Plato IntelligenceEssays on Plato

Plato, explained carefully.

269 essays on the dialogues, the ideas and the man — written to be read, cited and checked.

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Neoclassical painted illustration of Plato teaching in the grove of the Academy, students seated around him
Who Is Plato? A Complete Introduction to His Life, Works and IdeasCore Ideas · 929 words
Illustration of chained prisoners watching shadows on a cave wall, with a fire and figures carrying statues behind them and a steep path up to sunlight
Plato's Allegory of the Cave: Summary, Meaning and Symbols ExplainedThe Cave · 2,878 words
Greek philosophical painting representing Plato's Theory of Forms
Plato's Theory of Forms: What It Claims, Why He Held It, and Where It BreaksCore Ideas · 1,171 words

Themes

Core IdeasThe Forms, the soul, knowledge and virtue — the arguments Plato is read for.114 essaysAfterlifeHow Plato was inherited: by Christianity, by Western philosophy, by us.73 essaysLife & TimesAthens, family, war, and the travels that shaped him.20 essaysSocratesThe teacher, the trial, and the problem of telling the two of them apart.29 essaysPoliticsThe just city, the philosopher king, and Plato's quarrel with democracy.19 essaysThe DialoguesThe Republic and the works themselves, read closely.8 essaysThe CaveThe allegory, its machinery, and what the fire and the shadows stand for.6 essays

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Core IdeasPlato's Key Ideas: The Main Concepts of His Philosophy Explained2,801 w
SocratesHow did Socrates influence Plato's philosophy?2,098 w
SocratesHow did Socrates mentor Plato?1,988 w
The CavePlato's Allegory of the Cave: Summary, Meaning and Symbols Explained2,878 w
AfterlifePhaedo Summary: Plato's Dialogue on the Soul and Socrates' Death1,989 w
Core IdeasPlato and Freud Compared: The Tripartite Soul vs. the Id, Ego, and Superego1,850 w
Life & TimesPlato Facts: 24 Things We Know About His Life, and Where They Come From2,021 w
PoliticsPlato's Republic Summary: Book-by-Book Guide to the Dialogue2,036 w
SocratesPlato's Apology: Summary of Socrates' Defense Speech2,120 w
Core IdeasPlato's Cratylus: Language, Reality, and the Limits of Naming1,794 w
PoliticsPlato's Critiques of Democracy: Lessons for 21st-Century Governance1,697 w
PoliticsPlato's Crito: Summary, Arguments and Why Socrates Refused to Escape1,810 w
Core IdeasPlato's Divided Line: The Four Levels of Knowledge Explained1,855 w
Core IdeasPlato's Epistemology in the Theaetetus: Is Knowledge Justified True Belief?1,885 w
AfterlifeThe Euthyphro Dilemma: Plato's Question for Divine Command Theory1,875 w
The DialoguesPlato's Books: A Complete List of His Works and What Each Is About2,498 w
SocratesSocrates Facts: 22 Things We Actually Know, With Their Sources2,161 w
SocratesSocrates Quotes: The Real Ones, Where They Come From, and the Fakes2,828 w
Core IdeasThe Four Cardinal Virtues: Wisdom, Courage, Temperance and Justice1,862 w
SocratesThe Clouds by Aristophanes: The Comedy That Put Socrates on Stage1,819 w
AfterlifePlato on Writing: The Myth of Theuth and the Paradox of the Phaedrus1,864 w
The DialoguesPlato on Women: The Role of Women in the Republic1,751 w
Core IdeasThe Platonic Solids: What They Are, Why There Are Only Five, and What Plato Made of Them1,258 w
Core IdeasWhat Is Plato's Noble Lie? Meaning and the Myth of the Metals1,766 w