Plato's "Meno"

Paper Summary:

This paper takes a look at Plato's work, "Meno". The author provides a short background of Plato before examining "Meno", Plato's dialogue that studies the nature of virtue and whether it is something that can be taught or gained through experience. The paper describes the dialogue that takes place between Plato and a young adult named Meno from Thessaly and explains how this piece of work by Plato is as relevant today as it was in ancient Greece. The paper also advocates that if teachers can teach in a more Socratic way by studying "Meno", students can learn to open their minds and look beyond the concrete true and false.

From the Paper:

"Still giving this dilemma thought, Meno asks Socrates how can anyone consider the nature of virtue when not even knowing what virtue is. Socrates explains, because the soul is immortal and all-knowing from one generation to the next, it is just necessary to remember what has already been learned. That knowledge exists within people. To prove his point, he asks Meno's slave to solve a geometry problem with a number of individual steps. Socrates helps the slave by asking him a series of questions that lead him from one step to the next. Although the boy has had not any formal math education, he solves the problem. He has remembered this knowledge from before, Socrates concludes."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Philosopher's Lighthouse. "Plato's Life." Retrieved September 27, 2008 http://library.thinkquest.org/18775/plato/biop.htm
• Plato, Meno. Retrieved September 27, 2008. http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/meno.html

More papers on Plato's "Meno":

• Essay # 73491 : "Homer and Plato"
• Descriptive Essay # 149196 : "Virtue and Knowledge in Plato's Meno"
• Comparison Essay # 1765 : "Plato's "Meno"
• Essay # 26774 : "Plato's Quest for True Knowledge"

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