§7.806ΑΘ.ἢ τὸ τούτων δὴ διὰ μέσου φῶμεν, ὦ Μέγιλλε, τὸ Λακωνικόν;
ATH.: Or indeed shall we speak of that which is in the middle of these, Megillus, namely the Laconian way?
κόρας μὲν γυμνασίων μετόχους οὔσας ἅμα καὶ μουσικῆς ζῆν δεῖν, γυναῖκας δὲ ἀργοὺς μὲν ταλασίας, ἀσκητικὸν δέ τινα βίον καὶ οὐδαμῶς φαῦλον οὐδʼ εὐτελῆ διαπλέκειν, θεραπείας δὲ καὶ ταμιείας αὖ καὶ παιδοτροφίας εἴς τι μέσον ἀφικνεῖσθαι, τῶν δʼ εἰς τὸν πόλεμον μὴ κοινωνούσας, ὥστε οὐδʼ εἴ τίς ποτε διαμάχεσθαι περὶ πόλεώς τε καὶ παίδων ἀναγκαία τύχη γίγνοιτο, οὔτʼ ἂν τόξων, ὥς τινες Ἀμαζόνες, οὔτʼ ἄλλης κοινωνῆσαί ποτε βολῆς μετὰ τέχνης δυνάμεναι, οὐδὲ ἀσπίδα καὶ δόρυ λαβοῦσαι μιμήσασθαι τὴν θεόν, ὡς πορθουμένης αὐταῖς τῆς πατρίδος γενναίως ἀντιστάσας, φόβον γε, εἰ μηδὲν μεῖζον, πολεμίοισι δύνασθαι παρασχεῖν ἐν τάξει τινὶ κατοφθείσας;
That girls indeed, sharing in gymnastics and music, must live, but women, free from spinning, must weave a certain disciplined life, in no way worthless or cheap, and on the other hand arrive at a certain middle point in service, management, and child-rearing, but not sharing in the things concerning war, so that, even if ever some unavoidable necessity should arise to fight to the end for the city and their children, being able neither to share with skill in bows, like certain Amazons, nor in any other missile weapon, nor taking up shield and spear to imitate the Goddess, so as to stand up nobly when their fatherland is being ravaged and to be able, if nothing greater, to present at least fear to the enemies by being seen in some order?
Σαυρομάτιδας δὲ οὐδʼ ἂν τὸ παράπαν τολμήσειαν μιμήσασθαι τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον διαβιοῦσαι, παρὰ γυναῖκας δὲ αὐτὰς ἄνδρες ἂν αἱ ἐκείνων γυναῖκες φανεῖεν.
And living through life in this manner, they would not dare to imitate the Sauromatian women at all, and compared to those women, our men would appear to be women.
ταῦτʼ οὖν ὑμῶν τοὺς νομοθέτας ὁ μὲν βουλόμενος ἐπαινεῖν ἐπαινείτω, τὸ δʼ ἐμὸν οὐκ ἄλλως ἂν λεχθείη· τέλεον γὰρ καὶ οὐ διήμισυν δεῖν τὸν νομοθέτην εἶναι, τὸ θῆλυ μὲν ἀφιέντα τρυφᾶν καὶ ἀναλίσκειν διαίταις ἀτάκτως χρώμενον, τοῦ δὲ ἄρρενος ἐπιμεληθέντα, τελέως σχεδὸν εὐδαίμονος ἥμισυ βίου καταλείπειν ἀντὶ διπλασίου τῇ πόλει.
Therefore, let him who wishes to praise your legislators for these things praise them, but my view would not be expressed otherwise: for the legislator must be complete and not half-hearted, and by letting the female sex indulge in luxury, spend money, and use an orderly lifestyle in a disorderly way, while taking care of the male, he leaves for the city almost half of a completely happy life instead of double.
ΜΕ. τί δράσομεν, ὦ Κλεινία;
ME.: What shall we do, Cleinias?
τὸν ξένον ἐάσομεν τὴν Σπάρτην ἡμῖν οὕτω καταδραμεῖν;
Shall we allow the Stranger to overrun Sparta in this way for us?
ΚΛ. ναί· δεδομένης γὰρ αὐτῷ παρρησίας ἐατέον, ἕως ἂν διεξέλθωμεν πάντῃ ἱκανῶς τοὺς νόμους.
CL.: Yes; for since free speech has been granted to him, he must be allowed, until we have sufficiently gone through the laws in every way.
ΜΕ. ὀρθῶς λέγεις.
ME.: You speak rightly.
ΑΘ. οὐκοῦν τὰ μετὰ ταῦτα ἤδη σχεδὸν ἐμὸν πειρᾶσθαι φράζειν;
ATH.: Is it not then my task now to try to state what follows next?
ΚΛ. πῶς γὰρ οὔ;
CL.: How indeed not?
ΑΘ. τίς δὴ τρόπος ἀνθρώποις γίγνοιτʼ ἂν τοῦ βίου, οἷσιν τὰ μὲν ἀναγκαῖα εἴη κατεσκευασμένα μέτρια, τὰ δὲ τῶν τεχνῶν ἄλλοις παραδεδομένα, γεωργίαι δὲ ἐκδεδομέναι δούλοις ἀπαρχὴν τῶν ἐκ τῆς γῆς ἀποτελοῦσιν ἱκανὴν ἀνθρώποις ζῶσι κοσμίως, συσσίτια δὲ κατεσκευασμένα εἴη χωρὶς μὲν τὰ τῶν ἀνδρῶν, ἐγγὺς δʼ ἐχόμενα τὰ τῶν αὐτοῖς οἰκείων, παίδων τε ἅμα θηλειῶν καὶ τῶν μητέρων αὐταῖς, §7.807ΑΘ. ἄρχουσιν δὲ καὶ ἀρχούσαις εἴη προστεταγμένα λύειν ταῦτα ἑκάστοις τὰ συσσίτια πάντα, καθʼ ἑκάστην ἡμέραν θεασαμένους καὶ ἰδόντας τὴν διαγωγὴν τὴν τῶν συσσίτων, μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα σπείσαντας τόν τε ἄρχοντα καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους οἷς ἂν τυγχάνῃ θεοῖς ἡ τότε νύξ τε καὶ ἡμέρα καθιερωμένη, κατὰ ταῦτα οὕτως οἴκαδε πορεύεσθαι;
ATH.: What indeed would be the way of life for men for whom the necessary things indeed have been moderately prepared, and the tasks of the crafts have been delivered to others, and agriculture has been given over to slaves who pay a sufficient first-fruit of the products of the earth to men who live orderly lives, and common messes have been established, separately indeed for the men, but close by on the other hand those of their family members, together with the female children and their mothers, ATH.: and the male and female rulers have been commanded to dismiss all these common messes for each, after they have daily observed and seen the conduct of the messes, and after this, after the ruler and the others have made libations to whichever gods the then night and day happen to be consecrated, they thus proceed home?
τοῖς δὴ ταύτῃ κεκοσμημένοις ἆρα οὐδὲν λειπόμενόν ἐστιν ἀναγκαῖόν τε ἔργον καὶ παντάπασι προσῆκον, ἀλλʼ ἐν τρόπῳ βοσκήματος ἕκαστον πιαινόμενον αὐτῶν δεῖ ζῆν;
For those indeed ordered in this way, is there really no necessary and altogether fitting work left, but must each of them live fattening themselves in the manner of cattle?
οὔκουν τό γε δίκαιόν φαμεν οὐδὲ καλόν, οὐδʼ οἷόν τε τὸν ζῶντα οὕτως ἀτυχῆσαι τοῦ προσήκοντος, προσήκει δὲ ἀργῷ καὶ ῥᾳθύμως καταπεπιασμένῳ ζῴῳ σχεδὸν ὑπʼ ἄλλου διαρπασθῆναι ζῴου τῶν σφόδρα τετρυχωμένων μετὰ ἀνδρείας τε ἅμα καὶ τῶν πόνων.
Indeed, we say that this is neither just nor noble, nor is it possible for one living thus not to fail of what is fitting; and it is fitting for an idle and lazily fattened beast to be torn to pieces, as it were, by another beast from among those that are severely worn down by toil together with courage.
ταῦτα οὖν δὴ διʼ ἀκριβείας μὲν ἱκανῆς, ὡς καὶ νῦν, εἰ ζητοῖμεν ἄν, ἴσως οὐκ ἄν ποτε γένοιτο, μέχριπερ ἂν γυναῖκές τε καὶ παῖδες οἰκήσεις τε ἴδιαι καὶ ἰδίως ἅπαντʼ ᾖ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἑκάστοις ἡμῶν κατεσκευασμένα· τὰ δὲ μετʼ ἐκεῖνʼ αὖ δεύτερα τὰ νῦν λεγόμενα εἰ γίγνοιτο ἡμῖν, γίγνοιτο ἂν καὶ μάλα μετρίως.
These things indeed, if we should seek them with sufficient accuracy, as even now, would perhaps never happen, as long as women and children and private dwellings and all such things are privately established for each of us; but if these second-best things after those, which are now being spoken of, should happen for us, they would happen indeed very moderately.
ἔργον δὲ δὴ τοῖς οὕτω ζῶσίν φαμεν οὐ τὸ σμικρότατον οὐδὲ τὸ φαυλότατον λείπεσθαι, μέγιστον δὲ πάντων εἶναι προστεταγμένον ὑπὸ δικαίου νόμου· τοῦ γὰρ πᾶσαν τῶν ἄλλων πάντων ἔργων βίου ἀσχολίαν παρασκευάζοντος, τοῦ Πυθιάδος τε καὶ Ὀλυμπιάδος νίκης ὀρεγομένου, διπλασίας τε καὶ ἔτι πολλῷ πλέονος ἀσχολίας ἐστὶν γέμων ὁ περὶ τὴν τοῦ σώματος πάντως καὶ ψυχῆς εἰς ἀρετῆς ἐπιμέλειαν βίος εἰρημένος ὀρθότατα.
And we say that for those who live in this way, there is left a task that is not the smallest nor the most worthless, but the greatest of all commanded by a just law; for compared to the life of one who prepares total busyness in all other tasks of life, or who reaches for victory in the Pythian or Olympic games, the life concerned with the complete care of the body and soul for virtue, which has been spoken of most correctly, is full of double and indeed much more busyness.
πάρεργον γὰρ οὐδὲν δεῖ τῶν ἄλλων ἔργων διακώλυμα γίγνεσθαι τῶν τῷ σώματι προσηκόντων εἰς ἀπόδοσιν πόνων καὶ τροφῆς, οὐδʼ αὖ ψυχῇ μαθημάτων τε καὶ ἐθῶν, πᾶσα δὲ νύξ τε καὶ ἡμέρα σχεδὸν οὐκ ἔστιν ἱκανὴ τοῦτʼ αὐτὸ πράττοντι τὸ τέλεόν τε καὶ ἱκανὸν αὐτῶν ἐκλαμβάνειν·
For no other secondary task must become a hindrance to the labors and nourishment appropriate for the body, nor again to the lessons and habits for the soul, and almost every night and day is not sufficient for one doing this very thing to obtain their perfect and sufficient result.
οὕτω δὴ τούτων πεφυκότων, τάξιν δεῖ γίγνεσθαι πᾶσιν τοῖς ἐλευθέροις τῆς διατριβῆς περὶ τὸν χρόνον ἅπαντα, σχεδὸν ἀρξάμενον ἐξ ἕω μέχρι τῆς ἑτέρας ἀεὶ συνεχῶς ἕω τε καὶ ἡλίου ἀνατολῆς.
Since these things are so by nature, there must be an order of passing time for all free men throughout the whole time, almost beginning from dawn continuously until the next dawn and sunrise.
πολλὰ μὲν οὖν καὶ πυκνὰ καὶ σμικρὰ λέγων ἄν τις νομοθέτης ἀσχήμων φαίνοιτο περὶ τῶν κατʼ οἰκίαν διοικήσεων, τά τε ἄλλα καὶ ὅσα νύκτωρ ἀυπνίας πέρι πρέπει τοῖς μέλλουσιν διὰ τέλους φυλάξειν πᾶσαν πόλιν ἀκριβῶς.
Therefore, a legislator speaking of many, frequent, and small details about household managements would appear unseemly, especially on other matters and on what is appropriate concerning sleeplessness at night for those who are to guard the whole city accurately to the end.