sophist

sophist (sophistēs), originally meaning in Greek a man who had a particular skill and therefore a claim to wisdom. In the fifth century BC it came to be specially, though not exclusively, applied to itinerant teachers who went from city to city giving lectures and private instruction for a fee. The subjects they taught were wide ranging, such as geography, mathematics, science, linguistics, but their overriding purpose was to train rich young men to be successful in public life; in their own words they ‘taught virtue’ (aretē). To this end all of them to some extent included in their curriculum the teaching of rhetoric, the art of public speaking; some, notably Gorgias, concentrated on this subject exclusively and gave public performances to advertise their rhetorical skill; the ability to argue persuasively was essential for political advancement, and politics was the career above all other in the ancient world that offered power, fame, and fortune. The sophists satisfied a need among the ambitious for a kind of advanced education which was not obtainable elsewhere, attuned to the times, inclusive of new knowledge, practical and sophisticated. It is not surprising that sophists enjoyed great popularity among those for whom they catered, and amassed large fortunes. Their emphasis upon worldly success as well as their advocacy of the idea, which much impressed the Athenians, that the ability to plead a case and win depends on a skill that can be taught rather than on having a just cause (see the Clouds of Aristophanes), were factors in promoting the scepticism and moral relativism that were associated with their name. Famous sophists were Gorgias of Leontini, Protagoras of Abdera, Prodicus of Ceos, Hippias of Elis, and Thrasymachus of Chalcedon (see also ANTIPHON). Most Athenians of the day would have included Socrates, not aware of the radical differences in his outlook, but seeing that he too was an intellectual who questioned people's unexamined beliefs about the gods, the laws, and traditional values.

The dangerous effect of the sophists was evident in the late fifth-century phenomenon of able, cynical, and recklessly self-seeking politicians, but, on the other side, the intellectual stimulus they provided is manifested in the arguments and educational theories of Plato.