And ifyou should go to
Volycletus
of Argos or to Tbidias to give them Money to learn something of them, and any one should ask you the very fame Question, to whom do you give that Money , and what would you be ?
Plato - 1701 - Works - a
28.
nant to what the Christian Religion teaches us, That
Men notbeingwillingtoretainGodintheirknow~
ledge,Godgavethemovertoareprobatemind. And aThess. Godshallfendthem aSpiritosError.
z:"?
But how comes it thatSocrates asserting that
Vertue is a Science,maintains at the fame time that it can't be taught > For it is certain that all Sciences canbetaught. How then dothSocratesagreewith himself? This Contradiction is not so difficult to reconcile as that of Protagoras, who would have Vertue to be quite another thing than Science, and w h o notwithstanding pretends that it m a y be taught* There aresomeScienceswhich Men teach;but thereisonethatMen donotteach,andthatcan be,learntfromnootherbutGod. ThisiswhatSo crates would have us to understand, and what
thole
? ? the lntrodu&ion to Protagoras. 22^
thole false Teachers, who are accustomed to make illuse of human Sciences, could not perceive.
Since Science is Vertue, Valour can be nothing but Science;and consequently,allBoldness,thatisnot accompanied with Prudence, can't be calsd Valour j for,on thecontrary,itisIgnorance. Valour isthe Science of Things that are terrible ; that is to fay, that of two Things that are terrible, it induceth us to chuse that which is the least, and to chuse it even with the hazard of our Life ; as we have seen in Laches.
Ishallnot enterupontheparticularBeautiesof this Dialogue, which consist in the variety, and in the liveliness of the Characters ; in the Mirth and pleasant Humours of Socrates, in the Simplicity and Nobleness of the Narratives, and in the Knowledge of Antiquitythereindiscovered;thoseBeautiesare perceptible enough.
But I can't but relate a Passage here which seems tome very remarkable,and which Socrates only touches en pajj'ant,Without insisting upon it,asfinding ittooSublimeforthosewithwhom heconvers'd. It is when he fays, That even though the Pleasures oftheWorldwere notattendedby any kindofEvil in this Life, yet they would be no less bad, because theycauseMen torejoyce;and toreJoyceinVice,is the most deplorable of all States, and the Punishment ofSin.
We mustnotfinishthisArgumentwithout speak ing of the Date of this Dialogue, as to which A- theneus accuseth Plato to have committed very con siderableFaultsinChronology. Thewholestrength of hisCriticism consistsinthis. Plato tellsusthat this Dispute of Socrates against Protagoras happen'd the Year after the Poet Pherecrates his Play, call'd, The Savages, was acted. This Play was acted in the time of the Archon Ariftion, in the 4th Year of
the 89th Olympiad. The true Time then of this Dispute, according to Plato, is the Year after; that is to fay, the first Year of the poth Olympiad, in
Pp3 the
? ? 2,39
%he lntroduftion to Protagoras.
the time of the Archon Afiyphilus. Yet here are two thingsthatcontradictthisDate.
The first is, That by a Passage in a Play of Eupo- 7k\ which was acted a Year before that of Phere* (rates, itappearsthatProtagoraswasthenatAthens: N o w Plato fays positively, that in the time of this Dispute, that is to fay, the first Year of the 90th O- lympiad, Protagoras arrived at Athens but three Days before.
The secondis,ThatHippias<fEleis,waspresent atthatDispute, whichcouldnotbe-,fortheTruce which the Athenians had concluded with the Lace- demonianshQvng expired, no Peloponefian could be at
Athensatthattime. - ! Ishouldnothavereviv'dthisCensure, ifCa/aubon, that wise and judicious Critick , had not been so struck with itas to write, that he did not feewhat could be answered in justification of Plato, whereas
whatheanswer'disnothardtofind. Itwillquick ly appear, that the Objections of Atheneus serve only to fix the Time of this Dispute the more, as Plato has observ'd.
pucid. 1,1. Weknowforcertain,,thattheAtheniansmadea Peace with the Lacedemonians for fifty Years, in the time of the Archon Alcaus, the third Year of the
8pthOlympiad. Itistrue,thatthisTreatywas n o t f a i t h f u l l y o b s e r v e d o n e i t h e r f i d e ? , b u t i t i s a l s o
true, that this ill-cemented Peace lasted six Years andtenMonths,withoutcomingtoanopenRup ture. Then Hippias o? Eleas might be at Athens two YearsafterthisTreaty, which lastedfiveYears longer,afterthesetwoYearswereexpired. Somuch forthelastObjection. < -?
The firstisno betterfounded:Letusfeewhat Eupolisfays. Protagoras<? /Teosiswithinthere. He fays nothing but that; and it may be observed at firstfight, that he isdeceived as to the Country of P r o t a g o r a s h h e a s s u r e s u s , t h a t h e i s o f T e o s ? , a n d ;
he was of Abdera, This Remark will be of use to US. ? '? ! ? '? .
? ? the Introduction to Protagoras.
23 1
I fay then , that Atheneus, instead of imploying thisVerseofEupolistocontradictPlato, oughtra ther to have made use of the Passage of Plato to understandthesaidVerseofEupolis. ThePoetand
the Philosopher are in the right, and Atheneus is theonlyPersonthatisinthewrong, Protagorashad madetwoJourneystoAthens. Platospeaksofthe second, and the Verse of Eupolis ought to be under stood of the first: For tho' Protagoras was not at Athens when the: Play was acted in the time of the Archon Alcoeus, it was enough that he had been there : The Poets have the priviledge to bring the Times nearer and to take notice of things that are ^ past as if they were present ; besides, he might be there when the Poet composed it. Thus the Verse of Eupolis serves on the one hand for a Commenta
ry to what Hipocrates fays in this Dialogue : Socra tes,IcometoprayyoutospeakformetoProtago ras ; for, besides that, 1 am tooyoung, 1 never saw, nor knew him, I was but a Child vshen he made his
first Journy.
And, on the other hand, this Passage of Plato serves to excuse the Ignorance of Eupolis about the Country of Protagoras ? for Eupolis might very well
beignorantofitatthisfirstJourny, thatSophistnot beingthenverywellknown,whereasitwouldnot have been pardonable in him to have been ignorant of it at the second.
This Fault of Atheneus islesssurprising than that ofCafaubon, who follow'd him, and who inexplain ing his Reasons commits another more considerable Mistake, whiiest he assures us that Tbucidides does not speak of the one Year's Truce that was made between the Athenians and the Lacedemonians under the Archon Ifarchus , the first Year of the 857th Olympiad, at the end of the eighth Year of the War and two Years before the Treaty of Peace that has been spoke of-, for it is exprefly set down in the fourth Book, and the Treaty is there rela-
Pp4 ted
? ? ajx the fotrodu&ion to Protagoras^
aesasdownthemdof tedallatlength,withtheDateofthe theeighthrearoftheWar, Yean oftheMonth, oftheDayandof
the14thDayoftheMonth theSeason.
fckphebolion(Februa- The Wranglings of Atheneus serve 7*sZJ'e g>m'n$ only t01uRfiQP/^'S Exactness, and to
. make itappearthatthisDialogueisbe y o n d t h e r e a c h o f a l l C r i t i c i s m -, f o r i f t h i s . C e n f u - rer had found any thing else to find fault with , the Envy with which he was animated against this-Phi losopher would not have suffered him to have for
got it. *^ According to Diogenes Laertius, this Dialogue is -^ t>>JitKliKb(,ADialogueofAccusation,aSatyriqueDia-
*^ logue. Onemay lay, thatitisalso*WJj<<iM<<,de structive. But those Names mark only the Turn andtheMannerofthe. Dialogue. ItstrueCharacter, is Logical and Moral.
j
? *>
o^
? ? PROTAGORAS' ? OR, ,'
The S O P H I S T S
A Friend of Socrates. Socrates.
Socrates* T j R o m whence come you, Socrates ? Bu$ "Friend, x oughtonetoaskit,'tisfromyour usualChase. Youcomefromrunningafterthehand
someAlcibiades. Iconfess,thatIalsopleas'dmy felf&v*qtlfaS the otherDay with looking upon him ; he seem'd toTM*>>WSo-
m e to be very fine and comely, tho' he be already a fa? d? f~
M a n j for w e m a y fay jt here, between us, he is not bodes <<t<<-
now in his Youth, and his Beard casts a Shadow al-rywhere,to ready upon hisChin. preventUs
Soc. What's that to the purpose? D o you think 2 & " S that + Homer was much in the wrong, in faying that
the Age of a young Man, who begins to have a Beard,ismostagreeable? Thatis,justtheAgeof Alcibiades.
*Enquiryismadewhy"PlatadoesnotnamethisFriendof Socrates, and 'tiswhat will never be found out. It can only be guessed at. Perhaps "Platowas afraid of exposing the Friend of SocratestotheresentmentoftheSophists,who wereingreat credit at Athens, and w h o were revengeful ; or that the part which this Friend acts here, not being considerable, itwas not worth while to name . him.
? t This Passage of Homer is in the tenth Book of his Oiyffeit,
wherethatPoetspeaksofMercury,whotakesuponhimthe ShapeofayoungManthatbeginstohaveaBeard. Thus SocratescomparesMcibiaiestothatGod. '
? '. '. '. -. ? Soc.
m
? ? ij4
Protagoras: Or, The Sophists!
pe**h*
S? c'friend. Youhavejustnow comefromawise Manthen>
Soc. Yes,awifeMan-,nay,averywifeMan, at least ifyou look upon Protagoras to be the wisest of Men now living,
Soc. fr. What do you tellme ? Is Protagoras in this City ?
Soc. Yes : He hasbeen here thefe three Days.
Soc. fr. And you have just now parted from him?
Soc. Yes, Ihavejustnowpartedfromhim, after a very long Conversation.
Soc. fr. Alas! willyou notrelatethatConversa tiontous,ifyouben'tinhaste? sitdown, Ipray you, in that young Man's Place, w h o will willingly
give ityou.
! . ? ' SOC.
Soc. friend. Youjustcomeftomhimthen5how are you in his Favour ?
Soc. IamveryWellwithhim* Iperceivedthis
very Day, that I was more in his favour than usual,
for he said a thousand things in m y favour and al
ways took m y part : I have but just parted from him.
And 111 tell you a thing that may feem very strange
to you, which is, that whilst*he was present I law
him not, and did not so much as think of him. Soc. friend. 'What happened to you both then,
thatyouneithersawhimnorthoughtofhim? Isit possible that you have met with some finer young Man intheCitythanAlcibiades? Ican'tbelieveany thingofit.
So-. It is ev'n Ib.
Soc. friend. Ingoodearnest? IsheanAthenian^ or a Stranger ?
Soc. H e is a Stranger.
Soc. friend. Whence comes he then ?
Soc. From Abdera.
Soc. friend. And did you think him so fine, that
he hath effaced the Comeliness of Alcibiades ?
Soc. The greatestBeautyisnottobelaidinthe
WifSmk
>>ioremi- BallancewithgreatWisdom.
? ? Protagoras: Or, the Sophists. a>>j
Soc. IwilldoitwithallmyHeart;andshallbe obligedtoyou, ifyouwillgiveeartoit.
Soc. Fr. We shallbemuchmore obligedtoyou, if you will relate it to us.
Soc. The Obligation then will be reciprocal. Your Businessisonlytohearme. ThisMorningwhileit wasyetdarkHippocrates,theSon ofApollodorus and Phaforfs Brother, knock'd very hard at m y Gate withhisCane;itwasno sooneropen'dtohim, but he came directly to my Chamber , crying with a loud Voice, Socrates are you asleep? Knowing his Voice, Isaid,whatHippocrates! what News doyou bringme? VerygoodNews, fayshe. Godgrantit, reply'dI. ButwhatNewsisitthen,thatyoucome Ibearly? Protagoras isinTown, fays he, Jre^ ply'd,hehasbeenherethesetwoDays. Didyou
hothearittillnow? IhearditbutthisNight;and havingsaidthis,hedrew nearmyBed, andfeeling with hisCane, fatdown atmy Feet, and went on inthismanner. IreturnedlastNightverylatefrom the Village of Doinoe, where Iwent to take my SlaveSatyrusagain,whohadrunaway:IwasreT solved to come and tell you that I was going in searchofhim, butsomeotherthingput itoutof mymind. AfterIhadreturn'd,iupp'dandwasgo ingtoBed,my Brothercametotellmethat Protagoras was come to Town : At first my Thoughts were to come to acquaint you with this g o o d N e w s ? , b u t c o n s i d e r i n g t h a t t h e N i g h t w a s a l ready too far advanced, Iwent to Bed, and aftera smallslumber, whichrefreshedmea littleaftermy Fatigue,Iaroseandcamerunninghither. I,who
knew HippocratestobeaMan ofCourage,perceiving himallamazed,askedhim,WhattheMatterwas?
Has Protagoras done you any Injury ? Yes certainly, answered he, laughing ? , he has done me an Injury
thatIwillnotforgivehim, thatis,thatheiswise, anddoesnotmakemeso. Oh! saidItohim,if ou will give him good Money, and ifyou can o-r
IligehimtoreceiveyouforhisDisciple,he will also make you wife. ? ' !
? ? ? 36
Protagoras; Or, the Sophists:
IwishtoGod,fayshe,thatwereall;Iwould notleavemyselfaHalf-penny,and Iwouldalso drainmyFriendsPurses. 'Tisonlythatthatbrings mehither:Icometoprayyoutospeaktohimfor me; forbesidesthat, Iam tooyoung, Ineversaw
himnorknewhim:IwasbutaChild, whenhe came hither first, but I hear every body speak very wellofhim,andtheyassuremethatheisthemost eloquentofMen, Let? sgotohim,beforehegoes abroad. Iamtoldhelodgeswith*Ca//ias,Sonof Hipponicus. LetusgothitherIconjureyou. Tis too early, said I to him -, but let us walk in our Court; where w e will argue till D a y light, then w e
willgo:Iassureyouweshallnotmisshim,forhe seldom goes abroad. Then we went down into the Court, and while we were walking there, I had a mindtofindoutwhatHippocrates'sDesignwas. To this end I said to him, Well, Hippocrates, you are going to Protagoras to offer him Money, that he mayteachyousomething;WhatsortofMandoyou takehimtobe, and whatsortofMan would you
havehimtomakeyou? Ifyoushouldgotothegreat PhysicianofCW,who isyourname-sake,andaDescen dant of AEfcu/apius^nd shouldofferhim Mony,ifany Body should ask you, Hippocrates, to what fort of MandoyoupretendtogivethatMoney,andwhat wouldyoubecomebymeansofthisMoney? what Would youanswer>Iwouldanswer,ThatIgiveitto a Physician, and that I would be made a Physician.
And ifyou should go to Volycletus of Argos or to Tbidias to give them Money to learn something of them, and any one should ask you the very fame Question, to whom do you give that Money , and what would you be ? what would you answer ?
I would answer,sayshe, thatIgive itto a Statuary and that I would be a Statuary,
*CalliaswasoneofthefirstCiti? ensofAthens:HisFa ther Hipjnmcus had been General ot the Athenians with "Nicias at the Battle of Tanagre.
That
? ? Protagoras: Or, the Sophists, 237
Thatisverywell! Now thenwearegoing, you andItoProtagorat, withaDispositionto givehim, all that he shall ask for your Instruction, if all that we havewill satisfie him forit,or. beenough to tempt him5andifitbe not enough, we atealso readytomakeuseoftheCreditofourFriends. If any: one perceiving his extraordinary eagerness should askus,SocratesandHippocrates,tellme, ingiving so much Money to Protagoras,to what sort of a M a n do yoil think you give it1 what should we answer him ? what other Denomination has Protagoras that weknowof? weknowthatPhidiashasthatofSta
tuaryandHomerthatofPoet:Howshallwecall Protagoras to describe him by hisProfession ?
Protagorasiscall'daSophist, Socrates.
Wellthen,saidIjwearegoingtogiveourMo-: ney to a Sophist.
Yes, certainly.
And ifthefamePersonshouldcontinuetoaskyou, what do you design to become, with Protago-. ras ? "",'. "
AttheseWordsmyManblushing,foritwasthen lightenougUb letme see what Alteration there was"
in his Countenance : If w e will follow our Princi ple, fays he, it is evident that I would become ac Sophist.
How, by all that's good, said I tohim,wouldjou not be asham'd to give your self out to be a So phist among the Greeks ?
I swear to you, Socrates, seeing I must tell you the truth, I should be ashamed of it.
Ha! Iunderstand you, my dear Hippocrates; your design then is not to go to the School of'Protagoras, but as you went to that of a Grammarian, Music- Master , or Master of Exercises : For you went not to all those Masters to learn the depth of their Art and to make profession thereof; but you went thi
ther only to exercise your self, and to learn that which a Gentleman and a Man that would live in the World ought necessarily to know.
You
? ? i2$
Protagoras: Qr^The Sophists.
You areintheright,saidhe-,that'sexactlythe use that I would make of Protagoras.
But, said I, do you know what you are going to
do?
Astowhat?
You are going to trust a Sophist with your Under
standing ; and I dare lay you a Wager, that you do n o t k n o w w h a t a S o p h i s t i s ? , a n d , s i n c e i t i s I b , y o u
know not then with whom you are going to trust thatwhichismostvaluabletoyou, andyouknow not whether you put it into good or bad hands ?
Why ? Ibelieve I know very well what a So phistis.
Tell me then, what isit?
A Sophist, ashisvery Name testifies, isa learned Man, who knows a thousandgood things.
We may faythefamethingofaPainteroranAr chitect. They are also learned Men who know a great many good things: But ifany body sliould ask us wherein are they learn'd? we should certainly
? answer them, that 'tis in what regards drawing of PicturesandbuildingofHouses. Ifanyoneshould askusinlikemanner, whereinisaS4? tistlearned? what should we answer ? What is thefArt positive lythathemakesprofessionof? andwhatshouldwe say it is ?
We shouldsay,thathisProfessionistomakeMen Eloquent.
Perhaps we might speak trueinsosaying5that i s s o m e t h i n g , b u t i t i s n o t a l l -, y o u r A n s w e r o c c a sions another Question, to wit, In what it is that &
^Master o/Sophist renders a M a n eloquent ? For a player upon tuimu theLute,doesnothealsorenderhisDiscipleelo- fpeahht- quentinthatwhichregardstheLute? terofthe*~,. ,. . ?
tJetUn That iscertain.
themosielo- InwhatisitthenthataSophistrendersaMr/ft JuentManeloquent, isitnotinthatwhichheknows?
World Without do"bt.
" What is it that he knows then and teacttes 0-
thers ? j Iri
? ? , Protagoras:0r9 theSophists: 13$ '
In truth, Socrates. I cannot tell.
How then? saidIto him, takingtheadvantage*W>>>>g* o f t h i s C o n f e s s i o n ? , a l a s ! d o n ' t y o u p e r c e i v e t o w h a t j ^ ^ f "
f r i g h t f u l D a n g e r s y o u a r e g o i n g t o e x p o s e y o u r s e l f ? TM g i y t 0ltr If you had occasion to put your Body into the Hands fehts >>/. t>> ofaPhysicianwhomyouknownot,andwhomight*V*"<</ as well destroy itas cure it, would not you look to"2^"*** itmorethanonce? Would younotcallyourFriends
and Relations to consult with them ? And would
you not take more than one Day to resolve on the
Matter? You esteemyourSoulinfinitelyaboveyour
Body, and you are perfwaded that on it depends
your Happiness or Unhappinels , according as it is wellorilldisposed5and,notwithstandingitsWei- <?
fareisnow atstake, youneitheraskAdviceofyour Father,norBrother,norofanyofuswhoareyour Friends-,youdon'ttakesomuchasoneMomentto deliberatewhetheryououghttoentrustitwith this Strangerwho isjustnow arrived5 buthavingheard of his arrival very late at Night , you come next
Morning, before break of Day , to put it into his Hands without considering on it, and are ready not only to imploy all your own Riches for that pur pose,butalsothoseofyourFriends. Youhavere solved upon it, you must deliver up your selfto Pro tagoras,whomyouknownot,asyouyourselfcon fess, and with whom you have never spoke: You
call him only a Sophist, and, without knowing what ^ Sophistis,youthrowyourselfintohisHands.
All that you fay, Socrates, is very true 5 you are inthe right.
Don't you find, Hippocrates, that the Sophist isrieSophist butawholesaleMerchantandaRetailerofthose**"? "
Things wherewith the Soul is nourished ?
So it seems to me, Socrates, said he $ but what are the Things wherewith the Soul is nourished ?
Sciences,Iansweredhim* But,mydearFriend, we must be very careful that the Sophist, by boast ing too much of his Merchandize, do not deceive us, as those People do w h o sell all that is neceflary for
Merchant.
the
? ? * i\6
Ptotagotas: Or, the Sophist? .
theNourishmentoftheBody. Forthelatter,with out knowing whether the Provisions which they fell be good or bad,commend them excessively, that they may fellthem the better; and those who buy them know them no better than they, unless it be some Physician*orMasterofExercise. Itisthefame with those Merchants who go into the Cities to fell
Sciences to those who have a mind to them ; they
praiseindifferentlyallthattheysell. Itmayvery
well be, that most of them know not if what they
sellisgoodorbadfortheSoul: Butalltholewho
buy any thing of the1! ! ! are -certainly ignorant as to
thatMatter, unlesstheymeetwithsomePersonwho m who ;Sag00(jphysicianfortheSoul. Ifyouareskill'd
VothlZ in that Matter, and know what is Good or Bad< mi << a you may certainly buy Sciences of Protagoras and goodThy- ofalltheotherSophists;butifyouarenotskill'd ! "*>><</>'*herein, 'have a care, my dear Hippocrates, that hearaUfirtsWstenY011S? tn? reV0U'I011'*ma^eEVeiY^d Mar- cfTeachers. ket, and hazard that which is dearest to you in the Thebuying World ; for the risque we run in buying Sciences efvroyist- is far greater than that which w e run in buying Pro- cnsfirthe visions for Nourishment : After we have bought the j7llZr'h(R)>theima. y^ carriedhomeinVesselswhich
thaithatofthey cant spoil; and before using them we have ? Provision time to consult and to call to our assistance those
f"the whoknowwhatweoughttoeatanddrinkand
what not, the Quantity we may take and the time when, insomuch that the danger is not very great* ButitisnotthefamewithSciences, wecan'tput them into any other Vessel but the Soul, as soon as
* In Hippocratestime and a littlebefore, the Physicians, ha ving neglected the Study of Diet, which requires an exact Knowledge of every Thing in Nature, the Masters of Exer cise laid hold on it as on a deserted Estate, and took upon themselves to order their Disciples such Diet as was agree able to them in regard to their Temperament and Exercises. Hippocrates began to put himself again in possession of it, and
by degrees the Physicians regained the places of Exercise. There were but few Masters of Exercise who kept itup in the time >>f TUto. Most of them had hired Physicians, & c
the
? ? Protagoras: Or, the Sophists], 241
theBargain ismade it must of necessity be carried away,andthattoointheSoulirself;andwemust withdraw with it, being either enriched or ruined for therestofourDays. LetusthereforeconsultPeople
of greater Age and Experience than bur selves upon thisSubject;forwe aretooydungtodeterminesuch an important Affair: But let us go on however, see i n g w e a r e i n t h e w a y -, w e s h a l l h e a r w h a t P r o t a g o raswillsay, and, afterhaving heard him, we will communicate it to others : Doubtless Protagoras is
not there all alone,we shall find Hippias ofEleas with him,and I believe w e shall also find Prodicus de Ceos andmanyothersbesides,allof'emwiseMenand of great insight into things.
ThisResolutionbeingtaken,wegoon. When we came to the Gate, we stopt to conclude a small Disputewehadhadbytheway:Thiscontinueda short*time. IbelievethePorter,whoisanoldEu nuch, heard us, and that the Number of Sophists
thatcame thither constantly, had put him in an ill Hurrsour against allthosewho came near the House. W e had no sooner knockt, but opening the Gate and seeing us, ' Ah, ah, ("laid he) here are more of Our ' Sophists, he is not at leasiire. And taking the GatewithbothhisHands,heshutitinourTeeth withallhisForce. Weknockagain,andhean swers us through the Door, ' Did not you under- *standme? Have not Ialready toldyouthatmy 'MasterwillseenoBody?
MyFriend,saidI,wedon'tcomeheretointer rupt Callias, we are no Sophists j you may open withoutfear\We come toseeProtagoras:Forall this,itwaswithmuchado,thatheopenedtous* W h e n w e entered, w e found Protagoras walking ba- forethePortal, andwithhimononesideCallias,the Son of Hipponicus, and his Brother by the Mother^ Paralus,ihe Son Of Pericles, add Cbarmides, the Son, of Glaucon j and on the other were Xaztbippus, the other Son of P cricks, Pbilippides, the Son of Phi- lomelus. and Antimoerus of Sicily, the most famous
Q. q Dis-
? ? 242.
Protagoras: Or, the Sophists!
Disciple of Protagoras, and w h o aspires to be a So phist. AfterthemmarchedaTroopofPeoplemost of which seemed to be Strangers that Protagoras bringsalwayswith him from allthe Cities through which hepastes, and whom he attracts by the sweetnessofhisVoice,likeanotherOrpheus. There were also some Atheniansamongst them. When I perceived this fine Troop, I took great pleasure to fee with what Discretion and respect they marched always behind , being very careful not to be before Protagoras. AslbonasProtagorasturnedwithhis
Company, thisTroopopenedtotheRightandLeft* with a Religious Silence to make way for him to passthrough,andafterhehadpastbeganto follow him.
Next to him, * to make use of the Expression of Homer, IconsultedHippiasofEleas, whowasseated upon the other fide of the Portal, on an elevated Seat, and near him, upon the Steps, I observed
Myrrhi- EryximachustheSonofAcumenus,rhedrasofMyr- nusc* rbmufe,AndrontheSonofAndrotion,andsome
Attica, strangersofEleasmixedwiththerest. Theyfeem'd to propose some Questions ofPhysickandAstronomy toHippias,whoansweredalltheirDoubts. Ialso sawTantalusthere. ProdicusdeCeoswasalsothere, but in a little Chamber, which was usually Hippo- nicus\Office,and which Callias,because oftheN u m berofPeoplethatwerecometohisHouse, hadgiven to those strangers, after having fitted it up for them.
Ceramis orProdicus then was still abed, wrapt up in Skins and B? ran. fs ^-Coverings, and Paujanias of Cerame was seated by
A^ka! hisBed-side,andwithhimayoungMan,who feem'dtome tobeofnobleBirthandthecomeliest PersonintheWorld. IthinkIheardPaufaniascall
*ThiswordwastakenfromthenthBookoftheOdysses of Homer, where v/yffes descended to Hell and saw the Ghosts ofthedead. BythiswordaloneSocratesmeansthattheseSo phists are not Men, but Shadows, and vain Phantoms, tijhi\et. This^blig'dmetomakenseofthisword,fayarrisf,Icoh-
ju/tedfWhichissomewhatold,butbettttandmoreusual. him
? ? Protagoras: Or, 7he Sophists. ? 43
himAgatbonyandammuchdeceivediffaebenotin lovewithhim. TherewerealsothetwoAdimantes, theonetheSonofCepbisandtheothertheSonof %,eucolopbidesyandsomeotheryoungPeople. Being Without, I could not hear the Subject of their Di- icourle, altho' I wished passionately to hear Prodicusi
forheappearstometobeaverywife,orrathera divine M a n : But he has so big a Voice that itcaused asortofEcchointheChamber,whichhinder'dme fromunderstandingdistinctlywhathesaid. Wehad been in but a Moment, when after us came Alcibia- des the comely, as you used to call him, and Cri- tiastheSon ofCalaiscbrus.
After w e had been there a short time and conside redalittlewhatpass'dwewentouttojoynProta
goras. Inaccostinghim,Protagoras,saidItohim* Hippocrates and I are come here to see you.
Wouldyouspeaktomeinprivate,saidhe^drin public?
WhenIhavetoldyouwhatbringsushither,an swered I, you your self shall judge which will be most convenient.
Whatisitthen,saidhe,thathathbroughtyou? Hippocrates, whom you seethere, repliedI, isthe
Son of Apollodorm, of one of the greatest and rich estFamiliesofAthens,andasnoblybornasany youngManofhisAge;hedesignstomakehimself illustriousinhisCountry, aridtoacquireReputationj and he is perswad<<d that to succeed therein, he has heedofyourhelpforsometime. Seethenwhether you willentertainusuponthisSubject, inprivateor in public. --
That is very well done, Socrates, to use this Pre- Tl* v&ij cautiontowardsme;forastranger,who goesto<</fk*>>?
the greatest Cities, and perswades young People of r""1 the greatest Quality to leave their Fellow-Citizens, Parents,drothersyoungandold,. andonlytoad heretohim,thattheymaybecomemoreableMen"
by his Conversation ^ cannot make use of too much Pfecautiohl sotitfstveryniceArt^much exposed Q. q x f to
? ? 244 Protagoras: Or, the Sophists.
to the Darts of Envy and which attracts much Ha-
rheujuaitredandmanySnares. FormypartImaintain,that FoiiyofailtheArtofSophistryisveryancient, butthosewho ! tSS'Professedkatfirst>t0hidewhatkhasodiousot
hayJlZir suspected,havesoughttocoverit,somewiththeVail
^trt,Tn- ofPoetry, asHomer, Hejiodand Simonides;others feffio>>,&c. with the Vail of Purifications and Prophecies, as Or-
'iJl*? ^ P^eusan<^-M-ufeus;somehavedisguizeditunderthe ancient.
N a m e of Gymnastique, zslccusoiTarentum, and as one ofthegreatestSophiststhateverwas, doesnow atthistime, Imean HerodicusdeSe! ymbra'mTbracey originally from Megara ; and others have conceal'd it under the specious Pretext of Mufick, as your A- gatboc/es, agreatSophist,ifevertherewasany,Py-
thoclides of Cess, and an infinitenumber of others. All those People, as I tell you, to shelter them
selves from Envy, have sought after Sally-ports to
withdraw themselves out of Trouble in time of need.
AndinthatIaminnowiseoftheirOpinion, being
periwad ed that they have not done what they intend
edto. Foritisimpossiblethattheycanhidethem
selves long from the Eyes of those who have the
chief Authority in Cities, they will at last-discover
yourSubtleties. Itisverytrue,thatthePeopledo
not usually perceive them, but that does not lave
you, for they are always of the Sentiment of their
SuperiorsandspeakonlybytheirMouth. Besides,
there is nothing more ridiculous than to be surprized
like a Fool when one would hide-himself; that does
nothing but procure you still a greater number of
Enemies and renders you more suspected ; for then
you are suspected jpbe a dissembler and crafty in all things. Formypart,Itakethe? oppositewayjIam
downright ; I make an open profession of teaching Men -,and I declaremy selfa Sophist. The best Cunningofallis,tohavenone:Ihadrathershow my selfthanbediscovered:WiththisFranknessI fail not to take all other necessary Precautions ; inso much that, thafiks be to God, no^Misfortune has be- fali'nme asyet,,tho'Iproclaim,*thatIama Sophist
and
? ? f
Protagoras: Or, The Sophists. 24j
and tho1 I have practis'd that Art for a great many Years;forbymy AgeJshouldbetheFatherofallof you, be as great as you please: So that nothing can be more agreeable to me, if you are enclined to it, than to speak to you in the presence of all those that are in the House.
I immediately knew his drift, and saw that he sought for nothing but to value himself before Pro- dicus and Hippias, and to make an improvement of our having addressed our selves to him, as being ina- mour'donhisWisdom. ThenIsaidtohim,to oblige him, But must not Prodictts and Hippias be call'd,thattheymayhearUS? Yescertainly,said Protagoras j who desired no better. And Callias, catching the Ball upon the rebound, Shall we, said he, prepare Seats for you, that you may speak more atyourease? Thatfeem'dtoustobeaverygood thought, and at the fame time, being impatient to hear such able Men discourse, we setall Hands to
work to disfurnilh the House of Hippias, and to pull alltheChairsoutofit. Thiswasnosoonerdone but Callias and Aleibiades return'd, bringing with them Prodicus, whom theyhadmadetorise,andall thosethatwerewithhim. When we wereallseat ed, Protagoras, addressing hisDiscourse to me, said, Socrates, Now youmay tellme, beforeallthisgood Company, whatyouhadalreadybeguatofaytome for this young Man.
Protagoras, said I, I (hall pass no other Compli mentuponyouherethanwhatIhavealreadydone, a n d I shall tell y o u plainly w h y w e are c o m e hither. Hippocrates there has an earnest desire to enjoy your Conversation, and he would willingly know what advantages he shall reap from it. That is all we have to fay to you.
Then Protagoras,turningtowardsHippocrates,My dear Child, said he, the advantages which you shall reap from being with me, are, that from the first
Day ofthisCorrespondenceyoushallreturnatNight more learn'dthanyouwerethatMorningyoucame? ,
? ? 446
Protagoras: Or, the Sophists.
the next Day the ijme, and every Day you shall findthatyou shallhavemade some new progress.
But, Protagoras, fays I, there is nothing extraor d i n a r y i n t h i s , a n d w h a t i s n o t v e r y c o m m o n >>, t o r y o u your self, how old and learned so ever you be, if any Body teach you what you knew not, you will
Wemusinotalsobecomemoreknowingthanyouwere. Alas] strivefim-tj,at-ISnotwhatWedemand. ButsupposeHippocra*
&oieZltes ATM1'1 al1 of a sudden changehisMind, and that something he takes a fancy to apply himself to that young that'sgood. Painterwho islately1arrivedinthisCity,toZeuxip* pus tPHeracleus , he addresses himself to him as he does now to you-, that Painter promiseth the fame
things as you have done, that every Day he shall
become more learn'd and make new progress. 'H.
Hippocratesaskshim, whereinshallImake sogreat
aprogress? willnotZeuxippusanswerhim, thathe willmakeaprogressinPainting? ? - <. . '
Suppose he should have a mind tojoin himselfin the same manner to Oribagoras the Theban, and that after having heard the same things from his Mouths as he has heard from yours, he should ask him the fame Question , wherein should he become every' Day more learned > Will notOrtbagoras answer him, that'tisintheArtofPlayingupontheFlute? The- Matter being so, I pray you, Protagoras, to answer uslikewiseaspositively. Youtellus,thatifHip'-j p o c r a t e s j o i n h i m s e l f t o y o u , f r o m t h e first D a y , h e N
willreturnmorelearned,thenextDay stillmore,
and every Day after make new progresses, and so
on all the Days of his Lite. But explain to us where
initishewillbesolearned, andtheAdvantageshe ? shallreapfrom thisLearning. ;
You havereason, Socrates,saidProtagoras-, that's a very pertinent Question, and I dearly love to an- srfwSophistswerthosewhoputsuchsortofQuestionstome. I alwaysit- tell you then that Hippocrates needs not fear, with
^alLliof me>> any ? f tn0^ Inconveniences which would infal-
- "? pfi libly happen to him, with all our Sophists;' for all
the o^her Sophists do notably prejudice young People,: T*.
Men notbeingwillingtoretainGodintheirknow~
ledge,Godgavethemovertoareprobatemind. And aThess. Godshallfendthem aSpiritosError.
z:"?
But how comes it thatSocrates asserting that
Vertue is a Science,maintains at the fame time that it can't be taught > For it is certain that all Sciences canbetaught. How then dothSocratesagreewith himself? This Contradiction is not so difficult to reconcile as that of Protagoras, who would have Vertue to be quite another thing than Science, and w h o notwithstanding pretends that it m a y be taught* There aresomeScienceswhich Men teach;but thereisonethatMen donotteach,andthatcan be,learntfromnootherbutGod. ThisiswhatSo crates would have us to understand, and what
thole
? ? the lntrodu&ion to Protagoras. 22^
thole false Teachers, who are accustomed to make illuse of human Sciences, could not perceive.
Since Science is Vertue, Valour can be nothing but Science;and consequently,allBoldness,thatisnot accompanied with Prudence, can't be calsd Valour j for,on thecontrary,itisIgnorance. Valour isthe Science of Things that are terrible ; that is to fay, that of two Things that are terrible, it induceth us to chuse that which is the least, and to chuse it even with the hazard of our Life ; as we have seen in Laches.
Ishallnot enterupontheparticularBeautiesof this Dialogue, which consist in the variety, and in the liveliness of the Characters ; in the Mirth and pleasant Humours of Socrates, in the Simplicity and Nobleness of the Narratives, and in the Knowledge of Antiquitythereindiscovered;thoseBeautiesare perceptible enough.
But I can't but relate a Passage here which seems tome very remarkable,and which Socrates only touches en pajj'ant,Without insisting upon it,asfinding ittooSublimeforthosewithwhom heconvers'd. It is when he fays, That even though the Pleasures oftheWorldwere notattendedby any kindofEvil in this Life, yet they would be no less bad, because theycauseMen torejoyce;and toreJoyceinVice,is the most deplorable of all States, and the Punishment ofSin.
We mustnotfinishthisArgumentwithout speak ing of the Date of this Dialogue, as to which A- theneus accuseth Plato to have committed very con siderableFaultsinChronology. Thewholestrength of hisCriticism consistsinthis. Plato tellsusthat this Dispute of Socrates against Protagoras happen'd the Year after the Poet Pherecrates his Play, call'd, The Savages, was acted. This Play was acted in the time of the Archon Ariftion, in the 4th Year of
the 89th Olympiad. The true Time then of this Dispute, according to Plato, is the Year after; that is to fay, the first Year of the poth Olympiad, in
Pp3 the
? ? 2,39
%he lntroduftion to Protagoras.
the time of the Archon Afiyphilus. Yet here are two thingsthatcontradictthisDate.
The first is, That by a Passage in a Play of Eupo- 7k\ which was acted a Year before that of Phere* (rates, itappearsthatProtagoraswasthenatAthens: N o w Plato fays positively, that in the time of this Dispute, that is to fay, the first Year of the 90th O- lympiad, Protagoras arrived at Athens but three Days before.
The secondis,ThatHippias<fEleis,waspresent atthatDispute, whichcouldnotbe-,fortheTruce which the Athenians had concluded with the Lace- demonianshQvng expired, no Peloponefian could be at
Athensatthattime. - ! Ishouldnothavereviv'dthisCensure, ifCa/aubon, that wise and judicious Critick , had not been so struck with itas to write, that he did not feewhat could be answered in justification of Plato, whereas
whatheanswer'disnothardtofind. Itwillquick ly appear, that the Objections of Atheneus serve only to fix the Time of this Dispute the more, as Plato has observ'd.
pucid. 1,1. Weknowforcertain,,thattheAtheniansmadea Peace with the Lacedemonians for fifty Years, in the time of the Archon Alcaus, the third Year of the
8pthOlympiad. Itistrue,thatthisTreatywas n o t f a i t h f u l l y o b s e r v e d o n e i t h e r f i d e ? , b u t i t i s a l s o
true, that this ill-cemented Peace lasted six Years andtenMonths,withoutcomingtoanopenRup ture. Then Hippias o? Eleas might be at Athens two YearsafterthisTreaty, which lastedfiveYears longer,afterthesetwoYearswereexpired. Somuch forthelastObjection. < -?
The firstisno betterfounded:Letusfeewhat Eupolisfays. Protagoras<? /Teosiswithinthere. He fays nothing but that; and it may be observed at firstfight, that he isdeceived as to the Country of P r o t a g o r a s h h e a s s u r e s u s , t h a t h e i s o f T e o s ? , a n d ;
he was of Abdera, This Remark will be of use to US. ? '? ! ? '? .
? ? the Introduction to Protagoras.
23 1
I fay then , that Atheneus, instead of imploying thisVerseofEupolistocontradictPlato, oughtra ther to have made use of the Passage of Plato to understandthesaidVerseofEupolis. ThePoetand
the Philosopher are in the right, and Atheneus is theonlyPersonthatisinthewrong, Protagorashad madetwoJourneystoAthens. Platospeaksofthe second, and the Verse of Eupolis ought to be under stood of the first: For tho' Protagoras was not at Athens when the: Play was acted in the time of the Archon Alcoeus, it was enough that he had been there : The Poets have the priviledge to bring the Times nearer and to take notice of things that are ^ past as if they were present ; besides, he might be there when the Poet composed it. Thus the Verse of Eupolis serves on the one hand for a Commenta
ry to what Hipocrates fays in this Dialogue : Socra tes,IcometoprayyoutospeakformetoProtago ras ; for, besides that, 1 am tooyoung, 1 never saw, nor knew him, I was but a Child vshen he made his
first Journy.
And, on the other hand, this Passage of Plato serves to excuse the Ignorance of Eupolis about the Country of Protagoras ? for Eupolis might very well
beignorantofitatthisfirstJourny, thatSophistnot beingthenverywellknown,whereasitwouldnot have been pardonable in him to have been ignorant of it at the second.
This Fault of Atheneus islesssurprising than that ofCafaubon, who follow'd him, and who inexplain ing his Reasons commits another more considerable Mistake, whiiest he assures us that Tbucidides does not speak of the one Year's Truce that was made between the Athenians and the Lacedemonians under the Archon Ifarchus , the first Year of the 857th Olympiad, at the end of the eighth Year of the War and two Years before the Treaty of Peace that has been spoke of-, for it is exprefly set down in the fourth Book, and the Treaty is there rela-
Pp4 ted
? ? ajx the fotrodu&ion to Protagoras^
aesasdownthemdof tedallatlength,withtheDateofthe theeighthrearoftheWar, Yean oftheMonth, oftheDayandof
the14thDayoftheMonth theSeason.
fckphebolion(Februa- The Wranglings of Atheneus serve 7*sZJ'e g>m'n$ only t01uRfiQP/^'S Exactness, and to
. make itappearthatthisDialogueisbe y o n d t h e r e a c h o f a l l C r i t i c i s m -, f o r i f t h i s . C e n f u - rer had found any thing else to find fault with , the Envy with which he was animated against this-Phi losopher would not have suffered him to have for
got it. *^ According to Diogenes Laertius, this Dialogue is -^ t>>JitKliKb(,ADialogueofAccusation,aSatyriqueDia-
*^ logue. Onemay lay, thatitisalso*WJj<<iM<<,de structive. But those Names mark only the Turn andtheMannerofthe. Dialogue. ItstrueCharacter, is Logical and Moral.
j
? *>
o^
? ? PROTAGORAS' ? OR, ,'
The S O P H I S T S
A Friend of Socrates. Socrates.
Socrates* T j R o m whence come you, Socrates ? Bu$ "Friend, x oughtonetoaskit,'tisfromyour usualChase. Youcomefromrunningafterthehand
someAlcibiades. Iconfess,thatIalsopleas'dmy felf&v*qtlfaS the otherDay with looking upon him ; he seem'd toTM*>>WSo-
m e to be very fine and comely, tho' he be already a fa? d? f~
M a n j for w e m a y fay jt here, between us, he is not bodes <<t<<-
now in his Youth, and his Beard casts a Shadow al-rywhere,to ready upon hisChin. preventUs
Soc. What's that to the purpose? D o you think 2 & " S that + Homer was much in the wrong, in faying that
the Age of a young Man, who begins to have a Beard,ismostagreeable? Thatis,justtheAgeof Alcibiades.
*Enquiryismadewhy"PlatadoesnotnamethisFriendof Socrates, and 'tiswhat will never be found out. It can only be guessed at. Perhaps "Platowas afraid of exposing the Friend of SocratestotheresentmentoftheSophists,who wereingreat credit at Athens, and w h o were revengeful ; or that the part which this Friend acts here, not being considerable, itwas not worth while to name . him.
? t This Passage of Homer is in the tenth Book of his Oiyffeit,
wherethatPoetspeaksofMercury,whotakesuponhimthe ShapeofayoungManthatbeginstohaveaBeard. Thus SocratescomparesMcibiaiestothatGod. '
? '. '. '. -. ? Soc.
m
? ? ij4
Protagoras: Or, The Sophists!
pe**h*
S? c'friend. Youhavejustnow comefromawise Manthen>
Soc. Yes,awifeMan-,nay,averywifeMan, at least ifyou look upon Protagoras to be the wisest of Men now living,
Soc. fr. What do you tellme ? Is Protagoras in this City ?
Soc. Yes : He hasbeen here thefe three Days.
Soc. fr. And you have just now parted from him?
Soc. Yes, Ihavejustnowpartedfromhim, after a very long Conversation.
Soc. fr. Alas! willyou notrelatethatConversa tiontous,ifyouben'tinhaste? sitdown, Ipray you, in that young Man's Place, w h o will willingly
give ityou.
! . ? ' SOC.
Soc. friend. Youjustcomeftomhimthen5how are you in his Favour ?
Soc. IamveryWellwithhim* Iperceivedthis
very Day, that I was more in his favour than usual,
for he said a thousand things in m y favour and al
ways took m y part : I have but just parted from him.
And 111 tell you a thing that may feem very strange
to you, which is, that whilst*he was present I law
him not, and did not so much as think of him. Soc. friend. 'What happened to you both then,
thatyouneithersawhimnorthoughtofhim? Isit possible that you have met with some finer young Man intheCitythanAlcibiades? Ican'tbelieveany thingofit.
So-. It is ev'n Ib.
Soc. friend. Ingoodearnest? IsheanAthenian^ or a Stranger ?
Soc. H e is a Stranger.
Soc. friend. Whence comes he then ?
Soc. From Abdera.
Soc. friend. And did you think him so fine, that
he hath effaced the Comeliness of Alcibiades ?
Soc. The greatestBeautyisnottobelaidinthe
WifSmk
>>ioremi- BallancewithgreatWisdom.
? ? Protagoras: Or, the Sophists. a>>j
Soc. IwilldoitwithallmyHeart;andshallbe obligedtoyou, ifyouwillgiveeartoit.
Soc. Fr. We shallbemuchmore obligedtoyou, if you will relate it to us.
Soc. The Obligation then will be reciprocal. Your Businessisonlytohearme. ThisMorningwhileit wasyetdarkHippocrates,theSon ofApollodorus and Phaforfs Brother, knock'd very hard at m y Gate withhisCane;itwasno sooneropen'dtohim, but he came directly to my Chamber , crying with a loud Voice, Socrates are you asleep? Knowing his Voice, Isaid,whatHippocrates! what News doyou bringme? VerygoodNews, fayshe. Godgrantit, reply'dI. ButwhatNewsisitthen,thatyoucome Ibearly? Protagoras isinTown, fays he, Jre^ ply'd,hehasbeenherethesetwoDays. Didyou
hothearittillnow? IhearditbutthisNight;and havingsaidthis,hedrew nearmyBed, andfeeling with hisCane, fatdown atmy Feet, and went on inthismanner. IreturnedlastNightverylatefrom the Village of Doinoe, where Iwent to take my SlaveSatyrusagain,whohadrunaway:IwasreT solved to come and tell you that I was going in searchofhim, butsomeotherthingput itoutof mymind. AfterIhadreturn'd,iupp'dandwasgo ingtoBed,my Brothercametotellmethat Protagoras was come to Town : At first my Thoughts were to come to acquaint you with this g o o d N e w s ? , b u t c o n s i d e r i n g t h a t t h e N i g h t w a s a l ready too far advanced, Iwent to Bed, and aftera smallslumber, whichrefreshedmea littleaftermy Fatigue,Iaroseandcamerunninghither. I,who
knew HippocratestobeaMan ofCourage,perceiving himallamazed,askedhim,WhattheMatterwas?
Has Protagoras done you any Injury ? Yes certainly, answered he, laughing ? , he has done me an Injury
thatIwillnotforgivehim, thatis,thatheiswise, anddoesnotmakemeso. Oh! saidItohim,if ou will give him good Money, and ifyou can o-r
IligehimtoreceiveyouforhisDisciple,he will also make you wife. ? ' !
? ? ? 36
Protagoras; Or, the Sophists:
IwishtoGod,fayshe,thatwereall;Iwould notleavemyselfaHalf-penny,and Iwouldalso drainmyFriendsPurses. 'Tisonlythatthatbrings mehither:Icometoprayyoutospeaktohimfor me; forbesidesthat, Iam tooyoung, Ineversaw
himnorknewhim:IwasbutaChild, whenhe came hither first, but I hear every body speak very wellofhim,andtheyassuremethatheisthemost eloquentofMen, Let? sgotohim,beforehegoes abroad. Iamtoldhelodgeswith*Ca//ias,Sonof Hipponicus. LetusgothitherIconjureyou. Tis too early, said I to him -, but let us walk in our Court; where w e will argue till D a y light, then w e
willgo:Iassureyouweshallnotmisshim,forhe seldom goes abroad. Then we went down into the Court, and while we were walking there, I had a mindtofindoutwhatHippocrates'sDesignwas. To this end I said to him, Well, Hippocrates, you are going to Protagoras to offer him Money, that he mayteachyousomething;WhatsortofMandoyou takehimtobe, and whatsortofMan would you
havehimtomakeyou? Ifyoushouldgotothegreat PhysicianofCW,who isyourname-sake,andaDescen dant of AEfcu/apius^nd shouldofferhim Mony,ifany Body should ask you, Hippocrates, to what fort of MandoyoupretendtogivethatMoney,andwhat wouldyoubecomebymeansofthisMoney? what Would youanswer>Iwouldanswer,ThatIgiveitto a Physician, and that I would be made a Physician.
And ifyou should go to Volycletus of Argos or to Tbidias to give them Money to learn something of them, and any one should ask you the very fame Question, to whom do you give that Money , and what would you be ? what would you answer ?
I would answer,sayshe, thatIgive itto a Statuary and that I would be a Statuary,
*CalliaswasoneofthefirstCiti? ensofAthens:HisFa ther Hipjnmcus had been General ot the Athenians with "Nicias at the Battle of Tanagre.
That
? ? Protagoras: Or, the Sophists, 237
Thatisverywell! Now thenwearegoing, you andItoProtagorat, withaDispositionto givehim, all that he shall ask for your Instruction, if all that we havewill satisfie him forit,or. beenough to tempt him5andifitbe not enough, we atealso readytomakeuseoftheCreditofourFriends. If any: one perceiving his extraordinary eagerness should askus,SocratesandHippocrates,tellme, ingiving so much Money to Protagoras,to what sort of a M a n do yoil think you give it1 what should we answer him ? what other Denomination has Protagoras that weknowof? weknowthatPhidiashasthatofSta
tuaryandHomerthatofPoet:Howshallwecall Protagoras to describe him by hisProfession ?
Protagorasiscall'daSophist, Socrates.
Wellthen,saidIjwearegoingtogiveourMo-: ney to a Sophist.
Yes, certainly.
And ifthefamePersonshouldcontinuetoaskyou, what do you design to become, with Protago-. ras ? "",'. "
AttheseWordsmyManblushing,foritwasthen lightenougUb letme see what Alteration there was"
in his Countenance : If w e will follow our Princi ple, fays he, it is evident that I would become ac Sophist.
How, by all that's good, said I tohim,wouldjou not be asham'd to give your self out to be a So phist among the Greeks ?
I swear to you, Socrates, seeing I must tell you the truth, I should be ashamed of it.
Ha! Iunderstand you, my dear Hippocrates; your design then is not to go to the School of'Protagoras, but as you went to that of a Grammarian, Music- Master , or Master of Exercises : For you went not to all those Masters to learn the depth of their Art and to make profession thereof; but you went thi
ther only to exercise your self, and to learn that which a Gentleman and a Man that would live in the World ought necessarily to know.
You
? ? i2$
Protagoras: Qr^The Sophists.
You areintheright,saidhe-,that'sexactlythe use that I would make of Protagoras.
But, said I, do you know what you are going to
do?
Astowhat?
You are going to trust a Sophist with your Under
standing ; and I dare lay you a Wager, that you do n o t k n o w w h a t a S o p h i s t i s ? , a n d , s i n c e i t i s I b , y o u
know not then with whom you are going to trust thatwhichismostvaluabletoyou, andyouknow not whether you put it into good or bad hands ?
Why ? Ibelieve I know very well what a So phistis.
Tell me then, what isit?
A Sophist, ashisvery Name testifies, isa learned Man, who knows a thousandgood things.
We may faythefamethingofaPainteroranAr chitect. They are also learned Men who know a great many good things: But ifany body sliould ask us wherein are they learn'd? we should certainly
? answer them, that 'tis in what regards drawing of PicturesandbuildingofHouses. Ifanyoneshould askusinlikemanner, whereinisaS4? tistlearned? what should we answer ? What is thefArt positive lythathemakesprofessionof? andwhatshouldwe say it is ?
We shouldsay,thathisProfessionistomakeMen Eloquent.
Perhaps we might speak trueinsosaying5that i s s o m e t h i n g , b u t i t i s n o t a l l -, y o u r A n s w e r o c c a sions another Question, to wit, In what it is that &
^Master o/Sophist renders a M a n eloquent ? For a player upon tuimu theLute,doesnothealsorenderhisDiscipleelo- fpeahht- quentinthatwhichregardstheLute? terofthe*~,. ,. . ?
tJetUn That iscertain.
themosielo- InwhatisitthenthataSophistrendersaMr/ft JuentManeloquent, isitnotinthatwhichheknows?
World Without do"bt.
" What is it that he knows then and teacttes 0-
thers ? j Iri
? ? , Protagoras:0r9 theSophists: 13$ '
In truth, Socrates. I cannot tell.
How then? saidIto him, takingtheadvantage*W>>>>g* o f t h i s C o n f e s s i o n ? , a l a s ! d o n ' t y o u p e r c e i v e t o w h a t j ^ ^ f "
f r i g h t f u l D a n g e r s y o u a r e g o i n g t o e x p o s e y o u r s e l f ? TM g i y t 0ltr If you had occasion to put your Body into the Hands fehts >>/. t>> ofaPhysicianwhomyouknownot,andwhomight*V*"<</ as well destroy itas cure it, would not you look to"2^"*** itmorethanonce? Would younotcallyourFriends
and Relations to consult with them ? And would
you not take more than one Day to resolve on the
Matter? You esteemyourSoulinfinitelyaboveyour
Body, and you are perfwaded that on it depends
your Happiness or Unhappinels , according as it is wellorilldisposed5and,notwithstandingitsWei- <?
fareisnow atstake, youneitheraskAdviceofyour Father,norBrother,norofanyofuswhoareyour Friends-,youdon'ttakesomuchasoneMomentto deliberatewhetheryououghttoentrustitwith this Strangerwho isjustnow arrived5 buthavingheard of his arrival very late at Night , you come next
Morning, before break of Day , to put it into his Hands without considering on it, and are ready not only to imploy all your own Riches for that pur pose,butalsothoseofyourFriends. Youhavere solved upon it, you must deliver up your selfto Pro tagoras,whomyouknownot,asyouyourselfcon fess, and with whom you have never spoke: You
call him only a Sophist, and, without knowing what ^ Sophistis,youthrowyourselfintohisHands.
All that you fay, Socrates, is very true 5 you are inthe right.
Don't you find, Hippocrates, that the Sophist isrieSophist butawholesaleMerchantandaRetailerofthose**"? "
Things wherewith the Soul is nourished ?
So it seems to me, Socrates, said he $ but what are the Things wherewith the Soul is nourished ?
Sciences,Iansweredhim* But,mydearFriend, we must be very careful that the Sophist, by boast ing too much of his Merchandize, do not deceive us, as those People do w h o sell all that is neceflary for
Merchant.
the
? ? * i\6
Ptotagotas: Or, the Sophist? .
theNourishmentoftheBody. Forthelatter,with out knowing whether the Provisions which they fell be good or bad,commend them excessively, that they may fellthem the better; and those who buy them know them no better than they, unless it be some Physician*orMasterofExercise. Itisthefame with those Merchants who go into the Cities to fell
Sciences to those who have a mind to them ; they
praiseindifferentlyallthattheysell. Itmayvery
well be, that most of them know not if what they
sellisgoodorbadfortheSoul: Butalltholewho
buy any thing of the1! ! ! are -certainly ignorant as to
thatMatter, unlesstheymeetwithsomePersonwho m who ;Sag00(jphysicianfortheSoul. Ifyouareskill'd
VothlZ in that Matter, and know what is Good or Bad< mi << a you may certainly buy Sciences of Protagoras and goodThy- ofalltheotherSophists;butifyouarenotskill'd ! "*>><</>'*herein, 'have a care, my dear Hippocrates, that hearaUfirtsWstenY011S? tn? reV0U'I011'*ma^eEVeiY^d Mar- cfTeachers. ket, and hazard that which is dearest to you in the Thebuying World ; for the risque we run in buying Sciences efvroyist- is far greater than that which w e run in buying Pro- cnsfirthe visions for Nourishment : After we have bought the j7llZr'h(R)>theima. y^ carriedhomeinVesselswhich
thaithatofthey cant spoil; and before using them we have ? Provision time to consult and to call to our assistance those
f"the whoknowwhatweoughttoeatanddrinkand
what not, the Quantity we may take and the time when, insomuch that the danger is not very great* ButitisnotthefamewithSciences, wecan'tput them into any other Vessel but the Soul, as soon as
* In Hippocratestime and a littlebefore, the Physicians, ha ving neglected the Study of Diet, which requires an exact Knowledge of every Thing in Nature, the Masters of Exer cise laid hold on it as on a deserted Estate, and took upon themselves to order their Disciples such Diet as was agree able to them in regard to their Temperament and Exercises. Hippocrates began to put himself again in possession of it, and
by degrees the Physicians regained the places of Exercise. There were but few Masters of Exercise who kept itup in the time >>f TUto. Most of them had hired Physicians, & c
the
? ? Protagoras: Or, the Sophists], 241
theBargain ismade it must of necessity be carried away,andthattoointheSoulirself;andwemust withdraw with it, being either enriched or ruined for therestofourDays. LetusthereforeconsultPeople
of greater Age and Experience than bur selves upon thisSubject;forwe aretooydungtodeterminesuch an important Affair: But let us go on however, see i n g w e a r e i n t h e w a y -, w e s h a l l h e a r w h a t P r o t a g o raswillsay, and, afterhaving heard him, we will communicate it to others : Doubtless Protagoras is
not there all alone,we shall find Hippias ofEleas with him,and I believe w e shall also find Prodicus de Ceos andmanyothersbesides,allof'emwiseMenand of great insight into things.
ThisResolutionbeingtaken,wegoon. When we came to the Gate, we stopt to conclude a small Disputewehadhadbytheway:Thiscontinueda short*time. IbelievethePorter,whoisanoldEu nuch, heard us, and that the Number of Sophists
thatcame thither constantly, had put him in an ill Hurrsour against allthosewho came near the House. W e had no sooner knockt, but opening the Gate and seeing us, ' Ah, ah, ("laid he) here are more of Our ' Sophists, he is not at leasiire. And taking the GatewithbothhisHands,heshutitinourTeeth withallhisForce. Weknockagain,andhean swers us through the Door, ' Did not you under- *standme? Have not Ialready toldyouthatmy 'MasterwillseenoBody?
MyFriend,saidI,wedon'tcomeheretointer rupt Callias, we are no Sophists j you may open withoutfear\We come toseeProtagoras:Forall this,itwaswithmuchado,thatheopenedtous* W h e n w e entered, w e found Protagoras walking ba- forethePortal, andwithhimononesideCallias,the Son of Hipponicus, and his Brother by the Mother^ Paralus,ihe Son Of Pericles, add Cbarmides, the Son, of Glaucon j and on the other were Xaztbippus, the other Son of P cricks, Pbilippides, the Son of Phi- lomelus. and Antimoerus of Sicily, the most famous
Q. q Dis-
? ? 242.
Protagoras: Or, the Sophists!
Disciple of Protagoras, and w h o aspires to be a So phist. AfterthemmarchedaTroopofPeoplemost of which seemed to be Strangers that Protagoras bringsalwayswith him from allthe Cities through which hepastes, and whom he attracts by the sweetnessofhisVoice,likeanotherOrpheus. There were also some Atheniansamongst them. When I perceived this fine Troop, I took great pleasure to fee with what Discretion and respect they marched always behind , being very careful not to be before Protagoras. AslbonasProtagorasturnedwithhis
Company, thisTroopopenedtotheRightandLeft* with a Religious Silence to make way for him to passthrough,andafterhehadpastbeganto follow him.
Next to him, * to make use of the Expression of Homer, IconsultedHippiasofEleas, whowasseated upon the other fide of the Portal, on an elevated Seat, and near him, upon the Steps, I observed
Myrrhi- EryximachustheSonofAcumenus,rhedrasofMyr- nusc* rbmufe,AndrontheSonofAndrotion,andsome
Attica, strangersofEleasmixedwiththerest. Theyfeem'd to propose some Questions ofPhysickandAstronomy toHippias,whoansweredalltheirDoubts. Ialso sawTantalusthere. ProdicusdeCeoswasalsothere, but in a little Chamber, which was usually Hippo- nicus\Office,and which Callias,because oftheN u m berofPeoplethatwerecometohisHouse, hadgiven to those strangers, after having fitted it up for them.
Ceramis orProdicus then was still abed, wrapt up in Skins and B? ran. fs ^-Coverings, and Paujanias of Cerame was seated by
A^ka! hisBed-side,andwithhimayoungMan,who feem'dtome tobeofnobleBirthandthecomeliest PersonintheWorld. IthinkIheardPaufaniascall
*ThiswordwastakenfromthenthBookoftheOdysses of Homer, where v/yffes descended to Hell and saw the Ghosts ofthedead. BythiswordaloneSocratesmeansthattheseSo phists are not Men, but Shadows, and vain Phantoms, tijhi\et. This^blig'dmetomakenseofthisword,fayarrisf,Icoh-
ju/tedfWhichissomewhatold,butbettttandmoreusual. him
? ? Protagoras: Or, 7he Sophists. ? 43
himAgatbonyandammuchdeceivediffaebenotin lovewithhim. TherewerealsothetwoAdimantes, theonetheSonofCepbisandtheothertheSonof %,eucolopbidesyandsomeotheryoungPeople. Being Without, I could not hear the Subject of their Di- icourle, altho' I wished passionately to hear Prodicusi
forheappearstometobeaverywife,orrathera divine M a n : But he has so big a Voice that itcaused asortofEcchointheChamber,whichhinder'dme fromunderstandingdistinctlywhathesaid. Wehad been in but a Moment, when after us came Alcibia- des the comely, as you used to call him, and Cri- tiastheSon ofCalaiscbrus.
After w e had been there a short time and conside redalittlewhatpass'dwewentouttojoynProta
goras. Inaccostinghim,Protagoras,saidItohim* Hippocrates and I are come here to see you.
Wouldyouspeaktomeinprivate,saidhe^drin public?
WhenIhavetoldyouwhatbringsushither,an swered I, you your self shall judge which will be most convenient.
Whatisitthen,saidhe,thathathbroughtyou? Hippocrates, whom you seethere, repliedI, isthe
Son of Apollodorm, of one of the greatest and rich estFamiliesofAthens,andasnoblybornasany youngManofhisAge;hedesignstomakehimself illustriousinhisCountry, aridtoacquireReputationj and he is perswad<<d that to succeed therein, he has heedofyourhelpforsometime. Seethenwhether you willentertainusuponthisSubject, inprivateor in public. --
That is very well done, Socrates, to use this Pre- Tl* v&ij cautiontowardsme;forastranger,who goesto<</fk*>>?
the greatest Cities, and perswades young People of r""1 the greatest Quality to leave their Fellow-Citizens, Parents,drothersyoungandold,. andonlytoad heretohim,thattheymaybecomemoreableMen"
by his Conversation ^ cannot make use of too much Pfecautiohl sotitfstveryniceArt^much exposed Q. q x f to
? ? 244 Protagoras: Or, the Sophists.
to the Darts of Envy and which attracts much Ha-
rheujuaitredandmanySnares. FormypartImaintain,that FoiiyofailtheArtofSophistryisveryancient, butthosewho ! tSS'Professedkatfirst>t0hidewhatkhasodiousot
hayJlZir suspected,havesoughttocoverit,somewiththeVail
^trt,Tn- ofPoetry, asHomer, Hejiodand Simonides;others feffio>>,&c. with the Vail of Purifications and Prophecies, as Or-
'iJl*? ^ P^eusan<^-M-ufeus;somehavedisguizeditunderthe ancient.
N a m e of Gymnastique, zslccusoiTarentum, and as one ofthegreatestSophiststhateverwas, doesnow atthistime, Imean HerodicusdeSe! ymbra'mTbracey originally from Megara ; and others have conceal'd it under the specious Pretext of Mufick, as your A- gatboc/es, agreatSophist,ifevertherewasany,Py-
thoclides of Cess, and an infinitenumber of others. All those People, as I tell you, to shelter them
selves from Envy, have sought after Sally-ports to
withdraw themselves out of Trouble in time of need.
AndinthatIaminnowiseoftheirOpinion, being
periwad ed that they have not done what they intend
edto. Foritisimpossiblethattheycanhidethem
selves long from the Eyes of those who have the
chief Authority in Cities, they will at last-discover
yourSubtleties. Itisverytrue,thatthePeopledo
not usually perceive them, but that does not lave
you, for they are always of the Sentiment of their
SuperiorsandspeakonlybytheirMouth. Besides,
there is nothing more ridiculous than to be surprized
like a Fool when one would hide-himself; that does
nothing but procure you still a greater number of
Enemies and renders you more suspected ; for then
you are suspected jpbe a dissembler and crafty in all things. Formypart,Itakethe? oppositewayjIam
downright ; I make an open profession of teaching Men -,and I declaremy selfa Sophist. The best Cunningofallis,tohavenone:Ihadrathershow my selfthanbediscovered:WiththisFranknessI fail not to take all other necessary Precautions ; inso much that, thafiks be to God, no^Misfortune has be- fali'nme asyet,,tho'Iproclaim,*thatIama Sophist
and
? ? f
Protagoras: Or, The Sophists. 24j
and tho1 I have practis'd that Art for a great many Years;forbymy AgeJshouldbetheFatherofallof you, be as great as you please: So that nothing can be more agreeable to me, if you are enclined to it, than to speak to you in the presence of all those that are in the House.
I immediately knew his drift, and saw that he sought for nothing but to value himself before Pro- dicus and Hippias, and to make an improvement of our having addressed our selves to him, as being ina- mour'donhisWisdom. ThenIsaidtohim,to oblige him, But must not Prodictts and Hippias be call'd,thattheymayhearUS? Yescertainly,said Protagoras j who desired no better. And Callias, catching the Ball upon the rebound, Shall we, said he, prepare Seats for you, that you may speak more atyourease? Thatfeem'dtoustobeaverygood thought, and at the fame time, being impatient to hear such able Men discourse, we setall Hands to
work to disfurnilh the House of Hippias, and to pull alltheChairsoutofit. Thiswasnosoonerdone but Callias and Aleibiades return'd, bringing with them Prodicus, whom theyhadmadetorise,andall thosethatwerewithhim. When we wereallseat ed, Protagoras, addressing hisDiscourse to me, said, Socrates, Now youmay tellme, beforeallthisgood Company, whatyouhadalreadybeguatofaytome for this young Man.
Protagoras, said I, I (hall pass no other Compli mentuponyouherethanwhatIhavealreadydone, a n d I shall tell y o u plainly w h y w e are c o m e hither. Hippocrates there has an earnest desire to enjoy your Conversation, and he would willingly know what advantages he shall reap from it. That is all we have to fay to you.
Then Protagoras,turningtowardsHippocrates,My dear Child, said he, the advantages which you shall reap from being with me, are, that from the first
Day ofthisCorrespondenceyoushallreturnatNight more learn'dthanyouwerethatMorningyoucame? ,
? ? 446
Protagoras: Or, the Sophists.
the next Day the ijme, and every Day you shall findthatyou shallhavemade some new progress.
But, Protagoras, fays I, there is nothing extraor d i n a r y i n t h i s , a n d w h a t i s n o t v e r y c o m m o n >>, t o r y o u your self, how old and learned so ever you be, if any Body teach you what you knew not, you will
Wemusinotalsobecomemoreknowingthanyouwere. Alas] strivefim-tj,at-ISnotwhatWedemand. ButsupposeHippocra*
&oieZltes ATM1'1 al1 of a sudden changehisMind, and that something he takes a fancy to apply himself to that young that'sgood. Painterwho islately1arrivedinthisCity,toZeuxip* pus tPHeracleus , he addresses himself to him as he does now to you-, that Painter promiseth the fame
things as you have done, that every Day he shall
become more learn'd and make new progress. 'H.
Hippocratesaskshim, whereinshallImake sogreat
aprogress? willnotZeuxippusanswerhim, thathe willmakeaprogressinPainting? ? - <. . '
Suppose he should have a mind tojoin himselfin the same manner to Oribagoras the Theban, and that after having heard the same things from his Mouths as he has heard from yours, he should ask him the fame Question , wherein should he become every' Day more learned > Will notOrtbagoras answer him, that'tisintheArtofPlayingupontheFlute? The- Matter being so, I pray you, Protagoras, to answer uslikewiseaspositively. Youtellus,thatifHip'-j p o c r a t e s j o i n h i m s e l f t o y o u , f r o m t h e first D a y , h e N
willreturnmorelearned,thenextDay stillmore,
and every Day after make new progresses, and so
on all the Days of his Lite. But explain to us where
initishewillbesolearned, andtheAdvantageshe ? shallreapfrom thisLearning. ;
You havereason, Socrates,saidProtagoras-, that's a very pertinent Question, and I dearly love to an- srfwSophistswerthosewhoputsuchsortofQuestionstome. I alwaysit- tell you then that Hippocrates needs not fear, with
^alLliof me>> any ? f tn0^ Inconveniences which would infal-
- "? pfi libly happen to him, with all our Sophists;' for all
the o^her Sophists do notably prejudice young People,: T*.
