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5. The Principle of Gratitude
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Socrates. "And was that our agreement with you?" the law |
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would say; "or were you to abide by the sentence of the |
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State?" And if I were to express astonishment at their saying |
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this, the law would probably add: "Answer, Socrates,
instead |
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of opening your eyes: you are in the habit of asking and |
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answering questions. Tell us what complaint you have to |
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Greek Child
Rhode Island School of Design
The Perseus Project
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make against us which justifies you in attempting to destroy us |
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and the State? In the first place did we not bring you into |
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existence? Your father married your mother by our aid and |
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begat you. Say whether you have any objection to urge against |
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| 50e |
those of us who regulate marriage?" None, I should reply. "Or |
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against those of us who regulate the system of nurture and |
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education of children in which you were trained? Were not the |
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laws, who have the charge of this, right in commanding your |
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father to train you in music and gymnastic?" Right, I should |
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reply. "Well, then, since you were brought into the world and |
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nurtured and educated by us, can you deny in the first place |
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that you are our child and slave, as your fathers were before |
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you? And if this is true you are not on equal terms with us; nor |
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can you think that you have a right to do to us what we are |
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| 51a |
doing to you. Would you have any right to strike or revile or |
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do any other evil to a father or to your master, if you had one, |
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when you have been struck or reviled by him, or received some |
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other evil at his hands? -- you would not say this? And |
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because we think right to destroy you, do you think that you |
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have any right to destroy us in return, and your country as |
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far as in you lies? And will you, O professor of true virtue, say |
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that you are justified in this? Has a philosopher like you failed |
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to discover that our country is more to be valued and higher |
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and holier far than mother or father or any ancestor, and more |
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to be regarded in the eyes of the gods and of men of |
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understanding? also to be soothed, and gently and reverently |
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entreated when angry, even more than a father, and if not |
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persuaded, obeyed? And when we are punished by her, |
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whether with imprisonment or stripes, the punishment is to be |
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endured in silence; and if she leads us to wounds or death in |
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battle, thither we follow as is right; neither may anyone yield |
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or retreat or leave his rank, but whether in battle or in a court |
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of law, or in any other place, he must do what his city and his |
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country order him; or he must change their view of what is |
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just: and if he may do no violence to his father or mother, shall |
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much less may he do violence to his country." What answer |
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we make to this, Crito? Do the laws speak truly, or do they
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not? |
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Crito. I think that they do. |
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