Symposium, the Apology, and the Allegory of the Cave

By: Plato, Benjamin Jowett (translator)

Narrated by: Jonathan Cowley

Length: 4 hrs and 58 mins

Publisher's Summary

This collection brings together three of Plato's most enduring classics: the "Symposium", the "Apology", and the famous "Allegory of the Cave" from the Republic. The "Symposium", a dialogue on the nature and purpose of love centered around the ideals of beauty and goodness, is arguably the deepest inquiry of its kind in Western philosophy. The "Apology", Plato's account of the speech given by Socrates at his trial in 399 BC, constitutes an essential defense of Socrates' life and philosophy. Finally, the "Allegory of the Cave", written as a fictional dialogue between Socrates and Plato's brother, Glaucon, is a profound commentary on the human understanding of reality. This edition is the translation by Benjamin Jowett.

Public Domain (P)2011 Tantor

Reader kills it

Good choice of extracts if you want to learn the basics of Plato. It's the Benjamin Jowett translation, which is a bit stodgy but fine, and features lengthy introductions.

Unfortunately the reader kills the text. He's perfectly clear, but he recites everything in the same emotionless monotone. He doesn't give different voices to the characters in the Symposium, so it's hard to tell who's talking. He keeps giving words the wrong intonations, as if he's reading the text for the first time. He pronounces 'rhetoric' wrong (which is annoying because Plato says it a lot). It's very clear that the reader doesn't understand or care about what he's reading - indeed it sounds like he's not even listening to himself speak.

I fought through the whole thing, but I won't be buying any more books by this reader.

absorbing

Would you listen to Symposium, the Apology, and the Allegory of the Cave again? Why?

yes - especially the symposium. takes multiple listens.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

decription of Socrates as a soldier in the SYmposium

What does Jonathan Cowley bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The even pacing foregrounds the ideas

Excellent

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This audio book thouroughly enhances the scenes created for us by Plato!

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

The Symposium was definitely the best. It was quite compelling to hear the dialogue read.

Which character – as performed by Jonathan Cowley – was your favorite?

They were all read equally well.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It made me laugh when the discussion of drinking was being performed in the Symposium.

Missing the end???

I read the Allegory of the Cave before listening to it and this version is missing probably a 2-3 pages of the story. I plan to listen again following along with the written text, understanding that it’s a different translation, but I’m disappointed.

Not a good reader

The reader has a good voice but someone should correct his pronounciation. Words like agora and rhetoric he gets so wrong and he does not really know how to dramatise reported Or direct speech. Did he have any direction ? Sadly these faults spoilt the enjoyment of this important work