Psyche vs Φαίδων: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Soul, Immortality, Religion
Psyche
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THIS book offers an account of the opinions held by the Greeks about the life of the human soul after death, and is thus intended as a contribution to the history of Greek religion. Such an undertaking has in a special…
Φαίδων
“PERSONS OF THE DIALOGUE: Phaedo, who is the narrator of the dialogue to Echecrates of Phlius.”
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After an interval of some months or years, and at Phlius, a town of Peloponnesus, the tale of the last hours of Socrates is narrated to Echecrates and other Phliasians by Phaedo the 'beloved disciple.' The Dialogue…
Side by side
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- Φαίδων is the quickest read — about 3 hours vs 11 for Psyche.
- Φαίδων has the widest readership — 17232 ratings behind its score.
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How to choose
Scores by source
| Psyche | Φαίδων | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.4 (78) | 4.1 (17232) |
| Hardcover | 5.0 (1) | — |
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Reception
| Psyche | Φαίδων | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 78 | 17232 |
| Editions | 12 | 291 |
| Citations | 24 | — |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | 429 | — |
| Reading it now | 17 | — |
| Written reviews | 7 | 5 |
| Wikipedia attention | 1609 | 5092 |
| Pages | 626 | 198 |
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Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: Psyche or Φαίδων?
Psyche has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Psyche 4.2/5, Φαίδων 4.1/5).
Which is shorter to read: Psyche or Φαίδων?
Φαίδων is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Φαίδων (198 pages, ≈ 3 h 40 m); Psyche (626 pages, ≈ 11 h 36 m).
Which is harder to read: Psyche or Φαίδων?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Psyche: Challenging; Φαίδων: Demanding.