This book offers a new way of looking at the fifth-century BCE Sophists, rejecting the bad reputation they have had since antiquity and presenting them as individuals rather than a -movement,- each with his own specialty and personality as revealed through the scant surviving evidence.
It provides an account of the Sophists of this period that explains the historical and social developments that led to their prominence and popularity, demonstrating the reasons for their importance and for their seeming disappearance in the fourth century BCE. Restricted to discussion of the few Sophists for whom there are surviving quotations or other texts, The Sophists avoids generalizations often found in other books. It contains accurate translations of most of the surviving material, which forms the secure possible basis for understanding the Sophists as individuals in their various roles, not only as educators but also as ambassadors and pioneers in other fields. After a general i
