Symposium Platonicum XIII
Plato’s Sophist
Athens, Georgia, USA
July 18-22, 2022
Registration is now open.
The International Plato Society organizes a symposium on a single Platonic dialogue every three years. We are pleased to announce the XIII Symposium Platonicum: Plato’s Sophist.
The Symposium will take place July 18–22, 2022, at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, USA. Submissions on any aspect of the dialogue, including its Presocratic sources and later reception, will be considered.
Plato’s Sophist was, arguably, the most important Platonic dialogue for mid-20th century philosophy. Anglo-American analytic philosophers looked to it to come to understand Plato’s philosophy of language. Continental philosophers, inspired by Heidegger’s beginning Being and Time with a quotation from the Sophist, looked to the dialogue to wrestle with Plato’s notion of being. Not surprisingly, each group found a rich field from which to pursue their mostly non-overlapping interests. Both sides did agree on the importance of language in the dialogue. However, as if they were re-enacting a portion of the dialogue, they waged a kind of battle of gods and giants against each other. Now that the barriers between these approaches have begun to break down and interests, on all sides, have broadened, it is time for a new, 21st century look at this puzzling and interesting dialogue. The dialogue raises many issues that can be fruitfully explored. Besides questions about the nature and possibility of language, there are issues about definitions, truth, diaresis, interweaving, the five megista gene, separate form, the nature of images, non-being, being, dunamis, the motions of forms, and many, many more. We welcome submissions of high quality from these and all other perspectives.
The IPS may be able to provide a small subsidy to support travel to the Symposium. Direct inquiries to President@Platosociety.org
Confirmed Plenary Speakers
- Mauro Bonazzi (Utrecht)
- Lesley Brown (Oxford)
- Ronna Burger (Tulane)
- Nestor Luis Cordero (Rennes)
- Paolo Crivelli (Geneva)
- Verity Harte (Yale)
- Marko Malink (New York University)
- Maurizio Migliori (Macerata, Italy)
- Monique Dixsaut (Sorbonne)
- Noburu Notomi (Tokyo)
- Christopher Rowe (Durham)
The symposium’s program is here.
This draft likely contains mistakes. Direct corrections and requests to: President@platosociety.org
We encourage you to post your abstracts and papers to our site. Send them to: webmaster@platosociety.org
The IPS may be able to provide a small subsidy to support travel to the Symposium. Direct inquiries to: President@platosociety.org
Hotel Information
[N.B. – Neither ehotelservices.org nor expo hotel services has any connection to the IPS or our Symposium. Please refer solely to the information below:]
We have arranged special International Plato Society rates at four hotels (in maroon on the map, below) that are each a short walk from the main conference venue at the Terry School of Business (in black on the map). Make sure you request the IPS rate when booking your room. Make requests for special needs directly to the hotel. Breakfast is not included in the rates, though it is available if requested. The Groome shuttle from the Atlanta airport stops at each of these hotels if requested. It makes 24 round trips/day between Athens and the airport. For more information see: https://groometransportation.com/athens/.
On the attached map, all of these hotels are north of the Conference site. The distances look long than they are. Summer temperatures can be hot. Holiday Inn and SpringHill Suites are the shortest walk. Indigo may have a shuttle but there is no regular service. The Terry School of Business is a large complex between Hull St and Lumpkin St. Our rooms are towards the south end of the complex towards Baxter St. Make your way to Casey Commons for check in.
- Hilton Garden Inn, Downtown Athens, 390 E. Washington St, Athens, GA
- 706-353-6800 – Rate: $109/night +$5 state fee + tax – Parking: $9.95/night – Reserve before 6/17/2022
- Special discount rate link
- Discount applies for check-in Jul. 17 and check-out Jul. 23.
- If the discount page doesn’t show, the code is “00IPS“.
- Holiday Inn Express Athens, 513 W. Broad Street, Athens, GA 30601
- 706-546-8122 – Rate: $94/night+$5 state fee – Parking: $5/night – Reserve before 5/18/2022
- To obtain the discount rate: click on “Groups”, and then enter the code, “IPS“.
- Discount applies for check-in Jul. 17 and check-out Jul. 23.
- Hotel Indigo Athens, 500 College Ave, Athens, GA 30601
- 706-546-0430 – Rate: $99/night+$5 state fee + tax – Parking: $10.00/night – Reserve before 6/17/2022 – Non-Smoking Only
- Special discount rate link
- Discount applies for check-in Jul. 17 and check-out Jul. 23.
- If the discount page doesn’t show, use “IPS” for the Group Code in the search page.
- Spring Hill Suites Campus Hotel, 220 S. Hull Street, Athens, GA
- 706-850-2072 – Rate: 114/night+$5 state fee + tax – Parking: $10.00/night – Reserve before 6/17/2022
- Special discount rate link
- Discount applies for check-in Jul. 17 and check-out Jul. 23.
Travel Information
The closest airport to Athens is in Atlanta, GA. Groome Transportation has hourly shuttle service directly from the airport to the center of Athens, including conference-affiliated hotels. You can book a reservation at Groome Transportation’s website.
The cost of the Groome shuttle is about half of an Uber fare. Hence, if you are travelling with someone else, consider an Uber. If there are three of you traveling together, definitely take an Uber. To reach the pickup point for an Uber, go to the side of the airport that is called the North Terminal, go down one level from the baggage claim/ticketing level, walk out the door, at the far left side of the building cross into the parking lot and walk straight until you see the Uber sign on your left.
Public Transportation in Athens is Free—but infrequent. You can download a free app that tells you not only the routes, but where each bus is and when it will arrive at your stop. https://www.accgov.com/10106/Transit
Contact
Queries about the conference should be sent to president@platosociety.org.