A review by louisbirla
Five Dialogues: Euthyphro, Apology, Crito, Meno, Phaedo by Plato
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).