Anytus in Plato’s Meno

Diogenes Laertius writes in his chapter on Socrates: ‘he would take to task those who thought highly of themselves, proving them to be fools, as to be sure he treated Anytus, according to Plato’s Meno. For Anytus could not endure to be ridiculed by Socrates, and so in the first place stirred up against him Aristophanes and his friends; then afterwards he helped to persuade Meletus to indict him on a charge of impiety and corrupting the youth.’ (II. 38)

Anytus enters the dialog while Socrates answers Meno’s question ‘do you think there are no teachers of virtue?’ Socrates: ‘I must say I have often inquired whether there were any teachers of virtue, but for all my pains I cannot find one. And yet many have shared the search with me, and particularly those persons whom I regard as best qualified for the task. But look, Meno: here, at the very moment when he was wanted, we have Anytus sitting down beside us, to take his share in our quest. And we may well ask his assistance; for our friend Anytus [Anytos hode] is the son of a wise and wealthy father, Anthemion … who gave his son a good upbringing and education, as the Athenian people think, for they choose him for the highest offices.’ (89e-90b)

Anytus takes part in the discussion from 89e to 95a. In his last entry Anytus says: ‘Socrates, I consider you are too apt to speak ill of people. I, for one, if you will take my advice, would warn you to be careful: in most cities it is probably easier to do people harm than good, and particularly in this one; I think you know that yourself.’

W.R.M. Lamb notes: ‘Anytus goes away.’ This is wrong: Anytus refrains from taking part in the discussion but stays with Meno and Socrates to the end of the dialogue, as we can learn from references to him both by Socrates and by Meno. What misguided W.R.M. Lamb at 99b was his translation of Anytos hode as ‘our friend Anytus’. Lamb translates: ‘Themistocles and the rest of them, to whom our friend Anytus was referring a moment ago.’ Lamb speaks here of Anytus as absent, but Anytos hode ‘this here Anytus’ does not allow it: hoi amphi Themistoklea te kai hous arti Anytos hode elege. Similarly, in the last sentence of the dialogue, Lamb’s ‘our friend Anytus’ allows Lamb and the readers of his translation to think of Anytus as absent, which Socrates’ tonde [accusative of hode] Anyton disallows.