Isocrates is one of the most remarkable and influential figures in the
history of human thought. The influence of his ideas in the history of
historical writing, rhetoric, the visual arts, music, religion and
theology, political science, philosophy and, above all, educational
philosophy and practice in Europe, Australia, North America, North
Africa, and the Middle East are well established and widely known.
This book argues careful study of the educational philosophy of
Isocrates and its legacy can contribute to an improved understanding of
the historiography of educational thought, his distinctive normative
methodology in both political and educational philosophy, and his
arguments about the primary importance of the virtues of self-knowledge
and realistic self-appraisal for educational philosophers and
practitioners.
At a time when educational philosophy has an increasingly precarious
academic existence and educationists are actively seeking new
historiographical and methodological approaches to the philosophical
study of education, there is much to be gained by recovering and
reevaluating the historiography and normative methodology of Isocrates
and the role they play in educational discourse and practice today.