This is the first of two studies in which I examine Plato’s account of Parmenides’ contribution to Socrates’ education. This account suggests, I argue, that Socrates became a virtuoso of the elenchos and the embodiment of fundamental intellectual virtues thanks to the gymnasia depicted in the Parmenides. I show how Parmenides’ eightfold routine is not a method of philosophical investigation strictly speaking; rather, it is a skill-building exercise that relies on memory and whose virtue is partly defensive. My demonstration is based on three sets of distinctions required to do justice to the preparatory character of Parmenides’ gymnasia. The first differentiates three types of intellectual virtues, the second two kinds of training methods, and the third, three telic modes.
