History of Philosophy Commons^™

Interpreting The Republic As A Protreptic Dialogue, Peter Nielson Moore

Theses and Dissertations--Philosophy

Protreptic is a form of rhetoric, textual and oral in form, which exhorts its recipients to reorient their lives both morally and intellectually. Plato frequently portrays Socrates' use of this rhetoric with interlocutors who are enticed by the moral and political views of figures from Athens' intellectual culture. During these conversations Socrates attempts to persuade his interlocutors to reorient their lives in a way that conforms more closely to his own moral and intellectual practice of philosophy. Plato's depiction of protreptic, however, also exerts a protreptic effect on readers of his dialogues. Plato's writing thus performs a dual function, simultaneously …

Socrates' Satisfied Pigs, Jacob Zimbelman

Global Tides

At the start of Republic’s book II (358e-361d), Glaucon renews Thrasymachus’s challenge to Socrates with a robust account of the origin of justice, arguing that justice is only instrumentally desirable for the end of a good reputation, and that everyone would choose to be unjust were there no legal or social consequences. Socrates soon responds to this narrative account in kind (370c-372d), telling the story of an idyllic city whose people live simply, “in peace and good health,” and contribute to one another’s welfare by performing the task for which they are best suited. Socrates praises this city as “the …

Classical Philosophical Approaches To Lying And Deception, James E. Mahon

Publications and Research

This chapter examines the views of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle on lying. It it outlines the differences between different kinds of falsehoods in Plato (real falsehoods and falsehoods in words), the difference between myths and lies, the 'noble' (i.e., pedigree) lie in The Republic, and how Plato defended rulers lying to non-rulers about, for example, eugenics. It considers whether Socrates's opposition to lying is consistent with Socratic irony, and especially with his praise of his interlocutors as wise. Finally, it looks at Aristotle's condemnation of lies, and asks whether lies to enemies, and self-deprecating lies by the magnanimous person, are …

Ancient Animal Ethics: The Earliest Arguments For The Ethical Consideration Of Nonhuman Animals, Joshua J. Sias

The Downtown Review

Primarily focused on the ancient Greek philosophers, this work offers a survey of the earliest arguments for and against the inclusion of nonhuman animals in human realms of ethical consideration. By following the trends of ancient western thought concerning animal ethics, the influencing factors behind the downfall of the subject in Medieval times, both in terms of discourse and practice, is discovered in the philosophical exchange that preceded medieval thought.

"Via Platonica Zum Unbewussten. Platon Und Freud", Wien: Turia + Kant, 2012 (Pdf: Inhaltsverzeichnis, Vegetti Vorwort, Einleitung)., Marco Solinas

Marco Solinas

Psiche: Platone E Freud. Desiderio, Sogno, Mania, Eros, Firenze: Firenze University Press, 2008 (Pdf: Indice)., Marco Solinas

Marco Solinas

Desideri: Fenomenologia Degenerativa E Strategie Di Controllo, In Mario Vegetti (A Cura Di), "Platone. La Repubblica", Napoli: Biblipolis, 2005, Vol. Vi, Pp. 471-498., Marco Solinas

Marco Solinas

No abstract provided.

Rights Of Inequality: Rawlsian Justice, Equal Opportunity, And The Status Of The Family, Justin Schwartz

Justin Schwartz

Is the family subject to principles of justice? In A Theory of Justice, John Rawls includes the (monogamous) family along with the market and the government as among the "basic institutions of society" to which principles of justice apply. Justice, he famously insists, is primary in politics as truth is in science: the only excuse for tolerating injustice is that no lesser injustice is possible. The point of the present paper is that Rawls doesn't actually mean this. When it comes to the family, and in particular its impact on fair equal opportunity (the first part of the the Difference …