Sophistry is a unique philosophical school of antiquity

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:47

The path of philosophical thought in all epochs has developed according to a similar principle: all universal models are being replaced by teachings that sharply rebel against all metaphysics and refer to the limitations of consciousness and cognition. After Descartes and Leibniz came Immanuel Kant, after the materialists of the nineteenth century and Hegel came the positivists. In Ancient Greece, the cradle of all sciences, and philosophy in particular, such situations were constant. One school criticized and refuted the other, and then vice versa. However, there were people who proposed an original solution to all disputes: if all philosophical schools contradict each other in theories, then maybe all their “facts” and “arguments” are just “opinions”? Indeed, in fact, no one has seen either Existing, or God the Creator, or the finiteness or infinity of being. Sophistry is just that very "pill" against endless philosophical wars.

Who are sophists?

The most famous representatives of this school were Protagoras, Antiphon, Hippias, Gorgias, Prodik, Lycophron. Sophistics is a system that aims to teach virtue, wisdom, oratory, and the basics of management. Of contemporary figures, Dale Carnegie stands very close to her. Ancient sophistry was the first system introduced by the so-called "sellers of knowledge", who introduced an innovative type of relationship between learners and teachers - mutually beneficial equal communication and attitude.

What did the representatives of this philosophical school do?

The Sophists taught how to convince people, how to think for themselves and were associated with the emergence of democracy in many cities in Greece. They proclaimed the fundamental principle of the equality of people among themselves, put forward theories and concepts that eventually laid the foundation for building modern relations in the field of law and public administration. Sophistics is the basis for psychology, scientific philology, logic, theories of the origin of religions.

What does the term "sophist" mean?

Sophistry is a philosophical school that spread in ancient Greece. This doctrine was founded by scientists from the Greek city of Athens around the second half of the fifth century BC. The term "sophist" itself is translated from Greek as "wise man". So called professional teachers who taught people the art of oratory. Unfortunately, the writings of the founding fathers arealmost completely lost, almost nothing has survived to this day. However, with the help of indirect information, it was possible to establish that this caste of philosophers did not try to create an integral system of education and knowledge. They did not attach any importance to the systematization of education. The goal of the sophists was one - to teach students to argue and discuss. That is why it is believed that classical sophistry in philosophy is a teaching aimed at rhetoric.

“Elder” Sophists

Based on the historical sequence, we can talk about the existence of two currents - "senior" and "junior" philosophers of sophism. The "senior" (Gorgias, Protagoras, Antiphon) sophists were researchers of the problems of ethics, politics, law, and the state. The relativism of Protagoras, who argued that "man is the measure of things," brought into this school the denial of truth in its objective form. According to the ideas of the "senior" sophists, matter is changeable and fluid, and since it is such, perception is transformed and changes constantly. It follows from this that the true essence of phenomena is hidden by matter itself, which cannot be objectively imagined, so you can talk about it in any way you like. The ancient sophistry of the "seniors" is absolutely subjective and postulates the relativity of knowledge and knowledge. All the authors of this trend trace the idea that being itself does not exist, since knowledge about it cannot be objectively transferred to others.

"Junior" Sophists

The "younger" representatives of thisphilosophical school, which include Critias, Alcidamus, Lycophron, Polemon, Hippodamus and Thrasymachus, sophistry is “juggling” with concepts and terms, the use of false techniques that would prove both lies and truth at the same time. In Greek, the word "sophism" means "cunning", which is expressed in the activities of the followers of this doctrine as the use of verbal tricks that are misleading. False arguments based on broken logic are widespread.

Methodological principle of sophisms

What is sophistry in terms of its application? A popular method is "quadruple", which violates the principle of the syllogism that there should be no more than three terms. Hence, a false reasoning is created, in which the non-identity of outwardly similar concepts is used. For example: “The thief does not want to buy anything unnecessary. Acquiring something good is a good deed. Therefore, the thief wants to do a good deed.” Also a popular method is a collective middle term, when the distribution of terms by volume is violated in a syllogical conclusion. For example: diplomats are people, some people play the violin, all diplomats play the violin.