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conducted in this manner, the judgment will be just. I knew misshapen when he was alive, the same appearance would all about the matter before any of you, and therefore I have be visible in the dead. And in a word, whatever was the made my sons judges; two from Asia, Minos and habit of the body during life would be distinguishable after Rhadamanthus, and one from Europe, Aeacus. And these, death, either perfectly, or in a great measure and for a cer-when they are dead, shall give judgment in the meadow at tain time. And I should imagine that this is equally true of the parting of the ways, whence the two roads lead, one to the soul, Callicles; when a man is stripped of the body, all the Islands of the Blessed, and the other to Tartarus.
the natural or acquired affections of the soul are laid open Rhadamanthus shall judge those who come from Asia, and to view.And when they come to the judge, as those from Aeacus those who come from Europe. And to Minos I shall Asia come to Rhadamanthus, he places them near him and give the primacy, and he shall hold a court of appeal, in inspects them quite impartially, not knowing whose the soul case either of the two others are in any doubt:then the is: perhaps he may lay hands on the soul of the great king, judgment respecting the last journey of men will be as just or of some other king or potentate, who has no soundness as possible.
in him, but his soul is marked with the whip, and is full of From this tale, Callicles, which I have heard and believe, the prints and scars of perjuries and crimes with which each I draw the following inferences:Death, if I am right, is in action has stained him, and he is all crooked with false-the first place the separation from one another of two things, hood and imposture, and has no straightness, because he soul and body; nothing else. And after they are separated has lived without truth. Him Rhadamanthus beholds, full they retain their several natures, as in life; the body keeps of all deformity and disproportion, which is caused by li-the same habit, and the results of treatment or accident are cence and luxury and insolence and incontinence, and des-distinctly visible in it: for example, he who by nature or patches him ignominiously to his prison, and there he un-training or both, was a tall man while he was alive, will re-dergoes the punishment which he deserves.
main as he was, after he is dead; and the fat man will re-Now the proper office of punishment is twofold: he who main fat; and so on; and the dead man, who in life had a is rightly punished ought either to become better and profit fancy to have flowing hair, will have flowing hair. And if he by it, or he ought to be made an example to his fellows, that was marked with the whip and had the prints of the scourge, they may see what he suffers, and fear and become better.
or of wounds in him when he was alive, you might see the Those who are improved when they are punished by gods same in the dead body; and if his limbs were broken or and men, are those whose sins are curable; and they are 148
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improved, as in this world so also in another, by pain and Republic). And yet in that very class there may arise good suffering; for there is no other way in which they can be men, and worthy of all admiration they are, for where there delivered from their evil. But they who have been guilty of is great power to do wrong, to live and to die justly is a hard the worst crimes, and are incurable by reason of their crimes, thing, and greatly to be praised, and few there are who at-are made examples; for, as they are incurable, the time has tain to this. Such good and true men, however, there have passed at which they can receive any benefit. They get no been, and will be again, at Athens and in other states, who good themselves, but others get good when they behold have fulfilled their trust righteously; and there is one who is them enduring for ever the most terrible and painful and quite famous all over Hellas, Aristeides, the son of fearful sufferings as the penalty of their sinsthere they are, Lysimachus. But, in general, great men are also bad, my hanging up as examples, in the prison-house of the world friend.
below, a spectacle and a warning to all unrighteous men As I was saying, Rhadamanthus, when he gets a soul of who come thither. And among them, as I confidently af-the bad kind, knows nothing about him, neither who he is, firm, will be found Archelaus, if Polus truly reports of him, nor who his parents are; he knows only that he has got hold and any other tyrant who is like him. Of these fearful ex-of a villain; and seeing this, he stamps him as curable or amples, most, as I believe, are taken from the class of ty-incurable, and sends him away to Tartarus, whither he goes rants and kings and potentates and public men, for they are and receives his proper recompense. Or, again, he looks the authors of the greatest and most impious crimes, be-with admiration on the soul of some just one who has lived cause they have the power. And Homer witnesses to the in holiness and truth; he may have been a private man or truth of this; for they are always kings and potentates whom not; and I should say, Callicles, that he is most likely to he has described as suffering everlasting punishment in the have been a philosopher who has done his own work, and world below: such were Tantalus and Sisyphus and Tityus.
not troubled himself with the doings of other men in his But no one ever described Thersites, or any private person lifetime; him Rhadamanthus sends to the Islands of the who was a villain, as suffering everlasting punishment, or as Blessed. Aeacus does the same; and they both have sceptres, incurable. For to commit the worst crimes, as I am inclined and judge; but Minos alone has a golden sceptre and is to think, was not in his power, and he was happier than seated looking on, as Odysseus in Homer declares that he those who had the power. No, Callicles, the very bad men saw him:
come from the class of those who have power (compare 149
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Holding a sceptre of gold, and giving laws to the life which does not profit in another world as well as in this.
dead.
And of all that has been said, nothing remains unshaken but the saying, that to do injustice is more to be avoided Now I, Callicles, am persuaded of the truth of these things, than to suffer injustice, and that the reality and not the ap-and I consider how I shall present my soul whole and un-pearance of virtue is to be followed above all things, as well defiled before the judge in that day. Renouncing the honours in public as in private life; and that when any one has been at which the world aims, I desire only to know the truth, wrong in anything, he is to be chastised, and that the next and to live as well as I can, and, when I die, to die as well as best thing to a man being just is that he should become just, I can. And, to the utmost of my power, I exhort all other and be chastised and punished; also that he should avoid men to do the same. And, in return for your exhortation of all flattery of himself as well as of others, of the few or of me, I exhort you also to take part in the great combat, which the many: and rhetoric and any other art should be used by is the combat of life, and greater than every other earthly him, and all his actions should be done always, with a view conflict. And I retort your reproach of me, and say, that to justice.
you will not be able to help yourself when the day of trial Follow me then, and I will lead you where you will be and judgment, of which I was speaking, comes upon you; happy in life and after death, as the argument shows. And you will go before the judge, the son of Aegina, and, when never mind if some one despises you as a fool, and insults he has got you in his grip and is carrying you off, you will you, if he has a mind; let him strike you, by Zeus, and do gape and your head will swim round, just as mine would in you be of good cheer, and do not mind the insulting blow, the courts of this world, and very likely some one will shame-for you will never come to any harm in the practice of vir-fully box you on the ears, and put upon you any sort of tue, if you are a really good and true man. When we have insult.
practised virtue together, we will apply ourselves to politics, Perhaps this may appear to you to be only an old wifes if that seems desirable, or we will advise about whatever tale, which you will contemn. And there might be reason in else may seem good to us, for we shall be better able to your contemning such tales, if by searching we could find judge then. In our present condition we ought not to give out anything better or truer: but now you see that you and ourselves airs, for even on the most important subjects we Polus and Gorgias, who are the three wisest of the Greeks are always changing our minds; so utterly stupid are we! Let of our day, are not able to show that we ought to live any us, then, take the argument as our guide, which has revealed 150
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to us that the best way of life is to practise justice and every virtue in life and death. This way let us go; and in this exhort all men to follow, not in the way to which you trust and in which you exhort me to follow you; for that way, Callicles, If you wish to view more of
is nothing worth.
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