Their Epistemology
The Sophists believed that "humans are incapable of knowing absolute truths" (Smith 41) and therefore, their epistemology was simply that there are no absolute truths. They believed that everything was contextual and changing, and due to their belief that there are no transcendent truths, they thought rhetoric was a way to make sense of reality. They employed it to create the best illusion and specifically needed for persuasion. In creating the best illusion, they coined the term dissoi logoi which means looking at each side of an argument. Along with dissoi logoi, they also introduced us to the word kairos which focus on perfect timing. Their are three major Sophists that stick out: Protagoras, Gorgias, and Isocrates.
Protagoras (485-411 BC)
Protagoras was the first rhetorician, and the most famous of the Sophists. He is referred to as the father of debate, employing dissoi logoi by looking at both sides of an argument. He was the first to attempt to turn his students into civic leaders by his teaching of rhetoric. Protagoras specifically studied the meaning of words and was well respected even by those who disagreed with his arguments. One of his arguments was that there could be no theory without practice and vice versa. He believed that art needed theory and practice and truth was perception. His atheist views caused him to be banished from Athens. (Lee, "The Sophists")
Gorgias (485-380 BC)
Gorgias is a native in Leontini in Sicily which is considered the birthplace of the formal study of rhetoric. He is known for his ceremonial speeches, use of poetic devices in language, and stating that language is a "powerful lord". He compared rhetoric to a drug due to its effect on humans to induce euphoria and heal. Gorgias did believe that rhetoric can deceive and manipulate people into power. He wrote the book Encomium of Helen in which he utilized language to shape people's opinion of her. Below is a video to tell the story of Helen of Troy in just a few minutes.
(Lee, "The Sophists")
(Lee, "The Sophists")
Isocrates (436-338 BC)
Isocrates was a student of Gorgias and Protagoras. Due to his serious stage fright, he didn't give speeches and taught instead. Ironically, he believed that oral speech was more persuasive than written speech. He opened his own school and taught a rhetoric program, training his students to become civic leaders with virtue and ethics. He was known for this three part body organization which included the head or the introduction, the torso where the main arguments are stated, and the feet or conclusion. Gorgias focused on word choice and style to be more persuasive in oral and written speech.