Theaetetus and the Making of a Philosopher: Character and the Nature of Philosophical Discussion in Plato's Theaetetus

Kerklaan, Nicholas

Theaetetus and the Making of a Philosopher: Character and the Nature of Philosophical Discussion in Plato's Theaetetus

dc.contributor.advisor	Migotti, Mark
dc.contributor.author	Kerklaan, Nicholas
dc.contributor.committeemember	Inwood, Brad
dc.contributor.committeemember	Burch, Robert
dc.contributor.committeemember	Hume, James
dc.contributor.committeemember	Fantl, Jeremy
dc.date	2025-02
dc.date.accessioned	2024-12-10T23:11:10Z
dc.date.available	2024-12-10T23:11:10Z
dc.date.issued	2024-12-07
dc.description.abstract	Traditional approaches to Plato’s Theaetetus have it that it is only, or at least primarily, about knowledge. Yet large sections of the dialogue, including the so-called “Digression” of 172c-177c, do not appear to be concerned with knowledge at all, but with the nature of the philosopher and the activity the philosopher engages in, i.e. philosophical discussion. I offer a reading of the Theaetetus that proceeds from the assumption that the inclusion of such material suggests that the dialogue is also about philosophy and the philosopher, and I find such concerns in fact present throughout both explicitly and implicitly. On my view, the dialogue is both dramatically and philosophically a portrayal of the philosophical progress of Theaetetus, whose first encounter with philosophical discussion, when Socrates asks him if he can help find what knowledge is, not only demonstrates that he has, but draws out and develops in him, an essentially philosophical character – where to be “philosophical” is much more than to just be adept with arguments or quick to come up answers to philosophical questions, but to be willing to try out answers to such questions without attachment to them, to learn from the shortcomings of previous attempts, and ultimately to have a certain kind of orientation toward the world.
dc.identifier.citation	Kerklaan, N. (2024). Theaetetus and the making of a philosopher: character and the nature of philosophical discussion in Plato’s Theaetetus (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.
dc.identifier.uri	https://hdl.handle.net/1880/120192
dc.language.iso	en
dc.publisher.faculty	Arts
dc.publisher.institution	University of Calgary
dc.rights	University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.
dc.subject	Plato
dc.subject	Theaetetus
dc.subject	epistemology
dc.subject	Ancient Greek philosophy
dc.subject.classification	Literature--Classical
dc.subject.classification	Philosophy
dc.title	Theaetetus and the Making of a Philosopher: Character and the Nature of Philosophical Discussion in Plato's Theaetetus
dc.type	doctoral thesis
thesis.degree.discipline	Philosophy
thesis.degree.grantor	University of Calgary
thesis.degree.name	Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
ucalgary.thesis.accesssetbystudent	I do not require a thesis withhold – my thesis will have open access and can be viewed and downloaded publicly as soon as possible.