§271ΚΡ. τίς ἦν, ὦ Σώκρατες, ᾧ χθὲς ἐν Λυκείῳ διελέγου;
CRITO: Who was it, Socrates, with whom you were talking yesterday in the Lyceum?
ἦ πολὺς ὑμᾶς ὄχλος περιειστήκει, ὥστʼ ἔγωγε βουλόμενος ἀκούειν προσελθὼν οὐδὲν οἷός τʼ ἦ ἀκοῦσαι σαφές· ὑπερκύψας μέντοι κατεῖδον, καί μοι ἔδοξεν εἶναι ξένος τις ᾧ διελέγου.
Indeed, a large crowd stood around you, so that I, though wishing to hear and having approached, was not able to hear anything clearly; looking over, however, I caught sight of him, and he seemed to me to be some stranger with whom you were talking.
τίς ἦν;
Who was he?
ΣΩ. πότερον καὶ ἐρωτᾷς, ὦ Κρίτων;
SOCRATES: Are you asking which of the two, Crito?
οὐ γὰρ εἷς ἀλλὰ δύʼ ἤστην.
For there was not one, but there were two.
ΚΡ. ὃν μὲν ἐγὼ λέγω, ἐκ δεξιᾶς τρίτος ἀπὸ σοῦ καθῆστο· ἐν μέσῳ δʼ ὑμῶν τὸ Ἀξιόχου μειράκιον ἦν.
CRITO: The one I mean was sitting third from you on the right; in the middle of you was the youth, the son of Axiochus.
καὶ μάλα πολύ, ὦ Σώκρατες, ἐπιδεδωκέναι μοι ἔδοξεν, καὶ τοῦ ἡμετέρου οὐ πολύ τι τὴν ἡλικίαν διαφέρειν Κριτοβούλου.
And he seemed to me, Socrates, to have grown very much, and not to differ much in age from our Critobulus.
ἀλλʼ ἐκεῖνος μὲν σκληφρός, οὗτος δὲ προφερὴς καὶ καλὸς καὶ ἀγαθὸς τὴν ὄψιν.
But while the former is slender, this one is well-developed, handsome, and of noble appearance.
ΣΩ. Εὐθύδημος οὗτός ἐστιν, ὦ Κρίτων, ὃν ἐρωτᾷς, ὁ δὲ παρʼ ἐμὲ καθήμενος ἐξ ἀριστερᾶς ἀδελφὸς τούτου, Διονυσόδωρος·
SOCRATES: This one whom you ask about, Crito, is Euthydemus; and the one sitting next to me on the left is his brother, Dionysodorus.
μετέχει δὲ καὶ οὗτος τῶν λόγων.
He also takes part in the discussion.
ΚΡ. οὐδέτερον γιγνώσκω, ὦ Σώκρατες.
CRITO: I know neither of them, Socrates.
καινοί τινες αὖ οὗτοι, ὡς ἔοικε, σοφισταί·
These are some new sophists again, as it seems.
ποδαποί; καὶ τίς ἡ σοφία;
Where do they come from, and what is their wisdom?
ΣΩ. οὗτοι τὸ μὲν γένος, ὡς ἐγᾦμαι, ἐντεῦθέν ποθέν εἰσιν ἐκ Χίου, ἀπῴκησαν δὲ ἐς Θουρίους, φεύγοντες δὲ ἐκεῖθεν πόλλʼ ἤδη ἔτη περὶ τούσδε τοὺς τόπους διατρίβουσιν.
SOCRATES: In race, as I think, they are from somewhere around Chios, but they emigrated to Thurii, and fleeing from there they have now for many years been spending time in these parts.
ὃ δὲ σὺ ἐρωτᾷς τὴν σοφίαν αὐτοῖν, θαυμασία, ὦ Κρίτων· πάσσοφοι ἀτεχνῶς τώ γε, οὐδʼ ᾔδη πρὸ τοῦ ὅτι εἶεν οἱ παγκρατιασταί.
As for their wisdom which you ask about, it is marvelous, Crito; the two of them are absolutely all-wise; before this, I did not even know what pancratiasts were.
τούτω γάρ ἐστον κομιδῇ παμμάχω.
For these two are completely all-fighting.
οὐ κατὰ τὼ Ἀκαρνᾶνε ἐγενέσθην τὼ παγκρατιαστὰ ἀδελφώ· ἐκείνω μὲν γὰρ τῷ σώματι μόνον οἵω τε μάχεσθαι, τούτω δὲ πρῶτον μὲν τῷ σώματι δεινοτάτω ἐστὸν §272ΣΩ. —ἐν ὅπλοις γὰρ αὐτώ τε σοφὼ πάνυ μάχεσθαι καὶ ἄλλον, ὃς ἂν διδῷ μισθόν, οἵω τε ποιῆσαι—ἔπειτα τὴν ἐν τοῖς δικαστηρίοις μάχην κρατίστω καὶ ἀγωνίσασθαι καὶ ἄλλον διδάξαι λέγειν τε καὶ συγγράφεσθαι λόγους οἵους εἰς τὰ δικαστήρια.
They did not turn out like the two Acarnanian brothers who were pancratiasts; for those two were able to fight with the body only, but these two, first, are most formidable in body — —for they are themselves very skilled at fighting in armor and able to make anyone else so who pays them a fee — second, they are best at fighting the battle in the courts, both at contending themselves and at teaching another to speak and write speeches of the sort suitable for the courts.
πρὸ τοῦ μὲν οὖν ταῦτα δεινὼ ἤστην μόνον, νῦν δὲ τέλος ἐπιτεθήκατον παγκρατιαστικῇ τέχνῃ.
Before this, then, they were clever only at these things, but now they have put the finishing touch to the pancratiastic art.
ἣ γὰρ ἦν λοιπὴ αὐτοῖν μάχη ἀργός, ταύτην νῦν ἐξείργασθον, ὥστε μηδʼ ἂν ἕνα αὐτοῖς οἷόν τʼ εἶναι μηδʼ ἀντᾶραι· οὕτω δεινὼ γεγόνατον ἐν τοῖς λόγοις μάχεσθαί τε καὶ ἐξελέγχειν τὸ ἀεὶ λεγόμενον, ὁμοίως ἐάντε ψεῦδος ἐάντε ἀληθὲς ᾖ.
For the remaining kind of battle which they left unworked, they have now fully worked out, so that not even a single person is able to stand up against them; they have become so formidable at fighting in arguments and refuting whatever is said at any time, whether it be false or true.
ἐγὼ μὲν οὖν, ὦ Κρίτων, ἐν νῷ ἔχω τοῖν ἀνδροῖν παραδοῦναι ἐμαυτόν· καὶ γάρ φατον ἐν ὀλίγῳ χρόνῳ ποιῆσαι ἂν καὶ ἄλλον ὁντινοῦν τὰ αὐτὰ ταῦτα δεινόν.
I, therefore, Crito, have it in mind to entrust myself to the two men; for they say that in a short time they would make anyone else whomsoever clever in these very same things.
ΚΡ. τί δέ, ὦ Σώκρατες;
CRITO: But how so, Socrates?
οὐ φοβῇ τὴν ἡλικίαν, μὴ ἤδη πρεσβύτερος ᾖς;
Do you not fear your age, lest you are already too old?
ΣΩ. ἥκιστά γε, ὦ Κρίτων· ἱκανὸν τεκμήριον ἔχω καὶ παραμύθιον τοῦ μὴ φοβεῖσθαι.
SOCRATES: Not at all, Crito; I have sufficient proof and encouragement for not fearing.
αὐτὼ γὰρ τούτω, ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, γέροντε ὄντε ἠρξάσθην ταύτης τῆς σοφίας ἧς ἔγωγε ἐπιθυμῶ, τῆς ἐριστικῆς· πέρυσιν ἢ προπέρυσιν οὐδέπω ἤστην σοφώ.
For these very two, as the saying goes, being old men, began this wisdom which I desire, the eristic art; last year or the year before they were not yet wise.
ἀλλʼ ἐγὼ ἓν μόνον φοβοῦμαι, μὴ αὖ ὄνειδος τοῖν ξένοιν περιάψω, ὥσπερ Κόννῳ τῷ Μητροβίου, τῷ κιθαριστῇ, ὃς ἐμὲ διδάσκει ἔτι καὶ νῦν κιθαρίζειν· ὁρῶντες οὖν οἱ παῖδες οἱ συμφοιτηταί μοι ἐμοῦ τε καταγελῶσι καὶ τὸν Κόννον καλοῦσι γεροντοδιδάσκαλον.
But I fear only one thing, lest I bring reproach upon the two strangers, just as upon Connus, the son of Metrobius, the cithara-player, who even now still teaches me to play the cithara; seeing this, therefore, the boys who are my fellow-pupils laugh at me and call Connus 'the teacher of old men'.
μὴ οὖν καὶ τοῖν ξένοιν τις ταὐτὸν τοῦτο ὀνειδίσῃ· οἱ δʼ αὐτὸ τοῦτο ἴσως φοβούμενοι τάχα με οὐκ ἂν ἐθέλοιεν προσδέξασθαι.
Lest someone should reproach the two strangers with this very same thing; and they, perhaps fearing this very thing, might quickly not be willing to accept me.
ἐγὼ δʼ, ὦ Κρίτων, ἐκεῖσε μὲν ἄλλους πέπεικα συμμαθητάς μοι φοιτᾶν πρεσβύτας, ἐνταῦθα δέ γε ἑτέρους πειράσομαι πείθειν.
But I, Crito, have persuaded others, old men, to go thither as fellow-pupils with me, and here indeed I will try to persuade others.
καὶ σὺ τί οὐ συμφοιτᾷς;
And why do you not join me as a fellow-pupil?
ὡς δὲ δέλεαρ αὐτοῖς ἄξομεν τοὺς σοὺς ὑεῖς· ἐφιέμενοι γὰρ ἐκείνων οἶδʼ ὅτι καὶ ἡμᾶς παιδεύσουσιν.
We shall bring your sons as a bait for them; for, desiring them, I know that they will educate us as well.
ΚΡ. ἀλλʼ οὐδὲν κωλύει, ὦ Σώκρατες, ἐάν γε σοὶ δοκῇ.
CRITO: Well, nothing prevents it, Socrates, if it seems good to you.
πρῶτον δέ μοι διήγησαι τὴν σοφίαν τοῖν ἀνδροῖν τίς ἐστιν, ἵνα εἰδῶ ὅτι καὶ μαθησόμεθα.
But first describe to me what the wisdom of the two men is, so that I may know what we shall actually learn.
ΣΩ. οὐκ ἂν φθάνοις ἀκούων· ὡς οὐκ ἂν ἔχοιμί γε εἰπεῖν ὅτι οὐ προσεῖχον τὸν νοῦν αὐτοῖν, ἀλλὰ πάνυ καὶ προσεῖχον καὶ μέμνημαι, καί σοι πειράσομαι ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἅπαντα διηγήσασθαι.
SOCRATES: You cannot hear it too soon; for I could not say that I did not pay attention to them, but indeed I paid close attention and I remember, and I will try to describe everything to you from the beginning.
κατὰ θεὸν γάρ τινα ἔτυχον καθήμενος ἐνταῦθα, οὗπερ σύ με εἶδες, ἐν τῷ ἀποδυτηρίῳ μόνος, καὶ ἤδη ἐν νῷ εἶχον ἀναστῆναι· ἀνισταμένου δέ μου ἐγένετο τὸ εἰωθὸς σημεῖον τὸ δαιμόνιον.
For by some divine chance I happened to be sitting there, where you saw me, alone in the changing-room, and I already had it in mind to stand up; but as I was rising, my accustomed sign, the divine sign, occurred.