Introduction

The Phaedrus is of specific interest as it considers the concept of dialogue directly. As our epigraph, from George Herbert's poetic and spiritual dialogue with Christ, indicates, the concept of dialogue has a long tradition in theological and other religious writing, as well as in philosophy and in education. As a genre, it dates from Plato, who wrote most of his work as dialogues, setting an original methodology for philosophy in the West for centuries to come. At the heart of Plato's pedagogy is a constructivist understanding of learning. In this dialogue, Plato discusses epistemology and the paradox of teaching and learning. The influence of Plato and his dialogical style continued in Ancient Rome, during the Renaissance in Europe between the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries, and during the eighteenth-century Enlightenment. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.