Sophist Essays

Latisha Konz Phi111-006 Kennedy 9/15/14 ESSAY 1: Plato: The Republic: “The Sun, the Line, and the Cave” Plato’s theory of the forms came about through the proposition of how we can define something correctly. And he asserts we are able to properly do so through an understanding of that which we are defining. The foundation of his theory stems from a distinction of the many things that we experience through the material world as derivatives of the true essence of what is real which he calls the

Is Plato’s account of the Forms true? Plato is well known as a brilliant philosopher whose intelligence has surpassed the understanding of many other philosophers. He developed detailed concepts to explain the many questions that the world presents to its people. I believe that Plato is right in his theories, but I also believe that he is wrong with the way he portrays objectivity as superior to subjectivity. One cannot, and should not exist without the other. In a world free of human emotion, objectivity

Sophists believed in public speaking and rhetoric and some sophists taught subjects such as music, mathematics and athletics. . Sophists called their method of teaching sophism, and they wanted their students to become successful in life so they taught them everything. They were gifted speakers, so they didn’t agree with Plato’s philosophy. Sophists were convinced that persuasion was the most important thing and was the way to achieve power. People with high persuasion skills would be the one of

In Plato's Gorgias, it is apparent that Socrates has no desire to be a good statesman as it is defined in the eyes of the Athenians. His calculation is that Athenian rhetoricians place no reliance on facts or truth, nor are these their aim. Instead, they rely on the illusion of knowledge, and this morally weakens both themselves and their audiences. It is clear however, that if he wishes, Socrates is able to match most or all of the other statesmen in Athens, as is clearly indicated by his very eloquent

Topic Two: The Necessity of Forms In Plato’s Five Dialogues, Plato discusses one of his hypotheses called the Theory of Forms. The theory of forms is Plato’s way of explaining how we interpret, know, and understand things. Plato believes that nothing in this world is what it seems to be. Take a tree for example. We can all form a picture in our head of what a tree looks like. Although some may be satisfied at this conclusion, Plato, being a true philosopher, wants to discover the true meaning of

intellectuals who charged other people a fee in order to educate them, called sophists. Sophists generally taught academic subjects like astronomy, mathematics, etc., but what they specialised in was the art of rhetoric. The sophists were highly educated and very strong orators; being able to speak well was an important part of Athenian society because it was linked to your status and power and orators were considered high class. The sophists taught students how to be skilled orators and in public speaking

between the sophists and the philosophers was that sophists were teachers for hire in Athens and other Greek cities. Philosophers believed truth was the key to knowledge, and thought sophists were immoral because they were not arête. Because sophists were not citizens of Athens, they were able to travel around Greece and teach groups of individuals their craft. Sophists were competent communicators, so they decided to sell their talents to the middle and high-class part of Greek society. Sophists taught

The impact of Sophist’s view on Greek thought Greece called into existence a class of teachers known as Sophists. They were a professional class rather than a school and as such they were scattered over Greece and exhibited professional rivalries. The educational demand was for partly for genuine knowledge, but mostly reflected a desire for learning that would lead to political success. They were in fact the first in Greece to take fees for teaching wisdom. They taught any subject for which there

1. What are the specific charges brought against Socrates, and why do you think he was so charged? Is Socrates being charged with being a sophist? Is he being accused of offering scientific explanations for religious matters? Explain. Throughout “Apology”, we see Socrates pointing out the different charges placed on him by individuals who he does not actually know, by approaching and responding to each one separately. For the most part, what all of the charges imply that Socrates is going around

teaching used by the Sophists and Socrates have the common idea of using rhetoric, the principle and practice of persuasive teaching, to achieve what one thinks is success in their mind. The idea of “verbally pulling the wool over someone’s eyes” (chapter 3, pg. 44) is what sophists based their teachings around. The word sophists comes from the Greek word “Sophos”, which means wisdom.

Socrates vs. Sophists Believing Socrates was a Sophist can be a common misconception in Greek history. Although they have similarities, such as moving in the same circle, teaching, and having the same subject matter, there are only two given differences that set them apart. The fact that Socrates looked for objective truth through dialectic, while the Sophists believed in relative truth and taught that through rhetoric, clearly separates them. Questioning if Socrates was a Sophist is not an unintelligent

To this day only portions of the Sophists’ writings have survived and they are mainly known from Plato, a philosopher who helped lay the foundations of Western philosophy and science. Plato studied philosophy under the guidance from Socrates. Plato discusses his view on the Sophists’ thought, although his attitude is generally hostile. Due to his opposition, he is largely responsible for the modern view of the sophist as a stingy instructor who deceives. In some cases, such as Gorgias, some of his

the Sophist, Aristotle, Plato, and Isocrates. Greek educational purposes were to identify a person’s social status and to promote well rounded educated individuals. Each philosopher had different beliefs and methods to educate students. The Sophist believed education was based on time and circumstance. Their goals were to develop communication skills so students can be lawmakers. Sophist taught students to argue a claim and use persuasive methods to convince an audience. One well known Sophist, Protagoras

trial. In this interpretation, it is believed that Plato derided all sophists and recognised Socrates as the only real philosopher among his contemporaries, and knew of no other who could be considered as such. I however, argue that Plato never regarded, nor defended, Socrates as the only real philosopher. Rather, he presented Socrates as one of the many ‘real’ philosophers. Plato does so by making a distinction between a sophist and a philosopher. Furthermore, given Plato’s definition of what a philosopher

believed to be associated with a class of people known as sophists. These sophists were philosophers much like he was however they had a bad reputation among the people of Athens. The sophists were looked down on because they charged for their teaching, they often claimed to be much more knowledgeable than they actually were, and they also tried to use their words and rhetoric to confuse people during an argument. While Socrates and the sophists did superficially appear the same, Plato’s Apology clearly

right when acting in accordance with a Sophistic notion of truth. To begin with, I want to stress several factors from the readings that indicate potential ethical problems that arise when assessing the Sophistic notion of truth. Most importantly, Sophists “insisted that persuasive arguments can always be made on either side of an issue” (p. 47) indicating that truth emerges through an exchange of arguments and counterarguments that would “yield a better view of the truth” (p.

furthermore, they insist upon a strategic education to further what they consider to be true rhetoric. The usefulness of rhetoric was undisputed. Sophists believed that educated men could convince the world of anything, and Aristotle and Isocrates knew that persuasion was applicable to every subject. The difference between men like Isocrates and Aristotle and the sophists was the search for truth. As a result of their philosophy behind rhetoric, they taught rhetoric differently. Regardless of how diverse they

“Protagoras of Abdera (c. 485-415 BCE) is considered the greatest of the Sophists of ancient Greece”. A sophist was a teacher who taught the young men of the upper class rhetoric, politics and literature. (Mark). Sophists, such as Protagoras, were very important in Greece because of the quasi-democratic state of poleis like Athens. The ability to convey one’s ideas to the majority and sway them to their opinion was very important (Great Philosophers: Protagoras). Protagoras was known for his claim

also emphasized ethics rather than science; knowledge is not separable from virtue, and the good is also true. Plato is against rhetoric language similarly used by politicians and craftsmen, which is evident in his dialogues Apologia, Phaedrus, and Sophists.

Sophist were lovers of knowledge that expand their minds into all branches of knowledge. The sophist used their knowledge and wisdom to become traveling teachers, offering education for payment. Mainly this education would be based on rhetoric, in efforts to gain advantage in civil disputes. One contribution to rhetoric that the sophist brought upon was the ideals of subjective truth and how perception is the key to truth. Another significant contribution is the concept of dissoi logoi, introduced