On Hipparchus by Plato
Hipparchus is a lesser known work of Plato, probably due to it being so short as well as controversial in its authenticity.
Nonetheless, the work is a crucial piece of literature in understanding the morality of economic gain.
Hipparchus begins with Socrates asking his Comrade, “What is love of profit? What can it be, and who are the lovers of profit?”
In response, the Comrade asserts his main argument against the idea that profit can be moral by stating that economic gain relies on the selling of worthless commodities and breeds greed in all lovers of profit.
Socrates, immediately observing the absurdness of the argument, responds with a couple of examples to refute the first assertion: “…take a horseman who knows that he is providing worthless food for his horse; do you suppose he is unaware that he is destroying his horse?” or “take a navigator who has furnished his ship with worthless spars and ropes; do you think he is unaware that he will suffer for it, and will be in danger of being lost himself, and of losing the ship and all her cargo?”
A business owner is not incentivized to bring a worthless commodity to the market, for no sane individual will purchase the commodity.
The business owner will naturally act in a way that is beneficial to himself or the business, and to achieve that, he must appeal to the masses.
However, even the most absurd of commodities that might not seem appealing to one, are appealing to many.
Secondly, Socrates disagrees that all profit lovers are greedy by saying, “Now, of course lovers of profit must love profit… And by profit you mean the opposite of loss?… And is it a good thing for anyone to suffer loss?… So mankind are harmed by loss… Then loss is an evil… And profit is the opposite of loss… So that profit is a good.”
Profit is synonymous with gain, and gain is not an evil.
- How does one alleviate themselves from poverty? Through gain.
- How does one produce enough capital to purchase their needs? Through gain.
- How does one exchange enough goods to send their children to a top-notch school? Through gain.
To assert that profit is an unequivocal evil is to disagree with the actions of the not only the working class but all groups of economic individuals in their goal of achieving prosperity.
If greed means to act towards betterment, then sure, profit lovers are greedy.
Hipparchus continues with the discussion of the primary characteristic of profit: is economic gain valuable?
“SOCRATES: Now, I am just going to ask you about that. Tell me, if one spends half a pound of gold and gets double that weight in silver, has one got profit or loss?
COMRADE: Loss, I presume, Socrates; for one’s gold is reduced to twice, instead of twelve times, the value of silver.
SOCRATES: But you see, one has got more; or is double not more than half?
COMRADE: Not in worth, the one being silver and the other gold.
SOCRATES: So profit, it seems, must have this addition of worth. At least, you now say that silver, though more than gold, is not worth as much, and that gold, though less, is of equal worth.”
The question of value is not answered simply, but Plato attempts to find a solution in which value is defined as the socially constructed worth of an item.
Since silver is much more abundant than gold, it is worth less to society. Through this, it is difficult to claim that the silver and the gold hold equal amounts of worthness.
Soon after the discussion of value, the discourse ends with Socrates stating, “Hence it is not right to reproach anybody with being a lover of profit: for he who makes this reproach is actually a lover of profit himself.”
While first glance might alarm someone that Plato, through Hipparchus, is claiming that all means employed to achieve profit are moral, that is not true.
Plato is concerned with defining the true meaning of love of gain. It’s not solely about acquiring profit, but about doing so in a way that aligns with reason and benefits you in the long run.
Socrates uses examples like the horse dealer harming the animal to show that illogical or harmful pursuits of gain aren’t true love of gain. They might bring short-term profit, but ultimately lead to failure.
The dialogue seems to suggest that true love of gain involves using reason to achieve your goals. Fraud or manipulation might bring profit, but they wouldn’t be sustainable and could lead to negative consequences.
Through the thought-provoking words of Plato, one is able to observe an enjoyable dialogue on profit not existing as an evil due to its ability to offer worthwhile commodities, alleviations of loss, and socially-compatible values.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article! I hope you found it informative and engaging.
If you enjoyed this piece, be sure to explore more content on my profile. Your feedback and comments are always welcome and appreciated.
Stay curious!
