Abstract

In this article we examine one of the viewpoints linked to Platonic dialectics which directly concerns the conformity of the polis : the underlying questioning which the modus operandi of dialectics applies to everyday life, to social conventions, formalities, and generally accepted beliefs. We focus here on the passage in the Republic 537e-539e where dialectics is intimately linked to refutation. This procedure, which leads to the development of the dialectic method, requires distancing from the everyday and unconsciously assumed viewpoint, exercising critical consciousness. Plato explores the dangers of dialectics at the border between questioning the norm and assuming responsibility towards the polis.