Plato Books
Plato (c. 427–347 BCE) was an ancient Greek philosopher, a student of Socrates, and the teacher of Aristotle.
Known for: Meno, Apology, Gorgias, Phaedo, Phaedrus, Plato: Complete Works, Symposium, The Republic, The Symposium, Timaeus
Books by Plato
Meno
What if the hardest part of becoming good is not effort, but knowing what goodness actually is? In Meno, one of Plato’s most famous early dialogues, this deceptively simple problem drives a sharp and ...
Apology
Plato’s Apology is one of the most powerful defenses ever spoken in the history of ideas. Set during the trial of Socrates in 399 BCE, the dialogue presents the philosopher answering charges of impiet...
Gorgias
What if the people who seem most powerful are actually the least free? In Gorgias, Plato stages one of philosophy’s sharpest confrontations between appearance and reality, success and virtue, persuasi...
Phaedo
Phaedo is Plato’s profound account of Socrates’ final day, but it is far more than a record of a death. Set in a prison cell in Athens, the dialogue stages one of philosophy’s most enduring conversati...
Phaedrus
What if love, eloquence, and self-knowledge were all parts of the same philosophical puzzle? In Phaedrus, Plato stages one of his most beautiful and layered dialogues: a conversation between Socrates ...
Plato: Complete Works
Plato: Complete Works is not a single argument but a vast philosophical world. In this landmark Penguin Classics edition, edited by John M. Cooper, readers encounter the full range of Plato’s dialogue...
Symposium
Plato’s Symposium is one of the most enduring explorations of love ever written. Framed as a lively banquet conversation in classical Athens, the dialogue gathers poets, doctors, politicians, and phil...
The Republic
What makes a life truly good: power, pleasure, reputation, or justice? In The Republic, Plato tackles this question with extraordinary ambition. Written as a philosophical dialogue led by Socrates, th...
The Symposium
What if love were more than desire, romance, or longing for another person? In The Symposium, Plato turns that question into one of the most memorable conversations in Western philosophy. Set during a...
Timaeus
Plato’s Timaeus is one of the foundational texts of Western philosophy because it asks a question so large that few works even attempt it: how did the universe come to be, and what does its structure ...
Key Insights from Plato
The Search Begins With Definition
Most confusion survives because people talk confidently about things they have never properly defined. That is the opening lesson of Meno. When Meno asks Socrates whether virtue can be taught, Socrates refuses to answer until they first determine what virtue is. This move seems frustrating at first,...
From Meno
Confidence Often Hides Ignorance
The most dangerous kind of ignorance is the kind that feels like knowledge. Meno arrives in the dialogue self-assured and rhetorically skilled, ready to discuss virtue as though the topic were familiar territory. But under Socrates’ questioning, his certainty quickly collapses. This is not merely a ...
From Meno
Can Virtue Really Be Taught?
A practical question can expose an entire philosophy of human excellence. Meno begins by asking whether virtue is teachable, acquired by practice, given by nature, or obtained in some other way. Socrates insists that the question cannot be answered cleanly until virtue itself is understood. Still, t...
From Meno
The Paradox That Blocks Inquiry
One of the most famous moments in Meno begins with a challenge that sounds devastating: how can you search for something if you do not know what it is? If you already know it, inquiry is unnecessary. If you do not know it, how will you recognize it when you find it? This is Meno’s paradox, and it th...
From Meno
Learning As Recollection
Some truths seem to emerge not as if they were newly inserted into the mind, but as if they had been awakened. To answer Meno’s paradox, Socrates introduces the theory of recollection: the soul has encountered truth before, and what we call learning is in some sense remembering. Whether taken litera...
From Meno
True Belief Versus Knowledge
Getting the right answer is not always the same as understanding why it is right. Near the end of Meno, Plato introduces a distinction that has shaped epistemology ever since: true belief can guide action successfully, but knowledge is more stable because it is tied down by an account of the reason ...
From Meno
About Plato
Plato (c. 427–347 BCE) was an ancient Greek philosopher, a student of Socrates, and the teacher of Aristotle. He founded the Academy in Athens, one of the earliest institutions of higher learning in the Western world. His dialogues form the foundation of Western philosophy and continue to influence ...
Read more
Plato (c. 427–347 BCE) was an ancient Greek philosopher, a student of Socrates, and the teacher of Aristotle. He founded the Academy in Athens, one of the earliest institutions of higher learning in the Western world. His dialogues form the foundation of Western philosophy and continue to influence ...
Plato (c. 427–347 BCE) was an ancient Greek philosopher, a student of Socrates, and the teacher of Aristotle. He founded the Academy in Athens, one of the earliest institutions of higher learning in the Western world. His dialogues form the foundation of Western philosophy and continue to influence thought across disciplines.
Frequently Asked Questions
Plato (c. 427–347 BCE) was an ancient Greek philosopher, a student of Socrates, and the teacher of Aristotle.
Read Plato's books in 15 minutes
Get AI-powered summaries with key insights from 10 books by Plato.