Diotimos Library · Plato Collection · Bilingual Edition
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English Page · Branch 6 of 19
Hipparchus · 226c–227a
Ancient Greek
p. 6ΕΤ. Οὐ γάρ.
ΣΩ. Ἀλλὰ στρατηγὸς γιγνώσκων ὅτι ἡ στρατιὰ αὐτῷ οὐδενὸς ἄξια ὅπλα ἔχει, οἴεται ἀπὸ τούτων κερδαίνειν καὶ ἀξιοῖ κερδαίνειν;
ΕΤ. Οὐδαμῶς.
ΣΩ. Ἀλλ’ αὐλητὴς αὐλοὺς οὐδενὸς ἀξίους ἔχων ἢ κιθαριστὴς λύραν ἢ τοξότης τόξον ἢ ἄλλος ὁστισοῦν συλλήβδην τῶν δημιουργῶν ἢ τῶν ἄλλων τῶν ἐμφρόνων ἀνδρῶν μηδενὸς ἄξια ὄργανα ἢ ἄλλην παρασκευὴν ἡντιναοῦν ἔχων ἀπὸ τούτων οἴεται κερδαίνειν;
226dΕΤ. Οὔκουν φαίνεταί γε.
ΣΩ. Τίνας οὖν ποτε λέγεις τοὺς φιλοκερδεῖς; οὐ γάρ που τούτους γε οὓς διεληλύθαμεν, ⟨ἀλλ’⟩ οἵτινες γιγνώσκοντες τὰ οὐδενὸς ἄξια ἀπὸ τούτων οἴονται δεῖν κερδαίνειν· ἀλλ’ οὕτω μέν, ὦ θαυμάσιε, ὡς σὺ λέγεις, οὐκ ἔστ’ ἀνθρώπων οὐδεὶς φιλοκερδής.
ΕΤ. Ἀλλ’ ἐγώ, ὦ Σώκρατες, βούλομαι λέγειν τούτους φιλοκερδεῖς εἶναι, οἳ ἑκάστοτε ὑπὸ ἀπληστίας καὶ πάνυ 226e σμικρὰ καὶ ὀλίγου ἄξια καὶ οὐδενὸς γλίχονται ὑπερφυῶς καὶ φιλοκερδοῦσιν.
ΣΩ. Οὐ δήπου, ὦ βέλτιστε, γιγνώσκοντες ὅτι οὐδενὸς ἄξιά ἐστιν· τοῦτο μὲν γὰρ ἤδη ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς τῷ λόγῳ ἐξηλέγξαμεν ὅτι ἀδύνατον.
ΕΤ. Ἔμοιγε δοκεῖ.
ΣΩ. Οὐκοῦν εἰ μὴ γιγνώσκοντες, δῆλον ὅτι ἀγνοοῦντες, οἰόμενοι δὲ τὰ οὐδενὸς ἄξια πολλοῦ ἄξια εἶναι.
ΕΤ. Φαίνεται.
ΣΩ. Ἄλλο τι οὖν οἵ γε φιλοκερδεῖς φιλοῦσι τὸ κέρδος;
ΕΤ. Ναί.
ΣΩ. Κέρδος δὲ λέγεις ἐναντίον τῇ ζημίᾳ;
227aΕΤ. Ἔγωγε.
Hipparchus
p. 7Comp. He does not.
Soc. Well, does a general who knows that his army has arms worth nothing think that he gains from them, and think fit to gain?
Comp. Not at all.
Soc. Well, does a flute-player who has flutes worth nothing, or a lyre-player a lyre, or an archer a bow, or anyone at all, in sum, of the craftsmen or of the other intelligent men, who has instruments worth nothing or any other equipment whatever, think that he gains from them?
Comp. 226d It does not appear so, at any rate.
Soc. Then whom can you mean by the lovers of gain? For it is not, I suppose, those we have gone through, but those who, knowing what is worth nothing, think they ought to gain from it;1 but in the way you say, my wonderful friend, there is no one among men who is a lover of gain.
Comp. But what I mean, Socrates, is that those are lovers of gain who, out of insatiability, every time crave prodigiously even things quite 226e small and worth little or nothing, and love gain.
Soc. Not, surely, my excellent friend, knowing that they are worth nothing; for we have already refuted ourselves on this point by the argument: it is impossible.
Comp. I think so.
Soc. Then if not knowing it, plainly being ignorant of it, and thinking that things worth nothing are worth a great deal.
Comp. It appears so.
Soc. Then the lovers of gain, at least, love gain, don’t they?
Comp. Yes.
Soc. And you call gain the opposite of loss?
Comp. 227a I do.
Socrates
Reading Hipparchus · Hipparchus · 226c–227a
Ask about a concept, passage, contradiction, or connection.
Socrates will begin with this book and its sources.About This Reading Edition
Socrates and an unnamed companion examine the love of gain, the difference between gain and loss, and whether everyone desires what is good. This complete revised edition presents the dialogue, 225a–232c, across twelve 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; second edition, 1910), in a later impression printed by John Johnson. The words were taken from the Perseus Digital Library transcription and checked against the supplied printed pages. Burnet’s lineation, verse quotations, editorial signs, and critical apparatus are retained. 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, and Socrates’ humor. Each English dialogue page translates the Greek page opposite it. All 26 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.