The Greek philosopher we all know as Plato wasn't actually named Plato. The birth name given to him by his wealthy Athenian parents was Aristocles. In his school days he received the nickname "Plato" (meaning "broad") for his broad shoulders. Plato was born around 428 B.C. and died around 347 B.C. Plato saw war service between 409 and 404 B.C. during the Peloponnesian War and he won a medal for bravery. After the war he had political ambitions, but he was never really sympathetic to the Athenian democracy so he could not join it wholeheartedly. He became a devoted follower of Socrates at 409 B.C. When Socrates was executed for corrupting the young of Athens and for disbelieving in the gods of the city, Plato withdrew from public life and fled. He left believing that until "Kings were Philosophers and Philosophers were Kings" things would never go well in the world.
Detail of The School of Athens by Raffaello Sanzio...
PLATO_June_29_2005
English: The School of Athens (detail). Fresco, St...For several years he traveled around the citied of Greek, Africa, and Italy, finally returning to Athens in 387 B.C. Supposedly when Plato was enroute back to Athens, he was captured by pirates and held for ransom. When he returned he devoted himself to philosophy. Plato then established a school which he named "The Academy" because his school was founded on the grounds of a once legendary Greek called Academus. At his academy he became the mentor of the great Greek Philosopher Aristotles. Plato primarily stayed at the Academy until his death at about 347 B.C.
Plato is considered the best known Greek Philosopher. Plato's areas of concentration in philosophy are the metaphysics, epistemology. You could also add ethics to one of his areas of concentration but since ethics concerns how one ought to live and focuses on pleasure, virtue, and happiness. So according to Plato, virtue and...