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1-10. In a conversation with Antiphon, Socrates defends himself against the charge that his simple mode of life makes him and those who imitate him unhappy rather than happy.
αὐτοῦ: depends on ἃ διελέχθη “those conversations of his.” H. 733. Ἀντιφῶντα: described by Suidas as follows: Ἀντιφῶν Ἀθηναῖος, τερατοσκόπος καὶ ἐποποιὸς καὶ σοφιστής, ἐκαλεῖτο δὲ λογομάγειρος. He was the author of a work on the interpretation of dreams which had considerable reputation. Cf. “de quibus (somniis) disputans Chrysippus multis et minutis somniis colligendis facit idem quod Antipater, ea conquirens, quae Antiphontis interpretatione explicata declarant illa quidem acumen interpretis, sed exemplis grandioribus decuit uti” Cic. de Div. i. 20. He should not be confused with the orator Antiphon. συνουσιαστάς: see on συνόντων i. 1. 4. Σωκράτου: the name expressed for clearness, after the twice-used αὐτοῦ. Cf. πολλὴ ἦν ἀφθονία αὐτῷ τῶν θελόντων κινδυνεύειν, ὅπου τις οἴοιτο Κῦρον αἰσθήσεσθαι An. i.9.15, where the emphasis of Κῦρον is even more marked.
ᾤμην: I always supposed. Impf. of habitual past action. τοὺς φιλοσοφοῦντας: lovers of knowledge. Cf. the Platonic use of φιλοσόφους equivalent to φιλομαθεῖς, and ἀλλὰ μέντοι, εἶπον ἐγώ, τό γε φιλομαθὲς καὶ φιλόσοφον ταὐτόν; ταὐτὸν γάρ, ἔφη Plato Rep. 376 B. Cf. also Plato's use of ὀρθῶς φιλοσοφοῦντες (Phaedo 67 E) to avoid the use of φιλόσοφοι in a technical sense. εὐδαιμονεστέρους: happier, “more prosperous.” The opposite condition is κακοδαιμονία in 3. χρῆναι γίγνεσθαι: necessarily become. ἀπολελαυκέναι: to have enjoyed, ironical. For a similar use of ἐπαυρίσκομαι, cf. ἵνα πάντες ἐπαύρωνται βασιλῆος Hom. A 410. οὐδ᾽ ἂν εἷς: stronger than οὐδεὶς ἄν. Cf. iv.3.15, and the Eng. ‘no one’ and ‘none.’ ὡς: connect with διαιτώμενος. μείνειε: opposed to ἀποδιδράσκειν. In this sense, παραμένειν is generally used, as, e.g., Oec. iii. 4, Plato Meno 97 D.—σῖτά τε κτλ.: in explanatory appos. with the preceding. What conj. might have been used? For the decl. of σῖτα, see G. 288; H. 214. ἠμφίεσαι: pf. with pres. meaning. For aug. before prep., see G. 544; H. 361. οὐ μόνον, ἀλλά: like the Lat. non solum, sed. The second notion, as the more important, is added to the first, but without excluding it, as would be the case with οὐκ, ἀλλά (non, sed). ἀνυπόδητος: no special singularity is implied in assigning to Socrates a custom adopted by many of the more ascetic philosophers. Aristophanes (Clouds 103) applies this epithet, with others, to the followers of Socrates. For an interesting account of Greek shoes in the classical period, see an article by A. A. Bryant in Harvard Studies in Classical Philology, vol. x. p. 57 ff.; and for the hardihood manifested by Socrates at the siege of Potidaea, see Plato Sym. 220 A, B. ἀχίτων: i.e. without the outer χιτών (ἐπενδύτης). Under this outer garment was generally worn an inner χιτών (ὑπενδύτης), with which and his ἱμάτιον Socrates seems to have been content. See Guhl and Koner, The Life of the Greeks and Romans, p. 161 ff. διατελεῖς: without ὤν, as Cyr. i. 5. 10.
καὶ μήν: see on i.4.12, and cf. 8; ii. 3. 4. χρήματα: emphatic position. ὥσπερ καί, οὕτω καί: the first καί remains untranslated, like καί before πράττειν in i. 1. 6. So in Oec. vi. 3. Cf. καὶ ἡμῖν ταὐτὰ δοκεῖ ἅπερ καὶ βασιλεῖ An. ii.1.22 διαθήσεις: for the fut. denoting pres. intention, see G. 1391; H. 893 c.
τί: see on τίσι i. 1. 1. βίου: for the case, see on αὐτῶν i. 1. 12.
πότερον (sc. χαλεπὸν ᾔσθησαι), ὅτι: is it because. πότερον is correlative to ἤ below. τοῖς μέν, ἐμοὶ δέ: for μέν with subordinate effect, see on τὸ σὸν μὲν ὄμμα i. 4. 17. ἧττον (with παρέχοντα): to a less degree. χαλεπώτερα: pred. after ὄντα (to be supplied from the following sent.), with which διαιτήματα is acc. abs. with ὡς, while ἐμοῦ ἐσθίοντος in the preceding sent. is gen. absolute. G. 1568, 1570; H. 970, 974. ἥδιστα: with greatest relish. Cf. ἡδέως i. 3. 5. Note the assonance of ἥδιστα, ἥκιστα. μὴ παρόντος: not at hand.
ἱμάτια: emphatic position. πορεύεσθαι: for the inf. with verbs of hindering, see G. 1519; H. 948. τοῦ (equivalent to τινός): for the form, see G. 416; H. 277. ἔνδον: indoors. τὸ ἀλγεῖν τοὺς πόδας: pain in my feet. πόδας is acc. of specification. G. 1058; H. 718. ὅπου: for ὅποι, like our ‘where’ for ‘whither.’
μελετήσαντες: by practicing. αὐτά: sc. ἃ ἂν μελετήσωσι. ἀεί: const. with καρτερεῖν, at all times to bear patiently. μελετῶντα καρτερεῖν: for the inf. with verbs of practicing, cf. iii.9.14, and ἐμελέτων τοξεύειν An. iii.4.17
τοῦ δουλεύειν: const. with αἰτιώτερον. G. 1140; H. 753 e. γαστρί: appetite. Cf. i. 2. 1; i. 5. 1. τὸ ἔχειν: sc. ἐμέ as subject. ἐν χρείᾳ ὄντα: while in use. οὐ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καί: see on οὐ μόνον, ἀλλά in 2. καὶ μήν: as in 3. μηδέν: for the use of μή with verbs of thinking etc., cf. i.1.20; 2. 39, 41. εὖ πράττειν: are fortunate, “doing well.” Some editors see a play on words between this and εὖ πράττοντες below, where the sense seems to be “managing matters well.” ἐργαζόμενοι: for the supplementary participle with τυγχάνω, see G. 1586; H. 984.
ἑαυτόν: oneself. φιλοὺς ἀμείνους κτᾶσθαι: acquiring better friends, not by getting new friends, but by improving those we have. ἀμείνους is pred. adjective. G. 919; H. 594 b. ἐγὼ τοίνυν ... νομίζων: well then, I never cease to believe this (that I am improving myself and my friends). ἐάν, δή: see on i.5.1. ἐκπολιορκηθείη: would succumb to a siege. τοῖς ῥᾴστοις ἐντυγχάνειν: what is easiest to obtain, opposed to τῶν χαλεπωτάτων εὑρεῖν. On the use of the inf. with adjs., see G. 1528; H. 952. Cf. ii.1.22; iii. 8. 8. ἀρκούντως χρώμενος: “contented to use,” “contented with.”
ἔοικας οἰομένῳ: you are like one who thinks, “you seem to think.” εἶναι: “consists in.” θείου: for the gen. with advs., cf. ii.1.23. κράτιστον: “perfect.” The selfdenial here described was carried to an extreme by the sect of philosophers known as Cynics, founded by Antisthenes, a devoted follower of Socrates (cf. iii.11.17; Sym. viii. 4). Its most famous representative was Diogenes, who came from Sinope to Athens some years after the death of Socrates, and was speedily attracted to the school of Antisthenes. The extravagances and ostentation of his ascetic life are in strong contrast to the generally sane and unaffected simplicity of Socrates.
11-14. In another conversation Socrates refutes Antiphon when he charges him with folly in teaching without compensation. 11. οὐδ᾽ ὁπωστιοῦν: ne tantillum quidem. For -οῦν, cf. i.1.14. τοῦτο γιγνώσκειν: to be aware of this. οὐδένα: for the double acc. with πράττῃ, see on i.2.5. τῆς συνουσίας: gen. of ‘the thing bought,’ by analogy to the gen. of price. G. 1134; H. 746 c. ὧν: for the ‘assimilation’ of the rel. to the case of its omitted antec., see on i.2.21. μὴ ὅτι: “not to say,” “let me not say that,” with ellipsis of the verb of saying. Cf. on οὐχ ὅτι ii. 9. 8. G. 1504; H. 1035 a.
καὶ τὴν συνουσίαν, καὶ ταύτης: for the repetition of καί in compound sents., see on ὥσπερ καί 3. For the case of ταύτης, see on συνουσίας in 11. ἐπράττου: note the transition from the opt. δοίης in 11 to the indic. of unfulfilled condition. δίκαιος μὲν οὖν ἂν εἴης: emphatically put, honest, then, you would be. ἐπιστάμενος: change of const. from ὅτι οὐκ ἐξαπατᾷς. Thucydides is specially fond of this change to participial construction.
παρ᾽ ἡμῖν: with us, apud nos. νομίζεται ... εἶναι: “there is a noble as well as an ignoble disposition of wisdom as of personal charms.” διατίθεσθαι: to expose for sale. Obs. the condensed expression in ὥραν, σοφίαν, καλόν, αἰσχρόν. Each adj. belongs to each noun in turn. τὴν σοφίαν, τοὺς πωλοῦντας: the noun is placed before its governing participle, to correspond with τήν τε γὰρ ὥραν in the preceding sentence. For a similar order, cf. τούτου τῶν ἀπολυσόντων ii. 2. 4, περὶ ἀριθμῶν τοῖς ἐρωτῶσιν iv. 4. 7. σοφιστάς: see on i.1.11. In setting a price on their wisdom, they dishonored it, as did πόρνοι beauty. ὅ τι ἂν ἔχῃ: “what he has in him,” “what he understands.” Cf. ἐάν τι ἔχω in 14, and see on iii.10.1. ἃ προσήκει, ταῦτα ποιεῖν: for the dem. referring back with emphasis to the omitted antec. of the rel., see G. 1030; H. 996 b.
ὄρνιθι: perhaps an allusion to the Greek fondness for training quails to fight. See Becker, Charicles (Eng. transl.), p. 77 ff. ἄλλοις συνίστημι: introduce them to others. Cf. iv. 7. 1. ὠφελήσεσθαι: passive. τοὺς θησαυροὺς ... γράψαντες: cf. γράμματα πολλὰ ποιητῶν τε καὶ σοφιστῶν iv. 2. 1. κατέλιπον γράψαντες: wrote and left behind. Eng. idiom would use γεγραμμένους agreeing with οὕς. φίλοι γιγνώμεθα: become dear. “Already friends (τοῖς φίλοις), we are glad to have our mutual affection strengthened by the uniting force of a noble sentiment.” ἐμοὶ μέν: for μέν, see on i.1.1.
Another answer to Antiphon. αὐτὸς δέ: while he himself. εἴπερ: if indeed (as Antiphon doubted). ποτέρως: in which way, introduces the double question εἰ ... ἢ εἰ, hence does not correspond to ἤ, and should not be confused with πότερον or πότερα. Cf. ii.7.8. τοῦ εἶναι: for the gen. of the articular inf. with verbs, see G. 1547; H. 959.
Xenophon: Memorabilia. Josiah Renick Smith. Boston. Ginn and Company. 1903.
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