Lecture, Barnard's Inn Hall, Thursday, 19 Oct 2023 - 18:00

Plato and the Idea of Political Office

Statue of Plato

Have a Question? No Registration Required https://app.sli.do/event/wmH9gLS1yaP6AWW7ANLgc2

Is politics merely a gaslighting of the oppressed, a cloak for the rulers to exploit the ruled? Plato’s Republic confronted the challenges of political office (archē). By working through the ideas of this dialogue and comparing them to the present day, the lecture offers a new way of understanding the role of officeholders and the ethical demands placed on them. It argues that Plato took the risk of abuse of power far more seriously than has been generally recognised.

Professor Melissa Lane

Professor Melissa Lane

Gresham Professor of Rhetoric

Melissa Lane is the Class of 1943 Professor of Politics, Princeton University and is also Associated Faculty in the Department of Classics and Department of...

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