Quite true, he said.
Yes, I said; and facility in learning is learning quickly, And in all that concerns either body or soul, swiftness 10
“Charmides” – Plato
and activity are clearly better than slowness and quietness?
After a moment’s pause, in which he made a real manly Clearly they are.
effort to think, he said: My opinion is, Socrates, that tem-Then temperance is not quietness, nor is the temperate perance makes a man ashamed or modest, and that tem-life quiet,—certainly not upon this view; for the life which perance is the same as modesty.
is temperate is supposed to be the good. And of two things, Very good, I said; and did you not admit, just now, that one is true,—either never, or very seldom, do the quiet temperance is noble?
actions in life appear to be better than the quick and ener-Yes, certainly, he said.
getic ones; or supposing that of the nobler actions, there And the temperate are also good?
are as many quiet, as quick and vehement: still, even if we Yes.
grant this, temperance will not be acting quietly any more And can that be good which does not make men good?
than acting quickly and energetically, either in walking or Certainly not.
talking or in anything else; nor will the quiet life be more And you would infer that temperance is not only noble, temperate than the unquiet, seeing that temperance is ad-but also good?
mitted by us to be a good and noble thing, and the quick That is my opinion.
have been shown to be as good as the quiet.
Well, I said; but surely you would agree with Homer when I think, he said, Socrates, that you are right.
he says,
Then once more, Charmides, I said, fix your attention,
‘Modesty is not good for a needy man’?
and look within; consider the effect which temperance has Yes, he said; I agree.
upon yourself, and the nature of that which has the effect.
Then I suppose that modesty is and is not good?
Think over all this, and, like a brave youth, tell me—What Clearly.
is temperance?
But temperance, whose presence makes men only good, 11
“Charmides” – Plato
and not bad, is always good?
What makes you think so? he said.
That appears to me to be as you say.
Because, I said, he who uttered them seems to me to And the inference is that temperance cannot be mod-have meant one thing, and said another. Is the scribe, for esty—if temperance is a good, and if modesty is as much example, to be regarded as doing nothing when he reads or an evil as a good?
writes?
All that, Socrates, appears to me to be true; but I should I should rather think that he was doing something.
like to know what you think about another definition of And does the scribe write or read, or teach you boys to temperance, which I just now remember to have heard from write or read, your own names only, or did you write your some one, who said, ‘That temperance is doing our own enemies’ names as well as your own and your friends’?
business.’ Was he right who affirmed that?
As much one as the other.
You monster! I said; this is what Critias, or some phi-And was there anything meddling or intemperate in this?
losopher has told you.