Plato is perhaps the most significant philosopher who has ever lived and the ''''Republic'''', composed in Athens in about 375BC, is widely regarded as his most famous dialogue. Its discussion of the perfect city - and the perfect mind - laid the foundations for Western culture and, for over two thousand years, has been the cornerstone of Western philosophy. In this book, Simon Blackburn explains the judicial, moral and political ideas in the ''''Republic'''' and examines its influence on the modern world. He shows why, from St Augustine to twentieth - century philosophers such as Whitehead and Bergson, Western thought is still conditioned by this most important of books.

Simon Blackburn is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge. He is the author of Think, Truth and the Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy.