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Facing Pages · Branch 36 of 65
Alcibiades I · 122a–122d
Ancient Greek
p. 66άστρου τοῦ Ὡρομάζου—ἔστι δὲ τοῦτο θεῶν θεραπεία— διδάσκει δὲ καὶ τὰ βασιλικά, ὁ δὲ δικαιότατος ἀληθεύειν διὰ παντὸς τοῦ βίου, ὁ δὲ σωφρονέστατος μηδ’ ὑπὸ μιᾶς ἄρχεσθαι τῶν ἡδονῶν, ἵνα ἐλεύθερος εἶναι ἐθίζηται καὶ ὄντως βασιλεύς, ἄρχων πρῶτον τῶν ἐν αὑτῷ ἀλλὰ μὴ δουλεύων, ὁ δὲ ἀνδρειότατος ἄφοβον καὶ ἀδεᾶ παρασκευάζων, ὡς ὅταν δείσῃ δοῦλον ὄντα· σοὶ δ’, ὦ Ἀλκιβιάδη, 122b Περικλῆς ἐπέστησε παιδαγωγὸν τῶν οἰκετῶν τὸν ἀχρειότατον ὑπὸ γήρως, Ζώπυρον τὸν Θρᾷκα. διῆλθον δὲ καὶ τὴν ἄλλην ἄν σοι τῶν ἀνταγωνιστῶν τροφήν τε καὶ παιδείαν, εἰ μὴ πολὺ ἔργον ἦν καὶ ἅμα ταῦθ’ ἱκανὰ δηλῶσαι καὶ τἆλλα ὅσα τούτοις ἀκόλουθα· τῆς δὲ σῆς γενέσεως, ὦ Ἀλκιβιάδη, καὶ τροφῆς καὶ παιδείας, ἢ ἄλλου ὁτουοῦν Ἀθηναίων, ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν οὐδενὶ μέλει, εἰ μὴ εἴ τις ἐραστής σου τυγχάνει ὤν. εἰ δ’ αὖ ἐθέλεις εἰς πλούτους 122c ἀποβλέψαι καὶ τρυφὰς καὶ ἐσθῆτας ἱματίων θ’ ἕλξεις καὶ μύρων ἀλοιφὰς καὶ θεραπόντων πλήθους ἀκολουθίας τήν τε ἄλλην ἁβρότητα τὴν Περσῶν, αἰσχυνθείης ἂν ἐπὶ σεαυτῷ, αἰσθόμενος ὅσον αὐτῶν ἐλλείπεις. εἰ δ’ αὖ ἐθελήσεις εἰς σωφροσύνην τε καὶ κοσμιότητα ἀποβλέψαι καὶ εὐχέρειαν καὶ εὐκολίαν καὶ μεγαλοφροσύνην καὶ εὐταξίαν καὶ ἀνδρείαν καὶ καρτερίαν καὶ φιλοπονίαν καὶ φιλονικίαν καὶ φιλοτιμίας τὰς Λακεδαιμονίων, παῖδ’ ἂν ἡγήσαιο σαυτὸν πᾶσι τοῖς 122d τοιούτοις. εἰ δ’ αὖ τι καὶ πλούτῳ προσέχεις καὶ κατὰ τοῦτο οἴει τι εἶναι, μηδὲ τοῦθ’ ἡμῖν ἄρρητον ἔστω, ἐάν πως αἴσθῃ οὗ εἶ. τοῦτο μὲν γὰρ εἰ ἐθέλεις ⟨εἰς⟩ τοὺς Λακεδαιμονίων πλούτους ἰδεῖν, γνώσῃ ὅτι πολὺ τἀνθάδε τῶν ἐκεῖ ἐλλείπει· γῆν μὲν γὰρ ὅσην ἔχουσιν τῆς θ’ ἑαυτῶν καὶ Μεσσήνης, οὐδ’ ἂν εἷς ἀμφισβητήσειε τῶν τῇδε πλήθει
Alcibiades I
p. 67son of Horomazes (and this is the service of the gods),1 and he teaches the kingly arts as well; the most just teaches him to tell the truth all his life long; the most temperate, not to be ruled by even a single one of his pleasures, so that he may grow used to being free and a real king, ruling first the things within himself and not being their slave; and the most courageous makes him fearless and unafraid, on the ground that when he is afraid he is a slave. But over you, Alcibiades, 122b Pericles set as tutor the household slave most useless from old age, Zopyrus the Thracian.2 I would go through for you the rest of your opponents’ upbringing and education too, if it were not a long task, and if, besides, these things were not enough to show all the rest that goes with them. But no one, one may say, cares about your birth, Alcibiades, or your upbringing and education, or those of any other Athenian, unless someone is in fact your lover. And again, if you choose to 122c look at the wealth, the luxuries, the robes and trailing cloaks, the anointings with perfume, the crowds of attendants following, and all the rest of the Persians’ refinement, you would be ashamed of yourself, perceiving how far you fall short of them. And again, if you choose to look at the temperance and orderliness of the Spartans, their readiness and easy temper, their high-mindedness and good discipline, their courage and endurance, their love of toil, of victory and of honour, you would think yourself a child in all 122d such things. And if, again, you also pay any attention to wealth, and think yourself something on that score, let us not leave this unsaid either, in the hope that you may somehow perceive where you stand. For on this score, if you choose to look at the wealth of the Spartans, you will find that what we have here falls far short of what they have there. For as to land, the land they hold in their own country and in Messene, not one of our people here could dispute with them in extent
Socrates
Reading Alcibiades I · Alcibiades I · 122a–122d
Ask about a concept, passage, contradiction, or connection.
Socrates will begin with this book and its sources.About This Reading Edition
Socrates and Alcibiades examine political ambition, education, justice, and the care of the soul. Their inquiry turns on what it means to know oneself. This complete revised edition presents the dialogue, 103a–135e, across fifty-eight Greek–English page pairs, with an introduction, Key Words of the Dialogue, an outline, glossary, critical apparatus, and translator’s notes. The dialogue is transmitted among Plato’s works; its authorship remains disputed.
Historical Text and Translation
The Greek follows John Burnet’s Platonis Opera, volume II (Oxford, 1901), in a later Oxford impression printed by John Johnson and published by Humphrey Milford. The words were taken from the Perseus Digital Library transcription and checked against the supplied printed pages. Burnet’s lineation and critical apparatus are retained, including the extended mirror passage at 133c. The supplied PDF preserves the complete printed layout.
About Diotimos Editions
Diotimos Editions prepared and revised this independent English translation directly from the Greek, preserving the argument’s distinctions, consistent key terms, Socrates’ humor, and the quick exchanges with Alcibiades. Each English dialogue page translates the Greek page opposite it. Translator’s notes accompany their passages. The introduction and Key Words of the Dialogue precede the text; the Outline, Editorial Note, Glossary of Key Terms, and Note on this Edition follow it. Introductory and concluding matter reflows for the screen.
Rights
The ancient Greek work and Burnet’s printed edition are in the public domain. The Perseus digital Greek transcription and its modifications are attributed to the Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University, and reused under CC BY-SA 4.0. The independent English translation and Diotimos editorial matter are © 2026 Diotimos Editions.