| Amongst Western
philosophers, Plato is best known for having
conducted his philosophical expositions in the
form of dialogues. His early dialogues are almost
dramatic compositions in their own right and
could be performed as plays. The later dialogues,
including the Republic, are more stilted and show
the effect of the message overcoming the medium.
The central character is always Socrates; but
whilst in the early dialogues, there is an
interplay between the characters, in the later
dialogues Socrates dominates to the point where
the other characters are almost reduced to
yes-men. Steering a dialogue between the two
extremes of a free-for-all, where no message is
communicated, and one where all characters are
subordinated to the message, requires some care.
Accordingly, the structure of the dialogues
reflects the natural progression of an argument,
with Men Chow and Tsia Tung sometimes challenging
Fu Hsiang over what they believe are
contradictions. Their characters are different;
Men Chow is a devout Buddhist, kind-hearted and a
family man. Tsia Tung is college-educated,
sharper, more questioning and more worldly than
Men Chow.
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