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Plato's Republic
centers on a simple question: is it always better to be just than unjust? The Republic is the
supreme product of Plato's most mature years, thought, and style, containing virtually the entire
universe of Plato's philosophy.
In Latin res publica means "public matters" or "the state." In Greek, the
title was originially Politeia meaning constitution. But the Republic does not start out
about politics. It is initially a Socratic dialogue about justice. The Republic is divided into ten
books, each of which originally fit onto one papyrus scroll.
Unusual to other Plato dialogues, in the Republic
. .
- Socrates narrates the entire text,
- he speaks with a large number of people, not
just one,
- these include two brothers of Plato himself (Glaucon and Adeimantus), and
- after the dialogue about justice proceeds in the fashion that we expect of Socrates, things
take an unexpected turn . .
. . one we continue to deal with locally and globally today.
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