The Sophists 4th and 5th century B.C.E

The Sophists of the 4th and 5th Century B.C.  Sophistry means practical wisdom.  The first two sophists were: Corax and Tisias (the crow and the egg).  in an oral culture, sophists professed to teach the art of virtue, or excellence. This excellence was political as well as moral, so a great part of the training dealt with the use of the spoken word.  Most of the sophists were non-Athenian, and traveled to earn their living.

Sophists  although they had some general features in common, they ascribed to no central authority-- formed no particular movement or school  Kairos was a key sophistic concept. It is the full, present context, the speaker, audience and the moment. The sophists taught students to grasp the situation, to manage the situation and turn it to their purposes.  one of the questions of importance was: does excellence in society come from nature or by teaching and training

What did the Sophists teach?  Arete or virtue rather then birth right.  Nomos or conventional agreement as opposed to thesmos (kings) or physis (natural law) or logos (theory).  Antilogike or counter argument.

Criticisms of the Sophists  Epideixis or memorized speeches.  Help build the middle class.  Techne for the citizens.  Can make the lesser case appear the stronger case.

Criticisms/Critiques  were commonly charged with possessing "cleverness”--the ability to turn an argument.  Plato, in particular, criticized them for being argumentative--arguing for the sake of argument and not interested in the search for truth;  teaching in an authoritative rhetorical fashion-- delivering their speeches but not answering questions; denying absolute value of morality; and for claim to know what they did not know.  Aristotle criticized them for self contradiction and shallowness of thought

Three Great Sophists  Gorgias  Protagoras  Isocrates

Gorgias  came to Athens from his Sicilian home in 427 B.C. as an ambassador.  set up a school in Athens, teaching such subjects as ethics, civic duty, and public speaking.  Known for the "Gorgianic style," a way of speaking that attempts to raise the level of spoken prose (an approach that would have a great impact in a non- literate, oral culture): "I shall not relate the story of who won Helen or how."  Gorgianic style combines a metrical, lyrical delivery with complex clausal structures to produce a somewhat sing-song quality

Three part beginning point:  Nothing exists.  If anything did exist, we could not know it.  If we could know it, we could not communication it. Gorgias

"On Being" or "On Nature."  nihilistic skepticism--Nothing exists, he claims. Or, if it did, it would be incomprehensible. Or, if it is incomprehensible, it would be incommunicable.  Some scholars see a direct connection between this ontology and epistemology and the rhetorical principles that follow from it.  If nothing exists and we can't know it or share the knowledge if it did, then the only reality we can know is that which we create through discourse.  However, "On Being" may also be read as a sophistic exercise. It may have been a playful exhibition of Gorgias' cleverness

Famous For:  Incantations  Style  Supernaturalism  Antithesis, see Herrick p. 43

Encomium on Helen  was a show speech, a way to attract students to his school.  point of the speech is moot; after all, Helen is long dead.  text is highly organized in a tight, logical sequence.  here Gorgias claims seductive powers for language.  Words are seen as having incantatory and narcotic effects on an audience.  Even the divine is subject to the power of speech.  Words are like wizardry, and persuasion is akin to abduction by force.

Encomium on Helen important as  an example of Sophistic oratory;  an example of Sophistic pedagogy (in that Gorgias is reported to have taught by example rather than by precept); and as  a statement of the Sophistic belief in the power, or force of language to lead

Encomium on Helen  imagine how this would appeal to prospective students, young men eager to hone their persuasive abilities. imagine too how Athenians grew suspicious of the sophists, worrying that they were corrupting the youth.

Protagoras  the first to charge for his services as a teacher of political virtue.  famous for asserting that "Man is the measure of all things," a relativistic and humanistic position. Thus, sophistry is associated with appearances (as opposed to reality).  Also known for his concept of dissoi logoi (Gk. "different words"), the idea that there are two contradictory sides to every issue.  would have his students practice giving arguments on both sides

Protagoras  These exercises in declamation were supposed to be so effective as to render the student capable of "making the weaker cause appear the stronger," another of Protagoras' supposed claims. This theory, and the practice that grew out of it, became an issue in the debates between Socrates and the sophists, as we will see.

Isocrates  Thematic and Practical  Civil minded  sought the unity and expansion of Greek culture  believed in the general superiority of Greek culture

So why were they hated?  Politics or “Elect me.”  Is there a God? The watch or threats argument.  Who should rule? Best talker or birth?  Professional juries?