§6.779ΑΘ. τὸ δʼ ἡμέτερον ἔτι πρὸς τούτοις γέλωτʼ ἂν δικαίως πάμπολυν ὄφλοι, τὸ κατʼ ἐνιαυτὸν μὲν ἐκπέμπειν εἰς τὴν χώραν τοὺς νέους, τὰ μὲν σκάψοντας, τὰ δὲ ταφρεύσοντας, τὰ δὲ καὶ διά τινων οἰκοδομήσεων εἴρξοντας τοὺς πολεμίους, ὡς δὴ τῶν ὅρων τῆς χώρας οὐκ ἐάσοντας ἐπιβαίνειν, τεῖχος δὲ περιβαλοίμεθα, ὃ πρῶτον μὲν πρὸς ὑγίειαν ταῖς πόλεσιν οὐδαμῶς συμφέρει, πρὸς δέ τινα μαλθακὴν ἕξιν ταῖς ψυχαῖς τῶν ἐνοικούντων εἴωθε ποιεῖν, προκαλούμενον εἰς αὐτὸ καταφεύγοντας μὴ ἀμύνεσθαι τοὺς πολεμίους, μηδὲ τῷ φρουρεῖν ἀεί τινας ἐν αὐτῇ νύκτωρ καὶ μεθʼ ἡμέραν, τούτῳ τῆς σωτηρίας τυγχάνειν, τείχεσι δὲ καὶ πύλαις διανοεῖσθαι φραχθέντας τε καὶ καθεύδοντας σωτηρίας ὄντως ἕξειν μηχανάς, ὡς ἐπὶ τὸ μὴ πονεῖν γεγονότας, ἀγνοοῦντας δʼ αὖ τὴν ῥᾳστώνην ὡς ὄντως ἐστὶν ἐκ τῶν πόνων· ἐκ ῥᾳστώνης δέ γε, οἶμαι, τῆς αἰσχρᾶς οἱ πόνοι καὶ ῥᾳθυμίας πεφύκασι γίγνεσθαι πάλιν.
ATH.: Moreover, in addition to this, our own practice would justly incur very great ridicule—namely, that we send out the young men each year into the countryside, some to dig, others to trench, and others to bar the enemy by means of certain buildings, as if we would indeed not permit them to set foot on the borders of the country, and yet we should throw a wall around ourselves! This, in the first place, is by no means beneficial to cities with respect to health, and is accustomed to produce a certain soft habit in the souls of the inhabitants, inviting them to take refuge in it and not to ward off the enemy, nor to obtain safety by always having some of them on guard in it night and day, but to imagine that when they are barricaded and sleeping behind walls and gates, they will really have the means of safety, as if they were born for the purpose of not toiling, and being ignorant, on the other hand, that ease is truly born from toils; whereas from shameful ease and slackness, I think, toils are naturally born again.
ἀλλʼ εἰ δὴ τεῖχός γέ τι χρεὼν ἀνθρώποις εἶναι, τὰς οἰκοδομίας χρὴ τὰς τῶν ἰδίων οἰκήσεων οὕτως ἐξ ἀρχῆς βάλλεσθαι, ὅπως ἂν ᾖ πᾶσα ἡ πόλις ἓν τεῖχος, ὁμαλότητί τε καὶ ὁμοιότησιν εἰς τὰς ὁδοὺς πασῶν τῶν οἰκήσεων ἐχουσῶν εὐέρκειαν, ἰδεῖν τε οὐκ ἀηδὲς μιᾶς οἰκίας σχῆμα ἐχούσης αὐτῆς, εἴς τε τὴν τῆς φυλακῆς ῥᾳστώνην ὅλῳ καὶ παντὶ πρὸς σωτηρίαν γίγνοιτʼ ἂν διάφορος.
But if indeed a wall of some kind is necessary for men, the construction of private dwellings must be laid down from the beginning in such a way that the whole city may be a single wall, having defense-capabilities by all the dwellings being even and uniform toward the streets, which would not be unpleasant to see, as it would have the appearance of a single house, and it would be altogether and in every way advantageous for safety with respect to the ease of keeping guard.
τούτων δέ, ὡς ἂν μένῃ τὰ κατʼ ἀρχὰς οἰκοδομηθέντα, μέλειν μὲν μάλιστα τοῖς ἐνοικοῦσι πρέπον ἂν εἴη, τοὺς δὲ ἀστυνόμους ἐπιμελεῖσθαι καὶ προσαναγκάζοντας τὸν ὀλιγωροῦντα ζημιοῦντας, καὶ πάντων δὴ τῶν κατὰ τὸ ἄστυ καθαρότητός τʼ ἐπιμελεῖσθαι, καὶ ὅπως ἰδιώτης μηδεὶς μηδὲν τῶν τῆς πόλεως μήτε οἰκοδομήμασι μήτε οὖν ὀρύγμασιν ἐπιλήψεται.
For these things, as long as the buildings constructed at the beginning remain, it would be most fitting for the inhabitants to care; and the city-stewards (astynomoi) should take care of them, also compelling by punishing anyone who is negligent, and indeed taking care of the cleanliness of everything in the city, and ensuring that no private citizen encroaches upon any public property of the city, either by buildings or by excavations.
καὶ δὴ καὶ ὑδάτων τῶν ἐκ Διὸς εὐροίας τούτους ἐπιμελεῖσθαι χρεών, καὶ ὅσα ἐντὸς πόλεως ἢ ὁπόσα ἔξω πρέπον ἂν οἰκεῖν εἴη·
And indeed, it is necessary that these men take care of the free flow of rainwater, and of all such matters within the city or whatever it is fitting to inhabit outside.
ταῦτα δὲ πάντα συνιδόντες ταῖς χρείαις οἱ νομοφύλακες ἐπινομοθετούντων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὁπόσα ἂν ὁ νόμος ἐκλείπῃ διʼ ἀπορίαν.
The guardians of the laws, looking at all these things together with their practical needs, should make supplementary legislation, and concerning all other matters that the law may leave out through difficulty.
ὅτε δὲ ταῦτά τε καὶ τὰ περὶ ἀγορὰν οἰκοδομήματα καὶ τὰ περὶ τὰ γυμνάσια καὶ πάντα ὅσα διδασκαλεῖα κατεσκευασμένα περιμένει τοὺς φοιτητὰς καὶ θεατὰς θέατρα, πορευώμεθα ἐπὶ τὰ μετὰ τοὺς γάμους, τῆς νομοθεσίας ἑξῆς ἐχόμενοι.
And when these things, and the buildings around the marketplace, and those around the gymnasia, and all the schools established are waiting for the students, and the theatres for the spectators, let us proceed to the matters after marriage, holding next to the order of legislation.
ΚΛ. πάνυ μὲν οὖν.
CLE.: By all means.
ΑΘ. γάμοι μὲν τοίνυν ἡμῖν ἔστωσαν γεγονότες, ὦ Κλεινία· δίαιτα δὲ πρὸ παιδογονίας οὐκ ἐλάττων ἐνιαυσίας γίγνοιτʼ ἂν τὸ μετὰ τοῦτο, ἣν δὴ τίνα τρόπον χρὴ ζῆν νυμφίον καὶ νύμφην ἐν πόλει διαφερούσῃ τῶν πολλῶν ἐσομένῃ—τὸ δὴ τῶν νῦν εἰρημένων ἐχόμενον—εἰπεῖν οὐ πάντων εὐκολώτατον, ἀλλὰ ὄντων οὐκ ὀλίγων τῶν ἔμπροσθεν τοιούτων, τοῦτο ἔτι ἐκείνων τῶν πολλῶν δυσχερέστερον ἀποδέχεσθαι τῷ πλήθει.
ATH.: Let marriages then, Cleinias, be considered to have taken place; and the way of life before begetting children, not less than a year, would come next, as to how a bridegroom and a bride ought to live in a city which is to be different from the many—which indeed is the next point following what has now been said—which is not the easiest of all to tell, but while there are not a few such things before, this is still more difficult for the multitude to accept than those many things.
τό γε μὴν δοκοῦν ὀρθὸν καὶ ἀληθὲς εἶναι πάντως ῥητέον, ὦ Κλεινία.
Nevertheless, what seems to be correct and true must by all means be spoken, Cleinias.
ΚΛ. πάνυ μὲν οὖν.
CLE.: By all means.