The Platonic work Protagoras is written in dialogical form. Nine characters in Athens, around 432 BC, discuss among themselves. From this text, which we will soon read, we will follow the words exchanged in those discussions.
We will hear from eight of the nine interlocutors by name. The ninth remains nameless: he is one of Socrates' friends, referred to in the text as a partner. He does not meet any of the other characters in the dialogue: only Socrates. This character, as we will see, holds not essential but significant technical importance for the construction of the work.
Therefore, we are going to see Socrates in our text. He is present at a large gathering of sophists, with Protagoras being the most prominent among them. We will hear them converse for several hours in the lavish home of a well-known Athenian, Callias. We will also hear the host speak for a bit, as well as the always handsome Alcibiades, who is with them and follows the discussions.
The politician Critias will also speak for a bit, and we will hear what two other sophists, Prodicus and Hippias, said there. So far, we already have a gathering of seven participants.
[Excerpt from the introduction of the edition]
