Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime & FREE Returns

FREE delivery: Friday, Sep 3 on orders over $25.00 shipped by Amazon. Details

Fastest delivery: Friday, Aug 27

Only 6 left in stock (more on the way).
As an alternative, the Kindle eBook is available now and can be read on any device with the free Kindle app.

$$22.00 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Secure transaction

Ships from	Amazon.com
Sold by	Amazon.com

Details

Ships from

Amazon.com

Sold by

Amazon.com

Return policy: Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement

Add a gift receipt for easy returns

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime

FREE delivery: Friday, Sep 3 on orders over $25.00 shipped by Amazon. Details

Fastest delivery: Friday, Aug 27

Used: Good | Details

Sold by Just Reserve

Fulfilled by Amazon

Share <Embed>

Other Sellers on Amazon

$21.98
& FREE Shipping

Sold by: TheWorldShop - Ships from Overseas

$19.03
+ $3.99 shipping

Sold by: allnewbooks

Flip to back Flip to front

Listen Playing... Paused You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition.
Learn more

See all 2 images

Follow the Authors

Plato

Benjamin Jowett

The Portable Plato (Portable Library) Paperback – March 1, 1977

by Plato (Author), Scott Buchanan (Editor)

19 ratings

Part of: Portable Library (19 books)

See all formats and editions

Price

New from

Used from

Kindle

"Please retry"

$16.99

—

Hardcover

"Please retry"

$18.84

—

$10.34

Paperback

"Please retry"

$22.00

$13.95

$0.99

Writing in the fourth century B.C., in an Athens that had suffered a humiliating defeat in the Peloponnesian War, Plato formulated questions that have haunted the moral, religious, and political imagination of the West for more than 2,000 years: what is virtue? How should we love? What constitutes a good society? Is there a soul that outlasts the body and a truth that transcends appearance? What do we know and how do we know it? Plato's inquiries were all the more resonant because he couched them in the form of dramatic and often highly comic dialogues, whose principal personage was the ironic, teasing, and relentlessly searching philosopher Socrates.

In this splendid collection, Scott Buchanan brings together the most important of Plato's dialogues, including Protagoras, The Symposium, with its barbed conjectures about the relation between love and madness, Phaedo and The Republic, his monumental work of political philosophy. Buchanan's learned and engaging introduction allows us to see Plato both as a commentator on his society and as a shaper of the societies that followed, who bequeathed to us a hunger for the ideal as well as a redeeming habit of humane skepticism.

Print length

704 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Penguin Classics
Publication date

March 1, 1977
Dimensions

5.13 x 1.38 x 7.8 inches
ISBN-10

0140150404
ISBN-13

978-0140150407
See all details

Frequently bought together

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

Plato
1,390
Paperback
206 offers from $2.01
Karl Marx
77
Paperback
64 offers from $3.99
W. H. Auden
16
Paperback
55 offers from $1.02
Charles Darwin
3
Paperback
35 offers from $3.00
C. G. Jung
208
Paperback
79 offers from $3.16
Thomas Jefferson
19
Paperback
79 offers from $0.89

What other items do customers buy after viewing this item?

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

Friedrich Nietzsche
573
Paperback
129 offers from $2.07
Niccolo Machiavelli
50
Paperback
116 offers from $1.23
C. G. Jung
208
Paperback
79 offers from $3.16
Aristotle
263
Paperback
52 offers from $14.99
Saint Augustine of Hippo
125
Paperback
44 offers from $3.00
Aeschylus
39
Paperback
122 offers from $1.50

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Plato (c. 427–347 b.c.) founded the Academy in Athens, the prototype of all Western universities, and wrote more than twenty philosophical dialogues.

Start reading The Portable Plato (Portable Library) on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin Classics; 1st edition (March 1, 1977)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 704 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0140150404
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0140150407
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.19 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.13 x 1.38 x 7.8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #900,562 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,039 in Ancient Greek History (Books)
- #1,548 in Greek & Roman Philosophy (Books)
- #3,037 in Political Philosophy (Books)

Customer Reviews:
19 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		55%
4 star		18%
3 star		16%
2 star		11%
1 star 0% (0%)		0%

How are ratings calculated?

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Solid Anthology of Great Platonic Works

Reviewed in the United States on June 22, 2013

Verified Purchase

This well edited anthology contains four of Plato's most important works:

*Protagoras
*Symposium
*Phaedo
*The Republic (complete)

As noted by several of the other reviewers, this edition doesn't have great explanations, notes, commentary or references. What it does do, however, is provide the introduction to Plato with very approachable translations and a critical selection of key works.

Probably considered by most his magnum opus, The Republic is worth the read - whether in this edition and translation or another. Plato covers the landscape from religion to the arts to music to science and mathematics to the meaning of life itself and the purpose of theology. Written as a Socratic dialogue, The Republic will provide an overview of this philosopher, and the foundations of our modern Western culture and thinking.

The book is available used here, and that seems to be a value that might be just a bit too good to pass up. The book (or at least the contents) are likely foundational for any Western philosophy undergrad course, and if you haven't been exposed to Plato, you probably should give this a go given the easy reading translation and importance of the work.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Michael R. Young

I enjoyed this translation and selections

Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2018

Verified Purchase

A great edition of Plato's writing (includes The Republic) and a must read for anyone interested in western philosophy written by Socrates most celebrated pupil and Aristotle's teacher.

Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2017

Verified Purchase

It's okay for a study group; otherwise, it's kind of boring.

Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2017

Verified Purchase

Handy for the scholar on the move. The translations are percectly adequate,

Reviewed in the United States on September 25, 2014

Verified Purchase

Book delivered exactly as promised. Thank you.

Helpful

C. Middleton

For the Philosophy Student...a Must

Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2008

Have been stretching my memory all day today as to who said: "All philosophy since the Greeks, are merely footnotes to Plato." Depending on one's persuasion, this is certainly debatable, however, philosophy is all about debate, discussion...asking the hard questions.

As a student of philosophy or even a PHd in the discipline should always have this man's work at an arm's reach. Why? Because Socrates attempted to ask the hard questions, creating what is now known as critical thought. Something so lacking in our modern age.

One of the great lines in the introduction of this book by the editor, Scott Buchanan:

"So the reader of Plato joins Socrates in inquiry, as Sancho Panza joined Don Quixote, for adventures of the mind."

My personal favourite books of Plato are, "Phaedo" as the Master drinks the Hemlock (the deadly poisen). And, although not entirely agreeing with all the ideas, "The Republic", books 1-10, to my mind is an absolute master piece.

Not knowing Greek or Latin, commenting on the translation would be ludicrous, however, Benjamin Jowett has done a fine job as the material is accessable for the undergraduate or curious.

A Fine "Portable" of Plato to have in your library.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

basschicharrones

portableplato

Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2004

i guess i beat everyone to it, so i'll answer myself. I bought the portable plato book about a week ago. content-wise, i would redirect you to "great dialouges of plato" which includes all the stories in this book except "protagoras", and a few more, and is about 7 bucks (i think), the translation in this book from benjamin jowett, and "great dialouges" is w.h.d. rouse, both have been said to be great translations (i cant vouch since i've never understood greek, and i havent read the greek version of any of plato's writings).
If you wanna read some key philosophy, but have little attention-span, and are bored to death of essays, then i'd say read plato, its in the form of conversations, which are interesting (to me anyways, like plays almost), and humourous at times, and of course thought-provoking. if you dont think you could read conversations, then i guess i wouldn't choose plato.
if i wasn't a "portable" collector i'd of gotten another more complete plato book, not that this doesn't have alot, it does, but there ARE more complete editions, maybe even of the same translations (dont quote me on that)?
i always imagine merlin from the (king arthur story, i dunno what its called), when i listen to socrates. He has that kinda character, the serious, inhumanly wise, but yet humourous, human personality, you know (youll know) what i mean.
the best way i can describe the portable books is:
albums:boxset::books:"portable" books, but as for this one there is another collection that (i think) is superior, so i'd skip it and get "great dialouges" or something.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

basschicharrones

not a review. . . .

Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2004

but rather a plea for someone to review this book. . . .
im not sure whether to buy this or not, i generally trust the "portable" books, but since i already have "great dialouges of plato" im not sure if i'd still want to buy this, and i cant seem to find any indepth reviews of this particular book outside of amazon.com, or even on the penguin/putnam site. the copy of "great dialouges" that i have is really old and beat up, its the 1956 edition my dad used in college (when books were 95c), and i'm trying to decide if i should buy this or just get a new copy of it. i'd appreciate it if someone would review this book and list what is included in the anthology. sorry, if you thought this was gonna be a real review, i was disappointed too.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Pages with related products. See and discover other items: vikings of the north