The Greek Sophists (Penguin Classics)

A challenging but important book on my exploration of classical Greece.  The Sophists, learned men from whom the word "sophisticated" derives, were scoffed at by Socrates, Plato and many other philosophers, because they charged for the service of teaching men how to speak, debate and persuade in the Assembly.

The Sophists found great demand, commanding massive fees, for their services from the wealthy and the aristocracy.

The controversy around the Sophists - that they peddled power in the Assembly - reveals the level of their success.  Learning how to debate and persuade did translate into power in direct relationship to the level of rhetorical skill one acquired through their teaching.  The Sophists - at least the real masters of their craft - did "sell" political power.

I suppose the Sophistic movement also reveals a blind spot in the culturally advanced society of classical Athens: the teaching of rhetoric was not accessible to the general public, at least not to the level taught by the Sophists.  

As equitable as the classical Greek system was in relation to surrounding regions, it was still formative and far from perfect.