The Doctrine of Due Measure in Plato's Statesman

Abstract

This thesis examines the extent to which the doctrine of due measure can be rightfully called the skopos of Plato’s Statesman. In order to determine the doctrine’s explanatory power, the thesis adopts the Neoplatonic method of exegesis. It first examines the current state of Platonic scholarship in general and then of studies on the Statesman in particular, then provides both the philosophic and literary context of the dialogue in question. Next, it analyses the doctrine of due measure’s philosophic content, and then proceeds to examine its ability to illuminate the literary details of the text. In completing this exercise, this thesis hopes to demonstrate a method of interpreting a Platonic text, by which we can better understand how Plato wrote his dialogues, and how we can be better interpreters of his writing—both in its philosophical and literary aspects.