Memorabilia and Oeconomicus: v. 4 (Loeb Classical Library) - Hardcover

MemorabiliaXenophon (c. 430 c. 354 BCE) adds to Plato s picture of Socrates from a different viewpoint. The Apology complements Plato s account of Socrates defense at his trial. The Symposium portrays a dinner party at which Socrates speaks of love. In Oeconomicus Socrates advises on household management and married life.

In "Memorabilia" or "Memoirs of Socrates" and in "Oeconomicus," a dialogue about household management, we see the philosopher through Xenophon's eyes. Here, and in the accompanying "Symposium" we also obtain insight on life in Athens. The volume concludes with Xenophon's "Apology," an interesting complement to Plato's account of Socrates' defense at his trial. Ostensibly an account of a dinner party in the summer of 421 BCE, Xenophon's "Symposium" is a vibrant picture of an Athenian evening of quiet entertainment and conversation. Among the guests Socrates is the central figure, and as in Plato's "Symposium" love is the main subject of debate. But the style here is more relaxed and less artful than in Plato's philosophical dialogue, yielding an engaging portrait of Socrates and of Athenian social life.