- Source
- Platonis Opera, Tomus I: Tetralogia I-II. Burnet, John, 1863-1928, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1905.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0059.tlg002.humanitext-grc2:25
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-27
Socrates exposes the absurdity of Meletus's claim that all Athenians educate the youth except him, using the analogy of a horse trainer. He further argues that no one would voluntarily corrupt their associates because doing so would bring harm to themselves, exposing the logical contradiction in Meletus's charge of intentional corruption.
τί δὲ δή; οἱ δὲ ἀκροαταὶ βελτίους ποιοῦσιν ἢ οὔ;καὶ οὗτοι.τί δέ, οἱ βουλευταί;καὶ οἱ βουλευταί.ἀλλʼ ἄρα, ὦ Μέλητε, μὴ οἱ ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ,1 οἱ ἐκκλησιασταί, διαφθείρουσι τοὺς νεωτέρους; ἢ κἀκεῖνοι βελτίους ποιοῦσιν ἅπαντες;κἀκεῖνοι.πάντες ἄρα, ὡς ἔοικεν, Ἀθηναῖοι καλοὺς κἀγαθοὺς ποιοῦσι πλὴν ἐμοῦ, ἐγὼ δὲ μόνος διαφθείρω. οὕτω λέγεις;πάνυ σφόδρα ταῦτα λέγω.πολλήν γέ μου κατέγνωκας δυστυχίαν.2 καί μοι ἀπόκριναι· ἦ καὶ περὶ ἵππους οὕτω σοι δοκεῖ ἔχειν; οἱ μὲν βελτίους ποιοῦντες3 αὐτοὺς πάντες ἄνθρωποι εἶναι, εἷς δέ τις ὁ διαφθείρων; ἢ τοὐναντίον τούτου πᾶν εἷς μέν τις ὁ βελτίους οἷός τʼ ὢν ποιεῖν ἢ πάνυ ὀλίγοι, οἱ ἱππικοί, οἱ δὲ πολλοὶ ἐάνπερ συνῶσι καὶ χρῶνται ἵπποις, διαφθείρουσιν; οὐχ οὕτως ἔχει, ὦ Μέλητε, καὶ περὶ ἵππων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων ζῴων; πάντως δήπου, ἐάντε σὺ καὶ Ἄνυτος οὐ φῆτε ἐάντε φῆτε· πολλὴ γὰρ ἄν τις εὐδαιμονία εἴη περὶ τοὺς νέους εἰ εἷς μὲν μόνος αὐτοὺς διαφθείρει, οἱ δʼ ἄλλοι ὠφελοῦσιν. ἀλλὰ γάρ, ὦ Μέλητε, ἱκανῶς ἐπιδείκνυσαι ὅτι οὐδεπώποτε ἐφρόντισας τῶν νέων, καὶ σαφῶς ἀποφαίνεις τὴν σαυτοῦ ἀμέλειαν, ὅτι οὐδέν σοι μεμέληκεν περὶ ὧν ἐμὲ εἰσάγεις.ἔτι δὲ ἡμῖν εἰπέ, ὦ πρὸς Διὸς Μέλητε, πότερόν ἐστιν οἰκεῖν ἄμεινον ἐν πολίταις χρηστοῖς ἢ πονηροῖς; ὦ τάν, ἀπόκριναι· οὐδὲν γάρ τοι χαλεπὸν ἐρωτῶ. οὐχ οἱ μὲν πονηροὶ κακόν τι ἐργάζονται τοὺς ἀεὶ ἐγγυτάτω αὑτῶν ὄντας, οἱ δʼ ἀγαθοὶ ἀγαθόν τι;πάνυ γε. ἔστιν οὖν ὅστις βούλεται ὑπὸ τῶν συνόντων βλάπτεσθαι μᾶλλον ἢ ὠφελεῖσθαι; ἀποκρίνου, ὦ ἀγαθέ· καὶ γὰρ ὁ νόμος κελεύει ἀποκρίνεσθαι. ἔσθʼ ὅστις βούλεται βλάπτεσθαι;οὐ δῆτα.φέρε δή, πότερον ἐμὲ εἰσάγεις δεῦρο ὡς διαφθείροντα τοὺς νέους καὶ πονηροτέρους ποιοῦντα ἑκόντα ἢ ἄκοντα;ἑκόντα ἔγωγε.τί δῆτα, ὦ Μέλητε; τοσοῦτον σὺ ἐμοῦ σοφώτερος εἶ τηλικούτου ὄντος τηλικόσδε ὤν, ὥστε σὺ μὲν ἔγνωκας ὅτι οἱ μὲν κακοὶ κακόν τι ἐργάζονται ἀεὶ τοὺς μάλιστα πλησίον ἑαυτῶν, οἱ δὲ ἀγαθοὶ ἀγαθόν, ἐγὼ δὲ δὴ εἰς τοσοῦτον ἀμαθίας ἥκω4 ὥστε καὶ τοῦτʼ ἀγνοῶ, ὅτι ἐάν τινα μοχθηρὸν ποιήσω τῶν συνόντων, κινδυνεύσω κακόν τι λαβεῖν ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ, ὥστε τοῦτο τὸ τοσοῦτον κακὸν ἑκὼν ποιῶ, ὡς φῂς σύ;
Socrates: But what then? Do the hearers make them better, or not? Meletus: These also. Socrates: And what of the councilors? Meletus: The councilors too. Socrates: But then, Meletus, do those in the assembly, the assemblymen, corrupt the youth? Or do they also, all of them, make them better? Meletus: They also. Socrates: All the Athenians, then, as it seems, make them excellent except me, and I alone corrupt them. Is this what you say? Meletus: I say this most emphatically. Socrates: You have judged me to be in great misfortune. And answer me: does it seem to you to be so also with horses? That those who make them better are all men, and that it is some one person who corrupts them? Or is it the complete opposite of this, that some one person, or very few, namely the horse trainers, is able to make them better, while the many, if they associate with and use horses, corrupt them? Is it not so, Meletus, both with horses and with all other animals? Absolutely so, surely, whether you and Anytus deny it or admit it; for it would be a great piece of good fortune for the youth if only one person corrupts them, while the others benefit them. But indeed, Meletus, you show sufficiently that you have never cared for the youth, and you clearly reveal your own carelessness, that you have cared nothing about the things for which you bring me here. But tell us further, Meletus, by Zeus, is it better to live among good citizens or bad ones? Answer, my friend; for I am asking nothing difficult. Do not the bad always do some evil to those who are closest to them, and the good some good? Meletus: Yes, indeed. Socrates: Is there, then, anyone who wants to be harmed by his associates rather than benefited? Answer, my good man; for the law also orders you to answer. Is there anyone who wants to be harmed? Meletus: Not at all. Socrates: Come then, do you bring me here as one who corrupts the youth and makes them worse voluntarily or involuntarily? Meletus: Voluntarily, I say. Socrates: What then, Meletus? Are you so much wiser than I am at your age, while I am of this age, that you have known that the bad always do some evil to those who are closest to themselves, and the good some good, but I have come to such a depth of ignorance that I do not even know this, that if I make any of my associates bad, I shall run the risk of receiving some evil from him, so that I do this so great an evil voluntarily, as you say?
- 25aμὴ οἱ ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ
The particle μὴ with the indicative present (διαφθείρουσι) introduces a question expecting a negative answer or expressing apprehension ('surely they do not corrupt...').
- 25aπολλήν γέ μου κατέγνωκας δυστυχίαν
The verb καταγιγνώσκω takes the genitive of the person condemned (μου) and the accusative of the penalty or charge (πολλήν... δυστυχίαν).
- 25aοἱ μὲν βελτίους ποιοῦντες
The participle phrase οἱ μὲν βελτίους ποιοῦντες forms part of the accusative-and-infinitive construction dependent on δοκεῖ ἔχειν, with εἶναι being the infinitive and πάντες ἄνθρωποι acting as the predicate accusative.
- 25eἐγὼ δὲ δὴ εἰς τοσοῦτον ἀμαθίας ἥκω
The prepositional phrase εἰς τοσοῦτον followed by the partitive genitive ἀμαθίας expresses degree ('to such a point of ignorance'), correlating with the subsequent ὥστε clause to express result.