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Sophist
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A sophist or sophister (Greek: , Latin: sophistes) was a specic kind

of teacher in both Ancient Greece and in the Roman Empire. Many sophists
specialized in using the tools of philosophy and rhetoric, though other sophists
taught subjects such as music, athletics, and mathematics. In general, they
claimed to teach arete ("excellence" or "virtue," applied to various subject areas),
predominantly to young statesmen and nobility. There are not many writings from
and about the rst sophists. The early sophists' practice of charging money for
education and providing wisdom only to those who could pay resulted in the
condemnations made by Socrates through Plato in his Dialogues, as well as by
Xenophon in Memorabilia and, somewhat controversially, by Aristotle who,
being paid to tutor Alexander the Great, could be accused of being a Sophist
(although Aristotle did not actually accept payment from Philip, Alexander's
father, but requested that, in lieu of payment, Philip reconstruct Aristotle's home
town of Stagira, which Philip had destroyed in a previous campaign, terms which
Philip accepted). Author of The History and Theory of Rhetoric: An Introduction
James A. Herrick wrote, In De Oratore, Cicero blames Plato for separating
wisdom and eloquence in the philosophers famous attack on the Sophists in
Gorgias. [1] The classical tradition of rhetoric and composition refers more to
philosophers like Aristotle, Cicero, and Quintilian than to the sophists. Despite
these criticisms, however, many sophists ourished in later periods, especially
during the era of Roman history known as the Second Sophistic.

Contents
1 Etymology
2 Sophists of the 5th century BC
2.1 Sophists and democracy
2.2 Sophists and education
3 Second Sophistic
3.1 Inuence on Roman education
4 Notes
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

Etymology
The Greek (sophos), related to the noun (sophia), had the meaning

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"skilled" or "wise" since the time of the poet Homer and originally was used to
describe anyone with expertise in a specic domain of knowledge or craft. For
example, a charioteer, a sculptor or a warrior could be described as sophoi in
their occupations. Gradually, however, the word also came to denote general
wisdom and especially wisdom about human aairs (for example, in politics,
ethics, or household management). This was the meaning ascribed to the Greek
Seven Sages of 7th and 6th century BC (like Solon and Thales), and it was the
meaning that appeared in the histories of Herodotus. Richard Martin refers to the
seven sages as "performers of political poetry."[2]

From the word (sophos) is derived the verb (sophizo), which means
"to instruct or make learned," but which in the passive voice means "to become or
be wise," or "to be clever or skilled in a thing." In turn, from this verb is derived
the noun (sophistes), which originally meant "a master of one's craft"
but later came to mean "a prudent man" or "wise man."[3] The word for "sophist"
in various languages comes from sophistes.

The word "sophist" could also be combined with other Greek words to form
compounds. Examples include meteorosophist, which roughly translates to
"expert in celestial phenomena"; gymnosophist (or "naked sophist," a word used
to refer to a sect of Indian philosophers, the Gymnosophists), deipnosophist or
"dinner sophist" (as in the title of Athenaeus's Deipnosophistae), and
iatrosophist, a type of physician in the later Roman period.

Sophists of the 5th century BC

In the second half of the 5th century BC, particularly at Athens, "sophist" came to
denote a class of mostly itinerant intellectuals who taught courses in various
subjects, speculated about the nature of language and culture and employed
rhetoric to achieve their purposes, generally to persuade or convince others:
"Sophists did, however, have one important thing in common: whatever else they
did or did not claim to know, they characteristically had a great understanding of
what words would entertain or impress or persuade an audience."[2] Sophists
purposely went to Athens to teach rhetoric because of how ourishing the city
was at the time. It was good employment for those who were good at debate,
which was the specialty of the rst Sophists; they received the fame and fortune
they were seeking. Protagoras is generally regarded as the rst of these
professional sophists. Others include Gorgias, Prodicus, Hippias,
Thrasymachus, Lycophron, Callicles, Antiphon, and Cratylus. A few sophists
claimed that they could nd the answers to all questions. Most of these sophists
are known today primarily through the writings of their opponents (specically
Plato and Aristotle), which makes it diicult to assemble an unbiased view of
their practices and beliefs. In some cases, such as Gorgias, there are original
rhetorical works that are fortunately extant, allowing the author to be judged on
his own terms. In most cases, however, knowledge about what individual sophists

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wrote or said comes from fragmentary quotations that lack context.

Many sophists taught their skills for a price. Due to the importance of such skills
in the litigious social life of Athens, practitioners often commanded very high fees.
The sophists' practice of questioning the existence and roles of traditional deities
and investigating into the nature of the heavens and the earth prompted a
popular reaction against them. The attacks of some of their followers against
Socrates prompted a vigorous condemnation from his followers, including Plato
and Xenophon, as there was a popular view of Socrates as a sophist. For
example, the comic playwright Aristophanes criticizes the sophists as
hairsplitting wordsmiths, and makes Socrates their representative. [4] Their
attitude, coupled with the wealth garnered by many of the sophists, eventually led
to popular resentment against sophist practitioners and the ideas and writings
associated with sophism.

In comparison, Socrates accepted no fee, instead professed a self-eacing

posture, which he exemplied by Socratic questioning (i.e., the Socratic method,
although Diogenes Laertius wrote that Protagoras a sophist invented the
"Socratic" method[5][6]). His attitude towards the Sophists was by no means
oppositional; in one dialogue Socrates even stated that the Sophists were better
educators than he was,[7] which he validated by sending one of his students to
study under a sophist.[8] W. K. C. Guthrie classied Socrates as a Sophist in his
History of Greek Philosophy.[8]

Plato, the most famous student of Socrates, depicts Socrates as refuting some
sophists in several Dialogues. These texts depict the sophists in an unattering
light, and it is unclear how accurate or fair Plato's representation of them may be;
however, Protagoras and Prodicus are portrayed in a largely positive light in
''Protagoras'' (dialogue). Protagoras was the rst sophist, whose theory said
"Man is the measure of all things", meaning Man decides for himself what he is
going to believe.[9] The works of Plato and Aristotle have had much inuence on
the modern view of the "sophist" as a greedy instructor who uses rhetorical
sleight-of-hand and ambiguities of language in order to deceive, or to support
fallacious reasoning. In this view, the sophist is not concerned with truth and
justice, but instead seeks power.

Some scholars, such as Ugo Zilioli[10] argue that the sophists held a relativistic
view on cognition and knowledge. However, this may involve the Greek word
"doxa," which means "culturally shared belief" rather than "individual opinion."
Their philosophy contains criticism of religion, law, and ethics. Though many
sophists were apparently as religious as their contemporaries, some held
atheistic or agnostic views (for example, Protagoras and Diagoras of Melos).

Sophists and democracy

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The rst sophists prepared Athenian males for public life in the polis by teaching
them how to debate through the art of rhetoric. The art of persuasion was the
most important thing to have a successful life in the fth century Athens social
commonplace when rhetoric was in its most important stage. The sophists'
rhetorical techniques were extremely useful for any young nobleman looking for
public oice. The societal roles the Sophists lled had important ramications for
the Athenian political system at large. The historical context provides evidence for
their considerable inuence, as Athens became more and more democratic during
the period in which the Sophists were most active.[11]

Even though Athens was already a ourishing democracy before their arrival, the
cultural and psychological contributions of the sophists played an important role
in the growth of Athenian democracy. Sophists contributed to the new democracy
in part by espousing expertise in public deliberation, the foundation of decision-
making, which allowedand perhaps requireda tolerance of the beliefs of
others. This liberal attitude would naturally have made its way into the Athenian
assembly as Sophists began acquiring increasingly high-powered clients.[12]
Continuous rhetorical training gave the citizens of Athens "the ability to create
accounts of communal possibilities through persuasive speech".[13] This was
extremely important for the democracy, as it gave disparate and sometimes
supercially unattractive views a chance to be heard in the Athenian assembly.

In addition, Sophists had great impact on the early development of law, as the
sophists were the rst lawyers in the world. Their status as lawyers was a result
of their highly developed skills in argument.[14]

Sophists and education

Sophists taught the art of speaking and writing in the Western world prior to any
other philosophical or rhetorical gure. The Sophists were notorious for their
claims to teach virtue and excellence, and particularly for accepting fees for
teaching. The inuence of this stance on education in general, and medical
education in particular, have been described by Seamus Mac Suibhne.[15] The
sophists "oer quite a dierent epistemic eld from that mapped by Aristotle,"
according to scholar Susan Jarratt, writer of Rereading the Sophists: Classical
Rhetoric Regured.

Second Sophistic
The term "Second Sophistic" comes from Philostratos. In his Lives of the
Sophists, Philostratus traces the beginnings of the movement to the orator
Aeschines in the 4th century BC. But its earliest representative was really
Nicetes of Smyrna, in the late 1st century AD. Unlike the original Sophistic
movement of the 5th century BC, the Second Sophistic was little concerned with

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politics. But it was, to a large degree, to meet the everyday needs and respond to
the practical problems of Graeco-Roman society. It came to dominate higher
education and left its mark on many forms of literature. The period from around
AD 50 to 100 was a period when oratorical elements dealing with the rst
sophists of Greece were reintroduced to the Roman Empire. The province of Asia
embraced the Second Sophistic the most. Diococceianus (or Chrysostomos) and
Aelius Aristides were popular sophists of the period. They orated over topics like
poetry and public speaking. They did not teach debate or anything that had to do
with politics because rhetoric was restrained due to the empirical governments
rules.[16]

Owing largely to the inuence of Plato and Aristotle, philosophy came to be

regarded as distinct from sophistry, the latter being regarded as specious and
rhetorical, a practical discipline. Thus, by the time of the Roman Empire, a
sophist was simply a teacher of rhetoric and a popular public speaker. For
instance, Libanius, Himerius, Aelius Aristides, and Fronto were sophists in
this sense.

Inuence on Roman education

During the Second Sophistic, the Greek discipline of rhetoric had heavy inuence
on Roman education. During this time Latin rhetorical studies were banned for
the precedent of Greek rhetorical studies. In addition, the Greek history was
preferred for the education of the Roman elites above that of their native Roman
history.[17]

Many rhetoricians during this period were instructed under specialists in Greek
rhetorical studies as part of their standard education. Cicero, a prominent
rhetorician during this period in Roman history, is one such example of the
inuence of the Second Sophistic on Roman Education. His early life coincided
with the suppression of Latin rhetoric in Roman education under the edicts of
Crassus and Domitius. Cicero was instructed in Greek rhetoric throughout his
youth, as well as in other subjects of the Roman rubric under Archias. Cicero
beneted in his early education from favorable ties to Crassus.[17]

In his writings, Cicero is said to have showed a "synthesis that he achieved

between Greek and Roman culture" summed up in his work De Oratore. Despite
his oratorical skill, Cicero pressed for a more liberal education in Roman
instruction which focused more in the broad sciences including Roman history. He
entitled this set of sciences as politior humanitas (2.72). Regardless of his eorts
toward this end, Greek history was still preferred by the majority of aristocratic
Romans during this time.[18]

Notes

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1. Herrick, James (2005). The History and Theory of Rhetoric: An Introduction. Boston:
Allyn and Bacon. p.103. ISBN 0-205-41492-3.
2. Plato protagoras, intro by N Denyer, p1, cambridge up, 2008
3. A Lexicon Abridged from Liddell and Scott's Greek-English Lexicon, Oxford:
Clarendon, 1996, s.v.v. and .
4. Aristophanes' "clouds"; Aeschines 1.173; Diels & Kranz, "Die Fragmente der
Vorsokratiker",80 A 21
5. Jarratt, Susan C. Rereading the Sophists: Classical Rhetoric Regured. Carbondale
and Edwardsville: Southern Illinois University Press, 1991, p. 83
6. Sprague, Rosamond Kent, The Older Sophists, Hackett Publishing Company (ISBN
0-87220-556-8), p. 5
7. Guthrie, W. K. C. Vol. 3 of History of Greek Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1969, p. 399
8. Guthrie, W. K. C. Vol. 3 of History of Greek Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1969, p. 401
9. Versenyi, Laszlo (1962-01-01). "Protagoras' Man-Measure Fragment". The American
Journal of Philology. 83 (2): 178184. doi:10.2307/292215. JSTOR 292215.
10. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1468-2265.2009.00484_1.x/full
Watereld, R. (2009), Protagoras and the Challenge of Relativism: Plato's Subtlest
Enemy. By Ugo Zilioli. The Heythrop Journal, 50: 509510.
doi:10.1111/j.1468-2265.2009.00484_1.x (https://dx.doi.org
/10.1111%2Fj.1468-2265.2009.00484_1.x)
11. Blackwell, Christopher. Demos: Classical Athenian Democracy
(http://www.stoa.org/projects/demos/home?greekEncoding=UnicodeC). 28
February 2003. The Stoa: a Consortium for Scholarly Publication in the Humanitiez.
25 April 2007.
12. Sprague, Rosamond Kent, The Older Sophists, Hacker Publishing Company (ISBN
0-87220-556-8), p. 32
13. Jarratt, Susan C. Rereading the Sophists: Classical Rhetoric Regured. Carbondale
and Edwardsville: Southern Illinois University Press, 1991, p. 98
14. Martin, Richard. "Seven Sages as Performers of Wisdom". Cultural Poetics in
Archaic Greece. New York: Oxford, 1988. 108130.
15. Mac Suibhne, Seamus (Jan 2010). "Sophists, sophistry, and modern medical
education". Medical Teacher. 32 (1): 715. doi:10.3109/01421590903386799.
PMID 20095778.
16. McKay, Brett (2010). Classical Rhetoric 101: A Brief History.
17. Clarke, M.L. (April 1968). "Cicero at School". Greece & Rome. Second Series.
Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Classical Association. 15 (1): 1822.
doi:10.1017/s001738350001679x. JSTOR 642252.
18. Eyre, J.J. (March 1963). "Roman Education in the Late Republic and Early Empire".
Greece & Rome, second edition. Cambridge University Press. 10 (1): 4759.
doi:10.1017/s0017383500012869. JSTOR 642792.

See also
Sophism
Sophist (dialogue)

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References
Blackwell, Christopher. Demos: Classical Athenian Democracy
(http://www.stoa.org/projects/demos
/home?greekEncoding=UnicodeC). 28 February 2003. The Stoa: a
Consortium for Scholarly Publication in the Humanities. 25 April 2007.
Clarke, M.L. "Cicero at School". Greece & Rome, Second Series, Vol. 15, No.
1 (Apr., 1968), pp.1822; Published by: Cambridge University Press on
behalf of The Classical Association; Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org
/stable/642252
Eyre, J.J. "Roman Education in the Late Republic and Early Empire". Greece
& Rome,Second Series, Vol. 10, No. 1 (Mar., 1963), pp.4759,Published by:
Cambridge University Press; Article Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org
/stable/642792
Guthrie, W. K. C. Vol. 3 of History of Greek Philosophy. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1969
Jarratt, Susan C. Rereading the Sophists: Classical Rhetoric Regured.
Carbondale and Edwardsville: Southern Illinois University Press, 1991.
Kerferd, G. B., The Sophistic Movement, Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge, UK, 1981 (ISBN 0-521-28357-4).
Rosen, Stanley, Plato's 'Sophist', The Drama of Original and Image, Yale
University Press, New Haven, CT, 1983.
Sprague, Rosamond Kent, The Older Sophists, Hackett Publishing Company
(ISBN 0-87220-556-8).
Herrick, James A. The History and Theory of Rhetoric: An Introduction.
Boston: Allyn and Beacon, 2005. Print
McKay, Brett, and Kate McKay. "Classical Rhetoric 101: A Brief History." The
Art of Manliness RSS. The Art of Manliness, 30 Nov. 2010. Web. 03 Oct.
2013.

External links
"The Sophists". Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

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