Minos IX 1

by Plato (Editor), Joachim Dalfen (Editor)

"Minos (/ˈmaɪnɒs/ or /ˈmaɪnəs/; Greek: Μίνως) is a dialogue attributed to Plato, featuring Socrates and a Companion. Its authenticity is doubted by W. R. M. Lamb because of its unsatisfying character, though he does consider it a "fairly able and plausible imitation of Plato's early work." Edith Hamilton and Huntington Cairns do not even include it among Plato's spurious works in their Collected Dialogues. Leo Strauss on the other hand considered the dialogue to be authentic enough to write a commentary on it.

The dialogue begins with Socrates asking his nameless companion, "What is the law for us?" It then proceeds to examine the nature of law before praising Minos, the mythical king of Crete and an ancient enemy of Athens. Socrates defends an extraordinary definition of law as that which "wishes to be the discovery of what is," as opposed to the companion's more common-sense understanding that law is the decreed "official opinion" of a city. The culminating praise of Minos seems part of Socrates' intention to liberate the companion from loyalty to Athens and its opinions."

Wikipedia

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Classics

189 pages, Hardcover

Published December 31, 2009

About the author

Plato (Greek: Πλάτων), born Aristocles (c. 427 – 348 BC), was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the written dialogue and dialectic forms. He raised problems for what became all the major areas of both theoretical philosophy and practical philosophy, and was the founder of the Platonic Academy, a philosophical school in Athens where Plato taught the doctrines that would later become known as Platonism.
Plato's most famous contribution is the theory of forms (or ideas), which has been interpreted as advancing a solution to what is now known as the problem of universals. He was decisively influenced by the pre-Socratic thinkers Pythagoras, Heraclitus, and Parmenides, although much of what is known about them is derived from Plato himself.
Along with his teacher Socrates, and Aristotle, his student, Plato is a central figure in the history of philosophy. Plato's entire body of work is believed to have survived intact for over 2,400 years—unlike that of nearly all of his contemporaries. Although their popularity has fluctuated, they have consistently been read and studied through the ages. Through Neoplatonism, he also greatly influenced both Christian and Islamic philosophy. In modern times, Alfred North Whitehead famously said: "the safest general characterization of the European philosophical tradition is that it consists of a series of footnotes to Plato."

Reviews

[tyranus · Rating 3 out of 5]

"kanun nedir ve iyi bir kanunun özellikleri ne olmalıdır" sorusuyla başlıyor kitap. Sokrates ve genç talebesi arasında diyalektik yöntemle (burada soru-cevap bağlamındaki diyalog) bu sorunun yanıtı aranıyor. Günümüzden 2500 yıl önce yazılmış bir kitapta, belki de günümüzdeki yasa tanımından daha ideal bir yasa tanımlıyor. iyi okumalar...

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Law is the discovery of reality"
"whatever is not right we shall decline to call lawful"

Great read. And at the end he gets to the point (often repeated, cf. Alcuin's Rhetoric with Charlemagne, St Augustine letter 118, St Augustine on the happy life, etc) that if we fail to rise to the investigation of higher things, the study of lower things is ultimately useless.

[Truls Ljungström · Rating 5 out of 5]

En mycket kort text om vad Platon menar är grunden för lagar, dvs: det som fungerar. Från detta bygger han en pragmatisk naturrättsmoral, som definierar högre lag som det som fungerar igen och igen. Detta ligger väldigt nära Thomas, och är pragmatiskt sett väldigt tilltalande. Den ligger också nära ortodox teologi, vad gäller synen på bristfällighet som ett slags sjukdomssymptom. Jag rekommenderar denna för de som funderar över politik. Föga förvånande är inte alla överens om att denna djupt sympatiska text faktiskt skrevs av Platon.

[Mia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book! Overall, I enjoy philosophy as a concept, and I have fun "breaking down" the elements of an idea or trying to answer broad questions. However, this can also be really frustrating as there is usually no real or definitive answer.

For me, a lot of the vocabulary in this book was hard (words such as noetic, interlocutors, pugilistic, eristic, and petulant), and I had to stop and look it up to understand its meaning. I also struggled with the introduction to this book, written by Fulton H. Anderson, as the wording was extremely detailed and written in a way that I had never read before. This being said, I think that being introduced to other styles of writing and challenging myself was important.

Now, onto the characters. Firstly, Socrates and Mino are absolutely hilarious sometimes and quibble back and forth about the simplest differences. For instance, the difference between a virtue and virtue and the idea that other concepts, such as form or color, can be categorized as a whole while virtue cannot. My favorite quote about Socrates in this book by Mino is, "You seem to me both in your appearance and in your power over others to be very like a torpedo fish, who torpedoes those who come near him and touch him, as you have torpedoed me, I think" (35 Plato). To this, Socrates replies, "As to my being a torpedo, if the torpedo is torpid as well as the cause of the torpidity in others, then indeed I am a torpedo, but not otherwise" (36).

Additionally, the main question in this book is: What is virtue? Throughout these two philosophers' journey of defining virtue, they make hypotheses about it, and whether it can be taught or not, and at the end of the book, they end up not defining virtue at all. I believe that this was a very interesting and purposeful choice by the author, as it gives the reader background into what virtue is but lets them define it themselves based on the knowledge that they now have.

[Joshua Dew · Rating 3 out of 5]

This short dialogue first makes the distinction between law qua law and its application. Law as it exists as an ideal is the equivalent to Justice, Beauty, and Truth which informs its application but does not necessitate its adoption. Good rulers will, cross-culturally, recognizes the universal nature of Law and choose to apply it. The myth of Minos is used as an example of such a ruler who, in the poems of Homer and Hesiod, is portrayed as conversing every 9 years with Zeus and possessing his golden scepter. Similar archetypal relationships between king and divinity are found throughout antiquity and used as justification for laws and government.

[Favio Villaseñor · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was a fast read, not likely written by plato, as it lack the style and philosophical sophistication that the Dialogues show. but anyway its a nice conversation that tries to define law as something natural and eternal, without much detail or trascendence.

[Santiago González · Rating 3 out of 5]

De todos los diálogos apócrifos/dudosos, es el que más me ha gustado de lo que llevo por ahora (me falta el Primer Alcibíades aún). Es entretenido, el mito de Minos también, trata sobre la justicia, no es muy profundo pero es divertido

[Logan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was full of philosophical platitudes; I didn’t get much out of this. However, it is one of the pseudo platonic works. What I can say is that I am glad it was short, if it was long I would have had to give 1 star.

[Noah McMillen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Socrates tries to define “law.” He comes to the conclusion that it is a discovery of reality instead of something merely agreed upon by the state.

[Steven Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty short and straightforward. Not as engaging as Timaeus or Critias, but still interesting, especially with the debate over whether Plato actually wrote it.

[byte · Rating 2 out of 5]

Feels like a flashback interlude to the greater laws and republic

[Riccardo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Secondo Senofonte, Ippia sosteneva che la legge è sempre storica, in quanto è ciò che, di volta in volta, viene stabilito per legge dagli stessi cittadini, a seconda delle esigenze. Platone invece cerca di rintracciare un fondamento che determini la legge non per convenzione ma per natura: la legge è scienza in quanto scoperta di ciò che è. In quanto tale, la legge deve essere opera di chi sa, ossia il filosofo.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short dialogue asking the question: What is Law? Finishes with a reflection on Minos the king, how poets tarnished his reputation, and how he received his education from Zeus.

[Ethan McGuire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Translation: W.R.M. Lamb’s