The Republic - Justice, the Ideal State, and the Education of the Philosopher-King

What is justice, and why should anyone choose to live a just life? In The Republic, Plato transforms that fundamental question into one of the most ambitious examinations of morality, politics, education, knowledge, and human nature ever written. Through a searching dialogue led by Socrates, he considers not only the character of the just individual but also the kind of society in which justice might flourish.

To make justice easier to see, Socrates and his companions imagine an ideal city g...