Hipparchus by Plato
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
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In this Socratic dialogue about "lovers of gain," Socrates and an unnamed friend debate whether pursuing gains can be wicked. Usually, the title of a dialogue is the name of Socrates' philosophical sparring partner, but, herein, Hipparchus is a historical figure who Socrates cites as the reason he wouldn't hornswoggle his friend, quoting "Walk with just intent" and "Deceive not a friend" as credos that he, Socrates, lives by.
The friend tries a number of approaches to argue the loathsomeness of lovers of gain. Recognizing the starting premise will be that a gain is a good, the friend argues that such people (presumably greedy / materialistic types) purse valueless gains. Socrates attacks that as an oxymoron. Next, the friend argues that lovers of gain seek gains that no honorable man would pursue. Again, Socrates argues that a gain is a good and all humans seek good. Since the friend doesn't want to call the lovers of gain fools (i.e. unable to recognize a gain when they see it,) the friend is stuck. The third approach is to argue that a wicked gain could be considered a loss. This is also swiftly rebutted. The last tack is to argue that some gains are good, while some are evil, which runs afoul of the same argument.
This isn't one of the best dialogues - in fact, many question whether it was written by Plato. That said, it brings up a few ideas that are worthy of consideration. It felt very much like a conversation I once heard in which a young woman argued, "No one should have that much more than they need." Which drew the response, "You realize that 90% of the world would say you have tons more than you need?" Which resulted in the instigator walking off in a huff. If you want to engage in debates about the virtue (or vice) of wealth acquisition, this might be a good place to begin your reflection.
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