§1.1254bτῶν γὰρ μοχθηρῶν ἢ μοχθηρῶς ἐχόντων δόξειεν ἂν ἄρχειν πολλάκις τὸ σῶμα τῆς ψυχῆς διὰ τὸ φαύλως καὶ παρὰ φύσιν ἔχειν.
For in those who are depraved or in a depraved condition, the body would often seem to rule the soul because of their being in an evil and unnatural state.
ἔστι δʼ οὖν, ὥσπερ λέγομεν, πρῶτον ἐν ζῴῳ θεωρῆσαι καὶ δεσποτικὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ πολιτικήν· ἡ μὲν γὰρ ψυχὴ τοῦ σώματος ἄρχει δεσποτικὴν ἀρχήν, ὁ δὲ νοῦς τῆς ὀρέξεως πολιτικὴν ἢ βασιλικήν· ἐν οἷς φανερόν ἐστιν ὅτι κατὰ φύσιν καὶ συμφέρον τὸ ἄρχεσθαι τῷ σώματι ὑπὸ τῆς ψυχῆς, καὶ τῷ παθητικῷ μορίῳ ὑπὸ τοῦ νοῦ καὶ τοῦ μορίου τοῦ λόγον ἔχοντος, τὸ δʼ ἐξ ἴσου ἢ ἀνάπαλιν βλαβερὸν πᾶσιν.
At any rate, as we say, it is possible first in a living creature to observe both despotic and political rule; for the soul rules the body with a despotic rule, and the intellect rules the appetite with a political or royal rule; in which it is manifest that it is according to nature and beneficial for the body to be ruled by the soul, and for the passive part by the intellect and the part having reason, whereas for them to be on an equal footing or the reverse is harmful to all.
πάλιν ἐν ἀνθρώπῳ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ζῴοις ὡσαύτως· τὰ μὲν γὰρ ἥμερα τῶν ἀγρίων βελτίω τὴν φύσιν, τούτοις δὲ πᾶσι βέλτιον ἄρχεσθαι ὑπʼ ἀνθρώπου· τυγχάνει γὰρ σωτηρίας οὕτως.
Again, it is the same way in a human being and the other animals; for tame animals are better in their nature than wild ones, and for all these it is better to be ruled by a human being; for they obtain safety in this way.
ἔτι δὲ τὸ ἄρρεν πρὸς τὸ θῆλυ φύσει τὸ μὲν κρεῖττον τὸ δὲ χεῖρον, καὶ τὸ μὲν ἄρχον τὸ δʼ ἀρχόμενον.
Moreover, the male is by nature superior and the female inferior, and the former rules and the latter is ruled.
τὸν αὐτὸν δὲ τρόπον ἀναγκαῖον εἶναι καὶ ἐπὶ πάντων ἀνθρώπων.
And it is necessary that the same manner should hold also in the case of all human beings.
ὅσοι μὲν οὖν τοσοῦτον διεστᾶσιν ὅσον ψυχὴ σώματος καὶ ἄνθρωπος θηρίου (διάκεινται δὲ τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον ὅσων ἐστὶν ἔργον ἡ τοῦ σώματος χρῆσις, καὶ τοῦτʼ ἐστʼ ἀπʼ αὐτῶν βέλτιστον), οὗτοι μέν εἰσι φύσει δοῦλοι, οἷς βέλτιόν ἐστιν ἄρχεσθαι ταύτην τὴν ἀρχήν, εἴπερ καὶ τοῖς εἰρημένοις.
Therefore, those who differ as much as the soul from the body and a human being from a beast (and those are in this condition whose work is the use of the body, and this is the best that can be got from them), these are by nature slaves, for whom it is better to be ruled by this rule, if indeed it is so for the aforementioned.
ἔστι γὰρ φύσει δοῦλος ὁ δυνάμενος ἄλλου εἶναι (διὸ καὶ ἄλλου ἐστίν), καὶ ὁ κοινωνῶν λόγου τοσοῦτον ὅσον αἰσθάνεσθαι ἀλλὰ μὴ ἔχειν.
For he is by nature a slave who is capable of belonging to another (which is why he also belongs to another), and who shares in reason only so far as to perceive it but not to possess it.
τὰ γὰρ ἄλλα ζῷα οὐ λόγῳ ἀλλὰ παθήμασιν ὑπηρετεῖ.
For the other animals do not obey reason but their passions.
καὶ ἡ χρεία δὲ παραλλάττει μικρόν· ἡ γὰρ πρὸς τἀναγκαῖα τῷ σώματι βοήθεια γίνεται παρʼ ἀμφοῖν, παρά τε τῶν δούλων καὶ παρὰ τῶν ἡμέρων ζῴων.
And their utility also differs but little; for the assistance for necessary things with the body is obtained from both, both from slaves and from tame animals.
βούλεται μὲν οὖν ἡ φύσις καὶ τὰ σώματα διαφέροντα ποιεῖν τὰ τῶν ἐλευθέρων καὶ τῶν δούλων, τὰ μὲν ἰσχυρὰ πρὸς τὴν ἀναγκαίαν χρῆσιν, τὰ δʼ ὀρθὰ καὶ ἄχρηστα πρὸς τὰς τοιαύτας ἐργασίας, ἀλλὰ χρήσιμα πρὸς πολιτικὸν βίον (οὗτος δὲ καὶ γίνεται διῃρημένος εἴς τε τὴν πολεμικὴν χρείαν καὶ τὴν εἰρηνικήν), συμβαίνει δὲ πολλάκις καὶ τοὐναντίον, τοὺς μὲν τὰ σώματα ἔχειν ἐλευθέρων τοὺς δὲ τὰς ψυχάς· ἐπεὶ τοῦτό γε φανερόν, ὡς εἰ τοσοῦτον γένοιντο διάφοροι τὸ σῶμα μόνον ὅσον αἱ τῶν θεῶν εἰκόνες, τοὺς ὑπολειπομένους πάντες φαῖεν ἂν ἀξίους εἶναι τούτοις δουλεύειν.
Therefore, nature indeed wishes to make even the bodies of free men and of slaves different, the latter strong for necessary use, and the former upright and useless for such tasks, but useful for a political life (and this life is divided into military and peaceful use), but it often happens also the opposite, that some have the bodies of free men and others the souls; since this at least is clear, that if they should become as different in body alone as the images of the gods, all would say that those who fall short deserve to be slaves to these.
εἰ δʼ ἐπὶ τοῦ σώματος τοῦτʼ ἀληθές, πολὺ δικαιότερον ἐπὶ τῆς ψυχῆς τοῦτο διωρίσθαι· ἀλλʼ οὐχ ὁμοίως ῥᾴδιον ἰδεῖν τό τε τῆς ψυχῆς κάλλος καὶ τὸ τοῦ σώματος.
And if this is true in the case of the body, it is much more just for this to be defined in the case of the soul; but it is not equally easy to see the beauty of the soul as that of the body.