How do we know what we know? That’s the question Socrates presents to Theaetetus in this dialogue by Plato. I was actually intrigued with the some of the side discussions about learning and memory and how that connects to knowledge. In this podcast episode, I share the general outline of the arguments and highlight the parts about memory that might help us in our reading lives.

So far, this is my favorite dialogue by Plato. I’ve only read 5 of them, so I have a ways to go, but this one covers the origin of language and the correctness of names. It answers this question - is there a reason behind the name of a thing or is it just by chance?

Cratylus believes there is a correct name for each thing, one that belongs to it by nature. Hermogenes believes that names are agreed upon by the community. Socrates leads the discussion to determine if “names are given in accord with nature.”

I found this dialogue so interesting and delightful because Socrates spends most of the time guessing at the origin of words of gods, concepts, and names.

In this episode, I share some of my favorite word descriptions and ideas from Cratylus.

Were you there?

It’s the opening question of this dialogue. Echecrates is asking Phaedo if he was there when Socrates drank the hemlock and died in prison. He was there. This is Phaedo’s account of the final day of Socrates.

I wonder what I would do knowing I had a few hours to live. Would I be frantic? Would I conduct a dialogue about the soul as Socrates does here? Would I calmly drink my death sentence that 500 of my peers had bestowed upon me? I doubt it. Socrates was calm. He died as he had lived.

There are some incredible parts to this dialogue. With a few hours left to go, we find Socrates “versifying” the Fables of Aesop. He’s setting prose to poetry. He’s not creating anew. He’s improvising on what already exists. It’s an incredible thing to consider. Socrates didn’t leave any writings, but he did apparently leave some poetry.

The bulk of this work considers a questions that would be on the forefront of anyone’s mind about to exit this world. What’s next? Socrates argues that we have a soul that will continue into an afterlife. In fact, he argues that that soul pre-existed embodiment and that our learning was simply a recollection of Forms or Ideas encountered in that state. Socrates was being completely rational then in his calm willingness to die. This was simply a continuation of how he had lived his life, a betterment of the eternal part of him. His life as a philosopher was preparation for death.

In this episode, I cover the main arguments, talk about three things that stuck out to me, ask 6 questions that I hope to get answered in other Plato dialogues, and close out with the One Thing I always hope to remember from Phaedo by Plato.

Book Versions Read or Consulted:

* Plato Complete Works - edited by John M. Cooper - translated by G.M.A. Grube

* Phaedo - translated by David Gallop - Oxford World’s Classics

* The Last Days of Socrates - translated by Hugh Tredennick and Harold Tarrant (intro) - Penguin Classics (just read the intro in this one)

Socrates is nearing the end. He’s been sentenced to death and the time has come where he will be forced to drink hemlock. Crito, his old friend, comes to persuade him to escape this death. He tries to convince Socrates that in this grave injustice, the just thing would be to escape.

But Socrates says “we must examine whether we should act in this way or not, as not only now but at all times.” Would it be right for Socrates to escape?

This short dialogue allows us see if Socrates will remain true to what he has preached throughout his life.

Show Notes:

Book Versions:

* Plato Complete Works - edited by John M. Cooper - translated by G.M.A. Grube

* The Last Days of Socrates - translated by Hugh Tredennick and Harold Tarrant (intro) - Penguin Classics

* Defense of Socrates, Euthyphro, and Crito - translated by David Gallop - Oxford World’s Classics

Here’s Part II of a conversation with author Allen Levi that took place on Saturday, September 6th in Franklin, Tennessee, at the historic Franklin Theatre. Part I released last week and is the discussion from the 3pm event. Part II releases this week and is the discussion from the 7pm event. Each event was sold out and questions were different for each event.

Allen Levi is the author of Theo of Golden. In this conversation, I asked him about this book, his inspirations, his life, and potential movie adaptations. Enjoy!

SPOILER ALERT: This conversation contains book spoilers. Listener beware.

Here’s Part I of a conversation with author Allen Levi that took place on Saturday, September 6th in Franklin, Tennessee, at the historic Franklin Theatre. Part I releases this week and is the discussion from the 3pm event. Part II releases next week and will be the discussion from the 7pm event. Each event was sold out and questions were different for each event.

Please Note: Static interference is present at various points throughout the interview. I've worked to minimize it, but it is still audible at points.

Allen Levi is the author of Theo of Golden. In this conversation, I asked him about this book, his inspirations, his life, and potential movie adaptations. Enjoy!

Last week, Socrates was on his way to his trial in the Euthyphro dialogue. In Apology, Socrates is giving his defense against three charges:

* Not recognizing the gods recognized by the State

* Manufacturing new gods

* Corrupting the youth

If you are expecting any contrition on the part of Socrates, you’ve come to the wrong place. Here, apology means a defense speech in a legal proceeding, and Socrates is anything but apologetic in the sorrowful sense. Here we see a defiant man unconcerned with death but rather in continuing on in a life of justice and piety despite the threat to his life.

It’s quite startling actually. The defiance of Socrates in the face of 501 of his peers. But it’s also quite disturbing that a society that produced such great works of art around this exact time (399BC) could also kill one of its best citizens. Can civilization handle this level of truth telling?

In this episode, I consider Socrates’ defense to the three charges, look at Aristophanes’ Clouds and another account of the trial, Xenophon’s Apology.

Show Notes:

Book Versions:

* Plato Complete Works - edited by John M. Cooper - translated by G.M.A. Grube

* The Last Days of Socrates - translated by Hugh Tredennick and Harold Tarrant (intro) - Penguin Classics

* Xenophon Apology - translated by Martin Hammond - Oxford World’s Classics

* Xenophon Socrates’ Defense - translated by Hugh Tredennick and Robin Waterfield, with an excellent intro by Waterfield - Penguin Classics

I have decided to read through the complete works of Plato. Euthyphro is my first dialogue in this Plato Project. I ended up reading it 4 times within 4 different translations. In this episode, I give a brief overview of the dialogue, talk about piety and if/when this word shows up in Homer, the Greek Tragedies, and elsewhere, and cover each of the answers and responses between Euthyphro and Socrates.

Socrates has asked Euthyphro if piety and impiety take on an essential form. Poor Euthyphro thinks he is wise by giving particular example after particular example, but Socrates is after something deeper. Will we get to a form of piety and impiety that can be referenced in all circumstances? The stakes are high. Socrates has just been charged with impiety in corrupting the youth, creating new gods, and forsaking the old gods. If he can’t answer this charge, he’s in trouble. He’s hoping Euthyphro can give him a piety form. Or is Socrates just prodding Euthyphro to see if he knows what he is taking about?

Here are the four versions I read:

* Complete Works - edited by John M. Cooper - translated by G.M.A. Grube

* Penguin Classics The Last Days of Socrates - translated by Hugh Tredennick and Harold Tarrant (intro)

* Loeb Classical Library - translated by Harold North Fowler

* Collected Dialogues - edited by Edith Hamilton & Huntington Cairns - translated by Lane Cooper