Study Questions
Why does Hippocrates blush when Socrates asks him if he wants to become a Sophist?
Does Socrates's final position—that virtue can be taught—really contradict his view at the start of the argument?
In Protagoras's creation story, humans are defined negatively: they are "unclothed, unshod, unbedded, unarmed" (321c). What does such a definition entail about human nature?
Suggested Essay Topics
Why does Protagoras change his style of argument halfway through his long speech?
Who wins the argument between Socrates and Protagoras about how they should argue?
What are the relative merits of Socrates's argument against the interpretation of poetry as a method of philosophy, and Protagoras's argument in favor of this method?
Socrates frequently argues by listing a series of parallel cases. Is this form of argument sound?
Socrates argues that ethical knowledge is the knowledge of measurement. Is this fair? What kind of measurement is he speaking of?
How different is Socrates from the Sophists?
How convincing is Socrates's argument that claims that courage is identical with wisdom?
