Listening to the Cicadas: A Study of Plato's Phaedrus
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990. Soft cover. 8vo. Near Fine. Item #003472
Cambridge Classical Studies Series. Soft cover. xiii, 293 p.p. Some slight bumping to corners, else a fine copy. This full-length study of Plato's dialogue Phaedrus is written in the belief that such concerted scrutiny of a single dialogue is an important part of the project of understanding Plato so far as possible 'from the inside' - of gaining a feel for the man's philosophy. The focus of this account is on how the resources both of persuasive myth and of formal argument, for all that plato sets them in strong contrast, nevertheless complement and reinforce each other in his philosophy. Not only is the dialogue in its formal structure a dovetail of myth and argument, but the philosophic life that it praises is also shaped by an acknowledgement of the limitations of argument and the importance of mythical and poetic understanding.
Price: $40.00