§427ΣΩ. διὰ ταῦτα τὸ
ἰέναι
καὶ τὸ
ἵεσθαι
διὰ τοῦ ἰῶτα ἀπομιμεῖται, ὥσπερ γε διὰ τοῦ φεῖ καὶ τοῦ ψεῖ καὶ τοῦ σῖγμα καὶ τοῦ ζῆτα, ὅτι πνευματώδη τὰ γράμματα, πάντα τὰ τοιαῦτα μεμίμηται αὐτοῖς ὀνομάζων, οἷον τὸ
ψυχρὸν
καὶ τὸ
ζέον
καὶ τὸ
σείεσθαι
καὶ ὅλως σεισμόν.
SOCRATES: For this reason, "to go" and "to hasten" are imitated through iota, just as indeed through phi, psi, sigma, and zeta, because these letters are breathy, he imitated all such things in naming them with these—such as "cold", "seething", "shaking", and shaking in general.
καὶ ὅταν που τὸ φυσῶδες μιμῆται, πανταχοῦ ἐνταῦθα ὡς τὸ πολὺ τὰ τοιαῦτα γράμματα ἐπιφέρειν φαίνεται ὁ τὰ ὀνόματα τιθέμενος.
And whenever he imitates what is windy, the name-giver appears for the most part to apply such letters in all these cases.
τῆς δʼ αὖ τοῦ δέλτα συμπιέσεως καὶ τοῦ ταῦ καὶ ἀπερείσεως τῆς γλώττης τὴν δύναμιν χρήσιμον φαίνεται ἡγήσασθαι πρὸς τὴν μίμησιν τοῦ
δεσμοῦ
καὶ τῆς
στάσεως.
On the other hand, the force of the compression of delta and tau, and the pressing down of the tongue, seems to have been thought useful for the imitation of "binding" and "rest".
ὅτι δὲ ὀλισθάνει μάλιστα ἐν τῷ λάβδα ἡ γλῶττα κατιδών, ἀφομοιῶν ὠνόμασε τά τε
λεῖα
καὶ αὐτὸ τὸ
ὀλισθάνειν
καὶ τὸ
λιπαρὸν
καὶ τὸ
κολλῶδες
καὶ τἆλλα πάντα τὰ τοιαῦτα.
And seeing that the tongue slips most of all in lambda, he named, making likenesses, "smooth", "to slip" itself, "sleek", "gluey", and all other such things.
ᾗ δὲ ὀλισθανούσης τῆς γλώττης ἀντιλαμβάνεται ἡ τοῦ γάμμα δύναμις, τὸ
γλίσχρον
ἀπεμιμήσατο καὶ
γλυκὺ
καὶ
γλοιῶδες.
And where the force of gamma takes hold of the slipping tongue, he imitated "sticky", "sweet", and "glutinous".
τοῦ δʼ αὖ νῦ τὸ εἴσω αἰσθόμενος τῆς φωνῆς, τὸ
ἔνδον
καὶ τὰ
ἐντὸς
ὠνόμασεν, ὡς ἀφομοιῶν τοῖς γράμμασι τὰ ἔργα.
And on the other hand, perceiving the inward sound of nu, he named "inside" and "within", as if making the realities like the letters.
τὸ δʼ αὖ ἄλφα τῷ
μεγάλῳ
ἀπέδωκε, καὶ τῷ
μήκει
τὸ ἦτα, ὅτι μεγάλα τὰ γράμματα.
And again, he assigned alpha to "great", and eta to "length", because these letters are large.
εἰς δὲ τὸ
γογγύλον
τοῦ οὖ δεόμενος σημείου, τοῦτο πλεῖστον αὐτῷ εἰς τὸ ὄνομα ἐνεκέρασεν.
And needing the sign of omicron for "round", he mixed this most of all into its name.
καὶ τἆλλα οὕτω φαίνεται προσβιβάζειν καὶ κατὰ γράμματα καὶ κατὰ συλλαβὰς ἑκάστῳ τῶν ὄντων σημεῖόν τε καὶ ὄνομα ποιῶν ὁ νομοθέτης, ἐκ δὲ τούτων τὰ λοιπὰ ἤδη αὐτοῖς τούτοις συντιθέναι ἀπομιμούμενος.
And in this way the lawgiver seems to apply the rest, making a sign and a name for each of the things that are, both by letters and by syllables, and from these he then composes the rest by imitating them with these very things.
αὕτη μοι φαίνεται, ὦ Ἑρμόγενες, βούλεσθαι εἶναι ἡ τῶν ὀνομάτων ὀρθότης, εἰ μή τι ἄλλο Κρατύλος ὅδε λέγει.
This, Hermogenes, seems to me to be the correctness of names, unless Cratylus here says something else.
ΕΡΜ. καὶ μήν, ὦ Σώκρατες, πολλά γέ μοι πολλάκις πράγματα παρέχει Κρατύλος, ὥσπερ κατʼ ἀρχὰς ἔλεγον, φάσκων μὲν εἶναι ὀρθότητα ὀνομάτων, ἥτις δʼ ἐστὶν οὐδὲν σαφὲς λέγων, ὥστε με μὴ δύνασθαι εἰδέναι πότερον ἑκὼν ἢ ἄκων οὕτως ἀσαφῶς ἑκάστοτε περὶ αὐτῶν λέγει.
HERMOGENES: Indeed, Socrates, Cratylus causes me a lot of trouble often, as I said at the beginning, claiming that there is a correctness of names, but saying nothing clear about what it is, so that I cannot know whether he speaks so obscurely about them each time willingly or unwillingly.
νῦν οὖν μοι, ὦ Κρατύλε, ἐναντίον Σωκράτους εἰπὲ πότερον ἀρέσκει σοι ᾗ λέγει Σωκράτης περὶ ὀνομάτων, ἢ ἔχεις πῃ ἄλλῃ κάλλιον λέγειν;
Now therefore, Cratylus, tell me in the presence of Socrates whether you are pleased with how Socrates speaks about names, or whether you have some other more beautiful way to speak?
καὶ εἰ ἔχεις, λέγε, ἵνα ἤτοι μάθῃς παρὰ Σωκράτους ἢ διδάξῃς ἡμᾶς ἀμφοτέρους.
And if you have, speak, so that you may either learn from Socrates or teach both of us.
ΚΡ. τί δέ, ὦ Ἑρμόγενες;
CRATYLUS: And why, Hermogenes?
δοκεῖ σοι ῥᾴδιον εἶναι οὕτω ταχὺ μαθεῖν τε καὶ διδάξαι ὁτιοῦν πρᾶγμα, μὴ ὅτι τοσοῦτον, ὃ δὴ δοκεῖ ἐν τοῖς μέγιστον εἶναι;
Does it seem easy to you to learn and to teach any matter so quickly, let alone so great a one, which indeed is thought to be among the greatest?
§428ΕΡΜ. μὰ Δίʼ, οὐκ ἔμοιγε.
HERMOGENES: By Zeus, not to me.
ἀλλὰ τὸ τοῦ Ἡσιόδου καλῶς μοι φαίνεται ἔχειν, τὸ εἰ καί τις σμικρὸν ἐπὶ σμικρῷ καταθείη, προὔργου εἶναι.
But the saying of Hesiod seems to me to be well off: "if one should lay down even a little upon a little," it would be of use.
εἰ οὖν καὶ σμικρόν τι οἷός τʼ εἶ πλέον ποιῆσαι, μὴ ἀπόκαμνε ἀλλʼ εὐεργέτει καὶ Σωκράτη τόνδε—δίκαιος δʼ εἶ—καὶ ἐμέ.
If therefore you are able to do even some little more, do not grow weary but benefit both Socrates here—as is just—and me.
ΣΩ. καὶ μὲν δὴ ἔγωγε καὶ αὐτός, ὦ Κρατύλε, οὐδὲν ἂν ἰσχυρισαίμην ὧν εἴρηκα, ᾗ δέ μοι ἐφαίνετο μεθʼ Ἑρμογένους ἐπεσκεψάμην, ὥστε τούτου γε ἕνεκα θαρρῶν λέγε, εἴ τι ἔχεις βέλτιον, ὡς ἐμοῦ ἐνδεξομένου.
SOCRATES: And indeed I myself, Cratylus, would make no strong claim about any of the things I have said, but I investigated it with Hermogenes in the way it appeared to me; so, for this reason, speak with confidence if you have anything better, as I am ready to accept it.
εἰ μέντοι ἔχεις τι σὺ κάλλιον τούτων λέγειν, οὐκ ἂν θαυμάζοιμι·
If, however, you have something more beautiful to say than these, I should not wonder; for you seem to me to have investigated such things yourself and to have learned them from others.
δοκεῖς γάρ μοι αὐτός τε ἐσκέφθαι τὰ τοιαῦτα καὶ παρʼ ἄλλων μεμαθηκέναι. ἐὰν οὖν λέγῃς τι κάλλιον, ἕνα τῶν μαθητῶν περὶ ὀρθότητος ὀνομάτων καὶ ἐμὲ γράφου.
If therefore you say something more beautiful, register me too as one of your disciples concerning the correctness of names.
ΚΡ. ἀλλὰ μὲν δή, ὦ Σώκρατες, ὥσπερ σὺ λέγεις, μεμέληκέν τέ μοι περὶ αὐτῶν καὶ ἴσως ἄν σε ποιησαίμην μαθητήν.
CRATYLUS: But indeed, Socrates, just as you say, I have cared about them and perhaps I might make you my disciple.
φοβοῦμαι μέντοι μὴ τούτου πᾶν τοὐναντίον ᾖ, ὅτι μοί πως ἐπέρχεται λέγειν πρὸς σὲ τὸ τοῦ Ἀχιλλέως, ὃ ἐκεῖνος ἐν Λιταῖς πρὸς τὸν Αἴαντα λέγει.
However, I fear lest the very opposite of this be true, because it somehow occurs to me to say to you the word of Achilles, which he says in the Prayers to Ajax.
φησὶ δὲ
"
Αἶαν διογενὲς Τελαμώνιε, κοίρανε λαῶν,
πάντα τί μοι κατὰ θυμὸν ἐείσω μυθήσασθαι. "
καὶ ἐμοὶ σύ, ὦ Σώκρατες, ἐπιεικῶς φαίνῃ κατὰ νοῦν χρησμῳδεῖν, εἴτε παρʼ Εὐθύφρονος ἐπίπνους γενόμενος, εἴτε καὶ ἄλλη τις Μοῦσα πάλαι σε ἐνοῦσα ἐλελήθει.
For he says: "Ajax, of noble birth, son of Telamon, ruler of the people, you seem to have spoken everything after my own heart." And to me, Socrates, you seem to prophesy reasonably according to my mind, whether having become inspired by Euthyphro, or some other Muse having been within you for a long time without your knowing it.
ΣΩ. ὠγαθὲ Κρατύλε, θαυμάζω καὶ αὐτὸς πάλαι τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ σοφίαν καὶ ἀπιστῶ.
SOCRATES: My good Cratylus, I myself have long been wondering at my own wisdom and disbelieving it.
δοκεῖ οὖν μοι χρῆναι ἐπανασκέψασθαι τί καὶ λέγω.
It seems to me, therefore, that I must re-examine what it is indeed that I am saying.
τὸ γὰρ ἐξαπατᾶσθαι αὐτὸν ὑφʼ αὑτοῦ πάντων χαλεπώτατον· ὅταν γὰρ μηδὲ σμικρὸν ἀποστατῇ ἀλλʼ ἀεὶ παρῇ ὁ ἐξαπατήσων, πῶς οὐ δεινόν;
For to be deceived by oneself is the hardest of all; for when the deceiver is not even a little way off but is always present, how is that not terrible?
δεῖ δή, ὡς ἔοικε, θαμὰ μεταστρέφεσθαι ἐπὶ τὰ προειρημένα, καὶ πειρᾶσθαι, τὸ ἐκείνου τοῦ ποιητοῦ, βλέπειν
ἅμα πρόσσω καὶ ὀπίσσω. καὶ δὴ καὶ νυνὶ ἡμεῖς ἴδωμεν τί ἡμῖν εἴρηται.
It is necessary, therefore, as it seems, often to turn back to what was said before, and to try, as that poet says, to look "both forward and backward." And indeed now let us see what has been said by us.
ὀνόματος, φαμέν, ὀρθότης ἐστὶν αὕτη, ἥτις ἐνδείξεται οἷόν ἐστι τὸ πρᾶγμα· τοῦτο φῶμεν ἱκανῶς εἰρῆσθαι;
The correctness of a name, we say, is this, which will indicate what the thing is like; shall we say that this has been sufficiently said?
ΚΡ. ἐμοὶ μὲν δοκεῖ πάνυ σφόδρα, ὦ Σώκρατες.
CRATYLUS: To me indeed it seems so, very much so, Socrates.
ΣΩ. διδασκαλίας ἄρα ἕνεκα τὰ ὀνόματα λέγεται;
SOCRATES: Are names then spoken for the sake of teaching?
ΚΡ. πάνυ γε.
CRATYLUS: Certainly.
ΣΩ. οὐκοῦν φῶμεν καὶ ταύτην τέχνην εἶναι καὶ δημιουργοὺς αὐτῆς;
SOCRATES: Shall we then say that this too is an art, and that there are craftsmen of it?
ΚΡ. πάνυ γε.
CRATYLUS: Certainly.
ΣΩ. τίνας;
SOCRATES: Who?