285 292
285
SOCRATES RESEMBLES THESE CICADAS A LOT, WHICH ARE ENTHUSED WITH SINGING... LIKE THEM, SOCRATES DEDI-
CATES HIMSELF TO MUSIC, NOT CARING ABOUT ITS WRITTEN INSCRIPTION.
(LE TOMBEAU DE LA CIGALE 54)
[258]
ΣΩ. σχολὴ μὲν δή, ὡς ἔοικε: καὶ ἅμα μοι δοκοῦσιν ὡς ἐν τῷ
πνίγει ὑπὲρ κεφαλῆς ἡμῶν οἱ τέττιγες ᾁδοντες καὶ
[259α]
ἀλλήλοις
διαλεγόμενοι καθορᾶν καὶ ἡμᾶς. εἰ οὖν ἴδοιεν καὶ νὼ καθάπερ
τοὺς πολλοὺς ἐν μεσημβρίᾳ μὴ διαλεγομένους ἀλλὰ νυστάζοντας
καὶ κηλουμένους ὑφ᾽ αὑτῶν δι᾽ ἀργίαν τῆς διανοίας, δικαίως ἂν
καταγελῷεν, ἡγούμενοι ἀνδράποδ᾽ ἄττα σφίσιν ἐλθόντα εἰς τὸ
καταγώγιον ὥσπερ προβάτια μεσημβριάζοντα περὶ τὴν κρήνην
εὕδειν: ἐὰν δὲ ὁρῶσι διαλεγομένους καὶ παραπλέοντάς σφας
ὥσπερ Σειρῆνας
[259β]
ἀκηλήτους, ὃ γέρας παρὰ θεῶν ἔχουσιν
ἀνθρώποις διδόναι, τάχ᾽ ἂν δοῖεν ἀγασθέντες.
ΦΑΙ. ἔχουσι δὲ δὴ τί τοῦτο; ἀνήκοος γάρ, ὡς ἔοικε, τυγχάνω ὤν.
ΣΩ. οὐ μὲν δὴ πρέπει γε φιλόμουσον ἄνδρα τῶν τοιούτων
ἀνήκοον εἶναι. λέγεται δ᾽ ὥς ποτ᾽ ἦσαν οὗτοι ἄνθρωποι τῶν πρὶν
μούσας γεγονέναι, γενομένων δὲ Μουσῶν καὶ φανείσης ᾠδῆς
οὕτως ἄρα τινὲς τῶν τότε ἐξεπλάγησαν ὑφ᾽ ἡδονῆς,
[259ξ]
ὥστε
ᾁδοντες ἠμέλησαν σίτων τε καὶ ποτῶν, καὶ ἔλαθον τελευτήσαντες
αὑτούς: ἐξ ὧν τὸ τεττίγων γένος μετ᾽ ἐκεῖνο φύεται, γέρας τοῦτο
παρὰ Μουσῶν λαβόν, μηδὲν τροφῆς δεῖσθαι γενόμενον, ἀλλ᾽
ἄσιτόν τε καὶ ἄποτον εὐθὺς ᾁδειν, ἕως ἂν τελευτήσῃ, καὶ μετὰ
ταῦτα ἐλθὸν παρὰ μούσας ἀπαγγέλλειν τίς τίνα αὐτῶν τιμᾷ τῶν
ἐνθάδε. Τερψιχόρᾳ μὲν οὖν τοὺς ἐν τοῖς χοροῖς τετιμηκότας
αὐτὴν ἀπαγγέλλοντες
[259δ]
ποιοῦσι προσφιλεστέρους, τῇ δὲ
Ἐρατοῖ τοὺς ἐν τοῖς ἐρωτικοῖς, καὶ ταῖς ἄλλαις οὕτως, κατὰ τὸ
εἶδος ἑκάστης τιμῆς: τῇ δὲ πρεσβυτάτῃ Καλλιόπῃ καὶ τῇ μετ᾽
αὐτὴν Οὐρανίᾳ τοὺς ἐν φιλοσοφίᾳ... διάγοντάς τε καὶ τιμῶντας
τὴν ἐκείνων μουσικὴν ἀγγέλλουσιν, αἳ δὴ μάλιστα τῶν Μουσῶν
περί τε οὐρανὸν καὶ λόγους οὖσαι θείους τε καὶ ἀνθρωπίνους
ἱᾶσιν καλλίστην φωνήν. πολλῶν δὴ οὖν ἕνεκα λεκτέον τι καὶ οὐ
καθευδητέον ἐν τῇ μεσημβρίᾳ.
SOCRATES: And it is leisure time, it seems.
And then, I think the cicadas singing in the
noonday heat over our head, if they saw us
doing what most people do, not conversing in
themiddle of the day but, instead, being sleepy
and subcumbing to their enchantment out of
our mental laziness, they would be right to
mock us, taking us for be some slaves who’ve
come to this resting place like sheep at noon,
to sleep by the spring. But if they see us con-
versing and passing them by as if they were
the Sirens, sailing on impervious, then, out
of admiration, they might award us, the prize
they have from the gods to give to humans.
charmed
#
unaffected
κηλ-έω: A.
charm, bewitch, beguile
,
esp. by music, “κηλῶν τῇ φωνῇ ὥσπερ
Ὀρφεύς” Id.Prt.315a,
charm by incantation
ἀκήλητος, ον: A.
proof against enchant-
ment
, Od.10.329 (dub. vers.), Pl.Phdr.259b
PHAEDRUS: Have they such a thing, really?
Because, I don’t seem to have heard of it.
SOCRATES: But it’s not right for a man who
loves the muses to not have heard of such
things. So, then, it is said that, before the
Muses turned up, cicadas were human beings
and when the Muses were born and singing
came into being, some of the humans were
so surprised by the pleasure of it, that they
neglected to take food and drink for the sake
of singing and before they knew it, they were
dead. From these people originated the genus
of the cicadas who received this gift from the
Muses, to not need to eat from the moment
they are born but, rather, to start singing
straight away with no food or drink until they
die and, afterwards, they go to the Muses and
announce which of the mortals here honors
which one among them. So, by announcing
to Terpsichore those who honor her through
dances, they render themmore dear to her, to
Erato, thosewhohonor her through love songs
and similarly with the rest of them, those who
render the honor suitable to each. And to the
greatest one, Calliope and the one after her,
Urania, they announce those who philoso-
phise and honor the musical art, because out
of the Muses they are the ones who are most
taken up with the Heavens and the divine and
human speeches, and with who has the best
voice. For many reasons, then, we ought to be
saying something at noon and not fall asleep.
BY HERA, THIS HERE IS A FINΕ RESTING SPOT, FOR THE PLANE TREE IS SWARTHY AND TALL, AND THE HEIGHT
AND SHADE OF THE WICKER ARE JUST RIGHT, AND BEING IN THE MIDDLE OF ITS BLOOMING SEASON, IT FILLS
THE PLACE WITH FRAGRANCE. THE SPRING, TOO, UNDER THE PLANE TREE IS CHARMING AND THE WATER
FLOWS PLENTIFUL AND COLD IF YOU DIP YOUR FOOT IN IT. AND IF YOU WANT ME TO (230ξ) SAY MORE, HOW
DEAR AND UNBELIEVABLY SWEET THE LOCAL BREEZE: WITH A CLEAR AND SUMMERY SOUND IT ACCOMPA-
NIES THE CHORUS OF THE CICADAS. SMARTER, HOWEVER, THAN ALL THE REST IS THE GRASS FOR IT HAS
GROWN AT A SLIGHT ANGLE IDEALLY SUITED FOR RESTING ONE’S HEAD WHILE LYING DOWN.
[230Β]
ΠΛΑΤΩΝ: ΦΑΙΔΡΟΣ