This book is a lucid and accessible companion to Plato’s Republic, throwing light upon the text’s arguments and main themes, placing them in the wider context of the text’s structure. In its illumination of the philosophical ideas underpinning the work, it provides readers with an understanding and appreciation of the complexity and literary artistry of Plato’s Republic.

Title

• Plato's 'Republic': An Introduction

Creator

• McAleer, Sean

Learning resource type

• Textbook

Education level

• College / Upper division

Audience

• Student

Table of contents

• Table of Contents

  1. Fathers and Sons
  2. Taming the Beast: Socrates versus Thrasymachus
  3. A Fresh Start
  4. Blueprints for a Platonic Utopia: Education and Culture
  5. Starting to Answer the First Question: The Political Virtues
  6. The Republic’s First Question Answered at Last: Personal Justice
  7. Questions about the Idea Polis: The Three Waves
  8. Surfing the Third Wave: Plato’s Metaphysical Elevator, the Powers Argument, and the Infallibility of Knowledge
  9. The Philosopher’s Virtues
  10. Metaphors to Think by: The Sun and Divided Line Analogies
  11. The Allegory of the Cave
  12. The Decline and Fall of the Ideal City-Soul
  13. The Republic’s Second Question Answered: Three and a Half Arguments that the Just Life is Happier
  14. Are We There Yet? Tying up Loose Ends in Book X

Rights statement

• In Copyright

License

• Attribution 3.0 United States

Language

• English

Type

• Text