Protagoras Dialogue with Socrates
Protagoras is a dialogue of Plato. The traditional subtitle (which may or may not be Plato's) is "or the Sophists, probative". The main argument is between the elderly Protagoras, a celebrated sophist, and Socrates. The discussion takes place at the home of Callias, who is host to Protagoras while he is in town, and concerns the nature of Sophists, the unity and the ability of teaching virtue. A total of twenty-one people are named as present.
Introduction
The dialogue begins with an unnamed friend of Socrates asking him how his pursuit of the young Alcibiades, just now reputed to be growing his first beard, was proceeding. Socrates explains that while he has just been in the company of Alcibiades, he has just come from meeting with someone who is "more beautiful . . . No doubt the wisest of men nowadays-- if in your opinion the wisest is Protagoras".(309C). Socrates relates the story of how his young friend, Hippocrates, son of Apollodorus, came knocking on his door before daybreak and rousted him out of bed. Hippocrates was in a big hurry to be present when Protagoras held court, as he was expected to do, at the home of Callias. Socrates warns the excitable Hippocrates that sophists are dangerous. He tells him that the words of the sophists go straight into the soul (psukhē) and can corrupt a person straightaway. Socrates says that buying wisdom from a sophist is different from buying food and drink at the market. With food and drink, you never know what you are getting, but you can consult experts for advice before consuming anything that might be dangerous (313a-314c).
Socrates says he regards Prodicus as a man of inspired genius (316a). He expresses the same admiration for Prodicus in another dialogue, the Theaetetus. Socrates later notes that Prodicus was assigned to sleep in a storage room that his host had cleaned out for the visit (315d). Socrates accompanies Hippocrates to the home of Callias, and they stand in the doorway chatting about "some point which had come up along the road" (314c). A eunuch opened the door, took one look at them, guessed they were sophists, and slammed the door in their faces (314d). They knocked again, and this time assured the porter they were not sophists, but only wanted to visit with Protagoras. The porter let them in, and it is at this point that Socrates recites the list of guests.
[edit] Prodicus is wrestled out of bed Protagoras does not deny being a sophist, and claims that it is an ancient and honorable art, the same art practiced by Homer and Hesiod. These poets, he says, used the arts as a screen, a front, to protect themselves from the charge. He says that he is more straightforward than the ancient artists, trainers, and musicians in frankly admitting that he is an educator. Protagoras says he is old enough now to be the father of any of the men present, and would like now to address himself to the whole company of people in the house. Socrates assumes that Prodicus would not want to miss the lecture, and so Callias and Alcibiades are sent to roust him out of his bed (317c-e). [edit] Protagoras' great speech Socrates asks Protagoras "in what respect" will Hippocrates improve by associating with him (318d).Protagoras begins his discourse with the statement that a good sophist can make his students into good citizens. Socrates says this is fine and good, but that he personally thinks that virtue cannot be taught (319b). He adds that technical thinking can be imparted to students by teachers, but that wisdom cannot be. By way of example, Socrates says that Pericles did not manage to impart his wisdom to his sons (319e). Socrates' uses a similar example in the Meno. He then adds that Clinias, younger brother of Alcibiades, was taken from the family for fear that Alcibiades would corrupt him, and he was given back as a hopeless case. Socrates says he could give more examples, but thinks his point is sufficiently established. Protagoras says his claim that virtue can be taught is better made by a story than by reasoned arguments, and he tells a fable about the origins of living things. He says that Epimetheus (whose name means "Afterthought") was assigned the task of passing out the assets for survival, forgot to give mankind anything so his twin brother Prometheus (whose name means "Forethought") stole fire and practical wisdom for man. However, man was never granted civic wisdom or the art of politics, so the race was initially in danger of extinction. Zeus, however, sent Hermes to distribute shame and justice equally among human beings. To Protagoras, this answers Socrates's question why people think that wisdom about architecture or medicine is limited to the few while wisdom about justice and politics is thought to be more broadly understood (322d).
Protagoras states that he has two good pieces of evidence that people agree with him. First, people do not rebuke the ugly, dwarfish, and weak, but pity them, because they cannot help being as they are (323d). Second, they do instruct people who are unjust and irreligious, hoping to impart goodness in them. He says that parents begin with their children from earliest childhood, and teachers carry on the task. Protagoras notes that none of this is surprising, but what would be surprising is if this were not the case (326e). He closes by addressing Socrates's question why, if virtue is teachable, the sons of virtuous men often lack virtue. Protagoras points out that a skilled flute player could fail to teach his son to play the flute well, because the son may not be naturally inclined to music. The children of the flute player would be more skilled than those who had never studied the flute, but they would be inferior to their parents. The same applies to the teaching of virtue (327b-d).
[edit] Socrates' complaints Socrates complains that Protagoras is long-winded, like a gong that booms when you strike it and won't stop until you lay a hand on it. Socrates then asks Protagoras questions aimed at the problem of whether virtue is one thing or many, like the parts of a face (329d). Protagoras begins to bristle at this and so Socrates supposes that their styles are opposite. He personally doesn't like long-winded speeches like the one Protagoras just delivered, because he is forgetful and cannot follow the train of thought (334d), and Protagoras does not like to be peppered with questions that seem to lead them off track. Socrates gets up to leave, grousing that companionable talk is one thing and public speaking another (336b). After the intervention of several of the listeners, the men agree to compromise their styles so the discussion can continue.
First they analyze some poetry, and discuss the difference between being and becoming, and then Socrates praises the Spartans as the best people in the world at concealing their sophistical skills. He says you might think Spartans are unimpressive speakers, but just at the right moment, they can provide pithy phrases of wisdom (342e). He adds that Laconic brevity was the earliest characteristic of philosophy (343b). Socrates then broaches the question whether virtue is knowledge. He tries to establish that virtue is connected to knowledge of wise choices in pleasure and pain. Wrong choices, that is to say, ignorance, in these matters lead to evil-doing (357c-358d).
Socrates draws the conclusion of the discussion and the debate--he and Protagoras are an absurd pair (361a). Socrates by way of explanation adds that he began by saying that virtue is not teachable, and then tried to show that virtue is knowledge, in which case it is teachable, and that Protagoras, who tried to argue that virtue is teachable, wanted to argue that it is not knowledge, in which case virtue would not be teachable.
