6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Socratic method is still valid., July 24, 2002
This Bantam Classics edition presents, through translations by different sources, eight of Plato's "early" dialogues, all involving Socrates, his apotheosized master. Written in the form of question-and-answer sessions, these dialogues profile a man in a continuous quest for the truth, even when he is awaiting his execution, and demonstrate a particular system of gathering information and building knowledge, a system that is nothing less than the foundation of Western thought.
The oracle at Delphi stated that Socrates was the wisest of men because he knew that his wisdom was paltry -- unlike the Sophists, who not only thought they could teach things like virtue and "excellence" to the youth of Athens but also charged money for their tutelage. Since Socrates admits to knowing nothing, he gains all his knowledge through inquiry, deferring to his interlocutors' presumed knowledge, often using sarcasm with the Sophists. His questions commonly use logic of the form "If A is the same as B and B is the opposite of C, isn't A the opposite of C?"
Socrates saw himself as a "gadfly" to Athenian society, always seeking truth -- an absolute truth, as opposed to the moral relativism taught by the Sophists and practiced by the Athenians. His basic interest was inquiring of the way a man should live his life, one conclusion being that to suffer is better than to cause suffering, since the immortal soul is judged constantly by the gods.
Some of the arguments might seem specious to the modern reader, but the importance of reading the dialogues is not necessarily to agree with any particular argument presented but to observe an intensely systematic and organized method of gaining knowledge through interrogatory dialogue. First-hand experience tells me that asking and answering questions is a better way to learn than listening to a one-sided lecture, and reading Plato's Socratic recollections confirms my opinion.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
19 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
inadequate description, translation, August 10, 1998
This review is from: Dialogues of Plato (Library Edition) (Audio Cassette)
The pleasure of Plato is as much from his literary as from his philosophical acumen. The choice of the public-domain Jowett translation is unhappy for bringing out the literary merit of the original. This Victorian prose, while usually competent as translation, does not ring true to the original and certainly does nothing for the late 20th century American ear. One wonders why the set is so expensive when the translation was had for nothing. And why doesn't Amazon print the contents of these cassettes in their bibliographical information. Does one have to buy the set to find out exactly what its contents are>
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
excellent shape, January 11, 2009
better than i expected considering it was a penny. through this book i learned more about how powerful philosophy can be than in my intro to philosophy course
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
