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Full Idea
If our discussion is right, virtue is acquired neither by nature nor by teaching. Whoever has it gets it by divine dispensation, without taking thought.
Clarification
'Virtue' here is the Greek word 'areté', which also translates as 'excellence'
Gist of Idea
It seems that virtue is neither natural nor taught, but is a divine gift
Source
Plato (Meno [c.385 BCE], 99e)
Book Ref
Plato: 'Protagoras and Meno', ed/tr. Guthrie,W K C [Penguin 1956], p.156
| 1913 | Is virtue taught, or achieved by practice, or a natural aptitude, or what? [Plato] |
| 1916 | Even if virtues are many and various, they must have something in common to make them virtues [Plato] |
| 1918 | How can you know part of virtue without knowing the whole? [Plato] |
| 11259 | How can you seek knowledge of something if you don't know it? [Plato] |
| 1919 | You don't need to learn what you know, and how do you seek for what you don't know? [Plato] |
| 5985 | Seeking and learning are just recollection [Plato] |
| 5986 | The slave boy learns geometry from questioning, not teaching, so it is recollection [Plato] |
| 1921 | If virtue is a type of knowledge then it ought to be taught [Plato] |
| 1922 | Spiritual qualities only become advantageous with the growth of wisdom [Plato] |
| 1923 | As a guide to action, true opinion is as good as knowledge [Plato] |
| 20219 | True opinions only become really valuable when they are tied down by reasons [Plato] |
| 1927 | It seems that virtue is neither natural nor taught, but is a divine gift [Plato] |