THE GREEK’S LEGACY

The ancient Greek civilization was an era of unprecedented political, theoretical,

mathematical, scientific, and artistic achievements that made a significant impact on Western
culture. Though some societies had their own ways of doing things in their communities, the
classical Greek culture was way more remarkable with the fact that they were not even
physically united due to the country's difficult topography and geographically dispersed
towns. The ancient Greeks were able to establish such an outstanding legacy of concepts and
ideas that several of them were recognized for generations in the civilizations that followed
and, even up to this day, many of the defining aspects of living in ancient Greece can still be
observed in cultures across the world.

The ancient Greek philosophers have served a significant role in the development of
modern philosophical thinking. Aristotle, one of the prominent philosophers of his time,
stated that a man is a social creature with the ability to speak and reason morally. We think
because it is our nature to do so. However, most of our thoughts could be distorted, biased,
limited, misinformed, or plain prejudiced if left unchecked. The quality of our lives as well as
the quality of what we construct, develop, or produce is directly related to the quality of our
thinking. This is maybe the reason why the ancient Greek thinkers adopted a systematic
analysis based on logic and inquiry to explain the theories and concepts of our natural world.
In this way, we can trace the conceptual foundations of critical thinking back to Socrates'
teaching technique and philosophy 2,500 years ago (whose ideas were reflected in Plato’s
works), when he discovered through persistent inquiry that individuals could not properly
explain their certain claims to knowledge.

Uncertain meanings, insufficient proof, or self-contradictory views frequently hid

under polished but essentially hollow language. Socrates demonstrated that one cannot rely
on individuals in "authority" to have sound knowledge and insight. He indicated that people
with great status and power may still be terribly confused and illogical. Before we adopt ideas
as worthy of belief, Socrates emphasized the need of asking deep inquiries that delve deeply
into thought. He also highlighted the necessity of finding evidence, thoroughly evaluating
logic and assumptions, studying basic concepts, and drawing out the consequences of not just
what is stated but also what is done. This approach is known as "Socratic Method." On one
hand, it is also important to note that neither inquiry nor reason began with the ancient
Greeks, but the classical Greek philosophers intended to recognize a fixed fundamental
standard which could be utilized to understand the entirety of existence, allowing great
progress in key areas of mathematics, logic, sciences, epistemology, ethics, metaphysics,
aesthetics, psychology, politics, and others.

Plato and Aristotle, the two major thinkers of Greek philosophy in general and of
Greek political thinking in specific, have also contributed a significant effect on Western
political philosophy in a variety of ways. They both believed that in order for a man to have a
very good life, he must need to be part of a state. This is mainly because no man can satisfy
all his needs, hence, he must seek the help of other men. “A state comes into existence
because no individual is self-sufficing.” Aristotle considered the city (polis) to be the most
fundamental political unit. He also stated that man is a political animal by nature and so,
cannot avoid challenges associated with politics. In his perspective, politics works more like
an organism than a machine, and the purpose of the polis is to provide a place where its
people may live a happy life and accomplish great deeds, rather than to provide justice or
economic stability.

On the other hand, Plato believed that in order to establish a perfect form of
government, the individual's interests should be subsumed to those of society. His Republic
envisioned an ideal society in which each of the three classes (rulers, warriors, and workers)
had a function and power was retained in the hands of those considered best prepared for the
role, the "Philosopher Rulers." Plato explained the ideal state in detail in Plato's Republic,
concluding that his ideal state is “the only truly natural form of polis”. He thinks that an ideal
state will exist when each individual performs only what he is naturally capable for in order
to achieve the best quality work. The ideal state seeks to make the city as pleasant as nature
permits, which is attained by specialization.

When the state is already good, Plato believed that it must have the four virtues:
wisdom, temperance, bravery, and justice. In the ideal state, wisdom is found within the
ruling class since reason makes the state and individual wise. Courage belongs to the
guardian class who are the protectors of the beliefs that need to be respected and feared of as
specified by law and education. While all individuals of the ideal state exhibit temperance,
which is regarded as the accord between the classes that the ruling class will govern. Lasty,
justice is the one that keeps the balance within the state and allows the other virtues to exist.
It directs everyone to perform the most suited role to his nature and not to interfere with the
work of others. He then explained that creating justice will place the classes in a natural
relationship of control to one another. Hence, it is safe to say that justice is functioning in
parallel with nature. This also indicates that a state can only be natural if it is just, as
described by Plato, a condition that does not exist in any other state.

For Plato, philosopher kings were in a better position to lead the states since they are
guided by wisdom and reason; therefore, ruining tyranny, despotism, and oligarchy. He also
believed that the rulers should not be made by chance and must have the true desire to serve
and not be corrupted by power. Furthermore, Plato justified the accumulation and exercise of
power for those equipped with political governing expertise, in which this justification is
based on two separate sets of arguments. The first is his “ideal political philosophy,” which is
largely defined in the Republic as rule by philosopher kings exercising unlimited control over
their subjects. Their authority is completely based on their understanding of justice, from
which they make political decisions on behalf of their city-state. The second set of argument
is Plato's "practical political philosophy," in which the absolute authority by philosopher king
is challenged by the flawed nature of all political knowledge. Whereas perfect understanding
of justice sanctioned the absolute political authority of people with this expertise, partial
understanding of justice forbids such a massive investment of power.

Although Aristotle reflected several distinct viewpoints stated in the Republic

including the hierarchy of individual disposition, justice as a concern among parts, and the
certainty of social classes; he differed from his instructor in a variety of areas, most notably
on the ideal state, moral measurement, and the causes for revolution. Aristotle's criteria of the
golden mean, support for mixed constitutions, belief in the middle class to lead as being ideal
for ensuring a steady and persistent administration, as well as the necessity for property to
ensure independence and fulfill the person's desire of possessiveness. In Aristotle’s
perspective, he believed that power should be generated and controlled. Power should not be
concentrated on one person only, but rather it should be disseminated and owned by the
many, most belonging to the middle class, to sustain balance and prevent a cycle of
oppressive behaviors. Aristotle was critical of Plato's ideal state as he argued that Plato's
emphasis on unity instead of consistency inside a state would lead to excessive regimentation
and the abolition of the state as a political association.

Nonetheless, both Plato and Aristotle proposed that the perfect state be small in size,
with the purpose of making flawlessness easier. In general, the Greek state (Athens) was
small. Furthermore, the whole country of Greece was divided into small city states, each with
its own administration and decision-making structure. Even though Plato and Aristotle agree
on the concept of a perfect state, they disagree on more fundamental problems. Plato
described the way of things in hypothetical terms rather than in actual words (phenomena and
ideal). By focusing to the “higher structures,” he intended to explain the potential of existing
knowledge and understandings in the pursuit of “unquestionable reality.” Aristotle, on the
other hand, was more interested with actual physical elements of nature, or natural sciences in
general. Plato and Aristotle attempted to explain the link between the individual and society,
as well as the requirement of government to maintain justice and security, via their distinct
methods in respect to the way of man. Plato's perfect city-state, which he refers to as the
'kallipolis' in his dialogue in the Republic, and Aristotle's concept of the ideal relationship
between the society and government in a real city state differ not in terms of the end and
reason for which they sought to satisfy the purpose of the man; rather, they differ in terms of
the proposed path in which they attempted to meet that purpose.

In conclusion, Plato's and Aristotle's views vary significantly. Both philosophers'

theories contain flaws and unresolved questions as they refuse to allow for the probability of
unforeseen circumstances, and each assumes that everything has an ultimate truth and
explanation. Both have wide holes in their ideas, which makes them vulnerable to critique.
Nevertheless, their philosophies gave rise to two of the most important philosophical
thoughts, transcendentalism and naturalism, allowing subsequent thinkers to expand on and
improve their initial ideas in light of new knowledge and observations.
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