Plato and Socrates

Socrates:

• Mentor of Plato

• Died at the hand of the state in 399

• Everything we know about Socrates comes from others who wrote about him, sometimes in works of fiction

• One of the first professional philosophers

• Socratic Method attributed to him: a form of cooperative argumentative dialogue between individuals, based on asking and answering questions to stimulate critical thinking and to draw out ideas and underlying presuppositions

  • Creates necessary doubt and uncertainty, proves which ideas withstand criticism, allows for beliefs to be challenged

• Socrates believed every citizen had a moral obligation to search for truth: to search for Daimonion - the inner voice, moral compass, inner advice

• He was known as the Gadfly of Athens: constantly annoying people by questioning and challenging, leading to a public decision for his execution for corruption of the youth and blasphemy

• Therefore some consider him the first political martyr

• Believed in duty to society, but also in questioning society. He accepted his death even when (it is rumored) he had an opportunity to flee, thus he retained his duty to accept the law.

Plato

• (424/4 to 398/2 B.C.E)
• First scholar that we know of to take a rational approach to designing the “perfect state”
• Founded the myth of Atlantis and the Amazons \

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The Perfect State

• Devised the three class pyramidal system expressed as:
  • Artisans/Workers/producers, the auxiliary/warrior/land owner, then the guardians/wisdom-lovers
  • Bottom class: Appetite/temperance/money
  • Middle class: Will and spirit/courage/honor
  • High class: Wisdom
  • The limbs/abdomen, chest, and head
  • Bronze, silver, gold
• He also believed every soul consisted of these levels
• Those at the top had to suppress the feelings guiding those at the lower levels

Artisans, Auxiliaries and Guardians, a state could ideally hope for Justice to prevail where each class of person fulfilled their proper function as producers, defenders and rulers and did not interfere with each others' fulfillment of their individually necessary contributions to the functioning of the state.

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Art of Ruling

• Believed in a philosopher king, someone who ruled for the benefit of society without lust of power or greed (therefore no payment)
• Wisdom was esteemed as the highest form of beauty, value, and importance
• A strong state was necessary
• He believed politicians should be able to use the noble lie to ensure peace and stability.

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Democracy in Athens

• One of the first democracies: demos meaning people and Kratos meaning power
• Athens was also one of the first polis (city-state)
• 5th century B.C.E was considered the golden era, this was the time of Plato
• Athens was also a naval power. The military was important in society.
• Many people served in the military unlike Sparta
• Population was around 250,000 to 300,000
• Not everyone voted, slaves, women, children, and foreigners did not vote (the former accounted for 150,000 and foreigners were defined as people without both parents originating from Athens)
• Still, a very small percentage actually had the right to vote
• Voting was decided by the Assembly, but this had limited occupancy (perhaps 3,000 to 6,000)
• Orators (hubris) would be demagogues, who would be the ones truly in control of the assemblies
• Because the assemblies would only convene some 40 times a year, the council would be the leading body
• It had 500 members, ten tribes, and the members were lottery-picked
• the Court had the highest power, with 201 people
• There were other administrative bodies

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Conclusions :

• There were not professional politicians (laymen) derived from this sense of duty (and skills) to serve the state in public offices
• “Idiot” was a Greek term to referred to those who were not involved or interested in politics
• At this time, this was a unique system but now these values are present in liberal countries
• Plato was against complete democracy due to fears of mob rule, the fact that any citizen could participate, and instead believed it should be based on meritocracy