Concept in Definition ABC

Lilén gomez | Nov. 2021
Philosophy training

The sophistry appears in the context of the process of democratization of the Athenian political system, and to which two fundamental figures belong: Protagoras and Gorgias.

Protagoras Principles

Protagoras establishes a series of relativistic theses, according to the principle of “man as a measure of all things, of those that are, that are and of those that are not, that are not”(Known as homo mensura), and with the principle of identity between being and appearance.

Consequently with the Heraclitean conception of reality - by which everything is in permanent becoming—, it is admitted that both the knowing subject and the object to be known are in constant change; therefore, knowledge, the product of the conjunction between the two, is also changing all the time. In this way, it is not possible that it is immutable, universal and necessary, as Plato postulated, but it is mutable, particular and contingent.

The sensation It is the only possible form of knowledge, what is captured through the senses, that is, appearance, is equivalent to being. Protagoras maintains, against Platonism, that it is not possible to go beyond the scope of human experience, there is no "Idea".

Aristotle will question the protagonist thesis by affirming that it infringes the principle of no contradiction, since under the thesis of homo mensura, the same thing can be affirmed and denied to the Same time. However, the sophist maintains that there is no contradiction, since something and the opposite can be predicated on an object, always under different relationships. For there to be a contradiction, the same thing must be affirmed and denied at the same time and under the same relationship.

Two central problems associated with virtue appear in Protagoras's theory: the possibility of its learning, and their role in society. On the learning of virtue, Protagoras affirms that it can and must be learned, and therefore must be taught (he is thus opposed to Gorgias). Society is only possible through virtue, that is, mutual respect and the practice of justice. It is necessary that all men participate in virtue (areté politiké) so that the social group subsist. The education allows changing the nature of man, since being is mutable.

The thought of Protagoras is founded on an agnostic basis. The existence or nonexistence of the gods is ignored, from which the whole theory is derived, since, by dispensing with the immutable divine nature, human relativism remains. At the level of men, there are no truths superior to others. All opinions are true (being equals appearance), truth is relative to the individual.

The possible difference between the opinion of men is given by its usefulness for society, in this lies the pragmatism of Protagoras. All opinions are equally true but they are not equally helpful.

Relativism applies to all planes of reality, in terms of epistemology, sensitive-intellectual knowledge, and in terms of ethics, value judgments and moral norms.

Gorgias Principles

On his part, Gorgias takes Protagoras's ideas as his starting point, but differs from him in his linguistic skepticism. That is, it states that language does not manifest reality. The word corresponds to necessarily different experiences of reality, since there is no universal reality shared by individuals. Hence his three theses follow:

1) There is no essence. If there is essence, it should be eternal, therefore infinite. Consequently, being infinite, it could not be at all. That which is not in anything does not exist.

2) If the essence existed, it would not be knowable.

3) If the essence existed and was knowable, it would not be communicable. The word only transmits sounds that act as signs, different from its meaning. That meaning, the reality, cannot be conveyed by the word.

Language does not transmit a common reality, since it does not exist, since there are no essences; compression takes place from the particular reality of each individual, the limit of communication is experience. The relationship of words with things is associative.

Gorgias conceives of the word as an instrument of domination and manipulation. Language has the ability to provoke feelings and change opinions. In his theory, the power of persuasion of the word is interpreted as a form of violence.

Unlike Protagoras, Gorgias proposes the teaching of rhetoric as a tool, but the use that his disciples give to this tool is beyond his reach.

Politics how to know

Socrates argues with the sophists on two questions: the nature of justice and politics how to know.

Both sophists and Socrates conceive of politics as a virtue and, in turn, as a way of knowing. The difference is whether virtue in general and, specifically, political virtue can be taught.

Socrates, in Platonic dialogues, conceives of politics as intermediate knowledge, an opinion. While knowledge (episteme) is always true and based on reasons, opinion can be true or false and has no foundation.

Sophistics and rhetoric persuade by producing mere opinions (pseudo-knowledge), but not knowledge. Such pseudo-knowledge does not seek good, but pleasure; therefore, they do not make citizens better, but worse and more unfair.

True politics, on the contrary, is oriented to the good of the soul and, thus, to the good of the citizens.

Bibliography

Vernant, J.P. (1972) The origins of Greek thought, Bs. As: EUDEBA.

Plato (2003). Dialogues Complete work in 9 volumes. Volume I: Apology. Crito. Euthyphro. Ion. Lysis. Charmids. Hippias minor. Hippias major. Laques. Protagoras. Madrid: Editorial Gredos.