39. ἀλλ᾽ ὥσπερ ἀγαθὸς ἱστάναι κτλ. Cf. Rep. X. 602D
ἆρ᾽ οὖν οὐ τὸ μετρεῖν καὶ ἀριθμεῖν καὶ ἱστάναι βοήθειαι χαριέσταται
ρπὸς αὐτὰ ἐφάνησαν, ὥστε μὴ ἄπχειν ἐν ἡμῖν τὸ φαινόμενον μεῖζον ἢ
ἔλαττον ἢ πλέον ἢ βαρύτερον κτλ.;
40. καὶ τὸ ἐλλὺς κτλ.: in order that a near pleasure might
count for more than a remote.
42. ἐὰν μὲν γὰρ ἡδέα κτλ. Cf. Laws, v. 733B ἡδονὴν
βουλόμεθα ἡμῖν εἶναι, λύρην δὲ οὔθ᾽ αἱπούμεθα οὔτε βουλόμεθα, τὸ δὲ
μηδέτεπον ἀντὶ μὲν ἡδονῆς οὐ βουλόμεθα, λύρης δὲ ἀλλάττεσθαι βουλόμεθα: λύρην δὲ ἐλάττω μετὰ μείζονος ἡδονῆς βουλόμεθα, ἡδονὴν δὲ
ἐλάττω μετὰ μείζονος λύπης οὐ βουλόμεθα κτλ.
45. ἐάν τε τὰ ἐγγὺς κτλ. When once you have equated
‘near’ and ‘far’ (see above), then (but not till then) your final
choice is not affected by the question of proximity in time.
Theoretically, no doubt, this is right; but no man is so ἀγαθὸς
ἱστάναι as to weigh ἐγγύς and πόρρω correctly; whence the saying
‘Let us eat and drink; for tomorrow we die’. ‘Near’ and
‘far’ can only be weighed aright on the supposition that
man is immortal and will live hereafter under the same
moral laws as rule us here: but of immortality there is no hint
in this dialogue.
Plato. Protagoras. J. Adam & A. M. Adam. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press. 1893.
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