Menexenus - Plato

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Résumé :
...It seems impossible to separate by any exact line the genuine writings of Plato from the spurious. The only external evidence to them which is of much value is that of Aristotle; for the Alexandrian catalogues of a century later include manifest forgeries. Even the value of the Aristotelian authority is a good deal impaired by the uncertainty concerning the date and authorship of the writings which are ascribed to him. And several of the citations of Aristotle omit the name of Plato, and some of them omit the name of the dialogue from which they are taken...

Biographie:
Plato (428/427 or 424/423 - 348/347 BC) was an Athenian philosopher during the Classical period in Ancient Greece, founder of the Platonist school of thought, and the Academy, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. He is widely considered the pivotal figure in the history of Ancient Greek and Western philosophy, along with his teacher, Socrates, and his most famous student, Aristotle.[a] Plato has also often been cited as one of the founders of Western religion and spirituality.[4] The so-called Neoplatonism of philosophers like Plotinus and Porphyry influenced Saint Augustine and thus Christianity. Alfred North Whitehead once noted: the safest general characterization of the European philosophical tradition is that it consists of a series of footnotes to Plato.[5] Plato was the innovator of the written dialogue and dialectic forms in philosophy. Plato is also considered the founder of Western political philosophy. His most famous contribution is the theory of Forms known by pure reason, in which Plato presents a solution to the problem of universals known as Platonism (also ambiguously called either Platonic realism or Platonic idealism). He is also the namesake of Platonic love and the Platonic solids. His own most decisive philosophical influences are usually thought to have been along with Socrates, the pre-Socratics Pythagoras, Heraclitus and Parmenides, although few of his predecessors' works remain extant and much of what we know about these figures today derives from Plato himself.[b] Unlike the work of nearly all of his contemporaries, Plato's entire body of work is believed to have survived intact for over 2,400 years.[7] Although their popularity has fluctuated over the years, the works of Plato have never been without readers since the time they were written

Sommaire:
Plato, born around 428/427 BCE in Athens, was a key figure in shaping Western philosophy. Coming from an aristocratic family, he was exposed early to politics and philosophy. His relationship with Socrates was pivotal, and after Socrates' execution, Plato traveled before founding the Academy, one of the first higher learning institutions.Plato's works, including Republic, Phaedo, and Symposium, have had a profound impact on philosophy, especially through his theory of Forms, which distinguishes the eternal world of ideas from the changing physical world. Through these dialogues, he tackled justice, reality, and the soul's immortality, with Socrates often serving as his central character. His philosophy shaped not only Aristotle but generations of thinkers across many fields.Plato's influence extended into theology, political theory, and the sciences. His Academy became a hub of intellectual activity, attracting students from across the Greek world. Even today, his works, preserved for over 2,000 years, continue to inspire debate and reflection, cementing his status as one of history's most studied philosophers....