"The Birth of Tragedy" stands alongside Aristotle’s "Poetics" as essential works for all who seek to understand poetry and its relationship to human life. In this, his first...

The "Dao De Jing" exists on the border between poetry and philosophy, embracing both mythos and logos. Its poetic form can stand alone, but it is enriched when its timeless ideas...

René Descartes is often described as the first modern philosopher, but much of the content of his "Meditations on First Philosophy" can be found in the medieval period that had...

The dramatic nature of Plato’s dialogues is delightfully evident in the "Symposium." The marriage between character and thought bursts forth as the guests gather at Agathon’s...

After Socrates is sentenced to death by the Athenian court, his friend Crito comes to the prison to help him escape and go to another country. Socrates responds by saying that he...

The basic principles that Bergson articulates, especially his way of thinking about reality as a dynamic process and his view of human beings as creative and evolving, should be...

Gorgias of Leontini, a famous teacher of rhetoric, has come to Athens to recruit students, promising to teach them how to become leaders in politics and business. A group has...

Aristotle's Poetics is best known for its definition and analysis of tragedy and comedy, but it also applies to truth and beauty as they are manifested in the other arts. In our...

Hippias of Elis travels throughout the Greek world practicing and teaching the art of making beautiful speeches. On a rare visit to Athens, he meets Socrates who questions him...

The "Republic" poses questions that endure: What is justice? What form of community fosters the best possible life for human beings? What is the nature and destiny of the soul?...