Plato, Republic, Paul Shorey (Translator), 6.489

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[489] With such goings-on aboard ship do you not think that the real pilot would in very deed¹ be called a star-gazer, an idle babbler, 489a a useless fellow, by the sailors in ships managed after this fashion? Quite so, said Adeimantus. You take my meaning, I presume, and do not require us to put the comparison to the proof² and show that the condition³ we have described is the exact counterpart of the relation of the state to the true philosophers. It is indeed, he said. To begin with, then, teach this parable⁴ to the man who is surprised that philosophers are not honored in our cities, and try to convince him that it would be far more surprising 489b if they were honored. I will teach him,⁵ he said. And say to him further: You are right in affirming that the finest spirit among the philosophers are of no service to the multitude. But bid him blame for this uselessness,⁶ not the finer spirits, but those who do not know how to make use of them. For it is not the natural⁷ course of things that the pilot should beg the sailors to be ruled by him or that wise men should go to the doors of the rich.⁸ The author of that epigram⁹ was a liar. But the true nature of things is that whether the sick man be rich or poor he must needs go to the door of the physician, 489c and everyone who needs to be governed¹⁰ to the door of the man who knows how to govern, not that the ruler should implore his natural subjects to let themselves be ruled, if he is really good for anything.¹¹ But you will make no mistake in likening our present political rulers to the sort of sailors we are just describing, and those whom these call useless and star-gazing ideologists to the true pilots. Just so, he said. Hence, and under these conditions, we cannot expect that the noblest pursuit should be highly esteemed by those whose way of life is quite the contrary. 489d But far the greatest and chief disparagement of philosophy is brought upon it by the pretenders¹² to that way of life, those whom you had in mind when you affirmed that the accuser of philosophy says that the majority of her followers¹³ are rascals and the better sort useless, while I admitted¹⁴ that what you said was true. Is not that so? Yes.
Have we not, then, explained the cause of the uselessness of the better sort? We have. Shall we next set forth the inevitableness of the degeneracy of the majority, and try to show if we can that philosophy 489e is not to be blamed for this either? By all means.

Republic. Plato. Paul Shorey (Translator). Cambridge, MA. 1935-37.

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Current edition Perseus

Republic (English) (Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vol. 5-6. Shorey, Paul, translator. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1935-37 (printing).)

Editions (1)

Πολιτεία Perseus (Platonis Opera Tomus IV: Tetralogia VIII. Burnet, John, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1905.) — 6.489 focus

[489] τοιούτων δὴ περὶ τὰς ναῦς γιγνομένων τὸν ὡς ἀληθῶς κυβερνητικὸν οὐχ ἡγῇ ἂν τῷ ὄντι μετεωροσκόπον 489a τε καὶ ἀδολέσχην καὶ ἄχρηστόν σφισι καλεῖσθαι ὑπὸ τῶν ἐν ταῖς οὕτω κατεσκευασμέναις ναυσὶ πλωτήρων;
καὶ μάλα, ἔφη ὁ Ἀδείμαντος.
οὐ δή, ἦν δʼ ἐγώ, οἶμαι δεῖσθαί σε ἐξεταζομένην τὴν εἰκόνα ἰδεῖν, ὅτι ταῖς πόλεσι πρὸς τοὺς ἀληθινοὺς φιλοσόφους τὴν διάθεσιν ἔοικεν, ἀλλὰ μανθάνειν ὃ λέγω.
καὶ μάλʼ, ἔφη.
πρῶτον μὲν τοίνυν ἐκεῖνον τὸν θαυμάζοντα ὅτι οἱ φιλόσοφοι οὐ τιμῶνται ἐν ταῖς πόλεσι δίδασκέ τε τὴν εἰκόνα καὶ πειρῶ πείθειν ὅτι πολὺ ἂν θαυμαστότερον ἦν 489b εἰ ἐτιμῶντο.
ἀλλὰ διδάξω, ἔφη.
καὶ ὅτι τοίνυν τἀληθῆ λέγεις, ὡς ἄχρηστοι τοῖς πολλοῖς οἱ ἐπιεικέστατοι τῶν ἐν φιλοσοφίᾳ· τῆς μέντοι ἀχρηστίας τοὺς μὴ χρωμένους κέλευε αἰτιᾶσθαι, ἀλλὰ μὴ τοὺς ἐπιεικεῖς. οὐ γὰρ ἔχει φύσιν κυβερνήτην ναυτῶν δεῖσθαι ἄρχεσθαι ὑφʼ αὑτοῦ οὐδὲ τοὺς σοφοὺς ἐπὶ τὰς τῶν πλουσίων θύρας ἰέναι, ἀλλʼ ὁ τοῦτο κομψευσάμενος ἐψεύσατο, τὸ δὲ ἀληθὲς πέφυκεν, ἐάντε πλούσιος ἐάντε πένης κάμνῃ, ἀναγκαῖον 489c εἶναι ἐπὶ ἰατρῶν θύρας ἰέναι καὶ πάντα τὸν ἄρχεσθαι δεόμενον ἐπὶ τὰς τοῦ ἄρχειν δυναμένου, οὐ τὸν ἄρχοντα δεῖσθαι τῶν ἀρχομένων ἄρχεσθαι, οὗ ἂν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ τι ὄφελος ᾖ. ἀλλὰ τοὺς νῦν πολιτικοὺς ἄρχοντας ἀπεικάζων οἷς ἄρτι ἐλέγομεν ναύταις οὐχ ἁμαρτήσῃ, καὶ τοὺς ὑπὸ τούτων ἀχρήστους λεγομένους καὶ μετεωρολέσχας τοῖς ὡς ἀληθῶς κυβερνήταις.
ὀρθότατα, ἔφη.
ἔκ τε τοίνυν τούτων καὶ ἐν τούτοις οὐ ῥᾴδιον εὐδοκιμεῖν τὸ βέλτιστον ἐπιτήδευμα ὑπὸ τῶν τἀναντία ἐπιτηδευόντων· 489d πολὺ δὲ μεγίστη καὶ ἰσχυροτάτη διαβολὴ γίγνεται φιλοσοφίᾳ διὰ τοὺς τὰ τοιαῦτα φάσκοντας ἐπιτηδεύειν, οὓς δὴ σὺ φῂς τὸν ἐγκαλοῦντα τῇ φιλοσοφίᾳ λέγειν ὡς παμπόνηροι οἱ πλεῖστοι τῶν ἰόντων ἐπʼ αὐτήν, οἱ δὲ ἐπιεικέστατοι ἄχρηστοι, καὶ ἐγὼ συνεχώρησα ἀληθῆ σε λέγειν. ἦ γάρ;
ναί.
οὐκοῦν τῆς μὲν τῶν ἐπιεικῶν ἀχρηστίας τὴν αἰτίαν διεληλύθαμεν;
καὶ μάλα.
τῆς δὲ τῶν πολλῶν πονηρίας τὴν ἀνάγκην βούλει τὸ μετὰ τοῦτο διέλθωμεν, καὶ ὅτι οὐδὲ τούτου φιλοσοφία αἰτία, 489e ἂν δυνώμεθα, πειραθῶμεν δεῖξαι;
πάνυ μὲν οὖν.

Notes on the current edition

Republic

1. τῷ ὄντι verifies the allusion to the charge that Socrates was a babbler and a star-gazer or weather-prophet. Cf. Soph. 225 D, Polit. 299 B, and What Plato Said, p. 527 on Phaedo 70 C; Blaydes on Aristoph. Clouds 1480.

2. Plato like some modern writers is conscious of his own imagery and frequently interprets his own symbols. Cf. 517 A-B, 531 B, 588 B, Gorg. 493 D, 517 D, Phaedo 87 B, Laws 644 C, Meno 72 A-B, Tim. 19 B, Polit. 297 E. Cf. also the cases where he says he cannot tell what it is but only what it is like, e.g. Rep. 506 E, Phaedr. 246 A, Symp. 215 A 5.

3. διάθεσις and ἕξις are not discriminated by Plato as by Aristotle.

4. Cf. 476 D-E.

5. This passage illustrates one of the most interesting characteristics of Plato’s style, namely the representation of thought as adventure or action. This procedure is, or was, familiar to modern readers in Matthew Arnold’s account in God and the Bible of his quest for the meaning of god, which in turn is imitated in Mr. Updegraff’s New World. It lends vivacity and interest to Pascal’s Provinciales and many other examples of it can be found in modern literature. The classical instance of it in Plato is Socrates’ narrative in the Phaedo of his search for a satisfactory explanation of natural phenomena, 96 A ff. In the Sophist the argument is represented as an effort to track and capture the sophist. And the figure of the hunt is common in the dialogues (Cf. Vol. I. p. 365). Cf. also Rep. 455 A-B, 474 B, 588 C-D, 612 C, Euthyd. 291 A-B, 293 A, Phileb. 24 A ff., 43 A, 44 D, 45 A, Laws 892 D-E, Theaet. 169 D, 180 E, 196 D, Polit. 265 B, etc.

6. Cf. 487 D. Cf. Arnold, Culture and Anarchy, p. 3

I am not sure that I do not think this the fault of our community rather than of the men of culture.

7. For the idiom φύσιν ἔχει cf. 473 A, Herod. ii. 45, Dem. ii. 26. Similarly ἔχει λόγον, Rep. 378 E, 491 D, 564 A, 610 A, Phaedo 62 B and D, Gorg. 501 A, etc.

8. This saying was attributed to Simonides. Cf. schol. Hermann, Plato, vol. vi. p. 346, Joel, Der echte und der xenophontische Sokrates, ii.1 p .81, Aristot. Rhet. 1301 a 8 Cf. Phaedr. 245 A

ἐπὶ ποιητικὰς θύρας

, Thompson on Phaedr. 233 E, 364 B

ἐπὶ πλουσίων θύρας

, Laws 953 D

ἐπὶ τὰς τῶν πλουσίων καὶ σοφῶν θύρας

, and for the idea cf. also 568 A and Theaet. 170 A, Timon of Athens IV iii. 17

The learned pate ducks to the golden fool.

9. For Plato’s attitude toward the epigrams of the Pre-Socratics Cf. Unity of Plato’s Thought, pp. 68-69.

10. Cf. Theaet. 170 B and 590 C-D.

11. For the idiom with ὄφελος cf. 530 C, 567 B, Euthyphro 4 E, Apol. 36 C, Crito 46 A, Euthydem. 289 A, Soph. O. C. 259, where it is varied.

12. Cf. Theaet. 173 C, why speak of unworthy philosophers? and 495 C ff.

13. Possibly wooers. Cf. 347 C, 521 B. Plato frequently employs the language of physical love in speaking of philosophy. Cf. 495-496, 490 B, Theaet. 148 E ff., Pheado 66 E, Meno 60 B, Phaedr. 266 B, etc.

14. Cf. Theaet. 169 D.

Commentary

Commentary on Plato, Republic (Plato. The Republic, Vol 1-2. Adam, James, editor. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1902-1903.) focus

ἐξεταζομένην : ‘cross-examined.’

καὶ ὅτι ‐‐ λέγεις . ‘And also that what you say is true’ etc. Socrates identifies Adimantus with his hypothetical objector in 487 D; cf. σε λέγειν in D below. Another possibility—less good, I think—is to take ὅτι as introducing a direct address: “and say to him also ‘You speak truly, when you say’” etc. λέγειν is found in a few inferior MSS; and λέγει, which Stallbaum and Baiter adopt, occurs in Par. D. λέγειν is indefensible, and the corruption of λέγειν or λέγει to λέγεις is exceedingly improbable here. On τοίνυν=‘also’ see I 339 D note

τοὺς μὴ χρωμένους . Those who will not use them are to blame for their uselessness. The etymological figure is of course intentional.

οὐ γὰρ ἔχει φύσιν κτλ. See 488 D note

τοὺς σοφοὺς κτλ. “The learned pate Ducks to the golden fool” ( Timon of Athens IV 3). See also VIII 568 A note The author of the saying was, according to Aristotle ( Rhet. II 16. 1391^{a} 8 ff.), Simonides. Being asked on one occasion by Hiero's queen whether it was better to be a man of genius ( σοφός) or rich, he replied “Rich; for men of genius are found at the court of the rich”—a characteristic reply, by which the courtliest of ancient poets contrived to flatter the queen without forgetting himself. (It should be remembered that σοφός often means ‘poet’.) There is no reason for supposing (with e.g. Teichmüller Lit. Fehd. I p. 102) that Plato attributed the saying to Aristippus, although a witticism on the subject is ascribed both to him (D. L. II 8. 69) and to Antisthenes (Winckelmann Antisth. Frag. p. 58). Plato liked to get his knife into Simonides: see I 331 E ff.

δεῖσθαι is governed by the idea of obligation carried on from ἀναγκαῖον. The alternative suggested by J. and C., that the infinitive depends on πέφυκεν, is impossible.

ἐν τούτοις . τούτοις is neuter, like τούτων: otherwise ὑπὸ—ἐπιτηδευόντων is hardly necessary. The balance of clauses —‘in consequence of these circumstances, and amid these circumstances’—is also in favour of this—Schneider's—view.

οὓς δή ‐‐ λέγειν : ‘of whom it is that you say the accuser of philosophy declares that,’ etc. For τὸν ἐγκαλοῦντα see 487 C note

ἰόντων ἐπί almost=‘woo her’: cf. 495 C ff., Symp. 210 A . πλησιάζω is similarly used in 490 B.

τὴν ἀνάγκην should be taken strictly. There is no possibility of escape: the majority must inevitably succumb. Cf. 492 E note

ἐκεῖθεν ‐‐ ὅθεν . As ἀναμιμνῄσκομαι takes the genitive of a noun, so it can be followed by a genitival— originally ablatival—adverb. ὅθεν is attracted for οὗ: cf. Soph. Tr. 701 and other examples in Kühner Gr. Gr. II p. 915.

καλόν τε κἀγαθόν . The fashionable Greek phrase καλὸς κἀγαθός for an ἐλευθέριος, or gentleman, was continually used by Socrates and his followers to express their ideal of what a man should be. An excellent discussion of the Socratic connotation of the word will be found in Döring Die Lehre des Sokrates pp. 398—415: for its usual implications reference may be made to Schmidt Ethik d. alten Griechen I pp. 328—334. In politics, the expression was applied to the wealthy or oligarchical party (cf. VIII 569 A and Thuc. VIII 48. 6). It is therefore probable that Socrates' habitual use of καλὸς κἀγαθός fostered the not unwarranted suspicion that he and his friends were out of sympathy with democracy, and so contributed in some measure to his condemnation and death.

Plato Republic 6.489

Paul Shorey (Translator)

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