Plato’s Gorgias and the threat of persuasive power in the pólis

Abstract

Rhetoric is a central issue in Plato's Gorgias. Through the discussion with three of his practitioners, Socrates aims to define the object of rhetoric, what its relation to justice and to the happiness of the citizens of the pólis. From the dialogue between Socrates and the three speakers, who always depart the dóxa to speak or discourse, I try to show how this instance intrinsically relates the citizens and the speakers, both in life in the pólis and in political government. The Socratic examinations of rhetorical statements and beliefs contained throughout the Gorgias are useful to present the course of their discourses and how they do not commit themselves to Justice and to Good in the political and ethical life of the pólis. This commitment, while absent, triggers the threatening relationship between speakers and citizens.