The Protagoras, like several of the Dialogues , is put into the mouth of Socrates, who describes a conversation which had taken place between himself and the great Sophist at the house of Callias. Lombardo and Bell have translated this important early dialogue on virtue, wisdom, and the nature of Sophistic teaching into an idiom remarkable for its liveliness and subtlety. Michael Frede has provided a substantial introduction that illuminates the dialogue's perennial interest, its Athenian political background, and the particular difficulties and ironic nuances of its argument.