Plato's Meno

Abstract

Given its brevity, Plato's Meno covers an astonishingly wide array of topics: politics, education, virtue, definition, philosophical method, mathematics, the nature and acquisition of knowledge and immortality. Its treatment of these, though profound, is tantalisingly short, leaving the reader with many unresolved questions. This book confronts the dialogue's many enigmas and attempts to solve them in a way that is both lucid and sympathetic to Plato's philosophy. Reading the dialogue as a whole, it explains how different arguments are related to one another and how the interplay between characters is connected to the philosophical content of the work. In a new departure, this book's exploration focuses primarily on the content and coherence of the dialogue in its own right and not merely in the context of other dialogues, making it required reading for all students of Plato, be they from the world of classics or philosophy.

Sókratovská pedagogika v Platónovom dialógu Menón

“…Následne Menóna zaskočí svojím tvrdením, že nielenže nevie, akým spôsobom sa zdatnosť získava, ale dokonca ani vôbec nevie, čo zdatnosť je, a pokiaľ nevie čo je zdatnosť, nemôže vedieť ani aká je (70c-71b). 5 2 Kľúčovými monografiami k Menónovi sú napríklad (Ionescu 2007;Scott 2006;Tarrant 2005;Weiss 2001;Havlíček 2000;Day 1994;Sharples 1991;Klein 1965;Bluck 1961). 3 Pri interpretácii Menóna budeme používať metódu dramatického čítania.…”

India's Reluctant Urbanization

“…4 With the renewed interest in cities and urban areas as key sites for economic growth, states, probably for the first time, have become the focal points in driving the economic agenda of the central government (Shatkin and Vidyarthi, 2014). 5 However, while there were some piecemeal programmes put forward by the Government of India and states, problems "in" cities and urban areas were given little attention till the arrival of JNNURM. The Indian government, through a constitutional amendment, has, during this era, attempted to decentralize governance functions to urban local bodies which subsequently shifted the scale of action from states to cities (Sami, 2014).…”

“…(iii) a density of population of at least 400 per square-kilometre (i.e., 1,000 per square-mile) 5. Percentage of literate persons aged seven and above to the total population aged seven or above (effective literacy rate) (Census, 2001).…”

Meno and the Slave

“…Nehamas (1994: 226) thinks that Meno is perfectly justified in bringing his complaint forward. Weiss (2001: 57–63) thinks the paradox (at least) betrays a serious issue for Socrates, as does Scott (2006: 71–4 and 87–91), but for different reasons. See also Bluck (1961) 8–9.…”

“… 7 Some scholars think that the theory of recollection is a farce geared to Meno's predilections that does not address the paradox, e.g. : Eckstein (1968) 31–2; Scott (2006) 81–3; Ebert (2007) 187–90 and 197–8; and especially Weiss (2001) 63–76. Others think that Socrates genuinely believes in recollection, often because of a perceived commitment to the immortality of the soul, e.g.…”