The Apology of Socrates by Plato is the earliest work by him that we have—meaning that it is quite literally the oldest surviving document of Greek philosophy we have. Everything earlier was lost and is known only through quoted fragments in later works, like those of Plato himself. Socrates substantially refounded philosophy, and the Apology is still, by itself, perhaps the finest introduction to Western philosophy there is.
How does man distinguish right from wrong? What does it mean to be good? Or bad? How can we create a just society? Is it even possible?
These are the questions Plato sought to answer in his timeless exploration of moral and political philosophy, The Apology of Socrates.
In the course of its brilliantly rational Socratic dialogues, The Apology accomplishes nothing less than a complete dissection of the human soul.
Published in hundreds of editions and translated into virtually every modern language, it has not been out of print since the fourth century, BC.