Plato's Politeia is one of the most important and influential texts in the history of philosophy. Under the guiding question of justice, Plato rejects traditional views and makes a sophistic criticism; He then develops his doctrine of the three parts of the soul and the doctrine of the four cardinal virtues. He outlines a theory of education, a philosophy of the state with the theory of the rule of philosophers, a theory of knowledge and the theory of ideas. Above all, however, the Politeia contains Plato's most famous parables: of the sun, the line and the cave. In the form of a cooperative commentary, recognized interpreters of Plato, following the structure of the work, introduce the main themes of the Politeia and the most important research problems.
