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phaedrus-第4部分
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necessarily a delight to the lover; and when not implanted; he must
contrive to implant them in him; if he would not be deprived of his
fleeting joy。 And therefore he cannot help being jealous; and will
debar his beloved from the advantages of society which would make a
man of him; and especially from that society which would have given
him wisdom; and thereby he cannot fail to do him great harm。 That is
to say; in his excessive fear lest he should come to be despised in
his eyes he will be compelled to banish from him divine philosophy;
and there is no greater injury which he can inflict upon him than
this。 He will contrive that his beloved shall be wholly ignorant;
and in everything shall look to him; he is to be the delight of the
lover's heart; and a curse to himself。 Verily; a lover is a profitable
guardian and associate for him in all that relates to his mind。
Let us next see how his master; whose law of life is pleasure and
not good; will keep and train the body of his servant。 Will he not
choose a beloved who is delicate rather than sturdy and strong? One
brought up in shady bowers and not in the bright sun; a stranger to
manly exercises and the sweat of toil; accustomed only to a soft and
luxurious diet; instead of the hues of health having the colours of
paint and ornament; and the rest of a piece?…such a life as any one
can imagine and which I need not detail at length。 But I may sum up
all that I have to say in a word; and pass on。 Such a person in war;
or in any of the great crises of life; will be the anxiety of his
friends and also of his lover; and certainly not the terror of his
enemies; which nobody can deny。
And now let us tell what advantage or disadvantage the beloved
will receive from the guardianship and society of his lover in the
matter of his property; this is the next point to be considered。 The
lover will be the first to see what; indeed; will be sufficiently
evident to all men; that he desires above all things to deprive his
beloved of his dearest and best and holiest possessions; father;
mother; kindred; friends; of all whom he thinks may be hinderers or
reprovers of their most sweet converse; he will even cast a jealous
eye upon his gold and silver or other property; because these make him
a less easy prey; and when caught less manageable; hence he is of
necessity displeased at his possession of them and rejoices at their
loss; and he would like him to be wifeless; childless; homeless; as
well; and the longer the better; for the longer he is all this; the
longer he will enjoy him。
There are some soft of animals; such as flatterers; who are
dangerous and; mischievous enough; and yet nature has mingled a
temporary pleasure and grace in their composition。 You may say that
a courtesan is hurtful; and disapprove of such creatures and their
practices; and yet for the time they are very pleasant。 But the
lover is not only hurtful to his love; he is also an extremely
disagreeable companion。 The old proverb says that 〃birds of a
feather flock together〃; I suppose that equality of years inclines
them to the same pleasures; and similarity begets friendship; yet
you may have more than enough even of this; and verily constraint is
always said to be grievous。 Now the lover is not only unlike his
beloved; but he forces himself upon him。 For he is old and his love is
young; and neither day nor night will he leave him if he can help;
necessity and the sting of desire drive him on; and allure him with
the pleasure which he receives from seeing; hearing; touching;
perceiving him in every way。 And therefore he is delighted to fasten
upon him and to minister to him。 But what pleasure or consolation
can the beloved be receiving all this time? Must he not feel the
extremity of disgust when he looks at an old shrivelled face and the
remainder to match; which even in a description is disagreeable; and
quite detestable when he is forced into daily contact with his
lover; moreover he is jealously watched and guarded against everything
and everybody; and has to hear misplaced and exaggerated praises of
himself; and censures equally inappropriate; which are intolerable
when the man is sober; and; besides being intolerable; are published
all over the world in all their indelicacy and wearisomeness when he
is drunk。
And not only while his love continues is he mischievous and
unpleasant; but when his love ceases he becomes a perfidious enemy
of him on whom he showered his oaths and prayers and promises; and yet
could hardly prevail upon him to tolerate the tedium of his company
even from motives of interest。 The hour of payment arrives; and now he
is the servant of another master; instead of love and infatuation;
wisdom and temperance are his bosom's lords; but the beloved has not
discovered the change which has taken place in him; when he asks for a
return and recalls to his recollection former sayings and doings; he
believes himself to be speaking to the same person; and the other; not
having the courage to confess the truth; and not knowing how to fulfil
the oaths and promises which he made when under the dominion of folly;
and having now grown wise and temperate; does not want to do as he did
or to be as he was before。 And so he runs away and is constrained to
be a defaulter; the oyster…shell has fallen with the other side
uppermost…he changes pursuit into flight; while the other is compelled
to follow him with passion and imprecation not knowing that he ought
never from the first to have accepted a demented lover instead of a
sensible non…lover; and that in making such a choice he was giving
himself up to a faithless; morose; envious; disagreeable being;
hurtful to his estate; hurtful to his bodily health; and still more
hurtful to the cultivation of his mind; than which there neither is
nor ever will be anything more honoured in the eyes both of gods and
men。 Consider this; fair youth; and know that in the friendship of the
lover there is no real kindness; he has an appetite and wants to
feed upon you:
As wolves love lambs so lovers love their loves。
But I told you so; I am speaking in verse; and therefore I had
better make an end; enough。
Phaedr。 I thought that you were only halfway and were going to
make a similar speech about all the advantages of accepting the
non…lover。 Why do you not proceed?
Soc。 Does not your simplicity observe that I have got out of
dithyrambics into heroics; when only uttering a censure on the
lover? And if I am to add the praises of the non…lover; what will
become of me? Do you not perceive that I am already overtaken by the
Nymphs to whom you have mischievously exposed me? And therefore will
only add that the non…lover has all the advantages in which the
lover is accused of being deficient。 And now I will say no more; there
has been enough of both of them。 Leaving the tale to its fate; I
will cross the river and make the best of my way home; lest a worse
thing be inflicted upon me by you。
Phaedr。 Not yet; Socrates; not until the heat of the day has passed;
do you not see that the hour is almost noon? there is the midday sun
standing still; as people say; in the meridian。 Let us rather stay and
talk over what has been said; and then return in the cool。
Soc。 Your love of discourse; Phaedrus; is superhuman; simply
marvellous; and I do not believe that there is any one of your
contemporaries who has either made or in one way or another has
compelled others to make an equal number of speeches。 I would except
Simmias the Theban; but all the rest are far behind you。 And now; I do
verily believe that you have been the cause of another。
Phaedr。 That is good news。 But what do you mean?
Soc。 I mean to say that as I was about to cross the stream the usual
sign was given to me;…that sign which always forbids; but never
bids; me to do anything which I am going to do; and I thought that I
heard a voice saying in my car that I had been guilty of impiety; and。
that I must not go away until I had made an atonement。 Now I am a
diviner; though not a very good one; but I have enough religion for my
own use; as you might say of a bad writer…his writing is good enough
for him; and I am beginning to see that I was in error。 O my friend;
how prophetic is the human soul! At the time I had a sort of
misgiving; and; like Ibycus; 〃I was troubled; I feared that I might be
buying honour from men at the price of sinning against the gods。〃
Now I recognize my error。
Phaedr。 What error?
Soc。 That was a dreadful speech which you brought with you; and
you made me utter one as bad。
Phaedr。 How so?
Soc。 It was foolish; I say;…to a certain extent; impious; can
anything be more dreadful?
Phaedr。 Nothing; if the speech was really such as you describe。
Soc。 Well; and is not Eros the son of Aphrodite; and a god?
Phaedr。 So men say。
Soc。 But that was not acknowledged by Lysias in his speech; nor by
you in that other speech which you by a charm drew from my lips。 For
if love be; as he surely is; a divinity; he cannot be evil。 Yet this
was the error of both the speeches。 There was also a simplicity
about them which was refreshing; having no truth or honesty in them;
nevertheless they pretended to be something; hoping to succeed in
deceiving the manikins of earth and gain celebrity among the
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