(16) L. Dindorf (brackets) this passage as spurious. (17) On the principle "enough is as good as a feast," {arkountos}. IV A belief is current, in accordance with views maintained concerning Socrates in speech and writing, and in either case conjecturally, that, however powerful he may have been in stimulating men to virtue as a theorist, he was incapable of acting as their guide himself. (1) It would be well for those who adopt this view to weigh carefully not only what Socrates effected "by way of castigation" in cross-questioning whose who conceived themselves to be possessed of all knowledge, but also his everyday conversation with those who spent their time in close intercourse with himself. Having done this, let them decide whether he was incapable of making his companions better. (1) Al. "If any one believes that Socrates, as represented in certain dialogues (e.g. of Plato, Antisthenes, etc.) of an imaginary character, was an adept ({protrepsasthai}) in the art of stimulating people to virtue negatively but scarcely the man to guide ({proagein}) his hearers on the true path himself." Cf. (Plat.) "Clitophon," 410 B; Cic. "de Or." I. xlvii. 204; Plut. "Mor." 798 B. See Grote, "Plato," iii. 21; K. Joel, op. cit. p. 51 foll.; Cf. below, IV. iii. 2. I will first state what I once heard fall from his lips in a discussion with Aristodemus, (2) "the little," as he was called, on the topic of divinity. (3) Socrates had observed that Aristodemus neither sacrificed nor gave heed to divination, but on the contrary was disposed to ridicule those who did. (2) See Plat. "Symp." 173 B: "He was a little fellow who never wore any shoes, Aristodemus, of the deme of Cydathenaeum."--Jowett. (3) Or, "the divine element." So tell me, Aristodemus (he began), are there any human beings who have won your admiration for their wisdom? Ar. There are. Soc. Would you mention to us their names? Ar. In the writings of epic poetry I have the greatest admiration for Homer.... And as a dithyrambic poet for Melanippides. (4) I admire also Sophocles as a tragedian, Polycleitus as a sculptor, and Zeuxis as a painter. (4) Melanippides, 430 B.C. See Cobet, "Pros. Xen." s.n. Soc. Which would you consider the more worthy of admiration, a fashioner of senseless images devoid of motion or one who could fashion living creatures endowed with understanding and activity? Ar. Decidedly the latter, provided his living creatures owed their birth to design and were not the offspring of some chance. Soc. But now if you had two sorts of things, the one of which presents no clue as to what it is for, and the other is obviously for some useful purpose--which would you judge to be the result of chance, which of design? Ar. Clearly that which is produced for some useful end is the work of design.