necessary to regard the oracle of the god as of the greatest moment, and
that, in order to discover its meaning, I must go to all who had the
reputation of possessing any knowledge. And by the dog, O Athenians! for
I must tell you the truth, I came to some such conclusion as this: those
who bore the highest reputation appeared to me to be most deficient, in
my researches in obedience to the god, and others who were considered
inferior more nearly approaching to the possession of understanding. But
I must relate to you my wandering, and the labors which I underwent, in
order that the oracle might prove incontrovertible. For after the
politicians I went to the poets, as well the tragic as the dithyrambic
and others, expecting that here I should in very fact find myself more
ignorant than they. Taking up, therefore, some of their poems, which
appeared to me most elaborately finished, I questioned them as to their
meaning, that at the same time I might learn something from them. I am
ashamed, O Athenians! to tell you the truth; however, it must be told.
For, in a word, almost all who were present could have given a better
account of them than those by whom they had been composed. I soon
discovered this, therefore, with regard to the poets, that they do not
effect their object by wisdom, but by a certain natural inspiration, and
under the influence of enthusiasm, like prophets and seers; for these
also say many fine things, but they understand nothing that they say.
The poets appeared to me to be affected in a similar manner; and at the
same time I perceived that they considered themselves, on account of
their poetry, to be the wisest of men in other things, in which they
were not. I left them, therefore, under the persuasion that I was
superior to them, in the same way that I was to the politicians.

8. At last, therefore, I went to the artisans. For I was conscious to
myself that I knew scarcely anything, but I was sure that I should find
them possessed of much beautiful knowledge. And in this I was not