Ancient philosophy. Some thoughts about the sophists.

After the Greco-Persian wars in ancient Greece, a period of political, cultural and economic growth took place.Governance and education are democratized, as the same rights are granted to all free citizens (not to slaves). At such times, there is no ground for profound philosophical research, as the good life leads to a surface. Instead, it begins the study of practical sciences: medicine, rhetoric, mathematics, and politics with history. The former philosophy was purely cosmological. She studied the outside world without studying the man himself and his cognitive abilities.

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Through its criticism, philosophy has destroyed faith in the gods, but has not replaced it positively, because all philosophical teachings have denied each other. Thus the person has been left without supreme support and sanction, without mandatory norms in life. In such a situation, naturally, the awakened person did not recognize any authority, neither scientific, nor moral, nor religious. Everything was relentless and relentless. He came to the surface and became a major factor, the appetite for pleasure and various pleasures for which there was no inhibition. Social sentiment emerged in such a social setting. Sophists were initially noble teachers and enlighteners responding to the public need for democratized educators. They had encyclopedic knowledge and trained in a number of sciences. At the same time, they received remuneration for their work.

They they were not original researchers but only science promoters. Especially developed a theoretical rhetoric. Gradually, however, sophistry has become a negative public phenomenon, due to the ever-increasing desire for pleasure and glory for satisfaction, for which it required a lot of money. Since there was free competition among the Sophists, they began to criticize each other and pursue themselves and advertise themselves with unauthorized and unauthorized means, resort to verbal focus and cunning in disputes. That is why, to this day, the word sophist means a verbal rookie, a man of empty words, cunning, insignificant in the verbal and ideological struggle; they no longer sought knowledge, and more they wanted to show themselves that they had knowledge and stood before others with beautiful speeches - most often empty and swollen. This was necessary to increase the number of their pupils and hence to raise their fees so that they could live well.

The sophists who have left a name in history are: Protagor, Gorgi, Hippie, Prodi, Alkidam, Critius, Teradouma and others. Protagor was born in Abdera in 481 BC. He wandered like a teacher in various places. He spent a long time in Athens, where he was a personal and respected friend of the state leaders, headed by Pericles. He was expelled from there because of a charge of impiety. On his way to Sicily, he died in a shipwreck. This happened to 411.George came from the Sicilian city of Leonthina. He was born about 483. He was famous for his eloquence. He was sent by Leonthina to seek the help of Athens against Syracuse. Your mission has performed brilliantly. Since then he has been a teacher in many places, mainly in Larissa (Thessaly). He died at 375 at 108 years.