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Overview
Laches is a Socratic dialogue by Plato that was composed in Plato’s early period, around 380 BCE
. While it is ostensibly concerned with defining the virtue of courage, in the end it serves to deliver a familiar lesson of all Socratic dialogues: that even wise people (including Socrates himself) ultimately have no knowledge.Throughout Laches, two distinguished generals—Laches and Nicias—take turns attempting to define the nature of courage while Socrates mediates and responds. Socrates refutes each of their arguments and proves that none of them can define courage. In the end, Socrates suggests that they all go back to school.
Read the free full text of the work, the overall summary, explanations of important quotes, and three Question & Answers about key ideas in from Laches. Or, learn more by studying SparkNotes guides to other works by Plato.
