Publications, Issue 5

This book is an examination of Plato's life, spiritual development, and philosophy. The essential unity of his philosophy is explained and the impact that it still has for us twenty-four hundred years later.

In this excellent, very readable book the author concisely gives us the philosophical, social and political background to Plato's teaching. It takes us through his early years and the effects of the teaching and subsequent execution of his teacher, Socrates, on Plato's thought, to his final works and actions, most notably the founding of the legendary Academy. Dr.James' book provides a contextualised overview of the Philosopher's ideas and writings, and his attempts to integrate them into into the Greek culture of the time. It is an invaluable resource for anyone interested in this seminal period in the development of Western thought and civilisation. --Alan W. Burnside

Dr. L. Calpouzos, Professor Emeritus, California State University, Chico A synthesis of the mythical thought of Archaic Greece with the experiential realism of Classical Greece - a masterpiece of teaching. --Dr. L. Calpouzos

This interesting and perceptive account of Plato's life and work gives us a man very much of his time who is too large to be confined to his time. Dr. James' remarkable statement of Plato's hallmark philosophical contributions, [dialectic, the theory of Ideas, the theory of the Good, the theory of Eros], is straightforward, lucid, and accessible. Even more remarkable is his achievement of great breadth in brevity. For sheer context I have never seen anything equal to the chart following the Table of Contents. This is a very good book indeed. --Roger Shelton