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The Divine Method and the Disunity of Pleasure in the Philebus
- Journal of the History of Philosophy
- Johns Hopkins University Press
- Volume 55, Number 2, April 2017
- pp. 179-208
- 10.1353/hph.2017.0026
- Article
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Scholars frequently complain that the Philebus lacks unity. One of the most puzzling passages in the dialogue is the introduction of the so-called 'divine method,' which is described in detail (16c–20a), only to be set aside as unnecessary shortly afterwards (20c). I argue that, despite appearances to the contrary, the divine method plays a vital role in the dialogue's lengthy examination of pleasure. The application of the divine method does not result in a systematic and complete division of pleasure into sub-kinds, as one would expect, because Socrates fails to identify a common feature that unifies all pleasures. This negative outcome does not indicate a failure of the divine method, for the method successfully exposes the heterogeneity of pleasure.