Plato had written the Republic (also in Literature and Its Times) by this time, and it was thought that under his guidance the new Sicilian ruler might become the philosopher-king depicted in that dialogue. Things did not go as planned, however; not only were Plato’s proposals and ideas viewed as too radical, but Sicily’s political situation was unstable to the point of being dangerous. The King, in an attempt to consolidate his power, began exiling and then assassinating several members of his court. Amidst this turmoil, the philosopher decided to return home to Athens, where he devoted himself to his Academy until his death at the age of 81. During Plato’s lifetime Athens sank from a great empire to just one of the many Greek city-states jockeying for power. He bore witness to several of its brutal attacks on other city-states, which aggravated his already critical opinion of Athens because of Socrates’ trial and execution. Plato’s experiences in Sicily had confirmed that Athens was not unique in its less-thanscrupulous approach to public affairs. It should come as no surprise, then, that a great number of the 35 dialogues ascribed to him explore the relationship between morality, or virtue, and politics.
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