Gorgias

by Plato (Author); Hamilton, Walter (Translator); Emlyn-Jones, Chris (Translator)

• ISBN13: 9780140449044
• ISBN10: 0140449043
• Edition: Revised
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-07-01
• Publisher: Penguin Classics

Summary

Taking the form of a dialogue among Socrates, Gorgias, Polus, and Callicles, the Gorgiasdebates crucial questions about the nature of government. While the aspiring politician Callicles propounds the view that might is right, and the rhetorician Gorgias argues that oratory and the power to persuade represent the greatest good,” Socrates insists on the duty of politicians to consider the welfare of their citizens—a duty he believed had been dishonored in the Athens of his time. The dialogue offers fascinating insights into how classical Athens was governed and creates a theoretical framework that has been highly influential on subsequent political debate.

Author Biography

Plato (c. 427-û347 bce) founded the Academy in Athens, the prototype of all Western universities, and wrote more than twenty philosophical dialogues.

Walter Hamilton (1908-û1988) was master and honorary fellow of Magdalene College, Cambridge. His translations for Penguin Classics include Plato-'s Phaedrus and Letters VII and VIII.

Chris Emlyn-Jones teaches in the department of Classical Studies at the Open University.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	p. vii
Reference System Used in this Edition	p. ix
Chronology	p. xi
Introduction	p. xiii
Further Reading	p. xxxviii
A Note on the Text	p. xliii
Dialogue With Gorgias	p. 3
Dialogue With Polus	p. 27
Dialogue With Callicles	p. 64
Notes	p. 139
Glossary of Greek Terms	p. 151
Index	p. 153
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