karri reviewed The Republic of Plato by ICON Reference
Essential reading
4 stars
Plato having a conversation with himself, speaking on behalf of Socrates, as Socrates, with three author-biased interlocutors, trying to define the perfect society, "Kallipolis", and how it should be ruled. Turns out, it should be ruled by philosophers, or "philosopher-kings", as they're at the highest level of selflessness, knowledge and understanding, after 25+ years of mental molding, to be the ideal but reluctant politician.
Anyone with modern sensibilities can constantly see the frequent fallacies of his argumentation. Science-based they are not - rather, half-truths veiled in the guise of philosophy and therefore "truth". No matter how hard it tries to be impartial, and by the final appendix not at all, it's easy to see Plato's own biases in plain sight.
That being said, The Republic is an incredibly influential work and for good reasons; Plato puts in his brain cells to define, with his best understanding and intentions, what would …
Plato having a conversation with himself, speaking on behalf of Socrates, as Socrates, with three author-biased interlocutors, trying to define the perfect society, "Kallipolis", and how it should be ruled. Turns out, it should be ruled by philosophers, or "philosopher-kings", as they're at the highest level of selflessness, knowledge and understanding, after 25+ years of mental molding, to be the ideal but reluctant politician.
Anyone with modern sensibilities can constantly see the frequent fallacies of his argumentation. Science-based they are not - rather, half-truths veiled in the guise of philosophy and therefore "truth". No matter how hard it tries to be impartial, and by the final appendix not at all, it's easy to see Plato's own biases in plain sight.
That being said, The Republic is an incredibly influential work and for good reasons; Plato puts in his brain cells to define, with his best understanding and intentions, what would make up the ideal state, using human well-being as the barometer. By modern standards, it's pseudoscience at best, but it's very thought-provoking and opens up a whole new world for classical literature and how you think of, approach or interpret modern displays of power and manipulation in the government. I would say it's fundamentally important to read this to understand where we are now as societies and why.
The Republic is "easy" to read in terms of structure and vocabulary - sort of - but it also requires truckloads of patience to understand and internalize some of Plato's allegories.
I'm sure you'll also enjoy, among many topics, the Allegory of the Cave - which originates from this book.
