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The day after the conversations of the Republic and the Timaeus, Critias begins to tell a story he says came from Egyptian priests by way of the Athenian…
The day after the conversations of the Republic and the Timaeus, Critias begins to tell a story he says came from Egyptian priests by way of the Athenian statesman Solon: nine thousand years before, a primeval Athens of virtuous citizens fought against Atlantis, a great island empire beyond the Pillars of Hercules. He describes Atlantis in detail, its rings of land and water, its temple to Poseidon, its harbours, canals and kings, and its decline into arrogance; then, just as Zeus gathers the gods to punish it, the dialogue breaks off.
Context and significance
The unfinished Critias is, with the Timaeus, the only ancient source for the legend of Atlantis, which has fascinated readers ever since. Jowett's translation is used here. Read Plato's Republic.
About the author
Plato (c. 428–348 BC) was born into an aristocratic family in Athens and became the devoted student of Socrates. After his teacher's trial and execution in 399 BC, he travelled, returned to Athens and founded the Academy, a school that lasted for centuries and counted Aristotle among its students.
Almost all his writings are dialogues in which Socrates questions his fellow citizens about justice, love, knowledge and the soul, from the Apology to the Symposium and the Republic. Known to Arab philosophers as Aflatun, he was read closely by al-Farabi and Ibn Rushd, and Western philosophy has been called a series of footnotes to him.