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Callicles
5th-century BC Greek political philosopher

Callicles was an ancient Athenian political philosopher best known from Plato’s dialogue Gorgias, where he advocates a ruthless form of Realpolitik as an oligarchic amoralist who claims the strong have the right to dominate the weak and that laws limiting power serve only the interests of the weak. As a student of the sophist Gorgias, Callicles challenges traditional morals, arguing they were created by humans rather than gods. Though little else is known, he influenced modern thinkers like Machiavelli and Nietzsche, and is often seen as an antithesis to Socrates.

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Callicles in Plato’s Gorgias

Callicles poses an immoralist argument that consists of four parts: “(1) a critique of conventional justice, (2) a positive account of ‘justice according to nature’, (3) a theory of the virtues, and (4) a hedonistic conception of the good.”9 For the first aspect of the argument, Callicles supports the ruling of strong individuals and criticizes the weak for trying to undermine them. He views democracy as “the tyranny of the many over the exceptional individual,” and stresses that citizens should allow themselves to be ruled by these strong individuals.10 This ties into the second part of his argument; Callicles cites nature, saying “[nature] shows that this is what justice has been decided to be: that the superior rule the inferior and have a greater share than they.”11

This relationship leads Socrates to push Callicles to define what makes certain individuals “superior” to others, the third part of Callicles' argument. Callicles states that these superior figures must possess “intelligence, particularly about the affairs of the city, and courage.”12 He states that they do not need to have the virtues of justice or moderation, as they are not important like the aforementioned values. Finally, for the last part of Callicles’ argument, Socrates presses him to state of what it is that these “superior” people deserve more. Callicles rejects Socrates' ideas of more eating and drinking, but it appears that he does not really know what it is that the superior people deserve more of over the inferior. Nevertheless, he definitely believes that they should be held in higher regard.13

See also

References

  1. Charles L. Griswold. "Plato on Rhetoric and Poetry". Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/plato-rhetoric/ ↩

  2. Barney, Rachel (2017), Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), "Callicles and Thrasymachus", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2017 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, retrieved 2023-02-18 https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/callicles-thrasymachus/ ↩

  3. Barney, Rachel (2017), Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), "Callicles and Thrasymachus", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2017 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, retrieved 2023-02-18 https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/callicles-thrasymachus/ ↩

  4. Barney, Rachel (2017), Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), "Callicles and Thrasymachus", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2017 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, retrieved 2023-02-18 https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/callicles-thrasymachus/ ↩

  5. Barney, Rachel (2017), Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), "Callicles and Thrasymachus", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2017 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, retrieved 2023-02-18 https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/callicles-thrasymachus/ ↩

  6. George B. Kerferd, Hellmut Flashar: Kallikles aus Acharnai, in: Hellmut Flashar (ed.): Grundriss der Geschichte der Philosophie. Die Philosophie der Antike, Band 2/1, Schwabe, Basel 1998, p. 85f. /wiki/Hellmut_Flashar ↩

  7. Urstad, Kristian (2010). "Nietzsche and Callicles on Happiness, Pleasure, and Power". Kritike. 4 (2): 133–141. https://philpapers.org/rec/URSNAC ↩

  8. Urstad, Kristian (2010). "Nietzsche and Callicles on Happiness, Pleasure, and Power". Kritike. 4 (2): 133–141. https://philpapers.org/rec/URSNAC ↩

  9. Barney, Rachel (2017), Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), "Callicles and Thrasymachus", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2017 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, retrieved 2023-02-18 https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/callicles-thrasymachus/ ↩

  10. Barney, Rachel (2017), Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), "Callicles and Thrasymachus", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2017 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, retrieved 2023-02-18 https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/callicles-thrasymachus/ ↩

  11. Barney, Rachel (2017), Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), "Callicles and Thrasymachus", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2017 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, retrieved 2023-02-18 https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/callicles-thrasymachus/ ↩

  12. Barney, Rachel (2017), Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), "Callicles and Thrasymachus", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2017 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, retrieved 2023-02-18 https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/callicles-thrasymachus/ ↩

  13. Barney, Rachel (2017), Zalta, Edward N. (ed.), "Callicles and Thrasymachus", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2017 ed.), Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University, retrieved 2023-02-18 https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2017/entries/callicles-thrasymachus/ ↩

  14. Plutarch, Parallel Lives, "Life of Phocion" 9 (ed. Clough 1859; ed. Loeb). /wiki/Plutarch ↩