Plato's Republic
by Plato
'Plato's Republic' Summary
Socrates believes he has answered Thrasymachus and is done with the discussion of justice.
Socrates' young companions, Glaucon and Adeimantus, continue the argument of Thrasymachus for the sake of furthering the discussion. Glaucon gives a lecture in which he argues first that the origin of justice was in social contracts aimed at preventing one from suffering injustice and being unable to take revenge, second that all those who practice justice do so unwillingly and out of fear of punishment, and third that the life of the unjust man is far more blessed than that of the just man. Glaucon would like Socrates to prove that justice is not only desirable, but that it belongs to the highest class of desirable things: those desired both for their own sake and their consequences. To demonstrate the problem, he tells the story of Gyges, who – with the help of a ring that turns him invisible – achieves great advantages for himself by committing injustices.
After Glaucon's speech, Adeimantus adds that, in this thought experiment, the unjust should not fear any sort of divine judgement in the afterlife, since the very poets who wrote about such judgment also wrote that the gods would grant forgiveness to those humans who made ample religious sacrifice. Adeimantus demonstrates his reason by drawing two detailed portraits that the unjust man could grow wealthy by injustice, devoting a percentage of this gain to religious losses, thus rendering him innocent in the eyes of the gods.
Socrates suggests that they look for justice in a city rather than in an individual man. After attributing the origin of society to the individual not being self-sufficient and having many needs which he cannot supply himself, they go on to describe the development of the city. Socrates first describes the "healthy state", but Glaucon asks him to describe "a city of pigs", as he finds little difference between the two. He then goes on to describe the luxurious city, which he calls "a fevered state". This requires a guardian class to defend and attack on its account. This begins a discussion concerning the type of education that ought to be given to these guardians in their early years, including the topic of what kind of stories are appropriate. They conclude that stories that ascribe evil to the gods are untrue and should not be taught.
Book Details
Language
EnglishOriginal Language
Ancient GreekPublished In
Genre/Category
Tags/Keywords
Author
Plato
Greece
Plato ( Classical Attic; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC)) was an Athenian philosopher during the Classical period in Ancient Greece, founder of the Platonist school of thought and the Academy,...
More on PlatoDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books
The Future of the Women's Movement by Helena Swanwick
"There may seem to be a disappointing lack of prophesy in a book avowedly dealing with the future; but since I believe the women’s movement to be a se...
The Federalist Papers by Alexander Hamilton
In order to promote the ratification of the United States Constitution in the late 1780s, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Hay wrote a serie...
The History of England, from the Accession of James II - (Volume 4, Chapter 18) by Thomas Babington Macaulay
The History of England from the Accession of James the Second (1848) is the full title of the five-volume work by Lord Macaulay (1800–1859) more gener...
The Basis Of Morality by Arthur Schopenhauer
It is a philosophical treatise that delves into the fundamental principles of ethics and morality. Written in 1840, this book is widely considered to...
Moral Letters, Vol. II by Seneca
This is the second volume of the Letters, Epistles LXVI-XCII. Among the personalities of the early Roman Empire there are few who offer to the readers...
The Warren Report on the Assassination of President Kennedy by President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
The assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy on November 22, 1963, was a cruel and shocking act of violence directed against a man, a family, a nation...
The Coming of the Fairies by Arthur Conan Doyle
Before Darwin, human emotional life had posed problems to the western philosophical categories of mind and body. Darwin's interest can be traced to hi...
Moral Tales by Elisabeth Charlotte Pauline Guizot
Embark on a captivating journey through the corridors of virtue with "Moral Tales" by Elisabeth Charlotte Pauline Guizot. In this thought-provoking co...
Two Treatises of Civil Government by John Locke
Two Treatises of Government is a work of political philosophy published anonymously in 1689 by John Locke. The First Treatise attacks patriarchalism i...
The Irish Land Question by Henry George
It explores the complex political and economic issues surrounding land ownership in Ireland during the late 19th century. The book was originally publ...
Reviews for Plato's Republic
No reviews posted or approved, yet...