III A World of Words: The Sophists at the Crossroads Between Grammar, Rhetoric, Poetry, and Philosophy

Abstract

An interest in speech and an admiration for those capable of speaking well was a recurrent feature of the Greek world from its most archaic period. Contrary to a certain stereotyped image, the Homeric hero is not celebrated only for his strength and beauty; his ability to express himself is also fundamental: Achilles is the most famous hero, and Phoenix's duty was to teach him how to be ‘both a speaker of words and a doer of deeds’ (Iliad, 9.442–3). In times of war and peace, authority largely depended on one's skill in rhetoric, which allowed one to settle disputes and provide suitable advice (see, for example, Hesiod, Theogony, 83–7). Later on, the development of the institution of the polis further increased the importance of this skill, which became even more crucial in Athenian democracy, in an age in which courtrooms and assemblies shaped men's lives and careers. Hence the sophists’ success, which reflects the fame they enjoyed as masters of the art of speech: it is because he ‘makes you a clever speaker’ that the young Hippocrates wishes to rush off to visit Protagoras in Plato's dialogue of the same name (Protagoras, 312d–e).