The Bloomsbury Handbook of Socrates (Bloomsbury Handbooks)

This handbook provides detailed philosophical analysis of the life and thought of Socrates across fifteen in-depth chapters. Each chapter engages with a central aspect of the rich tradition of Socratic studies and, after surveying the state of scholarship, points the way forward to new directions of interpretation. A leading team of scholars present dynamic readings of Socrates, extracted from the historical context of Plato's dialogues, covering elenchus , irony, ignorance, definitions, pedagogy, friendship, politics and the daemon . Building on these core Socratic topics, this edition includes new accounts of Socrates in the work of philosopher and historian, Xenophon, the comic playwright, Aristophanes, as well as important scholarship on topics such as emotions, the afterlife, motivational intellectualism and virtue intellectualism. Fully revised and updated, the Bloomsbury Handbook of Socrates elucidates the complex landscape of Socratic thought and interpretation. Cover 1 Halftitle page 2 Also available from Bloomsbury 3 Title page 4 Copyright page 5 CONTENTS 6 LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS 8 PREFACE 9 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS 10 CHAPTER ONE Socrates in Old Comedy 12 I. INTRODUCTION 12 II. THE NEW WISDOM 13 III. SOCRATES ON STAGE: CHRONOLOGY AND DRAMATIC SETTING 16 IV. ARISTOPHANES 18 CONCLUSION 24 CHAPTER TWO Xenophon’s Socrates on Teaching and Learning 34 I. SETTING THE CONTEXT 34 II. INTELLECTUALISM 35 III. SOCRATES, KNOWER AND TEACHER 36 IV. PROBLEMATISING SOCRATES AS KNOWER AND TEACHER 38 V. A PROPOSED SOLUTION 39 VI. A CASE STUDY: CRITIAS AND ALCIBIADES 45 CHAPTER THREE Socratic Methods 56 ‘THE SOCRATIC METHOD’ 56 DOES SOCRATES HAVE A METHOD? 56 SOCRATIC EXAMINATION 60 SOCRATIC EXHORTATION 65 THE SOCRATIC METHOD 68 CHAPTER FOUR Socrates and the Forms 74 INTRODUCTION 74 THE EUTHYPHRO AND THE EARLY THEORY OF FORMS: ALLEN 75 RADICAL DEVELOPMENTALISM AND THE CRITIQUE OF THE EARLY THEORY OF FORMS: VLASTOS, DANCY AND WOODRUFF 80 CRITIQUE OF THE CRITICS (I) 85 THE UNITARIAN ALTERNATIVE: KAHN AND FRONTEROTTA 91 CRITIQUE OF THE CRITICS (II) 94 CONCLUSION 95 CHAPTER FIVE Socratic Ignorance 96 I. INTRODUCTION 96 II. TWO QUESTIONS 97 III. SOCRATES’ DISAVOWALS 98 IV. SOCRATIC KNOWLEDGE 108 V. RESTATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM OF SOCRATIC IGNORANCE AND A SURVEY OF PROPOSED SOLUTIONS 116 CHAPTER SIX The Priority of Definition 138 I. INTRODUCTION 138 II. THE PRINCIPLE 139 III. SOCRATES’ ENDORSEMENT OF (PD)? 141 IV. THE LANDSCAPE OF INTERPRETATIONS 147 V. CONCLUSION 156 CHAPTER SEVEN Socratic Virtue Intellectualism 164 INTRODUCTION: SOCRATIC INTELLECTUALISM 164 SOCRATIC VIRTUE THEORY 165 THE PENNER-VLASTOS DEBATE 167 THE DEVEREUX DISCREPANCY 169 SOCRATIC DEFINITION: THE ‘WHAT IS F-NESS?’ QUESTION 171 RECONCILIATION INTERPRETATIONS 174 SUB-DISCIPLINES AND APPLICATIONS 176 THE RESULTS OF PIETY AND JUSTICE 177 VIRTUE AND EUDAIMONIA 179 THE RESULT OF VIRTUE AS A CRAFT 182 CHAPTER EIGHT Socratic Eudaimonism 190 IS SOCRATES HAPPY THROUGH VIRTUE? 191 WHY DOES WRONGDOING LEAD TO MISERY? 192 EXTERNAL INJURIES AND BENEFITS: DEPENDENT GOODS 194 HAPPINESS: WELL-BEING OR GOOD FEELINGS? 195 EUDAIMONIST THEORIES ATTRIBUTED TO SOCRATES: A TAXONOMY 197 SOCRATIC REASONING: WHY AVOID MORAL INJURY 201 SOCRATIC REASONING: JUSTICE 203 THE CHARGE OF EGOISM 205 RATIONALITY 206 CONCLUSIONS 207 CHAPTER NINE Socratic Motivational Intellectualism 216 WHAT IS MOTIVATIONAL INTELLECTUALISM? 216 WE ALL DESIRE THE GOOD 218 EMOTIONS, APPETITES AND NON-RATIONAL DESIRES 224 WRONGDOING AND PUNISHMENT 230 IS SOCRATES AN INTELLECTUALIST ABOUT HUMAN MOTIVATION? 234 CHAPTER TEN Socrates On Love 240 INTRODUCTION: SOCRATES AS LOVER 240 DO LYSIS’ PARENTS LOVE HIM? 242 SOCRATES’ POSITIVE PROPOSAL 244 INTERPRETATIVE PROBLEMS FOR THE POSITIVE PROPOSAL 248 THE VLASTOS OBJECTION 251 CONCLUSION 259 CHAPTER ELEVEN Socrates on Emotions 266 I. INTRODUCTION 266 II. THE MOTIVATIONAL EFFICACY OF THE NON-RATIONAL ASPECTS OF THE HUMAN SOUL 267 III. EMOTIONS AS COGNITIONS 268 IV. FEAR 271 V. SHAME AND ITS ROLE IN PERSUASION 273 VI. ANGER 275 VII. ENVY 278 VIII. GRIEF 279 IX. CONCLUDING REMARKS 280 CHAPTER TWELVE Socrates’ Political Philosophy 286 I. INTRODUCTION 286 II. SOCRATES AS POLITICAL PRACTITIONER 287 III. INTERPRETATIONS AND CONTROVERSIES 289 IV. WAS SOCRATES AN ‘AUTHORITARIAN’ OR A‘LIBERTARIAN’ POLITICAL PHILOSOPHER? 298 V. CONCLUSION 304 CHAPTER THIRTEEN Socratic Theology and Piety 310 I. HISTORY OF THE PROBLEM 310 II. GREEK RELIGION 312 III. THE PUZZLES OF ‘SOCRATIC RELIGION’ 313 IV. SOCRATIC PIETY AND PHILOSOPHY 315 V. SOCRATIC REASON AND REVELATION 319 VI. SOCRATIC THEOLOGY 322 VII. SOCRATES ON TRIAL 324 CHAPTER FOURTEEN Socrates on Death and the Afterlife 334 DEATH IN PLATO’S APOLOGY 334 THE AFTERLIFE 342 COURAGE AND THE FEAR OF DEATH 349 CONCLUSION 353 CHAPTER FIFTEEN The Trial of Socrates 354 I. INTRODUCTION 354 II. LEGAL PRELIMINARIES 354 III. THE POLITICAL INTERPRETATION 356 IV. THE RELIGIOUS INTERPRETATION 364 BIBLIOGRAPHY 378 GENERAL INDEX 406