The Republic

The Republic is one of the most important works about philosophy and politics in history, written by Plato, one of Socrates students in ancient Greece, as a dialogue about justice and political systems.

The dialogue starts with Socrates asking his students to propose definitions of justice, all of which he dismantles quite quickly. As it turns out, defining justice without huge loopholes isn’t that easy. The reason is that it’s impossible to say what’s just if you only look at an individual or a city alone. You have to consider both.

Given this, Socrates comes up with his own idea of justice: minding one’s own business.

This has both an individual and a communal aspect to it. It means that everyone should take responsibility for their own role within society, and do as best a job as they can, thus benefitting themselves and the city as a whole.

For example, if a city has doctors, merchants, politicians, soldiers, artists, etc., then everyone can focus on their own role and no one will have to do everything, because each role serves the greater good of the society at large.

However, not everyone is suited for every role – we must consider our individual skills, as well as what the society needs, to determine it.

So in a just city, individual and societal needs are intertwined and they work in a symbiosis to make life better for everyone.

After defining justice, Socrates goes on to use something called the “noble lie” to give people something to believe in, which will keep social harmony intact. A noble lie can be a myth or a story, often of religious nature, presented by a leader as true to guide their followers, even though it’s not, but with good intent. Plato’s tripartite theory of soul is one of those noble lies, which suggests both cities and people’s souls have three distinct parts: Reason. The golden part of the soul, predominant in city rulers, who create just laws and rule their city with reason and logic, overseeing everything and maintaining order. Spirit. The mediator between emotions and reason, the silver part of the soul, represents the army, which keeps order during times of peace and tries to restore it in times of war. Desire. The bronze part of our soul, concerned with natural wants and needs, like food, sleep and sex. This represents the farmers, craft workers, and other more basic roles in society. While the three parts dominate certain individuals in their respective roles, every single individual has the same three parts in their own soul. We all have a rational side, a spiritual side and an emotional one and they balance each other. Considering how…