Plato's 'Laws' A Critical Guide

Long understudied, Plato's Laws has been the object of renewed attention in the past decade and is now considered to be his major work of political philosophy besides the Republic. In his last dialogue, Plato returns to the project of describing the foundation of a just city and sketches in considerable detail its constitution, laws and other social institutions. Written by leading Platonists, the essays in this volume cover a wide range of topics central for understanding the Laws, such as the aim of the Laws as a whole, the ethical psychology of the Laws, especially its views of pleasure and non-rational motivations, and whether and, if so, how the strict law code of the Laws can encourage genuine virtue. They make an important contribution to ongoing debates and will open up fresh lines of inquiry for further research.

Introduction Christopher Bobonich; 1. The Laws' two projects Malcolm Schofield; 2. The relationship of the Laws to other dialogues: a proposal Christopher Rowe; 3. Ordinary virtue from the Phaedo to the Laws Richard Kraut; 4. Virtue and law in Plato Julia Annas; 5. Morality as law and morality in the Laws Terence Irwin; 6. Puppets on strings: moral psychology in Laws I and II Dorothea Frede; 7. Psychology and the inculcation of virtue in Plato's Laws Rachana Kamtekar; 8. Images of irrationality Christopher Bobonich; 9. Family and the question of women in the Laws Thanassis Samaras; 10. The theology of the Laws Robert Mayhew; 11. Plato's 'truest tragedy' (Laws VII, 817a-d) André Laks; Bibliography; Index.

This volume provides essays on the Laws, Plato's last dialogue and major work of political philosophy besides the Republic. The essays cover a wide range of topics in the Laws, including political and ethical philosophy, psychology, theology and aesthetics. It will interest philosophers, classicists and political theorists.

Christopher Bobonich is Professor of Philosophy and, by courtesy, Classics at Stanford University. He is the author of Plato's Utopia Recast (2002) and of a number of articles on the Laws and other aspects of Greek ethical and political theory.