CHAPTER VIII.
Project Gutenberg EPUB3 edition
Grote, George
On the other hand, Thrasyllus has placed among the Dialogues of Search one which might, with equal or greater propriety, be ranked among the Expository — the Protagoras. It is true that this dialogue involves much of negation, refutation, and dramatic ornament: and that the question propounded in the beginning (Whether virtue be teachable?) is not terminated. But there are two portions of the dialogue which are, both of them, decided specimens of affirmative exposition — the speech of Protagoras in the earlier part (wherein the growth of virtue, without special teaching or professional masters, is elucidated) — and the argument of Sokrates at the close, wherein the identity of the Good and the Pleasurable is established.49
The classification, as it would stand, if his principles were applied correctly.
If then we rectify the lists of Thrasyllus, they will stand as follows, with the Expository Dialogues much diminished in number:—
Dialogues of Investigation or Search.
Dialogues of Exposition.
Ζητητικοί.
Ὑφηγητικοί.
1. Theætêtus.
1. Timæus.
2. Parmenidês.
2. Leges.
3. Alkibiadês I.
3. Epinomis.
4. Alkibiadês II.
4. Kritias.
5. Theagês.
5. Republic.
6. Lachês.
6. Sophistês.
7. Lysis.
7. Politikus.
8. Charmidês.
8. Phædon.
9. Menon.
9. Philêbus.
10. Ion.
10. Protagoras.
11. Euthyphron.
11. Phædrus.
12. Euthydêmus.
12. Symposion.
13. Gorgias.
13. Kratylus.
14. Hippias I.
14. Kriton.
15. Hippias II.
16. Kleitophon.
17. Hipparchus.
The Apology, Menexenus, Epistolæ, do not properly belong to either head.
Source notes
49 We may remark that Thrasyllus, though he enrols the Protagoras under the class Investigative, and the sub-class Agonistic, places it alone in a still lower class which he calls Ἐνδεικτικός. Now, if we turn to the Platonic dialogue Euthydêmus, p. 278 D, we shall see that Plato uses the words ἐνδείξομαι and ὑφηγήσομαι as exact equivalents: so that ἐνδεικτικὸς would have the same meaning as ὑφηγητικός.