The Trial and Death of Socrates, by Plato, is a timeless piece dealing with themes that are applicable to the generations of then, now and those to come. Written in the classic, observant, style of Plato, the book is a compilation of four dialogues that the main character, Socrates, engages in at various times with different people. Each dialogue is didactic in style and although they don't always end conclusively, they do provoke one to reflect upon that which is discussed. Throughout the book Socrates deals with such subjects as pious versus the impious, wise versus the unwise, and just versus the unjust. The book is set in Athens, in the year 399 B.C.E., and is written so that each section revolves around Socrates' trial as described in the section entitled "The Apology". The book focuses much attention on the trial in which Socrates is being tried for corrupting the youth and not believing in the gods recognized by the state. Aside from the philosophical side of Socrates, the reader is also introduced to his family and friends, thus observing the person who Socrates really was. Many readers are introduced to various sections of this book at some point in their education, yet those who never read the entire book miss altogether the importance of the relationships that Socrates has with others. It is through study of these relationships that the reader begins to view Socrates as a real human and develop a sympathetic connection with him. While the conversations are occasionally difficult to follow, the thoughts and philosophies of Socrates are profound and worth the invested time to understand. Each debate that Socrates partakes in introduces to the reader a new piece of knowledge or moral question to ponder. It is through the answers to these questions that the reader reaps the true benefit of tackling The Death and Trial of Socrates. Wisdom gained is worth more than the time invested.

For those of you who must have it all, buy PLATO COMPLETE WORKS, edited by John M. Cooper. Personally, I would save your [money] and just buy this. I have read and reviewed many other Platonic texts, but I really don't think you need anything else. This is the irreducible core of Platonic Goodness.

THE TRIAL AND DEATH OF SOCRATES is a compilation four dialogues: the "Euthyphro," the "Apology," "Crito," and the "Phaedo". As the title clearly states, these four dialogues convey the story - and philosophical debate - that surrounded Socates' trial and death. In these dialogues we find Socrates defending the righteousness of his actions and views, and tearing away at his prosecutors with the skill of expert lawyer. His only weapon being the truth.

In spite of, or perhaps because these four dialogues were written while Plato was still a middle-aged man (as opposed to the "Republic" and the "Laws," which are thought to be his more formulated philosophical expressions), they absolutely sizzle. The text bleeds with life, and so-called Socratic method of endless penetrating questions is here exemplified in the most dire of occasions - Socrates defense against the State of Athens.

It is in these dialogues that Plato expresses the core of philosopohy: a committment to truth, beauty and justice, and the the supreme tenent: "The unexamined life is not worth living." That said, if you still yearn for more Plato after reading these dialogues, grab a copy of Allan Bloom's translation of THE REPUBLIC. It is currently the best English translation available, and you will still be saving [money] over an edition of Plato's complete works.

This book really needs more attention than any other deserves. To understand this book is a life time challenge... So small yet so deep in thought...

Good source to compare and contrast Plato's accounts. Major significant part in this book is 'the dinner party'.

More on Socrates, especially for those who wish to know more after having exhausted Plato (which is no simple task). Only gets four stars because it comes across as being slightly less powerful than Plato, although, contrary to the translators opinion, appears to portray the historical Socrates more accurately (except for the final dialogue). Socrates' Defense presents the only other complete account of his trial, Memoirs of Socrates is a collection, The Dinner Party is about the notion of love, and Estate Manager is a dialogue about managing an estate. I have always find the presentation of dialogue preferable to essay (as in Plutarch).

Xenophon relates an easy-to-understand text of who Socrates was and what he taught. It includes his defence, memoirs, dinner party, and estate-manager. Truly fine reading.

This is an outstanding translation of these Greek texts. These are texts that many of us regularly teach in introductory classes, and it is a great help to have such a reliable translation: the translation is clear and accessible, but maintains an unusually strict adherence to the form of the original Greek. This makes it useful for advanced study as well. The running footnotes to the text are especially helpful for giving students the relevant points of historical and legal context for understanding Socrates's position, but they are sparse enough that they do not intrude in the interpretation of the text. This is the only translation of these texts that I will use in my courses.

This is a real rarity in Platonic scholarship--a synoptic translation of four important works on the life of Socrates; in other words, the translators use the same English words to convey the same important Greek terms in each of their translations in order to aid the reader in recognizing how those terms evolve in meaning and shape the drama of each of the works, or in short, in recognizing the dialogue which exists between the works rather than merely within them. A former reviewer seems to have missed the point of this work: if you want someone to TELL YOU WHAT PLATO MEANS, you can read a two line summary in an encyclopedia, but if you want to find out why Plato went and wrote an entire dialogue rather than a two line summary, you have to pay close attention to what he actually says. These translations are about as close as you can get without having advanced knowledge of Greek, and even then, the Wests note specific usages of key terms which even a native speaker of ancient Greek might not have noticed on a first reading, and which are largely ignored by the scholarly community. This is an ideal translation for students of politics, history, philosophy, and classical literature who want to know why the most profound and poetic civilization of antiquity put the first philosopher to death, and why he let them.

Thomas and Grace West translate Plato's Euthyphro, Apology and Crito and Aristophanes' Clouds in a clear and modern fashion. The useful background information and clear footnotes help make this an important book to have if you want to read about Socrates. This book is a "must have" for any Socrates fan indeed!

There are four things you need to remember about this book:

1) It is Kierkegaard's doctoral thesis and he bears a great load of hostility against his professors. He works this out passive-aggressively, by writing in a near impenetrable style. They are testing him by making him defend a thesis and he, in his turn, is testing them to see whether they can figure out exactly what thesis he is defending. He claims that Irony, the concept he is explicating, is "infinite absolute negativity." Certainly his thesis is. The thesis is not just about Irony, it enacts Irony. The thesis shows him the master of Irony.

2) The thesis seems hostile to Socrates who, throughout his authorship he always speaks of with approval. This is because among the contemporary witnesses he chooses to credit Aristophanes above Xenophon and Plato. Aristophanes' portrayal is indeed negative. Aristophanes is clearly hostile to Socrates. Socrates even blames Aristophanes at his trial for poisoning the peoples' minds against him.

3) He later repudiated the idea that Irony is "infinite absolute negativity," claiming that at the time he was an "Hegelian fool." Kierkegaard claims he did not, in his thesis, appreciate certain positive aspects of Socratic Irony, qualities that made Socrates a great ethicist. Certainly, he would never have believed Aristophanes except that he confirms Hegel's view of Socrates.

4) This book does not belong with the other books of his authorship (starting with Either/Or). While it is brilliantly shrewd, it does not carry out Kierkegaard's program. While it illustrates a mastery of technique, it is not a mature work in the sense that it lacks the his characteristic questions and concerns. This is the source of a negativity absent from his later works.

If you want to read a classic on the subject, read this book. An acquaintance with Xenophon, Plato and Aristophanes is vital. Moreover, patience with Kierkegaard's infuriating style is also a must.

1. Infuriating style? You're missing most of the irony. Don't you see it? The irony of the book has gone around like a serpent biting its own tail! And that's the point.

2. On whether or not Irony is a mature work: the first part is not. The first part begins and ends with Hegel, with occasional allusions to what points he will hit in the second part. Want to skip the first part because it's long and doesn't seem to get to the point, or you don't know enough about Socrates? Forget the second part then, which won't make any sense at all without the working definition it takes until the discussion of Aristophanes to get to. And don't worry about not having a background on the Greeks. All you have to do is have a little working knowledge of the Apology of Plato, and know that Xenophon is a bit of a dimwit. Everything you wouldn't know and Kierkegaard doesn't tell you is said in the commentary, which is both repititious to those who know, and vexatious to those who don't, but is really helpful nonetheless.

3. The second part, especially in the discussion of Lucinde is a microcosm of the rest of Kierkegaard's philosophy. It just takes a little bit of a skewed lens (an ironic lens, if you will). Irony as infinite negativity? (which is probably an infuriating way of putting it since it really doesn't say anything about irony unless you understand the context provided by the discussion on Socrates in the first part... see why you can't just skip ahead?) alludes to concious despair, or at least if you're an ironist, and you see the emptiness of your position LEADS you to concious despair. The Ironic itself becomes sublimated somewhere between the aesthetic and the humorous, something unsustainable in it of itself, because after all, it is infinite negativity (once again,i refer you to the first part. It has something to do with Socrate's position that he was the wisest man in Athens because he knew nothing, and about the soul after death. See why Socrates is so necessary an ingredient now?).

4. The discussion on Lucinde in the second part is his descisive turn away from the Aesthetic and from Regine, not the Seducer's Diary as presented in EITHER/OR. In fact, EITHER/OR is his more direct explanation of his position that he first touched upon in Irony. Do you see the irony in that? He had to write a pseudonymonous work of an editor who finds a pile of papers in a desk in order to be more direct about a subject he indirectly touched upon in his dissertaition.

5. This is seminal Kierkegaard. This is the book that makes clear the infinite bottomless pit that Kierkegaard points you to in his later work is in fact, an infinite bottemless pit--WAAAUUGHHHH!

6. I hereby disclaim all my references to Kierkegaard. Especially this one.

What you get here is 1) a new translation of Symposium by Benardete 2) Allan Bloom's Ladder of Love, which was previously published in his book Love and Friendship 3) a short, though not unworthy article by Benardete. Bloom dominates, so if you already have Love and Friendship and a copy of Symposium you might feel gyped because the only new thing is Benardete's small article. If however you don't have Love and Friendship and don't really care for Rousseau or the nineteen century novel, this book is a definite option. Bloom's book is rather unwieldly and unfocused. This book is most certainly focused.

Plato's _Symposium_ is essential to understanding, insofar as that is possible, the allure and rewards of philosophy. Benardete's translation is accurate and readable, and his essay is helpful in following the action and bringing out some of the more important features of the dialogue. Bloom's "Ladder of Love" is reprinted within, and helps to situate the _Symposium_ within the broader question of philosophy and philosophy within our world.

Although Hadot does know his stuff, me mostly talks about other people's view on philosophy. I found this book to be quite a tease. Hadot rairly gave a good description or analysis of ancient texts. I was always interested in philosophy, but this book did me no good exept lure me to read Plato: The Republic, which I had read before in college. Plato: The Republic gets to the heart of ancient philosophy by giving a great translation of the ancient Greek texts. Making it feel like you were there when Socrates and Thrasymachus engage in one of the greatest battles of intellect and reason. And their topic of interest; 'what is justice and injustice?' a question that is still debated. Even though these dialoges date back to 380 B.C., their reasoning can still be applied today.

This book is a great achievement. Hadot, a recognized scholar of classical philosophy, shows us what the classical philosophers were really after. Hadot shows that classical philosophy was primarily about teaching people how to live, and not about creating grandiose systems! This book will fascinate you. (No, I am not related.)

While I don't think that everyone should read this book in its entirety, I definitely think that some of the essays contained within this volume help readers and, more importantly, practitioners of philosophy to understand the historical context through which what we now consider philosophy emerged. I found the chapter on the figure of Socrates to be especially enlightening as it sketched a different way to read Plato's dialogues than we are currently accustomed. Philosophy is not a purely theoretical enterprise. I think, with the decline in the popularity of philosophy in recent years, that a book reminding us of the practical uses of philosphy can help us both in making philosophers leave the ivory tower that is all-too-often a place of refuge, and in making people aware of just how important philosophy can be, even to those who aren't accustomed to the theoretical rhetoric sometimes employed.

Let me start out by saying that this text is a welcome addition to the serious attempts made to bring Nietzsche's notebooks into publication. Not only, for those of us who are serious Nietzsche schorlars, does The Will To Power have many faults (see my review for it) but we also do not have much if any serious work being done in attempting to translate these 16,000 pages or so of notebook material.

One will see in this text Nietzsche's extraordinary knowledge of the greeks. Most of us know that Nietzsche started his academic life as a philologist, and found in the Greek culture something which pointed him towards the philosophical inquiry he would come to make in his life. I encourage all to partake in Nietzsche's discussion with the Greeks, for it will provide critical insight into the devlopment of his philosophy.

This text is the lecutre course that he gave at Basel in 1868. It provides an account of the most important thinkers before the time of Plato, in accordance to Nietzsche's own struggle with their (the thinkers) fragments. If one finds this text interesting, I would recommend looking into the Birth of Tragedy, Philosophy in the Tragic Age of the Greeks, and just to get some background info on the lives and fragments obtained from these thinkers, Kirk, Raven, and Schofield's The Pre-Socratic Philosophers.

With that said, this text does have its limitiations. At some moments the translation is very good, and at other moments rather poor. There are sections, for example, in the Chapter on Empedocles that are very important that do not make it into the English translation. Moreover, the translation seems to make use of common English expressions when the actual German dictates a more dramatic expression. Like I say in all my reviews of Nietzsche's notebooks, his texts makes one want to learn German, so do that if you can. If one cannot, read it alongside an expert in German and you will be able to see the rather superficial areas of translation.

So, an important text with some mechanical problems in the translation. Still worth the investment though, and it provides a good intro in NIetzsche's insight into the Greek world.

Amor fati

As always, Nietzsche demonstrates an incredible grasp of theology, and it is merely our own stupidity that someone who is so much smarter than his teachers in this way is in so much trouble in the field of public opinion, which demands a much more comfortable stupidity than any reader of this book is likely to sympathize with. In the midst of this book, the judgment which Nietzsche pursues about very early Greek thinkers is "These religious insights originated from a need to eliminate anthropomorphism, but they still show the primordial Hellenic sensitivity toward the gods." (p. 78) The fragment of Xenophanes, given in Greek in footnote 15 on that page, which preceded his observation, was: "Always he remains in the same place, not moving at all; Nor is it fitting for him to go to different places at different times." As Nietzsche thought Plato and Aristotle understood this, "the entire dichotomy between spirit and matter, deity and world, is absent here. He resolves the identification of God and man in order to equate God and nature." (pp. 78-79). In humor, a high spot is a poem by Planudes about Seven Wise Men, with a line, "But Bias of Priene declared, The majority are the worse." (p. 22). Nietzsche makes the effort to sort them all out. On Anaximander, he said, "Thus he made two great advances over Thales, to wit, a principle of water's warmth and coldness and a principle of the Unlimited, the final unity, the matrix of continuous arising." (p. 33). People who are new to philosophy might think that there is too much which is new here, but it's really very old.

This book is remarkable on several levels. As a work of scholarship, it is an awesome achievement, considering that Greg Whitlock was able to produce a coherent text of Nietzche's lecture notes, and performed the most helpful task of looking up every citation, confirming its source, and providing extensive notes to clarify the details of the lectures.

But even more surprising and satisfying is the section that Whitlock modestly calls a "Translator's Commentary", which is actually a challenging and profound engagement with Nietzsche, the various Greek philosophers under discussion, Nietzsche's near contemporaries in German science, philosophy, and philology, and later thinkers as well. In fact, one of the more exciting parts of the text is where Whitlock challenges various statements by Heidegger and, I think, comes out on top. This is not mere history of philosophy, but a genuine encounter with some very provocative ideas.

At the end of this book, the reader must be absolutely conviced that the Pre-Platonic philosophers are not just interesting historically, but that each of them was a brilliant thinker with a highly developed intuitive gift for charging ahead into new intellectual territory. Nietzsche's deep passion for these thinkers is irresistible, and the reader cannot help but marvel at his ability to synthesize the Greeks with the science of his day and then use that to begin his own extraordinary philosophical journey.

Socrates was important as a cultural figure who showed other people how to be a philosopher. Much of this entertaining account talks about Socrates' lifestyle and personality. There are amusing little vignettes, such as how Socrates fended off the homosexual advances of the much younger Alcibiades, who later became a traitor to Athens.

The book emphasizes that Socrates did not advance his own positions as much as he criticized those of others.

Now that I have read this shorter work on Socrates I feel prepared to move on to longer works on Plato and Aristotle.

It's short (54 pages), but that's alright since there's only second-hand accounts of Socrates anyway. Anthony Gottlieb makes the most of this space and you end up with a pretty good idea of how Socrates viewed life and intellectual inquiry, as well as the distinctions between his philosophy and that of Plato and other followers and critics. Since he is the first significant philosopher, he's worth understanding, and this book will not consume much of your time.

Three substantial excerpts from the book, plus more information, are available online at http://www.btinternet.com/~socratic

This is a great little book that is part Robert Pirsig, part Robert Fripp, part Gurdijeff, part Plato. I mean this in all the highest forms of flattery. Phillips presents philosophy as something lived and to be lived. It is a bit like taking the Socratic pursuit of Thinking, throwing it in Heideggerian fashion into being and then asking for questions in most unacademic places. Christopher Phillips has "rescued" Thinking from its academic brackets in the process.
It is also Chris's story. Interwoven with his wonder at the remarkable observations of children, senior citizens, prisoners, men and women he meets in cafes is the story of his life as well. So, at times I thought of Robert Pirsig, at times King Crimson diarist Robert Fripp. Elements of Gurdijeff's MEETINGS WITH REMARKABLE MEN are given uncanny twists: sometimes it is a Mexican kid from the mission district in San Francisco, sometimes a white collar criminal who realizes too late how and whereby he messed up his life. Some of the people are looking for Truth, be it emotional or spiritual truth. Sometimes unexpected answers are uncovered. At all times, Phillips recognizes that this is as close to the real deal as Philosophy can get.
This will not satisfy the academic who believes that sophisticated answers are found only in the in-bred world of the ivory tower. There is no Wittgenstein upheaval of Western Thought, no Quine like analyses of the logical positivistic framework. Nope, just folks thinkin seriously about their lives. Somehow because it is not a task for profit and career, it is all the more genuine. Fripp once noted that the professional (musician) when confronted with an abyss will play what he knows, while the amateur will exceed what he knows because he doesn't know to stop. That's what is at work here. Phillips will draw historical analyses as points are made, but the references are really beside the point. He has done something remarkable, or perhaps the thinkers he has encountered have done something remarkable: they have reclaimed the Socratic dictum of an examined life for themselves, and as such, they have stood up, pointed the way out of the cave to the true light.
This is a book to cherish, and to be enjoyed by all ages. I've just finished it and have given it to my 11 year old niece in St Louis. I suspect we'll have much to talk about. Thank you, Chris.

This book is the fascinating story of a young man imbued with the love of philosophy, who wants to bring philosophical thinking into the lives of more people. So, in his words, as a Johnny Appleseed of Philosophy, he begins going to book stores, coffee shops, elementary schools, senior centers, even prisons, to hold philosophical jam sessions. With a little advance notice, he can usually draw at least a small crowd. Sometimes he's surprised at the numbers of people who show up. He introduces himself, and asks what questions the folks in attendance would like to discuss philosophically. Suggestions are made, and soon a free wheeling, yet Socratically disciplined conversation begins, typically among people who don't know each other, and who are perhaps from very different backgrounds, occupations, and worldviews. With Chris playing the role of Socrates, and teaching by example how we can all play that role - the role of a seeker after wisdom who is willing to question everything in search of the truth - he ignites philosophy in a place where it may never before have happened. He teaches and he learns. And he moves on to the next opportunity for creating philosophical community.

It's quite a story. This is a man on fire to help people think more deeply about their lives and experiences. And a man willing to go wherever he can to make this happen. Throughout the pages of the book, he comes across as an idealist who is willing to do what it takes to see his dream come true. And the book consists of stories from along the way. We get to sit in on discussions all over the place, in a prison, or in a school. We are allowed to listen in on people's ruminations, reflections, and efforts to articulate their deepest beliefs. We overhear polite disagreements and witness collaborative efforts to get at the truth. What is the examined life recommended by Socrates? How can we live it? What is the best sort of life to live? And how do we get our bearings day to day, whatever we happen to be doing?

The conversations can veer from the practical to the theoretical, but always the voices of real people break through. I couldn't put it down until I had read the whole book, and it's rare for a new book to hold my attention like that when I really should be reading three others I've already started.

Take a look at Socrates Cafe and you may find yourself drawn into its great conversations like I was. And somewhere up in Platonic Heaven, Socrates himself may smile.

I was blessed to go to a reading-signing conducted by Chris Phillips, who also facilitated a live Socrates Cafe. I was astounded by how his dialogues in his books don't just mirror his live dialogues, but tie in all these wonderful threads with great thinkers across the disciplines from the past and present, while Phillips himself weighs in critically and creatively -- Socratically, I guess he'd say -- on so many timeless topics. He shows what a sham it is to create all these artificial divides between the disciplines, he shows how art and poetry and the hardest of the hard sciences are all intertwined, and how we can reveal hidden likeness between so many things by joining him in his exhilarating pursuit to question, question, and question some more in a decidedly Socratic way. My favorite vignette of all from his book is "What's Love Got to Do With It," where he recounts movingly the story of how he met his wife at a Socrates Cafe; in fact, she was the only one who came to that particular session -- they discussed the question, "What is love?" -- and they ended up marrying one another! It's so beautiful, and all the sections of the book are deeply moving, penetrating and insightful. Best of all, Phillips never talks down to his readers. Rather, he prods us to think through our own unique answers to life's great questions. What a gift he has given to us. Already, thanks to his book, I'm asking myself, and answering more fruitfully, "Who am I?" and "WHo can I become?"