Socrates provides the voice of Plato, as well as the antagonist for this dialogue. In the beginning of the dialogue Socrates asks what Gorgias does, after a longer speech from Polus about how wonderful Gorgias’ work is, it is made evident that Gorgias is a rhetorician and teacher of rhetoric. This demonstrates how the sophist were viewed to not get right to the point, and instead tried to distract with pretty words. The dialogue continues with Socrates trying to get an answer from Gorgias in regards to what rhetoric is, all Gorgias tells him is that it is speech. Which is not a good enough answer for Socrates; Plato is inferring that even the sophists don’t know what they are