C. C. W. Taylor

I read this book in conjunction with a course I am taking on Masters of Greek Philosophy. I haven't grappled with Greek philosophy since I was an undergraduate, which was a really long time ago.

C. C. Taylor sees Socrates as an elusive figure as he wrote nothing himself. After his death, his disciples (primarily Plato and Xenophon) wrote about his ideas and lifestyle in the genre of reconstructed dialogues. Taylor attempts to find the " historical Socrates" through analyzing these and other show more sources.

He then examines " Plato's Socrates" and discusses Plato's analysis of his mentor's key ethical ideas and the system of questioning he uses to determine these premises. Plato portrays Socrates as the " ideal" philosopher, a man who lives humbly and is faithful to his ethical teachings.

In the final chapter, Taylor investigates Socrates's influence on later philosophy from Ancient to Modern times. He provides an in-depth analysis of Hegel, Kierkegaard, and Nietzche's responses to Socratic thought.

I felt this short book was a thoughtful, accessible introduction. I recommend it to novices, like myself, who are looking to deepen their understanding. show less

Çdo epoke i është dashur të rikrijojë Sokratin e saj, sepse Sokrati është sidoqoftë një figurë sfiduese, nxitëse dhe frymezuese. Shembulli më i zakonshëm i kësaj është se Sokrati përbën ende një sfidë për ata që i hyjnë filozofisë në veçanti dhe mendimit kritik sistematik në përgjithësi përmes shtëgut të dialogëve sokratikë. Edhe në një botë ku studimi i veprave klasike e ka humbur rëndësinë e dikurshme, janë të shumtë ata që i konsiderojnë këta show more dialogë, ku mungesa relative e gjuhës teknike edhe nga gjallëria e bisedës e bëjnë lexuesin të krijojë lidhjen e vet me tekstin, si hyrjen më të mirë në botën e filozofisë. show less

I have said it before and I will say it again, the "A very short introduction" series of books is absolutely great. For a man with very few sources of information on his life, mainly Plato and Xenophon, this book did an incredible job at capturing who Socrates was as a man, as well as a bit on who he was as a philosopher. It touches a small bit on his philosophies, if you read this and it interests you I suggest you dive right in to Platonic dialogue.

This started out OK with a general discussion of the sources about Socrates and whether they are reconcilable to show us the historical figure behind the different accounts. This is followed by an in-depth discussion of Plato's earlier dialogues and then a quick guide on Socrates through the ages, focussed particularly on the 19th century.

There is no way that this is an "Introduction". I don't have a great knowledge of Plato's work but I do have some, and I found the central section show more discussing the chronology of the works and then the earlier dialogues in particular a real struggle. The last part focussed on Hegel, Kierkegaard, and Nietzsche, who I freely admit I know very little of beyond their names. I understood very little of this section and ended up skimming my way through it. show less