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English Page · Branch 59 of 65
Alcibiades I · 134c–134e
Ancient Greek
p. 112ΑΛ. Πῶς γὰρ οὔ;
ΣΩ. Δύναιτο δ’ ἄν τις μεταδιδόναι ὃ μὴ ἔχοι;
ΑΛ. Καὶ πῶς;
ΣΩ. Αὐτῷ ἄρα σοὶ πρῶτον κτητέον ἀρετήν, καὶ ἄλλῳ ὃς μέλλει μὴ ἰδίᾳ μόνον αὑτοῦ τε καὶ τῶν αὑτοῦ ἄρξειν καὶ ἐπιμελήσεσθαι, ἀλλὰ πόλεως καὶ τῶν τῆς πόλεως.
ΑΛ. Ἀληθῆ λέγεις.
ΣΩ. Οὐκ ἄρα ἐξουσίαν σοι οὐδ’ ἀρχὴν παρασκευαστέον σαυτῷ ποιεῖν ὅτι ἂν βούλῃ, οὐδὲ τῇ πόλει, ἀλλὰ δικαιοσύνην καὶ σωφροσύνην.
ΑΛ. Φαίνεται.
134dΣΩ. Δικαίως μὲν γὰρ πράττοντες καὶ σωφρόνως σύ τε καὶ ἡ πόλις θεοφιλῶς πράξετε.
ΑΛ. Εἰκός γε.
ΣΩ. Καὶ ὅπερ γε ἐν τοῖς πρόσθεν ἐλέγομεν, εἰς τὸ θεῖον καὶ λαμπρὸν ὁρῶντες πράξετε.
ΑΛ. Φαίνεται.
ΣΩ. Ἀλλὰ μὴν ἐνταῦθά γε βλέποντες ὑμᾶς τε αὐτοὺς καὶ τὰ ὑμέτερα ἀγαθὰ κατόψεσθε καὶ γνώσεσθε.
ΑΛ. Ναί.
ΣΩ. Οὐκοῦν ὀρθῶς τε καὶ εὖ πράξετε;
ΑΛ. Ναί.
134eΣΩ. Ἀλλὰ μὴν οὕτω γε πράττοντας ὑμᾶς ἐθέλω ἐγγυήσασθαι ἦ μὴν εὐδαιμονήσειν.
ΑΛ. Ἀσφαλὴς γὰρ εἶ ἐγγυητής.
ΣΩ. Ἀδίκως δέ γε πράττοντες, εἰς τὸ ἄθεον καὶ σκοτεινὸν βλέποντες, ὡς τὰ εἰκότα, ὅμοια τούτοις πράξετε ἀγνοοῦντες ὑμᾶς αὐτούς.
ΑΛ. Ἔοικεν.
ΣΩ. Ὧι γὰρ ⟨ἄν⟩, ὦ φίλε Ἀλκιβιάδη, ἐξουσία μὲν ᾖ ποιεῖν ὃ βούλεται, νοῦν δὲ μὴ ἔχῃ, τί τὸ εἰκὸς συμβαίνειν,
Alcibiades I
p. 113Alc. Of course.
Soc. And could anyone give a share of what he did not have?
Alc. How could he?
Soc. Then you yourself must first acquire virtue, and so must anyone else who is going to rule and care for not only himself and what is his own, in private, but the city and the city’s affairs.
Alc. What you say is true.
Soc. Then it is not license, nor rule, to do whatever you wish that you must procure for yourself, nor for the city, but justice and temperance.
Alc. It appears so.
Soc. 134d For if you and the city act justly and temperately, you will act in a way dear to the gods.
Alc. Likely, at any rate.
Soc. And, as we were saying earlier, you will act looking toward what is divine and bright.
Alc. It appears so.
Soc. And indeed, looking there, you will see and know yourselves and your own goods.
Alc. Yes.
Soc. Then you will act rightly and do well?1
Alc. Yes.
Soc. 134e And indeed, if you act in this way, I am willing to stand guarantor that you will truly be happy.
Alc. Yes, for you are a safe guarantor.2
Soc. But if you act unjustly, looking toward what is godless and dark, then, as is likely, you will act in keeping with these, being ignorant of yourselves.
Alc. It seems so.
Soc. For whoever, my dear Alcibiades, has license to do what he wishes but has no sense, what is likely to befall him,
Socrates
Reading Alcibiades I · Alcibiades I · 134c–134e
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.