Philosophy of Plato

In this book the author has aimed to reconstruct Plato’s thought from his own works, ignoring almost altogether what Aristotle and the ancient scholars have reported Plato’s doctrine to be. In this work, Plato means Plato’s writings: the dialogues and, to a minor degree, the epistles. Furthermore, the author makes no effort to draw a distinction between the Socratic and the Platonic elements in the dialogues, partly because the intent of this essay is not historical, but chiefly because, although he recognizes that the influence of Socrates upon Plato is very great, he believe that that influence was assimilated by Plato and became part of his mind. Raphael Demos, who taught at Harvard from 1919 to 1962, was Alford Professor of Natural Religion, Moral Philosophy and Civil Policy, emeritus. For many years, he taught a course in “Philosophy from Plato to William James.” He also edited the “Complete Works of Plato”. The present work on Plato stands as the most authoritative narrative on the philosophy of Plato.