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Socratic Dialogue
Socratic dialogue () is a genre of literary prose developed in Greece at the turn of the fourth century BC. The earliest ones are preserved in the works of Plato and Xenophon and all involve Socrates as the protagonist. These dialogues, and subsequent ones in the genre, present a discussion of moral and philosophical problems between two or more individuals illustrating the application of the Socratic method. The dialogues may be either dramatic or narrative. While Socrates is often the main participant, his presence in the dialogue is not essential to the genre. Platonic dialogues Most of the Socratic dialogues referred to today are those of Plato. Platonic dialogues defined the literary genre subsequent philosophers used. Plato wrote approximately 35 dialogues, in most of which Socrates is the main character. The protagonist of each dialogue, both in Plato's and Xenophon's work, usually is Socrates who by means of a kind of interrogation tries to find out more about the other ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Literary
Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, plays, and poems. It includes both print and digital writing. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include oral literature, much of which has been transcribed.; see also Homer. Literature is a method of recording, preserving, and transmitting knowledge and entertainment. It can also have a social, psychological, spiritual, or political role. Literary criticism is one of the oldest academic disciplines, and is concerned with the literary merit or intellectual significance of specific texts. The study of books and other texts as artifacts or traditions is instead encompassed by textual criticism or the history of the book. "Literature", as an art form, is sometimes used synonymously with literary fiction, fiction written with the goal of artistic merit, but can also include works in various non-fiction g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charmides (dialogue)
The ''Charmides'' (; ) is a dialogue of Plato, in which Socrates engages a handsome and popular boy named Charmides in a conversation about the meaning of ''sophrosyne'', a Greek word usually translated into English as "Temperance (virtue), temperance," "self-control," or "restraint." When the boy is unable to satisfy him with an answer, he next turns to the boy's mentor Critias. In the dialogue, Charmides and then later Critias champion that Temperance is "doing one's own work" but Socrates derides this as vague. The definition given next of know thyself, "knowing oneself" seems promising but the question is then raised if something can even have the knowledge of itself as a base. As is typical with Platonic early dialogues, the two never arrive at a completely satisfactory definition, but the discussion nevertheless raises many important points. The ''Charmides'' is one of Plato's most Homoeroticism, homoerotic dialogues. Socrates admires Charmides' beauty at the beginning of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laches (dialogue)
The ''Laches'' (; Ancient Greek, Greek: Λάχης) is a Socratic dialogue written by Plato. Participants in the discourse present competing definitions of the concept of courage or "manliness", ἀνδρεία in Greek. Characters *Socrates *Lysimachus – Son of the Athenian general and statesman, Aristides. * Melesias – A friend of Lysimachus. *Nicias – Athenian general and statesman, son of Niceratus. *Laches (general), Laches - Athenian general and statesman, son of Melanopus. *Aristides – Son of Lysimachus and grandson of the eponymous general and statesman. Summary Education and the value of military training Has military education a place in higher education? [178a–180a] Lysimachus, son of Aristides, and Melesias, son of Thucydides (politician), Thucydides (not the historian Thucydides), request advice from Laches (person), Laches and Nicias on whether or not they should have their sons (who are named after their famous grandfathers) trained to fight in armour ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ion (dialogue)
In Plato's ''Ion'' (; ) Socrates discusses with the titular character, a professional rhapsode who also lectures on Homer, the question of whether the rhapsode, a performer of poetry, gives his performance on account of his skill and knowledge or by virtue of divine possession. It is one of the shortest of Plato's dialogues. Dramatis personae *Socrates, the Greek philosopher. In this dialogue, he questions the nature of art and of divine inspiration. *Ion of Ephesus, the rhapsode. In poetry, he specialized in the works of Homer. The city of Ephesus was under Athenian control at this time and Athens had lost many of its beloved generals in the recent Sicilian expedition. Athens was in the process of hiring foreign mercenaries so Socrates' suggestion that Ion should serve as a general to the Athenian soldiers is not the non-sequitur it may at first appear when these circumstances are taken into account. Dialogue summary Ion's skill: Is it genuine? (530a–533c) Ion has just come ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hippias Minor
''Hippias Minor'' (), or ''On Lying'', is thought to be one of Plato's early works. Socrates matches wits with an arrogant polymath, who is also a smug literary critic. Hippias believes that Homer can be taken at face value, and he also thinks that Achilles may be believed when he says he hates liars, whereas Odysseus' resourceful () behavior stems from his ability to lie well (365b). Socrates argues that Achilles is a cunning liar who throws people off the scent of his own deceptions and that cunning liars are actually the "best" liars. Consequently, Odysseus was equally false and true and so was Achilles (369b). Socrates proposes, possibly for the sheer dialectical fun of it, that it is better to do evil voluntarily than involuntarily. His case rests largely on the analogy with athletic skills, such as running and wrestling. He says that a runner or wrestler who deliberately sandbags is better than the one who plods along because he can do no better. Authenticity Despite ''Hip ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hippias Major
''Hippias Major'' (or ''What is Beauty?'' or ''Greater Hippias'' (, ''Hippías meízōn''), to distinguish it from the '' Hippias Minor'', which has the same chief character), is one of the dialogues of Plato, although its authenticity has been doubted. It belongs to the early dialogues, written while the author was still young. Its precise date is uncertain, although a date of c. 390 BC has been suggested. In the ''Hippias Major'', Socrates and Hippias set out to find a definition for "beauty", but are destined to fail due to their inability to formulate an answer which encompasses the entire concept. The actual Greek term that is used in the dialogue is καλόν, which as an adjective often means fine or noble as well as beautiful. For this reason, translators such as Paul Woodruff typically translate the term ( τὸ καλόν—the abstract noun of the adjective) as "the Fine" (things) instead of "Beauty." As in ''Charmides'', ''Lysis'' and ''Euthyphro'', ''Hippias Majo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hipparchus (dialogue)
The ''Hipparchus'' (; ), or ''Hipparch'', is a dialogue attributed to the classical Greek philosopher and writer Plato. Like many of Plato's original works, Socrates is featured trying to define a single term, "love of gain" in this case, or philokerdēs''φιλοκερδές'' in the original text. There is some debate as to the work's authenticity. Stylistically, the dialogue bears many similarities to the ''Minos''. They are the only dialogues between Socrates and a single anonymous companion; they are the only dialogues where the titles bear the name of someone long-dead; and they are the only dialogues which begin with Socrates raising a "what is" question. Thomas L. Pangle, (1987), ''The roots of political philosophy: ten forgotten Socratic dialogues'', page 78. Cornell University Press, Thus, many scholars conclude that both were written by the same author, probably soon after the middle of the fourth century BC. John Madison Cooper, D. S. Hutchinson, eds., ''Plato, Comp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gorgias (dialogue)
''Gorgias'' (; ) is a Socratic dialogue written by Plato around 380 BC. The dialogue depicts a conversation between Socrates and a small group at a dinner gathering. Socrates debates with self-proclaimed rhetoricians seeking the true definition of rhetoric, attempting to pinpoint the essence of rhetoric and unveil the flaws of the sophistic oratory popular in Athens at the time. The art of persuasion was widely considered necessary for political and legal advantage in classical Athens, and rhetoricians promoted themselves as teachers of this fundamental skill. Some, like Gorgias, were foreigners attracted to Athens because of its reputation for intellectual and cultural sophistication. Socrates suggests that he (Socrates) is one of the few Athenians to practice true politics (521d). Dramatis personae * Socrates * Gorgias * Polus * Callicles * Chaerephon Major themes Definition of rhetoric Socrates interrogates Gorgias to determine the true definition of rhetoric, framing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euthyphro
''Euthyphro'' (; ), is a philosophical work by Plato written in the form of a Socratic dialogue set during the weeks before the trial of Socrates in 399 BC. In the dialogue, Socrates and Euthyphro attempt to establish a definition of '' piety''. This however leads to the main dilemma of the dialogue when the two cannot come to a satisfactory conclusion. Is something pious because the gods approve of it? Or do the gods approve of it because it is pious? This aporetic ending has led to one of the longest theological and meta-ethical debates in history. Characters *Socrates Socrates (; ; – 399 BC) was a Ancient Greek philosophy, Greek philosopher from Classical Athens, Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and as among the first moral philosophers of the Ethics, ethical tradition ..., the Athenian philosopher, currently waiting at the Porch of the King Archon to attend a preliminary hearing for his trial for impiety. He questions the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euthydemus (dialogue)
''Euthydemus'' (, ''Euthydemos''), written c. 384 BC, is a dialogue by Plato which satirizes what Plato presents as the logical fallacies of the Sophists. In it, Socrates describes to his friend Crito a visit he and various youths paid to two brothers, Euthydemus and Dionysodorus, both of whom were prominent Sophists and pankrationists from Chios and Thurii. The ''Euthydemus'' contrasts Socratic argumentation and education with the methods of Sophism, to the detriment of the latter. Throughout the dialogue, Euthydemus and Dionysodorus continually attempt to ensnare Socrates with what are presented as deceptive and meaningless arguments, primarily to demonstrate their professed philosophical superiority. As in many of the Socratic dialogues, the two Sophists against whom Socrates argues were indeed real people. Euthydemus was somewhat famous at the time the dialogue was written, and is mentioned several times by both Plato and Aristotle. Likewise, Dionysodorus is mentioned by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epinomis
''Epinomis'' (Greek: , or ''On the Laws'') is the final dialogue in the Platonic corpus, a follow-on conversation among the interlocutors of ''Laws'' – a twelve-book exploration of the best way to structure a ''polis''. The participants in the conversation were Clinias of Crete, Megillus of Sparta, and an unnamed Athenian. In ''Epinomis'' they reconvene to address an issue not covered in the earlier discussion: how one acquires wisdom. Synopsis Cleinias has reconvened with Megillus and the Athenian and poses the question, “What are the studies which will lead a mortal man to wisdom (σοφια)?” (973b). In answer, the Athenian begins by saying that “bliss and felicity” are impossible for most people because life for both young and old is too full of pain and discomfort, and so they have little time to devote to learning. The brief span of middle age, when these discomforts abate for a while, is insufficient – only a few are able to make the effort. Beyond ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Crito
''Crito'' ( or ; ) is a dialogue written by the ancient Greece, ancient Greek philosopher Plato. It depicts a conversation between Socrates and his wealthy friend Crito of Alopece regarding justice (''δικαιοσύνη''), injustice (''ἀδικία''), and the appropriate response to injustice. It follows Socrates' imprisonment, just after the events of the ''Apology (Plato), Apology''. In ''Crito'', Socrates believes injustice may not be answered with injustice, personifies the Laws of Athens to prove this, and refuses Crito's offer to finance his escape from prison. The dialogue contains an ancient statement of the social contract theory of government. In contemporary discussions, the meaning of ''Crito'' is debated to determine whether it is a plea for unconditional obedience to the laws of a society. The text is one of the few Platonic dialogues that appear to be unaffected by Plato's opinions on the matter; it is dated to have been written around the same time as the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
