Discipleship theme in Plato’s Cratylus
Discipleship theme in Plato’s Cratylus

Summary/Abstract: The article analyzes the dialectics of the one of the most bizarre Platonic dialogues that make up hidden references to the interactive dimension. The primary, superficial topic of dialogue - etymological accuracy and the significance of words - is addressed in the wider context of "teaching" and "authority" philosophy in the context. Through subtle authoring, each character in the dialogue - Socrates, Hermogenes and Kratila - is revealed in his own particular relationship with the philosophical truth and its searches. Plato criticizes the "school" model, the authoritative relationship between the teacher and the student, which is the most common and traditionally used in Greek culture, and aims to replace it with a "common search" relationship and a philosophical quest for a critical dialogue. An analysis of Plato's dialogue, based on the method of explication du texte, highlights the structuring themes of this dialogue, interpreting the work as a philosophical "letter to Plato" for his teacher of youth, Kratil.

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