Pl

ato(
427-
347BCE)

TheOr gani
sati
onoftheStat etoEnsur etheGood:
Pl
ato wasbor nint
o an ar i
stocrati
cfami l
yoft he city-st
ate of
Athens.Aft
ertheendoft hePel oponnesianWar ,whi chinvolved,
amongot hers,t
hecity-
statesofAt hensandSpar ta,i n404BCE,
somemember sof thePl ato’sownf amil
yseized powerand
creat
ed an oli
garchy– i .e.,gover nmentbyt he rich few.The
oli
garchywashoweverover t
hrownbydemocr atswi thinayear .
Thesedemocr atswereresponsi bl
ef ortheexecuti
onofSocr ates,
thephil
osopher-gadf
lyofAt hensandt eacherofPlato.

Threemaj orbooks-tr
adit
ional
l
yknownasdi al
ogues-ofPl
atoare
the Republi
c,the Lawsandt he St
atesman.Thelastt
wowor ks
werewr i
tt
enafterthefir
stone.

Platofoundedt hef i
rstuniversit
y,call
edtheAcademy,notj ustto
teach young peopl e phil
osophybutt or eform Hell
eni
c(Greek)
poli
ti
cs.Althoughhef ai
l
edmi serabl
yintr
ansf or
mingthepol
i
ticsof
histime,hi sbel i
efi n phil
osophy refor
mi ng pol
it
icswasnever
compl et
elydestroyed.

TheRepubl i
cisagr eatwor kofpol it
icalphil
osophy.I
tdealswith
theidealstateofperfectjust
ice.Pl
atot reatsjust
iceasauniver
sal
orgener alconcept-aconceptwhi chcanbeappl i
edatever y
placeandcul tur
e.Hei ntendedi tt
obeanor mativest
andardora
measur i
ng rod totestt he actual
l
yexi sting i
nst
ancesofjusti
ce.
Onlywhenoneknowst hest andard,onecanmeasur etowhat
extentj
usti
cepr evai
l
inginr ealoractualstatesapproxi
matestoit
.

Platoconsi der
st hestat
easanat uralandnotaconvent i
onalor
arti
fi
cialorgani
zationasnohumanbei ngisself
-suf
fi
cient.Human
beingsar esocialastheyneedeachot her
.Thequestionarisesas
to what i si nvolved i
n thi
s social
-and not i
ndivi
dual- sel
f-
suffi
ciency.ForPl at
o,iti
s appropri
ate di
vi
si
on ofl abourand
speciali
zati
on.

Ever
yst
ateneedsar
ti
sansorpr
oduci
ngcl
asses-f
armer
s,t
rader
s,
craft
smen,et c.Secondl y,ever ystaterequiresacl assofwar ri
or s,
whom Pl atocal l
sguar dsorauxi li
ari
es.Final
ly,therewil
lbeacl ass
ofrulerswhom hecal lsguar dians.Thisisthet hreef
olddivisionof
l
abour .Heasser tsf urt
hert hateachcl assmustpossessvi rtue-
requisi
teski l
landexcel lence.Ther ul
ersmustpossesswi sdom;
phil
osopher sshoul dbeki ngs/rul
ersort hekingsandpr incesof
thewor l
d should havet hespi r
itand powerofphi l
osophy.The
guards/auxili
ari
es shoul d have cour age and t he ar t
isans,
temper anceorsel f
- restr
aint.
Justi
cei sacondi t
ioni nwhi cheachcl asskeepsi t
splacei nt he
divi
si
onofl abourandper formsi tstaskwel lf
ort hebenefitoft he
whole.I notherwor ds,justicei sthevirtueofhar monywi thint he
stat
eandabsenceofconf li
ct.

The phi l
osopher ki ng woul d not be a l aw- gi
ver but an
admi ni
st rator.Thef unct ionoft hephi losopher -ki
ngi stokeept he
state ascl ose t ot he i dealst ate aspossi ble.Theymustwat ch
agai nstt he comi ng i nto st ate undue weal t
h and pover ty.They
mustseet hatt hest atedoesnotgr ow t oobi g.Theymustensur e
thatdi ffer entcl assesf ulfilthei rf unctions.Theyshoul dnotal low
anyi nnovat i
oni neducat ion.Whenmenf indr i
ghteducat i
ont hey
wi l
lneed no l aws ,f ort heywi l
lbe j ustwi thoutl aws .Thust he
guar dianswor ki snegat ive i nf orm butposi ti
ve i n cont ent:t o
moul dandshapesoul s.Themosti mpor tantf unct i
onoft hest ate
i
st oi mpar tt her ighteducat i
on.
The second char act erist i
c oft he good st ate wi l
lbe pr esence
below t heguar diansacl assofpr ofessi onalsol diers.Pl atocal ls
them guar ds.Thei r
sar et hesoul sofcour ageorspi ri
t,attractedby
honour .Guar dswi l
lnotr ulebutobeyt her ulers.
Thegoodst atewi llhavei tsthi rdchar act eristi
c:t heexi stencesof
acl assofpr oducer sbel ow t hephi losopher -kingsandt heguar ds.
This cl ass i ncludes wor kers, pr oper ty- owner s, busi nessmen,
shopkeeper s,f armer s,cr af t
smen,ar ti
sans,et c.Thi sclassi sint he
maj or i
ty.Al ltheweal thoft hecommuni tybel ongst othisappet i
tive
class.However ,itwi llnotexhi bittoogr eatapr opensi tyf orweal th;
fortoogr eatweal thandt oogr eatpover tyl eadst oclasswar .Thi s
classwi llcont aint hemaj or i
tyoft hecommuni t
y.Lessnobl ethan
theguar ds,t hepr oduceswi l
l,liket hem,obeyunquest ioni nglyt he
commandsoft heguar dians;l iket hem t heywi l
lhavenopar tin
polit
ics.
 The good st ate enshr i
nesPl ato’si dealofhuman excel lence.
Platoi sapassi onat especi alist.Hedoesnotbel ievei nver satilit
y
on whi ch democr acyi sbased;whi ch Per iclesso ver yst rongl y
l
audedi nhi sf amousf uneralspeech.
Accor di ngt oPl ato,doi ngt hewor kf orwhi chonei sbestf ittedi s
j
ust i
ce.Thegoodst atet heref orei saj ustst ate.The goodst ate
willalsobeanef ficientst ate:ini tever ybodydoesonl ywhathe’s
bestat .ForPl ato,t hest atei sef ficientbecausei tisj ust ,itisnot
j
ustbecause i tis ef fi
cient. Human excel lence al so l eads t o
har mony.So excel lence and har mony char act eri
se t he good
state.
Convi ncedt hatt hebestshoul dr ul eandt hateachshoul doccupy
the pl ace and do t he wor kf orwhi ch he i sbestsui ted,Pl at o
knows ver y wel lt hatmen show t he gr eat estr eluct ance t o
remai ningi nt hei rduepl aces.Hef eel st hatcer tainpr econdi ti
ons
areneededt oensur et hatal lshal ldoast heymusti ft hest atei s
i
ndeedt obet hegoodst ate.
Themosti mpor tantpr ecaut ion,f eel sPl ato,i seducat ional .Ther e
i
s no const ituti
onalsaf eguar d agai ns tt he abuse ofunl i
mi ted
poweri nPl at o’sRepubl i
c.Pl at ot ri
est oensur et hatt her ulers’
mi ndsmustbesodi rectedagai nstevi landt owar dst hegood,t he
rulerswoul dnotmi susepower .Andt hiscanbeachi evedonl yby
educat i
on.
Plato does notmake any pr ovision f ort he educat ion oft he
l
owestcl asses.Fort heguar diansandt heguar dsPl atodescr i
bes
acar efult r
ai ning.Fr om theear li
estdays,Pl atomai ntains,chi ldr en
mustbes ubmi t
tedt othemoul dingi nfluenceal oneofal lthati s
nobl e and good.Al lbanef uli nfl
uencesmustbe r emoved f r
om
them.Poet s mustbe banned f orm t he Republ i
c.Dur ing t heir
yout ht heguar diansandguar dswi llstudymat hemat ics,f or“byi t
alonet ruthi sseen”.Af t
ersel ection,aboutt heageoft went y,t he
mor epr omi singwi llunder goanot hercour seofeducat ionl ast i
ng
tenyear s.Thi swi l
lcompr i
seani ntensi fi
edst udyofmat hemat ics
and “di alect i
c”.Af urthersel ect i
oni sf ollowedbyanot herf ive
year s’ st udy ofdi al
ect i
c,t o see who i s capabl e off reeing
himsel ff rom senseper cept ionandpr essingont ot ruebei ng,of
conver ti
ng,asPl atosays,t hesoult or eality.Evenaf tert hist he
studyi si ncompl et e.Her ei
ncomesanot her1 5year sofpr act ical
exper ience.The f uture phi losopherki ng i s putt o al lki nds of
seduct ions,t empt ations t o see “whet her t hey wi llcont i
nue
steadf astnot wi t
hst andi ngever yseduct ion”.Now,att heageof
fi
fty,t hosewhohavest ayedt hecour sear et obei ntroducedt o
theirf inalt ask.Thought hesephi l
osopher sar et opassmostof
theirt i
mei nphi losophi calpur sui t
s,yeteachwhenhi stur ncomes
i
st o denot e hi msel ft ot he har d dut iesofpubl icl i
fe,and hol d
office f ort hei rcount ry’ssake,notasa desi rable butasan
unavoi dabl e occupat ion.And t hus t he i dealst ate woul d be
realised.
The second of t he pr econdi tion, accor di ng t o Pl ato, is
communi sm ofpr oper tyandwi ves.Theguar diansandt heguar ds
woul dnotownanypr oper ty.Ther eshoul dbeacompl etedi vorce
bet weenr uli
ngandowni ng.Becausef rom t heuni oni nt hesame
handsofpol iti
caland economi c powerhave spr ung so many
troubl esoft hewor ld.Pl atof urthert racest hecor rupti
onsoft he
i
dealst at et ot hatdegener ationofmenwhi chl eadst otheuni on
ofpol i
ticalandeconomi cpower .
Ever ythi ngusedbyguar diansandguar dswi llbehel dincommon.
Theywi llhavenopr i
vat ehomes.Theywi l
ll iveahar dbar rack-
room exi stence,r ecei ving a bar e mai ntenance.The r ulerswi ll
mat ef oraseason,butwoul d notmar ryf orl ife.Thei rchi l
dren
woul dbet akenf rom t hem andputi npubl icnur ser i
essot hatt he
par ent swoul dnotevenr ecogni zet hem ast hei rown.
Thet hirdpr ecaut i
ont hatPl atot alksofi seugeni cs.Theguar dians
andguar dswoul dnobeal l
owedt omat ewhenandwi thwhom
theyl i
ke.Theymustbegetchi ldrenwhent hest at edictatesand
wi t
h par tner s whi ch t he st ate chooses.I ti st he dut y oft he
guar di ansandguar dst o“begetchi ldrenf ort hest ate”.Thebest
ofbot hsexesmustbebr oughtt oget herasof tenaspossi bleand
thewor stassel dom aspossi ble.Br ave menwi llbeal lowedt o
enteri nt omaki ngr elationsasof t
enaspossi bl e.Nol adyshoul d
denyt hebr aveman’sdesi r
et oki ssher .
However ,Pl atoacknowl edgest hatt hechi l
dr enoft hebestmay
notbet hebest .Chi l
dr enofpr oducer smaybenat uralguar dians
orguar ds,t hought hechancesar et hatt heywon’t .Wher et hi
s
happens,t hechi ldrenmustbet ransf er redt ot hecl assesf orwhi ch
theyar ebestf i
tted.SoPl ato’scl assesar enotcl osedher edit
ary
cast est hatt heyar emadeoutt obe.
Thef our t
hpr ecaut i
ont hatPl atot akest oensur et her i
ghtwor king
ofhi sst at eiscal l
edal legor yormyt h.Pl at owant st hemyt ht obe
i
ncor por atedi ntot het raditi
onsoft hest ate,sot hati nt i
mei twill
beaccept edbyal l,includingt heguar di
ans,andwi l
lreconci leal l
totheirpar ti
cularstationi nl i
fe.Themyt hteachest hatGodmi xed
gold,silverandi ronandt hatthosemi xedwi thgoldar et heright ful
guar di
ans,t hosewi t
hsi lver,thet rueguar ds,andt hosewi thi ron,
thepr operpr oducer s.Henceeachshoul dacceptt hepl acewhi ch
correspondst ot hever ynat uret hatGodhasgi venhi m,andso
promot et hest abil
ityandj usti
ceoft hest ate.Butt hispar ticular
myt h hasdone much t o discr editPl at
o.He wasnott rying t o
i
ncul cateabel iefwhi chwasf alse.Plat owast ryi
ngt oconveyone
oft hemosti mpor t
antofpol i
ti
calt r
ut hs:thatmenar enotbor n
equalbutwi t
hver ydi ff
er entcapaci t
ies,andt hatwi l
lbet he best
stat
ei nwhi cht hosedi fferentcapaci tiesar edi r
ectedt ot het ask
forwhi cht heyar ebestsui t
ed.
Thi
swast hent hei dealst ateofPl at
o.I tislaidupi nheaven.Di d
hehopet hati tcoul dbebui l
tonear th?Pl atosayst hatitisnot
i
mpossi ble,t houghdi ff
icult,tomakechangesi nexi st
ing( actual ,
real
)st ateswhi chwi llmaket hem appr oximat emor ecloselyt ot he
archetype.

TheSt ateandt heI ndi vidual

Plato’st heor yofst atei sanor ganicone.That ’swhyhet hinks
thatst atei s bestwhi ch has uni t
yi ni t.Pl at o was t he most
for midabl eopponentt hatdemocr acyhaseverhad.Heat t
ached
l
ittleval uet oandt ookl i
tt
lei nteresti nt hemaj or i
tyofpr oducer s.
Soi tmi ghtwel lseem t hathesacr i
fi
cedt hei ndi vidualt
ot hest at e.
Di dPl atosacr ifi
cet hei ndividualt ot hest ate?
Likeot heror gani cistsPl atosayst hathappi nessoft hewhol ei s
mor ei mpor tantt hant hatoft hepar ts.Thehappi nessoft hest ate
comesbef oret hatofanyoneoft het hreecl asses. He does
notevenal low t ohi st wohi ghestcl as sest her ighttot heirown
bodi es. Hei nsistst hatt hel owestcl assobeyt herulerswi thout
quest ion.Hef urthersayst hatl if
eofever yi ndividualhasmeani ng
onl yfrom t hef unct ionsheper formsi nt heor gani sm oft hest ate.
However ,itwoul dbewr ongt oconcl udet hatPl atosacr i
ficedt he
i
ndi vidualt ot hest at e.Ther eali nterestofPl atoi sjusticei nt he
i
ndi vidualandj usticei sexami nedi nt heSt ateonl ybecause“t he
St ateist hei ndividualwr i
tlarge”.Andi nagoodst ateindi vi
duali s
notdeni edbutf ulf i
ll
ed.Thest ate,inPl at o’saccount ,exi stsf or
theper fectionoft hei ndividual swi thini t,andt hedevel opmentof
thei ndividual swi thini tper fectst hest ate.ForPl ato,t
hest ateand
i
ndividualarecompl ementaryandnotcontradi
ctor
y.
The or ganictheory oft he stat
e beli
eves i
nt he permanent
i
nequal i
tyofmen.Thevi ew t
hatsomemustbenat ur
all
yrul
edand
somenat ural
l
yther ul
ersisreal
lyanunavoidabl
eresultofor
ganic
teaching.
TheLawsandTheSt at
esman
(GeorgeH.Sabi ne,pp.
76-94)

TheReadmi ssi onofLaw

InTheRepubl i
cPl at oexcl udedl aw al toget herf rom t hei dealst at e.
Heconcei ved oft hest at easaneducat i
onali nst it
utiononl y,i n
whi cht hemaj or it
yoft heci t
izensar ei nacondi tionofper manent
tutelaget ot hephi losopher -ruler .However ,thest at esket chedi n
The Lawsi sagover nmenti n whi ch l aw i ssupr eme,r ulerand
subj ectalikebei ngsubj ectt oi t
.
Platowasawar eoveral ongper iodofyear st hatt heomi ssionof
l
aw f orm t he i dealst ate wasacar dinaldi f
fi
cul ty.However ,he
never sai dt hatt he t heor y devel oped i nt he Republ ic was
erroneous.
Plator epeat edl ysayst hathi spur posei n Lawsi st odescr ibea
secondbestst ate.Wi thoutl aws,menar enotdi fferent“savage
beast s”.However ,ifacompet entr ulershoul dar i
se,menwoul d
havenoneedt ober uledbyl aws,f or“nol aw i smi ght iert han
knowl edge”.Tot heend,Pl atowasconvi ncedt hatani dealst at e
shoul dpr evai l.Butast i
mewentonhebecameconvi ncedt hatan
i
dealst at
e coul d notbe r ealized.The st ater uled by l aw was
alwaysaconcessi ont ot hef railtyofhumannat ur e.Agover nment
accor dingt ol aw i sbet tert hanonebymen,r ul
er sbei ngwhatt hey
are.Thei deali slogi cal lyirrepr oachabl ebutnotat tainablei nf act ,
whi l
et he second- bestst atei snoti mpossi blet or ealize buti s
shakyi nr espectofi t
scr edent i
al s.
Thet r
ut hist hatt his di ffi
cultyaboutt hebestandt hesecond-
bestst at egr ew di rect l
youtofaf undament alpr obl em i nPl ato’s
philosophy.Law bel ongst ot r adi t
ion/cust om/ use and wont /( i
n
Greekt hewor dsar et hesame) .Thewi sdom ofl aw i st hewi sdom
ofexper i
ence.Posi tivel awsmustbecount edont hesi deoft he
senses and i nclinat ions ( i
nt he r ealm ofempi r i
cism) .I ft he
rati
onal istlineofr easoni ngf ollowedi nt he Republ icwassound,
therewasnopl acei nt hest at ef orl aw.Conver sel y,i fapl acehad
tobemadef orl aw,t henhi swhol ephi losophi calst ructur ehadt o
be modi fied.Pl ato was f ul
l
y awar e oft hi
s dilemma.Should
cus t
om/ t
raditi
on/ useandwont /conventionbeconsi der
edenemy
ofintel
li
genceandr eason.
Pl
atosai dyesi nthe Republic.Inhi slateryears,hehel donto
reason steadf ast
ly,buthe became l ess cer t
aint hathe must
despiseconvent i
on.Thenat ure/conventi
ondi chotomymadePl at
o
ar ebelagainstthepr evail
i
ngpol it
icali
dealofst at
ei nRepubl
icbut
withadvanci ngagehebecamel essofar ebel.

TheGol denCor dofLaw

I
ntheRepubl icPlatoclassif
iedt hest
atesi nthef oll
owi
ngmanner :
Theidealstat
ei splacedatt hetopandact ualstatesar
ear r
anged
assuccessivedegener ationst heonefrom t heother.
(
a) I dealstate
(
b) Ti mocr acy(mi l
it
ar ystat
e)(i
tisacor r
upt i
onoftheideal
stat
e:PlatohasSpar tai
nmi nd)
(
c) Ol igarhy(gover nmentbyt her ich)(itisacorrupti
onof
Democr acy)
(
d) Democr acy(cor r
upt i
onofOligarchy)
(
e) Tyr anny( corrupti
onofDemocr acy)

n TheSt
I at
esman,t hei dealstat
eissetof fdefi
nitel yfrom t he
class of possible state. And democr acy i
s gi ven a mor e
favourabl
eplace.
Law-abidingstate Lawl essst ate
(a) Monar chy(rul
eofone) (a)Ext reme
Democr acy(rul
eofmany)
(b) Aristocracy(ruleoffew) (b)Oligar chy( rul
eof
few)
(c) Moder atedemocr acy(mass) (
c)Tyr anny( rul
eof
one)
n The St
I atesman,t her ef
ore,Plat
o makesbot ht he f ormsof
democr acybetterthanol i
garchy.

ThestateinPl at
o’sl atertheoryist obehel dtogetherbyt he
“gol den cord ofthe l
aw”.The l aw isnow t he sur
rogatefor
reason.Thechi efvir
tueinthei dealstatehadbeenj usti
ce,the
divi
si
onofl abourandt hespeci al
izat
ionoff uncti
onswhi chputs
every man i n hi
s properpl ace and “gi ves him his due”.
However ,
inthestateofthelawswi sdom iscrystal
l
izedinthelaw.
The regul ati
onsmade byt he law are assumed to be the best
possibleont hewhol e.
Consequent ly,thesupremevi rtueins uchast ateistemperance
orself- control,whichmeansal aw-
abidingdisposi
ti
onoraspi ri
t
ofrespectt owar dstheinsti
tut
ionsoft hestateandar eadi
nessto
subordi nateonesel ftoitslawf ulpower s.Thest at
eoft helaws ,
ther
ef ore,isast ateconstr
uctedupont emper anceormoder ati
on
asitschi efvi rt
ueandseeki ngtoachi evehar mony,bothdomest i
c
andint ernational,byfost
eri
ngt hespi r
itofobediencetolaw.

TheMi xedSt ate

Temper anceandhar monycanbeachi evedi fthest ateisami xed
one.The mi xed st ate sket ched i nt he Laws i s sai dt o be a
combi nat i
on oft he monar chic pr i
nci ple ofwi sdom wi tht he
democr aticprincipleoff reedom.
The Laws deal swi th act ualst ates.I nt he t hid bookofLaws
r ,
Plato makest he f i
rstsuggest i
on oft he at t
empt sata ki nd of
philosophi chistor y.Thust hesuggest ioni nt he Lawsi st hatt he
studyofpol i
ti
csi stobeat t
achedt ot hehi storyofci vil
i
zat ion.And
thishasmor e possi bil
it
iesoff rui
tfulnesst han t he anal yti
c and
deduct i
ve met hod whi ch gover ned t he Republ ic.I tf or med t he
begi nningoft heaut hentict r
adi t
ionofsoci alst udies.
Themai npur poseofPl atoi nsuggest i
ngphi losophi chi storyi sto
show how t hear bit
rarypowerofmonar chyandt het yr annyt hat
goeswi thi thasbeenacauseofdecayofPer siaandhow an
unbr idl
ed democr acy atAt hens r uined i t
selfby an excess of
l
iber t
y.Ei t
hermi ghthavebeenpr osper oushadi tbeencont entto
remai nmoder ate,t ot emperpowerwi t
hwi sdom orl i
ber t
ywi t
h
order .
Her et hen i st he pr inciple upon whi ch a good st ate mustbe
formed.I fnotamonar chy,i tmustatl eastcont aint hepr incipleof
monar chy,t hepr i
ncipleofwi seandvi gor ousgover nment .subject
to l aw.I fnota democr acy,i tmustcont aint he democr atic
principle,t hepr i
ncipleoff reedom andofpowershar edbyt he
masses,agai nofcour sesubj ecttolaw.
Thear gumentmaybegener al
ized.Menhaveadmi t
ted sever al
claimst opower-t her i
ghtofpar entsoverchi l
dren,ofageover
yout h,off r
eemenoversl aves,et c.InPl ato’sopi nion,ofcour se,
theonl y“nat ural” cl ai
mt opoweri st hatoft hewi seovert he
l
esswi se,butt hisbel ongst ot hei dealst ate.Int hesecond- best
statet hepr oblem i stos electandcombi net heseadmi ttedclaims
i
nor dert ogetont hewhol ethemostl aw- abidi
ngr ul
e.Inef fect
thismeanssomeappr oximat i
ont owi sdom byf avor i
ngage,good
birt
h,orpr oper ty,withsomeconcessi ont ot hel otf orthesakeof
democr acy.Thi sPlatodescr i
besasami xtur eofmonar chyand
democr acy.
ThenPl atodi scussest hegeogr aphicalsi tuat i
onoft heci t
y/state
andt hecondi t
ionsofcl imat eandsoi lwhi char emostf avourabl e.
Thebestsi t
ei snot ,Platot hinks,upont hecoast ,becameoft he
corrupt i
ons i ntroduced by f orei
gn commer ce.Fur t
her,f oreign
trademeansanavyandnavymeanspowerf ort hedemocr atic
masses.Accor di ngtoPl ato,thebestpr acticablest ateisamai nly
agr i
culturalcommuni t
y,onasoi lthatissel f- suff
icingbutr ugged,
sincet hisist henur seoft hehar diestandmostt emper atekindof
popul ation.ThisshowsPl ato’sdi sli
keofcommer ceandi ndust ry.
Heal sobel ievest hatcommonr ace,l anguage,l aw andr el
igion
are desi rabl
e,pr ovided thatdo notgi ve t oo gr eata wei ghtt o
cus t
om.

SocialInsti
tuti
onsoft heMi xedSt ate
Int he Laws,he l eaves pr ivat
e owner ship and pr ivatef ami l
y
standing.Hehaspl anf orequaleducat i
onofwomenandf ort hei
r
showi ng inmi l
itaryand ot herci vicdut ies,t houghhenow says
nothingoft hei rhol dingof f i
ce.Thenumberofci t
izensi sf ixedat
5040.Landi sdi vi
dedi ntoanequalnumberofal lot
ment swhi ch
passbyi nher i
tancebutcanbenei therdi vi
dednoral ienated.The
produceoft hel andi st obeconsumedi ncommonatapubl i
c
mess .Pr oper t
yi nlandi st hereforeequal i
zed.Thecul t
ivationof
thelandi stobedonebysl aves,whopayar ent alint hef orm ofa
shareoft hepr oduce.
Personalpr oper ty,ont heot herhand,i sper mi ttedt obeunequal
butitsamounti sl i
mi t
ed:onl yf ourtimest heval ueofal otofl and.
The pur pose i st o ex cl
ude f rom t he st atet hose excessi ve
diff
erencesbet weenr ichandpoorwhi chGr eekexper i
encehad
shownt obet hechi efcausesofci viccont ent ion.Ci t
izensar enot
permi t
ted to engage i n eitherbusi ness ori ndust ry.Al lt hese
acti
viti
es,insof arast heycannotbedi spensedwi t
h,ar et obei n
thehandsoft hemet i
cs.
Thest at
ei stohaveonl yat oken-currency( per hapsl iket hei ron-
moneyofSpar t
a.Thet akingofi nterestsf orl oansi spr ohi bit
ed.
Even t he possession ofgol d and sil
veri
spr ohibi
ted.Thust he
citi
zen’sowner shipofper sonalpropertyi
sil
lusor
y.
Thus,int heLaws,agr icultureissetdownast hespecialf unction
oft hesl aves,t r
adeandi ndustryast hatofthemet i
cs,whi l
eall
polit
icalf uncti
onsaret hepr er
ogativeoftheciti
zens.Citi
zenshi pis
franklyr estr
ict
edt oacl assofpr i
vil
egedpersonswhocanaf f
ord
tot urnovert heirpri
vat ebusi ness-t hesordidjobofear ninga
l
iving-t oslavesandf oreigner s.
Thus,t hel i
nesofclass- cleavagei ntheLawsar eover t
.Her e,the
economi cpar tofthepopul ati
onisnotcomposedofci ti
zensatal l
,
andt hest at
eisthereforebasedf ranklyoneconomi cprivi
lege.

Politi
calInst itutionsoft heMi xedSt ate
Thepol i
ticali nst i
tutionst hatPl atopr ovi desar emai nlythree:t own
-meet i
ng,counci landmagi strates.Thechi efboar dofmagi strates
-calledt he“guar diansoft hel aw”-i sagr oupof37,chosenby
at hreef ol del ect ion.Thecounci lof360i schosenbyt heci tizens
dividedi ntof ourcl assesaccor dingt ot heamountoft heirper sonal
proper ty.Si nce per sonalpr oper tymaynotexceed 4 t i
mest he
valueofal otofl and,t her ear e4pr oper t
y- classes,t hel owest
classbei ngcomposedoft hosewhoseper sonalpr oper tydoesnot
exceed t he val ue oft heirl and,t he nextoft hose above t hi
s
amountbutnotexceedi ngt wicet heval ueoft heirland,andsoon.
Presumabl y,t hel owestcl asswoul dbemucht hemostnumer ous
andt hehi ghestmucht hesmal l
est ,yetPl atoassi gnst oeachcl ass
one- f
ourthoft hemember soft hecounci l
.Hef urtherwei ghst he
votesoft hemor eopul entci ti
zensbypr ovidingapenal tyfornon-
voting whi ch does notappl yt ot he l owestpr operty-cl
asses.
Cer tain of f
ices ,Pl ato sai d,can be f il
led onl yf rom t he highest
grouporgr oups.
I
tisr atheri ncompr ehensi blet hatPl atoshoul dhaver egar dedt hi
s
cons t
it
ution,wi thi mpor tance pl aced on pr oper ty-classes,asa
combi nation ofmonar chy and democr acy.The concessi on t o
democr acywascer t
ainlyver ysl ightand wasgr udginglymade
“on accountoft he di scont entoft he masses”.Mor eover ,
Aristotl
e,atl east ,t houghtt hatt her ewasnoel ementofmonar chy.
SaidAr i
stot l
e,“I tisnot hingbutol i
gar chyanddemocr acy,leani ng
rathert ool igar chy”.
EducationalInst
it
uti
onsoft heMi xedState
Educati
onst il
loccupiesgr eatshareofPl ato’sat tenti
oninthe
Laws.Thegener aloutl
ineoft hecurr
icul
um remai nssi mi
l
artot
hat
ofthe Republ i
c.Hisdi st
r ustoft hepoetsstillissuesi nthemost
ri
gorouscensor shipofl i
teratureandar t
;theeducat ionofwomen
withmenr emainsani mpor tantpartoftheplan;andt heeducati
on
oftheci t
izensissti
l
lcompul sory.
The changes,i nt he Laws,ar e mostly wi thr egardtot he
organi
zat i
onofeducat i
on.Pl atonow putsinpl aceasyst em of
publi
clyregulatedschool swi thpaidteachers.Heal somakest he
magistrate who haschar ge oft he schoolst he chi efofal
lthe
magistrates.

Rel i
gi onsI nst i
tutionsoft heMi xedSt ate
I
nt heLawsPl atoshowsmor ei nteresti nr eli
gion,asubj ecthar dl y
discussedi nt heRepubl ic.Plat osaysr eligionmustbesubj ectt o
ther egul ationandsuper vi
si
onoft hest ate,j ustaseducat ioni s
cons equent ly,Pl atof or bidsanyki ndofpr ivater eligi ousexer ci
ses
andsayst hatr i
tesmaybeper formedonl yi npubl i
ct empl esand
by aut hor ized pr iests.He says t hi s because he t hinks t hata
privat er eli
gi onwi thdr awsmenf rom t heiral l
egi ancet ot hest at e.
Platoal sobel ievest hatr eli
gionshoul dhaveacr eedf orbiddi ng
athei sm.I mpr isonmentand deat har et hepenal tiesat tached t o
athei sm.Thesepr oposal sgivet ot heLawst hebadpr eemi nence
ofbei ngt hef irstreasoneddef enceofr eli
gionsper secut ion.
I
nt hel astf ew pagesoft heLawsPl atoaddst ot hest at eanot her
i
nst i
tut i
on-t heNoct urnalcounci l,abodycomposedoft het en
eldestoft he37guar diansoft hel aw,t hedi rectorofeducat ion
andcer tainpr iests.Thi scounci lisqui t
eout si
det hel aw andyeti s
givenapowert ocont rolanddi rectal lthel egali nst itutionsoft he
state.I tsmember sar esupposedt ohavet heknowl edgeneeded
fort hesal vat ionoft hes tateandPl ato’sf i
nalconcl usi oni st hat
thecounci lmustf i
rstbef oundedandt hest at ebepl acedi ni ts
hands.I tisevi dentt hatt heNoct ur nalcounci lstandsi nt hepl ace
oft hephi losopher -kingoft heRepubl icandt hati t
si nclusi oni nt he
Lawsi saf lagr antvi olationofl oyal t
yt othesecond- bestst ate.But
i
ti snotqui t
et hephi l
osopher - king.I thasadi sagr eeabl ef l
avorof
clericalism.

TheRepubl
i
candTheLaws
 TheRepubl i
csuppl iedananal ysisoft hemostgener alpr inciples
under l
yingsoci ety.Platot houghtoft her elati
onsbet weent her ul
er
andt her uledasonebet weent hel earnedandt hei gnor ant .This
resulted i n el
imi nati
on ofl aw f rom t he st ate,and att hisst age
Platodi dnotgi veanypl acet ogr adualgr owt hofwi sdom t hough
exper ienceandcust om.Thi somi ssionf alsif
iedthemor alidealof
freeci ti
zenshi pwhi chwast heessenceoft hecity- st
ate.
Wheni nt heLawsPl atowant edt obr i
ngbackl aws ,hef acedas
pr oblem.Becausei tcalledf orar evisionofhi sepi stemol ogyt o
makeapl acef orexper i
enceandcust om.However ,int heLaws
hemadeacar efulanalysi sofact uali nstit
uti
onsand l aws ,and
suggest edt heat tachmentofsuchst udiest ohist ory.Int heLaws
also,hesuggest edt hepr incipleofbal anceast hepr opermeans
forf ormi ngaconst i
tut
ionalst ate.Andt hiswast heser iousat tack
ont hepr oblemsoft heci ty-state:t heconci li
ati
ngoft hei nter estof
thepr opertywi t
ht hedemocr at i
ci nterestrepr esent edbynumber s.
Itwasf rom thesebegi nningsi nTheLawst hatAr istotl
est arted.