Philosophy By The Book

We finish the republic with a discussion of imitative poetry and the myth of Er.

We explore the tyrannical man, the nature of desire, the benefits of justice and the nature of the soul.

We tackle the cycle of constitutions and their corresponding individuals in Plato's Republic book 8. 

The cave!   facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook

This week we explore the famous divided line and simile of the ship in Plato's Republic book 6. facebook: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analogy_of_the_divided_line

This week we tackle Plato's Republic book 5, which deals with the role of women in an ideal society and begins a discussion on philosopher kings.   facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook

This week we finish fleshing out our ideal city and finally figure out just what justice is.

This week we finish up our discussion on best education for a city's rulers in Plato's Republic Book 3 and start to examine some of the structures of our perfect city. facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook

This week we discuss the ring of Gyges, the origin of war and the foundation of cities in Plato's Republic Book 2.

Today we begin our examination of Plato's Republic starting with book 1 considering the nature and worth of justice. 

Plato's Phaedrus is a great literary work concerning itself with the nature of love and the use of rhetoric. Socrates gives a defense of the virtues both of being in love and not being so and determines whether or not its worth writing down your thoughts or speeches. facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook

This extremely short piece details some problems that Clitophon has with the way Socrates teaches. 

This week we discuss the nature of love with Socrates and friends in one of Plato's most famous dialogues, the Symposium. 

This week we explain Socrates' final conversation and the nature of the soul as seen in Plato's Phaedo.   facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook

This week we explore the natures of virtue and knowledge in Plato's Meno. Is virtue a type of knowledge and if so, can it be taught? How can we gain any knowledge if we must already have that knowledge in order to know when we have gained it? Is it possible to have knowledge at all? Do human's really learn, or are we simply recollecting things we already know from past lives. All of these questions and more are explored this week in Plato's Meno. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook Geometry link: http://www.socraticmethod.net/essays/meno_geometry/meno_geometry.html

Socrates gives a funeral oration detailing the history of Athens this week in Plato's Menexenus.   facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook

Today we finish up the Gorgias with the debate between Socrates and Callicles over what is good and if man holds to different laws than the natural world.    facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook

This week we tackle the first half of Plato's Gorgias, an ambitious dialogue concerned with oratory, justice, power and the good.    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook

Wordplay and not much wisdom abounds in this week's episode focusing on the foolishness of the Sophists as found in Plato's Euthydemus.   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook

Today we examine Plato's ideas on the philosophy of language in the Cratylus. Are names and words based on truth or on usage? Can we learn the nature of a thing by examining its name? How do letters work and where did they come from? All these questions and more will be answered.   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophybythebook/