The Unity of Plato's Sophist: Between the Sophist and the Philosopher

Description

Plato's later dialogue, the Sophist, is deemed one of the greatest works in the history of philosophy, but scholars have been shy of confronting the central problem of the dialogue. For Plato, defining the sophist is the basic philosophical problem: any inquirer must face the 'sophist within us' in order to secure the very possibility of dialogue, and of philosophy, against sophistic counterattack. Examining the connection between the large and difficult philosophical issues discussed in the Sophist (appearance, image, falsehood, and 'what is not') in relation to the basic problem of defining the sophist, Dr Notomi shows how Plato struggles with and solves all these problems in a single line of inquiry. His new interpretation of the whole dialogue finally reveals how the philosopher should differ from the sophist.

"Notomi's work on the Unity of Plato's Sophist succeeds in providing an appreciation of the dialogue as an organic whole and in answering difficult issues of composition and structure. For this reason and for the author's brave effort to deal with aspects of the dialogue which were previously overlooked by critics, the book will repay careful study." Bryn Mawr Classical Review "Notomi's book presents a well-argued and persuasive case for its interpretation of the Sophist and has many more or less self-contained accounts of philological and literary matters which will interest philosophers..." International Philosophical Quarterly "...there is plenty in [Sophist] to reward a student of Athenian cultural history, and Notomi's book, rather than many others, would be a good starting-point for further reflection on this aspect of the dialogue." Ancient History Bulletin "Noburu Notomi's book offers an exciting new interpretation of one of Plato's most difficult dialogues...a bold and original contirbution to the discussion of the Sophist...supersedes all previous attempts to grasp the overall structure of the Sophist, and thus, is required reading for serious students of the dialogue." Philosophy in Review "...the book is scholarly, clearly argued, textually supported, and highly recommended...Notomi's book succesfully re-frames the dialogue in terms of its fundamental question; for this it merits the attention of all serious students and scholars of Plato's Sophist." Ancient Philosophy