Home Commentary

Diogenes' Taxonomy of Platonic Dialogues

by Spencer Scorcelletti

Commentary #3 ()

prev-next

According to Diogenes1, Platonic dialogues are roughly classified as follows.

See Commentary #4 Thrasyllus of Mendes’ Platonic Canon for how each dialogue was originally categorized by Diogenes.

Diogenes' taxonomy of Platonic dialogues. Commentary along edges between nodes are my own.PlatonicdialoguesFocus on answersInstructivePossibilitiestheoreticaltangiblephysicalabstractlogicalActualitiespracticalindividual levelethicalsocietal levelpoliticalFocus onquestionsInquisitivecooperativeinterlocutortraining themindinquiryunresolvedtentativeinquiry resolvedobstetricuncooperativeinterlocutorvictory incontroversyraisesobjectionscriticaloverturns thepositionrefutative
Diogenes' taxonomy of Platonic dialogues. Commentary along edges between nodes are my own.

What follows is the same information in a tabular format:

DivisionDescriptionPurposeGeneral
physicalnature and the cosmostheoreticalInstructive
logicalreasoning and definitiontheoreticalInstructive
ethicalaffairs of the individualpracticalInstructive
politicalaffairs of the statepracticalInstructive
tentativean unresolved inquiry (aporia)training the mindInquisitive
obstetric(midwifery) a resolved inquirytraining the mindInquisitive
criticalraises objectionsvictory in controversyInquisitive
refutativeoverturns the positionvictory in controversyInquisitive

  1. Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers 3.49–51 (LCL, archive) ↩

Contextual Relations

Refers To

  • (none)

References Commentary

  • (none)

Refrenced by Commentary

Comments # (0)

Comment