Plato and Democracy Flashcards
(16 cards)
relevance of the cave allegory
we are mostly in the position of the prisoners in the cave, we cannot see what is really good for us so philosopher kings must rule
cephalus definition of justice
to give eachother what they are owed
socrates criticism of cephalus definition of justice
if i borrowed a knife from you then you went mad is it just to return it
polemarchus definition of justice
to benefit ones friends and harm ones enemies
socrates criticism of polemarchus justice definition
doesnt this mean it is ‘just’ to steal from enemies to help friends
thrasymachus definition of justice
what is in the interest of the stronger, each ruling class makes laws in their own interest, these laws define whats right
socrates critique of thrasymachus definition of justice
whats right is an interest but should not be the interest of the stronger party, ruling must be in the interests of the rules not the rulers and thrasymachus’ suggestion makes disobeying law the ‘just’ thing to do
Glaucon’s idea of the invisible ring
we should act justly as our actions have consequences but what if we had a ring which made us invisible, we could commit crimes with no consequences
socrates criticism of glaucon
we would become a slave to our appetites if we could do whatever with no consequence and to be happy we must be rationally in control of our appetites
justice on an individual and community level
we need justice to achieve proper function and be happy and cities/communities are the same, they can possess justice
socrates’ city of pigs
a city where everyones minimal needs are met, there is a division of labour in society which allows this
glaucons criticism of the city
he wouldn’t want to live anywhere so plain, can we have a city which is luxurious and ‘just’, it would also have no place in it for philosophy
why we need the guardian class
a luxurious city has more complex needs which means it will go to war to satisfy them, we then need an army of soldiers to protect these needs
how to train the guardian class
must be kept loyal to citizens and not themselves, extreme censorship needed - they must only be allowed to see poetry which shows good acts, nothing emotionally powerful
noble lies
not all guardians are fit to rule, the best are chosen and they are told that they have gold mixed in their souls whereas the others have bronze/silver
city/guardians relation to cave allegory
philosophy helps us see things as they really are, the rulers should be philosopher kings who know whats really going on as they have learnt to see things in the light of the good/the just
