But there is no moral lesson here. This isn't Damon and Pythias, it's not tutelary. It's argumentative. It does not make for a good narrative alone (at least th

But there is no moral lesson here. This isn't Damon and Pythias, it's not tutelary. It's argumentative. It does not make for a good narrative alone (at least then you would know which side was able to attract the skill of an artist!), its only content is the argument. Only the argument is couched in a fictional world that allows it to avoid addressing any counter-argument altogether. The fact that it is followed by an explicit argument only makes it stranger.