Sophist

by Plato

Overview

There are no descriptions of time, place or persons, in the Sophist and Statesman, but we are plunged at once into philosophical discussions; the poetical charm has disappeared, and those who have no taste for abstruse metaphysics will greatly prefer the earlier dialogues to the later ones. Plato is conscious of the change, and in the Statesman expressly accuses himself of a tediousness in the two dialogues, which he ascribes to his desire of developing the dialectical method.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781911429944
Publisher:	Interactive Media
Publication date:	06/19/2016
Series:	World Classics
Sold by:	StreetLib SRL
Format:	eBook
File size:	665 KB

About the Author

Plato was an ancient Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. In Athens, Plato founded the Academy, a philosophical school where he taught the philosophical doctrines that would later become known as Platonism. Plato (or Platon) was a pen name derived, apparently, from the nickname given to him by his wrestling coach - allegedly a reference to his physical broadness. According to Alexander of Miletus quoted by Diogenes of Sinope his actual name was Aristocles, son of Ariston, of the deme Collytus (Collytus being a district of Athens).Plato was an innovator of the written dialogue and dialectic forms in philosophy. He raised problems for what later became all the major areas of both theoretical philosophy and practical philosophy. His most famous contribution is the Theory of forms, which has been interpreted as advancing a solution to what is now known as the problem of universals. He is also the namesake of Platonic love and the Platonic solids.

Editorial Reviews

Professor Cobb manages remarkably well to sustain a conversational tone to the dialogue while maintaining precision and accuracy. The large issues stand out clearly and the small details are carefully rendered to enhance it.

Harrison J. Pemberton

This translation of one of Plato's most challenging dialogues is so unpretentiously honest that it risks undercutting its own significant merits. As far as I can judge, it will prove most helpful not only to students of classical studies and philosophy, but to anybody who is interested in the questions treated by the Sophist. Clarity seems to be the editor and translator's aim, and it is well achieved in: (a) an introduction which without philosophical arm-twisting brings in the views of some modern philosophers on negative and false statement (as inconclusive as Plato's), (b) a select bibliography and a summary of the arguments which students will find useful, and (c) a translation of the text in civilized modern English. Space forbids the adduction of parallel passages. However, I do not hesitate to claim that in terms of accuracy and credible conversational style, the translation will stand comparision with those of A.E. Taylor and F.M. Cornford. --David Rankin, in The Classical Review

From the Publisher