Showing results by author "Plato" in All Categories

The Trial and the Death of Socrates remains a powerful document not least because it gives a first-hand account of the end of one of the greatest figures in history.

In Apology, Socrates defends himself before the Athenian court against charges of corrupting youth. Phaedo is the account by a young man of the actual last words and moments of Socrates.

The Republic is perhaps the single most important, the most studied and the most quoted text of all of Plato's Socratic Dialogues. Through the medium of Socrates, Plato outlines his view and ideas concerning the ideal working of the city-state. Socrates narrates a conversation that took place the previous day with Cephalus, Glaucon, Thrasymachus and others. The dialogue is organised into 10 books and covers a broad range of topics, including the ideal community and the ideal rulers of the community.

Here are three important but very different Dialogues from the Middle Period. Symposium, the most well-known in this collection, is concerned with the theme of love. In the house of Agathon, a group of friends - each very different in personality and background - meet to consider and discuss various kinds of love. Each one, Phaedrus, Pausanias, Eryximachus, Aristophanes (the playwright) and Agathon (a prize-winning tragic poet), presents his particular view in a short discourse.

The second edition of Five Dialogues presents G.M.A. Grube's distinguished translations, as revised by John Cooper for Plato's complete works. It includes: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, and Phaedo.

Plato's Allegory of the Cave is what many believe to be the foundation of Western Philosophy. It addresses what is visible and invisible, seen and observed versus intuited and imagined, and what is public versus private and just versus unjust. It also concerns the meaning and importance of education, the state of the soul, the conflict between truth and beauty, animal urges versus higher aspirations, knowledge versus ignorance, and on and on.

Perception, memory, truth, and knowledge all play major roles in this dialogue. What is remarkable about Plato's treatment of those ideas is how contemporary are both the questions and the answers he puts in the mouths of his characters. Socrates is adamant in asserting that he does not know the answers but that his function is simply to help formulate and critically examine the doctrines presented by others.

The dramatic nature of Plato's dialogues is delightfully evident in Symposium. The marriage between character and thought bursts forth as the guests gather at Agathon's house to celebrate the success of his first tragedy. With wit and insight, they all present their ideas about love - from Erixymachus' scientific naturalism to Aristophanes' comic fantasy. The unexpected arrival of Alcibiades breaks the spell cast by Diotima's ethereal climb up the staircase of love to beauty itself.

Discover the depths of Plato's timeless wisdom with this new annotated edition of "The Republic." Delve into the intricate layers of this philosophical masterpiece alongside a comprehensive exploration of Plato's life. This edition features:

Lysis is a dialogue of Plato which discusses the nature often translated as friendship, while the word's original content was of a much larger and more intimate bond. It is generally classified as an early dialogue. The main characters are Socrates, the boys Lysis and Menexenus who are friends, as well as Hippothales, who is in unrequited love with Lysis and therefore, after the initial conversation, hides himself behind the surrounding listeners.

Meno is a Socratic dialogue written by Plato. In it, the two characters, Meno and Socrates, discuss "arete", or virtue. This dialogue is also famous for introducing "Meno's Paradox".

Euthyphro by Plato is a Socratic dialogue whose events occur in the weeks before the trial of Socrates (399 BC), between Socrates and Euthyphro. The dialogue covers subjects such as the meaning of piety and justice. As is common with Plato's earliest dialogues, it ends in aporia. In this dialogue, Socrates meets Euthyphro at the porch of the archon basileus (the 'king magistrate') at that time. Socrates tells him that he is preparing to go to court against the charges of Meletus on the grounds of impiety.

Laws is Plato's last and longest dialogue. It is generally agreed that Plato wrote this dialogue as an older man, having failed in his effort in Syracuse on the island of Sicily to guide a tyrant's rule, instead having been thrown in prison.

Gorgias of Leontini, a famous teacher of rhetoric, has come to Athens to recruit students, promising to teach them how to become leaders in politics and business. A group has gathered at Callicles' house to hear Gorgias demonstrate the power of his art. This dialogue blends comic and serious discussion of the best life, providing a penetrating examination of ethics. Is it better to suffer evil or to do evil? Is it better to do something wrong and avoid being caught or to be caught and punished? Is pleasure the same as goodness?

The Apology of Socrates, written by Plato, is a Socratic dialogue of the speech of legal self-defense which Socrates spoke at his trial for impiety and corruption in 399 BC. Specifically, the Apology of Socrates is a defense against the charges of "corrupting the youth" and "not believing in the gods in whom the city believes, but in other daimonia that are novel" to Athens.

Brandon Stover from the Evolve Podcast teaches you how to make, market, & monetize your podcast in 60 days. With step by step guidance, you'll learn how to attract your ideal listener, share your story, and help hundreds with your message. Brandon reveals what it really takes to successfully launch a podcast, without being techie or producing bad content. For free resources available with every episode visit powertopodcast.com How to Start a Podcast is a skill course brought to you by Plato University.

Laches, a general in the Athenian army, saw Socrates fight bravely in the battle of Delium. When he and Nicias, another general, are asked to explain the idea of courage, they are at a loss, and words fail them. How does courage differ from thoughtless and reckless audacity? Can a lion be said to be courageous? What about small children who have little idea of the dangers they face? Should we call people courageous who do not know whether their bravery will produce good or bad consequences?

William Shakespeare, Plato, Buddha, Albert Einstein, Winston Churchill, and Napoleon Bonaparte are just some of the famous names that make up this collection of 500 famous quotes. With ancient sages, politicians, military leaders, philosophers, and physicists imparting their wisdom, this carefully crafted compilation will not only develop your cultural knowledge but entertain, amuse, and inspire you too. "Develop your General Culture in 1000 Quotes" will delight those who would like a boost of cultural literacy.

Hippias of Elis travels throughout the Greek world practicing and teaching the art of making beautiful speeches. On a rare visit to Athens, he meets Socrates, who questions him about the nature of his art. Socrates is especially curious about how Hippias would define beauty. They agree that beauty makes all beautiful things beautiful, but when Socrates presses him to say precisely what he means, Hippias is unable to deliver such a definition.

The Republic is an influential work of philosophy and political theory by the Greek philosopher Plato, written in approximately 360 BC.

Critias is one of Plato's late dialogues and contains the story of the mighty island kingdom Atlantis and its attempt to conquer Athens, which failed due to the ordered society of the Athenians. Critias is the second of a projected trilogy of dialogues, preceded by Timaeus and followed by Hermocrates. The latter was possibly never written, and Critias was left incomplete. This edition was translated by Benjamin Jowett in 1871.