...The Republic There is no doubt that The Republic by Plato has helped developed the foundation of ethics. Since the main theme of The Republic is focused on the nature of Justice, it is ideal to say that ethics, which is based on the principles of regulating the distribution of social benefits and its burdens deals directly with the issue of what is fairness or not in our society(Norman, 83). Plato makes a lot of interesting arguments in The Republic regarding the issues of ethics. Plato was more focused on debunking theories that have been promoted by Cephalus, Thrasymachus, and Glaucon. Because Plato believed that their theories are focused on a single component, and that is they considered justice as something external. In other words, they perceive justice as an achievement or a convention they have, none of them carried it into the soul or considered it in place of its habitation (Bhandari). And in making his case, Plato argued that justice does not depend upon a chance, convention or upon external force. He sees it as the right condition of the human soul by the very nature of man when seen in the fullness of his environment. For Plato, this observation is important because justice is internal since it resides within the soul. First, the part I find fascinating relates to the reconciliation of nature and convention. I do believe this argument is vulnerable because, if justice is indeed comparable to health, then moral virtuousness should be something that we need just...
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...The Republic penned by Plato in 380 BC provides an interpretation and information regarding the different dimensions of the society and the ways through which justice, forms of government and theory of universals can be explained. It is primarily on the basis of these themes using which Plato has been able to publish and base his one of the most prominent works written in the field of philosophy and social justice. In addition to this it is also important to mention here that the Republic is basically a Socratic dialogue based on the conversations that Socrates had with his ideologues which have been narrated by Plato. During the course of this discussion we will be looking at some of the fundamental themes that have been discussed in this work and the nature of message and idea that they intend to deliver to us through them. Definition of Justice This particular theme of defining justice has been provided in the first book in which Socrates provides two definitions of justice but both are deemed as inadequate and irrelevant. Some of the generic definitions that are provided regarding justice are the fact that must return the debts he owned from somebody and he must help his friends in time of need while trying to harm his enemies. Towards the end of the first book Socrates in his dialogue does agree with the notion presented by Polemarchus that justice includes helping friends, however, Socrates was of the opinion that a man of justice would not think of harming anyone...
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...laws. Virtues also mold the individual outlook on life, and give them the moral’s to do what is right. In The Republic, Plato divides the city into three classes: gold, silver, as well as bronze and iron souls. Each class is designated to posses a specific virtue. He believes that wisdom, courage, moderation, and justice combine together to form The Republic. However, Plato’s four virtues individually do not necessarily produce a utopian society. A combination of the four in each citizen is imperative in producing the ideal society. In Plato’s search for the perfect “republic”, he decides that the basis of the city will be on four virtues. The first of them is wisdom. Plato defines wisdom, in Greek terms “Sophia”, as knowledge of the city as a whole. Of the three classes, the gold souls posses the virtue of wisdom. The gold souls are the only class whose knowledge goes beyond the mere facts to the level of true wisdom. “…This class, which properly has a share in that knowledge which alone among the various kinds of knowledge ought to be called wisdom, has, as it seems, the fewest members by nature” (429a). The second virtue that Plato defines is courage, which in Greek terms is “Andreia”. Courage is the preservation of the opinion produced by law, through education about what things are terrible, and what things are good. Courage can be found in the silver souls. Plato uses the example that when dyers want to dye wool, they start with the background. They need the right kind of...
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...Research Paper on a Philosopher Plato Valerie Jenter Centenary College April 24, 2012 Abstract Many Philosophers made a difference in society but Plato is perhaps recognized as the most famous. His writings have had a profound effect on people, politics, and the philosophy throughout the centuries. He was a public figure and he made major contributions to society. Plato helped to lay the philosophical foundations of modern culture through his ideas and writings. One of the most philosophical thinkers of Western civilization, Plato is the only author from ancient Greek times whose writings survive intact. His collection consists of thirty-five dialogues and thirteen letters, though the authorship of some is contested. Plato was born in Athens, into a prosperous aristocratic family. His Father’s name was Ariston and his Mother’s name was Perictione. His relative named Glaucon was one of the best-known members of the Athenian nobility. Plato's name was Aristocles, his nickname Plato originates from wrestling circles, Plato means broad, and it probably refers either to his physical appearance or his wrestling style. “Plato is, by any reckoning, one of the most dazzling writers in the Western literary tradition and one of the most penetrating, wide-ranging, and influential authors in the history of philosophy,” (Kraut, 2009). Plato was born during the Golden Age of Athens’s...
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...can you highlight which portion seems to be structurally weak so that I could correct it, Thank You! The great Greek philosopher Plato presented the simile of the divided line in the end of version VI of his book Republic. In the book Republic, version VI and VII Socrates repeatedly rejected that he recognized the form of the good nevertheless the fact that he labeled it as the most significant thing to try to recognize because this is where everything that is moral becomes its value and returns from. The good is to be identified with pleasure not with the knowledge. These rejections did not dishearten Glaucon from unrelenting Socrates for his own views about the good. Socrates straightaway recapped Glaucon of the dissimilarity between the many beautiful and many good things on the one hand and the beautiful itself as well as the good itself on the other hand. To see things light is needed which is get from the Sun while Sun is not sight itself and it is accountable for vision, so Sun is similar to the Good. It is a fact that the Good views in the intelligible realm to the intelligence and the substances known to us in the visible realm to the sun stands to vision and the things humans see. Socrates has suggested that the Sun is responsible for the visibility of the objects and it is the reason which gives power to the eyes to see. (Jowett) Plato explained the visible world as the apparent physical substances as well as their pictures which we make in our minds and in our paintings...
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...In the book, “The Republic” Plato, one of the most prominent philosophers of ancient Greek history makes his claim about life through various methods. Throughout the book Plato tries to explain the idea of which life is better based on the morals the individual holds. In the book IX of The Republic Plato uses the characters Socrates and Glaucon, to elucidate his point about life. Furthermore throughout the book Plato uses Socrates to create allusions. These allusions would captivate the mind and clarify the point he is trying to get across to the reader. In this passage in book IX I feel Plato is posing a question to the reader. Which is truly worth living? I got this question when Socrates says the “the lives themselves dispute…about which...
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...In Plato’s Republic, Socrates is describing the ideal system under which people ought to be educated under to have balance between the three tiers of the soul, with those being the spirited, appetitive, and rational parts. He goes into detail about how some aspects of education must be censored as to not skew people’s spirits out of balance. To critique Plato’s proposals for censorship, first we must outline his plans for education and analyze his proposal for education in his emulation of the “perfect city”. The basic guidelines Socrates provides for governing the education of children and adults are mostly all encompassing. Such rules include the redacted mythology and epics, studying mathematics, geometry, philosophical literature, partaking...
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...Plato was born around the year 428 BCE in Athens. His father died while Plato was young, and his mother remarried to Pyrilampes, in whose house Plato would grow up. Plato's birth name was Aristocles, and he gained the nickname Platon, meaning broad, because of his broad build. His family had a history in politics, and Plato was destined to a life in keeping with this history. He studied at a gymnasium owned by Dionysios, and at the palaistra of Ariston of Argos. When he was young he studied music and poetry. According to Aristotle, Plato developed the foundations of his metaphysics and epistemology by studying the doctrines of Cratylus, and the work of Pythagoras and Parmenides. When Plato met Socrates, however, he had met his definitive teacher. As Socrates' disciple, Plato adopted his philosophy and style of debate, and directed his studies toward the question of virtue and the formation of a noble character. Plato was in military service from 409 BC to 404 BC. When the Peloponnesian War ended in 404 BC he joined the Athenian oligarchy of the Thirty Tyrants, one of whose leaders was his uncle Charmides. The violence of this group quickly prompted Plato to leave it. In 403 BC, when democracy was restored in Athens, he had hopes of pursuing his original goal of a political career. Socrates' execution in 399 BC had a profound effect on Plato, and was perhaps the final event that would convince him to leave Athenian politics forever. Plato left Attica along with other friends...
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...in the 17th century, who was best known for his book Leviathan and his political views on society. Plato, an ancient Greek philosopher, who was a student of Socrates and a teacher of Aristotle, explored justice, beauty, and equality, and among many other topics. There are many common topics available to compare and contrast Thomas Hobbes and Plato. Although one point that has to be made clear is that, they share similar ideologies. Between Plato and Hobbes, there are many differences, however one of these differences is the result in how each writer perceives human beings and their roles within the state and society. Both have radically opposing views on human nature in general; because of the fundamental...
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...Punishment In Plato’s The Republic, Socrates has many conversations with people in order to further understand concepts such as justice and the way things are ideally supposed to be done. When I think about justice the definition that comes to mind is: the administration of a just action because of an unjust or immoral act being done by a human or group of humans. The issue of proper punishment has also been discussed in those conversations with Socrates and his peers. There must be a punishment for immoral or unjust actions committed by any human otherwise everything in our world would turn into complete chaos. In Socrates’s time people believed heavily in the afterlife and that his or her actions on Earth determined the quality of that life. The gods played a huge role in deciding the fates of everyone depending on how one lived while one was alive. If one lived an unjust and reckless life then it will show because the gods in one’s afterlife will punish him or her. Socrates states, “…bad people are wretched because they are in need of punishment, and that in paying the penalty they are benefited by that god.” There is a problem with waiting until the afterlife for people to be punished because then there would be no order in society. Bad people who are actually bad can get away with living well in the afterlife because during their Earthly life they gained enough wealth to pay the gods to give them a good afterlife. Meanwhile the good people of the world who did a bad...
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...Unlike his mentor Socrates, Plato was both a writer and a teacher. His writings are in the form of dialogues, with Socrates as the principal speaker. In the Allegory of the Cave, Plato described symbolically the predicament in which mankind finds itself and proposes a way of salvation. The Allegory presents, in brief form, most of Plato's major philosophical assumptions: his belief that the world revealed by our senses is not the real world but only a poor copy of it, and that the real world can only be apprehended intellectually; his idea that knowledge cannot be transferred from teacher to student, but rather that education consists in directing student's minds toward what is real and important and allowing them to apprehend it for themselves; his faith that the universe ultimately is good; his conviction that enlightened individuals have an obligation to the rest of society, and that a good society must be one in which the truly wise (the Philosopher-King) are the rulers. The Allegory of the Cave can be found in Book VII of Plato's best-known work, The Republic, a lengthy dialogue on the nature of justice. Often regarded as a utopian blueprint, The Republic is dedicated toward a discussion of the education required of a Philosopher-King. The following selection is taken from the Benjamin Jowett translation (Vintage, 1991), pp. 253-261. As you read the Allegory, try to make a mental picture of the cave Plato describes. Better yet, why not draw a picture of it and refer...
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...the demand for entertainment and amusement began to increase. This is significant because media has a powerful influence on society and affects how we dress, act, and think. In The Republic by Plato, Socrates argues against Thrasymachus’ idea that "Obedience to the interest of the stronger" will lead to a successful tyranny. Socrates believes that "justice is the excellence of the soul,” and that benevolence is the key to a successful state. Yet humans embody not only Apollo, the god of the sun, of dreams, and of reason but also, Dionysus, the god of wine, ecstasy and intoxication, both sons of Zeus. In Plutarch’s Moralia, it is suggested that the state allows society to live for their pleasure so that the state gains the power to control them. We are fighting a constant battle between the rational principle of the soul and the irrational or appetite. The state is determined to keep feeding the Dionysus in each of us in order to continue to control us. The music industry is a tool that is used to influence the youth to indulge in their desires through songs about violence, sex, misogyny and drug use. In the Socratic dialogue in The Republic, Adeimantus, son of Ariston of Athens, proposes the idea that “any musical innovation is full of danger to the whole State, and ought to be prohibited. Plato informs us that “when modes of music change, of the state always changes with them.” Adeimantus is known for his concern for the education system and the affect it has on our youth....
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...Many have proclaimed that Plato is making normative claims whereas, Thucydides is making empirical claim. I will address Thucydides versus Plato on the nature of the Good Life, as well as the truth about Thucydides. Thucydides and Plato have different views in their approach to the good life. Thucydides empirical claims , and dismissal of “right & justice” is best known from his famous writings “ The Peloponnesian war.” Whereas, Plato’s normative claims is best known in his writings in “The Republic.” In the Republic Plato states that the proper function of a man is his soul, to live with justice and obtain a harmonious life. The basic concept of Plato's theory about the good life is built on the concept that everything has a purpose, a job, a function. Plato believed that a man’s role is determine by nature, and man cannot decide for themselves what their function may be. In the Republic Plato discusses the proper use of function of man. It is his soul and to live with justice, and obtain a sense of harmony and unity. Lisa H. Newton stated,“in the greatest of all works of philosophy, Plato offers an elegant proof of the proposition: that whether or not the world recognizes and rewards virtue, the just person is the happiest of human beings.” However, I find in today’s society that most just people are not the wealthiest people. Somehow it is a trade off: just and poor, unjust wealthy. Thucydides would definitely disagree with the idea of universal truth of what...
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...assumptions which underpin Machiavellian & Platonic philosophies. In this paper I will discuss the assumptions which underpin Machiavellian & Platonic philosophies in reference to The Republic and The Prince. My position is that both Machiavallian and Plantonic philosophies make assumptions in exemplifying their notions. Machiavelli’s is intentional while Plato’s is unintentional. Also both philosophies through their assumptions sometimes contradict each other. Well expressed In discussing his notion above it is important to understand the basic theory and ideas of Machiavelli and Plato. Both Machiavelli and Plato produce arguments for order in the state but they have different notions of how to go about order. Plato obsesses with certainty and has an ideal form of order, while order with Machiavelli is learning to live with uncertainty. Machiavelli believes we need to be able to work with insecurity and not try and produce certainty. He believes we embrace uncertainty by developing our own armour. Knowledge is the basis of leadership for Plato while Power is the basis of leadership for Machievelli. In the Republic the Allegory of the Cave represents Plato's views on philosophy. Basically, we are all in the cave and Philosophy is what brings us out of the cave. Plato believes that Philosophy is the highest form of inquiry, just because it alone involves no presuppositions. I do not believe this to be true because The Allegory presents, in brief form most of Plato's...
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...Contemporary Moral Issues: (In) Civility as a Moral Issue Our primary focus this semester is Civility, or lack thereof, as a moral issue. Though written centuries apart, the two books under review share a common base i.e. optimism for the betterment of society. Plato in The Republic speaks about the ideal virtues of the soul and Davetian goes on to tell us the current problems with American civility. I think what we can take from both readings is a sense that human intellect and virtue can and will ultimately lead us to a better society. To fully understand the basic concepts of societal values that should be understood, and in turn followed, The Republic (Plato, Reprinted 1985) is an important piece of literature. Written almost as a transcript of conversations between Glaucon, Adeimantis and Socrates, one mustn't be fooled by the casual appearance of the texts, as they carry some important and relevant material. Through my readings and understanding of Book 2, 3 and 4, I was able to grasp the basic theme of the texts i.e. Justice and Injustice, correspondingly, Virtue and Vice and the concepts that follow. By observing virtues on a large scale, through the idealized behaviour of society as a whole, Plato was able to use those very observations to determine and guide the behaviour of individuals. As stated in Book 2, Section 369, " Let us first inquire into the nature of justice and injustice in the city and only after that in the individual." This statement paved the way...
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