In several of his dialogues, Plato suggests the possibility of moral expertise. Rod Jenks takes up this question of moral expertise as it is addressed in Laches, Charmides, The Republic, and Theaetetus. Jenks shows that, while Plato does believe that expertise is possible, the expert he countenances is internal to us all, so that we need not fear the moral expert as some kind of moral fascist. While we all know the moral truth, we also occasionally entertain false moral beliefs. For this reason, arriving at a systematically interrelated array of consistent beliefs is crucial to our moral health, that is discovering moral truth is akin to recovering something from within ourselves. Plato on Moral Expertise will be of interest to professional philosophers acquainted with and interested in Plato’s work, graduate students in philosophy and classics, and advanced undergraduates.
This book will be of interest to professional philosophers acquainted with and interested in Plato’s work, graduate students in philosophy and classics, and advanced undergraduates.