Plato's Republic

Blackburn explains the judicial, moral, and political ideas in "The Republic." He also examines its remarkable influence and unquestioned staying power, and shows why, from St. Augustine to 20th-century philosophers, Western thought is still conditioned by Platos book. Unabridged. 4 CDs.

Publishers Weekly

In this critical but judicious study, Blackburn (Truth: A Guide) regards what's considered the greatest of Plato's Socratic dialogues as "the foodstuff of unintelligent fundamentalisms." Hitler, totalitarianism and neoconservatism can't be blamed solely on "time and circumstance, land, food, guns, and money, the economic and social forces," he argues, so it may be that Socrates' utopian republic, ruled by philosopher-kings, may also have influenced the world in the worst possible way. Blackburn explores the themes that support such an argument, from Socrates' defense of the right of armies to conquer and colonize, to his extolling the benefits of a caste system. Although Blackburn—a philosopher at the University of Cambridge who identifies more closely with Aristotle—admits that he "had never felt Plato to be a particularly congenial author," he presents a clear and sympathetic synthesis of approaches to the famous Myth of the Cave, and gives the Platonist defenders their due. He finishes by making the case that the most critical reading of the book may be the best defense against its insidious influences. Hardly a ringing endorsement, Blackburn's book is a provocative companion to an essential text. (July)

Simon Blackburn is the Edna J. Koury Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. He was a Fellow and Tutor at Pembroke College, Oxford, from 1969 to 1990. His books for OUP are Spreading the Word (1984), Essays in Quasi-Realism (1993), The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy (hbk 1994, pbk 1996), and Ruling Passions (1998). He edited the journal Mind from 1984 to 1990.

Simon Vance is a prolific and popular audiobook narrator and actor with several hundred audiobooks to his credit. An Audie(R) Award-winner, Vance was recently named "The Voice of Choice" by "Booklist" magazine.