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‘Know thyself!’ and ‘Be temperate!’ are the same, as I maintain, and as the
letters imply (Greek), and yet they may be easily misunderstood; and
succeeding sages who added ‘Never too much,’ or, ‘Give a pledge, and evil is
nigh at hand,’ would appear to have so misunderstood them; for they
imagined that ‘Know thyself!’ was a piece of advice which the god gave, and
not his salutation of the worshippers at their first coming in; and they
dedicated their own inscription under the idea that they too would give
equally useful pieces of advice. Shall I tell you, Socrates, why I say all this?
My object is to leave the previous discussion (in which I know not whether
you or I are more right, but, at any rate, no clear result was attained), and to
raise a new one in which I will attempt to prove, if you deny, that temperance
is self-knowledge.
Yes, I said, Critias; but you come to me as though I professed to know
about the questions which I ask, and as though I could, if I only would, agree
with you. Whereas the fact is that I enquire with you into the truth of that
which is advanced from time to time, just because I do not know; and when I
have enquired, I will say whether I agree with you or not. Please then to allow
me time to reflect.
Reflect, he said.
I am reflecting, I replied, and discover that temperance, or wisdom, if
implying a knowledge of anything, must be a science, and a science of
something.
Yes, he said; the science of itself.
Is not medicine, I said, the science of health?
True.
And suppose, I said, that I were asked by you what is the use or effect of
medicine, which is this science of health, I should answer that medicine is of
very great use in producing health, which, as you will admit, is an excellent
effect.
Granted.
And if you were to ask me, what is the result or effect of architecture,
which is the science of building, I should say houses, and so of other arts,
which all have their different results. Now I want you, Critias, to answer a
similar question about temperance, or wisdom, which, according to you, is the
science of itself. Admitting this view, I ask of you, what good work, worthy
of the name wise, does temperance or wisdom, which is the science of itself,
effect? Answer me.
50
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Buch The Complete Plato"
The Complete Plato
- Titel
- The Complete Plato
- Autor
- Plato
- Datum
- ~347 B.C.
- Sprache
- englisch
- Lizenz
- PD
- Abmessungen
- 21.0 x 29.7 cm
- Seiten
- 1612
- Schlagwörter
- Philosophy, Antique, Philosophie, Antike, Dialogues, Metaphysik, Metaphysics, Ideologie, Ideology, Englisch
- Kategorien
- Geisteswissenschaften
- International