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Colloquium 2

Colloquium 2 In this paper, I propose a solution to a difficulty in Plato's Republic that has long troubled scholars. The problem arises from Socrates' requirement that after the rulers of the ideal city have completed their philosophical education, they must set aside their purely theoretical studies for a while in order to hold political office (519c-d). Immediately after Socrates lays down this requirement, Glaucon asks whether it treats the philoso- phers unjustly and is contrary to their interest (519e); to which Socrates replies that the laws of the ideal city are not designed to produce the greatest happiness of any one group of individuals, but must instead promote the good of the whole community (519e-520a). He goes on to argue that the requirement is appro- priate : since the philosophers have benefitted from the splendid education the city has given them, and since that education makes them more qualified to rule than any other group, it is just that they be asked to devote some of their time to public ser- vice (520a-d). Having been properly educated, they will recog- nize the justice of this arrangement and will accept it, however grudgingly (520e). The difficulty created by this interchange http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Proceedings of the Boston Area Colloquium in Ancient Philosophy Online Brill

Colloquium 2

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References (9)

Publisher
Brill
Copyright
Copyright 1993 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands
ISSN
1059-986X
eISSN
2213-4417
DOI
10.1163/2213441791X00042
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

In this paper, I propose a solution to a difficulty in Plato's Republic that has long troubled scholars. The problem arises from Socrates' requirement that after the rulers of the ideal city have completed their philosophical education, they must set aside their purely theoretical studies for a while in order to hold political office (519c-d). Immediately after Socrates lays down this requirement, Glaucon asks whether it treats the philoso- phers unjustly and is contrary to their interest (519e); to which Socrates replies that the laws of the ideal city are not designed to produce the greatest happiness of any one group of individuals, but must instead promote the good of the whole community (519e-520a). He goes on to argue that the requirement is appro- priate : since the philosophers have benefitted from the splendid education the city has given them, and since that education makes them more qualified to rule than any other group, it is just that they be asked to devote some of their time to public ser- vice (520a-d). Having been properly educated, they will recog- nize the justice of this arrangement and will accept it, however grudgingly (520e). The difficulty created by this interchange

Journal

Proceedings of the Boston Area Colloquium in Ancient Philosophy Online – Brill

Published: Jan 1, 1991

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