Peter kreeft, three philosophies of life plato, meno and apology. Dombrowski, 1981, university press of america edition, in english. Before we start talking about the best plato books. Plato had enormous impact on the development of western thought, and on our understanding of nature and the impact of knowledge. Expansive and formidable in its complexity of argument, yet constantly lucid, the. From plato and socrates to ethics and metaphysics, an essential primer on the history of thought adams 101. Plato baptized places a variety of spensers texts in the history of speaking, writing, reading, and interpreting which stretches from plato s mentors, pythagoras and socrates, to the present. From plato and socrates to ethics and metaphysics, an essential primer on the history of thought adams 101 kleinman, paul on. Athens streetcorner philosopher socrates was the bigcity philosopher in ancient athens. As plato repeatedly wrote, the essence of philosophy came down to the command to. In his written dialogues he conveyed and expanded on the ideas and techniques of his teacher socrates. I will answer for the beginner and for the advanced student. The best philosophy books of all time updated for 2020. An 800page scholarly overview is unlikely to be best for someone looking for a short.
At the center of reales interpretation of plato is the fulcrum of the supersensible, the metaphysical discovery that plato presented as a result of the second voyage. The best book for you will depend on your preferred learning style and the amount of time that you want to spend reading about political philosophy. To find the best books on the history of philosophy, we must first identify the level of the student. This is a new kind of history which will bring philosophy to life for all. Much of western philosophy finds its basis in the thoughts and teachings of socrates, plato, and aristotle. His extant work is in the form of dialogues and epistles. A number of platonic scholars and critics assert that he had, and refer to books viii and ix of the republic in support of their. This page contains a list of the best introductory books on political philosophy. Although this interpretation of platos writings particularly the republic has enjoyed immense popularity throughout the long history of western philosophy, it is. You cant begin a study of world philosophy without talking about these guys. Rothschilds fiddle, on happiness, the apology, heart of darkness, conscience, genesis, alienated labour, social contract. Plato is one of history s most influential philosophers. In this video i recommend 10 interesting books on the subject of philosophy. List of books and articles about philosophy of education.
His writings explored justice, beauty and equality, and also contained discussions in aesthetics, political philosophy, theology, cosmology, epistemology and the philosophy of language. Bringing together the education and philosophy communities, plato celebrates diversity within the philosophy classroom and endorses a wide variety of philosophical approaches and methods. Josiah obers political dissent in democratic athens. Second, the wonderful comparison of plato and aristotle through history, the. From about 388 bc he lived for a time at the court of dionysius the elder, tyrant of syracuse. Life after pursuing the liberal studies of his day, he became in 407 bc a pupil and friend of socrates. Rouse translation great dialogues of plato and mentally divide each book into 3 parts, a, b and c, you could cover book i, iia, vb through 7a, 9c, and rouses helpful summary of the rest. Footnotes on doing philosophy with young people author. Crime and punishment by fyodor dostoyevsky part 1 full audio books classic 2. He is widely considered the pivotal figure in the history of ancient greek and western philosophy, along with his teacher, socrates, and his most famous student, aristotle. His father, ariston, could trace his lineage back to the old kings of athens. It tells the story of a dinner party given by agathon, a handsome poet, who invites a group of his friends around to eat, drink and talk about love. For the beginner, perhaps the best book is by a worldclass world historian, name.
In this outstanding work of scholarship, a renowned expert on plato presents a scrupulously accurate historical view of the great philosophers life and works. See the additional sources and recommended reading list below, or check the philosophy books page for a full list. But taylors method of reading plato in terms of the subsequent history of philosophy, or of translating plato s arguments and ideas into the terms of more modern philosophers is no longer the preferred method of reading plato for example, when he says that for socrates and plato, no less than for kant, immortality is a postulate of the. Traditional history estimates platos birth was around 428 b. Res publica is a socratic dialogue, written by plato around 375 bc, concerning justice. His contributions range across numerous philosophical subfields, including but not limited to ethics, cosmology, and metaphysics. Bertrand russell a history of western philosophy part 01. The man and his work dover books on western philosophy. His book, the symposium, is an attempt to explain what love really is. Enter your mobile number or email address below and well send you a link to download the free kindle app. Whenever possible, i linked to books with my amazon affiliate code, and as an amazon associate i earn from qualifying purchases. Some of the dialogues and many of the epistles attributed to him are known to be spurious, while others are doubtful. Plato was an athenian philosopher during the classical period in ancient greece, founder of the platonist school of thought, and the academy, the first institution of higher learning in the western world.
Just to be clear, there is no single best book on political philosophy. From the beginning to plato routledge history of philosophy, vol. Though he was not a scientist in the modern sense, plato also examined the natural world and the philosophical implications it held. He came from a politically active family, but renounced politics to become a philosopher. Plato has also often been cited as one of the founders of western religion and spirituality. The best books on plato five books expert recommendations.
The fourth volume of professor guthries great history of greek thought deals exclusively with plato. Plato s philosophy of education in the republic, plato sets up a theory of what education means for both the individual and the state, focusing on the important role of those who must carefully choose. The great books reading and discussion program first series, volume 1. Plato was a superb writer, and his works are part of the worlds great literature. The ten best introductory political philosophy books the. The republic by plato, the symposium by plato, apology by plato, phaedo by plato, and phaedrus by plato. Plato s teachings have been among the most influential in the history of western civilization. Including quick summaries for beginners of modern philosophy books, eastern philosophy, western philosophy and more. Plato thought of philosophy as a therapy for the soul, and he dared to tackle some of the most profound philosophical problems with his allegory of the cave.
Project gutenberg offers 61,766 free ebooks to download. It tells the story of a dinner party given by agathon, a handsome poet. Greek philosophers plato, socrates and aristotle are among the major figures who laid the foundations of educational philosophy. Plato expert professor melissa lane chooses the best plato books to help us understand him. While teaching socrates engaged the others in dialogue. They debated on different subjects in the past that are important for philosophy of education even now. He wants it to be a metaphor of our nature regarding its education and its lack of education, that is, serves to. Plato is one of historys most influential philosophers. Platos philosophy of history 1981 edition open library. The ancient greek philosophers believed that philosophy was a tremendously useful skill that should be practiced by everyone. Plato appears to have been the founder of western political philosophy, with his republic, and laws among other dialogues, providing some of the earliest extant treatments of political questions from a philosophical perspective.
The republic by plato, meditations by marcus aurelius, thus spoke zarathustra by friedrich nietzsche, beyond good and evil b. Plato promotes philosophy classes for all k12 students, including those in classrooms least likely to have access to academic enrichment programs. Plato books biography and list of works author of the republic. In the vii book of the republic plato displays his wellknown myth of the cavern, the most important one as it embraces the cardinal points of his philosophy. Plato is one of the great theorists of relationships. What are some of the best books about history of philosophy.
Who was plato plato was an athenian who lived in the late fifth and into the fourth century bce. This guide includes the best philosophy books from throughout history. Platos philosophy of education and the common core debate. Platos allegory of the cave explained with examples. At the center of reales interpretation of plato is the fulcrum of the supersensible, the.
Plato s symposium, written in the early part of the 4th century bc, is set at a drinking party symposium attended by some of the leading intellectuals of the day, including aristophanes, the comic dramatist, socrates, plato s mentor, and alcibiades, the brilliant but eventually treacherous politician. It is plato s bestknown work, and has proven to be one of the worlds most influential works of philosophy. Platos dialogues are often presented as highly philosophical. Books by plato sorted by popularity project gutenberg. List of books and articles about platos republic online. The apology, phaedo and crito of plato, the golden sayings of epictetus, the meditations of marcus aurelius. Ancient greek philosopher plato founded the academy and is the. Theres a mixture of philosophers here from plato to sartre. Plato was the innovator of the written dialogue and dialectic forms in philosophy. Plato was born in athens in 427 bc to a well established aristocratic family.
1092 1363 1196 653 984 1206 1482 712 1289 145 1039 1373 1391 167 1345 1062 98 602 375 967 701 854 157 751 1370 736 1402 142 397 272