Ammonio e Socrate: due maestri a confronto

Figure magistrali, maestri di filosofia e norme di educazione in Plutarco

Abstract

Who is the true philosopher? How he acts in society and what kind of abilities he should hold? Comparing how Plutarch presents Socrates and Ammonius in his writings could help to understand Plutarch’s point of view. Socrates was the master of Plato, the Plutarch philosophic hero, so every things Plutarch attributes in Quaestiones platonicae (999 c-1000 e) to him, should be considered to refer to an ideal philosophical profile. Plutarch presents Socrates as a god-inspired person, able to judge and generate but he also criticizes Sokrates' hybris. Many of his statements in the Theaetetus (151c5-d3) seems to be arrogant in Plutarch’s view. Ammonius was not only the master of Plutarch, but also an important character of his writings. In The defectu oraculorum and in the De E apud Delphos he led the discussion, proposing what he considers a plausible solution for the problem, correcting and encouraging the others partners, without reproching them severely. But in De E apud Delphos (393a-394a) he did a real ex-cathedra lesson, as if he was the spokesperson of the author. Finally in the Quaestiones convivales he seems to be only one of the discussants, without acting like a real master, but still presenting effective inputs to the discussion. Comparing Socrates and Ammonius portraits should lead us to the profile of the true philosopher.