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The Republic — Page 1

English → Spanish INTRODUCTION AND ANALYSIS. Level 9/10

The Republic of Plato is the longest of his works with the exception of the Laws, and is certainly the greatest of them.

La República de Platón es la más extensa de sus obras, con la excepción de las Leyes, y es sin duda la más grande de todas ellas.

There are nearer approaches to modern metaphysics in the Philebus and in the Sophist; the Politicus or Statesman is more ideal; the form and institutions of the State are more clearly drawn out in the Laws; as works of art, the Symposium and the Protagoras are of higher excellence.

Hay aproximaciones más cercanas a la metafísica moderna en el Filebo y en el Sofista; el Político o Estadista es más ideal; la forma y las instituciones del Estado están más claramente desarrolladas en las Leyes; como obras de arte, el Simposio y el Protágoras son de mayor excelencia.

But no other Dialogue of Plato has the same largeness of view and the same perfection of style; no other shows an equal knowledge of the world, or contains more of those thoughts which are new as well as old, and not of one age only but of all.

Pero ningún otro Diálogo de Platón posee la misma amplitud de visión y la misma perfección de estilo; ningún otro muestra un conocimiento igual del mundo, ni contiene más de aquellos pensamientos que son tan nuevos como antiguos, y que no pertenecen a una sola época sino a todas.

Nowhere in Plato is there a deeper irony or a greater wealth of humour or imagery, or more dramatic power.

En ningún otro lugar de Platón se encuentra una ironía más profunda, ni una mayor riqueza de humor o de imágenes, ni un poder dramático más intenso.

Nor in any other of his writings is the attempt made to interweave life and speculation, or to connect politics with philosophy.

Tampoco en ningún otro de sus escritos se realiza el intento de entrelazar la vida y la especulación, o de vincular la política con la filosofía.

The Republic is the centre around which the other Dialogues may be grouped; here philosophy reaches the highest point (cp, especially in Books V, VI, VII) to which ancient thinkers ever attained.

La República es el centro en torno al cual pueden agruparse los demás Diálogos; aquí la filosofía alcanza el punto más alto (cf., especialmente en los Libros V, VI, VII) al que jamás llegaron los pensadores antiguos.

Plato among the Greeks, like Bacon among the moderns, was the first who conceived a method of knowledge, although neither of them always distinguished the bare outline or form from the substance of truth; and both of them had to be content with an abstraction of science which was not yet realized.

Platón entre los griegos, al igual que Bacon entre los modernos, fue el primero en concebir un método del conocimiento, aunque ninguno de los dos distinguió siempre el esquema o la forma escueta de la sustancia de la verdad; y ambos tuvieron que conformarse con una abstracción de la ciencia que aún no había sido realizada.

Vocabulary

República
Republic; a form of democratic government
Platón
Plato; ancient Greek philosopher
más
Adverb meaning 'more' or 'most'
extensa
Extensive or lengthy in scope or length
obras
Works; literary, artistic, or philosophical creations
excepción
Exception; something excluded from a general rule
Leyes
Laws; rules established by authority or custom
duda
Doubt; uncertainty about something
grande
Great or large in size, importance, or quality
Hay
There is or there are; indicates existence
aproximaciones
Approximations; approaches or close representations of something
cercanas
Close or near in relation to something else
metafísica
Metaphysics; branch of philosophy studying fundamental reality
moderna
Modern; relating to the present or recent times
Filebo
Philebus; a philosophical dialogue by Plato
Sofista
Sophist; a philosopher or one who uses clever arguments
Político
Political; relating to politics or statecraft
Estadista
Statesman; a skilled and respected political leader
ideal
Ideal; representing the best possible standard
forma
Form; shape, structure, or manner of something
instituciones
Institutions; established organizations or social structures
Estado
State; a politically organized community or government
claramente
Clearly; in a way that is easy to understand
desarrolladas
Developed; elaborated or worked out in detail
arte
Art; creative expression or skilled craft
Simposio
Symposium; Plato's dialogue on the nature of love
Protágoras
Protagoras; a Platonic dialogue about virtue and sophistry
mayor
Greater or higher in degree, size, or importance
excelencia
Excellence; outstanding quality or superiority
ningún
No or not any; negates the noun it modifies
Diálogo
Dialogue; a conversation or philosophical written discussion
posee
Possesses; has or owns something
amplitud
Breadth or scope; wide range of coverage
visión
Vision; the ability to see or a broad perspective
perfección
Perfection; the state of being flawless or ideal
estilo
Style; a distinctive manner of expression or form
muestra
Shows or demonstrates; displays evidence of something
conocimiento
Knowledge; understanding or awareness of something
igual
Equal; the same in quantity, quality, or degree
mundo
World; the earth or human society at large
ni
Nor; negative conjunction connecting two alternatives
contiene
Contains; holds or includes something within itself
aquellos
Those; refers to distant or previously mentioned things
pensamientos
Thoughts; ideas or reflections formed in the mind
tan
So or as; used in comparisons of degree
antiguos
Ancient or old; belonging to a remote past
pertenecen
Belong; are part of or associated with something
sola
Alone or single; only one, without others
época
Era or epoch; a distinct period of history
sino
But rather; used to introduce a contrasting idea
lugar
Place; a specific location or position
encuentra
Finds or is found; encounters or is located
ironía
Irony; expressing meaning opposite to literal words
profunda
Deep or profound; having great depth or intensity
riqueza
Richness or wealth; abundance of valuable qualities
humor
Humor; quality of being amusing or comical
imágenes
Images; mental or visual representations of things
poder
Power; ability, force, or authority over something
dramático
Dramatic; striking, intense, or relating to drama
intenso
Intense; extreme in strength, degree, or feeling
Tampoco
Neither or not either; negative addition to a statement
escritos
Writings; texts or documents that have been written
realiza
Carries out or performs; accomplishes an action
intento
Attempt; an effort to do or achieve something
entrelazar
To intertwine or weave together different elements
vida
Life; the state of being alive or one's existence
especulación
Speculation; abstract reasoning or theoretical thinking
vincular
To link or connect; to establish a bond between things
política
Politics; activities relating to governance and power
filosofía
Philosophy; study of fundamental questions about existence
centro
Center; the middle point around which things gather
torno
Around; used in 'en torno a' meaning 'around'
cual
Which; relative pronoun referring to a thing or idea
agruparse
To group together; to gather around a common point
demás
The rest or the others; remaining members of a group
Diálogos
Dialogues; Plato's philosophical conversational writings
alcanza
Reaches or attains; achieves a level or goal
punto
Point; a specific moment, place, or level
alto
High; elevated in position, level, or quality
especialmente
Especially; to a greater degree than usual
Libros
Books; major divisions of a long written work
jamás
Never; at no time, used for strong negation
llegaron
Arrived or reached; past tense of 'llegar'
pensadores
Thinkers; people who engage in deep intellectual thought
griegos
Greeks; people from or relating to ancient Greece
modernos
Modern ones; people or things of the modern era
primero
First; the one coming before all others
concebir
To conceive; to form or develop an idea mentally
método
Method; a systematic procedure for achieving a goal
aunque
Although or even though; introduces a concession
ninguno
None or neither; not one of a group
distinguió
Distinguished; told apart or differentiated clearly
siempre
Always; at all times without exception
esquema
Scheme or outline; a structured plan or diagram
escueta
Concise or bare; stripped down without extra detail
sustancia
Substance; essential matter or underlying reality
verdad
Truth; the quality of being in accordance with reality
ambos
Both; referring to two things or people together
tuvieron
Had; third person plural past tense of 'tener'
conformarse
To conform or be content; to settle for something
abstracción
Abstraction; a concept detached from concrete reality
ciencia
Science; systematic study of the natural world
aún
Still or yet; indicates something continues or remains
había
Had; imperfect form of 'haber' indicating past state
realizada
Realized or carried out; completed or made actual
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