Timaeus — Plato

1 86

Why is philosophy in such evil repute?

Republic VI. Socrates, Adeimantus.

The interpretation.

The uselessness of philosophers arises out of the unwillingness of mankind to make use of them.

The real enemies of philosophy her professing followers.

of their calling I Now in vessels which are in a state of 489 mutiny and by sailors who are mutineers, how will the true pilot be regarded? Will he not be called by them a prater, a star-gazer, a good-for-nothing? Of course, said Adeimantus. Then you will hardly need, I said, to hear the interpretation of the figure, which describes the true philosopher in his relation to the State ; for you understand already. Certainly.

Then suppose you now take this parable to the gentleman who is surprised at finding that philosophers have no honour in their cities ; explain it to him and try to convince him that their having honour would be far more extraordinary. I will.

Say to him, that, in deeming the best votaries of philosophy to be useless to the rest of the world, he is right ; but also tell him to attribute their uselessness to the fault of those who will not use them, and not to themselves.

The pilot should not humbly beg the sailors to be commanded by him — that is not the order of nature ; neither are * the wise to go to the doors of the rich ' — the ingenious author of this saying told a lie — but the truth is, that, when a man is ill, whether he be rich or poor, to the physician he must go, and he who wants to be governed, to him who is able to govern.

The ruler who is good for anything ought not to beg his subjects to be ruled by him ; although the present governors of mankind are of a different stamp ; they may be justly compared to the mutinous sailors, and the true helmsmen to those who are called by them good-for-nothings and stargazers. Precisely so, he said.

P'or these reasons, and among men like these, philosophy, the noblest pursuit of all, is not hkely to be much esteemed by those of the opposite faction ; not that the greatest and most lasting injury is done to her by her opponents, but by her own professing followers, the same of whom you

' Or, applying ottwc ^l Kvl^epv^aei to the mutineers, ' 13ut only understanding {'tTzaiovraq) that he (the mutinous pilot) must rule in spite of other people, never considering that there is an art of command which may be practised in combination with the pilot's art.'

The noble nature of the philosopher.

p. 187