“A simple thing enough; just what is commonly said, that a man should be temperate and master of himself, and ruler of his own pleasures and passions.”
- Source
- Gorgias
- Date
- 4th century BCE
- Local voice
- Dialogue speaker · Socrates
Meaning of “A simple thing enough; just what is commonly…”
Socrates describes moderation as governing one’s own appetite and impulses rather than merely exercising power over other people. Callicles immediately challenges this view and praises satisfying desires without restraint. The passage is an argument in a dispute about happiness and the good life, not modern evidence about psychology or a claim that feelings should be suppressed.
Where does it come from?
Plato, Gorgias, approximately Stephanus 491d–e, Socrates answering Callicles’s question about ruling oneself. Callicles promptly disputes the value of temperance. Full sentence in Benjamin Jowett’s English translation, Project Gutenberg #1672, within the Gorgias dialogue proper (not Jowett’s introductory essay). Socrates is the local dramatic speaker; the line is not Plato’s autobiographical speech. An ancient ethical argument, not experimental mental-health evidence.
Why the local voice matters
Plato, Gorgias 491d–e, in Benjamin Jowett English, Gutenberg #1672. Socrates answers Callicles; Callicles disputes moderation immediately afterwards. Not Plato autobiography or modern psychology.
