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What a masterful dialogue and I’m really glad I decided to return to it for a second read. It’s such an important piece of political literature especially and it exposes a lot of the underlying issues behind the prominence of popular political rhetoric (all of which still rings loudly true today). More than about politics and what nature is required of public servants, the heart of the conversation doubles down on one of Plato’s favorite topics: the nurturing of the soul. Great stuff.
Some things I noticed more acutely on second read is how similar some of Callicles’ speech was with Nietzsche’s notions of master and slave morality, as well as his idea of the will to power. More obviously as well I noticed just how deeply rooted the dialogue is in the future context of Socrates’ death by trial and execution. Some sections almost feel directly like attempts to justify and make sense of what Socrates did/allowed for at the end of his life. I also found it interesting how this may be the dialogue with the most resistant and combative interlocutors - it’s almost funny at times just how successfully (Callicles especially) they undermine Socrates’ points and force him to try different arguments.
Lots of interesting stuff and I think this is making me want to re-read Phaedrus as well before a second round of his Republic.
Some things I noticed more acutely on second read is how similar some of Callicles’ speech was with Nietzsche’s notions of master and slave morality, as well as his idea of the will to power. More obviously as well I noticed just how deeply rooted the dialogue is in the future context of Socrates’ death by trial and execution. Some sections almost feel directly like attempts to justify and make sense of what Socrates did/allowed for at the end of his life. I also found it interesting how this may be the dialogue with the most resistant and combative interlocutors - it’s almost funny at times just how successfully (Callicles especially) they undermine Socrates’ points and force him to try different arguments.
Lots of interesting stuff and I think this is making me want to re-read Phaedrus as well before a second round of his Republic.