Virtue and happiness in Plato's "Euthydemus"
by Jones, Russell Edward, Ph.D., THE UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA, 2010, 176 pages; 3409999

Abstract:

There is perhaps no philosophical thesis that has more often been thought to be most central to or most distinctive of the philosophy of Socrates in Plato’s dialogues than the thesis that virtue is sufficient for happiness. In this dissertation, I interpret the Euthydemus with an eye toward what it reveals about Socrates’ views about the relationship between virtue and happiness. In chapter 1, I survey the state of scholarship on virtue and happiness. In chapter 2, I narrow my focus to the Euthydemus and offer a framework in which to place the passages I analyze in the following chapters. In chapter 3, I offer a close reading of Euthydemus 277-282, arguing that it supports attributing to Socrates the view that virtue is necessary for happiness, but not the view that virtue is sufficient for happiness. In chapter 4, I offer a close reading of Euthydemus 288-292, arguing both that it confirms the findings of chapter 3 and that Socrates conceives of virtue as a craft. In chapter 5, I consider how my interpretation of the Euthydemus might be applied to related issues in the Platonic corpus. In particular, I argue that Socrates, by his own lights, was neither virtuous nor happy.

 
AdviserHugh H. Benson
SchoolTHE UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA
SourceDAI/A 71-08, p. , Aug 2010
Source TypeDissertation
SubjectsPhilosophy; Classical studies
Publication Number3409999
Adobe PDF Access the complete dissertation:
 

» Find an electronic copy at your library.
  Use the link below to access a full citation record of this graduate work:
  http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl%3furl_ver=Z39.88-2004%26res_dat=xri:pqdiss%26rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation%26rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:3409999
  If your library subscribes to the ProQuest Dissertations & Theses (PQDT) database, you may be entitled to a free electronic version of this graduate work. If not, you will have the option to purchase one, and access a 24 page preview for free (if available).

About ProQuest Dissertations & Theses
With over 2.3 million records, the ProQuest Dissertations & Theses (PQDT) database is the most comprehensive collection of dissertations and theses in the world. It is the database of record for graduate research.

The database includes citations of graduate works ranging from the first U.S. dissertation, accepted in 1861, to those accepted as recently as last semester. Of the 2.3 million graduate works included in the database, ProQuest offers more than 1.9 million in full text formats. Of those, over 860,000 are available in PDF format. More than 60,000 dissertations and theses are added to the database each year.

If you have questions, please feel free to visit the ProQuest Web site - http://www.proquest.com - or call ProQuest Hotline Customer Support at 1-800-521-3042.