Important information on book IV of the Republic - Coursework Example

Important information on book IV of the Republic The book is about the lifestyle of the guardians and the overall assessment of the as a whole.Socrates and his companion come up with a discussion about how rulers live comparing it with the normal citizens. He says that being a ruler sounds unpleasant because a ruler does not have a private wealth. The ruler cannot do things that people think make them pleased(Plato 419). Socrates in the book says that each person can only be happy if he/she is engaged in an occupation that suits them.

If all individuals are happy, then the whole city is happy. The diets of the guardians of the city are in moderation, neither too little nor too much. Socrates thinks that without the control of the education, there would be no control over the rulers. If the city would be run by non-law makers, then all the power would be left with the guardians (Plato 420).The book also discusses the definition of justice through Socrates, who says that justice is fulfilling one's role applicably and giving back to the city what is due.

Socrates comes up with a scenario bringing a similarity between the just man and the just city (Plato 426).He says that both are defined by the functions that each performs in different parts. Socrates and his companion then discuss the four fundamental virtues that include justice, wisdom, temperance, and courage. They say that courage is found in the guardian warriors, and wisdom amongst guardian rulers. Temperance is seen amongst all other classes that exist in the city when they argue who to rule and to be ruled.

Justice is spread all over the state with the law doing all that is suited to (Plato 431).Works CitedPlato. The Republic. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006. Print.