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374 374, PLATO

THE TRUE POLITICIAN 1

From the Gorgias, pp. 521, 522.

Socrates. Calucles.

Socrates. Then to which service of the State do you invite me ? determine for me. Am I to be the physi- cian of the State, who will striΛ'e and struggle to make the Athenians as good as possible ; or am I to be the servant and flatterer of the State ? Speak out, my good friend, freely and fairly as you did at first and ought to do again, and tell me your entire mind.

CaUides. I say, then, that you should be the ser- vant of the State.

Socrates. The flatterer? well, sir, that is a noble invitation.

Callicles. The Mysian,^ Socrates, or what you please. For if you refuse, the consequences will be —

Socrates. Do not repeat the old story — that he who likes will kill me and get my money ; for then I shall have to repeat the old answer, that he will be a bad man and will kill the good, and that the money will be of no use to him, but he will wrongly use that which he wrongly took, and if wrongly, basely, and if basely, hurtfully.

Callicles. How confident you are, Socrates, that you will never come to harm ! You seem to think that you are living in another country, and can never be brought into a court of justice, as you very likely may be brought by some miserable and mean person.

Socrates. Then I must indeed be a fool, Callicles,

1 In this is a distinct reference to Socrates's position before his judges.

2 A barbarian. He means, " Call me the lowest kind of slave, or anything you like."