Socrates, the Daimonion, and Rational Trust: A Perspectival Account
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Jared Brandt
Abstract
One of the most intriguing aspects of Plato’s Socrates is his reliance upon the mysterious phenomenon of the daimonion. This “divine sign” seems to command Socrates’ unconditional compliance, despite its seemingly extra-rational nature. Most modern interpreters have sought to rationalize Socrates’ trust in the daimonion. In this paper, I argue that the recent attempts at rationalization employ a notion of rationality that is foreign to Plato’s texts and ends up distorting the figure of Socrates. Furthermore, when this notion of rationality is made explicit, it becomes clear that the recent attempts do not succeed in maintaining the rationality of Socrates’ trust in the daimonion. In response, I argue that Socrates employed a perspectival notion of rationality. On such an account I demonstrate that one can preserve the rationality of Socrates’ trust in the daimonion without distortion.
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