How we cite our quotes: Stephanus pagination (the standardized way in which every text of Plato is divided). Every edition and translation will have this pagination in the margins.
Quote #7
"At all events, this is the way the phenomena look to me: in the knowable the last thing to be seen, and that with considerable effort, is the idea of the good; but once seen, it must be concluded that this is in fact the cause of all that is right and fair in everything." (517b-c)
It sounds more complicated than it is, but all Socrates is saying is that understanding true goodness is the hardest—but also the most rewarding—goal of our lives. It's not just a good end in and of itself; it also opens up the door to understanding other positive things. Sold yet?
Quote #8
"Unless a man is able to separate out the idea of the good from all other things and distinguish it in the argument, and going through every test, as it were in battle... he comes through all this with the argument still on its feet..." (533b-c)
By using this image of a dangerous battle to describe the intellectual work of understanding the good, Socrates makes intellectual labor sound heroic and exciting. Forget the Trojan War—philosophy is where all the action is. It makes sense, really, when you consider Socrates's argument that philosophy is the only "real" thing underlying everything else.
Quote #9
"Surely, when wealth and the wealthy are honored in a city, virtue and the good men are less honorable." (551a)
For Socrates, the desire for wealth and the desire for morality are pretty much incompatible. Does that seem true to you? We can't think of any examples (ahem) from our contemporary world that would back this up... Yeah, not a single one...