مجلة الرسالة للدراسات والبحوث الإنسانية

The Place Of Political Thought In Sophistic Philosophical Discourse

Auteurs : Idir Foudil .

Résumé

This article aims to highlight the central place of political thought within the philosophical project of the Sophistic movement during the fifth century BCE. The defining feature of this political thought lies in its positioning of the human being at the center of political and legal inquiry. On both the theoretical and practical levels, the Sophists advanced a range of ideas concerning justice, political authority, slavery, and servitude. They also examined the problem of the conflict between positive law and natural law—that is, between nomos (convention or positive law) and physis (nature)—raising the fundamental question of which should ultimately prevail within the state or society: the laws of nature or the laws and institutions established by human beings. Furthermore, this article seeks, first, to elucidate the epistemological foundations underlying the Sophists' conception of politics, despite the diversity and divergence of views among the philosophers associated with this movement. Second, it argues that Sophism was not merely a rhetorical or eristic movement concerned with misleading people or with the pursuit of financial gain through paid instruction, as alleged by its traditional opponents—Socrates and his followers, particularly Plato and Aristotle—whose philosophical writings contributed significantly to the movement's negative reputation. Contrary to the image constructed by its critics, the Sophistic movement embodied an enlightened and progressive intellectual orientation. This becomes evident in the influence of its philosophical ideas on certain modern social contract theorists, notably Jean-Jacques Rousseau and John Locke, especially in their emphasis on the principles of individual freedom and human cognitive and practical sovereignty.

Mots clés

Justice; ; Physis; ; Nomos; ; Freedom; ; Political Debate; ; Human Being.