第 4 节
作者:      更新:2021-02-18 23:31      字数:9320
  drunkenness or plunges headlong into licentious love; loses his old power
  of practising the right and abstaining from the wrong。 Many a man who
  has found frugality easy whilst passion was cold; no sooner falls in love
  than he loses the faculty at once; and in his prodigal expenditure of riches
  he will no longer withhold his hand from gains which in former days were
  too base to invite his touch。 Where then is the difficulty of supposing that
  a man may be temperate to…day; and to…morrow the reverse; or that he who
  once   has   had   it   in   his   power   to   act   virtuously   may   not   quite   lose   that
  power?'10' To myself; at all events; it seems that all beautiful and noble
  things are the result of constant practice and training; and pre…eminently
  the   virtue   of   temperance;   seeing   that   in   one   and   the   same   bodily   frame
  pleasures   are planted   and   spring up side   by  side   with   the   soul   and   keep
  whispering       in   her   ear;  〃Have   done   with     self…  restraint;   make   haste     to
  gratify us and the body。〃'11'
  '8' Theognis; 35; 36。 See 〃Symp。〃 ii。 4; Plat。 〃Men。〃 95 D。
  '9' The author is unknown。 See Plat。 〃Protag。〃 l。c。
  '10' Cf。 〃Cyrop。〃 V。 i。 9 foll。; VI。 i。 41。
  '11' See my remarks; 〃Hellenica Essays;〃 p。 371 foll。
  But   to   return   to   Critias   and Alcibiades;   I   repeat   that   as   long   as   they
  lived with Socrates they were able by his support to dominate their ignoble
  appetites;'12'       but   being     separated     from    him;    Critias    had    to   fly  to
  Thessaly;'13' where he consorted with fellows better versed in lawlessness
  than   justice。 And Alcibiades   fared   no   better。   His   personal   beauty   on   the
  one hand incited bevies of fine ladies'14' to hunt him down as fair spoil;
  while   on   the   other   hand   his   influence   in   the   state   and   among   the   allies
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  exposed   him   to   the   corruption   of   many   an   adept   in   the   arts   of   flattery;
  honoured       by   the  democracy       and   stepping     easily   to  the   front  rank    he
  behaved like an athlete who in the games of the Palaestra is so assured of
  victory   that   he   neglects   his   training;   thus   he   presently   forgot   the   duty
  which he owed himself。
  '12' Cf。 'Plat。' 〃Theag。〃 130 A。
  '13' See 〃Hell。〃 II。 iii。 36。
  '14' Cf。 Plut。 〃Ages。;〃 〃Alcib。〃
  Such were the misadventures of these two。 Is the sequel extraordinary?
  Inflated with the pride of ancestry;'15' exalted by their wealth; puffed up
  by power; sapped to the soul's core by a host of human tempters; separate
  moreover   for   many   a   long   day   from   Socrateswhat   wonder   that   they
  reached the   full   stature   of   arrogancy! And   for   the   offences   of   these   two
  Socrates is to be held responsible! The accuser will have it so。 But for the
  fact that   in early  days; when   they  were both   young and   of an   age   when
  dereliction from good feeling and self… restraint might have been expected;
  this same Socrates kept them modest and well…behaved; not one word of
  praise   is   uttered   by   the   accuser   for   all   this。   That   is   not   the   measure   of
  justice   elsewhere   meted。   Would   a   master   of   the   harp   or   flute;   would   a
  teacher of any sort who has turned out proficient pupils; be held to account
  because one of them goes away to another teacher and turns out to be a
  failure? Or what father; if he have a   son who in the society of a   certain
  friend remains an honest lad; but falling into the company of some other
  becomes a good…for…nothing; will that father straightway accuse the earlier
  instructor? Will not he rather; in proportion as the boy deteriorates in the
  company of the latter; bestow more heartfelt praise upon the former? What
  father; himself sharing the society of his own children; is held to blame for
  their transgressions; if only his own goodness be established? Here would
  have   been   a   fair   test   to   apply   to   Socrates:   Was   he   guilty   of   any   base
  conduct   himself?   If   so   let   him   be   set   down   as   a   knave;   but   if;   on   the
  contrary; he never faltered in sobriety from beginning to end; how in the
  name of justice is he to be held to account for a baseness which was not in
  him?
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  '15' Or; 〃became overweening in arrogance。〃 Cf。 〃Henry VIII。 II。 iv。
  110〃: 〃But your heart is crammed with arrogancy; spleen; and                           pride。〃
  I go further: if; short of being guilty of any wrong himself; he saw the
  evil    doings    of  others    with    approval;    reason    were    he   should     be  held
  blameworthy。        Listen    then:   Socrates     was    well   aware     that  Critias    was
  attached to Euthydemus;'16' aware too that he was endeavouring to deal
  by him after the manner of those wantons whose love is carnal of the body。
  From   this   endeavour   he   tried   to   deter   him;   pointing   out   how   illiberal   a
  thing it was; how ill befitting a man of honour to appear as a beggar before
  him   whom   he       loved;   in   whose    eyes   he   would     fain  be   precious;    ever
  petitioning for something base to give and base to get。
  '16' See below; IV。 ii。 1 (if the same person)。
  But   when   this   reasoning   fell   on   deaf   ears   and   Critias   refused   to   be
  turned aside; Socrates; as the story goes; took occasion of the presence of a
  whole company and of Euthydemus to remark that Critias appeared to be
  suffering from a swinish affection; or else why this desire to rub himself
  against Euthydemus like a herd of piglings scraping against stones。
  The hatred of Critias to Socrates doubtless dates from this incident。 He
  treasured it up against him; and afterwards; when he was one of the Thirty
  and associated with Charicles as their official lawgiver;'17' he framed the
  law   against   teaching   the   art   of   words'18'   merely  from  a   desire   to   vilify
  Socrates。 He was at a loss to know how else to lay hold of him except by
  levelling against him the vulgar charge'19' against philosophers; by which
  he hoped to prejudice him with the public。 It was a charge quite unfounded
  as regards Socrates; if I may judge from anything I ever heard fall from his
  lips myself or have learnt about him from others。 But the animus of Critias
  was     clear。  At   the   time   when     the  Thirty    were    putting   citizens;    highly
  respectable   citizens;   to   death   wholesale;   and   when   they   were   egging   on
  one   man   after   another   to   the   commission   of   crime;   Socrates   let   fall   an
  observation: 〃It would be sufficiently extraordinary if the keeper of a herd
  of   cattle'20'   who   was   continually   thinning   and   impoverishing   his   cattle
  did not admit himself to be a sorry sort of herdsman; but that a ruler of the
  state who was continually thinning and impoverishing the citizens should
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  neither be ashamed nor admit himself to be a sorry sort of ruler was more
  extraordinary        still。〃  The    remark     being    reported     to   the   government;
  Socrates was summoned by Critias and Charicles; who proceeded to point
  out the law and forbade him to converse with the young。 〃Was it open to
  him;〃   Socrates   inquired   of   the   speaker;   〃in   case   he   failed   to   understand
  their commands in any point; to ask for an explanation?〃
  '17'     Lit。   〃Nomothetes。〃        See    〃Hell。〃    II。  iii。  2;  Dem。      706。    For
  Charicles see Lys。 〃c。 Eratosth。〃 S。 56; Aristot。 〃Pol。〃 v。 6。 6。
  '18' See Diog。 Laert。 II。 v。 (〃Socr。〃)
  '19'   i。e。   {to  ton   etto  logon    kreitto   poiein};    〃of   making     the  worse
  appear the better cause。〃 Cf。 Arist。 〃Clouds。〃
  '20' See Dio Chrys。 〃Or。〃 43。
  〃Certainly;〃 the two assented。
  Then      Socrates:     I  am    prepared     to   obey    the   laws;    but   to   avoid
  transgression of the law through ignorance I need instruction: is it on the
  supposition   that   the   art   of   words   tends   to   correctness   of   statement   or   to
  incorrectness that you bid us abstain from it? for if the former; it is clear
  we must abstain from speeking correctly; but if the latter; our endeavour
  should be to amend our speech。
  To   which   Charicles;   in   a   fit   of   temper;   retorted:   In   consideration   of