Republic

The traditional translation of Western philosophy's founding text One of the most important works in the history of philosophy is generally agreed to be Plato's Republic. It is an investigation into the idea of the ideal community and the ideal individual within it, and is presented as a dialogue between Socrates and three different interlocutors. Other questions are brought up during the discussion, such as what constitutes virtue, reality, knowledge, and the goal of education. Plato describes a society ruled by "e;philosopher kings"e; and united by harmony with exceptional clarity and adroit allegory use.