Riassunto
Riassunto di Alcibiade primo
A chi è rivolto
For anyone drawn to Socrates at work, to questions about leadership and character, or to the advice to know yourself. It also suits readers seeking a first taste of Plato.
Che cos’è questo libro
Alcibiades I is a dialogue attributed to Plato, written in the fourth century before Christ in Athens. Two people talk. One is Socrates, the plain-spoken philosopher. The other is Alcibiades, a young nobleman who is rich, beautiful, well connected and sure that Athens will soon be his. Scholars have long debated whether Plato wrote it, but in later antiquity it was treated as his, and it was often the first dialogue a student was asked to read.
The setting is simple. Alcibiades is not yet twenty and is about to stand before the Athenian Assembly and advise the city. Socrates, who has followed him for years without speaking, now steps up and says he knows what Alcibiades wants. Then he asks a few humble questions and watches the young man's confidence come apart. What you get is a short course in how to think about power, knowledge and the self. It asks what a person must know before leading others, and what it means to know yourself at all. The first point is where the questions begin: with the gap between ambition and understanding.
In questo riassunto
- 1Ambition runs ahead of understandingFree
- 2You cannot advise on what you lack
- 3Your true rivals are kings, not citizens
- 4To care for yourself, first know yourself
- 5The soul sees itself in another soul
- 6Justice must come before power
Punto chiave 1 di 6
Ambition runs ahead of understanding
The dialogue opens with Socrates explaining why he has suddenly spoken. He has been Alcibiades' admirer for a long time, and the young man has driven off other admirers with his pride. Socrates says he alone stayed, and that a divine sign had long held him back from speaking. Now it allows him to talk, and he thinks Alcibiades will listen.
Socrates then describes what he sees in the young man. Alcibiades is proud of his looks, his height, his family and his wealth. He is the ward of Pericles, the most powerful man Athens has known. He believes no one can help him, because he needs nothing. Socrates says Alcibiades dreams of ruling not only Athens but the whole Greek world, and perhaps the lands beyond it.
Alcibiades admits it. This matters because the dialogue is not about a meek student. It is about a man at the very moment when talent and appetite are strongest and self-doubt is weakest. Socrates will use that moment.
The first lesson is plain. Wanting to lead is not the same as being fit to lead. A person can have every advantage of birth and still lack the one thing the task demands. The rest of the dialogue asks what that one thing is, and Socrates begins by asking Alcibiades what he plans to say when he stands up before the Assembly.
That’s 1 of 6 key points.
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Who’s who
- Socrates
- Socrates is a philosopher and persistent admirer of Alcibiades who questions the young man's readiness to advise Athens.
- Alcibiades
- Alcibiades is a wealthy young Athenian nobleman whose confidence and plans for public leadership draw Socrates into conversation.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 19,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 1 h 15 min
- Listening time2 h 5 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 11 other languages
Questions about Alcibiade primo
What is Alcibiades I about?
It is a dialogue in which Socrates shows a young, ambitious Athenian that he does not know what justice is. Socrates then argues that he must first know himself, and that the self is the soul.
Did Plato really write Alcibiades I?
Ancient readers treated it as Plato's and it was widely studied. Some modern scholars doubt that he wrote it, though others defend it. Either way, it presents ideas close to his other dialogues.
Who was the real Alcibiades?
Alcibiades was a gifted Athenian general and politician of the fifth century before Christ, raised in the household of Pericles. He was known for charm, ambition and a stormy career, and he appears in other Platonic works.
What does know thyself mean in this dialogue?
It means understanding what a person really is. Socrates argues that a human being is the soul that uses the body, so self-knowledge means understanding and caring for your soul and its wisdom.
Is Alcibiades I a good first Plato dialogue to read?
Yes, many find it so. It is short, has only two speakers, and moves in clear steps. Later Platonists used it as an opening text for the study of philosophy.