Cambridge Companion to Plato's Republic

This Companion provides a comprehensive account of this outstanding work, which remains among the most frequently read works of Greek philosophy, indeed of Classical antiquity in general. The sixteen essays, by authors who represent various academic disciplines, bring a spectrum of interpretive approaches to bear in order to aid the understanding of a wide-ranging audience, from first-time readers of the Republic who require guidance, to more experienced readers who wish to explore contemporary currents in the work's interpretation. The three initial chapters address aspects of the work as a whole. They are followed by essays that match closely the sequence in which topics are presented in the ten books of the Republic. Since the Republic returns frequently to the same topics by different routes, so do the authors of this volume, who provide the readers with divergent yet complementary perspectives by which to appreciate the Republic's principal concerns.

'Eminently suited to guide students, whether graduates or advanced undergraduates, through this intimidating text while at the same time introducing them to significant contemporary disputes in its interpretation. The Companions chapters … are to be congratulated for resisting the tendency to mystification.' Edward Butler, Metapsychology, 'A book that all admirers of Ethics with Aristotle will read with great pleasure.' Revue philsophique de Louvain

G. R. F. Ferrari is Professor of Classics at the University of California, Berkeley.