Hello everyone, help me please?

Question

Can you tell me anything about Protagoras-meno? I just want to understand it clearly.

Thank You.

Answer 1

The "Protagoras" and "Meno" are two of the most enjoyable and readable of Plato's dialogues; the "Protagoras" is, moreover, universally acknowledged as a dramatic materpiece.

Socrates (469-399 B.C.) played an integral part in the great ethical debates of the fifth century B.C. which laid the foundation for all later moral thought.  In the two dialogues in this volume, Plato reveals his master at work on the question of virtue - what it is and is it something that can be learned?

In "Protagoras", Socrates pits his wits against the great sophist of the title and, by implication, against both the new and accepted wisdom of his time.  The dialogue leads to the conclusion that all virtures are united by kowledge, which should be every person's goal.  In "Meno", which first clearly shows the Socratic approach to attempting definition of an ambiguous concept such as virtue, Socrates then argues that all so-called learning is in fact the recovery of pre-existent knowledge in the soul, and that if virtue is teachable it must be knowledge.

"Meno" is a great work because it challenges the reader to question his definitions of certain concepts in order that the reader may seek to find what that concept really is. Meno thinks he knows what virtue is and defines it as being different for each type of person; for instance, virtue for a man is governing his affairs well while virtue for a woman is being a good housewife and being obedient to her husband. Socrates then asks Meno questions such as what do all virtues have in common that make them virtues. By questioning Meno thus, he is forcing him to clarify what his idea of virtue is. This is crucial, for one cannot act virtuously if one does not know what virtue is. In this way, "Meno" challenges us to question not just our definition of virtue but all our ideas in order that we may be acting in accordance with reality rather than just an appearance that is actually far removed from reality.

Answer 2

Yeah, Scottie, you're right on target!!!  Anyone wanna talk about the allegory of the cave?  My reading is light too.  All kidding aside, I've never seen the dialogs described so well.