or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
 
Express Checkout with PayPhrase
What's this? | Create PayPhrase
More Buying Choices
37 used & new from $11.46
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
The Laws of Plato
 
 
Share your own customer images
Search inside this book

The Laws of Plato (Paperback)

~ (Author), Thomas L. Pangle (Translator) "Ath. Is it a god or some human being, strangers, who is given the credit for laying down your laws?..." (more)
Key Phrases: spirited anger, highest chorus, whole political regime, Guardians of the Laws, City Regulators, Market Regulators (more...)
3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
List Price: $28.00
Price: $17.76 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $10.24 (37%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Want it delivered Tuesday, November 17? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details
14 new from $15.50 23 used from $11.46

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
  Hardcover, April 30, 1981 -- -- $10.84
  Paperback, March 14, 1988 $17.76 $15.50 $11.46

Frequently Bought Together

Customers buy this book with The Argument and the Action of Plato's Laws by Leo Strauss

The Laws of Plato + The Argument and the Action of Plato's Laws
Price For Both: $42.76

Show availability and shipping details

  • This item: The Laws of Plato by Plato

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The Argument and the Action of Plato's Laws by Leo Strauss

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    This item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. Details

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

The Republic Of Plato: Second Edition

The Republic Of Plato: Second Edition

by Paul Shorey
4.6 out of 5 stars (49)  $12.34
History of Political Philosophy

History of Political Philosophy

by Leo Strauss
4.7 out of 5 stars (15)  $19.36
Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics (Philosophical Library Series)

Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics (Philosophical Library Series)

by Aristotle
4.4 out of 5 stars (9)  $11.53
Gorgias (Penguin Classics)

Gorgias (Penguin Classics)

by Plato
4.4 out of 5 stars (9)  $9.00
The Politics

The Politics

by Benjamin Jowett
4.3 out of 5 stars (26)  $10.13
› Explore similar items

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The Laws, Plato's longest dialogue, has for centuries been recognized as the most comprehensive exposition of the practical consequences of his philosophy, a necessary corrective to the more visionary and utopian Republic. In this animated encounter between a foreign philosopher and a powerful statesman, not only do we see reflected, in Plato's own thought, eternal questions of the relation between political theory and practice, but we also witness the working out of a detailed plan for a new political order that embodies the results of Plato's mature reflection on the family, the status of women, property rights, criminal law, and the role of religion and the fine arts in a healthy republic.

"Because it succeeds in being both literal and comprehensive, it is by far superior to any translation available. By reproducing dramatic detail often omitted, such as oaths, hesitations, repetitions, and forms of address, Pangle allows the reader to follow the dialogue's interplay between argument and dramatic context. . . . Pangle's translation captures the excitement and the drama of Plato's text."—Mary P. Nichols, Ancient Philosophy

"Pangle's achievement is remarkable. . . . The accompanying interpretive essay is an excellent distillation of a dialogue three times its size. The commentary is thoughtful, even profound; and it amply demonstrates the importance of reading Plato carefully and from a translation that is true to his language."—Patrick Coby, American Political Science Review


Language Notes

Text: English, Greek (translation)

Product Details

  • Paperback: 576 pages
  • Publisher: University Of Chicago Press (March 15, 1988)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0226671100
  • ISBN-13: 978-0226671109
  • Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 1.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #386,448 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

More About the Author

Plato
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

› Visit Amazon's Plato Page
Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
Ath. Is it a god or some human being, strangers, who is given the credit for laying down your laws? Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
spirited anger, highest chorus, whole political regime, ruling offices, judicial penalty, very fine way, choral art, something like the following way, nocturnal council, most correct way, theological oration, fifty drachmas, best regime
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Guardians of the Laws, City Regulators, Market Regulators, Field Regulators, Guardian of the Laws, Cavalry Commanders, Rank Commanders, Supervisor of Education, Tribe Commanders, Officers of the Guard
New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

The Laws of Plato
84% buy the item featured on this page:
The Laws of Plato 3.8 out of 5 stars (4)
$17.76
The Laws (Penguin Classics)
6% buy
The Laws (Penguin Classics) 4.0 out of 5 stars (1)
$11.70
The Argument and the Action of Plato's Laws
4% buy
The Argument and the Action of Plato's Laws 5.0 out of 5 stars (1)
$25.00
Plato: Timaeus (Focus Philosophical Library)
3% buy
Plato: Timaeus (Focus Philosophical Library) 4.3 out of 5 stars (6)
$6.08
Explore similar items

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(2)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
Agree with these tags?

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more
 

Customer Reviews

4 Reviews
5 star:
 (2)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.8 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A Useful Corrective to a Distorted View of Plato, May 2, 2002
By Christopher David Kirk (Memphis, TN United States) - See all my reviews
Plato's "Republic" is used most often in college courses to illustrate Plato's thoughts on politics, but it does not seem to contain a serious political program. The characters in the "Republic" are mostly young men not yet entrusted with political responsibility who are, nevertheless, concerned with justice and how a city would have to be composed in order to be fully just. That such a city could never, in fact, come about becomes less important than the questions of justice and soul that the discussion raises. Obviously (and by Plato's intention) the "Republic" does not present a practical political program. Students relying on this dialogue alone to get a sense of Plato's thoughts on the best regime may be led astray, especially if they are guided by a bad teacher (of which there are many in the universities). The best corrective to this is to read Pangle's translation of Plato's "Laws". In this dialogue an Athenian Stranger discusses various proposed laws with a Cretan who is shortly to assist in the founding of the new colony of Magnesia. The laws and regulations proposed by the Stranger are concessions to the way men are, rather than idealistic portraits of how they should be. The rule of philosopher-kings is not proposed, and the fact that all three interlocutors come from cities that at one time or another were at war with one another introduces a note of distrust and seriousness that is missing in the more playful "Republic"; this seriousness befits the discussion's more practical nature. Pangle's translation is literal and trustworthy where other translations take liberties with Plato's terminology, while the notes ameliorate the limitations of the translation form. If you are unsatisfied with this, prepare to learn the Greek since a better translation is not likely to be forthcoming. If Pangle's Interpretive Essay leaves a bad taste in your mout, feel free to read "The Argument and the Action of Plato's Laws" by Leo Strauss. My impression, however, is that Pangle's essay is more appropriate for readers who may find the unfamiliar "Laws" more, well, unfamiliar than, say, the "Republic". No one can deny that the "Laws" is more complex than the "Republic" and builds on many of that dialogue's insights, coming as it does at the end of Plato's career. To my mind, however, it is as indispensable as the "Republic" and teachers do their students a great disservice by not assigning the "Laws" more often. In conclusion, I highly recommend this dialogue and translation--accept no substitutes.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Laying down the law..., October 11, 2005
When one thinks of Plato and his ideas of politics, one naturally gravitates toward his best-known work, the Republic. In that book, Plato set up the ideal city-state, with classes born and bred to specific functions and roles in society, and a sense of philosophical outlook consistent across the board. However, such a society was unlikely to be brought out, in Plato's time and, as it turned out, in any other.

Plato tried at different times to persuade rulers to become his envisioned philosopher-king; the last attempt was with a tyrant of Syracuse, who in the end imprisoned Plato rather than following his directions. Plato wrote this work, 'The Laws', as the last of his dialogues. Its difference from the Republic is immediately apparent in the absence of Socrates as a character - Plato at the end of his life has finally taken to working in his own right and not through a proxy.

Just looking at the contents will show the breadth of this work - it involves practically every aspect of civil society: legislative bodies (and Plato has some scathing commentaries on some that he has known); education and its proper role and method (including even drinking parties as part of the educational process); ideas of monarchy, democracy, and the balance of power (some American constitutional ideas were generated from a reading (and occasional misreading) of this work); civil administration; arts and sciences; military and sports training; sexual conduct; economics; criminal law, torts, and judicial process; religion and theology; civil law, property and family law; Plato even argues for the need of a 'nocturnal council', one that delves not only into the practical aspects of the law, but also their philosophical bases.

According to translator and editor Trevor Saunders, 'The reader of the Republic who picks up the Laws is likely to have difficulty in believing that the same person wrote both.' Saunders speculates that Plato in his older years changed from optimism to pessimism, from idealism to realism, but that this is not all there is to the assumption, because in actual fact the transition from the Republic to the Laws involves transitioning unattainable ideals to attainable realities.

Plato describes the construction of a utopian society in great detail, down to the number of citizens permitted to live in the city (5040) and the length of time foreigners might reside in the city (20 years). This shows that Plato considers politics to be an exact science (indeed, despite the inclusion of the 'nocturnal council', he did see his system of laws being essentially unalterable through history). Plato is not averse to the use of force and coercion to set up and maintain the utopian society. Finally, Plato sees a self-contained kind of society that is likely to become xenophobic to the extreme, with less tolerance toward its own citizens than toward those foreigners permitted to live and work in the city. Indeed, for the virtuous citizens to be free to pursue their virtue, the majority of the manual work and crafts must be done by a worker class composed of slaves or immigrant workers, or both.

Plato's Laws suffer from much greater criticism in the modern world than the Republic, in part because it is a more 'realistic' work, with a reality that no longer applies. However, many of his insights are worthwhile, and the overall structure of his society reflected in the Laws is worth discussion as much as is that of the Republic. One of the problems with this work vis-a-vis the Republic is its length (the Laws is considerable longer); another problem is that it lacks the dramatic reading possible from the Republic, rather the difference between a political debate and a legal seminar. Still, it is an important work, showing how Plato's thought had shifted in his lifetime.
Comment Comment (1) | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
3 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book on the politics, July 30, 1998
By A Customer
The Laws by Plato is one of the best book on the political science. Here are some reasons why I think the Laws is the best book of the politics. First, This book extensively and thoroughly covers every aspects of the society such as education, laws, politics, justice, and religion. Unlike the Republic, the Laws has some pratical values in it. In other word, every political idea in this book is applicable to the Greek-States at the Hellinic period.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Where's the Philosophy?
This is a very flawed book. The translation suffices; however, the Interpretive essay is horribly flawed. Read more
Published on April 28, 1999

Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   

Product Information from the Amapedia Community

Beta (What's this?)

Look for Similar Items by Category

Look for Similar Items by Subject

Search Books by subject:















i.e., each book must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...
 

Feedback

If you need help or have a question for Customer Service, contact us.
 Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
Is there any other feedback you would like to provide?

Your comments can help make our site better for everyone.


Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.