Stephanus 75

75a about the hips, and the bones of the upper arms and the forearms, and whatever other bones we have without joints—and the inner bones, empty of understanding in their marrow through the scantiness of soul—all these he packed full of flesh; while the wiser ones, less so—unless somewhere he framed flesh for their own sake, for the sake of sensation, in just that way, like the form of the tongue—the most part otherwise. For the nature that comes to be of necessity and 75b is nourished together with them admits nowhere dense bone and much flesh at once, together with sharpness of hearing besides. Above all others the constitution about the head would have had these, had the two been willing to fall together; and our race, wearing flesh and sinew upon it, with a solid head, would have won a life double and many times multiplied, healthier and freer of pain than the one it has now. But the makers of our generation, reckoning whether they should work the kind longer-lived 75c and worse, or shorter-lived and better, came to this judgment: that a longer life but a meaner one must yield in every case to a shorter one that is better. And so, the head's bone being thin and its flesh and sinews scanty—since it has no bends—they left it without a covering of flesh. By all this, then, the head was joined to the body the more perceptive and the wiser, but far weaker than the whole man. And the sinews, for these reasons, 75d the god, binding them round the head's far end, glued in a circle about the neck, and tied to them the ends of the jaws beneath the face's nature; the rest he scattered through all the limbs, joining joint to joint. And the power of our mouth, with teeth and tongue and lips, the fashioners ordered, for the sake of the necessary things and the best, in the arrangement it keeps now: 75e the entrance contrived for the necessary, the exit for the best; for whatever enters in gives food to the body, which is necessary, while the spring of speech that flows outward, ministering to intelligence, is the fairest and the best of all springs.

Timaeus: But the head, again, it was not possible to leave as bare bone alone, because of the seasons' excess in either direction—nor yet, again, to see it cloaked over and grown dull and numb under the crowd of flesh. Now of the

75a the part around the hips, and the bones of the upper arms and of the forearms, and all our other bones that have no joints, and the bones inside us that are empty of understanding in their marrow because they hold so little soul—all these he filled up with flesh. But the bones with sense in them he filled less. In one place only did he build flesh up by itself for the sake of the senses, as with the shape of the tongue; most parts he left the other way. For the nature that comes to be by necessity and is 75b fed and nourished with them cannot anywhere take in thick bone and much flesh along with hearing that is sharp as can be. The frame around the head would have had all of these better than anything else, if the two had been willing to come together at the same time. Then our human kind, wearing flesh and sinews on its head and a head that was hard and strong, would have won a life twice as long, and many times longer, healthier and with less pain than the one it has now. But as things were, the makers of our race weighed the question: would they make the kind longer-lived 75c and worse, or shorter-lived and better? They decided that of a longer life, lived worse, and a shorter one, lived better, everyone must without fail choose the shorter. So they did not roof the head over with thin bone, flesh, and sinews, since it has no joints either. And so, for all these reasons, the head joined to the body was made quicker to feel and wiser, but far weaker than the whole man. For these reasons 75d too, and in this way, the god wrapped the sinews around the far end of the head, and glued them in a circle about the neck by likeness, and he bound the ends of the jaws to them under the face's natural line. The rest he scattered through all the limbs, joining joint to joint. And the power of our mouth they ordered with teeth and tongue and lips, for the sake of the necessary things and the best things, as it now stands arranged 75e. The entrance they made for the necessary things, and the exit for the best. For everything that goes in and gives food to the body is necessary. But the stream of words that flows out and serves intelligence is the fairest and best of all streams.

Timaeus: But the head, again, it was not possible to leave as bare bone alone, because of the excess of the seasons toward either extreme. Nor could one watch it being covered over with the mass of flesh and so growing deaf and without feeling. So then, since the

75a the thighs and the shins and the region of the loins and the bones of the upper and lower arm, and all our other parts which are jointless, and all those bones which are void of intelligence within, owing to the small quantity of soul in the marrow—all these are abundantly supplied with flesh; but those parts which are intelligent are supplied less abundantly—except possibly where He so fashioned the flesh that it can of itself convey sensations, as is the case with the tongue; but most of these parts He made in the way described above. For the substance which is generated by necessity and grows up with us 75b in no wise admits of quick perception coexisting with dense bone and abundant flesh. For if these characteristics were willing to consort together, then the structure of the head would have acquired them most of all, and mankind, crowned with a head that was fleshy and sinewy and strong, would have enjoyed a life that was twice (nay, many times) as long as our present life, and healthier, to boot, and more free from pain. But as it is, when the Constructors of our being were cogitating 75c whether they should make a kind that was more long-lived and worse or more short-lived and better, they agreed that the shorter and superior life should by all means be chosen by all rather than the longer and inferior. Wherefore they covered the head closely with thin bone, but not with flesh and sinews, since it was also without flexions. For all these reasons, then, the head that was joined to the body in every man was more perceptive and more intelligent but less strong.

It was on these grounds and in this way that God set the sinews at the bottom of the head 75d round about the neck and glued them there symmetrically; and with these He fastened the extremities of the jaws below the substance of the face; and the rest of the sinews He distributed amongst all the limbs, attaching joint to joint.

And those who fashioned the features of our mouth fashioned it with teeth and tongue and lips, even as it is fashioned now, 75e for ends both necessary and most good, contriving it as an entrance with a view to necessary ends, and as an outlet with a view to the ends most good. For all that enters in and supplies food to the body is necessary; while the stream of speech which flows out and ministers to intelligence is of all streams the fairest and most good.

Timaeus: Moreover, it was not possible to leave the head to consist of bare bone only, because of the excessive variations of temperature in either direction, due to the seasons; nor yet was it possible to allow it to be shrouded up, and to become, in consequence, stupid and insensitive owing to its burdensome mass of flesh.