Plato is probably one of the greatest philosophers of all time, if not the greatest at least in the Western philosophic  tradition.  Plato was born in Athens, Greece in the year 427 B.C.  He was born into an aristocratic family and was a  distinguished youth in his time, recognized for his excellent athletic and mental abilities.
          Many conflicting theories have been developed by scholars of various times regarding the interpretation of Plato's dialogues and their chronology.  One of his works were called the Apology and the Republic.  Another focused on what he called the "Forms": the Good, the Just, and the Beauty.  Plato felt that "the necessity of doing what one thinks is right in the face of universal opposition, and the need to pursue knowledge even when opposed."  Plato strongly believed in the togetherness of the body and the soul in the actions of life, especially after the execution of his master, Socrates.  He felt that wisdom could only be gained through the soul, not the body.
          He then moved away and founded his own school, the Academy, in 385. This is where he remained for the most part, until he was eighty and there he died, peacefully.

1.)  History of Interpretation of the Dialogues  (http://phd.evansville.edu/intrpret.htm)
This page suggests that there are other ways of interpreting Plato's work, especially when you assume the time period it was actually written in.

2.)  Plato (http://www.akula.com/~mlin/culhis/plato.html)
This page is a short biography which details Plato's life in brief, but focuses on his interests and his acquaintances.

3.)  Plato (http://www.lcc.gatech.edu/gallery/rhetoric/figures/plato.html)
This discusses Plato's ideas and writings, especially Gorgias and Protagras.

4.)  Plato Readings  (http://www.carleton.ca/~ddubrule/32.206/platoreadings.html)
This describes Plato's 5 dialogues on the life of Socrates and the immortality of the soul in the Phaedo.

5.)  http://www.columbia.edu/~is94/phil/plato.html
This is a biography of Plato.  It discusses his schooling, travels and philosophies.

6.)  Plato (http://www.fit.edu/~patterso/plato.htm)
This page is about Plato's life after his master, Socrates, died, and his creation of an Academy which focused on philosophy and the sciences.

7.)  http://www.knuten.liu.se/~bjuch509/philosophers/pia.html
This page contains all of Plato's works.  It separates his work into three stages, Early, Middle, and Late dialogues.

8.)  http://weber02.u.washington.edu/~smochen/timaeus.htm
This is about Plato's belief in the world of the "Being".  Everything in this world "always is" "has no becoming" and "does not change".

9.) Plato's Ethics  (http://www-philosophy.ucdavis.edu/phi001/platelec.htm)
This page gives Plato's answer to the sort of question Socrates asked, what makes a kind of thing, the kind of thing it is.

10.)  Platonism  (http://www.themystica.com/mystica/articles/p/platonism.html)
This page focuses on Plato's ideas of the Good and how this is greatly influenced the Greeks way of life.
 

Return to class readings page:  Kinesiology 493: Philosophy of Kinesiology