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Socrates proceeds:-The guardians of our state are to be

watch-dogs, as we have already said. Now dogs are not divided

into hes and shes-we do not take the masculine gender out to hunt

and leave the females at home to look after their puppies. They

have the same employments-the only difference between them is

that the one sex is stronger and the other weaker. But if women

are to have the same employments as men, they must have the same

education-they must be taught music and gymnastics, and the art

of war. I know that a great joke will be made of their riding on

horseback and carrying weapons; the sight of the naked old

wrinkled women showing their agility in the palaestra will

certainly not be a vision of beauty, and may be expected to

become a famous jest. But we must not mind the wits; there was a

time when they might have laughed at our present gymnastics.