Book description
Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have
transformed the way we see ourselves - and each other. They have
inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. They have enlightened,
outraged, provoked and comforted. They have enriched lives - and
destroyed them. Now Penguin brings you the works of the great
thinkers, pioneers, radicals and visionaries whose ideas shook
civilization and helped make us who we are.
Plato's retelling of the discourses between Socrates and his friends
on such subjects as love and desire, truth and illusion, spiritual
transcendence and the qualities of a good ruler, profoundly affected
the ways in which we view human relationships, society and leadership
- and shaped the whole tradition of Western philosophy.
Plato (c. 427-347 BC) stands with Socrates and Aristotle as one of
the founders of the Western intellectual tradition. Inspired by
Socrates' teaching, Plato sought a cure for the ills of society not in
politics but in philosophy, and in the early fourth century BC he
founded the Academy in Athens, the first permanent institution devoted
to philosophical research and teaching. He wrote over twenty
philosophical dialogues.
