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Rhetorics will be thrown in your face as if it is common language and some sense of historical background on the Greeks may help as well.But this shouldn't hold you back from reading this classic piece, all 450 pages of it. Most people know this book by title, not by content. I must admit reading this book is not for the faint at heart. It is not so much the result of all thinking, but the process of thinking itself which makes this a great book. Known as one of the greatest Greek philosiphers of all-time you can get a taste of his way of thinking and the time he was living in.If you have any interest in history and philosophy you'll love this book.
My intent is not to bog down the reader with a lot of drivel.This is one of the better copies of the republic I have seen and read. I would have prefered a hardcover version, but at this price it is a steal. There are copious footnotes and references which further assist the reader in deciphering one of the most published and interested philosphical texts ever.As far as the work by Plato, it is one of the single most important books ever written and should be read by every person with an above average IQ and a thirst for knowledge and understanding (which begins with truth, thanks Plato).
This is my absolute favorite non religious text."The Republic" should be required reading for all students in western society before high school graduation. To understand western society and all things or anything political past the days of barbarians and cave persons this book is the foundation. This book teaches the structure of western civilization, organization of government and definitively answers the question as to why borders must be respected, governments must be organized, the rule of law must be respected and why we must have a strong military force if we wish to live above the standards of barbarians. Without these standards and rules a civilized existence would be impossible because there would be no protection from those w/o a moral code.
Immanuel Kant critiques for pure practical reason is still my favorite. Does anyone know any other good sites for Christmas shopping.
Plato sets up a fascinating, and in some ways scary, argument for a utopian society run by the "philosophy kings" or the head intellectuals. For someone interested in theories of the "good society," this is a must along with Hobbes' Leviathan, Rousseau's Social Contract, Marx's German Ideology, and Huxley's The Island.
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