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ψυχὴ ἀγαθὴ -- βέλτιστον. No very recondite theory of the relation of body and soul is here involved. Plato simply means that the soul has more power over the body than the body over the soul. (The restriction in ὡς οἷόν τε should be noted.) On this principle some doctors held that to cure the body one should minister to the mind diseased: see the curious passage in Charm. 156 B—157 C. The general sentiment is well illustrated by J. and C. from Democr. Fr. Mor. 128 (Müllach) ἀνθρώποισι ἁρμόδιον ψυχῆς μᾶλλον ἢ σώματος ποιέεσθαι λόγον: ψυχὴ μὲν γὰρ τελεωτάτη σκήνεος μοχθηρίην ὀρθοῖ, σκήνεος δὲ ἰσχὺς ἄνευ λογισμοῦ ψυχὴν οὐδέν τι ἀμείνω ποιεῖ.
The Republic of Plato. James Adam. 1902. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press.
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