draw any
advantage
from the Things they receive fromus?
Plato - 1701 - Works - a
_?
.
, ?
t
Soc. Nowdoyouinlikemannerfeeifyoucan
informme whatpartofthatwhichisjustthatwhich
isHolyis;thatImay letMelitus know, that 'tis
bestforhim to forbear to do me any fartherInjustice
inaccusingme ofImpiety,me,who,Ifay,havebeen
perfectly instructed by you what Piety and Holiness,
and their Contraries are. .
,. *WxJibfctltsignifiesthaiwhichhastwoequalfiJes,forthe f even. Nfljnberdivide*itselfintocw<jequalpans. And theSciitnt
isihiiwhichha'stwounequalSides. ^
? ? ioi EUTTTB^ONi or,
a third E"t. For m y part, Socrates, I think that Holiness Definition andPietyistthatpartofwhatisJustwhich con- ivbicbat cernstheCareandWorshipoftheGods,andthatall bottomhas tjiereft0f-ltisthatwhich properlyrespectsMen.
Tmhinil Soc-VeryweI1:YettbereissomelittleMatterstill butthtse'wanting. ForIdonotwellunderstandwhatyou
falseTeach-meanbythisWord [Care]IsthisCareoftheGods trs hadnot tjie fan1e wjtj1 that which w e take about all other
wthHi If it.
things ? For w e every day fay, that none but a Quer- fyknowshowtotakecareofaHorse,andtolook wellafterhim,dowenot>
Eut. Yes doubtless,
Soc. Then the Caxe of Horses properly belongs to the Querry's Art.
Eut. Itdoes so.
Soc. AllMen arenotfittotakecareofDogs,and
to look after them, but only the Hunts-man. ? Eat. None but he.
Soc. Then the Care of Dogs properly belongs to the Art of Hunting.
Eut. Without doubtitdoes.
Soc. AnditbelongstotheGraziertotakecareof Oxen. ? :! -
Eut. True.
Soc N o w Holiness and Piety is the Care of the Gods;Isnotthiswhatyoufay?
Eut. Yes, certainly.
Soc. HasnotallCareforitsend, thegoodandad vantage of that which istaken care of? Don't you every day fee that the Horses which an able Querry takesCareofbecome better, andmore fitforservice than others ?
Eut. Yes, without doubt. '
Soc. Does not the care which a good Hunts-man takes of Dogs, and that which a good Grazier f This is true: but the Pagans had falseIdeas of it ; becaule
theydidnotunderstand thatthiscareofGod whichconsistson our partinoheyinghim, inconformingtohisholyWill,andinresign ing our selves to him, was preceded by his care of us in creating us,andinenlighteningourKindsjand thisisvhaSocmUs teaches m other places.
takes
? ? Of HOLINESS. ioj
takes of Oxen make both the one and the other bet ter ? and m a y not the like be said of all other Care ? Orcanyou thinkthatCaretendstohurtandspoilthat which is taken care of ? Eut. N o certainly.
Soc. Then it tends to make it better. Eut. That'sright. ?
Soc. Then Holiness, being the Care we take ofthe
Gods, tends to their Advantage ^ and so the end of
itmustbeto. make'embetter. Butwouldyoudare
to assert when you do any holy Action, that you make M*fs' T
anyoneoftheGodsbetterbyit? 'gj*% Eut. Iam farenoughfromutteringsuchhorridthingtotht
Blasphemy. . advantage SocNordoIthinkyouhaveanysuchThought;? fG"^
Iam veryfarfromsuchaSupposition:and'tisfor this Reason I ask'd you what this Care of the Gods is, being persuaded that was not your meaning.
Eut. You havedoneme Justice, Socrates^
Soc. Somuch forthat:Buttellmethen,what fort of Care of the Gods is Holiness ?
Eut. ''TisoftheNatureofthatCarewhich Ser vants take of their Masters.
Soc. I understand you, that is to. fay, Holinels is a kind of Servant to the Gods.
Eut. You hit it.
Soc. Can youtellme what Physicians operateby- MeansoftheArtofMedicinewhichistheirServant? . Do nottheyrestoreHealth> Eut. Ye>
Soc. What do the. Ship-Carpenters, who are in- Portsdo? ,and*what doourArchitectsperform bytha
M i n i s t r y o f t h e i r S e r v a n t ? . D o n ' t t h e f o r m e r b u i l d Ships and the latter Houses ?
Eut. Yes certainly.
Soc. *WhatthendotheGodsperform,bytheMi nistry of their Servant ? For you must certainly know-
* Socrates would hereby insinuate what he elsewhere reache? , thatGod by theMinistryofHolinessworkstheConversionot Souls, that thisConversion produces Love, and that this Lore en-, sages us to render him that which appertains to hiin, and which wecannotinnocentlyrefusehim, . . . ','. " . . ''',> .
U 3 this,
? ? |94
EUTtrH%QH. , or,
this,fince you pretend to know Religion better than any Man. in the World beside.
slut. And IhaveReasontomake thatpretence.
Soc. Tellmethen,Ibeseechyou,whatwonder ful work isit that the. Gods perform by making use of our Service ?
Eut. They perform many very great and wonder ful things. -
Soc. The Generals of our Army perform many great Things too'-/'but yet there is always one thing
that isthe Principal, and that isthe Victory they ob tain in Battel ? , Is it not >
'Eut. Tisso.
Soc. And the Graziers do many good things, but
the Principal is that of supplying Mankind with food by theirLabour. Eut. I grant it.
Soc. Well then, of all those good Things which the Gods operate by the Ministry of our Holiness, what isthe Principal ?
; Eut. Ijustnowtoldyou,Socrates^thatthereneeds moretimeandpainstoarriveat anaccurateknow ledgeofalltheseThings. AllthatIcan*tellyou in general, is, that to please the Gods by Prayers andSacrifices,isthatwhichwecallHoliness. And 4 inthisconsiststheWelfareofFamiliesandCities, whereastodispleasetheGods, isImpietywhichut terly mines and subverts every thing.
'Soc'. Indeed, Eutygbron, you might have told me whatIask'dinfewerwords,ifyouhadpleas'd; 'Tis easy to leeyouhave no Mind to instructme,for when vou seem to'bejuft in theway todo it, you present-' fystrikeoffagain;Ifyouhadbutanswer'dme aWord more, Ihadverywellunderstood*heNatureofHo- lipels. Butnow, (forhethatasksmustfollowhim w h o is ask'd) don't you fay, Holiness is the Art of sacrificingandprayirg> :Eut. YesthatIdp.
' ' t { c c . T o s a c r i f i c e , i s t o g i v e t o t h e G o d s . . ,' T o p r a y is to ask of 'em. ' . Eut. 'Tis right, Socrates. '? :
* I<< what the Sasetv cr Ruine of Families, Cities and States coefifis,evenbytheConfessionoftheblindestPagaar, -N
^'? '. r. s,-. >>. ,? . ! . ? 4. u-? ;? ;. ? ',. . . >>,',. i? i. -. Sec.
? ? Of HOLINESS. ipj
"* Soc. ItfollowsthenfromyourDiscourses,thatafourth Holiness is * the Science of giving to the Gois,and Dlfijtie't I
asking of them. * % % ? . Eut. Socnites, youperfectlycomprehendmymea-butthermh
ing. ofvhich Soc. TisbecauseIaminlovewithyourWisdom,ff'f'(R)
andgivemyselfupentirelyto it. You need notdidmm- fearthatIshallletone of your Words fall to thederstand. Ground. TellmethenwhatisthisArtofpleasing
t h e G o d s ? D o y o u f a y it is t o g i v e to. ' e m a n d t o a s k of'em>
Eut. Most certainly.
Soc. To ask well, must we not ask such things aswehaveneedtoreceiveofthemI
Eut. And what then ?
Soc. And to give well, must we not give them in exchange suchThings as they have need to receive. ofus? ForitwouldbeaFollytogiveanyonesuch Thingsashedoesnotwant, butareentirelyuseleis to him. Eut. You say very well.
Soc. Holiness, m y dear Eutypbron, is then a kind of Traffick betwixt the Gods and Men.
Eut. Letitbeso, ifyouwillhaveitso.
Soc. Iwouldnothaveitso,ifitbenotso:But tell
me,what advantage do theGods receivefrom the Pre
sentswhich we make 'em? For theadvantagewe de- All th(
rive from them is very evident since w e have not the Goods of
leastGood, butwhatprocedsfromtheirLiberality. Mencome- O f what advantage then are our Offerings to the Gods ? irm Gcd'
Are we socrafty, as todraw allthe Profit ofthis
Commercetoour selves,whiletheyderiveno. Ad
vantage from it ? Eut. Socrates,doyouthinktheGodscanever '?
draw any advantage from the Things they receive fromus?
* ThisfourthPefinitionisadmirable. SotHttisdesignsbyitto shewthatHolinessleadsustoaskofGod, hisSpirit,hisAssistance andGrace;andtoaskevenourselvesofhim;for'tisonhimour veryBeingdepends; andthatitalsoengagesusto. giveourselves tohim. AndthismakesupthewholeofReligion.
U4 Soc.
? ? |5>>4 EUTr<PB<HON-, or,
"" Soc. Towhatpurposethendoall'purOfferings
serve?
Eut. They servetofignifieourVeneration,and
Respect to 'em, and the desire w e have to please 'em.
Soc. Then Holinessdoes no^ profit, butplealethe Gods? ? -? "? ? "?
'? Eut. Yes without doubt.
Soc. Then that which is Holy is only that which pleasestheGods. '"''''v
? 'Eut. 'Tis only that.
Soc. When you speak thus to me, do you won der that your Discourse is not fix'dand steady ^ and dare you-'accuse me ofbeing the Beda/us, thatgives itthiscontinualMotion^You1,Ilay,who area thousandtimesmoreingenious than thatgreatArtist,
and give your Words a thousand different Turns >
Don't you find that your Discourse1makes only a
Circle. Yourememberverywell,thatthatwhichis
Holy and that which is agreable to the Gods were
not counted the fame Thing by. us just now y but
wereacknowledg'dtobeverydiflerent, Don'tyou rememberthis'>? :-? ;- ? ?
Eut. ' I do.
Soc. Well, and don't you consider that you now
fay/ that which is Holy is that which pleases the
? ods. Isnotwhatpleases'emagreableto'em> :Eut. Mostcertainly. ? - ?
Soc. Then oneofthesetwo Things'must be grant
ed. Eitherthatwedidnotwelldistinguishjustnow;
or if w e did, that w e are n o w fallen into a false de finition. ': ' ' '? '" l
Eut. That'splain.
Soc. Then we must begin all again, in our enqui ry after Holiness ^ for I shall hot be weary nor dis- courag'dtill you have infbrm'd me what it' is. I kg youwouldnotdespiseme;butbendyourMind, with all the Application ydu can' to teach m e "the truth, foryou know if, ifany Jylanalive does ; and Iwillnotletyougo, likeanotherProteus,'tillyou
haveinstructedfat. Forifyouhadnotaperfect '""" ? '*>? ---. u'ii . J ;? _? ? . Know
? ? Of HOLINESS. 297
Knowledge of what is Holy and Profane, doubtless
you would never for the lake of a wretched Far mer haveundertakentoaccuseyourFatherofMur
der,when'thegoodoldMan Hoops undertheBur- 'denofAge, andhasalreadyoneFootintheGrave:
Butwouldhavebeenieiz'dwithHonourtofeeyour Whatit<< selfabout to commit (itmay be) an impious Act. tosearGod, iaiwouldhave-fear'dtheGods, andrespectedMen. ^ftm
So that I cannot doubt but you think you know per fectlywell,whatHoliness,anditsContraryare. In form m e therefore, most Excellent Eutypbron, and do not hide your Thoughts from me.
Eui. We'llreserveitforanothertime,*fornowoi/f"*. **<<
Iam alittleinhaste, and 'tistime forme toleaveyou. fhkSHper- ' Soc. Alas, my dear Eutyphron, what do you la-stUms " tend to do ! This hasty Motion of yours ravishes Man, he is fromme thegreatestandsweetestofa'll'myhopes. i*P. C0Bs0,m-
For I ttattefd m y self, that after I had learn'd b i ^ f you,whatHolinessis,anditsContrary, Ishouldeasi-thingshim.
ly have got out of Melity^ hisClutches, by making/*'/ capable it plainlv appear to him, that Eutypbron had per- ? ftacl~'ins
fectly. instructedme inDivineThings, thatIgno-Jjfm raneeshouldnever more prompt me tointroduce{*<<*>him- ofmy oneHeadnewOpinionsabouttheDeity;and/<<'/. thatmy Lifeshouldbemoreholyforthefuture.
* TheAncientsinformusthatEutyphrongotsomeadvantageby this Conversation of Socrates: for he drop'd his Prosecution, and SethisFatheralone. By which'tiseasytosee,thattheseDia-
oguesofPlatowerenotmadeuponfeign'dSubjects, buthada verytrueandrealFoundation, aswell asthosewhichXenophonhas preserv'd to us,
An
? ? *9*
An Abridgment <t OF THE
First ALCIBIADES, OR
OftheNatureofMan.
Alsibiadeswis oneofthemostambitiousandmost HaughtyMen intheWorld. HisBirth,? his
Beauty, hisRiches, andtheCreditofhisTutorPe- ric/es, had so puffed him up, that, he thought noPersonsoworthyashimselftocommandtheA- theiiians, and to go to their first Assembly to get himself declar'd theft Captain-General. His proud and arrogant Carriage had driven away all his Lov ers, who being taken only with his Beauty, were at length discourag'd by the cold Reception he gave 'em. Socrates was the only Person, who loving him more trulythantherest(for heloy'dhim only to make him vertuous) could never be wearied out: This makes the beginning of this Dialogue.
Socrates tells Alcibi'ades\ that he doubts not but ,he is surpriz'd to see, that as he was the first, so he is
also the last of his Lovers : and that tho he was ne vertroublesometo. him, duringhistenderYouth,he should now follow him every where to discourse withhim, withoutfearingthe samedisdainfulTreat mentwhichhegavehisRivals. Alcibiadesconfes ses, he thinks it strange thathe mould persist in his Affection, and that he can't comprehend upon what Foundation he builds, that he should have any Hope remaining,afterallhisRivalshadlosttheirs. So- cratestellshim he'llgivehimanAccountofhisRea
sons,
? ? First Alcibiades, ipcj
sons, tho itbe a difficult thing to speak to a,Person whomoneloves,andofwhom oneisnotbelov'd. "Hetellshimthen, thatifhehadseenhimlikelyto: spend his whole Life in Softness, Laziness, and all the Amusements of Youth, he should have ceas'd lovinghim. Butthatashesawhimpassionately- aspiring after Glory, the love he bore to him was r e n e w ' d a n d a u g m e n t e d -, t h a t h e c a m e t o o f f e r h i m ail necessary Helps,because of all the Lovers he had had, he was the only Person who was able to serve him in his Ambition ; and that by this means he
might know the difference between such as love on lyCorporalBeauty, thatfrailandwitheringFlow er,and one that loves only the Beauty of the Soul, which being perfect is the true Image nf the Deity.
ThisgreatPromisefixestherestlessHumor ofthis ambitious young Man, and disposes him to hear what he had to fay.
Socrates immediatly throws him into the midst of that Assembly, whether he was going to get himself declar'd General of the Athenians ; and with abun dance of address, shows him, that instead of that greatAbilitywithwhichhefiatter'dhimself, hehad indeednothinginhimbutthePrejudices ofhisYouth, accompanied witha great-dealofArrogance and Pre
sumption. WhenyouareinthatAssembly(sayshe) you'll rife up to speak without doubt of fuchThings asyouknow ratherthananyotherMatrers-,forother wisehowcouldyoupresumetospeak? ButaMan knows nothing but what he has either found out himselforlearn'dofsomeotherPerson. Idon't know any thing that you have found out your self, your Knowledge is not by Infusion ; and all the Knowlege you have learn'd, is only to write, to play on the Musick, and to,perform your Exercises,' and none of these Things are talk'd of in the Coun cil. Thereforewhenwillyougo? andwhatwill you go for^ It must not be when they discourse of Buildings ; the meanest Brick-layer would speak
letterthanyouon thatSubject:Normust itbe ? . when
? ? ? 3oo
An abridgment of the
when they are considering any Prodigies, or any
Point of Divination, for that's the Business of the D i v i n e r s ? , a n d s o o f o t h e r T h i n g s ,
Alcibiadesbeingpress'd, answers, thathe'llspeak ? when the Athenians deliberate on their Affairs.
The Matter then in Question, is how to explain whatismeantbythe AffairsoftheAthenians.
Akibiades fays, 'tisPeace and War, and all that belongs to the highest Politicks.
Then, itmustbe (repliesSocrates) when theyare consideringwithwhom, andatwhattime'tisbestto beatPeace,orWar. ButasMastersinallArts and Sciences seek what is best and most convenient-, soinPeaceandWar, thatoughttobesoughtout which isbestandmostadvantageous,thatistofay, most Just-, and in order to find it, 'tis necessary to knowinwhattheseconsist. Inwhatthendothey consist >
Alcibiades knows not what to anlwer. How ! (fays Socrates^) Are you going to the Assembly of the Athenians to give 'em your Advice about Peace and War, and yet know not why War or Peace should bemade? ,
Alcibiadesanswers, that War is made, either to repel some Insult, or torecover some Good.
This is something(saysS^r^j)but'tis not all. For 'tis necessary toknow,*whether theEvil that is done us, isdonejustlyorunjustlyionthisKnowledgede pendstheknowledgeofwhat isbestandmostadvan tageous -, that which isBest being always most Just. SothatontheseMatterswe oughttohaveanexact Knowledge ofJustice, andtokeepitalwaysinview; andthisisathingofwhichyouareignorant, forof whom shouldyouhavelearn'dit>
Justice (replies Alcibiades)may be known without a Master.
Yes,says5^^^j, provided it be sought after: But noManseeksforwhathethinksheknows;andat ever^rDegreeofourAge wethinkwe know what Justice is, because we, speak of k throughout the
whole
? ? FirstAlcibiades;
3o 1
wholecourseofourLife, andnothingismore com mon than to hear Children complaining of the WrongsandInjuriesthataredone'em. Sothatwe continually speak of Justice without having learn'd what it iseither of our selves or others, and conse quently without knowing it
Alabiadesthinkstoextricatehimself outofthis Difficulty by saying he learn'd itofthe People.
That'saverybadMaster, faysSocrates, how mould
the People teach what they know not themselves ?
They have no Knowledge of Justice but by their P r e j u d i c e s , a s y o u h a v e ? , a n d o n e c e r t a i n s i g n t h a t
they areignorantofit,is,that,theyarealways at varianceonthisSubject, andthat'tisthisdifference alone that causes the Wars that desolate the World. For ifthePeoplewould agree aboutwhat isJust,and Unjust, they would always live inPeace.
Alcibiades endeavours toget rid ofthis Difficulty, in saying that 'tis rarely deliberated in Councils w h e therathingisJustorUnjust, butonlywhetheritbe Useful ; for Justice and Utility (says he) are not al ways the fame things : Seeing some notorious Acts ofInjusticehavebeenvery advantageous;and a great many Persons have been destroy'd for having acted
justly. WhichistootrueaDraughtofthePoli ticksofmostPrinces. Socratesrefutesthismischie vous Opinion, and shews, that an Action can't be u s e f u l a n d a d v a n t a g e o u s , u n l e s s it. b e C o m e l y a n d J u s t . H e firsts tells him, he could prove to him, by the fame Arguments that he had us'd, that he knows not what is useful any more than he does what is just, since he had neither learn'd itof any one, nor found itoutofhimself. ButnottooffendaPersonso nice and tender j (for Alcibiades being accustom'd to the diversified and florid Discourses of the Sophists,
did not like to hear the fame thing twice, but lov'd Change and Variety in Language as well as in his Clothes) Socrates takes another Course, and asks him, ifthat whichisComely orHonourable isalways good, orwhetheritsometimesceasestobeso.
Alcibiades
? ? [02
An Abridgment of the
Alabiadesarrfwers,thatthereare Comely andHo
norableThings which aresometimesEvil. ForEx
ample, ina Battle, whenaMan succours hisFriend
and is kill'd in the Action,this Action is Honourable ,
but'tisFatal. AnotherabandonshisFriend, ande- scapesdanger? ,thisActionisEvilbut 'tisuseful.
Socratesanswers, thatthesuccour aMan gives his Friend is, that which is calFd Valour, which is athingquitedifferentfromDeath, andthatthere foretheseoughttobeconsider'dseperately. Sothat t h e Q u e s t i o n is w h e t h e r V a l o u r b e a G o o d o r a n Evil.
Alabiadesanswers, that'tisagreatGood, and that he would not preserve his Life upon the Condition ofbeing a Coward.
Then(says&Krrfto)you confess that Cowardiscisa
greater Evil than Death : So that Valour is a greater
Good than Life, and consequently the Action of
succouringone'sFriendisgood,consider'dasabstracted
fromallitsconsequences-,ifitisGood itisHonour
able, anditcan'tbeHonourable, withoutbeinguse
ful ; for whatsoever is Comely isGood, and that
w h i c h i s G o o d i s U s e f u l :, t h e r e b e i n g n o t h i n g t h a t
is C o m e l y and Honourable that can be Evil so far as itisHonourable ? ,nor any thing which isShameful,
thatcanbeGood sofarasitisShameful,whichhe proves by this invincible Argument : Those that do goodActionsarehappy :Men can'tbehappy butby thePossessionofGood; thePossessionofGood isthe Consequence of a good Life $ therefore Happiness necessarily attends those that do good Actions ; so that HappineiS is a Comely and Honourable Thing,
and consequently that which isgood, that which is comely, and thatwhichisuseful,areneverdiffe
rentonefromanother. ThereforeJusticebeingCome lyandGood can'tbeoppos'dtoUtility; . ?
Alcibiades not only grants all these Truths ; hxitii thePersonthataffirms'em';forheis convinfc'dby himself and 'tis himself that makes the'Answers. He thereforeadmireshow itcomestopassxh. itth6 Things about which Sctrates interso'gates'hist! ,appeaf
? ? Ftrjl Alcibiades? 30$
to him with quite another aspectthan they had done before:Hereupon heaskshowitcomesabout,that upon the fame Subject he is forc'd to answer some timesafteronemanner, andsometimesafteranother.
Socrates informs him that this proceeds from his
Ignorance, because we never contradict our selves
intheThings we know;but'tisimpossibleforthe
Mind not to errinthoseThingsofwhich we are
ignorant. Butthisdoesnotariseabsolutelyfrom Ignorance? ,since'tiscertainwe nevercommit any
Fault in Things of which w e are ignorant, provided w e k n o w o u r o w n I g n o r a n c e -, b u t i t s p r i n g s f r o m a conceal'd Ignorance, when we think we know what
indeedwedonotunderstand. Andthiswasexact lytheCaseofAlcibiades, whowasgoingtointer meddle with Affairs of State in which he had not beeninstructed. AdeplorableCondition! Butsuch aswascommon to him withalmostallthathadgo vern'dtheAthenians, onlyPericlesperhapsmay be excepted.
Alcibiades observesthatPericlesdidnotarriveat so great a Capacity ofhimself , but had acquir'd his great Abilities in the Conversation of Philosophers andPoliticians. Forstill(fayshe)asoldasheis, he converses with Damon the greatest ofall our Po liticians.
Socrates, who perceivestheTendencyofthisAn swerofAlcibiaies, insinuatestohim, thattheCom panyofthosegreatMen wasveryusefulforthe, Acquirement ofVertue,inwhichtrueAccomplish mentaloneconsists. AndthisheprovesbytheEx ample ofPericleshimself,whohadnotbeenable to teach his o w n Children any thing, a sure sign that Vertuecannotbetaught, andthathehimselfhadnot learn'd it from Men, because "tis the Gift of Gcd, and there is nothing of Good in us, but what he implants j but this being too general a Question he reserves itto be treated elsewhere,and confining him selftohisSubject, hecarriesonhisDesign, which istoconfoundthePrideofAlcibiades. Therefore
he
? ? j04 Jn Abridgmentof the
he asks him how he intends to dispose ofhimself; Alciblades answers, that hell endeavour to get himself instructed ; but at the same time gives him
1to understand, that since they who then concern'd
themselves in Affairs of State were most of 'em ig norant Persons, he should not be obliged to give
himself"so much trouble to excel 'em ? , and that
since he had good Natural Parts itwould be an easy matter for him to out-do 'em:
Socrates amaz'd at the baseness of this Sentiment, whichisbuttoocommon,givesMm anadmirable Lessonuponit. Herepresents-tohim,thatnothing ismoreunworthyofagreatMind,thanforaMan topropose tohimselfonlytosurpassignorantPeo ple and Slaves : That a Statesman will never serve his Countrey well, if he is not a greater Man, not onlythantheCitizenswhom hegoverns,biitalso than their Enemies j that the Athenians being com monly in W a r with the Lacedemonians, or the King ofPersia ; he ought to strive to excel those Enemies in Capacity and Vertue.
AlcibiadeslikeayoungSpark fullofVanity^asks ifthe Kings of Lacedemonia, and the*King of Persia were not made like otherMen.
Socratesshewshim, thatifitwereso, heought toformagreatIdeaof'eminhisMind5 thatsohe mighttakethegreatercareofhimself, andrender himselfstillmoreAccomplish'd. Butthattherewas solittleTruthinthis,viz-, thattheyweremade like other men,that no Persons in the world seem'dsogreat as they, either for Birth, or Education, or the extent of
theirDominions. And tomortifyAlcibiadesthemore, . he Opposes the manner of his Birth and Education to thatoftheKingsof'Persia: WhenaKingofPersia is born (fays Socrates) all the People that are spread overthatvastEmpirecelebratehisNativity, and afterwardsthatDayisannuallykept asoneoftheir
greatestFestivals, sothatinalltheProvinces. of Asia, nothingistobeseenbutSacrificesand. Feasts. -' Whereas (fayshe) when we areborn, my DearAl-
abiddesi
? ? First Alcibiades.
3 0 5
cibiades, that Passage cf the Comtek Poet may be applied to us.
%he ~Newsfcar. ee to our nearest Neighbours comes-. When the, Child is born he is nurs'd under the Con ductofthemostvertuousEunuchs, who snapsand fashionhisBody. When heisabout sevenYearsofAge
they begin to let him fee Horses, and to put him
undertheCareofQuerries. HeperformshisEx
ercisestillheisfourteen, audfromthatAgethey
give him four of the greatest, and most vertuous
LordsoftheCountry/ ThefirstteacheshimPie
ty; the second forms his Mind to Truth and Jus1
ticej. thethirdinstructshim tobefree,. andtocon quer his Passions ? , and the last teaches him to de
spise Dangers and Death: For if a King should be fearfulhewouldbecomeaSlave. Whereasyou Alcibiades, have been brought up by a vile Thraci- anSlave, who wasgood forno otherOffice,because of his extream old Age. As for Riches, there is still as great a Disproportion ; the Lacedemonians
being richer than all Greece together, and yet hav inganEstatebutlikethatofaprivateMan incom parisonoftheKingofYerfia. Infine(sayshe) there is so great a disparity in every thing, between these Kings and you, that if one should go and tell theMotherofKingAgis,ortheMotherofArtax-
erxes, that a Citizen of Athens, nam'd Alcibiades, waspreparingtogoandmakeWarintheirCoun try, they would certainly imagine that long Exer cise, great Experience, and a consummate Wisdom hadinspir'dyouwithsogreataDesign. Buthow would they be surpriz'd, if they should ,be told that 'tis no such Matter ! that you are you;ig, ignorant and presumptuous ; that you never would take care to cultivate your Mind, and that you have no other Fund to carry on so great a Design, but your Beauty, your fine Shape, your Extraction,
your Riches, and the Advantages of a happy Genius ! They would look upon you as a Fool, because in all these things the Lacedemoni-
X ans
? ? io6
An Abridgmentofthe
ansandPersiansinfinitelysurpassus. Isitnota
very shameful thing, that the very Women among
our Enemies know better than you your felt what
you ought tobe, to attempt to make War against
'em with any hope of Success? Don't think there
forethatyouhavetodowithordinaryMen. But
imagine you have the greatest Project in the World
inyourheadj andeitherrenounceyourAmbition,
or rouze irom this Stupidity into which you have
castyour ielf. The Glory with which you are so
much charm'd is not acquir'd without a great deal of Toil and Labour ?
Soc. Nowdoyouinlikemannerfeeifyoucan
informme whatpartofthatwhichisjustthatwhich
isHolyis;thatImay letMelitus know, that 'tis
bestforhim to forbear to do me any fartherInjustice
inaccusingme ofImpiety,me,who,Ifay,havebeen
perfectly instructed by you what Piety and Holiness,
and their Contraries are. .
,. *WxJibfctltsignifiesthaiwhichhastwoequalfiJes,forthe f even. Nfljnberdivide*itselfintocw<jequalpans. And theSciitnt
isihiiwhichha'stwounequalSides. ^
? ? ioi EUTTTB^ONi or,
a third E"t. For m y part, Socrates, I think that Holiness Definition andPietyistthatpartofwhatisJustwhich con- ivbicbat cernstheCareandWorshipoftheGods,andthatall bottomhas tjiereft0f-ltisthatwhich properlyrespectsMen.
Tmhinil Soc-VeryweI1:YettbereissomelittleMatterstill butthtse'wanting. ForIdonotwellunderstandwhatyou
falseTeach-meanbythisWord [Care]IsthisCareoftheGods trs hadnot tjie fan1e wjtj1 that which w e take about all other
wthHi If it.
things ? For w e every day fay, that none but a Quer- fyknowshowtotakecareofaHorse,andtolook wellafterhim,dowenot>
Eut. Yes doubtless,
Soc. Then the Caxe of Horses properly belongs to the Querry's Art.
Eut. Itdoes so.
Soc. AllMen arenotfittotakecareofDogs,and
to look after them, but only the Hunts-man. ? Eat. None but he.
Soc. Then the Care of Dogs properly belongs to the Art of Hunting.
Eut. Without doubtitdoes.
Soc. AnditbelongstotheGraziertotakecareof Oxen. ? :! -
Eut. True.
Soc N o w Holiness and Piety is the Care of the Gods;Isnotthiswhatyoufay?
Eut. Yes, certainly.
Soc. HasnotallCareforitsend, thegoodandad vantage of that which istaken care of? Don't you every day fee that the Horses which an able Querry takesCareofbecome better, andmore fitforservice than others ?
Eut. Yes, without doubt. '
Soc. Does not the care which a good Hunts-man takes of Dogs, and that which a good Grazier f This is true: but the Pagans had falseIdeas of it ; becaule
theydidnotunderstand thatthiscareofGod whichconsistson our partinoheyinghim, inconformingtohisholyWill,andinresign ing our selves to him, was preceded by his care of us in creating us,andinenlighteningourKindsjand thisisvhaSocmUs teaches m other places.
takes
? ? Of HOLINESS. ioj
takes of Oxen make both the one and the other bet ter ? and m a y not the like be said of all other Care ? Orcanyou thinkthatCaretendstohurtandspoilthat which is taken care of ? Eut. N o certainly.
Soc. Then it tends to make it better. Eut. That'sright. ?
Soc. Then Holiness, being the Care we take ofthe
Gods, tends to their Advantage ^ and so the end of
itmustbeto. make'embetter. Butwouldyoudare
to assert when you do any holy Action, that you make M*fs' T
anyoneoftheGodsbetterbyit? 'gj*% Eut. Iam farenoughfromutteringsuchhorridthingtotht
Blasphemy. . advantage SocNordoIthinkyouhaveanysuchThought;? fG"^
Iam veryfarfromsuchaSupposition:and'tisfor this Reason I ask'd you what this Care of the Gods is, being persuaded that was not your meaning.
Eut. You havedoneme Justice, Socrates^
Soc. Somuch forthat:Buttellmethen,what fort of Care of the Gods is Holiness ?
Eut. ''TisoftheNatureofthatCarewhich Ser vants take of their Masters.
Soc. I understand you, that is to. fay, Holinels is a kind of Servant to the Gods.
Eut. You hit it.
Soc. Can youtellme what Physicians operateby- MeansoftheArtofMedicinewhichistheirServant? . Do nottheyrestoreHealth> Eut. Ye>
Soc. What do the. Ship-Carpenters, who are in- Portsdo? ,and*what doourArchitectsperform bytha
M i n i s t r y o f t h e i r S e r v a n t ? . D o n ' t t h e f o r m e r b u i l d Ships and the latter Houses ?
Eut. Yes certainly.
Soc. *WhatthendotheGodsperform,bytheMi nistry of their Servant ? For you must certainly know-
* Socrates would hereby insinuate what he elsewhere reache? , thatGod by theMinistryofHolinessworkstheConversionot Souls, that thisConversion produces Love, and that this Lore en-, sages us to render him that which appertains to hiin, and which wecannotinnocentlyrefusehim, . . . ','. " . . ''',> .
U 3 this,
? ? |94
EUTtrH%QH. , or,
this,fince you pretend to know Religion better than any Man. in the World beside.
slut. And IhaveReasontomake thatpretence.
Soc. Tellmethen,Ibeseechyou,whatwonder ful work isit that the. Gods perform by making use of our Service ?
Eut. They perform many very great and wonder ful things. -
Soc. The Generals of our Army perform many great Things too'-/'but yet there is always one thing
that isthe Principal, and that isthe Victory they ob tain in Battel ? , Is it not >
'Eut. Tisso.
Soc. And the Graziers do many good things, but
the Principal is that of supplying Mankind with food by theirLabour. Eut. I grant it.
Soc. Well then, of all those good Things which the Gods operate by the Ministry of our Holiness, what isthe Principal ?
; Eut. Ijustnowtoldyou,Socrates^thatthereneeds moretimeandpainstoarriveat anaccurateknow ledgeofalltheseThings. AllthatIcan*tellyou in general, is, that to please the Gods by Prayers andSacrifices,isthatwhichwecallHoliness. And 4 inthisconsiststheWelfareofFamiliesandCities, whereastodispleasetheGods, isImpietywhichut terly mines and subverts every thing.
'Soc'. Indeed, Eutygbron, you might have told me whatIask'dinfewerwords,ifyouhadpleas'd; 'Tis easy to leeyouhave no Mind to instructme,for when vou seem to'bejuft in theway todo it, you present-' fystrikeoffagain;Ifyouhadbutanswer'dme aWord more, Ihadverywellunderstood*heNatureofHo- lipels. Butnow, (forhethatasksmustfollowhim w h o is ask'd) don't you fay, Holiness is the Art of sacrificingandprayirg> :Eut. YesthatIdp.
' ' t { c c . T o s a c r i f i c e , i s t o g i v e t o t h e G o d s . . ,' T o p r a y is to ask of 'em. ' . Eut. 'Tis right, Socrates. '? :
* I<< what the Sasetv cr Ruine of Families, Cities and States coefifis,evenbytheConfessionoftheblindestPagaar, -N
^'? '. r. s,-. >>. ,? . ! . ? 4. u-? ;? ;. ? ',. . . >>,',. i? i. -. Sec.
? ? Of HOLINESS. ipj
"* Soc. ItfollowsthenfromyourDiscourses,thatafourth Holiness is * the Science of giving to the Gois,and Dlfijtie't I
asking of them. * % % ? . Eut. Socnites, youperfectlycomprehendmymea-butthermh
ing. ofvhich Soc. TisbecauseIaminlovewithyourWisdom,ff'f'(R)
andgivemyselfupentirelyto it. You need notdidmm- fearthatIshallletone of your Words fall to thederstand. Ground. TellmethenwhatisthisArtofpleasing
t h e G o d s ? D o y o u f a y it is t o g i v e to. ' e m a n d t o a s k of'em>
Eut. Most certainly.
Soc. To ask well, must we not ask such things aswehaveneedtoreceiveofthemI
Eut. And what then ?
Soc. And to give well, must we not give them in exchange suchThings as they have need to receive. ofus? ForitwouldbeaFollytogiveanyonesuch Thingsashedoesnotwant, butareentirelyuseleis to him. Eut. You say very well.
Soc. Holiness, m y dear Eutypbron, is then a kind of Traffick betwixt the Gods and Men.
Eut. Letitbeso, ifyouwillhaveitso.
Soc. Iwouldnothaveitso,ifitbenotso:But tell
me,what advantage do theGods receivefrom the Pre
sentswhich we make 'em? For theadvantagewe de- All th(
rive from them is very evident since w e have not the Goods of
leastGood, butwhatprocedsfromtheirLiberality. Mencome- O f what advantage then are our Offerings to the Gods ? irm Gcd'
Are we socrafty, as todraw allthe Profit ofthis
Commercetoour selves,whiletheyderiveno. Ad
vantage from it ? Eut. Socrates,doyouthinktheGodscanever '?
draw any advantage from the Things they receive fromus?
* ThisfourthPefinitionisadmirable. SotHttisdesignsbyitto shewthatHolinessleadsustoaskofGod, hisSpirit,hisAssistance andGrace;andtoaskevenourselvesofhim;for'tisonhimour veryBeingdepends; andthatitalsoengagesusto. giveourselves tohim. AndthismakesupthewholeofReligion.
U4 Soc.
? ? |5>>4 EUTr<PB<HON-, or,
"" Soc. Towhatpurposethendoall'purOfferings
serve?
Eut. They servetofignifieourVeneration,and
Respect to 'em, and the desire w e have to please 'em.
Soc. Then Holinessdoes no^ profit, butplealethe Gods? ? -? "? ? "?
'? Eut. Yes without doubt.
Soc. Then that which is Holy is only that which pleasestheGods. '"''''v
? 'Eut. 'Tis only that.
Soc. When you speak thus to me, do you won der that your Discourse is not fix'dand steady ^ and dare you-'accuse me ofbeing the Beda/us, thatgives itthiscontinualMotion^You1,Ilay,who area thousandtimesmoreingenious than thatgreatArtist,
and give your Words a thousand different Turns >
Don't you find that your Discourse1makes only a
Circle. Yourememberverywell,thatthatwhichis
Holy and that which is agreable to the Gods were
not counted the fame Thing by. us just now y but
wereacknowledg'dtobeverydiflerent, Don'tyou rememberthis'>? :-? ;- ? ?
Eut. ' I do.
Soc. Well, and don't you consider that you now
fay/ that which is Holy is that which pleases the
? ods. Isnotwhatpleases'emagreableto'em> :Eut. Mostcertainly. ? - ?
Soc. Then oneofthesetwo Things'must be grant
ed. Eitherthatwedidnotwelldistinguishjustnow;
or if w e did, that w e are n o w fallen into a false de finition. ': ' ' '? '" l
Eut. That'splain.
Soc. Then we must begin all again, in our enqui ry after Holiness ^ for I shall hot be weary nor dis- courag'dtill you have infbrm'd me what it' is. I kg youwouldnotdespiseme;butbendyourMind, with all the Application ydu can' to teach m e "the truth, foryou know if, ifany Jylanalive does ; and Iwillnotletyougo, likeanotherProteus,'tillyou
haveinstructedfat. Forifyouhadnotaperfect '""" ? '*>? ---. u'ii . J ;? _? ? . Know
? ? Of HOLINESS. 297
Knowledge of what is Holy and Profane, doubtless
you would never for the lake of a wretched Far mer haveundertakentoaccuseyourFatherofMur
der,when'thegoodoldMan Hoops undertheBur- 'denofAge, andhasalreadyoneFootintheGrave:
Butwouldhavebeenieiz'dwithHonourtofeeyour Whatit<< selfabout to commit (itmay be) an impious Act. tosearGod, iaiwouldhave-fear'dtheGods, andrespectedMen. ^ftm
So that I cannot doubt but you think you know per fectlywell,whatHoliness,anditsContraryare. In form m e therefore, most Excellent Eutypbron, and do not hide your Thoughts from me.
Eui. We'llreserveitforanothertime,*fornowoi/f"*. **<<
Iam alittleinhaste, and 'tistime forme toleaveyou. fhkSHper- ' Soc. Alas, my dear Eutyphron, what do you la-stUms " tend to do ! This hasty Motion of yours ravishes Man, he is fromme thegreatestandsweetestofa'll'myhopes. i*P. C0Bs0,m-
For I ttattefd m y self, that after I had learn'd b i ^ f you,whatHolinessis,anditsContrary, Ishouldeasi-thingshim.
ly have got out of Melity^ hisClutches, by making/*'/ capable it plainlv appear to him, that Eutypbron had per- ? ftacl~'ins
fectly. instructedme inDivineThings, thatIgno-Jjfm raneeshouldnever more prompt me tointroduce{*<<*>him- ofmy oneHeadnewOpinionsabouttheDeity;and/<<'/. thatmy Lifeshouldbemoreholyforthefuture.
* TheAncientsinformusthatEutyphrongotsomeadvantageby this Conversation of Socrates: for he drop'd his Prosecution, and SethisFatheralone. By which'tiseasytosee,thattheseDia-
oguesofPlatowerenotmadeuponfeign'dSubjects, buthada verytrueandrealFoundation, aswell asthosewhichXenophonhas preserv'd to us,
An
? ? *9*
An Abridgment <t OF THE
First ALCIBIADES, OR
OftheNatureofMan.
Alsibiadeswis oneofthemostambitiousandmost HaughtyMen intheWorld. HisBirth,? his
Beauty, hisRiches, andtheCreditofhisTutorPe- ric/es, had so puffed him up, that, he thought noPersonsoworthyashimselftocommandtheA- theiiians, and to go to their first Assembly to get himself declar'd theft Captain-General. His proud and arrogant Carriage had driven away all his Lov ers, who being taken only with his Beauty, were at length discourag'd by the cold Reception he gave 'em. Socrates was the only Person, who loving him more trulythantherest(for heloy'dhim only to make him vertuous) could never be wearied out: This makes the beginning of this Dialogue.
Socrates tells Alcibi'ades\ that he doubts not but ,he is surpriz'd to see, that as he was the first, so he is
also the last of his Lovers : and that tho he was ne vertroublesometo. him, duringhistenderYouth,he should now follow him every where to discourse withhim, withoutfearingthe samedisdainfulTreat mentwhichhegavehisRivals. Alcibiadesconfes ses, he thinks it strange thathe mould persist in his Affection, and that he can't comprehend upon what Foundation he builds, that he should have any Hope remaining,afterallhisRivalshadlosttheirs. So- cratestellshim he'llgivehimanAccountofhisRea
sons,
? ? First Alcibiades, ipcj
sons, tho itbe a difficult thing to speak to a,Person whomoneloves,andofwhom oneisnotbelov'd. "Hetellshimthen, thatifhehadseenhimlikelyto: spend his whole Life in Softness, Laziness, and all the Amusements of Youth, he should have ceas'd lovinghim. Butthatashesawhimpassionately- aspiring after Glory, the love he bore to him was r e n e w ' d a n d a u g m e n t e d -, t h a t h e c a m e t o o f f e r h i m ail necessary Helps,because of all the Lovers he had had, he was the only Person who was able to serve him in his Ambition ; and that by this means he
might know the difference between such as love on lyCorporalBeauty, thatfrailandwitheringFlow er,and one that loves only the Beauty of the Soul, which being perfect is the true Image nf the Deity.
ThisgreatPromisefixestherestlessHumor ofthis ambitious young Man, and disposes him to hear what he had to fay.
Socrates immediatly throws him into the midst of that Assembly, whether he was going to get himself declar'd General of the Athenians ; and with abun dance of address, shows him, that instead of that greatAbilitywithwhichhefiatter'dhimself, hehad indeednothinginhimbutthePrejudices ofhisYouth, accompanied witha great-dealofArrogance and Pre
sumption. WhenyouareinthatAssembly(sayshe) you'll rife up to speak without doubt of fuchThings asyouknow ratherthananyotherMatrers-,forother wisehowcouldyoupresumetospeak? ButaMan knows nothing but what he has either found out himselforlearn'dofsomeotherPerson. Idon't know any thing that you have found out your self, your Knowledge is not by Infusion ; and all the Knowlege you have learn'd, is only to write, to play on the Musick, and to,perform your Exercises,' and none of these Things are talk'd of in the Coun cil. Thereforewhenwillyougo? andwhatwill you go for^ It must not be when they discourse of Buildings ; the meanest Brick-layer would speak
letterthanyouon thatSubject:Normust itbe ? . when
? ? ? 3oo
An abridgment of the
when they are considering any Prodigies, or any
Point of Divination, for that's the Business of the D i v i n e r s ? , a n d s o o f o t h e r T h i n g s ,
Alcibiadesbeingpress'd, answers, thathe'llspeak ? when the Athenians deliberate on their Affairs.
The Matter then in Question, is how to explain whatismeantbythe AffairsoftheAthenians.
Akibiades fays, 'tisPeace and War, and all that belongs to the highest Politicks.
Then, itmustbe (repliesSocrates) when theyare consideringwithwhom, andatwhattime'tisbestto beatPeace,orWar. ButasMastersinallArts and Sciences seek what is best and most convenient-, soinPeaceandWar, thatoughttobesoughtout which isbestandmostadvantageous,thatistofay, most Just-, and in order to find it, 'tis necessary to knowinwhattheseconsist. Inwhatthendothey consist >
Alcibiades knows not what to anlwer. How ! (fays Socrates^) Are you going to the Assembly of the Athenians to give 'em your Advice about Peace and War, and yet know not why War or Peace should bemade? ,
Alcibiadesanswers, that War is made, either to repel some Insult, or torecover some Good.
This is something(saysS^r^j)but'tis not all. For 'tis necessary toknow,*whether theEvil that is done us, isdonejustlyorunjustlyionthisKnowledgede pendstheknowledgeofwhat isbestandmostadvan tageous -, that which isBest being always most Just. SothatontheseMatterswe oughttohaveanexact Knowledge ofJustice, andtokeepitalwaysinview; andthisisathingofwhichyouareignorant, forof whom shouldyouhavelearn'dit>
Justice (replies Alcibiades)may be known without a Master.
Yes,says5^^^j, provided it be sought after: But noManseeksforwhathethinksheknows;andat ever^rDegreeofourAge wethinkwe know what Justice is, because we, speak of k throughout the
whole
? ? FirstAlcibiades;
3o 1
wholecourseofourLife, andnothingismore com mon than to hear Children complaining of the WrongsandInjuriesthataredone'em. Sothatwe continually speak of Justice without having learn'd what it iseither of our selves or others, and conse quently without knowing it
Alabiadesthinkstoextricatehimself outofthis Difficulty by saying he learn'd itofthe People.
That'saverybadMaster, faysSocrates, how mould
the People teach what they know not themselves ?
They have no Knowledge of Justice but by their P r e j u d i c e s , a s y o u h a v e ? , a n d o n e c e r t a i n s i g n t h a t
they areignorantofit,is,that,theyarealways at varianceonthisSubject, andthat'tisthisdifference alone that causes the Wars that desolate the World. For ifthePeoplewould agree aboutwhat isJust,and Unjust, they would always live inPeace.
Alcibiades endeavours toget rid ofthis Difficulty, in saying that 'tis rarely deliberated in Councils w h e therathingisJustorUnjust, butonlywhetheritbe Useful ; for Justice and Utility (says he) are not al ways the fame things : Seeing some notorious Acts ofInjusticehavebeenvery advantageous;and a great many Persons have been destroy'd for having acted
justly. WhichistootrueaDraughtofthePoli ticksofmostPrinces. Socratesrefutesthismischie vous Opinion, and shews, that an Action can't be u s e f u l a n d a d v a n t a g e o u s , u n l e s s it. b e C o m e l y a n d J u s t . H e firsts tells him, he could prove to him, by the fame Arguments that he had us'd, that he knows not what is useful any more than he does what is just, since he had neither learn'd itof any one, nor found itoutofhimself. ButnottooffendaPersonso nice and tender j (for Alcibiades being accustom'd to the diversified and florid Discourses of the Sophists,
did not like to hear the fame thing twice, but lov'd Change and Variety in Language as well as in his Clothes) Socrates takes another Course, and asks him, ifthat whichisComely orHonourable isalways good, orwhetheritsometimesceasestobeso.
Alcibiades
? ? [02
An Abridgment of the
Alabiadesarrfwers,thatthereare Comely andHo
norableThings which aresometimesEvil. ForEx
ample, ina Battle, whenaMan succours hisFriend
and is kill'd in the Action,this Action is Honourable ,
but'tisFatal. AnotherabandonshisFriend, ande- scapesdanger? ,thisActionisEvilbut 'tisuseful.
Socratesanswers, thatthesuccour aMan gives his Friend is, that which is calFd Valour, which is athingquitedifferentfromDeath, andthatthere foretheseoughttobeconsider'dseperately. Sothat t h e Q u e s t i o n is w h e t h e r V a l o u r b e a G o o d o r a n Evil.
Alabiadesanswers, that'tisagreatGood, and that he would not preserve his Life upon the Condition ofbeing a Coward.
Then(says&Krrfto)you confess that Cowardiscisa
greater Evil than Death : So that Valour is a greater
Good than Life, and consequently the Action of
succouringone'sFriendisgood,consider'dasabstracted
fromallitsconsequences-,ifitisGood itisHonour
able, anditcan'tbeHonourable, withoutbeinguse
ful ; for whatsoever is Comely isGood, and that
w h i c h i s G o o d i s U s e f u l :, t h e r e b e i n g n o t h i n g t h a t
is C o m e l y and Honourable that can be Evil so far as itisHonourable ? ,nor any thing which isShameful,
thatcanbeGood sofarasitisShameful,whichhe proves by this invincible Argument : Those that do goodActionsarehappy :Men can'tbehappy butby thePossessionofGood; thePossessionofGood isthe Consequence of a good Life $ therefore Happiness necessarily attends those that do good Actions ; so that HappineiS is a Comely and Honourable Thing,
and consequently that which isgood, that which is comely, and thatwhichisuseful,areneverdiffe
rentonefromanother. ThereforeJusticebeingCome lyandGood can'tbeoppos'dtoUtility; . ?
Alcibiades not only grants all these Truths ; hxitii thePersonthataffirms'em';forheis convinfc'dby himself and 'tis himself that makes the'Answers. He thereforeadmireshow itcomestopassxh. itth6 Things about which Sctrates interso'gates'hist! ,appeaf
? ? Ftrjl Alcibiades? 30$
to him with quite another aspectthan they had done before:Hereupon heaskshowitcomesabout,that upon the fame Subject he is forc'd to answer some timesafteronemanner, andsometimesafteranother.
Socrates informs him that this proceeds from his
Ignorance, because we never contradict our selves
intheThings we know;but'tisimpossibleforthe
Mind not to errinthoseThingsofwhich we are
ignorant. Butthisdoesnotariseabsolutelyfrom Ignorance? ,since'tiscertainwe nevercommit any
Fault in Things of which w e are ignorant, provided w e k n o w o u r o w n I g n o r a n c e -, b u t i t s p r i n g s f r o m a conceal'd Ignorance, when we think we know what
indeedwedonotunderstand. Andthiswasexact lytheCaseofAlcibiades, whowasgoingtointer meddle with Affairs of State in which he had not beeninstructed. AdeplorableCondition! Butsuch aswascommon to him withalmostallthathadgo vern'dtheAthenians, onlyPericlesperhapsmay be excepted.
Alcibiades observesthatPericlesdidnotarriveat so great a Capacity ofhimself , but had acquir'd his great Abilities in the Conversation of Philosophers andPoliticians. Forstill(fayshe)asoldasheis, he converses with Damon the greatest ofall our Po liticians.
Socrates, who perceivestheTendencyofthisAn swerofAlcibiaies, insinuatestohim, thattheCom panyofthosegreatMen wasveryusefulforthe, Acquirement ofVertue,inwhichtrueAccomplish mentaloneconsists. AndthisheprovesbytheEx ample ofPericleshimself,whohadnotbeenable to teach his o w n Children any thing, a sure sign that Vertuecannotbetaught, andthathehimselfhadnot learn'd it from Men, because "tis the Gift of Gcd, and there is nothing of Good in us, but what he implants j but this being too general a Question he reserves itto be treated elsewhere,and confining him selftohisSubject, hecarriesonhisDesign, which istoconfoundthePrideofAlcibiades. Therefore
he
? ? j04 Jn Abridgmentof the
he asks him how he intends to dispose ofhimself; Alciblades answers, that hell endeavour to get himself instructed ; but at the same time gives him
1to understand, that since they who then concern'd
themselves in Affairs of State were most of 'em ig norant Persons, he should not be obliged to give
himself"so much trouble to excel 'em ? , and that
since he had good Natural Parts itwould be an easy matter for him to out-do 'em:
Socrates amaz'd at the baseness of this Sentiment, whichisbuttoocommon,givesMm anadmirable Lessonuponit. Herepresents-tohim,thatnothing ismoreunworthyofagreatMind,thanforaMan topropose tohimselfonlytosurpassignorantPeo ple and Slaves : That a Statesman will never serve his Countrey well, if he is not a greater Man, not onlythantheCitizenswhom hegoverns,biitalso than their Enemies j that the Athenians being com monly in W a r with the Lacedemonians, or the King ofPersia ; he ought to strive to excel those Enemies in Capacity and Vertue.
AlcibiadeslikeayoungSpark fullofVanity^asks ifthe Kings of Lacedemonia, and the*King of Persia were not made like otherMen.
Socratesshewshim, thatifitwereso, heought toformagreatIdeaof'eminhisMind5 thatsohe mighttakethegreatercareofhimself, andrender himselfstillmoreAccomplish'd. Butthattherewas solittleTruthinthis,viz-, thattheyweremade like other men,that no Persons in the world seem'dsogreat as they, either for Birth, or Education, or the extent of
theirDominions. And tomortifyAlcibiadesthemore, . he Opposes the manner of his Birth and Education to thatoftheKingsof'Persia: WhenaKingofPersia is born (fays Socrates) all the People that are spread overthatvastEmpirecelebratehisNativity, and afterwardsthatDayisannuallykept asoneoftheir
greatestFestivals, sothatinalltheProvinces. of Asia, nothingistobeseenbutSacrificesand. Feasts. -' Whereas (fayshe) when we areborn, my DearAl-
abiddesi
? ? First Alcibiades.
3 0 5
cibiades, that Passage cf the Comtek Poet may be applied to us.
%he ~Newsfcar. ee to our nearest Neighbours comes-. When the, Child is born he is nurs'd under the Con ductofthemostvertuousEunuchs, who snapsand fashionhisBody. When heisabout sevenYearsofAge
they begin to let him fee Horses, and to put him
undertheCareofQuerries. HeperformshisEx
ercisestillheisfourteen, audfromthatAgethey
give him four of the greatest, and most vertuous
LordsoftheCountry/ ThefirstteacheshimPie
ty; the second forms his Mind to Truth and Jus1
ticej. thethirdinstructshim tobefree,. andtocon quer his Passions ? , and the last teaches him to de
spise Dangers and Death: For if a King should be fearfulhewouldbecomeaSlave. Whereasyou Alcibiades, have been brought up by a vile Thraci- anSlave, who wasgood forno otherOffice,because of his extream old Age. As for Riches, there is still as great a Disproportion ; the Lacedemonians
being richer than all Greece together, and yet hav inganEstatebutlikethatofaprivateMan incom parisonoftheKingofYerfia. Infine(sayshe) there is so great a disparity in every thing, between these Kings and you, that if one should go and tell theMotherofKingAgis,ortheMotherofArtax-
erxes, that a Citizen of Athens, nam'd Alcibiades, waspreparingtogoandmakeWarintheirCoun try, they would certainly imagine that long Exer cise, great Experience, and a consummate Wisdom hadinspir'dyouwithsogreataDesign. Buthow would they be surpriz'd, if they should ,be told that 'tis no such Matter ! that you are you;ig, ignorant and presumptuous ; that you never would take care to cultivate your Mind, and that you have no other Fund to carry on so great a Design, but your Beauty, your fine Shape, your Extraction,
your Riches, and the Advantages of a happy Genius ! They would look upon you as a Fool, because in all these things the Lacedemoni-
X ans
? ? io6
An Abridgmentofthe
ansandPersiansinfinitelysurpassus. Isitnota
very shameful thing, that the very Women among
our Enemies know better than you your felt what
you ought tobe, to attempt to make War against
'em with any hope of Success? Don't think there
forethatyouhavetodowithordinaryMen. But
imagine you have the greatest Project in the World
inyourheadj andeitherrenounceyourAmbition,
or rouze irom this Stupidity into which you have
castyour ielf. The Glory with which you are so
much charm'd is not acquir'd without a great deal of Toil and Labour ?
