Laches is one of Plato´s early dialogues and part of a series of dialogues in which Socrates discusses the requirements for a successful life. Here, Socrates converses with two important Athenian generals, Laches and Nikias, in search of the answer to the question: What is the essence of courage? Jörg Hardy has written an exhaustive commentary on this work and puts this dialogue in the context of Plato´s complete works, paying particular attention to the historical background and discussing the individual sections in great detail.