§21ἀγαπᾶν δʼ ὅμως ἀναγκαῖον· οὐ γὰρ οὐδʼ ἂν φυγεῖν ἔτι σοι δυνατὸν ἐντὸς ἀρκύων γενομένῳ.
Yet it is necessary to be content; for it is no longer possible for you to escape, once you have got inside the nets.
δέχῃ τοίνυν τὸν χαλινὸν μύσας καὶ τὰ πρῶτα εὐάγωγος εἶ πρὸς αὐτὸν οὐ πάνυ περισπῶντα οὐδὲ ὀξέως νύττοντα, μέχρι ἂν λάθῃς τέλεον αὐτῷ συνήθης γενόμενος.
So you receive the bit with closed eyes and at first are easy to lead for him, since he does not pull hard or prick sharply, until you have gradually become completely accustomed to him without realizing it.
οἱ μὲν δὴ ἔξω ἄνθρωποι τὸ μετὰ τοῦτο ζηλοῦσί σε ὁρῶντες ἐντὸς τῆς κιγκλίδος διατρίβοντα καὶ ἀκωλύτως εἰσιόντα καὶ τῶν πάνυ τινὰ ἔνδον γεγενημένον·
The people outside, then, envy you after this, seeing you spending your time inside the lattice, entering without hindrance, and having become one of those very important persons inside.
σὺ δὲ αὐτὸς οὐδέπω ὁρᾷς οὗτινος ἕνεκα εὐδαίμων αὐτοῖς εἶναι δοκεῖς.
But you yourself do not yet see for what reason you seem to them to be happy.
πλὴν ἀλλὰ χαίρεις γε καὶ σεαυτὸν ἐξαπατᾷς καὶ ἀεὶ τὰ μέλλοντα βελτίω γενήσεσθαι νομίζεις.
Nevertheless, you rejoice and deceive yourself, and always think that things will be better in the future.
τὸ δʼ ἔμπαλιν ἢ σὺ ἤλπισας γίγνεται καὶ ὡς ἡ παροιμία φησίν, ἐπὶ Μανδροβούλου χωρεῖ τὸ πρᾶγμα, καθʼ ἑκάστην, ὡς εἰπεῖν, τὴν ἡμέραν ἀποσμικρυνόμενον καὶ εἰς τοὐπίσω ἀναποδίζον.
But the opposite of what you hoped happens, and as the proverb says, the matter goes the way of Mandrobulus, shrinking daily, so to speak, and stepping backward.
§22ἠρέμα οὖν καὶ κατʼ ὀλίγον, ὥσπερ ἐν ἀμυδρῷ τῷ φωτὶ τότε πρῶτον διαβλέπων, ἄρχῃ κατανοεῖν ὡς αἱ μὲν χρυσαῖ ἐκεῖναι ἐλπίδες οὐδὲν ἀλλʼ ἢ φῦσαί τινες ἦσαν ἐπίχρυσοι, βαρεῖς δὲ καὶ ἀληθεῖς καὶ ἀπαραίτητοι καὶ συνεχεῖς οἱ πόνοι.
Slowly, then, and little by little, as if opening your eyes for the first time in a dim light, you begin to understand that those golden hopes were nothing but gold-plated bubbles, while the labors are heavy, real, unavoidable, and continuous.
τίνες οὗτοι; ἴσως ἐρήσῃ με· οὑχ ὁρῶ γὰρ ὅ τι τὸ ἐπίπονον ἐν ταῖς τοιαύταις συνουσίαις ἐστὶν οὐδʼ ἐπινοῶ ἅτινα ἔφησθα τὰ καματηρὰ καὶ ἀφόρητα. οὐκοῦν ἄκουσον, ὦ γενναῖε, μὴ εἰ κάματος ἔνεστιν ἐν τῷ πράγματι μόνον ἐξετάζων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ αἰσχρὸν καὶ ταπεινὸν καὶ συνόλως δουλοπρεπὲς οὐκ ἐν παρέργῳ τῆς ἀκροάσεως τιθέμενος.
"What are these?" you will perhaps ask me; "for I do not see what is painful in such associations, nor can I conceive what those tiresome and unbearable things are that you mentioned." Listen then, my noble friend, examining not only whether there is labor in the matter, but also placing the shameful, the base, and altogether slave-like aspects not in the margin of your listening.
§23καὶ πρῶτόν γε μέμνησο μηκέτι ἐλεύθερον τὸ ἀπʼ ἐκείνου μηδὲ εὐπατρίδην σεαυτὸν οἴεσθαι.
And first of all, remember to no longer think of yourself as free or as well-born from that moment on.
πάντα γὰρ ταῦτα, τὸ γένος, τὴν ἐλευθερίαν, τοὺς προγόνους ἔξω τοῦ ὀδοῦ καταλείψων ἴσθι ἐπειδὰν ἐπὶ τοιαύτην σαυτὸν λατρείαν ἀπεμπολήσας εἰσίῃς·
For know that you will leave all these things—your birth, your freedom, your ancestors—outside the threshold when, having sold yourself into such servitude, you enter.
οὐ γὰρ ἐθελήσει σοι ἡ Ἐλευθερία συνεισελθεῖν ἐφʼ οὕτως ἀγεννῆ πράγματα καὶ ταπεινὰ εἰσιόντι.
For Freedom will not wish to enter together with you when you enter upon such ignoble and base matters.
δοῦλος οὖν, εἰ καὶ πάνυ ἀχθέσῃ τῷ ὀνόματι, καὶ οὐχ ἑνός, ἀλλὰ πολλῶν δοῦλος ἀναγκαίως ἔσῃ καὶ θητεύσεις κάτω νενευκὼς ἕωθεν εἰς ἑσπέραν
ἀεικελίῳ ἐπὶ μισθῷ.
Therefore a slave, even if you are very vexed by the name, and a slave not of one but of many you will necessarily be, and you will serve with head bowed down from morning till evening for a shameful wage.
καὶ ἅτε δὴ μὴ ἐκ παίδων τῇ Δουλείᾳ συντραφείς, ὀψιμαθήσας δὲ καὶ πόρρω που τῆς ἡλικίας παιδευόμενος πρὸς αὐτῆς οὐ πάνυ εὐδόκιμος ἔσῃ οὐδὲ πολλοῦ ἄξιος τῷ δεσπότῃ·
And since you have not been brought up together with Servitude from childhood, but have learned it late in life and are being educated by her far advanced in age, you will not be very successful, nor worth much to your master.
διαφθείρει γάρ σε ἡ μνήμη τῆς ἐλευθερίας ὑπιοῦσα καὶ ἀποσκιρτᾶν ἐνίοτε ποιεῖ καὶ διʼ αὐτὸ ἐν τῇ δουλείᾳ πονηρῶς ἀπαλλάττειν.
For the memory of freedom steals in and ruins you, and makes you sometimes object, and because of this you fare badly in servitude.
πλὴν εἰ μὴ ἀποχρῆν σοι πρὸς ἐλευθερίαν νομίζεις τὸ μὴ Πυρρίου μηδὲ Ζωπυρίωνος υἱὸν εἶναι, μηδὲ ὥσπερ τις Βιθυνὸς ὑπὸ μεγαλοφώνῳ τῷ κήρυκι ἀπημπολῆσθαι.
Unless, of course, you think it is sufficient for freedom that you are not the son of Pyrrias or Zopyrion, nor have been sold like some Bithynian under a loud-voiced crier.
ἀλλʼ ὁπόταν, ὦ βέλτιστε, τῆς νουμηνίας ἐπιστάσης ἀναμιχθεὶς τῷ Πυρρίᾳ καὶ τῷ Ζωπυρίωνι προτείνῃς τὴν χεῖρα ὁμοίως τοῖς ἄλλοις οἰκέταις καὶ λάβῃς ἐκεῖνο ὁτιδήποτε ἦν τὸ γιγνόμενον, τοῦτο ἡ πρᾶσίς ἐστι.
But when, my good sir, at the beginning of the month, having mingled with Pyrrias and Zopyrion, you stretch out your hand like the other servants and receive whatever that due amount was, this is the sale.
κήρυκος γὰρ οὐκ ἔδει ἐπʼ ἄνδρα ἑαυτὸν ἀποκηρύξαντα καὶ μακρῷ χρόνῳ μνηστευσάμενον ἑαυτῷ τὸν δεσπότην.
For there was no need of a crier for a man who has cried himself for sale and has for a long time courted a master for himself.