Plato

Introduction
Plato was born in Athens in 427 BC when the civilization of ancient Greece was at
the zenith of glory and eminence. He belonged to royal blood of aristocracy, from
his mother�s side he was related to Solan, the law giver. He made efforts to
discover the eternal principles of human conduct i-e justice, temperance and
courage which alone imbibed the happiness to the individual and stability to the
states. In 399 BC, the turning point came in the life of Plato, the defeat of
Athens by Sparta made him to despise democracy.
He wandered abroad for twelve years in Persia, Egypt, Africa, Italy and Sicily in
the hours of disillusionment, absorbing wisdom from every source and tasting every
creedal dogma. Then he returned to Athens and opened an academy. He wrote about 36
treaties all in the form of dialogues. His academy became the best school in
Athens.

Work of Plato
�The Republic� is the most important and authentic work of Plato. It was about
political philosophy, ethics, education and metaphysics.
Other works of Plato include: �The Politicus�, �The Apology�, �The Meno�, �The
Protagoras�, �The Gorgias�, and �The Critias�.

The Republic and Plato

�The true romance of the Republic is the romance of free intelligence, unbound by
custom, untrained indeed by human stupidity and self will, able to direct the
forces, even of customs and stupidity themselves along the road to a national
life.� (Prof. Sabine)

The Republic is an excellent product of Plato�s maturity. It is a major

contribution to political philosophy, education, economics, moral aspects of life
and metaphysics.

Plato�s Republic known as �Respublica� in Latin is translated from Greek word

�Politeia or Polity� which means a political constitution in general. It is an
achievement of comprehension, perfection and universality of thought. It presents a
picture not of any existing state in Greek but of an ideal state in which weakness
of the existing states were to be avoided.

Rousseau said, �The Republic is not a mere work upon politics but the finest
treatise on education that ever was written.�

Main feature of the Republic is the virtue of knowledge. Plato was of the view that
different classes and individuals had different capacities for the attainment of
virtues. The labor class showed the least capacity. Philosophers were the best
entitled to rule the state because of their superiority in virtue. Plato considered
justice to be the supreme virtue and his ideal state be dwelt with it. We can say
that the Republic is his master piece. Plato�s Republic is the crowning achievement
of art, science and philosophy.

According to Baker, �The mainspring of the Republic is Plato�s aversion to

contemporary Capitalism and his great desire to substitute a new scheme of
Socialism.�

Criticism
The Republic contains a good deal of criticism on contemporary institutions,
opinions and practices. The Republic represents a strong protest against the
teachings of Sophists and the existing social and political corruption.

Plato stresses that state should not be an assembly of corrupt and selfish
individuals but be a communion of souls united for the pursuit of justice and truth
and also for the welfare of the people.

Plato�s Ideal State

�Until philosophers are kings or the kings and princes of this world have the
spirit and the power of philosophy and political greatness and wisdom meet in one,
cities will never rest from their evils.� (Plato)

The Republic of Plato is interpreted as Utopia to end all Utopias, not because it
is a romance, but because he constructed an ideal state in it. He compares the
construction of an ideal state with an act of an artist who sketches an ideal
picture without concerning himself with the fact whether individual characteristic
features of imaginative picture are to be found anywhere or not? In the same way,
Plato never thought of the possibility of the institutions of his ideal state,
being capable of ever becoming a reality. He never thought of the impracticability
of this idea concerning his ideal state.

Plato built his state on the analogy of an individual organism. He believed that
the virtues of an individual and of the state were identical. He was of the view
that an individual presented almost the same features and qualities on a smaller
scale as society on a bigger scale.

Features of an Ideal State

1.Rule of Philosophy
Plato was of the view that in an ideal state the philosopher-ruler should be
prominent. He should has a broaden vision of unity of knowledge. Philosopher-kings
are immune from the provisions of law and public opinion.

2.No unqualified absolutism

Though, neither, there is any restraint of law nor of public opinion over
philosopher-rulers but that is not an unqualified absolutism. It is not all
despotism, because rule of philosophy is not free from the basic articles of the
constitution.

3.Control over the education system

Philosopher ruler should control the education system in an ideal state.

4.Justice in ideal state

Justice is the main feature of Plato�s Republic and it is also present in his ideal
state. Justice is the bond which binds every member of society together. It forms a
harmonious union of individuals.

5.Censorship of art and literature

In ideal state, there should be a complete censorship of art and literature. It is
necessary so that nothing immoral things might falls into the hands of the young
individuals.

6.System of Communism
Plato was of the view that guardian class should live under the system of communism
of property and family. The rulers and soldiers do not possess any property of
their own.

7.Equality among men and women

According to Plato, equal opportunities should be given to both men and women for
their economic, social, intellectual and political uplift. We can say that Plato
was the first feminist of his time.

8.Principle of Functional Specialization

Plato was of the view that due to multiple wants, an individual could not fulfill
all his desires by himself alone due to lack of capacity. Thus co-operation among
individuals should be necessary to satisfy their mutual desires. Some people are
specialized in performing some certain tasks.

Criticism

1.Plato built his ideal state on the analogy of individual and this identification
leads to confusion. He failed to distinguish ethics from politics. His ideal state
is based not merely on analogy but almost identification between the individual and
the state, which is quite wrong.

2.Plato fails to condemn the institution of slavery and regard it as fundamental

evil.

3.Plato�s system of communism of women and temporary marriage is detestable and

unethical.

4.Plato is a moralist rather than a political idealist. His assumption that the
state should control the entire lives of its citizens is false and contrary to
human liberty.

5.By the system of functional specialization, Plato tends to dwarf the personality
of the individual. There is no possibility of any full development of human
personality in his ideal state.

6.Plato completely ignores the lower class in his ideal state which forms the great
bulk of population. Such negligence may divide the society into two hostile groups.
Comparison between Plato and Aristotle

Aristotle, the favorite and most brilliant pupil of Plato, is more conscious of his
differences than of the points of agreement with him. The differences which these
giants of philosophy were not the outcome of any grudge or ill-will, but reflected
their own way of solving the existing problems of their state.

Similarities
1.Both upheld slavery and justified its continuation in true spirit of Greek
ideals. Each regarded slaves as an indispensable part of the community for the
manual performance and overall development progress of the state.

2.Both despised foreigners and regarded races other than Greeks fit for subjection
and bondage and as mentally inferior to the Greeks.

3.Both condemned democracy and wanted to replace it with some sort of

constitutional or ideal polity while Plato echoed in condemning democracy, as �What
could have been more ridiculous than this mob-led, passion-ridden democracy, this
government by a debating society, a mobocracy.� On the other hand Aristotle was of
the view that �the people are not capable of self-government.�

4.Both wanted to impose limitations on citizenship. Both taught that all manual
labor should be done by slaves or non-citizens.

5.Both opposed the views of Sophists that the state came into birth for the sake of
life and continues for the sake of good life. It is this conviction which makes
Aristotle a true Platonist.

6.Aristotle�s �Political� is no less a manual for statesman than the �Republic� of

Plato.

Differences
1.While Plato draws conclusion through the use of allusion and analogy, Aristotle
strikes at the very point with definite and clear-cut dogmas and doctrine.

2.While Plato believes in the abstract notions of justice, virtue and idea.
Aristotle judges the speculative fundamentals on the basis of exact comparison and
deduces a thought presentable and acceptable even in modern civilization.

3.Where Plato is visionary, imaginative and utopian, Aristotle is logical, realist

and scientific in his approach of propounding theories.

4.If Plato believes in the doctrine that the reality of a material thing lies in
its idea not in its form. Aristotle believes that reality in the concrete
manifestation of a thing, and not in its supposed inherent idea.

5. Plato believed in the phenomenon of unity through uniformity. On the other

hand Aristotle was of the view that unity could be achieved through diversity in
universe and men.

6. Plato inseparably mixed ethics and politics. He subordinated political

theories to ethical considerations. In Aristotle it was quite the reverse. Ethics
and politics were not only separated, but the former was made to sub serve the
later.

7. Plato was the propounder of new philosophy; Aristotle was a systemiser of

already existing knowledge, and made freshly streamlining and fascinating by his
powerful influential and charming style for practical adoption for state functions.

�Plato seeks a superman who will create a state as good as ought to be. Aristotle
seeks a super science will create a state as good as can be. Thus, all who believe
in new worlds for old are disciples of Plato, all who believe in old worlds made
new by the toilsome use of science are disciples of Aristotle.� (Maxey)