---
title: "Antidosis · Περὶ ἀντιδόσεως"
author: "Isocrates"
translator: "George Norlin"
languages: [grc, en]
shelf: "Classical Greek"
section: 3 of 5
url: https://scriptura.si/works/isocrates-antidosis/3/
cite: "Isocrates, tr. George Norlin, Antidosis · Περὶ ἀντιδόσεως, section 3. Scriptura (scriptura.si), https://scriptura.si/works/isocrates-antidosis/3/"
---

# Antidosis · Περὶ ἀντιδόσεως

*Isocrates, tr. George Norlin*

Isocrates’ defence of his life and teaching, written at eighty-two on the model of Socrates’ Apology.

> Greek: ed. George Norlin, from the Perseus Digital Library (canonical-greekLit, tlg0010.tlg019, CC BY-SA 4.0).

> English: George Norlin, from the Perseus Digital Library (tlg0010.tlg019.perseus-eng2). Notes are not included.

> Rows follow the references the two texts share (chapters and sections), cut where both reach the end of a sentence.

## 3. Sections 131–191

Source: https://scriptura.si/works/isocrates-antidosis/3/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/isocrates-antidosis/3/#p-N

[¶0] 131. For while he was no anti-democrat nor a misanthrope, nor arrogant, nor possessed of any such defect of character, yet because of his proud bearing—an advantage to the office of a general but out of place in dealing with men from day to day—everyone attributed to him the faults which I have named; for he was by nature as inept in courting the favor of men as he was gifted in handling affairs.

> Greek: 131. ἐκεῖνος γὰρ οὔτε μισόδημος ὢν οὔτε μισάνθρωπος οὔθʼ ὑπερήφανος, οὔτʼ ἄλλʼ οὐδὲν ἔχων τῶν τοιούτων κακῶν, διὰ τὴν μεγαλοφροσύνην τὴν τῇ στρατηγίᾳ μὲν συμφέρουσαν, πρὸς δὲ τὰς χρείας τῶν ἀεὶ προσπιπτόντων οὐχ ἁρμόττουσαν, ἅπασιν ἔδοξεν ἔνοχος εἶναι τοῖς προειρημένοις· οὕτω γὰρ ἀφυὴς ἦν πρὸς τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων θεραπείαν ὥσπερ δεινὸς περὶ τὴν τῶν πραγμάτων ἐπιμέλειαν.

[¶1] 132. Indeed he has often been advised by me, among others, that while men who are in public life and desire to be in favor must adopt the principle of doing what is most serviceable and noble and of saying what is most true and just, yet they must at the same time not neglect to study and consider well how in everything they say and do they may convince the people of their graciousness and human sympathy; since those who are careless of these matters are thought by their fellow-citizens to be disagreeable and offensive.

> Greek: 132. καί τοι πολλάκις καὶ παρʼ ἐμοῦ τοιούτους λόγους ἤκουσεν, ὡς χρὴ τοὺς πολιτευομένους καὶ βουλομένους ἀρέσκειν προαιρεῖσθαι μὲν τῶν τε πράξεων τὰς ὠφελιμωτάτας καὶ βελτίστας καὶ τῶν λόγων τοὺς ἀληθεστάτους καὶ δικαιοτάτους, οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ κἀκεῖνο παρατηρεῖν καὶ σκοπεῖν, ὅπως ἐπιχαρίτως καὶ φιλανθρώπως ἅπαντα φανήσονται καὶ λέγοντες καὶ πράττοντες, ὡς οἱ τούτων ὀλιγωροῦντες ἐπαχθέστεροι καὶ βαρύτεροι δοκοῦσιν εἶναι τοῖς συμπολιτευομένοις.

[¶2] 133. “You observe,” I would say to him, “the nature of the multitude, how susceptible they are to flattery; that they like those who cultivate their favor better than those who seek their good; and that they prefer those who cheat them with beaming smiles and brotherly love to those who serve them with dignity and reserve. You have paid no attention to these things, but are of the opinion that if you attend honestly to your enterprises abroad, the people at home also will think well of you.

> Greek: 133. “ὁρᾷς δὲ τὴν φύσιν τὴν τῶν πολλῶν ὡς διάκειται πρὸς τὰς ἡδονάς, καὶ διότι μᾶλλον φιλοῦσι τοὺς πρὸς χάριν ὁμιλοῦντας ἢ τοὺς εὖ ποιοῦντας, καὶ τοὺς μετὰ φαιδρότητος καὶ φιλανθρωπίας φενακίζοντας ἢ τοὺς μετʼ ὄγκου καὶ σεμνότητος ὠφελοῦντας. ὧν οὐδέν σοι μεμέληκεν, ἀλλʼ ἢν ἐπιεικῶς τῶν ἔξω πραγμάτων ἐπιμεληθῇς, οἴει σοι καὶ τοὺς ἐνθάδε πολιτευομένους καλῶς ἕξειν.

[¶3] 134. But this is not the case, and the very contrary is wont to happen. For if you please the people in Athens, no matter what you do they will not judge your conduct by the facts but will construe it in a light favorable to you; and if you make mistakes, they will overlook them, while if you succeed, they will exalt your success to the high heaven. For good will has this effect upon all men.

> Greek: 134. τὸ δʼ οὐχ οὕτως ἀλλὰ τοὐναντίον φιλεῖ συμβαίνειν. ἢν γὰρ τούτοις ἀρέσκῃς, ἅπαν ὅ τι ἂν πράξῃς οὐ πρὸς τὴν ἀλήθειαν κρινοῦσιν ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸ σοὶ συμφέρον ὑπολήψονται, καὶ τὰ μὲν ἁμαρτανόμενα παρόψονται, τὸ δὲ κατορθωθὲν οὐρανόμηκες ποιήσουσιν· ἡ γὰρ εὔνοια πάντας οὕτω διατίθησιν.

[¶4] 135. “But you, while seeking by every means in your power to win for Athens the good will of the rest of the Hellenes, because you recognize its great advantages, nevertheless do not consider that there is any need to secure for yourself the good will of Athens; nay, you who have benefited the city in ways beyond calculation are less esteemed than those who have done nothing of note.

> Greek: 135. “ἣν σὺ τῇ μὲν πόλει παρὰ τῶν ἄλλων ἐκ παντὸς τρόπου κτήσασθαι ζητεῖς, ἡγούμενος μέγιστον εἶναι τῶν ἀγαθῶν, αὐτὸς δὲ σαυτῷ παρὰ τῆς πόλεως οὐκ οἴει δεῖν τὴν αὐτὴν ταύτην παρασκευάζειν, ἀλλὰ πλείστων ἀγαθῶν αἴτιος γεγενημένος χεῖρον διάκεισαι τῶν οὐδὲν ἄξιον λόγου διαπεπραγμένων.

[¶5] 136. “And you could expect nothing else; for such men cultivate the public orators and the speakers who are effective in private gatherings and who profess to be authorities on every subject, while you not only neglect to do this, but actually make an open breach between yourself and the orators who are from time to time the most influential. “And yet I wonder if you realize how many men have either come to grief or failed of honor because of the misrepresentations of these orators; how many in the generations that are past have left no name, although they were far better and worthier men than those who are celebrated in song and on the tragic stage.

> Greek: 136. “εἰκότως· οἱ μὲν γὰρ τοὺς ῥήτορας καὶ τοὺς ἐν τοῖς ἰδίοις συλλόγοις λογοποιεῖν δυναμένους καὶ πάντα προσποιουμένους εἰδέναι θεραπεύουσι, σὺ δʼ οὐ μόνον ἀμελεῖς, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολεμεῖς τοῖς μέγιστον ἀεὶ δυναμένοις αὐτῶν. “καί τοι πόσους οἴει διὰ τὰς τούτων ψευδολογίας τοὺς μὲν συμφοραῖς περιπεπτωκέναι, τοὺς δʼ ἀτίμους εἶναι; πόσους δὲ τῶν προγεγενημένων ἀνωνύμους εἶναι; πολὺ σπουδαιοτέρους καὶ πλέονος ἀξίους γεγενημένους τῶν ᾀδομένων καὶ τραγῳδουμένων;

[¶6] 137. But the latter, you see, found their poets and historians, while the others secured no one to hymn their praises. Therefore, if you will only heed me and be sensible, you will not despise these men whom the multitude are wont to believe, not only with reference to each one of their fellow-citizens, but also with reference to the affairs of the whole state, but you will in some measure show attention and pay court to them in order that you may be held in honor both because of your own deeds and because of their words.”

> Greek: 137. ἀλλʼ οἱ μέν, οἶμαι, ποιητῶν ἔτυχον καὶ λογοποιῶν, οἱ δʼ οὐκ ἔσχον τοὺς ὑμνήσοντας. ἢν οὖν ἐμοὶ πείθῃ καὶ νοῦν ἔχῃς, οὐ καταφρονήσεις τῶν ἀνδρῶν τούτων, οἷς τὸ πλῆθος εἴθισται πιστεύειν οὐ μόνον περὶ ἑνὸς ἑκάστου τῶν πολιτῶν ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ ὅλων τῶν πραγμάτων, ἀλλʼ ἐπιμέλειάν τινα ποιήσει καὶ θεραπείαν αὐτῶν, ἵνʼ εὐδοκιμήσῃς διʼ ἀμφότερα, καὶ διὰ τὰς σαυτοῦ πράξεις καὶ διὰ τοὺς τούτων λόγους.”

[¶7] 138. When I would speak to him in this wise, he would admit that I was right, but he could not change his nature. He was a good man and true, a credit to Athens and to Hellas, but he could not lower himself to the level of people who are intolerant of their natural superiors. So it was that the orators occupied themselves with inventing many false charges against him, and the multitude with drinking them in.

> Greek: 138. ταῦτα δʼ ἀκούων ὀρθῶς μὲν ἔφασκέ με λέγειν, οὐ μὴν οἷός τʼ ἦν τὴν φύσιν μεταβαλεῖν, ἀλλʼ ἦν μὲν καλὸς κἀγαθὸς ἀνὴρ καὶ τῆς πόλεως καὶ τῆς Ἑλλάδος ἄξιος, οὐ μὴν σύμμετρός γε τοῖς τοιούτοις τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ὅσοι τοῖς ὑπὲρ αὑτοὺς πεφυκόσιν ἀχθόμενοι τυγχάνουσι. τοιγαροῦν οἱ μὲν ῥήτορες ἔργον εἶχον αἰτίας περὶ αὐτοῦ πολλὰς καὶ ψευδεῖς πλάττειν, τὸ δὲ πλῆθος ἀποδέχεσθαι τὰς ὑπὸ τούτων λεγομένας.

[¶8] 139. I should be glad to refute these slanders, if the occasion permitted me to do so; for I believe that if you could hear me, you would come to loathe the men who have stirred the city to anger against Timotheus and the men who dare to speak evil of him. Now, however, I shall leave this subject and take up again my own defense and the case before us.

> Greek: 139. περὶ ὧν ἡδέως ἂν ἀπελογησάμην, εἰ καιρὸν εἶχον· οἶμαι γὰρ ἂν ὑμᾶς ἀκούσαντας μισῆσαι τούς τε προαγαγόντας τὴν πόλιν ἐπὶ τὴν ὀργὴν τὴν πρὸς ἐκεῖνον καὶ τοὺς φλαῦρόν τι περὶ αὐτοῦ λέγειν τολμῶντας. νῦν δὲ ταῦτα μὲν ἐάσω, περὶ ἐμαυτοῦ δὲ καὶ τῶν ἐνεστώτων πραγμάτων πάλιν ποιήσομαι τοὺς λόγους.

[¶9] 140. But I am at a loss to know how to proceed with the rest of my speech—what topic to take up first and what next; for the power to speak in any set order has escaped me. Perhaps, therefore, I have no choice but to discuss each point as it happens to occur to me. Accordingly, I am going to lay bare to you the thoughts which have now come into my mind. I have been thinking all along that I ought to put them before you, but I have been advised against doing so.

> Greek: 140. ἀπορῶ δʼ ὅ τι χρήσομαι τοῖς ὑπολοίποις, καὶ τίνος πρώτου μνησθῶ καὶ ποίου δευτέρου· τὸ γὰρ ἐφεξῆς με λέγειν διαπέφευγεν. ἴσως μὲν οὖν ἀναγκαῖόν ἐστιν, ὡς ἂν ἕκαστον τύχῃ προσπεσόν, οὕτως εἰπεῖν περὶ αὐτῶν· ἃ δʼ οὖν μοι νῦν ἐπελήλυθε, καὶ περὶ ὧν ἐγὼ μὲν ἐνόμιζον εἶναι δηλωτέον, ἄλλος δέ τίς μοι συνεβούλευε μὴ λέγειν, οὐκ ἀποκρύψομαι πρὸς ὑμᾶς.

[¶10] 141. For when I was indicted, I pondered these very matters, as any one of you would have done, and I reviewed my life and my actions, dwelling longest on the things for which I thought I deserved approbation. But one of my associates, hearing me, made bold to urge an objection which was amazing in the extreme; he stated that while my life as I described it was worthy of emulation, yet he himself greatly feared that my story would irritate many of my hearers.

> Greek: 141. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἀπήνεγκε τὴν γραφήν, ἐσκόπουν περὶ αὐτῶν τούτων ὥσπερ ἂν ὑμῶν ἕκαστος, καὶ τόν τε βίον τὸν ἐμαυτοῦ καὶ τὰς πράξεις ἐξήταζον, καὶ πλεῖστον χρόνον περὶ τὰς τοιαύτας διέτριβον ἐφʼ αἷς ᾠόμην ἐπαινεῖσθαί με προσήκειν. ἀκροώμενος δέ τις τῶν ἐπιτηδείων ἐτόλμησεν εἰπεῖν πρός με λόγον πάντων σχετλιώτατον, ὡς ἄξια μὲν εἴη τὰ λεγόμενα φιλοτιμίας, οὐ μὴν ἀλλʼ αὐτός γε δεδιέναι ταῦτα μάλιστα, μὴ πολλοὺς λυπήσῃ τῶν ἀκουόντων.

[¶11] 142. “Some men,” he said, “have been so brutalized by envy and want and are so hostile that they wage war, not on depravity, but on prosperity; they hate not only the best men but the noblest pursuits; and, in addition to their other faults, they take sides with wrong-doers and are in sympathy with them, while they destroy, whenever they have the power, those whom they have cause to envy.

> Greek: 142. “οὕτω γάρ” ἔφη “τινὲς ὑπὸ τοῦ φθόνου καὶ τῶν ἀποριῶν ἐξηγρίωνται καὶ δυσμενῶς ἔχουσιν, ὥστʼ οὐ ταῖς πονηρίαις ἀλλὰ ταῖς εὐπραγίαις πολεμοῦσι, καὶ μισοῦσιν οὐ μόνον τῶν ἀνθρώπων τοὺς ἐπιεικεστάτους, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἐπιτηδευμάτων τὰ βέλτιστα, καὶ πρὸς τοῖς ἄλλοις κακοῖς τοῖς μὲν ἀδικοῦσι συναγωνίζονται καὶ συγγνώμην ἔχουσιν, οἷς δʼ ἂν φθονήσωσιν ἀπολλύουσιν, ἤν περ δυνηθῶσι.

[¶12] 143. They do these things, not because they are ignorant of the issues on which they are to vote, but because they intend to inflict injury and do not expect to be found out; and so, by protecting those of their own kind, they think they are providing for their own safety. “I have told you this in order that, being forewarned, you may be able to handle your case to better advantage and to use less dangerous arguments before the jury. For as things are, what judgement can you expect such men to reach when you tell them of your life and your conduct, which are not in the least degree like their own, but such as you are attempting to describe to me?

> Greek: 143. ταῦτα δὲ δρῶντες οὐκ ἀγνοοῦσι περὶ ὧν τὴν ψῆφον οἴσουσιν, ἀλλʼ ἀδικήσειν μὲν ἐλπίζοντες, ὀφθήσεσθαι δʼ οὐ προσδοκῶντες· σώζοντες οὖν τοὺς ὁμοίους σφίσιν αὐτοῖς βοηθεῖν νομίζουσι. “τούτου δʼ ἕνεκά σοι ταῦτα διῆλθον, ἵνα προειδὼς ἄμεινον προσφέρῃ καὶ τοῖς λόγοις ἀσφαλεστέροις χρῇ πρὸς αὐτούς, ἐπεὶ νῦν γε τίνα χρὴ προσδοκᾶν γνώμην ἕξειν τοὺς τοιούτους, ὅταν τόν τε βίον τὸν σαυτοῦ καὶ τὰς πράξεις διεξίῃς μηδὲ κατὰ μικρὸν ὁμοίας οὔσας ταῖς τούτων, ἀλλʼ οἵας περ πρὸς ἐμὲ λέγειν ἐπιχειρεῖς;

[¶13] 144. For you show that the speeches which you have written merit, not blame, but the highest favor; that the men who have been under your instruction have in no case been guilty of wrong-doing or of crime, while some of them have been crowned by the city in recognition of their worth; that from day to day you, yourself, have lived so uprightly and lawfully that I know not who of your fellow-citizens can compare with you; and that, furthermore, you have never brought anyone to trial nor stood trial yourself save in the matter of an exchange of property, nor have you appeared as counsel or as witness for others, nor have you engaged in any other of the activities which make up the civic life of all Athenians.

> Greek: 144. ἀποφαίνεις γὰρ τούς τε λόγους οὓς γέγραφας οὐ μέμψεως ἀλλὰ χάριτος τῆς μεγίστης ἀξίους ὄντας, τῶν τε πεπλησιακότων σοι τοὺς μὲν οὐδὲν ἠδικηκότας οὐδʼ ἡμαρτηκότας, τοὺς δὲ διʼ ἀρετὴν ὑπὸ τῆς πόλεως ἐστεφανωμένους, τά τε καθʼ ἡμέραν οὕτω κοσμίως καὶ τεταγμένως βεβιωκότα σαυτὸν ὡς οὐκ οἶδʼ εἴ τις ἄλλος τῶν πολιτῶν, ἔτι δὲ μήτε δεδικασμένον μηδενὶ μήτε πεφευγότα πλὴν περὶ ἀντιδόσεως, μήθʼ ἑτέροις συνηγωνισμένον μήτε μεμαρτυρηκότα, μήτʼ ἄλλο πεποιηκότα μηδέν, ἐν οἷς ἅπαντες πολιτευόμενοι τυγχάνουσι.

[¶14] 145. And to these peculiarities and idiosyncrasies you add another, namely, that you have held aloof from the public offices and the emoluments which go with them, and from all other privileges of the commonwealth as well, while you have enrolled not only yourself but your son among the twelve hundred who pay the war-taxes and bear the liturgies, and you and he have three times discharged the trierarchy, besides having performed the other services more generously and handsomely than the laws require.

> Greek: 145. πρὸς δὲ τούτοις οὕτως ἰδίοις οὖσι καὶ περιττοῖς κἀκεῖνο λέγεις, ὡς τῶν μὲν ἀρχῶν καὶ τῶν ὠφελιῶν τῶν ἐντεῦθεν γιγνομένων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων τῶν κοινῶν ἐξέστηκας, εἰς δὲ τοὺς διακοσίους καὶ χιλίους τοὺς εἰσφέροντας καὶ λειτουργοῦντας οὐ μόνον αὑτὸν παρέχεις ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν υἱόν, καὶ τρὶς μὲν ἤδη τετριηραρχήκατε, τὰς δʼ ἄλλας λειτουργίας πολυτελέστερον λελειτουργήκατε καὶ κάλλιον ὧν οἱ νόμοι προστάττουσι.

[¶15] 146. “When you say these things to men whose conduct is the opposite of all which has been said, do you not suppose that they will take offense and think that you are showing up the unworthiness of their own lives? For possibly if they had seen that it is through hard work and sacrifice that you provide yourself with the means wherewith to discharge your public duties and to maintain your affairs in general, they would not have felt the same about it.

> Greek: 146. “ταῦτʼ ἀκούοντας τοὺς τἀναντία πᾶσι τοῖς προειρημένοις ἐπιτετηδευκότας οὐκ οἴει βαρέως οἴσειν καὶ νομιεῖν ἐλέγχεσθαι τὸν βίον τὸν αὑτῶν οὐ σπουδαῖον ὄντα; καὶ γὰρ εἰ μὲν μετὰ πόνου καὶ ταλαιπωρίας ᾐσθάνοντό σε ποριζόμενον εἴς τε τὰς λειτουργίας καὶ περὶ τὴν ἄλλην διοίκησιν, οὐκ ἂν ὁμοίως ἔμελεν αὐτοῖς· νῦν δὲ τά τε παρὰ τῶν ξένων σοι γιγνόμενα πολὺ πλείω νομίζουσιν εἶναι τῶν διδομένων, αὐτόν τε σὲ ῥᾳθυμότερον ἡγοῦνται ζῆν οὐ μόνον τῶν ἄλλων ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν περὶ τὴν φιλοσοφίαν καὶ τὴν αὐτὴν σοι πραγματείαν ὄντων.

[¶16] 147. But in fact they think that these fees which come to you from your foreign pupils are much greater than they actually are, and they consider that you live in greater ease and comfort than not only the people in general but also than those who cultivate philosophy and are of the same profession as yourself. “For they see most of the sophists, excepting those who have embraced your life and ways, showing off their oratory in the public assemblies or in private gatherings, contesting against each other, making extravagant professions, disputing, reviling each other, omitting nothing in the language of abuse, but in effect damaging their own cause and giving license to their auditors, now to ridicule what they say, sometimes to praise them, most often to despise them, and again to think of them whatever they like.

> Greek: 147. “ὁρῶσι γὰρ ἐκείνων μὲν τοὺς πλείστους, πλὴν τῶν τὸν σὸν βίον καὶ τὸν τρόπον ἠγαπηκότων, ἔν τε ταῖς πανηγύρεσι καὶ τοῖς ἰδίοις συλλόγοις ἐπιδείξεις ποιουμένους, διαγωνιζομένους πρὸς ἀλλήλους, καθʼ ὑπερβολὴν ὑπισχνουμένους, ἐρίζοντας, λοιδορουμένους, οὐδὲν ἀπολείποντας κακῶν, ἀλλὰ σφίσι μὲν αὐτοῖς πράγματα παρέχοντας, τοῖς δʼ ἀκροωμένοις ἐξουσίαν παραδιδόντας τοῖς μὲν καταγελάσαι τῶν λεγομένων, ἐνίοις δʼ ἐπαινέσαι, τοῖς δὲ πλείστοις μισῆσαι, τοῖς δʼ ὅπως ἕκαστοι βούλονται διατεθῆναι πρὸς αὐτούς·

[¶17] 148. But in you they see a man who has no part in these things, who lives in a manner different from the sophists as well as from laymen, and from those who enjoy many possessions as well as from those who live in want.

> Greek: 148. σὲ δʼ οὐδενὸς μετέχοντα τούτων, ἀλλʼ ἀνομοίως ζῶντα καὶ τοῖς σοφισταῖς καὶ τοῖς ἰδιώταις, καὶ τοῖς πολλὰ κεκτημένοις καὶ τοῖς ἀπόρως διακειμένοις.

[¶18] 149. It is true that reasonable and intelligent people might perhaps congratulate you on these grounds, but people who are less fortunate and are wont to be more chagrined at the honest prosperity of others than at their own ill fortune cannot fail to be surly and resentful. Knowing, then, that such will be the attitude of your audience, consider well what you had better say and what you had better leave unsaid.”

> Greek: 149. ἐφʼ οἷς οἱ μὲν λογίζεσθαι δυνάμενοι καὶ νοῦν ἔχοντες ἴσως ἄν σε ζηλώσειαν, οἱ δὲ καταδεέστερον πράττοντες καὶ λυπεῖσθαι μᾶλλον εἰωθότες ἐπὶ ταῖς τῶν ἄλλων ἐπιεικείαις ἢ ταῖς ἑαυτῶν ἀτυχίαις οὐκ ἔστιν ὅπως οὐ δυσκολανοῦσι καὶ χαλεπῶς οἴσουσιν. ὡς οὖν οὕτως αὐτῶν διατεθησομένων σκόπει τί σοι λεκτέον τούτων καὶ τί παραλειπτέον ἐστίν.”

[¶19] 150. But I thought as he said these things and I think now that they would be of all men the strangest and most perverse who could take offense at being told that I hold myself at the service of Athens in discharging the liturgies and performing any public duty she enjoins, and yet do not ask to have any part in the allotment of the offices nor in the distribution of the gifts she doles out to others, nor in the privilege of prosecuting or defending cases in the courts.

> Greek: 150. ἐγὼ δὲ κἀκείνου τότε ταῦτα λέγοντος καὶ νῦν ἡγοῦμαι πάντων ἀνθρώπων ἀτοπωτάτους εἶναι καὶ σχετλιωτάτους, οἵτινες βαρέως ἂν ἀκούοιεν εἰ λειτουργοῦντα μὲν ἐμαυτὸν τῇ πόλει παρέχω καὶ ποιοῦντα τὸ προσταττόμενον, μηδὲν δὲ δέομαι μήτε κληροῦσθαι τῶν ἀρχῶν ἕνεκα, μήτε λαμβάνειν ἃ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἡ πόλις δίδωσι, μήτʼ αὖ φεύγειν δίκας μήτε διώκειν.

[¶20] 151. For I have prescribed this course for myself, not because I am rich or have any false pride, nor because I look down on those who do not live in the same way as I do, but because I love peace and tranquillity, and most of all because I see that men who so live are looked up to both in Athens and in other parts of the world. Moreover, I consider that this kind of life is more agreeable than that of men who are busy with a multitude of things, and that it is, besides, more in keeping with the career to which I have dedicated myself from the first.

> Greek: 151. ταῦτα γὰρ συνεταξάμην οὐ διὰ πλοῦτον οὐδὲ διʼ ὑπερηφανίαν, οὐδὲ καταφρονῶν τῶν μὴ τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον ἐμοὶ ζώντων, ἀλλὰ τὴν μὲν ἡσυχίαν καὶ τὴν ἀπραγμοσύνην ἀγαπῶν, μάλιστα δʼ ὁρῶν τοὺς τοιούτους καὶ παρʼ ὑμῖν καὶ παρὰ τοῖς ἄλλοις εὐδοκιμοῦντας, ἔπειτα τὸν βίον ἡδίω νομίσας εἶναι τοῦτον ἢ τὸν τῶν πολλὰ πραττόντων, ἔτι δὲ ταῖς διατριβαῖς ταῖς ἐμαῖς πρεπωδέστερον, αἷς ἐξ ἀρχῆς κατεστησάμην.

[¶21] 152. It was for these reasons that I chose this manner of life. And if I have refrained from accepting the bounties which are distributed by the city it was because I thought it outrageous if I, who am able to maintain myself from my private resources, should stand in the way of any of those who have been compelled to get their livelihood from the city, and if because of my presence anyone should be deprived of the necessities of existence. Now for this I deserved praise rather than prejudice.

> Greek: 152. τούτων μὲν ἕνεκα τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον ζῆν προειλόμην· τῶν δὲ λημμάτων τῶν παρὰ τῆς πόλεως ἀπεσχόμην δεινὸν ἡγησάμενος, εἰ δυνάμενος ἐκ τῶν ἰδίων τρέφειν ἐμαυτὸν ἐμποδών τῳ γενήσομαι τῶν ἐντεῦθεν ζῆν ἠναγκασμένων, καὶ διὰ τὴν ἐμὴν παρουσίαν ἐνδεής τις γενήσεται τῶν ἀναγκαίων. ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐπαίνου τυγχάνειν ἄξιος ἦν μᾶλλον ἢ διαβολῆς.

[¶22] 153. But as things are I am utterly at a loss to know what I could do to satisfy men of this stamp. For if I have made it my object all my life not to injure or burden or offend any man, and if by this very course I offend certain people, what could I do to please them? Or what conclusion is left to me other than that I seem to be unfortunate, and that these people appear to be boorish and churlish toward their fellow-citizens?

> Greek: 153. νῦν δʼ εἰς πολλὴν ἀπορίαν καθέστηκα, τί δρῶν ἀρέσαι δυνηθείην ἂν τοῖς τοιούτοις. εἰ γὰρ ἅπαντα τὸν χρόνον ἔργον ποιούμενος ὅπως μηδένα μήτʼ ἀδικήσω μήτʼ ἐνοχλήσω μήτε λυπήσω, διʼ αὐτὰ ταῦτα λυπῶ τινας, τί ποιῶν ἂν χαριζοίμην; ἢ τί λοιπόν ἐστι πλὴν ἐμὲ μὲν ἀτυχῆ, τοὺς δὲ τοιούτους ἀμαθεῖς δοκεῖν εἶναι καὶ δυσκόλους τοῖς συμπολιτευομένοις;

[¶23] 154. It is, therefore, utter folly to seek to justify myself to those who are not minded like other men but are harder on the innocent than on the guilty; for it is obvious that the more honest a man shows himself to be, the more hopeless will he make his case in their eyes. But to the others I must address myself in reply to the false charge of Lysimachus that I am possessed of enormous wealth, lest this statement, if credited, impose upon me greater public burdens than I could bear.

> Greek: 154. πρὸς μὲν οὖν τοὺς μηδὲν τῶν αὐτῶν τοῖς ἄλλοις γιγνώσκοντας, ἀλλὰ χαλεπωτέρους ὄντας τοῖς μὴ κακῶς πράττουσιν ἢ τοῖς ἀδικοῦσι, μωρόν ἐστιν ἀπολογίαν ζητεῖν· ὅσω γὰρ ἄν τις ἐπιεικέστερον αὑτὸν ἐπιδείξῃ, δῆλον ὅτι τοσούτω χεῖρον ἀγωνιεῖται παρʼ αὐτοῖς· πρὸς δὲ τοὺς ἄλλους, περὶ ὧν Λυσίμαχος διέβαλεν, ὡς παμπληθῆ κεκτήμεθα τὴν οὐσίαν, ἀναγκαῖόν ἐστιν εἰπεῖν, ἵνα μὴ πιστευθεὶς ὁ λόγος εἰς μείζους καὶ πλείους ἡμᾶς ἐμβάλῃ λειτουργίας ὧν ὑπενεγκεῖν ἂν δυνηθεῖμεν.

[¶24] 155. Now, generally speaking, you will find that no one of the so-called sophists has accumulated a great amount of money, but that some of them have lived in poor, others in moderate circumstances. The man who in our recollection laid up the most was Gorgias of Leontini. He spent his time in Thessaly when the Thessalians were the most prosperous people in Hellas; he lived a long life and devoted himself to the making of money; he had no fixed domicile in any city and therefore paid out nothing for public weal nor was he subject to any tax; moreover, he did not marry and beget children, but was free from this, the most unremitting and expensive of burdens; and yet, although he had so great an advantage toward laying up more wealth than any other man, he left at his death only a thousand staters.

> Greek: 155. ὅλως μὲν οὖν οὐδεὶς εὑρεθήσεται τῶν καλουμένων σοφιστῶν πολλὰ χρήματα συλλεξάμενος, ἀλλʼ οἱ μὲν ἐν ὀλίγοις οἱ δʼ ἐν πάνυ μετρίοις τὸν βίον διαγαγόντες· ὁ δὲ πλεῖστα κτησάμενος ὦν ἡμεῖς μνημονεύομεν, Γοργίας ὁ Λεοντῖνος, οὗτος διατρίψας μὲν περὶ Θετταλίαν, ὅτʼ εὐδαιμονέστατοι τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἦσαν, πλεῖστον δὲ χρόνον βιοὺς καὶ περὶ τὸν χρηματισμὸν τοῦτον γενόμενος, πόλιν δʼ οὐδεμίαν καταπαγίως οἰκήσας οὐδὲ περὶ τὰ κοινὰ δαπανηθεὶς οὐδʼ εἰσφορὰν εἰσενεγκεῖν ἀναγκασθείς, ἔτι δὲ πρὸς τούτοις οὔτε γυναῖκα γήμας οὔτε παῖδας ποιησάμενος, ἀλλʼ ἀτελὴς γενόμενος καὶ ταύτης τῆς λειτουργίας τῆς ἐνδελεχεστάτης καὶ πολυτελεστάτης, τοσοῦτον προλαβὼν πρὸς τὸ πλείω κτήσασθαι τῶν ἄλλων, χιλίους μόνους στατῆρας κατέλιπε.

[¶25] 157. And surely on the subject of each other’s incomes we must not credit people who make charges at haphazard nor think that the earnings of the sophists are equal to those of the actors, but should judge men of the same profession in reference to each other and go on the principle that those of the same order of talent in each profession have incomes which are comparable.

> Greek: 157. καί τοι χρὴ περὶ τῆς οὐσίας τῆς ἀλλήλων μὴ τοῖς αἰτιωμένοις εἰκῇ πιστεύειν, μηδὲ τὰς ἐργασίας ἴσας νομίζειν τάς τε τῶν σοφιστῶν καὶ τὰς τῶν ὑποκριτῶν, ἀλλὰ τοὺς ἐν ταῖς αὐταῖς τέχναις ὄντας πρὸς ἀλλήλους κρίνειν, καὶ τοὺς ὁμοίαν ἐν ἑκάστῃ δύναμιν λαβόντας παραπλησίαν καὶ τὴν οὐσίαν ἔχειν νομίζειν.

[¶26] 158. If, then, you will class me with the sophist who has made more money than any other, and will compare me with him, you will not seem to engage in utterly blind conjectures on such matters, nor shall I be found to have managed badly in providing either for the public welfare or for my own, although, as a matter of fact, I have lived on less than I have expended on my public duties. And surely it is deserving of praise when a man is more frugal in what he spends on his own household than in what he pays out for the common weal.

> Greek: 158. ἢν οὖν ἐξισώσητέ με τῷ πλεῖστον ἐξειργασμένῳ καὶ θῆτε πρὸς ἐκεῖνον, οὔθʼ ὑμεῖς παντάπασιν ἀσκέπτως εἰκάζειν δόξετε περὶ τῶν τοιούτων, οὔθʼ ἡμεῖς εὑρεθεῖμεν ἂν οὔτε τὰ περὶ τὴν πόλιν οὔτε τὰ περὶ ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς κακῶς διῳκηκότες, ἀλλʼ ἀπʼ ἐλαττόνων ζῶντες ὧν εἰς τὰς λειτουργίας ἀνηλώκαμεν. καί τοι τοὺς εὐτελεστέρους ἐν τοῖς ἰδίοις ἢ τοῖς κοινοῖς ὄντας δίκαιόν ἐστιν ἐπαινεῖν.

[¶27] 159. It occurs to me as I am speaking what a change has come over Athens; people nowadays do not look at things in the same way as those who lived in the city in former times. For, when I was a boy, wealth was regarded as a thing so secure as well as admirable that almost every one affected to own more property than he actually possessed, because he wanted to enjoy the standing which it gave.

> Greek: 159. ἐνθυμοῦμαι δὲ μεταξὺ λέγων, ὅσον τὰ τῆς πόλεως μεταπέπτωκε, καὶ τὰς διανοίας ὡς οὐδὲν ὁμοίας περὶ τῶν πραγμάτων οἱ νῦν τοῖς πρότερον πεπολιτευμένοις ἔχουσιν. ὅτε μὲν γὰρ ἐγὼ παῖς ἦν, οὕτως ἐνομίζετο τὸ πλουτεῖν ἀσφαλὲς εἶναι καὶ σεμνὸν ὥστʼ ὀλίγου δεῖν πάντες προσεποιοῦντο πλείω κεκτῆσθαι τὴν οὐσίαν ἧς ἔχοντες ἐτύγχανον, βουλόμενοι μετασχεῖν τῆς δόξης ταύτης·

[¶28] 160. Now, on the other hand, a man has to be ready to defend himself against being rich as if it were the worst of crimes, and to keep on the alert if he is to avoid disaster; for it has become far more dangerous to be suspected of being well off than to be detected in crime; for criminals are pardoned or let off with slight penalties, while the rich are ruined utterly, and it will be found that the number of men who have been spoiled of their property is greater than those who have been punished for their misdeeds.

> Greek: 160. νῦν δʼ ὑπὲρ τοῦ μὴ πλουτεῖν ὥσπερ τῶν μεγίστων ἀδικημάτων ἀπολογίαν δεῖ παρασκευάζεσθαι καὶ σκοπεῖν, εἰ μέλλει τις σωθήσεσθαι. πολὺ γὰρ δεινότερον καθέστηκε τὸ δοκεῖν εὐπορεῖν ἢ τὸ φανερῶς ἀδικεῖν· οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἢ συγγνώμης ἔτυχον ἢ μικροῖς ἐζημιώθησαν, οἱ δʼ ἄρδην ἀπόλλυνται, καὶ πλείους ἂν εὕροιμεν τοὺς ἐκ τῶν ὄντων ἐκπεπτωκότας ἢ τοὺς δίκην ὑπὲρ τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων δεδωκότας.

[¶29] 161. But why speak of public affairs? For I have myself, in my own affairs, suffered not a little from this change. For when I was beginning to repair my own fortunes after I had lost in the Peloponnesian War the patrimony which remained to me from what my father had spent partly in rendering himself serviceable to the state and partly in educating me with such care that I was more conspicuous then and more distinguished among the youth of my own age and among my fellow-students than I am now among my fellow-citizens — when, as I have said, I began to attach pupils to myself, I thought that if I could acquire a greater competence and attain a higher position than others who had started in the same profession, I should be acclaimed both for the superiority of my teaching and for the excellence of my conduct.

> Greek: 161. καὶ τί δεῖ λέγειν περὶ τῶν κοινῶν; αὐτὸς γὰρ οὐ μικρὸν διήμαρτον διὰ ταύτην τὴν μεταβολὴν τῶν ἐμαυτοῦ πραγμάτων. ὅτε γὰρ ἐπαμύνειν ἠρχόμην τοῖς ἰδίοις, ἀπολομένων ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ τῷ πρὸς Λακεδαιμονίους ἁπάντων τῶν ὑπαρχόντων ἡμῖν, ἀφʼ ὧν ὁ πατὴρ ἅμα τῇ τε πόλει χρήσιμον αὑτὸν παρεῖχεν, ἡμᾶς θʼ οὕτως ἐπιμελῶς ἐπαίδευσεν ὥστʼ ἐπιφανέστερον εἶναί με τότε καὶ γνωριμώτερον ἐν τοῖς ἡλικιώταις καὶ συμπαιδευομένοις ἢ νῦν ἐν τοῖς συμπολιτευομένοις— ὅτε δʼ οὖν, ὥσπερ εἶπον, ἠρχόμην πλησιάζειν τισίν, ᾠόμην, εἰ δυνηθείην πλείω κτήσασθαι καὶ περιποιήσασθαι τῶν ἐπὶ τὸν αὐτὸν βίον ὁρμησάντων, ἀμφότερα δόξειν, καὶ περὶ τὴν φιλοσοφίαν διαφέρειν καὶ κοσμιώτερον βεβιωκέναι τῶν ἄλλων. ἐμοὶ δὲ τοὐναντίον ἀποβέβηκεν.

[¶30] 163. But the result has been the very opposite; for if I had turned out to be worthless and had excelled in nothing, no one would have made trouble for me; nay, I might have been a flagrant offender and yet lived secure—from the sycophants, at any rate. But now, instead of the acclaim which I expected, I have been rewarded with trials and perils and envy and calumny.

> Greek: 163. εἰ μὲν γὰρ μήτʼ ἄξιος μηδενὸς ἐγενόμην μήτε περιεποιησάμην μηδέν, οὐδεὶς ἄν μοι πράγματα παρεῖχεν, ἀλλὰ φανερῶς ἀδικῶν ἀσφαλῶς ἂν ἔζων ἕνεκά γε τῶν συκοφαντῶν· νῦν δʼ ἀντὶ τῆς δόξης ἧς προσεδόκων ἀγῶνες περί με καὶ κίνδυνοι καὶ φθόνοι καὶ διαβολαὶ γεγόνασιν.

[¶31] 164. For so much does the Athens of this day rejoice in repressing and humiliating honest men, while giving license to the depraved to say and do what they please, that Lysimachus, a man who has elected to live by practicing intrigue and by preying from day to day on his fellow-citizens, is here in court denouncing me; while I, who have never in my life injured any man, who have kept my hands clean from such spoils, and have provided my advantages from foreigners who feel that I have served them well, am charged with grave offenses and placed in very great peril by this trial.

> Greek: 164. οὕτω γὰρ ἡ πόλις ἐν τῷ παρόντι χαίρει τοὺς μὲν ἐπιεικεῖς πιέζουσα καὶ ταπεινοὺς ποιοῦσα, τοῖς δὲ πονηροῖς ἐξουσίαν διδοῦσα καὶ λέγειν καὶ ποιεῖν ὅ τι ἂν βουληθῶσιν, ὥστε Λυσίμαχος μὲν ὁ προῃρημένος ζῆν ἐκ τοῦ συκοφαντεῖν καὶ κακῶς ἀεί τινα ποιεῖν τῶν πολιτῶν κατηγορήσων ἡμῶν ἀναβέβηκεν, ἐγὼ δʼ ὃς οὐδὲ περὶ ἕνα πότʼ ἐξήμαρτον, ἀλλὰ τῶν μὲν ἐνθένδε λημμάτων ἀπεσχόμην, παρὰ ξένων δὲ καὶ νομιζόντων εὖ πάσχειν ἐπορισάμην τὰς ὠφελίας, ὡς δεινὰ ποιῶν εἰς τηλικουτονὶ καθέστηκα κίνδυνον.

[¶32] 165. And yet all sensible men would do well to pray the gods to endow as many of our people as possible with the power of getting means from abroad in order to make themselves serviceable to the city, even as I have done. But, though there are many anomalies in my situation, it would be the crowning absurdity of all if, when the men who have paid me money are so grateful to me that they are still even now devoted to me, you on whom I have spent my means should desire to penalize me.

> Greek: 165. καί τοι προσῆκε τοὺς εὖ φρονοῦντας εὔχεσθαι τοῖς θεοῖς ὡς πλείστοις τῶν πολιτῶν παραγενέσθαι τὴν δύναμιν ταύτην, διʼ ἣν ἔμελλον παρʼ ἑτέρων λαμβάνοντες χρησίμους αὑτούς, ὥσπερ ἐγώ, τῇ πόλει παρέξειν. πολλῆς δʼ ἀλογίας περί με γεγενημένης πάντων ἂν συμβαίη δεινότατον, εἰ οἱ μὲν δεδωκότες μοι χρήματα τοσαύτην ἔχοιεν χάριν, ὥστʼ ἔτι καὶ νῦν με θεραπεύειν, ὑμεῖς δʼ, εἰς οὓς ἀνήλωκα τἀμαυτοῦ, δίκην ἐπιθυμήσαιτε παρʼ ἐμοῦ λαβεῖν.

[¶33] 166. It would be even more absurd if, whereas Pindar, the poet, was so highly honored by our forefathers because of a single line of his in which he praises Athens as “the bulwark of Hellas” that he was made ”proxenos“and given a present of ten thousand drachmas, I, on the other hand, who have glorified Athens and our ancestors with much ampler and nobler encomiums, should not even be privileged to end my days in peace.

> Greek: 166. ἔτι δὲ δεινότερον, εἰ Πίνδαρον μὲν τὸν ποιητὴν οἱ πρὸ ἡμῶν γεγονότες ὑπὲρ ἑνὸς μόνον ῥήματος, ὅτι τὴν πόλιν ἔρεισμα τῆς Ἑλλάδος ὠνόμασεν, οὕτως ἐτίμησαν ὥστε καὶ πρόξενον ποιήσασθαι καὶ δωρεὰν μυρίας αὐτῷ δοῦναι δραχμάς, ἐμοὶ δὲ πολὺ πλείω καὶ κάλλιον ἐγκεκωμιακότι καὶ τὴν πόλιν καὶ τοὺς προγόνους μηδʼ ἀσφαλῶς ἐγγένοιτο ἐπιβιῶναι τὸν ἐπίλοιπον χρόνον.

[¶34] 167. With regard, then, to this as well as to the other charges of my accuser, I consider that the defense which I have made is a sufficient answer. Nevertheless, I am not going to hesitate to confide in you the truth as to how I now feel about the pending trial and how I felt about it at the first. I was very confident that for myself personally I could make out a good case;

> Greek: 167. περὶ μὲν οὖν τούτων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τῶν κατηγορηθέντων ἱκανὴν εἶναι νομίζω τὴν εἰρημένην ἀπολογίαν· οὐκ ὀκνήσω δὲ πρὸς ὑμᾶς οὔθʼ ὡς ἔχω νῦν πρὸς τὸν ἐνεστῶτα κίνδυνον κατειπεῖν τὴν ἀλήθειαν, οὔθʼ ὡς τὸ πρῶτον διετέθην πρὸς αὐτόν. ἐγὼ γὰρ ὑπὲρ μὲν τῶν ἰδίων πολλὰς ἐλπίδας εἶχον καλῶς ἀγωνιεῖσθαι·

[¶35] 168. for I relied upon the character of my life and conduct, and believed that I had no lack of arguments to justify them. But as I observed not only the intolerant feeling toward the teaching of eloquence on the part of those who are churlish toward everyone, but the truculent attitude towards it on the part of my fellow-citizens in general, I began to be afraid that the truth regarding me personally might be overlooked and that I might suffer some harm from the common prejudice against the sophists.

> Greek: 168. καὶ γὰρ τοῖς βεβιωμένοις καὶ τοῖς πεπραγμένοις ἐπίστευον, καὶ πολλοὺς λόγους καὶ δικαίους ᾤμην ἔχειν ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν· ὁρῶν δʼ οὐ μόνον δυσκόλως διακειμένους περὶ τὴν τῶν λόγων παιδείαν τοὺς εἰθισμένους ἅπασι χαλεπαίνειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων πολιτῶν πολλοὺς τραχέως πρὸς αὐτὴν διακειμένους, ἐφοβούμην μὴ τὰ μὲν ἴδιά μου παραμεληθῇ, τῆς δὲ κοινῆς τῆς περὶ τοὺς σοφιστὰς διαβολῆς ἀπολαύσω τι φλαῦρον.

[¶36] 169. But as time went on, and I fell to thinking what I should do in the present circumstances, I ceased being fearful and disturbed on this account, not without good reason, but after having weighed the probabilities and reassured myself.

> Greek: 169. ἐπειδὴ δὲ χρόνων ἐγγιγνομένων εἰσέπεσον εἰς τὸ λογίζεσθαι καὶ σκοπεῖν τί χρήσομαι τοῖς παροῦσιν, ἐπαυσάμην τοῦ δέους καὶ τῆς ταραχῆς ταύτης, οὐκ ἀλόγως, ἀλλʼ ἐκ τῶν εἰκότων λογισάμενος καὶ παραμυθησάμενος ἐμαυτόν·

[¶37] 170. For I knew that the honest men among you—and it is to those that I shall address myself—do not remain fixed in opinions which they have formed unjustly, but are in quest of the truth and are ready to be convinced by those who plead a just cause; and I believed that I should have abundant grounds to show that philosophy has been unjustly slandered, and that it deserves much more to be held in favor than in contempt; and I am still of the same opinion.

> Greek: 170. τούς τε γὰρ ἐπιεικεῖς ὑμῶν, πρὸς οὕς περ ἐγὼ ποιήσομαι τοὺς λόγους, ἠπιστάμην οὐκ ἐμμένοντας ταῖς δόξαις ταῖς ἀδίκως ἐγγεγενημέναις, ἀλλʼ ἐπακολουθοῦντας ταῖς ἀληθείαις καὶ μεταπειθομένους ὑπὸ τῶν λεγόντων τὰ δίκαια, τήν τε φιλοσοφίαν ἐκ πολλῶν ἐνόμιζον ἐπιδείξειν ἀδίκως διαβεβλημένην, καὶ πολὺ ἂν δικαιοτέρως ἀγαπωμένην αὐτὴν ἢ μισουμένην. ἔχω δὲ καὶ νῦν ἔτι ταύτην τὴν γνώμην.

[¶38] 171. However, it is not surprising that liberal pursuits have sometimes failed of recognition and regard, nor that some people have been utterly misled about them. In fact we find that this happens in regard to ourselves as well as to other things without number. For our city, which is now and has been in the past the author of so many blessings both to our own people and to the other Hellenes, and which abounds in so many charms, has, nevertheless, a most serious drawback.

> Greek: 171. οὐκ ἄξιον δὲ θαυμάζειν εἴ τι τῶν καλῶν ἐπιτηδευμάτων ἠγνόηται καὶ διαλέληθεν, οὐδʼ εἰ διεψευσμένοι τινὲς αὐτοῦ τυγχάνουσι· καὶ γὰρ περὶ ἡμῶν αὐτῶν καὶ περὶ ἄλλων πραγμάτων ἀναριθμήτων οὕτως ἔχοντες ἂν εὑρεθεῖμεν. ἡ γὰρ πόλις ἡμῶν πολλῶν ἀγαθῶν αἰτία καὶ νῦν οὖσα καὶ πρότερον γεγενημένη καὶ τοῖς πολίταις καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις Ἕλλησι, καὶ πολλῶν ἡδονῶν γέμουσα, τοῦτʼ ἔχει δυσκολώτατον·

[¶39] 172. For Athens is so large and the multitude of people living here is so great, that the city does not present to the mind an image easily grasped or sharply defined, but, like a turbid flood, whatever it catches up in its course, whether men or things, in each case it sweeps them along pell-mell, and in some cases it imbues them with a reputation which is the opposite of the true; and exactly that has been the fortune of this system of education.

> Greek: 172. διὰ γὰρ τὸ μέγεθος καὶ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἐνοικούντων οὐκ εὐσύνοπτός ἐστιν οὐδʼ ἀκριβής, ἀλλʼ ὥσπερ χειμάρρους, ὅπως ἂν ἕκαστον ὑπολαβοῦσα τύχῃ καὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων καὶ τῶν πραγμάτων, οὕτω κατήνεγκε, καὶ δόξαν ἐνίοις τὴν ἐναντίαν τῆς προσηκούσης περιέθηκεν· ὅπερ καὶ τῇ παιδεία ταύτῃ συμβέβηκεν.

[¶40] 173. You must bear these things in mind, and not pass judgement in any trial without the exercise of reason, nor be as careless when you sit in judgement as you are in your private occupations, but must examine thoroughly each point and search for the truth, mindful of your oaths and of the laws under which you have come together to dispense justice. It is no minor question which is under discussion and on trial here, but the most important in the world. For you are to determine by your votes, not my fate only, but that of a way of life to which many of our youths are devoting their minds.

> Greek: 173. ὧν ἐνθυμουμένους χρὴ μηδενὸς πράγματος ἄνευ λόγου καταγιγνώσκειν, μηδʼ ὁμοίως διακεῖσθαι δικάζοντας ὥσπερ ἐν ταῖς ἰδίαις διατριβαῖς, ἀλλὰ διακριβοῦσθαι περὶ ἑκάστου καὶ τὴν ἀλήθειαν ζητεῖν, μεμνημένους τῶν ὅρκων καὶ τῶν νόμων καθʼ οὓς συνεληλύθατε δικάσοντες· ἔστι δʼ οὐ περὶ μικρῶν οὔθʼ ὁ λόγος οὔθʼ ἡ κρίσις ἐν ᾗ καθέσταμεν, ἀλλὰ περὶ τῶν μεγίστων· οὐ γὰρ περὶ ἐμοῦ μέλλετε μόνον τὴν ψῆφον διοίσειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ ἐπιτηδεύματος ᾧ πολλοὶ τῶν νεωτέρων προσέχουσι τὸν νοῦν.

[¶41] 174. I suppose that you are not unaware of the fact that the government of the state is handed on by the older men to the youth of the coming generation; and that since the succession goes on without end, it follows of necessity that as is the education of our youth so from generation to generation will be the fortune of the state. Therefore, you must not let the sycophants have control of a thing so momentous, nor punish those who refuse to pay them money, while permitting those from whom they have received it to do whatever they please.

> Greek: 174. οἶμαι δʼ ὑμᾶς οὐκ ἀγνοεῖν ὅτι τὰ πράγματα τῆς πόλεως τοῖς ἐπιγιγνομένοις καὶ τοῖς τοιούτοις οἱ πρεσβύτεροι παραδιδόασι. τοιαύτης οὖν ἀεὶ τῆς περιόδου γιγνομένης ἀναγκαῖόν ἐστιν, ὅπως ἃ οἱ νεώτεροι παιδευθῶσιν, οὕτω τὴν πόλιν πράττουσαν διατελεῖν· ὥστʼ σὺ ποιητέον τοὺς συκοφάντας κυρίους τηλικούτου πράγματος, οὐδὲ τοὺς μὲν μὴ διδόντας τούτοις ἀργύριον τιμωρητέον, παρʼ ὧν δʼ ἂν λάβωσιν ἐατέον ποιεῖν ὅ τι ἂν βουληθῶσιν, ἀλλʼ εἰ μὲν ἡ φιλοσοφία τοιαύτην ἔχει δύναμιν ὥστε διαφθείρειν τοὺς νεωτέρους, οὐ τοῦτον χρὴ μόνον κολάζειν ὃν ἂν γράψηταί τις τούτων, ἀλλὰ πάντας ἐκποδὼν ποιεῖσθαι τοὺς περὶ τὴν διατριβὴν ταύτην ὄντας·

[¶42] 175. But if philosophy has an influence which tends to corrupt our youth, you ought not merely to punish the occasional offender whom some sycophant hales into court but to banish all who are engaged in teaching it. If, however, it has the opposite effect and helps and improves and makes better men of its devotees, then you should call a halt on those who load this study with abuse; you should strip the sycophants of their rewards, and counsel our young men to occupy themselves with this pursuit above all others.

> Greek: 175. εἰ δὲ τοὐναντίον πέφυκεν ὥστʼ ὠφελεῖν καὶ βελτίους ποιεῖν τοὺς πλησιάζοντας καὶ πλέονος ἀξίους, τοὺς μὲν διαβεβλημένους πρὸς αὐτὴν παυστέον, τοὺς δὲ συκοφαντοῦντας ἀτιμητέον, τοῖς δὲ νεωτέροις συμβουλευτέον ἐν ταύτῃ διατρίβειν μᾶλλον ἢ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἐπιτηδεύμασι.

[¶43] 176. I would have given a good deal, assuming that I was doomed by fate to defend myself against this charge, if I could have faced this trial in the fullness of my vigor; for in that case I should have felt no misgiving but should have been better able both to protect myself from my accuser and to champion the cause of liberal education. Now, however, I am afraid that, although I have been enabled by this education to speak well enough on other themes, I may find that I have discoursed less ably upon this subject than upon matters which should have concerned me less.

> Greek: 176. πρὸ πολλῶν δʼ ἂν ἐποιησάμην, εἴπερ ἦν εἱμαρμένον μοι φεύγειν τὴν γραφὴν ταύτην, ἀκμάζοντί μοι προσπεσεῖν τὸν κίνδυνον· οὐ γὰρ ἂν ἠθύμουν, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον οἷός τʼ ἂν ἐγενόμην καὶ τὸν κατήγορον ἀμύνασθαι καὶ τῇ φιλοσοφίᾳ βοηθῆσαι· νῦν δὲ φοβοῦμαι μὴ διὰ ταύτην ὑπὲρ ἄλλων πραγμάτων ἐπιεικῶς εἰρηκώς, περὶ αὐτῆς ταύτης χεῖρον τύχω διαλεχθεὶς ἢ περὶ ὧν ἧττόν μοι σπουδάσαι προσῆκε.

[¶44] 177. And yet I would rather lay down my life this day—for you shall have the truth even though the words be inept —after having spoken adequately upon this theme and persuaded you to look upon the study of eloquence in its true light, than live many times my allotted span and see it continue to fare among you as it now does.

> Greek: 177. καίτοι δεξαίμην ἄν, εἰρήσεται γὰρ τἀληθὲς εἰ καὶ μωρὸς ὁ λόγος ἐστίν, ἤδη τελευτῆσαι τὸν βίον ἀξίως εἰπὼν τῆς ὑποθέσεως καὶ πείσας ὑμᾶς τοιαύτην νομίζειν τὴν τῶν λόγων μελέτην οἵα πέρ ἐστι, μᾶλλον ἢ ζῆν πολυπλασίω χρόνον ἐφορῶν οὕτως αὐτὴν ὥσπερ νῦν παρʼ ὑμῖν φερομένην.

[¶45] 178. My aspiration, then, is much greater than my power to do the subject justice; but yet I shall try as best I can to explain what is the nature of this education, what is its power, what of the other arts it is akin to, what benefit it is to its devotees, and what claims I make for it. For I think that when you know the truth about this you will be in a better position to deliberate and pronounce judgement upon it.

> Greek: 178. τῆς μὲν οὖν ἐπιθυμίας οἶδʼ ὅτι πολὺ καταδεέστερον ἐροῦμεν· ὅμως δʼ ὅπως ἂν δύνωμαι, πειράσομαι διελθεῖν τήν τε φύσιν αὐτῆς καὶ τὴν δύναμιν ἣν ἔχει, καὶ ποίᾳ τῶν ἄλλων τεχνῶν ὁμοιοειδής ἐστι, καὶ τί τοὺς συνόντας ὠφελεῖ, καὶ ποίας τινὰς ποιούμεθα ἡμεῖς τὰς ὑποσχέσεις· οἶμαι γὰρ ὑμᾶς μαθόντας τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἄμεινον καὶ βουλεύσεσθαι καὶ διαγνώσεσθαι περὶ αὐτῆς.

[¶46] 179. But I beg of you, if I appear to carry on the discussion in a manner far removed from that which is customary here, not to be impatient but to bear with me, remembering that when a man is defending himself on a charge unlike any other, he must resort to a kind of pleading which is out of the ordinary. Be patient, therefore, with the manner of my discourse and with my frankness of speech; permit me to use up the time allotted to my defense; and then cast your ballots as each of you thinks is right and in accordance with the law.

> Greek: 179. ἀξιῶ δʼ ὑμᾶς, ἢν ἄρα φαίνωμαι λόγους διεξιὼν πολὺ τῶν εἰθισμένων λέγεσθαι παρʼ ὑμῖν ἐξηλλαγμένους, μὴ δυσχεραίνειν ἀλλʼ ἔχειν συγγνώμην, ἐνθυμουμένους ὅτι τοὺς περὶ πραγμάτων ἀνομοίων τοῖς ἄλλοις ἀγωνιζομένους ἀναγκαῖόν ἐστι καὶ τοῖς λόγοις τοιούτοις χρῆσθαι περὶ αὐτῶν. ὑπομείναντες οὖν τὸν τρόπον τῶν λεγομένων καὶ τὴν παρρησίαν, καὶ τὸν χρόνον ἐάσαντες ἀναλῶσαί με τὸν δεδομένον ταῖς ἀπολογίαις, ὅπως ἂν ὑμῶν ἑκάστῳ δοκῇ δίκαιον εἶναι καὶ νόμιμον, οὕτω φέρετε τὴν ψῆφον.

[¶47] 180. In my treatment of the art of discourse, I desire, like the genealogists, to start at the beginning. It is acknowledged that the nature of man is compounded of two parts, the physical and the mental, and no one would deny that of these two the mind comes first and is of greater worth; for it is the function of the mind to decide both on personal and on public questions, and of the body to be servant to the judgements of the mind.

> Greek: 180. βούλομαι δὲ περὶ τῆς τῶν λόγων παιδείας ὥσπερ οἱ γενεαλογοῦντες πρῶτον διελθεῖν πρὸς ὑμᾶς. ὁμολογεῖται μὲν γὰρ τὴν φύσιν ἡμῶν ἔκ τε τοῦ σώματος συγκεῖσθαι καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς, αὐτοῖν δὲ τούτοιν οὐδεὶς ἔστιν ὅστις οὐκ ἂν φήσειεν ἡγεμονικωτέραν πεφυκέναι τὴν ψυχὴν καὶ πλέονος ἀξίαν· τῆς μὲν γὰρ ἔργον εἶναι βουλεύσασθαι καὶ περὶ τῶν ἰδίων καὶ περὶ τῶν κοινῶν, τοῦ δὲ σώματος ὑπηρετῆσαι τοῖς ὑπὸ τῆς ψυχῆς γνωσθεῖσιν.

[¶48] 181. Since this is so, certain of our ancestors, long before our time, seeing that many arts had been devised for other things, while none had been prescribed for the body and for the mind, invented and bequeathed to us two disciplines, physical training for the body, of which gymnastics is a part, and, for the mind, philosophy, which I am going to explain. These are twin arts—parallel and complementary—by which their masters prepare the mind to become more intelligent and the body to become more serviceable, not separating sharply the two kinds of education, but using similar methods of instruction, exercise, and other forms of discipline.

> Greek: 181. οὕτω δὲ τούτων ἐχόντων ὁρῶντές τινες τῶν πολὺ πρὸ ἡμῶν γεγονότων περὶ μὲν τῶν ἄλλων πολλὰς τέχνας συνεστηκυίας, περὶ δὲ τὸ σῶμα καὶ τὴν ψυχὴν οὐδὲν τοιοῦτον συντεταγμένον, εὑρόντες διττὰς ἐπιμελείας κατέλιπον ἡμῖν, περὶ μὲν τὰ σώματα τὴν παιδοτριβικήν, ἧς ἡ γυμναστικὴ μέρος ἐστί, περὶ δὲ τὰς ψυχὰς τὴν φιλοσοφίαν, περὶ ἧς ἐγὼ μέλλω ποιεῖσθαι τοὺς λόγους, ἀντιστρόφους καὶ σύζυγας καὶ σφίσιν αὐταῖς ὁμολογουμένας, διʼ ὧν οἱ προεστῶτες αὐτῶν τάς τε ψυχὰς φρονιμωτέρας καὶ τὰ σώματα χρησιμώτερα παρασκευάζουσιν, οὐ πολὺ διαστησάμενοι τὰς παιδείας ἀπʼ ἀλλήλων, ἀλλὰ παραπλησίαις χρώμενοι καὶ ταῖς διδασκαλίαις καὶ ταῖς γυμνασίαις καὶ ταῖς ἄλλαις ἐπιμελείαις.

[¶49] 183. For when they take their pupils in hand, the physical trainers instruct their followers in the postures which have been devised for bodily contests, while the teachers of philosophy impart all the forms of discourse in which the mind expresses itself.

> Greek: 183. ἐπειδὰν γὰρ λάβωσι μαθητάς, οἱ μὲν παιδοτρίβαι τὰ σχήματα τὰ πρὸς τὴν ἀγωνίαν εὑρημένα τοὺς φοιτῶντας διδάσκουσιν, οἱ δὲ περὶ τὴν φιλοσοφίαν ὄντες τὰς ἰδέας ἁπάσας, αἷς ὁ λόγος τυγχάνει χρώμενος, διεξέρχονται τοῖς μαθηταῖς.

[¶50] 184. Then, when they have made them familiar and thoroughly conversant with these lessons, they set them at exercises, habituate them to work, and require them to combine in practice the particular things which they have learned, in order that they may grasp them more firmly and bring their theories into closer touch with the occasions for applying them—I say “theories,” for no system of knowledge can possibly cover these occasions, since in all cases they elude our science. Yet those who most apply their minds to them and are able to discern the consequences which for the most part grow out of them, will most often meet these occasions in the right way.

> Greek: 184. ἐμπείρους δὲ τούτων ποιήσαντες καὶ διακριβώσαντες ἐν τούτοις πάλιν γυμνάζουσιν αὐτούς, καὶ πονεῖν ἐθίζουσι, καὶ συνείρειν καθʼ ἓν ἕκαστον ὧν ἔμαθον ἀναγκάζουσιν, ἵνα ταῦτα βεβαιότερον κατάσχωσι καὶ τῶν καιρῶν ἐγγυτέρω ταῖς δόξαις γένωνται. τῷ μὲν γὰρ εἰδέναι περιλαβεῖν αὐτοὺς οὐχ οἷόν τʼ ἐστίν· ἐπὶ γὰρ ἁπάντων τῶν πραγμάτων διαφεύγουσι τὰς ἐπιστήμας, οἱ δὲ μάλιστα προσέχοντες τὸν νοῦν καὶ δυνάμενοι θεωρεῖν τὸ συμβαῖνον ὡς ἐπὶ τὸ πολὺ πλειστάκις αὐτῶν τυγχάνουσι.

[¶51] 185. Watching over them and training them in this manner, both the teachers of gymnastic and the teachers of discourse are able to advance their pupils to a point where they are better men and where they are stronger in their thinking or in the use of their bodies. However, neither class of teachers is in possession of a science by which they can make capable athletes or capable orators out of whomsoever they please. They can contribute in some degree to these results, but these powers are never found in their perfection save in those who excel by virtue both of talent and of training.

> Greek: 185. τοῦτον δὲ τὸν τρόπον ἐπιμελόμενοι καὶ παιδεύοντες μέχρι μὲν τοῦ γενέσθαι βελτίους αὐτοὺς αὑτῶν τοὺς μαθητὰς καὶ ἔχειν ἄμεινον, τοὺς μὲν τὰς διανοίας τοὺς δὲ τὰς τῶν σωμάτων ἕξεις, ἀμφότεροι δύνανται προαγαγεῖν· ἐκείνην δὲ τὴν ἐπιστήμην οὐδέτεροι τυγχάνουσιν ἔχοντες, διʼ ἧς ἂν οἱ μὲν ἀθλητὰς οὓς βουληθεῖεν, οἱ δὲ ῥήτορας ἱκανοὺς ποιήσαιεν, ἀλλὰ μέρος μὲν ἄν τι συμβάλοιντο, τὸ δʼ ὅλον αἱ δυνάμεις αὗται παραγίγνονται τοῖς καὶ τῇ φύσει καὶ ταῖς ἐπιμελείαις διενεγκοῦσιν.

[¶52] 186. I have given you now some impression of what philosophy is. But I think that you will get a still clearer idea of its powers if I tell you what professions I make to those who want to become my pupils.

> Greek: 186. ὁ μὲν οὖν τύπος τῆς φιλοσοφίας τοιοῦτός τίς ἐστιν· ἡγοῦμαι δʼ ὑμᾶς μᾶλλον ἂν ἔτι καταμαθεῖν τὴν δύναμιν αὐτῆς, εἰ διέλθοιμι τὰς ὑποσχέσεις ἃς ποιούμεθα πρὸς τοὺς πλησιάζειν ἡμῖν βουλομένους.

[¶53] 187. I say to them that if they are to excel in oratory or in managing affairs or in any line of work, they must, first of all, have a natural aptitude for that which they have elected to do; secondly, they must submit to training and master the knowledge of their particular subject, whatever it may be in each case; and, finally, they must become versed and practised in the use and application of their art; for only on these conditions can they become fully competent and pre-eminent in any line of endeavor.

> Greek: 187. λέγομεν γὰρ ὡς δεῖ τοὺς μέλλοντας διοίσειν ἢ περὶ τοὺς λόγους ἢ περὶ τὰς πράξεις ἢ περὶ τὰς ἄλλας ἐργασίας πρῶτον μὲν πρὸς τοῦτο πεφυκέναι καλῶς, πρὸς ὃ ἂν προῃρημένοι τυγχάνωσιν, ἔπειτα παιδευθῆναι καὶ λαβεῖν τὴν ἐπιστήμην, ἥτις ἂν ᾗ περὶ ἑκάστου, τρίτον ἐντριβεῖς γενέσθαι καὶ γυμνασθῆναι περὶ τὴν χρείαν καὶ τὴν ἐμπειρίαν αὐτῶν· ἐκ τούτων γὰρ ἐν ἁπάσαις ταῖς ἐργασίαις τελείους γίγνεσθαι καὶ πολὺ διαφέροντας τῶν ἄλλων. εἶναι δὲ τούτων προσῆκον ἑκατέροις, τοῖς τε διδάσκουσι καὶ τοῖς μανθάνουσιν, ἴδιον μὲν τοῖς μὲν εἰσενέγκασθαι τὴν φύσιν οἵαν δεῖ, τοῖς δὲ δύνασθαι παιδεῦσαι τοὺς τοιούτους, κοινὸν δʼ ἀμφοτέρων τὸ περὶ τὴν ἐμπειρίαν γυμνάσιον·

[¶54] 188. In this process, master and pupil each has his place; no one but the pupil can furnish the necessary capacity; no one but the master, the ability to impart knowledge while both have a part in the exercises of practical application: for the master must painstakingly direct his pupil, and the latter must rigidly follow the master’s instructions. Now these observations apply to any and all the arts. If anyone, ignoring the other arts, were to ask me which of these factors has the greatest power in the education of an orator I should answer that natural ability is paramount and comes before all else. For given a man with a mind which is capable of finding out and learning the truth and of working hard and remembering what it learns, and also with a voice and a clarity of utterance which are able to captivate the audience, not only by what he says, but by the music of his words, and, finally, with an assurance which is not an expression of bravado, but which, tempered by sobriety, so fortifies the spirit that he is no less at ease in addressing all his fellow-citizens than in reflecting to himself—who does not know that such a man might, without the advantage of an elaborate education and with only a superficial and common training, be an orator such as has never, perhaps, been seen among the Hellenes?

> Greek: 188. δεῖν γὰρ τοὺς μὲν ἐπιμελῶς ἐπιστατῆσαι τοῖς παιδευομένοις, τοὺς δʼ ἐγκρατῶς ἐμμεῖναι τοῖς προσταττομένοις. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ἐστιν ἃ κατὰ πασῶν λέγομεν τῶν τεχνῶν· εἰ δὲ δή τις ἀφέμενος τῶν ἄλλων ἔροιτό με τί τούτων μεγίστην ἔχει δύναμιν πρὸς τὴν τῶν λόγων παιδείαν, ἀποκριναίμην ἂν ὅτι τὸ τῆς φύσεως ἀνυπέρβλητόν ἐστι καὶ πολὺ πάντων διαφέρει· τὸν γὰρ ἔχοντα τὴν μὲν ψυχὴν εὑρεῖν καὶ μαθεῖν καὶ πονῆσαι καὶ μνημονεῦσαι δυναμένην, τὴν δὲ φωνὴν καὶ τὴν τοῦ στόματος σαφήνειαν τοιαύτην ὥστε μὴ μόνοις τοῖς λεγομένοις ἀλλὰ καὶ ταῖς τούτων εὐαρμοστίαις συμπείθειν τοὺς ἀκούοντας, ἔτι δὲ τὴν τόλμαν μὴ τὴν ἀναισχυντίας σημεῖον γιγνομένην, ἀλλὰ τὴν μετὰ σωφροσύνης οὕτω παρασκευάζουσαν τὴν ψυχὴν ὥστε μηδὲν ἧττον θαρρεῖν ἐν δὴ πᾶσι τοῖς πολίταις τοὺς λόγους ποιούμενον ἢ πρὸς αὑτὸν διανοούμενον, τίς οὐκ οἶδεν ὅτι τυχὼν ὁ τοιοῦτος παιδείας μὴ τῆς ἀπηκριβωμένης, ἀλλὰ τῆς ἐπιπολαίου καὶ πᾶσι κοινῆς, τοιοῦτος ἂν εἴη ῥήτωρ οἷος οὐκ οἶδʼ εἴ τις τῶν Ἑλλήνων γέγονεν;

[¶55] 191. Again, we know that men who are less generously endowed by nature but excel in experience and practice, not only improve upon themselves, but surpass others who, though highly gifted, have been too negligent of their talents. It follows, therefore, that either one of these factors may produce an able speaker or an able man of affairs, but both of them combined in the same person might produce a man incomparable among his fellows.

> Greek: 191. καὶ μὲν δὴ κἀκείνους ἴσμεν, τοὺς καταδεεστέραν μὲν τούτων τὴν φύσιν ἔχοντας, ταῖς δʼ ἐμπειρίαις καὶ ταῖς ἐπιμελείαις προέχοντας, ὅτι γίγνονται κρείττους οὐ μόνον αὑτῶν ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν εὖ μὲν πεφυκότων λίαν δʼ αὑτῶν κατημεληκότων· ὥσθʼ ἑκάτερόν τε τούτων δεινὸν ἂν καὶ λέγειν καὶ πράττειν ποιήσειεν, ἀμφότερά τε γενόμενα περὶ τὸν αὐτὸν ἀνυπέρβλητον ἂν τοῖς ἄλλοις ἀποτελέσειεν.