Sparks Commentary: A review of “Plato” (audiobook)

Monday, April 17, 2023

A review of “Plato” (audiobook)

“The safest general characterization of the European philosophical tradition is that it consists of a series of footnotes to Plato.”

– Alfred North Whitehead, “Process and Reality” (1929)

This audiobook was my introduction to the Knowledge Products series of audiobooks. This particular audiobook is what got me hooked on the others. I love their way of introducing you to the thinkers covered. In particular, I love the way that they place these thinkers’ ideas into the context of their times, and give biographical information about the authors.

The life of Plato is tied in a very special way to the life of Socrates. Plato was a student of Socrates, who was greatly influenced by his master teacher. The earliest works of Plato are essentially historical records of some of the actual conversations that Socrates had earlier engaged in (although they may have been embellished somewhat). These include the only eyewitness account of the trial of Socrates. I have read all of the primary sources about the trial of Socrates in the original Greek. Thus, I am no stranger to this subject.

Socrates

Socrates could be very gentle in his discussions with friends, leading them to philosophical truth by his many searching questions. But to those that he considered dishonest or unjust, his questions were more hostile, and thus made him some enemies. He embarrassed the Athenian establishment enough that he was later executed for his combative questions, although these were not the official charges. The official charges were “impiety” and “corrupting the youth,” both charges of which Socrates was innocent.

Socrates

The later works of Plato also include a character named “Socrates,” who influences the direction of the dialogues. But these later works probably do not reflect the actual views of the historical Socrates. Most likely, they just represent the views of Plato, who by then had plenty of ideas of his own to advocate for. Plato’s most famous dialogue is “The Republic,” which is from this later period. This particular work almost certainly represents the ideas of Plato, rather than those of Socrates. This audiobook is quite hard on “The Republic,” but this is the way that it needs to be. “The Republic” was an unrealistic attempt to depict an ideal state. It included a philosopher-king with absolute power. Thus, his ideal state is often regarded as much less than a praiseworthy ideal.

Plato

But the earlier works of Plato are of much greater historical value. Plato was the first to address many important issues. The mere fact that he attempted to address them at all may be more important than whether or not his conclusions were indeed accurate. (Incidentally, I have read “The Republic” in the original Greek as well – something that I discuss in another post.)

Plato

Plato left so many works behind that this audiobook would have been hard-pressed to cover all of them. Thus, works like the “Euthyphro” are not covered here, although they are covered by the Knowledge Products audiobook about Socrates. But they do cover Plato’s works about the trial, imprisonment, and execution of Socrates. They also cover Plato’s work the “Symposium,” whose title is just the Greek word for a drinking-party. This dialogue is essentially a record of a famous drinking-party (a real event), where philosophical issues were discussed late into the night – although, again, it may be somewhat embellished.

Plato

This audiobook is a great introduction to Plato’s written work, which helps to place the ideas of Plato into the context of the times. Their discussion of what philosophy is ranks among the best that I’ve heard, and I love their discussion of what was going on in Classical Athens at that time. This is one of the best audiobooks that I’ve ever heard.