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?
m e to be very fine and comely, tho' he be already a fa?
Plato - 1701 - Works - a
Who isitthatisable to distinguish the false Gloss of Opinion from the trueLightofKnowledge> Theyspeakagreeably; they flatter our Passions and Prejudices j they pro miseusKnowledgeandVirtue,andfilluswithan highConceitofourselves.
Whatheedstheremore to make them be followed ?
ThiswastheProfessionoftheSophists. Asno thing is so opposite to that Spirit of Error as true Philosophy, Socrates was a mortal Enemy to those false Teachers, and Plato, who trod in his Foot steps, could not vex them worse than by preserving theMemory ofalltheDisputesthatthatwifeMan had with them on several Occasions, and of all the Bantersheputuponthem. Thisiswhathedoesin several Dialogues, as the Sophist:, Euthydeme, Gor-
gids, Hippias, arid Protagoras.
I have put this last after Laches, because it is ?
n a t u r a l C o n t i n u a t i o n o f it ; f o r h e r e is e x a m i n e d t h a t famousQuestion, IfVirtuecanbetaught? andwhat Valour is, properly speaking.
Nothing is more natural than the Plan of that Dialogue^ and nothing more solid than the Manner inwhich itisperformed.
A young Man become fond of the Sophists, goes toSocratesbeforebreakofDay, tobegofhimto conduct him to Protagoras, who was just arrived at Athens. Socratesagrees. TheygototheHouseof Callias, where he lodged ; and Callias, was one of the Chiefs of the Republick.
They find Protagoras walking in the midst of a. Crowd ofAthenians and Foreigners, who listened to himastoanOracle. ProdicusofCeo'sandHippias of Elee, two of the greatest Sophists of the Age, Werealsothere. AndthereforetheVictorywhich Socrates obtains in this famous Dispute, ought to be lookt upon as the defeat of all the Party of the Sophists, whoassistedthereinbytheirLeaders;
:'. - At
? ? %%%
. t? %l>e lntrodu&ion to Protagoras.
A t first P r o t a g o r a s T e e m s t o b e a n a d m i r a b l e M a n - , to prove that Vertqe can be taught, he tells a very ingenious Story, and it must be confessed, that he gives his Opinion the most specious Colours that could be, he omits nothing that can be said, and whathefaysiseveryDay repeatedbyPeoplewho are far from thinking themselves to be Sophists.
Socrates confutes him with a dexterity that can notbesufficientlypraised;andbyhis way of treat ing them he teaches us, that at all times, when one has to do with that fort of People, the true Secret, to get the depth of them, is not to suffer them to speak so much as they would , and to make their chimerical Systems-, for they avoid and sliift ofFall your Arguments, and escape from you at last by theirlong Discourses. You must then oblige them to answer positively, and without rambling, to all youaskthem: withthisPrecautiontheDisputewill soonbeatanend. ThatveryManwhowhensuf fered to Harangue and make Orationsupon any thing has many times confounded every Body, seems to be Weakness it self when he is kept close and confined totheLimitsofaregularDispute. Inshort,Visseen thatProtagorashas nothing butsomeconfusedNo tions, that which he hath scrap'd up by his undigest ed Reading, and that instead of Knowledge he has nothing but a monstrous Heap of Opinions which contradict and destroy one another when they are sounded to the bottom and compared together.
The Aim of Socrates, in this Dialogue, is not to confound and triumph over the Sophists , he has a more noble prospect ; he would cure the Athenians of affecting them so much , and teach important Truths, the Ignorance of which is the only Source of all the Evils that happen to Men, not only in this Life but also in that which isto come.
The firstTruth is, That there is nothing more dangerous than to submit our selves to all forts of Teachers, and that it is not the fame with Sciences which nourish the Soul , as with Food that nou
? ? rishes
? ? The Introduction to Protagoras. 223
rishestheBody. Thelattermaybeboughtbyeve r y o n e ? , f o r , a f t e r t h e y h a v e b o u g h t i t , t h e y m a y
cany ithome in Vessels of small value, and, before t h e y u s e it, t h e y h a v e t i m e t o a d v i s e w i t h t h o s e w h o knowwhetheritbegoodorbad,andcanteachthem how to use it: Whereas if one buy Knowledge of thefirstthatcomes, heexposeshimselftoverygreat danger $ for in buying it he has no other Vessel to putitintobuttheSoulitsel? whichalwaysfavours ofthatwhichisputintoit,andwhich,fromthe veryMinutethatitreceivestheDoctriu, iscured or poysoned for ever, unless some good Physician be found to restore it to its former state, which is very hard to do.
The second Truth is, That those false Teachers, by teaching that Virtue is composed of different Parts which have no dependance upon one another, do entirely destroy it, and corrupt the Mind and the Heart oftheirDisciples; forthey bring them tovain Aflurance, that they may have some Parts of Virtue without having the rest, and be, for example, tem perate without being justj just without being tem perate or pious, and valiant tho' impious 5 and thereby put them out of condition ofever becoming virtuous. TodivideVirtuethus,andtotearit,if w e m a y venture to fay so, to pieces, is absolutely to
a n n i h i l a t e it a n d d e s t r o y it.
Virtue is one in its Principle and Object j it is in
divisible and eternal as they are, and all its Acts de pend upon it self5 tho' each of them have certain distinguishing Characters, yet they are inseperable and indivisible; they always hold together by some commontye;theycanneitherbelimitednormo mentary, but are all eternal as Virtue that produ- ceth them, and as the Soul whereof they are the Life : In a word , Virtue is intire in every Act, and no Act of Virtue perishes, for all that perishes is notVirtue. ADemonstrationofthismightbemade; WheretheSpiritofGodisnot,thereisnoVirtuej a n d w h e r e t h e S p i r i t o f G o d is, t h e r e V i r t u e is n e c e s
sarily
? ? ii4
the Introdu&ien to Protagoras.
sarilywithallitsPans, andbyconsequenceajust
Man istemperate aridpious; a temperate Man is valiantandjust? ,and hewho isvaliantisneitherim
pious;debauched,norunjust. Thesearenaturaland incontestable Truths in lpight of the Illusions of our Prejudices.
The third Truth that Socrates would teach is, That it does riot belong to every body to explain the Poets, and that the Sophists, who boasted of
great learning in thit, could do nothing but spoil
the finest Passages of the Poets, and those that con
tained the soundest Theology and the greatest M a x
imsofMorality. HereisfoundasmallDisserta
tion upon a Passage of Simonides, who, in one of
his Poems, which Time has robb'd us of, quarelled
with that famous Sentence of Pittacus, It is a diffi
cultthingtobevirtuous. Simonidesfindsfaultwith
that? ,he would havehad him fay,itisadifficult
thing to become virtuous, arid at the lame time that
it is slot impossible, but that it is absolutely impos sibletobesoalways? ,forthereisnoManupon
Earthwho isinnocentandjustallhisLife-time,and wemustnothopetofindanysuch. Godaloneis unchangeable and constant in the perfection of Vir tue,andthosewhom hesupportsandfavours. This Theology, which is so agreeable to the Christian Doctrine, pleases Socrates, and- 'tis he himself w h o draws' pure Light from out of the middle of the Darkness wherein those Sophists had wrapt it up, bytheirbadCriticismsandfalseExplications. We may thereby see what profound Judgment a Man must have, to enable him to explain the Poets with success, that is to iky for the publick good.
This Passage of Simonides leads Socrates to touch
upon a fifth Truth, which isthis, That in order to Pmersust^omegoodonenwsthavebeenwicked,sotobe-
nisiqulde- come wicked one must have been good. For no body pravatusi can be called perverse bur he who from a good M a n rectoest. isbecomewicked. ThisMaximedoesnotappearat s. nerom. fyfaj0fewii. dtltreaUy}s;jtisveryprofound and
~u''at-u - draws
? ? The lntrvduZtion to Protagoras aaj
draws into the knowledge of this first Truths which
is one of the solid Foundations of Platonick Philoso
phy, that Men were created perfect, and that they
have fallen from that perfection by the unhappy use
theymadeoftheirliberty. Thereforewemustnot
expect a perfect M a n in this W o r l d : and, as Simoni-
desdid,we must,withallourtHeart,loveandpraise,
those who have fewest Failings, and who commit nothingthatisshameful. ?
From thisSentiment of Simomdes^ Socrates also draws the Explication of this sixth Troth, That the InjusticeofMen oughtnottoobliterateinusthole certain Sentiments which Nature has ingraven in our Heart,and which this PoetcallsbytheName of Necejfity\ because we must absolutely submit uritd andobeythem,orceasetobeMen. Forexample, all the Causes of Complaint that an ill-humoured Father and Mother, an unjust Country, or a cruel
Master can give us, will never Justine our Aversion to them, nor authorise a Spirit of Disobedience, Ven
geanceorRevolt. Letthemtreatusneversoill, we oughttolovethem,praisethem,servethem,&a And upon this Subject Socrates does, with an Elo^ quence, that may be called Christian, shew the dif ference there is in those Occasions between the Con ductofagoodandabadMan.
These great Truths which Socrates draws from
the Poem of Sitfionides, do not hinder him from ac*
knowledging, that Philosophers, who treat of diffi
cult and important Questions, ought to have re
course to the Poets, and to change the Dispute into
a Dissertation upon the Sense that ought to be given
to a Verse-, for w e cannot address our selves to them
todemandthereasonOfwhattheysay. Themost
Ignorant will dispute with the most Learned even to the end of Time ? , for what will you do to convince
him? hisWilfulriessaridIgnorancearemuchstronger thanyourReasons. Andifyoudisputewithalearn ed Man, he will not always have the Courage ro confess that he is in the wrong : private Interest, or
P p Jea-
? ? 2z6
she Introduction to Protagoras.
Jealousie and Vanity, too frequent Companions of that fort of Knowledge, will hinder him from sub mitting to the clearest of Truths, even tho'he hirn- ielf be secretly convinced of them : Where then
will be the end of the Dispute ? The surest way is to leave the Poets there, and to press your Man upon his own Principles, for which he is obliged to give,a Reason.
AfterthisPrecautionSocrates, todecide theQue- stiopthatistheSubjectoftheDispute, wouldhave it a g r e e d o n w h a t K n o w l e d g e p r o p e r l y is, a n d w o u l d have itdeterminedifitbe the. Slaveof thePassi ons, as People fansie itto be^ or, ifit be strong enough togovern Men surely:And 'tisinthisalso that-Socratesappears to be adivine Man, for he makes it appear that Knowledge is the strongest
thingintheWorld, that italonecanputMan ina statenever to be overcome by hisPassions, and that italone will always deliver him from the greatest Dangers, and will make him triumph over all the Powers of the Earth, that shall arm themselves to
Et cognos-force him to commit any thing contrary to the light cecisveri-ofthisScience. Thisagreesexactlywith thosead-
verltas U- m^ra^e Words of our Lord spoken to the Jews, Te berabit fidl^novo^}e Truth,and theTruthJhallmakeyou vos,S. }ohn/ree. Socratesmighthave drawnthisgreatNotion 9-32- from the Words ofSolomon, who fays, that the Scientia knowledgeofWisdomwillgiveLifetohimthathas sapientiae it. For by Knowledge Socrates means the Know- habSm ledSeofGod'andofthe*ruth- Knowledge,which
Ecdef. 7. '14 the Source of all Vertues, and which makes T e m perance, Justice, Valour, Sanctity, Strength, Use The Proposition- of Socrates, applied to other Sciences, would be perfectly ridiculous.
The cause ofVertue bekig known, so is also that ofVice,byreasontheyareContraries. 'Tisthere fore Ignorance that occasions Vice : From whence it follows by necessary Consequence, that those w h o commit Wickedness, do it whether they will or not.
Most
? ? The Inm&u&ioh toProtagoras. 7
. MostMen willnotagreetothisPrinciple;on the contrary, they maintain that we commit Evil whenwe knowit,andthatitdependsup? nour
selvestoshunit,andthatwerefusetodoGood with an intire Knowledge and with a full Power' tofollowit. AndwhentheyareaskedtheReason of this strange Conduct, they fay that it is because
Man isenslav'dbyhissensualPleasures.
Tis thereforeproper to enquireintothis vulgar and ill understood Reason , for when once thatfc
wellclear'd up, itwill be evidentlyknown what Vertue is the resemblance that Valour has with al! the other Parts of that Vertue, will appear, and t will be agreed that this Principle of Socrates is sd
S2? ,? f1'Ihaievei? thosew^othinkthem selves the furthest from it,and that contradict it
molt, comply therewith without perceiving it and' allow it, contrary to their Design, in terms of which they know not the Sense and Force.
These are the indisputable Maxims that Socrates establishes,and whicharenecessaryforthedecision or the Question.
PleasureisaGood,andGriefisanEvil. Plea- lurewhich leadstoGriefisanEvil,andGriefwhich leads to Pleasure is a Good. '
ThereisnoBody butwho seeksafterGood, and fleesfrom Evil.
These Principles being supposed, when 'us gfct aManknowing Evil,willnotwithstandingcommit it;andthatknowingGood,he dothnotceaseto flee Irom it , because he is enslav'd by his sensual rieaiure, it is not meant there of Pleasure which leads to Grief, for that is an Evil -,neither is it meant ofGriefwhichleadstoPleasure,fornoBo dycommitsEvilforthefakeofGrief:Itisspoke ofPleasuresynonymousofGood. Whichisas rrtuch as to fay, that thisMan shunsGood and fol lows Evil because he is thereunto inclin'd by Good ? which every Body will own to be ridiculous.
Ppi IJut
2,27
? ? 2,a8
the lntrodu&ion to Protagoras.
Butwhy isnottheGood thatinclinesuscapable to surmount the Evil? And why are the Evils the strongest, even when Goodness inclines us ? There is a manifest Contradiction there. Some will fay itisbecausetheEvilsaregreaterand morenumei rousthantheGood, Butthisisstillmoreri* diculous, for from thence it will follow, that to
be overcome by the Good, is to chuse the greatest Evilsin room of theleastGood.
? FromwhencecomessostrangeaChoice? Itcan proceed only from this, that we cannot measure the greatness oftheGood and oftheEvil,and cannot distinguish the one from the other. Then we do hot deceive our selves but for want of Knowledge j thatisto fay,throughIgnorance:And thisiswhat Socratesdesignstoprove. Therefore'tisKnowledge thatbringsforthTemperance, Justice,Sanctity,Va lour,Strength,&c. Or,father,allthoseVertuesare nothing but Knowledge it self; and consequently Knowledge, far from being overcome by thePassi
ons, is on the other hand able alone' to triumph over them ; always Mistress where everitis:Know ledge alone can deliver us , and Ignorance albne can destroy us. This Doctrine isaltogether conso-
Kon. 1. 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.
ThiswastheProfessionoftheSophists. Asno thing is so opposite to that Spirit of Error as true Philosophy, Socrates was a mortal Enemy to those false Teachers, and Plato, who trod in his Foot steps, could not vex them worse than by preserving theMemory ofalltheDisputesthatthatwifeMan had with them on several Occasions, and of all the Bantersheputuponthem. Thisiswhathedoesin several Dialogues, as the Sophist:, Euthydeme, Gor-
gids, Hippias, arid Protagoras.
I have put this last after Laches, because it is ?
n a t u r a l C o n t i n u a t i o n o f it ; f o r h e r e is e x a m i n e d t h a t famousQuestion, IfVirtuecanbetaught? andwhat Valour is, properly speaking.
Nothing is more natural than the Plan of that Dialogue^ and nothing more solid than the Manner inwhich itisperformed.
A young Man become fond of the Sophists, goes toSocratesbeforebreakofDay, tobegofhimto conduct him to Protagoras, who was just arrived at Athens. Socratesagrees. TheygototheHouseof Callias, where he lodged ; and Callias, was one of the Chiefs of the Republick.
They find Protagoras walking in the midst of a. Crowd ofAthenians and Foreigners, who listened to himastoanOracle. ProdicusofCeo'sandHippias of Elee, two of the greatest Sophists of the Age, Werealsothere. AndthereforetheVictorywhich Socrates obtains in this famous Dispute, ought to be lookt upon as the defeat of all the Party of the Sophists, whoassistedthereinbytheirLeaders;
:'. - At
? ? %%%
. t? %l>e lntrodu&ion to Protagoras.
A t first P r o t a g o r a s T e e m s t o b e a n a d m i r a b l e M a n - , to prove that Vertqe can be taught, he tells a very ingenious Story, and it must be confessed, that he gives his Opinion the most specious Colours that could be, he omits nothing that can be said, and whathefaysiseveryDay repeatedbyPeoplewho are far from thinking themselves to be Sophists.
Socrates confutes him with a dexterity that can notbesufficientlypraised;andbyhis way of treat ing them he teaches us, that at all times, when one has to do with that fort of People, the true Secret, to get the depth of them, is not to suffer them to speak so much as they would , and to make their chimerical Systems-, for they avoid and sliift ofFall your Arguments, and escape from you at last by theirlong Discourses. You must then oblige them to answer positively, and without rambling, to all youaskthem: withthisPrecautiontheDisputewill soonbeatanend. ThatveryManwhowhensuf fered to Harangue and make Orationsupon any thing has many times confounded every Body, seems to be Weakness it self when he is kept close and confined totheLimitsofaregularDispute. Inshort,Visseen thatProtagorashas nothing butsomeconfusedNo tions, that which he hath scrap'd up by his undigest ed Reading, and that instead of Knowledge he has nothing but a monstrous Heap of Opinions which contradict and destroy one another when they are sounded to the bottom and compared together.
The Aim of Socrates, in this Dialogue, is not to confound and triumph over the Sophists , he has a more noble prospect ; he would cure the Athenians of affecting them so much , and teach important Truths, the Ignorance of which is the only Source of all the Evils that happen to Men, not only in this Life but also in that which isto come.
The firstTruth is, That there is nothing more dangerous than to submit our selves to all forts of Teachers, and that it is not the fame with Sciences which nourish the Soul , as with Food that nou
? ? rishes
? ? The Introduction to Protagoras. 223
rishestheBody. Thelattermaybeboughtbyeve r y o n e ? , f o r , a f t e r t h e y h a v e b o u g h t i t , t h e y m a y
cany ithome in Vessels of small value, and, before t h e y u s e it, t h e y h a v e t i m e t o a d v i s e w i t h t h o s e w h o knowwhetheritbegoodorbad,andcanteachthem how to use it: Whereas if one buy Knowledge of thefirstthatcomes, heexposeshimselftoverygreat danger $ for in buying it he has no other Vessel to putitintobuttheSoulitsel? whichalwaysfavours ofthatwhichisputintoit,andwhich,fromthe veryMinutethatitreceivestheDoctriu, iscured or poysoned for ever, unless some good Physician be found to restore it to its former state, which is very hard to do.
The second Truth is, That those false Teachers, by teaching that Virtue is composed of different Parts which have no dependance upon one another, do entirely destroy it, and corrupt the Mind and the Heart oftheirDisciples; forthey bring them tovain Aflurance, that they may have some Parts of Virtue without having the rest, and be, for example, tem perate without being justj just without being tem perate or pious, and valiant tho' impious 5 and thereby put them out of condition ofever becoming virtuous. TodivideVirtuethus,andtotearit,if w e m a y venture to fay so, to pieces, is absolutely to
a n n i h i l a t e it a n d d e s t r o y it.
Virtue is one in its Principle and Object j it is in
divisible and eternal as they are, and all its Acts de pend upon it self5 tho' each of them have certain distinguishing Characters, yet they are inseperable and indivisible; they always hold together by some commontye;theycanneitherbelimitednormo mentary, but are all eternal as Virtue that produ- ceth them, and as the Soul whereof they are the Life : In a word , Virtue is intire in every Act, and no Act of Virtue perishes, for all that perishes is notVirtue. ADemonstrationofthismightbemade; WheretheSpiritofGodisnot,thereisnoVirtuej a n d w h e r e t h e S p i r i t o f G o d is, t h e r e V i r t u e is n e c e s
sarily
? ? ii4
the Introdu&ien to Protagoras.
sarilywithallitsPans, andbyconsequenceajust
Man istemperate aridpious; a temperate Man is valiantandjust? ,and hewho isvaliantisneitherim
pious;debauched,norunjust. Thesearenaturaland incontestable Truths in lpight of the Illusions of our Prejudices.
The third Truth that Socrates would teach is, That it does riot belong to every body to explain the Poets, and that the Sophists, who boasted of
great learning in thit, could do nothing but spoil
the finest Passages of the Poets, and those that con
tained the soundest Theology and the greatest M a x
imsofMorality. HereisfoundasmallDisserta
tion upon a Passage of Simonides, who, in one of
his Poems, which Time has robb'd us of, quarelled
with that famous Sentence of Pittacus, It is a diffi
cultthingtobevirtuous. Simonidesfindsfaultwith
that? ,he would havehad him fay,itisadifficult
thing to become virtuous, arid at the lame time that
it is slot impossible, but that it is absolutely impos sibletobesoalways? ,forthereisnoManupon
Earthwho isinnocentandjustallhisLife-time,and wemustnothopetofindanysuch. Godaloneis unchangeable and constant in the perfection of Vir tue,andthosewhom hesupportsandfavours. This Theology, which is so agreeable to the Christian Doctrine, pleases Socrates, and- 'tis he himself w h o draws' pure Light from out of the middle of the Darkness wherein those Sophists had wrapt it up, bytheirbadCriticismsandfalseExplications. We may thereby see what profound Judgment a Man must have, to enable him to explain the Poets with success, that is to iky for the publick good.
This Passage of Simonides leads Socrates to touch
upon a fifth Truth, which isthis, That in order to Pmersust^omegoodonenwsthavebeenwicked,sotobe-
nisiqulde- come wicked one must have been good. For no body pravatusi can be called perverse bur he who from a good M a n rectoest. isbecomewicked. ThisMaximedoesnotappearat s. nerom. fyfaj0fewii. dtltreaUy}s;jtisveryprofound and
~u''at-u - draws
? ? The lntrvduZtion to Protagoras aaj
draws into the knowledge of this first Truths which
is one of the solid Foundations of Platonick Philoso
phy, that Men were created perfect, and that they
have fallen from that perfection by the unhappy use
theymadeoftheirliberty. Thereforewemustnot
expect a perfect M a n in this W o r l d : and, as Simoni-
desdid,we must,withallourtHeart,loveandpraise,
those who have fewest Failings, and who commit nothingthatisshameful. ?
From thisSentiment of Simomdes^ Socrates also draws the Explication of this sixth Troth, That the InjusticeofMen oughtnottoobliterateinusthole certain Sentiments which Nature has ingraven in our Heart,and which this PoetcallsbytheName of Necejfity\ because we must absolutely submit uritd andobeythem,orceasetobeMen. Forexample, all the Causes of Complaint that an ill-humoured Father and Mother, an unjust Country, or a cruel
Master can give us, will never Justine our Aversion to them, nor authorise a Spirit of Disobedience, Ven
geanceorRevolt. Letthemtreatusneversoill, we oughttolovethem,praisethem,servethem,&a And upon this Subject Socrates does, with an Elo^ quence, that may be called Christian, shew the dif ference there is in those Occasions between the Con ductofagoodandabadMan.
These great Truths which Socrates draws from
the Poem of Sitfionides, do not hinder him from ac*
knowledging, that Philosophers, who treat of diffi
cult and important Questions, ought to have re
course to the Poets, and to change the Dispute into
a Dissertation upon the Sense that ought to be given
to a Verse-, for w e cannot address our selves to them
todemandthereasonOfwhattheysay. Themost
Ignorant will dispute with the most Learned even to the end of Time ? , for what will you do to convince
him? hisWilfulriessaridIgnorancearemuchstronger thanyourReasons. Andifyoudisputewithalearn ed Man, he will not always have the Courage ro confess that he is in the wrong : private Interest, or
P p Jea-
? ? 2z6
she Introduction to Protagoras.
Jealousie and Vanity, too frequent Companions of that fort of Knowledge, will hinder him from sub mitting to the clearest of Truths, even tho'he hirn- ielf be secretly convinced of them : Where then
will be the end of the Dispute ? The surest way is to leave the Poets there, and to press your Man upon his own Principles, for which he is obliged to give,a Reason.
AfterthisPrecautionSocrates, todecide theQue- stiopthatistheSubjectoftheDispute, wouldhave it a g r e e d o n w h a t K n o w l e d g e p r o p e r l y is, a n d w o u l d have itdeterminedifitbe the. Slaveof thePassi ons, as People fansie itto be^ or, ifit be strong enough togovern Men surely:And 'tisinthisalso that-Socratesappears to be adivine Man, for he makes it appear that Knowledge is the strongest
thingintheWorld, that italonecanputMan ina statenever to be overcome by hisPassions, and that italone will always deliver him from the greatest Dangers, and will make him triumph over all the Powers of the Earth, that shall arm themselves to
Et cognos-force him to commit any thing contrary to the light cecisveri-ofthisScience. Thisagreesexactlywith thosead-
verltas U- m^ra^e Words of our Lord spoken to the Jews, Te berabit fidl^novo^}e Truth,and theTruthJhallmakeyou vos,S. }ohn/ree. Socratesmighthave drawnthisgreatNotion 9-32- from the Words ofSolomon, who fays, that the Scientia knowledgeofWisdomwillgiveLifetohimthathas sapientiae it. For by Knowledge Socrates means the Know- habSm ledSeofGod'andofthe*ruth- Knowledge,which
Ecdef. 7. '14 the Source of all Vertues, and which makes T e m perance, Justice, Valour, Sanctity, Strength, Use The Proposition- of Socrates, applied to other Sciences, would be perfectly ridiculous.
The cause ofVertue bekig known, so is also that ofVice,byreasontheyareContraries. 'Tisthere fore Ignorance that occasions Vice : From whence it follows by necessary Consequence, that those w h o commit Wickedness, do it whether they will or not.
Most
? ? The Inm&u&ioh toProtagoras. 7
. MostMen willnotagreetothisPrinciple;on the contrary, they maintain that we commit Evil whenwe knowit,andthatitdependsup? nour
selvestoshunit,andthatwerefusetodoGood with an intire Knowledge and with a full Power' tofollowit. AndwhentheyareaskedtheReason of this strange Conduct, they fay that it is because
Man isenslav'dbyhissensualPleasures.
Tis thereforeproper to enquireintothis vulgar and ill understood Reason , for when once thatfc
wellclear'd up, itwill be evidentlyknown what Vertue is the resemblance that Valour has with al! the other Parts of that Vertue, will appear, and t will be agreed that this Principle of Socrates is sd
S2? ,? f1'Ihaievei? thosew^othinkthem selves the furthest from it,and that contradict it
molt, comply therewith without perceiving it and' allow it, contrary to their Design, in terms of which they know not the Sense and Force.
These are the indisputable Maxims that Socrates establishes,and whicharenecessaryforthedecision or the Question.
PleasureisaGood,andGriefisanEvil. Plea- lurewhich leadstoGriefisanEvil,andGriefwhich leads to Pleasure is a Good. '
ThereisnoBody butwho seeksafterGood, and fleesfrom Evil.
These Principles being supposed, when 'us gfct aManknowing Evil,willnotwithstandingcommit it;andthatknowingGood,he dothnotceaseto flee Irom it , because he is enslav'd by his sensual rieaiure, it is not meant there of Pleasure which leads to Grief, for that is an Evil -,neither is it meant ofGriefwhichleadstoPleasure,fornoBo dycommitsEvilforthefakeofGrief:Itisspoke ofPleasuresynonymousofGood. Whichisas rrtuch as to fay, that thisMan shunsGood and fol lows Evil because he is thereunto inclin'd by Good ? which every Body will own to be ridiculous.
Ppi IJut
2,27
? ? 2,a8
the lntrodu&ion to Protagoras.
Butwhy isnottheGood thatinclinesuscapable to surmount the Evil? And why are the Evils the strongest, even when Goodness inclines us ? There is a manifest Contradiction there. Some will fay itisbecausetheEvilsaregreaterand morenumei rousthantheGood, Butthisisstillmoreri* diculous, for from thence it will follow, that to
be overcome by the Good, is to chuse the greatest Evilsin room of theleastGood.
? FromwhencecomessostrangeaChoice? Itcan proceed only from this, that we cannot measure the greatness oftheGood and oftheEvil,and cannot distinguish the one from the other. Then we do hot deceive our selves but for want of Knowledge j thatisto fay,throughIgnorance:And thisiswhat Socratesdesignstoprove. Therefore'tisKnowledge thatbringsforthTemperance, Justice,Sanctity,Va lour,Strength,&c. Or,father,allthoseVertuesare nothing but Knowledge it self; and consequently Knowledge, far from being overcome by thePassi
ons, is on the other hand able alone' to triumph over them ; always Mistress where everitis:Know ledge alone can deliver us , and Ignorance albne can destroy us. This Doctrine isaltogether conso-
Kon. 1. 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.
