nides, but apparently only with the intention of flattering him
into absurdities. First a distinction is drawn between (Greek) to be,
and (Greek) to become: to become good is difficult; to be good is easy.
Then the word difficult or hard is explained to mean 'evil' in the Cean
dialect. To all this Prodicus assents; but when Protagoras reclaims,
Socrates slily withdraws Prodicus from the fray, under the pretence that
his assent was only intended to test the wits of his adversary. He then
proceeds to give another and more elaborate explanation of the whole
passage. The explanation is as follows:--

The Lacedaemonians are great philosophers (although this is a fact which
is not generally known); and the soul of their philosophy is brevity,
which was also the style of primitive antiquity and of the seven sages.
Now Pittacus had a saying, 'Hard is it to be good:' and Simonides, who
was jealous of the fame of this saying, wrote a poem which was designed
to controvert it. No, says he, Pittacus; not 'hard to be good,' but
'hard to become good.' Socrates proceeds to argue in a highly impressive
manner that the whole composition is intended as an attack upon
Pittacus. This, though manifestly absurd, is accepted by the company,
and meets with the special approval of Hippias, who has however a
favourite interpretation of his own, which he is requested by Alcibiades
to defer.

The argument is now resumed, not without some disdainful remarks of
Socrates on the practice of introducing the poets, who ought not to be
allowed, any more than flute-girls, to come into good society. Men's
own thoughts should supply them with the materials for discussion. A few
soothing flatteries are addressed to Protagoras by Callias and Socrates,
and then the old question is repeated, 'Whether the virtues are one or
many?' To which Protagoras is now disposed to reply, that four out of
the five virtues are in some degree similar; but he still contends that
the fifth, courage, is unlike the rest. Socrates proceeds to undermine
the last stronghold of the adversary, first obtaining from him the
admission that all virtue is in the highest degree good:--

The courageous are the confident; and the confident are those who know
their business or profession: those who have no such knowledge and
are still confident are madmen. This is admitted. Then, says Socrates,
courage is knowledge--an inference which Protagoras evades by drawing a
futile distinction between t