Introduction
The Republic is one of the most famous works from the ancient world, written by Plato, a student of Socrates. Similarly to many of his other works, the Republic follows Socrates and his friends and acquaintances, depicting their discussions and contemplations. The books begin with the discussion of the ideal city and more importantly, the concept of justice. Plato, through Socratic dialogue, battles with the difficult topic by introducing the imaginary ideal city and using its socio-political structure to explain the general notion of it. He then proceeds to narrow the concept down in the following books, claiming individual justice to be analogous of the more general notion. The concept of justice as following one’s role as assigned at birth is explained through both the political structure of an ideal and just city and the description of a righteous man.
Plato’s Republic
Although the Socratic dialogue depicted by Plato is titled “The Republic” in English, the central debate of the books is on justice and ethics rather than politics. Although politics and discussions of regimes are used to solidify the points made by Socrates and his friends, the title can be deceiving. The confusion comes from the translation of the work from Ancient Greek, its two original titles being Politeia and peri dikaiou (Uebersax). The former title is most closely translated to Regimes or Political Systems but is most widely known as The Republic (Uebersax). The latter title, which is often translated as On Justice, can be more accurately interpreted as On the Righteous Person (Uebersax). In fact, Plato uses the idealistic political regime described in the first few books to introduce the readers to the concepts of justice, rather than making a political statement.
The discussions between Socrates and his fellows begin with the contemplations of justice and a just society, during which the three types of people that exist are introduced – Producers, Auxiliaries, and Guardians. According to Plato, the harmony between the three groups is essential to the prosperity and utilitarian happiness of the city. Furthermore, in this ideal city, or republic, people must stick to their roles as parts of these groups. The first group, the Producers, are craftsmen, farmers, and other producing professions, the largest class of Plato’s society. The Auxiliaries, or warriors, are responsible for the protection of the city and its people. Lastly, the Guardians are the ruling class, the people that can tell right from wrong, and who live solely for the good of the city. According to Plato, the ideal and enlightened city, based on justice and virtue, has a philosopher king from the latter group governing the people.
The Guardians of the Republic
The Guardians, as mentioned above, are described by Plato as the servers of the people and its rulers. They are to dedicate their lives and crafts to the state fully, practicing nothing more in their lives, and avoiding even laughter (Plato). He further describes them to have no private property, and even the children of the Guardians are to be shared within them (Plato). Although the fellows of Socrates argue that the Guardians would not be happy as individuals, their sole goal in life is to be honorable and therefore just.
Importance of the Guardians
Therefore, the discussion of the Guardians is central to the Justice theory, as presented by Plato. According to Socrates, the Guardians are the epitome of just and righteous men, defining Justice as the sense of duty by the citizen. The Guardians, who are only motivated by their duty to the city, are therefore prime examples of such an idealistic concept. It is the dutifulness of the Guardians that allows for the prosperity of the ideal city, which is built on the concoction of human virtue and universal values and principles (Plato). The Guardians had not only to follow these principles, but to be educated on them, and to be wise enough to make the right judgments in all the political situations (Plato). Most of all, the Guardians had to be content with their roles, even if it meant sacrificing individual happiness for the sake of the society.
Plato’s View on Justice
However, it is not only the Guardians who, according to Plato, have the duty in the just city to be content with their roles and to follow them. The Auxiliaries support the rule of the Guardians, while the Producers obey by the rule. By Plato’s definition of justice, the ideal city has all its citizens practicing their roles, the inner callings that they are born with, and their roles only. The society that sees its members fill and entertain their assigned roles daily is, therefore, just, and an ideal city. More generally, Plato applies such definitions to the human nature and the concept of a righteous, or a just, man. Adopting the definitions of the three types of people in his ideal city, Plato uses them to explain the three components of the human soul – rational, spirited, and appetitive. These components mirror the roles of the three classes, making the just man the reflection of the ideal city. In his soul and mind, therefore, the rational component governs, supported by the spirited part, while the appetitive, or the lustful, is submissive to the rule.
The justness of such man lies in the balance within his soul’s components. Similarly to the ideal city, the “ideal man” is one that is governed by rationality – however, one that is not devoid of other parts of his soul, merely in control of them. This view on justice, as proposed by Socrates, differs from the definitions proposed by his fellow debaters. Furthermore, Socrates emphasizes the fact that it is in the individual’s interest to be just, analogous to it being in the city’s interests for it to be well-ordered.
Mind and Actions
Although Plato presents the readers with vivid metaphors and a detailed discussion of justice, as well as the republic, he fails to address the action part of justice. While his argument is extensive on the matter of the balanced soul, it does not take into account concrete actions. If a person is rational and in control of his soul’s compartments, it does not necessarily follow that he will act in a just way towards others, which might also be considered a part of justice. There is a disparity in Plato’s argument in that although a person might be just by his definition when in isolation, there is no guarantee that he will remain just in social situations. Since there is a clear distinction between maintaining order in one’s soul and maintaining order in society and having the desire to do one does not lead to the desire to do the other.
Conclusion
Nevertheless, Plato maintains a strong argument on his definition of justice and creates an elaborate running metaphor to convey it to others. The just city, which functions in the most efficient way and provides the high utilitarian happiness value, is representative of a just soul. Balance and control, which might mean sacrifices of short-term pleasures, according to Plato lead to a just life. The Guardians, or the rational part of the soul, make the well-ordered living possible. As a result, justice of the soul and the individual is achieved.
Works Cited
Plato. The Republic. Translated by Benjamin Jowett, 1998.The Project Gutenberg eBook, Web.
Uebersax, John. “On the Ancient Titles of Plato’s Republic.”Satyagraha, 2016, Web.