Credible Theories
Greece and Rome · Plato, Statesman 269c–274d

The world that ran backward

ReferencePlato, Statesman 269c–274d
Writtenc. 360 BCE
SetThe age of Cronus
In the age of Cronus, a god steered the cosmos directly and people were born from the earth, growing younger instead of older. Then the god let go of the controls, the world reversed its spin, and humans had to survive on their own with gifts of fire and craft from the gods.

Summary by the editors. Translation: Summary (Jowett 1871) · About the translator

Read it literally

An age when someone was literally at the controls, and a hand-off when they left.

What scholars say

A philosophical myth.

Strange time Looks like technology Council of gods

Quick answers about Plato, Statesman 269c–274d

Where is Plato, Statesman 269c–274d found?

Plato, Statesman 269c–274d (Greece and Rome). Translation quoted: Benjamin Jowett, The Dialogues of Plato (1871).

When was Plato, Statesman 269c–274d written?

c. 360 BCE.

What do scholars say about Plato, Statesman 269c–274d?

A philosophical myth.

Rabbit holes in this passage

TextThe reversed world of Plato's StatesmanPlato's myth of a cosmos steered by a god, then let go, so that the world spun backward and people grew younger.

Sources

  1. Benjamin Jowett, The Dialogues of Plato (1871)Primary text
  2. Plato, Statesman 268e–274e, trans. Benjamin Jowett (1871)Primary text

Scholarly dates are rounded. The wording follows the named public-domain translation.

Updated