古代ギリシアの哲学者プラトン（紀元前427-347年）は、著作の大半を「対話篇」と呼ばれるスタイルで、フィクションと哲学的に変形させた神話をそこに含めました。本書はその独特のスタイルに焦点を当てて著作を読み解きながら、最新の研究も踏まえ、プラトン哲学に迫ります。女性、同性愛、魂の不滅、宇宙の本質といった議論にも目を向け、さまざまな方法で哲学的課題に答えを出そうとしたプラトンの世界にひたることができる一冊です。(cf. Defence of Socrates, Euthyphro, and Crito (Oxford World's Classics); Symposium (Oxford World's Classics) ほか)
   

• Lively and original introduction to Plato, which brings out the philosophical excitement of Plato's writings
• Reflects recent Plato scholarship
• Makes the connection between Plato's thought and modern philosophical concerns
• Julia Annas is one of the most important scholars of Plato, and author of a highly-respected textbook on Plato's Republic

   
This lively and accessible introduction to Plato focuses on the philosophy and argument of his writings, drawing the reader into Plato's way of doing philosophy, and the general themes of his thinking. This is not a book to leave the reader standing in the outer court of introduction and background information, but leads directly into Plato's argument. It looks at Plato as a thinker grappling with philosophical problems in a variety of ways, rather than a philosopher with a fully worked-out system. It includes a brief account of Plato's life and the various interpretations that have been drawn from the sparse remains of information. It stresses the importance of the founding of the Academy and the conception of philosophy as a subject. Julia Annas discusses Plato's style of writing: his use of the dialogue form, his use of what we today call fiction, and his philosophical transformation of myths. She also looks at his discussions of love and philosophy, his attitude to women, and to homosexual love, explores Plato's claim that virtue is sufficient for happiness, and touches on his arguments for the immortality of the soul and his ideas about the nature of the universe.