In or. 25 Demosthenes compares Aristogeiton to a watchdog who, instead of defending the sheeps, attacks and tears them to pieces. This picture seems not to be common in Attic rhetoric, but is oc- curs in Plat. Rep. 416a, where Socrates warns about the danger that the most popular orators, in betrayal of their former task, assault the demos and eventually become tyrants. This platonic passage confers a new meaning to the Demosthenic statement and suggests the possibility that Aristogeiton aimed at tyranny. Hence the nomos, which only can control physis, protects society from the worst human vices (poneria, hybris and anaideia), and represents the most effective defence of democracy.
Dem. In Aristog. I 40: una metafora platonica?
Irene Giaquinta
2020-01-01
Abstract
In or. 25 Demosthenes compares Aristogeiton to a watchdog who, instead of defending the sheeps, attacks and tears them to pieces. This picture seems not to be common in Attic rhetoric, but is oc- curs in Plat. Rep. 416a, where Socrates warns about the danger that the most popular orators, in betrayal of their former task, assault the demos and eventually become tyrants. This platonic passage confers a new meaning to the Demosthenic statement and suggests the possibility that Aristogeiton aimed at tyranny. Hence the nomos, which only can control physis, protects society from the worst human vices (poneria, hybris and anaideia), and represents the most effective defence of democracy.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
