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Plato - The
Dialogues
(The Legend of
Atlantis)
The Critias
Written ca. 360
B.C.
Translated by Benjamin
Jowett
-
-
- Persons of the Dialogue
-
- CRITIAS
- HERMOCRATES
- TIMAEUS
- SOCRATES
Timaeus. How thankful I am, Socrates, that I have arrived at last,
and, like a
weary traveller after a long journey, may be at rest! And I pray the being
who
always was of old, and has now been by me revealed, to grant that my words
may endure in so far as they have been spoken truly and acceptably to him;
but
if unintentionally I have said anything wrong, I pray that he will impose
upon
me a just retribution, and the just retribution of him who errs is that he
should
be set right. Wishing, then, to speak truly in future concerning the
generation of
the gods, I pray him to give me knowledge, which of all medicines is the
most
perfect and best. And now having offered my prayer I deliver up the
argument
to Critias, who is to speak next according to our agreement.
Critias. And I, Timaeus, accept the trust, and as you at first said
that you were
going to speak of high matters, and begged that some forbearance might be
shown to you, I too ask the same or greater forbearance for what I am
about to
say. And although I very well know that my request may appear to be
somewhat and discourteous, I must make it nevertheless. For will any man
of
sense deny that you have spoken well? I can only attempt to show that I
ought
to have more indulgence than you, because my theme is more difficult; and
I
shall argue that to seem to speak well of the gods to men is far easier
than to
speak well of men to men: for the inexperience and utter ignorance of his
hearers about any subject is a great assistance to him who has to speak of
it, and
we know how ignorant we are concerning the gods. But I should like to make
my meaning clearer, if Timaeus, you will follow me. All that is said by
any of
us can only be imitation and representation. For if we consider the
likenesses
which painters make of bodies divine and heavenly, and the different
degrees of
gratification with which the eye of the spectator receives them, we shall
see that
we are satisfied with the artist who is able in any degree to imitate the
earth and
its mountains, and the rivers, and the woods, and the universe, and the
things
that are and move therein, and further, that knowing nothing precise about
such
matters, we do not examine or analyze the painting; all that is required
is a sort
of indistinct and deceptive mode of shadowing them forth. But when a
person
endeavours to paint the human form we are quick at finding out defects,
and our
familiar knowledge makes us severe judges of any one who does not render
every point of similarity. And we may observe the same thing to happen in
discourse; we are satisfied with a picture of divine and heavenly things
which
has very little likeness to them; but we are more precise in our criticism
of
mortal and human things. Wherefore if at the moment of speaking I cannot
suitably express my meaning, you must excuse me, considering that to form
approved likenesses of human things is the reverse of easy. This is what I
want
to suggest to you, and at the same time to beg, Socrates, that I may have
not
less, but more indulgence conceded to me in what I am about to say. Which
favour, if I am right in asking, I hope that you will be ready to grant.
Socrates. Certainly, Critias, we will grant your request, and we
will grant the
same by anticipation to Hermocrates, as well as to you and Timaeus; for I
have
no doubt that when his turn comes a little while hence, he will make the
same
request which you have made. In order, then, that he may provide himself
with
a fresh beginning, and not be compelled to say the same things over again,
let
him understand that the indulgence is already extended by anticipation to
him.
And now, friend Critias, I will announce to you the judgment of the
theatre.
They are of opinion that the last performer was wonderfully successful,
and that
you will need a great deal of indulgence before you will be able to take
his place.
Hermocrates. The warning, Socrates, which you have addressed to
him, I
must also take to myself. But remember, Critias, that faint heart never
yet raised
a trophy; and therefore you must go and attack the argument like a man.
First
invoke Apollo and the Muses, and then let us hear you sound the praises
and
show forth the virtues of your ancient citizens.
Crit. Friend Hermocrates, you, who are stationed last and have
another in front
of you, have not lost heart as yet; the gravity of the situation will soon
be
revealed to you; meanwhile I accept your exhortations and encouragements.
But
besides the gods and goddesses whom you have mentioned, I would specially
invoke Mnemosyne; for all the important part of my discourse is dependent
on
her favour, and if I can recollect and recite enough of what was said by
the
priests and brought hither by Solon, I doubt not that I shall satisfy the
requirements of this theatre. And now, making no more excuses, I will
proceed.
Let me begin by observing first of all, that nine thousand was the sum of
years
which had elapsed since the war which was said to have taken place between
those who dwelt outside the Pillars of Heracles and all who dwelt within
them;
this war I am going to describe. Of the combatants on the one side, the
city of
Athens was reported to have been the leader and to have fought out the
war; the
combatants on the other side were commanded by the kings of Atlantis,
which,
as was saying, was an island greater in extent than Libya and Asia, and
when
afterwards sunk by an earthquake, became an impassable barrier of mud to
voyagers sailing from hence to any part of the ocean. The progress of the
history will unfold the various nations of barbarians and families of
Hellenes
which then existed, as they successively appear on the scene; but I must
describe first of all Athenians of that day, and their enemies who fought
with
them, and then the respective powers and governments of the two kingdoms.
Let us give the precedence to Athens.
In the days of old the gods had the whole earth distributed among them by
allotment. There was no quarrelling; for you cannot rightly suppose that
the
gods did not know what was proper for each of them to have, or, knowing
this,
that they would seek to procure for themselves by contention that which
more
properly belonged to others. They all of them by just apportionment
obtained
what they wanted, and peopled their own districts; and when they had
peopled
them they tended us, their nurselings and possessions, as shepherds tend
their
flocks, excepting only that they did not use blows or bodily force, as
shepherds
do, but governed us like pilots from the stern of the vessel, which is an
easy
way of guiding animals, holding our souls by the rudder of persuasion
according to their own pleasure;-thus did they guide all mortal creatures.
Now
different gods had their allotments in different places which they set in
order.
Hephaestus and Athene, who were brother and sister, and sprang from the
same father, having a common nature, and being united also in the love of
philosophy and art, both obtained as their common portion this land, which
was
naturally adapted for wisdom and virtue; and there they implanted brave
children of the soil, and put into their minds the order of government;
their
names are preserved, but their actions have disappeared by reason of the
destruction of those who received the tradition, and the lapse of ages.
For when
there were any survivors, as I have already said, they were men who dwelt
in
the mountains; and they were ignorant of the art of writing, and had heard
only
the names of the chiefs of the land, but very little about their actions.
The names
they were willing enough to give to their children; but the virtues and
the laws
of their predecessors, they knew only by obscure traditions; and as they
themselves and their children lacked for many generations the necessaries
of
life, they directed their attention to the supply of their wants, and of
them they
conversed, to the neglect of events that had happened in times long past;
for
mythology and the enquiry into antiquity are first introduced into cities
when
they begin to have leisure, and when they see that the necessaries of life
have
already been provided, but not before. And this is reason why the names of
the
ancients have been preserved to us and not their actions. This I infer
because
Solon said that the priests in their narrative of that war mentioned most
of the
names which are recorded prior to the time of Theseus, such as Cecrops,
and
Erechtheus, and Erichthonius, and Erysichthon, and the names of the women
in
like manner. Moreover, since military pursuits were then common to men and
women, the men of those days in accordance with the custom of the time set
up
a figure and image of the goddess in full armour, to be a testimony that
all
animals which associate together, male as well as female, may, if they
please,
practise in common the virtue which belongs to them without distinction of
sex.
Now the country was inhabited in those days by various classes of
citizens;-there were artisans, and there were husbandmen, and there was
also a
warrior class originally set apart by divine men. The latter dwelt by
themselves,
and had all things suitable for nurture and education; neither had any of
them
anything of their own, but they regarded all that they had as common
property;
nor did they claim to receive of the other citizens anything more than
their
necessary food. And they practised all the pursuits which we yesterday
described as those of our imaginary guardians. Concerning the country the
Egyptian priests said what is not only probable but manifestly true, that
the
boundaries were in those days fixed by the Isthmus, and that in the
direction of
the continent they extended as far as the heights of Cithaeron and Parnes;
the
boundary line came down in the direction of the sea, having the district
of
Oropus on the right, and with the river Asopus as the limit on the left.
The land
was the best in the world, and was therefore able in those days to support
a vast
army, raised from the surrounding people. Even the remnant of Attica which
now exists may compare with any region in the world for the variety and
excellence of its fruits and the suitableness of its pastures to every
sort of
animal, which proves what I am saying; but in those days the country was
fair
as now and yielded far more abundant produce. How shall I establish my
words? and what part of it can be truly called a remnant of the land that
then
was? The whole country is only a long promontory extending far into the
sea
away from the rest of the continent, while the surrounding basin of the
sea is
everywhere deep in the neighbourhood of the shore. Many great deluges have
taken place during the nine thousand years, for that is the number of
years
which have elapsed since the time of which I am speaking; and during all
this
time and through so many changes, there has never been any considerable
accumulation of the soil coming down from the mountains, as in other
places,
but the earth has fallen away all round and sunk out of sight. The
consequence
is, that in comparison of what then was, there are remaining only the
bones of
the wasted body, as they may be called, as in the case of small islands,
all the
richer and softer parts of the soil having fallen away, and the mere
skeleton of
the land being left. But in the primitive state of the country, its
mountains were
high hills covered with soil, and the plains, as they are termed by us, of
Phelleus
were full of rich earth, and there was abundance of wood in the mountains.
Of
this last the traces still remain, for although some of the mountains now
only
afford sustenance to bees, not so very long ago there were still to be
seen roofs
of timber cut from trees growing there, which were of a size sufficient to
cover
the largest houses; and there were many other high trees, cultivated by
man and
bearing abundance of food for cattle. Moreover, the land reaped the
benefit of
the annual rainfall, not as now losing the water which flows off the bare
earth
into the sea, but, having an abundant supply in all places, and receiving
it into
herself and treasuring it up in the close clay soil, it let off into the
hollows the
streams which it absorbed from the heights, providing everywhere abundant
fountains and rivers, of which there may still be observed sacred
memorials in
places where fountains once existed; and this proves the truth of what I
am
saying.
Such was the natural state of the country, which was cultivated, as we may
well
believe, by true husbandmen, who made husbandry their business, and were
lovers of honour, and of a noble nature, and had a soil the best in the
world, and
abundance of water, and in the heaven above an excellently attempered
climate.
Now the city in those days was arranged on this wise. In the first place
the
Acropolis was not as now. For the fact is that a single night of excessive
rain
washed away the earth and laid bare the rock; at the same time there were
earthquakes, and then occurred the extraordinary inundation, which was the
third before the great destruction of Deucalion. But in primitive times
the hill of
the Acropolis extended to the Eridanus and Ilissus, and included the Pnyx
on
one side, and the Lycabettus as a boundary on the opposite side to the
Pnyx, and
was all well covered with soil, and level at the top, except in one or two
places.
Outside the Acropolis and under the sides of the hill there dwelt
artisans, and
such of the husbandmen as were tilling the ground near; the warrior class
dwelt
by themselves around the temples of Athene and Hephaestus at the summit,
which moreover they had enclosed with a single fence like the garden of a
single house. On the north side they had dwellings in common and had
erected
halls for dining in winter, and had all the buildings which they needed
for their
common life, besides temples, but there was no adorning of them with gold
and
silver, for they made no use of these for any purpose; they took a middle
course
between meanness and ostentation, and built modest houses in which they
and
their children's children grew old, and they handed them down to others
who
were like themselves, always the same. But in summer-time they left their
gardens and gymnasia and dining halls, and then the southern side of the
hill
was made use of by them for the same purpose. Where the Acropolis now is
there was a fountain, which was choked by the earthquake, and has left
only the
few small streams which still exist in the vicinity, but in those days the
fountain
gave an abundant supply of water for all and of suitable temperature in
summer
and in winter. This is how they dwelt, being the guardians of their own
citizens
and the leaders of the Hellenes, who were their willing followers. And
they took
care to preserve the same number of men and women through all time, being
so
many as were required for warlike purposes, then as now-that is to say,
about
twenty thousand. Such were the ancient Athenians, and after this manner
they
righteously administered their own land and the rest of Hellas; they were
renowned all over Europe and Asia for the beauty of their persons and for
the
many virtues of their souls, and of all men who lived in those days they
were
the most illustrious. And next, if I have not forgotten what I heard when
I was a
child, I will impart to you the character and origin of their adversaries.
For
friends should not keep their stories to themselves, but have them in
common.
Yet, before proceeding further in the narrative, I ought to warn you, that
you
must not be surprised if you should perhaps hear Hellenic names given to
foreigners. I will tell you the reason of this: Solon, who was intending
to use the
tale for his poem, enquired into the meaning of the names, and found that
the
early Egyptians in writing them down had translated them into their own
language, and he recovered the meaning of the several names and when
copying
them out again translated them into our language. My great-grandfather,
Dropides, had the original writing, which is still in my possession, and
was
carefully studied by me when I was a child. Therefore if you hear names
such
as are used in this country, you must not be surprised, for I have told
how they
came to be introduced. The tale, which was of great length, began as
follows:-
I have before remarked in speaking of the allotments of the gods, that
they
distributed the whole earth into portions differing in extent, and made
for
themselves temples and instituted sacrifices. And Poseidon, receiving for
his lot
the island of Atlantis, begat children by a mortal woman, and settled them
in a
part of the island, which I will describe. Looking towards the sea, but in
the
centre of the whole island, there was a plain which is said to have been
the
fairest of all plains and very fertile. Near the plain again, and also in
the centre of
the island at a distance of about fifty stadia, there was a mountain not
very high
on any side.
In this mountain there dwelt one of the earth born primeval men of that
country,
whose name was Evenor, and he had a wife named Leucippe, and they had an