The Republic (Peacock Books)

PLATO, born around 428 BC in Athens, was a philosopher and mathematician in Classical Greece. He was the founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world, and is arguably one of the greatest writers in the entire Western canon. He is widely acknowledged to be the most pivotal figure in the development of philosophy, especially the Western tradition. His entire oeuvre is believed to have survived intact for over 2500 years.
Along with his teacher Socrates and his student Aristotle, Plato is believed to have laid the foundations of Western philosophy and science. In addition to being a foundational figure for Western science, philosophy, and mathematics, Plato is widely recognized as one of the founders of Western religion and spirituality, particularly Christianity, which scholars like Friedrich Nietzsche called “Platonism for the people.” Plato’s influence on Christian thought is often thought to be mediated by his major influence on Saint Augustine, one of the most important philosophers and theologians in the history of Christianity.
The innovation of the dialogue and dialectic forms in philosophy originates with Plato. He is said to have founded the Western political philosophy, with his Republic, and Laws among other dialogues, providing some of the earliest extant treatments of political questions from a philosophical perspective.
Plato is believed to have been influenced by Socrates, Parmenides, Heraclitus, and Pythagoras. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy describes Plato as “one of the most dazzling writers in the Western literary tradition and one of the most penetrating, wide-ranging, and influential authors in the history of philosophy.... Few other authors in the history of Western philosophy approximate him in depth and range: perhaps only Aristotle (who studied with him), Aquinas, and Kant would be generally agreed to be of the same rank.”