Meno Hidden Virtue Analysis

In Plato’s Meno, Socrates and Meno attempt to answer the question, ‘What is virtue?’ Through this discussion, Meno is lead to question whether they are even able to arrive at an answer, presenting us with the paradox of inquiry, ‘And how will you enquire, Socrates, into that which you do not know? What will you put forth as a subject of enquiry? And if you find what you want, how will you ever know that this is the thing which you did not know?’ (Meno 80d). Meno’s paradox states that one cannot gain knowledge through enquiry.

If we apply this to the question of virtue, which is being considered in the Meno, neither Socrates nor Meno can define virtue, and so they do not know what virtue is, therefore they can not inquire about virtue.

Yes, I do agree with Meno’s first instinct, as even I would not be able to recount the interpretation of “virtue” in its entirety. Meno interprets virtue as “to find joy in beautiful things and have power.” (Meno) Even more so, Meno believes that virtue varies in relation to men, women and children. However, in reality, having virtue simply means to maintain and uphold good moral values and characteristics. For example, patience is said to be a virtue. Other virtues can be seen as bravery, charity, commitment, compassion, dignity, grace and honesty. I agree with Socrates when he states that virtue is the same for everyone. With that said, on the other hand, not every individual possesses all of the numerous virtues. This is because not every

As stated above the dialogue begins with Meno asking Socrates whether virtue can be taught, and if it is not teachable he inquires as to how one comes to possess it. As in earlier dialogues Socrates initial response to Meno’s question is to claim that he has no knowledge at all of virtue, and therefore he has no knowledge of the qualities it possesses—such as whether it is teachable or not. In addition to this, Socrates claims that he has never encountered anyone who actually knew what virtue is. Meno asserts that Gorgias, a sophist who he seems to revere, knows what virtue is. If this were the case then Gorgias being a sophist, someone who supposedly teaches others, should be able to teach other what virtue is. Following that, Meno—who has interacted with Gorgias should theoretically be able to explain

In Socrates-Meno conversation, Meno asked Socrates the nature of virtue and is it something taught or it is something innate to the men. Socrates couldn’t answer his question claiming that he doesn’t know the definition of what virtue is. So, Meno defined what virtue is for Socrates, one of the definition was that virtue is something to be learned and it is: “desire for good things”, where he explains that the man who manages the city or a woman who manages the house intend to be virtue. This type of management as Meno was thinking is taught, which it’s another definition of virtue that Meno gave, but Socrates disagrees with Meno and delivers his thoughts as a series of question so Meno gets to an understanding that virtue is not something

Although Meno’s paradox seems to be merely a dodge of proceeding to continue and ponder the true meaning of what virtue really is, “the (paradox) is one of real philosophical importance and is basic for understanding the Theory of Ideas and the related notion of Recollection” (Plato’s Meno:Text and Criticism, 78). The problem with this paradox is that in order to discover the definition of virtue, one must use reflection and logical insight, not research and proof. “If the question under discussion had been a merely empirical one-e.g., ‘How many citizens are there in Athens?’-then Meno’s objection would have been utterly pointless, for this is a question to be answered by counting heads and not by reflection” (Plato’s Meno:Text and Criticism, 79). Plato, who has confronted this paradox before, told Meno the argument was an “excuse for indolence: and hence we must not give ear to this specious argument, for it will make us idle, and is pleasing only to the slothful” (Plato’s Meno, 78). Plato strongly believes in this concept and discusses his thoughts furthermore:

Plato’s dialogue Meno begins with Meno asking Socrates whether virtue can be taught. Socrates responds by saying that he does not have an answer to such question because he does not even have knowledge of what virtue is. This claim prompts Meno to provide Socrates with a definition of virtue. He explains that there are different virtues for different people dependent on their gender, age, and social class (Plato 872). Socrates, however, rejects this definition because it fails to provide a single form common to all kinds of virtue. Meno gives another attempt by defining virtue as the ability to rule over people (Plato 873). Socrates swiftly refutes this claim by pointing out how it fails to explain virtue in the case of a child or slave. In his third attempt, Meno defines virtue as justice, but Socrates again explains how justice is merely a virtue and not a common feature of virtue. In his final attempt, Meno defines virtue as a poet says, “to find joy in beautiful things and have power” (Plato 877). The argument breaks down when Socrates explains how everybody desires good things and that acquiring power is not necessarily a good thing if not accompanied by justice or piety. Thus, Meno has repeated his earlier mistake by using different types of virtues in order to define virtue. In the end, Socrates is left nowhere closer to an answer as Meno realizes that he does not know what virtue is.

Plato’s dialogue, titled ‘Meno’, began with Meno proposing a question to Socrates on whether virtue is teachable, can be developed by practice, or something one is born with. Socrates, who is somewhat humored by the question, wants to first know what the nature of virtue truly is. Meno offers Socrates multiple examples of virtues based of roles, including the virtue of a man, a woman, a child, an elder, and a slave. The virtue of a man would be to manage his public affairs, and bring good on to himself and his friends and harm to his enemies. The virtue of a woman is to manage the household and to be submissive to her husband (Meno, pg. 60-61). He goes on to say that there are many other ways of defining virtue that is specific to the actions,

Arête, translates to the Greek word virtue. Within Meno, Plato puts forth a question, “MENO: Can you tell me, Socrates, is virtue something acquired by teaching? Or is it something acquired not by teaching, but by practice? Or is it something acquired neither by practice nor by learning, but something human beings possess by nature or in some other way?”

Socrates was one of the most influential and thought-provocative people in all of Ancient Greece; he was so monumental in his teachings that his theories and argumentative styles are still utilized today. One of Socrates’ most influential students was Plato, another ancient philosopher that followed Socrates through Greece and kept record of his arguments and teachings, who would go on to be some of the most significant philosophical academia to ever be published. In one of Plato’s recordings, the Meno, he records an argument that Socrates enters with a friend of his, Meno. In this argument, Socrates and Meno are attempting to define virtue, and are having a very difficult time in doing so considering that they were two brilliant and learned men. In the Meno, Socrates argues that true opinion and knowledge differ from each other, although sometimes it seems that they can serve as replacements for one another. However, Socrates is able to form an argument to help Meno see how knowledge and true opinion differ from each other. As I read the Meno, I found that I agreed with Socrates and his platform which argued that the two did in fact differ from each other, but they could also serve as two separate means for the same ending.

After being compared to the other methods suggested for figuring out what virtue is, the Socratic Method proved to be the most credible and efficient one. Having such an effective method in their hands one can’t help but wonder: how did they not figure out what virtue is? The answer is quite simple: they didn’t use it. The only moment in The Meno where the Socratic Method was put into action it was on the topic of geometry. Had Socrates and his interlocutors used the Socratic Method regarding the concept of virtue they wouldn’t have ended in the state of aporeia that they did and they would have successfully defined the

MENO: …if you want the virtue of a man, it is easy to say that a man’s virtue consists of being able to…benefit his friends and harm his enemies and to be careful that no harm comes to himself. (60)

In Plato’s Meno it begins with a debate between a fictional Socrates and Meno about whether virtue can be taught or if it is acquired in another way. Socrates begins to prove his point when he asks the slaves about the geometry question. When the slave answers the question, Socrates suggests to Meno that they inquire this together. Meno argues with his “Meno’s Paradox” that, “one logically cannot inquire productivity into what one does not already know” (Meno 58). Then Socrates continues to make Meno question his own beliefs when the slave recognizes the answer to geometrical problem. Socrates proceeds to confirm with the concept that the sole is immortal and the slave was “recollecting” knowledge that the soul already had.

As well as that, Meno proposes an idea that goodness could be taught if it was knowledge - as long as there are teachers to do so. There are none — and therefore, virtue cannot be taught and it cannot be knowledge — yet it is a good thing. In conclusion, the dispute between Meno and Socrates boils down to the agreement that correct guidance is a result of knowledge and true belief, and is as such both useful and

To begin with adding some context then, what exactly is the Meno? The Meno is a dialogue written by the ancient philosopher Plato. (427 B.C.E. -347 B.C.E.) These dates are unfortunately are not entirely exact as it is not in fact known for definite when Socrates was born or when he died. The dates do however inform us of the period he lived within. (Day, 1994, p.8) The actual dates of Plato’s work are also unknown to us. Philosophers have however created what they believe to be an accurate timeline of Plato’s works by cross-referencing the texts, from this it is believed that the Meno comes under the heading of one of Plato’s earlier works.