Why Plato Lost Interest in the Socratic Method

Gareth B. Matthews

ISBN 10: 3031136896 / ISBN 13: 9783031136894

Published by Springer International Publishing, Springer Nature Switzerland, 2022

About this Item

Druck auf Anfrage Neuware - Printed after ordering - The Socratic method of questioning and refutation (elenchus) predominates the early Platonic dialogues. But things change in the middle dialogues, as Socrates goes beyond merely asking questions and begins to provide answers to his questions. And the method virtually disappears in the late dialogues. The standard explanation of this phenomenon is that the early dialogues were intended to commemorate Socrates and the elenchus, while in the middle and late dialogues Plato went beyond Socrates to present his own mature philosophical thought. In this book, Matthews revises this explanation by uncovering the shortcomings that Plato came to find in the Socratic method and the reasons why Plato lost interest in it.

Seller Inventory # 9783031136894

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Why Plato Lost Interest in the Socratic Method
• Publisher: Springer International Publishing, Springer Nature Switzerland
• Publication Date: 2022
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 3031136896
• ISBN 13: 9783031136894
• Binding: Buch
• Condition: Neu

About this title

Synopsis

The Socratic method of questioning and refutation (elenchus) predominates the early Platonic dialogues. But things change in the middle dialogues, as Socrates goes beyond merely asking questions and begins to provide answers to his questions. And the method virtually disappears in the late dialogues. The standard explanation of this phenomenon is that the early dialogues were intended to commemorate Socrates and the elenchus, while in the middle and late dialogues Plato went beyond Socrates to present his own mature philosophical thought. In this book, Matthews revises this explanation by uncovering the shortcomings that Plato came to find in the Socratic method and the reasons why Plato lost interest in it.

About the Author

Gareth B. Matthews was Professor of Philosophy at the University of Massachusetts, USA. He passed away in 2011.

S. Marc Cohen is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University of Washington, USA.