My personal study guide- I will update as I read
Reading Plato: A Complete Guide to the Dialogues
Philosophy begins in wonder. — Plato
Plato’s dialogues are foundational texts in Western philosophy—offering timeless insights into justice, beauty, truth, the soul, and the ideal form of the state. The Complete Works, edited by John M. Cooper and D. S. Hutchinson, collects all of Plato’s surviving texts into a single volume. It is a book to read slowly, wrestle with, and return to for a lifetime.
This post serves as a master guide to Plato’s complete works, including every dialogue in order as found in this edition. Each entry will eventually be linked to a dedicated post exploring that specific dialogue—its key ideas, themes, and impact.
Who Was Plato?
Plato (c. 427–347 BCE) was a Greek philosopher and a student of Socrates, teacher of Aristotle, and founder of the Academy in Athens—the first institution of higher learning in the Western world. His writings, composed almost entirely in dialogue form, laid the groundwork for Western philosophy and continue to influence metaphysics, ethics, politics, epistemology, and aesthetics to this day.
Plato’s most frequent character is his mentor Socrates, who never wrote anything himself. Through Plato’s pen, Socrates becomes a symbol of reason, dialectic, and the relentless pursuit of truth.
The Complete Works of Plato (in order)
- Euthyphro
- Apology
- Crito
- Phaedo
- Cratylus
- Theaetetus
- Sophist
- Statesman
- Parmenides
- Philebus
- Symposium
- Phaedrus
- Alcibiades I
- Alcibiades II
- Hipparchus
- Rival Lovers
- Theages
- Charmides
- Laches
- Lysis
- Euthydemus
- Protagoras
- Gorgias
- Meno
- Greater Hippias
- Lesser Hippias
- Ion
- Menexenus
- Clitophon
- Republic
- Timaeus
- Critias
- Minos
- Laws
- Epinomis
- Letters
Why Read the Dialogues?
Plato’s dialogues aren’t just relics of ancient Greece—they’re living documents that challenge, provoke, and enlighten. Whether Socrates is debating the nature of justice, questioning the gods, or facing death with poise, each conversation sparks deeper reflection on how to live.
Reading the dialogues in order gives structure to Plato’s evolving philosophical vision:
- The early dialogues center on Socratic questioning and ethical inquiry.
- The middle dialogues (like Phaedo, Symposium, and Republic) introduce the theory of Forms, the soul, and the philosopher-king.
- The late dialogues become more abstract and technical, refining Plato’s metaphysics and political theories.
How This Guide Works
This post will serve as a hub to the entire series. As each individual post is written, it will be linked above. You can either read along in order or jump around based on your interests.
Each dialogue will have its own blog post covering:
- A short summary of the work
- Major philosophical themes and arguments
- Key quotes and commentary
- Connections to other dialogues
Final Reflection
Plato’s philosophy isn’t a system—it’s a lifelong dialogue. Every page invites us to pause, reflect, and rethink what we thought we knew.
“The unexamined life is not worth living.” — Socrates, in Plato’s Apology
These dialogues are not answers—they are an invitation to ask better questions.