Ion
Athens. · Socrates questions Ion, a prize-winning reciter of Homer, about whether his gift is a skill or divine inspiration.
Socratesτὸν Ἴωνα χαίρειν. πόθεν τὰ νῦν ἡμῖν ἐπιδεδήμηκας; ἢ οἴκοθεν ἐξ Ἐφέσου;
SocratesGreetings, Ion! Where have you come from to visit us this time? From home, from Ephesus?
Ionοὐδαμῶς, ὦ Σώκρατες, ἀλλʼ ἐξ Ἐπιδαύρου ἐκ τῶν Ἀσκληπιείων.
IonNot at all, Socrates. I’ve come from Epidaurus, from the festival of Asclepius.
Socratesμῶν καὶ ῥαψῳδῶν ἀγῶνα τιθέασιν τῷ θεῷ οἱ Ἐπιδαύριοι;
SocratesDon’t tell me the Epidaurians hold a contest of rhapsodes in the god’s honor too?
Ionπάνυ γε, καὶ τῆς ἄλλης γε μουσικῆς.
IonThey certainly do, and in every other art of the Muses as well.
Socratesτί οὖν; ἠγωνίζου τι ἡμῖν; καὶ πῶς τι ἠγωνίσω;
SocratesWell? Did you compete for us? And how did you do?
Socratesεὖ λέγεις· ἄγε δὴ ὅπως καὶ τὰ Παναθήναια νικήσομεν.
SocratesGood to hear. Now see to it that we win at the Panathenaea too.
Ionἀλλʼ ἔσται ταῦτα, ἐὰν θεὸς ἐθέλῃ.
IonAnd so we will, god willing.
Socratesκαὶ μὴν πολλάκις γε ἐζήλωσα ὑμᾶς τοὺς ῥαψῳδούς, ὦ Ἴων, τῆς τέχνης· τὸ γὰρ ἅμα μὲν τὸ σῶμα κεκοσμῆσθαι ἀεὶ πρέπον ὑμῶν εἶναι τῇ τέχνῃ καὶ ὡς καλλίστοις φαίνεσθαι, ἅμα δὲ ἀναγκαῖον εἶναι ἔν τε ἄλλοις ποιηταῖς διατρίβειν πολλοῖς καὶ ἀγαθοῖς καὶ δὴ καὶ μάλιστα ἐν Ὁμήρῳ, τῷ ἀρίστῳ καὶ θειοτάτῳ τῶν ποιητῶν, καὶ τὴν τούτου διάνοιαν 530c ἐκμανθάνειν, μὴ μόνον τὰ ἔπη, ζηλωτόν ἐστιν. οὐ γὰρ ἂν γένοιτό ποτε ἀγαθὸς ῥαψῳδός, εἰ μὴ συνείη τὰ λεγόμενα ὑπὸ τοῦ ποιητοῦ. τὸν γὰρ ῥαψῳδὸν ἑρμηνέα δεῖ τοῦ ποιητοῦ τῆς διανοίας γίγνεσθαι τοῖς ἀκούουσι· τοῦτο δὲ καλῶς ποιεῖν μὴ γιγνώσκοντα ὅτι λέγει ὁ ποιητὴς ἀδύνατον. ταῦτα οὖν πάντα ἄξια ζηλοῦσθαι.
SocratesYou know, Ion, I’ve often envied you rhapsodes your art. Your art makes it fitting for you always to be dressed up and to look as splendid as possible. At the same time you’re obliged to spend your time with many good poets, and above all with Homer, the best and most divine of poets, and to learn 530c his thought thoroughly, not just his lines. That really is enviable. No one could ever become a good rhapsode without understanding what the poet says. The rhapsode has to interpret the poet’s thought to his audience, and it’s impossible to do that well without knowing what the poet means. So all of this deserves to be envied.
Ionἀληθῆ λέγεις, ὦ Σώκρατες· ἐμοὶ γοῦν τοῦτο πλεῖστον ἔργον παρέσχεν τῆς τέχνης, καὶ οἶμαι κάλλιστα ἀνθρώπων λέγειν περὶ Ὁμήρου, ὡς οὔτε Μητρόδωρος ὁ 530d Λαμψακηνὸς οὔτε Στησίμβροτος ὁ Θάσιος οὔτε Γλαύκων οὔτε ἄλλος οὐδεὶς τῶν πώποτε γενομένων ἔσχεν εἰπεῖν οὕτω πολλὰς καὶ καλὰς διανοίας περὶ Ὁμήρου ὅσας ἐγώ.
IonThat’s true, Socrates. For me, at any rate, this has been the most laborious part of my art. And I think I speak about Homer more beautifully than anyone in the world. Neither Metrodorus of 530d Lampsacus nor Stesimbrotus of Thasos nor Glaucon nor anyone else who has ever lived has been able to offer as many fine thoughts about Homer as I have.
Socratesεὖ λέγεις, ὦ Ἴων· δῆλον γὰρ ὅτι οὐ φθονήσεις μοι ἐπιδεῖξαι.
SocratesGood to hear, Ion. Clearly you won’t begrudge me a demonstration.
Ionκαὶ μὴν ἄξιόν γε ἀκοῦσαι, ὦ Σώκρατες, ὡς εὖ κεκόσμηκα τὸν Ὅμηρον· ὥστε οἶμαι ὑπὸ Ὁμηριδῶν ἄξιος εἶναι χρυσῷ στεφάνῳ στεφανωθῆναι.
IonIt’s certainly worth hearing, Socrates, how beautifully I’ve adorned Homer. In fact, I think I deserve to be crowned with a golden crown by the Homeridae.
Socratesκαὶ μὴν ἐγὼ ἔτι ποιήσομαι σχολὴν ἀκροάσασθαί 531a σου, νῦν δέ μοι τοσόνδε ἀπόκριναι· πότερον περὶ Ὁμήρου μόνον δεινὸς εἶ ἢ καὶ περὶ Ἡσιόδου καὶ Ἀρχιλόχου;
SocratesAnd I’ll make time to listen to you 531a yet. But for now just answer me this: are you a master only of Homer, or of Hesiod and Archilochus as well?
Only Homer?
Ion is brilliant on Homer but bored by other poets, though they speak of the same things.
Ionοὐδαμῶς, ἀλλὰ περὶ Ὁμήρου μόνον· ἱκανὸν γάρ μοι δοκεῖ εἶναι.
IonNot at all. Only of Homer. That seems enough to me.
Socratesἔστι δὲ περὶ ὅτου Ὅμηρός τε καὶ Ἡσίοδος ταὐτὰ λέγετον;
SocratesIs there anything on which Homer and Hesiod both say the same things?
Ionοἶμαι ἔγωγε καὶ πολλά.
IonYes, I think so. A great many things.
Socratesπότερον οὖν περὶ τούτων κάλλιον ἂν ἐξηγήσαιο ἃ Ὅμηρος λέγει ἢ ἃ Ἡσίοδος;
SocratesThen on those topics, would you explain better what Homer says or what Hesiod says?
Ionὁμοίως ἂν περί γε τούτων, ὦ 531b Σώκρατες, περὶ ὧν ταὐτὰ λέγουσιν.
IonEqually well on those, at any rate, 531b Socrates, the ones where they say the same things.
Socratesτί δὲ ὧν πέρι μὴ ταὐτὰ λέγουσιν; οἷον περὶ μαντικῆς λέγει τι Ὅμηρός τε καὶ Ἡσίοδος.
SocratesAnd what about the things on which they don’t say the same? Take divination, for instance. Both Homer and Hesiod say something about it.
Ionπάνυ γε.
IonCertainly.
Socratesτί οὖν; ὅσα τε ὁμοίως καὶ ὅσα διαφόρως περὶ μαντικῆς λέγετον τὼ ποιητὰ τούτω, πότερον σὺ κάλλιον ἂν ἐξηγήσαιο ἢ τῶν μάντεών τις τῶν ἀγαθῶν;
SocratesWell then, take everything these two poets say about divination, whether they say it alike or differently. Who would explain it better, you or one of the good seers?
Ionτῶν μάντεων.
IonOne of the seers.
Socratesεἰ δὲ σὺ ἦσθα μάντις, οὐκ, εἴπερ περὶ τῶν ὁμοίως λεγομένων οἷός τʼ ἦσθα ἐξηγήσασθαι, καὶ περὶ τῶν διαφόρως λεγομένων ἠπίστω ἂν ἐξηγεῖσθαι;
SocratesAnd if you were a seer, and really could explain the things they say alike, wouldn’t you also know how to explain the things they say differently?
Ionδῆλον ὅτι.
IonObviously.
Socratesτί οὖν ποτε περὶ μὲν Ὁμήρου δεινὸς εἶ, περὶ δὲ Ἡσιόδου οὔ, οὐδὲ τῶν ἄλλων ποιητῶν; ἢ Ὅμηρος περὶ ἄλλων τινῶν λέγει ἢ ὧνπερ σύμπαντες οἱ ἄλλοι ποιηταί; οὐ περὶ πολέμου τε τὰ πολλὰ διελήλυθεν καὶ περὶ ὁμιλιῶν πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἀνθρώπων ἀγαθῶν τε καὶ κακῶν καὶ ἰδιωτῶν καὶ δημιουργῶν, καὶ περὶ θεῶν πρὸς ἀλλήλους καὶ πρὸς ἀνθρώπους ὁμιλούντων, ὡς ὁμιλοῦσι, καὶ περὶ τῶν οὐρανίων παθημάτων καὶ περὶ τῶν ἐν Ἅιδου, καὶ γενέσεις καὶ θεῶν 531d καὶ ἡρώων; οὐ ταῦτά ἐστι περὶ ὧν Ὅμηρος τὴν ποίησιν πεποίηκεν;
SocratesSo why on earth are you a master of Homer but not of Hesiod or the other poets? Or does Homer talk about anything other than what all the other poets talk about? Hasn’t he mostly gone through warfare, and how people deal with one another, good and bad, ordinary people and craftsmen? Hasn’t he described how the gods deal with one another and with human beings, what happens in the heavens and in Hades, and the births of gods 531d and heroes? Aren’t these the subjects Homer made his poetry about?
Socratesτί δὲ οἱ ἄλλοι ποιηταί; οὐ περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν τούτων;
SocratesAnd what about the other poets? Don’t they treat these same subjects?
Ionναί, ἀλλʼ, ὦ Σώκρατες, οὐχ ὁμοίως πεποιήκασι καὶ Ὅμηρος.
IonYes, Socrates, but they haven’t composed the way Homer has.
Socratesτί μήν; κάκιον;
SocratesHow, then? Worse?
Ionπολύ γε.
IonMuch worse.
SocratesὍμηρος δὲ ἄμεινον;
SocratesAnd Homer better?
Ionἄμεινον μέντοι νὴ Δία.
IonBetter, by Zeus, absolutely.
Socratesοὐκοῦν, ὦ φίλη κεφαλὴ Ἴων, ὅταν περὶ ἀριθμοῦ πολλῶν λεγόντων εἷς τις ἄριστα λέγῃ, γνώσεται δήπου τις 531e τὸν εὖ λέγοντα;
SocratesWell then, Ion, my dear friend, suppose many people are speaking about number and one of them speaks best. Surely someone will 531e recognize the one who speaks well?
Socratesπότερον οὖν ὁ αὐτὸς ὅσπερ καὶ τοὺς κακῶς λέγοντας, ἢ ἄλλος;
SocratesWill it be the same person who also recognizes those who speak badly, or someone else?
Ionὁ αὐτὸς δήπου.
IonThe same, surely.
Socratesοὐκοῦν ὁ τὴν ἀριθμητικὴν τέχνην ἔχων οὗτός ἐστιν;
SocratesAnd that’s the person who has the art of arithmetic?
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesτί δʼ; ὅταν πολλῶν λεγόντων περὶ ὑγιεινῶν σιτίων ὁποῖά ἐστιν, εἷς τις ἄριστα λέγῃ, πότερον ἕτερος μέν τις τὸν ἄριστα λέγοντα γνώσεται ὅτι ἄριστα λέγει, ἕτερος δὲ τὸν κάκιον ὅτι κάκιον, ἢ ὁ αὐτός;
SocratesWhat about this? Suppose many people are speaking about which foods are healthy, and one of them speaks best. Will one person recognize that the best speaker speaks best, and another that the worse speaker speaks worse? Or will it be the same person?
Ionδῆλον δήπου, ὁ αὐτός.
IonObviously the same, surely.
Socratesτίς οὗτος; τί ὄνομα αὐτῷ;
SocratesWho’s that? What’s he called?
Ionἰατρός.
IonA doctor.
Socratesοὐκοῦν ἐν κεφαλαίῳ λέγομεν ὡς ὁ αὐτὸς γνώσεται ἀεί, περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν πολλῶν λεγόντων, 532a ὅστις τε εὖ λέγει καὶ ὅστις κακῶς· ἢ εἰ μὴ γνώσεται τὸν κακῶς λέγοντα, δῆλον ὅτι οὐδὲ τὸν εὖ, περί γε τοῦ αὐτοῦ.
SocratesSo, to sum up, we’re saying this. When many people speak about the same things, it will always be the same person who recognizes 532a who speaks well and who speaks badly. If he can’t recognize the one who speaks badly, clearly he can’t recognize the one who speaks well either, at least on the same subject.
Socratesοὐκοῦν ὁ αὐτὸς γίγνεται δεινὸς περὶ ἀμφοτέρων;
SocratesSo the same person turns out to be expert on both?
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesοὐκοῦν σὺ φῂς καὶ Ὅμηρον καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ποιητάς, ἐν οἷς καὶ Ἡσίοδος καὶ Ἀρχίλοχός ἐστιν, περί γε τῶν αὐτῶν λέγειν, ἀλλʼ οὐχ ὁμοίως, ἀλλὰ τὸν μὲν εὖ γε, τοὺς δὲ χεῖρον;
SocratesNow, you say that Homer and the other poets, Hesiod and Archilochus among them, speak about the same things, but not in the same way. You say he speaks well, and they speak worse?
Ionκαὶ ἀληθῆ λέγω.
IonAnd what I say is true.
Socratesοὐκοῦν, εἴπερ τὸν εὖ λέγοντα γιγνώσκεις, 532b καὶ τοὺς χεῖρον λέγοντας γιγνώσκοις ἂν ὅτι χεῖρον λέγουσιν.
SocratesThen if you recognize the one who speaks well, 532b you’d also recognize that those who speak worse are speaking worse.
Socratesοὐκοῦν, ὦ βέλτιστε, ὁμοίως τὸν Ἴωνα λέγοντες περὶ Ὁμήρου τε δεινὸν εἶναι καὶ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων ποιητῶν οὐχ ἁμαρτησόμεθα, ἐπειδή γε αὐτὸς ὁμολογῇ τὸν αὐτὸν ἔσεσθαι κριτὴν ἱκανὸν πάντων ὅσοι ἂν περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν λέγωσι, τοὺς δὲ ποιητὰς σχεδὸν ἅπαντας τὰ αὐτὰ ποιεῖν.
SocratesThen, my excellent friend, we won’t be mistaken if we say that Ion is just as expert on the other poets as he is on Homer. He himself agrees that the same person will be a competent judge of everyone who speaks about the same things. And nearly all the poets compose on the same things.
Ionτί οὖν ποτε τὸ αἴτιον, ὦ Σώκρατες, ὅτι ἐγώ, ὅταν μέν τις περὶ ἄλλου του ποιητοῦ διαλέγηται, οὔτε προσέχω 532c τὸν νοῦν ἀδυνατῶ τε καὶ ὁτιοῦν συμβαλέσθαι λόγου ἄξιον, ἀλλʼ ἀτεχνῶς νυστάζω, ἐπειδὰν δέ τις περὶ Ὁμήρου μνησθῇ, εὐθύς τε ἐγρήγορα καὶ προσέχω τὸν νοῦν καὶ εὐπορῶ ὅτι λέγω;
IonThen what on earth is the reason, Socrates? When someone talks about some other poet, I can’t pay 532c attention and can’t contribute anything worth mentioning. I simply doze off. Yet the moment someone mentions Homer, I’m instantly wide awake, I pay attention, and I have plenty to say.
Socratesοὐ χαλεπὸν τοῦτό γε εἰκάσαι, ὦ ἑταῖρε, ἀλλὰ παντὶ δῆλον ὅτι τέχνῃ καὶ ἐπιστήμῃ περὶ Ὁμήρου λέγειν ἀδύνατος εἶ· εἰ γὰρ τέχνῃ οἷός τε ἦσθα, καὶ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων ποιητῶν ἁπάντων λέγειν οἷός τʼ ἂν ἦσθα· ποιητικὴ γάρ πού ἐστιν τὸ ὅλον. ἢ οὔ;
SocratesThat’s not hard to guess, my friend. It’s obvious to everyone that you can’t speak about Homer through art and knowledge. If you could do it by art, you’d be able to speak about all the other poets as well. There is, I take it, an art of poetry as a whole. Or isn’t there?
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesοὐκοῦν ἐπειδὰν λάβῃ τις καὶ ἄλλην τέχνην ἡντινοῦν ὅλην, ὁ αὐτὸς τρόπος τῆς σκέψεως ἔσται περὶ ἁπασῶν τῶν τεχνῶν; πῶς τοῦτο λέγω, δέῃ τί μου ἀκοῦσαι, ὦ Ἴων;
SocratesSo when someone grasps any other art whatever as a whole, won’t the same method of inquiry apply to all the arts? Do you need me to explain what I mean by this, Ion?
Ionναὶ μὰ τὸν Δία, ὦ Σώκρατες, ἔγωγε· χαίρω γὰρ ἀκούων ὑμῶν τῶν σοφῶν.
IonYes, by Zeus, Socrates, I certainly do. I love listening to you wise men.
Socratesβουλοίμην ἄν σε ἀληθῆ λέγειν, ὦ Ἴων· ἀλλὰ σοφοὶ μέν πού ἐστε ὑμεῖς οἱ ῥαψῳδοὶ καὶ ὑποκριταὶ καὶ ὧν ὑμεῖς ᾁδετε τὰ ποιήματα, ἐγὼ δὲ οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἢ τἀληθῆ λέγω, 532e οἷον εἰκὸς ἰδιώτην ἄνθρωπον. ἐπεὶ καὶ περὶ τούτου οὗ νῦν ἠρόμην σε, θέασαι ὡς φαῦλον καὶ ἰδιωτικόν ἐστι καὶ παντὸς ἀνδρὸς γνῶναι ὃ ἔλεγον, τὴν αὐτὴν εἶναι σκέψιν, ἐπειδάν τις ὅλην τέχνην λάβῃ. λάβωμεν γὰρ τῷ λόγῳ· γραφικὴ γάρ τίς ἐστι τέχνη τὸ ὅλον;
SocratesI wish what you said were true, Ion. But it’s you who are wise, I suppose: you rhapsodes and actors, and the poets whose works you sing. All I do is speak the truth, 532e as you’d expect of an ordinary person. Just look at what I asked you a moment ago. How simple and commonplace it is! Anyone could understand what I meant: that the inquiry is the same whenever someone grasps an art as a whole. Let’s take it up in argument. There is an art of painting, taken as a whole, isn’t there?
Socratesοὐκοῦν καὶ γραφῆς πολλοὶ καὶ εἰσὶ καὶ γεγόνασιν ἀγαθοὶ καὶ φαῦλοι;
SocratesAnd there are and have been many painters, good and bad?
Ionπάνυ γε.
IonCertainly.
Socratesἤδη οὖν τινα εἶδες ὅστις περὶ μὲν Πολυγνώτου τοῦ Ἀγλαοφῶντος δεινός ἐστιν ἀποφαίνειν ἃ εὖ τε γράφει καὶ ἃ μή, περὶ δὲ τῶν ἄλλων γραφέων 533a ἀδύνατος; καὶ ἐπειδὰν μέν τις τὰ τῶν ἄλλων ζωγράφων ἔργα ἐπιδεικνύῃ, νυστάζει τε καὶ ἀπορεῖ καὶ οὐκ ἔχει ὅτι συμβάληται, ἐπειδὰν δὲ περὶ Πολυγνώτου ἢ ἄλλου ὅτου βούλει τῶν γραφέων ἑνὸς μόνου δέῃ ἀποφήνασθαι γνώμην, ἐγρήγορέν τε καὶ προσέχει τὸν νοῦν καὶ εὐπορεῖ ὅτι εἴπῃ;
SocratesNow, have you ever seen anyone who is expert at pointing out what Polygnotus son of Aglaophon paints well and what he doesn’t, but who is 533a helpless about the other painters? When someone shows him the works of other painters, he dozes off, is at a loss, and has nothing to contribute. But when he has to give his opinion on Polygnotus, or on any single painter you like, he’s wide awake, pays attention and has plenty to say. Have you ever seen such a person?
Socratesτί δέ; ἐν ἀνδριαντοποιίᾳ ἤδη τινʼ εἶδες ὅστις περὶ μὲν Δαιδάλου τοῦ Μητίονος 533b ἢ Ἐπειοῦ τοῦ Πανοπέως ἢ Θεοδώρου τοῦ Σαμίου ἢ ἄλλου τινὸς ἀνδριαντοποιοῦ ἑνὸς πέρι δεινός ἐστιν ἐξηγεῖσθαι ἃ εὖ πεποίηκεν, ἐν δὲ τοῖς τῶν ἄλλων ἀνδριαντοποιῶν ἔργοις ἀπορεῖ τε καὶ νυστάζει, οὐκ ἔχων ὅτι εἴπῃ;
SocratesWhat about sculpture? Have you ever seen anyone who is expert at explaining what Daedalus son of Metion 533b has done well, or Epeius son of Panopeus, or Theodorus of Samos, or any other single sculptor, but who is at a loss when faced with the works of other sculptors? Someone who dozes off and has nothing to say?
Socratesἀλλὰ μήν, ὥς γʼ ἐγὼ οἶμαι, οὐδʼ ἐν αὐλήσει γε οὐδὲ ἐν κιθαρίσει οὐδὲ ἐν κιθαρῳδίᾳ οὐδὲ ἐν ῥαψῳδίᾳ οὐδεπώποτʼ εἶδες ἄνδρα ὅστις περὶ μὲν Ὀλύμπου δεινός ἐστιν ἐξηγεῖσθαι ἢ περὶ Θαμύρου ἢ περὶ 533c Ὀρφέως ἢ περὶ Φημίου τοῦ Ἰθακησίου ῥαψῳδοῦ, περὶ δὲ Ἴωνος τοῦ Ἐφεσίου ῥαψῳδοῦ ἀπορεῖ καὶ οὐκ ἔχει συμβαλέσθαι ἅ τε εὖ ῥαψῳδεῖ καὶ ἃ μή.
SocratesAnd what’s more, I think, you’ve never once seen such a man in pipe-playing or lyre-playing, or in singing to the lyre, or in rhapsody. He would be expert at explaining Olympus or Thamyras or 533c Orpheus or Phemius, the rhapsode of Ithaca. But faced with Ion, the rhapsode of Ephesus, he’d be at a loss, unable to contribute anything about what Ion performs well and what he doesn’t.
Ionοὐκ ἔχω σοι περὶ τούτου ἀντιλέγειν, ὦ Σώκρατες· ἀλλʼ ἐκεῖνο ἐμαυτῷ σύνοιδα, ὅτι περὶ Ὁμήρου κάλλιστʼ ἀνθρώπων λέγω καὶ εὐπορῶ καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι πάντες μέ φασιν εὖ λέγειν, περὶ δὲ τῶν ἄλλων οὔ. καίτοι ὅρα τοῦτο τί ἔστιν.
IonI can’t contradict you on that, Socrates. But this much I know about myself. I speak about Homer more beautifully than anyone in the world, and I have plenty to say, and everyone else says I speak well. But not about the others. Now, see what this means.
The magnet
Poets and reciters speak not by art but by divine inspiration, like iron rings hanging from a magnet.
Socratesκαὶ ὁρῶ, ὦ Ἴων, καὶ ἔρχομαί γέ σοι ἀποφανούμενος 533d ὅ μοι δοκεῖ τοῦτο εἶναι. ἔστι γὰρ τοῦτο τέχνη μὲν οὐκ ὂν παρὰ σοὶ περὶ Ὁμήρου εὖ λέγειν, ὃ νυνδὴ ἔλεγον, θεία δὲ δύναμις ἥ σε κινεῖ, ὥσπερ ἐν τῇ λίθῳ ἣν Εὐριπίδης μὲν Μαγνῆτιν ὠνόμασεν, οἱ δὲ πολλοὶ Ἡρακλείαν. καὶ γὰρ αὕτη ἡ λίθος οὐ μόνον αὐτοὺς τοὺς δακτυλίους ἄγει τοὺς σιδηροῦς, ἀλλὰ καὶ δύναμιν ἐντίθησι τοῖς δακτυλίοις ὥστʼ αὖ δύνασθαι ταὐτὸν τοῦτο ποιεῖν ὅπερ ἡ λίθος, ἄλλους 533e ἄγειν δακτυλίους, ὥστʼ ἐνίοτε ὁρμαθὸς μακρὸς πάνυ σιδηρίων καὶ δακτυλίων ἐξ ἀλλήλων ἤρτηται· πᾶσι δὲ τούτοις ἐξ ἐκείνης τῆς λίθου ἡ δύναμις ἀνήρτηται. οὕτω δὲ καὶ ἡ Μοῦσα ἐνθέους μὲν ποιεῖ αὐτή, διὰ δὲ τῶν ἐνθέων τούτων ἄλλων ἐνθουσιαζόντων ὁρμαθὸς ἐξαρτᾶται.
SocratesI do see, Ion, and I’m about to show you 533d what I think it is. This ability of yours to speak well about Homer isn’t an art, as I was just saying. It’s a divine power that moves you, like the power in the stone that Euripides called the magnet and most people call the stone of Heraclea. This stone not only attracts iron rings but also puts a power into the rings, so that they in turn can do the very same thing the stone does and attract other 533e rings. Sometimes a very long chain of iron pieces and rings hangs one from another, and for all of them the power depends on that stone. In the same way, the Muse herself makes people inspired, and through these inspired people a chain of others who are inspired hangs down.
πάντες γὰρ οἵ τε τῶν ἐπῶν ποιηταὶ οἱ ἀγαθοὶ οὐκ ἐκ τέχνης ἀλλʼ ἔνθεοι ὄντες καὶ κατεχόμενοι πάντα ταῦτα τὰ καλὰ λέγουσι ποιήματα, καὶ οἱ μελοποιοὶ οἱ ἀγαθοὶ ὡσαύτως, ὥσπερ οἱ κορυβαντιῶντες 534a οὐκ ἔμφρονες ὄντες ὀρχοῦνται, οὕτω καὶ οἱ μελοποιοὶ οὐκ ἔμφρονες ὄντες τὰ καλὰ μέλη ταῦτα ποιοῦσιν, ἀλλʼ ἐπειδὰν ἐμβῶσιν εἰς τὴν ἁρμονίαν καὶ εἰς τὸν ῥυθμόν, βακχεύουσι καὶ κατεχόμενοι, ὥσπερ αἱ βάκχαι ἀρύονται ἐκ τῶν ποταμῶν μέλι καὶ γάλα κατεχόμεναι, ἔμφρονες δὲ οὖσαι οὔ, καὶ τῶν μελοποιῶν ἡ ψυχὴ τοῦτο ἐργάζεται, ὅπερ αὐτοὶ λέγουσι. λέγουσι γὰρ δήπουθεν πρὸς ἡμᾶς οἱ ποιηταὶ ὅτι 534b ἀπὸ κρηνῶν μελιρρύτων ἐκ Μουσῶν κήπων τινῶν καὶ ναπῶν δρεπόμενοι τὰ μέλη ἡμῖν φέρουσιν ὥσπερ αἱ μέλιτται, καὶ αὐτοὶ οὕτω πετόμενοι· καὶ ἀληθῆ λέγουσι.
For all the good epic poets utter all those fine poems not by art but because they are inspired and possessed, and the good lyric poets do the same. The Corybants are not in their right minds 534a when they dance, and in the same way the lyric poets are not in their right minds when they compose these fine songs. Once they step into harmony and rhythm, they’re in a Bacchic frenzy and possessed. The bacchants, when possessed, draw honey and milk from the rivers, but not when they’re in their right minds. The soul of the lyric poets does just this, as they themselves say. For the poets tell us, of course, that 534b they gather their songs from honey-flowing springs in certain gardens and glens of the Muses, and bring them to us like bees, flitting about like bees themselves. And they speak the truth.
κοῦφον γὰρ χρῆμα ποιητής ἐστιν καὶ πτηνὸν καὶ ἱερόν, καὶ οὐ πρότερον οἷός τε ποιεῖν πρὶν ἂν ἔνθεός τε γένηται καὶ ἔκφρων καὶ ὁ νοῦς μηκέτι ἐν αὐτῷ ἐνῇ· ἕως δʼ ἂν τουτὶ ἔχῃ τὸ κτῆμα, ἀδύνατος πᾶς ποιεῖν ἄνθρωπός ἐστιν καὶ χρησμῳδεῖν. ἅτε οὖν οὐ τέχνῃ ποιοῦντες καὶ πολλὰ λέγοντες καὶ καλὰ περὶ 534c τῶν πραγμάτων, ὥσπερ σὺ περὶ Ὁμήρου, ἀλλὰ θείᾳ μοίρᾳ, τοῦτο μόνον οἷός τε ἕκαστος ποιεῖν καλῶς ἐφʼ ὃ ἡ Μοῦσα αὐτὸν ὥρμησεν, ὁ μὲν διθυράμβους, ὁ δὲ ἐγκώμια, ὁ δὲ ὑπορχήματα, ὁ δʼ ἔπη, ὁ δʼ ἰάμβους· τὰ δʼ ἄλλα φαῦλος αὐτῶν ἕκαστός ἐστιν.
For a poet is a light, winged, holy thing. He can’t compose until he becomes inspired and out of his mind, and his intellect is no longer in him. As long as a man keeps hold of this possession, he is quite unable to compose poetry or chant oracles. They don’t compose by art when they say many fine things about 534c their subjects, as you do about Homer. They compose by divine dispensation. So each of them can compose well only the kind of thing the Muse has stirred him to: one composes dithyrambs, another songs of praise, another dance-songs, another epic, another iambic verse. At everything else, each of them is poor.
οὐ γὰρ τέχνῃ ταῦτα λέγουσιν ἀλλὰ θείᾳ δυνάμει, ἐπεί, εἰ περὶ ἑνὸς τέχνῃ καλῶς ἠπίσταντο λέγειν, κἂν περὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων· διὰ ταῦτα δὲ ὁ θεὸς ἐξαιρούμενος τούτων τὸν νοῦν τούτοις χρῆται ὑπηρέταις καὶ 534d τοῖς χρησμῳδοῖς καὶ τοῖς μάντεσι τοῖς θείοις, ἵνα ἡμεῖς οἱ ἀκούοντες εἰδῶμεν ὅτι οὐχ οὗτοί εἰσιν οἱ ταῦτα λέγοντες οὕτω πολλοῦ ἄξια, οἷς νοῦς μὴ πάρεστιν, ἀλλʼ ὁ θεὸς αὐτός ἐστιν ὁ λέγων, διὰ τούτων δὲ φθέγγεται πρὸς ἡμᾶς.
For it’s not by art that they say these things but by divine power. If they knew by art how to speak well about one subject, they’d know how to speak well about all the others too. That’s why the god takes away their intellect and uses them as his servants, just as he uses 534d oracle-singers and divine seers. He does it so that we who hear them may know that it isn’t these people, who have no intellect in them, who say these things of such great worth. It’s the god himself who speaks, and through them he addresses us.
μέγιστον δὲ τεκμήριον τῷ λόγῳ Τύννιχος ὁ Χαλκιδεύς, ὃς ἄλλο μὲν οὐδὲν πώποτε ἐποίησε ποίημα ὅτου τις ἂν ἀξιώσειεν μνησθῆναι, τὸν δὲ παίωνα ὃν πάντες ᾁδουσι, σχεδόν τι πάντων μελῶν κάλλιστον, ἀτεχνῶς, ὅπερ αὐτὸς λέγει, 534e “εὕρημά τι Μοισᾶν.” ἐν τούτῳ γὰρ δὴ μάλιστά μοι δοκεῖ ὁ θεὸς ἐνδείξασθαι ἡμῖν, ἵνα μὴ διστάζωμεν, ὅτι οὐκ ἀνθρώπινά ἐστιν τὰ καλὰ ταῦτα ποιήματα οὐδὲ ἀνθρώπων, ἀλλὰ θεῖα καὶ θεῶν, οἱ δὲ ποιηταὶ οὐδὲν ἀλλʼ ἢ ἑρμηνῆς εἰσιν τῶν θεῶν, κατεχόμενοι ἐξ ὅτου ἂν ἕκαστος κατέχηται. ταῦτα ἐνδεικνύμενος ὁ θεὸς ἐξεπίτηδες διὰ τοῦ φαυλοτάτου 535a ποιητοῦ τὸ κάλλιστον μέλος ᾖσεν· ἢ οὐ δοκῶ σοι ἀληθῆ λέγειν, ὦ Ἴων;
The strongest evidence for this account is Tynnichus of Chalcis. He never composed any other poem that anyone would think worth remembering. Yet he composed the paean everyone sings, very nearly the finest of all songs, and simply, as he himself says, 534e “a find of the Muses.” In this case above all, it seems to me, the god has shown us, so that we wouldn’t doubt it, that these fine poems are not human, nor the work of human beings. They are divine, the work of gods. The poets are nothing but interpreters of the gods, each possessed by whichever god possesses him. To show this, the god deliberately sang the finest song through the most worthless 535a poet. Or don’t you think I’m right, Ion?
Ionναὶ μὰ τὸν Δία, ἔμοιγε· ἅπτει γάρ πώς μου τοῖς λόγοις τῆς ψυχῆς, ὦ Σώκρατες, καί μοι δοκοῦσι θείᾳ μοίρᾳ ἡμῖν παρὰ τῶν θεῶν ταῦτα οἱ ἀγαθοὶ ποιηταὶ ἑρμηνεύειν.
IonBy Zeus, I do. Your words touch my soul somehow, Socrates. And I believe the good poets interpret these things to us from the gods by divine dispensation.
Socratesοὐκοῦν ὑμεῖς αὖ οἱ ῥαψῳδοὶ τὰ τῶν ποιητῶν ἑρμηνεύετε;
SocratesAnd you rhapsodes, in turn, interpret the works of the poets?
Ionκαὶ τοῦτο ἀληθὲς λέγεις.
IonThat’s true too.
Socratesοὐκοῦν ἑρμηνέων ἑρμηνῆς γίγνεσθε;
SocratesSo you’re interpreters of interpreters?
Ionπαντάπασί γε.
IonAbsolutely.
Out of his mind
Ion admits that when he performs he weeps, his hair stands on end, and his audience weeps too.
Socratesἔχε δή μοι τόδε εἰπέ, ὦ Ἴων, καὶ μὴ ἀποκρύψῃ ὅτι ἄν σε ἔρωμαι· ὅταν εὖ εἴπῃς ἔπη καὶ ἐκπλήξῃς μάλιστα τοὺς θεωμένους, ἢ τὸν Ὀδυσσέα ὅταν ἐπὶ τὸν οὐδὸν ἐφαλλόμενον ᾁδῃς, ἐκφανῆ γιγνόμενον τοῖς μνηστῆρσι καὶ ἐκχέοντα τοὺς ὀιστοὺς πρὸ τῶν ποδῶν, ἢ Ἀχιλλέα ἐπὶ τὸν Ἕκτορα ὁρμῶντα, ἢ καὶ τῶν περὶ Ἀνδρομάχην ἐλεινῶν τι ἢ περὶ Ἑκάβην ἢ περὶ Πρίαμον, τότε πότερον ἔμφρων εἶ ἢ ἔξω 535c σαυτοῦ γίγνῃ καὶ παρὰ τοῖς πράγμασιν οἴεταί σου εἶναι ἡ ψυχὴ οἷς λέγεις ἐνθουσιάζουσα, ἢ ἐν Ἰθάκῃ οὖσιν ἢ ἐν Τροίᾳ ἢ ὅπως ἂν καὶ τὰ ἔπη ἔχῃ;
SocratesHold on, then, and tell me this, Ion, and don’t hide anything I ask you. Think of when you recite epic well and astonish your audience most. Perhaps you’re singing of Odysseus leaping onto the threshold, revealing himself to the suitors and pouring the arrows out at his feet. Or of Achilles rushing at Hector. Or of one of the pitiful passages about Andromache or Hecuba or Priam. At such moments, are you in your right mind? Or are you 535c beside yourself, and does your soul, inspired, believe it’s present at the events you describe, whether they happen in Ithaca or in Troy or wherever the poem sets them?
Ionὡς ἐναργές μοι τοῦτο, ὦ Σώκρατες, τὸ τεκμήριον εἶπες· οὐ γάρ σε ἀποκρυψάμενος ἐρῶ. ἐγὼ γὰρ ὅταν ἐλεινόν τι λέγω, δακρύων ἐμπίμπλανταί μου οἱ ὀφθαλμοί· ὅταν τε φοβερὸν ἢ δεινόν, ὀρθαὶ αἱ τρίχες ἵστανται ὑπὸ φόβου καὶ ἡ καρδία πηδᾷ.
IonHow vivid that piece of evidence is, Socrates! I’ll tell you without hiding anything. When I recite something pitiful, my eyes fill with tears. And when it’s something frightening or terrible, my hair stands on end with fear and my heart pounds.
Socratesτί οὖν; φῶμεν, ὦ Ἴων, ἔμφρονα εἶναι τότε τοῦτον τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ὃς ἂν κεκοσμημένος ἐσθῆτι ποικίλῃ καὶ χρυσοῖσι στεφάνοις κλάῃ τʼ ἐν θυσίαις καὶ ἑορταῖς, μηδὲν ἀπολωλεκὼς τούτων, ἢ φοβῆται πλέον ἢ ἐν δισμυρίοις ἀνθρώποις ἑστηκὼς φιλίοις, μηδενὸς ἀποδύοντος μηδὲ ἀδικοῦντος;
SocratesWell then, Ion, are we to say that this man is in his right mind at that moment? He’s decked out in embroidered clothes and golden crowns, yet he weeps at sacrifices and festivals, though he has lost none of these things. Or he’s frightened while standing among more than twenty thousand friendly people, when no one is robbing him or doing him any wrong.
Ionοὐ μὰ τὸν Δία, οὐ πάνυ, ὦ Σώκρατες, ὥς γε τἀληθὲς εἰρῆσθαι.
IonNo, by Zeus, Socrates, not at all, to tell you the honest truth.
Socratesοἶσθα οὖν ὅτι καὶ τῶν θεατῶν τοὺς πολλοὺς ταὐτὰ ταῦτα ὑμεῖς ἐργάζεσθε;
SocratesAnd do you know that you rhapsodes produce these very same effects in most of the spectators too?
Ionκαὶ μάλα καλῶς οἶδα· καθορῶ γὰρ ἑκάστοτε αὐτοὺς ἄνωθεν ἀπὸ τοῦ βήματος κλάοντάς τε καὶ δεινὸν ἐμβλέποντας καὶ συνθαμβοῦντας τοῖς λεγομένοις. δεῖ γάρ με καὶ σφόδρʼ αὐτοῖς τὸν νοῦν προσέχειν· ὡς ἐὰν μὲν κλάοντας αὐτοὺς καθίσω, αὐτὸς γελάσομαι ἀργύριον λαμβάνων, ἐὰν δὲ γελῶντας, αὐτὸς κλαύσομαι ἀργύριον ἀπολλύς.
IonOh, I know that very well. Every time, I look down on them from up on the platform, and there they are, weeping, staring wild-eyed, caught up in amazement at the words. And I have to pay very close attention to them. If I set them crying, I’ll be the one laughing as I take their money. If I set them laughing, I’ll be the one crying, because I’ll lose it.
Socratesοἶσθα οὖν ὅτι οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ θεατὴς τῶν δακτυλίων ὁ ἔσχατος, ὧν ἐγὼ ἔλεγον ὑπὸ τῆς Ἡρακλειώτιδος λίθου ἀπʼ ἀλλήλων τὴν δύναμιν λαμβάνειν; ὁ δὲ μέσος σὺ ὁ 536a ῥαψῳδὸς καὶ ὑποκριτής, ὁ δὲ πρῶτος αὐτὸς ὁ ποιητής· ὁ δὲ θεὸς διὰ πάντων τούτων ἕλκει τὴν ψυχὴν ὅποι ἂν βούληται τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἀνακρεμαννὺς ἐξ ἀλλήλων τὴν δύναμιν. καὶ ὥσπερ ἐκ τῆς λίθου ἐκείνης ὁρμαθὸς πάμπολυς ἐξήρτηται χορευτῶν τε καὶ διδασκάλων καὶ ὑποδιδασκάλων, ἐκ πλαγίου ἐξηρτημένων τῶν τῆς Μούσης ἐκκρεμαμένων δακτυλίων.
SocratesThen do you know that this spectator is the last of the rings I was talking about, the ones that take their power from one another through the magnet? The middle one is you, the 536a rhapsode and actor, and the first is the poet himself. Through all of these the god draws people’s souls wherever he likes, making the power hang down from one to the next. And just as from that stone, an enormous chain hangs down of choral dancers, chorus-masters and assistant masters, hanging off to the side from the rings suspended from the Muse.
καὶ ὁ μὲν τῶν ποιητῶν ἐξ ἄλλης Μούσης, ὁ δὲ ἐξ ἄλλης ἐξήρτηται—ὀνομάζομεν δὲ αὐτὸ κατέχεται, τὸ δέ 536b ἐστι παραπλήσιον· ἔχεται γάρ—ἐκ δὲ τούτων τῶν πρώτων δακτυλίων, τῶν ποιητῶν, ἄλλοι ἐξ ἄλλου αὖ ἠρτημένοι εἰσὶ καὶ ἐνθουσιάζουσιν, οἱ μὲν ἐξ Ὀρφέως, οἱ δὲ ἐκ Μουσαίου· οἱ δὲ πολλοὶ ἐξ Ὁμήρου κατέχονταί τε καὶ ἔχονται.
One poet is suspended from one Muse, another from another. We call it being “possessed,” but it 536b comes to much the same thing, since he is held. And from these first rings, the poets, others in turn are suspended, some from one poet and some from another, and are inspired: some from Orpheus, some from Musaeus, but most are possessed and held by Homer.
ὧν σύ, ὦ Ἴων, εἷς εἶ καὶ κατέχῃ ἐξ Ὁμήρου, καὶ ἐπειδὰν μέν τις ἄλλου του ποιητοῦ ᾁδῃ, καθεύδεις τε καὶ ἀπορεῖς ὅτι λέγῃς, ἐπειδὰν δὲ τούτου τοῦ ποιητοῦ φθέγξηταί τις μέλος, εὐθὺς ἐγρήγορας καὶ ὀρχεῖταί σου ἡ ψυχὴ καὶ εὐπορεῖς ὅτι 536c λέγῃς· οὐ γὰρ τέχνῃ οὐδʼ ἐπιστήμῃ περὶ Ὁμήρου λέγεις ἃ λέγεις, ἀλλὰ θείᾳ μοίρᾳ καὶ κατοκωχῇ, ὥσπερ οἱ κορυβαντιῶντες ἐκείνου μόνου αἰσθάνονται τοῦ μέλους ὀξέως ὃ ἂν ᾖ τοῦ θεοῦ ἐξ ὅτου ἂν κατέχωνται, καὶ εἰς ἐκεῖνο τὸ μέλος καὶ σχημάτων καὶ ῥημάτων εὐποροῦσι, τῶν δὲ ἄλλων οὐ φροντίζουσιν· οὕτω καὶ σύ, ὦ Ἴων, περὶ μὲν Ὁμήρου ὅταν τις μνησθῇ, εὐπορεῖς, περὶ δὲ τῶν ἄλλων ἀπορεῖς· 536d τούτου δʼ ἐστὶ τὸ αἴτιον, ὅ μʼ ἐρωτᾷς, διʼ ὅτι σὺ περὶ μὲν Ὁμήρου εὐπορεῖς, περὶ δὲ τῶν ἄλλων οὔ, ὅτι οὐ τέχνῃ ἀλλὰ θείᾳ μοίρᾳ Ὁμήρου δεινὸς εἶ ἐπαινέτης.
And you, Ion, are one of these: you are possessed by Homer. When someone sings the work of any other poet, you fall asleep and have nothing to say. But as soon as someone strikes up a song of this poet’s, you’re wide awake at once, your soul dances, and you have plenty 536c to say. That’s because it isn’t by art or knowledge that you say what you say about Homer, but by divine dispensation and possession. Think of the Corybants. They are keenly alive only to the one tune that belongs to the god who possesses them, and for that tune they have plenty of movements and words, but they pay no attention to any other. In the same way, Ion, when someone mentions Homer, you have plenty to say, but about the others you’re at a loss. 536d And the reason for this, which is what you’re asking me—why you have plenty to say about Homer and not about the others—is that it’s not by art but by divine dispensation that you’re such a marvelous praiser of Homer.
Ionσὺ μὲν εὖ λέγεις, ὦ Σώκρατες· θαυμάζοιμι μεντἂν εἰ οὕτως εὖ εἴποις, ὥστε με ἀναπεῖσαι ὡς ἐγὼ κατεχόμενος καὶ μαινόμενος Ὅμηρον ἐπαινῶ. οἶμαι δὲ οὐδʼ ἂν σοὶ δόξαιμι, εἴ μου ἀκούσαις λέγοντος περὶ Ὁμήρου.
IonThat’s well said, Socrates. Still, I’d be amazed if you could say it well enough to convince me that I’m possessed and out of my mind when I praise Homer. I don’t think you’d believe it either, if you heard me speaking about Homer.
What does the reciter know?
Homer describes charioteering, medicine, fishing and prophecy, and each belongs to its own expert.
Socratesκαὶ μὴν ἐθέλω γε ἀκοῦσαι, οὐ μέντοι πρότερον 536e πρὶν ἄν μοι ἀποκρίνῃ τόδε· ὧν Ὅμηρος λέγει περὶ τίνος εὖ λέγεις; οὐ γὰρ δήπου περὶ ἁπάντων γε.
SocratesAnd I really do want to hear you, but not before 536e you answer me this. Of the things Homer talks about, which do you speak well about? Surely not all of them.
Socratesοὐ δήπου καὶ περὶ τούτων ὧν σὺ μὲν τυγχάνεις οὐκ εἰδώς, Ὅμηρος δὲ λέγει.
SocratesSurely not the things you happen to know nothing about, though Homer talks about them.
Ionκαὶ ταῦτα ποῖά ἐστιν ἃ Ὅμηρος μὲν λέγει, ἐγὼ δὲ οὐκ οἶδα;
IonAnd what sort of things are these, that Homer talks about but I don’t know?
Socratesοὐ καὶ περὶ τεχνῶν μέντοι λέγει πολλαχοῦ Ὅμηρος καὶ πολλά; οἷον καὶ περὶ ἡνιοχείας—ἐὰν μνησθῶ τὰ ἔπη, ἐγώ σοι φράσω.
SocratesWell, doesn’t Homer talk about the arts in many places, and at length? Chariot-driving, for instance—if I can remember the lines, I’ll quote them for you.
Ionἀλλʼ ἐγὼ ἐρῶ· ἐγὼ γὰρ μέμνημαι.
IonNo, I’ll recite them. I remember them.
Socratesεἰπὲ δή μοι ἃ λέγει Νέστωρ Ἀντιλόχῳ τῷ ὑεῖ, παραινῶν εὐλαβηθῆναι περὶ τὴν καμπὴν ἐν τῇ ἱπποδρομίᾳ τῇ ἐπὶ Πατρόκλῳ.
SocratesThen tell me what Nestor says to his son Antilochus when he advises him to take care at the turn in the horse race held in honor of Patroclus.
Ionκλινθῆναι δέ, φησί, καὶ αὐτὸς ἐυξέστῳ ἐνὶ δίφρῳ 537b ἦκʼ ἐπʼ ἀριστερὰ τοῖιν· ἀτὰρ τὸν δεξιὸν ἵππον κένσαι ὁμοκλήσας, εἶξαί τέ οἱ ἡνία χερσίν. ἐν νύσσῃ δέ τοι ἵππος ἀριστερὸς ἐγχριμφθήτω, ὡς ἄν τοι πλήμνη γε δοάσσεται ἄκρον ἱκέσθαι κύκλου ποιητοῖο· λίθου δʼ ἀλέασθαι ἐπαυρεῖν.
Ion“Lean over yourself,” he says, “in the polished chariot / 537b a little to the left of the pair; and the right-hand horse / goad on with a shout, and give him rein with your hands. / And at the post let the left-hand horse shave close, / so that the hub seems just to graze its edge— / the hub of the well-made wheel; but take care not to strike the stone.”
Socratesἀρκεῖ. ταῦτα δή, ὦ Ἴων, τὰ ἔπη εἴτε 537c ὀρθῶς λέγει Ὅμηρος εἴτε μή, πότερος ἂν γνοίη ἄμεινον, ἰατρὸς ἢ ἡνίοχος;
SocratesThat’s enough. Now, Ion, who would be the better judge of whether Homer has these lines 537c right or not—a doctor or a charioteer?
Socratesπότερον ὅτι τέχνην ταύτην ἔχει ἢ κατʼ ἄλλο τι;
SocratesBecause he has this art, or for some other reason?
Ionοὔκ, ἀλλʼ ὅτι τέχνην.
IonNo, because he has the art.
Socratesοὐκοῦν ἑκάστῃ τῶν τεχνῶν ἀποδέδοταί τι ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ ἔργον οἵᾳ τε εἶναι γιγνώσκειν; οὐ γάρ που ἃ κυβερνητικῇ γιγνώσκομεν, γνωσόμεθα καὶ ἰατρικῇ.
SocratesNow hasn’t each of the arts been assigned by the god some particular work it’s able to know? Surely what we know by the art of steering a ship we won’t also know by medicine.
Ionοὐ δῆτα.
IonOf course not.
Socratesοὐδέ γε ἃ ἰατρικῇ, ταῦτα καὶ τεκτονικῇ.
SocratesNor will we know by carpentry what we know by medicine.
Socratesοὐκοῦν οὕτω καὶ κατὰ πασῶν τῶν τεχνῶν, ἃ τῇ ἑτέρᾳ τέχνῃ γιγνώσκομεν, οὐ γνωσόμεθα τῇ ἑτέρᾳ; τόδε δέ μοι πρότερον τούτου ἀπόκριναι· τὴν μὲν ἑτέραν φῂς εἶναί τινα τέχνην, τὴν δʼ ἑτέραν;
SocratesSo it’s the same with all the arts: what we know by one art we won’t know by another? But answer me this first. Do you say that one art is one thing and another is something different?
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesἆρα ὥσπερ ἐγὼ τεκμαιρόμενος, ὅταν ἡ μὲν ἑτέρων πραγμάτων ᾖ ἐπιστήμη, ἡ δʼ ἑτέρων, οὕτω καλῶ τὴν μὲν ἄλλην, τὴν δὲ ἄλλην 537e τέχνην, οὕτω καὶ σύ;
SocratesDo you reason the way I do? When one body of knowledge is about one set of things and another about a different set, that’s how I come to call one of them one art and the other 537e a different art. Do you do the same?
Socratesεἰ γάρ που τῶν αὐτῶν πραγμάτων ἐπιστήμη εἴη τις, τί ἂν τὴν μὲν ἑτέραν φαῖμεν εἶναι, τὴν δʼ ἑτέραν, ὁπότε γε ταὐτὰ εἴη εἰδέναι ἀπʼ ἀμφοτέρων; ὥσπερ ἐγώ τε γιγνώσκω ὅτι πέντε εἰσὶν οὗτοι οἱ δάκτυλοι, καὶ σύ, ὥσπερ ἐγώ, περὶ τούτων ταὐτὰ γιγνώσκεις· καὶ εἴ σε ἐγὼ ἐροίμην εἰ τῇ αὐτῇ τέχνῃ γιγνώσκομεν τῇ ἀριθμητικῇ τὰ αὐτὰ ἐγώ τε καὶ σὺ ἢ ἄλλῃ, φαίης ἂν δήπου τῇ αὐτῇ.
SocratesBecause if two kinds of knowledge were about the same things, why would we say one was one art and the other a different one, when you could know the same things from either? It’s like this: I know that these fingers are five, and you, just like me, know the same thing about them. And if I asked you whether you and I know the same things by the same art, arithmetic, or by a different one, you’d say, I take it, by the same one.
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesὃ τοίνυν ἄρτι ἔμελλον ἐρήσεσθαί σε, νυνὶ εἰπέ, εἰ κατὰ πασῶν τῶν τεχνῶν οὕτω σοι δοκεῖ, τῇ μὲν αὐτῇ τέχνῃ τὰ αὐτὰ ἀναγκαῖον εἶναι γιγνώσκειν, τῇ δʼ ἑτέρᾳ μὴ τὰ αὐτά, ἀλλʼ εἴπερ ἄλλη ἐστίν, ἀναγκαῖον καὶ ἕτερα γιγνώσκειν.
SocratesThen tell me now what I was about to ask you a moment ago. Do you think it holds for all the arts that by the same art we must know the same things, and by a different art not the same things—that if it really is a different art, it must know different things too?
Ionοὕτω μοι δοκεῖ, ὦ Σώκρατες.
IonThat’s what I think, Socrates.
Socratesοὐκοῦν ὅστις ἂν μὴ ἔχῃ τινὰ τέχνην, ταύτης τῆς τέχνης τὰ λεγόμενα ἢ πραττόμενα καλῶς γιγνώσκειν οὐχ οἷός τʼ ἔσται;
SocratesSo whoever doesn’t have a particular art won’t be able to judge properly what is said or done in that art?
Socratesπότερον οὖν περὶ τῶν ἐπῶν ὧν εἶπες, εἴτε καλῶς λέγει Ὅμηρος εἴτε μή, σὺ κάλλιον γνώσῃ ἢ ἡνίοχος;
SocratesThen take the lines you quoted. Will you know better whether Homer puts it well or not, or will a charioteer?
IonἩνίοχος.
IonA charioteer.
SocratesῬαψῳδὸς γάρ που εἶ ἀλλʼ οὐχ ἡνίοχος.
SocratesBecause you’re a rhapsode, I take it, and not a charioteer.
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesἡ δὲ ῥαψῳδικὴ τέχνη ἑτέρα ἐστὶ τῆς ἡνιοχικῆς;
SocratesAnd the rhapsode’s art is different from the charioteer’s?
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesεἰ ἄρα ἑτέρα, περὶ ἑτέρων καὶ ἐπιστήμη πραγμάτων ἐστίν.
SocratesThen if it’s different, it’s also knowledge about different things.
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesτί δὲ δὴ ὅταν Ὅμηρος λέγῃ ὡς τετρωμένῳ τῷ Μαχάονι Ἑκαμήδη ἡ Νέστορος παλλακὴ κυκεῶνα πίνειν 538c δίδωσι; καὶ λέγει πως οὕτως— οἴνῳ πραμνείῳ, φησίν, ἐπὶ δʼ αἴγειον κνῆ τυρὸν κνήστι χαλκείῃ· παρὰ δὲ κρόμυον ποτῷ ὄψον· ταῦτα εἴτε ὀρθῶς λέγει Ὅμηρος εἴτε μή, πότερον ἰατρικῆς ἐστι διαγνῶναι καλῶς ἢ ῥαψῳδικῆς;
SocratesWell then, what about when Homer says that Hecamede, Nestor’s concubine, gives the wounded Machaon a mixed potion to 538c drink? He puts it something like this: “With Pramnian wine,” he says, “and over it she grated goat’s cheese / with a bronze grater; and beside it an onion, a relish for the drink.” Whether Homer gets this right or not—is it for medicine to judge properly, or for the rhapsode’s art?
Socratesτί δέ, ὅταν λέγῃ Ὅμηρος— 538d ἡ δὲ μολυβδαίνῃ ἰκέλη ἐς βυσσὸν ἵκανεν, ἥ τε κατʼ ἀγραύλοιο βοὸς κέρας ἐμμεμαυῖα ἔρχεται ὠμηστῇσι μετʼ ἰχθύσι πῆμα φέρουσα· ταῦτα πότερον φῶμεν ἁλιευτικῆς εἶναι τέχνης μᾶλλον κρῖναι ἢ ῥαψῳδικῆς, ἅττα λέγει καὶ εἴτε καλῶς εἴτε μή;
SocratesAnd what about when Homer says: 538d “And she sank to the bottom like a lead weight, / which, set on the horn of an ox that ranges the fields, / speeds down among the ravening fish, bringing them harm”? Shall we say it’s for the fisherman’s art rather than the rhapsode’s to judge what he’s saying here, and whether it’s well said or not?
Socratesσκέψαι δή, σοῦ ἐρομένου, εἰ ἔροιό με· “ἐπειδὴ 538e τοίνυν, ὦ Σώκρατες, τούτων τῶν τεχνῶν ἐν Ὁμήρῳ εὑρίσκεις ἃ προσήκει ἑκάστῃ διακρίνειν, ἴθι μοι ἔξευρε καὶ τὰ τοῦ μάντεώς τε καὶ μαντικῆς, ποῖά ἐστιν ἃ προσήκει αὐτῷ οἵῳ τʼ εἶναι διαγιγνώσκειν, εἴτε εὖ εἴτε κακῶς πεποίηται” — σκέψαι ὡς ῥᾳδίως τε καὶ ἀληθῆ ἐγώ σοι ἀποκρινοῦμαι. πολλαχοῦ μὲν γὰρ καὶ ἐν Ὀδυσσείᾳ λέγει, οἷον καὶ ἃ ὁ τῶν Μελαμποδιδῶν λέγει μάντις πρὸς τοὺς μνηστῆρας, Θεοκλύμενος— 539a δαιμόνιοι, τί κακὸν τόδε πάσχετε;
SocratesNow look. Suppose you were the one asking, and you asked me: “Well then, Socrates, since 538e you’re finding in Homer, for each of these arts, the passages that are proper for each to judge, come and find me the ones for the seer and his art of prophecy too—what sort of passages it’s proper for him to be able to judge, whether they’re well or badly composed.” Look how easily and how truly I’ll answer you. He speaks of this in many places in the Odyssey, for instance in what the seer of the line of Melampus, Theoclymenus, says to the suitors: 539a “Poor wretches, what evil is this you suffer?”
νυκτὶ μὲν ὑμέων εἰλύαται κεφαλαί τε πρόσωπά τε νέρθε τε γυῖα, οἰμωγὴ δὲ δέδηε, δεδάκρυνται δὲ παρειαί· εἰδώλων τε πλέον πρόθυρον, πλείη δὲ καὶ αὐλὴ ἱεμένων ἔρεβόσδε ὑπὸ ζόφον· ἠέλιος δὲ 539b οὐρανοῦ ἐξαπόλωλε, κακὴ δʼ ἐπιδέδρομεν ἀχλύς· πολλαχοῦ δὲ καὶ ἐν Ἰλιάδι, οἷον καὶ ἐπὶ τειχομαχίᾳ· λέγει γὰρ καὶ ἐνταῦθα -- ὄρνις γάρ σφιν ἐπῆλθε περησέμεναι μεμαῶσιν, αἰετὸς ὑψιπέτης, ἐπʼ ἀριστερὰ λαὸν ἐέργων, 539c φοινήεντα δράκοντα φέρων ὀνύχεσσι πέλωρον, ζῷον, ἔτʼ ἀσπαίροντα· καὶ οὔπω λήθετο χάρμης. κόψε γὰρ αὐτὸν ἔχοντα κατὰ στῆθος παρὰ δειρὴν ἰδνωθεὶς ὀπίσω, ὁ δʼ ἀπὸ ἕθεν ἧκε χαμᾶζε ἀλγήσας ὀδύνῃσι, μέσῳ δʼ ἐνὶ κάββαλʼ ὁμίλῳ· 539d αὐτὸς δὲ κλάγξας πέτετο πνοιῇς ἀνέμοιο. ταῦτα φήσω καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα τῷ μάντει προσήκειν καὶ σκοπεῖν καὶ κρίνειν.
“In night are wrapped / your heads and faces and your limbs below; / a wailing has blazed up, your cheeks are wet with tears; / the porch is full of ghosts, and the courtyard is full too, / of ghosts hastening down to Erebus, into the gloom; the sun / 539b has perished out of the sky, and an evil mist has spread over all.” And in many places in the Iliad too—at the battle at the wall, for instance. There too he says: “For a bird came upon them as they were eager to cross, / a high-flying eagle, skirting the army on the left, / 539c carrying in its talons a monstrous blood-red serpent, / alive, still writhing; and it had not yet forgotten the fight. / For it struck the eagle that held it, on the breast beside the neck, / twisting back; and the eagle flung it from him to the ground, / stung with pain, and dropped it in the middle of the throng, / 539d and with a scream flew off on the gusts of the wind.” These passages, and others like them, I’ll say, are the ones it’s proper for the seer to examine and judge.
Socratesκαὶ σύ γε, ὦ Ἴων, ἀληθῆ ταῦτα λέγεις. ἴθι δὴ καὶ σὺ ἐμοί, ὥσπερ ἐγὼ σοὶ ἐξέλεξα καὶ ἐξ Ὀδυσσείας καὶ ἐξ Ἰλιάδος ὁποῖα τοῦ μάντεώς ἐστι καὶ ὁποῖα τοῦ ἰατροῦ καὶ 539e ὁποῖα τοῦ ἁλιέως, οὕτω καὶ σὺ ἐμοὶ ἔκλεξον, ἐπειδὴ καὶ ἐμπειρότερος εἶ ἐμοῦ τῶν Ὁμήρου, ὁποῖα τοῦ ῥαψῳδοῦ ἐστιν, ὦ Ἴων, καὶ τῆς τέχνης τῆς ῥαψῳδικῆς, ἃ τῷ ῥαψῳδῷ προσήκει καὶ σκοπεῖσθαι καὶ διακρίνειν παρὰ τοὺς ἄλλους ἀνθρώπους.
SocratesAnd so is what you say, Ion. Come on, then, now it’s your turn. Just as I picked out for you from the Odyssey and the Iliad the sort of passages that belong to the seer, the sort that belong to the doctor, and 539e the sort that belong to the fisherman, you pick out for me—since you’re more experienced in Homer than I am—the sort that belong to the rhapsode, Ion, and to the rhapsode’s art: the ones it’s proper for the rhapsode, beyond anyone else, to examine and judge.
Socratesοὐ σύ γε φῄς, ὦ Ἴων, ἅπαντα· ἢ οὕτως ἐπιλήσμων εἶ; καίτοι οὐκ ἂν πρέποι γε ἐπιλήσμονα εἶναι ῥαψῳδὸν ἄνδρα.
SocratesNo, Ion, you don’t say “all of them”—or are you really that forgetful? And yet it would hardly be fitting for a rhapsode to be forgetful.
Socratesοὐ μέμνησαι ὅτι ἔφησθα τὴν ῥαψῳδικὴν τέχνην ἑτέραν εἶναι τῆς ἡνιοχικῆς;
SocratesDon’t you remember saying that the rhapsode’s art is different from the charioteer’s?
Ionμέμνημαι.
IonI remember.
Socratesοὐκοῦν καὶ ἑτέραν οὖσαν ἕτερα γνώσεσθαι ὡμολόγεις;
SocratesAnd didn’t you agree that, being different, it would know different things?
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesοὐκ ἄρα πάντα γε γνώσεται ἡ ῥαψῳδικὴ κατὰ τὸν σὸν λόγον οὐδὲ ὁ ῥαψῳδός.
SocratesThen by your own account the rhapsode’s art won’t know everything, and neither will the rhapsode.
Ionπλήν γε ἴσως τὰ τοιαῦτα, ὦ Σώκρατες.
IonExcept, perhaps, things like that, Socrates.
Ion the general
Ion claims a reciter knows what a general should say, and that he would be Greece’s best general.
Socratesτὰ τοιαῦτα δὲ λέγεις πλὴν τὰ τῶν ἄλλων τεχνῶν σχεδόν τι· ἀλλὰ ποῖα δὴ γνώσεται, ἐπειδὴ οὐχ ἅπαντα;
SocratesBy “except things like that” you mean except more or less everything that belongs to the other arts. But then which things will he know, since he doesn’t know them all?
Ionἃ πρέπει, οἶμαι ἔγωγε, ἀνδρὶ εἰπεῖν καὶ ὁποῖα γυναικί, καὶ ὁποῖα δούλῳ καὶ ὁποῖα ἐλευθέρῳ, καὶ ὁποῖα ἀρχομένῳ καὶ ὁποῖα ἄρχοντι.
IonWhat it’s fitting, I’d say, for a man to say, and what for a woman; what for a slave and what for a free man; what for someone under command and what for the one in command.
Socratesἆρα ὁποῖα ἄρχοντι, λέγεις, ἐν θαλάττῃ χειμαζομένου πλοίου πρέπει εἰπεῖν, ὁ ῥαψῳδὸς γνώσεται κάλλιον ἢ ὁ κυβερνήτης;
SocratesDo you mean that the rhapsode will know better than the ship’s pilot what the one in command should say when his ship is caught in a storm at sea?
Ionοὔκ, ἀλλὰ ὁ κυβερνήτης τοῦτό γε.
IonNo, the pilot will know that, at any rate.
Socratesἀλλʼ ὁποῖα ἄρχοντι κάμνοντος πρέπει εἰπεῖν, ὁ ῥαψῳδὸς γνώσεται κάλλιον ἢ ὁ ἰατρός;
SocratesWell, will the rhapsode know better than the doctor what the one in charge of a sick person should say?
Ionοὐδὲ τοῦτο.
IonNot that either.
Socratesἀλλʼ οἷα δούλῳ πρέπει, λέγεις;
SocratesBut you mean what’s fitting for a slave?
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesοἷον βουκόλῳ λέγεις δούλῳ ἃ πρέπει εἰπεῖν ἀγριαινουσῶν βοῶν παραμυθουμένῳ, ὁ ῥαψῳδὸς γνώσεται ἀλλʼ οὐχ ὁ βουκόλος;
SocratesFor instance, what a slave who herds cattle should say to calm his cows when they’re getting wild—you mean the rhapsode will know that, and not the cowherd?
Ionοὐ δῆτα.
IonCertainly not.
Socratesἀλλʼ οἷα γυναικὶ πρέποντά ἐστιν εἰπεῖν ταλασιουργῷ περὶ ἐρίων 540d ἐργασίας;
SocratesWell, what’s fitting for a woman who spins wool to say about working 540d the wool?
Socratesἀλλʼ οἷα ἀνδρὶ πρέπει εἰπεῖν γνώσεται στρατηγῷ στρατιώταις παραινοῦντι;
SocratesWell, will he know what’s fitting for a man to say when he’s a general encouraging his soldiers?
Ionναί, τὰ τοιαῦτα γνώσεται ὁ ῥαψῳδός.
IonYes, that’s the sort of thing the rhapsode will know.
Socratesτί δέ; ἡ ῥαψῳδικὴ τέχνη στρατηγική ἐστιν;
SocratesWhat? Is the rhapsode’s art the art of generalship?
IonΓνοίην γοῦν ἂν ἔγωγε οἷα στρατηγὸν πρέπει εἰπεῖν.
IonWell, I certainly would know what’s fitting for a general to say.
Socratesἴσως γὰρ εἶ καὶ στρατηγικός, ὦ Ἴων. καὶ γὰρ εἰ ἐτύγχανες ἱππικὸς ὢν ἅμα καὶ κιθαριστικός, ἔγνως ἂν ἵππους 540e εὖ καὶ κακῶς ἱππαζομένους· ἀλλʼ εἴ σʼ ἐγὼ ἠρόμην· “ποτέρᾳ δὴ τέχνῃ, ὦ Ἴων, γιγνώσκεις τοὺς εὖ ἱππαζομένους ἵππους; ᾗ ἱππεὺς εἶ ἢ ᾗ κιθαριστής;” τί ἄν μοι ἀπεκρίνω;
SocratesMaybe that’s because you’re a general too, Ion. After all, if you happened to be a horseman and a lyre-player at once, you’d know horses 540e that were well ridden and badly ridden. But if I asked you, “By which art, Ion, do you know the horses that are well ridden—the one that makes you a horseman, or the one that makes you a lyre-player?” what would you answer me?
Socratesοὐκοῦν εἰ καὶ τοὺς εὖ κιθαρίζοντας διεγίγνωσκες, ὡμολόγεις ἄν, ᾗ κιθαριστὴς εἶ, ταύτῃ διαγιγνώσκειν, ἀλλʼ οὐχ ᾗ ἱππεύς.
SocratesAnd if you could also tell the good lyre-players apart, you’d agree that you did it by the art that makes you a lyre-player, and not by the one that makes you a horseman.
Ionναί.
IonYes.
Socratesἐπειδὴ δὲ τὰ στρατιωτικὰ γιγνώσκεις, πότερον ᾗ στρατηγικὸς εἶ γιγνώσκεις ἢ ᾗ ῥαψῳδὸς ἀγαθός;
SocratesAnd since you know military matters, do you know them because you’re a general, or because you’re a good rhapsode?
Ionοὐδὲν ἔμοιγε δοκεῖ διαφέρειν.
IonI don’t think there’s any difference.
Socratesπῶς; οὐδὲν λέγεις διαφέρειν; μίαν λέγεις τέχνην εἶναι τὴν ῥαψῳδικὴν καὶ τὴν στρατηγικὴν ἢ δύο;
SocratesWhat? You say there’s no difference? Are you saying that the rhapsode’s art and the general’s are one art, or two?
Ionμία ἔμοιγε δοκεῖ.
IonOne, I think.
Socratesὅστις ἄρα ἀγαθὸς ῥαψῳδός ἐστιν, οὗτος καὶ ἀγαθὸς στρατηγὸς τυγχάνει ὤν;
SocratesSo whoever is a good rhapsode turns out to be a good general as well?
Ionμάλιστα, ὦ Σώκρατες.
IonAbsolutely, Socrates.
Socratesοὐκοῦν καὶ ὅστις ἀγαθὸς στρατηγὸς τυγχάνει ὤν, ἀγαθὸς καὶ ῥαψῳδός ἐστιν.
SocratesThen whoever turns out to be a good general is a good rhapsode as well.
Ionοὐκ αὖ μοι δοκεῖ τοῦτο.
IonNo, that I don’t think.
Socratesἀλλʼ ἐκεῖνο μὴν δοκεῖ σοι, ὅστις γε ἀγαθὸς 541b ῥαψῳδός, καὶ στρατηγὸς ἀγαθὸς εἶναι;
SocratesBut you do think the other way round: that whoever is a good 541b rhapsode is also a good general?
Socratesοὐκοῦν σὺ τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἄριστος ῥαψῳδὸς εἶ;
SocratesAnd you’re the best rhapsode in Greece?
Ionπολύ γε, ὦ Σώκρατες.
IonBy far, Socrates.
Socratesἦ καὶ στρατηγός, ὦ Ἴων, τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἄριστος εἶ;
SocratesAre you also the best general in Greece, Ion?
Ionεὖ ἴσθι, ὦ Σώκρατες· καὶ ταῦτά γε ἐκ τῶν Ὁμήρου μαθών.
IonYou can be sure of it, Socrates. And I learned that, too, from Homer’s poems.
Socratesτί δή ποτʼ οὖν πρὸς τῶν θεῶν, ὦ Ἴων, ἀμφότερα ἄριστος ὢν τῶν Ἑλλήνων, καὶ στρατηγὸς καὶ ῥαψῳδός, ῥαψῳδεῖς μὲν περιιὼν τοῖς Ἕλλησι, στρατηγεῖς δʼ οὔ; ἢ 541c ῥαψῳδοῦ μὲν δοκεῖ σοι χρυσῷ στεφάνῳ ἐστεφανωμένου πολλὴ χρεία εἶναι τοῖς Ἕλλησι, στρατηγοῦ δὲ οὐδεμία;
SocratesThen why in the gods’ name, Ion, if you’re the best in Greece at both, as general and as rhapsode, do you go around Greece performing as a rhapsode, but not leading armies as a general? Or 541c do you think the Greeks have great need of a rhapsode crowned with a golden crown, but none at all of a general?
Ionἡ μὲν γὰρ ἡμετέρα, ὦ Σώκρατες, πόλις ἄρχεται ὑπὸ ὑμῶν καὶ στρατηγεῖται καὶ οὐδὲν δεῖται στρατηγοῦ, ἡ δὲ ὑμετέρα καὶ ἡ Λακεδαιμονίων οὐκ ἄν με ἕλοιτο στρατηγόν· αὐτοὶ γὰρ οἴεσθε ἱκανοὶ εἶναι.
IonBecause my city, Socrates, is ruled by you Athenians, and its armies are led by you, so it has no need of a general. And your city and Sparta wouldn’t choose me as general: you think you’re capable enough yourselves.
Socratesὦ βέλτιστε Ἴων, Ἀπολλόδωρον οὐ γιγνώσκεις τὸν Κυζικηνόν;
SocratesMy excellent Ion, don’t you know Apollodorus of Cyzicus?
Ionποῖον τοῦτον;
IonWho’s he?
Socratesὃν Ἀθηναῖοι πολλάκις ἑαυτῶν στρατηγὸν ᾕρηνται 541d ξένον ὄντα· καὶ Φανοσθένη τὸν Ἄνδριον καὶ Ἡρακλείδην τὸν Κλαζομένιον, οὓς ἥδε ἡ πόλις ξένους ὄντας, ἐνδειξαμένους ὅτι ἄξιοι λόγου εἰσί, καὶ εἰς στρατηγίας καὶ εἰς τὰς ἄλλας ἀρχὰς ἄγει· Ἴωνα δʼ ἄρα τὸν Ἐφέσιον οὐχ αἱρήσεται στρατηγὸν καὶ τιμήσει, ἐὰν δοκῇ ἄξιος λόγου εἶναι; τί δέ; οὐκ Ἀθηναῖοι μέν ἐστε οἱ Ἐφέσιοι τὸ ἀρχαῖον, καὶ ἡ Ἔφεσος 541e οὐδεμιᾶς ἐλάττων πόλεως;
SocratesA man the Athenians have often chosen as their general 541d though he’s a foreigner. And there are Phanosthenes of Andros and Heraclides of Clazomenae: foreigners though they are, this city promotes them to generalships and the other offices, once they’ve shown they’re men of some account. And Ion of Ephesus, then—won’t it choose him as general and honor him, if he seems a man of some account? Besides, aren’t you Ephesians Athenians by descent, and isn’t Ephesus 541e second to no city?
Dishonest or divine
Socrates gives Ion a choice: be a man who does wrong, or a man inspired by the gods.
ἀλλὰ γὰρ σύ, ὦ Ἴων, εἰ μὲν ἀληθῆ λέγεις ὡς τέχνῃ καὶ ἐπιστήμῃ οἷός τε εἶ Ὅμηρον ἐπαινεῖν, ἀδικεῖς, ὅστις ἐμοὶ ὑποσχόμενος ὡς πολλὰ καὶ καλὰ περὶ Ὁμήρου ἐπίστασαι καὶ φάσκων ἐπιδείξειν, ἐξαπατᾷς με καὶ πολλοῦ δεῖς ἐπιδεῖξαι, ὅς γε οὐδὲ ἅττα ἐστὶ ταῦτα περὶ ὧν δεινὸς εἶ ἐθέλεις εἰπεῖν, πάλαι ἐμοῦ λιπαροῦντος, ἀλλʼ ἀτεχνῶς ὥσπερ ὁ Πρωτεὺς παντοδαπὸς γίγνῃ στρεφόμενος ἄνω καὶ κάτω, ἕως τελευτῶν διαφυγών με στρατηγὸς ἀνεφάνης, 542a ἵνα μὴ ἐπιδείξῃς ὡς δεινὸς εἶ τὴν περὶ Ὁμήρου σοφίαν. εἰ μὲν οὖν τεχνικὸς ὤν, ὅπερ νυνδὴ ἔλεγον, περὶ Ὁμήρου ὑποσχόμενος ἐπιδείξειν ἐξαπατᾷς με, ἄδικος εἶ· εἰ δὲ μὴ τεχνικὸς εἶ, ἀλλὰ θείᾳ μοίρᾳ κατεχόμενος ἐξ Ὁμήρου μηδὲν εἰδὼς πολλὰ καὶ καλὰ λέγεις περὶ τοῦ ποιητοῦ, ὥσπερ ἐγὼ εἶπον περὶ σοῦ, οὐδὲν ἀδικεῖς.
But the fact is, Ion, if you’re telling the truth that it’s by art and knowledge that you’re able to praise Homer, then you’re doing me wrong. You promised me that you knew many fine things about Homer, and claimed you’d show me, and now you’re deceiving me and are far from showing me anything. You aren’t even willing to tell me what the subjects are that you’re so clever about, though I’ve been begging you all this time. Instead, exactly like Proteus, you take on every shape, twisting this way and that, until in the end you slip away from me by turning up as a general, 542a so as not to show how clever you are in your wisdom about Homer. Now if you are a master of an art and, as I was just saying, are deceiving me after promising a display about Homer, then you’re unjust. But if you’re not a master of an art, but say many fine things about the poet while knowing nothing, because you are possessed by Homer through divine dispensation—as I said of you—then you’re doing no wrong.
ἑλοῦ οὖν πότερα βούλει νομίζεσθαι ὑπὸ ἡμῶν ἄδικος ἀνὴρ εἶναι ἢ θεῖος.
So choose: would you rather we thought you an unjust man, or a divine one?
Ionπολὺ διαφέρει, ὦ Σώκρατες· πολὺ γὰρ κάλλιον τὸ θεῖον νομίζεσθαι.
IonThere’s a big difference, Socrates. It’s much finer to be thought divine.
Socratesτοῦτο τοίνυν τὸ κάλλιον ὑπάρχει σοι παρʼ ἡμῖν, ὦ Ἴων, θεῖον εἶναι καὶ μὴ τεχνικὸν περὶ Ὁμήρου ἐπαινέτην.
SocratesThen that finer title is yours in our eyes, Ion: to be a divine praiser of Homer, and not a master of an art.