PLATO: A Very Short Introduction by Julia Annas. Oxford University Press, 2003. Pp. 104. (B395.A646).

his little book is weighty, but easy to read. The author is a member and lay leader at St. Philip's In The Hills Parish. Julia Annas, Regents Professor in philosophy at the University of Arizona, is a graduate of Oxford with a Ph.D. from Harvard. She has lectured at Oxford and taught at Columbia University.

Julia Annas has the tools of seven languages with which to probe the riches of ancient minds. Plato wrestled with a variety of philosophical problems, e.g. virtue, love and philosophy. Particularly interesting are Plato's arguments on soul and body.

In Theaetetus Annus reminds us that Plato taught that we should be as much like god as possible in terms of becoming just, and pious and understanding. "God is purely good, wholly without evil (unlike the traditional Greek gods), and to become like god is to aspire to get as near to perfection as a human can." (P. 58).

Annas has the talent to weave Plato's Republic, Symposium, Phaedrus, Apology, Crito, and other works, into the tapestry of her book. It is a great review for the student who was introduced to the classics half a century ago.

This is one among many published works by Julia Annas and is located in the Renouf - Nelson Library (Ocotillo Room). It is posted on the library's link to the St. Philip's web site.

…The Library Committee