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Alcibiades I · 109a–109c
Ancient Greek
p. 20ὡς εἰδώς, τούτου δ’, ὡς ἔοικας, πέρι ἐρωτηθεὶς ἐὰν μὴ ἔχῃς εἰπεῖν, οὐκ αἰσχύνῃ; ἢ οὐκ αἰσχρὸν φανεῖται;
ΑΛ. Πάνυ γε.
ΣΩ. Σκόπει δὴ καὶ προθυμοῦ εἰπεῖν πρὸς τί τείνει τὸ ἐν τῷ εἰρήνην τε ἄγειν ἄμεινον καὶ τὸ ἐν τῷ πολεμεῖν οἷς δεῖ;
ΑΛ. Ἀλλὰ σκοπῶν οὐ δύναμαι ἐννοῆσαι.
ΣΩ. Οὐδ’ οἶσθα, ἐπειδὰν πόλεμον ποιώμεθα, ὅτι ἐγκαλοῦντες ἀλλήλοις πάθημα ἐρχόμεθα εἰς τὸ πολεμεῖν, καὶ ὅτι αὐτὸ ὀνομάζοντες ἐρχόμεθα;
109bΑΛ. Ἔγωγε, ὅτι γε ἐξαπατώμενοί τι ἢ βιαζόμενοι ἢ ἀποστερούμενοι.
ΣΩ. Ἔχε· πῶς ἕκαστα τούτων πάσχοντες; πειρῶ εἰπεῖν τί διαφέρει τὸ ὧδε ἢ ὧδε.
ΑΛ. Ἦ τὸ ὧδε λέγεις, ὦ Σώκρατες, τὸ δικαίως ἢ τὸ ἀδίκως;
ΣΩ. Αὐτὸ τοῦτο.
ΑΛ. Ἀλλὰ μὴν τοῦτο γε διαφέρει ὅλον τε καὶ πᾶν.
ΣΩ. Τί οὖν; Ἀθηναίοις σὺ πρὸς ποτέρους συμβουλεύσεις πολεμεῖν, τοὺς ἀδικοῦντας ἢ τοὺς τὰ δίκαια πράττοντας;
109cΑΛ. Δεινὸν τοῦτό γε ἐρωτᾷς· εἰ γὰρ καὶ διανοεῖταί τις ὡς δεῖ πρὸς τοὺς τὰ δίκαια πράττοντας πολεμεῖν, οὐκ ἂν ὁμολογήσειέν γε.
ΣΩ. Οὐ γὰρ νόμιμον τοῦθ’, ὡς ἔοικεν.
ΑΛ. Οὐ δῆτα· οὐδέ γε καλὸν δοκεῖ εἶναι.
ΣΩ. Πρὸς ταῦτ’ ἄρα καὶ σὺ [τὸ δίκαιον] τοὺς λόγους ποιήσῃ;
ΑΛ. Ἀνάγκη.
Alcibiades I
p. 21as one who knows, if, when you are asked about it, you can’t say, as it seems you can’t — are you not ashamed? Or will it not look shameful?
Alc. Very much so.
Soc. Then look into it, and do your best to say: what does the better in keeping peace, and in making war on those we should, tend toward?
Alc. I’m looking into it, but I can’t think.
Soc. Don’t you know this either: when we make war, what suffering we accuse one another of as we go to war, and what name we give it as we go?
Alc. 109b I do: that we are being deceived in something, or forced, or robbed.
Soc. Hold on: suffering each of these in what way? Try to say what difference there is between this way and that.
Alc. By “this way”, Socrates, do you mean justly or unjustly?
Soc. That very thing.
Alc. Well, this at least makes a difference, whole and entire.
Soc. What then? Which will you advise the Athenians to make war on, those who are doing wrong, or those who are doing what is just?
Alc. 109c That’s a dreadful question you ask. Even if someone does have it in mind that one ought to make war on those who are doing what is just, he would not admit it, at least.
Soc. No, for that is not lawful, it seems.
Alc. No indeed; nor does it seem fine either.
Soc. Then you too will make your speeches with these things in view?1
Alc. Necessarily.
Socrates
Reading Alcibiades I · Alcibiades I · 109a–109c
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.