Reviews

Five Dialogues of Plato Bearing on Poetic Inspiration by Plato, Percy Bysshe Shelley

louisbirla's review against another edition

3.0

A personally meaningful mélange of the interesting and the dull.

Five Dialogues was the first book I had read in a while, starting August 21st of this year, finishing on the 26th of September. Since then, I’ve “leveled up” my reading process in many ways, such as approaching each book with a “goal” in mind before reading. As I only began this practice after opening this book, I have to add a goal retroactively: To understand what a philosophical text was like. “I know who Plato and Socrates were, in some way or another, so let’s just see what the writing is like.”

I was not ready for how deeply this book would impact me, re-igniting my passion for reading, for philosophy, and for eudynagon (I will write about eudynagon in depth in the future). This reading snowballed into a massive shift in my life, one I believe I will look back on fondly. It set up my habits for reading: wanting to read, doing so in the mornings and evenings. This practice has stopped me from staying up late, staring at a screen, and has made me more mindful/purposeful in what I do. If the goal of life is to have a large snowman, this book is the first clump that begins to roll down the mountain.

That being said, I am hesitant to attribute this shift to this book’s content. I did not read it to understand Plato’s theories nor the nature of the Socratic method, but only to dip my toes into the ocean of insights within. It would be wrong of this review to criticize the content which I did not apply effort to understanding, so I will continue by reviewing the surface-level details and anecdotes of my reading. Since it is a technique I acquired up after picking up this book, I did not take any notes while reading; those looking for professionalism, beware.

I rather enjoyed the tone of the dialogues (perhaps a virtue of the translation). The polite hostility is entertaining, and the honest passion the characters have for finding the truth is admirable. Led by Socrates, the dialogues aside from Apology are great examples of how to think using the Socratic method, a tool I am fascinated by. The power of this method, ethic, elenchus, is beyond compare, and is fun to engage with. It’s the most intuitive way to learn/teach understanding (rather than information), the natural framework of problem-solving, and a fascinating method of discourse. Plato’s dialogues are a good example of the method, but to get more in depth, I recommend Ward Farnsworth’s amazing book [b:The Socratic Method: A Practitioner’s Handbook|57185177|The Socratic Method A Practitioner’s Handbook|Ward Farnsworth|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1623121641l/57185177._SX50_.jpg|89496953]. I am reading it through on my phone when I have time to spare, out and about. If you want a great, and I mean great set of dialogues to read through, I highly recommend [b:Dialogues on Mathematics|5967613|Dialogues on Mathematics|Alfréd Rényi|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1424115902l/5967613._SY75_.jpg|6140548] by Alfréd Rényi. I read that book in a day, review to come.

Grube’s (the translator’s) historical notes do a good job at putting the dialogues and their references in context, but rarely do more than that. There are pros and cons to this: more to discover and understand on your own, but less insight for a light reader. All said, Grube’s notes add to the experience. I am a fan of footnotes being at the bottom of the page, and this book does exactly so.

While I sat at the edge of my seat devouring Euthyphro and Crito (two of the five dialogues), my concentration kept breaking trying to get through Apology, Meno, and Phaedo (the other three). It must be more interesting and insightful, but as I did not attempt to dig deeper, they did not match the “cinematicity” the aforementioned Euthyphro and Crito had.

Overall, I suggest reading at least one dialogue, either from Plato or Rényi, to see if it is a good match for you. Maybe borrow this book from a library or flip through it at the bookstore before buying.

I will definitely read some of these dialogues for further, specialized understanding of Plato’s philosophy, but not for entertainment (although I might do so for Rényi).

jack_w16's review against another edition

3.0

Much of this is skipable. Phaedo is probably the only one worth reading in full. Meno is important for its theory of forms, but that could be summarized in a snippet with some context. The others are kinda pointless unless your REALLY into pre-poisoning Socrates.

enzoisprettycool's review against another edition

challenging reflective slow-paced

1.75

orange_eating_class's review against another edition

"Nothing worth mentioning grows in the sea, nothing, one might say, is fully developed; there are caves and endless slime and mud wherever there is earth--not comparable in any way with the beauties of our region."

You know what, you're right, Socrates. Fuck the ocean.

lydia_arvidsson's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

2.5

saigegub04's review against another edition

Apology: Socrates has always lived according to the rules of the gods and not the opinions of men/the majority. He will continue to do so now. He would shame himself and the gods by begging for his life or changing his tune to appease the majority. It would be better for him to die
Crito: By living his life in Athens, Socrates has entered into a contract with the city to serve one another. By fleeing he would be breaking the laws of the city and the laws are just. It was not the city but men who condemned him. Besides, the city is far more important than any man and he will not take revenge on the city by fleeing, therefore undermining its authority and its ability to serve. 
Phaedo: Why Socrates isn't afraid of dying. Philosophy is nothing other than preparing for death. Learning as recollection proves that the soul is immortal and has been "dead" before. The changing (body) is more easily destroyed than the unchanging (soul.) Things which are in opposition come from one another ie. life comes from death, death from life. However, Opposites, such as Even and Odd, will flee or be destroyed before they can have any part of one another. Because the soul always brings life, it cannot admit death and must therefore be deathless. For the pure soul, death represents freedom from the degradation of the body. 

rocknroulette's review against another edition

3.0

I started reading this for a course. I hated Socrates and his interrogations which only served to divert his interlocutors away from the topic they were discussing. Some time after the course ended, I wanted the read the remaining chapters of the book. This task took me some time, but I am proudly here now. I don’t hate Socrates anymore. I actually come to like how he diverts the interlocutors away from the topic only to make them reason the specific occurrings of the concept of their topic so that he can make them also reason the concept itself.

ddrowsy's review against another edition

this mf socrates is hilarious

bword's review against another edition

informative reflective

4.0

I could say a lot about each of these dialogues, particularly crito and phaedo as I found those dialogues particularly interesting. 

Instead however I'll simply say that for the most parts are very interesting and advanced pieces of work and at the very least can teach you how to efficiently and  effectively argue your points. 

Being that these dialogues are over 2000 years old they are still obviously flawed in terms of ideas and if Socrates had more of a peer which challenged him more then I feel these would have truly benefited from the intellectual battle. 

Overall though regardless on if you see these as historical fact or historical fiction there is still much to be taken and thought about.

yahyaelkinani's review against another edition

4.0

The questions that Socrates(Plato) poses about piety and recollection are very interesting. The problem with a pious person and the analysis provided are understandable and agreeable, the recollection theory on the other hand is something that can be hard to understand and accept. The apology and crito are beautiful pieces where you can see how Socrates chooses to uphold his own philosophy and accept death instead of giving up on his philosophical ideals.