From the book
Hipparchus
Plato · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordΝεανίσκος means a young man.
- In HipparchusThe young man is the least identified but most consequential figure in the final portion of the Hipparchus story.
- In this editionThe edition’s “wellborn” is important: “noble” could wrongly merge family status with ethical excellence.
- A place to readτῶν νέων τε καὶ καλῶν — He is introduced through age and beauty.
Meaning
Νεανίσκος means a young man. Νέος means young; the plural νέων places this person among the young men of the time. Γενναῖος here means wellborn, marking inherited standing rather than proving goodness of character. Socrates describes him as young, beautiful and wellborn; those are the qualifications given, not an account of his education, family or exact age.
Use in the book
The young man is the least identified but most consequential figure in the final portion of the Hipparchus story. Harmodius is in love with him. For a time he admires both Harmodius and Aristogeiton as wise; after keeping company with Hipparchus he despises them. Their reaction to that loss of esteem ends in murder. His judgment makes visible the vulnerability of a reputation that depends on admiration from another person.
Socrates makes the missing name conspicuous. Others tell it, he says, but he does not remember. This is not the same as saying the tradition itself left the person anonymous. Nor does it authorize identifying him from some otherwise known Athenian genealogy. Within the dialogue, the gap qualifies Socrates’ access to the account even while he confidently repeats its causal explanation. The combination of forgotten detail and confident moral narrative is one reason to keep the reported story distinct from verified history.
The text says that he associated with Hipparchus, then despised the other two. It does not describe a lesson, reproduce an argument or explicitly certify that the new judgment was correct. A favourable reading sees a student recognising superior wisdom. A more cautious reading notes that admiration can migrate without providing an independent test of wisdom. Both readings fit the contrast between Hipparchus’ declared educational benevolence and his wish to outrank rival authorities.
His role also creates a possible mirror for the unnamed companion. Both encounter someone credited with wisdom, and both must respond to a relationship that includes intellectual authority. The companion, however, does not leave merely to transfer admiration elsewhere; he voices the suspicion that he is being deceived and asks to revise the argument. The correspondence is therefore suggestive rather than a complete allegorical identity.
Places to read
- 229dτῶν νέων τε καὶ καλῶν — He is introduced through age and beauty.
- 229dκαὶ γενναίων τῶν τότε — His wellborn status belongs to the narrative’s social description.
- 229dἐγὼ δὲ οὐ μέμνημαι — Socrates marks his own failure to remember the name.
- 229dσυγγενόμενον τῷ Ἱππάρχῳ — Association with Hipparchus precedes the changed evaluation.
Translation in this edition
The edition’s “wellborn” is important: “noble” could wrongly merge family status with ethical excellence. “After keeping company with Hipparchus” likewise leaves the nature of the association open. The passage supplies no historical identification, and the lexicon should preserve that limit instead of furnishing a conjectural name.