Ath.In the first place,let us speak of the laws about music-that is to say,such music as then existed-in order that we may trace the growth of the excess of freedom from the beginning.Now music was early divided among us into certain kinds and manners.One sort consisted of prayers to the Gods,which were called hymns;and there was another and opposite sort called lamentations,and another termed paeans,and another,celebrating the birth of Dionysus,called,I believe,"dithyrambs."And they used the actual word "laws,"or nomoi,for another kind of song;and to this they added the term "citharoedic."All these and others were duly distinguished,nor were the performers allowed to confuse one style of music with another.And the authority which determined and gave judgment,and punished the disobedient,was not expressed in a hiss,nor in the most unmusical shouts of the multitude,as in our days,nor in applause and clapping of hands.But the directors of public instruction insisted that the spectators should listen in silence to the end;and boys and their tutors,and the multitude in general,were kept quiet by a hint from a stick.Such was the good order which the multitude were willing to observe;they would never have dared to give judgment by noisy cries.And then,as time went on,the poets themselves introduced the reign of vulgar and lawless innovation.They were men of genius,but they had no perception of what is just and lawful in music;raging like Bacchanals and possessed with inordinate delights-mingling lamentations with hymns,and paeans with dithyrambs;imitating the sounds of the flute on the lyre,and making one general confusion;ignorantly affirming that music has no truth,and,whether good or bad,can only be judged of rightly by the pleasure of the hearer.And by composing such licentious works,and adding to them words as licentious,they have inspired the multitude with lawlessness and boldness,and made them fancy that they can judge for themselves about melody and song.And in this way the theatres from being mute have become vocal,as though they had understanding of good and bad in music and poetry;and instead of an aristocracy,an evil sort of theatrocracy has grown up.For if the democracy which judged had only consisted of educated persons,no fatal harm would have been done;but in music there first arose the universal conceit of omniscience and general lawlessness;-freedom came following afterwards,and men,fancying that they knew what they did not know,had no longer any fear,and the absence of fear begets shamelessness.For what is this shamelessness,which is so evil a thing,but the insolent refusal to regard the opinion of the better by reason of an over-daring sort of liberty?
Meg.Very true.
Ath.Consequent upon this freedom comes the other freedom,of disobedience to rulers;and then the attempt to escape the control and exhortation of father,mother,elders,and when near the end,the control of the laws also;and at the very end there is the contempt of oaths and pledges,and no regard at all for the Gods-herein they exhibit and imitate the old so called Titanic nature,and come to the same point as the Titans when they rebelled against God,leading a life of endless evils.But why have I said all this?I ask,because the argument ought to be pulled up from time to time,and not be allowed to run away,but held with bit and bridle,and then we shall not,as the proverb says,fall off our ass.Let us then once more ask the question,To what end has all this been said?
Meg.Very good.
Ath.This,then,has been said for the sake-
Meg.Of what?
Ath.We were maintaining that the lawgiver ought to have three things in view:first,that the city for which he legislates should be free;and secondly,be at unity with herself;and thirdly,should have understanding;-these were our principles,were they not?
Meg.Certainly.
Ath.With a view to this we selected two kinds of government,the despotic,and the other the most free;and now we are considering which of them is the right form:we took a mean in both cases,of despotism in the one,and of liberty in the other,and we saw that in a mean they attained their perfection;but that when they were carried to the extreme of either,slavery or licence,neither party were the gainers.
Meg.Very true.
Ath.And that was our reason for considering the settlement of the Dorian army,and of the city built by Dardanus at the foot of the mountains,and the removal of cities to the seashore,and of our mention of the first men,who were the survivors of the deluge.And all that was previously said about music and drinking,and what preceded,was said with the view of seeing how a state might be best administered,and how an individual might best order his own life.And now,Megillus and Cleinias,how can we put to the proof the value of our words?
Cle.Stranger,I think that I see how a proof of their value may be obtained.This discussion of ours appears to me to have been singularly fortunate,and just what I at this moment want;most auspiciously have you and my friend Megillus come in my way.For Iwill tell you what has happened to me;and I regard the coincidence as a sort of omen.The greater part of Crete is going to send out a colony,and they have entrusted the management of the affair to the Cnosians;and the Cnosian government to me and nine others.And they desire us to give them any laws which we please,whether taken from the Cretan model or from any other;and they do not mind about their being foreign if they are better.Grant me then this favour,which will also be a gain to yourselves:-Let us make a selection from what has been said,and then let us imagine a State of which we will suppose ourselves to be the original founders.Thus we shall proceed with our enquiry,and,at the same time,I may have the use of the framework which you are constructing,for the city which is in contemplation.
Ath.Good news,Cleinias;if Megillus has no objection,you may be sure that I will do all in my power to please you.
Cle.Thank you.
Meg.And so will I.
Cle.Excellent;and now let us begin to frame the State.