Scan barcode
xadrya's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
It's true: these five dialogues build upon each other. But it's a tad misleading to present them as a continuity, or to treat them as such. Euthyphro, Apology, and Crito present an entirely different Socrates than Meno and Phaedo; the first is unrelentingly skeptical, the second won't get off the pulpit. The first is a more or less historical attempt at the portrayal of Socrates, the second is the usage of Socrates as a mouthpiece for Plato's ideas.
That said, there is narrative continuity, at least between Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, and Phaedo (though Meno frankly has no place, and Euthyphro and Crito are irrelevant to Apology and Phaedo). It's the story of the end of Socrates' life. And at its best, it's the sort of story that can bring you to tears. The speech in Apology is magisterial; the scene in Phaedo is gorgeous beyond belief, and tragic at that. Out of these five dialogues, two are literary masterpieces in my opinion. And that alone makes this a worthy read.
That said, there is narrative continuity, at least between Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, and Phaedo (though Meno frankly has no place, and Euthyphro and Crito are irrelevant to Apology and Phaedo). It's the story of the end of Socrates' life. And at its best, it's the sort of story that can bring you to tears. The speech in Apology is magisterial; the scene in Phaedo is gorgeous beyond belief, and tragic at that. Out of these five dialogues, two are literary masterpieces in my opinion. And that alone makes this a worthy read.
pascalibrary's review against another edition
4.0
4/5 Stars. A pretty good start to my philosophy journey.
Plato and Socrates shook the philosophical world all around when they took the stage. New issues, new methods, and an all new attitude came with them. Socrates, the rock star of philosophy, would go around vehemently questioning everyone, feigning interest and respect while logically running circles around them. Plato, student and friend of Socrates, built on many of his ideas and worked to immortalize his good image after it was ruined in his own time.
This book is a collection of five dialogues, all starring Socrates, as written by Plato. Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, and Phaedo. All except Meno, which was seemingly just thrown in there, comprise the trial and death of Socrates. As far as the philosophy goes, not too much of it is applicable. Modern science and philosophy have pretty much made the way that Socrates and Plato view the world look very archaic. This isn't a point against them at all, since they did the best they could with what they had. If they were born recently, I have no doubt that they would be just as famous and innovative as any modern philosopher. Sadly, though, it doesn't change just how pointless a lot of their ideas come across. They rely too much on mysticism and outdated worldviews, so the only thing I really got from this is a lesson on how arguments should work (and sometimes how they shouldn't).
Euthyphro is the best for this, showing Socrates effortlessly tying Euthrypho up in a web of his own logic. This is the Socratic method at its finest. While I would never want to talk to Socrates, I definitely enjoyed reading him. They discuss the nature of piety, and the dialogue ends abruptly as Euthyphro presumably gets too frustrated and leaves when he can't give a satisfying answer.
Apology is pretty much just a long monologue with Socrates detailing his defense against the charges of corrupting the youth and defying the gods. In my opinion, he gave a decent defense, but the jury wasn't hearing it. It didn't help that Socrates roasted the hell out of them multiple times. They sentence him to death for this. None of it phased him, though. Socrates is notoriously unafraid of death and relentlessly virtuous.
Crito is another classic-style dialogue showing Socrates in prison. He discusses with his friend Crito why he won't break out of Jail, despite his friend's desperate pleas. Here, Socrates outlines a pretty uncompromising morality, which was the only part of the philosophy I found genuinely interesting, if unconvincing. This is also probably the last dialogue in the collection meant to actually represent the historical Socrates.
Meno features Socrates speaking to the namesake about whether virtue can be taught, and how learning occurs. This is definitely where Plato really starts sneaking in his own philosophy, as you get hints of Forms and Socrates actually starts volunteering some of his own theories, rather than exclusively tearing down other people's.
Phaedo is the longest dialogue in the collection, and the most Plato heavy. Not that he's actually there, this one just most closely deals with Forms. It's also the most mystical and thus the least interesting. Still worth a read, but not practical at all.
The English here is mostly easy to get through. It's not overly dense, but Socrates does have a habit of being quite redundant. I see why he does this, but it doesn't help the readability. Also, the formatting of this edition is pretty bad sometimes, especially in Phaedo. In that dialogue, it's technically a story within a story, and all named dialogue sequences are completely removed when it goes into the main part. It gets really hard to follow and this is worse after you're used to the previous formatting style.
For the historical significance, great arguing style, decent translation, and love to hate him Socrates, I give this book 4 stars out of 5. I took away one star because of the really shoddy formatting for a third of the book and for its lack of practical philosophy. That might be a little unfair, but it did impact my personal enjoyment which is a big factor. Personally, I do think everyone should read this. Even if philosophy isn't really your thing, this will help you start thinking of things on your own. Like the ancient Socrates did, this book can help to make everyone a philosopher.
Plato and Socrates shook the philosophical world all around when they took the stage. New issues, new methods, and an all new attitude came with them. Socrates, the rock star of philosophy, would go around vehemently questioning everyone, feigning interest and respect while logically running circles around them. Plato, student and friend of Socrates, built on many of his ideas and worked to immortalize his good image after it was ruined in his own time.
This book is a collection of five dialogues, all starring Socrates, as written by Plato. Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, and Phaedo. All except Meno, which was seemingly just thrown in there, comprise the trial and death of Socrates. As far as the philosophy goes, not too much of it is applicable. Modern science and philosophy have pretty much made the way that Socrates and Plato view the world look very archaic. This isn't a point against them at all, since they did the best they could with what they had. If they were born recently, I have no doubt that they would be just as famous and innovative as any modern philosopher. Sadly, though, it doesn't change just how pointless a lot of their ideas come across. They rely too much on mysticism and outdated worldviews, so the only thing I really got from this is a lesson on how arguments should work (and sometimes how they shouldn't).
Euthyphro is the best for this, showing Socrates effortlessly tying Euthrypho up in a web of his own logic. This is the Socratic method at its finest. While I would never want to talk to Socrates, I definitely enjoyed reading him. They discuss the nature of piety, and the dialogue ends abruptly as Euthyphro presumably gets too frustrated and leaves when he can't give a satisfying answer.
Apology is pretty much just a long monologue with Socrates detailing his defense against the charges of corrupting the youth and defying the gods. In my opinion, he gave a decent defense, but the jury wasn't hearing it. It didn't help that Socrates roasted the hell out of them multiple times. They sentence him to death for this. None of it phased him, though. Socrates is notoriously unafraid of death and relentlessly virtuous.
Crito is another classic-style dialogue showing Socrates in prison. He discusses with his friend Crito why he won't break out of Jail, despite his friend's desperate pleas. Here, Socrates outlines a pretty uncompromising morality, which was the only part of the philosophy I found genuinely interesting, if unconvincing. This is also probably the last dialogue in the collection meant to actually represent the historical Socrates.
Meno features Socrates speaking to the namesake about whether virtue can be taught, and how learning occurs. This is definitely where Plato really starts sneaking in his own philosophy, as you get hints of Forms and Socrates actually starts volunteering some of his own theories, rather than exclusively tearing down other people's.
Phaedo is the longest dialogue in the collection, and the most Plato heavy. Not that he's actually there, this one just most closely deals with Forms. It's also the most mystical and thus the least interesting. Still worth a read, but not practical at all.
The English here is mostly easy to get through. It's not overly dense, but Socrates does have a habit of being quite redundant. I see why he does this, but it doesn't help the readability. Also, the formatting of this edition is pretty bad sometimes, especially in Phaedo. In that dialogue, it's technically a story within a story, and all named dialogue sequences are completely removed when it goes into the main part. It gets really hard to follow and this is worse after you're used to the previous formatting style.
For the historical significance, great arguing style, decent translation, and love to hate him Socrates, I give this book 4 stars out of 5. I took away one star because of the really shoddy formatting for a third of the book and for its lack of practical philosophy. That might be a little unfair, but it did impact my personal enjoyment which is a big factor. Personally, I do think everyone should read this. Even if philosophy isn't really your thing, this will help you start thinking of things on your own. Like the ancient Socrates did, this book can help to make everyone a philosopher.
bugmandan34's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
5.0
yahyaelkinani's review against another edition
4.0
The questions that Socrates(Plato) poses about piety and recollection are very interesting. The problem with a pious person and the analysis provided are understandable and agreeable, the recollection theory on the other hand is something that can be hard to understand and accept. The apology and crito are beautiful pieces where you can see how Socrates chooses to uphold his own philosophy and accept death instead of giving up on his philosophical ideals.
casparb's review against another edition
3.0
They have their moments but reading Plato thus far isn't an especially sexy time. Euthyphro is fun and philosophically neat. None of these are bad! I was just not especially awoken by them. Details are lovely to see - Phaedo: [Socrates] had a way of playing with my hair...
Keen for the next round of Plato, which should be a bit spicier.
Keen for the next round of Plato, which should be a bit spicier.