Daniel W. Graham, PhDinThe First PhilosophersPlato 8.5 The Road Not TakenAs the conversation winds down, Protagoras refuses to answer any more questions. He recognizes that Socrates has won the day. But Socrates…2d ago2d ago
Daniel W. Graham, PhDinThe First PhilosophersPlato 8.4 What Is Courage?One way of distinguishing between courage and other virtues is to note that the possessor of the virtue must overcome fear. Those who have…Jun 19Jun 19
Daniel W. Graham, PhDinThe First PhilosophersPlato 8.3 Is Virtue Teachable?When the preliminaries are over, Socrates raises a fundamental question: can virtue be taught? Socrates has his doubts. In areas of…Jun 17Jun 17
Daniel W. Graham, PhDinThe First Philosophers8.2 The Sophist’s Pitch“Young man,” Protagoras says to his prospective student Hippocrates, “if you come to me, your gain will be this. On the same day you join…Jun 14Jun 14
Daniel W. Graham, PhDinThe First PhilosophersPlato 8.1 Socrates among the SophistsIn Socrates’ lifetime the big new thing intellectually was the Sophistic Movement. The sophists were self-proclaimed experts who offered to…Jun 12Jun 12
Daniel W. Graham, PhDinThe First PhilosophersPlato 7.5 Plato’s Socrates at LargeSocrates’ life is an enigma; the views that he on occasion advances as his own are paradoxical. His method, if he has one, seems totally…Jun 10Jun 10
Daniel W. Graham, PhDinThe First PhilosophersPlato 7.4 The MagnetSo what made Socrates so special? We can identify a few salient traits from Plato’s Socratic dialogues.Jun 7Jun 7
Daniel W. Graham, PhDinThe First PhilosophersPlato 7.3 The EnigmaWe see here many of the traits of a Socratic dialogue: Socrates, professing to have no special knowledge, seeks it from a companion, often…Jun 5Jun 5
Daniel W. Graham, PhDinThe First PhilosophersPlato 7.2 What All the Gods LoveIf piety is what all the gods love and impiety is what all the gods hate, we have removed the potential for conflict in our account of this…Jun 3Jun 3
Daniel W. Graham, PhDinThe First PhilosophersPlato 7.1 How to Prosecute Your FatherAt some point perhaps soon after Socrates’ death and after the retreat to Megara, Plato seems to have put pen to papyrus and begun crafting…May 30May 30
