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Briefly: Plato's the Republic
The Republic is arguably Plato's most important work and was written in his middle period, around 370-5 BC. It is a philosophical masterpiece containing acute political theory as well as being great literature, and as such is not easily understood on first acquaintance. It has as its central problem the nature of justice. In a word, what is justice? The central character is said to be Socrates, Plato's own teacher as a young man, whom he had seen tried and executed for his politics and religion. The Republic is an examination of the figure of the philosopher, an examination of metaphysics, and epistemology and is confirmation of Plato's dedication to formulating a society based on eternal ideas of truth, goodness and justice.
96 pages, ebook
First published August 1, 2006
12 people want to read
About the author
David Mills Daniel
51 books9 followersHi there.
I am David Mills Daniel, author of the 'Briefly' series.
Over the past few years, a major focus of my life has been developing and writing my 'Briefly' series of guide yo key texts in philosophy, phiosophy of religion, religious studies and ethics. 21 classic texts guides have now been published.
A major aim of the series is to enable school and university/college students to acquire knowledge and understanding of the texts and of the thinking of the philosophers who wrote them. The series is also designed to make the texts, and philosophical ideas generally, more accessible to those who would like to know more about the subject, and to encourage people to discover for hemselves what philosophy has to offer.
One of my greatest pleasures in life is discussing philosophy with those who do not think it has much to offer them. A lot of people believe that philosophy is remote from everyday life, belongs in the study or lecture room, and is for those who are able to devote their lives to thinking, rather than doing.
Well, yes. Philosophy is thinking about things, but that includes all the issues which matter to everyone: the nature of the world we inhabit; our responsibilities to others; how we should live our livves; the sort of priorities we should have; what sort of society we want; our relationships; the values we should hand on to our children; and so on.
So, philosophy is not just a subject for university professors. Indeed, many of the great philosophers, like John Locke, David Hume and John Stuart Mill, were active in the wider world, and earned their living frtom jobs which has nothing to do with philosophy or teaching it. But, all of them thought and wrote about the big issues of life. And, a great deal of what they have to say is stimulating and challenging; some of it is controversial. Furthermore, it is relevant to our lives today.
Through studying philosophy, we can bring the thinking of the geat philosophers to bear on the challenges, issues and questions we face today, as human beings, citizens, members of society and individuals with relationships, responsibilities, conncerns and uncertainties. We can learn from them, and their thoughts and ideas can help us to answrr some of the questions we face. At least, they can help us to understand the questions more clearly.
My 'SCM AS/A2 Ethics and Moral Philosophy', which supports the teaching of AS-level philosophy and religious studies, but which will also be of interest to general leaders who want an easy-to-follow guide to these fascinating and important areas of
philosophy, was published in 2009.
I am David Mills Daniel, author of the 'Briefly' series.
Over the past few years, a major focus of my life has been developing and writing my 'Briefly' series of guide yo key texts in philosophy, phiosophy of religion, religious studies and ethics. 21 classic texts guides have now been published.
A major aim of the series is to enable school and university/college students to acquire knowledge and understanding of the texts and of the thinking of the philosophers who wrote them. The series is also designed to make the texts, and philosophical ideas generally, more accessible to those who would like to know more about the subject, and to encourage people to discover for hemselves what philosophy has to offer.
One of my greatest pleasures in life is discussing philosophy with those who do not think it has much to offer them. A lot of people believe that philosophy is remote from everyday life, belongs in the study or lecture room, and is for those who are able to devote their lives to thinking, rather than doing.
Well, yes. Philosophy is thinking about things, but that includes all the issues which matter to everyone: the nature of the world we inhabit; our responsibilities to others; how we should live our livves; the sort of priorities we should have; what sort of society we want; our relationships; the values we should hand on to our children; and so on.
So, philosophy is not just a subject for university professors. Indeed, many of the great philosophers, like John Locke, David Hume and John Stuart Mill, were active in the wider world, and earned their living frtom jobs which has nothing to do with philosophy or teaching it. But, all of them thought and wrote about the big issues of life. And, a great deal of what they have to say is stimulating and challenging; some of it is controversial. Furthermore, it is relevant to our lives today.
Through studying philosophy, we can bring the thinking of the geat philosophers to bear on the challenges, issues and questions we face today, as human beings, citizens, members of society and individuals with relationships, responsibilities, conncerns and uncertainties. We can learn from them, and their thoughts and ideas can help us to answrr some of the questions we face. At least, they can help us to understand the questions more clearly.
My 'SCM AS/A2 Ethics and Moral Philosophy', which supports the teaching of AS-level philosophy and religious studies, but which will also be of interest to general leaders who want an easy-to-follow guide to these fascinating and important areas of
philosophy, was published in 2009.
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November 9, 2020
Perfect format for reading the republic without truncating too much of it, anyway here's my thoughts on the work itself:
JUSTICE
Plato, through the voice of Socrates, is hesitant to conceptualise justice straight away and cannot do so without abstracting the idea on to the level of the state - which then proceeds to demystify what justice is like on the individual level. The considerable length of this process is conducive to building the concept due to the dialectical process it entails. This ensures that Plato encompasses all points of view and breaks them down to a point of atomisation. For example, with Thrasymachus' notion of 'justice as the interest of the stronger', Socrates is said to criticise this on the grounds that the stronger may not always be aware of their own interests and may end up serving the interests of the weak, presenting an antinomy in this thesis. Further, Socrates notes how 'the stronger' must have to co-operate with others in order to achieve their goals and cannot act in solitary pursuits of their own interests. Stronger powers can also end up acting in the interests of others, as when shown on a personal level, the doctor does in their will to help other people when potentially against their own self interest. This leads the conception of justice to an important point of harmony - a common theme within the republic - to a state of balance where justice is conceived by Adeimantus as the 'prevention of wrongdoing', not causing harm to others, nor being on the receiving end of it. This idea of 'harmony' is then able to be conceived on the individual level with a just soul comprising a sense of temperance, in that, it does not indulge in the passions, nor in excessive timidity.
UTOPIA
The book is obviously famous for Plato's conception of utopia, which, in short, is constituted by rule of "philosopher kings". These act as guardians to a city state of citizens that fulfil a role within their society, determined by a rigid tripartite class hierarchy - the philosopher kings, the warrior class, and the producers. The philosopher kings are those who have a love for the true vision of beauty and justice within society and are procured throughout their lives in gymnastics, literature, and engaged in dialectic reasoning in order to be able to govern properly. This articulates an aristocratic form of government that gets away from previous practical applications of aristocracy where rulers have not necessarily been fit to rule due to an absence of meritocracy. There are some very dark implications to this however as Plato espouses the benefits of selective breeding in sustaining this. There is little chance for social mobility in this society but this isn't necessarily seen as inimical as the society is conducive to a just soul. This is supposed to be achieved within society through the absence of property (as property can corrupt one's soul and cause them to indulge in passions) and a rigid education from the philosopher kings. The latter is important to acknowledge as it concerns the 'allegory of the cave'.
THE ALLEGORY OF THE CAVE
The allegory of the cave is a brilliant depiction of Plato's metaphysics and epistemological theory. The idea is that our senses can be deceiving, what we see in appearance does not necessarily represent reality or a sense of absolute truth. Plato expounds this through his 'theory of forms' where we are instilled with a perfect idea of objects and concepts before we are born, to which all appearance merely imitates in an imperfect fashion (I couldn't help but draw comparisons between this and Karl Marx's comparison of the architect and the bee), aided by the guiding light of the sun as depicted in the republic. This hence leads Plato to speculate the situation of prisoners in a cave, knowing nothing of the world but depictions of their own shadow and how this gives them a false conception of the world. It is hence the job of the philosopher kings, who have transcended the cave in their pursuits of philosophy (philosophy meaning literally, a love for the true vision of beauty), to go back into the cave and free the prisoners and helping them achieve a sense of enlightenment and become just as the sun guides them towards the true vision of beauty - or as close to it as possible. I agree with this conception somewhat, although our ideas of how to be just have changed, the allegory works in representing consciousness in our modern system. Lenin's idea of a vanguard loosely parallels 'philosopher kings' in the fact they can attain an elevated consciousness to the proletariat, and hence guide them in to a post-class society that allows them to renounce false consciousness and attain a 'true' consciousness about their role in society.
DEMOCRACY
Finally, I found Plato's critique of democracy fascinating. Plato noticed how governments, particularly starting as a timarchy, follow a similar teleological course towards tyranny, the least desirable form of government. However, it reaches this through the advent of democracy which he notes is doomed to atrophy. Democracy, whilst acknowledging its desirability on the surface, inevitably leads to self-indulgence, atomisation, and an excessive reliability on material goods. This has drastic consequences, perhaps better articulated later in the enlightenment by de Tocqueville, as people become so obsessed with their own material gains (as a product of freedom) that they become apathetic towards politics in general. The effect this has places citizens at risk of exploitation by astute demagogues who can appeal to people's emotional interests - leading inevitably to tyranny. Striking comparisons can be made to the present day with interwar Germany for example, or perhaps more pertinently, with Brexit. Whilst some may argue the institutions that are appendage to liberal democracy are supposed to prevent democracy from succumbing to this risk - it is hard not to acknowledge their failures in preventing the creeping wave of authoritarianism around the globe that is only set to intensify.
JUSTICE
Plato, through the voice of Socrates, is hesitant to conceptualise justice straight away and cannot do so without abstracting the idea on to the level of the state - which then proceeds to demystify what justice is like on the individual level. The considerable length of this process is conducive to building the concept due to the dialectical process it entails. This ensures that Plato encompasses all points of view and breaks them down to a point of atomisation. For example, with Thrasymachus' notion of 'justice as the interest of the stronger', Socrates is said to criticise this on the grounds that the stronger may not always be aware of their own interests and may end up serving the interests of the weak, presenting an antinomy in this thesis. Further, Socrates notes how 'the stronger' must have to co-operate with others in order to achieve their goals and cannot act in solitary pursuits of their own interests. Stronger powers can also end up acting in the interests of others, as when shown on a personal level, the doctor does in their will to help other people when potentially against their own self interest. This leads the conception of justice to an important point of harmony - a common theme within the republic - to a state of balance where justice is conceived by Adeimantus as the 'prevention of wrongdoing', not causing harm to others, nor being on the receiving end of it. This idea of 'harmony' is then able to be conceived on the individual level with a just soul comprising a sense of temperance, in that, it does not indulge in the passions, nor in excessive timidity.
UTOPIA
The book is obviously famous for Plato's conception of utopia, which, in short, is constituted by rule of "philosopher kings". These act as guardians to a city state of citizens that fulfil a role within their society, determined by a rigid tripartite class hierarchy - the philosopher kings, the warrior class, and the producers. The philosopher kings are those who have a love for the true vision of beauty and justice within society and are procured throughout their lives in gymnastics, literature, and engaged in dialectic reasoning in order to be able to govern properly. This articulates an aristocratic form of government that gets away from previous practical applications of aristocracy where rulers have not necessarily been fit to rule due to an absence of meritocracy. There are some very dark implications to this however as Plato espouses the benefits of selective breeding in sustaining this. There is little chance for social mobility in this society but this isn't necessarily seen as inimical as the society is conducive to a just soul. This is supposed to be achieved within society through the absence of property (as property can corrupt one's soul and cause them to indulge in passions) and a rigid education from the philosopher kings. The latter is important to acknowledge as it concerns the 'allegory of the cave'.
THE ALLEGORY OF THE CAVE
The allegory of the cave is a brilliant depiction of Plato's metaphysics and epistemological theory. The idea is that our senses can be deceiving, what we see in appearance does not necessarily represent reality or a sense of absolute truth. Plato expounds this through his 'theory of forms' where we are instilled with a perfect idea of objects and concepts before we are born, to which all appearance merely imitates in an imperfect fashion (I couldn't help but draw comparisons between this and Karl Marx's comparison of the architect and the bee), aided by the guiding light of the sun as depicted in the republic. This hence leads Plato to speculate the situation of prisoners in a cave, knowing nothing of the world but depictions of their own shadow and how this gives them a false conception of the world. It is hence the job of the philosopher kings, who have transcended the cave in their pursuits of philosophy (philosophy meaning literally, a love for the true vision of beauty), to go back into the cave and free the prisoners and helping them achieve a sense of enlightenment and become just as the sun guides them towards the true vision of beauty - or as close to it as possible. I agree with this conception somewhat, although our ideas of how to be just have changed, the allegory works in representing consciousness in our modern system. Lenin's idea of a vanguard loosely parallels 'philosopher kings' in the fact they can attain an elevated consciousness to the proletariat, and hence guide them in to a post-class society that allows them to renounce false consciousness and attain a 'true' consciousness about their role in society.
DEMOCRACY
Finally, I found Plato's critique of democracy fascinating. Plato noticed how governments, particularly starting as a timarchy, follow a similar teleological course towards tyranny, the least desirable form of government. However, it reaches this through the advent of democracy which he notes is doomed to atrophy. Democracy, whilst acknowledging its desirability on the surface, inevitably leads to self-indulgence, atomisation, and an excessive reliability on material goods. This has drastic consequences, perhaps better articulated later in the enlightenment by de Tocqueville, as people become so obsessed with their own material gains (as a product of freedom) that they become apathetic towards politics in general. The effect this has places citizens at risk of exploitation by astute demagogues who can appeal to people's emotional interests - leading inevitably to tyranny. Striking comparisons can be made to the present day with interwar Germany for example, or perhaps more pertinently, with Brexit. Whilst some may argue the institutions that are appendage to liberal democracy are supposed to prevent democracy from succumbing to this risk - it is hard not to acknowledge their failures in preventing the creeping wave of authoritarianism around the globe that is only set to intensify.
Displaying 1 of 1 review