The sovereignty of discourse in Gorgias: persuasion and illusion

Abstract

Logos is a central Greek term for the construction of the sophistic movement. Gorgias de Leontinos, one of the main representatives of the first generation of this movement, proposed to reflect, in Elogio de Helena, about the discourse as a great and sober master, able to produce persuasion in Helena and denouncing this persuasive power at the same time. In the first part of this study, we intend to situate logos as a producer of experiences in its listener, which is important in understanding the persuasive power. In the second part, the fabrication of experiences, different from persuasion, is identified with a fictitious reality produced due to voluntary deception. Because this experience of deception is voluntary, the reason for the sovereignty of logos is for Gorgias, in which speech, in addition to persuading, can serve as a possible instrument for the fabrication of learning, whose artistic experience his own text exemplifies.