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of neglect; and they blame their defects far more than they deserve, in order
that the odium which is necessarily incurred by them may be increased: but
the good man dissembles his feelings, and constrains himself to praise them;
and if they have wronged him and he is angry, he pacifies his anger and is
reconciled, and compels himself to love and praise his own flesh and blood.
And Simonides, as is probable, considered that he himself had often had to
praise and magnify a tyrant or the like, much against his will, and he also
wishes to imply to Pittacus that he does not censure him because he is
censorious.
‘For I am satisfied’ he says, ‘when a man is neither bad nor very stupid;
and when he knows justice (which is the health of states), and is of sound
mind, I will find no fault with him, for I am not given to finding fault, and
there are innumerable fools’
(implying that if he delighted in censure he might have abundant
opportunity of finding fault).
‘All things are good with which evil is unmingled.’
In these latter words he does not mean to say that all things are good which
have no evil in them, as you might say ‘All things are white which have no
black in them,’ for that would be ridiculous; but he means to say that he
accepts and finds no fault with the moderate or intermediate state.
(‘I do not hope’ he says, ‘to find a perfectly blameless man among those
who partake of the fruits of the broad-bosomed earth (if I find him, I will send
you word); in this sense I praise no man. But he who is moderately good, and
does no evil, is good enough for me, who love and approve every one’)
(and here observe that he uses a Lesbian word, epainemi (approve),
because he is addressing Pittacus,
‘Who love and APPROVE every one VOLUNTARILY, who does no evil:’
and that the stop should be put after ‘voluntarily’); ‘but there are some
whom I involuntarily praise and love. And you, Pittacus, I would never have
blamed, if you had spoken what was moderately good and true; but I do
blame you because, putting on the appearance of truth, you are speaking
falsely about the highest matters.’—And this, I said, Prodicus and Protagoras,
I take to be the meaning of Simonides in this poem.
Hippias said: I think, Socrates, that you have given a very good explanation
of the poem; but I have also an excellent interpretation of my own which I
will propound to you, if you will allow me.
Nay, Hippias, said Alcibiades; not now, but at some other time. At present
280
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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