Dialogues

epub:type="z3998:persona">Theaetetus Certainly. Stranger And that sort, which professes to form acquaintances only for the sake of virtue, and demands a reward in the shape of money, may be fairly called by another name? Theaetetus To be sure. Stranger And what is the name? Will you tell me? Theaetetus It is obvious enough; for I believe that we have discovered the Sophist: which is, as I conceive, the proper name for the class described. Stranger Then now, Theaetetus, his art may be traced as a branch of the appropriative,324 acquisitive family⁠—which hunts animals⁠—living⁠—land⁠—tame animals; which hunts man⁠—privately⁠—for hire⁠—taking money in exchange⁠—having the semblance of education; and this is termed Sophistry, and is a hunt after young men of wealth and rank⁠—such is the conclusion. Theaetetus Just so. Stranger Let us take another branch of his genealogy; for he is a professor of a great and many-sided art; and if we look back at what has preceded we see that he presents another aspect, besides that of which we are speaking. Theaetetus In what respect? Stranger There were two sorts of acquisitive art; the one concerned with hunting, the other with exchange. Theaetetus There were. Stranger And of the art of exchange there are two divisions, the one of giving, and the other of selling. Theaetetus Let us assume that. Stranger Next, we will suppose the art of selling to be divided into two parts. Theaetetus How? Stranger There is one part which is distinguished as the sale of a man’s own productions; another, which is the exchange of the works of others. Theaetetus Certainly. Stranger And is not that part of exchange which takes place in the city, being about half of the whole, termed retailing? Theaetetus Yes. Stranger And that which exchanges the goods of one city for those of another by selling and buying is the exchange of the merchant? Theaetetus To be sure. Stranger And you are aware that this exchange of the merchant is of two kinds: it is partly concerned with food for the use of the body, and partly with the food of the soul which is bartered and received in exchange for money. Theaetetus What do you mean? Stranger You want to know what is the meaning of food for the soul; the other kind you surely understand. Theaetetus Yes. Stranger Take music in general and painting and marionette playing and many other things, which are purchased in one city, and carried away and sold in another⁠—wares of the soul which are hawked about either for the sake of instruction or amusement;⁠—may not he who takes them about and sells them be quite as truly called a merchant as he who sells meats and drinks? Theaetetus To be sure he may. Stranger And would you not call by the same name him who buys up knowledge and goes about from city to city exchanging his wares for money? Theaetetus Certainly I should. Stranger Of this merchandise of the soul, may not one part be fairly termed the art of display? And there is another part which is certainly not less ridiculous, but being a trade in learning must be called by some name germane to the matter? Theaetetus Certainly. Stranger The latter should have two names⁠—one descriptive of the sale of the knowledge of virtue, and the other of the sale of other kinds of knowledge. Theaetetus Of course. Stranger The name of art-seller corresponds well enough to the latter; but you must try and tell me the name of the other. Theaetetus He must be the Sophist, whom we are seeking; no other name can possibly be right. Stranger No other; and so this trader in virtue again turns out to be our friend the Sophist, whose art may now be traced from the art of acquisition through exchange, trade, merchandise, to a merchandise of the soul which is concerned with speech and the knowledge of virtue. Theaetetus Quite true. Stranger And there may be a third reappearance of him;⁠—for he may have settled down in a city, and may fabricate as well as buy these same wares, intending to live by selling them, and he would still be called a Sophist? Theaetetus Certainly. Stranger Then that part of the acquisitive art which exchanges, and of exchange which either sells a man’s own productions or retails those of others, as the case may be, and in either way sells the knowledge of virtue, you would again term Sophistry? Theaetetus I must, if I am to keep pace with the argument. Stranger Let us consider once more whether there may not be yet another aspect of sophistry. Theaetetus What is it? Stranger In the acquisitive there was a subdivision of the combative or fighting art. Theaetetus There was. Stranger Perhaps we had better divide it. Theaetetus What shall be the divisions? Stranger There shall be one division of the competitive, and another of the pugnacious. Theaetetus Very good. Stranger That part of the pugnacious which is a contest of bodily strength may be properly called by some such name as violent. Theaetetus True. Stranger And when the war is one of words, it may be termed controversy? Theaetetus Yes. Stranger And controversy may be of two kinds. Theaetetus What are they? Stranger When long speeches are answered by long speeches, and there is public discussion about the just and unjust, that is forensic controversy. Theaetetus Yes. Stranger And there is a private sort of controversy, which is cut up into questions and answers, and this is commonly called disputation? Theaetetus Yes, that is the name. Stranger And of disputation, that sort which is only a discussion about contracts, and is carried on at random, and without rules of art, is recognized by the reasoning faculty to be a distinct class, but has hitherto had no distinctive name, and does not deserve to receive one from us. Theaetetus No; for the different sorts of it are too minute and heterogeneous. Stranger But that which proceeds by rules of art to dispute about justice and injustice in their own nature, and about things in general, we have been accustomed to call argumentation (Eristic)? Theaetetus Certainly. Stranger And of argumentation, one sort wastes money, and the other makes money. Theaetetus Very true. Stranger Suppose we try and give to each of these two classes a name. Theaetetus Let us do so.