'You are going to entrust your soul to the care of a sophist. But I should be su
rprised if you even know what a sophist is.' In the fifth century BC professiona
l educators, the sophists, travelled the Greek world claiming to teach success i
n public and private life. In this dialogue Plato shows the pretensions of the l
eading sophist, Protagoras, challenged by the critical arguments of Socrates.
From criticism of the educational aims and methods of the sophists the dialogue
broadens out to consider the nature of the good life, and the role of pleasure
and intellect in the context of that life. The dialogue combines subtlety of arg
ument with intricacy of dramatic construction and brilliant characterization. Th
is translation achieves both precision and colloquial naturalness while the note
s and introduction set the arguments in their historical and philosophical conte
xt.
