Theaetetus (Focus Philosophical Library) 1st Edition, Kindle Edition

Purchased for a class, so I didn't have much choice about what I was getting. Still, the text was clear and the introductory material helped make sense of the text.

I initially began this dialogue with the Bernardete translation, and while it was comprehensible, it sapped a lot of strength out of me and required two slow readings per page to untangle the odd English, never mind the fact that you're grappling with the foundational concepts of epistemology. Reading Sachs' translation was a great relief. I began by diving into a difficult passage in the Bernardete translation, consulted the Sachs translation for clarification, and eventually abandoned Bernardete's for Sachs'. I just didn't see the point in wrestling with unnecessarily opaque English. Not knowing Greek, I can't comment on the accuracy of the translation, but it contains the same potency of Bernardete's (which is revered for its accuracy) minus the obtuse wording of, well, everything. If, like me, you don't know Greek but want a scholarly approach to this dialogue, go with Sachs. If you want to wrestle with odd syntax and wording, learn Greek and read it in the original.

Plato's Theaetetus is a difficult and complex dialogue. "What is knowledge?", Socrates asks a Stranger, the rest is history. If you are looking for the Theaetetus you likely know it enough, but if not, I highly recommend it; it is short and readable despite the rigorous intensity Plato writes.Translation: Joe Sachs does an admirable job with this translation. It is accurate (a great aid to reading it in Greek) but still readable. Plato comes through crystal clear and you can spend your time studying him instead of wading through translator paraphrase and bias.Aesthetics: It's a pretty book. The text is laid well and is a good size; a little small, but that shouldn't be a big deal. The Stephanus numbers are in the margins which allows for easy reference and placemarking.Durability: Fairly good. Focus Publishers bind their books well (not as well as Green Lion but well enough) so in general, if you treat the book right it endures. This book is small so if you're not careful, you will break the spine so watch out. Stiffening the covers (contact paper or Kapco library binding) is a great idea for all paperback books.Price: For a translation of this caliber the price is very, very good, even if you choose to purchase it new. You will not (or should not) regret buying it.

Needed this book for class, but I'm excited to read it!

I cannot understand why people write that this is very readable. The sentences at times are interminable, which always makes for hard reading. At random, I found a long paragraph on page 53. The first sentence had 145 words. Try reading that. If Socrates had really spoken like this, it would be understandable that they'd kill him.