Bardzo mnie ubawiły te żarty. Powspominałem profesorów od filozofii

I'm strangely amazed that I finished this book today. I wasn't sure that I would.

I've been listening to this audio book for a week. Now that I'm done with it, I don't really know what to say in my review. Although I have several pages of notes on various parts of this book, I think I'm going to do an overall impression of it rather than a breakdown of it.

I enjoyed it. I'll admit that I got lost a few times, although that could be due to getting sidetracked from the audiobook instead of a true lack of understanding.

The whole book was about justice. I get that, but I'm not completely sure I agree. While justice does seem to be a reoccurring theme in this book, I'm not sure that it was the main focus of the book. There are too many other things in this book for it to just have one theme. I think my brain might still be fried over this book.

There was a point were I thought I was in a government class instead of listening to an audiobook.

Socrates was the man! I cannot believe he lived almost 2400 years ago. What a brilliant thinker. Is there anyone out there today that even compares?

Though the translation is by Mazon, the lengthy introduction is by Diès, and is the best single monograph-length study of the dialogue in existence. Diès, as I have said, was a remarkable scholar and a great Platonist.

Having finally read this from cover to cover (with the exception of The Republic to which I went to Allan Bloom’s translation) one cannot help but feel some sense of achievement. The purist in me loves that the entire corpus of Plato’s works is easily accessible in one volume. But I wouldn’t recommend reading Plato: Complete Works as I have.

To read Plato, and actually digest Plato, is not an easy task. At times, I am not ashamed to admit that it’s a chore. Though the Complete Works contain short introductions to each piece, they are not thorough analyses. The footnotes are welcome but far too few and sparse to provide any significant aid to understanding context. Citing Plato as great is easy, but I question how many of us truly understand why. In contrast, when reading Bloom’s edition of The Republic it became painfully apparent how little I could appreciate Plato’s writing simply because I don’t have a full background of 5th and 4th century B.C. Athens. So much of what was written must be understood in context of the times and the people Plato is responding too. The arguments on their face are oftentimes specious in light of different values, science and presuppositions of modern times.

Each work and dialogue is probably worthy of, and has been subject of, an essay unto itself. It would be a mistake to try to make comprehensive summaries here. There is a reason that certain dialogues are more well known than others. For example, I think few readers would get much out of Cratylus which focuses on Greek etymology and whether the name of a thing reflects its intrinsic value. Etymology was a highly respected and philosophic study in ancient Greece; not so much today. There are some exceptional and foundational works that should be read if for no other reason than gaining familiarity with the core works referenced by others. My personal list would include Apology, Crito, Phaedo, Phaedrus, Gorgias, Protagoras and The Republic. I’d recommend Symposium simply as a good example of the need to read the works in context. I also plan on revisiting Parmenides when I can find a good interpretive essay to help explain it. It’s described as a challenging and enigmatic dialogue which is a vast understatement.

Some would include Laws as a necessary read as well. It seems to exist in the shadows of The Republic and I know some believe it’s an often missed gemstone. I’d disagree. I thought it tedious and lacking in any real engaging argument. Even Plato seems to abandon his dialectic form so that he can espouse his own legal code.

All in all, an excellent compilation to have on your bookshelf for reference or to impress people. However, if you are genuinely interested in understanding, I’d highly recommend buying select works individually with accompanying literature on the significance of each.