Didaskalos: The Invention Of The Teacher In Classical Athens

This dissertation deals with the role of the teacher in fifth- and fourth-century Athens through an examination of the scope of the Greek word didaskalos. The first part of this investigation consists of an analysis of the various types of educational figures whose roles overlapped to some extent that of the didaskalos, beginning with the legendary educators Cheiron, Phoenix, and Mentor, and touching upon the characters of the erastês, the paidagôgos, and the Sophist. The second part is a study of the mechanism and process for teaching as described in the literary sources, focusing in particular on the importance of imitation in the student-teacher relationship. The third part approaches the aims and effects of teaching as described by Greek authors, especially the various ways that physis can be influenced by ones teacher, especially for the worse. The final part deals with the figure of Socrates, in particular, the way he is portrayed as a didaskalos in the texts of Aristophanes, Plato, and Xenophon. All in all, the pattern of Greek authors' usage of the word didaskalos suggests a strong societal belief in the potential power of the teacher - both inside and outside of the schoolroom - to improve or harm the polis