Minos

The dialogue begins with Socrates asking his nameless companion, "What is the law for us?" It then proceeds to examine the nature of law before praising Minos, the mythical king of Crete and an ancient enemy of Athens. Socrates defends an extraordinary definition of law as that which "wishes to be the discovery of what is," as opposed to the companion's more common-sense understanding that law is the decreed "official opinion" of a city. The culminating praise of Minos seems part of Socrates' intention to liberate the companion from loyalty to Athens and its opinions.