Plato's Republic

By: The Great Courses, David Roochnik

Narrated by: Professor David Roochnik Ph.D. Pennsylvania State University

More than 2,000 years later, Plato's Republic remains astonishingly relevant to our everyday lives. It poses one question after another that might well have been drawn from the headlines and debates of our nation's recent history: What sort of person should rule the state? Are all citizens equal before the law? Should everyone have equal access to health care? Plato's greater inquiry, however, was into the question of defining justice itself and the reasons why a person would choose a life aligned with that virtue.

These 24 remarkable lectures lead you through the brilliant dialogue Plato crafted both to define and examine the issues with which political philosophy still grapples.

Chapter by chapter, Professor Roochnik introduces you to Plato's literary recasting of his own great teacher, Socrates, and the dialogue through which Socrates and the Republic's other characters create the hypothetical ideal city. It is by dissecting life in this presumably just city - the "Republic" of Plato's title - that the nature of justice itself can be examined.

Many of Plato's ideas will startle contemporary readers, who may recognize in them the foreshadowing of some of humankind's darkest moments. Indeed, some have called the Republic the "great-great-grandfather of all totalitarian experiments." You'll wrestle with Plato's controversial vision, and you'll be surprised just how contemporary these arguments sound.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2005 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2005 The Great Courses

Very engaging Summary

I will listen to this several times as the key concepts of Plato’s book are articulated very well.

Simply Awesome!

Beautiful narration with simple examples and explanations by Professor David Roochnik that keep your interest alive throughout the book. Enjoyed each and every piece of it on my way to work on the NYC Subway while having my morning coffee. Love it!

Excellent.

Outstanding course. I have a firm grasp of the material. The lecturer knows the material intimately. This has been my best purchase so far.

Made the book understandable

This course made Plato's Republic understandable. It is broken into small sections which are easy to understand. The teacher brings it to life by explaining how it applies to today's world and to other philosophical references. He talks about his own theories about what things might mean and lets you know that those are only his theories. He is also tied into commonly agreed facts among scholars that he would not get from just reading the text alone. Bottom line is if you're going to read Plato's Republic, you need to get this audiobook.

Excellent

Definitely one of my favorite audiobooks. David is great, explaining every detail in a simple way. Fascinating. I will read it again.