The Best Translation of Phaedrus
Phaedrus was written in Ancient Greek. 2 recommended editions, ranked — with Gröblé’s verdict on which to read first.
Robin Waterfield
Oxford World's Classics · 2002 · 176 pages
Waterfield reads fluently and the Oxford notes do a lot of work, especially on the rhetoric stuff in the back half. Lighter on philosophical precision than Nehamas-Woodruff, easier to actually finish.
Every recommended edition, compared
Alexander Nehamas and Paul Woodruff
Hackett Publishing · 1995 · 144 pages
Nehamas and Woodruff is the philosophy-department version. Tight terminology, an introduction that's one of the best short essays on the dialogue, and the argument tracks line by line. Worth the extra friction if you're chasing Plato's actual moves.
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Reading Phaedrus in translation
Phaedrus was written in Ancient Greek, so unless you read Ancient Greek, the translator decides the book you actually experience — its register, its pace, how it sounds read aloud. Two editions of the same work can feel like different books.
The ranking above is Gröblé’s: one reader’s verdict on which English gets you closest, not a publisher’s blurb. Start with the top pick; reach for the others when you want a different angle on the original.