A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

392 PLATO. PLATO.
corrupt persons of his age; for he is charged by PLATO (FITAcrwv), the philosopher.
Dio Chrysostom with vituperation (Orat. xxxiii.
p. 4, Reiske), a curious charge truly to bring I. LIFE OF PLATO.
against a professed satirist! Among the chief The spirit of Plato is expressed in his works in
objects of his attacks were the demagogues Cleon, a manner the more lively and personal in proporHyperbolus, Cleophon, and Agyrrhius, the dithy- tion to the intimacy with which art and science
rmunbic poet Cinesias, the general Leagrus, and the are blended in them. And yet of the history of
orators Cephalus and Archinus; for, like Aristo- his life and education we have only very unsatisphanes, he esteemed the art of rhetoric one of factory accounts. He mentions his own name
the worst sources of mischief to the common- only twice (I'haedon, p. 59, b., Apolog. p. 58, b.),
wealth. and then it is for the purpose of indicating the
The mutual attacks of Plato and Aristophanes close relation in which he stood to Socrates; and,
must be taken as a proof of the real respect in passing, he speaks of his brothers, Adeimantus
which they felt for each other's talents. As an and Glaucon, as sons of Ariston (de Rep. i. p. 327,
example of one of these attacks, Plato, like Eu- comp. Xenoph. Alenz. iii. 6; Diog. Laert. iii. 4).*
polis, cast great ridicule upon Aristophanes's The writer of the dialogues retires completely behind
colossal image of Peace. (Schlol. Plat. p. 331, Socrates, who conducts the investigations in them.
Bekker.) Moreover Plato's friends and disciples, as Speusippus
Plato seems to have been one of the most dili- in his eulogium (Diog. LaUrt. iii. 2, with the note of
gent of the old comic poets. The number of his Menage; Plut. Queaest. Synzpos. viii. 2, &c.), appear
dramas is stated at 28 by the anonymous writer to have communicated only some few biographical
on Comedy (p. xxxiv.), and by Suidas, who, how- particulars respecting their great teacher; and
ever, proceeds to enumerate 30 titles. Of these, Alexandrian scholars seem to have filled up these
the AdccwvFs and Mdgauait,0os were only editions accounts from sources which are, to a great extent,
of the same play, which reduces the number to untrustworthy. Even Aristoxenus, the disciple of
29. There is, however, one to be added, which Aristotle, must have proceeded in a very careless
is not mentioned by Suidas, the'Ayx)idpieos. The manner in his notices respecting Plato, when he
following is the list of Suidas, as corrected by made him take part in the battles at Tanagra, B. C.
Meineke: WA3wvyl, Ai dq' ~Epclv,'Apcpiidpews 426, and Delillm, B. c. 424. (Diog. Labrt. iii. 8;
(Schol. ad Aristoph. Plut. 174), rpO~res, AaeLaXos, comp. Aelian, V. HI. ii. 30.)'EAXds 7i No'ot,i'EopTat, Etipo7r7, Zevs KaicovUEeos, Plato is said to have been the son of Ariston'Ilx, KAeho(pw, Adios, AdlcovEs W' Ioiotir'ai (second and Perictione or Potone, and to have been born
edition, MapadtcvOos), MeVhAecW, M-reoaKo, M'p- at Athens on the 7th day of the month Thargelion
Fackes (of this there are no fragments), NKal, (21st May), 01. 87. 2, B. c. 430; or, according to
NOt gaosKpd, _dvrplat i' KEpecores, lai3apo,, Ile- the statement of Apollodorus, which we find conoav3pos, Ilepiahky's, roInTrrae, Ilp'o'g:es, Kcvai, firmed in various ways, in 01. 88. 1, B. c. 428, that is,
ZodprtoTar; Zv. yaXia, -Vp(paS,'Trf'pgoAos, a' cuv. in the (Olympic) year in which Pericles died; acThe following-dates of his plays are known: the cording to others, he was born in the neighbouring
Cleophon gained the third prize in 01. 93. 4, B. C. island of Aegina. (Diog. Laert. iii. 1, 3; comp. v. 9,
405, when Aristophanes was first with the Frogs, iii. 2, 3; Corsini, Fast. - ttici, iii. 230; Clinton, Fasti
and Phrynichus second with the Muses; the Hell. sub anno 429, &c.) His paternal family
Phason was exhibited in 01. 97. 2, B. c. 391 (Schol. boasted of being descended from Codrus; his maie Aristoph. Plut. 179); the Peisander about 01. ternal ancestors of a relationship with Solon (Diog.
89, B. c. 423; the Perialges a little later; the Laert. iii. 1.) Plato mentions the relationship of
Hyperbolus about 01. 91, B. c. 415; the Presbeis Critias, his maternal uncle, with Solon. (Clharnm.
about 01. 97, a.c. 392. The Laius seems to p. 155, 159. Comp. Tim. 20.) Originally, we are
have been one of the latest of his plays. told, he was named after his grandfather Aristocles,
It has been already stated that some gramma- but in consequence of the fluency of his speech, or,
rians assign Plato to the Middle Comedy; and it as others have it, the breadth of his chest, he acis evident that several of the above titles belong to quired that name under which alone we know him.
that species. Some even mention Plato as a poet (Diog. Lagrt. iii. 4; Vita Platonis, p. 6, b; Tychsen,
of the New Comedy. (Athen. iii. p. 103, c., vii. Bibliothek der allen Literatur und Kunst, v.) Acp. 279, a.) Hence a few modern scholars have cording to one story, of which Speusippus (see
supposed a second Plato, a poet of the New Co- above) had already made mention, he was the son
medy, who lived after Epicurus. But Diogenes of Apollo; another related that bees settled upon
Laertius only mentions one comic poet of the the lips of the sleeping child. (Cic. deDivin. i. 36.)
name, and there is no good evidence that there He is also said to have contended, when a youth,
was any other. The ancient grammarians also in the Isthmian and other games, as well as to
frequently make a confusion, in their references, have made attempts in epic, lyric, and dithyrambic
between Plato, the comic poet, and Plato the phi- poetry, and not to have devoted himself to philolosopher. (Meineke, Fraq. Corn. Graec. vol. i. sophy till later, probably after Socrates had drawn
pp. 160-196, vol. ii. pp 615-697; Editio Mi- him within the magic circle of his influence. (Diog.
nor, 1847, 1 vol. in 2 pts. 8vo., pp. 357-401; Lairt. iii. 4, 5; Aelian. V. H. ii. 30; Plat. Epist.
Bergk, Comment. de Reliq. Corn. Att. Ant. lib. ii. vi.) His love for Polymnia had brightened into
c. 6, pp. 381, &c.; C. G. Cobet, Observationes Cri- love for the muse Urania (Plat. Symp. 187). Plato
ticae in Platonis Comnici Reliquias, Amst. 1840,
8vo.) * An older pair of brothers of the same name,
Several other literary persons of this name are mentioned in the Parmenides, p. 126, appear to
mentioned by Fabricius (Bibl. Graec. vol. iii. p. 57, belong to a previous generation of the family. See
note), but none of them are of sufficient import- Hermann, in the Allgemeine Schulzeitun7g, 1831.
ance to require mention here. [P. S.] ii. p. 653.