YOUNG SOCRATES: What is that?
YOUNG SOCRATES: What is it?
STRANGER: The diameter; and, again, the diam-STRANGER: Human beings have come out in the eter of a diameter. (Compare Meno.) same class with the freest and airiest of creation, and have been running a race with them.
YOUNG SOCRATES: What do you mean?
YOUNG SOCRATES: I remark that very singular STRANGER: How does man walk, but as a diam-coincidence.
eter whose power is two feet?
STRANGER: And would you not expect the slow-YOUNG SOCRATES: Just so.
est to arrive last?
STRANGER: And the power of the remaining kind, YOUNG SOCRATES: Indeed I should.
being the power of twice two feet, may be said to be the diameter of our diameter.
STRANGER: And there is a still more ridiculous consequence, that the king is found running about YOUNG SOCRATES: Certainly; and now I think with the herd and in close competition with the that I pretty nearly understand you.
bird-catcher, who of all mankind is most of an adept at the airy life. (Plato is here introducing a new STRANGER: In these divisions, Socrates, I descry suddivision, i.e. that of bipeds into men and birds.
what would make another famous jest.
Others however refer the passage to the division 66
Plato
into quadrupeds and bipeds, making pigs compete STRANGER: And now, I will not wait for you to with human beings and the pig-driver with the king.
ask the, but will of my own accord take you by the According to this explanation we must translate the shorter road to the definition of a king.
words above, ‘freest and airiest of creation,’ ‘wor-thiest and laziest of creation.’) YOUNG SOCRATES: By all means.
YOUNG SOCRATES: Certainly.
STRANGER: I say that we should have begun at first by dividing land animals into biped and quad-STRANGER: Then here, Socrates, is still clearer ruped; and since the winged herd, and that alone, evidence of the truth of what was said in the en-comes out in the same class with man, we should quiry about the Sophist? (Compare Sophist.) divide bipeds into those which have feathers and those which have not, and when they have been YOUNG SOCRATES: What?
divided, and the art of the management of mankind is brought to light, the time will have come to STRANGER: That the dialectical method is no re-produce our Statesman and ruler, and set him like specter of persons, and does not set the great above a charioteer in his place, and hand over to him the the small, but always arrives in her own way at the reins of state, for that too is a vocation which be-truest result.
longs to him.
YOUNG SOCRATES: Clearly.
YOUNG SOCRATES: Very good; you have paid me the debt,—I mean, that you have completed the 67
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argument, and I suppose that you added the di-names—shepherding pure-bred animals. The only gression by way of interest. (Compare Republic.) further subdivision is the art of man-herding,—this has to do with bipeds, and is what we were seeking STRANGER: Then now, let us go back to the be-after, and have now found, being at once the royal ginning, and join the links, which together make and political.
the definition of the name of the Statesman’s art.
YOUNG SOCRATES: To be sure.
YOUNG SOCRATES: By all means.
STRANGER: And do you think, Socrates, that we STRANGER: The science of pure knowledge had, really have done as you say?
as we said originally, a part which was the science of rule or command, and from this was derived an-YOUNG SOCRATES: What?
other part, which was called command-for-self, on the analogy of selling-for-self; an important section STRANGER: Do you think, I mean, that we have of this was the management of living animals, and really fulfilled our intention?—There has been a sort this again was further limited to the management of discussion, and yet the investigation seems to of them in herds; and again in herds of pedestrian me not to be perfectly worked out: this is where the animals. The chief division of the latter was the art enquiry fails.
of managing pedestrian animals which are without horns; this again has a part which can only be com-YOUNG SOCRATES: I do not understand.
prehended under one term by joining together three 68
Plato
STRANGER: I will try to make the thought, which YOUNG SOCRATES: To what do you refer?
is at this moment present in my mind, clearer to us both.
STRANGER: I want to ask, whether any one of the other herdsmen has a rival who professes and claims YOUNG SOCRATES: Let me hear.
to share with him in the management of the herd?
STRANGER: There were many arts of shepherding, YOUNG SOCRATES: What do you mean?
and one of them was the political, which had the charge of one particular herd?
STRANGER: I mean to say that merchants, hus-bandmen, providers of food, and also training-mas-YOUNG SOCRATES: Yes.
ters and physicians, will all contend with the herdsmen of humanity, whom we call Statesmen, declar-STRANGER: And this the argument defined to be ing that they themselves have the care of rearing or the art of rearing, not horses or other brutes, but managing mankind, and that they rear not only the the art of rearing man collectively?
common herd, but also the rulers themselves.
YOUNG SOCRATES: True.
YOUNG SOCRATES: Are they not right in saying so?
STRANGER: Note, however, a difference which distinguishes the king from all other shepherds.
STRANGER: Very likely they may be, and we will consider their claim. But we are certain of this,—