Plato’s dialogues show Socrates at different ages, beginning when he was about nineteen and already deeply immersed in philosophy and ending with his execution five decades later. By presenting his mo
This book offers a controversial interpretation of Plato's Apology of Socrates. By paying unusually close attention to what Socrates indicates about the meaning and extent of his irony, David Leibowitz arrives at unconventional conclusions about Socrates' teaching on virtue, politics, and the gods; the significance of his famous turn from natural philosophy to political philosophy; and the purpose of his insolent 'defense speech'. Leibowitz shows that Socrates is not just a colorful and quirky figure from the distant past but an unrivaled guide to the good life - the thoughtful life - who is as relevant today as in ancient Athens. On the basis of his unconventional understanding of the dialogue as a whole, and of the Delphic oracle story in particular, Leibowitz shows that the Apology is the key to the Platonic corpus, indicating how many of the disparate themes and apparently contradictory conclusions of the other dialogues fit together.
In many regards the dialectical counterpart of the Republic, the Symposium is one of the richest and most influential of the Platonic dialogues, resonating not only with Western philosophy, but also
Plato explores the thought of a man who, in a literary career of fifty years, generated ideas that have pervaded history from antiquity to today. Andrew S. Mason outlines Plato's intellectual developm
"Beginning from the most thorough review of classical intoxicants, Michael A. Rinella applies his findings in detail to many Platonic texts. His results certainly have great significance for students
The Philosopher's Song explores the complex and fruitful relation between the great poets of Greek culture and Plato's invention of philosophy, especially as this bears on Plato's treatment of justice
"An original analysis of one of Plato's most well-known and pivotal dialogues, this study is based upon the effort to think together the most manifest themes of the Symposium (the nature of eros and t
This book investigates the formative years of Hans-Georg Gadamer's Plato studies, while studying with Martin Heidegger at Marburg University. It outlines the evolution of Heidegger's understanding of
Miller (classics and comparative literature, U. of South Carolina) and Platter (classics, U. of Georgia) present a highly annotated edition of the Greek text followed by essays commenting on the text
The Commentary on Plato's Parmenides by Proclus (AD 412-85) is the most important extant document on the interpretation of this enigmatic dialogue, and has had a crucial influence on all subsequent r
What kind of literature is the Talmud? To answer this question, Daniel Boyarin looks to an unlikely source: the dialogues of Plato. In these ancient texts he finds similarities, both in their unique
This book proposes to rethink the relationship between philosophy and literature through an engagement with Plato's dialogues. The dialogues have been seen as the source of a long tradition that subor
An oracle was reported to have said, "No one is wiser than Socrates." And in fact it was Socrates’ life’s work to interpret these words, which demanded and defined the practice of philosophy. Each of
An oracle was reported to have said, "No one is wiser than Socrates." And in fact it was Socrates’ life’s work to interpret these words, which demanded and defined the practice of philosophy. Each of
The study of the ancient commentators has developed considerably over the past few decades, fueled by recent translations of their often daunting writings. This book offers the only concise, accessibl
