Quarreling, contention, and love of victory

Use in the book

The beginning places the boys in dispute and the adults in erotic rivalry. As the adults become the main speakers, the boys stop their quarrel and listen. Competition has not disappeared; it changes form. The cultured man claims he would gladly contest matters with his rival and could defend the position he laid down even if it were poorer. The remark makes skill at winning independent of the thesis’s quality.

Toward Socrates, however, he says he has no need to strive for victory against his own opinion. He then concedes that moderate, not many, exercises produce good condition. The two audiences elicit two declared standards. His statement may show a real willingness to submit to Socratic correction, an effort to save face by presenting a forced concession as voluntary, or both. The text does not decide the psychology for us.

Socrates also uses contest language. After the athlete’s intervention he asks whether the cultured rival is fighting out the argument against the two of them. That numerical alliance can add social pressure, but its force should not replace the evidence from training. For the inquiry to test a sincerely held position, agreement must answer to what the speakers actually judge.

The closing requirement that a philosopher lead in matters of judgment should not be equated without qualification with the earlier love of winning. Leadership there is tied to responsible competence. The opening rivalry seeks superiority before a beloved; the later question concerns duties to one’s household, friends, and city. The text’s reuse of rank and precedence invites comparison while keeping the purposes distinguishable.

Places to read

1. 132aδύο τῶν μειρακίων ἐρίζοντε — The opening dispute belongs first to the lads.
2. 134cβοηθῆσαι τῇ ὑποθέσει ἣν ὑπεθέμην — The cultured lover boasts of defending the position he has laid down.
3. 134cπαρὰ δόξαν φιλονικεῖν — He disclaims striving for victory against his own opinion when speaking with Socrates.

Translation in this edition

The note at 132b makes philonikein part of the recurring family of love-compounds. The English keeps “strive for victory” at 134c, while translating hypothesis as “the position I laid down.” It uses the paired phrasing “with this fellow … with you, however,” mirroring the earlier double answer about exercise. That repetition helps show that the competitive distortion is a pattern within the scene rather than a single accidental outburst.

Use in the book

Socrates warns Lysis that Menexenus is ἐριστικός and may attempt to refute him. Lysis agrees enthusiastically: that is precisely why he wants Socrates to converse with his companion and discipline him.

The adjective describes a conversational disposition, supported by the identification of Menexenus as Ctesippus’ pupil. It need not designate membership in a formal “eristic school.” The exchange is playful, but it anticipates an audience alert to victory and defeat in argument, contrasting with Lysis’ eagerness to listen and learn.

Places to read

1. 211bὅτι ἐριστικός ἐστιν — that he is contentious.

Use in the book

The noun occurs between envy and enmity in the account of competition among those most alike. Its φίλο- element does not make the whole word another kind of mutual friendship: it describes an inclination towards contest.

The term helps explain why a similarity-based account can be challenged through examples of competitors in the same field. It belongs to the reported argument, whose conclusion that opposites are most friendly proves too broad.

Places to read

1. 215dκαὶ φιλονικίας καὶ ἔχθρας — And rivalry and enmity.