Chapter 10 Volume Two, Chapter Three

Socrates, hearing the quarrel between the two brothers Harifon and Harekrates, persuaded Harekrates to have brotherhood by the following argument.A brother should be regarded as a friend, and valued more than riches, v. 1.Because the bearer of wealth has no friends, wealth is a treacherous thing, §2,3.Brotherly love is ordained by nature: he who has brothers is more esteemed than he who has no brothers, v. 4.We should endeavor to reconcile with our brother, even if he has ill feelings against us, v. 5-9.How such a settlement can be made successful, §§ 10-14.The younger brother should be more diligent in reconciliation than the older brother, and the nobler the brother's character, the easier it will be to reconcile with him, v. 15-17.Brethren should work together with one another, as members of the same body, v. 18, 19.

Socrates sees Halifon and Halikrates, two brothers he knew well, at odds with each other.When meeting Harai Krates, Socrates said to him, "Harai Krates, I think you must not be a person who values ​​wealth more than brothers, right? Wealth is an unconscious thing , brethren are sentient, wealth needs protection, and brethren can provide protection, and besides, riches are many, but brethren are but one. It is strange that a man should regard a brethren as a People who are harmful to themselves, but he does not think that the people of the same country are harmful to him because he cannot get the property of the same country, but when he is in the latter situation, he can infer like this: Living with many people in a society Here, it is better to be safe and well-to-do than to own the property of the whole nation and live alone in danger and terror, but they do not think so of their brethren. Also, those who are powerful buy slaves to fight with them. Work together, make friends so that they can help them in time of need, but don't value their brothers, as if all people in the whole country can be friends, but brothers can't, in fact, born of the same parents, brought up together, It should be more conducive to the development of friendship, for there is friendship even among animals bred together. Apart from these considerations, people always respect more and hurt less when they have brothers. They." Harekrates answered, "Socrates, if our differences were not great, perhaps I should be patient with my brother, and not allow little things to separate us; for as you say Yes, a brother is a precious inheritance, if what a brother does is really so. But if what a brother does is not so, but just the opposite, why demand the impossible?"

"Haracrates," asked Socrates, "does everyone, like you, think Harifon is a nuisance? Do some people think he is very nice?" "Ah, Socrates," answered Harekrates, "that is why I hate him: he is very friendly to others, but to me, whenever he comes to me, No matter what you say or do, there is always no help but only harm." "Then, is it not the case?" said Socrates to him, "that if you try to ride a horse without knowing what to do with it, it will do you harm, and so will a brother. If you Does not know how to treat a brother and he hurts you?"

Harekrates replied, "When someone speaks kindly to me, I know how to respond kindly; when someone does me kindly, I know how to return him kindly; why don't I know how to respond to my brother? But there's no way I can speak well of someone who just wants to hurt me with words and actions, and I can't treat him well, and I'm not going to try to do that." "Haracrates," said Socrates, "you speak strangely. One of your dogs shows you the sheep and wags its tail at your shepherd, but when you approach it it snarls. You cry out, but you do not get angry with it, but tame it with kindness; and as for your brother, though you admit that if he does his part, it will do you great good, though you admit that you You know how to treat him with good words and good deeds, but you don't even try to make him the best for you."

Haraicrates said, "Socrates, I am afraid I do not have the wisdom to make Harifon good to me". "But I think," replied Socrates, "that it is not necessary to treat him in any particular novel way, but to win him over to you by means which you already know." "If you see any magical powers in me that I don't know, please tell me first!" said Harekrates. "Then please tell me," Socrates said, "if you want someone you know to invite you to dinner when he sacrifices, what should you do?" "Of course, I will invite him to dinner first when I offer sacrifices."

"What would you do if you wanted to convince a friend to do the housework for you while you were away?" "Of course, I will first take care of his housework for him when he goes out." "What should you do if you want to make a foreign friend treat you well when you visit his country?" "Obviously, when he comes to Athens, I will treat him well first and foremost. And if I want him to be kind and help me with what I have to do in his country, I should treat him likewise first. .” "It seems that you have all kinds of magical powers, but you have been hiding them all the time. Are you afraid?" Socrates continued, "If you first show your kindness to your brother in this way, you will be rewarded." Lose your own identity? However, people think that those who are the first to attack the enemy and the first to do favor to the friend deserve the greatest praise. Therefore, if I think that Haraifeng can express this kind of expression first If I had been in the mood, I would have persuaded him to be the first to show you this friendship, but as things stand now, things have a better chance of success if you take the lead first."

Harekrates said, "Socrates, you speak so unreasonably, I did not expect you to say such a thing; I am a younger brother, but you want me to take the lead, and the general opinion is contrary to this, no matter When speaking and acting, the elders should take the lead.” "Why," asked Socrates, "is it not the general custom everywhere that when a young man and an old man meet on the road, the young man should always give way first? The elders give up their seats, give up the soft seats to the elders, and let the elders speak first when they speak? So, my good friend, do not hesitate, try to reconcile with your brother, he will soon obey you Don't you see that he is a very honorable and frank man? A vile man, you can win his favor by giving him something. But with a respectable sage, the best way to convince him is The best way is to treat each other with kindness."

"What if I don't get good results if I follow your method?" Haraikrates asked. "In that case, you run the risk of proving that you are a righteous and brotherly man and that he is a mean and unworthy man, but I am sure that will not happen, because I think that as soon as he finds out that you are competing with him in this respect, he will definitely surpass your kindness in words and deeds with an extremely competitive mood. According to the current situation, the two of you Human beings are like two hands, which were originally created by gods to help each other, but they neglect their own duties and hinder each other; they are like two feet, which were originally created by gods to cooperate with each other, but they have given up on this Wouldn’t it be great folly and misfortune to use what was created for our own good to our own detriment by becoming awkward with one another? In fact, it seems to me that God created brothers to help each other more than Hands, feet, eyes, or other paired limbs are much more beneficial to people; because the hands cannot do things at the same time that are not separated by a support length; , although it seems to be able to see very far, but if two things are very close, one is in front and the other is behind, they cannot be seen at the same time; only brothers, as long as they love each other, no matter how far they are, they can be of the same mind. Work together and help each other."