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ὧν -- γένει: sc. ἄρχειν. “Dativus causam indicat, cur tertiae parti non conveniat duabus reliquis praeesse et imperare, eamque in ipsius genere et indole positam demonstrat” (Schneider). If this is the meaning, we should expect φύσει rather than γένει. Perhaps Plato wrote γενῶν (so q Flor. U, Stallbaum etc.): cf. γένη in 441 C. To προσῆκον Campbell prefers προσῆκεν, but the present (προσῆκον sc. ἐστίν) is better here.

φυλαττοίτην. The two higher parts of soul are to be φύλακες both of the lower part and (in a different sense) ‘also’ (καί) ‘of external enemies’: cf. III 415 D, E. Dobree's φυλαττοίσθην fails to give its proper force to καί before τοὺς ἔξωθεν. For φυλάττω used in this way cf. II 367 A οὐκ ἂν ἀλλήλους ἐφυλάττομεν μη ἀδικεῖν, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτὸς αὑτοῦ ἦν ἕκαστος φύλαξ.

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