Philosophy Quick Guide: Plato’s Dialogues

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Philosophy Quick Guide: Plato's Dialogues

This study guide is to direct students to a few books and articles most useful for help in understanding the
more important dialogues of Plato.

GENERAL

The following two sources provide excellent background reading:

Guthrie, W .K. C. A History of Greek Philosophy. 6 vols. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1962-81.

Philosophy [Book Stacks and Desk]; Doheny; Leavey B171.G83

Guthrie’s monumental study contains an outstanding analysis of Plato and his place in the development of Greek
philosophy. Volume 3 deals with the Sophists and Socrates whereas volumes 4 and 5 contain detailed studies of each of the
dialogues, including the Laws, and the letters.

Shorey, Paul. What Plato Said. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1965.

Philosophy B395.S53 1965

Shorey’s book clearly analyzes each dialogue in the light of contemporary understanding.

THE DIALOGUES

The following books and articles pertain to the most often assigned dialogues of Plato. The dialogues are in
alphabetical order.

Apology

The dialogue deals with the trial of Socrates.

Hathawa, Ronald. Law and the Moral Paradox in Plato’s Apology. Journal of the History of Philosophy 8 (1970):
127-42.

Philosophy [Journal Stacks]

Hathawa’s article deals with a paradox in Socrates’ defense.

Smith, Nicholas D. Socrates on Trial. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1989.

Philosophy B365.B74 1989

West, Thomas G. Plato’s “Apology of Socrates”. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1979.

Philosophy; Leavey B365.W47

Crito

The dialogue takes place during the imprisonment of Socrates. The notion of legal obligation is the central focus.

Allen, Reginald E. Law and Justice in Plato’s Crito. Journal of Philosophy 69 (1972): 557-67.

Philosophy [Journal stacks].

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Allen’s article is a good analysis of Socrates’ argument.

Woozley, Anthony D. Law and Obedience: The Arguments of Plato’s “Crito”. Chapel Hill: University of North
Carolina Press, 1979.

Philosophy B368.W66 1979

Woozley’s book is a very good translation with extensive interpretation.

Euthyphro

The dialogue attempts to define piety. In this attempt, Socratic reasoning is demonstrated, and a fine distinction is
drawn between dialectics and religion.

Anderson, Albert. Socratic Reasoning in the Euthyphro. The Review of Metaphysics 22 (1969): 461-81.

Philosophy [Journal Stacks]

Geach, Peter. Plato’s Euthyphro: An Analysis and Commentary. Monist 50 (1966): 369-82.

Philosophy [Journal stacks]

Rosen, Frederick. Piety and Justice: Plato’s Euthyphro. Philosophy 43 (1968): 105-16.

Philosophy [Journal Stacks]

Meno

This dialogue deals with the problem of knowledge. It is here that Plato gives an account of the doctrine of
recollection; that is, the soul acquires knowledge of the forms between reincarnations. The dialogue also
addresses what is still an important issue in philosophy, namely, the problem of saying what we mean.

Sesonske, Alexander, and Noel Fleming, eds. Plato’s “Meno”: Text and Criticism. Belmont: Wadsworth
Publishing, 1965.

Philosophy 184 P71me s

This book is an important collection of articles.

Sternfeld, Robert, and Harold Zyskind. Plato’s “Meno”. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1978.

Philosophy B377.S73

Parmenides

The dialogue is an examination and criticism of Plato’s theory of forms. It is one of the more important dialogues
and very difficult.

Cornford, Francis MacDonald. Plato and Parmenides. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1969.

Philosophy B378.A2C6 1969

Cornford’s book is the best introduction and commentary on Plato’s Parmenides.

Much more has been written about the dialogue, but any one of the three books listed below is a good supplement
to Cornford.

Allen, Reginald E. Plato’s “Parmenides”. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1983.

Philosophy B378.A5A44 1983

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Meinwald, Constance C. Plato’s “Parmenides”. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991.

Philosophy B378.M45 1991

Miller, Mitchell H. Plato’s “Parmenides”: The Conversion of the Soul. Princeton: Princeton University Press,
1989.

Philosophy B378.M55 1986

Phaedo

Socrates’ last reflections before his execution are the dramatic context of this dialogue. It is here that the
arguments for the immortality of the soul are presented. Each of the following three books fully analyzes this
dialogue.

Bostock, David. Plato’s “Phaedo”. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1986.

Philosophy B379.B67 1986

Dorter, Kenneth. Plato’s “Phaedo”: An Interpretation. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1982.

Philosophy; Doheny B379.D67

White, David A. Myth and Metaphysics in Plato’s “Phaedo”. Sellinsgrove: Susquehanna University Press, 1989.

Philosophy B379.W48 1989

Phaedrus

The subject matter of the dialogue is love and inspiration, human nature, and the true purpose of rhetoric. Three
commentaries are recommended:

Burger, Ronna. Plato’s “Phaedrus”: A Defense of a Philosophic Art of Writing. University: University of
Alabama Press, 1980.

Philosophy B380.B86

Ferrari, Giovanni R. F. Listening to the Cicadas: A Study of Plato’s Phaedrus”. Cambridge; Cambridge
University Press, 1987.

Philosophy B380.F47 1987

Pieper, Josef. Love and Inspiration: A Study of Plato’s “Phaedrus”. Translated by Richard and Clara Winston.
London: Faber and Faber, 1965.

Philosophy 184 P71pha Xpi

Protagoras

The dialogue discusses what virtue is and whether it can be taught. Many scholars view the dialogue as a
preliminary study to the Republic because the relationship between knowledge and virtue is critically examined.

Coby, Patrick. Socrates and the Sophistic Enlightenment. Lewisberg: Bucknell University Press, 1987.

Philosophy B382.C63 1987

Coby’s book is a very good commentary on this dialogue. An excellent introduction to the dialogue, by Gregory Vlastos, is
in Martin Ostwald’s revision of the Benjamin Jowett translation (Philosophy 184 P71pj 1956).

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Republic

More than any other dialogue, the Republic presents Plato’s entire philosophy. From the opening question
concerning the definition of justice to the historical analysis of the ideologies of statescraft, this dialogue unifies
Plato’s metaphysical position with his ethical and political theory. There can be no question that the dialogue is
one of the truly great works that, for better or for worse, has altered the intellectual perspectives of the West.

Annas, Julia. An Introduction to Plato’s “Republic”. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981.

Philosophy; Doheny; Leavey JC71.P6A56

Cornford, Francis MacDonald. Plato’s “Republic”. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1945.

Philosophy; Doheny; Leavey; VKC JC71.P35 1945

Cross, Robert Craigie. Plato’s “Republic”: A Philosophical Commentary. London: Macmillan, 1964.

Philosophy JC71.P6C68 1964

Nettleship, Richard Lewis. Lectures on the “Republic” of Plato. London: Macmillan, 1920.

Philosophy; Doheny 184 P71rXn 1929

White, Nicholas P. A Companion to Plato’s “Republic”. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing, 1979.

Philosophy; Doheny; Leavey JC71.P6W45

Many books and articles have been written dealing with specific ideas found in the Republic. What follows is
recommended reading in four of the major topics addressed in this dialogue.

The Problem of Justic

e

Davis, Leo Donald. The Argument of Trasymachus in the First Book of Plato’s Republic. Modern Schoolman 47
(1969-70): 423-32.

Philosophy [Journal Stacks]

Lycoa, Kimon. Plato on Justice and Power. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1987.

Philosophy JC71.P6L93 1987

Vlastos, Gregory. Justice and Psychic Harmony in the Republic. Journal of Philosophy 66 (1969): 505-21.

Philosophy [Journal Stacks]

The Allegory of the Cave and the Divided Line

Fogelin, Robert J. Three Platonic Analogies. Philosophical Review 80 (1971): 371-82

Philosophy [Journal Stacks]

Joseph, Horace William. Knowledge and the Good in Plato’s “Republic”. 1948. Reprint. Westport: Greenwood
Press, 1981.

Philosophy JC71.P6J59 1981

Class, Education, and Gender in the Ideal State

Bluestone, Natalie Harris. Women and the Ideal Society: Plato’s “Republic” and Modern Myths of Gender.
Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1987.

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Philosophy HQ1206.B48 1987

Hammond, Lewis M. Classes and Functions in Plato’s Republic. The Southern Journal of Philosophy 4 (1966):
242-47.

Philosophy [Journal Stacks]

Nettleship, Richard Lewis. The Theory of Education in Plato’s “Republic”. Oxford: Oxford University Press,
1969.

Philosophy LB85.P7N5 1969

Reeve, C. D. C. Philosopher-Kings: The Argument of Plato’s “Republic”. Princeton: Princeton University. Press,
1988.

Philosophy JC71.P6R43 1988

The Four Stages of Political Disintegration

Foy, Edward. The Value of Idealism for Political Philosophy. Philosophical Studies (Ireland) 11 (1961-62): 147-
57.

Philosophy [Journal Stacks]

Ophir, Adi. Plato’s Invisible Cities: Discourse and Power in the “Republic”. Savage: Barnes & Noble, 1991.

Philosophy JC71.P6064 1991

Williams, Bernard. The Analogy of the City and the Soul in Plato’s Republic. In Exegesis and Argument. Edited
by E. N. Lee, 196-206. Assen: Van Gorcum, 1973.

Philosophy B171.E9

Symposium

Perhaps the most “literary” of Plato’s dialogues. The Symposium is an exposition on human love, both physical
and spiritual. Even more so than the Republic, this dialogue has had tremendous influence on the development of
Western thought since the Renaissance.

Cornford, Francis Macdonald. The Doctrine of Eros in Plato’s Symposium. In his The Unwritten Philosophy and
Other Essays, 28-67. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1967.

Philosophy; Doheny B1618.C763U5

Dorter, Kenneth. The Significance of the Speeches in Plato’s Symposium. Philosophy and Rhetoric 2 (1969): 215-
34.

Philosophy [Journal Stacks]

Rosen, Stanley. Plato’s “Symposium”. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1987.

Philosophy B385.A6 1987

The following books are recommanded for background reading on the notion of “eros” found in the Symposium:

Dover, Kenneth Jones. Greek Homosexuality. Harvard: Harvard University Press, 1978.

Philosophy; Doheny; Leavey HQ76.3.G8D68

Gould, Thomas. Platonic Love. New York: Free Press, 1963.

Philosophy B398.L9G6 1963

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Lewis, Clive Staples. The Four Loves. New York: Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich, 1960.

Philosophy; Doheny; Leavey; Education BV4639.L45 1960a

Nygren, Anders. Agape and Eros. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1953.

Philosophy BV4639.N813

Theaetetus

The major concern of the Theaetetus is epistemology. The question of perception and its relationship to
knowledge is thoroughly examined.

Bostock, David. Plato’s “Theaetetus”. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1988.

Philosophy B386.Z7B67 1988

Burnyeat, Myles. The ”Theaetetus” of Plato. Indianapolis: Hackett, 1990.

Philosophy B386.B87 1990

Cornford, Francis Macdonald. Plato’s Theory of Knowledge. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1967.

Philosophy B386.A5C6 1967

Polansky, Roland M. Philosophy and Knowledge: A Commentary on Plato’s “Theaetetus”. Lewisburg: Bucknell
University Press,1992.

Philosophy B386.P64 1992

Timaeus

This dialogue presents Plato’s theory of the origin of the universe.

Cornford, Francis Macdonald. Plato’s Cosmology. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1948.

Philosophy 184P71ti co 1948

Mohr, Richard D. The Platonic Cosmology. Leiden: Brill, 1985.

Philosophy 180.5 P568 v.42

ELECTRONIC TEXTS

Hamilton and Cairns’ The Collected Dialogues of Plato, Including the Letters (Bollingen Foundation, 1963) and
Jowett’s The Dialogues of Plato (Clarendon Press, 1953) editions of Plato’s works are available on CD-ROM in a
database called Past Masters. (The paper edition of the Hamilton and Cairns is in the Philosophy Library and in
Leavey, call number B358.C57 1963; and the 1937 Jowett is in Philosophy, call number B358.J8 1937.) The CD-
ROM may be used on the public personal computer in the reference area in Philosophy. Because the text has been
computerized, it is now very easy to locate a term or concept in any or all of Plato’s works.

Plato’s works are available also on the Internet at various sites. Two sites are:

http://english-www.hss.cmu.edu/philosophy/
http://plato.evansville.edu/

(Internet addresses may change or be eliminated entirely depending upon the needs of the host organization.)

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SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY

Use USC’s online catalog HOMER to find more books by doing an Easy Search combining Plato with one or two
words of the topic of interest. Use the Expanded Academic Index in the Periodicals Databases to find recent
articles about Plato. There are many articles about Plato in this index; so, as with books, combine Plato with one
or two words of the topic of interest. The Art Index and PsycINFO in the Periodicals Databases also list articles
dealing with Plato in art and in psyschology. Current Contents is also a useful source. It contains article citations
from several philosophy journals and is usually the most up to date database.

For more in depth research, consult The Philosopher’s Index, an index on CD-ROM and in paper format. The
Philosopher’s Index in both formats is in the reference section of the Hoose Library.

In the CD-ROM format, use the Easy Menu Search, Named Person option, to search for article and book citations
about Plato. Then, using Modify the Current Search with Additional Criteria, limit the search results by entering
an appropriate word, such as “cave,” in the Word/Phrase option. All the records in the database that are on Plato
combined with the additional search term(s) can be displayed with complete citations and abstracts. More detailed
instructions are provided next to the computer.

In the paper format, search under PLATO in the Subject Index of the annual editions and the quarterly updates.
Turn to the Author Index with Abstracts for the complete citation and summary of articles and books of interest.

See Philosophy Quick Guide No. 2: Introduction to Plato for books dealing with Plato’s philosophy as a whole
and with specific areas of his thought.

Feel free at any time to ask the staff of the Hoose Library of Philosophy for help.