The Republic by Plato, translated by Francis MacDonald Cornford

In his youth, Plato became closely attached to Socrates, the one man in Athens who, among war and revolution, stood aloof from active life to inquire what men should live for. Under this influence, Plato’s thought was chiefly bent on the question of how society could be reshaped so that man could realize the best that is in him. This is the theme of his central work, The Republic.