The Republic

Republic was one of only two longer "book-length" texts Plato wrote (the other being Laws, his final work). The title comes from the Latin Res Publica, or "public matters." In Greek, the title was Politeia, meaning "constitution." It was divided into ten books.

In this excerpt from Book II, the philosopher Socrates (who is assumed to be speaking for Plato) is discussing with Adeimantus how a leader should best be educated. In the course of the discussion, he puts forward the argument that poets and dramatists should be restricted in the sorts of stories they are allowed to recount; certain sorts of subjects should be censored.


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