Essential Ideas of Meno

When Plato was a young man, he had a mentor named Socrates. Plato gained much knowledge from the teachings of Socrates. Socrates taught Plato how to think, and what kind of questions he should think about. When Socrates died,Plato began to write down the conversations that he had with people; he later wrote down his own thoughts and ideas. Not only did Plato become incredibly intelligent from the teachings of Socrates, he became the mentor of Aristotle. (Nardo,55)

Socrates was a great Athenian philosopher. He was born in the fifth century B.C., the golden age of Greece. Socrates didn't write down any of his own works. Other people, such as Plato, wrote down conversations that they heard him have with people.Socrates was put to death in 399 B.C. because he didn't believe in the Greek gods.(Kreeft)

Plato is the author of Meno. Plato is one of the greatest philosophers of all time. He was born in 429 B.C., this was around the time that Pericles died and Alexander the Great was born. Plato was born into a wealthy and aristocratic family in Athens.

The conversation of Meno was written in about 380 B.C.E. Meno took place around 402 B.C.E. The whole conversation of Meno began with Meno asking Socrates if virtue could be taught. Meno thinks of many possible definitions of virtue, but each one is ripped to shreds by the brilliant mind of Socrates.

"Important and recurring Platonic themes are introduced in the Meno, including the form of the Socratic dialogue itself. Socrates attempts to dissect an ethical term by questioning a person who claims to know the term's meaning, and eventually concludes that neither he nor the "expert" really know what the term means. Other important themes raised here in an early form include that of amanuensis (the idea that the soul is eternal, knows everything, and only has to "recollect" in order to learn) and that of virtue as a kind of wisdom." (source)

Meno is ended in such a way that is unsatisfying to the reader. All of the characters that Socrates it speaking to are completely perplexed. We now call this a state of Socratic aporia. By the end of Meno you still aren't sure what virtue is. Socrates never actually defines virtue; this is the reason for the implied Socratic aporia.

Kreeft, Peter. What Would Socrates Do?: The History of Moral Thought and Ethics (CD 2, Lecture 3-Being Good and Being Wise:Can Virtue Be Taught). New York, NY: Barnes and Noble, 2004.

Nardo, Don. Lost Civilizations:The Ancient Greeks. San Diego Ca: Lucent Books, 2001.