Il manifestarsi del daimonion di Socrate: kairos o tyche?

Socrates’ daimonion manifests itself in very peculiar ways. This paper shows that, on the one hand, the daimionion appears as tyche, a chance over which Socrates has no control; on the other hand, it acts as a kairos, as the “right moment” in which a specific action has to be undertaken or avoided. As the kairos, the daimonion yields benefits, both for Socrates and his associates: 1) It directs the choices and actions not only of Socrates, but also, of his friends, companions and fellow citizens; 2) It appears in critical moments of Socrates’ educational activity: thanks to its intervention Socrates is able to perform his elenctic inquiry, and thus make his interlocutors better; 3) It enables Socrates to carefully pick his friends and associates; it thus brings about Socratic synousia, i.e. that kind of “company” that can develop into dialogical activity.