# Simmias — Dialogues character guide

> Simmias in Dialogues by Plato.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Simmias the Theban, the Theban

**First appearance:** 0047-phaedo

## Snapshot

A Theban philosopher who joins Socrates in the Phaedo to test whether the soul can survive death, pressing hard on the arguments he hears.

## Who they are

Simmias arrives at Socrates' cell with his friend Cebes, bringing Pythagorean interests and a willingness to argue rather than merely mourn. He offers the image of the soul as a harmony of the body, then worries that this analogy may not support immortality, showing a mind that would rather follow the argument than accept comfort. He matters because his objections force Socrates to refine the case for the soul's survival, turning the last hours into a genuine philosophical inquiry rather than a farewell.

## In the story

### [Phaedo](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/dialogues_se/chapters/phaedo)

Theban philosopher; raises objections to Socrates' arguments about the soul.

### [Phaedo](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/dialogues_se/chapters/phaedo)

Expresses doubts about the soul's immortality, proposing the harmony theory.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/dialogues_se/characters/simmias
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