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Facing Pages · Branch 45 of 65
Alcibiades I · 127b–127e
Ancient Greek
p. 84ΣΩ. Οὐδ’ εὖ ἄρα ταύτῃ οἰκοῦνται αἱ πόλεις, ὅταν τὰ αὑτῶν ἕκαστοι πράττωσιν;
ΑΛ. Οἶμαι ἔγωγε, ὦ Σώκρατες.
ΣΩ. Πῶς λέγεις, φιλίας μὴ παρούσης, ἧς ἔφαμεν ἐγγιγνομένης εὖ οἰκεῖσθαι τὰς πόλεις, ἄλλως δ’ οὔ;
ΑΛ. Ἀλλά μοι δοκεῖ καὶ κατὰ τοῦτ’ αὐτοῖς φιλία ἐγγίγνεσθαι, ὅτι τὰ αὑτῶν ἑκάτεροι πράττουσιν.
127cΣΩ. Οὐκ ἄρτι γε· νῦν δὲ πῶς αὖ λέγεις; ὁμονοίας μὴ ἐγγιγνομένης φιλία ἐγγίγνεται; ἢ οἷόν θ’ ὁμόνοιαν ἐγγίγνεσθαι [περὶ τούτων] ὧν οἱ μὲν ἴσασι περὶ τούτων, οἱ δ’ οὔ;
ΑΛ. Ἀδύνατον.
ΣΩ. Δίκαια δὲ πράττουσιν ἢ ἄδικα, ὅταν τὰ αὑτῶν ἕκαστοι πράττωσιν;
ΑΛ. Δίκαια· πῶς γὰρ οὔ;
ΣΩ. Τὰ δίκαια οὖν πραττόντων ἐν τῇ πόλει τῶν πολιτῶν φιλία οὐκ ἐγγίγνεται πρὸς ἀλλήλους;
ΑΛ. Ἀνάγκη αὖ μοι δοκεῖ εἶναι, ὦ Σώκρατες.
127dΣΩ. Τίνα οὖν ποτε λέγεις τὴν φιλίαν ἢ ὁμόνοιαν περὶ ἧς δεῖ ἡμᾶς σοφούς τε εἶναι καὶ εὐβούλους, ἵνα ἀγαθοὶ ἄνδρες ὦμεν; οὐ γὰρ δύναμαι μαθεῖν οὔθ’ ἥτις οὔτ’ ἐν οἷστισιν· τοτὲ μὲν γὰρ ἐν τοῖς αὐτοῖς φαίνεται ἐνοῦσα, τοτὲ δ’ οὔ, ὡς ἐκ τοῦ σοῦ λόγου.
ΑΛ. Ἀλλὰ μὰ τοὺς θεούς, ὦ Σώκρατες, οὐδ’ αὐτὸς οἶδ’ ὅτι λέγω, κινδυνεύω δὲ καὶ πάλαι λεληθέναι ἐμαυτὸν αἴσχιστα ἔχων.
ΣΩ. Ἀλλὰ χρὴ θαρρεῖν. εἰ μὲν γὰρ αὐτὸ ᾔσθου πεπονθὼς 127e πεντηκονταετής, χαλεπὸν ἂν ἦν σοι ἐπιμεληθῆναι σαυτοῦ· νῦν δ’ ἣν ἔχεις ἡλικίαν, αὕτη ἐστὶν ἐν ᾗ δεῖ αὐτὸ αἰσθέσθαι.
Alcibiades I
p. 85Soc. Nor, then, are cities well ordered in this respect, when each does its own business?
Alc. I think they are, Socrates.
Soc. How do you mean, when friendship is not present? We said that cities are well ordered when friendship comes to be in them, and not otherwise.
Alc. But it seems to me that friendship comes to be among them on this very account, because each of the two does its own business.
Soc. 127c It did not a moment ago, at any rate. But now, again, how do you mean it? Does friendship come to be when concord does not? Or is it possible for concord to come to be among people of whom some know about these things and others do not?1
Alc. Impossible.
Soc. And do they do just things or unjust, when each does its own business?
Alc. Just things; how could they not?
Soc. Then when the citizens in the city do what is just, does friendship not come to be among them toward one another?
Alc. Again it seems to me that it must, Socrates.
Soc. 127d Then what on earth do you mean by the friendship or concord about which we must be wise and of good counsel, if we are to be good men? For I cannot learn either what it is or in whom it is: at one time it appears to be present in the same people, at another not, by your argument.
Alc. No, by the gods, Socrates, I don’t even know myself what I am saying; and it may be that I have long been in the most shameful state without noticing it myself.
Soc. But you must take heart. For if you had perceived this condition in yourself 127e at fifty, it would be hard for you to care for yourself; but the age you are now is the very age at which you ought to perceive it.
Socrates
Reading Alcibiades I · Alcibiades I · 127b–127e
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.