[505d]
the same things
to be both good and bad, are they not?”
“Certainly.” “Then is it not apparent that
there are many and violent disputes1 about it?”
“Of course.” “And again, is it not apparent
that while in the case of the just and the honorable many would prefer the
semblance2 without the reality in
action, possession, and opinion, yet when it comes to the good nobody is
content with the possession of the appearance but all men seek the reality,
and the semblance satisfies nobody here?”
1 ἀμφισβητήσεις is slightly disparaging, Cf. Theaet. 163 C, 158 C, 198 C, Sophist 233 B, 225 B, but less so than ἐρίζειν in Protag. 337 A.
2 Men may deny the reality of the conventional virtues but not of the ultimate sanction, whatever it is. Cf. Theaet. 167 C, 172 A-B, and Shorey in Class. Phil. xvi (1921) pp. 164-168.
Plato. Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vols. 5 & 6 translated by Paul Shorey. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1969.
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