As the father of Western philosophy, who transformed Greek thought with his questioning insights into life and ethics, Socrates was a powerful inspiration - and major irritant - to the Athenians of his day. After his trial and execution on charges of heresy and the corruption of young minds, his greatest pupil, Plato (c. 427-347 c), wrote these early dialogues as an act of homage. Rich in drama and humour, they include the controversial lon, a debate on poetic inspir-ation; Laches, in which Socrates seeks to define bravery; and Euthydemus, which considers the relationship between philosophy and politics. Together, these seven dialogues provide a definitive portrait of the real Socrates and raise issues still keenly debated by phil-osophers, forming an incisive overview of Plato's philosophy.
These translations convey the eloquence of the original works. In his general introduction, Trevor J. Saunders discusses Socrates phil-osophy. This edition also includes introductions to each dialogue, an appendix, bibliographies and an index.