登陆注册
15427600000020

第20章 BOOK II(9)

Cle.To be sure,I remember.

Ath.And did we not say that the sense of harmony and rhythm sprang from this beginning among men,and that Apollo and the Muses and Dionysus were the Gods whom we had to thank for them?

Cle.Certainly.

Ath.The other story implied that wine was given man out of revenge,and in order to make him mad;but our present doctrine,on the contrary,is,that wine was given him as a balm,and in order to implant modesty in the soul,and health and strength in the body.

Cle.That,Stranger,is precisely what was said.

Ath.Then half the subject may now be considered to have been discussed;shall we proceed to the consideration of the other half?

Cle.What is the other half,and how do you divide the subject?

Ath.The whole choral art is also in our view the whole of education;and of this art,rhythms and harmonies form the part which has to do with the voice.

Cle.Yes.

Ath.The movement of the body has rhythm in common with the movement of the voice,but gesture is peculiar to it,whereas song is simply the movement of the voice.

Cle.Most true.

Ath.And the sound of the voice which reaches and educates the soul,we have ventured to term music.

Cle.We were right.

Ath.And the movement of the body,when regarded as an amusement,we termed dancing;but when extended and pursued with a view to the excellence of the body,this scientific training may be called gymnastic.

Cle.Exactly.

Ath.Music,which was one half of the choral art,may be said to have been completely discussed.Shall we proceed to the other half or not?What would you like?

Cle.My good friend,when you are talking with a Cretan and Lacedaemonian,and we have discussed music and not gymnastic,what answer are either of us likely to make to such an enquiry?

Ath.An answer is contained in your question;and I understand and accept what you say not only as an answer,but also as a command to proceed with gymnastic.

Cle.You quite understand me;do as you say.

Ath.I will;and there will not be any difficulty in speaking intelligibly to you about a subject with which both of you are far more familiar than with music.

Cle.There will not.

Ath.Is not the origin of gymnastics,too,to be sought in the tendency to rapid motion which exists in all animals;man,as we were saying,having attained the sense of rhythm,created and invented dancing;and melody arousing and awakening rhythm,both united formed the choral art?

Cle.Very true.

Ath.And one part of this subject has been already discussed by us,and there still remains another to be discussed?

Cle.Exactly.

Ath.I have first a final word to add to my discourse about drink,if you will allow me to do so.

Cle.What more have you to say?

Ath.I should say that if a city seriously means to adopt the practice of drinking under due regulation and with a view to the enforcement of temperance,and in like manner,and on the same principle,will allow of other pleasures,designing to gain the victory over them in this way all of them may be used.But if the State makes drinking an amusement only,and whoever likes may drink whenever he likes,and with whom he likes,and add to this any other indulgences,I shall never agree or allow that this city or this man should practise drinking.I would go further than the Cretans and Lacedaemonians,and am disposed rather to the law of the Carthaginians,that no one while he is on a campaign should be allowed to taste wine at all,but that he should drink water during all that time,and that in the city no slave,male or female,should ever drink wine;and that no magistrates should drink during their year of office,nor should pilots of vessels or judges while on duty taste wine at all,nor any one who is going to hold a consultation about any matter of importance;nor in the daytime at all,unless in consequence of exercise or as medicine;nor again at night,when any one,either man or woman,is minded to get children.There are numberless other cases also in which those who have good sense and good laws ought not to drink wine,so that if what I say is true,no city will need many vineyards.Their husbandry and their way of life in general will follow an appointed order,and their cultivation of the vine will be the most limited and the least common of their employments.And this,Stranger,shall be the crown of my discourse about wine,if you agree.

Cle.Excellent:we agree.

同类推荐
  • New Poems

    New Poems

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 行次汉上

    行次汉上

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • The King's Jackal

    The King's Jackal

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 秋灯琐忆

    秋灯琐忆

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 海岳名言

    海岳名言

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
热门推荐
  • 动漫之大神

    动漫之大神

    新人开书,觉得不好看不要骂,觉得好看的就收藏下。俺只想写自己的小说,李阳穿越,在火影,黑子的篮球,进击的巨人,龙珠,网王等动漫世界中“流浪”,是在每个世界中成为“超神”的存在,还是………要俺们来看看李阳是成长吧,还是宅男……
  • 逆天组合:傲娇王爷嚣张妃

    逆天组合:傲娇王爷嚣张妃

    她,是21世纪的顶尖杀手,杀人不眨眼;却因一次意外而穿越到了一个怯懦小姐身上。他,是个战神王爷,雷厉风行,杀伐果断。本来这命里最不可能有牵连的二人,却意外地走在了一起。当铁血王爷变成了温柔妻奴,当顶尖杀手变成听话小乖妻,他们的生活,开始了各种蜜糖:“璃儿,你一点也不漂亮”某男淡淡地说,“什么?!”“因为你最漂亮啊!”“…………”
  • 反派萌萌哒:男神请下榻

    反派萌萌哒:男神请下榻

    作为书中一个万年不变的反派小姐,身兼给主角送经验,下绊子,刷仇恨值的重任,价值用完最后抱的骨灰归——不对打住,这不是她的人生!扭转自己的命运,原作者滚一边去吧!夺了主角的外挂?主角你能奈我何?收了主角的小弟?我是反派我做主!抢了主角的后宫?抱歉美男我睡了先。成神,斩魔,一步步踏上巅峰,主角光环通通再见。只是不知道什么时候开始,她发现明明应该在主角旁边献殷勤的大反派开始成天在她面前晃悠,时不时刷一刷存在感,幡然醒悟时,她……已然被大反派拆吃入腹。“君无恙,说好的三天一次呢?!”某人欺身而上:“我自有分寸。”boss心满意足,却收获了自家娇妻的无数白眼。扶眠:一定是我打开反派的姿势不对!我要退货!
  • 重生之汝封情

    重生之汝封情

    楚莫卿九死一生为爱人诞下皇子,却怎么也想不到那一天就是她的忌日。掏心掏肺的爱情,换来的是利用和杀害,启用秘术,换来重生,新的外貌、新的一切只为旧的仇恨。你为了这皇位不惜手段,那她就算是毁天灭地也要把它夺来!只是……没想到,会遇上他。能否多给一点时间,让她重新学会爱。
  • 楼小楼传奇

    楼小楼传奇

    恩怨难消,情恩难却,思愁无尽,有死无生。难走世间江湖路,难测诡谲江湖心。可是,就有这样一个人,向问一百个人问他,就会有一百种答案。他叫楼小楼,小楼昨夜又东风的小楼,他喜欢自己这个名字。除了名字,他喜欢的东西还很多,美景、美人、当然也少不了美酒,可惜他不会喝酒,也不是不会喝,只是酒量差得很。一个爱酒却酒量差的人,早晚要出事。楼小楼又喝醉了,好运这次显然没有再跟着他,他不仅输掉了平生至乐之事,还丢了个朋友,多了门亲事,惹上两个女人,还到了个不该去的地方。若是平常人碰到这些,那一定头疼的要死,说不定也早就死了。
  • 剩女穿越:冷王的替身妃

    剩女穿越:冷王的替身妃

    卓清清三十岁那天,相恋十年的男友结婚了。可新娘不是她,酒醉之后她恍惚中与一男子洞房花烛,清醒了却发现来到了古代的王府,而那冷淡的男人发现新娘换了人,气愤之下将卓清清赶出了王府,只是他们的纠缠远没有这么容易就结束……
  • 天齐仁圣帝君

    天齐仁圣帝君

    他是赤天子火鸟凤凰投胎,施家嫡长子,继承麒麟血,凭借玄天残卷名扬天下,威震阴阳。他是僵尸的噩梦,他是魑魅魍魉的终结者,他是妖魔鬼怪的死敌,更是人类的守护神,灵异小说尽在天齐仁圣帝君
  • 江山谋:绝品女医

    江山谋:绝品女医

    权利追逐的风云中,古千灵食指指天:“我一定要做天下第一女医!”出山第一天,正是皇朝谋权颠覆之日,遇到个萌萌哒的落难皇子还不完,又机缘巧合碰上温柔衷心的王爷。从此以后,她的生活再也不能平静。高台之上的王者,俯身看着她:“成为朕的妃,从今以后朕只听你一个人的话。”温柔的笑迷醉了她的心:“阿灵,从今以后我就是你的人了。”君臣之别,爱情对错,扑朔迷离的身份,却不知那一笑究为何人……
  • 重生之吕氏娇娇

    重生之吕氏娇娇

    吕妍受尽苦难,终于爬上魏王侧妃的位置,却不想在魏王夺位成功的时候,下的第一道圣旨诛吕氏九族,赐吕侧妃毒酒。重生回来的吕妍开始步步为营,有仇报仇有怨报怨。--情节虚构,请勿模仿
  • 煞魂之刃

    煞魂之刃

    一位全大陆上唯一拥有蓝发的少年,一位全大陆唯一拥有复刻能力的少年,本想静静地度过自己漫长的人生,但却被卷入了一个关乎世界未来的风波。