Xenophon — Oeconomicus
Socrates discusses household management with Critobulus and recounts his conversation with the landowner Ischomachus. The work links knowledge, wealth and leadership, while its account of marriage and labour reflects deeply unequal household institutions.
Understanding the text
Socrates left no writings. This text belongs to the ancient reception through which his life and thought are reconstructed, rather than to an authored Socratic bibliography. Its genre, authorial purpose and dramatic setting matter: a philosophical dialogue, courtroom defence or comedy cannot be treated as a recording. Compare independent witnesses before identifying the speaker’s position with the historical Socrates.
Key points
- 01
Wealth
A possession becomes useful only when someone knows how to employ it; having more does not automatically mean living better.
- 02
Management
Order and teaching organise agricultural labour, making authority depend partly on knowledge and practical example.
- 03
Household hierarchy
The wife’s education and enslaved labourers’ roles reveal assumptions that require criticism rather than timeless endorsement.
How to read it
Ask whose perspective defines a well-run household and compare the language of care with the distribution of power.
Editions & sources
Summaries and key points are original editorial interpretations. They accompany reading the work and do not replace an edition of the text. Editorial method ↗