One difficulty with interpreting Plato is that his philosophical
views are hidden within his dialogues and articulated through his
dramatic characters. Nowhere in the dialogues does Plato the
philosopher speak directly to his readers. One of the fundamental
tenets of Platonism is the assertion that 'virtue is knowledge'.
Yet Socrates and the other characters in the dialogues do not
maintain consistent views on the role of knowledge in virtue. This
book develops a new interpretation of the puzzling claim that
virtue is knowledge, while also providing a reading of the
dialogues as a whole which harmonizes the apparently diverse
statements of their various characters. Michael Cormack examines
dialogues from Plato's early and middle periods, emphasizing the
role knowledge plays in each. The most significant of Plato's
examples of knowledge is the type of knowledge possessed by the
craftsman. Using craft knowledge as a guide, Cormack illustrates
the similarities and differences between craft knowledge and
Plato's concept of moral knowledge - that specific type of
knowledge identified with virtue. While the Platonic conception of
virtue is widely recognized as the apprehension of universal
truths, this book illustrates how the dialogues reveal a number of
distinct degrees of understanding that correspond to distinct
degrees of virtue. The significance of this interpretation is that
Plato has not only revealed the goal of the philosophic life, but
has shown us the path - or the 'stepping stones' as he calls them
in the Republic - that we should follow to reach that goal.
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