Source edition
Platonis Opera, Tomus II: Tetralogia III-IV. Burnet, John, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1910.
Source data
Perseus Digital Library · CC BY-SA (per Perseus's terms)
Cloned and adapted by Humanitext, with ongoing edits.
Summary
This work is a philosophical dialogue that explores the nature of "knowing oneself" and the "virtue" required of a political leader, through a conversation between the philosopher Socrates and the young, ambitious Athenian Alcibiades. As Alcibiades, harboring grand ambitions of global dominance, prepares to enter politics, Socrates begins to question him about the sources of his knowledge. As the dialogue progresses, Alcibiades is forced to realize his complete ignorance regarding "justice" and "utility," confronting his own state of "double ignorance." Socrates further explains that Alcibiades' true rivals are the kings of Sparta and Persia, and that rigorous self-discipline is indispensable. Through an examination of the Delphic maxim "Know thyself," they agree that the true self is not the body but the "soul," and that to know itself, the soul must look at its best part—wisdom and the divine—as a mirror. Ultimately, Alcibiades becomes convinced that those who lead the state must possess the virtues of the soul (justice and temperance), and he resolves to follow Socrates and dedicate himself to self-improvement.