Synopses & Reviews
Plato stands as the fount of our philosophical tradition, being the first Western thinker to produce a body of writing that touches upon a wide range of topics still discussed by philosophers today. In a sense he invented philosophy as a distinct subject, for although many of these topics were discussed by his intellectual predecessors and contemporaries, he was the first to bring them together by giving them a unitary treatment. This volume contains fourteen new essays discussing Plato's views about knowledge, reality, mathematics, politics, ethics, love, poetry, and religion. There are also analyses of the intellectual and social background of his thought, the development of his philosophy throughout his career, the range of alternative approaches to his work, and the stylometry of his writing.
Review
"This is an unusually well coordinated composite work, with a lengthy bibliography and good index. ... The volume can be commended to the use of graduate students and advanced undergraduates." Religious Studies Review"...should prove quite useful....For its intended audience, and also their instructors, this Companion will live up to its name, and Kraut and his contributors are to be commended." R.E. Houser, International Philosophical Quarterly"Richard Kraut has put together a rich collection of fifteen newly-commisioned articles on various aspects of Plato's thought, plus an extensive bibliography of secondary articles and books...". Ancient Philosophy
Synopsis
Fourteen specially-commissioned essays discuss Plato's views about knowledge, reality, mathematics, politics, ethics, love, poetry, and religion.
Synopsis
Fourteen new essays discuss Plato's views about knowledge, reality, mathematics, politics, ethics, love, poetry, and religion in a convenient, accessible guide that analyzes the intellectual and social background of his thought as well.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction to the study of Plato Richard Kraut; 2. Plato: the intellectual background T. H. Irwin; 3. Stylometry and chronology Leonard Brandwood; 4. Socrates and the early dialogues Terry Penner; 5. Mathematical method and philosophical truth Ian Mueller; 6. Inquiry in the Meno Gail Fine; 7. Plato and Greek religion Michael L. Morgan; 8. Platonic love G. R. F. Ferrari; 9. Plato's metaphysical epistemology Nicholas P. White; 10. The defence of justice in Plato's Republic Richard Kraut; 11. Plato on poetic creativity Elizabeth Asmis; 12. Good-bye to the Third Man Constance C. Meinwald; 13. Plato's Sophist on false statements Michael Frede; 14. Disintegration and restoration: pleasure and pain in Plato's Philebus Dorothea Frede; 15. Plato's later political thought Trevor J. Saunders.