Letter 1033: I have no time for the common run of philosophers who fake wisdom with pretentious clothing and a haughty air.
I have no time for the common run of philosophers who fake wisdom with pretentious clothing and a haughty air. Our age has produced only a few whose genuine philosophy would stand comparison with the ancients — and among those few, my friend Barachus stands out.
"Who are you," you'll say, "to judge philosophers?" Well, anyone can appreciate excellence in others. The masses admired Phidias's Olympian Zeus, Myron's bronze cow, and Polyclitus's basket-bearers without being sculptors themselves. Nature has made the capacity for judgment more widely available than the capacity for creation. Otherwise, the finest achievements would be appreciated by only a handful, if good taste didn't extend even to those who can't match it.
So grant me the right to vouch for Barachus, and embrace the friendship of a truly wise man. A short acquaintance will convince you to trust me on everything I know — once you see I'm not wrong even about things outside my expertise. Farewell.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.
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