<p>I'm considering buying Aristotle's "The Politics" and Plato's "The Republic". Has anyone read these books, what do you think of them?</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>I read both of them. I liked the "republic" better than the "politics". </p>
<p>Which translation are you buying? And why buy them, you can find them on google.</p>
<p>Why are you buying them? I think that will help answer your question. Both are great books that aren't all that difficult to understand. I would advise against starting with the Physics or some other philosophers like Hegel.</p>
<p>What do you think of "The Odyssey of Homer" and "The Prince"?</p>
<p>hmm - I'm partial to the Aeneid by Virgil myself. Its a great book if you can find a good translation that hasn't been mutilated to make the english sound like poetry. It just doesn't translate well that way. </p>
<p>The Odyssey is all right though, even though it is the quintessential high school classics book.</p>
<p>Here's what I've got:
1984- <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0451524934/ref=ord_cart_shr/104-7271852-6690365?%5Fencoding=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance%5B/url%5D">http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0451524934/ref=ord_cart_shr/104-7271852-6690365?%5Fencoding=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance</a></p>
<p>The Republic is more essential than the Politics, but both are great. The Republic is really hard to understand, REALLY. It's fairly easy to grasp the basics from it, though, especially with some help from someone whos read it many times and has read criticism and other texts by Plato. You can find these online, but I like owning books, and they aren't expensive. You can write in books if that's your thing, and it's just more satisfying than writing on the screen. And cheaper.</p>
<p>Aristotle's Ethics might be more comparable to the republic than politics.....</p>
<p>My brother studied Greek and Roman texts for awhile in college, and he tells me that buying a companion to the book is often the best way to help yourself understand what's being said--beyond just the basics. </p>
<p>Try running a search at amazon.com with the word "companion" and the book title in it, if you're interested.</p>
<p>i enjoyed the politcs much more than the republic. however, if youre looking to really get into philosophy, both are kinda necessary. for me, realism over idealism any day. go aristotle.</p>
<p>out of all of those, The Prince was the most interesting for me. you can see how these "principles" appear in modern politics and it's kind of scary.</p>
<p>i read the republic a while back, and it was fantastic, really gives you quite a bit of insight into plat's mind. so i'd most definitely suggest it.</p>