Clumsy, pretentious opening. No serious, independent thinker would lean on The Closing of the American Mind. Bloom wrote a powerful, provocative book, but it suffered from its own clumsy class pretentions, and Bloom's worship of Nazi Martin Heidegger (which Bloom's fans ignored, and critics failed to notice or grasp). "I'm not a philosopher, but I play one for NewsMax."
The best-known book of Plato-Socrates, written by Plato, since Socrates did not write but expressed himself orally, describes the ideal State and hence is entitled "The State," mistranslated into English as "The Republic," though "republic" is a Latin, not Greek, word that appeared after Plato’s death.
Dunce. The works were by Plato, who at times quotes Socrates, but at other times put his own words in Socrates' mouth. The Republic is one of Plato's books least influenced by Socrates. Why? Because Socrates never professed to have answers, only questions. But The Republic claims to have ALL the answers.
The ideal State of Plato-Socrates resembles the tyrannical Sparta, a mortal enemy of Athenian democracy, but this ideal State of Plato-Socrates is far more Spartan than Sparta. It is a countrywide cattle-breeding farm on which pedigree human cattle are raised.
Yeah, and it's Plato's ideal, not that of Socrates. I wonder if this mook even bothered READING Plato, or if he just skimmed Bloom.
The author is not leaning on Bloom; he's criticizing him in a way for placing the greatest of emphasis on the Greeks. This is a Christmas piece that castigates the excesses of modernism, whether before or after Christ.
I agree with you The Republic should not be attributed to the historical Socrates, but that error is incidental to the meaning of the piece.
In the course of Western Civilization, there have been two trials ending in a sentence of death imposed upon two individuals later deemed grossly unfair and unjust by the verdict of history. One trial was that of Jesus Christ, the other that of Socrates.
Of course, it can be said with justification that each man steered a course that ended with a fatal termination from the power structure of the time.
It was Jesus' destiny.
It was Socrates' choice.