Plato Conception of Moral and Political - Assignment Example

Philosophy essay Name of the Student: Name of the Instructor: Name of the course: Code of the course: Submission date: Plato held that a just state would be run by philosopher guardians. Plato thinks that, given their education, talents, virtues and the way their lives would be controlled in his Republic, such people are the best possible rulers. Is he right about this? Introduction Plato who is considered as being one of the founding fathers of modern philosophy is credited for putting forth a robust conception of a just state. In this case, he described how such a state ought to be organized, what nature of education the children should have as well as who is best suited to govern such a state. Subsequently, Plato held that a just state would be run by philosopher guardians. In Plato’s perspective, the backdrop of their education, talents, virtues and the way their lives would be controlled in his Republic, such people are best suited to rule the Republic. Against this backdrop, this paper will critically investigate the accuracy of this Platonic view. Nonetheless, it is imperative to first gain a summative brief into their distinctive historical context of Plato’s life which will offer a comprehensive insight into his approach about a just state and the role of philosopher guardians. Historical context Hall (1956) noted that the most prominent influence in the life of Plato and his conception of a just state is founded on the fact that he experienced a series of political crises. During this epoch, he saw his native Athens being not only humbled but also subjected to destruction. This culminated in the establishment of an oppressive regime credited for brutal persecution of the citizens. This harsh regime was succeeded by a disorderly democracy which he blamed for executing the ‘best man in Athens’, his idol and teacher Socrates. Against this background, Plato viewed good life as only being possible in and through a state. In this case, the society (state) is perceived as a natural institution whose sole existence is for the sake of good life. Subsequently, Plato perceived the aim of a good state as neither being freedom nor economic well-being but rather justice. Thus, the state has the role of maintaining and dispensing justice (the ideal form in the world of forms) to the citizenship (Plato, 1968). In this case, Plato outlined that in order to deliver this justice, the guardian ought to be a philosopher, failure to which he is bound to lead the state downwards towards self-destruction. The philosopher guardian ought to have robust virtues at the individual level which are to be profound in his leadership. This is founded on the backdrop that the success or failure of regimes usually has strong relationship with the men’s virtues, as opposed to the institutions. Thus, if the highest virtue is absent in the rulers, there is a great tendency towards the institution of an inferior regime (Plato, 1968). Therefore, by the virtue of the philosopher guardians possessing higher virtues when compared to the lower classes of the auxiliaries and the artisans, they are the best suited to rule and oversee the establishment of a just state. Additionally, through borrowing from the Socratic tradition, Plato extensively cemented the central role of education as embedded in the philosopher guardians as being greatly fundamental in the establishment and eventual growth of a state. This is whereby Socrates expounds on something imperative about education. He alludes to the fact that education ought to consist of reason. Above this, education must be integrated with a non-rational element which is central in tempering the wildness as well as the harshness of both the pre-philosophic and philosophic natures (Plato, 1968). Thus, by the virtue of the philosopher guardians having greater education and extensive talents, they are bound to govern with reason as entrenched in their educational predisposition towards a just state. Lastly, Plato also contends that the philosopher guardian ought to not only desist from private ownership of property but should also not have family life. In this case, the state has a fundamental role of controlling the marriage relations of the guardians. This is founded on the rationale that if the guardians are allowed to engage in such activities of amassing private property, women and children, they are bound to introduce grief and pleasure in their ranks which has the potential of causing faction amongst themselves (Plato, 1958). Nonetheless, it is plausible to note that despite Plato alluding to these distinctive elements of education, virtues and talent as embedded in the philosopher guardians as being fundamental for the establishment of a state, it is worth noting that they do not necessarily culminate to the entrenchment of justice in the state. This is founded on several reasons. Firstly, it is imperative to note that these guardians who have been nurtured through philosophic education are bound to exclusively approve of what they have already familiarized themselves with in the course of their education. In this case, they are bound to attack whatever is new and outside their educational predisposition. As a result, in a situation where the guardians rigidly follow the systems of governance as entrenched in their educational background and oppose anything new, they are bound to become tyrants as opposed to aiding towards the development of a just state as expounded by Plato. Secondly, these basic elements of robust education, talent and virtues as inherently embedded in the philosopher guardians do not necessarily culminate in a just state. It is the feeling in this paper that apart from the philosopher guardians having these attributes, the state ought to have good laws which are more central in the dispensation of justice through the establishment of a strong legal framework. This reality is founded on the fact that even if the ruler possesses the above attributes but they are absent among the citizenry, good laws are imperative in filling this vacuum and leading to the establishment of a just state. This is supported by McKeon (1941) who determined that laws might aid men to supply motives in the absence of more specific virtues. Lastly, it is imperative to be cognizant of the fact that these philosopher guardians in the state operate within political spectrums. In this case, be them possessing high virtue is imperative towards making them conscious of what is good and bad but this does not make them to be effecting from a political point of view. This reality is revealed by McKeon (1941) who determined that virtues are key in inclining men towards social consciousness but they do not in all the states make them to be politically effective. In this case, it is plausible to deduce that the political effectiveness of the ruler extends to something above having robust virtues. This can be perceived from the Machiavellian tradition whereby in his work The Prince, this philosopher who came many centuries after Plato perceived the ruler as having the role of getting allies from outside aimed at ensuring the security of the citizens. In this case, the fear from without (external threat) is only defended by the state having good allies and being well armed. Such undertakings of the rulers make them to be politically effective as opposed to basically having robust virtues. Conclusion The preceding analysis has expounded on the Platonic view in regard to the centrality of robust education, talent and virtues as inherently embedded in the philosopher guardians as being integral in making them best possible rulers. Nonetheless, it is the generic feeling in this paper that these attributes do not wholly make them the best possible rulers based on the fact that they can easily degenerate into tyrants and fail to accommodate any new realities as well as with the centrality of other undertakings like forging allies being recognized. Additionally, good laws have also been revealed as being integral towards the development of a just state. References Hall, J. (1956). Plato's Legal Philosophy. Indiana Law Journal, 31(2): 171-206. McKeon, R. (1941). Aristotle's conception of moral and political philosophy. Ethics an International Journal of Social, Political, and Legal philosophy, 51 (3): 253-290. Plato (1968). The Republic of Plato, 2nd ed. (Bloom. A, Trans.). New York: BasicBooks. (original work published 380 BC.). Read More