ABSTRACT

Bringing together the history of educational philosophy, political philosophy, and rhetoric, this book examines the influence of the philosopher Isocrates on educational thought and the history of education. Unifying philosophical and historical arguments, Muir discusses the role of Isocrates in raising two central questions: What is the value of education? By what methods ought the value of education to be determined? Tracing the historical influence of Isocrates’ ideas of the nature and value of education from Antiquity to the modern era, Muir questions normative assumptions about the foundations of education and considers the future status of education as an academic discipline.

chapter |14 pages

Introduction

part 1|48 pages

Isocrates’ Idea of the Nature and Value of Education

chapter 1|17 pages

Isocrates and the History of Education

Educationists vs. Everyone Else

part 2|97 pages

The Historical Transmission and Evolution of the Isocratic Idea of Education

chapter 3|26 pages

The Isocratic Idea of Education

Rome to the Early Middle Ages

chapter 6|20 pages

Education and Modern Political Philosophy

part 3|91 pages

Critique of the Isocratic Idea and Outline of the Parmenidean-Platonic Alternative

chapter 8|31 pages

The Parmenidean-Platonic Alternative I

Normative Method and Education

chapter 9|22 pages

The Parmenidean-Platonic Alternative II

An Outline of Educational Practice

chapter |4 pages

Conclusion