Lettres attribuées à Platon Passage 338

ὁ μὲν γὰρ δὴ πρῶτος χρόνος τῆς ἐν Σικελίᾳ διατριβῆς μοι διεπεράνθη, καθάπερ εἶπον, πρὶν συμβουλεύειν τοῖς οἰκείοις καὶ ἑταίροις τοῖς περὶ Δίωνα· τὸ μετʼ ἐκεῖνα δʼ οὖν ἔπεισα ὅπῃ δή ποτʼ ἐδυνάμην Διονύσιον ἀφεῖναί με, εἰρήνης δὲ γενομένης - ἦν γὰρ τότε πόλεμος ἐν Σικελίᾳ - συνωμολογήσαμεν ἀμφότεροι. Διονύσιος μὲν ἔφη μεταπέμψεσθαι Δίωνα καὶ ἐμὲ πάλιν, καταστησάμενος τὰ περὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀσφαλέστερον ἑαυτῷ, Δίωνα δὲ ἠξίου διανοεῖσθαι μὴ φυγὴν αὑτῷ γεγονέναι τότε, μετάστασιν δέ· ἐγὼ δʼ ἥξειν ὡμολόγησα ἐπὶ τούτοις τοῖς λόγοις. γενομένης δὲ εἰρήνης, μετεπέμπετό με, Δίωνα δὲ ἐπισχεῖν ἔτι ἐνιαυτὸν ἐδεῖτο, ἐμὲ δὲ ἥκειν ἐκ παντὸς τρόπου ἠξίου. δίων μὲν οὖν ἐκέλευέ τέ με πλεῖν καὶ ἐδεῖτο· καὶ γὰρ δὴ λόγος ἐχώρει πολὺς ἐκ Σικελίας ὡς Διονύσιος θαυμαστῶς φιλοσοφίας ἐν ἐπιθυμίᾳ πάλιν εἴη γεγονὼς τὰ νῦν· ὅθεν ὁ δίων συντεταμένως ἐδεῖτο ἡμῶν τῇ μεταπέμψει μὴ ἀπειθεῖν. ἐγὼ δὲ ᾔδη μέν που κατὰ τὴν φιλοσοφίαν τοῖς νέοις πολλὰ τοιαῦτα γιγνόμενα, ὅμως δʼ οὖν ἀσφαλέστερόν μοι ἔδοξεν χαίρειν τότε γε πολλὰ καὶ Δίωνα καὶ Διονύσιον ἐᾶν, καὶ ἀπηχθόμην ἀμφοῖν ἀποκρινάμενος ὅτι γέρων τε εἴην καὶ κατὰ τὰς ὁμολογίας οὐδὲν γίγνοιτο τῶν τὰ νῦν πραττομένων. ἔοικεν δὴ τὸ μετὰ τοῦτο Ἀρχύτης τε παρὰ Διονύσιον πρὶν ἀφικέσθαι - ἐγὼ γὰρ πρὶν ἀπιέναι ξενίαν καὶ φιλίαν Ἀρχύτῃ καὶ τοῖς ἐν Τάραντι καὶ Διονυσίῳ ποιήσας ἀπέπλεον - ἄλλοι τέ τινες ἐν Συρακούσαις ἦσαν Δίωνός τε ἄττα διακηκοότες καὶ τούτων τινὲς ἄλλοι, παρακουσμάτων τινῶν ἔμμεστοι τῶν κατὰ φιλοσοφίαν· οἳ δοκοῦσί μοι Διονυσίῳ πειρᾶσθαι διαλέγεσθαι τῶν περὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα, ὡς Διονυσίου πάντα διακηκοότος ὅσα διενοούμην ἐγώ. ὁ δὲ οὔτε ἄλλως ἐστὶν ἀφυὴς πρὸς τὴν τοῦ μανθάνειν δύναμιν φιλότιμός τε θαυμαστῶς· ἤρεσκέν τε οὖν ἴσως αὐτῷ τὰ λεγόμενα ᾐσχύνετό τε φανερὸς γιγνόμενος οὐδὲν ἀκηκοὼς ὅτʼ ἐπεδήμουν ἐγώ, ὅθεν ἅμα μὲν εἰς ἐπιθυμίαν ᾔει τοῦ διακοῦσαι ἐναργέστερον, ἅμα δʼ ἡ φιλοτιμία κατήπειγεν αὐτόν - διʼ ἃ δὲ οὐκ ἤκουσεν ἐν τῇ πρόσθεν ἐπιδημίᾳ, διεξήλθομεν ἐν τοῖς ἄνω ῥηθεῖσιν νυνδὴ λόγοις -

For (as I said) I had completed my account of the first period of my stay in Sicily before I gave my counsel to the intimates and companions of Dion . What happened next was this: I urged Dionysius by all means possible to let me go, and we both made a compact that when peace was concluded (for at that time there was war in Sicily ) Dionysius, for his part, should invite Dion and me back again, as soon as he had made his own power more secure; and he asked Dion to regard the position he was now in not as a form of exile but rather as a change of abode; and I gave a promise that upon these conditions I would return. When peace was made he kept sending for me; but he asked Dion to wait still another year, although he kept demanding most insistently that I should come. Dion , then, kept urging and entreating me to make the voyage; for in truth constant accounts were pouring in from Sicily how Dionysius was now once more marvellously enamored of philosophy; and for this reason Dion was strenuously urging me not to disobey his summons. I was of course well aware that such things often happen to the young in regard to philosophy; but none the less I deemed it safer, at least for the time, to give a wide berth both to Dion and Dionysius, and I angered them both by replying that I was an old man and that none of the steps which were now being taken were in accordance with our compact. Now it seems that after this Archytas arrived at the court of Dionysius; for when I sailed away, I had, before my departure, effected a friendly alliance between Archytas and the Tarentines and Dionysius; and there were certain others in Syracuse who had had some teaching from Dion , and others again who had been taught by these, men who were stuffed with some borrowed philosophical doctrines. These men, I believe, tried to discuss these subjects with Dionysius, on the assumption that Dionysius was thoroughly instructed in all my system of thought. Now besides being naturally gifted otherwise with a capacity for learning Dionysius has an extraordinary love of glory. Probably, then, he was pleased with what was said and was ashamed of having it known that he had no lessons while I was in the country; and in consequence of this he was seized with a desire to hear my doctrines more explicitly, while at the same time he was spurred on by his love of glory: and we have already explained, in the account we gave a moment ago, the reasons why he had not been a hearer of mine during my previous sojourn.

[338a] en Sicile s’écoulèrent comme je vous l’ai dit plus haut. Alors je fis tous mes efforts pour engager Denys à me laisser partir, et nous convînmes que quand la paix serait faite, car alors la guerre tourmentait la Sicile, et quand il aurait raffermi son pouvoir, il rappellerait Dion et moi auprès de lui : il voulait que Dion [338b] regardât son éloignement non pas comme un exil, mais comme un simple voyage. Je promis de revenir à ces conditions. Quand la paix fut conclue, Denys me rappela ; mais en pressant mon retour, il priait Dion de différer le sien d’une année. Dion me conjura, m’ordonna même de partir sans délai : car le bruit était venu de Sicile que Denys s’était enflammé de nouveau d’un amour merveilleux pour la philosophie ; et, à cette nouvelle Dion me pressait de ne point retarder mon départ. Je savais bien [338c] que la philosophie cause souvent aux jeunes gens de ces sortes de passions ; je crus plus prudent de n’écouter ni Dion, ni Denys ; et les mécontentai tous deux en leur répondant que j’étais trop vieux, et que d’ailleurs on n’avait point observé les conventions. Il paraît qu’à cette époque, Archytas se rendit auprès de Denys ; car, avant mon départ, je lui avais procuré à lui, ainsi qu’à plusieurs autres philosophes tarentins, l’amitié [338d] et l’hospitalité de Denys. Il y avait aussi, à Syracuse des hommes qui avaient quelquefois entendu Dion, et d’autres qui avaient quelques connaissances philosophiques. Il semble que ces gens-là essayèrent de discuter sur ces matières avec Denys, comme s’il eût bien entendu tous mes principes. Lui, qui ne manquait pas de pénétration et était rempli d’amour-propre, trouva quelque plaisir à ces entretiens et craignit de paraître n’avoir point [338e] compris ce que je lui disais quand j’étais auprès de lui. De là le désir de mieux connaître ma philosophie, et l’ambition enflamma ce désir, j’ai rapporté plus haut les causes qui l’avaient empêché de profiter de mes leçons à mon premier voyage. Aussi lorsqu’après mon heureux retour dans ma patrie je refusai pour la seconde fois de me rendre auprès de lui, comme vous le savez, son amour-propre lui fit craindre que mon refus n’eût l’air du mépris,