3 ,music to  
be mingled with gymnastic1 and both     
attempered to the  individual soul4     

,and he who mingles music with gymnastic
 in the fairest proportions1 and  best  
attempers them to the soul1 may be      
rightly called the true musician  and   
harmonist in a far higher sense than the
 tuner of the strings4    ,you are quite
 right1 ,socrates4    ,and such a       
presiding genius will be always required
 in our ,state if the  government is to 
last4    99#dab;,b99 ,yes1 he will be   
absolutely necessary4    ,sidenote3     
,enough of principles of education3 who 
are to be our rulers8    ,such1 then1   
are our principles of nurture and       
education3 ,where would be  the use of  
going into further details about the    
dances of our citizens1 or  about their 
hunting and coursing1 their gymnastic   
and equestrian contests8  ,for these all
 follow the general principle1 and      
having found that1 we  shall have no    
difficulty in discovering them4    ,i   
dare say that there will be no          
difficulty4    ,very good1 ,i said2 then
 what is the next question8 ,must we not

 ask who are  to be rulers and who      
subjects8    99#dab;,c99 ,certainly4    
,sidenote3 ,the elder must rule and the 
younger serve4    ,there can be no doubt
 that the elder must rule the younger4  
#aja    ,clearly4    ,and that the best 
of these must rule4    ,that is also    
clear4    ,now1 are not the best        
husbandmen those who are most devoted to
 husbandry8    ,yes4    ,and as we are  
to have the best of guardians for our   
city1 must they not be  those who have  
most the character of guardians8        
,yes4    ,and to this end they ought to 
be wise and efficient1 and to have a    
special  care of the ,state8            
99#dab;,d99 ,true4    ,sidenote3 ,those 
are to be appointed rulers who have been
 tested in all  the stages of their     
life2    ,and a man will be most likely 
to care about that which he loves8      
,to be sure4    ,and he will be most    
likely to love that which he regards as 
having the  same interests with himself1
 and that of which the good or evil     

fortune is  supposed by him at any time 
most to affect his own8    ,very true1  
he replied4    ,then there must be a    
selection4 ,let us note among the       
guardians those who  in their whole life
 show the greatest 99#dab;,e99 eagerness
 to do what is for  the good of their   
country1 and the greatest repugnance to 
do what is  against her interests4      
,those are the right men4    ,and they  
will have to be watched at every age1 in
 order that we may see  whether they    
preserve their resolution1 and never1   
under the influence  either of force or 
enchantment1 forget or cast off their   
sense of duty to  the ,state4    ,how   
cast off8 he said4    ,i will explain to
 you1 ,i replied4 ,a resolution may go  
out of a man's mind  either with his    
will or against his will2 with          
99#dac;,a99 his will when he  gets rid  
of a falsehood and learns better1       
against his will whenever he is         
deprived of a truth4    ,i understand1  
he said1 the willing loss of a          

resolution2 the meaning of  the         
unwilling ,i have yet to learn4    ,why1
 ,i said1 do you not see that men are   
unwillingly deprived of good1 and       
willingly of evil8 ,is not to have lost 
the truth an evil1 and to possess  the  
truth a good8 and you #ajb would agree  
that to conceive things as  they are is 
to possess the truth8    ,yes1 he       
replied2 ,i agree with you in thinking  
that mankind are deprived of  truth     
against their will4    99#dac;,b99 ,and 
is not this involuntary deprivation     
caused either by theft1 or  force1 or   
enchantment8    ,still1 he replied1 ,i  
do not understand you4    ,sidenote3 and
 who are unchanged by the influence     
either of pleasure1 or  of fear1    ,i  
fear that ,i must have been talking     
darkly1 like the tragedians4 ,i only    
mean that some men are changed by       
persuasion and that others forget2      
argument steals away the hearts of one  
class1 and time of the other2 and  this 
,i call theft4 ,now you understand me8  

,yes4    ,those again who are forced1   
are those whom the violence of some pain
 or  grief compels to change their      
opinion4    ,i understand1 he said1 and 
you are quite right4    ,sidenote3 or of
 enchantments4    99#dac;,c99 ,and you  
would also acknowledge that the         
enchanted are those who  change their   
minds either under the softer influence 
of pleasure1 or the  sterner influence  
of fear8    ,yes1 he said2 everything   
that deceives may be said to enchant4   
,therefore1 as ,i was just now saying1  
we must enquire who are the best        
guardians of their own conviction that  
what they think the interest of the     
,state is to be the rule of their lives4
 ,we must watch them from their  youth  
upwards1 and make them perform actions  
in which they are most likely  to forget
 or to be deceived1 and he who remembers
 and is not deceived  99#dac;,d99 is to 
be selected1 and he who fails in the    
trial is to be rejected4  ,that will be 
the way8    ,yes4    ,and there should  

also be toils and pains and conflicts   
prescribed for  them1 in which they will
 be made to give further proof of the   
same  qualities4    ,very right1 he     
replied4    ,sidenote3 ,if they stand   
the test they are to be honoured in life
 and  after death4    ,and then1 ,i     
said1 we must try them with             
enchantments--that is the third  sort of
 test--and see what will be their       
behaviour3 like those who take  colts   
amid noise and tumult to see if they are
 of a timid nature1 so must  we take our
 youth amid terrors of some kind1 and   
again pass them into  pleasures1        
99#dac;,e99 and prove them more         
thoroughly than gold is #ajc proved  in 
the furnace1 that we may discover       
whether they are armed against all      
enchantments1 and of a noble bearing    
always1 good guardians of themselves    
and of the music which they have        
learned1 and retaining under all        
circumstances a rhythmical and          
harmonious nature1 such as will be most 

serviceable to the individual and to the
 ,state4 ,and he who at every age1  as  
boy and youth and in mature life1 has   
come out of the trial victorious  and   
pure1 shall be appointed 99#dad;,a99 a  
ruler and guardian of the ,state2 he    
shall be honoured in life and death1 and
 shall receive sepulture and other      
memorials of honour1 the greatest that  
we have to give4 ,but him who fails1  we
 must reject4 ,i am inclined to think   
that this is the sort of way in  which  
our rulers and guardians should be      
chosen and appointed4 ,i speak          
generally1 and not with any pretension  
to exactness4    ,and1 speaking         
generally1 ,i agree with you1 he said4  
,sidenote3 ,the title of guardians to be
 reserved for the elders1 the young  men
 to be called auxiliaries4              
99#dad;,b99 ,and perhaps the word       
'guardian' in the fullest sense ought to
 be  applied to this higher class only  
who preserve us against foreign enemies 
and maintain peace among our citizens at

 home1 that the one may not have  the   
will1 or the others the power1 to harm  
us4 ,the young men whom we  before      
called guardians may be more properly   
designated auxiliaries and  supporters  
of the principles of the rulers4    ,i  
agree with you1 he said4    ,how then   
may we devise one of those needful      
falsehoods of which we lately           
spoke--just one royal lie which may     
99#dad;,c99 deceive the rulers1 if that 
be  possible1 and at any rate the rest  
of the city8    ,what sort of lie8 he   
said4    ,sidenote3 ,the ,phoenician    
tale4    ,nothing new1 ,i replied2 only 
an old ,phoenician#dj tale of what has  
often  occurred before now in other     
places1 7as the poets say1 and have made
 the  world believe7 though not in our  
time1 and ,i do not know whether such an
  event could ever happen again1 or     
could now even be made probable1 if it  
did4    ,footnote #dj3 ,cp4 ,laws1 #ffc 
,e4    ,how your words seem to hesitate 
on your lips6    ,you will not wonder1  

,i replied1 at my hesitation when you   
have heard4    ,speak1 he said1 and fear
 not4 #ajd    ,sidenote3 ,the citizens  
to be told that they are really         
autochthonous1  sent up out of the      
earth1    99#dad;,d99 ,well then1 ,i    
will speak1 although ,i really know not 
how to look you  in the face1 or in what
 words to utter the audacious fiction1  
which  ,i propose to communicate        
gradually1 first to the rulers1 then to 
the  soldiers1 and lastly to the people4
 ,they are to be told that their youth  
was a dream1 and the education and      
training which they received from us1   
an appearance only2 in reality during   
all that time they were being formed    
and fed in the womb of the earth1 where 
they 99#dad;,e99 themselves and their   
arms and appurtenances were             
manufactured2 when they were completed1 
the  earth1 their mother1 sent them up2 
and so1 their country being their       
mother and also their nurse1 they are   
bound to advise for her good1 and to    

defend her against attacks1 and her     
citizens they are to regard as  children
 of the earth and their own brothers4   
,you had good reason1 he said1 to be    
ashamed of the lie which you were  going
 to tell4    ,sidenote3 and composed of 
metals of various quality4    ,sidenote3
 ,the noble quality to rise in the      
,state1 the ignoble to  descend4        
99#dae;,a99 ,true1 ,i replied1 but there
 is more coming2 ,i have only told you  
half4 ,citizens1 we shall say to them in
 our tale1 you are brothers1 yet  ,god  
has framed you differently4 ,some of you
 have the power of command1 and  in the 
composition of these he has mingled     
gold1 wherefore also they have  the     
greatest honour2 others he has made of  
silver1 to be auxiliaries2  others again
 who are to be husbandmen and craftsmen 
he has composed of  brass and iron2 and 
the species will generally be preserved 
in the  children4 ,but as all are of the
 same original stock1 a golden parent   
will  sometimes have a 99#dae;,b99      

silver son1 or a silver parent a golden 
son4 ,and  ,god proclaims as a first    
principle to the rulers1 and above all  
else1 that  there is nothing which they 
should so anxiously guard1 or of which  
they  are to be such good guardians1 as 
of the purity of the race4 ,they should 
observe what elements mingle in their   
offspring2 for if the son of a  golden  
or silver parent has an admixture of    
brass and iron1 then nature  orders     
99#dae;,c99 a transposition of ranks1   
and the eye of the ruler must not  be   
pitiful towards the child because he has
 to descend in the scale and  become a  
husbandman or artisan1 just as there may
 be sons of artisans who  having an     
admixture of gold or silver in them are 
raised to honour1 and  become guardians 
or auxiliaries4 ,for an oracle says that
 when a man of  brass or iron guards the
 ,state1 it will be destroyed4 ,such is 
the #aje  tale2 is there any possibility
 of making our citizens believe in it8  
,sidenote3 ,is such a fiction           

credible8--,yes1 in a future generation2
 not  in the present4    99#dae;,d99    
,not in the present generation1 he      
replied2 there is no way of             
accomplishing this2 but their sons may  
be made to believe in the tale1 and     
their sons' sons1 and posterity after   
them4    ,sidenote3 ,the selection of a 
site for the warriors' camp4    ,i see  
the difficulty1 ,i replied2 yet the     
fostering of such a belief will  make   
them care more for the city and for one 
another4 ,enough1 however1 of  the      
fiction1 which may now fly abroad upon  
the wings of rumour1 while we  arm our  
earth-born heroes1 and lead them forth  
under the command of their  rulers4 ,let
 them look round and select a spot      
whence they can best  suppress          
insurrection1 if any prove refractory   
99#dae;,e99 within1 and also  defend    
themselves against enemies1 who like    
wolves may come down on the  fold from  
without2 there let them encamp1 and when
 they have encamped1 let  them sacrifice

 to the proper ,gods and prepare their  
dwellings4    ,just so1 he said4    ,and
 their dwellings must be such as will   
shield them against the cold of  winter 
and the heat of summer4    ,i suppose   
that you mean houses1 he replied4       
,yes1 ,i said2 but they must be the     
houses of soldiers1 and not of          
shop-keepers4    ,what is the           
difference8 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,the 
warriors must be humanized by education4
    99#daf;,a99 ,that ,i will endeavour 
to explain1 ,i replied4 ,to keep        
watch-dogs1  who1 from want of          
discipline or hunger1 or some evil habit
 or other1 would  turn upon the sheep   
and worry them1 and behave not like dogs
 but wolves1  would be a foul and       
monstrous thing in a shepherd8    ,truly
 monstrous1 he said4    99#daf;,b99 ,and
 therefore every care must be taken that
 our auxiliaries1 being  stronger than  
our citizens1 may not grow to be too    
much for them and  become savage tyrants
 instead of friends and allies8    ,yes1

 great care should be taken4    ,and    
would not a really good education       
furnish the best safeguard8    ,but they
 are well-educated already1 he replied4 
,i cannot be so confident1 my dear      
,glaucon1 ,i said2 ,i am much more      
certain  that they ought to be1 and that
 true 99#daf;,c99 education1 whatever   
that may  be1 will have the greatest    
#ajf tendency to civilize and humanize  
them in  their relations to one another1
 and to those who are under their       
protection4    ,very true1 he replied4  
,and not only their education1 but their
 habitations1 and all that belongs  to  
them1 should be such as will neither    
impair their virtue as guardians1  nor  
tempt them to prey upon the other       
citizens4 99#daf;,d99 ,any man of sense 
must acknowledge that4    ,he must4     
,sidenote3 ,their way of life will be   
that of a camp    ,sidenote3 ,they must 
have no homes or property of their own4 
,then now let us consider what will be  
their way of life1 if they are to       

realize our idea of them4 ,in the first 
place1 none of them should have any     
property of his own beyond what is      
absolutely necessary2 neither should    
they have a private house or store      
closed against any one who has a mind   
to enter2 their provisions should be    
only such as are required by trained    
warriors1 who are men of temperance and 
courage2 99#daf;,e99 they should agree  
to receive from the citizens a fixed    
rate of pay1 enough to meet the         
expenses of the year and no more2 and   
they will go to mess and live  together 
like soldiers in a camp4 ,gold and      
silver we will tell them that  they have
 from ,god2 the diviner metal is within 
them1 and they have  therefore no need  
of the dross which is current among men1
 and ought not  to pollute the divine by
 any 99#dag;,a99 such earthly admixture2
 for that  commoner metal has been the  
source of many unholy deeds1 but their  
own is  undefiled4 ,and they alone of   
all the citizens may not touch or handle

  silver or gold1 or be under the same  
roof with them1 or wear them1 or  drink 
from them4 ,and this will be their      
salvation1 and they will be the         
saviours of the ,state4 ,but should they
 ever acquire homes or lands or  moneys 
of their own1 they will become          
housekeepers and husbandmen instead  of 
guardians1 99#dag;,b99 enemies and      
tyrants instead of allies of the other  
citizens2 hating and being hated1       
plotting and being plotted against1 they
  will pass their whole life in much    
greater terror of internal than of      
external enemies1 and the hour of ruin1 
both to themselves and to the rest  of  
the ,state1 will be at hand4 ,for all   
which reasons may we not say that  thus 
shall our ,state be ordered1 and that   
these shall be the regulations          
appointed by us for guardians concerning
 their houses and all other  matters8   
,yes1 said ,glaucon4          ,,book    
,,iv4      ,sidenote3 ,republic ,,iv4   
,adeimantus1 ,socrates4    ,sidenote3   

,an objection that ,socrates has made   
his citizens poor and  miserable3       
99#dai;,a99 ,here ,adeimantus interposed
 a question3 ,how would you answer1     
,socrates1 said he1 if a person were to 
say that you are making#a these  people 
miserable1 and that they are the cause  
of their own unhappiness2  the city in  
fact belongs to them1 but they are none 
the better for it2  whereas other men   
acquire lands1 and build large and      
handsome houses1 and  have everything   
handsome about them1 offering sacrifices
 to the gods on  their own account1 and 
practising hospitality2 moreover1 as you
 were  saying just now1 they have gold  
and silver1 and all that is usual among 
the favourites of fortune2 but our poor 
citizens are no better than  mercenaries
 who are quartered in the city and are  
always mounting guard8    ,footnote #a3 
,or1 'that for their own good you are   
making these people  miserable4'        
,sidenote3 and worst of all1 adds       
,socrates1 they have no money4          

99#dbj;,a99 ,yes1 ,i said2 and you may  
add that they are only fed1 and not paid
  in addition to their food1 like other 
men2 and therefore they cannot1 if  they
 would1 take a journey of pleasure2 they
 have no money to spend on a  mistress  
or any other luxurious fancy1 which1 as 
the world goes1 is  thought to be       
happiness2 and many other accusations of
 the same nature  might be added4       
,but1 said he1 let us suppose all this  
to be included in the charge4           
99#dbj;,b99 ,you mean to ask1 ,i said1  
what will be our answer8    ,yes4       
,sidenote3 ,yet very likely they may be 
the happiest of mankind4    ,sidenote3  
,the ,state1 like a statue1 must be     
judged of as a whole4    ,sidenote3 ,the
 guardians must be guardians1 not boon  
companions4    ,if we proceed along the 
old path1 my belief1 ,i said1 is that we
 shall find  the answer4 ,and our answer
 will be that1 even as they are1 our    
guardians  may very likely be the       
happiest of men2 but that our aim in    

founding the  ,state was not the        
disproportionate happiness of any one   
class1 but the  greatest happiness of   
the whole2 we thought that in a ,state  
#ajh which is  ordered with a view to   
the good of the whole we should be most 
likely to  find justice1 and in the     
ill-ordered 99#dbj;,c99 ,state          
injustice3 and1 having  found them1 we  
might then decide which of the two is   
the happier4 ,at  present1 ,i take it1  
we are fashioning the happy ,state1 not 
piecemeal1 or  with a view of making a  
few happy citizens1 but as a whole2 and 
by-and-by  we will proceed to view the  
opposite kind of ,state4 ,suppose that  
we were  painting a statue1 and some one
 came up to us and said1 ,why do you not
 put  the most beautiful colours on the 
most beautiful parts of the body--the   
eyes ought to be purple1 but you have   
made them black--to him 99#dbj;,d99 we  
might fairly answer1 ,sir1 you would not
 surely have us beautify the eyes  to   
such a degree that they are no longer   

eyes2 consider rather whether1 by       
giving this and the other features their
 due proportion1 we make the whole      
beautiful4 ,and so ,i say to you1 do not
 compel us to assign to the  guardians a
 sort of happiness which will make them 
anything but guardians2  99#dbj;,e99 for
 we too can clothe our husbandmen in    
royal apparel1 and set  crowns of gold  
on their heads1 and bid them till the   
ground as much as  they like1 and no    
more4 ,our potters also might be allowed
 to repose on  couches1 and feast by the
 fireside1 passing round the winecup1   
while their  wheel is conveniently at   
hand1 and working at pottery only as    
much as they  like2 in this way we might
 make every class happy--and then1 as   
you  imagine1 the whole ,state would be 
happy4 ,but do not put this idea into   
our  heads2 for1 99#dba;,a99 if we      
listen to you1 the husbandman will be no
 longer a  husbandman1 the potter will  
cease to be a potter1 and no one will   
have the  character of any distinct     

class in the ,state4 ,now this is not of
 much  consequence where the corruption 
of society1 and pretension to be what   
you  are not1 is confined to cobblers2  
but when the guardians of the laws and  
of the government are only seeming and  
not real guardians1 then see how  they  
turn the ,state upside down2 and on the 
other hand they alone have the  power of
 giving order and happiness to the      
,state4 ,we mean our guardians to  be   
true 99#dba;,b99 saviours and not the   
destroyers of the ,state1 whereas our   
opponent is thinking of peasants at a   
festival1 who are enjoying a life of    
revelry1 not of citizens who are doing  
their duty to the ,state4 ,but1 if  so1 
we mean different things1 and he is #aji
 speaking of something which  is not a  
,state4 ,and therefore we must consider 
whether in appointing our  guardians we 
would look to their greatest happiness  
individually1 or  whether this principle
 of happiness does not rather reside in 
the ,state as  a whole4 ,but if the     

latter be the truth1 then the guardians 
99#dba;,c99 and  auxiliaries1 and all   
others equally with them1 must be       
compelled or  induced to do their own   
work in the best way4 ,and thus the     
whole ,state  will grow up in a noble   
order1 and the several classes will     
receive the  proportion of happiness    
which nature assigns to them4    ,i     
think that you are quite right4    ,i   
wonder whether you will agree with      
another remark which occurs to me4      
,what may that be8    99#dba;,d99 ,there
 seem to be two causes of the           
deterioration of the arts4    ,what are 
they8    ,wealth1 ,i said1 and poverty4 
,how do they act8    ,sidenote3 ,when an
 artisan grows rich1 he becomes         
careless3 if he is very  poor1 he has no
 money to buy tools with4 ,the city     
should be neither poor  nor rich4       
,the process is as follows3 ,when a     
potter becomes rich1 will he1 think you1
  any longer take the same pains with   
his art8    ,certainly not4    ,he will 

grow more and more indolent and         
careless8    ,very true4    ,and the    
result will be that he becomes a worse  
potter8    ,yes2 he greatly             
deteriorates4    ,but1 on the other     
hand1 if he has no money1 and cannot    
provide himself  with tools or          
instruments1 he will not work           
99#dba;,e99 equally well himself1  nor  
will he teach his sons or apprentices to
 work equally well4    ,certainly not4  
,then1 under the influence either of    
poverty or of wealth1 workmen and  their
 work are equally liable to degenerate8 
,that is evident4    ,here1 then1 is a  
discovery of new evils1 ,i said1 against
 which the  guardians will have to      
watch1 or they will creep into the city 
unobserved4    ,what evils8             
99#dbb;,a99 ,wealth1 ,i said1 and       
poverty2 the one is the parent of #aaj  
luxury  and indolence1 and the other of 
meanness and viciousness1 and both of   
discontent4    ,sidenote3 ,but how1     
being poor1 can she contend against a   

wealthy enemy8    ,that is very true1 he
 replied2 but still ,i should like to   
know1 ,socrates1  how our city will be  
able to go to war1 especially against an
 enemy who is  rich and powerful1 if    
deprived of the sinews of war4    ,there
 would certainly be a difficulty1 ,i    
replied1 in going 99#dbb;,b99 to war    
with one such enemy2 but there is no    
difficulty where there are two of  them4
    ,how so8 he asked4    ,sidenote3    
,our wiry soldiers will be more than a  
match for their fat  neighbours4    ,in 
the first place1 ,i said1 if we have to 
fight1 our side will be trained         
warriors fighting against an army of    
rich men4    ,that is true1 he said4    
,and do you not suppose1 ,adeimantus1   
that a single boxer who was perfect in  
his art would easily be a match for two 
stout and well-to-do gentlemen who  were
 not boxers8    ,hardly1 if they came   
upon him at once4    ,what1 now1 ,i     
said1 if he were able to run away and   
then 99#dbb;,c99 turn and  strike at the

 one who first came up8 ,and supposing  
he were to do this  several times under 
the heat of a scorching sun1 might he   
not1 being an  expert1 overturn more    
than one stout personage8    ,certainly1
 he said1 there would be nothing        
wonderful in that4    ,and yet rich men 
probably have a greater superiority in  
the science and  practise of boxing than
 they have in military qualities4       
,likely enough4    ,then we may assume  
that our athletes will be able to fight 
with two or  three times their own      
number8    ,i agree with you1 for ,i    
think you right4    ,sidenote3 ,and they
 will have allies who will readily join 
on condition of  receiving the spoil4   
99#dbb;,d99 ,and suppose that1 before   
engaging1 our citizens send an embassy  
to  one of the two cities1 telling them 
what is the truth3 ,silver and gold we  
neither have nor are permitted to have1 
but you may2 do you therefore come  and 
help us in war1 and take the spoils of  
the other city3 ,who1 on hearing  these 

words1 would choose to fight against    
lean wiry dogs1 rather than1  with the  
dogs on their side1 against fat and     
tender sheep8    ,that is not likely2   
and yet there might be a danger to the  
#aaa 99#dbb;,e99  poor ,state if the    
wealth of many ,states were to be       
gathered into one4    ,but how simple of
 you to use the term ,state at all of   
any but our own6    ,why so8            
,sidenote3 ,but many cities will        
conspire8 ,no3 they are divided in      
themselves4    ,sidenote3 ,many states  
are contained in one    ,you ought to   
speak of other ,states in the plural    
number2 not one of them  is a city1 but 
many cities1 as they say in the game4   
,for indeed any city1  however small1 is
 in fact divided into two1 one the city 
of the poor1 the  other of the rich2    
99#dbc;,a99 these are at war with one   
another2 and in either  there are many  
smaller divisions1 and you would be     
altogether beside the  mark if you      
treated them all as a single ,state4    

,but if you deal with them  as many1 and
 give the wealth or power or persons of 
the one to the others1  you will always 
have a great many friends and not many  
enemies4 ,and your  ,state1 while the   
wise order which has now been prescribed
 continues to  prevail in her1 will be  
the greatest of ,states1 ,i do not mean 
to say in  reputation or appearance1 but
 in deed and truth1 though she number   
not  more than a thousand defenders4 ,a 
single ,state which is her equal you    
will  hardly find1 either 99#dbc;,b99   
among ,hellenes or barbarians1 though   
many that  appear to be as great and    
many times greater4    ,that is most    
true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,the limit 
to the size of the ,state the           
possibility of unity4    ,and what1 ,i  
said1 will be the best limit for our    
rulers to fix when they  are considering
 the size of the ,state and the amount  
of territory which  they are to include1
 and beyond which they will not go8     
,what limit would you propose8    ,i    

would allow the ,state to increase so   
far as is consistent with unity2  that1 
,i think1 is the proper limit4          
99#dbc;,c99 ,very good1 he said4        
,here then1 ,i said1 is another order   
which will have to be conveyed to our   
guardians3 ,let our city be accounted   
neither large nor small1 but one and    
self-sufficing4    ,and surely1 said he1
 this is not a very severe order which  
we impose upon  them4    ,sidenote3 ,the
 duty of adjusting the citizens to the  
rank for which nature  intended them4   
,and the other1 said ,i1 of which we    
were speaking before is lighter         
still1--,i mean the duty of degrading   
the offspring of the guardians when     
inferior1 and of elevating into the rank
 99#dbc;,d99 of guardians the offspring 
of the lower classes1 when naturally    
#aab superior4 ,the intention was1      
that1 in the case of the citizens       
generally1 each individual should be put
  to the use for which nature intended  
him1 one to one work1 and then every    

man would do his own business1 and be   
one and not many2 and so the whole  city
 would be one and not many4    ,yes1 he 
said2 that is not so difficult4    ,the 
regulations which we are prescribing1 my
 good ,adeimantus1 are not1 as  might be
 supposed1 a number of great principles1
 but trifles all1 if care  be taken1 as 
the saying is1 99#dbc;,e99 of the one   
great thing1--a thing1  however1 which  
,i would rather call1 not great1 but    
sufficient for our  purpose4    ,what   
may that be8 he asked4    ,education1 ,i
 said1 and nurture3 ,if our citizens are
 well educated1 and  grow into sensible 
men1 they will easily see their way     
through all these1  as well as other    
matters which ,i omit2 such1 for        
example1 as marriage1 the  possession of
 99#dbd;,a99 women and the procreation  
of children1 which will all  follow the 
general principle that friends have all 
things in common1 as  the proverb says4 
,that will be the best way of settling  
them4    ,sidenote3 ,good education has 

a cumulative force and affects the      
breed4    ,also1 ,i said1 the ,state1 if
 once started well1 moves with          
accumulating  force like a wheel4 ,for  
good nurture and education implant good 
constitutions1 and these good           
constitutions taking root in a good     
education improve more and more1        
99#dbd;,b99 and this improvement affects
 the  breed in man as in other animals4 
,very possibly1 he said4    ,sidenote3  
,no innovations to be made either in    
music or gymnastic4    ,sidenote3       
,damon4    ,then to sum up3 ,this is the
 point to which1 above all1 the         
attention of  our rulers should be      
directed1--that music and gymnastic be  
preserved in  their original form1 and  
no innovation made4 ,they must do their 
utmost to  maintain them intact4 ,and   
when any one says that mankind most     
regard      ',the newest song which the 
singers have#b1'    99#dbd;,c99 they    
will be afraid that he may be praising1 
not new songs1 but a  new kind of song2 

and this ought not to be praised1 or    
conceived to be the  meaning of the     
poet2 for any musical innovation is full
 of danger to the  whole ,state1 and    
ought to be prohibited4 ,so ,damon tells
 me1 and ,i can  quite believe #aac     
him2--he says that when modes of music  
change1 the  fundamental laws of the    
,state always change with them4         
,footnote #b3 ,od4 i4 #ceb4    ,yes1    
said ,adeimantus2 and you may add my    
suffrage to ,damon's and your own4      
99#dbd;,d99 ,then1 ,i said1 our         
guardians must lay the foundations of   
their  fortress in music8    ,yes1 he   
said2 the lawlessness of which you speak
 too easily steals in4    ,yes1 ,i      
replied1 in the form of amusement2 and  
at first sight it appears  harmless4    
,sidenote3 ,the spirit of lawlessness1  
beginning in music1 gradually  pervades 
the whole of life4    ,why1 yes1 he     
said1 and there is no harm2 were it not 
that little by little  this spirit of   
licence1 finding a home1 imperceptibly  

penetrates into  manners and customs2   
whence1 issuing with greater force1 it  
invades  contracts between man and      
99#dbd;,e99 man1 and from contracts goes
 on to laws  and constitutions1 in utter
 recklessness1 ending at last1          
,socrates1 by an  overthrow of all      
rights1 private as well as public4      
,is that true8 ,i said4    ,that is my  
belief1 he replied4    ,then1 as ,i was 
saying1 our youth should be trained from
 the first in a  stricter system1 for if
 amusements become 99#dbe;,a99 lawless1 
and the youths  themselves become       
lawless1 they can never grow up into    
well-conducted and  virtuous citizens4  
,very true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,the 
habit of order the basis of education4  
,and when they have made a good         
beginning in play1 and by the help of   
music  have gained the habit of good    
order1 then this habit of order1 in a   
manner  how unlike the lawless play of  
the others6 will accompany them in all  
their actions and be a principle of     

growth to them1 and if there be any     
fallen places in the ,state will raise  
them up again4    ,very true1 he said4  
,sidenote3 ,if the citizens have the    
root of the matter in them1 they will   
supply the details for themselves4      
,thus educated1 they will invent for    
themselves any lesser rules which  their
 predecessors have altogether neglected4
    ,what do you mean8    99#dbe;,b99 ,i
 mean such things as these3--when the   
young are to be silent  before their    
elders2 how they are to show respect to 
them by standing and  making them sit2  
what honour is due to parents2 what     
garments or shoes are  to be worn2 the  
mode of dressing the hair2 deportment   
and manners in  general4 ,you would     
agree with me8 #aad    ,yes4    ,but    
there is1 ,i think1 small wisdom in     
legislating about such  matters1--,i    
doubt if it is ever done2 nor are any   
precise written  enactments about them  
likely to be lasting4    ,impossible4   
,it would seem1 ,adeimantus1 that the   

direction in which 99#dbe;,c99 education
  starts a man1 will determine his      
future life4 ,does not like always      
attract  like8    ,to be sure4    ,until
 some one rare and grand result is      
reached which may be good1 and may  be  
the reverse of good8    ,that is not to 
be denied4    ,and for this reason1 ,i  
said1 ,i shall not attempt to legislate 
further  about them4    ,naturally      
enough1 he replied4    ,sidenote3 ,the  
mere routine of administration may be   
omitted by us4    ,well1 and about the  
business of the agora1 and the ordinary 
dealings  between man and man1 or again 
about agreements 99#dbe;,d99 with       
artisans2 about  insult and injury1 or  
the commencement of actions1 and the    
appointment of  juries1 what would you  
say8 there may also arise questions     
about any  impositions and exactions of 
market and harbour dues which may be    
required1 and in general about the      
regulations of markets1 police1         
harbours1 and the like4 ,but1 oh        

heavens6 shall we condescend to         
legislate  on any of these particulars8 
,i think1 he said1 that there is no need
 to impose laws about 99#dbe;,e99 them  
on good men2 what regulations are       
necessary they will find out soon enough
  for themselves4    ,yes1 ,i said1 my  
friend1 if ,god will only preserve to   
them the laws which  we have given them4
    ,and without divine help1 said      
,adeimantus1 they will go on for ever   
making  and mending their laws and their
 lives in the hope of attaining         
perfection4    ,sidenote3 ,illustration 
of reformers of the law taken from      
invalids who  are always doctoring      
themselves1 but will never listen to the
 truth4    ,you would compare them1 ,i  
said1 to those invalids who1 having no  
self-restraint1 will not leave off their
 habits of intemperance8    ,exactly4   
99#dbf;,a99 ,yes1 ,i said2 and what a   
delightful life they lead6 they are     
always  doctoring and increasing and    
complicating their disorders1 and always

  fancying that they will be cured by   
any nostrum which anybody advises them  
to try4 #aae    ,such cases are very    
common1 he said1 with invalids of this  
sort4    ,yes1 ,i replied2 and the      
charming thing is that they deem him    
their worst  enemy who tells them the   
truth1 which is simply that1 unless they
 give up  eating and drinking and       
99#dbf;,b99 wenching and idling1 neither
 drug nor  cautery nor spell nor amulet 
nor any other remedy will avail4        
,charming6 he replied4 ,i see nothing   
charming in going into a passion with  a
 man who tells you what is right4       
,these gentlemen1 ,i said1 do not seem  
to be in your good graces4    ,assuredly
 not4    ,nor would you praise the      
behaviour of ,states which act like the 
men whom  ,i was just now describing4   
,for are there not ill-ordered ,states  
in which  the citizens are forbidden    
99#dbf;,c99 under pain of death to alter
 the  constitution2 and yet he who most 
sweetly courts those who live under this

  regime and indulges them and fawns    
upon them and is skilful in             
anticipating and gratifying their       
humours is held to be a great and good  
statesman--do not these ,states resemble
 the persons whom ,i was describing8    
,yes1 he said2 the ,states are as bad as
 the men2 and ,i am very far from       
praising them4    99#dbf;,d99 ,but do   
you not admire1 ,i said1 the coolness   
and dexterity of these  ready ministers 
of political corruption8    ,sidenote3  
,demagogues trying their hands at       
legislation may be excused for  their   
ignorance of the world4    ,yes1 he     
said1 ,i do2 but not of all of them1 for
 there are some whom the  applause of   
the multitude has deluded into the      
belief that they are really  statesmen1 
and these are not much to be admired4   
,what do you mean8 ,i said2 you should  
have more feeling for them4 ,when a  man
 cannot measure1 and a great many       
99#dbf;,e99 others who cannot measure   
declare that he is four cubits high1 can

 he help believing what they say8       
,nay1 he said1 certainly not in that    
case4    ,well1 then1 do not be angry   
with them2 for are they not as good as a
 play1  trying their hand at paltry     
reforms such as ,i was describing2 they 
are  always fancying that by legislation
 they will make an end of frauds in     
contracts1 and the other rascalities    
which ,i was mentioning1 not knowing    
that they are in reality cutting off the
 heads of a hydra8 #aaf    99#dbg;,a99  
,yes1 he said2 that is just what they   
are doing4    ,i conceive1 ,i said1 that
 the true legislator will not trouble   
himself with  this class of enactments  
whether concerning laws or the          
constitution  either in an ill-ordered  
or in a well-ordered ,state2 for in the 
former  they are quite useless1 and in  
the latter there will be no difficulty  
in  devising them2 and many of them will
 naturally flow out of our previous     
regulations4    99#dbg;,b99 ,what1 then1
 he said1 is still remaining to us of   

the work of  legislation8    ,nothing to
 us1 ,i replied2 but to ,apollo1 the    
,god of ,delphi1 there remains  the     
ordering of the greatest and noblest and
 chiefest things of all4    ,which are  
they8 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,religion  
to be left to the ,god of ,delphi4      
,the institution of temples and         
sacrifices1 and the entire service of   
gods1  demigods1 and heroes2 also the   
ordering of the repositories of the     
dead1  and the rites which have to be   
observed by him who would propitiate the
  inhabitants of the world below4 ,these
 are matters of which we are ignorant   
ourselves1 and as founders of a city we 
should be 99#dbg;,c99 unwise in         
trusting them to any interpreter but our
 ancestral deity4 ,he is the god  who   
sits in the centre1 on the navel of the 
earth1 and he is the  interpreter of    
religion to all mankind4    ,you are    
right1 and we will do as you propose4   
,but where1 amid all this1 is justice8  
son of ,ariston1 tell me where4         

99#dbg;,d99 ,now that our city has been 
made habitable1 light a candle and      
search1 and get your brother and        
,polemarchus and the rest of our friends
  to help1 and let us see where in it we
 can discover justice and where         
injustice1 and in what they differ from 
one another1 and which of them the  man 
who would be happy should have for his  
portion1 whether seen or unseen  by gods
 and men4    ,sidenote3 ,socrates1      
,glaucon4    ,nonsense1 said ,glaucon3  
did you not promise to search           
99#dbg;,e99 yourself1  saying that for  
you not to help justice in her need     
would be an impiety8    ,i do not deny  
that ,i said so1 and as you remind me1  
,i will be as good as  my word2 but you 
must join4    ,we will1 he replied4     
,well1 then1 ,i hope to make the        
discovery in this way3 #aag ,i mean to  
begin with the assumption that our      
,state1 if rightly ordered1 is perfect4 
,that is most certain4    ,and being    
perfect1 is therefore wise and valiant  

and temperate and just4    ,that is     
likewise clear4    ,and whichever of    
these qualities we find in the ,state1  
the one which is  not found will be the 
residue8    99#dbh;,a99 ,very good4     
,if there were four things1 and we were 
searching for one of them1 wherever  it 
might be1 the one sought for might be   
known to us from the first1 and  there  
would be no further trouble2 or we might
 know the other three first1  and then  
the fourth would clearly be the one     
left4    ,very true1 he said4    ,and is
 not a similar method to be pursued     
about the virtues1 which are  also four 
in number8    ,clearly4    ,sidenote3   
,the place of the virtues in the ,state3
 7#a7 ,the wisdom of the  statesman     
advises1 not about particular arts or   
pursuits1    ,first among the virtues   
found in the ,state1 wisdom comes       
99#dbh;,b99 into view1  and in this ,i  
detect a certain peculiarity4    ,what  
is that8    ,the ,state which we have   
been describing is said to be wise as   

being good  in counsel8    ,very true4  
,and good counsel is clearly a kind of  
knowledge1 for not by ignorance1 but  by
 knowledge1 do men counsel well8        
,clearly4    ,and the kinds of knowledge
 in a ,state are many and diverse8      
,of course4    ,there is the knowledge  
of the carpenter2 but is that the sort  
of knowledge  which gives a city the    
title of wise and good in counsel8      
99#dbh;,c99 ,certainly not2 that would  
only give a city the reputation of skill
  in carpentering4    ,then a city is   
not to be called wise because possessing
 a knowledge which  counsels for the    
best about wooden implements8           
,certainly not4    ,nor by reason of a  
knowledge which advises about brazen    
#aah pots1  ,i said1 nor as possessing  
any other similar knowledge8    ,not by 
reason of any of them1 he said4    ,nor 
yet by reason of a knowledge which      
cultivates the earth2 that would  give  
the city the name of agricultural8      
,yes4    ,sidenote3 but about the whole 

,state4    ,well1 ,i said1 and is there 
any knowledge in our recently-founded   
,state  among any of the citizens which 
advises1 99#dbh;,d99 not about any      
particular  thing in the ,state1 but    
about the whole1 and considers how a    
,state can  best deal with itself and   
with other ,states8    ,there certainly 
is4    ,and what is this knowledge1 and 
among whom is it found8 ,i asked4    ,it
 is the knowledge of the guardians1 he  
replied1 and is found among those  whom 
we were just now describing as perfect  
guardians4    ,and what is the name     
which the city derives from the         
possession of this  sort of knowledge8  
,the name of good in counsel and truly  
wise4    ,sidenote3 ,the statesmen or   
guardians are the smallest of all       
classes in  the ,state4    99#dbh;,e99  
,and will there be in our city more of  
these true guardians or more  smiths8   
,the smiths1 he replied1 will be far    
more numerous4    ,will not the         
guardians be the smallest of all the    

classes who receive a  name from the    
profession of some kind of knowledge8   
,much the smallest4    ,and so by reason
 of the smallest part or class1 and of  
the knowledge which  resides in this    
presiding and ruling part of itself1 the
 whole ,state1  being thus constituted  
according to 99#dbi;,a99 nature1 will be
 wise2 and this1  which has the only    
knowledge worthy to be called wisdom1   
has been ordained  by nature to be of   
all classes the least4    ,most true4   
,thus1 then1 ,i said1 the nature and    
place in the ,state of one of the four  
virtues has somehow or other been       
discovered4    ,and1 in my humble       
opinion1 very satisfactorily discovered1
 he replied4    ,again1 ,i said1 there  
is no difficulty in seeing the nature of
 #aai  courage1 and in what part that   
quality resides which gives the name of 
courageous to the ,state4    ,how do you
 mean8    ,sidenote3 7#b7 ,the courage  
which makes the city courageous is found
  chiefly in the soldier4    99#dbi;,b99

 ,why1 ,i said1 every one who calls any 
,state courageous or cowardly1  will be 
thinking of the part which fights and   
goes out to war on the  ,state's behalf4
    ,no one1 he replied1 would ever     
think of any other4    ,the rest of the 
citizens may be courageous or may be    
cowardly1 but their  courage or         
cowardice will not1 as ,i conceive1 have
 the effect of making  the city either  
the one or the other4    ,certainly not4
    ,sidenote3 ,it is the quality which 
preserves right opinion about things to 
be feared and not to be feared4    ,the 
city will be courageous in virtue of a  
portion of herself which  preserves     
under all circumstances that opinion    
99#dbi;,c99 about the nature of  things 
to be feared and not to be feared in    
which our legislator educated  them2 and
 this is what you term courage4    ,i   
should like to hear what you are saying 
once more1 for ,i do not think  that ,i 
perfectly understand you4    ,i mean    
that courage is a kind of salvation4    

,salvation of what8    ,of the opinion  
respecting things to be feared1 what    
they are and of what  nature1 which the 
law implants through education2 and ,i  
mean by the words  'under all           
circumstances' 99#dbi;,d99 to intimate  
that in pleasure or in pain1  or under  
the influence of desire or fear1 a man  
preserves1 and does not  lose this      
opinion4 ,shall ,i give you an          
illustration8    ,if you please4        
,sidenote3 ,illustration from the art of
 dyeing4    ,you know1 ,i said1 that    
dyers1 when they want to dye wool for   
making the  true sea-purple1 begin by   
selecting their white colour first2 this
 they  prepare and dress with much care 
and pains1 in order that the white      
ground  may take the purple hue in full 
perfection4 ,the dyeing then proceeds2  
and  99#dbi;,e99 whatever is dyed in    
this manner becomes a fast colour1 and  
no  washing either with lyes or without 
them can take away the bloom4 ,but1     
when the ground has not been duly       

prepared1 you will have noticed how poor
  is the look either of purple or of any
 other colour4    ,yes1 he said2 ,i know
 that they have a washed-out and        
ridiculous  appearance4 #abj            
,sidenote3 ,our soldiers must take the  
dye of the laws4    ,then now1 ,i said1 
you will understand what our object was 
99#dcj;,a99 in  selecting our soldiers1 
and educating them in music and         
gymnastic2 we were  contriving          
influences which would prepare them to  
take the dye of the laws  in perfection1
 and the colour of their opinion about  
dangers and of every  other opinion was 
to be indelibly fixed by their nurture  
and training1 not  to be washed away by 
such potent lyes as pleasure--mightier  
agent far in  washing the soul than any 
soda or lye2 99#dcj;,b99 or by sorrow1  
fear1 and  desire1 the mightiest of all 
other solvents4 ,and this sort of       
universal  saving power of true opinion 
in conformity with law about real and   
false  dangers ,i call and maintain to  

be courage1 unless you disagree4    ,but
 ,i agree1 he replied2 for ,i suppose   
that you mean to exclude mere           
uninstructed courage1 such as that of a 
wild beast or of a slave--this1 in  your
 opinion1 is not the courage which the  
law ordains1 and ought to have  another 
name4    99#dcj;,c99 ,most certainly4   
,then ,i may infer courage to be such as
 you describe8    ,why1 yes1 said ,i1   
you may1 and if you add the words 'of a 
citizen1' you  will not be far          
wrong2--hereafter1 if you like1 we will 
carry the  examination further1 but at  
present we are seeking not for courage  
but  justice2 and for the purpose of our
 enquiry we have said enough4    ,you   
are right1 he replied4    ,sidenote3    
,two other virtues1 temperance and      
justice1 which must be  considered in   
their proper order4    ,two virtues     
remain to be discovered in the          
,state--first1 99#dcj;,d99  temperance1 
and then justice which is the end of our
 search4    ,very true4    ,now1 can we 

find justice without troubling ourselves
 about temperance8    ,i do not know how
 that can be accomplished1 he said1 nor 
do ,i desire that  justice should be    
brought to light and temperance lost    
sight of2 and  therefore ,i wish that   
you would do me the favour of           
considering temperance  first4          
99#dcj;,e99 ,certainly1 ,i replied1 ,i  
should not be justified in refusing your
  request4    ,then consider1 he said4  
,yes1 ,i replied2 ,i will2 and as far as
 ,i can at present see1 the virtue of   
temperance has more of the nature of    
harmony and symphony than the           
preceding4    ,how so8 he asked4 #aba   
,temperance1 ,i replied1 is the ordering
 or controlling of certain pleasures    
and desires2 this is curiously enough   
implied in the saying of 'a man  being  
his own master2' and other traces of the
 same notion may be found in  language4 
,no doubt1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,the  
temperate is master of himself1 but the 
same person1 when  intemperate1 is also 

the slave of himself4    ,there is      
something ridiculous in the expression  
'master of himself2'  99#dca;,a99 for   
the master is also the servant and the  
servant the master2 and  in all these   
modes of speaking the same person is    
denoted4    ,certainly4    ,the meaning 
is1 ,i believe1 that in the human soul  
there is a better and  also a worse     
principle2 and when the better has the  
worse under control1  then a man is said
 to be master of himself2 and this is a 
term of praise3  but when1 owing to evil
 education or association1 the better   
principle1  which is also the smaller1  
is overwhelmed by the greater mass of   
the  99#dca;,b99 worse--in this case he 
is blamed and is called the slave of    
self  and unprincipled4    ,yes1 there  
is reason in that4    ,and now1 ,i said1
 look at our newly-created ,state1 and  
there you will find  one of these two   
conditions realized2 for the ,state1 as 
you will  acknowledge1 may be justly    
called master of itself1 if the words   

'temperance' and 'self-mastery' truly   
express the rule of the better part     
over the worse4    ,yes1 he said1 ,i see
 that what you say is true4    ,let me  
further note that the manifold and      
complex pleasures 99#dca;,c99 and       
desires and pains are generally found in
 children and women and servants1  and  
in the freemen so called who are of the 
lowest and more numerous  class4        
,certainly1 he said4    ,whereas the    
simple and moderate desires which follow
 reason1 and are under  the guidance of 
mind and true opinion1 are to be found  
only in a few1 and  those the best born 
and best educated4    ,very true4       
,sidenote3 ,the ,state which has the    
passions and desires of the many        
controlled by the few may be rightly    
called temperate4    ,these two1 as you 
may perceive1 have a place in our       
,state2 99#dca;,d99 and the  meaner     
desires of the many are held down by the
 virtuous desires and  wisdom of the    
few4    ,that ,i perceive1 he said4     

,then if there be any city which may be 
described as #abb master of its  own    
pleasures and desires1 and master of    
itself1 ours may claim such a           
designation8    ,certainly1 he replied4 
,it may also be called temperate1 and   
for the same reasons8    ,yes4    ,and  
if there be any ,state in which rulers  
and subjects 99#dca;,e99 will be  agreed
 as to the question who are to rule1    
that again will be our ,state8          
,undoubtedly4    ,and the citizens being
 thus agreed among themselves1 in which 
class will  temperance be found--in the 
rulers or in the subjects8    ,in both1 
as ,i should imagine1 he replied4    ,do
 you observe that we were not far wrong 
in our guess that temperance was  a sort
 of harmony8    ,why so8    ,sidenote3  
,temperance resides in the whole ,state4
    ,why1 because temperance is unlike  
courage and wisdom1 each of which       
resides in a part only1 the one making  
the 99#dcb;,a99 ,state wise and the     
other  valiant2 not so temperance1 which

 extends to the whole1 and runs through 
all the notes of the scale1 and produces
 a harmony of the weaker and the        
stronger and the middle class1 whether  
you suppose them to be stronger or      
weaker in wisdom or power or numbers or 
wealth1 or anything else4 ,most  truly  
then may we deem temperance to be the   
agreement of the naturally  superior and
 inferior1 as to the right to rule of   
either1 both in states  and individuals4
    99#dcb;,b99 ,i entirely agree with  
you4    ,and so1 ,i said1 we may        
consider three out of the four virtues  
to have been  discovered in our ,state4 
,the last of those qualities which make 
a state  virtuous must be justice1 if we
 only knew what that was4    ,the       
inference is obvious4    ,sidenote3     
,justice is not far off4    ,the time   
then has arrived1 ,glaucon1 when1 like  
huntsmen1 we should  surround the cover1
 and look sharp that justice does not   
steal away1 and  pass out of sight and  
escape us2 for 99#dcb;,c99 beyond a     

doubt she is  somewhere in this country3
 watch therefore and strive to catch a  
sight of  her1 and if you see her first1
 let me know4    ,would that ,i could6  
but you should regard me rather as #abc 
a follower  who has just eyes enough to 
see what you show him--that is about as 
much  as ,i am good for4    ,offer up a 
prayer with me and follow4    ,i will1  
but you must show me the way4    ,here  
is no path1 ,i said1 and the wood is    
dark and perplexing2 still we  must push
 on4    99#dcb;,d99 ,let us push on4    
,here ,i saw something3 ,halloo6 ,i     
said1 ,i begin to perceive a track1 and 
,i  believe that the quarry will not    
escape4    ,good news1 he said4         
,truly1 ,i said1 we are stupid fellows4 
,why so8    ,why1 my good sir1 at the   
beginning of our enquiry1 ages ago1     
there was  justice tumbling out at our  
feet1 and we never saw her2 nothing     
could be  more ridiculous4 ,like people 
who go about looking for what they have 
in  their hands--that 99#dcb;,e99 was   

the way with us--we looked not at what  
we  were seeking1 but at what was far   
off in the distance2 and therefore1  ,i 
suppose1 we missed her4    ,what do you 
mean8    ,i mean to say that in reality 
for a long time past we have been       
talking of  justice1 and have failed to 
recognise her4    ,i grow impatient at  
the length of your exordium4            
,sidenote3 ,we had already found her    
when we spoke of one man doing one      
thing only4    99#dcc;,a99 ,well then1  
tell me1 ,i said1 whether ,i am right or
 not3 ,you remember  the original       
principle which we were always laying   
down at the foundation  of the ,state1  
that one man should practise one thing  
only1 the thing to  which his nature was
 best adapted2--now justice is this     
principle or a  part of it4    ,yes1 we 
often said that one man should do one   
thing only4    ,further1 we affirmed    
that justice was doing one's own        
business1 and not  being a busybody2 we 
said so again and again1 99#dcc;,b99 and

 many others have  said the same to us4 
,yes1 we said so4    ,then to do one's  
own business in a certain way may be    
assumed to be  justice4 ,can you tell me
 whence ,i derive this inference8    ,i 
cannot1 but ,i should like to be told4  
,sidenote3 ,from another point of view  
,justice is the residue of the three    
others4    ,because ,i think that this  
is the only virtue which remains in the 
,state  when the other virtues of       
temperance and courage and wisdom are   
abstracted2 and1 that this is the       
ultimate #abd cause and condition of    
the existence of all of them1 and while 
remaining in them is also their         
preservative2 99#dcc;,c99 and we were   
saying that if the three were discovered
  by us1 justice would be the fourth or 
remaining one4    ,that follows of      
necessity4    ,if we are asked to       
determine which of these four qualities 
by its presence  contributes most to the
 excellence of the ,state1 whether the  
agreement of  rulers and subjects1 or   

the preservation in the soldiers of the 
opinion  which the law ordains about the
 true nature of dangers1 or wisdom and  
99#dcc;,d99 watchfulness in the rulers1 
or whether this other which ,i am       
mentioning1 and which is found in       
children and women1 slave and freeman1  
artisan1 ruler1 subject1--the quality1  
,i mean1 of every one doing his own     
work1 and not being a busybody1 would   
claim the palm--the question is not  so 
easily answered4    ,certainly1 he      
replied1 there would be a difficulty in 
saying which4    ,then the power of each
 individual in the ,state to do his own 
work appears  to compete with the other 
political virtues1 wisdom1 temperance1  
courage4    ,yes1 he said4    ,and the  
virtue which enters into this           
competition is 99#dcc;,e99 justice8     
,exactly4    ,sidenote3 ,our idea is    
confirmed by the administration of      
justice in  lawsuits4 ,no man is to have
 what is not his own4    ,let us look at
 the question from another point of     

view3 ,are not the rulers  in a ,state  
those to whom you would entrust the     
office of determining suits  at law8    
,certainly4    ,and are suits decided on
 any other ground but that a man may    
neither take  what is another's1 nor be 
deprived of what is his own8    ,yes2   
that is their principle4    ,which is a 
just principle8    ,yes4    ,then on    
this view also justice will be admitted 
to be the having and doing  what is a   
man's own1 and belongs to him8          
99#dcd;,a99 ,very true4    ,sidenote3   
,illustration3 ,classes1 like           
individuals1 should not meddle with  one
 another's occupations4    ,think1 now1 
and say whether you agree with me or    
not4 ,suppose a carpenter  to be doing  
the business of a cobbler1 #abe or a    
cobbler of a carpenter2  and suppose    
them to exchange their implements or    
their duties1 or the same  person to be 
doing the work of both1 or whatever be  
the change2 do you  think that any great
 harm would result to the ,state8       

,not much4    ,but when the cobbler or  
any other man whom nature 99#dcd;,b99   
designed to be a  trader1 having his    
heart lifted up by wealth or strength or
 the number of  his followers1 or any   
like advantage1 attempts to force his   
way into the  class of warriors1 or a   
warrior into that of legislators and    
guardians1  for which he is unfitted1   
and either to take the implements or the
 duties  of the other2 or when one man  
is trader1 legislator1 and warrior all  
in  one1 then ,i think you will agree   
with me in saying that this interchange 
and this meddling of one with another is
 the ruin of the ,state4    ,most true4 
,seeing then1 ,i said1 that there are   
three distinct classes1 any meddling  of
 one with another1 or the change of one 
into 99#dcd;,c99 another1 is the        
greatest harm to the ,state1 and may be 
most justly termed evil-doing8          
,precisely4    ,and the greatest degree 
of evil-doing to one's own city would be
 termed by  you injustice8              

,certainly4    ,this then is injustice2 
and on the other hand when the trader1  
the  auxiliary1 and the guardian each do
 their own business1 that is justice1   
and will make the city just4            
99#dcd;,d99 ,i agree with you4          
,sidenote3 ,from the larger example of  
the ,state we will now return to the    
individual4    ,we will not1 ,i said1 be
 over-positive as yet2 but if1 on trial1
 this  conception of justice be verified
 in the individual as well as in the    
,state1 there will be no longer any room
 for doubt2 if it be not verified1  we  
must have a fresh enquiry4 ,first let us
 complete the old investigation1  which 
we began1 as you remember1 under the    
impression that1 if we could  previously
 examine justice on the larger scale1   
there would be less  difficulty in      
discerning her in the individual4 ,that 
larger 99#dcd;,e99 example  appeared to 
be the ,state1 and accordingly we       
constructed as good a one as  we could1 
knowing well that in the good ,state    

justice would be found4 ,let  the       
discovery which we made be now applied  
to the individual--if they  agree1 #abf 
we shall be satisfied2 or1 if there be a
 difference in the  individual1 we will 
come back to the ,state and have another
 99#dce;,a99 trial  of the theory4 ,the 
friction of the two when rubbed together
 may possibly  strike a light in which  
justice will shine forth1 and the vision
 which is  then revealed we will fix in 
our souls4    ,that will be in regular  
course2 let us do as you say4    ,i     
proceeded to ask3 ,when two things1 a   
greater and less1 are called by the     
same name1 are they like or unlike in so
 far as they are called the same8       
,like1 he replied4    99#dce;,b99 ,the  
just man then1 if we regard the idea of 
justice only1 will be  like the just    
,state8    ,he will4    ,and a ,state   
was thought by us to be just when the   
three classes in the  ,state severally  
did their own business2 and also thought
 to be temperate  and valiant and wise  

by reason of certain other affections   
and qualities  of these same classes8   
,true1 he said4    ,and so of the       
individual2 we may assume that he has   
the 99#dce;,c99 same three  principles  
in his own soul which are found in the  
,state2 and he may be  rightly described
 in the same terms1 because he is       
affected in the same  manner8           
,certainly1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,how 
can we decide whether or no the soul has
 three distinct  principles8    ,once   
more then1 ,o my friend1 we have        
alighted upon an easy  question--whether
 the soul has these three principles or 
not8    ,an easy question6 ,nay1 rather1
 ,socrates1 the proverb holds that hard 
is  the good4    ,sidenote3 ,our method 
is inadequate1 and for a better and     
longer one we  have not at present time4
    ,very true1 ,i said2 and ,i do not  
think that the method 99#dce;,d99 which 
we are  employing is at all adequate to 
the accurate solution of this question2 
the true method is another and a longer 

one4 ,still we may arrive at a  solution
 not below the level of the previous    
enquiry4    ,may we not be satisfied    
with that8 he said2--under the          
circumstances1 ,i am  quite content4    
,i too1 ,i replied1 shall be extremely  
well satisfied4    ,then faint not in   
pursuing the speculation1 he said4      
99#dce;,e99 ,must we not acknowledge1 ,i
 said1 that in each of us there #abg are
  the same principles and habits which  
there are in the ,state2 and that from  
the individual they pass into the       
,state8--how else can they come there8  
,take the quality of passion or         
spirit2--it would be ridiculous to      
imagine  that this quality1 when found  
in ,states1 is not derived from the     
individuals who are supposed to possess 
it1 e4g4 the ,thracians1 ,scythians1    
and in general the northern nations2 and
 the same may be said of the love  of   
knowledge1 which is the special         
characteristic of our part of the       
world1 or of the 99#dcf;,a99 love of    

money1 which may1 with equal truth1 be  
attributed to the ,phoenicians and      
,egyptians4    ,exactly so1 he said4    
,there is no difficulty in understanding
 this4    ,none whatever4    ,sidenote3 
,a digression in which an attempt is    
made to attain logical  clearness4      
,but the question is not quite so easy  
when we proceed to ask whether these    
principles are three or one2 whether1   
that is to say1 we learn with one  part 
of our nature1 are angry with another1  
and with a third part desire  the       
satisfaction 99#dcf;,b99 of our natural 
appetites2 or whether the whole  soul   
comes into play in each sort of         
action--to determine that is the        
difficulty4    ,yes1 he said2 there lies
 the difficulty4    ,then let us now try
 and determine whether they are the same
 or different4    ,how can we8 he asked4
    ,sidenote3 ,the criterion of truth3 
,nothing can be and not be at the same  
time in the same relation4    ,i replied
 as follows3 ,the same thing clearly    

cannot act or be acted upon  in the same
 part or in relation to the same thing  
at the same time1 in  contrary ways2 and
 therefore whenever this contradiction  
occurs in things  apparently the same1  
we know that they are really not the    
same1 but 99#dcf;,c99  different4       
,good4    ,for example1 ,i said1 can the
 same thing be at rest and in motion at 
the  same time in the same part8        
,impossible4    ,still1 ,i said1 let us 
have a more precise statement of terms1 
lest we  should hereafter fall out by   
the way4 ,imagine the case of a man who 
is  standing and also moving his hands  
and his head1 and suppose a person to   
say that one and the same person is in  
motion and at rest at the same  moment  
#abh --to such a mode of speech we      
should object1 and should  99#dcf;,d99  
rather say that one part of him is in   
motion while another is at  rest4       
,very true4    ,sidenote3 ,anticipation 
of objections to this 'law of thought4' 
,and suppose the objector to refine     

still further1 and to draw the nice     
distinction that not only parts of tops1
 but whole tops1 when they spin  round  
with their pegs fixed on the spot1 are  
at rest and in motion at the  same time 
7and he may say the same of anything    
which revolves in the same  spot71 his  
objection would not be admitted by us1  
because 99#dcf;,e99 in such  cases      
things are not at rest and in motion in 
the same parts of  themselves2 we should
 rather say that they have both an axis 
and a  circumference1 and that the axis 
stands still1 for there is no deviation 
from the perpendicular2 and that the    
circumference goes round4 ,but if1      
while revolving1 the axis inclines      
either to the right or left1 forwards   
or backwards1 then in no point of view  
can they be at rest4    ,that is the    
correct mode of describing them1 he     
replied4    ,then none of these         
objections will confuse us1 or incline  
us to believe  that the same thing at   
the same time1 in the 99#dcg;,a99 same  

part or in  relation to the same thing1 
can act or be acted upon in contrary    
ways4    ,certainly not1 according to my
 way of thinking4    ,yet1 ,i said1 that
 we may not be compelled to examine all 
such objections1  and prove at length   
that they are untrue1 let us assume     
their absurdity1  and go forward on the 
understanding that hereafter1 if this   
assumption  turn out to be untrue1 all  
the consequences which follow shall be  
withdrawn4    ,yes1 he said1 that will  
be the best way4    ,sidenote3 ,likes   
and dislikes exist in many forms4       
99#dcg;,b99 ,well1 ,i said1 would you   
not allow that assent and dissent1      
desire  and aversion1 attraction and    
repulsion1 are all of them opposites1   
whether  they are regarded as active or 
passive 7for that makes no difference in
  the fact of their opposition78        
,yes1 he said1 they are opposites4      
,well1 ,i said1 and hunger and thirst1  
and the desires in general1 and again   
willing and wishing1--all these you     

would 99#dcg;,c99 refer to the classes  
already mentioned4 ,you would say--would
 you not8--that the soul of him who     
desires is seeking #abi after the object
 of his desire2 or that he is  drawing  
to himself the thing which he wishes to 
possess3 or again1 when a  person wants 
anything to be given him1 his mind1     
longing for the  realization of his     
desire1 intimates his wish to have it by
 a nod of  assent1 as if he had been    
asked a question8    ,very true4    ,and
 what would you say of unwillingness and
 dislike and the absence of  desire2    
should not these be referred to the     
opposite class of repulsion  and        
rejection8    99#dcg;,d99 ,certainly4   
,admitting this to be true of desire    
generally1 let us suppose a particular  
class of desires1 and out of these we   
will select hunger and thirst1 as  they 
are termed1 which are the most obvious  
of them8    ,let us take that class1 he 
said4    ,the object of one is food1 and
 of the other drink8    ,yes4           

,sidenote3 ,there may be simple thirst  
or qualified thirst1 having             
respectively a simple or a qualified    
object4    ,and here comes the point3 is
 not thirst the desire which the soul   
has of  drink1 and of drink only2 not of
 drink qualified by anything else2 for  
example1 warm or cold1 or much or       
little1 or1 in a word1 drink of any     
particular sort3 but if 99#dcg;,e99 the 
thirst be accompanied by heat1 then the 
desire is of cold drink2 or1 if         
accompanied by cold1 then of warm drink2
  or1 if the thirst be excessive1 then  
the drink which is desired will be      
excessive2 or1 if not great1 the        
quantity of drink will also be small3   
but  thirst pure and simple will desire 
drink pure and simple1 which is the     
natural satisfaction of thirst1 as food 
is of hunger8    ,yes1 he said2 the     
simple desire is1 as you say1 in every  
case of the  simple object1 and the     
qualified desire of the qualified       
object4    ,sidenote3 ,exception3 ,the  

term good expresses1 not a particular1  
but an  universal relation4             
99#dch;,a99 ,but here a confusion may   
arise2 and ,i should wish to guard      
against  an opponent starting up and    
saying that no man desires drink only1  
but  good drink1 or food only1 but good 
food2 for good is the universal object  
of desire1 and thirst being a desire1   
will necessarily be thirst after  good  
drink2 and the same is true of every    
other desire4    ,yes1 he replied1 the  
opponent might have something to say4   
,nevertheless ,i should still maintain1 
that of relatives some #acj 99#dch;,b99 
have a quality attached to either term  
of the relation2 others are simple  and 
have their correlatives simple4    ,i do
 not know what you mean4    ,sidenote3  
,illustration of the argument from the  
use of language about  correlative      
terms4    ,well1 you know of course that
 the greater is relative to the less8   
,certainly4    ,and the much greater to 
the much less8    ,yes4    ,and the     

sometime greater to the sometime less1  
and the greater that is to  be to the   
less that is to be8    ,certainly1 he   
said4    99#dch;,c99 ,and so of more and
 less1 and of other correlative terms1  
such as  the double and the half1 or    
again1 the heavier and the lighter1 the 
swifter and the slower2 and of hot and  
cold1 and of any other  relatives2--is  
not this true of all of them8    ,yes4  
,and does not the same principle hold in
 the sciences8 ,the object of  science  
is knowledge 7assuming that to be the   
true definition71 but the  object of a  
particular science is a 99#dch;,d99     
particular kind of knowledge2  ,i mean1 
for example1 that the science of        
house-building is a kind of  knowledge  
which is defined and distinguished from 
other kinds and is  therefore termed    
architecture4    ,certainly4    ,because
 it has a particular quality which no   
other has8    ,yes4    ,and it has this 
particular quality because it has an    
object of a  particular kind2 and this  

is true of the other arts and sciences8 
,yes4    ,sidenote3 ,recapitulation     
,sidenote3 ,anticipation of a possible  
confusion4    ,now1 then1 if ,i have    
made myself clear1 you will understand  
my original  meaning in what ,i said    
about relatives4 ,my meaning was1 that  
if one term  of a relation is taken     
alone1 the other is taken alone2 if one 
term is  qualified1 the other is also   
qualified4 99#dch;,e99 ,i do not mean to
 say that  relatives may not be         
disparate1 or that the science of health
 is healthy1  or of disease necessarily 
diseased1 or that the sciences of good  
and evil  are therefore good and evil2  
but only that1 when the term science is 
no  longer used absolutely1 but has a   
qualified object which in this case is  
the nature of health and disease1 #aca  
it becomes defined1 and is hence  called
 not merely science1 but the science of 
medicine4    ,i quite understand1 and ,i
 think as you do4    99#dci;,a99 ,would 
you not say that thirst is one of these 

essentially relative  terms1 having     
clearly a relation--    ,yes1 thirst is 
relative to drink4    ,and a certain    
kind of thirst is relative to a certain 
kind of drink2 but  thirst taken alone  
is neither of much nor little1 nor of   
good nor bad1 nor  of any particular    
kind of drink1 but of drink only8       
,certainly4    ,then the soul of the    
thirsty one1 in so far as he is thirsty1
 99#dci;,b99  desires only drink2 for   
this he yearns and tries to obtain it8  
,that is plain4    ,sidenote3 ,the law  
of contradiction4    ,and if you suppose
 something which pulls a thirsty soul   
away from drink1  that must be different
 from the thirsty principle which draws 
him like a  beast to drink2 for1 as we  
were saying1 the same thing cannot at   
the same  time with the same part of    
itself act in contrary ways about the   
same4    ,impossible4    ,no more than  
you can say that the hands of the archer
 push and pull the  bow at the same     
time1 but what you say is that one hand 

pushes and the  other pulls4            
99#dci;,c99 ,exactly so1 he replied4    
,and might a man be thirsty1 and yet    
unwilling to drink8    ,yes1 he said1 it
 constantly happens4    ,and in such a  
case what is one to say8 ,would you not 
say that there was  something in the    
soul bidding a man to drink1 and        
something else  forbidding him1 which is
 other and stronger than the principle  
which bids  him8    ,i should say so4   
,sidenote3 ,the opposition of desire and
 reason4    99#dci;,d99 ,and the        
forbidding principle is derived from    
reason1 and that which  bids and        
attracts proceeds from passion and      
disease8    ,clearly4    ,then we may   
fairly assume that they are two1 and    
that they differ from one  another2 the 
one with which a man reasons1 we may    
call the rational  principle of the     
soul1 the other1 with which he loves and
 hungers and  thirsts and feels the #acb
 flutterings of any other desire1 may be
 termed  the irrational or appetitive1  

the ally of sundry pleasures and        
satisfactions8    99#dci;,e99 ,yes1 he  
said1 we may fairly assume them to be   
different4    ,then let us finally      
determine that there are two principles 
existing in  the soul4 ,and what of     
passion1 or spirit8 ,is it a third1 or  
akin to one of  the preceding8    ,i    
should be inclined to say--akin to      
desire4    ,sidenote3 ,the third        
principle of spirit or passion          
illustrated by an  example4    ,well1 ,i
 said1 there is a story which ,i        
remember to have heard1 and in  which ,i
 put faith4 ,the story is1 that         
,leontius1 the son of ,aglaion1 coming  
up one day from the ,piraeus1 under the 
north wall on the outside1 observed     
some dead bodies lying on the ground at 
the place of execution4 ,he felt a      
desire to see them1 and also a dread and
 abhorrence of them2 99#ddj;,a99 for a  
time he struggled and covered his eyes1 
but at length the desire got the  better
 of him2 and forcing them open1 he ran  

up to the dead bodies1  saying1 ,look1  
ye wretches1 take your fill of the fair 
sight4    ,i have heard the story       
myself1 he said4    ,the moral of the   
tale is1 that anger at times goes to war
 with desire1 as  though they were two  
distinct things4    ,yes2 that is the   
meaning1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,passion
 never takes part with desire against   
reason4    ,and are there not many other
 cases in which we observe 99#ddj;,b99  
that when a  man's desires violently    
prevail over his reason1 he reviles     
himself1 and  is angry at the violence  
within him1 and that in this struggle1  
which is  like the struggle of factions 
in a ,state1 his spirit is on the side  
of his  reason2--but for the passionate 
or spirited element to take part with   
the  desires when reason decides that   
she should not be opposed#c1 is a sort  
of thing which ,i believe that you never
 observed occurring in yourself1  nor1  
as ,i should imagine1 in any one else8  
,footnote #c3 ,reading ,greek3 m dein   

a7ntipra_/tein1 without a comma  after  
,greek3 dein4    ,certainly not4        
,sidenote3 ,righteous indignation never 
felt by a person of noble character     
when he deservedly suffers4             
99#ddj;,c99 ,suppose that a man thinks  
he has done a wrong to another1 the     
nobler he is the less able is he to feel
 indignant at any suffering1 such  as   
hunger1 or cold1 or any other pain which
 the injured person may inflict  upon   
him--these he deems to be just1 and1 as 
,i say1 his anger refuses to  be excited
 by them4    ,true1 he said4    ,but    
when he thinks that he is the sufferer  
of the wrong1 #acc then he  boils and   
chafes1 and is on the side of what he   
believes to be justice2  and because he 
suffers hunger 99#ddj;,d99 or cold or   
other pain he is only the  more         
determined to persevere and conquer4    
,his noble spirit will not be  quelled  
until he either slays or is slain2 or   
until he hears the voice of  the        
shepherd1 that is1 reason1 bidding his  

dog bark no more4    ,the illustration  
is perfect1 he replied2 and in our      
,state1 as we were  saying1 the         
auxiliaries were to be dogs1 and to hear
 the voice of the  rulers1 who are their
 shepherds4    ,i perceive1 ,i said1    
that you quite understand me2 there is1 
however1 a  further point which ,i wish 
you to consider4    99#ddj;,e99 ,what   
point8    ,you remember that passion or 
spirit appeared at first sight to be a  
kind  of desire1 but now we should say  
quite the contrary2 for in the conflict 
of the soul spirit is arrayed on the    
side of the rational principle4    ,most
 assuredly4    ,sidenote3 ,not two1 but 
three principles in the soul1 as in the 
,state4    ,but a further question      
arises3 ,is passion different from      
reason also1 or  only a kind of reason2 
in which latter case1 instead of three  
principles  in the soul1 there will only
 be two1 99#dda;,a99 the rational and   
the  concupiscent2 or rather1 as the    
,state was composed of three classes1   

traders1 auxiliaries1 counsellors1 so   
may there not be in the individual  soul
 a third element which is passion or    
spirit1 and when not corrupted by  bad  
education is the natural auxiliary of   
reason8    ,yes1 he said1 there must be 
a third4    ,yes1 ,i replied1 if        
passion1 which has already been shown to
 be different  from desire1 turn out    
also to be different from reason4       
,but that is easily proved3--,we may    
observe even in young children that     
they are full of spirit almost as soon  
as they are born1 whereas some of  them 
never seem to attain to 99#dda;,b99 the 
use of reason1 and most of them  late   
enough4    ,sidenote3 ,appeal to ,homer4
    ,excellent1 ,i said1 and you may see
 passion equally in brute animals1 which
  is a further proof of the truth of    
what you are saying4 ,and we may once   
more appeal to the words of ,homer1     
which have been already quoted by us1   
',he smote his breast1 and thus rebuked 
his soul#d1' #acd    99#dda;,c99 for in 

this verse ,homer has clearly supposed  
the power which  reasons about the      
better and worse to be different from   
the unreasoning  anger which is rebuked 
by it4    ,footnote #d3 ,od4 xx4 #ag1   
quoted supra1 ,,iii4 #cij ,d4    ,very  
true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,the       
conclusion that the same three          
principles exist both in the  ,state and
 in the individual applied to each of   
them4    ,and so1 after much tossing1 we
 have reached land1 and are fairly      
agreed  that the same principles which  
exist in the ,state exist also in the   
individual1 and that they are three in  
number4    ,exactly4    ,must we not    
then infer that the individual is wise  
in the same way1 and in  virtue of the  
same quality which makes the ,state     
wise8    ,certainly4    99#dda;,d99     
,also that the same quality which       
constitutes courage in the ,state       
constitutes courage in the individual1  
and that both the ,state and the        
individual bear the same relation to all

 the other virtues8    ,assuredly4      
,and the individual will be acknowledged
 by us to be just in the same way  in   
which the ,state is just8    ,that      
follows1 of course4    ,we cannot but   
remember that the justice of the ,state 
99#dda;,e99 consisted in  each of the   
three classes doing the work of its own 
class8    ,we are not very likely to    
have forgotten1 he said4    ,we must    
recollect that the individual in whom   
the several qualities of his  nature do 
their own work will be just1 and will do
 his own work8    ,yes1 he said1 we must
 remember that too4    ,and ought not   
the rational principle1 which is wise1  
and has the care of  the whole soul1 to 
rule1 and the passionate or spirited    
principle to be  the subject and ally8  
,certainly4    ,sidenote3 ,music and    
gymnastic will harmonize passion and    
reason4 ,these  two combined will       
control desire1    ,and1 as we were     
saying1 the united influence of music   
and gymnastic will  bring them into     

accord1 nerving and sustaining the      
reason with noble words  and lessons1   
and moderating and 99#ddb;,a99 soothing 
and civilizing the  wildness of passion 
by harmony and rhythm8    ,quite true1  
he said4    ,and these two1 thus        
nurtured and educated1 and having #ace  
learned truly  to know their own        
functions1 will rule#e over the         
concupiscent1 which in  each of us is   
the largest part of the soul and by     
nature most insatiable  of gain2 over   
this they will keep guard1 lest1 waxing 
great and strong  with the fulness of   
bodily pleasures1 as they are termed1   
the 99#ddb;,b99  concupiscent soul1 no  
longer confined to her own sphere1      
should attempt to  enslave and rule     
those who are not her natural-born      
subjects1 and overturn  the whole life  
of man8    ,footnote #e3 ,reading       
,greek3 prostat_/seton with ,bekker2 or1
 if the  reading ,greek3 prost_/seton1  
which is found in the ,,mss41 be        
adopted1  then the nominative must be   

supplied from the previous sentence3    
',music  and gymnastic will place in    
authority over 444' ,this is very       
awkward1 and  the awkwardness is        
increased by the necessity of changing  
the subject at  ,greek3 tr_/seton4      
,very true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 and  
will be the best defenders both of body 
and soul4    ,both together will they   
not be the best defenders of the whole  
soul and  the whole body against attacks
 from without2 the one counselling1 and 
the  other fighting under his leader1   
and courageously executing his commands 
and counsels8    ,true4    ,sidenote3   
,the courageous4    ,and he is to be    
deemed courageous whose spirit retains  
in 99#ddb;,c99 pleasure  and in pain the
 commands of reason about what he ought 
or ought not to  fear8    ,right1 he    
replied4    ,sidenote3 ,the wise4       
,and him we call wise who has in him    
that little part which rules1 and  which
 proclaims these commands2 that part too
 being supposed to have a  knowledge of 

what is for the interest of each of the 
three parts and of  the whole8          
,assuredly4    ,sidenote3 ,the          
temperate4    ,and would you not say    
that he is temperate who has these same 
elements in  friendly harmony1 in whom  
the one ruling principle of reason1 and 
the two  subject ones of spirit and     
99#ddb;,d99 desire are equally agreed   
that reason  ought to rule1 and do not  
rebel8    ,certainly1 he said1 that is  
the true account of temperance whether  
in the  ,state or individual4           
,sidenote3 ,the just4    ,and surely1 ,i
 said1 we have explained again and again
 how and by virtue of  what quality a   
man will be just4    ,that is very      
certain4    ,and is justice dimmer in   
the individual1 and is her form         
different1 or is  she the same which we 
found her to be in the ,state8 #acf     
,there is no difference in my opinion1  
he said4    ,sidenote3 ,the nature of   
justice illustrated by commonplace      
instances4    ,because1 if any doubt is 

still lingering in our minds1 a few     
99#ddb;,e99  commonplace instances will 
satisfy us of the truth of what ,i am   
saying4    ,what sort of instances do   
you mean8    ,if the case is put to us1 
must we not admit that the just         
99#ddc;,a99 ,state1 or  the man who is  
trained in the principles of such a     
,state1 will be less  likely than the   
unjust to make away with a deposit of   
gold or silver8  ,would any one deny    
this8    ,no one1 he replied4    ,will  
the just man or citizen ever be guilty  
of sacrilege or theft1 or  treachery    
either to his friends or to his country8
    ,never4    ,neither will he ever    
break faith where there have been oaths 
or  agreements8    ,impossible4    ,no  
one will be less likely to commit       
adultery1 or to dishonour his father    
and mother1 or to fail in his religious 
duties8    ,no one4    99#ddc;,b99 ,and 
the reason is that each part of him is  
doing its own business1  whether in     
ruling or being ruled8    ,exactly so4  

,are you satisfied then that the quality
 which makes such men and such  states  
is justice1 or do you hope to discover  
some other8    ,not ,i1 indeed4         
,sidenote3 ,we have realized the hope   
entertained in the first construction   
of the ,state4    ,then our dream has   
been realized2 and the suspicion which  
we entertained  at the beginning of our 
work of construction1 99#ddc;,c99 that  
some divine  power must have conducted  
us to a primary form of justice1 has now
 been  verified8    ,yes1 certainly4    
,and the division of labour which       
required the carpenter and the shoemaker
  and the rest of the citizens to be    
doing each his own business1 and not    
another's1 was a shadow of justice1 and 
for that reason it was of use8          
,clearly4    ,sidenote3 ,the three      
principles harmonize in one4            
,sidenote3 ,the harmony of human life4  
,but in reality justice was such as we  
were describing1 being concerned        
however1 not with the outward man1 but  

99#ddc;,d99 with the inward1 which is   
the true self and concernment of #acg   
man3 for the just man does not  permit  
the several elements within him to      
interfere with one another1 or  any of  
them to do the work of others1--he sets 
in order his own inner  life1 and is his
 own master and his own law1 and at     
peace with himself2  and when he has    
bound together the three principles     
within him1 which may  be compared to   
the higher1 lower1 and middle notes of  
the scale1 and the  intermediate        
intervals--when he has bound all these  
together1 and is no  longer 99#ddc;,e99 
many1 but has become one entirely       
temperate and perfectly  adjusted       
nature1 then he proceeds to act1 if he  
has to act1 whether in a  matter of     
property1 or in the treatment of the    
body1 or in some affair of  politics or 
private business2 always thinking and   
calling that which  preserves and       
co-operates with this harmonious        
condition1 just and good  action1 and   

the knowledge which presides over it1   
wisdom1 99#ddd;,a99 and that  which at  
any time impairs this condition1 he will
 call unjust action1 and  the opinion   
which presides over it ignorance4       
,you have said the exact truth1         
,socrates4    ,very good2 and if we were
 to affirm that we had discovered the   
just man  and the just ,state1 and the  
nature of justice in each of them1 we   
should  not be telling a falsehood8     
,most certainly not4    ,may we say so1 
then8    ,let us say so4    ,and now1 ,i
 said1 injustice has to be considered4  
,clearly4    ,sidenote3 ,injustice the  
opposite of justice4    99#ddd;,b99     
,must not injustice be a strife which   
arises among the three  principles--a   
meddlesomeness1 and interference1 and   
rising up of a part of  the soul against
 the whole1 an assertion of unlawful    
authority1 which is  made by a          
rebellious subject against a true       
prince1 of whom he is the  natural      
vassal1--what is all this confusion and 

delusion but injustice1  and            
intemperance and cowardice and          
ignorance1 and every form of vice8      
,exactly so4    99#ddd;,c99 ,and if the 
nature of justice and injustice be      
known1 then the  meaning of acting      
unjustly and being unjust1 or1 again1 of
 acting justly1  will also be perfectly 
clear8    ,what do you mean8 he said4   
,why1 ,i said1 they are like disease and
 health2 being in the soul just what    
disease and health are in the body4 #ach
    ,how so8 he said4    ,sidenote3     
,analogy of body and soul4    ,why1 ,i  
said1 that which is healthy causes      
health1 and that which is  unhealthy    
causes disease4    ,yes4    99#ddd;,d99 
,and just actions cause justice1 and    
unjust actions cause injustice8    ,that
 is certain4    ,sidenote3 ,health 3    
disease 33 justice 3 injustice4    ,and 
the creation of health is the           
institution of a natural order and      
government of one by another in the     
parts of the body2 and the creation of  

disease is the production of a state of 
things at variance with this  natural   
order8    ,true4    ,and is not the     
creation of justice the institution of a
 natural order and  government of one by
 another in the parts of the soul1 and  
the creation of  injustice the          
production of a state of things at      
variance with the natural  order8       
,exactly so1 he said4    ,then virtue is
 the health and beauty and well-being of
 the 99#ddd;,e99 soul1  and vice the    
disease and weakness and deformity of   
the same8    ,true4    ,and do not good 
practices lead to virtue1 and evil      
practices to vice8    ,assuredly4       
,sidenote3 ,the old question1 whether   
the just or the unjust is the  happier1 
has become ridiculous4    99#dde;,a99   
,still our old question of the          
comparative advantage of justice and    
injustice has not been answered3 ,which 
is the more profitable1 to be just  and 
act justly and practise virtue1 whether 
seen or unseen of gods and  men1 or to  

be unjust and act unjustly1 if only     
unpunished and unreformed8    ,in my    
judgment1 ,socrates1 the question has   
now become ridiculous4 ,we know  that1  
when the bodily constitution is gone1   
life is no longer endurable1  though    
pampered with all kinds of meats and    
drinks1 and having all wealth  and all  
power2 and shall we be told that when   
the very essence of the  vital principle
 is undermined and corrupted1 life is   
99#dde;,b99 still worth  having to a    
man1 if only he be allowed to do        
whatever he likes with the  single      
exception that he is not to acquire     
justice and virtue1 or to  escape from  
injustice and vice2 assuming them both  
to be such as we have  described8       
,yes1 ,i said1 the question is1 as you  
say1 ridiculous4 ,still1 #aci as we  are
 near the spot at which we may see the  
truth in the clearest manner  with our  
own eyes1 let us not faint by the way4  
,certainly not1 he replied4             
99#dde;,c99 ,come up hither1 ,i said1   

and behold the various forms of vice1   
those  of them1 ,i mean1 which are worth
 looking at4    ,i am following you1 he 
replied3 proceed4    ,i said1 ,the      
argument seems to have reached a height 
from which1 as from  some tower of      
speculation1 a man may look down and see
 that virtue is one1  but that the forms
 of vice are innumerable2 there being   
four special ones  which are deserving  
of note4    ,what do you mean8 he said4 
,sidenote3 ,as many forms of the soul as
 of the ,state4    ,i mean1 ,i replied1 
that there appear to be as many forms of
 the soul as  there are distinct forms  
of the ,state4    ,how many8            
99#dde;,d99 ,there are five of the      
,state1 and five of the soul1 ,i said4  
,what are they8    ,the first1 ,i said1 
is that which we have been describing1  
and which may be  said to have two      
names1 monarchy and aristocracy1        
accordingly as rule is  exercised by one
 distinguished man or by many4    ,true1
 he replied4    ,but ,i regard the two  

names as describing one form only2      
99#dde;,e99 for whether  the government 
is in the hands of one or many1 if the  
governors have been  trained in the     
manner which we have supposed1 the      
fundamental laws of the  ,state will be 
maintained4    ,that is true1 he        
replied4          ,,book ,v4            
,sidenote3 ,republic ,v4 ,,socrates1    
,,glaucon1 ,,adeimantus4    ,sidenote3  
,the community of women and children4   
99#ddi;,a99 ,such is the good and true  
,city or ,state1 and the good and true  
man  is of the same pattern2 and if this
 is right every other is wrong2 and the 
evil is one which affects not only the  
ordering of the ,state1 but also the    
regulation of the individual soul1 and  
is exhibited in four forms4    ,what are
 they8 he said4    ,i was proceeding to 
tell the order in which the four evil   
99#ddi;,b99 forms  appeared to me to    
succeed one another1 when ,polemarchus1 
who was sitting a  little way off1 just 
beyond ,adeimantus1 began to whisper to 

him3  stretching forth his hand1 he took
 hold of the upper part of his coat by  
the shoulder1 and drew him towards him1 
leaning forward himself so as to  be    
quite close and saying something in his 
ear1 of which ,i only caught the  words1
 ',shall we let him off1 or what shall  
we do8'    ,certainly not1 said         
,adeimantus1 raising his voice4    ,who 
is it1 ,i said1 whom you are refusing to
 let off8    ,you1 he said4             
99#ddi;,c99 ,i repeated#a1 ,why am ,i   
especially not to be let off8           
,footnote #a3 ,reading ,greek3 e7_/ti   
e7g ei7pon4    ,sidenote3 ,the saying   
',friends have all things in common' is 
an  insufficient solution of the        
problem4    ,why1 he said1 we think that
 you are lazy1 and mean to cheat us out 
of a  whole chapter which is a very     
important part of the story2 and you    
fancy  that we shall not notice your    
airy way of proceeding2 as if it were   
self-evident to everybody1 that in the  
matter of women and children  'friends  

have all things in common4'    ,and was 
,i not right1 ,adeimantus8    ,yes1 he  
said2 but what is right in this         
particular case1 like everything  else1 
requires to be explained2 for community 
may be of many kinds4  ,please1         
therefore1 to say what sort 99#ddi;,d99 
of community you mean4 ,we have  been   
long #ada expecting that you would tell 
us something about the  family life of  
your citizens--how they will bring      
children into the world1  and rear them 
when they have arrived1 and1 in general1
 what is the nature  of this community  
of women and children--for we are of    
opinion that the  right or wrong        
management of such matters will have a  
great and paramount  influence on the   
,state for good or for evil4 ,and now1  
since the question  is still            
undetermined1 and you are taking in hand
 another 99#dej;,a99 ,state1 we  have   
resolved1 as you heard1 not to let you  
go until you give an account  of all    
this4    ,to that resolution1 said      

,glaucon1 you may regard me as saying   
,agreed4    ,sidenote3 ,socrates1       
,thrasymachus4    ,and without more ado1
 said ,thrasymachus1 you may consider us
 all to be  equally agreed4             
,sidenote3 ,the feigned surprise of     
,socrates4    ,i said1 ,you know not    
what you are doing in thus assailing me3
 ,what an  argument are you raising     
about the ,state6 ,just as ,i thought   
that ,i had  finished1 and was only too 
glad that ,i had laid this question to  
sleep1  and was reflecting how fortunate
 ,i was in your acceptance of what ,i   
then  said1 you ask me to begin again at
 the very foundation1 ignorant of       
99#dej;,b99  what a hornet's nest of    
words you are stirring4 ,now ,i foresaw 
this  gathering trouble1 and avoided it4
    ,sidenote3 ,the good-humour of      
,thrasymachus4    ,for what purpose do  
you conceive that we have come here1    
said  ,thrasymachus1--to look for gold1 
or to hear discourse8    ,yes1 but      
discourse should have a limit4          

,sidenote3 ,socrates1 ,glaucon4    ,yes1
 ,socrates1 said ,glaucon1 and the whole
 of life is the only limit which  wise  
men assign to the hearing of such       
discourses4 ,but never mind about  us2  
take heart yourself 99#dej;,c99 and     
answer the question in your own way3    
,what sort of community of women and    
children is this which is to prevail    
among our guardians8 and how shall we   
manage the period between birth and     
education1 which seems to require the   
greatest care8 ,tell us how these       
things will be4    ,yes1 my simple      
friend1 but the answer is the reverse of
 easy2 many more  doubts arise about    
this than about our previous            
conclusions4 ,for the  practicability of
 what is said may be doubted2 and looked
 at in another  point of view1 whether  
the scheme1 if ever so practicable1     
would be for  the best1 is also         
doubtful4 ,hence ,i feel a reluctance to
 approach #adb  the 99#dej;,d99 subject1
 lest our aspiration1 my dear friend1   

should turn out  to be a dream only4    
,fear not1 he replied1 for your audience
 will not be hard upon you2 they  are   
not sceptical or hostile4    ,i said3   
,my good friend1 ,i suppose that you    
mean to encourage me by these  words4   
,yes1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,a friendly
 audience is more dangerous than a      
hostile one4    ,then let me tell you   
that you are doing just the reverse2 the
  encouragement which you offer would   
have been all very well had ,i myself   
believed that ,i knew what ,i was       
talking about3 to declare the truth     
about  matters of high 99#dej;,e99      
interest which a man honours and loves  
among wise  men who love him need       
occasion no fear or faltering in his    
mind2 but to  carry on an argument when 
you are yourself only 99#dea;,a99 a     
hesitating  enquirer1 which is my       
condition1 is a dangerous and slippery  
thing2 and  the danger is not that ,i   
shall be laughed at 7of which the fear  
would be  childish71 but that ,i shall  

miss the truth where ,i have most need  
to be  sure of my footing1 and drag my  
friends after me in my fall4 ,and ,i    
pray  ,nemesis not to visit upon me the 
words which ,i am going to utter4 ,for  
,i do  indeed believe that to be an     
involuntary homicide is a less crime    
than to  be a deceiver about beauty or  
goodness or justice in the matter of    
laws#b4 ,and that is a risk which ,i    
would rather run among enemies than     
among friends1 and therefore you do well
 to encourage 99#dea;,b99 me#c4         
,footnote #b3 ,or inserting ,greek3 kai 
before ,greek3 nomi_/mn3 'a  deceiver   
about beauty or goodness or principles  
of justice or law4'    ,footnote #c3    
,reading ,greek3 7_/ste eu7 me          
paramuthei4    ,glaucon laughed and     
said3 ,well then1 ,socrates1 in case you
 and your  argument do us any serious   
injury you shall be acquitted beforehand
 of the  homicide1 and shall not be held
 to be a deceiver2 take courage then and
  speak4    ,well1 ,i said1 the law says

 that when a man is acquitted he is free
 from  guilt1 and what holds at law may 
hold in argument4    ,then why should   
you mind8    ,well1 ,i replied1 ,i      
suppose that ,i must retrace my steps   
99#dea;,c99 and say  what ,i perhaps    
ought to have said before in the proper 
place4 ,the part of  the men has been   
played out1 and now properly enough     
comes the turn of the  women4 ,of them  
,i will proceed to speak1 and the more  
readily since ,i am  invited by you4    
#adc    ,for men born and educated like 
our citizens1 the only way1 in my       
opinion1  of arriving at a right        
conclusion about the possession and use 
of women  and children is to follow the 
path on which we originally started1    
when we  said that the men were to be   
the guardians and watchdogs of the herd4
    ,true4    99#dea;,d99 ,let us       
further suppose the birth and education 
of our women to be  subject to similar  
or nearly similar regulations2 then we  
shall see  whether the result accords   

with our design4    ,what do you mean8  
,sidenote3 ,no distinction among the    
animals such as is made between men  and
 women4    ,what ,i mean may be put into
 the form of a question1 ,i said3 ,are  
dogs  divided into hes and shes1 or do  
they both share equally in hunting and  
in  keeping watch and in the other      
duties of dogs8 or do we entrust to the 
males the entire and exclusive care of  
the flocks1 while we leave the  females 
at home1 under the idea that the bearing
 and suckling their  puppies is labour  
enough for them8    99#dea;,e99 ,no1 he 
said1 they share alike2 the only        
difference between them is  that the    
males are stronger and the females      
weaker4    ,but can you use different   
animals for the same purpose1 unless    
they are  bred and fed in the same way8 
,you cannot4    ,then1 if women are to  
have the same duties as men1 they       
99#deb;,a99 must have  the same nurture 
and education8    ,yes4    ,the         
education which was assigned to the men 

was music and gymnastic4    ,yes4       
,sidenote3 ,women must be taught music1 
gymnastic1 and military exercises       
equally with men4    ,then women must be
 taught music and gymnastic and also the
 art of war1  which they must practise  
like the men8    ,that is the inference1
 ,i suppose4    ,i should rather expect1
 ,i said1 that several of our proposals1
 if they are  carried out1 being        
unusual1 may appear ridiculous4    ,no  
doubt of it4    ,yes1 and the most      
ridiculous thing of all will be the     
sight of women naked  in the palaestra1 
exercising with the men1 99#deb;,b99    
especially when they are  no longer     
young2 they certainly will not be a     
vision of beauty1 any more  than the    
enthusiastic #add old men who in spite  
of wrinkles and ugliness  continue to   
frequent the gymnasia4    ,yes1 indeed1 
he said3 according to present notions   
the proposal would be  thought          
ridiculous4    ,but then1 ,i said1 as we
 have determined to speak our minds1 we 

must not  fear the jests of the wits    
which will be directed against this sort
 of  innovation2 how they will talk of  
women's 99#deb;,c99 attainments both in 
music  and gymnastic1 and above all     
about their wearing armour and riding   
upon  horseback6    ,very true1 he      
replied4    ,sidenote3 ,convention      
should not be permitted to stand in the 
way of a  higher good4    ,yet having   
begun we must go forward to the rough   
places of the law2 at the  same time    
begging of these gentlemen for once in  
their life to be serious4  ,not long    
ago1 as we shall remind them1 the       
,hellenes were of the opinion1  which is
 still generally received among the     
barbarians1 that the sight of  a naked  
man was ridiculous and improper2 and    
when first the ,cretans and  then the   
,lacedaemonians introduced the          
99#deb;,d99 custom1 the wits of that day
  might equally have ridiculed the      
innovation4    ,no doubt4    ,but when  
experience showed that to let all things

 be uncovered was far  better than to   
cover them up1 and the ludicrous effect 
to the outward eye  vanished before the 
better principle which reason asserted1 
then the man  was perceived to be a fool
 who directs the shafts of his ridicule 
at any  other 99#deb;,e99 sight but that
 of folly and vice1 or seriously        
inclines to  weigh the beautiful by any 
other standard but that of the good#d4  
,footnote #d3 ,reading with ,paris ,a4  
,greek3 kai kalou 444    ,very true1 he 
replied4    ,first1 then1 whether the   
question is to be put in jest or in     
99#dec;,a99  earnest1 let us come to an 
understanding about the nature of woman3
 ,is she  capable of sharing either     
wholly or partially in the actions of   
men1 or  not at all8 ,and is the art of 
war one of those arts in which she can  
or  can not share8 ,that will be the    
best way of commencing the enquiry1 and 
will probably lead to the fairest       
conclusion4    ,that will be much the   
best way4    ,shall we take the other   

side first and begin by arguing against 
ourselves2  in this manner the          
adversary's position will not be        
undefended4 #ade    99#dec;,b99 ,why    
not8 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,objection3 
,we were saying that every one should do
 his own  work3 ,have not women and men 
severally a work of their own8    ,then 
let us put a speech into the mouths of  
our opponents4 ,they will say3          
',socrates and ,glaucon1 no adversary   
need convict you1 for you yourselves1   
at the first foundation of the ,state1  
admitted the principle that  everybody  
was to do the one work suited to his own
 nature4' ,and certainly1  if ,i am not 
mistaken1 such an admission was made by 
us4 ',and do not the  natures of men and
 women differ very much indeed8' ,and we
 shall reply3 ,of  course they do4 ,then
 we shall be asked1 ',whether the tasks 
assigned to men  and to women should not
 be different1 and such as are agreeable
 to their  99#dec;,c99 different        
natures8' ,certainly they should4 ',but 

if so1 have you not  fallen into a      
serious inconsistency in saying that men
 and women1 whose  natures are so       
entirely different1 ought to perform the
 same  actions8'--,what defence will you
 make for us1 my good ,sir1 against any 
one  who offers these objections8       
,that is not an easy question to answer 
when asked suddenly2 and ,i shall  and  
,i do beg of you to draw out the case on
 our side4    ,these are the objections1
 ,glaucon1 and there are many           
99#dec;,d99 others of a  like kind1     
which ,i foresaw long ago2 they made me 
afraid and reluctant to  take in hand   
any law about the possession and nurture
 of women and  children4    ,by ,zeus1  
he said1 the problem to be solved is    
anything but easy4    ,why yes1 ,i said1
 but the fact is that when a man is out 
of his depth1  whether he has fallen    
into a little swimming bath or into mid 
ocean1 he  has to swim all the same4    
,very true4    ,and must not we swim and
 try to reach the shore3 we will hope   

that ,arion's  dolphin or some other    
miraculous help may save us8            
99#dec;,e99 ,i suppose so1 he said4     
,well then1 let us see if any way of    
escape can be found4 ,we                
acknowledged--did we not8 that different
 natures ought to have different        
pursuits1 and that men's and women's    
natures are different4 ,and now what    
are we saying8--that different natures  
ought to have the same  pursuits1--this 
is the inconsistency which is charged   
upon us4 #adf    ,precisely4            
99#ded;,a99 ,verily1 ,glaucon1 ,i said1 
glorious is the power of the art of     
contradiction6    ,why do you say so8   
,sidenote3 ,the seeming inconsistency   
arises out of a verbal opposition4      
,because ,i think that many a man falls 
into the practice against his will4     
,when he thinks that he is reasoning he 
is really disputing1 just because  he   
cannot define and divide1 and so know   
that of which he is speaking2 and  he   
will pursue a merely verbal opposition  

in the spirit of contention and  not of 
fair discussion4    ,yes1 he replied1   
such is very often the case2 but what   
has that to do with  us and our         
argument8    99#ded;,b99 ,a great deal2 
for there is certainly a danger of our  
getting  unintentionally into a verbal  
opposition4    ,in what way8            
,sidenote3 ,when we assigned to         
different natures different pursuits1 we
  meant only those differences of nature
 which affected the pursuits4    ,why we
 valiantly and pugnaciously insist upon 
the verbal truth1 that  different       
natures ought to have different         
pursuits1 but we never  considered at   
all what was the meaning of sameness or 
difference of  nature1 or why we        
distinguished them when we assigned     
different pursuits  to different natures
 and the same to the same natures4      
,why1 no1 he said1 that was never       
considered by us4    99#ded;,c99 ,i     
said3 ,suppose that by way of           
illustration we were to ask the         

question whether there is not an        
opposition in nature between bald men   
and  hairy men2 and if this is admitted 
by us1 then1 if bald men are cobblers1  
we should forbid the hairy men to be    
cobblers1 and conversely8    ,that would
 be a jest1 he said4    ,yes1 ,i said1 a
 jest2 and why8 because we never meant  
when we constructed  the ,state1 that   
the opposition of natures should extend 
to every  difference1 but only to those 
99#ded;,d99 differences which affected  
the  pursuit in which the individual is 
engaged2 we should have argued1 for     
example1 that a physician and one who is
 in mind a physician#e may be  said to  
have the same nature4    ,footnote #e3  
,reading ,greek3 i7atron men kai        
i7atrikon tn psuchn  o7_/nta4    ,true4 
,whereas the physician and the carpenter
 have different natures8    ,certainly4 
#adg    ,and if1 ,i said1 the male and  
female sex appear to differ in their    
fitness  for any art or pursuit1 we     
should say that such pursuit or art     

ought to be  assigned to one or the     
other of them2 but if the difference    
consists only  in women bearing         
99#ded;,e99 and men begetting children1 
this does not amount  to a proof that a 
woman differs from a man in respect of  
the sort of  education she should       
receive2 and we shall therefore continue
 to maintain  that our guardians and    
their wives ought to have the same      
pursuits4    ,very true1 he said4       
,next1 we shall ask our opponent how1 in
 reference to any 99#dee;,a99 of the    
pursuits or arts of civic life1 the     
nature of a woman differs from that of  
a man8    ,that will be quite fair4     
,and perhaps he1 like yourself1 will    
reply that to give a sufficient answer  
on the instant is not easy2 but after a 
little reflection there is no           
difficulty4    ,yes1 perhaps4           
,suppose then that we invite him to     
accompany us in the 99#dee;,b99         
argument1  and then we may hope to show 
him that there is nothing peculiar in   

the  constitution of women which would  
affect them in the administration of the
  ,state4    ,by all means4             
,sidenote3 ,the same natural gifts are  
found in both sexes1 but they are       
possessed in a higher degree by men than
 women4    ,let us say to him3 ,come    
now1 and we will ask you a              
question3--when you  spoke of a nature  
gifted or not gifted in any respect1 did
 you mean to say  that one man will     
acquire a thing easily1 another with    
difficulty2 a  little learning will lead
 the one to discover a great deal2      
whereas the  other1 after much study and
 application1 no sooner learns than he  
forgets2  or again1 did you mean1 that  
the one has a body which is a good      
servant to  his mind1 while the body of 
the other is a hindrance to him8--would 
not  these be the sort 99#dee;,c99 of   
differences which distinguish the man   
gifted  by nature from the one who is   
ungifted8    ,no one will deny that4    
,and can you mention any pursuit of     

mankind in which the male sex has not   
all these gifts and qualities in a      
higher degree than the female8 ,need  ,i
 waste time in speaking of the art of   
weaving1 and the management of  pancakes
 and preserves1 in which womankind does 
really appear to be #adh  great1 and in 
which for her to be beaten by a man is  
of all 99#dee;,d99 things  the most     
absurd8    ,you are quite right1 he     
replied1 in maintaining the general     
inferiority of  the female sex3 although
 many women are in many things superior 
to many  men1 yet on the whole what you 
say is true4    ,and if so1 my friend1  
,i said1 there is no special faculty of 
administration in a state which a woman 
has because she is a woman1 or  which a 
man has by virtue of his sex1 but the   
gifts of nature are alike  diffused in  
both2 all the pursuits of 99#dee;,e99   
men are the pursuits of women  also1 but
 in all of them a woman is inferior to a
 man4    ,very true4    ,sidenote3 ,men 
and women are to be governed by the same

 laws and to have  the same pursuits4   
,then are we to impose all our          
enactments on men and none of them on   
women8    ,that will never do4          
99#def;,a99 ,one woman has a gift of    
healing1 another not2 one is a musician1
  and another has no music in her       
nature8    ,very true4    ,and one woman
 has a turn for gymnastic and military  
exercises1 and another  is unwarlike and
 hates gymnastics8    ,certainly4       
,and one woman is a philosopher1 and    
another is an enemy of philosophy2 one  
has spirit1 and another is without      
spirit8    ,that is also true4    ,then 
one woman will have the temper of a     
guardian1 and another not4 ,was  not the
 selection of the male guardians        
determined by differences of this  sort8
    ,yes4    ,men and women alike       
possess the qualities which make a      
guardian2 they  differ only in their    
comparative strength or weakness4       
,obviously4    99#def;,b99 ,and those   
women who have such qualities are to be 

selected as the  companions and         
colleagues of men who have similar      
qualities and whom they  resemble in    
capacity and in character8    ,very     
true4    ,and ought not the same natures
 to have the same pursuits8    ,they    
ought4    ,then1 as we were saying      
before1 there is nothing unnatural #adi 
in  assigning music and gymnastic to the
 wives of the guardians--to that point  
we come round again4    ,certainly not4 
,the law which we then enacted was      
agreeable to nature1 99#def;,c99 and    
therefore not an impossibility or mere  
aspiration2 and the contrary  practice1 
which prevails at present1 is in reality
 a violation of nature4    ,that appears
 to be true4    ,we had to consider1    
first1 whether our proposals were       
possible1 and  secondly whether they    
were the most beneficial8    ,yes4      
,and the possibility has been           
acknowledged8    ,yes4    ,the very     
great benefit has next to be            
established8    ,quite so4    ,sidenote3

 ,there are different degrees of        
goodness both in women and in  men4     
,you will admit that the same education 
which makes a man a good guardian  will 
make a woman a good guardian2 for       
99#def;,d99 their original nature is the
  same8    ,yes4    ,i should like to   
ask you a question4    ,what is it8     
,would you say that all men are equal in
 excellence1 or is one man better  than 
another8    ,the latter4    ,and in the 
commonwealth which we were founding do  
you conceive the  guardians who have    
been brought up on our model system to  
be more perfect  men1 or the cobblers   
whose education has been cobbling8      
,what a ridiculous question6    ,you    
have answered me1 ,i replied3 ,well1 and
 may we not 99#def;,e99 further say     
that our guardians are the best of our  
citizens8    ,by far the best4    ,and  
will not their wives be the best women8 
,yes1 by far the best4    ,and can there
 be anything better for the interests of
 the ,state than that  the men and women

 of a ,state should be as good as       
possible8    ,there can be nothing      
better4    99#deg;,a99 ,and this is what
 the arts of music and gymnastic1 when  
present in  such manner as we have      
described1 will accomplish8 #aej        
,certainly4    ,then we have made an    
enactment not only possible but in the  
highest degree  beneficial to the       
,state8    ,true4    ,sidenote3 ,the    
noble saying4    ,then let the wives of 
our guardians strip1 for their virtue   
will be their  robe1 and let them share 
in the toils of war and the defence of  
their  country2 only in the distribution
 of labours the lighter are to be       
assigned to the women1 who are the      
weaker natures1 but in other respects   
their duties are to be the same4        
99#deg;,b99 ,and as for the man who     
laughs at  naked women exercising their 
bodies from the best of motives1 in his 
laughter he is plucking      ',a fruit  
of unripe wisdom1'    and he himself is 
ignorant of what he is laughing at1 or  

what he is  about2--for that is1 and    
ever will be1 the best of sayings1 ,that
 the  useful is the noble and the       
hurtful is the base4    ,very true4     
,here1 then1 is one difficulty in our   
law about women1 which we may say  that 
we have now escaped2 the wave has not   
swallowed us up alive for  enacting that
 the guardians of either sex should have
 all their pursuits  in common2 to the  
utility 99#deg;,c99 and also to the     
possibility of this  arrangement the    
consistency of the argument with itself 
bears witness4    ,yes1 that was a      
mighty wave which you have escaped4     
,sidenote3 ,the second and greater wave4
    ,yes1 ,i said1 but a greater is     
coming2 you will not think much of this 
when  you see the next4    ,go on2 let  
me see4    ,the law1 ,i said1 which is  
the sequel of this and of all that has  
preceded1  is to the following          
effect1--'that the wives of 99#deg;,d99 
our guardians are  to be common1 and    
their children are to be common1 and no 

parent is to  know his own child1 nor   
any child his parent4'    ,yes1 he said1
 that is a much greater wave than the   
other2 and the  possibility as well as  
the utility of such a law are far more  
questionable4    ,i do not think1 ,i    
said1 that there can be any dispute     
about the very great  utility of having 
wives and children in common2 the       
possibility is quite  another matter1   
and will be very much disputed4 #aea    
99#deg;,e99 ,i think that a good many   
doubts may be raised about both4        
,sidenote3 ,the utility and possibility 
of a community of wives and  children4  
,you imply that the two questions must  
be combined1 ,i replied4 ,now ,i meant  
that you should admit the utility2 and  
in this way1 as ,i thought1 ,i should   
escape from one of them1 and then there 
would remain only the possibility4      
,but that little attempt is detected1   
and therefore you will please to give  a
 defence of both4    ,sidenote3 ,the    
utility to be considered first1 the     

possibility  afterwards4    ,well1 ,i   
said1 ,i submit to my fate4 ,yet grant  
me a little 99#deh;,a99 favour3  let me 
feast my mind with the dream as day     
dreamers are in the habit of  feasting  
themselves when they are walking alone2 
for before they have  discovered any    
means of effecting their wishes--that is
 a matter which  never troubles         
them--they would rather not tire        
themselves by thinking  about           
possibilities2 but assuming that what   
they desire is already granted  to them1
 they proceed with their plan1 and      
delight in detailing what they  mean to 
do when their wish has come true--that  
is a way which they have of  not doing  
much good 99#deh;,b99 to a capacity     
which was never good for much4  ,now ,i 
myself am beginning to lose heart1 and  
,i should like1 with your  permission1  
to pass over the question of possibility
 at present4 ,assuming  therefore the   
possibility of the proposal1 ,i shall   
now proceed to enquire  how the rulers  

will carry out these arrangements1 and  
,i shall demonstrate  that our plan1 if 
executed1 will be of the greatest       
benefit to the ,state  and to the       
guardians4 ,first of all1 then1 if you  
have no objection1 ,i will  endeavour   
with your help to consider the          
advantages of the measure2 and          
hereafter the question of possibility4  
,i have no objection2 proceed4          
,first1 ,i think that if our rulers and 
their auxiliaries are to 99#deh;,c99 be 
worthy of the name which they bear1     
there must be willingness to obey in    
the one and the power of command in the 
other2 the guardians must  themselves   
obey the laws1 and they must also       
imitate the spirit of them in  any      
details which are entrusted to their    
care4    ,that is right1 he said4       
,sidenote3 ,the legislator will select  
guardians male and female1 who will     
meet at common meals and exercises1 and 
will be drawn to one another by an      
irresistible necessity4    ,you1 ,i     

said1 who are their legislator1 having  
selected the men1 will now  select the  
women and give them to them2--they must 
be as far as possible  of like natures  
with them2 and they must live in common 
houses and meet at  common meals4 ,none 
of them will have anything specially his
 or her own2  #aeb 99#deh;,d99 they will
 be together1 and will be brought up    
together1 and  will associate at        
gymnastic exercises4 ,and so they will  
be drawn by a  necessity of their       
natures to have intercourse with each   
other--necessity  is not too strong a   
word1 ,i think8    ,yes1 he             
said2--necessity1 not geometrical1 but  
another sort of necessity  which lovers 
know1 and which is far more convincing  
and constraining to  the mass of        
mankind4    ,true1 ,i said2 and this1   
,glaucon1 like all the rest1 must       
proceed after an  orderly fashion2 in a 
city of the blessed1 99#deh;,e99        
licentiousness is an  unholy thing which
 the rulers will forbid4    ,yes1 he    

said1 and it ought not to be permitted4 
,then clearly the next thing will be to 
make matrimony sacred in the  highest   
degree1 and what is most beneficial will
 be deemed sacred8    99#dei;,a99       
,exactly4    ,sidenote3 ,the breeding of
 human beings1 as of animals1 to be from
 the  best and from those who are of a  
ripe age4    ,and how can marriages be  
made most beneficial8--that is a        
question which  ,i put to you1 because  
,i see in your house dogs for hunting1  
and of the  nobler sort of birds not a  
few4 ,now1 ,i beseech you1 do tell me1  
have you  ever attended to their pairing
 and breeding8    ,in what particulars8 
,why1 in the first place1 although they 
are all of a good sort1 are not  some   
better than others8    ,true4    ,and do
 you breed from them all indifferently1 
or do you take care to breed  from the  
best only8    ,from the best4           
99#dei;,b99 ,and do you take the oldest 
or the youngest1 or only those of ripe  
age8    ,i choose only those of ripe    

age4    ,and if care was not taken in   
the breeding1 your dogs and birds would 
greatly deteriorate8    ,certainly4     
,and the same of horses and animals in  
general8    ,undoubtedly4    ,good      
heavens6 my dear friend1 ,i said1 what  
consummate skill will our  rulers need  
if the same principle holds of the human
 species6    99#dei;,c99 ,certainly1 the
 same principle holds2 but why does this
 involve any  particular skill8 #aec    
,sidenote3 ,useful lies 'very honest    
knaveries4'    ,because1 ,i said1 our   
rulers will often have to practise upon 
the body  corporate with medicines4 ,now
 you know that when patients do not     
require  medicines1 but have only to be 
put under a regimen1 the inferior sort  
of  practitioner is deemed to be good   
enough2 but when medicine has to be     
given1 then the doctor should be more of
 a man4    ,that is quite true1 he said2
 but to what are you alluding8    ,i    
mean1 ,i replied1 that our rulers will  
find a considerable dose of  falsehood  

and deceit necessary for the good of    
their subjects3 99#dei;,d99 we  were    
saying that the use of all these things 
regarded as medicines might  be of      
advantage4    ,and we were very right4  
,and this lawful use of them seems      
likely to be often needed in the        
regulations of marriages and births4    
,how so8    ,sidenote3 ,arrangements for
 the improvement of the breed2    ,why1 
,i said1 the principle has been already 
laid down that the best of  either sex  
should be united with the best as often1
 and the inferior with  the inferior1 as
 seldom as possible2 and that they      
should rear the  offspring of the one   
sort of union1 99#dei;,e99 but not of   
the other1 if the  flock is to be       
maintained in first-rate condition4 ,now
 these goings on  must be a secret which
 the rulers only know1 or there will be 
a further  danger of our herd1 as the   
guardians may be termed1 breaking out   
into  rebellion4    ,very true4         
,sidenote3 and for the regulation of    

population4    ,had we not better       
appoint certain festivals at which we   
will bring  together the brides and     
bridegrooms1 and sacrifices 99#dfj;,a99 
will be offered  and suitable hymeneal  
songs composed by our poets3 the number 
of weddings  is a matter which must be  
left to the discretion of the rulers1   
whose aim  will be to preserve the      
average of population8 ,there are many  
other things  which they will have to   
consider1 such as the effects of wars   
and diseases  and any similar agencies1 
in order as far as this is possible to  
prevent  the ,state from becoming either
 too large or too small4    ,certainly1 
he replied4    ,sidenote3 ,pairing by   
lot4    ,we shall have to invent some   
ingenious kind of lots which the less   
worthy  may draw on each occasion of our
 bringing them together1 and then they  
will accuse their own ill-luck and not  
the rulers4 #aed    ,to be sure1 he     
said4    ,sidenote3 ,the brave deserve  
the fair4    99#dfj;,b99 ,and ,i think  

that our braver and better youth1       
besides their other  honours and        
rewards1 might have greater facilities  
of intercourse with  women given them2  
their bravery will be a reason1 and such
 fathers ought  to have as many sons as 
possible4    ,true4    ,and the proper  
officers1 whether male or female or     
both1 for offices are  to be held by    
women as well as by men--    ,yes--     
,sidenote3 ,what is to be done with the 
children8    99#dfj;,c99 ,the proper    
officers will take the offspring of the 
good parents to  the pen or fold1 and   
there they will deposit them with       
certain nurses who  dwell in a separate 
quarter2 but the offspring of the       
inferior1 or of the  better when they   
chance to be deformed1 will be put away 
in some  mysterious1 unknown place1 as  
they should be4    ,yes1 he said1 that  
must be done if the breed of the        
guardians is to be  kept pure4    ,they 
will provide for their nurture1 and will
 bring the mothers to the  fold when    

they are full of milk1 taking the       
99#dfj;,d99 greatest possible care  that
 no mother recognises her own child2 and
 other wet-nurses may be  engaged if    
more are required4 ,care will also be   
taken that the process of  suckling     
shall not be protracted too long2 and   
the mothers will have no  getting up at 
night or other trouble1 but will hand   
over all this sort of  thing to the     
nurses and attendants4    ,you suppose  
the wives of our guardians to have a    
fine easy time of it when  they are     
having children4    ,why1 said ,i1 and  
so they ought4 ,let us1 however1 proceed
 with our scheme4  ,we were saying that 
the parents should be in the prime of   
life8    ,very true4    99#dfj;,e99 ,and
 what is the prime of life8 ,may it not 
be defined as a period of  about twenty 
years in a woman's life1 and thirty in a
 man's8    ,which years do you mean to  
include8    ,sidenote3 ,a woman to bear 
children from twenty to forty2 a man to 
beget  them from twenty-five to         

fifty-five4    ,a woman1 ,i said1 at    
twenty years of age may begin to bear   
children to the  ,state1 and continue to
 bear them until forty2 a man may begin 
at  five-and-twenty1 when he has passed 
the #aee point at which the pulse of    
life beats quickest1 and continue to    
beget children until he be  fifty-five4 
99#dfa;,a99 ,certainly1 he said1 both in
 men and women those years are the prime
  of physical as well as of intellectual
 vigour4    ,any one above or below the 
prescribed ages who takes part in the   
public  hymeneals shall be said to have 
done an unholy and unrighteous thing2   
the  child of which he is the father1 if
 it steals into life1 will have been    
conceived under auspices very unlike the
 sacrifices and prayers1 which at  each 
hymeneal priestesses and priest and the 
whole city will offer1 that  the new    
generation may be better and more useful
 than their 99#dfa;,b99 good  and useful
 parents1 whereas his child will be the 
offspring of darkness  and strange lust4

    ,very true1 he replied4    ,and the 
same law will apply to any one of those 
within the prescribed age  who forms a  
connection with any woman in the prime  
of life without the  sanction of the    
rulers2 for we shall say that he is     
raising up a bastard  to the ,state1    
uncertified and unconsecrated4    ,very 
true1 he replied4    ,sidenote3 ,after  
the prescribed age has been passed1 more
 licence is  allowed3 but all who were  
born after certain hymeneal festivals at
 which  their parents or grandparents   
came together must be kept separate4    
,this applies1 however1 only to those   
who are within the specified age3  after
 that we allow them to range at will1   
99#dfa;,c99 except that a man may  not  
marry his daughter or his daughter's    
daughter1 or his mother or his  mother's
 mother2 and women1 on the other hand1  
are prohibited from  marrying their sons
 or fathers1 or son's son or father's   
father1 and so on  in either direction4 
,and we grant all this1 accompanying the

 permission  with strict orders to      
prevent any embryo which may come into  
being from  seeing the light2 and if any
 force a way to the birth1 the parents  
must  understand that the offspring of  
such an union cannot be maintained1 and 
arrange accordingly4    ,that also1 he  
said1 is a reasonable proposition4 ,but 
how 99#dfa;,d99 will they  know who are 
fathers and daughters1 and so on8       
,they will never know4 ,the way will be 
this3--dating from the day of the       
hymeneal1 the bridegroom who was then   
married will call all the male  children
 who are born in the seventh and tenth  
month afterwards his sons1  and the     
female children his daughters1 and they 
will call him father1 and  he will call 
their children his grandchildren1 and   
they #aef will call  the elder          
generation grandfathers and             
grandmothers4 ,all who were begotten  at
 the time when their fathers and mothers
 came together will be called  their    
brothers and 99#dfa;,e99 sisters1 and   

these1 as ,i was saying1 will be        
forbidden to inter-marry4 ,this1        
however1 is not to be understood as an  
absolute prohibition of the marriage of 
brothers and sisters2 if the lot        
favours them1 and they receive the      
sanction of the ,pythian oracle1 the law
  will allow them4    ,quite right1 he  
replied4    ,such is the scheme1        
,glaucon1 according to which the        
guardians of our ,state  are to have    
their wives and families in common4 ,and
 now you would have the  argument show  
that this community is consistent with  
the rest of our  polity1 and also that  
nothing can be better--would you not8   
99#dfb;,a99 ,yes1 certainly4    ,shall  
we try to find a common basis by asking 
of ourselves what ought to  be the chief
 aim of the legislator in making laws   
and in the organization  of a           
,state1--what is the greatest good1 and 
what is the greatest evil1 and  then    
consider whether our previous           
description has the stamp of the good   

or of the evil8    ,by all means4       
,sidenote3 ,the greatest good of        
,states1 unity2 the greatest evil1      
discord4  ,the one the result of public1
 the other of private feelings4    ,can 
there be any greater evil than discord  
and distraction 99#dfb;,b99 and         
plurality where unity ought to reign8 or
 any greater good than the bond of      
unity8    ,there cannot4    ,and there  
is unity where there is community of    
pleasures and pains--where  all the     
citizens are glad or grieved on the same
 occasions of joy and  sorrow8    ,no   
doubt4    ,yes2 and where there is no   
common but only private feeling a ,state
 is  disorganized--when you have one    
half of the world triumphing and the    
other  plunged in grief at 99#dfb;,c99  
the same events happening to the city or
 the  citizens8    ,certainly4    ,such 
differences commonly originate in a     
disagreement about the use of the  terms
 'mine' and 'not mine1' 'his' and 'not  
his4'    ,exactly so4    ,and is not    

that the best-ordered ,state in which   
the greatest #aeg number  of persons    
apply the terms 'mine' and 'not mine' in
 the same way to the  same thing8       
,quite true4    ,sidenote3 ,the ,state  
like a living being which feels         
altogether when hurt  in any part4      
,or that again which most nearly        
approaches to the condition of the      
individual--as in the body1 when but a  
finger of one of us is hurt1 the  whole 
frame1 drawn towards the soul as a      
centre and forming one kingdom  under   
the ruling power 99#dfb;,d99 therein1   
feels the hurt and sympathizes all      
together with the part affected1 and we 
say that the man has a pain in his      
finger2 and the same expression is used 
about any other part of the body1  which
 has a sensation of pain at suffering or
 of pleasure at the  alleviation of     
suffering4    ,very true1 he replied2   
and ,i agree with you that in the       
best-ordered ,state  there is the       
nearest approach to this common feeling 

which you describe4    ,then when any   
one of the citizens experiences any good
 99#dfb;,e99 or evil1 the  whole ,state 
will make his case their own1 and will  
either rejoice or  sorrow with him8     
,yes1 he said1 that is what will happen 
in a well-ordered ,state4    ,sidenote3 
,how different are the terms which are  
applied to the rulers in  other ,states 
and in our own6    ,it will now be time1
 ,i said1 for us to return to our ,state
 and see whether  this or some other    
form is most in accordance with these   
fundamental  principles4    ,very good4 
99#dfc;,a99 ,our ,state like every other
 has rulers and subjects8    ,true4     
,all of whom will call one another      
citizens8    ,of course4    ,but is     
there not another name which people give
 to their rulers in other  ,states8     
,generally they call them masters1 but  
in democratic ,states they simply  call 
them rulers4    ,and in our ,state what 
other name besides that of citizens do  
the people  give the rulers8            

99#dfc;,b99 ,they are called saviours   
and helpers1 he replied4    ,and what do
 the rulers call the people8    ,their  
maintainers and foster-fathers4    ,and 
what do they call them in other ,states8
    ,slaves4    ,and what do the rulers 
call one another in other ,states8 #aeh 
,fellow-rulers4    ,and what in ours8   
,fellow-guardians4    ,did you ever know
 an example in any other ,state of a    
ruler who would speak  of one of his    
colleagues as his friend and of another 
as not being his  friend8    ,yes1 very 
often4    ,and the friend he regards and
 describes as one in whom 99#dfc;,c99 he
 has an  interest1 and the other as a   
stranger in whom he has no interest8    
,exactly4    ,but would any of your     
guardians think or speak of any other   
guardian as a  stranger8    ,certainly  
he would not2 for every one whom they   
meet will be regarded by  them either as
 a brother or sister1 or father or      
mother1 or son or  daughter1 or as the  
child or parent of those who are thus   

connected with  him4    ,sidenote3 ,the 
,state one family4    ,capital1 ,i said2
 but let me ask you once more3 ,shall   
they 99#dfc;,d99 be a  family in name   
only2 or shall they in all their actions
 be true to the  name8 ,for example1 in 
the use of the word 'father1' would the 
care of a  father be implied and the    
filial reverence and duty and obedience 
to him  which the law commands2 and is  
the violator of these duties to be      
regarded  as an impious and unrighteous 
person who is not likely to receive much
  good either at the hands of ,god or of
 man8 ,are these to be or not to be  the
 strains which the children will hear   
repeated in their ears by all the       
citizens about those who are intimated  
to them to be their parents and the     
rest of their kinsfolk8    ,sidenote3   
,using the same terms1 they will have   
the same modes of thinking  and acting1 
and this is to be attributed mainly to  
the community of women  and children4   
99#dfc;,e99 ,these1 he said1 and none   

other2 for what can be more ridiculous  
than for them to utter the names of     
family ties with the lips only and not  
to act in the spirit of them8    ,then  
in our city the language of harmony and 
concord will be more often  heard than  
in any other4 ,as ,i was describing     
before1 when any one is well  or ill1   
the universal word will be 'with me it  
is well' or 'it is ill4'    99#dfd;,a99 
,most true4    ,and agreeably to this   
mode of thinking and speaking1 were we  
not saying  that they will have their   
pleasures and pains in common8 #aei     
,yes1 and so they will4    ,and they    
will have a common interest in the same 
thing which they will  alike call 'my   
own1' and having this common interest   
they will have a  common feeling of     
pleasure and pain8    ,yes1 far more so 
than in other ,states4    ,and the      
reason of this1 over and above the      
general constitution of the  ,state1    
will be that the guardians will have a  
community of women and  children8       

,that will be the chief reason4         
99#dfd;,b99 ,and this unity of feeling  
we admitted to be the greatest good1 as 
was implied in our own comparison of a  
well-ordered ,state to the relation  of 
the body and the members1 when affected 
by pleasure or pain8    ,that we        
acknowledged1 and very rightly4    ,then
 the community of wives and children    
among our citizens is clearly the       
source of the greatest good to the      
,state8    ,certainly4    ,and this     
agrees with the other principle which we
 were affirming1--that  the guardians   
were not to have houses or 99#dfd;,c99  
lands or any other  property2 their pay 
was to be their food1 which they were to
 receive from  the other citizens1 and  
they were to have no private expenses2  
for we  intended them to preserve their 
true character of guardians4    ,right1 
he replied4    ,sidenote3 ,there will be
 no private interests among them1 and   
therefore no  lawsuits or trials for    
assault or violence to elders4    ,both 

the community of property and the       
community of families1 as ,i am  saying1
 tend to make them more truly guardians2
 they will not tear the  city in pieces 
by differing about 'mine' and 'not      
mine2' each man dragging  any           
99#dfd;,d99 acquisition which he has    
made into a separate house of his own1  
where he has a separate wife and        
children and private pleasures and      
pains2  but all will be affected as far 
as may be by the same pleasures and     
pains  because they are all of one      
opinion about what is near and dear to  
them1  and therefore they all tend      
towards a common end4    ,certainly1 he 
replied4    ,and as they have nothing   
but their persons which they can call   
their own1  suits and complaints will   
have no existence 99#dfd;,e99 among     
them2 they will  be delivered from all  
those quarrels of which money or        
children or  relations are the occasion4
 #afj    ,of course they will4          
,neither will trials for assault or     

insult ever be likely to occur among    
them4 ,for that equals should defend    
themselves against equals we shall      
maintain to be honourable and right2    
99#dfe;,a99 we shall make the protection
  of the person a matter of necessity4  
,that is good1 he said4    ,yes2 and    
there is a further good in the law2 viz4
 that if a man has a  quarrel with      
another he will satisfy his resentment  
then and there1 and  not proceed to more
 dangerous lengths4    ,certainly4      
,to the elder shall be assigned the duty
 of ruling and chastising the  younger4 
,clearly4    ,nor can there be a doubt  
that the younger will not strike or do  
any other  violence to an elder1 unless 
the magistrates command him2 nor will he
  slight him in any way4 ,for there are 
two guardians1 shame and fear1 mighty   
to prevent him3 shame1 which makes men  
refrain from laying hands on 99#dfe;,b99
  those who are to them in the relation 
of parents2 fear1 that the injured  one 
will be succoured by the others who are 

his brothers1 sons1 fathers4    ,that is
 true1 he replied4    ,then in every way
 the laws will help the citizens to keep
 the peace with  one another8    ,yes1  
there will be no want of peace4         
,sidenote3 ,from how many other evils   
will our citizens be delivered6    ,and 
as the guardians will never quarrel     
among themselves there will be no       
danger of the rest of the city being    
divided either against them or  against 
one another4    ,none whatever4    ,i   
hardly like even to mention the little  
meannesses of 99#dfe;,c99 which they    
will be rid1 for they are beneath       
notice3 such1 for example1 as the       
flattery of the rich by the poor1 and   
all the pains and pangs which men       
experience in bringing up a family1 and 
in finding money to buy  necessaries for
 their household1 borrowing and then    
repudiating1 getting  how they can1 and 
giving the money into the hands of women
 and slaves to  keep--the many evils of 
so many kinds which people suffer in    

this way are  mean enough and obvious   
enough1 and not worth speaking of4 #afa 
99#dfe;,d99 ,yes1 he said1 a man has no 
need of eyes in order to perceive that4 
,and from all these evils they will be  
delivered1 and their life will be       
blessed as the life of ,olympic victors 
and yet more blessed4    ,how so8       
,the ,olympic victor1 ,i said1 is deemed
 happy in receiving a part only of  the 
blessedness which is secured to our     
citizens1 who have won a more  glorious 
victory and have a more complete        
maintenance at the public cost4  ,for   
the victory which they have won is the  
salvation of the whole ,state2  and the 
crown with which they and their children
 are crowned is the  fulness of all that
 life needs2 they receive 99#dfe;,e99   
rewards from the hands  of their country
 while living1 and after death have an  
honourable burial4    ,yes1 he said1 and
 glorious rewards they are4             
,sidenote3 ,answer to the charge of     
,adeimantus that we made our citizens   

unhappy for their own good4    ,do you  
remember1 ,i said1 how in the course of 
the previous 99#dff;,a99  discussion#f  
some one who shall be nameless accused  
us of making our  guardians             
unhappy--they had nothing and might have
 possessed all  things--to whom we      
replied that1 if an occasion offered1 we
 might perhaps  hereafter consider this 
question1 but that1 as at present       
advised1 we  would make our guardians   
truly guardians1 and that we were       
fashioning the  ,state with a view to   
the greatest happiness1 not of any      
particular class1  but of the whole8    
,footnote #f3 ,pages #dai1 #dbj ff4     
,yes1 ,i remember4    ,sidenote3 ,their 
life not to be compared with that of    
citizens in ordinary  ,states4    ,and  
what do you say1 now that the life of   
our protectors is made out to be  far   
better and nobler than that of ,olympic 
99#dff;,b99 victors--is the life of     
shoemakers1 or any other artisans1 or of
 husbandmen1 to be compared with  it8   

,certainly not4    ,sidenote3 ,he who   
seeks to be more than a guardian is     
naught4    ,at the same time ,i ought   
here to repeat what ,i have said        
elsewhere1 that  if any of our guardians
 shall try to be happy in such a manner 
that he  will cease to be a guardian1   
and is not content with this safe and   
harmonious life1 which1 in our judgment1
 is of all lives the best1 but          
infatuated by some youthful conceit of  
happiness which gets up into his  head  
99#dff;,c99 shall seek to appropriate   
the whole state to himself1 then he     
#afb will have to learn how wisely      
,hesiod spoke1 when he said1 'half is   
more than the whole4'    ,if he were to 
consult me1 ,i should say to him3 ,stay 
where you are1 when  you have the offer 
of such a life4    ,sidenote3 ,the      
common way of life includes common      
education1 common  children1 common     
services and duties of men and women4   
,you agree then1 ,i said1 that men and  
women are to have a common way of  life 

such as we have described--common       
education1 common children2 and  they   
are to watch over the citizens in common
 whether abiding in the city  or going  
out to war2 they are to keep watch      
together1 and to hunt 99#dff;,d99       
together like dogs2 and always and in   
all things1 as far as they are able1    
women are to share with the men8 ,and in
 so doing they will do what is  best1   
and will not violate1 but preserve the  
natural relation of the  sexes4    ,i   
agree with you1 he replied4    ,the     
enquiry1 ,i said1 has yet to be made1   
whether such a community be found       
possible--as among other animals1 so    
also among men--and if possible1 in     
what way possible8    ,you have         
anticipated the question which ,i was   
about to suggest4    99#dff;,e99 ,there 
is no difficulty1 ,i said1 in seeing how
 war will be carried  on by them4       
,how8    ,sidenote3 ,the children to    
accompany their parents on military     
expeditions2    ,why1 of course they    

will go on expeditions together2 and    
will take with  them any of their       
children who are strong enough1 that1   
after the manner  of the artisan's      
child1 they may look on at the work     
which they will have  to do when they   
are grown up2 99#dfg;,a99 and besides   
looking on they will have  to help and  
be of use in war1 and to wait upon their
 fathers and mothers4  ,did you never   
observe in the arts how the potters'    
boys look on and help1  long before they
 touch the wheel8    ,yes1 ,i have4     
,and shall potters be more careful in   
educating their children and in  giving 
them the opportunity of seeing and      
practising their duties than our        
guardians will be8    ,the idea is      
ridiculous1 he said4    ,there is also  
the effect on the parents1 with whom1 as
 with 99#dfg;,b99 other  animals1 the   
presence of their young ones will be the
 greatest incentive  to valour4    ,that
 is quite true1 ,socrates2 and yet if   
they are defeated1 which may  often     

happen in war1 how great the danger is6 
#afc the children will be  lost as well 
as their parents1 and the ,state will   
never recover4    ,true1 ,i said2 but   
would you never allow them to run any   
risk8    ,i am far from saying that4    
,well1 but if they are ever to run a    
risk should they not do so on some      
occasion when1 if they escape disaster1 
they will be the better for it8         
,clearly4    ,sidenote3 but care must be
 taken that they do not run any serious 
risk4    99#dfg;,c99 ,whether the future
 soldiers do or do not see war in the   
days of  their youth is a very important
 matter1 for the sake of which some risk
  may fairly be incurred4    ,yes1 very 
important4    ,this then must be our    
first step1--to make our children       
spectators of war2  but we must also    
contrive that they shall be secured     
against danger2 then  all will be well4 
,true4    ,their parents may be supposed
 not to be blind to the risks of war1   
but to  know1 as far as human foresight 

can1 what 99#dfg;,d99 expeditions are   
safe and  what dangerous8    ,that may  
be assumed4    ,and they will take them 
on the safe expeditions and be cautious 
about the  dangerous ones8    ,true4    
,and they will place them under the     
command of experienced veterans who     
will be their leaders and teachers8     
,very properly4    ,still1 the dangers  
of war cannot be always foreseen2 there 
is a good deal  of chance about them8   
,true4    ,then against such chances the
 children must be at once furnished with
  wings1 in order that in the hour of   
need they may fly away and escape4      
99#dfg;,e99 ,what do you mean8 he said4 
,i mean that we must mount them on      
horses in their earliest youth1 and when
  they have learnt to ride1 take them on
 horseback to see war3 the horses  must 
not be spirited and warlike1 but the    
most tractable and yet the  swiftest    
that can be had4 ,in this way they will 
get an excellent view of  what is       
99#dfh;,a99 hereafter to be their own   

business2 and if there is danger  they  
have only to follow their elder leaders 
and escape4 #afd    ,i believe that you 
are right1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,the  
coward is to be degraded into a lower   
rank4    ,next1 as to war2 what are to  
be the relations of your soldiers to one
  another and to their enemies8 ,i      
should be inclined to propose that the  
soldier who leaves his rank or throws   
away his arms1 or is guilty of any      
other act of cowardice1 should be       
degraded into the rank of a husbandman  
or artisan4 ,what do you think8    ,by  
all means1 ,i should say4    ,and he who
 allows himself to be taken prisoner may
 as well be made a  present of to his   
enemies2 he is their lawful prey1 and   
let them do what  they like with him4   
99#dfh;,b99 ,certainly4    ,sidenote3   
,the hero to receive honour from his    
comrades and favour from  his beloved1  
,but the hero who has distinguished     
himself1 what shall be done to him8 ,in 
the first place1 he shall receive honour

 in the army from his youthful          
comrades2 every one of them in          
succession shall crown him4 ,what do you
  say8    ,i approve4    ,and what do   
you say to his receiving the right hand 
of fellowship8    ,to that too1 ,i      
agree4    ,but you will hardly agree to 
my next proposal4    ,what is your      
proposal8    ,that he should kiss and be
 kissed by them4    ,most certainly1 and
 ,i should be disposed to go further1   
and say3 99#dfh;,c99  ,let no one whom  
he has a mind to kiss refuse to be      
kissed by him while the  expedition     
lasts4 ,so that if there be a lover in  
the army1 whether his  love be youth or 
maiden1 he may be more eager to win the 
prize of valour4    ,capital1 ,i said4  
,that the brave man is to have more     
wives than others has  been already     
determined3 and he is to have first     
choices in such matters  more than      
others1 in order that he may have as    
many children as possible8    ,agreed4  
,sidenote3 and to have precedence1 and a

 larger share of meats and  drinks2     
,again1 there is another manner in      
which1 according to 99#dfh;,d99 ,homer1 
brave  youths should be honoured2 for he
 tells how ,ajax#g1 after he had        
distinguished himself in battle1 was    
rewarded with long chines1 which  seems 
to be a compliment appropriate to a hero
 in the flower of his age1  being not   
only a tribute of honour but also a very
 strengthening thing4    ,footnote #g3  
,iliad1 vii4 #cba4    #afe ,most true1  
he said4    ,then in this1 ,i said1     
,homer shall be our teacher2 and we too1
 at  sacrifices and on the like         
occasions1 will honour the brave        
according to  the measure of their      
valour1 whether men or women1 with hymns
 and those  other distinctions which we 
were mentioning2 also with              
99#dfh;,e99 'seats of precedence1 and   
meats and full cups#h2'    and in       
honouring them1 we shall be at the same 
time training them4    ,footnote #h3    
,iliad1 viii4 #afa4    ,that1 he        

replied1 is excellent4    ,yes1 ,i said2
 and when a man dies gloriously in war  
shall we not say1 in  the first place1  
that he is of the golden race8    ,to be
 sure4    ,sidenote3 also to be         
worshipped after death4    ,nay1 have we
 not the authority of ,hesiod for       
affirming that when they are  dead      
99#dfi;,a99 ',they are holy angels upon 
the earth1 authors of good1 averters    
of evil1 the guardians of speech-gifted 
men'8#i    ,footnote #i3 ,probably      
,works and ,days1 #aba foll4    ,yes2   
and we accept his authority4    ,we must
 learn of the god how we are to order   
the sepulture of divine and  heroic     
personages1 and what is to be their     
special distinction2 and we  must do as 
he bids8    ,by all means4    ,and in   
ages to come we will reverence them and 
kneel 99#dfi;,b99 before their          
sepulchres as at the graves of heroes4  
,and not only they but any who are      
deemed pre-eminently good1 whether they 
die from age1 or in any other way1      

shall be admitted to the same honours4  
,that is very right1 he said4           
,sidenote3 ,behaviour to enemies4       
,next1 how shall our soldiers treat     
their enemies8 ,what about this8    ,in 
what respect do you mean8    ,first of  
all1 in regard to slavery8 ,do you think
 it right that ,hellenes  should enslave
 ,hellenic ,states1 or allow others to  
enslave them1 if they  can help8 ,should
 not their custom be to spare them1     
considering the danger  which there is  
99#dfi;,c99 that the whole race may one 
day fall under the yoke  of the         
barbarians8    ,to spare them is        
infinitely better4 #aff    ,sidenote3   
,no ,hellene shall be made a slave4     
,then no ,hellene should be owned by    
them as a slave2 that is a rule which   
they will observe and advise the other  
,hellenes to observe4    ,certainly1 he 
said2 they will in this way be united   
against the barbarians  and will keep   
their hands off one another4    ,next as
 to the slain2 ought the conquerors1 ,i 

said1 to take anything but  their       
armour8 ,does not the practice of       
99#dfi;,d99 despoiling an enemy afford  
an excuse for not facing the battle8    
,cowards skulk about the dead1          
pretending that they are fulfilling a   
duty1 and many an army before now  has  
been lost from this love of plunder4    
,very true4    ,sidenote3 ,those who    
fall in battle are not to be despoiled4 
,and is there not illiberality and      
avarice in robbing a corpse1 and also a 
degree of meanness and womanishness in  
making an enemy of the dead body  when  
the real enemy has flown away and left  
only his fighting gear behind  him1--is 
not this 99#dfi;,e99 rather like a dog  
who cannot get at his  assailant1       
quarrelling with the stones which strike
 him instead8    ,very like a dog1 he   
said4    ,then we must abstain from     
spoiling the dead or hindering their    
burial8    ,yes1 he replied1 we most    
certainly must4    ,sidenote3 ,the arms 
of ,hellenes are not to be offered at   

temples2    ,neither shall we offer up  
arms at the temples of the gods1        
99#dgj;,a99 least of  all the arms of   
,hellenes1 if we care to maintain good  
feeling with other  ,hellenes2 and1     
indeed1 we have reason to fear that the 
offering of spoils  taken from kinsmen  
may be a pollution unless commanded by  
the god himself8    ,very true4         
,again1 as to the devastation of        
,hellenic territory or the burning of   
houses1 what is to be the practice8     
,may ,i have the pleasure1 he said1 of  
hearing your opinion8    ,both should be
 forbidden1 in my judgment2 ,i would    
take 99#dgj;,b99 the annual  produce and
 no more4 ,shall ,i tell you why8       
,pray do4    ,sidenote3 nor ,hellenic   
territory devastated4    ,why1 you see1 
there is a difference in the names      
'discord' and 'war1' and  ,i imagine    
that there is also a difference in their
 natures2 the one is  expressive of what
 is internal and domestic1 the other of 
what is external  and foreign2 and the  

first of the two is termed discord1 and 
only the  second1 war4 #afg    ,that is 
a very proper distinction1 he replied4  
99#dgj;,c99 ,and may ,i not observe with
 equal propriety that the ,hellenic race
  is all united together by ties of     
blood and friendship1 and alien and     
strange to the barbarians8    ,very     
good1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,hellenic  
warfare is only a kind of discord not   
intended to be  lasting4    ,and        
therefore when ,hellenes fight with     
barbarians and barbarians with          
,hellenes1 they will be described by us 
as being at war when they fight1  and by
 nature enemies1 and this kind of       
antagonism should be called war2  but   
when ,hellenes fight with one another we
 shall say that ,hellas is then  in a   
state of disorder and discord1 they     
being by nature friends2 99#dgj;,d99    
and such enmity is to be called discord4
    ,i agree4    ,consider then1 ,i     
said1 when that which we have           
acknowledged to be discord  occurs1 and 

a city is divided1 if both parties      
destroy the lands and burn  the houses  
of one another1 how wicked does the     
strife appear6 ,no true  lover of his   
country would bring himself to tear in  
pieces his own nurse  and mother3 ,there
 might be reason in the conqueror       
depriving the conquered  of their       
harvest1 but still they would           
99#dgj;,e99 have the idea of peace in   
their hearts and would not mean to go on
 fighting for ever4    ,yes1 he said1   
that is a better temper than the other4 
,and will not the city1 which you are   
founding1 be an ,hellenic city8    ,it  
ought to be1 he replied4    ,then will  
not the citizens be good and civilized8 
,yes1 very civilized4    ,sidenote3 ,the
 lover of his own city will also be a   
lover of ,hellas4    ,and will they not 
be lovers of ,hellas1 and think of      
,hellas as their own  land1 and share in
 the common temples8    ,most certainly4
    ,and any difference which arises    
among them will be 99#dga;,a99 regarded 

by them  as discord only--a quarrel     
among friends1 which is not to be called
 a war8    ,certainly not4    ,then they
 will quarrel as those who intend some  
day to be reconciled8    ,certainly4    
,they will use friendly correction1 but 
will not enslave or destroy their       
opponents2 they will be correctors1 not 
enemies8 #afh    ,just so4    ,sidenote3
 ,hellenes should deal mildly with      
,hellenes2 and with barbarians  as      
,hellenes now deal with one another4    
,and as they are ,hellenes themselves   
they will not devastate ,hellas1 nor    
will they burn houses1 nor ever suppose 
that the whole population of a          
city--men1 women1 and children--are     
equally their enemies1 for they know    
that the guilt of war is always confined
 to a few persons and that the  many are
 their friends4 99#dga;,b99 ,and for all
 these reasons they will be  unwilling  
to waste their lands and rase their     
houses2 their enmity to them  will only 
last until the many innocent sufferers  

have compelled the guilty  few to give  
satisfaction8    ,i agree1 he said1 that
 our citizens should thus deal with     
their ,hellenic  enemies2 and with      
barbarians as the ,hellenes now deal    
with one another4    ,then let us enact 
this law also for our guardians3--that  
they are neither  to devastate the lands
 of ,hellenes nor to 99#dga;,c99 burn   
their houses4    ,agreed2 and we may    
agree also in thinking that these1 like 
all our  previous enactments1 are very  
good4    ,sidenote3 ,the complaint of   
,glaucon respecting the hesitation of   
,socrates4    ,but still ,i must say1   
,socrates1 that if you are allowed to go
 on in this  way you will entirely      
forget the other question which at the  
commencement  of this discussion you    
thrust aside3--,is such an order of     
things possible1  and how1 if at all8   
,for ,i am quite ready to acknowledge   
that the plan  which you propose1 if    
only feasible1 would do all sorts of    
good to the  ,state4 ,i will add1 what  

you have omitted1 that your 99#dga;,d99 
citizens will  be the bravest of        
warriors1 and will never leave their    
ranks1 for they  will all know one      
another1 and each will call the other   
father1 brother1  son2 and if you       
suppose the women to join their armies1 
whether in the  same rank or in the     
rear1 either as a terror to the enemy1  
or as  auxiliaries in case of need1 ,i  
know that they will then be absolutely  
invincible2 and there are many domestic 
advantages which might also be          
mentioned and which ,i also fully       
acknowledge3 99#dga;,e99 but1 as ,i     
admit all  these advantages and as many 
more as you please1 if only this ,state 
of  yours were to come into existence1  
we need say no more about them2         
assuming then the existence of the      
,state1 let us now turn to the question 
of possibility and ways and means--the  
rest may be left4 #afi    ,sidenote3    
,socrates excuses himself and makes one 
or two remarks  preparatory to a final  

effort4    99#dgb;,a99 ,if ,i loiter#aj 
for a moment1 you instantly make a raid 
upon me1  ,i said1 and have no mercy2 ,i
 have hardly escaped the first and      
second  waves1 and you seem not to be   
aware that you are now bringing upon me 
the  third1 which is the greatest and   
heaviest4 ,when you have seen and heard 
the  third wave1 ,i think you will be   
more considerate and will acknowledge   
that  some fear and hesitation was      
natural respecting a proposal so        
extraordinary  as that which ,i have now
 to state and investigate4    ,footnote 
#aj3 ,reading ,greek3 straggeuome_/n4   
,the more appeals of this sort which you
 make1 he said1 the 99#dgb;,b99 more    
determined are we that you shall tell us
 how such a ,state is possible3  speak  
out and at once4    ,let me begin by    
reminding you that we found our way     
hither in the search  after justice and 
injustice4    ,true1 he replied2 but    
what of that8    ,i was only going to   
ask whether1 if we have discovered them1

 we are to  require that the just man   
should in nothing fail of absolute      
justice2 or  may we be satisfied with an
 approximation1 99#dgb;,c99 and the     
attainment in  him of a higher degree of
 justice than is to be found in other   
men8    ,the approximation will be      
enough4    ,sidenote3 7#a7 ,the ideal is
 a standard only which can never be     
perfectly  realized2    ,we were        
enquiring into the nature of absolute   
justice and into the  character of the  
perfectly just1 and into injustice and  
the perfectly  unjust1 that we might    
have an ideal4 ,we were to look at these
 in order  that we might judge of our   
own happiness and unhappiness according 
to the  standard 99#dgb;,d99 which they 
exhibited and the degree in which we    
resembled  them1 but not with any view  
of showing that they could exist in     
fact4    ,true1 he said4    ,would a    
painter be any the worse because1 after 
having delineated with  consummate art  
an ideal of a perfectly beautiful man1  

he was unable to  show that any such man
 could ever have existed8    ,he would  
be none the worse4    99#dgb;,e99 ,well1
 and were we not creating an ideal of a 
perfect ,state8    ,to be sure4         
,sidenote3 7#b7 but is none the worse   
for this4    ,and is our theory a worse 
theory because we are unable to #agj    
prove the  possibility of a city being  
ordered in the manner described8        
,surely not1 he replied4    ,that is the
 truth1 ,i said4 ,but if1 at your       
request1 ,i am to try and show  how and 
under what conditions the possibility is
 highest1 ,i must ask you1  having this 
in view1 to repeat your former          
admissions4    ,what admissions8        
99#dgc;,a99 ,i want to know whether     
ideals are ever fully realized in       
language8  ,does not the word express   
more than the fact1 and must not the    
actual1  whatever a man may think1      
always1 in the nature of things1 fall   
short of  the truth8 ,what do you say8  
,i agree4    ,then you must not insist  

on my proving that the actual ,state    
will in every  respect coincide with the
 ideal3 if we are only able to discover 
how a  city may be governed nearly as we
 proposed1 you will admit that we have  
discovered the possibility which you    
demand2 and will be contented4          
99#dgc;,b99  ,i am sure that ,i should  
be contented--will not you8    ,yes1 ,i 
will4    ,sidenote3 7#c7 ,although the  
ideal cannot be realized1 one or two    
changes1  or rather a single change1    
might revolutionize a ,state4    ,let me
 next endeavour to show what is that    
fault in ,states which is the  cause of 
their present maladministration1 and    
what is the least change  which will    
enable a ,state to pass into the truer  
form2 and let the change1  if possible1 
be of one thing only1 or1 if not1 of    
two2 at any rate1 let  the changes be as
 few and slight as possible4            
99#dgc;,c99 ,certainly1 he replied4     
,i think1 ,i said1 that there might be a
 reform of the ,state if only one       

change were made1 which is not a slight 
or easy though still a possible  one4   
,what is it8 he said4    ,sidenote3     
,socrates goes forth to meet the wave4  
,now then1 ,i said1 ,i go to meet that  
which ,i liken to the greatest of the   
waves2 yet shall the word be spoken1    
even though the wave break and drown  me
 in laughter and dishonour2 and do you  
mark my words4    ,proceed4             
,sidenote3 ',cities will never cease    
from ill until they are governed by     
philosophers4'    ,i said3 ,until       
philosophers are kings1 or the kings and
 princes of this  world have the spirit 
and power of philosophy1 and 99#dgc;,d99
 political  greatness and wisdom meet in
 one1 and those #aga commoner natures   
who  pursue either to the exclusion of  
the other are compelled to stand aside1 
cities will never have rest from their  
evils1--nor the human race1 as  ,i      
believe1--and then only will this       
99#dgc;,e99 our ,state have a           
possibility of  life and behold the     

light of day4 ,such was the thought1 my 
dear ,glaucon1  which ,i would fain have
 uttered if it had not seemed too       
extravagant2 for  to be convinced that  
in no other ,state can there be         
happiness private or  public is indeed a
 hard thing4    ,sidenote3 ,what will   
the world say to this8    ,socrates1    
what do you mean8 ,i would have you     
consider that the word which  you have  
uttered is one at which numerous        
persons1 and very respectable  persons  
too1 in 99#dgd;,a99 a figure pulling off
 their coats all in a moment1  and      
seizing any weapon that comes to hand1  
will run at you might and main1  before 
you know where you are1 intending to do 
heaven knows what2 and if  you don't    
prepare an answer1 and put yourself in  
motion1 you will be  'pared by their    
fine wits1' and no mistake4    ,you got 
me into the scrape1 ,i said4    ,and ,i 
was quite right2 however1 ,i will do all
 ,i can to get you out of it2  but ,i   
can only give you good-will and good    

advice1 and1 perhaps1 ,i may be  able to
 fit answers to your questions better   
than another--that is all4  ,and now1   
having 99#dgd;,b99 such an auxiliary1   
you must do your best to show  the      
unbelievers that you are right4         
,sidenote3 ,but who is a philosopher8   
,i ought to try1 ,i said1 since you     
offer me such invaluable assistance4    
,and  ,i think that1 if there is to be a
 chance of our escaping1 we must explain
  to them whom we mean when we say that 
philosophers are to rule in the  ,state2
 then we shall be able to defend        
ourselves3 ,there will be discovered  to
 be some natures who ought to study     
philosophy and to be 99#dgd;,c99 leaders
  in the ,state2 and others who are not 
born to be philosophers1 and are  meant 
to be followers rather than leaders4    
,then now for a definition1 he said4    
,follow me1 ,i said1 and ,i hope that ,i
 may in some way or other be able to    
give you a satisfactory explanation4    
,proceed4    ,sidenote3 ,parallel of the

 lover4    ,i dare say that you         
remember1 and therefore ,i need not     
remind you1 that a  lover1 if he is     
worthy of the name1 ought to show his   
love1 not to some  one part of that     
which he loves1 but to the whole4 #agb  
99#dgd;,d99 ,i really do not understand1
 and therefore beg of you to assist my  
memory4    ,sidenote3 ,the lover of the 
fair loves them all2    ,another person1
 ,i said1 might fairly reply as you do2 
but a man of  pleasure like yourself    
ought to know that all who are in the   
flower of  youth do somehow or other    
raise a pang or emotion in a lover's    
breast1 and  are thought by him to be   
worthy of his affectionate regards4 ,is 
not this a  way which you have with the 
fair3 one has a snub nose1 and you      
praise his  charming face2 the hook-nose
 of another has1 you say1 a royal look2 
while  he who is neither snub nor hooked
 has 99#dgd;,e99 the grace of           
regularity3 the  dark visage is manly1  
the fair are children of the gods2 and  

as to the  sweet 'honey pale1' as they  
are called1 what is the very name but   
the  invention of a lover who talks in  
diminutives1 and is not averse to       
paleness if appearing on the cheek of   
youth8 ,in a word1 there is no          
99#dge;,a99  excuse which you will not  
make1 and nothing which you will not    
say1 in  order not to lose a single     
flower that blooms in the spring-time of
 youth4    ,if you make me an authority 
in matters of love1 for the sake of the 
argument1 ,i assent4    ,sidenote3 the  
lover of wines all wines2    ,and what  
do you say of lovers of wine8 ,do you   
not see them doing the same8  ,they are 
glad of any pretext of drinking any     
wine4    ,very good4    ,sidenote3 the  
lover of honour all honour2    ,and the 
same is true of ambitious men2 if they  
cannot command an army1  they are       
willing to command a file2 and          
99#dge;,b99 if they cannot be honoured  
by really great and important persons1  
they are glad to be honoured by  lesser 

and meaner people1--but honour of some  
kind they must have4    ,exactly4       
,once more let me ask3 ,does he who     
desires any class of goods1 desire the  
whole class or a part only8    ,the     
whole4    ,sidenote3 the philosopher1 or
 lover of wisdom1 all knowledge4    ,and
 may we not say of the philosopher that 
he is a lover1 not of a part of  wisdom 
only1 but of the whole8    ,yes1 of the 
whole4    ,and he who dislikes learning1
 especially in youth1 when 99#dge;,c99  
he has no  power of judging what is good
 and what is not1 such an one we        
maintain not  to be a philosopher or a  
lover of knowledge1 just as he who      
refuses his  food is not hungry1 #agc   
and may be said to have a bad appetite  
and not a  good one8    ,very true1 he  
said4    ,whereas he who has a taste for
 every sort of knowledge and who is     
curious  to learn and is never          
satisfied1 may be justly termed a       
philosopher8  ,am ,i not right8         
,sidenote3 ,under knowledge1 however1   

are not to be included sights and       
sounds1 or under the lovers of          
knowledge1 musical amateurs and the     
like4    99#dge;,d99 ,glaucon said3 ,if 
curiosity makes a philosopher1 you will 
find many  a strange being will have a  
title to the name4 ,all the lovers of   
sights  have a delight in learning1 and 
must therefore be included4 ,musical    
amateurs1 too1 are a folk strangely out 
of place among philosophers1 for  they  
are the last persons in the world who   
would come to anything like a           
philosophical discussion1 if they could 
help1 while they run about at the       
,dionysiac festivals as if they had let 
out their ears to hear every  chorus2   
whether the performance is in town or   
country--that makes no  difference--they
 are there4 ,now are we 99#dge;,e99 to  
maintain that all these  and any who    
have similar tastes1 as well as the     
professors of quite minor  arts1 are    
philosophers8    ,certainly not1 ,i     
replied2 they are only an imitation4    

,he said3 ,who then are the true        
philosophers8    ,those1 ,i said1 who   
are lovers of the vision of truth4      
,that is also good1 he said2 but ,i     
should like to know what you mean8      
,to another1 ,i replied1 ,i might have a
 difficulty in explaining2 but ,i am    
sure that you will admit a proposition  
which ,i am about to make4    ,what is  
the proposition8    ,that since beauty  
is the opposite of ugliness1 they are   
two8    ,certainly4    99#dgf;,a99 ,and 
inasmuch as they are two1 each of them  
is one8    ,true again4    ,and of just 
and unjust1 good and evil1 and of every 
other class1 the same  remark holds3    
taken singly1 each of them is one2 but  
from the various  combinations of them  
with actions and things and with one    
another1 they  are seen in all sorts of 
lights and appear many8    ,very true4  
,and this is the distinction which ,i   
draw between the sight- #agd loving1    
art-loving1 practical class and those of
 whom ,i am speaking1 99#dgf;,b99 and   

who are alone worthy of the name of     
philosophers4    ,how do you distinguish
 them8 he said4    ,the lovers of sounds
 and sights1 ,i replied1 are1 as ,i     
conceive1 fond of  fine tones and       
colours and forms and all the artificial
 products that are  made out of them1   
but their mind is incapable of seeing or
 loving absolute  beauty4    ,true1 he  
replied4    ,few are they who are able  
to attain to the sight of this4         
99#dgf;,c99 ,very true4    ,and he who1 
having a sense of beautiful things has  
no sense of absolute  beauty1 or who1 if
 another lead him to a knowledge of that
 beauty is  unable to follow--of such an
 one ,i ask1 ,is he awake or in a dream 
only8  ,reflect3 is not the dreamer1    
sleeping or waking1 one who likens      
dissimilar  things1 who puts the copy in
 the place of the real object8    ,i    
should certainly say that such an one   
was dreaming4    ,sidenote3 ,true       
knowledge is the ability to distinguish 
between the one  and many1 between the  

idea and the objects which partake of   
the idea4    ,but take the case of the  
other1 who recognises the existence     
99#dgf;,d99 of  absolute beauty and is  
able to distinguish the idea from the   
objects which  participate in the idea1 
neither putting the objects in the place
 of the  idea nor the idea in the place 
of the objects--is he a dreamer1 or is  
he  awake8    ,he is wide awake4    ,and
 may we not say that the mind of the one
 who knows has knowledge1 and  that the 
mind of the other1 who opines only1 has 
opinion8    ,certainly4    ,but suppose 
that the latter should quarrel with us  
and dispute our  statement1 can we      
administer any soothing 99#dgf;,e99     
cordial or advice to him1  without      
revealing to him that there is sad      
disorder in his wits8    ,we must       
certainly offer him some good advice1 he
 replied4    ,come1 then1 and let us    
think of something to say to him4 ,shall
 we begin by  assuring him that he is   
welcome to any knowledge which he may   

have1 and  that we are rejoiced at his  
having it8 ,but we should like to ask   
him a  question3 ,does he who has       
knowledge know something or nothing8    
7,you must  answer for him47    ,i      
answer that he knows something4 #age    
,something that is or is not8           
,something that is2 for how can that    
which is not ever be known8             
,sidenote3 ,there is an intermediate    
between being and not being1 and a      
corresponding intermediate between      
ignorance and knowledge4 ,this          
intermediate is a faculty termed        
opinion4    99#dgg;,a99 ,and are we     
assured1 after looking at the matter    
from many points of  view1 that absolute
 being is or may be absolutely known1   
but that the  utterly non-existent is   
utterly unknown8    ,nothing can be more
 certain4    ,good4 ,but if there be    
anything which is of such a nature as to
 be and not  to be1 that will have a    
place intermediate between pure being   
and the  absolute negation of being8    

,yes1 between them4    ,and1 as         
knowledge corresponded to being and     
ignorance of necessity to  not-being1   
for that intermediate between being and 
not-being there has to  be discovered a 
corresponding 99#dgg;,b99 intermediate  
between ignorance and  knowledge1 if    
there be such8    ,certainly4    ,do we 
admit the existence of opinion8         
,undoubtedly4    ,as being the same with
 knowledge1 or another faculty8         
,another faculty4    ,then opinion and  
knowledge have to do with different     
kinds of matter  corresponding to this  
difference of faculties8    ,yes4       
,and knowledge is relative to being and 
knows being4 ,but before ,i proceed     
further ,i will make a division4        
,what division8    99#dgg;,c99 ,i will  
begin by placing faculties in a class by
 themselves3 they  are powers in us1 and
 in all other things1 by which we do as 
we do4 ,sight  and hearing1 for example1
 ,i should call faculties4 ,have ,i     
clearly  explained the class which ,i   

mean8    ,yes1 ,i quite understand4     
,then let me tell you my view about     
them4 ,i do not see them1 and therefore 
the distinctions of figure1 colour1 and 
the like1 which enable me to  discern   
the differences of some things1 do not  
apply to them4 ,in speaking  of a       
faculty ,i think 99#dgg;,d99 only of its
 sphere and its result2 and that  which 
has the same sphere and the same result 
,i call the same faculty1 but  that     
which has another sphere and another    
result ,i call different4 ,would  that  
be your way of speaking8 #agf    ,yes4  
,and will you be so very good as to     
answer one more question8 ,would you say
  that knowledge is a faculty1 or in    
what class would you place it8          
,certainly knowledge is a faculty1 and  
the mightiest of all faculties4         
99#dgg;,e99 ,and is opinion also a      
faculty8    ,certainly1 he said2 for    
opinion is that with which we are able  
to form an  opinion4    ,and yet you    
were acknowledging a little while ago   

that knowledge is not  the same as      
opinion8    ,sidenote3 ,opinion differs 
from knowledge because the one errs and 
the  other is unerring4    ,why1 yes1 he
 said3 how can any reasonable being ever
 identify that which  is infallible with
 that which errs8    99#dgh;,a99 ,an    
excellent answer1 proving1 ,i said1 that
 we are quite conscious  of a           
distinction between them4    ,yes4      
,then knowledge and opinion having      
distinct powers have also distinct      
spheres or subject-matters8    ,that is 
certain4    ,being is the sphere or     
subject-matter of knowledge1 and        
knowledge is to  know the nature of     
being8    ,yes4    ,and opinion is to   
have an opinion8    ,yes4    ,and do we 
know what we opine8 or is the           
subject-matter of opinion the same  as  
the subject-matter of knowledge8        
,nay1 he replied1 that has been already 
disproven2 if difference in faculty     
implies difference in the sphere or     
99#dgh;,b99 subject-matter1 and if1 as  

we  were saying1 opinion and knowledge  
are distinct faculties1 then the sphere 
of knowledge and of opinion cannot be   
the same4    ,then if being is the      
subject-matter of knowledge1 something  
else must be  the subject-matter of     
opinion8    ,yes1 something else4       
,sidenote3 ,it also differs from        
ignorance1 which is concerned with      
nothing4    ,well then1 is not-being the
 subject-matter of opinion8 or1 rather1 
how can  there be an opinion at all     
about not-being8 ,reflect3 when a man   
has an  opinion1 has he not an opinion  
about something8 ,can he have an opinion
  which is an opinion about nothing8    
,impossible4 #agg    ,he who has an     
opinion has an opinion about some one   
thing8    ,yes4    ,and not-being is not
 one thing but1 properly speaking1      
99#dgh;,c99 nothing8    ,true4    ,of   
not-being1 ignorance was assumed to be  
the necessary correlative2 of  being1   
knowledge8    ,true1 he said4    ,then  
opinion is not concerned either with    

being or with not-being8    ,not with   
either4    ,and can therefore neither be
 ignorance nor knowledge8    ,that seems
 to be true4    ,sidenote3 ,its place is
 not to be sought without or beyond     
knowledge or  ignorance1 but between    
them4    ,but is opinion to be sought   
without and beyond either of them1 in a 
greater clearness than knowledge1 or in 
a greater darkness than ignorance8      
,in neither4    ,then ,i suppose that   
opinion appears to you to be darker than
 knowledge1  but lighter than ignorance8
    ,both2 and in no small degree4      
99#dgh;,d99 ,and also to be within and  
between them8    ,yes4    ,then you     
would infer that opinion is             
intermediate8    ,no question4    ,but  
were we not saying before1 that if      
anything appeared to be of a sort  which
 is and is not at the same time1 that   
sort of thing would appear also  to lie 
in the interval between pure being and  
absolute not-being2 and that  the       
corresponding faculty is neither        

knowledge nor ignorance1 but will be    
found in the interval between them8     
,true4    ,and in that interval there   
has now been discovered something which 
we call  opinion8    ,there has4        
99#dgh;,e99 ,then what remains to be    
discovered is the object which partakes 
equally of the nature of being and      
not-being1 and cannot rightly be termed 
either1 pure and simple2 this unknown   
term1 when discovered1 we may truly     
call the subject of opinion1 and assign 
each to their proper faculty1--  #agh   
the extremes to the faculties of the    
extremes and the mean to the  faculty of
 the mean4    ,true4    ,sidenote3 ,the 
absoluteness of the one and the         
relativeness of the many4    99#dgi;,a99
 ,this being premised1 ,i would ask the 
gentleman who is of opinion  that there 
is no absolute or unchangeable idea of  
beauty--in whose opinion  the beautiful 
is the manifold--he1 ,i say1 your lover 
of beautiful sights1  who cannot bear to
 be told that the beautiful is one1 and 

the just is one1  or that anything is   
one--to him ,i would appeal1 saying1    
,will you be so  very kind1 sir1 as to  
tell us whether1 of all these beautiful 
things1  there is one which will not be 
found ugly2 or of the just1 which will  
not  be found unjust2 or of the holy1   
which will not also be unholy8          
99#dgi;,b99 ,no1 he replied2 the        
beautiful will in some point of view be 
found  ugly2 and the same is true of the
 rest4    ,and may not the many which   
are doubles be also halves8--doubles1   
that is1  of one thing1 and halves of   
another8    ,quite true4    ,and things 
great and small1 heavy and light1 as    
they are termed1 will not  be denoted by
 these any more than by the opposite    
names8    ,true2 both these and the     
opposite names will always attach to all
 of them4    ,and can any one of those  
many things which are called by         
particular names  be said to be this    
rather than not to be this8    ,he      
replied3 ,they are like the punning     

riddles which are 99#dgi;,c99 asked at  
feasts or the children's puzzle about   
the eunuch aiming at the bat1 with  what
 he hit him1 as they say in the puzzle1 
and upon what the bat was  sitting4 ,the
 individual objects of which ,i am      
speaking are also a riddle1  and have a 
double sense3 nor can you fix them in   
your mind1 either as  being or          
not-being1 or both1 or neither4    ,then
 what will you do with them8 ,i said4   
,can they have a better place than      
between being and not-being8 ,for they  
are clearly not in greater darkness  or 
negation than not-being1 99#dgi;,d99 or 
more full of light and existence  than  
being4    ,that is quite true1 he said4 
,thus then we seem to have discovered   
that the many ideas which the  multitude
 entertain about the beautiful and about
 #agi all other things  are tossing     
about in some region which is half-way  
between pure being and  pure not-being8 
,we have4    ,yes2 and we had before    
agreed that anything of this kind which 

we might  find was to be described as   
matter of opinion1 and not as matter of 
knowledge2 being the intermediate flux  
which is caught and detained by the     
intermediate faculty4    ,quite true4   
,sidenote3 ,opinion is the knowledge1   
not of the absolute1 but of the  many4  
99#dgi;,e99 ,then those who see the many
 beautiful1 and who yet neither see     
absolute beauty1 nor can follow any     
guide who points the way thither2 who   
see the many just1 and not absolute     
justice1 and the like1--such persons    
may be said to have opinion but not     
knowledge8    ,that is certain4    ,but 
those who see the absolute and eternal  
and immutable may be said to  know1 and 
not to have opinion only8    ,neither   
can that be denied4    ,the one love and
 embrace the subjects of knowledge1 the 
other those of  opinion8 ,the latter are
 the same1 as ,i dare say 99#dhj;,a99   
you will remember1  who listened to     
sweet sounds and gazed upon fair        
colours1 but would not  tolerate the    

existence of absolute beauty4    ,yes1  
,i remember4    ,shall we then be guilty
 of any impropriety in calling them     
lovers of  opinion rather than lovers of
 wisdom1 and will they be very angry    
with us  for thus describing them8    ,i
 shall tell them not to be angry2 no man
 should be angry at what is true4       
,but those who love the truth in each   
thing are to be called lovers of  wisdom
 and not lovers of opinion4             
,assuredly4          ,,book ,,vi4       
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,vi4 ,socrates1   
,glaucon4    99#dhd;,a99 ,and thus1     
,glaucon1 after the argument has gone a 
weary way1 the  true and the false      
philosophers have at length appeared in 
view4    ,i do not think1 he said1 that 
the way could have been shortened4      
,sidenote3 ,if we had time1 we might    
have a nearer view of the true and      
false philosopher4    ,i suppose not1 ,i
 said2 and yet ,i believe that we might 
have had a better  view of both of them 
if the discussion could have been       

confined to this  one subject and if    
there were not many other questions     
awaiting us1 which  he who desires to   
see in what respect the life of the just
 differs from  99#dhd;,b99 that of the  
unjust must consider4    ,and what is   
the next question8 he asked4    ,surely1
 ,i said1 the one which follows next in 
order4 ,inasmuch as  philosophers only  
are able to grasp the eternal and       
unchangeable1 and  those who wander in  
the region of the many and variable are 
not  philosophers1 ,i must ask you which
 of the two classes should be the rulers
  of our ,state8    ,and how can we     
rightly answer that question8           
,sidenote3 ,which of them shall be our  
guardians8    ,whichever of the two are 
best able to guard the laws and         
99#dhd;,c99  institutions of our        
,state--let them be our guardians4      
,very good4    ,sidenote3 ,a question   
hardly to be asked4    ,neither1 ,i     
said1 can there be any question that the
 guardian who is to  keep anything      

should have eyes rather than no eyes8   
,there can be no question of that4      
,and are not those who are verily and   
indeed wanting in the knowledge of  the 
true being of each thing1 and who have  
in their souls no clear  pattern1 and   
are unable as with a painter's eye to   
look at the absolute  truth and to that 
original 99#dhd;,d99 to repair1 and     
having perfect vision of  the other     
world to order the laws about beauty1   
goodness1 justice in this1  if not #aha 
already ordered1 and to guard and       
preserve the order of  them--are not    
such persons1 ,i ask1 simply blind8     
,truly1 he replied1 they are much in    
that condition4    ,and shall they be   
our guardians when there are others who1
 besides being  their equals in         
experience and falling short of them in 
no particular of  virtue1 also know the 
very truth of each thing8    ,there can 
be no reason1 he said1 for rejecting    
those who have this  greatest of all    
great qualities2 they must always have  

the first place  unless they fail in    
some other respect4    99#dhe;,a99      
,suppose then1 ,i said1 that we         
determine how far they can unite this   
and the other excellences4    ,by all   
means4    ,sidenote3 ,the philosopher is
 a lover of truth and of all true being4
    ,in the first place1 as we began by 
observing1 the nature of the            
philosopher has to be ascertained4 ,we  
must come to an understanding about     
him1 and1 when we have done so1 then1 if
 ,i am not mistaken1 we shall also      
acknowledge that such an union of       
qualities is possible1 and that those in
  whom they are united1 and those only1 
should be rulers in the ,state4    ,what
 do you mean8    ,let us suppose that   
philosophical minds always love         
knowledge 99#dhe;,b99 of a  sort which  
shows them the eternal nature not       
varying from generation and  corruption4
    ,agreed4    ,and further1 ,i said1  
let us agree that they are lovers of all
 true being2  there is no part whether  

greater or less1 or more or less        
honourable1  which they are willing to  
renounce2 as we said before of the lover
 and the  man of ambition4    ,true4    
,and if they are to be what we were     
describing1 is there 99#dhe;,c99 not    
another  quality which they should also 
possess8    ,what quality8              
,truthfulness3 they will never          
intentionally receive into their mind   
falsehood1 which is their detestation1  
and they will love the truth4    ,yes1  
that may be safely affirmed of them4    
',may be1' my friend1 ,i replied1 is not
 the word2 say rather 'must be          
affirmed3' for he whose nature is       
amorous of anything cannot help loving  
all that belongs or is akin to the      
object of his affections4 #ahb          
,right1 he said4    ,and is there       
anything more akin to wisdom than truth8
    ,how can there be8    ,can the same 
nature be a lover of wisdom and a lover 
of 99#dhe;,d99 falsehood8    ,never4    
,the true lover of learning then must   

from his earliest youth1 as far as in   
him lies1 desire all truth8             
,assuredly4    ,but then again1 as we   
know by experience1 he whose desires are
 strong in  one direction will have them
 weaker in others2 they will be like a  
stream  which has been drawn off into   
another channel4    ,true4    ,sidenote3
 ,he will be absorbed in the pleasures  
of the soul1 and therefore  temperate   
and the reverse of covetous or mean4    
,he whose desires are drawn towards     
knowledge in every form will be         
absorbed in the pleasures of the soul1  
and will hardly feel bodily             
pleasure--,i mean1 if he be a true      
philosopher and not a sham one4         
99#dhe;,e99 ,that is most certain4      
,such an one is sure to be temperate and
 the reverse of covetous2 for the       
motives which make another man desirous 
of having and spending1 have no  place  
in his character4    ,very true4        
99#dhf;,a99 ,another criterion of the   
philosophical nature has also to be     

considered4    ,what is that8    ,there 
should be no secret corner of           
illiberality2 nothing can be more       
antagonistic than meanness to a soul    
which is ever longing after the whole   
of things both divine and human4        
,most true1 he replied4    ,sidenote3   
,in the magnificence of his             
contemplations he will not think  much  
of human life4    ,then how can he who  
has magnificence of mind and is the     
spectator of all  time and all          
existence1 think much of human life8    
,he cannot4    99#dhf;,b99 ,or can such 
an one account death fearful8    ,no    
indeed4    ,then the cowardly and mean  
nature has no part in true philosophy8  
#ahc    ,certainly not4    ,or again3   
can he who is harmoniously constituted1 
who is not covetous or  mean1 or a      
boaster1 or a coward--can he1 ,i say1   
ever be unjust or hard in  his dealings8
    ,impossible4    ,sidenote3 ,he will 
be of a gentle1 sociable1 harmonious    
nature2 a lover of  learning1 having a  

good memory and moving spontaneously in 
the world of  being4    ,then you will  
soon observe whether a man is just and  
gentle1 or rude and  unsociable2 these  
are the signs which distinguish even in 
youth the  philosophical nature from the
 unphilosophical4    ,true4             
99#dhf;,c99 ,there is another point     
which should be remarked4    ,what      
point8    ,whether he has or has not a  
pleasure in learning2 for no one will   
love  that which gives him pain1 and in 
which after much toil he makes little   
progress4    ,certainly not4    ,and    
again1 if he is forgetful and retains   
nothing of what he learns1 will  he not 
be an empty vessel8    ,that is certain4
    ,labouring in vain1 he must end in  
hating himself and his fruitless        
occupation8 ,yes4    99#dhf;,d99 ,then a
 soul which forgets cannot be ranked    
among genuine  philosophic natures2 we  
must insist that the philosopher should 
have a  good memory8    ,certainly4     
,and once more1 the inharmonious and    

unseemly nature can only tend to        
disproportion8    ,undoubtedly4    ,and 
do you consider truth to be akin to     
proportion or to disproportion8    ,to  
proportion4    ,then1 besides other     
qualities1 we must try to find a        
naturally  well-proportioned and        
gracious mind1 which will move          
spontaneously towards  the true being of
 everything4    ,certainly4             
99#dhf;,e99 ,well1 and do not all these 
qualities1 which we have been           
enumerating1 go together1 and are they  
not1 in a manner1 necessary to a  soul1 
which is to have a full and perfect     
participation of being8 #ahd            
99#dhg;,a99 ,they are absolutely        
necessary1 he replied4    ,sidenote3    
,conclusion3 ,what a blameless study    
then is philosophy6    ,and must not    
that be a blameless study which he only 
can pursue who has  the gift of a good  
memory1 and is quick to learn1--noble1  
gracious1 the  friend of truth1 justice1
 courage1 temperance1 who are his       

kindred8    ,the god of jealousy        
himself1 he said1 could find no fault   
with such a  study4    ,and to men like 
him1 ,i said1 when perfected by years   
and education1 and to  these only you   
will entrust the ,state4    ,sidenote3  
,socrates1 ,adeimantus4    ,sidenote3   
,nay1 says ,adeimantus1 you can prove   
anything1 but your hearers  are         
unconvinced all the same4    ,sidenote3 
,common opinion declares philosophers to
 be either rogues or  useless4          
99#dhg;,b99 ,here ,adeimantus interposed
 and said3 ,to these statements1        
,socrates1  no one can offer a reply2   
but when you talk in this way1 a strange
 feeling  passes over the minds of your 
hearers3 ,they fancy that they are led  
astray  a little at each step in the    
argument1 owing to their own want of    
skill in  asking and answering          
questions2 these littles accumulate1 and
 at the end  of the discussion they are 
found to have sustained a mighty        
overthrow and  all their former notions 

appear to be turned upside down4 ,and as
 unskilful  players of draughts are at  
last shut up by their more skilful      
adversaries  99#dhg;,c99 and have no    
piece to move1 so they too find         
themselves shut up at  last2 for they   
have nothing to say in this new game of 
which words are the  counters2 and yet  
all the time they are in the right4 ,the
 observation is  suggested to me by what
 is now occurring4 ,for any one of us   
might say1  that although in words he is
 not able to meet you at each step of   
the  argument1 he sees as a fact that   
the votaries of philosophy1 when they   
carry on the study1 not only in youth as
 a part of 99#dhg;,d99 education1 but   
as the pursuit of their maturer years1  
most of them become strange  monsters1  
not to say utter rogues1 and that those 
who may be considered  the best of them 
are made useless to the world by the    
very study which you  extol4    ,well1  
and do you think that those who say so  
are wrong8    ,i cannot tell1 he        

replied2 but ,i should like to know what
 is your opinion4    ,sidenote3         
,socrates1 instead of denying this      
statement1 admits the truth  of it4     
,hear my answer2 ,i am of opinion that  
they are quite right4    99#dhg;,e99    
,then how can you be justified in saying
 that cities will not cease  from evil  
until philosophers rule in them1 when   
philosophers are  acknowledged by us to 
be of no use to them8    ,you ask a     
question1 ,i said1 to which a reply can 
only be given in a  parable4 #ahe       
,yes1 ,socrates2 and that is a way of   
speaking to which you are not at all    
accustomed1 ,i suppose4    ,sidenote3 ,a
 parable4    ,sidenote3 ,the noble      
captain whose senses are rather dull    
7the people in  their better mind72 the 
mutinous crew 7the mob of politicians72 
and the  pilot 7the true philosopher74  
,i perceive1 ,i said1 that you are      
vastly amused at having plunged me into 
such a hopeless discussion2 but now hear
 99#dhh;,a99 the parable1 and then you  

will be still more amused at the        
meagreness of my imagination3 for the   
manner in which the best men are treated
 in their own ,states is so  grievous   
that no single thing on earth is        
comparable to it2 and therefore1  if ,i 
am to plead their cause1 ,i must have   
recourse to fiction1 and put  together a
 figure made up of many things1 like the
 fabulous unions of  goats and stags    
which are found in pictures4 ,imagine   
then a fleet or a  ship in which there  
is 99#dhh;,b99 a captain who is taller  
and stronger than  any of the crew1 but 
he is a little deaf and has a similar   
infirmity in  sight1 and his knowledge  
of navigation is not much better4 ,the  
sailors are  quarrelling with one       
another about the steering--every one is
 of opinion  that he has a right to     
steer1 though he has never learned the  
art of  navigation and cannot tell who  
taught him or when he learned1 and will 
further assert that it cannot be taught1
 and they are ready to cut in  pieces   

any 99#dhh;,c99 one who says the        
contrary4 ,they throng about the        
captain1 begging and praying him to     
commit the helm to them2 and if at any  
time they do not prevail1 but others are
 preferred to them1 they kill the       
others or throw them overboard1 and     
having first chained up the noble       
captain's senses with drink or some     
narcotic drug1 they mutiny and take     
possession of the ship and make free    
with the stores2 thus1 eating and       
drinking1 they proceed on their voyage  
in such manner as 99#dhh;,d99 might be  
expected of them4 ,him who is their     
partisan and cleverly aids them in      
their plot for getting the ship out of  
the captain's hands into their own      
whether by force or persuasion1 they    
compliment with the name of sailor1     
pilot1 able seaman1 and abuse the other 
sort of man1 whom they call a           
good-for-nothing2 but that the true     
pilot must pay attention to the year    
and seasons and sky and stars and winds1

 and whatever else belongs to his  art1 
if he intends to be really qualified for
 the command of a ship1 and  that he    
must and 99#dhh;,e99 will be the        
steerer1 whether other people like or   
not--the possibility of this union of   
authority with the steerer's art has    
never seriously entered into their      
thoughts or been made 99#dhi;,a99 part  
#ahf  of their calling#a4 ,now in       
vessels which are in a state of mutiny  
and by  sailors who are mutineers1 how  
will the true pilot be regarded8 ,will  
he  not be called by them a prater1 a   
star-gazer1 a good-for-nothing8         
,footnote #a3 ,or1 applying ,greek3     
o7_/ps de kubern_/sei to the  mutineers1
 ',but only understanding 7,greek3      
e7pai_/ontas7 that he 7the  mutinous    
pilot7 must rule in spite of other      
people1 never considering that  there is
 an art of command which may be         
practised in combination with the       
pilot's art4'    ,of course1 said       
,adeimantus4    ,sidenote3 ,the         

interpretation4    ,then you will hardly
 need1 ,i said1 to hear the             
interpretation of the  figure1 which    
describes the true philosopher in his   
relation to the ,state2  for you        
understand already4    ,certainly4      
,then suppose you now take this parable 
to the gentleman who is surprised  at   
finding that philosophers have no honour
 in their cities2 explain it to  him and
 try to convince him that 99#dhi;,b99   
their having honour would be far  more  
extraordinary4    ,i will4    ,sidenote3
 ,the uselessness of philosophers arises
 out of the unwillingness  of mankind to
 make use of them4    ,say to him1 that1
 in deeming the best votaries of        
philosophy to be useless  to the rest of
 the world1 he is right2 but also tell  
him to attribute  their uselessness to  
the fault of those who will not use     
them1 and not to  themselves4 ,the pilot
 should not humbly beg the sailors to be
 commanded by  him--that is not the     
order of nature2 neither are 'the wise  

to go to the  doors of the rich'--the   
ingenious author of this saying told a  
lie--but  the truth is1 that1 when a man
 is ill1 99#dhi;,c99 whether he be rich 
or poor1  to the physician he must go1  
and he who wants to be governed1 to him 
who  is able to govern4 ,the ruler who  
is good for anything ought not to beg   
his  subjects to be ruled by him2       
although the present governors of       
mankind are  of a different stamp2 they 
may be justly compared to the mutinous  
sailors1  and the true helmsmen to those
 who are called by them                 
good-for-nothings  and star-gazers4     
,precisely so1 he said4    ,sidenote3   
,the real enemies of philosophy her     
professing followers4    ,for these     
reasons1 and among men like these1      
philosophy1 the noblest  pursuit of all1
 is not likely to be much esteemed      
99#dhi;,d99 by those of the  opposite   
faction2 not that the greatest and most 
lasting injury is done to  her by her   
opponents1 but by her own professing    

followers1 the same of  whom you #ahg   
suppose the accuser to say1 that the    
greater number of them  are arrant      
rogues1 and the best are useless2 in    
which opinion ,i agreed4    ,yes4       
,and the reason why the good are useless
 has now been explained8    ,true4      
,sidenote3 ,the corruption of philosophy
 due to many causes4    ,then shall we  
proceed to show that the corruption of  
the majority is also  unavoidable1 and  
that this is not to be laid to          
99#dhi;,e99 the charge of  philosophy   
any more than the other8    ,by all     
means4    ,and let us ask and answer in 
turn1 first going back to the           
99#dij;,a99  description of the gentle  
and noble nature4 ,truth1 as you will   
remember1  was his leader1 whom he      
followed always and in all things2      
failing in  this1 he was an impostor1   
and had no part or lot in true          
philosophy4    ,yes1 that was said4     
,well1 and is not this one quality1 to  
mention no others1 greatly at  variance 

with present notions of him8            
,certainly1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,but 
before considering this1 let us         
re-enumerate the qualities  of the      
philosopher3    ,and have we not a right
 to say in his defence1 that the true   
lover of  knowledge is always striving  
after being--that is his nature2 he will
 not  rest in the multiplicity of       
individuals 99#dij;,b99 which is an     
appearance  only1 but will go on--the   
keen edge will not be blunted1 nor the  
force of  his desire abate until he have
 attained the knowledge of the true     
nature  of every essence by a           
sympathetic and kindred power in the    
soul1 and by  that power drawing near   
and mingling and becoming incorporate   
with very  being1 having begotten mind  
and truth1 he will have knowledge and   
will  live and grow truly1 and then1 and
 not till then1 will he cease from his  
travail4    ,nothing1 he said1 can be   
more just than such a description of    
him4    ,sidenote3 his love of essence1 

of truth1 of justice1 besides his other 
virtues and natural gifts4    ,and will 
the love of a lie be any part of a      
philosopher's nature8 ,will he  not     
utterly hate a lie8    99#dij;,c99 ,he  
will4    ,and when truth is the captain1
 we cannot suspect any evil of the band 
which he leads8    ,impossible4 #ahh    
,justice and health of mind will be of  
the company1 and temperance will  follow
 after8    ,true1 he replied4           
,neither is there any reason why ,i     
should again set in array the           
philosopher's virtues1 as you will      
doubtless remember that courage1        
magnificence1 apprehension1 memory1 were
 his natural gifts4 ,and you  objected  
that1 although no one could 99#dij;,d99 
deny what ,i then said1 still1  if you  
leave words and look at facts1 the      
persons who are thus described  are some
 of them manifestly useless1 and the    
greater number utterly  depraved2 we    
were then led to enquire into the       
grounds of these  accusations1 and have 

now arrived at the point of asking why  
are the  majority bad1 which question of
 necessity brought us back to the       
examination and definition of the true  
philosopher4    99#dij;,e99 ,exactly4   
,sidenote3 ,the reasons why             
philosophical natures so easily         
deteriorate4    ,and we have next to    
consider the corruptions of the         
philosophic nature1  why so many are    
spoiled and so few escape spoiling--,i  
am speaking of those  who were said to  
be 99#dia;,a99 useless but not          
wicked--and1 when we have done  with    
them1 we will speak of the imitators of 
philosophy1 what manner of  men are they
 who aspire after a profession which is 
above them and of  which they are       
unworthy1 and then1 by their manifold   
inconsistencies1  bring upon philosophy1
 and upon all philosophers1 that        
universal  reprobation of which we      
speak4    ,what are these corruptions8  
he said4    ,sidenote3 7#a7 ,there are  
but a few of them2    ,i will see if ,i 

can explain them to you4 ,every one will
 admit that a  nature having in         
perfection all the qualities 99#dia;,b99
 which we required in  a philosopher1 is
 a rare plant which is seldom seen among
 men4    ,rare indeed4    ,and what     
numberless and powerful causes tend to  
destroy these rare  natures6    ,what   
causes8    ,sidenote3 7#b7 and they may 
be distracted from philosophy by their  
own  virtues2    ,in the first place    
there are their own virtues1 their      
courage1 temperance1  and the rest of   
them1 every one of which praiseworthy   
qualities 7and this  is a most singular 
circumstance7 destroys and distracts    
from philosophy  the soul which is the  
possessor of them4    ,that is very     
singular1 he replied4 #ahi    ,sidenote3
 and also1 7#c71 by the ordinary goods  
of life4    99#dia;,c99 ,then there are 
all the ordinary goods of life--beauty1 
wealth1  strength1 rank1 and great      
connections in the ,state--you          
understand the  sort of things--these   

also have a corrupting and distracting  
effect4    ,i understand2 but ,i should 
like to know more precisely what you    
mean about  them4    ,grasp the truth as
 a whole1 ,i said1 and in the right way2
 you will then  have no difficulty in   
apprehending the preceding remarks1 and 
they will no  longer appear strange to  
you4    ,and how am ,i to do so8 he     
asked4    99#dia;,d99 ,why1 ,i said1 we 
know that all germs or seeds1 whether   
vegetable or  animal1 when they fail to 
meet with proper nutriment or climate or
 soil1  in proportion to their vigour1  
are all the more sensitive to the want  
of a  suitable environment1 for evil is 
a greater enemy to what is good than to 
what is not4    ,very true4             
,sidenote3 7#d7 ,the finer natures more 
liable to injury than the inferior4     
,there is reason in supposing that the  
finest natures1 when under alien        
conditions1 receive more injury than the
 inferior1 because the contrast is      
greater4    ,certainly4    99#dia;,e99  

,and may we not say1 ,adeimantus1 that  
the most gifted minds1 when  they are   
ill-educated1 become pre-eminently bad8 
,do not great crimes and  the spirit of 
pure evil spring out of a fulness of    
nature ruined by  education rather than 
from any inferiority1 whereas weak      
natures are  scarcely capable of any    
very great good or very great evil8     
,there ,i think that you are right4     
,sidenote3 7#e7 ,they are not corrupted 
by private sophists1 but compelled  by  
the opinion of the world meeting in the 
assembly or in some other place  of     
resort4    99#dib;,a99 ,and our         
philosopher follows the same analogy--he
 is like a plant  which1 having proper  
nurture1 must necessarily grow and      
mature into all  virtue1 but1 if sown   
and planted in an alien soil1 becomes   
the most  noxious of all weeds1 unless  
he be preserved by some divine power4   
,do you  really think1 as people so     
often say1 that our youth are corrupted 
by  ,sophists1 or that private teachers 

of the art corrupt them in any degree   
worth speaking of8 ,are not the public  
who say these things 99#dib;,b99 the    
greatest of all ,sophists8 ,and do they 
not educate to perfection young and     
old1 men and women alike1 and fashion   
them after their own hearts8    ,when is
 this accomplished8 he said4 #aij       
,when they meet together1 and the world 
sits down at an assembly1 or in a  court
 of law1 or a theatre1 or a camp1 or in 
any other popular resort1 and  there is 
a great uproar1 and they praise some    
things which are being said  or done1   
and blame other things1 equally         
exaggerating both1 shouting and         
99#dib;,c99 clapping their hands1 and   
the echo of the rocks and the place in  
which they are assembled redoubles the  
sound of the praise or blame--at  such a
 time will not a young man's heart1 as  
they say1 leap within him8  ,will any   
private training enable him to stand    
firm against the  overwhelming flood of 
popular opinion8 or will he be carried  

away by the  stream8 ,will he not have  
the notions of good and evil which the  
public in  general have--he will do as  
they do1 and as they are1 such will he  
be8    99#dib;,d99 ,yes1 ,socrates2     
necessity will compel him4    ,sidenote3
 7#f7 ,the other compulsion of violence 
and death4    ,and yet1 ,i said1 there  
is a still greater necessity1 which has 
not been  mentioned4    ,what is that8  
,the gentle force of attainder or       
confiscation or death1 which1 as you are
  aware1 these new ,sophists and        
educators1 who are the public1 apply    
when  their words are powerless4        
,indeed they do2 and in right good      
earnest4    ,now what opinion of any    
other ,sophist1 or of any private       
person1 can be  expected to overcome in 
such an unequal contest8    99#dib;,e99 
,none1 he replied4    ,sidenote3 ,they  
must be saved1 if at all1 by the power  
of ,god4    ,no1 indeed1 ,i said1 even  
to make the attempt is a great piece of 
folly2  there neither is1 nor has been1 

nor is ever likely to be1 any different 
type of character which has had no other
 training in virtue but that which  is  
supplied by public opinion#b--;,i speak1
 my friend1 of human virtue  only2 what 
is more than human1 as the proverb says1
 is not included3  for ,i would not have
 you ignorant that1 in the present evil 
state of  governments1 whatever is saved
 and comes to good is 99#dic;,a99 saved 
by the  power of ,god1 as we may truly  
say4    ,footnote #b3 ,or1 taking       
,greek3 para in another sense1 'trained 
to  virtue on their principles4'    ,i  
quite assent1 he replied4    ,then let  
me crave your assent also to a further  
observation4    ,what are you going to  
say8    ,sidenote3 ,the great brute2 his
 behaviour and temper 7the people looked
 at  from their worse side74    ,why1   
that all those mercenary individuals1   
whom the many #aia call  ,sophists and  
whom they deem to be their adversaries1 
do1 in fact1 teach  nothing but the     
opinion of the many1 that is to say1 the

 opinions of their  assemblies2 and this
 is their wisdom4 ,i might compare them 
to a man who  should study the tempers  
and desires of a mighty strong beast who
 is fed  99#dic;,b99 by him--he would   
learn how to approach and handle him1   
also at what  times and from what causes
 he is dangerous or the reverse1 and    
what is the  meaning of his several     
cries1 and by what sounds1 when another 
utters  them1 he is soothed or          
infuriated2 and you may suppose further1
 that when1  by continually attending   
upon him1 he has become perfect in all  
this1 he  calls his knowledge wisdom1   
and makes of it a system or art1 which  
he  proceeds to teach1 although he has  
no real notion of what he means by the  
principles or passions of which he is   
speaking1 but calls this honourable  and
 that dishonourable1 or good or evil1 or
 just or unjust1 all in  accordance     
99#dic;,c99 with the tastes and tempers 
of the great brute4 ,good he  pronounces
 to be that in which the beast delights 

and evil to be that  which he dislikes2 
and he can give no other account of them
 except that  the just and noble are the
 necessary1 having never himself seen1  
and  having no power of explaining to   
others the nature of either1 or the     
difference between them1 which is       
immense4 ,by heaven1 would not such an  
one be a rare educator8    ,indeed he   
would4    ,sidenote3 ,he who associates 
with the people will conform to their   
tastes  and will produce only what      
pleases them4    ,and in what way does  
he who thinks that wisdom is 99#dic;,d99
 the discernment  of the tempers and    
tastes of the motley multitude1 whether 
in painting or  music1 or1 finally1 in  
politics1 differ from him whom ,i have  
been  describing8 ,for when a man       
consorts with the many1 and exhibits to 
them  his poem or other work of art or  
the service which he has done the       
,state1  making them his judges#c when  
he is not obliged1 the so-called        
necessity  of ,diomede will oblige him  

to produce whatever they praise4 ,and   
yet the  reasons are utterly ludicrous  
which they give in confirmation of their
 own  notions about the honourable and  
good4 ,did you ever hear any of them    
which  were not8    ,footnote #c3       
,putting a comma after ,greek3 tn       
a7nangkai_/n4    99#dic;,e99 ,no1 nor am
 ,i likely to hear4    ,you recognise   
the truth of what ,i have been saying8  
,then #aib let me ask  you to consider  
further whether the world will ever be  
induced to believe  in the existence of 
absolute 99#did;,a99 beauty rather than 
of the many  beautiful1 or of the       
absolute in each kind rather than of the
 many in each  kind8    ,certainly not4 
,then the world cannot possibly be a    
philosopher8    ,impossible4    ,and    
therefore philosophers must inevitably  
fall under the censure of the  world8   
,they must4    ,and of individuals who  
consort with the mob and seek to please 
them8    ,that is evident4    ,then1 do 
you see any way in which the philosopher

 can 99#did;,b99 be preserved  in his   
calling to the end8 and remember what we
 were saying of him1 that  he was to    
have quickness and memory and courage   
and magnificence--these  were admitted  
by us to be the true philosopher's      
gifts4    ,yes4    ,sidenote3 ,the youth
 who has great bodily and mental gifts  
will be  flattered from his childhood1  
,will not such an one from his early    
childhood be in all things first among  
all1 especially if his bodily endowments
 are like his mental ones8              
,certainly1 he said4    ,and his friends
 and fellow-citizens will want to use   
him as he gets older  for their own     
purposes8    ,no question4              
99#did;,c99 ,falling at his feet1 they  
will make requests to him and do him    
honour and flatter him1 because they    
want to get into their hands now1 the   
power which he will one day possess4    
,that often happens1 he said4    ,and   
what will a man such as he is be likely 
to do under such  circumstances1        

especially if he be a citizen of a great
 city1 rich and  noble1 and a tall      
proper youth8 ,will he not be full of   
boundless  aspirations1 and fancy       
himself able to manage the affairs of   
,hellenes and  of barbarians1 and having
 got such 99#did;,d99 notions into his  
head will he  not dilate and elevate    
himself in the fulness of vain pomp and 
senseless  pride8    ,to be sure he     
will4    ,sidenote3 and being incapable 
of having reason1 will be easily drawn  
away  from philosophy4    ,now1 when he 
is in this state of mind1 if some one   
gently comes to him and  tells him that 
he is a fool and must get #aic          
understanding1 which can  only be got by
 slaving for it1 do you think that1     
under such adverse  circumstances1 he   
will be easily induced to listen8       
,far otherwise4    ,and even if there be
 some one who through inherent          
99#did;,e99 goodness or  natural        
reasonableness has had his eyes opened a
 little and is humbled and  taken       

captive by philosophy1 how will his     
friends behave when they think  that    
they are likely to lose the advantage   
which they were hoping to reap  from his
 companionship8 ,will they not do and   
say anything to prevent him  from       
yielding to his better nature and to    
render his teacher powerless1  using to 
this end private intrigues as well as   
public prosecutions8    99#die;,a99     
,there can be no doubt of it4    ,and   
how can one who is thus circumstanced   
ever become a philosopher8              
,impossible4    ,sidenote3 ,the very    
qualities which make a man a philosopher
 may also  divert him from philosophy4  
,then were we not right in saying that  
even the very qualities which make a    
man a philosopher may1 if he be         
ill-educated1 divert him from           
philosophy1  no less than riches and    
their accompaniments and the other      
so-called goods  of life8    ,we were   
quite right4    ,sidenote3 ,great       
natures alone are capable1 either of    

great good1 or great  evil4    ,thus1 my
 excellent friend1 is brought about all 
that ruin and 99#die;,b99  failure which
 ,i have been describing of the natures 
best adapted to the  best of all        
pursuits2 they are natures which we     
maintain to be rare at any  time2 this  
being the class out of which come the   
men who are the authors  of the greatest
 evil to ,states and individuals2 and   
also of the greatest  good when the tide
 carries them in that direction2 but a  
small man never  was the doer of any    
great thing either to individuals or to 
,states4    ,that is most true1 he said4
    ,and so philosophy is left desolate1
 with her marriage rite 99#die;,c99     
incomplete3 for her own have fallen away
 and forsaken her1 and while they  are  
leading a false and unbecoming life1    
other unworthy persons1 seeing  that she
 has no kinsmen to be her protectors1   
enter in and dishonour her2  and fasten 
upon her the reproaches which1 as you   
say1 her reprovers utter1  who affirm of

 her votaries that some are good for    
nothing1 and that the  greater number   
deserve the severest punishment4 #aid   
,that is certainly what people say4     
,sidenote3 ,the attractiveness of       
philosophy to the vulgar4    ,yes2 and  
what else would you expect1 ,i said1    
when you think of the puny  creatures   
who1 seeing this land open to           
99#die;,d99 them--a land well stocked   
with fair names and showy titles--like  
prisoners running out of prison  into a 
sanctuary1 take a leap out of their     
trades into philosophy2 those  who do so
 being probably the cleverest hands at  
their own miserable  crafts8 ,for1      
although philosophy be in this evil     
case1 still there remains  a dignity    
about her which is not to be found in   
the arts4 ,and many are  thus attracted 
by her whose 99#die;,e99 natures are    
imperfect and whose souls  are maimed   
and disfigured by their meannesses1 as  
their bodies are by  their trades and   
crafts4 ,is not this unavoidable8       

,yes4    ,are they not exactly like a   
bald little tinker who has just got out 
of  durance and come into a fortune2 he 
takes a bath and puts on a new coat1    
and is decked out as a bridegroom going 
to marry his master's daughter1  who is 
left poor and desolate8    99#dif;,a99  
,a most exact parallel4    ,what will be
 the issue of such marriages8 ,will they
 not be vile and  bastard8    ,there can
 be no question of it4    ,sidenote3    
,the msalliance of philosophy4    ,and  
when persons who are unworthy of        
education approach philosophy and  make 
an alliance with her who is in a rank   
above them what sort of ideas  and      
opinions are likely to be generated8    
#d,will they not be sophisms            
captivating to the ear1 having nothing  
in them genuine1 or worthy of or  akin  
to true wisdom8    ,footnote #d3 ,or1   
'will they not deserve to be called     
sophisms1' 4444    ,no doubt1 he said4  
,sidenote3 ,few are the worthy          
disciples3    ,sidenote3 and these are  

unable to resist the madness of the     
world2    ,sidenote3 they therefore in  
order to escape the storm take shelter  
behind  a wall and live their own life4 
,then1 ,adeimantus1 ,i said1 the worthy 
disciples of philosophy 99#dif;,b99 will
  be but a small remnant3 perchance some
 noble and well-educated person1        
detained by exile in her service1 who in
 the absence of corrupting  influences  
remains devoted to her2 or some lofty   
soul born in a mean city1  the politics 
of which he contemns and neglects2 and  
there may be a gifted  few who leave the
 arts1 which they justly despise1 and   
come to her2--or  peradventure there are
 some who are restrained 99#dif;,c99 by 
our friend  ,theages' bridle2 for       
everything in the life of ,theages #aie 
conspired to  divert him from           
philosophy2 but ill-health kept him away
 from politics4 ,my  own case of the    
internal sign is hardly worth           
mentioning1 for rarely1 if  ever1 has   
such a monitor been given to any other  

man4 ,those who belong to  this small   
class have tasted how sweet and blessed 
a possession philosophy  is1 and have   
also seen enough of the madness of the  
multitude2 and they  know 99#dif;,d99   
that no politician is honest1 nor is    
there any champion of  justice at whose 
side they may fight and be saved4 ,such 
an one may be  compared to a man who has
 fallen among wild beasts--he will not  
join in  the wickedness of his fellows1 
but neither is he able singly to resist 
all  their fierce natures1 and therefore
 seeing that he would be of no use to   
the ,state or to his friends1 and       
reflecting that he would have to throw  
away his life without doing any good    
either to himself or others1 he holds   
his peace1 and goes his own way4 ,he is 
like one who1 in the storm of dust  and 
sleet which the driving wind hurries    
along1 retires under the shelter  of a  
wall2 and seeing the rest of mankind    
full of wickedness1 he is  content1     
99#dif;,e99 if only he can live his own 

life and be pure from evil or           
unrighteousness1 and depart in peace and
 good-will1 with bright hopes4    ,yes1 
he said1 and he will have done a great  
work before he departs4    ,a great     
work--yes2 but not the greatest1 unless 
he find 99#dig;,a99 a ,state  suitable  
to him2 for in a ,state which is        
suitable to him1 he will have a  larger 
growth and be the saviour of his        
country1 as well as of himself4    ,the 
causes why philosophy is in such an evil
 name have now been  sufficiently       
explained3 the injustice of the charges 
against her has been  shown--is there   
anything more which you wish to say8    
,nothing more on that subject1 he       
replied2 but ,i should like to know     
which  of the governments now existing  
is in your opinion the one adapted to   
her4    ,sidenote3 ,no existing ,state  
suited to philosophy4    99#dig;,b99    
,not any of them1 ,i said2 and that is  
precisely the accusation which  ,i bring
 against them--not one of them is worthy

 of the philosophic nature1  and hence  
that nature is warped and estranged2--as
 the exotic seed which  is sown in a    
foreign land becomes denaturalized1 and 
is wont to be  overpowered and to lose  
itself in the new soil1 even so this    
growth #aif  of philosophy1 instead of  
persisting1 degenerates and receives    
another  character4 ,but if philosophy  
ever finds in the ,state 99#dig;,c99    
that  perfection which she herself is1  
then will be seen that she is in truth  
divine1 and that all other things1      
whether natures of men or institutions1 
are but human2--and now1 ,i know1 that  
you are going to ask1 ,what that  ,state
 is3    ,no1 he said2 there you are     
wrong1 for ,i was going to ask another  
question--whether it is the ,state of   
which we are the founders and           
inventors1 or some other8    ,sidenote3 
,even our own ,state requires the       
addition of the living  authority4      
,yes1 ,i replied1 ours in most respects2
 but you may remember my saying  before1

 that some living authority would always
 be required in the ,state  having the  
same idea of 99#dig;,d99 the            
constitution which guided you when as   
legislator you were laying down the     
laws4    ,that was said1 he replied4    
,yes1 but not in a satisfactory manner2 
you frightened us by interposing        
objections1 which certainly showed that 
the discussion would be long and        
difficult2 and what still remains is the
 reverse of easy4    ,what is there     
remaining8    ,the question how the     
study of philosophy may be so ordered as
 not to be  the ruin of the ,state3 ,all
 great attempts are attended with risk2 
'hard is  the good1' as men say4        
99#dig;,e99 ,still1 he said1 let the    
point be cleared up1 and the enquiry    
will  then be complete4    ,i shall not 
be hindered1 ,i said1 by any want of    
will1 but1 if at all1 by a  want of     
power3 my zeal you may see for          
yourselves2 and please to remark in     
what ,i am about to say how boldly and  

unhesitatingly ,i declare that ,states  
should pursue philosophy1 not as they do
 now1 but in a different spirit4    ,in 
what manner8    ,sidenote3 ,the         
superficial study of philosophy which   
exists in the present  day4             
99#dih;,a99 ,at present1 ,i said1 the   
students of philosophy are quite young2 
beginning when they are hardly past     
childhood1 they devote only the time    
saved from moneymaking and housekeeping 
to such pursuits2 and even those  of    
them who are reputed to have most of the
 philosophic spirit1 when they  come    
within sight of the great difficulty of 
the subject1 ,i mean  dialectic1 take   
themselves off4 ,in after life when     
invited by some one  else1 they may1    
perhaps1 go and hear a lecture1 and     
about this they make  much ado1 for     
philosophy is not considered #aig by    
them to be their  proper business3 at   
last1 when they grow old1 in most cases 
they are  extinguished more 99#dih;,b99 
truly than ,heracleitus' sun1 inasmuch  

as they  never light up again#e4        
,footnote #e3 ,heraclitus said that the 
sun was extinguished every evening  and 
relighted every morning4    ,but what   
ought to be their course8    ,just the  
opposite4 ,in childhood and youth their 
study1 and what philosophy  they learn1 
should be suited to their tender years3 
during this period  while they are      
growing up towards manhood1 the chief   
and special care  should be given to    
their bodies that they may have them to 
use in the  service of philosophy2 as   
life advances and the intellect begins  
to  mature1 let them increase the       
gymnastics of the soul2 but when the    
strength of our citizens fails and is   
past civil and 99#dih;,c99 military     
duties1 then let them range at will and 
engage in no serious labour1 as we      
intend them to live happily here1 and to
 crown this life with a similar         
happiness in another4    ,sidenote3     
,thrasymachus once more4    ,how truly  
in earnest you are1 ,socrates6 he said2 

,i am sure of that2 and  yet most of    
your hearers1 if ,i am not mistaken1 are
 likely to be still  more earnest in    
their opposition to you1 and will never 
be convinced2  ,thrasymachus least of   
all4    ,do not make a quarrel1 ,i said1
 between ,thrasymachus and 99#dih;,d99  
me1 who  have recently become friends1  
although1 indeed1 we were never enemies2
 for  ,i shall go on striving to the    
utmost until ,i either convert him and  
other  men1 or do something which may   
profit them against the day when they   
live  again1 and hold the like discourse
 in another state of existence4    ,you 
are speaking of a time which is not very
 near4    ,sidenote3 ,the people hate   
philosophy because they have only known 
bad and  conventional imitations of it4 
,rather1 ,i replied1 of a time which is 
as nothing in comparison with  eternity4
 ,nevertheless1 ,i do not wonder that   
the many refuse to believe2  for they   
have never seen that of which we are now
 speaking realized2 they  have seen only

 99#dih;,e99 a conventional imitation of
 philosophy1 consisting  of words       
artificially brought together1 not like 
these of ours having a  natural unity4  
,but a human being who in word and work 
is perfectly  moulded1 as far as he can 
be1 into the proportion and likeness of 
virtue--such a man ruling in a city     
which 99#dii;,a99 bears the same image1 
they have never yet seen1 neither one   
nor many of them--do you think that     
they ever did8 #aih    ,no indeed4      
,no1 my friend1 and they have seldom1 if
 ever1 heard free and noble  sentiments2
 such as men utter when they are        
earnestly and by every means  in their  
power seeking after truth for the sake  
of knowledge1 while they  look coldly on
 the subtleties of controversy1 of which
 the end is opinion  and strife1 whether
 they meet with them in the courts of   
law or in  society4    ,they are        
strangers1 he said1 to the words of     
which you speak4    ,and this was what  
we foresaw1 and this was the reason     

99#dii;,b99 why truth  forced us to     
admit1 not without fear and hesitation1 
that neither cities  nor ,states nor    
individuals will ever attain perfection 
until the small  class of philosophers  
whom we termed useless but not corrupt  
are  providentially compelled1 whether  
they will or not1 to take care of the   
,state1 and until a like necessity be   
laid on the ,state to obey them#f2 or   
until kings1 or if not kings1 the sons  
of kings or princes1 are divinely       
99#dii;,c99 inspired with a true love of
 true philosophy4 ,that either or both  
of these alternatives are impossible1 ,i
 see no reason to affirm3 if they  were 
so1 we might indeed be justly ridiculed 
as dreamers and visionaries4  ,am ,i not
 right8    ,footnote #f3 ,reading       
,greek3 katko_/ or ,greek3 katko_/ois4  
,quite right4    ,sidenote3 ,somewhere1 
at some time1 there may have been or may
 be a  philosopher who is also the ruler
 of a ,state4    ,if then1 in the       
countless ages of the past1 or at the   

present hour in some  foreign clime     
which is far away and beyond 99#dii;,d99
 our ken1 the perfected  philosopher is 
or has been or hereafter shall be       
compelled by a superior  power to have  
the charge of the ,state1 we are ready  
to assert to the  death1 that this our  
constitution has been1 and is--yea1 and 
will be  whenever the ,muse of          
,philosophy is queen4 ,there is no      
impossibility in all  this2 that there  
is a difficulty1 we acknowledge         
ourselves4    ,my opinion agrees with   
yours1 he said4    ,but do you mean to  
say that this is not the opinion of the 
multitude8    ,i should imagine not1 he 
replied4    ,o my friend1 ,i said1 do   
not attack the multitude3 they will     
99#dii;,e99 change  their minds1 if1 not
 in an aggressive spirit1 but gently    
#aii and with  the view of soothing them
 and removing their dislike of          
over-education1  you show them your     
philosophers as they really are and     
describe as you  were just now doing    

99#ejj;,a99 their character and         
profession1 and then  mankind will see  
that he of whom you are speaking is not 
such as they  supposed--if they view him
 in this new light1 they will surely    
change  their notion of him1 and answer 
in another strain#g4 ,who can be at     
enmity  with one who loves them1 who    
that is himself gentle and free from    
envy  will be jealous of one in whom    
there is no jealousy8 ,nay1 let me      
answer  for you1 that in a few this     
harsh temper may be found but not in the
  majority of mankind4    ,footnote #g3 
,reading ,greek3 7 kai e7an ou7_/t      
thentai without a  question1 and ,greek3
 a7lloi_/an toi3 or1 retaining the      
question and  taking ,greek3 a7lloi_/an 
do_/xan in a new sense3 ',do you mean to
 say  really that1 viewing him in this  
light1 they will be of another mind from
  yours1 and answer in another strain8' 
,i quite agree with you1 he said4       
,sidenote3 ,the feeling against         
philosophy is really a feeling against  

pretended philosophers who are always   
talking about persons4    99#ejj;,b99   
,and do you not also think1 as ,i do1   
that the harsh feeling which  the many  
entertain towards philosophy originates 
in the pretenders1 who  rush in         
uninvited1 and are always abusing them1 
and finding fault with  them1 who make  
persons instead of things the theme of  
their conversation8  and nothing can be 
more unbecoming in philosophers than    
this4    ,it is most unbecoming4        
,sidenote3 ,the true philosopher1 who   
has his eye fixed upon immutable        
principles1 will fashion ,states after  
the heavenly image4    ,for he1         
,adeimantus1 whose mind is fixed upon   
true being1 has surely no  time to look 
down upon the affairs of earth1 or      
99#ejj;,c99 to be filled with  malice   
and envy1 contending against men2 his   
eye is ever directed towards  things    
fixed and immutable1 which he sees      
neither injuring nor injured by  one    
another1 but all in order moving        

according to reason2 these he  imitates1
 and to these he will1 as far as he can1
 conform himself4 ,can a  man help      
imitating that with which he holds      
reverential converse8    ,impossible4   
,and the philosopher holding converse   
with the divine order1 becomes  orderly 
and divine1 as far as the nature of     
99#ejj;,d99 man allows2 but like  every 
one else1 he will suffer from           
detraction4    ,of course4 #bjj    ,and 
if a necessity be laid upon him of      
fashioning1 not only himself1 but  human
 nature generally1 whether in ,states or
 individuals1 into that which  he       
beholds elsewhere1 will he1 think you1  
be an unskilful artificer of  justice1  
temperance1 and every civil virtue8     
,anything but unskilful4    ,and if the 
world perceives that what we are saying 
about 99#ejj;,e99 him is the  truth1    
will they be angry with philosophy8     
,will they disbelieve us1 when  we tell 
them that no ,state can be happy which  
is not designed by artists  who imitate 

the heavenly pattern8    ,they will not 
be angry if they understand1 he said4   
,but 99#eja;,a99 how will  they draw out
 the plan of which you are speaking8    
,sidenote3 ,he will begin with a 'tabula
 rasa' and there inscribe his  laws4    
,they will begin by taking the ,state   
and the manners of men1 from which1 as  
from a tablet1 they will rub out the    
picture1 and leave a clean surface4     
,this is no easy task4 ,but whether easy
 or not1 herein will lie the  difference
 between them and every other           
legislator1--they will have  nothing to 
do either with individual or ,state1 and
 will inscribe no laws1  until they have
 either found1 or themselves made1 a    
clean surface4    ,they will be very    
right1 he said4    ,having effected     
this1 they will proceed to trace an     
outline of the  constitution8    ,no    
doubt4    99#eja;,b99 ,and when they are
 filling in the work1 as ,i conceive1   
they will  often turn their eyes upwards
 and downwards3 ,i mean that they will  

first  look at absolute justice and     
beauty and temperance1 and again at the 
human  copy2 and will mingle and temper 
the various elements of life into the   
image of a man2 and this they will      
conceive according to that other image1 
which1 when existing among men1 ,homer  
calls the form and likeness of ,god4    
,very true1 he said4    ,and one feature
 they will erase1 and another they will 
put 99#eja;,c99 in1  until they have    
made the ways of men1 as far as         
possible1 agreeable to the  ways of     
,god8    ,indeed1 he said1 in no way    
could they make a fairer picture4       
,sidenote3 ,the enemies of philosophy1  
when they hear the truth1 are  gradually
 propitiated1    ,and now1 ,i said1 are 
we beginning to persuade those whom #bja
 you  described as rushing at us with   
might and main1 that the painter of     
constitutions is such an one as we are  
praising2 at whom they were so very     
indignant because to his hands we       
committed the ,state2 and are they      

growing a little calmer at what they    
have just heard8    ,much calmer1 if    
there is any sense in them4             
99#eja;,d99 ,why1 where can they still  
find any ground for objection8 ,will    
they  doubt that the philosopher is a   
lover of truth and being8    ,they would
 not be so unreasonable4    ,or that his
 nature1 being such as we have          
delineated1 is akin to the  highest     
good8    ,neither can they doubt this4  
,but again1 will they tell us that such 
a nature1 placed under favourable       
circumstances1 will not be perfectly    
good and wise if any ever was8 ,or  will
 they prefer those whom we have         
rejected8    99#eja;,e99 ,surely not4   
,then will they still be angry at our   
saying1 that1 until philosophers bear   
rule1 ,states and individuals will have 
no rest from evil1 nor will this  our   
imaginary ,state ever be realized8    ,i
 think that they will be less angry4    
,sidenote3 and at length become quite   
gentle4    ,shall we assume that they   

are not only less angry but 99#ejb;,a99 
quite gentle1  and that they have been  
converted and for very shame1 if for no 
other  reason1 cannot refuse to come to 
terms8    ,by all means1 he said4       
,sidenote3 ,there may have been one son 
of a king a philosopher who has         
remained uncorrupted and has a ,state   
obedient to his will4    ,then let us   
suppose that the reconciliation has been
 effected4 ,will any  one deny the other
 point1 that there may be sons of kings 
or princes who  are by nature           
philosophers8    ,surely no man1 he     
said4    ,and when they have come into  
being will any one say that they must of
  necessity be destroyed2 that they can 
hardly 99#ejb;,b99 be saved is not      
denied  even by us2 but that in the     
whole course of ages no single one of   
them can  escape--who will venture to   
affirm this8    ,who indeed6    ,but1   
said ,i1 one is enough2 let there be one
 man who has a city obedient  to his    
will1 and he might bring into existence 

the ideal polity about  which the world 
is so incredulous4    ,yes1 one is      
enough4 #bjb    ,the ruler may impose   
the laws and institutions which we have 
been  describing1 and the citizens may  
possibly be willing to obey them8       
,certainly4    ,and that others should  
approve1 of what we approve1 is no      
miracle or  impossibility8              
99#ejb;,c99 ,i think not4    ,but we    
have sufficiently shown1 in what has    
preceded1 that all this1 if  only       
possible1 is assuredly for the best4    
,we have4    ,sidenote3 ,our            
constitution then is not unattainable4  
,and now we say not only that our laws1 
if they could be enacted1 would be  for 
the best1 but also that the enactment of
 them1 though difficult1 is  not        
impossible4    ,very good4    ,and so   
with pain and toil we have reached the  
end of one subject1 but more  remains to
 be discussed2--how and by 99#ejb;,d99  
what studies and pursuits will  the     
saviours of the constitution be created1

 and at what ages are they to  apply    
themselves to their several studies8    
,certainly4    ,sidenote3               
,recapitulation4    ,i omitted the      
troublesome business of the possession  
of women1 and the  procreation of       
children1 and the appointment of the    
rulers1 because ,i knew  that the       
perfect ,state would be eyed with       
jealousy and was difficult of           
attainment2 but that piece of cleverness
 was not of much service to me1         
99#ejb;,e99 for ,i had to discuss them  
all the same4 ,the women and children   
are  now disposed of1 but the other     
question of the rulers must be          
investigated  from the very beginning4  
,we were saying1 as you will remember1  
that they  were to be lovers 99#ejc;,a99
 of their country1 tried by the test of 
pleasures  and pains1 and neither in    
hardships1 nor in dangers1 nor at any   
other  critical moment were to lose     
their patriotism--he was to be rejected 
who  failed1 but he who always came     

forth pure1 like gold tried in the      
refiner's fire1 was to be made a ruler1 
and to receive honours and rewards  in  
life and after death4 ,this was the sort
 of thing which was being said1  and    
then the argument turned aside and      
veiled her face2 not liking to          
99#ejc;,b99 stir the question which has 
now arisen4    ,i perfectly remember1 he
 said4    ,sidenote3 ,the guardian must 
be a philosopher1 and a philosopher must
 be a  person of rare gifts    ,yes1 my 
friend1 ,i said1 and ,i then shrank from
 hazarding #bjc the bold  word2 but now 
let me dare to say--that the perfect    
guardian must be a  philosopher4        
,yes1 he said1 let that be affirmed4    
,and do not suppose that there will be  
many of them2 for the gifts which  were 
deemed by us to be essential rarely grow
 together2 they are mostly  found in    
shreds and patches4    99#ejc;,c99 ,what
 do you mean8 he said4    ,sidenote3    
,the contrast of the quick and solid    
temperaments4    ,you are aware1 ,i     

replied1 that quick intelligence1       
memory1 sagacity1  cleverness1 and      
similar qualities1 do not often grow    
together1 and that  persons who possess 
them and are at the same time           
high-spirited and  magnanimous are not  
so constituted by nature as to live     
orderly and in a  peaceful and settled  
manner2 they are driven any way by their
 impulses1  and all solid principle goes
 out of them4    ,very true1 he said4   
,on the other hand1 those steadfast     
natures which can 99#ejc;,d99 better be 
depended upon1 which in a battle are    
impregnable to fear and immovable1  are 
equally immovable when there is anything
 to be learned2 they are  always in a   
torpid state1 and are apt to yawn and go
 to sleep over any  intellectual toil4  
,quite true4    ,sidenote3 ,they must be
 united4    ,and yet we were saying that
 both qualities were necessary in those 
to whom  the higher education is to be  
imparted1 and who are to share in any   
office  or command4    ,certainly1 he   

said4    ,and will they be a class which
 is rarely found8    ,yes1 indeed4      
,sidenote3 ,he who is to hold command   
must be tested in many kinds of         
knowledge4    99#ejc;,e99 ,then the     
aspirant must not only be tested in     
those labours and  dangers and pleasures
 which we mentioned before1 but there is
 another kind  of probation which we did
 not mention--he must be exercised also 
in many  kinds of knowledge1 to see     
whether the soul will be able to endure 
the  highest of all1 99#ejd;,a99 or will
 faint under them1 as in any other      
studies  and exercises4    ,yes1 he     
said1 you are quite right in testing    
him4 ,but what do you mean by  the      
highest of all knowledge8    ,you may   
remember1 ,i said1 that we divided the  
soul into three parts2 and              
distinguished the several natures of    
justice1 temperance1 courage1 and       
wisdom8    ,indeed1 he said1 if ,i had  
forgotten1 ,i should not deserve to hear
 more4  #bjd    ,and do you remember the

 word of caution which preceded the     
discussion of  them#h8    ,footnote #h3 
,cp4 ,,iv4 #dce ,d4    ,to what do you  
refer8    ,sidenote3 ,the shorter       
exposition of education1 which has been 
already  given1 inadequate4             
99#ejd;,b99 ,we were saying1 if ,i am   
not mistaken1 that he who wanted to see 
them in their perfect beauty must take a
 longer and more circuitous way1  at the
 end of which they would appear2 but    
that we could add on a popular          
exposition of them on a level with the  
discussion which had preceded4 ,and  you
 replied that such an exposition would  
be enough for you1 and so the  enquiry  
was continued in what to me seemed to be
 a very inaccurate manner2  whether you 
were satisfied or not1 it is for you to 
say4    ,yes1 he said1 ,i thought and   
the others thought that you gave us a   
fair  measure of truth4    99#ejd;,c99  
,but1 my friend1 ,i said1 a measure of  
such things which in any  degree falls  
short of the whole truth is not fair    

measure2 for nothing  imperfect is the  
measure of anything1 although persons   
are too apt to be  contented and think  
that they need search no further4       
,not an uncommon case when people are   
indolent4    ,yes1 ,i said2 and there   
cannot be any worse fault in a guardian 
of the  ,state and of the laws4         
,true4    ,sidenote3 ,the guardian must 
take the longer road of the higher      
learning1    ,the guardian then1 ,i     
said1 must be required to take the      
99#ejd;,d99 longer  circuit1 and toil at
 learning as well as at gymnastics1 or  
he will never  reach the highest        
knowledge of all which1 as we were just 
now saying1 is  his proper calling4     
,what1 he said1 is there a knowledge    
still higher than this--higher than     
justice and the other virtues8    ,yes1 
,i said1 there is4 ,and of the virtues  
too we must behold not the  outline     
merely1 as at present--nothing short of 
the most finished picture  should       
satisfy us4 ,when little 99#ejd;,e99    

things are elaborated with an  infinity 
of pains1 in order that they may appear 
in their full beauty and  utmost        
clearness1 how ridiculous that we should
 not think the highest  truths worthy of
 attaining the highest accuracy6    ,a  
right noble thought#i2 but do you       
suppose that we #bje shall refrain  from
 asking you what is this highest        
knowledge8    ,footnote #i3 ,or1        
separating ,greek3 kai ma_/la from      
,greek3 a7_/xion1  ',true1 he said1 and 
a noble thought'3 or ,greek3 a7_/xion to
 diano_/ma  may be a gloss4             
,sidenote3 which leads upwards at last  
to the idea of good4    ,nay1 ,i said1  
ask if you will2 but ,i am certain that 
you have heard the  answer many times1  
and now you either do not understand me 
or1 as ,i rather  think1 you are        
disposed to be 99#eje;,a99 troublesome2 
for you have often been  told that the  
idea of good is the highest knowledge1  
and that all other  things become useful
 and advantageous only by their use of  

this4 ,you can  hardly be ignorant that 
of this ,i was about to speak1          
concerning which1 as  you have often    
heard me say1 we know so little2 and1   
without which1 any  other knowledge     
99#eje;,b99 or possession of any kind   
will profit us nothing4  ,do you think  
that the possession of all other things 
is of any value if we  do not possess   
the good8 or the knowledge of all other 
things if we have  no knowledge of      
beauty and goodness8    ,assuredly not4 
,sidenote3 ,but what is the good8 ,some 
say pleasure1 others knowledge1  which  
they absurdly explain to mean knowledge 
of the good4    ,you are further aware  
that most people affirm pleasure to be  
the good1 but  the finer sort of wits   
say it is knowledge8    ,yes4    ,and   
you are aware too that the latter cannot
 explain what they mean by  knowledge1  
but are obliged after all to say        
knowledge of the good8    ,how          
ridiculous6    99#eje;,c99 ,yes1 ,i     
said1 that they should begin by         

reproaching us with our  ignorance of   
the good1 and then presume our knowledge
 of it--for the good  they define to be 
knowledge of the good1 just as if we    
understood them  when they use the term 
'good'--this is of course ridiculous4   
,most true1 he said4    ,and those who  
make pleasure their good are in equal   
perplexity2 for they  are compelled to  
admit that there are bad pleasures as   
well as good4    ,certainly4    ,and    
therefore to acknowledge that bad and   
good are the same8    99#eje;,d99 ,true4
    ,there can be no doubt about the    
numerous difficulties in which this     
question is involved4    ,there can be  
none4    ,further1 do we not see that   
many are willing to do or to #bjf have  
or to  seem to be what is just and      
honourable without the reality2 but no  
one is  satisfied with the appearance of
 good--the reality is what they seek2 in
  the case of the good1 appearance is   
despised by every one4    ,very true1 he
 said4    ,sidenote3 ,every man pursues 

the good1 but without knowing the nature
 of  it4    ,of this then1 which every  
soul of man pursues and makes           
99#eje;,e99 the end of  all his actions1
 having a presentiment that there is    
such an end1 and yet  hesitating because
 neither knowing 99#ejf;,a99 the nature 
nor having the same  assurance of this  
as of other things1 and therefore losing
 whatever good  there is in other       
things1--of a principle such and so     
great as this ought  the best men in our
 ,state1 to whom everything is          
entrusted1 to be in the  darkness of    
ignorance8    ,certainly not1 he said4  
,i am sure1 ,i said1 that he who does   
not know how the beautiful and the  just
 are likewise good will be but a sorry  
guardian of them2 and ,i suspect  that  
no one who is ignorant of the good will 
have a true knowledge of  them4         
,that1 he said1 is a shrewd suspicion of
 yours4    99#ejf;,b99 ,and if we only  
have a guardian who has this knowledge  
our ,state  will be perfectly ordered8  

,sidenote3 ,the guardian ought to know  
these things4    ,of course1 he replied2
 but ,i wish that you would tell me     
whether you  conceive this supreme      
principle of the good to be knowledge or
 pleasure1  or different from either8   
,aye1 ,i said1 ,i knew all along that a 
fastidious gentleman#aj like you  would 
not be contented with the thoughts of   
other people about these  matters4      
,footnote #aj3 ,reading ,greek3 a7nr    
kalo_/s3 or reading ,greek3 a7nr  kals1 
',i quite well knew from the very first1
 that you1 c4'    ,true1 ,socrates2 but 
,i must say that one who like you has   
passed a lifetime  in the study of      
philosophy should not be 99#ejf;,c99    
always repeating the  opinions of       
others1 and never telling his own4      
,well1 but has any one a right to say   
positively what he does not know8       
,not1 he said1 with the assurance of    
positive certainty2 he has no right to  
do that3 but he may say what he thinks1 
as a matter of opinion4    ,and do you  

not know1 ,i said1 that all mere        
opinions are bad1 and the best  of them 
blind8 ,you would not deny that #bjg    
those who have any true  notion without 
intelligence are only like blind men who
 feel their way  along the road8        
,very true4    ,and do you wish to      
behold what is blind and crooked and    
99#ejf;,d99 base1 when  others will tell
 you of brightness and beauty8          
,sidenote3 ,socrates1 ,glaucon4         
,still1 ,i must implore you1 ,socrates1 
said ,glaucon1 not to turn away just  as
 you are reaching the goal2 if you will 
only give such an explanation of  the   
good as you have already given of       
justice and temperance and the other    
virtues1 we shall be satisfied4         
,sidenote3 ,we can only attain to the   
things of mind through the things of    
sense4 ,the 'child' of the good4        
,yes1 my friend1 and ,i shall be at     
least equally satisfied1 but ,i cannot  
help fearing that ,i shall fail1 and    
that my indiscreet zeal will bring      

ridicule upon me4 ,no1 sweet sirs1 let  
us not 99#ejf;,e99 at present ask what  
is  the actual nature of the good1 for  
to reach what is now in my thoughts     
would be an effort too great for me4    
,but of the child of the good who is    
likest him1 ,i would fain speak1 if ,i  
could be sure that you wished to        
hear--otherwise1 not4    ,by all means1 
he said1 tell us about the child1 and   
you shall remain in  our debt for the   
account of the parent4    99#ejg;,a99 ,i
 do indeed wish1 ,i replied1 that ,i    
could pay1 and you receive1 the  account
 of the parent1 and not1 as now1 of the 
offspring only2 take1  however1 this    
latter by way of interest#aa1 and at the
 same time have a  care that ,i do not  
render a false account1 although ,i have
 no intention of  deceiving you4        
,footnote3 #aa3 ,a play upon ,greek3    
to_/kos1 which means both 'offspring'   
and 'interest4'    ,yes1 we will take   
all the care that we can3 proceed4      
,yes1 ,i said1 but ,i must first come to

 an understanding with you1 and  remind 
you of what ,i have mentioned in the    
course of this discussion1 and  at many 
other times4    99#ejg;,b99 ,what8      
,the old story1 that there is a many    
beautiful and a many good1 and so of    
other things which we describe and      
define2 to all of them the term 'many'  
is applied4    ,true1 he said4    ,and  
there is an absolute beauty and an      
absolute good1 and of other things  to  
which the term 'many' is applied there  
is an absolute2 for they may be  brought
 under a single idea1 which is called   
the essence of each4    ,very true4 #bjh
    ,the many1 as we say1 are seen but  
not known1 and the ideas are known but  
not seen4    ,exactly4    99#ejg;,c99   
,and what is the organ with which we see
 the visible things8    ,the sight1 he  
said4    ,and with the hearing1 ,i said1
 we hear1 and with the other senses     
perceive  the other objects of sense8   
,true4    ,sidenote3 ,sight the most    
complex of the senses1    ,but have you 

remarked that sight is by far the most  
costly and complex  piece of workmanship
 which the artificer of the senses ever 
contrived8    ,no1 ,i never have1 he    
said4    ,then reflect2 has the ear or  
voice need of any third or 99#ejg;,d99  
additional  nature in order that the one
 may be able to hear and the other to be
  heard8    ,nothing of the sort4       
,no1 indeed1 ,i replied2 and the same is
 true of most1 if not all1 the other    
senses--you would not say that any of   
them requires such an addition8         
,certainly not4    ,but you see that    
without the addition of some other      
nature there is no  seeing or being     
seen8    ,how do you mean8    ,sidenote3
 and1 unlike the other senses1 requires 
the addition of a third  nature before  
it can be used4 ,this third nature is   
light4    ,sight being1 as ,i conceive1 
in the eyes1 and he who has eyes wanting
 to  see2 colour being also present in  
them1 still 99#ejg;,e99 unless there be 
a  third nature specially adapted to the

 purpose1 the owner of the eyes will    
see nothing and the colours will be     
invisible4    ,of what nature are you   
speaking8    ,of that which you term    
light1 ,i replied4    ,true1 he said4   
99#ejh;,a99 ,noble1 then1 is the bond   
which links together sight and          
visibility1  and great beyond other     
bonds by no small difference of nature2 
for light  is their bond1 and light is  
no ignoble thing8    ,nay1 he said1 the 
reverse of ignoble4    ,and which1 ,i   
said1 of the gods in heaven would you   
say was the lord of  this element8      
,whose is that light which makes the eye
 to see perfectly and  the visible to   
appear8 #bji    ,you mean the sun1 as   
you and all mankind say4    ,may not the
 relation of sight to this deity be     
described as follows8    ,how8          
99#ejh;,b99 ,neither sight nor the eye  
in which sight resides is the sun8      
,no4    ,sidenote3 ,the eye like the    
sun1 but not the same with it4    ,yet  
of all the organs of sense the eye is   

the most like the sun8    ,by far the   
most like4    ,and the power which the  
eye possesses is a sort of effluence    
which is  dispensed from the sun8       
,exactly4    ,then the sun is not sight1
 but the author of sight who is         
recognised by  sight8    ,true1 he said4
    ,and this is he whom ,i call the    
child of the good1 whom the good begat  
in  his own likeness1 to be in the      
visible world1 in 99#ejh;,c99 relation  
to sight  and the things of sight1 what 
the good is in the intellectual world in
  relation to mind and the things of    
mind3    ,will you be a little more     
explicit8 he said4    ,why1 you know1 ,i
 said1 that the eyes1 when a person     
directs them towards  objects on which  
the light of day is no longer shining1  
but the moon and  stars only1 see dimly1
 and are nearly blind2 they seem to have
 no  clearness of vision in them8       
,very true4    ,sidenote3 ,visible      
objects are to be seen only when the sun
 shines upon  them2 truth is only known 

when illuminated by the idea of good4   
99#ejh;,d99 ,but when they are directed 
towards objects on which the sun shines1
  they see clearly and there is sight in
 them8    ,certainly4    ,and the soul  
is like the eye3 when resting upon that 
on which truth and  being shine1 the    
soul perceives and understands1 and is  
radiant with  intelligence2 but when    
turned towards the twilight of becoming 
and  perishing1 then she has opinion    
only1 and goes blinking about1 and is   
first of one opinion and then of        
another1 and seems to have no           
intelligence8    ,just so4    ,sidenote3
 ,the idea of good higher than science  
or truth 7the objective  than the       
subjective74    99#ejh;,e99 ,now1 that  
which imparts truth to the known and the
 power of knowing  to the knower is what
 ,i would have you term the #baj idea of
 good1 and  this you will deem to be the
 cause of science#ab1 and of truth in so
 far  as the latter becomes the subject 
of knowledge2 beautiful too1 as are both

  truth and knowledge1 you will be right
 in esteeming this other nature         
99#eji;,a99 as more beautiful than      
either2 and1 as in the previous         
instance1  light and sight may be truly 
said to be like the sun1 and yet not to 
be  the sun1 so in this other sphere1   
science and truth may be deemed to be   
like the good1 but not the good2 the    
good has a place of honour yet  higher4 
,footnote #ab3 ,reading ,greek3 dianoou4
    ,what a wonder of beauty that must  
be1 he said1 which is the author of     
science and truth1 and yet surpasses    
them in beauty2 for you surely cannot   
mean to say that pleasure is the good8  
,god forbid1 ,i replied2 but may ,i ask 
you to consider the image in another    
point of view8    99#eji;,b99 ,in what  
point of view8    ,you would say1 would 
you not1 that the sun is not only the   
author of  visibility in all visible    
things1 but of generation and           
nourishment and  growth1 though he      
himself is not generation8              

,certainly4    ,sidenote3 ,as the sun is
 the cause of generation1 so the good is
 the cause  of being and essence4    ,in
 like manner the good may be said to be 
not only the author of knowledge  to all
 things known1 but of their being and   
essence1 and yet the good is  not       
essence1 but far exceeds essence in     
dignity and power4    99#eji;,c99       
,glaucon said1 with a ludicrous         
earnestness3 ,by the light of heaven1   
how amazing6    ,yes1 ,i said1 and the  
exaggeration may be set down to you2 for
 you made me  utter my fancies4    ,and 
pray continue to utter them2 at any rate
 let us hear if there is  anything more 
to be said about the similitude of the  
sun4    ,yes1 ,i said1 there is a great 
deal more4    ,then omit nothing1       
however slight4    ,i will do my best1  
,i said2 but ,i should think that a     
great deal will have  to be omitted4    
,i hope not1 he said4    99#eji;,d99    
,you have to imagine1 then1 that there  
are two ruling #baa powers1  and that   

one of them is set over the intellectual
 world1 the other over  the visible4 ,i 
do not say heaven1 lest you should fancy
 that ,i am playing  upon the name      
7,greek3 ou7rano_/s1 o7rato_/s74 ,may ,i
 suppose that you have  this distinction
 of the visible and intelligible fixed  
in your mind8    ,i have4    ,sidenote3 
,the two spheres of sight and knowledge 
are represented by a  line which is     
divided into two unequal parts4    ,now 
take a line which has been cut into two 
unequal#ac parts1 and divide  each of   
them again in the same proportion1 and  
suppose the two main  divisions to      
answer1 one to the visible and the other
 to the intelligible1  and then compare 
the subdivisions in respect of their    
clearness and want  of 99#eji;,e99      
clearness1 and you will find that the   
first section in the  99#eaj;,a99 sphere
 of the visible consists of images4 ,and
 by images ,i mean1 in  the first place1
 shadows1 and in the second place1      
reflections in water  and in solid1     

smooth and polished bodies and the like3
 ,do you understand8    ,footnote #ac3  
,reading3 ,greek3 a7_/nisa4    ,yes1 ,i 
understand4    ,imagine1 now1 the other 
section1 of which this is only the      
resemblance1 to  include the animals    
which we see1 and everything that grows 
or is made4    ,very good4    ,would you
 not admit that both the sections of    
this division have different  degrees of
 truth1 and that the copy is to the     
original as the sphere of  opinion is to
 the sphere of knowledge8    99#eaj;,b99
 ,most undoubtedly4    ,next proceed to 
consider the manner in which the sphere 
of the  intellectual is to be divided4  
,in what manner8    ,sidenote3 ,images  
and hypotheses4    ,thus3--,there are   
two subdivisions1 in the lower of which 
the soul uses the  figures given by the 
former division as images2 the enquiry  
can only be  hypothetical1 and instead  
of going upwards to a principle descends
 to the  other end2 in the higher of the
 two1 the soul passes out of hypotheses1

  and goes up to a principle which is   
above hypotheses1 making no use of      
images#ad as in the former case1 but    
proceeding only in and through the      
ideas themselves4    ,footnote #ad3     
,reading ,greek3 7nper e7keino          
ei7ko_/nn4    ,i do not quite understand
 your meaning1 he said4 #bab            
,sidenote3 ,the hypotheses of           
mathematics4    99#eaj;,c99 ,then ,i    
will try again2 you will understand me  
better when ,i have  made some          
preliminary remarks4 ,you are aware that
 students of geometry1  arithmetic1 and 
the kindred sciences assume the odd and 
the even and the  figures and three     
kinds of angles and the like in their   
several branches  of science2 these are 
their hypotheses1 which they and every  
body are  supposed to know1 and         
therefore they do not deign to give any 
account of  them either to themselves or
 others2 99#eaj;,d99 but they begin with
 them1 and  go on until they arrive at  
last1 and in a consistent manner1 at    

their  conclusion8    ,yes1 he said1 ,i 
know4    ,sidenote3 ,in both spheres    
hypotheses are used1 in the lower taking
 the  form of images1 but in the higher 
the soul ascends above hypotheses to the
  idea of good4    ,and do you not know 
also that although they make use of the 
visible forms  and reason about them1   
they are thinking not of these1 but of  
the ideals  which they resemble2 not of 
the 99#eaj;,e99 figures which they draw1
 but of the  absolute square and the    
absolute diameter1 and so on--the forms 
which they  draw or make1 and which have
 shadows and reflections in water of    
their  own1 are converted by them into  
images1 but they are really seeking to  
behold the things themselves1 which can 
only be seen with the eye of the  mind8 
99#eaa;,a99 ,that is true4    ,and of   
this kind ,i spoke as the intelligible1 
although in the search after  it the    
soul is compelled to use hypotheses2 not
 ascending to a first  principle1       
because she is unable to rise above the 

region of hypothesis1  but employing the
 objects of which the shadows below are 
resemblances in  their turn as images1  
they having in relation to the shadows  
and  reflections of them a greater      
distinctness1 and therefore a higher    
value4    99#eaa;,b99 ,i understand1 he 
said1 that you are speaking of the      
province of  geometry and the sister    
arts4    ,sidenote3 ,dialectic by the   
help of hypotheses rises above          
hypotheses4    ,and when ,i speak of the
 other division of the intelligible1 you
 will  understand me to speak of that   
other sort of knowledge which reason    
herself attains by the power of         
dialectic1 using the hypotheses not as  
first principles1 but only as           
hypotheses--that is to say1 as steps and
  points of departure into a world which
 is above hypotheses1 in order that  she
 may soar beyond them to the first      
principle of the whole2 and clinging  to
 this and then to that which depends on 
this1 by successive steps she  descends 

again without the aid of #bac           
99#eaa;,c99 any sensible object1 from   
ideas1 through ideas1 and in ideas she  
ends4    ,sidenote3 ,return to          
psychology4    ,i understand you1 he    
replied2 not perfectly1 for you seem to 
me to be  describing a task which is    
really tremendous2 but1 at any rate1  ,i
 understand you to say that knowledge   
and being1 which the science of         
dialectic contemplates1 are clearer than
 the notions of the arts1 as they  are  
termed1 which proceed from hypotheses   
only3 these are also  contemplated by   
the understanding1 and not by the       
senses3 yet1 because  99#eaa;,d99 they  
start from hypotheses and do not ascend 
to a principle1 those  who contemplate  
them appear to you not to exercise the  
higher reason upon  them1 although when 
a first principle is added to them they 
are cognizable  by the higher reason4   
,and the habit which is concerned with  
geometry and  the cognate sciences ,i   
suppose that you would term             

understanding and not  reason1 as being 
intermediate between opinion and reason4
    ,sidenote3 ,four faculties3 ,reason1
 understanding1 faith1 perception of    
shadows4    ,you have quite conceived my
 meaning1 ,i said2 and now1             
corresponding to  these four divisions1 
let there be four faculties in the      
soul--reason  answering to the highest1 
99#eaa;,e99 understanding to the second1
 faith 7or  conviction7 to the third1   
and perception of shadows to the        
last--and let  there be a scale of them1
 and let us suppose that the several    
faculties  have clearness in the same   
degree that their objects have truth4   
,i understand1 he replied1 and give my  
assent1 and accept your arrangement4    
,,book ,,vii4      ,sidenote3 ,republic 
,,vii4 ,socrates1 ,glaucon4             
,sidenote3 ,the den1 the prisoners2 the 
light at a distance2    99#ead;,a99 ,and
 now1 ,i said1 let me show in a figure  
how far our nature is  enlightened or   
unenlightened3--,behold6 human beings   

living in a  underground den1 which has 
a mouth open towards the light and      
reaching all  along the den2 here they  
have been from their childhood1 and have
 their  legs and necks chained so that  
they cannot move1 and 99#ead;,b99 can   
only see  before them1 being prevented  
by the chains from turning round their  
heads4  ,above and behind them a fire is
 blazing at a distance1 and between the 
fire and the prisoners there is a raised
 way2 and you will see1 if you  look1 a 
low wall built along the way1 like the  
screen which marionette  players have in
 front of them1 over which they show the
 puppets4    ,i see4    ,sidenote3 the  
low wall1 and the moving figures of     
which the shadows are  seen on the      
opposite wall of the den4    ,and do you
 see1 ,i said1 men passing along the    
wall carrying 99#ead;,c99 all  sorts of 
vessels1 and statues and figures of     
animals 99#eae;,a99 made of wood  and   
stone and various materials1 which      
appear over the wall8 ,some of them  are

 talking1 others silent4    ,you have   
shown me a strange image1 and they are  
strange prisoners4    ,like ourselves1  
,i replied2 and they see only their own 
shadows1 or the  shadows of one another1
 which the fire throws on the opposite  
wall of the  cave8    ,true1 he said2   
how could they see anything but the     
99#eae;,b99 shadows if they  were never 
allowed to move their heads8    ,and of 
the objects which are being carried in  
like manner they would only  see the    
shadows8    ,yes1 he said4    ,and if   
they were able to converse with one     
another1 would they not suppose  that   
they were naming what was actually      
before them#a8 #bae    ,footnote #a3    
,reading ,greek3 paro_/nta4    ,very    
true4    ,sidenote3 ,the prisoners would
 mistake the shadows for realities4     
,and suppose further that the prison had
 an echo which came from the other      
side1 would they not be sure to fancy   
when one of the passers-by spoke  that  
the voice which they heard came from the

 passing shadow8    ,no question1 he    
replied4    99#eae;,c99 ,to them1 ,i    
said1 the truth would be literally      
nothing but the  shadows of the images4 
,that is certain4    ,sidenote3 ,and    
when released1 they would still persist 
in maintaining the  superior truth of   
the shadows4    ,and now look again1 and
 see what will naturally follow if the  
prisoners  are released and disabused of
 their error4 ,at first1 when any of    
them is  liberated and compelled        
suddenly to stand up and turn his neck  
round and  walk and look towards the    
light1 he will suffer sharp pains2 the  
glare  will distress him1 and he will be
 unable to see the realities of         
99#eae;,d99  which in his former state  
he had seen the shadows2 and then       
conceive some  one saying to him1 that  
what he saw before was an illusion1 but 
that now1  when he is approaching nearer
 to being and his eye is turned towards 
more  real existence1 he has a clearer  
vision1--what will be his reply8 ,and   

you  may further imagine that his       
instructor is pointing to the objects as
 they  pass and requiring him to name   
them1--will he not be perplexed8 ,will  
he  not fancy that the shadows which he 
formerly saw are truer than the  objects
 which are now shown to him8    ,far    
truer4    99#eae;,e99 ,and if he is     
compelled to look straight at the light1
 will he not  have a pain in his eyes   
which will make him turn away to take   
refuge in  the objects of vision which  
he can see1 and which he will conceive  
to be  in reality clearer than the      
things which are now being shown to him8
    ,true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,when 
dragged upwards1 they would be dazzled  
by excess of  light4    ,and suppose    
once more1 that he is reluctantly       
dragged up a steep and  rugged ascent1  
and held fast until he is forced into   
the presence of the  sun himself1 is he 
not likely to be 99#eaf;,a99 pained and 
irritated8 ,when he  approaches the     
light his eyes will be dazzled1 and he  

will not be able to  see anything at all
 of what are now called realities4      
,not all in a moment1 he said4    ,he   
will require to grow accustomed to the  
sight of the #baf upper world4  ,and    
first he will see the shadows best1 next
 the reflections of men and  other      
objects in the water1 and then the      
objects themselves2 then he will  gaze  
upon the light of the moon and the stars
 and the spangled heaven2  99#eaf;,b99  
and he will see the sky and the stars by
 night better than the sun  or the light
 of the sun by day8    ,certainly4      
,sidenote3 ,at length they will see the 
sun and understand his nature4    ,last 
of all he will be able to see the sun1  
and not mere reflections of  him in the 
water1 but he will see him in his own   
proper place1 and not in  another2 and  
he will contemplate him as he is4       
,certainly4    ,he will then proceed to 
argue that this is he who gives the     
season and the  years1 and is the       
guardian of all that is in the visible  

world1 and in a  certain way the cause  
of all 99#eaf;,c99 things which he and  
his fellows have  been accustomed to    
behold8    ,clearly1 he said1 he would  
first see the sun and then reason about 
him4    ,sidenote3 ,they would then pity
 their old companions of the den4       
,and when he remembered his old         
habitation1 and the wisdom of the den   
and  his fellow-prisoners1 do you not   
suppose that he would felicitate himself
  on the change1 and pity them8         
,certainly1 he would4    ,and if they   
were in the habit of conferring honours 
among themselves on  those who were     
quickest to observe the passing shadows 
and to remark which  of them went       
before1 and 99#eaf;,d99 which followed  
after1 and which were  together2 and who
 were therefore best able to draw       
conclusions as to the  future1 do you   
think that he would care for such       
honours and glories1 or  envy the       
possessors of them8 ,would he not say   
with ,homer1      ',better to be the    

poor servant of a poor master1'    and  
to endure anything1 rather than think as
 they do and live after their  manner8  
99#eaf;,e99 ,yes1 he said1 ,i think that
 he would rather suffer anything than   
entertain these false notions and live  
in this miserable manner4    ,sidenote3 
,but when they returned to the den they 
would see much worse  than those who had
 never left it4    ,imagine once more1  
,i said1 such an one coming suddenly    
#bag out of the  sun to be replaced in  
his old situation2 would he not be      
certain to have  his eyes full of       
darkness8    ,to be sure1 he said4      
,and if there were a contest1 and he had
 to compete in measuring the  shadows   
with the prisoners who had never        
99#eag;,a99 moved out of the den1  while
 his sight was still weak1 and before   
his eyes had become steady 7and  the    
time which would be needed to acquire   
this new habit of sight might be  very  
considerable71 would he not be          
ridiculous8 ,men would say of him that  

up he went and down he came without his 
eyes2 and that it was better not  even  
to think of ascending2 and if any one   
tried to loose another and lead  him up 
to the light1 let them only catch the   
offender1 and they would put  him to    
death4    ,no question1 he said4        
,sidenote3 ,the prison is the world of  
sight1 the light of the fire is the     
sun4    ,this entire allegory1 ,i said1 
you may now append1 dear 99#eag;,b99    
,glaucon1 to  the previous argument2 the
 prison-house is the world of sight1 the
 light  of the fire is the sun1 and you 
will not misapprehend me if you         
interpret  the journey upwards to be the
 ascent of the soul into the            
intellectual  world according to my poor
 belief1 which1 at your desire1 ,i have 
expressed--whether rightly or wrongly   
,god knows4 ,but1 whether true or       
false1 my opinion is that in the world  
of knowledge the idea of good  appears  
last of all1 and is seen 99#eag;,c99    
only with an effort2 and1 when  seen1 is

 also inferred to be the universal      
author of all things beautiful  and     
right1 parent of light and of the lord  
of light in this visible world1  and the
 immediate source of reason and truth in
 the intellectual2 and that  this is the
 power upon which he who would act      
rationally either in public  or private 
life must have his eye fixed4    ,i     
agree1 he said1 as far as ,i am able to 
understand you4    ,moreover1 ,i said1  
you must not wonder that those who      
attain to this  beatific vision are     
unwilling to descend to human affairs2  
for their souls  are ever hastening into
 the 99#eag;,d99 upper world where they 
desire to dwell2  which desire of theirs
 is very natural1 if our allegory may be
 trusted4    ,yes1 very natural4        
,sidenote3 ,nothing extraordinary in the
 philosopher being unable to see in  the
 dark4    ,and is there anything        
surprising in one who passes from divine
  contemplations to the evil state of   
man1 misbehaving #bah himself in a      

ridiculous manner2 if1 while his eyes   
are blinking and before he has  become  
accustomed to the surrounding darkness1 
he is compelled to fight in  courts of  
law1 or in other places1 about the      
images or the shadows of  images of     
99#eag;,e99 justice1 and is endeavouring
 to meet the conceptions of  those who  
have never yet seen absolute justice8   
,anything but surprising1 he replied4   
,sidenote3 ,the eyes may be blinded in  
two ways1 by excess or by defect of     
light4    99#eah;,a99 ,any one who has  
common sense will remember that the     
bewilderments  of the eyes are of two   
kinds1 and arise from two causes1 either
 from  coming out of the light or from  
going into the light1 which is true of  
the  mind's eye1 quite as much as of the
 bodily eye2 and he who remembers this  
when he sees any one whose vision is    
perplexed and weak1 will not be too     
ready to laugh2 he will first ask       
whether that soul of man has come out of
  the brighter life1 and is unable to   

see because unaccustomed to the dark1   
or having turned from darkness to the   
day is dazzled by excess of light4      
99#eah;,b99 ,and he will count the one  
happy in his condition and state of     
being1 and he will pity the other2 or1  
if he have a mind to laugh at the  soul 
which comes from below into the light1  
there will be more reason in  this than 
in the laugh which greets him who       
returns from above out of the  light    
into the den4    ,that1 he said1 is a   
very just distinction4    ,sidenote3    
,the conversion of the soul is the      
turning round the eye from  darkness to 
light4    ,but then1 if ,i am right1    
certain professors of education must be 
wrong  when they say that they can put a
 knowledge 99#eah;,c99 into the soul    
which was  not there before1 like sight 
into blind eyes4    ,they undoubtedly   
say this1 he replied4    ,whereas1 our  
argument shows that the power and       
capacity of learning exists  in the soul
 already2 and that just as the eye was  

unable to turn from  darkness to light  
without the whole body1 so too the      
instrument of  knowledge can only by the
 movement of the whole soul be turned   
from the  world of becoming into that of
 being1 and learn by degrees to endure  
the  sight of being1 and of the         
brightest and best of being1 or         
99#eah;,d99 in other  words1 of the     
good4    ,very true4    ,and must there 
not be some art which will effect       
conversion in the easiest  and quickest 
manner2 not implanting #bai the faculty 
of sight1 for that  exists already1 but 
has been turned in the wrong direction1 
and is looking  away from the truth8    
,yes1 he said1 such an art may be       
presumed4    ,sidenote3 ,the virtue of  
wisdom has a divine power which may be  
turned  either towards good or towards  
evil4    ,and whereas the other         
so-called virtues of the soul seem to be
 akin to  bodily qualities1 for even    
when they are not 99#eah;,e99 originally
 innate they  can be implanted later by 

habit and exercise1 the virtue of wisdom
 more  than anything else contains a    
divine element which always remains1 and
 by  this conversion is rendered useful 
and profitable2 or1 on the other hand1  
hurtful and useless4 ,did you never     
observe the narrow 99#eai;,a99          
intelligence  flashing from the keen eye
 of a clever rogue--how eager he is1 how
 clearly  his paltry soul sees the way  
to his end2 he is the reverse of blind1 
but  his keen eye-sight is forced into  
the service of evil1 and he is          
mischievous in proportion to his        
cleverness8    ,very true1 he said4     
,but what if there had been a           
circumcision of such natures in the days
 of  their youth2 and they had been     
severed from those sensual pleasures1   
such  as eating and drinking1 which1    
99#eai;,b99 like leaden weights1 were   
attached  to them at their birth1 and   
which drag them down and turn the vision
 of  their souls upon the things that   
are below--if1 ,i say1 they had been    

released from these impediments and     
turned in the opposite direction1 the   
very same faculty in them would have    
seen the truth as keenly as they see    
what their eyes are turned to now4      
,very likely4    ,sidenote3 ,neither the
 uneducated nor the overeducated will be
 good  servants of the ,state4    ,yes1 
,i said2 and there is another thing     
which is likely1 or rather a  necessary 
inference from what has preceded1 that  
neither the uneducated  and uninformed  
of the truth1 nor 99#eai;,c99 yet those 
who never make an end of  their         
education1 will be able ministers of    
,state2 not the former1 because  they   
have no single aim of duty which is the 
rule of all their actions1  private as  
well as public2 nor the latter1 because 
they will not act at  all except upon   
compulsion1 fancying that they are      
already dwelling apart  in the islands  
of the blest4    ,very true1 he replied4
    ,then1 ,i said1 the business of us  
who are the founders of the ,state will 

be  to compel the best minds to attain  
that #bbj knowledge which we have       
already shown to be the greatest of     
all--they must continue to ascend  until
 they arrive at the good2 99#eai;,d99   
but when they have ascended and seen    
enough we must not allow them to do as  
they do now4    ,what do you mean8      
,sidenote3 ,men should ascend to the    
upper world1 but they should also       
return to the lower4    ,i mean that    
they remain in the upper world3 but this
 must not be allowed2  they must be made
 to descend again among the prisoners in
 the den1 and  partake of their labours 
and honours1 whether they are worth     
having or  not4    ,but is not this     
unjust8 he said2 ought we to give them a
 worse life1 when  they might have a    
better8    99#eai;,e99 ,you have again  
forgotten1 my friend1 ,i said1 the      
intention of the  legislator1 who did   
not aim at making any one class in the  
,state happy  above the rest2 the       
happiness was to be in the whole ,state1

 and he held  the citizens together by  
persuasion and necessity1 making them   
benefactors  of the ,state1 99#ebj;,a99 
and therefore benefactors of one        
another2 to this end  he created them1  
not to please themselves1 but to be his 
instruments in  binding up the ,state4  
,true1 he said1 ,i had forgotten4       
,sidenote3 ,the duties of philosophers4 
,sidenote3 ,their obligations to their  
country will induce them to take  part  
in her government4    ,observe1         
,glaucon1 that there will be no         
injustice in compelling our             
philosophers to have a care and         
providence of others2 we shall explain  
to  them that in other ,states1 men     
99#ebj;,b99 of their class are not      
obliged to  share in the toils of       
politics3 and this is reasonable1 for   
they grow up  at their own sweet will1  
and the government would rather not have
 them4  ,being self-taught1 they cannot 
be expected to show any gratitude for a 
culture which they have never received4 

,but we have brought you into the  world
 to be rulers of the hive1 kings of     
yourselves and of the other  citizens1  
and have educated you far better and    
more perfectly than they  have been     
educated1 and you are better able to    
share in the double duty4  99#ebj;,c99  
,wherefore each of you1 when his turn   
comes1 must go down to the  general     
underground abode1 and get the habit of 
seeing in the dark4 ,when  you have     
acquired the habit1 you will see ten    
thousand times better than  the         
inhabitants of the den1 and you will    
know what the several images are1  and  
what they represent1 because you have   
seen the beautiful and just and  good in
 their truth4 ,and thus our ,state1     
which is also yours1 will be a  reality1
 and not a dream #bba only1 and will be 
administered in a spirit  unlike that of
 other ,states1 in which men fight with 
one another about  shadows only and are 
distracted in the struggle for power1   
99#ebj;,d99 which in  their eyes is a   

great good4 ,whereas the truth is that  
the ,state in which  the rulers are most
 reluctant to govern is always the best 
and most  quietly governed1 and the     
,state in which they are most eager1 the
 worst4    ,quite true1 he replied4     
,and will our pupils1 when they hear    
this1 refuse to take their turn at the  
toils of ,state1 when they are allowed  
to spend the greater part of their  time
 with one another in the heavenly light8
    ,sidenote3 ,they will be willing but
 not anxious to rule4    99#ebj;,e99    
,impossible1 he answered2 for they are  
just men1 and the commands  which we    
impose upon them are just2 there can be 
no doubt that every one  of them will   
take office as a stern necessity1 and   
not after the fashion  of our present   
rulers of ,state4    ,sidenote3 ,the    
statesman must be provided with a better
 life than that of  a ruler2 and then he
 will not covet office4    ,yes1 my     
friend1 ,i said2 and there lies the     
point4 ,you 99#eba;,a99 must contrive   

for your future rulers another and a    
better life than that of a ruler1 and   
then you may have a well-ordered ,state2
 for only in the ,state which offers    
this1 will they rule who are truly rich1
 not in silver and gold1 but in  virtue 
and wisdom1 which are the true blessings
 of life4 ,whereas if they  go to the   
administration of public affairs1 poor  
and hungering after their  own private  
advantage1 thinking that hence they are 
to snatch the chief  good1 order there  
can never be2 for they will be fighting 
about office1  and the civil and        
domestic broils which thus arise will be
 the ruin of the  rulers themselves and 
of the whole ,state4    ,most true1 he  
replied4    99#eba;,b99 ,and the only   
life which looks down upon the life of  
political  ambition is that of true     
philosophy4 ,do you know of any other8  
,indeed1 ,i do not1 he said4    ,and    
those who govern ought not to be lovers 
of the task8 ,for1 if they are1  there  
will be rival lovers1 and they will     

fight4    ,no question4    ,who then are
 those whom we shall compel to be       
guardians8 ,surely they will  be the men
 who are wisest about affairs of #bbb   
,state1 and by whom the  ,state is best 
administered1 and who at the same time  
have other honours  and another and a   
better life than that of politics8      
,they are the men1 and ,i will choose   
them1 he replied4    99#eba;,c99 ,and   
now shall we consider in what way such  
guardians will be  produced1 and how    
they are to be brought from darkness to 
light1--as some  are said to have       
ascended from the world below to the    
gods8    ,by all means1 he replied4     
,sidenote3 ,the training of the         
guardians4    ,the process1 ,i said1 is 
not the turning over of an              
oyster-shell#b1 but  the turning round  
of a soul passing from a day which is   
little better than  night to the true   
day of being1 that is1 the ascent from  
below#c1 which  we affirm to be true    
philosophy8    ,footnote #b3 ,in        

allusion to a game in which two parties 
fled or pursued  according as an        
oyster-shell which was thrown into the  
air fell with the  dark or light side   
uppermost4    ,footnote #c3 ,reading    
,greek3 ou7san e7pa_/nodon4    ,quite   
so4    ,and should we not enquire what  
sort of knowledge has the 99#eba;,d99   
power of  effecting such a change8      
,certainly4    ,sidenote3 ,what         
knowledge will draw the soul upwards8   
,what sort of knowledge is there which  
would draw the soul from becoming to    
being8 ,and another consideration has   
just occurred to me3 ,you will  remember
 that our young men are to be warrior   
athletes8    ,yes1 that was said4       
,then this new kind of knowledge must   
have an additional quality8    ,what    
quality8    ,usefulness in war4    ,yes1
 if possible4    ,sidenote3             
,recapitulation4    ,there were two     
parts in our former scheme of education1
 99#eba;,e99 were there  not8           
,sidenote3 ,there were two parts in our 

former scheme of education1 were  there 
not8    ,just so4    ,there was         
gymnastic which presided over the growth
 and decay of the body1  and may        
therefore be regarded as having to do   
with generation and  corruption8        
,true4    99#ebb;,a99 ,then that is not 
the knowledge which we are seeking to   
discover8  #bbc    ,no4    ,but what do 
you say of music1 which also entered to 
a certain extent into  our former       
scheme8    ,music1 he said1 as you will 
remember1 was the counterpart of        
gymnastic1  and trained the guardians by
 the influences of habit1 by harmony    
making  them harmonious1 by rhythm      
rhythmical1 but not giving them science2
 and  the words1 whether fabulous or    
possibly true1 had kindred elements of  
rhythm and harmony in them4 ,but in     
music there was 99#ebb;,b99 nothing     
which  tended to that good which you are
 now seeking4    ,you are most accurate1
 ,i said1 in your recollection2 in music
 there  certainly was nothing of the    

kind4 ,but what branch of knowledge is  
there1  my dear ,glaucon1 which is of   
the desired nature2 since all the useful
 arts  were reckoned mean by us8        
,undoubtedly2 and yet if music and      
gymnastic are excluded1 and the arts are
  also excluded1 what remains8    ,well1
 ,i said1 there may be nothing left of  
our special subjects2 and then  we shall
 have to take something which is not    
special1 but of universal  application4 
,what may that be8    ,sidenote3 ,there 
remains for the second education1       
arithmetic2    99#ebb;,c99 ,a something 
which all arts and sciences and         
intelligences use in  common1 and which 
every one first has to learn among the  
elements of  education4    ,what is     
that8    ,the little matter of          
distinguishing one1 two1 and three--in a
 word1 number  and calculation3--do not 
all arts and sciences necessarily       
partake of  them8    ,yes4    ,then the 
art of war partakes of them8    ,to be  
sure4    99#ebb;,d99 ,then ,palamedes1  

whenever he appears in tragedy1 proves  
,agamemnon  ridiculously unfit to be a  
general4 ,did you never remark how he   
declares  that he had invented number1  
and had numbered the ships and set in   
array  the ranks of the army at ,troy2  
which implies that they had never been  
numbered before1 and ,agamemnon must be 
supposed literally to have been         
incapable of counting his own feet--how 
could he if he was ignorant of  number8 
,and if that is true1 what sort of      
general must he have been8 #bbd    ,i   
should say a very strange one1 if this  
was as you say4    99#ebb;,e99 ,can we  
deny that a warrior should have a       
knowledge of arithmetic8    ,certainly  
he should1 if he is to have the smallest
 understanding of  military tactics1 or 
indeed1 ,i should rather say1 if he is  
to be a man at  all4    ,i should like  
to know whether you have the same notion
 which ,i have of  this study8    ,what 
is your notion8    ,sidenote3 that being
 a study which leads naturally to       

reflection1 for    ,it appears to me to 
be a study of the kind which we are     
99#ebc;,a99 seeking1  and which leads   
naturally to reflection1 but never to   
have been rightly  used2 for the true   
use of it is simply to draw the soul    
towards being4    ,will you explain your
 meaning8 he said4    ,i will try1 ,i   
said2 and ,i wish you would share the   
enquiry with me1 and  say 'yes' or 'no' 
when ,i attempt to distinguish in my own
 mind what  branches of knowledge have  
this attracting power1 in order that we 
may  have clearer proof that arithmetic 
is1 as ,i suspect1 one of them4         
,explain1 he said4    ,sidenote3        
reflection is aroused by contradictory  
impressions of sense4    ,i mean to say 
that objects of sense are of two kinds2 
some 99#ebc;,b99 of them  do not invite 
thought because the sense is an adequate
 judge of them2  while in the case of   
other objects sense is so untrustworthy 
that further  enquiry is imperatively   
demanded4    ,you are clearly referring1

 he said1 to the manner in which the    
senses are  imposed upon by distance1   
and by painting in light and shade4     
,no1 ,i said1 that is not at all my     
meaning4    ,then what is your meaning8 
,when speaking of uninviting objects1 ,i
 mean those which 99#ebc;,c99 do not    
pass  from one sensation to the         
opposite2 inviting objects are those    
which do2  in this latter case the sense
 coming upon the object1 whether at a   
distance or near1 gives no more vivid   
idea of anything in particular than  of 
its opposite4 ,an illustration will make
 my meaning clearer3--here are  three   
fingers--a little finger1 a second      
finger1 and a middle finger4    ,very   
good4 #bbe    ,you may suppose that they
 are seen quite close3 ,and here comes  
the point4    ,what is it8    ,sidenote3
 ,no difficulty in simple perception4   
,each of them equally appears a finger1 
whether seen in the 99#ebc;,d99 middle  
or at the extremity1 whether white or   
black1 or thick or thin--it makes no    

difference2 a finger is a finger all the
 same4 ,in these cases a man is not     
compelled to ask of thought the question
 what is a finger8 for the sight  never 
intimates to the mind that a finger is  
other than a finger4    ,true4    ,and  
therefore1 ,i said1 as we might expect1 
there is nothing 99#ebc;,e99 here  which
 invites or excites intelligence4       
,there is not1 he said4    ,sidenote3   
,but the same senses at the same time   
give different impressions  which are at
 first indistinct and have to be        
distinguished by the mind4    ,but is   
this equally true of the greatness and  
smallness of the fingers8  ,can sight   
adequately perceive them8 and is no     
difference made by the  circumstance    
that one of the fingers is in the middle
 and another at the  extremity8 ,and in 
like manner does the touch adequately   
perceive the  qualities of thickness or 
thinness1 of softness or hardness8 ,and 
so of the  other senses2 do they give   
perfect intimations of such matters8    

99#ebd;,a99 ,is  not their mode of      
operation on this wise--the sense which 
is concerned  with the quality of       
hardness is necessarily concerned also  
with the  quality of softness1 and only 
intimates to the soul that the same     
thing is  felt to be both hard and soft8
    ,you are quite right1 he said4      
,and must not the soul be perplexed at  
this intimation which the sense  gives  
of a hard which is also soft8 ,what1    
again1 is the meaning of light  and     
heavy1 if that which is light is also   
heavy1 and that which is heavy1  light8 
99#ebd;,b99 ,yes1 he said1 these        
intimations which the soul receives are 
very  curious and require to be         
explained4    ,sidenote3 ,the aid of    
numbers is invoked in order to remove   
the  confusion4    ,yes1 ,i said1 and in
 these perplexities the soul naturally  
summons to her  aid calculation and     
intelligence1 that she may see whether  
the several  objects announced to her   
are one or two4    ,true4    ,and if    

they turn out to be two1 is not each of 
them one and different8    ,certainly4  
#bbf    ,and if each is one1 and both   
are two1 she will conceive the          
99#ebd;,c99 two as  in a state of       
division1 for if there were undivided   
they could only be  conceived of as one8
    ,true4    ,the eye certainly did see
 both small and great1 but only in a    
confused  manner2 they were not         
distinguished4    ,yes4    ,sidenote3   
,the chaos then begins to be defined4   
,whereas the thinking mind1 intending to
 light up the chaos1 was compelled  to  
reverse the process1 and look at small  
and great as separate and not  confused4
    ,very true4    ,was not this the    
beginning of the enquiry ',what is      
great8' and ',what is  small8'          
,exactly so4    ,sidenote3 ,the parting 
of the visible and intelligible4    ,and
 thus arose the distinction of the      
visible and the intelligible4           
99#ebd;,d99 ,most true4    ,this was    
what ,i meant when ,i spoke of          

impressions which invited the           
intellect1 or the reverse--those which  
are simultaneous with opposite          
impressions1 invite thought2 those which
 are not simultaneous do not4    ,i     
understand1 he said1 and agree with you4
    ,and to which class do unity and    
number belong8    ,i do not know1 he    
replied4    ,sidenote3 ,thought is      
aroused by the contradiction of the one 
and many4    ,think a little and you    
will see that what has preceded will    
supply the  answer2 for if simple unity 
could be adequately perceived by the    
sight or  by any other sense1 then1     
99#ebd;,e99 as we were saying in the    
case of the  finger1 there would be     
nothing to attract towards being2 but   
when there is  some contradiction always
 present1 and one is the reverse of one 
and  involves the conception of         
plurality1 then thought begins to be    
aroused  within us1 and the soul        
perplexed and wanting to arrive at a    
decision asks  ',what is absolute       

unity8' ,this 99#ebe;,a99 is the way in 
which the study of the  one has a power 
of drawing and converting the mind to   
the contemplation of  true being4       
,and surely1 he said1 this occurs       
notably in the case of one2 for we see  
the same thing to be both one and       
infinite in multitude8    ,yes1 ,i said2
 and this being true of one must be     
equally true of all  number8 #bbg       
,certainly4    ,and all arithmetic and  
calculation have to do with number8     
,yes4    99#ebe;,b99 ,and they appear to
 lead the mind towards truth8    ,yes1  
in a very remarkable manner4            
,sidenote3 ,arithmetic has a practical  
and also a philosophical use1 the       
latter the higher4    ,then this is     
knowledge of the kind for which we are  
seeking1 having a  double use1 military 
and philosophical2 for the man of war   
must learn the  art of number or he will
 not know how to array his troops1 and  
the  philosopher also1 because he has to
 rise out of the sea of change and lay  

hold of true being1 and therefore he    
must be an arithmetician4    ,that is   
true4    ,and our guardian is both      
warrior and philosopher8    ,certainly4 
,then this is a kind of knowledge which 
legislation may fitly prescribe2  and we
 must endeavour to persuade those       
99#ebe;,c99 who are to be the principal 
men of our ,state to go and learn       
arithmetic1 not as amateurs1 but they   
must carry on the study until they see  
the nature of numbers with the mind     
only2 nor again1 like merchants or      
retail-traders1 with a view to buying   
or selling1 but for the sake of their   
military use1 and of the soul  herself2 
and because this will be the easiest way
 for her to pass from  becoming to truth
 and being4    ,that is excellent1 he   
said4    ,yes1 ,i said1 and now having  
spoken of it1 ,i must add 99#ebe;,d99   
how charming  the science is6 and in how
 many ways it conduces to our desired   
end1 if  pursued in the spirit of a     
philosopher1 and not of a shopkeeper6   

,how do you mean8    ,sidenote3 ,the    
higher arithmetic is concerned1 not with
 visible or  tangible objects1 but with 
abstract numbers4    ,i mean1 as ,i was 
saying1 that arithmetic has a very great
 and elevating  effect1 compelling the  
soul to reason about abstract number1   
and rebelling  against the introduction 
of visible or tangible objects into the 
argument4  ,you know 99#ebe;,e99 how    
steadily the masters of the art repel   
and ridicule any  one who attempts to   
divide absolute unity when he is        
calculating1 and if  you divide1 they   
multiply#d1 taking care that one shall  
continue one and  not become lost in    
fractions4 #bbh    ,footnote #d3        
,meaning either 7#a7 that they integrate
 the number because  they deny the      
possibility of fractions2 or 7#b7 that  
division is regarded  by them as a      
process of multiplication1 for the      
fractions of one continue  to be units4 
,that is very true4    99#ebf;,a99 ,now1
 suppose a person were to say to them3  

,o my friends1 what are  these wonderful
 numbers about which you are reasoning1 
in which1 as you  say1 there is a unity 
such as you demand1 and each unit is    
equal1  invariable1 indivisible1--what  
would they answer8    ,they would       
answer1 as ,i should conceive1 that they
 were speaking of those  numbers which  
can only be realized in thought4        
,then you see that this knowledge may be
 truly called 99#ebf;,b99 necessary1    
necessitating as it clearly does the use
 of the pure intelligence in the        
attainment of pure truth8    ,yes2 that 
is a marked characteristic of it4       
,sidenote3 ,the arithmetician is        
naturally quick1 and the study of       
arithmetic gives him still greater      
quickness4    ,and have you further     
observed1 that those who have a natural 
talent for  calculation are generally   
quick at every other kind of knowledge2 
and even  the dull1 if they have had an 
arithmetical training1 although they may
  derive no other advantage from it1    

always become much quicker than they    
would otherwise have been4    ,very     
true1 he said4    99#ebf;,c99 ,and      
indeed1 you will not easily find a more 
difficult study1 and  not many as       
difficult4    ,you will not4    ,and1   
for all these reasons1 arithmetic is a  
kind of knowledge in which the  best    
natures should be trained1 and which    
must not be given up4    ,i agree4      
,let this then be made one of our       
subjects of education4 ,and next1 shall 
we  enquire whether the kindred science 
also concerns us8    ,you mean geometry8
    ,exactly so4    ,sidenote3 ,geometry
 has practical applications2            
99#ebf;,d99 ,clearly1 he said1 we are   
concerned with that part of geometry    
which  relates to war2 for in pitching a
 camp1 or taking up a position1 or      
closing or extending the lines of an    
army1 or any other military  manoeuvre1 
whether in actual battle or on a march1 
it will make all the  difference whether
 a general is or is not a geometrician4 

,sidenote3 these however are trifling in
 comparison with that greater part  of  
the science which tends towards the     
good1    ,yes1 ,i said1 but for that    
purpose a very little of either geometry
 or  calculation will be enough2 the    
question relates #bbi rather to the     
greater and more advanced part of       
geometry-- 99#ebf;,e99 whether that     
tends in  any degree to make more easy  
the vision of the idea of good2 and     
thither1  as ,i was saying1 all things  
tend which compel the soul to turn her  
gaze  towards that place1 where is the  
full perfection of being1 which she     
ought1 by all means1 to behold4         
,true1 he said4    ,then if geometry    
compels us to view being1 it concerns   
us2 if becoming  only1 it does not      
concern us8    99#ebg;,a99 ,yes1 that is
 what we assert4    ,yet anybody who has
 the least acquaintance with geometry   
will not deny  that such a conception of
 the science is in flat contradiction to
 the  ordinary language of              

geometricians4    ,how so8    ,they have
 in view practice only1 and are always  
speaking1 in a narrow and  ridiculous   
manner1 of squaring and extending and   
applying and the  like--they confuse the
 necessities of geometry with those of  
daily life2  whereas knowledge is the   
99#ebg;,b99 real object of the whole    
science4    ,certainly1 he said4        
,then must not a further admission be   
made8    ,what admission8    ,sidenote3 
and is concerned with the eternal4      
,that the knowledge at which geometry   
aims is knowledge of the eternal1 and   
not of aught perishing and transient4   
,that1 he replied1 may be readily       
allowed1 and is true4    ,then1 my noble
 friend1 geometry will draw the soul    
towards truth1 and  create the spirit of
 philosophy1 and raise up that which is 
now unhappily  allowed to fall down4    
,nothing will be more likely to have    
such an effect4    99#ebg;,c99 ,then    
nothing should be more sternly laid down
 than that the  inhabitants of your fair

 city should by all means learn         
geometry4 ,moreover  the science has    
indirect effects1 which are not small4  
,of what kind8 he said4    ,there are   
the military advantages of which you    
spoke1 ,i said2 and in all  departments 
of knowledge1 as experience proves1 any 
one who has studied  geometry is        
infinitely quicker of apprehension than 
one who has not4    ,yes indeed1 he     
said1 there is an infinite difference   
between them4 #bcj    ,then shall we    
propose this as a second branch of      
knowledge which our youth  will study8  
,let us do so1 he replied4              
99#ebg;,d99 ,and suppose we make        
astronomy the third--what do you say8   
,sidenote3 ,astronomy1 like the previous
 sciences1 is at first praised by       
,glaucon for its practical uses4    ,i  
am strongly inclined to it1 he said2 the
 observation of the seasons and  of     
months and years is as essential to the 
general as it is to the farmer  or      
sailor4    ,i am amused1 ,i said1 at    

your fear of the world1 which makes you 
guard  against the appearance of        
insisting upon useless studies2 and ,i  
quite  admit the difficulty of believing
 that in every man there is an eye of   
the  soul which1 when by 99#ebg;,e99    
other pursuits lost and dimmed1 is by   
these  purified and re-illumined2 and is
 more precious far than ten thousand    
bodily eyes1 for by it alone is truth   
seen4 ,now there are two classes of     
persons3 one class of those who will    
agree with you and will take your  words
 as a revelation2 another class         
99#ebh;,a99 to whom they will be utterly
  unmeaning1 and who will naturally deem
 them to be idle tales1 for they see  no
 sort of profit which is to be obtained 
from them4 ,and therefore you had       
better decide at once with which of the 
two you are proposing to argue4  ,you   
will very likely say with neither1 and  
that your chief aim in carrying  on the 
argument is your own improvement2 at the
 same time you do not  grudge to others 

any benefit which they may receive4     
,i think that ,i should prefer to carry 
on the argument mainly on my own        
behalf4    ,sidenote3 ,correction of the
 order4    ,then take a step backward1  
for we have gone wrong in the order of  
the  sciences4    ,what was the mistake8
 he said4    ,after plane geometry1 ,i  
said1 we proceeded at once to           
99#ebh;,b99 solids in  revolution1      
instead of taking solids in themselves2 
whereas after the  second dimension the 
third1 which is concerned with cubes and
 dimensions  of depth1 ought to have    
followed4    ,that is true1 ,socrates2  
but so little seems to be known as yet  
about these  subjects4    ,sidenote3    
,the pitiable condition of solid        
geometry4    ,why1 yes1 ,i said1 and for
 two reasons3--in the first place1 no   
government  patronises them2 this leads 
to a want of energy in the pursuit of   
them1  and they are difficult2 in the   
#bca second place1 students cannot learn
  them unless they have a director4 ,but

 then a director can hardly be found1   
and even 99#ebh;,c99 if he could1 as    
matters now stand1 the students1 who are
  very conceited1 would not attend to   
him4 ,that1 however1 would be otherwise 
if the whole ,state became the director 
of these studies and gave honour to     
them2 then disciples would want to come1
 and there would be continuous and      
earnest search1 and discoveries would be
 made2 since even now1 disregarded  as  
they are by the world1 and maimed of    
their fair proportions1 and  although   
none of their votaries can tell the use 
of them1 still these  studies force     
their way by their natural charm1 and   
very likely1 if they  had the help of   
the ,state1 they would some day emerge  
into light4    99#ebh;,d99 ,yes1 he     
said1 there is a remarkable charm in    
them4 ,but ,i do not  clearly understand
 the change in the order4 ,first you    
began with a  geometry of plane         
surfaces8    ,yes1 ,i said4    ,and you 
placed astronomy next1 and then you made

 a step backward8    ,sidenote3 ,the    
motion of solids4    ,yes1 and ,i have  
delayed you by my hurry2 the ludicrous  
state of solid  geometry1 which1 in     
natural order1 should have followed1    
made me pass over  this branch and go on
 to 99#ebh;,e99 astronomy1 or motion of 
solids4    ,true1 he said4    ,then     
assuming that the science now omitted   
would come into existence if  encouraged
 by the ,state1 let us go on to         
astronomy1 which will be fourth4        
,sidenote3 ,glaucon grows sentimental   
about astronomy4    ,the right order1 he
 replied4 ,and now1 ,socrates1 as you   
rebuked the vulgar  manner in which ,i  
praised astronomy 99#ebi;,a99 before1 my
 praise shall be  given in your own     
spirit4 ,for every one1 as ,i think1    
must see that  astronomy compels the    
soul to look upwards and leads us from  
this world to  another4    ,every one   
but myself1 ,i said2 to every one else  
this may be clear1 but not  to me4      
,and what then would you say8    ,i     

should rather say that those who elevate
 astronomy into philosophy  appear to me
 to make us look downwards and not      
upwards4    ,what do you mean8 he asked4
 #bcb    ,sidenote3 ,he is rebuked by   
,socrates1    ,you1 ,i replied1 have in 
your mind a truly sublime conception of 
our  knowledge of the things above4 ,and
 ,i dare 99#ebi;,b99 say that if a      
person were  to throw his head back and 
study the fretted ceiling1 you would    
still  think that his mind was the      
percipient1 and not his eyes4 ,and you  
are very  likely right1 and ,i may be a 
simpleton3 but1 in my opinion1 that     
knowledge  only which is of being and of
 the unseen can make the soul look      
upwards1  and whether a man gapes at the
 heavens or blinks on the ground1       
seeking to  learn some particular of    
sense1 ,i would deny that he can learn1 
for 99#ebi;,c99  nothing of that sort is
 matter of science2 his soul is looking 
downwards1  not upwards1 whether his way
 to knowledge is by water or by land1   

whether  he floats1 or only lies on his 
back4    ,sidenote3 who explains that   
the higher astronomy is an abstract     
science4    ,i acknowledge1 he said1 the
 justice of your rebuke4 ,still1 ,i     
should like  to ascertain how astronomy 
can be learned in any manner more       
conducive to  that knowledge of which we
 are speaking8    ,i will tell you1 ,i  
said3 ,the starry heaven which we behold
 is wrought upon  a visible ground1 and 
therefore1 99#ebi;,d99 although the     
fairest and most  perfect of visible    
things1 must necessarily be deemed      
inferior far to the  true motions of    
absolute swiftness and absolute         
slowness1 which are  relative to each   
other1 and carry with them that which is
 contained in  them1 in the true number 
and in every true figure4 ,now1 these   
are to be  apprehended by reason and    
intelligence1 but not by sight4         
,true1 he replied4    ,the spangled     
heavens should be used as a pattern and 
with a view to that  higher knowledge2  

their beauty is like 99#ebi;,e99 the    
beauty of figures or  pictures          
excellently wrought by the hand of      
,daedalus1 or some other great  artist1 
which we may chance to behold2 any      
geometrician who saw them would         
appreciate the exquisiteness of their   
workmanship1 but he would never  dream  
of thinking that in them he could find  
the true equal or the true  double1 or  
the truth of any 99#ecj;,a99 other      
proportion4    ,no1 he replied1 such an 
idea would be ridiculous4    ,and will  
not a true astronomer have the same     
feeling when he looks at the  movements 
of the stars8 ,will he not think that   
heaven and the things in  heaven are    
framed by the #bcc ,creator of them in  
the most perfect manner8  ,but he will  
never imagine that the proportions of   
night and day1 or of  both to the month1
 or of the month to the year1 or of the 
99#ecj;,b99 stars to  these and to one  
another1 and any other things that are  
material and  visible can also be       

eternal and subject to no               
deviation--that would be  absurd2 and it
 is equally absurd to take so much pains
 in investigating  their exact truth4   
,i quite agree1 though ,i never thought 
of this before4    ,sidenote3 ,the real 
knowledge of astronomy or geometry is to
 be attained  by the use of             
abstractions4    ,then1 ,i said1 in     
astronomy1 as in geometry1 we should    
employ problems1 and  let the heavens   
alone if we would approach the subject  
in the right way  and so make the       
99#ecj;,c99 natural gift of reason to be
 of any real use4    ,that1 he said1 is 
a work infinitely beyond our present    
astronomers4    ,yes1 ,i said2 and there
 are many other things which must also  
have a  similar extension given to them1
 if our legislation is to be of any     
value4  ,but can you tell me of any     
other suitable study8    ,no1 he said1  
not without thinking4    ,motion1 ,i    
said1 has many forms1 and not one only2 
two of 99#ecj;,d99 them are  obvious    

enough even to wits no better than ours2
 and there are others1 as  ,i imagine1  
which may be left to wiser persons4     
,but where are the two8    ,there is a  
second1 ,i said1 which is the           
counterpart of the one already  named4  
,and what may that be8    ,sidenote3    
,what astronomy is to the eye1 harmonics
 are to the ear4    ,the second1 ,i     
said1 would seem relatively to the ears 
to be what the first  is to the eyes2   
for ,i conceive that as the eyes are    
designed to look up at  the stars1 so   
are the ears to hear harmonious motions2
 and these are  sister sciences--as the 
,pythagoreans say1 and we1 ,glaucon1    
agree with  them8    ,yes1 he replied4  
99#ecj;,e99 ,but this1 ,i said1 is a    
laborious study1 and therefore we had   
better  go and learn of them2 and they  
will tell us whether there are any other
  applications of these sciences4 ,at   
the same time1 we must not lose sight   
of our own higher object4    ,what is   
that8    ,sidenote3 ,they must be       

studied with a view to the good and not 
after the  fashion of the empirics or   
even of the ,pythagoreans4    ,there is 
a perfection which all knowledge ought  
to reach1 #bcd and which  our pupils    
ought also to attain1 and not to fall   
short of1 as ,i was saying  that they   
did in astronomy4 99#eca;,a99 ,for in   
the science of harmony1 as you  probably
 know1 the same thing happens4 ,the     
teachers of harmony compare the  sounds 
and consonances which are heard only1   
and their labour1 like that  of the     
astronomers1 is in vain4    ,yes1 by    
heaven6 he said2 and 'tis as good as a  
play to hear them talking  about their  
condensed notes1 as they call them2 they
 put their ears close  alongside of the 
strings like persons catching a sound   
from their  neighbour's wall#e--one set 
of them declaring that they distinguish 
an  intermediate note and have found the
 least interval which should be the     
unit of measurement2 the others         
insisting that the two sounds have      

passed  into the same--either party     
setting 99#eca;,b99 their ears before   
their  understanding4    ,footnote #e3  
,or1 'close alongside of their          
neighbour's instruments1 as if  to catch
 a sound from them4'    ,you mean1 ,i   
said1 those gentlemen who tease and     
torture the strings and  rack them on   
the pegs of the instrument3 ,i might    
carry on the metaphor and  speak after  
their manner of the blows which the     
plectrum gives1 and make  accusations   
against the strings1 both of            
backwardness and forwardness to  sound2 
but this would be tedious1 and therefore
 ,i will only say that these  are not   
the men1 and that ,i am referring to the
 ,pythagoreans1 of whom  ,i was just now
 proposing to enquire about harmony4    
,for they too are in  error1 like the   
99#eca;,c99 astronomers2 they           
investigate the numbers of the          
harmonies which are heard1 but they     
never attain to problems--that is to    
say1 they never reach the natural       

harmonies of number1 or reflect why some
  numbers are harmonious and others not4
    ,that1 he said1 is a thing of more  
than mortal knowledge4    ,a thing1 ,i  
replied1 which ,i would rather call     
useful2 that is1 if sought  after with a
 view to the beautiful and good2 but if 
pursued in any other  spirit1 useless4  
,very true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,all 
these studies must be correlated with   
one another4    ,now1 when all these    
studies reach the point of              
inter-communion 99#eca;,d99 and         
connection with one another1 and come to
 be considered in their mutual          
affinities1 then1 ,i think1 but not till
 then1 will the pursuit of them  have a 
value for our objects2 otherwise there  
is no profit in them4 #bce    ,i suspect
 so2 but you are speaking1 ,socrates1 of
 a vast work4    ,what do you mean8 ,i  
said2 the prelude or what8 ,do you not  
know that all  this is but the prelude  
to the actual strain which we have to   
learn8 ,for  you surely would not       

99#eca;,e99 regard the skilled          
mathematician as a  dialectician8       
,sidenote3 ,want of reasoning power in  
mathematicians4    ,assuredly not1 he   
said2 ,i have hardly ever known a       
mathematician who was  capable of       
reasoning4    ,but do you imagine that  
men who are unable to give and take a   
reason will  have the knowledge which we
 require of them8    ,neither can this  
be supposed4    ,sidenote3 ,dialectic   
proceeds by reason only1 without any    
help of sense4    99#ecb;,a99 ,and so1  
,glaucon1 ,i said1 we have at last      
arrived at the hymn of  dialectic4 ,this
 is that strain which is of the         
intellect only1 but which  the faculty  
of sight will nevertheless be found to  
imitate2 for sight1 as  you may         
remember1 was imagined by us after a    
while to behold the real  animals and   
stars1 and last of all the sun himself4 
,and so with dialectic2  when a person  
starts on the discovery of the absolute 
by the light of  reason only1 and       

without any assistance of sense1 and    
perseveres 99#ecb;,b99  until by pure   
intelligence he arrives at the          
perception of the absolute  good1 he at 
last finds himself at the end of the    
intellectual world1 as in  the case of  
sight at the end of the visible4        
,exactly1 he said4    ,then this is the 
progress which you call dialectic8      
,true4    ,sidenote3 ,the gradual       
acquirement of dialectic by the pursuit 
of the arts  anticipated in the allegory
 of the den4    ,but the release of the 
prisoners from chains1 and their        
translation from  the shadows to the    
images and to the light1 and the ascent 
from the  underground den to the sun1   
while in his presence they are vainly   
trying  to look on animals and plants   
and the light of the sun1 but are able  
to  perceive 99#ecb;,c99 even with their
 weak eyes the images#f in the water    
7which are divine71 and are the shadows 
of true existence 7not shadows of       
images cast by a light of fire1 which   

compared with the sun is only an        
image7--this power of elevating the     
highest principle in the soul to the    
contemplation of that which is best in  
existence1 with which we may  compare   
the raising of that #bcf faculty which  
is the very light of the  body to the   
sight of that which is brightest in the 
material and visible  world--this power 
is given1 as ,i was saying1 by all that 
study and pursuit  99#ecb;,d99 of the   
arts which has been described4          
,footnote #f3 ,omitting ,greek3         
e7ntautha de pros phanta_/smata4 ,the   
word  ,greek3 theia is bracketed by     
,stallbaum4    ,i agree in what you are 
saying1 he replied1 which may be hard to
 believe1  yet1 from another point of   
view1 is harder still to deny4 ,this1   
however1  is not a theme to be treated  
of in passing only1 but will have to be 
discussed again and again4 ,and so1     
whether our conclusion be true or       
false1 let us assume all this1 and      
proceed at once from the prelude or     

preamble to the chief strain#g1 and     
describe that in like manner4 ,say1     
then1 what is the nature and what are   
the divisions of 99#ecb;,e99 dialectic1 
and what are the paths which lead       
thither2 for these paths will also lead 
to our final rest4    ,footnote #g3 ,a  
play upon the word ,greek3 no_/mos1     
which means both 'law'  and 'strain4'   
,sidenote3 ,the nature of dialectic can 
only be revealed to those who have  been
 students of the preliminary sciences1  
99#ecc;,a99 ,dear ,glaucon1 ,i said1 you
 will not be able to follow me here1    
though ,i would do my best1 and you     
should behold not an image only but the 
absolute truth1 according to my notion4 
,whether what ,i told you would or      
would not have been a reality ,i cannot 
venture to say2 but you would have  seen
 something like reality2 of that ,i am  
confident4    ,doubtless1 he replied4   
,but ,i must also remind you1 that the  
power of dialectic alone can reveal     
this1 and only to one who is a disciple 

of the previous sciences4    ,of that   
assertion you may be as confident as of 
the last4    99#ecc;,b99 ,and assuredly 
no one will argue that there is any     
other method of  comprehending by any   
regular process all true existence or of
 ascertaining  what each thing is in its
 own nature2 for the arts in general are
  concerned with the desires or opinions
 of men1 or are cultivated with a  view 
to production and construction1 or for  
the preservation of such  productions   
and constructions2 and as to the        
mathematical sciences which1  as we were
 saying1 have some apprehension of true 
being--geometry and the  like--they only
 dream about 99#ecc;,c99 being1 but     
never can they behold the  waking       
reality so long as they leave the       
hypotheses which they use  unexamined1  
and are unable to give an account of    
them4 ,for when a man  knows not his own
 first principle1 and when the          
conclusion #bcg and  intermediate steps 
are also constructed out of he knows not

 what1 how can  he imagine that such a  
fabric of convention can ever become    
science8    ,impossible1 he said4       
,sidenote3 which are her handmaids4     
,then dialectic1 and dialectic alone1   
goes directly to the first principle    
and is the only science which does away 
with hypotheses in order to make  her   
ground secure2 the eye of 99#ecc;,d99   
the soul1 which is literally buried  in 
an outlandish slough1 is by her gentle  
aid lifted upwards2 and she uses  as    
handmaids and helpers in the work of    
conversion1 the sciences which we  have 
been discussing4 ,custom terms them     
sciences1 but they ought to have  some  
other name1 implying greater clearness  
than opinion and less  clearness than   
science3 and this1 in our previous      
sketch1 was called  understanding4 ,but 
why 99#ecc;,e99 should we dispute about 
names when we have  realities of such   
importance to consider8    ,why indeed1 
he said1 when any name will do which    
expresses the thought of  the mind with 

clearness8    ,sidenote3 ,two divisions 
of the mind1 intellect and opinion1 each
 having  two subdivisions4    ,at any   
rate1 we are satisfied1 as before1 to   
have four divisions2 two for  intellect 
and two for opinion1 and to call the    
first division science1 the  second     
understanding1 the third belief1 and the
 fourth perception of  shadows1 opinion 
99#ecd;,a99 being concerned with        
becoming1 and intellect with  being2 and
 so to make a proportion3--      ,as    
being is to becoming1 so is pure        
intellect to opinion4    ,and as        
intellect is to opinion1 so is science  
to belief1 and    understanding to the  
perception of shadows4    ,but let us   
defer the further correlation and       
subdivision of the subjects  of opinion 
and of intellect1 for it will be a long 
enquiry1 many times  longer than this   
has been4    99#ecd;,b99 ,as far as ,i  
understand1 he said1 ,i agree4    ,and  
do you also agree1 ,i said1 in          
describing the dialectician as one who  

attains a conception of the essence of  
each thing8 ,and he who does not        
possess and is therefore unable to      
impart this conception1 in whatever     
degree he fails1 may in that degree also
 be said to fail in intelligence8  ,will
 you admit so much8    ,yes1 he said2   
how can ,i deny it8    ,sidenote3 ,no   
truth which does not rest on the idea of
 good    ,and you would say the same of 
the conception of the good8 ,until the  
person  is able to abstract and define  
rationally the #bch 99#ecd;,c99 idea of 
good1  and unless he can run the        
gauntlet of all objections1 and is ready
 to  disprove them1 not by appeals to   
opinion1 but to absolute truth1 never   
faltering at any step of the            
argument--unless he can do all this1 you
  would say that he knows neither the   
idea of good nor any other good2 he     
apprehends only a shadow1 if anything at
 all1 which is given by opinion  and not
 by science2--dreaming and slumbering in
 this life1 before he is  well awake    

here1 he 99#ecd;,d99 arrives at the     
world below1 and has his final  quietus4
    ,in all that ,i should most         
certainly agree with you4    ,and surely
 you would not have the children of your
 ideal ,state1 whom you  are nurturing  
and educating--if the ideal ever becomes
 a reality--you  would not allow the    
future rulers to be like posts#h1 having
 no reason in  them1 and yet to be set  
in authority over the highest matters8  
,footnote #h3 ,greek3 gramma_/s4        
literally 'lines1' probably the         
starting-point of a race-course4        
,certainly not4    ,then you will make a
 law that they shall have such an       
education as will  enable them to attain
 the greatest skill in asking and       
answering  questions8    99#ecd;,e99    
,yes1 he said1 you and ,i together will 
make it4    ,sidenote3 ought to have a  
high place4    ,dialectic1 then1 as you 
will agree1 is the coping-stone of the  
sciences1  and is set over them2 no     
other science can be 99#ece;,a99 placed 

higher--the  nature of knowledge can no 
further go8    ,i agree1 he said4       
,but to whom we are to assign these     
studies1 and in what way they are to be 
assigned1 are questions which remain to 
be considered4    ,yes1 clearly4    ,you
 remember1 ,i said1 how the rulers were 
chosen before8    ,certainly1 he said4  
,the same natures must still be chosen1 
and the preference again given to  the  
surest and the bravest1 and1 if         
possible1 99#ece;,b99 to the fairest2   
and1  having noble and generous tempers1
 they should also have the natural gifts
  which will facilitate their education4
    ,and what are these8    ,sidenote3  
,the natural gifts which are required in
 the dialectician3 a  towardly          
understanding2 a good memory2 strength  
of character2    ,such gifts as keenness
 and ready powers of acquisition2 for   
the mind more  often faints from the    
severity of study #bci than from the    
severity of  gymnastics3 the toil is    
more entirely the mind's own1 and is not

 shared  with the body4    ,very true1  
he replied4    99#ece;,c99 ,further1 he 
of whom we are in search should have a  
good memory1 and  be an unwearied solid 
man who is a lover of labour in any     
line2 or he will  never be able to      
endure the great amount of bodily       
exercise and to go  through all the     
intellectual discipline and study which 
we require of him4    ,certainly1 he    
said2 he must have natural gifts4       
,the mistake at present is1 that those  
who study philosophy have no  vocation1 
and this1 as ,i was before saying1 is   
the reason why she has  fallen into     
disrepute3 her true sons should take her
 by the hand and not  bastards4    ,what
 do you mean8    ,sidenote3 industry2   
99#ece;,d99 ,in the first place1 her    
votary should not have a lame or halting
  industry--,i mean1 that he should not 
be half industrious and half idle3  as1 
for example1 when a man is a lover of   
gymnastic and hunting1 and all  other   
bodily exercises1 but a hater rather    

than a lover of the labour of  learning 
or listening or enquiring4 ,or the      
occupation to which he devotes  himself 
may be of an opposite kind1 and he may  
have the other sort of  lameness4       
,certainly1 he said4    ,sidenote3 love 
of truth2    ,and as to truth1 ,i said1 
is not a soul equally to be deemed      
99#ece;,e99 halt  and lame which hates  
voluntary falsehood and is extremely    
indignant at  herself and others when   
they tell lies1 but is patient of       
involuntary  falsehood1 and does not    
mind wallowing like a swinish beast in  
the mire of  ignorance1 and has no shame
 at being detected8    ,to be sure4     
,sidenote3 the moral virtues4           
99#ecf;,a99 ,and1 again1 in respect of  
temperance1 courage1 magnificence1 and  
every other virtue1 should we not       
carefully distinguish between the true  
son and the bastard8 for where there is 
no discernment of such qualities  states
 and individuals unconsciously err2 and 
the state makes a ruler1 and  the       

individual a friend1 of one who1 being  
defective in some part of  virtue1 is in
 a figure lame or a bastard4    ,that is
 very true1 he said4    ,all these      
things1 then1 will have to be carefully 
considered 99#ecf;,b99 by us2  and if   
only those whom we introduce to this    
vast #bdj system of education  and      
training are sound in body and mind1    
justice herself will have nothing  to   
say against us1 and we shall be the     
saviours of the constitution and of  the
 ,state2 but1 if our pupils are men of  
another stamp1 the reverse will  happen1
 and we shall pour a still greater flood
 of ridicule on philosophy  than she has
 to endure at present4    ,that would   
not be creditable4    ,sidenote3        
,socrates plays a little with himself   
and his subject4    ,certainly not1 ,i  
said2 and yet perhaps1 in thus turning  
jest into earnest  ,i am equally        
ridiculous4    ,in what respect8        
99#ecf;,c99 ,i had forgotten1 ,i said1  
that we were not serious1 and spoke with

  too much excitement4 ,for when ,i saw 
philosophy so undeservedly trampled     
under foot of men ,i could not help     
feeling a sort of indignation at the    
authors of her disgrace3 and my anger   
made me too vehement4    ,indeed6 ,i was
 listening1 and did not think so4       
,sidenote3 ,for the study of dialectic  
the young must be selected4    ,but ,i1 
who am the speaker1 felt that ,i was4   
,and now let me remind you  that1       
although in our former selection we     
99#ecf;,d99 chose old men1 we must  not 
do so in this4 ,solon was under a       
delusion when he said that a man when   
he grows old may learn many things--for 
he can no more learn much than he  can  
run much2 youth is the time for any     
extraordinary toil4    ,of course4      
,sidenote3 ,the preliminary studies     
should be commenced in childhood1 but   
never forced4    ,and1 therefore1       
calculation and geometry and all the    
other elements of  instruction1 which   
are a preparation for dialectic1 should 

be presented to  the mind in childhood2 
not1 however1 under any notion of       
forcing our  system of education4       
,why not8    99#ecf;,e99 ,because a     
freeman ought not to be a slave in the  
acquisition of  knowledge of any kind4  
,bodily exercise1 when compulsory1 does 
no harm to  the body2 but knowledge     
which is acquired under compulsion      
obtains no hold  on the mind4    ,very  
true4    ,then1 my good friend1 ,i said1
 do not use compulsion1 but 99#ecg;,a99 
let early  education be a sort of       
amusement2 you will then be better able 
to find out  the natural bent4    ,that 
is a very rational notion1 he said4     
,do you remember that the children1 too1
 were to be taken #bda to see the       
battle on horseback2 and that if there  
were no danger they were to be  brought 
close up and1 like young hounds1 have a 
taste of blood given them8    ,yes1 ,i  
remember4    ,the same practice may be  
followed1 ,i said1 in all these         
things--labours1  lessons1 dangers--and 

he who is most at home in all of them   
ought to be  enrolled in a select       
number4    99#ecg;,b99 ,at what age8    
,sidenote3 ,the necessary gymnastics    
must be completed first4    ,at the age 
when the necessary gymnastics are over3 
the period whether of  two or three     
years which passes in this sort of      
training is useless for  any other      
purpose2 for sleep and exercise are     
unpropitious to learning2  and the trial
 of who is first in gymnastic exercises 
is one of the most  important tests to  
which our youth are subjected4          
,certainly1 he replied4    ,sidenote2   
,at twenty years of age the disciples   
will begin to be taught  the correlation
 of the sciences4    ,after that time   
those who are selected from the class of
 twenty years old  will be promoted to  
higher honour1 and the 99#ecg;,c99      
sciences which they  learned without any
 order in their early education will now
 be brought  together1 and they will be 
able to see the natural relationship of 

them to  one another and to true being4 
,yes1 he said1 that is the only kind of 
knowledge which takes lasting root4     
,yes1 ,i said2 and the capacity for such
 knowledge is the great criterion of    
dialectical talent3 the comprehensive   
mind is always the dialectical4    ,i   
agree with you1 he said4    ,sidenote3  
,at thirty the most promising will be   
placed in a select class4    ,these1 ,i 
said1 are the points which you must     
consider2 99#ecg;,d99 and those  who    
have most of this comprehension1 and who
 are most steadfast in their  learning1 
and in their military and other         
appointed duties1 when they have        
arrived at the age of thirty have to be 
chosen by you out of the select  class1 
and elevated to higher honour2 and you  
will have to prove them by  the help of 
dialectic1 in order to learn which of   
them is able to give up  the use of     
sight and the other senses1 and in      
company with truth to attain  absolute  
being3 ,and here1 my friend1 great      

caution is required4    ,why great      
caution8    ,sidenote3 ,the growth of   
scepticism    99#ecg;,e99 ,do you not   
remark1 ,i said1 how great is the evil  
which dialectic  has introduced8 #bdb   
,what evil8 he said4    ,the students of
 the art are filled with lawlessness4   
,quite true1 he said4    ,do you think  
that there is anything so very unnatural
 or inexcusable in  their case8 or will 
you make allowance for them8    ,in what
 way make allowance8    ,sidenote3 in   
the minds of the young illustrated by   
the case of a  supposititious son1    ,i
 want you1 ,i said1 by way of parallel1 
to imagine a supposititious son  who is 
brought up in great wealth2 he          
99#ech;,a99 is one of a great and       
numerous family1 and has many           
flatterers4 ,when he grows up to        
manhood1 he  learns that his alleged are
 not his real parents2 but who the real 
are he  is unable to discover4 ,can you 
guess how he will be likely to behave   
towards his flatterers and his supposed 

parents1 first of all during the  period
 when he is ignorant of the false       
relation1 and then again when he  knows8
 ,or shall ,i guess for you8    ,if you 
please4    ,sidenote3 who ceases to     
honour his father when he discovers that
 he is  not his father4    ,then ,i     
should say1 that while he is ignorant of
 the truth 99#ech;,b99 he will  be      
likely to honour his father and his     
mother and his supposed relations  more 
than the flatterers2 he will be less    
inclined to neglect them when in  need1 
or to do or say anything against them2  
and he will be less willing  to disobey 
them in any important matter4    ,he    
will4    ,but when he has made the      
discovery1 ,i should imagine that he    
would  diminish his honour and regard   
for them1 and would become more devoted 
to  the flatterers2 their influence over
 him would greatly increase2 he would   
now live after 99#ech;,c99 their ways1  
and openly associate with them1 and1    
unless he were of an unusually good     

disposition1 he would trouble himself   
no more about his supposed parents or   
other relations4    ,well1 all that is  
very probable4 ,but how is the image    
applicable to the  disciples of         
philosophy8    ,in this way3 you know   
that there are certain principles about 
justice and  honour1 which were taught  
us in childhood1 and under their        
parental  authority we have been brought
 up1 obeying and honouring them4        
,that is true4    99#ech;,d99 ,there are
 also opposite maxims and habits of     
pleasure #bdc which  flatter and attract
 the soul1 but do not influence those of
 us who have  any sense of right1 and   
they continue to obey and honour the    
maxims of  their fathers4    ,true4     
,sidenote3 ,so men who begin to analyse 
the first principles of morality  cease 
to respect them4    ,now1 when a man is 
in this state1 and the questioning      
spirit asks what is  fair or honourable1
 and he answers as the legislator has   
taught him1 and  then arguments many and

 diverse refute his words1 until he is  
driven into  believing that nothing is  
honourable any more than dishonourable1 
or  99#ech;,e99 just and good any more  
than the reverse1 and so of all the     
notions  which he most valued1 do you   
think that he will still honour and obey
 them  as before8    ,impossible4       
,and when he ceases to think them       
honourable and natural 99#eci;,a99 as   
heretofore1 and he fails to discover the
 true1 can he be expected to  pursue any
 life other than that which flatters his
 desires8    ,he cannot4    ,and from   
being a keeper of the law he is         
converted into a breaker of it8         
,unquestionably4    ,now all this is    
very natural in students of philosophy  
such as ,i have  described1 and also1 as
 ,i was just now saying1 most excusable4
    ,yes1 he said2 and1 ,i may add1     
pitiable4    ,therefore1 that your      
feelings may not be moved to pity about 
our citizens  who are now thirty years  
of age1 every care must be taken in     

introducing  them to dialectic4         
,certainly4    ,sidenote3 ,young men are
 fond of pulling truth to pieces and    
thus bring  disgrace upon themselves and
 upon philosophy4    99#eci;,b99 ,there 
is a danger lest they should taste the  
dear delight too  early2 for youngsters1
 as you may have observed1 when they    
first get the  taste in their mouths1   
argue for amusement1 and are always     
contradicting  and refuting others in   
imitation of those who refute them2 like
  puppy-dogs1 they rejoice in pulling   
and tearing at all who come near them4  
,yes1 he said1 there is nothing which   
they like better4    ,and when they have
 made many conquests and received       
99#eci;,c99 defeats at the  hands of    
many1 they violently and speedily get   
into a way of not believing  anything   
which they believed before1 and hence1  
not only they1 but  philosophy and all  
that #bdd relates to it is apt to have a
 bad name with  the rest of the world4  
,too true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,the  

dialectician and the eristic4    ,but   
when a man begins to get older1 he will 
no longer be guilty of such  insanity2  
he will imitate the dialectician who is 
seeking for truth1 and  not the eristic1
 who is contradicting for the sake of   
amusement2 and the  greater moderation  
of his 99#eci;,d99 character will       
increase instead of  diminishing the    
honour of the pursuit4    ,very true1 he
 said4    ,and did we not make special  
provision for this1 when we said that   
the  disciples of philosophy were to be 
orderly and steadfast1 not1 as now1 any 
chance aspirant or intruder8    ,very   
true4    ,suppose1 ,i said1 the study of
 philosophy to take the place of        
gymnastics  and to be continued         
diligently and earnestly and exclusively
 for twice the  number of years which   
were passed in bodily exercise--will    
that be enough8    99#eci;,e99 ,would   
you say six or four years8 he asked4    
,sidenote3 ,the study of philosophy to  
continue for five years2 #cj-ce4    ,say

 five years1 ,i replied2 at the end of  
the time they must be sent down  again  
into the den and compelled to hold any  
military or other office  which young   
men are qualified to hold3 in this way  
they will get their  experience of life1
 and there will be an opportunity of    
trying whether1  when they are drawn all
 manner of ways by temptation1 they will
 stand firm  or flinch4    99#edj;,a99  
,and how long is this stage of their    
lives to last8    ,sidenote3 ,during    
fifteen years1 #ce-ej1 they are to hold 
office4    ,sidenote3 ,at the end of    
that time they are to live chiefly in   
the  contemplation of the good1 but     
occasionally to return to politics4     
,fifteen years1 ,i answered2 and when   
they have reached fifty years of age1   
then let those who still survive and    
have distinguished themselves in  every 
action of their lives and in every      
branch of knowledge come at last  to    
their consummation3 the time has now    
arrived at which they must raise  the   

eye of the soul to the universal light  
which lightens all things1 and  behold  
the absolute good2 for that is the      
pattern according to which they  are to 
order the ,state and the 99#edj;,b99    
lives of individuals1 and the  remainder
 of their own lives also2 making        
philosophy their chief pursuit1  but1   
when their turn comes1 toiling also at  
politics and ruling for the  public     
good1 not as though they were performing
 some heroic #bde action1  but simply as
 a matter of duty2 and when they have   
brought up in each  generation others   
like themselves and left them in their  
place to be  governors of the ,state1   
then they will depart to the ,islands of
 the ,blest  and dwell there2 and the   
city will give them public memorials and
  sacrifices 99#edj;,c99 and honour     
them1 if the ,pythian oracle consent1 as
  demigods1 but if not1 as in any case  
blessed and divine4    ,you are a       
sculptor1 ,socrates1 and have made      
statues of our governors  faultless in  

beauty4    ,yes1 ,i said1 ,glaucon1 and 
of our governesses too2 for you must not
 suppose  that what ,i have been saying 
applies to men only and not to women as 
far  as their natures can go4    ,there 
you are right1 he said1 since we have   
made them to share in all  things like  
the men4    99#edj;,d99 ,well1 ,i said1 
and you would agree 7would you not87    
that what has  been said about the      
,state and the government is not a mere 
dream1 and  although difficult not      
impossible1 but only possible in the way
 which has  been supposed2 that is to   
say1 when the true philosopher kings are
 born in  a ,state1 one or more of them1
 despising the honours of this present  
world  which they deem mean and         
worthless1 esteeming above all things   
right and  the honour 99#edj;,e99 that  
springs from right1 and regarding       
justice as the  greatest and most       
necessary of all things1 whose ministers
 they are1 and  whose principles will be
 exalted by them when they set in order 

their own  city8    ,how will they      
proceed8    ,sidenote3 ,practical       
measures for the speedy foundation of   
the ,state4    ,they will begin by      
sending out into the country all the    
99#eda;,a99 inhabitants  of the city who
 are more than ten years old1 and will  
take possession of  their children1 who 
will be unaffected by the habits of     
their parents2  these they will train in
 their own habits and laws1 ,i mean in  
the laws  which we have given them3 and 
in this way the ,state and constitution 
of  which we were speaking will soonest 
and most easily attain happiness1 and   
the nation which has such a constitution
 will gain most4    ,yes1 that will be  
the best way4 ,and ,i think1 ,socrates1 
99#eda;,b99 that you  have very well    
described how1 if ever1 such a          
constitution might come into  being4    
#bdf    ,enough then of the perfect     
,state1 and of the man who bears its    
image--there is no difficulty in seeing 
how we shall describe him4    ,there is 

no difficulty1 he replied2 and ,i agree 
with you in thinking that  nothing more 
need be said4          ,,book ,,viii4   
,sidenote3 ,republic ,,viii4 ,socrates1 
,glaucon4    ,sidenote3 ,recapitulation 
of ,book ,v4    99#edc;,a99 ,and so1    
,glaucon1 we have arrived at the        
conclusion that in the  perfect ,state  
wives and children are to be in common2 
and that all  education and the pursuits
 of war and peace are also to be common1
 and the  best philosophers and the     
bravest warriors are to be their kings8 
,that1 replied ,glaucon1 has been       
acknowledged4    99#edc;,b99 ,yes1 ,i   
said2 and we have further acknowledged  
that the governors1  when appointed     
themselves1 will take their soldiers and
 place them in  houses such as we were  
describing1 which are common to all1 and
 contain  nothing private1 or           
individual2 and about their property1   
you remember  what we agreed8    ,yes1  
,i remember that no one was to have any 
of the ordinary possessions of  mankind2

 they were to be warrior 99#edc;,c99    
athletes and guardians1 receiving  from 
the other citizens1 in lieu of annual   
payment1 only their  maintenance1 and   
they were to take care of themselves and
 of the whole  ,state4    ,true1 ,i     
said2 and now that this division of our 
task is concluded1 let us  find the     
point at which we digressed1 that we may
 return into the old  path4             
,sidenote3 ,return to the end of ,book  
,,iv4    ,there is no difficulty in     
returning2 you implied1 then as now1    
that you  had finished the description  
of the ,state3 you said that such a     
,state was  good1 and that the man was  
good 99#edc;,d99 who answered to it1    
although1 as  now appears1 you had more 
99#edd;,a99 excellent things to relate  
both of ,state  and man4 ,and you said  
further1 that if this was the true form1
 then the  others were false2 and of the
 false forms1 you said1 as ,i remember1 
that  there were four principal ones1   
and that their defects1 and the defects 

of  the individuals corresponding to    
them1 were worth examining4 ,when we had
  seen all the individuals1 and finally 
agreed as to who was the best and  who  
was the worst #bdh of them1 we were to  
consider whether the best was  not also 
the happiest1 and the worst the most    
miserable4 ,i asked you what  were the  
four forms of government of which       
99#edd;,b99 you spoke1 and then         
,polemarchus and ,adeimantus put in     
their word2 and you began again1 and    
have found your way to the point at     
which we have now arrived4    ,your     
recollection1 ,i said1 is most exact4   
,then1 like a wrestler1 he replied1 you 
must put yourself again in the same     
position2 and let me ask the same       
questions1 and do you give me the same  
answer which you were about to give me  
then4    ,yes1 if ,i can1 ,i will1 ,i   
said4    ,i shall particularly wish to  
hear what were the four constitutions of
  which you were speaking4    ,sidenote3
 ,four imperfect constitutions1 the     

,cretan or ,spartan1 ,oligarchy1        
,democracy1 ,tyranny4    99#edd;,c99    
,that question1 ,i said1 is easily      
answered3 the four governments of  which
 ,i spoke1 so far as they have distinct 
names1 are1 first1 those of  ,crete and 
,sparta1 which are generally applauded2 
what is termed oligarchy  comes next2   
this is not equally approved1 and is a  
form of government  which teems with    
evils3 thirdly1 democracy1 which        
naturally follows  oligarchy1 although  
very different3 and lastly comes        
tyranny1 great and  famous1 which       
differs from them all1 and is the fourth
 and worst disorder  of a ,state4 ,i do 
not know1 do you8 of any other          
constitution which can be  said to have 
a distinct character4 99#edd;,d99 ,there
 are lordships and  principalities which
 are bought and sold1 and some other    
intermediate  forms of government4 ,but 
these are nondescripts and may be found 
equally  among ,hellenes and among      
barbarians4    ,yes1 he replied1 we     

certainly hear of many curious forms of 
government  which exist among them4     
,sidenote3 ,states are like men1 because
 they are made up of men4    ,do you    
know1 ,i said1 that governments vary as 
the dispositions of men  vary1 and that 
there must be as many of the one as     
there are of the other8  ,for we cannot 
suppose that ,states are made of 'oak   
and rock1' and not out  of the human    
natures which are in them1 and which in 
a figure 99#edd;,e99 turn  the scale and
 draw other things after them8    ,yes1 
he said1 the ,states are as the men are2
 they grow out of human  characters4    
,then if the constitutions of ,states   
are five1 the dispositions of           
individual minds will also be five8 #bdi
    ,certainly4    ,him who answers to  
aristocracy1 and whom we rightly        
99#ede;,a99 call just and  good1 we have
 already described4    ,we have4        
,then let us now proceed to describe the
 inferior sort of natures1 being  the   
contentious and ambitious1 who answer to

 the ,spartan polity2 also the          
oligarchical1 democratical1 and         
tyrannical4 ,let us place the most just 
by  the side of the most unjust1 and    
when we see them we shall be able to    
compare the relative happiness or       
unhappiness of him who leads a life of  
pure justice or pure injustice4 ,the    
enquiry will then be completed4 ,and we 
shall know whether we ought to pursue   
injustice1 as ,thrasymachus advises1  or
 99#ede;,b99 in accordance with the     
conclusions of the argument to prefer   
justice4    ,certainly1 he replied1 we  
must do as you say4    ,sidenote3 ,the  
,state and the individual4    ,shall we 
follow our old plan1 which we adopted   
with a view to clearness1  of taking the
 ,state first and then proceeding to the
 individual1 and begin  with the        
government of honour8--,i know of no    
name for such a government  other than  
timocracy1 or perhaps timarchy4 ,we will
 compare with this the  like character  
in the individual2 and1 after that1     

99#ede;,c99 consider  oligarchy and the 
oligarchical man2 and then again we will
 turn our  attention to democracy and   
the democratical man2 and lastly1 we    
will go  and view the city of tyranny1  
and once more take a look into the      
tyrant's  soul1 and try to arrive at a  
satisfactory decision4    ,that way of  
viewing and judging of the matter will  
be very suitable4    ,sidenote3 ,how    
timocracy arises out of aristocracy4    
,first1 then1 ,i said1 let us enquire   
how timocracy 7the government of        
honour7 arises out of aristocracy 7the  
government 99#ede;,d99 of the best74    
,clearly1 all political changes         
originate in divisions of the actual    
governing power2 a government which is  
united1 however small1 cannot be  moved4
    ,very true1 he said4    ,in what    
way1 then1 will our city be moved1 and  
in what manner will the two  classes of 
auxiliaries and rulers disagree among   
themselves or with one  another8 ,shall 
we1 after the manner of ,homer1 pray the

 ,muses to tell us  'how discord        
99#ede;,e99 first arose'8 ,shall we     
imagine them in solemn #bej  mockery1 to
 play and jest with us as if we were    
children1 and to address  us in a lofty 
tragic vein1 making believe to be in    
earnest8    ,how would they address us8 
,sidenote3 ,the intelligence which is   
alloyed with sense will not know how  to
 regulate births and deaths in          
accordance with the number which        
controls  them4    99#edf;,a99 ,after   
this manner3--,a city which is thus     
constituted can hardly be  shaken2 but1 
seeing that everything which has a      
beginning has also an end1  even a      
constitution such as yours will not last
 for ever1 but will in time  be         
dissolved4 ,and this is the             
dissolution3--,in plants that grow in   
the  earth1 as well as in animals that  
move on the earth's surface1 fertility  
and sterility of soul and body occur    
when the circumferences of the  circles 
of each are completed1 which in         

short-lived existences pass over a      
short space1 and in long-lived ones over
 a long space4 ,but to the  knowledge of
 human fecundity and sterility all the  
wisdom and education of  your rulers    
will not attain2 99#edf;,b99 the laws   
which regulate them will not  be        
discovered by an intelligence which is  
alloyed with sense1 but will  escape    
them1 and they will bring children into 
the world when they ought  not4 ,now    
that which is of divine birth has a     
period which is contained in  a perfect 
number1#a but the period of human birth 
is comprehended in a  number in which   
first increments by involution and      
evolution or squared  and cubed         
obtaining three intervals and four terms
 of like and unlike1  waxing and waning 
numbers1 make all the terms 99#edf;,c99 
commensurable and  agreeable to one     
another4#b ,the base of these 7#c7 with 
a third added 7#d7  when combined with  
five 7#bj7 and raised to the third power
 furnishes two  harmonies2 the first a  

square which is a hundred times as great
 7#djj   #d x #ajj71c and the other a   
figure having one side equal to the     
former1  but oblong1#d consisting of a  
hundred numbers squared upon rational   
diameters of a square 7i4e4 omitting    
fractions71 the side of which is five   
7#g x #g  #di x #ajj  #dijj71 each of   
them #bea being less by one 7than the   
perfect square which includes the       
fractions1 sc4 #ej7 or less by#e two    
perfect squares of irrational diameters 
7of a square the side of which is  five 
#ej  #ej  #ajj72 and a hundred cubes of 
three 7#bg x #ajj  #bgjj  #dijj   #djj  
#hjjj74 ,now this number represents a   
geometrical figure which has  control   
over 99#edf;,d99 the good and evil of   
births4 ,for when your guardians  are   
ignorant of the law of births1 and unite
 bride and bridegroom out of  season1   
the children will not be goodly or      
fortunate4 ,and though only the  best of
 them will be appointed by their        
predecessors1 still they will be        

unworthy to hold their fathers' places1 
and when they come into power as        
guardians1 they will soon be found to   
fail in taking care of us1 the  ,muses1 
first by under-valuing music2 which     
neglect will soon extend to  gymnastic2 
and hence the young men of your ,state  
will be less cultivated4  ,in the       
succeeding generation rulers will be    
appointed who have lost the  guardian   
power of testing the metal of your      
99#edf;,e99 different races1 which1     
like ,hesiod's1 are of gold and silver  
and brass and iron4 ,and so iron will   
be mingled with silver1 99#edg;,a99 and 
brass with gold1 and hence there will   
arise dissimilarity and inequality and  
irregularity1 which always and in  all  
places are causes of hatred and war4    
,this the ,muses affirm to be the  stock
 from which discord has sprung1 wherever
 arising2 and this is their  answer to  
us4    ,footnote #a3 i4e4 a cyclical    
number1 such as #f1 which is equal to   
the sum  of its divisors #a1 #b1 #c1 so 

that when the circle or time represented
 by #f  is completed1 the lesser times  
or rotations represented by #a1 #b1 #c  
are  also completed4    ,footnote #b3   
,probably the numbers #c1 #d1 #e1 #f of 
which the three first   the sides of the
 ,pythagorean triangle4 ,the terms will 
then be #cc1 #dc1  #ec1 which together  
#fc  #baf4    ,footnote #c3 ,or the     
first a square which is #ajj x #ajj     
#aj1jjj4 ,the whole  number will then be
 #ag1ejj  a square of #ajj1 and an      
oblong of #ajj by #ge4    ,footnote #d3 
,reading ,greek3 prom_/k de_/4          
,footnote #e3 ,or1 'consisting of two   
numbers squared upon irrational         
diameters1' c4  #ajj4 ,for other        
explanations of the passage see         
,introduction4    ,yes1 and we may      
assume that they answer truly4    ,why1 
yes1 ,i said1 of course they answer     
truly2 how can the ,muses speak         
falsely8    99#edg;,b99 ,and what do the
 ,muses say next8    ,sidenote3 ,then   
discord arose and individual took the   

place of common  property4    ,when     
discord arose1 then the two races were  
drawn different ways3 the iron  and     
brass fell to acquiring money and land  
and houses and gold and silver2  but the
 gold and silver races1 not wanting     
money but having the true  riches in    
their own nature1 inclined towards      
virtue and the ancient order  of things4
 ,there was a battle between them1 and  
at last they agreed to  distribute their
 land and houses among 99#edg;,c99      
individual owners2 and they  enslaved   
their friends and maintainers1 whom they
 had formerly protected  in the         
condition of freemen1 and made of them  
subjects and servants2 and  #beb they   
themselves were engaged in war and in   
keeping a watch against  them4    ,i    
believe that you have rightly conceived 
the origin of the change4    ,and the   
new government which thus arises will be
 of a form intermediate  between        
oligarchy and aristocracy8    ,very     
true4    ,such will be the change1 and  

after the change has been made1         
99#edg;,d99 how  will they proceed8     
,clearly1 the new ,state1 being in a    
mean between  oligarchy and the perfect 
,state1 will partly follow one and      
partly the  other1 and will also have   
some peculiarities4    ,true1 he said4  
,in the honour given to rulers1 in the  
abstinence of the warrior class from    
agriculture1 handicrafts1 and trade in  
general1 in the institution of  common  
meals1 and in the attention paid to     
gymnastics and military  training--in   
all these respects this ,state will     
resemble the former4    ,true4          
,sidenote3 ,timocracy will retain the   
military and reject the philosophical   
character of the perfect ,state4        
99#edg;,e99 ,but in the fear of         
admitting philosophers to power1 because
 they  are no longer to be had simple   
and earnest1 but are made up of mixed   
elements2 and in turning from them to   
passionate and less complex  characters1
 who are by nature 99#edh;,a99 fitted   

for war rather than peace2 and  in the  
value set by them upon military         
stratagems and contrivances1 and in  the
 waging of everlasting wars--this ,state
 will be for the most part  peculiar4   
,yes4    ,sidenote3 ,the soldier class  
miserly and covetous4    ,yes1 ,i said2 
and men of this stamp will be covetous  
of money1 like those  who live in       
oligarchies2 they will have1 a fierce   
secret longing after  gold and silver1  
which they will hoard in dark places1   
having magazines  and treasuries of     
their own for the deposit and           
concealment of them2 also  castles which
 are just nests for their eggs1 and in  
which they 99#edh;,b99 will  spend large
 sums on their wives1 or on any others  
whom they please4    ,that is most true1
 he said4    ,and they are miserly      
because they have no means of openly    
acquiring the  money which they prize2  
they will spend that which is another   
man's on the  gratification of #bec     
their desires1 stealing their pleasures 

and running  away like children from the
 law1 their father3 they have been      
schooled not  by gentle influences but  
by force1 for they have neglected her   
who is the  true ,muse1 the companion of
 reason and 99#edh;,c99 philosophy1 and 
have  honoured gymnastic more than      
music4    ,undoubtedly1 he said1 the    
form of government which you describe is
 a  mixture of good and evil4           
,sidenote3 ,the spirit of ambition      
predominates in such ,states4    ,why1  
there is a mixture1 ,i said2 but one    
thing1 and one thing only1 is           
predominantly seen1--the spirit of      
contention and ambition2 and these are  
due to the prevalence of the passionate 
or spirited element4    ,assuredly1 he  
said4    ,such is the origin and such   
the character of this ,state1 which has 
been  described in outline only2 the    
more perfect 99#edh;,d99 execution was  
not  required1 for a sketch is enough to
 show the type of the most perfectly    
just and most perfectly unjust2 and to  

go through all the ,states and all  the 
characters of men1 omitting none of     
them1 would be an interminable  labour4 
,very true1 he replied4    ,sidenote3   
,socrates1 ,adeimantus4    ,sidenote3   
,the timocratic man1 uncultured1 but    
fond of culture1 ambitious1             
contentious1 rough with slaves1 and     
courteous to freemen2 a soldier1        
athlete1 hunter2 a despiser of riches   
while young1 fond of them when he  grows
 old4    ,now what man answers to this  
form of government--how did he come into
  being1 and what is he like8    ,i     
think1 said ,adeimantus1 that in the    
spirit of contention which              
characterises him1 he is not unlike our 
friend ,glaucon4    99#edh;,e99         
,perhaps1 ,i said1 he may be like him in
 that one point2 but there  are other   
respects in which he is very different4 
,in what respects8    ,he should have   
more of self-assertion and be less      
cultivated1 and yet a  friend of        
culture2 and he should be a good        

99#edi;,a99 listener1 but no  speaker4  
,such a person is apt to be rough with  
slaves1 unlike the educated  man1 who is
 too proud for that2 and he will also be
 courteous to freemen1  and remarkably  
obedient to authority2 he is a lover of 
power and a lover  of honour2 claiming  
to be a ruler1 not because he is        
eloquent1 or on any  ground of that     
sort1 but because he is a soldier and   
has performed feats  of arms2 he is also
 a lover of gymnastic exercises and of  
the chase4    ,yes1 that is the type of 
character which answers to timocracy4   
,such an one will despise riches only   
when he is young2 #bed 99#edi;,b99 but  
as  he gets older he will be more and   
more attracted to them1 because he has a
  piece of the avaricious nature in him1
 and is not single-minded towards       
virtue1 having lost his best guardian4  
,who was that8 said ,adeimantus4        
,philosophy1 ,i said1 tempered with     
music1 who comes and takes up her abode 
in a man1 and is the only saviour of his

 virtue throughout life4    ,good1 he   
said4    ,such1 ,i said1 is the         
timocratical youth1 and he is like the  
timocratical  ,state4    99#edi;,c99    
,exactly4    ,his origin is as          
follows3--,he is often the young son of 
a brave father1  who dwells in an       
ill-governed city1 of which he declines 
the honours and  offices1 and will not  
go to law1 or exert himself in any way1 
but is ready  to waive his rights in    
order that he may escape trouble4       
,and how does the son come into being8  
,sidenote3 ,the timocratic man often    
originates in a reaction against his    
father's character1 which is encouraged 
by his mother1    ,the character of the 
son begins to develope when he hears his
 mother  complaining that her husband   
has no place in the government1 of which
 the  consequence is that she has       
99#edi;,d99 no precedence among other   
women4  ,further1 when she sees her     
husband not very eager about money1 and 
instead  of battling and railing in the 

law courts or assembly1 taking whatever 
happens to him quietly2 and when she    
observes that his thoughts always       
centre in himself1 while he treats her  
with very considerable  indifference1   
she is annoyed1 and says to her son that
 his father is only  half a man and far 
too easy-going3 adding all the other    
complaints about  her own 99#edi;,e99   
ill-treatment which women are so fond of
 rehearsing4    ,yes1 said ,adeimantus1 
they give us plenty of them1 and their  
complaints  are so like themselves4     
,sidenote3 and by the old servants of   
the household4    ,and you know1 ,i     
said1 that the old servants also1 who   
are supposed to be  attached to the     
family1 from time to time talk privately
 in the same  strain to the son2 and if 
they see any one who owes money to his  
father1  or is wronging him in any way1 
and he fails to prosecute them1 they    
tell  the youth that 99#eej;,a99 when he
 grows up he must retaliate upon people 
of  this sort1 and be more of a man than

 his father4 ,he has only to walk       
abroad and he hears and sees the same   
sort of thing3 those #bee who do  their 
own business in the city are called     
simpletons1 and held in no  esteem1     
while the busy-bodies are honoured and  
applauded4 ,the result is  that the     
young man1 hearing and seeing all these 
things--hearing1 too1 the  words of his 
father1 and having a nearer view of his 
way of life1 and  making comparisons of 
him and others--is drawn opposite ways3 
99#eej;,b99 while  his father is        
watering and nourishing the rational    
principle in his soul1  the others are  
encouraging the passionate and          
appetitive2 and he being not  originally
 of a bad nature1 but having kept bad   
company1 is at last  brought by their   
joint influence to a middle point1 and  
gives up the  kingdom which is within   
him to the middle principle of          
contentiousness and  passion1 and       
becomes arrogant and ambitious4    ,you 
seem to me to have described his origin 

perfectly4    99#eej;,c99 ,then we have 
now1 ,i said1 the second form of        
government and the  second type of      
character8    ,we have4    ,next1 let us
 look at another man who1 as ,aeschylus 
says1      ',is set over against another
 ,state2'    or rather1 as our plan     
requires1 begin with the ,state4    ,by 
all means4    ,sidenote3 ,oligarchy     
,i believe that oligarchy follows next  
in order4    ,and what manner of        
government do you term oligarchy8    ,a 
government resting on a valuation of    
property1 in which 99#eej;,d99 the rich 
have power and the poor man is deprived 
of it4    ,i understand1 he replied4    
,ought ,i not to begin by describing how
 the change from timocracy to  oligarchy
 arises8    ,yes4    ,well1 ,i said1 no 
eyes are required in order to see how   
the one passes into  the other4    ,how8
    ,sidenote3 arises out of increased  
accumulation and increased expenditure  
among the citizens4    ,the accumulation
 of gold in the treasury of private     

individuals is the  ruin of timocracy2  
they invent illegal modes of            
expenditure2 for what do  they or their 
wives care about the law8    ,yes1      
indeed4    99#eej;,e99 ,and then one1   
seeing another grow rich1 seeks to rival
 #bef him1  and thus the great mass of  
the citizens become lovers of money4    
,likely enough4    ,sidenote3 ,as riches
 increase1 virtue decreases3 the one is 
honoured1 the  other despised2 the one  
cultivated1 the other neglected4    ,and
 so they grow richer and richer1 and the
 more they think of making a  fortune   
the less they think of virtue2 for when 
riches and virtue are  placed together  
in the scales of the balance1 the one   
always rises as the  other falls4       
,true4    99#eea;,a99 ,and in proportion
 as riches and rich men are honoured in 
the ,state1  virtue and the virtuous are
 dishonoured4    ,clearly4    ,and what 
is honoured is cultivated1 and that     
which has no honour is  neglected4      
,that is obvious4    ,and so at last1   

instead of loving contention and glory1 
men become lovers  of trade and money2  
they honour and look up to the rich man1
 and make a  ruler of him1 and dishonour
 the poor man4    ,they do so4          
,sidenote3 ,in an oligarchy a money     
qualification is established4    ,they  
next proceed to make a law which fixes a
 sum 99#eea;,b99 of money as the        
qualification of citizenship2 the sum is
 higher in one place and lower in       
another1 as the oligarchy is more or    
less exclusive2 and they allow no one   
whose property falls below the amount   
fixed to have any share in the          
government4 ,these changes in the       
constitution they effect by force of    
arms1 if intimidation has not already   
done their work4    ,very true4    ,and 
this1 speaking generally1 is the way in 
which oligarchy is  established4        
,yes1 he said2 but what are the         
characteristics of this form 99#eea;,c99
 of  government1 and what are the       
defects of which we were speaking#f8    

,footnote #f3 ,cp4 supra1 #edd ,c4      
,sidenote3 ,a ruler is elected because  
he is rich3 ,who would elect a pilot  on
 this principle8    ,first of all1 ,i   
said1 consider the nature of the        
qualification4 ,just think  what would  
happen if pilots were to be chosen      
according to their property1  and a poor
 man were refused permission to steer1  
even though he were a  better pilot8    
,you mean that they would shipwreck8    
,yes2 and is not this true of the       
government of anything#g8 #beg          
,footnote #g3 ,omitting ,greek3 7_/     
tinos4    ,i should imagine so4         
,except a city8--or would you include a 
city8    ,nay1 he said1 the case of a   
city is the strongest of all1 inasmuch  
as the  rule of a city is the greatest  
and most difficult of all4              
99#eea;,d99 ,this1 then1 will be the    
first great defect of oligarchy8        
,clearly4    ,and here is another defect
 which is quite as bad4    ,what defect8
    ,sidenote3 ,the extreme division of 

classes in such a ,state4    ,the       
inevitable division3 such a ,state is   
not one1 but two ,states1 the one  of   
poor1 the other of rich men2 and they   
are living on the same spot and  always 
conspiring against one another4         
,that1 surely1 is at least as bad4      
,sidenote3 ,they dare not go to war4    
,another discreditable feature is1 that1
 for a like reason1 they are  incapable 
of carrying on any war4 ,either they arm
 99#eea;,e99 the multitude1  and then   
they are more afraid of them than of the
 enemy2 or1 if they do  not call them   
out in the hour of battle1 they are     
oligarchs indeed1 few to  fight as they 
are few to rule4 ,and at the same time  
their fondness for  money makes them    
unwilling to pay taxes4    ,how         
discreditable6    ,and1 as we said      
before1 under such a constitution the   
99#eeb;,a99 same persons  have too many 
callings--they are husbandmen1          
tradesmen1 warriors1 all in  one4 ,does 
that look well8    ,anything but well4  

,there is another evil which is1        
perhaps1 the greatest of all1 and to    
which  this ,state first begins to be   
liable4    ,what evil8    ,sidenote3    
,the ruined man1 who has no occupation1 
once a spendthrift1 now  a pauper1 still
 exists in the ,state4    ,a man may    
sell all that he has1 and another may   
acquire his property2 yet  after the    
sale he may dwell in the city of which  
he is no longer a part1  being neither  
trader1 nor artisan1 nor horseman1 nor  
hoplite1 but only a  poor1 helpless     
creature4    99#eeb;,b99 ,yes1 that is  
an evil which also first begins in this 
,state4    ,the evil is certainly not   
prevented there2 for oligarchies have   
both the  extremes of great wealth and  
utter poverty4    ,true4    ,but think  
again3 ,in his wealthy days1 while he   
was spending his money1 was  a man of   
this sort a whit more good to the ,state
 for the purposes of  citizenship8 ,or  
#beh did he only seem to be a member of 
the ruling body1  although in truth he  

was neither ruler nor subject1 but just 
a  spendthrift8    99#eeb;,c99 ,as you  
say1 he seemed to be a ruler1 but was   
only a spendthrift4    ,may we not say  
that this is the drone in the house who 
is like the drone  in the honeycomb1 and
 that the one is the plague of the city 
as the other  is of the hive8    ,just  
so1 ,socrates4    ,and ,god has made the
 flying drones1 ,adeimantus1 all without
 stings1  whereas of the walking drones 
he has made some without stings but     
others  have dreadful stings2 of the    
stingless class are those who in their  
old  age end as paupers2 99#eeb;,d99 of 
the stingers come all the criminal      
class1 as  they are termed4    ,most    
true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,where     
there are paupers1 there are thieves    
,clearly then1 whenever you see paupers 
in a ,state1 somewhere in that          
neighbourhood there are hidden away     
thieves1 and cut-purses and robbers of  
temples1 and all sorts of malefactors4  
,clearly4    ,well1 ,i said1 and in     

oligarchical ,states do you not find    
paupers8    ,yes1 he said2 nearly       
everybody is a pauper who is not a      
ruler4    ,sidenote3 and other          
criminals4    99#eeb;,e99 ,and may we be
 so bold as to affirm that there are    
also many  criminals to be found in     
them1 rogues who have stings1 and whom  
the  authorities are careful to restrain
 by force8    ,certainly1 we may be so  
bold4    ,the existence of such persons 
is to be attributed to want of          
education1  ill-training1 and an evil   
constitution of the ,state8    ,true4   
,such1 then1 is the form and such are   
the evils of oligarchy2 and there may   
be many other evils4    ,very likely4   
99#eec;,a99 ,then oligarchy1 or the form
 of government in which the rulers are  
elected for their wealth1 may now be    
dismissed4 ,let us next proceed to      
consider the nature and origin of the   
individual who answers to this  ,state4 
#bei    ,by all means4    ,does not the 
timocratical man change into the        

oligarchical on this wise8    ,how8     
,sidenote3 ,the ruin of the timocratical
 man gives birth to the  oligarchical4  
,a time arrives when the representative 
of timocracy has a son3 at first he     
begins by emulating his father and      
walking in his footsteps1 but presently 
he sees him of a sudden 99#eec;,b99     
foundering against the ,state as upon a 
sunken reef1 and he and all that he has 
is lost2 he may have been a  general or 
some other high officer who is brought  
to trial under a  prejudice raised by   
informers1 and either put to death1 or  
exiled1 or  deprived of the privileges  
of a citizen1 and all his property taken
 from  him4    ,nothing more likely4    
,sidenote3 ,his son begins life a ruined
 man and takes to money-making4    ,and 
the son has seen and known all this--he 
is a ruined man1 and his fear  has      
taught him to knock ambition and        
99#eec;,c99 passion headforemost from   
his  bosom's throne2 humbled by poverty 
he takes to money-making and by mean    

and miserly savings and hard work gets a
 fortune together4 ,is not such an  one 
likely to seat the concupiscent and     
covetous element on the vacant  throne  
and to suffer it to play the great king 
within him1 girt with tiara  and chain  
and scimitar8    ,most true1 he replied4
    99#eec;,d99 ,and when he has made   
reason and spirit sit down on the ground
  obediently on either side of their    
sovereign1 and taught them to know      
their place1 he compels the one to think
 only of how lesser sums may be  turned 
into larger ones1 and will not allow the
 other to worship and  admire anything  
but riches and rich men1 or to be       
ambitious of anything so  much as the   
acquisition of wealth and the means of  
acquiring it4    ,of all changes1 he    
said1 there is none so speedy or so sure
 as the  conversion of the ambitious    
youth into the avaricious one4          
99#eec;,e99 ,and the avaricious1 ,i     
said1 is the oligarchical youth8        
,sidenote3 ,the oligarchical man and    

,state resemble one another in their    
estimation of wealth3 ,in their toiling 
and saving ways1 in their want of       
cultivation4    ,yes1 he said2 at any   
rate the individual out of whom he came 
is like the  ,state out of which        
oligarchy came4    ,let us then consider
 whether there is any likeness between  
them4    99#eed;,a99 ,very good4        
,first1 then1 they resemble one another 
in the value which they set upon        
wealth8 #bfj    ,certainly4    ,also in 
their penurious1 laborious character2   
the individual only  satisfies his      
necessary appetites1 and confines his   
expenditure to them2  his other desires 
he subdues1 under the idea that they are
 unprofitable4    ,true4    ,he is a    
shabby fellow1 who saves something out  
of everything and makes a  purse for    
himself2 and this is the sort of        
99#eed;,b99 man whom the vulgar         
applaud4 ,is he not a true image of the 
,state which he represents8    ,he      
appears to me to be so2 at any rate     

money is highly valued by him as  well  
as by the ,state4    ,you see that he is
 not a man of cultivation1 ,i said4     
,i imagine not1 he said2 had he been    
educated he would never have made a     
blind god director of his chorus1 or    
given him chief honour#h4    ,footnote  
#h3 ,reading ,greek3 kai e7ti_/ma       
ma_/lista4 ,eu71 7 d' e7g_/1  according 
to ,schneider's excellent emendation4   
,excellent6 ,i said4 ,yet consider3     
,must we not further admit that owing to
  this want of cultivation there will be
 99#eed;,c99 found in him dronelike     
desires as of pauper and rogue1 which   
are forcibly kept down by his  general  
habit of life8    ,true4    ,do you know
 where you will have to look if you want
 to discover his  rogueries8    ,where  
must ,i look8    ,sidenote3 ,the        
oligarchical man keeps up a fair        
outside1 but he has only  an enforced   
virtue and will cheat when he can4      
,you should see him where he has some   
great opportunity of acting             

dishonestly1 as in the guardianship of  
an orphan4    ,aye4    ,it will be clear
 enough then that in his ordinary       
dealings which give him  a reputation   
for honesty he coerces his bad          
99#eed;,d99 passions by an enforced     
virtue2 not making them see that they   
are wrong1 or taming them by reason1    
but by necessity and fear constraining  
them1 and because he trembles for  his  
possessions4    ,to be sure4    ,yes1   
indeed1 my dear friend1 but you will    
find that the natural desires of  the   
drone commonly exist in him all the same
 whenever he has to spend what  is not  
his own4 #bfa    ,yes1 and they will be 
strong in him too4    ,the man1 then1   
will be at war with himself2 he will be 
two men1 and not  one2 but1 in general1 
his better desires 99#eed;,e99 will be  
found to prevail  over his inferior     
ones4    ,true4    ,for these reasons   
such an one will be more respectable    
than most people2  yet the true virtue  
of a unanimous and harmonious soul will 

flee far away  and never come near him4 
,i should expect so4    ,sidenote3 ,his 
meanness in a contest2 he saves his     
money and loses the  prize4             
99#eee;,a99 ,and surely1 the miser      
individually will be an ignoble         
competitor in  a ,state for any prize of
 victory1 or other object of honourable 
ambition2  he will not spend his money  
in the contest for glory2 so afraid is  
he of  awakening his expensive appetites
 and inviting them to help and join in  
the struggle2 in true oligarchical      
fashion he fights with a small part     
only of his resources1 and the result   
commonly is that he loses the prize  and
 saves his money4    ,very true4    ,can
 we any longer doubt1 then1 that the    
miser and money-maker 99#eee;,b99       
answers to the oligarchical ,state8     
,there can be no doubt4    ,sidenote3   
,democracy arises out of the            
extravagance and indebtedness of  men of
 family and position1    ,next comes    
democracy2 of this the origin and nature

 have still to be  considered by us2 and
 then we will enquire into the ways of  
the democratic  man1 and bring him up   
for judgment4    ,that1 he said1 is our 
method4    ,well1 ,i said1 and how does 
the change from oligarchy into democracy
 arise8  ,is it not on this wise8--,the 
good at which such a ,state aims is to  
become  as rich as possible1 a desire   
which is insatiable8    ,what then8     
99#eee;,c99 ,the rulers1 being aware    
that their power rests upon their       
wealth1  refuse to curtail by law the   
extravagance of the spendthrift youth   
because  they gain by their ruin2 they  
take interest from them and buy up their
  estates and thus increase their own   
wealth and importance8    ,to be sure4  
,there can be no doubt that the love of 
wealth and the spirit of moderation     
cannot exist together in citizens of the
 same state to any considerable  extent2
 one or the other will 99#eee;,d99 be   
disregarded4 #bfb    ,that is tolerably 
clear4    ,and in oligarchical ,states1 

from the general spread of carelessness 
and  extravagance1 men of good family   
have often been reduced to beggary8     
,yes1 often4    ,sidenote3 who remain in
 the city1 and form a dangerous class   
ready to  head a revolution4    ,and    
still they remain in the city2 there    
they are1 ready to sting and  fully     
armed1 and some of them owe money1 some 
have forfeited their  citizenship2 a    
third class are in both predicaments2   
and they hate and  conspire against     
those who have got their property1 and  
against everybody  else1 and are        
99#eee;,e99 eager for revolution4       
,that is true4    ,on the other hand1   
the men of business1 stooping as they   
walk1 and  pretending not even to see   
those whom they have already ruined1    
insert  their sting--that is1 their     
money--into some one else who is not on 
his  guard against them1 and recover the
 parent sum many times over multiplied  
into a family of children3 and so they  
make drone and pauper to abound in  the 

,state4    99#eef;,a99 ,yes1 he said1   
there are plenty of them--that is       
certain4    ,sidenote3 ,two remedies3   
7#a7 restrictions on the free use of    
property2    ,the evil blazes up like a 
fire2 and they will not extinguish it1  
either by  restricting a man's use of   
his own property1 or by another remedy3 
,what other8    ,sidenote3 7#b7         
contracts to be made at a man's own     
risk4    ,one which is the next best1   
and has the advantage of compelling the 
citizens to look to their               
characters3--,let 99#eef;,b99 there be a
 general rule  that every one shall     
enter into voluntary contracts at his   
own risk1 and  there will be less of    
this scandalous money-making1 and the   
evils of which  we were speaking will be
 greatly lessened in the ,state4        
,yes1 they will be greatly lessened4    
,at present the governors1 induced by   
the motives which ,i have named1 treat  
their subjects badly2 while they and    
their adherents1 especially the young   

men of the governing class1 are         
habituated to lead a life of luxury and 
idleness 99#eef;,c99 both of body and   
mind2 they do nothing1 and are incapable
  of resisting either pleasure or pain4 
,very true4    ,they themselves care    
only for making money1 and are as       
indifferent as the  pauper to the       
cultivation of virtue4 #bfc    ,yes1    
quite as indifferent4    ,sidenote3 ,the
 subjects discover the weakness of their
 rulers4    ,such is the state of       
affairs which prevails among them4 ,and 
often rulers  and their subjects may    
come in one another's way1 whether on a 
journey or  on some other occasion of   
meeting1 on a pilgrimage or a march1 as 
fellow-soldiers or 99#eef;,d99          
fellow-sailors2 aye1 and they may       
observe the  behaviour of each other in 
the very moment of danger--for where    
danger is1  there is no fear that the   
poor will be despised by the rich--and  
very  likely the wiry sunburnt poor man 
may be placed in battle at the side of a

  wealthy one who has never spoilt his  
complexion and has plenty of            
superfluous flesh--when he sees such an 
one puffing and at his wits' end1  how  
can he avoid drawing the conclusion that
 men like him are only rich  because no 
one has the courage to despoil them8    
,and when they meet in  private will not
 people be 99#eef;,e99 saying to one    
another ',our warriors are  not good for
 much'8    ,yes1 he said1 ,i am quite   
aware that this is their way of talking4
    ,sidenote3 ,a slight cause1 internal
 or external1 may produce revolution4   
,and1 as in a body which is diseased the
 addition of a touch from without  may  
bring on illness1 and sometimes even    
when there is no external  provocation a
 commotion may arise within--in the same
 way wherever there  is weakness in the 
,state there is also likely to be       
illness1 of which the  occasion may be  
very slight1 the one party introducing  
from without their  oligarchical1 the   
other their democratical allies1 and    

then the ,state  falls sick1 and is at  
war with herself2 and 99#eeg;,a99 may be
 at times  distracted1 even when there  
is no external cause4    ,yes1 surely4  
,sidenote3 ,such is the origin and      
nature of democracy4    ,and then       
democracy comes into being after the    
poor have conquered their  opponents1   
slaughtering some and banishing some1   
while to the remainder  they give an    
equal share of freedom and power2 and   
this is the form of  government in which
 the magistrates are commonly elected by
 lot4    ,yes1 he said1 that is the     
nature of democracy1 whether the        
revolution has  been effected by arms1  
or whether fear has caused the opposite 
party to  withdraw4    ,and now what is 
their manner of life1 and what sort of  
99#eeg;,b99 a government  have they8 for
 as the government is1 such will be the 
man4    ,clearly1 he said4 #bfd         
,sidenote3 ,democracy allows a man to do
 as he likes1 and therefore  contains   
the greatest variety of characters and  

constitutions4    ,in the first place1  
are they not free2 and is not the city  
full of freedom  and frankness--a man   
may say and do what he likes8    ',tis  
said so1 he replied4    ,and where      
freedom is1 the individual is clearly   
able to order for himself  his own life 
as he pleases8    ,clearly4             
99#eeg;,c99 ,then in this kind of ,state
 there will be the greatest variety of  
human natures8    ,there will4    ,this1
 then1 seems likely to be the fairest of
 ,states1 being like an  embroidered    
robe which is spangled with every sort  
of flower#i4 ,and just  as women and    
children think a variety of colours to  
be of all things most  charming1 so     
there are many men to whom this ,state1 
which is spangled with  the manners and 
characters of mankind1 will appear to be
 the fairest of  ,states4    ,footnote  
#i3 ,omitting ,greek3 ti_/ m_/n2 e7_/ph4
    ,yes4    99#eeg;,d99 ,yes1 my good  
,sir1 and there will be no better in    
which to look for  a government4        

,why8    ,because of the liberty which  
reigns there--they have a complete      
assortment  of constitutions2 and he who
 has a mind to establish a ,state1 as we
 have  been doing1 must go to a         
democracy as he would to a bazaar at    
which they  sell them1 and pick out the 
one that suits him2 then1 when he has   
made his  choice1 he may found his      
,state4    99#eeg;,e99 ,he will be sure 
to have patterns enough4    ,sidenote3  
,the law falls into abeyance4    ,and   
there being no necessity1 ,i said1 for  
you to govern in this ,state1  even if  
you have the capacity1 or to be         
governed1 unless you like1 or go  to war
 when the rest go to war1 or to be at   
peace when others are at  peace1 unless 
you are so disposed--there being no     
necessity also1 because  some law       
forbids you to hold office or be a      
dicast1 that you should not  hold office
 or be a dicast1 if you have a fancy--is
 not 99#eeh;,a99 this a way  of life    
which for the moment is supremely       

delightful8    ,for the moment1 yes4    
#bfe    ,and is not their humanity to   
the condemned#aj in some cases quite    
charming8 ,have you not observed how1 in
 a democracy1 many persons1  although   
they have been sentenced to death or    
exile1 just stay where they  are and    
walk about the world--the gentleman     
parades like a hero1 and  nobody sees or
 cares8    ,footnote #aj3 ,or1 'the     
philosophical temper of the condemned4' 
,yes1 he replied1 many and many a one4  
,sidenote3 ,all principles of order and 
good taste are trampled under foot  by  
democracy4    99#eeh;,b99 ,see too1 ,i  
said1 the forgiving spirit of democracy1
 and the 'don't  care' about trifles1   
and the disregard which she shows of all
 the fine  principles which we solemnly 
laid down at the foundation of the      
city--as  when we said that1 except in  
the case of some rarely gifted nature1  
there  never will be a good man who has 
not from his childhood been used to play
  amid things of beauty and make of them

 a joy and a study--how grandly does    
she trample all these fine notions of   
ours under her feet1 never giving a     
thought to the pursuits which make a    
statesman1 and promoting to honour  any 
one who professes 99#eeh;,c99 to be the 
people's friend4    ,yes1 she is of a   
noble spirit4    ,these and other       
kindred characteristics are proper to   
democracy1 which is  a charming form of 
government1 full of variety and         
disorder1 and  dispensing a sort of     
equality to equals and unequals alike4  
,we know her well4    ,consider now1 ,i 
said1 what manner of man the individual 
is1 or rather  consider1 as in the case 
of the ,state1 how he comes into being4 
,very good1 he said4    ,is not this the
 way--he is the son of the miserly and  
oligarchical 99#eeh;,d99  father who has
 trained him in his own habits8         
,exactly4    ,sidenote3 ,which are the  
necessary and which the unnecessary     
pleasures8    ,and1 like his father1 he 
keeps under by force the pleasures which

 are of  the spending and not of the    
getting sort1 being those which are     
called  unnecessary8    ,obviously4     
,would you like1 for the sake of        
clearness1 to distinguish which are the 
necessary and which are the unnecessary 
pleasures8    ,i should4 #bff           
,sidenote3 ,necessary desires cannot be 
got rid of1    ,are not necessary       
pleasures those of which we cannot get  
99#eeh;,e99 rid1 and  of which the      
satisfaction is a benefit to us8 ,and   
they are rightly called  so1 because we 
are framed by nature to desire both what
 is beneficial and  what is necessary1  
and cannot help it4    ,true4           
99#eei;,a99 ,we are not wrong therefore 
in calling them necessary8    ,we are   
not4    ,and the desires of which a man 
may get rid1 if he takes pains from his 
youth upwards--of which the presence1   
moreover1 does no good1 and in some     
cases the reverse of good--shall we not 
be right in saying that all these  are  
unnecessary8    ,yes1 certainly4        

,suppose we select an example of either 
kind1 in order that we may have a       
general notion of them8    ,very good4  
,will not the desire of eating1 that is1
 of simple food and condiments1 in  so  
far as they are required for health and 
99#eei;,b99 strength1 be of the         
necessary class8    ,that is what ,i    
should suppose4    ,the pleasure of     
eating is necessary in two ways2 it does
 us good and it is  essential to the    
continuance of life8    ,yes4           
,sidenote3 but may be indulged to       
excess4    ,but the condiments are only 
necessary in so far as they are good for
  health8    ,certainly4    ,sidenote3  
,illustration taken from eating and     
drinking4    ,and the desire which goes 
beyond this1 of more delicate food1 or  
other  luxuries1 which might generally  
be got rid of1 if controlled and trained
  in youth1 and is hurtful to the body1 
and hurtful to the soul in the  pursuit 
of wisdom and virtue1 may be 99#eei;,c99
 rightly called unnecessary8    ,very   

true4    ,may we not say that these     
desires spend1 and that the others make 
money  because they conduce to          
production8    ,certainly4    ,and of   
the pleasures of love1 and all other    
pleasures1 the same holds  good8        
,true4    ,and the drone of whom we     
spoke was he who was surfeited in       
pleasures and  desires of this sort1 and
 was the slave #bfg 99#eei;,d99 of the  
unnecessary  desires1 whereas he who was
 subject to the necessary only was      
miserly and  oligarchical8    ,very     
true4    ,again1 let us see how the     
democratical man grows out of the       
oligarchical3  the following1 as ,i     
suspect1 is commonly the process4       
,what is the process8    ,sidenote3 ,the
 young oligarch is led away by his wild 
associates4    ,when a young man who has
 been brought up as we were just now    
describing1  in a vulgar and miserly    
way1 has tasted drones' honey and has   
come to  associate with fierce and      
crafty natures who are able to provide  

for him  all sorts of refinements and   
varieties of pleasure--then1 as you may 
99#eei;,e99 imagine1 the change will    
begin of the oligarchical principle     
within  him into the democratical8      
,inevitably4    ,sidenote3 ,there are   
allies to either part of his nature4    
,and as in the city like was helping    
like1 and the change was effected by  an
 alliance from without assisting one    
division of the citizens1 so too  the   
young man is changed by a class of      
desires coming from without to  assist  
the desires within him1 that which is   
akin and alike again helping  that which
 is akin and alike8    ,certainly4      
,and if there be any ally which aids the
 oligarchical principle within him1     
whether the influence of a father or of 
kindred1 99#efj;,a99 advising or        
rebuking him1 then there arises in his  
soul a faction and an opposite  faction1
 and he goes to war with himself4    ,it
 must be so4    ,and there are times    
when the democratical principle gives   

way to the  oligarchical1 and some of   
his desires die1 and others are         
banished2 a  spirit of reverence enters 
into the young man's soul and order is  
restored4    ,yes1 he said1 that        
sometimes happens4    ,and then1 again1 
after the old desires have been driven  
out1 99#efj;,b99 fresh  ones spring up1 
which are akin to them1 and because he  
their father does  not know how to      
educate them1 wax fierce and numerous4  
,yes1 he said1 that is apt to be the    
way4    ,they draw him to his old       
associates1 and holding secret          
intercourse with  them1 breed and       
multiply in him4 #bfh    ,very true4    
,at length they seize upon the citadel  
of the young man's soul1 which they     
perceive to be void of all              
accomplishments and fair pursuits and   
true  words1 which make their abode in  
the minds of men who are dear to the    
gods1 and are their best guardians and  
sentinels4    99#efj;,c99 ,none better4 
,false and boastful conceits and phrases

 mount upwards and take their  place4   
,they are certain to do so4             
,sidenote3 ,the progress of the         
oligarchic young man told in an         
allegory4    ,and so the young man      
returns into the country of the         
lotus-eaters1 and  takes up his dwelling
 there in the face of all men2 and if   
any help be  sent by his friends to the 
oligarchical part of him1 the aforesaid 
vain  conceits shut the gate of the     
king's fastness2 and they will neither  
allow  the embassy itself to enter1 nor 
if private advisers offer the fatherly  
counsel of the aged will they listen to 
them or receive them4 99#efj;,d99 ,there
  is a battle and they gain the day1 and
 then modesty1 which they call          
silliness1 is ignominiously thrust into 
exile by them1 and temperance1  which   
they nickname unmanliness1 is trampled  
in the mire and cast forth2  they       
persuade men that moderation and orderly
 expenditure are vulgarity  and         
meanness1 and so1 by the help of a      

rabble of evil appetites1 they  drive   
them beyond the border4    ,yes1 with a 
will4    ,and when they have emptied and
 swept clean the soul of 99#efj;,e99 him
 who is  now in their power and who is  
being initiated by them in great        
mysteries1  the next thing is to bring  
back to their house insolence and       
anarchy and  waste and impudence in     
bright array having garlands on their   
heads1 and a  great company with them1  
hymning their praises and calling       
99#efa;,a99 them by  sweet names2       
insolence they term breeding1 and       
anarchy liberty1 and waste              
magnificence1 and impudence courage4    
,and so the young man passes out of  his
 original nature1 which was trained in  
the school of necessity1 into  the      
freedom and libertinism of useless and  
unnecessary pleasures4    ,yes1 he said1
 the change in him is visible enough4   
,sidenote3 ,he becomes a rake2 but he   
also sometimes stops short in his       
career and gives way to pleasures good  

and bad indifferently4    ,after this he
 lives on1 spending his money and labour
 and time on  unnecessary pleasures     
quite as much as on necessary #bfi ones2
 but if he  be fortunate1 and is not too
 much disordered in his wits1 when years
 have  elapsed1 and the heyday of       
99#efa;,b99 passion is over--supposing  
that he then  re-admits into the city   
some part of the exiled virtues1 and    
does not  wholly give himself up to     
their successors--in that case he       
balances his  pleasures and lives in a  
sort of equilibrium1 putting the        
government of  himself into the hands of
 the one which comes first and wins the 
turn2 and  when he has had enough of    
that1 then into the hands of another2 he
  despises none of them but encourages  
them all equally4    ,very true1 he     
said4    ,sidenote3 ,he rejects all     
advice1    ,neither does he receive or  
let pass into the fortress any true word
 of  advice2 if any one says to him that
 some 99#efa;,c99 pleasures are the     

satisfactions of good and noble desires1
 and others of evil desires1 and  that  
he ought to use and honour some and     
chastise and master the others          
--whenever this is repeated to him he   
shakes his head and says that they  are 
all alike1 and that one is as good as   
another4    ,yes1 he said2 that is the  
way with him4    ,sidenote3 passing his 
life in the alternation from one extreme
 to  another4    ,yes1 ,i said1 he lives
 from day to day indulging the appetite 
of the hour2  and sometimes he is lapped
 in drink and strains of the flute2 then
 he  becomes a water-drinker1 and tries 
to get thin2 99#efa;,d99 then he takes a
  turn at gymnastics2 sometimes idling  
and neglecting everything1 then once    
more living the life of a philosopher2  
often he is busy with politics1 and     
starts to his feet and says and does    
whatever comes into his head2 and1 if   
he is emulous of any one who is a       
warrior1 off he is in that direction1 or
  of men of business1 once more in that4

 ,his life has neither law nor order2   
and this distracted existence he terms  
joy and bliss and freedom2 and so  he   
goes on4    99#efa;,e99 ,yes1 he        
replied1 he is all liberty and equality4
    ,sidenote3 ,he is 'not one1 but all 
mankind's epitome4'    ,yes1 ,i said2   
his life is motley and manifold and an  
epitome of the lives  of many2--he      
answers to the ,state which we described
 as fair and spangled4  ,and many a man 
and many a woman will take him for their
 pattern1 and many  a constitution and  
many an example of manners is contained 
in him4    ,just so4    99#efa;,a99 ,let
 him then be set over against democracy2
 he may truly be called  the democratic 
man4 #bgj    ,let that be his place1 he 
said4    ,sidenote3 ,tyranny and the    
tyrant4    ,last of all comes the most  
beautiful of all1 man and ,state alike1 
tyranny  and the tyrant2 these we have  
now to consider4    ,quite true1 he     
said4    ,say then1 my friend1 ,in what 
manner does tyranny arise8--that it has 

a  democratic origin is evident4        
,clearly4    ,and does not tyranny      
spring from democracy in the 99#efb;,b99
 same manner as  democracy from         
oligarchy--,i mean1 after a sort8       
,how8    ,sidenote3 ,the insatiable     
desire of wealth creates a demand for   
democracy1  the insatiable desire of    
freedom creates a demand for tyranny4   
,the good which oligarchy proposed to   
itself and the means by which it was    
maintained was excess of wealth--am ,i  
not right8    ,yes4    ,and the         
insatiable desire of wealth and the     
neglect of all other things  for the    
sake of money-getting was also the ruin 
of oligarchy8    ,true4    ,and         
democracy has her own good1 of which the
 insatiable desire brings her  to       
dissolution8    ,what good8    ,freedom1
 ,i replied2 which1 as they tell you in 
a democracy1 99#efb;,c99 is the  glory  
of the ,state--and that therefore in a  
democracy alone will the  freeman of    
nature deign to dwell4    ,yes2 the     

saying is in every body's mouth4    ,i  
was going to observe1 that the          
insatiable desire of this and the       
neglect  of other things introduces the 
change in democracy1 which occasions a  
demand for tyranny4    ,how so8    ,when
 a democracy which is thirsting for     
freedom has evil 99#efb;,d99            
cup-bearers presiding over the feast1   
and has drunk too deeply of the  strong 
wine of freedom1 then1 unless her rulers
 are very amenable and give  a plentiful
 draught1 she calls them to account and 
punishes them1 and says  that they are  
cursed oligarchs4    ,yes1 he replied1 a
 very common occurrence4    ,sidenote3  
,freedom in the end means anarchy4      
,yes1 ,i said2 and loyal citizens are   
insultingly termed by her slaves who    
hug their chains and men of naught2 she 
would have subjects who are like        
rulers1 and rulers who are #bga like    
subjects3 these are men after her  own  
heart1 whom she praises and honours both
 in private and public4 ,now1  in       

99#efb;,e99 such a ,state1 can liberty  
have any limit8    ,certainly not4      
,by degrees the anarchy finds a way into
 private houses1 and ends by  getting   
among the animals and infecting them4   
,how do you mean8    ,i mean that the   
father grows accustomed to descend to   
the level of his  sons and to fear them1
 and the son is on a level with his     
father1 he  having no respect or        
reverence for either of his parents2 and
 this is his  freedom1 and the metic is 
equal with the citizen and the citizen  
with the  metic1 and the 99#efc;,a99    
stranger is quite as good as either4    
,yes1 he said1 that is the way4         
,sidenote3 ,the inversion of all social 
relations4    ,and these are not the    
only evils1 ,i said--there are several  
lesser ones3  ,in such a state of       
society the master fears and flatters   
his scholars1 and  the scholars despise 
their masters and tutors2 young and old 
are all  alike2 and the young man is on 
a level with the old1 and is ready to   

compete with him in word or deed2 and   
old men condescend to the young and  are
 full of pleasantry and gaiety2 they are
 loth to be 99#efc;,b99 thought  morose 
and authoritative1 and therefore they   
adopt the manners of the  young4        
,quite true1 he said4    ,the last      
extreme of popular liberty is when the  
slave bought with money1  whether male  
or female1 is just as free as his or her
 purchaser2 nor must  ,i forget to tell 
of the liberty and equality of the two  
sexes in relation  to each other4       
99#efc;,c99 ,why not1 as ,aeschylus     
says1 utter the word which rises to our 
lips8    ,sidenote3 ,freedom among the  
animals4    ,that is what ,i am doing1  
,i replied2 and ,i must add that no one 
who does  not know would believe1 how   
much greater is the liberty which the   
animals  who are under the dominion of  
man have in a democracy than in any     
other  ,state3 for truly1 the she-dogs1 
as the proverb says1 are as good as     
their  she-mistresses1 and the horses   

and asses have a way of marching along  
with  all the rights and dignities of   
freemen2 and they will run at any body  
who  comes in their way if he does not  
leave the road clear for them3 and all  
things are 99#efc;,d99 just ready to    
burst with liberty4 #bgb    ,when ,i    
take a country walk1 he said1 ,i often  
experience what you describe4  ,you and 
,i have dreamed the same thing4         
,sidenote3 ,no law1 no authority4       
,and above all1 ,i said1 and as the     
result of all1 see how sensitive the    
citizens become2 they chafe impatiently 
at the least touch of authority1  and at
 length1 as you know1 they cease to care
 even for the laws1 written  or         
unwritten2 they will have 99#efc;,e99 no
 one over them4    ,yes1 he said1 ,i    
know it too well4    ,such1 my friend1  
,i said1 is the fair and glorious       
beginning out of which  springs tyranny4
    ,glorious indeed1 he said4 ,but what
 is the next step8    ,the ruin of      
oligarchy is the ruin of democracy2 the 

same disease magnified  and intensified 
by liberty overmasters democracy--the   
truth being that the  excessive         
99#efd;,a99 increase of anything often  
causes a reaction in the  opposite      
direction2 and this is the case not only
 in the seasons and in  vegetable and   
animal life1 but above all in forms of  
government4    ,true4    ,the excess of 
liberty1 whether in ,states or          
individuals1 seems only to  pass into   
excess of slavery4    ,yes1 the natural 
order4    ,and so tyranny naturally     
arises out of democracy1 and the most   
aggravated  form of tyranny and slavery 
out of the most extreme form of liberty8
    ,as we might expect4    ,sidenote3  
,the common evil of oligarchy and       
democracy is the class of idle          
spend-thrifts4    ,that1 however1 was   
not1 as ,i believe1 your question--you  
rather desired to  know what is that    
disorder which is 99#efd;,b99 generated 
alike in oligarchy  and democracy1 and  
is the ruin of both8    ,just so1 he    

replied4    ,well1 ,i said1 ,i meant to 
refer to the class of idle spendthrifts1
 of whom  the more courageous are the   
leaders and the more timid the          
followers1 the  same whom we were       
comparing to drones1 some stingless1 and
 others having  stings4    ,a very just 
comparison4    ,sidenote3 ,illustration4
    ,these two classes are the plagues  
of every city in which they are         
generated1 being what phlegm and bile   
are to the body4 99#efd;,c99 ,and the   
good  physician and lawgiver of the     
,state #bgc ought1 like the wise        
bee-master1  to keep them at a distance 
and prevent1 if possible1 their ever    
coming in2  and if they have anyhow     
found a way in1 then he should have them
 and their  cells cut out as speedily as
 possible4    ,yes1 by all means1 he    
said4    ,sidenote3 ,altogether three   
classes in a democracy4    ,then1 in    
order that we may see clearly what we   
are doing1 let us imagine  democracy to 
be divided1 as indeed it is1 into       

99#efd;,d99 three classes2 for  in the  
first place freedom creates rather more 
drones in the democratic  than there    
were in the oligarchical ,state4        
,that is true4    ,and in the democracy 
they are certainly more intensified4    
,how so8    ,sidenote3 7#a7 ,the drones 
or spend-thrifts who are more numerous  
and  active than in the oligarchy4      
,because in the oligarchical ,state they
 are disqualified and driven from       
office1 and therefore they cannot train 
or gather strength2 whereas in a        
democracy they are almost the entire    
ruling power1 and while the keener  sort
 speak and act1 the rest keep buzzing   
about the bema and do 99#efd;,e99 not   
suffer a word to be said on the other   
side2 hence in democracies almost       
everything is managed by the drones4    
,very true1 he said4    ,then there is  
another class which is always being     
severed from the mass4    ,what is that8
    ,sidenote3 7#b7 ,the orderly or     
wealthy class who are fed upon by the   

drones4    ,they are the orderly class1 
which in a nation of traders is sure to 
be the  richest4    ,naturally so4      
,they are the most squeezable persons   
and yield the largest amount of honey   
to the drones4    ,why1 he said1 there  
is little to be squeezed out of people  
who have  little4    ,and this is called
 the wealthy class1 and the drones feed 
upon them4    99#efe;,a99 ,that is      
pretty much the case1 he said4          
,sidenote3 7#c7 ,the working class who  
also get a share4    ,the people are a  
third class1 consisting of those who    
work with their own  hands2 they are not
 politicians1 and have not much to live 
upon4 ,this1  when assembled1 is the    
largest and most powerful class in a    
democracy4    ,true1 he said2 but then  
the multitude is seldom willing to      
congregate  unless they get a little    
honey4 #bgd    ,and do they not share8  
,i said4 ,do not their leaders deprive  
the rich of  their estates and          
distribute them among the people2 at the

 same time  taking care to reserve the  
larger part for themselves8             
99#efe;,b99 ,why1 yes1 he said1 to that 
extent the people do share4             
,sidenote3 ,the well-to-do have to      
defend themselves against the people4   
,and the persons whose property is taken
 from them are compelled to defend      
themselves before the people as they    
best can8    ,what else can they do8    
,and then1 although they may have no    
desire of change1 the others charge     
them with plotting against the people   
and being friends of oligarchy8         
,true4    ,and the end is that when they
 see the people1 not of their own       
accord1 but  through ignorance1 and     
because they are 99#efe;,c99 deceived by
 informers1  seeking to do them wrong1  
then at last they are forced to become  
oligarchs  in reality2 they do not wish 
to be1 but the sting of the drones      
torments  them and breeds revolution in 
them4    ,that is exactly the truth4    
,then come impeachments and judgments   

and trials of one another4    ,true4    
,sidenote3 ,the people have a protector 
who1 when once he tastes blood1 is      
converted into a tyrant4    ,the people 
have always some champion whom they set 
over them and nurse  into greatness4    
,yes1 that is their way4    99#efe;,d99 
,this and no other is the root from     
which a tyrant springs2 when he  first  
appears above ground he is a protector4 
,yes1 that is quite clear4    ,how then 
does a protector begin to change into a 
tyrant8 ,clearly when he  does what the 
man is said to do in the tale of the    
,arcadian temple of  ,lycaean ,zeus4    
,what tale8    ,the tale is that he who 
has tasted the entrails of a single     
human victim  minced up with the        
entrails of other victims is 99#efe;,e99
 destined to become  a wolf4 ,did you   
never hear it8    ,oh1 yes4    ,and the 
protector of the people is like him2    
having a mob entirely at his  disposal1 
he is not restrained from shedding the  
blood of kinsmen2 by the  favourite     

method of false accusation he brings    
them into court and murders  them1 #bge 
making the life of man to disappear1 and
 with unholy tongue  and lips tasting   
the blood of his fellow citizens2 some  
he kills and  others he banishes1 at the
 same time hinting at the abolition of  
debts and  partition of lands3 and after
 this1 what 99#eff;,a99 will be his     
destiny8 ,must  he not either perish at 
the hands of his enemies1 or from being 
a man  become a wolf--that is1 a tyrant8
    ,inevitably4    ,this1 ,i said1 is  
he who begins to make a party against   
the rich8    ,the same4    ,sidenote3   
,after a time he is driven out1 but     
comes back a full-blown  tyrant4        
,after a while he is driven out1 but    
comes back1 in spite of his enemies1 a  
tyrant full grown4    ,that is clear4   
99#eff;,b99 ,and if they are unable to  
expel him1 or to get him condemned to   
death by a public accusation1 they      
conspire to assassinate him4    ,yes1 he
 said1 that is their usual way4         

,sidenote3 ,the body-guard4    ,then    
comes the famous request for a          
body-guard1 which is the device of all  
those who have got thus far in their    
tyrannical career--',let not the        
people's friend1' as they say1 'be lost 
to them4'    ,exactly4    ,the people   
readily assent2 all their fears are for 
him--they have none for  themselves4    
99#eff;,c99 ,very true4    ,and when a  
man who is wealthy and is also accused  
of being an enemy of the  people sees   
this1 then1 my friend1 as the oracle    
said to ,croesus1      ',by pebbly      
,hermus' shore he flees and rests not1  
and is not ashamed to    be a           
coward#aa4'    ,footnote #aa3 ,herod4 i4
 #ee4    ,and quite right too1 said he1 
for if he were1 he would never be       
ashamed  again4    ,but if he is caught 
he dies4    ,of course4    ,sidenote3   
,the protector standing up in the       
chariot of ,state4    99#eff;,d99 ,and  
he1 the protector of whom we spoke1 is  
to be seen1 not 'larding  the plain'    

with his bulk1 but himself the          
overthrower of many1 standing up  in the
 chariot of ,state with the reins in his
 hand1 no longer protector1  but tyrant 
absolute4 #bgf    ,no doubt1 he said4   
,and now let us consider the happiness  
of the man1 and also of the ,state in   
which a creature like him is generated4 
,yes1 he said1 let us consider that4    
,at first1 in the early days of his     
power1 he is full of smiles1 and he     
salutes every one whom he meets2--he to 
be called 99#eff;,e99 a tyrant1 who is  
making promises in public and also in   
private6 liberating debtors1 and        
distributing land to the people and his 
followers1 and wanting to be so  kind   
and good to every one6    ,of course1 he
 said4    ,sidenote3 ,he stirs up wars1 
and impoverishes his subjects by the    
imposition of taxes4    ,but when he has
 disposed of foreign enemies by conquest
 or treaty1 and  there is nothing to    
fear from them1 then he is always       
stirring up some war  or other1 in order

 that the people may require a leader4  
,to be sure4    99#efg;,a99 ,has he not 
also another object1 which is that they 
may be  impoverished by payment of      
taxes1 and thus compelled to devote     
themselves  to their daily wants and    
therefore less likely to conspire       
against him8    ,clearly4    ,and if any
 of them are suspected by him of having 
notions of freedom1 and  of resistance  
to his authority1 he will have a good   
pretext for destroying  them by placing 
them at the mercy of the enemy2 and for 
all these reasons  the tyrant must be   
always getting up a war4    ,he must4   
99#efg;,b99 ,now he begins to grow      
unpopular4    ,a necessary result4      
,then some of those who joined in       
setting him up1 and who are in power1   
speak their minds to him and to one     
another1 and the more courageous of     
them cast in his teeth what is being    
done4    ,yes1 that may be expected4    
,sidenote3 ,he gets rid of his bravest  
and boldest followers4    ,and the      

tyrant1 if he means to rule1 must get   
rid of them2 he cannot stop  while he   
has a friend or an enemy who is good for
 anything4    ,he cannot4    ,and       
therefore he must look about him and see
 who is 99#efg;,c99 valiant1 who is     
high-minded1 who is wise1 who is        
wealthy2 #bgg happy man1 he is the enemy
  of them all1 and must seek occasion   
against them whether he will or no1     
until he has made a purgation of the    
,state4    ,yes1 he said1 and a rare    
purgation4    ,sidenote3 ,his purgation 
of the ,state4    ,yes1 ,i said1 not the
 sort of purgation which the physicians 
make of the  body2 for they take away   
the worse and leave the better part1 but
 he does  the reverse4    ,if he is to  
rule1 ,i suppose that he cannot help    
himself4    99#efg;,d99 ,what a blessed 
alternative1 ,i said3--to be compelled  
to dwell only  with the many bad1 and to
 be by them hated1 or not to live at    
all6    ,yes1 that is the alternative4  
,and the more detestable his actions are

 to the citizens the more  satellites   
and the greater devotion in them will he
 require8    ,certainly4    ,and who are
 the devoted band1 and where will he    
procure them8    ,they will flock to    
him1 he said1 of their own accord1 if he
 pays them4    ,sidenote3 ,more drones4 
,by the dog6 ,i said1 here are more     
drones1 of every sort 99#efg;,e99 and   
from  every land4    ,yes1 he said1     
there are4    ,but will he not desire to
 get them on the spot8    ,how do you   
mean8    ,he will rob the citizens of   
their slaves2 he will then set them free
 and  enrol them in his body-guard4     
,to be sure1 he said2 and he will be    
able to trust them best of all4         
,sidenote3 ,he puts to death his friends
 and lives with the slaves whom he  has 
enfranchised4    ,what a blessed        
creature1 ,i said1 must this tyrant be2 
he 99#efh;,a99 has put to  death the    
others and has these for his trusted    
friends4    ,yes1 he said2 they are     
quite of his sort4    ,yes1 ,i said1 and

 these are the new citizens whom he has 
called into  existence1 who admire him  
and are his companions1 while the good  
hate and  avoid him4    ,of course4     
,sidenote3 ,euripides and the tragedians
 praise tyranny1 which is an  excellent 
reason for expelling them from our      
,state4    ,verily1 then1 tragedy is a  
wise thing and ,euripides a great       
tragedian4    ,why so8 #bgh    ,why1    
because he is the author of the pregnant
 saying1      99#efh;,b99 ',tyrants are 
wise by living with the wise2'    and he
 clearly meant to say that they are the 
wise whom the tyrant makes  his         
companions4    ,yes1 he said1 and he    
also praises tyranny as godlike2 and    
many other  things of the same kind are 
said by him and by the other poets4     
,and therefore1 ,i said1 the tragic     
poets being wise men will forgive us and
  any others who live after our manner  
if we do not receive them into our      
,state1 because they are the eulogists  
of tyranny4    99#efh;,c99 ,yes1 he     

said1 those who have the wit will       
doubtless forgive us4    ,but they will 
continue to go to other cities and      
attract mobs1 and hire  voices fair and 
loud and persuasive1 and draw the cities
 over to tyrannies  and democracies4    
,very true4    ,moreover1 they are paid 
for this and receive honour--the        
greatest honour1  as might be expected1 
from tyrants1 and the next greatest from
  democracies2 but the higher they      
ascend 99#efh;,d99 our constitution     
hill1 the  more their reputation fails1 
and seems unable from shortness of      
breath to  proceed further4    ,true4   
,but we are wandering from the subject3 
,let us therefore return and enquire    
how the tyrant will maintain that fair  
and numerous and various and            
ever-changing army of his4    ,sidenote3
 ,the tyrant seizes the treasures in the
 temples1 and when these  fail feeds    
upon the people4    ,if1 he said1 there 
are sacred treasures in the city1 he    
will confiscate  and spend them2 and in 

so far as the fortunes of attainted     
persons may  suffice1 he will be able to
 diminish the taxes which he would      
otherwise  have to impose upon the      
people4    99#efh;,e99 ,and when these  
fail8    ,why1 clearly1 he said1 then he
 and his boon companions1 whether male  
or  female1 will be maintained out of   
his father's estate4    ,you mean to say
 that the people1 from whom he has      
derived his being1 will  maintain him   
and his companions8    ,yes1 he said2   
they cannot help themselves4            
,sidenote3 ,they rebel1 and then he     
beats his own parent1 i4e4 the people4  
,but what if the people fly into a      
passion1 and aver that a #bgi grown-up  
son ought not to be supported by his    
father1 but 99#efi;,a99 that the father 
should be supported by the son8 ,the    
father did not bring him into being1  or
 settle him in life1 in order that when 
his son became a man he should  himself 
be the servant of his own servants and  
should support him and his  rabble of   

slaves and companions2 but that his son 
should protect him1 and  that by his    
help he might be emancipated from the   
government of the rich  and             
aristocratic1 as they are termed4 ,and  
so he bids him and his  companions      
depart1 just as any other father might  
drive out of the house a  riotous son   
and his undesirable associates4    ,by  
heaven1 he said1 then the parent will   
discover what 99#efi;,b99 a monster he  
has been fostering in his bosom2 and1   
when he wants to drive him out1 he  will
 find that he is weak and his son       
strong4    ,why1 you do not mean to say 
that the tyrant will use violence8      
,what6 beat  his father if he opposes   
him8    ,yes1 he will1 having first     
disarmed him4    ,then he is a          
parricide1 and a cruel guardian of an   
aged parent2 and this  is real tyranny1 
about which there can be no longer a    
mistake3 as the  saying is1 the people  
who would escape the smoke which is the 
slavery of  freemen1 has fallen         

99#efi;,c99 into the fire which is the  
tyranny of slaves4  ,thus liberty1      
getting out of all order and reason1    
passes into the  harshest and bitterest 
form of slavery4    ,true1 he said4     
,very well2 and may we not rightly say  
that we have sufficiently discussed  the
 nature of tyranny1 and the manner of   
the transition from democracy to        
tyranny8    ,yes1 quite enough1 he said4
          ,,book ,,ix4      ,sidenote3  
,republic ,,ix4 ,socrates1 ,adeimantus4 
99#ega;,a99 ,last of all comes the      
tyrannical man2 about whom we have once 
more  to ask1 how is he formed out of   
the democratical8 and how does he live1 
in  happiness or in misery8    ,yes1 he 
said1 he is the only one remaining4     
,there is1 however1 ,i said1 a previous 
question which remains unanswered4      
,what question8    ,sidenote3 ,a        
digression having a purpose4    ,i do   
not think that we have adequately       
determined the nature and number of  the
 appetites1 and until this is           

accomplished 99#ega;,b99 the enquiry    
will  always be confused4    ,well1 he  
said1 it is not too late to supply the  
omission4    ,sidenote3 ,the wild beast 
latent in man peers forth in sleep4     
,very true1 ,i said2 and observe the    
point which ,i want to understand3      
,certain of the unnecessary pleasures   
and appetites ,i conceive to be         
unlawful2 every one appears to have     
them1 but in some persons they are      
controlled by the laws and by reason1   
and the better desires prevail over     
them--either they are wholly banished or
 they become few and weak2 while  in the
 case of others they are stronger1 and  
99#ega;,c99 there are more of  them4    
,which appetites do you mean8    ,i mean
 those which are awake when the         
reasoning and human and ruling power  is
 asleep2 then the wild beast within us1 
gorged with meat or drink1  starts up   
and having shaken off sleep1 goes forth 
to satisfy his desires2  and there      
99#ega;,d99 is no conceivable folly or  

crime--not excepting incest or  any     
other unnatural union1 or parricide1 or 
the eating of forbidden  food--which at 
such a time1 when he has parted company 
with all shame and  sense1 a man may not
 be ready to commit4    ,most true1 he  
said4    ,sidenote3 ,the contrast of the
 temperate man whose passions are under 
the  control of reason4    ,but when a  
man's pulse is healthy and temperate1   
and when before going to  sleep he has  
awakened his rational #bha powers1 and  
fed them on noble  thoughts and         
enquiries1 99#ega;,e99 collecting       
himself in meditation2 after  having    
first indulged his appetites neither too
 much nor too little1 but  just enough  
to lay them to sleep1 and prevent them  
and their enjoyments  99#egb;,a99 and   
pains from interfering with the higher  
principle--which he  leaves in the      
solitude of pure abstraction1 free to   
contemplate and aspire  to the knowledge
 of the unknown1 whether in past1       
present1 or future3 when  again he has  

allayed the passionate element1 if he   
has a quarrel against  any one--,i say1 
when1 after pacifying the two irrational
 principles1 he  rouses up the third1   
which is reason1 before he takes his    
rest1 then1 as  you know1 he attains    
truth most nearly1 and is least         
99#egb;,b99 likely to be  the sport of  
fantastic and lawless visions4    ,i    
quite agree4    ,in saying this ,i have 
been running into a digression2 but the 
point which  ,i desire to note is that  
in all of us1 even in good men1 there is
 a  lawless wild-beast nature1 which    
peers out in sleep4 ,pray1 consider     
whether ,i am right1 and you agree with 
me4    ,yes1 ,i agree4    ,sidenote3    
,recapitulation4    ,and now remember   
the character which we attributed       
99#egb;,c99 to the  democratic man4 ,he 
was supposed from his youth upwards to  
have been  trained under a miserly      
parent1 who encouraged the saving       
appetites in  him1 but discountenanced  
the unnecessary1 which aim only at      

amusement and  ornament8    ,true4      
,and then he got into the company of a  
more refined1 licentious sort of        
people1 and taking to all their wanton  
ways rushed into the opposite  extreme  
from an abhorrence of his father's      
meanness4 ,at last1 being a  better man 
than his corruptors1 he was drawn in    
both directions until he  halted        
99#egb;,d99 midway and led a life1 not  
of vulgar and slavish passion1  but of  
what he deemed moderate indulgence in   
various pleasures4 ,after this  manner  
the democrat was generated out of the   
oligarch8    ,yes1 he said2 that was our
 view of him1 and is so still4    ,and  
now1 ,i said1 years will have passed    
away1 and you must conceive this  man1  
such as he is1 to have a son1 who is    
brought up in his father's  principles4 
,i can imagine him4 #bhb    ,then you   
must further imagine the same thing to  
happen to the son which  has already    
happened to the father3--he is          
99#egb;,e99 drawn into a perfectly      

lawless life1 which by his seducers is  
termed perfect liberty2 and his  father 
and friends take part with his moderate 
desires1 and the opposite  party assist 
the opposite ones4 ,as soon as these    
dire magicians and 99#egc;,a99          
tyrant-makers find that they are losing 
their hold on him1 they contrive  to    
implant in him a master passion1 to be  
lord over his idle and  spendthrift     
lusts--a sort of monstrous winged       
drone--that is the only  image which    
will adequately describe him4    ,yes1  
he said1 that is the only adequate image
 of him4    ,and when his other lusts1  
amid clouds of incense and perfumes and 
garlands  and wines1 and all the        
pleasures of a dissolute life1 now let  
loose1 come  buzzing around him1        
nourishing to the utmost the sting of   
desire which  they implant in his       
drone-like nature1 then at last this    
lord of 99#egc;,b99  the soul1 having   
,madness for the captain of his guard1  
breaks out into a  frenzy3 and if he    

finds in himself any good opinions or   
appetites in  process of formation#a1   
and there is in him any sense of shame  
remaining1  to these better principles  
he puts an end1 and casts them forth    
until he  has purged away temperance and
 brought in madness to the full4        
,footnote #a3 ,or1 'opinions or         
appetites such as are deemed to be      
good4'    ,sidenote3 ,the tyrannical man
 is made up of lusts and appetites4     
,love1  drink1 madness are but different
 forms of tyranny4    ,yes1 he said1    
that is the way in which the tyrannical 
man is generated4    ,and is not this   
the reason why of old love has been     
called a tyrant8    ,i should not       
wonder4    ,further1 ,i said1 has not a 
drunken man also the spirit of          
99#egc;,c99 a tyrant8    ,he has4       
,and you know that a man who is deranged
 and not right in his mind1 will  fancy 
that he is able to rule1 not only over  
men1 but also over the gods8    ,that he
 will4    ,and the tyrannical man in the

 true sense of the word comes into being
  when1 either under the influence of   
nature1 or habit1 or both1 he becomes   
drunken1 lustful1 passionate8 ,o my     
friend1 is not that so8 #bhc            
,assuredly4    ,such is the man and such
 is his origin4 ,and next1 how does he  
live8    99#egc;,d99 ,suppose1 as people
 facetiously say1 you were to tell me4  
,i imagine1 ,i said1 at the next step in
 his progress1 that there will be       
feasts and carousals and revellings and 
courtezans1 and all that sort of  thing2
 ,love is the lord of the house within  
him1 and orders all the  concerns of his
 soul4    ,that is certain4    ,yes2 and
 every day and every night desires grow 
up many and formidable1  and their      
demands are many4    ,they are indeed1  
he said4    ,his revenues1 if he has    
any1 are soon spent4    ,true4          
99#egc;,e99 ,then comes debt and the    
cutting down of his property4    ,of    
course4    ,sidenote3 ,his desires      
become greater and his means less4      

,when he has nothing left1 must not his 
desires1 crowding in the nest like      
young ravens1 be crying aloud for food2 
and 99#egd;,a99 he1 goaded on by them1  
and especially by love himself1 who is  
in a manner the captain of them1 is  in 
a frenzy1 and would fain discover whom  
he can defraud or despoil of his        
property1 in order that he may gratify  
them8    ,yes1 that is sure to be the   
case4    ,he must have money1 no matter 
how1 if he is to escape horrid pains and
  pangs4    ,he must4    ,sidenote3 ,he 
will rob his father and mother4    ,and 
as in himself there was a succession of 
pleasures1 and the new got the  better  
of the old and took away their rights1  
so he being younger will  claim to have 
more than his father and his mother1 and
 if he has spent his  own share of the  
property1 he will take a slice of       
theirs4    ,no doubt he will4           
99#egd;,b99 ,and if his parents will not
 give way1 then he will try first of all
  to cheat and deceive them4    ,very   

true4    ,and if he fails1 then he will 
use force and plunder them4    ,yes1    
probably4    ,and if the old man and    
woman fight for their own1 what then1 my
 friend8  ,will the creature feel any   
compunction at tyrannizing over them8   
#bhd    ,nay1 he said1 ,i should not    
feel at all comfortable about his       
parents4    ,sidenote3 ,he will prefer  
the love of a girl or a youth to his    
aged  parents1 and may even be induced  
to strike them4    ,but1 ,o heavens6    
,adeimantus1 on account of some         
new-fangled love of a  harlot1 who is   
anything but a necessary 99#egd;,c99    
connection1 can you believe  that he    
would strike the mother who is his      
ancient friend and necessary to  his    
very existence1 and would place her     
under the authority of the other1  when 
she is brought under the same roof with 
her2 or that1 under like  circumstances1
 he would do the same to his withered   
old father1 first and  most             
indispensable of friends1 for the sake  

of some newly-found blooming  youth who 
is the reverse of indispensable8        
,yes1 indeed1 he said2 ,i believe that  
he would4    ,truly1 then1 ,i said1 a   
tyrannical son is a blessing to his     
father and  mother4    ,he is indeed1 he
 replied4    ,sidenote3 ,he turns       
highwayman1 robs temples1 loses all his 
early  principles1 and becomes in waking
 reality the evil dream which he had in 
sleep4    ,sidenote3 ,he gathers        
followers about him4    99#egd;,d99 ,he 
first takes their property1 and when    
that fails1 and pleasures  are beginning
 to swarm in the hive of his soul1 then 
he breaks into a  house1 or steals the  
garments of some nightly wayfarer2 next 
he proceeds  to clear a temple4         
,meanwhile the old opinions which he had
 when a child1  and which gave judgment 
about good and evil1 are overthrown by  
those  others which have just been      
emancipated1 and are now the body-guard 
of  love and share his empire4 ,these in
 his democratic days1 when he was still 

subject to the laws 99#egd;,e99 and to  
his father1 were only let loose in the  
dreams of sleep4 ,but now that he is    
under the dominion of love1 he becomes  
always and in waking reality what he was
 then very rarely and in a dream  only2 
he will commit the foulest murder1 or   
eat forbidden food1 or be  guilty of any
 other horrid act4 99#ege;,a99 ,love is 
his tyrant1 and lives  lordly in him and
 lawlessly1 and being himself a king1   
leads him on1 as a  tyrant leads a      
,state1 to the performance of any       
reckless deed by which he  can maintain 
himself and the rabble of his           
associates1 whether those whom  evil    
communications have brought in from     
without1 or those whom he himself  has  
allowed to break loose within him by    
reason of a similar evil nature  in     
himself4 ,have we not here a picture of 
his way of life8    ,yes1 indeed1 he    
said4    ,and if there are only a few of
 them in the ,state1 and the #bhe       
99#ege;,b99  rest of the people are well

 disposed1 they go away and become the  
body-guard or mercenary soldiers of some
 other tyrant who may probably  want    
them for a war2 and if there is no war1 
they stay at home and do many  little   
pieces of mischief in the city4    ,what
 sort of mischief8    ,for example1 they
 are the thieves1 burglars1 cut-purses1 
foot-pads1  robbers of temples1         
man-stealers of the community2 or if    
they are able to  speak they turn       
informers1 and bear false witness1 and  
take bribes4    99#ege;,c99 ,a small    
catalogue of evils1 even if the         
perpetrators of them are  few in number4
    ,sidenote3 ,a private person can do 
but little harm in comparison of the    
tyrant4    ,yes1 ,i said2 but small and 
great are comparative terms1 and all    
these  things1 in the misery and evil   
which they inflict upon a ,state1 do not
  come within a thousand miles of the   
tyrant2 when this noxious class and     
their followers grow numerous and become
 conscious of their strength1  assisted 

by the infatuation of the people1 they  
choose from among  themselves the one   
who has most of the tyrant in his own   
soul1 99#ege;,d99 and  him they create  
their tyrant4    ,yes1 he said1 and he  
will be the most fit to be a tyrant4    
,if the people yield1 well and good2 but
 if they resist him1 as he began by     
beating his own father and mother1 so   
now1 if he has the power1 he beats      
them1 and will keep his dear old        
fatherland or motherland1 as the        
,cretans  say1 in subjection to his     
young retainers whom he has introduced  
to be  their rulers and masters4 ,this  
is the end of his passions and desires4 
99#ege;,e99 ,exactly4    ,sidenote3 ,the
 behaviour of the tyrant to his early   
supporters4    ,when such men are only  
private individuals and before they get 
power1 this  is their character2 they   
associate entirely with their own       
flatterers or  ready tools2 or if they  
want anything from anybody1 they in     
their turn are  equally ready to bow    

down before them3 they profess every    
sort of 99#egf;,a99  affection for them2
 but when they have gained their point  
they know them  no more4    ,yes1 truly4
    ,sidenote3 ,he is always either     
master or servant1 always treacherous1  
unjust1 the waking reality of our dream1
 a tyrant by nature1 a tyrant in  fact4 
,they are always either the masters or  
servants and never the friends of       
anybody2 the tyrant never tastes of true
 freedom or friendship4 #bhf            
,certainly not4    ,and may we not      
rightly call such men treacherous8      
,no question4    99#egf;,b99 ,also they 
are utterly unjust1 if we were right in 
our notion of  justice8    ,yes1 he     
said1 and we were perfectly right4      
,let us then sum up in a word1 ,i said1 
the character of the worst man3  he is  
the waking reality of what we dreamed4  
,most true4    ,and this is he who being
 by nature most of a tyrant bears rule1 
and the  longer he lives the more of a  
tyrant he becomes4    ,sidenote3        

,socrates1 ,glaucon4    ,that is        
certain1 said ,glaucon1 taking his turn 
to answer4    ,sidenote3 ,the wicked are
 also the most miserable4    ,and will  
not he who has been shown to be the     
wickedest1 99#egf;,c99 be also the  most
 miserable8 and he who has tyrannized   
longest and most1 most  continually and 
truly miserable2 although this may not  
be the opinion of  men in general8      
,yes1 he said1 inevitably4    ,sidenote3
 ,like man1 like ,state4    ,and must   
not the tyrannical man be like the      
tyrannical ,state1 and the  democratical
 man like the democratical ,state2 and  
the same of the others8    ,certainly4  
,and as ,state is to ,state in virtue   
and happiness1 so is man in relation to 
man8    99#egf;,d99 ,to be sure4        
,sidenote3 ,the opposite of the king4   
,then comparing our original city1 which
 was under a king1 and the city  which  
is under a tyrant1 how do they stand as 
to virtue8    ,they are the opposite    
extremes1 he said1 for one is the very  

best and the  other is the very worst4  
,there can be no mistake1 ,i said1 as to
 which is which1 and therefore ,i  will 
at once enquire whether you would arrive
 at a similar decision about  their     
relative happiness and misery4 ,and here
 we must not allow ourselves  to be     
panic-stricken at the apparition of the 
tyrant1 who is only a unit  and may     
perhaps have a few retainers about him2 
but let us go as we 99#egf;,e99  ought  
into every corner of the city and look  
all about1 and then we will  give our   
opinion4    ,a fair invitation1 he      
replied2 and ,i see1 as every one must1 
that a  tyranny is the wretchedest form 
of government1 and the rule of a king   
the  happiest4 #bhg    ,and in          
estimating the men too1 may ,i not      
fairly make 99#egg;,a99 a like  request1
 that ,i should have a judge whose mind 
can enter into and see  through human   
nature8 he must not be like a child who 
looks at the outside  and is dazzled at 
the pompous aspect which the tyrannical 

nature assumes  to the beholder1 but let
 him be one who has a clear insight4    
,may ,i suppose  that the judgment is   
given in the hearing of us all by one   
who is able to  judge1 and has dwelt in 
the same place with him1 and been       
present at his  dally life and known    
99#egg;,b99 him in his family relations1
 where he may be  seen stripped of his  
tragedy attire1 and again in the hour of
 public  danger--he shall tell us about 
the happiness and misery of the tyrant  
when  compared with other men8    ,that 
again1 he said1 is a very fair proposal4
    ,shall ,i assume that we ourselves  
are able and experienced judges and have
  before now met with such a person8 ,we
 shall then have some one who will      
answer our enquiries4    ,by all means4 
99#egg;,c99 ,let me ask you not to      
forget the parallel of the individual   
and the  ,state2 bearing this in mind1  
and glancing in turn from one to the    
other of  them1 will you tell me their  
respective conditions8    ,what do you  

mean8 he asked4    ,sidenote3 ,the      
,state is not free1 but enslaved4       
,beginning with the ,state1 ,i replied1 
would you say that a city which is      
governed by a tyrant is free or         
enslaved8    ,no city1 he said1 can be  
more completely enslaved4    ,and yet1  
as you see1 there are freemen as well as
 masters in such a ,state8    ,yes1 he  
said1 ,i see that there are--a few2 but 
the people1 speaking  generally1 and the
 best of them are miserably degraded and
 enslaved4    ,sidenote3 ,like a slave1 
the tyrant is full of meanness1 and the 
ruling  part of him is madness4         
99#egg;,d99 ,then if the man is like the
 ,state1 ,i said1 must not the same rule
  prevail8 his soul is full of meanness 
and vulgarity--the best elements in  him
 are enslaved2 and there is a small     
ruling part1 which is also the  worst   
and maddest4    ,inevitably4    ,and    
would you say that the soul of such an  
one is the soul of a freeman1  or of a  
slave8    ,he has the soul of a slave1  

in my opinion4 #bhh    ,and the ,state  
which is enslaved under a tyrant is     
utterly incapable of  acting            
voluntarily8    ,utterly incapable4     
,sidenote3 ,the city which is subject to
 him is goaded by a gadfly2             
99#egg;,e99 ,and also the soul which is 
under a tyrant 7,i am speaking of the   
soul taken as a whole7 is least capable 
of doing what she desires2 there  is a  
gadfly which goads her1 and she is full 
of trouble and remorse8    ,certainly4  
,and is the city which is under a tyrant
 rich or poor8    ,poor4    ,sidenote3  
poor2    99#egh;,a99 ,and the tyrannical
 soul must be always poor and           
insatiable8    ,true4    ,and must not  
such a ,state and such a man be always  
full of fear8    ,yes1 indeed4          
,sidenote3 full of misery4    ,is there 
any ,state in which you will find more  
of lamentation and sorrow  and groaning 
and pain8    ,certainly not4    ,and is 
there any man in whom you will find more
 of this sort of misery  than in the    

tyrannical man1 who is in a fury of     
passions and desires8    ,impossible4   
99#egh;,b99 ,reflecting upon these and  
similar evils1 you held the tyrannical  
,state to be the most miserable of      
,states8    ,and ,i was right1 he said4 
,sidenote3 ,also the tyrannical man is  
most miserable4    ,certainly1 ,i said4 
,and when you see the same evils in the 
tyrannical man1  what do you say of him8
    ,i say that he is by far the most   
miserable of all men4    ,sidenote3 ,yet
 there is a still more miserable being1 
the tyrannical man  who is a public     
tyrant4    ,there1 ,i said1 ,i think    
that you are beginning to go wrong4     
,what do you mean8    ,i do not think   
that he has as yet reached the utmost   
extreme of misery4    ,then who is more 
miserable8    ,one of whom ,i am about  
to speak4    ,who is that8              
99#egh;,c99 ,he who is of a tyrannical  
nature1 and instead of leading a private
  life has been cursed with the further 
misfortune of being a public tyrant4    

,from what has been said1 ,i gather that
 you are right4 #bhi    ,yes1 ,i        
replied1 but in this high argument you  
should be a little more  certain1 and   
should not conjecture only2 for of all  
questions1 this  respecting good and    
evil is the greatest4    ,very true1 he 
said4    ,let me then offer you an      
illustration1 which may1 ,i think1      
99#egh;,d99 throw a  light upon this    
subject4    ,what is your illustration8 
,sidenote3 ,in cities there are many    
great slaveowners1 and they help to     
protect one another4    ,the case of    
rich individuals in cities who possess  
many slaves3 from them  you may form an 
idea of the tyrant's condition1 for they
 both have slaves2  the only difference 
is that he has more slaves4    ,yes1    
that is the difference4    ,you know    
that they live securely and have nothing
 to apprehend from their  servants8     
,what should they fear8    ,nothing4    
,but do you observe the reason of this8 
,yes2 the reason is1 that the whole city

 is leagued together for the  protection
 of each individual4    ,sidenote3 ,but 
suppose a slaveowner and his slaves     
carried off into the  wilderness1 what  
will happen then8 ,such is the condition
 of the tyrant4    99#egh;,e99 ,very    
true1 ,i said4 ,but imagine one of these
 owners1 the master say  of some fifty  
slaves1 together with his family and    
property and slaves1  carried off by a  
god into the wilderness1 where there are
 no freemen to  help him--will he not be
 in an agony of fear lest he and his    
wife and  children should be put to     
death by his slaves8    ,yes1 he said1  
he will be in the utmost fear4          
99#egi;,a99 ,the time has arrived when  
he will be compelled to flatter divers  
of  his slaves1 and make many promises  
to them of freedom and other things1    
much against his will--he will have to  
cajole his own servants4    ,yes1 he    
said1 that will be the only way of      
saving himself4    ,and suppose the same
 god1 who carried him away1 to surround 

him with  neighbours who will not suffer
 one man to be the master of another1   
and  who1 if they could catch the       
offender1 would take his life8          
99#egi;,b99 ,his case will be still     
worse1 if you suppose him to be         
everywhere  surrounded and watched by   
enemies4    ,sidenote3 ,he is the       
daintiest of all men and has to endure  
the hardships  of a prison2    ,and is  
not this the sort of prison in which the
 tyrant will be bound--he  who being by 
nature such as we have described1 is    
full of all sorts of  fears and lusts8  
,his soul is dainty and greedy1 and yet 
alone1 of all men  in the city1 he is   
never #bij allowed to go on a journey1  
or to see the  things which other       
freemen desire to see1 but he lives in  
his hole like a  woman 99#egi;,c99      
hidden in the house1 and is jealous of  
any other citizen who  goes into foreign
 parts and sees anything of interest4   
,very true1 he said4    ,sidenote3      
,miserable in himself1 he is still more 

miserable if he be in a  public station4
    ,and amid evils such as these will  
not he who is ill-governed in his own   
person--the tyrannical man1 ,i          
mean--whom you just now decided to be   
the  most miserable of all--will not he 
be yet more miserable when1 instead of  
leading a private life1 he is           
constrained by fortune to be a public   
tyrant8 ,he has to be master of others  
when he is not master of himself3 he  is
 like a diseased or paralytic man who is
 compelled to pass his 99#egi;,d99      
life1 not in retirement1 but fighting   
and combating with other men4    ,yes1  
he said1 the similitude is most exact4  
,sidenote3 ,he then leads a life worse  
than the worst1    ,is not his case     
utterly miserable8 and does not the     
actual tyrant lead a  worse life than he
 whose life you determined to be the    
worst8    ,certainly4    ,sidenote3 in  
unhappiness1    ,he who is the real     
tyrant1 whatever men may think1 is the  
real slave1 and  is obliged to practise 

the greatest adulation 99#egi;,e99 and  
servility1 and to  be the flatterer of  
the vilest of mankind4 ,he has desires  
which he is  utterly unable to satisfy1 
and has more wants than any one1 and is 
truly  poor1 if you know how to inspect 
the whole soul of him3 all his life long
  he is beset with fear and is full of  
convulsions and distractions1 even as   
the ,state which he resembles3 and      
surely the resemblance holds8    ,very  
true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 and in     
wickedness4    99#ehj;,a99 ,moreover1 as
 we were saying before1 he grows worse  
from having  power3 he becomes and is of
 necessity more jealous1 more faithless1
 more  unjust1 more friendless1 more    
impious1 than he was at first2 he is the
  purveyor and cherisher of every sort  
of vice1 and the consequence is that  he
 is supremely miserable1 and that he    
makes everybody else as miserable  as   
himself4    ,no man of any sense will   
dispute your words4    ,sidenote3 ,the  
umpire decides that    ,come then1 ,i   

said1 and as the general umpire in      
theatrical 99#ehj;,b99 contests         
proclaims the result1 do you also decide
 who in your opinion is first in  the   
scale of happiness1 and who second1 #bia
 and in what order the others  follow3  
there are five of them in all--they are 
the royal1 timocratical1  oligarchical1 
democratical1 tyrannical4    ,the       
decision will be easily given1 he       
replied2 they shall be choruses  coming 
on the stage1 and ,i must judge them in 
the order in which they  enter1 by the  
criterion of virtue and vice1 happiness 
and misery4    ,sidenote3 the best is   
the happiest and the worst is the most  
miserable4  ,this is the proclamation of
 the son of ,ariston4    ,need we hire a
 herald1 or shall ,i announce1 that the 
son of ,ariston the  best has decided   
that the best and justest 99#ehj;,c99 is
 also the happiest1  and that this is he
 who is the most royal man and king over
 himself2 and  that the worst and most  
unjust man is also the most miserable1  

and that  this is he who being the      
greatest tyrant of himself is also the  
greatest  tyrant of his ,state8    ,make
 the proclamation yourself1 he said4    
,and shall ,i add1 'whether seen or     
unseen by gods and men'8    ,let the    
words be added4    ,then this1 ,i said1 
will be our first proof2 and there is   
99#ehj;,d99 another1  which may also    
have some weight4    ,what is that8     
,sidenote3 ,proof1 derived from the     
three principles of the soul4    ,the   
second proof is derived from the nature 
of the soul3 seeing that the  individual
 soul1 like the ,state1 has been divided
 by us into three  principles1 the      
division may1 ,i think1 furnish a new   
demonstration4    ,of what nature8      
,it seems to me that to these three     
principles three pleasures correspond2  
also three desires and governing powers4
    ,how do you mean8 he said4    ,there
 is one principle with which1 as we were
 saying1 a man learns1  another with    
which he is angry2 the third1           

99#ehj;,e99 having many forms1 has  no  
special name1 but is denoted by the     
general term appetitive1 from the       
extraordinary strength and vehemence of 
the desires of eating and drinking  and 
the other sensual appetites which are   
the main elements of it2 99#eha;,a99    
also money-loving1 because such desires 
are generally satisfied by the  help of 
money4    ,that is true1 he said4       
,sidenote3 7#a7 ,the appetitive3    ,if 
we were to say that the loves and       
pleasures of this third part were       
concerned with gain1 we should then be  
#bib able to fall back on a single      
notion2 and might truly and intelligibly
 describe this part of the soul as      
loving gain or money4    ,i agree with  
you4    ,again1 is not the passionate   
element wholly set on ruling and        
conquering  and getting fame8           
99#eha;,b99 ,true4    ,sidenote3 7#b7   
,the ambitious2    ,suppose we call it  
the contentious or ambitious--would the 
term be  suitable8    ,extremely        

suitable4    ,sidenote3 7#c7 ,the       
principle of knowledge and truth4    ,on
 the other hand1 every one sees that the
 principle of knowledge is  wholly      
directed to the truth1 and cares less   
than either of the others for  gain or  
fame4    ,far less4    ',lover of       
wisdom1' 'lover of knowledge1' are      
titles which we may fitly  apply to that
 part of the soul8    ,certainly4       
,one principle prevails in the souls of 
one class of men1 99#eha;,c99 another in
  others1 as may happen8    ,yes4       
,then we may begin by assuming that     
there are three classes of men--lovers  
of wisdom1 lovers of honour1 lovers of  
gain8    ,exactly4    ,and there are    
three kinds of pleasure1 which are their
 several objects8    ,very true4        
,sidenote3 ,each will depreciate the    
others1 but only the philosopher has    
the power to judge1    ,now1 if you     
examine the three classes of men1 and   
ask of them in turn  which of their     
lives is pleasantest1 each will be found

 praising his own  and depreciating that
 of others3 99#eha;,d99 the money-maker 
will contrast the  vanity of honour or  
of learning if they bring no money with 
the solid  advantages of gold and       
silver8    ,true1 he said4    ,and the  
lover of honour--what will be his       
opinion8 ,will he not think that  the   
pleasure of riches is vulgar1 while the 
pleasure of learning1 if it  brings no  
distinction1 is all smoke and nonsense  
to him8    ,very true4 #bic             
,sidenote3 because he alone has         
experience of the highest pleasures and 
is  also acquainted with the lower4     
,and are we to suppose#b1 ,i said1 that 
the philosopher sets 99#eha;,e99 any    
value on other pleasures in comparison  
with the pleasure of knowing the  truth1
 and in that pursuit abiding1 ever      
learning1 not so far indeed from  the   
heaven of pleasure8 ,does he not call   
the other pleasures necessary1  under   
the idea that if there were no necessity
 for them1 he would rather  not have    

them8    ,footnote #b3 ,reading with    
,grasere and ,hermann ,greek3 ti_/      
oi7_/metha1 and  omitting ,greek3       
ou7den1 which is not found in the best  
,,mss4    ,there can be no doubt of     
that1 he replied4    ,since1 then1 the  
pleasures of each class and the life of 
each are in  dispute1 and the question  
is not which life is more or 99#ehb;,a99
 less  honourable1 or better or worse1  
but which is the more pleasant or       
painless--how shall we know who speaks  
truly8    ,i cannot myself tell1 he     
said4    ,well1 but what ought to be the
 criterion8 ,is any better than         
experience  and wisdom and reason8      
,there cannot be a better1 he said4     
,then1 ,i said1 reflect4 ,of the three  
individuals1 which has the greatest     
experience of all the pleasures which we
 enumerated8 ,has the lover of  gain1 in
 learning the nature of essential truth1
 greater experience of the  pleasure of 
99#ehb;,b99 knowledge than the          
philosopher has of the pleasure of      

gain8    ,the philosopher1 he replied1  
has greatly the advantage2 for he has of
  necessity always known the taste of   
the other pleasures from his childhood  
upwards3 but the lover of gain in all   
his experience has not of necessity     
tasted--or1 ,i should rather say1 even  
had he desired1 could hardly have       
tasted--the sweetness of learning and   
knowing truth4    ,then the lover of    
wisdom has a great advantage over the   
lover of gain1 for  he has a double     
experience8    99#ehb;,c99 ,yes1 very   
great4    ,again1 has he greater        
experience of the pleasures of honour1  
or the lover  of honour of the pleasures
 of wisdom8    ,nay1 he said1 all three 
are honoured in proportion as they      
attain their  object2 for the rich man  
and the brave man and the wise man alike
 have  their crowd of admirers1 and as  
they all receive honour they all have   
experience of the pleasures of honour2  
but the delight which is to be  found   
#bid in the knowledge of true being is  

known to the philosopher  only4         
99#ehb;,d99 ,his experience1 then1 will 
enable him to judge better than any one8
    ,far better4    ,sidenote3 ,the     
philosopher alone having both judgment  
and experience1    ,and he is the only  
one who has wisdom as well as           
experience8    ,certainly4    ,further1 
the very faculty which is the instrument
 of judgment is not  possessed by the   
covetous or ambitious man1 but only by  
the philosopher8    ,what faculty8      
,reason1 with whom1 as we were saying1  
the decision ought to rest4    ,yes4    
,and reasoning is peculiarly his        
instrument8    ,certainly4    ,if wealth
 and gain were the criterion1 then the  
praise or 99#ehb;,e99 blame of  the     
lover of gain would surely be the most  
trustworthy8    ,assuredly4    ,or if   
honour or victory or courage1 in that   
case the judgment of the  ambitious or  
pugnacious would be the truest8         
,clearly4    ,sidenote3 the pleasures   
which he approves are the true          

pleasures3 he  places 7#a7 the love of  
wisdom1 7#b7 the love of honour1 7#c7   
and lowest the  love of gain4    ,but   
since experience and wisdom and reason  
are the judges--    ,the only inference 
possible1 he replied1 is that pleasures 
which are  approved by the lover of     
wisdom and reason are the truest4       
,and so we arrive at the result1 that   
the pleasure of the 99#ehc;,a99         
intelligent part of the soul is the     
pleasantest of the three1 and that he   
of us in whom this is the ruling        
principle has the pleasantest life4     
,unquestionably1 he said1 the wise man  
speaks with authority when he  approves 
of his own life4    ,and what does the  
judge affirm to be the life which is    
next1 and the  pleasure which is next8  
,clearly that of the soldier and lover  
of honour2 who is nearer to himself     
than the money-maker4    ,last comes the
 lover of gain8 #bie    ,very true1 he  
said4    ,sidenote3 ,true pleasure is   
not relative but absolute4              

99#ehc;,b99 ,twice in succession1 then1 
has the just man overthrown the unjust  
in this conflict2 and now comes the     
third trial1 which is dedicated to      
,olympian ,zeus the saviour3 a sage     
whispers in my ear that no pleasure     
except that of the wise is quite true   
and pure--all others are a shadow  only2
 and surely this will prove the greatest
 and most decisive of falls8    ,yes1   
the greatest2 but will you explain      
yourself8    99#ehc;,c99 ,i will work   
out the subject and you shall answer my 
questions4    ,proceed4    ,say1 then1  
is not pleasure opposed to pain8        
,true4    ,and there is a neutral state 
which is neither pleasure nor pain8     
,there is4    ,a state which is         
intermediate1 and a sort of repose of   
the soul about  either--that is what you
 mean8    ,yes4    ,you remember what   
people say when they are sick8    ,what 
do they say8    ,that after all nothing 
is pleasanter than health4 ,but then    
they never knew  this to be the greatest

 of pleasures until 99#ehc;,d99 they    
were ill4    ,yes1 ,i know1 he said4    
,sidenote3 ,the states intermediate     
between pleasure and pain are termed    
pleasures or pains only in relation to  
their opposites4    ,and when persons   
are suffering from acute pain1 you must 
have heard them  say that there is      
nothing pleasanter than to get rid of   
their pain8    ,i have4    ,and there   
are many other cases of suffering in    
which the mere rest and  cessation of   
pain1 and not any positive enjoyment1 is
 extolled by them as  the greatest      
pleasure8    ,yes1 he said2 at the time 
they are pleased and well content to be 
at rest4    99#ehc;,e99 ,again1 when    
pleasure ceases1 that sort of rest or   
cessation will be  painful8             
,doubtless1 he said4    ,then the       
intermediate state of rest will be      
pleasure and will also be  pain8    ,so 
it would seem4 #bif    ,but can that    
which is neither become both8    ,i     
should say not4    ,and both pleasure   

and pain are motions of the soul1 are   
they not8    ,yes4    ,sidenote3        
,pleasure and pain are said to be states
 of rest1 but they are  really motions4 
99#ehd;,a99 ,but that which is neither  
was just now shown to be rest and not   
motion1 and in a mean between them8     
,yes4    ,how1 then1 can we be right in 
supposing that the absence of pain is   
pleasure1 or that the absence of        
pleasure is pain8    ,impossible4       
,this then is an appearance only and not
 a reality2 that is to say1 the  rest is
 pleasure at the moment and in          
comparison of what is painful1 and      
painful in comparison of what is        
pleasant2 but all these representations1
  when tried by the test of true        
pleasure1 are not real but a sort of    
imposition8    ,that is the inference4  
,sidenote3 ,all pleasures are not merely
 cessations of pains1 or pains of       
pleasures2 e4g4 the pleasures of smell  
are not4    99#ehd;,b99 ,look at the    
other class of pleasures which have no  

antecedent pains  and you will no longer
 suppose1 as you perhaps may at present1
 that  pleasure is only the cessation of
 pain1 or pain of pleasure4    ,what are
 they1 he said1 and where shall ,i find 
them8    ,there are many of them3 take  
as an example the pleasures of smell1   
which  are very great and have no       
antecedent pains2 they come in a moment1
 and  when they depart leave no pain    
behind them4    ,most true1 he said4    
99#ehd;,c99 ,let us not1 then1 be       
induced to believe that pure pleasure is
 the  cessation of pain1 or pain of     
pleasure4    ,no4    ,still1 the more   
numerous and violent pleasures which    
reach the soul  through the body are    
generally of this sort--they are reliefs
 of pain4    ,that is true4    ,and the 
anticipations of future pleasures and   
pains are of a like nature8    ,yes4    
99#ehd;,d99 ,shall ,i give you an       
illustration of them8    ,let me hear4  
#big    ,you would allow1 ,i said1 that 
there is in nature an upper and lower   

and  middle region8    ,i should4       
,sidenote3 ,illustrations of the        
unreality of certain pleasures4    ,and 
if a person were to go from the lower to
 the middle region1 would he  not       
imagine that he is going up2 and he who 
is standing in the middle and  sees     
whence he has come1 would imagine that  
he is already in the upper  region1 if  
he has never seen the true upper world8 
,to be sure1 he said2 how can he think  
otherwise8    99#ehd;,e99 ,but if he    
were taken back again he would imagine1 
and truly  imagine1 that he was         
descending8    ,no doubt4    ,all that  
would arise out of his ignorance of the 
true upper and middle and  lower        
regions8    ,yes4    ,then can you      
wonder that persons who are             
inexperienced in the truth1 as  they    
have wrong ideas about many other       
things1 should also have wrong  ideas   
about pleasure and pain and the         
intermediate state2 so that when  they  
are only being 99#ehe;,a99 drawn towards

 the painful they feel pain and  think  
the pain which they experience to be    
real1 and in like manner1 when  drawn   
away from pain to the neutral or        
intermediate state1 they firmly  believe
 that they have reached the goal of     
satiety and pleasure2 they1 not  knowing
 pleasure1 err in contrasting pain with 
the absence of pain1 which  is like     
contrasting black with grey instead of  
white--can you wonder1 ,i  say1 at this8
    ,no1 indeed2 ,i should be much more 
disposed to wonder at the opposite4     
,look at the matter thus3--,hunger1     
thirst1 and the like1 99#ehe;,b99 are   
inanitions of the bodily state8    ,yes4
    ,and ignorance and folly are        
inanitions of the soul8    ,true4       
,and food and wisdom are the            
corresponding satisfactions of either8  
,certainly4    ,sidenote3 ,the          
intellectual more real than the sensual4
    ,and is the satisfaction derived    
from that which has less or from that   
which has more existence the truer8     

,clearly1 from that which has more4     
,what classes of things have a greater  
share of pure #bih existence in  your   
judgment--those of which food and drink 
and condiments and all kinds  of        
sustenance are examples1 or the class   
which contains true opinion and         
knowledge and 99#ehe;,c99 mind and all  
the different kinds of virtue8 ,put the 
question in this way3--,which has a more
 pure being--that which is  concerned   
with the invariable1 the immortal1 and  
the true1 and is of such  a nature1 and 
is found in such natures2 or that which 
is concerned with  and found in the     
variable and mortal1 and is itself      
variable and mortal8    ,far purer1 he  
replied1 is the being of that which is  
concerned with the  invariable4    ,and 
does the essence of the invariable      
partake of knowledge in the same  degree
 as of essence8    ,yes1 of knowledge in
 the same degree4    ,and of truth in   
the same degree8    ,yes4    ,and1      
conversely1 that which has less of truth

 will also have less of  essence8       
,necessarily4    99#ehe;,d99 ,then1 in  
general1 those kinds of things which are
 in the service of  the body have less  
of truth and essence than those which   
are in the  service of the soul8    ,far
 less4    ,and has not the body itself  
less of truth and essence than the soul8
    ,yes4    ,what is filled with more  
real existence1 and actually has a more 
real  existence1 is more really filled  
than that which is filled with less real
  existence and is less real8    ,of    
course4    ,sidenote3 ,the pleasures of 
the sensual and also of the passionate  
element  are unreal and mixed4    ,and  
if there be a pleasure in being filled  
with that which is according to  nature1
 that which is more really filled with  
99#ehe;,e99 more real being will  more  
really and truly enjoy true pleasure2   
whereas that which participates  in less
 real being will be less truly and      
surely satisfied1 and will  participate 
in an illusory and less real pleasure8  

,unquestionably4    99#ehf;,a99 ,those  
then who know not wisdom and virtue1 and
 are always busy with  gluttony and     
sensuality1 go down and up again as far 
as the mean2 and in  this region they   
move at #bii random throughout life1 but
 they never pass  into the true upper   
world2 thither they neither look1 nor do
 they ever  find their way1 neither are 
they truly filled with true being1 nor  
do they  taste of pure and abiding      
pleasure4 ,like cattle1 with their eyes 
always  looking down and their heads    
stooping to the earth1 that is1 to the  
dining-table1 they fatten and feed      
99#ehf;,b99 and breed1 and1 in their    
excessive love of these delights1 they  
kick and butt at one another with  horns
 and hoofs which are made of iron2 and  
they kill one another by  reason of     
their insatiable lust4 ,for they fill   
themselves with that which  is not      
substantial1 and the part of themselves 
which they fill is also  unsubstantial  
and incontinent4    ,verily1 ,socrates1 

said ,glaucon1 you describe the life of 
the many like an  oracle4    ,their     
pleasures are mixed with pains--how can 
they be otherwise8 ,for they  are mere  
shadows and pictures of 99#ehf;,c99 the 
true1 and are coloured by  contrast1    
which exaggerates both light and shade1 
and so they implant in  the minds of    
fools insane desires of themselves2 and 
they are fought about  as ,stesichorus  
says that the ,greeks fought about the  
shadow of ,helen at  ,troy in ignorance 
of the truth4    ,something of that sort
 must inevitably happen4    ,and must   
not the like happen with the spirited or
 passionate element of  the soul8 ,will 
not the passionate man who carries his  
passion into action1  be in the like    
case1 whether he is envious and         
ambitious1 or violent and  contentious1 
or angry and discontented1 if he be     
seeking to attain 99#ehf;,d99  honour   
and victory and the satisfaction of his 
anger without reason or  sense8    ,yes1
 he said1 the same will happen with the 

spirited element also4    ,sidenote3    
,both kinds of pleasures are attained in
 the highest degree when  the desires   
which seek them are under the guidance  
of reason4    ,then may we not          
confidently assert that the lovers of   
money and honour1  when they seek their 
pleasures under the guidance and in the 
company of  reason and knowledge1 and   
pursue after and win the pleasures which
 wisdom  shows them1 will also have the 
truest pleasures in the highest degree  
which is attainable to them1 inasmuch as
 they follow truth2 99#ehf;,e99 and     
they will have the pleasures which are  
natural to them1 if that which is  best 
for each one is also most natural to    
him8    ,yes1 certainly2 the best is the
 most natural4 #cjj    ,and when the    
whole soul follows the philosophical    
principle1 and there is  no division1   
the several parts are just1 99#ehg;,a99 
and do each of them their  own business1
 and enjoy severally the best and truest
 pleasures of which  they are capable8  

,exactly4    ,but when either of the two
 other principles prevails1 it fails in 
attaining its own pleasure1 and compels 
the rest to pursue after a  pleasure    
which is a shadow only and which is not 
their own8    ,true4    ,and the greater
 the interval which separates them from 
philosophy and  reason1 the more strange
 and illusive will be the pleasure8     
,yes4    ,and is not that farthest from 
reason which is at the greatest distance
  from law and order8    ,clearly4      
,and the lustful and tyrannical desires 
are1 as we saw1 at the 99#ehg;,b99      
greatest distance8    ,yes4    ,and the 
royal and orderly desires are nearest8  
,yes4    ,then the tyrant will live at  
the greatest distance from true or      
natural  pleasure1 and the king at the  
least8    ,certainly4    ,but if so1 the
 tyrant will live most unpleasantly1 and
 the king most  pleasantly8             
,inevitably4    ,sidenote3 ,the measure 
of the interval which separates the king
 from the  tyrant1    ,would you know   

the measure of the interval which       
separates them8    ,will you tell me8   
,there appear to be three pleasures1 one
 genuine and two 99#ehg;,c99 spurious3  
now the transgression of the tyrant     
reaches a point beyond the spurious2  he
 has run away from the region of law and
 reason1 and taken up his abode  with   
certain slave pleasures which are his   
satellites1 and the measure of  his     
inferiority can only be expressed in a  
figure4    ,how do you mean8    ,i      
assume1 ,i said1 that the tyrant is in  
the third place from the oligarch2  the 
democrat was in the middle8 #cja        
,yes4    ,and if there is truth in what 
has preceded1 he will be wedded to an   
image  of pleasure which is thrice      
removed as to truth from the pleasure of
 the  oligarch8    ,he will4    ,and the
 oligarch is third from the royal2 since
 we count 99#ehg;,d99 as one  royal and 
aristocratical8    ,yes1 he is third4   
,then the tyrant is removed from true   
pleasure by the space of a number  which

 is three times three8    ,manifestly4  
,sidenote3 expressed under the symbol of
 a cube corresponding to the  number    
#gbi4    ,the shadow then of tyrannical 
pleasure determined by the number of    
length  will be a plane figure4         
,certainly4    ,and if you raise the    
power and make the plane a solid1 there 
is no  difficulty in seeing how vast is 
the interval by which the tyrant is     
parted from the king4    ,yes2 the      
arithmetician will easily do the sum4   
,or if some person begins at the other  
end and measures 99#ehg;,e99 the        
interval  by which the king is parted   
from the tyrant in truth of pleasure1 he
 will  find him1 when the multiplication
 is completed1 living #gbi times more   
pleasantly1 and the tyrant more         
painfully by this same interval4        
,what a wonderful calculation6 ,and how 
enormous is the 99#ehh;,a99 distance    
which separates the just from the unjust
 in regard to pleasure and pain6        
,sidenote3 which is nearly the number of

 days and nights in a year4    ,yet a   
true calculation1 ,i said1 and a number 
which nearly concerns human  life1 if   
human beings are concerned with days and
 nights and months and  years#c4        
,footnote #c3 #gbi nearly equals the    
number of days and nights in the  year4 
,yes1 he said1 human life is certainly  
concerned with them4    ,then if the    
good and just man be thus superior in   
pleasure to the evil and  unjust1 his   
superiority will be infinitely greater  
in propriety of life  and in beauty and 
virtue8    ,immeasurably greater4       
,sidenote3 ,refutation of ,thrasymachus4
    99#ehh;,b99 ,well1 ,i said1 and now 
having arrived at this stage of the     
argument1  we may revert to the words   
which brought us hither3 ,was not some  
one  saying that injustice was a gain to
 the perfectly unjust who was reputed   
to be just8    ,yes1 that was said4 #cjb
    ,now then1 having determined the    
power and quality of justice and        
injustice1 let us have a little         

conversation with him4    ,what shall we
 say to him8    ,let us make an image of
 the soul1 that he may have his own     
words presented  before his eyes4       
99#ehh;,c99 ,of what sort8    ,sidenote3
 ,the triple animal who has outwardly   
the image of a man4    ,an ideal image  
of the soul1 like the composite         
creations of ancient  mythology1 such as
 the ,chimera or ,scylla or ,cerberus1  
and there are many  others in which two 
or more different natures are said to   
grow into one4    ,there are said of    
have been such unions4    ,then do you  
now model the form of a multitudinous1  
many-headed monster1  having a ring of  
heads of all manner of beasts1 tame and 
wild1 which he is  able to generate and 
metamorphose at will4    99#ehh;,d99    
,you suppose marvellous powers in the   
artist2 but1 as language is  more       
pliable than wax or any similar         
substance1 let there be such a model  as
 you propose4    ,suppose now that you  
make a second form as of a lion1 and a  

third of a  man1 the second smaller than
 the first1 and the third smaller than  
the  second4    ,that1 he said1 is an   
easier task2 and ,i have made them as   
you say4    ,and now join them1 and let 
the three grow into one4    ,that has   
been accomplished4    ,next fashion the 
outside of them into a single image1 as 
of a man1 so that  he who is not able to
 look within1 and sees 99#ehh;,e99 only 
the outer hull1  may believe the beast  
to be a single human creature4    ,i    
have done so1 he said4    ,sidenote3    
,will any one say that we should        
strengthen the monster and the  lion at 
the expense of the man8    ,and now1 to 
him who maintains that it is profitable 
for the human creature  to be unjust1   
and unprofitable to be just1 let us     
reply that1 if he be  right1 it is      
profitable for this creature to feast   
the multitudinous  monster and          
strengthen the lion and 99#ehi;,a99 the 
lion-like qualities1 but to  starve and 
weaken the man1 who is consequently     

liable to be dragged about  at the mercy
 of either of the other two2 and he is  
not to attempt to  familiarize or       
harmonize them with one another--he     
ought rather to suffer  them to fight   
and bite and devour one another4 #cjc   
,certainly1 he said2 that is what the   
approver of injustice says4    ,to him  
the supporter of justice makes answer   
that he should ever so speak  and act as
 to give the man within him in some way 
or other the most  complete mastery over
 the 99#ehi;,b99 entire human creature4 
,he should watch  over the many-headed  
monster like a good husbandman1         
fostering and  cultivating the gentle   
qualities1 and preventing the wild ones 
from  growing2 he should be making the  
lion-heart his ally1 and in common care 
of them all should be uniting the       
several parts with one another and with 
himself4    ,yes1 he said1 that is quite
 what the maintainer of justice say4    
,and so from every point of view1       
whether of pleasure1 99#ehi;,c99 honour1

 or  advantage1 the approver of justice 
is right and speaks the truth1 and the  
disapprover is wrong and false and      
ignorant8    ,yes1 from every point of  
view4    ,sidenote3 ,for the noble      
principle subjects the beast to the man1
 the  ignoble the man to the beast4     
,come1 now1 and let us gently reason    
with the unjust1 who is not             
intentionally in error4 ',sweet ,sir1'  
we will say to him1 'what think you  of 
things esteemed noble and ignoble8      
99#ehi;,d99 ,is not the noble that which
  subjects the beast to the man1 or     
rather to the god in man2 and the       
ignoble that which subjects the man to  
the beast8' ,he can hardly avoid  saying
 ,yes--can he now8    ,not if he has any
 regard for my opinion4    ,sidenote3 ,a
 man would not be the gainer if he sold 
his child3 how much  worse to sell his  
soul6    ,but1 if he agree so far1 we   
may ask him to answer another question3 
',then  how would a man profit if he    
received gold and silver on the         

condition  that he was to enslave the   
noblest part of him to the worst8 ,who  
can  imagine that a man who 99#ehi;,e99 
sold his son or daughter into slavery   
for  money1 especially if he sold them  
into the hands of fierce and evil men1  
would be the gainer1 however large might
 be the sum which he received8 ,and     
will any one say that he is not a       
miserable 99#eij;,a99 caitiff who       
remorselessly sells his own divine being
 to that which is most godless and      
detestable8 ,eriphyle took the necklace 
as the price of her husband's life1  but
 he is taking a bribe in order to       
compass a worse ruin4'    ,yes1 said    
,glaucon1 far worse--,i will answer for 
him4    ,has not the intemperate been   
censured of old1 because in #cjd him the
  huge multiform monster is allowed to  
be too much at large8    ,clearly4      
,sidenote3 ,proofs3--7#a7 ,men are      
blamed for the predominance of the lower
  nature1    ,and men are blamed for    
pride and bad temper when the           

99#eij;,b99 lion and  serpent element in
 them disproportionately grows and gains
 strength8    ,yes4    ,and luxury and  
softness are blamed1 because they relax 
and weaken this  same creature1 and make
 a coward of him8    ,very true4    ,and
 is not a man reproached for flattery   
and meanness who subordinates the       
spirited animal to the unruly monster1  
and1 for the sake of money1 of  which he
 can never have enough1 habituates him  
in the days of his youth to  be trampled
 in the mire1 and from being a lion to  
become a monkey8    99#eij;,c99 ,true1  
he said4    ,sidenote3 as well as for   
the meanness of their employments and   
character3    ,and why are mean         
employments and manual arts a reproach8 
,only because they  imply a natural     
weakness of the higher principle2 the   
individual is unable  to control the    
creatures within him1 but has to court  
them1 and his great  study is how to    
flatter them4    ,such appears to be the
 reason4    ,sidenote3 7#b7 ,it is      

admitted that every one should be the   
servant of a  divine rule1 or at any    
rate be kept under control by an        
external  authority3    ,and therefore1 
being desirous of placing him under a   
rule like that of the  best1 we say that
 he ought to be the servant 99#eij;,d99 
of the best1 in whom  the ,divine rules2
 not1 as ,thrasymachus supposed1 to the 
injury of the  servant1 but because     
every one had better be ruled by divine 
wisdom  dwelling within him2 or1 if this
 be impossible1 then by an external     
authority1 in order that we may be all1 
as far as possible1 under the same      
government1 friends and equals4         
,true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 7#c7 ,the 
care taken of children shows that we    
seek to establish  in them a higher     
principle4    99#eij;,e99 ,and this is  
clearly seen to be the intention of the 
law1 which is  the ally of the whole    
city2 and is seen also in the authority 
which we  exercise over children1 and   
the refusal to let them be free until we

 have  established in them a principle  
analogous to the constitution of a      
state1  and by 99#eia;,a99 cultivation  
of this higher element have set up in   
their  hearts a guardian and ruler like 
our own1 and when this is done they may 
go their ways4    ,yes1 he said1 the    
purpose of the law is manifest4 #cje    
,from what point of view1 then1 and on  
what ground can we say that a man is    
profited by injustice or intemperance or
 other baseness1 which will make  him a 
worse man1 even though he acquire money 
or power by his wickedness8    ,from no 
point of view at all4    ,sidenote3 ,the
 wise man will employ his energies in   
freeing and  harmonizing the nobler     
elements of his nature and in regulating
 his bodily  habits4    ,what shall he  
profit1 if his injustice be undetected  
and unpunished8  99#eia;,b99 ,he who is 
undetected only gets worse1 whereas he  
who is detected  and punished has the   
brutal part of his nature silenced and  
humanized2 the  gentler element in him  

is liberated1 and his whole soul is     
perfected and  ennobled by the          
acquirement of justice and temperance   
and wisdom1 more  than the body ever is 
by receiving gifts of beauty1 strength  
and health1  in proportion as the soul  
is more honourable than the body4       
,certainly1 he said4    99#eia;,c99 ,to 
this nobler purpose the man of          
understanding will devote the  energies 
of his life4 ,and in the first place1 he
 will honour studies which  impress     
these qualities on his soul and will    
disregard others8    ,clearly1 he said4 
,sidenote3 ,his first aim not health but
 harmony of soul4    ,in the next place1
 he will regulate his bodily habit and  
training1 and so  far will he be from   
yielding to brutal and irrational       
pleasures1 that he  will regard even    
health as quite a secondary matter2 his 
first object will  be not that he may   
99#eia;,d99 be fair or strong or well1  
unless he is likely  thereby to gain    
temperance1 but he will always desire so

 to attemper the  body as to preserve   
the harmony of the soul8    ,certainly  
he will1 if he has true music in him4   
,and in the acquisition of wealth there 
is a principle of order and harmony     
which he will also observe2 he will not 
allow himself to be dazzled by the      
foolish applause of the world1 and heap 
up riches to his own infinite  harm8    
,certainly not1 he said4    ,sidenote3  
,he will not heap up riches1            
99#eia;,e99 ,he will look at the city   
which is within him1 and take heed that 
no  disorder occur in it1 such as might 
arise either from superfluity or from   
want2 and upon this principle he will   
regulate his property and gain or  spend
 according to his means4    ,very true4 
,sidenote3 and he will only accept such 
political honours as will not           
deteriorate his character4    ,and1 for 
the same reason1 he will gladly accept  
and enjoy #cjf 99#eib;,a99  such honours
 as he deems likely to make him a better
 man2 but those1  whether private or    

public1 which are likely to disorder his
 life1 he will  avoid8    ,then1 if that
 is his motive1 he will not be a        
statesman4    ,by the dog of ,egypt1 he 
will6 in the city which is his own he   
certainly  will1 though in the land of  
his birth perhaps not1 unless he have a 
divine  call4    ,sidenote3 ,he has a   
city of his own1 and the ideal pattern  
of this will be  the law of his life4   
,i understand2 you mean that he will be 
a ruler in the city of which we are  the
 founders1 and which exists in idea     
only2 99#eib;,b99 for ,i do not believe 
that there is such an one anywhere on   
earth8    ,in heaven1 ,i replied1 there 
is laid up a pattern of it1 methinks1   
which he  who desires may behold1 and   
beholding1 may set his own house in     
order#d4  ,but whether such an one      
exists1 or ever will exist in fact1 is  
no matter2  for he will live after the  
manner of that city1 having nothing to  
do with  any other4    ,footnote #d3 ,or
 'take up his abode there4'    ,i think 

so1 he said4          ,,book ,x4        
,sidenote3 ,republic ,x4 ,socrates1     
,glaucon4    99#eie;,a99 ,of the many   
excellences which ,i perceive in the    
order of our ,state1  there is none     
which upon reflection pleases me better 
than the rule about  poetry4    ,to what
 do you refer8    ,to the rejection of  
imitative poetry1 which certainly ought 
not to be  received2 as ,i see far more 
clearly now that 99#eie;,b99 the parts  
of the soul  have been distinguished4   
,what do you mean8    ,sidenote3        
,poetical imitations are ruinous to the 
mind of the hearer4    ,speaking in     
confidence1 for ,i should not like to   
have my words repeated to  the          
tragedians and the rest of the imitative
 tribe--but ,i do not mind  saying to   
you1 that all poetical imitations are   
ruinous to the  understanding of the    
hearers1 and that the knowledge of their
 true nature  is the only antidote to   
them4    ,explain the purport of your   
remark4    ,well1 ,i will tell you1     

although ,i have always from my earliest
 youth had  an awe and love of ,homer1  
which even now makes the words falter on
 my  lips1 for he is the great          
99#eie;,c99 captain and teacher of the  
whole of that  charming tragic company2 
but a man is not to be reverenced more  
than the  truth1 and therefore ,i will  
speak out4    ,very good1 he said4      
,listen to me then1 or rather1 answer   
me4    ,put your question4    ,sidenote3
 ,the nature of imitation4    ,can you  
tell me what imitation is8 for ,i really
 do not know4    ,a likely thing1 then1 
that ,i should know4    99#eif;,a99 ,why
 not8 for the duller eye may often see a
 thing sooner than the  keener4    ,very
 true1 he said2 but in your presence1   
even if ,i had any 7#cjh faint  notion1 
,i could not muster courage to utter it4
 ,will you enquire yourself8    ,well   
then1 shall we begin the enquiry in our 
usual manner3 ,whenever a  number of    
individuals have a common name1 we      
assume them to have also a              

corresponding idea or form3--do you     
understand me8    ,i do4    ,sidenote3  
,the idea is one1 but the objects       
comprehended under it are  many4    ,let
 us take any common instance2 there are 
beds and 99#eif;,b99 tables in the      
world--plenty of them1 are there not8   
,yes4    ,but there are only two ideas  
or forms of them--one the idea of a bed1
 the  other of a table4    ,true4       
,and the maker of either of them makes a
 bed or he makes a table for our  use1  
in accordance with the idea--that is our
 way of speaking in this and  similar   
instances--but no artificer makes the   
ideas themselves3 how could  he8        
,impossible4    ,and there is another   
artist1--,i should like to know what you
 would say of  him4    99#eif;,c99 ,who 
is he8    ,sidenote3 ,the universal     
creator an extraordinary person4 ,but   
note also  that everybody is a creator  
in a sense4 ,for all things may be made 
by the  reflection of them in a mirror4 
,one who is the maker of all the works  

of all other workmen4    ,what an       
extraordinary man6    ,wait a little1   
and there will be more reason for your  
saying so4 ,for this  is he who is able 
to make not only vessels of every kind1 
but plants and  animals1 himself and all
 other things--the earth and heaven1 and
 the  things which are in heaven or     
under the earth2 he makes the gods also4
    99#eif;,d99 ,he must be a wizard and
 no mistake4    ,oh6 you are            
incredulous1 are you8 ,do you mean that 
there is no such maker  or creator1 or  
that in one sense there might be a maker
 of all these  things but in another    
not8 ,do you see that there is a way in 
which you  could make them all yourself8
    ,what way8    ,an easy way enough2  
or rather1 there are many ways in which 
the feat might  be quickly and easily   
accomplished1 none quicker than that of 
turning a  mirror round and round--you  
99#eif;,e99 would soon enough make the  
sun and the  heavens1 and the earth and 
yourself1 and other animals and plants1 

and  #cji all the other things of which 
we were just now speaking1 in the       
mirror4    ,yes1 he said2 but they would
 be appearances only4    ,sidenote3 ,but
 this is an appearance only3 and the    
painter too is a maker  of appearances4 
,very good1 ,i said1 you are coming to  
the point now4 ,and the painter too  is1
 as ,i conceive1 just such another--a   
creator of appearances1 is he not8      
,of course4    ,but then ,i suppose you 
will say that what he creates is untrue4
 ,and yet  there is a sense in which the
 painter also creates a bed8    ,yes1 he
 said1 but not a real bed4              
99#eig;,a99 ,and what of the maker of   
the bed8 were you not saying that he too
  makes1 not the idea which1 according  
to our view1 is the essence of the  bed1
 but only a particular bed8    ,yes1 ,i 
did4    ,then if he does not make that  
which exists he cannot make true        
existence1  but only some semblance of  
existence2 and if any one were to say   
that the  work of the maker of the bed1 

or of any other workman1 has real       
existence1  he could hardly be supposed 
to be speaking the truth4    ,at any    
rate1 he replied1 philosophers would say
 that he was not speaking  the truth4   
,no wonder1 then1 that his work too is  
an indistinct expression of truth4      
99#eig;,b99 ,no wonder4    ,suppose now 
that by the light of the examples just  
offered we enquire who  this imitator   
is8    ,if you please4    ,sidenote3    
,three beds and three makers of beds4   
,well then1 here are three beds3 one    
existing in nature1 which is made by    
,god1 as ,i think that we may say--for  
no one else can be the maker8    ,no4   
,there is another which is the work of  
the carpenter8    ,yes4    ,and the work
 of the painter is a third8    ,yes4    
,beds1 then1 are of three kinds1 and    
there are three artists who  superintend
 them3 ,god1 the maker of the bed1 and  
the painter8    ,yes1 there are three of
 them4 #caj    99#eig;,c99 ,god1 whether
 from choice or from necessity1 made one

 bed in nature  and one only2 two or    
more such ideal beds neither ever have  
been nor ever  will be made by ,god4    
,why is that8    ,sidenote3 7#a7 ,the   
creator4 ,god could only make one bed2  
if he made two1 a  third would still    
appear behind them4    ,because even if 
,he had made but two1 a third would     
still appear behind  them which both of 
them would have for their idea1 and that
 would be the  ideal bed and not the two
 others4    ,very true1 he said4        
99#eig;,d99 ,god knew this1 and ,he     
desired to be the real maker of a real  
bed1  not a particular maker of a       
particular bed1 and therefore ,he       
created a bed  which is essentially and 
by nature one only4    ,so we believe4  
,shall we1 then1 speak of ,him as the   
natural author or maker of the bed8     
,yes1 he replied2 inasmuch as by the    
natural process of creation ,he is the  
author of this and of all other things4 
,sidenote3 7#b7 ,the human maker4       
,and what shall we say of the           

carpenter--is not he also the maker of  
the  bed8    ,yes4    ,but would you    
call the painter a creator and maker8   
,certainly not4    ,yet if he is not the
 maker1 what is he in relation to the   
bed8    ,sidenote3 7#c7 ,the imitator1  
i4e4 the painter or poet1    99#eig;,e99
 ,i think1 he said1 that we may fairly  
designate him as the imitator  of that  
which the others make4    ,good1 ,i     
said2 then you call him who is third in 
the descent from nature an  imitator8   
,certainly1 he said4    ,and the tragic 
poet is an imitator1 and therefore1 like
 all other  imitators1 he is thrice     
removed from the king and from the      
truth8    ,that appears to be so4       
,then about the imitator we are agreed4 
,and what about 99#eih;,a99 the painter8
  --,i would like to know whether he may
 be thought to imitate that which       
originally exists in nature1 or only the
 creations of artists8    ,the latter4  
,as they are or as they appear8 you have
 still to determine this4 #caa    ,what 

do you mean8    ,sidenote3 whose art is 
one of imitation or appearance and a    
long way  removed from the truth4    ,i 
mean1 that you may look at a bed from   
different points of view1  obliquely or 
directly or from any other point of     
view1 and the bed will  appear          
different1 but there is no difference in
 reality4 ,and the same of  all things4 
,yes1 he said1 the difference is only   
apparent4    99#eih;,b99 ,now let me ask
 you another question3 ,which is the art
 of painting  designed to be--an        
imitation of things as they are1 or as  
they appear--of  appearance or of       
reality8    ,of appearance4             
,sidenote3 ,any one who does all things 
does only a very small part of  them4   
,then the imitator1 ,i said1 is a long  
way off the truth1 and can do all       
things because he lightly touches on a  
small part of them1 and that part  an   
image4 ,for example3 ,a painter will    
paint a cobbler1 carpenter1 or any      
other artist1 though he 99#eih;,c99     

knows nothing of their arts2 and1 if he 
is  a good artist1 he may deceive       
children or simple persons1 when he     
shows  them his picture of a carpenter  
from a distance1 and they will fancy    
that  they are looking at a real        
carpenter4    ,certainly4    ,sidenote3 
,any one who pretends to know all things
 is ignorant of the very  nature of     
knowledge4    ,and whenever any one     
informs us that he has found a man who  
knows all the  arts1 and all things else
 that anybody knows1 and every single   
thing with  a higher degree of accuracy 
99#eih;,d99 than any other man--whoever 
tells us  this1 ,i think that we can    
only imagine him to be a simple creature
 who is  likely to have been deceived by
 some wizard or actor whom he met1 and  
whom  he thought all-knowing1 because he
 himself was unable to analyse the      
nature of knowledge and ignorance and   
imitation4    ,most true4    ,sidenote3 
,and he who attributes such universal   
knowledge to the poets is  similarly    

deceived4    ,and so1 when we hear      
persons saying that the tragedians1 and 
,homer1 who is  at their head1 know all 
the arts and all 99#eih;,e99 things     
human1 virtue as  well as vice1 and     
divine things too1 for that the good    
poet cannot compose  well unless he     
knows his subject1 and that he who has  
not this knowledge  can never be a poet1
 we ought to consider whether here also 
there may not  be a similar illusion4   
,perhaps they may have come across      
imitators and  been deceived by them2   
they may not have remembered when they  
saw their  works that 99#eii;,a99 these 
were but imitations thrice removed from 
the truth1  and could easily be made    
without any knowledge of the truth1 #cab
 because  they are appearances only and 
not realities8 ,or1 after all1 they may 
be in  the right1 and poets do really   
know the things about which they seem to
  the many to speak so well8    ,the    
question1 he said1 should by all means  
be considered4    ,sidenote3 ,he who    

could make the original would not make  
the image4    ,now do you suppose that  
if a person were able to make the       
original as well  as the image1 he would
 seriously devote himself to the        
image-making  branch8 ,would he allow   
imitation to be the ruling principle of 
his life1  as if he had 99#eii;,b99     
nothing higher in him8    ,i should say 
not4    ,the real artist1 who knew what 
he was imitating1 would be interested in
  realities and not in imitations2 and  
would desire to leave as memorials of   
himself works many and fair2 and1       
instead of being the author of          
encomiums1 he would prefer to be the    
theme of them4    ,yes1 he said1 that   
would be to him a source of much greater
 honour and  profit4    ,sidenote3 ,if  
,homer had been a legislator1 or        
general1 or inventor1    ,then1 ,i said1
 we must put a question to ,homer2 not  
about 99#eii;,c99 medicine1  or any of  
the arts to which his poems only        
incidentally refer3 we are not  going to

 ask him1 or any other poet1 whether he 
has cured patients like  ,asclepius1 or 
left behind him a school of medicine    
such as the ,asclepiads  were1 or       
whether he only talks about medicine and
 other arts at  second-hand2 but we have
 a right to know respecting military    
tactics1  politics1 education1 which are
 the chiefest 99#eii;,d99 and noblest   
subjects of  his poems1 and we may      
fairly ask him about them4 ',friend     
,homer1' then we  say to him1 'if you   
are only in the second remove from truth
 in what you  say of virtue1 and not in 
the third--not an image maker or        
imitator--and  if you are able to       
discern what pursuits make men better or
 worse in  private or public life1 tell 
us what ,state was ever better governed 
by  your help8 ,the good 99#eii;,e99    
order of ,lacedaemon is due to          
,lycurgus1 and  many other cities great 
and small have been similarly benefited 
by others2  but who says that you have  
been a good legislator to them and have 

done  them any good8 ,italy and ,sicily 
boast of ,charondas1 and there is ,solon
 who  is renowned among us2 but what    
city has anything to say about you8' ,is
  there any city which he might name8   
,i think not1 said ,glaucon2 not even   
the ,homerids themselves pretend that   
he was a legislator4 #cac    99#fjj;,a99
 ,well1 but is there any war on record  
which was carried on  successfully by   
him1 or aided by his counsels1 when he  
was alive8    ,there is not4    ,or is  
there any invention#a of his1 applicable
 to the arts or to human  life1 such as 
,thales the ,milesian or ,anacharsis the
 ,scythian1 and other  ingenious men    
have conceived1 which is attributed to  
him8    ,footnote3 ,omitting ,greek3    
ei7s4    ,there is absolutely nothing of
 the kind4    ,but1 if ,homer never did 
any public service1 was he privately a  
guide or  teacher of any8 ,had he in his
 lifetime friends 99#fjj;,b99 who loved 
to  associate with him1 and who handed  
down to posterity an ,homeric way of    

life1 such as was established by        
,pythagoras who was so greatly beloved  
for  his wisdom1 and whose followers are
 to this day quite celebrated for the   
order which was named after him8        
,nothing of the kind is recorded of him4
 ,for surely1 ,socrates1 ,creophylus1   
the companion of ,homer1 that child of  
flesh1 whose name always makes us       
laugh1 might be more justly ridiculed   
for his stupidity1 if1 as is said1      
,homer was 99#fjj;,c99 greatly neglected
 by him and others in his own day when  
he was alive8    ,sidenote3 or had done 
anything else for the improvement of    
mankind1 he  would not have been allowed
 to starve4    ,yes1 ,i replied1 that is
 the tradition4 ,but can you imagine1   
,glaucon1 that  if ,homer had really    
been able to educate and improve        
mankind--if he had  possessed knowledge 
and not been a mere imitator--can you   
imagine1 ,i say1  that he would not have
 had many followers1 and been honoured  
and loved by  them8 ,protagoras of      

,abdera1 and ,prodicus of ,ceos1 and a  
host of others1  have only to whisper to
 their contemporaries3 99#fjj;,d99 ',you
 will never be  able to manage either   
your own house or your own ,state until 
you appoint  us to be your ministers of 
education'--and this ingenious device of
 theirs  has such an effect in making   
men love them that their companions all 
but  carry them about on their          
shoulders4 ,and is it conceivable that  
the  contemporaries of ,homer1 or again 
of ,hesiod1 would have allowed either of
  them to go about as rhapsodists1 if   
they had really been able to make       
mankind virtuous8 ,would they not have  
been as unwilling to part with them  as 
with gold1 and have compelled them to   
stay #cad 99#fjj;,e99 at home with      
them8 ,or1 if the master would not stay1
 then the disciples would have  followed
 him about everywhere1 until they had   
got education enough8    ,yes1          
,socrates1 that1 ,i think1 is quite     
true4    ,sidenote3 ,the poets1 like the

 painters1 are but imitators2    ,then  
must we not infer that all these        
poetical individuals1 beginning with    
,homer1 are only imitators2 they copy   
images 99#fja;,a99 of virtue and the    
like1  but the truth they never reach8  
,the poet is like a painter who1 as we  
have  already observed1 will make a     
likeness of a cobbler though he         
understands  nothing of cobbling2 and   
his picture is good enough for those who
 know no  more than he does1 and judge  
only by colours and figures4    ,quite  
so4    ,in like manner the poet with his
 words and phrases#b may be said to lay 
on the colours of the several arts1     
himself understanding their nature  only
 enough to imitate them2 and other      
people1 who are as ignorant as he  is1  
and judge only from his words1 imagine  
that if he speaks of cobbling1  or of   
military tactics1 or of anything else1  
in metre and harmony 99#fja;,b99  and   
rhythm1 he speaks very well--such is the
 sweet influence which melody  and      

rhythm by nature have4 ,and ,i think    
that you must have observed again  and  
again what a poor appearance the tales  
of poets make when stripped of  the     
colours which music puts upon them1 and 
recited in simple prose4    ,footnote   
#b3 ,or1 'with his nouns and verbs4'    
,yes1 he said4    ,they are like faces  
which were never really beautiful1 but  
only blooming2  and now the bloom of    
youth has passed away from them8        
,exactly4    ,sidenote3 they know       
nothing of true existence4    ,here is  
another point3 ,the imitator or maker of
 the image knows nothing of  true       
existence2 he knows appearances only4   
99#fja;,c99 ,am ,i not right8    ,yes4  
,then let us have a clear understanding1
 and not be satisfied with half an      
explanation4    ,proceed4    ,of the    
painter we say that he will paint reins1
 and he will paint a bit8    ,yes4 #cae 
,and the worker in leather and brass    
will make them8    ,certainly4          
,sidenote3 ,the maker has more knowledge

 than the imitator1 but less than  the  
user4 ,three arts1 using1 making1       
imitating4    ,but does the painter know
 the right form of the bit and reins8   
,nay1 hardly  even the workers in brass 
and leather who make them2 only the     
horseman who  knows how to use them--he 
knows their right form4    ,most true4  
,and may we not say the same of all     
things8    ,what8    99#fja;,d99 ,that  
there are three arts which are concerned
 with all things3 one  which uses1      
another which makes1 a third which      
imitates them8    ,yes4    ,sidenote3   
,goodness of things relative to use2    
hence the maker of them is  instructed  
by the user4    ,and the excellence or  
beauty or truth of every structure1     
animate or  inanimate1 and of every     
action of man1 is relative to the use   
for which  nature or the artist has     
intended them4    ,true4    ,then the   
user of them must have the greatest     
experience of them1 and he  must        
indicate to the maker the good or bad   

qualities which develop  themselves in  
use2 for example1 the flute-player will 
tell the flute-maker  which of his      
flutes is satisfactory to the performer2
 he will tell him how  he ought         
99#fja;,e99 to make them1 and the other 
will attend to his  instructions8    ,of
 course4    ,the one knows and therefore
 speaks with authority about the        
goodness and  badness of flutes1 while  
the other1 confiding in him1 will do    
what he is  told by him8    ,true4      
,sidenote3 ,the maker has belief and not
 knowledge1 the imitator neither4       
,the instrument is the same1 but about  
the excellence or badness of it the     
maker will only attain to a correct     
belief2 and this he will gain from him  
who knows1 by talking to him 99#fjb;,a99
 and being compelled to hear what he    
has to say1 whereas the user will have  
knowledge8    ,true4    ,but will the   
imitator have either8 ,will he know from
 use whether or no his  drawing is      
correct or beautiful8 or will he have   

right opinion from being  compelled to  
associate with another who knows and    
gives him instructions  about what he   
should draw8 #caf    ,neither4    ,then 
he will no more have true opinion than  
he will have knowledge about  the       
goodness or badness of his imitations8  
,i suppose not4    ,the imitative artist
 will be in a brilliant state of        
intelligence about  his own creations8  
,nay1 very much the reverse4            
99#fjb;,b99 ,and still he will go on    
imitating without knowing what makes a  
thing good or bad1 and may be expected  
therefore to imitate only that  which   
appears to be good to the ignorant      
multitude8    ,just so4    ,thus far    
then we are pretty well agreed that the 
imitator has no knowledge  worth        
mentioning of what he imitates4         
,imitation is only a kind of play or    
sport1 and the tragic poets1 whether    
they write in ,iambic or in ,heroic     
verse1 are imitators in the highest     
degree8    ,very true4    ,sidenote3    

,imitation has been proved to be thrice 
removed from the truth4    99#fjb;,c99  
,and now tell me1 ,i conjure you1 has   
not imitation been shown by us  to be   
concerned with that which is thrice     
removed from the truth8    ,certainly4  
,and what is the faculty in man to which
 imitation is addressed8    ,what do you
 mean8    ,i will explain3 ,the body    
which is large when seen near1 appears  
small when  seen at a distance8         
,true4    ,and the same object appears  
straight when looked at out of the      
water1 and  crooked when in the water2  
and the concave becomes convex1 owing to
 the  illusion about colours to which   
the sight is liable4 ,thus every sort of
  confusion is revealed within us2      
99#fjb;,d99 and this is that weakness of
 the  human mind on which the art of    
conjuring and of deceiving by light and 
shadow and other ingenious devices      
imposes1 having an effect upon us like  
magic4    ,true4    ,sidenote3 ,the art 
of measuring given to man that he may   

correct the  variety of appearances4    
,and the arts of measuring and numbering
 and weighing come to the rescue of  the
 human understanding--there #cag is the 
beauty of them--and the  apparent       
greater or less1 or more or heavier1 no 
longer have the mastery  over us1 but   
give way before calculation and measure 
and weight8    ,most true4              
99#fjb;,e99 ,and this1 surely1 must be  
the work of the calculating and rational
  principle in the soul8    ,to be sure4
    ,and when this principle measures   
and certifies that some things are      
equal1  or that some are greater or less
 than others1 there occurs an apparent  
contradiction8    ,true4    ,but were we
 not saying that such a contradiction is
 impossible--the same  faculty cannot   
have contrary opinions at the same time 
about the same  thing8    ,very true4   
99#fjc;,a99 ,then that part of the soul 
which has an opinion contrary to measure
  is not the same with that which has an
 opinion in accordance with measure8    

,true4    ,and the better part of the   
soul is likely to be that which trusts  
to  measure and calculation8            
,certainly4    ,and that which is       
opposed to them is one of the inferior  
principles of the  soul8    ,no doubt4  
,this was the conclusion at which ,i was
 seeking to arrive when ,i said that    
painting or drawing1 and imitation in   
general1 when doing their own proper    
work1 are far removed from truth1 and   
the companions and friends and          
associates of 99#fjc;,b99 a principle   
within us which is equally removed from 
reason1 and that they have no true or   
healthy aim4    ,exactly4    ,sidenote3 
,the productions of the imitative arts  
are bastard and  illegitimate4    ,the  
imitative art is an inferior who marries
 an inferior1 and has inferior          
offspring4    ,very true4    ,and is    
this confined to the sight only1 or does
 it extend to the hearing  also1        
relating in fact to what we term poetry8
    ,probably the same would be true of 

poetry4    ,do not rely1 ,i said1 on a  
probability derived from the analogy of 
painting2 but let us examine further and
 see #cah 99#fjc;,c99 whether the       
faculty with which poetical imitation is
 concerned is good or bad4    ,by all   
means4    ,we may state the question    
thus3--,imitation imitates the actions  
of men1  whether voluntary or           
involuntary1 on which1 as they imagine1 
a good or bad  result has ensued1 and   
they rejoice or sorrow accordingly4 ,is 
there  anything more8    ,no1 there is  
nothing else4    ,sidenote3 ,they       
imitate opposites2    ,but in all this  
variety of circumstances is the man at  
unity 99#fjc;,d99 with  himself--or     
rather1 as in the instance of sight     
there was confusion and  opposition in  
his opinions about the same things1 so  
here also is there  not strife and      
inconsistency in his life8 ,though ,i   
need hardly raise the  question again1  
for ,i remember that all this has been  
already admitted2  and the soul has been

 acknowledged by us to be full of these 
and ten  thousand similar oppositions   
occurring at the same moment8    ,and we
 were right1 he said4    ,yes1 ,i said1 
thus far we were right2 but there was an
 99#fjc;,e99 omission  which must now be
 supplied4    ,what was the omission8   
,were we not saying that a good man1 who
 has the misfortune to lose his son  or 
anything else which is most dear to him1
 will bear the loss with more           
equanimity than another8    ,yes4       
,sidenote3 they encourage weakness2     
,but will he have no sorrow1 or shall we
 say that although he cannot help       
sorrowing1 he will moderate his sorrow8 
,the latter1 he said1 is the truer      
statement4    99#fjd;,a99 ,tell me3 will
 he be more likely to struggle and hold 
out against  his sorrow when he is seen 
by his equals1 or when he is alone8     
,it will make a great difference whether
 he is seen or not4    ,when he is by   
himself he will not mind saying or doing
 many things which  he would be ashamed 

of any one hearing or seeing him do8    
,true4    ,there is a principle of law  
and reason in him which bids him resist1
 as  well as a feeling of his misfortune
 which is 99#fjd;,b99 forcing him to    
indulge  his sorrow8 #cai    ,true4     
,but when a man is drawn in two opposite
 directions1 to and from the same       
object1 this1 as we affirm1 necessarily 
implies two distinct principles in  him8
    ,certainly4    ,one of them is ready
 to follow the guidance of the law8     
,how do you mean8    ,sidenote3 they are
 at variance with the exhortations of   
philosophy2    ,the law would say that  
to be patient under suffering is best1  
and that we  should not give way to     
impatience1 as there is no knowing      
whether such  things are good or evil2  
and nothing is gained by impatience2    
also1  because no human 99#fjd;,c99     
thing is of serious importance1 and     
grief stands  in the way of that which  
at the moment is most required4    ,what
 is most required8 he asked4    ,that we

 should take counsel about what has     
happened1 and when the dice  have been  
thrown order our affairs in the way     
which reason deems best2  not1 like     
children who have had a fall1 keeping   
hold of the part struck  and wasting    
time in setting up a howl1 but always   
accustoming the soul  forthwith         
99#fjd;,d99 to apply a remedy1 raising  
up that which is sickly and  fallen1    
banishing the cry of sorrow by the      
healing art4    ,yes1 he said1 that is  
the true way of meeting the attacks of  
fortune4    ,yes1 ,i said2 and the      
higher principle is ready to follow this
 suggestion  of reason8    ,clearly4    
,sidenote3 they recall trouble and      
sorrow2    ,and the other principle1    
which inclines us to recollection of our
 troubles  and to lamentation1 and can  
never have enough of them1 we may call  
irrational1 useless1 and cowardly8      
,indeed1 we may4    99#fjd;,e99 ,and    
does not the latter--,i mean the        
rebellious principle--furnish a  great  

variety of materials for imitation8     
,whereas the wise and calm  temperament1
 being always nearly equable1 is not    
easy to imitate or to  appreciate when  
imitated1 especially at a public        
festival when a  promiscuous crowd is   
assembled in a theatre4 ,for the feeling
 represented  is one to which they are  
strangers4    99#fje;,a99 ,certainly4   
,then the imitative poet who aims at    
being popular is not #cbj by nature     
made1 nor is his art intended1 to please
 or to affect the rational  principle in
 the soul2 but he will prefer the       
passionate and fitful  temper1 which is 
easily imitated8    ,clearly4           
,sidenote3 they minister in an inferior 
manner to an inferior principle in  the 
soul4    ,and now we may fairly take him
 and place him by the side of the       
painter1  for he is like him in two     
ways3 first1 inasmuch as his creations  
have an  inferior degree of truth--in   
this1 99#fje;,b99 ,i say1 he is like    
him2 and he is  also like him in being  

concerned with an inferior part of the  
soul2 and  therefore we shall be right  
in refusing to admit him into a         
well-ordered  ,state1 because he awakens
 and nourishes and strengthens the      
feelings and  impairs the reason4 ,as in
 a city when the evil are permitted to  
have  authority and the good are put out
 of the way1 so in the soul of man1 as  
we maintain1 the imitative poet implants
 an evil constitution1 for he  indulges 
the 99#fje;,c99 irrational nature which 
has no discernment of greater  and less1
 but thinks the same thing at one time  
great and at another  small--he is a    
manufacturer of images and is very far  
removed from the  truth#c4    ,footnote 
#c3 ,reading ,greek3 ei7dlopoiounta 444 
a7phestta4    ,exactly4    ,but we have 
not yet brought forward the heaviest    
count in our  accusation3--the power    
which poetry has of harming even the    
good 7and  there are very few who are   
not harmed71 is surely an awful thing8  
,yes1 certainly1 if the effect is what  

you say4    ,sidenote3 ,how can we be   
right in sympathizing with the sorrows  
of poetry  when we would fain restrain  
those of real life8    ,hear and judge3 
,the best of us1 as ,i conceive1 when we
 listen to a passage  of ,homer1 or one 
of the tragedians1 in 99#fje;,d99 which 
he represents some  pitiful hero who is 
drawling out his sorrows in a long      
oration1 or  weeping1 and smiting his   
breast--the best of us1 you know1       
delight in  giving way to sympathy1 and 
are in raptures at the excellence of the
 poet  who stirs our feelings most4     
,yes1 of course ,i know4    ,but when   
any sorrow of our own happens to us1    
then you may observe that we  pride     
ourselves on the opposite quality--we   
would fain be quiet and  patient2 this  
is the manly part1 99#fje;,e99 and the  
other which delighted us  in the        
recitation is now deemed to be the part 
of a woman4    ,very true1 he said4 #cba
    ,now can we be right in praising and
 admiring another who is doing that     

which any one of us would abominate and 
be ashamed of in his own person8    ,no1
 he said1 that is certainly not         
reasonable4    99#fjf;,a99 ,nay1 ,i     
said1 quite reasonable from one point of
 view4    ,what point of view8          
,sidenote3 ,we fail to observe that a   
sentimental pity soon creates a real    
weakness4    ,if you consider1 ,i said1 
that when in misfortune we feel a       
natural hunger  and desire to relieve   
our sorrow by weeping and lamentation1  
and that this  feeling which is kept    
under control in our own calamities is  
satisfied and  delighted by the         
poets2--the better nature in each of us1
 not having been  sufficiently trained  
by reason or habit1 allows the          
sympathetic 99#fjf;,b99  element to     
break loose because the sorrow is       
another's2 and the spectator  fancies   
that there can be no disgrace to himself
 in praising and pitying  any one who   
comes telling him what a good man he is1
 and making a fuss  about his troubles2 

he thinks that the pleasure is a gain1  
and why should  he be supercilious and  
lose this and the poem too8 ,few persons
 ever  reflect1 as ,i should imagine1   
that from the evil of other men         
something of  evil is communicated to   
themselves4 ,and so the feeling of      
sorrow which has  gathered strength at  
the sight of the misfortunes of others  
is with  difficulty repressed in our    
own4    99#fjf;,c99 ,how very true6     
,sidenote3 ,in like manner the love of  
comedy may turn a man into a  buffoon4  
,and does not the same hold also of the 
ridiculous8 ,there are jests which  you 
would be ashamed to make yourself1 and  
yet on the comic stage1 or  indeed in   
private1 when you hear them1 you are    
greatly amused by them1 and  are not at 
all disgusted at their                  
unseemliness2--the case of pity is      
repeated2--there is a principle in human
 nature which is disposed to raise  a   
laugh1 and this which you once          
restrained by reason1 because you were  

afraid of being thought a buffoon1 is   
now let out again2 and having           
stimulated the risible faculty at the   
theatre1 you are betrayed  unconsciously
 to yourself into playing the comic poet
 at home4    ,quite true1 he said4      
99#fjf;,d99 ,and the same may be said of
 lust and anger and all the other       
affections1 of desire and pain and      
pleasure1 which are held to be          
inseparable from every action--in all of
 them #cbb poetry feeds and  waters the 
passions instead of drying them up2 she 
lets them rule1  although they ought to 
be controlled1 if mankind are ever to   
increase in  happiness and virtue4    ,i
 cannot deny it4    ,sidenote3 ,we are  
lovers of ,homer1 but we must expel him 
from our ,state4    99#fjf;,e99         
,therefore1 ,glaucon1 ,i said1 whenever 
you meet with any of the  eulogists of  
,homer declaring that he has been the   
educator of ,hellas1 and  that he is    
profitable for education and for the    
ordering of human things1  and that you 

should 99#fjg;,a99 take him up again and
 again and get to know him  and regulate
 your whole life according to him1 we   
may love and honour  those who say these
 things--they are excellent people1 as  
far as their  lights extend2 and we are 
ready to acknowledge that ,homer is the 
greatest  of poets and first of tragedy 
writers2 but we must remain firm in our 
conviction that hymns to the gods and   
praises of famous men are the only      
poetry which ought to be admitted into  
our ,state4 ,for if you go beyond  this 
and allow the honeyed muse to enter1    
either in epic or lyric verse1  not law 
and the reason of mankind1 which by     
common consent have ever been  deemed   
best1 but pleasure and pain will be the 
rulers in our ,state4    ,that is most  
true1 he said4    ,sidenote3 ,apology to
 the poets4    99#fjg;,b99 ,and now     
since we have reverted to the subject of
 poetry1 let this  our defence serve to 
show the reasonableness of our former   
judgment in  sending away out of our    

,state an art having the tendencies     
which we have  described2 for reason    
constrained us4 ,but that she may not   
impute to us  any harshness or want of  
politeness1 let us tell her that there  
is an  ancient quarrel between          
philosophy and poetry2 of which there   
are many  proofs1 such as the saying of 
'the yelping hound howling at her lord1'
 or  of one 'mighty in 99#fjg;,c99 the  
vain talk of fools1' and 'the mob of    
sages  circumventing ,zeus1' and the    
'subtle thinkers who are beggars after  
all'2  and there are innumerable other  
signs of ancient enmity between them4   
,notwithstanding this1 let us assure our
 sweet friend and the sister arts  of   
imitation1 that if she will only prove  
her title to exist in a  well-ordered   
,state we shall be delighted to receive 
her--we are very  conscious of her      
charms2 but we may not on that account  
betray the truth4  #cbc ,i dare say1    
,glaucon1 that you are as much charmed  
by her 99#fjg;,d99 as  ,i am1 especially

 when she appears in ,homer8    ,yes1   
indeed1 ,i am greatly charmed4    ,shall
 ,i propose1 then1 that she be allowed  
to return from exile1 but upon  this    
condition only--that she make a defence 
of herself in lyrical or some  other    
metre8    ,certainly4    ,and we may    
further grant to those of her defenders 
who are lovers of  poetry and yet not   
poets the permission to speak in prose  
on her behalf3  let them show not only  
that she is pleasant but also useful to 
,states and  to human life1 and we will 
listen in a kindly spirit2 for if this  
can be  proved 99#fjg;,e99 we shall     
surely be the gainers--,i mean1 if there
 is a use in  poetry as well as a       
delight8    ,certainly1 he said1 we     
shall be the gainers4    ,sidenote3     
,poetry is attractive but not true4     
,if her defence fails1 then1 my dear    
friend1 like other persons who are      
enamoured of something1 but put a       
restraint upon themselves when they     
think their desires are opposed to their

 interests1 so too must we after  the   
manner of lovers give her up1 though not
 without a struggle4 ,we too  are       
inspired by that love of poetry which   
the education 99#fjh;,a99 of noble      
,states has implanted in us1 and        
therefore we would have her appear at   
her  best and truest2 but so long as she
 is unable to make good her defence1    
this argument of ours shall be a charm  
to us1 which we will repeat to          
ourselves while we listen to her        
strains2 that we may not fall away into 
the childish love of her which          
captivates the many4 ,at all events we  
are  well aware#d that poetry being such
 as we have described is not to be      
regarded seriously as attaining to the  
truth2 and he who listens to her1       
fearing for the safety of the           
99#fjh;,b99 city which is within him1   
should be  on his guard against her     
seductions and make our words his law4  
,footnote #d3 ,or1 if we accept         
,madvig's ingenious but unnecessary     

emendation ,greek3 a7so_/metha1 ',at all
 events we will sing1 that' c4    ,yes1 
he said1 ,i quite agree with you4       
,yes1 ,i said1 my dear ,glaucon1 for    
great is the issue at stake1 greater    
than appears1 whether a man is to be    
good or bad4 ,and what will any one be  
profited if under the influence of      
honour or money or power1 aye1 or under 
the excitement of poetry1 he neglect    
justice and virtue8 #cbd    ,yes1 he    
said2 ,i have been convinced by the     
argument1 as ,i believe that any  one   
else would have been4    99#fjh;,c99    
,and yet no mention has been made of the
 greatest prizes and rewards  which     
await virtue4    ,what1 are there any   
greater still8 ,if there are1 they must 
be of an  inconceivable greatness4      
,sidenote3 ,the rewards of virtue extend
 not only to this little space of  human
 life but to the whole of existence4    
,why1 ,i said1 what was ever great in a 
short time8 ,the whole period of  three 
score years and ten is surely but a     

little thing in comparison with         
eternity8    ,say rather 'nothing1' he  
replied4    ,and should an immortal     
being seriously think of this little    
99#fjh;,d99 space  rather than of the   
whole8    ,of the whole1 certainly4 ,but
 why do you ask8    ,are you not aware1 
,i said1 that the soul of man is        
immortal and  imperishable8    ,he      
looked at me in astonishment1 and said3 
,no1 by heaven3 ,and are you  really    
prepared to maintain this8    ,yes1 ,i  
said1 ,i ought to be1 and you too--there
 is no difficulty in proving  it4    ,i 
see a great difficulty2 but ,i should   
like to hear you state this  argument of
 which you make so light4    ,listen    
then4    ,i am attending4    ,there is a
 thing which you call good and another  
which you call evil8    ,yes1 he        
replied4    99#fjh;,e99 ,would you agree
 with me in thinking that the corrupting
 and  destroying element is the evil1   
and the saving and improving element the
  good8    ,yes4    ,sidenote3          

,everything has a good and an evil1 and 
if not destroyed by its  own evil1 will 
not be destroyed by that of another4    
,and you admit that every thing has a   
good and also an evil2 99#fji;,a99 as   
ophthalmia is the evil of the eyes and  
disease of the whole body2 as  mildew is
 of corn1 and rot of timber1 or rust of 
copper and iron3 in  everything1 or in  
almost everything1 there is an inherent 
evil and  disease8    ,yes1 he said4    
,and anything which is infected by any  
of these evils is made evil1 and at     
last wholly dissolves and dies8         
,true4    ,the vice and evil which is   
inherent in each is the destruction #cbe
 of  each2 and if this does not destroy 
them there is nothing else that will2   
99#fji;,b99 for good certainly will not 
destroy them1 nor again1 that which is  
neither good nor evil4    ,certainly    
not4    ,if1 then1 we find any nature   
which having this inherent corruption   
cannot  be dissolved or destroyed1 we   
may be certain that of such a nature    

there  is no destruction8    ,that may  
be assumed4    ,well1 ,i said1 and is   
there no evil which corrupts the soul8  
,yes1 he said1 there are all the evils  
which we were just now 99#fji;,c99      
passing in review3 unrighteousness1     
intemperance1 cowardice1 ignorance4     
,sidenote3 ,therefore1 if the soul      
cannot be destroyed by moral evil1 she  
certainly will not be destroyed by      
physical evil4    ,but does any of these
 dissolve or destroy her8--and here do  
not let us  fall into the error of      
supposing that the unjust and foolish   
man1 when he  is detected1 perishes     
through his own injustice1 which is an  
evil of the  soul4 ,take the analogy of 
the body3 ,the evil of the body is a    
disease  which wastes and reduces and   
annihilates the body2 and all the things
 of  which we were just now speaking    
come to annihilation 99#fji;,d99 through
 their  own corruption attaching to them
 and inhering in them and so destroying 
them4 ,is not this true8    ,yes4       

,consider the soul in like manner4 ,does
 the injustice or other evil which      
exists in the soul waste and consume    
her8 ,do they by attaching to the soul  
and inhering in her at last bring her to
 death1 and so separate her from  the   
body8    ,certainly not4    ,and yet1 ,i
 said1 it is unreasonable to suppose    
that anything can perish  from without  
through affection of external evil which
 could not be  destroyed from within by 
a corruption of its own8    ,it is1 he  
replied4    99#fji;,e99 ,consider1 ,i   
said1 ,glaucon1 that even the badness of
 food1 whether  staleness1              
decomposition1 or any other bad quality1
 when confined to the  actual food1 is  
not supposed to destroy the body2       
although1 if the badness  of food       
communicates corruption to the body1    
then we should say that the  body       
99#faj;,a99 has been destroyed by a     
corruption of itself1 which is  disease1
 brought on by this2 but that the body1 
being one thing1 can be  destroyed by   

the badness of food1 which #cbf is      
another1 and which does  not engender   
any natural infection--this we shall    
absolutely deny8    ,very true4         
,sidenote3 ,evil means the contagion of 
evil1 and the evil of the body does  not
 infect the soul4    ,and1 on the same  
principle1 unless some bodily evil can  
produce an evil of  the soul1 we must   
not suppose that the soul1 which is one 
thing1 can be  dissolved by any merely  
external evil which belongs to another8 
,yes1 he said1 there is reason in that4 
,either1 then1 let us refute this       
conclusion1 or1 while it 99#faj;,b99    
remains  unrefuted1 let us never say    
that fever1 or any other disease1 or the
 knife  put to the throat1 or even the  
cutting up of the whole body into the   
minutest pieces1 can destroy the soul1  
until she herself is proved to  become  
more unholy or unrighteous in           
consequence of these things being  done 
to the body2 but that the soul1 or      
anything else if not destroyed          

99#faj;,c99 by an internal evil1 can be 
destroyed by an external one1 is not to 
be affirmed by any man4    ,and surely1 
he replied1 no one will ever prove that 
the souls of men  become more unjust in 
consequence of death4    ,but if some   
one who would rather not admit the      
immortality of the soul  boldly denies  
this1 and says that the dying do really 
become more evil and  unrighteous1 then1
 if the speaker is right1 ,i suppose    
that injustice1 like  disease1 must be  
assumed to be fatal to the unjust1 and  
that those who  take 99#faj;,d99 this   
disorder die by the natural inherent    
power of destruction  which evil has1   
and which kills them sooner or later1   
but in quite another  way from that in  
which1 at present1 the wicked receive   
death at the hands  of others as the    
penalty of their deeds8    ,nay1 he     
said1 in that case injustice1 if fatal  
to the unjust1 will not be  so very     
terrible to him1 for he will be         
delivered from evil4 ,but ,i rather     

suspect the opposite to be the truth1   
99#faj;,e99 and that injustice which1 if
  it have the power1 will murder others1
 keeps the murderer alive--aye1 and     
well awake too2 so far removed is her   
dwelling-place from being a house of    
death4    ,true1 ,i said2 if the        
inherent natural vice or evil of the    
soul is unable  to kill or destroy her1 
hardly will that which is appointed to  
be the  destruction of some other body1 
destroy a soul or anything else except  
that of which it was appointed to be the
 destruction4 #cbg    ,yes1 that can    
hardly be4    ,but the soul which cannot
 be destroyed by an evil1 whether       
99#faa;,a99 inherent  or external1 must 
exist for ever1 and if existing for     
ever1 must be  immortal8    ,certainly4 
,sidenote3 ,if the soul is              
indestructible1 the number of souls can 
never  increase or diminish4    ,that is
 the conclusion1 ,i said2 and1 if a true
 conclusion1 then the souls  must always
 be the same1 for if none be destroyed  

they will not diminish  in number4      
,neither will they increase1 for the    
increase of the immortal  natures must  
come from something mortal1 and all     
things would thus end in  immortality4  
,very true4    99#faa;,b99 ,but this we 
cannot believe--reason will not allow   
us--any more than  we can believe the   
soul1 in her truest nature1 to be full  
of variety and  difference and          
dissimilarity4    ,what do you mean8 he 
said4    ,the soul1 ,i said1 being1 as  
is now proven1 immortal1 must be the    
fairest  of compositions and cannot be  
compounded of many elements8            
,certainly not4    ,sidenote3 ,the soul1
 if she is to be seen truly1 should be  
stripped of the  accidents of earth4    
,her immortality is demonstrated by the 
previous argument1 and there are  many  
other proofs2 but to see her as she     
99#faa;,c99 really is1 not as we now    
behold her1 marred by communion with the
 body and other miseries1 you must      
contemplate her with the eye of reason1 

in her original purity2 and then  her   
beauty will be revealed1 and justice and
 injustice and all the things  which we 
have described will be manifested more  
clearly4 ,thus far1 we have  spoken the 
truth concerning her as she appears at  
present1 but we must  remember also that
 we have seen her only in a condition   
which may be  compared 99#faa;,d99 to   
that of the sea-god ,glaucus1 whose     
original image can  hardly be discerned 
because his natural members are broken  
off and crushed  and damaged by the     
waves in all sorts of ways1 and         
incrustations have  grown over them of  
seaweed and shells and stones1 so that  
he is more like  some monster than he is
 to his own natural form4 ,and the soul 
which we  behold is in a similar        
condition1 disfigured by ten thousand   
ills4 ,but not  there1 ,glaucon1 not    
there must we look4    ,where then8     
,sidenote3 ,her true conversation is    
with the eternal4    99#faa;,e99 ,at her
 love of wisdom4 ,let us see whom she   

affects1 and #cbh what  society and     
converse she seeks in virtue of her near
 kindred with the  immortal and eternal 
and divine2 also how different she would
 become if  wholly following this       
superior principle1 and borne by a      
divine impulse  out of the ocean in     
which she now is1 and disengaged from   
the stones and  shells and things of    
earth and rock which in wild variety    
spring up 99#fab;,a99  around her       
because she feeds upon earth1 and is    
overgrown by the good  things of this   
life as they are termed3 then you would 
see her as she is1  and know whether she
 have one shape only or many1 or what   
her nature is4  ,of her affections and  
of the forms which she takes in this    
present life ,i  think that we have now 
said enough4    ,true1 he replied4      
,sidenote3 ,having put aside for        
argument's sake the rewards of virtue1  
we  may now claim to have them restored4
    ,and thus1 ,i said1 we have         
fulfilled the conditions of the         

argument#e2  99#fab;,b99 we have not    
introduced the rewards and glories of   
justice1 which1  as you were saying1 are
 to be found in ,homer and ,hesiod2 but 
justice in  her own nature has been     
shown to be best for the soul in her own
 nature4  ,let a man do what is just1   
whether he have the ring of ,gyges or   
not1 and  even if in addition to the    
ring of ,gyges he put on the helmet of  
,hades4    ,footnote #e3 ,reading       
,greek3 a7pelusa_/metha4    ,very true4 
,and now1 ,glaucon1 there will be no    
harm in further enumerating how many    
and how great are the rewards which     
99#fab;,c99 justice and the other       
virtues  procure to the soul from gods  
and men1 both in life and after death4  
,certainly not1 he said4    ,will you   
repay me1 then1 what you borrowed in the
 argument8    ,what did ,i borrow8      
,the assumption that the just man should
 appear unjust and the unjust just3  for
 you were of opinion that even if the   
true state of the case could not        

possibly escape the eyes of gods and    
men1 still this admission ought to be   
made for the sake of the argument1 in   
order that pure justice might be        
99#fab;,d99 weighed against pure        
injustice4 ,do you remember8    ,i      
should be much to blame if ,i had       
forgotten4    ,then1 as the cause is    
decided1 ,i demand on behalf of justice 
that the  estimation in which she is    
held by gods and #cbi men and which we  
acknowledge to be her due should now be 
restored to her by us#f2 since  she has 
been shown to confer reality1 and not to
 deceive those who truly  possess her1  
let what has been taken from her be     
given back1 that so she  may win that   
palm of appearance which is hers also1  
and which she gives to  her own4        
,footnote #f3 ,reading ,greek3 7mn4     
99#fab;,e99 ,the demand1 he said1 is    
just4    ,in the first place1 ,i        
said--and this is the first thing which 
you will  have to give back--the nature 
both of the just and unjust is truly    

known  to the gods4    ,granted4        
,sidenote3 ,the just man is the friend  
of the gods1 and all things work        
together for his good4    ,and if they  
are both known to them1 one must be the 
friend and the other  the enemy of the  
gods1 as we admitted from the beginning8
    ,true4    99#fac;,a99 ,and the      
friend of the gods may be supposed to   
receive from them all  things at their  
best1 excepting only such evil as is the
 necessary  consequence of former sins8 
,certainly4    ,then this must be our   
notion of the just man1 that even when  
he is in  poverty or sickness1 or any   
other seeming misfortune1 all things    
will in  the end work together for good 
to him in life and death3 for the gods  
have  a care of any one whose desire is 
to become just and to be like ,god1 as  
far as 99#fac;,b99 man can attain the   
divine likeness1 by the pursuit of      
virtue8    ,yes1 he said2 if he is like 
,god he will surely not be neglected by 
him4    ,sidenote3 ,the unjust is the   

opposite4    ,and of the unjust may not 
the opposite be supposed8    ,certainly4
    ,such1 then1 are the palms of       
victory which the gods give the just8   
,that is my conviction4    ,sidenote3   
,he may be compared to a runner who is  
only good at the start4    ,and what do 
they receive of men8 ,look at things as 
they really are1 and  you will see that 
the clever unjust are in the case of    
runners1 who run  well from the         
starting-place to the goal but not back 
again from the goal3  they go off at a  
great pace1 99#fac;,c99 but in the end  
only look foolish1  slinking away with  
their ears draggling on their shoulders1
 and without a  crown2 but the true     
runner comes to the finish and receives 
the #ccj  prize and is crowned4 ,and    
this is the way with the just2 he who   
endures to  the end of every action and 
occasion of his entire life has a good  
report  and carries off the prize which 
men have to bestow4    ,true4           
,sidenote3 ,sidenote3 ,recapitulation of

 things unfit for ears polite which  had
 been described by ,glaucon in ,book    
,,ii4    ,and now you must allow me to  
repeat of the just the blessings which  
you  were attributing to the fortunate  
unjust4 99#fac;,d99 ,i shall say of     
them1 what  you were saying of the      
others1 that as they grow older1 they   
become rulers  in their own city if they
 care to be2 they marry whom they like  
and give  in marriage to whom they will2
 all that you said of the others ,i now 
say  of these4 ,and1 on the other hand1 
of the unjust ,i say that the greater   
number1 even though they escape in their
 youth1 are found out at last and  look 
foolish at the end of their course1 and 
when they come to be old and  miserable 
are flouted alike by stranger and       
citizen2 they are beaten and            
99#fac;,e99 then come those things unfit
 for ears polite1 as you truly term     
them2 they will be racked and have their
 eyes burned out1 as you were  saying4  
,and you may suppose that ,i have       

repeated the remainder of your  tale of 
horrors4 ,but will you let me assume1   
without reciting them1 that  these      
things are true8    ,certainly1 he said1
 what you say is true4    99#fad;,a99   
,these1 then1 are the prizes and rewards
 and gifts which are  bestowed upon the 
just by gods and men in this present    
life1 in addition  to the other good    
things which justice of herself         
provides4    ,yes1 he said2 and they are
 fair and lasting4    ,and yet1 ,i said1
 all these are as nothing either in     
number or greatness in  comparison with 
those other recompenses which await both
 just and unjust  after death4 ,and you 
ought to hear them1 and then both just  
and unjust  will have received from us a
 full payment of the debt which the     
argument  owes to them4    99#fad;,b99  
,speak1 he said2 there are few things   
which ,i would more gladly  hear4       
,sidenote3 ,socrates4    ,sidenote3 ,the
 vision of ,er4    ,sidenote3 ,the      
judgement4    ,sidenote3 ,the two       

openings in heaven and the two in earth 
through which  passed those who were    
beginning and those who had completed   
their  pilgrimage4    ,sidenote3 ,the   
meeting in the meadow4    ,sidenote3    
,the punishment tenfold the sin4        
,sidenote3 ',unbaptized infants4'       
,sidenote3 ,ardiaeus the tyrant4        
,sidenote3 ,incurable sinners4    ,well1
 ,i said1 ,i will tell you a tale2 not  
one of the tales which ,odysseus  tells 
to the hero ,alcinous1 yet this too is a
 tale of a hero1 ,er the son  of        
,armenius1 a ,pamphylian by birth4 ,he  
was slain in battle1 and ten days       
afterwards1 when the bodies of the dead 
were taken up already in a state  of    
corruption1 his body was found          
unaffected by decay1 and #cca carried   
away home to be buried4 ,and on the     
twelfth day1 as he was lying on the     
funeral pile1 he returned to life and   
told them what he had seen in the  other
 world4 ,he said that when his soul left
 the body he went on a journey  with a  

great company1 99#fad;,c99 and that they
 came to a mysterious place at  which   
there were two openings in the earth2   
they were near together1 and  over      
against them were two other openings in 
the heaven above4 ,in the  intermediate 
space there were judges seated1 who     
commanded the just1 after  they had     
given judgment on them and had bound    
their sentences in front of  them1 to   
ascend by the heavenly way on the right 
hand2 and in like manner  the unjust    
were bidden by them to descend by the   
lower way on the left  hand2 these also 
bore the symbols of their deeds1 but    
fastened on their  backs4 ,he drew near1
 99#fad;,d99 and they told him that he  
was to be the  messenger who would carry
 the report of the other world to men1  
and they  bade him hear and see all that
 was to be heard and seen in that place4
  ,then he beheld and saw on one side   
the souls departing at either opening   
of heaven and earth when sentence had   
been given on them2 and at the two      

other openings other souls1 some        
ascending out of the earth dusty and    
worn  with travel1 some descending out  
of heaven clean and bright4 ,and        
99#fad;,e99  arriving ever and anon they
 seemed to have come from a long        
journey1 and  they went forth with      
gladness into the meadow1 where they    
encamped as at a  festival2 and those   
who knew one another embraced and       
conversed1 the souls  which came from   
earth curiously enquiring about the     
things above1 and the  souls which came 
from heaven about the things beneath4   
,and they told one  another of what had 
happened by the way1 those from below   
weeping and  sorrowing 99#fae;,a99 at   
the remembrance of the things which they
 had endured  and seen in their journey 
beneath the earth 7now the journey      
lasted a  thousand years71 while those  
from above were describing heavenly     
delights  and visions of inconceivable  
beauty4 ,the story1 ,glaucon1 would take
 too  long to tell2 but the sum was     

this3--,he said that for every wrong    
which  they had done to any one they    
suffered tenfold2 or once in a hundred  
years--such being reckoned to be the    
length 99#fae;,b99 of man's life1 and   
the  penalty being thus paid ten times  
in a thousand years4 ,if1 for example1  
there were any who had been #ccb the    
cause of many deaths1 or had  betrayed  
or enslaved cities or armies1 or been   
guilty of any other evil  behaviour1 for
 each and all of their offences they    
received punishment ten  times over1 and
 the rewards of beneficence and justice 
and 99#fae;,c99 holiness  were in the   
same proportion4 ,i need hardly repeat  
what he said concerning  young children 
dying almost as soon as they were born4 
,of piety and  impiety to gods and      
parents1 and of murderers#g1 there were 
retributions  other and greater far     
which he described4 ,he mentioned that  
he was present  when one of the spirits 
asked another1 ',where is ,ardiaeus the 
,great8' 7,now  this ,ardiaeus lived a  

thousand years before the time of ,er3  
he had been  the tyrant of some city of 
,pamphylia1 and had murdered his aged   
father and  his elder brother1          
99#fae;,d99 and was said to have        
committed many other  abominable        
crimes47 ,the answer of the other spirit
 was3 ',he comes not  hither and will   
never come4 ,and this1' said he1 'was   
one of the dreadful  sights which we    
ourselves witnessed4 ,we were at the    
mouth of the cavern1  and1 having       
completed all our experiences1 were     
about to reascend1 when of  a sudden    
,ardiaeus appeared and several others1  
most of whom were tyrants2  and there   
were also besides the tyrants private   
individuals 99#fae;,e99 who had  been   
great criminals3 they were just1 as they
 fancied1 about to return  into the     
upper world1 but the mouth1 instead of  
admitting them1 gave a  roar1 whenever  
any of these incurable sinners or some  
one who had not been  sufficiently      
punished tried to ascend2 and then wild 

men of fiery aspect1  who were standing 
by and heard the sound1 99#faf;,a99     
seized and carried them  off2 and       
,ardiaeus and others they bound head and
 foot and hand1 and threw  them down and
 flayed them with scourges1 and dragged 
them along the road  at the side1       
carding them on thorns like wool1 and   
declaring to the  passers-by what were  
their crimes1 and that#h they were being
 taken away  to be cast into hell4' ,and
 of all the many terrors which they had 
endured1  he said that there was none   
like the terror which each of them felt 
at  that moment1 lest they should hear  
the voice2 and when there was silence1  
one by one they ascended with exceeding 
joy4 ,these1 said ,er1 were the         
penalties and retributions1 and there   
were blessings as great4 #ccc           
,footnote #g3 ,reading ,greek3          
au7to_/cheiras4    ,footnote #h3        
,reading ,greek3 kai o7_/ti4            
,sidenote3 ,the whorls representing the 
spheres of the heavenly bodies4         

99#faf;,b99 ,now when the spirits which 
were in the meadow had tarried seven    
days1 on the eighth they were obliged to
 proceed on their journey1 and1 on  the 
fourth day after1 he said that they came
 to a place where they could  see from  
above a line of light1 straight as a    
column1 extending right  through the    
whole heaven and through the earth1 in  
colour resembling the  rainbow1 only    
brighter and purer2 another day's       
journey brought them to  the place1 and 
there1 in the 99#faf;,c99 midst of the  
light1 they saw the ends  of the chains 
of heaven let down from above3 for this 
light is the belt of  heaven1 and holds 
together the circle of the universe1    
like the  under-girders of a trireme4   
,from these ends is extended the spindle
 of  ,necessity1 on which all the       
revolutions turn4 ,the shaft and hook of
 this  spindle are made of steel1 and   
the whorl is made partly of steel and   
also  partly of other materials4        
99#faf;,d99 ,now the whorl is in form   

like the whorl  used on earth2 and the  
description of it implied that there is 
one large  hollow whorl which is quite  
scooped out1 and into this is fitted    
another  lesser one1 and another1 and   
another1 and four others1 making eight  
in  all1 like vessels which fit into one
 another2 the whorls show their edges   
on the upper side1 and on their         
99#faf;,e99 lower side all together form
 one  continuous whorl4 ,this is pierced
 by the spindle1 which is driven home   
through the centre of the eighth4 ,the  
first and outermost whorl has the  rim  
broadest1 and the seven inner whorls are
 narrower1 in the following             
proportions--the sixth is next to the   
first in size1 the fourth next to  the  
sixth2 then comes the eighth2 the       
seventh is fifth1 the fifth is  sixth1  
the third is seventh1 last and eighth   
comes the second4 ,the largest  or fixed
 stars is spangled1 and the seventh or  
sun is brightest2 the  eighth or moon   
99#fag;,a99 coloured by the reflected   

light of the seventh2  the second and   
fifth ,saturn and ,mercury are in colour
 like one another1  and yellower than   
the preceding2 the third ,venus has the 
whitest light2  the fourth ,mars is     
reddish2 the sixth ,jupiter is in       
whiteness second4  ,now the whole       
spindle has the same motion2 but1 as the
 whole revolves in  one direction1 the  
seven inner circles move slowly in the  
other1 and of  these the swiftest is the
 eighth2 next in swiftness are the      
99#fag;,b99  seventh1 sixth1 and fifth1 
which move together2 third in swiftness 
appeared to move according to the law of
 this #ccd reversed motion the  fourth2 
the third appeared fourth and the second
 fifth4 ,the spindle turns  on the knees
 of ,necessity2 and on the upper surface
 of each circle is a  siren1 who goes   
round with them1 hymning a single tone  
or note4 ,the eight  together form one  
harmony2 and round about1 at equal      
intervals1 99#fag;,c99  there is another
 band1 three in number1 each sitting    

upon her throne3  these are the ,fates1 
daughters of ,necessity1 who are clothed
 in white  robes and have chaplets upon 
their heads1 ,lachesis and ,clotho and  
,atropos1  who accompany with their     
voices the harmony of the               
sirens--,lachesis  singing of the past1 
,clotho of the present1 ,atropos of the 
future2 ,clotho  from time to time      
assisting with a touch of her right hand
 the revolution  of the outer circle of 
the whorl or spindle1 and ,atropos with 
her left  hand touching and guiding the 
inner ones1 and ,lachesis laying        
99#fag;,d99 hold  of either in turn1    
first with one hand and then with the   
other4    ,sidenote3 ,the proclamation  
of the free choice4    ,sidenote3 ,the  
complexity of circumstances1            
,sidenote3 and their relation to the    
human soul4    ,when ,er and the spirits
 arrived1 their duty was to go at once  
to ,lachesis2  but first of all there   
came a prophet who arranged them in     
order2 then he  took from the knees of  

,lachesis lots and samples of lives1 and
 having  mounted a high pulpit1 spoke as
 follows3 ',hear the word of ,lachesis1 
the  daughter of ,necessity4 ,mortal    
souls1 behold a new cycle of life and   
mortality4 ,your genius will not be     
allotted to you1 99#fag;,e99 but you    
will  choose your genius2 and let him   
who draws the first lot have the first  
choice1 and the life which he chooses   
shall be his destiny4 ,virtue is  free1 
and as a man honours or dishonours her  
he will have more or less of  her2 the  
responsibility is with the chooser--,god
 is justified4' ,when the  ,interpreter 
had thus spoken he scattered lots       
indifferently among them  all1 and each 
of them took up the lot which fell near 
him1 all but ,er  himself 7he was not   
allowed71 and each as he took his lot   
perceived the  number which he had      
obtained4 99#fah;,a99 ,then the         
,interpreter placed on the  ground      
before them the samples of lives2 and   
there were many more lives  than the    

souls present1 and they were of all     
sorts4 ,there were lives of  every      
animal and of man in every condition4   
,and there were tyrannies among  them1  
some lasting out the tyrant's life1     
others which broke off in the  middle   
and came to an end in poverty and exile 
and beggary2 and there were  #cce lives 
of famous men1 some who were famous for 
their form and beauty  as well as for   
their strength and success in games1    
99#fah;,b99 or1 again1 for  their birth 
and the qualities of their ancestors2   
and some who were the  reverse of famous
 for the opposite qualities4 ,and of    
women likewise2 there  was not1 however1
 any definite character in them1 because
 the soul1 when  choosing a new life1   
must of necessity become different4 ,but
 there was  every other quality1 and the
 all mingled with one another1 and also 
with  elements of wealth and poverty1   
and disease and health2 and there were  
mean states also4 ,and here1 my dear    
,glaucon1 is the supreme peril of our   

human state2 and therefore the utmost   
care should be taken4 99#fah;,c99 ,let  
each one of us leave every other kind of
 knowledge and seek and follow one      
thing only1 if peradventure he may be   
able to learn and may find some one  who
 will make him able to learn and discern
 between good and evil1 and so  to      
choose always and everywhere the better 
life as he has opportunity4 ,he  should 
consider the bearing of all these things
 which have been mentioned  severally   
and collectively upon virtue2 he should 
know what the effect of  beauty is when 
combined with poverty or wealth in a    
99#fah;,d99 particular  soul1 and what  
are the good and evil consequences of   
noble and humble  birth1 of private and 
public station1 of strength and         
weakness1 of  cleverness and dullness1  
and of all the natural and acquired     
gifts of the  soul1 and the operation of
 them when conjoined2 he will then look 
at the  nature of the soul1 and from the
 consideration of all these qualities he

  will be able to determine which is the
 better and which is the worse2 and  so 
he will choose1 giving the name         
99#fah;,e99 of evil to the life which   
will  make his soul more unjust1 and    
good to the life which will make his    
soul  more just2 all else he will       
disregard4 ,for we have seen and know   
that this  is 99#fai;,a99 the best      
choice both in life and after death4 ,a 
man must take  with him into the world  
below an adamantine faith in truth and  
right1 that  there too he may be        
undazzled by the desire of wealth or the
 other  allurements of evil1 lest1      
coming upon tyrannies and similar       
villainies1  he do irremediable wrongs  
to others and suffer yet worse himself2 
but let  him know how to choose the mean
 and avoid the extremes on either side1 
as  far as possible1 not only in this   
life but #ccf in all 99#fai;,b99 that   
which  is to come4 ,for this is the way 
of happiness4    ,sidenote3 ,habit not  
enough without philosophy when          

circumstances change4    ,sidenote3 ,the
 spectacle of the election4    ,and     
according to the report of the messenger
 from the other world this was  what the
 prophet said at the time3 ',even for   
the last comer1 if he chooses  wisely   
and will live diligently1 there is      
appointed a happy and not  undesirable  
existence4 ,let not him who chooses     
first be careless1 and let  not the last
 despair4' ,and when he had spoken1 he  
who had the first choice  came forward  
and in a moment chose the greatest      
tyranny2 his mind having  been darkened 
by folly and sensuality1 he had not     
thought out the whole  matter before he 
chose1 and did not at first sight       
perceive that he 99#fai;,c99  was fated1
 among other evils1 to devour his own   
children4 ,but when he had  time to     
reflect1 and saw what was in the lot1 he
 began to beat his breast  and lament   
over his choice1 forgetting the         
proclamation of the prophet2  for1      
instead of throwing the blame of his    

misfortune on himself1 he  accused      
chance and the gods1 and everything     
rather than himself4 ,now he  was one of
 those who came from heaven1 and in a   
former life had dwelt in a  well-ordered
 ,state1 but his virtue 99#fai;,d99 was 
a matter of habit only1 and  he had no  
philosophy4 ,and it was true of others  
who were similarly  overtaken1 that the 
greater number of them came from heaven 
and therefore  they had never been      
schooled by trial1 whereas the pilgrims 
who came from  earth having themselves  
suffered and seen others suffer1 were   
not in a  hurry to choose4 ,and owing to
 this inexperience of theirs1 and also  
because the lot was a chance1 many of   
the souls exchanged a good destiny  for 
an evil or an evil for a good4 ,for if a
 man had always on his arrival  in this 
world dedicated himself from the first  
to sound philosophy1 99#fai;,e99  and   
had been moderately fortunate in the    
number of the lot1 he might1 as  the    
messenger reported1 be happy here1 and  

also his journey to another  life and   
return to this1 instead of being rough  
and underground1 would be  smooth and   
heavenly4 ,most curious1 he said1 was   
the spectacle--sad and  laughable and   
strange2 for the choice of the souls    
99#fbj;,a99 was in most  cases based on 
their experience of a previous life4    
,there he saw the soul  which had once  
been ,orpheus choosing the life of a    
swan out of enmity to  the race of      
women1 hating to be born of a woman     
because they had #ccg  been his         
murderers2 he beheld also the soul of   
,thamyras choosing the life  of a       
nightingale2 birds1 on the other hand1  
like the swan and other  musicians1     
wanting to be men4 ,the 99#fbj;,b99 soul
 which obtained the  twentieth#i lot    
chose the life of a lion1 and this was  
the soul of ,ajax  the son of ,telamon1 
who would not be a man1 remembering the 
injustice  which was done him in the    
judgment about the arms4 ,the next was  
,agamemnon1  who took the life of an    

eagle1 because1 like ,ajax1 he hated    
human nature  by reason of his          
sufferings4 ,about the middle came the  
lot of ,atalanta2  she1 seeing the great
 fame of an athlete1 was unable to      
resist the  temptation3 and after her   
99#fbj;,c99 there followed the soul of  
,epeus the son  of ,panopeus passing    
into the nature of a woman cunning in   
the arts2 and  far away among the last  
who chose1 the soul of the jester       
,thersites was  putting on the form of a
 monkey4 ,there came also the soul of   
,odysseus  having yet to make a choice1 
and his lot happened to be the last of  
them  all4 ,now the recollection of     
former toils had disenchanted him of    
ambition1 and he went about for a       
considerable time in search of the life 
of a private man who had no cares2 he   
had some difficulty in finding this1    
which was lying about and had been      
neglected by everybody else2 99#fbj;,d99
 and  when he saw it1 he said that he   
would have done the same had his lot    

been  first instead of last1 and that he
 was delighted to have it4 ,and not only
  did men pass into animals1 but ,i must
 also mention that there were animals   
tame and wild who changed into one      
another and into corresponding human    
natures--the good into the gentle and   
the evil into the savage1 in all  sorts 
of combinations4    ,footnote #i3       
,reading ,greek3 ei7kost_/n4    ,all the
 souls had now chosen their lives1 and  
they went in the order of  their choice 
to ,lachesis1 who sent with them the    
genius whom they had  severally chosen1 
to be the guardian 99#fbj;,e99 of their 
lives and the  fulfiller of the choice3 
this genius led the souls first to      
,clotho1 and  drew them within the      
revolution of the spindle impelled by   
her hand1 thus  ratifying the destiny of
 each2 and then1 when they were fastened
 to this1  carried them to ,atropos1 who
 spun the threads and made 99#fba;,a99  
them  irreversible1 whence without      
turning round they passed beneath the   

throne  of ,necessity2 and when they had
 all passed1 they marched on in a       
scorching  heat to the plain of #cch    
,forgetfulness1 which was a barren waste
  destitute of trees and verdure2 and   
then towards evening they encamped by   
the river of ,unmindfulness1 whose water
 no vessel can hold2 of this they  were 
all obliged to drink a certain quantity1
 and those who were not saved  by wisdom
 drank more than was necessary2 and each
 one as he drank forgot  all things4    
99#fba;,b99 ,now after they had gone to 
rest1 about the middle of  the night    
there was a thunderstorm and earthquake1
 and then in an instant  they were      
driven upwards in all manner of ways to 
their birth1 like stars  shooting4 ,he  
himself was hindered from drinking the  
water4 ,but in what  manner or by what  
means he returned to the body he could  
not say2 only1 in  the morning1 awaking 
suddenly1 he found himself lying on the 
pyre4    ,and thus1 ,glaucon1 the tale  
has been saved and has not perished1    

99#fba;,c99  and will save us if we are 
obedient to the word spoken2 and we     
shall pass  safely over the river of    
,forgetfulness and our soul will not be 
defiled4  ,wherefore my counsel is1 that
 we hold fast ever to the heavenly way  
and  follow after justice and virtue    
always1 considering that the soul is    
immortal and able to endure every sort  
of good and every sort of evil4  ,thus  
shall we live dear to one another and to
 the gods1 both while  remaining here   
and when1 like 99#fba;,d99 conquerors in
 the games who go round  to gather      
gifts1 we receive our reward4 ,and it   
shall be well with us both  in this life
 and in the pilgrimage of a thousand    
years which we have been  describing4   
,,index4      ,a4    ,,abdera1          
,protagoras of1 #aj4 #fjj ,c4           
,abortion1 allowed in certain cases1 #e4
 #dfa ,c4    ,absolute beauty1 #e4 #dgf1
 #dgi2 #f4 #did ,a1 #eja ,b1 #ejg       
,b2--absolute good1 #f4  #ejg ,b2 #g4   
#edj ,a2--absolute justice1 #e4 #dgi2   

#f4 #eja ,b2 #g4 #eag ,e2--absolute     
swiftness and slowness1 #g4 #ebi        
,d2--absolute temperance1 #f4 #eja ,b2  
--absolute unity1 #g4 #ebd ,e1 #ebe     
,e2--the absolute and the many1 #f4     
#ejg4    ,abstract ideas1 origin of1 #g4
 #ebc4 ,cp4 ,idea4    ,achaeans1 #c4    
#chi ,e1 #cij ,e1 #cic ,a1 ,d1 #cid ,a4 
,achilles1 the son of ,peleus1 third in 
descent from ,zeus1 #c4 #cia ,c2 his    
grief1 ib4 #chh ,a2 his avarice1        
cruelty1 and insolence1 ib4 #cij ,e1    
#cia ,a1 ,b2 his master ,phoenix1 ib4   
#cij ,e4    ,active life1 age for1 #g4  
#eci1 #edj4    ,actors1 cannot perform  
both tragic and comic parts1 #c4 #cie   
,a4    ,adeimantus1 son of ,ariston1 a  
person in the dialogue1 #a4 #cbg ,c2 his
  genius1 #b4 #cfh ,a2 distinguished at 
the battle of ,megara1 ibid42 takes up  
the discourse1 ib4 #cfb ,d1 #cfh ,e1    
#cgf ,d2 #d4 #dai ,a2 #f4 #dhg ,a2 #h4  
#edh ,e2  urges ,socrates to speak in   
detail about the community of women and 
children1 #e4 #ddi4    ,adrasteia1      

prayed to1 #e4 #dea ,a4    ,adultery1   
#e4 #dfa ,a4    ,aeschylus1 quoted3--   
,s4 c4 ,t4 #dea1 #h4 #eej ,c2           
#eib1 #b4 #cfa ,b1 ,e2       #eic ib4   
#cfb ,a2  ,niobe1 fr4 #adf1 #c4 #cia ,e2
      fr4 #aea1 #b4 #chj ,a2            
,xanthians1 fr4 #aei1 ib4 #cha ,d2      
,fab4 incert4 #bff1 ib4 #chc ,b2        
#cbf1 #h4 #efc ,c4    ,aesculapius1 see 
,asclepius4    ,affinity1 degrees of1   
#e4 #dfa4    ,agamemnon1 his dream1 #b4 
#chc ,a2 his gifts to ,achilles1 #c4    
#cij ,e2 his anger  against ,chryses1   
ib4 #cib ,e foll42 shown by ,palamedes  
in the play to be a  ridiculous general1
 #g4 #ebb ,d2 his soul becomes an eagle1
 #aj4 #fbj ,b4    ,age1 for active life1
 #g4 #eci1 #edj2--;for marriage1 #e4    
#dfj2--;for philosophy1  #g4 #eci4      
,agent and patient have the same        
qualities1 #d4 #dcg4    ,aglaion1 father
 of ,leontius1 #d4 #dci ,e4             
,agriculture1 tools required for1 #b4   
#cgj ,c4    ,ajax1 the son of ,telamon1 
#aj4 #fbj ,b2 the reward of his bravery1

 #e4 #dfh ,d2  his soul turns into a    
lion1 #aj4 #fbj ,b4    ,alcinous1 'tales
 of1' #aj4 #fad ,b4    ,allegory1 cannot
 be understood by the young1 #b4 #cgh   
,e4    ,ambition1 disgraceful1 #a4 #cdg 
,b 7cp4 #g4 #ebj ,d72 characteristic of 
the  timocratic state and man1 #h4 #ede1
 #edh1 #eej ,b1 #eec ,e2 easily passes  
into  avarice1 ib4 #eec ,e2 assigned    
#cdj to the passionate element of the   
soul1 #i4 #eha ,a2--ambitious men1 #e4  
#dge ,a2 #f4 #dhe ,b4    ,ameles1 the   
river 7  ,lethe71 #aj4 #fba ,a1 ,c4     
,amusement1 a means of education1 #d4   
#dbe ,a2 #g4 #ecg ,a4    ,anacharsis1   
the ,scythian1 his inventions1 #aj4 #fjj
 ,a4    ,analogy of the arts applied to 
rulers1 #a4 #cda2 of the arts and       
justice1  ib4 #cdi2 of men and animals1 
#b4 #cge2 #e4 #dei4    ,anapaestic      
rhythms1 #c4 #djj ,b4    ,anarchy1      
begins in music1 #d4 #dbd ,e cp4 ,laws  
#c4 #gja ,b2 in democracies1  #h4 #efb  
,d4    ,anger1 stirred by injustice1 #d4
 #ddj4    ,animals1 liberty enjoyed by1 

in a democracy1 #h4 #efb ,e1 #efc ,c2   
choose their  destiny in the next world1
 #aj4 #fbj ,d cp4 ,phaedr4 #bdi ,b4     
,anticipations of pleasure and pain1 #i4
 #ehd ,d4    ,aphrodit1 bound by        
,hephaestus1 #c4 #cij ,c4    ,apollo1   
song of1 at the nuptials of ,thetis1 #b4
 #chc ,a2 ,apollo and ,achilles1  #c4   
#cia ,a2 ,chryses' prayer to1 ib4 #cid  
,a2 lord of the lyre1 ib4 #cii ,e2      
father of ,asclepius1 ib4 #djh ,c2 the  
,god of ,delphi1 #d4 #dbg ,a4           
,appearance1 power of1 #b4 #cfe ,b1 #cff
 ,c4    ,appetite1 good and bad1 #e4    
#dge ,c4    ,appetites1 the1 #h4 #eei2  
#i4 #ega 7cp4 #d4 #dci74    ,appetitive 
element of the soul1 #d4 #dci cp4 ,tim4 
#gj ,e2 must be  subordinate to reason  
and passion1 #d4 #ddb ,a2 #i4 #ega ,d2  
may be described as  the love of gain1  
#i4 #eha ,a4    ,arcadia1 temple of     
,lycaean ,zeus in1 #h4 #efe ,d4         
,archilochus1 quoted1 #b4 #cfe ,c4      
,architecture1 #d4 #dch ,c2 necessity of
 pure taste in1 #c4 #dja4    ,ardiaeus1 

tyrant of ,pamphylia1 his eternal       
punishment1 #aj4 #fae ,c1 ,e4    ,ares  
and ,aphrodit1 #c4 #cij ,c4    ,argos1  
,agamemnon1 king of1 #c4 #cic ,e4       
,argument1 the longer and the shorter   
method of1 #d4 #dce2 #f4 #ejd2          
misleading  nature of 7,adeimantus71 #f4
 #dhg2 youthful love of1 #g4 #eci cp4   
,phil4  #ae ,e4 ,for the personification
 of the argument1 see ,personification4 
,arion1 #e4 #dec ,e4    ,aristocracy    
7i4e4 the ideal state or government of  
the best71 #d4 #dde ,c  7cp4 #h4 #edd   
,e1 #ede ,d1 and see ,state72 mode of   
its decline1 #h4 #edf2  --the           
aristocratical man1 #g4 #eda ,b2 #h4    
#edd ,e 7see ,guardians1  ,philosopher1 
,ruler73--7in the ordinary sense of the 
word71 #a4 #cch ,d4 ,cp4  ,constitution4
    ,ariston1 father of ,glaucon1 #a4   
#cbg ,a 7cp4 #b4 #cfh ,a74              
,aristonymus1 father of ,cleitophon1 #a4
 #cbh ,b4    ,arithmetic1 must be learnt
 by the rulers1 #g4 #ebb-ebf2 use of1 in
 forming  ideas1 ib4 #ebd foll4 7cp4    

#aj4 #fjb72 spirit in which it should be
  pursued1 #g4 #ebe ,d2 common notions  
about1 mistaken1 ib4 ,e2 an excellent   
instrument of education1 ib4 #ebf cp4   
,laws #e4 #gdg2 employed in order  to   
express the interval between the king   
and the tyrant1 #i4 #ehg4 ,cp4          
,mathematics4    ,armenius1 father of   
,er1 the ,pamphylian1 #aj4 #fad ,b4     
,arms1 throwing away of1 disgraceful1   
#e4 #dfh ,a2 arms of ,hellenes not to be
  offered as trophies in the temples1   
ib4 #dgj ,a4    ,army needed in a state1
 #b4 #cgd4    ,art1 influence of1 on    
character1 #c4 #djj foll42--art of      
building1 ib4  #dja ,a2 #d4 #dch ,c2    
carpentry1 #d4 #dbh ,c2 calculation1 #g4
 #ebd1 #ebf ,b2 #aj4 #cda  #fjb2        
cookery1 #a4 #ccb ,c2 dyeing1 #d4 #dbi  
,d2 embroidery1 #c4 #dja ,a2 exchange1  
#b4 #cfi ,c2 measurement1 #aj4 #fjb2    
money-making1 #a4 #ccj2 #h4 #eef2       
payment1 #a4  #cdf2 tactics1 #g4 #ebb   
,e1 #ebe ,b2 weaving1 #c4 #dja ,a2 #e4  
#dee ,d2 weighing1 #aj4  #fjb ,d2--the  

arts exercised for the good of their    
subject1 #a4 #cdb1 #cde-cdg  cp4        
,euthyph4 #ac2 interested in their own  
perfection1 #a4 #cdb2 differ  according 
to their functions1 ib4 #cdf2 full of   
grace1 #c4 #dja ,a2 must be  subject to 
a censorship1 ib4 ,b2 causes of the     
deterioration of1 #d4 #dba2  employment 
of children in1 #e4 #dfg ,a2 ideals in1 
ib4 #dgb ,d2 chiefly  useful for        
practical purposes1 #g4 #ecc ,a2--the   
arts and philosophy1 #f4  #die ,e1 #dif 
,c 7cp4 supra #e4 #dge ,d1 #dgf         
,a72--the handicraft arts a  reproach1  
#i4 #eij ,c2--the lesser arts 7,greek3  
technu_/dria71 #e4 #dge ,d2  7,greek3   
te_/chnia71 #f4 #die ,d2--three arts    
concerned with all things1  #aj4 #fja4  
,art4 ,art1 according to the conception 
of ,plato1 is not a collection of       
canons of criticism1 but a subtle       
influence which pervades all things     
animate as well as inanimate 7#c4 #djj1 
#dja74 ,he knows nothing of  'schools'  
or of the history of art1 nor does he   

select any building or  statue for      
condemnation or admiration4 ,cp4        
,protag4 #caa ,c1 where  ,pheidias is   
casually mentioned as the typical       
sculptor1 and ,meno #ia ,d1  where      
,socrates says that ,pheidias1 'although
 he wrought such exceedingly  noble     
works1' did not make nearly so much     
money by them as ,protagoras did  by his
 wisdom4 ,plato judges art by one test1 
'simplicity1' but under  this he        
includes moderation1 purity1 and harmony
 of proportion2 and he  would extend to 
sculpture and architecture the same     
rigid censorship which  he has already  
applied to poetry and music 7#c4 #dja   
,a74 ,he dislikes the  'illusions' of   
painting 7#aj4 #fjb7 and the 'false     
proportions' given by  sculptors to     
their subjects 7,soph4 #bcd ,e71 both of
 which he classes as a  species of      
magic4 ,with more justice he points out 
the danger of an  excessive devotion to 
art2 7cp4 the ludicrous pictures of the 
unmanly  musician 7#c4 #daa71 and of the

 dilettanti who run about to every      
chorus  7#e4 #dge774 ,but he hopes to   
save his guardians from effeminacy by   
the  severe discipline and training of  
their early years4 ,sparta and ,athens  
are  to be combined cp4 ,introduction1  
p4 clxx3 the citizens will live1 as     
,adeimantus complains1 'like a garrison 
of mercenaries' 7#d4 #dai72 but  they   
will be surrounded by an atmosphere of  
grace and beauty1 which will  insensibly
 instil noble and true ideas into their 
minds4    ,artisans1 necessary in the   
state1 #b4 #cgj2 have no time to be ill1
  #c4 #djf ,d4    ,artist1 the ,great1  
#aj4 #eif cp4 ,laws #aj4 #ijb ,e2--the  
true artist does  not work for his own  
benefit1 #a4 #cdf1 #cdg2--;artists must 
imitate the good  only1 #c4 #dja ,c4    
,asclepiadae1 #c4 #dje ,d1 #djh ,b2 #aj4
 #eii ,c4    ,asclepius1 son of ,apollo1
 #c4 #djh ,c2 not ignorant of the       
lingering  treatment1 ib4 #djf ,d2 a    
statesman1 ib4 #djg ,e2 said by the     
poets to  have been bribed to restore a 

rich man to life1 ib4 #djh ,b2 left     
disciples1 #aj4 #eii ,c2--descendants   
of1 #c4 #djf ,a2--his sons at ,troy1    
ibid4    ,assaults1 trials for1 will be 
unknown in the best state1 #e4 #dfd ,e4 
,astronomy1 must be studied by the      
rulers1 #g4 #ebg-ecj2 spirit in which it
  should be pursued1 ib4 #ebi1 #ecj4    
#cdb    ,atalanta1 chose the life of an 
athlete1 #aj4 #fbj ,b4    ,athen1 not to
 be considered author of the strife     
between ,trojans and  ,achaeans1 #b4    
#cgi ,e4    ,athenian confectionery1 #c4
 #djd ,e4    ,athens1 corpses exposed   
outside the northern wall of1 #d4 #dci  
,e4    ,athlete1 ,atalanta chooses the  
soul of an1 #aj4 #fbj ,b2 athletes1     
obliged to  pay excessive attention to  
diet1 #c4 #djd ,a2 sleep away their     
lives1  ibid42 are apt to become        
brutalized1 ib4 #daj1 #daa 7cp4 #g4 #ece
 ,d72--the  guardians athletes of war1  
#c4 #djc ,e1 #djd ,b2 #d4 #dbb2 #g4 #eba
 ,e2 #h4 #edc  cp4 ,laws #h4 #hcj4      
,atridae1 #c4 #cic ,a4    ,atropos 7one 

of the ,fates71 her song1 #aj4 #fag ,c2 
spins the threads of  destiny1 and makes
 them irreversible1 ib4 #fbj ,e4        
,attic confections1 #c4 #djd ,e4        
,audience1 see ,spectator4              
,autolycus1 praised by ,homer1 #a4 #ccd 
,a4    ,auxiliaries1 the young warriors 
of the state1 #c4 #dad2 compared to     
dogs1  #b4 #cgf2 #d4 #ddj ,d2 #e4 #dea  
,d2 have silver mingled in their veins1 
#c4 #dae ,a4  ,cp4 ,guardians4          
,avarice1 disgraceful1 #a4 #cdg ,b2     
forbidden in the guardians1 #c4 #cij ,e2
  falsely imputed to ,achilles and      
,asclepius by the poets1 ib4 #cia ,b1   
#djh ,c2 characteristic of timocracy and
 oligarchy1 #h4 #edh ,a1 #eec4      ,b4 
,barbarians1 regard nakedness as        
improper1 #e4 #deb2 the natural enemies 
of  the ,hellenes1 ib4 #dfi ,d1 #dgj ,c 
cp4 ,pol4 #bfb ,d2 peculiar forms of    
government among1 #h4 #edd ,d4          
,beast1 the great1 #f4 #dic2 the        
many-headed1 #i4 #ehh1 #ehi2 'the wild  
beast  within us1' ib4 #ega1 #egb4      

,beautiful1 the1 and the good are one1  
#e4 #deb2--the many beautiful           
contrasted with absolute beauty1 #f4    
#ejg ,b4    ,beauty as a means of       
education1 #c4 #dja foll42 absolute     
beauty1 #e4 #dgf1  #dgi2 #f4 #did ,a1   
#eja ,b1 #ejg ,b cp4 ,laws #b4 #fee ,c4 
,becoming1 the passage from1 to being1  
#g4 #eah ,d1 #eba ,d1 #ebe ,d4    ,beds1
 the figure of the three1 #aj4 #eif4    
,bee-masters1 #h4 #efd ,c4    ,being and
 not being1 #e4 #dgg2 true being the    
object of the philosopher's  desire1 #f4
 #dhd1 #dhe1 #dhf ,e1 #dij1 #ejj ,c2 #g4
 #eba1 #ecg ,d2 #i4 #eha1 #ehb ,c 7cp4  
#e4 #dge ,e2 #g4 #ebj ,b1 #ebe2 and     
,phaedo #hb2 ,phaedr4 #bdi2 ,theaet4    
#agc ,e2  ,soph4 #bdi ,d1 #bed72        
concerned with the invariable1 #i4 #ehe 
,c4    ,belief1 see ,faith4             
,bendidea1 a feast of ,artemis1 #a4 #ced
 ,a 7cp4 #cbg ,a1 ,b74    ,bendis1 a    
title of ,artemis1 #a4 #cbg ,a4    ,bias
 of ,priene1 #a4 #cce ,e4    ,birds1    
breeding of1 at ,athens1 #e4 #dei4      

,blest1 ,islands of the1 #g4 #eai ,c1   
#edj ,b4    ,body1 the1 not             
self-sufficing1 #a4 #cda ,e2 excessive  
care of1 inimical to  virtue1 #c4 #djg  
7cp4 #i4 #eia ,d72 has less truth and   
essence than the soul1  #i4 #ehe        
,d2--harmony of body and soul1 #c4 #djb 
,d4    ,body1 the1 and the members1     
comparison of the state to1 #e4 #dfb ,d1
 #dfd ,b4    ,boxing1 #d4 #dbb4         
,brass 7and iron7 mingled by the ,god in
 the husbandmen and craftsmen1  #c4 #dae
 ,a 7cp4 #h4 #edg ,a74    ,breeding of  
animals1 #e4 #dei4    ,building1 art of1
 #c4 #dja ,a2 #d4 #dch ,c4    ,burial of
 the guardians1 #c4 #dad ,a2 #e4 #dfe   
,e1 #dfi ,a2 #g4 #edj ,b cp4 ,laws  #ab4
 #idg4 #cdc      ,c4      ,calculation1 
art of1 corrects the illusions of sight1
 #aj4 #fjb 7cp4  #g4 #ebd72 the talent  
for1 accompanied by general quickness1  
#g4 #ebf ,b4  ,cp4 ,arithmetic4         
,captain1 parable of the deaf1 #f4 #dhh4
    ,carpentry1 #d4 #dbh ,c4    ,causes1
 final1 argument from1 applied to       

justice1 #a4 #ceb3 #f4 #dia ,e1  #die   
,b2--of crimes1 #h4 #eeb ,d2 #i4 #ege   
,a4    ,cave1 the image of the1 #g4 #ead
 foll41 #ecb 7cp4 #eci ,e74             
,censorship of fiction1 #b4 #cgg2 #c4   
#chf-cia1 #dja ,a1 #djh ,c2 #aj4 #eie   
foll4  cp4 ,laws #g4 #hja1 #haa2 of the 
arts1 #c4 #dja4    ,ceos1 ,prodicus of1 
#aj4 #fjj ,c4    ,cephalus1 father of   
,polemarchus1 #a4 #cbg ,b2 offers       
sacrifice1 ib4 #cbh ,b1  #cca ,d2 his   
views on old age1 ib4 #cbh ,e2 his views
 on wealth1 ib4 #ccj ,a  foll4          
,cephalus of ,clazomenae1 #a4 #ccj ,b4  
,cerberus1 two natures in one1 #i4 #ehh 
,c4    ,chance in war1 #e4 #dfg ,e2     
blamed by men for their misfortunes1    
#aj4 #fai ,c4    ,change in music1 not  
to be allowed1 #d4 #dbd cp4 ,laws #g4   
#gii4    ,character1 differences of1 in 
men1 #a4 #cbi ,d cp4 ,pol4 #cjg2 in     
women1  #e4 #def2--;affected by the     
imitation of unworthy objects1 #c4      
#cie2--national  character1 #d4 #dce cp4
 ,laws #e4 #gdg3--;great characters may 

be ruined by  bad education1 #f4 #dia   
,e1 #die ,b2 #g4 #eai3--;faults of      
character1 #f4 #ejc  cp4 ,theaet4 #add  
,b4    ,charmantides1 the ,paeanian1    
present at the dialogue1 #a4 #cbh ,b4   
,charondas1 lawgiver of ,italy and      
,sicily1 #aj4 #eii ,e4    ,cheese1 #b4  
#cgb ,c2 #c4 #dje ,e4    ,cheiron1      
teacher of ,achilles1 #c4 #cia ,c4      
,children have spirit1 but not reason1  
#d4 #dda ,a2 why under authority1 #i4   
#eij ,e2--in the state1 #c4 #dae2 #e4   
#dej ,e1 #deg foll42 #h4 #edc2 must not 
hear  improper stories1 #b4 #cgg2 #c4   
#cia ,c2 must be reared amid fair sights
 and  sounds1 #c4 #dja2 must receive    
education even in their plays1 #d4 #dbe 
,a2 #g4  #ecg ,a cp4 ,laws #a4 #fdc ,b2 
must learn to ride1 #e4 #dfg cp4 ,laws  
#g4  #hjd ,c2 must go with their fathers
 and mothers into war1 #e4 #dfg2 #g4    
#ecg ,a3--transfer of children from one 
class to another1 #c4 #dae2  #d4 #dbc   
,d3--exposure of children allowed1 #e4  
#dfj ,c1 #dfa ,c3--illegitimate         

children1 ib4 #dfa ,a4    ,chimaera1 two
 natures in one1 #i4 #ehh ,c4           
,chines1 presented to the brave warrior1
 #e4 #dfh ,d4    ,chryses1 the priest of
 ,apollo 7,iliad i4 #aa foll471 #c4 #cib
 ,e foll4    ,cithara1 see ,harp4       
,citizens1 the1 of the best state1      
compared to a garrison of mercenaries   
7,adeimantus71 #d4 #dai 7cp4 #h4 #edc72 
will form one family1 #e4 #dfb foll4    
,see ,guardians4    ,city1 situation of 
the1 #c4 #dae3--the 'city of pigs1' #b4 
#cgb3--the heavenly  city1 #i4          
#eib3--;,cities1 most1 divided between  
rich and poor1 #d4 #dbb ,e2 #h4  #eea ,e
 cp4 ,laws #ab4 #ide ,e3--the game of   
cities1 #d4 #dbb ,e4 ,cp4               
,constitution1 ,state4    ,classes1 in  
the state1 should be kept distinct1 #b4 
#cgd2 #c4 #cig ,e1 #dae ,a2  #d4 #dba1  
#dcc ,a1 #dcd1 #dda ,e1 #ddc2 #e4 #dec  
7cp4 #h4 #eeb ,a1 and ,laws  #h4 #hdf   
,e74    ,cleitophon1 the son of         
,aristonymus1 present at the dialogue1  
#a4 #cbh ,b2  interposes on behalf of   

,thrasymachus1 ib4 #cdj ,a4             
,cleverness1 no match for honesty1 #c4  
#dji ,c 7cp4 #aj4 #fac ,c72 not often   
united with a steady character1 #f4 #cdd
 #ejc cp4 ,theaet4 #add ,b2 needs  an   
ideal direction1 #g4 #eai cp4 ,laws #g4 
#hai ,a4    ,clotho1 second of the      
fates1 #aj4 #fag ,c1 #fbj ,e2 sings of  
the present1 ib4  #fag ,c2 the souls    
brought to her1 ib4 #fbj ,e4            
,colours1 comparison of1 #i4 #ehe ,a2   
contrast of1 ib4 #ehf ,c2--indelible    
colours1 #d4 #dbi3--';colours' of       
poetry1 #aj4 #fja ,a4    ,comedy1 cannot
 be allowed in the state1 #c4 #cid cp4  
,laws #g4 #haf ,d2  accustoms the mind  
to vulgarity1 #aj4 #fjf2--same actors   
cannot act both  tragedy and comedy1 #c4
 #cie4    ,common life in the state1 #e4
 #deh1 #dfd foll42--common meals of the 
guardians1 #c4 #daf2 common meals for   
women1 #e4 #deh ,d cp4 ,laws #f4 #gha2  
#g4  #hjf ,e2 #h4 #hci ,d2--common      
property among the guardians1 #c4 #daf  
,e2  #d4 #dbj ,a1 #dbb ,d2 #e4 #dfd2 #h4

 #edc4    ,community of women and       
children1 #c4 #daf2 #e4 #dej ,e1 #deg   
foll41 #dfb1 #dfd2  #h4 #edc ,a cp4     
,laws #e4 #gci ,c2--of property1 #c4    
#daf ,e2 #d4 #dbj ,a1 #dbb ,d2  #e4     
#dfd2 #h4 #edc2--of feeling1 #e4 #dfd4  
,community4 ,the communism of the       
,republic seems to have been suggested  
by  ,plato's desire for the unity of the
 state 7cp4 #e4 #dfb foll474 ,if those  
'two small pestilent words1 meum and    
tuum1 which have engendered so  much    
strife among men and created so much    
mischief in the world1' could be        
banished from the lips and thoughts of  
mankind1 the ideal state would soon  be 
realized4 ,the citizens would have      
parents1 wives1 children1 and  property 
in common2 they would rejoice in each   
other's prosperity1 and  sorrow at each 
other's misfortune2 they would call     
their rulers not  'lords' and 'masters1'
 but 'friends' and 'saviours4' ,plato is
 aware that  such a conception could    
hardly be carried out in this world2 and

 he evades  or adjourns1 rather than    
solves1 the difficulty by the famous    
assertion  that only when the           
philosopher rules in the city will the  
ills of human  life find an end cp4     
,introduction1 p4 clxxiii4 ,in the      
,critias1 where  the ideal state1 as    
,plato himself hints to us 7#aaj ,d71 is
 to some extent  reproduced in an       
imaginary description of ancient        
,attica1 property is  common1 but there 
is no mention of a community of wives   
and children4  ,finally in the ,laws    
7#e4 #gci71 ,plato while still          
maintaining the  blessings of communism1
 recognizes the impossibility of its    
realization1  and sets about the        
construction of a 'second-best state' in
 which the  rights of property are      
conceded2 although1 according to        
,aristotle 7,pol4  ii4 #f1  #d71 he     
gradually reverts to the ideal polity in
 all except a few  unimportant          
particulars4    ,conception1 the1 of    
truth by the philosopher1 #f4 #dij ,a4  

,confidence and courage1 #d4 #dcj ,b4   
,confiscation of the property of the    
rich in democracies1 #h4 #efe4          
,constitution1 the aristocratic1 is the 
ideal state sketched in bk4 iv 7cp4  #h4
 #edd ,e1 #ede ,d72--defective forms of 
constitution1 #d4 #dde ,b2 #h4 #edd  cp4
 ,pol4 #bia ,e foll42 aristocracy 7in   
the ordinary sense71 #a4 #cch ,d2       
timocracy or ',spartan polity1' #h4 #ede
 foll42 oligarchy1 ib4 #eej foll41  #eed
 ,e2 democracy1 ib4 #eee foll41 #eeg ,d2
 tyranny1 ib4 #edd ,c1 #efb4 ,cp4       
,government1 ,state4                    
,contentiousness1 a characteristic of   
timocracy1 #h4 #edh4    ,contracts1 in  
some states not protected by law1 #h4   
#eef ,a4    ,contradiction1 nature of1  
#d4 #dcf2 #aj4 #fjb ,e2 power of1 #e4   
#ded ,a4 #cde    ,convention1 justice a 
matter of1 #b4 #cei ,a4                 
,conversation1 should not be personal1  
#f4 #ejj ,b4    ,conversion of the soul1
 #g4 #eah1 #eba1 #ebe cp4 ,laws #ab4    
#ieg ,e4    ,cookery1 art of1 employed  

in the definition of justice1 #a4 #ccb  
,c4    ,corinthian courtesans1 #c4 #djd 
,d4    ,corpses1 not to be spoiled1 #e4 
#dfi4    ,correlative and relative1     
qualifications of1 #d4 #dcg foll4 cp4   
,gorg4  #dgf2 how corrected1 #g4 #ebd4  
,corruptio optimi pessima1 #f4 #dia4    
,corruption1 the1 of youth1 not to be   
attributed to the ,sophists1 but to     
public opinion1 #f4 #dib ,a4            
,courage1 required in the guardians1 #b4
 #cge2 #c4 #chf1 #dac ,e1 #daf ,e2 #d4  
#dbi2  #f4 #ejc ,e2 inconsistent with   
the fear of death1 #c4 #chf2 #f4 #dhf   
,a2  the  preservation of a right       
opinion about objects of fear1 #d4 #dbi1
 #ddb ,b 7cp4  #b4 #cgf1 and ,laches    
#aic1 #aie72 distinguished from         
fearlessness1 #d4 #dcj ,b2  one of the  
philosopher's virtues1 #f4 #dhf ,a1 #dij
 ,e1 #did ,a3--the courageous  temper   
averse to intellectual toil1 ib4 #ejc ,d
 cp4 ,pol4 #cjf1 #cjg4    ,courtesans1  
#c4 #djd ,d4    ,covetousness1 not found
 in the philosopher1 #f4 #dhe ,e2       

characteristic of  timocracy and        
oligarchy1 #h4 #edh1 #eec2  the         
appetitive element of the  soul1 #i4    
#eha ,a4    ,cowardice in war1 to be    
punished1 #e4 #dfh ,a2 not found in the 
philosopher1  #f4 #dhf ,b4              
,creophylus1 'the child of flesh1'      
companion of ,homer1 #aj4 #fjj ,b4      
,crete1 government of1 generally        
applauded1 #h4 #edd ,c2 a timocracy1 ib4
  #ede ,b2--,cretans1 naked exercises   
among1 #e4 #deb ,c2 call their country  
'mother-land1' #i4 #ege ,e2--,cretic    
rhythm1 #c4 #djj ,b4    ,crimes1 great  
and small1 differently estimated by     
mankind1 #a4 #cdd  7cp4 #cdh ,d72 causes
 of1 #f4 #dia ,e1 #die ,b2 #h4 #eeb ,d2 
#i4 #ege ,a4    ,criminals1 are usually 
men of great character spoiled by bad   
education1  #f4 #dia ,e1 #die ,b2       
numerous in oligarchies1 #h4 #eeb ,d4   
,croesus1 #b4 #cei ,c2 'as the oracle   
said to ,croesus1' #h4 #eff ,c4         
,cronos1 ill treated by ,zeus1 #b4 #cgg 
,e2 his behaviour to ,uranus1 ibid4     

,cunning man1 the1 no match for the     
virtuous1 #c4 #dji ,d4    ,cycles1      
recurrence of1 in nature1 #h4 #edf ,a   
cp4 ,tim4 #bb ,c2 ,crit4 #aji ,d2  ,pol4
 #bfi foll42 ,laws #c4 #fgg4      ,d4   
,dactylic metre1 #c4 #djj ,c4           
,daedalus1 beauty of his works1 #g4 #ebi
 ,e4    ,damon1 an authority on rhythm1 
#c4 #djj ,b 7cp4 #d4 #dbd ,c74          
,dancing 7in education71 #c4 #dab ,b4   
,day-dreams1 #e4 #deh ,a1 #dgf ,c4      
,dead 7in battle7 not to be stripped1   
#e4 #dfi2 judgment of the dead1  #aj4   
#fae4    ,death1 the approach of1 brings
 no terror to the aged1 #a4 #ccj ,e2 the
  guardians must have no fear of1 #c4   
#chf1 #chg 7cp4 #f4 #dhf ,c72 preferable
 to  slavery1 #c4 #chg ,a4    ,debts1   
abolition of1 proclaimed by demagogues1 
#h4 #efe ,e1 #eff ,e4    ,delphi1       
religion left to the god at1 #d4 #dbg ,a
 7cp4 #e4 #dfa ,e1 #dfi ,a2  #g4 #edj   
,b74    ,demagogues1 #h4 #efd1 #efe4    
,democracy1 #a4 #cch ,d2 spoken of under
 the parable of the captain and the     

mutinous crew1 #f4 #dhh2 democracy and  
philosophy1 ib4 #did1 #ejj2 the third   
form of imperfect state1 #h4 #edd cp4   
,pol4 #bia1 #bib2 detailed account  of1 
ib4 #eee foll42 characterised by        
freedom1 ib4 #eeg ,b1 #efa-efc2 a       
'bazaar of constitutions1' ib4 #eeg ,d2 
the #cdf humours of democracy1  ib4 ,e1 
#efa2 elements contained in1 ib4        
#efd4--;democracy in animals1  ib4      
#efc3--the democratical man1 ib4 #eeh1  
#eei foll41 #efa1 #efb2 #i4 #egb2  his  
place in regard to pleasure1 #i4 #ehg4  
,desire1 has a relaxing effect on the   
soul1 #d4 #dcj ,a2 the conflict of      
desire and reason1 #d4 #ddj cp4 ,phaedr4
 #bec foll42 ,tim4 #gj ,a2--the  desires
 divided into simple and qualified1 #d4 
#dcg foll42 into necessary  and         
unnecessary1 #h4 #eei4    ,despots      
7masters71 #e4 #dfc ,a4 ,see ,tyrant4   
,destiny1 the1 of man in his own power1 
#aj4 #fag ,e4    ,dialectic1 the most   
difficult branch of philosophy1 #f4     
#dih2 objects of1  ib4 #eaa2 #g4 #ecg   

,d2 proceeds by a double method1 #f4    
#eaa2 compared to  sight1 #g4 #ecb ,a2  
capable of attaining to the idea of     
good1 ibid42 gives  firmness to         
hypotheses1 ib4 #ecc2 the coping stone  
of the sciences1 ib4  #ecd cp4 ,phil4   
#eg2 must be studied by the rulers1 ib4 
#ecg2 dangers of  the study1 ibid42     
years to be spent in1 ib4 #eci2         
distinguished from  eristic1 ib4 ,d 7cp4
 #e4 #ded ,a2 #f4 #dii ,a73--the        
dialectician has a  conception of       
essence1 #g4 #ecd cp4 ,phaedo #ge ,d4   
,dialectic4 ,dialectic1 the 'coping     
stone of knowledge1' is everywhere      
distinguished by ,plato from eristic1   
i4e41 argument for argument's sake  cp4 
,euthyd4 #bge foll41 #bic2 ,meno #ge ,d2
 ,phaedo #aja2 ,phil4 #ag2 ,theaet4     
#afg ,e4 ,it is that 'gift of heaven'   
7,phil4 #af7 which teaches men to       
employ the hypotheses of science1 not as
 final results1 but as points from      
which the mind may rise into the higher 
heaven of ideas and behold truth  and   

being4 ,this vague and magnificent      
conception was probably hardly  clearer 
to ,plato himself when he wrote the     
,republic than it is to us  cp4         
,introduction1 p4 xcii2 but in the      
,sophist and ,statesman it  appears in a
 more definite form as a combination of 
analysis and synthesis  by which we     
arrive at a true notion of things4 ,cp4 
the ,greek3  u7phgme_/n metho_/dos of   
,aristotle 7,pol4 i4 #a1  #c2 #h1  #a71 
which is  an analogous mode of          
proceeding from the parts to the whole4 
,in the ,laws  dialectic no longer      
occupies a prominent place2 it is the   
'old man's  harmless amusement' 7#g4    
#hbj ,c71 or1 regarded more seriously1  
the method  of discussion by question   
and answer1 which is abused by the      
natural  philosophers to disprove the   
existence of the ,gods 7#aj4 #hia74     
,dice 7,greek3 ku_/boi71 #aj4 #fjd ,c2  
skill required in dice-playing1  #b4    
#cgd ,c4    ,diet1 #c4 #djd2 #h4 #eei ,c
 cp4 ,tim4 #hi4    ,differences1        

accidental and essential1 #e4 #ded4     
,diomede1 his command to the ,greeks    
7,iliad iv4 #dab71 #c4 #chi ,e2         
'necessity  of1' 7proverb71 #f4 #dic ,d4
    ,dionysiac festival 7at ,athens71   
#e4 #dge ,d4    ,discord1 causes of1 #e4
 #dfb2 #h4 #edg ,a1 #eef ,e2 the ruin of
 states1 #e4 #dfb2  distinguished from  
war1 ib4 #dgj cp4 ,laws #a4 #fbh1 #fbi4 
,discourse1 love of1 #a4 #cbh ,a2 #e4   
#dej ,b2 increases in old age1 #a4 #cbh 
,d2  pleasure of1 in the other world1   
#f4 #dih ,d cp4 ,apol4 #da4    ,disease1
 origin of1 #c4 #djd2 the right         
treatment of1 ib4 #dje foll42 the       
physician must have experience of1 in   
his own person1 ib4 #djh2 disease  and  
vice compared1 #d4 #ddd2 #aj4 #fji foll4
 cp4 ,soph4 #bbh2 ,pol4 #bif2 ,laws     
#aj4 #cdg #ijf2 inherent in everything1 
#aj4 #fji4    ,dishonesty1 thought by   
men to be more profitable than honesty1 
#b4 #cfd ,a4    ,dithyrambic poetry1    
nature of1 #c4 #cid ,b4    ,diversities 
of natural gifts1 #b4 #cgj2 #e4 #dee2   

#g4 #ece ,a4    ,division of labour1 #b4
 #cgj1 #cgd ,a2 #c4 #cid ,e1 #cie ,b1   
#cig ,e2 #d4 #dbc ,e1 #dcc ,a1  #dce ,a1
 #dda ,e1 #ddc1 #dec ,b2 a part of      
justice1 #d4 #dcc1 #dce ,a1 #dda ,e 7cp4
  supra #a4 #ccb1 #cdi1 #cej1 and ,laws 
#h4 #hdf ,c72--of lands1 proclaimed by  
the would-be tyrant1 #h4 #efe ,e1 #eff  
,e4    ,doctors1 flourish when luxury   
increases in the state1 #b4 #cgc ,c2 #c4
 #dje ,a2  two kinds of1 #e4 #dei ,c cp4
 ,laws #d4 #gbj2 #i4 #heg ,d4 ,cp4      
,physician4    ,dog1 ,socrates' oath by 
the1 #c4 #cii ,e2 #h4 #efg ,e2 #i4      
#eib2--;dogs are  philosophers1 #b4     
#cgf2 the guardians the watch-dogs of   
the state1 ibid42  #d4 #ddj ,d2 #e4 #dea
 ,d2 breeding of dogs1 #e4 #dei4        
,dolphin1 ,arion's1 #e4 #dec ,e4        
,dorian harmony1 allowed1 with the      
,phrygian1 in the state1 #c4 #cii ,a4   
,draughts1 #a4 #ccc ,a2 skill required  
in1 #b4 #cgd ,c2--comparison of an      
argument to a game of draughts1 #f4 #dhg
 ,c4    ,dreams1 an indication of the   

bestial element in human nature1 #i4    
#ega1 #egb1  #egd ,e4    ,drones1 the1  
#h4 #eeb1 #eed ,c1 #eee ,e1 #eei ,c1    
#efd ,b1 #efg ,e2 #i4 #egc ,a cp4  ,laws
 #aj4 #ija ,a4    ,drunkenness1 in      
heaven1 #b4 #cfc ,d2 forbidden in the   
guardians1 #c4 #cih ,e1  #djc ,e2--the  
drunken man apt to be tyrannical1 #h4   
#egc ,c4 ,cp4 ,intoxication4    ,dyeing1
 #d4 #dbi ,d4      ,e4      ,early      
society1 #b4 #cei4    ,eating1 pleasure 
accompanying1 #h4 #eei4    ,education1  
commonly divided into gymnastic for the 
body and music for the  soul1 #b4 #cgf  
,e1 #djc 7see ,gymnastic1 ,music1 and   
cp4 ,laws #g4 #gie ,e72  both music and 
gymnastic really designed for the soul1 
#c4 #daj3--use of  fiction in1 #b4 #cgg 
foll42 #c4 #cia2 the poets bad          
educators1 #b4 #cgg2 #c4 #cia1  #cib1   
#djh ,b2 #aj4 #fjj1 #fjf ,e1 #fjg ,b cp4
 ,laws #aj4 #hhf ,c1 #hij ,a2 must be   
simple1 #c4 #cig1 #djd ,e2 melody in1   
ib4 #cih foll42 mimetic art in1 ib4     
#cii2 importance of good surroundings1  

ib4 #dja2 influence of1 on manners1  #d4
 #dbd1 #dbe2 innovation in1 dangerous1  
ibid42 early1 should be given  through  
amusement1 ib4 #dbe ,a2 #g4 #ecf ,e cp4 
,laws #a4 #fdc ,b2 ought to  be the same
 for men and women1 #e4 #dea foll41     
#dff2 dangerous when  ill-directed1 #f4 
#dia2 not a process of acquisition1 but 
the use of powers  already existing in  
us1 #g4 #eah2 not to be compulsory1 ib4 
#ecg  ,a2--education of the guardians1  
#b4 #cgf foll42 #d4 #dbi1 #dcj2 #g4 #eba
 7cp4  ,guardians1 ,ruler72--the higher 
or philosophic education1 #f4 #dih1 #ejc
 ,e1  #ejd2 #g4 #ead-ecg2 age at which  
it should commence1 #f4 #dih2 #g4 #ecg2 
'the  longer way1' #f4 #ejd 7cp4 #d4    
#dce72 'the prelude or preamble1' #g4   
#ecb ,e4    ,education4 ,education in   
the ,republic is divided into two parts1
 7i7  the common education of the       
citizens2 7ii7 the special education of 
the  rulers4 7i7 ,the first1 beginning  
with childhood in the plays of the      
children cp4 ,laws #a4 #fdc ,b1 is the  

old ,hellenic education1 the  ,greek3   
katabeblme_/na paideu_/mata of          
,aristotle1 ,pol4 viii4 #b1  #f1        
#cdh--'music for the mind and gymnastic 
for the body' cp4 ,laws #g4  #gie ,e4   
,but ,plato soon discovers that both are
 really intended for the  benefit of the
 soul cp4 ,laws #e4 #gdc ,d2 and under  
'music' he includes  literature 7,greek3
 lo_/goi71 i4e4 humane culture as       
distinguished from  scientific          
knowledge4 ,music precedes gymnastic2   
both are not to be learned  together2   
only the simpler kinds of either are    
tolerated cp4 ,laws ,book  ,,vii1       
passim4 ,boys and girls share equally in
 both cp4 ,laws #g4  #gid ,d4 ,the      
greatest attention must be paid to good 
surroundings2 nothing  mean or vile must
 meet the eye or strike the ear of the  
young scholar4 ,the  fairy tales of     
childhood and the fictions of the poets 
are alike placed  under censorship cp4  
,laws ,book ,x1 and see s4 v4 ,poetry4  
,gentleness  is to be united with       

manliness2 beauty of form and activity  
of mind are to  mingle in perfect and   
harmonious accord4--7ii7 ,the special   
education  commences at twenty by the   
selection of the most promising         
students4 ,these  spend ten years in the
 acquisition of the higher branches of  
arithmetic1  geometry1 astronomy1       
harmony cp4 ,laws #g4 #hag ,e1 which are
 not to be  pursued in a scientific     
spirit or for utility only1 but rather  
with a view  to their combination by    
means of dialectic into an ideal of all 
knowledge  7see s4 v4 ,dialectic74 ,at  
thirty a further selection is made3     
those  selected spend five years in the 
study of philosophy1 are then sent into 
active life for fifteen years1 and      
finally after fifty return to           
philosophy1 which for the remainder of  
their days is to form their chief       
occupation 7see s4 v4 ,rulers74         
,egyptians1 characterised by love of    
money1 #d4 #dce ,e4    ,elder1 the1 to  
bear rule in the state1 #c4 #dab ,b cp4 

,laws #c4 #fij ,a2  #d4 #gad ,e2 to be  
over the younger1 #e4 #dfe ,a cp4 ,laws 
#d4 #gba ,d2 #i4 #hgi ,c2  #aa4 #iag ,a4
    ,embroidery1 art of1 #c4 #dja ,a4   
,enchantments1 used by mendicant        
prophets1 #b4 #cfd ,b2--enchantments1   
i4e4  tests to which the guardians are  
to be subjected1 #c4 #dac 7cp4 #f4 #ejc 
,a2  #g4 #eci ,e74    ,end1 the1 and use
 of the soul1 #a4 #cec3--;ends and      
excellencies 7,greek3  a7retai7 of      
things1 ibid42 things distinguished by  
their ends1 #e4 #dgh4    ,endurance1    
must be inculcated on the young1 #c4    
#cij ,c 7cp4 #aj4 #fje ,e74    ,enemies1
 treatment of1 #e4 #dfi4    ,enquiry1   
roused by some objects of sense1 #g4    
#ebc4    ,epeus1 soul of1 turns into a  
woman1 #aj4 #fbj ,c4    ,epic poetry1 a 
combination of imitation and narration1 
#c4 #cid ,b1  #cif ,e2--epic poets1     
imitators in the highest degree1 #aj4   
#fjb ,c4    ,er1 myth of1 #aj4 #fad ,b  
foll4    ,eriphyle1 #i4 #eij ,a4        
,eristic1 distinguished from dialectic1 

#e4 #ded ,a2 #f4 #dii ,a2 #g4 #eci ,d4  
,error1 not possible in the skilled     
person 7,thrasymachus71 #a4 #cdj ,d4    
,essence and the good1 #f4 #eji2 essence
 of the invariable1 #i4 #ehe2--;essence 
of things1 #f4 #ejg ,b2 apprehended by  
the dialectician1 #g4 #ecd ,b4          
,eternity1 contrasted with human life1  
#aj4 #fjh ,d4    ,eumolpus1 son of      
,musaeus1 #b4 #cfc ,d4    ,eunuch1 the  
riddle of the1 #e4 #dgi4    ,euripides1 
a great tragedian1 #h4 #efh ,a2 his     
maxims about tyrants1  ibid43--quoted1  
,troades1 l4 #aafi1 ibid4 #cdi          
,eurypylus1 treatment of the wounded1   
#c4 #dje ,e1 #djh ,a4    ,euthydemus1   
brother of ,polemarchus1 #a4 #cbh ,b4   
,evil1 ,god not the author of1 #b4 #cfd1
 #cgi1 #chj ,a2 #c4 #cia ,e cp4 ,laws   
#b4  #fgb ,b2 the destructive element in
 the soul1 #aj4 #fji foll4 7cp4 #d4     
#ddd73--;justice must exist even among  
the evil1 #a4 #cea foll42 their         
supposed prosperity1 #b4 #cfd cp4 ,gorg4
 #dgj foll42 ,laws #b4 #ff #a2 #aj4     

#hii1  #ije2 more numerous than the     
good1 #c4 #dji ,d4 ,cp4 ,injustice4     
,excellence relative to use1 #aj4 #fja2 
excellences 7,greek3 a7retai7 and  ends 
of things1 #a4 #cec4    ,exchange1 the  
art of1 necessary in the formation of   
the state1 #b4 #cfi ,c4    ,exercises1  
naked1 in ,greece1 #e4 #deb4            
,existence1 a participation in essence1 
#i4 #ehe cp4 ,phaedo #aja4              
,experience1 the criterion of true and  
false pleasures1 #i4 #ehb4    ,expiation
 of guilt1 #b4 #cfd4    ,eye of the     
soul1 #g4 #eah ,d1 #ebg ,e1 #ecc ,d1    
#edj ,a2--the soul like the eye1  #f4   
#ejh2 #g4 #eah3--;,eyes1 the1 in        
relation to sight1 #f4 #ejg 7cp4        
,sight74      ,f4      ,fact and ideal1 
#e4 #dgb1 #dgc4    ,faculties1 how      
different1 #e4 #dgg2--;faculties of the 
soul1 #f4 #eaa ,e2  #g4 #ecc ,e4        
,faith or ,persuasion1 one of the       
faculties of the soul1 #f4 #eaa ,d2  #g4
 #ecc ,e4    ,falsehood1 alien to the   
nature of ,god1 #b4 #chb cp4 ,laws #aa4 

#iag ,a2 a  medicine1 only to be used by
 the state1 ibid42 #c4 #chi ,a1 #dad ,c2
 #e4 #dei ,d  cp4 ,laws #b4 #ffc2       
hateful to the philosopher1 #f4 #dhf1   
#dij4    ,family life in the state1 #e4 
#ddi2--;families in the state1 ib4      
#dfa2--;family and state1 ib4           
#dfc2--;cares of family life1 ib4 #dfe  
,c4    ,fates1 the1 #aj4 #fag1 #fbj ,e4 
,fear1 a solvent of the soul1 #d4 #dcj  
,a2 fear and shame1 #e4 #dfe ,a4        
,fearlessness1 distinguished from       
courage1 #d4 #dcj ,b cp4 ,laches #aig   
,b2  ,protag4 #cdi ,c1 #cei foll44      
,feeling1 community of1 in the state1   
#e4 #dfd4    ,festival of the ,bendidea 
7at the ,piraeus71 #a4 #cbg ,a1 #ced ,a2
 of ,dionysus  7at ,athens71 #e4 #dge   
,d4    ,fiction in education1 #b4 #cgg  
foll42 #c4 #cia2 censorship of1         
necessary1  #b4 #cgg foll42 #c4         
#chf-cia1 #dja ,a1 #djh ,c2 #aj4 #eie   
foll42 not to represent  sorrow1 #c4    
#chg foll4 7cp4 #aj4 #fjd72 representing
 intemperance to be  discarded1 #c4     

#cij2--stories about the gods1 not to be
 received1 #b4 #cgh  foll42 #c4 #chh    
foll41 #djh ,c cp4 ,euthyph4 #f1 #h2    
,crit4 #aji ,b2 ,laws  #b4 #fgb ,b2 #aj4
 #hhf ,c2 #ab4 #ida2--stories of the    
world below1 objectionable1  #c4 #chf   
foll4 7cp4 ,hades1 ,world below74       
,final causes1 argument from1 applied to
 justice1 #a4 #ceb4    ,fire1 obtained  
by friction1 #d4 #dcd ,e4    ,flattery1 
of the multitude by their leaders1 in   
ill-ordered states1 #d4 #dbf  7cp4 #i4  
#eij ,b74    ,flute1 the1 to be         
rejected1 #c4 #cii2--;flute players and 
flute makers1  ib4 ,d2 #aj4 #fja4       
,folly1 an inanition 7,greek3 ke_/nsis7 
of the soul1 #i4 #ehe ,a4    ,food1 the 
condition of life and existence1 #b4    
#cfi ,c4    ,forgetfulness1 a mark of an
 unphilosophical nature1 #f4 #dhf ,d1   
#dij ,e3--the  plain of ,forgetfulness  
7,lethe71 #aj4 #fba ,a4    ,fox1 the    
emblem of subtlety1 #b4 #cfe ,c4        
,fractions1 #g4 #ebe ,e4    ,freedom1   
the characteristic of democracy1 #h4    

#eeg ,b1 #efa-efc4    ,friend1 the1 must
 be as well as seem #cej good1 #a4 #ccd1
 #cce2--the friends  of the tyrant1 #h4 
#efg ,e2 #i4 #egf4    ,friendship1      
implies justice1 #a4 #cea foll42 in the 
state1 #e4 #dfb1 #dfc4    ,funeral of   
the guardians1 #e4 #dfe ,e1 #dfh ,e2 #g4
 #edj ,b2--corpses placed on  the pyre  
on the twelfth day1 #aj4 #fad4          
,future life1 #c4 #chg2 #aj4 #fad foll42
 punishment of the wicked in1 #b4 #cfc2 
#aj4 #fae cp4 ,phaedo #ajh2 ,gorg4 #ebc 
,e1 #ebe2 ,laws #i4 #hgj ,e1 #hha ,b2   
#aj4 #ijd ,c4 ,see ,hades1 ,world below4
      ,g4      ,games1 as a means of    
education1 #d4 #dbe ,a 7cp4 #g4 #ecg    
,a72--dice 7,greek3  ku_/boi71 #aj4 #fjd
 ,c2--draughts 7,greek3 pettei_/a71 #a4 
#ccc ,a2 #b4 #cgd ,c2  #f4 #dhg         
,c2--city 7,greek3 po_/lis71 #d4 #dbb   
,e3--the ,olympic1 c4 glory  gained by  
success in1 #e4 #dfe ,d1 #dff ,a2 #aj4  
#fah ,a 7cp4 #fbj ,b74    ,general1 the1
 ought to know arithmetic and geometry1 
#g4 #ebb ,d1 #ebe ,b1  #ebf ,d1 #ebg ,c4

    ,gentleness1 characteristic of the  
philosopher1 #b4 #cge1 #cgf2 #c4 #daj2  
#f4 #dhf ,c2 usually inconsistent with  
spirit1 #b4 #cge4    ,geometry1 must be 
learnt by the rulers1 #g4 #ebf foll42   
erroneously thought  to serve for       
practical purposes only1 ib4            
#ebg2--;geometry of solids1  ib4        
#ebh2--;geometrical necessity1 #e4 #deh 
,d2--geometrical notions  apprehended by
 a faculty of the soul1 #f4 #eaa ,c4    
,giants1 battles of the1 #b4 #cgh ,b4   
,gifts1 given to victors1 #c4 #dad2 #e4 
#dfj1 #dfh2--;gifts of nature1 #b4 #cgj 
,a2  #e4 #dee2 #g4 #ece ,a2 may be      
perverted1 #f4 #dia ,e1 #die ,a2 #g4    
#eai cp4 ,laws #g4  #hai ,a2 #aj4 #ijh  
,c4    ,glaucon1 son of ,ariston1 #a4   
#cbg ,a2 #b4 #cfh ,a2 takes up the      
discourse1 #a4  #cdg ,a2 #b4 #cgb ,c2   
#c4 #cih ,b2 #d4 #dbg ,d2 #e4 #dej ,a2  
#f4 #ejf ,d2 #i4 #egf ,b2 anxious  to   
contribute money for ,socrates1 #a4 #ccg
 ,e2 the boldest of men1 #b4 #ceg ,a2   
his genius1 ib4 #cfh ,a2 distinguished  

at the battle of ,megara1 ibid42 a      
musician1 #c4 #cih ,d2 #g4 #eca ,a2     
desirous that ,socrates should discuss  
the  subject of women and children1 #e4 
#dej ,a2 breeds dogs and birds1 ib4     
#dei ,a2 a lover1 ib4 #dgd ,d 7cp4 #c4  
#djb ,e2 #e4 #deh ,e72 not a            
dialectician1  #g4 #ecc2 his            
contentiousness1 #h4 #edh ,e2 not       
acquainted with the doctrine  of the    
immortality of the soul1 #aj4 #fjh4     
,glaucus1 the sea-god1 #aj4 #faa ,c4    
,gluttony1 #i4 #ehf ,a4    ,god1 not the
 author of evil1 #b4 #cfd1 #cgi1 #chj   
,a2 #c4 #cia ,e cp4 ,laws #b4  #fgb ,b2 
never changes1 #b4 #chj2 will not lie1  
ib4 #chb2 the maker of all  things1 #aj4
 #eih3--;,gods1 the1 thought to favour  
the unjust1 #b4 #cfb ,b1 #cfd2  supposed
 to accept the gifts of the wicked1 ib4 
#cfe cp4 ,laws #d4 #gaf ,e2  #aj4 #ije  
foll42 #ab4 #idh2 believed to take no   
heed of human affairs1 #b4 #cfe  cp4    
,laws #aj4 #hhi foll42 #ab4 #idh2 human 
ignorance of1 #b4 #cfe cp4  ,crat #djj  

,e2 ,crit4 #ajg2 ,parm4 #acd ,e2        
disbelief in1 #b4 #cfe cp4 ,laws #aj4   
#hhe foll41 #iji2 #ab4 #idh2 stories of1
 not to be repeated1 #b4 #cgh foll42    
#c4 #chh foll41 #djh ,c cp4 ,euthyph4   
#f1 #h2 ,crit4 #aji ,b2 ,laws #b4 #fgb  
,b2 #aj4  #hhf ,c2 #ab4 #ida2 not to be 
represented grieving or laughing1 #c4   
#chh2--';gods  who wander about at night
 in the disguise of strangers1' #b4 #cha
 ,d2--the  war of the gods and the      
giants1 ib4 #cgh ,b4    ,god4 ,the      
theology of ,plato is summed up by      
himself in the second book of  the      
,republic under two heads1 ',god is     
perfect and unchangeable1' and ',god  is
 true and #cea the author of truth4'    
,these canons are also the test  by     
which he tries poetry and the poets 7see
 s4 v4 ,poetry73--,homer and  the       
tragedians represent the ,gods as       
changing their forms or as deceiving    
men by lying dreams1 and therefore they 
must be expelled from the state4  ,but  
,plato has not yet acquired the austere 

temper of his later years4 ,he  does not
 threaten the impenitent unbeliever with
 bonds and death 7,laws  #aj4 #ijh1     
#iaj71 but is content to show by        
argument the superiority of  justice    
over injustice4 ,in other respects the  
theology of the ,republic is  repeated  
and amplified in the ,laws2 the theses  
that ,god is not the author  of evil and
 will not accept the gifts of the wicked
 or favour the unjust1  are maintained  
with equal earnestness in both4 ,the    
,republic is less  pessimistic in tone  
than the ,laws2 but the thought of the  
insignificance  of man and the briefness
 of human life is already familiar to   
,plato's  mind cp4 #f4 #dhf ,a2 #aj4    
#fjd2 and see s4 v4 ,man4 ,the          
conception of  ,god as the ,demiurgus or
 ,creator of the universe1 which is     
prominent in the  ,timaeus1 ,sophist1   
and ,statesman1 hardly appears either in
 the ,republic or  the ,laws 7cp4 ,rep4 
#aj4 #eif foll42 ,laws #aj4 #hhf foll474
    ,gold1 mingled by the ,god in the   

auxiliaries1 #c4 #dae ,a 7cp4 #daf ,e2  
#h4 #edg ,a72--and silver not allowed to
 the guardians1 #c4 #daf ,e2 #d4 #dai1  
#dbb ,d2 #e4 #dfd ,d 7cp4 #h4 #edc74    
,good1 the saving element1 #aj4         
#fji3--the good  the beautiful1 #e4 #deb
  cp4 ,lys4 #baf2 ,symp4 #bja ,b1 #bjd  
,e foll42 the good and pleasure1 #f4    
#eje1  #eji ,a cp4 ,gorg4 #dig2 ,phil4  
#aa1 #fj ,a2 the good superior to       
essence1  ib4 #eji2 the brightest and   
best of being1 #g4 #eah ,d2--absolute   
good1  #f4 #ejg ,b2 #g4 #edj ,a2--the   
idea of good1 #f4 #eje1 #ejh2 #g4 #eag1 
#ecd2 is the  highest knowledge1 #f4    
#eje2 #g4 #ebf ,e2 nature of1 #f4 #eje1 
#ejf2--the child of  the good1 ib4 #ejf 
,e1 #ejh3--;good things least liable to 
change1 #b4  #cha2--;goods classified1  
ib4 #ceg1 #cfg ,d cp4 ,protag4 #ccd2    
,gorg4 #dea ,e2  ,phil4 #ff2 ,laws #a4  
#fca2 #c4 #fig2--the goods of life often
 a temptation1 #f4  #dia ,e1 #die ,a4   
,good man1 the1 will disdain to imitate 
ignoble actions1 #c4 #cif3--;,good men1 

why they take office1 #a4 #cdg2  the    
wise1 ib4 #cej cp4 #a ,alcib4 #abd1     
#abe2 unfortunate 7,adeimantus71 #b4    
#cfd2 self-sufficient1 #c4 #chg cp4     
,lys4 #bae ,a2 will not give way to     
sorrow1 ibid42 #aj4 #fjc ,e cp4 ,laws   
#e4 #gcb2 #g4 #gib ,b1 #hjj ,d2 appear  
simple from their inexperience of evil1 
#c4 #dji ,a2 hate the tyrant1 #h4 #efh  
,a2 the friends of ,god and like ,him1  
#aj4  #fac cp4 ,phil4 #ci ,e2 ,laws #d4 
#gaf4    ,goods1 community of1 #c4 #daf2
 #e4 #dfd2 #h4 #edc4 ,see ,community4   
,government1 forms of1 are they         
administered in the interest of the     
rulers8  #a4 #cch ,d1 #cdc1 #cdf2 are   
all based on a principle of justice1 ib4
 #cch ,e  cp4 ,laws #ab4 #ide2 present  
forms in an evil condition1 #f4 #dib ,e1
 #dif2  none of the existing forms      
adapted to philosophy1 ib4 #dig2--the   
four  imperfect forms1 #d4 #dde ,b2 #h4 
#edd cp4 ,pol4 #bia foll41 #cja foll42  
succession of changes in states1 #h4    
#ede foll42--peculiar barbarian forms1  

ib4 #edd ,d4 ,cp4 ,constitution1 ,state4
    ,government1 forms of4 ,the         
classification of forms of government   
which  ,plato adopts in the ,republic is
 not exactly the same with that given in
  the ,statesman or the ,laws4 ,both in 
the ,republic #ceb and the ,statesman   
the series commences with the perfect   
state1 which may be either monarchy  or 
aristocracy1 accordingly as the 'one    
best man' bears rule or many who  are   
all 'perfect in virtue' cp4 ,arist4     
,pol4 iv4 #b1  #a4 ,but in the          
,republic the further succession is     
somewhat fancifully connected with the  
divisions of the soul4 ,the rule of     
reason i4e4 the perfect state  passes   
into timocracy1 in which the 'spirited  
element' is predominant  7#h4 #edh71    
timocracy into three governments in     
turn1 which represent the  'appetitive  
principle1'--first1 oligarchy1 in which 
the desire of wealth  is supreme 7#h4   
#ecc ,d2 #i4 #eha72 secondly1 democracy1
 characterised by an  unbounded lust for

 freedom 7#i4 #efa72 thirdly1 tyranny1  
in which all evil  desires grow         
unchecked1 and the tyrant becomes 'the  
waking reality of what  he once was in  
his dreams only' 7#i4 #egd ,e74 ,each of
 these inferior forms  is illustrated in
 the individual who corresponds to the  
state and 'is set  over against it' 7#h4
 #eej ,c74 ,in the ,statesman1 after the
 government of  the one or many good has
 been separated1 the remaining forms are
  classified accordingly as the         
government has or has not regard to law1
 and  democracy is said to be 7#cjc ,a7 
'the worst of lawful and the best of    
lawless governments' 7an expression     
criticised by ,aristotle1 ,pol4 iv4  #b1
  #c74 ,in the ,laws again the subject  
is differently treated3 monarchy  and   
democracy are described as 'the two     
mother forms1' which must be  combined  
in order to produce a good state 7#c4   
#fic71 and the ,spartan and  ,cretan    
constitutions are therefore praised as  
polities in which every form  of        

government is represented 7#d4 #gab74   
,but the majority of existing  states   
are mere class governments and have no  
regard to virtue 7#ab4  #ifb ,e74 ,these
 various ideas are nearly all reproduced
 or criticised in the  ,politics of     
,aristotle1 who1 however1 does not      
employ the term 'timocracy1'  and adds  
one great original conception1--the     
,greek3 mes politei_/a1  or government  
of the middle class4    ,governments1   
sometimes bought and sold1 #h4 #edd ,d4 
,grace 7,greek3 eu7schmosu_/n71 the     
effect of good rhythm accompanying  good
 style1 #c4 #djj ,d2 all life and every 
art full of grace1 ib4 #dja ,a4         
,greatness and smallness1 #d4 #dch ,b2  
#e4 #dgi ,b2 #g4 #ebc1 #ebd2 #i4 #ege   
,c2  #aj4 #fjb ,d1 #fje ,c4    ,grief1  
not to be indulged1 #c4 #chg2 #aj4      
#fjc-fjf4 ,cp4 ,sorrow4    ,guard1 the  
tyrant's request for a1 #h4 #eff ,b1    
#efg ,e4    ,guardians of the state1    
must be philosophers1 #b4 #cgf2 #f4     
#dhd1 #dih1 #eja1  #ejc ,b2 #g4 #ebj1   

#eba1 #ebe ,b1 #edj2 #h4 #edc2 must be  
both spirited and gentle1  #b4 #cge2 #c4
 #daj2 #f4 #ejc cp4 ,laws #e4 #gca ,b2  
must be tested by pleasures  and pains1 
#c4 #dac 7cp4 #f4 #ejc ,a2 #g4 #eci ,e72
 have gold and silver mingled  in their 
veins1 #c4 #dae ,a 7cp4 #daf ,e2 #h4    
#edg ,a72 their happiness1 #d4 #dai     
foll42 #e4 #dfe ,e foll42 #f4 #dih ,c2  
#g4 #eai ,e2 will be the class in the   
state  which possesses wisdom1 #d4 #dbh 
cp4 ,laws #ab4 #ife ,a2 will form one   
family with the citizens1 #e4 #dfb-dff2 
must preserve moderation1 ib4  #dff ,b2 
divided into auxiliaries and guardians  
proper1 #c4 #dad 7cp4 #h4 #ede ,e2  and 
see ,auxiliaries1 ,rulers73--the        
guardians i4e4 the auxiliaries must  be 
courageous1 #b4 #cge2 #c4 #chf1 #dac ,e1
 #daf ,e2 #d4 #dbi2 #f4 #ejc ,e2 must   
have  no fear of death1 #c4 #chf 7cp4   
#cec #f4 #dhf ,c72 not to weep1 #c4 #chg
 7cp4  #aj4 #fjc ,e72 nor to be given to
 laughter1 #c4 #chh cp4 ,laws #e4 #gcb2 
#aa4  #ice2 must be temperate1 ib4 #chi 

,d2 must not be avaricious1 ib4 #cij ,e2
  must only imitate noble characters and
 actions1 ib4 #cie foll41 #djb ,e2  must
 only learn the ,dorian and ,phrygian   
harmonies1 and play on the lyre  and    
harp1 ib4 #cih1 #cii2 must be sober1 ib4
 #cih ,e1 #djc ,e2 must be  reared amid 
fair surroundings1 ib4 #dja2 athletes of
 war1 ib4 #djc1  #djd ,b2 #d4 #dbb2 #g4 
#eba ,e2 #h4 #edc cp4 ,laws #h4 #hcj2   
must live according to  rule1 #c4 #djd2 
will not go to law or have resort to    
medicine1 ib4 #daj ,a2  must have common
 meals and live a soldier's life1 ib4   
#daf2 will not  require gold or silver  
or property of any kind1 ib4 #dag2 #d4  
#dai1 #dbj ,a1  #dbb ,d2 #e4 #dfd ,c2   
compared to a garrison of mercenaries   
7,adeimantus71 #d4  #dai 7cp4 #h4 #edc72
 must go to war on horseback in their   
childhood1 #e4 #dfg2  #g4 #ecg ,a2      
regulations for their conduct in war1   
#e4 #dfg-dga3--;female  guardians1 ib41 
#def1 #deh1 #dfh2 #g4 #edj ,c 7cp4      
,women74    ,gyges1 #b4 #cei ,c2 #aj4   

#fab ,b4    ,gymnastic1 supposed to be  
intended only for the body1 #b4 #cgf ,e2
 #c4 #djc2  #g4 #eba cp4 ,laws #g4 #gie 
,e2 really designed for the improvement 
of the  soul1 #c4 #daj2 like music1     
should be continued throughout life1 ib4
 #djc ,c2  effect of excessive1 ib4     
#djd1 #daj2 #g4 #ecg ,b2 should be of a 
simple  character1 #c4 #djd1 #daj ,a2   
the ancient forms of1 to be retained1   
#d4 #dbd2  must co-operate with music in
 creating a harmony of the soul1 ib4    
#dda ,e2  suitable to women1 #e4        
#deb-deg cp4 ,laws #g4 #hjd1 #hac1 #hcc2
 ought to be  combined with intellectual
 pursuits1 #g4 #ece ,d cp4 ,tim4 #hh2   
time to be  spent in1 ib4 #ecg4      ,h4
      ,habit and virtue1 #g4 #eah ,e2   
#aj4 #fai ,d4    ,hades1 tales about the
 terrors of1 #a4 #ccj ,d2 #b4 #cff ,a2  
such tales not to  be heeded1 #c4 #chf  
,b cp4 ,crat4 #djc2--the place of       
punishment1 #b4 #cfc2  #aj4 #fad foll42 
,musaeus' account of the good and bad   
in1 #b4 #cfc2--the  journey to1 #aj4    

#fad cp4 ,phaedo #ajh ,a3--7,pluto7     
helmet of1 #aj4 #fab ,b4  ,cp4 ,world   
below4    ,half1 the1 better than the   
whole1 #e4 #dff ,b4    ,handicraft arts1
 a reproach1 #i4 #eij cp4 ,gorg4 #eab4  
,happiness of the unjust1 #a4 #ced2 #b4 
#cfd2 #c4 #cib ,b 7cp4 #h4 #ede ,a1 and 
,gorg4 #dgj foll42 ,laws #b4 #ffa2 #aj4 
#hii ,e1 #ije ,a72--of the guardians1   
#d4 #dai  foll42 #e4 #dfe ,e foll42 #f4 
#dih ,c2 #g4 #eai ,e2--of ,olympic      
victors1 #e4 #dfe ,d1  #dff ,a2 #aj4    
#fah ,a2--of the tyrant1 #i4 #egf foll41
 #ehg2--the greatest  happiness awarded 
to the most just1 ib4 #ehj foll4        
,harmonies1 the more complex to be      
rejected1 #c4 #cig foll42--the ,lydian  
harmony1 ib4 #cih2 the ,ionian1 ib4 ,e2 
the ,dorian and ,phrygian alone to  be  
accepted1 ib4 #cii4    ,harmony1 akin to
 virtue1 #c4 #dja ,a 7cp4 #g4 #ebb      
,a72--science of1 must be  acquired by  
the rulers1 #g4 #eca 7cp4               
,music72--harmony of soul and body1 #c4 
#djb ,d2--harmony of the soul1 effected 

by temperance1 #d4 #dcj1 #dda ,e1 #ddb  
,d1  #ddc 7cp4 #i4 #eia ,d1 and ,laws   
#b4 #fec ,b72--harmony in the           
acquisition of  wealth1 #i4 #eia ,e4    
,harp1 the1 7,greek3 kitha_/ra71 allowed
 in the best state1 #c4 #cii4 #ced      
,hatred1 between the despot and his     
subjects1 #h4 #efg ,e2 #i4 #egf ,a4     
,health and justice compared1 #d4 #ddd2 
pleasure of health1 #i4 #ehc ,c2        
secondary to virtue1 ib4 #eia ,d4       
,hearing1 classed among faculties1 #e4  
#dgg ,e2 composed of two elements1      
speech and hearing1 and not requiring1  
like sight1 a third intermediate        
nature1 #f4 #ejg ,c4    ,heaven1 the    
starry1 the fairest of visible things1  
#g4 #ebi ,d2 the motions  of1 not       
eternal1 ib4 #ecj ,a4    ,heaviness1 #e4
 #dgi2 #g4 #ebd ,a4    ,hector1 dragged 
by ,achilles round the tomb of          
,patroclus1 #c4 #cia ,b4    ,helen1     
never went to ,troy1 #i4 #ehf ,c4       
,hellas1 not to be devastated in civil  
war1 #e4 #dgj ,a foll41 #dga ,a3        

--,hellenes characterised by the love of
 knowledge1 #d4 #dce ,e2 did not        
originally strip in the gymnasia1 #e4   
#deb ,d2 not to be enslaved by          
,hellenes1 ib4 #dfi ,b1 ,c2 united by   
ties of blood1 ib4 #dgj ,c2 not to      
devastate ,hellas1 ib4 #dga ,a foll42   
,hellenes and barbarians are  strangers1
 ib4 #dfi ,d1 #dgj ,c cp4 ,pol4 #bfb ,d4
    ,hellespont1 #c4 #djd ,c4           
,hephaestus1 binds ,her1 #b4 #cgh ,d2   
thrown from heaven by ,zeus1 ibid42     
improperly delineated by ,homer1 #c4    
#chi ,a2 chains ,ares and ,aphrodit1 ib4
  #cij ,c4    ,heracleitus1 the 'sun    
of1' #f4 #dih ,b4    ,her1 bound by     
,hephaestus1 #b4 #cgh ,d2 ,her and      
,zeus1 ibid42 #c4 #cij ,b2  begged alms 
for the daughters of ,inachus1 #b4 #cha 
,d4    ,hermes1 the star sacred to      
7,mercury71 #aj4 #fag ,a4    ,hermus1   
#h4 #eff ,c4    ,herodicus of           
,selymbria1 the inventor of             
valetudinarianism1 #c4 #djf ,a foll4    
,heroes1 not to lament1 #c4 #chg1 #chh2 

#aj4 #fjc-fjf2 to be rewarded1 #e4 #dfh2
  after death1 ibid4    ,heroic rhythm1 
#c4 #djj ,c4    ,hesiod1 his rewards of 
justice1 #b4 #cfc ,b2 #aj4 #fab ,a2 his 
stories improper  for youth1 #b4 #cgg   
,d2 his classification of the races1 #h4
 #edg ,a2 a wandering  rhapsode1 #aj4   
#fjj ,d3--  ,quoted3--   ,theogony1     
l4 #aed1 #dei1 #b4 #cgg ,e4   ,works and
 ,days1    l4 #dj1 #e4 #dff ,b4    l4   
#aji1 #h4 #edf ,e4    l4 #abb1 #e4 #dfh 
,e4    l4 #bcc1 #b4 #cfc ,b4    l4 #bhg1
 ib4 #cfd ,d4   ,fragm4 #aag1 #c4 #cij  
,e4    ,hirelings1 required in the      
state1 #b4 #cga ,e4    ,holiness of     
marriage1 #e4 #deh ,e1 #dei cp4 ,laws   
#f4 #ggf4 ,see ,marriage4    ,homer1    
supports the theory that justice is a   
thief1 #a4 #ccd ,b2 his  rewards of     
justice1 #b4 #cfc ,b2 #aj4 #fab ,a2 his 
stories not approved for  youth1 #b4    
#cgg ,d foll4 7cp4 #aj4 #eie72 his mode 
of narration1 #c4 #cic ,a  foll42 feeds 
his heroes on campaigners' fare1 ib4    
#djd ,c2 ,socrates'  feeling of         

reverence for him1 #aj4 #eie ,c1 #fjg   
7cp4 #c4 #cia ,a72 the  captain and     
teacher of the tragic poets1 #aj4 #eie  
,b1 #eih ,d1 ,e2 not a  legislator1 ib4 
#eii ,e2 or a general1 ib4 #fjj ,a cp4  
,ion #ecg  foll42 or inventor1 ibid42 or
 teacher1 ibid42 no educator1 ib4  #fjj1
 #fjf ,e1 #fjg ,b2 not much esteemed in 
his lifetime1 ib4 #fjj ,b foll42  went  
about as a rhapsode1 ibid4 ,passages    
quoted or referred to3--   ,iliad i4    
l4 #aa foll41 #c4 #cib ,e foll4    l4   
#aca1 #f4 #eja ,b4    l4 #bbe1 #c4 #chi 
,e4    l4 #eij foll41 #b4 #cgh ,d4    l4
 #eii foll41 #c4 #chi ,a4   ,iliad ii4  
l4 #fbc1 #f4 #eja ,c4   ,iliad iii4     
l4 #h1 #c4 #chi ,e4 #cee   ,iliad iv4   
l4 #fi foll41 #b4 #cgi ,e4    l4 #bah1  
#c4 #djh ,a4    l4 #dab1 ib4 #chi ,e4   
l4 #dca1 ibid4   ,iliad v4    l4 #hde1  
#aj4 #fab ,b4   ,iliad vii4    l4 #cba1 
#e4 #dfh ,d4   ,iliad viii4    l4 #afb1 
ibid4   ,iliad ix4    l4 #dig foll41 #b4
 #cfd ,d4    l4 #eac foll41 #c4 #cij ,e4
   ,iliad xi4    l4 #egf1 ib4 #dje ,e4  

l4 #fbd1 ibid4    l4 #hdd1 ib4 #djh ,a4 
,iliad xii4    l4 #caa1 #e4 #dfh ,e4    
,iliad xiv4    l4 #bid foll41 #c4 #cij  
,c4   ,iliad xvi4    l4 #dcc1 ib4 #chh  
,c4    l4 #ggf1 #h4 #eff ,d4    l4 #hef 
foll41 #c4 #chf ,e4   ,iliad xviii4     
l4 #bc foll41 ib4 #chh ,a4    l4 #ed1   
ib4 ,b4   ,iliad xix4    l4 #bgh foll41 
ib4 #cij ,e4   ,iliad xx4    l4 #d      
foll41 #b4 #cgi ,e4    l4 #fd foll41 #c4
 #chf ,c4   ,iliad xxi4    l4 #bbb      
foll41 ib4 #cia ,b4   ,iliad xxii4      
ll4 #ae1 #bj1 ib4 ,a4    l4 #afh foll41 
ib4 #chh ,c4    l4 #cfb foll41 ib4 #chf 
,e4    l4 #dad1 ib4 #chh ,b4   ,iliad   
xxiii4    l4 #ajj foll41 ib4 #chg ,a4   
l4 #ajc foll41 ib4 #chf ,d4    l4 #aea  
ib4 #cia ,b4    l4 #age ibid4   ,iliad  
xxiv4    l4 #aj foll41 ib4 #chh ,a4     
l4 #ebg1 #b4 #cgi ,d4   ,odyssey i4     
l4 #cea foll41 #d4 #dbd ,d4   ,odyssey  
viii4    l4 #bff foll41 #c4 #cij ,d4    
,odyssey ix4    l4 #i4 foll41 ib4 ,b4   
l4 #ia foll41 #h4 #efj ,c4   ,odyssey x4
    l4 #die1 #c4 #chf ,e4   ,odyssey xi4

    l4 #dhi foll41 ib4 ,c2 #g4 #eaf ,d4 
,odyssey xii4    l4 #cdb1 #c4 #cij ,b4  
,odyssey xvii4    l4 #chc foll41 ib4    
#chi ,d4    l4 #dhe foll41 #b4 #cha ,d4 
,odyssey xix4    l4 #aji foll41 ib4 #cfc
 ,b4    l4 #cie1 #a4 #ccd ,b4   ,odyssey
 xx4    l4 #ag1 #c4 #cij ,d2 #d4 #dda   
,b4    ,homer1 allusions to1 #a4 #cbh   
,e2 #b4 #cha ,d2 #c4 #cij ,e2 #h4 #edd  
,d4    ,homeridae1 #aj4 #eii ,e4        
,honest man1 the1 a match for the rogue1
 #c4 #dji ,c 7cp4 #aj4 #fac ,c74        
,honesty1 fostered by the possession of 
wealth1 #a4 #cca ,a2 thought by  mankind
 to be unprofitable1 #b4 #cfd ,a2 #c4   
#cib ,b4    ,honour1 pleasures enjoyed  
by the lover of1 #i4 #eha ,c1 #ehf      
,e3--the  'government of honour1' see   
,timocracy4    ,hope1 the comfort of the
 righteous in old age 7,pindar71 #a4    
#cca ,a4    ,household cares1 #e4 #dfe  
,c4    ,human interests1 unimportance   
of1 #aj4 #fjd ,b 7cp4 #f4 #dhf ,a1 and  
,theaet4  #agc2 ,laws #a4 #fdd ,e2 #g4  
#hjc72--life1 full of evils1 #b4 #cgi   

,c2 shortness of1  #aj4 #fjh            
,d2--nature1 incapable of doing many    
things well1 #c4 #cie ,b2  --sacrifices1
 #h4 #efe ,d4 #cef    ,hunger1 #d4 #dcg 
,e1 #dci2 an inanition 7,greek3         
ke_/nsis7 of the body1  #i4 #ehe ,a4    
,hymns1 to the gods1 may be allowed in  
the ,state1 #aj3 #fjg ,a cp4 ,laws  #c4 
#gjj ,a2 #g4 #hja ,e2--marriage hymns1  
#e4 #dei ,e4    ,hypothesis1 in         
mathematics and in the intellectual     
world1 #f4 #eaj2 in the  sciences1 #g4  
#ecc4      ,i4      ,iambic measure1 #c4
 #djj ,c4    ,ida1 altar of the gods on1
 #c4 #cia ,e4    ,idea of good1 the     
source of truth1 #f4 #ejh 7cp4 #eje72 a 
cause like the sun1  ib4 #ejh2 #g4 #eaf1
 #eag2 must be apprehended by the lover 
of knowledge1  #g4 #ecd2--;ideas and    
phenomena1 #e4 #dgf2 #f4 #ejg2--;ideas  
and hypotheses1  #f4 #eaj2--;absolute   
ideas1 #e4 #dgf cp4 ,phaedo #fe1 #gd2   
,parm4 #acc2 origin of  abstract ideas1 
#g4 #ebc2 nature of1 #aj4 #eif2         
singleness of1 ib4 #eig  cp4 ,tim4 #bh1 

#ea4    ,idea4 ,the ,idea of ,good is an
 abstraction1 which1 under that name at 
least1 does not elsewhere occur in      
,plato's writings4 ,but it is probably  
not essentially different from another  
abstraction1 'the true being of         
things1' which is mentioned in many of  
his ,dialogues cp4 passages cited  s4 v4
 ,being4 ,he has nowhere given an       
explanation of his meaning1 not  because
 he was 'regardless whether we          
understood him or not1' but rather1     
perhaps1 because he was himself unable  
to state in precise terms the ideal     
which floated before his mind4 ,he      
belonged to an age in which men felt too
  strongly the first pleasure of        
metaphysical speculation to be able to  
estimate the true value of the ideas    
which they conceived 7cp4 his own       
picture of the effect of dialectic on   
the youthful mind1 #g4 #eci74 ,to  him1 
as to the ,schoolmen of the ,middle     
,ages1 an abstraction seemed truer  than
 a fact3 he was impatient to shake off  

the shackles of sense and rise  into the
 purer atmosphere of ideas4 ,yet in the 
allegory of the cave  7,book ,,vii71    
whose inhabitants must go up to the     
light of perfect  knowledge but descend 
again into the obscurity of opinion1 he 
has shown  that he was not unaware of   
the necessity of finding a firm         
starting-point  for these flights of    
metaphysical imagination 7cp4 #f4 #eaj74
 ,a passage  in the ,philebus 7#fe ,a7  
gives perhaps the best insight into his 
meaning3  ',if we are not able to hunt  
the good with one idea only1 with three 
we may  take our prey1--,beauty1        
,symmetry1 ,truth4' ,the three were     
inseparable to  the ,greek mind1 and no 
conception of perfection could be formed
 in which  they did not unite4 7,cp4    
,introduction1 pp4 lxix1 xcvii74        
,ideal state1 is it possible8 #e4 #dga1 
#dgc2 #f4 #dii2 #g4 #edj 7cp4 #g4 #ebj1 
and ,laws #d4 #gaa ,e2 #e4 #gci72 how to
 be commenced1 #f4 #eja2 #g4 #edj3      
--ideals1 value of1 #e4 #dgb4 ,for the  

ideal state1 see ,city1  ,constitution1 
,education1 ,guardians1 ,rulers1 etc4   
,ignorance1 nature of1 #e4 #dgg1 #dgh2  
an inanition 7,greek3 ke_/nsis7 of the  
soul1 #i4 #ehe4    ,iliad1 the style of1
 illustrated1 #c4 #cib ,e foll42        
mentioned1 ib4 #cic ,a4  ,cp4 ,homer1   
,odyssey4    ,ilion1 see ,troy4         
,illegitimate children1 #e4 #dfa ,a4    
,illusions of sight1 #g4 #ebc2 #aj4 #fjb
 cp4 ,phaedo #fe ,a2 ,phil4 #chj1 #db   
,d2  ,theaet4 #aeg ,e4    ,images1 7i4e4
 reflections of visible objects71 #f4   
#eaj2 #aj4 #eif 7cp4 ,tim4  #eb ,d74    
#ceg    ,imitation in style1 #c4 #cic1  
#cid2 #aj4 #eif foll41 #fjj foll42      
affects the  character1 #c4 #cie2 thrice
 removed from the truth1 #aj4 #eif1     
#eig1 #eih1  #fjb ,b2 concerned with the
 weaker part of the soul1 ib4 #fjd4     
,imitative poetry1 #aj4 #eie2 arts1     
inferior1 ib4 #fje4    ,imitators1      
ignorant1 #aj4 #fjb4    ,immortality1   
proof of1 #aj4 #fjh foll41 7cp4 #f4 #dih
 ,c1 and see ,soul74    ,impatience1    

uselessness of1 #aj4 #fjd ,c4           
,impetuosity1 #f4 #ejc ,e4    ,inachus1 
,her asks alms for the daughters of1 #b4
 #cha ,d4    ,inanitions 7,greek3       
ke_/nseis7 of body and soul1 #i4 #ehe   
,a4    ,incantations used by mendicant  
prophets1 #b4 #cfd ,b2 in medicine1 #d4 
#dbf ,a4    ,income ,tax1 #a4 #cdc ,d4  
,indifference to money1 characteristic  
of those who inherit a fortune1  #a4    
#ccj ,b4    ,individual1 inferior types 
of the1 #h4 #ede2 individual and state1 
#b4 #cfh2  #d4 #dcd1 #dda2 #e4 #dfb2 #h4
 #edd2 #i4 #egg ,b cp4 ,laws #c4 #fhi2  
#e4 #gci2 #i4 #hge1  #hgg ,c2 #aa4 #ibc4
    ,infants have spirit1 but not       
reason1 #d4 #dda cp4 ,laws #ab4 #ifc ,e4
    ,informers1 #i4 #ege ,b4            
,injustice1 advantage of1 #a4 #cdc2     
defined by ,thrasymachus as discretion1 
ib4 #cdh ,d2 injustice and vice1 ibid42 
suicidal to states and  individuals1 ib4
 #cea ,e cp4 ,laws #aj4 #ijf ,a2 in     
perfection1 #b4 #cfj2  eulogists of1 ib4
 #cfa1 #cff1 #cfg2 #c4 #cib ,b 7cp4 #h4 

#ede ,a2 #i4 #ehh72 only  blamed by     
those who have not the power to be      
unjust1 #b4 #cff ,c2 in the  state1 #d4 
#dcd2  anarchy in the soul1 ib4 #ddd ,b 
cp4 ,soph4 #bbh2  brings no profit1 #i4 
#ehi1 #eij2 #aj4 #fac4    ,innovation in
 education dangerous1 #d4 #dbd cp4 ,laws
 #b4 #fef1 #ffj ,a4 ,see  ,gymnastic1   
,music4    ,intellect1 objects of1      
classified1 #g4 #ecd 7cp4 #e4 #dgf72    
relation of the  intellect and the good1
 #f4 #ejh4    ,intellectual world1      
divisions of1 #f4 #eaj foll42 #g4 #eag2 
compared to the  visible1 #f4 #ejh1     
#eji2 #g4 #ecb ,a4    ,intercourse      
between the sexes1 #e4 #deh foll4 cp4   
,laws #h4 #hci foll42 in  a democracy1  
#h4 #efc ,b4    ,interest1 sometimes    
irrecoverable by law1 #h4 #eef ,a cp4   
,laws #e4 #gdb ,c4    ,intermediates1   
#i4 #ehc4    ,intimations1 the1 given by
 the senses imperfect1 #g4 #ebc foll42  
#aj4 #fjb4    ,intoxication1 not allowed
 in the state1 #c4 #cih ,e1 #djc ,e4    
,cp4 ,drinking4    ,invalids1 #c4 #djf1 

#djg2 #d4 #dbe1 #dbf4    ,ionian        
harmony1 must be rejected1 #c4 #cii ,a4 
,iron 7and brass7 mingled by the ,god in
 the husbandmen and craftsmen1  #c4 #dae
 ,a 7cp4 #h4 #edg ,a74    ,ismenias1 the
 ,theban1 'a rich and mighty man1' #a4  
#ccf ,a4    ,italy1 'can tell of        
,charondas as a lawgiver1' #aj4 #eii ,e4
      ,j4      ,judge1 the good1 must   
himself be virtuous1 #c4 #dji cp4 ,pol4 
#cje4    ,judgement1 the final1 #aj4    
#fad foll4 ,cp4 ,hades4    ,juggling1   
#aj4 #fjb ,d4    ,just man1 the1 is at a
 disadvantage compared with the unjust  
7,thrasymachus71 #a4 #cdc2 is happy1 ib4
 #ced cp4 ,laws #a4 #ffj ,e2 attains    
harmony in his soul1 #d4 #ddc ,e2       
proclaimed the happiest1 #i4 #ehj       
foll42--just men the friends of the     
gods1 #aj4 #fac cp4 ,phil4 #ci ,e2 ,laws
  #d4 #gaf ,d2--just and unjust are at  
heart the same 7,glaucon71 #c4 #cfj4    
,justice1  to speak the truth and pay   
one's debts1 #a4 #cca foll42 #ceh   the 
interest of the stronger1 ib4 #cch2 #b4 

#cfg cp4 ,gorg4 #dhi2 ,laws #d4  #gad   
,a2  honour among thieves1 #a4 #ceb2    
the excellence of the soul1  ib4        
#cec3--the art which gives good and evil
 to friends and enemies1  ib4 #ccb      
foll41 #ccf2 is a thief1 ib4 #ccd2 the  
proper virtue of man1  ib4 #cce2        
'sublime simplicity1' ib4 #cdh2 does not
 aim at excess1 ib4  #cdi2 identical    
with wisdom and virtue1 ib4 #cea2 a     
principle of harmony1  ibid4 7cp4 #i4   
#eia ,d72 in the highest class of goods1
 #b4 #ceg1 #cfg ,d  cp4 ,laws #a4 #fca  
,c2 the union of wisdom1 temperance1 and
 courage1 #d4  #dcc cp4 ,laws #a4 #fca  
,c2 a division of labour1 ibid4 foll4   
7cp4  supra1 #a4 #ccb1 #cdi1 #cej1 and  
#a ,alcib4 #abg73--nature and origin of 
7,glaucon71 #b4 #ceh1 #cei2             
conventional1 ib4 #cei ,a cp4 ,theaet4  
#agb ,a1  #agg ,c2 ,laws #aj4 #hhi1     
#hij2 praised for its consequences only 
7,adeimantus71  ib4 #cfb ,e1 #cff2 a    
matter of appearance1 ib4 #cfe3--useful 
alike in war  and peace1 #a4 #ccc2 can  

do no harm1 ib4 #cce2 more precious than
 gold1  ib4 #ccf2 toilsome1 #b4         
#cfd3--;compared to health1 #d4         
#ddd3--the poets on1  #b4 #cfc1 #cfd1   
#cfe ,e3--in perfection1 ib4 #cfa3--more
 profitable than  injustice1 #d4 #dde2  
#i4 #ehi foll42 superior to injustice1  
#i4 #ehi2 final  triumph of1 ib4 #ehj2  
#aj4 #fab1 #fac3--;in the state1 #b4    
#cfi2 #d4 #dca2 the  same in the        
individual and the state1 #d4 #dce      
foll41 #dda foll43--absolute  justice1  
#e4 #dgi ,e2 #f4 #eja ,b2 #g4 #eag ,e4  
,justice4 ,the search for justice is the
 groundwork or foundation of the        
,republic1 which commences with an      
enquiry into its nature and ends with a 
triumphant demonstration of the superior
 happiness enjoyed by the just  man4 ,in
 the ,first ,book several definitions of
 justice are attempted1 all  of which   
prove inadequate4 ,glaucon and          
,adeimantus then intervene3--mankind    
regard justice as a necessity1 not as a 
good in itself1 or at best as only  to  

be practised because of the temporal    
benefits which flow from it3 can        
,socrates prove that it belongs to a    
higher class of goods8 ,socrates in     
reply proposes to construct an ideal    
state in which justice will be more     
easily recognised than in the           
individual4 ,justice is thus discovered 
to be  the essential virtue of the      
state1 7a thesis afterwards enlarged    
upon by  ,aristotle ,pol4 i4 #b1  #af2  
iii4 #ac1  #c71 the bond of the social  
organization1 and1 like temperance in   
the ,laws #c4 #fif1 #fig2 #d4 #gji ,e1  
rather the accompaniment or condition of
 the virtues than a virtue in  itself   
cp4 ,introduction1 p4 lxiii4 ,expressed 
in an outward or  political form it     
becomes the great principle which has   
been already  enunciated 7i4 #cbb71     
'that every man shall do his own work2' 
on this  ,plato bases the necessity of  
the division into classes which         
underlies the  whole fabric of the ideal
 state 7#d4 #dcc foll42 ,tim4 #ag ,c74  

,thus we are  led to acknowledge the    
happiness of the just2 for he alone     
reflects in  himself this vital         
principle of the state 7#d4 #dde74 ,the 
final proof is  supplied by a comparison
 of the perfect state with actual forms 
of  government4 ,these1 like the        
individuals who correspond to them1     
become  more and more miserable as they 
recede further from the ideal1 and the  
climax is reached 7#i4 #ehg7 when the   
tyrant is shown by the aid of           
arithmetic to have '#gbi times less     
pleasure than the king' i4e4 the        
perfectly just ruler4 ,lastly1 the      
happiness of the just is proved to  #cei
 extend also into the next world1 where 
men appear before the  judgment seat of 
heaven and receive the due reward of    
their deeds in this  life4      ,k4     
,king1 the ,great1 #h4 #eec             
,d3--pleasure of the king and the tyrant
 compared1  #i4 #ehg foll42--kings and  
philosophers1 #e4 #dgc 7cp4 #f4 #dhg ,e1
 #dih foll41  #eja ,e foll42 #g4 #edj2  

#h4 #edc2 #i4 #eib74    ,kisses1 the    
reward of the brave warrior1 #e4 #dfh   
,c4    ,knowledge 7,greek3 e7pist_/m1   
gign_/skein71  knowledge of ideas1 #f4  
#dhd2  --nature of1 #e4 #dgg1 #dgh2     
classed among faculties1 ib4 #dgg2 #f4  
#eaa ,e2  #g4 #ecc ,e2--previous1 to    
birth1 #g4 #eah ,c2--how far given by   
sense1 ib4  #ebi cp4 ,phaedo            
#ge2--should not be acquired under      
compulsion1 ib4  #ecf ,e2--the          
foundation of courage1 #d4 #dbi cp4     
,laches #aic1 #aig2 ,protag4  #cej1     
#cfj2--knowledge and opinion1 #e4       
#dgf-dgh2 #f4 #ejh1 #eaj ,a2 #g4 #ecd2  
knowledge and pleasure1 #f4 #eje2       
knowledge and wisdom1 #d4 #dbh2--the    
highest  knowledge1 #f4 #ejd2 #g4 #ead  
foll42--unity of knowledge1 #e4 #dgi cp4
 ,phaedo  #aja2--the best knowledge1    
#aj4 #fah2--knowledge of shadows1 #f4   
#eaa ,d2 #g4  #ecd ,a3--love of         
knowledge characteristic of the         
,hellenes1 #d4 #dce ,e2  peculiar to the
 rational element of the soul1 #i4 #eha 

,b4      ,l4      ,labour1 division of1 
#b4 #cgj1 #cgd ,a2 #c4 #cid ,e1 #cie ,b1
 #cig ,e2 #d4 #dbc ,e1  #dcc ,a1 #dce   
,a1 #dda ,e1 #ddc1 #dec ,b cp4 ,laws #h4
 #hdf1 #hdg4    ,lacedaemon1 owes its   
good order to ,lycurgus1 #aj4 #eii      
,e2--constitution of1  commonly         
extolled1 #h4 #edd ,d2 a timocracy1 ib4 
#ede ,b3--,lacedaemonians  first after  
the ,cretans to strip in the gymnasia1  
#e4 #deb ,d4    ,lachesis1 turns the    
spindle of ,necessity together with     
,clotho and ,atropos1  #aj4 #fag ,c2 her
 speech1 ib4 ,d2 apportions a genius to 
each soul1 ib4  #fbj ,d4    ,lamentation
 over the dead1 to be checked1 #c4 #chg4
    ,lands1 partition of1 proclaimed by 
the would-be tyrant1 #h4 #efe ,e1 #eff  
,e4    ,language1 pliability of1 #i4    
#ehh ,d cp4 ,soph4 #bgg ,b4    ,laughter
 not to be allowed in the guardians1 #c4
 #chh cp4 ,laws #e4 #gcb2  #aa4 #ice2   
nor represented in the gods1 ib4 #chi4  
,laws1 may be given in error1 #a4 #cci  
,e2 supposed to arise from a convention 

among mankind1 #b4 #cei ,a2 cause of1   
#c4 #dje2 on special subjects of little 
use1 #d4 #dbe1 #dbf cp4 ,laws #g4 #ghh2 
treated with contempt in  democracies1  
#h4 #efc ,e2 bring help to all in the   
state1 #i4 #eij4    ,lawyers1 increase  
when wealth abounds1 #d4 #dje ,a4       
,learning1 pleasure of1 #f4 #dhf ,c 7cp4
 #i4 #eha1 #ehf74    ,legislation1      
cannot reach the minutiae of life1 #d4  
#dbe1 #dbf2 requires the  help of ,god1 
ib4 #dbe ,e4 ,cp4 ,laws4    ,leontius1  
story of1 #d4 #dci ,e4    ,lethe1 #aj4  
#fba4    ,letters1 image of the large   
and small1 #b4 #cfh2 #c4 #djb ,a4       
,liberality1 one of the virtues of the  
philosopher1 #f4 #dhe ,e4    ,liberty1  
characteristic of democracy1 #h4 #eeg   
,b1 #efa-efc4    ,licence1 begins in    
music1 #d4 #dbd ,e cp4 ,laws #c4 #gja   
,b2 in democracies1  #h4 #efb ,d4       
,licentiousness forbidden1 #e4 #deh4    
#cfj    ,lie1 a1 hateful to the         
philosopher1 #f4 #dij ,c 7cp4 supra #dhf
 ,e72--the  true lie and the lie in     

words1 #b4 #chb2--the royal lie 7,greek3
 gennai_/on  pseudos71 #c4 #dad2--rulers
 of the state may lie1 #b4 #chb2 #c4    
#chi ,a1 #dad ,c2  #e4 #dei ,d2--the    
,gods not to be represented as lying1   
#b4 #chb2--lies of the  poets1 ib4 #cgg 
foll42 #c4 #chf1 #djh ,b 7cp4 #aj4 #eig 
foll474    ,life in the early state1 #b4
 #cgb2--loses its zest in old age1 #a4  
#cbi ,a2  full of evils1 #b4 #cgi ,c2   
intolerable without virtue1 #d4 #dde2   
shortness of1  compared to eternity1    
#aj4 #fjh ,d2--the life of virtue       
toilsome1 #b4 #cfd ,d2  --the just or   
the unjust1 which is the more           
advantageous8 ib4 #cdg  foll42--three   
kinds of lives among men1 #i4           
#eha2--life of women ought to  resemble 
that of men1 #e4 #dea foll4 cp4 ,laws   
#g4 #hjd ,e2--the necessities  of life1 
#b4 #cfi1 #cgc ,a2--the prime of life1  
#e4 #dfj ,e4    ,light1 #f4 #ejg ,e4    
,cp4 ,sight1 ,vision4    ,light and     
heavy1 #e4 #dgi2 #g4 #ebd4    ,like to  
like1 #d4 #dbe ,c4    ,literature       

7,greek3 lo_/goi71 included under       
'music' in education1  #b4 #cgf ,e4     
,litigation1 the love of1 ignoble1 #c4  
#dje4    ,logic2 method of residues1 #d4
 #dbg2--;accidents and essence          
distinguished1  #e4 #ded2--nature of    
opposition1 #d4 #dcf2--;categories1     
,greek3 pro_/s ti1 #d4  #dcg2 quality   
and relation1 ibid42--fallacies1 #f4    
#dhg4 ,for ,plato's method  of          
definitions1 see ,knowledge1            
,temperance2 and cp4 ,dialectic1        
,metaphysic4    ,lotophagi1 #h4 #efj ,c4
    ,lots1 use of1 #e4 #dfj ,a1 #dfb ,e2
 election by1 characteristic of         
democracy1  #h4 #eeg ,a4    ,love of the
 beautiful1 #c4 #djb1 #djc cp4 #a       
,alcib4 #aca2 bodily love and  true     
love1 ib4 #djc2 love and the love of    
knowledge1 #e4 #dgd foll42 is of  the   
whole1 not of the part1 ib4 ,c1 #dge ,b2
 #f4 #dhe ,b2 a tyrant1 #i4 #egc ,b1    
#egd ,e 7cp4 #a4 #cbi                   
,b73--familiarities which may be allowed
 between the  lover and the beloved1 #c4

 #djc ,b3--lovers' names1 #e4           
#dgd3--lovers of wine1  ib4 #dge        
,a3--lovers of beautiful sights and     
sounds1 ib4 #dgf ,b1 #dgi ,a1  #dhj4    
,luxury in the state1 #b4 #cgb1 #cgc2 a 
cause of disease1 #c4 #dje ,e2 would not
  give happiness to the citizens1 #d4   
#dbj1 #dba2 makes men cowards1 #i4 #eij 
,b4    ,lycaean ,zeus1 temple of1 #h4   
#efe ,d4    ,lycurgus1 the author of the
 greatness of ,lacedaemon1 #aj4 #eii ,e4
    ,lydia1 kingdom of1 obtained by     
,gyges1 #b4 #cei ,c3--,lydian harmonies1
 to be  rejected1 #c4 #cih ,e foll4     
,lying1 a privilege of the state1 #c4   
#chi ,a1 #dad ,c2 #e4 #dei ,d4    ,lyre1
 the instrument of ,apollo1 and allowed 
in the best state1 #c4 #cii ,d4         
,lysanias1 father of ,cephalus1 #a4 #ccj
 ,b4    ,lysias1 the brother of         
,polemarchus1 #a4 #cbh ,b4      ,m4     
,madman1 arms not to be returned to a1  
#a4 #cca2 fancies of madmen1 #h4 #egc   
,c4    ,magic1 #aj4 #fjb ,d4            
,magistrates1 elected by lot in         

democracy1 #h4 #eeg ,a4    ,magnanimity1
 7,greek3 megalo_/prepeia71 one of the  
philosopher's virtues1  #f4 #dhf ,a1    
#dij ,e1 #did ,a4    ,maker1 the1 not so
 good a judge as the user1 #aj4 #fja ,c 
cp4 ,crat4 #cij4    ,man1 'the master of
 himself1' #d4 #dcj ,e cp4 ,laws #a4    
#fbf ,e foll42 'the  form and likeness  
of ,god1' #f4 #eja ,b cp4 ,phaedr4 #bdh 
,a2 ,theaet4 #agf ,c2  ,laws #d4 #gaf   
,d2 his unimportance1 #aj4 #fjd ,b 7cp4 
#f4 #dhf ,a1 #cfa and  ,laws #a4 #fdd   
,e2 #g4 #hjc72 has the power to choose  
his own destiny1 #aj4 #fag ,e2  --the   
one best man1 #f4 #ejb cp4 ,pol4        
#cja3--,men are not just of their  own  
will1 #b4 #cff ,c2 unite in the state in
 order to supply each other's  wants1   
ib4 #cfi2--the nature of men and women1 
#e4 #dec-dee2--;analogy of  men and     
animals1 ib4 #dei2--three classes of1   
#i4 #eha4    ,manners1 influenced by    
education1 #d4 #dbd1 #dbe2 cannot be    
made the subject  of legislation1 ibid42
 freedom of1 in democracies1 #h4 #efc   

,a4    ',many1' the term1 as applied to 
the beautiful1 the good1 c41 #f4 #ejg4  
,many1 the1 flatter their leaders into  
thinking themselves statesmen1 #d4      
#dbf2 wrong in their notions about the  
honourable and the good1 #f4 #dic ,e2   
would lose their harsh feeling towards  
philosophy if they could see the  true  
philosopher1 ib4 #ejj2 their pleasures  
and pains1 #i4 #ehf2--'the  great       
beast1' #f4 #dic4 ,cp4 ,multitude4      
,marionette players1 #g4 #ead ,b4       
,marriage1 holiness of1 #e4 #deh ,e1    
#dei2 age for1 ib4 #dfj2 prayers and    
sacrifices at1 ibid42--marriage         
festivals1 ib4 #dei1 #dfj4    ,marsyas1 
,apollo to be preferred to1 #c4 #cii ,e4
    ,mathematics1 #g4 #ebb-ecb2 use of  
hypotheses in1 #f4 #eaj2--mathematical  
notions perceived by a faculty of the   
soul1 #f4 #eaa ,c3--the mathematician   
not usually a dialectician1 #g4 #eca ,e4
    ,mean1 happiness of the1 #aj4 #fai  
,a cp4 ,laws #c4 #fgi ,a2 #e4 #gbh ,e2  
#g4 #gib ,d4    ,meanness1 unknown to   

the philosopher1 #f4 #dhf ,a2           
characteristic of the  oligarchs1 #h4   
#eed4    ,measurement1 art of1 corrects 
the illusions of sight1 #aj4 #fjb ,d4   
,meat1 roast1 the best diet for         
soldiers1 #c4 #djd ,d4    ,medicine1    
cause of1 #c4 #dje2 not intended to     
preserve unhealthy and  intemperate     
subjects1 ib4 #djf foll41 #djh ,a2 #d4  
#dbf ,a cp4 ,tim4 #hi ,b2  the two kinds
 of1 #e4 #dei cp4 ,laws #d4 #gbj2 use of
 incantations in1 #d4  #dbf ,a2--analogy
 of1 employed in the definition of      
justice1 #a4 #ccb ,c4    ,megara1 battle
 of1 #b4 #cfh ,a4    ,melody1 in        
education1 #c4 #cih foll42 its          
influence1 #aj4 #fja ,b4    ,memory1 the
 philosopher should have a good1 #f4    
#dhf ,d1 #dij ,e1 #did ,a2  #g4 #ece ,b4
    ,mendicant prophets1 #b4 #cfd ,c4   
,menelaus1 treatment of1 when wounded1  
#c4 #djh ,a4    ,menoetius1 father of   
,patroclus1 #c4 #chh ,c4    ,mental     
blindness1 causes of1 #g4 #eah4         
,merchants1 necessary in the state1 #b4 

#cga4    ,metaphysics2 absolute ideas1  
#e4 #dgf2--;abstract and relative ideas1
  #g4 #ebd2--;analysis of knowledge1 #f4
 #eaj2--qualifications of relative and  
correlative1 #d4 #dcg foll42 #g4 #ebd4  
,cp4 ,idea1 ,logic4    ,metempsychosis1 
#aj4 #fag4 ,cp4 ,soul4    ,midas1 wealth
 of1 #c4 #djh ,b4    ,might and right1  
#a4 #cch foll4 cp4 ,gorg4 #dhc1 #dhi2   
,laws #a4 #fbg2 #c4 #fij2  #aj4 #hij4   
,miletus1 ,thales of1 #aj4 #fjj ,a4     
,military profession1 the1 #b4 #cgd4    
,mimetic art1 in education1 #c4 #cid    
foll42 the same person cannot succeed in
  tragedy and comedy1 ib4 #cie ,a2      
imitations lead to habit1 ib4 ,d2 men   
acting women's part1 ib4 ,e2 influence  
on character1 ibid4 foll4 ,cp4          
,imitation4    ',mine and thine1' a     
common cause of dispute1 #e4 #dfb4      
,ministers of the state must be         
educated1 #g4 #eai4 ,see ,ruler4 #cfb   
,miser1 the1 typical of the oligarchical
 state1 #h4 #eee ,a 7cp4 #eei ,d74      
,misfortune1 to be borne with patience1 

#c4 #chg2 #aj4 #fjc-fjf4    ,models 7or 
types71 by which the poets are to be    
guided in their  compositions1 #b4 #cgi 
,a4    ,moderation1 necessity of1 #e4   
#dff ,b cp4 ,laws #c4 #fij ,e2 #e4 #gcb1
 #gcf ,e4    ,momus 7god of jealousy71  
#f4 #dhg ,a4    ,monarchy1 distinguished
 from aristocracy as that form of the   
perfect state  in which one rules1 #d4  
#dde ,c 7cp4 #i4 #egf ,d1 and ,pol4     
#cja72 the happiest  form of government1
 #i4 #egf ,e 7cp4 #ehj ,c1 #ehg ,b74    
,money1 needed in the state1 #b4 #cga ,b
 cp4 ,laws #aa4 #iah2 not necessary  in 
order to carry on war1 #d4 #dbc2--love  
of1 among the ,egyptians and            
,phoenicians1 ib4 #dce ,e2              
characteristic of timocracy and         
oligarchy1 #h4  #edh ,a1 #eec1 #efb ,a2 
referred to the appetitive element of   
the soul1  #i4 #ehj ,e2 despicable1 ib4 
#ehi ,e1 #eij ,c 7cp4 #c4 #cij ,e74     
,money-lending1 in oligarchies1 #h4     
#eee1 #eef4    ,money-making1 art of1 in
 ,cephalus' family1 #a4 #ccj ,b2 evil   

of1 #h4 #eef2  pleasure of1 #i4 #eha ,c1
 #ehf ,e4    ,money-qualifications in   
oligarchies1 #h4 #eej1 #eea4    ,moon1  
reputed mother of ,orpheus1 #b4 #cfd ,e4
    ,motherland1 a ,cretan word1 #i4    
#ege ,e cp4 ,menex4 #bcg4    ,mothers in
 the state1 #e4 #dfj4    ,motion and    
rest1 #d4 #dcf2--motion of the stars1   
#g4 #ebi1 #ecj2 #aj4 #faf ,e4           
,multitude1 the1 the great ,sophist1 #f4
 #dib2 their madness1 ib4 #dif ,c4 ,cp4 
,many4    ,musaeus1 his pictures of a   
future life1 #b4 #cfc ,d1 ,e1 #cfd ,e4  
,muses1 the1 ,musaeus and ,orpheus the  
children of1 #b4 #cfd ,e4    ,music1 to 
be taught before gymnastic1 #b4 #cgf ,e 
7cp4 #c4 #djc ,c72 includes  literature 
7,greek3 lo_/goi71 #b4 #cgf ,e2--in     
education1 ib4 #cgg foll42 #c4  #cih    
foll42 #g4 #ebb ,a 7see ,poetry1 ,poets1
 and cp4 ,protag4 #cbf2 ,laws #b4  #fed1
 #ffj72 complexity in1 to be rejected1  
#c4 #cig cp4 ,laws #g4 #hab2 the  severe
 and the vulgar kind1 ibid4 cp4 ,laws   
#g4 #hjb2 the end of1 the  love of      

beauty1 ib4 #djc ,c2 like gymnastic1    
should be studied throughout  life1     
ibid42 the simpler kinds of1 foster     
temperance in the soul1 ib4  #djd ,a1   
#daj ,a2 effect of excessive1 ib4 #daj1 
#daa2 ancient forms of1 not  to be      
altered1 #d4 #dbd cp4 ,laws #b4 #feg2   
#g4 #gii1 #hja2 must be taught to       
women1 #e4 #deb4    ,music4 ,music to   
the ancients had a far wider            
significance than to us4 ,it  was       
opposed to gymnastic as 'mental' to     
'bodily' training1 and included  equally
 reading and writing1 mathematics1      
harmony1 poetry1 and music  strictly    
speaking3 drawing1 as ,aristotle tells  
us 7,pol4 viii4 #c1  #a71  was sometimes
 made a separate division4 ,i4 ,music   
7in this wider  sense71 ,plato says1    
should precede gymnastic2 and1 according
 to a  remarkable passage in the        
,protagoras 7#cbe ,c71 the pupils in a  
,greek  school were actually instructed 
in reading and writing1 made to learn   
poetry by heart1 and taught to play on  

the lyre1 before they went to the       
gymnasium4 ,the ages at which children  
should commence these various studies   
are not stated in the ,republic2 but in 
the ,v,i,ith ,book of the ,laws1 where  
the subject is treated more in detail1  
the children begin going to school  at  
ten1 and spend three years in learning  
to read and write1 and another  three   
years in music 7,laws #g4 #haj74 ,this  
agrees very fairly with the  selection  
of the #cfc most promising youth at the 
age of twenty 7,rep4  #g4 #ecg71 as it  
would allow a corresponding period of   
three years for  gymnastic training4    
,,ii4 ,music1 strictly so called1 plays 
a great part in  ,plato's scheme of     
education4 ,he hopes by its aid to make 
the lives of his  youthful scholars     
harmonious and gracious1 and to implant 
in their souls  true conceptions of good
 and evil4 ,music is a gift of the ,gods
 to men1 and  was never intended1 'as   
the many foolishly and blasphemously    
suppose1'  merely to give us an idle    

pleasure 7,tim4 #dg ,e2 ,laws #b4 #fed1 
#feh ,e2 #g4  #hjb ,d74 ,neither should 
a freeman aim at attaining perfect      
execution  cp4 ,arist4 ,pol4 viii4 #f1  
#g1 #ae3 in the ,laws 7#g4 #haj7 we are 
told  that every one must go through the
 three years course of music1 'neither  
more nor less1 whether he like or       
whether he dislike the study4' ,both    
instruments and music are to be of a    
simple character3 in the ,republic  only
 the lyre1 the pipe1 and the flute are  
tolerated1 and the ,dorian and          
,phrygian harmonies4 ,no change in the  
fashions of music is permitted2 for     
where there is licence in music there   
will be anarchy in the state4 ,in  this 
desire for simplicity and fixity in     
music ,plato was probably opposed  to   
the tendencies of his own age4 ,the     
severe harmony which had once           
characterized ,hellenic art was passing 
out of favour3 alike in  architecture1  
sculpture1 painting1 literature1 and    
music1 richer and more  ornate styles   

prevailed4 ,we regard the change as     
inevitable1 and not  perhaps wholly to  
be regretted3 to ,plato it was a cause  
rather than a sign  of the decline of   
,hellas4    ,musical amateurs1 #e4      
#dge2--;education1 #b4 #cgg2 #c4 #cih   
foll42 #g4 #ebb ,a2  --instruments1 the 
more complex kinds of1 rejected1 #c4    
#cii cp4 ,laws  #g4 #hab ,d2--modes1 ib4
 #cig-cii2 changes in1 involve changes  
in the laws1  #d4 #dbd ,c4              
,mysteries1 #b4 #cfe ,a1 #cff ,a1 #cgh  
,a2 #h4 #efj ,e4    ,mythology1         
misrepresentations of the gods in1 #b4  
#cgh foll42 #c4 #chh foll41  #djh ,c    
7cp4 ,gods72 like poetry1 has an        
imitative character1 #c4 #cib ,d foll4  
,n4      ,narration1 styles of1 #c4     
#cib1 #cic1 #cif4    ,national          
qualities1 #d4 #dce4    ,natural gifts1 
#b4 #cgj ,a2 #e4 #dee2 #f4 #dia ,e1 #die
 ,a2 #g4 #eai1 #ece4    ,nature1        
recurrent cycles in1 #h4 #edf ,a 7cp4   
,cycles72 divisions of1 #i4 #ehd  cp4   
,phil4 #bc4    ,necessities1 the1 of    

life1 #b4 #cfh1 #cgc ,a4    ,necessity1 
the mother of the ,fates1 #aj4 #faf1    
#fag1 #fba ,a4    ,necessity1 the1      
'which lovers know1' #e4 #deh ,e2--the  
'necessity of  ,diomede1' #f4 #dic ,d4  
,nemesis1 #e4 #dea ,a4    ,niceratus1   
son of ,nicias1 #a4 #cbg ,c4    ,nicias1
 #a4 #cbg ,c4    ,nightingale1 ,thamyras
 changed into a1 #aj4 #fbj4    ,niobe1  
sufferings of1 in tragic poetry1 #b4    
#chj ,a4    ,greek3 no_/mos1 strain and 
law1 #g4 #ecb ,e cp4 ,laws #g4 #hjj ,a4 
,not-being1 #e4 #dgg4    ,novelties in  
music and gymnastic to be discouraged1  
#d4 #dbd4    ,number1 said to have been 
invented by ,palamedes1 #g4 #ebb        
,d2--the number of  the ,state1 #h4     
#edf4      ,o4      ,objects and ideas  
to be distinguished1 #e4 #dgf2 #f4 #ejg4
 #cfd    ,odysseus and ,alcinous1 #aj4  
#fad ,b2 chooses the lot of a private   
man1 ib4  #fbj ,d4    ,odyssey1 #c4 #cic
 ,a4 ,cp4 ,iliad4    ,office1 not       
desired by the good ruler1 #g4 #ebj ,a4 
,old age1 complaints against1 #a4 #cbi2 

,sophocles quoted in regard to1  ibid42 
wealth a comforter of age1 ibid42--old  
men think more of the  future life1 ib4 
#ccj2 not students1 #g4 #ecf cp4 ,laches
 #ahi2--the  older to bear rule in the  
state1 #c4 #dab cp4 ,laws #c4 #fij ,a2  
#d4 #gad ,e2  to be over the younger1   
#e4 #dfe ,a cp4 ,laws #d4 #gba ,d2 #i4  
#hgi ,c2  #aa4 #iag ,a4    ,oligarchy1 a
 form of government which has many      
evils1 #h4 #edd1 #eea1 #eeb2  origin of1
 ib4 #eej2 nature of1 ibid42 always     
divided against itself1  ib4 #eea ,d1   
#eed ,e--the oligarchical man1 #h4 #eec2
 a miser1 ib4 #eee2 his  place in regard
 to pleasure1 #i4 #ehg4    ,olympian    
,zeus1 the ,saviour1 #i4 #ehc ,b4       
,olympic victors1 happiness and glory   
of1 #e4 #dfe ,d1 #dff ,a 7cp4  #aj4 #fah
 ,a74    ,one1 the1 study of1 draws the 
mind to the contemplation of true being1
  #g4 #ebe ,a4    ,opinion and          
knowledge1 #e4 #dgf-dgh2 #f4 #ejh ,d1   
#eaj ,a2 #g4 #ecd2 the lovers of        
opinion1 #e4 #dgi1 #dhj2 a blind guide1 

#f4 #ejf2 objects of opinion and        
intellect classified1 #g4 #ecd 7cp4 #e4 
#dgf72--true opinion and courage1  #d4  
#dbi1 #dcj 7cp4 ,courage74              
,opposites1 qualification of1 #d4 #dcf2 
in nature1 #e4 #ded1 #dge ,e4 ,cp4      
,contradiction4    ,oppositions in the  
soul1 #aj4 #fjc ,d4    ,orpheus1 child  
of the ,moon and the ,muses1 #b4 #cfd   
,e2 soul of1 chooses a  swan's life1    
#aj4 #fbj ,a2--quoted1 #b4 #cfd ,e4     
,p4      ,paeanian1 ,charmantides the1  
#a4 #cbh ,b4    ,pain1 cessation of1    
causes pleasure1 #i4 #ehc ,d cp4 ,phaedo
 #fj ,a2  ,phil4 #ea ,a2 a motion of the
 soul1 ib4 ,e4    ,painters1 #aj4 #eif1 
#eig2 are imitators1 ib4 #eig cp4 ,soph4
 #bcd2 painters  and poets1 ib4 #eig1   
#fjc1 #fje3--'the painter of            
constitutions1' #f4 #eja4    ,painting1 
in light and shade1 #aj4 #fjb ,c4       
,palamedes and ,agamemnon in the play1  
#g4 #ebb ,d4    ,pamphylia1 ,ardiaeus a 
tyrant of some city in1 #aj4 #fae ,c4   
,pandarus1 author of the violation of   

the oaths1 #b4 #cgi ,e2 wounded         
,menelaus1 #c4 #djh ,a4    ,panharmonic 
scale1 the1 #c4 #cii4    ,panopeus1     
father of ,epeus1 #aj4 #fbj ,b4         
,pantomimic representations1 not to be  
allowed1 #c4 #cig4    ,paradox about    
justice and injustice1 the1 #a4 #cdh4   
,parental anxieties1 #e4 #dfe ,c cp4    
,euthyd4 #cjf ,e4    ,parents1 the      
oldest and most indispensable of        
friends1 #h4 #egd ,c2 parents  and      
children in the state1 #e4 #dfa4        
,part and whole1 in regard to the       
happiness of the state1 #d4 #dbj ,d2 #e4
 #dff2  #g4 #eai ,e2 in love1 #e4 #dgd  
,c1 #dge ,b2 #f4 #dhe ,b4    ,passionate
 element of the soul1 #d4 #ddj2 #f4 #ejd
 ,a2 #h4 #edh ,d2 #i4 #ega ,e1  #ehj ,a4
 ,see ,spirit4    ,passions1 the1       
tyranny of1 #a4 #cbi ,c2 fostered by    
poetry1 #aj4 #fjf4    ,patient and agent
 equally qualified1 #d4 #dcf cp4 ,gorg4 
#dgf2 ,phil4 #bg ,a4    ,patroclus1     
cruel vengeance taken by ,achilles for1 
#c4 #cia ,b2 his treatment  of the      

wounded ,eurypylus1 ib4 #djf ,a4 #cfe   
,pattern1 the heavenly1 #f4 #ejj ,e2 #g4
 #edj ,a2 #i4 #eib cp4 ,laws #e4 #gci   
,d4    ,paupers4 ,see ,poor4            
,payment1 art of1 #a4 #cdf4             
,peirithous1 son of ,zeus1 the tale of1 
not to be repeated1 #c4 #cia ,d4        
,peleus1 the gentlest of men1 #c4 #cia  
,c4    ,perception1 in the eye and in   
the soul1 #f4 #ejh foll4    ,perdiccas  
,king of ,macedonia1 #a4 #ccf ,a4       
,perfect state1 difficulty of1 #e4 #dgb2
 #f4 #ejb ,e cp4 ,laws #d4 #gaa2        
possible1 #e4 #dga1 #dgc2 #f4 #dii2 #g4 
#edj cp4 ,laws #e4 #gci2 manner of its  
decline1 #h4 #edf cp4 ,crit4 #abj4      
,periander1 the tyrant1 #a4 #ccf ,a4    
,personalities1 avoided by the          
philosopher1 #f4 #ejj ,b cp4 ,theaet4   
#agd ,c4    ,personification2 the       
argument compared to a search or chase1 
#b4 #cfh ,c2 #d4  #dbg ,c1 #dcb2 to a   
stormy sea1 #d4 #dda ,b2 to an ocean1   
#e4 #dec ,d2 to a game of  draughts1 #f4
 #dhg ,b2 to a journey1 #g4 #ecb ,e2 to 

a charm1 #aj4 #fjh ,a2--'has  travelled 
a long way1' #f4 #dhd ,a2--'veils her   
face1' ib4 #ejc ,a2  --'following in the
 footsteps of the argument1' #b4 #cfe   
,c2--'whither the  argument may blow1   
thither we go1' #c4 #cid ,d2--'a swarm  
of words1'  #e4 #dej ,b2--the three     
waves1 ib4 #deg ,c1 #dgb ,a1 #dgc ,c4   
,persuasion or ,faith1 one of the       
faculties of the soul1 #f4 #eaa ,d2  #g4
 #ecc ,e4    ,philosopher1 the1 has the 
quality of gentleness1 #b4 #cge1 #cgf2  
#c4 #daj2 #f4  #dhf ,c2 'the spectator  
of all time and all existence1' #f4 #dhf
 ,a cp4  ,theaet4 #agc ,e2 should have a
 good memory1 ib4 ,d1 #dij ,e1 #did ,a2 
#g4 #ece2  has his mind fixed upon true 
being1 #f4 #dhd1 #dhe1 #dhf ,e1 #dij1   
#ejj ,c1 #eja ,d2  #g4 #eba1 #ecg ,d2   
#i4 #eha1 #ehb ,c 7cp4 #e4 #dge ,e2 #g4 
#ebj ,b1 #ebe1 and ,phaedo  #hb2        
,phaedr4 #bdi2 ,theaet4 #agc ,e2 ,soph4 
#bdi ,d1 #bed72 his qualifications and  
excellences1 #f4 #dhe foll41 #dij ,d1   
#dia ,b1 #did ,b cp4 ,phaedo #fh2       

corruption of the philosopher1 ib4 #dia 
foll42 is apt to retire from the  world1
 ib4 #dif cp4 ,theaet4 #agc2 does not   
delight in personal  conversation1 ib4  
#ejj ,b cp4 ,theaet4 #agd ,c2 must be an
 arithmetician1  #g4 #ebe ,b2 pleasures 
of the philosopher1 #i4 #eha            
,e3--,philosophers are to be  kings1 #e4
 #dgc 7cp4 #f4 #dhg ,e1 #dih foll41 #eja
 ,e foll42 #g4 #edj2 #h4 #edc2 #i4      
#eib72 are lovers of all knowledge1 #e4 
#dge2 #f4 #dhf ,a1 #dij2 true and false1
  #e4 #dge foll42 #f4 #dhd1 #dia1 #did1 
#dif ,a1 #ejj2 #g4 #ece2 to be          
guardians1 #b4  #cge 7see ,guardians72  
why they are useless1 #f4 #dhg foll42   
few in number1  ib4 ,e1 #dif1 #dii ,b1  
#ejc ,b cp4 ,phaedo #fi ,c2 will frame  
the state after  the heavenly pattern1  
ib4 #eja2 #g4 #edj ,a2 #i4 #eib2        
education of1 #f4 #ejc2  philosophers   
and poets1 #aj4 #fjg cp4 ,laws #ab4     
#ifg4    ,philosophic nature1 the1      
rarity of1 #f4 #dia2 causes of the ruin 
of1 ibid4    ,philosophy1 every headache

 ascribed to1 #c4 #djg ,c2  love of real
  knowledge1 #f4 #dhe 7cp4 supra #e4    
#dge ,e72 the corruption of1 #f4 #dia2  
philosophy and the world1 ib4 #did2 the 
desolation of1 ib4 #die2  philosophy and
 the arts1 ib4 ,e1 #dif ,c 7cp4 supra   
#e4 #dge ,d1 #dgf ,a72  true and false  
philosophy1 #f4 #dif ,e1 #dih ,e2       
philosophy and governments1  ib4 #dig2  
time set apart for1 ib4 #dih2 #g4 #eci2 
commonly neglected in  after life1 #f4  
#dih2 prejudice against1 ib4 #ejj1 #eja2
 why it is useless1  #g4 #eag1 #ece1    
#eci2 the guardian and saviour of       
virtue1 #h4 #edi ,b2 philosophy  and    
poetry1 #aj4 #fjg2 aids a man to make a 
wise choice in the next world1  ib4     
#fah4 #cff    ,phocylides1 his saying1  
'that as soon as a man has a livelihood 
he should  practise virtue1' #c4 #djg   
,b4    ,phoenician tale1 the1 #c4 #dad  
,c foll4    ,phoenicians1 their love of 
money1 #d4 #dcf ,a4    ,phoenix1 tutor  
of ,achilles1 #c4 #cij ,e4    ,phrygian 
harmony1 the1 #c4 #cii4    ,physician1  

the1 not a mere money maker1 #a4 #cda   
,c1 #cdb ,d2 the good  physician1 #c4   
#djh2 physicians find employment when   
luxury increases1 #b4  #cgc ,c2 #c4 #dje
 ,a4 ,cp4 ,medicine4    ,pigs1          
sacrificed at the ,mysteries1 #b4 #cgh  
,a4    ,pilot1 the1 and the just man1   
#a4 #ccb 7cp4 #cda72 the true pilot1 #f4
 #dhh ,e4    ,pindar1 on the hope of the
 righteous1 #a4 #cca ,a2 on ,asclepius1 
#c4 #djh ,b2  --quoted1 #b4 #cfe ,b4    
,pipe1 the1 7,greek3 su_/rigx71 one of  
the musical instruments permitted to  be
 used1 #c4 #cii ,d4    ,piraeus1 #a4    
#cbg ,a2 #d4 #dci ,e2 ,socrates seldom  
goes there1 #a4 #cbh ,c4    ,pittacus of
 ,mitylene1 a sage1 #a4 #cce ,e4        
,plays of children should be made a     
means of instruction1 #d4 #dbe ,a2  #g4 
#ecg ,a cp4 ,laws #a4 #fdc ,b4          
,pleasure1 not akin to virtue1 #c4 #djb1
 #djc2 pleasure and love1 ibid42        
defined as knowledge or good1 #f4 #eje  
,b1 #eji ,b2 the highest1 #i4 #ehc2     
caused  by the cessation of pain1 ib4 ,d

 cp4 ,phaedo #fj ,a2 ,phil4 #ea2 a      
motion  of the soul1 ib4 ,e2--real      
pleasure unknown to the tyrant1 ib4     
#ehg2  --pleasure of learning1 #f4 #dhf 
,c 7cp4 #i4 #eha1 #ehf1 and ,laws #b4   
#ffg72  --sensual pleasure1 #g4 #eai2   
#i4 #ehf2 a solvent of the soul1 #d4    
#dcj ,a  cp4 ,laws #a4 #fcc ,e2 not     
desired by the philosopher1 #f4 #dhe    
,e3--,pleasures1 division of1 into      
necessary and unnecessary1 #h4 #eeh1    
#eei1  #efa ,a2 #i4 #egb1 #eha ,e2      
honourable and dishonourable1 #h4 #efa  
,c2 three  classes of1 #i4 #eha2        
criterion of1 ib4 #ehb2 classification  
of1 ib4  #ehc2--pleasures of smell1 ib4 
#ehd ,b2--pleasures of the many1 #ehe2  
of the  passionate1 ib4 #ehf2 of the    
philosopher1 ib4 #ehf1 #ehg4    ,pluto1 
#h4 #eed ,b4    ,poetry1 styles of1 #c4 
#cib-cid1 #cih2 in the state1 ib4       
#cib-cid1 #cih2 #h4  #efh ,b2 #aj4 #eie 
foll41 #fje ,a1 #fjg ,a cp4 ,laws #g4   
#hag2 effect of1 #aj4  #fje2 feeds the  
passions1 ib4 #fjf2 poetry and          

philosophy1 ib4 #fjg  cp4 ,laws #ab4    
#ifg3--';colours' of poetry1 ib4 #fja   
,a4    ,poetry4 ,the ,republic is the   
first of ,plato's works in which he     
seriously  examines the value of poetry 
in education1 and the place of the poets
 in  the state4 ,the question could     
hardly be neglected by the philosopher  
who  proposed to construct an ideal     
polity or government of the best4 ,for  
poetry played a great part in ,hellenic 
life3 the children learned whole  poems 
by heart in their schools 7,protag4 #cbf
 ,a2 ,laws #g4 #haj ,c72 the  rhapsode  
delighted the crowds at the festivals   
7,ion #ece72 the theatres  were free1 or
 almost free1 to all1 'costing but a    
drachma at the most'  7,apol4 #bf ,d72  
the intervals of a banquet were filled  
up by conversation  about the poets     
7,protag4 #cdg ,c74 ,the quarrel between
 philosophy and  poetry was an ancient  
one1 which had found its first          
expression in the  attacks of           
,xenophanes 7#ech ,b4,c47 and           

,heracleitus 7#ejh ,b4,c47 upon the     
popular mythology4 ,in the earlier      
dialogues of ,plato the poets are       
treated  with an ironical courtesy1     
through which an antagonistic spirit is 
allowed  here and there to appear3 they 
are 'winged and holy beings' 7,ion #ecd7
  who sing by inspiration1 #cfg but at  
the same time are the worst  possible   
critics of their own writings and the   
most self-conceited of  mortals 7,apol4 
#bb ,d74 ,in the ,republic 7,,ii and    
,,iii71 ,plato begins the  trial of     
poetry by the enquiry whether the tales 
and legends related by  the epic and    
tragic poets are true in themselves or  
likely to furnish good  examples to his 
future citizens4 ,they cannot be true1  
for they are  contrary to the nature of 
,god 7see s4 v4 ,god71 and they are     
certainly  not proper lessons for youth4
 ,there must be a censorship of poetry1 
and  all objectionable passages         
expunged2 suitable rules and regulations
 will  be laid down1 and to these the   

poets must conform4 ,in the ,xth ,book  
the  argument takes a deeper tone4 ,the 
,poet is proved to be an impostor thrice
  removed from the truth1 a wizard who  
steals the hearts of the unwary by  his 
spells and enchantments4 ,men easily    
fall into the habit of imitating  what  
they admire2 and the lamentations and   
woes of the tragic hero and the         
unseemly buffoonery of the comedian are 
equally bad models for the  citizens of 
a free and noble state4 ,the poets must 
therefore be banished1  unless1 ,plato  
adds1 the lovers of poetry can persuade 
us of her innocence  of the charges laid
 against her4 ,in the ,laws a similar   
conclusion is  reached3--',the state is 
an imitation of the best life1 and the  
noblest  form of tragedy4 ,the          
legislator and the poet are rivals1 and 
the latter  can only be tolerated if his
 words are in harmony with the laws of  
the  state' 7vii4 #hag74    ,poets1 the1
 love their poems as their own creation1
 #a4 #ccj ,c cp4 ,symp4  #bji2 speak in 

parables1 ib4 #ccb ,b 7cp4 #c4 #dac ,b72
 on justice1 #b4 #cfc1  #cfd1 #cfe ,e2  
bad teachers of youth1 ib4 #cgg2 #c4    
#cia1 #cib1 #djh ,c cp4  ,laws #aj4 #hff
 ,c1 #hij ,a2 must be restrained by     
certain rules1 #b4 #cgi foll42  #c4 #cih
 ,a cp4 ,laws #b4 #fef1 #ffj ,a2 #d4    
#gai2 banished from the state1 #c4  #cih
 ,a2 #h4 #efh ,b2 #aj4 #eie foll41 #fje 
,a1 #fjg ,a cp4 ,laws #g4 #hag2 poets   
and tyrants1 #h4 #efh2 thrice removed   
from the truth1 #aj4 #eif1 #eig1 #eih   
,e1  #fjb ,b1 #fje ,c2 imitators only1  
ib4 #fjj1 #fja 7cp4 #c4 #cic1 and ,laws 
#d4  #gai ,c72 poets and painters1 #aj4 
#fja1 #fjc1 #fje2--'the poets who were  
children and prophets of the gods' 78   
,orpheus and ,musaeus2 cp4 supra  #cfd  
,e71 #b4 #cff ,a4    ,polemarchus1 the  
son of ,cephalus1 #a4 #cbg ,b2 'the heir
 of the argument1'  ib4 #cca2 intervenes
 in the discussion1 ib4 #cdj2 wishes    
,socrates to  speak in detail about the 
community of women and children1 #e4    
#ddi4    ,politicians1 in democracies1  

#h4 #efd4    ,polydamas1 the            
pancratiast1 #a4 #cch ,c4    ,poor1 the1
 have no time to be ill1 #c4 #djf ,e2   
everywhere hostile to the  rich1 #d4    
#dbc ,a2 #h4 #eea ,e cp4 ,laws #e4 #gcf 
,a2 very numerous in  oligarchies1 #h4  
#eeb ,d2 not despised by the rich in    
time of danger1 ib4  #eef ,c4           
,population1 to be regulated1 #e4 #dfj4 
,poverty1 prejudicial to the arts1 #d4  
#dba2 poverty and crime1 #h4 #eeb4      
,power1 the struggle for1 #g4 #ebj ,c   
cp4 ,laws #d4 #gae ,a4    ,pramnian     
wine1 #c4 #dje ,e1 #djh ,a4    ,priam1  
,homer's delineation of1 condemned1 #c4 
#chh ,b4    ,prisoners in war1 #e4      
#dfh-dgj4    ,private property1 not     
allowed to the guardians1 #c4 #daf ,e2  
#d4 #dbj ,a1 #dbb ,d2  #e4 #dfd ,c2 #h4 
#edc4    ,prizes of valour1 #e4 #dfh4   
,prodicus1 a popular teacher1 #aj4 #fjj 
,c4 #cfh    ,property1 to be common1 #c4
 #daf ,e2 #d4 #dbj ,a1 #dbb ,d2 #e4 #dfd
 ,c2 #h4 #edc2  restrictions on the     
disposition of1 #h4 #eef ,a cp4 ,laws   

#aa4 #ibc3  --property qualifications in
 oligarchies1 ib4 #eej1 #eea4           
,prophets1 mendicant1 #b4 #cfd ,c4      
,proportion1 akin to truth1 #f4 #dhf ,e4
    ,prose writers on justice1 #b4 #cfd 
,a4    ,protagoras1 his popularity as a 
teacher1 #aj4 #fjj ,c4    ,proteus1 not 
to be slandered1 #b4 #cha ,d4           
,proverbs3 'birds of a feather1' #a4    
#cbi ,a2 'shave a lion1' ib4 #cda ,c2   
'let brother help brother1' #b4 #cfb ,d2
 'wolf and flock1' #c4 #dae ,d2 'one    
great thing1'#d4 #dbc ,e2 'hard is the  
good1' ib4 #dce ,c2 'friends have all   
things in common1' #e4 #ddi ,c2 'the    
useful is the noble1' ib4 #deg ,b2 'the 
wise must go to the doors of the rich1' 
#f4 #dhi ,b 7cp4 #b4 #cfd ,b72 'what is 
more than human1' #f4 #dib ,e2 'the     
necessity of ,diomede1' ib4 #dic ,d2    
'the  she-dog as good as her mistress1' 
#h4 #efc ,d2 'out of the smoke into the 
fire1' ib4 #efi ,b2 'does not come      
within a thousand miles' 7,greek3 ou7d' 
i7_/ktar ba_/llei71 #i4 #ege ,d4        

,public1 the1 the great ,sophist1 #f4   
#dib2 compared to a many-headed beast1  
ib4 #dic2 cannot be philosophic1 ib4    
#did ,a cp4 ,pol4 #bib ,d4 ,see  ,many1 
,multitude4    ,punishment1 of the      
wicked1 in the world below1 #b4 #cfc2   
#aj4 #fad4 ,cp4 ,hades1  ,world below4  
,purgation of the luxurious state1 #c4  
#cii ,e2--of the city by the tyrant1    
#h4 #efg ,d2--of the soul1 by the       
tyrannical man1 ib4 #egc ,a4            
,pythagoreans1 the1 authorities on the  
science of harmony1 #g4 #ebi1 #ecj1     
#eca2 never reach the natural harmonies 
of number1 ib4 #eca ,c2--the            
,pythagorean way of life1 #aj4 #fjj ,a4 
,pythian ,oracle1 the1 #e4 #dfa ,e2 #g4 
#edj ,c4      ,q4      ,quacks1 #e4     
#dei4    ,quarrels1 dishonourable1 #b4  
#cgh2 #c4 #cie ,e2 will be unknown in   
the best  state1 #b4 #cgh ,b2 #e4 #dfd  
,e cp4 ,laws #e4 #gci2--quarrels of the 
,gods and  heroes1 #b4 #cgh4      ,r4   
,rational element of the soul1 #d4      
#dce-ddb2 #f4 #ejd ,a2 #h4 #eej ,a2 #i4 

#ega1  #ehj ,e1 #eha cp4 ,tim4 #fi      
,e-#gb2 ought to bear rule1 and be      
assisted by the  spirited element       
against the passions1 #d4 #dda ,e1 #ddb2
 characterized by the  love of          
knowledge1 #i4 #eha ,b2 the pleasures   
of1 the truest1 ib4 #ehb2  preserves the
 mind from the illusions of sense1 #aj4 
#fjb4    ,rationalism among youth1 #g4  
#ech cp4 ,laws #aj4 #hhf4    ,reaction1 
#h4 #efd ,a4    ,read1 learning to1 #c4 
#djb ,a4    ,reason1 a faculty of the   
soul1 #f4 #eaa ,d 7cp4 #g4 #ecc ,e72    
reason and  appetite1 #i4 #ega 7cp4 #d4 
#dci-ddb1 and ,tim4 #fi ,e foll472      
reason should be  the guide of pleasure1
 #i4 #ehe-ehg4    ,reflections1 #f4 #eaj
 ,a4    ,relations1 slights inflicted   
by1 in old age1 #a4 #cbi4    ,relative  
and correlative1 qualifications of1 #d4 
#dcg foll4 cp4 ,gorg4  #dgf2 how        
corrected1 #g4 #ebd4    ,relativity of  
things and individuals1 #e4 #dgi2       
fallacies caused by1 #i4 #ehd1  #ehe2   
#aj4 #fjb1 #fje ,c4    ,religion1       

matters of1 left to the god at ,delphi1 
#d4 #dbg ,a 7cp4 #e4 #dfa ,e1  #dfi ,a2 
#g4 #edj ,b74    ,residues1 method of1  
#d4 #dbg ,e4    ,rest and motion1 #d4   
#dcf4    ,retail traders1 necessary in  
the state1 #b4 #cga cp4 ,laws #aa4 #iah4
    ,reverence in the young1 #e4 #dfe ,a
 #cfi cp4 ,laws #e1 #gbi2 #i4 #hgi2     
#aa4 #iag ,a4    ,rhetoric1 professors  
of1 #b4 #cfe ,d4    ,rhythm1 #c4 #djj2  
goes with the subject1 ib4 #cih ,d1 #djj
 ,b2 its persuasive  influence1 ib4 #dja
 ,e2 #aj4 #fja ,b4    ,riches4 ,see     
,wealth4    ,riddle1 the1 of the eunuch 
and the bat1 #e4 #dgi ,c4    ,ridicule1 
only to be directed against folly and   
vice1 #e4 #deb ,e2 danger of            
unrestrained ridicule1 #aj4 #fjf ,c cp4 
,laws #aa4 #ice ,a4    ,riding1 the     
children of the guardians to be taught1 
#e4 #dfg2 #g4 #ecg ,a  cp4 ,laws #g4    
#gid ,d4    ,right and might1 #a4 #cch  
foll4    ,ruler1 the1 in the strict and 
in the popular sense1 #a4 #cda ,b2 the  
true  ruler does not ask1 but claim     

obedience1 #f4 #dhi ,c cp4 ,pol4 #cjj1  
#cja2  the ideal ruler1 ib4             
#ejb3--,rulers of states2 do they study 
their own  interests8 #a4 #cch ,d1 #cdc1
 #cdf 7cp4 #g4 #ebj ,c72 are not        
infallible1 #a4 #cci2  how they are     
paid1 ib4 #cdg2 good men do not desire  
office1 ibid42 #g4  #ebj ,d2 why they   
become rulers1 #a4 #cdg2 present rulers 
dishonest1 #f4 #dif ,d3  --in the best  
state must be tested by pleasures and   
pains1 #c4 #dac 7cp4  #f4 #ejc ,a2 #g4  
#eci ,e72 have the sole privilege of    
lying1 #b4 #chb2 #c4 #chi ,a1  #dad ,c2 
#e4 #dei ,d cp4 ,laws #b4 #ffc2 must be 
taken from the older  citizens1 #c4 #dab
 7cp4 #f4 #dih ,c72 will be called      
friends and saviours1 #e4  #dfc2 #f4    
#ejb ,e2 must be philosophers1 #b4 #cgf2
 #e4 #dgc2 #f4 #dhd1 #dig foll41  #eja1 
#ejc ,b2 #g4 #ebj1 #eba1 #ebe ,b1 #edj2 
#h4 #edc2 the qualities which must be   
found in them1 #f4 #ejc ,a2 #g4 #ece2   
must attain to the knowledge of the     
good1  #f1 #ejf2 #g4 #eai2 will accept  

office as a necessity1 #g4 #ebj ,e1 #edj
 ,a2 will  be selected at twenty1 and   
again at thirty1 from the guardians1 ib4
 #ecg2  must learn arithmetic1 ib4      
#ebb-ebf2 geometry1 ib4 #ebf1 #ebg2     
astronomy1  ib4 #ebg-ecj2 harmony1 ib4  
#eca2 at thirty must be initiated into  
philosophy1 ib4 #ecg-eci2 at thirty-five
 must enter on active life1 ib4  #eci   
,e2 after fifty may return to           
philosophy1 ib4 #edj2 when they die1    
will be buried by the state and paid    
divine honours1 #c4 #dad ,a2 #e4 #dfe   
,e1  #dfi ,a2 #g4 #edj ,b4 ,cp4         
,guardians4      ,s4      ,sacrifices1  
private1 #a4 #cbh ,b1 #cca ,d2--in      
atonement1 #b4 #cfd2--;human1 in        
,arcadia1 #h4 #efe ,d4    ,sailors1     
necessary in the state1 #b4 #cga ,b4    
,sarpedon1 #c4 #chh ,c4    ,sauces1 not 
mentioned in ,homer1 #c4 #djd ,d4       
,scamander1 beleaguered by ,achilles1   
#c4 #cia ,b4    ,scepticism1 danger of1 
#g4 #ech1 #eci4    ,science 7,greek3    
e7pist_/m71 a division of the           

intellectual world1 #g4  #ecc ,e 7cp4   
#f4 #eaa72--the sciences distinguished  
by their object1 #d4 #dch  cp4 ,charm4  
#aga2 not to be studied with a view to  
utility only1 #g4  #ebg ,a1 #ebi1 #ecj2 
their unity1 ib4 #eca2 use hypotheses1  
ib4 #ecc2  correlation of1 ib4 #ecg4    
,sculpture1 must only express the image 
of the good1 #c4 #dja ,b2 painting of1  
#d4 #dbj ,d cp4 ,laws #b4 #ffh ,e4      
,scylla1 #i4 #ehh ,c4    ,scythian1     
,anacharsis the1 #aj4 #fjj              
,a2--,scythians1 the1 characterized by  
spirit or passion1 #d4 #dce ,e4         
,self-indulgence in men and states1 #d4 
#dbe ,e1 #dbf2--self-interest the       
natural guide of men1 #b4 #cei          
,b2--self-made men bad company1 #a4 #ccj
 ,c2  --self-mastery1 #d4 #dcj1 #dca4   
#cgj    ,sense1 objects of1 twofold1 #g4
 #ebc2 knowledge given by1 imperfect1   
ibid42 #aj4 #fjb2 sense and intellect1  
#g4 #ebd3--,senses1 the1 classed among  
faculties1 #e4 #dgg ,c4    ,seriphian1  
story of ,themistocles and the1 #a4 #cbi

 ,e4    ,servants1 old family1 #h4 #edi 
,e4    ,sex in the world below1 #aj4    
#fah ,b2--sexes to follow the same      
training1 #e4  #dea1 #dff cp4 ,laws #g4 
#hje2 equality of1 advantageous1 ib4    
#def1 #deg2  relation between1 ib4 #deh 
foll4 cp4 ,laws #h4 #hce ,e2 freedom of 
intercourse between1 in a democracy1 #h4
 #efc ,b4 ,cp4 ,women4    ,sexual       
desires1 #e4 #deh ,e cp4 ,laws #f4 #ghc 
,a2 #h4 #hce ,e4    ,shadows1 #f4 #eaj  
,a2--knowledge of shadows 7,greek3      
ei7kasi_/a71 one of the  faculties of   
the soul1 #f4 #eaa ,e2 #g4 #ecc ,e4     
,shepherd1 the analogy of1 with the     
ruler1 #a4 #cdc1 #cde cp4 ,pol4 #bge4   
,shopkeepers1 necessary in the state1   
#b4 #cga cp4 ,laws #aa4 #iah4    ,short 
sight1 #b4 #cfh ,d4    ,sicily1 'can    
tell of ,charondas1' #aj4 #eii          
,e2--,sicilian cookery1 #c4 #djd ,d4    
,sight1 placed in the class of          
faculties1 #e4 #dgg ,c2 requires in     
addition to  vision and colour1 a third 
element1 light1 #f4 #ejg2 the most      

wonderful of  the senses1 ibid42        
compared to mind1 ib4 #ejh2 #g4 #ecb ,a2
 illusions of1  #g4 #ebc2 #aj4 #fjb1    
#fjc ,d3--the world of sight1 #g4 #eag4 
,sign1 the1 of ,socrates1 #f4 #dif ,c4  
,silver1 mingled by the ,god in the     
auxiliaries1 #c4 #dae ,a 7cp4 #daf ,e2  
#h4 #edg ,a72--and gold not allowed to  
the guardians1 #c4 #daf ,e2 #d4 #dai1   
#dbb ,d2 #e4 #dfd ,d 7cp4 #h4 #edc74    
,simonides1 his definition of justice   
discussed1 #a4 #cca ,d--#cce ,e2 a sage1
  ib4 #cce ,e4    ,simplicity1 the first
 principle of education1 #c4 #cig foll41
 #djj ,e1 #djd2  the two kinds of1 ib4  
#djj ,e2 of the good man1 ib4 #dji ,a2  
in diet1  #h4 #eei ,c 7cp4 #c4 #djd ,d74
    ,sin1 punishment of1 #b4 #cfc2 #aj4 
#fad foll4 ,cp4 ,hades1 ,world below4   
,sirens1 harmony of the1 #aj4 #fag ,b4  
,skilled person1 the1 cannot err        
7,thrasymachus71 #a4 #cdj ,d4           
,slavery1 more to be feared than death1 
#c4 #chg ,a2 of ,hellenes condemned1    
#e4 #dfi ,b4    ,slaves1 the uneducated 

man harsh towards1 #h4 #edi ,a2 enjoy   
great freedom in  a democracy1 ib4 #efc 
,b2 always inclined to rise against     
their masters1  #i4 #egh cp4 ,laws #f4  
#ggf1 #ggg4    ,smallness and greatness1
 #d4 #dch ,b2 #e4 #dgi ,b2 #g4 #ebc1    
#ebd2 #i4 #ege ,c2  #aj4 #fjb ,d1 #fje  
,c4    ,smell1 pleasures of1 #i4 #ehd   
,b4    ,snake-charming1 #a4 #ceh ,b4    
,socrates1 goes down to the ,peiraeus to
 see the feast of ,bendis1 #a4 #cbg2    
detained by ,polemarchus and ,glaucon1  
ibid42 converses with ,cephalus1  ib4   
#cbh-ccb2 trembles before ,thrasymachus1
 ib4 #ccf ,d2 his irony1 ib4  #ccg ,a2  
his poverty1 ib4 ,d2 a sharper in       
argument1 ib4 #cdj ,d2 ignorant  of what
 justice is1 ib4 #ced ,c2 his powers of 
fascination1 #b4 #ceh ,a2  requested by 
,glaucon and ,adeimantus to praise      
justice per se1 ib4  #cfg ,b2 cannot    
refuse to help justice1 ib4 #cfh ,c2 #d4
 #dbg ,d2 his oath 'by  the dog1' #c4   
#cii ,e2 #h4 #efg ,e2 #i4 #eib ,a2 hoped
 to have evaded discussing the  subject 

of women and children1 #e4 #ddi1 #dgb1  
#dgc 7cp4 #f4 #ejb ,e72 his love  of    
truth1 #e4 #dea ,a2 #f4 #ejd2 his power 
in argument1 #f4 #dhg ,b2 not           
unaccustomed to speak in parables1 ib4  
,e2 his sign1 ib4 #dif ,c2 his          
earnestness in behalf of philosophy1 #g4
 #ecf ,b2 his reverence for ,homer1     
#aj4 #eie ,c1 #fjg 7cp4 #c4 #cia ,a74   
#cga    ,soldiers1 must form a separate 
class1 #b4 #cgd2 the diet suited for1   
#c4 #djd ,d  7cp4 ,guardians72--women to
 be soldiers1 #e4 #deb1 #dff1 #dga      
,e2--punishment  of soldiers for        
cowardice1 ib4 #dfh ,a4 ,cp4 ,warrior4  
,solon1 famous at ,athens1 #aj4 #eii    
,e2--quoted1 #g4 #ecf ,d4    ,son1 the  
supposititious1 parable of1 #g4 #ecg ,e4
    ,song1 parts of1 #c4 #cih ,d4       
,sophists1 the1 their view of justice1  
#a4 #cch foll42 verbal quibbles of1  ib4
 #cdj2 the public the great ,sophist1   
#f4 #dib2 the ,sophists compared to     
feeders of a beast1 ib4 #dic4           
,sophocles1 a remark of1 quoted1 #a4    

#cbi ,b4    ,sorrow1 not to be indulged1
 #c4 #chg2 #aj4 #fjc-fjf2 has a relaxing
 effect on  the soul1 #d4 #dcj ,a2 #aj4 
#fjf4    ,soul1 the1 has ends and       
excellences1 #a4 #cec ,d2 beauty in the 
soul1 #c4 #dja2  the fair soul in the   
fair body1 ib4 #djb ,d2 sympathy of soul
 and body1 #e4  #dfb ,d1 #dfd ,b2       
conversion of the soul from darkness to 
light1 #g4 #eah1 #eba1  #ebe cp4 ,laws  
#ab4 #ieg ,e2 requires the aid of       
calculation and  intelligence in order  
to interpret the intimations of sense1  
ib4 #ebc1  #ebd2 #aj4 #fjb2 has more    
truth and essence than the body1 #i4    
#ehe ,d2--better  and worse principles  
in the soul1 #d4 #dca2 the soul divided 
into reason1  spirit1 appetite1 ib4     
#dce-ddb2 #f4 #ejd ,a2 #h4 #eej ,a2 #i4 
#ega1 #ehj ,e1 #eha  cp4 ,tim4 #fi      
,e-#gb1 #hi ,e2 ,laws #i4 #hfc2         
faculties of the soul1 #f4 #eaa ,e2  #g4
 #ecc ,e2 oppositions in the soul1 #aj4 
#fjc ,d cp4 ,soph4 #bbh ,a2 ,laws #aj4  
#hif ,d2--the lame soul1 #c4 #dja2 #g4  

#ece cp4 ,tim4 #dd2 ,soph4 #bbh2--the   
soul marred by meanness1 #f4 #die ,e cp4
 ,gorg4 #ebd ,e2--immortality of the    
soul1 #aj4 #fjh foll41 7cp4 #f4 #dih    
,c72--number of souls does not increase1
  #aj4 #faa ,a2--the soul after death1  
ib4 #fad foll42--transmigration of      
souls1 ib4 #fag cp4 ,phaedr4 #bdi2 ,tim4
 #ij ,e foll42--the soul impure  and    
disfigured while in the body1 ib4 #faa  
cp4 ,phaedo #ha2--;compared  to a       
many-headed monster1 #i4 #ehh2 to the   
images of the sea-god ,glaucus1  #aj4   
#faa2--like the eye1 #f4 #ejh2 #g4      
#eah2--;harmony of the soul1 produced by
  temperance1 #d4 #dcj1 #ddb1 #ddc 7cp4 
#i4 #eia ,d1 and ,laws #b4 #fec         
,b72--eye of  the soul1 #g4 #eah ,d1    
#ebg ,e1 #ecc ,d1 #edj ,a2--five forms  
of the state and  soul1 #d4 #dde2 #e4   
#ddi2 #i4 #egg4    ,soul4 ,the          
psychology of the ,republic1 while      
agreeing generally with that  of the    
other ,dialogues1 is in some respects a 
modification or developement  of their  

conclusions4--,the division of the soul 
into three elements1  reason1 spirit1   
appetite1 here first assumes a precise  
form1 and  henceforward has a permanent 
place in the language of philosophy 7cp4
  ,introd4 p4 lxvii74 ,on this division 
the distinction between forms of        
government is based 7see s4 v4          
,government74 ,virtue1 again1 is the    
harmony or accord of the different      
elements1 when the dictates of reason   
are enforced by passion against the     
appetites1 while vice is the anarchy  or
 discord of the soul when passion and   
appetite join in rebellion against      
reason 7cp4 #d4 #ddd2 #aj4 #fji foll42  
,soph4 #bbh2 ,pol4 #bif ,d2 ,laws #aj4  
#ijf  ,c4--,regarded from the           
intellectual side the soul is analysed  
into four  faculties1 reason1           
understanding1 faith1 knowledge of      
shadows4 ,these  severally correspond to
 the four divisions of knowledge 7#f4   
#eaa ,e71 two  for intellect and two for
 opinion2 and thus arises the ,platonic 

'proportion1'--being 3 becoming 33      
intellect 3 opinion1 and  science 3     
belief #cgb 33 understanding 3 knowledge
 of shadows4  ,these divisions are      
partly real1 partly formed by a logical 
process1  which1 as in so many          
distinctions of ancient philosophers1   
has outrun  fact1 and are further       
illustrated and explained by the        
allegory of the  cave in ,book ,,vii    
7see ,introduction1 p4 xciv74--,the     
pre-existence and  the immortality of   
the soul are assumed4 ,the doctrine of  
,greek3  a7na_/mnsis or 'remembrance of 
a previous birth' is not so much dwelt  
upon as in the ,meno1 ,phaedo1 or       
,phaedrus1 neither is it made a proof of
  immortality 7,meno #hf2 ,phaedo #gc74 
,it is apparently alluded to in the     
story of ,er1 where we are told that    
'the pilgrims drank the waters of       
,unmindfulness2 the foolish took too    
deep a draught1 but the wise were more  
moderate' 7#aj4 #fba ,a74 ,in the ,xth  
,book ,glaucon is supposed to receive   

with amazement ,socrates' confident     
assertion of immortality1 although a    
previous allusion to another state of   
existence has passed unheeded 7#f4  #dih
 ,d72 and in earlier parts of the       
discussion 7e4g4 #b4 #cfb2 #c4 #chf71   
the censure which is passed on the      
common representations of ,hades        
implies in itself some belief in a      
future life cp4 ,introduction to        
,phaedo1 ,vol4 ,i4 ,the argument for the
 immortality of the soul is not  drawn  
out at great length or with the emphasis
 of the ,phaedo4 ,it is  chiefly of a   
verbal character3--,all things which    
perish are destroyed by  some inherent  
evil2 but the soul is not destroyed by  
sin1 which is the  evil proper to her1  
and must therefore be immortal 7cp4     
,introd4 p4  clxvi74--,the condition of 
the soul after death is represented by  
,plato in  his favourite form of a myth 
cp4 ,meno #ha2 ,phaedo #hh2 ,gorg4 #ebb4
 ,the  ,pamphylian warrior ,er1 who is  
supposed to have died in battle1 revives

  when placed on the funeral pyre and   
relates his experiences in the other    
world4 ,he tells how the just are       
rewarded and the wicked punished1 and is
  privileged to describe the spectacle  
which he had witnessed of the choice  of
 a new life by the pilgrim souls4 ,the  
reward of release from bodily  existence
 is not held out to the philosopher     
7,phaedo #aad ,c71 but his  wisdom1     
which has a deeper root than habit 7#aj4
 #fai71 preserves him from  overhaste in
 his choice and ensures him a happy     
destiny4--,the  transmigration of souls 
is represented in the myth much as in   
the ,phaedrus  and ,timaeus4 ,plato in  
all likelihood derived the doctrine from
 an ,oriental  source1 but through      
,pythagorean channels4 ,it probably had 
a real hold on  his mind1 as it agreed1 
or could be made to agree1 with the     
conviction1  which he elsewhere         
expresses1 of the remedial nature of    
punishment cp4  ,protag4 #cbc2 ,gorg4   
#ebc-ebe4    ,sounds in music1 #g4 #eca 

,a4    ,sparta4 ,see ,lacedaemon4       
,spectator1 the1 unconsciously          
influenced by what he sees and hears1   
#aj4  #fje1 #fjf cp4 ,laws #b4 #fef ,a1 
#fei ,c2--the philosopher the spectator 
of  all time and all existence1 #f4 #dhf
 ,a cp4 ,theaet4 #agc ,e4               
,spendthrifts1 in ,greek states1 #h4    
#efd4    ,spercheius1 the river-god1 #c4
 #cia ,b4    ,spirit1 must be combined  
with gentleness in the guardians1 #b4   
#cge2 #c4 #daj2  #f4 #ejc cp4 ,laws #e4 
#gca ,b2 characteristic of northern     
nations1 #d4 #dce  ,e2 found in quite   
young children1 ib4 #dda ,a cp4 ,laws2  
#ab4 #cgc  #ifc3--the spirited 7or      
passionate7 element in the soul1 ib4    
#ddj foll42  #f4 #ejd ,a2 #h4 #eej ,a2  
#i4 #egb ,a1 #ehj ,e2 must be subject to
 the rational part1  #d4 #dda ,e cp4    
,tim4 #cj ,c1 #gj1 #hi ,d2 predominant  
in the timocratic state  and man1 #h4   
#edh1 #eej ,b2 characterised by         
ambition1 #i4 #eha ,b2 its  pleasures1  
ib4 #ehf ,d2 the favourite object of the

 poet's imitation1 #aj4  #fjd1 #fje4    
,stars1 motion of the1 #g4 #ebi1 #ecj2  
#aj4 #faf ,e4    ,state1 relation of1 to
 the individual1 #b4 #cfh2 #d4 #dcd1    
#dda2 #e4 #dfb2 #h4  #edd2 #i4 #egg ,b  
cp4 ,laws #c4 #fhi2 #e4 #gci2 #i4 #hge1 
#hgg ,c2 #aa4 #ibc2 origin  of1 #b4 #cfi
 foll4 cp4 ,laws #c4 #fgh foll42 should 
be in unity1 #d4 #dbb2 #e4  #dfc cp4    
,laws #e4 #gci2 place of the virtues in1
 #d4 #dbh foll42 virtue of  state and   
individual1 ib4 #dda2 #f4 #dih ,e2      
family life in1 #e4 #ddi cp4  ,laws #e4 
#gdj3--the luxurious state1 #b4 #cgb ,d 
foll43--the best state2  classes must be
 kept distinct1 ib4 #cgd2 #c4 #cgi ,e1  
#dae ,a2 #d4 #dba1 #dcc ,a1  #dcd1 #dda 
,e1 #ddc2 #e4 #dec 7cp4 #h4 #eeb ,a1 and
 ,laws #h4 #hdf ,e72 the rulers  must be
 philosophers1 #b4 #cgf2 #e4 #dgc2 #f4  
#dhd1 #dig foll41 #eja1 #ejc ,b2 #g4    
#ebj1 #eba1 #ebe ,b1 #edj2 #h4 #edc 7cp4
 ,rulers72 the government must have the 
monopoly of lying1 #b4 #chb2 #c4 #chi   
,a1 #dad ,c2 #e4 #dei ,d cp4 ,laws #b4  

#ffc ,e2  the poets to be banished1 #c4 
#cih ,a2 #h4 #efh ,b2 #aj4 #eie foll41  
#fje ,a1  #fjg ,a cp4 ,laws #g4 #hag2   
the older must bear rule1 the younger   
obey1  #c4 #dab cp4 ,laws #c4 #fij ,a2  
#d4 #gad ,e2 women1 children1 and goods 
to be  common1 ib4 #daf2 #e4 #dej ,e1   
#deg foll41 #dfb1 #dfd2 #h4 #edc ,a cp4 
,laws #e4  #gci2 #g4 #hjg ,b2 must be   
happy as a whole1 #d4 #dbj ,d2 #e4 #dff 
,a2 #g4 #eai ,e2  will easily master    
other states in war1 #d4 #dbb2 must be  
of a size which is  not inconsistent    
with unity1 ib4 #dbc cp4 ,laws #e4 #gcg2
 composed of  three classes1 traders1   
auxiliaries1 counsellors1 ib4 #dda ,a2  
may be  either a monarchy or an         
aristocracy1 ib4 #dde ,c 7cp4 #i4 #egf  
,d72 will form  one family1 #e4 #dfc cp4
 ,pol4 #bei2 will be free from quarrels 
and  law-suits1 #b4 #cgh2 #e4 #dfd1     
#dfe2--;is it possible8 #e4 #dga1 #dgc2 
#f4 #dii2 #g4  #edj cp4 #g4 #ebj and    
,laws #d4 #gaa ,e2 #e4 #gci2 framed     
after the heavenly  pattern1 #f4 #ejj   

,e2 #g4 #edj ,a2 #i4 #eib2 how to be    
commenced1 #f4 #eja2 #g4 #edj2  manner  
of its decline1 #h4 #edf cp4 ,crit4     
#abj2--the best state that in  which the
 rulers least desire office1 #g4 #ebj1  
#eba3--the four imperfect  forms of     
states1 #d4 #dde ,b2 #h4 #edd cp4 ,pol4 
#bia foll41 #cia foll42  succession of  
states1 #h4 #ede foll4 7cp4 ,government1
 forms of73--existing  states not one   
but many1 #d4 #dbc ,a2 nearly all       
corrupt1 #f4 #dif2 #g4 #eai1  #ebj2 #i4 
#eib4    ,state4 ,the polity of which   
,plato 'sketches the outline' in the    
,republic  may be analysed into two     
principal elements1 ,i1 an ,hellenic    
state of the  older or ,spartan type1   
with some traits borrowed from ,athens1 
,,ii1 an  ideal city in which the       
citizens have all things in common1 and 
the  government is carried on by a class
 of philosopher rulers who are selected 
by merit4 ,these two elements are not   
perfectly combined2 and1 as ,aristotle  
complains 7,pol4 ii4 #e1  #ah71 very    

much is left ill-defined and            
uncertain4--,i4 ,like ,hellenic cities  
in general1 the number of the  citizens 
is not to be great4 ,the size of the    
state is limited by the  requirement    
that 'it shall not be larger or smaller 
than is consistent  with unity4' ,the   
'convenient number' #ejdj1 which is #cgd
 suggested  in the ,laws 7v4 #gcg71 is  
regarded by ,aristotle 7,pol4 ii4 #f1   
#f7 as an  'enormous multitude4' ,again1
 the individual is subordinate to the   
state4 ,when ,adeimantus complains of   
the hard life which the citizens will   
lead1 'like mercenaries in a garrison'  
7#d4 #dai71 he is answered by  ,socrates
 that if the happiness of the whole is  
secured1 the happiness of  the parts    
will inevitably follow4 ,once more1 war 
is supposed to be the  normal condition 
of the state1 and military service is   
imposed upon all4  ,the profession of   
arms is the only one in which the       
citizen may properly  engage4 ,trade is 
regarded as dishonourable3--'those who  

are good for  nothing else sit in the   
,agora buying and selling' 7#b4 #cga    
,d72 the  warrior can spare no time for 
such an employment 7ib4 #cgd ,c74 ,in   
the  ,laws ,plato's ideas enlarge2 he   
thinks that peace is to be preferred to 
war 7#a4 #fbh72 and he speculates on the
 possibility of redeeming trade  from   
reproach by compelling some of the best 
citizens to open a shop or  keep a      
tavern 7#aa4 #iah74--;,in these         
respects1 as well as in the             
introduction of common meals1 ,plato was
 probably influenced by the  traditional
 ideal of ,sparta cp4 ,introd4 p4 clxx4 
,the ,athenian  element appears in the  
intellectual training of the citizens1  
and  generally in the atmosphere of     
grace and refinement which they are to  
breathe 7see s4 v4 ,art74 ,the restless 
energy of the ,athenian character  is   
perhaps reflected in the discipline     
imposed upon the ruling class  7#g4     
#edj71 who when they have reached fifty 
are dispensed from continuous  public   

service1 but must then devote themselves
 to abstract study1 and  also be willing
 to take their turn when necessary at   
the helm of state  cp4 ,laws #g4 #hjg2  
,thucyd4 i4 #gj2 ii4 #dj4--;,,ii4 ,the  
most peculiar  features of ,plato's     
state are 7#a7 the community of         
property1 7#b7 the  position of women1  
7#c7 the government of philosophers4    
7#a7 ,the first  7see s4 v471 though    
suggested in some measure by the example
 of ,sparta  or ,crete cp4 ,arist4 ,pol4
 ii4 #e1  #f1 is not known to have been 
actually practised anywhere in ,hellas1 
unless possibly among such a body  as   
the ,pythagorean brotherhood4 7#b7      
,nothing in all the ,republic was       
probably stranger to his contemporaries 
than the place which ,plato assigns  to 
women in the state4 ,the community of   
wives and children1 though  carefully   
guarded by him from the charge of       
licentiousness 7#e4 #deh ,e71  would    
appear worse in ,athenian eyes than the 
traditional 'licence' of the  ,spartan  

women ,arist4 ,pol4 ii4 #i1  #e71 which1
 so far as it really  existed1 no doubt 
arose out of an excessive regard to     
physical  considerations in marriage4   
,again1 the equal share in education1 in
 war1  and in administration which the  
women are supposed to enjoy in ,plato's 
state1 was1 if not so revolting1 quite  
as contrary to common ,hellenic         
sentiment cp4 ,thucyd4 ii4 #de4 ,the    
,spartan women exercised a great        
influence on public affairs1 but this   
was mainly indirect cp4 ,laws #g4  #hjf2
 ,arist4 ,pol4 ii4 #i1  #h2 they did not
 hold office or learn the use  of arms4 
,at ,athens1 as is well known1 the      
women1 of the upper classes at  least1  
lived in an almost ,oriental seclusion1 
and were wholly absorbed in  household  
duties 7,laws #g4 #hje ,e74 7#c7        
,finally1 the government of             
philosophers had no analogy in the      
,hellenic world of #cge ,plato's time4  
,he may have taken the suggestion from  
the stories of the ,pythagorean rule  in

 ,magna ,graecia4 ,but it is also       
possible that these accounts of the     
brotherhood of ,pythagoras1 some of     
which have reached us on very doubtful  
authority1 may be themselves to a       
considerable extent coloured and        
distorted by features adapted from the  
,republic4 ,whether this is the case  or
 not1 we can hardly doubt that ,plato   
was chiefly indebted to his own         
imagination for his kingdom of          
philosophers1 or that it remained to    
himself an ideal1 rather than a state   
which would ever 'play her part in      
actual life' 7,tim4 #ai1 #bj74 ,it is at
 least significant that he never        
finished the ,critias1 as though he were
 unable to embody1 even in a  mythical  
form1 the 'city of which the pattern is 
laid up in heaven4'    ,statesmen in    
their own imagination1 #d4 #dbf4        
,statues1 polished for a decision1 #b4  
#cfa ,d2 painted1 #d4 #dbj ,d4          
,steadiness of character1 apt to be     
accompanied by stupidity1 #f4 #ejc cp4  

,theaet4 #add ,b4    ,stesichorus1 says 
that ,helen was never at ,troy1 #i4 #ehf
 ,c4    ,stories1 improper1 not to be   
told to children1 #b4 #cgg2 #c4 #cia4   
,cp4  ,children1 ,education4            
,strength1 rule of1 #a4 #cch4    ,style 
of poetry1 #c4 #cib2--styles1 various1  
ib4 #cig4    ,styx1 #c4 #chg ,b4        
,suits1 will be unknown in the best     
state1 #e4 #dfd ,e4    ,sumptuary laws1 
#d4 #dbc1 #dbe4    ,sun1 the1 compared  
with the idea of good1 #f4 #ejh2 not    
sight1 but the  author of sight1 ib4    
#eji2--'the sun of ,heracleitus1' ib4   
#dih ,a4    ,supposititious son1 parable
 of the1 #g4 #ech4    ,sympathy1 of soul
 and body1 #e4 #dfb ,d1 #dfd ,b2 aroused
 by poetry1 #aj4 #fje ,b4    ,syracusan 
dinners1 #c4 #djd ,d4      ,t4          
,tactics1 use of arithmetic in1 #g4 #ebb
 ,e1 #ebe ,b4    ,tartarus 7 hell71 #aj4
 #faf ,a4    ,taste1 good1 importance   
of1 #c4 #dja1 #djb4    ,taxes1 heavy1   
imposed by the tyrant1 #h4 #efg ,a1 #efh
 ,e4    ,teiresias1 alone has           

understanding among the dead1 #c4 #chf  
,e4    ,telamon1 #aj4 #fbj ,b4          
,temperance 7,greek3 sphrosu_/n71 in the
 state1 #c4 #chi2 #d4 #dcj foll4  cp4   
,laws #c4 #fif2 temperance and love1 #c4
 #djc ,a2 fostered in the soul  by the  
simple kind of music1 ib4 #djd ,e1 #daj 
,a2 a harmony of the soul1  #d4 #dcj1   
#dda ,e1 #ddb ,d1 #ddc 7cp4 #i4 #eia ,d1
 and ,laws #b4 #fec ,b72 one of the     
philosopher's virtues1 #f4 #dhe ,e1 #dij
 ,e1 #dia ,b1 #did ,b cp4 ,phaedo #fh4  
,temple-robbing1 #i4 #egd ,d1 #ege ,b4  
,territory1 devastation of ,hellenic1   
not to be allowed1 #e4 #dgj2--unlimited1
  not required by the good state1 #d4   
#dbc cp4 ,laws #e4 #gcg4    ,thales1    
inventions of1 #aj4 #fjj ,a4            
,thamyras1 soul of1 chooses the life of 
a nightingale1 #aj4 #fbj ,a4            
,theages1 the bridle of1 #f4 #dif ,b4   
,themis1 did not instigate the strife   
with the gods1 #b4 #cgi ,e4             
,themistocles1 answer of1 to the        
,seriphian1 #a4 #ccj ,a4    ,theology of

 ,plato1 #b4 #cgi foll4 ,cp4 ,god4      
,thersites1 puts on the form of a       
monkey1 #aj4 #fbj ,c4    ,theseus1 the  
tale of1 and ,peirithous not permitted1 
#c4 #cia ,c4    ,thetis1 not to be      
slandered1 #b4 #cha ,d2 #cgf her        
accusation of ,apollo1  ib4 #chc ,a4    
,thirst1 #d4 #dcg ,e1 #dci2 an inanition
 7,greek3 ke_/nsis7 of the body1 #i4    
#ehe ,a4    ,thracians1 procession of1  
in honour of ,bendis1 #a4 #cbg ,a2      
characterised by  spirit or passion1 #d4
 #dce ,e4    ,thrasymachus1 the         
,chalcedonian1 a person in the dialogue1
 #a4 #cbh ,b2  described1 ib4 #ccf ,b2  
will be paid1 ib4 #ccg ,d2 defines      
justice1 ib4  #cch ,c foll42 his        
rudeness1 ib4 #cdc ,a2 his views of     
government1 ibid4  7cp4 #i4 #eij ,d72   
his encomium on injustice1 #a4 #cdc ,a2 
his manner of speech1  ib4 #cde ,b2 his 
paradox about justice and injustice1 ib4
 #cdh ,b foll42  he blushes1 ib4 #cej   
,d2 is pacified1 and retires from the   
argument1 ib4  #ced 7cp4 #f4 #dih ,c72  

would have ,socrates discuss the subject
 of women and  children1 #e4 #dej4      
,timocracy1 #h4 #ede foll42 origin of1  
ib4 #edg3--the timocratical man1        
described1 #h4 #edi2 his origin1 ibid4  
,tinker1 the prosperous1 #f4 #die1 #dif4
    ,tops1 #d4 #dcf4    ,torch race1 an 
equestrian1 #a4 #cbh ,a4    ,touch1 #g4 
#ebc ,e4    ,traders1 necessary in the  
state1 #b4 #cga4    ,traditions of      
ancient times1 their truth not certainly
 known to us1 #b4 #chb  ,c 7cp4 #c4 #dad
 ,c1 and ,tim4 #dj ,d2 ,crit4 #ajg2     
,pol4 #bga ,a2 ,laws #d4 #gac ,e2  #f4  
#ghb ,d74    ,tragedy and comedy in the 
state1 #c4 #cid cp4 ,laws #g4 #hag4     
,tragic poets1 the1 eulogizers of       
tyranny1 #h4 #efh ,a2 imitators1 #aj4   
#eig1  #eih4    ,training1 dangers of1  
#c4 #djd ,a2 severity of1 #f4 #ejd ,a   
7cp4 #g4 #ece ,b74    ,transfer of      
children from one class to another1 #c4 
#dae2 #d4 #dbc ,d4    ,transmigration of
 souls1 #aj4 #fag4 ,see ,soul4          
,trochaic rhythms1 #c4 #djj ,b4         

,troy1 #c4 #cic ,e2 ,helen never at1 #i4
 #ehf ,c3--,trojan ,war1 #b4 #chj ,a3   
treatment  of the wounded in1 #c4 #dje  
,e1 #djh ,a2 the army numbered by       
,palamedes1  #g4 #ebb ,d4    ,truth1 is 
not lost by men of their own will1 #c4  
#dac ,a2 the aim of the  philosopher1   
#f4 #dhd1 #dhe1 #dhf ,e1 #dij1 #ejj ,c1 
#eja ,d2 #g4 #eba1 #ecg ,d2 #i4 #eha1   
#ehb ,c 7cp4 supra #e4 #dge ,e2 #g4     
#ebj1 #ebe2 and ,phaedo #hb2 ,phaedr4   
#bdi2  ,theaet4 #agc ,e2 ,soph4 #bdi ,d1
 #bed ,a72 akin to wisdom1 #f4 #dhe ,d2 
to  proportion1 ib4 #dhf ,e2 no partial 
measure of1 sufficient1 ib4 #ejd2  love 
of1 essential in this world and the     
next1 #aj4 #fah2--truth and  essence1   
#i4 #ehe ,d4    ,tyranny1 #a4 #cch ,d2  
injustice on the grand scale1 ib4 #cdd  
cp4 ,gorg4  #dfi2 the wretchedest form  
of government1 #h4 #edd ,c2 #i4 #egf cp4
 ,pol4  #cjb ,e2 origin of1 #h4 #efb1   
#efd3--the tyrannical man1 #i4 #ega     
foll42 life  of1 ib4 #egc2 his treatment
 of his parents1 ib4 #egd2 most         

miserable1  ib4 #egf1 #egh2 has the soul
 of a slave1 ib4 #egg4    ,tyrant1 the1 
origin of1 #h4 #efe2 happiness of1 ib4  
#eff foll42 #i4 #egf  foll4 cp4 ,laws   
#b4 #ffa ,b2 his rise to power1 #h4     
#eff2 his taxes1 ib4  #efg ,a1 #efh ,e2 
his army1 ib4 #efg ,a1 #efi2 his        
purgation of the city1 ib4  #efg ,b2    
misery of1 #i4 #egi2 has no real        
pleasure1 ib4 #ehg2 how far distant     
from pleasure1 ibid43--,tyrants and     
poets1 #h4 #efh2 have no friends1       
ibid42 #i4 #egf cp4 ,gorg4 #eaj ,c2     
punishment of1 in the world below1  #aj4
 #fae cp4 ,gorg4 #ebe4      ,u4         
,understanding1 a faculty of the soul1  
#f4 #eaa ,d2  science1 #g4 #ecc ,e4     
,union impossible among the bad1 #a4    
#ceb ,a cp4 ,lysis #bad4 #cgg    ,unity 
of the state1 #d4 #dbb1 #dbc2 #e4 #dfb1 
#dfc cp4 ,laws #e4 #gci2  --absolute    
unity1 #g4 #ebd ,e1 #ebe ,e2 unity and  
plurality1 ibid4    ,unjust man1 the1   
happy 7,thrasymachus71 #a4 #cdc1 #cdd   
cp4 ,gorg4 #dgj  foll42 his unhappiness 

finally proved1 #i4 #ehj2 #aj4          
#fac3--;injustice   private profit1 #a4 
#cdd 7see ,injustice74    ,uranus1      
immoral stories about1 #b4 #cgg ,e4     
,user1 the1 a better judge than the     
maker1 #aj4 #fja ,c cp4 ,crat4 #cij4    
,usury1 sometimes not protected by law1 
#h4 #eef ,a cp4 ,laws #e4 #gdb ,c4      
,v4      ,valetudinarianism1 #c4 #djf2  
#d4 #dbf ,a4    ,valour1 prizes of1 #e4 
#dfh4    ,vice1 the disease of the soul1
 #d4 #ddd2 #aj4 #fji foll4 cp4 ,soph4   
#bbh2  ,pol4 #bif ,d2 ,laws #aj4 #ijf   
,c2 is many1 #d4 #dde2 the proper object
 of  ridicule1 #e4 #deb ,e2--fine names 
for the vices1 #h4 #efj ,e4 ,cp4        
,injustice4    ,virtue and justice1 #a4 
#cej cp4 ,meno #gc ,e1 #gi2 thought by  
mankind to be  toilsome1 #b4 #cfd ,a cp4
 ,laws #hjg ,d2 virtue and harmony1 #c4 
#dja ,a 7cp4  #g4 #ebb ,a72 virtue and  
pleasure1 #c4 #djb ,e 7cp4 ,pleasure72  
not promoted by  excessive care of the  
body1 ib4 #djg 7cp4 #i4 #eia ,d72 makes 
men wise1 #c4  #dji ,e2 divided into    

parts1 #d4 #dbh foll41 #dcc2 in the     
individual and the  state1 ib4 #dce     
foll41 #dda 7cp4 ,justice72 the health  
of the soul1 ib4  #ddd 7cp4 #aj4 #fji   
foll41 and ,soph4 #bbh2 ,pol4 #bif ,d72 
is one1 ib4 #dde2  may be a matter of   
habit1 #g4 #eah ,e2 #aj4 #fai ,d2       
impeded by wealth1 #h4 #eej ,e  cp4     
,laws #e4 #gbh ,a1 #gdb2 #h4 #hca1 #hcf 
,a2--virtues of the philosopher1 #f4    
#dhe foll41 #dij ,d1 #dia ,b1 #did ,b   
7cp4 ,philosopher72 place of the several
  virtues in the state1 #d4 #dbg foll4  
,visible world1 divisions of1 #f4 #eaj  
foll42 #g4 #eag2 compared to the        
intellectual1 #f4 #ejh1 #eji2 #g4 #ecb  
,a4    ,vision1 #e4 #dgg2 #f4 #ejh2 #g4 
#eag4 ,see ,sight4      ,w4      ,war1  
causes of1 #b4 #cgc2 #d4 #dbb foll42 #h4
 #edg ,a2 an art1 #b4 #cgd ,a 7cp4  #d4 
#dbb1 and ,laws #aa4 #iba ,e72 men1     
women1 and children to go to1 #e4 #deb  
foll41 #dfg1 #dga ,e2 #g4 #ecg ,a2      
regulations concerning1 #e4 #dfg-dga2 a 
matter  of chance1 ib4 #dfg ,e cp4 ,laws

 #a4 #fch ,a2 distinction between       
internal  and external1 ib4 #dgj ,a cp4 
,laws #a4 #fbh1 #fbi2 the guilt of1     
always  confined to a few persons1 ib4  
#dga ,b2 love of1 especially            
characteristic  of timocracy1 #h4 #edg  
,e2 cannot be easily waged by an        
oligarchy1 ib4 #eea  ,e2 the rich and   
the poor in war1 ib4 #eef ,c2 a         
favourite resource of the  tyrant1 ib4  
#efg ,a4    ,warrior1 the brave1 rewards
 of1 #e4 #dfh2 his burial1 ib4 ,e2 the  
warrior  must know how to count1 #g4    
#ebb ,e1 #ebe2 must be a geometrician1  
ib4 #ebf4    ,waves1 the three1 #e4 #deg
 ,c1 #dgb ,a1 #dgc ,c4    ,weak1 the1 by
 nature subject to the strong1 #a4 #cch 
cp4 ,gorg4 #dhi2 ,laws  #c4 #fij ,b2 not
 capable of much1 either for good or    
evil1 #f4 #dia ,e1 #die ,b4    ,wealth1 
the advantage of1 in old age1 #a4 #cbi1 
#ccj2 the greatest blessing  of1 ib4    
#ccj1 #cca2 the destruction of the arts1
 #d4 #dba2 influence of1 on  the state1 
ib4 #dbb ,a cp4 ,laws #d4 #gje2 #e4 #gbi

 ,a2 the 'sinews of war1'  ibid42       
all-powerful in oligarchies and         
timocracies1 #h4 #edh ,a1 #eea ,b1 #eec1
  #efb ,a2 an impediment to virtue1 #cgh
 ib4 #eej ,e cp4 ,laws #e4 #gbh ,a2     
#gdb ,e2 #h4 #hca1 #hcf ,a2 should only 
be acquired to a moderate amount1 #i4   
#eia ,e cp4 ,laws #g4 #hja ,b3--the     
blind god of wealth 7,pluto71 #h4 #eed  
,b3  --,wealthy1 the1 everywhere hostile
 to the poor1 #d4 #dbc ,a2 #h4 #eea ,e  
cp4 ,laws #e4 #gcf ,a2 flattered by     
them1 #e4 #dfe ,c2 the wealthy and the  
wise1 #f4 #dhi ,b2 plundered by the     
multitude in democracies1 #h4 #efd1     
#efe4    ,weaving1 the art of1 #c4 #dja 
,a2 #e4 #dee ,d4    ,weep1 the guardians
 not to1 #c4 #chg ,c 7cp4 #aj4 #fjc ,e74
    ,weighing1 art of1 corrects the     
illusions of sight1 #aj4 #fjb ,d4       
,whole1 the1 in regard to the happiness 
of the state1 #d4 #dbj ,d2 #e4 #dff ,a2 
#g4 #eai ,e2 in love1 #e4 #dgd ,c1 #dge 
,b2 #f4 #dhe ,b4    ,whorl1 the great1  
#aj4 #faf4    ,wicked1 the1 punishment  

of1 in the world below1 #b4 #cfc2 #aj4  
#fad2 thought  by men to be happy1 #a4  
#ced2 #b4 #cfd ,a2 #c4 #cib ,b 7cp4 #h4 
#ede ,a1 and ,gorg4  #dgj foll42 ,laws  
#b4 #ff #a2 #aj4 #hii ,e1 #ije ,a74     
,wine1 lovers of1 #e4 #dge ,a4          
,wisdom 7,greek3 sophi_/a1 phro_/nsis7  
and injustice1 #a4 #cdi1 #cej2 in the   
state1 #d4 #dbh2 akin to truth1 #f4 #dhe
 ,d2 the power of1 #g4 #eah1 #eai2 the  
only virtue which is innate in us1 ib4  
#eah ,e4    ,wise man1 the1  the good1  
#a4 #cej cp4 #a ,alcib4 #abd1 #abe2     
definition  of1 #d4 #ddb ,c2 alone has  
true pleasure1 #i4 #ehc ,b2 life of1 ib4
 #eia2--'the  wise to go to the doors of
 the rich1' #f4 #dhi ,b2--wise men said 
to be the  friends of the tyrant1 #h4   
#efh4    ,wives to be common in the     
state1 #e4 #deg foll42 #h4 #edc4        
,wolves1 men changed into1 #h4 #efe ,d2 
'wolf and flock' 7proverb71 #c4 #dae ,d4
    ,women1 employments of1 #e4 #dee2   
differences of taste in1 ib4 #def2 fond 
of  complaining1 #h4 #edi ,d2 supposed  

to differ in nature from men1 #e4 #dec2 
inferior to men1 ib4 #dee cp4 ,tim4 #db2
 ,laws #f4 #gha2 ought to be  trained   
like men1 ib4 #dea1 #dff cp4 ,laws #g4  
#hje2 #h4 #hbi ,e2 in the  gymnasia1 ib4
 #deb1 #deg cp4 ,laws #g4 #hac1 #had2   
#h4 #hcc2 in war1 ib4  #dec foll41 #dff 
,e1 #dga ,e cp4 ,laws #f4 #ghe2 #g4     
#hjf1 #had ,a2 to be  guardians1 ib4    
#def1 #deh1 #dfh2 #g4 #edj ,c2 7and     
children7 to be common1 #e4  #dej ,e1   
#deg foll41 #dfb1 #dfd2 #h4 #edc cp4    
,laws #e4 #gci4 ,see supra s4 v4        
,state1 p4 #cgd4    ,world1 the1 cannot 
be a philosopher1 #f4 #did ,a4    ,world
 below1 the1 seems very near to the     
aged1 #a4 #ccj ,e2 not to be  reviled1  
#c4 #chf foll4 cp4 ,crat4 #djc2 ,laws   
#e4 #gbg ,e2 #h4 #hbh ,d2 pleasure  of  
discourse in1 #f4 #dih ,d cp4 ,apol4    
#da2 punishment of the wicked in1  #b4  
#cfc2 #aj4 #fad foll42 sex in1 #aj4 #fah
 ,b2--heroes who have ascended from  the
 world below to the gods1 #g4 #eba ,c4  
,x4      ,xerxes1 perhaps author of the 

maxim that justice  paying one's debts1 
#a4 #ccf ,a4      ,y4      ,young1 the1 
how affected by the common praises of   
injustice1 #b4 #cfe2  cannot understand 
allegory1 ib4 #cgh ,e2 must be subject  
in the state1  #c4 #dab ,b cp4 ,laws #c4
 #fij ,a2 #d4 #gad ,e2 must submit to   
their elders1  #e4 #dfe ,a cp4 ,laws #d4
 #gba ,d2 #i4 #hgi ,c2 #aa4 #iag ,a4    
,cp4 ,children1  ,education4    ,youth1 
the corruption of1 not to be attributed 
to the ,sophists1 but to  #cgi public   
opinion1 #f4 #dib ,a2--youthful         
enthusiasm for metaphysics1 #g4  #eci ,b
 cp4 ,phil4 #ae ,e2--youthful           
scepticism1 not of long continuance1    
ib4 ,d cp4 ,soph4 #bcd ,e2 ,laws #aj4   
#hhh ,b4      ,z4      ,zeus1 his       
treatment of his father1 #b4 #cgg ,e2   
throws ,hephaestus from  heaven1 ib4    
#cgh ,d2--,achilles descended from1 #c4 
#cia ,c2--did not cause  the violation  
of the treaty in the ,trojan ,war1 or   
the strife of the gods1  #b4 #cgi ,e2 or
 send the lying dream to ,agamemnon1 ib4

 #chc ,a2 or lust for  ,her1 #c4 #cij   
,b2 ought not to have been described by 
,homer as lamenting for  ,achilles and  
,sarpedon1 ib4 #chh ,c2--,lycaean ,zeus1
 #h4 #efe ,d2--,olympian  ,zeus1 #i4    
#ehc ,b4          ,,the ,,end4          
,oxford    ,,printed ,,at ,,the         
,,clarendon ,,press    ,,by ,,horace    
,,hart    ,,printer ,,to ,,the          
,,university                 99       99
       99       99       99             
,transcriber's ,note      ,the reference
 text was kindly provided by the        
,internet ,archive1                     
https3_/_/archive4org_/download_/a#fjdeg
hdjjplatuoft_/a#fjdeghdjjplatuoft4pdf4  
,corrections and ,emendations    ,in the
 ,introduction page xxv1 a final        
quotation mark has been restored that   
dropped out after the first edition4 ,on
 page l1 ,shakespere has been changed   
to ,shakespeare4    ,in section #dad ,c1
 the third edition closes a parenthesis 
with a comma1 thus  172 the comma has   
been deleted as in earlier editions4    

,in the ,index1 s4v4 ,aglaion1 the name 
has been made consistent with the  text2
 it reads ,aglaon in the #crd edition4  
,s4v4 ,athen1 ,acheans has been  changed
 to ,achaeans to maintain consistency1  
s4v4 ,festival1 ,bendidaea  has been    
changed to ,bendidea1 and s4v4 ,luxury1 
,lycean has been changed to  ,lycaean1  
for the same reason4 ,various other     
inconsistencies have been left          
untouched 7e4g4 ,arist4 ,pol4 ii4 #i1   
#e7 in the ,index in the article on     
,state2 italicising of supra1 etc474    
,in the ,index also1 a reference1 s4v4  
,intoxication1 to ,drinking fails to    
refer2 it should be to ,drunkenness4    
,conventions in this text    ,sidenotes 
in the ,introduction and material in the
 left margin of the  translated part of 
the book have been labelled ,sidenote3  
and placed above  the paragraph beside  
which they are placed4    ,page numbers 
have been placed in the body of the text
 within 4    ,material in the right     
margin1 the ,stephanus numbering1 has   

been placed in  the body of the text    
within 9999 - in the translated text the
 section  letters 7,a-,e7 have been     
taken from a two-volume edition         
published in #aijh  and all ,stephanus  
numbers in the translation have been    
given in full 7so  #efe;,a instead of   
#efe1 and note that the space between   
number and letter has  been omitted74   
,page numbers and the ,stephanus        
numbering have been given a  space on   
either side1 even when this goes against
 ,project ,gutenberg  conventions4      
,footnotes have been labelled ,footnote 
and have been placed below the          
paragraph in which they occur4 ,they are
 numbered consecutively within the      
,introduction and each ,book of the     
translation4    ,greek has been         
transliterated in full3 7 is used for   
smooth breathing2 7  for hard2  for     
diaeresis2 _/ for acute accent2  for    
grave2  for  circumflex2  for iota      
subscript2 ch is used for chi1 ph for   
phi1 ps for  psi1 th for theta2  for eta

 and  for omega2 u is used for upsilon  
in all  cases4