The Republic

by Plato, Desmond Lee (Editor), Melissa Lane (Introduction)

Overview

Plato's Republic is widely acknowledged as the cornerstone of Western philosophy. Presented in the form of a dialogue between Socrates and three different interlocutors, it is an enquiry into the notion of a perfect community and the ideal individual within it. During the conversation other questions are raised: what is goodness; what is reality; what is knowledge? The Republic also addresses the purpose of education and the role of both women and men as 'guardians' of the people. With remarkable lucidity and deft use of allegory, Plato arrives at a depiction of a state bound by harmony and ruled by 'philosopher kings'.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780141917696
Publisher:	Penguin UK
Publication date:	05/31/2007
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	480
Sales rank:	356,051
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Plato (c.427-347 BC) stands with Socrates and Aristotle as one of the shapers of the whole intellectual tradition of the West. He founded in Athens the Academy, the first permanent institution devoted to philosophical research and teaching, and theprototype of all Western universities. Desmond Lee was a fellow and tutor of Classics at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and later became President of St Hughes Hall, Cambridge.


Melissa Lane received her PhD in Philosophy from Cambridge University. She teaches the history of political thought and political philosophy in the History Faculty at Cambridge University, and is a Fellow of King's College. Her books include Method and Politics in Plato's Statesman (Cambridge, 1998) and Plato's Progeny: how Plato and Socrates still captivate the modern mind (Duckworth, 2001).

Read an Excerpt

Socrates: I went down yesterday to Piraeus with Glaucon, Ariston’s son, to pray to the goddess, wanting at the same time also to see the way they were going to hold the festival, since they were now conducting it for the first time. The parade of the local residents seemed to me to be beautiful, while the one that the Thracians put on looked no less appropriate. And having prayed and having seen, we went off toward the city. Spotting us from a distance then as we headed home, Polemarchus, Cephalus’s son, ordered his slave to run and order us to wait for him. And grabbing me from behind by my cloak, the slave said “Polemarchus orders you to wait.” And I turned around and asked him where the man himself was. “He’s coming along from behind,” he said. “Just wait.” “Certainly we’ll wait” said Glaucon.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction
Part 2 Book I
Chapter 3 Study Questions
Part 4 Book II
Chapter 5 Study Questions
Part 6 Book III
Chapter 7 Study Questions
Part 8 Book IV
Chapter 9 Study Questions
Part 10 Book V
Chapter 11 Study Questions
Part 12 Book VI
Chapter 13 Study Questions
Part 14 Book VII
Chapter 15 Study Questions
Part 16 Book VIII
Chapter 17 Study Questions
Part 18 Book IX
Chapter 19 Study Questions
Part 20 Book X
Chapter 21 Study Questions
Part 22 Appendix 1:Cephalus and Polemarchus (Lysias, Against Eratosthenes)
Part 23 Appendix 2:Athenian Imperialism (Thucydides, "The Melian Dialogue")
Part 24 Appendix 3:The Ring of Gyges (Herodotus, Histories, Book I)
Part 25 Appendix 4:The Status of Women (Xenophon, Oeconomicus)
Part 26 Appendix 5:Athenian Constitutional History

What People are Saying About This

John Cooper

"Its increased accessibility promises to make it the number-one choice for undergraduate courses."
—Princeton University

Lloyd P. Gerson

"Loving attention to detail and deep familiarity with Plato's thought are evident on every page."
—University of Toronto

Interviews

Joe Sachs's translation of Plato's Republic is for students studying philosophy at the college level, as well as for the general reader interested in the major works of western civilization.

Editorial Reviews

This superior translation has an engaging, constructive tone. For introductory students with little or no historical background with which to appreciate the nuances of Plato's Republic, Tschemplik clearly sets the historical context and identifies the characters.

P.C. Kemeny

Regarded as Plato's most important work, The Republic has long been studied as a seminal text of the Western literary and philosophical canon. In this group of philosophical dialogues, Plato uses a conversational prose format to explore the nature of society, seeking to define the characteristics of an ideal society, or republic.”

Vol. 75 Classical and Medieval Literature Criticism

"Must we not acknowledge...that in each of us there are the same principles and habits which there are in the State; and that from the individual they pass into the State?"

What does it mean to be good? What enables us to distinguish right from wrong? And how should human virtues be translated into a just society? These are the questions that Plato sought to answer in this monumental work of moral and political philosophy, a book surpassed only by the Bible in its formative influence on two thousand years of Western thought.

In the course of its tautly reasoned Socratic dialogues, The Republic accomplishes nothing less than an anatomy of the soul and an exhaustive description of a State that both mirrors and enforces the soul's ideal harmony. The resulting text is at once mystical and elegantly logical and may be read as a template for the societies in which most of us live today.

Vintage Classics are quality paperback editions of the world's greatest written works. They are durably bound and are printed exclusively on acid-free paper.

From the Publisher

Plato’s musings on how society should function, as well as the nature of the people who inhabit society, is read by Bruce Alexander in this abridgment. The recording and Alexander’s performance are flawless. A veteran Shakespearean actor, Alexander has a voice that is rich and versatile in portraying each of the speakers in this dialogue. His accent also has an air of authority. He makes one suppose that the ancient Greek philosophers went to Oxford. This work is really delightful to hear as one follows the course of Socrates’ arguments and the questions thrown at him by the Athenians. The packaging is sturdy, and the enclosed outline is most helpful. Music at the beginning and end of each side does not distract from the performance. A wonderful introduction to Plato. M.T.F. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine

DEC/JAN 02 - AudioFile