The Republic Of Plato: Second Edition [Paperback]

 

 

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Plato's Republic is really beyond reviews, and it would be presumptuous do anything other than encourage potential readers to study it for themselves. As the overt political slants of some of the other reviews suggest, his ideas resonate in the modern world as much as they did in his own. Whether a reader approaches Republic with positive or negative prejudices, the actual text of the argument forces constant reevaluation and refinement of those preexisting opinions.

Allan Bloom has created a literal translation that is ideal for those who truly wish to engage with Plato. Most other translators have used non-literal methods that attempt to convey in a more contemporary form what Plato "meant" by his arguments. However, in this process the translator's own interpretation of Plato's argument inevitably influences the language in which he renders his translation. Bloom has attempted, with a great degree of success, to separate the processes of translation and interpretation. Rather than imposing his reading on the text itself, he express it in a thought-provoking interpretive essay that follows the text

This is probably not the easiest translation of Plato to read, because Bloom does not attempt to serve as a baby-sitter for his readers. However, the extra time spent in reading this version will be well rewarded by a deeper understanding of Plato's argument.

What is so fascinating about this translation and the essay is that it deviates in important ways from the typical Christian Platonist conception of philosophy. Bllom is engaged in a war of sorts, it is stunning oh so many other academics fail to recognize how Bloom undermines their common assumptions about 'The Republic' and philosophy itself. Note the absence of comment on the 'Divided Line' of Book VI, and the entire discussion of the 'Theory of Forms' get short shrift. Why? There is a reason, if you follow the interpretitive essay, a parenthitic expression sends shivers- did Bloom really suggest 'The Just City in Speech' is not the best regime? Haunting. This view of 'The Republic' is deeply dependent on Leo Strauss' earlier groundbreaking sensitivity to irony. This is easy to say-IRONY- Plato was ironic, "The Republic' is ironic, but what does that really mean? An excellent read, and read, and read again.

Why get *this* Republic rather than some other translation? Because Allan Bloom is wonderfully attentive to the fact that the ancient greek civilization is a totally alien society whose common ground with modern western civilization is reason, rather than details of culture.

For example, Bloom starts his translation with a mini rant about the title itself. The original Greek title is better translated "The Regime". The traditional title is retained in Bloom's translation so that people know this is the same book as all the other translations but that's the *only* place in the book that this word is translated as "republic", everywhere but in the title it is translated as "regime". Bloom really wants you to know that the book isn't about a *form* of government (as though a good society could be established by clever arrangement of voting powers and checks and balances as the founders of the US later thought).

The book is about the actual people in charge of society and what their *character* is like. What virtues should the leaders have? How does such virtue work? How can such virtue be cultivated? This focus (and the characterization of virtue in a foreign language with foriegn starting assumptions about human nature and the "structure of the soul") is what was alien about the Greeks. Connecting modern readers with an alien culture that was concerned with *universally valid* reasoning about how people ought to be when coming together in groups is the point of reading it.

Bloom's whole orientation this way is the joy of this translation of Plato's "Regime" (or "Republic" if you prefer the traditional English title).

The reason I gave it only 4 stars was that, personally, Plato's original work seemed silly and amateurish to me. Socrates will offer some crazy theory with and the other characters will just say "Yes that's so", without a peep of objection. If the writing wasn't a dialogue it would require better structuring and argument and yet as a dialogue it rang false to me. The characters were cardboard cutouts saying what it was necessary for them to say for Plato to make the points he wants to make.

(It's worth pointing out that I've been accused of reading shallowly. For example, the characters are supposed to be well known. Thrasymachus was a sophist. Some of the people Plato talks to are young men and may be offered as "how young men think and politics" and in the meantime the dialogue was written after some of these same young men siezed power and had lots of people killed in political purges of Athens (which was one of the reasons Socrates was later killed for "corrupting the youth" once the young men he'd corrupted lost power - Socrates wasn't just killed for "being gay" as some modern spins have it.) Imagine this as a conversation backstage of the Tonight Show between a 25 year old Bill Clinton (one of the young men), Pat Robertson (as a philosopher from a competing school IE a sophist like Thrasymachus), Warren Buffet (an old wealthy man trying to make good on a life spent on things other than philosophy) and so on. The conversation would mean something to people right now that it didn't to people who didn't know who any of those people are. Let's just say that maybe I didn't get all the resonances and for that reason the book didn't do for much as me as I'd expect a five star book to do.)

If you're comparing translations of this book and you're only buying one, this is the one to buy. On the other hand, if you're looking for good books on philosophy that are more directly written for modern Americans, you might want to try one of Allan Bloom's original books "The Closing of the American Mind". It's original title (the publishers thought this title wouldn't sell as well) was "Souls Without Longing" and, personally, I think Bloom's title is more honest and stirring. I originally picked up "The Closing of the American Mind" because I saw it in a bookstore and realized "Hey that's written by the same curmudgeon who translated my copy of The Republic in such a distinctive way. I bet his original books are neat too." I'm glad I did.

One thing worth mentioning is that Bloom was working at the University of Chicago and is nominally part of the neoconservative movement. Not so much like Condi Rice and W. Bush's neoconservatism... the academic neocons are more like Marx was to Stalin or Mao, "theory driven and thoughtful" compared to the actual politicians's "pragmatic and thoughtless but guided by the theory". (Another possible model for the relationship is between Nietzche and the Nazis where they grossly misinterpreted the few of his ideas they borrowed.)

Other people in Bloom's school with interesting books are Leo Strauss with "The City and Man" and Francis Fukuyama with "The End of History and the Last Man". Irving Kristol is a sort of bridge, being in philosophy and politics both, and in some sense founding the explicit idea of "neoconservatism". Also, Saul Bellow wrote a novel that was a thinly veiled portrait of Bloom, called "Ravelstein".

If I was going to chart out the sweep of human political thinking I'd start with Plato's Republic. Then I'd read Francis Fukuyama's "The End of History and the Last Man" where Fukuyama argues that Kant and Hegel were right that there will be no new ideas in human political development beyond rights-respecting liberal democractic societies with largely market-oriented free-trading economic systems because they perfectly satisfied human nature as well as could be done. Then (because Fukuyama eventually retracted the claim of the book because he realized that genetic engineering, psychopharmacology, cybernetics, and transhuman projects in general will obsolete human nature itself and make more progress possible) I'd read some science fiction sketching out possible transhuman futures: Greg Egan's "Permutation City" and "Diaspora" would work and Iain M. Banks's novels on The Culture would work as well. Between them they offer three radically different takes on where things could go.

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5.0 out of 5 stars A literal Republic
Plato's 'Republic' is one of the most important works of ancient Greek philosophy, and one of the foundation pieces of political science and political philosophy of that and... Read more

Published on Feb 21 2006 by FrKurt Messick

3.0 out of 5 stars For those willing to disagree
So you've asked some of the tough questions. You've questioned your teachers, you've questioned your parents, you've questioned yourself (you never thought to ask your boss), but... Read more

Published on Mar 10 2003 by Sobeit

5.0 out of 5 stars The classic--what did you expect?
There probably isn't much I can add in a scholarly vein to what people have already said about Plato. Read more

Published on Aug 25 2002 by magellan

5.0 out of 5 stars The classic discussion of what justice is and how it works.
Plato's purpose here is to find the definition and nature of justice such as whether the just man is happier than the unjust man. Read more

Published on Jun 5 2002 by an_avid_book_reviewer

5.0 out of 5 stars A splendid translation of one of the world's greatest texts.
The famous French philosopher, Rene Descartes, once said that the reading of good books "is like a conversation with the finest men of past centuries. Read more

Published on April 17 2002 by Mitchel Weaver

5.0 out of 5 stars Awsome
If you love philosphy, this is the best book. There are many different versions of this book but this is the best one.

Published on Feb 21 2002 by tommy88

5.0 out of 5 stars Same version I used in College
Ah... those lectures were invaluable. Pick up a copy and do some thinking!!!

Published on May 19 2001 by James May

5.0 out of 5 stars Irony Schmirony
With all due respect (and I really mean it -- Bloom's a treasure and I have a lot of respect for this translation), people with a modern right-wing ideological bent desperately... Read more

Published on Mar 30 2001 by Bill Krapek

5.0 out of 5 stars The only responsible way to read Plato
The Republic is a challenging, intricate, subtle work in which every word counts. This is why a "literal" translation is necessary -- a translation that truly reflects... Read more

Published on April 11 2000

4.0 out of 5 stars solid translation
For serious students of Plato (i.e. of philosophy) Bloom's translation is a must. Nowadays few can read Greek comfortably, and a translation that does not cheat the readers is... Read more

Published on Nov 13 1999

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