George Grote

Plato and the Other Companions of Sokrates is a three-volume inquiry combining close philology with lucid, argumentative prose. Grote reconstructs the late fifth-early fourth-century Athenian milieu, reading not only Plato's Protagoras, Gorgias, Parmenides, Theaetetus, and more, but also the Socratic schools-Xenophon, Antisthenes, Aeschines, Aristippus, and the Megarians. He separates the historical Sokrates' elenchus from Plato's evolving doctrines, scrutinizes authenticity and chronology, and rehabilitates the Sophists as serious theorists within democratic culture.
A banker-turned-historian and Radical MP, Grote brought to this project the empirical temper that shaped his History of Greece and his Benthamite allegiance to analysis over dogma. Allied with James and John Stuart Mill and seasoned by decades of self-directed Greek study, he sought to restore Plato and Sokrates to their civic, argumentative setting and to resist idealizing, Neoplatonic readings. Scholars of classics, philosophy, and intellectual history will value its exacting argument and historical poise.
Read it as a rigorous map through the dialogues and as a measured portrait of Socratic companions-a bracing counterweight to metaphysical gloss and a durable guide to Plato in his city. Quickie Classics summarizes timeless works with precision, preserving the author's voice and keeping the prose clear, fast, and readable-distilled, never diluted. Enriched Edition extras: Introduction · Synopsis · Historical Context · Brief Analysis · 4 Reflection Q&As · Editorial Footnotes.