Polsc22 the republic
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Transcript of Polsc22 the republic
The RepublicBy Plato
Plato
Born into a prominent Athenian family, whose member were active in the
oligarchic political faction Went to Sicily to try
(unsuccessfully) to reform the rule of the Syracusan tyrant Dionysus II
Founded the school of philosophy
known as the Academy
Plato
Socrates was his primary
interlocutor in his dialogues
The philosopher’s quest for the
truth about the political things
often seems to threaten the
community in which he lives
Socrates
Initiator of political philosophy from
inquiry
Socrates looked inward to the human soul
Opted to pursue his quest for
knowledge through conversations with fellow citizens (dialectical approach)
The Republic
Explores the problem of
philosophy’s relationship to the
city (polis) by constructing a
theoretical regime in which their
interests might be
harmonized.
The Ethics of the Republic
An inquiry into the nature of
justice, seeking to clarify what
it is and why we should act
justly.
Socrates’ companions were
Cephalus, Polemarchus, and
Thrasymachus
The Ethics of the Republic
Dialectic a process of
asking and answering
questions whereby we can
rationally evaluate an opinion by
seeing whether it can be
defended as internally coherent
and consistent with our
experience.
Definition of Justice
Cephalus
It is giving back what one has borrowed and telling the truth
Socrates’ response
Cannot simply define justice because it would not be just to do such things.
Ex. Telling truth to an insane person
Definition of JusticePolemarchus
It is giving what is owed and doing good to friends and harm to enemies
Socrates’ response
When harmed, human beings, like dogs or horses, appear to become worse
Definition of Justice
Thrasymachus
It is a sham – merely “the advantage of the stronger”
Injustice is more profitable
Willing to invoke tyranny
Socrates’ response
Ruling is a kind of art – it is characteristic of all art to seek the good of those they rule
Injustice leads to factions or conflict among human being
Definition of Justice
Glaucon
• The many contend that justice is to be desired not for its own sake but only for the sake of its consequences
• The many agree to treat each other justly – not because they believe justice is good in itself, but rather because they fear being treated unjustly by others
The City in Speech
Proposes by Socrates, reasoning that
when we see justice in the city we
may be able to see it in the soul.
The city comes into being because
people are needy rather than self-
sufficient
Human community requires a division
of labor, people only work at the jobs
which they are best suited by nature
Classes in the City
Rulers –Wisdom
Guardians –Courage
Artisans –Moderation
What each soul possesses?
Reason
Capable of calculation
Spiritedness
Capable of anger, self-assertion, and moral indignation
Desire
Concerns with
pleasures of the body
Justice in the soul
The proper ordering exists when
the rational element
rules over
desire with assistance of the spirited element
Injustice of the soul exists when the inferior elements seek to rule the whole
Justice in the soul
Order in the soul fosters order in
the city and disorder in the soul
generates disorder in the city
◦ For example: citizen who lacks
moderation will unable to submit to
the reasonable laws
Allegory of the Cave
Insid
e th
e c
ave Confused
people believe in the reality of the shadows cast by artificial things
Ascensio
n fr
om
the c
ave
They will be delighted in seeing real things in the light of the sun
Symbolisms in the Allegory
• The visible world where we find our bodily selvesCave
• Stands for the principles that informs the world’s existence
Sunlit world
• The idea of the good
• The supreme and perfect cause of all being, intelligibility, and goodness that we see imperfectly reflected in the visible world
Sun
Reason
It longs for good and finds
happiness in the contemplation of
the good.
A distinctively human element,
other animals possess only desire
and spiritedness
The human good
What is good?
Socrates suggests that it is “ what every soul pursues
and for the sake of which it does
everything”
The idea of the good provides
measure of perfection
between the good and bad
The limitations and
imperfections of this world makes it impossible for the good to be fully grasped
and achieved in this life
Lesser happiness of
the soul
Greater happiness of
the soul
The Philosopher
The most just person, both
in the internal organization of the
soul and in dealing with others.
Philosopher
Loves and pursues wisdom
The most just person
Tyrant
Loves and pursues the
gratification of bodily desires
The most unjust person
The Nature Politics
Education and Virtue
The purpose of the city or political
com-munity is to provide the citizens
with
an EDUCATION in VIRTUE
Education and Virtue
Education (Paideia)◦ Included not only the learning of
information but more on the
formation of character Virtue (Arête)◦ Signified not only the decent habits
necessary to orderly living in the
society, but also the highest activities of the human soul
Aim of the city
To provide the citizens with
character formation that fosters
civic and human
excellence
Aim of the City
In this light, Socrates, in Gorgias,
claim that great statesmen of
Athens were not statesmen at all,
fore they merely increased the
power of the city without making
the citizens better
He contends, in Apology, that he
is the only statesman that Athens
has ever had
How can the disposition of the
souls be so shaped that they will
be open to virtue?
Through EDUCATION, character
formation of the young
The Guardian
Must be spirited to be
courageous in war
The need to be gentle with
their fellow citizens
Traditional Greek
Education
Gymnastic training for the body
Music education
for the soul
Music in Greek education
Not fitting for those
who will be reared as guardians
The gods are presented as
being animated by unruly
passions such as lust and anger
Gods are constantly at war with one another
Socrates proposal to the problem
The city in speech should require
a CENSORSHIP or public
control of speech and artistic
expression
Models that regulate both
SUBSTANCE and STYLE – both
what it is said and how it is said
A. Substance
Two broad consideration
1. The depiction of the gods and the
afterlife
2. The depiction of the heroic beings
of the past
1. The depiction of the gods and the afterlife
Poets must not disparage the afterlife
Heroic men must not grieve excessively
Death is not a terrible thing
Must not be changing in form (false appearances)
The best condition are impervious
No being would alter himself for the worse
Must not depict the divine as the source of evil
Shown as good Cannot cause evil or harm
Additional qualification
Guardians must be truthful
◦ Falsehood may be useful to some
but not to the guardians, only the
rulers.
◦ Lying to rulers is as bad as patient
lying to doctors about his body or a
sailor to his captain about the state
of the ship
Additional qualification
Guardians will need moderation,
mastering his own bodily desires
and obeying to their rulers
◦ Self-control is obviously essential to
the guardians
◦ Immoderation fosters injustice
B. Style Socrates proposes to employ the
proper combination of
NARRATION and IMITATION
B. StyleNarrative
• When an author relates the thrust of a character speech or summarizes her actions
• Narrative style of the “gentleman,” or the noble and good will only be used
Imitation
• When they actually reproduce the character’s words
• Indiscriminate imitation has moral consequences
Rhythm and Harmony
For Socrates, these are imitations
or depictions of the various
passions and states of
character of which the human
soul is capable.
Rhythm and harmony that
communicate excessive grief will
be banished
Rhythm and Harmony
Immoderation are
unsuitable for the guardians,
thus, the rhythms and harmonies
about symposia (drinking parties)
must also be excluded from the
city’s musical repertoire
The right music
City’s music
Represents the bearing and
speech of the reasonable man in war and peace
Endures the dangers of the of battle patiently
Holds his passions in
check and listens to persuasion in
peace
Gracefulness
The ultimate aim of the good
city’s music education
Music aims to be graceful itself
and to foster a graceful
disposition in the soul of citizens.
Gracefulness
Graceful soul brings forth orderly and dignified speeches and actions that are
depicted in graceful music
Exposure to a graceful poetic and musical presentation of the good speeches and
deeds of good men tends to foster a gracefulness in the souls of the audience.
Gracefulness
Through gracefulness, music
education culminates the man to
love the beauty of the well-
ordered soul.
Music education is moral
education
It is important to note that the
Greeks typically use the same
word kalon, to signify what is
NOBLE and what is BEAUTIFUL
The impact of moral
educationMoral
excellenceCivic health
Citizens become decent
and orderly
Uninterested in the pleasure of
the body
Fosters justice
Cities neglecting
music education
will be oversha-
dowed by unruly
or lawless
desires
The Noble Lie
Since the music education and of reason is insufficient for fostering good education, Socrates introduces the noble lie.
The members must be convinced that the period of their moral education was in fact a dream, that they were really being fashioned in the earth and were born in the land.
The Noble Lie
They will look upon the land as “a
mother and nurse” and upon their
fellow citizens as “brothers” also
“born of the earth”
The lie also intends to legitimize
the political inequalities of the city
in speech, to justify the rule by
some over others
Metals for each class
Rulers - Gold
Auxiliaries -Silver
Artisans – Iron and Bronze
Thank you!!