Gorgias
by Plato · Γοργίας
Assigned by 3 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- c. 385 BCE
- Language
- Greek
- Length
- Short · 110 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Demanding3 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendGorgias, translated by Donald J. ZeylHackett, 1987Accurate and idiomatic; the standard student translation.
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Socrates questions the visiting rhetorician Gorgias about what his art is, then argues with his pupil Polus and the ambitious politician Callicles about whether rhetoric is anything more than flattery. Polus claims the tyrant is happy; Socrates replies that doing wrong is worse than suffering it, and that the wrongdoer who escapes punishment is worst off of all. Callicles defends the natural right of the strong and a life of unlimited appetite, and the dialogue ends with a myth of judgement after death.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns Gorgias are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
