The Philosopher in Plato’s Statesman

by Mitchell H. Miller Jr.

others in his discipline tend not to bring their studies to bear on the substance of the dialogues. Conversely, philosophical interpreters have generally felt free to approach the extensive logical and ontological, cosmological, and political doctrines of the later dialogues without concern for questions of literary style s and form. Given, moreover, the equally sharp distinction between the diSCiplines of philosophy and cultural history, it has been too easy to treat this bulk of doctrine without a pointed sense of the specific historical audience to which it is addressed. As a result, the pervasive tendency has been the reverse of that which has dominated the reading of the early dialogues: here we tend to neglect drama and pedagogy and to focus exclusively on philosophical substance. Both in general and particularly in regard to the later dialogues, the difficulty is that our predispositions have the force of self-fulfilling prophecy. Are we sure that the later Plato's apparent loss of interest in the dramatic is not, on the contrary, a reflection of our limited sense of the integrity of drama and sub­ stance, form and content? What we lack eyes for, of course, we will not see. The basic purpose of this essay is to develop eyes, as it were, for that integrity. The best way to do this, I think, is to take a later dialogue and to try to read it as a whole of form, content, and communicative function.

Genres: Philosophy

163 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

Mitchell “Mitch” Miller earned his bachelor’s degree from Stanford University and his MA and PhD from the State University of New York at Buffalo. He joined the Philosophy Department at Vassar College in 1972, rising to the rank of professor in 1984. He served as chair of the department from 1984 to 1987, in 1988, and again from 1994 to 1996. In 2009, he was appointed to the Dexter M. Ferry Jr. Chair. He retired in 2014, becoming Dexter Ferry Professor of Philosophy, Emeritus.

Miller is broadly interested in the history of philosophy, and he has done work in areas ranging from medieval philosophy to 20th-century continental philosophy. He is perhaps best known, however, for his work on Plato. He has published two books, as well as articles, reviews, and comments almost too numerous to count.

He has been a frequent consultant to departments at other institutions and has often been asked to review article and book manuscripts for journals and presses.

He has served as a referee for several major granting institutions, including the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and the Earhart Foundation.