Plato did not say many positive things about imitation, so I hope he would forgive me for writing this “apocryphal” Platonic dialogue.

As in almost all of Plato’s work, a fictionalized Socrates guides us through deep philosophical explorations in the form of dialogos. There are open-ended questions, challenges, and a reciprocal movement of ideas leading toward greater clarity. This style of Socratic dialogue has influenced many writers since Plato’s time—for example, Acastos by Iris Murdoch, and...