THE SOPHISTS

Origins and Meaning The Greek word sophos which means ‘wise.’ Primarily skilled in a particular craft, e.g. a sculptor, charioteer, etc. A Sophist: A man who claims superior knowledge, who has something to impart; often made ‘ambassadors’ of their cities. Derogatory Senses (from Socrates and Plato): (a) He is not so clever as he thinks he is; (b) His cleverness is used for wrong purposes.

Professionalism At the time of Socrates, the Sophists were itinerant, professional educators who gave instruction to young men, and public displays of eloquence, for fees (Protagoras 349a). Socrates: A Sophist is ‘a seller of the goods by which a soul (or mind) is nourished.’ But watch out: their food enters the mind directly! Claim of Expertise: “The proper care of his personal affairs, so that he may best manage his own household, and also of the State’s affairs, so as to become a real power in the city both as speaker and as man of action.”

Interest and Outlook Rhetoric (important to political life): giving instructions to small circles or public displays. They also had their own interests: mathematics, anthropology, etc. Influences: (1) the extreme monism of Parmenides; (2) the meeting with other cultures. Reactions: (1) Skepticism: our sense-perceptions are untrustworthy; (2) Relativism: national and local ways of life, religious and ethical codes, are ethnically bound.

Comparison with the older Greek philosophers Topic: a movement from cosmology to ‘humanism,’ Object to Subject. Method: from ‘deductive method’ (holding on to the ultimate constituent principle) to ‘empirical-inductive’ (gathering facts and drawing both theoretical and practical conclusions from them). Goal: from finding out the truth (speculative) to teaching (practical).