SOPHIST IBD

Sinopse

Sophist is aáPlatonic dialogueáfrom the philosopherâÇÖs late period, most likely written in 360 BC. In it the interlocutors, led byáEleatic Strangeráemploy theámethod of divisionáin order to classify and define theásophistáand describe his essential attributes and differentia vis a vis theáphilosopheráandástatesman. Like its sequel, theáStatesman, the dialogue is unusual in thatáSocratesáis present but plays only a minor role. Instead, theáEleaticáStranger takes the lead in the discussion. Because Socrates is silent, it is difficult to attribute the views put forward by theáEleatic Strangeráto Plato, beyond the difficulty inherent in taking any character to be an authorâÇÖs 'mouthpiece'.The main objective of the dialogue is to identify what aásophistáis and how a sophist differs from a philosopher and statesman. Because each seems distinguished by a particular form of knowledge, the dialogue continues some of the lines of inquiry pursued in theáepistemologicaládialogue,áTheaetetus, which is said to have taken place the day before. Because theáSophistátreats these matters, it is often taken to shed light onáPlatoâÇÖsáTheory of Formsáand is compared with theáParmenides, which criticized what is often taken to be the theory of forms.InáCratylus, contemporary or slightly preceding theáRepublic, Plato poses the problem, decisive for the use of dialectics for cognitive purposes, of the relationship between name and thing, between word and reality. Thus the âÇÖSophistâÇÖ has its major background in theáCratylus. This dialogue is resolved in a contrast between the thesis of Hermogenes, who considers the name a simple sequence of sounds conventionally chosen to refer to an object, and the thesis of Cratylus, a pupil of the oldáHeraclitus, who supported the full expression of the essence of the 'nominatum' in the name, and who considered the names as expressions forged by an Onomaturge, capable of expressing the essence of the thing named. Following this research, all the âÇÖSophistâÇÖ is dedicated to find the right definition of the name 'sophist'.