Plato is often reproached for having a distorted view of democracy due to prejudice and an
elitist philosophical approach. Such objections are not utterly groundless but they miss the
gist of the matter. One of the main aims of this study is to show that while conceiving his
critique of democracy Plato has a clear perception of its development and elements. A further
objective is to demonstrate how he draws on democratic ideology to advance his own political
theory. Accordingly this book will expose numerous intertextual connections of Plato with
other authors of this epoch. The first and greater part of this study reveals how in the
Gorgias Plato gives a detailed account on the process of democratic man's transformation into
tyrannical man. The second part examines the parallels between this dialogue and the Republic.
Thus Plato's intimate knowledge of democratic ideology shows that his criticism of phenomena
such as absolute freedom demagoguery (populism) glorification of power traditional politics
etc. remains relevant.
