Republic

​Thus, the one who finds many wrongdoings of his own in his life, frequently waking up even from his sleep like children, is afraid and lives with a bad hope; but to the one who is conscious of no injustice in himself, sweet hope is always present, and a good nurse of old age, as Pindar also says. For charmingly indeed, Socrates, did that man say this, that whoever lives his life justly and piously, “sweet hope accompanies him, fostering his heart, a nurse of old age, which most of all governs the changeful mind of mortals.” He speaks, then, wonderfully and exceedingly well. It is indeed with a view to this that I set the possession of wealth as being of the greatest value, not at all for every man, but for the decent and orderly one. For to deceive or lie to anyone even unwillingly, or again to depart to that other world in fear, owing either sacrifices to a god or money to a man, to this the possession of wealth contributes a great deal. It has also many other uses; but comparing one thing against another, I for my part would set down that, for a man of understanding, Socrates, wealth is most useful for this. “You speak beautifully, Cephalus,” I said. “But this very thing, justice, shall we say that it is simply truthfulness and giving back whatever one has received from anyone, or is it possible to do these very things sometimes justly, and sometimes unjustly? For example, I mean something like this: everyone, I suppose, would say, if someone were to receive weapons from a friend who was in his right mind, and if that friend, having gone mad, should demand them back, that one ought not to return such things, nor would the one who returned them be just, nor again would he be just if he wished to tell the whole truth to someone in such a condition.” ”You speak correctly,” he said. “Then this is not the definition of justice, to speak the truth and to give back whatever one has received.” “It certainly is, Socrates,” Polemarchus said, interrupting, “if indeed one must believe Simonides at all.” “And indeed,” Cephalus said, “I hand over the discussion to you; for I must now attend to the sacrifices.” “Is not Polemarchus, then,” I said, “the heir to what is yours?” “Certainly,” he said with a laugh, and at the same time he went off to the sacrifices. “Speak then,” I said, “you, the heir of the argument, what do you say Simonides says correctly about justice?” “That,” he said, “to give back what is owed to each person is just; in saying this, he seems to me to speak well.”