DOCSLIB.ORG

Plato's Project for Education in the Early Socratic Dialogues

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Plato's Project for Education in the Early Socratic Dialogues University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 1-1-1996 Plato's project for education in the early Socratic dialogues. Heather Lynne Reid University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1 Recommended Citation Reid, Heather Lynne, "Plato's project for education in the early Socratic dialogues." (1996). Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014. 2285. https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1/2285 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. PLATO'S PROJECT FOR EDUCATION IN THE EARLY SOCRATIC DIALOGUES A Dissertation Presented by HEATHER LYNNE REID Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 1996 Department of Philosophy © Copyright by Heather Lynne Reid 1996 All Rights Reserved PLATO'S PROJECT FOR EDUCATION IN THE EARLY SOCRATIC DIALOGUES A Dissertation Presented by HEATHER LYNNE REID Approved as to style and content by: ca Gareth B. Matthews, Chair Robert Ackerman, Member J^n Robison, Department Head philosophy ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my dissertation director Gareth B. Matthews for his special balance of support and criticism throughout this project, as well as Bruce Aune and Marios Philippides for their comments on early stages of the manuscript. I also wish to thank the Department of Philosophy of the University of Southern California for providing library privileges and research support necessary to the completion of this dissertation. Finally, for their generous emotional and financial support throughout my graduate education, I wish to thank my family, especially my husband Larry. IV ABSTRACT PLATO'S PROJECT FOR EDUCATION IN THE EARLY SOCRATIC DIALOGUES MAY 1996 HEATHER LYNNE REID, B.A., UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA M.A., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Ph.D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Gareth B. Matthews What is the role of philosophy in education? This timeless question may best be answered by examining Plato's earliest dialogues in which he makes a case for philosophy as the centerpiece of education. I call this effort Plato's project for education and interpret the Apology, Crito, Charmides, Laches, Ion, Hippias Minor, Euthyphro, and Lysis as an integrated attempt to promote philosophy as education in ancient Athens. Plato accepted arete (excellence, virtue) as the proper goal of education, but his interpretation of arete as a distinctly moral quality required a new approach to education. Plato recognized that the quality in a doctor that makes her aim at what is good for her patient is distinct from the skill that enables her to choose the most effective treatment. Against traditional education, which emphasized social standing, professional skill, and the accumulation of information, Plato focused on the moral dimension of human beings and prescribed philosophy as a means for developing it. Memorization of information and tuition in practical skills may help us in our particular crafts, but it does little to improve us morally. This task must be undertaken separately through examination V and reflection. Success will be judged not by one's peers, or even by one's government, but by the gods themselves who adhere to a universal idea of goodness. Plato's conception of arete as the health of the soul precipitates a new approach to education that focuses on philosophy and presents Socrates as its hero and martyr. Health of the soul, like health of the body, is something that requires constant labor and attention, and yet may never be perfected. In Plato's project, the ignorant Socrates and the dialogues themselves become indirect teachers by exhorting students to care for their souls and to appreciate the task. The promise that arete can be achieved through the pursuit of moral wisdom is given in the words and actions of Socrates. Like his ancient friends, the reader struggles to understand Socrates and from this struggle emerges philosophy: the love and pursuit of wisdom; the proper education for aiete. VI TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ABSTRACT ^ LIST OF TABLES xi LIST OF GREEK WORDS xii Chapter 1. PLATO AS AN EDUCATIONAL REFORMER 1 1.1 Connecting Plato and Education in the Earliest Dialogues 1 1.1.1 Connecting Philosophy and Education with 2 1.1.2 The Historical Motivation for Plato's Project 5 1.1.3 The Mythopoetic Ideal of Arete 8 1.1.4 The Aristocratic Tradition 12 1.1.5 The Sophistic Revolution 15 1.2 Plato's Educational Objectives in the Earliest Dialogues 18 1.2.1 Awakening the Mind: The Release from Poetry 19 1.2.2 Establishing as Moral 21 1.2.3 Eliminating False Conceit 23 1.2.4 Directing the Pursuit of Arete 25 1.2.5 Approaching a Popular Audience 28 1.3 How Would the Earliest Dialogues Achieve Plato's Agenda? 30 1.3.1 Plato's Use of the Dialogue Form 31 1.3.2 Plato's Use of Dramatic Techniques 34 1.3.3 Elenchus and Aporia 38 1.3.4 Puzzles and Irony 43 1.3.5 Socrates as Hero 46 2. A PUSH FOR CHANGE IN THE APOLOGY AND CRITO 53 2.1 A Challenge to the Educational Establishment in Apology 53 2.1.1 First Offense: A Failure to Pursue Truth and Justice 54 vii 2.1.2 Second Offense: Dogmatic Acceptance of the First Accusers 57 2.1.3 Third Offense: Failure to Acknowledge Ignorance 59 2.1.4 Fourth Offense: Failure to Direct Pursuits toward the Good 63 2.1.5 The Penalty: In Condemning Socrates Athens Harms Itself 66 2.2 Socrates' Mission: A Defense of Philosophy as a Moral Pursuit 71 2.2.1 The Oracle Story: The Divine Origin of Socrates' Mission 72 2.2.2 Socrates' Service to the God 75 2.2.3 Philosophy as Pious Activity 77 2.2.4 Words vs. Deeds: The Practical Utility of the Philosophic Life 81 2.2.5 Penalties 2.3 Socrates: Ironic Moral Hero of the Crito 2.3.1 Does Socrates Practice What He Preaches? 87 2.3.2 The Rejection of Public Opinion Despite the Penalty 89 2.3.3 Moral Decision Derived from Principle 92 2.3.4 Moral Decision Derived from Imagined Dialectic 93 2.3.5 Socrates: An Ironic Moral Hero 95 3. AWAKENING THE MIND IN JON AND HIFPIASMINOR 98 3.1 Engaging the Mind: Interpretation vs. Exhibition in Ion 98 3.1.1 Appearance vs. Ability: The Rhapsode and His Audience 99 3.1.2 Exhibition vs. Expertise: The Limits of the Rhapsode's Art 103 3.1.3 Inspiration vs. Interpretation: The Knowledge of the Poet 106 3.1.4 Techne, Logoi, and Episteme Ill 3.1.5 Conclusion: The Proper Use of Poetry in Education 113 3.2 The Nature of a Wiseman in Hippias Minor 117 3.2.1 Opening: Portrait of a Wiseman 118 3.2.2 The Moral Neutrality of Poetry 122 3.2.3 The Moral Neutrality of Technai 124 3.3.43.2.4 The Intention Behind Hippias' Technai 126 3.2.5 Contrasting Attitudes towards Wisdom 129 3.3 The Nature of the Good Man in Hippias Minor 133 3.3.1 The Moral Category 134 3.3.2 Being Good vs. Being Good at Something 137 3.33 Good Action vs. Competent Action 139 The Argument Applied to the Soul 143 viii 3.3.5 The Good Man 4. A NEW VIEW OF ARETE IN CHARMIDES AND LACHES ... 150 4.1 Reshaping Conceptions of Arete in Cbarmides and Laches 150 4.1.1 Looking for Arete in All the Wrong Places 151 4.1.2 Examining the Aristocratic Ideal of Arete in Charmides 155 4.1.3 Examining the Heroic - Military Ideal of Arete in Laches 159 4.1.4 Craftsmen, Wisemen and the Kalon Connection 162 4.1.5 Discovering To Kalon in the Soul or Mind 166 4.2 Intellectualizing, Unifying, and Idealizing Arete 168 4.2.1 Arete as Intellectual; a Property of the Psyche 169 4.2.2 Arete as Unified 4.2.3 The Educational Impact of the Unification of Arete 173 4.2.4 What Sort of Knowledge Corresponds to Arete? 176 4.2.5 Arete as an Ideal 178 4.3 In Search of Education for Arete 181 4.3.1 Finding a Teacher of Arete 181 4.3.2 Arete Is Not Transmittable 184 4.3.3 Socrates’ Skill as a Teacher 186 4.3.4 Cryptic Expressions: Clues to the Discovery of Arete 188 4.3.5 The Pursuit of Wisdom: Education as Philosophy 192 5. EDUCATIONAL MMS IN AND 196 5.1 The Nature of and Need for Moral Direction in Euthypbro 196 5.1.1 The Dubious Pursuits of Euthyphro and Meletus 197 5.1.2 Mimesis and Morality: Socrates' Request for a Definition 201 5.1.3 First Definition: The Case of the Missing Standard 204 5.1.4 Missing Paradigms and Wandering Words 207 5.1.5 The Possibility of Moral Expertise 210 5.2 Educational Relationships 213 5.2.1 Philosophy, Friendship, and the Pursuit of Wisdom 213 5.2.2 Resemblances among Socrates, Sophists, and Pederasts 218 5.2.3 Friendship in Education 221 5.2.4 The Role of Philia in Education 226 5.2.5 The Pursuit of Wisdom 228 ix Directing the Love and Pursuit of Wisdom in Lysis 230 53.1 Teachers, Friends, and the Objects of Love 231 5.3.2 The Connections among Friendship, and Philosophy 237 5.3.3 The Emergence of an External Ideal 241 5.3.4 Aiming for the Good: Obstacles and Manifestations 243 5.3.5 Kindred Souls in Search of Wisdom 248 APPENDIX: SELECTING THE DIALOGUES 254 BIBLIOGRAPHY nc7 X LIST OF TABLES Table Page A.l Length and Chronology of the Dialogues 256 XI LIST OF GREEK WORDS adikos [o^iKoq, unjust] agathos [ocycxGoc^, good, (Horn.) brave, noble, morally good] ainigmati [aiviy^ati, enigmatic, riddling, cryptic] ainissomai [diviacTO|iai, to speak darkly or in riddles, to hint] aischron [aia^pov,
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Socratic Dialogue: Teaching Patients to Become Their Own Cognitive Therapist
    National Crime Victims Center > Socratic Method > Socratic Dialogue Print This Page Socratic Dialogue: Teaching Patients to Become Their Own Cognitive Therapist “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Socrates (469 BC – 399 BC) Socratic dialogue is a foundational skill used by CPT therapists to help patients examine their lives, challenge maladaptive thoughts, address stuckpoints, and develop critical thinking skills. Socratic dialogue is derived from the work of the Greek philosopher, Socrates, who developed what is now called the Socratic method of teaching. In traditional education, the teacher is presumed to know more than the student, and the role of the teacher is to transmit the teacher’s knowledge to the student. In contrast, Socrates believed that the role of the teacher should not be to tell students what the “truth” is but to help them discover the truth themselves through a collaborative process of asking questions. By asking a series of questions designed to get the student to identify logical contradictions in their positions and/or evidence that does not support their thoughts, the Socratic method is designed to help the student discover the “truth” for themselves as opposed to being told what the “truth” is by the teacher. Socrates also thought this teaching method was superior because it teaches students the skill of critical thinking, a skill they can use throughout their lives. Another advantage of this method is that students are more likely to value knowledge if they discover it themselves than if someone tells them about it. In CPT, the purpose of Socratic questioning by the therapist is to prompt the patient to examine the accuracy of maladaptive thoughts that are causing psychological distress.
    [Show full text]
  • The Poverty of Socratic Questioning: Asking and Answering in the Meno
    University of Cincinnati University of Cincinnati College of Law Scholarship and Publications Faculty Articles and Other Publications College of Law Faculty Scholarship 1994 The oP verty of Socratic Questioning: Asking and Answering In The eM no Thomas D. Eisele University of Cincinnati College of Law, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarship.law.uc.edu/fac_pubs Part of the Legal Education Commons Recommended Citation Eisele, Thomas D., "The oP verty of Socratic Questioning: Asking and Answering In The eM no" (1994). Faculty Articles and Other Publications. Paper 36. http://scholarship.law.uc.edu/fac_pubs/36 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Law Faculty Scholarship at University of Cincinnati College of Law Scholarship and Publications. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Articles and Other Publications by an authorized administrator of University of Cincinnati College of Law Scholarship and Publications. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE POVERTY OF SOCRATIC QUESTIONING: ASKING AND ANSWERING IN THE MEND Thomas D. Eisele* I understand [philosophy 1 as a willingness to think not about some­ thing other than what ordinary human beings think about, but rather to learn to think undistractedly about things that ordinary human beings cannot help thinking about, or anyway cannot help having occur to them, sometimes in fantasy, sometimes asa flash across a landscape; such things, for example, as whether we can know the world as it is in itself, or whether others really know the nature of one's own experiences, or whether good and bad are relative, or whether we might not now be dreaming that we are awake, or whether modern tyrannies and weapons and spaces and speeds and art are continuous with the past of the human race or discontinuous, and hence whether the learning of the human race is not irrelevant to the problems it has brought before itself.
    [Show full text]
  • The Roles of Solon in Plato's Dialogues
    The Roles of Solon in Plato’s Dialogues Dissertation Presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Samuel Ortencio Flores, M.A. Graduate Program in Greek and Latin The Ohio State University 2013 Dissertation Committee: Bruce Heiden, Advisor Anthony Kaldellis Richard Fletcher Greg Anderson Copyrighy by Samuel Ortencio Flores 2013 Abstract This dissertation is a study of Plato’s use and adaptation of an earlier model and tradition of wisdom based on the thought and legacy of the sixth-century archon, legislator, and poet Solon. Solon is cited and/or quoted thirty-four times in Plato’s dialogues, and alluded to many more times. My study shows that these references and allusions have deeper meaning when contextualized within the reception of Solon in the classical period. For Plato, Solon is a rhetorically powerful figure in advancing the relatively new practice of philosophy in Athens. While Solon himself did not adequately establish justice in the city, his legacy provided a model upon which Platonic philosophy could improve. Chapter One surveys the passing references to Solon in the dialogues as an introduction to my chapters on the dialogues in which Solon is a very prominent figure, Timaeus- Critias, Republic, and Laws. Chapter Two examines Critias’ use of his ancestor Solon to establish his own philosophic credentials. Chapter Three suggests that Socrates re- appropriates the aims and themes of Solon’s political poetry for Socratic philosophy. Chapter Four suggests that Solon provides a legislative model which Plato reconstructs in the Laws for the philosopher to supplant the role of legislator in Greek thought.
    [Show full text]
  • Interpretation: a Journal of Political Philosophy
    Interpretation A JOURNAL J_OF POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY Winter 1998 Volume 26 Number 2 149 Jules Gleicher Moses Politikos 183 Tucker Landy The Limitations of Political Philosophy: An Interpretation of Plato's Charmides 201 Jason A. Tipton Love of Gain, Philosophy and Tyranny: A Commentary on Plato's Hipparchus 217 Larry Peterman Changing Titles: Some Suggestions about the "Prince" Use of in Machiavelli and Others 239 Catherine H. Zuckert Leadership Natural and Conventional in Melville's "Benito Cereno" 257 Jon Fennell Harry Neumann and the Political Piety of Rorty's Postmodernism Book Reviews 275 George Anastaplo Aristotle's "Physics": A Guided Study, by Joe Sachs 285 Michael P. Zuckert Shakespeare and the Good Life, by David Lowenthal 295 Joan Stambaugh Martin Heidegger: Between Good and Evil, by Rudiger Safranski 299 Patrick Coby Hypocrisy and Integrity: Machiavelli, Rousseau and the Ethics of Politics, by Ruth Grant 305 Susan Orr Leo Strauss and the American Right, by Shadia Drury 309 Will Morrisey Public Morality and Liberal Society: Essays on Decency, Law, and Pornography, by Harry M. Clor Interpretation Editor-in-Chief Hilail Gildin, Dept. of Philosophy, Queens College Executive Editor Leonard Grey General Editors Seth G. Benardete Charles E. Butterworth Hilail Gildin Robert Horwitz (d. 1987) Howard B. White (d. 1974) Consulting Editors Christopher Bruell Joseph Cropsey Ernest L. Fortin John Hallowell (d. 1992) Harry V. Jaffa David Lowenthal Muhsin Mahdi Harvey C. Mansfield Arnaldo Momigliano (d. 1987) Michael Oakeshott (d. 1990) Ellis Sandoz Leo Strauss (d. 1973) Kenneth W. Thompson International Editors Terence E. Marshall Heinrich Meier Editors Wayne Ambler Maurice Auerbach Fred Baumann Amy Bonnette Patrick Coby Elizabeth C de Baca Eastman Thomas S.
    [Show full text]
  • In Dialogue with the Greeks 1St Edition Kindle
    IN DIALOGUE WITH THE GREEKS 1ST EDITION PDF, EPUB, EBOOK Rush Rhees | 9781351964586 | | | | | In Dialogue with the Greeks 1st edition PDF Book Become an author Sign up as a reader Sign in. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Worlds Apart. This article needs additional citations for verification. Consequentialism Deontology Virtue. Ancient Philosophy. Notify us with 7 days of receiving, and we will offer a full refund without reservation! Kenklies, Karsten Minor wear and tears to head and foot of spine and some slight wear to spine edges. More information about this seller Contact this seller 8. Nabu Press, All Plato's writing, except for The Apology and the Letters, is in dialogue form. Social gadfly Socratic dialogue Socratic intellectualism Socratic irony Socratic method Socratic paradox Socratic questioning. Subjects; Plato. More information about this seller Contact this seller 1. I [69], , [1] o Vol. Plato wrote approximately 30 dialogues, in most of which Socrates is the main character. The translations of Meno, Laches and Euthydemus are included here for the first time. First Edition Thus. Wright, M. First Edition in this Format. Recco, Gregory and Eric Sanday eds. Socratic dialogue remained a popular format for expressing arguments and drawing literary portraits of those who espouse them. In some dialogues Plato's main character is not Socrates but someone from outside of Athens. Plato's Laws : Force and Truth in Politics. It is also said to be the longest day of the year, allowing for the densely packed twelve chapters. Details: Collation: Complete with all pages; 2 volumes o Vol. Cooper in Plato, Complete Works.
    [Show full text]
  • Agorapicbk-17.Pdf
    Excavations of the Athenian Agora Picture Book No. 17 Prepared by Mabel L. Lang Dedicated to Eugene Vanderpool o American School of Classical Studies at Athens ISBN 87661-617-1 Produced by the Meriden Gravure Company Meriden, Connecticut COVER: Bone figure of Socrates TITLE PAGE: Hemlock SOCRATES IN THE AGORA AMERICAN SCHOOL OF CLASSICAL STUDIES AT ATHENS PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY 1978 ‘Everything combines to make our knowledge of Socrates himself a subject of Socratic irony. The only thing we know definitely about him is that we know nothing.’ -L. Brunschvicg As FAR AS we know Socrates himselfwrote nothing, yet not only were his life and words given dramatic attention in his own time in the Clouds of Ar- istophanes, but they have also become the subject of many others’ writing in the centuries since his death. Fourth-century B.C. writers who had first-hand knowledge of him composed either dialogues in which he was the dominant figure (Plato and Aeschines) or memories of his teaching and activities (Xe- nophon). Later authors down even to the present day have written numerous biographies based on these early sources and considering this most protean of philosophers from every possible point of view except perhaps the topograph- ical one which is attempted here. Instead of putting Socrates in the context of 5th-century B.C. philosophy, politics, ethics or rhetoric, we shall look to find him in the material world and physical surroundings of his favorite stamping- grounds, the Athenian Agora. Just as ‘agora’ in its original sense meant ‘gathering place’ but came in time to mean ‘market place’, so the agora itself was originally a gathering place I.
    [Show full text]
  • SOCRATES in the CLASSROOM Rationales and Effects of Philosophizing with Children Ann S
    SOCRATES IN THE CLASSROOM Rationales and Effects of Philosophizing with Children Ann S. Pihlgren Socrates in the Classroom Rationales and Effects of Philosophizing with Children Ann S. Pihlgren Stockholm University ©Ann S. Pihlgren, Stockholm 2008 Cover: Björn S. Eriksson ISSN 1104-1625-146 ISBN (978-91-7155-598-4) Printed in Sweden by Elanders Sverige AB Distributor: Stockholm University, Department of Education To Kjell with love and gratitude. Contents Contents ........................................................................................................ vii Preface ............................................................................................................ 1 1 Introduction ............................................................................................ 3 1.1 Philosophizing and teaching ethics ..................................................................... 4 1.2 Some guidance for the reader ............................................................................ 5 1.3 Considerations ................................................................................................... 8 2 Research Goals and Design .................................................................. 9 2.1 Classroom interaction ......................................................................................... 9 2.2 Studying Socratic interaction ............................................................................ 10 2.3 Research questions .........................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Protagoras 330-1 David Wol£Sdorf
    ~tKatO<J"UVll and 'Qc.nem,c; at Protagoras 330-1 David Wol£sdorf I Introduction and Review In an argument in Protagoras for the similarity of Ol1WlO(j'\JVTj and oCH6'tTj~ Socrates introduces the following set of propositions: 1 (1) OtKalO(j'\JVT] is OtKlXlOV. 2 (2) oCH6'tTj~ is OCHOV. 3 (3) OtKlX lO(j'\JVTj is ocrWV. 4 (4) oCH6'tT]~ is otKawv. iI , I The meanings of (1)-(4) remain controversial. The objective of this paper is to give an update on the state of the discussion and to offer my own interpretation. The words 'OtKlXtOOUVTj' and 'OtKlXtoV' are typically translated as 'jus- tice' and 'just'. Thus, (1) is rendered as 'Justice is just'. The words '6CH6'tT1~' and 'ocrtoV' are typically translated as 'piety' or 'holiness' and 'pious' or 'holy'. But 'piety' and 'holiness' are not synonyms. Humans and their actions can be pious or holy, but inanimate objects can be holy, 330c4-dl 2 330d2-el 3 331a7-b3 4 331a7-b3 182 David Wolfsdorf ~lKato(jUVT\ and 'CXn6'!T\~ at Protagoras 330-1 183 but not pious. Thus, it is unclear whether to translate (2)-(4) as 'Holiness defined, is a condition that can only occur within a metaphysical discur- is holy', 'Justice is holy', and 'Holiness is just', or 'Piety is pious', 'Justice sive context.9 is pious', and 'Piety is just'. For much of the paper I will retain the original Insofar as the condition of self-predication depends upon the subject Greek and render the key words in English only where necessary.
    [Show full text]
  • On the Arrangement of the Platonic Dialogues
    Ryan C. Fowler 25th Hour On the Arrangement of the Platonic Dialogues I. Thrasyllus a. Diogenes Laertius (D.L.), Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers 3.56: “But, just as long ago in tragedy the chorus was the only actor, and afterwards, in order to give the chorus breathing space, Thespis devised a single actor, Aeschylus a second, Sophocles a third, and thus tragedy was completed, so too with philosophy: in early times it discoursed on one subject only, namely physics, then Socrates added the second subject, ethics, and Plato the third, dialectics, and so brought philosophy to perfection. Thrasyllus says that he [Plato] published his dialogues in tetralogies, like those of the tragic poets. Thus they contended with four plays at the Dionysia, the Lenaea, the Panathenaea and the festival of Chytri. Of the four plays the last was a satiric drama; and the four together were called a tetralogy.” b. Characters or types of dialogues (D.L. 3.49): 1. instructive (ὑφηγητικός) A. theoretical (θεωρηµατικόν) a. physical (φυσικόν) b. logical (λογικόν) B. practical (πρακτικόν) a. ethical (ἠθικόν) b. political (πολιτικόν) 2. investigative (ζητητικός) A. training the mind (γυµναστικός) a. obstetrical (µαιευτικός) b. tentative (πειραστικός) B. victory in controversy (ἀγωνιστικός) a. critical (ἐνδεικτικός) b. subversive (ἀνατρεπτικός) c. Thrasyllan categories of the dialogues (D.L. 3.50-1): Physics: Timaeus Logic: Statesman, Cratylus, Parmenides, and Sophist Ethics: Apology, Crito, Phaedo, Phaedrus, Symposium, Menexenus, Clitophon, the Letters, Philebus, Hipparchus, Rivals Politics: Republic, the Laws, Minos, Epinomis, Atlantis Obstetrics: Alcibiades 1 and 2, Theages, Lysis, Laches Tentative: Euthyphro, Meno, Io, Charmides and Theaetetus Critical: Protagoras Subversive: Euthydemus, Gorgias, and Hippias 1 and 2 :1 d.
    [Show full text]
  • Politics and Dialogue in the Philebus 109
    Politics and Dialogue in the Philebus 109 Politics and Dialogue in the Philebus J AMES L. WOOD BOSTON UNIVERSITY [email protected] I. Two related aspects of Plato’s philosophy have come increas- ingly to the attention of scholars in recent years, due largely to the influence of Leo Strauss and his followers: the political and the dramatic. By the former I mean the general theme of politics, the interaction of human beings together in the polis. By the latter I mean the aspects of the dialogue form—time and place, character and context—that they have in common with actual dramas. But while it is obvious that Plato writes in dialogue form and often takes up politics as a central theme in his dialogues, there may be a broader and less obvious sense in which Platonic philosophy itself, as informed by its dialogical character, is fundamentally political in nature. We might call this the “political thesis.” As Strauss puts it, “All Platonic dialogues refer more or less directly to the political question” (Strauss 1975, 160). But as he points out immediately following this statement, there are only three dialogues that deal directly with politics and indicate this in their titles: Republic, Statesman, and Laws; and it is in these dialogues that one can best discern Plato’s political teachings. This lim- itation suggests the corresponding difficulty of extracting the political significance of other dialogues. Here the dramatic dialogue form becomes particularly useful. Plato’s dialogues always take place as a living interaction between different sorts of people, often historically based and politically significant, in the concrete context of a given time and place, typically in or near the city of Athens (cf.
    [Show full text]
  • Laches by Plato
    Laches By Plato 1 LACHES, OR COURAGE. PERSONS OF THE DIALOGUE: Lysimachus, son of Aristides. Melesias, son of Thucydides. Their sons. Nicias, Laches, Socrates. LYSIMACHUS: You have seen the exhibition of the man fighting in armour, Nicias and Laches, but we did not tell you at the time the reason why my friend Melesias and I asked you to go with us and see him. I think that we may as well confess what this was, for we certainly ought not to have any reserve with you. The reason was, that we were intending to ask your advice. Some laugh at the very notion of advising others, and when they are asked will not say what they think. They guess at the wishes of the person who asks them, and answer according to his, and not according to their own, opinion. But as we know that you are good judges, and will say exactly what you think, we have taken you into our counsels. The matter about which I am making all this preface is as follows: Melesias and I have two sons; that is his son, and he is named Thucydides, after his grandfather; and this is mine, who is also called after his grandfather, Aristides. Now, we are resolved to take the greatest care of the youths, and not to let them run about as they like, which is too 2 often the way with the young, when they are no longer children, but to begin at once and do the utmost that we can for them. And knowing you to have sons of your own, we thought that you were most likely to have attended to their training and improvement, and, if perchance you have not attended to them, we may remind you that you ought to have done so, and would invite you to assist us in the fulfilment of a common duty.
    [Show full text]
  • The Ascent from Nominalism Philosophical Studies Series
    THE ASCENT FROM NOMINALISM PHILOSOPHICAL STUDIES SERIES Editors: WILFRID SELLARS, University of Pittsburgh KEITH LEHRER, University of Arizona Board of Consulting Editors: J ON A THAN BENNETT, Syracuse University ALLAN GIBBARD, University of Michigan ROBERT STALNAKER, Cornell University ROBERT G. TURNBULL, Ohio State University VOLUME 37 TERR Y PENNER Department of Philosophy, The University of Wisconsin at Madison, U.S.A. THE ASCENT FROM NOMINALISM Some Existence Arguments in Plato's Middle Dialogues D. REIDEL PUBLISHING COMPANY ~~ A MEMBER OF THE KLUWER . ACADEMIC PUBLISHERS GROUP DORDRECHTj BOSTONj LANCASTERjTOKYO Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Penner, Terry, 1936- The ascent from nominalism. (Philosophical studies series; v. 37) Bibliography: p. Includes indexes. 1. Plato. 2. Aristotle. 3. Metaphysics-History. 4. Nominalism-History. I. Title. II. Series. B395.P347 1987 111'.2'0924 86·31641 ISBN-13: 978-94-010-8186-3 e-ISBN-13: 978-94-009-3791-8 DOl: 10.1007/978-94-009-3791-8 Published by D. Reidel Publishing Company, P.O. Box 17, 3300 AA Dordrecht, Holland. Sold and distributed in the U.S.A. and Canada by Kluwer Academic Publishers, 101 Philip Drive, Assinippi Park, Norwell, MA 02061, U.S.A. In all other countries, sold and distributed by Kluwer Academic Publishers Group, P.O. Box 322, 3300 AH Dordrecht, Holland. All Rights Reserved © 1987 by D. Reidel Publishing Company, Dordrecht, Holland Softcover reprint of the hardcover I 5t edition 1987 No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical induding photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the copyright owner ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Much of this work was conceived and executed between 1971 and 1975, though some of it was done much earlier, and a few bits are quite recent.
    [Show full text]