Timaeus [Paperback]

Plato (Author), Benjamin Jowett (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 4, 2006 | ISBN-10: 1406831727 | ISBN-13: 978-1406831726

First published in Plato, Complete Works, Donald Zeyl's translation of Timaeus is presented here with his substantial introductory essay, which situates the dialogue in the development of Greek science, discusses points of contemporary interest in the Timaeus, deals at length with long-standing and current issues of interpretation, and provides a consecutive commentary on the work as a whole. Includes an analytic table of contents and a select bibliography.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Donald Zeyl's fresh and faithful translation and his lucid, comprehensive commentary will bring the sublime Timaeus to life for contemporary students of cosmology, metaphysics, history of science, and philosophy." -- Sarah Broadie, Princeton University --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Greek --This text refers to the Library Binding edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 124 pages
• Publisher: Echo Library (October 4, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1406831727
• ISBN-13: 978-1406831726
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,454,808 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An educational introduction to a complex text, June 20, 2000

By 

Rich Lenihan "richinlife" (Belchertown, MA, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Timaeus (Paperback)

Reading Zeyl's translation of Timaeus is like taking a college-level seminar on this classic text. His introduction is longer than the text and gives background and insight to the translation. That coupled with the many footnotes throughout the text, explain Zeyl's translation of the Greek, offer alternative translations for certain key words or concepts, and make Zeyl's case for why he made some of the translation choices he did.

The text itself is one of the classics of western thought, offering among other things Plato's theory on creation, how and why the world and its parts was formed. While less well read than Plato's other works such as the Republic, the ideas in this book influenced writers for centuries to come including St. Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. Be forewarned, however, this is not light reading. Plato's ideas are quite intricate and are frequently explained using geometric models. You may want to brush up on your high school geometry before tackling this treatise.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars go for the Zeyl translation, January 12, 2008

By 

socraticirony (New Orleans) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Timaeus (Dodo Press) (Paperback)

Amazon seems to have linked together all the comments on the Timaeus (no matter the translator). It is very possible that you are reading this under a different translation, not the Jowett translation as the commenter suggests. In any case, I recommend the Donald Zeyl translation. It DOES have Stephanus numbering -- very appropriate for class discussions and scholarly work. In my opinion, it is the best English translation available -- and I've spent years working through the text in Greek. Another translation that is nice to have around for alternative readings of key passages (all translation involves interpretation) is Peter Kalkavage's.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Easy to read, June 7, 2011

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IAB - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Timaeus (Paperback)

Zeyl's translation is easy to read; for a translation that follows the Greek a little more closely (and therefore is arguably less readable) see Peter Kalkavage's translation. The two translations and their notes are complementary.